6:50 PM:
The room quickly fell silent.
"Ahem, ahem!" One of the guests rose from his chair — the old man he saw with Ari.
He began tapping his glass of white wine with a spoon.
"We have a very important announcement! Please, have a break while the others prepare themselves for the news."
Oh saintess.
"It's… probably the will…" The girl next to Catheris said.
7:00 PM: After 10 minutes, the same man stood up again and tapped his wine glass; the room hushed.
"I will have my buddy take it from here; it is the one and only ceremony you've been waiting for!"
Catheris watched the others dive for their pamphlets, looking a little funny when they looked at the itinerary.
Clearing up the confusion, the man hummed, "Yes, that ceremony. I would be very thankful if everyone would kindly stand."
Confused, Catheris was still sitting down later than the rest and reluctantly rose to his feet. His hand was before his chest, unsure of where to rest it.
His index finger and thumb hovered over the 'loose' thread.
—???—
Catheris bit his lower lip, irritated.
"This is quite an inappropriate use of everyone's time." He started bitching, breaking the tense silence.
"This wasn't even in the itinerary, what did you expect everyone to react like? Who do you think you are, to be pulling this sudden change?"
"You are but a widow, and I am one of the organizers-" The old man tried to use his 'wise' voice.
"Clearly not a respectable one," Catheris dramatically panned across the room, making sure the others could see his dramatic display from across the room.
"It's obvious this 'surprise' of yours wasn't agreed upon beforehand."
Catheris clutched a lock of his hair, twirling it between his fingers. He blinked his fine, long eyelashes in a manner so calculated with those siren eyes.
The old man stilled – flustered beyond words, he stayed silent with nothing more to say. That only prompted Catheris to lean into the theatrics more. He tilted his head and put his elbows on the table, sluggishly leaning his head on his hand. The irresistible lull of those pretty obsidian eyes served to make somebody feel so, so stupid.
"It wouldn't be a surprise then." The old man did not dwell much on his response.
"Exactly, I don't like surprises."
Catheris' eyes darted to the antique grandfather clock in the corner just for a split second. 7:03
"The wedding was slowing down, our deceased wouldn't have stood for that. Many of my companions would agree with that."
??? What a liar.
"Oh, really? I don't see that."
Catheris eyed everyone intently, luring them in to cause a ruse. It was a gamble on why they needed it at 7:30, as he didn't even know what the matter was.
"The widow is right." A fat, old blonde woman began to bang her chest, clearing her throat.
"We've only just arrived, a little more time to relax and bask in this ethereal wedding would be lovely."
A handsome, youthful priest got up, stammering on where to start.
"Now… that's not necessary… plenty of us are already ready."
The man tended to talk quite a lot with his hands.
"You're old, you're far too used to a tortoise's pace."
"Yes… that is the thing. A lot of us are old, dear."
Catheris's eyes were practically swinging from the way he was following their argument. The whole room was enamored, the widows were especially curious about who's side to take. The tension only grew as the retorts became more critical and equally as personal. Yes.. that was it… keep arguing now. 7:07… 7:10…
"Quiet, you two." The old organizer firmly told them off. "Stop bickering like playground kids. We are getting nowhere and only wasting time.'
"Yes! Wasting time! Lovely!" The old blonde woman sarcastically mocked his tone.
Sian said it would take 10-20 minutes for the fire to take effect… Any minute now—
All he had to do was stall.
.
..
…
Why was Catheris mette Orial pulling this whole charade…? The Bureau of Paranormal Activity just… seemed quite incompetent at best, intentionally negligent at worst – simply put, the kiddo was his backup escape route. Dozens of women must have been murdered for the cult's sheer perverted fetish already; it was simply a matter of if the Bureau knew or if they did not – and if they knew, sigh. They were going to such an extreme to follow through to the ritual – just for a smidge more info.
Mr. Beo was… also acting shifty earlier, rather overcompensating — as if he were keeping him in the dark on purpose. Ari was also like that, only telling Catheris to blindly gather information. This whole affair had 'shady' all over it from both sides, and Catheris needed a third party to break him out of it.
"...How about a dance?" The old blonde woman began with her measured tone.
"To… entertain us. Yes. That would be a lovely show to watch. And surely it would not interrupt the flow of things before the wedding, no?"
She eyed the other with a soft gaze, trying to settle in the middle. Catheris thought the other would oppose, but–
"Why –of course. That sounds brilliant, madame."
He closed his eyes and raised the corner of his mouth into a sweet, subtle smile that seemed fake. He reciprocated her offer in a way that was oddly quick. They seemed to be on the same frequency.
Catheris pushed down that ringing paranoia in his chest with a big gulp of water. The widows were already halfway up from their seats, leaning on the table in anticipation as they eyed their pairs knowingly.
In tandem, they both turned to the old organizer for the final verdict.
"Alright, I suppose. Then we shall commence."
Fairytale-esque music faded in, and everyone practically leapt into… a big circle around the room. Catheris was caught a bit off guard but followed. Yes… he never took up on the dance lessons this place offered, nor the acting ones. He truly was an outlier, but surely it wouldn't be too hard to fit in.
