Of Ice, Death & Monsters

Chapter 110 : And Its Fall To Nature

15 Days Ago.

Chuma and Beda 2

I felt myself heave, going down on my knees as I winced. My body felt like it was burning up, and not even in the way before, where I was literally becoming a heated slushie. But the more sick way that had my body firing off in different directions biologically.

Usually, I wouldn’t be worried. I have such control over my body that I would be able to flush out most pathogens, harmful bacteria, or viruses. But this felt different. It felt strange. It was trying to curse my whole body. I tried to speak, but I soon coughed up my own blood. Even my vision felt so blurry.

I had to focus again, redirecting all my power to simply allow myself to stand up. The others were probably faring way worse, so I extended that reach, grabbing Dela’s wrist and rushing over to the other two as I radiated the health and goodness of the Caretaker.

Once my ears stopped ringing, I could hear the gasps of the other two through the golems.

“I-I think I just vomited…”

“Dude… I-I think I’m crying blood holy shit!”

I turned to Dela, who was visibly shaking but trying to keep it together. She placed one foot after the other before stabilizing. “The Chuma must have noticed us. Stay close together so that we do not expend more power than needed.”

She raised her hand, it glittered in the air, cascading downwards as I heard a sigh of relief come over the other two. “I decreased the feeling of pain for the time being. We will need it to go through unimpeded.”

Dela was right. The less pain to feel, the better, especially since I could heal myself fast enough before my organs could decompose inside of my body. So, following in her footsteps, I shut down all the feelings of pain, or rather, minimized the feeling of touch. The sensory deprivation felt… Uncomfortable to say the least.

I had to concentrate on it a lot, especially since I had numerous other spells at once going on. Anymore, and I may in fact begin to shatter.

“Lead the way, and as I was made to be your guide. I shall ensure your survival and safety.” Dela stared at me, or I think she did through her mask. I nodded along

Derek and Topher took to my back. I could still hear them heave a bit. I could also hear tissues being taken and wiping up the place. I concentrated a little bit more to help ensure that any of the vomit or blood would be solid enough to be easily scooped away inside their compartments.

“Thanks, Missus!”

“Do you wish to have a code Name?” Topher’s question was silly but… Well, I did like the idea of a title. But perhaps something simpler. 

“Wolf shall suffice for now.”

“Really? Come on! You can do better than that, surely, Missus?”

I wasn’t so sure. I was not the creative one when I was with Adrian. He was the one who gave me the cute NickNames, most of them referring to how I am in bed… In fact. 

“Soul Reaver.”

I could collectively hear their gasps and nods of approval as I hid my embarrassment at the origin of such a Name.

“We’ll cover your back, Soul Reaver! Ain’t nobody gonna get past us!”

I hope so, or we’d be in serious trouble. “Thank you, Fire. Now let’s keep it moving.”

I began to walk forward, manifesting a laser pointer to act as a guide to showcase where to go next as I rubbed my head in mental anguish. It was like keeping leashes on several dogs at once. I was already lucky, per se, even using this many spells in conjunction would have caused a man like Rook to have Shattered.

But anything more, and I think I could already see the lines on my body begin to form. Luckily, the others did indeed have my back.

Ghouls were plentiful in the area, in hordes of dozens and dozens that slugged their way through the muddy waters after us. Derek and Topher did quick work on them, employing their auto cannon fire to quickly rip and tear them apart before reusing all of the bullets as pseudo shotgun hails with their Magick.

Dela, on the other hand, dealt with what I could only call a ‘Giant Ghoul’. It was a massive humanoid, tall enough to be amongst the trees, with white skin blemished with green and brown. Their eyes were leaking mud and swamp water. It felt hungry, it felt… Sad. As if it were trying to complete itself by feeding on others.

It stared towards us, reaching out quickly to try and claw at us. Derek and Topher quickly fired out CEF missiles towards its hands, blowing and freezing it and even their arms upon contact. 

However, even then, the ghoul looked unfazed, and while their arm was essentially frozen, it still tried to grab at us.

Dela rushed to its hands, grabbing a piece of rotting wood from one of the trees before the giant ghoul managed to swipe, completely destroying and uprooting the trees in one stroke, carving the land like a hot knife through ice.

She then twirled the rotten plank in her hands before stabbing the giant’s arm with it. Immediately, thorns and water exploded outwards from their arms, shaking violently as they carved through their skin, letting out all the fluids and swamp water from their body in a deluge not unlike a flood.

