The Book of Lucia, Chapter XVI - Beware of False Prophets

[Liesmith]

As soon as she stepped into the minibus and every head aboard swiveled to stare at her (and her blonde companion), Tris wondered if she’d made a really bad decision here.

She was used to being the centre of attention, being blessed with the sort of looks that turned heads wherever she went. It wasn’t that. It reminded her of some pubs back home, the ones where every local turned to look and went quiet the second someone new set foot inside.

It was more than a touch creepy and she thought quite seriously about turning around there and then. Her dignity wasn’t worth being kidnapped by some crazy cult of nun-wannabees. But Sister Chastity’s fulsome frame blocked the exit, the tall blonde’s hand gently but insistently steering her to a seat.

And, however much Tris might want out, she didn’t want it badly enough to throw herself out of a moving vehicle.

So instead she sat back, let the oddly soothing chatter wash over her with the odd ‘mmm’ when it seemed required and stared out the window. At the least, she supposed, her day definitely wouldn’t be dull.

And she was getting to see a side of Japan she hadn’t seen before – Tris hadn’t so far got out of Tokyo, so this was proving some of an eye opener for her. Instead of the busy streets and the modern roads, they wound their way up a track that clearly hadn’t been maintained for years under the shadow of old, gnarled trees with skeletal fingers clawing at the skies. Tris couldn’t help but grin.

Just like home.

A murmur from the rest of Chastity’s cadre brought her eyes forward, just in time to get her first look at this ‘church’ they had all been talking about. Sure, she knew there were Christians in Japan, had been for years, but that didn’t mean she expected an actual church.

Pausing as she left the minibus, the redhead raked a glance over it, lips curling dismissively. It looked big enough, she supposed. She didn’t care for it, probably wouldn’t have done even before it had been left to rot and ruin.

But she was there now, so Tris followed Sister Chastity to the steps and up, making sure to watch where she put her feet. Wondering, as she did, whether they’d been left like this as some sort of stupid ‘trial for the faithful’.

It just seemed on brand.

“Got to say, Chaz,” she sniped, “This place isn’t impressing me much so far. Do you even have wi-fi?”

Actually, Tris was starting to doubt if they had running water…

[BlackAkuma]

Sister Chastity was about to let on as much, but she had kept a keen eye on the woman as they made their trip back home, taking in little details. She had found that, often in life, you could learn a good deal from a person when they weren’t talking, when they were trying to fill the void of silence and occupy themselves as best they could.

Something was there in Tris. Uncertain? Discomfort? Not fear, but concern. She sensed the woman’s mind was less at ease, which made it all the more important to divert her attention to something she would be more attracted to. Sister Chastity felt she knew exactly what that would be, too, but first she had to get the woman to it.

”I can’t shake the impression that you’re not a woman who impresses easily…Tris.” She tried the nickname on for size, decided she liked it, and moved on as they made their way up the steps. ”And yes, we do have Wi-Fi, though I can’t remember the password off the top of my head. I rarely use the internet. Such a wasteland.” One of the few things from her upbringing that she still adhered to, as it turned out. ”If you need the connection, we can find Ellie on our way. She tends to handle our ‘tech issues’.”

They made their way inside, and Sister Chastity's words about the renovations proved true, though she might’ve undersold just how unorthodox the decor was. Though she would never describe it as such herself, one of her compatriots proclaimed that their facility looked like a cross between an orthodox Christian church and a BDSM club. The pews were black with red padding and gothic curls along the fringes, giving them a twisted flair. The stained-glass windows depicted women in different poses and frames, all exploring the wonder of the female body. The floor they walked on was plush, soft, and red as spilled blood, while darkened chandeliers hung above them. Torches even adorned the walls, though none were lit.

The centerpiece of it all was their organ, a towering thing the back of the room, with silver pipes that stretched to the ceiling. It would make quite a lovely sound when they a) had it fixed and b) found someone who could actually play it and was willing to join them.

As they moved down the aisle, they passed by scattered groups of their sisters hanging around. A few of them were currently working on one of the windows, getting a new one installed, this one showing the vague shape of a woman wrapping her legs around the other from behind in a bodyscissor, as luck would have it. A group of them chatted off to the side, saying something to themselves and giggling when they caught sight of Tris and Sister Chastity, and a couple were off in a dark corner, embracing and occasionally sharing kisses.

