As the base of the citadel came into view, Kano spotted a misshapen lump lying on the ground near the structure. It was fleshy and about the size of a torso, but beyond that it was a mystery to her. Was it the byproduct of the necromancers’ experiments? It made sense, but then why hadn’t they disposed of it rather than just leaving it beside the building. It seemed rather sloppy.
It was only when she got closer that Kano saw the creature’s face, or what remained of it. There was only a single eye visible, gray like that of a ghoul and inexplicably split into several portions placed at random across its flesh. Its only other feature was a slit that she guessed was supposed to be a mouth. Whatever it was meant to be, it slowly moved across the skin, contracting and expanding. It had practically no relevance to her, yet Kano found herself unable to take her eyes off it.
Though a grislier spectacle than anything she’d seen necromancers leave behind before, the most unsettling aspect was that it was moving. Did that mean the horrible little thing was still alive? It was definitely animated, though she wasn’t sure how much that really meant.
“What is that?” Sherp muttered, noticing the horror that had so captured Kano’s attention.
“Probably just one of the necromancer’s failed experiments. Nothing to worry about.” At least, there was probably no point in Sherp worrying about it. Not like she could do anything about it.
“It’s horrible.”
Despite not being far from her own, Kano found Sherp’s reaction amusing. What a ridiculous spectacle this was for someone as timid as Sherp to encounter. It was a wonder she hadn’t already tried to flee. And this surely wasn’t doing much to improve the ghoul’s opinion of necromancers.
Still staring as she approached it, Kano was wondering whether it was worth going the other way to avoid it when she felt a strange tingling sensation across her body. It was as if something unsubstantial, almost nonexistent, had brushed against her. Something that jolted her nerves and seemed hot yet cold at the same time.
Pausing to consider this strange sensation, she noticed that the energy she’d sensed in the citadel was present here as well. Only now, the nature of it had shifted. The sensation was stronger out here for one, though the strength of it around her seemed to shift constantly. Was it fluctuating? It felt more like it was moving around her, like the wind.
So distracted was she by this flood of new information that she nearly forgot all about the twisted remains nearby. It was only when Sherp gasped that she returned her attention to it. A single limb, formed of a tangled mess of flesh and bone, protruded from it, and it was using it to drag itself toward them. Though it was only a stone’s throw away, it wouldn’t be reaching them anytime soon at the pace it was going.
Curious as to what this thing could possibly want, Kano went out to meet it. Kneeling down, she waited for it a little beyond the reach of its solitary limb. After getting a little closer, the vaguely clawed-shaped manipulator on the end of its lumpy protrusion reached out toward her. It clutched her booted foot, the closest part of her to it, and she waited to see what it would do next. Was it going to attack her?
But it remained as it was, gripping her with its pitiful strength. Did it want something from her? “What is it?” she asked. She didn’t expect a reply, but it seemed worth a try. It did have a mouth of some kind.
Its mouth did indeed shift in response, though all that came out was a garbled cry. Was it trying to express something? Or was it just mindlessly trying to copy her? Looking into its single yet divided eye, she saw nothing but pain. Now that she saw it, it was so obvious and all-encompassing that she wondered how she ever could have missed it. Whatever this thing was, it was somehow still alive and suffering. Well, she could put an end to that easily enough.
Pulling herself free with the barest modicum of exertion, Kano drew back her boot and stamped down on it until it was a flattened ruin of blood and bone. Taking one last look before she left, she noticed one of the recognizable fragments of its eye. It was hard to tell from only a piece, but it seemed to bear the same expression of agony. Was it still alive? She stepped back, and the mass, which had remained motionless as it was crushed, squirmed as it tried to move toward her.
Had the necromancers been trying to create some sort of immortal being? She had trouble believing they would have just discarded it after succeeding, even if it probably wasn’t much use to anyone. It seemed more likely that it had something to do with the necromantic energy around them. Could it do something like this? Strange as it was to think, particularly since she was standing amidst so much of it, it didn’t seem implausible. This was what necromancers used to create life, after all.
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Well, if the energy had created it, perhaps she could do something about that. She concentrated and willed it to leave the body of the creature before her. Just as she’d hoped, it went still, and Kano drew the portion of energy that had been inside it into herself. Was that it? Had she done it? She was proven wrong in mere seconds, when it flopped around on the ground. Reaching out, she realized that more energy had simply flowed into it.
Distasteful as it was to see the poor thing still alive, it was easy enough to fix. She dragged the bloody mess through the dirt until she could no longer sense energy around them, not far from where Sherp had remained, and drew the energy out once more. This time the flat, much-abused little thing lay motionless and stayed that way.
