You're not supposed to be inside St. Peter's, the big, old, gothic church downtown—the abandoned one, boarded up for as long as you can remember. But you're not here for you; you're here for Laina, your...
(link-reveal-goto: "Sister", "2")[(set: $rel to "sis")]
(link-reveal-goto: "Acquaintance", "2")[(set: $rel to "ac")]
(link-reveal-goto: "Crush", "2")[(set: $rel to "crush")]{(set: $fade to (t8n: "fade"))}{(if: $rel is "sis")[Three years younger than you, she was going to go whether you came along or not. At least this way you'll be there to (try to) keep her safe. Also... she's always been bolder than you, and you know exactly how she'd look at you if you refused to come. You don't want to be the boring sibling, //again//.]
(if: $rel is "crush")[Truthfully, you would have agreed to pretty much any venture she asked you to join her in, just to get to spend more time with her. You've seen the lesbian flag patch on her backpack, and you've kind of thought she might be flirting with you recently... But even if it never goes anywhere, you'll always be happy just being around her.]
(if: $rel is "ac")[You don't actually like her, really, and you didn't think she liked you. So it's odd that she asked, and maybe odder that you said yes. Maybe it's because you like the idea of escaping, briefly, to somewhere no one knows you are. Somewhere forbidden.]}
{(link: "➥")[==
$fade[Getting in was easy; she already knew about a loose board over a long-broken window, which led to one of the priest rooms in the back. Your flashlight caught graffiti on the wall: "WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?" When you looked back at Laina, she was already walking on toward the [[sanctuary->nave]].]}(set: $count to it+1)You're standing in the vast, open space of the church's belly. (if: $count is 1)[It smells musty here. Light creeps in from the edges of the stained glass windows; illuminating them with your flashlight reveals row of saints, boards at their backs, watching you with judgemental eyes.
]In front of you are the [[pews]], most of which have been nudged out of their neat rows, as if shuffled by the fingers of a giant hand. Behind you stands the stolid, solitary [[pulpit]]. One of the two [[aisles->aisle]] on either side is blocked off by errant pews, but the other is accessible.
High above is the vaulted ceiling, and below it at the far end, the (if: $count is >3)[[[choir loft->narthex]]](else:)[choir loft], wreathed in shadows that your flashlight can't penetrate. (if: $count is 1)[You catch sight of Laina disappearing through the [[double doors->narthex]] below it.](if: $count is 2)[
"Hey!" comes Laina's voice from [[that direction->narthex]]. "Up here!"
"Just a minute!" you call back.](if: $count is 3)[
"Still waiting!" Laina shouts from [[that direction->narthex]].](if: $count is 4)[
Laina is quiet now.](set: $pewcount to it+1)(if: $pewcount is >1)[You wander between the pews again.](else:)[You idly wander between a few of them—those that are still wander-able—imagining the people who sat or knelt here every Sunday. Believing every word they sang and heard, or else zoning out the whole time, mouths moving but not meaning a word of it. Your parents took you to church when you were younger, but no one in your family goes anymore.](if: not $cross)[(if: $neck)[ The cross necklace still lies on the floor amidst the debris. (link-reveal-goto: "Take it?", "nave")[(set: $cross to true)]](else:)[
Amidst some debris, your flashlight beam catches [[something shiny->necklace]] on the floor.]
](if: $cross)[
][[Back->nave]](set: $pulcount to it+1)(if: $pulcount is >1)[You climb the pulpit stairs again and stand before your absent congregation. (if: $bible)[The words of the 23rd Psalm creep in at the periphery of your vision. //...the Valley of the Shadow of Death...//]](else:)[You climb the short flight of curving stairs up to the elaborately carved wooden puplit. Meant to elevate the priest, God's spokesperon, except now it sits dusty and unused, nothing special at all, rendered empty and meaningless.
](unless: $bible)[On the lecturn, a [[Bible]] lies open.