Then there was the woman approaching them, having just emerged from a staircase leading up from the lower levels. Tall, towering, she marched over their way and towered over them both, staring Tris’ way through the tangled mess of hair lining her face.

”Huh, you’re back. Little late, Lucia decided to go to the arena without you.”

gave Tris a quick up and down, lingering on the down noticeably longer than the up. ”You found some fresh meat?”

”Something like that.” Sister Chastity gestured between them. ”Beatrice, Prudence. Prudence, Beatrice.”

[Liesmith]

Well, at least they had wi-fi. Whoop-de-fucking-do.

Tris wasn’t convinced that made up for attempted murder by staircase. And she wasn’t sure which she liked less – Chastity’s annoying habit of taking her verbal jabs and smoothly defusing them or the thought that the blonde was wacky enough to think this was some sort of divine test.

There was something so unsatisfying about sarcasm when the other person just took it at face value. And, sure, Chazzie there had an accent. So maybe it was a language issue but Tris was pretty much certain the nun was laughing at her behind that placid mask.

She was also by herself here so the redhead contented herself with a haughty sniff as the sister pushed open the doors and they stepped inside.

And Tris paused, a softly surprised sound slipping free of her parted lips.

The outside of the church had not impressed her, either in its design or what it’d become in its decay. The inside-

Sister Chastity had not been lying when she said they’d focused on the inside. It was still clearly the corpse of a church but dressed up like a fancy club – with a decidedly more satanic-slash-sex wrestling theme than Tris’d been expecting from a group that spent most of its time objecting to exactly this sort of stuff.

Don’t get her wrong, she wasn’t exactly shocked that they were a bunch of hypocrites. Sister Chastity’s outfit alone was roughly akin to a whole parade of red flags in that respect. But this place-

The redhead’s icy blue gaze swept over it all, taking in the pews, the darkened torches and Gothic chandeliers, the custom windows. Even the organ, its pipes glinting coldly in the low light.

“Mmm,” it could be taken a thousand ways, “Not bad, I suppose. Were you aiming for naff or did you just stumble into it?”

Her lips twitched, the merest hint of a smirk.

“Carpet’s lush though,” she added almost as an afterthought as the twosome made their way down the aisle, Tris ignoring the activity around them (without missing any of it).

She was just wondering if the underground levels were original – they must be surely, there was no way this lot could have got planning permission – when she realised they had company. And, unlike the lesser spotted sisters who clearly preferred to steer clear of her guide, this one had no such compunctions. She stomped right over to loom over them, giving Tris plenty of opportunity to inspect the tower of muscle headed her way.

First impressions then. Big, blunt, definitely strong (Tris’ eyes lingered with interest on those biceps). Stupid or not to be determined. Very much not akin to Chastity or any of the nun-clones, in that this one dressed like a wrestler with a nun theme rather than a stripper with a nun fetish.

Tris didn’t like her much. She’d never cared for people talking past her nor did she like being called fresh meat, especially the way Cousin It said it. Like Chastity’s caught another loser, it must be Tuesday.

Still, best not to upset the inmates just yet.

“Charmed, I’m sure,” Tris smiled politely.

[BlackAkuma]

On the best of days, Prudence didn’t have patience for a lot of things. If you wanted patience, go find Sister Patience. She was probably making out in one of the pews.

Maybe at one point she would have more taste for this sort of thing, but since she’d joined the church, she’d found herself running low on fucks to give. While she wasn’t unreligious, exactly, she never had much taste for the sort of intense focus and worship that Sister Lucia instilled in their growing flock. She wasn’t the preaching type. They didn’t want her in the field, bringing newcomers to the fold.

She was here for the mission, and she didn’t bother hiding it. Tearing down LAW, brick by brick. So far, she was decently pleased with those results, having the Hentai Championship under their thumb was a great step, and she’d happily bring her muscle to drive that spearhead home.

It almost made her wary, very much so, that there might be those out there looking to slip into their ranks and derail their efforts. A concern she had voiced to Chastity often, when she brought in all these strays.

A concern that had mostly gone ignored.

After the introduction, she gave Beatrice another up-down, really taking a moment to chew on the data. Pretty woman. Not casually pretty, either, but close to model pretty. Magazine cover pretty. Good body, too - voluptuous? She hated that word, but it fit. She could see why Chastity of all people liked her. The two could’ve swapped wardrobes.

