Bastard Homunculus: Reborn in the Corpse Pit

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes! It's working! The Homunculus Ritual is finally working! Not a single one of our previous test subjects lasted even half this long, it's finally happening! Such is the power of Royal blood, even if it is tainted by lowly Commoner blood! This really was the missing ingredient all along, and now, after waiting for so long, I shall finally have the ultimate weapon in my possession!" Exclaimed Priest Opal ecstatically, as the lingering Magic Power in the Monster corpses began to flow into Raven's body, while he continued to howl in excruciating pain, tears streaming down his face as his voice cracked hoarsely.

Every muscle in his body was sharply tensed and strained, his nerves feeling like there were needles pierced all through them, the slightest twitch in movement triggering agonizing waves of pain across his entire body, his blood continuing to spill out into the pit and seep through the Monster corpses below him.

The glow of the Monster Core in the middle of his chest suddenly intensified sharply, a bright purple glow washing over the entire space, the sudden flash of light stunning the Priest and Inquisitors.

Raven's screams of pain then grew louder, echoing across the room as black scales formed on his chest, circling around the Monster Core and steadily spreading out across the rest of his torso.

His body began to bulk up, his muscles visibly growing stronger as a streaky pattern of glowing dark purple scales formed between the black scales, his entire torso covered in the scales as they began to spread out across his arms.

Suddenly, several violent spasms erupted across his body, a spray of blood shooting out of the gash in his stomach and splattering across the pit as his cries suddenly died down, his body going limp and slumping against the Monster corpses below him.

"Huh? Wait, what just happened?"

"No way, don't tell me...did it fail, after all?"

"Is he dead, then? He isn't moving, and looking at how still his chest is, I don't think he's breathing either."

"Yeah, he definitely looks dead. Damn it, maybe that injury was too severe, after all."

"N-no...no, this can't be happening, i-it can't fail!" Stuttered the Priest as he stumbled back, shaking his head in dismay.

"Wait, look...the ritual is still going! The glow always faded whenever our previous test subjects died, but the pit is still glowing! And his body is still transforming, it's not over yet!"

"O-oh, you're right...well, that's a relief. I lost my cool for a moment there, how embarrassing," The Priest let out a relieved chuckle, wiping his brow as he composed himself.

Raven's seemingly dead body continued to transform, the scales coating his arms and spreading out across his legs, before moving up along his neck.

More spasms erupted across his body, the streaky purple pattern across the scales that were now covering nearly his entire body began glowing, before his upper body suddenly got launched upright as a pair of large, black, Dragon-like wings rapidly grew out of his shoulder blades.

Purplish-black feathers grew out over the edges of the wings, as a row of curved, sharp spikes grew up down along his spine. A long, flexible black tail then grew out of the back of his waist, whipping against the Monster corpses with a sharp crack, a burst of stifling heat erupting from his body, startled cries ringing out from the Priest and the Inquisitors as the wave of heat hit them.

His fingernails morphed into razor sharp claws, his mouth stretching open widely before his cheeks ripped apart, his teeth extending out into curved, serrated fangs and turned jet-black.

Sparks of purple lightning cracked around his body as wisps of purple flames flowed out of the sides of his mouth, the Monster Core in the middle of his chest sinking into his body before the opening closed up, as did the gash across his stomach.

"S-so, this is it...this is a Homunculus."

"He still isn't breathing, but the Enslavement Collar is still active, so that means he isn't dead, right?"

"The ritual is supposed to kill him, that is, his mind...after all, the whole point is to turn him into a loyal, mindless killing machine that obeys my every command, so-...," Began the Priest, before abruptly trailing off as Raven's eyes suddenly opened, causing all of them to flinch and shrink back, his gaze triggering an instinctive, primal fear in them.

An ominous, threatening growl rang out as he narrowed his eyes at them, the whites of his eyes turning black as the chains binding him began to creak.

His hair spiked up on end as it changed from blonde to a deep, dark purple, his growls steadily growing louder as the chains continued to creak, right as he let out a viciously feral, deafening roar, chilling his captors down to the bone.

"H-hey, uh..."

"I-it's fine, the Enslavement Collar will make sure he can't attack us even if he breaks free of the chains, we're not in any danger here."

"Yes, let it struggle all it wants, it cannot defy us no matter wh-...," Began to Priest, before trailing off in horror as the Enslavement Collar abruptly broke apart, getting torn to shreds as it fell off Raven's neck, right as the chains wrapped around his body shattered to pieces.

He narrowed his eyes at the Priest with a deep, low growl, who stumbled back in terror, before letting out an animalistic, murderous roar, his wings spreading out as he crouched and shot forward with immense speed, closing in on Priest Opal in the blink of an eye, a powerful gust of wind generated by his speed hitting the Priest before his eyes widened in fear as he met Raven's gaze.

"Watch out, Father!" Yelled one of the Inquisitors, pushing the Priest out of the way before letting out an agonized wheeze of pain as Raven drove his right arm forward and plunged his claws into the Inquisitor's stomach.

