Chapter 240. Whispers from the Past
What was even more surprising was a Legendary wand that dropped after dealing with a Plague Maggot Elite, making Michael smile from the bottom of his heart.
[ Blood Boiling Wizard's Touch
Legendary Wand
572 Item Power
-----------------
480 Damage per Second (+61 when compared to the currently equipped item)
* [320 - 480] Damage per Hit
* 1.20 Attacks per Second
* +6.0% Lucky Hit Chance
------------------
* +30% Overpower Damage
* +10% Vulnerable Damage
* +9.5% Damage to Slowed Enemies
* +17.0% Damage to Injured Enemies.
Legendary Aspect: When your Core Skills Overpower an enemy, you spawn 3 Volatile Blood Drops. Collecting a Volatile Blood Drop causes it to explode, dealing 874 Physical damage around you.
Every 20 seconds, your next skill is guaranteed to Overpower. ]
It was pretty useless and not something he would use, but it was a good find nevertheless.
Furthermore, its Aspect sounded quite interesting, so he decided to salvage it instead of just selling the weapon for materials.
[There, ahead! That should be it.](Lorath)
Lorath smacked another Ghoul to death with a single blow and pointed at the 'alcove' at the end of the tunnel.
Complaining inwardly about how this was a damned stone door baring their entrance and couldn't comprehend why call it an alcove, he kept silent and waited to see what the ex-Horadrim wanted to do next.
"On the wall to the right."
[Hmm? Twin sabers, just as Oyuun described. Left one, was it?](Lorath)
Messing with the pommel of the left one, the massive stone door was lifted from the ground and pulled upward into the carved cliff, and the road ahead was now clear again.
Entering the room, they found hundreds of rotting corpses, the stench of which overpowered Michael's self-control, forcing him to puke out his breakfast.
"What the fuck is this rotten stench? Are these people?"
[Undead. Whoever threw them here left them to rot away slowly... A most gruesome ending for the restless dead. There's a ladder ahead. You first?](Lorath)
Rolling his eyes, the Necromancer wanted to argue but remained quiet after remembering how easily Lorath dealt with the mobs on the way.
It would be best to do him more favors and have him deal with the annoying enemies later on instead of having to face them himself.
Climbing, he found a large ledge they could walk on, so he immediately resummoned his minions since they were incapable of climbing.
With everyone ready and on guard, they continued traveling the newly discovered elevated road until a massive brick wall blocked their way.
Before he could say anything, Lorath covered his mouth and made a shushing motion.
[Why do we stay here? Need more prey. More meat.](?)
[And you will have it once Elias has finished his grand work, great Brol.](?)
Pointing at a large crack conveniently placed ahead, the duo stuck their faces into it, curious to see who was talking beneath.
Two 'monsters' identified by the Sanctuary as enemies were talking—or rather, appeasing—a small giant, the one who had previously spoken of prey and meat.
'Judging by their clothes, those two should be Mother's Disciples and Mother's Chosen. As for the small giant, judging by his clothes and weapons, it is like a combination of a Mongol and a Turk, albeit the ones from the old times back on Earth. Brol, huh? This should be the Tyrant.'
Lorath quickly brought out something from his inventory and used it, creating a small array that covered them.
After using it many times with Helen, the Necromancer identified it as a soundproofing array, albeit slightly different from the ones he had seen before.
[Now we can speak, but not too loud. That bastard over there is pretty high-level. I might not be able to assist you in fighting him, or else the Sanctuary's restrictions on it will be gone. At that point, even I'm not sure these old bones could stand more than a couple of hits.](Lorath)
"Sounds lovely. That should be the Tyrant Brol, right? The leader of the cannibalistic bandits?"
[Apparently. Shush! Let's see what they're talking about.](Lorath)
The two people, especially the Mother's Chosen, were incredibly animate in explaining the greatness of whatever the fuck Elias was planning.
The 'great' Brol, however, wasn't very interested.