It doused the ground, washing over us in its putrid stink. Derek and Topher flew upwards while I stood my ground, literally bearing the flood as it smashed into trees and small hills, washing away the remnants of the ghouls that Derek and Topher defeated into the lakes.

Dela didn’t stop, however, and neither did the ghoul. Even if its hands were frozen, it could still move its arms. It swiped away at the Fae, trying to squash her like a fly, but as if there were eyes at the back of her head, she simply jumped upwards, even performing a backflip as she landed on the giant’s other hand. 

Her performance reminded me of when I saw the Watchtower agents on display, so graceful and beautiful, although her technique seemed to be most similar to those in Balthalem. 

That reminded me of what she said earlier, something about Netzar, one of the old regions from Balthalem, perhaps she was from there?

Dela then began to carve symbols on the ghoul’s arm using the rotten plank, shaping them into runes akin to a tree before leaping off and stabbing the giant ghoul in the chest, shoving it deeply.

All at once, the ghoul’s body began to peel away, molting as if it were a lobster, shedding pounds upon pounds of flesh as it withered away, deforming into that of a massive skeleton that fell back onto the world, its bones scattering into the swamp as the fleshy bits crawled aimlessly, shivering as if they could feel pain.

“It’s done… For now, at least.” Dela relaxed her body before turning to and walking to us. 

“Good work, are you alright?” I asked curiously.

“I am, but I feel the presence of the Beda and Chuma. Are you certain that this is the right path?”

I nodded along and pressed forward. “I am, which means that they could be the guardians of the Leshy, as I could feel his drained presence as well.” I then noticed once again that there seemed to be a black butterfly flying around the swamp, as if trying to search for a flower that would never come.

Or perhaps, it was something else, or another creature. Although, as long as it did not try to stop the mission, I shall not pay it any heed aside from caution.

With that, and the growing presence of the Beda and Chuma, I marched ahead, bracing myself for what was to come.

15 Days Ago.

After many harrowing days and nights, dashing throughout the forest as fast as possible, avoiding and fighting off several monsters, we made it to what I would call the most disgusting place in all of what I’ve seen in Galfania.

It was, of course, a swamp that lay on the side of a mountain, or rather, it was part of the mountain. For the mountain itself was a corpse. A rotting carcass of nature. Of course, it didn’t look humanoid at all, but I knew it was a corpse. I felt the once-life that radiated from it.

The mountain was grotesque, misshapen. It was curved with no jagged bits, with soft stone oozing out pus as massive worms and flies swarmed around it. The pus itself formed down into the swamp where I saw massive maggots feast, devouring each other in an endless mad cacophony.

It was there, hunched over the lake of maggots, where I saw someone standing watch. It was a woman with skin as black as the plague, rotting like a corpse. Her body was shrouded with an aged shawl, tattered, wrinkled, yellow, and black from filth. She was hunched over, her eyes as empty as a pit with hair as white as snow.

From her, I fault a decaying presence. Like we were in a graveyard, and I was supposed to be put back in my coffin. A wave of death washed over me each time I even sensed her presence. I had to stay strong, for the others, and for myself, especially since she was only one of the other spirits I would be facing.

I turned to see if the others were doing well, first and instinctively to Dela as she seemingly stared at someone in the distance, right by the tip of the mountain, or rather, in this case, by the head. I narrowed my eyes and enhanced my vision.

It was a large and bony creature, covered in what looked to be dripping mucus. They hung off what I could only believe was the nose of the corpse, dangling away as they turned their head and stared at us.

Instantly, when my eyes locked with theirs. I could hear the phone call. I even felt a buzz on my thighs. I had the urge to reach down to check on it… To check on him.

It was so vivid that night. A phone call from his number when I was at work? We worked on different sites at the same hours, so usually we talked back when we went home, but… Alas…

‘I’m sorry to report, Mrs Monroe. Adrian was caught in the crossfire of an ambush by the Choir. One of the Name Givers broke and he…”

Information overload. His mind broke, like a pitcher with too much water… He was alive, but he was processing that data forever. 

Why was that his Destiny? For the first time, I questioned it, myself. I felt as if I was betrayed, as if I was wrong. Why was this his Destiny? Why was that my… Destiny.

I knew I couldn’t change it, that I had to let it run its course, but every day it felt unfair. And it was then I understood all those I judged before, those who wanted to change their Fate, their Destiny.

I took a deep breath, but now I realized the reason I suffered and that he suffered was for this journey. It was so that I could become the one who leads the way. So that nobody could ever suffer again!

I raised my hand, snapping my fingers as I grabbed my mind out of my stupor. But not just back to reality, I had to get the others out first!