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Pt. 1 The Elvenpath

Brilliant moonlight shone through the room, making it impossible for Christine to sleep. She'd had many wakeful nights like this as of late, which she greatly lamented. Her dreams were the only escape from a reality without fantasy. The notion that she was trapped here, stuck in the banal cycle of work and sleep was its own personal hell. The news was trapped in its own endless loop, crisis, false promises, and eternal hatred between sides that could never reconcile. Was this all humanity had to offer?

All her childhood, she'd immersed herself in fantasy literature. Fairy tales, Tolkien, Lewis, Gaiman, and everything else she could get her hands on. She felt more kinship with Bilbo, Sparhawk, Willow, and the Seven Dwarfs than anyone she'd met in the waking world. Those beings lived lives that were far more fulfilling than anything that could possibly exist in her reality.

It was the honesty of those worlds, ruled by magic and mighty swords, that really drew her in. Everything in her reality was lies and deceit. She longed with all her soul for the simplicity the worlds of her fantasies held within.

She wished to be the hero in her own story, one of adventure and purpose. A heroine on a quest to free her lands, or save the citizens from a long-standing curse. She wanted to be something beyond human, a mighty beast that could explore the lands uncontested. How she longed to just exist in such a world, to explore all its majesty and wonder!

As it often did, her restless thoughts drifted to a fantasy world of her own design. Tonight, it seemed to call to her, louder than ever before. It was as though she was hearing music from the deepest parts of a forest path. The songs were as seductive as sirens, as though something was reaching out to her. It compelled her to get up, to go to her window and open it, much like Wendy in Peter Pan before she was carried to Neverland.

Not bothering to don anything other than her evening gown, she walked out into the night, as though the experience was a dream. Yet, now, there was a part of her that was certain she was doing so in the waking world. That made her anticipation rise to new levels. If she just did as the voice asked, if she just walked forward, then she would find all that she sought. The voice continued to sing to her, telling her to become one with the moonlit night and the promise of her deepest fantasies. She felt as though she was a sleepwalker, seduced by the voice.

Yet, none of that mattered to her now. The voice was too beautiful to be human. It carried notes of something beyond the veil, of what her mind perceived to be one of the other worlds. The one that lay on the other side of her imaginings.

The sheltering shade of the forest called for her to come in silence. It was not the woods that she was familiar with. Its presence was accompanied only by the full moon that had roused her from slumber. A single cry pierced the night, one she recognized as the howling of a night wolf. Yet, she held no fear. The possibility that she could meet such a creature on her path only filled her with excitement.

She was aware of little more than the moon's rays on her skin, the warm breeze that ruffled her gown, and the path under her bare feet. Beyond which lay everything she ever desired. It was as though the forest was open to her, the gateway to where she thought her mind lay. What could she do but march forward?

She knew the moment she stepped into that other world. An electric tingling caressed her flesh as soon as she entered. Though her world lay behind it, she was no longer part of it now. This trail was a familiar friend, one that played in her dreams each night before sleep. She followed it diligently, bathed in its brilliant moonlight as she did so. The path seemed to go on forever before her, traveling an endless forest though branching off towards enchanted lands that would meet even her deepest fantasies.

Yet, there was one thing missing. Her form did not belong here. Witches, trolls, goblins, pixies, dwarfs, elves. Those creatures comprised the lands here. Humans did not. She would not last in this world of fantasy as herself. She would need another form. Moreso, she desired one. The form of her deepest fantasies.

Of all the tales that played in her head, only one did not end as she willed it. Little Red Riding Hood, the little girl that was eaten by a wolf. Though the wolf was cunning, intelligent, he was killed in the end, and the girl was free. The wolf and the girl had become one, in a way. Just as she always wished to become one with the beast.

As though in response to her thoughts, the tingling played over her form once more. Yet this time it was more than the brief exposure from entering this space. It was as though she was becoming one with it, like being enveloped with a warm blanket. The tingle turned into a prickling that encompassed her skin, coating her in a lovely pelt of brown and gray fur. She scratched at it lovingly, savoring the sensation of blunt claws playing over it as her hands began to widen. She was truly changing!

