Reud stalked through the darkness of the city, the ground just barely lit by the light cast out from Tel's burning hand. Still, in the gloom, the twisted roots and broken road made walking the streets a slow and tedious affair.
For anyone but Reud, that was.
He knew the weaving streets and overgrown alleys like the back of his hand, his feet carrying him on the same route he'd walked for centuries. Straight back to the underground.
Far off in the distance, a long screech broke the silence of the night, like the howl of a wolf but higher and longer, filled with a warbling pulse of mana and aching with a terrible hunger. A chimera's screech, if ever he'd heard one. That meant the monsters were stirring from their dungeons, the mana strumming in their veins pushing them to feed. Soon they'd notice the villagers, exposed without proper shelter, and come to hunt.
He'd have to be quick.
As Reud walked, he felt the mana in the air grow thicker, denser, more chaotic as the night truly took hold. It was that exact same power that drove the chimeras to greater heights of madness and pushed them to feed. Every mage felt that same frenzied energy each night, and Reud was no exception. It was Vistol's influence, some said, given that the mana seemed to pour down from the moon that hung in the night sky. Demons, others said, rising up from hell to torment the living.
Whatever the truth, it was the most dangerous time to cast magic.
Soon, he reached the building where Lilia had shifted the boulder and entered the tunnels beneath. Down there was a true darkness, the only light penetrating its depths being that which the intruder brought with them. To some, such a darkness may have felt oppressive, but to Reud it felt familiar. Safe.
Like returning home.
Running a hand along a wall, Reud let his feet carry him through the twisting passageways to the room he had brought Lilia to a mere couple of weeks ago. There, he'd left the things he was down here for.
Skeletons and clothes. Walking around in just a cloak was starting to get old.
The skeletons were right where he'd left them, standing in perfect rows against the wall of the room. Reud pushed out a flood of mana, renewing the spell animating them. Immediately, they stood up straighter, small imperfections in their bones vanishing as if they'd never existed.
Walking over to the chest in the room, Reud pulled it open and started rooting around within. One by one, he piled weapons beside it, and clothes in a pile beside that.
Most of the clothing had seen better days, hailing from all sorts of eras. The spoils of centuries of dealing with overly curious explorers.
A pair of dirty brown trousers, a grey tunic, and a thick leather belt finally passed the inspection, and Reud quickly dressed himself. No longer feeling so self-conscious, Reud stood and gestured to the skeletons.
With a rattle and the scraping of bones, the skeletons lined up and marched over to take a weapon each.
Reud watched them move, a strange satisfaction building in him. He'd made these undead so long ago, more as a way to fill the long centuries with something rather than for any particular reason, and ever since then they'd sat here idle. Now they had a purpose, something of true value they could be used for. And everyone needed a purpose, even undead.
Even Reud.
Miraculously, after such an unbelievably great length of time, he'd found his. Lilia was back in his life. He had people to protect. A new life to fight for.
He had hope.
Hope for rebuilding the land of his memories, before the war tore it to pieces. Hope for pushing Lightire out, and restoring Rudase to the Rudaian people. And hope for a life, a family, with the woman he loved more than anything in the world.
Smiling, Reud turned and exited the room, the skeleton horde clattering along behind him. Slowly, they weaved their way back towards the surface.
As he walked, Reud sent out a pulse of magic, feeling down through the maze of tunnels to the caverns far beneath, then deeper still. To the immense spell that lay in the depths there, fed by the entire mana output of the vast dungeon that lay beneath the city.
And the thing that slumbered in the manaless zone around it.
Thankfully, that mistake hadn't stirred, despite the spate of restorations he'd drawn upon over the last day. And as long as it remained in place, his phylactery was protected. One day, he'd have to deal with it properly, to find a solution that didn't require the desperate spells he'd cast back then, the sacrifices he’d had to make.
A problem for another time.
Leaving the darkness behind, Reud exited the underground to be greeted by the chill of the night. Perfect silence filled the air, marred only by the faint clacking of bones.
Then a howl broke the night, answered moments later by another. The chimeras were close.
He had to hurry.
—
Terrified faces greeted Reud as he returned, the howls in the distance getting closer and closer. Lilia and Bo, along with a few others, were jamming burning branches into alcoves along the street, illuminating the overgrown ruins in a flickering light.
Spotting him, Lilia jogged over, her face serious. "I'm so glad you're back. They'll attack soon, I can feel it."
Reud gestured over his shoulder at the horde behind him. "I've got ten skeletons here, where do you want them?"
