And Darkness Consumes
Chapter Four: Necromancer Janus
The Cold Plains, like it's namesake, was cold all year round. Even if the surrounding terrain was warm, the Cold Plains maintained a chilly atmosphere. There was some speculation around this, but no cause was very apparent. Erich himself didn't appear the least bit affected by the sudden drop in temperature as him and Kyoko moved from the warmish Blood Moors to the Cold Plains. The female Rogue, on the other hand, shivered every so often, and her breath appeared in front of her mouth as a cloud of frost.
Kyoko had guided Erich through the Blood Moor without encountering any demon patrols, which was good. They didn't want to alert the Necromancer Janus to their presence just yet.
During their travels, Kyoko explained to Erich the nature of those whom they would fight, of the Demoness Andariel and her three human allies: Necromancer Janus, Yun of Blood Wolf Clan, and her most powerful General, Miho the Cold. She explained that they know very little of Yun of the Blood Wolf Clan, and even less of Miho the Cold. Necromancer Janus, on the other hand, was a well known and sadistic Necromancer, a man capable of summoning great hordes of undead minions to carry out his will. Killing him would strike a terrible blow to the demon forces, as the majority of the assault forces were zombies and skeletons summoned by Janus.
The cover provided to them by the Moor quickly thinned then vanished all together. From here on in, they would have to travel in the open. The Cold Plains was a flat, rolling plains, where one could see great distances in any given direction by simply looking. Getting to the Burial Grounds without being seen would requite nothing less then a miracle. Quickening their pace to a steady run, Kyoko guided Erich to where the Burial Grounds lay, taking him along a route that would afford them the greatest cover and allow them to remain out of sight for any posted sentries.
The gates to the Burial Grounds suddenly appeared on the horizon ahead. Moans of the undead could be heard coming from it.
Without any sort of warning, an arrow dropped from the sky. Kyoko tossed herself to the side the instant she noticed it, but couldn't dodge fast enough as the arrow buried itself deep into her arm. She cursed as she fell, and Erich threw himself to the ground. A female voice called out to them.
"You will soon join Janus' Army of the Dead..." Kyoko's eyes went wide.
"That's Blood Raven's voice! She was killed when Andariel took over the Monastery! That bastard Janus must have raised her. Kill him, and you'll set her soul free!" She told Erich.
"What about you?" He inquired quickly.
Kyoko kicked Erich in the shins. "Don't worry about me! MOVE IT!"
Raising his Halberd, Erich threw himself to his feet, then ran full tilt ahead towards the gates. Arrows started lancing towards him, but Erich utilized his training in Bonemold armor, twisting his body so that when an arrow struck him, it would slide harmlessly across his armor.
He could see standing in front of the gates a Rogue, but she was twisted by dark arts, her face a hideous mask with horns protruding from the sides. She launched arrow after arrow at him as he ran towards her, the distance closing between them with alarming speed. Letting loose a loud war cry, Erich shoved his Halberd towards her as he came within range. Dropping the bow in favor of a melee weapon, Blood Raven parried Erich's thrust with a pair of daggers. As the blade of the Halberd went harmlessly off to Blood Raven's side, she clamped one arm down on it to hold it in place, opting to throw her dagger at him with her other hand.
Erich managed to deflect the thrown blade by leaning his body to the right a little, the dagger hitting his left shoulder pad at an angle and being deflected away. Releasing the Halberd, Erich drew his Daedric Dagger and lunged at Blood Raven. The raised Rogue leapt back away from Erich, her back suddenly up against the gates as Erich continued his attack. Bringing the knife down in a diagonal slashing motion, Erich sought to end the knife fight quickly, to tackle the greater menace Janus. But Blood Raven had other plans. Instead of flinging herself to the side, as Erich expected, she pushed herself forward, tackling Erich and driving her shoulder into his sternum. Erich reeled as suddenly the world went inverted, the gate sliding under his field of vision, being replaced by the sky. The Daedric Dagger went flying from his grasp as he was thrown onto his back, Blood Raven straddling him, raising her own dagger high into the air to deliver the killing blow. NO! I will not let it end like this!