The process was quick, as though a call to her inner self that demanded her to metamorphose. It was akin being born again, like a butterfly from its chrysalis. Her muscles strained and bulked, making her into the warrior she knew she could be. Her face pressed forward, sharp sheering fangs tearing from blackened gums. Her stance shifted as her feet became paws, thick pads carrying her forward down the winding path. A tail tore its way through her backside as the gown parted to allow it to wag its excitement.

Yet, best of all was her newfound awareness of her surroundings. A blackening nose lit the world up in a panorama of detail beyond which the likes of her human self could fathom. Ears twisted this way and that, taking in the sounds of creatures going about their nightly activities. Golden eyes pierced the darkness, lighting up black corners that even the moonlight did not penetrate.

She truly was the form of her dreams, the one she'd always envisioned herself as. A mighty werewolf, not one that was slave to the whims of a beast, but rather a warrior by night that could save those in need with her power and speed. She had beautiful, long flowing blonde hair running down her furry shoulders. It was everything she could have hoped for and more.

Eventually, the path before her split in two, one trail leading from the endless woods to the world beyond. Compelled to explore its wonders, she raced forward towards a towering castle in the distance. Instinctively, she knew that was where she was to go. The moonbeam lighted her path, as though an old friend was guiding her.

It was there she was met with the Faye beings that predominated this land. To her delight, none of them questioned her appearance or presence. Her form was one that could easily exist in this world. Anthropomorphic creatures resided in parallel realms, she soon discovered. She needed not to worry.

She wished to learn all she could about their ways, their customs, their cultures. But, there was no time for that. A devil had risen from the ocean, a creature beyond their understanding. Their best warriors had traveled to the oceanside, only to be devoured by the beast, never to be seen again. She was warned against going there, told to return to whatever land she had come from.

All she informed them of herself was that she came from a distant land. Returning there would not be possible, best to her knowledge. Perhaps she could pass back through the veil if she wished it so. After all, that was how she had come here. But, she had not been summoned here of her own volition. She was determined to see this journey through to wherever it led her.

Swearing that she would vanquish this evil, she took up the sword and was given a steed to take her to the nearest shore. Racing on the horse through the moonlight was more exhilarating than she could have ever known. The horse, for her part, did not fear the wolf-woman riding on her back as they made record time across the countryside. She truly did belong in this world, in this form, it seemed.

The moonlight trailed endlessly as she continued to ride towards her goal. Though words of caution had been placed deep in her psyche, she felt no apprehension. There was no need to fear what she did not understand. This was not the natural world. It was the world of dreams, or at least what humans referred to as such. If she had the ability to influence her dreams, could she not influence herself and the world from this side, as she had changed her form?

Though she carried a sword, she knew it would not be needed. Her imagination would be the weapon to wield as she fought down the demon in the dark ocean. She would save the kingdom, she would vanquish its evil. She would continue to persist in this land, the one that had sung to her, to quell all her deepest desires...

Pt 2. The Devil and the Deep Dark Ocean

The ocean was vast, dark even under the light of the moon. No lunar rays were even reflected on its surface as black waves crashed across the shore. She could feel the presence that lay just below the waves. It was almost palpable in the air, around the ocean where once would be a salty breeze. It felt like an ancient evil, something that existed before even this land had been birthed.

Even in her current state, she knew that she lacked the physical power to quell the force that threatened her newfound paradise. But that was alright. She knew deep down she possessed the necessary strength within. The rest of her imaginings would prove true, as they had up till now.

The image of the moonlit sea called to her as she took a tentative step into its waves. A rush of trepidation raced over her as she entered what she perceived to be the devil's domain. Yet, the moon was there to light her path like a guardian as she walked forward. A second step, and then a third brought her closer to the demon that besieged the land.

Eventually, she made it far enough that she could swim the ocean depths if she wished. But that was not her compulsion. Instead, she lay back, allowing herself to relax as she stared up at the moon, its light shining only on her and she floated into the waves.

The warm water was accentuated only by the moonlight that trailed her form as she floated over the endless expanse of sea. She was as close to the devil as she needed to be in order to combat it. She had to exist in its domain to make it appear, even though she would be on its terms for the challenge ahead.

To her surprise, a snowy owl floated above the haunted waves, singing as though a poet of the ancients with its piercing cries. Yet, to her, its calls sounded of warnings of long-ago, of ruin and coming floods. An attempt to prepare her for the coming encounter. She was not sure how she understood its words, simply that the story she heard was part of her mind now.

