Offensive in the Ossuary
The sun was high up as the two guards strained their eyes in attempt to see through the rays and investigate a noise, unaware of the shadow approaching behind them. One was quietly run through the neck with spear like teeth. The other turned slowly believing his comrade stirred back to his post and saw the figure clad in gunmetal gray armor, his face red with blood. He began to move a horn to its lips the figure threw a spear at him, and as the guard inhaled the wind suddenly left his chest as the spear plunged into him. Satisfied that the sentries were dispatched without any camps being alerted Striker moved towards the cave. His blood sword protested hungrily as he left the sight of the zealot guards wanting to feast upon them, but he ignored its pull.
Ordinarily Striker didn't like to kill humans, but these sentries needed to be dealt with. He had already used a fair amount of energy evading the patrols, and saw through the disguise of the soldiers anyway. Dashing through the cave entrance he recalled his mission as he knew the passageway well enough and his heightened senses would make navigation a breeze. The magic protecting an Ossuary had been disturbed by an unscheduled visitor, this alerted the magi, and Nosgate sent him to respond while it dealt with an invasion. In more ideal times they would send an army, but the Necromancers forced things this way. He just needed to enter the ossuary, discover and deal with whatever was causing the problem, and prevent whatever is stored there from getting out.
Ossuaries were simple tombs protected by powerful magic rituals that entombed the remains of foul creatures. All the kingdoms feared the prospect of these things being revived, so they created the ossuary to seal them away in the hopes that their powers would fade in time. This made them prime targets for enemies such as the necromancers so they were hidden well, and in better times more adequately defended.
Striker made his way through the caves, bypassing the sometimes stirring remains of zombies that had sprung various traps left behind. Occasionally one would still have enough ability to reach for him in an effort to strangle him as they often did, but they were so pitiful in form and strength he often didn't need his sword to handle them. They reminded him of why he and his vampire kindred hated necromancers so, with their magics they control the undead as puppets, and they like to use it on humans.
Following the trail of corpses and collapsed passageways, Striker made his way to the entrance. The entrance to such a place would've been cloaked with illusory magic to give it the appearance of a cave wall, but it would seem this one had been excavated. He descended down the steps into darkness eventually having sickly pale light greet him, guiding him towards his destination.
The air in the chamber was stale, light from crystals and candles illuminated roughly carves limestone walls a hundred feet up into darkness, the walls and floor wrapped around the chamber covered in the foul remains of the slain fiends interrupted only in the walls by an ornate obsidian entryway covered in symbols with gargoyles carved in the ancient styles. A circle of crystals illuminated the center of the chamber, acting as an additional seal for a gargantuan skull.
Striker made his way to the center circle, giving a cursory inventory of the remains as he moved. He recognized a few among them which he had slain himself, specifically the triclops skull, the remains of a fiend covered with eyes stolen from victims. He took particular relief noticing the ones suspended from the cages above had not been disturbed. The cages were reserved for children of the deceiver, masters of infiltration with powerful magics at their disposal. The fact they still remained suspended indicated to Striker that this raid was less planned out than he originally thought.
Striker approached the skull in the crystal circle, he recognized it as Krugsigor, a fiend that took the form of a giant twisting mass of blood and stone. He recalled the stories of its immense power, and counted himself fortunate to have not faced him, as it was long before his time. As he approached it, several skeletons leaped out of the bone piles and were quickly upon him.
One of them grabbed his left arm and pulled it towards himself, Striker mentally chastised himself for his complacency as he struck back with a fierce punch knocking the skull off the vertebrae. Still he held strong to his limb, and as Striker reached back for his blade another bony hand grabbed is right arm and pulled in from him. Striker used his enemies persistence to get in a strong kick in the sternum on the first skeleton collapsing its arms, only to have that leg seized upon by another. As he attempted to pry bony hands from his sword arm, his right leg was taken by a forth. A fifth moved for his left arm again, but he was in prime stance to strike him with wide swipe at the crown of the skull, knocking it through the rib-cage, and cracking the obsidian gem in its sternum, the source of the magic holding it together, crumbling another foe. This victory was short lived, as a fourth skeleton latched onto that arm and like the one before it, pulled it outwards. Striker was grappled in place by his limbs.
From the other side of the glow around the giants skull came a scratchy but hollowed voice cackling with delight, followed by a frail diminutive form clad in black robes. The form made its presence known with condescension “ Ah Striker, you do so know how to keep me smiling.” Immediately Striker recognized the form and replied smiling “Ickrep was it? I don't believe we've met personally.” “You know very well who I am!” Ickrep replied with frustration in his voice, “When last we met I had to raid that village for recruits, you intercepted my generous offer.”
