thefictionvixens Page 124
Page 124
Elvir quickly regained his spellcasting ability, instantly casting several short-lived, powerful buff spells to further enhance the squad's stats. Dragon Nightmare rose, raising his holy sword, and charged forward, slashing at Okus's shin, whose movement speed was hampered by the frost.
This demon was so huge that even when the Dragon Nightmare jumped, it could only hit its knees.
Okus dodged the sword sweep with a kick, but the radiant Exorcising Slash, imbued with the exorcising power of the burning holy armor, flew off the sword, leaving a deep, bone-revealing burn on the Great Demon's calf. The Undying Lord's gaze turned cold, his voice filled with malice: "It seems Bahamut's power is indeed well-deserved. But this is only the beginning..."
He waved his scepter once more, and the entire throne room began to distort. The ground suddenly cracked open, and dozens of black tentacles emerged from the fissures. At the same time, a large number of demons and undead creatures poured into the demiplane hall through the unseen portal, and the temperature of the entire battlefield plummeted, with a bone-chilling cold penetrating to the very core.
Casaloz, concealing its true form for camouflage, and with its unprotected weakness to the cold and fire attributes of a golden dragon, recalled its tragic death by a single breath from a white dragon. Instinctively, it retaliated with a breath of its own. However, it was now Tobiasternd, merely a young golden dragon "bestowed" with the power of exorcism by Bahamut. Lacking the buffs of an elemental master's energy specialization, the significant boost to its breath from the chaotic elemental state, and unable to display its distinctive blazing flames, its breath inflicted negligible damage on the abyss lord, who also possessed fire attributes.
With Orcus deliberately avoiding melee combat with dragons, in this battle, it could only sit at the same table as the elven archmage, whose spellcasting level and abilities were completely suppressed, acting as a major support to dismantle Orcus's divine power effects and provide battlefield situational awareness. Effective damage had to be done entirely by Bahamut's great chosen paladin and his silver dragon companion.
11. What do you want to do?
The undead army of Okus is hailed as the abyss lord closest to the true god, but that is governed by divine power, especially the divine power reshaped by the AO after the upheaval. Okus is one of the few abyss lords in the Abyss with a wide following and worshippers within the Prime Material Plane.
If we remove the suppression at the rule level of "godlike power," Okus, who has only recently returned to Sanato's, has not yet fully regained his power and is not actually that strong.
Unlike other divine powers, which possess a variety of disgusting and unpredictable abilities, it is just an ordinary, crazy, cunning, warlike, and cautious, contradictory undead Natalie Great Demon, a proper numerical monster... and now it has lost its numerical value.
When fighting Him, you don't need to worry about Him suddenly appearing behind you and giving you a fatal blow, nor do you need to worry about the instant-death spell "Finger of Death," which is something that a great lich seems to possess and is easy to defend against as long as you are prepared. There is only one thing to be careful about.
“Your struggles are so pathetic,” Okus said, slamming his hammer down to force back the approaching dragon nightmare. He then raised his hand to release a cold defensive barrier that blocked the silver dragon’s breath and countered the elven mage’s Calamity Black Blade. He continued, “Why don’t you just admit defeat and accept your fate?”
Dragon Nightmare flipped onto the smashed scepter head, his holy sword slicing upwards at Okus's hammer-wielding fingers. The Mark of Doom, cleared by the burning dragonfire armor, successfully projected onto the Undead Highlord, revealing golden holy runes and chains. Gerlesk, his attack halted by the dragon breath blocked by the barrier, followed with a wing strike and tail sweep, all easily dodged by Okus, who had discarded his scepter, spread his wings, and leaped into the air. Elvir, enduring the shock of his high-level spell being countered, instead cast two instant-cast Mirror Image spells, creating illusions of both the dragonfire and the silver dragon.
"Do you know that you are now facing a god?"
Okus, hovering in mid-air, raised his hand, and several doors opened around the battlefield. Two Balrogs, five six-armed serpent demons, and twelve demonic corpses emerged from them, converging on the center. The scepter, which had been trampled under the dragon's flames, flew backward, throwing the paladin to the ground and returning to the Undead High Lord's hand. The illusion was shattered by the ripples emanating from the scepter.
