With the night sky slowly shadowing the Sah'Jangi Empire, the bright full moon along the starry coat basked over the lands and waters.
Meanwhile, in the village of Diowo, the entire community suddenly became a ghost town.
The windows and doors were locked shut with charms and relics tied between the wood frame of each hut — bright orange candlelight illuminated from behind the closed entries.
The men of each household; Fathers, husbands and even sons, sat awake in their living rooms, fully armed and alert with their eyes locked on the front doors.
Wives, mothers and eldest daughters laid next to their innocent tiddlers lying peacefully in their beds fast asleep, with all the women laying with one eye open and all ears to their doors, waiting for the slight agitation or noise from their husbands or fathers.
Silence consumed the entire community.
But one of the medium self-contained huts in the centre, had its door and windows wide open, with four shadows casted onto the interior clay walls from the single lamplight set in the middle of the room.
Danji, Ajefe and Kamyla, locked their gazes on the back of the being standing before them, tightening their grips on the weapons in their hands.
Their eyes narrowed.
Leviathan stood silently opposite them, staring down at the medium-sized bed with a plain expression.
The bed was clean and suspended from the floor, made with stuffed wool underneath a sheet and covered with silky grey fur and a thick blanket folded and placed at an end.
He remained still for a few more seconds, raising his gaze to glance at the wooden frame windows, then at the smoothened clay walls; noticing little or no decoration around the entire room.
"Your arrival was a bit short notice, so we didn't have time to decorate the guest hut for you", Ajefe said.
Leviathan didn't say a word, still scrutinizing the building quietly as the warrior continued to monitor him from behind.
"Why is he looking for?" Ajefe whispered.
"Maybe he thought we'd put flowers for him?" Kamyla murmured back.
Ajefe pouted, "We should have given him your hut, Kamy. It's finer".
"I'll slice your ear".
Ajefe felt the cold edge of Danji's blade rest against the corner of his ear.
Ajefe slowly pulled his gaze in Danji's direction, meeting his stone-hard glare with a deep scowl over his brows.
He let out a wimpy chuckle, "I was joking, Dan..."
Danji narrowed his eyes at him, pressing the blade lightly on his skin. "You better..."
Danji then pulled down his kuiza, turning back at the Devil Prince. Leviathan remained mute and still like a statue.
More silent minutes passed.
Leviathan finally spoke, "And how long do you three plan to stand there and watch me?"
Danji was the first to respond, "As long as needed".
"Even in my sleep?"
"Even in your sleep".
Leviathan slowly craned his head over his shoulder, gazing at Danji. "How unpleasant".
He looked back at the bed.
A beast's grunts suddenly echoed from outside, having the white-furred face of a giant tiger leaning towards the open window. Its crystal blue eyes locked with the demon's, growling underneath its breath.
"Really?" Leviathan's brows dropped. "Is the tiger necessary?"
"Just in case things get a bit out of hand", Kamyla answered.
Leviathan let out a blase sigh, turning to finally face them. They gazed back at him in anticipation that he was about to do or say something.
Instead, he just simply stepped back to lower himself to the bed and lie down flat on his back, looking up at the ceiling.
The three stared quietly at him, watching him then shut his eyes with his body still facing upwards.
Their brows slowly raised in disbelief.
It was believed across most Empires that those who slept on their backs with their bodies faced up, were either witches, possessed or trying to be possessed; as diabolic spirits could easily slip into a body in such a sleeping position.
The origin of such a belief came from the exposure of a human-eating cult, where all the members slept in that particular position all through the night; to align their bodies to the spiritual pathway into their realm.
Ajefe parted his lips. "See how he is sleeping..."
"He's truly a devil".
Kamyla scrunched her eyes. "Maybe he has a meeting in hell this night?"
"Maybe... It's so creepy he can even feel comfortable like that". Danji added.
Leviathan furrowed his brows, clenching his jaws as their voices scratched his eardrums.
"Maybe he wants the spirits in hell to reenter his body in his sleep".
"He probably has a lot in him already".
"Do you think all demons sleep like thi—"
"Now how do you expect me to sleep if you three keep talking?" Leviathan snarled.
The three sealed their lips, staring at him silently.
