Zavet

The thick, viscous ooze slowly seeped into the intricate network of roots encasing the ancient oak tree at the heart of the grove. In the mystical realm of the forest, a grove is not merely a cluster of trees but an enigmatic place where the very essence of nature resonates with powerful, untamed magic. It is revered as a sanctuary where druids seek enlightenment and mastery of their magical craft.

However, This particular grove harbored more than enchanting foliage and ancient trees. It was also home to a colony of unique lizards resembling the elusive red-eyed crocodile skinks. These small reptilian creatures bore thick scales with distinctive orange rings encircling their little black eyes. As the relentless ooze found its way into the labyrinthine burrow of the lizard colony, transformation was set in motion.

The gradual impact of the ooze became evident as the lizards began to undergo an astounding metamorphosis. They grew in size, starting with a few inches, then a foot, until they became too colossal to dwell within the confinements of the roots. Forced to leave the safety of their ancestral home, the lizards ventured out into the wider world. One lizard stood out, over four feet long, not considering its tail. Its body underwent further changes, and it started to walk on its hind legs, displaying an unnervingly humanoid form.

Meanwhile, within the depths of the grove, time seemed to meld and waver like a lingering enchantment. It is difficult to ascertain how long had passed since the arrival of an old elf, his presence shrouded in mystery, perhaps spanning five seasons. One fateful day, he encountered a fairy wandering through the mystical forest. Fairies manifest as ethereal beings in this realm, standing three to four feet tall and adorned with radiant, iridescent wings. They bear a semblance of humans, except for their otherworldly features – their hair, eyes, and mystifying wings that evoke the essence of the season in which they were born.

The fairy possessed the radiant aura of spring, and her verdant locks and glistening brown eyes unmistakably identified her as a spring fairy.

The fairy moved gracefully through the forest, her delicate wings shimmering in the dappled sunlight. As she plucked ripe berries and placed them carefully in her woven basket, she seemed unaware of the lizard's watchful eyes. The little lizardman's scales, blending seamlessly with the tree bark he perched upon, observed the fairy keenly. Unfamiliar with the concept of fairies, he mistook her for some unusually colorful bug.

These past few days had been challenging for the lizard to find food, and he spent more time foraging than exploring his surroundings. As he watched the fairy, a tantalizing thought crossed his mind – what if he could spend less time hungry and more time exploring? He didn't have the words for these thoughts, only a vivid image of himself devouring the fairy and the relief of no longer having to spend most of his day searching for sustenance.

Lost in his daydream, the lizard hardly noticed as the fairy began to make her departure. He blinked and shook himself from his reverie, watching as she gracefully made her way through a winding forest trail. Compelled by hunger and the prospect of an easy meal, the lizard decided to follow her, keeping a cautious distance of about a hundred feet at all times.

The lizard grew anxious as the hours passed and the sun descended towards the horizon. The path seemed to lead further away from his familiar surroundings, and a creeping sense of unease settled over him. Unsure of how to return home, the lizard decided to turn back. Still, to his surprise and growing dismay, the path behind him had disappeared entirely. He wondered to himself, feeling a surge of panic rising within him.

He turned around, only to realize that the path ahead had disappeared. Panic set in as he frantically searched for any sign of her. He dashed forward, but there was nothing to be found. He searched high and low but came up empty-handed. Night had fallen, leaving him starved and utterly alone. Exasperated, he lay down, hoping that waiting for daylight would make things clearer so he could find his way home. Despite his exhaustion, sleep eluded him. The hooting of owls and the rustling of the wind created an eerie atmosphere, making it impossible to drift off.

After what felt like an eternity, a faint glow appeared in the distance. Intrigued by this mysterious light, he stealthily made his way towards it. With each step, the light grew brighter, revealing a fire. He approached cautiously, intrigued yet apprehensive. As he drew closer, he spotted a burly figure feasting on wings by the fire. Unfamiliar with such a creature, yet overcome by hunger and weariness, he sensed an inexplicable comfort emanating from the man. The man gestured for him to sit, and despite his reservations, a strange set of words accompanied by a small purple ball of light rendered him compliant. He obediently settled beside the man, who then offered him a portion of the fairy's meat. "Here, boy," the man grunted. The little lizard man devoured the morsel hungrily while the man watched, taking in the sight and scent of this peculiar being. He exuded the stench of decay, his voice hoarse and gruff, yet there was a kindness in his eyes. "What's your name, boy?" the man inquired, but the little lizard man continued to eat, unable to comprehend the foreign words. "My name is Talich," the man stated between bites. After the little lizard man finished eating, Talich attempted to engage him again. "You can't understand me, can you?" he murmured, knowing full well that a creature of this nature could only have been recently brought into existence by his master, Mah'nethotep, who had crash-landed nearby. But why? What purpose had led to the creation of such a creature?

