Chapter 25: The Plan II - Basileus the Darkness Renegade!

Special Guest recounting events - Basileus

Previously on Darksiders II: Frozen Assets

"You forgot your station, Nephilim, Chris, and Alito. You might be a Rider, Death, but I am the Lord of the Dead!"

A spectral Dead Lord rose out of a green portal. He has two huge sabres with jagged blade bodies. A knight helmet with two devil-like horns, a bony jaw, and a full clad knight armor with skeleton ornaments decorated around his shoulder pads and waist belts.

It did not take long for the trio to know who the Dead Lord was...

The Trio frowned."Basilieus!"

"And your King demands an audience." Death frowned.

"This realm belongs to Corruption now. None alive can stand against it." Basilieus snarled.

"You...misjudge us..." Chris, Alito, and Death hissed.

"You both are just followers of the Pale Rider, and you, Pale Rider, ride the power of the seals at your back. You would not survive..." Basilieus boasted, but a smack from Death's merged Possessed Scythe silenced him.

"We would not survive? You talk too much!" Death snarled as he pounced on a surprised Basilieus and knock the Dead Lord back several spaces by punching the ground several time with his Slice of Death.

"How dare you defy the Lord of the Dead?!" Basileus growled.

"And how dare you defy that which is the Ender of Life itself?!" Death growled.

"If we have to knock you back like we do Phariseer, we will! Alito!" Chris called out.

"Yes, my Lady!" Alito transformed into Lifebane.

"Time for you to chill out!" Chris frowned.

Chris and Death screamed and charged into Basileus as he charged into them too.

Summoning three ghouls, Death lured the Dead Lord into the ghouls. The ghouls screeched as they slashed rapidly at Basilieus's armor and undead flesh. Death unleashed two charged shockwaves for good measure.

Chris launched a kick on Basilieus's face, but the Dead Lord managed to stand his ground and held the Icy Maiden into a deadlock. The Adjudicator's bench disintegrated because of the excess energy given out by the clash.

Basileus smirked, thinking he had it under control, but Death commanded the ghouls to explode, causing the Dead Lord to cut his concentration short. With a shout, Chris concentrated her arcane ice energy into Basilieus's face and sending him flying hard into the entrance door hard.

Death teleported straight to Basileus, grabbed him by the body with the possessed scythe, and threw him towards the other side of the tower filled with spiky arcane icicle towers impaling the Dead Lord's chest!

"Nice job, Chris." Death nodded.

"Am always willing to shut disrespectful people up." Chris nodded.

Basilieus frowned and created a large and powerful portal.

"You have forced my hand!" the Dead Lord snarled as he descended into the portal.

"Get him!" Death shot out.

Both Death and Chris leapt into the portal seconds before the portal close. They landed on a dimly lit area, where only silhouettes of rock appeared, and little light seeped into the area they stood on. There were no clouds up ahead; there was nothing but inky, black darkness.

Project Tundra activated - Arcane Military Grade Night Vision Visor Tech: Online.

Chris's eyes glowed blue as she took in the enhanced vision; her sight became a clear lime green. Two spectacle lenses soon scrolled down to prevent any sneak attacks into her eyes and glowed, indicating the night vision's activation.

Chris's enhanced cochlear implant and Death's super-enhanced hearing picked up rapid footsteps in front of him.

"Why don't you give up now, Basileus? You know you are matchless against us." Death frowned.

"I hoped a champion would arise who could face Corruption. I got three, instead. You have come far, Horseman and the two followers. A pity, your journey ends here!" Basileus taunted as he held his dual blades in a cross.

"DUCK!" Chris shot out.

Both Death and the Icy Maiden flipped away from Basileus's air slash and unleashed shockwaves from their weapons.

Morphology: Basileus

Type: Dead Lord

Handedness: Ambidextrous

Armor: Heavy

Description: The Last of the Dead Lords and formal Pillars of the Four before taken by the Lord of Bones against his will. Capable of using dual-swords to unleash a powerful air slash. Despite wielding two swords, his attack speed are only average, but compensate it with powerful arcane magic. His attacks consist of only melee attacks; use ranged attacks for quicker defeat.

Death quickly rolled over to Basileus and unleashed a Harvestor Revenge. The Dead Lord to flinch as Death's scythe tore through the former's flesh and armor.

"What? He has arcane weapons that matched up to my calibre...This is not in my calculations!" Basileus frowned.

Basileus was so engrossed with getting a good aim to overcome Death's constant dodging that he failed to notice Chris appearing behind Basileus, slashed across the Dead Lord's back, and shred him several times with Lifebane's Boomerang Shredder.

Enraged, Basileus's eyes glowed as he turned and attempted an overhead smash with his right blade at Chris.

The Icy Maiden managed to block the blade, and her Project Tundra quickly anticipated the sweeping slash from Basileus's left blade. Chris quickly jumped and kicked the left blade and a huge burst of energy blast through as they separated from the deadlock, damaging both parties.

Quattro Sentinel EX Cardiovertor Defibrillator activation - Regeneration process accelerated.

