There are worse things than starving zombies.
Regalia
Gironde Mehisto was expecting my arrival. How the hell could he not expect me when he's a fucking necromancer?
The iron gates of the cemetery creaked open before me, and I walked with ominously slow steps all the way to the crypt. I entered and he was waiting for me.
"Welcome to my humble home, Shaytan," he bowed. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"
"Don't deflect," I demanded. "You know exactly why I am here."
A sly grin spread across the Necromancer's lips. Irritated, I plopped down in the armchair, glancing at him expectantly.
"Well, what would you like to know first?" he asked.
"Let's say, first of all, who and why is trying to kill me at all costs," I answered a little bit too amused for my situation, "Because I'm being hunted by a necromancer, probably one of your buddies."
"What makes you so sure it's not me?" he raised one of his pretty eyebrows.
Why is that? I could not have made an irrefutable argument in the necromancer's defence, but I felt sure that he was not my mysterious assailant.
"If you have plans for someone, it's not a wise decision to make an attempt on their life," I shrugged.
"You see your situation very clearly, despite your youth. Yes, it wasn't me who made the attempt on your life."
"And do you know who it was?" I inquired.
"Of course, I know him personally," he nodded, but hisusual cheerfulness was gone from his face and his movement, "A necromancer who always stood out from the rest."
I raised my eyebrows.
"He had principles, emotions, which we largely lack. Unusually, even after his rebirth, he retained his humanity," Giro pondered for a moment. "Do you have any idea why his emotions die when a necromancer is reborn?"
I shrugged. "So that emotions couldn't affect your decisions."
"Indeed," he nodded, "If we had emotions and felt pity or mercy, we would not be able to do the tasks assigned to us so perfectly. We live longer lives than any creature in this world, so we see a lot of death. And the soul would collapse if it had to watch endlessly as people we love pass away."
He was silent for a moment.
"He was different, we didn't notice it at first, but later it became striking. He was different from us. For days he would cry and sob because he couldn't bear the death of those he knew or liked. After a couple of years, he gave up our work and fled to the Mirrorworld, but that didn't solve the problem, it made it worse. He got it into his head that the Wraith had to be released one by one. Perhaps it was because the last person he liked was locked up there."
"And what's that got to do with me?" he asked.
"Well, he knows his fate," Gironde shrugged, "His success is not yet decided. It all depends on which side you take."
Gods, no! Not this! I'll pray three times a day if you leave me out of this mess!
"Can't I just stay out of it?" I asked, but I didn't think he would just agree to that either.
"Fate has noticed you, Shaytan," the necromancer began, "The moment you stood up to your father, you became a puppet on the board for good. You are now part of this. It's very hard to get out," he paused for a moment to think. "In any case, it's better to fight than to simply let the world get distroyed, isn't it?"
I had my own opinion about that, but I didn't say anything.
"And what do you expect me to do?" I interjected.
"I don't expect anything from you," he shook his head, "You could just do nothing and spend the rest of your time with the people you love. No one would blame you, and neither would I.'
I nodded and stood up."Then it's settled."
I started to leave, but before I could go out the door, Gironde Mehisto spoke again.
"Good luck!"
I stepped out and closed the door behind me. I drilled my fist into the crypt wall. My teeth gritted, I clenched my jaw so tight. Was Lordling the evil necromancer? That would explain a lot... After all, he said he'd once been from my world, but he was different from all the other Wraiths. Yet most importantly, it would answer the question of how he was able to pull me into his world, even if only spiritually. It was so obvious! So obvious! After all, it all added up! So why am I not able to accept this?
(...)
At home, Alex was waiting at the door.
"Where have you been?" he questioned angrily.
"I was just chased through town by two undead," I replied tiredly, and he covered his mouth.
I patted him on the shoulder and then, taking advantage of his shock, ran up the stairs and locked the door to my room. I was about to do something fatally insane. Seriously, I didn't even know myself how I could have come up with such a useless, reckless and failure-smelling idea. In any case, I was not known for letting my plans go, even if I myself knew how nonsensical they were.
So, I went to bed and concentrated on Lordling, trying to fall asleep. I suffered for five minutes, but nothing happened. I was just about to give up when darkness suddenly engulfed me.
I found myself on the balcony, with the unusual sensation of staring for too long into the distance standing in front of the railing. I blinked a few times, so the initial, sluggish heaviness of my consciousness soon vanished.
"Long time no see," I heard the familiar voice.
I spun around on my axis, finding myself face to face with Lordling. There was a smile at the corner of his lips, though I knew, I felt, that the gesture was fake.
"Just answer me one question honestly," I demanded, "Are you responsible for what is happening now?"
He nodded slowly, and I felt as if the rug had been pulled out from beneath my feet.
"If I hadn't created the damned regalia, the necromancer wouldn't have made such a mess," his voice was sombre, yet it gave me new strength.
"Did you get my message?"
