Seeing how the Animation is going around, I kind of felt compelled to edit the next chapter of this! And I should actually continue with it, too, but the thesis is coming up and I can't promise anything...
Well, whatever!
Hope that you have fun and I'll see you around~! :)
~ 4-2: Dead Beat
As Father Cypher had predicted, Grant was awake when the other two were preparing for a light dinner. He grumbled something like 'why didn't you wake me' or 'I wasn't planning to nap'.
Neither of them minded his words though and soon enough, they were sharing their food in companionable silence. By then, the sun had already set and the darkness of the night had rolled in. In the distance, they could hear the crows. Yet, none of them came near, so the sizzling fire was the only source of sound that was comforting.
"Since I fell asleep first", Grant began between a bite and another, "you two will be resting while I keep my guard up." It would be wise to have at least one of them awake and take turns, so everyone got equal amounts of rest. Trevor was about to agree when Father Cypher shook his head at the suggestion.
"I was planning to go to a pond near these ruins to clean myself a bit from the blood." The priest wasn't exactly comfortable with the smell of blood on him. This was understandable though, so the pirate shrugged.
"You will need to keep your guard up though, but you have proven that you can stand your ground well enough!" Grant showed him a proud smile which had the priest cough to himself in slight embarrassment. It was enough to have him grow silent which had him laugh some more, but he wasn't going to poke it.
The hunter looked between them before he tried to make himself comfortable on the muddied grass. "Very well then. Once Cypher is back from his trip, you wake me up so you can take the turn to sleep." He wasn't going to pass up a chance to rest finally and they were more than willing to let him have this moment as well.
Without waiting for another sign, Father Cypher got up and picked up his staff, pulling it close. Then he strapped one oil lamp to his belt to make sure that he could see while he would walk through the dark. Grant warned him to be cautious once more, worried for the other. Yet, he remained in place and hugged his legs in hopes to sit in a better position.
In all honesty, it was creepy to walk back down the path by himself without any of his companions with him. The sound of the crows became more threatening and that little cone of light from the lamp wasn't as big as the one from the campfire. As if that wasn't enough, now the wind howled after him, too.
Near the former village was not only a lake, but also other ponds. The inhabitants either used these for washing or for fishing. There was enough water after all.
Either way, they wouldn't have much use for it anymore.
For a moment, the priest wondered if the two sailors were. Did they come from this place or, if they were travelers, from far? Never able to be reunited with their friends and family again.
Father Cypher let out a weary sigh. There was no point in dwelling about these thoughts now that they were dead. During dinner, he had kept them in his thoughts in his prayer, hoping that the Lord had taken them to his Realm where their pain would have ceased.
It didn't take long for the priest to find a pond where he could rest and finally clean himself. The priest placed down the staff as well as the oil lamp, then allowing the cloak to fall to the ground. He had worn the clothes for so long and he would be happy to give himself relief for once. Then came off the belt of his tunic, the cloth now even more loose than before; it was already too big anyway.
Yet, what was revealed wasn't the body of a servant of God.
The form was smooth, showed rounder shapes than the clothing would have assumed. Once the ponytail was opened, the long, blond hair flowed straight down, reaching the lower back. There was undergarment, yes, but the chest was bound with bandages to hide another rounding of the frame.
A woman, living the life of a man.
Seeing her own, dull reflection in the water always perplexed her. She had lived as a man for so long that her own female curves were starting to look odd to her.
Those were the reason why she was denied knowledge. It was an obstacle, though more to others than to herself.
Her father, a local priest, had wished for a son in hopes to raise a child to follow in his footsteps. Inofficially, that was.
But fate wasn't so kind to fulfill his wish. When she was little, she would often feel the disappointment emitting from him. It was as if he was saddened whenever he looked at the girl. Her sex wouldn't allow her to grow wise or intelligent even.
Or so he had imagined it to be, at least.
This had her grow defiant, stubborn even. Her will to learn and grow and she wasn't willing to accept defeat. And if she wouldn't be able to do so as a woman, she would have found another way.
She knelt down to dip her hands into the water. Her fingers sunk into the liquid, it was cold and had her shiver, yet the sensation soothed her limbs. With her hands filled with water, she would pour it over herself to clean herself from dust, sweat and blood. Goosebumps rose on her arms from the cold, but she wouldn't flinch. Perhaps this would help her feel better about this journey, give her a moment of peace.
