Ferrin's limp body rose higher in the air as it absorbed the surrounding, swirling, purple light. Teres shields his eyes away from the blinding brightness. the room was begging to heat up, and the air felt static, full of energy. The light seemed to soak deep within the frail boy's pores, entering into him from all angles. His arms hung beneath him. Suddenly his back arches and his head was thrown back. The boy opens his mouth, a ray of purple light shining from his throat. Teres takes a squinting glance at the scene laying before him. His wings shutter as the energy in the room only continued to collect. He again was forced to turn his head away from the blinding light, his vision obstructed from it. His night visioned eyes were especially not adapted to lights at all really, let alone ones so bright.
Ferrin's feeble figure then began to lower again, slowly dropping from midair. The light was dimming as it all seemed to absorb into the boy. Teres peeks over as just then Ferrin gently lowers back into the purple waters. He scrambles back to his feet, rushing towards the edge of the warm water. He grasps onto the stone edge of the pool, gazing at Ferrin intently, waiting anxiously. The boy's eyes then burst open. He jolts awake, lurching into a sitting position. The blonde boy coughs, the petal dropping from his mouth. He thrashes his legs about in the water, hunched over. Teres backs up, his eyes widening in surprise. Ferrin coughs again before wiping a bit of saliva from his lips. He glanced up frantically, his blonde hair dripping with the warm water. He looks towards his own body, placing his palm over his chest. Something was off... Different. His heart was beating rapidly and panic was settling in. Ferrin then darts his eyes upward and around the room. he quickly spots the familiar winged creature who sat staring, intrigued.
"Jade... She only changed one of your eyes..." He says in a mutter. Ferrin draws back, making himself small in the pool's corner.
"What have you done to me?" He asks with a quavering tone.
The beast tilts his head curiously frowning. He then suddenly glides towards Ferrin, very quickly hunching over the pool. He leans his head in, reaching out and grasping the small blonde boy's face. Ferrin jumps, frozen in fear. He inhales, holding his breath as the smell of something rancid fills the air around him. The creature studies Ferrin's features.
"Did she only take half your soul?" He asks more to himself than to Ferrin. Ferrin stares back up at the creature's large and unsettling eyes. He frowns, confused as he hears him speak. Ferrin pushes his palm on Teres's shoulder, shoving him away. He turns his head
"Stop it! Where am I? What are you talking about?" Ferrin asks. He could feel his heart rate rising. he had never felt so strange: almost disconnected from the world around him. Teres pulls away. He opens his wide, toothy mouth to speak, but then stops. His eyes had landed on something far behind Ferrin. The boy frowns, looking back with him. He furrows his brow in confusion, the water sloshing as he moves. There was nothing there. Teres nods to whatever it was he saw before he swiftly turns his gaze back to Ferrin.
"She doesn't want us to talk in here. I'll take you back, and then you can eat, okay?" Teres states. Eating... Ferrin was again painfully reminded of his insistent hunger and an empty stomach. Though it was uncertain what the naive creature might have brought him. Ferrin could only pray that it wasn't another slap of human meat. He shakes off the thought. There were more important things to worry about.
"Wh- What? No! I don't want to go back." Ferrin states. Which was true. He despised the cavern. It simply showed no chance of escape, the smell was awful, and Ferrin was never allowed much mobility. Teres frowns, however, seemingly disappointed and confused by this response. He simply shakes his head before bending down.
The beast wraps his arms around Ferrin, tucking them under his knees. He then lifts him up and out of the warm waters effortlessly. Ferrin's skin prickles as he's taken from the heated pool and met with the cold air above it. His expression twists into one of panic.
"Wait! Stop, put me down!" He whines out. Ferrin began to weakly thrash his arms and legs about. Teres pulls his head away, straining a bit as he held the struggling boy.
"Hold still!" He demands. But Ferrin didn't listen. He only continued to struggle, even as the creature wraps his tail around him, binding his legs tight.
"Let me go! I don't wanna go back, Please!" Ferrin cries out. Teres frowns, again staring at the far end of the room. He tightens his grip on the frail boy, immobilizing him. Ferrin yelps a bit, the creature crushing him almost. Then Teres steps back from the pool, starting towards a small doorway across from it on the back wall. He stares down at Ferrin.
