14 The Dance of Death

Eamon, stood at the cave entrance, eyes fixed on the plain where the colossal rat king and his horde of giant rats awaited. The morning sun was casting it's pale light across the plain.

He turned to Malakai and issued his orders:

"Malakai, prepare the Fred and Cassandra behind the protective barrier," Eamon instructed. "You have to hold your lances ready. And keep the rat zombie hidden for now—don't let it frighten the rats outside."

Malakai nodded. The zombies shuffled into position, their hands gripping the spears. Eamon's gaze shifted to the rat king, calculating the distance. He needed to lure the leader close to the cave entrance, at spear range, where they could strike without endangering themselves. But if the plan failed, he'd face the rat king head-on.

"Remember," Eamon said to Malakai, "the rat zombie stays hidden until I give the signal. And when that moment comes, it must leap at the rat king, aiming for his right eye."

With a determined breath, Eamon stepped beyond the cave's boundary. The rat king's intelligent eyes locked onto him, but the creature didn't move. It stood there, wary, as if fearing Eamon might retreat back into the safety of the cave. In that moment, Eamon realized his plan to lure the rat king to the cave's entrance had failed.

As Eamon reached the midpoint between the rat king and the cave, the giant rat lunged. Its claws tore through the earth, flinging clumps of soil into the air. Eamon remained still. As the beast closed, he sidestepped the rat king's claws, evading the lethal strike. In the same fluid motion, Eamon thrust his lance into the creature's left eye. The rat king howled, shattering the silence as blood and vitreous fluid sprayed.

Eamon turned and shouted to Malakai, "Now!"

The giant rats, drawn by their king's cry of pain, surged toward the battle. But then, an ominous shadow emerged from the cave—the rat zombie. Its presence alone sent the horde scrambling backward.

The rat zombie throwed itself at the rat king with an unmatched ferocity.

Enraged, the rat king struck the rat zombie. Its claws sliced through putrid flesh, revealing a disgusting liquid.

Yet the undead creature felt no pain. With a brutal motion, it tore out the rat king's remaining eye, leaving the monster blind and emitting a prolonged, frustrated hiss.

This was Eamon's chance.

He turned to Malakai. "Malakai! To my side! Come with Fred and Cassandra!" He ordered before lunging at the blinded rat king.

His lance plunged deep into the creature's torso, and he leaped back just in time. The rat king howled in pain.

Eamon knew that if he killed the rat king, the enemy's morale would crumble.

The rat king, though blinded, was not defenseless. It lashed out, its front claws catching the rat zombie in a grip of death. The zombie's decaying flesh tore easily under the assault, spilling foul ichor onto the ground.

Eamon, thrust his lance into the rat king's underbelly, a place where the fur was thin and the skin vulnerable. The lance pierced through, rupturing the stomach and spilling its contents. The rat king released the rat zombie with a piercing shriek of agony, the sound echoing across the battlefield.

The other rats, driven by a primal urge to protect their leader, charged despite their fear of the undead. Eamon commanded the rat zombie, "Attack them! Buy us time!" The zombie obeyed, hurling itself at the oncoming rats, its grotesque form a blur of motion.

Eamon dodged a vicious swipe from the rat king, who was now relying on its keen sense of smell to fight. He bent his knees for stability and thrust his lance forward, anticipating the rat king's movements.

In the tumult of the fray, a giant rat, propelled by his instinct to save its king, avoided the zombie rat and made a charge at Eamon. As the rat's form bore down upon him, Eamon executed a deft sidestep, evading the gnashing teeth and slashing claws.

The rat, overextended from its failed strike, presented its neck to the Eamon. Seizing the fleeting opportunity, he thrust his lance forward with lethal precision. The tip of the weapon found the nape of the rat's neck, where skull meets spine, and with a swift, upward jab, the lance severed the spinal cord. The giant rat's momentum carried it forward, but its life was extinguished before its body hit the ground.

