Assault on the Dark Spire part 2

         The Necromancer stood up as blood gushed from his wounds. The Ancient dark magic staff had expended all of its energy, but the evil staff had a mind of its own and was determined to retake as much energy as it could. The staff began to absorb the dark power of the Haunted forest, the cursed clearing, the undead minions and the Necromancer himself. Dark energy swirled around the Necromancer but he refused to give up the staff even though it was killing him. He held it tight against his body as the dark energy stripped the flesh and organs from his bones. The undead minions all collapsed to the ground and their souls were released into the air. The demons of the Haunted forest fled from this realm as they feared their energy would be drained from the mad Staff’s power.

            The Mayor could barely stand and had to watch the madness unfold as he struggled to his feet. When the energy and flashing light faded the Necromancer stood before the Mayor as a skeleton. The Skeleton was fused with the power of the staff. The Staff held his magic, his life force and his soul and the Necromancer held the Staff. It was even more important to him now than it had ever been.

            The mayor couldn’t fight and even if he could he didn’t know how to kill a skeleton wizard with so much power. The Mayor stood up defiantly. He didn’t think he could win, but he had to try. He had to fight, even with his last breath. “Foolish Mortal. I have been reborn. I am the most powerful undead wizard of all time. I have been reborn as a Lich and my power surpasses all. I have power over death itself!!” The Lich Shouted. At that moment Death appeared. The Grim reaper wore a black cloak and carried a scythe, he floated in front of the Lich and his cloak seemed to fade into the shadows. “As a mortal you tried to bend the laws of life and death to your will, you twisted the laws of reality to match your selfish desires. I cannot take mortals before their time so I had to sit and watch as you sinned against nature. But you are no longer mortal, you are an abomination that claims to have powers over me. Alright then Abomination, do your worst” Death said, its voice came from the air and not its skeletal mouth. Each word that Death spoke echoed and sent chills down The Mayor’s spine.

            The Lich wasted no time and held out his staff sending his strongest spell at the Grim Reaper “Lord of Death, you shall bow to me!” Shouted the Lich as the magic of the staff blasted the Grim Reaper and surrounded him. Death spun his scythe through the air and the magic spell dissipated. “Fool” Death said then in a blink was next to the Lich, then in another blink the Grim Reaper had slashed his Scythe through the Lich.

            The Lich was thrown back and damaged but was not destroyed. His life force was safe within the Staff. The Lich was quite possibly immortal, but he was not stronger than Death itself. The Grim Reaper summoned a dark portal below the Lich. Shadowy hands rose up from the portal and grabbed onto the Lich, dragging him down into the ground. The Lich screamed as the shadow hands pulled him into his dark prison deep down into the earth. The ground shook and the Lich slowly disappeared underground.

            “Thank so much” the Mayor said as his voice quaked with fear. He knew Death was a natural force and not a villain like the Lich, but it was still terrifying to be in its presence. Death nodded to the Mayor “You have also contributed to this victory young Mayor. You and John Baines” Said Death. “What will happen to the Necromancer? Or the Lich or whatever he calls himself” Asked the Mayor “He will be sealed underground for eternity. But I fear he will regain his power one day and return. He will return but will need to use all of his energy to do so. Only then will he be able to be destroyed once and for all. So I hope that there will be mortals as brave as you when that happens” Death explained.

            “I want to be there when he comes back. I will do anything to make sure the Necromancer doesn’t come back to destroy the world” The Mayor said. The Grim Reaper was surprised “it is within my power to do this but there is a price. You will be immortal, free from dying of old age, but you can still be killed by other means. Also you will only be immortal while standing on these Hallowed grounds. You may leave the forest to see your family, but as you reach the end of your life you must never leave the forest or you will die the second your foot touches the outside world” Death explained.

            The Mayor was overjoyed to have a chance to protect his people and the people of the world. “Thank you so much for this chance, I will not let it go to waste. I promise. But these grounds are not hallowed or holy, are they?” Asked the Mayor. “Yes, this was once the burial site of many heroes of the ages. This was the site for the heroes of not just the Autumn Forest but of many lands as well. The Necromancer corrupted that energy and turned it to dark energy. The land and forest will be forever scarred, the Haunted forest will be free from demons but the spirits and creatures of the night still lurk within. The land will remain blackened and twisted but the dark energy has been removed and sealed within the staff. This land is once again a holy land, the burial site of heroes and many dead who lost their lives to the Necromancer” Death Explained.

