The receptionist took me to an office with a high ceiling. A man was sitting behind the desk, reading a document. He was tall and athletic with a sculpted face. I sat across from him, and he set down his scroll of parchment and dismissed the receptionist.

“Hello. My name is Telyos, nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, too. My name’s Maximilian.”

“So Maximilian, first I’d like to welcome you to Nezura. I’m glad you’ve come. Do you have any family members or friends that live here?”

“Uh, no.” I frowned.

“That’s all right, not a problem at all. Tell me about yourself, your background, and what led to this decision. Don’t worry, this isn’t a test or anything like that. You’ll still have a home here, but it might not be what you’d expect.”

“That’s okay. I don’t really know much about necromancy. I can summon a good bone flower from the ground, but that’s as far as my knowledge goes. I grew up in Verrenna, and I felt like an outsider my whole life. The most exciting thing that’s ever happened to me was when my uncle showed me how to create a bone flower, but then—” my voice broke at the end, and my eyes brimmed.

“That’s okay, you don’t have to continue. Thank you for telling me. If you’d like to talk more, I’m here for you, but I know we just met, so I don’t want you to feel pressured to share anything you don’t want to.”

“K-King M-Mozer killed my uncle.” My chest sank and ached. A wave of intense emotion burst through my head, and I sobbed.

Telyos got up from his desk and came to my side. He held my hand. “I’m sorry, Maximilian. Everything will be all right. You’re here now. We’ll put you in a loving home, and you’ll enroll in our educational program. You’ll be safe here. You’re part of our family. Trust me, I was also a runaway, and my life couldn’t be better.”

I nodded but still had tears streaming. I stood up and gave him a hug; he wrapped his arms around me and rubbed my back. Once I pulled away, he met my eye line and took a deep breath.

“We get younger people that flee to our city for refuge regularly. You’re not alone,” Telyos began. “With that said, we do have a program in place that will help take care of you. Some older people in Nezura can still take care of themselves, but they could use a young person around the house to prepare them breakfast and dinner and do their chores. They aren’t able to summon skeletons to help them with their daily tasks because of their age. Also, you’ll earn a monthly stipend: a gold coin every four months, basically, a silver coin every month. Still, you won’t have to worry about paying any landowning fees or anything like that. All supplies you could ask for will be provided by the house you’ll live in.”

Even though my head was exploding with raw emotions, I understood every word. I was hopeful at the prospect of living in a peaceful house, especially with a gold coin payment at that rate. I had never earned anything close to that kind of money—just a couple of coppers every two weeks for doing household chores.

“That sounds good.” I wiped the tears off my face. My eyes were finally starting to dry.

“You’ll be living with Mr. Cole, a dedicated necromancer his whole life. Born and raised here in Nezura. I don’t know anyone who’s ever had a bad thing to say about him.”

I nodded.

“I’ll take you to his house whenever you’re ready.” Telyos smiled.

Mr. Cole lived on the southern side of Nezura, where the hill sloped up, not too far from the largest park, Caster’s Court. On the way to Mr. Cole’s house, Telyos showed me the two-story school building that took up an entire block where I would have all my classes from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM every weekday. Telyos also told me to get in touch with him if I ever needed his assistance.

We arrived at a narrow, two-story ivory stone building surrounded by others that looked the same. Telyos knocked on the door, and an old man using a bone-ore walker opened it. His face had deep wrinkles, and his eyes were half-closed, but he had the warmest smile and gentlest voice. “Telyos! To what do I owe this honor?”

“Good news, Mr. Cole. As a necromancer who’s part of the mentor-assistance program, you now have an assistant. Fresh from the outer world of central Lavarund. Meet Maximilian.”

“Nice to meet you, Maximilian. Welcome to our home.” Mr. Cole shook my hand. “Please, though, call me Ray. Come on in, I’ll give you a tour.”

I said my goodbyes to Telyos, and Mr. Cole showed me around his house. He had a little kitchen area with a cauldron and a living room with a table and a couch. There was a door at the other end of the house and a staircase to the left. The house was much cleaner than I expected.

