His incantation concluded, and the macabre sight unfolded before Talax, skeletal faces twisted into mad grins, their hollow sockets brimming with malevolent glee, thrilled to have discovered a living vessel to unleash their pent-up resentment. A shiver of death's embrace coursed through him fleetingly as the chill of the afterlife enveloped his form. In the blink of an eye, the Spectral Guardian leaped forth from his body, clutching his favorite sword.
"Welcome, buddy. I'll need your help," Talax addressed the spectral warrior, his words tinged with urgency. The ghost remained silent, yet a heavy, rattling breath emanated from the helm, almost as if in tacit agreement. The emergence of the Spectral Guardian sparked a cacophony among the assembled skeletons, their bones clattering in grotesque excitement upon the platform.
His magic had drawn the attention of every creature in the vicinity, and for a moment, Talax felt overwhelmed by the sheer number of enemies he had to confront. However, his focus remained singular, the Deathbound, who was using its staff crackling with otherworldly energy. Its skeletal minions, animated and obedient, redirected their attention toward Talax and the Spectral Guardian.
Talax unsheathed his new Galewind Shortsword with a swift whoosh of air, briefly considering using his new dagger as well before deciding against it. His spells would prove more effective against the skeleton army.
"Okay, buddy. Hold off on attacking for now. Step in only if I'm in danger," he instructed, realizing that his initial assessment of having 200 health points wasn't as substantial as he'd presumed. Against a lone adversary, it was sufficient, but facing a small army of skeletons meant the ghostly warrior would vanish after dispatching only two or three opponents. It would be better suited as a bodyguard, covering his flanks and deflecting attacks he couldn't counter.
Though the Spectral Guardian showed no overt acknowledgment, Talax remained confident that the ghost would heed his commands. Gathering his resolve, he prepared to charge toward the encroaching army when Aria's shrill voice resonated in his mind.
“What are you doing?” She demanded, sounding apoplectic. “I was about to attack...” He responded a bit hesitantly, wondering what her problem was. “Just like that? Without any strategy, preparation or I don’t know asking for advice from the ancient spirit inhabiting your mind?”
Talax paused, casting worried glances as the tide of bones crept closer, giving him only a few seconds before they would overwhelm him. "I need to reach that dead guy with the sword and staff you seem so fond of. Any suggestions, oh wise spirit of the past?" His sarcasm triggered a vehement response from Aria, screaming within his mind.
Grimacing, Talax began casting again, this time using Slick. "We must review your skills and spells, find the optimal approach. You can't charge in blindly..." Aria's words were abruptly cut off as the chamber was rocked by an intense tremor, signaling the imminent collapse of the dungeon's final temple.
"We don't have time for that!" Talax retorted impatiently as the first skeletons closed in. "But..." Aria attempted once more, but he was no longer listening when a skeleton lunged, its bony fingers slashing at him.
Raising his sword, Talax intercepted the attack. His new blade halted the hand effortlessly, slicing through the bone as though it were butter. With a swift sideways motion, he decapitated the skeleton and pivoted to the next foe. Slicing at one arm and then the other, the appendages fell to the ground, writhing as if possessing a will of their own. The skeleton's manic grin turned downwards, seemingly saddened by its loss, but Talax didn't let it dwell on its mourning for long.
A decisive stab pierced the skull, crumbling it under the force. Like a cascading waterfall, the remaining bones lost cohesion once the skull was crushed, clattering to the ground. Amidst Aria's distant shouts, Talax struggled to concentrate on her words, his focus consumed entirely by the foes surrounding him.
Talax started running, ramming against skeletons that tried to grab him, but couldn’t find purchase thanks to his Slick spell and Tychos blessing. He slashed left and right, his hand seemed to move on its own accord, changing its position minutely to deliver a critical strike, which would otherwise harm but not outright kill the weak skeletons.
Sometimes he heard Aria’s voice penetrate the fog of battle, announcing with a voice devoid of emotion what was happening around him.
“Congratulations! You have landed a critical hit.”
“You have suffered 3 points of damage.”
“You have dealt 30 points of slashing damage.”
“Congratulations! You have killed a level 6 skeleton.”
Talax tuned out Aria's commentary, focusing solely on the chaos surrounding him. Encircled on all sides, the skeletons relentlessly tried to overpower him. Fortunately, his new gear, both armor and sword, proved invaluable, deflecting most attacks that would otherwise have torn him apart.
