What are you doing Karla?

That was the big question running through the ghost's mind as she lay on the ground, pinned by several nails of light with a secretary woman standing over her. If she'd known this was how she'd go out, she wouldn't have spent so much time scaring randos at the junkyard. Or maybe she would have scared more. It wasn't like regret was something Karla really dwelled on. Even now as the secretary had her sword raised over her heart. Or where it should have been, anyway. She could only feel disappointment at the fact that she wouldn't see Lui's castle get built.

Maybe if I'm lucky that reincarnation thing will work on me too.

The thought gave her a little bit of peace as she looked into the secretary's eyes.

"What are you waiting for?" she asked.

The secretary didn't respond, her eyes flickering a moment. One had returned to its normal brown, but Karla knew that wouldn't help matters. As long as she had even one working eye, all her illusions were useless. Something she'd found out the hard way when she'd attempted to fight. Her first real fight, now that she thought of it. Why did she think she'd stand a chance? Gingee was always the muscle. She was the support. That's how Lui trained them to be.

She glanced up, looking to the wall of light that extended across the alleyway they'd been fighting in. A second was in front of her, both acting to block the ghost in. If not for them, she may have had a chance at escape. Not that she really felt like taking them.

She wasn't sure why. Maybe she was bored. Maybe she was just plain stupid. But she'd actually thought she could stop the hunter. That she could be an actual knight for a change.

She sighed. Life had never been nice to her. Why would her afterlife be?

"If you're gonna do it, then do it," she said.

The secretary woman didn't move, instead scanning her face over.

"I want answers spirit," she said. "Who is orchestrating these attacks?"

The blade shined with intent. So that's what it was, then? An interrogation? Like she'd get anything out of her. Karla might have failed to take the human down, but she wasn't about to sell Lui out. Or anyone else in the Kingdom. She at least wanted to pretend to be a real knight.

"Gonna have to pry it from my cold undead hands, human," she shot back. "Not telling you jack."

"So then there is someone behind all this, huh?"

Karla blinked.

The secretary woman squatted down in front of her, a smile crossing her lips. Karla cursed in her head. You conniving little- Her jaw slammed shut, the ghost refusing to say another word on the matter. It didn't seem to dissuade the secretary woman.

"Your devildog friend," she said. "I saw he was with you, but not the demon. I take it he's still at the junkyard?"

Karla didn't say a word, hoping that that would be enough to fool her. But even then, the secretary woman nodded as if she could read her thoughts. It was annoying, to say the least. Will you just kill me already? The woman stood up, sheathing her sword and raising a hand.

"I'll make this simple," the secretary said. "Give me the name of that demon, or I will make every moment of your death as agonizing as possible. More than you'll be getting when you depart at least."

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Karla shut her eyes, taking a breath for strength.

"Take your best shot, counter d-"

Pain rose through her body, like a million razor-sharp volts plunging her at once. Her eyes shot open, whatever strength she had used to hold in a scream. The sensation lasted only seconds, but it left her panting.

"Tell me, spirit," the counter woman said.

Her chest heaved. She was a ghost. She had no organs or a physical body. So why did it just feel like she'd been put through the world's largest storm blender? Why was she gasping?

The woman raised her hand again. Fear rising in Karla's chest.

"Wait!"

The woman stopped. And for a moment, Karla did consider telling her the truth.

But another idea came to mind faster than she could stop it. She looked right at the woman and smiled.

"Your magic sucks," she said. "And so do you."

Unsurprisingly, the shockwave that came after hurt a lot more.

If she'd had the ability she would have spat in the woman's face. As it stood, all she could think to do was call her every curse and slur she could think of in the moment.

It was something that surprised her a bit. How fast she managed to get over the pain to instead focus on hurling insults. As much as she wanted to scream, she wanted to tell the woman off even more. And in doing so, she managed to notice something else between all the shocks. Namely, the fact that she was writhing in pain. Actually writhing. In the few seconds she was shocked, she was able to move freely. The counterwoman lowered her hand after the most recent attack, Karla giving her best maniacal spirit impression.

"Pathetic human!" she shouted. "So weak! Is that all the power you command?"

It was all she could think to do on the off chance it would help her. Though the secretary woman didn't seem the type to rise to provocation, Karla did hear a slight twinge in the woman's voice as she responded.

"The next shot will be twice as strong."

Karla gave a cackling laugh.

"Hit me!"

And then the shockwave came through.

Karla's jaw locked in place, the ghost fighting against the pain as she felt the ability to move again. Maybe she would have turned the tables that way if not for the stabbing pain intensifying. The secretary's words hadn't been a bluff. The shock somehow grew twofold, to the point that she couldn't even keep up the maniacal ghost act. All she could do was try to hold back screams, ignoring how much her body felt like it was being torn apart. And even then, she couldn't hold back for long.

The instinct to scream overcame her. She wanted to stay strong. To keep up the knightly act. But it was too much. Her mouth flew open, the ghost shouting into the air.

The pain stopped all at once.

Karla fell back, panting heavily. Her body was flickering, head swimming as the world was a daze. But the pain had stopped. In fact, so did the paralysis around her.

W-what?

She squeezed her hands, the flickering gradually fading along with the deliriousness. Why did she feel so much lighter? And why, when she sat up, did she see the human who'd been killing her kneeling on the ground.

Her eyes were static, the green remaining in her left. But despite that, the secretary woman was doubled over, hands squeezing her ears shut. Body trembling. She glared at the ghost, her voice several notches higher.

"You? How did you...When did you learn that?"

Karla looked down at herself. What did I...do? She looked back to the paralysis prison, which was gradually fading away. As were the walls of light that had blocked Karla from escaping. Did I do that? She looked to the secretary woman. Despite the rain around them, she noticed her skin had grown slightly paler.

But as many questions as Karla had at that moment, they fell away as she heard a distant scream.

"Master!"

She jerked in its direction, the panicked voice easy to recognize. Gingee! That's gotta be them! She glanced at the secretary woman, who was still holding her ears shut. As much as Karla didn't get it, her gut told her to focus on one thing at a time. And finding her fellow kingdomnites was the top priority.

"Hang on, Gin!"

She took to the sky.

She could worry about the what later. After she figured out why Gingee sounded so scared.