A Monster Life Ch. 91-93

He glimpsed the black shadow moving fast in front of him, then Rachael standing over Handil lying face down on the ground. The shadow flashed as it moved left and right while Rachael swung her staff at it. It jumped forward through Rachael, and she froze.

'Rach!' shouted Ulric, but he knew she couldn't hear him when she fell on her knees, and forward onto the ground next to her dead lover.

The yelp from Susi became too much. His blind rage took over completely. The still bodies from his bloodwolf daughter and Isazea barely added to it as he bolted fast at the shadow standing still ahead of him.

Kaui sat crying in front of it, and the shadow seemed to look back at him with completely black eyes and a gaze which went beyond evil. He snarled loud as he jumped at it with all his might while it tore open Kaui's chest.

'Wolfie!'

He burst from the ground with a sharp snarl at the sound of his girls calling out to him all at once. He growled fiercely as he looked around in darkness for his beloved ones with glowing red eyes.

Iphigenia reached her hand out to him. 'Wolfie! We're here.'

The red in his vision dissipated slowly as he looked in the direction of her voice, along with all the pain, sorrow, and hatred in his heart and mind. 'Iphi?' he growled.

She stepped up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. 'I'm here, Wolfie.' she whispered. 'We're all here.'

He pulled her tight while tears ran down his cheeks. 'You died. All of you died and I couldn't save you.'

Valdys stroked his ear. 'It was a nightmare, my love. That must be how that thing captured and killed the villagers while they were all alone out here in the forest like you.'

Ulric pulled her into his embrace, and kissed both of them. 'It was the most horrible thing I've ever experienced.'

Elzbieta smiled softly at him. 'It's over now, darling.'

He chuckled once. 'Not yet. Come here and let me kiss you all to make sure you're safe.'

Tipper rolled her eyes and averted them from Ulric holding his girls tight and kissing them. 'I've never seen anyone so desperate for their partner after a nightmare. I can't believe anyone can feel that way when they parade around with a harem.'

Ulric gave Susi another squeeze in his embrace, then moved to Tipper. She turned her head and looked up at his wide smile. 'What?' She yelped when he suddenly hugged her tight.

'I was sad and angry when you were killed as well.' he said softly.

She went silent for a couple of heartbeats as his pounded against her, then pushed as her cheeks turned red in embarrassment. 'That's nice and all but that doesn't mean you have to hug me this tight.'

He chuckled. 'So, it's all right when I hug you less tight?'

She stopped wriggling for a moment, then pushed again. 'No! No hugging of any kind! You're suffocating my in all your fur!'

He let her go while the others laughed, then turned to Rachael and Handil and hugged them at the same time. 'I saw you standing at Handil's side until the end, Rachael.' he whispered.

Handil felt proud of Rachael at his words, and held her a little tighter. 'I know she would.' she whispered.

He let go of them and Rachael put her arm around Handil's waist to hold her close, and he looked at Yingshien. She stepped back and crossed her arms. 'I find it insulting that you can imagine I would die at the hands of some dream monster.'

He chuckled. 'Then accept my sincerest apologies, and I hope the hurt I felt at that moment makes up for it.'

She looked away, wondering how her mother could think a demon with flaws like that was worthy of her trust, but she had little choice but to trust her wisdom. 'Fine.'

Valdys giggled. 'Well, now that we know how the shadow attacks, we'll have to think up a way to catch or kill it.'

Ulric nodded. 'But first I need something to eat.' he said and rubbed his stomach. 'All that rage made me hungry and I need more hugs.'

***

Muni gripped Coëllo's hand and a short spike at the edge of the crack, and looked up at her. 'Thanks.'

She smiled deviously at him. 'No problem. It's another win for me.'

'What? What's a win now?'

'I saved your life.'

He sighed deep. 'And I'm leading you along this dangerous route high above lava, which would have killed you already if it wasn't for my climbing skills.'

She sniggered. 'Says the one who fell.'

Muni groaned. 'Only because of the quake while I tested the route for you.'

Elyta blew a sharp whistle. 'Hey! Save this for when we're back on solid ground beneath our feet. I for one do not enjoy hanging from the ceiling with certain grilled death below me.'

Muni pulled himself up with Coëllo's help. 'The crack widened a little when the quake hit, so we'll keep on moving along the ceiling to be safer.'

They continued until they were far enough above the island in the lava lake, and Muni tied one end of a rope to a loop of stone. 'This should hold us.' he said, and dropped the rope. He grumbled as the end dangled high above the surface. 'It's too short. Do we have any rope left?'

Tarrence estimated the distance. 'We only have the one we secured ourselves with, but that should be long enough. We don't need it for our descent.'

They lowered along the rope, and Muni tied the rope they had used to the end, and dropped the length. He grumbled again when it still dangled at some distance from the ground. 'Still too short.'