Something about the look in her big, green eyes, though, put Prudence on edge. The smile was polite enough, though, so she didn’t have any reason to be too brusque just yet.

”Likewise. I’m sure.” She folded her arms and looked between them, then nodded Beatrice’s way. Her head tipped lower, taking a good look at the woman’s legs, comparing them, then back up again. ”You look fit. Are you just interested in the fellowship, or did you come for the, uh…” She idly flexed the knuckles in her hand, making an audible crack. She’d just been working on the heavy bag, they were stiff. ”...aggressive aspects.”

Sister Chastity brought her lazy eyes back to Beatrice with a soft chuckle. ”She’s talking about our in-ring ministries. The wrestling work.”

”Fuck me for being subtle, I guess.”

[Liesmith]

Oh, so Cousin It had meant that sort of fresh meat. The sort who put on a habit and played along. Not that Tris had any plans to apologise – that was almost as offensive as thinking she was just there for those nasty (yet decidedly fascinating) things Chastity was hiding behind that mask of hers.

Which… Well, she supposed she was there for that – to see what exactly the oh-so-placid blonde had lurking in her closet.

Her smile didn’t even flicker, whatever her thoughts; she just stood there as the two spoke, her only reaction to Pru’s inspection a subtle adjustment of her stance, letting the woman get as good a look as she liked. Admittedly, much of the detail would be obscured by the over-large hoodie she still wore over her tank-top as well as the leggings.

Though she did flick an arched brow Chastity’s way at the ‘aggressive aspects’, only for the curvier of the two Sisters to weigh in with a helpful explanation.

Oh, so that’s what Tall, Dark and Hairy meant. And, in fairness, if she had been even slightly interested in playing Wicked Sister, that would have been the part that intrigued her. But she didn’t need to join up with a cult to get that sort of action.

“Don’t worry yourself about it, sweetness,” Tris said, her grin widening just a hair with a quiet huff of amusement, ”I’m here for a good time, not a long time.”

She waved a casual hand around, taking in Chastity as well as the church in general.

“Chazzie here promised me the grand tour. Something about introducing me to some of your flock. Then I’ll be out of your hair.”

The redhead leant in slightly, as though confiding a secret, though she didn’t lower her voice or let her gaze waver from the leggy blonde Sister.

“Between you and me, I think she’s still hoping I’ll join up.”

[BlackAkuma]

Prudence didn’t know what to make of this one. Maybe she shouldn’t have been making anything at all.

She could tell that Beatrice, if that was, in fact, her real name, was more interesting than the typical women Chastity brought home, but that was like saying Cherry Vanilla ice cream was more interesting than Vanilla, true, sure, but not exactly a high bar. She certainly had an aura about her, and she would be lying if she said the woman wouldn’t look killer in one of their outfits, but…

She was a talker. The clever kind. So was Chastity, but Prudence had at least learned to tolerate and tune her out most of the time. The idea of having another one around didn’t appeal, and she was about to voice her opinion.

Until ‘Chazzie’.

Her long hairs covered the twitch in her face, but it was undoubtedly there, concealed for the moment as Beatrice spoke and laid out her idea of things. Prudence did her best to hold it in, not let it slip, but there was only so much a lowly mortal like her could do. The moment Beatrice stopped speaking, it came out.

A laugh.

A boisterous one, too, not that she could make any different kind. It was loud enough to echo about the church and draw more than a few awkward glances, before they realized who the source was and promptly decided to mind their own business. ”Holy fuck, that’s the silliest thing I’ve heard all week. Chazzie? She downgraded it to snickers as she looked Chastity’s way, who seemed oddly bemused by the whole thing, a rarity for her.

”I fail to see the humor.”

”You would. That’s your new name, though. Either that or I’m bringing it down to ‘Chaz’. I haven’t decided yet.” She let it all out with a long sigh, then stepped aside and cleared a path for them. ”Look, whatever you two are doing, do it before Lucia gets back. I don’t feel like hearing more of her mouth; she’s in a mood today.”

”It won’t be a problem, I promise.” Sister ‘Chaz’ gave her a little nod, then looked back to Beatrice with her typical shining demeanor. ”Shall we continue?”