How much?
A question, that depending on the context can be so mundane the words barely even register in one’s mind or so insulting the only right way to answer it, is by spilling the blood of the fool who dared even ask.
It’s amazing how something as simple as a transaction can possess such a striking duality, even though when everything is boiled down, regardless of the goods or services being sought, the question remains the same.
A concept, which many for some reason have a problem with, as if they’re above a simple exchange or unwilling to do well, anything if the price was right.
It’s almost as if people somehow manage to forget that they already sell their entire lives, and offer their “virtue” for a smile, a laugh or an attractive face.
Delusion, trying to protect them from a truth, which they already know in their hearts to be true, after all, if it was truly groundless, then why would the question impact some so significantly?
The truth though, is so often an ugly thing, staring us right in the face, and looking directly into our eyes, but if we can ignore it, it’s almost as if it doesn’t exist.
As if, the things we hate or fear aren’t real, but when the entirety of so many lives are lost to the blur of what we have collectively named a job, how far can one really run?
When work, labor, those things people so often describe as something they hate.
A place where they have to do things they don’t want to, forced to smile at those they loathe, or listen to the prattling of idiots, just because the credits are “worth it” and when one is already willing to go so far, often times for very little… Exactly, how far would they be willing to go, for something that’s actually worthwhile?
So, how much?
How much would it cost to wipe away everything that makes you who you are?
A pile of credits?
Your dreams being handed to you on a silver platter?
Safety?
A pair of seductive eyes?
How about a world?
Two world’s?
Immortality for everyone you love?
How much is what you believe truly worth, and how far would you fall, if someone was actually willing to pay any price?
CEO of Metro corps Interglatic, five systems strong, and constantly growing!
____________________________________________
No killing undead
Huh, what a weird sign “Hey Steve, you think one of bonies grew enough of a brain to start complaining?” Steve walks over to the sign that’s propped up on the ground, its letters are crimson red, and painted onto a solid white plank of something grainy.
His foot slams into the plank, shattering it into pieces, and reveals its surprisingly hollow insides.
“Huh, it almost looks like bone.” Steve says as he picks up one of the pieces, while Bob on the other hand just shrugs.
“Weird, next thing you know, they’ll be sending us a strongly worded letter.” The two start laughing, and keep laughing, until the next sign comes into view.
This one though, stops them cold, suddenly none of it quite seems like a game anymore, and unease begins to work through their minds.
We kill you, you kill us, and we may be ground to dust, but it’s only a matter of time until you become one of us.
Steve’s foot also smashes into this sign, but this time he’s not laughing.
“Look Bob, we will just kill a few skeletons, grab their cores, an-”
‘Thump’
‘Thump’
Behind them a figure completely covered in black metal armour approaches, and the pair let out a sigh of relief at the unexpected aid, even if it is from some weirder larper, but then…
‘Thump’
‘Thump’
‘Thump’
A figure that’s a mirror copy of the first knight, begins approaching from the front, and another slides from behind some gravestones.
As a black mist begins to surround the two, the sun itself is shrouded in darkness, before a gravely voice fills the graveyard.
“I recognize you two, like clockwork, every day you sneak into our home, before killing a few of us, and then run away like craven little cowards.”
“I don’t know who you have us confused with, but we haven’t killed anyone, and-” Bob grabs Steve’s arm, panic racing through his eyes “Analyze them!”
Tier One Skeleton – Oh boy, if the armor is anything to go by, these are death knights, which can make this range from bad, to really really bad, you better pray to whatever God you worship, because you’re going to need them bad.
The bad option, which you should actually be hoping for, death knights form on battlefields so if the undead you’re currently facing have damaged armor or weapons congratulations.
You’ve found yourself on an abandoned battlefield, which could have hundreds or even thousands of undead wandering around BAD!
If however their armour is pristine or heavens forbid even glowing… RUN.
Why are you still reading this?
Oh, of course, they’ve already surrounded you, damn.
I guess you really should have worked on that whole reading comprehension thing then huh.
Well, better get to praying, for you’re either facing sentient undead or undead who were wearing enchanted armour, before they bit the dust, but odds are it’s the first one with you know, the whole surrounding you thing.
Good luck!
Steve shakes Bob off “We’re the same tier as them, we can tak-” An arrow bursts through the back of Steve’s throat, and blood sprays onto Bob’s face.
