The Monster That Comes At Night

Shenra entered the hall solemnly. His dark mane glistened ominously, highlighting the tip of his retracted claws. The Council of Conditioners was awaiting his arrival. As he entered, he saw the shame and defeat in the eyes of the greatest warriors in the realm.

“You know the importance of our job, Shenra”,  Head Conditioner Myora spoke. The once great warrior who was dubbed the Pawn of Purgatory, was now old and frail, but spoke with dire seriousness. “If the mortals are not conditioned to fear us in their childhood, they will rise up against us. Need I remind you of the bloody wars they once waged on us?”

Considering the question rhetorical, Shenra kept his silence. Myora continued.

“An unconquerable mortal has been detected lately. Even our best conditioner couldn’t scare this warrior.”

Shenra felt a tinge of anger rise in him. Myora was referring to his sister Kayri, the Drinker of Tears. She was the pride of their family, and the thought of her being defeated irked him. He shot a look at her direction for confirmation.

“It is true brother. She looked me in the eye, and dismissed me with a chuckle. She calls us monsters just like the other mortals, but does not fear us like them”. Kayri moved closed to Shenra and almost whispered her next words. “She knows of us; of the astral realm. It won’t be long before she leads her kind here to finish what her ancestors started”.

“We know you did not want to be a conditioner, Shenra” Myora continued. “But your realm pleads you to protect it. Will you rise to its defence?”

“No mortal will set feet in the astral realm” Shenra growled. “I pledge that on my honour. Now how do I find this mortal warrior?”

The elder priests handed him a potion that would bring him back to the astral realm. The gave him the customary warnings regarding the dangers the innocent-looking mortals pose, and opened a portal to the mortal realm. He stepped in, brandishing his fangs.

The portal had brought him to the warrior’s bedroom. He hid under the bed, waiting for the optimal moment. He heard approaching footsteps, curled further into the darkness. His colossal bearlike body made it harder to hide, but his singed mane gave him natural camouflage.

The girl climbed into her bed, and whispered. “I know you’re down there, monster”

Realising the time for subtlety has passed, and even his fearsome appearance will not be enough now to scare her, Shenra emerged from the darkness with bloodthirsty eyes and bared claws.

“Oh, you’re new!”, the girl exclaimed with a smile. She looked eight years old, and was cuddling a tattered teddy bear.

“Silence, you brat” He growled. “I am your worst nightmare. I will kill everyone you love, and drink their blood, and feast on their carcasses. If you care for your life, then point me to your mentor - the one who trains you to resist us”

The girl shot a disinterested look at him. “You’re boring. I wanna play with the lady who came yesterday. Can you tell her to come tomorrow?

Shenra was surprised. He had not heard of any mortal younglings who weren’t afraid of the monsters under the bed. She not only didn’t fear them, but she wanted to play with them? He opened his month to voice another threat, but she shushed him hurriedly.

“Shut up and hide”, she spat out and hid under her blankets. Shenra hid under the bed, terrified of what he saw in the girl’s eyes - fear. Something terrifying was approaching - apparently more terrifying than a seven-foot monster with a feral appearance. He crawled under the foot of the bed, eager to see what had scared the fearless mortal.

The door opened, and Shenra saw  a silhouette. A silhouette that resembled an ordinary mortal, but this one was holding a bottle in one hand, and a belt in another.

“Nyssa! Wake up, you useless piece-of-s**t!”, He yelled in a slurry voice. “Go wash my clothes or you’ll end up like your mother”.

“But I already washed them daddy”, the girl trembled.

“Oh yeah? Well, daddy vomited on them, so go wash them again”

“Please daddy. My hands are paining so much. Can I wash them tomorrow?”

“You b***h! How dare you talk back to me”. The man advanced, raising his belt-wielding hand.

At that instance, Shenra knew. He knew the reason for the girl’s courage; he why her toy and her clothes were tattered; above all, he knew what he had to do. Without delaying a second, he pounced on the man with his most blood-curdling roar.

“Listen to me very carefully”, he growled, sinking is claws into the man’s shoulders. “This is my child. She is mine to haunt and terrorize. Today is the last day you lay your hand on her. Come tomorrow, you will tend to her needs and take care of her. If you ever threaten her, abuse her, or hurt her again, I will know. I will know, and I will hunt you, and I will skin you alive. Do you understand?”

The man was already wincing from the pain on his shoulders. He stared at the set of fangs inches away from his face, and whimpered out a feeble ‘yes’. Once Shenra released his grip, he clutched his shoulder and ran for his life.

Shenra realised that he had given away the existence of the astral realm to an adult mortal - an act that could destroy his kind. But right then, he did not care. He poured the potion in the ground, and it opened a portal back to his realm. Just as he was about to step in, he felt a little arm tugging his mane. He turned to face the little child.

“Umm… Can I come with you?”

“I am afraid not, child. Bringing you to my realm will result in the destruction of the peace between our realms that has lasted centuries”.

Her face sank. Looking down at her feet, and in a very feeble voice, she spoke again.

“Will you at least promise to come daily and scare me?”

“Will you promise not to amass an army and invade the astral realm?”

“Promise!”. Her face lit up.

“Then I too shall promise to haunt you every day”. He turned and entered the portal.

Back in the astral realm, the council was awaiting his return. As he entered the hall, silence befell, and all eyes were on him. He triumphantly announced that the astral realm was once more safe. Kayri ran to him and hugged him.

“For a reward like this, being called a monster is worth enduring, is it not, brother?”

“Believe me, sister” Shenra replied with pain in his eyes. “We are not the monsters”