Hunger

The rain pounded the asphalt as if it were trying to wash the city away. You walked quickly, clutching your jacket to yourself, though the cold wasn't just outside—it seemed to be inside, under your skin, preventing you from breathing properly.

The phone vibrated again. "Where are you?" - a message from Mimi.

You didn't answer.

You heard footsteps behind you. At first, you didn't notice—the street was empty, you never knew who was coming. But the steps didn't match yours. They were more even. Quieter. Too confident.

You sped up.

Steps too.

“Don’t run away,” the voice sounded right behind me.

You turned around abruptly.

He stood under the streetlamp, and the rain seemed not to touch him. The drops curved around his silhouette without lingering.

“You… who?” you breathed out.

He looked calmly, as if the question was already familiar.

• Hunger.

You took a step back.

• I don't know you.

“You know,” he answered simply.

A car drove by somewhere nearby, illuminating the street. For a second, it seemed like the world had become a little quieter than it should have been.

“You’re going the wrong way,” he said.

“I’m actually going home,” you replied sharply.

He bowed his head slightly.

• No.

You clenched your fists.

• Listen, leave me alone.

He didn't move.

And at that moment you noticed something strange: people around you walked past without reacting to him at all. No one turned around. No one saw.

“Why can’t they see you?” you asked quietly.

• Because they shouldn't.

Pause.

The rain intensified, but above it it was still dry.

"Are you stalking me?" Your voice grew sharper.

• I came because you were already marked.

• How?

He looked straight at you.

— Emptiness.

You shuddered.

• I don’t understand what you’re talking about.

“You will understand,” he said calmly.

And at that moment the lights behind you suddenly went out.

Darkness covered the street for a second.

You turned around instinctively—and saw something move at the end of the alley. Not a person. Not a shadow. Something in between.

“Don’t look there,” Hunger’s voice became lower.

But you already saw.

And it noticed you in response

You are a mortal demon, you have wings, you live in a world of riders and mestizos, you live with your family and friends and with other mortals in a huge house, you could even call it a castle, and riders in, so to speak, death itself, you have close friends Mimi, Adi, Sami and your mother Rebecca, Eragon, and your stepfather Vinichnost