The sun shines through the room, its beams casting a warm glow on the floor and creating a soft haze that illuminates the space. I head out the door to the dining area, where the group is already seated at a table. Romeo stands with a wide smile, looking excited. “Alright, let’s head out!” he says cheerfully.

In the village, we make our way to the cave, the dirt dry and cracked from the relentless sun. As we approach the entrance, the sun begins to slip away, casting long shadows. Stepping into the cave, we are immediately enveloped in cool darkness, with the faint sound of water droplets echoing from deep within. As we go deeper, I begin to hear the murmurs I heard the other night. I glance at Romeo, he nods and tosses me his battle axe, which I catch with confidence.

“Whoa, that was pretty cool, Cai!” Halron’s voice echoes in the cave. I raise the massive axe with both hands, positioning it at Halron’s throat. “Uh... Cai, you don’t need to do all that... We’re buddies, right?”

I look at him straight-faced. “Prepare to die.” The others ready their weapons.

“Cai! Please, you don’t need to do this,” Halron pleads, his voice trembling with fear. I ignore him. With a roar of effort, I swing the axe with brutal force, gashing his chest open. The blade bites deep, and blood erupts in a violent spray, warm droplets splattering across my face and neck. His scream, a chilling mix of agony and despair, reverberates through the cave, echoing off the jagged walls.

Ignoring his cries, I take another vicious swing, carving deeper into his already torn flesh. The axe cleaves through muscle and bone with a sickening crunch, silencing his screams as his blood pours out. Halron collapses in a bloody heap, his body twitching sporadically as the life drains from him. Jade’s horrified scream pierces the air, the sound raw and frantic.

Surrounded by the remaining two, I catch sight of Romeo watching from a distance, a cruel smile stretching across his face. “You DEMON!” Azkar roars, his voice filled with rage. He charges at me with a blade, the metal flashing in the dim light.

I barely manage to deflect his strike, the blade grazing my cheek and drawing a thin line of blood. The searing pain is nothing compared to the fury it ignites within me. Azkar’s eyes blaze with defiant anger as he presses the attack, swinging his blade in powerful arcs. I twist away from one strike, but his next swing slashes across my ribs, leaving a deep, stinging cut. I growl in pain, the blood mixing with sweat as I retaliate.

I slam my axe into his shoulder. The impact is devastating, and I feel the bone shatter beneath the blade, a wet, cracking sound filling the cave. Azkar’s scream escalates into a desperate howl of pain. He stumbles back, clutching his shattered shoulder, but not before attempting one final, desperate swing at me. I dodge the feeble attack, the blade narrowly missing my side as I wrench the axe free, blood and fragments of bone splattering around us.

Turning to Jade, I see her shaking with terror, her small dagger trembling in her hand. She’s determined to fight back, though her hands are unsteady. As I charge at her, she lets out a panicked scream and lunges forward, the dagger aimed at my torso. Her stab is wild, fueled by desperation rather than skill. I sidestep the clumsy attack, feeling the rush of air as the dagger narrowly misses my side.

Jade’s eyes widen in fear as I pin her against the cave wall, her attempts to stab me growing increasingly frantic. With a cold, calculated motion, I bring the axe down on her. The blade tears through her body with brutal efficiency, carving a gruesome, bloody split. The force of the strike rends her flesh, her screams muffled by the crushing weight of the axe. Her body falls, blood pooling at my feet.

Azkar, still writhing in pain behind me, lets out a final, agonized scream before I spin around and deliver a decisive swing. The axe cleaves through his chest, a final spasm of life twitching through him. Blood pools around him, the red staining the ground in a morbid testament to the brutality of the fight.

Standing over the corpses of my three fallen comrades, their lifeless bodies a grim display of the violence that has unfolded, I catch Romeo approaching. He claps slowly, the sound echoing in the cave. “Bravo, bravo! Cai, what a show!” he exclaims, his voice dripping with mockery and approval.

