There was not a wide arrange of ways a Ruler such as Cathay could 'unwind' as mankind would put it. When she assumed the throne of Lord of the Depths, not only did she acquire the power befitting such a title but also the responsibilities that came with it. Responsibilities that her predecessor shamefully tarnished. The previous lord, his name stricken from the cosmos, was more a beast than he was a king. He valued strength and only listened to those who shared his views. Such pride was ultimately his downfall. His killer was someone he had grossly underestimated, and that cost the tyrant his life.
But even if it was Gilah who delivered the killing blow that did not take away from Cathay's right to rule.
Even if she took the throne in the leviathan's stead, Gilah having no desire to rule, Cathay was plenty powerful by the time she ascended. Though she had not shared her dear ally’s nature as a natural predator of the divine, the corpses she made were more than enough to earn her a widely feared reputation. She was a butcher even before the Depth's most feared one was born.
When she spoke, creatures obeyed. From the monstrosities of the Depths to the mind-breaking horrors found at the furthest corners of space. There was nothing that dared question her; not before she became a Ruler and even less so after. Recent events, however, had begun to test her patience. Gilah and Jason aside, the advent of humans mating with creatures far beyond their power has been going on longer than she would have liked.
It was simple at first and easily managed without any direct intervention. One such incident involved a human sailor who had managed to earn the favor of a young leviathan. Far from the beast that their mother was, yet still more than enough to maim even the strongest ape. Instead of disposing of the primate, they let him live his life on some island hidden in the Pacific. Already, that was problematic for their kind. Worse still was when Cathay learned that the young leviathan had become smitten.
That alone should have been cause enough for Cathay to exterminate all three, but thanks to some sway from an adviser in the Atlantic region of Earth's ocean they were allowed to live.
Cathay had hoped that was the end of the end, but no. Not just the Leviathans in the Pacific, not just her closest ally in the Depths, but cosmic destroyers as well. Beings who weren't even under her command yet still knew well not to tempt her ire. And yet in some no-name town found in the middle of nowhere, one such destroyer had chosen a human as their mate. It was getting to the point that Cathay had considered, on more than one occasion, hunting down any who still coveted a human lover and taking care of the issue before it got out of hand.
A single, simple thought would be all it took to eradicate the issue. A genocide that stretched from the sea and expanded into the stars. But then she'd be under the eyes of her fellow Rulers. And then she'd have a whole new set of issues to contend with.
It was all so frustrating. At her fingertips, Cathay had enough power to eradicate life on a scale undreamt of. Of the tyrants that existed in creation she was one of the most powerful, and yet when she wished to exercise her power to do away with an ever-growing headache, instead she was forced to cull her irritation. It had forced her hand in searching for.... alternative methods to calm her nerves. While she couldn't do away with those who gave her a never-ending stream of issues, there were still ways even one such as her could relax.
A small walk across the surface of a planet that's been a thorn in her side for quite some time. Then again, to refer to it as a thorn would be undeserved kindness. It was more akin to an annoyance; an itch she’s allowed to persist. That was a far more apt comparison.
A civilization thousands of generations more advanced than mankind, living upon a planet hundreds of times the size of Earth. They were one of the few races who have managed to find an opening in Cathay's domain and had even succeeded in killing a few beasts from the Depths. Nothing too serious, however. Whelps, sea pups, and nothing more. But even the death of those gnats was enough to make them a proud and arrogant race.
Cathay's favorite, if she were being honest. The realization of trillions, as they came to understand their place in the universe, was always a delicious treat.
Her arrival was sudden, likened to a flash of lightning that cracked open the crust of the planet. She didn't even need to use an opening into the Depths to arrive. A simple thought and she was already there, in a form far larger than she may have needed for experimentation like this. Cathay's avatars ranged wildly in size, with some being nearly as small as the average human while others towered over the tallest of skyscrapers. Rare were the instances where they came close to matching her natural size. A form that was so large It proved more than enough to blanket hundreds of billions in her shadow.
The form she possessed now was greater than even that and were it not for her control over reality the planet would have surely perished a dozen times over after only a few soft steps.
