Chapter 85: The Village

Timmy and Vera were giggling, looking all around them. The babies had never been in the forest before.

Well, Timmy was. Back on Earth, for Dimitri's cabin had been in the woods. But the baby still giggled at the greenery.

"Cute kids," Nate said as he smiled at the two babies. "And cute golem."

Dimitri beamed at him, as Jack and Jean also smiled.

Nikola was pushing the stroller. Hoping that he would not meet a stone in the road and have the whole think overturned.

"We are nearly there," Rene told them as he walked at the front of the party.

"Hey," Nikola finally asked, because he didn't know if he would ever get such an opportunity. "Do you two know any good mana exercises?"

The books the guild master had given him were very dry. He had tried to do some of the exercises but ended up sleeping in the lotus position.

To be woken up when he tipped over and fell on the bed.

"Well, what you will do is a form of that," Nate told him as he looked around. The forest was fresh and green. He wondered why the fields were suffering so.

"We're here," Rene said as he knocked on the village gates. "Good sirs, we are here to fix your fields! We are from Oak's Rest!"

The gates remained closed. Rene took off his sword and shield and made a sign for the party to stop.

Nikola had a bad feeling about it all.

"I'll climb the walls. See if I can't open them from the inside."

The party nodded as one. Timmy and Vera began to babble. Rocky clutched at his plant all the tighter.

Tony the Phoenix spread his wings. One moment he was just a tiny bird; the next he was about as big as Nikola. His plumage blazing, his eyes narrowed.

Without thinking, Nikola took off his bow from his back. Ready to shoot at anything that would try to attack them.

Dread pooled in his stomach.

Timmy and Vera were in danger!

A mist began to roll out of the village. Rene began to climb faster.

What he saw on the other end made him suck in a breath.

There were ghosts lingering in the village. Corpses were rotting on the streets. And there was a green light in the middle of the village.

Rene jumped down, looking at the stroller with the babies.

"There is a Lich inside. We need to go," if the babies were not here, Rene would have fought. But Timmy and Vera were in danger.

He couldn't risk it.

"Come now, before it notices that we are here," Rene said.

Nikola turned the stroller around and began to push it back towards Oak's Rest.

His hands trembling.

"What do you think happened in here?" The brunette asked Rene. The man kept on marching at the back. Ready to defend them.

"The Lich probably got tired of poisoning the fields and then attacked the village."

It was happening far too often these days.

The small party continued on its retreat. Trying not to let their panic show.

For the babies.

****

Guild Master Arnold left the town of Oak's Rest early in the morning.

 A Lich was no laughing matter.

The only thing he hoped for, as he began to go down the deer trail leading to the village of Water's Fall, was that the Lich was still conserving energy and had not eaten all the ghosts in the village.

He had not taken anyone with him. Refused to even entertain the notion.

No, should he fall, Arnold told himself, then it would be better if Lily were there to take up the mantle of guild master and organize the defenses.

The old berserker made a stop before the gates.

If they used to have a color, he didn't see any traces of it. The wood was pure white. A white so sickening that Arnold just knew that it was a product of too much necromantic mana in the village.

Bone white walls with bloodstains on them told him everything he needed to know.

He took out his dagger. Placing it between his teeth and then scaling the walls.

When he made it to the other side, the ghosts of the villagers turned their heads to stare at him.

Arnold did a small bow.

"Pass over, or you will be eaten!" Arnold said as he began to walk towards the green light.

The ghosts refused to do so. Their eyes were blazing.

Arnold knew that their rage would be the only ally he would find in this village.

The Lich was there, by the well. Arnold made a mental note to purify all wells in the village.

He threw the dagger.

The Lich snapped his eyes open quickly, catching the blade before it could hit him in the neck.

"So, you have come to die?" The Lich's voice was raspy. So, as if he had barely enough mana in himself to breathe, let alone speak.

"No. I came to purge you!" Arnold said. He took his sword off his back.

The first ghost dived in the blade, letting its coldness spread to it.

Arnold sucked in a breath.

The hatred ran deep between the dead and the Lich.

The guild master raised his sword high. Letting the ghosts dive inside it.

"In the name of the Three Mothers," Arnold roared. "Respecting the wisest, the Mother of Death, I banish you!"

The ghosts began to gather their souls so as if they were mana.

Arnold slashed his sword at the Lich.

The being dove out of the way.

It was then that Arnold noticed the small cages near the well.

The children of the village were alive. Arnold finally realized why the ghosts were risking their souls just to stop the Lich.

A parent's love knew no boundaries.

Arnold charged. The Lich began to gather his mana.

The children were crying silent tears as light mana began to battle with sickly green.

The Lich was no fighter. The ghosts were negating it.

Arnold slashed once more, aiming at the head. Then, as soon as the Lich dived out of the way, the guild master made another slash.

The ghosts placed all of their souls in that slash at once.

The Lich never stood a chance.

But Arnold knew that some scars would not be healed easily. The children didn't cheer.

The guild master began to get them out of the cages one by one.

Thinking about who could be such a monster as to make a Lich capture children.

Whoever it was, Arnold thought to himself, he was going to introduce them to his sword.

Until there was no breath left in their bodies.