Lilia looked up and down the street. The once proud road was fully overgrown, its carefully laid flagstones broken and displaced by roots that had dug themselves under and through the earth beneath. A number of large trees had also sprouted through the road surface, and the rest of the ground was covered in a combination of moss and a variety of small plants. The buildings lining the street had most of their road-side walls still standing, creating a corridor of stone interspersed with the odd alley that led off into the night.
Finally, Lilia spoke. "Given we had to squeeze single file through here, it's the perfect choke point. If we build a barricade there, there, and there."
She gestured at the alley across from them, and the nearest and furthest ends of the street.
"Building those barricades will give us a sizable safe area, for minimal effort. We just need, what, ten planks to cover the gaps. But we already looked through the buildings, and there's nothing to use."
Reud smiled. "I can help you there."
With a gesture, the skeletons carrying axes, six of the ten, jerked forward. Reud gestured at the closest tee, and the skeletons sprung forward, launching into a frenzy of chopping. In no time at all, the tree toppled to the ground with a boom that echoed down the street.
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A chorus of howls responded to the noise.
One of the skeletons slammed its axe deep into the log, wedging it firmly in place. Another of its companions dropped its weapon and shambled over to the side of the road, pulling a large chunk of rock from the ground. Staggering back, it raised the rock and slammed it down on the axe, driving it deep into the wood. With a loud crack, the trunk split, a rent travelling up its length. Another pair of the skeletons repeated the action further up, sending the rent even further. With a final groaning crack, the trunk split in two.
Breaking into two groups, the skeletons repeated the procedure on the two halves, splitting it over and over until they were left with rough planks. Reud glanced back at the building behind him, noticing the interest the work was garnering. Heads peeked out from windows and around the doorway, watching the skeletons work with fascination.
Soon a pile of wood planks lay spread out on the ground. The skeletons dropped their axes, and stepped forward to gather the planks, four skeletons to each. Step by step, they shifted them over to the places Lilia had indicated, jamming the planks haphazardly into any available gap. The group then walked back and grabbed another, carrying it back and balancing it on top of the first. Plank by plank, the wall got higher, each one wedged in on top of the first.
Reud glanced over the barricade, analysing it critically. He certainly wasn't an expert in construction, but it looked good enough. Probably.
“No no no!” Came a gruff voice from within the building. Reud turned, looking for the speaker. A jostling ran through the crowd peeking from the windows, followed by the emergence of a large man from the doorway.
The carpenter, Grym, strode over to Reud, grumbling loudly. “What in Vistol’s name is that wall! A strong fart would bring it down.” He stopped before Reud, glancing at his glowing eyes for a moment before glancing away. “Beggin’ your pardon, my lord, but I can’t just stand there in silence no more. Your pets are impressive, but even me’ nan could work wood better than they.”
Reud raised an eyebrow at the man’s outburst. “Good to see you again, Grym. I take it you have some suggestions for how to improve the wall?”
“Aye, my lord. You see what we need is some braces there, a supporting beam there.” He pointed to the wall, gesturing to each side. “We could also carve some joints to them ends, and slot them in over there. What I’d suggest is a-”
Reud held up his hand to stop the man. “You’re obviously the expert here. How about you just give the orders to the skeletons instead of me, have them do the work you need.”
Grym looked surprised. “You mean them skeletons can understand me? Even though they ain’t got no ears?”
Reud gestured at the skeletons. “Go on, find out for yourself. I think you’ll be impressed at how quickly they learn.”
Grym stared for a moment before shrugging. He turned to the building and shouted. “Right then, Daryl, Benny, get yourselves out here. We got a wall to build.”
Two young men emerged, smaller in stature than Grym but showing signs of developing the strong build that came from lugging heavy loads around all day. The three men strode over to the wall and began to order the skeletons about, quickly organizing into an efficient team.
Grym led two of the skeletons in carving the ends of the logs with protrusions that would interlock, loudly ordering them to carve this or to chop that. The other two men led the rest of the skeletons to begin work felling the other trees in the immediate vicinity and splitting them into usable logs.
Reud relaxed, watching the men work alongside the skeletons with a bemused smile on his face. A touch on his shoulder startled him. He whipped his head around to see Lilia standing by his side, Bo standing just outside the building behind her.
“Will you look at that, people actually working alongside the undead.” Lilia said, smiling gently.
Reud nodded and turned back to the group. “I never thought I’d see the day. Everyone always said they were too creepy.”
They paused like that for a time, Lilia’s hand on Reud’s shoulder setting him at ease, the simple contact bringing him great comfort.
But such peace could never last.
A shout broke the quiet. “Look! The chimeras are here!”
One of the villagers pointed up the road, the opposite way from the half finished wall. In the gloom blazed a number of purple eyes, the bodies of the chimeras still hidden in the darkness. Screams came from the villagers behind Reud, panic setting in.