            “Speaking of Heroes” Death said. Then appeared next to John’s body. “Arise John Baines, you have not left his world yet” Death said. The mayor watched a ghost of John appear and step back into his body. John’s eyes opened and he slowly stood up. “John you have done well. I know you have heard what the Mayor has asked of me. I ask you now, do you wish to join him in guarding this land or will you move on to the afterlife?” Asked Death.

            “I wanted to be free for so long. Now I am free from the Necromancer’s curse and I feel as though a weight has been lifted. I would very much like to go to the afterlife, but I cannot rest as long as the threat of the Lich is still present” John said. “Very well John. I will make you immortal as long as you stay within this land. Magical weapons and spells can still kill you but you have nothing to fear from mortal weapons. Since you have already used up your lifespan you cannot ever leave this forest and if you do, you will die. When you and the Mayor die you will go to afterlife and welcomed as heroes” Death explained. John and the Mayor nodded to show they understood.

            “Before I leave, I will bestow one more gift” Said Death. The Grim Reaper floated over to the ground where the Lich was buried and stuck his finger into the ground, pulled it out then dropped a small seed into the earth and buried it. “This plant will sap the Lich’s power, delaying his return and making him more vulnerable. The plant will grow over the years and it will transform the dark magic of the Lich and the land into the holy energy this land once had. After a time the land might actually recover and become a place of beauty again. What the plant grows into is entirely up to you. It will take any form you wish. But protect it with your lives” Death said. Then before John or the Mayor could say anything, the Grim Reaper vanished.

            John walked over to the seed and looked down at it. “It can grow to anything? What should we grow it into?” Asked John. “I have always been fond of Halloween, the people in the Autumn forest never get into it as much as I do. Maybe we can grow it into a symbol of our victor, a symbol of a new holy land of the dead, a symbol for Halloween. What do you think, John?” The Mayor asked. “It sounds like you want to grow a Jack-o-lantern” John said with a sigh then smiled. His smile was determined but a little frightening “If we are going to live in this hallowed end of the world and grow a Jack-o-lantern as a symbol, then I guess you can call me Jack” Said Jack, his broad smile and wide eyes combined with the scars on his face really did make him look like a pumpkin that was carved on Halloween.

“Alright Jack, consider this your new life. And if we are going to start a new life and actually have to live here, we might as well make it more comfortable” the Mayor said. “What like build a house?” Asked Jack. “No, we build a town” Replied the Mayor.      

Assault on the Dark Spire part 1

            Permanent night blanketed Haunted forest, the trees were black like burnt wood, the branches were bare and instead of sap, they had green slime oozing from any opening. The haunted forest was very large and deep within the forest was a large clearing. The ground was full of rocks and gray dirt. Nothing grew in the Haunted forest and the clearing looked even more barren. The only thing in the clearing was the Necromancer, his evil minions and the Dark spire that stood at the center of it all. The feeling of dread would wash over all who looked upon the spire.

 John Bones and the Mayor of honeydew village finally reached the Necromancers spire within the Haunted forest. John stepped out from the black and twisted trees into a clearing of gray, dead soil and stepped into a gloomy green mist that lingered through the air.  The mayor followed John into the clearing and looked up at the evil spire that loomed over them.

            John was technically a minion of the Necromancer but the Mayor was an intruder to the land and soon alerted the other minions. As soon as the Mayor stepped foot into the clearing the ground began to shake. Undead minions crawled up from the ground, ghouls, skeletons and zombies clawed their way from the earth with their skeletal hands. Eerie howling could be heard in the air, distant and echoed. John unsheathed his sword and walked forward on the uneasy ground.  Undead that guard the spire shambled forward toward John and new undead continued to rise up from the earth. The Mayor held up his broad sword as he prepared to fight. His sword was made of silver and blessed by a priest. He had it forged so that he could slay the Necromancer.

            The Mayor was brave and determined but his resolve wavered in the face of so many enemies. John saw this “Do not waiver, victory is at hand!” John said then charged forward to meet the enemy. John ran as fast as he could, his feet slammed against the ground, if he had a heartbeat it would have been pounding out of his chest. Most of the undead were nothing more than skeletons and walking suits of armor, but some had partial human faces, newer undead still seemed like people. This made John think of himself, how he was no better than these shambling undead. He began to wonder how he retained so much of his independence when the others were mindless even when the Necromancer wasn’t present. John began to doubt himself and his mind became clouded.

