Deep Embrace

Deep Embrace

"Perri, this is a stupid idea," Jan warned.

The raven-haired woman ignored him, adjusting the heavy rucksack slung over her shoulders, the straps pulling down on her deep blue-violet cloak, the yellow trim along the hems dusty from the day spent trudging through the old woods.

"We have a chance to slow the spread of the Creep, and to answer a mystery that's decades old," she told him, her purple eyes, a sign of her magical talent, glinting in the sunlight as it filtered through the dried canopy of the sickly forest.

"I really doubt we can achieve that," Jan added, his own brown hair, short and scruffy, hardly as elegant as her silken strands hanging to her shoulders. His blue eyes were at least bright and vibrant like her own, if more mundane in nature.

He looked down with a start, face tensing in momentary panic as he stepped in something squishy, but fortunately his heavy black leather boots just sank into some mud, a half-dried stream nearby.

He sighed, pulling his foot from the gooey soil and brushing down his thick cloth travelling garb, a light grey cloak, thinner and far less fancy than Perri's, covering his beige shirt and black pants.

He didn't see much of what she wore beneath, just her brown shoes, but it seemed far less suited to trudging through half-dead forests than what he had.

"Always so negative," Perri chastised. "You know my Guild has been doing research. We've already discovered ways to push the Creep back or at least delay it. If we're correct, and we find Weyland Manor, then my own research might have a chance to be vindicated."

"And what if they're alive?" Jan asked pointedly, stopping in his tracks and spreading his arms questioningly.

Perri turned around, her sharp features beautiful but piercing, thin lips tensing as she fixed him with a stern glare. Jan was a little more rounded in his face, but thin stubble helped him look a little older. He did not waver under her withering stare.

"If they're alive, then we deal with them," she said simply, turning around and continuing along the path, her steps agitated.

He shook his head and trailed after her, gripping the hilt of the short sword he had at his side.

"Perri, the Manor may have been connected to your family once, but your connection with it is about as great as mine," he spoke up.

"So what? I told you, we find out answers, or we successfully stall the spread of the Creep into this forest, or even both!"

"Perri, I've known you for a long time, this isn't just about your theory."

"Clearly you don't know me well enough. I mean, look around you," she shot back, turning around and gesturing to the forest. The trees had thinned out, everything had a greyness to it, much of the grass dry and crunchy, yellowed or greyed, even the soil was a pale grey colour. It almost seemed like a fire had gone through the place, though there were no signs of that. The leaves were dry and the canopy was sparse. The sunlight shone through and lit the forest well enough, but it resulted in a strange, grey light, the faintest mist seemingly hanging in the air, even though the weather was on the warmer side.

The place looked ill, if not dead.

"This is undoubtedly the effects of nascent Creep corruption, the early stages at least."

"But I thought the reports from the deeper Creeplands said forests were full of corrupted life and not barren like this place," he retorted.

"Once they've undergone complete subversion, sure, but the early stages, the Creep must strangle or suck the life out of things before corrupting them," she said confidently.

He wasn't so sure, but she was leading, and he followed, shaking his head.

"I hope you're right about this, but it's just the two of us, we can't expect to fight an army of Spawn out here."

"I don't expect to," she assured. "This early on in corruption, there isn't enough Creep around for more than the odd Spawn. They tend to stay where the Creep is more concentrated, only the more adventurous types roam further afield."

"You say that like Spawn aren't tethered to the Creep," he said, suddenly eyeing his surroundings warily.

"Come on, Jan, you should know this; they don't venture from the Creep because it empowers them and lets them escape and heal. Away from the Creep, they're more likely to die, but nothing stops them from going further towards untainted lands, they're just not as strong. Doesn't stop them trying to infiltrate some of the bordering towns on the edge of the Creeplands either."

"Right, right," he answered, shivering when he recalled stories of men and women, human and the rare non-human, being seduced by disguised Spawn and corrupting them, whisking them away into the Creeplands, never to return. Some rumours told of entire villages falling to the Spawn, from just a single one.

It made him less inclined to follow Perri, but he owed her. Besides, they were partners, this was what they were supposed to do. And he knew Spawn could be killed or at least driven away, they were not invincible.

Didn't mean he wanted to encounter one.

They came to a break in the road, the ground torn up and lifted a little. Perri climbed up and helped Jan up after her, not that he needed her assistance, but he nodded his appreciation.

That was when they saw it, in the distance; Weyland Manor.

The three-story house presented an imposing facade, looming over a large but now untended grounds, overgrown with dried grass and bushes, the iron fencing rusted and falling away in places.

The manor itself seemed to be mostly intact, the North and South wings on either side Almost as large as the central structure, the angular roof in the middle topped with a four pointed star, each point sporting a pair of protruding 'barbs'. The Weyland Crest.

On the top floor of the central structure, overlooking the grounds was a circular window, but it was so dusty and dirty, seeing inside was impossible.

It would've been a magnificent building once, but even if intact, Jan could tell it had fallen into decay, its brick walls cracked and many of its windows shattered. Paint was peeling, and wooden panels from the trim and the awnings were hanging down.

It had lost its colour, seemingly as grey as the rest of the forest, only adding to the ominous aura it exuded.

But there was something more unsettling they noticed; wrapped around the South wing to the right, snaking into one of the top windows, was an oily, glossy vein of Creep, the shine seemingly shifting as if it were constantly but ever so slowly moving.

Jan gulped at this, but Perri seemed to harden her features.

"This proves the presence of Creep. And that this place is the source," she said. "We will need to move quickly. Give it time, and it will more directly spread its taint. For all we know, Creep is running beneath our feet this very moment."

"Oh, very reassuring," Jan groaned as he fell in behind her, Perri taking the lead as she pushed one of the iron gates open, squealing on its terribly rusty hinges, the noise making Jan winced. They didn't need to herald their arrival.

They walked along the brick path running through the front garden, wilted flowers and overgrown grasses filling the plots, the bricks beneath them uneven and cracked from overgrowth, though everything still seemed dry and lifeless.

The front steps creaked beneath their feet, and the pair of front doors groaned ominously when Perri pushed them inside.

The smell of musty, stale air hit them both, dust raining off the two doors. It was only after they were opened and the dust shaken off that Jan saw the crest carved into each.

Walking inside, they were met with a crushing gloom, only a few shafts of light piercing through holes in the roof and ceiling offering any illumination deeper into the manor, away from the front door.

Two sets of stairs flanked the main foyer, with large double doors leading into the two wings, as well as directly ahead on the lower floor. The upper floor balcony surrounded the room, looking down onto the wooden floor below.

Old, rotted furniture hugged the walls, the ornate banisters clearly damaged by water and woodlice.

Everything had a sense of old decay. Not utterly destroyed, but the place would've been condemned if it were in any civilised territory. Its only saving grace was, despite the holes in the ceiling and the roof, everything seemed structurally sound otherwise.

Jan coughed, dust irritating his throat, but he cast wary glances to the doors on the right leading to the South Wing.

Perri, meanwhile, seemed to be having a moment. Whether it was melancholy or intrigue or something else, he couldn't tell.

She stopped, and faced him.

"We need to find something that looks like it could be a source for the Creep. A core, or a seed, or something. Anything that looks like Creep is emerging from."

"Looking forward to it," Jan groaned sarcastically.

"Oh quit your whining, we'll be fine," she said, flipping her palm up, and twitching her fingers as she summoned a small, burning sphere of fire. It was rather impressive, magic often requiring an incantation or something like a staff or similar magical implement.

But with the right enchantments, and some other traits, and appropriate skill, a mage could cast simple magic, typically elemental magic, with their thoughts.

He wondered if there was something special about her cloak, perhaps some magical embellishments stitched into the inside.

Whatever, he did feel a little more confident with her around, but she extinguished the ball of flame, difficult to keep ready at all times.

He felt slightly less comfortable with it gone, and less confident when she made for the door to the south wing.

"I guess we're doing this," he said. All the same, he steeled himself; if she was right, and there was a way to stop or slow the Creep's spread here, it'd be a small but important victory against the terrible corruption spreading from the heart of a diseased land. If nothing else, he knew he had to have resolve for that.

Perri carefully pushed one of the doors open, revealing a hallway, eerily lit by the sunlight coming through the dirty windows overlooking the front grounds on the right side. On the left were doors, along with more furniture, and between them, on the walls, were old, rotted paintings.

They were of people and landscapes, but moisture and vermin had rendered them unrecognisable, save for a handful.

One, Perri stopped in front of, looking at it silently.

"What is it?" Jan asked, before taking a look for himself.

It was a portrait of a woman, sitting on a chair, hands in her lap, clothed in a black dress with white shirt and sleeves beneath, looking regal and elegant despite her expressionless visage.

The paint was damaged and the canvas warped from moisture, but he could make out the details well enough, the woman's purple eyes just barely discernible, long, dark hair, straight and silky, hanging down behind her back. She had a soft, beautiful face, a beauty mark just left of her nose, her fringe high above her eyes exposing her forehead.

Soft lips remained flat, betraying no emotion. And yet, there was something oddly melancholic about it.

Jan turned to Perri.

"Is that her?" he asked.

She quietly nodded her head.

"Yes... Nara Weyland. She was the eldest daughter of the family. Expected to be the heir, if they weren't all lost."

"You say 'lost' like they all died," he probed.

"Your point?" she responded sharply.

"Her fate was never certain, and you know what the rumours said..."

"Yes, I know. I'm not ignorant, Jan. Let's just find this seed and get out of here," she remarked, turning away from the painting and stomping off down the hall louder than Jan would've liked.

"I just hope you know what you're doing," he muttered quietly as he followed her.

---

They searched the lower floors, but found no success. They did find Creep, however, thick veins oozing through the walls in some of the numerous rooms, overwhelming one study with branching webs of the dangerous substance.

Though Perri had been quite confident at the start, now that she was up close with the stuff, Jan could tell she wasn't as fearless now, giving the stuff as wide a berth as possible.

Normally, Creep was relatively inert unless one stood or fell in it. But the Guild had enough reports of it suddenly becoming animated, trying to snare people like a wave of inky slime, or with tentacles bursting from its mass to drag them screaming into into its oily depths, never to be seen again... not unchanged at least.

Usually that risk was higher the greater the concentration of Creep... but Jan wasn't about to test that theory...

Nor was Perri, keeping an eye on it as they explored, moving from one room to the other.

