Chapter 30 - Woman In White

"I'm starting to think that they really didn't go to get help." Professor Kal said sarcastically as he poked at a fire with a long stick.

Ryan didn't even bother acknowledging him in any way. He was sitting as far away from Professor Kal as he could with the worm monster still snuggled up against him seemingly asleep. Ryan was still fuming, it had been over an hour since the end of the battle. They had commandeered the adventurers campsite, using their fire pit as their own. Professor Kal had set out food for his student, but Ryan didn't have much of an appetite.

They sat there in awkward silence for a long time. Professor Kal was keeping an eye on the dead bodies they had dragged closer to the campsite. He was wanting to catch the moment the dungeon would absorb them. It was said that the dungeons would recycle whatever was left inside them, he just didn't know how long it would take or what the process looked like.

"You know, I'm actually very proud of the way you handled yourself back there." Professor Kal admitted.

Ryan looked over at the man, his arms still crossed across his chest. He didn't say anything.

"Most mages would panic if faced with the same predicament, let alone one as young as yourself. Although there were some things you could have done better, overall it was almost flawless."

"How can you say that, without you sending in this…. thing, I would have died. How can you say it was almost flawless?" Ryan spoke for the first time in over an hour, gesturing at the monster.

"Because you never gave up, not until you could barely stand. Sometimes in life, no matter how hard you try, no matter how hard you fight, you fail. If you would have died it would have been caused through no fault of your own. You used every tool available to you, you used all your knowledge to the best of your abilities." Professor Kal said, standing up and smoothing out his robe.

Ryan felt slightly better after listening to what Professor Kal had told him, but was still angry with him. Everyone liked to be told that they had done a good job, he was no exception. Although his mood had been lifted slightly his mood was still sour. One thing still bothering him was why Professor Kal chose to put him in such dangerous situations. He decided to ask.

"Why did you make me risk my life though? Even if you were nearby, there still was a chance I could have been killed!"

"Necromancy is the art of death, wouldn't you say?" Professor Kal asked his own question.

"I guess so." Ryan said, not following his train of thought.

"Well, to be an effective necromancer, you must be familiar with death. What better way than to be so close to it that you can feel its icy clutches around your neck?" He said in a low gravelly voice, causing Ryan's skin to have goosebumps.

Ryan didn't ask anymore questions, he was almost afraid to. For a moment, just one fleeting moment, it almost looked like Professor Kal was death himself. He could have sworn that instead of his black hair and plain face, there was nothing but a skull with dried skin stretched over it with multi-colored flames burning in the sockets. He shook his head, driving the visions from his mind. He was exhausted and had been underground for far too long. He just needed a good rest, that was all.

"Here, take this." Professor Kal offered him what looked like a gemstone set into a holder. It had a chain so you could wear it around your neck like a necklace.

Ryan looked at him suspiciously, wondering if this was another test of some sort.

"It's a reward for your efforts today. Give me the ring I gave you as well. I'll take the limiter off of it so you can use it how you like." Professor Kal said after seeing Ryan eye him.

Ryan timidly reached out, taking the necklace from him. He handed him the storage ring as well, smiling slightly at the thought of finally being able to use it. He examined the necklace more closely. He noticed that there were small etchings that were carved into the green gemstone. They were impossibly intricate, staring at them made his head hurt.

"What is this?" He asked.

"It's called a summoning charm. It's very old, I highly doubt they even know how to make them anymore." Professor Kal told him, handing back the storage ring after removing the limit he put on it.

"A summoning charm? I've never heard of anything like that before."

"I would be surprised if you had. They're very convenient items. They allow you to instantly summon one creature without having to recite a chant or prepare the spell." Kal explained to him.

Ryan almost dropped the priceless item. If what Professor Kal said was true then this thing was worth many times more than the largest storage item.

"I can't take this. It's too much!" Ryan said, refusing the gift.

"Nonsense, it's a gift. It would be rude to refuse it. You can use it with your friend there, I'm sure it will love to see you again."

With the Professor refusing to take the charm back, he relented, putting it around his neck. He then looked at the worm monster sleeping next to him, a frown on his face.

"What is this thing anyways. It ruined my robes."

"Ha ha." Professor Kal burst out with laughter.