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I turn toward him, my face expressionless, and swing the axe.. The blade slices through the air, severing his head cleanly from his shoulders. The headless body stumbles for a moment before collapsing to the ground, blood gushing from the neck. I let out a sigh, my voice tinged with careless indifference. “Oops,” I murmur, watching as the head rolls away, its eyes wide in frozen shock.

An idea slithers into my mind, a memory of the dark necromancy books I've divulged in over the years. I can almost feel the weight of the knowledge as I rummage through my bag, my fingers finally closing around the familiar, weathered book. “Binding the Soulless,” I mutter, my voice echoing through the cave.

With a deep breath, I open the book, its pages stained with the essence of countless rituals. My eyes scour the ancient text, hunting for the rite to control the dead. The words, though foreign and twisted, resonate with a dark power that tingles down my spine.

Without hesitation, I plunge my arms into the pools of blood from my fallen comrades, the warm, sticky liquid coating my skin. It drips from my elbows, splattering onto the cold stone floor and begin to form a circle. The air is thick with the metallic scent of iron.

I drag Azkar’s body closer to the circle, his lifeless form heavy and limp. I tear open the wound in his chest, the flesh parting with a firm crack of his bones. His blood still warm, it gushes over my hands as I dip them into the cavity feeling the fading heat of life.

Using his blood as my paint, I trace symbols around the circle, the ancient language flowing from the book to my hands. The letters twist and curl, forming shapes that I don’t fully understand but instinctively know are correct. The blood glistens in the dim light, ready to summon the dead.

The air grows heavy, and I feel the energy shift as the ritual takes hold. There is no turning back now.

My body freezes, unable to move. I collapse to my knees, overwhelmed by a sinking feeling I’ve never experienced before. My mouth is forcibly opened as my head is tilted back; I try to resist, but I cannot. The cave goes dark as black feathers spew from my mouth, surrounding me and filling the space. The Raven Queen appears before me, her hand resting on my throat as she gazes down at me. My eyes are wide and fixed on her. She is beautiful.

She clicks her teeth, shaking her head in disappointment. Moving slowly around me, she runs her hand down my neck and brushes against my shoulders before returning to stand directly in front of me, her hand back on my throat. “Have you forgotten the nature of your vow?” Her voice is intense, her face inches from mine. “Life is not to be tampered with, for it belongs to the realm of the living and the dead alone. You have severed your bond with me and embraced a path of betrayal. By breaking your oath, you have forfeited your place in my domain. Your actions have cast you out of my favor, and you are now but a shadow of your former self, destined to wander without purpose. The consequences of your disloyalty are yours to bear alone, and you will find no refuge in my realm.” Her fingers trail along my throat before lightly brushing my chin. I watch her walk away into the darkness, struggling to keep my gaze fixed on her as I remain frozen in place. Her footsteps grow fainter, their echoes fading into the distance.

It feels like an eternity, trapped in this state. I stare into the void before me, and within seconds, the darkness is inhaled into my lungs. Corpses reappear in front of me. I take a deep breath, trying to process what just happened. I glance ahead, seeing the dim light from the cave entrance. How long has it been? I feel a profound emptiness inside me, as if the entirety of my life dedicated to the Raven Queen has been stripped away. I try to suppress my emotions, but instead, I’m left feeling hollow and numb. What is this sensation? What purpose do I have now in life?

Despite this internal confusion, I know I must focus on my mission. My personal struggles must be set aside for now. The tasks ahead are crucial, and I need to channel my energy into completing them, even though I feel lost within myself. The entrance glows a deeper yellow, closer to sundown. “Let’s get to work,” I mutter to myself as I stand, brushing the gravel off me, numb by what I just witnessed. I drag Azkar’s body into the circle and grasp the book in my hand. Reading the ritual, I murmur, "By my will, rise from death and serve once more." I slowly raise my hand, watching as the body before me begins to rise, a green hue radiating from him. Azkar, now reanimated, walks toward me in silence, his mouth hanging open and his eyes glowing with the same eerie green light. With each step, his guts spill out, and blood runs down his body. I examine him for a moment before continuing deeper into the cave.