Melody and Smores had left Harmonia's house shortly after Asphodel had. Melody had come to believe it was Sorath's will. The two, following a dirt road surrounded by trees, eventually end up at a small village with a chapel in the middle. The trees seem to droop down slightly, and the smell of a nearby swamp is present. Outside this small village is a sign that's clearly been vandalized to say;
GOD'S KINGDOM
Music can be heard from the chapel, it sounds like an organ. A lot of the houses are white, slightly dirty, or bloody. There's a cemetery nearby as well. From where they're standing at the entrance, there's maybe... 10, 15 buildings total? Not counting the church or the building labeled 'market'. There's no one in sight, aside from the music of the chapel and very light footsteps from within the trees.
Melody narrows her eyes. "I do not like the look of this..." To be honest it felt... nostalgic? Like a nightmare based on her hometown.
"I mean.. it seems like they're doing okay with the whole apocalypse thing..?" Smores doesn't seem fazed by it. Then again, he's never seen a normal human civilization really.
"Yeah but..." Melody trails off. "Just keep your guard up, okay?" She says, looking at him a bit worriedly. She keeps a firm grip on her crossbow and heads up to the chapel, trying to silently crack the door open so she can see inside.
Smores nods, following along. Inside the chapel, a mass is being held. Everyone is joined together in song, praising the Lord. The leader of the mass, who appears to be a priest of some sort, motions for Melody and Smores to head to a pew and join them in worship.
Melody hesitates before heading inside. She didn't want to make a bad impression yet. Maybe these people were nice? Just religious. She joins them but she notices how different it felt now. She wasn’t sure about what she believed in anymore but the motions of prayer felt so familiar, like a home left behind.
Once the song is finished, the priest says; "That was wonderful, everyone. It seems we have two new guests joining us!"
He motions to Smores and Melody, as the people look back at them. "I'm glad you two could join us! Why don't you tell us your names? A fun fact about yourselves? C'mon, break the ice," he laughs. Some of the looks people are giving them are... off. Maybe it's due to the fact that Smores' eyes glow a bright mint? Or maybe the fact that Melody's a whole deer? But other than a few strange looks, they seem relatively unfazed by the pair.
"My name is Melody and I like making flower crowns," She says with a smile.
"Uhhh I'm Smores and I like music," Smores says soon after, nervously fidgeting.
"We're so happy you decided to join us," says the priest, clapping. "After mass, you two can get to know some of our other members, how does that sound? We love meeting new people here in God's Kingdom."
"That sounds delightful!" Melody says with a smile.
"Lovely."
The service continues on for another half hour before the Priest says his closing statements and everyone begins to walk to another room of the chapel.
Melody and Smores follow and they enter a room with a popcorn ceiling, tiled floor, and a few windows. There are a couple of tables around with various snacks and refreshments. All the people are eating snacks, talking to each other, and overall socializing.
There's a grandmother standing with her grandkids and making sure they get their fill of snacks. She sees Melody and Smores, and waves politely.
Melody waves back and walks over. "Hi, miss,"
"Hello there, dear," She chuckles at the pun, "Are you the new people in town? It warms my heart to see new faces around."
Melody nods. "Yep! We were just passing by. What's your town like?"
"Ooh, you should stay a while to rest up, we've got lots of places for you and your little boyfriend to stay," The old woman smiles warmly, waving to Smores.
Smores blushes, pulling at his sleeves.
Melody blushes and nods. "Sounds good,, we don't have much food packed anyways."
"We've got plenty of food to spare, the farmers do a wonderful job preparing the most wonderful food for us, they are such a blessing."
"Have you guys encountered any monsters or anything?" Melody asks curiously.
"Monsters? Well, that's just silly, there's no such thing." She looks down at one of her grandkids, "Isn't that right, David?" The kid nods and goes back to stuffing his face with brownies.
Melody raises an eyebrow. This was weird. She heads over to someone who looks like a farmer.
There's a young man wearing a flannel. He looks fucking ripped actually. Like Cole but if he was a normal dude, except he doesn't have a mullet. He's also wearing tight jeans held up by a black belt. Fucking slut. He's drinking some lemonade and flirting with one of the girls before he sees Melody and Smores walk up.
"Well hey there, lil lady. What brings you 'round these parts?"
