Gerald breathed the fresh sea air and almost choked. He'd been away from the sea for far too long, and it honestly felt like he was drinking the air around him. He looked around him, and the people and vampires around him were all lying down on the ground of the central plaza. He wanted to join them on the ground. His head was woozy from the mass teleportation, but he was pleased with the results.
The entire city of Portal and all of its people were here.
The northland's cold winds took him back to his years in Woodstand. Oh how he missed the place and the boring tedium of life that it had been now. He shook his head. If the town were lucky, they would have been able to show that they knew nothing about a Necromancer in their midst, and the Everseekers would have spared the town. (Not that he had much hope of that, but it was a hope nonetheless.) The Necromancer walked and climbed up the stairs to the wall of the city, taking his time and hoping, beyond hope, that he had gotten them to the correct destination.
The view from the wall improved his mood.
The wall was now standing and overlooking a steep cliff that fell a hundred meters into the churning sea below. The non-magi were the only ones not laying on the floor in shock or under magic deprivation. All at once, they began to cheer. Gerald didn't pay much attention to them at the moment, but instead began to walk around the wall, getting down to go around the gates, (he still wished he had proper gates for this city) and back up to check on the surroundings. On three sides, there was the cliffside. Only those with magic could attack that way, and even then not by simply teleporting. (Their magics wouldn't be able to form the spells in time before they were a new shade of red on the rocks below.) The city also seemed to be slanted down the hill, with the plaza where the town hall was towards the top of the hill. The lands to the North looked pale and bleak, full of Vampiric Corruption, but it was still an open and wonderful sight. The only gate that would still work for the city would have to be upgraded, as it was the one at the Southwest corridor, closest to the old slums. Gerald hated walking past that, but the non-magi who saw him walking with the cape flapping in the cold breeze cheered him and shouted their thanks and appreciation. Some were already playing songs on their lyres and lutes, and at least one person was playing on a flute a merry tune. A girl was singing an old hymn that Gerald had only heard once before and it gave him hope:
"For now we're free from bond and whore, That seeks to wrong the ones before. And now we stand on our first days, to smile and grow, and mend our ways. Oh that we, our souls delight, may gods and men our hearts unite. For now the gods, our plight have seen, The Wizard, Witch, and all between. Praise all who smile on our fair lands, and praise to those without idle hands…"
It was an ancient praising hymn to Dreiss, and one that the Necromancer hadn't planned on ever hearing again. The land to the southwest sector looked good and fertile, with long grasses and a forest that appeared to be on the horizon.
He smiled and walked along the wall, relishing the salty sea below. It would be needed for the winter. 'I hope the people here like fish.' He thought. 'Because that's going to be about all we have to eat until the first crops are harvested.'
As he finished his walk around the moonlit city, the other people in the plaza were beginning to wake, or get some measure of their strength back. The darkness was beginning to break, and they would need to move the Vampires back into the buildings long before the break of day. He got down from the wall, and was immediately greeted by several non-magi who thanked him. (One pledged his daughters to him forever if he wanted.) Gerald smiled and thanked them for their faith in him, but he counted as he replied. The entirety of the non-magi population was now close to the plaza (or so he felt) and he got a count. Three hundred and forty-two souls. He had done all of that for less than half a thousand men, women, and children. He thought of the innumerable horde of Zombies, Skeletons (including the commanders), and Vampires who had just given their lives for him and them.
He mourned them, in his own way. They were his, and he was their Master. It struck him as odd, as he had never really liked the title before. It brought to mind the ownership of another human being, and that was something that he didn't like. (It went against the teachings of Jasmine) 'Not that I'm exactly following them right now.' He thought, thinking of the slave pact between himself and Lydia. He smiled as the absurdity of his situation connected with him. Here he was, running from the Everseekers again, but this time with a slave, a Vampress, and several hundred non-magi in tow. 'An entire town!" He thought, chuckling at the absurdity that he had just witnessed. Honestly, it was a miracle that the magic had adapted the ground for the town and fixed the foundations so that the buildings didn't fall over immediately. It was a good spell, but one that Gerald didn't want to use that often. The sea sprayed some cold moist air into his face, and he just breathed it in. While the Necromancer didn't mind the cold, he didn't exactly like the moistness of the sea. The darker clouds, mostly hidden by the night's darkness, also made him feel very tired. The sound of thunder in the distance also reminded him that he needed to get everyone prepared and indoors.
A town meeting would have to be set up, and a town watch set up.
The Vampires would need to be sent to their homes, and the non-magi would need to decide how they wanted to run their city from now on. He sighed, letting all of the items come over his brain at once. He then smiled and let them all go. "I'm tired." He muttered to himself. The cold breeze made him shiver with the wet cold, and he finally walked down and back to the house that he was now growing accustomed to. He walked in the door, and realized just how hungry he really was. He poured himself a glass of wine ('Looks like good stuff') and then promptly looked around the room for something to eat. Unfortunately, it was a Druid's house, and he found only vegetables and a few rotting fruits laying around. He ate what he could find ('It's better than nothing.') And just as he was finishing the last bit of food in the house, the door opened.
"Hello Lydia."
"Gerald." Lydia responded. Her demeanor was quite improved, but it was clear that the last few days were still haunting her. "Do you have time for… for some questions?"
He smiled. "I'm quite happy to answer them, but I think you probably need a nap or something. Maybe a snack?"
"If I go get some food, will you answer my questions?" She asked, rolling her eyes.
"Um… sure." He responded, smiling still, but now curious.
