IX - Catacombs
1459 Words
After regaining composure, the group continued their endless search. Sombrak gathered everyone and took the lead, accompanied by his wolf. They aimed to avoid a surprise attack, acting as scouts in the middle of the forest. Behind them, the others discussed the previous incident, as if the earlier argument wasn't enough.
After a few more hours of walking through the dense forest, the group stumbled upon a gigantic stone structure that looked very ancient and had the appearance of a horrifying catacomb. The smell of death emanated from the opening where a staircase descended.
"Let's go in, ha-ha-ha!" boldly exclaimed Bernàbares.
The barbarian took the lead and reached the entrance. He saw some torches faintly illuminating the space. The stench of death was now much stronger, almost unbearable, and he noticed that the steps were covered in moss. On each side of the door were heavily damaged gargoyle statues, covered in vines and leaves. They seemed alive, ready to jump and attack at any moment.
"I don't like gargoyles. Bernàbares, I think it would be a good idea to break these statues before we proceed," suggested Luke.
Ignoring the mage's request, Bernàbares entered the catacomb. Realizing that the statues were just decorative, everyone cautiously descended behind the barbarian into the cursed catacombs. The ranger, last to descend, signaled for Labba to guard the entrance while they explored the strange structure.
As the search party approached the end of the staircase, the mage suddenly slipped on the moss. His fall was swiftly prevented by the ranger's hands, and after some expressions of gratitude, they continued the descent. A few dim torches illuminated the disgusting environment they were exploring. A chill ran through their veins, and with each step, they felt more frightened.
The staircase led to an immense hall housing various putrefied bodies, with tombs destroyed by the passage of time. However, one tomb was better preserved than the others. Its opening revealed a strong glow inside, positioned on an altar in the middle of the hall.
Bernàbares began examining the room without touching anything, as he believed there might be traps, not willing to take any risks.
Sombrak decided to check the entire area before focusing on the tomb emitting the incredible blue light.
"Don't touch the central tomb; there might be traps," warned the ranger.
The dark elf began searching for traps and anything else interesting. Looking at the other tombs, he noticed nothing unusual. When the ranger approached the central tomb, he looked over the altar and was surprised by what he saw inside. A very old but well-preserved body lay in the tomb, holding in its hands against its chest a silver object with various ancient and unknown inscriptions. The item resembled the cutting edge of an axe, emitting the same blue light that stood out in the almost monochromatic darkness of the terrifying place. Bernàbares and Luke approached the shining object. Simultaneously, the same intense glow emerged from the half-elf mage's backpack, where the handle of the OX Axe was stored. Without a doubt, it was the missing part of the axe. Luke took the handle from his belongings and discovered that the broken part fit perfectly into the blade held by the deceased with such enthusiasm.
Alain, still apprehensive, remained near the staircase to have a tactical advantage in case of danger. Meanwhile, Sombrak intended to try to decapitate the body in the tomb before anything else. In his eagerness, he also wanted to dismember it, fearing the corpse might rise and initiate a battle. Drawing his sword, he said:
"Does anyone have a long weapon to destroy this creature? I value my sword too much to risk losing it."
"Why not combine the two parts of the axe and use it to destroy the body? As long as the axe remains with the barbarian afterward, I don't mind. I just don't want such a powerful artifact in the hands of the druid," suggested the mage.
"But the axe has to stay with me. That was written in the first chapters of this saga, ha-ha-ha!" added the barbarian, hearing Luke.
"I don't believe this should be in the hands of just one person. I am in favor of leaving the axe as it is and never with the same person. But please, I don't want trouble on my end. I don't want the group trying to kill me. Anyway, I support the bearers of the axe, and I also argue that they should stick together. Shall we take the blade?" the ranger bravely expounded.
After Sombrak's "courageous" demonstration and before anyone could think of approaching the axe blade, the body rose at an incredible speed and uttered a cold and cruel voice:
"My precious blade!"
They looked at each other after the cliché, but they gave up commenting when they saw a black aura emanating from the undead. However, it couldn't penetrate the blue energy emitted by the two parts of the OX Axe. When it reached the druid, he was paralyzed by fear, as he wasn't close to any part of the magical weapon.
At that moment, the indomitable courage filled the barbarian's heart. He took the axe handle from the mage's hand, stored it, drew his two-handed axe, and attacked the undead without a second thought. Inspired, Luke prepared to invoke one of his powerful spells.
The undead blocked the barbarian's attack using the OX Axe blade as a weapon and struck back. Bernàbares quickly dodged and hit the monster directly in the chest, causing a significant wound.
"Litigare contestatio delicti!" shouted Schinkariwalker, releasing a lightning bolt at the monster but also hitting the barbarian.
Despite receiving most of the lightning, the barbarian fell unconscious. However, despite taking a considerable portion of the lightning, the undead still stood firm.
Regretfully, Luke put his hand on his head, but as the monster approached for revenge, he began casting a kind of arcane armor, uttering:
"Absolvere damnum emergens!"
The ranger, who had hidden upon seeing the terrible undead awaken, decided to appear to remove the unconscious barbarian from the battlefield.
The zombie ran towards the half-elf Luke and struck with the axe blade. Using all his meager mage strength, he managed to parry the attack with his staff and counterattacked the monster accurately. Roaring with rage, the creature struck again, this time hitting the mage squarely, throwing him a few meters away. If it weren't for the arcane armor, the half-elf would be dead. Despite suffering several abrasions, the zombie continued towards the mage, ignoring the injuries. It prepared for the final blow, one that even the arcane protection wouldn't endure.
Luke got up, dizzy, trying to move away from the monster while pondering something. To his despair, the zombie was already very close, and when the OX Axe blade glowed in the monster's hands, the mage accepted that this would be his end. He shielded his face with his arm and awaited the blade to take his life.
At that very moment, Sombrak struck the right side of the undead's neck with the magical axe handle. Thus, the monster's attack was diverted, only grazing the mage's arm. The monster had been gravely wounded
, but upon realizing that the missing part of its weapon was in the ranger's hand, it turned into a bloodthirsty fury. Despite the weakened black aura, the dark elf retreated, trying to avoid a possible attack.
With his arm incapacitated and losing a lot of blood, Luke shouted to Sombrak:
"Give him the handle! We have no choice!"
The druid managed to recover from the paralysis but still tried to understand the situation. Suddenly, the ranger exclaimed:
"This fight is mine!" and threw the axe handle to Luke. "He's right where I want him."
In what seemed to be the end of the heroes, they made a final combined attack: while the zombie approached the ranger, the dark elf took his sword with one hand and pulled a mirror from his belongings with the other. The undead tried to stop Sombrak, but to everyone's surprise, the druid used magic, creating various vines, plants, and moss that emerged from the ground and restrained the monster, leaving it vulnerable. The dark elf plunged his sword into the zombie, showed the mirror, and shouted:
"Ahhhhhhhhh! You cursed monster..." but was interrupted by the monster, who went berserk upon seeing its reflected image and let out a horrifying scream typical of when the villain is finally defeated:
"Noooo!"
A strong light began to emerge from inside the monster, starting from the mouth, then nose, ears, and other orifices. Then, a bright flash temporarily blinded the entire group, and the malevolent being exploded into several pieces that hit everyone, throwing them to the ground.
- Writer
