Death stood upon the old building, her head tilted slightly but her two cold eyes gazed at the two mortal beings before her. Begrudgingly, she admitted to herself that she was surprised at their strength.
It had barely been that long, yet the zombie had risen in rank and the vessel for her sons was now a Duo Cultivator of both the Spiritual and Physical paths of power. She couldn't discern his rank though, the pesky Bloodline oozed out from him like a clouding mist.
Oh well, she tapped the head of the human she had brought, this should be able to get me leverage. Such petty and benign methods are disgusting. Curse these restrictions.
"My child, I see you have grown in power and will, but my equal you are not. This I hope you know, for your sake, lest you take actions I will be forced to punish." She spoke softly, yet her voice echoed across the whole space," You denied me my sons souls, aligned with an enemy of The Order and vowed harm upon my visage... I have reaped souls for far less."
Lesley clenched his hand, and bit his lip, refusing to utter a word. If she was looking for a conversation, she wouldn't get one from him. Seeing his refusal to talk, Grimaire narrowed her eyes and lifted the human at her feet by the throat, bringing her scythe to his neck. The human's eyes stayed closed, seemingly asleep or unconscious.
"Silence results in his execution." She warned him.
"What the fuck do you want bitch?" The words came through gritted teeth.
"He speaks, then I shall continue." She took no offense from his human vulgarity," I seek what I have sought for decades; my family. Long have I waited for my sons to return, and when within grasp, I lose them to you. A blight with no understanding of this plane or the world around you."
"Lych and Liv chose to stay with me," Lesley narrowed his own eyes," They chose to fight you as I have. Your wish for a family probably won't be happening anytime soon."
Grimaire's grip on her scythe tightened as she looked at the red haired boy," They think they chose right when they acted in haste. The state of this world, is but an act of love I brought to preserve myself for them."
"What do you mean?" Lesley had feeling he knew what she meant and it was inkling he'd had for a while.
"The creatures of Undeath before you, are my creations, built to maintain the belief of the absolute power of myself. " Grimaire's eyes grew blood red," I as the Avatar of Death, must preserve my existence till the end of this planes life span, belittling though it is. Yet, without my contrasting opposite, my Pillars lack intent and reason. So, I seeked the minor laws tied to Life, to fulfill the requirements for my existence. None were enough however, none survived, all too weak to stand before an Immortal Law such as myself. Only Immortal Laws could help me, but none were left, the divine are too feeble, the rest had ascended eons ago, and only Gaia remained."
Grimaire's eyes shone bright as she pointed her scythe at Lesley," Until I saw you, the very visage of my children combined. Never had I seen you, me, the keeper of Souls was unaware of your existence until I layed my eyes upon you. Lych and Liv must have shrouded you from my sight in my Domain, but fate blessed me. I had you tended to, knowing your feeble mortal coil would not contain the might of two Immortal souls, knowing they would destroy your feeble flesh and i would be able to take them, and together, achieve the balance this world lacks.
Although you risked an unnatural death, which would put you away from my grasp, I saved you. My plan would come into being, if you died a natural death and I claim that death. The Order would approve, Gaia would be found, I would be ascended and My Origin self would uplift me to a plane above this one at last. My wife, my children, my power... all hinged upon you, and yet, you failed me."
"You... did this?" Lesley pointed to the desolate waste around them," So you could keep yourself alive, but then you fucked up, too much death too fast, and then you saw your kids in me. You decided... you were planning to kill me, steal their souls and then... leave? Leave us, in this wasteland? These ruins? With them!? Is that fucking right!?"
Lesley sharply pointed to a zombie walking a distance away, which Death looked at with indifferent eyes. What the boy said was the simplified version of her goals, so she saw no reason to confirm it. His eyes suggested he had already worked it out, surprising since he was mortal.
The boy in question however was fuming!
This power hungry selfish bitch was going to leave them in a zombie apocalypse. The countless lives lost, the people living and surviving in terror meant nothing to her, all of it was nothing in her eyes as long as she got her way. To think, those times he sat in Mel's apartment, eating fruit and lounging around, he was being tended like a pig for the slaughter.
But something caught his attention.
"Are you not an Origin God?" He asked her. She said Immortal Law in reference to herself, not Origin Law.
