Magic: The Gathering: Say You'll Haunt Me

Chapter 1: Dried Bugs

Kerrick 
One Year Later…

It's been a year since the war on Ravnica. I was woken up in the morning by my alarm clock, a small, fireproof device that I would shut off by throwing a bolt of flame at. Getting out of bed, I went to get dressed.

Now, I used to be a member of The Cult Of Rakdos, but that doesn't mean I'm a blood-soaked idiot with no personal hygiene. 

I keep myself looking decent, if I say so myself. Orange eyes, short black hair, and the beginning of a stubble was the look I had been given growing up. Not too flashy, but I didn't care.

Clothing was usually a leather trench coat that concealed a somewhat flashy outfit from my time in the Cult. Gladiator gear. Functional, but also made to catch your eye.

After putting my belt on and grabbing my weapons, I went outside for my first task of the day.

I've gotten much better at necromancy. I can now effortlessly raise the dead reliably. I don't even need a corpse anymore. Spirits do the trick. Anything dead, at my command, becomes a bomb. Perfect for dealing with any annoyances.

Like what remains of the Grimnant Knights of The Cabal.

They had been relentless in their attempts to kill Miss Vess. As her student, I would like to keep her alive. She still has so many secrets to show me.

I watched the knights approach the Manor, and I grinned. Now to have some fun.

"Richard, don't you get tired of this?" I called out to the lead. "Me killing your troops, you fleeing back to your masters empty-handed, and you getting punished?".

The leader shrugged and unsheathed his blade. "The one who killed Belzenlok must pay. In blood." He explained.

I sighed and ignited my left hand. "But your troops always end up paying that price instead. Let's dance, paladin." I said, releasing several gouts of concussive flame at him, knocking him off his mount. The other knights surged forward, blades in hand, hunger in their eyes.

I grabbed my axe in my left hand and threw it at one of my attackers, setting him ablaze on contact. I ducked a swing from another one of my assailants and followed up by grabbing his neck and heating my hand to unfathomable temperatures, smelting the plating in place, burning it into his flesh.

He tried to scream, but the melted metal had cooled, and his windpipe was sealed shut. He fell to the ground, trying desperately to remove his helmet, to no avail.

The remaining attackers growled and circled me. I grinned and grabbed my whip from my belt. A little souvenir from when Miss Vess and I went to Alara. Made from demon spine by the finest Vithian Craftsmen. It was a unique request, since I managed to salvage the remains of a Prince of Thralls.

"Tell you boys what. You leave now, I won't seal you in your own armor. You get to live the rest of your lives like they have meaning. That okay with you?" I asked, twirling my weapon.

The knights continued circling. "I gave you a choice. This is on you." I said, lashing out at the one closest to me, catching his arm in my whip. I ripped it back toward me, severing his arm at the elbow. He roared and continued towards me, to which I responded by burying the spiked end of my whip into his chest and igniting it.

Ripping the point of my weapon out, I dragged his soul from his body. That was a mistake, and that became when the ethereal form lashed out at me, nearly taking my head off. One of Belzenlok's elite. The Elder Demon's magic was powerful, and it always managed to surprise me.

I brought my hand up and responded by creating a wave of heat to repel the knights as I dealt with the spirit. A simple Hellfire bolt took care of the spirit, so now I could resume my attack on the Grimnant Knights.