Chapter 6
Unseen Monsters
"Huuuuh."
I opened my eyes, to see Brayan kneeling in his cage. He was gasping for breath. A Dragon stood beside him and dug the claws on his feet into Brayan's side.
"Stop it!" I screamed at him.
The Dragon jerked his head in my direction and glared at me. A smile slowly played across his lips, and he watched me shudder as he kicked again. He delighted in my disgust, and I knew I should not show it. I stood straighter and quickly spoke to the Dragon.
"What do you want!"
He laughed right out loud, and said,"I'm just following orders."
He laughed as he kicked Brayan in the side again. After a few more kicks, I could take it no more. I threw myself against the door of my cage and let the metal rip into my skin. Over and over again. I would get to him, I would stop that awful Dragon. Clyte ran into the room, looking alarmed. He saw me throwing myself into the door and yelled.
"No! You will damage yourself! Stop! You're hurting yourself! Clahire, stop her! My prize will not kill herself!"
The Dragon named Clahire ran to my cage. He fumbled with his keys and unlocked the door. I jerked my body to the back of the cage and whinnied. He jumped and leaped for me.
"You didn't have to," Brayan told me.
"Yeah, I did."
"No, you didn't!"
I shrugged and lay my head back on the wire floor of my cage. It was after the incident. My legs were tied, and I was lying on the floor. Brayan wasn't tied up, but he was bruised and cut. We were arguing about whether I needed to injure myself or not.
"Please, teach me to form a Centaur."
"You do know what they are, don't you?" asked Brayan.
I nodded, and told him what a centaur was. "A centaur is a horse up to its shoulders. Then, where its neck should be is a person, from the waste of a human up."
He smiled and nodded his head. "You must picture a centaur. The horse part should be the color of your unicorn body. The person part should look like when you were a human, or you can make a new one if you've never been a human."
I took a deep breath and focused on my human self. I imagined a Centaur that looked like me, but like the Unicorn I was also. When I opened my eyes, I saw hands. I was beautiful! I had an orange shirt on, and a pony tail in my hair. I had my tan and pretty face. My hair was still brown, and my eyes were a light blue. I laughed, I was so happy. I quickly untied the ropes around my hooves and stood. It was a little awkward, standing on four legs with half my human body. I looked over at Brayan, my eyes sparkling with tears of joy.
"You are truly beautiful," he remarked.
"Thank you!"
I was so happy. I could speak with my own mouth and be half human and half Unicorn. He slowly changed to a Centaur, and he looked handsome. I told him so, and he blushed.
"Oh, it shows when you're embarrassed as a human, doesn't it."
I laughed and told him yes. He laughed also and told me it tickled his throat. I laughed again, and he laughed with me. We heard footsteps coming towards the door, and we quickly changed back.
"They do not know we can change to Centaurs. You must never tell them," he said, when he was back in his Unicorn form.
I nodded and lay down again. I had taken a drama class, so I was good at acting. I acted like I was sleeping. I took deep, slow breaths and lay very still. A Dragon entered the room and looked around. He walked up and down the room and looked at each of us once more. Then he shrugged and walked out. I had closed my eyes halfway and was able to see what he was doing. Brayan had left his eyes all the way closed, so I told him what the Dragon had done.
He nodded and said,"I'll keep my eyes half open next time. Come on, we need some sleep."
I lay my head down on the floor again and closed my eyes. Having Brayan in the same room was a comfort.
I tried to sleep, but sleep did not come. I finally stood and walked to the door of my cage.
"What's wrong?" asked Brayan.
"Nothing. I can't sleep, so I decided to come to the door," I told him.
He stood in the dark room and squinted at the torch. "Wish they'd give us more light in here."
He sighed and shook his head. Then we slowly changed to Centaurs.
"I never knew any of these creatures were real. I mean, I always believed they were, but I was starting to doubt. I guess Quint sensed my doubting and came to get me before I no longer believed." I sighed and shook my head.
He peered at me through the darkness and stuck his fingers in the small holes of the cage. "I also started as a human. I was rescued only two weeks ago. I was told that we are the only humans made Unicorns. I don't think the Unicorns would lie, and I trust them with my life. So, I guess we are the only human/Unicorns."