Steve collapses to the floor slowly choking on his own blood, and mana quickly wraps around Bob’s body.
For a moment he even manages to vanish from sight, but then he slams into the wall of black mana surrounding them.
“You really thought we would let you get away? This is for Mark, you bastard!” A spear slams into Bob’s side lifting him into the air like an impaled pig, before two more spears dive into his body, and his life ends in a spray of red.
“I’ll reset the signs, while you lot move the bodies.” One of the undead covered in robes says in a surprisingly light tone, while nodding towards two of the knights.
“Meanwhile, the rest of you get back into position, and hopefully we will be able to catch a few more of these bastards, before they catch on.” The lightly toned undead mage named Issec then drops from the top of a mausoleum, and gets to work.
____________________________________________
The graveyard has changed, the at least fifty tier one necromancers I ended up raising on my first day back, not only helped tame the rest of the undead, but quickly gave rise to so much more.
Under the direction of Kacious, Veronica, and well, Sarah who had a list of demands, which no one could really say no to… Over the course of a grand total of three days, hundreds of more necromancers were made.
Who then raised more necromancers, along with all kinds of other undead, and quickly snow balled the graveyard into a place with thousands, tens of thousands.
Akin to any bustling city, given sleeping isn’t really something the undead need to do, resulting in them always running around, and doing things, but it’s still well, a graveyard.
Just the mausoleums, and empty spaces have been repurposed.
Mostly with mages filling the chambers, and sending out the piles of materials they’re constantly materializing, before they’re hauled off to crafters, lugged off to be absorbed, or brought to the necromancers who for some reason are still raising more undead.
Maybe, it has something to do with the whole not needing to sleeping thing or wanting something to do, so they’re not driven completely insane by all of the ENDLESS!
NOISE!
The sound of hammers ringing out as armaments are forged, and the undead crashing their weapons into each other.
Constantly creating a racket that sounds like cars crashing into each other or fireworks constantly being blasted.
It’s god awful, some have no regard for the time of day or others at all!
But, who is really going to tell off hundreds or rather thousands of undead covered in dark black metal armor, and who are quite literally smacking into each other.
Overall though, the graveyard hasn’t physically changed too much, like sure there are a couple of new small buildings made of smooth grey stone, but they’re mostly just things like forges, the place that cooks food, oh, and the bar.
That everyone, but Sarah, and her bartender’s are apparently for some reason barred from?
I don’t know, Sarah is a bit of an oddity, but she is also helping out, well kind of.
She went over evolutions work, or really just summed them up, and it turns out they’re not actually that complicated.
One simply absorbs materials, and mana while being subjected to a ritual.
The thing is she didn’t share the ritual, instead she just went on about how every tier one goes up increases the cost, and that in Vie’s case it would increase the cost by billions of mana, before basically telling us all to buzz off.
Leaving us to all focus on our abilities, which apparently also matter, just less so?
She was getting pretty snippy at that point, regardless it’s at least part of an answer to a question, which has been bugging me for a while.
Oh, and then, before she wandered off again, she basically threatened to murder or “Make Vie wish she was dead” if she tried tiering up before she hit mythic grade, and somehow it also became all of our responsibility to watch over her?
A bit of a weird circumstance, but when the lady who can tear apart a dragon with her bare hands, says do something, smart people do it.
Vie, though, is surprisingly taking it pretty well even if we’re all still not quite seeing eye to eye, and she even decided to start building her dungeon.
A tower made of bone, which endlessly grows through spectral mages, a potentially problematic endeavor, given she is still a bit on the fence on the whole, her minions having rights thing.
Oh, and then there’s the whole her wanting to build a deadly tower of DEATH, a discussion, luckily?
Sidelined when we hit a snag.
My mana regeneration started to slow down, all of ours did, cutting in half by a solid fifty percent… it seems with the gateway gone, the mana density in this area has taken a bit of dive leading to another goal, find more gateways!
One for Vie to build her tower around, and the rest for the empire!
Assuming of course, we don’t get genocided, well in my case I guess just flat out murdered, but to-mato, tomat-o.
Ultimately, though this has led to countless scouts being sent off in search of graveyards, and concentrations of mana.
While I, on the other hand, soak in a jacuzzi shaped crystal tub, which is set a couple of feet into the floor of my mausoleum.
