Concentrating on any signs of movement and listening to the sounds I warily sneak forward, inspecting the piles of bones. Some even reach the ceiling, obstructing my sight, but as I send a mental probe, in a sphere like impulse, I suddenly see something. Decayed humans, rotten and without eyes are bashing their heads against the walls?
Hearing faint, slow moans of pain in the distance, I notice something else about them. These creatures were completely without battle-qi and life. The only thing holding them together is their prisoned soul bound to them by soul magic, the magic variant passed down from our ... his, former master. It seems that either the demon had been wrong, or this was actually an ancient ruin of our own demonic family.
Necromancy was a magic to bind lesser to greater undead or deceased souls, by showing your superiority in the realms of the dead. No living create may enter the astral plane and live, but if one has the abilities to, for example by having done the initiation of necromancy, one could send a projection of his soul into the plane and subdue these souls into service. When summoned they would follow the commands of their summoner and disspear when killed, dismissed or their summoner is killed, thus the link is severed.
What this was, was something far more sinister. This was imprisoning willingness souls that have not yet crossed into the astral plane to bind them into their, or another’s body. Most souls were not sturdy enough for such an endeavour, resulting in these mindless husks. If you wanted to kill one, you could go and slowly behead it with a spoon, if you are so inclined. They wouldn’t pose one bit of resistance.
Unlike necromancy, when done right, you could summon countless of monsters indefinitely and even when you're dead they'd still roam about our plane. Most would know only hatred and pain, so controlling them was also out of the question, but according to the demon this was how the Demon Lords created their lieutenants.
What sick creature would create husks and still keep them alive in their catacombs!?
Examining them, I make my over and end their existence, when a clacking behind me made me jump away in an instant.
*CLANG*
A heavy sword now landed on the floor exactly where I stood, a skeleton holding it, looking at me while clacking its bones. The lower jaw was missing and the blue fire in its eyes indicated that this thing was actually fuelled by two minor soul springs, giving their bony host its unrelenting hatred for the living.
Great… so this ruin was not just filled with husks. The skeleton gave off a chilly wind as it began walking towards me, suddenly completely silent, lacking any of its previous clacking.
Slowly backing away from it, I scan the rest of this rather large room of the catacombs. It had a rather unique layout; basically there was one main walkway with pillars of skulls. In a symmetric fashion it would expand into a chamber filled with bones, husks and dead bodies. There were a total of six chambers, 3 to the north, or what I thought was north and 3 to the south. I came in via a doorway in the middle chamber to the south and am currently in the walkway between in the middle of the room. At each end I saw a door and after quickly looking over the other rooms, while avoiding the skeletons, I saw some more bone piles moving, a hand slowly trying to make its way out…
Damn, there might be more… it truly was astonishing how much the demon knew about these things, I’m betting he might have even created far more vile creatures. It hurts to remember anything from my past, especially if it had anything to do with the things he experienced, but the facts were easy to access, most of these were unlocked by now, so I knew just how difficult these skeletons were do deal with.
Without resorting to my demonic magic, I could only get rid of them with resorting to either light magic, a magic I cannot use, or reducing the bones to dust. Even after destroying their bodies, these minor spirit fountains could possess some other remains to exact their revenge on the world in their insanity. As long as they only had possessed these human bones, it’s fine, they wouldn’t pose much of a threat. Were they to form into a greater skeleton fiend, however… I’d be in trouble. So it's best to just dodge and try to shut them in here. They're not very smart, so opening a door isn't really a thing they could do.
If they could smash it down, well... I just hope they can't.
Making my way to the eastern door, dodging the now five skeletons attacking me, I was getting mighty annoyed be these pests.
*Whoosh*
Just as I opened the door, this damned skeleton actually dared to cut me, its cold magic cutting my spirit directly.
“ANNOYING PESTS!”
Enraged, I blast them all away with an explosion of fire, dispersing their bones with a wave of my battle-qi. Thankfully I had an incredible amount of spiritual energy, had I just had the spiritual energy of a magus of the 5th rank, I would have definitely died from its attack on my spirit!
“Oh no…”
Having realised my mistake, I stare in shock as the ten minor spirit fountains suddenly seemed to expand, consuming each other and swirling around each other before combining and binding most of the bones in their vicinity.
The bone piles began to rattle with a concerning volume, more and more skeletons beginning to rise and even combine.
"Tsk!"
I sprint forward! I have to end this before its becoming unmanageable. Just as I arrived at the hovering flame of souls a bony hand reaches forward and the fire contracts into a small concentrated light, moving into the skeleton, which begins to float as its forehead lights up.
Now I’ve done it… a Lich. Why a Lich? Couldn’t it have been a dread knight, or a simple undead mage?
Jumping to the left, after sensing the danger, I narrowly avoid the fireball that would have hit me squarely in the chest. I jump up, digging deep into the bone-like material in the ceiling, scurrying along to get behind a pillar, away from the Lich.
I cannot use too much fire in here, or else the air might run out. Even though I could live without eating or drinking anything because I could directly absorb life force and elemental energy at a rate that would sustain me indefinitely, because there is such low density of both of them down here, I would quickly die without being able to breath. In fact, if I wouldn’t get a source of drinkable water or life-force soon enough, I’d be facing a pretty dire crisis anyway.