"I'll be right back. Hermina, you can go inside." Gerald nodded as the Vampress entered.
"Hello Hermina."
"I'm… very thirsty." She stated, looking at the man in front of her.
"You want to suck my blood?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. She looked pleadingly at him, and he sighed. "You can feel my limits better than I can." He stated.
"Master… Gerald… thank you." She whispered. She moved behind him and then she did something that he wasn't expecting. She kissed his neck, giving it a light suck (and sending a small shiver of pleasure down his spine), and then what felt like a small nibble on the back of his neck. Then she began to drink, slowly and carefully. He knew this because he had previously been bitten by other vampires and they were nowhere near as courteous.
Lydia soon after walked in. "Um… if you two need a minute, I can come back." She said, looking away.
"No, I think she's almost fed, aren't you?"
The sucking stopped and Hermina looked slightly shocked at seeing Lydia there. "Yes, Master." She lingered with her lips longer on his neck than they needed to, and then pulled away entirely. (Regretting pulling away all the while.) Lydia shot Hermina a look as Hermina dabbed at her chin with a handkerchief that she produced from her blouse.
"Well Lydia? What is it? I have a lot to do before morning."
"I'll make it quick then." She placed her food on the table, a mixture of lettuce, nuts, and other vegetables, and ate as she talked (though not with her mouth full) "How can you use the different types of magic?"
Gerald smiled at the Druidess. "A bit of a naive question, don't you think?" The silence that followed gave him the answer he needed. "Seems the Wizard's doctrine runs deep in the world. Oh well." He leaned forward and reached into his pocket as he was speaking. "You see, Lydia. Magic is not so much the six different branches as it is a primordial connection with magic inside of all of us. Even those without manifested powers, like Rory or the others in this town, have their own connection. Ah…" He quickly pulled out a piece of parchment and then a quill and ink from his bag. "You see. Imagine this circle is the source of all magic." He drew a circle in the middle of the page. "And this is the six races." He drew six circles around the outside of the magic. "Please notice that each of the different magics touch each other. Now, what are the different races connected to?"
Lydia swallowed and responded, "The magic. You said that earlier."
"Yes I did. It was for a good reason too, my girl." He smiled at her quick uptake, and continued. "You see. Is the magic partitioned?"
"Um… No." Lydia said, looking at it. "It's all one big whole."
"Exactly. The same is true for all magic." She looked at him quizzically, so he flipped the parchment over. "Look, Here is how the Wizards teach magic, am I still correct?" He drew the large circle but in this case, he drew five large cones that filled a large portion of the circle, leaving a portion untouched. Of these, he drew a smaller line closer to the surface of the outside of the circle near the Witches' area, one just below that for the Gin and Druids, One that went further down for the Sorcerers, and the Wizard's went all the way to the core of the circle and circled it, delving into some of the other areas. "Isn't this correct? Or have they simplified it down so that they just touch the core? They'll often do that for the other races."
"It was simplified when I looked at it." Lydia said, looking at it.
"Well, that's a load of dung." He smiled at her and flipped it back around. "Here is how it, more accurately. At least, to our limited understanding." He smiled, turning his full potential on the woman in front of him. "Lydia, you have been lied to for most of your life. Now, before you get defensive," She was about to interject but he beat her to the punch, "I'm not saying that your family, friends, and tutors didn't do their best. It's just that they didn't have accurate information either. It would be more accurate to say that the Wizards have been lying to you your entire life. You have the capacity to be a Gin, a Druidess, a Witch, and (yes) even a... dead raiser if you so desire."
"Then why the breakup of the races in the first place?"
At this, Gerald shrugged and chuckled. "I don't know. I have my theories, but they could be wrong. Though I personally don't doubt them. Would you care for them?" At a nod, the Necromancer sat straighter in his chair. "You see, I believe that back at the founding of the world, back when the gods and goddesses were founding our lands and creating the branches of magic, that they gave each of us an… innate ability to use one of the branches. Back in those days, the gods and humans got along and they communicated in such ways as we could only dream of. However, jealousy grew between the major users of magic. Some claimed that their form was the best, or most powerful, or whatever. Silly pathetic reasoning in my view. Anyways… It is my belief that it is then that the gods withdrew themselves after the first murder was committed."
"By why six?"
"Because there are Seven major gods of our world." Gerald replied with a widening smile. "Geez is a destroyer and would have no part in the creation of anything except malice and contention, and so he didn't create a group that fulfilled his purposes, while the others did."
Lydia pondered for several seconds. It made a lot more sense than what the Wizards had taught about the nature of the gods. "You said that the gods talked to you once." Lydia stated. He nodded. "What did they tell you?"
"I…" He paused, choosing his words so as to avoid lying. "I want to tell you, and the rest of the world, but I should not yet."
"Sounds like a way to weasel out of telling me."
"That's because I shouldn't tell you." Gerald responded, his face growing more serious. "I am only allowed to talk to three people about it, and I'm not sure about the two of you." he turned and nodded to Hermina. "It's not a trust thing, please believe me on that."
"Of course. After all," Lydia shot him a look. "You can't lie."
The Necromancer smiled wide and with a fatherly pride. "About time that lesson sank home." He stood. "I need to get going. If you would like to relearn what the Wizards have lied to your people about, and weakened your connection to magic as a result, do not hesitate to ask." With that, Gerald walked out of the house, leaving Hermina and Lydia in the room alone. Gerald wished that he would have been able to go to sleep, but he was certain that his racing mind would keep him awake anyways. "There's just so much to do…"