Grimaire's eyes turned back to blue as she lifted the hourglass in her hand, which had disappeared somewhere along the line and was now back. It rose up into the air, flying above their heads, then like a light box of TNT, it combusted in an avalanche of blue dust.
The sound was deafening, shattering glass and exploding shards everywhere. The street was consumed, drowned and engulfed in blue sand, burying cars, zombies and light posts. The quantity of sand was far more than it appeared in that tiny hourglass, and Lesley and Mel were quickly buried alive and undead.
"The time for talking has passed." She said and threw the human into the heap of sand, that covered the whole block. Like a rock in water, the human sank below and with a wave of her hand a being appeared next to her, manifesting from darkness.
"Wh-what?" It growled in confusion.
"Your chance for revenge has come, the one who defeated you lies below those sands. Go, fight him, kill him and I'll reward you with more power." Grimaire's eyes didn't even look at the creature, as if knowing it would obey.
"But... the other one... rampage still... city." It spoke with a gravely barely coherent voice, similar to a certain blue eyed zombie from the past.
"He's fulfilling his purpose. The mortal I claimed barely got a reaction, so its value is not high enough. The other one will be more useful, blood is thicker than most." She turned her head," Do I repeat myself again? Enter the sand and claim me my victory. Now."
"Yes...Mistress." With a ferocious roar, the creature jumped into the sand and sank aswell.
With a snap of her bony finger, all the sand bounced of the ground and swirled into the sky, the roaring chaos barely acknowledged by her cold eyes. The blue sand defied the law of gravity, swirling into a giant sphere the size of a skyscraper, and many eyes turned up to look at it. Like the coming of a tiny moon, the sphere floated away higher into the air, disappearing in the clouds.
"It had best succeed or I'll have to fight myself, and butcher the boy." She sighed as she vanished into thin air, her form consumed by shadows.
...
In a seemingly infinite expanse of blue sand, much like a desert, three figures lay still. One of the two figures got up and looked at his companion and seeing their eyes still closed, they quickly got up, sand slipping out from their clothes and falling gently to the ground.
"Lesley, please wake up."
Mel?
Lesley slowly opened his eyes, the gritty feeling of sand in them was harsh. In fact, sand was everywhere in his clothes, he felt really uncomfortable.
"Brrgh... blah." Lesley spat sand out from his mouth," Gross."
"I'm happy you're awake." Mel gave a smile but then looked around them," This place... dangerous. It's very dangerous."
"Oh? How can you tell?" Lesley asked getting up and dusting off his scarf.
"No life energy, no death energy. Empty. This place is empty." Mel replied slowly and Lesley understood what he meant.
[Your Familiar is correct]
[Host has entered The Death Territory: Null Desert]
[This Territory has no spiritual energy or cosmic energy]
[Aether will not be replenished if exhausted]
[Territory has been graded as Disaster level]
"How about you fucking explain what a Territory is first?" Lesley asked harshly.
[Territories are manifestations of a Law Aspect, the core of a Law Pillar. These are different from Domains as they are controllable spaces closed off from reality, that the creator has full authority over. Only beings at the Soul Titan rank and higher can manifest them to such a degree as to block out space and time such as this one.]
[Territories become manifest at the Soul Lord rank]
[ The Territory Rankings:
1. Obstacle
2. Hazard
3. Peril
4. Disaster
5. Catastrophe
Further ranks are unavailable due to your low cultivation level.]
"Shit, we're in a Disaster level Territory?" Lesley didn't fully grasp the differences, since he was new to Territories but judging from the size of the place, it had to be something frightful.
"Ughhh."
Huh? Lesley turned his head and finally noticed the third person with them. As soon as his eyes landed on the individual, watching them slowly get up, his eyes grew cold.
"You fucking son of a bitch!" Lesley walked past Mel and grabbed the guy by the collar," Out of anyone in our team, why, bloody hell, tell me why you?"
"Huh? Lesley? You- wait, what's going on? Where are we?" Rick's eyes swirled around, his confusion filling Lesley with irritation and he let him go with a curse.
"What's happening? Trust me, you wouldn't believe me if I tried to explain." Lesley turned to Mel," Mel this is Rick, he was my Captain back in the Citadel."
