The Monstrosity
is
Unleashed
Moving on.
xxx
A refurbished corpse decayed by the elements was lied peacefully inside an oakwood casket. Pale hands closed the creaking lid. Long nails traced the engraved crest lovingly. The latch flipped to secure him inside and was locked. With the rotting corpse away, a nose was free to inhale a new kind of smell in the air. A familiar smell with death and desperation wallow in the flowing musk. A hunger gripped the swallowing throat.
Cackling resonated from a toothy grin. Cloaked elbows folded on the arched lid, profuse light gray hair draping past shoulders. Fingers interlaced under a chin. The smile growing wider as the scents became stronger. "Well, well, well. So it finally happened, it did." Finger pinched the brim of a black hat, tipping it slightly to gray bangs. "The young lady's hunger has arisen. And is bringing Hell to her and those around her." A pink tongue lathered pale lips. "Two left clinging to a thread. Their souls spared the kiss growing to passionate. Emerald green eyes glistened in the encroaching chaos. The fingers curled to a sickle in the corner, cutting the thickly coating fumes as it was propped to a shoulder. "It would appear I will have to get my hands dirty this time around. Lest another hunger crazed demon tip the balance to a breaking point."
xxx
"YOUNG MASTER! HE'S IN HERE!" Finnian and Bardroy screamed.
Ciel, Mey-Rin, and Sebastian sprinted after the frantic cries. The ground floors quaked in their stampede. Bardroy and Finnian, lugging a comatose Von Price by their shoulders, met Ciel and company near the kitchen. Horror struck Ciel and Mey-Rin rooted in place at Vincent's state. The young Lord was found unconscious in Mr. Tanaka's Quarters. Thankfully the elder Butler was tending to the horses. He was pale as a sheet. Head to toe his suit was dangling on an emaciated body. His voluminous hair regressed to a sickly grey, wiry and unkempt. Lips dried and cracking, dabs of blood splitting the lips. And his eyes...they were glossed over. He resembled a ghoul. Disembodied moans shakily reverberated from his wrinkled throat.
"My goodness! What happened to him?!" Mey-Rin helped the boys carry him to a nearby seat, laying him flat. "He looks like the devil himself sucked his soul out of him, he does!" Mey-Rin checked him for a pulse, and listened to his breathing. An amazing feat that he was still breathing.
Not a devil. A demon, Ciel and Sebastian simultaneously deduced. Ciel surreptitiously glared Sebastian way, silently demanding an explanation. To his surprise, Sebastian appeared to be...seething. Apprehensive. Concerned. Sebastian hissed under his breath. To the naked human eye they are invisible. But Sebastian can clearly make out deprived veins constricting the muscles to his neck. Healthy lips blemished a blackish-purple, as if the circulation were cut from them for a prolonged period. The only positive sign is his heart was still beating was the pulsing artery in his neck. Much like his fiancee - praise whoever is watching over the woman Sebastian arrived in time - Vincent is very much alive. Just in a type of shock. Adding to his string of fortune, his soul remained untouched.
"There's one more thing!" Bardroy approached Ciel. "The dress Lady Alliahnna was wearing was torn to ribbons right next to him." Ciel and Sebastian gaped. Alliahnna tore out of her dress. The pair inwardly prayed she wasn't running around in the nude. Bardroy angrily cracked his knuckles. "Pardon me, My Lord, but if this bastard tried to take advantage of her-"
"That is not the case, I assure you!" Ciel barked.
Enough was enough. Ciel ground his fingers to a fist. It's been acknowledged and remarked upon before, but no more will it be maintained at the opposite end of the ten foot pole. Ciel allows Alliahnna and Sebastian's relationship to flourish because he was convinced Sebastian would be able to take care of her better than anyone else. That said, he's tried to stay on his end of the pole and pretend it was a norm.
"Is Alliahnna still in the manor?" He heatedly frothed at Sebastian.
"She is not, My Lord." Sebastian regretted to inform him. "She is nowhere on the grounds either!"
"Then we must make haste! Bardroy!" Ciel barked. The cook stiffened to attention. "Contact the Doctor and have them be tended to! Finnian and Mey-Rin!"
"Master!" They saluted.
