Nearer to the center of the necropolis, where the giant pillar of light shot up toward the impenetrable darkness above, Rainbow and Swordslayer’s team found themselves surrounded by hordes of undead. The Adept ranked Amber Guard moved through the field of dead horrors like a force of avenging angels sent to return the restless spirits back to their graves.
“How much further?” Tara, the weapons maiden with red hair, asked.
She fought with her long-bladed spear in two hands and used her weapon to both impale and slash. Rainbow’s forehead beaded with sweat as she multi-tasked. Rainbow Summoned, Shaped, and Controlled a twisted wall of vines that encircled the party and kept the undead that swarmed them to manageable numbers. In addition, Rainbow channeled her will into the fist-sized stone eye of a Corpse Eater that they defeated and scanned the surrounding mausoleums, gravestones, and sarcophagi. Nothing happened, and the stone eye remained inert.
“There is no way for me to know,” Rainbow hissed and added, “We just gotta keep searching.”
“No problem for me. I can do this all day!” Aaron boasted.
The short-cropped blonde-haired man-at-arms shattered a Ghoul’s snapping jaw with the edge of his heater shield and lopped off a zombie’s head with his axe. Zabo was the third to complete the defensive guard that surrounded Rainbow. The silent bald man rapidly removed the heads of three grasping zombies before he shared a glance with Tara.
The red-haired lady nodded and expressed their concerns. “The sooner we get out of this mess, the better,” Tara said.
Swordslayer gracefully ran along the thorny tops of Rainbow’s vines. He weaved in and about the horde of undead like a bladed terror. Swordslayer’s presence alone lured away a large number of monsters, and his two swords glistened and flashed from the eerie pale light of the enormous glowing monolith. Swordslayer sliced and slashed the surrounding undead like a farmer through a field of wheat.
“Hey Swordslayer! Buddy! You know what would be a good idea? If you joined us like a team,” Aaron called out.
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Good luck with that.”
“Focus on finding the entrance to these Core Tunnels you talked about,” Tara snapped.
Zabo nodded without saying a word. Rainbow gave the red-haired warrior a quick scowl before she returned to searching. The team moved at a slow but steady pace. Rainbow Re-Summoned and re-Shaped the vines to keep the horde at bay as Tara, Aaron, and Zabo maintained their defensive positions around her. Rainbow inspected another set of tombstones.
“It has to be around here somewhere,” she muttered.
“What was that?” Tara called out. The red-headed warrior maiden twirled her long-bladed spear above her head, and with a powerful swipe, she cut down four zombies.
Rainbow scowled but answered, “The tomb of Lev Shabuyaton has to be around here somewhere. We are close. I know it!”
They were near the center of the dusty necropolis, and the team ducked as a large explosion erupted above them where Couzart, the Elite ranked Adventurer, fought the Lich that was lord of this dark realm of death and ash. The fighting paused as if even the undead needed to glance up in awe at the demonstration of power above.
Rainbow was both impressed and terrified at the ease in which the Lich was able to work Rune magic. She saw Lev Shabuyaton gracefully control the Fire, Earth, and Water aspects where the Lich hurled exploding fireballs, mountains of stone, and torrents of frozen water at Couzart. Lev also encased himself in shadows and electricity, which Rainbow identified as the Darkness and Storm aspects. But, the Lich also Summoned angry red specters that swarmed the Elite-ranked adventurer. This was an aspect that Rainbow didn’t recognize but guessed to be Necromancy. Rainbow knew that Summoning and Shaping Spirits was a dangerous endeavor as the Spirits did not like to be controlled, and one would never know how they would take their vengeance upon the caster. But, clearly, this was not a concern for the Lich. Such power! Rainbow thought to herself. How does one get that strong?
But, despite the power disparity where the Lich had the advantage in that area, Couzart had a clear edge in pure combat skill. The Elite ranked adventurer was no slouch when it came to Rune magic either, but it was not on the level as Lev Shubyaton. Where Couzart was a real threat was when he was able to land a grievous injury on the Lich with his enormous scythe in combat. Despite his wound, the Lich was not defeated, and he retreated to a safe distance to recover.
That was the situation the two powerhouses were in now. Couzart stood upon a tall obelisk and hopped from tower to tower in a blur of speed as the Lich launched explosive magic at him. If Lev was not careful, Couzart could easily close the distance and land a fatal blow. However, Couzart’s Elite power reserves were limited, and if he missed or failed his powerful Shadow Death Strike, he would be vulnerable, and the Lich would win. That was the dilemma the two-faced, as far as Rainbow could tell. Couzart inched closer to get in range of his special attack, and Lev worked to avoid that. Both were careful to conserve their energies and to not overextend themselves.
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“Aaron! Come back here!” Tara cried.
This snapped Rainbow back to the present moment. The short, cropped, blond-haired Amber guard broke their formation and wandered ahead.
“She knows how to find the Core Tunnels and can help us,” Aaron responded. He continued to defend himself and fought off three Ghouls that pounced on him with his axe and shield.
