Since this chapter was nearly complete, I thought that I might as well finish it and submit it, despite of my current situation. Be warned, this is one of the few times where I've decided to make a chapter into a cliffhanger. You'll see what I mean once you get to the end. Hope you'll enjoy it!

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Chapter 36 - Bacterial hazard

The time had come for us to advance. I could feel it in my veins, that we were running low on time. The others had followed me loyally to this location, and even though that I knew they’d stand by my side to the end, it was clear that they had a vague doubt in my theory. But not me. Though I couldn’t explain how it was possible, I could sense that the king was in peril. With our weapons equipped, we walked down the steep hill, approaching the ruins of Paravil. Within a short time, we made our way to the wrecked gate, leading to the town. The wooden walls surrounding the town had suffered much more damage since the last time we were here, proving that there’s been at least a few more attempts at invasion during our absence. Before entering that gate, I had to take a deep breath and summon the courage. Even by the entrance, a foul stench met my nostrils. It was the stench of death and decay. Back when we defeated the necromancers taking control of the undead buried in our graveyard, the horde of zombies perished, causing their bodily remains to melt and sink into the ground. But the rotten flesh has apparently not gone so deep underground that it can cover the foul smell attached to it. At this point, it’s probably hazardous to a living persons health, to wander into the town of Paravil because of the bacterial contamination.

After a few moments had passed by, we eventually passed through the broken gate leading into the ruined town, despite of the risks involved. We were quickly forced to cover our noses in which ever way we found most efficient, because the stench from earlier was even greater in here, just as I expected. It made my nostrils burn painfully, and tears were gathering in the corners of my eyes. Some of us occasionally coughed loudly during the brief moments where we failed to block the foul odor out. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that we must move fast, because inhaling this for too long could quickly become dangerous. The earth inside the town had grown dark, and there were parts of skulls and bones exposed in the ground, being remnants of the zombies that roamed these streets before we vanquished the necromancers. Just walking among these skeletal remains made my paranoia go wild, because you never know when these bones rise to fight again. And yet, a necromancer would have to be very desperate to raise the same corpse twice. Because every time a corpse is brought back from the dead, the black magic damages and weakens the unit being raised, quickly crippling it to the point where it’s completely useless in battle. So once their undead units have fallen, they’re more likely to search for new and fresh corpses, to target with their dark magic. But still, the bones make me very nervous.

Time passed, and it didn’t take long before the foul stench managed to give me a headache, and also make me rather dizzy. My vision was getting blurry. By the looks of it, everyone else in my group was also becoming quickly weakened by the bacterial contamination haunting this area. We must find the way to the castle fast. But within long, we had made our way to the center of the town, where our well was still standing. This was where everyone used to gather fresh water for drinking. But after having been under the influence of the bacterial contamination for so long, I could imagine that the water in this well was like poison now. From the center of the town, we could see the towers of the castle rise above the roofs of the wrecked houses, making it easy for us to figure out which way to go. But once we had come this far without encountering any undead enemies, I was starting to lose faith in my theory. And I could imagine that everyone else was doing the same. The town may have crumbled even more since last we were here, and the contamination has made it hazardous for any living person to be here. But I was expecting to find Sean’s undead minions scattered around in these streets, attacking us from all directions. It never happened. There was no one there. I was even tempted to conclude, that the town was just as empty and abandoned, as back when Paul and I left it. Puzzled by the mystery, the shaman stepped up to my side. He coughed before talking.

Sinqularis: Your home is left in ruins, and the stench of death is tormenting. But I really don’t see any enemies in the area.
Raksasha: Me neither. Seems pretty peaceful at the moment.
Paul: Are you sure that he wasn’t just bluffing, Wesley?
Wesley: I’m positive. To be honest, I really don’t understand what is going on here. It makes no sense at all. I…

A couple of disturbing thoughts grazed my mind, causing me to stop talking instantly, without finishing my sentence. Everyone looked curiously at me, confused by my sudden silence. These thoughts provided me with reliable clues about what was going on here. It felt like I had somehow managed to figure out what Sean was secretly plotting. Before anyone asked into my silence, I presented my new theory.

