I walked forward, and found my nails digging into the wooden planks underneath my feet. My feet had had grown long nails, and I found that with a small force of will, I could grow my fingernails into long sharp points, and they seemed sharp as daggers. The Baron took several steps back, fear replacing all other emotions on his face.
"This can't be real... you're a monster!" He screamed as he attempted to gain a modicum of courage, and he attacked me.
Chains shot out from the ground, seemingly materialized from nothing, and they wrapped around my limbs. He unsheathed a sword he had at his hip, and changed me.
"ELI!" Cici shouted, and while I appreciated her concern, she had nothing to worry about, and I'd show her that.
I moved my arm, the chain around it snapping like a weak tree branch, and I caught the Baron's wrist as easily as a tiger would stop a mouse. His eyes widened, and he tried pull away, but I didn't let him. I squeezed harder, and he began to scream in pain.
"You say I'm a monster, yet you kidnapped an entire village of people, and killed many of them. And why? Because they look different than you?" I said, scoffing at the ancient way of thinking. Racism exists everywhere I guess, or in this case, speciesism would probably be more apt.
"That was bad enough, and I would have found you, and killed you anyways. But you went a step further, by taking her." I pointed to Cici, "You took the woman I love. You were going to rape her, and who knows what else... no, I'm not just going to kill you, I'm going to make you suffer."
Cici's eyes glistened as I met hers.
"I'm sorry it took me so long." I said, and she just gave me a weak smile as her tears fell, and I smiled back, "You might want to close your eyes."
The anger in her eyes as she looked at the Baron's struggling form told me that she was not going to do that. I think she wanted this man to suffer more than I did. Given what she must have went through without me, I couldn't blame her. I turned an icy glare on the Baron.
"Now..." I growled, because crushing his wrist.
He screamed as the sword fell free from his hand, but I wasn't done. I had to hold myself back quite a bit, as I could have easily killed this man in one hit, but there's no way he was getting off that easy. I punched him in the gut, sending him stumbling back, and he coughed out an unhealthy amount of blood.
"PLEA-" He screamed, only for his nose to crunch and flaten against his face as I threw a straight jab at him.
He fell backwards, flat on his ass, and groaned in pain as I stomped towards him.
"Oh my gods... father, how could you do something like this!" Clarissa yelled as she finally stepped into the room, and took everything in.
He father looked over at her, and a look of fury crossed his face again.
"Clarissa! Stop standing there and help me!" He screamed, and she looked at him incredulously.
"NO!" She screamed, and he blinked in confusion.
"What...? Clarissa, I'm your father!" He yelled back, and she clenched her fists as twin sets of tears fell from her eyes.
"YOU'RE A PIG! A MONSTER! I KNEW YOU WERE A BAD PERSON, BUT THIS IS WORSE THAN I COULD HAVE IMAGINED!" Screamed, her tears flowing as she let out her frustration, "YOU DESERVE THIS!"
She shook with anger, sadness, regret, and guilt. Then, she looked over at Cici, and ran over to her. As she ran past me, she just weakly nodded at me, understand what needed to be done.
"I'll help her, you... deal with this... thing." She said, and the Baron's face fell, and went white as a ghost.
I grabbed him by his face, my hand and fingers easily covering it, and a muffled scream left his lips as I hauled him into the air. I grew out the claws on my left hand, and began making deep cuts and lacerations all over his body. He screamed again, so I just squeezed his face harder, and I felt his skull begin to crack.
"See what being a degenerate piece of shit gets you?" I said, my emotions both calm and roiling inside of me.
His only answer was more screams. Without warning, I severed his left arm, and blood sprayed out in a fountain as his screams intensified. I ran my blade across his groin in one swift action, and heard the satisfying wet thud of his severed cock and balls hitting the ground. His scream this time sounded like a keening horse.
"That's how you should deal with scum like you." I said, as I threw him across the room, and he smashed into the wall, cracks forming from the impact, before he slid to the ground.
I stalked towards him, and I now very aware of the sets of eyes on me. That made me pause in my steps. This man deserved all of this, and yet... I didn't want Cici to look at me differently. To be afraid of me... was I going to far? Was I enjoying this? I reached his nearly lifeless body and stared him in the eyes. It was all he could do to look back, as he had lost so much blood that I was surprised he was still conscious. B rank must be really strong, but it wasn't enough to save him this time.