“This is pretty much everything,” Mr. Cole said, smiling. “Your room is upstairs. Sorry if things are dusty. I haven’t been up there in a while. My darn legs don’t allow for much movement, as I’m sure you can imagine. But make yourself right at home. I can still cook, so, please, let me make you some dinner. There’s no better way to get to know someone than sharing a meal together. Especially with my famous necromancer dumplings. Have you had those before?”

“Uh, yes, actually. I had many of them earlier today,” I said.

“Ah well, let me cook you up something else. Do you have any favorite foods?”

“I really like breakfast meals, eggs, pancakes, stuff like that.”

Mr. Cole grinned from ear to ear. “Please, go upstairs. You’ll find your bedroom and a bathroom. Make the space your own. While you’re up there, I’ll get started on some eggs and pancakes. Good choice, my boy.”

I walked up the steps and analyzed every nook and cranny. The house smelled of various spices. Cobwebs dominated the corners of the hall, connecting to the bedroom and bathroom. A thin layer of dust left a footprint with each step, but everything was neat and organized. My room upstairs had a large bed that could easily fit two people comfortably, along with a dresser, a bookcase, and a nightstand.

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Wow, this is way better than my bedroom back at Verrenna.

I opened up the shelf of the nightstand and deposited the ivory slip that Megan gave me. I made sure to burn a concrete memory of putting it there. I even read the address repeatedly, even though I had no awareness of where Venom avenue was.

Reaching into my bag, I pulled out my knife and sack of coins and put them in the dresser as well. I wanted to ask Mr. Cole what I should do with all the money my uncle gave me, but I just met him. It seemed like a strange thing to bring up so soon. I decided it was best to wait a while.

I sat on the bed for a moment. I was impressed with how soft the mattress was, like a thick layer of foam. As I stared up at the ceiling, I smelled the batter cooking. My nose tingled, and I remembered the few happy days I had back in Verrenna when my mom would make pancakes on my birthday.

***

12 years later…

I had made an appointment with Telyos regarding my circumstances.

When I went to the Municipality Building, I didn’t have to wait long in the lobby before the receptionist took me to the office I hadn’t been to since I was thirteen. It was strange walking in there as I held a bag of gold coins.

Telyos’ hair had slightly grayed, the wrinkles on his face were more pronounced, but he still looked just as sharp as when I first met him.

“Hi, Telyos, do you remember me at all? We met about twelve years ago when I came to Nezura for the first time ever, completely alone. You had me live with Mr. Cole. My name is Maximilian Forrester.”

“Yes, yes, it’s been a while.” He shook my hand. “Sorry, I don’t really remember your face much, but I remember that day, yes. How are you? How has life treated you here since then?”

“Well. It’s been very complicated, and I don’t want to take up too much of your time.” I sighed.

“Please, don’t worry about that. We can talk all day if you’d like. I care about every citizen here, and I want to make sure you’re all right.”

“If you insist.” I rubbed my forehead, wondering where to begin. “School didn’t go so well. I graduated and everything at eighteen, but I never got the hang of summoning skeletons or really any other necromancer spell. I mean, I could do well enough to pass, but, gee, I don’t know. Never mastered summoning something larger than a mouse. When it came time to summon a full-body skeleton, I could get everything assembled, but it would fall apart just as it began to talk. Which was enough to pass exams, but since I’ve graduated, I haven’t worked on my skills.”

Telyos frowned. “I’m sorry to hear that. You should keep trying, though.”

“But I’m twenty-five.”

“That’s still incredibly young. Maybe without the pressure of school and grades, you’ll flourish going at your own pace.”

“It’s tough, though, because I’m also depressed.” I paused for a lengthy moment. “I never feel like doing much of anything. Hell, it took me six months to come down here and inform you today that…Mr. Cole passed away.”

Telyos’ face froze. “He passed away six months ago?”

“I’ve cried so much I feel like I’m all cried out. I’ve felt emotionally drained and void of any feelings. I’m sorry it’s taken me this long to tell you, but I’m asking for your understanding. I’ve not really been myself lately. Just been getting drunk at Risers a lot.”