](if: $bible)[
][[Back->nave]](if: visits is >1)[You walk through the dim, low-ceilinged space again, where rows of candles bring no light.](else:)[It's dimmer here, the ceiling dropping low to form a sort of hallway. Small chapels are set off on the other side, their saints gone but racks of half-melted candles remaining. It would be nice, you think, to see them lit again—a small spark of life returned to this place. But it's not like you carry a lighter.]
[[Back->nave]](set: $neck to true)It's a cross necklace—your grandma gave you one like it when you were a kid. You don't remember where it ended up. This one is simple and silver, in color if not actual metal. You wonder how long it's been here; who lost it, and how.
(link-reveal-goto: "Take it", "nave")[(set: $cross to true)]
[[Leave it->nave]]You cross the room and pass through the doors into the entry vestibule.(if: $count is 1)[ Laina is already out of sight.] The(if: $doors)[ front doors—immovable—](else:)[ [[front doors]] ]are ahead of you. There's a fountain thing for holy water beside them—dry now. To your left is an open door with [[stairs]] beyond it. Behind you is the [[sanctuary->nave]].(set: $count to it+1)(set: $doors to true)The doors are beautifully carved wood. You try one of the handles, just to see. The door doesn't budge.
[[Back->narthex]]As you emerge from the stairs onto the balcony, the weight of this place's emptiness hits you for the first time. A space that was made to hold throngs of people, voices joined in song, speaking and kneeling in unison, eating cermonial bread and drinking ceremonial wine. Communion. Now it's dead and silent, and you, who never even believed in God—you're the last person who belongs.
[[➥->loft]] The gloom seems thicker here, as if your flashlight beam has to actively fight through it. There's more debris, too, and here it bespeaks violence—remnants of smashed pews, torn pages of hymnals lying like discarded wings.
Finally you find Laina, flashlight hitting her red flannel.(unless: $count is <=2 and $rel is "sis")[ She's standing with her back to you.]
(if: $count is <=2)[(if: $rel is "ac")[ [[➥->Oops]]
](else:)[(link: "➥")[(display: "early")]
]](else:)[(if: $rel is "sis")[ [["Hey, you shouldn't have ditched me like that."->4]]
](else-if: $rel is "ac")[ [["All right, so what's so exciting up here?"->4]]
](else:)[ [["Hey. Sorry I was so slow."->4]]]]She turns. At first you think it's just an effect of the weird flashlight shadows, but, with horror, you realize it's not. Laina isn't Laina anymore.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[Shadows seem to writhe beneath her skin, occasionally flickering out in dark tendrils. Her eyes have gone completely black, swallowed up.
"Finally," she says, and when she smiles—or twists her mouth into the semblance of one—some of the black vapor snakes out.
You swallow. In this moment, you know you have to...
(if: $rel is "ac")[ [[Get out of here->stairs2]]
](else:)[ [[Get out of here->fail]]
][[Save her->5]] ]You turn and run, clambering down the stairs, clutching your flashlight—but then you slip, sliding down the last few steps and landing hard, and it jolts from your hand and goes dark.
"Come back," a voice calls from behind and above you. It doesn't sound like Laina anymore.
(if: $doors)[ [[Run]]
](else:)[ [[Run->trapped]]
][[Feel for the flashlight->flashlight]](set: $bible to true)You look down at the spread pages of the massive book. It's open to the 23rd Psalm:
//...Even though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.//
[[Back->nave]]"Laina," you say, just to say something. "This is... we can..."
Still grinning, she takes a step toward you.
(if: $cross)[ [[Throw the cross necklace at her->throw]]
](if: $rel is "ac")[ [[Take her hand->handfail]]
](else:)[ [[Take her hand->hand]]
][[Give up and run->stairs2]]$fade["Hey, look." She turns to face you, eyes wide. "I found something." She steps aside, unblocking your flashlight beam—except something else blocks it now, a shadow that it can't disperse. Darkness that swallows up the light instead of fleeing from it.
