“Yes,” she whispered with a smile on her face.
She had the belt. It had been cut into two pieces. One felt fine, while the other had sticky blood on it and had lost some of its fur. Sybil tossed aside the damaged part, knowing it was useless, and clutched at the part that could still work.
She closed her eyes and tried to feel for its magic. Her hands trembled as she felt it was still alive with power; pulsing and needing to be attached to a host.
Sybil had to obey it. She couldn’t resist its call. She took the belt and wrapped it tightly around her right wrist. It fit perfectly and the place it was on her skin burnt brightly. She yelped in her discomfort as she felt the magic seep into her and started to change her. Her father had never told her what the belt did to him; all he said was that it made him powerful beyond belief.
She expected to gained more power, to be a witch like no other, but she was mistaken. She screamed as the belt became boiling hot and her bones snapped in on themselves. She collapsed onto the ground and withered in pain as her body broke and rebuilt itself in another form.
Her screams became howls. Her teeth grew into fangs. Her hands and legs stomped the ground as they grew into the paws of a beast. She opened her eyes and her world spun.
She could see in the dark and she could smell the hunters nearby. She couldn’t concentrate on what to do next. She knew that she was different and that power coursed through her limbs.
A howl escaped from her throat and she lifted her muzzle into the air. She needed to hunt; she had to hunt. The power of the beast was too much to handle. Sybil let go and it took over.
The beast, a predator of the night, ran through the forest in a great speed. It jumped and dodged without much effort and easily followed the way to the hunters. They smelled of smoke and anger; their warm blood making the animal’s mouth water.
Sybil couldn’t control what she had become. Her body moved against her will and the beast gave into its hunger as it appeared from the shadows and tore into the throats of the men.
Her mind became blank as she drank in the taste of fresh blood and the feel of flesh between her razor teeth. She started to enjoy tearing them apart just as they had torn her father to pieces.
A smile curled up from her blood-soaked lips, and she embraced her newly found power. She became the beast and vowed never to take the belt off. She was free to kill without the fear of being killed and she loved it; loved being a werewolf.
Sybil terrorized the village that had been her home for all her human years. She let the magic of the belt engulf her completely and she became more animal than human. Her thoughts became drenched in red as she killed all the families of the hunters; their screams making her howl even louder.
The beast was the master of its body and Sybil became a small flicker of light at the back of its mind. It ran from house to house to commit murders. Some villagers grabbed their children and ran into the forest in hopes of escaping the monster. Children shrieked and mothers wept. The beast enjoyed every second of it. It had a little girl cornered, her tear-stained face frozen in fear as she stared up into the menacing eyes of the creature that had taken her father away from her. The beast held up a large paw crusted with blood and claws, aiming for the girl’s throat when something whispered through the air and lodged itself into the paw of the beast.
The monster reared up on its hind legs that were slightly more human than wolf and turned to look at the arrow that was sticking out of its paw. When the monster saw its own bright blood running through its thick black fur it howled at the top of its lungs and swung around at its attacker in blind rage. Red smiled at the monster that had been hit by her brother’s arrow.
“Good job, Liam,” she said to her brother.
Liam drew another arrow and raised it on his bow, aiming for the beast’s forehead. Red unsheathed her sword and nodded at Daniel, who stood on her other side.
Daniel, a skilled axe man, gripped his large steel axe in one hand and winked back at her. Red could feel her cheeks burn with a blush, but luckily her brother was too busy firing arrows at the charging wolf to have noticed.
She was glad they had arrived in time before the entire village had been destroyed by the monster. She and her team of specialized hunters had received an urgent letter from one of the village people asking for their assistance. She had expected to see this large wolf the letter had mentioned in the forest, but hearing the screams of the people she and her team ran toward the chaos.
Red took hold of her sword and rushed right at the beast that was covered in blood. She jumped up high and slashed down. The beast dodged the attack at the last minute and Red tumbled to the ground.
