Chapter 7: Enthralled
The runes faded from his vision.
[You have received a Memory: Bonefiend's Embrace.]
Let's check this shit out.
He focused inward, focusing on summoning the memory.
Something stirred from within, expanding outwards.
Dark strands appeared at first, wrapping around Dolin's body like thick cords.
At first, Dolin thought they were ropes.
That was, until he noticed the texture.
They were like thick coiled tentacles. They began to wound up even tighter, forming a dense protective layer around his body.
Then came the bone plating.
Jagged white plates slid into place over the wrappings, locking into a formation across his shoulders, ribs, knees, and forearms.
It's crude and ain't that pretty. But it sure does feel solid.
The armor moved easily with his limbs, not impeding on the movement of any of his joints.
"Woah there."
The others turned.
"You didn't have that before," another knight said.
Dolin looked down at himself with a smile.
"No I did not."
"Is that your aspect?"
Dolin paused for a second.
Right… There's no way these people know about the spell.
To them, awakened abilities seemed to be different.
Explaining the truth would only cause confusion and waste time that he did not have.
So Dolin shrugged.
"Yeah… something like that."
One of the knights let out a low whistle.
"Useful trick."
Another frowned at the armor.
"Looks like it crawled off the corpse of that beast."
Dolin glanced down at it again, once again being reminded of how disgusting it looked.
Can't really argue with that.
Across the chamber, the knight who had lost his arm was leaning against the wall, his arm already tied up with cloth to stop the bleeding.
The man was pale, but alive.
"Leave me," he muttered. "I will only slow you all down."
"Alright," the man who slid off the monster's back responded in an understanding yet saddened tone.
"We fall back to the keep."
One of the knights frowned.
"The keep?"
"If the outer halls are overrun, that is where we must regroup. The throne hall is the safest place."
He glanced at Dolin.
"It has stone walls and an escape route."
Dolin nodded in response.
The knight stepped forward and offered Dolin a hand.
"Garrick."
Dolin shook it firmly.
"Dolin."
Garrick studied him.
"You are an oddity. Even though your swordsmanship is crude and untrained, you fight well for a kid. What's even more surprising is that you have an aspect."
Dolin shrugged.
"Running from gangs teaches you things."
Garrick didn't understand the reference as he seemingly misinterpreted it.
"Don't get any ideas about escaping outside," he said grimly.
"The outer gate fell an hour ago. The courtyard is overrun."
Dolin responded.
"I know. Earlier I saw them."
Another knight added bitterly, "Those things are pouring through like ants. Anyone who runs outside is dead within seconds.
Garrick nodded.
"That's why we must fall back to the keep. It has thicker walls. One entrance. And the King's hall inside connects to an old escape tunnel beneath the castle."
"Sounds good," Dolin said. He still did not know the true objective of this nightmare, but he certainly wanted to get to somewhere safer.
"Alright," Garrick said. "We will move."
They left the wounded knight behind.
***
The castle corridors were in chaos.
Blood smeared around the stone walls.
Smoke drifted through the halls, stinging Dolin's eyes.
Then Garrick suddenly raised a hand.
"Stop."
Everyone froze.
Murmuring echoed from the next hallway.
It was a low whispering, causing a chill to creep up Dolin's spine.
"That doesn't sound right," one of the knights murmured.
The whispering grew louder, then figures stepped into views.
Five of them. They were castle guards, the armor on them marking them as defenders.
But something was wrong, their movements were stiff and their eyes… Their eyes were empty. Devoid of all emotion.
Just like the knight I saw before getting chased…
"It's all pointless," one of the armored guards spoke, his voice sounding dull and lifeless.
Another guard raised his sword, swinging it forward as if being controlled like a marionette.
"You… should surrender."
"Resisting… is pointless…"
The knights reacted immediately.
"What in the hell—"
"They seem to be under some sort of mind hex. I saw one earlier," Dolin spoke.
Before the group could even get into formation, the guards charged.
Steel rang out through the hallway.
One enthralled rushed toward Garrick, while another went towards Dolin. Their movements were reckless yet fast.
Dolin sidestepped and slashed across the guard's ribs.
The Traitorous Edge cut cleanly, slicing easily through the mundane iron armor.
Even though the guard had a deep wound, he barely reacted. He swung again wildly. Dolin ducked and drove his blade into the man's head, slicing right into his brain.
[You have slain a dormant human, name unknown.]
The guard's body collapsed instantly.
Behind him, one of the knights shouted in pain.
Dolin turned.
Two of the enthralled guards had overwhelmed one of the knights, their blades stabbing into the man's flesh again and again.
"Damn it!" Garrick roared.
He cut them down with a powerful strike.
The remaining guard lunged forward, another knight intercepting him.
The two exchanged a cacophony of blows rapidly.
Then the enthralled guard ignored the blade that went right through his chest, tackling the knight straight into the wall. The impact shattered the knight's ribs, causing him to groan out in pain.
The guard's sword then plunged into the knight's chest, killing him instantly.
Damn it. They don't suffer from pain at all.
Dolin slashed his sword in a downward arc, slicing right through the helmet of another one of the guards. He had been hit a few times, but his new armor was impervious to the weak weapons of the guards.
[You have slain a dormant human, name unknown.]
Only three of them were left. Dolin, Garrick, and one more surviving knight.
The hallway was littered with bodies.
Garrick wiped blood with his blade.
"What the hell is wrong with them?"
The surviving knight knelt beside the corpses with an anguished expression on his face.
"Some sort of mind hex."
"Has to be."
Garrick looked toward the deeper halls.
"We are almost at the throne hall. Whatever is doing this… someone there must know."
Dolin glanced at one of the dead guards.
The nightmare would only get worse from here on out.