Cyreen awoke in a rather large bed made for a demon. The previous day was rather blurry from the aftereffects of the drugs, so she barely remembered much after the fight. Lavor was sitting on the edge and had nudged her awake. Cyreen sat up, trying to ignore the aching in her shoulders. Cyreen realized that Lavor had his old arms back. She held up her right arm to see what had replaced them on her body.
It looked like her old arm, same shape and size. The skin however, was a deep red like Lavor’s and there was not a single hair on them. Her fingernails were grey and almost looked like claws, Cyreen appreciated having five fingers again as she moved them around. She then checked on the underside of her arm and saw no trace of the magic seal, her left arm was the exact same.
“How are they?” Lavor asked.
“Where did these come from?” Cyreen asked.
“Hired the best demon alchemist I could. Took some material from my body and some from your old arms to grow those. It was the only way we could get something like what you used to have without dismembering some mook and taking theirs.” Lavor said.
“Hey I’m not complaining. Makes a good souvenir of that quest. Also now I can finally wear something with sleeves again. I assume these aren’t much different from my old ones?” Cyreen asked.
“Well you shouldn’t touch anything too holy in the future, otherwise the gentle mix of both kinds of flesh should keep things normal.” Lavor said.
Cyreen tried to get off the bed, but was gently pushed back down by Lavor. In addition to recovering from the transplant, she also had numerous injuries and drugs she had to recover from. Cyreen claimed she felt fine but Lavor said it was only because of the doctor’s treatments that she hasn’t felt much yet. Cyreen noticed Lavor was now wearing a more regal outfit compared to the borderline rags he had been wearing before.
“Is the transition of power going okay?” Cyreen asked.
“As good as it can be. Deinia’s allies are still causing a stink, I swear it will be years before I’m finally done with her.” Lavor said.
“Where is she?” Cyreen asked.
“Currently incarcerated in the dungeon. Going to be a trial soon to answer for all she’s done. I could have executed her there and then, but I think it will be good for this transition of power to be as less violent as it can be.” Lavor said.
“And what about Jortam? Did you find him?” Cyreen asked.
“Yes, that’s why I woke you up. Surraid! Bring him in!” Lavor shouted.
Surraid had been cured of his imp form, now he took the form of a large one-eyed ogre. Being wheeled in on an upright gurney was Jortam. He was strapped down and a magic seal preventing him from talking was hovering over his mouth. He looked like he had just been in a fight from the bruises and torn clothes he had.
“Caught him trying to sneak through one of the portals to get out of Deepworld. He put up a rather big fight so we had to restrain him.” Surraid said.
“His fate is in your hands Cyreen. We could keep him locked up here, have him executed, you could just kill him now if you wanted. All up to you.” Lavor said.
Cyreen once again tried to get out of bed, this time Lavor helped her stand up. Cyreen felt a bit dizzy and stiff, she managed to hobble over to Jortam who looked at her with the same contempt he had for all witches. Cyreen then punched Jortam right in the chest as hard as she could, he coughed and wheezed when the blow’s pain was amplified by his existing injuries.
“Agh, that felt good but damn I shouldn’t have done that. Now it hurts even more.” Cyreen said as she rubbed her shoulder.
“Yeah, the doctor said no strain on the arms for at least a month. Don’t get into any more fights soon.” Lavor said as he helped Cyreen back to her bed.
“Oh well, I’ve earned some downtime anyway.” Cyreen said as she sat back down.
“So, what do we do with him?” Surraid asked.
“I was thinking about it ever since I woke up after the fight. I think the best thing to do is send him to the Forlunged coven. They’re the most well known coven in the world and act as a sort of de-facto head of witchcraft. His hunters have committed many crimes against them. Let the coven decide his punishment.” Cyreen said.
“Understood, I’ll arrange to have him delivered to them.” Surraid said.
Jortam was struggling against his restraints as Surraid wheeled him away. Cyreen laid back down as Lavor once more sat beside her. They both had a hard time believing it was over. The debt was repaid, Cyreen could finally go home.
“I assume you want to return to your coven as soon as you can?” Lavor asked.
“Yeah, I would like that once I can walk properly again.” Cyreen said.
“Well here, I made this for you.” Lavor said as he handed Cyreen a scroll.
