Beauty between Beasts

Chapter 1: The Beast's Castle

They say a beast lives in that castle. A monster, cursed by magic, hidden away in shadows.

I believed the stories. I never expected to meet him.

The wind howled through the trees, tugging at the edges of my cloak. My horse, Amara, shuffled nervously beneath me, her hooves sinking slightly into the muddy path that led toward the looming structure. The castle was closer now, its dark stone walls rising high against the stormy sky, its towers twisting into the clouds like the fingers of some ancient, sleeping god.

No one from the village had dared venture this far for generations. The stories about the Beast were too terrifying. Too real.

But none of that mattered now.

My father was here. And I was here to save him.

I pulled Amara to a stop before the massive iron gates. The wind screamed against the gates, but they stood, unmoving. I reached for the cold metal and slowly, with a creak, pushed them open. They didn't resist.

Inside, silence awaited me—heavy and suffocating. The world outside had vanished. The quiet in the castle felt unnatural, like something was holding its breath, watching.

I swallowed, the knot in my stomach tightening.

I had no choice but to move forward. My father was locked away here because of one man: Adam, the prince. The one cursed to be a beast. But my father—Maurice—wasn't supposed to be trapped in this nightmare. He had never done anything wrong.

But when my father had been captured by the Beast's brother, Richard, who had long coveted the crown, he had been forced to design a machine to break the curse. A machine that could protect them from their own magic, keep them from hurting others. But it didn't work. Richard wasn't interested in fixing the curse—he was interested in using it, controlling it.

So they locked him away. And now, I was here to free him.

The castle felt like it had been abandoned for centuries, yet everything was perfectly maintained. Candles flickered in golden sconces, casting eerie shadows on walls that seemed to pulse with their own heartbeat. The floor beneath my boots was made of smooth marble, cold and unyielding.

"Father?" I called into the void of the grand entryway. My voice echoed, bouncing off stone and disappearing into the distance.

No answer.

I took a hesitant step forward, my heart pounding harder with every footfall. I had been prepared for this—prepared for the unknown, for the cursed prince who had locked my father away, for the rumors of his rage and monstrous form.

But nothing could have prepared me for the figure that appeared at the top of the grand staircase.

At first, it was only a shadow, moving fluidly, silently. Then, as the figure descended, the flickering light revealed him—tall, broad, and cloaked in dark, imposing robes. The man—no, the beast—was terrifying, even though his face was mostly hidden in the shadows. His eyes glowed faintly, a sickly, unnatural green that seemed to pierce through me like knives.

His skin was pale, almost unnaturally so, as if the very light around him had fled. But it wasn't just the skin that made him monstrous—it was the presence, the aura of malice and pain that seemed to emanate from him, making the air feel heavy and hard to breathe. His posture was stiff, yet controlled, as if he were at war with his own body, every movement carrying the weight of centuries of loneliness.

And still, he watched me.

I took an involuntary step back, my heart racing. I hadn't expected him to be so... real. So alive. The stories spoke of claws and fangs, of a creature too hideous to even imagine. But the man before me was worse than any beast could be.

His eyes locked onto mine. A beat of silence passed before he spoke, his voice gravelly, hoarse, like he hadn't used it in years.

"What are you doing here?" His tone was sharp, demanding, but there was a hesitation there—an uncertainty.

"I came for my father," I said, my voice steady even though my insides were shaking. "Maurice. He's being held captive here."

The Beast's expression remained unreadable, but his eyes narrowed slightly. "Your father... What does he have to do with anything?"

"He's the one who designed the machine," I replied, swallowing against the lump in my throat. "The one you're trying to use to protect yourselves from your curse."

For a moment, the Beast remained still. Then, to my surprise, he let out a low, bitter laugh.

"Your father failed. That machine doesn't work. Nothing works."

I stood my ground, fighting the urge to step back. "It doesn't matter. I'm here to take him. Whatever it takes."

The Beast's eyes glinted, something dark and dangerous stirring behind them. He took a step toward me, his figure looming larger as he did. The space between us seemed to stretch as I tried not to flinch.

"You think you can just walk in here and take him?" His voice was a low growl now, tinged with something I couldn't quite place. "You think you can just—"

Before he could finish, the door to the side of the hall opened, and a figure stepped into view—his brother, Richard.

The tension in the air thickened. Richard's eyes swept over me before landing on his brother, the Beast, with an almost predatory gleam.

"She's here for her father, isn't she?" Richard said, stepping forward. "But that's not why you're really here, is it, girl?"

I felt my breath catch, but I didn't answer him. I kept my eyes on the Beast, who still stood there like an immovable force, a shadow of a man. His brother, Richard, was the one who had orchestrated this, who had imprisoned my father in the first place. But it was the Beast I had to face. I didn't know what kind of curse was that. Father said it was something going on in their bloodline. I wasn't allowed to know more.