"Just exploring. I was wondering, do monsters often come by these parts?" Melody asks curiously.
"Monsters? Naw, less you're talkin' about ol' Eugene when he don't get his daily apple, then there's no monsters 'round here. Name's Melody, right? I'm Jeremy, nice to meet ya." He holds his hand out for Melody to shake. His hand is probably as big as her entire face.
"Nice to meet you too," She smiles back and shakes his hand. This was weird. If they hadn't encountered monsters then why weren't they surprised by her and Smores appearances?
"Well, if you need anythin', stop by the farmhouse down by the well. If one of my brothers or sisters answers the door, just ask for Jeremy, got that?" His smile is warm and he feels relatively safe.
"Okay! Thank you," She smiles and looks for someone else to talk to.
There's a woman sitting by the exit with her kid, who's talking to some other children. She spots Melody and Smores.
"Hey there, honey, you're new here right?"
Melody nods. "I am. Just a visitor for now though." She smiles gently. "Question, how's the whole, apocalypse treating you?" She asks, keeping her voice down so no one overhears.
"We're alright, we've been relatively self-sustaining. We got some good farmers and workers keepin' us fed." The woman sighs, "How bout you all?"
Melody shrugs. "We've been okay. What do you think caused the apocalypse?"
"Demons, thought that was common knowledge," she chuckles lightly.
Melody nods. "It is! Do they ever come here?"
The woman shakes her head, "We've got all the things to drive out evil spirits like them."
"Like what?" Melody asks curiously.
"Rosaries, crucifixes, holy water, all that jazz"
Melody nods, taking out her crucifix. "I see!! Have you seen people like me around before?"
"We got animal people around sometimes, I think they're a lil bit funny but it's nothin' we aint seen before."
Melody nods. "Gotcha." Probably best not to mention she's a demon then. "Anything strange or unusual arund here?"
"Not that I can think of, most weird thing to happen recently was when some kids pulled that prank a few weeks back. So much hay."
"I see. Thank you," Melody smiles and looks for the priest.
The priest watching them, standing quietly near the door they came in from.
Melody. approaches him. "Hi, nice to meet you!"
"Nice to meet you as well, Melody, Smores. I hope you two enjoy your time here in God's Kingdom."
smiles. "Thank you! You all seem to do really well for yourselves. How often do you get visitors?"
"Not very often! We're glad to bring in more people, though."
Melody nods. "Where do we stay?"
"There's plenty of communal housing around, or you could ask someone to stay with them."
Melody nods. "Okay! Thank you!" She grabs Smores and gets some food before leaving.
Smores takes a few cookies and follows.
Outside, they're near a small shop and some other houses. They can see the small farm close by. Appears to be a cornfield. There's a small sign on the fence to the cornfield but it's illegible from they're standing. The sun appears to be setting soon.
The entire village seems to be shrouded by trees and dense forest. The smell of a swamp is still present, there's definitely one around.
Melody starts looking around for the communal houses.
All the houses look pretty much the same, though some are larger.
Melody heads to a big one and goes inside.
Inside is a small living room connected to a kitchen. There's a staircase and a hallway, as well as a chalkboard.
2/5 ROOMS TAKEN is written on it. There's a lady in the kitchen making some food.
Melody walks over to the woman. "Hi, I was wondering if Smores and I could temporarily stay in one of your rooms?"
"Of course, honey," The woman says, taking the cornbread out of the oven. She heads over to the whiteboard and erases the 2, turning it into a 3. She turns back to them, "Follow me, I'll show y'all to your rooms." She walks down the hallway with Melody and Smores in tow.
They're led to a bedroom that looks like this. The lady says, "Enjoy your stay," before heading back to the kitchen.
Melody waves before sitting on the bed and looking to Smores. "Something’s off about this place." She whispers.
Smores sits next to her. "Oh?"
"They havent encountered any monsters... it just... somethings not right..." She whispers.
"Maybe they just have good protection?"
"I don’t think rosaries and holy water can keep away demons like they claim..."
"I mean... I dunno. Might depend on the demon?" Smores shrugs.
"True... but Asphodels a demon and a rosary doesnt hurt her.”
"Hm. True."
-
Later that night when the two are in bed, something can be heard walking outside. The air smells slightly of sulfur.
Melody wakes up with the smell, her ears twitching. She heads to the window and pulls the curtain back, trying to look outside.
