Romulus panned through his alerts as the wardens and Isolde conversed below him, with a smaller group of the still-mortal soldiers returning periodically as they ferried back the bodies of their slain comrades. The task had been a grim one to order, but Isolde had understood the need and made sure the wardens did as well, marshalling the men and women she’d commanded for most of her adult life with ease. He turned back to his alerts as he focused on getting through them.
SYSTEM MESSAGE
Quest Complete: Neutralize the Necropolis
The Duke of Blackstone tasked you with entering the fortress in the heart of the inner city and dealing with whatever is wrong within its depths.
He authorised you to use whatever means are necessary to ensure the completion of your task, and offered you anything you need to see it done.
The Duke also, however, had an ulterior motive. Having stumbled on texts relating to the [Liber Nox] and the power it holds, the Duke of Blackstone desperately desires to acquire the sacred tome in order to bring back his departed wife.
He infiltrated the Necropolis in the wake of the Revenant-King’s presumed demise, and entered your throne room. In the ensuing confrontation, you managed to secretly access the well of ancient Dark mana beneath the Necropolis.
Using this power, you killed the Duke and raised him as a Wight, successfully turning your enemy into an asset and succeeding in defanging the assault force that would surely have killed you.
As a final hurrah, you even managed to turn the Duke’s daughter, Isolde, into your first Methuselah.
Congratulations on your victory, Traveler Romulus!
WARNING: The manner in which you resolve this quest will have lasting consequences for the world of Eternus. Choose your path wisely.
Difficulty: A+
Success: Thwart the Duke of Blackstone’s Plan
Failure: Permanent Character Death, Destruction of Blackstone
Rewards: Due to your success, you have earned:
* Experience: 22,000
* Currency: 5 Platinum
* Reputation: +10,000 Infamy
* Item: [Duke’s Signet Ring] (Epic Ring)
* Territory: The Necropolis (Capital)
* Access to Dominion Interface
“Oh shit.” Romulus spat out, before the power of multiple level ups consumed him.
When the black flames rolled over him, Romulus gripped the armrests of his throne with gritted teeth, his eyes narrowed against the raging pain and pleasure roaring through his veins. After accessing his mana, the level ups felt even more potent, consuming him in an inferno of black flames that roused cries of alarm from the wardens. Only Isolde remained calm, and offered reassurances to the wardens. Romulus made a note to ask her how she understood later.
When the process was complete, Romulus sagged in his chair, resting his head back against the ivory throne. He felt amazing after a level up, but he also felt exhausted. Very likely it was the sheer volume of power as opposed to the actual power itself. He doubted many people achieved multiple levels in one go regularly.
Wearily he looked into the space before him as a System alert populated.
SYSTEM MESSAGE
Level Up x 10
You have reached Level 25!
You have 50 Attribute Points to Allocate!
Would you like to Allocate your Points now?
YES NO
Romulus selected ‘NO’ after a moment’s hesitation. He’d do it soon, but not yet.
“Good choice.” Mortarius said from his position next to the throne.
“It’s mostly laziness.” Romulus muttered.
“Still a good choice. You have other alerts waiting, and they might change your allocations once they’re dealt with.”
Romulus frowned at that. “I’ve been meaning to ask, how did you block the Duke from Examining me?”
“I am your soulbound companion, Romulus.” Mortarius said in the tone he used when he wanted Romulus to know he was intentionally exercising patience. “That means I have the ability to access your HUD, see your System alerts, and offer you some defenses against the invasive probes of others. My power is far more limited than it used to be, however. The more you level, the more I level.”
“Why didn’t I see a System message about this?” Romulus asked in confusion.
“I suppressed it.” Mortarius said without contrition. “Would you like to see it?”
Romulus hesitated, then shook his head. “Not now. I trust you. Besides… My world had similar things to our… relationship. They were artificial, though, not other souls.”
“I see.” Mortarius said after a moment’s silence. “Thank you for your trust.”
“We’re in this together.” Romulus said simply. “Now about this ‘Dominion Interface’...”
“Ah, you finally have access to it?”
“Apparently.” Romulus confirmed.
“Ah yes, the alert was pending.” Mortarius confirmed. “Would you like to deal with the other ones first? You have some skill levels, a new skill, and achievement alerts... nothing too pressing.”
“Can you summarise for me?” Romulus asked.
