Elara and Rowan hurtled down the spiral staircase, the lantern swinging wildly and throwing broken, frantic shadows along the stone walls. Above them, the lantern room groaned under the weight of something forcing its way inside.
A wet, tearing sound echoed down the tower.
Followed by a low, rattling breath.
Rowan stumbled on the step, nearly falling, but Elara caught his arm and pushed him forward.
"Don't stop," she hissed."If it reaches the stairs before we get to the service room—we're trapped."
Behind them, the stairwell filled with a new sound:
Tap.Tap.Tap.
Not footsteps.
Fingers.
Long ones.
Feeling their way down the metal railing.
Rowan looked back despite Elara's warning—and immediately wished he hadn't.
At the top of the tower, just visible in the dim lantern-glow, a hand curled around the railing.
Too many joints.Skin slick like something peeled from the sea.
The nails scraped the iron, leaving thin silver lines with every tap.
"Elara…" Rowan's voice cracked."It's crawling."
She didn't look back. She didn't dare."Keep running."
The tapping grew faster.
Like excitement.
Something was gaining on them.
They reached the middle landing—a circular platform where the stairway narrowed. Elara skidded to a stop.
The air here was colder.Wrong.
Rowan nearly collided with her. "Why'd you stop?!"
She lifted the lantern.
On the floor ahead of them were footprints.
Watery.Human-shaped—almost.Trailing in a circle around the landing.
Rowan whispered, "They're fresh…"
Elara lifted the lantern higher.
And saw the message smeared on the wall in dripping seawater:
TURN BACK.IT'S BELOW TOO.
Rowan's breathing stopped.
"Elara, what does that mean?"
But before she could answer, a sound drifted up from beneath the staircase.
A voice.
Soft. Familiar.
"Elara… Rowan… come down… please… hurry…"
Rowan went pale."That's your voice."
Elara felt her stomach twist."No. That's not me."
The tapping from above grew louder.The imitation-voice from below grew sweeter.
They were being squeezed between two things wearing human memories like masks.
Rowan whispered, "We're trapped."
"No." Elara tightened her grip on the lantern.
"We jump."
Rowan blinked. "We what?!"
Elara nodded at the narrow maintenance ladder bolted to the inner pillar of the stairwell—far faster than the long spiral staircase.
"That ladder goes straight to the service room. If we take the stairs, that thing will reach us first."
From above, the fingers tapped faster.From below, the false voice began laughing.
Rowan clenched his jaw."Okay. Ladder. Fast."
Elara swung one leg over the railing and grabbed the maintenance ladder. Rowan followed.
Just as they began climbing down, the creature above let out a sound—
A shriek so sharp it felt like metal being dragged across their skulls.
A moment later, they heard it rushing down the stairs—fast. Too fast.
"Elara?! It's coming down!"
"Faster!"
As they climbed, the lantern flickered, shadows twisting in impossible shapes on the walls.
And then Rowan looked up.
Something was sliding down the railing in a jerking, inhuman motion—as if its limbs bent the wrong way—its bloated face split by a wide, waterlogged smile.
Rowan nearly lost his grip.
"Elara—!"
"I know! Don't look at it—just go!"
The creature dropped onto the stairwell, its head tilting unnaturally as its eyes followed Rowan.
It whispered:
"Almost… mine…"
Elara kicked the lantern off her belt and threw it upward.
It shattered at the creature's face—a burst of flame, oil, and smoke erupting in its path.
The creature recoiled with an ear-splitting scream.
Rowan and Elara climbed the last meters of the ladder—and dropped into the dark service room below.
Above them, something massive hit the floor of the landing and started descending again—angry now.
Very, very angry.