Cith's Corruption

Past the tall red arch lay a courtyard that should have been green and lush. Instead, Rei wrinkled her nose at the chemical musk seeping off of bare, blackened soil. The shrine rose from the desolation, outwardly untouched by the sense of corruption, beckoning her closer. Promising safety. She gritted her teeth and tried not to gag.

The charms on Minako's staff tinkled as she hugged it close. "What happened here?"

"Something bad," Rei fingered the pouch of salt at her belt. "There aren't even any trees - it's like everything just vanished."

"Everything but the shrine." Minako swallowed. "Do you think there are survivors?"

"We don't know how long it's been like this. Days, weeks, months..."

The shy brunette curled in on herself as if trying to hide behind her long, straight hair. Rei pursed her lips - Minako wasn't ready for an exorcism. She was barely ready for a pilgrimage! But their master had sent them into the world to do good, and a corrupted shrine needed their cleansing touch. And Rei begrudgingly admitted she couldn't do it alone. Not something this big, at least.

She ran a hand through her short-cropped black hair - highly irregular for a Shrine Maiden, much to everyone else's annoyance - and stared out at the desolate expanse. Perhaps her gut feeling was wrong; a lesser demon could do this kind of damage with enough time. Maybe. If they tried day in and day out. In the end, it didn't matter what it was or how it did it, because sacred ground was sacred ground, and any corruption must be purged.

Rei stepped closer to her trembling companion. She slid her hand into Minako's slim fingers and squeezed. "Don't worry, I'm here."

Minako's pretty face flushed Rei's favourite shade of pink. She squeezed back, tightening her grip on the staff and hesitantly nodding.

"We'll stick to the path. That should keep us safe from the worst of it." Rei said, sounding more confident than she felt. She was the strong one - always had been, since the day they'd met - and she needed to show Minako that was still true. Even when her heart thumped in her chest.

"And when we get to the shrine? What then?" Minako asked quietly.

"We'll figure it out. You're always good at making up plans on the fly."

"Only because you keep making me!" She pouted. Even so, she interlocked her fingers with Rei's and stood straighter, staring up the winding gravel that cut through the black soil. "Ready?"

"Always."

The two of them took their first step together and paused, waiting for the first sign of an ambush. Nothing but grim silence awaited. With a shared sigh of relief, they made their way along the path. Stones crunched underfoot, their long red skirts trailing gently behind them. Rei let her hand wander down to the simple studded club at her belt as her eyes flicked over the landscape. Not a shred of grass or wayward weed broke the brown-black desert. Where once tall groves of trees might've stood, instead, there were only clusters of curious statues. Vaguely humanoid and smooth like black glass, with blank eye-sockets that never moved but still followed them.

They passed a sacred pool where crystalline water once sparkled in the light of dawn - now, only the same glossy black as the figures lay inside, still and perfect as if it'd been painted on. Rei's skin crawled as a cold breeze blew at her long sleeves. That musk saturated everything. Acrid and artificial. Chemical. Wrong.

Minako tugged Rei's sleeve and pointed ahead. Lining the path was more of those strange statues. Vaguely humanoid and distinctly feminine, with blank faces and tightly held bodies, as if restrained. And all of them pulled into lewd, perverted positions. The nearest had its back arched and its legs spread wide as if showing off its... unmentionables. Another buried its face into the ground, rear in the air, silently begging some fantastical thing to mount it.

"They're, um..." Minako mumbled.

"I see it." Rei tried to hide her blush.

"Some of them are bigger than Sister Hanamura."

"Ugh, the sculptor must've been a pervert. Probably some old guy obsessed with big chests." And rather large arses, Rei noted as she passed by the presenting one.

Not that she could necessarily blame the sculptor. They were very, very good at what they'd carved. She paused to stare at one. It knelt on the ground before her, arms pulled tightly behind its back and its head tipping. Even without a clear face, something about the shiny black surface felt so... real. Sexual, yes, but with just the right kind of imperfect proportions to suggest a life model. But that was absurd; there wasn't even a face!

The more Rei looked, the more the statues unnerved her. Who had made them? They couldn't have been part of the original shrine, not posed like this! And why were they so shiny? Everything else in the courtyard was dusty and barren, yet these shone as if polished on the hour. The blank faces made her skin crawl. The empty eyes at once stared into space and yet into her. Begging. Pleading for something she didn't want to give.

