Necrophobia

by Devaney, Mark

  Content that his seals and wards were secure Razakel turned to face the traitor. Haures appraised him with an expression of disappointment.

  “This is a mistake.”

  “Is it really?” Razakel narrowed his eyes further. “You’re innocent are you?”

  Haures shook his head. “There’s no such thing as innocence in our line of work.”

  “We’re nothing alike, you and I.”

  “You don’t believe that. I don’t need my abilities to see that.” A faint grin crossed Haures’ face. “In time you’ll need my help.”

  “Somehow I doubt that.” Alba said keeping herself out of sight.

  Haures shrugged. “You’re not getting any younger Alvis.”

  Razakel nodded his head in agreement and raised a finger in front of Haures’ forehead. “You won’t be getting any older if you’re not careful.”

  The traitor held up his hands in surrender. “I’m the tip of the iceberg. You’ll need my help if you want to stop them. I’ve no love nor loyalty to them.”

  “Why should we believe you?” Alba asked.

  “I failed to deliver Valdgeirr. My time here is limited. I can feel it.”

  “On that point we both agree.” Mia stormed into the room with her long coat trailing behind her and flanked by Aether. “Is he ready for transport?” Her gaze flickered between Razakel and Alba.

  Alba nodded and turned to Razakel.

  “Ready whenever you are, Inquisitor.” He smiled and stepped to one side.

  “Excellent.” Mia drew her sword and stalked towards the magically bound traitor. “Perhaps you should do your stone trick, for extra security.”

  Green light flickered around Haures and the temperature dropped to an ice-cold chill within an instant. Haures kept his hands up in surrender as the energy swirled around him.

  “Enough!” Mia rested her sword under his chin and pointed towards his exposed throat. Alba and Razakel exchanged a nod and tried to dispel the energy stirring throughout the room. The effect was like nothing she’d ever seen and any attempts to interfere were either ignored or the energy found a way around.

  “It’s not me.” Haures replied as the sword tip pushed deeper drawing blood.

  “Don’t lie to me!”

  Green flames seeped out of his neck wound and motes of spectral energy flickered around him. “I’m being called!” With a desperate glance Haures looked at Alba and Razakel. “Interrupt the spell!”

  “What do you mean?” Alba asked through gritted teeth. Spectral flames spread across his body and his outline flickered and wavered, whatever magic was taking hold of him was far beyond her ability to stop. She could see Razakel opposite her having similar difficulty.

  Embers of energy leeched upwards from the bound Inquisitor negating the magic wards and inscriptions. Bit by bit, piece by piece the necromancer dissolved into green flames caught on the swirling gale-force winds. The motes tried to remain together but the force of the spell was too much, against his will the magic disassembled Haures and teleported him out of the room.

  “I thought you warded this room!” Mia shouted shielding herself from the ravaging winds. Though capable of casting magic she was nowhere near the same calibre of sorcerer as they were. Instead Mia focused on negating magic and counter-spells, none of which were having any effect.

  “I did! This is no ordinary teleportation!” Razakel held out his hands and tried to contain the escaping embers in a blue shield. The energy passed through his barrier without any issue and dissipated amongst the winds. “He’s being drawn somewhere.”

  “Where?”

  “Hard to say.” The winds died down as the last of the traitor Inquisitor evaporated. “It’s difficult to get a lock on the source.”

  “There’s too much interference.” Alba added, feeling compelled to defend her mentor. They’d both checked and double checked every single ward and inscription. There was no way he could have escaped using magic without them being able to stop him. Alba chided herself, there was no way that they knew of. Evidently there was a method, a principle they were unaware of.

  “I believe you. You two know what you’re doing.” Aether stepped forward keeping his arms folded. A talented swordsman and knight Aether was the least magically inclined of their retinue and Razakel’s oldest friend. He was also the most senior Inquisitor in the room. “Calm down Mia. We’ll get him again.”

  “Every time we catch him he slips through our fingers.” She cursed and sheathed her blade and took a deep breath to compose herself.

  “This time was different.” Razakel stroked his chin as he often did when deep in thought. “This wasn’t his doing.”

  “You believe him?” Mia raised an eyebrow.

  “That magic was far beyond him. Trust me.” He tapped the end of his nose with a finger and smiled. “His master has drawn him back, no doubt curious where the undead dragon and Morveil are. I don’t envy Haures right now.”

  “So how do we find them now?”

