Following back to the events within the dreaded cave, tethered at the edge of the marching battleground, a little girl scoured the cave walls until she stumbled upon a little burrow. She stopped and peered deep inside. The end of a tiny tail could be seen within, digging further and further into its earthen sanctuary. The little girl plunged her hand inside and clasped on her prey with a screech of delight. Then, she pulled her arm out and the burrow collapsed with clay. Held in her palm was a rat, struggling and thrashing for its pitiful life. Just as she was about to open her mouth and devour her lucky find, a meddling hand appeared out of nowhere and snatched it away.

“Celeste! You silly girl! Why are you still hungry? I just gave you all our rations!” Selena said.

Celeste puffed up her cheeks and stood on her little toes. Jumping up and down, she stretched her arms and tried to retrieve her quarry from her mother’s grasp. Selena frowned and raised her arm higher and higher, but the more she did, the more her little daughter jumped further and further, almost reaching the height of her shoulders. Seeing no other way to cease her insistence, Selena threw the rat away deep into the cave’s depth and pulled Celeste in her grasp.

“My child, please stop!” Selena said.

Celeste opened and closed her mouth, speaking incoherent thoughts once again. But her mother understood what she meant all the way. The little girl was hungry. Selena rubbed her little belly and ravenous growls escaped therein.

“Don’t worry Celeste, I will think of something!” Selena said and looked at the man standing guard near the entrance. “Nathaniel! Go find something to eat! My child is starving!”

“I cannot leave you two undefended,” Nathaniel replied.

“Oh? Undefended? What could possibly ever hurt me and my dear child? So just go outside and fetch us something!”

“I searched the entire valley to its bones when we first set camp here, there is nothing to eat in these desolate peaks.”

“Humph! Then you should have searched a bit harder!”

“I should have,” Nathaniel said and sighed.

“Heh? Is that all you have to say? No rebuttal? Well well, you are dull as ever Nathaniel. Why don’t you at least make yourself useful and help Vincent in his battles outside,” Selena said.

“As I said before, I cannot leave you undefended.”

“Are you scared Nathaniel?” Selena said and chuckled. “Do you mean to tell me that the prodigy of the Blackburne family is scared of battles such as these?”

“You and I both know that is not the case,” Nathaniel replied, tapping the hilt of his blade as he looked outside. “Besides, Vincent won’t appreciate my, or anyone’s help.”

“Are you so sure? Why is your sister still outside with him?”

“She can make her own decisions and Vincent… won’t put her in danger.”

“Oh? You seem to really trust him, even after what happened, even after he took away your future bride-to-be.”

“It was fated.”

“Yes, keep telling yourself that, I would not have married you in any case.”

“Do you hate me this much?”

“Oh my! What made you think I hate you? Since you do everything I say,” she said and laughed.

“Then?”

“You misunderstand Nathaniel, it has more to do with things being forced upon me. Don’t you see? The elders decreed our engagement even before we were born.”

“We… cannot disobey our elders.”

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“We cannot? Heh? I just did and gave birth to my lovely daughter,” Selena gave a faint smile and pulled at the cheeks of her little girl. “Let’s see what the elders have to say about this.”

“Was all this… out of spite against them?” Nathaniel asked and slowly walked toward her, for his face mired with thoughts of unbridled affliction. “If you have just said so… I could have pleaded with them to annul the engagement.”

“I thought you just said the orders of the elders cannot be disobeyed. But to answer your question. No, I did not do all this out of spite, at least that’s what I like to think, hehe.”

A drumming groan broke off their thoughts. They followed their ears to know its owner but deep down they all knew from whom it appeared. It came from Celeste. Her little belly. She was puffing up her cheeks and squirming in her mother’s grasp.

“Nathaniel! Do something! She is hungry!” Selena shouted.

“There is nothing to eat here,” Nathaniel said and shook his head.

As if struck by a sudden revelation, Celeste stopped her discomfort and slightly tugged at her mother’s clothes. Selena raised an eyebrow and leaned her face closer to her. Celeste slowly open her mouth and rolled her tongue, trying her hardest to embark upon her first words in this mortal realm. Selena smiled in delight and encourage her to try even harder. But alas, she was tricked. Just as Selena was within her daughter’s reach, the mischievous Celeste clutched at her hair and pulled away.