Or at least they were soft to her. To the planet’s population, they must have been nature-defying rumbles that shook the world to its core. And this was still far from Cathay exerting any sort of effort on her power. At most, turning her normally serpentine lower half into a pair of humanesque legs was more difficult than dealing with creatures that could hardly be registered as insects to her. In fact, everything about this form of hers was made to appear pleasing to the eyes, even if a wide majority of the population was currently tearing theirs out.
Cathay’s normally green skin was restructured to give it a more pale and silvery shine. Still, she allowed her old patches of green to sneak through in the way of scales that covered her arms. Her tentacled, and at times seemingly living hair, now resembled long locks of emerald, green. Wings that once heralded the doom of any who earned her ire had been shrunken down to a more manageable level at rested comfortably around her shoulders, draping over them like a cape. Lastly, the tyrant’s once rather bare body had been covered with a finely crafted dress. One that matched her restructured hair and was littered with golden trinkets. The one thing not of her design was the manicured nails of her fingers and toes, both painted to match her hair and dress.
They were handled personally, by one of the sources of her headaches. Still, Jason had done a fairly acceptable job for an ape. It was enough for her to alter her form to best suit their kept state.
It all worked to give Cathay a terrifying beauty that was outshined only by the obscene power she demonstrated. Across the planet, she basked in the lovely screams that filled her ears with euphoria. It brought back memories of old when such screams were common in her younger days. When she was actually feared not just by mortal kind but by those who grasped onto their divinity for power. Allowing herself this reprieve, from what was very well centuries of disobedience, was worth any risk that may come her way.
The dark goddess raised her foot over a continent, the shadow she cast from the simple act more than enough to envelope all beneath her in a darkness so profound it almost hid away the horror above. But even if her face was obscured, both by her sole and breasts, every single one of the planet’s population could see expression. Even those blinded by their actions to free themselves of their sight were witness to her lips curling upward and her fiery eyes narrowing. Cathay was enjoying every moment of this. Their screams, their pleas, and praises. All they did was cry for mercy.
Mercy that would never come as, even now, they were only viewed as toys. No, less than that. Momentary distractions from the Ruler’s sacred duties. On a whim, Cathay lowered her big toe over so softly on what was most likely a city. Grander than many within the cosmos, larger too, yet still no more than a speck that was quickly crossed off the face of the world. Though the motion of her foot couldn’t have amounted to little more than a love tap, the force with which the tyrant placed the extremity upon the city was still enough to crush it in its entirety. Hundreds of millions, in that one city, were silenced in an instant.
A chill ran up Cathay’s spine. A blush fell on the titan’s cheeks as the world plummeted into silence, news came in about the sudden eradication of the city. The mad, terrified, and even the previously doubtful all tried to process what it was that just happened. Some tried to find a reason for what just happened. Others fled to family members or friends, wishing to spend their last day together. The most manic among the numbers made things worse for those around them, believing the impossible force before their eyes required sacrifice so that they may not bring destruction to the beautiful world they called home.
Worthless, every single one of them. All that mattered of them was the breaking of their spirits and bodies.
“Perhaps I made myself too big?” The dark goddess wondered. “I could hardly feel their bodies give.” She made a mental note to ensure that she felt the next step she took.
Despite their hopeless situation, some on the surface still fought back. Though the minds of trillions broke at the sight of the Tyrant, with only a few million worldwide maintaining control of their senses, there were still plenty who believed resistance against the impossible was the answer to their plight. As if by fighting back they’d spare themselves the coming genocide.
Once again, worthless. But what harm was there in playing along with such delusions? So it was that when the planet did fight back, Cathay did nothing to prevent it.
They fired everything in some vain attempt to repel the all-powerful deity. It didn’t matter the absurdity behind their motives, or their delusion that, by some chance, there’d be a tomorrow for them. They fought for the fate of their world. A fate that, by all accounts, was no longer in their hands. By way of such logic, those who thought to fight back were perhaps more insane than those who plucked out their teeth and dug into their scalps.