The thick gooey roots of Creep had yet to fully infest the manor, leaving Jan to wonder if they'd even find this 'seed' here.

Maybe in the cellars? Or was it in some underground cave they couldn't get to, coming upon one room in which the Creep had torn up the floors, leaving a massive gash in the panelling and exposing a deep crevice in the earth.

It would've been suicide trying to go down it, so Perri kept searching.

In time, they'd exhausted every room on the bottom floor, so they had to go up to the next level, finding a set of stairs at the very end of the wing. They ascended, and found themselves among more lavish décor. Or it would've been, back in its day.

The damp had left its mark more harshly on the second floor, the walls and furnishings more visibly rotted, though the dry environment around the manor had kept things from decaying too severely.

The rooms on the second floor were more luxurious bedrooms, perhaps belonging to the family and its guests. They were more personalised, differing noticeably between them, and they were larger too, so it was likely they were the family's rooms.

The Creep was also thicker here, branching out across the rooms and leaving small 'tendrils' of the stuff along the floor of the hall, and it appeared they'd come from above, breaking in from the top floor.

Perri led Jan into a room that was a little less hazardous than the others, and though it was pretty badly damaged - the wallpaper and paint peeling and mouldy - they could both tell it once belonged to a child, a boy from the looks of some of the badly decayed toys.

The Creep clung and near-imperceptibly pulsed along the ceiling, ominous and unsettling, but out of their way.

Perri searched around, and waved away a curtain of thick cobwebs over a bedside table, and leaned down to pick a book from its top.

It was a small, leather-bound journal, its pages curled at the edges, its covers cracked and wrinkled. But she opened it up with a dry crinkling sound, dust spilling from the paper.

The pages were in surprisingly good condition, though some sections were unreadable. She flipped through the pages, and then paused, and turned to Jan.

"Have a read of this," she said, presenting the open pages to him.

He leaned close, unable to make out the first date and the first line of the journal, the top of the page disintegrating. But the rest was still legible.

... say that I don't have anything to worry about. But they are worried, I can tell. Would mother and father lie to me? They always told me never to tell lies. But I don't think they're being truthful. They're scared. My tutor says there is nothing wrong, and he said my writing is very good. But even he is scared and is just trying to keep me busy. The only one who isn't is Nara. She isn't scared, even with the fights she's had with mother and father. She says she doesn't fear the Creep. Mother and Father tell her not to say such things, that they need to prepare. But the Creep isn't coming here? They say the Wizards are keeping it at bay. Nothing can stop the Wizards. But mother and father are still worried. They don't tell me things, just tell me to keep following my studies. But Nara says there is nothing to be worried about. She sounds like she's being honest. But there's something weird about her. She sometimes gets this creepy smile. I don't like it. And she tells me if she's right, then I won't have to be scared anymore. But she won't tell me what. I don't know what my sister is doing. Something is happening. I'm getting scared. Please, keep my family safe.

Herron.

A pretty big entry for a child, though Jan didn't know how old he was.

"You know anything about this Herron?" he asked.

Perri shook her head.

"Only that he was one of the younger members of the family. He vanished when the rest of the family did. Consumed by the Creep or lost in the wilderness. Nobody knows for sure," she answered, but she kept looking back at the page. Her face hardened ever so subtly.

"It's Nara, isn't it?" Jan guessed.

"Look, there's no proof she did anything. And if she did, then it's ancient history. Let's just get this over with."

She set the journal down hard on the bedside table, causing the back cover to separate from the spine, a puff of dust erupting from the wooden surface.

Jan was having a hard time believing this wasn't personal for Perri, even if all this happened well before her time. Even if it was all rumour and hearsay passed down the generations until it got to her. And she wasn't even from the main branch of the Weyland family.

He shook his head and followed her.

They came to the balcony overlooking the main foyer, and Perri was busy glancing at the two large doors at the end, and at the ceiling.

"The third floor, perhaps," she said idly, her eyes tracking a subtle vein of Creep visible through cracks in the wall, running behind it and seemingly moving up into the ceiling.

"What makes you so sure?" Jan asked.

"Don't you see it? The Creep isn't flowing towards the roof, it's coming from it. I figured the seed or core would've been somewhere below, maybe even in the cellar, or underground somewhere. The Creep often transfers through the earth. But I guess the local 'nodes' can form anywhere."

"Wonderful," he muttered, suddenly seeing a terrible ball of writhing creep through all the walls of the Manor, hiding in the upper floors, waiting to snag them, to change them.

Perri caught his errant watching and sighed in exasperation.

"Look, if you're that scared, just stay down here, let me go check," she suggested.

He shot her a look.

"What? No, absolutely not, I'm not leaving you alone," he replied sternly.

"Then stop worrying," she stated plainly.

She made for the door leading to the upper level of the main part of the structure, pushing the double doors open.

Immediately they were met with a deeply unpleasant sight; dripping Creep covering the ceiling of the hall before them, veins and webs of the stuff strangling the walls and leaving few places for them to advance.

It was warmer, more moist, and instead of musty, stale air, a sweet, enticing aroma tickled their noses.

They could both make out subtle wet noises burbling within, though with this much Creep, why hadn't the rest of the manor succumbed to such infestation?

Perri grimaced, and turned to Jan.

"On second thought, maybe you should stay here," she muttered.

"But..." he protested weakly, finding it hard to disagree with her.

"Listen," she said firmly, slipping off her rucksack and pulling a flask from it, wrapped in old bindings etched with Caulic Runes. "I have this to protect me. I know you have one yourself, but you're not a mage. I can handle myself, don't worry. Just... stay here."

Her voice grew increasingly concerned for his wellbeing. He looked at her, wanting to argue, just as worried... but he sighed and slackened his shoulders; there was no point debating with Perri.

And truthfully, he didn't like the idea of trying to pick his way through that mess.

"Alright. I'll wait for you downstairs. Just... don't get corrupted, okay?"

"I don't plan on it. I plan on crippling this thing," she said assuredly, and after that, she took a small swig of the flask, grimacing from the foul taste. She placed it in her robes, and began to quietly intone an incantation. Jan did not understand the words, but he knew it was a ward, Perri running paired fingertips along her body with very precise choreography.

Soon it was done, and she stepped before the threshold.

With a soft breath, she steeled herself, and took a step into the hall beyond, picking her way through the mess of Creep, anywhere there was exposed floor, and brushing off whatever dripped on her, her cloak, that potion, and her ward keeping her largely safe from its effects.

She summoned a ball of light to shine her way forward, but she came to a door, and disappeared through it, leaving Jan alone with his anxiety.

"Come back soon, okay," he said to himself.

---

Jan paced about on the floor of the foyer. Perri had been gone ten minutes, though with the pace she had to take, it could've taken far longer. It was going to, surely. Did she even know what she was going to do when she found this 'seed'? 'Node'? Whatever it was? Was it even going to be up there? What if it wasn't, what if it was a trap, what if she tripped and fell into the Creep?

He paused, and spaced his arms out.

"Dammit, relax," he chided himself. Getting himself worked up over nothing wasn't going to help anyone... but he still couldn't keep his worry at bay. When it came to the Creep and the Spawn, there was never anything 'safe'.

He contemplated pulling out the flask of ale he kept alongside that protective potion, when a noise caught his attention.

He whirled around, trying to track its source; he wasn't sure what it was, like a gust of wind, but something was creaking along the wood.

He heard a brick shift. Something rustle beneath a floorboard.

He grimaced, his blade hissing as he drew it from its sheath. The simple steel sword glinted in the shafts of light that pierced the roof from ceiling to floor, showing off the strange iridescent sheen of the coating it possessed. Sanctified Oil from a Cairn Tree.

The substance had an adverse effect on Spawn, causing them more harm, making it harder for them to simply reform themselves after injury. It was a good way of improving the effectiveness of mundane weaponry, less costly than enchantment, at which point they were no longer mundane. Of course, the oil itself wasn't a common commodity. The Guild fortunately had a good supply of it.

All the same, Jan didn't like the idea of having to use use his sword as he waved it about. He pivoted on his feet, keeping his flanks watched and making sure nothing came from behind. Spawn were slippery creatures, they did not play fair. And losing to them was a truly terrible fate, no matter the 'method' of their corruption.

A voice suddenly filled the air, chilling the blood in Jan's veins.

"So, intrepid explorers come to my home at last... and one of my blood, no less~!" It was a woman's voice, rich, sensual, disembodied, echoing off the walls and coming from everywhere and nowhere. "You must be a good friend of hers~"

Jan didn't answer, suddenly terrified for Perri's safety, but also thinking he might've been better off staying with her.

He kept searching for the threat, his teeth clenched. A terrible chuckle made the hairs on the back of his neck and arms stand on end.

"I haven't had the luxury of visitors in so long~ Or perhaps trespasser is the better word. I don't recall inviting you to my home... ah, but where are my manners, you must have had a long trip~!"

He became aware of something pressing against his shoes, and he jumped forward and twisted around, in time to see a roiling mass of dark slime bubbling up from the ruined floorboards. The grip on his sword tightened, knuckles going white, face pulled taut in fear and readiness.

The pool of Creep rose, twisting around itself into a spiralling pillar, bubbles of the stuff bursting across its surface and sending tainted droplets down across the rising mass.

It was nearly eight feet high by the time it began to manifest more recognisable features; arms emerging from the gooey column, legs materialising as it split at the base, curves starting to form.

Until, as if bursting from an oily chrysalis, a woman's head ripped through the surface and rocking back with a gasp.

The slimy Creep rolled down the Spawn's body, slowly solidifying into a dark figure of subtly purple flesh.

The Spawn was tall, just over eight feet tall, and possessed rolling, feminine curves, a hefty bust peaked with firm nipples, and a shapely rump that wobbled as its shape solidified. A smooth belly reflected the light cast upon it from the holes in the roof, the thing glistening as if subtly moist after drying off.

Long hair hung down to the small of its back, thin strands of inky darkness that seemed to wave as if caught in a gentle wind that was nowhere to be felt, the foyer terribly still.

Its head levelled out, and fixed its gaze upon him, luminous blue eyes shining with a lusting fire, lips twisting into a hungry, knowing smirk.

It was beautiful, but terrible, a seductive visage offering temptation and doom.

There was something familiar though...