"P...please... have...mer-"
I had decided that it was enough, and I kicked him in the face, causing it to splatter across the wall behind him. I didn't want to hear his damn voice again. I didn't want to fight anymore, I didn't want to have to kill anymore, not today... I just wanted Cici. She was safe, and that's what mattered.
I felt my transformation ending, my body shrinking, and all of my new appendages drawing back inside of me. There was no need for it, and to be honest, the way my thoughts changed was... unnerving. I was calm and collected at all times, which was good for the situation, but not for my reunion with Cici. I was still worried about what she would think. I wasn't exactly the same exact man she fell for, even though I felt like I was.
I began making my way towards them as Clarissa had helped find Cici some more modest clothing, and they were pretty damn expensive looking. I looked down at my rags I had on, as my transformation had torn them even more to shreds than they already were. I looked back up, and met Cici's tear filled eyes. She looked at me, not with fear, but love and wonder. Then, she moved.
"ELI!!" She screamed as she leapt at me, and I opened my arms as she crashed into me. I had been worried for nothing.
She wrapped her arms and legs around me tightly as she buried her face into my neck, and cried deep, powerful sobs that reverberated through my ribcage. I wrapped my arms around her back, tangling my hand through her hair as I held the back of her head.
"Cici... thank god you're okay. It's all right, kitten... It's all right..." I mumbled, my own emotions catching up to me as my eyes watered with pure relief and happiness.
She leaned up to meet my eyes, leaned in, and stole a deep kiss that took the breath from my lungs. It was full of need, relief, and love. I massaged the back of her head as we kept kissing with a passion I had never felt before. Was this feeling inside of me what it felt like to be truly in love? Maybe I didn't love Rachel as much as I thought I did. Cici released my lips, and stared into my eyes, her green cat eyes a balm to my aching soul.
"I'm so glad you're alive... Eli... I was so scared... and I didn't know what to do anymore! I thought you were dead... Eli.." Cici sobbed as she began nuzzling my face, making sure I was real.
"I'm here baby. I'm sorry it took me so long." I said, inhaling her scent deeply, "I said I wasn't going to leave you, and I meant that."
She cried even louder as she buried her face into my neck again, and I just smiled. Yeah, this was the feeling I've wanted to feel my whole life. This was what having a real partner, or a mate, as Cici said, was like. Now I had the power to protect her, and no one would ever lay a hand on my woman ever again.
"I love you, Cici." I said, and she kissed my neck, her soft lips sending a tingle through my body.
"I love you too." She mumbled, her tears falling to my neck and trailing down my exposed chest.
"Um..."
We both turned to the sound, and there stood Clarissa, blushing from ear to ear, but a smile creased her lips.
"Right... she's still here." I thought to myself, and Cici gave her a small smile.
"Thank you for helping me... and I heard what you said... that he was your father..." Cici said, but Clarissa shook her head vigorously.
"No! I'm sorry, what he did was unforgivable." She said, peering over at his headless body, and wincing, yet she didn't look that upset surprisingly, "I'm surprised I don't feel that sad... I've always known he was a bad man. He never raised me, or did much for me, so I didn't pay attention to him like I should have. If I would have known..." Clarissa said, her eyes becoming wet again.
"Eli... put me down for a moment?" Cici asked me, and I did so without a second thought.
She smiled, kissed me again, and then walked over to Clarissa and wrapped the girl in a hug. Clarissa didn't even know how to respond, so her body just locked up. Cici's soothing voice was like the calmest melody someone's ears could hear.
"Clarissa, right?" Cici asked, stroking the Clarissa'a hair gently.
"Y-yes." She responded, the words choked out.
"Clarissa, thank you. You're a good person, and you helped me. This wasn't your fault. It was his, and he would have done wrong regardless of if you knew or not. I'm sorry this had to happen this way... but I'd like to be friends, if you'd let me?" Cici said, and her heartfelt words even touched my heart. She was such a sweet girl, it was unreal. I hardly deserved her, but she was mine, and I'd treasure her.
Clarissa broke at Cici's words, and a powerful cry escaped her lips as she cluched at her. Cici just continued to soothe and whisper reassuring words into Clarissa's ear, and I just smiled.
"This..." I said, wiping at my eyes, "This is nice."