spelled my name in finger bones

The uneven, quiet voice in which his sister replied to his pitiful pleas sounded almost like they were parroted by an entity that had taken up residence behind her two toned eyes. The way her attention instantly snapped back to stare at the glowing clusters with blank expression and empty eyes.. The boy whined anxiously, tail sweeping furtively against his heels while he fought against the stuttering machinations of his enthralled mind to force him into the same fate. He backpedalled, a few staggering steps to put distance between himself and the object of his sudden, unnatural infatuation. "Faith," he said again, more insistent this time. She was standing stock still, a statue that seemed to mirror the heartbeat rhythm of the pulsating crystals with her own bioluminescence. "Faith, come on!" he pleaded, knocking his paw against her hip with a tenuous swing of the unsteady forelimb. He was still hazy, his brain wasn't moving with its usual pace. Before he could think twice, and decide against it, he swung his skull low between his shoulders and aimed to grab hold of a clump of the thick fur at the end of Faith's tail. Either the pain would wake her up from the trance, or he would try and drag her out of here by her rump.

A soft growl built in his chest, punctuated by a keening whine as he struggled to ignore the compulsion to release his grip and get closer to the crystals again. He could hear a static buzzing in his head, closer now to the sharp spires of translucent, faceted gemstones that were growing on the damp stone floor. As his gaze caught the gentle glow, he hesitated, his grip faltered. His sister's cerulean tipped banner slipped from his jaws. Saliva pooled on his tongue, and he wondered how the little crystals might taste...

"Pontifex" || "Hallux" || "others"