4,000 years before canon timeline.
More than a hundred people walked through the stone streets of a city in a kingdom. Some wore rags for their clothing while others wore expensive looking clothes. Dozens of men wore armor and carried either swords or halberds. They patrolled around their home and constantly weaved their way through the crowds of people.
Wooden carts with various cargo were pulled by horses and one cart carried large bundles of the black mineral. A nearby area of the forest was rich in it, and it took countless years to figure out how to even crack it, much less scratch it but the people figured it out. The younger generations ignored the ominous warning signs; from the various trinkets that dangled from the branches to the haunting symbols that were carved into the nearby stone.
The older generations constantly warned their younger counterparts of a beast that has slept for the last couple thousand years. Although the only proof of its existence was merely through stories, paintings, and ancient drawings, nothing more and nothing less. As each generation passed, the less they believed that such a creature existed and continued to expand upon their territory.
After some time, the people of the valley started to meet with other groups. They grew in size, eventually merging them together into something larger. Territory was quickly acquired, whether through force or peaceful negotiations, it didn't matter. The valley that started out as a small village grew to one of the largest kingdoms.
Due to the pitch black minerals giving them an edge, they were able to fend off attackers and Grimm while conquering more land for themselves. That wasn't all the resource was good for; many nations across the globe sought after the rich mineral and were willing to pay a substantial amount of currency to acquire even a little bit of it. The valley's wealth boomed after they had figured out how to make profit off of it.
Thus ushering an golden age where powerful tools and weapons were created through brilliant minds.
It was different from Dust, though some scholars argued that it was the same, this mysterious material boggled the mind of all. A small handful of it hummed with vibrant energy. When exposed to the right conditions, it could do nearly anything if one had the resources and the knowledge to do so.
However, mining the resource was dangerous. It resided in the area where dangerous species of Grimm roamed around freely and merely trekking to the area allowed a horrible feeling of dread to surface. When one miner died due to horrible circumstances, another was was soon taking their place. It only added infamy to the area and people continued to ignore the warning signs that were constantly carved into the stones and trees.
Everyone knew this infamous area was the territory of the beast, yet the ruling class didn't care and continued to send their subjects to gather more of the resource.
During this current day, a Faunus miner carried a bag over his shoulder. His black air was matted down with sweat and grime from being stuck inside the mine all day. He groaned as he practically threw the bag onto the cart and stared up at the knight on his horse. The two looked at one another before the knight gestured with his hand for the miner to return, making him sigh and empty the bag before returning back to the cave. A couple more miners waited at the entrance with torches.
"More?" The first one asked.
"More." The young miner nodded sadly. The others groaned in fatigue before grabbing their tools and heading back inside.
"This is terrible. Why are we gathering more when we have enough to last us centuries?" Another one asked.
"That is because the king is a greedy, senile man. The old fool wouldn't know the face of his own daughter if she was in front of his eyes!" A taller miner barked with laughter. His voice echoed across the cave and bounced off the walls.
"We shouldn't be here... mother always warned me of a beast that slept in this cave." A smaller miner commented as he held a little trinket in his hand.
"You still believe those stories? Everybody knows those were merely to scare us as children." The taller miner rolled his eyes and grabbed his tool with both hands. The tools they carried were carefully crafted with several different materials. As opposed to merely scratching the black minerals, they could break it after three dozen strikes, but it took nearly all their strength with each hit.
"But you all saw those signs. We're not supposed to be here and I know you all felt it too." The smaller miner said and everyone went silent before shaking their heads. They knew the risks of being here but they didn't have a choice. It was either this or go back to their homes with empty bellies.
"We don't have a choice. I don't want to be here either." The young miner shook his head and struck a certain spot at the end of the cave. A loud noise echoed across the walls and they all looked at him. He just looked at the spot he struck before rearing his tool back and swinging forward. All of them recognized that noise and felt a mixture of emotions.
It sounded hollow... which meant there was more to this place than they what they originally thought.
The others quickly crowded around him and collectively struck the spot. It was more fragile than some other spots and after several minutes, they managed to break open a large chunk and create a hole.
