Before the dark altar, I opened the book and carefully placed each of the offerings as described, casting them into the flames at the altar’s center. As the flames roared to life, I recited the forbidden incantation.
In an instant, the flames turned black—“It” had answered my summons!
“Who are you? How dare you summon me! If you cannot provide a fitting reason, I will tear you apart and imprison your soul for eternity!”
The black flames blazed fiercely, revealing a vague, ethereal form within. Though I could not discern “Its” appearance, I knew that what I had summoned was merely a phantom, not the true entity. I remained silent, aware that “It” was meticulously reading my soul, extracting every secret it sought to know.
“Do you desire power? Do you seek vengeance?”
“Yes! Please grant me power!”
“Have you considered all the consequences and sworn never to regret?”
“I willingly accept all consequences. I shall bear them alone!”
“Hahaha…” “It” began to laugh. “Then, what will you offer me in exchange? I never bestow power without a price!”
“I am willing to exchange everything I possess,” I declared with a cold, almost ruthless calm.
“Will you accept any demand I make?”
“Yes!”
“Very well, then my demand is…”
The flames on the altar continued to burn, gradually returning from black to their natural red hue, growing ever more intense… and more intense…
A city! The city was ablaze! Beneath its towering, majestic walls, the living and the dead were locked in a brutal battle. Cries of war echoed across the sky and earth! The undead army had besieged the city, and though its defenders fought desperately, they were unaware that the reinforcements they awaited had already been annihilated!
A cadre of vampire mages, led by a lich, focused their fireballs on a single point on the city wall, while catapults relentlessly hurled boulders at the same spot. Under such a concentrated assault, no wall could withstand for long. With a thunderous crash, the section of the wall, weakened by the fireballs, finally crumbled!
A horde of zombies surged toward the breach. Skeleton commanders strove to concentrate more forces at this breakthrough, while hundreds of ghouls followed closely behind the zombies, their wicked hissing reverberating across the battlefield.
Arrows rained down like waves from atop the wall, felling rows of zombies, but the dead knew no fear, and the advance continued. Ghouls and zombies trampled over the bodies of their fallen comrades, drawing ever closer. Just as they reached the base of the wall, a volley of fireballs struck, igniting the decaying flesh with a pungent odor, stalling the offensive. The humans seized the opportunity to fill the breach with stones and sandbags…
The battle had raged for two months, with the undead army growing stronger each day—skeletons, zombies, ghouls, wights, ghosts, vampires… their numbers ever increasing. Meanwhile, the humans’ defense grew weaker by the day. The power of dark magic and death was gradually eroding this once impregnable city!
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As I walked through the camp, I observed the frenetic activity, but nothing dared to approach me!
“Were you seeking me, Master?” A cold, shadowy voice came from behind. I turned to see a towering skeleton! Its frame was much larger than that of an average man, and the armor it wore, though ancient, still gleamed as if new. In its hand, it held a magical longsword, and the ghostly flames flickering in its hollow eye sockets were fixed on me!
“Yes, Sairen. I’ve waited for two months now, and you promised me you would take this city within three weeks!”
“Forgive me, Master. The enemy’s resistance exceeded my expectations. But I assure you, give me ten more days, and I will open the city gates for you!”
I nodded. Sairen was a famed general of ancient times, whom I had resurrected from the battlefield. Though I knew nothing of military strategy, I had heard of his legendary battles, so I entrusted my army to his command. He was indeed formidable; even I could see the brilliance in his tactics.
“You may go,” I waved him off. Sairen ran off, issuing orders to his subordinates as he prepared to launch a new assault!
I continued walking; there were matters that required my attention today!
A wraith drifted over and greeted me.
“Lead the way,” I commanded. The wraith floated ahead, and I followed. I no longer needed to act personally; the deathly aura of this undead army would summon new undead to join us on its own.
The sound of furious curses reached my ears, their crude vulgarity enough to shame any street ruffian. Then, the sharp crack of a blow! I quickened my pace. The undead parted to make way, allowing me to reach the source of the commotion.
A dwarf stood before the other prisoners, blood streaming down his head, yet he continued to hurl invectives. The temper of dwarves was notorious for its ferocity, and this one was clearly among the most fiery. Beside him lay the shattered remains of a skeleton. Though his hands were bound, he had managed to headbutt the skeleton to pieces.
“You filthy coward, using traps to harm others! Face me in a fair fight!” He shouted at a nearby zombie, but the undead were uninterested in verbal exchanges—insulting them was like speaking to the wind.
I approached, my eyes glowing with a red, malevolent light that drew the attention of all the prisoners. The dwarves and elves recognized me instantly as a necromancer.
The dwarf glared at me, his anger undiminished, his eyes burning with even greater fury as he locked gazes with me.
“You despicable necromancer, what do you want? Why not just kill me?”
I smiled. Such an upright race, as stubborn as stone yet so refreshingly straightforward!
“I have no intention of killing you…”
“Then let us go, and I’ll take up my axe and face you head-on!”
“Don’t be angry. I won’t harm you,” I said, causing each prisoner to look at me in astonishment, as if they had misheard. “There’s no need for you to lose your lives in a war that does not concern you.”
The dwarf looked at me in disbelief, then glanced around, seemingly doubting his own ears.
“Not concerned?” An elf stepped forward from the group of prisoners. “Will it only concern us when your undead army marches to the gates of our homeland? What will your next target be after Dalrak falls?”
I studied her—a strikingly beautiful woman, the elegance and nobility of her race clearly etched in her features. Though slender, I had no doubt she possessed great strength. Only the finest warriors could join the elven army. If not for their foolish plan, I could never have captured so many of them. Even if I could defeat them, my army would have been severely depleted.
“You say you won’t harm us, but do you intend to let us go?” She asked with a hint of scorn in her voice, a slight smile of contempt playing on her lips.
“Yes! I am willing to release you! I do not wish to treat you as enemies…”
“Yes! You hope to call us friends… by treating us like this?” Her tone dripped with irony as she gestured to the ropes binding her hands.
It was mere luck that allowed me to capture the combined elven and dwarven forces, for they had chosen a foolish strategy—attempting to reinforce Dalrak through tunnels. They had forgotten one thing: in tunnels, it is difficult to disperse sleeping gas, and the undead do not need to breathe!
“I’m sorry, but I had no other choice! If you promise not to intervene in this war, I will release all of you!”
“If I get my hands on my axe, I’ll chop off your head and feed it to the dogs!” The dwarf growled, his eyes filled with defiance. “We will never make peace with a vile and despicable necromancer, never!”
“Why would you release us?” The elven woman stepped closer, and I noticed the emblem on her armor. If I wasn’t mistaken, she was the commander!
“Because you shouldn’t lose your lives in this senseless war.”
“A senseless war? Then why are you attacking Dalrak?”
“I seek only vengeance…”