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A day in the life of a monster (working title)


Mr.Grignard

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Hey, happy St. Patrick's day! (Technically). I meant for this chapter to be longer but unfortunately my schedule has been kind of wonky, since it’s finals week for me right now and I have family members that keep trying to get me to drink. Hope you enjoy it anyway.

She was small, probably only 5 feet tall at most even if she wasn’t hunched over like that. She was pretty thin too, and unsteady on her feet, her eyes clamped shut and shielded by her arm from the direct sunlight. Slowly and with a grimace on her face, she opened them. Her skin was whitish-gray and sickly looking, like a corpse that had been dragged out of a river. Her body was covered in large, gray scales, like the plates on an armadillo, all over her arms, shoulders, legs, back, and her dog-like tail, the underside of which was lined in a patchy, matted gray fur. Long hair of a similar shade fell over her face. Her eyes were black and tired looking, but also weirdly... more aware(?) than most of the monsters I’ve battled in the past. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve every fought a monster with pupils before. She’s also probably the first to start out looking this beaten up. For once, I’m not actually sure if I can handle fighting this thing. Is it even dangerous?

The white monster glanced around lazily once her eyes adjusted, but when they fell on me, her long, furry ears pricked up and her pupils dilated. Her expression didn’t change, but her tail flicked energetically.

“Listen, I don’t know who, or what, you are, but I’ve had a pretty long day all ready and I’m not in the mood to draw this out-“ I draw my bow. “So just let me shoot you and get this over with.”

If she understood what I said, she didn’t give any indication. She simply cocked her head, studying me. I rolled my eyes and fired... and she dodged. I barely had time to register what happened, because she barely moved from her stance. It was like her body bent around the arrow like a cat's torso. Guess I should’ve seen that coming. However rather then immediately retaliating, she turned her attention away from me, instead looking down the sidewalk. I fired again, and once again, the arrow whiffed, this time because she staggered her stride so that the arrow whizzed in front of her. Okay, this was getting annoying. Time for the net. I pull the net off my utility belt and throw it at her.

But this time, instead of dodging, she actually tore a stop sign out of the street corner she’d walked to and used it to bat the net aside. Then, planting the  sign next to her like a scepter, she looked back at me again, but this time her expression was far more grim.

“I-I’m w-well aware this d-day hasn’t been easy for you. B-But I d-don’t have time to play with you right now. G-Get out of my way, or I’ll make you regret it.” Her voice was... quiet, and shaky, but she didn’t seemed afraid. I was actually at a loss for words. But I drew my bow again all the same. I wasn’t going to be talked to like that.

“*Sigh* I had a f-feeling it would c-come to this.” Her hands slid across the length of the sign's pole and she assumed a defensive stance.

“I have a lot of questions for you.” Was all I managed to get out.

And then she was right on top of me. Before I even realized what was happening, she’d closed the distance be tween me and the metal hexagon at the end of her stick. I managed to put up a block with my left arm, which shielded my face, but the blow was heavy enough to stagger me a bit. And she didn’t stop there. She quickly recovered and struck again, even faster this time, before bringing it back and hooking it against the side of my leg. I stumbled but didn’t fall, and in a moment of desperation, I fired my thrusters again, launching myself back and away from her. I had to leave her range of attack!

Weirdly enough though, despite how obviously telegraphed my escape was, she didn’t pursue me, instead, staying where she was and assuming another defensive stance. Not wasting the opportunity, I got on top of a car and fired another set of arrows at her, this time in rapid succession. But instead of dodging, she actually knocked them aside with the flat of her makeshift weapon! They didn’t even stick, they just fell limply and disappeared before even hitting the ground! I didn’t even know that could happen.

At this point she spoke again. “This is p-pointless. J-Just let me g-go, before you really g-get hurt.”

“What’s your deal? How come you can talk? Why are you-“

“D-Different?” She finished. “Because I wasn’t human to begin w-with. I’ll l-leave you with that for n-now.”