Cathay could feel the heat of thousands of powerful weapons, all firing into the heel of her foot. Armaments of such power that they humbled even the most advanced of mankind’s plans. From rays of light designed to extinguish stars to mechanical, god-slaying weapons, once a secret and now revealed, they unleashed everything they had in the hopes of turning away the force that had chosen their world for genocide. Power fit to conquer solar systems harmlessly collided against the bottom of Cathay’s lower foot. Light flooded the vision of any unfortunate enough to still see. To the utter horror of those who thought to strike back against the inevitable, the light remained. Almost as though the coalescence of energies above had been forced to a standstill. One moment passed, followed by another, as second by second the light above grew not just dimmer, but smaller as well.
The light meant to save them condensed, becoming almost solid as an outside power molded the properties of the countless explosions into a singular force that suited a new purpose. With a snap of her fingers, Cathay urged the light upward, and with it any light that was still upon the planet. Color faded away, leaving behind only gray, black, and white, as the source of the world’s illumination continued to climb beyond their reach.
“You really thought a small little flicker was worth my time?” Cathay’s voice rang out in the mind of those she tormented, sounding almost disappointed by their paltry attempt at resistance. It was betrayed by her still-growing smile and the realization that she knew they could never harm her sunk it. The goddess brought her heel down, snuffing out the remainder of the continent that had a front-row view of the destruction she brought. This time, she felt every individual pop of those she killed. Her wings unfurled and fluttered at the sensation. For a brief moment, the veins within glowed red to match her eyes and blushing cheeks.
Ecstasy. This was pure ecstasy. Destruction was the nature of many born naturally within the Depths. From the smallest monstrosity to a supreme being like herself, few lacked a desire for annihilation. Even in her reign, far more restrained than that of the previous lord, Cathay did not deny her people their thirst for calamity, nor did she deny herself the taste of carnage. Though she was more contained when compared to her kin, she was still a natural born of the Deep Wastes. Just as Gilah was. Just as a thousand other horrors she knew were. There was no escaping it. In the end, they could only accept their nature. Only then would they be able to find some semblance of peace in their conflict-heavy life.
Cathay ground her foot into the continent a few more times to ensure none survived, as unlikely as it may have been. A few more pops and a chill up her spine meant that she had made the right call.
Lifting her foot, the goddess viewed her handiwork with glee. What once was a collection of marvelous cities, a small piece of civilization when compared to the titanic planet, was now nothing more than a wasteland devoid of any sort of life. No silence followed this time. Instead, panic became even more rampant as all over the world, leaders of these advanced countries took further action against the tyrant. She could hear the commands being given. When the firepower of a collection of cities wasn’t enough, now the entire globe would fire against her.
“You know nothing you do will work, right?” Her voice rang out with reckless abandon, destroying ear drums and glass structures alike. Still, the population that managed to claw onto their sanity did not listen. So stubborn. So proud. Really, Cathay was doing the cosmos a favor in wiping them out. If anything, a destroyer would have come along and done away with them in time. Or perhaps even a high dragon who felt insulted by their presence and thought it best to turn their world into glass and fashion the remains into some accessories.
“Actually…. that doesn’t sound half bad.” Looking at the jewelry upon her dress now, Cathay wondered what the planet might look like as a bracelet, or perhaps an earring. Maybe even an anklet. “Oh, or a piercing for my tongue!” The thought of subjecting the world to an eternity of her salivating maw was almost too good to pass up. But no, it’d be none of that. She came out with the intention of obliteration, and so obliteration was what would be delivered.
Though, the use of her mouth did give rise to an idea.
Cathay stretched her hand outwards, immediately followed by entire portions of the ground being torn off and rising into the air. Whole swathes of land from every corner of the globe came to a halt before coming together into the palm of the tyrant’s hand. They collided and condensed, smoothing over as the structure coming together took on a spherical form. Patches of metal, plant life, and even sea water made up the structure’s mass, before finally it was completed to barely resemble the planet Cathay was on. Not her best work, but the technological advancement of the species here had taken away much of the world’s natural resources. It did little to affect the purpose of the object, which she felt held comfortably between her fingers. But she always preferred a more ‘natural’ appearance to her creations.
Still, it would do just fine for what she had planned.