Glorious steam! is rising out of it, and next to it there is a small pile of glowing stones.
That an undead in red robes, along with one in blue robes is rotating out of the tub, and not being exploited!
Technically… given it is very important for abilities to be utilized for evolutions!
Which I’m sure these two will want at some point, and there truly are only so many ways certain spells like fire or water magic can be used.
Although, it’s something I plan on figuring out how to do myself later on, but not today.
Instead, I’ll enjoy a little slice of perfection, the crystal step feeling like the finest silk, as I’m lost in the bliss of crystal clear warm water that sinks into my bones, wiping away all of my worries, the nightmares constantly plaguing me, and the stress from these past weeks fading away in a steaming haze.
A much different story from my first bath, the one after I traveled, miles, covered in sweat, dirt, and gore… The memory of having to peel my clothes off of my body, the fabric covered, and engrained with a layer of dried muck, while black sludge slowly filled the tub.
With a pungent smell that managed to take on a life of its own, and managed to crawl from the tub… will forever be something which haunts my dreams or at least the judgemental stare of the undead mages, will be.
And I know that they were judgmental!
Because a manger ghost was literally summoned, as if they were saying wow look at this guy. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
“At least, those clothes were burned.” Notifications
Notifications
Experience Earned
Class: Raise undead, undead raise more undead, those undead raise even more undead, and before you know it you’re swimming in undead.
Somehow, you managed to basically raise an undead empire over the course of three days 0_0 scary stuff, but the weirdest thing is that you’re not the leader of it all 0_o odd.
Combat: When exactly is the last time you fought something?
Hmm?
0_o Then again, that’s not really the way your class works, or is it?
Either way, you’re minions certainly have been getting into fights, and they’ve even been winning.
Level up +3
Health Restored
Mana Restored
Stamina Restored
Attributes Increased
Intelligence +3
Willpower +1 (+3)
Spells Leveled Up
Raise The Dead +4
Skills Leveled Up
Anatomy of The Risen +4
Analyze +3
Commander +9
Meditation +5
Sense Mana +2
Milestones
Class
Meditation – Core
Milestone Reached
Level twenty five, and you’re not dead?!?!
Really, huh I’ve no idea how you managed that, like let’s be honest here, there have been sooo many times you should have died, yet here you stand.
Well, let’s take a look, and see where your next step in mastering necromancy, the thing which you hold the highest potential in takes you.
Forbidden Knowledge – The basics of engravings enter your mind, filling you with designs such as the conversion of materials into pure mana, and other plans some would say are questionable or even immoral, but what do they know?
The more you master these engraving the more, which shall be unlocked.
Empower – Your mana once again enters your minions, but instead of bringing them life or stealing it from them, now it brings them strength, taking them to heights they couldn’t even imagine, but after a minion reaches two times power there are diminishing returns, and too much power may result in minions exploding.
Milestone Reached
Meditation has unlocked the level ten core pathway choice.
(Warning! Pathways impact all branches of their related abilities, and this choice will be the first step in determining how all core pathway abilities grow, after all, pathways are a lifestyle, and not an arbitrary choice!)
Focus – Meditation becomes far easier, your thoughts becoming something, which flows through you, instead of a solid barrier, and maybe best of all, distractions will no longer be a hindrance that breaks your focus.
(Class Exclusive)
Two For One – You’re already messing with one system in your body, so why not add another one to the mix?
Meditation will now impact your stamina regeneration as well, but if you thought the burning was bad before…
(Class Exclusive)
Who Exactly Said It Has To Burn?
– Meditation no longer burns, and instead has turned into a calm relaxing peaceful process.
When all of your problems disappear into a lovely empty haze, well to you at least, any nearby minions on the other hand will experience ten times the discomfort you would have experienced.
Only one choice can be made, what shall it be?
(Note the only way you can currently change this decision is by resetting or changing your class)
Finally a new class option, sketchy knowledge or empowering my minions, one of the options clearly being better than the other, and it’s not!
The one which might just end up summoning Cthulhu, but… then again.
When exactly am I going to need to empower any undead, given I’m currently surrounded by thousands of them?
Besides, when has a bit of knowledge or a book ever hurt anyone?
Forbidden knowledge is quickly chosen, before I move onto the meditation milestone, which has a couple of decent options, each carrying different pros, and cons, but only one providing any new benefit.