"Take them both to the guest quarters and do what you can for them in the mean time!" Ciel stormed down the hall with Sebastian in tow.
"Where are you goin', M'Lord?" Bardroy asked worriedly.
"To see about England's latest bat problem!" Question marks rose over the staff's head. They weren't aware England had a bat problem. "And you can explain on the way." Sebastian exhaled solemnly. He cannot blame Ciel for his rising frustration. Alliahnna is not only his lover, she is his responsibility. And it is due to his negligence Vincent and Desiree nearly crossed the threshold of death's door. "First we must ascertain where Alliahnna has gone. Where do demons go when they are hungry?"
"Newborn demons like Alliahnna actually fear the overwhelming hunger. 2 out of every 11 embrace the hunger, while the rest fight to contain and resist it." Sebastian elucidated, pondering the question. Taking into account of Vincent and Desiree's state, Alliahnna stopped before it was too late. And by how weary she has been as of late, she's been resisting for quite some time. "Alliahnna will want to go where there is a minimum of to no people."
"Then she will have to travel far!" Ciel ripped his hat and cane from their places at the door. "Hundreds of people who escaped London's blaze are returning to help refurbish and rebuild!"
xxx
Women and children rode in carriages and carts, helping to secure provisions and equipment as well as maintain inventory. Heavy lifting men moseyed alongside the carts, carrying backpacks packed to the brim with tools and first aide equipment. Much of London has yet to be reconstructed after the fire. It will be important to calculate how much supply they have, and how long it will last.
Hidden amongst the thick brush lining the stretch of country, a figure lurked. Rabid eyes locked to the helpless little sheep following their shepherd. Ignorant of the predator ready to pounce. Rowdy conversation dulled the raspy, deprived breaths exhausting past hungry fangs. A long tongue lapped to dried, smiling lips. The abundance of aromas combining into one alluring smell. Veins tightened as the dry throat swallowed.
"Hun...gry…" Saliva pooled to fangs.
xxx
Sebastian and Ciel jumped into a carriage and they were on their way. It would be faster to travel Sebastian's way. However, it is unknown how Alliahnna will react to their pursuit in her current state of mind. The coachman snapped the reins vigorously, driving the horses into a mad sprint. Time was not on Ciel and Sebastian's side. On top of having a major scandal on their doorstep, Alliahnna was loose on the unsuspecting world. Starving for rich souls.
"Sebastian, be perfectly honest!" Ciel sternly ordered. "How serious is this situation?" More importantly, will his sister be alright?
Sebastian lowered his head. "If we do not capture Alliahnna before her urges become too great…" He braced himself, "London can and will become a mass graveyard." Ciel went rigid, clawing at his pant leg. London has suffered two fires and a near apocalypse. Now his sister - a newborn, hunger crazed demon - was on the loose.
"Those civilians are in danger." Ciel growled. "We must stop Alliahnna before she reaches them." In the back of his naive mind, Ciel prayed the resolve and discipline Alliahnna displays for urges holds
"Against her own volition, instinct will draw Alliahnna to the people and she will follow that flow back to London." Sebastian warned urgently. Judging from how she abstained from robbing Desiree and Vincent of their souls, Alliahnna's will is standing strong. However...another second longer...and Vincent most surely would not be with them. A sign her will is weakening. "I just hope she will be able to fight the urges so we may arrive to help her."
xxx
Dress shoes weightlessly touched down to a chimney spout. A despondent sigh huffed hot air. Olive green eyes tediously gazed to the small town beyond a pair of crafted glasses. Gloved hands folded behind orangish blond and black hair, letting the picking up breeze waft his standard uniform suit.
"Why in the world would Will send me to London..." He bleakly pouted to the very lack luster town, "Only to have that old codger at the Under Taker shop send me to this pisspoor speck of urban living?" He bit his lower lip. He sat on the spout, leaning an elbow onto his knee. The town wasn't bad. Pretty quaint. Quiet. Nice fresh air and scenery. But it was no London. Countless cinematic records to behold. Judgments of the soon to be dearly departed's worth to be made every second. "Just because he sentenced Robin Hood and Marie Antoinette doesn't make him a big shot. He's just lucky he got to them before anyone else." He huffed his bangs.