Talich dug in his pouch and pulled out a thick tome of scrolls. These scrolls are rituals that allow one to do many things with magic, such as sending a mental message to another person, with their full name known by the caster and permission given by the said person to send them a message. He pulled out the scroll and began the ritual to message Mah'nethotep. “My master,” he said aloud, “I have found a black lizard man that I sense your power on. The power is potent as a lord of necromancy. What are your commands?” The voice of the old elf spoke back. “Teach him our ways. He will be an asset in the months to come.”

Talich nodded as he put the Tome back in his pouch. Talich stared at the lizard man, looked at the fairy's remains, then smiled. Talich put a hand on the remains and said, “By the power of necromancy, I command you, spirit, serve my will.” A ghost screamed into existence. “Noooo!” the ghost of the fairy screamed. Talich set his gaze upon it. “You will do as I command, or you shall not find peace.” The ghost stared defiantly. “I know your kind can speak to animals. You will teach this creature the common language,” Talich commanded the ghost.

The little lizard man peered cautiously back and forth from the human to the translucent apparition of the fairy he was tailing. He felt a surge of bewilderment. What was that spectral being? The ghostly figure of the fairy turned its gaze toward the little lizard man, its eyes empty and haunting. "Hello," it murmured to him, and at that moment, he comprehended the intent behind the communication. To a lizard, a salutation could be conveyed by lowering their eyelids while maintaining focused eye contact with another being. This gesture signified, 'I mean no harm. I am friendly.'

The little lizard man tilted his head while staring at the ghost. "Yes, yes, I know. We do look strange, and you are frightened," the ghost said to him. "I need to teach you how to talk to this dumb human." The lizard man looked at Talich questioningly. "Yes. That man," the ghost said and turned to Talich. "He is listening. Introduce yourself." Talich straightened himself up. "My name is Talich Nun. I am here to teach you about our world." That was the beginning of Zavet’s life as he knew it.

The ethereal spirit patiently instructed the humanoid lizard in the intricacies of the common language. Remarkably, the lizard was a quick and adept learner, understanding the basics of the language in just a week. Adopting the name Zavet, he explained it was an eerie memory of the land's gradual decline. When pressed further on his choice of name, he merely shrugged and recounted how he had heard it whispered as the once vibrant land began to wither away.

At the same time, he was given a long tunic with a belt to tie around his waist. Talich trained Zavet in the way of the sword and shield, but Zavet always reacted with a tail whip whenever he was attacked. He would use it to counter-attack, although it was effective. Talich trained it out of him because it would expose his back for a split second. He could not grasp how to attack with a sword; he wanted to use it like a whip. During one of the sessions, Zavet got frustrated and dropped his tail like a lizard would when endangered. He carved out the handle from the thick end and wrapped it in the dried skin of the fairy. He then started to use it as a whip. Talich was impressed with his idea of making a weapon from his tail. He helped Zavet create his fighting style, using the whip and shield much like a sword and shield, but he would target the legs and arms more to cause the opponent to fall or drop their weapon.

His tail would decay after a few days. It also would regrow on his body after he received necromantic healing. The tail had innate magic properties that would dispense some necromantic magic when it hit someone. Yet it still hurts undead, even more so for living creatures. It had other properties, such as when he killed a creature, it would cause it to decay faster. A body would decay to nothing in about two minutes. The tail would also become ridged and hard like a sword when he would squeeze the bone of the makeshift hilt.

Zavets training lasted a week before the magic that created the ghost expired. Undead created in this manner only lasts for a week. There are ways to extend this duration, but Talich did not need to. Zavet had learned enough of the common language to understand and talk to Talich. "What we do now?" he asked. "Well, we need to find my master. He needs our help to recreate our world of necromancy," Talich said as he began to pack his things and clean up the campsite they had been staying in. "What is our world?" Zavet asked while he dug through Talich's pouches. He pulled out gems and coins and put them in his homemade satchel. He just found them pretty; that is all. He had no perception of right and wrong. Talich was busy packing his bags to notice.

