Infuscomus

E1: Madison Meltdown
Map 1:Cheese Head

Welcome my dear readers. I think an introduction is in order. This a crossover story between Worm and Dusk as a pre-canon fusion crossover. This story features a mostly original character cast and if you do not like OC's I would encourage you to skip this story. If you have not played Dusk it is a fun 90's style FPS game and if you have yet to read Worm please go do so it is a good read for the most part. That being said this story will delve into themes that may not be suitable for all audiences. If you have a problem with excessive violence, blood, and gore this is not your story. If you have a problem with violence against minors this story is not for you. If you dislike references to old 90's games this story is not for you. All that said I present to you Episode 1 of Infuscomus affectionately called Madison Meltdown.

Prologue

The rural town of Dusk was founded well over 2 centuries ago by farmers looking for new land to settle. The village slowly grew into a small town and by the year of 1956 it had become the site of a secret government operation. Soon afterwards, the town was walled off and guards were posted to prevent anyone from leaving or entering. At one point an intruder broke into the town in search of hidden riches. He never came out, but he left a trail of bodies that could be seen from above the ground. Eventually time forgot about the little town and there it sat for 30 more years waiting and when it woke up from its slumber the world had changed and was far more different than what it had become. "Superheroes" and "Supervillains" had appeared and the whole world was stupefied. Dusk was patient and it had waited this long and it will wait longer still. The walls opened themselves crack by crack and piece by piece. A lattice of openings into the outside world had formed and the town's greatest defenders had become their greatest asset. Soldiers were taken, indoctrinated, and sent back in skin not their own to seduce others to the cause of Dusk. There were soon men and women devoted to Dusk and its dark Under-Lord. There was only one problem and that was with the world. It was not ready for Dusk and its inhabitants. And so there it sat until the Under-Lord gives his word, then corruption shall spread. Soon all will know of the bastion of salvation that is DUSK!

My name is unimportant, and I serve Dusk. My name is unimportant, and I serve Dusk. My name is unimportant, and I serve Dusk. My name is unimportant, and I serve Dusk. My name is unimportant, and I serve Dusk. My name is unimportant, and I serve Dusk. My name is unimportant, and I serve Dusk. My name is unimportant, and I serve God. My name is unimportant, and I serve God. My name is unimportant, and I serve God. My name is Shawn and I serve Dusk. My name is Shawn and I serve Dusk. My name is Shawn and I serve Dusk. My name is Shawn and I serve Dusk. I SERVE DUSK.

I woke up with a start, my head striking the bunk above me and I lay down again, gripping my head and in pain I writhed for a moment and cursed. One man shot me a look and I calmed myself. I listened to the teachings that were taught and took a moment to sit cross-legged and head bowed while I uttered a forgiveness for my outburst. I received my penance and served it dutifully. I opened my robe and knelt in front of a mirror, a whip was presented to me and I used it to flagellate myself thirteen sets of seven for my callous mistake until blood and run down my back and seeped into the floor. I stood wincing and in pain fastened my robe around my bleeding form, wincing as the rough fabric chafed against my fresh wounds and staining the dirty fabric a deep crimson.

This is my final test to prove myself worthy or as sacrifice; a wizard or food for our Lord. I walked down into the Under-chamber where the Under-Lord of Dusk sits on his throne of stone and bias made from the bones of the unworthy. I knelt at his feet and the guards left the room at his command. I am anxious but unafraid; this test will be completed to the Lord's satisfaction and I will succeed for Dusk. The Lord never spoke a word to me, instead he stood and circled my prostrated form, as he lifted a pair of sickles from off his throne. His emerald eyes crackled with power as gazed upon me and I felt a presence on my mind. I closed my eyes and relaxed as I mentally prepared myself for what was to come.

The Lord grasped my arm and carved into it with the symbol of Dusk. I teared up as the pain built but never opened my mouth nor made a sound even as my vision failed and I collapsed at the Lord's feet I knew that I was worthy. My eyes were opened then, not to some notion of the human condition or the revelation of some afterlife. I saw a being of endless faces swimming upon a sea of stars. I saw a Pharaoh cloaked in gold and covered in sin. I saw a man without face or body yet still solid and true. I saw a brown beast of great proportion with green boils and cracked skin. I saw a giant fog of sentient thought and deadly purpose. And most insidiously I saw our Lord himself but twisted and burdened with great virescent tumors and pustules across his back reaching up like a tree supporting all the previous forms.

I woke with a start an aura of green miasma flowed around my hands for a few moments and disappeared into nothingness. The Lord cleared his throat loudly and spoke in a voice aged by disuse, but all the same raspy and echoing. His words cut through me in every sense of the word for a moment I glimpsed one of the many faces behind him.

