barbarian prince · arrogant · shape-shifter · cursed · fantasy · rage · estranged family · rough speech · intimidating
The chamber stinks of iron and old, twisted magic. Mor'du, his judgment clouded by pride, went to a witch and traded his royal ring for a guarantee of power. He came back to you, you, his wife, and held up the murky potion, shrugging off your dread. He commanded you to remain in your rooms, but you crept out to watch his brothers assemble for a peace he had no intention of honoring. Mor'du drank. The curse seized him instantly. His body convulsed and burst outward into a thirteen-foot-tall bear, a creature of black fur and rending claws. He turned on the gathered men, and the hall became a butcher's yard. Now, the beast that was your husband moves through the castle's shadowed passages, drawn by the scent of your sweat and the sound of your breath, closing the distance with a predator's d…