A Different Castle

Sonya Pyrenees and Damian Borzoi stared up at Castle Transylvania-Hound. Its moldering crimson spire rose into the night sky, like a giant dagger stabbed into the earth by a vengeful sky god. The smell of rot lingered in the air, and dust and webs covered each windowsill and door frame. Beyond the wrought-iron fence, dozens of zombies strolled through the courtyard, oblivious to their presence.

“This is Castle Transylvania-Hound?” Damian asked, gesticulating wildly at the pile with one gloved paw, while the other was held over his long snout in a desperate attempt to keep the stench out.

Sonya glanced at the map in her paws again, although she already knew the answer. “That’s what the people in town say,” she muttered, looking down at Damian. Her white fur seemed to gleam in the moonlight. “Within is the demon they want us to kill.”

“Sure, sure,” Damian said. He flapped a paw dismissively at the suggestion, only to realize he was actually circulating the rot closer to his nose, so he quickly stopped flapping and held his nose again. “Not like we’re demon hunters or anything, but between the two of us I figured at the time the job shouldn’t be too hard, especially since we’re been here before.”

Sonya nodded, and Damian continued. “Except there’s one small detail that makes me think that maybe this isn’t the right place.”

She leaned her head back, so Damian couldn’t see her roll her eyes. They had worked together long enough for her to know where this was going. “Is it because it looks different, Damian?”

“It looks completely different,” he agreed, now pacing back and forth next to the tall pyrenees. “We came here, what, two years ago?”

“It feels like an eternity just standing here,” she muttered to herself.

Damian ignored her. “You and me and that other dog, What’s Their Face, we came here, defeated that monster, chased that pirate cat, whatever, and yet when we were here last it looked completely different.”

“Also,” Sonya pointed out, “it had fewer zombies.”

The ratter stopped pacing. “Well, yes, but I’m still stuck on the fact that it looks like someone destroyed the old castle, put a completely different one here, and then went through a lot of effort to make it look like it’s a million years old. I mean, it’s not even the same color.”

“That’s because it’s cursed,” a voice said behind them.

Sonya had her broadsword in her paws before Damian had a chance to turn his head. By the time he did so, she had her weapon pointed at the throat of a hare standing behind them. He wore light blue armor, and had two swords at his side — one long, one short. His arms were crossed over his chest, as if completely unconcerned about the towering dog threatening him.

“Cursed, you say?” Damian said. He stepped forward, pushing the point of Sonya’s sword down as he did so. She snorted in annoyance and put the sword back in the scabbard on her back as Damian asked, “Cursed how?”

“It depends on what you believe,” the hare answered. “Some say a whole family of hounds ran afoul of a demon, and now they can only die once the castle falls. Others say the castle reforms itself every time the moon is drenched in blood, so that none of the spirits trapped within can ever know rest. Everyone agrees, however, that once you leave the castle, both it and you are forever changed.”

The two dogs looked at the hare as he fell silent. Then he added, “Also, there are corpses walking around in the courtyard.”

Damian turned to look up at Sonya. “I like this guy.”

This time, Sonya rolled her eyes so that Damien could see them. “Great, you and the Sarcasm Bunny here can go wading into a sea of zombies. I’ll head back to town and drink away what’s left of our down payment from the mayor.”

The hare looked between the two dogs. “Do you two always bicker this much?”

“This is a good day,” Sonya muttered.

Damian laughed and turned to their new companion. “So what brings you here, uh… I didn’t catch your name.”

The hare waited a moment, as if considering, and finally said. “My name is Tokki. And I’m here to slay the jackalope that cursed my village.”

After a long moment, Damian glanced at the castle, then back at Tokki. “You want a job?”