I nodded and imagined the world with Unicorns and humans living together.
Shaking my head again I said,"It wouldn't work with many people. We have to be old enough to choose, but we need to be young enough to still believe."
I saw tears in his eyes as he said,"Yes. Quite a shame."
I nodded and wiped my eyes with my hands. I stepped forward a few steps and looked at him through my cage. He did the same, and we gazed at each other for a few minutes. He blinked, and I giggled.
"I win! You blinked!" I whispered.
He laughed, and I shushed him. He covered his mouth with his hand and turned away. He was bursting with laughter but was trying to contain himself. He finally turned back after regaining his composure.
"I'll try to stay quiet. Isn't it amazing that we are having contests like this in the enemy's cave?"
"Yes, it is amazing. We are still so childish. I only hope we do not give in to these Dragons. I will stay brave as I can be. How about you?"
"Yes, I will too," he replied.
I glanced to the door and turned back to my corner. "We need to save our energy for the torture. We best get to sleep, whether we can or not."
"Yes, that would be a good idea," he said as he turned back to Unicorn.
I slowly changed back and lay in my corner. I was very tired and found myself drifting off to sleep.
"Aaaaahhh!" I screamed.
The foot in my side woke me. The Dragon pulled his foot back and got ready to kick me again. I jumped up, and reared, bumping my head on the top of my cage. I fell to the ground, and my hooves scrabbled against the stone and wire floor of the cage. I got to a standing position, just as Clyte walked in the room and the Dragon ran out of my cage.
"Good morning," he said simply.
I glared at him and squeezed as far to the back of my cage as I could get.
"Do not be afraid. We have a lot to do today."
I looked over at Brayan who was already awake. I shuddered. The Dragon ran into my cage and bridled me. I had no time to fight him. It was the silver bridle, I had to obey. He put one on Brayan next, and Brayan also had to obey.
"Great, another bridle. How many more does this...., guess I better not call him anything yet," Brayan muttered.
Clyte laughed at Brayan and snapped his fingers. I walked forward, still battling with my mind whether to walk forward or run backward. I slowly followed his command. Brayan was having more difficulty. He was turning half way back, then following Clyte, then turning back again. I finally stopped resisting and just followed.
We walked into the grassland and toward the door leading to the tunnel. The Dragon opened the door and led us into the tunnel. Then he ran back to where Clyte was and shut the door after him. We followed the Dragon down the tunnel and out to the mouth of the cave. He led us to the Main Room and on to a side door. In that room were dogs. Thirty dogs, all chained to different stone pillars. They growled, snarled, and barked. Each one had foam around their mouths. Clyte began speaking nonchalantly.
"These are our dogs. They each have a name, but all have the same name. Hunter!"
At the sound of their names, the dogs went crazy. Slashing the air, barking, foaming and growling. They jumped at us, despite the chains holding them back. Each dog came within three feet of reaching us and was jerked back by the chain.
"Yes, Hunter is the name of every dog here. At one word, they would chew you to bits. Now, come, we have another something we'd like you to meet."
We walked slower, not wanting to see what was ahead. The Dragon stopped and turned around. He walked back to the door and waited there. Clyte kept walking down the long hall with dogs on each side. Dog after dog, pillar after pillar. We finally came to a small door. It was just big enough for a Dragon to fit through. We walked to it, and Clyte raised his hand into the air. A key dropped out of nowhere, and he unlocked the door. We followed him inside and were amazed. Inside this room were twenty Unicorns. Each one was standing sturdy and strong. They smiled at us. The strange thing was, they also smiled at Clyte and bowed to him. There was no look of fear on Brayan's face, and none on mine either. I walked slowly beside Brayan, glancing at each Unicorn as we passed them. At the end of the row of Unicorns, we stopped at another door. I closed my eyes but had to force them open again. I would face whatever was next without fear. Or at least, without showing fear. Clyte opened the door and revealed dozens of little Unicorns. They were all playing and having the time of their lives. Brayan's face was filled with horror, but I kept my face expressionless. We walked amongst the Unicorns and came to another door. Clyte opened the door and revealed the most amazing thing I'd ever seen. It was the Lock Ness monster. We walked into the room, and Clyte introduced us. Clyte took the silver bridles off and nodded his head. The creature bowed to Clyte. Clyte nodded again and walked out the door, shutting it behind him. We were left in the huge, dark, damp room with the giant creature. He was at least ten times taller than us.
