We walked up the hill, the fog thickening around us with each step. The air grew cooler, clinging to our skin as the mist wrapped itself around the trees like a living thing. The faint sound of the ocean below was barely audible, muffled by the weight of the fog.

  The colonial bungalow loomed ahead, three stories tall, its silhouette barely visible through the haze. The architecture was imposing, with high arches and narrow windows, the kind of structure that seemed to echo with the history of a bygone era. Its walls, once a proud white, were now streaked with grime, ivy creeping up the sides, threatening to consume it whole. The air felt heavy here, thick with the remnants of something old and forgotten.

  We stopped at the base of the steps that led up to the front door. It was an imposing entrance, flanked by tall, weathered columns, and the door itself was large, made of dark wood that seemed to suck in the light. The windows on the upper floors were shuttered, and there was no sign of life. It was just an empty, abandoned shell waiting for us to step inside.

  "This place gives me the creeps," Jess said, her voice barely above a whisper. She raised her hand, and her [Torch] spell flickered, casting eerie shadows that seemed to shift with the sound of the wind.

  I nodded but didn’t speak. There was something unsettling about this place. Something in the air made my skin crawl. But we couldn’t put it off any longer. We had to go in.

  Siva was already up the steps, the faintest trace of hesitation in his eyes. Shawn followed close behind, scythe leaning against his shoulder. I hung back for a moment, looking up at the house, feeling the weight of what we might find. The quest had been clear enough: investigate abnormal spiritual residue. But what did that even mean? And why had the system marked this place as a higher-level paranormal threat?

  I stepped forward and joined the others at the door. As Shawn pushed the creaking wood open, the smell hit me first. The air smelt damp, musty and old. The door groaned, but it opened with surprising ease, revealing the entryway. Dust and cobwebs hung from the ceiling, and the air felt thick, almost alive with the weight of something long forgotten.

  "Ready for this?" Shawn said, his voice oddly light, but I could tell his grin was masking something else. Even he felt the tension in the air.

  "Let's get it over with," I replied, drawing my bow and readying an arrow.

  We made our way deeper into the house, passing through shadowy hallways. The floorboards creaked underfoot, the only sound besides the distant skittering noises that made me more alert.

  Suddenly, a faint rustling sounded, followed by the unmistakable clicking of claws on the floor. A large, incorporeal rat appeared from the shadows, its form flickering between translucent and solid, its glowing red eyes fixed on us. It was larger than any rat I’d ever seen, easily the size of a small dog.

  Before we could react, another one appeared. And another. Soon, they were everywhere, walking in from cracks in the walls and hidden crevices, their ghostly forms flickering. The rats’ fur was matted, and their teeth, long and sharp, gleamed as they bared them toward us.

  “Rats,” Siva muttered.”

  ‘ROUSS,’ I thought for a stupid moment.

  I notched an arrow and fired, hitting one in the chest. But it passed right through it, and the rat continued its relentless approach. I cursed under my breath.

  “We can’t touch them!” I shouted. “They're incorporeal!”

  “Ok, hang on!” Shawn replied, moving forward.

  A dark energy swirled around him as he raised his hand. The air around the rats shimmered, and a deep purple glow surrounded the nearest one. With a low chant, a faint pulsing light emanated from Shawn’s outstretched hand, and for the briefest moment, the incorporeal rats flickered, becoming tangible for just a moment. The purple glow pulsed again, and the rats suddenly looked... mortal.

  A countdown appeared above them, ticking down from thirty seconds.

  “Now! We’ve got thirty seconds!” Shawn shouted.

  Siva moved first. His katana flashed through the air, slicing through the first rat’s neck with a clean strike. The rat’s body collapsed to the ground, its incorporeal form now solid and defeated.

  I didn’t wait. I aimed my bow again, shooting another rat in the side. This time, the arrow sank in, and the rat screeched, its body splintering from the impact. It collapsed, twitching before going still.

  But there were more. The rest of the rats swarmed us, their red eyes glowing with a malevolent hunger. I fired again and again, Siva slicing through them with precision, Jess playing whack-a-mole with her weapon and Shawn launching purple blasts from his hands to incinerate them.

  The countdown ticked down, but the rats were proving tougher than we anticipated just from sheer volume.

  I fired off another shot, this one hitting a rat in the chest, and with a loud, dissonant crack, it shattered into a puff of dark smoke, disintegrating into nothingness.

  Siva leaped into the air, slicing down at another rat that had come too close. His katana cleaved through its chest, and with a sickening splat, it exploded into a cloud of smoke.

  The countdown reached its final seconds, and with a final, desperate push, we cut down the last few. They tried to run, but Siva was too fast, his katana slashing through them like butter. Both rats dropped, collapsing as their physical bodies shattered into dust.

