[participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge] All Ian has ever wanted is to live free. Free from responsibility, from prejudice, and, is it so much to ask, from persecution for being a Necromancer. After becoming the resident Mage for the Night Watch, the… magically challenged Faction in Seattle's warring supernatural underworld, Ian is beginning to believe that he has finally found a place that will accept his ‘gift.’ But while undertaking a job for the Kin, thus securing his shaky position, corrupt forces step in to tear him away from his new home. With his Grimoire mentor, Succubus lover, and Flesh Golem protector in tow, Ian sets forth to show his rivals that he is willing to raise bodies from the ground to protect those he cares for. Only when a Lich, a Slayer, and a Siren - oh my! - join a growing group that look to him for guidance, Ian quickly realises that his power puts him in a unique position to make a place for not just himself, but others like him, to live free.  Armed with the knowledge of the depraved acts those in charge are making, Ian knows he must cripple the Factions (no problem) to reveal how deep the corruption goes (little harder), without alienating his own side (no promises).