#deermons

But before that, small ol' drawing of mine! I wouldn't name it cover but more as art about this family!!

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YOU KILLED ME, MOTHER.

THE DIMENSION OF THE EVER-SETTING SUN. A yellowish-orange sky surrounded all the grasses and abandoned buildings. The landscape was deserted, empty. Not very welcoming. Endless meadows. Occasionally ruins. Few buildings far far away from each other. One market. A lot of dangerous things were here, weird and wild creatures for example. Almost like some ghost town.

And of all places, this is where they had to settle with their two small children. After few years they got used to live in such a place.

Along a long, wide, carved path cutting through dry, yellow grass, a married couple walked. A tall, anthro-demon slender doe, pink in color, dressed in dark purple and wearing unusually heavy makeup-Marianna. And her husband, a dark green stag with black tie, with one red eye and a figure instead of head. Turned upside down star-shaped head with antlers on top of it. Instead of hooves he had claws. This very specific anthro-demon-deer was called-Diego. The stag carried groceries in a huge bag, walking ahead of his chosen one, life companion, his wife. His eye was half-closed, as if focused. But honestly? He was simply holding back the irritation already visible toward the woman-and everything around him.

"Diego." — Marianna finally spoke from behind her husband, trying to start a conversation. He didn’t even slow his pace, didn’t hesitate, and kept walking quickly. It only intensified the already tense atmosphere.

"Diego, for fuck’s sake! Stop pretending you’re deaf and slow down! I’m not going to run after you like some sort of dog."

Diego still didn’t listen. His head was full of thoughts. How much he hated this woman. Hated this entire place- everything that had stripped him of any happiness.

"Oh, what’s that? You’re not listening to me?! What a surprise. Are you really in such a hurry to get back to the TV, you bum?! If it weren’t for me, you’d definitely have bought the wrong things." — more words. Venomous, like the worst poison, poured into the man’s mind. He hated her… he hated her. HATED her.

At last, the stag with the oddly shaped head turned around so suddenly that the woman flinched slightly.

"I told you not to come with me. I could’ve handled it myself. And now all you do is keep nagging me." — Diego’s head was already starting to ache. He would probably never live to see a day when Marianna didn’t insult him or blame him for everything.

"Just leave. Or take a different path. Anything. Just give me some damn peace."

“NO!” Marianna roared angrily. Diego knew that tone-here we go again. He could feel it.

"What do you think you’re doing? Ugh, probably nothing!! God, how did I end up with lazy pig like you?! What did I do wrong?! I'm just trying to be happy!"

"..."

“Oh. Now you’re not saying anything?"—she asked sarcastically.

"You fetishize your own sadness!"— were these words real? It was hard to tell. Man kept being silent.

“As always, right? Best way is to just run away! What have I ever done to you? Do you even know how much I have sacrificed- and still sacrifice- for our family? Oh, of course you don’t! Because you’re too fucking busy wallowing in your own pathetic misery!!”— this was slowly becoming too much.

“Shut up.”— a worthless, weak defense. Desperate. Like an animal cornered with nowhere to go were said by Diego.

Marianna only snorted and without even hesitation, continued again with cynicism and anger.

“Oh, poor you. What kind of man are you?! You left me with kids and everything!! They need a father! And you? You fail across the board!! You’re destroying us! Have you even thought about how this makes me feel?? So alone- shitty!! I'm really tired! You don't care about that! About us! About me! You probably don't even know where Hill and Arbi are right now! ”— his wife’s raised voice always echoed loudly, even when, given the surroundings, it shouldn’t have been possible. A piercing scream that froze the blood in his veins, made the hair on his neck stand on end. As Marianna mentioned their children, Diegos red eye twitched.

“And you think you’re the victim. Of course you do. You think I didn’t see what you hid under the couch?”— pink doe asked.

“I don’t know what you’ve made up this time, woman.”— Diego replied carelessly, as if he couldn’t even convince himself to sound genuinely surprised. He didn’t have the strength for it. NOR THE WILL.

“YOU DON’T KNOW. Mhm. Then I’ll tell you what I found, then. A rope. A rope consecrated by a holy ritual, so it could pose a real threat to Deermons.”— she replied angrily. Could it be… that it worried her? No. It irritated her. Whatever the man did, it provoked her. Even when he did nothing at all.

Silence.

Silence.

SILENCE-

"You want hang yourself, right? There you go, you bastard. Do it. You’ve always been a damn coward!! You’d better leave me and the kids alone forever right now! So what are you waiting for?! DO WE NOT MATTER TO YOU THAT MUCH, YOU FUCKING EGOIST?!"— the woman was shouting, increasingly desperate. Full of pain. Full of regret and sadness and uncontrollable rage.

"Shut your fucking mouth."— that was all Diego had to say. Well, not really. He had much, much more to say. But nothing could come out of his throat.

"What are you waiting for?! Is that what you’re rushing for?! Great. When we get home I’ll bring you a stool! I’ll help you, to show you that YOU SHOULD BE HELPING ME TOO! "— she didn’t really mean it… Why did she say that? Somewhere deep, deep down… she still felt some affection for her husband. But very deep and very little.

THEY BOTH WERE TRAPPED. THEY BOTH HATED THEMSELVES. THEY BOTH HAD FLOWS. THEY BOTH WERE HURTING EACH OTHER.

Silence again.

"You are so ungrateful-" this sentence was never ended by Marianna. Her own husband, grabbed her by a throat with his claws and pulled. Roe-deer was shocked and made choking sounds. She tried to get away but even blind kicks didn't worked. Without second thought, Diego grabbed a big bottle from the shopping bag they bought. For who? He doesn't even care now. HE HAD ENOUGH OF BEING VICTIM-

hit

Bottle broke.

hit

Pieces of glass were flying through the air.

Hit

Wine splashed all around the place with blood. Two red, dark liquids were dancing together in such a harmony.

hIt HiT HIT—

Endless pain. Endless anger. Endless sadness. ENDLESS VIOLENCE.

When everything just ended... Demon deer let go of his wife lifeless body on the ground. There was a lot of blood. Tone of it. It was soaking from pink deers head. Rest of the bottle also landed on the ground, after few seconds.

Diego began observing from a few angles, without moving from his spot.

“Ah.”— he let out a sound of calm satisfaction, then kept watching.

“Ha ha.”— confidence was etched on his unusually flat face. Was he was smiling? It's hard to tell. Because he doesn't have mouth. And also half of the mind. And his gaze drifted upward, as if he were proud. Was he? He didn’t know. He felt nothing anymore. It was too late for him. Far too late.

Then… he spoke his final words.

“Mommy. I got lost. It’s because of you. You hurt me. I’ve let myself be hurt for too long. I am a monster because of you and there is nothing I can do. And I grew up under your sun. Because of you, I will never be happy. You killed me.”

Violence is creating violence.

THE END.