The ability to boost my stamina regeneration, a way to increase my physical attributes at the low cost of a bit more burning, and what’s pain in comparison to progress?
My second choice is made, and then energy begins to course through my body, before it reaches my brain.
My vision freezes, almost throbbing in place, a herald to the pain, which is quickly followed after.
It’s like a brain freeze, just about ten times worse, and like hundreds of needles made of ice being shoved directly into my brain.
I’m left convulsing in the tub, but still feeling everything, and when it ends, I by some miracle don’t even throw up.
A small victory, but I’ll take what I can get, and hey bright side also didn’t drown… The one positive out of my bath, and possibly my entire day having been ruined.
That’s life though, in my mind there now rests a crisp leather book, its surface is plain, and there’s no way for me to move it.
The only thing that happens when I focus on it, is a single page turning, and on it rests a rather simple diagram filled with circles, and sigils.
New Engraving
Ritual Matter To Mana – A ritual, which converts mana bearing materials into pure mana, that can be collected for a variety of different purposes, but it’s far from an efficient process.
Status Screen1
21
Hey look, my health didn’t even go down, that’s something, and then my eyes wander around the rest of it.
A lot of my attributes, along with so many abilities, are still pretty low, and I’ve got to figure out a way to address them all at some point, but “Bah” certainly not now.
I slip out of the tub, and into an undead robe made out of materialized material, instead of recycled or at least that’s what the undead who handed it to me claimed!
Although, I can’t help, but wonder if I’m currently wearing the combined clothes of a bunch of dead people, regardless onward to my rounds I go.
“Keep up the great work gents.” The fire mage, and water mage ignore me while examining the tub.
See judging!
And of course they care more about the tub, than you know me, when I was potentially dying.
Tier One Undead (shoddy) Water Mage – Are you serious right now?!?!?!
What do you think a water mage does?
Fine, a water mage is someone who specializes in a specific type of matter, that’s in a liquid state, and is a significantly unique path.
One with countless nuances, along with endless possible evolutionary paths, but you don’t care about any of that, and are just an ignorant buffoon!!!
(Coughs) Typically found in oceans or areas filled with water, these undead, were not content to reside in their watery tombs, and have claimed this element as their own.
Be really worried if you see them on or by a ship or really if you’re by any large body of water.
Tier One Undead (shoddy) Fire Mage – I don’t get paid enough for this… What do you think a fire mage does?
Don’t worry I will wait, realllllly stretch that thing in your head, that you call a brain, and tell me what YOU BELIEVE A FIRE MAGE DOES?….
No, answer?
Is this too hard of a question for you?
I would say that I am surprised, but ***************************** They control the element of fire, and are typically found in places, shockingly enough filled with fire, from volcanoes, burned down villages to the fiery pits of hell.
In any environment where a resource is abundant, something will come along, and weaponize it… this something just happens to be an undead skeleton.
Good luck!
Still tier one, and shoddy quality, but these notifications at least sure are getting snarky or at least snarkier… I really should probably ask Sarah about it at some point, assuming of course she ever crawls her way out of the bar.
“But in the meantime, FOOD!” Once I’m about half way out of my home, of course here comes the busy body, a ghost in a suit, and tie pokes their head THROUGH A WALL!
Surely to see what destruction I caused this time.
Tier Two Undead (Shoddy) Manager – The wheels on the bus go round and… ORDER!
Who ensures an undead empire runs smoothly, without wasted inefficiencies or worse undead who are either too lazy or stupid to do their jobs right?
Managers!
Not to be mistaken for the meaningless bureaucrats, which are all too common in societies filled with fleshy bits.
These undead are not parasites who live off the work others, they’re the machines who find problems, and eliminate them by any means necessary 0_0 Oh, and if you’re seeing one of these, and you happen to be a fleshy mortal who did the whole “I want to speak with your manager” bit, well, at this point, a quick death is literally the best thing you should hope for right now, but I wouldn’t count on it… After all, managers hate waste, and even screams can be useful in the right environment.
The manager stares at me, their cold soulless eyes staring right into my soul, no!
Staring right through me, almost as if I’m nothing.
Then they turn, their gaze landing on the tub, the same empty soulless stare examining every inch of it, and after a few moments specks of golden mana start to flake off of their body.