            “John!” Shouted the Mayor. John looked up and realized he had reached the undead horde but was so distracted that he didn’t keep his guard up. An armored skeleton brought a sword down and slashed Johns arm. John escaped with only a cut on his arm thanks to the warning from the Mayor. John’s arm began to feel pain and green blood oozed from his wound. John realized that all of the undead must carry cursed blades. Which meant any undead carrying a blade of any kind could permanently kill John. John’s first thought was “That could be a way out” If he had a way to die then he would no longer be bound to his undead body and maybe he would find peace. This thought was quickly pushed out. If John died now he wouldn’t be able to take his revenge out on the Necromancer. Many would suffer at the hands of the dark wizard if he wasn’t stopped. John knew that he wouldn’t be able to face Captain Mohardy in the afterlife if John took the easy way out.

            The Mayor slashed undead as he ran forward to meet up with John. There were so many zombies, skeletons and undead knights that he couldn’t stand and fight each one without being overwhelmed. “We need to run to the spire” The Mayor called ahead.

            John was fighting two Skeleton knights, both with jagged broad swords and covered in armor. John found it difficult to dodge the attacks and find the weak points in his opponent’s armor. John ducked one sword slash then stabbed his sword upward as he stood back up. His sword stabbed into the helmet slots of the first undead knight. John pulled his sword out and the undead knight crumbled to the ground. The second knight swung it’s sword at John but just then the Mayor ran up and cut the skeletons head off. He slashed and perfectly hit the space between the Skeletons chest armor and the bottom of the helmet.

            John and the Mayor ran forward and reached the Spire gates. John touched the gate and the door opened. The tower reacted to dark magic and John used his curse to their advantage. John and the Mayor ran into the spire and closed the door behind them. The undead didn’t understand how to open the door and just stood next to the spire with vacant expressions.

            John and the Mayor ran up the stairs as fast as they could. The twisting staircase seemed to go on for miles. John did not tire but the Mayor was starting to fatigue. He was a muscular man and very fit but he had been running since they stepped foot in the clearing and now they had to run to the top of a giant spire. “Keep going, I will catch up” The Mayor said as he slowed. John continued to run forward. He knew he couldn’t face the Necromancer alone, but he couldn’t wait either. He was too determined to seek revenge and couldn’t bear waiting another moment.

            John reached the top of the spire and kicked open the door. The Necromancer turned with surprise but then smiled when he saw whom it was. “Ah my lovely Jack pumpkin head, pumpkin Jack. Jack-o-lantern Jack…well you get the idea. Your face is a disaster and that’s coming from a Necromancer who has seen all kinds of faces” The Necromancer said with a cocky smile. The Necromancer wore all black robes with a small symbol on his chest. The symbol was dark purple and looked like an eye with a cross through it. The Necromancer had long black hair and a trimmed goatee. He looked young for such a powerful wizard, late forties at most.

            The Necromancer lifted his hand up and stopped John just as he tried to pull his sword. “This is getting tiresome. I noticed you caused quite a disturbance on the ground. It was amusing but now it has become bothersome” Said the Necromancer. He closed his hand into a fist and John felt shooting pain through his body and crumpled to the ground. The Necromancer smiled but his victory was short lived as an axe came hurling through the air and hit the Necromancer in the chest. His eyes went wide and he stumbled backward. “W-who was that?” He muttered as blood dripped from his mouth. He pulled the axe from his chest and threw it to the ground. The Mayor stood in the doorway behind John. The Mayor was brandishing his silver sword and had a row of hand axes strapped to his belt. With the Necromancer distracted John was able to rise up and took his opportunity to strike.

            The Necromancer tried to stop John but was stabbed through the chest before he could react.  John pulled his sword out and glared at the Necromancer as he fell to the ground. “That was for the tradewind, its crew and anyone else you killed” John said.

            The Necromancer began to laugh and then stood back up. “I cannot be killed so easily” He said. Then held his hand out to summon the source of his powers, a magical staff of the undead. This ancient artifact boosted the Necromancers power from his average dark magic abilities to the skill of a one hundred year old wizard.