There's a figure staring back at her. Their body is shrouded by a cloak, and they're wearing a deer skull on their head, antlers and all. They're just standing there, a good distance away.
Melody presses her snoot against the glass. "You."
It doesn't respond. Chattering can be heard nearby, but it doesn't sound like it's coming from the figure. It sounds like it's coming from something else.
She looks around to see if she can see anything else.
It's just the person.
She steps away, closing the curtain and debating whether or not she should go outside.
As Melody steps away, the figure steps closer. She can notice some sort of jewelry around its neck, flickering vaguely in the motion-sensor light in the backyard.
She narrows her eyes and opens the curtain again to see if he's still there.
He's CLOSER. Not up against the window or near it in any capacity, but he's still noticeably closer to the window than before.
Melody closes her eyes for a moment then opens them to see what happens.
Same place.
She closes the curtain for a second before opening it again.
It’s closer.
Melody sighs and opens the window.
The smell of sulfur is STRONG. Chattering can be heard from somewhere, but it's unclear where.
Melody coughs and grabs her crossbow, leveling it at the creature and firing.
It barely grazes the figure. It shrieks, dissolving into a black mist before disappearing entirely. The chattering is still around.
Melody closes the window and the curtain, looking at Smores.
Smores is sound asleep.
She tries to shake him awake and Smores wakes up the moment she touches him.
"Hi-” says Smores.
"Hey, there’s something outside." Melody says, ears swiveling
"Whyyy…”
"What do you mean why?"
"Why's it out there!!!" Smores says, frowning.
"I dunno! Wanna find out?" She asks.
"Uhhhh sure," He gets up off the bed.
Melody reloads her crossbow and starts to head outside with Smores following.
Outside, there's the buzzing of cicadas and the croaking of frogs. Typical sounds of being by the water at night. There's something moving in the trees.
Melody creeps towards the trees, crossbow in hand.
It's fuckin DARK in the trees, but they can see a swamp nearby, illuminated by fireflies. Smores follows close behind.
Melody heads towards the swamp.
There's something walking around the trees.
There's a deer. Though, it looks somewhat. off. Its eyes are closer to the front of its face instead of the sides.
Melody narrows her eyes and levels her crossbow at it. "Hello?"
It turns its head to look at Melody. The face looks slightly more canid than a deer's.
"Should I shoot you?" She asks.
It tilts its head and flicks its ears.
Smores looks to Melody, "Uhh. Is that like.. a long lost sibling of yours,?" He tries to joke.
Melody glares at him. "No! Should I shoot it?" She asks nervously.
"It doesn't look like it's doing anything that would warrant that,?" Smores replies.
"True…" Melody approaches it more, curious.
It steps back some, though it keeps its composure.
She takes a hand off the bow and extends it to the creature.
The deer steps closer. The mouth looks wrong. Teeth are visible. Sharp, canid teeth.
Melody pauses. "It’s got sharp teeth…”
"I do too, is that not... normal??" Smores asks.
"Not for deer!" Melody explains.
"Oh."
Melody sighs. If it bit her hand it’d just heal so... She makes a little sound to call it forward.
The deer looks to Smores, backing up slightly. It growls deeply.
"Smores, back up-" Melody says nervously, getting between the deer and Smores.
Smores does so. The deer's bones begin to crack and change as it stands on its hind legs, taking on a more anthro form. It's thin, emaciated. Its face and mouth resemble a wolf's more than a deer's, and its eyes appear human-like. Y’know how a dog will have human eyes? Like that. But worse.
Its teeth are sharp, and parts of its body look like the fur and skin were scraped off. There are deep gashes in its sides, sharp bones sticking out of them. The hooves on its front legs slowly separate and form long, sharp claws. It's much taller than both Melody and Smores, and it moves in jerky ways, as though it's being puppeted around by something. It snarls and growls, a dark, bloody substance dripping from its mouth.
Melody backs up. "OH NO-" She grabs Smores and starts booking it back to the house.
They make it back to the house relatively quickly, and once inside, the stench of sulfur fades.
Melody sits against the door, whimpering a bit. "Y-you’re okay?"
"Yyeah, that was prob ably the scariest thing I've ever seen and I've seen Memphi angry," Smores wheezes, shaking like a leaf.
Melody takes some deep breaths and gets up, taking Smores back to their room. "W-would a hug help?"