But this peace was fading as quickly as it came.
She could make out sounds behind her.
Light footsteps.
Her body froze in place and she held her breath. The steps got closer and closer.
She jolted up and reached for her staff, turning with her weapon clutched in her hands. What was next, was a second of shock and surprise.
It was no enemy that stood before her, but the pirate who himself was a bit confused by the sight before him. He didn't even dare to come any closer as if he was processing what he was seeing.
"What are you doing here?! You are supposed to watch the camp!", she hissed while her limbs relaxed, lowering the staff. Grant didn't dare to answer, pressed his lips together. It didn't occur to her what might have caused the confusion in him, so she waved him off. "Trevor is sleeping and he's unprotected! I will follow up soon enough, do not worry."
"Well, I… Uh…" Grant was completely lost, then he shook himself. He wouldn't want to look like a moron. At least, not more than what she already thought of him. "There is something that you missed to tell us, I think."
Then it struck her.
She looked down on herself and her face flushed red. "This is… I mean…" Now it was her turn to stutter, her arms instinctively covering her skin. Yet, the pirate didn't outright glare at her. Instead, he took hold of her cloak and handed it over while his eyes were now cast in the distance. "Neither of you were supposed to know..." She pulled the cloak around her while Grant was making himself comfortable by the pond.
For a moment, she could only stand in place and wonder what he was thinking of her now. She was afraid to meet his gaze once more. But when he patted the spot beside him, the priestess obliged and kept her eyes down.
"So… Your real name is?" She could feel his gaze on him and she pressed her lips together. There was no emotion found in the question except for a bit of curiosity.
"It's Sypha." It didn't have much of a difference. The priestess figured that there was no point in changing it so much when no one would know her in the monastery. Sypha heard herself speaking more without any kind of control. She was tired and vulnerable right then. "I wished to learn. To do so, I would need to serve God. Like this, I wouldn't have found a place."
Grant let out a weary sigh and leaned back a bit, supporting himself with his arms. "Becoming a nun wouldn't do quite the job, uh?" He wasn't going to comment on that further, not even attempting to understand her situation. Sypha shifted in place and hugged her own legs. Grant reached out to take hold of her shoulder, hoping that it was somewhat soothing.
"Please… Don't tell Trevor about this", she finally muttered under her breath. The priestess could feel how his hand tensed for a second. "I don't need more people to know about it… This is for my mission alone. It would put my life on the line if anybody else came to know about it..." People weren't friendly to the type of women who held magical powers. Years before, the Church had hunted them and executed every single one of them. Being cloaked as a priest was protecting her from a fate worse than death.
Yet, what had her glance up at the pirate was a chuckle that came from him. It perplexed her to see a smile on his face and yet, there was no sense of mockery behind it. "
Don't worry. I'm not that kind of guy who runs up to everyone to shout out things." Sypha could feel how her cheeks changed in color once more. The other patted and rubbed her back, laughing some more. "We all have our little secrets, I understand that." The priestess sunk in place. She was unsure whether it was embarrassment or relief that she didn't disappoint her companion with the truth. His words almost had something ominous, yet Sypha wasn't going to question him. A pirate had enough secrets of his own most likely. Grant jumped back on his feet and stretched himself.
"Well, I will head back to camp and stop making you feel uncomfortable! You go and get yourself ready, but do watch out. I'll wait for you at camp."
When Grant was already headed back to the main path, Sypha turned in place and called out to him. It had him stop and glanced back once more in confusion. "Thank you, friend. I owe you one."
Another carefree laugh and it lightened her mood some more.
"Don't thank me. We're partners in crime! No need to back stab each other and I sure know a lot about stabbing!" Of course, the pirate would laugh at his own joke some more. Sypha didn't know if she should chuckle herself or roll her eyes. "Anyway! I'll see you later!" With that, Grant was heading back and left the priestess alone.
What a strange companion, she thought to herself with a soft smile. The Lord had blessed her for sure.
