In a dusty dark room, barely lit up by ghostly blue lights, Mr. Skelly was standing in front of a crude map drawn on the walls. There was a creaking sound behind him, and a skeleton ca into view. Leader, we found a way out.
Mr. Skelly turned around. Surprisingly, it was very difficult to find a skeleton that retained its ability to speak. The raise dead spell that the mistress had taught him was the best one there was, but if it couldnt bring out the full potential of an undead, then the problem lay with the skeletons themselves. He suspected they were over thousands of years old with their residual souls mostly dissipated. The large majority of them could only be used as mindless puppets that rigidly accepted orders. Mr. Skelly scratched his skull. Have the ghosts finished scouting it?
The skeleton paused before nodding. Outside, theres lots of people. The biggest power seems to be a church. On the outside, theyre respected by the common people.
Ah. Mr. Skelly frowned and stroked his lower jawbone. A church, is it? Either the church is a corrupt entity thats prolific in necromancy, or theres a hidden force that wishes to go against the church with this giant ritual. His eye socket expanded as he raised an eyebrow. Which one do you think it is? Youre a native, arent you?
I used to be a slave, the skeleton said. I dont know much about the world. The buildings outside are much more impressive than they were in my ti. However, I think the church represents my beliefs. The ghosts said there was a cross with a man pinned to it. If Im not mistaken, thats Jesus Christ, soone I believed in while I was still alive.
So, you think its the second option? Mr. Skelly nodded. A hidden force wishes to cause chaos right underneath the churchs nose. Certainly, thats a standard plot in stories. However, in so stories, theres a twist where it turns out the church was the evil one all along!
The skeleton didnt respond. After Mr. Skelly stared at it for a while, it shrugged and asked, What are your next orders?
Mr. Skelly sighed and shook his head. Ask what Im planning to do first.
What are you planning to do?
Since I dont know whether the church is evil or not, Im neither going to destroy them in case they are or help them if they arent. Instead, Im going to create an undead army with the sole purpose of raiding ceteries and graves! Mr. Skelly grinned. Once were joined by all the people whove ever died in this world, no matter how big the church is or how big the evil organization is, well root them out and determine the truth of the matter.
The skeleton didnt react. After a brief mont, it asked, What are your next orders?
Mr. Skellys shoulders sagged, and he sighed again. Have we finished excavating everything?
Yes, the skeleton said. We set up magic circles in the places you indicated. All of the dead have been brought back to life thanks to them. The ghosts havent found any more tunnels.
Mr. Skelly tapped his fingers against his thigh bone. How many undead do we have?
Too many to count, the skeleton said.
Mr. Skelly blinked, his eye sockets contorting. How high can you count?
Up to seven.
Seven? You never learned beyond seven?
The skeleton raised its hands. Three of its bony fingers were missing. I used to be able to count up to ten. But now I can only count up to seven.
Mr. Skelly sighed. It was a sha all of these skeletons were dead for so long. Even the ones that knew how to speak were still dumb. Alright, well, if weve finished bringing everyone back to life, destroy the magic circles and have everyone gather in a single-file line facing the exit. After a short pause, he added, The ghosts dont have to line up. Have them gather around the exit as well.
Okay.
Mr. Skelly nodded and followed the skeleton. After a few hours of walking and inspecting, he concluded there were over several tens of thousands of skeletons. There really were too many to count even if he could count past seven. The number of ghosts were a little less than the number of skeletons. It seed like burials were more popular than cremations. The exit of the winding ritual site was mostly blocked off, but a few streams of light broke through so cracks. Along the way, ghosts inford him there were more than one exit, but this one was the most obvious one. Mr. Skelly looked behind himself at the long line of skeletons. Normally, hed give an inspiring speech, but with these subordinates, they wouldnt be affected by low or high morale. He turned back around and pushed down the stones blocking the exit.
***
Prika swam up to the shore and squinted. Unlike the last landmass she was on, this one didnt seem to be frozen. In fact, it was thriving with life. Past the initial sandy beach, there was massive patches of green grass. Prika blinked and crawled up onto the shore and shook herself off. She raised one wing into the air and waited. She didnt get shot by laser beams. After confirming there wasnt any imdiate danger, she lumbered past the sand and onto the grassy portion. A strange creature with a tail hopped away from Prika, bouncing on two legs, but it didnt get very far before Prika snatched it up with her claw. What are you supposed to be? she asked.
The strange creature peed; then it fainted.
Prika blinked twice and wrinkled her snout. She dropped the kangaroo and wiped her paw on the grass, removing the foul sll. She raised her front paw, checking for laser beams. After confirming nothing was going to shoot her, she leapt into the air, spreading both her wings.
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