            The Necromancer shot a beam of dark energy from his staff. The beam cooked the air as it shot forward at the Mayor. John jumped in front of the blast and was struck in the chest. Green energy burst from John’s eyes and mouth then he went limp and hit the ground. The Mayor threw another axe then charged forward. The Necromancer blasted the axe mid air and then turned and shot at the Mayor again, but the Mayor was gone. “Where have you gone coward?” Shouted the evil wizard. The Mayor did not hid or run away but instead jumped straight into the air. The Mayor came down with his sword pointed at the Necromancer’s head. The Dark wizard held up his staff as a reflex to defend against the strike. The Mayor’s sword slashed and broke the ancient staff, releasing all of the magical energy at once. Dark energy exploded from the staff sending The Necromancer, the Mayor and John’s body to the ground below. The top of the spire was destroyed and it was a miracle that the Mayor even survived.

Death and Bones part 2

This is the continued story of John Baines. He was the character from last years stories "Tradewind embarks"

http://sjmstories.blogspot.com/2013/09/tradewind-embarks.html

And "Death and Bones part 1" http://sjmstories.blogspot.com/2013/10/death-and-bones-1-of-2.html

if you haven't read them yet, I suggest you read them to catch up with the story line.

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 John Bones, formerly John Baines, walked the desolate cursed land. A shadowy serpent had attacked his ship, the Tradewind, and all of his friends died in the wreck. John had died but was resurrected by the dark energy that flowed through the land. Almost fifty years had passed between the time the Tradewind sank and he woke up as an undead sailor. John didn’t even know where he was but had a strange sense that he knew where he was going. He felt like he was being pulled inland by an invisible force.

            John saw a large black spire in the distance. The spire towered over the cursed trees and the forest and John felt drawn to it. “That tower is an abomination. It an affront to me” Said the voice of Death, who was still following John. “Just take me already! I want to avenge my fallen brothers but being in this cursed state is a torment I cannot handle” John told Death. “If I could I would have years ago. The master of that tower is a necromancer who has cursed the land. He seeks to rule this land and all lands with his power over the dead. He traps souls in their bodies before they can pass on. Needless to say I am not pleased with him at all” Said the voice of Death.

            John mindlessly walked toward the spire and Death’s words fell away. John reached the great gate of the spire and the doors opened for him. John navigated through the spire as if he knew where to go. He reached the center room and began to walk up a spiral staircase that went all the way to the top of the tower. John walked up the stairs with ease, he didn’t feel tired or out of breath, he felt as though he could have walked forever. Finally John reached the top and opened a door that led back outside. John walked through the door and saw the Necromancer standing on a balcony watching the cursed land below. “Ahh my newest minion” The Necromancer said as he turned around. “My magic brought you here, as it does with all who die in my lands. Now let me take a look at you” Said the Necromancer. He looked hard at John and then began to smile. “you face looks just like a Jack-o-lantern. Did someone carve your face before you died?” The Necromancer said as he barely contained his laughter. “I will call you Jack, pumpkin Jack” Said the Necromancer. “My name is J-“ John began to say but the Necromancer lifted a finger and John lost the ability to speak. “J-is for Jack. As in Pumpkin Jack. The only way this would be more fitting is if…well I suppose your eyes DO glow” The Necromancer said then began to laugh.

            John reached for his sword as the rage boiled up inside. This dark wizard was responsible. The shadow creature that sank the Tradewind, John being reborn as an undead monster and probably the skeleton attack in the autumn forest were all linked to this evil man. On top of his sins, he dared to mock John in Death. John Bones pulled his sword from its holster and slashed at the Necromancer. The evil wizard was busy laughing and didn’t see his new subject reach for his sword. John’s blade was stopped at the very last second before it killed the Necromancer. John stood paralyzed, holding his sword against the Necromancers bleeding through. The sword cut the skin but did not do any serious damage. The Necromancer was no longer laughing, he had an awful scowl on his face as he held his hand up. The Necromancer held John in place with a wave of his hand. With another wave his hand the Necromancer sent John flying off the Spire.