However, he knew that things had to change or else he would be overwhelmed before he reached the Deathbound. He wanted to use Fog of Mystica, but he couldn’t afford the time required for the casting, so he went for the next best thing, Tar of Restrain.
Ducking to evade an attack, he struck at a nearby skeleton. For the first time, his new sword's enchantment activated, a whoosh of air surged from the blade in a thin wave, forcing the encroaching skeletons to stagger back, granting him a brief respite.
"Cool, cool, cool, cool!" he muttered in excitement, momentarily reveling in the enchantment's unexpected power before refocusing on his spellcasting. His left hand contorted, arcane words escaped his lips, and within seconds, a viscous black substance materialized, coating the nearby skeletons in a gummy mess.
Talax grinned wickedly, and pointed with his sword at a skeleton who was grappling with the summoned tar. “Hmm, you will do!” he quipped as he darted toward the immobilized creature, casting Minor Hex with a touch to its skull. He chuckled as he deftly evaded the skeleton's flailing limbs, spinning away and sprinting as far as his legs would carry him.
The rattling breath of the Spectral Guardian echoed by his side as he fled, he heard on occasion its sword clash with bones trying to protect him from random attacks and offered the ghost a silent thanks. A detonation echoed behind him, and upon a quick glance, he witnessed a two-meter-wide area strewn with bones. His new death spell had worked wonders against the weak skeletons.
"Hey, Aria, how much mana do I have?" Talax asked, stopping amidst a cluster of enemies. "Oh, did the silent treatment end?" Aria retorted mockingly as Talax maneuvered between the skeletons, dealing blow after blow. "Aria, please!" he pleaded through clenched teeth. "Fine!" she huffed, relenting.
"You've got 152 out of 314 mana remaining," Aria announced in her usual uninterested tone.
Talax felt a twinge of concern; he had already expended half of his mana reserve, relying on his spells to stave off overwhelming odds. Suddenly, a whizzing sound jolted him, and he glanced up with a terrified expression.
A deathly energy ball sailed dangerously close above his head. He was certain that without Tycho's blessing, it would have struck him directly. Whipping around with frantic eyes, he spotted the Deathbound, its empty eye sockets fixated on him, promising a swift end. Gaining its attention wasn't exactly an ideal situation.
"I can't deal with these things right now," he muttered, deciding to throw caution aside and use whatever mana remained. With one hand, he slashed at the nearest skeleton, aiming for its neck, swiftly decapitating the animated bones. With the other hand, he cast a simple spell, Frost Breath!
A frigid cloud of icy air billowed from his lips, buffeting the skeletons nearby. The effects were immediate, those closest to him halted, encased in a thin layer of ice, while those further away slowed in their movements, patches of ice forming on their bodies.
Thrilled to witness the potency of his new spells, Talax didn't pause to admire his handiwork. Seizing the moment, he unleashed as much damage as he could. With a fierce roar, he raised his sword, raining punishment upon the frozen enemies.
“You have killed a level 7 skeleton!”
“You have killed a level 9 skeleton!”
“You have killed a level 6 skeleton!”
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“Congratulations you have leveled up!”
“You have reached level 15!”
“You have killed a level 5 skeleton!”
Talax wanted to shout in triumph, feeling a newfound power that felt intoxicating as he dismantled skeleton after skeleton. The fact that he had just leveled up, a testament of his growing power, only fueled the glee in his heart. By his side the Spectral Guardian stood a silent sentinel, intervening only when a skeleton ventured too close while Talax was preoccupied or basking in his triumph.
His inflated ego suffered a blow when a previously frozen skeleton broke free, launching an unexpected attack at Talax, targeting his exposed lower face beyond the helmet's protection. Agonizing pain seared through him as bony fingers left deep gashes along his cheek, blood trickling down. Before he could react, an ethereal blade pierced the skeletal skull, the Spectral Guardian intervening with a brutal twist, reducing the creature to a pile of bones.
Talax nodded in gratitude to the silent ghost, noticing its flickering outline, a telltale sign that it had nearly exhausted the 200 health points it could dispense upon enemies. "Aria!" Talax called the ghost in his head, and he realized he should be a little more social. Lately he was hanging out with ghosts a little too much... “Mana!” He leaped aside, narrowly avoiding another incoming energy ball.
"You have 127/314 mana remaining,"
Talax nodded in acknowledgement and unleashed Frost Breath once more, encasing the area around him in a circle of icy air. This time, instead of individually dispatching the frozen skeletons, he touched the nearest one, invoking Minor Hex and leaving the frozen adversaries to deal with his death magic.
