TTW - 26 (Patreon)

Esmerelda…Lydia…whoever she was, ran out of the room. Her frail body didn't allow for running very fast but if she'd been in her old body, her young body she would have darted out the door as fast as she could.

Panting, she made it down the stairs. She went for the kitchen as fast as Esmerelda's feet could carry her.

Simply put, Thomas was a monster. There was nothing left of him anymore, he was a human-shaped, boneless, eyeless, horror with oozing obsidian skin. He'd been coated in a gelatinous slime that squelched and smelled absolutely awful.

She dug through the refrigerator, pulling out as much meat as she could. Hopefully, this would tide him over until the coven could drag their asses up here.

Lydia sighed, glancing into the reflective surface of the fridge. She could almost see the echo of Lydia in her expression. It was so strange, not to feel the presence of the geas, like it had been lifted from her somehow.

She didn't have time to think on that. She dashed back to the bedroom, climbing the stairs as fast as her aching knees would let her.

Opening the door, she scanned for Thomas…or, well, the creature formerly known as?

"Thomas?" she said.

"Here," he said from right above her.

He kind of…an image came to her mind. She was 5 years old and had fifty cent piece her grandfather had given her. There was a toy and candy machine in the seven-eleven they had stopped at, on the road home from school. Grampa told her to take the fifty cent piece and buy a toy or a piece of candy from the machine. Happily, she saw the biggest plastic bubble, and slid the fifty cent piece into the slot. Grampa gave it a twist, and the plastic bubble was delivered into her tiny hand.

Grampa helped her to open it, and inside was a sticky hand.

"Throw it against the window, darlin," he said as he got into the car. She frowned, and threw the sticky hand against the car window where she sat. The hand, stuck, at first, then slowly unfolded, rolling down the window, until it got down to the bottom. Delighted she did it again, and again, watching the sticky hand as it rolled down the window, or later the wall in her bedroom. Such a simple toy that gaver her amusent for hours.

That was what Thomas looked like, rolling down from the ceiling above the door. That sticky hand. Boneless, the surface of his skin adhering then pulling away from the wall, and rolling down.

"Did you bring fooood?" he said. His voice sounded, squelchy, coming from a mouth somewhere in the center of his body.

"Yes."

Thomas's body shivered. "Put it on the floor."

Lydia took the steak and set it a few inches from his..appendages.

The moment she pulled her hand back, Thomas darted over the meat in that rolling, way. A sickening squelching came from underneath him and a few moments later, Thomas rolled off the plate. It was completely clean, save for the bone.

"I need more," he said, in that…squelching voice. "I'm soooo hungry."

She was ready for that and stepped out of the door, grabbing a package of porkchops. For good measure, she also opened the chicken they'd just purchased at the butcher the following day. She piled all the meet on the plate, and turned—

Thomas was right in front of her. Uncomfortably close. He had risen up somewhat on his…tentacle legs, and his mouth was angled right at her. He was breathing deep, through the…mouth..hole, he now had.

"Hurry!" he said, he squelching voice urgent. "Set it down!"

She set the plate down, but before she could pull her hand away, he had darted onto the plate and onto.her.hand.

"Thomas!" she yelled, trying to pull her hand away. "You've got my arm!"

She could feel his mouth then, the slobbery, awful, mouth, with some kind of tongue or…she didn't want to think about it. Thomas rolled back slightly, and Lydia was able to pull her hand away.

She looked down at her hand. It was red, and blisters were starting to rise on the surface of her skin. It hurt, fiercely.

"Oww!" she said. "That hurt, Thomas!"

Where were her shields? The magic in her rings should have protected—

She glanced up into the mirror.

Lydia's face stared back at her.

She reached for her magic, anything that could help protect her—

"Lydia," Thomas's voice squelched at her. "I'm….still hungry."

"I know babe, just let me tend to my—"

"I need food, RIGHT, NOW!" and with a speed Lydia thought impossible, Thomas launched him—-itself, at her. Speed rolling, the tentacles flapping, something squelching.

Panic set in and Lydia launched herself out the door, slamming it shut behind her. The…Thomas—thing, squealed and Lydia saw several of its tentacles had lodged in the door. She didn't want to risk opening it, Thomas was insane with whatever hunger had him in its grip. She pulled with all the might in her frail—-but growing younger and more lithe—arms that she could. With a final click the door closed, and Lydia twisted the key in the lock.