Being reassigned to Angston isn't entirely what's creased his suit. It was the assignment designated to him by Undertaker that has him fuming. In place of collecting souls of the dying, he's been asked to help...preserve them. And to do so, he was to scout for someone threatening those souls.
"Let's see…" The young Reaper boredly opened his ledger. The pages fluttered to a section containing the photo of his young, female victim. "Alliahnna Phantomhive. Age 19. Sister to Ciel Phantomhive. Newborn Demoness succumbing to insatiable hunger." He scoffed, snapping the book closed. Not a normal passage entered in a ledger. Undertaker took the liberty of inserting it himself. By his insistence that she be found and not engaged, this Alliahnna Phantomhive wasn't meant to be killed. "A demon has hunger pains and I'm supposed to babysit her?" He sighed resignedly. "No sense harping about it, eh Ronald." He pepped himself. Nothing he can do about it now. He's here. Might as well make the best of it. "Who knows? This Daemonette might not even be a sweat breaker for me."
xxx
Two men conversing heartily passed down the lackluster streets of Angston. Angston is a relatively large town serving as the halfway point to London. The younger man hooted loudly in eager anticipation of returning home after a long night's work. Drool spilling to his chin for a taste of one's wife's cooking. Lucky for him, his wife is also a night owl with a passion for cooking. The happily married man assured his friend the cooking is worthy of add to his deathbed list.
"That good, eh? I can't wait!" The elder gentleman itched his curly beard.
"It'll be worth it!" The younger man boisterous. "You may actually want to move in once you taste it."
"I spend 12 hours a night with you in a cramped warehouse hauling sugar and salt bags!" He hooked his friend by the neck, brotherly ruffling his hair. "Do you honestly think I'll want to see your ugly mug every morning?"
"The same ugly mug picking up the slack for his AGED and VETERAN friend!" He laughed at the hand's mercy.
"You callin' me old, boy?!" He was going to let him have it now. Shaky whimpers captured their ear, stopping them in mid stride. "You hear tha'?"
"Yeah." The two men slowly parted, straining their ears to identify the strange noise. Small sniffles raised their brows. "Someone's...crying." They searched up and down the street for the crying person. Only people out for a stroll were on the mainstreet, and the occasional passerby heading for London. The crying sounded close.
The elder man turned. "It's coming from over there." He strolled cautiously into an alley. His friend followed close behind. The crying had to have been coming from there. Finding who it is was proving to be a challenge. They checked behind dumpsters and trashcans, investigated the fire escape walkways, and went so far as to look inside a manhole leading to musty catacombs. The crying grew louder the further in they went, but they had no luck finding the person.
"Hello?" The young man beckoned. "Is someone there?" The only response was the sad crying. A woman by the pitch of the whimpers.
"Please! Miss! If you can hear us, answer!" The elder man implored. Her weeping wounded him. These were whimpers of a woman in dire need. They just hoped she wasn't too injured. No one deserves to be tossed with the trash and left.
The crying was louder where they were standing. They should be right on top of her. Or, at the very least, close by.
"Psst! Right here!" The young man urged in a hushed tone. He waved his friend over to an adjacent way in the alley. The elder man strained on ear. Chills rolled over his skin when he heard the crying emanating from the turn. He crept behind his friend. The young man put a finger on his lips, warning him to keep quiet, then pointed around the corner.
Both men peered around the corner and gasped. The woman they found...was young. Couldn't be any older than her teens or 20's. She rocked edgily in the fetal position amongst discarded trash. Her clothing was covered in sticks and leaves. Her clothing - odd white dress coat and...skirt for a woman to be wearing - were free of dirt and grime. She hasn't been there for long. Her arms were wrapped tightly to her quivering form. Nails digging to her elbows, ready to tear the fabric. Her long, voluminous navy hair was a matted mess, dangling messily and masking half her face.
"Excuse me...Miss?" The younger man treaded carefully. The girl flailed her hands, clawing at the wall. Incoherent mutterings coupled by shaky laughter unnerved him. Is she an asylum patient? An asylum is not far from their position. The young man mouthed for his friend to get help. The older man kept eyes peeled for the nearest officer to seek assistance. He was nervous about leaving his friend alone with her. Something doesn't smell right. And it wasn't the garbage. "Miss…" He continued to creep closer. "Are you alright? Do you require aid?"
