The Beasts Inside Us

Chapter 14

"So.. how do I get rid of the claws and fangs?" I ask hesitantly as the carriage glides, unusually smooth over the gravel road.

We are an hour into our journey and as I look out the window, the only view so far has been trees.

"Easy.. just calm down and focus."

I glare slightly then cower a little as he fires back his own death stare, reminding me of the situation I'm in.

I glance down, "easier said than done."

Tavarious gives an exasperated look and turns his body to face me.

"Just.. think of something or someone that makes you calm. Think of the one thing that you go to when you are feeling down."

I close my eyes and think.

I'm not surprised at the first person that comes to mind.

Caide.

I picture grey eyes and soft raven hair–not that I've ever had a chance to feel his hair. It just looks soft. And perfect. I wonder how he gets it to look that way...

I stop when I realize I've lost focus.

I sigh, opening my eyes.

"This is ridiculous, it's not going to work."

Tavarious gives a little smirk, "look down."

I look down at my hands, gasping at the sight of smooth and rounded nails. Smiling in excitement, I run my tongue along my teeth, relieved when I don't find long, pointed fangs.

"It worked!"

Then I frown.

"But I lost focus."

Laughing, Tavarious shakes his head, "you didn't lose focus.. you just focused on something else. When I said focus I didn't mean to think about your claws, that's how you produce them. I meant think about something else, something more human and calming."

I suppose that makes more sense.

The carriage suddenly stops, causing me to jolt forward. I quickly grab my seat, preventing myself from falling into Tavarious' lap.

I look up, blowing my hair out of my face.

My brows furrow at the same sight I've been seeing the whole time, "are we here?"

The carriage sits in a field in the middle of a forest. Through a gap in the trees, I watch as soft pink and orange stretch across the sky. Night is approaching.

"Not yet." Tavarious mutters as he gets up from his seat, bending a little because of his height. He steps outside and closes the door behind him.

I wait, debating if I should follow him or not. He never indicated he wanted me to, but then again, he never outright told me to stay.

I settle for watching through the window.

Tavarious walks up to a rock wall and stands in front of it.

When nothing happens, I start to question his mental stability. He just stands with a blank look on his face.

Yep, just keep standing there, buddy, I'm sure whatever you're waiting for will appear someday. I chuckle to myself.

Then, two clouds of dark smoke appear on either side of him. They grow and grow until they stand at the same height as him. Then they begin to take shape.

When they stop, they look like the silhouettes of two men holding swords. Slight wisps of smoke flow from them, giving the opposite affect of a halo glow.

The silhouettes turn to Tavarious and bow before lifting their swords and pointing to the wall, as if to lead the way.

The middle of the wall slowly fades away and an entrance is suddenly in its place.

Tavarious re-enters the carriage like nothing happened and the driver encourages the horses to continue our journey.

I can't help but to have a couple questions.

"What if it wasn't you standing there?"

"They would die."

I shudder, "so no one else has access to your... cave?"

"The other demons just teleport. My guests are brought by carriage with a trusted escort from the demon realm."

Demon realm.

That's where he is taking me.

"So.. hell?"

Tavarious chuckles, "no, this is not hell.. this is the demon realm, we don't welcome any dead here. Anyone who lives here was born a demon or half-demon and I am their ruler."

I already guessed that part. Tavarious has this aura around him that screams, 'I'm in-charge'.

"That's..cool, I guess." I decide to focus on our surroundings.

Trees, again.

I lean back in my chair in disappointment. I had been hoping for a change of scenery and an other worldly look.

"Patience, we're almost there." Tavarious notices my pouting.

A few minutes later a growl startles me into straightening up in my seat.

A black shadow passes the right window of the carriage. I peak around the curtain and am instantly amazed with the sight before me.

This is nothing like earth, and is definitely terrifying, but equally intriguing.

Forest grass has turned into dark, black stone. A glowing aqua and violet river runs ominously beside us. The only lights come from the river and a few lava falls–which are like waterfalls but with luminous molten lava.

I only see glimpses of the creatures that soar by rapidly, when they pass one of the light sources. I don't understand how they move around so easily in the dark.

A splash forces my gaze down. A bright tail disappears beneath the surface of the water, leaving a ripple in its wake.

I point to the misty river.

"Are- are those–?"

"Mermaids? Yes.. one of the deadliest creatures down here. Other than me, of course."

"They don't look deadly.."

"Keep watching."

One of the beautiful, glowing mermaids peers at and lures a small demon closer to her, all while staying just beneath the clear water. She grins sweetly and beckons with one finger.

The demon, that looks more like a gargoyle to me, sinks down on his knees and reaches toward her. She reaches her own hand up, keeping eye contact with him. Because of the eye contact, he misses how her hand changes the instant it hits air. The soft, light-blue tone of her hand turns into a gnarled grey with long claws. The demon realizes too late, squealing only when she has her claws sunk in his shoulders. She raises her head out of the water and I wince at her new appearance.

Sunken eyes, grey skin, half bald.. she looks like a corpse with a tail.

I look away as the demon is dragged into the water.

"H-how?"

Tavarious grins, "it's a glamour.. the water shows false beauty, it helps the mermaids in their hunt."

"What if someone is already beautiful?"

Tavarious looks at me curiously, "I don't know.. no one down here is beautiful, inside or out."