Once more, she beckoned the light that once belonged to this world towards her, having it rest beside the structure she had crafted. It shined brightly over the faux planet, acting as a source of warmth and comfort that was denied to the denizens forced to watch the display of power. And just as swiftly as it arrived was it also extinguished once Cathay clamped her teeth around the light’s surface. As befitting its strange makeup, the light didn’t give right away almost as if it had a surface that kept it protected from the assault of the titanic teeth. But the tyrant’s goal wasn’t destruction for the light she so carefully crafted. Instead, she rolled it in between her teeth before wrapping her tongue around its width. The light sizzled against the pink muscle before getting dragged within the waiting maw.
When it vanished, so did the remainder of the colorless world. Whatever light came was through the red glow of the Ruler’s wings and eyes. They shined brighter than any star and gave way to a horror greater than words allowed. The light that was dragged past Cathay’s lips was taken even deeper with an audible gulp. That was hardly worthy of concern now, however, as beyond the planet’s atmosphere there was…nothing.
There was no sky or colorless stars, no sun, or clouds; instead, there was only endless darkness. A vast expanse of oblivion that stared back quite literally. Cathay’s wings unfurled further, and with it came eyes within the void, blood red and large enough to fit the globe in their iris. Cathay was extremely glad to have taken this time for herself. Goodness knows she’s earned it. Her mood had improved considerably; to such a point that she deemed it fine to show these lucky inhabitants of this doomed world a neat trick of hers.
“Now, you’re going to want to pay close attention to this next part,” Cathay instructed. There were quite a few methods with which she could have ended things. She could have grown large and crushed the planet between her fingers or grown larger still and wipe out the whole system with a simple breath. “Because you won’t get a second chance to~.”
She could have conjured herself a weapon and plunged it into the world’s core, letting nature take care of the rest.
Instead, Cathay wished to indulge herself further, and this particular method was perhaps one of her favorites.
The dark goddess’s snake-like tongue breached her lips once more, wrapping around the faux planet. They were salivating even more than before, lubricating the structure and somehow with it the planet itself. From the void came drops of what could only be saliva from the dark goddess, reality upended all so that she may enjoy this method of execution to its fullest. Cathay couldn’t recall the last time she did this and only knew that she had resorted to this out of anger rather than desire, to exterminate one of her own. A lesser ruler who had overstepped their boundaries.
Using this sliver of creation, which was of her design, in this sort of manner was far more pleasurable. She bit into the structure, and when it cracked so too did the world. When her canines tore into her creation they dug into the planet as well, creating craters of unfathomable proportions. Still, she allowed the planet to retain its shape even after she tore off a sizeable chunk of its surface. It was like biting into a sweet piece of candy.
Upon her tongue, she could feel the writhing of the hundreds of billions she had just condemned. Not their bodies, those were fed to the darkness around her. What she could taste was their souls, their beings. All that they ever were and could have been had she never arrived. It was an indescribable feeling. The ultimate flavor. It was almost enough to make her want to take things a step further. To force this construction, and by extension the world, in between her legs. To drown them in a flood of her essence. One fit to dwarf those known by mankind in their own ancient texts.
But that would have to wait. There was a special planet, the source of all her issues, that she was saving for just such an occasion. So she bit into the construct once more, bringing further ruin in her wake. All the while she envisioned another world between her teeth. One far more deserving of this sort of calamity than this soon-to-be-forgotten civilization. The more she imagined it the less control she had over the planet she tormented, its form coming apart as she pictured Earth in its place. All the while, her lips continued to curl upwards into a devilish smile.
Her reprieve today had given her time to think. Too long had she been lax in her judgment on those who go against her orders. Too often had humans like Jason grown bold in their actions towards beings infinitely their greater. If anything else went against her commands, if either Gilah or Jason decided to go against her wishes, then there wouldn’t just be hell to pay.
Cathay would personally wipe out not just Earth but any being who had chosen a human as their mate
Maybe then she’d finally earn herself the respect she so rightfully deserved.
***
The sound of bones snapping tore Jason away from his slumber. He frantically searched his surroundings, trying desperately to see where he was. Instead, he only found himself in pitch-black darkness, with the only source of light he could see being a faint blue glow from both above and below. He tried to stand, only to find the ground he stood upon was soft and rather warm. What’s more, there was a rumble from within, rhythmic like a pattern. A beating of sorts. It was rather soothing, but he had already gotten enough sleep.