And what kind of stone was that anyway? It didn't sparkle like basalt. It had no veins like marble...

Rei licked her dry lips. The sensible part of her brain screamed at her to stop. But the curious, impulsive side moved her first - she reached out to the stated and gingerly pressed her finger onto the kneeling statue's forehead.

The surface gave.

"What?" Rei muttered. It wasn't solid, like stone. No, she sank into it - met a faint, springy resistance. Almost like... rubber?

The statue squirmed.

Rei shrieked and leapt back, almost bowling Minako over. The two of them stared in horror as the glossy black figure writhed in place, stuck fast in its kneeling pose but still wriggling. Still resisting. A low, guttural groan bubbled through the silence. A human groan.

Minako tugged on Rei's arm, her pale face whiter than marble. The other statues came to life, twisting in place as a chorus of muffled moans surrounded the girls. One bucked against the air, thrusting its hips into empty space as if trying to grind itself on some invisible edge. Another clamped its legs together, rubbing its thighs, its head drooping back on its shoulders. All along the path, a corridor of carnality erupted at once, rubbery bodies wracked with desperate frustration. The shiny exteriors tightened, bringing definition to supple thighs and full chests. Outlining every curve and bulge.

Pulling Minako tight against her, Rei tried to block out the sounds. Tried and failed - those moans vibrated through her body. Begged for... what? Release? More?

For them to join?

"Rei..." Minako whispered, tightening her grip on her fellow maiden's hand. "Can you hear that?"

"How could I not? It's everywhere! These things are-"

"No! N-not those." She blushed. "The voice."

Rei cocked her head and strained her ears. The cacophony around her blotted out even the howl of the wind. She didn't hear any- No, there it was. A whisper, like a gentle caress past her ear. The faintest breath tickling the edge of her senses. She snatched at the words, but what few syllables she found didn't match any language she knew. The voice was human, but the words ancient. Primal.

"Magic," Rei muttered, "There's probably still a sorcerer nearby."

"Or a demon," Minako mumbled.

"Hey, that's good, right? We know we can handle those!" She gave her friend a broad smile - the kind she always gave when they were about to do something stupid together. "All of this is probably just a distraction. We'll run in, deal with whatever made these statues, and get it over with soon, okay?"

Minako looked at her for a moment, a flicker of doubt in her eyes. She stepped closer, pressing herself against Rei for protection. A waft of lavender set Rei's heart racing. Minako's soft, warm body, hidden under those loose robes...

She shoved the thought out of her head. Now was not the time for that!

The statues seemed to think otherwise; their moans grew with every step the shrine maidens took. Minako bit her lip, her face growing as red as her skirt, trying her best not to glance at the bucking, trembling forms that surrounded them. With deep, levelled breaths, Rei kept her attention forward and firmly on the massive double doors of the shrine. Her brow furrowed: the rope seal had been broken.

They nudged the door ajar and slipped inside. The thin crack of light bounced off of glossy black surfaces, scattering around the room like sparkling crystal. Minako gasped, and Rei's lip curled. The whole of the shrine was covered in black - dripping down wooden pillars, pooling at the base of walls into puddles that seeped across the floor. Thick and viscous like tar, yet as shiny and polished as glass. Thin strands stretched from wall to wall like enormous spider webs. The rustic, open space buried beneath it all might've been welcoming to all weary travellers, but now, it curled into a claustrophobic cave.

Rei's lips pursed in anger as she spied the shrine at the far end, its idol swallowed by blackness. Defiled by this, this... filth!

A droplet crashed into a pool, startling the girls.

"What is this stuff?" Rei gingerly stepped around a puddle.

"It's the same as the statues outside," Minako's voice was high and quiet, "Could they be...?"

"I'm not thinking about that." Rei lied. The creeping possibility that there was no sculptor spread through her mind like the goosebumps down her back. "Right now, we need to find the demon."

"Th-this is a big shrine. There should've been a lot of priestesses, right?"

"I told you, we're not thinking about that!"

Minako flinched.

"I- Sorry, sorry." Rei ran a hand through her hair as the guilt settled in. "We can look for survivors too, okay? Maybe a few of them sealed themselves somewhere. It's what I'd do."

They both knew it was a long shot - whatever this thing was had blighted the land. Anything short of a high priestess' skills would struggle to keep it at bay for long. But, if there was a reliquary, or a sacred pool, or some sort of shielded vault... Rei swallowed her nerves and pressed on, eyes flicking around the room for any sign of holy magic. For a hint of safety.