Much of the bird's stories sang of ruin and destruction at the hands of this ancient evil. Yet, it spoke of a warrior, a lady in brightest white. An incarnate daughter that would soon be born, created by the night. Was she to be that warrior?

Yet, she had no time to contemplate it further. Her understanding of the dark being sent shivers through her body. The deep dark of the devil's majesty's kingdom was a portent of tomorrow's world. Even the shallow liquid of rivers and streams was his power, though he was strongest here in the darkest ocean. She could almost see him under the waves, the red eyes of the unborn lord.

Too late, she felt the fatal embrace of the water around her, its depths suddenly darkening to bloodred. The devil was not here, not truly. He was yet to be born into this world. Though he had taken the bodies of many down to his deep cavern, none of them were suitable for his purposes. And the spell for him to master this earth was carved here, where would be her tome.

The devil's words rang from beneath the ocean depths, crying its rage and desire. "You will die for my need, no, my love of you, the maiden, for your seduction, beauty, and scorn. Welcome, to the end of your life, warrior. Hail, the ocean born!"

It was then her purpose became clear. She was lying in his cradle of infinite gloom. Her virginity was to be disgraced. Death would be woven into her wedding dress as she would be taken by the essence of the devil. The great blue ocean would breathe new dawn at the birth, and the cradle would bear the image of this world's new god.

There was no time for her to even attempt escape. She was frozen in the waves as the devil's presence rose towards her. Yet, she did not fear. Did not cower. She would stand her ground against this evil until her last breath. Such was her duty, as this land's protector.

The voice called up to her, hackling her courage in the face of his presence. " You are brave now, but a long rest is sweet. Come, join me in unity!"

Regrets flooded her mind and she slowly realized her . She was trapped, helpless, and struggling. This was not the end she had expected, not the one she had wished for. She had prayed for pleasure, for adventure, prayed for him to be vanquished...

"NEVER PRAY FOR ME!" came the voice, reading her thoughts. Was he truly that powerful?

"Who the hell are you to me!?" She retorted, fear in her voice even as she attempted her defiance.

Yet, the calling voice cared not for her resistance. "Just a mortal woman, playing at a life that is not hers. Your apathetic life must drown, forever, just for my rebirth!"

"Leave me be! Leave me be! Leave me... AAAHHHHHHH" She screamed as the being overtook her, clawing into her body with his mind as he prepared to use her flesh to birth itself into the world.

She could not move. Could not struggle. She had no power here, over the being that would take her body and make it his own. No power over the land and the journey. Except...

The mental image of the wolf she had become entered her mind. She had reshaped her body so easily to fit with the narrative that her mind embraced. What if she could do so again? What if that was her power? Not the strength or the speed or the skill with the sword. But the power to change herself within this story time? To change into something that could not be possessed...

She was on the shore before she knew it, fur wet and her body filled with boundless energy. Yet she no longer possessed her prior form. Her thighs and shoulders had collapsed into her body, her fingers were short and stubby and sank into wide paws. Head in line with her shoulders now, she realized that she was on all fours. Not just the werewolf she had been, she was a wolf. Not a suitable being for the devil's rebirth. He had rejected her bestial body and thrust her back to shore!

She'd used her one power she knew of in this world to escape. She could not alter the world surrounding her. But she could affect her place and form within it. And, now, as a wolf, she could escape.

Running across the beach and dashing towards the woods, the beast's roar echoed in her furry ears. "How dare you get away from me! Then, take heed to thyself and see my face no more! For in the day thou see my face once more, thou shalt die!"

The formless being chased her through the forest, tearing through the foliage as it did so. Yet, she ran away effortlessly, dodging every branch, ducking under every obstacle as she raced to escape her tormentor. He could not use her in this form. But he could certainly kill her with a whim. If he could catch her, that was!

The cover of woods was soon to be lost as she came up upon the clearing that had been her target. Ultimately, she knew she couldn't escape forever from the massive, formless blob that her tormentor had taken as it raced to defeat the creature that had denied him. But in a few moments, she would no longer need to escape.

She wasn't sure why it had come to her at the moment. Yet, her revelation seemed so obvious that she could not deny it as truth. The devil was not meant to exist outside its watery cradle without a body. And if it did not catch her, then...