A sea of darkness greeted them and they gulped thickly. Deep inside that inky abyss was a feeling of dread that had been unleashed. They felt like they broke the chains of something evil that had been contained for countless years.
Yet, there was an unnerving sense of curiosity that tickled at their minds. A gentle whisper in their ears that overshadowed their fear and lured them into it. The twistedly, odd combination of instinctive fear and human curiosity got the better of them.
The Faunus miner grabbed a torch and lit it, feeling a sense of security in the light before he bent down and dropped it into the hole. It didn't far fall and when it finally landed on the ground, they could barely see a large open area.
"I knew this place was deep, but this is absurd." One of them breathed. He looked closely and saw several, large, glowing crystals growing out of the black mineral. Each one hummed with energy.
The sight was alluring and before they could react, the ground underneath them gave away and they all shouted in alarm as they tumbled down an incline. Rocks and chunks of the valuable resource rolled with them, some bumping into them and causing bruises.
It was hard to tell how long they fell but when they stopped, they all groaned in agony. The air had been sucked out of their lungs and for the next few minutes, they just lied on the ground before shakily standing up.
"Is everyone okay?" One of them asked. He received various forms of confirmation, ranging from grunts to actual answers.
"Where are we?" The smaller miner asked as he dusted himself off and looked around.
They all looked to see that they were in a large, enclosed area. It was covered in the pitch black mineral and several crystals that glowed and were full of vibrant energy. The crystals offered a sense of illumination and a sense of safety, but also a feeling of terror.
The Faunus miner looked around before he froze and stared at something at the end of the room. His heart slammed in his chest and his pupils shrunk in fear. His animal ears stiffened and he finally realized why he was feeling so much dread. Despite sharing animal traits with a predator, he felt like the prey compared to the thing he was staring at.
"What has you so spooked?" The taller miner asked as he looked at him.
"It's real..." The Faunus whispered out forcefully. His throat clogged up and his mouth felt like a desert.
"What-" The taller miner stopped when he looked in the direction and saw the source of the younger man's fearful expression. Everyone else did as well and their hearts skipped a few beats.
At the end of the room was the Monster, curled up and sleeping without any signs of waking up soon. Low rumbles bounced off the walls and their hearts slammed against their ribcages. The thing that scared them as children was real and they quickly realized their ancestors weren't lying. Those signs weren't merely for show and they felt a wave of despair flood across their souls.
"Oh merciful Brothers, may you grant your protection on us and guide us away from this evil." The smaller miner quickly grabbed his pendant and prayed almost silently. A bead of sweat slid down the side of his head as he shook in his boots.
Every single one of them slowly backed up, their steps slow and careful to make as little noise as possible. They stopped when the Monster jerked around in his sleep being pawing at his face a bit. Deep rumbles made their hearts slam in their ribcages and sweat slid down their faces. When the Monster adjusted himself a bit and went still, they started to slowly retreat back to the hole they fell from.
Fortunately, they could just climb up and escape. However, each step they took would cause a fragile crystal to crack. They shushed one another as they slowly, but surely, made their way back to the entrance. Each crack sounded louder than it actually was and all of them mentally prayed that the small noise wouldn't wake the beast.
The Monster sucked in air and sneezed once. The loud sound bounced off the walls and he pawed at his face some more before his arm slumped down. More snores were heard and the miners quietly made their way up towards the hole they fell through.
One by one, they made it up and started to run towards the entrance, but none of them saw the Monster's eyes snap open and catch a glimpse of them.
The first group didn't get very far and bumped into another group, throwing them all to the ground.
"There you all are, the knights have been waiting for you all." One of them said. The first group just shook their heads quickly and rushed past them, causing the second group to look at them quizzically before they heard faint rumbles. Their curiosity got the better of them and they saw a faint light in the distance. Each step they took felt odd the closer they got and the temperature started to increase as they approached the hole.
After looking at one another, they descended into the hole. What awaited them would be their doom and claim their lives from a horrid beast of legend.
