The Holy Vessel Is A Death Sentence In Disguise

The men of our village never marry the women they grow up with. Not the ones who reach maturity here in Blackwood Hollow. No, the local girls are cleansed, wrapped in a blanket, and offered to the Serpent. The morning after, if a girl is found to be carrying, she is deemed blessed by The Elder Serpent. She becomes The Vessel, a kind of holy mother, and is sheltered and fed until the birth. Tonight, it was my sister’s turn. She had been sent into the Chapel. I was sick with envy that she was a year older than me, a year closer to this twisted form of grace. I crept into the Chapel, wriggling under the offering table, determined to ruin her chance. But moments later, the scene I witnessed was far more terrifying than anything I could have planned. A mass of sleek, oily-black serpents were sliding and writhing, vying to get to my sister…

1. In the dim candlelight, my sister Sharon’s skin glowed, a pale, shocking white like fine alabaster. I truly hated her. Hated her to the point of sickness. She wasn’t even prettier than me, but simply because she was born a year earlier, she was blessed with the first chance to serve The Serpent. The thought made my teeth ache with fury. When The Serpent came, and they were in the midst of their ritual, I would emerge. I would interrupt them. There was no way I’d let Sharon get away with becoming The Vessel and living a life of soft luxury. Then, from the stillness of the Chapel, Sharon’s whisper drifted toward me. “Mama said to keep my legs clamped tight, tighter than anything…” “That way, The Serpent will favor me, and I’ll be the most honored Vessel the Hollow has ever seen.” A wild, ugly resentment flared up in my chest. Mama was so unfair! She always kept the best things for Sharon. Now, even this secret trick—this vile piece of advice for winning The Serpent’s favor—she’d only told Sharon! I trembled with rage, but a small, malicious part of me also celebrated. At least now I knew the trick. When my turn came, I would clamp my legs, too. I would steal the favor from under Sharon’s pale nose. Sharon carefully extended her legs from the edge of the ritual blanket. They were long and impossibly white, shining faintly in the gloom, like peeled eggs. The Serpent would certainly love those legs. My hatred intensified. I dug my fingernails into the dirt floor beneath the altar, wishing I could rush out with an ax and chop her legs off right there. If she was maimed, how would she clamp them? How would she entice the Elder Serpent then? A scraping noise suddenly echoed from above—the sound of rough scales dragging against old wood. I peered toward the sound. A black snake, thicker than a grown man’s thigh, with a forked, scarlet tongue flickering, was slowly descending from the rafters. My eyes widened, and my body went cold. I had always assumed The Serpent was a god, a deity that took human form. Not a monster of scale and muscle. Sharon was obviously terrified. She was shaking. “G-get away from me!” She shrieked, scrambling to pull her legs back, cinching the red ritual blanket around herself until she resembled a terrified cocoon. But the giant black snake seemed to possess an intelligence. Its enormous tail followed the winding path of its body, gliding across the floor, heading straight for my sister’s feet. 2. The scene was horrifying, but a sick rush of pleasure washed over me. That snake was thicker than a man’s leg. It would surely crush her. The thought of her dying a tortured death filled me with a twisted joy. I always thought I was the better-looking sister. But everyone in the Hollow said Sharon was the more luminous. They whispered that her slight build meant she was destined to be The Vessel. Even Jake, the Elder’s son—the future Elder—was smitten with her. Jake once declared publicly, “If The Serpent ever turns down Sharon, I’ll marry her myself!” I thought my chest would split open from the jealousy when I heard that. My first ambition was always to become the revered Vessel, worshipped by the entire village. If that failed, my second choice was to marry Jake and become the future Elder’s wife. But that bitch, Sharon, she was blocking both my paths! “Aah! Aah!” Sharon’s screams were sharp, tearing through the quiet Chapel. I risked a look through a gap in the altar cloth. The blanket was gone. Sharon’s body was covered in a shifting, thick layer of black snakes. I couldn’t see the heads of the smaller snakes, but blood was already seeping from her upper thighs. “Go away!” Sharon’s face was contorted in pain and terror. She struggled to her feet and, barefoot, ran toward the heavy oak door. The massive serpent was still wrapped around her, making her flailing, bloody silhouette look bizarre and demonic. She pounded frantically on the door. “Open up! Elder Silas, please, open the door!” “It’s not a god! It’s a giant, real snake!” “It’s boring into me—I’m going to die!” She clung to the door, sobbing hysterically. “Elder, I beg you, open the door! I don’t want to be The Vessel!” But from the other side came the Elder Silas’s furious shout. “You wicked child!” “Being chosen by the Serpent is a blessing you’ve earned over ten