Over the following weeks, Asher introduced Senani and Necrideon to Neve, Fitz, and Flint.
The groups quickly merged with Asher, Senani and Flint often discussing melee combat, and Neve, Necrideon and Fitz discussing many aspects of magic.
While the groups shared many things, Asher refused to teach Senani the combat skills his mother had passed to him.
With Necrideon, Neve, and Fitz things were significantly different as they freely shared knowledge. One had simply to ask to achieve an answer.
This led to Necrideon having a significant understanding of the way crystals worked on Asher's home world, the planet they knew as Pax.
The groups continued to learn from one another and cohabitate the area in peace for the following 6 months.
The more Necrideon learned, the more certain he was that the crystals Senani's sword and shield were forged from came from Pax.
Eventually, Necrideon convince Senani to allow Flint to admire the craftsmanship of the pieces.
Flint not only confirmed Necrideon's statement, but also revealed that the sword and shield were crafted by dwarven hands, though he could not verify which tribe had crafted them.
From this revelation, Necrideon hypothesized that Skammlauss and Hadorix must have ventured to Pax at some point in the distant future.
Necrideon assumed they had used a method like that Asher and his group had used.
Unfortunately, the group remained unwilling to share how they had travelled between planets.
This was the only knowledge, Neve refused to share. She simply stated they had utilized magic far beyond Necrideon's means.
Neve's statement along with Asher's refusal to train Senani led to some tension between the groups.
Over the next 6 months Asher's group spent less and less time within the castle.
This was just as well as Senani and his group spent far more time absorbing resources from their raids on the Hukrat's.
By this point, Necrideon had been allowed to travel anywhere he desired. Senani trusted him completely and allowed him use of the soul stones in whatever manner he saw fit.
Necrideon appreciated the trust Senani extended him, yet he was quite unwilling to travel into the settlement. He did not desire to scare the humans of the group.
1 year and 2 months after Asher's group had arrived, Senani found himself leading what he felt was a rather large army.
They now had 76 minor nobles, 3 major nobles, 250 trained guards, and 500 semi-trained and armed peasants.
Senani had recently begun to feel that they could directly confront the Hukrat's.
As his soldiers began to prepare for war, Luna finally returned from her outing to the peasant villages desperately seeking out Senani.
Senani was elated by her return. As she had left prior to Asher's arrival, he had long thought she would never return.
When Luna saw Senani across the yard, she quickly ran to him, desperate for his embrace.
The couple hugged long and hard as Luna convinced Senani to take her to the castle entrance for a bit of privacy.
Now that they were alone, Luna embraced Senani once again, desperately seeking his mouth with her own.
Luna savored the taste of his lips as she removed the hidden dagger from her sleeve and viciously plunged it through the top of his spine and though the front of his throat.
Senani didn't even have time to register what had occurred before the light dimmed from his eyes and Luna lovingly lowered his body to the ground.
Necrideon always monitored Senani as he travelled throughout the castle. Once he detected Senani's life force begin to fade, he swiftly moved to Senani's side.
As Necrideon arrived, he examined the situation with a glance.
Using the blood now flowing from Senani's wound, he crystallized the pool of Senani's blood, continuing to pull it from Senani's body and form it around Luna.
Now fully encased in crystallized blood, Luna could no longer move or breathe as she became trapped within a statue.
Necrideon cradled Senani's body in his arms and quickly moved him into the throne room.
Necrideon then returned to gather the statue of Luna.
As Necrideon began carrying the newly formed statue of Luna, screams could be heard from the gate.
The Hukrat's were now attacking the base in force.
Maximus and his forces had already been preparing for war. They ran in to beat back the soldiers now coming in against them.
The swordsmanship of Maximus was without equal in the human realm.
Yet as he swung his sword, he found himself unable to contact the flesh of those that stood before him.
With a godlike invulnerability, the Hukrat's quickly slew those around Maximus.
Maximus swung his sword left and right with all his might, carefully parrying with his sword and using his mighty shield to block each and every blow that came his way from the 3 Hukrat's that had surrounded him.
Yet defending is simply not enough to win in a war.
The Hukrat's began to surround Maximus, clearly realizing the threat he presented.
As they surrounded him, they began to pummel him with their maces, completely ignoring the troops that had surrounded them in their attempt to free Maximus.
As Maximus found himself being beaten into the ground, he only regretted that he would be unable to defend Senani.