“Intrigue to 8, Spatial Awareness to 4, Sanguine Kiss to 3… You also earned the Strategist and Tactician skills, which were merged into Warmaster, and you now have access to Necromancy.”
“Warmaster?”
“I’ll show you the new skills.” Mortarius said with a flick of his hand toward Romulus.
Congratulations, you have learned a new skill!
Skill Name: Necromancy
Skill Type: Active
Skill Function: You have awakened the power of Necromancy, an ancient and proud tradition of the followers of the Dark Lady. Through the power of Necromancy, you may assert your control over the souls of the dead, or turn the living into your minions through vicious rituals. As you level your Necromancy, you will be able to raise more powerful and potent minions, and gain access to new types of Undead creation tools. The amount of minions you may control is tied to your Willpower. Necromancy also grants access to the Summons Interface. You may control 1 Minion per 3 Points of Willpower.
Skill Level: Novice 3
Skill Description: Every foe that falls is another soldier in Her army!
Congratulations, you have learned a new skill!
Skill Name: Warmaster
Skill Type: Passive
Skill Function: Having successfully earned both the Strategist and Tactician skills, you have unlocked the hidden skill Warmaster. This skill allows you to affect a bonus via leadership to all forces under your command during all forms of conflict, be it political or martial. Not to be confused with Intrigue, Warmaster gives an overall effectiveness bonus to your forces, and at higher levels can offer several unique bonuses based on your choice of evolution. Warmaster also grants access to the special Warfare Interface. (Current: 2% Effectiveness Bonus)
Skill Level: Novice 2
Skill Description: The realm of War is yours to rule!
“So I’ve got a summons interface and warfare interface.” Romulus said as he read.
“Both are useful.” Mortarius said as he started to explain. “The former will let you understand your limits as far as Necromancy goes, as well as designate special designs for new minion types as you advance. The latter will give you a more powerful tool for managing your forces, and allowing you to see where you need to make changes and such. You can also grant specific access to designated Generals or Admirals as needed, and they can do the same to their subordinates. It makes unit management far less agonizing.”
“Like a 4X Strategy Game…” Romulus muttered. “Okay, that’s pretty cool.”
“Both can wait until later. For now, you need to start making good on your proclamation. The wardens have just finished assembling the corpses, and you need to reaffirm their faith a final time.”
“You’re sure this will work?” Romulus asked as his eyes drifted to the corpses, some mangled beyond recognition.
“As long as the majority of their still-whole corpses are here, yes. It hasn’t been a full day, so their souls are still lingering. Power over Death isn’t purely about undeath. These people need to understand that. It’ll make them perfect for your personal guard.”
Mortarius had already suggested making them the beginnings of whatever Romulus decided to name his personal guard, and while he was hardly about to fully trust his life to people that had been his enemies not even two hours prior, he understood the former Revenant-King’s logic. The wardens were the first of his ‘converts’, and some of them had taken the idea of earning an escape from death unsurprisingly well.
The next step was to turn the converts into true believers.
“Okay, here we go.” Romulus muttered to the ghost, before raising his voice to address the surviving wardens and Isolde. “There are no more bodies within the Necropolis?” He knew the answer, but process was important.
“None milord!” One of the wardens answered. “Fredrick was the last.” The man gestured to the newest addition to the rows of bodies.
“Good.” Romulus said, ignoring the fluttering of nerves in his body. “Now step away from your fallen comrades, and prepare to witness the Dark Lady’s glory!”
The wardens beat a quick retreat from the bodies, while Isolde remained apart but nearby, appearing quite unconcerned. Romulus really needed to figure out how much the Dark Lady had told her about everything. Her confidence was both reassuring and disconcerting.
First, the interface. He said mentally as he focused, connecting to the well of dark mana beneath the Necropolis.
Immediately, a screen filled his vision.
MANA WELL INTERFACE
Welcome to the Mana Well Interface.
Within this interface, you may designate the use of your Mana Well in the pursuit of various available projects.
As you have unlocked access to the Dominion Interface, Summons Interface, and Warfare Interface new options have been made available to you.
Please note that some options will require upkeep to maintain, which will detract from the daily mana income. Upkeep that outstrips the income will result in a daily, weekly, or monthly loss of your total mana reserves as specified.
Mana Well Status:
Available Mana 999,750 / 1,000,000
Daily Increase 150
Which of the following purchase menus would you like to peruse?
Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.
