“Nice shot!” Lucian cried as one of his men took down a fleeing chaos sorcerer. Since last we saw them things have certainly been on the mend for Lucian’s regiment whose honour has been restored after exposing and slaying the Tzeentchian sorcerer posing as a Cathayan diplomat, Hong Fu Chu, resulting in them being deputised as soldiers by the Countess of Wissenland while Lucian was promoted to the rank of Sergeant.

Now officially recognised as soldiers of the state, Lucian and his men were positioned on the Northern border of Ostland in order to keep any invading Norscan or Chaos marauders at bay. “Search the bodies, burn them once that’s complete.” Lucian commanded his men with a certain tone that reflected the fact he’d given that same order many times these last few months, usually without anything being found.

“Sir, I think I’ve got something here.” Lucian heard from his trooper who’d killed and searched the sorcerer. “It’s a book, sir.”

The private passed the tome to Lucian, for he couldn’t read himself, and the captain took one glimpse at the cover before realising he was in way over his head on this one as he read out “Die Zerstörung von Schloss Tempelhof” though his attention was directed further down the cover, where its author read as – Egrimm Van Horstmann!

Lucian abandoned his post at the border, taking 5 of his men with him while he ordered the remainder of his unit to continue normal operations. He rode for many days and nights through the hills of Hochland, the forests of Middenland and the ruins of Reikland, most of which had yet to even begin reconstruction on account of the money being set aside for repairs coming from deferred payments owed by the colonies.

Finally, Lucian’s men arrived in Nuln, Wissenland, having made sure never to gaze within the books pages on their way there, where Reiksmarshal Kurt Helborg had been informed of their arrival in advance.

Helborg took Lucian into the central barracks, an unusual place for Lucian to find himself given this was where many of the knights and officers who may typically look down on his unit would gather, and brought him to a room where Verspasian Kant, the current Magister Patriarch of the Light Order and an experienced reader of forbidden texts, was waiting for them.

“This is a genuine piece.” Kant claimed upon inspection. “See this watermark? Or that slight flourish on his upsilons? All hallmarks of a Van Horstmann publication. I was a mere magister back when he was our Patriarch, I would know these details from anywhere. The order admitted 99 students under Van Horstmann’s peerage, someone really should have seen his betrayal coming.”

“But what of the content? What does it say?” Helborg demanded.

“It’s a step-by-step instruction manual on how a sorcerer may infiltrate their way into the catacombs beneath Castle Templehof unnoticed by its masters and sanction its destruction. It even provides detailed accounts of the catacombs’ passageways and a destructive spell the user may cast to destroy the edifice above them while teleporting themselves out.” Kant responded.

“Impossible. That fortress has long been proven unassailable by our forces. No way could a single wizard destroy it.” Helborg claimed.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out. I have a contact by the name of Sunscryer, he’s a fellow light wizard residing near Templehof who will know if this manual’s schematics check out.” Kant said.

….

• Love React: “I’m not an idiot Patriarch. Jovi Sunscryer is the mastermind behind our Templehof Luminarks and I will not risk putting his life in danger, pursuing instructions by a known traitor. This tome will be burnt, Deputy Lucian will return to his post and we shall go on with our lives as if this conversation never happened. Good day to you gentlemen.” Kurt Helborg ordered before leaving the room.

….

….

….

“Hmmm…that may work. What do you think, Magister?” Helborg inquired.

“With respect, Reiksmarshal, I think we need a victory. Our people still reel over the devastation of Altdorf while Essen and Siegfriendhof are in constant fear of reprisals by our enemies. Any chance at a victory needs to be taken my lord, not just for strategic purposes but for the people’s morale in general. This book seems genuine to me….that has to offer us some hope.” Verspasian Kant responded.

“Alright. Make contact with this Sunscryer and allow him to test whether this could work. I would discuss this further with you but unfortunately, I’ve got another rant from Sir Applebag to attend in a few minutes so I will need to leave this to you.” Helborg said dejectedly before leaving the room.

With their engagement with Kurt Helborg complete, Verspasian Kant and Lucian the Blade set off to the town of Ulfheim on the Northern frontiers of Fort Oberstyre, the closest town to Castle Templehof still under Imperial control, accompanied by the bright wizard Wolfgang Scheunacht who’d been tasked with incinerating Van Horstmann’s tome if anything began to go awry. Once there, the two light wizards consulted the text and mutually agreed that it seemed to check out, Sunscryer concurring that the way into the Catacombs seemed to check out. Sunscryer was positively jubilant at the notion of retaking Castle Templehof, or at least levelling it. After all, his ancestors were mages too and had once taught and trained in Templehof’s famous Temple of Morr, a sacred site untouched by any priest in almost 800 years after the place was taken by vampires many centuries ago. Compared to Kant who was cautiously optimistic, Sunscryer was practically raring to go, his mind set to the dream of seeing sunlight once more over his ancestors’ home.

