Dean looked around and saw most of the people in the group panicking, all but himself and Angelo. Angelo was saying something to the others, but Dean couldn’t understand what he was saying. Dean looked behind him and saw Jess cowering in fear. One of the skeletons took Dean off guard and attacked, slicing Dean’s arm. ‘Shit!’ Dean thought, ‘I need to pay attention.’
Dean dodged the skeleton’s next blow and stabbed its skull, killing it. Dean turned around and saw another skeleton attacking Jess. “Watch out, behind you!” He screamed. Jess turned around and shot a ray of light at the skeleton, turning it to ash. ‘Wasn’t she just cowering in fear?’ Dean thought.
Jess turned around and gave a thumbs up at Dean, wiping her tears in the process. Dean chuckled and went back to fighting the other skeletons. He looked down at his hand and saw a black flicker of lighting run in between his fingers. He looked shocked but then realized what it was. He focused on the black lightning and tried to propel it forward. A huge pitch-black lightning bolt shot out of his hand, throwing him backward in the process. The skeletons that were in the blast range were hit by the bolt and immediately turned into black ash. Dean stood back up and looked at the carnage. Some of the skeletons, that were collateral damage, had black veins spreading across their bones and it absorbed the life out of them. It looked like a plague was infecting them. Eventually, the skeletons succumbed to the dark energy and turned into dust.
The skeletons that were left looked at Dean in fear and ran away. Dean then started to sweat profusely and became light-headed. ‘What is going on?’ Dean thought, ‘I feel like I’m gonna pass out.’ Dean fell and the group began to rush over to his side. Everything went black.
-----
Dean opened his eyes to the night sky. ‘Wha happened?’ Dean thought as he sat up. He looked around and saw that everyone was asleep. He stood up and sighed, ‘What happened to me?’
“You were drained of your mana.”
Dean turned around and jumped backward, “What the hell?!?” It was the girl.
“You used up all of your mana like an amateur,” the girl said.
“Mana? What is this, a game?”
“That’s at least how the man upstairs thinks.”
“Man upstairs? Who the hell are you?”
“I’ll tell you if you make it out of here.”
“Why not tell me now?”
“I like to keep the suspense going.” Within a blink of an eye, the girl disappeared, leaving Dean standing by himself. He sat down in a slump and began to think. ‘This feels too surreal to be a dream.’ He looked up at the starry night and closed his eyes. He listened in on the crickets chirping and the wind hitting the leaves. The voices of nature rang in his ears. Then, Dean heard something unusual, crying, screams. He could hear all the variations of negative emotions resonating with him. Dean opened his eyes and followed the sounds. They led him to the spot where he killed the skeletons. He kept following the voices until he saw where they were coming from.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Dean looked down and saw a pile of black ashes that were smoking. This was the center of the cries and screams, he could feel it. Dean crouched down and grabbed some of the black ashes. They ran through his fingers like he was picking up sand, and they smelt like sadness and hopelessness. Dean didn’t know how he could smell the emotion, but it was there. The ash in his hand started to glow, and Dean had memories sent into his mind.
-----
There was a woman, 5’ 5” with chestnut brown hair and pale white skin. She was wearing what would be the farmers get up in the dark ages. She looked to be cleaning clothes outside of her house. The house looked like a wooden cabin that had been built a long time ago.
“Nancy!” someone yelled from inside the house.
“Coming Father!” the woman said as she ran inside the house. Nancy approached a man, 6’ 2” tall and had brown hair with a long beard. “I need you to go to town to buy something for me,” the father said.
“Yes father,” Nancy said, “I’ll be back soon.” Nancy left the home skipping her way to the town. She passed the beautiful green landscape of the farm, watching the animals eat the grass.
Nancy arrived in town in a heartbeat, looking for a store to buy the thing her father requested. She skipped her way downtown and passed many people running like their life depended on it. She continued to walk in confusion until she saw what they were running from. It was a tall tan man with black hair and white wings, almost like an angel.
Almost.
The man snapped his fingers and monstrous creatures attacked. They had a snow-white color all over their body with no definitive features. Their faces had two blood-red eyes and a circular mouth with saw-like teeth.
Nancy ran in terror and screamed but not for long. The monsters were too fast and caught up to her easily. They grabbed her and ripped off her arms and clothes. They then proceeded to violate her and use her. The tan man just watched and smiled at the horrific sight. Eventually, Nancy died of blood loss.
She woke up again in some type of forest; green as far as the eye can see. She had no recollection of her past life. She looked down and saw that her hands were bone. There was but only one thought swimming through her head, KILL.
-----
Dean was awoken out of his trance to him squeezing his hands so hard that they started to bleed. ‘What was that?’ Dean thought. He brushed his hands as the girl’s emotions were swimming through his head. He felt disgusted and anger at whatever that man was, fear and despair from the monsters that violated her, and murderous intent from when she became the skeleton.
Dean looked back at the black smoke and touched it once again. He heard the girl’s call for help and imagined himself reaching out a hand. Suddenly, the black ash began to swirl into a cloud and form a humanoid shadow. Its eyes were a bright white and were the only feature of the thing. The thing then kneeled and spoke in a raspy voice, “Thank you, my lord, for giving me a new chance at life and a chance at revenge.”
Dean was in shock, ‘Lord? Am I some type of necromancer?’ The thing stood up and stared at Dean. “I would be eternally grateful if you bestowed upon me a name.”
Dean thought for a second before speaking, “Your name was Nancy right? How about you use that one.” White tears began to fall from the thing’s white eyes as it disappeared into a void.
A screen popped out from Dean’s hand and he looked at it.
[Three new skills learned]
--Black Arrow
--Lesser Soul Invigoration
--A Special Kind of Place