"Hmm," Talich thought for a moment. "Our master once had his world where we could live without being hunted down for using the magic known as necromancy. It was created so our master could live in a world without dragons." Talich had been thinking about it a lot lately. He was worried that the world would never be recreated. "What dragon?" Zavet asked. Talich stopped packing. "Dragons are large lizards that have evolved by magic for millennia." Zavet interrupts Talich, "I dragon!" He nods in approval. Talich chuckles a bit, "Not quite." Talich smiles, "I’ll tell you more about dragons later. We need to get to the town of Fairfon."

Fairfon is one of the oldest cities in the world. It is a port city far south of the capital of the kingdom, Taighaneth. Taiga, the third descendant of the kingdom's namesake, ruled this kingdom. Zavet learned this on their way to the town. The town has very few people living in it for its size. It could be big enough for Ten thousand people. It was an elven town before the dragon’s war on necromancy. The buildings are old and made of marble flaked in gold. It's beautiful, but many people in the kingdom hate it since it was a town built by the bronze elves. Most of its inhabitants are elves and humans who worship Mah'nethotep. In this kingdom, necromancy is Illegal and punishable by death. Those who worship Mah'nethotep are also said to dabble in necromancy.

Knights of all orders come to Fairfon to prove themselves by killing undead and necromancers. As Talich and Zavet approached the city, they saw many undead people outside and inside it. Zavet asks Talich, “Why so many undead?” Zavet has been working on his speech and sentence structure on the way to the town. It took them three weeks of walking to reach it. “Let's find out,” Talich answered. As they got close, the undead did not react to them. They made their way to the closest tavern, which was pretty close to the edge of the town. Upon entering the tavern, Zavet heard fighting going on, so he did what any curious youngster would do; he followed the sound of fighting. He found a knight attacking the undead around the town. “Why are there so many undead out?” the knight asked his friend. He was too busy to talk as he was casting healing spells on the knight. The knight wore a chain shirt with a purple and white quartered tabard. He had a silver longsword and a silver shield. The other one wore the same color scheme tabard but no armor. Zavet watched as they were overwhelmed by zombies.

Zavet grabbed his severed tail from his hip and joined the fight. Running in and swinging his tail at the zombie, The knight failed to get the upper hand. His tail wrapped around its leg, and he pulled. Making the zombie fall to the ground. The knight took the advantage of removing the zombie’s head. The knight looks at Zavet in confusion. “What is that?” he asks his partner. “It helped us, so keep going,” the healer said as he cast spells to heal and protect the knight. The knight ran to the next zombie and attacked it. Zavet followed and lashed out with his tail, striking the zombie’s face and ripping its jaw off. The knight cut the same one's arm off at the elbow, and with the same motion, he cut its leg off. Zavet and the other two killed all the zombies in the area within a few minutes.

The knight, exhausted and out of breath, turned to Zavet. “Thank you for helping us.” Zavet nodded at the knight. “Yup,” he said and walked off. The knight yelled out, “What is your name.” Zavet yells out his name and continues to walk toward the tavern. Talich walked in, too. It was not too far from the tavern; he could see it from where the knight and his companion were being attacked. He enters the tavern and spots Talich right away. “ I saved two guys,” Zavet tells him. Talich smiles. “Well done. Were they being attacked by knights?” Zavet pauses for a second. “What does a knight look like?” Talich explains, “A knight wears a quartered tabard with a coat of arms. They are squires if they don't have a coat of arms.” Zavet shrugs. “Not knights, then. Undead attacked squires. I helped the squires.” Talich looks at Zavet. “Their kind kills our kind. They are the enemy and don't know we are gathering here to meet our master.” Talich tells him. Zavet swings his arms and looks down. Talich ruffles Zavet’s head. “It is ok. I found out why there are so many undead. All the undead in the land are drawn to all the necromantic power gathering here. You don't have to worry about them. They won't attack you unless you provoke them.” Zavet playfully fights his hand off his head. Talich orders their food and tells Zavet, “Later tonight, I will take you somewhere to teach you necromancy. “ Zavet sits by Talich and acts like a zombie, saying, “Am I going to learn how to make the thing that you made before.” Talich nods. “Baby steps, my young lizard.” Talich has been growing fond of Zavet. In the short time he has known him, he has started to see him as a son.

