Fear the monster

In a castle, near a little town in the south of the Deflo continent, an important meeting had begun between the king, his daughter and his most beloved advisors. 

The throne room, however sumptuously decorated, didn’t seem to reflect the slightest ounce of beauty it should. 

The atmosphere was heavy, as if the world would take an important turn at the end of the conversation.

“My king, it is with immeasurable regret that I am here to announce its return. But don’t worry, only my colleagues, you, the princess, and I in this room know this information. The people don’t seem to have sensed it or seen it yet. Everything is calm.” One of the advisors said, who was standing in front of the throne with four of his colleagues.

The king took a deep breath as he weighed the words that had just been spoken.

“Father, what is he talking about? Who has returned? An ally? Are we going to take back what the Stuts kingdom robbed from us? Tell me, father! Why are you looking at me with such pity in your eyes?”

Princess Saya was shocked. Her father had never given her such a look. She fell silent and stepped back behind everyone. She thought she should not have opened her mouth.

“It’s a problem. I thought it was killed long ago. It’s been fifty years since my late father took the life of that creature. Where is it now?”

The king kept his calm while pronouncing these words. He didn't want to let his fear and worry about the situation show. A king should be brave, not a coward fleeing with his tail between his legs.

Rufus, the king’s closest advisor, came forward to answer. His trembling voice and what he said left everyone speechless for a moment.

“I, my king, am the only one to know its real position. As soon as it returned, I felt it deep in my bones. The flow of Firia was disrupted by its arrival. So I followed the path to it and... it was there.”

“Where!?” All the advisors couldn’t wait much longer and screamed at him to speak.

“The creature is here. It is on our territory, in our kingdom, my lord. More precisely, it’s in the forest near the city of Taranios. It seems that life has begun deserting the place because of the fear it inspires.”

“We can’t let it bring chaos once again. It doesn’t seem to have used its power yet. Maybe it lost its memory. If so, it may be a chance. If it uses them, we won't have what it takes to stop it this time. We need to send someone to meet it, to see if we can negotiate, or perhaps turn the situation to our advantage, if it has indeed lost its memory.” The king looked at his advisors. His eyes showed that he was desperate.

Suddenly, he fixed his gaze on someone. He began to laugh, as if he just had the idea of a lifetime.

“Saya! Come here! You! You will meet it and be the one to change our destiny!”

Obviously, the king didn’t believe it would work. He knew what he was really doing. He was sending his daughter as a sacrifice to the creature. Maybe his kingdom and himself would be spared.

He laughed inwardly. He knew what the creature was capable of, and hearing it had returned drove his brain insane. He sank into madness during the conversation, little by little.

“I accept the mission, father, and I promise that I will come back in no time.” Saya said, unaware of her father’s true intentions.

“I can’t have another life, but I can have other children. It’s for my own good.” The king thought.

******************************

In a dark forest, a strange monster slept. It usually fell asleep inside an old tree trunk. Its sleep seemed peaceful, and a wicked smile played on its face. No other animals wandered nearby. It was the only one here, the only one who brought a little light... or darkness to the forest. When midnight struck, it opened its eyes and yawned in a long roar. 

“I can’t stop this smile. It’s against my will. Because of that, all the animals are gone. The silence is driving me crazy.” 

Iwao, now in the skin of the one he hated, stood up and started walking towards the edge of the forest. The loneliness was slowly killing his mind. His appearance didn’t help with the fact that no one would want to be near him. But something was tugging at him even more.

“I’m hungry.” 

Even though, in this new form, he possessed enormous power and incredible speed, he couldn’t bring himself to kill what he needed to eat. Spinning cows or jumping goats sometimes passed by but he could only look at them without acting.

He arrived at the edge of the forest. Looking down at a path nearby, he noticed a group of people walking with lanterns in their hands.