"Welcome, traveller, to my family home~!" it announced, spreading its arms wide as excess Creep crawled into its legs, the calves rippling and distorting unnaturally before no more Creep pooled around it and the limbs went smooth.

Jan stepped back and raised his sword, ready to defend himself.

The Spawn clicked its tongue in disapproval at him, waving its hand dismissively, an odd flowing quality to its movements, like its body wasn't entirely solid.

"Brandishing a weapon before your host? How unbecoming of one of Perri's companions," it chastised.

He still did not answer, gritting his teeth and keeping his eyes off its more intimate parts, though he couldn't ignore the faint glow outlining the slit of its pussy.

But he dared not look it directly in the eyes. There were rumours some powerful Spawn could control the minds of those without the proper wards. Hypnotising them and bending them to their will.

But he couldn't help glancing at its visage, something so familiar about it.

"Wait..." he finally spoke, sword lowering slightly. "I recognise you... the woman! From the painting! You're Nara Weyland!"

His tone was as accusatory as it was shocked. It was definitely her, though a Spawn's features could be hard to define at the best of times even when solid, owing to their inky complexion, especially in gloomier environment.

But unlike the cold, neutral look presented in that portrait, the expression looming down upon him now was hungry, devious, wicked. Terrible schemes were hatching behind those glowing eyes, burning with terrible intent.

Its lips pulled into a tighter smirk, turning it toothy.

"I'm glad someone remembers me~ I suppose I left an impression if Perri knows, so far removed from the main branch, born after my time... I wondered if my legacy would be lost to the years~"

Jan raised his sword again, glowering.

"I know what you've done, Spawn. I will not allow you to spread further," he warned defiantly, though inwardly he was terrified.

He had fought Spawn before. The regular 'Corrupted', those people who had been changed but had gained no great powers beyond what came natural to the Spawn.

He knew in his gut 'Nara' was no mere Corrupted. This Spawn was something more. But it wasn't Nara, not anymore. Just the twisted shell.

It laughed.

"Do you really think you or her could stop me? I have not gone through so much effort those decades ago just to be undone by some simple adventurer... but no matter, I have better plans for you~"

He did not strike first. He knew better than that.

'Nara' struck first, and it was soon apparent he was out of his depths, gooey, inky tentacles bursting from the back of the Spawn and surging towards him.

They weaved through the air, turning and twisting as they tried to deny him movement. He fortunately managed to dive out of the way, rolling back onto his feet, though hardly as smooth as he wanted.

He dropped his pack, knowing that he needed the mobility more than the items within, even what could help him against this Spawn.

Fortunately, he had placed the flask of protective potion on his belt, and quickly downed as much as he could before he had to move again, slashing at the marauding tentacles intent on catching him.

He gagged from the foul liquid, but at least he knew he had some protection. Not enough if he was caught, but hopefully he could survive getting splashed.

'Nara' was hardly moving, moving its arms as though they were responsible for the path of its tentacles, puppetting the tendrils as they chased after Jan.

He slashed at the limbs, making them back off. He couldn't take a more stable stance, needing to stay light on his feet.

A quick slash cut the tip off one tentacle, sending it wriggling to the floor whereupon it melted through the cracks of the boards.

They tried to grab his blade, though they had trouble touching it, owing to the coating it was given.

But he was aware the more he sliced, the less effective the coating would become, wearing off with each messy cut.

Yet no matter how many he managed to 'decapitate', there was always four tentacles coming after him, their tips reforming after a brief retreat, another sprouting from 'Nara's' back whenever one recoiled all the way back to it.

The Spawn didn't even seem annoyed, smirking the entire time, though Jan did not like the eager look on its face, just waiting for something. It was excited for him, not mocking him.

"Perri, I need some help down here!" he bellowed.

"Perri can't hear you~ It's just you and me, my sweet~" the Spawn taunted, earning a frustrated growl from Jan.

He slashed at an incoming tentacle, his chest starting to burn from fatigue.

That was when he saw something out of the corner of his eye; his pack, flying through the air towards his face.

Low on stamina, he was too slow to properly avoid it, raising his arms to knock it away, giving the Spawn all the opportunity it needed.

He yelped as tentacles coiled around his limbs, crawling beneath his clothes and bulging them out, slippery, moist trails left on his skin.

He tried to hack them off, severing one before his arms were both seized, a tentacle wrapping around the hilt of his sword and prying it from his hand, the amorphous limb squeezing beneath his fingers and expanding to break his grip.

He screamed and struggled, his feet dragged across the floor, his sword clattering to the ground.

The Spawn laughed, spreading its arms as it drew him to it, breasts jiggling and hair fanning outwards as though alive.

The four tentacles binding his limbs crawled across his body, skirting around his most intimate parts, until they placed him right where the Spawn wanted him; face buried in its cleavage, his body pulled tight against its own, arms wrapping around him. The tentacles retreated slightly, until they only held his wrists and ankles.

He still fought, but a hand to the back of his head did quite well to subdue him, a cold shudder arcing along his spine.

"There is no need to fight me, human~ There is no way you can resist me~"

He tried to curse it, 'jump into the Abyss', but all that came was angry, muffled grunts.

The Spawn laughed, and traced a finger down his spine, leaving moisture behind that soaked through his clothes.

"I know why you're scared... I know you think the Spawn bring death... but you're wrong. We are life~ Perfection and pleasure~"

It squeezed its breasts around his head, and he was dismayed by how pleasant they felt; perfectly plush, smoother than silk on the outside, perfectly dry at the moment, but so slick to the touch. And their consistency, the spongy outer layer so malleable, easily wrapping around his head, of which they were equal in size too. They squished wonderfully around his skull, yet there was a pliant core within that resisted him, applying a gentle pressure that squeezed him, making every single little movement and caress that much more acute.

The finger tracing his spine became a hand, sliding down his back until it slipped beneath his pants and his belt, caressing his rump and giving it a possessive squeeze, prompting a return of his struggling.

He knew what it was about to do, and he was desperate to avoid that fate.

Unfortunately, his body was responding, his pants growing tight as life stirred between his thighs.

The Spawn loosed a sultry laugh.

"There it is~ The honesty of the body, even if the mind resists... do not fear, I know you will never believe me~ So I will show you what it means to be Spawn~ I will give this gift to you, freely~ It is her will~"

He had a vague idea of who this 'her' was, but conjecture was the last thing on his mind when the Spawn suddenly sat down, bubbling Creep massing from the floor to provide a seat. It spread its legs, holding him between its thighs. Now his feet touched the floor again, but the tentacles around his ankles kept them bound to its legs.

His struggling was useless, and he started realising that it was only making the creature more excited, lecherous giggles escaping its mouth as he was smothered and groped... and forced to grind against its crotch, the hand to his rear manipulating his hips. He fought back, but the Spawn was so much stronger than him.

He never stood a chance.

It made the bulge in its pants rub against its moist pussy, not a single prickle of hair to be seen or felt around its perfectly smooth groin. It pulled on him with salacious movements, even as he resisted, only worsening the arousal he was feeling.

He still slung curses at it, but even muffled and barely intelligible through its breasts, the edge of fear was obvious.

It simply laughed at him.

"Soon, you will have no insults to throw, and you will have no fear to feel~ But let us have some fun first~"

He was suddenly pulled from its enveloping chest, Jan taking the first deep, clear breath since he was buried in those plush depths.

He'd been trying not to breathe through his nose, aware of an enticing smell, like wildflowers and honey, trying to infiltrate his very mind.

The Spawn were pure temptation, every aspect of even the lesser beings tailored to breaking down the willpower of those caught. Some simpler individuals didn't even need to be taken, a few choice lies and sweet offers had them easily seduced and throwing away their lives for pleasure.

Some even knew exactly what they were in for.

Jan refused to let himself fall like that. Even if it was inevitable, he was going to resist.

But 'Nara' wasn't making it easily, suddenly turning him around with the careful manipulation of his arms.

Now his head was back betwixt the Spawn's bosom, seeing his field of vision dominated by those two perfect globes either side of him. He was held spread eagle against it, the tentacles keeping his limbs bound to its respective arms and legs.

"Let's see what you have in here..." it trailed off as the hand just prior groping his ass traipsed to his front, and with dancing fingertips, tugged his pants down, and fished out his swollen erection, already stiff as steel.

Slick fingers wrapped around his mast and he flinched, gritting his teeth as a thumb rolled across his helm, stroking the most sensitive point beneath the opening at the tip.

He was of average size, and the Spawn's hand easily enveloped his member as a result.

He didn't want to readily admit it... but pleasure was an effective means of subjugating their prey once caught. Every little twitch through his cock seemed to take the fight out of his body, little bit by little bit, even if his mind burned in fiery resistance.

'Nara's' fingertips danced across his cock, palm grazing his mast with fleeting touches as the Spawn twisted its hands to leave most of the contact to its fingers, and even that was a soft, delicate affair, like satin threads being draped and dragged over his mast.

Every little bit of extra pressure saw his member throb hard, especially whenever its fingertips 'clawed' at his helm with the lightest of touches, dragging against his glans, softly tugging on his corona, and curling a fingertip to that spot just beneath his urethra.

It didn't take long for precum to ooze forth, smeared into his meat with the grazing of fingertips, getting his head nice and glossy, the lubrication enhanced by the gradual secretions from its digits, as though 'sweating' a slippery moisture at will.

The Spawn enveloped his manhood in its soft hand, though now it applied a firmer grip, stroking from tip down to his root and all the way back up, its pumping hand spiralling with inhuman grace.

He flinched when the fingers of its other hand brushed over his nipples. Its touch was ticklish and feathery, applying only the right amount of pressure to tease with devilishly intense reactions.

A moist palm pressed to his pectorals, sliding around beneath his shirt, Jan watching the fabric bulge as that hand roamed and caressed, groping where it pleased.

It circled a fingertip to one nipple, then the other, gently rolling the shallow bump beneath that slick pad, leaving tingly moisture behind.

He felt similar on his cock, wherever the Spawn's secretions lingered, his skin seemed to itch pleasantly.

He realised that prolonged contact with this thing was going to heighten his arousal further, to make him far more sensitive than anything.

He tried not to watch its hand work, gritting his teeth, but there wasn't much to see, his vision boxed in either side by those enormous breasts.

Its grip on his cock tightened, and it slid its thumb up the slope of his glans, and started firmly rubbing against that point right below the tip.