"Come on." Laina takes a step closer to whatever-it-is, beckoning you to do the same.
[[Follow]]
(if: $rel is "sis")[ [["No, wait..."->caution]]
](else:)[ [["No, wait..."->nowait]] ]]You bolt out of the stairway and back into the sanctuary, where there's just enough light to ensure you don't crash into the pews. Past the altar, into the back rooms, toward the window that promises safety if only you can fling yourself back through.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[And you do. You manage to scramble out, tumbling down into the alley, the wind knocked out of you as you hit the ground. You lie frozen like that, waiting, because if Laina-not-Laina can follow you out, well, there's not really any point in continuing to run. Might as well get your dreadful ending over with.
It's quiet inside the church. As quiet as when you entered. The monster doesn't follow you—and neither does Laina.
//(link-goto: "Play again", "title")//]You shove yourself up onto your knees and frantically pat down the stairs and floor around you. Just as your hand closes around it, an icy chill starts seeping into your shoulder, and suddenly you can't move your fingers to lift the flashlight.
Not that it would have helped you, anyway. It's only moments before the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//You step forward, and she shudders when you touch her, a ripple starting from the hand you hold and passing over her entire body. The darkness recedes, withdrawing into her body a bit; the whites of her eyes appear at the edges, and her face twists with fear. "Help me," she pleads.
[[Run, pulling her after you->run2]]
(if: $rel is "sis")[ [[Tell the monster to take you instead->take]]
](if: $rel is "crush")[ [[Kiss her->kiss]] ]You yank the tiny necklace from your pocket and toss it at Laina-not-Laina, as if you suddenly believe in the power of this fragile symbol. Her hand rises to catch it midair. "You think this can hurt me? You think this will free her? You're as deluded as the rest of them."
(link: "➥")[==$fade[Suddenly she's right in front of you, shoving you to the floor. The last thing you see is her smile, before the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//]If taking her hand helped chase the darkness away a little, maybe this will help more. Still holding her hand, you lean in and press your lips to hers. You feel her draw in a sharp breath against your mouth—and then she whispers, "Run," and lunges toward the stairs, pulling you along.
[[➥->run3]]"I will," you whisper, squeezing her hand, and then you let go. The smoky shadows flood back to the surface, lapping at the air. "You can have me," you tell the thing, lifting your chin despite your absolute terror. "Let her go, and take me."
(link: "➥")[==$fade[The monster doesn't answer beyond contorting Laina's face into another horrible grin. A moment later it's streaming out of her, coalescing into a vague form between the two of you. Your awareness lasts long enough to hear Laina cry, "No!" before the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//]You race toward the door, tugging Laina to follow with a tight grip on her hand, but her foot catches something on the floor and she falls, hand pulling free of yours. You stop, reaching for her again, but when she looks up, the darkness has consumed her eyes once more. Her arm rises, and the last thing you see is a spectral, shadowy hand extending from it, reaching out to claim you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//You can't resist glancing back as you flee, flashlight swinging crazily to catch a shadow that it can't disperse—a spot of darkness that swallows up the light. Then the two of you are on the stairs, nearly tumbling down them, bolting through the sanctuary to the priest room and [[out the window->out]].You grab each other's hands again once you're in the alley, and you both keep on running in unspoken agreement. Until you're back out on the main street, in the sun, surrounded by life once again.
(link: "➥")[==$fade["Are you okay?" you ask breathlessly, turning to look at her. Her hair's a mess, but otherwise she doesn't look worse for wear even after playing host to an incorporeal entity.
"Yeah," she answers, closing her eyes and nodding. "You?"
"Yeah," you say, although you're not sure if it's one hundred percent true.
You're still holding her hand. The two of you keep walking, putting more distance between yourselves and St. Peter's, and neither of you lets go.
