Ed awoke an indeterminable amount of time later, lying in rough dirt and sand. He sat up and wiped the grogginess from his eyes.

It was nighttime. He was greeted by Vaalem’s nighttime sky, finding comfort in the familiar constellations. He took a deep breath of cold desert air and let it wash through him.

He glanced around, figures and shapes coming into focus gradually as his vision adjusted. There was no immediate sign of Ren, though that didn’t mean she wasn’t somewhere nearby. Maybe she was still sleeping, as he had been.

Time to test if this was all a dream, Ed thought. He slowly reached his hand into the side pockets of his pants, where he had placed the Deathwhisper stone Mortem had given him.

He closed his eyes and winced as his fingers wrapped around a small, smooth object. Ed pulled the stone out and observed it. The carvings on the small stone were illuminated by feint moonlight, but enough to confirm everything had been real.

Ed sighed deeply as the last hope that this was all a dream faded. An ancient goddess possessed Lila, he had died and was saved by Mortem, and he had unbelievable new powers.

Ed rubbed his eyes again as he stood up, scouting the surrounding area for Ren. There was no sign of her.

He noticed a decent amount of plants, meaning there was likely a river nearby. He had never heard of the town Silt, but given the name, he felt certain he would find water soon. Ed picked up a handful of gravel, sifting it gently through his fingers.

It was sandy and dirty, but not the dry, fine sand he’d expect to find deep in the desert.

Ed studied the constellations above him, as his father had taught him years ago. He pinpointed the Scorpion’s Tale, remembering an old adage his father taught him.

Follow the tail until it ends,

Or until you meet the water’s bend.

The saying was referring to the twists and bends of the Serpentine River. Ed and his family had traveled all over western Vaalem and always west of the river. So, following the tail would eventually lead east to Serpentine since it cut the continent in two.

But according to Mortem, he was east of the river. Far east, near the coast. Ed knew nothing of this part of the world. He didn’t know the people, the cities, the oceans, nothing.

Ed’s gut told him to follow the scorpion’s tale and head east. It should lead him to this coastal town of Silt.

Ed gathered the few belongings he had. He was thankful now that he had bugged Lila about his attire. He wore comfortable clothes instead of the stiff tunic and pants she had wanted him to wear.

His red headband remained, tied tightly around his head, with the ties falling down the back of his beck. Beyond that, he had the staff and stone from Mortem.

“No money and no food,” Ed grumbled to himself.

The lumie was also missing. Ed felt a deep pang of concern, but he figured it was likely with Ren. It had bolted for her the second it laid eyes on her in Mortem’s realm.

Ed weighed his options. Overall, he felt well-rested. Traveling at night, with just enough moonlight to navigate, wasn’t a bad option. He could wait until morning to find Ren, but he wasn’t confident she hadn’t set off without him. If he waited, he would lose hours trying to catch up with her.

If she left, she probably was heading for Silt. And Silt was most likely due east, to Ed’s best guess.

“East it is then,” Ed said aloud.

Moments after he started walking, a light flickered a few hundred feet ahead of him. Ed squinted his eyes, trying to make out what it was.

It was a fire. Someone had just lit a fire.

Ed froze. It could be Ren, but it could be someone else… could be multiple people… and no guarantee they were friendly. Ed’s experience with other desert nomads had been overwhelmingly positive, but he was nowhere near home. He didn’t know the customs.

For all Ed knew, this could be a group that would kill him on the spot.

Or I’d have to fight them, he thought, suddenly remembering his powers.

Ed gripped his staff tightly and focused on his spell.

[You have summoned a thrall.]

[Name: Skeleton

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Health: 20 / 20

Strength: 1

Dexterity: 1

Resistance: 1

Intelligence: 1

Equipped items: None]

[You have summoned a thrall.]

[Name: Skeleton

Health: 20 / 20

Strength: 1

Dexterity: 1

Resistance: 1

Intelligence: 1

Equipped items: None]

Ed gasped aloud as the sanity cost of his new double summons spell kicked in. He almost collapsed to his knees but maintained his composure. Just barely.

He didn’t want to alert whoever was at that fire. As Mortem had instructed him, a Necrolyte thrives with the upper hand.

Ed gave himself a minute to recover from the nagging, sickly feeling of the sanity drain. Leaning on his staff for support, he glanced appreciatively at his two skeletal minions.

“Alright, fellas, follow my lead and be as quiet as possible,” Ed whispered.

The trio slowly snaked through the short and sparse grass. As they approached the fire, Ed was able to discern multiple figures. His stomach dropped as he realized it wasn’t Ren. Unless she had made friends already, which he severely doubted. Enemies, maybe, but not friends.