"Hold on! We just can't be in here..." He growls. Ferrin stops moving, panting heavily. Already he felt worn out. Was he weaker than before? His wounds and gashes stung, and his legs felt entirely sore, almost like rubber. He couldn't fight anymore, not with Teres's grip. He huffs heavily, weakly pushing at his chest. The beast simply continues to walk towards the small doorway.
"Please... Don't take me back there... Just let me go..." Ferrin whines softly. Teres ignores him, shaking his head. He then ducks his head just as they come through the small doorway, but even as he did this, his tall spindling horns still scraped against the top of it. Teres after all was freakishly tall, and the horns certainly didn't help his stature to seem any less large or intimidating.
He continues, stopping once he immersed himself further into the musty area. The room was much larger than the other. It in fact almost seemed endless. It was longer than it was wide, and the walls were lined with stone tombs. The room was dark with only the occasional streams of moonlight to light the path in the center, the origin of such from small gaps in the roof. Cemented into the ground about every ten feet were stone coffins, much like the ones along the walls. Most of them had the lids shut, presumably to hide the skeletons beneath them.
Ferrin again pushes away from the creature. Teres sighs, obviously annoyed with the boy's constant rebellion against him.
"Hold on. Just a bit further and I'll let you down! Stop wiggling!" He complains, his voice a whiney sort of chirp again. Ferrin huffs. The air was stuffy, and the room's scent was nauseatingly old. Teres starts to walk again down the center of the path, his wings shuttering behind him. Ferrin glances back towards the doorway in which they came, still gently pushing at the beast's chest. It was getting darker as they delved deeper into the room, and almost too dark to see. Ferrin turns his gaze up to Teres again. Just as he expected, it seemed as if the monster could see just fine.
The creature suddenly halts, glancing around at his surroundings.
"Okay. I will explain it now." He says, loosening his grip on Ferrin's petite figure. He gently lowers him so that his feet met the stone ground beneath the two. Ferrin quickly pushed away from Teres as he was set down. He wobbles, stumbling back. For a brief moment he stands, But quickly his legs shake and crumple beneath him. He gasps, startled as he starts to fall. Teres swoops towards him, quickly grabbing onto his upper arms. Teres holds him up, catching him with quick reflex. Ferrin on the other hand, stares down at his legs, questioning why they failed him. The beast lowers the boy until he was kneeling, releasing him shortly.
"You're so weak... I think we should go back home." He says in a concerned tone. Ferrin scoots back, glancing up at the creature. he glares, shaking his head.
"No. I'm fine here." He says from the floor. Though Ferrin wasn't sure this statement was quite true. He was weak. He felt disassociated mentally, and physically he ached all over. His hunger and thirst were unbearable. He felt feverish almost. Beyond that, it was still very cold. He couldn't help but let his teeth chatter and his body shiver from the freezing air; especially now as he was damp from the peculiar purple pool.
Teres sighs before dropping down into a squat. He reaches towards the boy's face, but Ferrin quickly dodges. He scoots backward again, exclaiming in surprise as his back suddenly meets a stony tomb. he glances back, sighing in relief once he realized it was nothing. The beast cocks his head in confusion.
"You don't need to be scared of me. I saved your life just now. I did before too, remember?" The beast gruffly states with a pouting expression. He draws back, allowing Ferrin his distance. Ferrin frowns, bringing his knees to his chest.
"You saved my life?" He questions. Did Teres mean the heat of the pool? He was unsure. He glances towards the distant doorway of the other room. Teres nods grimly.
"I'm sorry... It was the only way... I tried everything else before." He states in a low, guilty tone. Ferrin frowns.
"What are you talking about?"
Teres glances down in thought. He sighs before adjusting himself into a sitting position. He crosses his legs, staring down at his knobbly, pale knees.
"I had to offer you to her... The goddess. Your soul will be reborn under her now..." He mutters. This however didn't help Ferrin's confusion.
"What? My soul?" He inquires. Teres brings his gaze back to the boy. He leans his head in a bit closer again, studying his face.
"Yes... She marked you, but only half. Your eye... You can't see it right now, but you will." He adds. None of this was clearing anything up. The beast had mentioned this before. Ferrin touches under his eye, unsure if it was the right one. He was devoted to the Goddess before, and yet he had never heard any of this. The beast must have spotted Ferrin's confusion because he continued to speak.
