25: Harvest Ritual

After the massacre in Vanco Village and the culling in Suray, roughly seven thousand people remained, of the seven thousand, two thousand were workers.

The remaining five thousand who had been "accepted" into the cult were now in the pits below fighting for their lives.

Wet sounds could be heard as bone smacked on flesh, and pools of blood formed in the bottom of the pits.

Loki, who had all of the remaining texts of the cult had never heard of such a ritual, but its brutality enamored him.

"High Priest, this humble subject does not mean to question your methods, but what is the purpose of this?"

Lapyx did not immediately, simply grinning.

"A tower cannot grow tall without a strong foundation. I am making that foundation."

'It seems the vessel is more interesting than I thought.'

Loki, originally was doubtful of Lapyx. His intention was for Jabberwock to be fully manifested as opposed to the current situation. Loki was unable to fully understand Lapyx and his goals and whether or not they truly aligned with his and those of the cults.

Not only was the vessel young, but Lapyx was not even 25! The vessel's power level was also unclear.

Loki was sure he was above the boy in Grade, but he witnessed the young man displaying powers and abilities beyond his Grade.

As a Grade 2 Novite, he shouldn't have been able to cast techniques with an incantation only and now have to draw an array, and yet he did so when killing Golor. 

He also cast a large-scale spell by himself, a feat only a Grade 3 should be able to accomplish, and yet the young man did it, to his younger brother no less!

'It seems he might be the perfect vessel, that would explain why Lord Jabberwock chose assimilation of taking over.'

He walked around the pits watching the violence below, most pits were down to single-digit combatants while others were still in heated melees of over thirty people.

The hesitance these people displayed earlier was nowhere to be seen, all that remained were feral beasts that were in a violent frenzy. 

Bones in hands and feet were broken from punches and kicks, and yet they still fought on.

Eyes were gouged out and throats were ripped open with jaws.

They still fought on.

It did not matter age or gender, brother or sister, the people below were fighting for their lives.

'Madness, what else could this be called?'

As Loki began walking back to where Lapyx was he saw him gesture for Horus to come over.

"Priest Horus put ten crystals in the five pits I designate to you."

Horus nodded and did as he was told.

Loki observing the exchange gave a questioning look.

"You wished to understand what my intentions were, correct?"

Loki nodded.

"Watch very well then Priest, this will be the first and last Raging Blood Harvest Ritual in the cult's history."

Loki's eyes widened.

'Raging Blood Harvest Ritual?!? Wasn't that described in one of the lost texts?'

Of the many variables that led to the fall of the Mad God Cult in the past, one was because of the defection of Mahrem, Jabberwock's brother disciple.

When he left he took with him multiple texts that were of great importance to the cult, including secret training methods and the true martial art of Ashtar, and Jabberwock's master.

'He must have been able to put it together through centuries of imprisonment.'

"Why only those pits, High Priest?"

"Why only those pits, High Priest?"

"Those are the only ones who will have survivors."

And just as he spoke, Lapyx's words came true.

Only five people survived, their respective pits, the others had also won their injuries were too severe and they succumbed to them on the spot.

Nephal as well as two of the people who had silently entered into different pits, the last two survivors, on the other hand, were way more surprising.

Firstly, was the Chieftain turned slave, Toro Minos.

"I guess this one wasn't just a Chieftain because of his blood. Hahaha."

Horus found it amusing that Toro was able to survive given that he thought the Chieftain was a coward due to becoming Lapyx's slave.

Second, was a young girl whose parents were workers from Vanco Village. The surprising fact was not just that she survived, but that she was also one of Loki's students.

This girl was Kaya!

as her family was directly related to the Silo Clan she was able to escape the massacre, the same could not be said for her family though.

"This is all of them, should I bring them out, High Priest?"

"No, leave them. This is the most important part of the ritual!"

Lapyx walked out in between the pits and sat down.

He started chanting a lengthy incantation and five circular arrays formed above the five pits.

The arrays then split into three and descended into the pits. At this point Lapyx's body began to change, the veins on the left side of his body turned completely black, and the white of his left eye, though not visible due to being shut, also turned black.

The Nova emanating from him became more oppressive and substantial causing Horus, a high-level Grade 2 Novite to step back.

"The vessel is exerting way more power than physically possible for his grade, how is this possible Chief?!"

Even Loki himself was impressed, whether a person was a suitable vessel or not the purity of Nova from higher Grades burn weaker Novites alive from the inside.

This has to be because of the assimilation! 

"It is because Lord Jabberwock's Nova sees the vessel as Lord Jabberwock himself, and your own Nova can't hurt you, but seeing it up close is something else."

As the two priests watched the spectacle from a safe distance, Lapyx continued to focus on the incantation for the ritual.

The arrays began to rotate within the pits as Lapyx completed the chant and Nova began to be drawn into them. Red lights began to fill the pits as more and more Nova got pulled in.

The arrays, now fully charged, began to apply a suction to whatever was in the pit, the array at the bottom drawing in bone and flesh, while the middle array sucked in blood.

The top array however began to draw in small glowing grey spheres.

Seeing that the process had reached this stage, Lapyx got up and walked over to where both priests were standing.

"Performing the ritual is extremely taxing, I need to rest now. Alert my attendant when it is complete and she will come and get me."

"Yes, High Priest."

The two men watched as the young man walked off with his attendant following behind him silently.

"Chief, I know that the vessel is the key to fully reviving the cult, but can we trust him? He's changed our titles, our initiation process, and now even the rituals. We had enough living and capable bodies, with your technique and the cult's methods we could have brainwashed them and made enough berserkers to destroy a region's capital! Now we only have 5! And that's if they even survive whatever this is."

Horus was furious and let Loki know of his complaints, Loki was his leader, not Lapyx.

"Horus, I agree with you nothing has gone to plan but just be patient the goal is still the same, the arrival method has changed slightly, that's all."

"Fine, Chief. I wish the vessel was a bit older at least, how am I supposed to take a kid seriously?" 

Loki laughed and shook his head.

'Kid? Ha. That so-called kid slayed his whole clan joyfully and made a pact with ancient evil his clan was supposed to be guarding. Horus underestimates him too greatly.'

Loki had been observing Lapyx over the last few days and realized that the boy was far more cunning than he let on. He never explained any of his plans to the two of them and only gave out the most basic of instructions leaving the two men completely in the dark as to what the next steps would be.

'He doesn't trust us and only tells us enough to get the task done but not too much where we could potentially sabotage him, I'm impressed.'

TSSSSSSS

Sounds coming from the pits caught Loki's attention and he approached the nearest one.

The scene that greeted him when he peered inside was an unforgettable one.

The bottom third of the pit was covered in a greyish-pink paste while sticky black liquid dripped down onto it from the third above.

"What is this?"

Loki was shocked, he had never seen something like this ever in his life.

Horus who was now beside him was also shocked but not at the gore, but at the body and three crystals that were barely visible above the muck.

"Chief, look at those."

Pulling his gaze away and following Horus's finger, Loki laid eyes on the crystals.

His confusion grew even more.

"Huh, how did those get there?"

Realizing Lapyx had done something that he would not be able to understand without the young man there himself to explain, he sighed and looked at Horus.

"Get the High Priest."