Chapter 12 Part 1

The dark and unforgiving marshlands, a portion charred and broken by raging fires. The trees blackened charcoal, the muddy marsh now solid and filled with cracks. In its centre is a monstrous crater, the ground glows from the raw heat escaping the more scarred land. Ponds, once filled with murky waters filled by an abundance of swamp life, now look more like tar, as scolding hot gas bubbles up from its thickened sludge.

Undead trudge the landscape, Zombies, Skeletons, Ghasts, Ghouls, and ghosts all under the command of the most powerful of them all, an Elder Lich. Once powerful necromancers, escaping the mortal disease known as death, turning themselves into Undead monstrosities.

Now I know what you're thinking, Ghasts and Ghouls? Aren't those just zombies with a different moniker? No my foolish idiotic friend. Zombies have corrosive blood, so you better clean it off before it starts eating at your weapons and armour. Ghouls invoke paralysis with a noxious gas like a pungent odour. They're skin potted with gaps showing their rotting flesh, and Ghasts have decaying flesh drawn tight across clearly visible bones. It has very pale skin, a carnivore's sharp teeth, and long sharp claws. Its eyes burn like hot coals in their sunken sockets. They can poison anything with a mere scratch. You WILL die agonisingly if not treated immediately.

(Narrator) They look similar in a sense but all of them have very different characteristics, not like one another.

Just beyond the wastes of the burnt marsh, where dry grass and singed tree's have not yet fallen to the torched, almost alien land. Our trio, crouched inside a thick leafless bush, watch on in horror at the traumatised earth.

"Do we really need to be doing this? Undead are fucking stupid. Not to mention I feel these twigs poking me in the arse. Never know a dry bush could be so perverse." Jill says with an uncomfortable scowl.

"Save it, Jill. We need to observe what we are up against. We also need to find out what's inside that crater. So much soil got kicked up we can't see into it unless we rise over that peak." Christopher grumbles.

(Narrator) It's massive Christopher, I know I was only up there for a split second, but that's an eternity for a Wisp.

"What did you see, Tari?" Christopher asks.

(Narrator) Hundreds of undead, in most varieties that I could identify from afar. I don't think I'm doing justice to the scale, but this crater is easily over a kilometre in diameter.

"Which would mean this gradual rise is about 20 metres high."

(Narrator) I couldn't see the impact object though. Could they have taken it?

"No. Whatever it is, it's still emitting that interference."

"I suppose only those who've been using Spatial Magic their whole life can differentiate that feeling." Jill says.

"Not necessarily. Have you ever had your mana stolen from you before? Or actually. That feeling you get donating some of your mana to the church as a child. It's a bit like that." Christopher says.

"Oh, I get it now." Jill says in a hushed voice.

"I think it'll be best if we find our mysterious object that caused this crater first." Christopher says.

"We'll have an army of Undead between us and our goal." Jasyn comments.

"To be fair. I have no idea what we are going to do once we find it. What if the blessing Tallifik gave me isn't powerful enough to protect Tari?" Christopher says, a sense of unease on the matter making him cautious.

"I guess we don't have time for you to teach either one of us to do whatever you're thinking might work either." Jasyn ponders. "Which means I guess we'll have to trust that the blessing will protect them." 

"I-I don't think I can take that risk." Christopher says, pain audible in his voice as he blinks away tears.

Jasyn gestures for him to sit. He joins him, wrapping an arm over his shoulders. "You really care for them. Don't you?" He asks. Christopher hangs his head and nods with a rough and heavy exhale.

(Narrator) This is weird. Like, do I pretend I'm not here? I'm not sure what to do here.

Christopher chortles, amused by Tariku's remark. "To be honest. I never had a plan to begin with. How am I supposed to counter something I do not understand?"

(Narrator) You have what us storytellers call Plot Armour. You have a sort of metaphysical luck that allows you to survive complete bullshit.

"That makes Zero sense Tari." Christopher says, shooting the comment down.

(Narrator) The Broodmother Queen is a perfect example. The only one that didn't make it through that was Hayle. You cannot tell me that you don't have Plot Armour after that. Actually, same with Jasyn. He literally died in that Dungeon. Yet here he is.