Jason believed he had grown used to the darkness. Down in the Depths, there was hardly any source of light with which one could use. He had grown accustomed to bioluminescence, and when that wasn’t in abundance he’d have to rely on his own adjusting eyesight. Yet, in his current location, he found himself unable to rely on either. Just where was he that disallowed the use of one’s vision?
Above him, the crunching resumed, even more, monstrous than before. Waves of strange blue liquids fell past him, so bright that it stood out even here. Along with the strange substance were what he could only assume to be chunks of meat. They carried the scent of iron despite their color, along with what may have been sulfur. A strange combination, yet one that gave him an idea as to what was happening. It didn’t take a genius to connect the dots and looking up he felt relief flood his body.
Above him, Gilah helped herself to what remained of some poor wretch who was unfortunate enough to cross her path. A beast that would have just as quickly made a meal of him. Instead, it was the one dined upon. The leviathan’s powerful jaws went to work in tearing the beast apart with horrifying ease, its bright blue blood staining her darkened chin. Due to the lack of light, Gilah was forced to alter her form, turning her normally pale skin the same black Jason had seen when she rearranged some stars for him. Thinking back prior, it became clear the sources of light he had seen were her hair, as well as scars that normally went hidden. In this form, however, they were presented for all to see.
Jason could not deny that there was a certain ‘allure’ to them. While Gilah didn’t much care for showing them and even preferred to keep them hidden from her little love when she could, he couldn’t deny that there was a strange beauty to them. Each one was a trophy, a reminder, of the strength she possessed, and he had no clue as to why she wished to conceal them.
Hundreds of gallons of bioluminescent blood continued to flow before the human, like some great, macabre waterfall, before finally, it ceased. An echoing gulp signaled the end of the leviathan’s meal, and her focus slowly turned toward Jason. Moments of silence followed, with Gilah’s bright, beautiful eyes meeting the human’s, as a shade of blue began to take over her cheeks.
“So…you enjoy your meal?”
The titan’s response was immediate, with both her hands coming to conceal her gore-filled mouth. Her sudden movements were such that Jason was forced to grab ahold of a strand of Gilah’s hair and position it so that he could firmly hold on. Desperately, the leviathan tried to wipe away the bright blue blood from her lips, only to further spread it across her face. Because of her skin’s current pigmentation, any imperfection she created was all the more visible. There was no hiding what she had done from her dear human.
When finally she understood the effort was pointless, the Titaness sulked. “How much of that did you see?”
“Just the end,” Jason said with a chuckle. “You know if you were hungry you could have told me. I’m sure I could have cooked something you’d like.”
A clear joke. Though Gilah wasn’t foreign to the concept of cooking, having even shown Jason a few dishes she liked to experiment with using ingredients found only in the depths, she much preferred the taste of raw meat. Though being so large meant that when hunger did hit, she’d need a large abundance of food, and there was just no way Jason could cook a meal fit for someone of her size and appetite. Still, even if it was meant to be a joke, Gilah couldn’t help but smile at the thought.
Her and Jason, enjoying a meal together. An actual meal, not her cutting the flesh off of some eldritch monstrosity, hoping the taste is to his liking. One where she was around his size, able to be spoon fed, or spoon feed him in turn. The thought alone was enough to turn the shade of blue upon her cheek even deeper. Unfortunately, it was only a passing thought as the longer Gilah looked upon Jason the more she realized that, if her nature continued to hinder such a future, it would only ever be a dream. What happened on the surface, what happened to the people on the pier, was all too clear of a reminder of the danger she posed. Not just to mankind as a whole, not just to the cosmos, but to her dear human as well.
Were she ever to harm Jason, physically or otherwise, then there’d be no going back for her. She’d lose her anchor, the one thing keeping her from returning to her old ways. It was already difficult, as is, to keep herself under control and so far only the thought of keeping her love safe was the key to her restraint. Gilah needed him, in more ways than he could imagine. One day, she hoped to tell him just how important he was to her.
“So, where are we exactly?” the human finally asked, now noticing that his titanic lover had her thoughts elsewhere. Though his vision was still poor here, and the only thing he could see were the blue lights emanating off of his girlfriend, Jason had the suspicion that they were being watched. It was unnerving, and he only remained to stay as calm as he was thanks to being so close to Gilah.
