Monsters: The Folklore Trilogy Book 3

How to Become

I wasn't sure when to tell Sierra about the voices.

They were quiet, at first. A passing whisper. Something your brain invents to fill the unbearable silence. But then, I was able to make out some words.

"...think you're...to...anyone?...stupid."

I was confused, but figured Sierra would point it out if she heard anything, so I continued to pull apart the vines. It was an odd, quiet procedure. After the vines broke, they dissolved into dust and disappeared. The most disconcerting part was the absence of any sort of sound accompanying the vine breaking. My brain insisted there had to be a snap, or a rip, but instead I was left with the whispering voices of the realm.

I figured the voices were connected to me being a monster. They didn't sound like the Whisperers, whose voices reverberated in my head. It sounded like a small group of people gossiping a few feet away. But it wasn't bothering me, so Sierra didn't need to know. I didn't want to unnecessarily worry her. I often felt like a burden to her kindness.

"You are a burden."

I froze. That voice had been particularly clear.

"Hey, Amarie, look! Some of the vines are dissolving all on their own! Those must be the monsters that have been defeated in the battle!"

It sounded like Sierra. I hesitated for a moment before responding. "That makes sense to me."

"That's good, I hope they're doing okay. But we should hurry."

I was a bit disturbed. Sierra's voice was almost indistinguishable from the ghostly voice from before, the only difference being her timbre. If I couldn't tell the difference, that might pose a problem.

"Wow, you're stupid. Can't even tell which voice is your friend's."

My mood soured and I silently snapped another vine. At least I knew one thing: Sierra would never say anything to hurt me. If the voices were going to be negative, that would be an easy way to tell.

I got into a sort of rhythm, pulling whatever vine was in front of me. There were so many. At times, it felt like I was making no progress at all. But then, I'd look behind me and see how much I had cleared, and be reinvigorated.

"You're moving too slow. Your failure will doom them all."

I sighed. Maybe it was true, but I was working as fast as I could. I just needed to focus.

"Oh! I'm doing a thing!"

That exclamation sounded excited. I turned to see a silhouette of Sierra glowing with golden light, her arms moving through the vines like they were water, crumbling before her. I watched in awe. I had only seen her do this once before, when she faced Giselle for the first time. I had never seen any other Myth achieve that state.

"That's incredible!" I said, unable to keep the excitement out of my voice.

"Love is the answer!" she replied. "It's hard to be afraid when you're fighting with love!"

"You're incapable of love."

I was momentarily taken aback by the abrupt shift in tone, but recovered quickly. I went back to snapping vines, though they seemed colder than before.

Incapable of love. Was I incapable of love? A year ago, even a few months ago, I would have said yes. I didn't deserve to have any interaction with love. I was a worthless gnat amongst thousands, a creature more than a person, a being grotesque and insufferable, unless I was transformed. That was what they had told me. That was what I had believed.