Maximus continued to fight with every ounce of strength within him. It wasn't until every spot of life disappeared from his eyes that the Hukrat's attention was allowed to waver.
Maximus's death was a huge blow to the morale of the forces within the settlement.
Yet they continued to fight valiantly.
Unfortunately, even with the numbers they possessed, Senani's forces were unable to so much as breach the shield that covered a single Hukrat.
The Hukrat's crushed them as an elephant would crush an ant.
Within the hour, each and every person within the settlement had been slain.
The Hukrat's then began to loot the buildings within the settlement, though they did not dare go near the castle.
The Hukrat's were rather aware of what this castle had been, and they feared the home of the templars.
In fact, they had long known where the Templars base had been, they simply did not dare to venture near it.
It was only due to the constant attacks from Senani and his group that they ventured here now.
Of course, since they were here now, they were quite content to merely loot the headquarters of the settlement. Within it, they hoped to retrieve some of their lost resources.
Within it, they found many books on blood magic, as well as the black robes Senani had found within the jail. The Hukrat's felt this far exceeded the value of all they had lost. These things were priceless.
With it being the largest building by far, and books on blood magic being announced, more and more of their number entered to help with the raid on the headquarters.
This was clearly the largest treasure trove within the settlement.
The Hukrat's loaded up everything they found, including the kitchen utensils that had originally been within the kitchen before the building had been relocated.
They then merrily sought to exit the building only to run straight into an invisible wall.
You see, Senani had anticipated that an attack might occur. As such, he had enlarged the blood rune square to encompass the entire building. No blood magic would be able to pass that barrier, they would be trapped for all eternity.
Necrideon had taught Senani well. With his shield it mattered not whether he utilized blood magic, he could come and go as he pleased.
Senani's plans had ultimately failed though as he had planned for his people to flee into the castle and down into the tunnels Asher and his people now called home.
Senani felt that if they retreated to Asher, he would have no choice but to aid them and slay the Hukrat's before his people were slain by them.
Unfortunately, this would not come to pass as Senani had severely underestimated the strength of his enemy.
Seeing half the hundred Hukrat's that had attacked the settlement were now trapped within the headquarters, the remainder attempted to flee this accursed place.
Unfortunately for them, Senani had placed blood runes across the entrance to the settlement as well. They were able to enter freely, but now they could not leave.
Necrideon shut and barred the doors to the castle. He knew the Hukrat's would be unable to leave the settlement, and it had become evident rather quickly that none within the settlement would survive.
In his mind, Luna had thoroughly arranged the slaughter of them all.
Necrideon carefully carried Luna in her new statue form down to the dungeon and placed her within the cell he himself had occupied when he was awakened within the castle.
Completely lost in thought, he returned to the throne room.
Once there he reached down to Senani's throat while praying with every fiber of his being that he had down as requested.
Fortunately, Senani had listened to Necrideon.
Around his neck resided the necklace Senani had removed from the first Hukrat he slew.
It now shined rather brightly with the soul of Senani stored within.
Necrideon had bound the necklace to Senani so that if he fell in battle he would not be fully lost.
This was both good and bad, as Senani was no lich.
Therefore, he had not created a phylactery to use for regeneration.
Further, Senani had no real magical power. While his soul remained, and his body had been salvaged, it would require an immense amount of external power to revive him.
IF revival were even possible.
In his extremely long life, this was something that even Necrideon had never seen attempted.
For the first time in more years than Necrideon could count, he felt powerless.
Reviving Senani was an impossible task.
Yet Necrideon felt he had to try.
The Templar and all they had represented, could not die this way. Yet they clearly had with Senani. As had the family line of Hadorix.
Senani could not die this way. Yet here he lay.
Necrideon encased Senani's corpse within a blood crystal shell to prevent deterioration and began to study his tomes as he awaited Asher and Neves return.
Necrideon wondered how Asher would take Senani's passing. Would the great beast enter a fit of rage? He had grown rather fond of Senani after all.
Would Asher blame himself?
Would Neve offer her help and guidance?
Had a resurrection ever been performed in Pax?
If so, this would prove far simpler than it clearly would be on Earth.
These questions and o so many more spun round and round within Necrideon's mind as he attempted to study.
Yet the Lich did not lack in patience.
After all what was a few weeks to one that had lived thousands of years?