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.

Death and Bones (1 of 2)

            The Tradewind had departed from the shores of the autumn forest. The beautiful trees and cool, crisp air was as inviting as any of the Tradewind crew had seen. Unfortunately the new discovery was ruined by the sudden appearance of skeleton knights. The pirates turned traders walked into a town after it had been attacked, all the villagers had either run off or been dragged away and the Tradewind crew barely escaped with their lives.

            John Baines was checking the ship for damage and inspecting the crates of fruit they managed to salvage before the skeletons ran them off. His boots creaked on the wooden deck of the ship, the sound of waves was constant and soothing and even though they were no long on land, they still could smell the fresh air of the autumn forest as it mixed with the wind that came from the sea.

            After a few hours of inspection, John returned to the captain. Captain Mohardy sat on the upper deck by the help, peering out at the sea. “The ship is in good condition and we got a two crates of apples before our escape” John reported. Captain Mohardy smiled “Good work my boy, good work”

            The ship took almost no damage and the crew was able to salvage some of the delicious apples from the autumn forest. Mohardy was a tough sea captain, but he spent so much time with his crew and regarded them as family, so even though John delivered good news, the captain couldn’t hold his smile for too long. Before the crew escaped, the skeletons knights killed one of the sailors. John felt bad because he didn’t even know the guys name, but the captain was mourning as if he had lost a son. John left the captain in silence and went back to work.

            As the ship sailed through the water, the wood of the ship creaked and the waves splashed against the sides. Mr.Peeps shouted from the crows nest. The air had grown cold and brutal and a storm began to form. Mr. Peeps shouted again. “Something is headed straight for us!” He shouted

            The wind roared, the clouds grew dark and rain started to pour down on the ship. Mr. Peeps’ warnings were lost in the wind and the ship was hit by something big under the water. The Tradewind shook and some of the crew fell overboard. “All hands on deck!” Mohardy shouted. The crew tried to keep the Tradewind steady but they were all at the mercy of the storm. John held onto the rails as the ship was tossed around on the water. The storm was beating down all around them, then something in the water hit them again. The ship shook and the haul cracked open.

            Land could be seen up ahead. The grass was dead, the trees were black and leafless and the air was bone chilling and foul. With every guest of wind that blew the branches of the trees bent forward like the outward reaching arms of death. John had survived storms before, but he had never seen a land so dark and evil that it made him want to stay out in a storm. His will did not matter though, the will of nature took control and the ship continued to take a beating. Captain Mohardy was seen trying to fasten ropes around his crew. He could barely stand without being thrown, but still he tried to save as many people as he could. John let go of the railing and tried to help the captain. “Captain!” John shouted. But his voice was swallowed by the raging sound of the storm. John shambled across the deck and stabbed his sword into the deck to steady himself. Before he could reach the captain a giant monster rose up from the depths.

            The creature was a giant serpent, with black scales and glowing orange eyes. John was struck with fear, he had never seen a creature like this. Worse still was the serpents face. The scales and flesh was falling from its face and back. This sea snake was shedding its skin to reveal bone, not more skin. The undead sea snake reared back and then with lighting speed struck the side of the Tradewind. John was tossed overboard and before he hit the ice-cold water, he heard a loud cracking and snapping of wood and the screams of his crew as they plunged into the icy depths.

           

            John’s world was now that of silence and darkness. Then he could hear the sound of waves crashing against the shore. How he loved the crisp blue water as it splashed against the golden sandy beach of his homeland. He remembered joining Captain Mohardy’s crew as a boy. Mohardy was a retired pirate, looking for a crew of upstanding sailors. He was trying to leave his old life behind and to do this he needed an honest crew. John was a boy of sixteen who dreamed of sailing. Crew came and went as the years went on. Every year or so the captain would say “Tired of the life at sea yet?” and John would always respond “Never”

            John opened his eyes and saw dark blue water splashing against a shore of dead grass and gravel. The trees swayed in the freezing cold wind and any grass under John’s feet would be long dead. John stood up. He ran to the cursed shore and looked out into the sea. He was horrified to see the remains of the Tradewind sticking out of the water and clinging to jagged rocks that jutted out from the ocean depths. Seaweed and moss grew on the ship and the wood looked ancient. The raging storm and sea serpent destroyed the ship, but only time could age and weather the ship to this degree.

            John looked down and he saw a skeleton stuck on a rock under a foot of water. The bones looked old and the ocean had washed away any traces of a face. He felt his heart sink and sadness engulfed him. He stumbled through the water and grabbed the skeleton. Captain Mohardy’s hat floated up from under the skeletons head. John recoiled in terror and fell into the water.

            He stood up and climbed onto the shore. That’s when he saw a reflection of his face. His eyes glowed bright orange. Like a great burning Jack o Lantern, or like the sea serpent who attacked the Tradewind. John also had scars all over his face. The scars came from the time he spent on the bottom of the ocean as his face was sliced and bashed against jagged rocks. “Why didn’t I die? How much time has passed?” John muttered as he clutched his hand over his face.

            “You reached the shore. You are the unlucky one. You reached the shore just before you died. While the Tradewind crew was able to depart for the afterlife, you were cursed by the darkness of this land” Said a voice.

            “Who is that?!” John shouted. He pulled his sword from his sheath and raised it. his sword was jagged and bent. It was still sharp and could kill someone, but the jagged shape now reflected John’s cursed body. “I am death, who are you?” Said Death, who didn’t reveal itself, but its voice echoed. “I’m John…no, just call me Bones” John Bones said with a sneer.

            Without a word, John Bones climbed the gravel shore and headed back into land. Something or someone was responsible for this curse and responsible for the attack on the Tradewind. Whoever was responsible was going to pay. John was no longer the honorable sailor he once was. He had become a ghost pirate, a spirit of vengeance and the bringer of death.