He groaned and squirmed, his sensitivity heightened compared to before. It kept this up, cooing sensually above him, the wet smack of lips signalling its hungry delight.

Its hand twisted around, so now its thumb was grinding to the back of his helm, massaging the frenulum and toying with his foreskin.

He could feel subtle moisture rolling down into his pubes, already a little musty from sweat, the journey to the manor a little bit of a work out.

The Spawn didn't seem to care, more interested in making him squirm and grunt, the stimulation getting to him. It was pleased, soft, teasing croons escaping its lips.

Jan growled.

"Just get it over with, monster," he snarled, only to find the hand toying with his chest suddenly emerge from the neck hole of his shirt to clasp over his mouth, silencing him.

"There's no fun in that~" it taunted. "I will take my time with you~ Perri will not be coming out of there any time soon, so there's no rush~"

He growled into its palm, but that smell was strong. Not as strong as its bust, but he could scent it all the same, filling his nostrils and tickling his sinuses, his mind momentarily hazing over from its influence.

He struggled some more, to no avail, and felt the Spawn slide its hand down to his balls, palm and fingers wrapping luxuriously around the tender sack, gently tugging and fondling the orbs within.

He groaned, and his cock nodded enthusiastically from this touch to his jewels. Fresh precum oozed over his glans, his mast looking slick and faintly black from the film of secretions it'd left on his rod, looking like it'd been dipped in the water cup of a water-colour painter rendering a night sky.

His penis tingled, and it was only getting more intense.

The fondling to his balls continued, masterful movements tracing the curves of both testicles and scrotum with dancing fingertips. But it all stopped, its palm pressed to the underside of his sack.

Its chest pushed into his head slightly, leaning down as best it could to whisper to him.

"Want to feel something special~?" it purred.

The rhetorical question was immediately answered, much to Jan's sudden shock and confusion, a yelp escaping his mouth when he felt the Spawn's fingers start to coil around his mast like they themselves were tendrils, stretching further and further as they entwined and embraced his cock.

He could see it, a helix of five wriggling digits spiralled around his mast, reaching all the way to the head. His eyes widened at the sight, bizarre and surreal.

And intensely stimulating, once those finger-tendrils began to pump, stroke, and twist, coiling and uncoiling whilst sliding up and down his rod, the tips of each scouring his glans, tracing and grinding against his tip and corona, leaving the rest of the lurid digits to stimulate his mast. Its palm, meanwhile, continued to cup and fondle his jewels, moving and squeezing in ways no human palm could.

He started to squirm now, feeling a rising ejaculation building in his loins. This was something he could hardly bear, those fingertips grinding upon the most sensitive part of his body.

And to make matters worse, the tentacles binding his wrists to its arms, constantly shifting to adjust for the Spawn's own movements, crept further down Jan's limbs once more, slipping beneath the sleeves of his shirt to creep across his chest and trace his nipples with their tips.

For the first time since he was caught, a whimper left him, feeling so utterly helpless and overwhelmed.

"Yessss~" it hissed. "No need to resist, no need to restrain yourself~ There is no escaping me~ Soon, you will be one with me, and then, with the Spawn, and Sehraa herself~"

Sehraa. The name was familiar to him. Supposedly the dark being, the goddess, that birthed the Creeplands, twisting all in their wake with corruption and depravity.

He had hoped he would've put up more of a fight against Sehraa and their Spawn. But he and Perri had walked right into a trap.

He could only hope she was strong enough to escape.

The torment of his mast continued, those stroking, writhing fingertips sending spasms through his hips as the pleasure mounted, building him up to a high-pressure release.

He groaned into the palm held over his mouth, incapable of holding his hips at bay, bucking into that spiral of stroking fingers against his will.

His cock throbbed in the Spawn's grasp, leaking profusely from this exquisite and merciless attention.

In the end, he signalled his surrender to this monster, whining loudly into its hand as his hips humped into its hand, balls contracting against its palm, timed with the pulses racing through his mast. It forced heavy ropes of his seed to burst forth, spattering against the fingertips that closed in, only one shot managing to fountain proudly into the air before the rest were caught by those writhing tendrils.

He yowled into the palm over his mouth, the incessant stimulation to his ejaculating dick making him convulse, too much stimulation for his sensitive cock to take.

But there was nothing he could do to stop the Spawn, the creature laughing gleefully, almost menacingly, at his plight, squirming against it, those fingers continuing to stroke him.

He shook his head, but that just forced it into those wonderfully cushioning breasts, which distressingly pushed back with delightful pliancy.

Jan was close to begging. He was begging, pleading for respite, but the hand over his mouth muffled every word, leaving him entirely at the Spawn's mercy as those fingers continued to dance, even their delicate pressure more than enough to overwhelm his sensitised manhood.

Only once he was thrashing in dry orgasm did the Spawn offer reprieve, its fingers slowing down, and then retreating back to their normal length, continuing to fondle his spent balls.

He didn't realise how hard he was panting until he had a chance to calm, feeling and seeing his chest rising and falling a good inch or so. His muscles burned with a low-intensity warmth, and he had barely done anything; his thrashing was enough.

A soft tongue-clicking came from above, gentle and soothing.

"Look how much you gave~" the Spawn crooned, sliding its hand from his balls to his tip, ever so lightly stroking his helm and smearing his emission into his flesh, what wasn't clinging to its dark fingertips at least.

It made him squirm in lingering stimulation, a torment with how intense it was.

The hand left his cock and he watched it pass his face on the way to 'Nara's', the sound of smacking lips evidence enough it was sucking its fingers clean, like his release was a treat to be savoured.

It squeezed its chest tighter around his head for but a moment after a satisfied sigh.

"Delicious~" it praised, and he could only whimper in defeat and despair.

It took note of this.

"It's cute when you submit, but I sense your sadness... it both delights and bothers me... allow me to help you~"

He only groaned, half-groggy, in response, when the hand over his mouth slipped away, leaving his muzzle moist with the secretions from its palm.

Before he could say or do anything, he found himself being pulled away from its body, twisted back around to face it. He was held aloft, his arms and legs weakly tugging in lingering resistance, but his strange was thoroughly sapped at this point.

Still, he managed a weak glare, though undermined by the fear he couldn't suppress filtering through his tightening features.

The Spawn cocked its head to the side, leaning against a hand and smiling as if looking at an adorable puppy.

"So cute~" it purred, only further angering him, though he didn't have the strength to demonstrate.

"You... will pay... for thi--" he panted out, summarily interrupted by its other hand grasping his chin, its head lunging forward to lock lips with him.

His eyes widened as the comparatively oversized mouth started to work away in a salacious kiss, thick tongue pushing into his mouth to all but envelop his own.

He squirmed, trying to break the kiss, but it was a vain effort, two hands now holding onto his head and keeping him firmly snared by those dexterous lips, easily tugging and sucking on his despite the difference in stature.

The Spawn's eyes narrowed at him, half-lidded blue gaze piercing him to the soul. How could he hope to overcome such a creature? He knew this was no mere Spawn, but this... this was more than just a stronger specimen.

He could feel it in his gut.

Jan continued to writhe, but his strength was rapidly failing him as that tongue languidly roiled about in his mouth, twisting everywhere and tracing every contour.

Its gooey tongue tasted sweet, devilishly so. A flavour he could not rightly define, but one that was readily apparent in its addictive quality. Smooth, sensual, the flavour filled his mouth as its tongue did, that flexible muscle tasting him just as much.

His cheeks bulged whenever it probed the inner surfaces, and not even the softer flesh beneath his own tongue was safe from its exploration.

It felt like a living being in its own right, and after that demonstration with its fingers, Jan knew that tongue was capable of much more.

Indeed, after so long, 'Nara' decided to flood his mouth with that roiling muscle, stretching beyond any human limit, twisting upon itself, curling about and filling every bit of space in his mouth, the flavour on his own tastebuds growing more intense.

His cheeks bulged, momentarily, his mouth near to capacity, until the Spawn decided to do something more depraved; it recoiled its muscle some, but engorged the appendage until it was much thicker, yet no less flexible... and fed it down his throat.

He gagged upon that invading muscle, bulging out his neck as it filled his gullet. He squirmed, but there was no escaping this terrible intrusion. His eyes rolled upward, feeling overwhelmed. He could breathe nothing but its own twisted air... and worse, his gag reflex, the one thing that offered some distraction to this monstrous 'kiss', to diminish its pleasure, faded rapidly the more of the Spawn's slick secretions were lathered into the walls of his oesophagus. As if the Creep could suppress it. Leaving him at the mercy of the alien sensation of a tongue tentacle twisting and pumping slowly within his throat.

He groaned, and slackened, the strength in his body robbed, the kiss disarming him utterly. And worse... its strangely erotic quality aroused him, his cock rising to attention before the Spawn eagerly, ready for more abuse.

It did not fail to notice, and a garbled whimper escaped him when he felt a tentacle crawl further around his leg and coil around his junk, balls and all, tip teasing his glans.

The rest of the tentacles followed suite, along with more emerging from the Spawn's back to descend upon him, hooking around his clothes and finding the hems and buttons, stripping him article by article.

Slimy film was left behind on his soon naked body, the pale grey-black residue leaving his body looking as if it were stained, and thoroughly sensitive.

But he couldn't feel it sinking into him just yet. That potion must have been the real deal... though now he realised it was a double-edged sword; true, he knew it would be of no help if he was caught, but it didn't occur to him that it'd drag out his ordeal.

He groaned in despair, and his hips bucked in glee.

A tendril coiled around his mast, stroking it slickly, the wet noise just barely audible to his ears.

He groaned and squirmed, precum pushing from his tip as the arousal grew in strength once more.

This damnable creature...

The kiss endured, Jan's strength ebbing from him rapidly, until he was left completely slack, no further bouts of squirming to impede the Spawn.

Another tentacle joined his rod, and he felt the two appendages spiral around his mast like a helix, twisting and pumping up and down and around his dick relentlessly.

Suddenly, he felt something. The tongue in his throat bulging, contractions pushing something within along... and then, thick, heavy globs of viscous slime poured down his gullet into his body, the warm, tingling substance settling with a terrible weight in his gut, spreading a buzzing warmth slowly through his innards.

It was feeding him Creep. Ensuring his fall to the Spawn.

Perhaps he would've cried, if he didn't feel so overwhelmed and aroused.

