[ Chapter 3 - Lich ]

[ Male hunter ] Gah!

The male hunter shrieked, because of the pain caused by the female hunter while applying medicine onto his fresh wound.

[ Female hunter ] Stay still!

The huntress exclaimed.

Then she leaned in, closer to the wound and bit off the bandage, then she stuffed the end of the bandage inside a wrapped layer.

The huntress leaned back and wiped off her sweat with the back of her right hand.

[ Female hunter ] That should do the job.

The huntress looked behind and noticed Denma, alive and well.

[ Female hunter ] So, you're still alive.

The huntress seemed exhilarated at the thought of another person surviving instead of meeting their end at the hands of the enemy.

[ Denma ] Indeed I am, although, I think the laboratory may be overrun by the undead.

The hunters and Natasha keep quiet and listen.

Everybody manages to hear the quiet screams inside off a sealed off room.

That just sends the shivers down their spines.

The noise managing to come over to the room shows how loud they are.

Denma looked down and saw Natasha pulling down on his coat with her two fingers while shaking, her eyes, horrified, as it is her first time a laboratory gets invaded by the enemies with her inside.

Denma puts his right arm around her shoulder's and brings her closer.

Natasha closes her eyes and hugs the team head.

[ Denma ] Hunters, you should get comfortable, as it will take a long time for a response from the government to come.

Denma squeezed Natasha's shoulder.

He knew, he knew that the government, would not come for them.

As the laboratory's contamination is high, the extraction, would not be possible.

Denma bit his lower lip and trembled with rage.

The look in Denma's eyes scared Natasha.

Denma took quick notice to Natasha's reaction and covered his eyes with his left hand.

[ Denma ] Huf, alright, let's start the extracting organs from the lich.

Denma cooled down and wished to start the extraction from the lich's body, to write down all data, as another lich will most likely not appear any time soon in other laboratorys.

Denma let go of Natasha's shoulder and went towards the lich to strap him in and add any available restraints, because once the procedure begins, the specimen will always stress.

Once Denma turned around and saw the lich, he stared at the lich, noticing, that the lich stared back.

[ Denma ] "Why does it keep staring at only me?"

Denma was confused by the lich's behavior pattern, he wasn't the one who captured him, he wasn't the one who strapped him in, why did it keep staring at him?

Denma hastened his search for any restraints that could be used on a humanoid figure.

Search failed, the only thing found was a spit mask, that didn't let the wearer spit or bite.

[ Denma ] "I won't even bother with this dog mask, it's not like the lich has saliva or a strong jaw.

Denma put the spit mask on another dissecting table and went towards the locker and took out: gloves, surgical mask, safety goggles, a coat with a unique property where it cannot get wet and any wet substance will fall off without clinging.

Natasha joined Denma in preparing their clothes for the 'surgery'.

[ Denma ] "This seems fine, no holes, no damages, alright, let's begin then."

Denma put on his clothes on top of his previous clothes minus the coat he was previously wearing.

Denma neared the dissecting table with the lich strapped on it.

Natasha appeared on the other end of the dissecting table, staring at the team head with determined eyes.

Natasha nodded at Denma.

Denma nodded back at Natasha, knowing what will happen after this is finished.

[ Undead ] M-ma-aste-er, maste-er!

An undead groaned behind the laboratory's door, as if searching for his so called 'master'.

Denma and stood in silence, watching the lich's reaction while he sweat in horror.

The lich did not bother to react, he kept staring at Denma, as if enticing him, to embrace him.

Natasha looked Denma, she tinted her head in confusion of the situation.

[ Male hunter ] Hey prof.

The male hunter wanted to ask a question.

Denma looked towards the male hunter.

[ Denma ] What is it, hunter?

Denma wondered what the question will be.

[ Male hunter ] Will we come out of this alive?

Denma could not see the male hunter's face, because all the light was concentrated on the lich's body.

[ Denma ] That's the most amusing question I have ever heard today!

Denma smiled behind his mask while staring at the male hunter.

