Lilia sat in the large chair in the audience room, listening to yet another squabble between two residents of the city. With the conversation going back and forth and back and forth and essentially nowhere, she had zoned out a while back.

Gods, she wished Reud was here, he’d be able to deal with this far better. He was the thinker, she was the fighter. As much as he complained about not being able to deal with people, his calm demeanour gave him an aura of authority they seemed to like.

A sudden quiet in the room brought her attention back to the matter at hand. Looking up, Lilia noticed that all the occupants of the room were staring up at her expectantly.

“Rachel, quickly summarize the problem for me.” Lilia ordered, trying to hide the fact that she hadn’t been listening to them for a while now.

Rachel stood on Lilia’s right, her blonde hair tied up into a bun and her arms folded. She looked everything like a stern school mistress, albeit about twenty years too young. The young woman had proven herself invaluable in keeping the city running, quickly springing into organizing and managing the blossoming settlement.

“My lady, this is a dispute over housing. Both Poliver and Barnet here claim they set up in the property first, yet neither has any proof.” Rachel summarized.

Lilia rubbed her forehead, remembering now why she'd stopped listening. As the protective walls had been pushed further and further out, more buildings had become available. The people that were once crammed together in the only available liveable place had slowly spread out, searching out and occupying the most intact buildings they could find. Alongside new arrivals to the city, it had become a free-for-all in claiming homes. Lilia hadn’t put any restrictions on who could claim what, and as a result conflicts over ownership were running rampant.

Lilia looked over the two men. “Can you really not find a compromise? Maybe you can share the building.” She said hopefully.

Immediately a look of righteous indignation broke out over both their faces, and they began to protest, pointing accusing fingers at one another. A surge of anger rose within Lilia. They had an entire city to pick from, and they were squabbling over a single building!

“Fine, as you can’t agree then the city of Srinaber will claim the building. You can both find somewhere else to live.” Lilia said.

The men fell silent, looking shocked. Eventually the man on the left, Poliver, spoke up. “But my lady, I should-”

“No!” Lilia barked out, her anger getting the better of her. “I’ve had enough of your bickering. You couldn’t work together, so now you can both lose out. That is my final decision.”

The men looked at one another, lost for words.

Rachel stepped forward, reading Lilia’s expression. “This audience is over.” She guided them to the exit, all but throwing them out the door.

“Reud was right, why are all the disputes such petty nonsense?” Lilia grumbled, slouching in the chair, throwing a leg up onto its armrest. “Why do they need me for this? It’s mind-numbingly boring!”

Rachel walked back up the room as she responded. “The problem is that we don’t have any real government. No officials, besides you and Lord Reud. No records to speak of. Therefore, it’s difficult to keep track of who owns what or who lives where.”

Lilia looked up at the ceiling. “Let’s fix that then. Surely we can dredge up some trustworthy people who can read and write, and start putting some of these decisions down on paper?”

Rachel stopped by Lilia’s side. “As you wish, I think I can suggest some people who can be trusted.”

Looking down at Lilia, Rachel’s face twisted into a critical frown. “Master Lilia, please stop slouching, you need to look respectable.”

“There’s no one here, let me relax a little.” Lilia complained.

“As you have told me, the only way to achieve results is through constant, rigorous training.” Rachel responded, frowning. She looked up to Lilia’s left. “Bo, could you please?”

A skeletal hand reached down and gently but firmly pushed Lilia’s leg from the armrest.

“Dammit, you bag of bones!” Lilia exclaimed, looking up at Bo. “You’re supposed to obey me, not her!”

“Don’t shout at Bo, he knows I’m right.” Rachel said, stifling a giggle.

“You two are insufferable! Let’s get out of here and go train, I’ve done enough mediating for one day.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Lilia sprang up from the chair, reaching around behind it and pulling out two swords. One she tossed to Rachel and the other she strapped to her waist, over the top of her tunic. Rachel caught the sheathed blade with practised ease and strapped it on too. Together, they headed out of the room and into the city outside.

—

The street was lively, filled with people walking with a purpose. The sounds of hammering filled the air from all directions, mingling with the voices of a multitude of people going about their lives. There were even few stalls stood along the road, the vendors behind them selling various fruits or small tools.

A far cry from the state the city had been in when they'd first arrived.