            John was launched from the tower as if thrown by a large invisible hand. Fear and adrenaline pumped through John as he fell. He had been thrown from such a height he knew this was his end. Then just before John hit the ground he remembered he couldn’t die and met the ground with a sense of boredom and annoyance. “If that Necromancer can control my every action how am I supposed to get revenge?” John asked as his body lay sprawled out on the hard black dirt. “You find someone who is alive who also wants the Necromancer to die. This wont be difficult, his evil magic has been plaguing the lands for many years and all would like to see an end to his reign of terror. This desolate place used to be part of the Autumn land before the Necromancer arrived and began practicing his evil sorcery” Death explained.

            “Then I will leave and find a group of humans to help me!” John said as he was empowered by a new sense of hope. “You cannot leave the borders of the cursed land unless the Necromancer allows you to leave. Which he wont, not after you tried to kill him” Death explained. “Fine I will go to the edge of the land. I will do everything I can!” John said as he shambled along. His legs slowly snapped back into place and his broken arms straightened out. His body returned to its normal state as if he had never been thrown off of a spire.

            The cursed land stretched out for miles. The spire had a clearing around it, but anything beyond that clearing was thick with cursed dark trees. “This is the Haunted land. The necromancer’s evil tainted this autumn forest beyond repair. The dark magic has attracted so many demons and spirits it is now home to creatures worse than even the Necromancer. Luckily for you, you cannot die” Death told John as John entered the dense Haunted Forest.

            The Haunted forest lived up to its name, besides John there were many undead creatures wandering about. Mindless zombies, ghosts and nightmarish demons inhabited the forest. When dark magic infects a whole land it attracts other dark creatures. Most of the monsters in the Haunted forest didn’t even follow the Necromancer, they were just drawn to the darkness. The forest was filled with dead trees with black bark and no leaves. Some of the trees even had greenish ooze instead of sap. John shuddered to think what would come out if he chopped one of the trees down.

            While John was walking through the forest he heard roars and rustling in the trees ahead. He ran forward and saw a short muscular man fighting shadow beast with glowing orange eyes. John felt his rage grow when he saw the beast because he knew it was another servant of the Necromancer. John pulled his sword from its sheath and charged forward, slashing the head off of the shadow creature. The undead magic that kept John alive was also infused within his blade, the magic in his blade was able to kill minions of the Necromancer for good. John discovered his new ability when he slashed the shadow creature’s head off and it melted into the ground. Usually slashing any part of a shadow creature, even the head did little more than slow it down.

            The muscular man was relieved that the evil shadow was gone but turned his blade on John when he noticed John had glowing orange eyes. “I come in peace. I am cursed like this land but I do not protect the Necromancer” John said as he put his hands in the air. John couldn’t die so he wasn’t worried about fighting, but he did need the help of a mortal to slay the Necromancer.

            “Who are you if not a minion of the dark wizard?” Said the Muscular man. “I am John Baines…I was John Baines. I don’t know what to call myself now. Bones, Pumpkin Jack, Jack o lantern, dead sailor guy” John rattled off the names casually with a tired sigh. It only took a moment for the man to realize why John would refer to himself as a Jack-o-lantern of a pumpkin. John had glowing eyes and a face that looked like it had been carved up for Halloween. “I am Finnious Malcolm Honeydew. You can call me Malcolm, or just Mayor is fine” said the Muscular man. “Why Mayor?” asked John. “I used to be the Mayor of Honeyside, the port town in the autumn forest. When the Necromancer attacked Honeyside the villagers and I fought back, after we learned that the Necromancer’s skeletons couldn’t be killed we escaped the town for our lives and built a new town called Honeydew. I am the Mayor of Honeydew” the Mayor explained.

            “I was in Honeyside before I died, that was years ago. I am sorry, it looked like a beautiful place. If you have a new town, why risk the dangers of these woods?” Asked John. “I can’t sit around getting fat as the Mayor, not while that Necromancer is still alive. Until he is destroyed no one will be truly safe” Replied Mayor. “I want to see the Necromancer dead as well, but he can control me whenever he wants. So I need help to break his spell over me so I can kill him” John explained.

            “If I can find the source of the Necromancers power, maybe I can take it out and then you would be free” Explained the Mayor. “Good, I am glad I ran into you. Maybe together we actually have a chance to stop this maniac” John said

            John and Mayor made their way through the Haunted Forest back toward the Necromancer’s spire. John sought revenge and freedom while Mayor Honeydew risked his life for the good of the autumn forest and all that lived there.