  “Give us time. We’ll find a way.” Razakel smiled at Alba. They’d found another mystery and a unique magic phenomena and they were in their element.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  In Caelholm Reiner sat in the fortress-stronghold waiting in the hospital ward. Monks and priests fussed over the unconscious Commander. Every Caelite in the order had been in an out to check on her over the past few days. Her sister Anya almost never left the ward. Today it was Reiner’s turn to keep a vigil. There was nothing wrong with Amelia’s body physically. She bore no injuries. No signs of trauma. She was intact and perfect. Even trapped halfway between life and death she kept her quiet dignity and poise. Whatever effect channelling the raw power of Caelus had upon her it wasn’t visible. Becoming a conduit of such power was a blessing but a dangerous one. So far she seemed to have survived but she’d not regained consciousness since Valdgeirr’s defeat. Reiner hoped, prayed she would reawaken. He could only imagine what she’d experienced being so close to divinity. To become a demi-god even for a brief moment would change a person forever. He stared at her in contemplation whilst the sister on duty dealt with a recent admittance. One of the novice Caelites injured themselves during training and another bore the distinctive marks and burns all Caelites became familiar with. It took a while for most novices to realise lightning magic was not a game. The commander twitched and jerked awake sitting up. She shielded her eyes from the daylight as they adjusted. Reiner was relieved to see her beautiful green eyes looking at him rather than the blinding empty intensity of the Avatar. She cupped her forehead and massaged it gently.

  “How do you feel commander?” He leaned in closer to her trying to see if she was unwell.

  “Reborn.” She replied with a confused expression and met his gaze. He held it for a few seconds and looked away. Even without the glowing eyes it was a difficult stare to match. “It’s so clear to me now.”

  “What is?” Reiner’s eyes narrowed as he looked at her. Her voice and mannerisms remained the same as he always knew as did her face. Maybe she was unaffected?

  “You’ll see.” She smiled at him and stared out the window by her bed. Before she could elaborate further the attending nurses and priests gathered around her and blocked her from view. Reiner shrugged and kept his distance. He wasn’t sure he liked the sound of that.

  The clean air of Caelholm’s forests and mountains was a welcome change as Claire trudged through the snow. The scent of ash and industry tended to clog your nostrils after a while. Caelholm hadn’t changed much since she’d left. It never did. She walked through the forests and towards the mountains passing by a stream trickling downhill and crossed a small wooden bridge over it. Sevaur followed behind her in silence, like her he appreciated the peace and quiet after the hectic pace of life in Kriegsfeld. They continued uphill for an hour or more before coming to a halt before a snow-covered stone structure in a clearing of fir trees.

  “Are you sure about this?” He asked standing beside her in front of the
grey-white stone.

  Claire nodded and stepped forwards brushing snow and lichen off the sealed door. She noted with a flush of relief that the door remained intact. The seals unbroken in decades. She set to work easing the stone door open and shifting the heavy weight aside. The mausoleum opened to the fresh wind and light snowfall allowing the stale air to rush outwards.

  “It’s intact.” Sevaur breathed a sigh of relief. “I’d hoped that…you know.”

  “So did I.” She admitted. On the journey back she’d been deeply worried that the body inside would have been resurrected by Morveil and Haures’ atrocity. Trapped and forgotten about for weeks. There was no flash of green flame. No movement. No body.

  Sevaur reached for a dusty torch off a bracket on the wall and lit it with a snap of his fingers. He passed it to her and stood by the entrance. The flickering torch light illuminated the cobwebs and untouched dust. In the centre of the mausoleum laid a coffin. Claire remembered it vividly. It was hard to forget a thing like that. She moved in closer holding her breath. The lid was thrown to one side and the coffin itself was empty other than an over-sized spider sat in a web staring back at her.

  “It’s empty. She’s not here.”

  “You sure?”

  Despite the trepidation she felt Claire couldn’t help but laugh. “There’s not a lot of room for error.” She waved the torch around the small and empty mausoleum. Sevaur stepped inside and peered into the empty coffin and stared up at her.

  “Doesn’t hurt to be sure.”

  Claire’s heart raced. The body had been sealed here she remembered it. Her father confirmed the body was that of her mother before it was interred and many villagers witnessed the burial ceremony. There were no signs of forced entry and no body or undead thrall to be found. It was just as Haures said; she’d not stayed dead for long.

  “Take a look at this.” Sevaur waved her over to the inside of the door and she waved her torch over it.

  The texture of the stone was rough and craggy, water seeping in freezing and thawing over the decades had not been kind to it. She peered closer and saw what Sevaur had seen. Scratched deep into the stonework words were scrawled across different parts of the door. Most were illegible but some were readable. There was one word she recognised, it almost leapt out at her once she saw it. Morana.

  “I don’t understand. How did she get out?” Sevaur searched the door for further scribbles and markings.

  “Mist perhaps?” Claire bit her lip. The cracks and dents in the stone proved it wasn’t completely water-tight. “Or she could have opened it from within and re-closed it.”

  “So what now?”

  Claire smiled at her old friend and gave him back the torch.

  GLOSSARY

  Adranos: The god(dess) of vengeance, destruction and justice. Takes the form of an angel wreathed in holy fire. Associated with the sun and fire, Adranus is believed to be located within a volcano. As a god of loyalty and justice Adranos’ intermediaries take on either an angelic or a canine form.