After Sypha had finished washing herself from all the dirt, she refilled a couple of bottles, that were on her belt, with water. If they were to wander further into the marsh, they wouldn't find fresh water anytime soon. She might return to the pond with the other water bags once again. For now, the priestess changed back into her clothes and disguise. When she returned to the camp, she found Grant still awake while Trevor was curled up in place with his own cape working as a blanket. The pirate attempted to keep the fire going somehow with anything he could find. His eyes lighted upon her return, calmed knowing that she was back. After she had proposed her suggestion about the water bags, he immediately stood back up.
"You take a rest for now while I do that! When I return, you can sleep some more, too." Grant already went to grab the water bag which was not even half full anymore. The priestess frowned a bit at his enthusiasm.
"Is it because I am a woman that you wish to do this now? ", she asked while she watched him to find out the answer before he could think of a lie.
Grant stemmed his arms on his hips and shook his head. "Who do you think I am? Your shift will be over anyway and I am supposed to guard! Trevor will be on the gin the last stretch anyway." She couldn't help but believe his words, he was far too honest for her to doubt him. Thus, she could only nod at that and he dashed off with the oil lamp, not wishing to leave them alone for too long and be by himself either. In the group, they were working together better after all.
It was as they discussed.
Grant had refilled the water bag while Sypha was taking care of the fire. She was having much less trouble with it with her magic keeping it up, warming them. Trevor was sleeping still and she didn't have the heart to wake him up, yet Grant wasn't as kind and shook him awake. The hunter was groaning when he woke up, not pleased from being ripped from his sleep. Not that Trevor was going to complain, it was his plan and he had to stand up to it. Both Sypha and Grant laid down to get some rest, too.
Being left alone like this had Trevor think, allowing his memory to trail over the past events.
Every time the hunter would ponder about the adventure so far, Trevor couldn't believe that they were still breathing and kicking. With these thoughts swarming in his mind, he was greeted by the morning, grey and depressing. Clouds were covering the entire sky, not allowing the sun to come through. The only difference was that they wouldn't need any lamp or fire any longer to find their way.
In fact, their surroundings looked even more sorrowful now that everything was visible. Yet, it was enough to chase away the majority of demons who dwelt in the dark except for the crows. Of course, they could be heard in the morning. Not as sweet as hearing the birds chirp, but this was the closest that they could get while they had a bit of breakfast.
Their path to the marsh wasn't looking anymore joyful.
There was no more life surrounding them anymore. The scarce plant life around them was disappearing, the ground becoming muddy. Yet, the amount of dead trees around them was increasing. A foul smell filled the air, it was difficult to breathe without their stomachs twisting from disgust. A lot of living creatures must have sunk into the marsh for it to smell this rotten. Their way leaded them further down while more clouds rolled in, blocking out more light. In fact, their own path was getting lost in the marsh and they would need to use the rocks that were sticking out to pass some areas to avoid getting stuck. There was no point in losing energy over falling in the deep mud over and over again.
Before the group could even wonder if there were any enemies around, something stirred in the marsh pits.
Bubbles emerged from one and once they popped, the smell was even more intense than before. Trevor couldn't keep from retching, the smell burned in his throat.
They couldn't tell what was rising from the dark marsh. Then one could tell that it was a head appearing, then shoulders and an entire body welled up. But this creature wasn't the only one which appeared, more and more of them joined in.
"Are... Are these the villagers that attempted to escape? ", Sypha gulped at the sight as she stepped back, holding the staff tighter to herself.
Trevor's expression darkened. "It very well could be that. Let's not wait any longer."
The undead, as they have called them, were far too slow in the marsh to be of a proper danger. Yet, the amount was terrifying and their surroundings weren't fit for running. They would have to move with care which took out quite some speed.
Grant was the one who lead the group now. He was more skilled when it came to balance and had an eye for which platform was more appropriate to land on. It didn't help that the rocks were slippery and there was nothing to hold on to except for the undead once they were to appear next to them. Lashing out at them proved itself to be only somewhat effective. They still had another body underneath this great amount of mud covering them, but it was so sticky that they always risked falling back. Thus, they would need to hit them with precision, because that way, they would dissolve.
"How about these ice powers that you got? Can't you freeze the ground for us? ", Trevor requested as he stabbed the chest of an undead creature and watched it fall apart. Another leap to another rock.
Sypha, who was on a platform before him, looked over her shoulder and showed a frown. "That would be a good idea if I wouldn't have to use this much energy for it. There is no ending in sight and I don't want to run low on power if we happen to be in battle." Continuing on like this was annoying, to say the least. Yet, it did make sense, they wouldn't want to be stuck in place.