//(link-goto: "Play again", "title")//]"You'd leave your (if: $rel is "crush")[girlfriend](else:)[sister] behind?" Laina-not-Laina asks as you turn to bolt, and suddenly something wraps around your waist—a tendril of tangible vapor, pulling you back. You barely have time to scream "NO!" before the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//"Hey..." you say, and Laina turns. Her expression is strangely solemn.
"Sorry," she says. "I know you won't understand, but..."
Before you can fully process her words, something is rushing toward you—an animate shadow, detaching from the rest of the darkness and swirling at you like wind-blown smoke. It doesn't dissipate when it hits your body, but seeps through your skin with an icy chill, and before you can run or scream or move at all, it has you fully in its clutches.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[The thing turns your head toward Laina. It paints a grisly smile on your lips. It opens your mouth, and says, "Thank you."
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//
<!--//(link-reveal-goto: "Try again", "nave")[(set: $count to 0)]//-->]You approach the strange shadow by Laina's side, both your flashlights pointing at it. The black void becomes undefined and smoky at the edges, and you slowly realize it's growing bigger.
"Laina, wait—" you start, but then a tendril of it whips out and grabs her ankle.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[You both scream, and Laina jumps backward—or, tries to. The thing holds her in place, shifting toward her—seeping into her. She flashes you a look of sheer panic.
(if: $rel is "crush")[ [[Turn and run->flee]]
](if: $cross)[ [[Throw the cross necklace at the thing->throw2]]
][[Throw yourself at the thing->attack]]
[[Grab her arm and pull->grab]] ]Laina stops, turning to look back at you, squinting in the dark. "For real? Don't you want to investigate?"
You keep your eyes on the mystery thing, a black void that's undefined and smoky at the edges. At first you think you're imagining it, but no—it's growing bigger, stretching toward Laina.
[["Run!"->run!]]Desperation drives you to jump forward in an attempt to tackle whatever-this-is, but you almost expect to fall right through it onto the floor. Instead, though, you're cushioned by it as if by a pillow. Behind you, you're vaguely aware of Laina stumbling back—successfully this time.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[At first you're just relieved that she's safe. But then you feel it, just as Laina says, "No, wait, no..." Cold is seeping into your skin, into your bones. Suddenly you're back on your feet, but it wasn't you who ordered your limbs to move. There's a black haze in front of your eyes. Laina's terrified face is the last thing you see before the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//]You clamber down the stairs as Laina screams behind you, "Wait! Help me!" Through the vestibule, the sanctuary, where you hear the moment her screams abruptly stop. You picture the thing in the choir loft above you and run faster, not stopping until you've flung yourself back out the priest room window.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[You fall to the ground in the alley outside, and you stay there, staring up at the window—hoping that somehow, Laina's face will appear.
But it doesn't. It's quiet inside the church. As if the two of you had never entered it at all.
//(link-goto: "Play again", "title")//]Laina obeys without question. When it comes down to it, your little sister trusts you. She bolts down the stairs with you right behind her, and neither of you stop till you're back outside in the alley where you started.
"What... what just happened?" Laina asks through panting breaths, glancing nervously at the window you just came through.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[You wish you knew. You wish you had a logical explanation for the incident, but there is no logic here. Only the church, the screaming emptiness, and the darkness.
//(link-goto: "Play again", "title")//]You yank the tiny necklace from your pocket and chuck it at the monster, as if you suddenly believe in the power of this fragile symbol. It's immediately swallowed by the darkness, with no effect.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[Laina's head jerks back, and she screams. Black vapor rises from her mouth and then rushes toward you as if pulled by a vacuum. It's only moments before the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//]{(set: $cross to false)
(set: $count to 0)
(set: $pewcount to 0)
(set: $pulcount to 0)
(set: $doors to false)
(set: $neck to false)
(set: $bible to false)}
<div class="center">
[<div class="title">(text-size: 2)[Dark Communion]</div>
(text-size: .85)[//Two teenage girls. One abandoned church. ??? survivors.//
[[Play->1]]
[[About]]
[[Achievements]]]]
</div>A game by Tabitha O'Connell. Started as an entry for the La Petite Mort category of Ectocomp 2023; soon grew out of control and was entered in the Grand Guignol instead.
