Eternal Rest

It was wicked, sinful, and immoral! But Bones justified his actions by reminding himself that he wasn’t robbing the graves of valuables. "I mean, it’s just convenient since I’m most familiar with bones, and skulls would make perfect containers! Besides, I only need... thirty-ish skulls", he rationalized.

Bones was nearly ready to create his bombs; the only thing missing was suitable containers. Instead of searching through various shops, the idea of using skulls from a cemetery popped into his mind.

With only a few hours to work, the night seemed peaceful aside from the sounds of shoveling and the unsettling desecration of graves. Digging wasn’t difficult for someone of Bones' level, but it still took hours to unearth thirty-one skulls. As dawn approached, Bones sensed movement nearby. “Someone is coming! This early? Must be a gravedigger! Take it up a notch, Skully, we have company!" Bones urged Skully to hurry and exhume the last grave while he kept an eye on the perimeter. Once Skully unearthed the final skull, they both hastily began to fill the grave back with earth. Their work was rushed and sloppy, frequently interrupted by the approaching gravedigger making his rounds and closing in on their location.

Bones glanced sideways at the mess they had made. Out of thirty-two graves, maybe half were properly filled and smoothed to be flat. The rest had noticeable mounds of dirt.

“You'd have to be blind not to notice something was off, especially... Forget this, what's done is done!”

Bones quickly stored the shovels and Skully, then fled the area, leaving the last grave half-filled. The gravedigger, still groggy from sleep, stumbled into the graveyard, unaware of the recent disturbances. As he walked absentmindedly, he tripped and fell into the half-filled grave. The old man screamed in pain as he sprained his ankle upon falling, then looked around in confusion.

"Wha... what is this? Are... gasp The zombies!!" the old gravedigger exclaimed before crawling out of the grave and making a run for it.

Bones dusted off his robe as he leisurely walked back toward the smithy. Things were looking up, sort of. He counted on Rayne to foil whatever Silva planned. He didn't know the exact plan, only that it involved mana bombs in large quantities. Two, or was it three, had rocked the tunnels and caused a cave-in in Westbrook. Having ten of them… that could cause massive damage in crowded places.

A new day had started, and he had work to do. It was still too early to start making noise in the workshop, so after washing off the dirt and changing his robe, Bones sat at a bench in front of the smithy and summoned one of the skulls. His shaping skill had reached a high enough level to shape the skull and close almost all the orifices, leaving only a wide hole at the bottom.

He set the skull aside and took out one dispenser and a pouch full of powder. Carefully, he twisted the top off the dispenser and added the poisonous substance inside, then tightly secured the top. Holding the skull in one hand, he used the other to place the dispenser inside the skull from the bottom. He shaped a small gap at the top of the skull, leaving only the top of the dispenser visible, and finished by closing the hole at the bottom.

Bones stood up and marveled at the skull in front of him. He observed his work and made slight adjustments where needed. Once satisfied, he stored the skull and left a note in the kitchen saying he went up the mountain to test the bomb. He then left the smithy and headed toward the stone steps leading up the mountain, seeking a remote place to test the effectiveness of his newly made bomb.

The steps led in a zigzag pattern, and Bones passed by more than one smithy on his way. After fifteen minutes of climbing, the houses and the view of Stonefalls were no longer visible, replaced by trees and towering mountains. This should be far enough, he thought.

He summoned Skully, then retrieved the test bomb. The bomb needed one final touch to be explosion-capable: the needle, or igniter, as Mirami called it. Bones took out a single needle and, as instructed, embedded it through the top of the dispenser, leaving only a minuscule amount sticking out.

"I think we're done! Skully, be a pal and go stand right over there," Bones said, pointing at a spot a dozen meters away. Skully moved to the designated spot, stopped, and played the best test dummy he could be.

Bones gripped the skull with his right hand and mentally reviewed the instructions one last time. It's simple. All I have to do is guide the flow of mana out of my hand and encompass the skull to activate the igniter.

Hm…if I hold the skull by the top, I don't actually have to encompass the whole skull.

Bones turned the skull upside down and held it at the top with his palm. The igniter needle was touching his palm, and he briefly expelled mana through his palm. He felt the mana leave and activate the igniter. Without a moment's pause, he lobbed the skull at Skully's location.

The bomb hit the ground at Skully’s feet and exploded on impact. A burst of dark green smoke filled the area, obscuring Skully from view and rapidly spreading. The smoke permeated the area within a five-meter radius around Skully, lingering for a minute before starting to dissipate.

“Come over here,” Bones commanded his golem once the smoke had completely dissipated. Skully approached, and Bones inspected the faint traces of green left by the smoke.

The smoke caused by the explosion is dense! Denser than I thought it would be considering the amount used in a bomb. The radius is good as well, taking into account that I can’t sense the wind here. The wind would spread the smoke over a larger area but would reduce its density. That’s fine though. The bomb works!

The first test was a success, but Bones wasn’t done experimenting. He walked over to the nearest tree and sat down, leaning against it. He summoned another skull, a dispenser, and the pouch of powder he had used in the previous bomb. He repeated the process, and roughly five minutes later, another bomb was ready.

“You stay right there, Skully. I won’t be needing your assistance this time,” Bones said, walking over to the clearing with the bomb in his hands. Lobbing the bomb works, but the impact is rather… impactless. It took around five seconds for the poison to spread to a maximum radius. This time, I won’t be lobbing the skull.