Christopher looks somberly at Jasyn, then back at Tari. "Look. This is reality. Stuff like that is a work of fiction."

"Only hearing one side of this conversation is starting to get old." Jasyn says, putting his helmet on his head.

…

Christopher stands, a firm almost quizzical expression on his face. "Right. This plan is a simplistic one. We kill any undead that blocks our path to the anomaly. Then it's basically defending your King while he figures out how to either suppress its effects or destroy it." 

"Understood, Your Majesty. King Jasyn and I will do everything we can to defend you." Jill salutes, still a little shaky trying to perform the bow.

Jasyn slaps Jill on the back, causing her to stumble. "What the lady said babe. We will do as much as it wills of us to protect you during your investigation."

"I honestly don't have high hopes of this working but, don't die. That is an order, above all others." Christopher's eyes flicker and he takes a breath before simply walking out from the bush. 

"Your Highness! What are you doing?" Jill whispers, trying her best not to shout.

Christopher walks backwards with his arms outstretched. "Undead are stupid, right? So let's try to have fun doing this." 

A deep rumble much like a laugh comes from her right as Jasyn walks briskly after his betrothed. "You ain't leaving me behind babe!" 

Christopher jaunts up the incline giggling as Jasyn chases after him. Jill sounds exasperated at their lack of concern briskly following behind. The slope gradually becomes steeper as they fend off the poultry low class Zombies.

Jasyn blushes slightly as the slope becomes even more acclivitous, giving him a firm and glorious view of Christopher's gluteus maximus. He gets an awful idea, shown from his inability to conceal it from his expression. Perhaps he thought it didn't matter because of his helmet. The incline gets heavier, making Christopher use his hands to climb. 

It is at this moment Jasyn claims this golden opportunity to grasp his betrotheds voluptuous cheeks, pushing him up the last part of the hill. Jasyn's action makes Christopher smirk and he leans into it. Jill loses her footing and stumbles down the hill a bit as she notices the happenings of her employers.

She regains her footing and wipes at her eyes, stunned by their behaviour. The blood in her body rushes to her head as she looks back up, unintentionally finding Jasyn feeling himself as Christopher grabs the top of the hill.

Blood trickles from her nose after she slips again, hitting her head on the hard cobbled rocks of the hill. It's lucky she didn't get concussed from the impact as she finds a new foothold.

"Honestly." Jill remarks, wiping the blood from her nose on her sleeve.

Christopher's voice cracks as he screams, long spindly fingers dig into the flesh of his wrist pulling him over the apex of the incline. Jasyn shouts his name in concern, scrambling to get to the top. 

"Get off me, vile bastard!" Christopher yells out of view. An explosion sends a cloud of dust to flow over the edge and upon both of them.

Jill swiftly climbs to catch up with Jasyn, using her shoulder to push the heavily armoured man up the rest of the hill. Jasyn joins Christopher, who freed himself from his assaulter. It drew blood. The crimson liquid trickles off his fingers.

"Damn it. I didn't pack antidotes. It's going to take me a while to get Ghast Poison out of my blood. Can you buy me some time?" Christopher says.

"A Ghast huh? I should be fine, but I'm not sure I can kill one. Its body is said to be harder than iron so." Jasyn replies. Uncertain of his victory against a powerful undead.

"Did you learn any light magic?" Christopher inquires, casting an antidote spell called Elixir Of Life.

"A little. I'm not sure how good it will be against a Ghast though." Jasyn answers.

"Anything is better than nothing. Buy me about three minutes." Christopher says, wincing from pain.

Huffing and puffing comes from behind them as Jill pulls herself up. "What's going on?"

"You're slow. Catch your breath for now. We've been ambushed by a Ghast." Christopher says.

(Narrator) Guh, they have such a ghastly appearance, hehe.

"Now is no time for jokes Tari." Christopher scolds.

(Narrator) You're no fun…Why is the Ghast just standing there? Are they waiting for something?

"I hit it with a bomb spell. It's probably being cautious. Ghasts have shown some level of intelligence in the past, so that's likely what's happening." Christopher says.

"They look tortured." Jill says, getting up from the ground.

"What do you mean?" Jasyn asks.

"Their eyes." Jill replies. "It's like they were pulled from Hel itself."