Trees thinned as Abe pulled himself up and over ledges of snow—the terrain growing rougher with every step he took.

Of course, that asshole went up the fucking mountain, why wouldn’t he?

Grunting, he took hold of a snow-covered rock and pulled, his feet slipping out beneath him momentarily before he steadied and found his footing.

Between the Chairman and Miss Nia’s thinly veiled hints, it sounded like some kind of war was coming.

It was hard to place the bond he felt with her; betrayal felt entirely foreign and unthinkable. If a war was coming, he already knew which side he would be fighting on. But simple-minded servitude wasn’t what fueled him. He hungered for more. A dull sensation rang somewhere deep within. It was a hunger, not the one that told him to feed or obey. This was something else, something that wanted more. Something that wasn’t obedient.

He didn’t want to betray Miss Nia, though. The thought of her sent pulses of exhilaration flooding out from his core, making him feel stronger. No, his desire wasn’t one of betrayal but control.

He wanted to hold her milky flesh and see her silver hair wrapped around his form. He wanted to see her to bow to his will.

A shake of his head dispelled the disruptive thoughts as he pushed on, his face dusted by the increasingly strong snowfall.

The winds howled as they bent with the mountain, carrying down the scents from above. He knew they waited for him. But whatever fear he had carried with him from his previous life was gone now. Instead, battle excited him now. It was a chance to grow stronger and reach closer to his goals.

Soon, he could see the glowing, blue eyes through the snowfall. The scruffy hounds and hooded figures flashed between the rock in the distance. They kept a low profile, but it didn’t matter much. Abe didn’t need to rely much on his vision anymore.

However, the whipping winds wreaked havoc on his ability to map them mentally—reducing him to a vague understanding of their numbers.

Smells like your numbers are dwindling. About fucking time.

The higher he climbed, the stronger the snow became, but it mattered little in his undead form. Abe could feel the cold, in the sense that he knew that it was cold, but it did not bother him.

He figured it would likely be wise to try and draw them out into a fight, hoping to take out as many as possible before reaching the Man in White. But as dumb as they were, there seemed to be some organization.

“Come on, just fucking try it,” Abe growled as he climbed another ledge, gaze locked on the blue eyes that followed him.

He crunched up through the snow as it began to level. Raising a hand, he tried to shield his face from the snow as he squinted across the white plateau.

“What is that?” he mouthed, the blurred shapes growing clearer with every step. “A metal hull?”

His eyes widened, and his lips parted. It was the metal hull of what looked like an old submarine, partially submerged in the snow—a flag above it flapping in the wind.

“The hammer and sickle?” he muttered, eyeing the red flag. “How the fuck did it get up here?” Abe shook his head, his mind struggling to comprehend what his eyes showed.

“Bao mentioned soviets, but… A sub on a fucking mountain?”

Climbing from the snow and piercing rock, black cloaks, dogs, and crows fluttered in. They stood watching, hundreds of eyes following him, but did not attack.

“Change of heart?” Abe said, eyeing them as he walked closer to the submarine. “This thing, it’s ancient.”

A snow path led directly to the deck, and Abe glanced back at the following eyes before jumping down a couple of feet to land atop it.

“Just when you think you’re starting to figure this place out,” he muttered as he followed the deck around to a steel hatch and adjoining wheel latch.

“I take it this is the way in,” he shrugged. I should probably be concerned they’re not trying to stop me.

The worms wiggled to life as if in response to Abe’s thoughts.

Are you responsible?

He could feel them move.

I have no idea what that’s supposed to mean, but I’m guessing it’s a yes.

“What has my life come to, speaking to parasitic worms living within me,” Abe shook his head as he clasped the wheel latch, and his muscles tightened as he ground it open, the sound of screeching metal following.

Metal groaned as the hatch was released.

He looked down into the shadow beyond, his ghoul vision providing hazy illumination.

The scent of corroded metal and stale air assaulted his senses, but beneath it, he could smell the Man in White.

The worms stirred again; they wanted to enter. But it wasn’t rebellion or a desire to be reunited with their former master that fueled their desire; no, it was hunger.

You little bastards want to get stronger as well, don’t you? Well, at least that’s something we agree on. As long as you don’t forget who the boss is around here.

A shrill of subjugation filled his veins, and Abe nodded. Good.

He sniffed again, catching the necromancer’s scent in greater detail.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

You’re still hurt, aren’t you?

With a shrug, Abe jumped into the hatch hold, landing in the submarine with a metallic bang that echoed throughout. The Man in White knew he was here; stealth held little merit.

Lowering his head, Abe walked forward, the rusted metal at his feet groaning against his weight. He marveled at the ancient valves and green copper piping lining the walls. A bulkhead sectioned the compartments up ahead, and he stooped low to pass through it.

Closed hatches lined the claustrophobic corridor, and metal echoed in the distance.

Keeping his eyes in the shadow ahead, Abe unclipped his holster and steadily drew the pistol, bringing it to aim as his other hand tightened around the hilt of his sheathed sword.

Passing through another bulkhead with his revolver pointed forward, he sensed the Man in White nearing.

He could hear the low hum of electricity and murmuring machinery ahead.

Wait, there’s no fucking way this thing still works, is there? No, I mean, it’s on top of a fucking mountain. And last time I checked, submarines had a tendency to stay below water. So, then, why, or rather how, is something running in this thing?

Abe scanned the darkness beyond before gingerly stepping through the final bulkhead into what must have been the control room. Metal panels lined the walls, paint faded and flaked. Dials, levers, and switches filled almost every space. At the far end was a heaped form, bent over and heaving form beneath a white robe and low-hung cowl.