Project Tundra Magnetic Ride Dampeners activated: Reflexes enhanced; Damage reduction into limbs.

Death managed to land a free shot on Basileus, causing him to keel.

The Dead Lord roared and pushed Death and Chris away with a powerful green shockwave.

Basileus boasted as a huge silhouette of a scaly spider appeared above him, "You cannot stand against me!"

A giant spider with big, spiky jaws landed behind the Dead Lord. The Spider had no eyes, and many small sharp teethes. It has eight brown, bony legs with rock-like skins. Its thorax and abdomen had several layers of scaly skins and shadows imbued upon it.

Morphology: Achidna

Type: Former Queen of the Spider Kingdom

Size: Giant

Description: A powerful spider from Ysilik, the Shadow Realm. Her attacks consist of a very powerful lightning attack that she can unleash on the ground through her strong legs thanks to the electrical glands on her abdomen. She then can charged along the ground with her lightning imbued legs. Melee attacks are not recommended in this mode.

Basileus commanded the big spider Queen to unleash a powerful electrical field, with Chris unfortunately caught in the attack's radius.

"GAAAARRRRRGGGH!" Chris screamed in pain as a strong surge of lightning struck her body and Lifebane.

"Chris! Alito!" Death shot out.

"Hahahaha! What did I warn you? Your journey might as well end here!" the Dead Lord Basileus taunted, but his celebration was short-lived when he saw that Chris was smirking!

"Do you really believe I am done? TAKE IT BACK!"

The Icy Maiden spread her arms as a burst of ice soon erupted from the ground, interrupting Achidna's attack!

The Icy Maiden dusted her armor off, huffed, and cracked her neck.

"Yeah, betcha didn't know that I possessed abilities where I can find out about your attacks through body scanning. And I bet you didn't know I have a electromagnetically conductive elements - Magnetic filings - in my armor that can dissipate electrical and magnetic damage. I can take no damage from neural overload. My skin might be charred...I will take that over system shutdowns any day!" Chris smirked.

Basileus was so enraged that he failed to notice the pale Rider delivering Harvestor Revenge to make the Spider Queen keel. The Pale Rider grabbed the Dead Lord by his neck and threw him down the cold, hard floor. Achidna roared as she soon retreated into the shadows, preparing to strike again.

Basileus got on his feet quickly and delivered a quick cross slash towards the Pale Rider. The latter unleashed a shockwave towards Basileus after dodging his attack with a back flip.

Desperate as his eyes frowned in worry; the Dead Lord pointed his right blade towards Chris and Lifebane. "Flatten them down!"

The Spider Queen descended from the ceiling and slammed hard on the ground, unleashing a huge electrical surge across the floor.

Chris managed to resist the electrical surge and quickly used Lifebane to climb up the Spider Queen's head via her legs and jaws. The Icy Maiden rapidly hammered Achidna's head with her icicle-enhanced fists, sending the Spider Queen into a pained frenzy.

"Death! Get her if you want to prove to Thane!" Chris called out.

Death summoned his ghouls, lured the Dead Lord into them, jumped on top of the Spider's head, and sliced off the Spider's head with his Possessed Scythe.

Following Death's Ghoul Explosion on Basileus, Chris slashed Basileus across his chest.

The Icy Maiden unleashed a flurry slashes, rolling slashes, cleaves, overhead smash, and cross slashes across Basileus's armor, blending brawl, power, and grace together in her attacks. Chris then impaled Lifebane through the Dead Lord's chest and in one fell swoop, sent the Dead Lord flying over to the Pale Rider.

Death responded by an uppercut attack, jumped on level with Basileus, and unleashed a powerful flipsaw attack that sent the Dead Lord crashing down the floor.

Basileus attempted to recover despite his weakened state but Death transformed into the Reaper Form, grabbed the dead Lord by his neck, and pounded his face off the ground several times with such brutality that crack lines started to form in multiple directions.

The Reaper Form started to strangle Basileus with his big, crushing claws. The Dead Lord began screaming for mercy.

"No! Stop! Enough!" the Dead Lord relented.

Basileus landed on the ground in pain, bowing on one of his knees.

"I will ride with the three of you. Even unto the Lord of Bones; even unto death."

Chris and Alito approached the powered down Death.

"Basileus, right?" Chris replied.

"It is I." the Dead Lord nodded.

"Look, if you aren't hot-headed, we wouldn't have to trash you all the way till kingdom come!" Chris crossed her arms. "I have to admit, you nearly have us during the electrical stomp by Achidna!"

"I don't get you." Basileus wondered.

Death began explaining about the plan to overthrow the Dead King and Argul's last message.

"The Formal Dead King...released from his madness. I thank you three. Do you mean it? Are you really planning on overthrowing the Dead King?" Basileus wondered.

"Yes. As long as we find out the source that powers the Lord of Bones's Interdiction, we're golden." Chris nodded.

Basileus lowered his head and clenched his fists. "For years on end...I have been serving the Lord of Bones for years against my will. I knew, just like the Soul Arbiter, that the Lord of Bones and the Chancellor is responsible for a Kingdom ruled by Hate and Fear. Alas, there's nothing I can do about it due to his Interdiction. You have our support..." Basileus bowed to the trio.