"So insignificant, so weak, so powerless! Unworthy of any pity."
He continued spouting nonsense, just like a boss in a game.
Casalos donned a suit of sculpted dragonfire armor, then directly confronted the Balrog and the six-armed serpent demon. The elven mage tore open a scroll, immobilizing the twelve demonic corpses. The paladin climbed onto the silver dragon's neck, radiating brilliance. The silver dragon's body suddenly swelled, yet without appearing bloated; instead, it became even more slender and graceful. A second pair of wings, composed of luminous feathers, grew from its waist. The aid of its four wings allowed it to break free from the dragon's innate agility limitations, keeping pace with Okus's nimble movements. It slithered around the demon, biting, clawing, and sweeping its tail, engaging Okus in a fierce battle in conjunction with the Dragon Nightmare's holy martial arts. For a short time, it even gained the upper hand.
"Your efforts are laughable."
Two powerful debuffs were applied to the Dragon Nightmare and the Silver Dragon with the swing of the scepter, turning back the advantage they had just gained. The Undead Highlord's vicious tail spike grazed the Silver Dragon's abdomen, paralyzing its lower body and temporarily depriving it of tail coordination, causing its mobility to plummet.
With Elville's magical assistance,
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Casaloz had just destroyed two six-armed serpent demons and one Balor fire demon when the demon soul broke free of its restraints and joined the ranks of the demons to surround it.
"Your expectations are so vain!"
Orcus plummeted like a meteor, his raised scepter crashing down upon the silver dragon and the dragon's nightmare on its back. The latter sheathed its sword and cast a spell, teleporting forward several meters with its mount, avoiding the fatal blow. The silver dragon swung back, unleashing a rainbow of light with its breath, condensing it into a seven-colored sphere that enveloped the unstoppable abyss lord. Then, like a comet, it plunged into the area of Casalos and the horde of demons and corpses, unleashing a frost nova that froze the battlefield, striving to unleash a combined force to annihilate these minions in the shortest possible time.
The Rainbow Orb only restricted Orcus for half a minute. After Dragon Nightmare and Silver Dragon were replenished with Dragonfire Armor, they faced the Undead Lord again. There were still three-headed hydra and five demonic corpses remaining on the field, unable to threaten Casalos and the elven mage, but they were not threats that could be eliminated in a short time.
Elvir should have been the team's most powerful damage dealer, but the Silence spell severely limited the Archmage's effectiveness—unfortunately, this was the final precaution when fighting Okus. In the battle against the Undead Lord, one must never respond verbally to His words, communicate with teammates, or utter any spells.
After Orcus was killed by the Banshee Queen, a fragment of his essence survived, taking the name Shadow, and lurking among the realms. He stumbled upon the Last Word, a power of words based on rules at a level deeper than divine power within the multiverse. This is a power capable of killing the very essence of a deity. In his quest to retrieve his scepter, Shadow used the Last Word to kill several deities, including the mind flayer god Manzecorian, the elemental prince Bivim, Kamastery, and the Lord of Fate, permanently altering certain aspects of the multiverse's structure.
Casalos, with his godlike perspective, shared this previously unknown secret, but he was unaware of the specific rules governing the activation of the final word. The only certainty was that Orcus would undoubtedly try to guide them to trigger this condition through language, just as He had done with the gods.
Rather than playing a guessing game with the cunning Undead Highlord, it's better to simply silence him. While this limits our spellcasting abilities, it also completely avoids the deadly power of Oculus's abilities. Let him chatter on as he pleases; nobody will pay him any attention in this battle anyway.
"You mortals, trapped and struggling within flesh and blood, why don't you kneel down and pray to me, pray that my remaining compassion will reserve a place for you at the end of the world!"
His response was the Holy Sword of Evil Slash and the chilling breath of a dragon.