"The one who threw you away? Who... hurt you?" Mel's eyes grew colder as he walked to Rick," You, hurt him, I kill you."
"No, don't. He's a piece of trash but I don't want to kill anyone." Lesley put a hand on Mel's chest and the zombie reluctantly conceded.
"Who is he? Seriously what is going on?" Rick got to his feet and gasped," Where are my clothes?"
Rick was in nothing but faded blue boxers, a white unbuttoned shirt, grey socks and a condom was hanging from the edge of his fly. He quickly pulled the condom away and tossed it to the side with an awkward cough.
"Judging from your appearance, Death must have taken you while you were... busy." Lesley rolled his eyes and looked away." How do we get out of here?"
"Where is here?" Rick asked and Lesley raised his right hand and an onyx short sword appeared in his hand, it's tip pointed right at Rick's left eye socket.
"I said I wouldn't kill you, but do not test my patience. You threw me from the back of a van into a horde of stampeding zombies, I should be butchering you right now." With a flick the sword disappeared in a swirl of darkness," Now, quiet. Or Mel will get to eat you, I'll let him bite where you won't die, and make you a slave."
"Eat? He's a zombie!?" Rick backed away from Mel with a fearful expression on his face." He was talking... He's a mutant? Or an upper rank?"
"Mel, grab him, cover his mouth, and if he tries escaping, break his arm." Lesley lost all his patience with this dip shit.
Before Rick could take a step, Mel was behind him, grabbing his arms and covering his mouth, his eyes indifferent. The human could scarce believe the speed with which the undead moved, it was close to a blur and he knew that if he tried running, he'd be caught in seconds. Not even bothering to resist, his eyes turned to Lesley, pleading and guilty.
"Blood interface, how do we escape?" Lesley ignored Rick's existence.
[Request acknowledged]
[Searching for a solution]
[Analysis complete]
[Possible solutions:
1. Territory Master undoes the Territory - 100% success
2: Defeat Territory Avatar - 50 % success
3. Ascend to Soul Lord rank - 20 % success
4. Damage Territory infrastructure - 3 % success]
"Death isn't going to free us, she wouldn't put us in here for nothing. " Lesley looked over his options," What's a Territory Avatar?"
[These are creatures chosen as the conduit for a Territory in place of a Territory Master. They are given a Territory enhancement, that increases their overall power and abilities. Defeating them undoes the manifested Territory.]
"Huh, that sounds hard, especially since my Aether won't replenish in here. What about the other two options? How do I ascend to Soul Lord rank?"
[Entering your Law Domain and ceaselessly cultivating will increase your level. However, the Territory may restrict your advancement and leave you stagnant. You will know after attempting.]
"That's out of the question, I'm not cultivating in a place completely under Death's control, that's literally becoming a sitting duck." Lesley shook his head," What about the last option? How do I damage the Territory infrastructure?"
[A Territory at the Disaster level has a Structural shell and severely damaging it can weaken the Territory enough to let you escape. However the Territory Master can restrenghten and repair the Territory, so this option has a 3% chance of succeeding.]
"Fuck! That leaves only one option." Lesley clenched his fist," We're gonna have to fight that Territory Avatar. Together, maybe me and Mel could win. Oh yeah."
Lesley opened his hands and a glowing green fire appeared on his fingertips, rising and shifting into a ghostly translucent Wisp.
"Woah, quite the shitfest Boss." Tobias whistled as he looked around at the blue desert," Are we on an alien planet? That would be sweet."
"Uh, no. Still on Earth, just inside a magical prison." Lesley explained," We've gotta fight something to escape, I don't know how strong it is. But, I think if we work together, we could win. "
"Just us three?" Tobias grew anxious," Fighting something we don't know, in a place we have never been? That's the worst case scenario ever. We're fucked."
"Calm down," Lesley smirked as another burst of green fire appeared in his left hand, flying before them and shifting. It swirled, and curled high into the giant slithering shape of a serpent, before dying down, leaving Lesley's other summon.
A giant skeletal serpent appeared before the group, the size of a horse and as alive as a dry bone. It's back had a sharp spinal cord, its tail was barbed and razor edged as a dagger, whilst it's fangs were as long as a human hand.