"My body and my soul belong to her you see. I was fully reborn under her. I awoke in the Amethyst Pool one day again as an infant. This broke the bond between me and the depths. Now I am tied to her and her realm, And that lady that looks like was assigned to care for me like a mother, see?" He starts. Ferrin frowns, trying to focus on every word.
"What does that have to do with me? What did you do to me?" He asks, his tone becoming a bit frantic.
"Well, you see Jade... Your soul was about to move on to the soul realm. But once you rebirth your soul under the goddess, she restores it to your body, which is in this one. See? So now your soul is hers. Just as my soul and my body are hers." He explains. The beast had never sounded so intelligent before. It was clear that he was familiar with this concept. Ferrin glances down at himself, and then at Teres. He felt speechless. Too many questions were racing through his head at once. Soon however he regained his voice.
"So? What does that all mean?" He questions, his voice cracking in his angst.
"There's a cost Jade... Don't you see? Your soul... It will never see the soul realm. You will forever live on here. You won't be able to leave this temple after death." He states somberly.
Ferrin's eyes widen. He again began to panic. Never leave? The idea was terrifying. Now there would be no escape from Teres, and no way to see his family again. He thought of Lavender, his father, and even his mother who seemed to be but a distant memory now. Tears start to fill his eyes. Ferrin's sorrow quickly however began to transform into anger. He brings his gaze to the creature that sat before him. He clenches his fist. Never had he ever hated someone more. He wished nothing but death on Teres at that moment.
"Why would you do that to me!? Don't you see you've already stolen everything from me as it was?" He says, his voice faltering as tears began to stream down his cheeks. He glares at the creature, huffing heavily. Teres shows a shocked expression as he hears these words. He tilts his head.
"What? You were going to die Jade!" He exclaims in confusion, clearly ignorant of the boy's anger. Ferrin grimaces.
"You stupid beast! I'd rather die than see you again! I HATE you! And my name is not Jade, my name is Ferrin! You've taken everything! My name, my home, my family! That wasn't good enough?" He screams, adjusting himself. He grasps onto the top of the tomb in which he sat against, beginning to pull himself up. Teres's expression drops. He winces, pulling back as Ferrin began to scream at him. Tears already had started to well up in the beast's eyes. His expression twists into one of hurt.
"Wh... You're lying. You don't hate me. You love me. You have to love me!" He whines in a sad sob. Ferrin widens his eyes a bit. The creature, it was crying. It was clear to the boy that he had hurt his feelings. But Ferrin couldn't care about that. He brings himself to his feet, holding tightly onto the stone tomb for support. His legs wobble with uncertainty. He had to get away. Now could be his only chance. He steps back a bit, starting to back away from Teres. The beast sniffles, reaching out towards the boy.
"N-no, don't leave me!" He cries out before capturing Ferrin's ankle in his grasp. He tugs at his leg, pulling the boy off balance. The boy plummets down, his backside hitting the stone ground hard. He yelps out, beginning to kick his legs defiantly as the creature still held tightly to his ankle. Its long nails were starting to dig into the boy's flesh as the creature pulls him towards himself.
Ferrin fights with everything in him, crying out in panic.
"Let go of me!" The beast however had already started to crawl over him. His large purple eyes stare down at the small boy, tears dropping down onto his pale cheeks. He grasps onto the boy's wrists just as Ferrin attempted to claw at his face. He pins him down, binding his legs tight again with his tail. The creature wraps his wings around the two, holding the boy more in place than ever before.
"You love me! YOU LOVE ME!" Teres screeches in a wail. His expression was more frightening than Ferrin had ever seen. He was entirely immobile now, tears streaming down his face. He turns his head away, not wanting to face the creature.
"SAY IT! SAY YOU LOVE ME, YOU USELESS HUMAN!" Bellows the beast. Anger was clearly surfacing in him. Ferrin whimpers, his bottom lip trembling in fear. He knew there was no escape. The only thing further that Teres could do to him was traumatize and hurt him even more than he already had. Even in death, he'd be trapped with the creature. He whimpers, shutting his eyes tight. The beast releases one of his wrists, instead roughly grabbing the boy's jaw. He tugs his head to look at him. Ferrin whines, forced to make eye contact. He reaches out, grasping onto the feathers of Teres's wings, tugging.
