Wiseman stared into the hallway as the floorboards continued to creak. With each step that could be heard, anxiety began to build within himself and the nameless girl. As the two waited with anticipation, the stench of rotten eggs filled the air.

Soon a hoarse voice had spoken out, “I know you're up here, my sweet prisoners.”

A thin hand grasped at the door frame. The foul smell flooded into the room and the girl masked her nose with her hands, stealthily awaiting Wiseman’s signal to slam the door shut. Sweat dripped from his forehead as the danger loomed ever so closer. Inch by inch, the monster slowly revealed itself in the moonlight. It was coloured white with blackened veins pulsating throughout its body. A wide grin appeared on its face with one hand grooming a fancily curled mustache. The other hand then held a walking cane with a t-shaped silver handle.

Now fully displayed in the hallway door frame, it stared and watched Wiseman carefully.

“What's your game, old man?” It inquired.

“No game, punk. Just wondering what I’ll be having for breakfast tomorrow. Perhaps some scrambled eggs will do? But then again… you smell like shit.” He taunted.

The egg man’s face quickly turned cross and it growled, preparing to charge inside.

‘wait… just a little more’

Time had slowed down in Wiseman’s mind.

‘The second it… no, the millisecond that its body is halfway in. That’s when we will crush it.’

Then, it had finally lunged.

“Now!” He yelled out.

The mixed sound of a boot slamming into the door and an eggshell cracking suddenly filled the air.

The duo both watched the rotund fiend as its shell shattered from the blunt force. Stuck between the edge of the door and its frame, the egg had fallen still. The cane it was holding had flown into the room from the attack. A few moments passed and just as Wiseman was about to exhale a sigh of relief, the monster’s laughter echoed throughout the upper floor.

Its shell had cracked open, revealing a sinister pair of eyes from within.

The monster smirked, “Did you dimwits think you could get rid of me that easily?”

“Slam the door again!”

The girl then gave another kick to the door, however, it did not budge. If anything, it had slightly bounced back. Retreating from behind the door frame, the girl and Wiseman could now fully see what lay beneath the cracked shell. As the fiend stood in the doorway unphased from any damage, a similar physique could be seen. It had shed the shell and was now a proper hard-boiled egg.

Its pulsating black veins were now more clearly visible, pumping some sort of dark residue throughout its organs. The mustache of the monster was now gone, however, its scornful eyes and the creepy smile remained. It pushed back the door and began walking into the room like a beast who had just cornered their prey.

It then charged toward them once more.

As the egg man approached, the girl leapt onto the bed while Wiseman stepped to the side near the cabinet and drawer. It turned to the old man first and began a barrage of punches. As it had stick-like limbs, Wiseman braced himself, believing that the monster would not have enough force to seriously harm him. However, appearances were deceiving and as the blows struck his guard, he could feel his muscles tearing away.

While watching Wiseman’s forearms bruise, the girl quickly scanned the room for anything to help.

‘In such a barren room, what could be of help?’

Then she saw the dropped cane on the floor from when she had broken the fiend’s eggshell. Seeing as Wiseman was backed against the wall and struggling to defend himself against the monster, she swiftly grabbed the cane and attempted to whack the back of the egg. True to its shape and material, the strike merely bounced off like a toothpick trying to slice an egg.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Stab it!” Wiseman yelled out.

Realizing the properties of the monster, she placed one hand on the shaft and another on the handle, pushing forward. It pierced the body and not wanting to lose her weapon, she quickly retracted the walking stick. Black fluids began oozing out of the monster as it backed off from Wiseman and faced the girl. It held pressure with one palm on the wound, attempting to stop its innards from spilling out.

Now cornered, the egg shouted out into the hallway as a last resort, “Ogre! Come here!”

Loud stomps could be heard rushing up the stairs and soon in the door frame stood the beast from before. With its singular large eye, it scanned the room for the situation and charged inside. Using one arm, the faceless monster slammed the girl into the wall and continued its rampage toward the elderly gentleman. Avoiding the attack, Wiseman sidestepped a downward thrusting arm. While successful in his evasion of one arm, he was met with failure when the ogre caught him in a chokehold with the other hand.

