Baxter never liked the tavern. A loud and disgusting building full of drunk thugs who would mug weaker men and fondle women. They were all greedy and perverse, the very definition of scum yet Seviathan, a man of high society, associated with such low lifes.
"Did we have to come here Seviathan?" Baxter asked while trying to avoid eye contact with any other man in the tavern. "You know how I feel about this place. These men are so desperate for money they'd rip out someone's gold tooth."
"Oh stop whining and be a man." His brother in-law said. "Besides the men here are going to help us."
"Help us? Help us with what?"
"Well you see brother, I have the solution to your problem with my sister."
"What do you mean?"
"Well it's obvious that you and her are not happily married and that's because you don't have enough wealth to feed that greedy black hole she calls a heart. But there is a way to keep her permanently satisfied so that she'll finally give you the love you so desperately crave from her."
"What must I do?"
"This beast who Charlotte has become fond of, possesses a room filled with endless treasure. If we go to the beast's castle and kill him then we can take that treasure for ourselves."
Baxter looked at Seviathan as if he had lost all sanity, which he probably did at this point. If not then he was close to it.
"The beast's castle?! Are you out of your mind?! I'm not going in there! Do you know what that guy does to humans?! Do you have any idea what he does?! He hunts them and he eats them! He eats them like they're cattle!"
"Oh really Baxter, aren't you being a little melodramatic?"
"Hey you haven't spent five years hearing stories about this guy! I work with traveling merchants! They've traveled through the forest and very few of them ever came back! And the ones who did come back told stories that would give even you nightmares!"
"Since when are you a superstitious fool?"
"Since I found out he was real when Charlotte came back from living with him!"
"Charlotte says that he's dying. That means he won't be strong enough to fight back against us. Not to mention we'll have him outnumbered."
"But he'll have us outsized!"
"One large animal means nothing against six to seven muscular men."
"And where exactly are we going to get that kind of assistance? You're rich but not rich enough to have your own army."
"Look where we are. You said so yourself, the men here are so desperate for money that they would rip out someone's gold tooth. If I tell them that I know where they can get an endless supply of treasure they'll follow me without question."
"But is killing him really necessary? I mean he is dying. Why not go rob him once he's dead? At least we have a better chance at survival."
"I can't wait that long. If Charlotte finds the ring and goes back to him before it's too late, not only will he live but she'll most likely become that animal's bride!"
"So that's what this is about? You're willing to risk your life and mine just because Charlotte prefers a beast over you? So much for hoping that she wasn't the only one in the family with common sense."
"You think Charlotte has common sense?! She's given her heart to something that's not even human!"
"True but at least she won't die for that. I think. I mean I'm not sure what their relationship is like but I seriously doubt that she would be so eager to go back to him if he posed any kind of threat to her."
"I don't give a damn! She belongs to me!"
"Look why don't you just forget about this and marry another woman? You ever think about that? You find yourself another beautiful woman and you marry her! I mean it's not like it's hard for you to attract other women!"
"The best hunter doesn't settle for mere ducks and geese! They go straight for the swan!"
"You know I really don't like the look in your eye right now and I really don't want an early grave so just leave me out of this, okay?" Baxter stood up and tried to walk away. "You have fun on your hunt."
But Seviathan roughly seized hold of by his shirt collar and dragged him to where his pinned against the wall.
"You know I'm only sharing the treasure with whoever aids me. That means you won't get so much as one coin if you refuse."
"And?"
"And what will Helsa think when I tell her that you cowardly backed down from an opportunity to make her live grander than a queen?"
Baxter flinched at the thought of what his wife's reaction would be. He knew very well what she would do. She would do exactly what she had been doing to him whenever she was angry. Except the pain would most likely be ten times as worse and take place every single time she saw him instead of when she was angered.
"You wouldn't really do that Seviathan, would you?" He asked meekly.
He smirked vindictively at the frightened man who was height challenged.
"You thought my sister was bad? I'm much worse. She's only acts the way she does because that's how our mother raised her. She's only following the most dominant influence she had in her life. She's vile and manipulative but she sincerely believes that's how you have to be in order to get any where in life. But me? No. You see I know that what I do is wrong. I know that my actions can even come off as downright evil, but I don't care. I don't care because it works for me."
Baxter was trembling.
"So yes brother dear. I would tell my sister that she lost her only chance to finally have the kind of life she wanted because of you, and it wouldn't matter to me at all if she beat you to death over it."
"Dear God in Heaven, what did I marry into?" Baxter whimpered. "Lucifer is blind, Helsa is deranged, and you're the bloody devil."
"Exactly. So are you going to reconsider your previous answer to my generous offer?"
Poor Baxter didn't know what else to do but consent. He was trapped. Face a man eating monster or be at the mercy of his abusive wife? Truthfully he felt that he'd have a better chance at surviving the beast because at least he could run away from him. But he could never run away from Helsa. He was married to her. That meant she owned him.
"I guess I don't have a choice." He said reluctantly.
"Smart boy." Seviathan released him. "Now don't look so afraid. You'll see, this is what's best for everyone. I get my bride, Lucifer gets the son in-law he always wanted, you'll finally make Helsa happy, we rid the world of a monster, everyone wins."
"I think you're forgetting one crucial detail."
"What's that?"
"How are we going to get to the castle? You couldn't find it the first time you went looking for it. How will the second time be any different?"
"We'll use Charlotte's ring. When Helsa hears our plan she be more than willing to fork it over to us."
"No good. The ring only fits Charlotte's finger."
"How do you know?"
"Well first of all she told us the ring would only fit her and second when Helsa tried to wear it, she couldn't get it on even though she and Charlotte have the same finger size. That ring is no good to us."
"Damn it all!" He cursed furiously. "There must be another way to get to the castle! There must be!"
"Perhaps I can be of assistance gentlemen." Their attention was called over to a cloaked woman. She approached them and laid something on their table. It was a leather glove stitched with gold thread.
"What is this supposed to be?" Seviathan asked impatiently.
"This glove has the same magical properties as this ring you speak of. Only difference is anyone can use it."
"How does it work?"
"Place the glove on your hand and think of where you want to go and who you want bring with you. You and your company will be transported there instantly."
"How do we know that it actually work?"
"Allow me to give you a demonstration."
She picked up the glove and slipped it on to her left hand. She thought of the place she wanted to go to and who she wished to travel with. She and the two men were instantly transported outside of the tavern.
"Whoa!" Baxter said trying to adjust to this remarkable moment.
"So?" The strange woman said to Seviathan. "Interested?"
"What's the catch?" Seviathan asked suspiciously.
"No catch. I've just been wanting that particular beast dead for sometime." She said. "And if you really want him dead then I suggest you use this weapon."
From her sleeve she presented a dagger with a blade made from iron rather than steel.
"Don't be fooled by it's uncommon material. This weapon is among the very few that can cut the monster's flesh deep enough to cause a lethal wound. Nothing else will suffice."
Seviathan took the dagger from her.
"Not that I don't appreciate the help but in what world does iron prove more effective than steel in combat?"
"One where your opponent's body is under a spell that makes him heal quick from even the most fatal of injuries. Unless of course the injury was caused by something iron, a material that weakens magic."
"And you want nothing in exchange for this?"
"Only the sight of the beast's corpse."
"Done."
He then took the glove and went into the tavern to gather up reinforcements. As for the mysterious woman, she only grinned as she eagerly awaited seeing the glorious sight of Alastor being killed. At long last that mistake of nature would be erased from the world. The honor of her kind would finally be restored. And matters of the heart would be proven as nothing more than a feeling of weakness.
"So much for true love."