The Worm

The Cage

The creature was larger than it should have been to be able to fit in the room. Its dried skin flaked with every breath it took, sending gargantuan quantities of the stuff to coat the bones beneath it. It stalked out of the darkness, but remained largely unseen. Nine hands grappled the walls of the room each tipped with four spindly fingers. Its mouth was a gaping pit of infinite darkness formed into a crooked, toothless smile. Slime dribbled from its jaw, irregularly cascading onto the floor. It's eyes shriveled into slits, its nostrils were two long holes that flared as it breathed a foul stench.

It spoke Craeic, the language of the ancient Gods, inconceivable to the minds of mortals. Master Ivanavich taught me as much. Gazing upon the demon, I felt something stir within me, as if I was being torn away from reality itself. I looked away and observed it through my peripherals, but I feared the damage had already been done. My hand was melting before my very eyes, blending into the very ground beneath me. The demon roared. The entire chamber shook in the wake of its shout and I could feel the sound waves of the beast reverberating inside of the deepest parts of my soul.

"I wish to speak with you," I yelled, avoiding staring at the creature.

More Craeic, incomprehensible.

"I'm not leaving here until my master gets the answers he's looking for."

"Who are you to demand anything of me, mortal?"

"I was sent her on behalf of-"

"To hell with who sent you!" It roared before I could finish, slime spraying onto my coat. It had a foul stench, akin to rotten eggs and sour milk.

"I was sent here on behalf of Mark Ivanavich."

"Mark Ivanavich," It spoke, my master's name hanging on it's mouth as if he held some contempt for the old man, "The False God. What do you know of him?"

"He said he made you his servant, is that true?" I asked, careful not to reveal my master's true intent. The creature's eyes narrowed further, transforming into paper thin lines.

"He has fed you lies!" The beast yelled, slamming one of it's massive fists into the wall.

The ground shook beneath my feet, disturbing my balance. The creature stalked toward me, extending it's skeletal arm toward me.

"I-I-I'm sorry," I stammered, backing away slowly, "I just-"

The creature's claw touched my chin. It was flakey, like salmon bits, and it smell of old fish. I felt the claw tug at me, making a shallow cut into my flesh that grew deeper the more I resisted it. I allowed the creature to turn my head and I stared at it directly again.

"No more," It bellowed, "We will speak of this no longer."

And so I stood silent, standing alone in this darkness face to face with the creature. It stared at me, burrowed its way into the farthest reaches of my being, making a right mess of my sense of reality. The world around the being twisted into an amalgamation of shapes, my own face appeared in place of the creature's. It smiled at me, a twisted thing. My teeth were sharp on the beast, jagged and black. My eyes were that of the creature's, it's tongue licked the corners of it's face as it growled at me.

"Your master sent you to learn the beginning," As it spoke, it's face morphed back into its own, "Then I will tell you this. In the beginning, there was little more than darkness. And from that darkness came the Worm."

It's breath burned the hairs out of my nostrils as it spoke.

"The Worm," The creature spoke, a claw tracing the outline of its jaw, "The False God seeks its power, does it not?"

I could utter no response, its words were fragmented records that played in my mind. My vocal chords were intangible instruments of the beast's chaotic nature. My heartbeat blared in my ears. My blood steamed in my veins as it coursed through my body in an almost artificial way. I felt as if I took my attention off the beast that my very existence would erupt into a tangled mess of sinew and steaming blood.

So there I stood, ensnared in my own mind, unable to so much as take my eyes off the thing.

"You cannot contain the Worm. Your master cannot do it, you certainly can't, mortal. Only I can harness its power. Set me free, and I'll grant you my boon."

I stood there, at least as far as I could tell I was standing there, in silence. My lack of response only served to anger the thing. I could feel rubble falling atop my head. I stumbled back for what felt like eternity before I felt one of it's boney fingers against my back. When I stood straight again, I felt the world shift beneath my feet. My gaze drifted away from the beast and it growled a sickening sound.

"Your answer, human," It spoke, "What will you do for knowledge? How far will you go for loyalty?"

I looked away from the beast, feeling reality slowly slip back into place. Not all was restored, but at the very least I could comprehend the ground I was standing on now. My sense of perspective had returned. I dare not look at it again.

"As far as I need to. What happens when I set you free?"

"What I do with my freedom is none of your concern.  You will have your knowledge and can scurry back to your master if that is what you wish. What I have to tell you will change your reality, forever. This is the boon I spoke of. Your answer, tell it to me."

I thought for a moment, trying to collect my thoughts and ground myself in reality once more. 

"I'll free you, but I'm going to need something from you first."

"You dare make demands of me? You know nothing of the forces that you seek to dabble with. I could destroy you in an instant if that was my wish."

"And yet you haven't because you and I both know I am the only one that is able to set you free."

The creature roared and thrashed its arms around, colliding with the walls and floor. I felt one of its bony hands snatch me and hoist me up into the air. It brought me close enough to its face that I could reach out and touch it if I wanted to. It roared, the sound resonating in my chest. It was deafening, but I dare not cover my ears. It roared for what felt like hours and sprayed saliva that covered my entire body. When it finished, I felt its eyes zero in on me. I did not return its gaze.

"What is it that you want, mortal?"

"Tell me what you know about my Master. Tell me everything, grant me your boon and I will set you free. On my honour."

I heard a sickening series of cracks, as if bones or leaves were being crunched beneath someone's boot. The being smiled. It set me down on the ground and retreated. I looked where it once stood and saw darkness in its place. It hadn't disappeared though, as I could still feel it's presences lurking somewhere hidden. It knew Master Ivanavich and I have to know why. What does this thing know about him that it's not telling me. I had to know.