He twitched in the grasp of the creature, forced to ingest its terrible 'gift', as its tentacles played with his cock, flexing around his mast with tracing movements, tickling his glans and tracing along the underside of his corona. They crept down to his root, slithering through his bush to ensnare his balls, wrapping them up in the writhing strokes of the inky limbs.

More precum oozed from him, his body helplessly claimed by the Spawn. And it was going to be slow, before the effects of the potion were overcome.

After a while, with his gut starting to feel ever so slightly bloated, the Spawn released his mouth from that rapacious kiss, tongue recoiling with languid force, curling over his lips and its own, smacking them in satisfaction afterwards.

"That will help you for what's next~" it purred, stroking his cheeks with the back of its hand. He tried to spit in its face, but his mouth felt so slick, slick with its oily, sweet-tasting saliva, and that terrible, corrupting substance. And he was too weak even for that, all his strength going to his hips involuntarily, to buck and twitch in his stimulation.

His sensitivity was growing by the moment, every little touch to his skin a spark of stimulation through his senses. He couldn't help it, the Creep afflicting him, already corrupting him, even if it couldn't claim him quickly.

But a third tentacle joined the two swirling messily around his penis, tracing his tip, teasing at the very entrance of his urethra, sliding down to join the others, even teasing at his perineum.

He had no hope of resistance, whimpering groggily. Before long, he was releasing a heavy load right against the Spawn's belly, the stains rapidly fading as each stripe of seed was absorbed into the creature's body.

The stimulation endured, causing him to weakly thrash, his strength robbed from him, but he cried and all but sobbed as he was tortured by those tentacles constantly teasing his mast.

It was a good minute of this hellish torment before those tendrils retreated, spiralling fluidly away from his mast, grazing along his helm until they melted right back into 'Nara's' form.

The Spawn looked down upon him with an affectionate look, leaning its head against a hand as it admired him.

"So cute... but I think it's time I made the final preparations, and dealt with Perri... but do not fret, I have no intention on harming you~"

He had no idea what it meant by 'final preparations', but it filled him with a cold dread.

He could only hope Perri escaped or defeated this damned thing... and him with it.

Even as such thoughts of 'mercy' swirled through his head, a heated breath left his mouth as the arousal enveloped his mind and afflicted his body.

He groaned when he was once again turned around to face away from the Spawn, his back pressed against it, his head returning to its place deep within its cleavage, its body welcoming and soft, beckoning him to relax upon it, to give up and give in.

He couldn't help sighing and loosening up, more than he already was, his limbs held firmly to its legs and its sides by its tentacles. A hand reached down to caress his head, fingertips tenderly raking through his hair and leaving subtle moisture trails upon his scalp.

"There, nice and snug... all ready to become one with me~"

'Nara' laughed, and pulled him tight against its body, resting its hands against his shoulders, sandwiched under its bust.

That's when he felt himself relax further into the Spawn than seemed right. He mustered some strength to look, but his head... his head was stuck to the Spawn!

He tried to move his legs, but they were even more bound than before, adhered to its limbs.

He felt moist goo creep up the sides of his body, small, fat 'tongues' of the Spawn's body slowly advancing.

Panic began to rise in him, Jan finding some hidden strength as adrenaline surged, but to his dismay, he was only sinking further into the malevolent, amorphous being, crooning sweetly above him as he sank into it.

Worse, that adrenaline surge seemed to amplify his sensitivity, and his manhood did not seem at all concerned he was being 'consumed' by the Spawn... especially not when he felt firm ooze push against his pucker, 'licking' the firm ring of muscle with tantalising pressure.

His terror brought a return to his thrashing, but the Spawn's body was like glue, sticking him down and drawing him in, thicker than any mud bog or pool of quick sand.

But it was drawing him in. It was pulling on him, sucking him down with terrible, rippling sensations and a gentle suction that caressed his sensitive body as those creepers of ooze began to wrap around his front.

His cock bobbed eagerly, jubilantly, encouraged by the attention to his ass, a point of stimulation he had heard of but was never interested in. Now it was making him feel strange things and gasp hotly.

His balls were caught by the Spawn's body, gentle tugging akin to a massage adding to the stimulation.

His shins slipped below the surface of its legs, only his feet sticking out. His arms fully submerged now, only fingers desperately poking free of the inky flesh that was absorbing him, and they were rapidly disappearing into 'Nara's' form.

"S-Stop! Please! I don't want to die!" he blurted out, his defiance finally and fully cracking as this unexpected act broke him.

The Spawn shushed him in a way that was equally soothing and equally unsettling.

"Hush now, human... no death awaits you~ But a new beginning~"

The Spawn laughed salaciously, practically cackling as it pushed his shoulders down beneath its surface.

His head was halfway down into its body, eyes darting every which way in panic, but as he sank deeper, its breasts slowly closed in, further obstructing his vision. Slime rolled over his chest, the creeping tendrils and curls of dark ooze starting to come together, stitching up and smoothing out as if nothing had broken up the surface at all.

His feet were tugged downwards, and now his toes too vanished from sight.

The Spawn sighed luxuriously as if it were enjoying this. Perhaps it was pleasurable for it.

And unfortunately, despite his horror, it was pleasurable for Jan too. A strangled gasp ripped from his mouth as he felt Creep squeeze into his anus and swirl around as it flooded his rear.

Too many emotions and sensations were roiling in his head for him to feel any humiliation, least of all when he felt pressure applied to his prostate. The Spawn took advantage, and pumped its amorphous appendage in and out of his rear, making his cock bounce and jump, hard enough that fresh precum whipped off his tip, the droplets falling to the ground.

His balls were fully submerged in its body, under assault from what felt like a dozen different tongues and sets of lips, sucking on each orb, tugging them in every direction and leaving nothing untouched.

Everywhere, he felt the writhing caress of similar sensations against his submerged body, and a growing sensitivity just from being trapped within its form.

And yet, there was no evidence of any of this terrible activity on the surface. The Spawn's body was still, save for the sensual flexing of its movements.

He belatedly realised that he'd stopped sinking into its inky flesh, leaving him wondering why, even through the haze of euphoria rolling over him.

He felt himself slip down slightly, until his head was shadowed by the bottom of its breasts, and his cock emerged from just above its pussy, about where its clit ought to have been, had that area not given way for his dick.

It looked so disproportionately small compared to the rest of its body, but that didn't stop the Spawn from giggling.

"It looks like I have a dick~" it teased, curling its fingers tenderly around his mast, and starting to give it some masterful pumps, twisting its hand and adding a gentle rocking motion atop. Its fingers occasionally splayed against his shaft, grazing down his glans and playing back up towards the top, before reasserting that wonderfully soft grip. He whimpered and moaned, feeling a pressure rising in his loins already.

His nipples felt like countless minuscule bumps were twisting and spiralling against the sensitive points, a gentle suction imparted upon them atop of it all. He felt faux lips pepper his body everywhere, pseudo tongues taste every square inch of him, worming between his fingers and toes, tasting his neck, and yet he still saw no disturbance on the Spawn's exterior.

It was like inside its body was another realm all its own, yet it tightly encompassed him, save for the two parts of him left exposed.

He couldn't move at all now, the involuntary convulsions of his body so minute and restrained. If he could, and wasn't so exhausted, he'd probably be writhing madly.

All he could do was twitch, moan, and whimper, coherent thought eroded from his mind by the increasingly intensifying sensations he felt.

No human could resist this. No mortal inhuman could resist this.

What could anyone do to stop to this?

He yowled as the Spawn's stroking picked up speed and tightened ever so slightly.

"No holding back now~" it crooned, and he had no answer.

Just more desperate moans as that slippery hand mercilessly rolled over his glans, again and again, grazing the most sensitive points.

His fate was doom. Signed by the cry of ecstasy ripped from his lips, and the stunted bucking of his hips as he came, cock jerking with every rope released. His balls contracted with each pump within its body, contained by the relentless, amorphous flesh that roiled around it.

It was the biggest load yet, spattering the floor and only briefly staining those fingers as they rolled over his hypersensitive tip, earning more flinches.

His seed melted into those digits, absorbed and consumed, but that didn't stop the Spawn mercifully releasing his cock to bring its fingers to its lips, the audible smacking of its lewd tasting reaching him even as his ears were submerged.

"Still delicious~ Everything about you is delicious~" it praised, voice muffled through its slime, but he could still hear it clearly, as if transferring through its amorphous substance. "But now I think it's time you had a good rest~ I have something special planned for you~"

He could only groan, too exhausted to panic when he felt the Spawn press its hand to his brow, and push him all the way into its body until darkness crept over his eyes, slimy Creep tugging on his head and drawing him into the very depths of its body, his cock submerging to join the rest of him in roiling torment, as slimy appendages and shifting Creep flesh assaulted his body all over, a tentacle pouring into his mouth and flooding his throat, providing him with all the air and sustenance he'd need.

It was at this point he all but passed out, remaining conscious, but barely cognisant of what was happening to him.

Beyond the pleasure, that was. And one final sane thought.

'Perri... run...'

---

Perri grimaced as a fat dollop of Creep dropped onto her shoulder, rolling off her cloak.

The enchantment was holding, for now, both the water shield charm and wards to fend off corruption, and the potion she'd ingested was another layer of protection.

The first layer was her summoning fire to burn away strands of Creep that got in her way that didn't suddenly animate to ensnare her.

The stuff was getting thicker though, denser, covering the walls and spanning spaces between them and the floor and ceiling like slimy, nightmarish spider webs.

The notion made all the more unsettling by the fact Perri knew there were giant corrupted spiders in the deeper reaches of the Creeplands, creatures that bound their prey in corrupting silk cocoons that they'd never emerge from... not without being Spawn at least.

But there was an upside to that; it meant she was getting closer. Closer to the heart of this local infestation.

Whilst it wouldn't completely halt the spread of the Creeplands, as the veins of Creep from far off are how this corruption manifested in the first place.

She was a little perturbed though... this was much thicker than she expected it to be, as though her calculations about how long it'd been here were incorrect.

She had assumed the Creep had afflicted woods and the land around the manor for some time, the corruption moved slowly on its spread from the Creeplands, but early stages of corruption shouldn't have been this thick around the apparent 'node'. It was incongruous with what was present outside and around the rest of the manor.

It made the hairs on the back of her neck stand straighter.