Danji then cleared his throat. "Hm... I guess that's a good point".
He slowly lowered himself to sit on the floor. Ajefe and Kamyla followed, placing their weapons on their lap.
"We won't make any more noise to distur—"
"Good!"
Kamyla pouted, leaning closer to Danji's ear. "He sure has an attitude".
"Bad one", Danji whispered back.
"Maybe he's a sad lonely person".
"With an entitled personality like that, why wouldn't he be lonely—"
"Are you fucking with me right now?!" Leviathan raised his voice.
Their lips pursed.
Kamyla then leaned to Ajefe to whisper again. "Who wants to fuck him?"
"How should I know?..." Ajefe shrugged, "Maybe demons get their boners at night instead of the morning".
Danji and Kamyla busted into laughter, quickly grasping their lips as their shoulders bounced.
Leviathan suddenly snapped his slitted eyes. They bit their lips with poker expressions.
He grinded his teeth in anger, slowly turning back to look up as he pulled his eyelids shut.
The three then glanced at one another and back. They exhaled softly, resting back on the wall with their eyes on the Demon Prince.
They sighed simultaneously.
It was going to be a long night, Kamyla thought to herself.
• • •
A few hours later...
A light groan suddenly escaped Kamyla's lips, having her eyelids squeeze as she moved her head unconsciously.
She gulped in her sleep.
Taking a few moments for her consciousness to set in, Kamyla slowly pulled her heavy eyes open.
A yawn escaped her lips, causing her to shut her eyes again and wipe them. She slowly pushed herself off the cold surface of the wall, pulling down her hands as she tasted her bitter mouth.
She opened her eyes to look forward at the bed in front.
She froze. The bed was empty.
She quickly pushed herself off the floor, instinctively picking up her weapon as she stepped forward.
"H- How the..." She blinked twice at the empty space, drawing her eyes to the other corners of the room.
She quickly snapped her head behind, "Da—" Her eyes immediately fell on the two men still fast asleep against the wall.
Her expression fell.
Both men looked peaceful and calm in their sleep, reminding her to sympathize with their exhaustion from the already hectic days they have been having.
From slave traders, werehyenas, ritual and now this!?
SNAP!
Kamyla darted her attention to the open window in the direction of the sudden sound. Her eyes then caught sight of the tall figure standing outside in the dark.
"Shit!" She clinched.
Kamyla quickly turned to the open door, dashing out silently so as not to wake Ajefe and Danji; who remained in deep sleep against the wall. She raced around the hut, pulling to a halt the moment she spotted him.
She pulled up her kuiza. "Hey!"
Leviathan stood a good distance away from her between other huts, gazing up at the sky with a serene expression. He remained still.
"Hey!" She stepped forward. "What are you doing out here?"
Leviathan didn't respond.
Kamyla scrunched her brows into a frown. "I said! What are you doing out here?!"
Still silence.
"Hey! I'm talking to you!"
Leviathan completely ignored her words as his eyes didn't shift from the sparkling sky for one moment.
Kamyla clenched her sword. "Are you deaf now, Leviathan—"
"Ocean".
Her brows quirked. "What?"
Leviathan watched the beautiful sky a bit longer, leaving Kamyla to stare confusedly at him.
He slowly lowered his head. "Ocean".
"O- Ocean?"
His sharp eyes glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. "How far is this village from the ocean?"
Kamyla stared at him with a perplexed grimaced, taking a few seconds to respond. "U- Um... About three villages away".
"How long does it take to get there?"
Kamyla gingerly lowered her weapon, crooking her head. "Mm... A- About three to four hours on the footpath. Why?"
"Hm", Leviathan turned to look back up at a distance. "I want to go to the ocean".
"Huh? Why?"
"I want to swim".
"At this time of the night!? You want to swim? Are you normal!?"
Leviathan nodded subtly, turning back at her. "By the way, what is that creature crawling into the hut where your friends are in?"
"EH!? What! Where!?" She snapped her eyes in the direction of the hut. There was nothing there.
Her brows knitted. She turned back at Leviathan, "There is nothing th—"
Leviathan was gone.
Kamyla's eyes widened, darting her gaze in all directions. "HUH?!"