23. Aliana #2
“Where the fuck am I?” I repeat, not expecting anyone to respond since I appear to be alone.
I practically jump out of my skin when a gruff voice declares from behind me, “My home.”
I spin towards the figure standing directly in front of a doorway that must lead out of this tiny shack…though all I can see is a dark staircase climbing upwards.
Are we underground?
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
My pulse palpitates as the unfamiliar monster steps forward, and the lit candles scattered throughout the room finally illuminate him.
He’s…unlike anyone or anything I’ve ever seen before. I can’t quite tell if it’s terror that crashes through my veins like sparks of electricity or intrigue.
He’s large, though not in the way that the Devourer is tall.
This monster is just…bulky, his body hewn of nothing but striated muscle.
Just like with Creep, his skin appears to be constructed out of something different than a normal human’s.
Stone, perhaps? Concrete? Whatever it is looks rough to the touch, a strange shade of gray that’s a stark contrast to this brightly colored room.
With the red Venetian mask he wears covering all but his ape-like lips, I can’t decipher many of his facial features, though I can see two tiny white horns sprouting from the top of his head. They’re significantly smaller than Creep’s, but they appear sharp to the touch.
“Who are you?” I whisper the words on a breathy exhale as he shifts uncomfortably.
What the fuck?
Is he…anxious?
Before the monster can answer, a roar reverberates from the still open doorway. I tense, every muscle in my body locking together, as the masked tongue turns to stare at the figure approaching us. No, not a figure. Not a human or even a monster.
A tiger.
An honest-to-God tiger.
Awe battles with fear for dominance as the enormous creature pads forward on silent feet, his head twitching in both directions as if to take in the scene.
This creature isn’t like any tiger I’ve read about before.
He—or she—almost appears…mutated. His fur is a strange yet striking shade of cerulean blue, and the stripes crisscrossing across his back are white and black.
He’s nearly as tall as me, his head probably twice the size of my own with pitch-black eyes rimmed in silver.
And those eyes? They’re currently fixated on me.
My awe is quickly overpowered by terror as the tiger takes a step closer, a rumble vibrating through his huge body.
“Don’t…” the monster warns, but I don’t know if he’s talking to me or his pet, because in the next instant, the tiger launches himself at me.
I brace myself for pain, for the sharpness of claws digging into my sides and making me bleed, but it never comes. I must’ve closed my eyes when the tiger struck, because it takes considerable effort to get them to reopen, as if my lids are made of lead.
“What the fuck?” That seems to be my motto for the day, because when I reopen my eyes, I find the tiger…purring, his huge head batting against my hand, as if demanding pets.
The masked monster—who started running forward as soon as the tiger leapt at me—freezes as well, and though I can’t see his eyes clearly with the mask on, I swear they widen imperceptibly.
The tiger continues to push his huge, furry head against my hand, and unsure of what to do, I give in to his silent demands and begin to pet him behind the ears. His purring increases like a huge, overgrown housecat.
Seriously…
What. The. Fuck?
The monster clears his throat. “That’s…um…never happened before.”
His voice reminds me of rocks grating together—a low and husky sound. It might even be deeper than the Devourer’s rich baritone.
He then scowls at the tiger, as if the beast has personally offended him by asking me for pets.
“What’s… What’s his name?” I find myself asking. Am I really asking what the name of a huge, overgrown, ferocious tiger is? The name of a monster’s pet?
As if he can hear my thoughts, the tiger bumps at my stomach until I fall back onto the couch. Before I can catch my breath—hell, before I can even react—he’s on top of me, his five-hundred pounds crushing my already weak body.
“Hey!” The masked tongue shoots the tiger a pointed glare. “Get off of the tiny human.”
My breath wheezes out of my lungs as the tiger gives the monster an indolent look before settling back on my lap. Fucking hell. I’m going to break a rib or two if he keeps this up.
“You never told me what his name is,” I manage to rasp out, wondering if I somehow lost my sanity in the fight with the tentacled monster.
I should be trying to find a way to escape, demanding to know how much time has passed, where I am…
but none of those questions leave my lips.
Instead, I’m inquiring about a goddamn pet tiger as if it’s the most natural thing in the world.
The monster’s scowl deepens. “It’s a she,” he corrects scathingly, as if he’s pissed at me for not figuring that out already. “And her name isn’t relevant.”
“And she’s your pet?” I press.
The monster grunts something that might have been an acknowledgment.
“So then you must have a name for her,” I continue, not bothering to phrase it as a question.
Like before, I simply receive a grunt in response.
“What’s your name? Where am I? How did I get here? What happened?” I vaguely remember canting precariously to the side, my head swarming like a million mosquitoes had been set loose inside, and then…nothing. Did I pass out? How did that happen?
“Tesq. My home. I brought you. You were poisoned.” He ticks the answers to each of my questions off on his huge, granite-like fingers.
“Okay…” I try to dissect all of that, my mind churning.
