"Arghh!!"
"Whaaaa!!!"
"Bang!! Bang!!"
As the menacing sun slowly rose, its light touched the land and with it, horror was unleashed.
In a small town in the middle of a vast desert, cries, screams, and loud bangings accompanied the ascent of the yellow giant. The cries were full of agony, and the sounds of bodies hitting metal made it seem like they wanted to break free from their constraint.
Inside a small house with a bakery at the front, something was trapped inside a metal cage that gave off a mysterious glow. The thing looked like an elderly lady, but with each second, its body mutated, looking less and less like a human.
The thing's skin melted away, and what used to be the legs started turning jelly-like, as if the bones had become soft. Before long, the legs had fully mutated into a pair of tentacles wearing human skin, flailing about the metal cage trying to escape.
Not only the legs, but the body also transformed from what was a human torso into a blob of bloody flesh, as if the human was turned inside out. With the legs gone, the blob fell onto the floor and started wriggling. The arms also suffered the same fate, as they had turned into another pair of human-skinned tentacles.
Left intact was the head, which still resembled an elderly lady's head. The expression on the head was strangely calm, although the eyes showed obvious pain and suffering. It was as if such a thing was a common occurrence.
The sight of the human head resting on a bloody mass of flesh with tentacles was so terrifying that any human with a weak heart would have fainted. Even worse, the face was very slowly melting into the blob underneath it. It was also apparent that during the whole process, the head still had its consciousness and could feel the pain of its body deforming into a thing of horror.
The whole process took about an hour and after that, there was no trace of humanity left inside the cage. The sounds of screaming and banging also started dying down.
Inside another house with pretty decoration, in a room that was locked and barricaded from the inside, two cages were placed far from each other. Inside each was a creature that was not any less horrific than the tentacle monster. One cage had a ball-like creature made from condensed human body parts with blood still dripping from it, while the other one had a small dog-like creature crudely constructed of human limbs.
The room was filled with gentle smoke floating about, smelling of moonlight lavender. The monsters were apparently sleeping due to the soothing scent
It was the curse that the people suffered. Whenever the sun was out, they would turn into monsters. The process took about an hour for them to turn into ones, during which they retained full consciousness of their human self. If one was awake, this period was always the most excruciating physically and mentally. Only when they had fully become monsters would they lose all rationality.
The curse was not caused by the sunlight itself, as people would still be affected even if they stayed locked up in a dark room; there was no escape from the curse. However, it didn't mean the sunlight itself was not dangerous, because if exposed to it directly, the monsters the people became would be more violent and dangerous than usual. That was why everyone would lock themselves in specially-made cages before dawn.
The Wright triplets were also not spared from the curse. Inside their house, each of them had turned into monsters locked up in their own cages, sleeping soundly due to the effect of the incense.
Crane Wright was turned into a small furless dog-like monster whose skin was as dark as the night sky. However, on his neck was not a dog head, but an elongated tentacle split in the middle, revealing two sets of sharp teeth. His whole body was emitting an aura of darkness, making whoever was looking at him feel like they were staring into the abyss of no return.
Christopher Wright had become a monster whose whole body was submerged in the wooden floor as if thousands of worms were dragging him down. Only his dark-orange lion-like face was visible, and his expression was solemn and peaceful, despite his grotesque appearance.
Catherine Wright, the younger of the triplets, had also turned into something inhuman. Her face had become a giant baby face with curly hair, seemingly angelic at a first glance. However, her whole body was like that of a giant centipede with pus oozing out of small pores on her hard skin.
The three terrifying monsters were unconscious due to the effect of the incense that was prepared specially by the town's Apothecary. It caused deep sleep, and even monsters twice the size of the Brown Scaled Lizard would be affected by it if exposed for a long time.
Without the incense, the cursed people would most likely rampage the whole night. Although there was little chance of a break out due to the special cages that were planted deep into the ground, being awake all night as monsters would still cause them fatigue. Night time was the only time they could become humans, so most people wanted to be awake for as long as possible, and to sleep when they became monsters.
