Necromancer For Hire- Arc 8

Arc 8, Chapter 17

The Sinner

Morena drifted past Victor, touching her fingers to an ornate, hanging censer. Blue flames licked at the end of several incense sticks, a fragrant smoke filling the air. The strong scent of lilac hit Victor’s nose, the smell almost relaxing to him. He settled in his chair, watching Morena sit across from him.

“Death mages have a rich history, passed down from parent to child for centuries. Ideally, you should be in an ancestrally death magic family, but since that's obviously not the case, I'll have to fill you in.”

“Victor, do you know of the most powerful Überdragon?”

“Life, correct?” Victor said, keeping his eyes on the table. I've met him, he added mentally.

“Keep going.”

“There's also Death, of course, but he's not here anymore. He hasn't been for a long time.”

“Do you know what happened to Death?”

Victor’s cheeks grew hot, embarrassed she had put him on the spot. Magical history was his least favorite subject at school. “Uh, he grew corrupt and Life killed him,” he swallowed, “Right?”

“Wrong.” Morena hissed, pacing the floor, a fierce light burning in her eyes, “Death never went rouge. Life is a liar and a traitor.”

“Only we death mages know the true story of what happened that day. This is our most sacred tale- the fall of Death,” Morena paused, back turned to Victor. Victor leaned forward, heart pounding. What was she talking about?

“All those thousands of years ago, Life and Death did exist together in peace, so that part’s true. But Death wasn't the one who became wicked. Life was,” Morena murmured, clenching her fist, “He became power hungry. He couldn't standing having an equal to his power. He wanted to be the one and only god.”

“He started the war, claiming his reasons were for the good of mankind. It was a vicious battle, with thousands of life and death mages involved, fighting for the honor of their god,” Morena let her fingers brush across the table, pulling Victor’s attention onto her, “Your biological descents were probably in it. Nearly every family sent soldiers.”

My biological family? Victor thought, squeezing a handful of his hoodie in his hands. He hadn't given them much of a thought in years. They were probably death mages, just like him. Maybe she was right- he could come from a line of warriors.

Morena shook her head, covering her mouth, “Death never saw it coming. Life launched a surprise attack on him, his personal order of mages and generals versus Death's. While their churches engaged in a bloody last stand, Life and Death fought head-on. Life took the upper hand. We suspect another Überdragon helped him, but it's all conspiracy at this point. No matter what, Death had been destroyed. His powers were sealed and our god was gone. Life was left the most powerful Überdragon in the universe.”

A lock of oily hair fell across Victor’s eyes as he focused on his lap. He couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe the kindly man he had met during their visit with Time was hiding such a dark side. He didn't want to believe Morena’s story, but with such passion searing in her eyes, she couldn't be lying.

Morena grew quiet, letting the story sink in. Moving to the bookcase, she plucked a flower from an arrangement hung on the shelf. She placed the white flower in Victor’s palm, Victor staring at the soft indigo center.

“Victor, this is an anemone, the forsaken flower. Traditionally, we death mages use it to represent the tragedy that came over Death.”

Sighing, Morena dusted off her hands, hovering over the threshold of the door. “That's all for today. We'll start the hard stuff tomorrow. I want you to get some dinner and a good night's sleep first.”

Author's Note- a lot of important stuff brought up here