Two Necromancers, a Dwarf Kingdom, and a Sky City

by L. G. Estrella

  “You’re deep in thought, Little Miss.”

  Katie giggled. Old Man had a knack for sneaking up on people. She’d even seen him sneak up on Spot, which was no easy task. The dragon had made a distinctly un-draconic squawk before rounding on Old Man with a glare and a puff of smoke. “I’m just thinking,” she said. “About how different things might have been if I hadn’t become a necromancer.”

  “Ah. So you are still thinking about the princess’s question.” Old Man settled down beside her. He seemed at home on a ship, and he was carving something out of some driftwood. It was a toy of some sort. He liked to carve toys and give them away to the children of the villagers who lived near the castle although he’d also made some for Spot. The dragon’s favourite was a wooden egg carved to resemble the one he’d hatched from. Spot had asked her master to put runes and seals on it because a wooden egg could easily be damaged, and he had happily added it to his makeshift hoard. Sometimes, she saw him curl up to it, and she wondered if he wanted siblings. Her master believed the reason he often snuck into her bed was because she was the closest thing he had to a sibling. Oh well, if they happened to find another dragon egg somewhere without a dragon to take care of it, they could always bring it back with them. She wasn’t surprised Old Man was good with a knife. He was incredible with a sword. “You know,” he began. “I have often wondered how my life might have gone if I hadn’t taken up the sword.”

  “Oh?”

  “My family were warriors – every single one of us for however many generations back we cared to look.” His voice was calm, but his eyes held the shadow of old, well-trodden grief. “It was simply part of us, and we were very, very good at it, the best some would say. But as a youth, there were times when I dreamed of being something else.”

  “What did you dream of being?” Katie asked. Spot was circling overhead, eager to burn off some of the excess energy he’d accumulated. Avraniel was shouting out commands, and he was doing his best to follow them. Katie had always known that dragons were incredible in the air, but Spot had driven the point home. He was so young, but it was already difficult to imagine anything matching his agility in the air. Naturally, Spot was soon distracted by a passing whale, and he seemed to seriously consider attacking the huge creature before realising it was far too big for even him to drag out of the water, not to mention the ship they were on was too small to fit such a massive animal on the deck.

  “A gardener,” Old Man said. “I used to dream of tending to the imperial gardens of my homeland.” He stared out over the water, and a fond smile crossed his lips. “They were beautiful, Little Miss, so beautiful, and I had so many plans to improve them further. However, things went… poorly. I ended up in the family business, and the imperial gardens, I am sad to say, ended up in flames.” He shook his head. “They weren’t completely destroyed, but I doubt they are the same. It took centuries of work to make them so beautiful, and I wasn’t around to see them rebuilt. Perhaps one day, I’ll get a chance to find out what happened.” He looked at her. “What about you, Little Miss? If you had not become your master’s apprentice, what would you have liked to do instead?”

  “Hmm…” Katie frowned. “I don’t know. I really like what I’m doing now. I can’t imagine myself doing anything else. I’m not sure how to explain it, but being a necromancer feels right. It’s like… I was meant to be a necromancer.”

  “Then consider yourself fortunate,” Old Man said. “Few ever find their place in life, but it sounds as though you may have found yours.” He glanced to the side as the princess walked toward them with Chomp trailing after her. The huge dog had been tasked with seeing to her safety since Lord Tarrick was currently being guarded by a handful of Timmy’s zombie warriors. Amanda had also trapped him in an illusion that kept him unaware of his surroundings, just to be on the safe side. “Good morning, Calista.”

  “Good morning to you both.” The princess was in much higher spirits now that they were on the open sea. She had even helped to complete some of the tasks around the ship with the ease of frequent practice, and the sailors had quickly taken a liking to the girl who they’d been told was the daughter of a wealthy merchant captain. She’d also shown a knack for reading the wind. As far as Katie could tell, it was a combination of education and experience rather than magic, and the princess had lived next to the sea her whole life. “I happened to overhear your conversation. I too have contemplated what I would do if I wasn’t who I am.” She struck a pose and brandished an imaginary harpoon. “Calista… the monster hunter!”

