Chapter 11 - The Chapel of Bones
Dante slapped a brick of C4 against the iron locking mechanism of the portcullis. "Fire in the hole!"
They dove behind an outcropping of stone as the explosive detonated with a concussive shockwave that blew the iron gate off its hinges. Dante led the charge through the smoke, coughing through his dust-clogged mask, Elena right behind him with her MPX raised.
They burst into the grand chapel of the Old Fortress.
The ceiling rose fifty feet high, supported by columns entirely constructed from ancient human skulls. Hundreds of black candles flickered along the altar, casting grotesque dancing shadows across the vaulted walls.
In the center of the altar, strapped to a massive circular slab of black marble, was five-year-old Lily. An IV line ran from her small arm into an ornate glass vessel mounted on an iron tripod. Half the vessel was already filled with crimson blood.
Julian stood beside her, looking dramatically younger. His pale skin had flushed with color, the veins on his neck throbbing with stolen life. Around him stood twenty elite Covenant zealots, dressed in black hooded robes, armed with assault rifles and broad curved daggers.
"You're too late, Dante," Julian smiled, holding a silver chalice brimming with blood. "The harvest is nearly complete."
"Let her go!" Dante barked, raising his shotgun and firing at Julian.
A robed zealot threw himself in front of the buckshot, taking the blast to his torso and dying instantly, shielding his master. The chapel erupted into deafening gunfire.
"Kill them all!" Julian screamed, stepping behind the altar. "Protect the chalice!"
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Elena broke left, sliding behind a marble pillar as rifle fire chipped ancient limestone into jagged shrapnel. She returned fire in disciplined three-round bursts, dropping zealots as they advanced down the central aisle.
Dante charged directly down the center, using his shotgun like a battering ram, blasting through the zealots with raw, unadulterated paternal fury. A bullet grazed his cheek; another struck his thigh, but he didn't slow down. He was a demon forged in grief and vengeance.
