Captured by the Monsters

by R. L. Caulder

  Sera sucked in a breath. “Ok, so no one can fight for me now?”

  “No one. It is against our rules.”

  Sera fingered her crystal. “Okay, then what?”

  “Well, then we test you to see if you’re the Queen.”

  Sera let out a little squeak of surprise. “Me, Queen? No way.”

  Chuckling at her adamant refusal of the idea, I soothed her, “It is a one in a million chance that you would be Queen. But remember, we are always looking for that one woman who can finally fix the wrongs of our land. We have hope we will find her soon.”

  Her eyes softened and her shoulders slumped forward, “I understand. I can’t imagine how sad your people are. How desperate to return to the way it was before. Will there be other human women there?”

  “Maybe. Since the leaders sent down women from The Above shortly before and after you came, some matches could have been made. Those Trifectas would be taking their mates to the capital.”

  Sera gave me a delighted smile just as Rowen came back into the bedroom, carrying with him a gossamer dress. Her eyes widened and she pulled out of my embrace as she squeaked in delight. “This is beautiful. Where did you get it? “

  Instead of answering, Rowen helped Sera by slipping the garment over her body. It flowed like water, settling over her curves in a tantalizing display of perfection.

  “You look lovely,” I complimented and winked. “An outfit fit for a Queen.”

  “I’m not the Queen,” Sera groused, glaring playfully at me. “I wouldn’t be any good at it anyways.”

  Rowen shared a conspiratorial grin with me. “That’s for the crystal to decide.”

  Axton returned with clothes in hand from the stash all Trifectas have in their homes in case of finding their mate, signaling it was time for us to begin our journey to the castle. A part of me was still fearful of bringing her around unmatched Trifectas, but I had to believe that we were strong enough to handle anything that could happen now that we were Rumilus.

  We’d kill anyone who dared to even look at her wrong.

  Chapter Sixteen

  SERA

  Something strange was happening to me. A feeling I couldn’t quite describe was taking hold deep inside of me. It felt possessive and out of control, and I didn’t like it at all.

  So much of my life had been out of my hands because of the way we lived in The Above, and so this was a very unwelcome feeling. My body’s reactions were the only thing that were truly mine, right? But my body felt like it’d been hijacked by whatever strange and wild thing was taking hold.

  After talking with my monsters, especially Sylan, I’d learned that so many human women didn’t make it. This obviously was a fear of theirs, and I didn’t want to worry them that something was wrong with me by bringing this up. Not to mention the monstrous weight of their land and species being on the brink of dying out.

  So instead of worrying them by expressing this change within me, I focused on the lovely gown that they had somehow had waiting here for me—these monsters truly were full of surprises—although I wasn’t sure how I was going to walk to the castle in the delicate dress.

  They didn’t sound concerned, but they were much bigger than me and could cover far more ground. Also, they were probably really excited to just use their legs again, if I had to hazard a guess. I was happy for them, but if I had to choose between walking and flying, I think I might have preferred to be a Specter.

  Exercising was not my thing.

  “What are you thinking about?” Sylan asked, coming up beside me and tracing the pad of his finger across my shoulder, careful to not rip the material with his claw. “Your brow is creased. That means you’re worrying about something.”

  A half smile tugged at my lips.

  Of course he would have noticed this about me already. I hadn’t even been with them for three whole days, and it felt like they’d known me for a lifetime. Before I came to The Below, I would have never believed in anything such as fate. I created my own fate. What was left of it after it was taken from me by the leaders from The Above and the monsters from The Below. But now, I wasn’t so sure. I lightly touched the crystal around my neck before answering.

  “How long will it take to get to the castle? I’m worried about traveling in such a nice gown and ruining it before we get there,” I admitted. That would be my luck, showing up and looking a mess in front of important people.

  Sylan smiled. “Not very long. We’re not far away, and we are very fast in this form.”

  “Faster than floating around as Specters?” I snorted, teasing him.