The Monster narrowed his eyes and waited in silence as he woke up. His breathing was slow, yet steady, as he started to take in his surroundings. He opened his mouth and yawned deeply for several seconds. His mouth closed and he perked up slightly when the sound of pebbles shifting was heard.
He heard voices and the more pebbles fell into his domain and he saw a group of people slide down. Their torches illuminated a small area and he watched from the back of the cave. An echo carried when one of them talked and bounced off the cave walls. They were marveled at the sight of such rare crystals and the amount of the sought after resource that caused their kingdom to bloom. It was enough to last centuries if they were smart.
The Monster didn't care nor did he understand their words as they started to wander around his domain, too mesmerized by the sights to notice him tucked away in the back of the cave. He watched them unblinkingly and his lower jaw vibrated with anticipation as the hunger from the last couple thousand years started to creep up on him. Just before he could lunge at the closest one, one of them tripped and cut their arm on one of the shards.
Warm blood trickled down their appendage and as soon as it dripped onto the ground, the scent carried across the room. It reached the Monster's nose and his mind went blank for several seconds. His gaze was locked onto the injured one and he instantly ruled them out as the weakest link. The hunger in his stomach was too great to ignore and when it growled, they all froze when they heard it.
Slowly, but shakily, they turned around and spotted seven eyes peering at them from the darkness. Their breathing quickened but their bodies were stiff with terror and the injured one barely got a chance to make a noise before a fleshy, muscular organ shot out like a viper and wrapped around the upper half of his body.
A muffled scream was heard and he was dragged towards the darkness. The others fell on their rears as they watched him disappear and the thunderous clamp of what appeared to be jaws echoed across the area. A disgusting sound of flesh being torn and bones snapping made them flinch violently. It went silent not long after and their hearts slammed in their chests.
A puddle of blood slowly started to spread towards them and one of them dropped the torch. It rolled a bit but stopped when it bumped into what appeared to be an arm and they shakily looked up.
The Monster's eyes glowed in the darkness and his maw opened up slowly. Like the fiery pits of hell, the heat escaped and the back of his throat illuminated the area dimly. Chunks of flesh could be seen off some of his razor sharp teeth and blood dribbled down the tips of them. Strands of bloody saliva in between his teeth reeked of a burning smell that made them slightly gag. One of the arms of their former companion was stuck in between two of the teeth, and with a quick flick of his tongue, the Monster maneuvered it down his throat.
"Ru-" One of them started to shout but he was quickly grabbed and squeezed tightly. The bones in his body snapping violently and he barely had time to feel his organs rupture before he went limp. His mangled corpse was thrown at the others and they fell to the ground. Only a few of them managed to stand up and run towards the exit while the others were turned into a red paste when the Monster slammed his claws on them.
The remaining four rushed towards the exit, barely seeing it through the dimly lit area. One of them was snatched by the Monster and he gave a terrified scream before it was cut short when the Monster bit him in half. The second one tripped on a crystal and he tried to roll out of the way but was squashed underneath the beast. The third one reached the exit but was grabbed by the leg and was swung into the ceiling, splattering it with blood and gore. Her body was then slammed onto the floor and scattered across the lair.
Only the final one remained and he managed to make it out somehow. His lungs burned as he dashed across the rocky surface of the cave, tripping on the slippery ground but quickly getting up and continuing forward. There was a faint light ahead and he felt hope swell in his system, a salvation from the recent hellish sight he just witnessed several moments ago.
However, that hope would soon be snuffed out when a fleshy, muscular tongue coiled around his leg. His face slammed against the stone floor and his nose broke, caking the spot with blood. A howl of terror escaped his mouth as he was dragged back towards the hole. No matter how much he clawed or struggled, he wasn't able to escape the grip of the beast. He looked back and saw an orange light come from the hole and he continued to desperately claw on the ground.
When he got to the edge, he saw nothing but an open maw. Strands of fresh flesh and blood dribbled off the Monster's fangs and he gave one last scream before he was dragged into its mouth and swallowed whole.
