Chapter 88: Return Of The Lich (2/2)

Variants

Aquatic type variants, all of the almost like hideous s, finned tails, gills that breathed sucked in air through both land and sea, burly, clawed ar yellow eyes

A dozen of these variants stood still, stopping the on hue, as if to lend their eyes and ears to a perfor their death

Aldrichof where his summons were They were not here in the Red Circle It seemed that, under Valera's command, they had rallied their forces and left when the Red Circle, its defenses already thoroughly daed by villains, came under attack by variants

They had retreated to the abandoned a complex apartment that Aldrich initially stationed the Geist, Walters, and Smoke at to deal with the Blackwater instructor Colette They had fortified the co its many floors as a natural tower full of choke points to defend against attacks

Overall, though, Aldrich had suffered no major losses to his forces A few skeletons had fallen, but that was about it

That left Aldrich to clean up here and regroup with the others

As soon as the variants y and bone, they froze, awed

"I hope you enjoyed your , thunderous peals that no longer sounded re to the core to listen to that voice, a voice that pro death "For they will be your last"

Aldrich thrust out a skeletal hand and cast [Death Bolt], a new cantrip spell he learned that all Liches knew It was a 5th circle spell that cost 10 mana that specialized in heavy destructive power For eneh, it was an instant death spell

A helical strand of green, flahostly wail as it smashed into a variant The variant did not just die, it blew apart as if a bo its brethren behind it in its scales, blood, and entrails

The variants shrieked in fear, but one of the variants, a larger, bulkier variant re its brethren to stay and fight It was evident that this creature was in coer than the others with a heavy build reminiscent of an armored car Easily two e and skewer anything with its long, blade like snout

The swordfish variant charged, using a power that boosted its movement speed with jet bursts of pressurized air in various holes in its flesh The variant sped forwards as fast as a speeding car, s into Aldrich

The variant's snout blade, metallic in its tensile durability, shattered when it hit Aldrich's ribcage Aldrich not even budge a single inch back

The variant roared in pain as it sturabbed the swordfish variant's throat with one hand and held its several hundred-pound weight of muscle and scale up with utter ease The variant flailed its finned arle to survive, but there was no struggle here

Only a rab a fir into the flesh and anchoring into the creature's skull He then channeled another Death Bolt right into the creature's head, co it

Blood spouted out fro this, all the other variants shrieked and fled as fast as they could

"Weak Very weak And to think soe to me before," said Aldrich The creature was level 15now, especially in termentations, he was more than aVolantis toAr present within him even if not physically present

Aldrich could feel the living ar dormant inside, the heart of a fierce, powerful warrior ready to awaken and serve at a moment's notice

But before Aldrich willed Volantis to awaken and ed his Materius

Aldrich's current fory and bone was his Aspect Base, his fundamental appearance as the Death Elemental known as a Lich

On top of this, he could create as known as a Materius, essentially a far more physical form that Liches used to appear similarly to other mortals and to reduce any weaknesses they had to attacks that targeted spirits

The Materius also gave Aldrich much more maneuverability to move around in armor and wield weapons with a atives to equipping regular warrior type armor, but with a Materius, he could subvert that

The process to create one was si his will for it was an innate racial ability of his As natural as knowing how to breathe or knohere one's limbs were even in the dark

Strands of raw red flesh sprouted fro no true functional purpose, greithin his skeletal fra deathly pale skin His energy aura faded away as it covered up under his costume of flesh and blood, and within seconds, he looked as he had in his huh, with a fewalmost as tall as his lich Aspect form

Now, it was time to don his new set of armor

"Awaken, Volantis," said Aldrich as he looked down at his naked body, balling up his fists and breathing in, re how it felt to be in a body of flesh and blood