Wiseman mustered all the strength he could, grasping at the wrists of the monster with his bruised forearms but it was to no avail. The ogre was simply too muscular. He looked to the side and saw the girl attempting to stand, she was still in the middle of regaining her senses. The situation looked dire and Wiseman couldn't help but begin accepting their fates.

However, fate had different plans for the two.

The air went numb and silent. A wave of apathy washed over Wiseman. The feeling was lacking, in every aspect. He felt unmotivated to survive, to even breathe. He felt as if the embodiment of nothing itself had possessed him. This feeling had afflicted the monster as well, releasing its grip and dropping Wiseman’s limp body to the ground. Soon, the monster also fell to its knees and just stared forward with an empty and dull expression. Just as Wiseman was on the brink of giving everything up, the feeling quickly faded. From the floor and in the corner of his eyes, he could see the girl reaching out with one arm.

‘An ability..!’

Wiseman watched as invisible waves distorted the air toward both the monsters. Merely looking at the phenomenon caused a sense of dullness. Looking away to prevent the same symptoms from appearing on him, he quickly shook his head and regained his senses. Observing the girl, he noticed her trembling figure and realized that time was of the essence for she could not hold on for much longer.

Even with his energy expended, the adrenaline from a near-death experience puppeteered his body and he reached for the nearby fallen cane. Grasping the shaft and pushing the handle, he plunged the walking stick into the large eye of the muscular monster. It had zero reaction to the injury. After repeating this action a few more times to ensure its blindness, he swiftly continued a similar procedure with the egg man. It had a parallel effect in that it was unresponsive to any sort of pain. Its blackened blood drained from the veins and pooled onto the flooring beneath it as Wiseman repeatedly stabbed. Eventually, a noticeable change had occurred in the egg. Previously, under the effects of the girl’s spell, it had merely sat like a doll with blood still pulsating throughout its body. Now, the body was no longer throbbing with vitality, instead, a corpse drained of any sustenance remained.

Acknowledging this change, Wiseman returned to the humanoid-shaped fiend who was still kneeling on both legs. He then approached it from behind and hammered away at the back of both ankles. If stabbing at its eyes hadn't killed it, then making the fiend unable to walk would aid in their escape. Once satisfied with crippling the bulky monster, he glanced over at the nameless girl, still channelling her newly acquired ability. Her body continued to tremble and her eyes were shut tightly, as if in a struggled concentration.

“It’s alright now, release the spell young lass,” Wiseman spoke in a reassuring whisper.

Breaking out of concentration, the girl collapsed to the floor. She held herself up with her arms stretched out and gagged. Upkeeping the ability seemingly took a tremendous toll on her body. Briefly regaining her composure, she sat upright and looked toward the monsters and then to Wiseman. He appeared ragged, tired, but relieved. The fight was now over and so she let the exhaustion wash over her, passing out onto the ground.

Immediately after, the ogre monster roared loudly as its hands pressed against its giant eyeball. Blinded, it attempted to stand but failed in doing so. The tendons in its legs were completely mashed. As the monster was becoming accustomed to its crippled body, Wiseman had already lifted the girl onto his back. While the girl had successfully played out her role, he still had another job to finish. Wiseman needed to escape fast before more encounters with devilish beings occurred.

Together, the two made their way out of the room and into the hallway. Aside from the occasional screaming coming from within the inn room where the fight happened, it was silent. But upon reaching the stairs, a loud smashing noise could be heard. It was the fiend from before and it was rapidly crawling to their location.

‘This lump of muscle just won't give up!’ Wiseman thought with a mix of surprise and disgust.

He quietly carried the girl down the stairs as the monster repeatedly smashed its head into the wall behind him. The two made it to the exit before Wiseman casted one last glance at the fiend. It had somehow stumbled down the stairs and was rampaging throughout the main lobby. Thinking he was fortunate to have met such a young ability user, he exited with the girl still on his back and closed the doors to the accursed inn.

…

Moments later, a veiled figure can be seen approaching the doorsteps of the inn. It opened the door and observed the crippled monster thrashing about.

“Hmmm.”

The person then stretched out their arms and instantly, the entire building became wrapped in a long scaly tissue. Crushing anything within the serpent-like flesh, all that was left were planks of wood, rubble, and blood.