Wesley: This is not an invasion… it’s an assassination.
Paul: Huh? I’m not sure what you mean.
Wesley: Do you remember that dark portal which opened and granted Sean an opportunity to escape us back in Ranador?
Sinqularis: Yeah, I remember.
Archimedes: That portal was a gateway between our world and the plains of death. In other words, the spiritual dimension that lost souls fade into, once their lives have come to an end.
Paul: Hmm. You seem to know a whole lot about this.
Archimedes: The spiritual dimension is Zervas’ territory. And from the plains of death, his undead minions access the world of the living through portals like that. They are gateways conjured with black magic.
Wesley: That leads me to my question. What if Sean somehow found a way to open a portal inside the castle, to get past the fortification?

This question left everyone silent for a moment.

Archimedes: …He has a point. To the castle! Go, go, go!

Despite having our bodies weakened by the bacterial contamination, we continued immediately and dashed through the streets at high speed, moving towards the castle towering over the remains of Paravil. At this point, we were convinced that there were no enemies hiding in the area, so we decided to take the risk of approaching the castle incautiously. There was no more time for discretion. While moving at a fast pace, I desperately attempted to avoid focusing on the towns condition. But it was hopeless. Out of the corner of my eyes, I became witness to stalls of groceries having been smashed, leaving rotten vegetables scattered all over the place. There were also broken horse carriages. The only living creatures that seemed to thrive in this contamination, was the maggots cleaning the bones for the small leftovers of rotten flesh, and the countless bluebottles seeking to lay eggs in the carcasses. It seemed like some of the townspeople who previously sought refugee in the castle, had ignored the kings order and went back to town, and then failed to return before they were too severely infected by the contamination. It was first when we approached the outskirts of Paravil, that we came across corpses that seemed somewhat fresh. But I knew by then, we had to get out of this place as quick as possible. Otherwise, the horrible contamination would lead us to our demise. It was nearly impossible to keep my nose blocked while running, so I compensated by only inhaling the minimum amount of oxygen required for me to stay conscious.

It felt like a heavenly relief when we suddenly made our way out of town, and found ourselves on the same grassy field, where Paul and I were almost overwhelmed by zombies that other day. Partly due to the fact that we were very close to the castle at this point, but also because we could sense that the air was becoming much more fresh from here on. The bacterial contamination was apparently attached to the ruins of Paravil, and hadn’t passed to the grassy fields yet, between the town and the castle itself. So to our relief, our health was no longer threatened. Once we were halfway through the field of grass, we all stopped to catch over breath, inhaling deeply. The air wasn’t perfectly fresh, but it was a lot safer out here, compared to the inside of the town. My lungs were killing me at this point, and my leg muscles were burning. Drops of sweat had appeared in my face, and the pain made me heave for air with my eyes wide open. I couldn’t even stand straight up. But we had no time to delay. Before our fatigued bodies were ready to continue, we pushed ourselves to advance, approaching the moat blocking our way. Before us stood the proud castle, with the gate closed and the bridge raised. We needed help from the inside to cross the moat. Paul was the first of us to fully recover from the dash through the town, so he shouted loudly to the guards in charge of handling the gate, telling them to let us through. They should be able to recognize our voices. But nothing happened. And no one replied. Something was definitely not seeming right around here.

Paul: That’s strange. Didn’t they hear me?
Wesley: Oh, they heard you. Your voice echoed throughout the entire valley for crying out loud.
Zephyr: We don’t have time for this. Is there any other way in?
Sinqularis: Could we climb the walls, perhaps?
Raksasha: Or maybe crash through the wall with force?
Archimedes: Allow me, I have a better idea.

