Elric Greystone stood rooted at the edge of a large, rocky cavern. His eyes peeled and ready, taking in everything as goosebumps popped up all over his skin.

The magic felt almost palpable. Especially in the centre of the cave. Where over twenty necromancers from the Duskborn Covenant stood in a circular formation, all of them collectively chanting a spell.

Zorin Gravesend. Elric's master. Sat in the heart of the formation on a strange, ornate chair.

The middle-aged man wore a rough-looking black tunic with a wild, gnarly old staff in hand. The staff had an expensive jewel attached to its tip that radiated an insidious green mana into the surroundings, revealing his dark grey eyes, locked onto a strange swirling portal ahead.

Its colours were in a constant transition. From red to blue, green, purple, black and gold. Never truly stopping for a second.

From time to time, he would channel a spell. Adding it to an item before throwing it forward and into the portal.

"Elric!" Zorin commanded, one bony finger stabbing towards his apprentice. "Bring the next ingredient!" Each word was laced with a cold authority like that of a sword poised to strike anyone who disobeyed.

And why not?

He was one of the youngest necromancers with the rank of Gravecaller—an up-and-coming star! It wouldn't be long now until he seized his destiny and rose to true greatness. Gaining eternal life as a lich in the black court.

As for his young apprentice? There were plenty of initiates around, so it was up to him to prove himself useful. If not... well, it wasn't much of a loss to replace him, either.

"Coming, master!" Elric soon replied, grabbing a vial of blood. The contents were black in colour, radiating something awfully similar to the smell of rotten eggs into his nose.

He held back the urge to gag as his leather boots crunched down on the rough stone floor below.

A moment later, he carefully placed the vial into Zorin's pale hand. Who opened it up without pause. Smearing it onto the floor while creating a magical formation in front of the portal. Intricate runes slowly took shape with each flick of his finger.

Elric thought they were truly beautiful. Standing in a daze.

While Zorin just let out an irritated huff.

"The next one!" He barked out, sending over a deathly glare. "Hurry up, will you? And remember. This time. I need dragon's blood..." Letting out a long breath of air upon noticing his apprentice's confused countenance, he yelled. "The golden one!"

His attention shifted back towards the portal.

Today's summoning ritual was too important to be messed up because of one imbecilic disciple's fascination.

Zorin had long since prepared everything for today. Including the ideal vessel. Hidden within a large black coffin—etched with glowing runes. It's presence solemn and unsettling towards any normal man.

But not to him. A necromancer with the knowledge and power to bring forth the darkest of creations. To him, it was the greatest boon one could ask for. A chance to rise amongst the ranks and teach his rivals an important lesson.

And for that, one piece still remained.

Something that he had come all this way for.

A heroic soul. One with enough potential and ability to make proper use of the body stored within the coffin. For only when the two obtained a perfect balance, a synchronicity of sorts, would the ultimate servant be born.

A servant that Zorin greatly desired.

His long nails brushed against an old grimoire attached to his belt. The source of today's ritualistic spell. It was an item that had been discovered within an ancient pocket dimension years ago.

Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

A place found only through sheer luck or... destiny, as he would call it.

Unfortunately, Zorin soon encountered two huge stumbling blocks back then.

Firstly, his power and comprehension were much too low to even make an attempt. And secondly, the ingredients required. All of them were rare or priceless treasures in their own right, incredibly difficult to gather.

And without these two things, he could only bide his time and wait, his ambitions hidden beneath a calm facade. Bowing down and serving his superiors with a meek and subservient countenance.

While secretly, he would train and gather each of the necessary items.

All of it for this one moment of triumph years later.

Zorin wanted to laugh.

'Now. Everything will change.' He mocked. 'Those old fools will be forced to recognise my greatness!' Turning his head towards Elric.

The boy stumbled back and forth with precious ingredients, his gait a constant worry that put him on edge. 'Should I just replace him already..?' He considered with narrowed eyes, trying to restrain himself from cursing at the bumbling idiot's display.

