The Necromancer

Chapter 1, Part 1

Bugles sounded somewhere just over that last ridge. I'd gotten a bit of a headstart on them, but they had horses. And spells. And magical armor for infinite stamina. And an army of men. And a mountain of gold. It was only a matter of time until they caught up. 

 I'd killed Sir Athaelwas, and they were out for blood. He was a skilled swordsman and tactitian, the head of the province's Paladin order, and a high ranking leader in the entire organization. And all that was left of him was a wet pile of ashes left in the street from where my magical Ruby had disintegrated him. Ok, well, not my Ruby per se: apparently it belonged to my skeleton minion, Lirk. It wouldn't so much as give me a tingle of magical energy when my life was threatened, but as soon as someone drew a sword on Lirk... poof! Well, Lirk's bones were now tucked away in my bag, and I was out of supplies that I needed to resurrect him. So the gem was pretty much useless to me right now unless I could use it to bribe my way out of a grisly death. Not likely, though. They'd just kill me, then take the necklace.  

I hurried down the last hill, nearly tripping over some loose stones that could have sent me tumbling to the bottom. My feet were so tired that they didn't even care anymore; rolling down on the rocks would have been a welcome break from all of this running. Who cares if it ended up breaking my back? 

Hooves pounded stone in the distance, and I thought I heard the whinnying and neighing of the excited horses. The bugles rang out once again, echoing through the rolling hills. They couldn't be more than a few minutes' ride away by now. The end was so close. I turned to look over my shoulder as I staggered forward, expecting to see the Paladin's orange and white banners cresting the hilltop soon. I'd want to see the end coming, at least.

I was so distracted by my impending death that I plowed right into another traveler who I swear hadn't been there just a minute ago. She must have just stepped out of the forest, silent as a cat. The impact toppled me into some sort of ditch by the side of the road, filled with some of the filthiest water I'd ever seen. Perfect. What a dignified way to die: covered in a wide assortment of animal droppings. 

"Hey," the traveler called out from the roadway. She hadn't even staggered or stumbled; she just danced out of the way as I blundered by, then came over to the ditch to berate me.  "Watch where you're going, pal!" She wore a long green cloak streaked with greens and browns, and a hood covered most of her head except for a few dark curls peeking out the sides. 

I floundered around in the muck for a while before managing to heave myself back onto the road.  "Sorry," I managed to gasp. "So sorry. Just... in a hurry," I told her. Bugles sounded again even louder, and my head snapped around to make sure that the Paladins weren't already over the last hill. 

"Ah," the traveler commented. "So that's why you're in such a hurry."

I was too tired to think up any excuse. Not that it really mattered. I dragged myself to my feet, brushed off as much of the mud and straw and poop as I could, and nodded. "Yes. Now, I really must be going, unless you care to have my blood splattered all over that nice cloak of yours."

"Can't say that I do," she answered, matching my pace and walking behind me. "But if I could just suggest: why don't you just hide in the forest?" She gestured to the lush green wall of evergreens on the right-hand side of the road that stretched from here all the way till the mountains. "They'll never find you if you go deep enough. The Paladins don't care enough to chase petty crooks through the woods; there are some pretty scare things in the deep forest."

I gave a wry chuckle. "Petty crooks. Good one." 

She cocked her head at me and grinned. Her teeth were perfectly white, contrasting with the dark skin made even darker by the hood covering up her features. "Well, well!" she mocked, "have a look at the master thief in all his glory, then!" She gestured towards the droppings that still adorned most of my cloak. 

The bugles called for me again. We both turned to look, and there it was: an orange banner swimming over the top of the hill. The Paladins had come. 

"Well, it was nice to meet you, erm... whatever your name is," I told the girl. "You might not want to stick around for this part. It could get a little... gory."

She sized me up one last time, then rolled her eyes. "Stop being a twit and follow me." She ducked into the trees in a flash, and somehow blended in with the foliage.

I hesitated for just a moment, then gave a quick shrug. What have I got to lose? I took a few precarious steps into the woods, but the girl seemed to blend with the shadows more and more with every step. I looked away for just a second as a bird took flight, and when I turned back, there was no sign of her. I'd only gotten about 20 meters into the forest, hardly enough to hide. Well, that was a short-lived bit of hope. Just what I needed. Through the trees, I watched the stream of knights ride down the hill. They were able to track me without hounds or anything, just using one of those damned Seeker spells. I didn't know exactly how it worked; Necromancers and Paladins didn't exactly get together and swap recipes very often. 

"Well, are you coming?" her voice asked, right in my ear. I jumped with fright, not realizing anyone was there. She had somehow materialized again out of thin air right beside me. I hadn't even heard her footsteps. 

"How do you keep doing that?" I asked, stumbling back against a mossy log in shock.

The mystery girl grabbed my hand and pulled me deeper into the forest. "I'll show you later. For now, we need to get back to my camp."

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