“Kyaa!” Selena screamed and lost her balance, enough for the little girl to escape her embrace and jump down. Clutched with strands of gold in her little hands, Celeste broke into a sprint and delved deeper into the cave.

“You silly girl! What are you doing again?!” Selena shouted and rubbed her scalp in pain. “Nathaniel! Help me catch her quick!”

The two ran after the unruly child, but they had no need to go much further. Celeste walked out from a corner and stood before them, carrying a headless body of a rat. Blood dripped out of her mouth. She opened her mouth and crunched on its remaining body.

Munch! Munch! Munch!

“No! Don’t eat rats!” Selena screamed.

Before her mother could snatch it away again, she gobbled it all down her throat and fled deeper into the shadowy depths.

“Look at my poor child! Look at how hungry she is! This is all your fault Nathaniel” Selena said.

“Me? What did I do now?”

“You did not bring in any more food, and now, she is forced to eat those filthy things!”

“How is that my fault that you gave birth to a monster,” Nathaniel said, his face slowly turning a smile of ridicule, but before it could finish its course, he shook his head and took a step back. “Wait! Sorry… I did not mean it--”

“Don’t you dare insult my daughter!” Selena shouted and her eyes turned bloodshot. She unsheathed her sword and pointed it at his throat. A single drop of blood trickled down and splashed on the ground. He closed his eyes and took deep breaths, calming his beating heart from his shuffling thoughts.

“I apologise,” he said.

“Humph! You should apologise to my daughter,” she said and withdrew her sword.

Step! Step! Step! Footsteps echoed in their ears. Celeste ran back, carrying two rats, struggling in her palms. She walked up to them with a playful smile and raised her arms. Nathaniel shrugged his shoulders and took one of the rats, “Thank you... and I am sorry for calling you a monster.”

Celeste tilted her head in confusion before slowly losing interest, befitting of a child. She turned to her mother, urging her with innocent eyes, to take and feast on her prey. Selena’s face crumbled with disgust with just the thought of her putting up with the act. Before long, she covered her mouth and looked away, for the mere thought was just enough for her to cause vomit. Celeste pouted in dissatisfaction and threw the rat away in a fit. It rolled along the cave walls before it latched into a winding crack and hid inside.

“How bad can rats be? I am sure it would be a taste to our liking… if we cook it properly,” Nathaniel said and bent down, releasing the other rat from its eventual demise at the hands of a little girl.

“Don’t encourage her! You fool!” Selena shouted.

“Haha, alright,” Nathaniel gave a dry laugh and stood up.

Celeste looked up at her mother and spread her arms, jumping up and down on her toes. Selena shared a helpless smile and picked her up in a loving embrace. A slight bump could be seen on her cheeks, inciting Selena to bump it with a finger. A press was made and a rat's tail peeked out from her mouth.

“Celeste! You ate another one?! Spit that out this instant!” Selena berated.

Gulp! But her request fell on deaf ears in the end.

“What shall I ever do with you,” Selena said and sighed.

“Beginning to be on terms that she is… a bit different from the others, would be a nice start,” Nathaniel said. “Wait don’t get mad… I only said--”

“Why would I get mad? Hmm, you are right, I have to treat her a bit different from the others. Say, Nathaniel? Did anyone ever tell you that you are quite smart at times?”

“Umm… I--”

“Of course not, why would anyone? For you are such a fool in the end.”

“I was right, you are angry. I should go... and guard the entrance,” Nathaniel said and walked away.

“That’s right, do just that. That’s the only thing you are useful in,” Selena said.

The cave rattled and a heaven-rumbling roar charged inside. Selena pulled Celeste deeper into her bosom and gazed at the entrance. There, she saw Nathaniel running back with his sword unsheathed and held in his hand. Selena did not question his actions, for they both knew the origin of such howls, that reeked with abhorrence plucked from the abyss.

“Is that what… I think it is?” Selena asked in a solemn tone.

“Most likely… they have released one of their guardian beasts,” Nathaniel replied.