And then she threw a stop sign at me. With how fast it travelled, you’d think it was made of plastic, but it hit me hard enough to knock the wind out of me. I think I heard a crack when I hit the wall of the building behind me. Hopefully it wasn’t me doing the cracking. At this point, a pretty sizable crowd of pedestrians evacuating the area had formed in the distance. I’d learned to tune out most of the chaos over the years so I guess never put much thought into it until now. Off in the distance, my scope was able to show me snap shots of their startled faces as they watched me get my ass handed to me.

The white monster was on top of me in a split second. After another split second, she’d knocked my bow away, and after a third she was slamming the edge of her recovered stop sign into my gut. With the signs edge digging into me, essentially pinning me with her strength, she leaned in close to me.

“I p-promised myself I w-wouldn’t hold a g-grudge. B-but I need you out of my hair for n-now.”

“What are you- MMPH!” Oh god! Oh, god! She’s kissing me! Ewww! Her breath is so gross, and her skin tastes like expired yogurt and... and... I feel... weird...

My body relaxed without my consent, my arms falling limp at my sides. Eventually, she released my mouth, leaving behind a nasty smelling trail of drool, but at that point I felt too exhausted to care. I wanted a nap... and some French fries...

“Phew, th-there. That w-wasn’t so b-bad, w-was it?”

“What... did you do... to me?” I could feel my consciousness slipping.

“S-sleep.”

And as she commanded, whether I wanted to or not, I could feel myself drifting away.

...

 

There. That should keep her out of fighting shape for a while. Now I need to head back to the school. There’s something I gotta take care of.

Being only a couple blocks away, I managed to get there in only a few seconds flat. There was a crowd in the way, some of them rushing to their hero's aid, so I simply leaped over them, traversing the streets via roof top. Eventually, the field came into view. The victims of the curse appeared to be pulling themselves together, lifting themselves out of the mud and shuffling slowly towards the school. They were difficult to pick out of the crowd, but I didn’t need to see them to find them. Sam and Tessa were still there, waiting for their friend to return alongside Pauline, who at the moment was more concerned with her  coworker.

Amanda was still out cold and covered in the toxic gunk she’d been spewing earlier. Thankfully, now that she’d returned to normal, the substance was rapidly fading, it’s toxicity diluted, but Pauline and the girls were still careful not to touch it, attempting to wipe it away using scraps of cloth not picked up as makeshift clothes by the curse victims. They didn’t even notice I was there until I was right in front of them.

“Wha-Ah!?” Sam and Tessa instinctively backed away from me, while Pauline clutched Amanda closer to her.

“I w-won’t hurt you.” I looked down at Amanda, trying to telegraph my intentions.

“Who are you? What do you want with Miss Fulvits?” Sam was the first to notice something was a miss. She could tell I wasn’t a run of the mill monster.

“I c-can f-fix her. Hand, please.” I hold out my hand.

Pauline didn’t understand, so I nodded towards Amanda’s limp arm. Reluctantly, she let me take it.

As a feared. That last transformation was rough on her. The internal damage she suffered during her first fight with Sharen had been exacerbated by her second transformation, and there was still some excess negative left behind in her body. Well, here goes nothing. Never thought I’d get to try this on a human.

I reach out with my power through our physical contact and start combining her negative energy with my own, converting it into positive energy. This is better suited to healing injuries then regular negative energy, but up until now I’ve only used this trick to keep myself alive while I was trapped in that whole. I wasn’t actually sure if it would work, but sure enough, she began to stir and slowly regain consciousness. The whirlwind of pain inside her mind began to slow until it finally became still. I let go of her hand as soon as I was sure the remnants of the curse were completely gone. Everyone stood, or sat, in silence as Amanda slowly awakened. Eventually, her eyes opened.

Sam got to her first.

“Ms. Fulvits?! Are you all right?”

“Wha- what happened? Where am I?”

“You’re outside, on the track field. There was a monster attack and... um, well, let’s just say you were involved.”

“Also y-you’re n-not wearing c-clothes.” I added, not that I’m one to talk.

Amanda looked down and realized she was not only naked but sitting on her colleagues equally poorly dressed body and instantly froze in place, blushing. Not sure what I was expecting, to be honest. At least she’s back to normal.

Then, all eyes were back on me. I tried to maintain my composure, not afraid, not threatening.