'Go down.' Tarrence said. 'We're not going in any other direction anyway.'

At the end of the rope, Muni looked at pitch black ground, the height of a tall tree below him. 'This does not make for a soft landing.'

Tarrence examined the ground and the surroundings, then gazed at stone trolls appearing from between the large boulders at the centre. Elyta noticed them next. 'Stone trolls here?' she said, then thought it wasn't as surprising as it looked at first when they survived on rock.

Muni waved at them. 'I don't suppose you have something to safely climb or fall down on!?'

Tarrence gazed at the remains of a nearby tall stalagmite. 'We'll use that to traverse to the ground.'

Muni looked up at him. 'You want them to hack it loose and shove it underneath us?'

'We swing.'

Muni looked at the distance and height. 'This had better work without breaking bones.'

They swung back and forth until they came close enough to the curved stone base, and Muni let go of the rope. He dropped onto the nearly vertical surface, and slid down until he stopped halfway down the incline at the base. He waved at the others. 'It's all right!'

They jumped down from the rope's end one by one, and were glad to stand safely on their feet again. Tarrence looked at the trolls for a moment, who gazed blankly at the strangers. 'They don't seem hostile either.' he said, and walked towards the centre of the boulders. 'Let's see what we'll find over there.'

They walked between the boulders several times their height and the trolls shuffling seemingly aimless between them, and ended up at a couple of pools of lava providing light to an open area with a round and flat rock in the middle. On top of it lay a rock with a rune. Elyta glanced at Tarrence. 'Just like that? No guards or locked away? It was left out here in the open?'

Gigacks gave a nod to Tarrence to say there were no trap spells, and retrieved the artefact. Tarrence looked up at the ceiling. 'Why bother locking it away when it's hidden in a permanent furnace and there's no obvious way to escape?'

'You have a point there.' We'd have to be able to build a bridge or fly across it to leave this island.' She wiggled her wings. 'And I'm just as unlikely to do the latter as you are.'

Tarrence turned to Gigacks. 'I believe you have a way to accomplish the first.'

'If there is a suitable location.' the lich said.

They went around the island, and examined the place with the shortest distance to the other bank of the lava stream. Muni saw no way to cross the stream. Even if it crept slowly and they piled up rocks in it, they'd still burn alive if they walked across it. 'Try as we might, I don't see any of us jump across this when we can't even jump the distance between the lava and where our faces won't melt.'

'I did not plan on jumping.' said Tarrence, and they watched Gigacks approach one of the stone trolls. He spoke a spell, lifted his new staff, and stabbed it into the troll's chest.

The grating sound from the troll was like a large rotating barrel full of pebbles. It clutched at its chest, then fell dead on its back. Gigacks pulled his staff from the body,held it up high, and spoke another spell, this time louder. Trolls appeared from all directions in mere moments.

Muni didn't like the determined looks on their faces as far as he could read them, and Coëllo flexed her fingers. 'Are we in for a fight?' she asked.

'Just wait.' said Tarrence.

Muni moved aside when the trolls came near, then looked on in surprise when the trolls stepped into the lava stream. He turned to Gigacks. 'How did you do that?'

Gigacks gave his staff a pat.

Muni looked once more at the trolls, who began to form a bridge on top of the lava as they held on to each other, then back at Gigacks as an idea dawned on him. 'You mean you can control creatures once you killed one with that staff?'

Elyta sniggered. 'The muscle head had an epiphany.'

Muni frowned at her. 'I may not be qualified to be a scholar, but I still am able to figure things out after some time.'

Coëllo embraced his arm. 'Muscles and some brains. I'm becoming even more interested in you.' she said, and giggled.

He gazed blankly at her. 'One of these days I'm so going to spank you.'

She kissed his cheek. 'Promises, promises.'

He looked up and groaned. 'Why did this have to happen to me?'

Elyta pointed to the bank on the other side. 'Look. Those trolls are doing the same.'

More trolls gathered and stepped onto the lava, and laid down to build the bridge from the other side. Tarrence glanced at Gigacks. 'Good. The faster this is done, the better.'

As soon as the troll bridge was thick and wide enough to run across it unscathed, the party went over to the other side. 'Don't stop, we need to leave quickly.'

'Is something going to happen?' asked Coëllo.

Tarrence gestured at some trolls who didn't move towards the lava stream, but stepped towards the party with sudden haste. 'The control over them is limited, and they don't like it when we used their kind as a bridge and kill them in the process.'

She looked back and noticed some of the trolls acting more aggressive. 'Okay. Fighting creatures made from rock might be a little too difficult for me now. I'm with you on running.'

They ascended through the winding tunnel, evading the trolls who became hostile the moment they saw the murderers of their kind, until the way out was blocked by a large group of the vengeful creatures.

Coëllo glanced at Muni. 'This is a time where I prefer more muscle than brains.'