The Devotee

Art and Inspired by @apricot_tarte_ on X

The Devotee

A beautiful chiaroscuro; an ancient structure abandoned for centuries. Its walls were scaly and branching, crowded with primordial ornaments and hand-painted images from an age so old it had endured millions of years. The ceiling itself was fissured, and from certain angles the chamber appeared to be a lethal chamber. Light, a beam of light. Yet the chamber bore no opening despite its cracks. And then: such beauty. Long silver hair fell freely in exquisite strands. Light shone without any known source, while the hues of the chamber she occupied felt strangely familiar, for she possessed dozens of sheep. The sheep had not yet appeared; their bleating was not yet heard. But soon they would come, and the girl waited patiently, humming sweetly, swinging her legs back and forth, her eyes closed in serene peace. She smiled as she regarded each of the six corridors of fossil and earth that led toward her.
Then the motion of her legs ceased gently, and she leapt down from the circular stone podium, turning her attention to one of the northern corridors from which an unnatural footstep sounded. She thought, “Oh. ?I"ri,, is it already time.” She drew a long breath and turned toward the stone. Her small body appeared endearing, like freshly polished wood. Her skin bore a virginal hue, and her eyelashes curved delicately. Should a human behold her, they would surely stand transfixed, as if witnessing a fallen angel.
She shed her garments, though the girl herself seemed indifferent to the act.
After all, she—
The girl lifted her gaze upward. Full of compassion, and at once beyond explanation by words, nor could it be understood what she was or why she watched with such tenderness. A figure with the head of a ram, then two rams, appeared as though blessing her with the joined fingers of its right hand, blessing her in the manner of Baphomet. The girl felt no fear; instead she smiled, as though offering gratitude. Having received that beautiful smile, the figure vanished into the darkness of the cold marble ceiling.
And then, when she heard the bleating of a sheep, her expression softened into love and anticipation.
Eight sheep. They bleated as soon as they entered the chamber, beholding the girl. The girl, watching with hope, walked toward them and crouched. The foremost sheep, the one bleating loudly, was biting onto a rope, while the other seven herded silently and cautiously in an arrow formation.
The sheep at the tip bleated once more, and the girl greeted it with a gentle stroke upon the head, saying, “Well done. Thank you for bringing it here.” Her smile bloomed once again.
“Baa,” the sheep replied, followed by the others, who broke formation and lined up side by side.
“Yes, yes. You have all worked hard as well.” The girl stood and stroked each of their heads in turn. “Thank you. Thank you, all of you.”
After that, the girl instructed the foremost sheep to drag the rope so that what it carried might be placed upon the stone podium. The sheep understood, and slowly pulled the rope from the corridor. Gradually, a human body emerged, stretched out in weakness, arms and legs bound. Its head was wrapped in a thick cloth tied at the neck, with several holes cut beneath the eyes. Binding the human was futile, for the body was already torn apart. So grievously mutilated, so formless.
The body was dragged until it reached the circular stone podium.
“Baa,” the sheep groaned as it struggled to adjust the position.
“What is it?” the girl approached.
“Baaaa.”
“Oh.” The girl turned and asked three sheep who stood watchfully to lift the human body using their heads.
The three sheep obeyed. With the aid of their horns, snouts, and brows, they managed to place the body atop the podium. “There, like that. Hmmm, that is better,” said the girl. “How much longer until They arrive?”
“Baaaa.”
“Baaaohn....”
“Oh, they have been preparing at the portico since earlier? Oh dear, you do love making me wait.”
The two sheep followed with, “Bbaa,” and “Mbe...k.”
The girl held her head in bewilderment and resignation. “I only proposed to him as my betrothed, that is all. Each of you has a partner you love, do you not? So do I.” She released her head and looked at each sheep with eyes still closed. “You have heard what ?I"ri,, said, have you not? He said, ‘your body is forbidden to sheep.’ That is what he said.”
“Baaa. mbaaaaaa.”
The girl pursed her lips. “I wish to be a bride as well, you know. And...” She glanced at the torn human body. “At last I found a way out. No, perhaps ?I"ri,, granted me a path and answered my prayer. The same prayer I have repeated at dawn, morning, noon, dusk, night, and midnight. This is the answer. ?I"ri,, gave me an opportunity, an opportunity to reach and fulfill my desire.”
The sheep fell silent, gazing at one another in astonishment, as though unable to deny that they must accept the declaration of the girl who had now come of age. Millennia wasted, perhaps longer than that, or since the ancient aeons with ?I"ri,,.
At last, one of them, whose thick wool covered its brow almost to its nose, bleated softly, “Baaa,” with sincerity.
The girl listened. “I too think the engagement may fail. But I am certain he will accept it. He will accept it, and he will accept himself. And so, after the long wait and my prayers to ?I"ri,, , I will fulfill my promise to myself. To please myself.” The girl was radiant with joy. For the first time, the eight sheep beheld her face flushed with color. How good it was for her, for ?I"ri,, , and for the eight sheep.
Then they all heard the sound of knocking, the knocking of hooves, the clatter of sheep hooves, coming from every corridor. The girl turned toward each passage, beholding them one by one with eyes still closed, not yet daring to open them, not until later.