Lilia studied the people they passed, many of the faces unfamiliar to her. Over the past couple of weeks, a steady trickle of people had arrived at the city gates, mostly young men and women eager to take advantage of the opportunity to acquire their own space. Villages this far into chimera-controlled territory survived through the protection of their walls, which also meant that they couldn’t expand along with their population. A family would often share a home, three, maybe even four generations packed into a single tiny building, and when that became too onerous a living situation the only option was to leave. What Srinaber offered those people was a place to grow, and as a result people were flocking here in droves.

The clacking of bones on stone sounded from further up the street. A gang of skeletons rounded the corner, carrying a large tree trunk between them. People quickly sprang out of their way as they marched onwards, heading along the route to the storage yard adjacent to Grym’s workshop. The sight had been a regular fixture in the city for weeks as the skeletons continued to clear the trees that took over the city and the surrounding lands.

Bit by bit, tree by tree, the city was being reclaimed.

As Lilia, Rachel, and Bo continued on, they passed a number of building projects. The old stone ruins were slowly being reconstructed with wooden roofs or walls. Skeletons and people worked side by side, the undead providing the strength required to lift and position the heavy materials so the people could fix them into place.

Lilia smiled as she watched a man direct a pair of undead to align a stretch of planks. Reud would be delighted to see how his creations had been accepted by the people, how they had become just a part of life here.

Undead that were respected, not reviled. How times had changed.

One of the workmen spotted Lilia and paused his hammering, wiping the sweat from his brow with one hand. He gave her a bow followed by a cheerful wave. His companions followed his gaze, spotting Lilia too. Immediately, they also stopped and waved. Lilia raised a hand and gave them a little wave back.

“I’ll never get used to this reaction.” She whispered to Rachel, continuing to wave, much to the delight of the workers. “It’s just so strange being someone people are so excited to see.”

“Master Lilia, you are a noble. Surely in your original home the people reacted similarly?” Rachel said, looking confused.

“Right, of course, yes.” Lilia stammered, avoiding Rachel’s gaze. Quickly, she changed the topic to avoid any further inquiries. “So, have you been keeping up with your training?”

“Of course Master Lilia, every morning and night I have been following the plan!” Rachel said proudly, raising her arm and flexing her bicep theatrically.

Lilia laughed. “Well, let’s go see if you’ve improved, then.”

Together they passed through the city and out the gate into the undefended area beyond. None of the buildings here had been repaired at all yet, though the skeletons had thoroughly cleared away the undergrowth to reveal the bare stones beneath.

The road threaded around until it arrived at a large open field. Back when Lilia was young, this was one of Srinaber’s famous parks. Vibrant flowers would have lined the paths that criss-crossed the immaculately-kept lawns, and an intricate maze of hedges and statues would have filled the rest. None of that remained now, bar the tumbled remains of the once majestic stone sculptures.

One side of the park had been claimed by the farmers, and beans had been carefully planted in neat rows. Apparently, in a few months the city would be able to get its first harvest, and then they could replant and fill up the rest of the park. Beans weren’t the most exciting food, but they would help deal with Srinaber’s food supply issues.

The other side of the park was marked with scorch marks and stones peppered with long rents. Bo had been using that side to train the new mage skeletons, Kin and Lec, in using their magic. From what she could tell, they'd been making great improvements, though it was hard to get any information out of the skeleton.

Without being able to speak, communicating was hard.

“Bo, you keep an eye out.” Lilia said, turning sharply to face Rachel. “As for you, draw your blade, let’s see what you can do now.” She said, pulling her sword free of its sheath.

Rachel grinned fiercely and pulled out her sword, raising it into Falling Sky.

Lilia inspected the stance critically. “Knees bent, arm straight!” She barked, pointing out Rachel’s flaws.

Rachel grimaced, but quickly adjusted her stance.

Lilia nodded in approval. “Okay then, begin when you’re ready.”

With a shout, Rachel sprang forward, bringing her sword whistling down. Lilia turned her body and brought her sword up, gently deflecting the swing with a circular motion.

Rachel shifted her stance and swung her blade up into a diagonal cut. Lilia stepped forward within the girl’s guard, stopping the attack by slamming her hip into Rachel’s arm. Rachel stumbled back, almost dropping her blade.

“Don’t go for big swings, it leaves you too open.” Lilia said, lowering herself into Falling Sky. “If someone deflects your attack like so.” She mimicked Rachel’s first attack. “Then reset into guard like so.” She brought her sword back into Stable Ground.

Rachel nodded. “Yes Master Lilia.”

Lilia stepped back and gestured to Rachel to reset her stance. “Right, let’s go from the top again.”