"We should leave," Minako whispered.

"If it knows we're here, then trying to leave only puts us in more danger." Rei stared up at a gooey stalactite. "Demons love to toy with people."

"How do we know if it knows?"

"We don't. But if it does know, we can handle it." She tapped the sacred salt at her belt and nodded towards Minako's staff. "Just trust me, okay? It'll be like those exercises back at the temple. You do your thing with the magic, I'll handle the fighting, and we'll be done before we know it. Think you can handle that?"

Minako hesitated but nodded. With a soft sigh of relief, Rei ushered her along, sidestepping the oily black puddles and ducking beneath sagging, sticky strands. Rei picked through her head for likely rooms to hole up in. Dormitories would be too expansive, the kitchen too far... Many of the shrines had the same layout, so it wouldn't be too hard to find any of them. Her stomach sank as she scanned the walls - thick piles of tar slumped against where doors ought to be. All the entrances to the outer wings.

Was it herding them deeper?

That was crazy. Rei pushed the idea aside, but it came back, gnawing at the back of her mind. This sludge was just gunk, right? A residue left behind by whatever slimy demon had barged its way in. Probably some polluting spirit. It couldn't think or plan any more than crude oil could!

And yet, the only doors left uncovered took them toward the relic vault.

Rei's ears pricked at a wet sound - like snow sloughing off a roof. She glanced over her shoulder, looking for... what? Ripples in the glassy puddles? Her skin crawled as the silence returned. All except for that bloody voice!

A scream cut through it all.

"Survivors!" Minako's head snapped up. "Th-there! It came from over there!"

"Minako, wait-!" Rei stumbled as her companion rushed toward an unmarked door. A suspiciously clean door. Her stomach turned. "Minako!"

Too late - the beautiful brunette grabbed the brass handles and flung the doors open. For a moment, the world went still. Frozen, just like the wave of black slime looming in front of Minako.

It lurched as she screamed. It didn't fall - it split apart like a circular maw, its rim bulging. Bubbling. Thick spurts of slime lashed out like limbs. Minako shrieked, tripping over her won feet as she tumbled back. Tendrils lashed around her ankles, her calves, her wrists...

"Rei!" She squealed as the slime pulled.

Rei leapt over a puddle and snatched Minako's flailing hand. "I've got you!"

She dug her heels into the wooden floor. Yanked and pulled. But the tendrils grip grew firmer. Tighter. The slime oozed up Minako's legs. More arms shot forth, curling around her waist, dragging her deeper into the glossy black void. The staff clattered to the floor. Minako screamed, louder and louder.

"Rei! Rei, I can't hold on!" She cried.

A whip of sludge wrapped around her mouth. Tears budded in her eyes as her wrist slipped from Rei's grasp. As their fingers held as best they could.

"I've got you! I've got you, I promise!" Rei screamed back.

One last tug and her hand slipped away.

Minako's muffled scream disappeared into the oily mass. Rei stumbled, her back hitting the hard floor. Pain lanced through her. Her vision blurred. The doors slammed shut, leaving her to stare at their impeccable, polished veneer as the last traces of Minako's voice faded into the silence.

"Minako!" Rei shoved herself to her feet. She slammed her fists on the door. "Let her go! LET! HER! GO!"

The echo taunted her. The hollow thump of her fists on unfeeling wood filled the empty slime-soaked chamber. Rei screamed, pounding her fists until they ached and shook. Until her shoulders shook as she slumped to her knees. All she could do was stare up at the tiniest of dents she'd made, and the flecks of lacquer stuck to her fists.

"Let her go..." She sobbed, "Just let her go."

A thin line of sludge ran down the centre of the door, oozing through until it sealed it shut.

Rei stared. She didn't know how long for. For as long as it took for her stomach to sink into a pit as black as the wretched stuff around her and as cold as the stones outside, and then a few minutes more. They shouldn't have been there. Minako shouldn't have been there! This was Rei's fault. It was her fault! She slammed her fist into the door, the pain arching up her arm. Her! Fault!

"Fuck," Rei said, ignoring all her etiquette training. "Fuck!"

The word bounced back at her.