As crawled as close as he felt comfortable, laying down to hide in the grass with his thralls. They mimicked his every moment faithfully and were completely silent as they did so.

Ed could hear faint chatter from the fire, though it didn’t seem lively conversation.

Three people, at least two of them are probably men. I have the upper hand, but that’s only useful if I attack. If I try peace and they’re friendly, great. If I try peace and they aren’t friendly… I may be in trouble. If I attack, I get some answers and supplies. I also become a cold-blooded killer and probably make a lot of enemies.

Ed wasn’t sure what to do, but he decided attacking them wasn’t an option. Not if they didn’t attack first.

Ed decided to wait. He hoped two of them would go to sleep while one would keep watch over the fire. That’s how he had always done it during his nomad days.

Before long, Ed was proven right. The two men dozed off, leaving a small person awake, sitting on a stone by the fire. The lookout had their back to Ed, so he slowly crawled forward to get a closer look.

Ed got close enough to scope out the group. The two men sleeping were older, with large beards peppered with grey hair. All three of them wore tattered, dirty clothes. The one man didn’t even have shoes.

They were likely drifters—poor, homeless desert wanderers who often resorted to stealing and harassment. In Ed’s experience, they are easy to spot.

Not promising, Ed thought. Sometimes drifters were good people down on their luck, but Ed couldn’t afford the trouble either way. They were in rough shape, which meant they may be desperate. Vaalem’s deserts were cruel. Ed shuddered at the thought of traversing the hot sands without shoes.

And then his eye caught something strange. The lookout tossed a knapsack to the ground, causing it to squeal as it bounced and struggled in response. Something was inside of it…

Squinting his eyes, Ed’s heart sank. A blue light emanated from the sack, the same blue light etched into Ed’s mind forever. The same blue light that had saved his life.

The lumie!

Thoughts raced through Ed’s mind. They had kidnapped the lumie, so it wasn’t with Ren now. If it was with Ren before… then where was Ren? Ed doubted this ragtag group could have defeated Ren in a fight, even if they had the upper hand. But if she was sleeping…

Suddenly, fighting was an option. Ed didn’t know these people, but mistreating a lumie was taboo where he was from. To Ed, tying it up in a sack and tossing it onto the ground constituted mistreatment.

Plus, he owed the thing his life.

Ed positioned himself and his skeletons into the same pincer formation he had used in Mortem’s trials. He decided they would restrain the lookout before they could make a sound.

The three of them inched closer and closer… until Ed crunched a trig under his hand. It snapped louder than any twig had ever snapped in history.

Shit, Ed thought.

The lookout spun around towards Ed, hair whipping around her shoulders as she revealed her face. It was a woman, much younger than the other two men. Ed rose to his feet as she noticed him. He put a finger to her lips, urging her to be quiet. Ed knew her first instinct would be to wake her friends; he hoped to buy himself just a second by disorienting her.

It worked.

His two thralls ambushed her from behind, catching her by surprise. Ed charged forward, untying his bandana as he ran towards the woman.

She opened her mouth to cry out. Ed shoved his bandana in her mouth, gagging her. The skeletons kept her arms pinned back. She thrashed about but to no avail.

Ed quickly approached the fire, looking for the lumie. He untied a shoddy burlap sack, revealing his little companion inside.

The lumie leaped into Ed’s arms, shivering in fear.

Ed turned to look at the girl. She was younger than him, probably in her early twenties. Her hair was messy and tattered, as if it hadn’t been washed for a long time. Her face was dirty and bruised, and her clothes were stained with sweat and dirt.

Ed felt terrible; the girl was obviously poor or struggling.

Her face was twisted in a mix of shock and anger.

“You look like Ren,” Ed mumbled under his breath.

He considered how to manage the situation. He had never taken a hostage before, though he felt good about it. His plan had worked perfectly; he didn’t wake the others, and he didn’t have to kill anyone.

The fire was nice, but it wasn’t cold enough tonight that he needed it. Plus, he’d have no issue starting his own fire if required. He figured taking the girl somewhere she couldn’t wake up her friends was best. From there, he could ask her some questions.

If she cooperated, great. If not… Ed would figure it out as he went.

He commanded his skeletons to bring the girl. If she resisted, they would drag her.

Ed decided to head to where he had woken up since he knew the area was dark and quiet. It should be safe to interrogate his hostage there.

Just thinking those words made him feel gross and ashamed. He had taken a young drifter girl hostage. Ed had hoped he would be better than –

Ed tripped over something massive, tumbling to the ground. He smacked his head off a stone as he landed, red hot pain searing across his face.

His skeletons dashed to his side, releasing the drifter girl. She ripped out her gag and sprinted back to the fire, screaming.

He turned around to see what he had tripped over.

Ren lay motionless in front of him.