Awakening: (The Necromancer's Legacy Book 1)

by Henry Andrews

  She was back to the rock, to the creek, Liu-Ken still sitting on one of the chairs. Aurora stood up and looked around. The world looked different to her; the blue of the sky was a lighter tone, the weeds that grew near the gray walls of the garden were of strong light green and even the birds’ chirping now sounded peculiar, reassuring her and making her feel like she was being watched and protected from above.

  "You've been there for hours. I guess it was worth it," Liu-Ken told her. He got up, with his hand on his forehead shielding him from the sun, and stared at the girl.

  "Hours? It just seemed like a few minutes to me," Aurora replied, looking at the sun. It gleamed from the west, the horizon mirroring orange and vermilion throughout the surrounding areas.

  "I should have warned you before. Time passes differently when you are visualizing. I didn't think it would take you that long. Do you want to talk about what you saw?"

  "Not really. I am ready. I want to do it. I want to raise one of the dead," Aurora said, jumping off the rock.

  Liu-Ken did not answer her. He merely raised his arm and signaled her to move forward. The two remaining bodies were still in the opposite corner, covered by the white sheet and surrounded by a smell so strong and putrid that the neighboring flowers had waned. Aurora stepped forward, approaching, and ignoring the smell, removing the sheet, and throwing it to the side. It danced through the air before it landed on top of the engawa, a narrow, outdoor corridor that stood outside the house like a balcony, protecting the shoji from storms and heavy rains.

  "Good luck," were Liu-Ken's last words before he sat down again. The book at the table was now a different one. The old one with the black flaps had been replaced by a more recent one, namely one that still had white pages with a few underlined words, containing the secret of some potions and mixtures.

  "Enjoy the show," Aurora told him as she turned back to glance at her mentor.

  Chapter 19

  The girl crouched and placed a hand on one of the soldiers’ scorched skeleton. The weakened bones, a mixture of white and brown, the organs almost all liquified. She closed her eyes and focused on the chi that now flew away from her pores, black chains spinning around her arms, moving forward, sinking into the dead body.

  Unlike last time, the girl clung to her happy memories: her adoptive parents, the village parties, her smiling and playful friends, the beautiful, adventurous boys with a white smile. The dantian remained calm and the meridians under control. The world slowed down. The birds’ singing rose, and Liu-Ken's gestures seemed to take minutes instead of seconds as trunks jiggled very slowly. The black chi clung to the body, mostly settling where it once stood the heart and coating the pink brain.

  The white, skeletal fingers popped and the undead moved them, scraping them on the ground. Aurora opened her eyes and raised her hand. The body followed her orders, standing up, working as a mere puppet even though he could hardly stand up. His flesh-less legs, a few of the bones about to break, made him look equally scary and sickening.

  "I did it!” Aurora said, jumping up and shouting in triumph, lifting her clenched fist above her head.

  Still very strongly connected, the undead was forced to imitate her. It jumped as gracefully as a broken, wrecked, burnt body could, but, as it landed, it shattered into dozens of bones. The body collapsed on itself.

  "What have I told you about keeping your emotions in check?" Liu-Ken said and yawned, "At least, now you can lift a dead man. All that is left is to cut the connection and keep your control over him. We have come a long way," he said, “I’m proud of you, Aurora,”

  "We don't have time for more, do we?" Aurora asked, punching the air. "I'm sorry. I let you down," he said.

  "Don't be silly, boy. You've done something that many can't do in months or even years. I told you, you were born for this. You're a descendant of one of the greatest necromancers who's ever trodden upon the earth and the dead world," Liu-Ken told him as he walked up to him. When he got there, he shoved his forehead with the same old two fingers. "You're close. We'll keep training and you'll get there," he said.

  "I want to try again," Aurora said, his gaze on the last body, "it's not like we're gonna use it for something else,"

  "Are you sure you can handle it? Don't forget that your body and mind have a limit."

  "I can do it," Aurora said, chapped lips and the joints between her fingers swollen.