"Yes please,,"
She hugs him, wrapping herself around him in bed to cuddle.
Smores hugs back, still shaking.
Melody gently pets his head. "It’ll be okay.."
There's a knock at the door to their room.
Melody stirs and yawns, getting up and opening the door
It's the lady who owns the house, she's brought them breakfast! Bacon, eggs, toast, sausage, hashbrowns. Wow, she's. Very generous! Even brought them some orange juice, all on plates on two trays she brought for the two of them.
"Good morning, you two! Here's your breakfast, I hope you enjoy!"
Melody’s eyes widen and she takes them. "Ah!! Thank you so much," Melody smiles at her, taking the food to Smores. "You're wonderful," She says to the woman.
"You're so very welcome, dear! Mass starts in an hour, I hope to see you there!" She says, closing the door and moving on to the next room.
Smores wakes up, sees the food and picks up an egg with his bare hands, and starts eating it.
Melody smiles and nods before starting to eat herself. She chuckles at Smores. "Cutie.”
"I have never seen one of these in my life," Smores says as he continues trying to eat it.
Melody demonstrates how to eat it with the fork. "See?"
Smores tries but ends up poking the inside of his mouth. "I think I'll stick to hands.”
She giggles. "Okay, cutie.”
Smores tries eating a breakfast sausage like a popsicle.
Melody starts laughing so hard she’s crying, wheezing at the display.
Once they finish eating, the church bells begin to ring. The lady knocks and cracks the door open, "It's time to go to mass, you two!"
Melody gets up and motions for Smores to follow. "Okay miss-" She heads towards the church, looking around to see if everyone here was human aside from her and Smores.
It's all humans walking into the church. The organ is playing music as everyone walks to their pews.
Melody stays towards the back with Smores.
The service goes on as usual, ending around an hour later. It's typical service, singing songs, engaging in prayers, and talking about recent events in the community. Everyone begins heading into the side room again.
Melody follows, going to the grandma again.
She's cleaning a mess of chocolate from her grandkid's face before she sees Melody and Smores, "Oh. hello there dear," she smiles warmly.
"Hi, I was wondering, you said people like us have come ‘round before, right?" Melody asks.
"Oh yes, a few times"
"Did they leave?"
She nods, "People come and go often"
Melody nods. "I see... any reason?"
"Not that I would know of, our small community is wonderful," She chuckles softly, ruffling her grandkid's hair.
Melody nods. "Do you see deer around here often?"
"There's a lot of deer in Mississippi," She nods.
"Have they ever looked... off? Like eyes too front facing and sharp teeth?"
"Not that I recall," She says, looking down at her grandkid and covering his ears slightly, "Don't wanna give David here any nightmares," She chuckles.
Melody nods. "Good idea- I just uh... did you smell sulfur last night?"
"No, though that may be the smell of the swamp? There is one nearby and it doesn't smell good at all.”
Melody nods. "Yeah... Thank you,," She smiles, walking off to get some food.
There are mostly baked goods, but there are also some homemade pizzas and other warm foods.
Melody is EATING. Also thinking very hard and keeping an eye on Smores.
Smores is trying to eat and failing.
Melody films him to show to Asphodel.
One of the little kids walks up and pokes Melody. "Do you have games on your phone?”
Melody nods. "Yeah!"
"Can I play?”
"Sure. " She takes out Subway Surfers and hands it to the kid.
When she gets the phone back it has sticky fingerprints on it.
She doesn't seem to mind and shoves it back in her pocket. Then she takes Smores hands and heads back outside to take a walk with him.
Smores follows close by.
The air is warm and there are a few animals nearby.
"So, I'm thinking we stay here for a few days, rest up then leave? This seems like a nice community but not very... thrilling or in need of healing." Melody explains.
"That works," Smores sighs, looking up at the sky. It's still bright out, but the red sky makes everything feel darker.
She pokes at his horn nubs. "You're cute.”
He smiles and blushes some. "Hhthanks,,"
She nuzzles him, still holding his hand
Melody is making Smores a flower crown.
Smores is laying in bed, listening to music. A small moth flies into the room and just kinda vibes near the lamp.
She looks up. "Oh hi, moth.”
It kinda just hangs out there for a bit before flying out of the room.
"Gone..." Melody says.