Oh gods. As they danced and danced, Catheris quickly caught onto the fact that the circle was changing – into a damned mobius strip, going round and around in nausea-inducing speed. The sight of his fellow widows blurred before his very eyes.
He felt the circle getting slower and slower, and more desperately Catheris prayed for the fire to come faster. Still a bit blurry-eyed, he waited and waited for the circle to slow down to readjust his vision, before oddly enough he felt the palm next to him turn cold and smooth.
Turning around, a chill cold instantly ran across his body as he immediately pulled away, met face to face with the side profile of the woman's statue. Glancing past her, dozens and dozens of women were eerily lined up, frozen and stone.
Eyes darting across the room, he realized it. All the cultists' wide eyes were on him, stalking him for this moment.
Riiiiing! The noise in his head chimed. A putrid sense of rotting taint filled his lungs as everyone put their hands in a prayer over their chest and began to chant the ritual in an inaudible, glitchy language.
Catheris blocked everything out, all his ears processed was an unbearable, high-pitched ring. He closed his eyes, trying to fight it with any ounce of consciousness and ink in his system to purify himself.
It was disgustingly one sided. The pressure dawned on him, and his view became monotone, and an overwhelming, feverish cold broke out, washing over all his senses.
The windows broke, and the chandelier above him shattered from the immense energy surging. Catheris' heart was petrifying him from the inside out as he clutched his chest. Falling to his knees, his arteries were being clogged by a myriad of gold speckles. His veins began to glow yellow as the holiness flowed through; it was excruciating – his blood burnt like molten metal.
An intense stabbing hunger panged through his entire body. His mouth drooled like a dog as his pupils flickered across the room, his dry throat scratching at him. Oh saintesses, it felt as if he were dying – he felt his brain erratically glitching at his own state, threatening to shatter and shut down at the feeling of his ink kicking in, choking his veins and painfully trying to fix himself in a losing battle against the golden ichor.
He began to sob endless flows of searing black gold, his pupil but a thin, predatory slit.
With a glint of red in his eyes, he staggered forward and immediately lurched at the first cultist he saw. The cultist's mouth was open in awe, his eyes devoid of any soul as he stared at this new 'savior.' How brilliant, how holy, how hopeful-
In a split second, his claws formed, piercing straight through the chest and ripping out the heart in one go.
With an expression of contentment, his eyes softened. Holding up his victim by the waist as if this were a romantic waltz, he wrapped his heart-holding arm around the person's neck and began to devour, licking the sweet, sweet blood running down his forearm as if it were apple juice, savouring in the robust richness of the blood's copper combined with the sweet cold metallic taste of their taint.
The long-haired man's brows began to furrow in annoyance. The nectar wasn't enough to keep up with his growing thirst.
"My my, look at him… so happy.." The old blonde lady cooed.
She grabbed the handsome man next to her by the back of his collar and threw him down onto the floor in front of him.
"Eat." She ordered.
Instinctively, he crawled onto the man and met face to face with him. Uncannily, he was content to die this way, a light smile formed on his lips as he ripped his shirt open for the deity to take his heart.
With such eager hunger, blood burst across the floor and across the long-haired man's face as he bit down too hard and too quickly. But still, it was satiating. Sliding his fingers down his throat, he swallowed it whole with ease as he sucked on his fingertips.
"Good boy." She teased mockingly, throwing down another.
He continued to devour and devour at a rapid pace, only aiming for the heart. Some victims were still conscious as he was going for another, the epitome of gluttony as his pretty, pretty silk blue hanfu was stained with carmine, red bloodying his pretty pearl necklace, claws utterly caked with dried blood and flesh fibers.
"Now now…" she came up to him and patted the top of his head.
"If you are a good boy, there's more where that came from if you obey – just wait, we promise you everything, oh great one."
Narrowing his eyes, he tilted his head to the side naively. He wrapped his arms around her leg and pulled her down, ripping into her chest in one fell swoop. It didn't matter; nothing mattered. Only the abyssal pit of hunger mattered.
Some cultists tried to run in the face of death – but it was no use. Their running was slow and clunky, not bearing any semblance of proper prey, more like an innocent tamed herd whose instincts had grown dull from civil society. This age had clearly forgotten those primal times.
When he was done gorging, he wrapped the old woman's blonde hair around his arm and took her head as a victory prize. He took in the sheer carnage, the scent of fresh blood, strewn corpses still twitching madly, and of course, the trail that led back to himself. Approaching the door, he began to walk out for his next lovely meal.
Suddenly, he noticed glowing red in the corner of his eyes, and he whipped his head towards them.
The reflection of red snake eyes — himself.
His eyes widened. Dropping the woman's head, it rolled away. Walking towards the mirror, he was finally close enough to see his reflection in fine detail. His face was obscenely flushed. He put a hand up to his cheek to admire this face once again. The long-haired man ignored his hunger, stilling for a moment to admire this ethereal form. How… awfully pretty. Turning his head to the side, he exposed his soft, pale nape and blushed at the very sight of it. He stretched his hand out and felt his navel up and down, feeling the womb empty — and reveled in the euphoric discovery, his face contorted into a perverted mad smile.