A lot of monsters outside the city were active during the day, so the town's founding members erected giant walls that could withstand most curious creatures that were attracted by the initial wailing when the curse was happening. During the day, the town guards and police also turned into monsters, so the wall was their only hope of surviving.
Despite the countermeasures in place, however, accidents could still happen, so it wouldn't be a surprise if, in the morning, someone woke up to their loved one already dead. It was the reality that the townsfolk had to face.
The sun kept on rising higher and higher while shining its malignant light upon the land below. The town in the middle of the desert remained quiet and peaceful, and luckily, the peace lasted until sundown.
The moment the sun fully set and its light had disappeared from the eastern horizon, everyone in the town gradually turned into humans again, a process which lasted around an hour. It was a painful process, but the pain also served as a wake-up call, reminding them that the blissful night had arrived, marking the end of their curse for the day.
"As usual, you're the ugliest, Cath," Chris joked the moment he regained his mouth function.
"Shut up. You're really creepy, just a face on the ground. Even if I had to, I wouldn't want to hunt a monster like that," Catherine shot back. Her head had fully turned back to normal, but her body was still morphing. There was apparent discomfort on her face.
"My monster form is the most normal one," said Crane rather proudly. He smiled cheekily, an expression that was surprisingly creepy considering his body that was still that of a dog possessing a human face.
"Shut up!" his siblings protested.
"Should we find a husband for Cath based on their monster form, Crane?" Chris looked at his brother meaningfully, "She is a centipede, so if anyone else in this town is also a centipede, they would be a match."
"Hahaha..." Crane let out laughter, but suddenly shut his mouth when he got a death glare from his sister. He turned to his brother instead and said sternly, "Chris, stop teasing your sister!"
"You're boring, Crane," Chris protested.
Ever since they were children, Crane had always been the boring and studious type in Chris's eyes. Whenever he wanted to play, Crane would often choose to read a book instead, so Chris would end up playing with Catherine most of the time.
Despite that, the sibling's relationship was still very good. They each had their own role, and although they were different, they could understand each other pretty well.
"It's not Crane who is boring-it's you who's too annoying," commented Catherine jokingly, "After all, you were always the one getting us or dad in trouble."
When it came to rule-breaking, the siblings were all the same; they didn't mind breaking rules for their own convenience. However, Chris was the one always acting on impulse, so he would be the one caught causing trouble. Crane would break the rules secretly while Catherine would just be bad at the person catching her. Chris would always try to find someone else to blame, but it didn't always work.
"Remember when you were caught by the lady across the street for stealing her son's chocolate, Cath? You got angrier at her for catching you that she had to give you the chocolate in the end. But then she complained directly to dad, and that gave us trouble," Chris rebutted her sister's claim.
"You're one to speak! You pretended to be Crane and punched the lady's kid." Catherine didn't want to lose.
"Yeah, that got me in big trouble," Crane replied with a bitter expression, remembering the event in the past.
"Well, that bully deserved it," Chris stuck his tongue, "But to think their whole family would die like that..." his expression changed.
The family across the street met an unfortunate accident when the siblings were still children. One night, the husband deliberately lit the incense much sooner than usual, causing the whole family to fall asleep before having the chance to prepare for dawn. When the effect of the incense wore out, in their monster form, they started attacking and eating each other. The three of them were found dead the next night with their bodies badly mangled.
It was found out later that the husband was depressed and couldn't continue living like that anymore, so he decided to end it all. His diary was found by the town's police when they were investigating the scene, and news about it spread quickly in that small town.
Such an accident, unfortunately, was not rare. That was why everyone was searching desperately for a clue to breaking the curse. Generations after generations of people had failed to do so, however, that was why the siblings had yet to reveal their father's journal. They didn't want to give the townsfolk false hope.
"Way to bring down the mood, Chris," Crane commented, "Well anyhow, let's quickly get ready for Cath's ritual. The sooner she becomes a Tier 2 Votary, the sooner we'll find out what dad means in his journal."
