“But do you think the old man knows? Or any of the higher ups, I guess.”

“No, I don’t think so. From what Violet told me, the high priest was just another follower who eventually rose through the ranks to take over when the last one died. He’s just as fervent as the rest of them. Probably more so.”

I grunted, drawing her to a gentle stop when we reached the closed door at the bottom of the stairs. “But you said people can only join when they turn twenty-one. So they spent the first two decades of their lives living among demiurgus, seeing how normal we all are.”

“Yeah,” she said thoughtfully, “but I guess people see what they want to see. And people can forget easily. Plus, it’s only a matter of time before you start to believe what everyone around you believes. When you’re being told every day that the demiurgus are ethereal sex gods who’ve blessed humanity by living among us, it doesn’t take long for that to become the truth. Especially when you’ve willingly gone into that situation with some sort of belief around that anyway.”

I squeezed her hand, giving her a tiny smile. “Except for you.”

“Yeah. I was lucky Violet never got sucked in. She made sure I didn’t either.” She snorted. “Can you imagine if you’d turned up that day and I’d been waiting in that line, drooling at the thought of becoming your mate?”

I shuddered, turning for the door. “Don’t even joke about that. Okay, you ready to see it? The room, I mean.”

She perked up. “Yeah.”

“It’s not, um, anything special.” I reached for the handle. “It’s literally a dirt room.”

“I’m sure it’s—” She gasped when I let the door swing inward. “Oh my god, Greid.”

I followed her in, trying to take in the room through new eyes. It was about twenty feet across and forty feet high, with rock and packed earth walls that curved organically. Embedded in the walls and rounded ceiling were countless imitation gemstones that were wired up to give off a jewel-toned glow. These ones were small enough that they didn’t give off the hum of current that bothered me. I knew some fancy fucks actually had thousands of real gems in their deeprooms.

Artificially formed stalactites jutted down from the ceiling, affixed to support beams hidden by the dirt, and in a circular cluster of big rocks at the side was my deeproom nest—just a mound of blankets on top of several giant floor cushions. Gotta have a nest.

“I can’t believe this is just… under your house.” Beryl stared up at the ceiling, turning in a slow circle. “Is it safe? Like, how does the rest of the house not just cave in?”

I shrugged, tucking my hands into my sweater sleeves. “I dunno. Support beams and stuff. I could ask my brother Nuni. He’s an architect.”

She laughed. “No, it’s okay. I trust that the house isn’t going to collapse. This is amazing, Greid.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty cool, I guess.” Now that I was back in here, I was itching to shift into my true form again. To breathe in the scent of dirt and stretch my legs and spine.

I’d been running around like a feral idiot when I’d heard Beryl’s faint call from the top of the stairs, so I’d quickly shifted back and scrambled into my clothes in case she came down. I was still restless and antsy. I’d told Beryl that it was only work that’d made me feel this way, but honestly, it was a little bit to do with the conversation I knew we were going to have.

But I knew I had to be brave. Beryl was open-minded and considerate—she wouldn’t make me feel like a freak for what I wanted. This was my chance to actually, possibly have a sex life that was satisfying. A relationship that suited me. A relationship with Beryl, who I liked so much.

Okay, time to start with the whole brave thing. Maybe I could get it all done in one day and then I’d never have to be brave again. That sounded like a solid plan.

Taking a breath, I turned to face her. “Um, r-ready to see my true form?”

“Yes. Only if you want to show me.”

“I do, but… if it freaks you out, just tell me.”

She rolled her eyes. “I’ve seen demiurgus in their true forms before, Greid. It’s not going to freak me out, I promise.”

“Okay.” I fidgeted anxiously. “Um, do you—I need to get undressed, so…”

“Of course.” She turned her back on me, and I immediately felt kind of silly. I wanted to be with her. We were starting to navigate something new between us that would undoubtedly require me to get naked in front of her.

But this felt different. This wasn’t a sexy situation. I was about to turn into a big beastly-faced creature that looked nothing like the form Beryl knew me as.

Taking another deep breath, I pulled off my sweater, then my jeans. I usually stripped off completely, but no way in the deepest parts of hell was I running around with my cock and balls swinging around in front of Beryl. Leaving my boxer briefs on—god, I was going to look like such a dork—I concentrated on the shift.

It was a kind of ache that felt bad and good at the same time, as my spine and limbs lengthened and my jawbone distended. Like super bad cramps in your legs, but also the satisfying ache of a really good stretch when you first woke up.

My feet lengthened, the heels rising and lifting me onto the thick pads of my toes as my claws curved down into the earth. My lower spine ached as my tail grew until it reached mid-calf. My vision shifted as my pupils became vertical slits.

I flexed my fingers as my claws grew longer and sharper, better for gripping onto rocks. Stretching my spine with a satisfied grunt, I rose to my full height. Beryl looked even tinier than usual down below.

Resisting the urge to cover my monstrous face with my hair, I cleared my throat. “Um, okay. You can turn around.”

My voice was much deeper and raspier in this form, and I saw Beryl jump at the sound of it. Her eyes widened when she turned and saw me.

“Oh my word, you’re so tall,” she breathed.

“Uh, yeah. About another foot, I think.”

I dragged a toe claw through the dirt as she studied my changed face. I knew what she was seeing. A long snout with even sharper teeth, spikes trailing up the bridge of my nose and curving over my brow to connect with the ones framing my hairline. The fronds of my ears had grown longer, better for detecting vibrations in the dark. The smile lines that cut across my cheeks had split open wider from my lengthened lower face, revealing pale green gums.

“Even your tail’s grown.” She circled me as I held perfectly still. “And your skin looks a little different. Tougher.”

“Yeah, leathery.” I coughed awkwardly, the sound coming out wheezy.

Beryl stopped in front of me again and smiled at up me. “You’re beautiful, Greid. I mean, your other form is too, but like this you’re… majestic.”

I laughed, but it came out as an embarrassing snort through my nostrils. “I don’t think I’ve ever been called majestic while standing in my underpants before.”

She grinned, gaze dropping to my boxer briefs before shifting to my hands as they hung awkwardly by my sides. “Your claws are longer. And they look sharper.”

“Yeah.” I held up my hands and flexed them. “To dig. And grip onto rocks and stuff.”

“Are you a good climber like this?” she asked with interest.

“Um, yeah. I can… I can show you, if you want.”

Her eyes brightened, the light from the gemstones around us sparkling in them. God, she was so pretty. When were we going to kiss again?

Definitely not now, while I was like this. I was pretty sure I couldn’t kiss her with such a long snout—at least not well, without slobbering all over her face.

“Yes, please.” She looked around and spotted my nest, a fond smile tilting her lips. “Can I sit here?”

“Sure, of course.” I watched, fidgeting anxiously as she made her way over and settled in the centre of the nest, looking so small with her legs crossed and her head barely poking up over the rocks.