Several disappearances and unexplained events have been registered shorty after the commercialization of an ancient statue linked to some legends from a mysterious place called "Reich der Finsternis" in eastern Germany, there is no know route leadin...
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The punishers
The dense gray mist that blanketed the area made it impossible to detect the presence until it landed on the substation, its rigid skin scraping against the concrete. The creature was massive, its body covered in a solid layer resembling scales. Its torso displayed a spine as hard as diamond, and from its sides extended a long, spiked reptilian tail. Instead of arms, it had a bundle of tentacles that hinted at its immense strength. Its face, a sickly shade of gray-green, had glowing yellow eyes that emitted faint stellar sparks. A chill ran through Liz's body—before her stood something that looked like it had stepped out of another dimension.
The monster fixed its glowing yellow eyes on the agents' hiding spot, emitting a series of light pulses that had a hypnotic effect. Liz immediately broke eye contact, remembering the sinister swirl created by the butterflies at the cemetery. The strange being stretched its tentacles toward another tower of the substation, moving with surprising agility.
"What the hell is that thing?" Liz muttered, her heart pounding violently in her chest.
"How did you know it was coming here?" Nick asked, bewildered, but there was a hint in his voice that suggested the situation didn't completely shock him.
Liz shook her head, unable to form a coherent answer. For a brief moment, her expression softened with uncertainty, reminding Nick of Anika's distressed face. Was Liz developing the same ability? The thought crossed his mind as they both scanned the room. There was no other exit besides the front door. Only when the monster moved in another direction did Liz feel safe enough to speak.
"Forget that—show me the book on blood alchemy," Nick ordered, holding out his hand.
Liz shot him a look of disbelief. "You seriously want to start reading right now?"
"Just do it!" Nick snapped, raising his voice. Liz complied, knowing this wasn't the time to get into an argument.
With the book in hand, Nick quickly flipped through the fragile pages, searching the table of contents with little regard for the delicate paper. Outside, the footsteps of the tentacled beast echoed ominously, reminding them that time was running short. He stopped at the section titled Consecration: Compendium of Beasts, skimming past the parts about offerings of flesh used to summon creatures, until he reached descriptions of the beings: Vernichter (Annihilators), Zerreißer (Rippers), Knochenbrecher (Bonebreakers), and Blutsauger (Bloodsuckers)—shadows of the demons Holzmann had consecrated himself to.
Nick kept turning pages until he found the methods of transferring dark blood to victims. Vampirism was the most effective way, but the more gruesome methods were illustrated further on. Some humans, after succumbing to the power of infernal blood, were flayed alive, becoming the creatures that prowled the library, known as Läufer (Runners). The next page depicted these skinless beings with a disturbing level of realism, positioned next to images of salamanders and snakes.
