Chapter 20: The Tree of Death

John and Dixie slowly rose from the shadow of one of John's newly turned zombies near the entrance to the infamous Paris Catacomb. John stood on the side of the entrance by a tree so he wouldn't be seen too early while looking around to ensure no one was near before breaking his way into the Catacombs despite it being dark outside and the moonlighting the sky.

John knew this would be the best way to bolster his forces even if most of the corpses would be nothing more then skeletons, to John they all had their uses. John had many ideas from his Tree of Death to using his necromancy to make different sizes and shapes of abominations that would give very beneficial effects in taking in humanity down. all he needed now was those who lay eternally below his feet to be at his command.

After reassuring himself that he was clear he walked around to the entrance to the black door before him. Dixie stared for a moment and said, "Well how do you suppose we get in Darth Skele."

John wanted to ignore Dixie's attempt to mock him but then again he realized he was wearing a large black cloak with a hood over his head that he even had to admit made him resemble the sith from Star Wars. Without saying a thing he conjured a giant black hand with claws to his right the size of an SUV using his {Darkness Manipulation} and willed it flying into the side of the entrance breaking it along with a small portion of the wall around it before it dissipated into nothing.

"Well... I guess this isn't a stealth mission." Said Dixie as she sat on John's shoulder.

Walking into the new enlarged entrance John says, "Never was a stealth mission."

John walked past the gift shop which he found disgusting as he saw what now only a few people in the world would find disturbing. People making a profit off of death which irritated him, yet he continued down the real entrance to the catacombs in order to not stall his intentions there.

John had walked a few minutes into the catacombs until he came upon the walls of bone that lined the interior of the underground maze, but he didn't stop to gaze as his aim was the heart of it. After a few minutes of walking he following the map of the catacombs, he swiped back at the gift shop he stopped as he had reached his destination. He was now in the center of the catacombs and everything was silent as he channeled his Mana through his body of bones and into his surroundings. He could feel them. All of them. All seven million within the catacombs that lined the walls and those that were stacked up to make walls themselves.

Dixie just sat back on John's shoulder as he didn't need her help at all for this task. Yeah, there would've been a warning from her about raising this many skeletons back to life, but with John massive amount of Mana, it would only take at most half of his entire Mana pool. With enough to spare for when he made his Tree of Death along with taking most of the undead skeletons he just created back to Hornbrew City.

After finishing John stood still as he waited for them to rise and sure enough the walls around him and under the neighboring buildings began to shake violently as the bones that lined them fell. Then as he expected they began to build themselves up like a force commanded each bone and shard to the original owner. It was like seeing oddly-shaped legos make something unexpected.

Within an hour all seven million skeletons were put back together and were ready for Johns command. John took a moment to bask in his army's growth while still staggering from the massive drain in Mana. While still having her mental connection to John, Dixie sensed what John was going through and said, "Ahh get over it, you big wuss. It's nothing more than little Mana deprivation. It common after using huge amounts of Mana. Trust me it's like drugs, the more you experience it the less you'll feel it down the road."

John wondered where Dixie got this comparison from but dreaded the possible answers. Without further ado, he made his way back to the entrance where multiple police waited screaming for anyone within to come out with their hands up in french. John could only guess that he was seen entering which begged the question of if he was seen entering did anyone see him using his magic.

John wanted what he had behind him to be a surprise so he made a slow approach before what he guessed were hand signs and yells for him to cease his approach and comply to their commands. A helicopter flew above and shined a light onto John from up in the air. John could tell it a new chopper as a man with a camera could be seen on the side filming and transmitting what he saw back to whatever news station he worked for. John kept approaching until a warning shot was fired before his feet.

With this as a queue for him to stop John froze in his tracks. John felt that with the construction of his Tree of death just moments away and all signals around the world soon to be disrupted and slowed to the speed of dial-up modems he saw it as the best chance to show the world he was born in what they would soon be up against.

He slowly raised his black skeletal hands toward his hood which spooked the officer on the ground along with the spectators nearby. As he pulled the hood off and revealed his black horns and skull along with his fangs and the supernatural red fire within his eye sockets. There was nothing but silence other than the helicopter above their head with the spotlight on John after all he was the star at the moment.

John felt the stares from all over and knew that this was the moment he wanted and this was the best chance to leave a lasting impression on a soon to be destroyed civilization. He looked forward to the officers and yelled in a stern voice, "Rejoice humans, your prophecies of world destruction, extinction, and the apocalypse have finally been realized and brought forth by the true gods of this infernal existence. I who have been wronged by those who were meant to care and nurture me and was damned to a life not worth living has been given the chance to wipe away most of your race and all of your civilization by the gods you traded out for false imitations, idols, and non-existent deities that have not once answered your prayers. You have followed books made by those who wished to ensure their descendant's dominance and control over the ignorant while pretending to be gods themselves. Religions like Christianity and the Catholics wiped out the true believers thousands of years ago and even until this night they continue to secretly wipe away any evidence of their existence. So as punishment for the churches wickedness and disgusting habit along with humanities grotesque saddening actions of the past couple of millennia humanity has been judged as too unfit to thrive in this world they wish to start anew."

Just as John finishes his announcement he descends into his own shadow and reappears back into the catacombs. Knowing he doesn't have much time left before they search the Catacombs he quickly spreads a shadow beneath the feet of every skeleton which encompasses the entire floor of the maze and he along with his seven million skeletons descend into the floor. Disappearing before anyone can search the catacombs on to reappear within The Grave center.

John falls onto his knee cap and struggles to stay conscious. He hadn't planned to bring all seven million back with him but it was too risky. He couldn't let the world taste too much of his monstrous sweet plan before he could finish putting the topping on the main course.