As Eamon turned back to the rat king, the sound of shuffling feet grew louder. Malakai and the two zombies, Fred and Cassandra, joined the fight.

Malakai moved with a purposeful grace that belied his undead nature. The two flames within is eye sockets flickered as they locked onto the rat king. Fred and Cassandra flanked him, their bodies rigid, yet capable of swift, jerking movements. Each held a spear, the tips ready to puncture flesh and bone.

Malakai lunged forward, his spear aimed at the rat king's thoracic cavity, seeking to pierce the heart and lungs. Fred and Cassandra targeted the creature's abdomen, where the soft tissue offered little resistance, aiming to disembowel the beast.

The rat king, sensing the approach of his assailants, swung its massive paws with lethal force. Its claws, sharp as razors, were weapons forged by nature for such confrontations. Malakai deftly avoided a swipe, the claw grazing his cheek and leaving a gash that oozed blackened blood.

Eamon thrust his lance with precision into the rat king's side, piercing through the diaphragm and into the liver, causing bile to mix with blood. The rat king let out a guttural roar, its pain evident even without sight.

The rat king, though formidable, was losing strength with each passing second as the coordinated assault of Eamon and his undead minions took its toll.

The other rats, witnessing the the situation, scattered in terror, their instinct for survival overtaking their loyalty. They fled into the forest, leaving behind their once-mighty king.

The rat king, now alone and blind, emitted a weak hiss, a sound of defeat and despair. Eamon approached, his lance ready to deliver the final blow. With surgical precision, he drove the weapon into the pulsating heart of the beast, ending its suffering.

Eamon's gaze lingered on the still forms, his mind analyzing the battle's outcome. It was then that he noticed the absence of movement from where the rat zombie had last been seen. A twinge of something akin to concern flickered within him as he stepped forward.

Approaching the spot, Eamon's eyes confirmed what his instincts had feared. The rat zombie lay there, its body torn and lifeless. It had completed its mission with a ferocity that matched its master's will. Around it lay the bodies of two giant rats, a testament to the zombie's relentless assault.

Eamon knelt beside his fallen minion, a silent nod to the creature's service. The rat zombie had been a crucial part of his strategy. In its last act, it had not only fulfilled its duty but had also protected him from harm.

He turned to Malakai "Can you bring back the rat zombie?"

"No, I don't have the power to do so." Malakai responded.

Eamon nodded, he then approached the rat king's corpse, his decision made.

This creature had been a formidable enemy, and now it would serve as a powerful ally. Eamon had gathered enough mental energy to perform the summoning. Without hesitation, he placed his hand upon the beast and unleashed the Summoner's power.

A surge of energy, as vast as when he had summoned Malakai, flowed from Eamon's body.

The air crackled with power as the rat king's body began its transformation into an undead. Greenish fluid filled the empty eye sockets, solidifying into pale green orbs, new and unseeing. The rat's wounds knitted together, sealing shut as if time were rewinding upon its flesh.

With a final pulse of energy, the transformation completed, and the rat king's body jerked upright.

It turned towards Eamon, its new master, its massive form dwarfing the necromancer's human silhouette.

The rat king, now an undead servant bound to Eamon's will, approached him.

It lowered its head in a gesture of fealty, rubbing against Eamon's side in an eerie display of subservience.

Eamon placed a hand upon the creature's matted fur, feeling the unnatural chill of undeath that clung to it.

Eamon's triumph was short-lived as a sudden, immense pain overwhelmed him. It felt as if his skull was being split open, an excruciating agony that clouded his vision and buckled his knees. As he staggered, two notifications from the system flashed before his eyes, momentarily cutting through the haze of pain:

< Congratulations, you have summoned a Rat Ghoul. >

< Your summons are powerful enough for your Necromancer rank to be increased.>

With these words echoing in his mind, Eamon's consciousness slipped away, and he collapsed to the ground.

The Rat Ghoul, stood by, its pale green eyes the last thing Eamon saw before succumbing to the darkness.