Branded Part 2



The many slaves dragged at the ends of the chains pulling the Iron Maiden up from the pit into the direct sunlight. Some their bones broke at the task screaming in abject pain.


“Silence.” whispered the Archon Drect. “We have uncovered an incredible find here so close to our dark world. The etchings upon the lid of the tomb date back over 30,000 years. This is a vessel of intense pain... a thing of raw of beauty.” She ran her forked tongue over the tips of her sharp fangs letting the wet blood run back down her throat as she momentarily gasped. “Unbind the ancient chains!” commanded Drect.


Shambling forward a Grotesque towered above her, its slabs of inhuman muscle flexing in unison as the beast lifted the axe. “So mote it be.” The teeth of the weapon bit into the chain links shattering them into dust. The gigantic lid slid off revealing what was within.


The court looked down to see a vast multitude of poisoned spikes bent and broken. A solitary figure lay with the trap unstirred as if caught in a dream of unbroken sleep. A somber smile split the pale face then its pale blue eyes opened drinking in the dire surroundings.


Drect looked down upon the ash white suit of armor covering the tombed body. The pauldrons and hood a somber blue as deep as some forgotten sea. At first she frowned in disgust then immediately fought against the immediate reaction. The body was larger than they had ever encountered and a sense of immediate peace radiated out out from its mortal coil. Warily she stepped back shrouded by her Incubi. “What are you?" she demanded.