Later that night, Talich brings Zavet to an ancient graveyard that houses some of the heroes of old. The site is covered in old tombstones as far as the eye can see. The ground is overgrown with grass and weeds; some trees have grown over the tombstones. Some are broken, some lean, and many have fallen to the ground. Most of the tombstones are made of marble and are green from the moss. However, they are not the only ones there tonight. There are five figures shrouded in darkness. They are surrounding a tombstone and chanting. One figure is sitting in front of it with a piece of paper in hand. "Stay clear of them," Talich says. Zavet watches as this ritual stirs his curiosity. "What are they doing?" he asks. Talich listens to the group for a few seconds. "They are creating a powerful undead."

Talich led Zavet to a quiet place away from the chanting to teach him magic. "The first spell you will learn is the lowest level of necromancy. There are ten levels of necromancy. The first level is a small amount of healing for us and the undead, but it can be painful for others. It won't kill anyone, but it will hurt smaller creatures enough to make them easy prey," Talich explained while demonstrating gathering green energy in his palm. "To summon magic like this, you must know where it comes from," Talich explained, letting the green energy float from his hand. "See it here?" he pointed to the floating energy. Zavet stared at it with a toothy smile and said, "Yes, I see it. Looks like green fog, smells like bad food." Talich gave Zavet a strange look and asked, "It has a smell?" Zavet sniffed it and replied, "Bad food, rotting plants, or dead creatures that sit out in the sun for too long." Talich nodded and said, "That is the smell of decay. It's unusual for one to smell magic."

"Let's see if you can do it," Talich tells Zavet. The lizard man holds his hand out, concentrating on his palm. His vision tunnels, and his heartbeat fills his ears, but nothing happens. He stops trying and is instantly out of breath. Looking around the ground and back to his hand, he asks, "Did I make magic?" Talich smiles as he looks across the cemetery and says, "No, but I think something happened over there," nodding toward the group performing the ritual. Zavet looks in the same direction and asks, "Sounds like fighting. Did they create it to fight it?" Talich shakes his head and responds, "I don't think so."

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Talich begins to walk in that direction. "Stay here and practice for a while. Imagine magic floating all around you. Then, visualize breathing in the magic and transforming it into what you are made of. After that, exhale the magic and command it to form into a ball of energy," Talich instructs as he proceeds towards the source of the chanting, pulling out his black and blue flanged mace.

A large creature made from bones is hunched over, tearing the flesh from the bones of the ones that created it. Talich stands far enough away from the creature to run if needed. He stands still, watching it add the bones to itself. Talich recognizes the creature as a bone collector. Talich turns to make his way back to Zavet. As he gets closer, he sees Zavet fighting a green fog humanoid. It does not hurt him but attacks him slowly, and Zavet attacks it. His attacks do not affect it since it is just a mass of floating necromantic magic. Talich dashes to his aid but hears Zavet laughing as he attacks it. "What?" Talich says in confusion. Zavet responds, "I did what you said and made it bigger, then told it to fight me."

Talich is stricken with confusion and amazement. "How?" He has difficulty forming sentences since this is something he has never seen or heard of before. "Never mind that. Dismiss it. We must leave; the undead, the men created, turned on them."

Talich hurries Zavet out of the graveyard. Quietly running, they make their way towards the town. Zavet asks Talich, "What is a bone collector thing?" Talich looks back, "It's undead made of bones. It takes the bones of creatures it kills and adds them to itself. The bigger it gets, the stronger it becomes."

As they flee, they encounter the bone collector, who spots them and begins to follow them slowly. When they reach the town, they inform everyone they meet about what happened and warn them to be cautious, as the creature may require intervention. Talich guides Zavet to the tavern and gets a room for the night. Inside the room, Talich unwinds by removing his pack and weapons. Sitting down, he looks at Zavet and says, "Tomorrow, we will meet with Mah’nethotep and the lords of necromancy." Zavet nods and swings his arms, asking, "What do they want?" as he retrieves gems from his bag. Talich watches Zavet handling the gems and tilts his head, asking, "Are those from my satchel?" Zavet looks at his bag and replies, "Nope, these are from my bag. I gave them a better home," while admiring their beauty. Talich chuckles and warns Zavet, "They want to meet you and assess your power. Please don't relocate any of their belongings." Zavet playfully flexes his muscles, emulating modern-day bodybuilders, and exclaims, "I'm strong like Talich!" Talich smirked and flexed his arm to demonstrate his strength, smiling at Zavet. "Come on, boy, let's get to bed," he says. Zavet nods, crawls under the bed, and remarks, "I'll sleep under here; it feels like home." Talich lies on the bed and closes his eyes. Sleep envelops him swiftly as his mind drifts into the darkness.