A task that soon proved impossible after Elric slipped. Spilling a drop of golden liquid onto a spherical-shaped rock below.

One that he quickly overlooked due to his growing rage.

"Elric!" Zorin all but screamed. "If you spill one more iota of that blood, I'll take all of yours!" With a ragged and erratic voice. Wanting nothing more than to skin his apprentice alive at this very moment in time.

The spell even wavered due to the distraction.

Unbeknownst to the pair. The previously believed 'spherical-shaped rock' gave off a golden glow before it faded away again. Revealing a few scales on its surface that went unnoticed within the formation.

Meanwhile...

[POV Switch back to a slightly insane Henry]

Henry sat in the darkness, wondering how the hell he could escape. It felt like it had been forever since arriving in this place.

'Has it been weeks? Months? Maybe even decades? Seriously. I'd kill for a simple clock at this point...'

Though where could you even hang it?

It wasn't as if there was some wall that he could just point at and say, "Ah, that'd work!"

'They probably sell glow-in-the-dark variants.' Henry mused to himself in another pointless reflection. Before he mentally sighed to himself and dropped it altogether.

There were still other things that needed to be done.

Such as today's debate. Which ironically turned out to be: How many different ways can someone die in their own garden? A topic close to his own heart.

'The first would be... ah, death by drowning in a pond. Not too bad, honestly. It's a nice, quiet end. If you forget the whole suffocation thing.'

Henry placed it in the preferred category.

'Next... hmmm... What about getting buried alive underneath a stacked compost heap? Pretty classy if you ask me.'

Again, it was in the preferred category, only slightly below the pond option.

Moving on without missing a beat.

'How about death by rabid squirrel attack? Yeah, that'd be the stupidest option. Even worse than my own. The news articles the next day would be priceless.' He chuckled at the imagined headlines. 'Death by Squirrel. Now, that's a headline that would turn heads. "Local gardener found dead, squirrels flee the scene."'

He was about to add it to his top five worst ways to die in a garden list when suddenly.

*Fwooooosh*

A sound akin to a gale blew over. Everything started to shake and tilt. Then, as sudden as it came, everything calmed down.

But, unlike before, Henry found himself somewhere else. A shockingly huge forest stood before his eyes, or at least, it felt like it did anyway.

'....'

His thoughts paused in astonishment as the seconds ticked away. Until he finally managed to take it all in. The plants brought a sense of comfort, a homely feeling that had long since been forgotten.

'A forest?' He wondered, still not able to move despite the change. 'Why am I suddenly inside a forest? I mean, it's not that I enjoyed the darkness, but... why?'

Did something change?

'...I don't think so?'

Then why?

Henry couldn't work it out. Especially after he started to feel that the trees here were watching him. Which felt utterly ridiculous.

'Come on. Trees don't even have eyes!'

He wanted to deny the idea. But the feeling only grew with time. His own eyes long since focused on every detail within the forest. Where not a soul could be seen.

Something didn't add up.

His gaze darted left, then right.

When a gentle breeze passed through the leaves, causing each of them to rustle together. Gradually forming into a strange pattern of sorts. Sometimes, the pitch would be high, and other times, it would be low.

In fact, it even started to sound a bit similar to...

'Wait, is that a voice?!' He realised, thinking that, indeed, his daydreams might be going a bit too far! Did all of that darkness take away the last remnants of his sanity? Now, he was even imagining a conversation with an entire forest!

If that wasn't crazy, Henry didn't know what was.

So when the leaves finally started to rustle out the word, "Welcome." Booming throughout the entire woods. He tactfully ignored it in the hopes that it would vanish.

Despite dying and being trapped inside a dark place for god knows how long, this felt a bit far-fetched.

Yet, as the silence stretched on, the forest rubbed its leaves together again. Sounding a bit similar to an awkward cough this time. "Do not worry, child. You are quite sane. Ah, where are my manners? Let me formally introduce myself."