“Is this a portal?” Cyreen asked.
“Yup. Personal portal programmed only to work for you. Figured you could use it to keep in touch.” Lavor said.
“I’d hug you if it wouldn’t hurt so much.” Cyreen said with a smile.
“As soon as the doctor says you can leave, I can arrange for a demon escort back to your coven.” Lavor said as he stood up.
“Can I still summon you? We did make that pact after all.” Cyreen asked.
“Overridden by my princely powers, sorry but I can’t have you pulling me away when I'm doing important things. But I’ll be able to come visit myself, I’d like to meet your coven someday.” Lavor said.
“They’d like you…. Have you told Seron about Deinia yet?” Cyreen asked.
“She’s going to be a witness during Deinia’s trial whenever that happens. She seemed happy to hear she’ll have the chance to have a part in that.” Lavor said.
“Good to hear. Well, I guess you’ve got all sorts of things you need to do?” Cyreen asked.
“Yes. Let any of the staff know if you need something. You’re an honored guest here after all. I’ll stop by later.” Lavor said as he walked out of the room.
Cyreen laid on the bed feeling quite happy with herself because of either finally going home or the demonic painkillers inside her. She noticed on a nightstand beside the bed was a tray with some biscuits and water. Cyreen reached out and grabbed a biscuit, it looked just like every other one she had eaten. She used her other hand to weave a spell and applied some of the magic onto the biscuit before taking a bite. It tasted just as good as it did before.
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Seron had finally been given an update from the now Prince Lavor. The threat had subsided and she was now free to go about her business. The first thing she did was go visit Vaughn under the pretense of scouting out a lead she found. With her car still in for repairs, she instead took the van she had borrowed on numerous occasions before. A quick drive to the motel later, she arrived at Vaughn’s room and knocked on the door. The ventriloquist opened the door and Seron saw Vaughn sitting in a chair covered in bruises and scrapes.
“The hell happened to you? I’ve been gone for two days!?” Seron asked.
“Tripped down some stairs, I had a weird night.” Vaughn said.
“What happened since I last saw you?” Seron asked.
Vaughn then told all he had done. The successful resurrection, the raid on the organ thieves, and the encounter with Hictor. Seron couldn’t believe Vaughn of all people managed to finally get him. Though she considered it a shame there was no evidence of his death he could bring back. Hictor would go down in history as having just vanished with no one to claim the bounty. Conspiracy nuts would theorize about his fate for generations.
Vaughn no longer had any more business in Grict. With all of his affairs settled, he told Seron he now has to move on to the next part in his plan. Even if word had gotten out how Vaughn had saved the city, it wouldn’t change anything with the necromancer council. The simple fact was that Vaughn knew secrets they wanted to know but could never get out to the public. Which was why Vaughn has been devising a plan to solve that.
“Seron, I want you to take me in.” Vaughn said.
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“The fuck? Why!?” Seron asked.
“The next part of my plan is to get an audience with the necromancer council. I can’t just stroll up to that place, they’ll suspect something. I need it to look legitimate. Plus it would be a shame to let that bounty go to waste.” Vaughn said.
“Wait, did you throw yourself down those stairs on purpose so it would look like I fought you?” Seron asked.
“I swear that was not my plan, that fall was a total accident. But I might as well use these bruises while I have them.” Vaughn said.
“Vaughn, they’ll see your face. No one knows about our connection, but you’ll never be able to hide.” Seron said.
“A necessary sacrifice. Say you got a lead from Lavor and Cyreen, managed to track me here and beat me up when I was distracted. I’ll recall my performers and give you my stuff to take with you.” Vaughn said.
“And what if I refuse to turn in my brother?” Seron asked.
“Then I’ll have to find someone else and they probably won’t be as gentle.” Vaughn said.
“Agh, you got a point. Alright, let’s do this.” Seron said as she pulled out a pair of handcuffs.
The back of the van was reinforced to hold all sorts of criminals. Magic inhibiting seals installed on the inside left any wizards as powerless as any normal person. Vaughn sat in the back, handcuffed and unmasked as Seron drove her to the other bounty hunters. It was not a comfortable ride and Vaughn was understandably nervous, but he was confident. Especially once he told Seron to hold onto a small flash drive he had prepared for this day.