As he was forced down the Monster's throat and into its stomach, he couldn't breath or see. Whenever he did manage to suck in a gulp of air, it was filled with nothing but the stench of burning minerals and digesting bodies. He splashed into something and immediately felt his skin start to boil and melt. He made the mistake of trying to scream, allowing some of the absurdly strong stomach acid of the Monster to enter his mouth.
His flesh and bones started to melt, causing him to collapse into the horrid liquid and the most painful sensations flooded his mind. The last thing that was raised in the air was his hand and it was slowly submerged after several long seconds.
The Monster on the other hand gave a small belch before going around his lair and lapping up whatever remains were left of the group. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to fill his stomach and the deep pain of hunger reared its ugly head out again. A deep rumble reverberated around the cave and he sniffed the air and turned towards the entrance where the miners created an opening.
There was no telling how much time had passed but it didn't matter, he was practically starving and there was bound to be an abundance of food for him to feast on. So with a great amount of strength, he forced the tiny opening to widen for his body to fit through and started to wildly crawl through the tight space. With each and every inch he forced through the small confines of the cave walls and ceiling, it cracked and turned to pebbles before widening to fit his larger size.
After he forced the cave to widen, an array of precious minerals were revealed, humming with power and rarity. If one were to take one look upon them, it would invoke an unhealthy amount of greed within that individual.
Of course, the Monster held no concept of such a thing, all that mattered to him was finding food, expanding his territory, eliminating any threats, and hopefully continuing existence of his species.
There was a light at the end of the tunnel and every inch he gained, the more his hunger stabbed at his stomach. Right now, he was completely overtaken by hunger and his mind didn't care what it was, so long as it satiated him.
The first group of miners quickly rushed past the knights, ignoring their demands as they took off in the direction of the city. Their lungs burned as they ran through the wilderness, panting with each step they took. Before the knights could give chase to them, the miners heard it.
A sound so vile, so monstrous, that it shook them to their cores. It sounded primordial in a sense and they all knew what it was, which is why they wanted to gain as much ground as they could from the cave. The ground shook and a loud, horrid roar echoed across the sky. One of them stumbled but quickly picked himself back up as the group faintly heard the sound of terrified screams in the distance. The ground shook several times and the horses horrified squeals echoed across the sky.
Screaming made them look up to see half the body of a knight flying through the air. Blood flicked across the branches and trees as his corpse crumbled down the leaves and onto the ground. The grisly sight terrified them to their cores but they had to keep running. Unfortunately, they weren't paying attention to which direction they were running and came to the edge of a waterfall.
Thunderous stomping drew closer to them and they looked at the tree line before looking at one another then the edge. Water crashed at the bottom and they had no idea what was below. However, they didn't have a choice as the stomping drew closer and the trees snapped loudly. A deep, primal fear bubbled in their systems when they heard the sound and saw the thickness of each individual tree. Which meant that the Monster was extremely powerful in order to push them aside like that.
Without saying a word, they all jumped over the edge and into the water just as soon as the Monster breached the tree line and snapped his jaws at them. A loud, thunderous crack echoed across the area and he snarled as he watched their bodies plummet into the water below and disappear underneath the surface. His attention was turned towards the direction of where the village used to be, instead seeing a city in place of it.
The group waited underwater until they heard the stomping from above fade away before they quickly surfaced. Large gulps of air entered their mouths as they resurfaced and coughed a few times, trying to get rid of any water that entered their mouths. Each one of them swam towards the shore and panted when they reached it. For the next minute, they just caught their breaths and looked at one another before scooting away from the water a bit.
Dark storm clouds covered the sky and made the area darker as thunder rumbled in the distance. The Faunus miner stood up and started to walk in the direction of the city before stopping when he heard a thunderous roar, as did the others. They quickly stood up and followed him as he ran towards the direction of the city. Faint screaming could be heard in the distance and it made them push themselves to be faster.
In front of them were the farms and crop fields, but a long trail of fire and lava was seen. A few of the huts that contained the farmers was destroyed and half eaten farm animals were strewn around the area. They stopped and quickly hid behind the remains of a broken barn and could only watch in horror as they saw the Monster in all of his wild glory.
