The abandoned warehouse loomed against the starless sky, its rusted metal walls creaking in the autumn wind. Kevin paced between stacks of moldering cardboard boxes, trying to ignore the way his footsteps echoed through the cavernous space. Every shadow seemed to writhe and twist in the dim light filtering through the grimy windows. The musty scent of decay filled his nostrils, mingling with the metallic tang of old machinery.

"This is a terrible idea," he muttered, adjusting his collar for the hundredth time. The warehouse felt like an icebox, and goosebumps prickled along his arms despite his thick sweater. His breath came out in visible puffs, dancing in the cold.

Jessica's voice crackled through his earpiece. "Stop fidgeting. You'll give away our position." Her usual confidence carried a slight edge tonight–she was nervous too, though she'd never admit it.

"Easy for you to say. You're not the one playing bait for an ancient Egyptian werecat." Kevin forced himself to stand still, though his hands wouldn't stop trembling. "Why couldn't we just, I don't know, leave out a giant ball of yarn?"

"Because she's not actually a cat," Salina's voice cut in, dry as ever. "She's a millennia-old supernatural being who thinks you're the reincarnation of her dead lover. Just because she never saw daylight for a long time, doesn’t mean she is a complete dumbass.”

"Thanks for the reminder. That makes me feel so much better." Kevin ran a hand through his dark hair, remembering how Aziza kissed him yesterday.

So gross, he almost thought he would cough out hairballs after the cat violated him.

Kevin could practically hear Jessica rolling her eyes. "Just stay focused. Remember the plan - when she shows up, lead her to the marked spot. The trap will do the rest."

"Right. The trap." Kevin glanced at the innocuous-looking circle painted on the concrete floor. Salina had spent hours inscribing it with Egyptian symbols and magical runes, her black-painted nails precise as she traced each ancient character. According to her, it would contain Aziza long enough for them to stab her with Salina’s golden dagger.

If it worked.

If Kevin didn't mess up his part.

If the ancient, powerful werecat didn't just rip him to shreds instead.

A sudden draft sent shivers down his spine. Kevin spun around, heart hammering against his ribs. Nothing but shadows and silence greeted him. The darkness between the towering shelves seemed deeper than before, almost alive.

"Guys?" he whispered, pressing the earpiece closer. "You're still there, right?"

No response. Just static in his ear, like radio interference.

"Jessica? Salina?" His voice cracked embarrassingly. "This isn't funny."

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

The static cut out completely, leaving him in total silence. Even the creaking of the warehouse walls had stopped, as if the entire building was holding its breath. Kevin's own heartbeat thundered in his ears.

Something warm and soft brushed against his leg.

Kevin's breath caught in his throat. Slowly, fighting every instinct screaming at him to run, he looked down.

A tawny cat sat at his feet, regarding him with gleaming golden eyes that seemed to pierce straight through to his soul. As he watched, frozen, it stretched languorously and changed. Its form rippled and grew, bones cracking and reforming until a woman stood before him - if you could call her that. Bandages hung in tatters from her lithe frame, and her face was a disturbing blend of human and feline features. Her skin had an ancient, papery quality, but there was nothing frail about her presence.

"My beloved Kekara," Aziza purred, her voice like silk over steel. "At lassst, we're alone."

Kevin stumbled backward. "I-I'm not Kekara. My name is Kevin. Kevin Lebowski." His back was damp with cold sweat, and he could feel his pulse racing in his throat.

"Sssuch a plain name." She stalked toward him, movements fluid and predatory. Her bare feet made no sound on the concrete floor. "Unworthy of your true nature. But don't worry - sssoon you'll remember everything. Our nightsss in the temple gardensss, the sssecrets we ssshared, the promisesss we made..."

"Listen, I think there's been a mistake-" Kevin's back hit a stack of boxes. Nowhere left to retreat. The cardboard crumbled slightly under his weight, releasing clouds of ancient dust.

Aziza pressed against him, running sharp claws down his chest. Her touch was like ice, sending violent shivers through his body. She leaned close, breath cold against his ear. "No mistakesss. I would know your sssoul anywhere. Even after three thousssand yearsss, it callsss to me."

Her rough tongue scraped across his cheek. Kevin barely suppressed a yelp of terror.

The trap, he remembered through his panic. Lead her to the trap. If he could just get her into that circle...

"If- if you're so sure," he managed, "then maybe we should talk about this somewhere more comfortable?" He gestured vaguely toward the painted circle on the floor. "Away from all these dusty boxes?"

Aziza's lips curved into a razor-sharp smile. "Alwaysss ssso considerate, my prince. But I have a better idea."

She seized his shoulders, claws digging in deep enough to draw blood. Before Kevin could react, she yanked him close and pressed her stiff lips to his. The kiss tasted of sand and ancient spices and death.

Dark energy crackled between them like static electricity. Kevin felt something *pull* at him, like hooks in his soul trying to tear it loose. He couldn't breathe, couldn't think- it was as if she was trying to draw his very essence out through the kiss.

A furious roar shattered the silence. Through darkening vision, Kevin saw a massive wolf-like form hurtling toward them–Jessica in her transformed state, white fur gleaming in the dim light.

"NOW!" Jessica's voice bellowed, distorted by her partially lupine vocal cords.

Purple light exploded from the floor as Salina triggered the trap, ancient symbols blazing to life. But Aziza was already moving, dragging Kevin with her. She dodged the mystical barriers with inhuman speed, bandages streaming behind her like tattered wings.

"You dare interfere?" she snarled. Still gripping Kevin with one hand, she lashed out with the other. Jessica went flying across the warehouse, crashing into a wall with a sickening thud.

"Jessica!" Salina's voice rang out from the shadows. She began chanting in Egyptian, hands glowing with eldritch power. The air crackled with opposing magical energies.

Aziza laughed - a horrible, grating sound like centuries-old papyrus tearing. "Do I need to repeat myself? Your pitiful magic cannot harm me, child." She gestured sharply, and Salina's spell fizzled out in a shower of purple sparks. Another casual wave sent the gothic girl tumbling backwards into a pile of debris.

"No," Kevin struggled, but Aziza's grip was like iron bands around his torso. "Let me go!"

"Husssh, beloved." Aziza stroked his cheek almost tenderly with one claw, leaving a thin line of blood. "Sssoon we'll be together properly, far from these meddlesome creaturesss. Our eternal romance can finally resume."

Kevin glimpsed his friends sprawled motionless on the warehouse floor–Jessica's wolf form slowly shifting back to human, Salina's dark clothes covered in dust and debris. Then Aziza gathered him into her arms like he weighed nothing at all, her inhuman strength terrifying.

"Help!" he cried as she bounded toward a broken window, the night wind whipping at his clothes. "Jessica! Salina!"

But his only answer was the hollow moan of the autumn wind as Aziza carried him off into the darkness, his desperate scream echoing through the night.