“Sh-she should be all r-right now.” I tilt my head forward in a polite nod and then turn to leave.

“Wait.” It was Sam again. “How did you do that? Who or what are you?”

“I d-don’t have a n-name. You c-can call me Mimi, assuming we m-meet again. No, I am n-not a monster, but I d-do know where they come from. And one more thing.” I turn around, one last time, and bow forward. I really hope I don’t regret this later. “I’m r-really sorry f-for all the trouble I c-caused.”

Before they have time to process my statement, I whip back around and run off into the distance, hoping they wouldn’t be able to figure out where I escaped to.

Finally... I was free... but I know it isn’t over yet. They’ll becoming soon. I need to get my strength back and get ready for a fight. I don’t think I’ll survive if I lose to her again.

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Yes. Technically, Sharen is also a main character, so I thought I’d switch to her for the big reveal so I could flesh her out a bit more and not have write an elaborate mirror scene (cough). 
Anyway, I guess it didn’t really work. I tried to make them distinct sounding by trying to make Sharen a little less verbose, but I didn’t want either of them to run around quipping like Spider-Man and I still needed to narrate the scene, so they ended up sounding kind of similar. Oops.

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It’s the dramatic conclusion to part 1 you’ve all been waiting for! Maybe. Probably.

“Eugh.” My stomach hurts. Where am I?

“The monster!” I immediately sprang upright and looked around. I was... in a hospital bed? The room seemed empty. Looked down at my body. My wounds were healed, aside from a few aches here and there, and I was still wearing my armor. Maybe I was in the clear. I could check and make sure... but I didn’t want to pay a bill if all I needed was a nap. If they know who I am I’m sure I’ll find out later either way. Better get outta here before someone checks on me. I get up and head towards the window to my right. Where ever I am, we’re still in the business section of town, and this hospital has at least five floors. My guess is this is St. Luther's. The window didn’t open, so I just smashed through it and jumped out. At this point, my bow should be completely rechar- Oh shit! Where’s my bow! It’s not on my- oof!

While I was distracted, I  didn’t take that fall very well and ended up face planting on the pavement. Good thing my barrier still works. Geez, freaked out there for a minute. I need to calm down. I’m still in my uniform, so I should just be able to just summon it to me. Even if it’s too far away I can just- oh. It’s out of range. But that’s fine. With my scope, I should be able to just track where it is. Let’s see, it looks like I passed out at 37th Avenue, but it’s not there. One of the shopkeepers must of taken it or something. It must be around here somewhere.

Bingo. Now, time to get out of here, before security shows up. I should be able to hoof it from here. The enhancement field is up and running again, so I can move at full speed, now. When I see that weird monster again, I’m gonna throttle her... right after I get my bow back. And maybe a burger. I wonder what’s for dinner tonight. Come to think of it, how long was I out? It couldn’t have been more than an hour, otherwise the sun would be setting. So mom probably won’t start cooking until... oh, right.

Mom. I completely forgot about her. Shit.

I stop running for a minute. She’s gotta be worried about me by now. But I have to get my bow back. I’ll just say I ditched school during the confusion and went to the arcade. I’ll look like an idiot and probably get grounded, but I think she’ll at least buy it. Now, about that other problem... eh, she’s better now. If she doesn’t bring it up, I won’t either.

Now, that bow... and maybe some French fries.

Hey, that’s strange. I recognize this street. This is close to where I live. Come to think of it...

This is where I live. The bow, it’s in my house!

Shit! This can not be happening!

I check the signal again, and then a third time just to be sure. But this is my street. There’s no doubt about it. How, and why? When? While I was passed out? Did mom bring it here? No, there’s no way. Even if she had known about my secret identity, there’s no way she would have known to find my bow after I ran off, unless way more time has passed than I thought. Oh god, how long was I out for? A day? A week?! I mean, I wasn’t beaten up that badly, was I? That... white monster did something to me, with some kind of poison or something? What was her deal anyway? I’ve never met a monster that could talk. Or dodge. I mean, I wasn’t exactly at a hundred percent at the time. I could probably take her now. But still, most monsters are a lot... dumber.

