Chapter 13 - The Beast

The Beast.

After the last Annihilation War, a curse afflicted the later generations of the titans. Its malevolence presence had woven into their very essence, manifesting as a twisted 'ego' that hungered only for destruction.

Tiamat's desire for vengeance against Arcadia had birthed this abomination, and it knew no mercy.

He dubbed it the Beast, as it was merciless and unrelenting in its actions. It thirsted for blood and destruction, and its very existence was an affront to Reve's being.

In the past, before he sealed it away, it had wreaked havoc uncontrollably, ravaging everything in its path with a cruel and capricious glee, much like what Ravriel was doing now, and maybe even worse. As a creature of control, Reve couldn't handle it and had to request his mentor to lock it away in his mind, until he was ready… or not.

Reve's body began to contort, and strange, white branches sprouted from the ground and encircled him.

Perhaps, it was just a coincidence or fate lending a hand, darkness fell on them as night came. The only source of light was the pair of glowing orbs that rattled ominously in the darkness.

Accompanying the arctic blue and frosty green orb was a deep heavy grunt. The continuous grunts of the creature were like the roars of an apex predator.

Even without its appearance seen, it had a menacing presence—an aura that triggered fear in the heart of Ren. She could not recognize the monster she saw.

The figure of the Beast gradually materialized. The grunts grew louder and the devilish orbs drew closer to Ren and Ravriel.

Ravriel saw past the darkness and sighted the Beast, smiling.

The four-legged beast stood on its twos. Its heterochromatic eyes had savage intelligence about them that sought to destroy everything in its path.

With fifteen feet, it possessed a feral body with unique white fur highlighted with green streaks. On its head was a pair of long, sharp antlers and covering its monstrous face was a bony skull gleaming with blood. Bony spikes spread its skin, along with green and white vines.

The beast went on its fours and crawled closer to them. Its eyes descended on Ravriel with a hint of familiarity.

Ravriel sneered, "Perfect. You look magnificent and glorious, Beast. How long have you hidden under the skin of Reve Amethyst?"

The Beast reached five inches from Ravriel and halted.

"Do you even know your name? Mother gave names to each one of us. You just have to look deep and find it, but I reckon your discord with Reve Amethyst hinders your development."

The Beast grunted and lunged for Ravriel.

"Ahhh, I see. You are called the Beast, for a reason." Ravriel sighed, raising his claws to stab the Beast.

But something strange happened. The Beast accepted the attack, allowing Ravriel's claws to pierce into its stomach. It clamped down on Ravriel's arm with its jaws, biting down until gold blood with red shimmers spilled out.

To his horror, Ravriel watched the Beast drink his blood, its eyes glowing brighter with each gulp.

The Beast tried to ensnare Ravriel with its arm, but he was too quick to react. He blasted the creature with a crimson stream that sent it flying far away.

As he looked down at his arm, Ravriel frowned, but he couldn't hide the smile that was slowly growing on his face.

He quickly turned to his side as the Beast appeared, jumping at him with its claws.

Ravriel was unfazed. He said before opening his mouth, "You are scary, but you are still too young."

A red light flared up, and within seconds, a stream of red energy shot out towards the Beast.

The Beast grabbed a nearby car to block it, but it was futile. The energy blasted through the car, hitting the Beast directly in the chest. It fell to the ground with a gaping hole in its chest.

Ravriel approached the Beast, stepping on its body as he walked closer.

He looked down at it and spoke, "You have so much potential for a fifth-generation titan. It is almost painful to end your life, but your sins are too heavy."

Ravriel opened his mouth and fired another crimson stream at the Beast, tearing through its body with ease

He dropped his legs on the Beast's neck and said, "I have heard a lot about you. It almost makes me jealous to see Mother fixated on you like none other. But I have to protect her, you see. The last time she did that, she was betrayed."

But the Beast wasn't done yet. With a roar, it rose up and bit Ravriel's neck, refusing to let go as they both bled. The Beast used its tail to stab Ravriel's chest, but he didn't flinch.

Ravriel gutted the Beast with its arm. "After all your dirty tricks and efforts, you die here. Do you hear me, Reve Amethyst? Our dance is over!"

The Beast looked down and gripped Ravriel's arm, twisting it until it tore off in a brutal fashion.

Ravriel sneered, not minding the missing arm, "I see you like gnarly. Let's get gnarly!"

In a world of grey clouds and an eternal rain of blood, Reve appeared in his usual form, sitting on a small cloud as he conversed with a half-monster half-pebble.

This was his mindscape, the center of his mind, and he held all power here!

"You can't defeat him by yourself. Ravriel is years older than us. He is toying with us, and hasn't shown his true power."

The Beast roared in defiance and attempted to lunge at Reve, but Reve shrugged it off.

He sneered, "You are really getting a beating out there, aren't you? When will you understand that we need to work together to repel Ravriel"

Reve revealed a sad smile.

After Ravriel had given him a merciless beat-down, he started to realize his wrongs.

Everywhere he went, he had always assumed the identity of a human or something close. After a while, it stuck with him, and sometimes he wished he was human and free from the aspects of a titan.

He neglected his true self, just like Ravriel mentioned. He sealed the Beast and denied every wisp of his titan identity, hiding among other races and pretending to be one of them.

It was pathetic. For someone so prideful as him, he couldn't even challenge his inner titan.

But now, he was aware of his flaws.

Reve reached for the Beast and fully released him at a moment's notice.

As he watched the Beast fully transform and eye him with intense hostility, Reve sighed, "Now, there are only two options for both of us. Either you force a takeover and we die to Ravriel, or we work together and we defeat Ravriel. I have a plan that could work. What do you say?"

The Beast walked closer until it was breaths away from Reve. Its eyes were still hostile, but they bore hints of understanding.

Suddenly, a wisp of information appeared in Reve's head.

He sneered, "So, that's our name? Zariel… I like it. Now, let's go subdue Ravriel!"

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