Hey! So my fantasy world is basically just our world, but there are creatures that normal humans don't know about. This will be easier to understand if you read my books, or at least the summary of the first one (they're published as e-books).
So the evil race is called the Vauglim (plural). Each Vaug (singular) has the ability to change to a human form so as to pass without notice through human civilization. Most/all of them actually were humans at one point, seduced by the power that the dark side offered. Excerpt from book 1:
Abigail Bones entered, to the tune of a roll of thunder. She seemed to suck the energy out of the room. She glided on silent feet to Zach's bedside, after shutting the door. Zach was pretending to be asleep. She stared, and the red tint in her eyes stood out more and more until it seemed as if they were on fire.
"How did you get out?" she whispered, running her long fingernails down his cheek, raising goosebumps.
Another thunderclap. She whirled around to face the four girls, who had been hiding behind the bathroom door and had silently snuck out to stand menacingly behind Abby.
"Sit," Max demanded, pointing to the empty seat.
"Who's going to make me?" Her voice had changed. Instead of being girlish, innocent and joyful, it was now gravelly, seductive, like an actress advertising lingerie on television.
"We are," answered Stella.
"Right," she chuckled. But she sauntered over and perched on the arm of the chair. "What do you little girls want? Are you going to interrogate me now?"
"As a matter of fact, yes," Celia crossed her arms. "First order of business; Who are you, and why do you think you can trap people in your basement and leave them to die?!"
"Temper, temper, darling," Abigail said in a way that made even Jinny want to strangle her.
"Answer the question," Max commanded.
"Only if you say 'please'."
"Please."
"And only if you answer mine first. What were you doing in my house?"
"You were gone," Celia began.
"Obviously," interrupted Abby.
"Well, we were just trying to prove it to ourselves, I guess. Then that weird noise came from the basement, and we wanted to see what it was. Now it's your turn. Answer our question."
"Well, let's see. My name is Abigail Bones, and I am a normal human." She chuckled. "Oh wait, you wanted the truth. Gather 'round, children." She stood and strode to the window. "Now, watch carefully." She moved a hand, and the lights went out. She snapped her fingers, and the thunder rolled mightily, with lightning so bright that Abigail was lit from behind for a full two seconds, and the girls surrounding her could see her silhouette grow taller, and morbidly thin and misshapen.
"I control the elements!" she rasped, her voice now scratchy and creepy, like nails on a chalkboard.
She clapped her hands, and Max keeled over backward onto the foot of Zach's bed. Jinny and Stella caught her so she wouldn't slide to the floor.
"I control death!" She clapped again, and Max awoke, and groggily stood. "And life." She looked-no, glared at Jinny. This made her want to squirm, but she couldn't move; not willingly, anyway. Suddenly, she found herself dancing weirdly toward the window, which wasn't open. Hospital windows don't open. Abigail, with a flick of her gaze, sent Jinny flying over the sill and through the window-but it didn't shatter.
"I control your body. I have power over atoms and molecular density."
"Give her back!"
"Bring her in!"
"Stop!"
Abigail snarled and Jinny floated back inside. Relinquishing control of Jinny's body, she laughed as Jinny fell to the floor in shock.
"I control all the powers of the earth and the air! I am invincible! I am all-powerful! I AM VAUG!!!" Thunder cracked again, and Abigail cackled like an insane witch. She seemed to be sucked through the wall, but they could still hear her laugh as they ran to the window and looked out to see a dark-winged creature silhouetted against the full moon. The thing hovered, then dove and disappeared into the black night sky.
Changelings have the ability to assume the body, powers, and memories of any living creature by (this is the morbid part) drinking their blood. No, they're not vampires! They actually hate doing this! Here's a snippet from my
third book:
I creep through the dense forest in search of my goal. This is a vast area to search for their village...
I scramble up a tree just in time to escape notice from a man walking by. He looks to be a soldier. I tune in to my keen hearing and listen to the sounds I had foolishly been ignoring. Yes, it seems that a part of their army is on their way back to their home. What a stroke of luck. I will be able to simply follow them, and forgo weeks of searching.
I leap down onto the man's back, cover his mouth, and pull him into a thicket. I look into his terrified eyes and say, "I'm sorry." Then, with a quick wrench, I snap his neck, and his body goes limp, his struggles cease. Even in death, his eyes seem to be screaming at me, "Please, no..."
"I'm sorry," I repeat in a whisper. "If there was another way, believe me, I'd take it."
Now comes the most unpleasant part. I steel myself and bite his neck, my sharp teeth severing his jugular vein. I drink his still-warm blood, trying not to gag. Even after doing this a hundred times, it gets no easier.
I have drained his body halfway, and I can already feel my slim but strong female body painfully morphing to match his tall, muscular one. When I feel that his body will yield no more, I release him and writhe in pain for a minute as the transformation completes itself. I undress the body and myself, then don the man's clothing after wiping my face on my own. He has many medals and ribbons on his uniform; it appears he is a general. I hide my former garments underneath the body, and drag branches and scoop bracken over it so he will not be found until it is too late for them all.
I hate doing this. I loathe being a vampiric monster. But there is no other way, I am in the service of the Dark Lord. No one has ever seen my true form except myself. I suppose he and I are alike in that respect...
"Edmond?" I hear, and I realize his comrades noticed he is gone. I step out onto the path once more.
"Here," I call in this man's voice. "Sorry, I was distracted."
If only that were true. But I am a Changeling, and furthermore, in the employ of the Evil One. I can never go back to my old life. Else I will die; I will be killed by the Dark King or one of his minions. He cannot risk me giving information to the Empowered. I would not, of course, but he suspects everyone of the same underhanded deception that makes him who he is.
We arrive at the outskirts of the village. I use the man's power to get myself to the other side of the wall. For now that I am, in essence, this man, I have his powers, skills, and memories. If I maintain a neutral personality and keep a low profile, no one will suspect me, not even their leader, whom we now report to.
"Chief." My victim's fellow soldiers kneel and I follow suit. "Nothing to report, sir," announces one of them. "The trip back was uneventful." He goes on to describe a few key points and happenings in the battle.
"Thank you, and welcome home. You are dismissed." The Chief cocks his head and gives me a peculiar look. I nod and say, "Chief," and follow the others. He seems about to say something, but thinks better of it and returns my nod.
I am in.
A hellhound (not the official name, I don't have one yet, one of my characters made up this name for them after fighting one) has (quoting my 5th book), "short, glistening blue-black fur, a strange, unnatural color. Its face, a lion's without the mane. It had to be at least twenty feet tall. Yellowed fangs protruded from its mouth, dripping saliva at the sight of all the delicious little dinners running around on the ground. Its body was huge, muscular, and bearlike, its tail long and stiff like a whip, its eyes, very bright and red, with pupils like a cat's, sizing up its next meal."
I know this was a reeeeeaaalllyy long post, but I want to know what y'all think of my creatures.
How can you kill it?
