{"id":3447,"date":"2016-04-26T07:46:15","date_gmt":"2016-04-26T11:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tellest.com\/?p=3447"},"modified":"2016-05-12T07:34:32","modified_gmt":"2016-05-12T11:34:32","slug":"becoming-a-monster-part-two","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/becoming-a-monster-part-two\/","title":{"rendered":"Becoming a Monster, Part Two"},"content":{"rendered":"

Becoming a Monster<\/strong>
\nA Story by Nace Phlaux<\/strong>
\n-Part Two-<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Syrell grunted and gave a weak tug on the shackles dangling him from the wall.\u00a0A wiggle of his foot told him he wasn\u2019t close to a floor, and the cold, dry air in his nostrils suggested he hadn\u2019t left the cavern.\u00a0Pain flashed across his head when he attempted to open his eyes, the purple light stabbing into his vision like a blade.\u00a0In the distance, it sounded as though someone was examining the contents of his bag, mumbling as they tore through his possessions.<\/p>\n

A voice growled and said, \u201cStandard Wispus wares.\u00a0Hmm.\u00a0But what\u2019s this?\u201d\u00a0Bottles clinked and scraps of leather rubbed against each other, the noises clear across the smooth rocky expanse.\u00a0\u201cNice find, traveler. Very nice.\u201d\u00a0Syrell practiced opening and closing his eyes as the sounds continued, allowing himself to build a tolerance to the pain.\u00a0\u201cYou awake over there yet, thief?\u201d<\/p>\n

A groan escaped his throat before he could contain it, and at once, something heavy stomped toward his position, the creature\u2019s rancid breath filling his nostrils in an instant.\u00a0\u201cThe wisps, boy,\u201d it said.\u00a0\u201cTell me about the wisps.\u00a0Judging from your bag, you have a thing for jewelry, but you weren\u2019t wearing any when I found you.\u00a0So what inspires the wisps?\u00a0One of these gems?\u201d\u00a0Syrell gave no response, and after a time, the voice continued, \u201cOr what of the plants?\u00a0The white roots, to be exact.\u201d\u00a0Some subtle reaction must have made its way across his face, for the beast said, \u201cHmm.\u00a0Singed, eh?\u00a0Yes, makes sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

The footsteps thudded away, and his eyelids lifted enough to see a stone golem crouched on the other side of the room, ransacking his satchel.\u00a0Syrell\u2019s fingers explored the shackles, as his captor examined the white roots that could conjure the flaming wisps. The golem\u2019s voice croaked, \u201cThose?\u00a0A gift from the ancients, enchanted by sunlight.\u00a0Haven\u2019t seen anyone tear them off yet.\u201d\u00a0The monster looked in his direction, its eyes almost looking human.\u00a0\u201cThe trick is in the buttons.\u00a0Touch them in the wrong combination, and the fetters will tighten around your limbs, demolishing your bones.\u00a0The time I discovered that was…a story.\u00a0You can\u2019t imagine the mess.\u201d\u00a0A demented laugh erupted throughout the cavern.<\/p>\n

\u201cFoul beast, you shall feel the steel of my\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s stop there with the dramatics.\u00a0Your tools are mostly from Wispus.\u00a0You\u2019re barely a beginner.\u00a0Don\u2019t pretend you\u2019re an experienced warrior, child.\u201d\u00a0As the creature spoke, he examined a slave bracelet from Syrell\u2019s bag, the ring engraved with the shape of some animal\u2019s jagged tooth.\u00a0\u201cAlthough I must admit an admiration of your penchant to pick the darker of his inventory.\u201d<\/p>\n

The prisoner let out a scoff-turned-cough. Once he regained his composure, he said, \u201cYou\u2019ve hidden in your cave too long, monster.\u00a0Wispus and his town of Westwick have disappeared.\u00a0Once word spread, his charms tripled in price.\u00a0What you have before you is a small fortune, and it could be yours if you let me go.\u00a0What say you?\u201d\u00a0Syrell grinned for the first time since entering the cavern, hoping he had found a way to escape.<\/p>\n