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These skeletons don’t care about that though, evident by the Lich continuing to send fireballs my way! I need to get rid of him, and quick!
“Smelting body”! Soon my body was enveloped in a smelting heat and as I directly charge through the next fireball with my enhanced resistance to fire, I jumped directly in front of the Lich, just to be blocked by two skeleton knights that have managed to rise in the time I formulated my plan.
Dropping low I quickly swipe at their legs, avoiding their blades and sending them sprawling on the ground. Grabbing their heads I quickly do the smart thing and sever their connection to the Lich by interfering with the bond between them with a small portion of my own life-force. I had no other choice, I need to end this quickly!
Dancing around the ice shards, apparently the Lich was a bit smarter than the average skeleton and changed his approach, I try to pierce his skull, but with a distortion of the air around him, he suddenly moved with a speed no normal undead should possess.
Damn, by using his wind spells, he is nearly as fast as me!
Even more skeletons are now moving into the hallway, the bone piles seemingly almost all scattered there was scarcely any room on the floor without bones left.
Gritting my teeth I stared at this Lich, if I run now, I might run into even more, which would eventually kill me. No other choice, I must use my own life.
Demonic Arts: Life-force manipulation. Gathering my own power from deep within me, I feel my face becoming pale, my bones creaking and muscles tearing. My previously lush black, purple hair slowly turned grey and white, while a blinding light slowly formed over my palm.
“Die!”
Staring daggers at the Lich, who seemed to chant a long incantation, I let the light go, making it explode noiselessly, sending an invisible shockwave outwards. Any Skeleton it passes stops dead in their tracks, crumbling where they stood. The Lich suddenly finished his powerful spell, lightning crackling, sending an unavoidable lightning bolt my way, which struck me into my shoulder, throwing me into the wall and making me almost lose consciousness.
As the shockwave crashed into the Lich, a loud wailing could be heard as the bundles of countless lesser souls were destroyed. The light vanishing from its forehead and bones flying loose all over the place.
I did it, but at what price?
Damn me and my stupidity…
Slumping down I sit against the wall and try to consume anything in my vicinity only to find that nothing but death surrounds me. While the elemental energies would regenerate my battle-qi and mageforce, my current demonic powers and health couldn’t regenerate without sufficient life-force.
“Demon… if you’re still there, now would be the time to help… Things are not looking good here right now, hehe.
If only I could have seen her one more time...”
As my mind wanders, the now completely silent room makes me feel me an even more dreading sense of despair. Trying to hold my eyes open and my mind focused, I gradually lose feeling in my fingers.
So this… is the end?
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
“What is that?” (Owen)
“Hm? What do you mean?” (Demon)
As the boy stares behind me into the icy storm raging in the distance, the manifestation of our anger and hatred, the crucial power motivating and tormenting me, his complexion suddenly changed into one of fear. Like a seedling drowned in the goodwill of the rain, lost for its greed of water, he seemed to lose all hope and colour.
“This… this guy there behind you, is what I mean. What sort of horrors are you making me witness!? Is this part of the past you want me to remember?” (Owen)
Past? Has he fallen to the insanity of the lake, buried deep within us and finally excepted our past and vengance?
I cannot feel our minds finally merging into one, nor do I feel the pull of the void, wanting to extinguish the remains of my past life... so what is happening?
What is he seeing? What is he starting to-
A blue mist gives me no respite, as it’s enveloping the boy and severing the tunnel that existed between us, letting me access his awareness, thus allowing me a window to the outside.
It cannot be?
“Abraxas…” (Demon)
Spitting out his name as if it’s a curse, my former master finally makes his presence known.
“Daring to use my name, are you? My ‘right hand?’”
“So you were the one to sever the tie and send him back? How have you managed to invade my mind? Why do you insist on tormenting me even after my death!?”
“There is some grim satisfaction in infuriating you.”
“YOU… “
Tsk… Blind rage cannot cloud my judgement. What is he planning?
“What do you want, oh my benefactor? What can your ‘loyal’ servant do for you? Wanting to see me spend another few millennia in ceaseless agony?”
“If only you knew how wrong you are, child. We are on the same side, even if you may hate me.”
“Oh, are we? Why don’t you go ahead and end yourself, as I see Baator couldn’t be bothered to expunge your anarchic existence himself. Say, what exactly did I do to warrant the treatment of weaklings and traitors? As the loyal dog is beaten and killed for having served his master, the one he served, the one to give the orders laughs while being praised and deified? Oh, what great show of rewarding loyalty!”
“Spare me your sarcasm. You think to defy me when all you have done is blindly follow your road to revenge? Don’t fool yourself, zealot. Following a road of another’s design, believing it yours, will lead you to nothing but your own despair. To live like that, is to cast aside your free-will, to follow fate to its bitter end.
The Overgods have written our history. They have given us our role in this rotten play, but the tale is crude and ill-conceived. I have seen the beginning and the end of our story, Belial, and the end is in dire need of rewriting. We must change it, you and I”
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Thank you for reading! Hope you’ll give me some feedback. No trivia for today! I’ll write up some more when I have the time, or if the demand for more is big enough.