The sheer size of the ominous structure sent a shiver down Corabeth’s spine. Again, she felt the oppressive weight of beingwatched, unsure if the Beast was lurking nearby or if it were the eyes of the house that unsettled her.
All four ravens took flight, joined by others from the nearby woods, and flew towards the mansion, finding landing spots on various parts of the house.
Corabeth walked down a barely noticeable path towards the house, being pulled by its dark allure, now sure that the ravens had guided her here.
The stone staircase was cracked, and vines crept up the steps, over the handrails. When Corabeth reached the looming double doors, she noticed that the dried leaves and debris in front of the door had been swept aside, as if someone had swept through here recently.
The thought of turning around and fleeing crossed her mind, not for the first time. Once more, she was reminded of the fact that she had nothing to return to, and her heart plummeted. She was still out searching for death.
Corabeth placed a shaky hand on the wooden door and pushed. It fell open with a loud creak, the sound echoing into the vast emptiness inside. The smell of mildew and damp wood hit her as she took a hesitant step into the cavernous entryway.
She managed only one more step before the door slammed shut behind her, and she felt a heavy hand wrap around the back of her neck.
“You don’t belong here,” growled a deep voice before Corabeth was dragged away.
Six
Corabeth
Corabeth was pulled into darkness, her feet barely touching the floor. The walls passed with such speed she didn’t have a chance to notice any details. For a brief second, her feet lifted into the air, and one by one they started hitting stone steps as she was pulled down a staircase. The whole time, a firm hand held the back of her neck, almost lifting her into the air.
Her heart raced relentlessly, her thoughts tumbled over themselves. To her surprise, some tiny, primal part of her still grasped for survival.
Corabeth was suddenly tossed forward with such force, she almost lost her footing. She remained standing only due to the cold, rough wall she crashed into. Behind her came a cold, metallic clunk.
As she looked back, metal glinted in the darkness. Iron bars from floor to ceiling. Corabeth had been tossed into a dungeon. Beyond those bars stood the great shadow of the Beast.
“You never should have come here,” it said, its voice deep and gravely. It took a step back, blending seamlessly into the shadows. Chest heaving, Corabeth stood and waited for a moment that dragged on too long. Only when the bang of a door shutting echoed through the dungeon did she realize that the Beast had left her alone.
The only light in the dungeon trickled through the narrow, barred windows high above her head. Silver moonlight glintedoff the metal and the cold, damp stone surfaces. In one corner was a worn hay mattress with a threadbare and frayed blanket. In the other sat an empty bucket. For waste, Corabeth guessed and grimaced.
Her shaky steps took her across the uneven stone floor to the bars. The metal was cold and smooth under her touch as she gripped them and shook. Only once was enough to tell her she wasn’t going anywhere.
With a sigh, she sank onto the mattress and pulled the blanket over her shoulders, considering the downward spiral her life had gone down in a matter of hours.
When she was pressed against the rough wall of a house, Ely’s fumbling hands all over her, she had thought this was the worst thing that had happened to her. When the whole village accused her, shunned her, scorned her, she had sunk even lower. When she had kneeled before her burning home, everything she had in this world turning to ash, she truly felt herself hit the bottom and shatter into ten thousand pieces.
Now? Now she was stuck in the dungeon of the Beast.
Tears prickled her eyes as she squeezed them shut, leaning her head back against the wall. She didn’t want to cry anymore. She wanted to be done with all of this, but the horrors just kept coming. Like giant waves crashing overhead and dragging her further to sea without a moment of reprieve.
Surely, she would die here, forgotten and abandoned by the Beast. By her village. The blanket was barely enough to keep her warm. Come colder weather, she would freeze. Drift off into a peaceful sleep. Like mother, like daughter. That was if hunger or thirst didn’t come first. Perhaps a disease…
Corabeth listed off different ways she could die and dozed off from pure exhaustion that went deeper than the physical kind. When she startled awake again, she was still sitting on the mattress that rustled with every move, head against thewall. But she was also aware of another presence. Like a barely perceivable static.
She strained her eyes, but all she was met with were shadows.
“Hello?” Corabeth called out into the darkness, her voice rough.
The reply was a low rumble. A dog giving a warning growl.
“Why did you follow me?” asked the Shadowbeast slowly, as if words came hard for it. It was sitting outside the bars, in the opposite corner from Corabeth.
For a moment, she didn’t know what to say. Her first instinct was to lie. Tell the Beast that she got lost in the woods and stumbled upon the manor. But for what?
“I wanted to die,” she admitted instead. “You are Death, are you not?”
A cold chuckle. It made the hairs on Corabeth’s arms stand up. “I am not Death. Merely the bringer of it.”