“It feels dry here,” he added. They were out of water, and not a lick of moisture could be felt in the air, though Jason found that he could breathe just fine. “Are we somewhere on the surface? You know Cath will kill us both if we are, right?”
“We aren’t on the surface,” the leviathan assured. “We’re still in the Depths. We’re just…a bit further away from any place you may know. Really, I was hoping you’d stay asleep for the entire walk. I even put a spell on you to make sure you slept soundly.”
“That why you thought you could get away with a quick meal?” the human remarked, earning a small chuckle from his significant other.
“I’ve been walking for some time. Think I earned myself a little snack.”
If that’s what she considered a snack, then Jason shuddered to see what she’d call a meal. “Wait, you said walking? Does that mean…” the human looked down from his perch, past Gilah’s generous chest, and towards a pair of towering and athletic legs. He could just barely see the outline of them, along with their scars. What caught his attention, however, were the tight shorts that Gilah was wearing. those certainly weren’t part of any type of fashion seen in the Depths, most creatures preferring to go bare. In fact, she may have been one of the few who actually wore any sort of cloth.
Gilah caught him looking, a new, prideful smile, crossing her lips. “Like what you se-”
“Hey, is that a tail?”
The smile vanished when she realized that Jason was pointing towards a stub on her tailbone, the remnants of her tail. She was hoping he’d pay attention to other aspects of her body rather than that. In truth, she took the time to find something that fit around her legs just so that he WOULDN’T notice it.
“Really? I got legs as tall as skyscrapers and yet that’s what you’re focusing on?”
“I can’t help it. It just looks so adorable.”
Though it was embarrassing, Gilah still found enjoyment in Jason’s amusement. “Yes, it’s a tail. I’m not as good at changing my body like Cathay so I couldn’t get rid of the stub. But really, is there nothing else you wanna notice?” for further emphasis, Gilah placed a hand on her thigh as she flexed her leg. “Nothing at all?”
It had been centuries since she last used her legs. At the very least she wanted to hear some sort of compliments.
Jason was quick to realize this, whistling as she lifted her leg slightly. The leviathan’s body was athletic enough to put any human to shame, and there was no doubt in his mind that Gilah could lift her leg well past her head. He even clapped his hands a few times as she continued to lift her leg, up until Jason could see her toes.
“Very impressive dear. You are the envy of the Depths.”
Gilah dropped her leg before bowing, all the while making sure Jason was properly secured. “Why thank you very much.”
The two shared a laugh before Gilah fell silent once more, trying to retain her smile. Though she was glad to have her beloved awake she had also hoped he would have stayed asleep. Though she was powerful, spells weren’t always her strongest suit. That was perhaps why Jason had woken up earlier than anticipated. Things would have been so much easier had he remained unconscious.
“You still didn’t answer my question,” Jason recalled. Though he enjoyed the ‘show’ presented to him, as well as the laughs that came with it, he still had no clue as to where the two of them were heading. “If this is still in the Depths, then how come it feels so dry? Where are we exactly?”
Questions Gilah wished she could answer straight away, but words could only explain so much of what the leviathan wished to show rather than tell. There were only so many words in the human language which could explain all that she’s done, and even then that’d never amount to half of the atrocities she’s committed. No, if Gilah wanted a chance at moving forward then she needed to show Jason who exactly she was.
“Before, when I asked you if you thought I was a monster, I’m sorry. It was unfair of me to put you in that spot without any sort of prior knowledge.” Had he known who she was truly, then perhaps Jason would have changed the way he saw her. “So, I wanna try again. But this time I want you to learn more about…me; about who I am.”
The pair came to a stop and in the distance, great pillars of light could be seen. They shot upward, reaching higher than they had any right to. They lined what must have been walls, creating a sort of dome. And though the light was still faint, Jason would have sworn that he saw things moving in the dark.
“I already told you, you’re not a monster.” Jason rebuked. If this was an attempt to make him rethink his previous answer then he’d have none of it. He already spoke his mind, there was no changing that.
Even then, the leviathan was dead set. “Well…we’ll just have to see if you still think the same in a bit.”