[[Back->title]]But Laina doesn't listen. She proceeds toward the strange shadow while you take an involuntary step back.
"It's fine, why—" she starts, glancing back at you. But then she screams.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[At first you're not sure why, but then she collapses to her knees. You go to help her, but when she looks up at you, shadows seem to writhe beneath her skin, and her eyes have gone completely black. Laina isn't Laina anymore.
[[Run->fail]]
[["Laina?"->smile]] ]She smiles at you—or, twists her mouth into the semblance of one, some of the black vapor snaking out. And you realize you've made a terrible mistake. Laina's arm whips up and a spectral hand extends from it to grab your wrist, cold seeping into your skin where it touches you. That horrible smile is the last thing you see before the darkness takes you.
//[[Undo->nowait]]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//You bolt out of the stairway and, on instinct, fling yourself at the nearest exit—the front doors. Your fumbling fingers find the handle and give it a yank. But of course these doors are locked.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[You turn to dash back through the sanctuary, but it's too late. She's here, blocking your exit, smiling that horrible smile. She raises her arm, and a spectral hand extends from it to grab your wrist, cold seeping into your skin where it touches you. It's only moments before the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//]Rescues:
1. (if: (visited: "out"))[Your crush]
2. (if: (visited: "run!"))[Your sister (and yourself)]
3. (if: (visited: "flee") or (visited: "Run"))[Only yourself]
Fails:
1. (if: (visited: "handfail"))[Too nice for your own good]
2. (if: (visited: "trapped"))[Foiled by the front doors]
3. (if: (visited: "throw") or (visited: "throw2"))[Yeah the cross necklace is only here for flavor]
4. (if: (visited: "Oops"))[Never go into an abandoned church with a random acquaintance]
Awards:
1. (if: (visited: "Bible") and (visited: "necklace") and (visited: "aisle") and (visited: "front doors"))[Investigator (thoroughly searched the church)]
2. (if: (visited: "take") and (visited: "attack"))[Hero (sacrificed yourself to save Laina in every possible way)]
2. (if: (visited: "run!") and (visited: "flee") and (visited: "Run") and (visited: "out"))[Escapee (got out in every possible way)]
3. (if: (visited: "throw2") and (visited: "attack") and (visited: "smile") and (visited: "fail") and (visited: "Oops") and (visited: "trapped") and (visited: "flashlight") and (visited: "handfail") and (visited: "throw") and (visited: "take") and (visited: "run2"))[Friend of darkness (taken by the darkness in every possible way)]
4. (if: (visited: "run!") and (visited: "flee") and (visited: "Run") and (visited: "out") and (visited: "throw2") and (visited: "attack") and (visited: "smile") and (visited: "fail") and (visited: "Oops") and (visited: "trapped") and (visited: "flashlight") and (visited: "handfail") and (visited: "throw") and (visited: "take") and (visited: "run2"))[Completionist (seen every ending)]
[[Back->title]]You step forward and slide your fingers into hers, ignoring for the moment that you don't really know each other and under any other circumstances this would be a very weird thing to do. Her hand is freezing. At first she's still, her face gone blank, and you think you see a flicker in her eyes. But then you realize your arm is growing cold. That horrible smile paints her face again, and moments later, the darkness takes you.
//(link: "Undo")[(go-to: (history:)'s last)]
(link-goto: "Restart", "title")//You take hold of Laina's arm and tug, and she comes with you—but so does the thing, vanishing into her skin faster and faster. When smoky blackness creeps over her eyes and her face goes slack, you can't help letting go and stumbling backward.
(link: "➥")[==$fade[Laina-not-Laina turns to stare at you, twisting her mouth into a gruesome semblance of a smile, black vapor snaking out between her lips. In this moment, you know you have to...
[[Get out of here->fail]]
[[Save her->5]] ]