Instead, the golem gathered the charms he recognized into a small pile between his hands and clapped them together, stomping to a position in front of the adventurer where he could pour the debris out before the trapped treasure-seeker.\u00a0\u201cForgive me, but I\u2019ve been in this cave for so long\u2026Triple the price of nothing is what again?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen tell me, what do you need of me? You\u2019ve kept me alive for some reason.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI keep you alive to be your savior.\u00a0One simple request is all I make: Stop hunting treasure.\u00a0Change your path.\u00a0Promise me this, and I\u2019ll let you go.\u00a0Agreed?\u201d\u00a0The golem shifted until they faced each other, the monster\u2019s head three times the size of the adventurer\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps,\u201d Syrell said, but unbeknownst to the beast, the young man tongued the tip of his incisor three times.\u00a0\u201cBut if I may, let me counter-offer with\u2014Hamartia!<\/em>\u201d\u00a0At the word, a pulse of blue energy erupted from the adventurer, causing the clamps to release his wrists and silencing the red flare that had been routinely bursting against the ceiling, possibly since the ancients\u2019 time.<\/p>\n

Syrell landed on his feet, stumbling as he found his balance, running toward the entrance once he\u2019d gotten his bearings. The golem, startled at first, charged at him, careening across the stone pathway, growling threats and curses as he burst forward.\u00a0Small stones fell from the ceiling as the two raced through the chambers, catching in the young man\u2019s hair and bouncing off the hide of the beast.<\/p>\n

As they reached the entrance to the cavern, Syrell twisted around, tearing out a seed sewn into his tunic and throwing it to the ground, shouting a word of enchantment that sprouted vines from the tiny shell.\u00a0Soon the entire antechamber filled with thick green coils. The monster\u2019s claw tore through and grasped the young man\u2019s ankle, dragging him back through the hole his hulking mass had created.<\/p>\n

The myriad slashes from the vines\u2019 thorns throbbed with every bang of the adventurer\u2019s head against the stones or cavern floor, which the golem ensured were numerous.\u00a0Once back to the far wall, the beast wrapped Syrell\u2019s body in chains, leaving nothing bare save his head.\u00a0In the distance, the sizzling of the rhythmic flare building up to its climax with the explosive finale returned, changing the eerie silence of the chamber to some semblance of what passed there for normalcy.<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds like your counter is wearing off, boy.\u00a0The ancients\u2019 toys are returning to life. Since you so disgracefully refused my offer to renounce your path as a treasure-hunter, you\u2019ve inadvertently volunteered to further test their…treasures.\u201d The creature\u2019s demented laughter filled the cavern once more.<\/p>\n

\u201cW-why?\u201d the young man managed to stammer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was once like you, child.\u00a0Hungry for adventure.\u00a0For fame.\u00a0Until one of my own finds made me… this. Now I preach a new way\u2014a way where we hide or destroy the ancients\u2019 terrors.\u00a0I offer your kind a chance to renounce my fate, but it seems that no one can sate such a hunger.\u00a0So I spare you from this kind of life by tearing out what\u2019s left of yours.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cB-but why destroy us?\u00a0Especially with the recent tales of Victor Raleigh?\u201d\u00a0A snort and hardened stare from the beast insinuated he was unaware of what Syrell talked about.\u00a0\u201cThe capital is gathering relics as we speak\u2014and their owners.\u00a0Whispered lists of those who\u2019ve disappeared grow by the day.\u201d\u00a0Getting no response, the young man continued to babble. \u201cThey\u2019re preparing for a battle, but with their reluctance to fight against Blacklehn at Atalatha, the question is, with whom?\u201d<\/p>\n

The living stone rubbed his grey face and stretched out his lower jaw, mindlessly eyeing the cave as he contemplated the adventurer\u2019s words. \u201cDo you have children?\u201d the golem finally asked, standing from his crouched position, stretching his body until he filled nearly all the adventurer\u2019s vision.<\/p>\n

