Beneath the Surface [Yandere Creature x Reader]

Chapter 16 - My Darling?

I flopped down on my bed, exhausted and overwhelmed. The encounter with the young woman had left me shaken, unsure of who or what to trust. I absentmindedly picked at the food left for me, my mind racing with possibilities and fears.

Should I go back into the hole?

Is that what they want me to do?

Or is it a trap?

I tried to ignore the nagging thoughts, the constant state of alertness that had become my new normal. But then, I heard something that made my blood run cold – my name, whispered on the wind, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.

I shook my head, trying to convince myself it was just my imagination. But the whispers persisted, growing louder, more insistent. I clamped my hands over my ears, determined to block it out.

Then, cutting through the whispers, I heard a familiar voice – Mateo, the translator. "Help! Someone, please help!"

My heart raced. Mateo had been missing for days. If he was here, calling for help...

I can't just leave him.

But what if it's a trick?

Despite my fears, I knew I couldn't ignore his cries. With great effort, I managed to get to my feet, my casted leg making movement difficult. I grabbed a makeshift crutch and made my way towards the cavern entrance.

As I descended into the hole, the world around me shifted. Gone was the rocky cavern I remembered. Instead, I found myself in what looked like a deep forest, lush and green. But something was off – right in the middle of this impossible woodland was a living room set, complete with a couch, coffee table, and even a lamp.

This can't be real.

It's like... like that photo background.

I remembered one of the photos we had found earlier in the expedition, showing a similar surreal scene. The realization sent a chill down my spine. What was going on here?

Suddenly, I heard rustling from nearby. I turned to see Mateo emerging from behind a tree, looking disheveled but unharmed.

"H-how do I know if you're the real person...?" I asked, my voice trembling.

Mateo just stared at me for a moment before speaking. "Just trust me, we have to get out of here before the creature comes back."

"Uh, get out of where? The island?" I said, confusion evident in my voice.

"Yes! Exactly!" he replied, an urgency in his tone that didn't quite fit the situation.

"Uh, we can't," I mumbled, the weight of our predicament crashing down on me once again.

"Why... why not?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

Tears swelled in my eyes as I crumbled to the ground. "They left us here to die..."

I heard him immediately rush over. "Hey... hey... it's gonna be ok," he said, his voice soft and comforting.

"No, it won't!" I cried out, panic rising in my chest. "We've been left here to die! We are gonna get killed and eaten by that monster!"

"Oh love, don't cry," he said soothingly.

Wait a minute...

The translator never called me that...

I looked up in horror, the realization dawning on me. This wasn't Mateo. It couldn't be.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his face a mask of concern that now seemed far too perfect, too rehearsed.

My heart pounded in my chest as I stared at the thing wearing Mateo's face. The creature had used those exact words – "Oh love," – during our first encounter. This wasn't a coincidence.

"You're not Mateo," I whispered, my voice barely audible.

The concern on his face flickered for a moment, replaced by something else – curiosity? Amusement? It was gone so quickly I couldn't be sure.

"What do you mean?" he asked, reaching out to touch my arm. I flinched away, scrambling backwards despite the pain in my leg.

"Stay away from me!" I shouted, my voice echoing in the strange forest. "I know what you are!"

The thing wearing Mateo's face tilted its head, a small smile playing at its lips. "Oh, Y/N," it said, its voice shifting, becoming that melodic whisper I remembered from the cavern. "I told you they wouldn't understand. But you... you're starting to see, aren't you?"

As it spoke, the forest around us began to shimmer and fade, like a mirage in the desert. The living room set melted away, and we were once again in the cavern, but it was different now – alive with bioluminescent plants and strange, shifting shadows.

"What do you want from me?" I asked, my voice shaking but determined.

The creature – still wearing Mateo's face but no longer pretending to be him – smiled wider. "I want you to understand, Y/N. To see the truth about this place, about yourself. You're part of something much bigger than you realize."

As it spoke, its form began to shift and change, the familiar features of Mateo melting away to reveal the ethereal, otherworldly being I had first encountered.

"The question is," it continued, its violet eyes fixed on mine, "are you ready to embrace it?"

I stared at the creature, my mind reeling. Part of me wanted to run, to escape this nightmare. But another part – the part that had always pushed me to seek out the unknown – was intrigued.

What truths did this being hold?

And more importantly, what role did I play in all of this?

As the cavern pulsed with an otherworldly light, I realized I was standing on the precipice of a decision that would change everything. Whatever I chose next, there would be no going back.