His claws pierced through the man's skin before tearing into his flesh, blood pouring out of the Inquisitor's mouth as Raven's claws poked out of his back.

Raven then yanked his arm back out with a violent twists, before slamming his foot onto the man's chest, caving in his ribcage with a crushing impact and sending him hurtling back through the air and crashing headfirst onto the wall behind him, his neck snapping upon impact with a sharp crunch, before Raven rapidly spun around as two of the remaining Inquisitors sprang up behind him.

Before they could attack, his jaws snapped open and a blazing wave of dark purple flames burst out of his mouth, engulfing the pair before they could react, screams of pain ringing out before quickly fading away as they got roasted to ash in a matter of seconds.

Raven let out a vicious snarl before zipping across the space towards the last remaining Inquisitor in the basement, who quickly drew out a dagger, coating it in swirling waves of wind before swinging it across at Raven's head as he closed in on him.

Raven swiftly whipped his claws across, striking the man's wrist and slicing off his hand before the dagger could reach him, blood bursting out of the stump that was left around his wrist as he howled in pain, his dagger hitting the floor with a clatter as Raven grabbed the top of the man's head with a iron grip, before an intense burst of dark purple lightning erupted out of his palm, frying the Inquisitor's brain and charring his head black, killing him instantly.

Raven then turned his head towards the stairs, as the Priest desperately ran that way to escape, all his ambitions and schemes gone from his mind, and all that was left was a desperate desire to cheat his impending death.

As he reached the bottom of the stairs and began to take a step, he let out a startled yell as he found himself falling over, his forehead slamming onto the edge of one of the stairs painfully, dazing him as he let out a groan.

He tried to shake it off and get back on his feet as quickly as possible, but he couldn't...and as he glanced down as his feet, he realized why. His left leg was gone, severed from around the knee. But no blood spilled out, the end of the stump that was left of his leg was seared shut.

The Priest hadn't even felt the pain in his immense fear and adrenaline, but now, panic set in, magnifying his fear as a terrified scream rang out, tears streaming down his face as he began to scramble and crawl up the stairs in desperation, before a sudden weight on the middle of his back stopped him in his tracks.

He shakily turned his gaze back, before flinching in terror...Raven loomed above him, a look of cold, murderous rage in his eyes. Even in his current berserk state, with not so much as a single coherent thought in his mind, the sight of the Priest filled him with an unbearable, burning anger, stirring up every ounce of bloodlust in every fibre of his being.

"N-no, please...please don't kill me, I-I...I don't want to do! P-please, I'll do anything, just spare me, I beg of y-...arghhhhh!!!" He screeched in pain as beams of intense purple energy suddenly shot out of Raven's eyes and sliced through the Priest's left shoulder, slicing his arm off but not so much as a single drop of blood came out, the heat from the beams cauterizing the wound as it simultaneously cut his arm off.

Raven snarled at him before reaching down and grabbing his lower jaw, before violently pulling back and breaking it, his mouth hanging open as he desperately struggled in vain to get out from under Raven's heel, who then grabbed hold of the Priest's right wrist.

He began pulling on it with steadily increasing pressure, with clear, venomous intent to make the man beneath his foot suffer. He was in no rush to kill him, every instinct in his body was driving him to inflict as much pain as humanly possible.

The Priest screamed in agony as the skin around his shoulder began to rip, streaks of blood spraying out as Raven began to twist while pulling with more and more force, the flesh around that area getting rendered and torn apart, right as the bone popped out of the socket, his entire arm getting ripped off his shoulder violently, an intense fountain of blood gushing out as Raven roared and grabbed the top of the Priest's head, turning him around and lifting him up until their eyes met, the Priest trembling in terror as tears continued to pour down his face, a wet patch appearing below the waist on his robes as he wet himself in fear, dripping onto the stairs below him.

He then let out a gasping wheeze as Raven slammed his fist onto the middle of his stomach, before coughing out blood with a pained gurgle, before Raven violently gouged out a chunk of flesh from the Priest's stomach and flung it away, hitting the wall with a splat before he drove his claws into the right side of the Priest's chest and took hold of one of his ribs, a sharp scream of pain ringing out as Raven tore the rib out with a violent twist.

He then plunged the man's own bone into the middle of his chest and slowly dragged it down, shredding his skin to ribbons as he continued to drag it across the surface of the Priest's body, like a child drawing in the sand with a stick.

Having shredded most of the skin across Priest Opal's torso, Raven tossed the bloodsoaked bone away and dropped the Priest back onto the stairs, looming over him before lifting his right foot and stomping down on his waist with a crushing force, his foot crushing through the Priest's flesh and bones and shattering his spine, blood gushing out of the Priest's mouth as his consciousness began to fade, the immense blood loss he'd suffered so far already beyond fatal, he was seconds away from dying.