The siblings had now completely turned into humans, and they put the oversized robes back on to cover their bodies. After that, they unlocked the gate of the cage using the latch that was more like a puzzle. It was made that way so that only a rationally thinking person could do so.
"Have we got everything?" Crane asked.
"White candles, which are the Cursed Goddess' favorite color, Storax oil to attract the Goddess' attention, and sesame seeds as an offering to the Goddess." Catherine counted, "Those were leftovers from my Tier one ritual. As for the materials, Tier 2 Contract Parchment, the vocal cord of an adult Silverback Banshee, both eyeballs of a Mutated Green Toad, and lastly, both hands of a black magic practitioner. Luckily, dad kept something like that in the storage. They're all dried up and mummified, but should still be usable."
"Alright, Cath, let's bring everything to the ritual room and get ready. Meanwhile, Chris, can you go out and copy Mr. Barnhart's ability? It would be very useful if you could Reverse it," Crane split the job, "Don't forget to take the supplement too."
Chris nodded and the three of them quickly got dressed before taking a small pill. They gulped it down with a glass of water.
The pill was a supplement made by the Apothecary, which helped keep the people of the town healthy despite the lack of exposure to sunlight.
Wearing his favorite linen shirt and loose cotton pants, Chris sauntered out of the house and walked down the cobblestone road to the center of the town.
The sun had fully set and another dark night was now upon them. Most people in the town had recovered from the curse and were now already busy with their own jobs and activities. Night time was the only time they were humans, so they would make use of the time as much as they could.
Chris greeted the people he passed by with a smile and kept on walking with a destination in mind: the town's Administrative Office, where Mr. Barnhart would be working. It was located not far from the big Bell Tower in the center of the town.
Upon arriving at the magnificent-looking office, Chris opened the door and was greeted by the receptionist, a thin young lady with bright blonde hair and a pale complexion.
"Good evening, Mr. Wright. What brings you here today?" asked the receptionist politely. The person in front of her was one of the members of an official hunting team, so she showed respect to him.
"Hi there, Margriet. Is Mr. Barnhart free? I need to see him. It's about Cath's ritual," Chris replied with a friendly smile.
"He just came here, so I think he should be. You can go to his office directly to check. You know where it is, don't you?" answered Margriet.
The small town didn't have a strict bureaucracy, so meeting a town official wouldn't need any prior appointment. Besides, they would usually gladly help each other become stronger because the more strong people they had, the more they could explore and the higher chance they had of breaking the curse.
"Thanks, Margriet!" Chris nodded and waved his hand as he walked past the reception table.
He walked down a short hallway and knocked at the second door to his right.
Knock knock!
"Mr. Barnhart, it's me, Chris!"
"Come in!" said a hoarse voice from inside.
Opening the door, Chris found a tall, thin man sitting behind a desk with stacks of documents on it. He was Hubert Barnhart, the town's financial manager. Besides his official job, he was also a Votary.
Barnhart beckoned his guest to come closer with his tired eyes. The dark circles in his eyes showed that he hadn't had enough sleep, and his skin was abnormally pale, much paler than everyone else in town.
His complexion was not caused by an illness, but rather, due to his Occupation as a Votary. Hubert Barnhart was a Grave Digger, a Tier 3 Votary under the God of Corpses. The state of being close to death caused his skin tone to resemble that of a dead person. The man's age also became hard to gauge due to his deathly appearance.
"What brings you here, Chris? Is it about Cath's ritual?" asked the thin man.
"Yes, Sir. I'm surprised you knew," Chris's eyes opened wide for a split second.
"News travels fast in this town, and you know that son." he answered, his voice sounding tired, "So how can I help Catherine?"
"Well, that's true. Anyhow, can you use your signature ability on me? I don't know if you know, but I can copy abilities, and I need to copy yours," Chris explained to the point.
Hubert raised his eyebrows and answered, "I don't know how that will help Catherine's ritual, but I am sure you've got your plans. And I am sure you also know it won't be pleasant," he warned Chris, who didn't show any sign of hesitation.
Seeing that the man in front of him didn't back down, Hubert nodded in approval "Well then, Let me get ready."