I nodded. "You scared the hell out of me."
"I couldn't help it, the necromancer had put a spell on me, it took me a while to undo it," he grumbled.
"What regalia are we talking about?"
He was thinking for a moment. "Perhaps your friends will be interested and you might want to wake up before the wolf breaks down your door..."
He must have made up his mind, because he looked into my eyes again with his special gaze. "I will tell you everything in your world."
My eyes snapped open as if I hadn't slept a wink, even though I could still feel the weight of sleep on my limbs. I jumped out of bed and crept cautiously to the door, listening for a while and then slowly opening it in case Alex was waiting behind it with a pan and not necessarily with the idea of making pancakes.
Well, the coast was clear, but I could hear snippets of conversation coming from the kitchen. I hurried down the stairs and headed for the room in question. When I entered, I froze.
Alex was standing at the kitchen counter, Rolo standing beside him, also tense. He was comfortably seated at the table, feeling perfectly at home. He noticed my arrival immediately and looked up at me. A sly grin stretched his lips, and he was very pleased with my surprised expression.
"Well," he began in a soft voice, "now you know my name?"
I almost just breathed the one word.
"Aleshio!"
It was obvious that neither Alex nor Rolo understood the situation.
"But why didn't I recognize you before?" I asked, "Your eyes... You can't be mistaken!"
His sly grin widened. "What do you think a little magic is for? No one in this world knows who I really am. Well... now you do."
"Well, we'd be interested to know," Rolo interjected, before I could ask the mage any more questions.
"Aleshio," I began, considering how much Rolo was going to kill me after my explanation, "has a reputation as a wicked dark mage, and he is the ruler of the Wraith in the Mirrorworld."
Suddenly, I couldn't tell which piece of information would give Rolo a stroke first. Aleshio just smiled at the angry-frightened expression on the brat's face as Rolo's eyes darted between us. One moment he was bent on scratching my eyes out in anger, the next he wanted to run away.
"I hope you have a good explanation for all this," he hissed at last, but still looking as if he was going to strangle me the next moment.
In fact, I couldn't imagine what kept him from doing it. In any case, I couldn't decide whether he was really mad or just shocked close to madness, but one thing was certain: Rolo was not in his right mind. How could he possibly think that I had a satisfactory explanation for anything in this situation? Even I was in the phase of waiting for answers.
Alex showed no signs of any reaction, he must have blacked out when Aleshio appeared on the scene. In any case, the mage cleared his throat and finally spoke.
"Our situation is very complicated," he stated gravely, "A necromancer is preparing to merge the Mirrorworld with your world, which, needless to say, would be a failed experiment and would involve the destruction of both worlds. The ritual requires five regalia, once made by me and scattered throughout this dimension. The changes in both planes of existence indicate that two of the five have been found and united. We must prevent him from getting the other three."
"Why should we believe you?" hissed Rolo, "I don't trust you."
"You don't have to trust me," Aleshio shrugged, then poked his head at me, "Trust him!"
Alex finally seemed willing to make some intellectual contribution to the situation.
He looked deeply into my eyes. "Do you believe what he says?"
His voice sounded hard, I knew there was no room for uncertainty.
"Yes."
Alex nodded, and Rolo got his scorching look on his face, indignant. "Don't tell me, this is enough for you!"
The wolf shrugged. "I didn't smell a lie in the air."
Rolo didn't like it all, but since he was losing two to one, he just boiling angrily, grumbling a few words under his breath.
"What kind of regalia are we talking about?" I asked.
"Individually, they are simple amulets. The first can give the wearer control of the elementals, the second gives him great physical strength, the third brings good luck, the fourth is for protection against any curse or hex, and the fifth can be used to trap the magic of others. But the runes carved into their backs are key elements in a ritual that can open a doorway between dimensions."
"Well, all right," I nodded, "Good luck, then, because you're going to need it."
For perhaps the first time since we met, I managed to really surprise Aleshio. His mouth even hang open in surprise. "What?"
"I never promised to help you," I said, "I've faced a necromancer before, I know exactly how powerful he is. Don't expect me to rush to my death!"
"If you do nothing, you will still die!" he growled.
That did not seem to be the answer he expected.
"I don't know about you, but I'd rather die in front of the TV watching some idiot show than be beaten to shit," I shrugged.
Rolo's eyes twinkled approvingly, and Alex just frowned quietly. He was probably still decoding most of the information.
"I thought I could count on you," he said.
I noticed that his voice was a little shaky. That gave me a good feeling. The uncertainty of another always gives you confidence.
"You should have expected that you would need a strong argument to convince me," I shrugged.
"I have only one argument!" he snapped, and then opened his lips to continue.
Finally he faltered and closed them again. He didn't need to say anything, I knew exactly what he wanted.
"Alex, Rolo," I began, "Could you leave me alone with him for a moment?"