\u201cW-what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOffspring, thief.\u00a0Stop your stuttering.\u00a0It shadows the grace of your upcoming death.\u201d\u00a0The beast cracked his neck with a look on his face that could have been anticipation of his kill or a pain from his thick body as bits popped into place.\u00a0\u201cIf not, what would you name your first son?\u201d The thief didn\u2019t respond with words.\u00a0Instead, tears flowed from his eyes, and a ball of snot dropped onto the ground beneath him.\u00a0\u201cCome, thief, we don\u2019t have all night.\u201d<\/p>\n

The boy opened his mouth, steadying himself before finally saying, \u201cKrueler.\u00a0After my uncle.\u201d<\/p>\n

The golem silently moved to a pile of treasure, burying his arm in the trinkets until it reemerged holding a box covered in runes and symbols of death.\u00a0\u201cThank you, thief,\u201d he said, pulling out what appeared to be a sort of cap with jagged metal spikes.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019ve not only sealed your fate, but potentially my own as well.\u201d\u00a0The adventurer shouted, then screamed, then shrieked as the beast came closer.\u00a0\u201cI must warn you:\u00a0This will be excruciatingly painful.\u00a0Deliciously so.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

*\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 *\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 *<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cKrueler?\u00a0You ready, boy?\u201d a thundering voice bellowed from the cave.<\/p>\n

Strange shadows danced on the side of the mountain as clouds graced the soil and stones with their cool touch.\u00a0The warmth came over the apprentice\u2019s garments like a beloved memory, enveloping him in waves between the moments of darkness as he stared at the valley below.\u00a0 Blades of grass jutted through the softer dirt of the hill, and somewhere in the distance, the call of a hawk announced its hunt for prey.<\/p>\n

\u201cKrueler?\u00a0You hear me, boy?\u201d\u00a0The stone golem emerged from the cave entrance, a heavy bag strapped over his shoulder.\u00a0\u201cYou ready to go?\u201d<\/p>\n

The apprentice stood, continuing his dazed gazing of the valley, until the golem shook his shoulder. \u201cHmm?\u00a0Hoalun?\u201d\u00a0The mention of the name brought on a wave of pain, with two different timelines battling for dominance in the poor boy\u2019s head.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, boy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2014I just had\u2014It was the weirdest dream.\u00a0Daydream, I guess.\u00a0Hmm.\u00a0You were torturing me.\u201d The young man rubbed his fingers against his forehead, feeling the marks there.\u00a0\u201cMy scars came from some device you had.\u00a0You\u2014You called me by another name.\u00a0Well, not exactly.\u00a0You called me a thief.\u00a0But it felt like…\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMayhap that blackberry wine was stronger than you had figured, eh?\u201d the golem said, dropping a satchel on the ground overflowing with trinkets and wares.\u00a0\u201cBy Nerot\u2019s fuzzy chin, you should be watching yourself.\u00a0The gods know you can\u2019t handle your drink well.\u00a0You scraped yourself against the walls as you thrashed about in your stupor.\u00a0Now throw that over your shoulder, and let me know if it\u2019s too much for you.\u00a0I\u2019ll give the cavern a once-over, then we\u2019re capital-bound, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

The young apprentice rubbed his temples but said, \u201cRight, Hoalun.\u201d\u00a0The name brought another twinge of pain to the boy\u2019s forehead, but he was unable to stop himself from pulling the satchel over his shoulder. \u201cReady to go when you are, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Becoming a Monster A Story by Nace Phlaux -Part Two-   Syrell grunted and gave a weak tug on the shackles dangling him from the wall.\u00a0A wiggle of his foot told him he wasn\u2019t close to a floor, and the cold, dry air in his nostrils suggested he hadn\u2019t left the cavern.\u00a0Pain flashed across his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3274,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[145,146],"tags":[1284,134,149],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Short-Story-Panel.jpg","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1UVey-TB","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3447"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3447"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3447\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3448,"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3447\/revisions\/3448"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3274"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3447"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3447"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3447"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}