Gilah bent down, forcing Jason to hold on tighter to her strand of hair. Through the darkness she could see perfectly what it was she was reaching for. Untold tons of metal clanged together as the titaness picked what looked to be a chain up. She held it close, looking upon the metal links as old memories flooded her mind once more. To be hounded by them as she slept was one thing, but to see them even now was harrowing as well. Gilah wished to lie to herself and say that she could just walk away right now and forget this part of her life, but she knew she couldn’t.
Jason needed to see this. He needed to understand that there were risks to being close to someone like her.
With a heavy heart, she pulled at the great chain with all the might she could muster. Even centuries later, they still held up well, though she had long since outgrown them. As she tugged at them the pillars of light grew brighter and brighter, flooding the area with light, and it didn’t end there. The light traveled down the way they had come, now revealed to be a cavern so large it seemed to dwarf even Cathay’s avatars. From within, the pair could hear the wails of beasts, far more than just the beast Gilah had devoured.
“Are we…supposed to be here?” Jason was growing nervous, not just for his safety but for Gilah’s as well. She was strong, sure, but what they had heard sounded like an army of horrors.
Yet the leviathan remained undaunted and focused on her task. “If they know what’s good for them, they’ll remain where they are. Besides, it’s the ones up ahead you should be worried about.”
“The ones up ahead? What are you…HEY WAIT!” Before Jason knew what was happening, Gilah’s hand enveloped him. She didn’t apply any pressure and exercised extreme caution in handling the human. She held him close to her chest as she continued to pull at the chain, fully knowing that once it broke Jason would be in danger if he remained on her shoulder. Eventually, the chain did give way, snapping in the distance as the line went slack.
As it did, light flooded the area in its entirety, finally revealing what had been laid to rest, as well as the horrors which had waited in the dark. Beasts of various sizes and appearances, with some being less than half of Gilah’s height and others that towered over her. Some possessed wings, while others instead had extra limbs, heads, or tails. They all shared an ominous blue glow that seemed to emanate from within their bodies and only served to grow brighter once something had entered their territory.
Jason was fear-stricken. There must have been dozens of terrors here, maybe even more. But what terrified the small human most wasn’t the beasts themselves but rather what it was they dined on. Ancient flesh and bones of creatures far larger than even them acted as the walls of this massive chamber. Monsters that had been mutilated long before any horror present had arrived. It was unbelievable to think of the scale of some of them, and yet their corpses lined the walls, along with the bodies of a hundred others. The greatest among those numbers, however, lay at the very center of everything. A titan even among titans, its body ripped in half.
Great chains tore into its ancient flesh, the very same that Gilah had broken. This place almost seemed like a tomb, but the chains gave it a feeling more befitting a prison.
“Gilah, where did you bring me?” It felt like everything in this room was staring at him. All but the one who could actually keep him safe.
There was no way in which she could sugarcoat things. Gilah knew the risks that came with bringing Jason here. Beasts aside, this wasn’t really the most pleasant of locations to be in. But it was one she was unfortunately familiar with. These beasts, both those that eyed her lover and those in the caverns, were nothing more than Guards. Praetorians tasked with keeping in check their one prisoner. Now, after centuries since their departure, that very same individual had returned.
If they were able to, they’d ensure she never leave a second time.
Gilah seemed defeated in a way. Her hand shook as she felt a wave of fear wash over her. To be here again, to be around all that she had killed, brought ancient urges that she had once tried to cull. Even centuries old, the flesh strewn about here was enough to make her mouth water. She fought against any primal urge though, not wishing to act out on instinct. Not while Jason was close by. But still, the urge to dine on what was present was rising. It would take much to fight against it and looking down at her beloved it became clear that her internal struggle was obvious.
She forced a smile, trying her hardest to ease any worries Jason might be having. Despite her efforts, Gilah could see that he was terrified, though whether it was of her or the beasts around them she could not say. Even just looking at him was dangerous. He was so small, so vulnerable, that were she to waver in her struggle for even a moment it would, not could, cost him his life.
But he needed to see this, so that when she asked him next if he thought she was a monster there’d be no doubt of his response. Gilah wanted to know, more than anything, if he would accept her even then.
“This…is my home,” She told him. “And my prison”
If the worst was bound to happen then she’d do what would need to be done.