Outside of their room, they can hear the front door open. Two people seem to be talking. It sounds like the priest and the woman who owns the house.
Melody goes to the door, pressing her ear against it curiously.
The conversation seems to be serious. Some discussion about preparations for some kind of event.
Melody tries to crack open the door to hear them better.
Something about preparations for an event tomorrow! Talking about food and stuff, bringing the kids.
Melody tries to figure out what the event is.
They're being very vague about it, though it sounds like some sort of social gathering.
All the young girls dressing in white gowns. Weird.
After a bit Melody opens the door fully, exiting the room and pretending like she was just going to the bathroom.
The priest looks at her, "Ah, hello, Melody. Hope you're having a good evening." The lady smiles and waves to her as well.
"I am! Did you say something about an event? Thought I might’ve heard something on my way out," She says innocently.
"Yes, we're going to be holding an event tomorrow! Make sure you and Smores are there, you'll know when it's happening. Muriel here will help you two get ready." The woman smiles.
“Alright," Melody smiles. "May I ask what it is?"
"It's a social event for everyone in town," The priest says with a smile.
"Oo! Sounds fun," Melody says. "Well, it was nice seeing you! Good night." She turns to head to the bathroom
"Good night, Melody. I hope you rest well. God bless you."
"Peace be with you.” She says before entering the Pee Room.
The Priest soon leaves and Muriel goes to her room.
Melody soon returns to her room and lays in bed, turning to see if Smores is awake but finds him asleep.
She sighs and lays in bed, unsure if she'll be able to sleep, nervous about the event.
The same moth from earlier flies into the room, landing on the nightstand next to Melody.
Melody stares at it. "Hello?" She extends a hand to it.
It flies over to her, landing on her hand. It's a luna moth. Fluffy!
She smiles at it. "Little friend..."
It rests on her hand for a bit before turning its attention to the window.
Melody looks at the window. "Is something out there?"
It's the deer skull person. He's right up against the window, staring in at Melody. The eyes of the skull have small, green pupils that glow as they stare.
Melody's eyes widen as she lies there, terrified. "H-hello?"
The jaw of the skull moves ever-so-slightly, almost as though it's breathing. Other than that, the Motherfucker isn't moving.
She is shaking with fear. Then she gets up and goes to the window. Part of her wants her to open it, just to see what would happen. But the other part has survival instincts.
The moth flies onto her shoulder.
The figure stares at Melody, the pupils following her movements. He remains unmoving.
Her stupid brain wins and she opens the window, attempting to touch the skull.
Melody’s arm is grabbed immediately by a gloved hand, reaching out from the figure’s cloak. He feels deathly cold. A grating voice comes from the skull:
"Vade retro Satana"
Melody squeaks, frozen in fear.
He pulls her closer, the moth flying off of her shoulder. She feels extremely cold. It reeks of sulfur. A dark mist pours from the mouth of the skull.
"Vade retro Satana"
Melody tries to take her arm back, panicking. "LET GO-" She screams.
Beneath the gloves, there are sharp metal tips in each finger that begin to dig into Melody's skin.
"God has punished you and you shall repent, leave or you will be forced to face God once more."
Melody whimpers, panicking. "NO, HE HASN’T! THERES MORE THAN ONE GOD- I HAVE NOT BEEN PUNISHED. LET. GO." She screams, anger and fear boiling inside her chest.
"Accept your fate, devil," The Orator growls, black mist beginning to fog up the windows. He digs into Melody's skin further, the mouth of the skull opening more, though it's pitch black in there.
She glares at the Orator, anger taking the forefront now. "You are the devil. She uses her free arm to try and punch him in the chest.
"I am a servant of the Lord," The Orator growls, catching Melody's fist and pulling her halfway out the window. There's a dark mist coating the grass, and eyes peering out from the woods. Two large, orange-greenish-brownish, beady eyes. Though they're barely noticeable, especially with the situation Melody's in.
Melody screams, struggling. "SMORES! SMORES WAKE UP-" Melody looks at the Orator. "YEAH? WHAT GOD??"
Smores wakes up, and upon seeing Melody and Orator, he tries using his bug legs to jab at him.
"The Father," he grunts between stabs, "The Son, and the Holy Spirit," he growls before dissolving into mist again. The window slams shut on Smores' bug legs but he slides them out just fine.