Telyos nodded. “I understand. You’re not in trouble in any way for taking the time to inform me and making it official with the Nezura Assistance Program. We just ask you to pay back the coins you—”

I lobbed the sack of coins on his desk; it jingled as it landed on the wood.

“There are all the payments I’ve received since he passed. It’s been a struggle, but I made it here today. I’ve been living off my own savings, but I’m gonna have to find a person to take care of because necromancy magic isn’t my thing.”

“We can help you with that, no problem.” Telyos didn’t even look at the bag of coins. He kept his eyes on me. “Do you own Mr. Cole’s house?”

“No. He actually has a son who’s in Orbavue, and he wants to sell the house. So I’m out in just a few days.”

“Oh, Maximilian, I’m so sorry.”

“What can you do?” I shrugged, my lips quivered, and my voice grew syrupy. “I just need a new person to take care of, if you have anyone who’s looking for help.”

“Yes, absolutely, but it will take me a few weeks at least to get that arranged if that’s okay? Sorry, we’ve been rather busy here at the Municipality Building. With Akara being gone after her crusade a few years ago, things have been insane ever since. We’ve had an issue with Silver Spies lately, so don’t forget to keep your eyes peeled.”

“Honestly, take all the time you need to process. I can live on my own in a hotel for a little bit. Even mentally, I’m not sure I’m prepared to go back to helping out the older community.” My eyes brimmed. Thoughts of Mr. Cole’s warm smile and hugs reopened the emotional wounds.

“I understand. And that’s probably best that you take time to recover. Have you thought about seeing a therapist at all?”

I sniffled. “To be honest, I haven’t thought about it.”

“Well, here, take this. I recommend seeing Josiah.” Telyos pulled out an ivory slip from a shelf on his desk. “Stop in to his building anytime. They have a great staff of therapists who would be happy to talk to you.”

I took the slip and slid it into my pocket. “Thank you, I really appreciate that.”

“Absolutely. I see a therapist once a week. As you can imagine, this job is pretty stressful sometimes, especially with how things have been going the past few years.” He sighed.

“Yeah, it’s a good idea. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner. I don’t even have any friends I talk to or see. I was bullied all through school for never getting the hang of things.” I shook my head. “I could’ve used therapy back then.”

“That pains my heart to hear. Maximilian, I can’t tell you how sorry I am.”

“It’s okay. Life here was all right. I know it’s better than it would have been back in Verrenna. I just have to keep reminding myself of that. But I don’t know, sometimes I think I’m on the edge.”

Telyos’ voice took a grave tone. “Edge of what?”

“Don’t worry, nothing drastic. It’s been an exhausting handful of years.” I took a deep breath. “Well, I’d better go. I understand you’re busy. I just wanted to give you this form of the official death certificate for Raymond Cole.”

“Thank you, and I’m tremendously sorry for your loss. Mr. Cole was a wonderful human being.”

“I know. Thankful I had him as a parent.” I broke with a singular awkward laugh. “Maybe if he wasn’t so easy on me, I’d be a better necromancer.”

“Stop. Don’t think like that. That’s a dark path to go down.”

“You’re right, I’m sorry. Just been in a weird headspace lately. Thank you for all your help, Telyos.”

“Absolutely, and Maximilian, before you leave, if you ever want to talk to me, my door is open. I know what you’re going through. I took Akara’s loss hard. It ripped my soul apart.”

“Me too, she was a legend. The honorary mother of Nezura is what Mr. Cole and I called her.”

“Yes. That’s a good moniker for her. I was close to her, like a…” Telyos’ lips twitched. “…like a sister to me…” His voice trailed off, and he paused before shaking his head. “Well, I’m sorry, I’m digressing. All to say, I understand how hard it is to lose someone close to you. My door is always open.”

“Thanks, Telyos.” I stood up to shake his hand, but he stepped around the desk and gave me a hug.

“Give some therapy a try and let me know what you think.”