I shake my head, putting the concern aside for now. I can’t guarantee anything for certain. For all I know, I was only asleep a few minutes, and someone else planted the bow in my house. Like Tessa or Sam. Yeah, that must be it. They must’ve hidden the bow in my room or something for me to get it later. I might still be in the clear. Just to be safe, I’ll have to sneak in through the window. I’m pretty sure mom should be home by now, so I’ll have to be stealthy about this. I can’t let her see me like this, even if she does know about my powers. If my one week theory turns out to be correct, I’ll probably look pretty stupid sneaking around for nothing, but if I’m wrong, it’ll look even dumber if I just walk in through the front door.

I leap up and land as silently as I can manage onto the roofing below my bedroom window sill. The signal was getting stronger. My bow was close. Maybe my friends did find it first. They would have had to fend off a ton of pedestrians, not to mention the police to get there hands on it. I’d have to thank them later. As I slid open my window and peeked inside, listening carefully, I could hear clanging and clattering downstairs. As soon as I was on top of the bed, I closed the window and the blinds behind me. My bow was somewhere in this room. There were only a few hiding places in here, and even fewer my mom wouldn’t check while cleaning. Sure enough, there it was, under my bed. I performed a quick and relatively silent victory dance before then attaching it to my belt, causing it to instantly fade from view, transporting my bow to a nebulous, extra-dimensional space from which I can call upon it later. Along with it, my uniform faded in a faint flash of pink light, revealing my normal clothes underneath. Now, with that crisis averted, it was time to confront my mother.

I open the door and head towards the stairs. I can hear a lot of packages being unwrapped and... crunching? What is mom making? It sounds like she’s tearing up the kitchen cabinets in there.

“Hey mom! What’s with all the rack... et...”

A single black eye peered from across the kitchen at me as we both froze. Her cheeks were engorged, presumably with potato chips, since she currently had one of her paws shoved inside a freshly opened bag. Her hair was wet, but free of the mud and debris from earlier, and her pale skin was missing those grimy smudges as well, although this only served to make it look more rough and scaly looking. She was wearing one of my mom’s night shirts, which due to her much smaller and thinner stature, made her look like a cat wearing a pillow case. And upon my arrival, her ears and tail began to flick and twitch.

She swallowed. Neither of us said anything for a full ten seconds.

And then she immediately pulled out another handful of chips, stuffing the whole thing into her mouth.

“Hey, stop that! You can’t eat right out of the bag!”

She swallowed another mouthful. “Why n-not?”

“Well for starters, you didn’t pay for them. And secondly, the last time I saw you, you crawled out of a sewer. I don’t want you getting your grubby hands all over our food.”

“I d-don’t have any m-money, so I have to t-take what I want either w-way. And I hosed myself off in your backyard and t-took a shower before I t-touched anything else.”

“Wait you used our- never mind. Why are you here?”

“I remembered Pauline keeps a s-spare key under the m-mat, and I n-need a place to stay.”

“Uh- wait, why do you know that? Have you been spying on me?”

“I’ve d-done literally n-nothing but watch you since you f-found the bow of Gaia.” She threw the bag of empty chips into the garbage and poured hot water from the kettle into a cup for herself. Then she took a seat at the table and began rhythmically blowing and sipping from it. Once again we fell silent.

Eventually, I lost my patience. “Well?”

“W-Well what?”

“You’re not going to elaborate on that?”

“W-Would you l-like me to?”

Oh. My. God! “Yes! Please!”

“Very well. You see, until r-recently, I was imprisoned beneath your c-city for crimes I didn’t commit. In order to escape, I had to collect enough p-power to break the s-seal holding me in with brute force, and that meant harvesting the emotions you humans generate d-during times of crisis: fear, depression, anger, anxiety, p-pain, hopelessness, etc. T-To speed up the p-process I even resorted to p-planting curses on some individuals, triggering the mutations you’ve w-witnessed up until now. If you’re still w-wondering why all those victims suddenly reverted back to normal today, th-that was my doing.”

“So, wait, you’re the reason there have been monster attacks? You’re the big, bad monster boss?!”

“W-Well, I mean, in a s-sense, although I wouldn’t really call myself a ‘boss monster’, since I don’t have th-that much control over my victims, and you were n-never intended to f-fight me anyway.”

