Shield brandished and sword gripped tight, Veikh's gaze locked to the door at the left side of the room; a sign on the wall beside it indicating it led to a wine cellar.
Three others, consisting of a tan-skinned man whose face was littered with scars, a long-haired man with rather androgynous features, and the brown-haired man from earlier with the shoddy blade followed him through the doorway. Safe to say, Veikh found himself growing weary at the knowledge that the former two's weapons were truly no better than the last man's "weapon."
The small hallway greeting them upon their entrance was surprisingly empty, if a bit foreboding by the various indoor torches nailed onto the walls. Their steps were muffled by the plush carpet underfoot, which would serve well if there were any guards stationed behind the door ahead of them.
Making their way through to the end of the hall and with his weapon readied, Veikh slowly pushed open the door to the next room. He found himself recoiling a few steps to the confusion of the other men, shield hand clasped tight around his mouth as he stifled a gag at the intense scent of alcohol that permeated from beyond; so much so he found his eyes watering at the sheer volume.
"Hey, you okay dude?" The tan-skinned man piped up, the worry in his voice evident.
"...Yeah, perfectly fine." Veikh choked as his small fit died away.
After catching his breath and with a nod of confirmation, the four of them burst into the wine cellar without further hesitation; met by… nothing. Aside from the even thicker scent of wine.
Gaze darting cautiously around the cellar, Veikh noted the unsurprising prominence of oak barrels strewn about. Shelves displayed with what he assumed to be antiquated bottles sat behind the large countertop at the far right corner of the room. A sort of built-in tavern, he believed.
Veikh paused at the thought. Even if it was just a wine cellar, there would at least be a guard or two posted to keep watch... or something. Had they been so arrogant to only post guards outside? If so, it would make their job a hell of a lot easier…
"Hey uh, guys…?"
Veikh was snapped free from his pondering at the familiar voice of the brown-haired man; who seemed to be rife with uncertainty by tone alone. Had he found something?
Drawn to the back of the room where more large quantities of oak barrels were placed about, as he and the other two men neared the man's side did he find an answer.
From a crack in one of the barrels leaked a strange black substance… a coloration that clearly indicated it was anything but wine. From the small chandeliers overhead, did the black sludge seem to reflect the light, taking on a strange metallic sheen. And as he narrowed his eyes to examine it in more detail, did he notice how it appeared to shift and bubble as it slowly puddled before them... almost as if it were… alive?
"So… this what they're throwing in alcohol now? Glad I was never into that crap." Veikh muttered under his breath as he withdrew in disgust.
...He never did like the smell of wine or anything of the sort. Alcohol was far from his preferred beverage, and with how strong it invaded his senses now alongside the sight before him, being inside a tavern would never be the same.
Before he could even suggest they return to the entrance room, the he found his gaze returning to the mass of black ooze once more as it appeared to gather into itself; growing thicker in consistency. For a moment, he could even glimpse his reflection.
Either without thinking or enamored by the sight, the long-haired feminine-faced man leaned inwards; and as his mouth opened to talk did the ooze strike. Lurching towards him with a speed that he couldn't have ever hoped to anticipate, did it stretch from the wooden floor and coat the effeminate man's head with a loud, wet slap; the abrupt motion causing him to jerk back and accidentally shove the tan-skinned man to the floor in a panic.
"MMMMPHH!"
From beneath the goop clinging to his head the man's mouth opened with a muffled cry, hands grasping to his face and attempting to claw the blackness desperately from his sight. And at a glance, the way the substance had begun thinning appeared to signify his efforts wouldn't be in vain.
Yet Veikh found his body frozen as the reality of the situation dawned upon him. While he'd seen Corrupted beasts during his time in Ithulmia, and had heard about the way Corruption twisted an individual, he'd never actually witnessed such an event in person.
And the sight before him was both terrifyingly hypnotic and revolting all the same.
Crawling down his neck, tendrils of the black ooze broke off from the main mass to tear apart the man's clothing; slim physique bared in order for its consumption to be witnessed. At the now naked man's feet another mass of black ooze puddled around the tan-skinned man, whose clothing had also been torn away as he was given the same treatment.
Eventually, Veikh noticed how the very skin of both men had begun to gain a strange sheen similar to the ooze, even darkening. The mass of sludge around the long-haired man's face bubbled and shifted, elongating into what amounted to the face of some kind of wolf-like creature going by the muzzle. From growing hands and feet, claws burst forth accompanied by an ear-piercing howl; a loud gurgling roar joining it as a second, much more reptilian beast rose from the floor, slime squelching beneath both beast's feet.
"W-We have to get out of here!"
Veikh gasped, the voice of the man with the shoddily-crafted sword snapping him free from his entranced state and not a second too soon as he raised his shield to block the large fist of the canine beast; although the force alone was enough to send him crashing into a nearby table.
Immediately back on his feet and with adrenaline pumping through his veins, a scream attracted Veikh's eyes to the reptilian beast; the man who'd yelled crushed between it's heavily muscled arms in a vice-grip.
Yet before he could attempt to come to his cohort's aid, the platinum-haired man's gaze snapped to the floor underfoot as a loud slurp graced his ears; eyes widening at the sight of his left foot submerged to the ankle in a puddle of black ooze, following a trail to another pile of barrels behind him.
"You gotta be fucking shitting me."