Czars and the Dark secret of Hallows End

            The Czars of Halloween stood at the center of Hallows End. Their names were Poe and Nyx. Nyx was tall and slim, had brownish orange eyes, olive skin and short brown styled hair. Poe was slightly shorter and didn’t stand up quite as straight, but was also slim like Nyx. Poe had thin black hair, the front came down to his eyebrows and the back went down to the bottom of his neck. He had pale gray eyes and pale skin. Since it was almost Halloween the two were dressed up. Not in costumes, but dressed up for a party. Poe wore a black bowler hat with a white stripe in the middle, a white shirt, black vest, jacket pants and shoes. He also had a black bowtie with skeletons on it. Nyx wore a black shirt and jacket, orange vest, black pants and dark green orange shoes. He didn’t have a hat, but did have a long straight orange tie with little pumpkins on them.

            The two stood in the center of the city and marveled at the decorations and lights. “I love this place year round, but there is something about Halloween that really brings out the spirit” Poe said as he stared mesmerized by a pumpkin light that was blinking and changing colors. “Yeah” Nyx muttered back as he too seemed enthralled by the majesty of this rapidly color changing pumpkin.

            Hallows End was a small town, even after years of success and tourism. The buildings looked old fashioned and twisted, some even seemed stitched together like Frankenstein’s monster. Strings of orange and purple lights ran along the tops of the buildings and orange pumpkin lanterns were strung between buildings and over entrance ways  Jack-o-Lanterns were placed at every door and most doors had Halloween wreaths set up. Made of black sticks from the dark woods and tied together with festive ribbon. The great pumpkin stood at the center of town. It was a large Jack-o-Lantern that would mysteriously start to glow when Halloween began to approach. There was also a large fountain in the town, it was a stone statue of a skeleton drinking from a beer mug. It looked as if the skeleton was drinking and water would pour out through a hole in the back of his head, never even reaching the holes in his rib cage  Every Halloween the fountain water was drained, cleaned and the water was replaced with pumpkin ale. So party goers would line up behind the skeleton and put their mugs under the hole in his head as the ale literally passed right through the poor undead statue. It was customary to then say “Thanks for the drink and sorry about your luck”. This would be said with a tone of pity as if the town really was swiping beer from a skeleton that was so desperately trying to drink something.

The residences of Hallows End were out in the streets singing, drinking and setting up more decorations for the fast approaching Halloween day. It was Hallows eve and there was still much to be done. Poe and Nyx had regained their senses four hours later after being entranced by the pumpkin that flashed lights and changed color. The all Hallows eve party was about to start. This was the countdown to midnight, which made it Halloween. Then the next day everyone would have a different kind of party that was bigger than this one, to celebrate a happy Halloween and celebration of another good year past. For in Hallows end, the end of Halloween meant the end of the year.

Poe and Nyx walked to the bar Jack and Lanterns. They smoothed down the wrinkles in their clothes with their hands as they walked excitedly to the party. “So Hallows Eve you wear party clothes, what are we going to wear for tomorrow’s party?” Nyx asked. “Well since its Halloween people dress up as monsters and such. But since Hallows End is full of creatures already, lets all just try to dress as spooky and Gothic as we can” Poe replied. “I’m going to dress up as a nun!” Said a villager, who was clearly undead. He was some kind of bluish zombie person. Poe tried not to laugh. For once he didn't have a sarcastic comment for this one.

The night continued on and the Czars were the life of the party. Drinks were flowing and everyone was in a good mood. The skeleton fountain only poured out free drinks on Halloween, so on Hallows Eve everyone would have to buy their drinks from Jack or John lantern. A friendly mustached man came up to the counter. “what can I get you?” Asked the bartender. “Just a beer please” said Poe as the two stepped up to the bar.” The bartender gave Poe one of the best pumpkin beers in the bar. “Thanks John” Said Poe. The bartender smiled “you got it right this time” smiled John. “sure did, you don’t look so much like your brother. Some people just aren't as observant as I am” Poe replied. “We aren't actually brothers, but thanks” Said John with a smile, then walked off. “How did you know who it was? Jack and John look exactly the same. They might even be the same person” Nyx said. ‘I just guesses as usual and this time got it right” Poe replied casually.