[What work?](Brol)
[You will see soon, Brol. The seeds we have sown will bear fruit. Guulrahn will be reborn, and so will--](Mother's Chosen)
Before the lunatic could continue speaking, one of Brol's sheathed weapons on his back disappeared, and the talking man's head fell to the floor, much to the shock and horror of the remaining 'aide.'
Pointing with his weapon at the Disciple, he asked again.
[What work?](Brol)
[Elias... he is poised to summon Andariel into the world. Her-- her power will lift us to new heights. And, of course, y-you will have more meat.](Mother's Disciple)
[*Grunt* I want to watch.](Brol)
[Certainly, great Brol. You will be the guest of honor.](Mother's Disciple)
Snickering at the small giant's 'no bullshit' policy, Michael was inwardly complaining about the intel they overheard.
[Andariel, the Mained of Anguish. That is the Lesser Evil he means to summon. Heavens help us...](Lorath)
"I doubt they will. They're more occupied with the invading Burning Hells."
Getting a glare in response, Michael kept his snide remarks to himself and continued on the small corridor they found ahead, leading into the Palace Bowels.
Complaining at the disgusting image the Sanctuary created in his head, the Necromancer had his Skeletons scout the way ahead.
The first thing they found was a Resplendent Chest. Lorath wasn't very interested in the crappy Rare item box, but he insisted on splitting the over 100,000 golden coins stashed here equally.
Michael happily agreed since either way, it was over 50,000 gold coins he made easily.
The way ahead was occasionally barred by the fanatics who fell prey to Lilith's charms. What stumped the Necromancer was their sheer stupidity.
Rather than sounding the alarm or yelling at the top of their voices that intruders were about, they simply charged at the Reapers and smashed their faces into their scythes.
To this, the ex-Horadrim added that even the best scholars are unable to study something as abstract and profound as human stupidity, and continued moving forward.
[It seems this place has also been renamed.](Lorath)
"Mhm. I see it, too—The Tyrant's Court. It looks like we're close. How well does this soundproofing array of yours work?"
[It will wear off eventually, but we have at least half an hour's worth left.](Lorath)
The duo stopped five minutes or so later, standing in front of a room with strange expressions on their faces.
The previously named Royal Throne Room, or something, was now renamed Elias's Throne Room.
Michael decidedly kept quiet this time and only gestured that he would send Pathfinder ahead to scout the way, to which Lorath absentmindedly nodded.
Surprisingly, Pathfinder was evaporated as soon as he entered by a red flash, shocking the Necromancer.
Without a better alternative, Michael ordered his entire squad to charge ahead, and seconds later, with Quarterback being the exception, everyone else was ground into dust by some strange red lightning explosions.
A woman wielding a huge staff was calmly looking at the Golem as if waiting for its master to enter the fray. Gesturing to Lorath, who immediately put on his game face, the duo entered the Throne Room.
[The master calls forth the Maiden! You shall not disturb him!](?)
As soon as they entered, they were given the same greeting by means of red lightning, which Michael immediately absorbed using his Blood Mist skill.
The pain was intense, but it was better than being turned into cinders. Since the woman was a Boss, the duo immediately went to work.
Unfortunately, her skills had high burst damage, and the Golem was sent to sleep almost ten seconds into the battle.
Without a better alternative, Michael took the tank role after realizing he would only lose around 500-600 Life Points with each hit from the Boss.
Fortunately, the OP Lorath was dealing heavy damage on the side, so he kept quiet and endured. Thanking his lucky stars and the idiotic Inarius for the Healing Well in the Hidden Overlook, he gulped potion after potion once his Life Points dropped under 50%.
The fight moved throughout the Throne Room, and Michael could finally see what a throne looked like in real life. He was disappointed upon noticing it was just a fancy chair, but the Boss didn't give him any chance to voice his complaints.
Finally, about ten minutes later, it was silent again. Only the two tired men remained, besides the endless corpses and the Boss, who was slowly turning into dust.
Gasping for breath, he collected the three Potion Orbs on the ground to refill his consumed potions, as well as a Legendary two-handed Scythe and a Rare item box.