He was large, larger than any Grimm they've ever had the displeasure of seeing, and his body was covered in the rare mineral. The same resource they've been using actually came from him and it suddenly dawned on the group of miners that they were using parts of his body. Which meant that it would take a powerful weapon or something as strong as the beast to crack the armor.
Their attention was drawn to a screaming farmer, watching as the man struggled in the Monster's grasp before being placed in between his teeth. With a sickening crunch, his body was torn in two and the sound of flesh being chewed was loud enough for all to hear. The rest of the body was thrown down his gullet and slid down his throat. Nearby was a cow that was practically trying to crawl away before it was grabbed harshly. It barely had time to react before the Monster sunk his teeth into the animal, removing its head with a quick jerk and chewing on it loudly.
Blood squirted from the body and a mixture of saliva and blood dribbled down his teeth. His head dove back down to continue feasting on the cow. Large strands of flesh, fur, and muscle were ripped out as more blood flicked through the air. With each disgusting gulp, the more his hunger was satiated, but it wasn't enough. His gluttonous appetite wasn't easily filled until nothing was left in the area to consume.
The miners looked at one another before slowly creeping towards the city. Their steps were quiet and calculated to avoid gaining the Monster's attention. Mutilated bodies of farmers and their families were strewn about and they had to suppress the urge to vomit or make a noise. One of them wasn't paying attention and tripped over a piece of broken wood in the field, causing a loud noise to make the Monster's head jerk up at the sudden sound. They stopped and quickly took cover in a nearby tool shed and held their breaths as the area rumbled.
Their bodies huddled close to one another and they clasped their hands over their mouths as the ground shook. Fear gripped their hearts as the shaking increased and they saw one of the Monster's claws slam down in front of the entrance. His head leaned over the shed and viscous bloody saliva dribbled down through the cracks in the roof and eventually in front of the entrance.
A terrible burning scent reached their nose and made them quietly gag at it. It reeked of burning minerals and cooked flesh that irritated their nostrils unpleasantly. A disgusting squelching sound was heard and they saw the Monster's tongue slowly slither down and turn towards them. Just as it got a few feet away from them, a loud boom echoed across the sky and the tongue retracted while the Monster snarled in pain.
The ground shook as the Monster took off towards the city and the group peeked through the gaps in the shed and saw the beast rushing towards the wall. There was another thunderous boom as one of the cannons went off and hit the Monster right in his arm, causing him to whip to the side. An enraged snarl escaped his maw and he saw the cannons being aimed at him again.
He reared his left arm back and slammed it down on the ground. Glowing cracks could be seen and the ground shook violently; as if the earth bent to his will, a rock wall suddenly shot up into the air and shielded him from any more cannon fire. He looked at his hand then at the wall before starting to climb it quickly.
The miners in the shack lost color in their faces when they saw the sight and their fear only continued to grow when they watched him literally climb the wall he created. Horrified screaming reached their ears from the denizens inside the city as they saw the Monster fall into their home. A colossal crash shook the earth and several buildings were turned to rubble as he landed, killing dozens of people upon the impact.
"No, no, no, no, no, no!" One of the miners exclaimed as he rushed out of the shack and towards the city. The others called for him but their voices fell on deaf ears as they watched as he continued to run towards where the Monster was at. However, he would soon meet his doom as there would be nothing left by the end of the night.
People ran erratically as the Monster made his way through the streets, devouring anything with a pulse to satiate the deep hunger he was still feeling. The defenders of this place tried to save whoever they could and attempt to bring him down. None of them succeeded so far but a few were lucky and managed to pierce the unarmored parts of his body. Multiple swords, spears, arrows, and ballista bolts were seen sticking out of him. His dark, red blood held an odd odor and dribbled from his wounds.
He picked up a bleating goat and placed it in his mouth, chewing on it sloppily and swallowing shortly after. Destroyed buildings were seen and several were on fire and mutilated bodies were strewn across. A pained howl escaped the Monster as a boulder was launched at the side of his head, making him jerk to the side and shake himself from the sudden trauma. He turned to his right and saw several people on the wall load what looked like a catapult.