"It's called an ubi vermis diaboli tenebris rostratis, or dark beaked devil worm. They love dark damp places. They can burrow underground just as well as they can swim in the water. As you saw before, they are a terrifying presence on the battlefield. I summoned him early on, having him keep an eye on you. The affection he shows for you is all him though, I don't know what that's about to be honest with you." He explained after calming himself down.

"So you didn't tell it to slobber all over me?" Ryan asked, looking back towards the worm.

"Of course not, just what kind of person do you think I am?" Professor Kal said, looking at him with hurt eyes.

"Ehh, nevermind." Ryan said, shaking his head.

"So how does summoning work? They haven't taught us that yet at the Academy."

"Summoning is much like when I open a Warp Gate. It opens a portal to another plane, or it could be our own, then draws a creature into the portal, popping it out the other side. Of course there is more to it, but that is the simplest explanation. One word of warning though, never summon anything that could be stronger than you. When you summon a creature, part of the spell binds it to your will, forcing it to obey. Should its will overpower yours, it will then be free to do as it pleases, which would most likely mean it would kill you." Professor Kal explained seriously.

"Then won't the devil worm overpower me if I use this thing?" Ryan asked, holding up the summoning charm.

"That's the beauty of the charm. It allows the user to summon ANY creature that is bound to it, with no restrictions. Well, I can't say there are no restrictions, I've never tried it on a dragon before." Professor Kal said, trailing off at the end and falling deep into thought.

"So how do I use it?"

"Hmmm? Oh, oh, yes, sorry about that. Just place your hand on the worm's head, then hold the charm in your other hand. Circulate your mana from one hand to the other until the gem glows. I've already released it from my control so it should be seamless."

Ryan paused and thought for a moment, then jerked his head up, looking at Professor Kal. "When did you release him?"

"Oh, about an hour ago. Pretty soon after we set up here." He said, shrugging his shoulders.

"So you're saying that an unrestrained MONSTER has been sleeping right next to me!" Ryan spat out, his anger rising once again.

"What? Look at him. He's like a puppy with you. Just finish doing what I told you to do." Professor Kal said, dismissing any worries Ryan might have had.

With a huff, Ryan finished binding the devil worm to the charm, then put it around his neck. The devil worm didn't move an inch the entire time, seeming content with being next to him. He then began to think about how his life would unfold from this moment onwards, how it would change. He was the only son of a somewhat successful merchant. His father had spent almost his entire fortune just to send him to the Academy.

If only he knew that his only son, the heir to the business, was currently inside a dark dungeon being snuggled by a devil worm. Ryan's lips curled up into a smile at the thought. He knew he couldn't tell anyone though, not even his best friend Ben. Ben thought that he was visiting home right now, that was the lie that he came up with before leaving with Professor Kal.

"Now what?" Ryan asked, only to see Professor Kal had already moved away.

Professor Kal was practically crawling on all fours, moving around in circles. Curious, Ryan got to his feet and walked over to where Professor Kal was imitating a crab. He was just in time to catch the last goblin body being absorbed into the ground. Professor Kal had a clear crystal out, watching everything through it.

"Fascinating, purely fascinating. Nothing is left, not even a single cell. The dungeon even absorbed its loin cloth, why would it do that? Why didn't it absorb the man's body? Could it be able to tell the difference? Is there a mechanism that differentiates the organisms born in the dungeons from those outside? Or is there an intelligence governing everything? I have so many more questions, so many more." Professor Kal was like a raving lunatic, speaking quickly, nearly pulling his hair out.

Ryan had no idea what he was going on about, but decided to give him some time to himself. He walked back over, sitting down next to his new summons. Leaning his head back, he closed his eyes. He would have class tomorrow and it didn't seem like he would get much sleep tonight.

…..

"We made it out." A wary looking adventurer sighed in relief as he and his three companions exited the dungeon.

"We lost Malcom though."

"Don't look so down, there was nothing we could do for him. If we would have tried to help none of us would have made it." Another said, putting his hand on the other's shoulder.

"Yeah, I suppose so…. Should we get help and try to get his body, and what about the other two that were in there?"

"Forget about it, his body is long gone, there's probably nothing left, same goes for the other two as well." The leader of the group explained.

"Let's just go to the tavern and drink to Malcom's memory, put all of this behind us." The leader suggested.

"We should at least get help for them right? I mean, they could still be alive, running like we were." He said, looking back towards the entrance to the dungeon.

