Inside a civilian home.

  In a young girl’s room, a human face slowly materialized from the dark wall. The face, formed from concrete, glanced around the room before the rest of its body began to emerge from the wall. Soon, the figure stepped out fully, reverting to human form.

  “This scent… that faint fragrance. It must belong to a beautiful girl,” murmured the man from the wall, smiling as he observed the room’s pink decor. His hand brushed over the rosy bedsheet before he leaned over the sleeping girl. “Mmm… delightful,” he whispered, inhaling deeply.

  The girl stirred, her eyelids fluttering open, but she saw nothing. As she closed her eyes again, the man’s face reappeared on the wall behind her. “Such an alert little darling,” he chuckled, stepping out once more. But this time, the girl’s brow twitched.

  As the man drew closer, her eyes snapped open. In a flash, she grabbed a dagger from her nightstand and stabbed at him!

  Clang!

  Sparks flew as the blade bent against his chest. The man glanced down—his body had petrified to an extreme density, leaving only a white scratch where the knife struck.

  “Pretty… what a lovely reaction,” he said, amused. The girl stared in shock at the warped blade and his stone-like skin. What… is this thing?

  “Hel—mmph!” She tried to scream, but the man clamped a hand over her mouth. “No, shouting would ruin the elegance of this moment,” he chided. Tears welled in her eyes just as the door burst open.

  “Sweetheart!” Her father charged into the room.

  The man sighed. “Ah, how tedious.” He plunged his hand into the wall. The surface rippled, and a stone pillar erupted from it, narrowly missing the father. Boom!

  “Consider this a warning, sir. Sufficient, don’t you think?” the wall-man said coolly. The girl shook her head frantically, tears streaming. He wiped one away with a finger. “Don’t fret. This is merely… a unique invitation to dinner. No harm will come to you or your dear father—provided you accept a gentleman’s offer.”

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  He smirked. “As you saw, I could’ve skewered him like a kebab. But I chose mercy.”

  “Let her go! Take me instead!” the father roared.

  The wall-man grimaced. “No, no. I’ve no interest in men. Only beauty captivates me.” He turned back to the girl. “Your answer, lovely one?”

  “I’ll call the police!” the father threatened.

  The wall-man’s expression darkened. “Ah, humans and their lack of self-awareness. I’m speaking to the lady, not you. Is life so worthless to you?” He raised his hand toward the wall again, but the girl cried out:

  “I’ll go with you!”

  “An elegant choice,” he purred. “But I’ve changed my mind. Eliminating your father seems prudent—”

  “No!!”

  Caw!

  A raven suddenly appeared at the window.

  The wall-man groaned. “You again? Must you haunt me, feathery pest?”

  The raven morphed into a girl who vaulted through the window. “You told me to ‘find self-worth.’ Well, I have. Following you lets me collect distraught souls—their sweet despair fuels my power. Though lately, absorbing their emotions makes me wonder… how your soul might taste.”

  Her hands transformed into webbed claws, slashing at his head!

  “Tsk, tsk.” He ducked smoothly. “I’d hate to mar such a pretty disguise, but push me, and I’ll pluck those wings bare.”

  “Try it.” She lunged again, claws aimed to shred him.

  “Stubborn creature.” He raised his hands, revealing ten rings of varied metals and gems—diamond, meteorite, graphene—embedded in his fingers. “Diamond.”

  His body turned crystalline, gleaming like cut glass. The raven’s claws screeched against him, blunting on impact.

  “Futile,” he said, reverting to flesh. “No physical attack can breach me. Even your aquatic friend’s claws failed—he’s the weakest among us.”

  The raven girl retracted her claws. “Disgusting trick.”

  He smirked. “I can be hard in other ways too—”

  “Ugh. Repulsive.”

  Their brief clash left the human girl and her father frozen in terror. “P-please, keep fighting…” the girl stammered.

  The wall-man and raven girl exchanged a glance. “We’re… associates,” he admitted. “Our squabble is personal, but you’ve seen too much. Can’t have that.”

  The raven girl produced a syringe filled with amber liquid. “Queen Bee’s body fluid. Two uses: mind control, or turning men into women. She decides which. Public figures get the first option—less messy.”

  She leveled the needle. “Come quietly. I won’t ask twice.”

  ...