While standing in front of the castle’s gate, the sorcerer raised his one hand and placed his index finger and middle finger on his forehead, looking sharp and concentrated. His fingers started to sparkle with magical energy, and only a few seconds later, he disappeared in a flash of light. No more than a couple of moments later, we could hear the sound of someone rummaging on the other side of the gates. A sudden whirring noise occurred, and the bridge was slowly lowered down, leaving us free passage to the castle. And once the gate opened, we could see Archimedes standing inside, still holding onto the lever that lowers the bridge. He may be a strange bloke at times, but his magic certainly seems to come in handy often, especially his ability to teleport himself to other nearby destinations. Now that the bridge made it possible for us to cross the moat, we quickly rushed to Archimedes side, entering the castle. But once we stepped inside, we noticed that two guards were laying on the floor, seemingly unconscious. These were probably the guys who usually lower the bridge for allies. After having checked their pulse, we could conclude that they were still alive, just unconscious. The heavy dents in their helmets made me believe that they were probably knocked out by a strike from a blunt weapon. In either case, something was definitely wrong around here, and we had to hurry. My theory about the king being in peril seemed to have been proven right at this point.

We were forced to leave the wounded guards behind for now, and quickly make our way towards the king’s throne room. My intuition told me that these guards were knocked out recently, so there may still be time for us to stop the intruder. When we dashed through the hallways as a gathered group, I noticed that none of the townspeople were around. I could imagine that they were still out in the field, working on the strange contraptions that the king plans to use in the coming war. So there was probably only few guards left behind to defend the king. But once we came to the first point where we had two large doorways at each side of us, leading to other rooms in the castle, we heard a disturbing rattling noise. We stopped immediately to listen and look around, and then a small army of undead skeletons suddenly appeared in both doorways, armed with old armors and weaponry. The path leading forward was still unblocked, but these skeletal warriors would with no doubt chase us down, and eventually get us cornered. We had no choice but to finish them off here. With their weapons equipped, the skeletons approached us slowly, planning to strike us from both sides. But before I had the chance to draw my sword, the shamans hand flared up with spiritual energy, and he exposed his sharp teeth while snarling. He held his wooden staff horizontally while placing himself in a stance fit to launch an attack.

Sinqularis: Wesley, go to your kings side. We’ll take care of this…
Wesley: But…
Sinqularis: Don’t worry about us. Zephyr, Raksasha, GO!
Zephyr: Understood.
Raksasha: Get them!

The shaman and Zephyr suddenly leaped directly into the fray, attacking the skeletons by the doorway to the right with rage. To be honest, I wasn’t too excited about the order given, since it goes against my nature to leave allies behind. But it was the only way to go, if we were to have any chance of protecting the king. Like a true daredevil, the shaman had leaped directly into the group of skeletons, letting them surround him intentionally. Then he crouched and performed a sweeping kick in a circular motion, toppling all the enemies around him that were standing too close. I was concerned about the durability of his wooden staff, because the following moment, he spun it around and delivered swift and bone-shattering blows to his surrounding opponents. Very close to the shaman, Zephyr came down from the air and landed on one of the toppled skeletons, crushing it’s chest with his weight. No more than a few seconds later, he swung the humongous spear at the nearby skeletons, using the heavy tip of his weapon to break their bones. He’s obviously wise enough to understand that skeletons are highly resistant to penetrating attacks, but vulnerable to any type of blunt attacks. He was quickly surrounded as well, but once an enemy found the courage to attack him from behind, he send the rickety skeleton flying with a devastating kick backwards. It never saw that massive foot coming.