  The countdown finally hit zero.

  “That was close,” I muttered, lowering my bow. “Why didn’t you do that earlier with the Pontianaks?” I asked.

  Shawn shook his head, “Thirty seconds is too short a time for five women…”

  I… I couldn’t tell if he was joking…

  Jess eyed the final remnants of the rats. "We might not be done yet. Let’s move on, but keep your eyes open."

  Jess walked quietly at the front of the group, her eyes scanning the surroundings as she led the way. Her face was tense, the focus she was putting into the space palpable.

  “You okay?” I asked, eyeing her closely.

  “I’m fine,” Jess replied, but her voice wasn’t quite steady. “I just need to focus.”

  She reached into her inventory and pulled out a small pendant, one I hadn’t seen before, a polished stone hanging from a leather cord. She held it in both hands and muttered something under her breath.

  The pendant began to glow faintly, and a soft pulse of light emitted from it. Jess closed her eyes and stood completely still. We all paused, watching her. Her fingers tightened around the pendant as her head tilted slightly, as though she were listening to something just out of reach.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  "Can you feel that?" Jess said suddenly, her eyes snapping open. She was focused now, her gaze intense. "I can sense it. It’s… it’s coming from upstairs."

  I raised an eyebrow, impressed. "So you can track them?"

  "Sort of," she answered, still looking towards the staircase. "I can sense the density of paranormal activity. It's stronger upstairs. Let’s move."

  We followed Jess upstairs, the temperature dropping as we neared the higher floor. At the top of the stairs, Jess didn't hesitate, leading us to the first room on the left.

  The door creaked as she pushed it open, revealing an old office space, its furniture outdated but still standing. It looked like it hadn’t been touched in years.

  I felt a chill on the back of my neck as I stepped in. This room… felt wrong. My skin prickled with unease, and I instinctively reached for my bow.

  Jess walked to the center of the room and stopped, her hand raised slightly, signaling us to halt. There, standing near the desk, was a woman.

  She was dressed in modern clothing, a white button-down shirt and faded blue jeans, her hair long and disheveled. Her figure was translucent, flickering in and out of view, as though she didn’t belong in this space. There was no mistaking it, she was incorporeal.

  At first, I thought she might just be another ghostly apparition, but then she began to move deliberately, bending forward as if she were typing on an invisible keyboard in the air. Her fingers tapped furiously, as though she were working on something she couldn’t stop, her gaze focused on the phantom screen only she could see. Every now and then, she would pause, glance at us, then resume typing with a sense of urgency, fingers flying across an unseen interface.

  I wasn’t sure what to make of it.

  “Jess,” I whispered, my voice a little shakier than I intended. “What’s she doing?”

  Jess’s face was tense, her focus narrowing. “I… I don’t know. This is… I think this is a recording. It’s like she’s stuck in time, but… the things she’s doing...” she trailed off.

  I watched as the woman’s eyes darted between the invisible screen and us. She didn’t seem to notice us; her focus was entirely on whatever was playing out in front of her. Her lips moved, but no words came out at first. Then, as she typed again, her voice suddenly filled the room, strained and desperate.

  “It’s gone rogue… it’s sentient... it’s taking over...”

  The words repeated, coming faster now, more frenzied. She continued typing, her fingers moving with terrifying speed and precision. Her gaze flicked back to us, and for a moment, I thought she might acknowledge our presence, but she didn’t. She simply resumed her actions, trapped in a cycle, as though time had frozen for her in this moment.

  Jess took a step forward, her voice barely above a whisper. “She’s trying to tell us something. It’s like this was her final message before... before it all went wrong.”

  I stood frozen, unable to tear my eyes away from her frantic movements. Her movements were so normal, so human, but the context, the content of her words, everything felt deeply wrong.

  “It's gone rogue… It’s sentient… it’s taking over...”

  Her voice, broken and full of fear, repeated again. I couldn't help but feel sympathy for this lost soul, trapped in a moment of her own past, replaying it over and over, the echoes of her panic bouncing off the walls.

  I turned to Jess, who was staring at the woman with a mixture of sadness and frustration. "Is there any way to help her?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.

  Jess shook her head. "She's beyond help. Whatever happened here, whatever started it... it's already too late for her. She’s a victim of the system. Just like everyone else here."

  I wanted to say something, but the words caught in my throat. How could I comfort someone who was already lost to this place? How could I understand what she’d gone through, being trapped in an endless loop of her own fear?

  The woman’s voice broke through the silence again, louder now, as her typing became even more frantic.

  “It’s gone rogue... It’s sentient... it’s taking over!”