"... ...ay…" She strained, grounding her teeth.
"I'm sorry?"
"Go...a...way…" She clawed at her scalp, yanking handful of hair. "Get...away…!" She snarled forcefully.
"My Lady, please!" The younger man removed his coat to drape on her. "We must get you away from here." He bridged the gap, lowering the coat to her shoulders. "It's not safe." He barely touched the coat to her shoulders. She whipped around. Claws grasped his neck, dragging him in close.
"No…" Fumes exhausted from the twisted girl, "It certainly isn't."
xxx
Ronald leapt for one mile of rooftops, and scoured the streets. He landed on one man's head, spied from beneath a woman's dress, and went so far as to question a baby in a stroller. A whole hour of searching the third smallest town in all of England and nothing. No demons, no Phantomhives, not even a person bearing a strong resemblance. He never thought it would be this difficult to find a demon in a sea of humans. If what Will told him is true, Demons aren't very subtle. In appearance or actions. They stick out worse than sore thumbs.
"Come on, Ronald, THINK!" He knocked on his forehead. He stuffed half a crepe in his mouth, munching furiously. "You're a demon...you're hungry...where would you go?" For that matter, what type of souls do demons look for? Young? Old? The middle way? In the past, demons attached themselves to humans yearning for revenge. "Humans are pretty simple minded. Most want revenge for a bad haircut." He twisted his own hair. A couple of split ends. "Hmm. Maybe I should-"
"AAAHHH!" Screams shrilly howled from close by. Ronald choked on his crepe. The crowd caught wind of it as well. A couple wanted to go investigate. Ronald's cream splotched lips stretched into a smile. Screams of terror in an otherwise quiet town. Either they're being mugged, or his quarry has finally surfaced.
"Well that certainly didn't take long." He tossed the pastry into the trash. "This might be easier than I thought."
xxx
"MONSTER! MONSTER!" The old man cried.
"SOMEBODY HELP US!" The pair were the ones cowering in the alley now. Embraced in each other's arms they quivered in fear. The dark shadow of an animal hued over them, towering with hollowed eye sockets and razor sharp teeth.
A boot crushed a fresh rat corpse. The gushing blood curdled the two men's stomachs, only for it to subside as their assailant drew closer. Her upper body hunched languidly as her arms swayed side to side with her stiff stalking. The shadows highlighted her glowing pink eyes. Her hungry, razor sharp fangs oozed with drool. Her gnarly knuckles crackled as each finger drummed, the sharpening talons puncturing her palms little by little. She cackled maliciously. Her slit pupils narrowed to the throbbing veins in their necks. The teasing aroma of their fear, the emanating essence of their darkest nightmares, wafted to her nostrils, driving her wild. Fear...yes...
"PLEASE! SOMEONE! ANYONE!" The young man was in tears.
"I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE!" The elder man wailed.
"Tell me, Gentlemen…" Her eyes widened, "What hidden terrors keep you awake at night?!" Pink diluted to dark crimson. The two men gradually became transfixed in their brilliance.
Loud revving echoed up and down the alleyway. "HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" The two men gazed to the sky, answers to their prayers being answered. The woman grit her teeth, growling impatiently. A figure rode a lawnmower across the air, passing Alliahnna overhead. The lawnmower screeched on the bumpy landing, twisted around to a dead halt. "Whew. Glad I made it when I did. This will be Hell for me at the office." Ronald flipped hair from his face, smiling smugly to the starved demon a short distance away. "The name's Ronald Knox. I'm a Grim Reaper in case you can't tell." He kicked his lawnmower, exciting a couple sounds.
"Rea...per…" She snarled. Just what...I don't...need. Her right mind hissed.