  "Before you go any further, fight me. No weapons. I want to see if the training has been worth it," Liu-Ken told her. He knew he was going to get her tired, but he also did not want the girl to try to raise two bodies one after the other.

  "I'll get tired, but it won't make any difference," Aurora replied, flexing her legs and lifting her arms. "let's do this," she said and started running towards Liu-Ken.

  The man deflected a dozen or so punches with only his palm before retreating. Aurora followed him. She jumped and tried to kick the mentor while still in the air.

  Liu grabbed her leg and tossed her to the grass. When he saw Aurora smile it was already too late. The girl filled her hands with black chi and used it to propel herself, jumping backward, landing, and, without even settling down, fired another kick toward Liu-Ken. The man only had time to protect himself with one arm. The pressure of the impact fluttered a few of his white hairs.

  He laughed, "I see you've learned something, very well. Take a deep breath and move on. Try to get him up," he said.

  Aurora moved forward and repeated the process from before. Knee on the floor, hand on top of what was left of the dead body, eyes half-shut, short flashes of light amidst the darkness. The images swirled in her mind, one after the other, her friends’ faces giving way to others, fading away in colorful threads.

  The black chi flickered and crawled through Aurora's arms. They roamed throughout the skeletal body, rigidly attaching the most fragile bones to the rest of the body. The girl was not going to make the same mistake twice. The very energy that came out of her tasted different to her. Even though it was the same darkness as always, it was now accompanied by a warm, accommodating sensation. She raised her hand and the undead stood up. That was it—the moment she had been training for, for the last nine days.

  Black lightning bolts united both bodies. Aurora tried to move away, slowly, removing one finger at a time from the bone that was now covered with black goo. Her chi spread throughout the undead's body, offering him an extra layer of protection. The memory of her adoptive parents crossed her memory once again. It all started with them. The first step to end the cruelty of the Kaji School was facing her inner demons and she was not going to let them slip by her.

  She poked her nails into the skin as her knees trembled. She remained unscathed, standing up despite the pain, and eventually walked away from the body, albeit with a dotted line of a sparse black light still shooting towards the undead. It took her some time before she achieved total separation between both bodies. And, after doing so, after the black light had dissipated above her, the particles being carried by the autumnal breeze, the skeleton was still standing.

  This time, Aurora did not allow herself to be carried away by emotions. She had learned her lesson.

  "Follow me," she said to the undead.

  He walked to the edge of the creek and the body followed him, walking like a slob, his legs creaking loudly. Aurora was still not satisfied with that alone. Dark energy rims kept the bones minimally stable. The girl turned around and picked up the two swords. She tossed one at the undead, which was watching its reflection in the crystal-clear water.

  "Pick it up. Attack me," Aurora said.

  Liu-Ken had sat on one of the steps. He arched his eyebrow but did not meddle. The purple ring sparkled; Kagu was also vigilant. The undead bent over, his spinal cord sliding and eventually getting stuck between two ribs. He bent his hand inhumanely, reaching his back, and pushing the long vertical bone, and putting it in place until it clicked. Only then did he pick up the sword's grip and handle it minimally well for
what was to be expected. He spun the weapon twice without ever moving out of the same spot. Seen from the outside, he seemed to be relearning everything he had learned in life in a few seconds.

  Aurora had already taken the other sword and placed herself in a defensive position. Her legs were bent, and her sword was placed diagonally. The undead stepped out, his sword rattling and clacking whenever the iron hit his right leg.

  He was three great strides away from Aurora when he held the sword rigidly, small craters bursting in his fingers, and swung it, readying for a lateral attack.

  Seconds later, the clash between the two metal swords resulted in a thunderous crackling sound. The sparks spilled across the green corridor that the two occupied while they both tried to gain an advantage over the opponent. Aurora used both hands to push and counter the undead's attack, while the soldier whose eyes did not mirror even when looking at the metal, pressured on the opposite side. His hands trembled and the few burnt teeth he had were falling out, one by one, due to the strain.

