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MidReal Story
The Bestiary
Scenario:The bestiary of many creatures, it does some like a mere fantasy book, but it's information sounded too realistic DND logical, someone finally decided to actually follow along with whatever this Bestiary was about. Though not exactly connected too much into religion, they do somewhat sound like myths and such, either you find evidence or find whatever you are after, Itself.
Create my version of this story
Evelyn Thorne
which leads her to encounter various mythical creatures. Evelyn is driven by curiosity and a desire for adventure. She is fiercely independent, brave, and quickwitted. Despite her tough exterior, she has a soft spot for those in need and is haunted by past regrets. Her journey becomes intertwined with that of her former lover, Marcus.
Lila Stone
naive, and trusting but also brave and willing to help others in need. She becomes an unwitting participant in Evelyn's adventure when she accidentally follows her into the forest. Lila's presence adds an element of vulnerability to the story as she navigates the dangers of the supernatural world alongside Evelyn.
Marcus Blackwood
seeking redemption and closure. Marcus is haunted by his past mistakes and the loss of his brother. He is determined, loyal, and protective of those he cares about. His reunion with Evelyn reignites old feelings but also brings unresolved tensions to the surface. Despite his rough exterior, he harbors deep emotional scars.
The Bestiary read like a fantasy book.
Except it felt too real.
The descriptions were too accurate, too many like eyewitness accounts.
They sounded like myths, like fairy tales.
Except the more I read, the more I realized someone had to have seen these things before they wrote about them.
They wrote about the creatures as if they were real, not some figment of their imagination.
Some of the stories were old, older than any written record I could find.
They sounded like oral traditions passed down through generations.
Others were newer, written in a style that made me think the writer had seen what they wrote about firsthand.
It was impossible to tell what was real and what wasn’t.
But someone had written this with the intention that it be followed.
As if whoever read it would go on an adventure to find out what was true and what wasn’t.
And so I decided to do just that.
I was going to follow along with whatever this Bestiary said to do, no matter how foolish it seemed, until I found my answer.
I didn’t care if it sounded ridiculous or not.
I head into the city's surprisingly cool library, everything doesn't seem too old nowadays. Not sure if this place could have anything in books such as this Bestiary, it doesn't even have publisher details.
The shelves stretched out wide and clean with a smooth pattern of books along it. Even comes with step ladders if anyone needs it.
The books on them were just on modern stuff, mostly boring, but plenty interesting.
Mrs. Henderson, a librarian who had to be at least in her sixties, looked up from her desk as I came in.
She peered at me over the top of her thick glasses, watching me as I walked over to her desk.
I held out the Bestiary for her to see.
"Can you tell me more about this?"
I asked.
Mrs. Henderson took it from my hands, turning it over to study it.
At first, she was polite, interested in what it was and where I’d found it.
But when she opened it up, her expression changed.
Her eyes narrowed and she glanced back up at me.
"Where did you say you found this?"
She didn’t wait for me to answer before she turned and walked away from me.
I followed after her, my shoes making a soft sound on the worn carpet.
She led me down narrow aisles between the shelves of books.
The smell of old paper filled my nose as I followed her deeper into the library. Eventually we came to a door that was locked behind a shelf.
A faded sign that said "Special Collections" was taped to the door.
Mrs. Henderson pulled out a ring of keys from her pocket and unlocked it, pushing it open.
Inside were more shelves, lined with even more books.
They were all leather-bound and looked just as old as the ones in the main part of the library.
Mrs. Henderson went over to one shelf and pulled down a book that was similar in size and shape to the Bestiary.
She brought it back over to me, opening it up so I could see that it was written in the same style as mine.
The pages were yellowed and worn around the edges, but they still seemed sturdy enough for me to handle without worrying about them falling apart. Mrs. Henderson handed me the book, but just before I could open it up, she grabbed my wrist tightly in hers.
Her eyes met mine and she leaned close to me so no one else would hear what she said next.
"You need to understand, this isn't just a book—it's a map," she whispered, her voice trembling slightly.
"A map to what?" I asked, my curiosity piqued despite the unease creeping up my spine.
"To places that should have remained forgotten," she replied, releasing my wrist but not her intense gaze.
I sat down at a corner table in the reading room, the two books laid out side by side in front of me.
The worn leather covers touched each other, the smell of old books filling my nose.
Mrs. Henderson hovered nearby, pretending to organize the shelves but shooting worried glances my way.
The newer volume had detailed sketches of creatures, while the older one had maps of specific locations.
When I overlaid the pages, the drawings aligned perfectly with marked sites.
My heart raced as I realized these weren't separate books—they were a set, meant to be used together.
I hunched over the table, my finger tracing the lines of the maps, overlaying them with the drawings.
I marked each spot in my notebook, studying them carefully.
There were five distinct locations within the city limits.
One was an abandoned church in the old district, another was the sealed entrance to the underground tunnels near the river.
A third was an overgrown botanical gardens that I'd never known existed.
The fourth was the demolished wing of Saint Mary's Hospital, which had been abandoned for years.
The fifth surprised me—a construction site on 5th Street that was still active.
