Veron opened his eyes — if he even had eyes — and quickly stood up. He had one of the worst dreams imaginable: he had been killed by all his comrades, thrown into an abyss, falling endlessly, and crashing at the bottom of that dark hell, seeing their smiling faces.
He woke up startled, yet his mind was calm. Just a dream, he thought. Just another one of those dreams.
"Oh, another one has been summoned," a distant voice said. "Looks like this one doesn’t even know what hit him, huh?"
Opening his eyes again, though he couldn’t feel the motion, Veron turned his head to face them. He swallowed hard—if he had any saliva left to swallow.
They walked over their own bones — white skeletons approaching while chatting amongst themselves. Not just those two, but dozens, perhaps even hundreds of skeletons stood around, talking, gesturing at maps, even at paintings.
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The two nearest ones crouched down. They wore a kind of tapestry draped over their torsos, concealing their shoulders and part of their chests. Their faces — their polished white skulls — were identical.
"It’s normal to be confused. I am Amin," said the skeleton with a piece of red cloth around his waist, extending a hand. "I can explain, but you have to promise you won’t scream."
Veron nodded. He raised his hand, looking at what was left of his fingers, white bones, not a single shred of flesh. He curled his fingers; no creaking, no sound.
"I’ll start explaining..."
The iron door was shoved open, slamming against the wall. A skeleton clad in gray and bluish armor entered. Only his head was visible, with two horns on each side, making Veron think of an elk.
"Commander Pokop," Amin turned quickly to Veron, pointing at him urgently. "I know you’re confused, but we are beings summoned for war by a Lich. It’s confusing, and we don’t have time."
The bodies of all the skeletons began to glow, including Pokop, who remained still in the doorway.
"Don’t just stand there, and don’t let yourself get hit. You’ve been given a second chance. Too good of one to throw away. Even as mere skeletons, we are..."
The lights flashed, and everything vanished.