The hunter seemed to also faintly smile while chuckling.

[ Male hunter ] Hehe, you're right prof, we must do what we must, isn't that right, Emma?

The male hunter referred to the huntress.

[ Emma ] You're so full of shit John.

Emma let out a tear, trying to cover it up with her hand while wiping it off.

[ John ] Help me up, please.

John smiled, asking for help to stand up.

Emma did not say a word and helped John the hunter up, putting his arm around her shoulder and het putting her arm around his waist.

[ John ] We'll get going now, be sure to send that data to the others once you're finished.

John smiled, but Denma could not see that, as he looked down on the ground, sad, that the gravely injured hunters must distract the undead.

The door opens.

[ Natasha ] Please live to hear our achievements!

Natasha let out some tears in frustration while waving her hand to them.

The hunters stepped outside, turned around to the researchers and smiled, before the door closed.

Denma leaned over the table and patted Natasha's head.

[ Denma ] They will be okay, right?

Denma tried to reassure Natasha, and make her belief on this data stronger.

[ Natasha ] Yeah.

Natasha wiped her tears.

Denma put down his hand and got ready to direct Natasha.

[ Denma ] Get the staples and get the mana destabilizer!

Natasha rushed to the cabinets that were on her left, she got: Staples and the mana destabilizer.

The mana destabilizer looked like a small acorn, but it was more complex than that.

It had machinery, far surpassing the humans technology.

How could they have this?

It's because it was excavated from one of the tomb's that hunters once raided.

It's purpose was found after a couple of months of testing.

Natasha rushes back to the dissecting table and gives the team head the items while keeping one of the staples.

[ Denma ] Alright, let's get started.

Denma pulled out the stem that was on top of the mana destabilizer, it let out an eerie sound that was constant but low in volume, the mana around them shook, especially the lich, it seemed like the lich was losing it's mind, it struggled to get out.

But the restraints did not let the lich go, it could only move it's head and jaw.

[ Denma ] Get its clothes out of the way!

Natasha quickly followed the command.

The took a look at the lich's clothes: Black coat with black sleeves that seemed to be made out of silk full of blood stains.

Natasha quickly cut open a circle in the middle of the coat.

The lich's chest is now visible.

[ Denma ] Cut open the ribs on your side and I'll open the ribs on my side.

Natasha took quick notice to see, that the lich had 28 ribs.

Natasha then and there, understood, that they are not similar, and are indeed the alien enemies to humanity.

Natasha quickly cut one of the ribs, she couldn't cut it, but with some strength, she cut the rib.

Natasha quickly disconnected the ribs on her side, so did Denma, they then took hold of the ribs and lifted it out, revealing the organs of the lich.

The slimy black and yellow organs did not suit each other, it seemed so, disgusting.

Their vile appearance, not covered by any blood, disgusted Natasha, but not Denma, as he dealt with these kinds of organs for a long time.

[ Natasha ] Team head!

Denma rose up to look at Natasha's face.

[ Denma ] Yes?

Denma wondered, what question she would have.

Natasha trembled a bit, as if in a fit of horror.

[ Natasha ] Why does it have two hearts?

Denma quickly glanced down and noticed, two hearts, one yellow and another, black, both beating, in the same pattern.

[ Denma ] What the hell?

The sudden find was shocking to both Denma and Natasha, why does a dead being have a heart in the first place, and two in fact!

The hearts started beating faster, as if in a nervous breakdown.

[ Denma ] Quick, take out your side of the lich's heart!

Natasha started cutting the arteries around the heart to take it out, Denma did the same.

They took out the lich's hearts, the shaking of the lich stopped.

The foul smell of the lich's blood filled the room, not of iron, but of a rotting corpse.

Denma and Natasha quickly took off their masks and vomited while kneeling.

[ Denma ] This smell, it's just too vile!

Denma screamed with vomit around his mouth flinging everywhere he talked.

Denma then stood up and turned back to the lich.

The lich, had risen from the dissecting table and sat on top of the dissecting table.

It stared, stared at Denma.