“You have 68/314 mana remaining.”
Aria’s announcement made Talax sweat with worry. His mana was depleting too fast! The pace he was using his magic couldn’t be sustained, before too long he would drain his mana pool. If that happened, he would be unable to use his spells on a critical moment, or in the worst-case scenario the depilating headache would make him lose focus and end up killing him.
With these troubled thoughts he passed through the frozen skeletons, that stood like icy statues, frozen in mid motion, and closed the distance between him and the Deathbound. With only a few meters between them, the creature now recognized him as a potential threat. It still commanded the remaining skeletons, awkwardly stumbling down the steps in an effort to reach the intruders.
A swift glance revealed Talax's friends were still alive, if barely. Qalo had activated a new ability, creating a small glowing domain around him with a reddish light, enraging the attacking skeletons. Their bloodthirsty state drove them to attack anyone nearby, even other skeletons. The half-orc had been pushed to the side of the room by the horde, increasing the distance between him and the struggling Franny.
Franny appeared far worse than before. Drenched in blood, he staggered clumsily, trying to evade his determined uncle. Edward looked so focused on Franny that he seemed unaware of what was happening to the rest of the room.
Callum too appeared to struggle with the overwhelming numbers of the skeletons. Most of his traps had been used and what few remained were unable to stem the tide of the undead, with more and more managing to sleep through his defenses and climb down to the next step where Qalo and Franny were currently on, adding to the pressure.
That had both good and bad results. It added to the numbers Qalo had to contend with, but it also managed to distract the stubborn noble for a few crucial moments. Franny took the opportunity to gulp a few potions and as Talax looked, he threw a small sphere at his uncle, who was occupied defended against a group of skeletons.
Talax didn’t have time to look anymore, only catching a few more glimpses and noticing Vesperine was nowhere to be found, but the gnolls were reduced to three individuals who tried desperately to pass through the sea of undead and reach the final platform where Talax was standing.
Launching an overhead chop with his sword, Talax pulverized a skeleton, swiftly moving on to the next. Yet, as he pressed forward, the Deathbound raised its staff, emitting eerie whistling sounds. Before Talax’s eyes, a huge rent opened in the air, teeming with death energy, and he saw a skull wiggling its way through the opening.
“Oh, shit!” Talax swore, seeing the size of that thing; it was bigger than him. When his eyes darted to the Deathbound, the creature was all but laughing at him! "That wretched maggot!" Aria exclaimed in outrage. "Where did he learn such advanced magic?"
Talax looked around frantically, trying to find a way out of the situation. “Any suggestions?” He pleaded with the former priestess. “Oh, now you want my advice! Ignore Aria, but once you are in trouble, call for her help, because she has all the answers! Men, so predictable, always looking for a woman to solve...” The skull freed itself from the weird magical portal with a soft plop and illuminated the whole platform with a deep purple light.
Its eyes surveyed the scene and then trained on him. A phantom tongue peeked out from its mouth and lolled to the side, almost playfully. Talax stood frozen, watching with horror at the towering skull, unable to think or move. The skull's eyes intensified, gathering energy that pulsed ominously. Suddenly, all around him, skeletons began crumbling to dust, disintegrating before his eyes in a cascade of decay.
"Aria!" He shouted aloud, full of panic. "Talax, quickly, grab a mana potion!" Her voice was urgent and filled with dread. "It’s a summoned Demilich from another realm! How in the name of Ha’arun did Morgrimm learn the spell? I don’t know, but you have to hurry!"
Talax grabbed his satchel and plunged his hand into its bottomless depth, thinking of the mana potion. A vial appeared in his hand, he unstopped the bottle and drank its contents in one go. The Spectral Guardian materialized out of nowhere and defended him from two skeletons that chose that moment to attack. The warrior spirit had to dispatch the determined undead, and its form lost cohesion, finally expending its last available health points.
"Great, that’s just great!" He muttered as his eyes raised to the grinning skull, which looked like a beacon inside the chamber. "Run! Run to the wall!" Aria all but yelled inside his mind. "Use Frost Breath, just don’t stop until you reach the wall! Quickly!"
Talax followed blindly her instructions. He started running towards the side of the platform, he had almost reached the middle, but now he was running back in the opposite direction and away from the Deathbound. He didn’t know why, but he decided to trust the former high priestess.