And so as nightfall fell, Jovi Sunscryer, Sergeant Lucian and a crack squad taken from his militia set off to infiltrate the cavernous tunnels beneath Castle Templehof. The way there was long and difficult, having needed to dismount a few miles away from the castle and needing to stay low through the tall grass of the Sylvanian farming pastures to avoid the notice of nearby Crypt Horrors and even the odd Varghulf stalking the land. What made this worse of course was the fact that the militia men couldn’t use their pistols if they got into a spot of bother without attracting more monsters due to the noise they made. Similarly, any lore of light spells cast by the wizard would surely be noticed in the open fields under the sky’s pitch black aspect.

….

• Angry React: The group continued to skulk their way through the tall grass, avoiding all manner of dangers as the outline of Castle Templehof began to come into view. However, just as soon as they thought they were in the clear they suddenly heard a noise. A bark in the distance.

The group looked toward each other and beyond. Clearly there was a dire wolf going around somewhere…but where? Could it smell them?

In utter silence the group continued to skulk, now merely crawling through the grass to lessen the chances of detection. Then they heard the bark once more. It was closer this time. Then they heard another bark. Then another. And then another. They heard more and more barks, each sounding closer to them and space far too close to each other to have come from a single wolf. Finally, they saw the rustling coming from the distant grass and realised the truth. Not only had their scent been caught. An entire pack of dire wolves were coming for them!

The wizard and militia men stood up and proceeded to run full speed toward the castle in the hope they could get there before the dogs caught up. Sadly this wasn’t to be as the wolves emerged from the grass and pounced on them. The soldiers withdrew their pistols and formed a circle, blasting the wolves one by one as the wizard cast his spells. Sadly the bright light of the spells and the sound of gunfire attracted more beasts. A swarm of fell bats swirled overhead, deafening the Imperials with the screeching sound they made as they flew, while crypt ghouls, horrors, vargheists and varghulfs approached from the distance.

Jovi and Lucian’s men stood their ground. Fighting off so many beasts that the militia men ran out of ammunition and were forced to fend them off with nothing but their cutlasses but eventually they were overrun and killed. In time, every single scrap of flesh that clung to their bodies would be stripped and devoured by the monsters of the night.

….

….

….

The group crept through the tall grass and miraculously, were never detected on their way to the Castle. They circled its walls until they came across a grate into the tunnels below, a grate which perfectly lined up with the description in the tome.

The militia made their way through the endless series of caverns, though this time the mage could at least cast a spell for light without worrying about who might see it outside, guided by Van Horstmann’s instructions. The catacombs reeked with the stench of death, for all around them slept several thousand corpses and skeletons, just waiting to be revived by their Countess should someone ever try to lay siege to the castle. Yet even then these repellent tunnels were arguably still more hospitable than the fortress above their heads where the banshee countess Emmanuelle von Templehof, nicknamed Whispering Nell for her lethal voice, wandered its halls wailing in grief for the loss of her cousin, Konrad the Bloody of the Von Carstein lineage, whose death she missed while taking part in Mannfred’s failed campaign against Karaz-a-Karak. The group continued to delve deeper into the catacombs until finally, they reached a large, round room at the base of the castle, exactly the room the book suggested the spell be cast in.

As the militiamen kept lookout, Jovi Sunscryer stood at the centre of the room and began reading its text. (The following is a translated account of the spell in the tome, itself written in a combination of the Classical and Dark tongues:)

“O Centred Hysh,

Shine through me,

Come forth in war,

Come forth in peace,

Bring down the dark,

Extinguish the night,

Let me remain,

In splendor of thy light,

Invoke your being,

Embrace my tongue,

Cast the flame,

Felt by none,

Burn the wicked,

Sear the stone,

Come forth now,

Make me thine own,

By my passion,

Grant me my Ascension,

Instil me with your might,

Bring the light!”

….

• Laugh React: A burning light emerged from the book and formed a ring around the wizard from whence he suddenly vanished from the view of the militia men. The book fell to the ground and the ring widened, its bright white flame engulfing both soil and edifice that it came across. The flame continued to grow, flowing up the walls and into the castle above as the militia men ran from it.

The burning fire crept upstairs and roared its way through the castle’s halls, instantly purifying and incinerating any undead fiend it came across. Meanwhile, Jovi Sunscryer materialised back near Ulfheim. The teleport had worked and from what he’d seen moments before teleporting, it would seem the destructive spell had succeeded to. But where were Lucian and his men he wondered? It seems that spell only transported its caster away, not their entourage.