“Who?” Rainbow asked and then she saw. “Oh no,” the multi-colored haired Adventurer stated.
Through the gaps of Rainbow’s Summoned vines, there was a pale woman with red eyes. She beckoned to Aaron, and like a lovestruck puppy, he approached her. The strange woman had long dark hair and a shapely body that was naked and modestly covered by the vines. Rainbow would not describe her as beautiful, but the pale lady was mesmerizing. Captivating! Her voice reminded Rainbow of songbirds singing in springtime. It was seductive and gave one a hint of escape from this terrible place. No, from this terrible existence! Rainbow reflected, why do I bother with this hardship after hardship?
“Rainbow, the Vines are giving way!” Tara cried.
This snapped the multi-haired adventurer out of the spell. Rainbow growled and used her rage to fuel her Will, and the Vines sprung back with a vengeance. But not enough to block out the strange lady with the red glowing eyes. Somehow, Rainbow’s Nature magic was thwarted and left an opening for the creature to continue their enchantment. Aaron approached, and the strange naked lady beckoned him with a shapely hand. More Ghouls and Zombies swarmed them. Zabo and Tara fought harder to keep the monsters away from Rainbow as the multi-colored-haired adventurer strained her Will to expand the wall of Vines.
“Aaron! Focus your Will snap out of it!” Tara screamed.
“Relax! I know what I am doing, and she can help us,” Aaron replied without taking his gaze from the naked lady.
The vines parted, despite Rainbow’s efforts, and Aaron was free to get close to the red-eyed lady who spread her arms and offered a warm but deadly embrace. To rest and escape all this toil, Rainbow reflected before she shook the enthrallment from her mind.
“Aaron, come back now!” Rainbow barked.
“You two don’t trust me. This lady can show us the way,” the blonde Amber Guard replied. His eyes appeared glazed as if he drank too much.
The three watched in horror and were helpless to aid their colleague as they desperately fought their way closer to him. Ghouls, Zombies, and Wights swarmed the four and they barely kept the undead at bay. In a dark blur followed by flash of steel, Swordslayer appeared behind the red eyed lady. Her smile faded as her head fell off her shoulders.
“What have you done!” Aaron roared and charged the sword fighter.
The man-at-arms bashed with his shield and chopped with his axe, but Swordslayer gracefully dodged and deflected the attacks. The sword fighter returned with a powerful kick to Aaron’s chest that knocked him flat onto his back.
“Pull yourself together, or my next attack will not be as nice,” Swordslayer threatened.
Aaron scrambled back to his feet, his eyes returned to normal, and he asked, “What the hell was that?”
“A Vampyre,” Rainbow answered.
With the powerful undead gone, she was able to reinforce her vine wall and give the team a moment of reprieve. Swordslayer joined Aaron, Zabo, and Tara to form a protective circle around the Rune caster.
“You are familiar with vampires?” Tara asked.
Swordslayer smirked. “Yeah, I may have had some dealings with them.”
The sword fighter’s hair fell down to his sides, and his body was tense with a powerful and restless energy. Rainbow knew that the sword fighter only returned to make sure she was safe and he rushed out back into the thick of battle.
“That man does not like to stay in formation,” Aaron observed.
Zabo silently nodded in agreement as Rainbow’s vine spell weakened and the hungry undead swarmed them once again.
“Is he glowing?” Tara asked. She was talking about Swordslayer as he weaved a deadly dance of destruction among the horde.
Rainbow sighed. She knew that the longer Swordslayer utilized the Sanguine Blades style, the more the Bloodlust took a hold of him. The multi-colored-haired lady changed the topic and bopped Aaron on the head.
“Stay focused! Keep your Will sharp! You can not fall for enthrallment like that again,” Rainbow scolded.
Aaron grimaced and prepared his axe and shield to face the rushing undead. He replied, “I was not enthralled. I had her right where I wanted.”
Tara impaled a Wight through the face and activated the Holy aspect that was etched upon her spear. The celestial energies negated the creature’s dark healing ability, and it collapsed to the ground, never to rise again. Rainbow was impressed with both Aaron and Tara’s resourcefulness. They had a weapon and tool for every occasion.
The Corpse Eater’s eye flared in Rainbow’s hand. She was so used to it being inert that this surprised her.
“It is here!” Rainbow exclaimed and pointed to an unassuming tombstone.
“What is?” Tara asked.
The tombstone was small and out of place among the grand mausoleums and sarcophagi that surrounded it. It was a simple gravemarker, and Rainbow knew what it meant. It marked the burial ground of a man born into a low class but with an astronomical ambition. It was the tombstone of Lev Shubyaton, and it was at the heart of the necropolis.
“This is the entrance to the Core Tunnels,” Rainbow answered and she narrowed her sharp eyes as she noticed something. “And someone else came through here already.”
“Nothing is easy,” Zabo said in a voice that was hardly used. It came out as a whisper.
He was right, Rainbow reflected. Nothing is ever easy.