lifetimes! I suggest you lie back down and submit. If you anger The Serpent, I will have you Bog-Drowned!” Sharon visibly recoiled from the door. Her hands froze on the wood. Her whole body was shaking, and thick, scarlet blood was dripping onto the floor with every movement of the black coils around her. In our village, insubordination from a woman means being Bog-Drowned. It’s a truly horrific punishment. The woman is bound to a heavy stone, sealed inside a makeshift coffin of willow branches, and thrown alive into the bottom of the Marsh. Her corpse is never allowed to be retrieved. It must stay in the marsh water for three years. Countless fish, water rats, and river slugs crawl into every opening, slowly consuming the flesh. After three years, only the skeletal frame is retrieved. Then, the bones are ground into a fine powder and scattered back into the Marsh, ensuring the soul can never find rest. My mind drifted to my friend, Penny. Penny was two years older than me. On the day she was set to be taken to the Chapel, she refused. She cried, saying she only wanted to be Jake’s bride. Elder Silas turned purple with rage. He had her bound on the spot and tossed into the Marsh. Sometimes, when I miss her, I go down to the Marsh. The water is usually clear. Penny’s flesh is long gone. Her skeleton lies at the bottom, densely covered in snails and barnacles. It’s disgusting. Then I always sigh and think how utterly stupid Penny was. She should have focused on being The Vessel first. Marrying Jake should have been the second, lesser option. How could she throw away her life for a mere man? Yet, looking at Penny’s skeletal remains, a small smile always touches my lips. It’s good she was drowned. Otherwise, I’d have one more competitor… With that thought, I stared hard at Sharon, the malice in my heart thickening. I wished she would open that door, get herself Bog-Drowned, and disappear forever. If she died, I’d make sure to visit her remains every day. 3. But Sharon was afraid to die. She did not have the courage to open the Chapel door. Now, the massive black serpent was tightly coiled around her. I still couldn’t see the large serpent’s head, but I noticed my sister’s slender body was beginning to arch unnaturally. The pool of blood at her feet was spreading. “Ah!” Sharon screamed and fell heavily to the stone floor. She curled into a ball, clawing at the thick black coil around her. “Please, Serpent, let me go!” This was the first time I’d ever seen Sharon cry so desperately. I felt no pity. My mother, Barb, always gave Sharon the best food. Once, I was so hungry I stole and ate her bowl of egg custard. Mama found out. She grabbed a cleaver and chopped off my index finger. She had spat at me, her eyes wild: “That custard was for your sister to grow strong! You, ugly wretch, eat one bite, and I cut off one finger! When the fingers are done, I’ll chop off your head!” The sight of my own severed finger ensured I never stole food again. But every time I look at the jagged stump on my hand, I despise Sharon even more. I want to bite off her fingers. Now, watching her weep on the floor, a perverse satisfaction bloomed inside me. Hurry, Serpent. Finish her. Kill her now! Just then, the large black snake that was wound around Sharon suddenly uncoiled. Its head lifted sharply! Its eyes, unnervingly large and convex, fixed directly on my hiding place under the offering table. My whole body seized up. Did it see me? Did it know I was watching? Before I could react, the serpent slithered toward me. Was it going to torment me like it did Sharon? Would I bleed like that, too? In that moment, my breath caught, the world went dark, and I collapsed. … I don’t know how long I was out. When I woke, I heard a desperate, raw scream from my sister. “Y-you can let me go now, can’t you?” I was confused. Why was I fine? Did the snake not see me after all? Gathering my courage, I carefully parted the altar curtain and peered out again. Sharon was lying motionless in a pool of blood, like a discarded ragdoll. The black serpent looked satisfied. It undulated away, slowly climbing back up toward the rafters. The malice rose up again. That’s it? The Serpent was done? Sharon shed a little blood, endured a scare, and now tomorrow she’d become the honored Vessel? That was far too easy for her! I was furious, wanting to rush out and kick her senseless. Then, from the rafters above, I heard a dense, slithering sound. I looked up. Hundreds of tiny, black, oily snakes were descending. They were intertwined, a black waterfall of flesh, hissing and smelling of musk and rot, pouring down onto my sister’s still body… 4. In seconds, Sharon was a living monument to horror. Every exposed inch of her skin was covered in the black snakes. At first, she managed a slight twitch, her mouth clamped shut. But then, her struggles became weaker, her mouth unconsciously opened, and the tiny snakes began to squirm inside. Sharon’s mouth turned into a churning void of black, writhing flesh. Snakes were moving in her throat! Soon, blood-flecked foam bubbled from the corners of her lips. “Urrgh…” A weak sound gurgled from her throat. The pain must have been unimaginable. Her