[ Blood-Bathed Toothed Reaper
Legendary Two-Handed Scythe
563 Item Power
-----------------
928 Damage per Second (+506 when compared to the currently equipped item)
* [826 - 1,238] Damage per Hit
* 0.90 Attacks per Second
* +45 Life Points on Kill
------------------
* +54% Overpower Damage
* +33% Basic Skill Damage
* +20% Core Skill Damage
* +26.0% Damage to Stunned Enemies.
Legendary Aspect: Blood Surge's nova echoes again after a short delay, dealing 9% less damage (Necromancer Only). ]
Raising an eyebrow and adding the possibility of trying a Blood build later, Michael withdrew his attention from the items in his inventory after Lorath pointed at something in the middle of the Throne Room.
[ A gruesome collection of partially eaten corpses. Scraps of fine clothing suggest these may be the royal family's remains. ]
He winced at the Sanctuary's description and immediately looked away. He had seen enough fucked up shit for one day and didn't want to exceed his quota, or his mental sanity might dip even lower than it already was.
[Come. I sense a ward being used in the room to the left. We should find something more interesting there.](Lorath)
Following behind the man, they quickly found the source of the magical interference Lorath had sensed before.
A red barrier blocked the way forward, and a strange symbol was drawn in the middle of it. It was a Sealing Ward, according to the ex-Horadrim.
[Heh. How foolish of Elias. He used this Sealing Ward to earn more time against me, but any other Wanderer can simply brute-force their way in by channeling their energy in the Seal. Go on! We must hurry.](Lorath)
Nodding slightly, Michael approached the barrier and cautiously placed his left hand on it. Worst comes to worst, he would only have his left hand crippled and could still use his right to defend and fight against a possible ambush.
Almost hearing Lorath's eyes roll behind him, the Necromancer coughed awkwardly and funneled his Essence into the Seal. Seconds later, the red barrier fizzled out and disappeared, prompting the ex-Horadrim to come forward and push the door open.
The MAP immediately identified the room as Elias's Sanctum. Rather than finding a gruesome room filled with ritualistic sacrifices, it was instead...
"...a library?"
[Look at all this. An archive of the forbidden, hand-picked by Elias himself. I can sense Seals placed on most books here. The type used by Horadrim to guard against dangerous knowledge. *Sigh*](Lorath)
"Does this mean we missed him again?"
[I'm not sure. He must be planning to summon Andariel somewhere else, but he did his research here.](Lorath)
"What now?"
[Look around. There might be some clues that can tell us where the ritual will take place.](Lorath)
Agreeing with the suggestion, Michael waited for the Sanctuary to react.
[ Main Quest update - Whispers from the Past
Objective: Search for information on Elias's ritual. ]
Opening his MAP, a golden circle encompassed the entire Sanctum, prompting the Necromancer to roll his eyes. It wasn't that helpful.
However, seeing something glowing on the periphery of his left eye, he immediately thanked the Sanctuary for highlighting the open book. After inspecting it closely, he realized it was a journal kept by the madman.
Flipping through it, he finally stopped at a page with relevant information, planning to go through it more carefully later.
[ The prophecy is unfolding before my eyes. I was right to act on it. When the Prime Evils come, they will find no easy prey. We will be ready.
Our rebirth begins here, with Andariel chained to the heart of Guulrahn. She will feed on the suffering in this City of Anguish, and we, in turn, will feed on her. Andariel's power will be ours to wield against the other Lords of Hell.
If more must die to see it come to pass, so be it. I will not fail you, Mother. ]
Sighing heavily and labeling the madman a fanatic as well, Michael pondered the reason Elias did what he did. The prophecy he was speaking of should be the one Rathma created.
In his fear and helplessness about humanity's impending doom, he found a possible thread to hang on to: Lilith.
Due to Lilith's displeasure with the Eternal Conflict and her mothering of the human race, Elias thought her to be a staunch ally against the hordes of Hell poised to destroy humanity.
'So he researched how to release her from her prison in the Void and summoned her into the Sanctuary. However, from what I've seen so far, Lilith has her own plans. If Elias thinks he can use her as a pawn in his chess game... I'm afraid he didn't realize who the player is yet.'