"Look like a snake to you? Yes, of course I do. A giant snake, with legs, and spikes down my back and tail." He laughed at us, even though I had no expression on my face. "Didn't think I was real, did you?" He talked in a scratchy voice and slowly enunciated each word correctly.
"I believed in you," I told him.
"Yes, of course you did. Only those who believe will see. You would not have seen me, Dajons, Dragons, Unicorns or even the Treons if you had not believed."
"I've not seen Treons yet," Brayan said.
The monster eyed me curiously, then did the same to Brayan. "You'll meet them soon enough." He extended a hand to a small table. We walked to it, and stood beside it. "Alright, what do you want to know about me?"
I thought hard, trying to come up with a question. Just as I came up with a question, Brayan asked his.
"Why do you come up sometimes and at other times stay totally under the water?"
The monster sat back and leaned against the big stone wall. "Good question. Very good question. I like to keep peoples hopes alive. But I do not want anyone capturing me. I could stay in here the whole time, but what fun would that be? I like to see if the humans believe in us ‘fairy tale creatures'."
It was my turn to ask a question, and I took it. "Why do you only go to the Lock Ness?"
He laughed. "Well, every Dragon, Unicorn or monster has a special place to be spotted. Strange creatures are found in all parts of the world. Even ones like Werewolves and zombies. Well, zombies aren't real, but some people think they are. These creatures are discovered but not captured. There are some places a creature is spotted, and that place becomes popular because of the creature. I chose somewhere totally unexpected, and this is what I got. Tons of publicity and lots of researchers." He sat back and sighed, as if he were content with his answer. His eyes began to droop as he said,"Walk to the door at the right wall. Go through it." His head fell to his chest, and he slept.
Both of us quickly changed to Centaurs and walked cautiously to the door. Brayan opened it slowly. Dozens of Werewolves jumped at us but suddenly pulled back.
"Sorrrrry. We didn't know it was you," they growled.
The Werewolves all smiled, showing their teeth. They pulled us into their room and shut the door quietly. We assumed our Unicorn forms.
"We werrre told guests werrrre coming. But we did not expect you so soon. Come, sit on these comfy furrr rrrugs."
They growled at each ‘r' they hit in a word. We looked at each other and shrugged as best a Unicorn can shrug. I followed the Werewolves to one corner, while Brayan followed them to a corner opposite me. Fifty Werewolves surrounded Brayan and fifty surrounded me.
"I believed you were real, but it's so cool to see you all in real life!" I told them.
They all grinned their human/canine grins. They glanced at one another and nodded their heads.
"I was starting to doubt that any of you existed. I am sorry for doubting," I continued.
They nodded solemnly, and a Werewolf stood. He was the only fully brown Werewolf in the group.
"We do not have many that believe. Therrrre arrrre some crrrreaturrres that arrrrre not rrrreal. Such as, ghosts, vampirrres, mummies, zombies, and The Incredible Hulk. I'm surrrre you believed in a few of these, but just because you believed in them didn't make them rrrreal. You could have believed in the bogy man and neverrrr seen him. Know why? Cause he wasn't rrrrreal eitherrrr. Only about half of the strrrange sightings and crrrreaturrrres in the world are rrreal. Please keep this in mind."
The rest of the group nodded, keeping half their attention on me and the other half on the brown Werewolf.
"Oh, and my name is Frun. The rest do not have names. We call this group the Frunny group. They just come when called. We call them by numbers. This one on my left is called 3908. He is a fine fellow, he is."
'3908 stood, nodded his head and sat back down.
Frun turned his attention back to me and said,"Please, tell us about yourself. We always want to know new things."
I nodded and thought of what I would tell them.
"Tell us of your world. Only a choice few have been there. Including me, but I've been there only twice. We are usually kept in this room."