eyes were wide, bulging from their sockets. The black mass on her body seemed to writhe with increased enthusiasm… The sight was sickening. I pressed my hands to my chest, gasping for breath. I had envied Sharon all my life. But now, seeing her state, my jealousy finally faded, replaced by cold relief. I wished we had been identical twins. She could have been tortured to death by these beasts in my place. Once she drew her last breath, I could have walked out, taken her identity, and instantly become The Vessel. I would have suffered nothing, yet I would have earned a life of comfort, meat at every meal, and the worship of the entire village… What a beautiful thought. … At dawn, the snakes silently vanished. Elder Silas led the men through the Chapel door. I was crammed into the deepest recess of the offering table, holding my breath. Sharon was still lying on the floor, unmoving. The Elder frowned, poking her with his pipe. “She didn’t die, did she?” As if on cue, a figure darted past the Elder. Jake knelt in the blood, trembling as he removed his outer shirt and gently draped it over my sister. “Sharon, Sharon, wake up!” I curled my lip in disgust. Jake was pathetic. She was likely rotten, and he was hugging her like a cherished doll. Elder Silas reached down and checked her neck. After a long pause, he sighed. “She’s dead.” Jake’s body went rigid. He clung to her, tears streaming down his face. “Sharon, my Sharon, why did you have to die!” The Elder scoffed. “She was blessed, but her body was too base, too weak to hold the honor. She simply didn’t have the fortune to become The Vessel.” He turned to two muscular men behind him, Gus and Ray. “A woman with no fortune is a jinx. Drag her out and Bog-Drown her for the fish.” “No!” Jake suddenly lifted his head, his eyes bloodshot. “Father, Sharon did nothing wrong!” “You can’t drown her. I want to bury her in our family plot!” The Elder backhanded Jake with a brutal slap. “Insolent fool! Is that how you address your father?” The blow was vicious. Blood trickled from Jake’s lip, and one side of his face immediately swelled. Jake instantly crumpled. He covered his face and ran out like a beaten dog with its tail between its legs. Watching him, I felt a swell of satisfaction. See, Sharon? Jake didn’t love you that much after all. Elder Silas spat on the floor. He pointed at my sister’s body. “What are you standing around for? Drag her to the Marsh!” After the Elder left, Gus stared at Sharon’s face and sighed. “Damn. Sharon was the prettiest girl in the Hollow, maybe for ten miles around.” “What a waste.” Ray walked over and chimed in. “No kidding.” He grabbed my sister’s ankle, chuckling. “It’s a damned shame to throw her to the fish just like this.” Gus, who was about to lift the body, froze, looking at Ray with alarm. “Ray, what are you doing? She’s dead!” Ray slowly looked up, saliva glistening on his lips. “Heh-heh. Brother, we’ve been bachelors our whole lives. Haven’t you ever wondered what it’s like to touch a woman?” 5. Gus frantically shook his head. “No! We can’t do something this wicked!” Ray wasn’t listening. His eyes were glued to Sharon’s body. “So what if she’s dead? She’s going to rot in the Marsh anyway. What a waste of good flesh.” “Besides, only God knows, and you and me. If you don’t say anything, who will?” Gus let out a heavy sigh, looking sickened. “I won’t be a part of this sin.” Seeing Gus hesitate, Ray shoved him. “Then go stand guard!” Gus tried to reason with him. “Ray, you’ll bring a terrible curse down on yourself!” Ray didn’t care. “I don’t have time for curses!” He pushed Gus out the door. The heavy Chapel door slammed shut. Through the crack in the altar cloth, I watched Ray rub his calloused hands together, his face a mask of lechery, as he walked toward my sister. My stomach turned. I felt bile rise in my throat. I despised Sharon, and I wished her dead. But I detested that greasy, lifelong bachelor, Ray, even more. My sister’s smooth flesh was not for a disgusting pig like Ray. I wanted to rush out and kick him away, send him stumbling. But I bit my lip until I tasted blood, curled into a ball, and didn’t dare move. If I revealed myself, Elder Silas would find out, and I’d be dragged off to be Bog-Drowned. Ray stood over my sister, then crouched, reaching out to stroke her cheek. “Tsk, tsk, Sharon, my girl.” “When you were alive, you were so haughty, you wouldn’t even look at me.” “But see? However proud you were, you’ve still fallen into my hands. You’re mine now.” He swallowed hard, his rough hand sliding down her pale face… Outside, Gus’s voice was a low, urgent whisper. “Ray, hurry up! If the Elder comes back, we’re finished!” I sneered internally. Gus was only scaring him. In the Hollow, men’s punishments are always far lighter than women’s. A woman who defies them is immediately Bog-Drowned and her bones are ground to dust. A man who makes a mistake is, at worst, forbidden from being buried in the family plot. “I know!” Ray reached out and brutally snatched the shirt Jake had draped over Sharon. The smile on his face instantly froze. He looked like he had seen a true demon. His eyes bulged out, threatening to burst from his face!