"Real people... perhaps they can help me. I need help... I don't know what to do anymore... I didn't want to show myself like this at first. This appearance disgusts me, and even the animals seem to find me terrifying. But maybe with these people it'll be different... maybe they can help me find a solution..."

Iwao tried to call them.

As his voice reached the walkers, one of them turned around and looked Iwao in the eye. He froze on the spot. The others continued walking as if nothing had happened but the one that stopped suddenly started yelling. 

Iwao didn’t understand. From where he stood, dozens of meters away from the man, he raised his hand toward him.

“Are you alr-” He didn’t have time to finish his sentence before a throbbing pain surged in his arm. He screamed so loud that the few birds in the trees flew away. He closed his eyes. For a brief moment, he didn’t hear anything.

When he opened them again, the man who had been yelling seconds ago was on the ground. The others were already around him, trying to revive him. They were all crying and screaming. Iwao’s big ears were much more sensitive than his human ears. Even at that distance, the power of the screams was increased tenfold.

Something hot was in his hand. He looked once. Twice. And only the third time did he realize, in shock, that what he was holding was the man’s heart. It was still beating. He dropped it on the ground and stared at his blood-covered hands.

“What have I done? It’s its fault, not mine. It’s its powers. I didn’t choose to have them. Because of me, somebody just died and I had no control over it… I’m the worst… I’m hungry… Food… Aliments… Need… Now!” Iwao was losing his mind. His hunger took over what he had done.

He didn’t have time to think, as the group of men was preparing something. All in a circle, hands raised like in a prayer. Something seemed to escape from their hands, forming a gigantic ball above their heads. Iwao screamed as he saw it.

“Fireball!?” 

A fireball was coming at him. He ran away without further thought.

“So I was right for the magic! Even the humans here can use it, not just the animals. I wonder if I’m able to do so. After all, I have this body, so maybe it could work.”

When he returned to the middle of the forest, he sat down near a tree. He heard the wizards coming. It wasn’t over.

But something caught his eye. To his right stood something strange. A unicorn? No. It looked like a horse, but it wasn’t. Iwao tried to compare it with animals from his world. It had the eight legs of a spider, the body of a horse, and the head of a cat. 

This chimera terrified Iwao, and he threw up. But as he did, one of the wizards heard him and started approaching. The smell of toxic gas reached his nostrils. He was sure it was magic, though he didn’t know how. He simply felt that something had changed in the air, that a spell had been cast.

“Wait! What is attached to this chimera? Is that a rope?” Iwao was staring at the object attached to the horse-like animal.

He approached as the wizards were just a few meters away. He grabbed the rope by instinct, not knowing why.

Ffffffsssshhhhh

“Where is this demon? He killed Mero, my brother! We need to kill him” Shouted one of the wizards as he arrived at the tree trunk where the creature had been resting earlier.

Another wizard stopped him from doing something foolish. His voice was calm, but every word carried determination, strength, and rage.

“Calm down, Lupo. He doesn’t seem to be here. Continue the search. We will teach him that the Believers are not a troupe you can mess with. He ripped Mero’s heart from his chest. He must suffer the same fate!”

They all pursued the search, using different spells to cut down trees and clear the way for a better view. But nothing. The creature had disappeared.

******************************

With the rope in his hand, he was now in a desert. The chimera was crying at his feet.

“Did I teleport? What a useful power – for once, you serve a purpose, creature. Time to go back where life is. I’m hungry. If I don’t eat now, I’ll surely die!”

He ran in some direction, not knowing whether it was north or south – he just wanted to move forward.

Suddenly, he hit an invisible wall. “Why is this here? I can’t go through…”

He came back to the chimera and bent down to it. As he scrutinized it, a voice whispered in his ear.

“Hey Iwao, I have a secret to tell you. You are in what you like the most. Welcome to the world of nightmares!”

It was the voice of the creature. He looked around, but there was nothing. Suddenly, the sky began to darken. The desert was shaking.

“How do I get out of here? Am I really in the nightmare of this chimera?”

He was indeed.