Convulsing, he hugged this form's waist and gripped his face, his blurred, blissful expression staring into the ceiling. So horribly soft ah… it was to die for… the way it curved into his waist was so sensual…
At last… he'd gotten what he'd wanted all along.
–Ah.
He took another look in the mirror and froze.
He lunged one hand into his chest and felt an awfully flat chest. Simultaneously caressing his neck, he also found an Adam's apple. This was… a man?
Wh…
Well, who cared that much anyway–
Slowly, the door creaked open, and Mr. Beo's head cautiously peeked around. The room was an utter mess; everything was shattered. In the center was a mobius strip of dozens of petrified dancing widows like some eerie Stonehenge, and the strewn gore of all the cultists across the floor – the sheer chaos pointed to one thing: the operation failed.
In an instant, he drew out his handgun from inside his coat. It didn't matter – they were already dead. Where was Catheris – it didn't matter if he was a damned murderer, it only mattered if he was okay.
The detective held out his gun, ready to shoot at any moment as he stalked the scene with heavy breaths, the twitch of his ears on edge.
Then he saw him.
His black eyes were lifeless, utterly tired. Ink stained his cheeks, and oddly enough, his veins were a dim, glowing gold, like a dying star. The way he tried to balance himself on the mirror looked like he wasn't even aware he was human. It looked like he was trying to say something, but all that came out of his mouth was animalistic wailing.
"..."
The long-haired man desperately lunged at him, bloodied chin grazing his neck. Mr. Beo yanked him by the wrist and shot him through the shoulder to subdue him. Sensing his limpness, the detective walked back and let him crash onto the floor.
"Huuuu…." Catheris' (?) throat let out a dry, weak sound, and he fell face-first, bloodied fists shaking as he tried to get up.
"No can do." The detective shot him again in the back of his leg.
Narrowing his eyes, the detective coldly watched him twitch on the floor. Walking over, he planted a foot on the top of his head, almost crushing the man.
"Yes, just let the mansion burn." He muttered into the walkie-talkie.
"Everyone's dead anyway. Mn, I'm trying to salvage the situation. Twice. Get Shishiro on the line."
He sucked in a harsh breath. His heart raced as he heard the static 'on hold' sound.
[...Mr Beo, I trust your experience to read the situation.] Ms. Shishiro paused — a long pause considering the situation, her voice heavy and tense.
[However, you have permission to kill him. Even if–]
He shot him in the head, shiny black taint splattering all over his face.
"..."
Mr Beo touched his cheek with the back of his hand, before he kicked the corpse on its side.
"I'm getting out now. That is all."
He put his head down, putting away his gun in his coat.
Eyeing the corpse, he couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong. The Bureau case had several vessel cases you could count on one hand, but the files did not go into much detail on the aftermath. Why was there so much taint… and why hadn't his body melted down into a puddle of black ink?
[Hurry.] Ari must've noticed him not moving [The fire's coming.]
"You're right."
The detective — for some reason, pulled out his gun again and shot into the corpse's heart.
"..." He stared at it, the sight becoming glitchy.
"I must be going insane."
He spat on the floor and ground the back of his teeth. Palming his head, he made his way to the exit.
He leaned forward over the balcony's ledge and sighed as he took in the grand floral entrance. It was a long night. Mr Beo took a step back, dusted his hands, and took a deep sigh as he eyed the stairs.
-!
His eyes widened as he was harshly yanked back by his detective coat's collar, and a tight hold on his waist kept him locked in the embrace.
Dragging him into the venue, Catheris (?) pinned him to the floor. Getting on top of him, he crushed his neck with his knee. He clasped the detective's hands and pinned them over his head, those black void eyes not moving from the detective's squirming expression, watching him intently as he tried to pry away.
His face slowly inching closer, Catheris (?) left a hot breath on the side of the detective's neck, mindlessly sucking on the skin. His jaw unhinged in an instant and bit down hard, the detective letting out a harsh groan.
He sunk his fangs in softly, eyes rolling back at the taste of blood as he continued to chew through the flesh.
"Mmmph…" Catheris made a meek noise, bubbling the spit mixed with blood on the detective's neck.
As he watched the detective try to instinctively pull his neck away, Catheris leaned on his side and began to cradle the other's head against his chest. Gripping the detective's soft hair, he pressed his face into him as he sucked on his neck, lapping up the streams of blood that came rushing down.
It seemed like the detective was saying something but — really, he couldn't hear him.
When the detective managed to find an opening and tried to flee, he clawed him across the torso, leaving deep slits as he dragged him back again. He must've been paralyzed by now, unconscious maybe?
Pressing his head against the detective's chest, his eyes softened, satisfied with its warmth. Dipping his hand in, it got hotter and hotter as he pierced through his flesh, his spilling guts and hot blood sowarm…
Feeling his consciousness grow weaker and the hunger becoming impossibly unbearable, he finally excavated the heart and gave it a light peckish kiss before swallowing it whole, saliva stringing from his fingertips as he pushed it all in.
Head resting in the middle of the detective's flayed out chest, Catheris mette Orial died.
-[BAD END 1]-
CAR – MINE/NALITY