12. Flavia
Flavia
T he forest dreamed through me, or perhaps I dreamed through it—the boundaries dissolved like mist between ancient trees.
I moved through undergrowth that parted before my presence, my body flowing in serpentine patterns that felt more natural than walking ever had. It felt right, just as Ysu had said. A part of me that had just been waiting to awaken.
The Roman scout ahead crashed through bracken with the graceless noise of civilization, his bronze armor catching moonlight in flashes that announced his position to every predator within miles.
My tongue flicked out, tasting his fear-sweat in the air. He was young—barely past his first campaign season, sent to patrol borders his commanders no longer truly controlled. The leather of his sandals was still stiff and fresh from the armoury.
Foolish humans , a voice that sounded like Ysu whispered through my consciousness, though I knew he slept back in the grove. They send children to map territory that was never theirs to claim .
But as I descended from the canopy the voice shifted, deepened, became something older than even Ysu. The trees themselves spoke, their roots pulsing with words that tasted of mycelium and blood and patient fury.
The roads cut us. The stones suffocate our soil. Their ordered grids carve wounds that will not heal.
The scout stopped to drink from his waterskin, oblivious to how the shadows had changed around him.
I could see the pulse in his throat, count the rapid heartbeats that spoke of exhaustion and unease.
He was lost—had been for hours—though he didn’t yet realize the forest had been guiding him in circles, eating up his markers and shifting his path.
Show them what they cannot tame , the forest-voice commanded, and my jaw began to ache with transformation.
I dropped silently behind him, my body elongating in ways that no longer frightened me. He turned at the last moment, eyes widening as he took in what I’d become—neither woman nor serpent but something between, something impossible.
His scream died in his throat as mine opened wider than any human mouth should.
The forest held him still, roots tangling his feet, branches ensuring he could not flee.
I tasted his terror as my transformed jaw accepted what it was made for, swallowing him in sections that should have horrified me but only satisfied the deep hunger.
Yes , the ancient voice thrummed through soil and stone. Let them know their empire will end, but we will always endure. For every tree they fell, every road they build, a new monster will be born.
I felt the scout’s life force spreading through me, not just sustaining my body but feeding something larger. The forest drank through me, used me as a conduit for its patient rage. I knew now that each Roman life I would claim returned strength to the wounded land.
The scene wavered, my consciousness wanting to return to my sleeping body, but the forest wouldn’t let me go, not just yet.
More will come , the voice promised. They always send more. And you will be waiting, my serpent. You and others like you. What they thought conquered will devour them from within.
Ysu wrapped several arms around my body, his physical presence pulling me out of the dream. His touch was protective, possessive. He was satisfied with my hunger, but beneath that I felt a hesitation.
I was no longer just Flavia seeking revenge.
I was the forest’s hunger given form, its answer to centuries of systematic destruction.
And somewhere in the ordered villas and geometric cities, Romans slept uneasily, dreaming of roots cracking through their foundations and shadows with too many teeth.
The dream claimed me again, and I saw them—others like me. Old blood singing with ancient magic, where nature and humanity were merged into new demons who stalked the night.
I woke with dirt beneath my nails and the taste of bronze on my tongue, wrapped in Ysu’s silk while he watched with all eight eyes.
“It has been many nights since you had a nightmare, my neidr.” He traced a cool hand down my cheek. “What disturbs you?”
I swallowed again and I could still taste that soldier on my tongue. It had just been a dream, hadn’t it? The wind picked up and I swore I heard laughing. Ysu’s grip tightened around me.
“It wasn’t a nightmare.” Had I changed so much that the thought of swallowing a man whole no longer disturbed me? That I found the embrace of a monster all that I needed? I curled in tight to Ysu’s chest, and he relaxed as I traced my fingers over the dark markings that whorled over his skin.
“Sleep now, my spider.” I curled my fingers through his hair, and emitted a sound almost like purring until his chest rose and fell with the soft pattern of sleep. But as I dozed off, the wind rose again, its laughter tracing down my spine.