Categories > Original > Fantasy > The Tyger
Author's note: Tyger is spelled this way for a reason. It's based off a poem by William Wordsworth, called the Tyger.
Ryuu means dragon in japanese, Aiko means love and affection, Hayate means smooth, Hikari means light, and Katsu means victory. The names will come into play later in the story, for they describe the characters. Enjoy.
Epilogue
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare sieze the fire?
And what shoulder, & what art.
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?
What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
William Wordsworth, 1794.
Glowing eyes shone from the depths of the forest. The bush the creature took refuge in remained still while it waited for its prey. The eyes, glowing red like the firey soul behind them darted around, alert, awake, waiting.
The forest dweller was not a normal one. It's diet did not consist of meat, leaves, or any other earthly matter. The monster, who some thought was the work of the devil, fed on souls, wandering through the darkness. Lost, confused souls who hadn't, according to legend, found their determined place in the world.
So far tonight, none had come.
Some nights were slower than others, naturally. The creature's eyes never closed as he waited patiently for his meal to come.
Crouching lower, the monster's eyes focused on the footpath dead ahead, illuminated by the moon leaking through the dense mass of trees providing shelter to the animals scurrying beneath them.
To the man named Ryuu, it was only a hiding place at night, so he could do his job. His job was not a happy one, but he had learned to accept it.
The glowing eyes closed when the sound of soft footsteps came toward the hidden prowler. By the mere sound of them, the predator could tell it was time.
The steps were as light as air, unheard to the deer prowling the woods to the right, or the nest of squirrels at the hollow of the ancient oak to the left.
The footsteps were those of who were damned. A man and a woman, both glowing in the moonlit night. The man was handsome, with round, blue eys and thin lips. He had a square jaw and a round face, his hair a mixed color between brown and gold. He had long legs that were covered by tattered jeans, and strong biceps, one of which was wrapped around the petite woman's torso. She had a wild mass of curly red hair, bright curious green eyes and soft pink lips. Freckles dotted her fragile nose. Her tiny figure was covered by a long white flowing dress that reached well past her knees.
Such a beautiful couple. They hadn't done anything neccesarily wrong in life, at least to humans' standards. They were good people, living a modest lifestyle, about to become husband and wife. Their life had ended via car crash. They weren't there because they were criminals. They just hadn't done what they were destined to do in life.
That couldn't be allowed.
Rules were rules, no matter how kind and gentle the people were. They ignored the signs of fate, and gone their own way.
Fate is not a force to be reckoned with. It could ruin a person. No one should ever go against fate. Ryuu learned that the hard way.he had been in the couples position long, long ago. But he was lucky. The job was offered to him, and he gladly took it.
The animal crouched lower still, eyes closed, ears perked up as the couple slowly walking down the tree-lined path.
Slowly, the eyes opened. As expected, the couple stopped dead in their tracks. Slowly, the ancient animal stood, silently, and padded into the clearing.
Again, this animal was not an ordinary one. It was a Tyger, it's luminescent skin glowed in the soft moonlight, a silvery color instead of the normal yellow-orange and black. It seemed to glow, even when it stepped out of the patch of moonlight into the darkness. Its red eyes glowed even more fiercly against its shimmering fur.
The couple stared in awe at the magnificent tyger before them. Both of their mouths were opened in a slight 'O'.
A low growl erupted from the tyger's throat that only the couple could hear. The woman gasped and clung tightly to the man. The man's eyes were fixed on the tyger's.
The tyger took one step forward. The couple found they couldn't move. The tyger bared its teeth and snarled loudly, scattering the forest dwellers. Then it lunged, claws unsheathed, teeth glinting in the moonlight.
Ryuu means dragon in japanese, Aiko means love and affection, Hayate means smooth, Hikari means light, and Katsu means victory. The names will come into play later in the story, for they describe the characters. Enjoy.
Epilogue
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare sieze the fire?
And what shoulder, & what art.
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?
What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
William Wordsworth, 1794.
Glowing eyes shone from the depths of the forest. The bush the creature took refuge in remained still while it waited for its prey. The eyes, glowing red like the firey soul behind them darted around, alert, awake, waiting.
The forest dweller was not a normal one. It's diet did not consist of meat, leaves, or any other earthly matter. The monster, who some thought was the work of the devil, fed on souls, wandering through the darkness. Lost, confused souls who hadn't, according to legend, found their determined place in the world.
So far tonight, none had come.
Some nights were slower than others, naturally. The creature's eyes never closed as he waited patiently for his meal to come.
Crouching lower, the monster's eyes focused on the footpath dead ahead, illuminated by the moon leaking through the dense mass of trees providing shelter to the animals scurrying beneath them.
To the man named Ryuu, it was only a hiding place at night, so he could do his job. His job was not a happy one, but he had learned to accept it.
The glowing eyes closed when the sound of soft footsteps came toward the hidden prowler. By the mere sound of them, the predator could tell it was time.
The steps were as light as air, unheard to the deer prowling the woods to the right, or the nest of squirrels at the hollow of the ancient oak to the left.
The footsteps were those of who were damned. A man and a woman, both glowing in the moonlit night. The man was handsome, with round, blue eys and thin lips. He had a square jaw and a round face, his hair a mixed color between brown and gold. He had long legs that were covered by tattered jeans, and strong biceps, one of which was wrapped around the petite woman's torso. She had a wild mass of curly red hair, bright curious green eyes and soft pink lips. Freckles dotted her fragile nose. Her tiny figure was covered by a long white flowing dress that reached well past her knees.
Such a beautiful couple. They hadn't done anything neccesarily wrong in life, at least to humans' standards. They were good people, living a modest lifestyle, about to become husband and wife. Their life had ended via car crash. They weren't there because they were criminals. They just hadn't done what they were destined to do in life.
That couldn't be allowed.
Rules were rules, no matter how kind and gentle the people were. They ignored the signs of fate, and gone their own way.
Fate is not a force to be reckoned with. It could ruin a person. No one should ever go against fate. Ryuu learned that the hard way.he had been in the couples position long, long ago. But he was lucky. The job was offered to him, and he gladly took it.
The animal crouched lower still, eyes closed, ears perked up as the couple slowly walking down the tree-lined path.
Slowly, the eyes opened. As expected, the couple stopped dead in their tracks. Slowly, the ancient animal stood, silently, and padded into the clearing.
Again, this animal was not an ordinary one. It was a Tyger, it's luminescent skin glowed in the soft moonlight, a silvery color instead of the normal yellow-orange and black. It seemed to glow, even when it stepped out of the patch of moonlight into the darkness. Its red eyes glowed even more fiercly against its shimmering fur.
The couple stared in awe at the magnificent tyger before them. Both of their mouths were opened in a slight 'O'.
A low growl erupted from the tyger's throat that only the couple could hear. The woman gasped and clung tightly to the man. The man's eyes were fixed on the tyger's.
The tyger took one step forward. The couple found they couldn't move. The tyger bared its teeth and snarled loudly, scattering the forest dwellers. Then it lunged, claws unsheathed, teeth glinting in the moonlight.
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