At the same time, Raksasha charged forward to attack alone, crashing into the band of skeletons by the left doorway like a raging bull. Her massive bodyweight alone was enough to destroy the first enemies standing in line, and once she raised her gigantic axe to swing it, the remaining skeletons could apparently sense that their doom was approaching. They staggered slowly backwards, as a sign of cowardice, but Raksasha showed no mercy. She released a deafening roar of rage that echoed through the stony hallways, and then she swung her axe violently, striking two or three enemies with each sweeping attack. Bones and skeletal fragments were scattered all over the place. I doubt anything could possibly endure an attack delivered with such strength, be it living or not. But while our friends were keeping the enemies distracted, the rest of us seized the opportunity to proceed down the hallway, towards the staircase leading to the throne room. The sound of battle became more and more distant as we moved deeper into the castle. I couldn’t help it but to be greatly worried about our friends left behind. They are all formidable warriors, but the enemies in here are quite numerous.

The three of us making our way to the throne room were forced to hit the brakes instantly, as a small pack of skeletons appeared by a doorway to the left further ahead of us, and immediately charged forward to attack. Having my sword and shield unequipped for greater speed and flexibility, I recklessly rammed into the pack of skeletons with a strong shoulder charge. The bash of my shoulder wasn’t enough to destroy their fragile bodies, but it left them stunned long enough for me to finish them off with a much more powerful kick. Paul immediately rushed to my aid, swinging the spiked ball of his flail above his head to build up strength, before swinging it horizontally at the closest skeleton he could find. The blow was more than enough to break the skull off the spine and send it flying. In one blur of motion, he ducked to dodge a sword being swung at him, and immediately retaliated by having his flail destroy the skeletons boney legs with a sweeping attack across the floor. The rest of the skeleton shattered once it fell over and crashed onto the ground. As Paul and I both sensed danger approaching, we barely managed to leap out of harms way as a massive fireball suddenly came from behind, exploding on impact as it struck the remaining skeletons head on. The fiery explosion caused bones to burst in all directions, leaving nothing standing. We panted from exhaustion and looked over our shoulders, to find Archimedes standing there with his hand still caught in flames.

Archimedes: No sweat.
Wesley: I beg to differ…
Paul: The path is clear. Let’s go!

Once the small pack of enemies had been eliminated, we resumed dashing through the hallway. A shiver went down my spine as our muddy shoes left dirty footprints on the elegant red carpet that we came across. In the past, the king would’ve had any person punished, who was disrespectful enough to bring dirt and mud into his royal castle. The punishment was usually carried out by us, the king’s royal bodyguards. But now the roles had switched, and it was us carrying dirt and filth into the castle, breaking the rules that we used to honor. Despite that we were facing a case of emergency here, I still felt uncomfortable with it. But once we came to the end of the hall and were about to climb the staircase leading to the kings throne room, we ran into a very unpleasant surprise. When we had the opportunity to direct our sight towards the second floor, we could see that a band of armored skeletons were moving down the staircase, ready to face us in battle. They were blocking the way to the king, and we’d have to fight our way through. This would take forever. But then Paul suddenly placed his hand on my chest and shoved me back, standing in front of me. Archimedes walked past my side and placed himself right next to Paul. While holding the open book with one arm, the hand of his other arm was surrounded by crackling sparks, indicating that he must’ve switched to another element of magic.

Paul: These guys are ticking me off. Wesley, leave these to us. Go find another way to access the throne room.
Wesley: But this is the only way in…
Archimedes: Then make a new one. Go!

My heart jumped as a loud crackling noise was heard, as Archimedes suddenly hurled a devastating lightning bolt at the approaching enemies, which arched between their bodies. None of them were destroyed, but they were all stunned for a few seconds. I figured that there was no other choice but to do as they said. So I turned around and fled back down the hallway, leaving Archimedes and Paul behind to clear the staircase. It seemed like the greatest burden rested on my shoulders now, and I was completely alone about it. I felt a painful spasm in some of my muscles, caused by the combination of fear and anxiety. Having no better idea to follow, I made a turn further down the hallway, entering the large doorway on my right side where we encountered enemies before. Bones and skulls were still scattered on the floor, smoking from the fireball that Archimedes hurled at them before. At this location, I could hear that the shaman and the others were still fighting the hoard of skeletons further down the hallway. It calmed me down a little, because as long as there’s fighting, they’re still alive. But I figured that at this moment, it was probably best if I was most concerned about my own safety, since I’m the only person being alone. The pressure was killing me, leaving my forehead soaked with sweat. I had no idea how they expected me to find the king on my own and stop Sean all by myself. It seemed hopeless.