The other hunters couldn’t believe what Seron had done. Vaughn had been one of their most wanted targets for years and now he was finally caught. The necromancer council was quickly contacted as no one wanted to see if Vaughn could manage to break free. Within the day, an official transport was sent by the council and Vaughn was hauled away.
In a day, Vaughn found himself sitting in the court chamber of the necromancer council. A room normally used for the conviction of necromancers who break the laws of the practice. Vaughn was stripped of all clothing save for a simple pair of pants and a shirt. All of his possessions were displayed on a table nearby. Both the items and Vaughn were surrounded with a box-shaped magic barrier designed to inflict a painful shock on anyone who touched it. In addition to that, several reanimated skeletons were holding crossbows ready to fire on him at a moment’s notice.
The five necromancer councilors all sat at their seats behind the podium. They were all suspicious of Vaughn from the start. He made no attempt to escape during the entire trip over there. For someone as paranoid as he was known to be, the councilors were all on edge.
“Vaughn Sock-Buskin. I’ll be honest, I never thought we’d get you here like this.” Councilor Yorum said.
“We all assumed you’d either go down fighting or come here of your own accord. Can I assume the latter is the case?” Councilor Giji said.
“I didn’t last this long without having a plan. Yes, I did turn myself in.” Vaughn said.
“We were suspecting as much once we heard of your alleged connection to Sumeria, I don’t suppose you’ll tell us of her whereabouts?” Councilor Toren said.
“Long dead, buried her myself. Taught me everything she knew before then.” Vaughn said.
“Yes, regarding that. Vaughn, you know the immense danger your ability presents to all of necromancy. I’m just as interested in the details as any of us here, but surely you understand what we will have to do?” Councilor Woru said.
“I understand and I’d do the same in your position. But what if I told you the grand goal of necromancy is possible now?” Vaughn asked.
“Resurrection? Plenty have tried but we simply don’t know enough to even begin to attempt it.” Councilor Gurn said.
“Necromancy has been stagnant for generations. Even after being legalized there has been barely any advancement in the art. That’s because we reached the upper limit of what mortals can understand. That’s why I contacted Sumeria after death, and learned the truth. I have performed a successful resurrection that was admittedly not perfect but still possible. And I want to share it with you all.” Vaughn said.
The council was silent, shocked at what Vaughn was claiming. They demanded an explanation, so Vaughn told them all about what he did in Grict. Contacting Sumeria, the truth about souls, and how to perform a resurrection. He informed them of a flash drive he could see on the table nearby that had all of his research and documentation on it. The council was allowed to have it all.
“Why would you give away such powerful secrets to us?” Toren asked.
“Because Sumeria asked me to, it was not long before she died. Her necromancy is dangerous, but it does not deserve to die with me. What I propose is simple: let me work with you.” Vaughn said.
“Why in the world would we do that!?” Giji asked.
“Because I’m the only one alive at the moment who can work with these new discoveries! The main criteria to getting these powers is to fully accept death. Sumeria did when she got that diagnosis, I did when I believed I was going to fall to my death. This isn’t something you could easily replicate. Not to mention the sheer amount of death energy I absorbed. I’m your only current hope of figuring this out and finally advancing this stagnant practice.” Vaughn said.
“And how can we trust you?” Yorum asked.
“I turned myself in. I’m fully willing to do whatever you need. I’ll give up my criminal ways, burn all bridges, you can even fake my death and say I’m gone for good. I’ll get a new identity and everything, not like I’m giving up much anyway.” Vaughn said.
“And what’s to stop us from simply taking what we want from you by force?” Gurn asked.
“Because there is one person in this world I trust. They have a copy of everything on that drive. It will be out there and if they are given a reason, it gets released online. Then all of my secrets will be there for the public to see.” Vaughn said.
“That would practically destroy the laws keeping necromancy legal!” Woru said.
“I’m not trying to be your enemy, I genuinely do want to finally join the necromancer community. I didn’t want to have to make this threat, but working with criminals has shown me how such methods are sometimes needed. Accept my partnership and I’ll order for the copy to be destroyed later on. Take all the time you need to discuss it.” Vaughn said.
The council all looked at each other, unsure of what to say. They stood up and said that the terms of Vaughn's offer would be discussed in private. Until then, Vaughn was to be escorted back to his cell. The barriers came down as the councilors left and Vaughn was taken away. He hoped he had made the right move.