  “Actually, you’d be surprised,” he answered cryptically.

  “Well, I’m not that fast.” I reminded him and lifted the dress a bit to make my point. “I have small little human legs.”

  Axton joined us and ran his claws through my hair in a manner that made me shiver. “Don’t worry, we’ll carry you if you get tired or can’t keep up, precious.”

  I harrumphed indignantly, because Serafina Adler was fiercely independent, but deep down inside, I didn’t mind being taken care of when it came to these monsters. I quite liked the idea. They made me feel cherished.

  When they mentioned the castle, it brought to mind a hazy recollection of when I first came to The Below and saw it looming in the shadows, in the gloom. In my head, the place was draped in mystery.

  I wasn’t worried about going to the castle, not when I had my Trifecta, because I knew that my monsters would stop at nothing to protect me. How ironic that I felt safer here in The Below with them than I ever did when I lived in The Above.

  Rowen came back out with a satchel. “Are we all ready?” he prompted while throwing it over his shoulder. I barely contained the giggle of this massive monster looking like he was carrying a purse.

  It was already funny enough seeing them grumbling about wearing clothes, so this was the icing on the cake.

  “Yes, it’s time to go.” Sylan took my small hand, squeezing it lightly. “Ready?”

  I nodded mutely. My voice strangled in my throat at his touch, sending a jolt through me. What was meant to be a supportive gesture felt like it had awoken an inferno in the pit of my stomach. Carefully, I extracted my hand, trying not to draw attention to the action, but Sylan’s frown told me he noticed.

  Forcing a smile to my lips, I tipped my head. “Lead the way,” I suggested brightly, trying to play off my reaction.

  Sylan shared a look with Rowen and Axton that was heavy with meaning I couldn’t interpret. It felt like they knew something that I didn’t, adding more worry to my plate. But Axton diverted my attention by taking the lead, marching ahead of me. I followed, with Sylan and Rowen at my back.

  This was the first time I was fully capable of observing my surroundings down in this new land. Before, when I had first come to The Below, I couldn’t breathe. The air literally was killing me. Then, after the crystal had picked my Trifecta in the cave, my monsters had wrapped me up in the shadows of their Specter forms, taking me to their home, meaning I didn’t see very much of Paratiisi.

  When we walked outside, it dawned on me that I wasn’t wearing any shoes—none of us were—but the ground was soft, a cross between volcanic ash and sand. I leaned down to scoop some into my hand, pulling it close to my face and the faint glow of the crystal hanging at my neck. The sand glittered as if a thousand diamonds had been crushed and ground into it.

  “How pretty,” I whispered, letting it sift through my fingers as it poured back to the ground.

  “You should see this place how it’s supposed to be,” Rowen mused. “It’s a sight to behold.

  My heart panged at the sentiment.

  “I can’t wait to see Paratiisi restored,” I told him in an upbeat manner, attempting to be positive about the situation. Although the three men were hopeful, I could tell whenever they talked about their land that deep down, they didn’t think it would ever be recovered. That as a species, they were doomed. It hurt my heart because I�
�d come to care for them, and I didn’t want anything to happen to them.

  Squinting into the darkness surrounding me, I tried to pierce the shadows with my eyes, but I could only see so far, and I wondered what my monsters could see. I knew that they had mentioned before being able to see easily in the dark.

  “How far can you see?” I asked no one in particular, wanting to learn as much as I could.

  “Very far,” Axton answered. “Rumilus senses are much more heightened than a human’s. We can see further, jump higher, run faster. You get the idea.”

  I rolled my eyes, poking him in the back. “You don’t have to rub it in,” I teased. “I’m sure there’s something humans do that is better.”

  Behind me, Rowen laughed, and I turned to watch him shrug.

  “I don’t know about humans as a whole, but there is one in particular who’s pretty amazing. She has a smile that lights up a room and is the most beautiful creature in all the lands. Her heart far outshines any of our kind.”