Turning around, she saw Daniel take a shot. He swung his axe in circles above his head and tossed it right at the wolf. The wolf was distracted by another arrow that soared past its lifted ears and didn’t see the axe heading its way.
It howled loudly as the weapon cut into its flesh. Red took that opportunity to stab her sword at the creature. Her sword went through its hind leg, but a paw caught her off guard and she flew backward without her weapon.
“Red!” Daniel shouted, running to her side.
Liam was focused on hitting the wolf with as many arrows as possible. Daniel reached Red’s side as she sat up painfully from the village floor. He placed his hand on her arm, his blue eyes full of concern.
“I’m fine,” she said through clenched teeth. “Go help my brother.”
“You are bleeding,” he told her.
He lightly touched her head, and they saw his fingers were red with her blood. She wiped her forehead with her arm and stood up quickly, Daniel following.
“We need to stop this thing before it kills everyone here,” she said, watching as the wolf jumped away from her brother.
“We must lead it away from the village, into the forest where it can’t do any more damage,” Daniel said, his eyes still on Red.
She was beautiful, even during battle. There was dirt on her cheeks and the blood staining her hair matched the bright auburn color. Daniel had fallen in love with her the moment he had met her that night her grandmother had been killed by a wolf. He had saved her before it could kill her as well, but he was surprised when he saw the young woman grab for his axe and kill the beast by cutting off its head.
Now they lived their lives in danger every day as hunters of monsters that kill the innocent. Red looked up at him, her dark eyes filled with determination and the ghost of a smile.
“Sounds good,” she replied to his plan. “I’ll lead it away and you and Liam attack it from behind,”
“No, Red!” He tried to stop her but she was already gone.
She ran towards the monster, picking up her discarded sword covered in its blood, and whistled at it. The wolf turned its head to her, eyes as yellow as a full moon and teeth showing with hunger.
“Hey ugly!” she shouted at it.
It growled deep in its throat as Red turned her back on it and ran toward the forest. It gave chase. The beast could remember the girl giving it pain and making it bleed. It wanted to make her bleed and cry out in despair.
Red ran as fast as she could, her heart pounding in her chest. She pushed herself further when she heard the animal right behind her. She could practically feel its hot breath at the back of her neck.
She knew she shouldn’t look back, but wanting to make sure her brother and Daniel had followed her orders, she looked behind her and only saw those yellow eyes. She tripped over something and felt her ankle snap painfully.
Crying out, she fell head over heels into the cold dirt of the forest floor. She landed on her back with her eyes shut closed tightly. Her ankle throbbed with pain and she bit down on her lip to keep her tears away.
Heavy breathing was right above her head and she opened her eyes. The wolf was standing above her, its yellow eyes boring into hers and pink tongue lolling out of the side of its mouth.
Red was frozen in place, the images of her past rushing through her mind at
top speed. Those yellow eyes looked similar to those eyes of the beast that had killed her grandmother, the only other family she and her brother had. They were orphans that had been taken in by her father’s mother when they were just children. Some said she was still a child, since she had only just turned seventeen. No matter her age, Red had a job to do and she wasn’t going to let this creature of death take her away from her brother.
Taking hold of her sword, which was by her side, she stabbed up, swinging her arms up and back. She felt it connect with the wolf’s head.
She and the beast cried out. She pulled back, a sickening sound coming from the wound she had given the wolf, and she rolled to the side to get out of the way of its stamping paws.
“Filthy human!” it shouted.
Red stared with wide eyes as the wolf shook violently and its large form began to shrink. Its long snout pushed itself back into its face, which was being pulled in many ways, and its fur was shrinking back into flesh.
Red had never seen a wolf transform back into its human self again. They chose to stay in their animal form for the power and bloodlust that took them over. The wolf’s fur was turning back to a longer length at the top of its head and its eyes opened to show feminine human eyes.
“Red!” Liam shouted.
He and Daniel came charging toward her, fearing the worst when they saw her lying on the ground and clutching her ankle while the wolf was basically right next to her.
