Chapter 12:
Eight
Still filled with a fiery drive that propelled her forwards, Eight had made it out of the tunnels and was approaching what she guessed was the Hull of the Maw. Gargantuan cogs and chains criss-crossed the whale-sized space around her, all mechanisms that would have to have a role in opening the ship's sealed entrance and lowering the gangway.
Eight reached a ladder and began to climb hand over hand, not slowing down for a heartbeat. She was so close now to the top of the Maw, the very exit. Maybe Six had gone this way too - it seemed the only option. And Seven, too. Was he anywhere around here? Her heart clenched at the memory of the cage door slamming shut behind him, and the Janitor's shaking causing him to be flung against the bruising metal.
But the Janitor is dead now, Eight told herself firmly. The thought was empowering; oddly comforting. Six and I cut off his arms. He can't hurt Seven anymore, and that means he would've escaped from the Lair.
Eight could see light filtering in from somewhere above her and she heard the squawking of some kind of bird. Her breathing quickened. This means -? I have to at least be above sea level…
Reaching the end of the ladder, Eight climbed onto a small metal platform as she blinked against the bright light - and found herself outside the Maw for the first time, touched by ocean spray and sunshine. The water sloshed and rocked underneath her, slapping the side of the ship's dark hull. Eight's breath hitched and she lowered herself against the small platform. One misstep and she'd be tumbling into the dark waves. The Depths and the Granny had taught her to have a healthy wariness of water, and she felt a little dizzy as she looked down.
Focus now. Ignoring the water for a moment, Eight's gaze travelled up and she noticed a thin black chain dangling before her. She craned her neck and saw that it hung down from the side of the Maw, leading somewhere higher. Even though she was above sea level now, the very top of the Maw was still a long way away, out of sight. She decided she should climb the chain and find another entrance leading back into the ship. It was the only way forward.
The chain wasn't the only thing Eight noticed, however - to her left was a boat dipping up and down on the waves. It was fairly large in size, but looked minuscule in the Maw's hulking shadow. A sloping platform connected the smaller ship to the bigger one, and if Eight squinted through the sunshine she could see a long line of people waddling up the gangway and disappearing into the Maw.
They were awfully large and flabby, of a similar build to the Twin Chefs she'd evaded earlier, and she shivered, relieved that she was a safe distance away from them. As she watched, Eight found herself thinking that there was no end to them. A constant stream of outsiders, shuffling inside and out of sight. A multitude of possible enemies to deal with.
A memory flicked into her mind and she remembered what Six had told her about swarms of guests boarding the Maw once a year to feast themselves into oblivion. Was it that time of year? That confirmed the reason why the Chefs had been preparing more food than any normal person would see in their lifetime.
A bird screeched above her and wheeled into the sky, flapping white wings. It was no bird that Eight recognised, but it snapped her out of her thoughts. She carefully stood up straight, willing her legs to stop trembling, and edged towards the chain. As it swung towards her, she made a leap for it and began climbing once more, not daring to look down.
Her breathing became more laboured and her arms grew weary as she continued the long climb up the slippery surface of the Maw. Eight placed each hand and foot very carefully, making sure she had a proper grip before making her next move. But it wasn't entirely awful. The sunlight warmed her back as she climbed, and melted some of her fatigue and worries a little. She promised herself she would have this again - sunshine, fresh air, freedom - and she would share it with Six and Seven too. Whoever she could rescue from the Maw, Nome or kid, would have the chance to feel this too.
The climb finally ended. Eight took one last look towards the sunny horizon, bid it a brief goodbye, and slipped back inside the Maw. She allowed her eyes a moment to adjust to the gloom, and the familiar smell of dust and cold metal returned.
She was on a narrow pipe. Below her was the gangway that she'd seen, creaking under the combined weight of all the huge Guests who were still trekking deeper inside. Looking down at the tops of their heads, Eight could see that they were dressed in semi-formal attire like ties and coats that strained to contain their bloated wearers. Some Guests also wore masks over their faces. She glimpsed a few painted with monster-like features in bright red, the brightest red she had ever seen. The rest had uncovered faces, sagging and drooping and with small, lifeless eyes. The sight of them made her stomach churn, and she focused instead on simply getting across the pipe and beyond.
...oOo…
While navigating across pipes, between walls and through tunnels like a mouse, Eight noticed a sound. It started off as just another background noise - barely noticeable, no different to the omnipresent hum of the Maw - but soon it developed into a thrumming crescendo that was impossible to ignore. As Eight came nearer to where the Guests were heading, she realised that it was coming from them. A chant. Peering down, she saw them swaying to and fro as they walked rhythmically into a Japanese-style dining area with papery screens, chanting all the while as they found their seats one by one.