Golden mana slowly drifts, and spreads around the room, doing something, but… I have no idea what, and simply stare back at the undead.
“When you’re sentient, we are going to have a looooong talk about the importance of privacy, and boundaries.” I swear the ghost scoffs, before just disappearing again, and with a shake of my head keep on my path.
Outside is busy, hundreds of skeletons, zombies, ghosts, and draugr constantly moving towards their purpose.
I examine them as they pass, with all of them being shoddy in fact I’ve yet to see any standard grade undead, with even Vie coming in at shoddy, and well, Sarah isn’t exactly the type to let random people examine her.
Regardless, a lot of the undead are surprisingly classed undead, at least all of the draugr are, which apparently are the hot new things for necromancers to make. This chapter was copied from novelping.com without permission.
Tier One draugr (Shoddy) – There are undead, and then there are UNDEAD.
This is of the second variety, a fully sentient being right from tier one, the thing is… draugr, almost never form naturally, given they require flesh, bone, arcane, and blood in order to function.
Meaning, really only attacks that directly attack the mind or soul can leave a body intact enough for one to ever form naturally, and is why they’re typically made.
Now, who would want to make sentient undead?
Oh wait, I know, congratulations, you’re currently facing the basic building block of an undead empire.
These undead, have skin with distinct glowing veins, running through their bodies, that match whatever shade is their mana, and the same is true with their eyes, but other than that, they look rather human in nature.
Having, rather typical hair, their bodies coming in a variety of shapes, sizes, and shades.
More importantly many of them are wandering around the city, endlessly being pursued by managers who are trying to find the best use for whatever random class they were raised with, which is both a blessing, and a curse.
Definitely cheaper, than just creating classed undead, and tiering them up, until they become sentient, but initially more expensive, and chaotic, given if the tier one juggler is anything to go by… it’s not simply producing useful or needed classes, but volume though, has the amazing ability to counter just about anything, particularly, when so many undead like the blood mages, are just endlessly materializing materials for the necromancers.
Tier Three Elemental Blood Mage (Shoddy) – The undead or rather a blood elemental playing with blood magic is a rather natural thing, given you know they’re literally made of the stuff.
A possible reason why they’re also so exceptional at creating blood, manipulating the blood of others or much more terrifying both, regardless of the particulars of their magic.
Seeing one should be a fairly worrying sight, given the only instances of undead blood mages naturally forming is in environments where blood runs like rivers, and in artificial cases?
Are formed by blood mages, and necromancers… which circumstance of the two is more dangerous is rather difficult to determine, but one thing is clear, if you see a blood elemental, you should probably head the other way as quickly as possible.
Three human shaped blood elementals in red robes are meditating around a crystal tub filled with shimmering tier one blood, then there’s their competition, the bone mages, and their pile of doom!
Tier Three Skeleton Bone Mage (Shoddy) – Glorious bones!
The very building blocks of life itself or rather most life anyways, from gleaming shells to the good old ivory stuff, these mages have not only gained an intrinsic understanding of what makes bones special, but have learned to weaponize them!
Either launching spikes of bones at foes or in much rarer cases literally ripping the bones out of their opponents.
Terrifying foes who destroy their enemies in blood, and carnage or alternatively are the builders of an undead society, providing the building blocks to create unique structures, and the various forms of undead.
Soooo, either someone that can directly rip bones out of you or someone that makes up the very backbone of an undead society.
Do you feel safe?
Because you definitely shouldn’t, if you count yourself among the living.
The skeletons in gray robes stand huddled around a pile of tier one bone dust, which bears a striking resemblance to an ant hill, and is growing by a foot every second.
“Keep up the good work, everyone.” Some of the draugr turn at my words, and stare at me in a questioning manner, but for the most part I’m ignored, as I keep it moving along the trampled dirt.
The stone path acts more as a guide line to the various buildings, given they were in no way designed for this kind of traffic, and the grass has long since been trampled into dirt.
When at long last, my destination comes into view, a lovely dome of ice that covers one of the tombs, and it’s even slowly expanding.
A blue glowing luster illuminates it from the inside, before it sputters out, and fades to opaque, to darkness, at least until three faint red orbs start to glow in the center of the dome.
I knock on the dome, and the wall of ice cracks.