A tingling sensation in the back of his mind reminded him of something. He had magic powers! Clenching his fist, he swung it into Blood Raven's side, rabbit punching her as his fist became enchanted with ice magic. The blow wouldn't have normally bothered Blood raven, but the extra ice magic added the needed umph to it to cause her to reel.
It was just the opportunity Kyoko needed. Holding her bow in her injured hand, pulling back the draw string with her good arm, Kyoko charged the arrow with fire magic, then let it go. Zooming across the distance, the arrow flew true, striking Blood Raven between the eyes. "Gotcha." Kyoko said, a weak grin on her face as Blood Raven fell backwards off Erich, the flaming arrow stuck between her eyes. Kicking out from under the corpse, Erich shouted thanks to Kyoko and retrieved his Dagger and Halberd. Kicking open the gates, Erich strode into the burial ground, playing it Bogart. In the center of the graveyard was a pale skinned man, thin, wearing armor that appeared to be made out of human bone. His flowing white hair was long, swaying in the breeze. He clapped his hand as Erich approached.
"Well done! You've managed to defeat Blood Raven! Quite impressive. I am sure your corpse will make an excellent addition to my army of dead!" Janus mocked Erich outright.
Suddenly, from within Erich came a searing, raging hatred that defied rationality. "You're wrong, foul creature. I shall slay you, and put your head on a pike for all to see the fate that awaits ALL Necromancers!"
Janus drew back, unsettled by the hatred that raged in Erich's eyes. He threw up his hand. "Big words. Let's see you back them up!" Suddenly, zombies began to claw up from the ground, their moans echoing out across the cemetery. Without wasting an instant's time, Erich's hand flew to his Dagger and flung it forward, spinning end over end towards Janus. It was over in the blink of an eye, the blade buried deep in Janus' throat. Blood gurgled up from his lips as his hands shot to his throat, grabbing around the dagger buried there. More blood trickled out from between his fingers, running down his neck and onto his armor. Life fled from his eyes, and he fell back as the cold enveloped him whole.
However, before his corpse hit the ground, streams of magic started streaming out from him, suspending him in mid-air as tendrils of magic lanced out from graveyard, spreading throughout the land. Everywhere, zombies and skeletons in his control just fell over, the magic that bound them to this world no longer in effect.
"Geez Erik, that was... Anti-climatic..." Kyoko said as she came up behind Erich.
"I hate Necromancers." The mind had forgotten much, but his body remembered. Making due on his promise, Erich retrieved his dagger then used it to cut Janus' head off, finding a suitable spear to stick it on. With Janus' head now on a pike, he drove it into the ground outside the gates to the Burial Grounds. Kyoko watched in morbid fascination. She had never seen someone do that, and it both frightened and intrigued her.
"We should return now and report your success to Kashya." Kyoko finally said after staring at Janus' head for a few minutes.
"Right. Let's." Erich said as he turned away from the head, Kyoko in tow as the duo made their way back to the encampment...
As they neared the Rogue encampment, it became increasingly evident that something was amiss. Moving through the Blood Moor, Erich could smell brunt flesh and blood on the air, causing them to quicken their pace as dread set in on them. The scene they stumbled upon was like something tore straight from a nightmare. The encampment was under attack! Fires raged as werewolves and wolves alike attacked the Rogue encampment! Rogues and Paladins fought side-by-side, shouts and battle cries ringing out across the camp. A man stood apart from the carnage, well built, a bloodied wolf paw print on his face. He held something in his hands. Kyoko gasped, pointing him out.
"That's Jun of the Blood Wolf Clan!"
Even from this distance, Erich could see what he held in his hands. "NO!!!" He screamed as Jun threw his head back and let out a long, forlorn howl, thrusting his trophy up into the air.