World of Alvarra: Rise of the Vampire Lord

Chapter 56 Haunted Mansion Part 2

Van went on a killing spree, blasting any zombies that got too close and forcibly banishing any ghosts as well.

The ghosts were not like the ones he knew in the community homes, they were more like the apparition that he met before. Eyes wholly black or red, limbs missing or too transparent, hands like claws and worse.

He didn't care to save any of his energy at the moment, he was surrounded and preferred not to be. That was all that mattered to him right now.

In the back of his head, he wondered if he should bring out his familiars or perhaps Anna. But even now, he refused to give in to those thoughts. He rather use the amulet and teleport out than have to rely on them for everything. This was him trying to prove to himself that he could take care of himself, that he could be a proud spirit caller and necromancer. And a necromancer, or a summoner for that matter, was never outnumbered.

Thanking his past self, he summoned four wolves made of shadow. They were slightly stronger than the one that was used to hold down the death wolf of the past. He even went so far as to use parts of that death wolf to augment the shadow wolves he summoned, making them far stronger.

With a will, he sent them to attack the ghosts and zombies that were slowly trying to surround and overwhelm him. They shredded into the rotting flesh of his enemies, and even the ghosts were surprised to find that their semi-incorporeal forms were no defense against the pure shadow energy of his wolves.

Taking his time, van slowly dealt with the undead, ringing his lantern every so often to stun them and give his wolves an easier time, and blasting any that got too close to him. After what felt like forever but was probably like ten minutes, he finished the last of them off.

"Alright, no more mister nice guy. This stupid place wants war, I'll give it war!" not that he had any choice at this moment. Ringing the lantern so many times probably woke up the mansion nice and proper, and it probably would now be more determined than ever to get rid of the intruder that messed with its sleep. Which meant Van had to pull out all the stops if he was going to get anywhere.

Taking some time to gather all the essence that was made from killing all those undead, he paused in the center of the room to decide what his next course of action would be.

"I already checked most of the first floor... Perhaps I should check the second floor and see if it has a study, maybe it will have some info about where I can find the core..." with that in mind Van dispelled any fear he might have, putting himself in the proper mindset, and set his wolves to guard him in square formation. Two in the front, two in the back, with him taking the center and summoning a ball of white light so that he could see better.

Taking a mana potion, he left for the second floor.

The mansion seemed content to wait for him, he could almost feel it biding its time as he walked up the creaking stairs and looked down the long dark corridors of the second floor. It also gave up most if any pretext of pretending not to know that he was there. The eyes of paintings and statues were watching him, and they did not care anymore to hide it.

With a grunt, Van sent some of his shadow magic to temporarily blind up the eyes of the paintings and statues. Cruel? Maybe... but he had this thing about being stared at, especially by a creepy house that wanted to kill him.

The upstairs was also much different than the downstairs. Lounge rooms, guest rooms, and more, he slowly walked down the dark corridors. The sudden silence and inactivity from what he faced downstairs, unnerving him.

Opening a few doors, he found that everything was in its place, nothing out of the ordinary. This actually went to confuse and worry Van, as it made him feel like the house was preparing something that he probably wouldn't enjoy.