Chapter 112: Chapter 112: House of Kalamus (10)
The ground trembled under the weight of an ancient power. Elkid was drawing seals with his own blood, each stroke burning with golden fire as the air grew dense, as though the entire world held its breath.
"Elkid..." My voice came out broken, torn, while the demon’s laughter leaked through from within. "That spell... you can’t... it will destroy everything."
His eyes gleamed with determination, though fear was written in the sweat on his brow.
"It’s the Ancestral Arcane Prison. Our forefather left it to seal the impossible. If this is the only way to save you... then so be it."
The demon erupted in fury inside me, thrashing like a beast in a cage. My mouth curled into a smile that wasn’t mine.
"Fools!" it roared, my voice twisted over its own. "Do you think a cage can hold me? He is mine! His flesh, his bones, his soul—everything belongs to me!"
The symbols expanded, covering the shattered floor, climbing the broken walls like living chains. Elkid’s blood fed the circle, weaving light and shadow into an unbreakable pattern.
I felt my body ripping apart from within, my will clashing against the demon’s hunger. For a fleeting moment, I seized control. My eyes met Elkid’s.
"Elkid... listen to me... it’s too strong. But... I can hold it... just for a moment."
"You’ll die if you do!" he shouted.
"Better me... than the whole world." I clamped the beast down with my will, every muscle burning, every vein seared with black fire. I held it in place, even as its claws tore me apart inside.
Then, suddenly, silence.
And in that calm, I heard it.
"Don’t do this..." The demon’s voice was no longer a roar. It was broken. Pleading. "Don’t lock me away... please. You’re... my only friend."
It begged with my voice. Damn monster. I would face death with a smile—I was not as pathetic as it.
The seal closed with a thunderclap that split the air in two. Arcane chains descended from the heavens, binding my blood to the earth, and at the center stood him: Kalamus, my master, my brother-in-arms... and the monster the demon had forged.
I didn’t scream. I didn’t cry. I only watched as he vanished inside the prison, my eyes empty of everything but restrained fury.
That was the last day I saw him.
From then on, I took up the quill and wrote what happened, so no one would forget either his glorious deeds or his unforgivable sins. I couldn’t allow his name to be lost to dust, but neither could I allow his crimes to be ignored. The House of Kalamus had to be remembered in all its splendor, and in all its curse.
With the few arcanists who survived, I ordered the construction of a mausoleum. A fortress that would seal not only my master, but also myself and those who still remained loyal to him. Not as punishment, but as an oath. If Kalamus was to wander sealed for eternity, I would be his guardian. We, his shadow.
The day the mausoleum was sealed, all the arcanists together spoke the last forbidden spell of our race.
A dimensional incantation, so vast it tore the heavens apart. The fortress rose, crossing the limits of our world and vanishing among nameless stars. Wandering, lost in the void, without a course.
I did it because I feared the truth: if my master ever escaped, if the demon ever fully claimed his body... neither I nor anyone else could stop him.
Better to cast him adrift, a relic floating in nothingness, than doom our race to be buried with him.
Thus ended the era of the arcanists of House Kalamus, who for ages ruled an empire that seemed indestructible—until it withered because of the accursed dragons.
Thus began our exile.
We, the last, sealed ourselves in stone and silence. Eternal custodians of a man who was both hero and monster.
The master who devoured his own soul.
The friend who would never return.
That was the final written page. The group fell into silence as they read the account that shrouded this place.
The echo of the manuscript’s final words still rang in the minds of Jax and the women surrounding him.
Manaia, always the calm one, trembled with fear in her eyes, clutching her healing staff tightly.
Anya and Karely whispered protective chants, gathering their mana, unable to tear their gaze from the last page of the book.
Lyra, the youngest of the healers, wept quietly, while Jayde, the catlike assassin, stood perfectly alert, as though expecting something to emerge from the shadows unseen.
Jax slammed the manuscript shut.
His fingers shook, but his eyes burned with resolve.
A page had been torn out... and all that remained was the chilling fragment:
"If anyone reads this... Run!"
The tension was unbearable.
A deep rumble, like thunder buried beneath miles of stone, shook the ground.
Torches flickered, shelves groaned, and suddenly the floor at the center of the chamber split apart.
From the cracks rose a massive obsidian door, carved with runes that seemed to breathe.
At its core, a portal churned like a liquid vortex of shadows and fire, exhaling a metallic air that scorched the lungs.
"Holy heavens..." Manaia whispered, backing away in fear.
"This isn’t a ruin..." Karely added, her voice breaking. "It’s a trap..."
The entire group instinctively stepped back.
All except Jax.
He stepped forward, the light of the portal reflecting in his eyes.
He could feel it: this was no accident. That portal had waited centuries for someone to arrive.
And now, it had opened for them.
"There’s no turning back," Jax said firmly, drawing his weapon. "If this portal opened... it’s because what lies beyond is waiting for us."
Zela slammed her shield against the ground, resolute.
"Then we’ll go with you!"
Jayde smirked with her cold, calculated grin.
"If we’re going to die... then at least we’ll die killing."
One by one, the women formed around Jax.
Bows drawn, staffs glowing, swords ready for battle.
The air vibrated with tension and power.
The portal roared, the obsidian door finished opening, and a wave of dark energy flooded the chamber.
Jax clenched his teeth, raised his weapon, and shouted:
"Form up! Ready your souls!"
The ground quaked. The portal swallowed the light.
And together, with fear and determination entwined, they stepped into the unknown.