  I glared at him playfully. “Are you trying to flatter me to get in my pants?”

  It was totally working, but he didn’t need to know that.

  Sylan murmured under his breath, “But you aren’t wearing any pants,” making me laugh at his constant confusion of human sayings.

  Rowen touched a hand to his chest in mock offense. “I was not. I was being sincere. I’m just biased that we have the perfect mate.” He punctuated his words by delicately running a finger down my spine. The ensuing shiver nearly brought me to my knees, and a lust so strong it nearly blinded me came out of nowhere.

  Sylan and Rowen both reached for me, but I arched out of their reach, falling instead into Axton’s arms.

  My skin was so sensitive at the contact, it felt like an electrical livewire beneath my skin jumping around. I wrenched out of Axton’s hold, wrapping an arm around my midsection in protection, as if to ward the others away.

  “Sera, is everything all right?” he asked, extreme concern lacing his tone.

  Taking a deep breath, I dropped my arms and shook them out. “Yes, everything’s fine,” I lied, hating feeling like I was doomed to be broken forever. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be so clumsy.”

  Sylan shifted closer, but made sure not to touch me. “It’s okay, Sera. Let us help you.”

  “I would really like it if you could tell me about everything in the land. What’s what and what you call it. If this is to be my home, I want to know too,” I answered, breezing over the issue at hand.

  Sylan looked torn, as if he couldn’t decide what to do.

  I stepped lightly around Axton, continuing to walk in the direction where he had been leading. They easily caught up with me, and Axton took the lead once more.

  Rowen pointed out things in the landscape, thankfully dropping my issues. “So over there to our left is a huge mountain range that used to bloom with the most vibrant flowers.” He gestured with his hand in the direction, but all I could see through the dark haze was a glob of dark black terrain, so I closed my eyes for a moment and imagined it.

  I pictured the wind blowing through my hair, caressing my skin as I leaned down to smell an exotic purple flower with eight petals around a glimmering silver center that reminded me of the ash beneath my feet.

  “I can’t wait to see it one day,” I breathed out as I opened my eyes and smiled at him. Grabbing his hand, I enjoyed his shocked expression at my open intimacy. “What else is there?”

  Clearing his throat, we continued on, hand in hand as he pointed in the opposite direction. “Over there was an endlessly long river that flowed with the same healing waters of our grotto, but the water was refreshingly cold.”

  This time I pictured immersing myself in the cool water after a hot day and splashing around with my monsters. I smirked, thinking of how funny it would be to see these three hulking monsters splashing around like children.

  “That sounds lovely,” I sighed wistfully.

  “Do you like animals, beauty?” Sylan asked, slowing his pace to come grab my other hand.

  It was like a sharp dagger to the chest, thinking of Gizmo.

  Coughing slightly to cover my emotions, I answered, “Yes. I’ve always loved animals and feel like they’re too good for humans. Their love is unconditional. I have a big, fluffy white cat named Gizmo at home.”

  I hadn’t realized I’d allowed my head to droop down until Sylan’s free hand crossed over to tilt it back up. “Once these lands are restored, he can come live down here with us.”

  My eyes widened as my heart soared. “Really?” I asked excitedly. “He wouldn’t be in harm’s way?”

  “Not at all, beauty,” he answered and smiled. “We lost hope for a long time that we would never find our mate and that our lands wouldn’t be restored. But you have given us our faith back. So hold fast in the belief that everything will work out and we will build a life here together.”

  Nibbling on my lip at his encouraging words giving me butterflies, I stopped walking and dropped their hands. Turning to face Sylan who had also stopped, I cut him off as he started to ask, “What’s wr—” and jumped, throwing my arms around his neck to the best of my ability.

  For a moment I jolted, forgetting about the issue I was having when our skin made contact. I prepared myself for the pain and insufferable desire to take over, but it didn’t. Instead it was like that new piece of me coiled up and laid down like a content house cat in his embrace.

  What the hell was going on with me?