From the darkness came a multitude of sheep, varied in form, some normal, some strange, many mutated from crossings between normal and abnormal breeds with ?I"ri,,. Over time they had grown more numerous, until they gathered beneath the arched ceiling, not quite entering the lethal chamber. The strange and ordinary sheep were now clearly visible. Some bore unnaturally long necks, ten tongues hanging downward, rigid as iron, green eyes, hooves mutated like those of humans, faces marred with pox and cancer, and thick wool that concealed or revealed lamb heads the size of full-grown sheep.
With fervor, the girl raised both arms and cried out, “All of you! Welcome to my engagement!” The eight sheep who had arrived earlier bleated, leading the chorus of the others. The lethal chamber grew loud, filled with the howling of white sheep converging upon the girl.
After several minutes of terrifying cries, shrill and thunderous, echoing through the palace, the girl lowered her arms. At once, the lethal chamber fell silent. The sheep ceased their howling and began to listen. Some sat with legs folded beneath their wool, while the stranger sheep remained standing, sinking into shadow, or coughing from metallic saliva or molten gold.
The girl continued. “My brothers and sisters, my friends, my family, I call upon you. As you know, I am a sheep.” The girl declared.
“Baa.”
“But the universe says otherwise. In my life, the ancient aeons have always kept their promises to me. Yet at some point, perhaps I sinned, and so I was born different from you, my sisters. I was born in the most different form. I could not mingle nor associate with any of you. My sorrow was deep, so deep it swallowed me into a great depression that made me suffer for nearly a millennium.”
“Baa.” “Baaa.”
The girl smiled, turning and walking slowly. “But because of you, I remained sane. I remained formed. And I remained faithful to ?I"ri,,. Thank you. Thank you all for your support. And five days ago, ?I"ri,, answered my prayer. A prayer I had offered for so long. He granted it by giving me a soulmate. I, who was forbidden to consort with sheep, finally gained a partner whom I may consort with. Blessed be ?I"ri,,. Blessed be His Name.”
“Today, I shall be engaged to him, my sisters. But I also realize that perhaps many of you may not bless our future marriage. So I ask, if you do not object, step forward.”
The girl stopped. She looked at every sheep around her, before, behind, left, right, every side without omission. Yet not a single sheep stepped forward.
“Does everyone agree?” the girl asked softly.
And indeed, every sheep gave its blessing. The question was answered by a renewed howl, thunder once more shaking the lethal chamber. The girl herself blushed, shy, and from her closed eyes flowed tears. She smiled warmly as she listened to them bleat with hopeful goodwill. She offered her deepest gratitude to ?I"ri,, and began again. “Very well.”
The sheep gradually quieted. The girl stepped toward the torn body, approached it, and gently stroked the sheep cloth wrapped around its head. She whispered, “They bless us, B.”
She then called one of the eight sheep who had carried the body. To those not called, she instructed them to draw a pattern around the stone podium. They obeyed. Quickly, a circular design formed, filled with sigils, fragments of incantations, lines, and blood from each sheep. The pattern bore the name of ?I"ri,,. Such a pattern could only be made by sheep and drawn using their own blood. To obtain it, each bit their own tongue.
When the pattern was complete, the girl stroked each sheep’s head and spoke to the seven now standing in a line. “For the last time, I thank you. You shall be remembered. From this moment, your names are D’ero, Ries, Meto, Aun, Rowl, Wer, Lbov. To me, you are eternal. I will not forget any of you. Ries, Aun, Rowl, D’ero, Wer, Lbov, Meto. You may leave me now.”
Their bodies collapsed at once, falling aside as though they had endured for centuries. The girl then approached the last of the eight who had lived from the beginning. The sheep bleated with eyes full of affection, “baaa.”
The girl crouched before it. “I love you too, Shild.” The sheep pressed its head against her face. “Yes, we will meet again, Shild.”
She asked Shild to open its jaws, and the girl inserted her arm into the open mouth to grasp something within. It did not take long before Shild groaned in pain, yet it made no attempt to resist or withdraw. The groan ceased as the girl withdrew her arm, clutching a dagger.
A magnificent dagger, beautiful and formidable despite its small size. It was pitch black, carved, forged, and refined from rare onyx stone.
As the girl admired the dagger, Shild collapsed, joining its fallen companions.
She gripped the dagger tightly, weeping for her departed kin. Yet she had to remain strong, and she vowed not to let their sacrifice be in vain.
She walked slowly toward the torn body. The sheep who had stood at the arched corridor now drew closer. Lambs watched with curiosity, while the adult and strange sheep stood silently, bearing witness to the rite.
Standing beside the stone podium, she knew this was the moment. This was the long-awaited hour. She would sever the head of the torn body, and the tale would continue toward a happy ending.
She raised the dagger without hesitation and aimed the blade downward. Lambs ran about her feet, curious about her actions. One approached and bleated briefly, but the girl ignored it. The sharp edge reached the neck. She studied the blade, the neck, the cloth. Slowly she pressed the blade in, cutting skin, flesh, sinew, moving up and down, up and down. Blood sprayed everywhere, onto her face, the podium, and the patiently waiting sheep. The woman cut with firmness, humming and chanting.
When the final connection was severed and the dagger laid down, a green light burst forth from the circle of blood flowing from the torn body. As the light grew brighter, though awkwardly so, the girl thanked ?I"ri,,. Not long after her gratitude, she saw the right index finger of the torn body move, trembling, rising and falling.