3-1-1706
…
She hasn't left her vigil. All the dead monks are watching with her. I had to send Delores away today.
…
9-1-1706
…
Potions are missing from inventory. It's not thieves. The owner herself is stealing them. She must be using them to keep the man alive from his suicide attempts. The dungeon itself has an aura of undeath in it. I ask Ujan if he can procure a book on making protective trinkets.
…
24-1-1706
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She is still watching him. Truly her rage
…
-----
Lea, fountain.
I watch the man struggle. He stopped trying to reason with me. The only area without my aura for the entire area. He hasn't starved long enough. There is some shouting. Then silence.
Lea is next to me, “I thought this whole setup was to protect your body.”
Watson, seeing someone living, croaks out, “Kill me, please.”
I summon one of Lea's fresh kills. I glance at Lea. Beheading really?
“They looked familar…I didn't want to see them every time I came here.”
She called me soft. She grabs my ethereal shoulder.
“Hey, you're starting to kill the land around here. Pull your aura back in.”
Another glance, my eyes close. I pull my aura to the wall. I return to my vigil.
-----
…
2-2-1706
…
I asked Ujan what he knew of a knight named Watson. He instead asked me why I knew that name. He became visibly angry at the mention. I only told him that Sara seemed particularly focused on him.
…
-----
The man in question just pissed himself. He didn't bother to drop his trousers anymore. He can't really get up. Just next to the cistern and pissing himself.
A new piece of memory. I pull in the sheared piece, making it a part of me.
Cea is handing me a necklace. A gift. She loops it over her head.
“Today is your fifth soul day.”
It was Cea's voice inside my head. I was happy, so ecstatic. I had a voice for the system.
I look at the memory in disgust. It's not my soul day. Is she literally talking to my mind to gaslight a voice into me? This is beyond gross.
“Sarcea, you can let your notifications pop up again. Sarcea, any notification you receive you are to immediately push into this trinket without noticing them. Sarcea, If you are not wearing this trinket then you don't receive notifications.”
I see. So she intends to play filter for my skills while masquerading as my system voice. Can't have little Sarcea asking what a [Vampiric Blood Kinesis] is after all.
The command was to Sarcea specifically. Her little fiction. I'm still locked out of my status screen, though. But I am only prevented from viewing it. Sorry sister, my soul trembles. I mentally command the status screen to continue not showing notifications for soul skills, and to not show skill notifications to Sarcea for any that I earn. I feel my soul wishing to tear where our minds are. I assuage it. It's all temporary soul, only while we are outside of communication range. My soul settling, my new truth setting.
-----
…
5-3-1706
…
Enough is enough. I am getting Ujan and we are both going to her. She needs to see reason.
…
-----
Sir Ujan walks in front of Lea. He is bedeckled in various knicknacks that appear to repulse my aura. My army of undead parts for them. They all stare at the gibbering man.
“Why have you come?” I ask without looking.
“You need to stop this Sara, enough is enough. Kill him already.” Lea starts off.
“I'm waiting for him to starve, just as he did me.”
“So it's true, you captured Sir Watson.”
I look at Ujan with a great deal of rage, “Do not give this filth an honorific. If I still had my cores I would strip this man of every memory he had. Instead I must wait for him to do it himself.”
Ujan doesn't back down, “If you want him stripped of his title, you will need to surrender him to me.”
I narrow my eyes at him, “As if the Queendom cares that he starved me. I'm an executed criminal myself.”
“He is a deserter as well, should he be found alive. Also his crime against you is still valid. He ruined a promising spark for our Queendom. Does Sir Timotran killer not deserve his own execution? Or do you wish for Sir Timotran's name to forever be sullied.”
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
“It should not require this man to clear Sir Timotran's name.” I scream.
Ujan weathers it. He stares at me. The undead leave. To hide in ambush places. The barrier to the cell comes down and I too leave.
-----
Lea approaches my fountain. I'm sitting on my coffin staring up. My Tapestry is so tiny. Just a few months of memories. Of Sarcea. I received a bit of memory recently. Of Cea commanding her to finish her salad. And a rather obstinate six year old who turned into a puppet.