Tier One Ice – When water gets cold it freezes, I’m really not sure what you were expecting here, but hey random fact, ice is considered a rock, which makes water lava!
0_0
The ice then splits, shifting until a doorway forms, revealing an undead in blue robes that’s touching the side of the wall, and in the middle of the dome, sits zombies covered in gray leather.
One of which is standing over a massive pile of steaks, which easily reaches a few feet into the air, and the other two, are meditating around solid pounds of meat sitting on a platter made of ice.
Tier One Skeleton Ice Mage (Shoddy) – How bloody different do you think an ice mage is from a water mage?!?!?
Well frankly!
They are significantly different…..
I mean an ice mage is really just a specialized earth mancer, who make with the ice magic… much like how any elemental mage embodies their element.
Did you really need to see this bit, but hey look at you using your skills, your parents, well maybe not them, but I’m sure someone out there is proud of you 🙂
Tier Three Zombie Flesh Mage (Shoddy) – How do horrors beyond a person’s wildest nightmares come to be?
They come from minds steeped in madness, from horrors twisted, beyond what any ‘normal’ being can even imagine, and who better able to picture horrors beyond the pale than a being that’s steeped in death… from a life torn from or escaped from the very wheel of death itself (note) seeing one of these is really concerning, but you should be faaaaar more concerned with what you don’t see 0_0
A skeleton in a white puffy hat, and a white buttoned jacket then rushes into the room, and fills their arms with steaks, before rushing back out.
Tier One Skeleton Chef (Shoddy) – They cook stuff, what exactly is confusing here or requires further examination?
Well fine, at least it’s an undead, and a ghost at that, which I guess does make it a tad more interesting…
Everything, yes even ghosts, can consume things, if not outright desires to consume them, typically to help advance their class or in rare lower evolved cases in order to survive.
The food processed by chiefs give buffs, condenses the mana in the food, and in the more advanced cases can even unlock skills, bloodlines, or permanently enhance stats, by consuming the very essence of a being.
Chefs are a staple in undead empires, the homes of necromancers, but rarely if ever formed naturally or found in environments not controlled by sentient beings, after all, while cooking may be a noble pursuit… it’s really not one that provides a whole lot in the way of survival skills.
I trail behind them as they lumber off to a large gray building, where a crystal table, a pile of wood, and a crystal box that has a seamless front panel glowing with a red flame.
The crystal tube is ingrained in the back of the box, and leads off into the wall.
They dump the steaks onto the crystal table, before grabbing one and placing it on top of the box releasing a satisfying sizzle.
Silver mana then starts to sprinkle out of their hands slowly sinking into the meat, and leaving a faint haze behind.
Then a silver glow flows from their hands, in one hand a glowing spatula forms, which they use to flip the steak, while the other condenses into a stream of mana that sinks into the meat.
The skeleton flips the steak, a final time, before throwing a bit more mana dust on it, and slams it onto the pile of cooked meat that’s already covering the table, while already reaching for the next steak.
The smell, how does one describe the scent of heaven, of tantalizing grilled perfection gracing the receptors of one’s nose is a blaze of glory?
My mouth is watering, no watering doesn’t even do it justice, and I swear somehow drool is already escaping from my mouth from just the thought of tasting it.
Tier One Grilled Steak (Shoddy) – A processed good or rather a glorious steak, which some incompetent moron has absolutely ruined, leaving behind something most would consider cruel to even feed to their dogs.
Infused with mana, albeit poorly, and giving no chance to confer any real benefits… At every stage this glorious piece of meat has had its potential stripped from it, what more is there to say, this steak sucks, and whoever made it should feel bad about it!
Delicious, the steak disappears into my mouth, and plops down onto the ground with a content sigh.
Hot food is always an amazing thing, regardless of whatever the system thinks.
When I see them (standard) and jump to my feet chasing after the undead who is escaping!
____________________________________________
Quest Failed
Flee You Fool!
A greater being will soon learn of your existence, escape while you still can!
Reward – Zero, nothing, nada, they caught you, and there’s no rewards for losers!
-_-
“I’ll show you a loser, you bloody system!” Vie proceeds to stab the air, but alas the system is unaffected.
“That will teach you!” Her eyes narrow at the air “Grumble” Vie glances at her pouches, before plopping down on top of a table, and stares down any of the undead who DARE to look in her direction.