Rolo didn't like the idea, but Alex finally dragged him out with great difficulty. The kid sank his teeth into his hand, trying to claw the wolf's eyes out with inexplicable enthusiasm. I felt sorry for my best friend in advance for what more was he going to get from the kitten.
"Thank you," Aleshio said, and I just nodded.
"Won't you sit down?" he added, "This is going to be a bit long."
I finally took a seat and scanned Aleshio's face with careless attention.
"I have only taken three disciples," he explained, "You are the third. The second, well the second is still a famous magician, known as..."
"The Sorcerer Lord," I declared.
He raised his eyebrows. "How did you know?"
I shrugged. It was a simple guess.
"You know, Livius had a little brother. He was a special child when he was born, the world welcomed him and showered him with stars. He was an amazingly quick learner and enjoyed the sole attention of his parents, so Liv hated him, but loved him more than anything because he was the only one who really cared for him. In any case, a catastrophe soon happened that turned his world upside down: his brother was murdered." he explained, "Do you wonder who it was?" he asked, and I shrugged noot overly interested in this family drama, he continued unabated, "Ágota Rosenstein."
My eyes widened. The kindly Ágota Rosenstein, of whom everyone was singing praises?
"Ágota Rosenstein was not a bad person. But power makes a monster of even the gentlest soul," he said, "She was simply afraid of his power."
He was silent and lost in his memories. He did not seem to want to continue any time soon, and I thought that he might have forgotten my presence.
"What happened next?" I asked.
"Liv vowed revenge," he replied, "If they had not killed his brother, he might never have become such a powerful mage. After that, his life was filled with nothing but plotting revenge and practising magic. Then, when he felt the time had come, he went for her head. Of course, I knew that if he succeeded, and I was sure he would, the sons of the witch would not let him go. That's when I made the regalia, so that if it came to it, I could get my mad disciple out of his prison — but then I didn't have to use them."
"The Rosenstein twins have launched a war against us. And I knew that if they killed Livious, I would kill them, and then the other hunters would come for my head, and with my death the mages would turn against the hunters," he continued, "The vicious circle of revenge cannot be broken by death, there is only one way to do it, and that is sacrifice. That day I locked up Liv and took all his sins upon myself, I went to battle myself. As I had expected, there was no real fight, the twins knew they were no match for me, so they allied themselves with a necromancer who imprisoned me forever in the Mirrorworld."
"And what's that got to do with me?" my voice sounded cruelly cold in the light of what had been said.
"Shay, the last regalia is with Liv," he declared, "If he does not hand it over willingly, the necromancer will kill him."
"He's the Sorcerer Lord, he'll sort it out," I shrugged.
"Livious is indeed strong, but he has a fatal weakness, of which the enemy is fully aware," said Aleshio, "When he took the life of Ágota Rosenstein that rainy day, she put a blood curse on him: he cannot bear the touch of water, for it makes him weak."
I continued to stare unchanged at the fuchsia eyes, which were clouded with despair.
"I don't want him to die, Shay," Aleshio said again, "After what I've said, the only thing I have left is to ask you to help. Please help my foolish disciple!"
Aleshio merely remained silent and waited for my answer. The pieces of the story started to make a whole in my mind. The word regalia means crown jewel, crowning badge. Lordling... No, now Aleshio, who sat opposite me, was none other than the first ruler, the legendary king whose power was acknowledged by all creatures.
I wondered how to present that I would not help his stupid disciple and he should leave my apartment immediately without him cursing me to death.
"Why can't you help him?" I asked, "You have the power."
Aleshio pressed his lips together in one sharp line.
"I no longer belong in this world," he said, "If I go into battle myself, I may bring you an even greater disaster."
I didn't want to get involved, but I felt that if I said no, Aleshio would be crushed. Even the most powerful dark mages have their weaknesses. Aleshio had a student he loved and respected. He had caused his downfall, yet even as a prisoner he tried to protect him.
Yet, what surprised me most was that he never once did he remind me how many times he had helped, not demanded, merely asked.
"I'll do what I can," I grumbled, finally, reluctantly.
I was cursing myself. That bastard Necromancer knew I was going to help all along!
The look on Aleshio's face was one of relief and gratitude that made me want to kick him in the ankle. Well, I thought, it was time for Aleshio to leave my house, if he kept staring at me with such teary eyes. I told him that, and then I added that I would think things over and try to persuade my friends to help me, so he should do his own research.
At first he didn't want to stand up, but then he nodded. Eventually he started to move and I saw him out, just to make sure he didn't think of turning back on some pretext to spoil the air in my house.
When I opened the door, I saw a kid in front of me, staggering towards our door handle.
When he noticed me, a smile seemed to tug at his lips, but as soon as he saw the man at my side, the process was interrupted and all he could manage was a surprised, disbelieving groan. We stood still for moments, and then the kid spoke. He said only one word, but I knew the end had come.
"Master."