As the demons fell, Okus's already minor wounds multiplied, but Tobiastern always managed to apply a dragon-shaped armor to dismantle the godlike power. The elven mages unleashed a barrage of silent, instant, and scroll-cast spells.
The Undead Lord, who spouts cheesy nonsense, has run out of tricks!
“You are not ordinary Bahamut lackeys,” He stared at Casalos, a dangerous glint in his eyes, “especially you, Golden Dragon, your actions are too…calculating.”
Casalos did not respond, continuing to support his companions with dragon breath while simultaneously seizing an opportunity to sever the spine of the last Balor, extinguishing its life force with an implosion-inducing Evil Slash. He then carried Elville on his back and joined the aerial assault on the Undead Highlord, pushing him to his limit.
"I am the immortal king, the eternal ruler of Thanatos... Ants, and you, Bahamut, wait, I will be back soon!"
Before being frozen solid again, Orcus uttered a defeatist's declaration. Then, the massive ice floe was shattered by the holy sword, along with the remnants of the abyss lord Orcus's life—as a godlike being, he would not perish. Just as he had said, it wouldn't be long before he returned to Thanatos and once again sat on his throne as the undead lord.
But by this point, Vasa's demons and undead legions had lost their source of power, and Damara had been liberated.
The "adventurer" was finally able to speak. Dragon Nightmare and Jelesk looked at Casalos, the silver dragon's eyes flashing with admiration and... a hint of doubt: "Thank you... Holy Watcher, but there's something I still don't quite understand."
"what?"
“If we proceed as planned, stealing and destroying the Scepter of Orcus, the mission will be much easier—and more importantly, it won't incur much of Orcus's hatred. Since divine power is no longer permitted to enter Faerûn, He will focus His attention on new conspiracies, and Damara will also be liberated…”
"What you want to ask is, why am I so determined to kill Him?" Tobiastern-Cassaloz wiped his tired, short face with the fleshy whiskers on his face, pointing to the question the silver dragon had been trying to ask all this time: "The Undead Highlord will not truly die. At least, the power we have is far from enough to truly kill a quasi-god who is about to become a true god. Destroying the scepter, stopping His conspiracy, and saving Damara is enough. Why should I draw His hatred onto myself?"
When Okus says "soon," does he mean hundreds or even thousands of years?
When He returned to Thanatos, the short lives of mortals would have long since ended, and Oculus could not seek revenge on the dead. But I, a golden dragon, and you, a silver dragon, were still alive and well then, and you will surely become His targets of revenge. Is that what you mean?
Why kill Orcus? Because he had no other choice: kill Orcus or destroy his scepter. The former would incite the hatred of a pit lord who was about to become, but probably never would, a true god; the latter would undeniably bring Tiamat, the goddess of dragons, to the continent of Faerûn on a massive scale. What was Casalos supposed to do…?
"I admit my cowardice..." The silver dragon, who couldn't lie, lowered its head in shame: "To fight against evil and destroy evil without hesitation, even if it means becoming a thorn in the side of the evil god, is this the necessary determination to become a holy guardian?"
“I don’t know if this is the necessary determination to become a Holy Watcher. To be honest, I have never seen the Lord of Justice, nor have I ever prayed to Him. This is just my own insistence. But you, who have become His vassal and chosen one, may have to find the answer you are looking for yourself, or you can pray to Him directly for the answer. I believe He will not refuse to answer your questions.”
If possible, Casalos would also like to know what Bahamut is really thinking, but given His bad reputation, he probably will never be able to honestly answer Gerlesk's questions.
"Furthermore, no matter how determined I am to eradicate evil, I will not willingly create huge trouble for myself. Now that we have successfully killed Okus, that petty goddess who helped us before will probably be happy to help us go even further. Am I right, Banshee Queen Qi Yawen Shali?"
As soon as the dragon finished speaking, a laugh that caused pain to the dragon/human just by hearing it rang out in the demiplane: "Hehehe... Such keen perception, is this the golden dragon who wields divine power and fortune?"