"Absolutely not! What we did back there….. No one can ever know, got it? Just forget it ever happened, you'll live much longer that way." The leader stated plainly, staring at his companion dead in the eyes.

Averting his eyes and looking down, the adventurer relented. He nodded his head, conveying that he understood. Seeing that his threat worked, the leader then started towards the nearest tavern. The other three followed his lead, not saying anything as they walked.

Not only had they abandoned their friend's body, they had basically committed murder as well. They all knew they were culpable. They had led an entire platoon of goblins right to the group they had run into and there was no way that they could have survived. Especially since Ron had knocked the smaller one into the pond to buy themselves more time.

They had to do it, they didn't have a choice. It was either that or the goblins would kill them, they really didn't want that to happen. Now, as long as everyone kept quiet, they would be in the clear.

They were a fairly new group of adventurers, only joining together a little over a month ago. They had found each other in a tavern, drinking like fish. They all had been part of different groups before, but were kicked out due to lackluster performances. Seeing that they all had something in common, and the common thought that they were being discriminated against, they banded together.

Nicum was the self appointed leader. They hadn't voted him in, but with his strong will and assertive attitude, placed himself into the position. Sam was the youngest, and smallest of the group. He was the one that wanted to go get help for the people they had put into danger, but he didn't have the confidence to go against the group. Ron was the biggest of the group, standing at an impressive six feet two inches tall. He was as dumb as a bag of hammers, but could still swing a sword.

Bringing up the rear was Daniel, he was the 'scout' of the group. He was horrible at his position, he had led them into the mess from before. He failed to see the goblins had set up camp directly in front of their path. What was worse was the fact he didn't notice anything until they had become surrounded. Nicum was seriously considering changing his assignment after this.

It was late at night, the street was dimly lit by lanterns burning fat. The group turned down a dark alleyway, it was a short cut to one of the cheapest taverns in town. They had taken this path more times than they could count. If they weren't down in a dungeon, scrounging around for a living, they were at this tavern, drinking their lives away.

"Who's that up ahead?" Nicum said, signaling for the others to stop.

Up ahead, only made visible by her white dress, was a woman. She had her back to them and her head down. Her black hair draped over her face and if they listened closely, they could hear her whimpering. They looked at each other, not sure what to do.

Sam, being the bleeding heart of the group, walked forward. "Miss, is everything alright? Do you need any help?"

Reacting to his calls, the woman in white's whimpering turned into full blown sobbing. Sam slowly edged closer, for some reason the woman in front of him gave him the chills. He pushed past his reservations though, continuing on.

"I wouldn't Sam, somethings not right." Ron called out, getting the same feeling from the woman.

Sam turned to look at Ron, only five feet from the woman. From behind him, the woman's violent crying quickly morphed into hysterical laughter. Sam whipped his head back to the woman, only to find her now facing him. Sam's face contorted into one of abject horror.

The woman's pure white dress had suddenly turned into one that had been ripped and torn. The pristine white lace was now covered in dirt, mud, and dried blood. Her slim arms and petite hands were twisted and bloated. A few of her fingernails were missing, the others were chipped with blood and flesh under the nails.

Her eyes were black, so black as to seem as if they sucked in what little light there was in that dark alleyway. They were set in what once was an angelic face, but now her face was deformed and swollen, like she had been underwater for years. She opened her mouth, showing rotted teeth behind a pair of blue lips, contorting them into a vulgar smile.

Sam reached for his short sword, forgetting that he had tossed it aside back inside the dungeon. Before he could do anything else, the woman in white latched on to his face, pressing her cold lifeless lips to his. He tried to struggle free, but she had supernatural strength and didn't let go. All his companions could see was Sam kissing the woman, they started to clap and jeer at him.

He tried to scream, but was met with something terrifying. Water started to flood into his mouth and down his throat. He instinctively took in a sharp breath, filling his lungs with the icy waters. No matter how much strength he mustered, he couldn't break free. He was drowning on dry land and no one could save him.

The woman held him in her embrace for several minutes before allowing his lifeless body to fall to the ground. By this time the jeering had stopped, the other three stood still and stared on in disbelief. They could finally see what Sam had seen, and it would be the last thing they ever would.. The drowned woman turned her black eyes towards them and started laughing once again.