Chapter 26: Ritual of The Dead


    The growl was faint, but it echoed through the clearing like a warning. Abel stiffened, his senses sharpening as the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. The forest, which had been eerily quiet during Gravedigger’s preparations, now felt alive with something sinister. Around him, the other recruits shifted uneasily, exchanging nervous glances.


    The wind had died down, leaving only the oppressive silence. Abel''s pulse quickened, and his grip on his dagger tightened as he scanned the tree line. He wasn’t sure what he expected, but the tension in the air made his stomach twist. Something was wrong.


    Gravedigger remained focused in the center of the clearing, kneeling before the massive bone he had laid on the ground. His chants filled the air, rhythmic and haunting, while the symbols around him pulsed faintly with energy. Abel could see beads of sweat forming on the man’s brow, his concentration unwavering as the ritual neared its climax.


    Then, a low growl echoed from the depths of the forest, louder this time, closer. Abel’s eyes flicked toward the sound, his breath catching in his throat. He wasn’t the only one who noticed. One of the other recruits, a girl with wild, black curls and a scar across her cheek, glanced nervously at the trees.


    “Did you hear that?” she whispered, her voice barely audible.


    Abel nodded slowly, his gaze locked on the shadows between the trees. He strained to hear, but the forest seemed to hold its breath. The sense of wrongness grew, pressing down on him like an invisible weight.


    Another growl, deeper now, sent a shiver down his spine. His heart pounded in his chest, his eyes darting to the other recruits. The tension was palpable, and even though they hadn’t seen anything yet, Abel knew something was coming.


    Without warning, the creature emerged from the shadows, its form hulking and grotesque. It was larger than Abel had anticipated, its long, sinewy limbs dragging across the ground as it advanced on them. Its body was a twisted mockery of life—fur matted with filth, skin stretched tightly over sharp bones, and its glowing, hollow eyes fixed on Gravedigger at the center of the clearing.


    Abel felt his blood run cold. The creature let out a bone-chilling screech, and the recruits instinctively spread out, their weapons drawn, ready for a fight.


    “Stay calm!” Lorne, one of the older recruits, shouted, his voice steady. Abel recognized him as a tall, broad-shouldered young man with a scar running down his arm. In the Mossy Floater, many other recruits would ask to make conversation with Lorne making him someone who already had some clout and respect. “We protect Gravedigger. Focus on that!”


    Abel wasn’t about to charge in headlong. He had been in the Stone Tower long enough to know better. He kept his distance, waiting for an opening, his eyes darting between the recruits, searching for their plan of attack.


    Lorne acted first, pulling out a black iron sphere from a pouch at his waist. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled it toward the creature. The sphere exploded in midair, unleashing a thick, inky smoke that coiled around the beast’s limbs, slowing its movements. The creature let out a frustrated growl, its claws scraping uselessly against the ground as it struggled to move forward.


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    Next, Elara, the girl with the scar on her cheek, raised a glowing lantern. With a twist of her wrist, the light flared brightly, casting a beam directly at the creature’s eyes. It recoiled, hissing in pain, its hollow eyes now blind to their movements.


    Abel saw his chance. While the creature was disoriented, he moved in his dagger at the ready. His strike was quick and precise, the blade finding purchase in the creature’s side. It screeched in fury, the wound shallow but enough to draw blood.


    Abel jumped back just in time as the creature swung its massive claw at him, missing by inches. His heart pounded in his chest as he retreated to the relative safety of the group.


    The teamwork unfolding around him was impressive. Each recruit used their magical artifact to weaken the creature further. Lorne moved in again, his serrated blade flashing as he slashed at the creature’s exposed side, leaving a deep gash. The beast screeched once more, stumbling backward.


    But before they could finish it off, the ground beneath Gravedigger trembled violently, and a surge of energy pulsed through the clearing.


    Gravedigger’s chanting reached its peak, and the symbols around him flared to life with a brilliant, eerie light. The ancient bone at the center of the ritual began to vibrate, its surface cracking as though something deep within it was awakening. A low hum filled the air, and the bone started to disintegrate, the dust swirling around Gravedigger in a protective vortex.


    Abel watched in awe as the ritual reached its climax. Gravedigger’s eyes were wide, his body trembling as he completed the final words of the chant. The bone dust spiraled faster and faster until it condensed into a floating shape above him—an ethereal ribcage, made entirely of glowing bone. It hovered there for a moment before slowly lowering itself onto Gravedigger, fusing with him. That must have been a manifestation of his mana pool.


    Gravedigger’s body shuddered as the power of bone manipulation coursed through him. His hands glowed with the same ethereal energy, and the ground beneath him began to rumble. From the earth, skeletal hands—made of pure bone—rose and gripped the soil, responding to his newfound power.


    Just as this transformation took place, the creature screeched again. It had sensed the power shift, and its instincts screamed at it to flee. Abel could see the desperation in its movements. It turned, limping away from the clearing, blood dripping from its wounds, knowing it had lost.


    The recruits held their ground, weapons at the ready, but the beast’s retreat was swift. It limped into the shadows of the forest, disappearing into the darkness, wounded but alive.


    Gravedigger, now fully embraced by his new power, stood in the center of the clearing, panting heavily. The glowing ribcage slowly faded from view, but the aura of bone magic lingered around him. He flexed his hands experimentally, and to everyone’s amazement, skeletal structures began to rise from the earth around him—shields, weapons, even skeletal warriors ready to obey his command.


    The other recruits stared in awe, their expressions a mixture of relief and disbelief.


    “We did it,” Elara muttered, her voice barely above a whisper.


    Lorne wiped the blood from his blade and sheathed it, glancing over at Gravedigger. “Looks like you got what you came for.”


    Gravedigger, still catching his breath, nodded slowly. “I did… Thanks to all of you.”


    Abel let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. He had landed a hit on the creature, and while it had escaped, they had protected Gravedigger and succeeded in their task. He didn’t need to be the hero; they had all contributed in their own way.


    As they gathered themselves, Gravedigger made the glowing ribcage appear once more from within himself as it transformed into a huge femur which he grabbed and placed it on his back and turned to the group, his voice steady. “Let’s head back to the Tower. We’ve done what we came to do.”


    The forest, once again, fell into eerie silence as they made their way back to the Stone Tower. The memory of the battle lingered in the chilly night air, but Abel knew this was only the beginning.