The Goddess

Atlus hammered Kuo in the sides thrusting him away from the door and allowing the beast to burst through. Snorting, they could hear the being cough a viscous liquid gurgling up through its throat to hawk it at Atlus only to be dodged instantly.

He jumped to his feet running from the monster that had suddenly become once again slightly on two feet. It hobbled fast at the boy.

[Master is not yet a phantom, Kuo]

"What do you mean?" Kuo asked.

[He hasn't been activated like you are yet assistant Kuo]

The realization hit him as he accused Atlus of knowing something he had no true idea of so why was he acting suspiciously he thought?

"Atlus!" Kuo shouted.

He ran down the hall to give chase only to find Atlus had been long gone. As he traversed the halls of the hotel he had become confused if he was going the right way or not second-guessing himself.

A loud beeping startled him as he walked lightly down the steps. To find panicking people down below frozen in place as Atlus was nowhere to be found, but the room had been ravaged and dismantled with tables knocked over and potted plants knocked to their sides.

"Did you see an animal go this way?" Kuo asked.

Everyone pointed straight saying nothing more. The next room is a roofed patio going outside to find even then he was nowhere in sight.

Something made his fingers quiver and his body suddenly shake rounding the corner. The lapping of an animal could be heard. Surely was nothing more than a thirsty dog he imagined taking one step at a time.

He wanted to turn away. Surely it was nothing and they were inside the building. Left foot then right foot around the bend to find Atlus on the ground.

His lifeless eyes peered up at the sky. A bright blue and wafting fluffy clouds reflected down into his enlarged irises as the beast feasted on his insides, his intestines strung out before him as his body laid stiff as a board plastered in his own blood.

"Li…Hua…"

Reversing gradually he did not plan to get caught. Unknowingly a bottle rolled out nearly tiptoeing stumbling backward on the empty container rolling his foot out to trip, and falling on his back.

"Ahhhh!" He cried out.

Catching the attention of the being it let out a rawr watching it run to him. Kuo shielded his face elongating the pathetic attempt to scream sticking out his other hand and feeling its rancid breath on his neck.

"C-chaos burst!" He yelled.

A blue beam exploded from the palm of his hand. The creature yelped whimpering away only to anger the thing.

He peeked gawking through his fingers to find all was in a petrified position like a statue around him. Atlus's lifeless body could be seen laying there.

Kuo lifted himself up from the concrete floor to find a woman floating down from the sky. Long luminous black hair flowed with no help from the breeze in the air, her large golden and pink hanfu reaching Atlus from above.

[Kuo, get ready…]

"Get ready for?" Kuo whispered.

"Who is there?!" She shouted.

Behind her, she found the awkward Kuo. Anxious he shuddered at such a sight in front of his eyes. Her hair seemed to move of its own accord becoming longer and longer wrapping itself around Kuo.

He became entangled in the mess of glimmering follicles. Each has a life of its own. Her face became contorted like a monster; the snout of a furred animal.

"Y-You sent my friend on Atlus!" Kuo yelled.

"I did no such thing!" She scoffed.

The fleshy stone lion statue unraveled becoming a naked woman collapsed on the ground. She became furious and realized what had happened.

"Li-Hua!" Kuo shouted.

"Not-so-fast!" The Goddess snapped.

[Contact made-bind #1]

"What is going on?!" Kuo muttered.

He slumped over for several seconds. The Goddess was puzzled why he had just sagged in her grip. She pulled him to find he slunk back with his eyes mute color.

New confidence came over his being. A brave smile appeared on his face gracing her with his pearly whites. His lips seemed to change to darker skin color.

"Goddess Zhan…do you remember me?" He asked.

Her eyes widened in horror realizing his presence through Kuo. She almost wanted to escape his grasp. He tugged on her long sleeves clutching it hard as he could.

"How dare you…" She whispered.

Practically growling at the possessed man. She could feel a burning, rushing through her veins and biting into her bones like internal marrow mites as her whole body flush hot gaining temperature by the second.

"UNRAVEL THE GODDESS!" He shouted.

She was blinded by the internal spell eating at her insides, her tissues, bones shattering, muscles ribboning externally to the outside of her body till only her golden heart could be seen beating pulsating in threads of her hanfu.

Kuo stood up to claim the organ. Bending down he could feel her mind inside his head.

"So…this…is…" Kuo said.

He blanked out returning to his consciousness on that of a white smoldering in his vision. Li-Hua across the room and in the middle nothing more than a threadbare costume in all its glory on the nothingness.

An echo of mourning could be heard high in the air. His head felt fuzzy finally comprehending his hands were bound behind his back. Everyone is dead he thought and so was he.

Gazing around he didn't see Atlus. When he tried to call he became aware he couldn't speak.

The silence of the environment was damning as they say. He sighed closing his eyes and listening to a hum he couldn't recognize almost akin to a machine. Kuo felt horrible in this state waiting to see what would happen to him.

In the middle of the room, he caught someone hobbling. They lurched like a zombie bumping into Li-Hua unable to progress.

[Good job Kuo! You are now in the Goddess's hold!]

He forgot his voice had become lost in this strange world. Was this the plan the whole time?