Chapter Thirty-Two:
"No Rest for the Living"
Avalis was a dying land.
Lucinda could feel it more and more with every step she took in this place, it clung to her bones and refused to let go.
The road ahead stretched toward a distant city, but between them and that promise of shelter, only rot remained. Graves littered the ground, but not all the dead had been buried. Some still lay where they fell, their bodies nothing but sun-bleached remains.
Evelyn walked ahead, her posture firm, her chain whip coiled loosely in her hand. Ankit trailed beside her, flipping a dagger between his fingers, his eyes scanning the landscape, calculating. Lucinda stayed in step behind them, taking in every detail of their surroundings. And Lily, Lily walked with that same eerie calm, her bare feet untouched by the filth beneath her.
“This place is worse than home,” Evelyn muttered.
“No kidding.” Lucinda exhaled. “Feels like the whole world is trying to die.”
Evelyn flicked a glance toward Lily, lowering her voice. “Speaking of things that don’t feel right… tell me she doesn’t creep you out.”
Ankit chuckled. “Hey, at least these skeletons aren’t getting up.”
The moment the words left his mouth, something cracked. Then another. Brittle bones scraped together, rising from the depths of the grave. The stench of decay thickened, clawing at their throats, rancid and suffocating. A dry rasp scraped through the silence, the dead whispering, waiting, listening.
And now, they answered.
Evelyn stopped, turning her gaze toward Ankit with the flattest stare imaginable.
“Great going, kid.”
From the graves and open remains, they rose. Skeletal figures twisted back to life, dragging themselves free from the dust, empty sockets burning with unnatural fury.
Ankit groaned. “I really need to learn to keep my mouth shut.”
Lucinda didn’t hesitate. “Bright Light!”
A burst of radiant light erupted in the middle of the rising dead, their bones rattling as the searing glow disoriented them.
She swept her hand toward Evelyn and Ankit. “Protection!” A shimmer of magic coated them both, dull silver lingering around their forms.
Evelyn and Ankit exchanged looks. They could feel the protection around them.
Evelyn grinned. “Alright, let’s see what these bastards are made of.”
She surged forward, her whip snapping through the air. The chains lashed around a skeleton’s neck before she yanked, the skull ripping free and clattering to the ground. She spun, catching another one around the leg, then slammed it into a third like a makeshift club.
Ankit darted between them, his daggers flashing as he cut through exposed joints, slicing tendons, slipping through gaps in ribs with ruthless efficiency. “Kind of feels wrong to stab something that’s already dead,” he admitted.
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“Just keep going,” Lucinda snapped. “Finish them.”
A crack of bone behind them. More were coming.
Then, Lily moved.
She had been still, utterly untouched by the chaos. But now her feet lifted off the ground, her body hovering just above the filth. Her head tilted slightly, and a sickly energy pulsed outward.
The undead with flesh still clinging to their bones froze mid-motion. A tremor ran through their decayed forms, their limbs locking before violent spasms overtook them.
Their bodies convulsed, vomiting blackened bile, muscles twitching uncontrollably as unseen rot devoured them from within. Their flesh withered in moments, collapsing inward as the Plague consumed them entirely.
Flies erupted from the corpses, swarming over the remaining skeletons. The insects burrowed into empty sockets, clogging their joints, eroding them from the inside. The swarm moved, guided by Lily’s will, until nothing was left standing.
The battlefield fell silent.
Evelyn exhaled, wiping bone-dust from her whip. “That was… unsettling.”
Ankit sheathed his daggers. “I mean, at least she’s on our side? Right?”
Evelyn wasn’t so sure.
Lily slowly lowered to the ground, her bare feet touching the dust once more. She blinked once, turning her gaze toward the city ahead.
“I need to find my brother.”
Lucinda's hands tensed at her sides, unease gnawing at her gut. Even Gameweaver had been silent during all this.
She didn’t like that one bit.
Night had begun to settle over Avalis, draping the endless stretch of lifeless terrain in darkness. The distant city still loomed on the horizon, but instead of drawing closer, it somehow seemed further away, as if mocking them.
The ground beneath their feet felt harder, their steps slower, and the weight of exhaustion pressed against their bodies with an unshakable force.
Lucinda came to a halt, hands on her hips, breath steady but labored. “Tell me I’m not the only one who feels like we’ve been walking for hours and gotten nowhere.”
Evelyn let out a long sigh. “No, it’s not just you.”
Ankit pulled his hood back, wiping the sweat from his forehead. “Great. We’re officially trapped in a bad dream.” He glanced at the city, frowning. “And we don't even have the luxury of sleep while we endure it.”
Lucinda exhaled through her nose. “Or food. Or restorative items. We’re running on fumes.”
Lily stood a few paces away, unmoving, her gaze locked on the distant city as if sheer will could bring it closer. Her bare feet hovered inches above the cracked earth, untouched by the decay beneath them. She hadn't spoken in hours, except to repeat the same hollow phrase whenever addressed. "I need to find my brother."
A tense silence settled over them, the cold realization sinking in. They were stranded in a graveyard of a land, surrounded by the remnants of the dead with no shelter, no supplies, and no clue how long they’d last at this rate.
Evelyn ran a hand through her hair and huffed. “So, what, we just keep walking until we collapse?”
Ankit opened his mouth, then hesitated before throwing a glance at Lucinda. “I mean, at least nothing’s risen to kill us again…”
Evelyn and Lucinda turned to him in unison, deadpan stares drilling into him.
“What?” Ankit held up his hands. “How could I have known?!”
Evelyn pinched the bridge of her nose. “You’re a menace.”
Lucinda looked skyward, as if seeking divine intervention.
And in a way, it came.
A deep rumble. A sudden shift in the air. Then, a low whooshing sound from above.
Evelyn’s head snapped up first. “What is that?”
Ankit’s hand went to his dagger instinctively. “I really don't want to fight a skybeast right now.”
Lucinda lifted her gaze, scanning the darkened sky. For a second, she could only see it's outline and the vast emptiness of the heavens above. And then she saw it.
An Airship.
It hung in the sky, its massive shape barely visible against the dim light of the moons. The sound of it's propellers grew louder as it descended, the wind whipping across the barren land.
The group stood frozen, eyes locked on the vessel above as it hovered just overhead.
"Be ready for anything!" Evelyn yelled out.
A rope suddenly unfurled from the ship’s hull, and a figure came sliding down with ease. Boots hit the ground in a perfect landing, dust kicking up from the impact.
The woman straightened, glancing over them with an air of complete confidence. A smirk played at her lips as she casually rested a hand on her hip.
“So,” Asha said, her tone light, yet undeniably commanding. “Which one of you is ‘The Girl’?”
Lucinda’s pulse hammered against her ribs. Evelyn tensed. Ankit shifted his stance, wary.
The Airship hummed overhead, casting its massive shadow over them, the promise of escape and unknown danger looming in the same breath.