Tales of Undeath: The Von Virtus Chronicles

Approaching his two comrades as the beast grows closer, Jargen begins to melt the tar that restricted their movement.

Rel: AGHH!

As he got close to Rel, the young man could feel the burning heat emanating from his skin and searing his own.

Jargen: ENDURE, KID.

As the monster got dangerously close to their position, Jargen takes a couple of steps in its direction while increasing his body's temperature further, now glowing even redder than before. The monster recoils in fear momentarily, as most of the tar melts away from Rel and Punjo's bodies.

Jargen: DMITRI... GET THE ANTIDOTE FROM HIM. GO.

Both of them make their way to Dmitri's motionless body. Relying heavily on Rel to carry him forward, Punjo walked with much difficulty, yet both of them managed to reach him. The creature seemed entirely focused on Jargen, whose body temperature was now dropping, as he bled from his eyes, nose and ears.

Monster: Weak... Die...!

A faint whispering came from the slimy black sheet, advancing towards a weakened Jargen. As he stepped closer to the laboratory's exit, he turns to Rel and Punjo.

Jargen: You two... You'll have to find another way out of here. The cellar will no longer be an option.

Leading the creature out the laboratory, he leaves them with but a final statement.

Jargen: It was a pleasure to fight for home... For our home.

Rel and Punjo sit next to Dmitri's body, catching their breath. Taking a quick glance towards Punjo, Rel could see the sadness in his eyes. Neither of them had expected this night to be as dreadful as it was turning out.

Guard: What is that noise?!

Outside, the group of guards that were making their way towards the laboratory stop dead in their tracks, as they hear the sound of thundering footsteps in the distance. As the sound grows closer, the corridor itself seems to tremble.

Jargen: GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE WAY!

Suddenly, Jargen appears from behind the bend, bolting straight down the corridor where the guards were patrolling. While they initially reach for their swords, their stance rapidly changes when they see a slithering blanket coating the floor and walls chasing right behind him.

Guard: T-that's... Dmitri's experiment!

Some of them turn tail and start running in the opposite direction, while others decide instead to take the stairs to the upper floor to try and dodge the incoming mass. As Dmitri's creature chases after Jargen, who shoves some of the guards to the side himself in order to clear the path ahead, it slashes and gnaws at the fallen men while its body passes them by, leaving a trail of blood and open wounds in its wake.

Guard: RUN! RUN!!

As the guards scramble for their lives, Jargen makes a sharp left turn and heads down the wooden stairs that led to the cellar. As soon as the creature begins its descent into the cellar, something arouses its senses, causing its speed to increase to the point where it was now faster than Jargen. Surprisingly, it passes him by without so much as touching him, rushing across the 30-centimeter-high pool of wine that covered the cellar floor.

Jargen: What...?

Like a bloodthirsty hound feeding on fresh meat, it lunges at the floating corpse in the middle of the cellar. Just as it does, Tyssa comes running from behind some foudres, headed straight towards the stairs.

Tyssa: RUN, JARGEN!!

As she reaches for the matchbox, a black tendril latches and quickly coils around her leg, restricting it tightly. Though Jargen tries reaching for her hand to grab it, he was too late, and Tyssa is pulled into the growing mass of tentacles that devoured the floating corpse.

Jargen: FUCK...!

Wasting no time, Jargen rushed down the stairs, though it seemed like this was exactly what the monster wanted. In the blink of an eye, it stretches out countless tentacles, which touch the cellar's walls and begin entirely coating them. Before long, both Jargen and Tyssa were encased within a cage of pure darkness.

Jargen: Think this can stop me...? I'LL BECOME THE DAMN SUN IF THAT'S WHAT IT TAKES TO STOP YOU...!

Jargen raises his body's temperature yet again, to the point where his own skin was glowing so brightly that it could light up the pitch black room. Ahead of him, he could see Tyssa getting slowly devoured by the monster, which only seemed to grow stronger and stronger as it consumed the last corpse.

Tyssa: JARGEN...! RUN! SAVE YOURSELF!

Tyssa tries reaching for the matchbox, but it was as if the enemy could read her thoughts. Another tentacle coils around her wrist, cutting off circulation and causing her to drop the matchbox in the wine.

Jargen: No, Tyssa... I'm not the one who's worthy of saving here.

Jargen confidently strides toward the monster, his heat melting the tentacles as they get close... However, the temperature required for the tentacles to melt had increased considerably. Jargen was feeling his body give in, under the immense stress that he was putting it under. Still, he would not rest until Tyssa was safe from harm.

Jargen: My whole damn life I had a choice... And for most of it, I chose the easy path. No more.

Jargen stretches out his hand, gripping Tyssa's ankle. Her skin gets burnt badly, but the tar recoils

Tyssa: AAAHHH!!!

She cries in agony, feeling the intense pain coming from the third-degree burns Jargen was inflicting upon her.

Jargen: Sorry... You'll be the last person I ever hurt.

Grabbing the fallen matchbox in his other hand, he closes it tightly, causing all the matches within to ignite. With the makeshift fireball in his hand, he hurls it towards the cellar's exit, the very same they had used when first entering the mansion. As the burning matchbox hits the wall of tar, it causes it to temporarily recoil, creating a large enough hole for Tyssa to fit through.

Jargen: Rel and Punjo should be making their way outside soon... The future of our people lie in your hands, now. Get his fortune... Take back what's ours.

With a powerful throw, he launches Tyssa toward the exit's stairs. As she flies through the self-repairing hole, the last thing she sees is a glowing Jargen, radiating more and more heat from his body, before the hole closes back up entirely. With her fall softened by the wine that permeated the cellar's floor, she breaks a couple of stair steps due to the impact of Jargen's throw, yet the pain couldn't compare to the searing intensity of her burns.

Tyssa: JARGEN!!!

Inside the black cube, Jargen's body burned so brightly that the wine around him began to ignite.

Jargen: Syl... Cabdan... I'll be joining you soon.

As his skin begins melting away, so does the monster start writhing and screeching in pain.

Jargen: Wouldn't be surprised... If we all end up in Mortmundus... Heh. Heheh...

The fire rapidly spreads, setting the entire cellar on fire before long.

Jargen: But I'd be lying if I said I'm not hoping for better... For another life where I meet her. Undeserving as I may be, if there's any redeemable act I've ever committed... It is thanks to her.

As his body turns to ash, Jargen starts crying, with a wide smile in his face.

Jargen: Would you be proud...? Or would you be disappointed, if you saw me now, I wonder...?

Having made her way up the cellar's exit's stairs, Tyssa looks back, to see a curtain of fire enveloping the entire room.

Tyssa: Jargen...

Tears streaming down her face, Tyssa clutches the wine-soaked journal that documented the locations of Cabdan's fortune.

Jargen: It hurts... It burns... So... Much...

As he is completely vaporized, so is the creature, whose cries of torment horrifyingly pierced the otherwise silent and peaceful night.