Back to Lena, the path ahead was black as pitch, the kind of black that eats light. It felt wrong, twisted, the opposite of everything Lena thought she knew. But when you're drowning, you grab anything that floats. And right now, Lena felt like she was going under, the fear of becoming fully human swallowing her whole, louder than any little voice telling her right from wrong.
One moon-pale night, her feet carried her towards the village. It hummed with the quiet breaths of sleeping people. Lena could feel it, a faint thrum, a pull. Like a hidden spring in the earth.
"No," she breathed, her own hands shaking like leaves in a storm. "I can't. I just can't."
But then, the blurry face in her reflection flashed in her mind. The memory of the smooth skin where scales used to be. Live. Just live. That's all that screamed in her head.
She reached out, her senses locking onto a small house, the shapes of people asleep inside. A thin shadow, like smoke, curled from her fingers. It wavered, unsure. She could feel their warmth, their life, a bright spark.
Could she really do this? Step over that edge?
Just as the shadow touched the wall of the house, a voice sliced through the quiet night, sharp and icy. "Well, well, what little creature have we here?"
Cautiously, like a kid touching a hot stove, Lena tried it. Just a tiny sip of energy from some sleeping humans. And wow. It worked. Her powers felt like they were waking up, her magic getting its spark back. Even her beauty felt brighter, like the moon on water. The human world, which scared her before, was now food.
But it wasn't long before a little sip wasn't enough. She got hungrier, needing more, more often. The tiny tastes didn't cut it anymore. She started hiding, pulling away. When she talked to humans, there was a new edge in her voice, a hunger in her eyes they couldn't quite place. At first, they were just curious about her. Then, whispers started. Suspicion. And then fear.
Lena, who once fought for what was right and kind, was changing. Turning into something dark. Something that needed to take from the very people she lived among. She found a way to live, sure. But now, she was the problem. A danger that the humans would have to face. Her own survival had messed things up big time, setting her against the world that gave her shelter.
The gentle sound of the waves on the beach, which used to calm her, now sounded like a hungry tongue licking its lips. Water, her own kind's lifeblood, had become her hunting ground. The need to feed, to get her magic back, had twisted how she saw everything. Humans weren't just there anymore. They were batteries, their life a drink she craved. It happened slowly, like a shadow growing longer. But now, Lena, the lost queen, was a hunter.
Her first time it was a fisherman. He was throwing his net out before the sun even peeked over the edge. The fog was thick, hiding Lena as she slid into the water. He just heard a little splash, like a fish jumping, and didn't think twice. Then, a hand, white and strong, grabbed his ankle. Hard. He yelled, but the fog and the waves swallowed the sound. Lena pulled him down, the cold water shocking him. He fought, kicking and pulling. She didn't need him to drown. Just his energy. As she held him close, the life drained out of him, leaving him still and empty. She floated up for a second, the stolen power making her feel strong again, then slipped back under, leaving his net floating all alone in the mist.
Her next targets? A couple, laughing like kids in a puddle by the sea. The sound scratched at Lena, a reminder of the life she was stealing. She swam up quiet as a shadow, acting friendly. "Want to see who can hold their breath the longest?" she asked, her voice sweet. It wasn't a game for long. One by one, she pulled them down, their happy squeals turning into choked bubbles as she took what she needed. Later, their small bodies washed up. "Terrible accident," the villagers whispered, not knowing the monster hiding in the water.
Then there was the woman singing to herself in a quiet little bay, washing her hair. Lena watched from below, silent. She rose up behind her, a hand clamped over her mouth before a sound could escape. The woman fought, but Lena was too strong now. The familiar drain, the rush of stolen life. Then, silence as the woman sank into the dark.
Her next kill? Bold. A lifeguard, watching the beach on a still afternoon, saw someone "struggling" in the waves. He jumped in, ready to save them. But it was a trick. The one pretending to drown was Lena. As he got close, she grabbed him, her touch burning with the power she'd taken. She dragged him under. The joke of it a lifeguard becoming her food was twisted and ugly. Like the others, his body was found later, another sad puzzle.
Anywhere water touched, Lena hunted. Gentle waves, shallow pools, hidden bays all became death traps. The coastline, once happy and full of life for the villagers, now felt spooky. A silent fear grew, a dread of the unseen thing below. A thing that used to be a queen, now just a killer.
A new monster was here, alright. And it was smart. Its hunts were quiet, like a fish taking a fly, leaving no sign. Lena, the queen who lost her throne, was now a hunter wearing a mask of worry. Her kills were quick, clean, and made no sense to anyone else. The villagers whispered about bad luck, angry ghosts, something from the deep sea wanting their lives. Fear squeezed the joy out of their little town, turning their peaceful days into scary nights filled with who's next.
Even Leon, her own husband, had no idea about the darkness that had grown inside Lena. He just saw the woman he loved, sad and worried about all the strange deaths. Lena played her part perfectly. She acted like she was also hunting the monster, reading old books, talking to the fishermen, even walking the beaches at night, pretending to look for clues. She'd come home, her face looking tired and sad, telling Leon what she "found," how she couldn't understand what was happening.
"It's awful, Leon," she'd say, her voice full of worry. "These poor people, their lives just gone. We have to do something. We have to find this thing before it takes someone else."
Leon, seeing how much she cared and how hard she was trying, thought she was amazing. A kind soul who just wanted everyone to be safe. He had no idea the monster he was looking for slept right beside him.