Chapter 37

Snake Report:

Hissss...

Magic things are happening.

The suspense is terrible.

Thiss is real deal, crazy impressive, magical stuff.

The kind I remember seeing in movies. A battle for the history books: Two heroes versus the great ancient evil.

Compared to the Earth Molding and the Q&a talks I've been having, this is on a different level.

As the Giant Skeleton has made its approach, the two humans have readied themselves. I've never seen anything like it.

The human duo made a shield of some kind by the door, and though looking through it got a little difficult after a few seconds, I definitely manages to see something going on with young-gandalf and his staff.

I think something crazy is about to happen. Maybe an all out wombo-combo style attack.

Either good, or bad. I can't tell yet.

That remains up to the Giant Skeleton, his giant-fists and wrist shackles.

"GRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAW"

And the fist comes down-

CRASH

It's on fire. Holy smokes, the Giant's arm is on fire. The other arm is coming down now, but that shield magics holding up to it.

CRASH

Wow. That's some crazy barrier.

It's looking a bit less white and foggy than before though.

CRASH

Ah, the Skeleton is really on fire now. It's looks a bit like Burning man, flames reaching up its arms and covering its shoulders and head.

Can they really kill it? A immortal monster like that doesn't exactly seem the type that will go down with a bit of heat.

There's a price to pay too, That shield is almost gone. If I called it a bubble before, it's about to pop. Almost invisible compared to the white orb that was in place at the start.

Ah... I see it.

That was the plan all along.

This was all to bide time.

To stall for young Gandalf.

"THUNDER!"

"THUNDER!"

The shout was overwhelmed as the magic erupted over Talia's head, passing force knocking her to her knees as the shield released from the inside out.

With impact that shook the white fires of faith free to the air of the giant room, the Skeleton shuddered, its chest agape as the magic forced its way inside, pulsing and burning a path of fury. Yellow, blue, red and orange mixed in a single pillar of force that surged from the crystal piece atop Grant's staff. Even as he too fell towards the ground, his hands clutched the wood, barely capable of kneeling as the magic continued.

"NOW TALIA! DO IT NOW!" His shouted command was barely a whisper over the roar of magics, but Talia moved all the same, responding with all her remaining effort.

As the last whispers and sputters of the magic fell to their ends in threads and spitfire, She rose with her Mace held high to shout the crucial words. "TURN UNDEAD!"

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-" The Giant Skeleton howled in agony, head thrown back and arms raised towards the distant ceiling as the magic struck it- but it was not enough. Again Talia shouted:

"TURN UNDEAD!"

Her words lashed out with the glow of faith. Her power crucial ability as a paladin, a weapon against the scourge that haunts mankind. "TURN UNDEAD!" It stuck out again, and again. "TURN UNDEAD!"

Behind her, the clatter of a staff rolling upon polished stone confirmed what she already knew. Grant slumped to the floor unconscious, completely spent by his massive efforts. How he'd even had so much power left, Talia didn't know, but she knew that it was down to this last spell.

Mace raised high with all of her remaining strength, she shouted the last of her magics:

"TURN UNDEAD!"

As her energy left her, she stared as the great Skeleton fell to the ground before her. As if crumpling beneath its own weight, it slouched downward, flaming fists of bone and shackles landing to either side of her weakened stance. The Skull, too, approached. In the dark caverns of its eyes she could see smoldering coals of hatred. Black and desperate things, raging against the pain that had lashed out upon its body of bleached bones.

Then, the flames atop its chest, its arms and shoulders, faded. It began to rise.

Talia held her ground, knees shaking along the effort just to stand as it towered upward before her. Higher and higher, back to its full stance, easily thirty paces of scorched and ashen bone. Egregiously wounded, but not defeated, that hated smolder looked down at her with such pressure it threatened to break her very spirit.

To her soul, and to the unconscious Grant behind her, Talia offered a silent prayer. They had done all they could. They had thrown everything they had, and come up short. Eyes wide, she waited for the end, mace ready to strike out with one final swing as a massive fist raised high for the coming downward motion.

The end came- only to cease.

Eyes open to the final blow, Talia watched in awe as a terrible great fire erupted from afar: giant skeleton shattered beneath the blow of a terrible flame. Hollow eyes raged their last as the ghostly green fires surging with relentless pressure and wicked heat that reduced the massive bones to nothing more than dust and slag.

From the distant direction which the sudden blast had come from, she could see the slightest glow of blue seemed to watch, staring intently from the dark stone of the dungeon wall. A beautiful and crystal blue, observing those beneath it.

Then, the strength she'd pressed far beyond her normal limits fell to gray, fading with the last light of her magics. Talia's legs gave out, then her knees, and then even her head slumped to the cold surface of the polish runic floor.

Without a further thought or question to how or why, she embraced by the sweet comfort of nothingness.