Everything changed after Maelona got bitten by the Monster.
At first, she barely noticed anything. The bite stung, but it wasn't unbearable, just a sharp pain that faded quickly.
It felt insignificant compared to the horrors she had seen others go through. For a fleeting moment, she even thought she might be spared from the worst.
But as time passed, an eerie sensation crept through her veins, like something slithering under her skin, unseen yet ever-present. Then came the convulsions—violent, unnatural spasms that took control of her body, twisting her limbs and making her jerk uncontrollably.
A deep, primal fear sank its claws into her.
Her body burned, a searing heat spreading through her muscles and bones, an unbearable fire licking at her insides. It was unlike any fever, unlike any pain she had ever known. Her chest heaved, her breath coming in ragged, broken gasps as if the air itself had turned to fire in her lungs.
