Page 34 of How Does It Feel?

Just then, iron clanged, and the sound of heavy footfalls echoed from the opposite end of the dungeon. The screams and cries of the other prisoners only amplified as they continued down the stone aisle. Slowly the footsteps grew louder as they neared my cell.

“Oh! I have failed you! No matter what, be silent! It will hurt you! Oh, stars!” brown rat cried as he opened his mouth to tell me more.

The iron bars of my door gained a few silhouetted shadows, and I stared at the realization that they were here.

I moved to place brown rat safely behind me, but he had vanished, already gone to wherever it was he went.

My eyes returned to the bars from where I sat huddled in the dark corner of the cell. A stubby, round creature came into view, stepping arrogantly into the cell as soon as they opened it.

The creature’s eyes immediately went to the dark corner where I hid and began laughing a cold, grating laugh.

Could they all see in the dark?

I pressed my back harder against the cold wall behind me, wishing with everything I had that it would magically give way and I would fall through the other side to safety. What did safety even look like here?

The creature was about the height of a human man, maybe six foot or so, round with a greenish tint to its grimy-looking body. It looked like a cross between a toad and a human with no hair on its head. No ears that I could see, but giant bloodshot green eyes stared back at me with a look of wrongness. The eyes of someone who only held malice in their heart. They reminded me of the prince’s cold blue eyes.

“So the prince left me a present after all,” the voice croaked out, sounding infinitely more frog than human.

It smiled the eeriest grin I have ever seen as hundreds of needle-like teeth lined its mouth, with no space left for a tongue as it was filled to the brim with rotten yellow spikes of teeth.

I screamed, unable to stop the cry as I recalled brown rat’s command to be silent a little too late. I slapped my palm over my mouth, praying I could go back in time and muffle the sound.

The forest bog trembled at my scream. It dropped to all four abnormally long limbs and careened its round green head to one side. Red flickered in its eyes before they returned to green while he continued to watch my every move.

“So he is trying to win me over after all,” the bog chuckled to the guard. “Her terror is so palpable I could spend an eternity in this dungeon simply for the delectable scent of her fear,” it croaked hoarsely.

“Prince Mendax said he doesn’t care what you do to her, but once you are close to ending the assassin, His Highness demanded he is called upon to make the killing strike,” the guard mumbled matter-of-factly as he locked up the bars behind the hideous creature. “Watch if you shift to an animal, Bog, we’ve been having problems with the animals and shifters being drawn to her. The assassin is dangerous, that’s why Mendax is gifting her to you,” he mumbled, double-checking the security of the sturdy iron lock.

“Drawn to her? What do you mean? She is human, I can smell it. Not even the weakest of the Unseelie would be drawn to a human,” he spat the words out with obvious disgust. “Other than to hear their weak little mouths scream in pain.” He lowered his voice an octave to growl the last sentence in my direction.

“I don’t know, Bog,” the guard said, sounding bored and confused. “Even the guards that shift are having problems.” He leaned in closer to the bars now as if letting out a secret. “Captain Walter had to be forcibly removed. He was trying to get her out, can you believe that? Captain Walter, the prince’s best friend, attempting to free the assassin?”

The bog’s eyes went black for a second before it shook. It returned to stand on two feet as he turned to stare at the guard with an odd expression.

“Captain Walter?” It turned from the guard back to me, confusion marring its hideous face.

“Just for that, I may keep you alive.” It smiled eerily, licking one of his muddled eyes with a disturbingly long tongue. “I loathe that man.” It snapped its neck as if stretching it to the side to get the kinks out, but it remained hanging grotesquely to the side as if it were broken.

I screamed before both hands flew to cover my mouth. Even without my scream, my heart pounded so loudly I was sure the creature could have heard.

The frog-man got down on all fours again, his eyes flashing red. This time the burning red of his eyes took over the green completely, and the creature let out a moan. It shuddered wildly as it crouched low against the ground, its robust belly pressed against the stone floor.

“Yessssss. I haven’t tasted human fear in eons,” it moaned, holding its head up and closing its heinous eyes. “I doubt I’ll be able to keep you alive till the end of the week.”

Its green belly dragged against the ground as it crawled closer. I was paralyzed with fear. This was it, I was going to die.

Its back legs dragged across the floor with an awkward gait as if only his arms functioned.

“Please don’t hurt me! Please!” I cried, tears dripping from my eyes and heating my cheeks in warm streaks.

I checked to see if the guard was still outside the cell, but he was gone.

The bog’s eyes flared even more red than before as it closed the distance between us before he stopped himself only a few paces away.

At my pleas, it shuddered and began to writhe against the floor.

The slimy-looking creature ground its pelvis against the floor salaciously as it stared at me open-mouthed.