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It was the rattle of chains that pulled Vyren from his magic-induced sleep. Red-hot prickles numbed his arms as he shifted, and he realized it was his chains that were rattling. His hands were suspended above his head, wrists raw and bleeding. As if that wasn’t enough, a creature of unimaginable horror stared at him from the other side of the dungeon, hunger apparent in the ropes of saliva dripping from its teeth. Because of course.
“Oh shit,” Vyren muttered.
The monster was three times Vyren’s size; its black antlers tapped the ceiling of the prison and sent down dusty waterfalls. Its face was drowned in eyes of different shapes and sizes, all of which watched Vyren’s pathetic stirring to life. A huge, forked tongue swarmed from its horrendous mouth--the corners of its lips practically touched its neck, revealing needle-sharp teeth. A hiss rumbled from its core as Vyren struggled to sit up.
You’ll either tame the beast or become its next meal. The conversation rushed back to Vyren. It’s had quite a bit to eat recently, but it’s always hungry. Vyren’s temper had flared at the ridiculous task. What was he supposed to do? How could someone tame a bloodthirsty monster with nothing but their words?
Like an idiot, he’d yelled at the magician (the human seemed a rather stupid man, and he could only stare dumb-founded at Vyren as a steady stream of expletives dripped from his mouth), and followed up his threats with their culmination: a strike to the face. Next thing he knew…
He glanced up; blood dripped from his wrists where the manacles suspended them above his head. Fear and anger pounded in his head. He hated being so weak. He fiddled with the manacles, and at the rattling, the monster growled. “Oh, shut up,” Vyren snapped. “If you haven’t noticed, I’m rather indisposed right now.” He tried again to inspect the lock mechanism, but a wave of light-headedness made him give up the game. He glared at the monster. “How is anyone supposed to tame you?”
“They’re not,” the creature growled. Its lips flapped over its teeth as it spoke, surging and falling back as if there was nothing as unnatural as its speaking Common. “None can tame me.”
“You can talk?” Vyren laughed in disbelief. “But--why?”
“Why can anyone talk?” the creature hissed. It dragged itself toward him; its ribs showed through a dense black hide. It pushed its face into Vyren’s, so close that he could smell the rot rolling off its breath. He had never felt so powerless in all his life, his arms chained above his head as a monster shoved its teeth in his face. “Don’t insult me.”
“I--I--” Vyren licked his lips, trying to slow the trembling of his breath. He was going to die, unless he thought of something fast. “Did the magician trap you down here, too?”
“Yes,” the monster replied. Its muzzle wrinkled with wrath. “While I was sleeping. I wouldn’t have been too easily subdued otherwise.”
“W-well, wouldn’t you like to take revenge on him?”
The monster growled, but it was no longer showing off its fangs.
“Yes!” Vyren said. The idea began to take shape in his mind. “You and me! He’ll come down to check on us eventually, and if you pretend to be tame, we could trick him. There’d be an opportunity to kill him in the confusion. Then we’ll both be free!”
Of course, Vyren had no intention of sticking around for the fight since he’d more likely be squashed or fried than anything else, but the monster didn’t have to know that.
“Do you think he’ll be so easily fooled?”
Vyren thought back to the man’s slack-jawed silence when he’d yelled at him. “Yes,” he assured the monster. “He will be.”
The monster sat back. It stared intently at Vyren, as if any one of its eyes might be able to detect his falsehood. Vyren licked his lips, trying to slow his breathing. “Fine,” the creature rumbled. “But I may eat you after, anyway. I fall into bloodlust very easily.”
“No worries,” Vyren said. He leaned his head against the wall of the dungeon; the relief was so intense it was dizzying. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”