“So, the cub was brave enough to come alone,” the Man in White said, his voice heavier and strained than it had been.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Abe said with a jerk of the magnum. “Have you come for the well?”

“The well,” the Man in White chuckled. “You’re so cute, little cub. But please, before I say anything more, answer me a question first.”

“I’m the one holding the gun,” Abe said.

“Who are you?”

“Me?” he tilted his head. “How about no. I didn’t climb that fucking mountain to play your stupid games. Now answer the damned question before a blow a hole in your head,” Abe said, raising the gun to the man’s head.

“You were brought here, no?” The Man in White said, straightening a little. “By the one you call the Mistress. But what were you before, and why did she pick you?”

“Are you listening,” Abe said, waving the pistol. “I’m the one with the gun, remember? Again, I’m not playing whatever the fuck this is.”

“You don’t know, do you? The memories she took from you were by choice. To keep you unaware. To keep you in her service. Now, you do her bidding like a good little pet and don’t even ask yourself who you truly are. Or what life was stolen from you.”

“Buddy, pal, do we need to go over this again?” Abe tightened his hand around the resolver. “Man. With. Gun. Asks. The-fucking-questions.”

“Oh, you’re no fun,” the Man in White chuckled. “Fine, truth is I’m a nobody. A sellsword who was sent here on a lie. My only hope was to do the impossible, and look at me now, pitiful. Bowed to the weak little cub. Now, Abraham, who are you?”

“You didn’t say a whole lot. What do you mean, sellsword?”

“Getting greedy, aren’t we? I told you what I am. Can I not have one little answer in return?”

“Gun, remember?” Abe said, momentarily holding it up beside his head before returning his aim. “Now, who hired you? What do they want with the manor?”

“Who knows,” the Man in White shrugged. “Someone of my stature doesn’t have the luxury of knowing their employers. I can smell them, you know.”

“Smell who?” Abe raised a brow.

“My pets. They're usually very loyal. At your stage, with the amount of them, my minions filled you with, survival shouldn’t be possible. And yet here you are, standing before me. There’s something special about you, little cub. I wonder what it could be. Those traitorous worms won’t even share what they have tasted. I don’t suppose you would?”

“What do you think?”

“It was worth a try,” the Man in White shrugged.

Abe stared at him blankly fore a moment before continuing, “What about the mordoks and the slayers, what’s their deal?”

“Desperate parasites. Followed me here. They managed to get themselves lost in the Astral Vale. I suppose you and that other ghoul dealt with them?”

“What do you mean, followed you here?”

Beneath his crystallized blue eyes, a faint line formed beneath the shadow of his cowl.

“You understand how the Astral tethers work, don’t you?”

Abe remained silent, arching a brow.

“You really know nothing, don’t you? You should ask more questions of that master of yours. It’s the least you deserve,” the Man in White snickered.

“Just answer the fucking question!”

“The Astral Vale connects the domains of death, dream, and life. The tethers join these domains, making travel between them possible. That orb,” the Man in White said, eyeing an orb of pure black in the control room's center. “It’s what gave me the power to travel here. A gift from my employer. It was a two-faced gift as it lacked the deathly energy to return me. My only chance of returning home was to find your Mistress’s well and draw from it the energy required to power this vessel.”

“Wait, so this thing is operational?”

“Not in the sense you’re probably thinking. But it can fly and travel between the domains with enough energy.”

“This thing flies?”

“Oh, it most certainly does,” he smiled.

“This place gives me a fucking headache,” Abe rubbed his temples.

“There is more to it than you can imagine. This little backwater barely provides enough deathly energy to keep that mistress of yours fed. There are entire realms. Armies marching to the beat of their leaders.”

“And why don’t they come here?”

“It’s not so easy. There are limits to travel and invasion. Besides, a place like this has limited value.”

“So, you were sent here to conquer this place?”

The Man in White began to chuckle, “Boy, do you really believe I pose a threat to your Mistress? I’m just a pawn here, like you. But we don’t have to accept our positions in this game.”

“Shut up,” Abe grunted.

“Wouldn’t you like to travel? Discover what was taken from you?”

“If you weren’t sent to take over this place, then what purpose are you here for?”

“Abraham, listen to me. I can help you. Take you places, travel the Astral Vale, visit distant domains. Take you away from this horrid Deathscape to luscious fields of green, honey, and life within the Dreamsca-”

Abe’s finger swelled, tightening around the trigger. The blast echoed through the metal coffin.

Half of his skull was missing, thanks to the hole where his right eye had been.

The Man in White slumped forward, falling limply against the ground.

“Shut up!” Abe growled, moving to stand over the corpse and firing again. “Think I need your help?” As he panted, the realization of what he had done hit. He still had unanswered questions. But a sniff quickly masked those thoughts.

It was sweet. An intoxicating scent wafted up from the man’s head as blood pooled beneath him, soaking his once-white robes.

Anger tapered in the face of hunger, and his body trembled as he sniffed again.

Diving forward, he dug his claws into the skull, peeling it apart to reveal the treasure within.

Greedily, he cracked it open and began slurping the internals, emptying its contents within seconds and rolling across the ground as pulses of intoxicating energy filled his body.

His pupils dilated, and his muscles tensed. He was in a dream-like state for several seconds before he sat upright, his senses stronger than ever.

He could feel the worms within. They were delighted. Something had changed within them, as if they had been freed from bondage.

Killing the Man in White had done more than just make the worms stronger; it had bound them to him in a way that hadn’t been possible before.

Abe’s razor-sharp fangs curled into a grin. It had been a worthy feed.