Striker replied, “The same offer you give to vampire and human alike?” He quietly hoped his mind game would work. Necromancers were powerful but they were still human, somewhat. “Eternal servitude to sycophants without even closure of the grave?” Ickrep stroked his withered gray beard, no doubt an attempt to calm himself, “I've been hoping they would send you, long have I desired inundate you with my magic, and turn you into my servant.” replied Ickrep. “But worry not, I would allow you to have some awareness, I care not for the humans you vampires protect, I shed no tears at their deaths, but I would not deny you yours.”
As Ickrep spoke, Striker listened only in part as he devised a plan. Powerful though his vampire blood magic was, he needed to ration it to survive. “ I know not which is worse, the servitude or having to endure your whinging existence.” Ickrep let out a sickly cackle, “ I have more important things to deal with at the moment, once I break the seal and revive the great beast within it, it won't matter how well your allies have done at the front.” Striker had a partial plan formulated but now Ickrep had his attention. He had been sent alone to investigate while the a battle raged at the city gates. “I shall lead this army of great undead colossi back to Nosgate and lay down a righteous fury upon the populace not seen since the titans of old.” Ickrep continued, “None shall stand before me, and when I'm done then I shall use my magics upon you Striker, and form my own Necropolis.” Ickrep turned and started towards the the front of the skull, the last of the skeletons followed him.
Striker could no longer take any chances, quickly he utilized a blood spell most of his kind know and in an instance his body flowed with the strength of a hundred men. He ripped the arms of the skeletons that grappled his arms clear off their elbows and before gravity could pull him down, launched them into the sternums of the ones at his legs shattering the gems and destroying them. Hitting the ground he rolled forward onto his feat and with a sweeping high kick knocked the rib-cage of skeleton into another shattering them in a single blow. He then turned towards Ickrep while drawing his blood sword, from the scabbard at his right shoulder, it issued a hungry rasp as he did so.
Ickrep turned and as striker struggled with the skeletons used a talisman of dark magic which fired a beam of piercing green light at the Triclops skull. “Now first of my generals, arise and seek revenge on the vampire that humiliated you so long ago.” With that green lights appeared in the sockets of the skull and a mass of bones began to form around it as it arose from the pile. As limbs formed it suddenly struck Striker knocking upwards and across the crypt, hitting one of the cages above. Ickrep satisfied with this moved back to continue the ritual.
Clinging to the cage Striker quietly thanked what gods were listening that the ancient chains still held true against his sudden impact. The colossus dragged itself towards the middle of the room, still generating it form as it did so. An additional set of arms formed around it helping to position itself in between Striker and its master. As the cage swung forward Striker used what was left of his enhanced strength and the momentum of the cage to launch himself towards the skeletal fiends head. The skeletal construct only having been recently summoned still needed time to form but raised it's guard hoping to catch Striker, only to have him sail through his bony clutches and shoot into his skull, launching it towards Ickrep. Distracted with his incantations the skull struck Ickrep, interrupting the ritual and causing magical energies to fly outwards, the spells used to try and break the seal, were flung back by the crystals, into the energies the colossus used to try and reassemble itself, causing a fierce explosion. Striker took cover under one of the shoulder blades of the massive creature which cracked under the blast but shielded him from it and the fire.
Striker struggled to adjust his senses back to the usual lighting of the ossuary. His deafness interrupted by a scream, no doubt from Ickrep. As he recovered the last of the skeletons from before was upon him, wrapping his bony limbs around his neck from behind in an attempt to wrestle him to the ground. Striker noting the position of its elbow struck it over the back of his shoulder with the flat of his blade, shattering the skull and the gem.
He looked around for his prey and realized the blast had created a hole in the other side of the ossuary, and he could just make out Ickrep limping through it to his escape. Striker charged up the rubble and after him, discovering it lead to a new cavern. Using his superior sense he could still scarcely make out the familiar whimpering, and pursued it to a corner, only to be met with a pair of red eyes. Whatever this manner of beast was, Striker new he would have to protect the ossuary from it. As the hulking ape-like fiend charged him, Striker used his blood sword to stab through its mouth and downward into it's heart, draining it of it's blood. “There will be more, I will let that miserable cur escape for now. Protecting this ossuary is far more important.”