Prologue: How the Sisters Died

"Hello," A raspy, demonic voice whispered from behind Mana and Gairma. The sinister voice made the girls' blood run cold; It was neither male nor female, but it was obviously someone talking to them 

Mana tucked her long, pink hair behind her ears. "Was that you?" She stupidly asked her sister, who's short, black hair was stuck to her face with sweat. Gairma only shook her head no, unable to mutter a word.

Prepared to run, they twisted themselves back around, but were stopped from proceeding before they even began. 

A slim, dark figure stood before them; its eyes were glowing red with a small white circle in the middle of each that was pointed right at them. Its hair was unkept, long, and black, nearly touching the ground like the ripped dress it had on, which, in itself, was elegant if the grim was looked past. 

Two horns protruded from either side of its head, curling out slightly, before making their way back in, while flesh hung from them; like molting antlers. The figure smiled, revealing a row of sharp teeth lining its gums. 

The sisters stood frozen in place, while the entity remained unmoving just the same, though fear was not the reason. It was only 8 feet away, but they knew what it was the moment they laid eyes upon it; whether it was 100 feet or a few centimeters away, there was no doubt about what it was. 

The women peered at it, reading its stats: 

Level: 77 

HP: 4180

"It was once human..." Gairma muttered. 

Its head tilted to the side slightly as it appeared to study the two young women in front of it, before quickly straightening back out only a moment after. "Hello," the demonic voice repeated, as it took a step towards them.

Its steps were light, only rustling the leaves as it crept forward, silent; the perfect hunter. 

"Hello?" Gairma hesitated, finally answering back. The creature halted when she spoke, its eyes squinting at her. 

Mana looked on in absolute horror as the figure's smile seemingly got wider when her sister spoke. The monster wasted no more time, as it dashed towards them, immediately grabbing Gairma's shoulder with one of its hands, digging its long boney fingers into her shoulder. 

Gairma let out a loud, ear-piercing scream. "Run, Mana!" 

Mana, without thinking, did as she was told. She immediately began to make a mad dash towards the safety of their city. 

The monster paused for a moment, looking on, watching as Mana ran away, before taking off after her, reaching her effortlessly as it stabbed its hand and nails into the pit of her back, knocking her to the ground, face-first. 

Her green tank top soon became red, as her blood pooled onto her back, leaking down her sides to the ground, saturating herself in her own blood as she lay on the vast blanket of fallen leaves. 

She felt like she was drowning as she laid there in excruciating pain, the taste of metal kissing her tongue as she felt blood seep up her throat. 

"Mana!" she heard Gairma scream. Mana closed her eyes as the world began to silence itself, the noises from the struggle between her sister and the beast becoming mute. She knew what was becoming of herself, though she felt at peace, and her breath was becoming more and more shallow. 

She felt herself smile as she watched her somewhat short life flash before her eyes, the scenes of the amazing times she had with her family, the laughs, the sadness, the madness. She saw the day she met Gairma, how they grew as sisters, them working at the bakery together, going to the same school and attending the same classes. She was her sister, blood or not. 

She suddenly felt a small nudge, and she opened her eyes as far as she could. In front of her was her sister who had flipped Mana onto her back and had been shaking her violently to get her to wake up, though she was unaware, and simply smiled. She saw Gairma's mouth moving with tears flowing from her eyes and dripping onto her face as she lay there staring up. 

Then she saw the monster appear from behind her sister, and she remembered, and she let out a scream that echoed throughout the land. 

Gairma's eyes grew wide, and her mouth stopped moving. Her eyebrows flinched a few times as she looked into Mana's eyes and finally smiled. "Thank you for everything," she whispered, as she suddenly fell limp across Mana's body, warming her with a pool of blood. 

She looked back up at the monster, who still had its toothy grin plastered upon its face. Its arm was outstretched, and in its enclosed fist, it was holding a still beating heart. 

"Love...daughter," it said brokenly, before dropping Gairma's heart onto the ground, blood squirting from the valves upon impact with it. "Need...Gino..." It muttered, as it turned from them, making its way back into the forest, away from the wall.