“Whooooo!” cheered a very drunk Pumpkin Jack, the towns own Halloween enthusiast and violent psychopath. Jack stumbled over to the Czars, dragging his orange cloak behind him. “you guys throw the best parties” Said Jack with a big drunk smile. Nyx was about to reply, but was interrupted by a rumbling. The ground shook and the lights flickered. It was two minutes till midnight, but the shaking became so violent that no one noticed. “I didn't think we got earthquakes here” said Nyx as he hung onto the bar. John Lantern was flung over the bar. “We don’t” he said. Pumpkin Jack seemed pretty stable on his feet for once and had a determined look on his face.

The party guests all shuffled outside to see what was happening. Then at the center of town the ground began to break apart under the Great Pumpkin. Jack jumped and knocked it over, pushing it out of the way just as a hole opened on the spot it had been sitting. Screaming souls and green energy blasted out of the ground in a loud and violent scene. The earth stopped shaking and when the souls had all flown away all that was left was a hunched over man in a black cloak. Jack seemed to know who this was and pulled out his sword. He lunged forward but was stopped at the last moment. He stood there his sword seemed to be blocked by an invisible wall. “You pathetic residence of Hallows End cannot harm me. I have been locked away in your wretched cage for one thousand years. This whole time I have absorbed the power of this town. Feeding off of it as you threw your parties and celebrated like fools” Said the hunched over hooded man.

Everyone seemed clueless about what were happening, Everyone except Jack and the mayor. These two were apparently much older than they let on. Pumpkin Jack’s sword was flung off into the trees by a mysterious force, then he too was thrown away without any effort. “I am the Lich. This used to be my home. But then a group of hooligans attacked me and sealed me into a magical cage. Then built a town over the wreckage of my castle.” The Lich explained. “You were the terror of the autumn land, we did it to save everyone” Said the mayor who seemed to show up suddenly. The mayor was short and round, but had noticeable muscles under his layers of fat, looking like in his younger years he would have been insanely strong. The mayor also had a thick mustache and a black hat.

Suddenly all of the residence of Hallows End dropped to their knees, Powerless and helpless to the Lich’s magic, everyone except the Czars of Halloween. Since they were from the Autumn forest, the Lich didn't have power over them. The two Czars stepped up in front of the crowd. “Listen buddy. You might have owned this place once, but this is our town now” Poe said. “Well the mayor runs it, but we help!” Nyx added, but still tried to sound tough. Poe nodded in agreement. “Yes I suppose its more of the mayors town. But our wealth and social status, plus the fact that everyone here likes us, kind of makes this our town too” Poe replied, no longer looking at the Lich. “that’s true but we usually just throw parties so the actual ownership…” Replied Nyx, but he was cut off when the Lich shouted “ENOUGH!” the Lich’s yell shook the town and would have forced most people to their knees out of fear.

“Short response. You are going to have to leave” Poe said. The two Czars looked determined to protect their town and the Holiday they loved. The Lich began to laugh. “you don’t even have weapons or powers!” The Lich continued to laugh. The Mayor made a strained noise. Nyx looked down and realized the Mayor had come ready for a fight. Nyx laughed when he pictured the chubby little mayor swinging a sword. The mayor brought a sword and an axe. Nyx threw the axe to Poe. “Right, now we have weapons. Lets end this guy” Poe said.

The Lich chuckled and then slowly began to stand up straight. As the Lich moved the sound of bones snapping and popping could be heard. Finally the Lich stood up over six feet tall and the cloak fell off. The Lich stood as a giant skeleton, green and purple flames burned inside his skull and his bone hands glowed with magic. He wore black wizard boots, and ripped black pants. His spine bones were sharp and Jagged and his empty eye sockets glowed yellow. Then Poe noticed a hole in the back of the Lich’s head. “Doesn't he look like a larger meaner version of the statue?” Poe asked. “He is. The statue was made in honor of his defeat” Said the mayor as he struggled to move and talk.