Bones gripped the skull and smashed it down on the ground with force. The skull exploded in a cloud of green smoke, similar to the first time, but the impact and the speed at which the smoke spread were significantly greater. The radius of the explosion increased by two to three meters.

So the strength and speed at the point of impact affect the magnitude of the explosion. Best used right at my feet, noted!

Satisfied with the results of his bombs, Bones decided to continue making them without further testing. He sat back down, leaned against a tree, and got to work. Hours passed as he meticulously crafted more bombs. Eventually, he heard voices coming from the direction of the stone steps. Looking up, he saw Darsumi and Hemdus approaching.

“What's takin' ye so long?” Hemdus asked.

“Obviously, he’s not testing anymore, Hem. He’s making more bombs!” Darsumi replied.

“He could’ve done that at the smithy too!”

“True. Greetings, Bones. How’s it going?” Darsumi asked.

Bones grabbed one of the skulls and tossed it to Hemdus. “Catch!”

Hemdus's eyes widened as he caught and fumbled the skull in his hands. “Cor blimey, Bones!!!”

Bones? I don’t think he’s ever called me Bones before. He must really not like the bombs. I’m sure there’s a story behind the reason why… or common sense?

“What brings you two here? Want to test the bomb?” Bones asked, amused.

Darsumi explained that they had waited for Bones to return, but after he didn’t show up by noon, they decided to find him. Bones was so caught up making bombs that he didn’t notice the time passing. The bombs weren’t overly difficult to make, but the shaping and closing of the orifices took most of the time.

"I have a few more to make until I finish. Why don’t you test the bomb in the meantime? The result is best if you smash the skull at your feet,” Bones suggested.

Both dwarves looked at Bones with raised eyebrows. “Aye, Dar? Ye can have it.” Hemdus said, passing the skull to Darsumi.

sigh “Fine, I’ll do it.” Darsumi said, taking the skull in his hand. He moved away from Hemdus and into the clearing. Bones nodded and directed Skully to go and play the testing dummy again. “There, aim at Skully. He will be fine.”

“Right, thanks… Do you often talk to your golem?” Darsumi questioned as he watched Skully walk away.

“What’s wrong with talking to yer golem? I still do that sometimes… when I’m alone, of course!” Hemdus added.

“I’m not really expecting a conversation, Dar. It just comes naturally more than giving directions telepathically all the time,” Bones explained.

Darsumi shrugged, muttering, "I suppose so," and focused back on Skully some distance away. Bones briefly instructed the dwarf on how to activate and use the bomb. He watched as Darsumi took a few steps back and hurled the bomb. The bomb made a nice parabolic arc and fell just short of Skully. It exploded in a cloud of green smoke, enveloping the area around Skully.

Both dwarves exclaimed in amazement as the dense smoke spread out quickly. "Blimey! That's somethin’!” Hemdus said, eyes wide with astonishment.

Bones looked at Dar, then back at the smoke, exclaiming in surprise as he observed the cloud being carried further away by a slight breeze. He stood up and walked over, stopping next to the dwarves. They watched as the breeze spread the poisonous gas over a thirty-meter radius, with a green cloud still lingering in the area.

The dwarves glanced at Bones, who returned their questioning look. "What?"

"Ye made a bomb outta skulls? Where did ye get all them skulls from?" Hemdus asked.

"Bones, don't tell me…" Darsumi began, realizing what Bones had probably done. Bones scratched the back of his head and nodded.

Hemdus facepalmed, coming to a sudden realization. "Let's get outta 'ere before someone comes 'nd questions what we doin', eh?!"

"I second that," Bones concurred, adding that he could finish the rest at the smithy.

Back at the smithy, Bones finished making the rest of the bombs within an hour. He then sat in the kitchen, writing a letter. Once he was finished, he asked Dar where he could find Thaddeus.

"He'll come by later, so you can hand it to him then," Dar replied.

Bones nodded and made his way into the workshop. With the bombs done, he still had one more task he wanted to complete before the festival: engraving the orc's skeleton.

Thaddeus visited in the evening, and Bones handed him a letter with specific delivery instructions. After receiving additional guidance from Darsumi, Thaddeus departed for the capital, his mission clear.

"Preparing for the heist?" Bones inquired, catching snippets of their conversation.

"Thaddeus handles our contacts for the goods we acquire," Darsumi explained. "What are your plans until the festival?"

"Can I assist with the preparations for the heist?" Bones asked, eager to contribute.

Darsumi shook his head. "Everything's under control; no need for more help."

"Then I'll continue with my engraving," Bones decided, returning to his workshop. Darsumi remained behind, keeping Hemdus company in the kitchen. The dwarves' presence added to the lively atmosphere, and Bones could hear Hem's slurred speech echoing across the workshop. It was never quiet around here when the dwarves were in their element.

Around midnight, Bones was halfway through engraving the skeleton when an unexpected notification chimed on his screen. Intrigued, he paused his work to investigate. This was indeed unexpected.

Level up!

Bone Shaping has leveled up to lvl 16

Level up!

Congratulations! Race: Undead Skeleton is lvl 25

Congratulation on reaching level 25

Undead Skeleton Race advancement available: 1