12. The New "Deal"
"To call the name of a god is blasphemy, Golden Dragon." A piercing screech, like a needle scraping against iron, echoed in the throne room of Orcus. The sound seemed to pierce through flesh and go straight to the soul, causing both man and dragon to shudder involuntarily.
"Do you care?" Tobiastern retorted, a surge of courage emanating from Bahamut spreading and dispelling the seeds of fear planted within the others by the Banshee Queen. The golden dragon's muscles beneath its golden scales tensed, ready to respond to any sudden situation. It wasn't overly concerned about its safety; from the moment it accepted the help of the Banshee Queen's priestess Sarah, the Banshee Queen had been watching them closely.
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She wanted to use them to achieve a greater goal of revenge—but it was best to remain vigilant when dealing with such a chaotic and goofy person. After all, no one knew what might suddenly happen to such a goofball, leading to actions that even they couldn't have predicted.
"I care, of course I care. I care about every offense anyone has ever committed against me," the echoing voice grew even harsher, but the previous unbearable ache, as if an invisible hand were tearing at my insides, was gone. "But now, my desire for revenge tells me I should forgive you ants this once, because your goal aligns with my primary objective of revenge!"
A phantom form appeared in mid-air, vaguely resembling the silhouette of a drow woman, her long white hair fluttering in the still air. Ziavinshari, the drow's banshee goddess, a vengeful spirit, the banshee queen deposed by Orcus.
Zia Winshari is not one of the gods of the Pan-Faerûn pantheon; she is an elven deity from another prime material plane. The rules rewritten by the AO after the upheaval do not bind her, nor can they bring her new hope. Otherwise, even if she were "deposed" by Okus, with the current reshaping of the rules of divine power, she could almost immediately ascend to a powerful divine status under the weight of her abundant faith.
Unfortunately, she had neither a face nor any faith in Faerûn, not even a general one. The drow of Faerûn were completely unaware that their people possessed such a deity.
"I want to destroy Sanatos!" Casalos revealed a fanatical determination, just as one would expect from a golden dragon who hates evil.
"Hahaha! Just what I wanted..." The banshee queen's laughter was like the wails of countless dead.
The Sorceress Queen's mind was filled with thoughts of revenge, which made her nature increasingly cruel and her mind increasingly twisted. She had gone mad long ago and her mind was almost completely deranged, but she still retained her original cunning and shrewdness, and clearly remembered every insult that others had done to her—no matter how minor the offense, some of which actually happened, and some of which were just figments of her imagination created by her twisted mind.
She will seize any opportunity to take revenge on those who have offended her, including Okus, who stole her divine power—even though she originally took her divine power from Okus—as well as these "ants" who have invaded her former territory.
"My priestess Sarah will guide you," the Banshee Queen's voice deepened, "follow her guidance to the City of Tears. My power has weakened, and I cannot intervene directly, but my loyal servants still await there."
Casalos nodded slightly.
The Sorcerer Queen appeared to be helping them, but she actually had ulterior motives. She likely wanted them to be sacrificed at the time of Thanatos's destruction. This was precisely why Casalos dared to provoke her—in her eyes, they were already dead anyway.
"Thank you for your generosity, Your Majesty," Casalos flapped his sail-like dragon wings, "We will follow Sarah's guidance."
"Go, little golden dragon, to carry out our shared revenge—to destroy Okus and his plane." The Banshee Queen's laughter was sharp and piercing. "And don't worry, I'll make sure you all emerge unscathed from this destruction."
The pauses in the last few words further reveal the evil goddess's sinister intentions; this siren queen had no intention of letting them leave alive.
However, this did not prevent Casalos from turning the tables on Casalos.
Long Yan watched the gradually dissipating phantom of the banshee and asked in a low voice, "Are you sure this is a wise move? It's hard to say whether a deposed evil goddess is trustworthy."
"No, she is not trustworthy at all; every word she utters is a trap," Casalos replied calmly. "But for now, our goals are aligned. Besides, we have already defeated Orcus; why should we fear a goddess stripped of her divine power?"