"Yeah, we would not be able to get your support unless you tell us about the source that powered the Interdiction." Death frowned as he summoned Phariseer and Adjudicator.

"We are close to the Dead Lord against our will, of course we will know about the source. It lies within six unholy beasts of absolute filth, called the Bloodless." Basileus frowned.

"The Bloodless?" Chris wondered.

"Yes. Creatures of indescribable filth. Created by the Dead King, they served as the source of power for his Interdiction." Basileus nodded.

"If you knew about it, why don't you kill it?" Death wondered.

"By the time we knew it, we are serving the Dead King against his will. He warned us that if he ever knew that we killed even one Bloodless through our link with the Interdiction, he would be able to kill us with his executioner magic before we could even kill the next one." Adjudicator replied.

"As for the Bloodless' weaknesses, those we do not know. The Bloodless have scattered throughout the realms to who knows wherever since Corruption struck in the Kingdom of the Dead, not that the Lord of Bones cared anyway. The further they went without any harm, the better for the Dead King, or so he reckons. Phariseer replied.

"So you three do not know about the Bloodless' weaknesses, yet the Dead King warns his closest servants about killing them. Talk about paranoia..." Alito shook her head.

"If we kill the Bloodless, the Lord of Bones will not know as we're not linked with him. But if you three kill even a single Bloodless, the Lord of Bones will find you and kill you, right?" Death asked.

The Three Dead Lords nodded.

"Okay, brief summary. So the Bloodless powered the Interdiction, which in turn gave the Dead King power to overcome the Four without the Seven Seals and the ability to bring the Kingdom under his iron fists. As long as the Interdiction exists, the Dead King will still be invincible and has command over the Dead Army, except the Three Dead Lords, even when given to someone. That is, unless that someone else destroys the Bloodless, right?" Chris summarized.

The Three Dead Lord nodded once again.

"Good, so we know that the Bloodless powers the Interdiction. But we need its specific places and weaknesses...someone besides the Dead Lords that are forcefully close to him." Death grunted, deep in thought.

"The Chancellor is out of the question because he will rat in on us." Alito followed.

Death's eyes lit up. "Draven, he's 'close' to the Dead Lord due to his ability to conquer the Gilded Arena. He might be able to help us."

Draven - Eternal Throne

"Ah...The Bloodless. Yes, I knew 'em. Nightmares of claw and bone that cannot be slain by common steel. They are the ones to power the Interdiction." Draven nodded.

"How'd you come to know about them?" Death wondered.

"When I was forced under the Dead King's whip, I guard the Bloodless Cave right under the Undead Court before Corruption separate them apart. I could have killed them, yes, but I was warned that the Dead King would kill me if so much as one Bloodless were killed. I usually do not care about that, but I wanted to bide my time for my ideal revenge and so I obeyed back then. By the time I have devised a thing to 'see' and kill them, Corruption happened. The Bloodless were gone.

"A way to see and kill them?" Chris frowned.

"Bloodless are vulnerable to things of the spirit." Draven nodded.

"Like kills like - is that it?" Death snickered.

"And Poison with Poison." Chris followed.

"Yes. And as the Dead King is quite fond of his Bloodless - kill all six of them, if you dare." Draven chuckled.

"If you have guarded their dens before, you should be able to study them well. How are these Bloodless formed?" Death wondered.

"Souls must pass through the City of the Dead before they are reborn in the Well. But some escape their torments to haunt other realms. Thus do the dead walk again. Bloodless are such types. However, I found out that the Bloodless have traces of Corruption in them. Their flesh can be destroyed - but their spirits resist killing." Draven replied.

"The Bloodless were formed before Argul's fall, used to power the Lord of Bone's Interdiction...The Lord of Bone's refusal to hear the pleas of Corruption in recent memories..." Chris's eyes widened. "Does that mean..."

Draven nodded. "Your guess is as good as mine. The Dead King has association with Corruption. Why then, would he ignore the pleas of many who wanted Corruption dead? He said that he is ancient and it would not bother him, but everyone knows that Corruption consumes all and hence its name."

"So somehow the Lord of Bones used arcane sorcery to combine the souls he captured from the Well of Souls with Corruption, forming the Bloodless. Through that, he devised a gadget that will allow him invincibility and the ability to bring all Dead Army under his feet even when passed on to someone else, because the Interdiction belongs to him and him alone." Death concluded.

"Yes." Draven nodded.

"We wished you could have joined us. It is a pity that the Lord of Bones still has control over you, even without the Interdiction by his hands. That and the son of a bitch Chancellor is always on look out for you." Chris huffed.

"Just promise me one thing, that I can have his head or his crown, when the King is overthrown. You can have the Chancellor. One thing's is for certain...the Dead King's paranoia and complacency will bring him to an end, I know it." Draven smirked.

Alito, Chris, Death, and Draven gave off a sinister chuckle that even the Chancellor could not recognize.