Chapter Three: The Things That Whisper

The remnants of Arianna's sorrow had just begun to ease away moments prior. The mud held a strong stench of putrid decay and something that whiffed of ancient blood. It clung onto her like a second skin, its slick black consistency making her feel filthy from head to toe. 

A shudder surges throughout the body. 

Arise, self-motivation. 

Yet despite trying to lift herself, her limbs almost seemed to be frozen in a position as if made out of lead. 

Exceedingly quiet. 

No obnoxious sounds of disruption from the outside world. 

And whispering. 

Initially, she attempted to dismiss them. 

Ignoring the sensation that seems to emanate from everything—the walls, the ground, and the air itself. 

Their voices lacked any shred of moisture as they whispered secrets that she had no desire to unveil. 

"Arianna... we see you..." 

In the hopes of shutting the noise out, she closes her eyes tightly. 

It's not real. 

But repeating the phrase did nothing, instead being amplified by the voices. 

"Pretty healer girl." 

"Soft. Weak." 

"Fresh." 

Another shudder accompanies Arianna's new goal as she attempts to crawl forward, only to shatter in tears while her palm is immersed in deeper muck than she anticipated. 

Stray strands of her hair stuck to her face in addition to the unkept mane plastered in a tangle was rather unsightly. 

"Lovely," Arianna croaks, "So dignified." 

Shifted the precise moment she ceased her efforts to move and commenced looking down. 

To her absolute astonishment, it strayed away from her initial guess of a form of dirt. 

It was human skin. 

Greyish and bloated. 

Half awake as milky eyes coated by a thin layer of skin stared blankly into a void of darkness. 

In the process of screaming, she recoiled her body only to fall back into the sludge, allowing the torso to drift slightly. 

In the process of gagging, furiously hot bile clawed at her throat.

The murmurs chuckled. 

Soft, vicious, joyful.

Each frantic attempt to stand made her legs wobbly like jelly, threatening to collapse once more. 

It seems as though the world beneath wanted to pull her further downwards as the forthcoming tunnel started descending. 

With effort, she placed one foot in front of the other. 

What had once been mud changed into something far worse, foul a few paces down. 

A putrid layer covered the ground that had once been a thin layer of ice over a swamp, weakly yielding under her boots. 

It started to make squelching and popping sounds as she stepped. 

There was no doubt it pulsed faintly beneath her: 

"Not natural," she mused. 

Arianna placed a hand on her ribs while whispering words of healing. 

Here, they felt faint. 

The warmth that came after was meager. 

Even my magic hates this place, she thought. It's tainted here. 

Metaphorically speaking, the walls here were alive. 

Veins crisscrossed them, glowing a dull, sickly yellow, like worms writhing in flesh. 

And the whispers were clearer. 

Calling someone, inviting others in. 

Making promises. 

"Power," hissed one voice like scraping metal. 

"Death." 

"Life." 

Silky wet coos. 

"Obey." 

"Consume." 

It didn't help. 

Covering her ears while keeping motionless did not remedy the situation. 

Stopping at the threshold, there was no denying that a vast cavern lay beyond.

Her breath became momentarily suspended.

Bones. Piled up heaps of bones. Broken and grotesquely twisted human skulls and animal skeletons.

A thin, green mist crawled over them. The stench made her gag immediately. Few things are as horrifying as something atop the bone pile that moves.

Skewed.

Hunched.

A conglomerate of heads and limbs strung together.

Quadrupedal animals could move broken femurs beside themselves as it reorganized themselves using the skeletons.

Too many eyes opened throughout its form, all stitched together, gaze unnervingly in her direction.

"Welcome," a raspy voice said.

Many voices spoke at once.

Human. Animal.

Dead.

She felt her knees tremble.

Fighting to maintain composure, gritted her teeth.

Her palms seethed as she hissed, "I am not dealing with this today."

Voice cracking, the creature wheezed.

Laughter reminiscent of grinding teeth in a garbage disposal.

She pivoted to escape— 

But behind her, the tunnel sealed off.

A wound scabbed over, flesh pulsating beneath the surface. Flailing her arms wildly and yelling, thumping her palms against the surface with feeble anger.

Exhausted from tilling, she turned to breathe. Tremendous effort to focus on subtracting for the most basic utilities fluid foremost. Firm control evaded her, head heavy, eyes shut, limbs slack.

Shrugging away, her stamina rejuvenated like almighty hands now directing her wax body.

The more fragments of bone paired with stone emerged reveal, with many appendages lacking limbs to pull, restraint fragments cross appendages, and caress bone scraping stone.

Eyes closed, ever so softly whispering, "I can help you," framing betrayed honesty, saying: "Join us." 

"BE us."

"Hard pass," shaking fueled words, she snapped. Each word feels as though skimming across an empty paper, yearning to burn, embracing the fire, lifeless sleep exhaled upon it. The delicate wisp bringing warmth was rendered incandescent, evaporated.

She lifted her arms as if to cast her healing spell and began to shout, but it was unleashed like a weapon. Light flashed from her palms, strident and raw. The soul reeled back, bringing out smoke where the light touched it.

It cried in pain. Arianna didn't wait due to fear. She ran, tripping, sliding.

Sobbing with extreme fear and fury. She eroded through another tunnel with the walls trying to close in on her. Forcing magic into her legs made her legs move when they felt like lead. She continued running in terror until she fell face-first into a new chamber. It felt similar to her, drier.

The floor was different; it was a cracked stone, not mud. It smelled different, too. it smells like ash instead of rot. She lay on the floor shivering, shaking, gasping, while fighting with tears leaking into the dust. She looked around her, but it was dark, and something laughed softly. It was feminine.

Smooth.

Almost.... amused. "Interesting, " the voice purred.

Arianna stood up, hair hanging in her eyes. 

"Who's there?" she whispered, voice raw.

A pair of glowing eyes opened in the dark.

Beautiful.

Deadly.

"Welcome to my realm,' the voice said.

"You'll do nicely.''

Arianna tried to speak, but no words came. The woman stepped forward.