The Necromancer

Chapter 6, Part 1

Lamneras led the way out of the city, down a road of crumbling stones that looked like it had been there since the beginning of time. The terrain grew rockier and rougher as our path meandered through the low hills that hugged the shore until we found ourselves standing atop jagged cliffs overlooking a slate-grey sea. We'd gone through three endurance potions to get here, and I was surprised to see the sun (though dulled by fog) directly overhead when we finally came to a stop. Hadn't it just risen when we left Bermatora?

"Well," Lamneras huffed, a bit out of breath despite his potions, "Here we are! What do you think?"

Skip and I joined him at the edge of the cliffs to see what he was gesturing at. Just peeking out of the crashing waves, a rocky peninsula jutted out into the sea. It seemed like the most inhospitable place in the world to ever build something, but I found myself gazing at a vast array of ruins half-eaten by green shrubbery and a few windblown trees. The entire stone ledge over the sea was covered in a criss-crossing pattern of straight lines that had once been walls, with the odd circular column or so jutting upwards every dozen feet or so.

"The ruins of Mashasca Abbey," Lamneras explained. He took a careful, deliberate step onto a small niche carved into the rock. It was a staircase leading down that seemed designed to lead to unwanted visitors breaking their necks. The ocean spray and thin carpet of moss over everything wasn't making it much easier. Skip followed him, bounding down the stairs quickly and gracefully without even a moment's hesitation. Not wanting to look bad in front of her, I gingerly took the first step down, clutching the rock wall with my entire body like a fat starfish.

"It was originally built by a Pyromancer cult a few hundred years ago!" Lamneras narrated from the base of the stairs. His voice was barely audible over the din of the crashing waves. "They built it all with stone and glass to prevent any nasty accidents, and they wanted to be away from civilization so that they could test the very limits of fire manipulation." Some of this sounded a bit familiar from school; Pyromancy had been one of my favorite subjects. Mostly because few Necromancers (including Amcerlizar) ever chose to take it. Most of my classmates had been Mage trainees, and there were far more cute girls learning that school of magic. "But unfortunately for them, they succeeded in creating an immensely powerful fire spell." 

As I reached the bottom staircase, I saw what he meant: a thick block of what looked like black marble rested nearby. Half of it was neatly cut into a square... and the other half looked like a melted candle, with blobs of hardened stone trailing down the sides. "There were no survivors," Lamneras explained, "So no one knows exactly what happens. But the records say that the explosions were even visible all the way from Bermatora, and that the Abbey burned for a week straight, even with all the waves drenching it. And best of all, even the bones of the monks were incinerated, so it's useless to Necromancers."

Skip whistled appreciatively and began to wander through a nearby trench that had presumably been a hallway at some point. "And the Summoning Stone?" I asked Lamneras. That was, after all, kind of the one critical thing we needed.

"Right through here," he said, ducking behind a crumbling wall. "These things are built to last, you know. It's got some scorch marks on the runes, but it should still do the trick! Lord Berman has had guests use this portal before, even though we've got one in the city. It's usually for his in-laws." Lamneras smirked. "I think he keeps hoping that his mother-in-law will slip and fall on the rocks, though they've gotten smart enough to start bringing a ramp to avoid those stairs."

We entered the remains of a grand room. The columns here soared dozens of meters overhead in a circular pattern, suggesting that there must have been a beautiful dome here at one time. In the center, rubble had been swept aside to reveal the grey stone of the Summoning Pedestal, large enough for even Mog to use.

"Well?" Lamneras asked. "Does this work?"

Skip and I looked at each other and exchanged shrugs. Secluded, places for us to hide, no bodies for Amcerlizar to suddenly resurrect and bring to his aid.... what more could we ask for?

"Looks good," I told him.

"You ready to go to the Academy to get his incantation?"

Again, we traded glances. How had it happened so fast? The plan always seemed like this far-off thing that we'd do one day and now... well, depending on how long things would take at the Academy, we could be summoning Amcerlizar either tonight or tomorrow! The butterflies in my stomach were going wild.

Skip grinned. "Yeah, I'm ready. Let's do this."

My heart pounded. We were really doing it. By this time tomorrow, I'd be the Undead Heir. I'd take my rightful place on the throne over Amcerlizar's corpse. Maybe I'd reanimate him and make him dance around a bit for good measure. And I'd show all of those other assholes who had looked down on me. And Skip... well, she'd be off with her husband, I suppose. Can't win 'em all.

"Step onto the stone," Lamneras directed. He handed me a slip of paper with the Mashasca Abbey incantation, which we'd need to get back.

"While we're gone," Skip asked as she made her way to the center of the Summoning Pedestal. "Do you mind getting word to Mog to come meet us here?"

She drew a quick map of the forest (from memory, which was pretty damn impressive) and handed it to Lamneras. He studied the map quickly and nodded. "I know the spot. It's a fairly long trip... you might beat us back."

I laughed as I joined Skip in the center of the stone. "You'd be surprised at how fast Mog can go," I warned him. 

He grinned back. "Well, all right. Guess we'll see you then. Now, stand close together!" he waved his hands like he could push us closer with the air. "And you'll need to hold hands for it to work."

Just as I opened my mouth to protest, Skip took my hand, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. Lamneras winked at me with a roguish grin. He knew that holding hands wasn't required to use a Summoning Pedestal. I did my best to scowl at him, but my smile peeked through anyway.

He read the pattern of runes engraved on the lip of the stone circle, and Skip's hand squeezed mine tight. The runes began to glow a fierce, vivid blue, and the stone felt like it was vibrating beneath my feet. Skip looked at me with just a hint of fear in her eyes, and I gave her a reassuring smile and squeezed her hand back. And then the ruins of Mashasca Abbey faded into a fine mist.

===================================

I hope you liked it! If so, remember to vote on the chapter and follow me for more updates!