Corin found himself alone in a room. The mages had set about recruiting and enhancing others of their trade through out the small settlement. Corin had alway been a bit dismissive of the trade. He knew they were useful, but something about summoning otherworldly powers had put him off. He looked at his claws. He had been called a demon once. Was it true? He still felt the same. He tried to compare himself to how he once was. Beyond any cosmetic change he thought his mind had stayed the same.
The door opened and the wight Amil entered. They sat together in silence a lot. Amil didn’t have anything important to say and stood to the side of Corin. Corin’s claws tapped on the desk. Amil stood silently.
“Amil, what’s the progress?” Corin asked.
“We have two more caravans leaving today, Lord,” Amil said.
His voice seemed to have a different quality than how Corin remembered it. He knew the wights were different than they had been killed. They were strange creatures.
“So, we have a few weeks before we need to leave?”
“Two weeks, Lord.”
“Search for an armor smith, if you can find one, bring him here.” Said Corin.
“Yes, Lord.”
He tapped his claws in a pattern across the wood, the sharp points leaving small marks. Just what was he? The though couldn’t escape his head. How did he make others of his kind? That unnamed man did something to him, would it be possible to repeat? The elders hadn’t been touched. The Venerated Razors had mostly kept to themselves and hadn’t dealt with the town for the most part. Even the guards that rode out to greet him hadn’t been enhanced. There mages were actively scouting for recruits, but mages tended to settle their own business themselves. It was a world Corin had no interest in. Maybe he should pay more attention to them. Corin put on his gloves, pushed himself to his feet and walked to the door.
“Get me the elders, and one of the more prestigious mages, preferably an undisputed leader.”
The guards at the door were surprised, but managed to hide the fact well. They were frozen still with fear. Corin wanted to show he had no ill will for the town by keeping the locals as guards. It wasn’t like they would get anything out of it if they decided to rebel. If something were to happen to Corin, he was pretty sure the oasis wouldn’t survive. He pointed at a guard.
“You, Go,” he pointed at the other and said, “You, stay.”
That seemed to shake them out of inaction and the selected guard sped off toward the elders. The second guard looked a little fearful still, but seemed to ease a little.
“Is the pay good enough for you?” asked Corin.
The guard’s eyes grew a little and he stumbled out a reply, “Yes, uh, Lord.”
“I see, have you ever considered mercenary work?”
“No, Lord.”
The guard seemed to relax slightly but was still intimidated.
“Mercenary work is good money,” Corin corrected himself, “When the work is worth it, that is.”
“I didn’t like the danger, Lord.”
Corin nodded, “Do you have children?”
“Yes, Lord. A boy and a girl.”
“How about the other guard?”
“I believe so, Lord, but I don’t know him well enough to know for sure.”
“We have families in The Venerable Razors,” said Corin as he dug into a pouch.
He pulled out two coins, which lit up the eyes of the guard he was talking to.
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“I want you to give the other one to your companion. It takes a lot of courage to guard an occupier.”
“I will, Lord,” the man said, forgetting his fear.
Corin talked with the man a little longer. When he finished he went back inside, shutting the door behind him and then sat in his chair. Corin probably made a mistake with asking for an armor smith and then calling in the elders and a mage. It was a little too impulsive.
It took about an hour for the elders and the mage to arrive. When the door shut he could hear the talk from the guards outside and a shout of surprise. Corin had judged the man correctly. The elders took places near each other and the mage sitting awkwardly to the other side.
“Don’t bunch up, I wanted to meet as equals.”
The sounds of scraping chairs filled the room as they spread apart.
“Please, introduce yourselves to each other.” said Corin, feeling quite proud of himself for that wonderful social trick.
“Elder Cordus Jan,” said the oldest elder.
“Elder Ezra Birely,” Said the other male elder.
“Aude Orel,” said the final elder.
“Daman,” said the mage.
“Good. I won’t introduce myself,” Corin said.
“Why did you bring us here, Lord?” asked the mage.
“I want to offer you a gift,” Corin stated with a grin.
Corin didn’t quite remember what the unnamed man had done to him, but he followed his instincts. He slowly removed his gloves and then jumped on one of the elders. The mage was quick to help and they easily overpowered the elders. He drove one of his claws into the arm of Cordus and drove the liquid from his claws inside. The man fell silent as the screams of pain died. He then repeated the process on both Ezra and Aude. The mage willingly offered his arm when he was no longer needed for his magic. He could remember his first night.
“I’ll tell you all now. The pain will be immeasurable, but you’ll thank me for it as time goes on.”
The four people on the ground writhed in pain, clawing at their own skin. It was like fire in his veins when Corin had experienced. He should have thought more about what they might need during the process. He was being too impulsive. Something in the back of his mind felt excitement with more of his kind coming into the world. Was Corin still human? He wasn’t. There could be no way he could count himself as human anymore.
He looked at the people on the ground. They shouldn’t be able to speak or make any sound for at least an hour. He couldn’t quite remember how long it was. He really shouldn’t have sent Amil out for an armor smith. Amil would be fine if he saw what was going on, but the potential craftsman might get alarmed by the whole transformation. He shouldn’t have sent away the guards either. Could the transformation made him a bit more impulsive that he had been before? He certainly had seen a lot more combat than he had in the past. He was only concerned with keeping his men paid and not dragging The Venerable Razors too far down into the dirt.
The door started to open.
“Stay outside, I’ll be right there,” Corin said.
That was a potential disaster. Corin put on his gloves and carefully stepped through the door. There hadn’t been an armorer, it was just Amil. Corin felt a little disappointed. They both went back inside. Corin had Amil move the table out of the way and then they both arranged the four others in the center of the room. Corin kept looking down at them, feeling pleased with himself.
“I wasn’t able to find an armorer, Lord.” Stated Amil.
“We’ll make due later.” Corin said as he waived a hand dismissively.
Amil hadn’t been interested in what was happening on the floor and stood behind Corin once again. It was all too fascinating. The three had stopped writhing after an hour and the elders had started to sweat profusely. Corin send Amil to bring water and a few good meals. They would all need something to drink, and something to eat. Corin had been ravenous when he first woke, but it quickly subsided as he ate his fill. Again he felt pride, his eyes looking at the now still people before him. Amil arrived shortly after. He started bringing food into the room.
The mage sat up first, gasping for air. His eyes were unfocused and Corin could see the liquid dripping from his fingertips. Daman hadn’t said a word as he tried to gather his bearing.
“Amil, give him food please, he might need multiple servings.”
Amil piled food upon the plate and handed it to the hungry mage. The mage had started eating fist fulls of food, but somehow managed to keep his face clean. Corin had not remembered eating like that. He was still able to mostly function when he had changed. The mage croaked for water, which Amil had promptly given him in exchange for the plate. The plate was then handed back, filled once again with food. The mage had started his second serving with a little less desperation. The mage was able to join Corin as they watched the other three in fascination.
It had only taken another hour for the elders to wake. Amil had his work cut out for him as he tried to keep the elders fed. With the urging of Corin, Daman jumped in to help. They ate far more than Daman had. They also required much more water than the mage as well. When things settled down Amil put the table back into the center of the room and they stared at each other. Corin felt the happiest he had ever felt and his face was plastered in a smile. The feeling was indescribable.
“This is the gift,” Said Corin.
The elders watched were busy playing with the liquid dripping from their fingertips. The mage was a little more restrained. Corin was proud. He was so proud of himself. He was proud of his new family. They were family. He could feel a deeper connection in him to them than he had with Amil and the rest of the wights. He would keep them near for now and let them rest. He continued to grin.