Thomas squealed on the other side of the door. "You cut off my fingerssssss," he whined, crying. "Owww!"

"The coven is coming, babe."

Where are you!

We have several issues we are attending to right now, darling. Came the response to Lydia.

Are they tentacle creatures that used to be human?

Silence came from the mindspeak.

Some time later. Yes, is one of them there?

THOMAS. she sent. He's boarded up in the bedroom, but I just severed several of his tentacles trying to get through the door!

Believe me, they regenerate. Agatha sent. I'm sorry, child, but since you refused the Infusion Rite, we are very under-powered at the moment. Use a binding on him, and set him into a blessed circle, and he will be contained.

I can't.

Silence again from the psychic link.

Are you still there?

Yes. Why can't. you bind and bless him?

I have no magic. And I can't re-ignite my geas.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

The link went quiet, and for awhile, Lydia thought she'd lost the connection to that magical space as well. She went to the doorway and could still hear the Thomas think mewling softly. "It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts…"

"Are you okay, Thomas?" she called.

Something thudded, hard against the door. A few fragments of the door actually came loose.

"Calm down!" she said. "Apparently, there are more in a state like yours. The coven is busy You're just going to have to settle down!"

"I.AM.SO.HUNGRY!" it roared.

She tried snapping her fingers, again and again, to no avail. Looking into a mirror in the hallway, she saw much of her hair had come out of its complex bouffant, and hung down her shoulders. It was brown, as were her eyes.

It was nice to see Lydia re-emerging from the elder Esmerelda. If circumstances weren't so dire, she would be happy to see her old self, and planning a nice return to the real world.

The sound of thumping came from above. She couldn't guess what Thomas might be doing.

She went down into the basement where several magic texts lay on her experiments table. She flipped through the pages, seeing if there was anything on—

She found it. Midway through the Thrice Woven Paths.

Infusion Rite.

1. Candle of Binding: A specially crafted candle made from beeswax mixed with essential oils known for their magical properties, such as frankincense for purification and myrrh for protection. This candle represents the light guiding.
2. Circle of Salt: A circle of salt to enclose the ritual space, providing protection from outside influences and creating a sacred ground. Salt is anciently known for its purifying and protective properties.
3. Chalice of the Moon: A silver chalice filled with water that has been left to charge under the light of a full moon, symbolizing the feminine energy and the connection to the mystical powers of the moon..
4. Athame: A ceremonial blade used to direct energy and intentions, to cut metaphysical ties, and to carve sigils or symbols into candles or other items.
5. Madrake, Sage and Mugwort: for protection, power, purification, and psychic vision.
6. Ancestor's Relic: An item that belonged to Origin or to one of her close kin, serving as a physical connection to her past life and energies. This could be a piece of jewelry, a fragment of her witch's robe, or a tool she once used in her own magical practices.
7. Book of Shadows: A grimoire or a book of magic containing the specific incantation for the infusion rite, written in a mixture of ancient languages and symbols..
8. Quartz, Amethyst, and black tourmaline: for spiritual protection and connection, amplifying magic, and grounding Esmerelda's essence into her new host.
9. Mirror of Truth: A mirror to reflect the true essence of the individual undergoing the transformation, used in the ritual for the Container to confront her past and embrace her new identity as the Origin.
10. Vessel of Remembrance: A small, ornate box or vessel containing soil from the Orgin's homeland or from the site of her most powerful magical act, to ground her spirit in the physical world and link her essence to the earth.

"Ic, se ðe gæþ in þæs steorran leohte þe eald geworden, under sceade rīca þe arison ond feollon, ic cīge ðē, Esmerelda Devereaux, þæt ðū ācenned wierþe innan mec. Læt þīn wisdom, þīn cræft, and þīn wæstm gelimpan mid mīnum, þæt wē magon gān swā ān ofer wyrd's þrǣdum."

Blinking, she realized she had all of the items.

This was a very powerful rite, and if she screwed it up, it could spell the doom of not only Lydia and probably Thomas, but quite possibly for the entire Universe.

It was time to stop being selfish.

It was time to save Thomas.

Decision made, she gathered the items she would need for the Working.