The locals poked their heads and some waved at the skeleton king. They called him Victor. He waved back as he set up a perimeter. He walked around creating a pentagram. I saw that he had dug his heels into the earth to make an impression. The pentagram disappeared and a huge black door opened. His bone army marched out of the third dimension. All of them were skeletons wearing identical red and black loincloths. Some were holding huge rectangular shields. Some had spears. Some had swords. The rest had flaming arrows. The shield bearers slammed the bottom half of the shield into the earth and I saw cracks appear like spiderwebs. The spear throwers took a stance as the rift opened near the hospital. A single thread snaked its way up. Then it caught fire and the rift opened like someone had burned a banister revealing a hidden world. The person on the other side was inflated with arrogance till he saw Victor. He stared in disbelief. Moments later he began hyperventilating. He ordered the caster to close the portal and try again elsewhere. The caster mentioned the other places have been hexed so if they try anything the rift might not open at all. He asked her to come over and have a look. She saw everything and calmly walked out. The skeleton king took one step and he carelessly removed his signet ring on his left pinkie. She fell face first and started having seizures. When she rose she didn't think twice just made a run back inside. She tried different spells but the portal refused to close.
At the end the man wearing beach shorts ordered his men to just charge head on. He is certain someone will be able to get through. One of the skeletons gave me a flask. I gave Erebus and she told me it was a potion to re-energize the body. I took a sip and the nearest soldier took my hand. He dragged me to the front and Victor gave me six rings. One on each thumb. The next two on the index and ring finger on the right hand. The last two were for the middle and pinkie finger in the left. He told me to focus. No one on the other side wanted to come forward. Edgar was seen jumping over the trees. I guess it was some sort of signal. I asked Erebus to find out what was going on. She sent her raven and it came back with the bad news that someone was trying to pry open the rift. I told her to take what reinforcement she needs to stop it. She explained that she was enough. She disappeared in a cloud of smoke. I asked Victor what these rings can do. He explained, "The rings respond to the wearer's imagination." Finally beach shorts had enough so he charged forward. I wished I could hurl a sword to slice him in two. My shadow and charged forward. It met him just below the rib and cut right through. His chest fell out of the rift whilst the rest of his body was on the other side.
A large gnarled hand grabbed his corpse and pulled it back in. When the hand vanished I saw a deer skull with actual fangs. It was resting on a pile of snakes. Puff adders to precise. Next to it was the head of a teenage girl. She had long black hair. Pale skin and a pleasant smile but her eyes were all white. I saw no pupils or irises. It was jumping forward. I guess it is how she moves from point a to b. There were people who impaled on stakes. People who are dangling by their ankles. Others were slit from the throat to the groin. Their insides all decayed. The air distorted before it went back to normal I saw a figure in a black cloak wearing a goat skull as a mask in the middle of where the distortions occured. He casually walked forward. His hands looked like someone had doused them in acid. He walked sideways like a crab. He let out a chuckle before addressing someone on our side. He called out, "Evander Darkstorm. Oh my! my! my! It has been far too long." The skeleton king calmly answered, "Not long enough Necros Bainbridge. You should have stayed in that rickety old hut. But you just had to open the Grimoire. Looks like you are trapped." He took off the mask. He looked like he was given an acid bath. He limped as he walked towards us head-on. As he tried to step over the orange flames. I had to give him points for his efforts. The moment his foot was above the flames. I heard a bang like someone had fired a cannon. The flames shot up and he was engulfed in it. He walked backwards till he was a half a dozen yards away. The flames vanished without a trace. He said something in a language I have heard of. He stormed off. The skeleton king called out, "Till we meet again."
Moments later the nearest person on the other side asked if the rift was opened elsewhere. The reply was simple. The only person who could do that is dead. They never bothered to write it down. So they are stuck with the one portal policy till someone figures it out. The caster was brought forward and they slit her throat to shut the portal. I stared at the clock tower. Two hours have been deducted. Still plenty of time to escape Yami to cause pandemonium. A pale woman in black funeral gown walked forward. She wore a small squashed black hat on the side with a lace black veil draped over her face. She looked as though she had just come from a cremation. She wore a necklace of red thorns and bleached bird skulls. She extended a glove hand delicately. A sword pierced her belly and she was cut in half vertically. She fell sideways to reveal a slender woman wearing an off shoulder floor length black lace dress walked forward. She had shoulder length wavy gray hair which had a faint glow. Two large black ribbed horns on either side of her and a headdress consisting of black feathers and a gray skull of a toddler on the center. I noticed a gray crescent moon nestled on top. She wore red eyeshadow and bright red lipstick. The way her dress moved made it look like the fabric was spilled ink. She spoke with a stammer. Her voice was hoarse and yet held tough steel behind it. She demanded we let her out and help her find something called the Talons. It will cover the world in eternal night. The warmth will be removed and replaced with frost.
I gave her the middle finger and waved my hand in sideways slicing motion. Her horns were sliced off. She shrieked in pain as blood dripped down the side of her face. She tried to staunch the bleeding. She shouted angrily, "Ttttttttthat was nnnnn no no no not necessary. I am not being an un un un unreasonable person. I am going to ensure certain types of darklings can roam without burning to a crisp." I asked, "Like Tiberius?" She yelled back, "His name is Dracula. You have unfairly domesticated him. You ch ch ch changed his name and and and corrupted his greatness wi wi wi with stupidity. I am going to undo the mind warp and and and set him free." Tiberius laughed menacingly, "I am not being brainwashed. I chose this as a penance for everything I did. I have done many horrible things. I felt nothing as I did it all. Not pain. Not fear. Not disgust. Not even remorse. Not pleasure. In exchange for my service I get to be with HER. I would give anything and do anything to get HER back." She stared for a moment and asked him what if she reunited him with her. He grinned, "You don't know where she is. You can't even get out of Yami. Exactly how are you going to get her? Wishful thinking always bored me." He walked away and the horned one slit the caster's throat. I heard someone whine, "If you keep killing them then we won't be able to open the barrier in the near future. Find some other way to close the door. What is the progress on the other door? Did we take a crack at it?" We didn't hear the answer because the portal clamped shut.
Erebus summoned Atticus and he sniffed the air searching for the rift. I climbed on his back and he flew into the air. I saw red lights on seven different directions. My gut told that some were decoys so I tried to remember what the rift felt like. I looked around to see Erebus was nearby. She was thinking the same thing. I noticed one rift expelled a bunch of bats. Atticus didn't move so I guess it was a decoy. He levitated for a moment and charged head on towards a rift in the clearing near the mountain. Erebus stepped forward and tried to cast a spell. I told her to curb her enthusiasm. She explained that she was going to make sure the rift stays open here. I asked her not to cast it. What if her spell keeps the rift open permanently. Which means no matter what we do we will be overwhelmed by darklings. Her hands froze in midair trying to find an argument but clearly she was at a loss of words. She growled and walked towards the rift to find the person who opened the rift. I heard her cursing in Middle English. The skeleton king walked firmly and placed one of his boney fingers on the rift. A blood red powder flaked off and floated for a little bit before it began to burn. The walking skeleton simply sat down to watch the people on the other side figure out what to do. The window was closing and they won't get another opportunity for another thousand years.