Rei breathed slowly, testing each of her fingers. They stung but worked. Mostly. The charms on Minako's staff clinked as she hefted it up. She pulled herself to her feet and pushed her fringe from out of her eyes. Away from the damp tracks down her cheeks.

"Fuck you," She growled at the door. "I'll rip her away from you with my bare fucking hands if I have to."

The door stared uncaringly.

Rei turned away and marched towards the defiled shrine - towards the doors that flanked it, which would lead deeper into the building. Perhaps even underground. She didn't give a shit where as long as it got her closer to the demon.

One of the doors creaked open as she passed it. A trap, obviously. Rei tossed a handful of salt onto the slime in front of another archway. It sizzled but didn't retreat. She scowled. Resistant to purification, huh?

She slammed the staff down three times and spoke a holy word.

The slime recoiled, pulling away from the arch. A short wooden corridor sunk into a set of stone stairs, creeping deep into the darkness below. Rei smirked - at least it knew who the boss was now. She straightened herself and marched down, staff held proudly and her hand reaching for her club. Whatever lurked down there was going to have a much harder time pulling her around.

Rei whacked a stalactite on her way down, just for good measure. And catharsis.

The deeper she went, the more that unintelligible voice whistled in her ear. The light of day faded, and Rei squinted in the dark. Gods damn it all, she should've paid more attention in her magic lessons. Repelling demons she could do, so a tiny light should've been fine, but no...

A flash of sickly green lit up the darkness. And another, and another, running down the walls like faintly bobbing torches. Or glowing eyes, peering out of the sludge that oozed along every surface. Light glinted off the oily surface of thin strands of the black tar, rainbows shifting as Rei tilted her head. It was beautiful, in a macabre way. But that brief moment of awe gave way to horrified frustration - the strands stretched from wall to wall, crisscrossing like torn spider's webs, blocking the path ahead.

"Great," Rei mumbled.

She prodded one of the strands with the butt of her staff. It thrummed like a guitar string for a second, taut and firm. And lunged down the staff. Rei yelped, yanking, but the strand refused to break. She dug her heels in and pulled, and finally, it gave, letting her stumble back as the staff came free.

Rei turned the staff over, staring down at the oily mess that still clung to the wood; oh, spirits, was it moving? She whacked it against a wall, splattering it like a disgusting bug, but droplets still clung tight. Still squirmed their way up the staff and towards her hand, like black slugs.

Dropping the staff, Rei gingerly kicked it to one side. She couldn't just leave it; it was Minako's, and she'd need it if - when, Rei corrected herself - they found each other again. Rei poked it with her foot. The sludge bubbled. Well, at least it wasn't trying to come towards her.

"Fine," Rei sighed, "I'll... I'll come back for you. Not like you'd fit through here anyway."

Great, she was talking to objects now. She took her club and salt from off her belt - the last thing she needed was her weapon catching - and took a deep, steadying breath. Her grip tightened to stop her hands from shaking. Just one step at a time. Don't think about the whole corridor; just try to get past each strand. That's what Minako would tell her, right? Keep calm. Take it one at a time.

Rei ducked beneath the first strand. Gingerly stepped over the next. Twisted and turned until her back ached to slip through the maze. A few dripped like strands of saliva in a great maw, threatening to catch on her shoulders or sleeves. Her heartbeat pounded in her chest with every pause. Every rustle of her clothes made her blood run cold. Her skirt hung perilously close to the puddles littering the floor.

Her muscles burned as she contorted past another. Spirits, how long was this corridor? Rei teetered on one foot, hiking up her skirt to step over a knee-high strand. Another loomed above, and she ducked sharply.

A little too sharply.

Rei toppled. Crashed to the cold, hard floor. Her head swirled - snatching at thoughts. Her foot caught on something, and her arm fell into a wet, viscous pool.

"Shit!" She shouted and pulled away.

Too late: the tar surged up her sleeve, pulling it deeper into the pool. The saliva-like strand stuck firm to her leg, keeping it up in the air as it coiled around her. Rei yanked, a fly stuck in the web, screaming as her eyes flicked to the other strands that loomed oh-so-close. Did they just move?

Her leg came free, and Rei rolled onto her front, pulling at her sleeve. The pool resisted, holding it down like glue. Sucking it deeper. Her eyes widened, and her mind screamed in panic as her long sleeve disappeared, her hand perilously close to the oily black surface. No, no, no! Not like this! She tugged and tugged and tugged...!