It gave a hissing roar as it appeared in its undead horror, the green fire in its eyes locking onto Rick with unimaginable hunger. The maw opened wide as it prepares to devour the living whole, to quench it's unquenchable hunger for life.
"Stop." Mel spoke up and The Bone froze, it's flaming eyes rising and meeting ice cold dead blue ones.
[Bone Constrictor acknowledges Primordial Familiar]
"Oh, you too?" Lesley smiled as he walked up to the giant undead skeleton," Tobias also felt the same way. It's good to know that you won't disobey Mel if I'm not around in future."
The Bone Constrictor hissed and lowered it's head, bowing to its Master. The red head stroked it's skull as he looked at the group, hoping this would be enough to kill whatever was the Territory Avatar. Knowing Death, it would probably be harsh and brutal.
"Lesley, the human is wet." Mel spoke up and Lesley raised a brow as he looked at Rick.
"Oh my god... You wet yourself?" Lesley shook his head in disbelief," Let him go, we've got better things to do than deal with this."
Mel let Rick go, making sure not to let the human fluid touch him, he felt it was bad and... wrong.
Rick's mouth quivered as he stared at Lesley in horror," What are you? A demon? A monster?"
"Baby you wish. " Lesley turned to Rick and crossed his arms," Now, I am going to find the way to escape this blue prison. You can come with, listen and live or you can stay here and wait for death or whatever. I'm giving you the option you never gave me. Choose."
Lesley turned around and started walking away, Mel followed next to him, as did Tobias and the Bone Constrictor. Rick watched them as they left and felt a feeling of helpless like never before. He was out of his depth here, with no weapons, team or information and his only hope of survival was someone he tried to kill.
"Lesley! Wait!" Rick ran after him, his feet moving to the rhythm of his desperation.
...
After walking for twenty minutes of utter silence, Tobias took it upon himself to break the silence.
"So Boss," He floated near Rick, who instinctively flinched," This is the guy who threw you to be zombie chow right?"
"Yep. That's him." Lesley didn't turn his head but kept walking," If you're thinking of killing him, don't. I'm not a murderer, and I am not aiming to be one for as long as I can."
"Cool, cool," Tobias flew up to Rick's face," Quite the looker isn't he? He your type?"
"He was, but I realised a pretty fruit on a tree can be full of worms."
"Hey, I get that what I did was fucked up but i-"
"If this is an apology, I'll feed you to my snake right now." Lesley gave him a poisonous glance that made Rick swallow in fear.
"It's not an apology, it's an explanation. " Rick scratched the back of his head," I was terrified you were infected, that you had become a deserter, or joined a Survivor faction. I thought if I brought you back, you would be the cause for the destruction of the citadel."
"My guy, that sounds ridiculous." Tobias chuckled as he floated near him," If he was infected your citadel has medicine for that stuff, and you don't have to kill like survivors we do. If he was a deserter, why did he come back? Defeats the whole point and meaning of deserting. And joining a Survivor faction -"
"I stayed with a Survivor faction for weeks, but I never joined them. I never helped in anything that could hurt the citadel. I was loyal, even after you, my boyfriend tried to kill me!" Lesley's eyes grew darker, Aether pouring from his pours, his rage craving revenge. The air around him grew rigid and cold, promising the undeniable fact of death and necrosis.
Rick froze and raised his hands in surrender," Yes, yes, it was fucked up! I was a bastard! I admit it!"
Lesley gritted his teeth, trying to cool down, but he was still viciously bitter about the whole thing. No, forget bitter, he was blood thirsty and furious!
A tiny bit of darkness crept into his eyes, notifications of his sanity dropping echoed in his head as the Bloodline interface warned him repeatedly.
Two cold arms reached out and hugged Lesley, squeezing him gently, and stroking his back slowly.
"It's okay... It's okay... It's okay." Mel repeated the comforting words in an oddly monotonous voice and slowly Lesley's thoughts cleared.
"Are you... dating that corpse?" Rick's jaw dropped in disbelief," You're joking."
"Dude, honest talk," Tobias floated near Rick's head," Mel never threw Lesley out of a moving car. He's a major improvement, I think."
"No, Mel isn't my boyfriend, he's my Familiar. My companion." Lesley turned around," Don't bring up what you did, I'm gonna skewer you at this rate, Rick."