Zavet dreamed of a black ooze creeping through the roots of an oak tree. The ooze hardened and formed into a slim, humanoid figure. It clawed at the dirt, digging its way out of the ground. Zavet's entire family watched as it stood, tilting their heads in curiosity. However, they all ran when they saw the ooze starting to take the shape of one of them, but with undead features such as bones peeking out from its skin. Zavet stared at the new creature and asked, "What are you?" The creature's mouth moved, but no words were heard.

Zavet was woken up by Talich shaking his leg. "Time to get up," said Talich as Zavet crawled out from under the bed, yawning and stretching. "Good morning," Talich greeted Zavet. "Morning," Zavet replied. Talich then put on an old black tabard, ripped and patched with a symbol resembling the biohazard symbol, but upside down. The outer three circles were enclosed, and the fifth circle enclosed the inner circles. Zavet asked Talich, "What's that?" pointing to the tabard. "It's an old dark knight order’s tabard," Talich answered. Zavet cocked his head to the side and asked, "You are a Knight?" Talich smiled, reminiscing about his days as a Knight. "Yes, at one time, I was a knight. But I became a Dark Knight once I turned on my order and learned necromancy." Zavet’s eyes widened, and he asked, "You betrayed them?" Talich answered, "No, they betrayed me by leaving me behind. That's a story that requires more time to tell. Let's head out."

As they approached the castle located in the heart of the city, they were stopped by six large undead guards at the entrance. The guards, covered in armor and armed with swords and shields, blocked their way and inquired if they were expected. Talich introduced himself as "Sir Talich Nun, Knight of the Black Order," stating that he was escorting Zavet, the black lizardman Master Mah’Nethotep, the lords would like to meet. Meanwhile, Zavet rudely demanded to be let through. Confused by Zavet's behavior, the large undead guard eventually allowed them to pass and instructed them to make their way to the throne room. Talich and Zavet then moved forward, and the guards bowed slightly to Talich as a sign of respect before he led the way to the throne room at the center of the castle.

"Wow, this place is huge," Zavet said as he gazed at the castle. "Yes, this is where I was knighted for the second time," Talich replied. The castle was grand and displayed great wealth. The carpets were rare, and it was even more uncommon to find red dyes and gold filigree on the edges. The walls were adorned with beautiful pictures of bronze elves. There were mainly the same five elves, three males and two females. As they walked down the hall, the pictures depicted the elves being attacked and killed by large lizard-like creatures. In the last picture, one elf seemed to survive, wielding a spear and creating a giant sphere in the sky with green magic. It showed him and others ascending into the air, heading towards the sphere. Zavet commented on the picture, "Is that the world that was destroyed?" Talich looked at the picture and responded, "Yes, that is the Forgotten." This was the last picture before they reached the large door leading to the throne room.

Talich stops before he opens it. He looks down at Zavet. "I should have gotten you some better clothes. Too late now. I hope you are ready. You may fight to show them how strong you are." Zavet throws some punches as if he is shadow boxing. "I'll give 'em some of this." Talich gives a little nervous chuckle. "You'll be fine," he says, more to calm himself down than to calm Zavet.

Talich opens the large doors and is met by a large undead knight wearing the same tabard. The knight moves to let them in. The room is large, with a throne made of skulls at the back. Sitting on the throne is a Bronze elf with long black dreadlocks and a pointed, well-groomed goatee. He is wearing black and teal clothes and a lot of gold jewelry. He looks kind and inviting, and many would call him a beautiful man, finding it hard to look away.

Eight undead are in the throne room as Zavet enters. Each one looks at him. Zavet notices that they each seem to be a different type of undead. Zavet asks Talich, "Are these the lords?" "Yes," Talich replies, "Let's step forward and introduce ourselves." Talich says, "My Lords, I am Sir Talich, a dark knight of the black order. I have brought Zavet to meet our Master and, of course, my lords." Talich gestures for Zavet to step forward. Zavet cautiously takes a few steps forward and nervously waves, saying, "Hi." One of the lords approaches and examines him. The undead is about six feet tall and wears old armor spotted with rust. He has a shield and an ornate sword that has a faint green glow on its dark blade. His eyes have a bright red glow.

"Master, I can almost see the magic pouring off of this creature. May I test him in strength?" the undead asks Mah’Nethotep.

"You may," the bronze elf replies as he crosses his legs, only halfway paying attention. The undead looks back to Zavet. "My name is Emmerich, the lord of death knights. Please, prepare yourself for combat." Zavet smiles at Emmerich as he pulls his tail from his hip. "Ready."