Raven paused for a moment, before reaching down and placing his palm against the Priest's chest, a glow emanating from his hand...as he partially healed the Priest's injuries, prolonging his life. Or rather, delaying his death.

Desperate, pleading noises rang out of the Priest's mouth, unable to form any words with his lower jaw broken, the thought of survival having disappeared from his mind...all he wanted now, was to be put out of his misery. But Raven wasn't done with him. He was yet far from satisfied.

The entrance to the basement had been soundproofed, in order to keep the cries of the many test subjects the Priest had gone through from reaching the surface...and because of that, not a single person could hear the Priest's desperate, pleading cries and screams of pain, as Raven continued to tear him apart while regularly healing him to keep him alive.

The Priest had gathered dozens of test subjects to undergo the Homunculus Ritual, and every last one of their cries had fallen on deaf ears. And now, Priest Dietre Opal was experiencing exactly that for himself, and not even once realizing the fact that he'd brought this on himself.

The bottom of the staircase and the walls around that spot were slick with his blood, his limbs and chunks of his flesh scattered around his severely mutilated body, laying in a puddle of his own blood.

And Raven, finally satisfied, raised his foot up one last time, and slammed it down onto the Priest's head, crushing his skull and smashing his brain into a paste, putting him out of his misery at last.

Raven stared at his hands, slickly coated in the Priest's blood, a deep growl ringing out before he let out a sharp, gutteral roar and unleashed a burst of scorching purple flames around him, as more flames spewed out of his mouth, intense streaks of purple lightning crackling around his body and painting the walls black as his flames set the corpses around him ablaze, before he began firing off piercing beams of purple energy out of his eyes.

His conscious mind was not in control, all he was being driven by was the immense rage, terror and hatred he'd felt in the moments before his body died during the ritual, and now, with no targets left in sight to direct those feelings at, he was running amok, lashing out in a murderous fury.

He then flew up along the staircase, unleashing a burst of speed as the door leading out into the church came into sight. He slammed his fist onto the door and unleashed a burst of flames, setting the door ablaze as it went flying off its hinges, a loud crash ringing out followed by startled screams, as Raven emerged through the doorway with a trail of flames and thick clouds of smoke in his wake.

"What the hell!?"

"What is that thing!?"

"I-is that the Homunculus? O-oh, no, something must have gone wrong with the ritual!"

Raven spewed out more flames in response to the voices with a vicious snarl before zipping towards a nearby nun and grabbing her head, swinging her off her feet as she let out a terrified screams before he flung her away with all his strength, sending her barreling towards a wall, a burst of blood erupting as her body slammed onto the wall and exploded upon impact from the sheer force exerted, dying immediately upon impact.

An Inquisitor shot towards Raven, firing out a blast of water at him, before Raven countered with a swirling purple fireball, a cloud of steam bursting out as the attacks collided, the Inquisitor shot through the steam and drew out a blade, slashing at Raven's throat, who raised his arm defensively, a shallow cut appearing across his forearm, before the Inquisitor's eyes widened in horror as the cut healed almost instantly.

Raven rapidly reached out and grabbed the top of the Inquisitor's head before he could get away, crushing his skull with ease before he spotted the nun who'd conducted his and Ravella's appraisal, and then tricked them into coming here today. The sight of her stoked his volatile, surfing emotions even further, an enraged roar ringing out as he then shot towards her in a murderous rage.

She quickly turned around and began to run away in fear, but he caught up to her in an instant, a sharp scream of pain ringing out as he plunged his claws into her body through her back, violently twisting his hand across inside her as she coughed out blood with an agonized wheeze.

"N-no, wait, I-I was just-...," She began, before he cut her off by unleashing a fierce blast of flames inside her body, setting her ablaze from the inside and tossing her body away as smoke burst of her mouth.

He then threw back his head and let out a fierce, deafening roar, the remaining people in the church seized by fear as they began to flee in terror and desperation, as Raven began unleashing more and more flames all over the church, setting the building on fire as his flames spread rapidly.

Meanwhile, outside the church...

"Hey, did you hear that? I thought I heard a scream from inside the church."

"Yeah, I heard it too, I wonder what's-...huh? Wh-what...what's that?"

"A roar? I-is it a Monster?"

"Hey, look! What's that purple light that's coming from inside the church?"

"I think I see smoke, is there a fire in there?"

A few startled cries rang out among the passerby as several of the windows in the church then shattered from the heat of Raven's flames, clouds of smoke billowing out as the flames continued to spread, screams of pain and terror ringing out from inside the church.

Suddenly, the roof of the building burst open, a monstrous, bone-chilling roar echoing out across the night sky as an inhuman figure soared up into the air, its silhouette illuminated by the faint glow of the crescent moon behind it.

The people on the ground below stared up at it in bewilderment and awe, before it suddenly turned around and flew off with a rapid burst of wind as it flapped its wings, heading away from the village and flying towards the forest ahead with immense speed, disappearing into the night as the church continued to burn down to the ground...