New Lore: Castle of the Dead

It is a place covered in thick dark clouds, where no light shines upon even during the day. It is constantly battered by chilling gale force winds and the vile stench of the dead fills the air.

Ever since the day that Bakal ascended from Pandemonium, the Castle of the Dead has been a hotbed of all kinds of ghastly stories. It is after all the only gateway that connects Pandemonium and Empyrean.

As Anton’s last breath disrupted the dimensional boundary, the people of Empyrean were able to clearly view the Castle of the Dead for the first time. Each and everyone who saw it felt their heart sink in fear, their eyes fixated at the horrifying sight. Not even the most experienced officer could keep their composure.

“Well this is going to be fun” said Jakter.
Woon dropped his shoulders as he heard Jakter make fun of their situation. There were many things he could have said but his emotions got the best of him.
“Fun...? Have you gone senile old man?” asked Woon.
“You’ve always been foul mouthed and overly serious, Woon. You've got to learn to take these kinds of situation in strides” said Jakter.
Woon scratched the back of his head, trying to find the right words to say but gave up on the idea and moved on to a different topic.
“Well... according to Ria Richter, we should be able to contact a lady named Niu through the Interdimensional Rift that has been opened” said Woon.
“That would mean getting close to Pandemonium and catching the attention of another Apostle would be disastrous for us right now” replied Jakter. “We simply do not have enough men to muster any kind of resistance”
“But with the boundary breached, shouldn’t we take this opportunity to explore the Castle?” asked Woon.
Jakter looked at his adjutant intensely and turned towards the Castle of the Dead and said “From Bakal to Anton, I’m sick and tired of these Apostles”
“Lieutenant Lyonir!” he shouted “Get a scouting party ready. I want to know what’s in that Castle”
Woon smiled as he expected nothing else from the man they call Eagle Eye.
“Yes sir!” replied Woon.
The boastful exchange between the Commander and his adjutant spread like wildfire throughout the ranks. The fear and panic that the soldiers felt after seeing the Castle has turned into excitement and determination as they form a scouting party.

Naen who had been below deck all this time, entered the bridge and walked up to the Jakter and Woon
“I have contacted Meryl... I told her about the Castle of the Dead and she said she’ll most certainly be there... she asked us to wait for her at the headquarters...” she said.

Woon frowned and scowled at Naen, as Naen nodded to reaffirm what she said was true. He quickly turned his head towards Jakter, who was trying not to laugh as best as he could but he couldn’t stop his mustache from twitching.

“Permission to retreat sir!” said Woon in a very serious tone.
“Now, now Lieutenant, we may not see eye to eye with Meryl but she still is a very important and influential person in the Empire” explained Jakter “Besides I can’t have my adjutant going AWOL on me, what would this senile old man to do?”
“Ugh... you couldn’t let that go after all...” said Woon.
“You wouldn’t like jail food anyway” replied Jakter “The soldiers complaining about the rations is bad enough as it is”

Jakter cleared his throat and stretched, as he looked at the enormous fallen body of Anton which did not completely submerge under the deep Sea of Twilight.

“Sir, the scouting party is ready to leave and rendezvous with Meryl and her team. Everyone else is ready to return to base” said Woon.
“Very well Lieutenant” replied Jakter as he observed the faces around him. Too many have died, he thought. Friends that have stood with them since the beginning are no longer with here but he knew this is not the time for mourning. There are still a lot of things that needs to be done.

“Alright, let us sail home before the old lady gets here” said Jakter as he joke about Meryl “I want a quiet and long vacation at the beach with a lot of drinks, without the need to suffer her warts and wrath. Hahaha!”

The soldiers laughed cheerfully at their commander’s jokes. They will finally get a much needed respite. They have won the battle against impossible odds. Now they get a chance to go home.

However, as the soldiers celebrated their victory, they did not realize the sky was darkening above them.