A clang rang out, above the heads of the combatants and James looked up to see a stalactite emerging from the Blue Stone steam, falling directly downwards. “Thump!” was the sound made as the 20 foot long cylinder of calcium carbonate impacted the sludge. “Clang!” rang out again, almost as loud as a church bell, and a second missile punctured the surface of the blue sludge. The Dwarf was succeeding!

James could hardly believe it! Perhaps there was some hope!

“What?” screamed the Chaos Lord. “You insignificant nothings seek to sabotage my life’s work at my moment of triumph?” Another clang and another arrow of the God’s struck home in the pile. And another, and another. Erik Blarneysson was relentless.

Gloamanthal called up a bolt of black lightning and cast it upwards, into the mist. A thunderclap rang out upon impact with the ceiling, but that did not stop the Dwarf’s progress. Another stalactite fell, and another, and another. Gloamanthal fired one more bolt, with equally ineffective results.

Gloamanthal redirected his anger towards Oakleaf, chopping downwards with his evil blade. The impact was less than it had been before. Something had weakened the Chaos Lord. Oakleaf struggled to his feet a second time, deflecting blows from Gloamanthal. Several more stalactites buried themselves into the sludge pit, and still they rained down. And another thing caught James’s attention. The golden worms were accumulating in the floor of the chamber encircling Gloamanthal and Lord Gilderwood. What was that all about?

The Chaos Lord took a step back and considered his position. He muttered some words and waved his sword in a whirling motion. A black vortex formed and grew in size, and speed. The air crackled with power and black sparks flew. Gilderwood also muttered his own words of power. The dark whirlwind approached the Emerald Wizard but he resisted, pressing his scythe blade against the edge of the vortex. It sounded like a spinning saw cutting metal but Gilderwood’s blade remained intact.

Exerting every muscle in his body Gloamanthal attempted to will the magic vortex forward. He would gain a few inches, forcing Gilderwood to step backwards a fraction, and then Gilderwood would call up his own desperate effort, shoving the eldritch enchantment back towards Gloamanthal. It was a titanic wrestling match. Neither appeared to be able to gain the upper hand. And both wizards appeared to be weakening.

It occurred to James that the Sunstone was now considerably dimmer than it had been when first ignited. But the apparent source of Gloamanthals power, the Blue Stone sludge pit, was also diminishing. Around forty stalactites had been absorbed into the pit, and as James had hoped, this had slowed the cascading reaction. There was noticeably less heat being produced already, and Gloamanthal’s confidence seemed to also be cooling. Who would prevail?

Suddenly, Gloamanthal screamed out and lost concentration on his vortex of doom. The black manifestation evaporated in an instant, leaving behind a harmless vapour trail. James spotted the reason for Gloamanthal’s pain. The glowing golden worms had emerged from the floor of the cave and were swarming the Chaos Lord! They were underneath his ensorcelled armor. James could even see the worms wriggling underneath the facial skin of Gloamanthal, and actually entered his eyes! Gloamanthal was being eaten alive!

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Gloamanthal’s body struggled and swayed in a hopeless attempt to save itself, but the outcome was inevitable. The Chaos Lord crumbled to the floor, and the death-causing golden worms emerged from the body and returned to the stony soil of the cavern.

James looked elsewhere on the cave floor and saw the five remaining Chaos soldiers also struggling mightily. They too were being consumed by the worms. The Dwarfs however, remained intact and undisturbed by the attack from below. Perhaps these strange creatures were only capable of consuming the flesh of Chaos infected beings? James looked down beneath his own feet and fearfully imagined being consumed by these soil dwellers.

“Just some garden friends I met a few years back in the soils of Patagonia,” commented Gilderwood. “I brought them here and they thrived in the limestone based soils of Mt. Issabella. They are very good at removing pests from the garden!”

Erik Blarneysson appeared, axe in hand, looking exhausted, scorched and scraped. In his free hand he held his Lodestone. “Master Jamersson, ye were right!” spoke the Dwarf, with great enthusiasm, “Thar be hardly a trail left ta see in my Lodestone. I navar wud ave believed that Blue Stone cud be stopped, but ye did it!”

Elana also appeared next to the Dwarf with the rapidly dimming Sunstone, still bright, but now in no way comparable with the sun. When James turned to check on Celeste and saw her reasonably well recovered and descending the scaffolding he allowed himself to believe for a moment that his side had prevailed. But that moment did not last.

James’s attention was drawn back to the site of the Chaos Lord’s collapsed body. Black flames had appeared and were growing rapidly upwards. A fearful image was being created amongst the flames, stretching upwards and outwards, A vast horned and tentacled squid like Demon, at least thirty feet tall, manifested itself. Oakleaf Gilderwood stood in front of the beast, a calm expression on his face. Everyone else was terrified. The Demon leaned back its ghastly head and cackled a deafening laugh.

As one the giant tentacles were brought together, and as one they shot forward targeting the direct center of Oakleaf Gilderwoods chest. The impact was catastrophic and sent Gilderwood flying towards the stalagmite wall, shattering several, and also appearing to shatter the ancient Emerald Wizard. As quickly as the squid Demon had appeared, the image and the laughter vanished into thin air.

The remaining members of the quest immediately ran to Oakleaf’s side, Celeste and Elana issuing cries of dismay. “Oh no, oh no, oh no,” cried Celeste. “This cannot be”. Tears flowed onto her crimson robes.

“Sir Goldenwood fell fer the oldest trick in the book, ee did. Oldest trick in the book! Old Gloamanshit got the last laugh in the end, dint he? Never trust a Chaos Lord. Even when they die they can kill ye! Bastards, every one ov them!” Erik Blarneysson shook his head in silence.

James was crushed and filled with sadness, his mind reeling. He also started feeling like the world around him was starting to wobble. Was there an earthquake happening?

“James, you are starting to fade!” exclaimed Elana. “You must use the ring before you exit from our world! Quickly! Touch the ring to the Sunstone! That is how to activate it! Hurry!” she emphasised as she held the dimming Sunstone close to James. “You must make use of the remaining energy in the Stone!”

James produced the emerald encrusted ring and touched the white metal to the Sunstone. It flared brightly for a moment, then extinguished itself. The ring acquired the light and glowed brightly with a green tinge, flooding the cavern. A shimmering portal appeared behind the fallen body of Lord Gilderwood.

“We will mend his body, Sir James, but you must retrieve Sir Gilderwood’s soul,” stated Elana gravely. “Enter the portal now Master James. The fate of our world depends on you.”

James stepped into the portal.