Amina was watching over the family bookstore, leaning on the front desk, immersed in some random book, when chaos erupted in the city. At first, she noticed nothing — her eyes were glued to the pages. But out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a strange movement outside. When she finally looked up at the street, she was startled to see people running in panic.
They were screaming. Amina tried to focus on one of them, relying on lip reading to understand what was happening. A middle-aged man across the street was making urgent gestures to his wife, who lagged behind, and said:
— Hurry! The demons have invaded the city!
Amina froze when she read those words. In shock, she left the bookstore and ran several blocks until she reached a building's large screen. It was broadcasting a live news report, with a headline that read:
"BREAKING: Nefaris cross Mizuki's border and advance toward the city."
The lips of the reporter, visible on the screen, formed the words:
"Everyone must head to Mizuki's underground shelter immediately. Meanwhile, we hope the Hinoken group will contain the situation."
She didn't need to see anything else. She rushed back to the bookstore, determined to grab her phone and make a video call to her family. But when she reached the door, she froze at the sight before her: Amara was sitting behind the counter, wearing a strange smile.
Amina hesitated. She looked carefully at the street before entering — no sign of the car her sister had left in earlier. She looked back at Amara… and what she saw put her on high alert.
Her twin sister was speaking. With her mouth, with actual words. Something unusual. Amara always communicated through sign language, even knowing Amina could read lips. Seeing her sister speak so casually, with that forced smile and fixed gaze, was enough to awaken her instincts.
She remembered a book about the types of Nefaris. Among them were the Morphids, creatures capable of changing shape. And among those, a dangerous variant: the Sombros, able to perfectly replicate human forms to deceive and devour their prey.
The creature in front of her wasn't Amara.
The scent was wrong. The expression, fake. The gaze... empty.
Amina hid her fear behind a forced smile and nodded at everything the false sister was saying. She took a few subtle steps to the side, feeling along the shelf behind her for a thick book.
The Sombro stopped smiling.
— What's wrong, sister?
She shook her head, trying to keep up the act.
— You've figured it out, haven't you, little deaf girl? Then why don't you take a look behind you?
But Amina didn't turn around. Instead, she hurled the book forcefully at the false Amara. A second Sombro — identical to herself — leapt from behind the shelf and sank its teeth into her arm.
The pain was blinding. Screaming, Amina broke free. The first Sombro, still wearing Amara's face, lunged and grabbed her by the neck. She struck it with her elbow and, using a technique she'd learned in Khalawa's military training, twisted the creature's arm until it cracked. The Sombro collapsed, howling in pain.
Another one behind her scratched her back with claws that had replaced its fingernails. Amina arched in pain but ran toward the counter, where she found herself trapped.
The Sombro with her face smiled, its teeth now pointed. The other one, with the broken arm, was already twisting to set its bones back into place.
— This is your end, little deaf girl! — growled her doppelgänger, lunging forward.
But the monster didn't expect Amina to be armed. She raised a pen she'd discreetly grabbed from the counter and stabbed it into the creature's neck. Even injured, the Sombro managed to claw her again before she dragged the pen sideways, widening the wound.
Black blood sprayed everywhere. The creature's body collapsed at her feet.
The fake Amara snarled and prepared to attack, but Amina was faster. She drove another pen into the creature's left eye, unleashing more of that dark blood. Then she swept its legs and tried to strangle it — but she lacked the strength. The creature clawed at the floor, writhing in agony.
Amina backed away, ran to the shelf, and pulled out a rare encyclopedia. She returned and, without mercy, began crushing the creature's head with the book. She hit it once, twice, ten times, until the scratching stopped and black blood soaked the pages. Only then, panting, did she stop.
She climbed off the body and rushed to the counter to look for her phone. She found it on the other side, the screen shattered. Useless.
With no other choice, Amina locked the bookstore door behind her, leaving the Sombros' bodies inside, and ran through the chaotic streets toward the shelter.