Whispers of A Dead Empire

Chapter 53

I was on high alert as I rummaged through my bags. All the vital potions were kept on Alinore's person, so I wasn't worried about them getting tampered with. My biggest concern was our food supply. I brought out all of the food and quickly laid it out. "Alinore, Carter, I need you to check over our food supplies for any sort of tampering. Mostly magic, and or poison."

I started pulling out whatever equipment I left behind and quickly inspected it. I ran my fingers across them, looking for any breaks or any spell residue. "Foods clear, Redrick. No sense of any magic in it." Alinore's soft voice filled the cabin.

"No poison, at least from mid-tier down, is present. I doubt anyone would use anything higher than that here." I nodded my head and sat back.

"Just check over the equipment, Alinore, see if anyone left a spell on it." It was stupid leaving our equipment here. I was fully expecting us to be alone here, and no one else was allowed in the domain until we completed our investigation. But the presence of a high-level teleportation spell was troublesome.

I stood up and limped over to the window and glanced outside of it, and looked around. This place has defied all levels of expectations. Nothing here makes sense. The undead was unlike anything I have ever dealt with. They were utterly devoid of any controlling factor and seemed to make choices on their own. They were even fighting amongst themselves. It really made me even more curious. Who was the Empress? What power did she possess to make them act this way? Was she a friend or foe?

With a sigh, I tore my gaze from the outside and limped back over to the couch. Alinore was still busy inspecting the bags and equipment. Gunther had already passed out on one of the couches. The cuts on his body were rapidly healing from the potion he had drunk earlier. Those praetorians were powerful. I probably could have beaten them if they weren't spirits, but that was neither here nor there. We would have to be more careful and not split up anymore; if any of those praetorians caught us on our own, we would be screwed.

We all sat in silence until Carter spoke up. "So, Redrick, what's the plan for now?"

"For now, we lie low. I have no idea what ringing that bell did, and to be honest with you, I'd much rather lie low for some time, at least until we figure out what's next." I settled onto the couch and laid back. Little flairs of pain coursed through my body. I really hated having to use side-step more than I needed to. This pain sucks.

"Fair. Alinore and I will take our first watch then. Once you wake up, we can rotate out." I nodded my head in agreement as my eyelids grew heavy.

"Alright, I'll only be a moment," I told him as I threw my arm over my eyes in an attempt to keep out some of the ambient light from keeping me awake longer than I had to be.

When I woke up, my body was pulled taunt, and my muscles were sore. I pulled myself off of the couch and could feel my bowels twisting, crying out to be relieved. I sat up and wiped away my bleary eyes and glanced around the room. Gunther was awake and was staring outside. His hand on his staff, poised and ready for action. I shoved down whatever I was feeling and kept myself low to the ground as I made my way over to him.

"What is it?" I asked as soon as I was close enough to him to whisper."The undead are on the move. But this time, it's the military." I tore my gaze from his face and looked outside and saw a small formation of undead marching down the road. It was composed of primary zombies, all using swords, followed by a few skeletons that wore heavily padded gloves. Leading the front was a spirit with a spear. They were all equally spaced and marched with purpose down the road as if they were looking for something.

"Ah, well, now we finally know what that bell did. It seems the military here is still very alive and well. What are your thoughts on the matter?" I pulled away from the window and walked over to the table. Ignoring the desire to use the restroom, at least until I knew we were safe.