Compatible Monsters - 10

The next two minutes goes by in a flash:

She's almost unrecognizable;

Her body stretched, pulled like silly putty,

Arms and legs, fingers toes and hair

Elongated and split o'er and o'er, 

Into tiny living filaments;

All of them screaming to be outside,

Flailing, frenzied, groping for purchase;

too fast for the guards (or their bullets) --

Seizing them six, seven at a time,

Effortlessly tossing them about,

Snapping bones and crushing skulls like eggs. 

The laughing man watches her, awestruck.

'Most outstanding,' he thinks to himself,

'But there exists no wolf that looks like that.

What is she becoming, I wonder?

Whatever she may be, she's beautiful --

The way she dances through the guards' assault,

As if there is no threat to her safety;

As if there's nothing happening at all.

Even with her body in that shape,

How majestic -- gracefully macabre --

The bodies fall in chunks of bloody mess,

Dead before they ever touch the ground.

Standing fierce, surrounded by the dead,

Covered head to toe in viscera,

She glares at him with eyes of brilliant green,

Hyperventilating. "Fresh air. Now."

A million tiny tentacles hang limp,

Her eyelids weigh a ton -- she's exhausted --

Weakened by the melee, terrified,

And about to pass out on the floor. 

Before she lands, he scoops her in his arms,

And carries her, unconscious, out the door.

No one's brave enough to block his path

(They know what he's done -- they read the news).

They watch him cross the grounds and disappear,

Swallowed by the vast expanse of woods;

He lays her on the fallen autumn leaves,

Looming over her, so hungrily...

"Sorry darling -- nothing personal,

But I need to feed. It's been so long,

Since my appetites were satisfied,

And my tastes are sophisticated.

I don't intend to kill you, little one;

Only to take from you what I need,

And otherwise, I won't hurt you at all,"

And leaning toward her neck, bares razor teeth.

His red eyes bulge as something grabs his throat,

Her green ones flash with rage. "I don't think so."

Tentacles like angel hair pasta,

Burrowing into the chilly ground...

Arms coiled 'round him like a flesh coocoon,

Lifts the laughing man above her head,

And stares at him silently for a time

Her angry grin a scar across her face;

Opens wide her mouth, then wider still, 

Until her face breaks open to reveal

A giant drooling mouth devoid of teeth

(The laughing man's not laughing anymore.)

Her instinct's taken over by this point;

She is a predator, and little else.

The demon in her coils tries wriggling free,

But not before she lowers him to her,

Mouth wide, dripping with acidic spit,

Emerald eyes glaring, happily.

He thrashes harder, but it's of no use;

She's far too strong to let him get away -- 

And once he realizes that he's lost,

Along with realizing what she is,

He panics, letting loose a primal howl,

Right before her giant jaws snap shut.

The acid in her mouth eats at his flesh,

Until there's nothing left, and she's alone. 

So tired, and it's cold and dark out here, 

All she wants to do is go to sleep,

But she can't move. She's anchored to the ground,

Her legs have taken root below the leaves.

So heavy are these thoughts of pain and rage,

How cumbersome it's been to bear it all.

Her eyes close slowly, and then disappear,

All human features lost and left behind, 

Relieved and finally free, she faces east,

And drifts away while waiting for the sun.

And here is where we leave her soul at ease;

A giant venus flytrap 'mongst the trees. 

[fin]

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- © Jackson Cambridge, 2015