Once I had made my way into the new room, there were no less than three doorways leading to other places in the castle, but the doorway behind me lead back to where I came from. So there were only two ways out that lead to locations where I hadn’t been before. But while I was deciding which way to go, my foxy ears suddenly caught the rattling sound of bones nearby. It sounded like great numbers of skeletal warriors were making their way to this location, and from what I could tell, they were about to appear in both doorways. I was dangerously close to panic. If they caught me here alone, they could overwhelm me with numbers, and crush me like a bug. But then I suddenly noticed a rickety ladder in the corner of the room, made of wood. It seemed like my only way to escape the approaching battle that I wouldn’t have a chance to win, so I didn’t care where it would take me. With no hesitation, I ran to the ladder and ascended it swiftly, hoping it could carry the weight of my armor. To my dismay, the ladder led to the castles dark and dirty attic. In all the years I’ve served the king as his royal bodyguard, I’ve never been in this part of the castle. This is no place for a knight, and by the looks of it, the servants have neglected to clean it for quite some time. While I was by the top of the ladder, hiding out at the attic, I could hear the sound of skeletons passing through the room below me. Lucky for me, none of them seemed to suspect that I had climbed up here. For the time being. But I definitely had no intention of waiting for them to find me here.

Having been left with no other choice, I left the ladder and walked cautiously deeper into the attic. There was no source of light at all, because the servants usually bring lanterns up here when working, so it was completely pitch black. No matter how careful I was, I kept bumping my head into beams of wood, and sticky spider webs got stuck in my long hair. I was overwhelmed by the feeling that something was crawling all over my body. Which there probably was. I was forced to tread lightly, since the boards I stepped on weren’t quite designed to carry a grown fox wearing a heavy armor. But after having moved through the attic for a few minutes, I suddenly noticed some light in the darkness further ahead. As I approached it, I realized it was a large crack in the ceiling of the room below. The light from the room below entered the attic through the crack and provided a weak illumination. I thought it’d be nice to find out where in the castle I was at this point, so once I was close enough to the crack, I laid down on my stomach and chest to have a peek into the room below. Even after laying down, I needed to adjust myself a bit and move until I had my eye in the right place. And of course, I had to do this slowly and carefully, to make sure that I didn’t make too much noise. There could be enemies inside the room below.

A gasp escaped my mouth, as I realized the room below was actually the king’s throne room. Fate can be so cruel at times. It frustrated me to no end that I had found the throne room, without being able to get in there. Once I had moved slightly and looked through the crack from the right angle, I could see the king standing by the wall, gazing out the window. It was a relief to see that he was still safe. But the joy came to a sudden end when I the next moment heard footsteps inside the throne room. Very slow footsteps. Who could this be? I dragged my stomach slightly across the boards and moved again, looking into the room from a new angle now. And then I saw a sight that made my heart stop beating for a moment. Almost right below me, a shaded figure walked very slowly across the red royal carpet, approaching the throne. His long black cape with orange trims swayed with each step taken, and the black hood kept his head completely hidden when watched from above. There was no doubt - it was Sean. And he was in the same room as the king. My eyes grew wide and I struggled to breath. I was dangerously close to panic. The king was in grave danger, and there was absolutely nothing I could do to prevent the approaching disaster. Sean would strike him down with no mercy, killing the one man that could lead our armies to victory. Never had I felt so weak, scared and powerless. As I helplessly observed Sean approach the king from behind unnoticed, he pulled out a mace crafted in steel, raising it above the kings head to deliver a lethal blow. I clenched my fists and whimpered. What the heck was I supposed to do!?