Another luna moth flies into the room and lands on Smores.
Melody falls back onto the floor, watching her arm heal. "We need to leave. Now." She says, getting up and trying to catch her breath.
"B-but the monsters??" he says, "We can leave tomorrow just pleeeeease don't open the window?????"
Melody nods. "O-okay... W-well leave tomorrow-" She makes sure the window’s locked and looks at the moth. Was it connected? She feels lightheaded and stumbles back, tearing up. "F-fuck- what if I'm not strong enough for this-"
"Hey, we'll be okay, we've already gotten this far,," Smores says.
Melody sits against the wall, starting to sob into her hands, shaking like a leaf. "I'm scared-"
Smores gets next to her and hugs her gently, "It'll be okay,,,"
She hugs back, clinging to him. She knew she wouldn't sleep tonight.
Thunder roars outside as another webbed crack forms in the sky.
As they wake up, they'd immediately notice a white dress on Melody's bed with a note.
Melody yawns and rubs her eyes. When had she fallen asleep? She wasn't sure. She looks over and reads the note.
It says "put this on, meet at the chapel"
There's another luna moth chillin on the dress.
Melody smiles at the moth, putting out her finger for it. "Hey little guy,,"
It flitters away and out the door, which is slightly ajar.
Melody raises an eyebrow and gently shakes Smores awake.
"Get your stuff together, it's time to leave," Melody says.
"Mnnhh... is that today..?" Smores groggily says, rolling over.
"Yeah, remember what happened last night?" Melody SHAKES HIM MORE.
"Hhhyeah.." he rolls out of the bed and plops on the floor.
Melody laughs a little then gets changed into the dress. After that, she starts packing up the remainder of their stuff and making the bed.
"We should just leave, not worry about the gathering thing. I have a bad feeling about it..."
"Yeah.. that's probably the best idea," he gets up, brushing himself up and getting his bag. "Ready when you are."
Melody smiles and extends her hand. "I'm ready now."
Smores takes it, and they head out. It's very quiet aside from light rustling in the trees and wind chimes. There's a moth following them.
Melody takes note of it and heads to the gate. "The moths can't be a coincidence."
"Whaddya mean?" He tilts his head. The gate is locked, and too high to climb.
Melody swears. "The moths. Luna moths only live for a week and we keep seeing them in our room the past two nights? It can't be a coincidence..." She looks at the church. "It looks like we don't have much of a choice..."
"Huh.." Smores sighs. "Well.. we going?"
Melody nods, taking a shaky breath. "You have a knife in your pocket, right? The one Asphodel gave you?"
"Yeah."
"Okay, just... be careful please…” She says, kissing Smores cheek before heading up to the church
Smores follows. As they make it inside, more people come inside. They're some of the first to arrive. The priest stands by the podium.
Melody puts on a serene smile and waves at the priest, seemingly excited about the event. In her pocket, she feels the weight of the hunting knife Asphodel had given her.
As more people gather, The Priest moves behind the podium and speaks into the microphone;
"Good evening, to all of God's Children here tonight. As you all know, tonight is our monthly Moon Festival. Let us join one another in prayer before we head outside to the festival."
Everyone lowers their heads as the Priest leads them in prayer. Once done, everyone stands up and begins to walk out the front door. The Priest waits for Melody and Smores.
Melody follows, holding Smores hand. "Will there be food?" She asks innocently.
"Of course." They head out. They're walking down a path through the trees. Seems like it'll go on for a while. All the young women are wearing white gowns and the adult women wearing colored dresses. The men are wearing suits. Except for Smores, he's still wearing his t-shirt, torn jeans, and lab coat.
Melody sets her jaw, putting her free hand in her pocket and gripping her knife. "What a beautiful night," She says to Smores with a smile.
"Yeah,,"
They eventually make it to a field closed in by trees. There are tables set up, and people are placing food on them. There's a podium in the middle of the clearing, on a small wooden stage lit up by torches. The Priest steps onto the stage and behind the podium.
It's darker now.
Melody acts relaxed and excited but is holding Smores hand tightly, ready to run.
The Priest begins speaking, "Tonight, under the full moon, we will give our thanks to the Lord for the gifts he has given us. We will please our Lord, God, and give him our thanks by vanquishing evil from our Kingdom." He begins shuffling around for something inside the shelf of the podium.