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“Alright lady, we’re here.” the captain said as the boat pulled up to a dock.
Yara stepped out of the boat’s cabin and looked at the familiar sight of the place she called home. There was a sizable port on the edge of the village, fishing was popular around there after all. Yara grabbed her luggage and thanked the captain and her associates for helping her get home. The captain then thanked Yara for the very generous tip she had given to their group. Once Yara and her belongings were off the boat, it sped away to confirm a job well done with her colleagues.
News of Meredith Gord’s grisly murder had been all over the news. Yara heard they could only identify the body through the security camera footage. Five dead, a good portion of that apartment and the one across from it damaged, and the killer managed to escape the city. Everyone was trying to solve this mystery and Yara made sure to leave them as little leads as possible.
They knew of the strange woman geomancer who uses crystals, but that only told them so much. None of them have an idea on her name, race, or even appearance aside from the straw hat and the mask. Masks were fairly common among magic users and the hat Yara wore was something anyone could find for sale in a souvenir shop. Yara made sure to ditch her bloodstained robes during the journey home, she had wrapped them around a brick and tossed them into a lake on the trip back. The only accessory she kept was her staff. Yara didn’t think she would need it anytime soon, keeping it tucked away in her home sounded like a good idea to her.
Queen Yanadeyis has already handed the compiled evidence against Clarita to a trusted member of the authorities. It was likely they hadn’t revealed the story yet because they were confirming what it revealed. All of Clarita’s goons probably don’t know that she’s dead considering how secretive she was. If word got out over the news, they’d probably destroy all the evidence they had and just bail. So until that finally gets released to the public, people will think a great woman was brutally murdered in her own home.
Yara walked down a dirt path in the woods near the town and found a sight she had been missing for a long while. Her small home nestled away and surrounded by nature. Sumai’s bike was parked out front, he was home. Yara had the keys to her home, the front door was probably unlocked too. Despite all of that, she knocked on the door. She heard him call from inside saying he’ll be there soon.
The door opened, Sumai Yanadeyis stared at the woman he loved. His wings twitched at the surprise as Yara too felt relieved to see him. Without words they embraced each other as tight as they could. The only thing keeping them from hugging longer than they did was the buzzing of mosquitoes, which made them both quickly move inside the house.
Yara left her luggage by the door and immediately collapsed on a couch before asking for a drink. Sumai quickly made his way into the kitchen to get her some water. Once he handed it to Yara, she lifted up her mask slightly and drank the whole glass. Sumai sat beside her as she put the drink down.
“So, how are you feeling?” Sumai asked.
“Like I settled an argument I had going on my whole life. I don’t feel different, just relieved it’s finally over.” Yara said.
“Yara, I’m glad this finally happened. You got some kind of closure from I assume performing a drawn out and slow murder?” Sumai asked.
“It wasn’t as long as I had wanted it to be. I didn’t even say a word, everything went quiet, and I just pummeled her until I felt like I had enough.” Yara said.
“You just did what you came there to do?” Sumai asked.
“Yeah. I met some interesting people along the way. Even took out a group of witch hunters.” Yara said.
“I saw that on the news, I had a feeling that it was you.” Sumai said.
“I even fought another successful experiment like me.” Yara said.
“What were they like?” Sumai asked.
“Someone who became what she wanted me to be in her half-baked plan for domination. I made sure to end him.” Yara said.
“Are you okay? You look tired?” Sumai asked.
“I think that’s twenty four years of anger finally subsiding…. Can we order from that place that does all-day breakfast? I’ve been craving a waffle or something.” Yara said.
“Absolutely. I’ll put in an order and let mother know you’ve come home safely.” Sumai said as he stood up.
Yara took off her mask and set it on a coffee table. For the first time in her life, she had no idea what to do with herself. Killing Clarita was always her goal but now that’s done. It would be a long road to recovery for her, at least now she could follow it without hesitation.
She wouldn’t be going anywhere anytime soon, with her currently being wanted by the government and all. The town was isolated enough to where she could wait for the heat to die down at least. It was during this time that Yara decided to start focusing on improving herself. Undoing as much damage done to her was the final piece of revenge Yara had against Clarita after all.