Page 2 of To Love A Monster
“When can I see you again, Aylin? Please tell me this is not just a fleeting moment.” I asked as I took her small hand in mine, a kind smile on her face as she stopped to gaze up at me. I wanted to kiss her at that moment, but I had to resist my urges. I had to be patient.
“Do you know the ruins east of the river, the ones covered in the green and red vines?”
“I do.”
“The loveliest of flowers bloom there. It is my most treasured place to be. If you wish to see me again, I will be there tomorrow as the sun sets.” She said as she rushed away from me and into the thick forests, a part of my heart carried with her.
A MOTHER’S ADVICE
Aylin
“Are you all right, dear Aylin? You haven’t said a word all evening and barely touched your stew.” My mother knocked me from my thoughts of the handsome Orc from the river. At first, I was frightened, but the moment I stared into his golden-brown eyes, I could feel the warmth of his heart. On the rare occasion mother would let me accompany her to the markets, I would see Orcs of Various Clans. I knew that Ironshield was the largest, and Nightfrost was to be avoided, but there were also the orcs of the west near the lava falls of Hallows Peak. Those orcs were easily noticeable by their gray, almost pale, cracked skin, and it was rare to see one this far north.
“Mother, what was it like when you met my father” I knew asking such a question would upset her, but I needed to know if what I was feeling for Daegon was real and not just foolishness. My mother had taught me to fear the orcs, humans, and many other creatures of this world, but the moment I laid eyes on him, my sense told me he was no danger to me. My heart raced as a vision of him and me embracing under a willow tree flashed before my eyes.
It was common to have visions of what could come to pass, a trait my father had given me, a quality my mother disliked. The visions would appear in flashes and never at a proper time since they would constantly distract me from my chores or when I was speaking.
“Why do you ask such things?” Her tone was worried, but I understood her hesitation and fear, for my father tried to steal me away from her in the middle of the night when I was only an infant. She had hidden me in a tiny, abandoned cottage locked away deep in the Bloodhill forest, a small cottage that I loved but secretly loathed. Very few ventured into these woods, for the ground was covered in dark red flowers that made the earth look like a sea of blood. It was perfect for hiding, but I often found the silence dreadful and lonely.
“You never speak of him, and surely you loved him once?”
“I adored your father, Aylin. Our love was passionate but fleeting, his love fading for me when his father, the late King, discovered our love. Your father chose his station and his people, and I cannot be angry at him for that, but he tried to take you from me.” Her words faded as she returned to stirring my small bowl of soup, my heart sinking for my mother and her sadness.
My mother was once a great beauty according to the stories she used to tell me when I was just a child, but being away from my father had made her once red hair fade and her eyes grow dull as if her very life force was leaving her. She once spoke of her bond with my father, a bond that felt like it was taking her soul.
I settled into the small pile of dirty furs on my bed, my thoughts turning back to Daegon. I had seen Orcs before, but they looked nothing like him. They were hideous to me, but Daegon was far different. His eyes were kind, and his smile warm, a blush over my cheek as I remembered the hot feeling pooled in my belly when my hand slipped into his. I had never seen an orc that stood as tall or broad as him. I had caught myself staring at his rippling muscle that showed through his untied tunic, my cheeks flushing as I pushed those thoughts from my mind.
I knew that meeting Daegon was not by chance; it was fated, for otherwise, why would I have ventured so far from my mother and picked flowers outside of the forest? An unseen force drew me to him as if we, the gods, had fated us to meet. My mother had told me long ago about fated mates, but I was certain that would never happen to me. Was this what was happening? Was this handsome, kind Orc my true fated mate?
“Why do you ask my child?”
“No reason, mother.” I lied to her, and that broke my heart. How could I confess to her that I was feeling a strong bond with an Orc that I barely knew or spoke to? I thought I was so naive in my heart, for an orc like Daegon deserved to be with the most beautiful maiden in all the lands, not a peasant hiding away in the forbidden wood.
DAEGON
“This is useless.” I groaned as I sat up and pushed the furs from my naked body, my once large fire reduced to embers as sleep eluded me. All I could think of was Aylin, my thoughts consumed by her and only her since she disappeared into the forest. There was no doubt in my soul that she was my mate, but I would be a fool if I were to take her the way so many others had taken their maidens.
It was almost a custom now that Orcs would so brutishly take their women; however, I refused to be such a fool. I desired nothing more than to have Aylin by my side, but I could not let my heart run away with such fantasies. I wanted her to love me; I wanted our bond to be natural and not forced. The village was silent, but hearing footsteps near my home forced me to slip on my breeches and loincloth.
“Who is it?” I grumbled as a light tap sounded at my door as I watched the heavy leathers rise. “Mother.” I rose and embraced her, her forehead resting on mine as I knew she could feel my troubled thoughts. My mother had seen many winters, her once brown hair white and always tied in a tight braid that rested over her shoulder like mine, and her once strong stature replaced with a walking stick that never left her side.
“What troubles you, my son? Your heart has been so uneasy.” Her words made me breathe a sigh of relief as we sat down on the furs by the fire, the flames coming back to life as I reignited them. I held no secrets from my mother or father; talking to my mother was far easier. I loved and respected my father, but he hated speaking of matters of the heart.
“Today, as I laid by the stream, the gods granted me, my mate, mother. A woman so beautiful, it took the very air from my chest. Mother, she is the one I have been waiting for, the one that will bear my children. I can think of nothing else; I cannot eat or sleep. I have a desire deep within me to be by her side, to hold her and love her.”
“If she is the one, Daegon, why is your heart so troubled? Does she belong to another?” Sitting there, I knew I needed to be truthful; my mother and my people deserved to know she was half-elf. The elves of Oryndaas loathed all Orcs since we had once been their servants, but our freedom came in the great uprising, a moment that is still celebrated by all Orc clans.
“She is—her father is an elf. King Paeris.” My words surprised my mother as I watched her eyes shift uncomfortably to the fire and back to me. “Our union would be a first, and it will be celebrated and written about—”
“My son, how can you be so certain she can bear your child? What if she gives her life to bring your child into this world?” I scoffed at her words and stood, my eyes gazing into the fire as the mere thought of losing Aylin felt like a dagger to my heart. She was right, and I was not sure that Aylin could carry my child, for orc children (even half) were larger than most infants. From the stories foretold, when Elves were born, they could fit into the palm of a grown warrior’s hand, a feat that would be impossible for a newborn Orc.
“I have not even courted her yet, and here I am discussing her possible demise. I know that others will share your concern, if not the entire village, but Aylin is my mate, and I will do whatever I can to protect her.”
“I know, my son, but you cannot get lost in your fantasies. I know how much you have longed for a true mate, but I need you to be patient and calm about this. If King Paeris is truly her father, why does she not live in the ice mountains?” My mother worried more than most, and I did not want to give her more reason to worry, but I could not lie to her.
“For reasons still unknown to me, her mother hid her away from the King, fearing he would take her away. I can see the worry in your eyes, mother, but you must trust me. I would never put my life or the lives of my people in danger.”