Melody watches closely.
The Priest takes something out from behind the podium. A large deer skull, which he soon fits over his head. Two lights within the eyes flash on, a dark mist spilling from the mouth.
He removes his cloak, revealing a black sleeveless shirt, a belt with a holster for what appears to be a very shiny silver blade with emeralds embedded into the handle, and black pants with combat boots. His arms.. there's something wrong with them.
There are white flowers on his arms. The stems are wrapped around and embedded into his skin. The Orator steps down from the stage, taking the blade from the holster. It's curved and serrated. The crowd tightens around the entrance to the field so that Melody and Smores can't leave.
"Vade retro Satana."
Melody brandishes her own blade and nods at the trees. "Smores climb a tree and hide-" She says, letting go of his hand and tossing him her bag.
Smores scuttles away and climbs up a tree but the tree is quickly surrounded by a few people. The rest of the field becomes circled in by the rest.
The Orator steps down from the stage.
Melody takes a deep breath. "Sorath if you're listening... please give me strength.." She whispers. She needed to be strong. She needed to beat him. If not for herself then for Smores. She had to prove she was no longer the little girl murdered by demons in her own home.
The Orator runs at Melody, attempting to stab the blade into her side.
She dodges and tries to slam her blade into his neck.
He takes the hit as he stumbles back, vines coming out from the deer mask to cover the wound as black mist pours from the mouth. He tries to kick her as something wet flies off of the blade and onto Melody's gown. It's holy water. Literally not gonna do anything.
The kick lands and she stumbles back before attacking again, trying to stab him in the side.
He allows her to stab him as he uses her close proximity to grab her and drive his blade into her shoulder.
Melody screams in pain, trying to drag the knife to his stomach.
Mist pours out from the wound as he growls, stabbing her in the stomach and throwing her to the ground, tearing the knife from his stomach.
"God's will shall always prevail over Evil."
She screams in pain, gritting her teeth. "DO YOU SERIOUSLY THINK I'M EVIL BECAUSE I'M A DEER?!?!?!?"
"I know a demon when I see one." He looms over Melody, holding the blade above his head.
He kneels over her, readying the blade, before slamming it down, and...
Some children in the crowd start screaming as a gust of wind begins to blow.
The Orator stabs the blade into Melody's chest, dragging it down to her stomach. It heals instantly yet again, and Orator looks in the direction of the wind as the mist from his mouth flows in the wind. He seems. Scared? Confused? Maybe a mix of the two.
Melody screams in pain, tears streaming down her face as she looks in the direction he is looking.
There's a figure in the sky. Unable to be seen in the darkness, but the fact that there are many small things beside it is visible. All that can be seen is the vague shape of large, moth-like wings and two glowing, pink eyes.
The vines begin to writhe on Orator's arms as he throws Melody to the side, staring up at the monster.
"What... Michael, Michael you said-" he yells in a raspy voice, coughing some as mist and vines pour from the mouth of the skull. "MICHAEL THIS WASN'T PLANNED-"
Melody retrieves her knife and crawls away, panting with effort as she gets up and tries to run to Smores' tree.
The figure shrieks, as another crack forms in the sky. Moths begin pouring down and flying at Orator's mask. The Orator stumbles back as the mist begins pouring from the eyes as well, killing the moths.
Smores stares at the display as he helps Melody up the tree. The mothman quickly drops to the ground, still appearing as a vague, shadowy figure as its wings form into a cape. It tries biting down on the Orator as he turns around to slice it in retaliation. The mothman begins to bleed a bright green, viscous blood from its wing as it stumbles back onto the ground.
Melody's eyes widen as she watches, confused as to who this mothman was and why it was helping her. Also... who was Michael? She had so many questions...
The mothman gets up, jerking forwards as its form grows taller. It strikes the mask off the Orator's face, covering it in scratches from the thorns. He groans in pain, stumbling back and spitting up blood. The moth's head splits down the middle into a large maw full of sharp, serrated teeth as it lunges towards the Orator, shoving his head in its mouth, and...
Plop.
The now headless body of the Orator drops to the ground.
Screams are heard from all over. The crowd disperses as people run back to their homes.
Melody is frozen in shock and fear. How... why... who...? Her breathing is quick and uneven.
A figure with dark skin and a yellow dress appears before the body and the moth, twelve feet tall with two golden rings circling around their head and covering their eyes.