Rick nodded his head, his eyes were locked on Mel though, the gears in his mind turning.
"Now to answer the important questions you should be asking," Lesley spoke up," The world we know is far more complicated than people thought. The zombies aren't some divine punishment or biological mutation. They were created by ... Death. I'm not joking when I say Death, I mean literal Death personified.
She's a person and she apparently raised the dead so she could live longer, more dead people means more death I think. But she fucked up, because there's not enough life in the world or something, and she needs the power of her two sons, who's souls are inside me, so she can grow strong enough to find Life personified, Gaia as she's called, and have her family. Then she'll leave, which will mean all the undead stay, and we'll be stuck in a zombie apocalypse till the universe ends."
"Hmmm. Okay, I'll try very very hard to believe this. So, the reason you have a zombie, a giant skeleton and a tiny ghost is because of her sons souls?" Rick's Captain instincts kicked in as he grew serious, yet skeptical.
"Yes, and no. I gained this ancient power that lets me use their abilities. Like a cheat system in a webnovel." Lesley explained," The skeleton and wisp are my summons, and Mel is my Familiar. I'm still relatively new to this stuff, so I'm not all knowing, but I get information if I ask my Bloodline interface. Like an AI in my head, these guys can see it, and in a few weeks, you might get one. I think. "
"What does that mean? What is happening in a few weeks?" Rick asked with dread.
"Well, the universe will gain spiritual energy and... Evolve I guess. Magic will be possible and I think magical creatures might become a thing. There's also a possibility the door to hell will appear and demons will come and enslave humanity. So, fingers crossed."
Magic? Hell? Demons?
Rick didn't know how much more he could take!
"Okay, fine. I'll put this in the back of my head for later. Can I ask more about it? " He pointed at Mel.
"Seriously? He is not-"
"I am not an it, human." Mel turned to Rick, his eyes dead cold," I am Lesley's companion, his Familiar and I want to protect him. You are a failure, who hurt him. I want to kill you and eat your heart, but Lesley said no killing. But I will wait, for when you try to hurt him."
Mel walked closer, the blue in his turning slightly grey, as a sadistic smirk appeared on his face.
"I will butcher you like a chicken and share you amongst myself and the Bone costricter. I'll carve you open and it will shred you, then The Wisp may eat your soul. Now be quiet and listen to Lesley. Your failure of a life depends on it."
"Woah... He just got dark." Tobias muttered under his breath.
"Mel, you okay?" Lesley placed a hand on Mel's shoulder and the undead's eyes returned to normal.
"Yes. This human is very... Unpleasant." Mel inclined his head at Rick.
"I know, trust me i-"
Mel grabbed Lesley by the shoulders and jumped away, just as the Bone costricter kept forward with a monstrous roar, striking at a zooming projectile.
Boom!
A cloud of blue dust rose into the air from the collision, obscuring everyone's view.
"Mel, you can let me go now." Lesley said and Mel nodded his head and released him.
"Cough! Cough! What happened?" Rick was still alive it seemed.
"I don't know, Tobias what is happening?" Lesley asked and the Wisp floated through the cloud of dust... Only to quickly float back in terror.
"Uh, Boss, I think I found the thing we're gonna fight." Tobias his behind Mel," It's fucking strong. Shitting strong."
Lesley frowned as the dust settled and he finally saw the Territory Avatar.
"You?" Mel spoke up in shock.
"Oh my gosh." Lesley felt dread rise like bile from his stomach, and clam his throat.
"It's that upper rank zombie from the hotel." Rick squeaked as he backed away slowly.
A grotesque monstrosity stood before them that carried the visage of the High rank zombie they had encountered. It's skin was pasty and peeling off in tiny clumps, decayed and rotting like wet wood under a stove. It's clothes were torn black fabric sewn together like the stitching on Frankenstein's monster. It's arms were bent on twisted angles, and its hands were shaped into claws, the skin having thickened and turned them into giant weapons of necrosis mutilation. The most striking feature was it's eyes, now stuck on its waxy and melted face, at irregular places. One eye was next to the mouth, and the other was touching the nose.
Death had changed it into something truly heinous and repugnant.
"I... Red."
Even it's voice was horrendous!