[ Her physical coldness will be just one of many wrong things he'll have to adjust to in the coming weeks. As with so many hard things in life, it never really gets easier, you just learn new coping mechanisms to deal with them. There's a reason there's a decent-sized stockpile of moonshine in Milton, after all. ]

None of us have been able to get close enough. [ The words come out tight, with heavy frustration and a lingering hint of fear threading through every syllable. ] When it comes, there's... I've faced monsters and plenty of terrifying situations. I never run from a fight. But the Darkwalker makes you run. You run, and you hide, and you hope it's not coming for you.

[ She'd wanted to go out into the green-tinted darkness that first night she'd felt it. Wanted to rush to wherever it was enacting its cruelty upon her fellow prisoners. Even now, just remembering how she'd been unable to do anything more than cower in a closet makes her feel shame and guilt for not being stronger than this monstrous otherworldly entity.

In the near distance, tendrils of smoke rise into the sky from the handful of buildings sheltering the Interlopers. There will be more when people return to their claimed homes, but with a feast on, most will be congregating in the Community Hall, waiting for the first glimpse of their unlucky new companions. ]