“It’s changing back!” she shouted at them.
Liam bent down by her side and saw pain on her sweat-slicked face. Daniel saw that she wasn’t in great danger with her brother right by her, so he ran at the thing of fur and blood, cutting at its throat.
The wolf snarled and bit his arm. Daniel pulled away quickly and cut again. The head of a young girl fell onto the forest floor, rolling into the tall grasses and under a bush. The body of the girl fell to its knees, landing on its stomach. The body was naked except for a piece of fur wrapped around the wrist.
Daniel turned away from the body and staggered back to his companions. Liam helped Red stand up, her arm around his slim shoulders, and she hopped to the axe man.
“It’s dead,” he told her.
Red glanced at the human body and looked back at him. He was out of breath and sweat dampened the yellow hair hanging on his forehead. She frowned, seeing him hiding his arm behind his back.
“He was bitten,” Liam told Red.
The young girl’s brown eyes widened in fear at hearing that. Daniel sighed and showed them his injury. The bite mark had already begun to swell up and eat away at his flesh; making it pucker and bruise with blue, yellow, and pink.
Red was speechless when she saw the tell-tale mark of a bitten man. He would soon turn into a werewolf himself when the moon rose. She pulled away from Liam’s grip and hopped into the arms of Daniel.
“We will find the cure,” she told him, refusing to let the tears show in her eyes. “We can find a witch to make you a potion, or ask a goblin for a pact.”
“There is no cure,” he said, brushing aside her hair to clearly see her pretty face.
She knew what he wanted them to do. She shook her head, the tears rolling down her cheeks. Daniel held her around her tiny waist and glanced up at Liam. He was busy checking the last two arrows in his quiver, not paying them any attention.
Daniel thought that Liam knew the secret between him and his sister; that they had become closer than friends. Daniel turned back to Red and brushed the tears away with his thumb.
“Do it now,” he whispered, pulling away from her arms.
Red sobbed, her whole body shaking, as Daniel stood before them unarmed. Liam cocked an arrow and aimed at Daniel’s heart. Daniel smirked. The guy hadn’t been checking his arrows after all; he knew he would have to do it since his sister wouldn’t be able to.
“No Liam!” She grabbed the bow from her brother. “We have to save him.”
“We can’t,” Liam replied.
“There must be another way!”
“There is no other way!” he shouted at her.
Red’s lip quivered as she looked at her brother. He had the same snub nose as she did, and a slight tint of red in his brown locks. Red could see that he was clenching his jaw, a muscle jumping in his cheek from knowing that they had to kill their only true friend.
“Red.”
She turned to look at Daniel. She knew his face so well. Those high cheekbones she traced with her finger at night when she would sneak into his tent after Liam had gone to sleep. His blue eyes the color of a warm summer sky, and his lips ...
“Do it now,” Daniel told Liam.
Liam reached for his bow in his sister’s hand when she picked it up and aimed an arrow at Daniel. Her arms didn’t even shake as she trained the weapon right at his heart; the heart she loved listening to as she fell asleep, the heart that he had said beat only for her.
“Do it, Red,” Daniel said, lifting his arms in surrender.
She hesitated.
“Now!”
She let the arrow go.
About the Author:
Leah D.W. is 21 years old and currently a journalism student at her local university. She lives in South Africa in a town called Bloemfontein with her family and two beloved dogs. She has been writing since the age of 13 and her first published work was a short horror story titled Dracula’s Mistress. She is busy working on a number of novels and is an editor/proofreader for Bayou Brew Publishing.
Her author page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/leahdwauthor?ref=stream but no blog as of yet.
She loves writing in the genres of paranormal romance, fantasy fiction, and historical fiction and is a proud bookworm with a mountain of reads stacked up in her room. She is also studying criminology in order to be able to write mystery horrors.
