Chapter 44: Chasing clouds

Elias:

The chill that was to be felt outside is making its way inside the temple. I can see that the candles are barely flickering. It won't be long now, that the dark clouds release their poison on my home.

I take the heavy tome, which was on the altar, and begin leafing through it. There, among the normal celebrations of saints, and ceremonies about weddings and funerals, is what I seek.

What I will need, is to burn a body, and then coat the ashes in holy water. Gerion will have his chance to be useful. Besides, it is better if we burn him, rather than to leave him as Sorix's servant.

I go to the throne of Harika, and peer inside the bowl, which is always present there. It is full. I thank the spirit of the priest, for doing this final good deed for us.

"Did you find a way to stop the clouds?" I hear Norrix ask me. I turn to him.

"It involves a little bit of magic. Still, it is doable," I tell him.

"Please tell me, that it has nothing to do with human sacrifices?" Well, I'll be. A vampire who doesn't want to kill.

"We can use the corpse of Gerion," I say. When I get a blank look in return, I clarify. "The priest who is nailed on the arch."

"Wait, was he the only priest here?" Norrix looks paler than usual. I understand him. Doing the work of priests is not something that normal people should do.

"We can't waste time arguing. Nothing bad will happen. There is no difference between the priests, and the rest of us," I assure him. He looks ready to argue. Yet, when the first thunder sounds in the distance, he closes his mouth. "Let us go."

I take the tome, and he takes the holy water. Together, we go outside. Climbing the temple is not easy, yet, I manage. Soon, the corpse of the priest falls down, and I jump from the arch.

"Ok, let us do this," Norrix says. I make a fireball in my hands, and throw it at the priest. His clothes catch on fire, and the smell of burning meat fills the air.

"I wonder if anyone is going to make us face the court over this?" Norrix asks. I shake my head.

"No one needs to know. Well, maybe Giv and Nate do need to know, but no one else," Erik is still a child. He could blab to people about what we did.

The stormy skies are not releasing water yet, but many thunders are falling down. I just hope that the barrier around the town will prevent any fires. Now, more than ever, I wish that the barrier had a water filter. But no, this is too expensive for our mayor.

The priest turns to ashes, and I take the basin with the holy water from Norrix. Slowly, I pour it on the ashes. They turn into white dust, and the wind carries them up.

We wait, as the sacrifice begins to work. The necromantic mana doesn't want to just clear out, yet, we did sacrifice the remains of a priest. As if the foul mana decides to do a final push, a thick black thunder falls from the sky.

The barrier strains to keep it at bay. Just as it is about to give way, a white mana surges up, and repairs the cracks. The black clouds part, and we see the night sky.

You are reading story The Dread Scrolls at novel35.com

"Was that Givontair?" I ask Norrix. He must be more acquainted with the dragon's mana.

"Could be. The thunders must have woken him up," Norrix looks at the charred spot, where once the priest laid. "We should clean it. Do you think there are cloths and brooms at the temple?"

"We can't leave fingerprints," I say. "Come on, we have to make it to the inn, before the morning."

Norrix doesn't need much convincing. We walk back to the inn, and see Givontair and Nathaniel waiting for us at the entrance.

"Just what did the two of you do?" The dragon growls. I am taken aback by his reaction. This is the first time; I see him this angry.

"Didn't you see the black clouds in the air? We had to take care of them," I say. Givontair's face softens a little.

"That is good. How did you manage?" Nathaniel asks. I shift in my spot.

"We might have cremated the local priest. That said, we didn't kill the man," I tell him.

"What a mess," Givontair rubs the back of his head. He looks conflicted about something. "To think, the man was alive, when I destroyed the crystal."

"We can't keep on running," Nathaniel says. Givontair looks tired at that.

"So, we play tower defense?" The dragon asks, making it clear from his tone of voice, that this is not optimal. "What if Sorix attacks when we are asleep?"

"Norrix is awake, when we are asleep," Nathaniel says, and looks at the vampire. "That is, if you are up to the task?"

Norrix smiles then, and nudges me.

"How about you become my partner for the night shift?" I feel a blush spread through my body, when Norrix suggests that. He is a friendly guy, and good company overall. Not to mention, he has a dimpled smile. One that makes him look younger and more carefree, than he really is.

"Sounds good to me," I say. Givontair nods then, and goes back inside the inn. Nathaniel lingers in the doorway.

"We intend to put a barrier around the town, which will prevent all necromancers from coming inside. Can you two make sure that Sorix is not in the town?" Nate asks. I blink at that.

"You want us to patrol the town?" I ask him. He shakes his head.

"No, I just need more mana for a ritual. A Scrying one," that eases my nerves. Even with the cleansing ritual, I still have plenty of mana. Norrix reserves are untouched. We can definitely do this.  

You can find story with these keywords: The Dread Scrolls, Read The Dread Scrolls, The Dread Scrolls novel, The Dread Scrolls book, The Dread Scrolls story, The Dread Scrolls full, The Dread Scrolls Latest Chapter