"SAY IT!" Teres screams again, his voice echoing against the stone walls and floor.
"No... I don't want to." Ferrin sobs softly attempting to kick his legs from beneath the creature. Teres tightens the grip of his tail around the boy. The beast stares down at the small fragile human that he held in his grasp. He sniffles as he looks over him, suddenly smiling a terrifying grin.
"Maybe I can break your legs so you won't run from me again. You'll love me eventually. Just like how that lady loves me." He says with a horrific giggle, tears still falling from his eyes, which now twitched like a mad man. He really was mad, every word was absolutely crazy. Ferrin shows a pleading expression as the creature only tightens his tail further, crushing the blonde boy's legs together. He yelps, wincing as his knee pops from the pressure.
"No no! Please don't Teres! I'm sorry, I didn't mean it!" He cries, tugging on the black feathers tighter than before. He could barely let the words out.
The beast stops, gazing down at him. He holds his gaze, tilting his head a bit before leaning in close to the boy's cheek. He then drags his sandpaper-like tongue against his skin. Ferrin whimpers, scrunching his nose as he holds his breath. The beast pulls away.
"She can show you how to love me... You can meet that lady now okay? Then when I come back you must say it. We can play every day!" He exclaims, sniffing again. The beast then releases the boy's wrist and chin, pulling away. He still kept his long, feathered tail wrapped tightly around Ferrin's legs. He stands, turning back towards the center path.
Teres begins to walk, dragging Ferrin behind him. Ferrin cries out in surprise, the stone ground rough against his skin. He attempts to grab anything he could, but it was no use. Each time he grasped the corner of a stone coffin he was dragged away from it and forced to let go. All he could do again was cry.
"Where are you taking me? Please, Teres!" He cries out. Teres however ignores him, continuing to walk down the center of the room. Soon enough he stops, stepping in front of a stone tomb. The encasing was covered in gold coins, gems, flowers, and even a branch of peaches that were a bit overripe.
Teres grasps onto the lid of the tomb, and with a heave starts to slide it off of the stone box. The scraping sound from this was almost deafening. All of what was on the topples to the ground as he moves it aside, gently propping against the side of the stone coffin, but even for him, it seemed quite heavy. Teres then turns his gaze to the boy who sat trembling in fear as he watches the creature. The beast pulls his tail towards himself, and the boy along with it. He then reaches down, grasping into Ferrin's arms. He pulls him, lifting the boy up till he was sitting on the edge of the stone coffin. Ferrin again begins to struggle, But Teres quickly wrapped his arms around the boy in a tight embrace, in doing so keeping him from moving.
Ferrin whines, attempting to pull away. But the beast only continues to cling onto him.
"I love you, Jade. Maybe she will teach you to love me too." He whispers. Ferrin frowns, feeling uncertain of what was to come. And then suddenly Teres was pushing him into the stone coffin, holding him down over the bones that had already been laying there. Ferrin gasps, surprised.
"No! No, what are you doing?!" Ferrin cries, tears drenching his rosy cheeks.
The beast then slithers his tail up higher over the boy's body, wrapping its coils instead around his waist to hold him in place. Ferrin struggles, grasping at the tail feathers and kicking his feet, but it was no use. Teres then bends down, heaving again as he lifts the stone lid. He starts to slide it over the coffin again, shutting Ferrin in. Ferrin widens his eyes, Screaming and whining out in a frantic panic.
"No! Teres please! Don't leave me in here!" He pleads, begging like he never had before.
But it was too late. The stone coffin was closing, and the creature had begun to unwrap his tail from the boy's bony torso. Teres then pulls his tail from the coffin. Just before it started to slither out. The boy, however, reaches out, grasping onto its end. Teres was quick to yank his tail away from the boy's grasp, leaving Ferrin with nothing but a fist full of feathers. He then quickly slams the coffin lid shut before the boy could even protest. Ferrin whimpers, slamming his fists against the lid and screaming out after him. But all too soon the creature's footsteps began to distance, leaving the boy in nothing but complete and utter darkness.