  "That's enough," Aurora said and the undead dropped his sword. His life, or what was left of it, no longer belonged to him. He was now a mere doll at the necromancer's disposal. "What do I do now?" he asked, looking at Liu-Ken.

  "You've proved you can do it. Now, let him go. Give him a chance at a second life. Reincarnation awaits him," the mentor replied.

  "I understand that, but... how do I do that?” Aurora asked, confusingly, her gaze bouncing between the undead and Liu-Ken.

  The mentor laughed. "Instead of thinking about raising him, think the opposite. Suck your chi out of him," he said.

  "That's it?" Aurora answered him, still suspicious, her eyebrows curved and her eyes half-lidded.

  "Yes. When you get stronger, you will be able to do it without even getting close. For now, just repeat the same process."

  "Just one last question. Does he retain his previous memories? He fought too well for a pile of bones."

  "I like it when you’re curious. I wouldn't say the memories, but the physical abilities, yes. Also, each undead contains a part of you, your chi, your soul. If you know how to fight, they too will know even if they didn't know before. Not at the same level, but they will not be useless," Liu-Ken said. He too, looked at the undead standing before them, his eyes gazing at the whole place but nowhere in specific.

  Aurora got closer and laid her hand on the soldier's forehead. She tinkered her fingers against the hollow bone structure and the chi gathered all over where it was once his dantian, right before being turned into a cloud of black smoke, climbing through the undead's body, seeping into the girl's body through the notches between her nails and the skin. For a thousandth of a second, just a blink of an eye, Aurora's iris blackened.

  "I'm fine, I'm fine," she repeated, before taking a deep breath. "I'm tired."

  "I assume so. The sun is about to set. Sit down at the table. I'll make dinner," Liu-Ken told her, getting up. "You did well. Your parents, both biological and adoptive, would be very proud of you," Liu-Ken added.

  "I would rather have them alive than proud," Aurora instinctively replied, regretting immediately of the words she had spoken, "I should not have said this. I'm sorry," she said.

  "Don't worry. You're right. It would be better," Liu-Ken replied and turned his back, "Don't think that I don't miss them or that I don't feel like I'm living on borrowed time," he added. He entered the living room; the silhouette of his body reflected through the translucent paper.

  Aurora sat on the chair and looked at both bodies. She had made it. Not only was she proud of herself, but she longed to know more about her father's life. Liu-Ken had promised her, and the girl had not forgotten. Violet distorted lines waved from a distance; the night being greeted with a gentle hug. The wind roared and the trunks whistled back.

  Chapter 20

  Dinner arrived shortly after. Liu-Ken not only had two dishes full of noodles and meat perched on one arm, but he also had a fire lit lamp on the other. Aurora had never seen anything like it and, following her curiosity, as soon as Liu-Ken placed it on the table, she touched it.

  "It's hot!" she shouted, the surface of his fingers scorched, shaking them.

  "Of course, it's hot, silly. It's to warm us up. Autumn came earlier this year," Liu-Ken said, shaking his head in denial. He yawned and put Aurora's plate in front of her. "I haven't forgotten. After dinner, you can ask me anything you want. Remember, a man is only as strong as the value of his word. If you don't keep your promises, no one will respect you or follow you," he said.

  Aurora nodded. A trail of nervousness lingered in the air.

  Tomorrow a new adventure would begin; far from the peace of that hidden place, concealed behind thick logged trees and dark green curtains.

  It was likely that a hundred or more Kaji School soldiers were already on the way. Perhaps even the leader himself. In the best-case scenario, he had had his doubts, or fears, and had become uneasy at home, at the top of one of the continent's largest volcanoes but had stayed. In the worst-case scenario, he was also on the way, equipped with the best armor money could buy, escorted by several levels 1, some immortal included, while the other four schools had also made minimal preparations to destroy the necromancer. It was the only situation in which the five leaders agreed; a necromancer cannot live; he has no right to tread on the land of the living.

  As soon as they both put the wooden cutlery on the plate, Liu-Ken broke the silence.