"You have seen for yourself the beauty and terror of Dusk. It will be your job to spread it in the coming days. You have one last test to prove to your use to us. You will go to Madison, Wisconsin and await further instructions from Me. Your contact is a man by the name of Dillon Andrews. You will say to him our Phrase and He will respond." I did not speak and instead nodded my assent. A deep and hearty laugh sounded out as the world bent and twisted around me until I was placed outside a home in an unfamiliar city. "You will prove most helpful in the coming days my servant. Yes indeed, or you will be a sacrifice for me."

I walked along the pavement head bowed and whispered out my assent: Pestis Cruento vilomaxus pretiacreunto. The Lord's cackle followed me across my walk until a door was opened and a man walked out from an alleyway dressed in flannel with a sack cloth hood covering his face. I said without hesitation: "From out of the Dusk we come to Ashes we go." He replied automatically and without pause "And the Heretic will burn upon our fury. Follow me before you make a scene." He guided me into a building dusty and dirty cluttered with crates, barrels, boxes, and all manner of storage containers. I heard a breath emanating from behind a few boxes and was pinned down by an invisible force. As suddenly as it fell the force was lifted and I was staring into a horse's skull being held by my guide mere inches from my face as drool leaked from its maw. The beast was moved off me and I sat up wheezing as the skull disappeared from sight again.

"You keep a Wendigo in a city? Wouldn't a Black Philip be much more appreciated by the residents?" I asked incredulously. Wendigos were only kept in the inner parts of Dusk as they tended to maul their caretakers when not fed.

"You assume the residents even know where George is. He's a Wendigo for a reason." Mr. Andrews spoke in an attempt to assuage my doubts. "Now then, you're new to this operation so I'll make this quick and to the point. The Lord has tasked us with observing and converting new members into the fold in preparation for our deliverance. Any powered individuals are to be monitored at all times and those who first gain their powers are a priority target. Not only for observation, but also for possible conversion. This city isn't quite as superfluous in powered individuals as others so you will not need to worry too greatly about that." He paused here for a moment and retrieved a cigar from inside one of his pockets. "I am the head of our operations here and the liaison between Dusk and you. Any necessary items for transportation or new inductees are to be brought to me for processing. With all the formal duties outlined let's find you a good cover." Dillon lit his cigar and paused in thought. "What were your assignments in Dusk?" He finally asked as he began to pace back and forth.

"I was an indoctrinator during the early days of Dusk. I handled priests and clergymen as well as children. In addition, I was a technician working maintenance on the first few mighty Altars to our Lord." Looking back, I feel a sense of pride. No doubt my promotion had to do with my many years of service.

Dillon cackled quickly and bore his yellowed teeth in a wide and toothy grin. "I believe that you and I are in luck; we may have a disguise that will work splendidly for a man of your talents. Follow me."

We walked to the back end of the warehouse where Dillon pressed his hand against a small plate on the wall and a door opened in front of them. As we entered the hallway, the door behind us swung shut quashing any light that shone save the cigar clasped between Mr. Andrews' teeth. We walked further and further down a spiral staircase the further we went the stronger the stench in the air got. I smelled it further above, but down here it was comforting in a nostalgic way. The sharp smell of excessive blood and viscera filled my nose and I took a deep breath. In a way this was like coming home. We stopped outside a cell and looking inside I saw something revolting. A sick and simpering sack of a man lay in a pool of his own blood bound in chains and whimpering softly.

"This is Alastair Masters, a teacher of history who, until now, has had a string of back luck and trusted the wrong people to get him out of a gambling debt." Andrews introduced us, but all I was only partially listening to him. In front of me sat everything I despised and tried to distance myself from. In the back of my head sat a small voice repeating over and over: unworthy. I returned to reality to hear the last part of my chaperone's thoughts. "Dusk is prepared to give you his identity and set you up with an interview at a local high school until we are ready to enact our grand plan." He concluded seeming to not have sensed my displeasure in being near such a despicable waste of life.

"Don't you think he knows too much?" I asked itching to walk into that cell as if I were back in Dusk.

"Of course, but while he has been deemed unworthy, we will need as much blood as possible for our Great Delivery. Unless of course you feel as though he has a chance at escaping and will be a problem in the future?" Dillon asked as a smile crossed his face.

"I will make certain he will never be a problem except for the ones who have to clean his waste off the cell." I said and I could swear that for a moment I hear the laugh of our Lord. The cell was unlocked, and I strode in. In the sight of my presence the waste of space fled from me attempting to hide. It was infuriating that this thing would dare try to escape from me. My miasma flowed around me growing from the very air and settling like a cloak around my body and wrapping within the warm embrace of Dusk. I strode forwards and punched that little beast in the face, and it cried out in pain. WORTHLESS. I hit that disgusting thing again and again until it fell to the floor and for good measure, I kicked him while he lay on the floor causing it to spit up whatever gruel the guards had given it. I strode out of the cell as my miasma faded into the air. The two of us walked out of that prison and back up the stairs where soon all the Unworthy, the Heretics and the Defilers would be gone. "Infuscomus lokemundux bhuudesco Cruento paashaeximus." I recited as the doors opened up again and we walked back into the warehouse.