12 Fit For A King - Part 3

Chips and pieces of silvery wood flew everywhere, accompanied by the falling of sparkling sawdust. Soon the ground around Zote's humble workbench was completely covered in a thin layer of silver chips and dust.

The smooth slicing of wood was accompanied by no sound. Instead the crescent shaped blade employed by Zotes skillfully hands glided through the silvery wood as if it was butter.

Sharp angles upon sharp angles eventually began to take shape. Several impossibly looking shapes came into existence, and the unique coffin eventually began to take form.

With the swish of a knife the coffin that Zote had designed was slowly taking shape, slowly turning from an idea to reality.

Zote was crafting what appeared to be a cocoon of sharp twisting angles and curves. Of course after the base of the coffin was set Zote began to add some detail. Several odd runes were eventually smoothly carved into a few notches, along with several mosaics depicting several events, and items. A crown of thorns, a lion, a sword and a sinister looking crest.

Of course Zote had not forgotten its purpose. At the center of the twisted and pointed coffin itself was a rather large nook. Perfectly hidden behind the center spire was the perfect place to slide a body into and have it be completely protected from the direct embrace of the earth.

After carving out the finishing details of his newest work Zote sanded it down with a fine purple sandpaper that permeated a sour sent.

Stepping back Zote admired his finished work. A twisted cocoon made up of twisting sharp spires that curved at impossible angels and join to form impossible shapes. Adorned with strange symbols and carvings the entire thing looked like something that was ment to be used in an evil ritual.

Satisfied Zote ran over and grabbed the Man off of his special table and slid him right into the center nook of his creation. Reaching out he sealed off the compartment completely by twisting one of the spires after making sure the man was stuffed into his new home nice and tight.

Satisfied with his work Zote used his inhuman strength to lift up the entire thing and ran off to find his boss.

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Cleff was almost finished burying the final corpse of the day as he was shoveling dirt back into a half filled hole. Of course his misty eyes were as unfocused as ever and his face showed no sign of emotion of any kind.

Well... that was until he had heard a voice calling him from afar.

" Gravedigger !!! Gravedigger !!! I have brought you another body to burry !!! "

His face twitching slightly Cleff hurriedly managed to completely finish covering the body he was burying before turning around to be greeted with a strange sight.

A strangely dressed mummy was carrying an absurdly large and pointy silver thing over his head while standing rather close to him. A little too close....

Cleff stood frozen for a moment before taking a few steps to the side and eyeing Zote strangely.

" I assume this is the..... Coffin ? You have crafted .... I do hope there's a body inside," Cleffs cloudy eyes grew wide. His imagination failed to see how a body could fit into such a strangely shaped coffin. Was the poor man inside squatting, or eternally stuck in a yoga position ? In all honesty the coffin that Zote had crafted had actually given him a small headache. The strange form and curves were quite hard on the his dulled brain.

" Of course Gravedigger" Zote nodded, the coffin he was carrying bobbled along with his head. Cleff had to take another step back to avoid being impaled by an outward pointing spike.

Cleff let out a loud sigh before pointing to the ground next to Zote.

" Just place the coffin you have fashioned there. Ill make sure to take extra care while burying it. to prevent damage of course. " Of course Cleff was really wondering about how he was going to burry this strange and sharp coffin while not impaling himself on it. It looked quite sharp after all.

Complying Zote gingerly placed his "masterpiece" down before waddling away.

Digging an extra large grave to accommodate the coffins... curves... Cleff gingerly reached out to pick up the coffin before gently laying it down inside its new home. His slow movement more out of self protection than concern for Zotes work.

Although Cleff had once wondered if his blood was still red, he wanted to avoid such self discovery at the moment.

Sighing once more, Cleff began moving dirt back onto the coffin. If anything, although the coffin was strangely shaped and took up more space, Cleff actually buried it quite quickly. As he wasn't placing a body directly in earth, he could get away with digging a shallower grave leading to less work overall.

Finally finished with his days work, Cleff was just about to walk off but he was hit with quite the surprise. Just as he was about to walk away a sudden burst of cold air flowed through his body at once. It felt as if he had just buried a good fifty corpses at once. The sudden burst of strength it had given him felt absolutely amazing.

A slight smile crept onto Cleff's face. It seemed as if a body buried in a ornate coffin was worth more than a regular corpse. Way more. And the strength it provided at once felt absolutely amazing. Although rather particular, it seemed as if Zotes strange methods actually came with some merit. It seemed as if he was going to have to praise his new employee for his hard work. Although he should also talk to Zote about the strangeness of his coffins....

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Somewhere at a particular shrine, dedicated to a particular king, in a particular castle made of steel and iron, a few candles were suddenly extinguished. Frightening a monk who was offering up a prayer to the long dead king.