13 — Beasts In The Forest
∾ 𝔼𝕡𝕚𝕤𝕠𝕕𝕖 𝟙𝟛: 𝔹𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕥𝕤 𝕀𝕟 𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔽𝕠𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕥 ∾
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𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐎𝐋𝐊 𝐌𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐁𝐄 the creatures of the sea, but their ancestors were powerful and great explorers. Before the Merfolk decided to settle down at one location which they called their kingdom, they swam through the seas and stored their memories in shells that would be treasured and used by the generations to come.
Many died gruesomely in these travels due to which the Merfolk finally stopped exploring at all. They chose their own safety and life above their gypsy heart.
As a future Queen, Esmeray was able to see through those shells and find the mysteries beyond the seas. It wasn't much, but it was fearful. The creatures looked deadly, with their frightening abilities that made one question the creation of these monsters.
And now that one was standing in front of her, she could feel her nerves tremble with fear and her heart thumping blood at an abnormally high rate.
The beast stood on its four legs with dark brown fur covering its entire body. Black eyes stared into her soul and sharp canines snarled at her. A dangerous growl erupted from its mouth that made her shiver in fear. As it stepped closer to her, its eyes examining her like she was its next meal, Esmeray stood there staring at it.
She knew if she runs, it would come after her.
But it seemed that the luck wasn't going be at her side, at all. A swarm of beasts arrived from the forest, their eyes looking as lethal as that of the brown wolf. Their fur ranged from brown to night black. A scream threatened to leave her mouth but she tried to be brave.
She tried to remain calm.
But when your death is standing in front of you, it is impossible to do so.
The dark brown beast growled at her as he walked towards her with slow, calculated steps. It analyzed every single of her moment and she felt like he was searching for a weak spot of hers. The sea was next to her, all she needed to do is jump in it and swim away.
But could she trust the sea to not throw her back to the demons?
Her brain designed every scenario that might come out of the situation in front of her, yet none of them happened to be beneficial for her. So, she did what she could.
She screamed.
A mermaid's cry for help. Now, she hoped that somebody might have heard her.
That maybe she could be saved.
The beasts became alert as the brown one started running towards her. So, she started running towards the sea - it was her body's natural instinct for survival. Not caring about the consequences that might emerge if the sea refuses to provide her shelter, she ran towards it.
But the beast was fast.
As it's sharp canines sank into the tender flesh of her right leg, she screamed.
"Leave me alone!" Esmeray cried out.
The Queen of the sea fell to the ground as blood started sweeping out of her legs. The wet sand started to heal her but the excruciating pain still existed. It was like a thousand needles have poked her leg and penetrated into her muscles.
She watched as the beast threw away the skin it had bitten off from her leg on the sand. It looked at her like she was its prey.
Esmeray didn't want to die. And the pain made her livid.
She was better than this - rather than surrendering like a coward, she needed to be brave. Her trust in herself was the only tool that could get her out of this situation.
Letting the anger and pain sweep through her veins, she summoned the sea behind her. If she was going to die, she would die fighting. Not cowering away like a weak and pathetic mermaid.
A huge wave formed behind her as she imagined the water droplets gathering to make the giant shield against the beasts. It was like the anger swam through her body to the water. And now, the water was going to take her revenge.
The eyes of the brown beast widened when it saw the wave. It couldn't comprehend when the water hit it with a giant force, throwing it to the nearest tree. But the torture didn't end there. It swirled around the injured beast, drowning it in the water.
Esmeray could hear the beast wailing and somehow, it made her feel good.
Her leg had almost healed since her body was now covered with water. Her heart swelled when she realized that the sea still cared for her. But the mystery as to why she couldn't see the silver light to her home still plagued her mind.
When she felt the beast's heart take its last beat, she stopped and threw him away from the water. As she relaxed, the water swept away and her gaze turned to the rest of the beasts waiting for her.
But their attention wasn't on her.
It was in the forest.
She heard them before she saw them.
Similar beasts emerged from the greens, but instead of bombarding her, they attacked the beasts which were there originally. With an open mouth, she watched as they fought each other - gruesomely tearing apart each other's limbs.
Blood stained the sand and mixed with the seawater as the two sides fought.
She simply sat in the comfort of the sea as she watched them fight. Her mind drifted to Lucian, Martin, and the others in their pack. What if they made their way to her but instead, found the beasts? She might be leading them to a trap!
Esmeray was clueless as to why she cared for their well-being - perhaps because they took care of her when she felt alone and hadn't murdered her till now. But there was no way that they could fight these monsters easily.
She wasn't aware of the powers they possessed but even if they were strong enough, they needed to strategize since an element of surprise was never good in a fight.
But she couldn't help herself - then how she could reach Lucian?
The mere thought of Lucian made her heart quiver and she wished that he doesn't come to find her. The connection they shared can remain a mystery but she couldn't be the cause of his death.
Those monstrous beasts kept on fighting until one of them let a howl and soon enough, some of them started running away. Like cowards a part of the beasts fled the beach, leaving the other part to deal with Esmeray.
But she wasn't scared of them since she knew that she could drown them in the sea. This fight might be unfair but she knew she could win.
When there were a few beasts left on the beach, she prepared herself for what was to come. Her eyes examined the beasts whose fur was stained with crimson blood. Hate was written all over her face as she promised herself to loathe these creatures for the rest of her life.
But what she didn't expect was a night-black beast with familiar green eyes staring at her.
And she definitely didn't expect to hear the horrible and painful cracking and adjustment of the bones of the beast as the fur went back inside the beast's body to transform into someone she very much knew.
"Lucian," she whispered as he stood in front of her, naked as the day he was born.
The beast was Lucian.
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