Cult of the Lamb : Rise of the Black Crown

Chapter 1: Indoctrination

Narinder fell to the ground, wincing hard as a searing pain coursed through his body. He was panting as he looked at his hands, and snarled with fury. He was no longer the God he once was, instead he was his in his feeble mortal form. That of a tall, black cat, with three eyes. It took all his restraint not to charge at the Lamb once more, but he knew better than to try it. The Lamb had already proven herself to be stronger than him at his best. He'd be a fool to try to attack her in his weakened state. Instead, he brought his knees to his chest and glared up at her. She was standing there, with a hint of a smirk upon her lips, awaiting a plea for his life.

"You have supplanted me. A vessel no more, instead a crown bearing deity." He spoke bitterly. She did not reply, she only stood there, still waiting. It was infuriating. "Damned Lamb!" He hissed, "I am at your mercy, are you to be a vengeful false idol, or a merciful coward?" Narinder glared up at her from his place on the ground. "No longer can you blame your vile acts on me."

"I promised to free you, and free you I shall." She said finally. Narinder laughed coldly and shook his head. As he suspected, she was still soft even after he tried to kill her. What a truly unworthy bearer for the Red Crown.

"You weak, sniveling, foul thing." Narinder spat. The Lamb raised a hand, her eyes beginning to glow a bright crimson. Narinder's eyes widened as he fully understood her intentions. "Wait!" He screamed. No, he would not join her cult. He wouldn't take orders from her. He couldn't! His attempt to halt her was in vain, it was too late. A swirling, red portal opened up beneath him and he fell through.

When the portal released him, he was thrown up onto the summoning circle at the center of her cult grounds. Narinder let out a grunt of pain as his sore body hit the hard stone. He coughed and sat up weakly, his arm gripping his ribs. Narinder lifted his head to survey his surroundings. The Lamb's cult had grown quite a bit since he last checked in on her. She had nearly thirty followers now, and every single one of them had stopped to stare at Narinder.

"Is... Is that really him? The One Who Waits?" Asked a small fennec fox.

"Oh, wow, it is. It's him! The One Who Waits!" Exclaimed a red panda, this called the attention of anyone who had yet to notice Narinder's arrival. He glared at the cultists, beyond enraged. The audacity of that damned Lamb. He wished, now more than ever, that she had just killed him and saved him this embarrassment. To make matters worse, he was stuck. An unindoctrinated Follower was forced to remain in the summoning circle until the Leader indoctrinated them into the cult. The curse kept him firmly planted in the circle, unable to stand. A few minutes went by, and the Followers were still staring at him, whispering to each other in amazement. He had finally gotten sick of it.

"Don't you fools have work to do?!" He yelled. The rise in his voice caused a few of them to jump and busy themselves with their work in fear, and all to get an air of nervousness about them. He scoffed and shook his head. These Followers were weak, and the Lamb was soft. How could he have lost to her? It just didn't make sense.

Nearly an hour had passed before the air was permeated by the soft jingling of a bell in the distance. Narinder knew it was the Lamb instantly as she wore a bell on her collar. He looked towards the entrance and sure enough, there she was. She smiled at her Followers and waved at them as they greeted her excitedly. The sight was sweet enough to make Narinder sick to his stomach. The Lamb turned in the direction of the summoning circle, and approached Narinder. A cocky smirk replaced her sweet smile the moment she made eye contact with the former God. Narinder glared up at her, his expression one of fury and disgust. The Lamb crossed her arms as she stood before him, and waited once again. All eyes had turned towards the two, watching in an uneasy silence.