Eight strained her ears, but it was hard to pick out individual words when there were so many voices. She caught a few fragments of words or sentences:
Eat...me eat...me eat…
Next was the word 'more' or possibly 'Maw' - she couldn't tell.
Eat...more...more eating...me eat…
The longer Eight listened, the more she was swept up into the chant. She found her own mouth moving to form the words on her lips, breathing them into the air in harmony with the Guests.
Then she shook her head. What am I doing? She had to get out of here. It seemed to her like the Guests were under some strange, hypnotic spell encouraging them to eat and not stop eating. Between the time they took boarding the Maw and now, some spell had been cast over the Guests while Eight had been busy navigating through walls and such.
Eight bit her lip. She somehow wasn't surprised - the Maw didn't seem to follow normal rules after all, what with all the monsters and magic. But this was still unsettling to say the least. Eight wondered if the spell over the Guests was similar to the intense hunger attacks that Six suffered. Had they been inflicted by the same person? And who was the person behind this?
Eight was pondering over this, remembering something Six had told her about a masked woman in a kimono that she had seen through a carved Eye - and when she rounded a corner, she glimpsed the very woman Six was talking about.
Standing motionless on a wooden balcony, overlooking the line of spellbound Guests, was a woman in a deep brown kimono. She stood tall, with something regal in her posture. Her black hair was tied loosely in a bun on top of her head, while the rest cascaded down her back in a glossy curtain. But the most striking thing about her was her mask - bright white porcelain that shone dully in the light, and the two black, commanding eyes that looked out over the scene.
A shiver bolted down Eight's spine and she instinctively flattened herself against the wall. A few seconds of shock passed before she realised she was out of the woman's view - safe behind a wooden screen. She assessed the situation. The woman was still poised like a statue, watching the endless throng of Guests move to the stools in her elegant, yet sombre dining rooms.
Occasionally the woman would raise her hand and give a gentle wave of her fingers. Eight blinked in awe as black particles seemed to swirl from her fingertips and dissolve into the crowd of Guests below, completely unnoticed.
So that's how they are being controlled, Eight thought. That lady can use magic.
Her work complete, the lady slowly turned and left the balcony. Her kimono was so long that it covered her feet and trailed slightly behind her; she looked like a dark swan as she glided gracefully away. A pair of screen doors closed behind her and Eight wondered how, given that the woman did not touch them. Magic again.
It's that lady from the newspaper Six read, Eight thought. She has to be the leader of the Maw. The Lady. What has she done to the Guests? To the children? And why?
Eight raced to climb the wooden screen and entered the next room. Guests were seated everywhere, half-hidden behind stacks of meat that they mindlessly shoved into their drooling mouths and swallowed, barely chewing. The noise was disgusting - hundreds of lips smacking, teeth tearing slabs of meat and frenzied gulps and swallows. It made Eight feel queasy and she hurried across the space, thinking of Six.
Poor Six, the little girl who had been struck by this hunger that agonised and crippled her. That she had no way of controlling or foreseeing. A primal hunger that ruined her very relationships with others and made her a danger to them. The Lady had done that to her, Eight was certain.
"Don't worry, Six," Eight whispered out loud, her breath hot and fierce. "I'll get you out of here."
...oOo…
The Guests were mostly too concerned with stuffing food into their gaping mouths to notice Eight, their eyes hollow and dead as they feasted without end. Occasionally though, one would catch sight of the girl as she crossed the shadows and let out an excited gurgle, literally launching across their table and over meats and plates to crawl towards the rare dessert that had entered their vision.
The first time it happened, Eight sprinted as fast as she could through a gap in the wall as the mindless Guest scrambled on hands and knees towards her. Once she'd reached safety, she looked back to see a desperate sadness in his eyes and his chubby fingers straining in vain to snatch her up. Strings of drool dribbled down his chin and onto his own clothes. Eight felt nothing but sympathy for the man.
"I'm sorry I can't do anything to break the spell," she murmured to the Guest, despite him being oblivious to her words. She wondered if this was how Six felt - this maddening desperation, the fear that she would die if she did not consume the nearest living thing.
But the instant Eight was out of sight, the Guest forgot about her and fumbled back to the food that had fallen off the table and onto the floor in the commotion. Eight watched the poor man brainlessly shovel fistfuls of sausage into his mouth, hopeless to continue until he ate himself to death, and she found tears welling in her eyes.
...oOo…
The Lady's residence was dark, but Eight had the aid of her flashlight. Rows and rows of ornate bookshelves lined the dwelling, and she wandered through them in amazement. Perhaps she could scan some of them and learn something valuable. Eight brushed dust from the cover of a heavy book on the floor and opened it up, looking for any useful information...but it was written in a language she couldn't understand. Frowning, she tried another. From the very first word, her attention was captured. This was important - this was what she needed to know!