Leah D.W. will have an anthology, called Unnatural, out soon with a collection of paranormal short stories and a full length novel, titled The Runaway's Secret, both published by Bayou Brew Publishing. Her short story, Dracula's Mistress, is already out and featured in the Midnight Hour Publishing anthology, Love Kills, available on Amazon.
The Eighth Dwarf
by Marissa Hartman
“Oh no!” Grumpy exclaimed in his gruff and always crabby voice.
“What is it?” Sneezy asked as he walked into the room, his face contorted as he tried to hold back a sneeze. After only a few seconds, his itchy nose got the best of him and he let out a loud “Ah-ah-achoo!”, startling Sleepy, who had inadvertently passed out at the dining room table.
Grumpy extended his arm, holding out an opened envelope and a piece of paper. Sneezy grabbed it and began reading. “That’s just wonderful,” he said sarcastically.
“Tell me about it.”
“What is all the commotion in here?” Snow White asked in her songbird voice.
Sneezy handed her the letter and then ran to the bathroom to go blow his nose.
She read as gracefully as she did everything else, but when she finished, all of that delicate grace momentarily disappeared. “You have got to be kidding me.”
Grumpy just shook his head.
“Why is he coming here?”
“He wants to visit.”
“I know, but why does he think that anyone wants him to visit? I thought we made it pretty clear last time that he’s not exactly welcome.” Her songbird voice had turned crackly and anxious.
“Who’s coming to visit?” Happy walked in with an ever-present smile on his face.
Snow White’s eyebrow arched as she answered, “Pesty.”
Happy’s smile disappeared. “Why?”
“He wants to visit.”
Happy thought for a moment. “Okay, everyone pack your bags! We’re going on an emergency vacation!” But he was too late. Just as he finished his sentence, there was a knock at the door. The letter had been sent five days prior—five days that Pesty had used to travel to the cottage. Everyone stared silently at the door.
They knocked again.
Doc came stomping into the room and started toward the door. “Isn’t anyone going to get that?”
“No!” they all yelled simultaneously, but once again, their cries were too late. Doc, not having heard the conversation about Pesty’s visit, opened the door.
“Oh crap,” he said under his breath. “Hello, Pesty. What brings you all the way out here?”
In one of the mousiest, most annoying voices anyone had ever heard, Pesty exclaimed, “I’m out here to visit my family, of course!” He threw his arms around Doc, and Doc reciprocated with a depthless hug. Pesty dropped his bag on the ground and ran into the house. “It’s so great to see all of you!”
Happy was the only one who responded with a superficial, “It’s great to see you, too.”
Years before, Snow White and the dwarf family had landed a movie deal, one of which they kept secret from the black sheep of the family, Pesty. They knew that if they allowed Pesty to be involved, something would surely go wrong. The deal was too big, and there was no way in Hades they were going to allow Pesty to ruin this for them. So they came up with a plan and sent their brother to live and work on a horse farm eight enchanted forests away. Being the youngest, Pesty did not question their authority. Six weeks later, to the family’s surprise, Pesty sent a letter saying how much he enjoyed living and working at the horse farm, and that he hoped to stay there for a long time. Things could not have worked out more perfectly. Snow White and the dwarf family were able to proceed with their movie deal in peace, and they never even had to tell the producers that there was in fact an eighth dwarf in the family.
Sadly, though, the production of the movie brought on its own slough of problems. Snow White’s neighbor, Ophelia Lenore, had landed a part in the movie as the evil queen. Even Snow White had agreed that Ophelia was a perfect fit for the character. What nobody knew, was that Ophelia, who truly was jealous of Snow White’s beauty, took her part very seriously. Ever since the end of production, Ophelia continued to harass Snow White, doing things like raking all of her leaves into Snow White’s yard and bringing her two Rottweiler’s over to use Snow White’s garden as a bathroom when no one was watching. Snow White had even confronted Ophelia, to which Ophelia denied all of Snow White’s accusations, but she knew the truth.
Unhappily Ever After: Fairy Tales With a Twist Page 14
