Chapter 120: 121. Deaf Paw

Cer, Jury, and Broker spelunked a gold-tinted tunnel. The walls were carved into the shape of bricks as crimson lines ran through them like veins. Though there was uncertainty in where they were, Cer sensed that this place was somehow alive.

The tunnels were wide enough for a small group to comfortably navigate through. But the three found it difficult to believe that a small group would even manage to move a single meter through this bizarre place.

A red liquid dripped from the ceiling. It pooled into artificial vats which bubbled as body parts were stewed into a noxious concoction. The Reorganizers roamed these areas, clinging onto the walls like peeled skin as Cer wondered just what these tunnels were supposed to be.

Rooms with jagged teeth dripping with a blood-like liquid were also common, as were what seemed to be train carts used for roller coasters, as well as sewn up horses impaled with a pole, like those found in the Blood Festival carousels.

These tunnels were likely were the Attractions formed. In some rooms they’d watch as golden flakes peeled from the walls and wriggled onto the surface of the fleshy constructs.

They made them appear as if they were made from gold when in reality it was a much more sinister process. Cer, Jury and Broker destroyed each putrid facility they came across as they watched half-digested people fall from the ceiling into a bath of bubbling liquid.

What these vats did was dissolve the entire body, leaving behind only the bones and the organs of their victims.

Golden stakes impaled the Reorganizers along the walls, hanging them like the tanned hide of an animal, whilst Jury shredded them with her claw. Meanwhile, Cer created artificial tunnels of her own with her electric bites.

Even after when they’d clear a section she’d continue biting away, cussing irately in the absence of her sisters’ presence.

“It’s aaaaaall fucked up! What’s it with them and their obsession with gold!? You’re telling me they’re not like you up there in your tower of debt – I mean, City of Diamonds?”Cer said whatever came to mind.

Like Frost, it was incredibly difficult for her to ignore the similarities between the Ateliers and the Impuritas.

It was worse for her since she and her sisters had always suspected this to be the case. But they were always called Jesters as a result.

“Please do not put us on the same level of these monstrosities. We only try to keep everyone happy. We don’t aspire to hurt. Not like these monsters… Moon. Do you accuse us of being enemies of the Nexus?” Broker spoke. His voice sounded hollow thanks to his bulky armor.

“You’re not enemies. Cer. Calm down. We’re getting close to your sisters. They wouldn’t want to see you like this.” Jury intervened with a mellow voice as they suddenly found themselves at the foot of a long bridge.

“Yeah yeah. They’ll see me regardless… but thanks, I guess.” Cer sighed.

She was truly thankful that she at least had Jury by her side. Without her she probably would’ve maimed Broker. There were no rules constraining her as a Moon anymore, aside from Frost’s ‘save everyone’ approach.

That being said, the bridge hung over a gaping pit, where nothing but an all-devouring abyss awaited beneath. An invisible wind howled from an unknown source as did a bizarre heat that seared the bottom half of the bridge.

Cer could have sworn that she had seen something like this before in the City of Diamonds with Frost. The sewerage system! Although, upon looking up she saw that it did not connect to anything at all.

It was just a straight pit down.

So what was this pit used for then? To discard waste?

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Cer cared little as she felt Jury’s warmth, calming down a little as they moved along the giant bridge. Their wits were finely tuned. Dozens of floating stakes followed Broker as they illuminated the murky atmosphere like fleeting stars.

The emphatic light that lit the entire cavern was nowhere to be found. As they walked Cer’s ears twitched like fluffy radars as she sensed something from deep underneath. She could not put her finger on what the sound was, but a part of her psyche begged her to never unlock it.

She sensed a miasma rich in despair. So much so that it nearly sobered her. They were like a supersized version of the pores that the Hearts used to invade Brandar.

No one spoke a word. Even their breaths echoed endlessly in this vast chasm.

Jury would tend to her missing tail every so often. It was rare to see Jury make such a pained face. But it was nothing compared to the face she made whenever she thought of Frost. Cer wondered if she herself maybe made a similar face when she looked at Frost.

Not because of love of course. She just enjoyed being under the devouring gaze of that woman. Why? Cer knew exactly why. But she never allowed herself to delve too deeply into it.

It has already been nearly 30 years since that incident. Yet her attachment to that incident was like a strand that could not be snipped.

But why did these thoughts interrupt her? Nothing was supposed to be running through her mind, and yet she felt like there was an external influence upon her. Her RESIST stat remained the same. So what was it?

Were they under the influence of a Corrupted’s power?

She suddenly froze and threw a hand up to get the others to freeze. Her ears detected an abnormal sound pattern. Her ears perked up like little towers as she instantly bit in the direction of the noise, casting her light into the darkness surrounding the bridge.

A swarm of Reorganizers wiggled their way across the rim. They were surrounded by these monsters, but they did not seem to be their target. Rather, they went into an obscure direction with a sense of urgency, disappearing into pores at the upper edge of the pit.

And then, someone spoke from beneath the bridge.

“It’s unbelievably harrowing. They call us the impurities when they do not know what else lays beneath! Hahaha! You can speak too, I believe Moon!” A cloaked monkey man crawled onto the bridge, laughing hysterically at Cer as if trying to wind her up.

“Another one of these lunatics! A friend of yours or something Broker!? Like that creepy fish!?” She yelled, checking the creature’s stats whilst she suddenly sent an electric bite at it.

 

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