  Katie laughed. “It might sound exciting, but it’s not like in all the stories. I know several monster hunters, and I’ve gone on a few hunts myself.” She grinned. “For every epic battle worthy of story and song, there’s far more time spent swabbing the deck or fighting through storms. The battles also have a tendency to be more messy than glorious. I once went with my master to hunt a giant squid. We would have hired someone to do it for us, but we were in the area, and we didn’t want it wandering off while we looked for someone since you’d be amazed by how useful they can be when you’re making giant zombies.”

  “What happened?” Calista asked excitedly. She looked so happy waving around an imaginary harpoon that Katie made her one with her shadows – blunt, of course. Chomp gave her a look and nudged Calista out of the way before she could bump into a passing crewman. The crew had gotten used to the three-headed dog quite quickly. Despite his imposing size and appearance, he was very well behaved. “Can I presume it was a thrilling battle full of excitement and amazing acts of valour?”

  “Actually, it was pretty awful. There was water everywhere, and don’t even get me started on what happened when it started spraying ink. It was a giant squid, so there was a lot of ink. We were practically drowning in it.” Katie shuddered. “And then there was the smell. I think it must have eaten something before we caught it, but when we hit it, it ended up sprawled over the deck. It just… vomited everywhere. I was really, really glad that I took my master’s advice and wore proper boots instead of clogs – and then there were the tentacles.”

  “Tentacles?” Calista squirmed. “What do you mean?”

  “It was a giant squid, so it grabbed the ship and tried to rip it apart. There was even a bit where it broke off part of the mast and tried to club my master with it. Luckily, my master is quick on his feet. It also tried to whip us a lot, and you can imagine what would have happened if it had managed to land a hit.” Katie mimed an explosion. “It would not be pleasant. Thankfully, we were prepared. My master had put together some depth charges, which we threw overboard to stun it. While it was stunned, we used some harpoons with runes and seals on them to kill it. We weren’t interested in using it as the core of a composite zombie – we were mostly interested in it for parts – so we didn’t have to worry about damaging its brain.”

  “You destroyed its brain?”

  “Destroying the brain is the quickest way to kill most things although you do have to be careful. There are many creatures, especially large ones, with secondary brains, and some creatures like hydras barely even notice if you destroy one brain. The harpoons were made to pierce through its skull and then shatter, destroying its brain. It took us a while, but we eventually killed it.” Katie made a face. “Some things are so big they take a while to notice they’re supposed to be dead. By the time it finally stopped trying to kill us, we were both covered in ink, and I must have slipped over in what it had puked up about a dozen times.” Katie shivered in disgust at the memory. “It was too big to fit onto the ship, so we had to drag it along behind us until we got back. Since my shadows are better for defence, I had to ride on it to fight off scavengers.”

  “Scavengers?” Calista asked. “Like sharks?”

  “And a lot of other things too. Anything that big is bound to attract plenty of animals looking to steal an easy meal. If you’re not careful, you can lose most of your catch before you make it back to shore.” Katie studied Calista carefully
. The other girl clearly knew a lot about sailing, but it didn’t seem as though she’d ever been on a hunt of her own. “Have you ever fought anything dangerous before?”

  Calista huffed. “I would like to, but my father has forbidden me from fighting anything too dangerous. I am his only heir, so it is understandable. I need experience, but he cannot afford to have me seriously injured or killed. But fighting monsters sounds so thrilling.” She bit her lip. “If my magic was stronger, I don’t think I’d have to worry so much. I’m not like you. I’ve seen you fight. You would be fine even if there was a monster around. It would probably be afraid of you.”

  “Probably.” Katie’s shadows stirred. “I’m not saying I can fight off a dragon or anything, but I can deal with most things or use my shadows to fly away. I can even use my shadows to store air and dive underwater. It’s not as fun as flying – and it’s hard to see anything once you go deep enough – but it has come in handy a few times.”