Hunger is a primal instinct experienced by all organic and sentient lifeforms to some degree, and can furthermore be manipulated by magick to induce beast-like and agonising 'hunger attacks' which significantly reduce the inflicted target's cognitive function and physical capabilities. As time continues, these hunger attacks grow increasingly frequent and violent until the victim can only be satiated by living flesh and blood, devoid of all rationality and completely overcome by Hunger. Documented cases are rare indeed, as only a very powerful and learned caster can inflict Hunger, but known cases describe vampiric and rabid behaviour in those cursed.
Eight stepped away from the page, her head reeling. She didn't understand all of what was written, but it was enough for her to know that Six's hunger attacks had indeed been cast upon her as a curse. The Lady had done this to her - there was no other explanation. But for what reason would the Lady curse Six?
With the help of her flashlight, Eight quickly read on:
Even more rarely, this Hunger may be combined with a lesser-known magickal phenomenon called 'essence absorption', wherein the victim develops the ability to consume memories, fears, talents and emotions of the live entities they eat, especially those which were experienced in that entity's final moments. Few cases have come to light, however, it is notable that this phenomenon usually only occurs in individuals who are severely maltreated and have an inherent 'greed' and survivalist instinct about them, as caused by their circumstances. For example, malnourished or severely mistreated people are more likely to develop essence absorption in an effort to help them survive.
Eight's heart skipped a beat. This, absolutely, was also something that affected Six. Her fear of the rat traps, her ability to see better in the dark - all things she'd absorbed from the rat she ate. Eight feverishly flipped to the next page, and the next and the next, but they yielded no way to break the curse. Was there even a way to undo it?
Oh, Six - where are you?! Eight thought desperately.
A giggle. Child-like and eerie, hanging in the air briefly before fading like a wisp.
Eight froze, eyes widening. The sound had come from somewhere ahead of her, from behind a stack of books. Eight knew that the voice was not a normal child's - what would another kid be doing around here, giggling of all things? She dared not speak to them - to it. Eight stood cautiously to her full height, eyes locked on the stack of books. She slowly directed her flashlight to the book-tower and held it in its beam.
A giggle. Again - louder. From behind. Eight whipped around, pointing the flashlight like a gun and saw the last of a figure's foot disappear behind another book-tower. Black, swirling particles danced around the space, and then faded. The Lady's power.
"Who's there?" Eight demanded. Her voice was raspy but strong.
Yet another giggle answered her, coming from behind the book-tower. Followed by another giggle, and another...coming from all around her. Eight looked left and right, the flashlight trembling in her hands, not knowing where to point it.
She saw a flicker of movement in the corner of her eye, and whirled around to finally see who her new foes were:
A humanoid shadow about the same size as her was creeping out from behind the first book-tower. It giggled menacingly and fixed her with expressionless black eyes, peering out from behind a stark white mask. Particles of the Lady's magic coiled around it as it watched her for a few heartbeats - and then it zigzagged towards her with surprising agility.
Eight yelped and fled backwards, jerking the flashlight towards the Shadow Child and catching it in her beam. It shrieked and stopped in its tracks, throwing its hands up as if to shield its face. But it was inevitable - the light melted away the coils of darkness making up the creature's body, and after mere seconds, the Shadow Child's mask split and crumbled to the floor, vanishing from existence.
Eight was panting. But the other Shadow Children around her were not phased. Two more crept out, hunched like goblins, and giggled as they whispered and teased. Eight swivelled her flashlight, managing to catch one - but the other continued towards her. Keeping the first one in her beam, she edged quickly backwards to avoid the second, but then her back hit a solid bookcase. A hiss sounded in her ears and a third Shadow Child reached its shadowy arm out from the bookcase, groping towards her.
Adrenalin took control as Eight shoved away from the bookcase and dodged the growing number of Shadow Children that were closing in. She sprinted for the exit, the same way she had come into the room, and managed to evade at least some of them.
But they were everywhere, all throughout the Lady's residence and library. Eight ran until she found herself in what appeared to be a wardrobe - or at least a very, very wide room filled with kimono-clad mannequins, smashed mirrors and looming porcelain statues of geisha. The Shadow Children had not followed her here, as she had climbed inside. And to her knowledge, they didn't have the ability to climb after her.
Eight huddled against a mannequin, sitting half-hidden in the folds of the kimono it was wearing, and caught her breath. She vaguely wondered if Six had come this way...and if she had seen the Shadow Children too.
Six is smart, Eight told herself. Smart and tough. If I escaped, so could she. And now I have to keep looking for her and Seven.
As she got to her feet, there was a scream. A high-pitched shriek of rage and wrath that erupted from the next room over, the very direction in which Eight was headed. Her heart jolted in fear, but she realised she was not in any immediate danger - it was not her who had been found.
The Lady was here...and so was someone else.
- End of chapter -
