Pestilence: Rise Of The Pure Undead

The head of a rather large soldier in white came rolling in the ground, not quite as large as the brutes the natives of the realm had gotten used to by now, but definitely larger than the typical humanoid, but their slayer was not quite interested in inspecting their true identity, long coat fluttering chaotically as he moved in between trees swiftly, wielding a crude-looking polearm which bladed end reassembled a cleaver, with a slight nudge, the polearm decreased in length, and like a trap, closed in on itself right around the neck of another invader, cutting into his throat.

With another movement, the neck and head were torn apart from one another, killing the tall living soldier in one fell swoop, and only then did the slayer slow down, looking around the area, making sure that no other threats were lying in wait.

Slightly pushing his old hat up, Abraham sighed heavily, to think that a death hunter like himself would one day be actively hunting down people whose hearts still beat, and whose life was still vibrant…

Such was the ugliness of the dead, pitting livings against livings, he never would have expected the undeads to use livings as foot soldiers before, but now, it had become commonplace.

'Bring out your nosferatus already… Then we can start to have some fun' he cleaned the blood off his weapon, and then reached for something inside of his pocket, swiftly throwing thin knives carved from bone through some nearby bushes, only the sound of them stabbing into a tree accompanied by rapid steps came as a response.

"I take it that I am not that good at hiding? You could have just told me that I was bad at it instead of trying to give new holes, you know?" out from the bushes, stepped someone dressed in white, a living Abraham did not recognise, and upon which he could just smell the miasmic scent of death, an odour that all the soldiers in white shared from prolonged contact with the undead and from having their minds corrupted.

However, this one carried it exceptionally heavily.

"You seriously stink, what sort of corpse left that on you?" he said before even taking in the appearance of the person, making the invader scowl.

"You decrepit old thing, my father is more than just a corpse"

Only then did Abraham really process that the soldier in white he was addressing was most uncommon-looking, the apparel may be white like the rest, but it was closer to a military uniform, completely different from the rank and file gear worn by the typical enemies he normally encountered.

But if he had to qualify it, the old vampire hunter would describe it as more of a costume that looked like a uniform as it featured a skirt and tights for some reason, which he was certain, weren't the most adequate for walking through the woods and partaking in the invasion of another realm on behalf of a nation led by the dead.

"Father? And aren't you a bit young to be here? Do the undeads really have no standards whatsoever?" he frowned, looking at the girl before him, so far, the undeads had at least had the presence of mind to not send child soldiers.

The young girl in question had shoulder length red hair, and had eyes which glowed with a dark red shine, and that glow was growing fiercer at this very moment.

"It might be hard for you to tell the difference, but I am not a child, I am an adult"

Predictably, she did not appreciate the old man's comment.

Abraham looked around, almost expecting an ambush, but nothing of the sort was coming, it was just him and this girl, whomst he was considering a sassy lost child.

"You are definitely not an adult, you are like fifteen at most, and that's me being generous" he replied with a grin.

"Why don't you go back to your corpse papa or whatever? Or maybe you could go to your mama and get your fill of milk for the day? You do seem a bit grumpy, must be because you skipped feeding time-"

Bright flames tore through the air, and the old man had to throw himself aside to evade them, the fire blasting forth through the forest, turnings trees and grass to cinders within moments, but Abraham was attentive enough to immediately realise that this inferno was not behaving like regular fire at all.

It might look like normal flames at a glance, but their movements were heavy, and the initial blast of fire had slammed into everything obstacle as though it truly carried a heavy weight, turning trees to splinter.

And also, the flames were sent everywhere when they entered into contact with things, and would stick like oil to whatever they landed on first.

"That's quite the dangerous toy you've got there…"

"You… Instead of provoking me, isn't there anything else that you are noticing, old fool?" she was visibly aggravated due to being treated like a child, she had been certain to have been amongst the most mature-looking of her sisters, so who was this ruin of a man to claim otherwise? But still, the girl in white needed to maintain some composure.

"You mean the fact that we can understand one another? That's unprecedented for an invader to speak something comprehensible, but what? Am I supposed to parley with a little girl? I doubt a toddler and a senile old man can discuss anything of interest" he shrugged his shoulders, the living soldier was livid that the ancient fool was actively mocking her.

Gritting her teeth so hard that it was audible, the girl sighed before returning to a neutral expression and giving a slight bow.

"I am Alici, member of the Soror, and daughter of Loimos… It is a pleasure to meet one of the livings designated as a special threat, Abraham, if I remember correctly, yes?"

The old man frowned.

"The one you call father, is the undead champion?"

"Are you afraid to speak his name aloud? Father is generous to give cowards like you such high credit" she held up one hand.

"As per the aspects of death of Compassion, Love, and Peace, I have come extend a formal warning to the people of this realm, your end is nigh, your liberation is near, so surrender and accept to be saved by death, or squirm as you experience Fear and Agony"

"That's all, you can think about it and give an answer later… But do keep in mind, once the time comes, Father Loimos will come in person to bless you all… If you can't even speak his name without fear, then you surely understand that his presence means your doom?"

Alici stepped away as the vampire hunter frowned.