  “Your magic sounds incredibly versatile,” Calista said enviously.

  “What does your magic do?” Old Man asked. “Perhaps we could help.”

  Calista held up one hand. “I can control water that is touching me or in very close proximity to me.” Some of her sweat rose into the air. It was very warm out on deck, and Katie’s master had ensured she’d slathered herself in sunblock before letting her lounge about since she sunburned easily. Poor Gerald was practically coated in the stuff, and he was still starting to go a bit red. Was it weird that he got sunburnt more easily than the group’s vampire? In fairness, Amanda was an ancient vampire, but it had to be a bit depressing for the bureaucrat. Calista’s sweat trembled in the air before receding back onto her skin. “Unfortunately, my range is awful. I can’t control it once it gets too far, and too far usually means a few inches. It’s not useless. I can’t drown since I can always stand on water or pull myself out of it, but it’s a pity. Being able to control larger volumes of water at greater ranges would be very useful for someone in my position.”

  “Hmm…” Katie’s gaze drifted to where some of the rats were playing a game of cards. She’d urged Rembrandt to take a break, and her favourite rat was currently grinning evilly as he won another hand and added some more peanuts to his pile. At the moment, Bramante – whom Rembrandt considered the least insane of the demolition rats – was watching over her, his small form perched on her right shoulder. Calista’s problem reminded her of her master. Although she didn’t know the exact details, her master had shown her how hilariously bad his control over his earth magic was without his shovels. It was why he avoided going without a shovel unless he had to. It made his magic as dangerous to him as it was to his opponents. “Maybe you should ask my master for some advice. He might have a few ideas about how to help you.”

  “Would I have to wave a shovel around?” Calista giggled. “I might not have known him for long, but it is very clear he loves shovels.” She covered her mouth with one hand to muffle her laughter. “I asked him what the difference was between a shovel and a spade, and he gave me this look, as though I’d asked him which direction the sun rose from. He then proceeded to explain, as well as cover all of the many, many different types of shovels.”

  “Well, he is a necromancer. A good shovel is one of the tools of the trade since digging up graves is kind of a prerequisite for a proper necromancer. You can also turn a shovel into a decent weapon although not many know how to use one properly. My master is the only one I’ve seen who has put that much effort into it.”

  Katie had tried to use a shovel before. Even using a small one better suited to her size was exhausting. No wonder her master was so good at close combat. Years of waving around a shovel must have greatly improved his strength and stamina. Luckily her master – and one of the maids and Old Man – had been teaching her how to handle daggers. A dagger was the right sort of weapon for someone her size, and she’d already begun incorporating her magic into it too.

  For example, her shadows could not only conceal a dagger but also wield one – or ten. She now carried a pair of daggers with her wherever she went, just in case. They had several runes and seals on them to make sure no one else could use them without her permission, and she’d even added several more runes and seals to let them poison or stun whatever she hit with them. As her master had put it, until she got big enough to do real damage with her strength and skill alone, poison would be a great equaliser. If necessary, she could also make her daggers explode if she had to abandon them or if they got stuck in an opponent.

  Calista stretched. She’d been climbing the rigging, and as comfortable as she was on it, it was equally clear that she hadn’t been able to do a lot of exercise while she’d been captured. “Is that the island we’ll be stopping at?” she asked, pointing toward a small, dark patch on the horizon. She had good eyes. Even with her glasses on, Katie could barely see it. “If I’m not mistaken, it’s neutral territory, which means it’s likely frequented by all manner of pirates, smugglers, and monster hunters. But now that I think of it, it’s probably not that island. It’s too close since we’re not supposed to get there until tomorrow morning.”

  “We’ll have someone waiting for us there with a dreadnought.” Katie smiled. Jake would be happy to see them again. The captain had seized his new lease on life as a privateer for Everton with both hands, and his daughter was apparently doing very well at the academy too. “By the way, how did they manage to kidnap you?”

