Grave

I knelt in the cold earth, the ground was soft, partly because of the incessant dripping of rain but mostly because it had been dug up and then replaced not long ago. There was a reason for this; I was kneeling on a grave.1

I gently ran my fingers though the moist soil, shivering with pleasure, and then, leaning forwards I drove my hands deeper into the ground. The coffin was deep and the mud was over my elbows before my fingers caressed the wooden lid. As I began to prise open the lid I felt a faint jolt as something moved within.2

I grinned, if only it knew what I had planned, I would have felt more than a weak bump against the side. Sliding my long fingers under the lid I stood up. The earth tore and crumbled as I wrenched the coffin out from the ground.3

Globs of soil rained down onto me, I ignored them focusing instead on emptying the coffin. With a thud, my prize fell out the box onto the damp soil. It struggled to stand, realising what and who had released it. “Let me lie, please let me lie.” Its moan was weak and feeble but rose almost to a scream as I reached out to touch it.4

Its flaking skin resembled the soil; both in colour and in texture. The moment my fingers touch made contact with its throat the scream died away. My touch increased its physical strength and crumbled its free will.5

“Stand.” I said as I strode towards the next grave “Come.” I didn’t need to check that it was obeying, Nothing, alive or dead, had ever disobeyed after I had touched it. 6

“Dig.” I said pointing at the nearest patch of disturbed soil.7

Most of the corpses in the graveyard were hardly worth waking; almost all of them were Shufflers with the exception of a few Clamberers and Zombies and one Vampire.8

The last was able to stand before I touched it; it even tried to fight back before I gently touched its cheek and its will became mine, when alive it had been the head of the surrounding village, a powerful man who dominated all around him, even in death a small portion of this power remained.9

After finding the Vampire I was hopeful for more the same, but it didn’t last long. I watched in boredom as my slaves lifted another coffin from its hole; this one wasn’t even struggling. Whoever was inside must be very weak; I let out a short growl of frustration.10

Then as my minions righted the coffin a skeletal arm burst out through the wood; catching hold of a Shufflers head and crushing it. I was impressed.11

The coffin burst apart. Thin slivers of cedar spraying into the air, revealing my target. Little flesh remained to cover the bones and I could see its decaying organs hanging limply from its ribcage. It had clearly been dead for a long time but what I really noticed was the sword it carried; what kind of person would be buried with a sword unless they expected to be woken.12

The sword plunged into the nearest minions. The Shufflers just stood there, as I had given them no orders, and were sliced to bits, the higher creatures tried to defend themselves a bit, this also failed.13

Drawing my own sword I approach my prey. In life it must have been a great warlord and I was cautious. Its empty eyes fixed on me, burning with hatred for a second it considered attacking me then it turned and ran.14

“Catch it.” I ordered and my remaining slaves stumbled forwards. I followed at a more restrained pace.15

Sliced flesh littered the ground, some of it still struggling to obey my orders. I followed it like a trail leading me to my prey. Even the vampire was lying there, chopped into to many pieces to continue, it didn’t matter, I would have lost any number of lesser minions to control this one.16

I found it in the woods surrounding the chapel; it looked at me, dead flesh hung from its empty sockets but this wouldn’t matter to the undead.17

The scraps of muscle surrounding its jaws stretched into a vague semblance of a grin “I knew you would follow.” It croaked. Still wary of its sword I considered using magic to immobilise it then rejected the idea.18

“Kresh vembri, Nagravie!” it screamed. I realised that my prey had not been a warlord in its life but another necromancer. The language was Vembari and was used to command souls, a part of necromancy I had little talent or interest in.19

I knew enough to translate the words though ‘Murdered souls, Vengeance!’20

To have control over a necromancer would make me more powerful than ten thousand lesser beings.21

I moved closer then stopped as I remembered his words; in front of me barely visible was the soul of a young girl. The soul got brighter until I could make out the details, blood dripped from her neck, mingling with her tears and fading to invisibility before hitting the ground, she tried to speak faintly mouthing a single word “Why?” She began repeating it, I could see the skeletal necromancer standing behind her.22

Impatient I tried to brush past the soul.23

As I came near she ran her hands across my face, I screamed and jumped back. Her hands were either extremely hot or extremely cold, searing my flesh where they touched.24

The girl reached out for me again, but her hands pressed against an invisible barrier and she was unable to reach me. Slowly and deliberately she began mouthing the word “Come.”25

The necromancer spoke out as well “You don’t remember do you. You killed her. You killed her and no-one dared do anything about it.” it occurred to me that I had been in this village before; several years ago. I didn’t remember killing the girl but that was hardly surprising. “Then you left and I spent ten years trying to bring her back. Then I was executed for practicing necromancy. All because of you!”26

“As they dragged me to the gallows, I knew I could escape. I could have killed them all. But I didn’t. And because I didn’t they hanged me.”27

I vaguely wondered why he thought it was my fault he had let himself be killed.28

“Kren!” he shouted. The word meant ‘Die’ 29

Power flared around me, bighting my skin, I staggered in pain. But he was dead, however powerful he might have been when he was alive he couldn’t be as strong as a live necromancer, I raised my own power and fought back.30

He was stronger than I had expected but eventually he fell to the ground, defeated. Savouring the moment I reached out to touch him, and then I felt the searing hands of the ghost plunge through my head.31

My powers faded. The boy went back to a corpse and the soul of the girl faded. But too late, I collapsed into darkness.32

Everything was black, I tried to stand and found I was trapped. I was in a box, a wooden box, a coffin. Above me I could hear a faint scraping noise, something was digging.33

I screamed.34

I screamed and screamed for mercy but I knew it wouldn’t help. Soon I would be a mindless slave under another necromancer’s power.