  "What do you want to know?" he asked, placing his gaze on the moon that had arisen in the corner of the starry night canvas.

  "Everything. How did you meet my father? What happened next? How did you meet Bardolph? And my mother? Is she still alive? Has she abandoned me?"

  "Calm down, girl. We still have a few hours left before we go to sleep," Liu-Ken said and smiled. It was rare for him to do so even though he had a pleasant enough smile, "Hm, how did I meet your father? It was a long, long time ago. Maybe forty years. At the time we were just two motivated young men who wanted to become immortal cultivators, hoping to be recognized and rewarded by Dao. We took part in a competition between schools. Him for Kaji School, I for Mizu School, which honors the natural element of water as I told you before. The tournament was simple. Teams of five, one from each school and element: water, fire, earth, air, metal. The objective was to carry out various missions. Most of them were raids to caves where demonic beasts lived, each containing a unique core that could be used to make a cultivator stronger or to produce magic items and weapons. Are you following me?" Liu-Ken asked, arching his eyebrow as he saw the girl with her eyes hooked on the moon, now even brighter, the clouds drifting away and giving it room to stand out.

  "Yes, I'm sorry. The moon seems to be calling me. It must be the fatigue. I’m extremely tired." Aurora said, "Please continue," she added. "I'm sorry.”

  Liu-Ken ignored the observation about the moon and moved on, "Well, the rest of our team, although very strong, weren't exactly friendly. Your father and I got to know each other and realized that we had a similar line of thought. At the time, your father was already regarded as one of the greatest promises in the world of cultivators. The conjunction of red and black chi that ran through his veins offered him a power that no one could ignore. There are very few who can tame two elements and your father was the only person in history who is known to control one element besides darkness. At the time, necromancers were still accepted in society. A few years later... we became friends, great friends. As adults, we left our schools and decided to embark on adventures across the continent. Some people even called us vagrants Xia's, heroes who use their strength to fight injustice. During one of our treks, we ended up making a stop at the Kaji School and it was there that everything changed. Your father was so respected and so strong that the school leader, Luan-Lu, was so afraid of losing his place that he ordered the elite soldiers to arrest your father. He agreed to go without a fight and asked me to accept it too, told me that everything would be fine, and I
believed him. According to the school leader, your father had been experimenting on dead people, raising an army of darkness, allowing beasts and demons to join him, all to rule the world. All lies. Your father never hurt anyone who didn't deserve it," Liu-Ken said and paused to breathe.

  "And then what? Don't stop now!" Aurora said, taking her eyes off the moon and staring at the mentor. Her fists were clenched, and a layer of black chi enveloped them.

  "The leader of the Kaji School convinced all the other schools that it was real. He even got shattered and corrupted dead bodies to make it seem believable. I don't know how he did it. Most likely, he paid banned cultivators, those who walk in the shadows and deal with demonic cultivation, who even though they don't have black chi, have a corrupted black soul, some of whom are under invocation spells, others sharing their body and mind with devils. It was then that Yin appeared to your father. At first, he refused her help. But shortly after, your mother told him that she was pregnant and that she felt observed every night, eyes peeking through the trees. You know, your mother was a healer, one of the best. She had an enormous amount of chi and used it to heal the wounded at Kaji School," he said.

  "Is that when my father accepted Yin's help? To protect me..." Aurora said, looking down, her chi pulsing until it reached her wrist.

  "He was afraid that they would attack your mother. Summing up what happened next, your father escaped from prison and brought all the possible necromancers together and as promised, Yin took you. Maybe she knew how all of this would end, but your mother never forgave your father for what he did. She ended up sinking into drinking and was never the same. I have no idea where she is now. Your father... he, he was killed in battle and I, like a coward, ended up living here, always following in your footsteps. It was the least I could do. I should have been there, fighting by his side," Liu-Ken said. Aurora wasn't sure if the mentor's eyes were damp or if it was the effect of the moonlight pouring over his clear eyes.