Emmerich tilts his head. "No spells to protect yourself?" Zavet shrugs his shoulders. "Don't know any." The lords give each other a dull look, with a few crossing their arms. Emmerich shakes his head in disappointment. He calls one of the dark knights over from the entrance. "Kill the lizard man!"

One of the knights rushes forward, shield first, attempting to shield bash Zavet. He easily sidesteps and tilts his head. "Why attack with that? Sword is longer," he remarks. He dodges and weaves through the knight’s onslaught, learning his movements and form. Zavet lightly counterattacks each strike in the next onslaught, touching the knight with his tail. The knight breathes out in frustration. "Are we going to fight, or will you just play? They asked to see what you are capable of," he points to the lords. "Show them, or you will not leave this hall with your mind intact." Zavet, with his severed tail on his shoulders, responds, "They want me to hurt you?" Talich speaks up. "If it makes you feel better, we will heal him." Zavet shrugs, muttering to himself, "This is dumb." He starts to walk forward toward the knight, not feeling good about having to hurt someone for the sake of these people wanting to see how strong he is. The knight closes the distance and lunges with his sword. Zavet throws his waist backward, narrowly dodging the blade. In the same movement, he whips his tail toward the knight’s wrist, causing the sword to be flung from his grip. Zavet then uses his position to whip his tail, currently attached to his body, toward the side of the knight's face. The knight is caught off guard and sent sprawling to the floor.

Emmerich looks over to Talich with an impressed look on his face. Talich smiles back, just as impressed. Mah’nethotep begins to give his full attention now, uncrossing his legs and leaning forward. The knight quickly jumps to his feet and frantically runs for his sword. Thinking to his shelf, he has to be careful; his counterattacks are dangerous. The knight drops his shield, seeing that it will be useless to this opponent. The knight picks up his sword and studies Zavet, thinking of using faints and kicks. The knight runs in and does the same lunge but faints and kicks Zavet in the chest. He dodges the same as before, falling for the faint and taking the kick.

Zavet moves back, getting out of the way of any other attacks, rubbing his chest and making a frowny face. He says, “Hey, you hit me with your bottom hands.” The lords all laugh at his comment. Mah’nethotep smiles and stands, walking toward Talich and placing a hand on Talich's shoulder. “Good Work on training him in such a short time frame.” Talich bows, and he replies, “ No, master, I can not take credit. He is very good at learning; he learns the movements his opponent’s body makes seconds before they attack. His body reacts as they move like he develops muscle memory just after seeing the same attack a few times.”

Mah’nethotep smirked, thinking of the last time he had to use a sword. “I can already tell this will be a stimulating experience.” Zavet goes on the offensive, attacking the leg of the knight using both his severed tail and his attached tail. The knight tries to block his attacks, but the tails wrap around his sword, striking him. The knight, battered and bruised, moves out of Zavet’s range just long enough to see an opening, then leading with a faint, he pulls back, waiting for Zavets arm to cross his body. He rushes in, pushing Zavets’ arm to his body. He then drives his sword into Zavet’s shoulder. The sword’s tip barely makes it through his scales before stopping. Zavet grabs the knight with his free arm and delivers a devastating bite to his shoulder. Zavet then grabs the sword and pushes the knight off of him. He plunges the sword through the knight's armor and body, breaking the ribs and piercing the lungs.

The Knight's breath is knocked out of him. He gasps for air, staring at nothing, focusing on the pain. He coughs some blood up and reaches for Emmerich with one hand while the other grabs the sword. He falls to his knees, still gasping for air. He mouths the words to help me to his master. Emmerich walks over to the knight and heals him with a dense ball of green fog. He says,” By my necrotic mantle, I heal your wounds.” he pulls the sword out as he recites the incantation. “You are no match for the lizard. But you allowed us to see his ability to adapt to his opponent. That skill alone puts him leagues above the average knight.” Emmerich thinks for a moment and speaks to the other lords.” Let’s see how he compares to a light knight and healer duo. We captured two living human knights just this morning. I planned on getting information from them, but I am intrigued by this lizard.” Zavet speaks up: “The lizard can also be called Zavet. Just in case any other lizard comes around.” He smiles as he wipes the blood off his chest. Emmerich nods in respect. “Bring out the two knights.”

