2 Death and Life

The Requiem for a Necromerchant

So, this is what it feels like. This is the sad death of a necromerchant. This is what my requiem will be... Not a song or a funeral held in my honor, but the honor of everyone I could've saved... Yes, it seems the requiem of a Necromerchant is never for the Necromerchant in question.

Oh, how the people would come crying to me! Begging me to bring back their lost loved ones! And even when I was on my own deathbed, that didn't change in the slightest. They still came crying to me rather than for me.

As I passed on from this life into the next, they all came to weep and mourn, begging that I stay with them for just a bit longer. No. That's not true. They didn't come to beg for me at all, they came to beg for my powers. And they didn't beg me to stay, they begged for all the people I brought back to stay. They weren't weeping and mourning for me, they were weeping and mourning for everyone I'd resurrected on their behalf.

In my death throes, in my death knells, they did not come to me to comfort me. They wanted me to comfort them. As I succumbed to my powers, becoming a victim to the very thing I'd conquered so many times already, they flocked to my gates to see my on my throne, one last time. It was a marvelous magnitude you could not have imagined! The shining multitudes filled every hall of my home, coming to see me one last time.

No. That's not true. They didn't come to see me. They came to see my powers. They came to beg, not for me, but my powers. They didn't want my life, but the life of my powers. They were mourning themselves more than they ever mourned me. Even though it was I who was on death's doorstep, it was not me that the crowds cried out for.

Yes, they cheered and honored my actions and they lauded my deeds. They promised to keep my legacy alive! But not a single one of them knew my name. Not a single one of them actually cared about me for me. Instead, they only cried out titles and praises. But I didn't want any of it. I wanted my name! I wanted to hear my name. I wanted at least one single person in all of that sea of warm bodies to SAY MY NAME! But not a single one of them did.

My powers continued to wane and I continued to fade out of existence. They knelt before my throne, but they weren't here to worship me. They were here to worship my powers, and to request one last boon of me, even as I was dying. With teary eyes and sobbing mouths, they clutched at me as I continued to die.

I gave them a sad smile, but told them no more. I could not keep on forever. Even Necromancers can die. We may control death for a while, but in the end, it is always death who controls us. I told them that, but they didn't want to listen. Instead, the continued to weep and beg, shouting out names, asking me to reconsider. They wanted me to live so that the people I'd resurrected would also continue to live.

They all cried out a name, a relationship, begging me to stay on behalf of that person. There was so much noise, but it fell upon deaf ears. I didn't want to hear their names, I wanted to hear my own. It was a wish that was never granted. Instead, they only asked me to live on. They wanted me to be strong, but not for my own sake or wellbeing. They didn't want me, they wanted what I could give them.

In truth, I know that not a single one of them would've cared whether I lived or died. But, they continued to support me through my death, offering me everything they had if it gave me a chance to survive. No. That's not true. They didn't come to help me survive. They came to help their loved ones survive. They all cried out for me, but not a single one of them ever said my name.

Thus was the Necromerchant's death, the sad and tragic passing of one who traded their life for the good of others and received nothing in return. My requiem was not for me, but for all the people who died when I died. It was never my funeral, it was always everyone else's. They only mourned all the ways in which they could no longer exploit me. They were grieving for all the people they loved more than me.

But no one mourns people like me. I suppose I can't entirely blame them. Although I do wish they would've. Even if only just a little... Even if only just one person... I wish that out of the ocean of tears that was shed that day, at least one of those tears could've been for me. But I suppose that makes us even. They don't get what they want. I don't get I want. In the end, only death is satisfied.

AN: Just a sad look on the life of Necromancer who made a living (LOL) off of resurrecting people's loved ones only to then be forgotten when they finally died.

All those mourners and not a single one thought to weep for the Necromancer who made their reunion with their lost loved one possible. All those mourners and the Necromerchant was the only one who was not wept for.