Eventually the castle set alight in its entirety. The walls crumbled and its towers split and fell. The banshee which haunted this place screamed in agony as the righteous light destroyed her form and reunited her with her cousin while the vampires and their underlings fled in their droves. It seemed unlikely that Lucian and his men could have escaped the catacombs before being burnt alive. Still, one would be hard pressed to argue that the preservation of a militia’s lives outweighed the tactical victory this day brought.

….

….

….

The light wizard had finished reciting his spell yet the book went on. He stood there transfixed, unable to turn his gaze from the page as the letters drifted from their places on the page and reshuffled into a new order, some letters even transforming into others entirely. As the words took their new positions, Jovi tried to shut his eyes, yet found he couldn’t even blink. He tried to drop the book, only to find that a blue hair-like material suddenly sprouted from the book’s hardcover and warped its away around hands and fingers, forcing him to keep the book open.

“O Bornless One,

As darkened might,

Found not in tongues,

Found not in the light,

Bring the beast that whirlest forth,

A thunder-bolt brought henceforth,

Beget as ray void of the sun,

Made so powerful yet undone,

Thou that flowest,

Thou that knowest,

Thou that goest,

Thou air, breath, spirit,

Thou without bound or bond,

Thou essence, air swift-streaming,

Thou wandering, master of all,

Thou wandering, spirit of all,”

At this point Lucian ran over and tried to cut the book loose from the wizard’s hands with his cutlass yet found that every single strand of the strange sinew reattached itself instantly, making it impossible to remove it from the mage’s grip. Seeing no other option, he withdrew his pistol and aimed it at the wizard’s head only for the book to defend itself as a blast of magical wind sent him and his followers flying against the walls and kept them in place there under some form of psionic-pressure. As this happened, the wizard continued to recite the rewritten words on the pages, his language become more and more corrupted by the Dark tongue as he spoke:

“Hear me,

Make all spirits subjects unto me,

So that every spirit of the firmament,

And of the ether,

Upon this world,

And beyond this world,

On dry land,

And in the water of whirling air,

And of rushing fire,

And every spell made known onto me,

Such that your spawn may be obedient unto me,

Thy name is nowhere,

Thy name is never,

Thou spiritual sun,

Thou eye,

Thou mind,

I cry aloud,

I cry out,

Whirl the wheel,

Oh my father,

O cometh,

O Tzeeneth!”

….

• Wow React: At that moment, Jovi suddenly vanished and found himself in the boiling heart of a volcano. Where he had previously stood beneath Castle Templehof remained only a tear in the fabric of reality. The tear widened, making itself into a portal and the front legs of a terrifying Mutalith Vortex Beast came through!

No longer under the influence of the book’s shockwave, the militia men stood up and turned to run for their lives only to find their body mutating in real time as vile tentacles and spikes emerged from all over their bodies. They fell, unable to run as their feet morphed into clawed blobs and as the beast came through the portal, their mutations grew worse and worse.

The Vortex Beast rampaged through the base of the catacombs, growing in size as its tentacles tore at the castle’s foundations and all which attempted to fight it, whether living or dead, found themselves hideously mutated beyond all recognition. Even the Banshee Countess found herself unable to harm the beast and so fled from this place as her ancient home came tumbling down.

Meanwhile, back in Ulfheim the bright wizard Wolfgang Scheunacht entered Verspasian Kant’s sleeping quarters as he rested and proceeded to set him alight, burning his bedsheets and hurling fireballs at the unsuspecting sleeping wizard. The patriarch woke and attempted to defend himself but found himself outmatched by the better prepared bright wizard who slew him and torched his quarters. It would later transpire that while transporting the tome here from Nuln, Scheunacht had succumbed to its corrupting influence unbeknownst to either of the light wizards.

It would seem that though Egrimm Van Horstmann is long dead, his schemes are still unfolding just as planned…

….

….

….

• Sad React: As the incantation finished the book suddenly released Jovi Sunscryer and his compatriots from its influence and they turned to retreat as the book tore a hole in reality from whence the fearsome Mutalith Vortex Beast began to emerge.

However, as they ran away they found their path toward escaping become easier as 100s of crypt ghouls ran past them instead of towards them, much more focused on killing the chaos beast that was entering their world, and skeletons and zombies burrowed out of the walls to defend their home from the monster.

However, even though Lucian and most of his militia managed to escape without too much harm, the same didn’t apply for all of them as Countess Emmanuelle von Templehof emerged from the walls and grabbed one of the militia men by the arm before peering into his mind and uttering his name, causing him to slump to the ground stone dead. From there she went after Jovi Sunscryer, grabbing him by his wizard’s collar and dragging him into her castle. Lucian considered turning back to save him but with the roaring of the vortex beast and the hundreds of crypt monstrosities who would no doubt come for him if not for that beast all being present, he and the remaining militia members decided it was best they simply ran for their lives.