Before he could react to them, he was hit from the other side when more people launched giant flaming boulders at him. They took turns firing; whenever one was launched the other would fire and allow the previous one to load another boulder in. Each hit made him stumble and it was a constant onslaught that made him jerk in several directions. One of the boulders got lucky and hit him in his weak stomach area after it bounced off the ground, making him choke and suddenly vomit.
Multiple half digested bodies splattered on the ground and the Monster breathed harshly before his eyes glowed brightly. A spiderweb of cracks appeared all across his armor and they started to glow as more flaming boulders hit him. Quicker than anybody could react, he stood up on his hind legs and roared loudly. A burst of flames spread across the area in waves and scorched anything caught in its immediate radius.
He slammed his claws down on the ground and started to vibrate violently. Spikes rapidly grew on him and each one started to illuminate quickly. It was like a beacon in the dark with how bright they were but the Monster tucked himself into his boulder form and without warning, several of the spikes shot out at breakneck speeds. Each one struck several random places and a short fuse was heard before they exploded. Three of the catapults on the walls were scattered into pieces, as well as its users. More buildings were turned to mere splinters and rubble, and lit on fire.
The Monster himself was glowing an ominous combination of black, red, and purple. His armor turned pitch black, the cracks in them were a deep red, and his explosive spikes turned purple. He was thrown into an enraged state and wildly slammed his fists into the immediate area multiple times, causing it to rumble with each strike. Whenever he saw movement, he would throw his entire body into the location and rapidly punch the last location the thing was at.
He tucked himself into his boulder form and started to rapidly spin towards the next area, barreling through the gate and into the wealthier district. There were more screams but he didn't pay them any mind, only continuing to roll his colossal body through buildings and streets. When he got out of that form, he continued to thrash around, swiping buildings into nothing but piles of rubble, eating whoever he caught, and killing whatever caused damage to him.
A knight on a horse was caught and the Monster stared at him, ignoring his thrashing before placing him towards his stomach. The knight howled in agony as his armor started to heat up quickly and cause his skin to boil. His flesh started to cook and he went silent as the pain became too much. Not long after, he perished when his body couldn't take the heat anymore. However, the Monster didn't stop and continued to melt both him and his armor. Everyone nearby watched in horror as the Monster did something...
He melted the knight into his weak, exposed part. Although it was small, it covered it and acted like armor when it rapidly cooled. The Monster, despite in his enraged state, seemed to take notice of this and started to target knights and any other armored units. He started to rush towards a few of them and quickly grab them, hoisting them high above his head and slam them on the ground repeatedly. Their bodies turned into mangled messes but that didn't matter to the Monster, he only sought them for their armor and started to melt them into him.
The sight of their companions being turned into nothing but a piece of armor was enough to make the rest break formation. The very few that maintained what little bravery they had were turned into a bloody, red paste and their mangled corpses were added to the Monster's sick collection. Civilians of all ages and size tried to run and hide but were always found by the beast. He gobbled them up greedily and destroyed anything that got in his way.
Although, he soon started to slow down when he reached another fortified gate and he calmed down. His wounds started to hurt too much and he began to feel tired. The rest of the population cowered inside the wealthiest part of the city and he stared at them through the gates. He didn't do anything further... just stared at them as if he was gauging how much strength they had left. It made them shake in their boots and even the strongest defenders of the city felt somewhat intimidated by his stare.
It was the look of a predator that was smarter than it seemed.
After what felt like an eternity, he tucked himself into his traversal form and rolled off. A breath of relief escaped their lips when they saw him leave and the survivors felt utter despair and terror still remain in their systems.
Unbeknownst to them though, he was still lurking around. He'd rest nearby and wait until their hopes got up and they tried to escape. A good rest was needed for him to heal from his wounds and he felt that eating the rest of them would finally satiate his hunger.
I apologize for not updating this for so long. This chapter might not be as good as I thought but I'd like to at least continue this story and possibly work things out as I update more.
Thanks for reading this though.