The main problem was the fact that the undead could appear anywhere anytime in the marsh without any warning. Since the mud was in motion by now, it was hard to tell whether a monster would emerge or not. Both Trevor and Grant were fighting with long daggers to stab them whenever it was getting too close or even cut off a muddy hand grabbing them. The hunter handed one to the priestess for her to defend herself better, but she wasn't trained to use a blade.
Yet, it wasn't Sypha that was getting in trouble.
Her staff did serve her well to keep distance from the undead even if it was slow. The biggest danger came from being this close to them after all. So while they moved forward step by step, they noticed how much more difficult it was getting. The dead tree branches were forming a roof above them which forced them to use an oil lamp that Grant buckled to his belt. The darkness was cloaking the undead better and they would rely on their ears more than on their eyes. In the end, the light cone could only illuminate so much.
Trevor glanced behind himself more than once, unsure whether a fiend was close to him and he was growing more paranoid. Suddenly, a slimy hand grabbed his arm and attempted to pull him back. The hunter gasped and slashed away with the dagger, cutting right through the wrist and freed himself.
But that wasn't the only enemy near him.
Another undead latched onto him in the next second and another embraced him from behind, locking his movement. His inhuman strength was helpful in this situation, he could rock himself back and attempt to throw the enemy off. With one undead, it worked out quite well, but as soon as that one was shoved away from him, another fiend threw its' arms around him. By now, two or three monsters were enough to actually drag him from the platform. They were able to coordinate together to not only drag him off his feet, but also to lift him and throw him back over their heads. There was nothing that Trevor could do to defend himself and with his back, he landed right in the marsh.
The sound was loud enough to attract the attention of every other fiend as well as his companions. Sypha called out for Grant who took action immediately. He used another path of platforms to get on a tree trunk and climbed upwards while the priestess focused on her powers for a moment.
So much to not wasting energy, then again, this was an emergency.
A breeze of ice dashed over the marsh, freezing it as well as the undead that were appearing and heading for the hunter. Trevor himself was struggling in the mud and all he could do was to get in an upright position to keep his head up, at least. With despair, he pulled out one arm with his dagger, aiming at whatever monster was close enough. Meanwhile, he wiggled with the rest of his frame which was stuck in the mud up to his hips. Then came out the other arm, but he wasn't getting further in place, since there was nothing that his feet could stand on. The marsh wasn't appropriate for swimming either. It was all one gigantic trap.
Sypha used the path that she had created to rush back while Grant was climbing the branches from above to be right where Trevor was. The pirate hooked his feet between the branches and allowed his body to hang down.
"Come on, take hold of my hands!", he called out as he himself tried to stretch himself further to reach him. Trevor didn't wait much longer and lifted his arms towards him, yet, only their fingertips would grace the other. "Y-You will have to work yourself upwards somehow!" Grant was more than desperate. He looked back up to his feet and tried to figure out a way to get down further to reach him.
Getting out of the marsh wasn't as simple as he made it out to be. Especially when Trevor still had to defend himself in the meantime.
The priestess reached closer, smashing the frozen undead with her staff. Other fiends turned into ice as well, preventing them from reaching the hunter.
"Hang in there! I am almost there!", Sypha called to him, cautious with her powers as she didn't want to cover Trevor in ice as well. It would need to be enough for her to reach his side. Shots of ice spells were directed towards the growing enemies while Grant climbed on the tree tops some more.
"Fidgeting does nothing!", cursed Trevor as he kept trying to swim upwards somehow. "It actually drags me further down!" Either that or the monsters were able to work from under the marsh the same. It didn't matter at this point since Trevor was in the predicament still without a proper solution.
Sypha was finally able to get closer to the other, yet was not within reach. She glanced down on her staff and figured that she could hold this out for Trevor to grab, but on this surface, she would slip and fall.
Her eyes darted up immediately and without any warning, she yelled: "Grant! Catch!"
