A loud repeated knock beat against the rotten wood of Narni's home. "What do you think that is, the trees?" Narni asked her worm companions as they slithered and crawled through the broth she was making.
"Do you think its someone?" Plucking the fat worms from the food she wiped her hands on her long black dress as she approached the door.
"Hello?" Narni asked looking outside, no one was visible to her, so she figured it must have been the long dead trees knocking against the door.
She took more than a few moments to enjoy the amazing weather she was having, lighting cracked through the sky as wind howled and played along the thrashing rain, the beautiful smell of the dirt being disturbed filled her nostrils with pleasure as she went to close the door.
"I'm so sorry!" A man said putting his foot in the door preventing Narni from closing it. "Hello?" Narni cocked her head allowing the man to burst through the door.
His body was soaking from head to toe and his clothes were covered in mud. "I didn't think anyone lived here, but when i smelt the cooking, i couldn't resist" Wiping the rain from his face the boy shook his head like a wet dog.
"Please, take a seat." Narni said her soft voice sounded insignificant to this mans. His arms were strong and body was that of a work horse, but he was no warrior. "Are you a stagecoach driver?" she asked fetching a wooden bowl and emptying the worm occupants onto the ground.
"Actually, yes I am, how did you guess that?" He asked accepting the bowl of food hungrily.
"Your clothes, the red and black usually the drivers don't come up so far, did something happen?" Narni asked brushing the strands of thick black hair away from her face.
"Yes...its getting harder for me to remember, but there was something on the road?" The coach driver rubbed his head as he gratefully devoured the broth.
Narni wondered if it was one of her friends, often warriors and hunters came to the lands of Amarnth to search for treasures and kill her friends, she didn't mind though her friends could never really die.
"How are finding the food?" Narni asked as a fat brain worm slid into the mans mouth.
"Its really good! can I have some more?" He said coughing lightly as he smiled handing the bowl back to her. "Of course" Narni smiled as a worm crawled out from the moistness of her mouth.
Narni knew that a second helping wouldn't be required, the brain worms acted fast, but this man was a little stronger than most, she sat back by her sink and watched as he struggled.
Her grabbed and tore at his own skin, peeling from his bones large chunks of flesh, Narni wanted nothing more than to comfort him, to tell him that everything will be okay, but she knew better now as many had tried to kill or harm her as the worms feasted upon their bodies.
Walking over to the now still body, Narni placed her hands over the mans opened eyes, allowing the power invested in her by the worms and her family his body began to shake and writhe until he was brought back to life.
"Shh...you are home now." Narni pulled the groaning mans head into her chest stroking his head of hair. "Come on, lets get you down stairs"
Narni escorted her new brother down the stairs, her home was built with a little help from her family just above the large dungeon of Amaranth, usually the place was filled with would adventurers, but something was different, this young man was her first guest in a few weeks.
Hundreds of worm ridden corpses marched around the large complex, some still understood the basics of how to wield swords, whilst other simply groaned and hungered for flesh.
"Hello everyone!" Narni smiled happily at the horde, their attention straight to her and her newly created brother. "Play nice with him." She said watching as the other members rubbed their hands against his skin and soon welcomed him into the horde.
Taking her cloak and lantern Narni exited her home and took a walk down the path. Family members shambled around the forgotten graveyards and homes, some repeated daily tasks constantly, her recently captured blacksmith was a prize, he was busy forging armor and weapons for those with the capacity to wield them, but they were comical at best and they made her laugh.
Narni soon came across the overturned coach, her lantern light exposing the likely cause, but the lack of bodies or even her family was surprising.
"We got her!" A arrow struck deep into her chest, it didn't hurt but it was awfully annoying. Narni looked at her would be attacked, a man dressed in a long robe and hood was hiding on the top.
Whistling Narni moved away from the carriage as a man dressed in radiant silver armored emerged, he must have been using some kind of magic to mask himself. "I wonder if you could still do that dead?" Narni asked as a pack of dogs to her location heralding their coming with mouth frothing howls.
The archer above was the first to go, his limbs being torn apart by the pack of dogs, however the warrior charged at Narni, his sword glowing bright blue as flames smouldered at his feet. "By the power of Varos I will strike you down!"
His summoning of the deity were useless as none had more power in Amarnth than the worm, raising her hand to protect herself Narni moved a bone at lighting speed toward the mans skull, instantly piercing it as he fell on his face.
Narni hated using her powers, as it often meant that the bodies couldn't be brought back, and though the knight would have made and excellent addition to the family, she would have to feed his corpse to the horde.
It was a rather fortunate happenstance however, as upon entering the crypt, the family members had all but torn the meat from the new addition bones. Without muscle of tendons to move itself, the body simply wasted away into a permanent death. It brought her sadness to see a family member die... but she was happy that they had eaten.
Having removed a scroll of some sort from the dead knight and with her family happily feasting, Narni took the liberty of reading what was upon it, the worms seemed eager as well, the smartest ones taking purchase on her shoulder.
"Sir Garot, you are hereby charged with the purging of the Amarnth with, also known as the Empress of worms, failure to bring her head to the academy of Fiedal will result in your immediate expulsion." Reading the scroll Narni removed the arrow from her chest, and her body quickly went to healing.
"What does the academy want with us?" A little worm asked adjusting his reading glasses. "I don't know, but maybe we should find out?" Narni had never left the city, but hearing the news made her excitable, and perhaps maybe it was time to search further for new family members.