  Adranite: The followers of Adranos whose powers reflect those of their god. They’re known for their use of pyromancy and manipulation of light. They’ve been known to use gigantic canine mounts into battle.

  Aeromancy: A field of magic focusing upon the control of air molecules, wind, storms, weather and lightning. Any magic user may learn how to channel their powers into aeromancy but it remains a signature ability of the Caelite order.

  Avatar: The term for a person that has undergone the sacred rites and transformed into a conduit of the god’s power. The process is dangerous and though temporary it leaves a permanent mark upon any that survive the ritual. Whilst transformed the body manifests divine powers far beyond a normal mortal. They are the will of the gods made manifest.

  Caelus: The god associated with storms, skies, lightning and fate. Takes the form of a vast black dragon born from lightning clouds, all types of dragons through Vesta are believed to be its offspring.

  Caelite: The followers of Caelus. The Caelites are an order of knights under the control of the church whose powers and believes derive from their god. They focus on aeromancy using control over lightning and the air itself to mirror the god of storms. Spears and polearms are their most notable weapon of choice but they often carry a backup sword or bow.

  Cataclysm: The most recent magical apocalypse that terraformed the surface of Vesta and reduced civilisation down to small fragmented groups. The cause of the cataclysm is unknown and scholars spend decades researching what happened and why. Recent evidence suggests it is the only latest cataclysm not the first.

  Dark Gift: An umbrella term for the process or curse that transforms a human into a vampire. The curse is not transmitted by bites but by a dark and arcane ritual.

  Faunus: God(dess) of nature, animals, plants and fertility. Takes the form of a gigantic reindeer with horns formed from trees and roots. The Faunus forest is named for this god and people believe either the god exists beneath the forest itself thus explaining its divine powers or it is a gift from Faunus. Deer, reindeer, plants and earth elementals are known to guard places sacred to Faunus.

  Faunite: Follower of Faunus. They wield terramancy - controlling the earth, rock and soil to attack or defend themselves. Their magic also extends towards plant life and has found numerous uses in agriculture and farmland practises.

  Golem: A magical construct animated by powerful magic. Typically either made from stone, clay or certain types of metal. They’re given limited sentience and the ability to carry out basic instructions. They’re considered far more ethical than resurrecting corpses.

  Knight-Errant: A man or woman who has received a knighthood from the church but has yet to serve a master or order. Given that most knights are quickly inducted into the ranks of the Caelites and other religious orders or taken under the wing of a noble family a Knight-Errant has become a rarity.

  Inquisitor: An elite member of the Inquisition that wields absolute authority over the empire’s subjects. They seek to route out criminals, heretics and any threat to the stability of the Empire. They answer only to high-ranking Inquisitors and the Kaiser. They’re each highly trained and gifted individuals whose skills and methods vary wildly from each other and are pragmatic to a fault. Defying them or their retinues is considered treason. Inquisitors are free to requisition any resource they want in theory but in practice it’s more complicated than that.

  Magus/Magi: A graduate of the Lohrheim Imperial Academy of Magic. The most well-known and respected magical institution in the empire.

  Necromancy: An ancient form of magic that was once the ‘mere’ method of communicating with the spirits of the dead. In modern times the practice extents to the resurrection of dead bodies into servants or mindless thralls. Perfect resurrection and immortality is the ultimate goal of most necromancers but such things do not come without a cost. Retrieving the soul of their resurrectee is far more difficult than animating their flesh.

  Nereus: God of the seas and worshipped by seafaring folk, pirates and sailors. Nereus takes the form of a gigantic leviathan said to lurk in the deepest trenches of the endless ocean. Others claim it to resemble a gigantic whale. It’s associated with water, sea and knowledge. Nereus and Caelus are said to have a rivalry and any storms out at sea are their disagreement. Nereus is believed to test mortals crossing his oceans with sea storms and monsters so that only the worthy or the faithful may cross.

  Nereuite: The mortal followers of Nereus, this term can include especially religious seafarer's. The most devout are said to wield powerful hydromancy and the ability to breathe underwater. It’s rumoured they have some degree of influence over the aquatic terrors that plague the seas as a result of their pact with Nereus.

  Sorcerer: A common term for anyone who uses magic, in particular those who study and refine magic. The term is gender-neutral but some people prefer to be called a sorceress.

  Spellstone: An electric-blue crystalline substance formed from magic bui
ld-up deep below the ground. It can be used as both a power source and a magical restorative in small doses. Larger doses when not immediately fatal become addictive and lead to a degenerative sickness that destroys the user’s mind. Victims of Spellstone sickness develop electric blue discoloured veins, breathing difficulties, paranoia and mania before dying. Certain types of animal are known to produce small amounts of Spellstone within their cells to power their own magic.

  Terramancy: Magic that focuses on controlling the earth, rocks and soil. It can also manipulate plant growth and the fertility of soil. Besides the Faunites, farmers are also known to use mild forms of Terramancy to enhance their crop yield.