The guards bring in the two knights, and Zavet recognizes them from the day before. They are badly beaten and shackled. The other guard returns their weapons and items and then unshackles them. Emmerich stares at them. “If you kill Zavet here, we will let you go alive.” The squire squints, looking at Zavet, and he rubs his wrists. “I remember you.” Zavet sighs, looking at his next opponent. “If I beat them, can you heal them and let them go?” Emmerich looks to Mah’nethotep, “IF the fight impresses me enough, I will grant them safe passage home.” Mah’nethotep answers. Zavet smiles at the squires. “You fight big, I fight big.” The duo looks at each other, trying to understand what the lizard man said.

One asks the other, “Do our best?”. The other one shrugs. “I'm thinking that's what he meant.” They ready their weapons. The squire uses a two-handed sword, and his healer uses a shield and dagger. The squire brings his sword over his head with the tip pointing toward Zavet’s feet. It stays pointing at his feet even when Zavet moves in slowly. The healer puts the dagger in his shield sheath and starts creating a golden sphere about the size of his fist. He stays about four feet away from the squire. Zavet attempts to attack, but the squire easily blocks the attack and backs it up. The squire feels the wind from the tip of the tail. He nods, realizing standard blocking will cause the tail to wrap around the sword. The Squire jumps forward, making a broad arching attack from the right while the healer throws the sphere in the direction Zavet would dodge. Zavet dodges the sword attack by ducking, but the magic hits his leg. Zavet jumps back, hopping on one leg due to the pain of the golden magic. It hurts him more than anything he has experienced so far. “ What that magic. Gold bad magic.” Mah’nethotep, getting hyped, yells, “ Yeah, Gold Magic Bad.” This seems out of character for him as he looks around and sees the lords with raised eyebrows. “What!? He is infectious.” Talich chuckles. “Indeed he is. He grows on you too.”

Zavet makes a green sphere as big as his head with his off-hand. As he does this, the squire rushes in, making short, fast attacks. Each Movement follows up with an attack that uses the momentum of the previous attack. Zavet is hit with three of the attacks before he jumps to rolling and throws the sphere into the face of the healer. Instantly sending him to the ground, not moving. The squire’s attacks had more effect than the knight before. The squire tactically retreats to his partner. Glancing down at him, he says,” You have access to that level of magic with no incantation.” Zavet shrugs. “It knows what I want it to do.” The squire squints with a confused look on his face.”That makes no sense.”

Zavet replies, “Makes sense to magic.” The squire shakes his head in annoyance. Then he rushes forward and attacks, ready for Zavets counter. He dodges it, presses forward with determination, and uses every opportunity. He swings short and long, switching hand grip as he spins to attack a thrust. It finds its target and stabs Zavet in the leg. He wastes no time in pulling it out and continuing the assault. Zavet tries to dodge the attacks but cannot find a pattern. It's like the squire is dancing rather than fighting. Zavet makes his way to the shield, rolling to the healer's shield. He finds it still strapped to its owner's arm. He panics and pulls at it as the squire runs at him with an overhead attack. Zavet drops his severed tail and pulls off the shield, and with both hands, he blocks the attack. The sword is wedged in the shield, and Zavet twists it as he throws it and the shield. He tackles the squire to the ground and claws at him, deeply cutting the squire's face. The squire grabs Zavet’s neck with both hands, pulling him down to his chest. He wraps his legs around Zavet’s waist and starts to deliver devastating elbows to the top of Zavet’s head. Zavet frees his head, clawing at the squire's arms, and shreds them. Skin hangs from the arms and face of the squire.

On the verge of giving up, the squire fights to stay conscious. He throws a hand up just to stop Zavet’s onslaught. One of his fingers finds one of Zavet’s eyeballs. He starts digging as he feels eyeball fluid run down his hand. Zavet Breaks loose and stands to heal his eye. “ Ouch, Ouch, Ouch.” Zavet, out of breath, says to the lords, “This good fight. Break time... My eyeball came out of my face... I think I need a few seconds.” He says between breaths. The lords stare briefly before Mah’nethotep looks between the two combatants. “That. Was. Exhilarating.” he claps lightly.