  And then, just as suddenly as it had started, the loop reset, and she was back to typing in silence.

  The tension in the room was suffocating, but I could feel Jess’s resolve hardening beside me. “We need to move,” she said, her voice tight. “We’re not going to get anything more from her.”

  I nodded, and we stepped back, away from the ghostly figure. I couldn’t shake the feeling that the woman’s gaze was still following me, lingering in the corners of my vision, her words echoing in my mind like a warning.

  We had barely regained our footing from the ghostly encounter when a sudden, sharp screech split the air. It was high-pitched, unnatural, and filled with a primal hunger. I turned instinctively to see a horde of Penanggal emerging from the shadows, each one a floating head, their entrails trailing behind them like grotesque, writhing serpents.

  Jess stepped forward, her eyes locked on the nearest one. Her morningstar was already raised, her body coiled with tension. Shawn, on the other hand, grinned widely, an eager gleam in his eyes as he cracked his neck. Siva readied his katana, his posture steady, but there was an undeniable tension in his shoulders.

  The first Penanggal reached us with a horrifying scream, its glowing eyes focused on Jess. With a fluid motion, she swung her morningstar high and brought it down, connecting with the creature’s head. It recoiled, but not before its serpentine entrails lashed out, striking at her legs.

  “Watch out!” I yelled, drawing an arrow from my quiver.

  I fired, the arrow soaring through the air and embedding itself in the creature’s head. It screeched, but didn’t stop. The bodyless head continued to float, its intestines wriggling violently, trying to lash at anything in reach.

  Siva darted in, his katana a blur of steel as he sliced through the air, cleaving into one of the Penanggal’s floating heads. The creature screeched as it split apart.

  I quickly switched to my Flame Arrows, hoping the fire would kill them quicker. I nocked one and fired at another Penanggal, watching as the flame-scorched creature screamed and writhed, the fire consuming its floating head. It fell, its twitching uncontrollably as the fire spread to its entrails.

  But it wasn’t enough. The number of Penanggal only seemed to grow. For each one we took down, two more appeared, emerging from windows, cracks in the walls, and even bursting through the floorboards. The air was thick with their shrieks and the disgusting sound of squirming intestines.

  “Damn it!” Shawn cursed, his scythe flashing through the air as he took another Penanggal down. He slashed, sending another head flying through the air, but more were coming. They just kept coming.

  “We can’t fight them all!” Jess shouted, her breath ragged as she swung her morningstar again. “We need to fall back!”

  I nodded, scanning the area. The numbers were overwhelming. We were quickly being surrounded.

  I shot another arrow, but it only made the Penanggal stumble. We were losing ground.

  “Fall back!” I yelled, grabbing Jess’s arm and pulling her down the stairs. Siva and Shawn were already backing up, cutting through the mass of writhing bodies as we made our way out of the house.

  The Penanggal weren’t letting up. The further we retreated, the more aggressive they became, their shrieks growing louder, their floating heads darting toward us like a swarm of bloodthirsty insects. One of them lunged at Siva, its intestines wrapping around his sword arm. He grunted in pain but managed to slice it off before the creature could pull him under.

  We were only a few meters from the truck, but the creatures were relentless. They were closing in faster than I thought. Jess’s Torch spell flickered, the light dimming as she struggled to keep the creatures at bay.

  “We’re almost there!” Shawn shouted, his voice strained.

  I glanced behind us, my heart pounding. The Penanggal were nearly on top of us, but the truck was in sight. It was the only chance we had.

  “Get in the truck!” I ordered, pushing Jess toward the open door. I turned, pulling my bow up for one final shot. The remaining Penanggal were still coming, their heads circling above us, their shrieks deafening. I aimed and fired at the largest one, hoping to slow it down long enough for us to escape.

  The arrow struck true, setting the creature ablaze. It screeched in agony, its head disintegrating as the fire spread, but it didn’t stop. We didn’t have time to watch.

  Siva was already inside the truck, Shawn already revving the engine. Jess followed close behind, but I hesitated for just a moment. The last of the Penanggal were charging us, their entrails wriggling in the air like snakes. I jumped into the truck, slamming the door behind me, just as one of the creatures tried to reach for us.

  The engine roared to life as Shawn floored the accelerator. We tore out of the park, the screeching of the Penanggal fading behind us as the truck sped away.

  I slumped back in my seat, my breath ragged, sweat pouring down my face. We’d made it, barely.

  But as I glanced back at the park in the rearview mirror, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was a setup. Why would the system show us that recording? It didn’t make any sense. Unless… There’s something else working counter to it. Something or someone, wanted us to see that recording, that time loop.

  We need to find out who…