She was heading up to the third floor of the manor, where the 'source' seemed to be. She felt a strange dread building inside her, like she was about to stumble into an old secret she didn't want answered. Even part of coming here was for exactly that reason.

She exhaled heavily, a blush on her face; the pervasive smell around her was mildly intoxicating, her enchantments and the potion she drank enough to keep the stronger effects at bay, but not enough to stop her feeling just a little aroused.

That's how the Spawn got their victims; temptation, pleasure, ecstasy. By the time they have moment of clarity - if they ever get one - it's already far too late for them, even if they're saved by an external source.

It was insidious, and with their many abilities and many forms, terribly effective. Entire cults sprang up revering the Spawn, desiring to change and to 'help' others change, spreading the corruption.

People believed they had protections to engage in such depravity with the Spawn and return unchanged. Rarely did they. And of those that did return, they were not as 'unchanged' as they claimed, an infiltrator or unwitting weapon ready to unleash their obscene terror on an unsuspecting populace.

Some did not want to abandon lost family and friends, believing the rumours the mind remained the same... or not.

Others just wanted a taste of power, or whatever reason to justify giving up their humanity, or whatever term applied for those other races who lived near or within the Creeplands.

That last one was a little too relevant right now...

She found the steps leading up to the final floor, creeping up the stairs, picking her way around pulsing, silently squelching vines of Creep that strangled the surfaces of the stairwell.

She came to the top, ducking beneath a veritable web of black slime nearly blocking her path.

She was in another hallway now, a short one, and only the faded carpet and a few patches along the walls and ceiling remained uncovered by the Creep.

There were several other doors around, but they were all choked and barred by the Creep all around them.

Only the double doors leading to the master bedroom were unobstructed, filling Perri with a funny feeling; like she was being directed into the room.

Fire swirled around her fingertips, a thin glove of flame forming as she stepped forward, ready to birth a full ball of fire at the first sign of real trouble.

She approached the double doors, the fire around her right hand flickering its light off her face, and off the glossy Creep all around her.

A tentative hand pressed to one of the doors, and pushed it open with an uncomfortably loud creaking.

She slipped inside and was taken aback.

The room was pristine. Besides the veins of creep neatly crawling across the walls and ceiling, the floor and furniture inside looked like it had never aged, a grand four-posted bed with white sheets and dark blue covers pressed against the far wall from the entrance, windows on either side of the room overlooking the wings of the manor, one in the wall behind the bed providing view to the rear of the property.

The portraits along the walls were left conveniently untouched by the Creep, each showing a different member of the old Weyland family, though none of her ancestors were present, hailing from an offshoot of the lineage, even if they shared the name.

A great chest of drawers sat on the left side the room by the window, a low table with a white porcelain flower vase filled with blooming roses with black petals sitting on its polished oak surface beneath that window. On the right was a tall cabinet with a mirror pressed against the wall, a similar table with a glass bowl filled with inky grapes sitting on it instead of a vase.

A privacy screen was folded up just to her right, half subsumed by the Creep surrounding the door, another set of drawers, smaller and less ornate than the one by the window, to the left.

A writing desk was facing the wall left of the great bed, and another privacy screen seemed drawn across the corner of the room to the right.

Everything looked clean, but the presence of corruption could not be ignored, no candles or lamps providing light, but 'growths' in the Creep, stunted, rounded protrusions that glowed a bright blue around their tips, though perplexingly the light that filled the room was natural, like lamplight or sunlight, alongside what filtered through the windows.

As for the 'source'... she believed she found it, a large 'pustule' of dark ooze roiling on the ceiling, eddies rippling along its surface as veins of Creep radiated from it.

But still, the sense of something being off didn't leave Perri. The lump of ooze was large, yes, but she was expecting something larger. And nothing accounted for the unusual condition of the room.

The flame around her hand burned hotter, almost clenching into a fist.

She stepped forward, towards the bed, and looked around; that was when she noticed a portrait hanging above the door. The subject was one Perri had seen earlier.

Nara Weyland.

Perri grit her teeth, feeling like something was terribly wrong. She faced the bed again, making sure not to step directly beneath the 'seed' on the ceiling, and checked around beside the bed, even fishing into some of the drawers for anything that might shed some light on... whatever this was.

All she found was old clothes.

"I've gotta get back to Jan," she said to herself, first preparing to set fire to the 'seed' and destroy it. If not, she'd set the whole place ablaze.

But when she turned back around, the blood drained from her face and she froze on the spot, eyes wide and fixed on the terrible smile of the Spawn standing at the doors.

"Hello there~" it greeted with treacherous sultriness.

The visage seemed all too familiar to Perri, a comparison conveniently hanging above the door... partially obscured by the Spawn's great stature.

"Nara Weyland," Perri guessed coldly.

"The very one~" 'Nara' answered. "And you must be Perri Weyland~ Such a long way to come for an offshoot of my family, after so much time has passed... but this is a joyous thing, truly~!"

"How do you know who I am?" Perri asked lowly, keeping her eyes fixed on the Spawn's, knowing full well some had hypnotic powers... but she dared not let herself get distracted with this thing around.

"Well, I always did like to keep up with family, and a little birdy has a way of getting tales to me, long before you set out~ I always hoped you'd find your way here, my long removed cousin~" the facsimile of Nara explained with a small flourish of its hand. "To see what I've achieved here~"

"So it's true," Perri remarked, "you brought the Creep here. They always said you were a strange one, and that you never feared the Spawn. Or at least, the Nara Weyland that was, before you stole her."

The Spawn rolled its eyes.

"You simple-minded Untainted really do believe everything, don't you," it chastised. "I am Nara Weyland. I have been, and always will be. I just saw what everyone else refused to. I saw the Spawn for what they really were... ascension~ Beautiful and wonderful, I am more now than I ever was..."

The Spawn trailed off, plucking the portrait above the door with its tentacles and holding the painting before it, brushing fingertips across the pristine canvas.

"I was beautiful then... and I am more so now~ But it is still me, if perhaps a little more... free spirited~ I have no need for inhibitions now, none do in Sehraa's embrace; she will lead us all to rapture and peace, one and the same~"

"Hah!" Perri spat. "You talk about rapture and peace, and yet look outside and see how your 'freedom' has choked the life from this land."

The Spawn rolled its eyes.

"Again, you believe everything. The Creep may twist and change the land into something unsettling when it first arrives in a place, but what you see outside is not its doing... no, that was the work of others, poisoning the land in an attempt to stop the spread not long after I had brought the Creep here. As you can see, it worked on the woods, but not on me. The Goddess has made me far stronger than that~"

'Nara' spread its arms wide in reverence whilst returning the portrait to its place above the door, taking a step towards Perri, the mage in the middle of contemplating that revelation; it was not something she had read about. But then again, it happened so long ago... and she couldn't fault the reasoning.

Her attention returned to the Spawn when it cast a lecherous smile at her.

"And now, I plan to give you that same gift~"

Perri grit her teeth, but her eyes widened in shock and disgust as she spied a phallic object tug down through its lowermost belly, strands of Creep pulling taut as though the object, resolving itself into a throbbing penis, had to break through the surface tension of the Spawn's flesh.

Balls hung with a bounce below the rod, positioned where the clit was, and the creature stroked its mast with a tender touch, causing it to twitch as it grinned wickedly.

It looked oddly small, given its overall proportions, though still bigger than the average man's.

Perri had no intention of finding that out in any intimate detail, the fiery cloak around her hand bursting into a full fieball, crackling with potential incendiary power.

"I will not suffer your advances, or you to live, Spawn," she growled threateningly, her hand beginning to recoil, preparing to blast the amorphous creature with no further delay.

The Spawn raised a hand and waggled its finger with a wicked smirk.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you... you'll harm something precious~"

Before Perri's confusion could set in, she watched as the inky cock was suddenly revealed to be made of flesh, the surface ooze crawling backward and receding into the Spawn, leaving a throbbing, leaky human cock behind, the balls and root devoid of any pubic hair, the veins within discoloured with early corruption.

And she watched with horror as a familiar face pushed through the surface of the Spawn's body, just between the lowest parts of its bust.

"JAN!" she screamed, face wrenching in dismay at the sight of his subsumed form.

He was aware, groaning weakly, his heavy-lidded eyes glancing at Perri, a look of weak desperation crossing his face, as if pleading with Perri to flee. One eye was partially discoloured, several of the veins in his face were black beneath his skin, and creepers of corrupting matter clung to the sides of his face above the skin.

The Spawn cackled softly.

"He really was quite fun~" it said, licking its lips and dragging a fingertip across the terribly swollen and sensitive glans of the man trapped within it, Jan's face wincing in stimulation. "Though that potion he drank is slowing things down a little."

A despair and fury filled Perri, tears rolling down her face.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" she screamed, the contained conflagration in her palm flaring with instability. Yes, Jan would perish with the Spawn... but he would be saved from a terrible fate. She had to take solace in that.

But the hesitation upon first seeing him was enough, and Perri loosed a panicked yelp as a gooey tendril lashed the wrist holding the fireball. She looked to the bound limb, her concentration causing the fireball to burst into a puff of embers and smoke.

More tentacles attacked her limbs, snaring them with slimy but unyielding grip, and she was suddenly forced to stand spread eagle, Perri desperately grunting as she strained against the appendages that bound her.

They had emerged from the Creep that crawled across the walls and ceiling, Perri making a grave error in not paying attention; Creep could become animate at almost any time... and if 'Nara' was powerful enough, could be commanded to do so by greater Spawn.

A look of lethargic despair crossed Jan's embedded face, realising that Perri had lost.

"When I brought the Creep here, my family fled. Not all made it out, becoming one with our Goddess, but they chose to head deeper into the Dark Lands, to revel in what magnificence lay there. But I knew my purpose was not yet done. I had to help the Spawn spread. But I was just a lowly Changed then, I had no real power. So I waited. I focused, I looked inward, I asked the Creep my questions, and it answered. I got stronger, I steeled myself. I overcome other Spawn, proving my prowess, and experienced bliss you could never imagine in doing so~ It took me decades, holding onto this rotting home as best I could, unable to advance the Creep further with the power I had and what was arrayed against me, more than that terrible act of poisoning to thwart the Goddess' ambition. I dealt with it all with what strength I possessed."

'Nara' seethed lustfully as it talked, eyes closing and lips twisting into a wicked smile, its hands moving to its chest to fondle its own bust.