And with that, she threw her staff upwards to him. The pirate was caught off guard, but did manage to grasp the handle, then hung himself down with it. Now the club was actually right next to Trevor's head and he grabbed on without hesitation. The undead, which were thinking about doing the same, were frozen by the priestess once more so that Grant had a chance to heave himself up and pull the hunter out inch by inch. Sypha edged closer to create a surface which Trevor could grab unto as soon as he would be up far enough. When his hip was already out, he wiggled from side to side to swing himself on the ice which, after a few attempts, worked out in his favor. Sypha took hold of his shoulders and pulled him, unable to put a lot of strength behind it due to the ice. Speaking of which, her magic could only work for so long as the undead beat it from underneath, causing it to crack.
Finally, Trevor was freed and the two of them hurried back to their original path before the monsters could take hold of them again. Grant threw back the staff to Sypha so that he could climb back to where he stood before.
"There's no way to escape this marsh! We will need to go further and hope to find a place where these monsters can't reach us!",. ordered Trevor as he stumbled over obstacles together with the priestess.
"From up here, I was able to make out a cave not too far!", replied Grant after he was back on track with them. The pirate gestured into a specific direction that would lead over a couple of other rocks. "And to be fair, there wasn't much else for me to spot, so this might be our only option for now!"
Well, Trevor sure didn't feel like climbing the trees on his own to do his own research. There were enough threats around them to leave him nervous. It almost felt like there was an infinite amount of them. Either that or whenever they dissolved, they would reform somewhere else which was more likely.
As predicted, they were able to make out a cave that was in some hill, preventing it to come in contact with the marsh. That was promising enough for them to climb up and venture inside. The undead were unable to follow, because as soon as they would set foot on anything that wasn't mud, they fell apart.
To their surprise, this was no ordinary cave.
In fact, it actually looked like a gate that would lead down to an even bigger complex. Stone stairs were build downwards; they could make out the faint outlines of doors. Nonetheless, the crew leaned against the rocky walls and slid down to catch their breaths. Cold sweat glistened on their faces, they had paled from all the panic before.
"T-Thank you", Trevor finally managed to mumble as his eyes fell shut for a moment. "I don't know what would have been of me if it wasn't for you." His friends were silent, unable to put together a sentence as if someone had punched the air out of their lungs.
Sypha shook her head at that, her eyelids tempted to close as well. "We wouldn't be able to leave you behind like that. We have fought together this far and we will continue on." Even if her body was drained from this chase, she wouldn't let her voice falter. After all, she wouldn't want to give him the impression that she was only saying this to convince him.
The pirate felt similar and waved him off with a weak smirk. "Honestly, you are our biggest hope here on this mission. We can't afford losing you when you are the only one with a weapon strong enough to kill a vampire." It almost sounded like jest from his side. Grant wasn't one to let the mood drop between them this low.
Yet, it was true when he said that Trevor was the one with the best chances to kill the Lord of Darkness. After all, his bloodline was bound to defeat him and send him back to Hell. Of course, the Vampire Killer was essential, too, only to be used by them.
"Believe me when I say that I won't hesitate to save you, too, when the need arises." Trevor's words seemed to strike them at heart, Sypha even blushed a bit. "Fate has brought us together and I won't let it slip away this easily."
"Then we all agree that we need each other to keep on going! The end of the world might be near, so it is nice to know that there's someone who has got your back!" The pirate winked and then leaned back with a laugh while the priestess looked down the stairway in silence. Soon, the other two glanced down the same, knowing very well that this was the only way to go for now. Who knew how much land the marsh had claimed by now and they weren't willing to find out.
"Do you think that this is a good idea?",. muttered Grant with doubt as he lifted the oil lamp to illuminate the corridor better. Indeed, this was built with the intention to lead from one place to another. Ergo, this cave was man made. The question was now if it was built by men or demons.
"We don't seem to have much of a choice, do we?" Sypha was the first one to be back on her feet. "But maybe it won't smell so badly down there." Not that she actually believed that it was better down there, but she might as well lift her spirits.
Otherwise, they would be stuck in the opening with nowhere left to go.
And indeed, this was enough motivation for her friends to join her side and step down the stairs.
A rusted iron door greeted them at the bottom, thus there was no need to break the door open. The handle wasn't working as it should, but that was about it. Opening that door revealed them a larger hall. It was eerily empty and by the other side was yet another entrance, but this time, the gate was much bigger. Torches were by the sides, indicating that this was in still use for better or for worse.