  Quickly he wrapped his arms around me and helped lift me up until my legs wrapped around his waist, loving the way my dress rose and settled high on my thighs. I buried my face into his neck and breathed his scent that reminded me of home. “Thank you,” I murmured. “I needed that.”

  With one arm wound tightly around my back, he pulled his head back and gripped my chin lightly. “I refuse to believe the fates brought us together just for it to be ripped away before we get our happy ending.”

  He leaned in to press a kiss to my forehead, and damn if it didn’t set fireworks off in my chest. It was such an intimate gesture that made me feel so…loved.

  “Let’s pick up the pace,” Axton called out. “Keep carrying her, Sylan, so we can take off.”

  “Got it,” he answered and dropped my chin to wrap his other arm around me and then took off. I squealed at the speed in which we went and slammed my eyes shut.

  Soon we would get this presentation over with a plan to go back to The Above. I wouldn’t be swayed from this, but I would get this customary greeting out of the way first to assuage them.

  Chapter Seventeen

  SERA

  The castle that came into view from a distance was nothing like the one I thought I saw when I first arrived in The Below. In my head, it was small, removed, and hazy, but up close, it was jaw-droppingly enormous—far larger than any structure I had seen in The Above or even read about in our history.

  “Wow,” I breathed in awe, taking in the towering spires of blackness. The castle itself seemed to be alive, undulating with shadows, as if it were turning into a Specter, too.

  Up close, in my crystal’s light, I could see the building had the same glittering aspect as the soil—a sparkling onyx—and I wondered what it was. Everything in Paratiisi seemed to be made of gems in some manner, reminding me of Rowen’s nickname for me.

  At the palace doors, three Specters were standing guard—a Trifecta, I assumed, without a mate. Even though I couldn’t see their eyes, I felt their hungry stares, and a shiver raced down my spine.

  Axton stepped in front of me to shield me. “We’re here to present our mate,” he stated with calm authority.

  The Specter to the left nodded his shadowy head before opening the doors and ushering us in, Sylan and Rowen crowding close to my back. Although their touch awoke the beast inside of me slightly, it still comforted me and made me feel safe.

  I leaned into them, needing the connection and the reassurance that they were
protecting me. All I could think of was the Specters rushing me like they were all going to take me after my monsters had paired with me in the first cave.

  Once inside, the walls of the castle were really no different than the exterior except that they were molded into intricate patterns. I assumed it was to serve as artwork, but otherwise, everything inside was bare. No pictures or decorations in sight, and I wondered if this is how it had always been.

  Pieces of peach crystal peppered the walls up and down the hall, giving it a soft glow that afforded me the ability to see. Questions swirled in my mind, and I wondered if their light was fueled by the fact that there were women like me here, or if there was still some spark of life left in the original crystal that must be nearby.

  The crystal that would test me to see if I was their Queen.

  Nibbling on my lip, I tried not to think about it. Not so much that I could be chosen Queen, but more so the odds that Paratiisi would ever find its true ruler again.

  The castle was much different than the home my Trifecta had built for me, but the one similarity was that there were many doors, and they were shut. To me, it seemed a symbol of how the Specters lived their lives, closed off from one another.

  When we finally reached the end of the hall, Axton paused. “When we enter, I will tell them who we are. They will announce us, and I will present you to our leaders. Rowen and Sylan will stay at your side. If you need anything, signal to them, please.”

  I straightened my shoulders, nodding. Nerves ran through me at the idea of meeting their leaders. I had no idea what to expect from them, but back home, our governing body was highly feared.

  “Don’t worry, we’ve got this,” Rowen whispered. “In and out.”

  Admittedly, I was a little nervous, but I was excited to hopefully see the other women who had been claimed as well as their Trifectas. Perhaps we could band together in taking the truth back home.

  When Axton pushed through the doors, I marched stoically in behind him with my head held high. Peering around him, I saw three Rumilus, who I assumed were the current rulers. sitting on thrones.