Mrs. Henderson leaned over my shoulder, her shadow falling across my notebook.
"Those places," she whispered, her voice trembling.
"They're not safe."
I looked up at her, my eyes meeting hers.
"Can I access city records for these locations?"
I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. Mrs. Henderson hesitated before pulling out a ring of keys from her pocket.
She selected one and handed it to me.
"The basement archives," she whispered, glancing around nervously.
"But we have to hurry. The library closes in an hour."
I took the key from her and stood up, my heart pounding in my chest.
Mrs. Henderson followed me as I made my way to the basement door, unlocking it and heading down into the darkness below.
The air was musty and stale, filled with the smell of old books and dust.
The walls were lined with shelves, stretching up towards the ceiling and disappearing into darkness.
"Why are you helping me?" I asked, my voice echoing softly in the dimly lit basement.
Mrs. Henderson paused, her hand resting on a dusty shelf.
"Because," she said quietly, "I once tried to follow that map myself."
I spread out both books on a dusty table in the basement, the dim light casting long shadows across the pages.
Mrs. Henderson disappeared into the stacks, searching for more city records.
While she was gone, I studied the newer bestiary.
Instead of labeled locations, these entries had strings of numbers.
I recognized them as coordinates, but they were written in an older format.
I pulled out my phone to convert them, but there was no signal down here.
Mrs. Henderson returned with a yellowed surveyor's map and laid it out beside the books.
Her hands shook slightly as she helped me plot the points, revealing locations deep in the surrounding wilderness.
"These coordinates," she said, her voice barely a whisper, "lead to places beyond the city's reach."
I sat alone in my apartment, the bestiary entries spread out before me.
The lamp cast flickering shadows on the walls as I read through the descriptions of each creature.
They were written in a detached, clinical style, like a field guide for a zoologist.
Each entry included precise measurements, behavioral patterns, and anatomical details.
One entry described a bipedal creature standing at 5'8" with elongated limbs and retractable claws.
Another was a quadruped the size of a large dog, but with distinctly primate-like features.
The descriptions were methodical, using technical terms for bone structure and muscle placement.
I carefully photographed each page, noting how the language avoided fantastical descriptions in favor of scientific precision.
It read like a field guide for a zoologist, not folklore.
As I closed the book, I heard scratching outside my window.
I froze, remembering an entry about creatures that hunted at night.
I leaned closer to the bestiary, studying the anatomical diagrams.
The first showed a creature with an elongated skull and spines running down its neck.
The next had four limbs, each ending in razor-sharp claws.
But one entry caught my attention.
It was labeled "Hazzy," and unlike the others, its hands were eerily human-like.
They had defined fingers and opposable thumbs, with precise measurements of joint flexibility and grip strength.
The drawing showed a bipedal stance, with arm length matching human proportions.
In the margins were notes about observed tool use, including manipulation of door handles and carrying objects.
A photo clipped to the page showed a blurry figure holding what appeared to be a lantern.
These weren't just beasts; they were something unnervingly close to human.
I turned to Mrs. Henderson, my voice shaking slightly.
"Do you think these creatures are still out there?"
She nodded solemnly, her eyes filled with a mixture of fear and determination.
"I believe so, Evelyn. I think that's why they kept these records. They knew one day someone would need to know."
I sat cross-legged on the floor of my bedroom, flipping through the pages of the bestiary.
The worn leather cover felt strangely comforting in my hands, and the smell of aged paper filled the air.
As I turned a page, a particularly grotesque sketch caught my eye.
It depicted a creature with razor-sharp claws and teeth, its eyes glowing with an otherworldly light.
But then I saw something unexpected - nestled between the sketches of clawed predators was a drawing labeled "Mr. Whiskers."
This creature was small and round, with fuzzy ears and oversized eyes that seemed almost childlike.
The detailed anatomical drawings showed it had retractable wings and tiny paws perfect for gathering berries.
The clinical notes described it as having a gentle nature, preferring moonlit meadows for foraging.
I flipped to the corresponding map location - a peaceful valley just outside of town.
I sat in the dimly lit basement, surrounded by dusty bookshelves and flickering fluorescent lights.
I flipped through the pages of the bestiary, searching for something specific.
One dog-eared page caught my attention, marked with a red stamp that read "DANGER."
The entry was for a creature called "Sinnox."
The sketch showed a grotesque creature with translucent skin that revealed internal organs suspended in acidic fluid.
Anatomical drawings detailed its chemical glands scattered throughout the body.
I traced the precise measurements listed - 6'2" tall, 180 pounds, capable of spraying corrosive liquid up to 15 feet.
In the margins, I noticed warnings scribbled in different handwriting.
"Melted through equipment. Acid corroded bones."
When Mrs. Henderson saw what I was studying, she pulled out an old box from under the desk.
It contained stacks of yellowed papers - incident reports from the sealed tunnels.
Her hands shook slightly as she flipped through the pages, stopping at one photograph.
"That's the last known image of a Sinnox," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
I studied the photograph, my heart pounding.
"Is that... is that the old subway station?"