Avatar Menu Sovereign Menu Necromancy Menu Warmaster Menu
Romulus selected the ‘Avatar Menu’ with a finger tap, returning to the same interface he’d used to kill and raise the Duke into a Wight. As his eyes roamed the options, pondered his options, noting nothing had changed following his defeat of the Duke.
MANA WELL INTERFACE
Welcome to the Mana Well Interface Avatar Menu.
This menu will allow you to peruse purchase options relating to your status as the Avatar of Darkness. Please note that all purchases are final, and cannot be refunded.
Mana Well Status:
Mana Well Level 100 / 100
Available Mana 999,750 / 1,000,000
Daily Recharge 150
Avatar Menu Purchase Options:
Dark Rebirth -250 Mana Dark Resurrection -150 Mana Dark Sacrifice +100 Mana Dark Conversion -300 Mana
Dark Rebirth was what he’d used to forcibly kill and raise the Duke, albeit at a much lower level. While 250 Mana seemed like a pittance, it was only because the well was at capacity. Once that changed, Dark Rebirth would be both costly and extremely economically insolvent. Romulus already knew what he wanted, anyway. His finger moved down to Dark Resurrection and he selected the option.
MANA WELL INTERFACE
You have selected Dark Resurrection.
There are currently 33 viable targets in your immediate vicinity.
Enacting Dark Resurrection will cost 150 Mana per target, for a total of 4,950 Mana.
This expenditure cannot be recovered, even if the targets are slain.
Do you wish to proceed?
YES NO
Romulus clicked ‘YES’ without hesitation. The cost was far outweighed by the benefits he would reap. The moment he did, darkness boiled over the interior of the throne room, black clouds of power rippling into existence with flashes of purple lightning. From above, hooded beings in black plate descended with midnight-feathered wings, carrying with them glowing white orbs.
Each of the figures touched down beside a body, bending to place the orb gently within each one with reverence. When they were finished they waved their hands over the corpse, wrapping each body in a cocoon of dark magic before ascending upward to retreat back into the clouds. The storm continued until each of the figures had departed from whence they’d come, at which point single bolts of lightning struck each of the cocoons with thunderous cracks of sound.
Once this final act was done, the clouds dissipated from the roof of the throne room quickly.
“I never get tired of the Reapers.” Mortarius said from beside Romulus.
“What are they?”
“Souls that have proven their devotion to the Dark Lady’s Faith in life, and are immortalized in Death. Men and women both. They are her enforcers, messengers, protectors, and agents.” He glanced at Romulus. “Never forget that. You may be Her Avatar, but they are Her eternal companions. Show them respect.”
Romulus nodded in understanding, watching his interface.
MANA WELL INTERFACE
You have successfully cast Dark Resurrection on 33 targets in your immediate vicinity.
4,950 Mana has been deducted from the well.
There is no upkeep for this purchase.
Romulus smirked and dismissed the interface entirely, leaning forward on his throne to watch the cocoons. Each of them had a new icon next to them populated by his HUD: A purple cross in a black circle, slowly filling with red. The progress on each cocoon was different, and Romulus could only assume it was due to the differing severity of injury across the collective. Many of them had been all but obliterated by traps or the skeletons activated by Mortarius.
When the first status circle filled to maximum, Romulus watched as the cocoon bisected and burned away toward the ground in a flare of black fire. When the flames abated, the woman that had been within the cocoon stirred, slowly pushing herself up to sit as she looked at her surroundings. Her restored armour had seemingly undergone a change as well, with the steel blackened and the chainmail over the joints turned to a light silver.
When she pushed herself to her feet, her eyes searched out the area. The moment her gaze fell on Romulus, her eyes widened and she made her way toward the foot of the throne’s dais determinedly. The wardens that had started to approach hesitated when they saw this, clearly worried she was about to do something foolish.
Romulus wasn’t so sure. There was a calmness to the way the woman moved, and he watched her curiously as she approached.
“Ah. The Dark Lady really is spoiling you.” Mortarius said from beside him.
Romulus didn’t have a chance to question his meaning.
The woman halted just shy of the stairs to the throne, and she tossed back her long black hair to look up at him. A look of uncertainty flashed across her features, and she finally spoke. “Are you the Revenant-King?” She called up to him in an interrogative tone.
Romulus raised an eyebrow. “I am.” He called back.
The moment he did, the woman smiled beatifically and dropped to one knee, slamming her fist across her chest. “Hail, Revenant-King! I, Kalaria Mengst, do hereby pledge my life and loyalty to you now and for all time.”