It fixed its eyes with Perri once more, who was still struggling against her restraints.

"Now I am close to ascending to an Acolyte. Perhaps one day, I may even become one of Sehraa's Scions. But I need more than just this manor, and it has seen better days. But you, Perri... you will help restore our name~ Our family will mean something, in this land we will call our own~"

"You are not of my name!" Perri shouted bitterly, baring her teeth in a fierce snarl. "You cast a shadow on all of us with your treachery!"

"Did my little act of liberation really cause that much grief? A shame, I had no intention of damning the name... but that is no matter~ It's time to make amends... besides, I think you own Jan for dragging him all the way out here over old family wounds~"

The Spawn stepped closer, gently stroking Jan's cock, earning pitiable whimpers from the captive man, his face wincing from stimulation.

The tentacles holding onto Perri adjusted, and forced her into a slightly lowered position, so that her head was level with Jan's trapped and partly corrupted manhood.

Her eyes were wide, realising what the Spawn intended to do. It was too terrible to contemplate.

But she was helplessly caught... and when the Spawn's own back tentacles slithered forth to find their way beneath her cloak, despite its enchantments, to bind and grope her most sensitive places, she couldn't help groaning.

She already felt an intoxication from the air inside this place, but she didn't realise how sensitive it had made her, even with the potion she consumed.

And she could feel those worming limbs slathering a film of their secretions against her skin. Their bulges writhed in her cloak and her clothes beneath, a bizarre visual of roiling cloth and fabric, hiding the obscenity happening beneath.

She felt her nipples tugged and teased, the areolae circled wickedly, her vulva splayed apart by a tendril slipping beneath her pants from the front and curling tight against her body to grind against her back door and slither up between her glutes, to finally come to rest squeezing one of those cheeks.

She grunted, the stimulation humiliating, but the growing sensitivity on her skin making it hard to not feel uncomfortably pleasant.

And that was before she felt Jan's cock prod her lips, the glans still swollen, his length noticeably above average, and Perri suspected it was not the case beforehand.

Not that she knew for sure.

Salty, creamy precum teased her lips, and she tried to look away. It was Jan's cock, but it wasn't him raping her. It was that damned Spawn, using him like a mere puppet.

But she couldn't help gasping from the wriggling touches beneath her clothes... and that gave the Spawn a chance to graze Jan's tip between her lips, pushing against her teeth, smearing more of that musky flavour into her mouth.

She whined, and Jan gasped in pleasure. She looked him in the eyes, and he seemed halfway between dismay and desire, the effects of the Creep already in his head. That potion would not spare him for long, and nor was it a perfect shield, not against that.

The Spawn reached down, and grasped Perri's head, slick fingertips wrapping around her cheeks and the back of her skull, holding her in place.

That kept her from looking away, and she was struggling to find the strength to resist, between the constant molestation beneath her clothes, those tendrils finding every sensitive point she had, even those she never realised, and the gradually intensifying effects of exposure to those secretions.

She grit her teeth, denying entry as long as she could... but tentacles slithered around her belly, two of them descending upon her clit to all but vibrate against them with vigorous movement.

It was enough to make her gasp... and find her mouth filled with tainted cock, Jan's moans piercing her will in a way that she never could have conceived.

And that damned monster sighed out too, groping its chest with one hand, holding Perri's head with the other, starting to move its hips.

It was slow, and careful, gently pumping Jan's member back and forth between Perri's lips, gliding over her tongue as it leaked that salty-sweet arousal onto her tastebuds.

There was something off about it. It made her tongue tingle, made the sensation of that girthy length pushing into her muscle oddly pleasant.

Jan's own precum must have been already infected with the Creep. Worse, as his cock was carefully forced deeper into Perri's mouth, she was certain it was having an affect on her.

She could feel arousal growing, a desire forming in her mind and loins. She had known Jan for a long time, and he was easy on the eyes...

Did he think the same about her? He never was out to pursue her, and nor she him.

It must have been the Creep talking. Hazing her mind, making it wander as his throbbing length slowly pushed into her gullet, starting to fill her throat.

She groaned, shuddering as stimulation began to grow, but the tentacles groping her body were not going very fast or very hard.

They were keeping her pleasured, keeping her stimulated, but they weren't taking her arousal any further.

Leaving her to focus on the cock of her friend currently pushing into her throat.

She gagged a little, with each creeping thrust delving a little deeper. But precum oozed constantly from his helm like a leaky gutter, slicking up her throat, leaving it sensitive and oddly warm, though the effects weren't quite as intense as the building influence on her body.

It was enough that she felt her gag reflex slowly weakening, until it was entirely diminished... leaving her to gulp and gurgle as the hefty rod plunged all the way to the root, burying inside her gullet and gently smacking its balls against her chin.

For a moment, it lingered there, gently contractions in Jan's testicles subtly bouncing them against her chin. Precum oozed down her throat, and his cock had taken on a strange flavour she could only quite describe as masculine and tempting.

A similarly scented musk filled her nose, and she was finding it ever harder to concentrate.

Still, air remained a concern, and her face began to redden further as a result, trying to breathe through her nose. That's when the Spawn finally pulled its hips back, but not far enough that Jan's cock cleared her mouth, his tip still nestled behind her lips, resting on the tip of her tongue.

It gave her a chance for a deep inhale, gagging a little for breath. But her respite was short lived, the Spawn burying Jan's cock deep into her once more.

Only this time, it continued to move its hips, thrusting slowly, but with enough force all the same for Jan's hefty, slightly bloated sack to slap against her chin.

A hand remained to the top of her head, keeping her obediently locked to that oddly delicious manhood. And worse, she found herself maintaining a sensual seal with her lips... and occasionally, as if entirely at the whim of her subconscious, curling her tongue against the invading length.

Where had that come from? Was she truly falling already?

Jan certainly had, gasping and moaning, grimacing on those occasions he tried to resist, fully aware of what was happening... but there was nothing he could do to truly resist, and clearly... her mouth felt good to him.

It was a strange comfort, the idea that Jan was feeling good from her. He was a good friend, he deserved that much at least. Not something she would've ever considered in any other circumstance.

The Spawn continued to thrust its hips, Jan's dick plunging a little bit faster every time. He was starting to throb, the fat droplets of his precum rolling down her tongue and her throat, so sweet, so creamy, so savoury.

Why did it have to taste so nice?

She whined as his balls continued to slap against her chin, and moaned from everything else being done to her body.

Jan's moans were getting hotter, however, sharper and more strained. He was surely close.

And with the way the Spawn was going, there would be no pulling out.

Perri was going to have to swallow every drop.

"He sounds close~" 'Nara' observed with a wicked delight, gasping as it pinched one of its nipples. "Isn't it wonderful to make a friend feel good~?"

Perri didn't have the energy to curse the Spawn anymore, her resistance slowly eroded from the invasive groping and the forced fellatio of her own friend's dick.

The thrusting got hard, and soon, Jan couldn't resist anymore, moaning loud and whorish into the room, the Spawn forcing his mast to the base inside Perri's mouth.

She gagged slightly, even with the unbelievable load that followed, his balls practically bouncing against her chin with each of their vigorous contractions, every throb of his cock parting her lips that little bit more, repeatedly, as cum poured down her throat.

The taste and the smell was even more pungent than before. There was no way a human could release a load this thick, a subtle weight forming in her gut by the time the creature pulled its hips back and let a final, weaker pulse paint a streak across her face, making her flinch.

She was left panting, though not as hard as Jan; if she could've seen his chest, she was sure it would've been heaving.

She coughed up a few spatters of his cum onto the floor, but ultimately groaned in defeat. And steadily growing arousal; she realised his cum was not even an off-white. It looked grey, a dark tinge to it. A sign of his inexorable change.

And no doubt, her own.

"P-Perri..." Jan groaned. "I'm... sorry..."

"It's... okay," Perri answered between breasts. A hand tenderly caressed each of their cheeks, the Spawn crooning sweetly.

"Yes, it's okay~ Everything will be okay~" they purred, sounding more affectionate and caring than they ever had.

Suddenly, the tentacles mercilessly groping and fondling Perri's body expanded, and tugged off her clothes and her cloak, dexterously removing every single article down to her shoes, until she was stripped naked, her body slack but standing in the grasp of the oily limbs, her pale skin stained with a faint blackish hue, the result of the thorough exploration of those Creep-formed tendrils. Her skin glistened from the moisture.

She had a modest figure; a shapely rear, breasts that could fill a person's hands, the dark nipples contrasting with her complexion, and harder than diamonds, the areolae quite narrow compared to some.

She had subtle rolls on her belly, and her waist only tapered a little. But she was still beautiful, still shapely, and Jan couldn't help staring in his mind-warped state.

Perri didn't know whether to feel embarrassed, humiliated, ashamed... or oddly proud. That someone could desire her so.

"Beautiful~" Nara praised, licking their lips. "You are truly fit to become Spawn~"

They chuckled, and then raised Perri off the ground with their own back tentacles, positioning her before their hips, holding her body at a slight angle so she got a nice view of what was about to happen.

Perri squirmed, some lingering defiance, weakly tugging on those tentacles, not quite so defeated just yet. But the unwholesome thoughts and desires swirling around her head, and how sensitive she felt, left her struggling to despair or defy.

Instead, she watched her body drawn close enough to feel Jan's still mightily erect cock gently splay her labia apart, her folds 'kissing' his tip, a modest amount of pressure put on her clitoris.

It was strange, she never thought about doing this with Jan. They were good friends, his eyes always seemed to be for others.

But she didn't feel so bad that it was Jan. It made her feel oddly happy.

His eyes were fixed on the juncture between her legs, on where his tip was spreading her folds, ready to push inside. He was large, but not impossibly so; she could take him, she was sure of it, though she wasn't quite sure why.

Maybe she really had gone insane. It's not like she'd been made to ingest pure Creep. A coping mechanism to make the end less terrible.

Her body seemed to appreciate it, her nerves steadily arcing with euphoria once her hips began to be pulled onto Jan's enhanced and partly corrupted cock.

A loud moan left her, feeling the strain of her stretched walls fill her with both discomfort and delight.

It wasn't like she was a virgin, she'd fooled around when she was young and hormonal, before she dedicated herself to the Guild... but she'd never taken something like this.

Jan moaned too, breathy, whorish, too little defiance left in him to stay quiet, to pretend he wasn't enjoying this.