Moreover, the deal with the Banshee Queen was my unauthorized action. You have completed your mission and can return to the Material Plane and rebuild the glorious dynasty in Damara…”
Casalos provided a way out for its companions. In fact, it didn't care whether they continued the adventure with it. If it were to act alone, it could revert to its true form as an iron dragon at any time, and then it would be able to fight even if the deposed goddess or other abyss lords came to it.
Gairos Dragon Nightmare answered without hesitation, "What are you talking about? Do you think I, Dragon Nightmare, am a hypocrite who would abandon my companions?"
Silver Dragon Gerlesk followed suit, declaring to his knight, "As a vassal of the King of the North Wind, I believe I also bear the responsibility of destroying this abyss."
The elven archmage Elville spread his hands: "If my employer insists on continuing, I can only play along to the end, after all, I've been paid a commission—the kind where you pay your life."
Casalos nodded in satisfaction. His companions' choice was not unexpected. Their steadfastness and loyalty further proved his judgment; these people were indeed worthy of long-term cooperation.
The golden and silver dragons transformed back into humanoid forms for easier passage through the portal. The four left the ruined Eternal Demiplane and returned to Naratal to report to Sarah. By this time, Thanatos had fallen into the chaos befitting the Abyss.
The death of Highlord Okus the Undead plunged both the demons and the local, chaotic undead into a state of disorder and internal strife. According to the inherent rules of the Abyss, this chaos would persist until a new Abyss Lord ascended to the throne. For a group consisting of a chosen gold dragon, a silver dragon vassal of the Dragon God, a chosen legendary paladin, and a legendary elven archmage, traversing such a chaotic land was a piece of cake.
Sarah, having received a new oracle from her goddess, had been waiting for them at the temple in Narathal for some time. Guided by this seemingly benevolent evil priest, the four of them, along with a small squad of skinless corpses as guards, left Narathal and continued their journey north. With the skinless corpses providing cover, most of the undead and demons ignored the group. Their chaotic and suicidal antics were rare; several sporadic provocations they encountered along the way were quickly dealt with by the skinless corpses, leaving the "adventurers" with no need to even participate in the battles.
Three days later, they arrived in the City of Tears.
This city, constructed of rust-red geysers, resembles a giant constantly weeping from afar. The geysers spew steam and water into the River Styx, creating a peculiar landscape known as the "Cavity of Tears." It was once the nominal capital of Orcus. However, the demon lord spent most of his time incubating and plotting in the palace of the Everdead Fortress, and the city's administration was handled by the Balrog Gladiator Gleifemhurn. Now, the entire city is shrouded in an eerie silence.
“Greymhurn has escaped,” Sarah explained. “After sensing the fall of Orcus, he and most of the high-ranking demons chose to temporarily retreat—just like when Orcus was first killed by the Queen. They are very experienced in this regard. Now, besides our sisters, only some low-ranking demons and the vengeful spirits trapped here remain in Tearful City.”
After traversing the city's empty streets, the two dragons and two humans, accompanied by a group of evil god cultists, arrived before a blood-red tower. The tower's outer walls were covered with small fountains, continuously spewing out hot water with a sulfurous smell.
"This Tower of the Banshee's Tears is His Majesty's last stronghold in Sanato Solomon," Sarah's voice grew even more ethereal, "and the device lies at the very bottom."
Aren't you coming with us?
Sarah stopped outside the tower.
"I can't leave Naratell for much longer," she shook her head. "Our sisterhood is inside the tower to guide you. Remember, once the device is activated, you must return to Naratell immediately. The portal there is the only way for you to leave Thanatos."
"Thank you for your guidance, Priestess Sarah," Casalos, transformed into a young human male paladin, politely produced a holy emblem carved from a diamond, its surface shimmering with magical light.
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It was so conspicuous: "As a token of my gratitude, please accept this gift."
The greedy priest accepted it without hesitation, nodded in response, and then disappeared into the shadows.
"Is what she said true?" Dragon Nightmare asked in a low voice. "Do we really need to return to Naratell to leave?"