I chuckle a bit at that last part. “What’s that supposed to mean? Were you planning on running with your tail between your legs when I found you?”

“If I’m remembering th-this correctly, it was I who w-won our last fight. And no, that’s n-not what I meant.  I’m saying you failed to do your job.”

I could feel the blood rushing to my cheeks. “Well, yeah, but you only won because you caught me after a tough battle. Now that I’m back to a hundred percent, I’m gonna kick you butt!”

“And th-then what?”

“What do mean? I’m gonna-“

“Th-Throw me in jail? Your arsenal can’t k-kill me, it was never meant to. You’re not a s-super hero, you are a guard, and the th-thing you were guarding is broken now. The s-seal can’t be repaired, and there isn’t a prison on this planet that can hold me.”

*Siiiiipp*.

“You sure talk a pretty big game. But I can’t just let you roam free. I’ll figure something out after I riddle you with arrows.”

“I’m n-not going to curse anyone else.” She said flatly. “I don’t need to, not anymore. But I am willing to m-make amends for what I d-did, now that I’m finally free.”

“... You seriously expect me to believe that?”

“No.” She put her cup down and slid her chair out from the table. “I know you, probably better than you realize. I’ve b-been watching you, remember. I know you need m-more than words to convince you. That’s why I w-want to show you something f-first.”

She turned away from me and walked towards the back door.

“Oh, and b-bring out your bow. You’ll need it.” And like that, she just walked out into the yard.

What other choice did I have? I followed her, wondering where my mom was.

“Pauline is at Amanda’s apartment. You know, Ms. Fulvits. She’s had a rough day too, so she and your friends are checking up on her.”

“How do you know all this? Were you there?”

“I think we’ve already established I know lots of things.”

“You’re really creepy, you know that?”

“No, I d-don’t actually. You’re the first human I’ve ever interacted with in p-person. And I’m not being hyperbolic either.”

“... okay.” What the hell am I supposed to say to that? Sorry?

“I have proposal for you. You've claimed you can b-beat me in your c-current condition. You’re wrong, b-but I’ll humor you for a moment. We’ll settle this with a d-duel. If you can l-land a single attack on me before I can strike you with my fist, then I will admit d-defeat. You can do whatever you want with me then.”

“And if you beat me?”

“I w-will lay c-claim to the c-crawl space above your closet.”

“This bet feels really unbalanced.”

“It’ll m-make you feel w-worse when I beat you.”

“Whatever you say. Fine, I’ll take your bet. Hope you’re ready to eat your words, though.”

She didn’t respond at first. Instead, she looked down at the ground and held out her hand in front of her, palm parallel with the ground. My bow began to react to what she was doing. As I watched her actions carefully, the bow materialized into the hand at my hip and I began to change into my uniform. Simultaneously, the ground beneath her feet began to react, the grass seemingly coming alive. It grew in length and density, transforming into a patch of bramble which reached out and wove itself into a bracelet around her wrist. Then, with a light tug, the bramble detached itself, but remained active, floating and snaking through the air as though scan the surroundings for her.

“So, what’s this, a new trick?”

“I suppose. Perhaps I’ll tell you m-more when we’re finished. I c-could even take you on as a disciple, if you’re interested.”

“Uh, yeah, I’ll pass. For obvious reasons.”

“Fair enough. So, are you ready?”

last time, she over powered me using nothing but a flimsy road sign. Now, based off the way they move and what her new weapon is made of, she’s probably going to whip and tangle me with those vines around her wrist. She knows she’s at a disadvantage from a distance, so she’s using weapons that’ll make it easier for her to hit me from further away. Not to mention she’s fast. I’m gonna have to go all out.

“Yes. I’m ready.”

“Good. Then let’s begin.”