“I’m honoured, Kalaria, but also mildly perplexed.” Romulus said after he recovered from his moment of surprise. “While it’s true the other wardens have sworn themselves to me, I expected to have to convince you and the rest of the resurrected to do the same.”
“I understand, sire.” Kalaria responded as she raised her head, remaining in a salutory pose. “But that is only because you do not know what transpired across the veil. The Dark Lady has returned by your hand, my King. The souls of the dead no longer wander aimlessly through the infinite black. When you invoked the Resurrection, She came to us. All of us. She told us who She was, and what it was you were doing for us.”
Kalaria paused as she choked, reaching up to brush away tears.
“We could see and hear everything that happened from the moment you encountered the Duke. Our souls lingered, even though our bodies were gone. We watched it all, heard it all. Then when the time came to choose, you chose the harder path for yourself. You chose to give us life again, with no guarantee of loyalty. The Dark Lady… she offered us a modification to the revival. New bodies, new armour, and access to magic. All we had to do was agree to serve you, Her Avatar.”
“You couldn’t use magic before?” Romulus asked in surprise.
Isolde’s laugh drew their attention as she approached languidly. “No, my King. Magic is not necessarily rare, but it is very uncommon. Perhaps one in a thousand people will be born with the talent, and even then the level of capability is exceedingly inconsistent. To be given magic is a wonderful gift, made sweeter by the unique powers of the Dark.”
Kalaria nodded at Isolde’s words, turning back to Romulus. “Lady Isolde is right, my lord. Once you saved her…”
“I told you my lord,” Isolde said with a grin, “the Lady showed me many things.”
“You knew this would happen, didn’t you?” Romulus asked shrewdly. “That’s why you didn’t even flinch at what was happening to their bodies. You knew the whole time!”
“Not the specifics.” Isolde admitted. “Only that, if you made the choice, I would receive an entire force of what the goddess called Dark Templars.”
“Ah, that makes sense.” Mortarius said with a nod. “They’re the equivalent to Solarius’ Paladins. Very dangerous heavy infantry. It’s a prestige class, at that. The Dark Lady just handed you a means, if properly harnessed, to make your mortal army very dangerous.”
Romulus glanced at the ancient spirit in surprise, then turned back to Kalaria. As he did, he noticed more and more of the fallen wardens rising from dissipating cocoons, with more of the dark circles filling to completion. As they did they seemed to look around until they spotted Kalaria, before immediately moving to join her.
“I’m a little taken aback by how many assets the Dark Lady is offering me.” Romulus admitted to Isolde, but also partially to Mortarius. “I’m certainly not about to complain, but it seems disproportionate to how weak She is currently.”
Isolde snorted at the same time as Mortarius, though the latter was invisible.
“My king, you show your Traveler nature with that statement.” Isolde said with a shake of her head. “You think this is significant? It is certainly helpful, but it is hardly significant. You have no concept of scope, when it comes to the other gods. Today the Dark Lady has gifted you thirty-three Dark Templars. Tomorrow, Solarius could awaken hundreds of Paladins, if His Avatar fulfilled the correct requirements.”
“I see.” Romulus said thoughtfully.
Isolde seemed content to let him think about it, turning to watch over the still-healing stragglers as their cocoons neared restorative completion.
“She’s right.” Mortarius said from his side. “The Dark Lady is giving you a few blades to use against entire legions. You need every advantage you can get, but it still may not be enough. You should have enough in the well to use Dark Conversion on the still-living wardens. I recommend you do so. It’ll bring your total number of Dark Templars to an even fifty, and it’ll make them indebted to you.”
Romulus nodded slightly at Mortarius’ words, and looked over at the final resurrected warden, watching as the woman moved to join the others kneeling in neat rows of ten before the throne. When she did, Isolde raised her voice. “Sons and daughters of Blackstone!” She began in a commanding tone. “You have been given life once more, and freed from the cold embrace of Death by the power of Her Avatar, the Revenant-King.”
Romulus watched Isolde with a subtle raise of his eyebrows. She was a natural.
“As if that were not benevolent enough, the Dark Lady has given you a gift beyond measure: She has infused you with Her own power and granted you access to the magnificence of Dark mana. All She asks in return is fair exchange.” Isolde turned to Romulus with an arched eyebrow as she spoke, as if asking if he were paying attention.
He responded with a wry smile as she continued.
