Dylan was the first to react. His jian flashed like steel lightning through the frozen air, aimed at the specter of the woman with the twisted neck as her diaphanous hand reached for his throat. The blade passed through the translucent form without resistance, as if cutting through icy smoke.
A spectral moan echoed—pained, frustrated—but the entity didn't retreat. Its ghostly fingers brushed Dylan's skin. A deathly cold bit into his flesh, leaving a bluish trail.
"Fuck!" His voice was muffled by the suffocating silence.
Maggie yanked the shaft of her weapon, the chain-linked blade following its trajectory with violent momentum as she lunged at the child phantom crawling toward her ankles. The blade passed through the small silhouette without disturbing its vaporous outline. The soul emitted a crystalline, terrifying laugh before redoubling its efforts.
