The Cursed Brides

The Cursed Brides: They Were Married to the Darkness

In the small, secluded village of Ashmore, there was an ancient tradition that had been passed down for generations. It was a twisted and macabre custom, one that no one dared question. On the eve of each spring solstice, a wedding was held, though it was not the joyous occasion one might expect. The bride was always chosen from the most vulnerable of the village’s young women, often those with troubled pasts or families in debt. And though the groom was never seen, the wedding always went on, and the bride always disappeared.

Eliza Thompson, a young woman of 18, had never heard the full story of the cursed weddings. She grew up in the shadows of Ashmore, a town where secrets were as thick as the fog that rolled in from the mountains. Her parents, quiet and reserved, rarely spoke of the past. But when Eliza’s name was whispered by the elders and her fate was sealed, she began to hear the rumors—the ones about the darkness that lingered, the unholy union that demanded a soul every year.

Eliza’s parents tried to protect her, but tradition was a powerful force. The night of her wedding, she was led to the altar, her hands trembling beneath the heavy white lace of her dress. Her heart hammered in her chest as she passed by the candle-lit procession of villagers. They all watched in silence, eyes hollow with dread. They knew what this night meant, what it had meant for the past hundred years. But for Eliza, it was the first time she felt the weight of the curse.

As she stepped onto the platform, the air turned cold. The wind howled like a distant scream. A figure in dark robes appeared at the far end of the altar. His face was hidden beneath a hood, but Eliza could feel his presence like a pressing weight. The villagers remained silent, their gazes fixed on the scene as if they were mere spectators to something far greater than themselves.

The figure spoke in a voice that echoed through her bones. "Do you take this man to be your husband, to honor and obey him, until death do you part?"

Eliza didn’t know what to say. She had been taught to say the words, to obey the ceremony. But something within her hesitated. The stories of past brides—their blank, lifeless eyes when they returned from the altar—flashed through her mind. There were no true marriages in Ashmore, only sacrifices to the darkness that dwelled beneath the earth, to something ancient and hungry.

But it was too late. The villagers’ chants filled the air, drowning her thoughts, as if they were compelling her to speak. And, with a voice that trembled like the wind outside, she whispered the words, “I do.”

The figure raised his hand, and a wave of coldness swept over her. A shadow seemed to stir beneath the altar, thick and viscous, like a living thing. Eliza felt a pull deep within her chest, a force drawing her towards it. The darkness around her began to take shape, twisting into monstrous forms.

And then, she felt it—something cold, something evil—wrap around her soul, binding her to the shadow.

The villagers began to chant louder, their voices rising in intensity. Eliza tried to scream, but her voice was drowned out by the deafening roar of the wind. The darkness seeped into her body, filling her veins with a black poison. She could feel the life being drained from her, her spirit slipping away, becoming one with the curse.

She thought of her family, of her parents’ desperate faces as they watched her transform. But they could do nothing. Tradition had already claimed her.

In an instant, the figure in the robe stepped forward, his hands reaching for her. The ceremony was almost complete. Eliza’s vision blurred, her body growing numb as she felt herself being consumed by the darkness.

Then, just as quickly as it had begun, it stopped. The world grew still. The figure before her dissolved into nothingness, leaving her standing alone on the altar. The villagers slowly began to disperse, as if nothing had happened.

Eliza looked around, confused. Was it over? Had she survived?

But as she turned to leave, she saw something in the reflection of the altar's silver mirror. Her own face, pale and ghostly, stared back at her. Her eyes were empty, lifeless. The wedding veil that had once been white was now a deep, dark crimson. She had become one of them.

The cursed brides.

The ones who were never truly free, bound to the darkness for all eternity. And as Eliza felt the cold presence wrap around her once more, she understood the truth: the bride’s soul was never meant to return. They were married to the darkness, and the darkness was their groom—forever.

And so, year after year, Eliza would stand at the altar, waiting for the next unfortunate girl to take her place, as the curse of the cursed brides lived on.