“Sorry, but it had to be done.” Lea doesn't sound sorry.
I ignore her. It does not improve her mood.
“Do you even know what day it is?”
“You wrote the Fifth day of Granltin today.”
She looked at me annoyed, “Thought your attention was on him only.”
“I have another.”
“I thought the other was stuck under your ass.”
I rolled my eyes, “I wrenched it from the body.”
“Was that wise? You were worried about abandoning the body.”
I sigh, "It's too late now. I stopped feeling, Lea.”
“Could have fooled me, I thought Ujan was about to join your shamblers.”
I did get angry. I mime huffing out a sigh. “I guess I misspoke. I stopped feeling anything but rage.”
“I thought your soul only froze from slaying in the dungeon.” She posits.
“I am unsure. But each of these undeads have tethers to my body. I think the more I gain the more I become a Lich.”
“Do you know how much you are holding in comparison to your soul?” I give her a questioning brow lift, she explains. “The [Countess] briefed us all on your previous lichification. Told to keep a clear eye for it and not let you go past a tenth of your soul.”
“Then you really are behind the curve, I am already almost half.”
Lea grows fearful of that, “Is your soul being pulled apart then.”
I shake my head, “No, they are falling apart though. They pull soul mana from me, but I generate that now. Besides, your soul would have accounted for more than ten percent. Whatever I am…I don't follow those rules anymore.”
She thinks on that, “Is the hold on your emotions lessening with them?”
“No.”
“Then what can we do?” The shout was a tad loud.
“Healing was my only relief before...” I trail off.
“Fine, free healing them. Systems knows the adventurers leaving your aura need it.”
-----
…
6-3-1706
…
Sara's attempts at writing the letters for the sign were met with frustration. Seems her ghost self is just incredibly clumsy. Her lamenting about ten stats had me asking if she was this inept as a child. She said she couldn't tie a knot back then. Her demonstration showed not much had changed. Ultimately she simply willed a sign with the words free healing to exist. I couldn't do it though. I couldn't actually place it. My merchant soul cried out against it. She just willed one on the side of the building.
…
-----
Another adventurer came in. I winced. They have lesions on them. Black and veiny. My aura of undeath was leaving these festering wounds.
“Is the sign true, free healing? I was worried I would lose money on this attempt by buying a potion.”
Lea scowls at his words. I poke her with my invisible hand. Her annoyance grows.
“Of course it's true, I wouldn't put a sign up to advertise free services without meaning to.” She said the last part through clenched teeth.
“Miss Vampire?”
She shakes her head and walks over. Her hand on the man's arm. She pushes her blood straight into the wound. It heals.
“Any other spots?”
I roll my eyes, she can see them.
“O ya, let me remove this.”
He starts to undress, Lea begins to smile. I turn away and try to pay attention elsewhere. She finishes healing him and sends him on his way.
“You didn't need him to undress.”
She gives me a rather smarmy grin, “Free service, free viewing. If there is one thing adventurers have, it's good muscle to fat ratios.”
Gross.
“So?” Lea asks.
“I felt it move my soul a bit.”
“Huh, no I can feel that in your aura. I wanted your opinion on the man.”
I leave her to her cackling.
-----
…
9-3-1706
…
Word gets around, I'm having to drink more to replace all the blood I am using. Sara says once I reach blood magic 2, I'll not have to worry about the thirst. My pointing out that it's a shame earned me another frowny face. Speaking of shame, it seems while the girl has no interest in men, she is looking in on the women.
…
-----
“I am not.”
Lea just laughs. Damn it.
-----
…
16-4-1706
…
Another two Elves showed up at the citadel. I didn't recognize them. I left their heads this time. Sara pointed out that if it unnerves me it will unnerve others. The aura was just starting to get less stifling too.
…
30-4-1706
…
I got a smile yesterday. Finally progress.
…
-----
I see them coming down the plains. They have been scouting the location for a while. So long as they are not Elves I don't bother Lea about it. Most turn away after a night or two. Even without the aura they sense the undead. I let them go.