The lords all give the two a deep bow. “Knight,” Emmerich looks to the squire, “You fight with such ferocity. I have not seen that style since the Dragon Wars. Who are you?” The squire sits up, covered in blood. He looks to Emmerich. “My Name is Runner Ghostfast, and I’m not a knight; I'm just a squire for now.” He heals himself, whispering the incantations. He has very little magic and cannot heal himself all the way. The bleeding stops, and the cuts close. His skin is still hanging from his arms, though. Emmerich nods, impressed with Runner. “ Famous name, Ghostfast. You are not from this kingdom.” Runner looks up to Emmerich with a swollen face. “I don't know much about it. Just know that I'm from the far north. The armies of Taighaneth destroyed the kingdom where my family lived. All the children were taken to work on farms or be soldiers.” Emmerich nods knowingly. “Yes, I know of the war. Do you wish to be a dark knight of the black order?” Runner lets out a sigh and stands. “I respectfully decline the offer.” Emmerich smiles. “My door is open if your mind changes.” Runner thanks him

Zavet asks Mah’nethotep, “Are we done?” He replies, “ No. It's time to test your magic. But I also want to see how well you handle a death knight.” Mah’nethotep asks the lords with a more authoritative voice. “Shall we test his magic first or see how long he lasts against one of our greater undead?“ A skeleton with glowing purple spheres for eyes and an icy crown with a beautiful blue jewel set on the front Steps forward in its custom-fitted black robe lined with purple runes. The skeleton greets Zavet with a soft, friendly voice. Zavet can not tell if the voice belongs to a male or female. “Hello, Zavet. My name is Merek. I am the very first lich created by our bronze-elven friend here. I am so happy to meet you.” Merek very slowly approaches Zavet. The feeling Zavet gets from the skeleton is the same as he would treat a cute bug, but he still sees it as food. Zavet takes a deep breath and nervously says, “Hi, Merek.” Zavet's eyes are drawn to the jewel in the crown. “I like your pretty gem.” Merek would smile if it had lips. Instead, its voice carries a sincere tone. “Thank You. The gem is called a sapphire. I am the sapphire itself.” it keeps the same tone. It's almost like a person calming an animal before they kill it. “I would like you to animate the healer you killed.” It points to Runner's companion.

Runner is by the doors being escorted out by some guards. He looks back to his companion, knowing they have no intention of reviving him. He knows he is lucky to make it out of the hall. As he reaches the door, he hears Merek ask Zavet to animate him. His heart sank, knowing the lizard would not do this normally. After all, he helped them and asked if they could live if he beat them. He promises to himself he will save that lizard from these monsters. He will not let him be manipulated into being something he is not. Runner makes his way out of the castle and is escorted onto the main road, where he continues to the capital of Taighaneth.

While Runner leaves, Zavet conjures the green sphere and says the words instructed by Merek: “By the power of necromancy, I call the hunger of gluttony to Animate this corpse.” The corpse of the healer decays faster than usual as it starts to sit up. It smells the air, looking for living to feed on. Merek Studies the zombie, circling it four times, looking at its arms, legs, torso, and head. “Astounding. The undead before us is strong. I would rank it lower than the greater undead we could create by a lord's magic but a higher rank than our own lesser undead.” Merek tells this to the other lords and his master.

Zavet watches him, curious as to what Merek means. He asks,” What you talking about?” Merek turns to Zavet and explains, “On a scale of one to ten. One is very weak, and ten are very strong. Undead above rank five would be considered greater undead. Any undead below five is considered a lesser undead. The undead you just created would be around a four. Mind you, lords of necromancy only create a rank three lesser and seven greater.” Zavet nods, understanding what Merek is talking about. “ What rank are you?” Merek lets a little laugh out. “My best guess would be around thirty-five. But we can not be gaged the same as undead. We have free will. So our ability to strategize would make us impossible to gauge.“

Mah’nethotep speaks to the lords with authority:” I believe we have seen all we need to see. I am satisfied. Talich a word.” He gestures his head to the throne and walks towards it. Mah’nethotep nodded as he thought The zombie Zavet created possibly would use his fighting style, and I'm willing to bet it could learn as Zavet himself learns. He rubs his chin, turns to Talich, and whispers, “That assessment is inaccurate; I believe the zombie can strategize. Maybe even learn.” Talich tilts his head in confusion. “ But master, that would make his creations stronger than the lords.” He whispered to his master. Mah’nethotep continues, “Let's have him join a barony. He would be a good spy. Gathering so much necromantic power will cause the land to call those capable of fighting. To come here soon.” Talich looks interested. “You believe the gathering of heroes will start again. I have not felt that pull in two hundred years.” Mah’nethotep smiles with a sinister grin. “All part of my design, my friend.” The bronze elf sits on the throne, crossing a leg over the other. He grins as he thinks of all the mayhem they are about to bring the kingdom.