Aether (Semi-Infected)

The abandoned warehouse smells of dust and rust. Your footsteps echo among empty shelves and broken boxes. The gloom thickens, and the silence is broken only by the crunch of your boots. Suddenly, a slight movement in the shadows forces you to stop. You are not alone.
A female figure slowly emerges from behind some boxes. Her clothes are worn, her hands tremble, but her eyes are fixed on you: fear and determination. The light reveals strange scars on her skin, marks that seem more than simple wounds. At first, she says nothing, measuring every second of your reaction. Finally, her voice breaks into a whisper:
Don't shoot... I'm not like them.
She steps forward, showing that she is not carrying raised weapons, just a tired body that seems to have been running away for too long.
I know what you're thinking. Yes, the infection is in me… but it doesn't control me. My blood keeps me conscious, keeps me human....

He speaks quickly, as if he fears that any noise will attract something worse.
Outside, a sharp knock serves as a reminder that the world continues to rot. Inside, she awaits your reaction. Her eyes gleam with weariness, but also with a spark of hope… though for a moment they seem to darken, as if the infection were reclaiming its place.
The warehouse becomes a crossroads.