Immediately, I jump up and land on the roofing behind me, all while charging up a shot. I  only needed to hit her once, right? And she seems pretty confident in her abilities, so I’ll make this shot count. I had to make sure it flew fast enough that she couldn’t dodge it, so I made sure to build the energy up as much as I could. Meanwhile, my target was making some moves as well. She charged up, possibly recognizing what I was doing, but rather than following me onto the roof, she instead went underneath it. Activating my scope, it tried to track her using her energy readings, but I could find her for some reason. Even that faint signal she was giving off before was gone. Then from below me, to my left, bramble erupted from the edge of the gutter and snagged my bow. My energy field reacted, causing the vines to sizzle a bit, but they didn’t crumble apart or revert back. Then, as to be expected, I felt a strong tug yanking the bow downward with me attached to it, followed by a strong jerk to my left. I didn’t let go, because if I lost my bow even for a second I was screwed, but the way things were shaping up, I wasn’t sure if I was still in this thing. Technically, she said she had to land a hit on me, not my bow, so to make sure I didn’t slam into the ground, worried that would forfeit me, I activated my thrusters to cushion my fall. Unfortunately, this also ate up the shot I was charging. Screw it. I hooked my leg around the vines in an attempt to stamp down on them with my foot, but to my surprise the thorns managed to break the skin, even with my field in the way. Powering through the pain, I try to pry the bramble off my bow, all the while, gray was just standing wait impatiently for me to get my shit together. Did she want to win or not?

Of course, right as I was about to actually pull the vines off my bow, she just flicked her wrist and they slipped right off... only to then wrap and dig themselves into my leg. I could definitely feel a tear roll down my cheek after that. Then, she planted her feet into a fighting stance, and yanked the planet out from underneath me. I couldn’t even react with my thrusters in time, because she’d slammed me back down onto my ass before I even realized what happened. Two milliseconds later, she was about a foot away from me and rearing up into a punch. I actually felt myself flinch, despite myself.

One. Two seconds. Three seconds. Still nothing.

“Are you g-going to open your eyes, or w-what?”

I open my eyes slowly, and then I felt something cold gently place it’s left against my forehead. It was her fist.

“I win. I’m going to finish my tea now.” She stepped back, removing her fist slowly and popping her neck. “Oh, and in case you were wondering, the neighbors aren’t home yet, so nobody saw us.”

“Ack, I forgot! Why didn’t you say something sooner?!”

“I wanted you to take this seriously, and I wasn’t sure if you’d believe me if I said anything. Besides, your reactions are pretty funny.”

Great.

 

So, I guess now there’s monster living in my closet. After drinking her tea, she just went upstairs and immediately slithered into the crawl space. She told me to just ask if I needed anything, but right now I didn’t have anything to say. Of course by the time I felt like questioning her, my mom got home, so I couldn't talk to her even if I wanted to. The walls in this place are super thin, so if gray so much as shifted around too much or passed some gas, mom would figure out she was there, but some how she remained completely silent. It was like she wasn’t even here. Of course, when mom got home, I had to explain where I had been, where all the chips went and later why there was a huge crater in the backyard, but for the most part she bought my excuses. I was still grounded for a week, but mostly for leaving without calling her, so I couldn’t even blame it on gray in the closet. We didn’t bring up what happened today, although she talked a little bit about Amanda and how she was doing. Apparently, after a quick look from the paramedics she was doing just fine and just needed rest, which is a little weird. Wasn’t she the one who changed twice? I usually after changing just once, people are left in pretty rough shape when they change back, or at least that’s what Sam keeps going on about, so shouldn’t she be in worse shape then everyone else? I mean, mom did say she was pretty wiped out when she got back. Might’ve been a fluke.

Anyway, she, Sam, and Tessa drove Amanda home and then got rides to their respective houses. Mom was going to pick up Amanda tomorrow for work so she could retrieve her car. And then we just moved onto dinner, the conversation ending there. Can’t say I blame her. I didn’t really want to talk about it either.

Gray never ended up leaving the closet. I couldn’t sleep that night because I just spent the whole night watching my closet door, expecting her to crawl out and lay eggs in my stomach while I’m sleeping. But she didn’t make so much as a sound. The next morning, I tried to put it out of my mind and went to school like nothing happened. I didn’t bother telling my friends, because I didn’t want them to worry. I’d tell them eventually anyway. There were no monster attacks, perhaps as to be expected. She did say she would stop. I needed to figure out a way to beat and get rid of her or else I was going to lose my mind!

 

Edited by Mr.Grignard
Could to couldn’t
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