The cries of phantom agony pierced the night as the devil finally understood what it had done. It was too far away from its ocean slumber to maintain what power that it had. Without its reservoir, it could be killed. She could end the people's suffering with a single strike.

Shifting forms was as easy to her now as changing clothes, and in an instant, she was back on two legs, standing tall and proud in her armor once more. So, too, did she carry the blade she had been gifted, its sharpened edge glistening in the moonlight. It could not pierce the flesh of the being that existed in the waves. But on land, so far from its source of power...

Stunned in its silence, the devil could not move fast enough to avoid her strike as her blade sank true. Though the thick, black miasma was mostly formless, a pair of red eyes sitting atop a head-like structure gave her the perfect target for her blade to slice through.

The black head separated from the body with a cry of pain and fear that pierced the night with its intensity. Yet, it was too late for the presence to resist. The deed was done. With its body in such a state, there was no chance of it returning to the oceans from where it was born. It could only dissipate into the air, its essence obliterated by the moon.

"Never forget... From cradle to coffin... shall my wickedness... be your passion..." The voice whispered its last words, as though in a curse. She did not understand the meaning of those words but hoped that it would not turn out to be a prophecy that she could not avoid.

With that, the threat was vanquished. The moon shone over the waters once more, the songs of freed dolphins echoed over the mountains and seas. The waters themselves were washed from the blood-red stain. And the kingdom's eternity would once again begin in peace.

Pt 3. Wanderlust

Her reward was the eternal admiration of the kingdom. But, it was enough. She would want for nothing throughout the realm. Everyone would be in her debt for what she had done for them. Yet, she would not abuse that privilege. She needed only a guide every once and a while. A brief visit to meet new people and experience all they had to teach her.

She had no desire to return to the lands from which she came. This world held so much more promise. In truth, what compelled her forward was wanderlust. There was an entire world for her to explore, one that spoke to every fantasy she had ever read. It was perhaps here that she would find the inspirations for many of the stories she enjoyed. Perhaps here, she would find the star she could wish on, the beauties sleeping until their awakening from true love's first kiss. The girl in the rain, swearing her father's name, the cub betrayed by his usurper uncle.

She wanted to hear the siren's singing, the true ones that brought sailors to their doom with enchanting voices. She wanted to hear the wolves howl, then change and run with her kin through the night. She wanted to swim the deep waters under moonlight now that darkness was removed. She wanted to dance in fields of coral, blinded by brilliant sunlight before exploring the deepest jungles. She wanted to find a secret path, as hidden to the inhabitants of this world as the Elven path had been to those of her's.

Yet, it did not ultimately matter what she found as she explored the world in its wonders. The entire world held treasures that would likely be unexplored by anyone from her side of the veil. It was the call of the wild that was in her forever, the wanderlust to explore. It was the journey that mattered the most to her, the one she wanted never to end. And in this world, it seemed as though the paths truly did go on forever.

And so, she did. In the endless expanse of moonlit night, she sought all the majesty she could. Dancing through the kingdom, running with the wolves that hid just out of sight. She watched from a lakeshore as swans grew from chicks and flew off in the night. Even when the moonlight faded towards clouds, she knew her visage was still there, almost able to see the wolf's silhouette before the moon's glow lit the path under her bare feet. It was as though it was hers, to use as she wished to quell her infinite needs to explore...

Pt 4 Bless the Child

At present, she found herself walking in the air, floating across the moonlit sky. The kingdom below was sleeping as she passed by. The villages went by like trees as she viewed the world from a sleepwalker's dream. Occasionally, a child would look up, gazing open-mouthed and not believing their eyes as they saw her above. The moonlight guided her along its midnight blue as she danced above the world's wonders.

Yet, there was something wrong. The moonlight that had guided her along the Elven path was starting to wane, sinking below the clouds as though fading. She wished for this nighttime to last for a lifetime, granting her the form and the life that she had always wanted. She held her dreams as her life. She wished not to view their loss as a crime, holding onto her faith that this wish of the everlasting night would truly never end.

Yet, nothing could last forever. She knew instinctively that once the sun rose, she could not hold this form, this were-creature she had made herself. No matter what form she changed herself into, it would be dust once the dawn came to wipe away her dreams. She would be human, as alien to this world as the devil in the deep dark ocean.