"Of course not," Casalos patted Dragon Nightmare's broad shoulder. "We have ways back to the Prime Material Plane, why should we follow their planned path? But right now, destroying Thanatos is the top priority."
"Haha, you remind me of Tie Long, you two are quite similar."
Upon hearing this, Casalos became alert: unlike the clone of Roar, Tobiastern was a direct transformation and disguise of it. Although it deliberately differentiated the powers it displayed, its habitual words and actions could easily be noticed by those familiar with both.
"Casaloz and I are friends. Isn't it normal for friends to have some similar habits?"
It casually brushed them off, and the four entered the Tower of the Banshee's Tears, descending the strange spiral staircase. As they went deeper underground, the surrounding temperature gradually rose, and the air filled with the smell of sulfur and a certain metallic, sweet odor.
Every few dozen meters down the stairs, a skinless corpse dressed in a black robe would appear to guide them. These skinless creatures maintained an eerie silence, only using hand gestures to indicate directions, and one after another they would descend—it was unclear what was so special about a single staircase.
Finally, they arrived at the circular platform at the bottom of the well. In the center of the platform was a huge obsidian disc, covered with intricate runes. Around the disc stood twelve priestesses, their faces hidden beneath hoods, but their pale hands could be seen extending from their sleeves, making strange gestures in the air.
A figure taller than the other priests emerged from behind the disc, removed her hood, and revealed the face of a Drow woman crisscrossed with knife marks.
"Welcome, servants of Bahamut," her voice was hoarse and grating, "I am Kalia, High Priestess of the Banshee Queen. You have come at just the right time; the fragments of Orcus's soul have begun to reform, and soon he will regain some of his power."
"What do we need to do?" Casalos got straight to the point.
"Stand on the discs," Kalia instructed, "and display your divine power. They will serve as the guiding beacon and fuse for activating the device. With you as the medium, we can guide the power of the positive energy plane into Thanatos."
Casalos chuckled, signaling Jelllesk to restore his dragon form, then carefully observed the disc and the priests around him.
"Are you ready?" Kalia asked, her eyes gleaming with an eerie light.
The dragon exchanged a glance with its companions, then nodded: "We're ready." It stepped onto the designated spot on the obsidian disc, and Kalia and the other twelve priests began chanting in unison in an unfamiliar language. The negative energy belonging to Thanatos beneath the disc began to fluctuate. Then, divine power representing chaos and death was channeled into it, creating a bizarre, distorted point.
The one who received the divine power was the priestess Sarah, who had already "returned" to Narathiel—her true identity should be that of Ziawenshari's chosen one, and the characteristics of her divine power were never hidden from Casaloz's eyes.
The disc, named Banshee's Lament, is a "doomsday device" placed deep within the abandoned Fortress of Tearful City by Qi Yawen Shali when she was still a goddess. Once activated, it creates a vortex that connects directly to the core of the positive energy plane, acting like a giant pump to continuously draw the purest positive energy into Thanatos. This energy, in the clash of positive and negative energies, would tear Thanatos apart, potentially even bringing devastating effects to the entire Abyss—the latter being merely the Banshee Queen's delusion. Like Bane, Melkor, and Baal, she, a mortal who became a god, is utterly ignorant of the grandeur behind this world!
As the chant reached its climax, Kalia abruptly stopped, drawing a bone dagger from within her robes: "Now, the final seal is needed—the blood and souls of the four heroes!"
Even though he had expected it, Casalos was still surprised by the Banshee Queen's directness—she didn't even intend to hide her true purpose.
But Casalos was more "cunning" than the Banshee Queen.
As Kalia raised the bone sword, Casalos detonated the holy symbol given to Sarah. The fission and flames that were pre-existing within it instantly destroyed the fragile bodies and souls of the evil god's chosen ones, fully releasing the divine power that Zia Wenlisa had entrusted to her. Like a pulse wave, it tore apart the point of distortion and also shattered the souls of the evil god's priests who were leading the ritual.
13. The Great Crash
Casalos didn't know why Zia Winsari wanted his soul and blood, but as an evil god, it was normal for her to do such things.