I nodded and began to explain the grass, trees and dirt. We went on like that for three hours. Finally, exhausted, I told them it'd be best if I'd get going. They all nodded sadly and each one rose to their feet. They filed past, grinning and shaking my hand. I grinned back and walked to another door.
Brayan walked over to me, and he slowly said,"We might as well assume human form. The Dragons know of our skills from the other Unicorns, no doubt, and we need to stay comfortable."
"I thought we couldn't change back!"
"Yes, but only for five hours. We automatically change back to Unicorn after five hours. I did not tell you, because I did not feel you needed to know."
I sighed and would have thrown my hands in the air with irritation, except I wasn't human. I looked at him and watched him slowly turn to human. I also turned human, and I opened the door. Inside this door were strange green dog-like creatures. Each looked in our direction and immediately ran to our sides. They whimpered just like dogs and barked. They led us to two human chairs. We sat in the wooden chairs and watched the creatures scurry around.
"We are the Treons. We look like dogs and usually act like dogs. The only difference is, we're shape shifters. We can change to anything or anyone. Only living forms above the size of a mouse though."
We nodded our heads and waited for the Treons to continue.
"Is our form fine for now? Do we scare you at all?"
I shook my head. The treons sighed and kept talking.
"Well, that's good. Usually a talking dog would make anybody freak. But, teens have a lot of freaky things going on now a days." He chuckled to himself and walked up to us, carrying a bowl in his drool covered mouth.
"Could you please get a cleaner form to serve us with?" I asked the dog.
He dropped the bowl and stared at me.
"Or not," I said quickly.
He glared at me and trotted off into another room. He quickly came back with two pieces of beef jerky in his mouth. "Stick these in your pockets. Maybe you'll be more grateful when you're starving!" he yelled, glaring at us.
Then he walked to a door and pressed a small button with his paws. The door opened, and I stared at Brayan. He stared at me, and we shrugged at the same time. Taking a piece of beef jerky each, we stuffed the pieces in our pockets and walked to the door. Once inside, the door slammed shut. Brayan stared wide eyed at a huge shadow on the floor. The room was lit by hundreds of torches, but one corner stayed dark. Our eyes quickly adjusted to the brightness of the room. The rest of the rooms had been very dim, and this was much brighter.
"Ummmm... hello?" Brayan was trying to get the creature to respond.
I said hello to it, and it still did not answer. I looked at Brayan, he looked at me. Two human kids, standing in front of a huge creature we could not identify and that would not speak. Suddenly, with a great shake of the ground, the creature stood. It stepped into the light, and we stared wide eyed at it. Standing before us was a Cyclops.
"Wow! You are real!" I squealed in delight.
He laughed out loud and gently scooped us into his huge hand. "Yes! Very real! Hahahahahah!"
Brayan laughed with me and the huge Cyclops.
"What is your name?" I asked it.
"Clarence. I am Clarence Hobber. I do not scare you?"
"Oh no. I've read of you Cyclops' in books. I know that you mean no harm."
Brayan gathered his courage and said,"I have wanted to see one of you my whole life! All fifteen years of it!"
The giant laughed and laughed. Brayan laughed with joy and hugged the Cyclops' thumb.
"And what are your names?"
"My name's Brian! At least, as a human it is." He hugged the Cyclops' thumb even tighter and let his tears soak into the gentle hand.
"My name's Sarah, at least as a human it is," I told him.
He smiled and said sweetly,"I shall remember that Princess. You do know that is what Sarah means, don't you?"
"Yes, but I never thought I'd be called princess," I giggled to myself, and the Cyclops' eyes grew moist with tears.
"You must go. I have many things to do this day, and thanks to you Princess and your friend, it will be a good day. I am sorry to see you go so soon, but you must. Good bye." He set us on the floor with the gentlest of hands and wiped tears from his eyes.
"Good bye friend!" Brayan or Brian and I said together.
The Cyclops' burst into tears of happiness, not something you would expect from such a large and imposing form. "We are friends! Good bye friends!"
I wiped tears from my eyes and walked to a door. Brian followed slowly, reluctantly. I let him open the door, and we stepped into the next room, pulling the door shut behind us.
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