Perhaps that was what his final words to her meant. Perhaps, he, too, once traveled into this world, taking on a shape to explore its wonders. Perhaps he did not wish to leave, ultimately becoming a shadow of his former self and finding refuge in the ocean depths, waiting until another like herself fell into the world unknowingly. Would that be her fate if she chose to remain? Perhaps, she, too, might threaten the lands with her foreign existence and the depravity that came with centuries of loneliness.

In the end, there was no choice. She knew she had to return to where she had entered the world, the pathway that had led her to this Imaginarium of the mind. Overcome with sadness, her gaze turned to the waning orb in the sky, not wanting to leave the land of her dreams behind. She was to return to that mundane life for the slight chance that she might once more find the Elven path.

Near her point of no return, her gaze settled on a purple waterfall, one that still glowed under the full moon. Her form could be birthed only amidst a place that could sport such beauty. Walking towards it, she stared at her reflection for what she knew would be the last time. Marveling, she drank in her wolven form, witnessing the beauty of the beast.

Where had all the joy gone from being in this foreign land? Why did she feel so unblessed, after experiencing the dream of a lifetime? Only loved before she had to leave this world behind, perhaps forever? How could she ever feel again, unless she was guaranteed the chance to return to her form once more? The uncertainty would haunt her the rest of her days.

Never had she felt so alone in all her life. It was as though she was drinking from a poison cup, one that would put her back to sleep once more. It was counting the seconds of her time here. The other citizens of this parallel world could scarcely fathom who she was or from whence she came. She hoped that they would think of her long enough to make a lasting memory.

Why was it the deadliest sin for her to love as she loved this world? The one thing that pained her more than anything that she could ever fathom? She would be unblessed, homesick in a world that did not understand all that she lost, all that she stood to gain if she had at least one more night to live here.

Her tale here carried with it the most bitter truth. She was paid back for her heroism only with the knowledge that she would return to earth and dust, a dark silent grave with no hope of seeing her dreams fulfilled once more. Hope being only an illusion, the ocean's soul she carried with her now, nothing but a name.

Before her was the only path she could walk in good conscience. It did not need to carry the sense of awe and wonder that had drawn her in. It was only a bland, rocky road, the meek visage of her former house under the glow of the coming dawn. It was time.

Epilogue: Beauty of the Beast

Christine stared out at the moonlight waters, under the same glow that had beckoned her down the Elven path what felt like a lifetime ago. She'd wished for that nighttime to last for a lifetime, and in some respects, it had. She was being granted a second life, of sorts. But it was a half-life; dull, monotonous, unfulfilling. The burden of existence without it was killing her.

All around her, trees were dropping their leaves. Clouds hid the moon from her while they dropped their torrents of water. Her tears carried the memory of better days. All of this false beauty was eating away her insides. Nothing could compare with the beauty she'd known.

She still felt for her other self, the self that she no longer was, no longer could be. She knew that she would never find anyone who could understand all she had lost. Only her other self, that being that had been her and not her at the same time. Would they find each other in the dark, like a long-lost love?

She had been safely away from the world, lost in the dream in that other place. Life had made more sense then. She wished she could come back to her, the wolf, once again, feeling the warm moonlight on their skin. She had seen through the eyes of the wolf, searched them to find the beauty of the beast. She wished, to all the beings in the universe, that she had one more night to live there.

Her fall had been for the wolf, her love within. They had swum the same moonlight waters, oceans away from the wakeful days she now experienced. The scents of the seas before the waking world, borough her into memory.

A blade hung in her hand, dripping her desire as she stared into the moonlit waters. It would be the end of all her hope, though she had none left to give. Her fall had been for the wolf. Her love had been there. Its loss was the one thing to cut her, making her bleed crimson forever on the sands.

Yet, she stopped, almost hearing that siren from the deep that had guided her to the Elven path. It sang her name, ached of her longing. It echoed her own songs, written to regard that other world in case she lost its memory. Those words were worth everything she could ever be.

"Bring me home, or leave me be!" She called into the waves, knowing that the path before her had been truly lost. But, perhaps, the path was behind her, in the past. Where it had been all along...

In her final moments of haze, one thing shone with crystal clarity. The path once before her was no longer. But the part was behind her. What should be lost was there. The path once again under her bare feet. The Elven path...