Chapter 35: Tomblord

Kaius descended the wide blocky stairs that lead deeper into the mausoleum that had laid at the centre of the glade. Each step was just a little too tall, a little too wide, to walk down comfortably. Their faces were carved in deep reliefs. Yet more scenes of death and slaughter like those that were engraved on the exterior wall.

Kaius itched to race down the stairs. The rewards that each Champion protected were another potential edge he would have in his inevitable confrontation with the Guardian. Plus, they pushed him. His fights with the bear and the Butcher had been some of the best he had ever had. Both in terms of skill growth, and in how it made his heart race. He could already feel his blood heating up at the thought of what lay at the bottom of this macabre descent into the earth.

Porkchop padded alongside him, huffing as he eyed the endless rows of coffins recessed into the walls. Stacking high up to the ceiling.

“This feels wrong.” The words coloured with discomfort as they flowed across his connection with his friend.

“Yeah.” Kaius kept walking down the stairs, trying to make out what he could beyond the limited range of his Low Light Vision. “I don’t like it either. Whole place gives me the creeps.”

“No.” Porkchop shook his head, having started to pick up on Kaius’s body language. “Not the building. The bodies. Shouldn’t be kept from the earth.”

“Oh?” Kaius looked over to Porkchop. “We mostly do that, only the rich are buried in something like this. You do know those stones outside had bodies buried under them, right?” Or at least they would if the Depths had put them there. He didn’t know how deep the recreation of environments went.

Porkchop’s ears flicked back, stopping dead on the stairs.

“Outside was a field of the dead?!” Porkchop asked, mortification spilling across their link.

Kaius couldn’t help but snort at Porkchop’s surprise. It broke his tension, distracting him from his rising anticipation. He could tell from their link that Porkchop was more creeped out than offended.

“Why didn’t you tell me!” Porkchop yelled, embarrassed as he ran after him.

“I thought it was obvious! There were bloody walking corpses everywhere!” Kaius said back with a disbelieving shake of his head. He honestly forgot that Porkchop was a greater beast sometimes. That he didn’t have the cultural knowledge he often took for granted.

“Wait. If those stones are where bodies are, then what about where we were wrestling? At the church?” Porkchop eyed him accusatory.

“I thought you knew!” Kaius threw his hands up in defeat. “Come on. It’s not my fault this biome is creepy. We have a Champion to fight.” Kaius picked up his pace.

Porkchop grunted. “It’s still wrong!” he said, following after Kaius.

…

They reached the bottom of the stairs. A massive iron door barred their passage further into the catacombs. On its front face, a raised engraving of a man being sacrificed on an altar. A cloaked figure loomed over the man, a withered hand plunging deep into his chest.

Stopping in front of the door, Kaius inspected the engraving before slipping down to take in the heavy bar that held the door shut.

“Alright,” Kaius turned to Porkchop. “We need a plan. I’m confident that whatever we find in there we’ll be able to handle, but strolling in like we’re going to the spring fair is just stupid.”

He wanted to just throw open the door and hurl a challenge at the beast that no doubt waited within. But, Bloodsong or no, he wasn’t going to be reckless.

“I’m thinking that I should put the pressure on whatever is in there, try to hold its attention.” Kaius explained. “I’m a bit more mobile than you, and with a sword I can actually parry and block without getting cut up.”

“I’ll try to flank?” Porkchop asked enthusiastically, clearly getting excited for the battle ahead.

He gave Porkchop one sharp nod. “What of your Crystal Manipulation? You’ve mentioned you have it, but I haven’t seen you use it?”

“Maybe.” Porkchop tilted his head. “Raw manipulation is slow, especially at a low level and without other skills to support it. Claws are usually better. If you distract them well enough it might work if a physical assault wont work.”

Kaius nodded again, chest expanding as he took a slow breath to ready himself for what was to come. Even if he did find clashing blades invigorating, nobody could completely get rid of all of their pre-battle jitters.

It was a little…loose to be truly considered a plan, but at the very least it gave them clearly defined roles. Without knowing what they would face, it wasn’t as if they could strategize in depth.

With a grunt, Kaius hauled the lockbar off the door, tossing it to the side to clatter to the ground. He dug in, yanking on the heavy iron gate that slowly creaked open. The open portal revealed a room too far for his Low Light Vision to pierce completely.

Kaius stepped through, Porkchop close behind.

Embedded sconces on the wall flashed to light, highlighting the room in a soft orange light. Skill or no, after so long in the dark the illumination was blinding. Kaius threw his hands up, shading his eyes. He heard Porkchop growling in frustration next to him. He must have been similarly affected.

Eyes adjusting quickly, Kaius returned his hand back to his blade and took his first good look at the room.

Wide and high ceilinged, it was easily large enough that it must have stretched under a good chunk of the graveyard above. A raised plinth dominated its centre, a large golden sarcophagus glimmered in the firelight on its top. Otherwise, the space was completely empty.

It was where the Champion would be, it had to.

“Let’s go.” Kaius gestured to Porkchop, directing him to circle around. They spread out, slowly approaching the grave. As he drew near, Kaius could make out that the sarcophagus was clearly fashioned after the creature that had been set into the doors to the chamber.

A heavy grind sound started to emanate from the coffin.

“Shit.” Kaius started to run.

The lid of the sarcophagus slid open, defying gravity as it inched its way out over open air. A figure rose out of its confines. Flat as a board, the black garbed undead floated straight up. Kaius kept running, flicking off an Inspect.

Tomblord Xerx – Level ?:

???, ???, ???

Definitely the Champion.

To his left, Kaius saw Porkchop sprinting. Trying to circle around the raising figure.

After it had reached a few long-strides in height, the Tomblord snapped upright – still stiff, with its hands crossed over its chest. Decrepit eyelids opened to reveal empty orbits.

They ignited in a green balefire a moment later.

Kaius’s skin prickled under its gaze.

**Ding! You have challenged a Champion: Tomblord Xerx **

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Kaius watched Xerx slide through the air faster than he could run, darting away from both him and Porkchop. The undead’s body stayed ridgid, only tilting slightly in the direction it moved.

It stopped, halfway across the room. One gnarled hand snapped out from its chest. Hovering unmoving, a ghastly green light started to grow in intensity in the palm of its hand. It was a caster.

He had nothing to deflect magic.

“Porkchop!” He screamed to his friend, still sprinting towards the Tomblord. “Magic! You try to get its attention!”

Porkchop roared, the sound biting deep into Kaius’s ears as his friend redoubled his pace. Charging the undead.

Green grew in intensity. They were almost there.

A green shard appeared, rocketing away from the Tomblord to lance towards Kaius. Far faster than he expected.

“Shit!” He thought, throwing himself to the side. The bolt clipped his shoulder, sizzling his leathers and eating its way into the flesh below. Kaius let out a ragged cry. He could feel his flesh roil and twist. The strange magics grabbing on to him, expending themselves to morph his flesh. Pain screamed out from the site of the wound as skin and fat began to break down.

Rapid Adaptation reacted, flooding the wound with questing vigour, the skill tasting the flavour of the new mana he had been exposed to.

He hit the ground roughly, looking up to see the Tomblord glide away from the rapidly approaching form of Porkchop. Reaching the other side of the room, the undead floated higher.

Firmly out of both of their reach.

Stopping fast, its hand snapped out towards Porkchop, glowing green once more. It was channelling again.