“You live now by the Revenant-King’s mercy! Your lives are his, and your Faith is Hers!” Isolde’s voice hit an oratory crescendo as she finished. “You are called to serve, now and until you return to the Dark Lady’s embrace! So I ask you now… Will you serve?!”
As if rehearsed, they responded one after the other, repeating Kalaria’s words.
“Hail, Revenant-King! I, Victor Reznick, do hereby pledge my life and loyalty to you now and for all time!”
“Hail, Revenant-King! I, George Beltane, do hereby…”
On and on they continued, filling the throne room with their fervent declarations of loyalty until the last of them spoke.
“Hail, Revenant-King! I, Victoria Larryn, do hereby pledge my life and loyalty to you now and for all time!”
When Victoria’s echo within the space trailed away, Isolde spoke again. “Dark Templars, to whom do you owe your eternal loyalty?!”
“The Revenant-King!” They repeated back with martial precision.
“To whom do you owe your eternal worship?!”
“The Dark Lady!” They roared with fervour.
“Your Eternal Majesty…” Isolde said as she turned to Romulus with a smile “...I present the first of your Dark Templars!”
Romulus glanced subtly at Mortarius before he fixed his attention on the kneeling Templars, considering his words carefully. “Today is a momentous one. I came to this city as an unsure Traveler, sent on a mission by a deity absent from the world for eons. Yet despite my lack of preparation, my unabashed weakness, and my clear unpreparedness… My Faith in the Dark Lady was not misplaced. You are proof that, with enough Faith, there is no limit to what we can achieve.”
Romulus subtly accessed his mana well interface as he spoke.
“Yet as powerful as you are, you are not whole. You have brothers and sisters who watch you with envy, with uncertainty… They do not know where they fit any longer. Yet, that need not be the case. Fifty of you came to this place, endured its crucible, and now stand whole… yet seventeen of you remain absent from the new majority.” As Romulus spoke, he looked toward the wardens that had survived to make it to the throne room.
Within their ranks he saw shock, confusion, and in the more savvy of them; hope.
His fingers navigated stealthily to Dark Conversion as he spoke.
“The time has come to unite you all on this new and glorious path.” Romulus declared as he turned to the remaining seventeen. “Will you give me your loyalty, now and forever? Will you swear to serve me above all other authorities, and give your Faith forevermore to the dark Lady?”
The warden known as Hector was the first to respond. “Aye! I will!”
He was joined by Lamonte. “I will!”
Then Tricia, and then all of them; their voices roaring their oaths of fealty.
“Then let it be done.” Romulus said grandly, selecting ‘YES’ in the waiting window.
Dark energy erupted from the floor the moment he did, surrounding the seventeen wardens in a flurry of power and obsidian fire that discharged bolts of purple lightning. No sound came from within the flames, which obscured each of the men and women from view entirely. Nobody moved as the conversion occurred, leaving the throne room eerily silent.
Abruptly the flames vanished, the lightning dissipated, and where before seventeen wardens had stood with armour in various degrees of durability: Now seventeen Dark Templars stood in their place, bedecked in abyssal steel and silvered chainmail. Nobody spoke as the newly converted looked at their armour in wonder, admiring themselves in stunned silence.
It was Hector, in the end, that spoke first.
“Bugger me.” He said, voice shattering the silence. “I look fantastic!”
That opened the floodgates, and even Romulus joined in the sudden laughter at the man’s words. “Rise!” He said to the still-kneeling thirty-three. “Rise, and be whole once more!”
The sound of clanking steel followed as the kneeling Templars rose and moved to join their converted fellows, breaking down the momentary wall that had come between them and embracing with clangs of metal and echoing laughter. Tears were shed, hugs were exchanged, and a few kisses shared between both the survivors and resurrected. Romulus smiled at the sight.
“I think you’re right, Mortarius. I think this would be a fine beginning to my personal guard.”
“Of course I’m right.” The ancient King responded indignantly, glancing over at him. “What will you call them?”
Romulus knew the moment he was asked. It was a fantasy he’d had since childhood.
“Praetorians.” He said after confirming his thoughts. “I’m going to call them Praetorians, of the Praetorian Guard.”
Mortarius tilted his head, and then nodded in approval. “A strong name.”
“Now all that’s left is to give them something to protect.” Romulus said with a grin.
“Ah.” Mortarius said with a hint of approval. “You’re finally ready, are you?”
“I am.” Romulus replied with a shiver of anticipation. “Let’s remake a city.”