            After hearing this the Lich became enraged. Green flames burst up all around him and he pointed a magical staff at the Czars. “this is the staff of souls. I will use it to enslave your souls and torments you for all of eternity. Your misery and torment will fuel my magic as I conquer this land” the Lich said then began to laugh. The laugh was cut short when Poe’s Axe struck the Lich in the head then bounced off and rolled back toward Poe. Poe ran up a little to retrieve his weapon as the Lich to put his head back on straight. The Lich now had an axe chop mark on the top of his skull. “Fine, if your in a rush to die” The Lich said. Then dark energy waves shot forth and hit the Czars and all of the citizens of Hallows End. Poe and Nyx clenched their teeth and tried to move despite the pain they now felt.

            The Lich spun his hand around and darkness rose up into the air, the starry night sky was blocked out by an unnatural evil magic. Now the sky looked like a swirling abyss of darkness and shadows. “Already starting to feel like home” The Lich said. Nyx stood up and rushed forward with his sword. “You can’t do this to our town!” He said then stabbed his sword into the Skeletons rib cage  “I don’t have muscle, flew or organs, stabbing wont do anything” The Lich laughed. His hands burst with green flames and he reached down to grab Nyx. At that moment Nyx turned his blade with all of his strength. This twisted the sword up and broke several bones in the Lich’s rib cage. The Lich recoiled and his hands lost their fire.

            The Lich rushed forward to attack Nyx before he got away. Right before The Lich got to Nyx another flying axe came sailing forward and hit the Skeleton Lich right in the chest, breaking the rest of his rib cage  The two regrouped and moved back to avoid direct attacks. The Lich stood up and used his staff of souls to heal his broken bones. Soon he was back to full strength. Poe grinned “thank you for showing us your weakness” Poe shouted to the Lich. Without the powerful soul magic, the Lich was just another skeleton.

            Nyx nodded to Poe then ran straight at the Lich again. The Lich looked ready, his skeleton hands glowed with a green death magic and one touch could wither a person to bones. The Lich shot blasts of shadow energy out at Nyx as he rushed forward. Nyx dodged those and got up right to the Lich. The Lich reached down and was going to grab Nyx before he could strike. Then Poe flanked the Lich from the side and slashed his axe down with all of his might. He slice the Lich’s arm off, the Lich turned and tried to attack Poe with his other arm but at that moment Nyx stabbed his blade into the Lich’s skeleton face. The sword went right through the evil wizards head and made a second hole, going straight through between the eyes and out the back of the head. This hole was above the original, made by Jack a thousand years ago, when Jack stabbed his pumpkin blade through the Lich’s mouth and out the back of his head where the spine met the skull.

            The Lich let out a loud shriek and dropped his staff. He staggered backward and the two Czars went after the staff. As it hit the ground they both slammed their weapons down onto it as hard as they could. The staff shattered and all of the trapped souls were released. Then the remaining magic mixed with The courage of the Czars and went into their weapons. Poe’s Axe became large and bent like a scythe. It was black with a skull at the top and a shiny silver blade at the end. Nyx’s sword became a straight long sword, with a pumpkin for the pommel and a black hilt with orange gems. The blade was also silver and looked a little like a pumpkin carving knife, but as a sword.  “The Carver” which Nyx now calls it is different than Jack’s pumpkin sword. Jack’s sword was jagged and the hilt was orange with a Jack-o-lantern face burned into the blade.

            The two Czars marveled at their new weapons almost as much as they marveled at the glowing color change pumpkin. Then they both turned and saw the Lich was still standing and trying to summon the last of his magic to attack again. Before the Lich could do anything. Poe and Nyx attacked, slashing their weapons down at him. Orange and black energy streamed from their combined weapons as the two struck the evil Lich. The attack was so strong the Lich exploded into dark energy and his bones turned to dust.

            Hallows End had been saved and the Czars had been rewarded with fancy new weapons. The citizens cheered as the Czars slowly walked back to the bar. “I need a drink” Poe said. “Me too” Nyx replied, sounding tired.

The two drank and then slept. The next day was Halloween. The darkness in the sky had disappeared, the hole in the center of town was filled, the Great pumpkin was placed back on its spot and any damage done to the town was now fixed.

            Poe and Nyx started getting ready for the big spooky Halloween party. They wore black robes, Nyx had a hollowed out Jack-o-lantern over his head and Poe had a skull mask. “So we let home, started new lives in Hallows End, became rich and powerful, threw the best parties, defeated a Lich, saved the town and gained powerful magic weapons. What should we do now?” Asked Nyx with a smile. “Now we celebrate Halloween” said Poe as he pulled his black hood over his head.