  Calista’s eyes narrowed, and her lips firmed into a thin line. “They attacked my escort while I was sailing between two islands. I don’t know where they found the manpower – although the more I hear about the Eternal Empire’s ambitions, the stronger my suspicions become – but they were somehow able to conceal a dozen ships, including a dreadnought, and catch us by surprise. My escort sank most of them, but they were able to board my ship and kidnap me. The last thing I remember is being thrown onto a drake with a sack over my head.”

  “A smash and grab, huh?” At Calista’s questioning look, Katie explained. “A smash and grab operation is when you go in, smash whatever you have to, grab what you’re after, and then run for it. You’re not worried about collateral damage or finesse. It’s all about grabbing your target. I’m going to guess they considered their forces expendable as long as they were able to get you. The fact they had so many ships means Lord Tarrick must have had help. There’s no reason for him to have so many. They must have had a skilled and powerful illusionist too. Amanda could conceal that many ships, but there aren’t many others who could, and I’m sure you had people with you who could detect illusions. Fooling them couldn’t have been easy.”

  “When I next woke up,” Calista said. “I was in the fortress. They were careful to keep a close eye on me, and there were guards stationed nearby at all times. They didn’t harm me, but they threatened me on numerous occasions.” Her fists clenched. “I was there for more than two weeks before I heard explosions.”

  “We made those. We had to bring down the barrier and then fight our way through all the people.” Katie shared a look with Old Man. The swordsman’s lips twitched into a smile. “There were a lot of people.”

  “Yes,” Old Man said dryly. “There were. To think that a crime lord could sway so many to his cause… the Combine will be a better place without him.” He smiled faintly. “On the upside, I don’t think we have to worry about property damage for this mission, at least the second part of it, since his fortress wasn’t anywhere near civilians, and he is a wanted crime lord.”

  Calista blinked. “You have to worry about property damage?”

  “Oh, yes.” Katie laughed. “Let’s say we’re asked to save a town, there’s not much point to it if we have to blow it up to save it, so we need to be careful. Of course, that’s easier said than done.” She looked over meaningfully to where Avraniel and Spot were competing to see how far they could throw fire into the sky. “But with wanted criminals, that’s not an issue unless we damage property belongin
g to innocent civilians.”

  “Ah, right.” Calista nodded firmly. “Well, I for one am happy you did so much damage to his fortress. Not only did you capture him but also whoever is still around will soon find themselves in trouble with the merchants’ guild, and I doubt the fortress will offer them any solace given its condition.”

  “We might have to pay them another visit,” Katie said. “We weren’t able to loot everything while we were there, and you never know. The merchants’ guild might miss a few things.”

  “Bring Chomp next time,” Old Man advised. “He may not like treasure as much as our resident elf and dragon, but he does have an excellent nose for it.”

  * * *

  Amanda watched the horizon. It was still several hours before sunrise, but she had no problems seeing. If anything, her eyesight was keener at night. Not far away. Spot was snoring as he curled up to Chomp, and both of them were curled up to Avraniel. A normal person would have been chilled by the sharp gale rushing over the deck, but the elf produced more than enough warmth to ward off the cold, as did Spot. Chomp, of course, had his fur to keep him warm, and he provided a nice windbreak for the other two due to his size. The elf’s expression was peaceful as she dozed, her brows occasionally furrowing whenever Spot tried to chew on her hair. Each such attempt was met with a sleepy admonition and a half-hearted bonk over the head, which drew an equally sleepy apology from the dragon before he went back to chasing whatever it was he saw in his dreams. Chomp’s legs would sometimes twitch, which suggested he was also chasing things in his sleep. From the expressions on his faces, he usually managed to catch it. Was it a rabbit? No. It was likely something larger. Perhaps it was a deer. Labyrinth hounds were more than capable of bringing down larger prey. Fire-Fang had been partial to yaks although those had been hard to acquire outside the mountains.