"At least, this will definitely lead us somewhere",. Trevor mumbled to himself as they stepped into the room to get to the other doors. But when they dared to take a look, they were met with a surprise.
There was a bat on the ceiling.
And not just any kind of bat.
It was a gigantic creature hanging there and it was soon aware of their presence.
Without waiting, it let go and glided downwards only to land right in front of them. The size of its' wings was immense and all three of them would have more than enough space to lay on top of one wing.
Trevor wasn't one to admire this creature for it surely had other intentions.
His Vampire Killer was in his hand quick and he whipped the monster. The weapon struck the monster, ripping the hairy skin and it cried out. Ignoring the pain, it then charged in flight to either to get them in its' mouth or strike them with its' claws.
Luckily, bats were almost blind, so the group could dodge these attempts by lying flat on the ground as the bat flew past them. The intensity of the wind was strong enough to keep them there, too. Another hit by the Holy Whip, finally coming in handy against an enemy after it had proven itself to be uneffective against the undead.
Yet, this attempt had another effect than they would have expected. When the Vampire Killer had sent another wound across the animal's torso, there wasn't blood raining from above, but the form of the monster was flickering before their eyes. It burst apart and every bit of its' body had formed into smaller bats which were now determined to attack them.
Sypha reacted first to the army of bats dashing towards them and a claw of flames dug into the group. Yet, as she had taken out a couple of bats, it wasn't nearly enough to have them defeated or blocked even. Scratches here and there, no matter how much they swung their weapons at them. It was a whole swarm of bats with the goal to take revenge while those that had been slashed and burst into flames, only leaving behind a tiny bit of ash. After having taken a leap down on them, the bats flew back up and the majority merged back into one bat while a few others followed it.
"Don't tell me that we have to take down every single one of these flying rats!",. groaned the pirate while they kept their gaze upwards and shifted on the ground to get ready for the next attack.
"It does look smaller than before, so yes, I am afraid that we need to do this." Trevor wasn't pleased with his own conclusion, but before they could even get to the gates and test if they would open, they would need to battle the bat. Otherwise, they would risk getting injured or even maimed in the process. "So it seems that if we deal enough damage on it, it has no power to keep itself together and will burst into smaller fragments."
"We will be here a while if this is what we have to do with every single one of them…", grumbled Grant in return. At that, Sypha could only laugh.
"You might need a long time", she scoffed and was already folding her hands to gather some power. Trevor actually let out a chuckle as well.
"Indeed, it isn't exactly our problem if you fight with short distance weaponry only",. he added and Grant was crossing his arms with a pout, but didn't comment.
There wasn't time to argue and joke among them when the giant bat was sweeping down on them.
Each of them got ready, jumping to different sides and attempting to attack the bat. One smack from the Holy Whip, fire balls from Sypha's side and Grant was flinging short daggers at it. The form of the bat was flickering in place, but it kept its' original size.
"I'll show you what I can do!", complained the pirate and without waiting for any kind of answer, he rushed to a wall to climb it. Trevor turned in place to see what he was doing and frowned.
"Don't be foolish!", he yelled and was about to call him back down, but he figured that he wasn't his father to scold him. Grant did have extraordinary skills and he should trust him with it.
Thus, with a growl, he turned back to watch and attack their foe. Yet, the bat was getting erratic in movement, then it cried out. The sound was so shrill that the group flinched in place. Before the last tone had died out, the bat was aware of where its' targets were. Since Grant was alone there on the wall, it seemed like a good idea to go for him first, so it dashed towards him. Yet, the pirate wouldn't have any of that and aimed his dagger at its' face. The blade dug right between its' yellow glowing eyes, then he slid down further while the bat crashed against the wall. Finally, its' form changed again and many smaller bats swooshed down. In the middle of this, Grant stretched his arm out to catch the dagger.
Sypha didn't wait to summon more flames as soon as the regular bats came into sight, roasting a couple midair. Meanwhile, Trevor lashed out at them to weaken the group even further and to keep them from scratching and biting some more.
