>>5550450>>5550458>>5550554>>5550603Your options are limited. The stories of the Wurm are familiar, you know that it would grant you a portion of its strength and vigor in proportion to your flesh. It would make you like it, sinuous and earthen, able to dig and devour and call the lesser worms, all an aspect of it, forth to consume your foes and find their secrets. But it would come at a cost of flesh you could never replace. Far too great a sacrifice and for what, to spend your life searching for food or trying to placate it and never progressing, like your mother? You could summon another outer entity and leave your soul to the whims of fate, but you know you got lucky last time. Too lucky to dare gambling again.
No. You know what you have to do. You crawl, hissing in pain, and scratch the chalk over the floor of the pit. What should’ve taken minutes takes hours, since you have to stop and rest and go back to double-check so often. Eventually you have a clear, rounded chalk circle. The ritual needs blood. Almost all of them do, according to mom, but you have blood. You don’t have your knife so you use your teeth. It hurts but you pour it in the circle and chant the rite. It’s very simple. Your mother beat it into you like it was a nursery rhyme.
“Black Goat…"
Taker of souls…
The one who was smote…
Whose name is written on no scrolls…
Hear these words out of my throat…
Come quick, and bring all the treasures you’ve stole.”
It takes a few minutes. Mother said it would be like this, that he’s inconsistent. Sometimes it happens instantly, sometimes it takes hours. Sometimes it won’t happen when you’re awake and he’ll visit your dreams. He always comes when called, though. Always. You’re starting to lose your grip when your blood turns black and an animalistic figure steps out of the shadows, like it was always there, just waiting. You can’t help but stare. Mom told you everything but it catches you by surprise. It’s a literal black goat, chewing cud. It doesn’t look suspicious, like any other livestock, but you look into its eyes and you know, this is no ordinary goat. You wait. It chews cud and scrapes its hoof.
