Hecatomb

[content warning for (partial) loss of bodily autonomy]

Hecatomb had always been known as a very kind and sweet dragon. Always willing to give a helping claw to her neighbors in need and always having cookies and tea ready for any visitors. She was beloved in her clan and every dragon knew they could come to her if they ever needed a listening ear and a comforting presence.

One day, however, a visitor came to the clan, one that had never made an appearance before. They introduced themselves as a peddler of various wares and asked where they could find a place to settle down for a few hours, since they were exhausted from their travels. The dragons in the clan knew exactly where to send the unexpected visitor, and soon they stood in front of Hecatomb's door. Hecatomb welcomed them with open arms, givng them a warm place to rest and store their wares for fear of them being lost or worse, stolen. The traveller warmly thanked Hecatomb for her help, but warned her not to touch any of his belongings. Hecatomb readily agreed and left them in their room.

An hour or two later, some strange noises began to spill out from the traveller's room. Hecatomb, ever curious and wanting to help in case something had fallen over, rushed over to see what was going on. Upon arriving, she saw the room in complete disarray, while the merchant was still sleeping peacefully. Papers were thrown everywhere, some empty glasses had been knocked over and it seemed some of the wares had somehow gotten out of their crates. Not wanting to disturb the visitor, and wishing to keep her home relatively tidy, she began to clean up the mess. The merchant's warning flashed briefly through her mind as she started on the papers (yet unsigned contracts and documents for proof of ownership, she noted), but she quickly disregarded it as just a precaution against stealing from a weary traveller.

The papers stacked up in a neat pile and the glasses returned to the kitchen, Hecatomb decided to get started on the wares that had become strewn all throughout the room. She bent down to pick up a locket, shining strangely bright in the low light, and as she touched it, she instantly felt a surge of energy, striking her like a bolt of lightning. She felt it enter her body through the contact with the locket, rapidly making a place for itself in her body. Gasping, she stumbled back, but it was too late. It had already settled in her ribcage, close to her throat but not quite. The energy spoke to her in a low and terrible voice.

"Hello there. Thank you so much for getting me out of that prison, I was starting to feel a bit restless in there. I think we'll be the best of friends, don't you?"

Since then, Hecatomb has never heard the entity speak to her again.

The merchant woke up a short while later, disturbed from their sleep by Hecatomb roughly shaking them and urging them to wake up. She tried to explain her situation to them, but everything that she said came out wrong. Insults fell off her tongue instead of sentences, vulgarity instead of questions. The merchant looked distraught, then noticed the chaos in the room, upon which a knowing look descended onto their face.

The traveller was a merchant of cursed wares, mostly for collectors across Sornieth. Some of the items they had with them were incredibly unique and costly, others quite mundane but would still sell for some shining coin to a dragon just starting their collection. The locket Hecatomb had touched had functioned as a cage for a malevolent spirit. Not much was known about it yet, the traveller had been on their way to get it assessed by an expert in possessed objects. The merchant expressed their sincerest apologies for not clarifying further before they went to sleep, and seemed to curl up into themselves in remorse as they explained that they had no way of relieving her. Hecatomb could do nothing but nod numbly.

Hecatomb retained most of the control over her body, she could still move by her own will and the entity never seemed to showany interest in restricting her in this. No, it seemed much more amused by the emotional distress of not being able to speak the words she wanted to speak. The dragons in the clan were quite distraught by the sudden change in attitude from their beloved Hecatomb. The merchant had explained her predicament to everyone, but knowing the reason for something did not magically erase the negative feelings that cropped up over time. However much she tried, she could only ever speak in vulgarities and insults.

After a while of this, Hecatomb left her clan of her own volition. She was unable to deal with the looks she was getting from the other dragons, and she didn't want to subject the ones she loved to any more abuse.

Hecatomb strayed the world of Sornieth for a time unknown even to herself. She kept interaction with other dragons to a minimum, and she seemed to get by quite alright through this. Meanwhile, she searched in every library she came across for ways to break curses, inadvertently becoming quite adept at breaking minor curses in the process. She also regularly started up correspondence with expert cursebreakers and academics who specialized in cursed objects, but nothing conclusive ever came out of those letters.

Hecatomb has been able to hash out a few things about the entity though, for instance that it doesn't seem to need sustance, only seeming to feed on the emotional distress of its host. It has never lashed out against Hecatomb, nor has it ever spoken to her again, even when she went for extended periods of time without any contact to other dragons.

After some time, Hecatomb ended up contacting Mirage, who put her in contact with Mehda, who in turn invited her over to her clan so she could observe the effects of the possession. Mehda never seemed perturbed by Hecatomb's harsh words, just focused on helping her get in contact with dragons that can further help her, which comforted Hecatomb immensely. The progress on Hecatomb's curse is slow, but it has significantly sped up in comparison to the years Hecatomb has spent on her own.