It did work in a way, many of them sensed that those foes were dangerous as well and avoided contact. The rest that was left of them merged back together, but this time, the bat was much smaller and looking less frightening. Not that this was going to let their guard down, because the monster wasn't done with them. Thus, before any of them could prepare for it, the bat clawed downwards in hopes to reach any of them, separating the hunter and the priestess right away. This gave the creature an opportunity to hear where they fled to. It flapped in place, now dashing towards Sypha right away and the breeze was strong enough to throw her off her feet. The bat stopped right above her, ready to strike its' claws into her when Trevor had the Vampire Killer wrap around the feet of the monster, pulling it back forcefully. Yet, it wasn't ready to be kept on a leash and instead tried to take off into the air and carry the hunter with it. With its' current size, it wasn't able to lift off properly, Trevor remained stubborn and tugged on it over and over. Another dagger to its' torso from Grant's side and yet another direct hit that caused the beast to fall apart. The priestess, now angered over her own action, jumped back on her feet and pointed her palms upwards above herself a ball of lightening shot towards the army of bats that was about to spread over the room. The electricity hit each of them, causing them to rain down from above, hitting the stone ground hard enough to splat blood. Naturally, the priestess fled from the bat rain to Grant's position who had slid down the wall again. Once the last bat had hit the ground, the burst revealed yet another red orb sticking out of its' chest. It shimmered in the light of the flames, dragging the attention quick and Trevor bent to pick it up. It was the imagery of the giant bat flapping in the fog as if trying to clear the view, but it was always being blocked. Another one for the collection, he thought as it joined the rest of the orbs.
"I suppose, this was the backup plan from Lord Dracula",. Trevor mumbled when he finally joined the other two who had already made their way to the gates. His eyes studied the copper gates. There wasn't any kind of decoration on it, though one could argue that the scratch marks were a form of it. "Not exactly the best type of defense mechanism. There was worse before."
"Perhaps it wasn't in his intention to keep this completely protected. Just enough to have regular warriors defeated as if to challenge those who wish to venture deeper. Either that or this wasn't Dracula's doing at all." Sypha frowned a bit at these thoughts, unsure what to think of either of these.
In the meantime, Grant had knelt to check on the keyhole, pulling out a lock pick right away to get to work. "Maybe it was created by one of Dracula's minions. I mean, who knows, he probably has enough smart demons that can do dark magic on their own. I can't imagine that the Lord of Darkness does everything by himself when he has a demonic army at his disposal."
That much was also true.
Trevor glanced back at the remains of the bats, their bodies dissolving on their own. Certainly, the Medusa was smart enough to create monsters on its' own even if it was a recreation of the original creature. For someone to have left a warning sign in this entrance would be likely indeed.
Then the gates clicked.
Grant was about to stem himself against one of the doors, but Trevor placed a hand to his shoulder and suggested that they should take a breath and sit down. They were on a mission, yes, but it would be useful to have a bit of a break.
"Can't face the new terrors if we are sweating waterfalls, I guess." That was the only answer that Grant gave at that and they allowed themselves to sit down and letting their excitement and nervousness die down. Feeling one's own physical boundaries was important to bring them back to reality and not overshoot it.
After all, they only had one life to live.
It began to rain outside.
The wind howled even inside the cave and their eyes were drawn to the stairs. They couldn't make out the outside, but they could hear how rain drops were hitting the entrance. It had something relaxing to it, some white noise to fill the silence. Their limbs dragged down even further.
Before tiredness would roll in, however, Trevor got back up. He refused to sleep in this area, the atmosphere hostile. The hunter pushed himself against the gates, swinging them open with not too little effort. Once more, the foul stench of rotten flesh and burnt remains reached to them from whatever was behind these gates. There was even something humid to the breeze that hit them as if it had been closed off for some time.
"Well then." Trevor turned to face his two companions who rose to their feet as well. Uncertainty was in their expressions and he couldn't blame them. For that, he showed them a bit of a cheeky smirk. "We can't stick around in here. Let's see what Dracula has prepared for us this time and ruin his plans some more. What other choice do we have anyway?" The hunter wasn't trained to motivate anybody, in fact, he had lived for so long by himself that it was to be expected.
Yet, it was the truth and that much his friends could understand. Besides, they had chosen their own fate to accompany him and to finish what they had started. Trevor knew that they were strong and brave at heart, otherwise, he wouldn't even allow them to continue on.
Together, they had proven themselves to be more than capable for the holy mission of God.
Pssst, take a wild guess who's favorite pretty boy is up the next chapter teehee