“AND, what are you lot looking at!” Undead eyes are quickly averted, but she just keeps glaring away, until the stone in her pocket manages to regain her attention.
“Grumble” Vie taps one of her pouches
“Don’t worry, once the scouts find a new portal we will build our tower, but until then?” She sighs, before flying towards her little cubby passing by countless marshaling undead covered in weapons, and armor.
Home is a small little tomb, and filled with undead slaving away materializing crystals.
Once she lands the core floats from her pouch, and begins to gobble it all up, while Vie relaxes on a throne waiting, after all she has all of the time in the world.
____________________________________________
Meanwhile in an office, well really just another tomb, but filled with fancy mage lights, and a massive desk where two undead sit across from each other.
Kacious, and Veronica are discussing?… What needs to be done “You should not be going!” Veronica’s fist slams into the table causing some of various writing utensils, and orbs to bounce.
Kacious though is unaffected by her outburst “They’re killing our people, what would you have me do?” “But they’re not OUR people, our people are currently being attacked, those are just some random undead, and we don’t owe them anything.” Kacious sighs, before leaning back in his chair “You’re right we don’t owe them anything, but if not for a bit of luck, we would be in the exact same position as those undead. Unorganized, being picked off, killed one by one, without really even knowing what’s happening.”
Veronica sighs, before collapsing into her chair, and staring directly into Kaciou’s fiery eyes.
“But it’s not, and we have a responsibility to our people, we can’t save every undead on the planet.” Kacious stands while pressing both of the palms of his hands on the table.
“Maybe not, but we can save them, and if we’re unwilling to help those we can, those we can see being killed right before our very eyes.” He waves towards a crystal filled with images of undead being cut down, and their cores dug from their chests.
“Then why are we doing any of this?” Veronica shakes her head, before in frustration propping her head up on the desk with one of her hands.
“But, you still don’t have to go.” “Don’t worry I’m taking some of the best of us with me, we’ll be fine, and back before you know it.” He then turns, and exits the chamber, while Veronica watches him go.
____________________________________________
Three days, not even a full week, yet even for a normal person just living their life so much can happen over the course of a couple of days, but for someone caught in the middle of a war?
It’s an eternity, every second stretching out in a never ending flow of time, until it suddenly stops.
Blood pools along the floor, a trail of red coming from a hallway filled with bodies.
Nelka, and Salazar covered in armor, side by side, their weapons on the ground or in rarer cases still inside of their opponent, before someone else managed to kill them.
While down the hall, the battle still wages, every inch gained being bought with blood, but the Nelka are advancing, their stone skin giving them the edge in these confined spaces, and then they’re through.
A chamber filled with Salazar in red plates, and a single elderly one covered in golden ones.
“Auralio, at last, I’ve been looking forward to this.” Auralio scoffs, while staring down the Nelka king Salvatore with pity in his eyes.
“Do you have any idea how many of your people died to get here?” Salvatore’s feet thud into the chamber, the only break in the silence, other than the slow drip of blood, and a glowing smile grows across his face.
“It doesn’t matter.” There’s some slight shuffling behind Salvatore, but he only has eyes for Auralio.
“When soon enough, your entire planet will be ground to dust!” And in response Auralio just shakes his head, before looking past Salvatore at the troops forming ranks behind him, then says in a slow measured tone.
“Let’s say that you do, your people will be at peace, for a day, maybe even two, and then you’ll drag your people into some other pointless war to fulfill your endless thirst for violence.”
In response Salvatore just laughs “You talk too much.” He then lunges into the center of the room, and is little more than a blur as he closes the distance to Auralio. https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!0Q6O!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5c85c92e-3c4c-4a69-8111-fedb9b6af752_599x996.pnghttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mpxj!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fda11d4c0-1e1a-4c74-ad1a-7e0dbd1d2998_604x264.jpeg
Due to formating issues this story doesn’t quite look the way it’s supposed to 0_o and you can read an updated version on Kobo, or other platforms. https://litrpgandpolitics.wordpress.com The story is also at around chapter 60 with around 400,000 words, and will posted once per day, until it’s caught up.
Then it will either be weekly, or twice a week, with that being said, I still welcome any feedback, after all I’m still editing everything 0_0 and different perspectives can so often help one see the things we take for granted.
Thanks for reading, and I hope that you have a great day!