They look down at the body, then up at the moth.
"Disgusting insect." They, along with the body, vanish, leaving the moth in the field.
Melody pulls herself together. "M-moth?" She calls out to them.
Her antennae perk up as she looks at Melody and Smores, her eyes glowing pink.
"T-thank you... you won't... hurt us, right?" She asks her, a bit nervous.
The moth tilts her head.
Melody looks to Smores. "Should I go say hi?”
"Uhhh... I don't think it's very safe- did you see what it did to that guy???" Smores replies.
"Yeah... true..." Melody waves at it. "I think it was trying to protect us maybe? I don't know why though...."
"..Maybe?" Smores takes a shaky breath, "I'd be careful though..."
"I will," Melody pats his head before swinging down to the ground, still clutching her knife. "Moth? Who are you?" She asks.
It looms over Melody at around 15' tall, leaning down to look at her. Its face is white, some of the fluff green with yellow antennae and eyes glowing bright pink. No mouth, on its face at least. It tilts its head, its green wings flitting slightly.
Melody looks really nervous. How did it eat him without a mouth? "Um... do you understand me?? Nod if yes-" She says nervously.
It nods, blood seeping from the area its head split open.
Melody tilts her head. "Are you hurt?"
It shakes its head.
"Can you write?"
It lifts its hands, which are. mostly just claws.
"Could you try to write in the dirt with your claws?" Melody asks, tilting her head curiously.
It digs one of its claws into the dirt, scraping it messily around. It's barely legible.
Melody sighs. Damn. "Okay, I can't read that. I guess we'll stick to yes or no for now. Were you trying to save us?" She asks, tilting her head.
It shrugs, pointing to where the decapitated Orator was before rubbing its stomach (which appears to have a closed mouth on it).
"So you were hungry? But why him?" Melody asks, approaching the area where the Orator was and looking at the ground to see if there's anything left behind.
The stomach mouth opens, revealing sharp serrated teeth, as a long, neon green tongue stained with a dark fluid lurches out. It's wrapped around what looks like a white glass sphere filled with a dark substance that slowly bleeds out to the ground.
Melody raises an eyebrow. "Impurity... so you eat impurity?" She asks, looking up at the moth.
The moth nods.
"I guess we're two sides of the same coin then? I cure it. Are you impure yourself?" Melody asks, pretty confident the moth wouldn't attack her or Smores now.
It shrugs.
"I see... are you a demon?"
It nods.
"Are you from my hell??" Melody asks.
It POKES her. Then shrugs.
Melody blushes! "Oh!" She giggles a little. "Are you a gluttony demon?" She asks.
It nods.
"Hm... I see. I guess you could be from either then? I think Metamorphosis demons are bugs too... I'll have to ask Asphodel I think." Melody puts her hand to her chin like a detective. "Do you know who Michael is?"
It tilts its head.
"The guy you ate was calling out for Michael? Do you know who that is?" Melody asks, craning her neck to look up at them.
It thinks a moment before shrugging
"Fair enough, thank you though. You really got me and my boyfriend Smores out of a bad situation," Melody says with a smile.
It tries to make a heart with its claws.
Melody does a heart back!! "My name's Melody by the way! Do you have a name?" She asks, smiling.
It starts to draw in the dirt, a vague "ADE".
"Ade?" She asks, tilting her head at the moth.
It nods and then puts up its hands, indicating a wide space, then brings them closer together to indicate it's short for something.
"Oh! So Ade is short for a longer name? Is it okay if I call you Ade?" Melody asks.
It nods.
Melody grins. "Want to be friends!!"
Ade takes a moment before carefully nodding, slightly nervous?
Melody hugs Ade with no hesitation, wrapping her arms around them. "I'm so glad!!"
It freezes up slightly but Melody keeps hugging.
Ade just kinda. sits there. then gently moves its arms around Melody.
After a bit, Melody lets go. "I guess we should be off then. Before the villagers come back to try and kill us?"
Ade tilts her head.
Smores comes up to them, "YEAH. YEAH ID LIKE THAT."
Melody giggles. "Okay! Off we go then! Nice meeting you Ade!!" She takes Smores hand and waves at Ade with the other.
Smores follows, bag in hand as Adephagia dissipates into an eclipse of moths.