They were frozen in fear, unable to move as they stared at her. She was pale, her skin as white as the moon, as though drained of blood.
Dark circles framed her eyes, like smeared eyeliner or shadows carved into her skin. Her lips curled into a cold smile, one that sent shivers down their spines.
"Normally," she began, her voice smooth but laced with malice, "I'd kill you two just for fun. But you seem to have good hearts. So, I'll spare you..."
They blinked, swallowing hard, unsure of what she meant.
"...if you join my army."
The brothers exchanged nervous glances, unsure of how to respond. Her expression darkened, and before they could speak, her cold, dead hands wrapped tightly around their necks.
"Yes..." she murmured, her grip tightening, "or no..."
Her fingers dug into their throats, cutting off their air and stopping the blood flow to their brains. Their heads spun as she leaned closer, her voice chillingly calm.
"I won't give you a miserable death. Only a painless one. After all..." She nudged their mother's lifeless body with her boot. "Your mother's dead. You wouldn't mind joining her now, would you?"
Mark gasped for air, his will crumbling under the pressure. "Yes!" he croaked.
She released him with a satisfied smile, and he collapsed, scrambling away from her. As he moved, he bumped into a little girl standing silently nearby.
Her wide eyes were hollow, as though she had seen horrors far worse than this.
Marcus, however, was tougher to crack. His fists clenched, his teeth gritted, even as his face turned pale from lack of oxygen.
"Come on, Marcus," she whispered, her voice like ice. "You're the one I like the most."
She leaned in, her lips brushing his ear as she spoke. "I'll help you avenge your mother's death. All of them, dead by your hands."
For a moment, his eyes gleamed, the promise of revenge stirring something primal within him. Even as he gasped for air, he forced out the words.
"If you do that... I'll serve you."
Her lips curled into a wicked smile. "Well then."
Without warning, she dropped him into the water below. He surfaced quickly, sputtering for air, his resolve now firmly in her grasp.
"Let's kill them all, shall we?" she said, her voice as sweet as it was deadly.