Wiping the filth off as best as she could, Kano went over to Sherp. “Wait over there.” She pointed some distance away from the citadel, though still within sight.
“Um, why? Is it related to that thing you killed?”
“Just do it.” It was, but she saw no point explaining herself to Sherp. It wasn’t like the ghoul would have any useful insight to offer on something like this. Taking one last look back to make sure Sherp was doing as she was told, Kano hurried around the back of the citadel and took the elevator.
Tapping her foot as she waited for it to reach the top, Kano wondered whether Ren would still be alive when she got there. She’d seemed fine the last time Kano had seen her, but she couldn’t shake the idea that she might’ve been wrong about what the blob needed to survive. Was there more to it than just having the reactor functioning again?
She was thinking that she’d feel damned foolish if she’d gone to all that effort of getting the orb back if Ren was just going to die while she was gone when the doors opened. And there was Ren, sitting in her tank as usual, colorful as ever. Pleased that her worries had been for nothing, Kano walked up to the glass. “Hey, Ren, I’ve brought something for you.”
A head vaguely resembling Kano’s emerged from the blob. “What is it?”
Was there something wrong with Ren, or was she just being lazy? From the apathy in her voice, Kano assumed it was the latter. “Something that I hope will work in place of the reactor to provide you with energy, then you’ll be able to go outside again.”
“Oh. Great. Are you sure I won’t just start dying again and try to eat someone?”
Kano blinked. “Uh, I’m not sure yet, but I hope so. We still need to test it.” Pulling the golden orb from her pocket, she presented it to Ren.
Kano’s face sneered back at her. “That’s supposed to help me?”
“That’s the idea. I know it doesn’t look like much, but it might be the key to your freedom. All you need to do is give it a try.” She inserted the orb through the open airlock and gestured for Ren to take it.
Ren grunted. “Fine.” She grasped it in a tendril. “What am I supposed to do with it?”
“Uh, just eat it or absorb it, whatever it is you do. Then it should work.” Once it was within her, it should sustain her. Assuming there wasn’t something about it Himin had neglected to tell her. Though how much did the ghoul really understand it? Much as it pained Kano to admit it, even if Himin only understood a little of how it functioned, she still knew a lot more than Kano did.
The last time Kano had tried to help Ren using something she didn’t understand, it hadn’t gone so well, but hopefully this time would be different. Kano didn’t really have any other options anyway, and the few things she was familiar with were no help in keeping Ren alive. Seeing that Ren was still holding the orb, Kano asked, “Well?”
With a golden glimmer, the orb disappeared into the blob’s squishy flesh.
“How do you feel?” Kano asked after a few seconds had passed. There was nothing outwardly different about Ren, but that was much as Kano had expected. None of Himin’s ghouls had exhibited any outward changes either.
“A bit strange at first,” Ren said, rousing herself enough to form more of her body. “But now I feel sort of warm inside. It’s nice.”
“Good.” Though she wasn’t entirely sure what to make of Ren’s experience so far, it sounded positive. Unfortunately, she had little idea of how to proceed from here. How was she meant to know if the orb was working? She’d been able to sense necromantic energy in close proximity before. Maybe she could use that same sense here. There was a chance the reactor’s output would give her a false reading, but it seemed worth a try. “Can you reach out toward me?”
A tendril extended from Ren and slithered toward Kano. Grasping it, she closed her eyes and tried to get a sense of Ren’s whole. She felt the energy present throughout the blob’s body, and more importantly she sensed it emanating from something within Ren. Releasing the tendril, Kano smiled. “It might be a bit early to say, but I think we’ve done it.”
“Really?” Ren asked, voice rising in excitement. Was it possible she might change back to her old self as well? The change had been so sudden last time, maybe changing back would be just as abrupt. Though Kano was at a loss as to why.
“Yep. You’re free to go. Just make sure you carefully monitor your condition. If you start feeling tired again, then you should go straight back inside.”
An array of eyes formed across Ren’s body, and she said, “I’ll keep an eye on it.”
Despite how feeble the joke was, Kano found herself chuckling only to stop as she remembered what had happened when she was outside the citadel. “Oh, but you should probably wait a while before you leave the citadel. There’s something strange going on out there.” She’d hate for Ren to end up like the pitiful wretch she’d dispatched, especially after all this work.
“What’re you talking about?”
“I’m not sure, exactly, but the necromancers must know more about it. You’re free to come along and speak with them if you like.” It was probably more interesting than sitting around here.
“I guess. Hopefully they can fix whatever’s happening quickly.”
Kano nodded, though she didn’t hold out the same hope. Whatever was happening outside, the necromancers were probably doing it for a reason, and they were unlikely to stop so long as it benefited them.