Apparently, the monster’s name is Tesq, though I can’t decide if he’s a savior or an abductor. He did kidnap me, but he may have also…saved my life? Maybe? According to him…though I’m not certain I can believe a word that comes out of his mouth.
And he brought me to his house? Because I was poisoned?
How the fuck did that happen?
“Tentacle. Poison,” he grunts out, jerking his chin towards a jar I hadn’t noticed before sitting on one of the many shelves lining the perimeter of the room.
I squint my eyes at it, my shock almost palpable at the sight of a familiar purple tentacle resting inside, surrounded by green goo.
Almost absently, I rub at the back of my neck, where a tiny bit of pain radiates. I hadn’t even realized I’d gotten hit during the fight, though my brain had been overstimulated with adrenaline.
“Did you…?” I trail off, hoping he’ll fill in the blanks.
That scowl of his doesn’t falter as he glares at where the tiger still rests lazily on my legs.
“Used medicine,” he growls, this time pointing his chin at a different shelf on the opposite side of the room, where numerous vials, jars, and containers press together. “You had a fever.”
“Oh.” I struggle to understand everything. Why did he save me? Why didn’t he leave me to die? I’m just a human. I’m nothing in their world. Does he want something from me in repayment? But if he does…
Why didn’t he just take it from me while I was unconscious?
One glance down confirms I’m still dressed in the robe I found at the Devourer’s home. And though my neck is slightly sore, there are no other injuries.
Before I can voice one of the million thoughts clamoring for attention in my head, Tesq stalks into the kitchen, grabs a roll and banana off the counter, and returns to me with the food, which are ridiculously small in his hand.
He all but thrusts them into my face as I blink at him wordlessly.
When I don’t immediately reach for the proffered items, a tiny growl reverberates through his massive, gray chest.
“Eat,” he grits out, tossing the food on top of the tiger’s head before stomping away once more.
I blink at him.
And then blink some more when he returns with a glass of water.
Uncertainty roils inside my stomach because whatever is happening right now is not normal.
This is not a typical monster-human relationship, with a tongue waiting on me.
But then… I glance around his lair one more time.
It’s filled with human memorabilia. Perhaps this Tesq isn’t a normal monster.
“I don’t need to eat as often as humans,” he declares randomly with another venomous scowl in my direction.
This time, I don’t hesitate to grab the water from his hand, immediately placing it to my lips and swallowing mouthful after mouthful. It’s a balm to my dry, irritated throat.
“I…um…thank you,” I manage to get out, finally lowering the cup from my lips.
“Don’t have better food,” he grunts, folding his arms over his chest, his thick muscles flexing. “Sorry.”
“No. Don’t apologize. You’ve done more than enough for me.
” I shake my head adamantly as I lift the roll out of the tiger’s fur, pluck off a blue hair, and take a tiny bite of it.
It’s stale, but it’s able to dampen the worst of the hunger pangs gnawing at my stomach. How long have I been unconscious?
“Only a day,” Tesq responds.
Did I speak out loud?
“Well…thank you. For…um…saving my life.” I absently scratch at the back of my neck, unsure of what else to say. I never thought I would express my gratitude to a tongue before, yet here I am. I have no doubt I would’ve died if Tesq hadn’t done…whatever he did.
An uncomfortable pain cinches my heart, and I lower my gaze to where one hand grips the roll and the other clenches around the glass of water. The banana still rests on the top of the tiger’s head, though she doesn’t seem to notice or care as her tail swishes lazily back and forth.
“You’re welcome,” Tesq rasps, drawing my attention back to him.
That scowl of his deepens. “You can, um, shower if you want.” He waves a hand towards the bathroom I noted earlier.
“Change your clothes. I won’t, um, bother you or anything.
” I watch in growing fascination as he brings a shaky hand up to his bald head and scrubs at the skin there.
I’m once again struck by the realization that this huge, terrifying tongue is anxious…of me. Scared of a tiny, one-hundred-twenty pound female. Maybe he’s low on the power scale? And he’s afraid of the repercussions of not only saving my life after I killed another tongue, but keeping me here?
That doesn’t seem right, though. I don’t know how I can tell, but I get the sense that this Tesq isn’t a monster to be trifled with. He practically radiates unfettered power and magic. Violence. Danger. Destruction. The force of it has the fine hairs on both my arms standing at attention.
I clear my throat, garnering his attention. “You still haven’t told me your pet’s name.” I scratch once more behind her ears, and a low rumble echoes through the diminutive room in response.
I swear Tesq’s face shutters over, becoming more unreadable than the mask he wears.
Through the tiny holes, I can see eyes as hard as granite and as dark as obsidian.
They ensnare me, dragging me into a black hole that I can’t hope to escape from.
I’m tumbling headfirst through an abyss.
Falling. Flipping. Twisting. I feel…weightless, my body disconnected from my brain, my brain disconnected from my heart that is beating incessantly in my chest.
I can’t look away.
And then he speaks. “Fluffy.” Is he… Is he blushing? The first sign of color enters his gray cheeks, visible where his mask doesn’t reach. “Her name is Fluffy.”