"So you're the demon I've been searching for. Alliahnna...something or other, right?" He waved a hand, clearly unimpressed by the rabid dog across from him. "Somehow I expected more. Not some yank looking for a dirty time in an alley." He put hands to his hips, laughing obnoxiously loud. Alliahnna languorously turned to the big mouth Reaper. Her bangs masked her irritation. Grell and Will. He reminds me of Grell and Will wrapped into one. She took a step forward. "Egh. Whatever. This shouldn't take too long. So why don't you sit back and let me-" Alliahnna smashed her hand to his face, hooking the whole with her talons. "Huh? Ugh...wait-!" She twisted her body, stomped one foot in her general direction, grabbed Ronald's collar and poured all her strength into a mighty throw. Ronald screamed, flipping into the air.
The two men poked from their hiding place, blinking in confusion. "How did she do that?"
"I have 20 years on you, son, and I've never seen anything like this."
xxx
Curious onlookers leaned on the railing, peering to the ripple in the water. Ronald broke the surface, gasping for air and spitting out pieces of trash...and other stuff. Rather than search for someone to help him out of there, the crowd shrugged and meandered on their way. Must not be too out of the norm for them to bother.
"DAMN! That girl's got an arm!" He blurted in disbelief. Ronald wasn't sure how, but he splash landed into a sewage reservoir. He was too humiliated to guesstimate the distance. For one, if Grell finds out a Demoness sent him flying he'd be the laughing stock of the entire bureau. He moaned in despair. "What am I going to tell Will when he finds out about this?!"
xxx
Alliahnna's arms hit her sides. Her blank expression shifted to the two men. They were crawling on their hands and knees like dogs, muttering to one another to be quiet. Water splashed, stopping them in their tracks. Both men cried in horror, falling to their butts. Alliahnna was in front of them, bearing her fangs in a twisted grin. The men were too terrified to question how she traversed the space. Their lives were flashing before their eyes. Cries for someone - their mothers or friends or god - to save them.
"There is no god, little man." Alliahnna crooned. She read their thoughts, paralyzing them. She crouched low. Her hair parted to reveal one crazed eye. She reached a hand for their throats. How easy it will be to squeeze the life out of them. To drain them dry. "There is only Hell. Which I shall bestow..."
A presence appeared in the alley a foot behind her. "That's quite enough, I think, Lady Alliahnna." Alliahnna froze, her gaping mouth trembled. The cold curve of a sickled blade hugged to her neck. A drop of sweat stream to the sharp gleam. The two men awoke from their daze, crying out in horror of the grey haired man holding a scythe at Alliahnna's neck. A grin pasted to his pale face only made unnerving by grey bangs obscuring half his face. The scar running down his face didn't diminish their apprehension. "You gents aren't issued to die here in this alley quite yet. I suggest you make haste before this young lady makes off with your soul." Alliahnna sat on her hands and feet - like haunches of a feral cat - drooling venomously at the mouth. She unleashed a mad roar. The men's flight response kicked their scrambling feet into overdrive. The men tripped over themselves trying to run.
Alliahnna was enraged they were escaping. "COME...BACK...!" She eased forward not even half a foot.
"No, no, Dearie. You stay put." Scythe was raised to the crook of her neck at the jaw. Thin grazes drew lines of blood on either side of the neck. "Can't have you stealing souls all willy-nilly. At least not without forming a contract." He wagged a finger. Alliahnna twisted her madness unto him. Her pupils narrowed tighter spying the Undertaker inhibiting her pursuit. She growled at him like a rabid dog. Her fangs craved to sink into his flesh. "Were those men under contract, I would have watched you devour them with a jar of marmite in me hands."
Undertaker removed his Scythe, keeping the long sickle angled to the side of him. "Alas for you they were not. Plus they are in Ronald's Death Ledger, so he needs them alive. I may be a retired reaper, but I know the repercussions of demons stealing random souls to sate their unyielding appetites. You, My Dear new demon, will cause all sorts of havoc." Alliahnna's retort was a vicious snarl. The fact he educated her with that blasted smile only invoked her uncontrollable rage. Her claws lengthened. Undertaker pinched the brim of his hat. "Oh my. This is serious. You've been immersed by the hunger stage, haven't you? Sebastian will not be pleased when he learns you ventured out." Undertaker whisked to the side. Alliahnna's swipe missed. Not a single lock of hair ensnared. Alliahnna pivoted on her foot and thrust the claws for his face again. Undertaker's grin widened. Grey bangs parted from an emerald eye.
To Be Continued