Seems Lea ministrations has lessened my unsettling factor. That or the latest scouts are dense as bricks. I see the train approaching. Fiftyish individuals and five cages. I am shaken.
“What?”
“Sorry your aura just grew really dense, you know no mana aura in the shop.” Lea says.
I look at her as if she is insane, I blink. “Sorry, I forgot myself. Slavers are heading to the citadel…do we have enough trinkets for thirteen…fourteen children.”
Her eyes widened. She then nods. Good. I pull my aura out of the shop and the citadel.
-----
“Can't believe the cells still work. Place is a dream.” The man walks away from the huddled children.
“Ya, well they're supposed to be undead here, we got a real job having to clear this place.”
“Mark is paranoid, haven't seen one yet.”
“Boss thinks they might be hiding till night time. Think they will get the fountain workin’?”
The man shrugs. They climb the stairs away from the cell. I form a dungeon door. Lea steps out. She lowers the barrier. She starts handing out trinkets as I float towards the door.
She hisses, “Not till they are on the other side. We don't want you growing worse during the exodus.”
Soon.
“That also means not tensing your emotions.” Lea further admonishes.
I sigh. Fine calm…before the storm. I get another annoyed look from Lea.
“Put these on children, we just have a small walk and you will be free, alright.”
They are scared, especially of a monster helping them. But a promise of freedom is better than what their imaginations had in store for them. I sense the slaver duo started to come back. The door grows a wall of stone in front of it.
A muffled ‘the hell’ echoes pass.
Best hurry Lea. She does. Picking up the smallest she hustle into the dungeon. The door closes. A dirt mage forces the rocks away. There is a rush down the steps.
“The hell did they go. Fuck, find them.”
The camp is alerted they spread out, searching. I smile. This is most opportune. I watch as Lea corrals the last child through the dungeon into the knights waiting beyond. Sir Ujan wanted to be part of this raid. I reminded him that there are no knights here who deserve a trail.
I form a stone wall at the main gate. They don't notice. My aura explodes out of the fountain. Immediately some start laughing. Their aura subsumed, they begin to injure themselves. They grow my ranks of the undead quickly enough. Only five though. Another forty-five to go. There is a loud whistle. The slavers head towards the man.
“We lost the merchandise and the air went sour. We need to get out before more of us start laughin’”
“Laughin’?”
“Saw it myself, Winks went and started stabbing himself as he laughed. Most fucked up thing ever. Tried to stop ‘em but he slumped over ‘fore I reached him.”
A smattering of curses greet this. He didn't relay that he ran like a coward after seeing ‘Winks’ get back up with a rictus grin. They move as a group. They reach my blocked gate. The previous dirt mage steps forward. I could just keep baring his way. Certainly my soul core would outlast him. But instead I float into his body. The man seizes. Undeath floods into him. He rots from the inside. He grabs his stomach and grows pale. Then he starts to laugh. I focus my aura onto the group. More start laughing as they gain more undeath lesions. I could stop their blood. I let them laugh.
The dirt mage collapses. The others panic as they try to stop the laughing ones from harming themselves. But they are too bunched up. Easier to crush each mana aura. Soon they are all laughing. They start attacking each other. It's not long until they are all dead. They don't stay that way for long.
-----
Lea comes up to me as I mill my latest soul tethers about.
“You didn't save any for me.”
“Nor will I ever. Slavers must die as soon as possible.”
She rears away from me, “Sara, your voice.”
I look at her, “Too many tethers, too long without drinking.”
“But Violet has been making you lose your mind an hour a day.”
“Sarcea…not the same.”
She grows even more shocked. “She's still your sister, damn it. Let me kill the next few.”
“Doesn't matter, you still form the tethers to me.”
“Fine…do you have enough undead? Like maybe scare off the next few. Fuck, I hope healing more can correct this. That crazy priestess will figure out a way to kill me over this.” I laugh at that. It doesn't improve Lea's mood. Probably because there was no real mirth in it. She then looks at me again. “They're all safe, you know, the children. Sir Ujan will get them back home.”
I smile at that. It's small but it helps.