He rammed into the skeletons attempting to block his path, using both Frost Breath and his body to clear the way. He didn’t waste time trying to kill any of the creatures; he just continued on his path, urged on by a frantic Aria.
Even though he kept using his spells, casting Frost Breath and Tar of Restrain the moment their cooldown ended, his mana pool kept replenishing, offering him a chance to defend against the attacking skeletons and reach his destination. The continuous use of magic had its drawbacks however, with every spell he felt a strain in his mind, and his concentration faltered at an alarming rate, making it difficult to cast, especially as he ran.
He finally reached the wall as the grinning skull shone like a second sun, its foreboding brilliance illuminating the entire chamber. “Now what?” He demanded, out of breath, raising his sword as a skeleton swiped at him. “Now you wait until the Demilich unleashes its howl and use your new spell, Shadow Step!” He froze for a moment, letting the skeleton score with its bony fingers on his new armor. With a disgruntled groan, he punched it in the face, creating small cracks on its skull, and with the other hand, he brought his sword down, crushing it to pieces.
“I... I will do what?” He demanded, trying to catch his breath. “Once it unleashes its howl, the Demilich will return to its original realm. You just have to evade the howl; Shadow Step can be activated only in shadows, hence you had to reach the wall. The spell has a small range though, so once the Demilich targets you, cast the spell and you are instantly transported to the other end of the platform. Simple!”
Talax felt his jaw dropping. “That’s your plan?” He demanded. “Don’t be ungrateful, Talax! Did you know you need to be among shadows for the spell to work? Or that once cast, you are transported to another pool of shadows? No? I thought so! Now!” He had to begrudgingly admit she was right, but still... “Now! Talax, now!”
Talax looked at the skull with wide eyes and saw it opening its mouth as if in slow motion. For a moment, he forgot how to cast, pure terror overwhelming his senses as he watched cataclysmic energy gather in a single point of destruction.
“TALAX! NOW!”
Talax shook his head, his left hand moving for a brief second. That second was enough for the overwhelming death magic to be unleashed by a single bone-rattling howl. Talax’s breath stopped as he watched energy pouring out of the skeletal mouth like a sea of death, instantly erasing from existence the skeletons closest to it.
The next moment, his own foot moved as if controlled by unseen forces. It was as if he was sucked in by the shadows at his feet. Everything became a blur, and he felt as if he was upside down, floating in circles, until an image of where he was meant to be appeared in his mind. Suddenly, he felt his right foot touch the ground, and everything came back into focus.
He watched with wide eyes at the destruction unfolding before him. His ears bled from the force of the Demilich’s howl, even though it wasn’t directed at him but the opposite side of the room. An overwhelming beam of death energy annihilated everything in its path, reducing the skeletons and one of the remaining gnolls to nothing. Fear gripped Talax as the beam cascaded toward the lower platforms, threatening his friends.
Thankfully, both Franny and Qalo were on the opposite side of the room, just like him. Unfortunately, Callum wasn’t so lucky. The horde of skeletons had pushed him to the center of the platform, their overwhelming numbers distracting him at the crucial moment when the beam reached his platform.
Talax watched with both happiness and sorrow as the man realized what was happening. His eyes grew wide for a moment, but he had no more than that moment, because the next, he ceased to exist.
The walls cracked, giant fissures appearing, throbbing with energy, rocking the platforms where they were standing precariously, making Talax feel as if he was standing on planes of glass ready to plummet into the unknown.
The howl suddenly stopped, plunging the chamber into a deafening silence, everyone within it trying to comprehend the magnitude of the destruction. The grinning skull popped out of existence, and that simple action reanimated the Deathbound, who eagerly surveyed its handiwork.
When he spotted Talax, the skeleton froze. Then, it began a flurry of movements, and suddenly, a bubble of energy surrounded the creature. “Now what?” He asked Aria, feeling tired.
“He cast a protective barrier,” Aria supplied thoughtfully as another tremor rocked the chamber.
“How do we break it?” Talax demanded. “In your case? Brute force seems the best option.” Talax thought for a second when an idea came to him.
“Aria, do I have enough mana to cast Weak Void Ball?” He felt her check something and then she responded simply. “No.” Talax nodded, expecting that answer.
“That’s okay, I’m still gonna cast it.” He felt confusion from the memory fragment. “How?” She asked, perplexed.
With a smile on his face and looking straight at the Deathbound, he replied,
“I have an idea.”