The Spawn were truly terrifying, Perri thought, if this was what they did to the minds of those they claimed.

She began to squirm again, not in resistance, but from the intensity of the stimulation, her walls stretched, her depths filled by Jan's meaty rod, until there was a small jolt, and Jan's member buried itself all the way inside her.

A sharp, stimulated gasp escaped her, eyes going wide from the spike of intensity that coursed through her body, muscles tensing all over.

She flinched a few seconds after once she fully comprehended what was happening... and then felt Nara's hands luxuriously curl around her hips.

"Allow me to help you two realise new possibilities~" they crooned... and began rocking their hips, and moving Perri's body back and forth, pushed away, and pulled in to meet the Spawn's thrusts, Jan's cock spearing her repeatedly.

Sharp moans continually escaped from her, her breasts wobbling hypnotically from the gradually quickening movements, Jan's eyes unable to tear away from Perri's shifting bust.

She was still suspended by tentacles, holding her up and keeping her in place and assisting Nara in forcing Perri and Jan to copulate.

He couldn't help his moans, drool rolling over his bottom lip. More of his eye looked discoloured now, and the other was starting to darken at the edges.

That potion was likely the only thing that was keeping him from succumbing entirely, though it was obvious the lust had already overwhelmed him. In time, his body would follow suite completely.

She squirmed some more, but that just forced Jan's cock into her walls at different angles... including right against her trigger spot, a girlish yelp escaping her, accompanied by a tense shudder.

Nara licked their lips.

"So, that's where it is~" they crooned deviously.

Perri suddenly found her hips tilted slightly, and with every thrust, felt that very spot pressed over and over, twitches wracking her body, her spine arching and harsh gasps and moans forced from her lips. She rocked back and forth, soon hearing and feeling the Spawn's crotch wetly slapping upon her own, Jan's balls swinging and knocking into her rippling glutes.

The creature murmured softly, deriving pleasure in some manner from this communion, but it was Jan and Perri's voices that created the real symphony.

She felt his manhood starting to throb, a good sign he was close to climax. He was going to cum inside her. Jan was going to cum inside her. And the maddest thing of all, she didn't seem to mind it that much.

The slapping got faster, louder, wetter, and their mixing moans were similarly intensifying. Every soft part on her body was jiggling, her hair flicking repeatedly.

It all came to a head, when Perri came first.

She cried out, cramping up and spasming, her body shivering tautly, and her walls practically buzzing Jan's dick. Enough to force a harsh groan out of his throat as ejaculation followed, heavy ropes, just as thick as the first load, pumping into her depths.

Nara laughed, and pulled Perri as firmly down upon Jan's cock as possible, ensuring she felt every potent throb and forceful pulse. She even felt the jumping of his balls, contracting as they worked to fill Perri's womanhood.

Her mouth hung open, drool rolling down her cheek as she endured the intense ecstasy of this mutual bliss.

But in time, they both calmed down, panting heavily and groaning in lust that wouldn't leave them, Jan especially afflicted.

"P-Perri... I'm... sorry Perri..." he groaned, repeating himself.

"It's... okay," Perri echoed. "It's... okay."

Nara laughed sweetly.

"Perhaps you two really should've gotten together... but no matter~ I can arrange that right now... you will be together, and so much more, when I'm done with you... but you'll need time~ I have plenty of that~"

Perri was suddenly sat upright, now level with Jan's exposed face, but the rest of him remained buried inside of Nara's body, the edges of their amorphous body creeping up the sides of his face.

He looked into Perri's eyes, trying not to go mad with the lust, then glanced at her lips. He wanted to kiss her, surely.

Without warning, Perri felt her legs lashed tight against Nara's own, her arms being forced to the Spawn's sides. And she was still impaled upon Jan's meaty rod, still throbbing with fresh arousal.

Her bust squashed against Nara's skin, the Spawn's breasts brushing against the sides of her head. Could Jan feel her chest through Nara's Creep flesh? Could he feel just how steely her nipples felt in this moment?

"Jan... I..." she began, but stopped. Was she about to confess? Confess to what, she hadn't loved him, they were close friends. But never lovers. She never sensed anything of the sort from him either.

But if this was to be their end... again, she thought, it wouldn't be so bad it was Jan. It made her happy in a way she couldn't describe.

"I'm glad it's you," she finished with a smile, a tear rolling down her cheek.

She lurched forward, pulled tight against Nara's body... and realised she was sinking into it.

She and Jan were both sinking into Nara's form, a subtle burbling sound, almost imperceptible, reaching her ears as her arms and legs melted into the malleable flesh of the Spawn.

She felt her limbs tugged on, a gooey suction drawing her in as Creep assailed her limbs, like so many feelers and so many tongues caressing and licking her.

She squirmed, but it was useless, groaning from the feeling of Jan's cock throbbing needily inside her.

Her vision began to darken as Creep washed over Jan's face, closing in on his eyes.

"I'll be here..." he said quietly, before his face vanished.

Her voice hitched in her throat, but soon, tendrils of Creep began to slink up her sides, curling around her limbs, her back, her rump, and up the sides of her head, drawing her ever deeper into the slimy mass that was Nara Weyland.

"When you emerge, you will understand~" was the final words she heard from Nara before the Creep flowed over her head and she was drowned in inky mass, the kiss of warm, moist air on her back slowly fading, until she was utterly subsumed within Nara's form.

She could see nothing. But she could feel a lot, a garbled moan escaping her as a slimy tendril found her pucker, and began to tease it. Jan's cock was still lodged deep inside of her pussy, leaking fresh precum like some other force was stimulating him... a gentle, subtle thrusting that seemed like it was an external force rather than his own motions.

But soon, she felt more of him... her body squashing against his, her breasts compressing against his chest as they were brought close, and a strange pocket drained away to free their heads and upper torsos, still buried deep within Nara's body.

Unexpectedly, the inky flesh around them began to pulse with a gentle blue light, flooding the small pocket with an azure glow... allowing Nara to lay eyes on a beleaguered, lusting Jan.

"I tried... I tried... to fight her. I couldn't... she was too... too strong," he explained desperately, exhausted and with debilitating arousal. It made him struggle to get the words out.

"I told you, it's okay," she reassured. She could see through the lust, the corruption, that Jan felt guilty over his failure. He always was a dutiful sort. She'd caress his cheek, if she could. A smile would have to do.

"I didn't... want to see you fall," he admitted.

"Well, we both have," Perri said with a bitter laugh, a heated breath escaping after; the atmosphere within Nara's body was intoxicating, the air laden with the tainted pheromones and corruption of the Creep. Why had Nara formed this space? To let them speak?

Well, perhaps a small mercy. They could have this conversation before they lost their sense of self.

She groaned, the constant molestation around her impossible to ignore.

"This was always... nnf... a risk. It's what we accepted when we joined the Guild..." she said, trying to make light of their situation.

"I didn't think... it'd be me..." Jan admitted.

"Well, at least we're together... and we can hope to be avenged. That the Spawn will be stopped, and the world will be safe. Let's hope others learn from our mistakes... until that happens... I guess we can go mad together."

She smiled... and leaned into kiss Jan, slipping her tongue into his mouth, not really caring anymore, and perhaps driven by the growing lust from contact with the Creep slowly roiling all around her.

Jan didn't even seem to hesitate, his tongue returning the dance as his lips worked away in return, both murmuring in lust and happiness, the pocket of Creep seeming to constrict around their heads... keeping them pulling out of the kiss.

Perri moaned, feeling her ass invaded by a gooey tendril, her rump groped by shifting Creep, rippling sensations cascading along her spine.

Tendrils found her nipples and Jan's, latching onto both and imparting intense suction.

Everywhere outside the pocket was subject to relentless sensation, like the most obscene, squeezing massage she could imagine.

Creep flowed across her groin, and focused around her clitoris, swirling and sucking on it and making her whimper.

Jan was whining much the same, no doubt all manner of molestation inflicted upon his body too.

But there was little either could do to resist what was happening. And they were too far gone to care now, making the most of their final moments of humanity. The thrusting in her ass increased in speed, and she felt Jan's hips bucking jerkily at a similar tempo... his rear must've been filled and plundered much like hers.

They were both prisoners within Nara, to be overwhelmed with lust, before the Corruption fully claimed them.

In time, they both moaned into their kiss, as climax washed over them, her pussy spasming, and his cock throbbing, pulsing thick, fresh ropes of tainted cum right into her depths, adding to the loads she'd already taken, beginning to feel their effects, even if weaker compared to a fully changed Spawn.

It didn't matter. They kept kissing. They started rubbing their bodies together with what little range of motion they had. There was nothing left to do, but enjoy themselves, feeling a strange sense of contentedness, as Nara's Creep once more closed in around them, drowning them in darkness... and they still continued to kiss as their bodies were filled...

---

Nara sighed happily, caressing her smooth belly where Perri had just sank into her to join her friend.

The woman was formidable, even if she didn't get a chance to really strike back. But there was strength in her, and Nara knew it could be better served bringing the Goddess' plan to fruition.

Nara smiled, and walked out of the bedroom, through the hall and past the stairwell, strangling Creep blocking the way behind it parting and recoiling to let her through, until she came to the room at the far end, wherein a round window overlooked the grounds, facing the West. The Dark Lands' heart lay to the far North, but the Manor laid closer to the Eastern edge of Sehraa's domain.

Tendrils opened the window, allowing Nara to breathe in fresh air, even if the barren atmosphere of the poisoned land before her.

The Creep would rejuvenate it, return it to life, give it a chance to flourish. And soon, those that stood before her and the Goddess would succumb, and understand.

All they had to do, was return to the old borders, cross over them, if they did not want such a fate. To live unchanged. But such knowledge had been lost to time, it seemed. Few seemed to know where the old borders were, few seemed to even remember - or even heard - the warning Sehraa gave those many years ago after her return, and not many seemed interested in spreading that knowledge.

No matter, those who remained would not come to regret their new lives. And those that ventured in, for treasure or 'noble cause', would find themselves enjoying new lives themselves.

But there was something to be said about their fear in the heat of the moment... how much like prey they were.

She rubbed her belly and licked her lips; soon, Jan and Perri would be by her side, reborn and renewed, and ready to serve. To serve her, and to serve the Goddess' will.

"It will be time for the Weyland name to carry weight once more~" she crooned with a hungering lick of her lips.