Lilia gave Reud another squeeze before letting him go, stepping away.
“Now it’s my turn.”
Her blade rung as she whipped it from its scabbard, another ring joining hers as Bo drew his blade too, stepping up to stand by her side. The mana in the air twitched as she sheathed her body in magic, her eyes flaring up to blaze with amethyst light. With a thought from Reud, Tel walked over to join the pair, flickering flames flaring into life around his hands.
“You focus on getting that wall built!” Lilia said, lowering herself into a crouch. “I’ll show these chimeras what a trained adventurer can do. They won’t know what hit them.”
Lilia took her blade in a two-handed grip, pointing it out in front of her, directly towards the eyes shining in the dark. For a moment, she just stood there, analysing the movement of the eyes in the darkness.
Then she was off.
Lilia raced down the street, her feet blurring as she nimbly danced over the broken ground. Bo and Tel launch into a run behind her, lagging far behind the glowing woman. In an instant, she was on top of the chimeras, spinning into an arcing slash.
In the light thrown off by her magic, the chimeras were finally revealed. A pack of monstrous wolves, each one sporting a puffy mane of white fur around their heads, a long horn shimmering with streaks of purple luminescence jutting from the centre of their temples. Like a horrific hybrid of unicorn and wolf.
Lilia’s blade glinted as it arced through the air, a white glow lining its leading edge. Blood sprayed from the closest wolf, accompanied by a yelp of pain. The rest of the pack sprang backwards, avoiding the deadly blade. Unfazed, Lilia reversed her sword, thrusting it into the skull of the reeling wolf, sending it flopping to the floor.
One down.
A wolf darted forward from the pack, dodging around its fallen companion with far more agility than a beast of its size should possess. With a snarl, it snapped at Lilia. The glowing woman hopped back, easily avoiding the bite, but before she could counter the wolf sprang back out of reach.
Another of the pack sprang in, taking advantage of Lilia’s distraction. Her sword flashed up, the creature’s teeth screeching along the metal blade. Her legs blurred as she flicked out a kick, barely catching the wolf as it tried to spring away, sending it flying into a wall with a crunch.
A gout of flame shot over her shoulder, sending the pack scattering to each side. Tel ran up to Lilia’s left, firing searing flame after searing flame. The wolves were too fast, easily avoiding the fire. It did, however, keep them too busy to attack Lilia.
Reud smiled. His skeletons really were learning to fight in a team, Tel providing the ranged support and area denial, and Bo the…
Wait, where was Bo?
Reud cast out his mana sense, looking for the skeleton, quickly finding him. He was on the… rooftop?
Glancing up, Reud spotted the skeleton running along the top of the ruined buildings, just barely visible by the firelight glinting off his sword.
Then he jumped.
The skeleton sailed through the air to slam into the ground behind the wolf pack, his bones clattering along the ground. The wolves span to face him as the skeleton's bones shuddered then flew back together, reforming Bo once more.
Raising his blade into a high stance, Bo charged the wolves. The pack tried to flee to the sides, but walls of fire spewed out by Tel cut them off. The only way they could go was back.
Right into the path of Lilia’s blade.
The three-pronged attack tore through the pack, wolves falling before the flashing blades in droves, their animal minds not letting them step into the roaring flames of Tel. With the pack unable to escape, Lilia and Bo cleaved through the wolves with ease.
A frantic minute more, and it was over.
A cheer went up from the villagers as the last wolf fell to Lilia’s sword. These people had likely never seen an adventurer fight, especially not one as deadly as Lilia, and they seemed thoroughly thrilled by the experience. Reud smiled as he took note of the wonder in their eyes. Lilia would have a number of new admirers after this display.
People squeezed out of the building, striding out into the street without the fear they’d had mere minutes before, walking up to congratulate Lilia. One brave man walked over to Bo and began thanking him too, excitedly pumping the skeleton's arm up and down. The skeleton tilted his skull and raised a hand to rub the back of his cranium.
Reud’s thoughts were scattered as people began to crowd around him too, babbling at him from all directions at once. He raised his hands and stepped back, trying to give himself some space, but the crowd pressed in. His mind racing, he tried to think of something, anything he could do to get them away, the closeness and attention of so many people making him intensely uncomfortable.
Then, a strange thing happened.
One moment the attention of the crowd was oppressive, the next that was replaced with a sense of pride. A feeling of responsibility towards these people who had put their lives in his hands. Reud looked over the shoulders of the crowd, catching Lilia’s eye, the same look dancing in her gaze.
With these people, maybe they could turn this place into a home.
Srinaber had residents once again.