Elinor’s lips became a line as she looked at the limp man before her, locked in place by her skeleton. I don’t know how many of those toad people are out there, but it’s pretty obvious that they’re not friendly. If they find my parents, then they’re dead; there’s no way they could escape creatures that can jump up roofs and have killer alligator-toad pets.

Her attention was pulled back to Raul as he began crying.

“Seriously? You’re crying?” She stated with a dull expression, grayish-white hair partially obscuring her vision.

“It’s just—it wasn’t supposed to be like this,” he babbled. “Javier—you … he’s—he’s dead?”

Her cold ghostly green eyes stared at him for several seconds. “Yes—and if you don’t want to be, then you’ll shut-up.”

It took him a moment, but he slowly regained control of his emotions, head lying limp against the floor. His chest heaved, eyes closed as he seemed to be mumbling some kind of prayer.

Wow, that was so cold, but I just can’t find it in myself to really care about him. No ... chilling with this guy won’t help me get back to my parents or deal with this toad problem. If I’m a necromancer … I should bolster my army.

She hummed thoughtfully as she studied Raul and her skeleton; her vision slid down her previous bony figure, green flames smoothly flowing down the polished white bone of her former arms.

Is it strong enough to snap his neck? Maybe I could turn him into a skeleton while he’s alive, though? It’s not saying I can’t, but … that doesn’t mean I can. Am I really contemplating killing this man? He has a name, and he’s crying about his dead friend, but at the same time, they did kidnap me. How am I considering this an option? I don’t necessarily want to kill him, but it’s not like I’d really feel bad about it either…

Her luminant eyes moved to the broken window. He’ll eventually die if I let him go … which would be a waste. He could make a good decoy; it’s not like I’m killing him myself … is that how I justify it? I mean, I guess, it’s either him or me that tests the waters, and I’d rather it not be me or my skeleton. I should give my old body a name! How about … Ms. Bones? Yeah, I like it.

A grim smile lit Elinor’s cheeks as she willed Ms. Bones to let Raul go; he tensed as his skeletal prison released its grip and rose to its feet.

“What—are you going to do to me?” He muttered, rising with his left arm as his right rubbed his sore shoulders.

She pointed at the door while rising to her feet. “Nothing, you’re free to go. I have my own things to worry about, and if you don’t know where my parents are, then I don’t need you.”

“Okay…” He muttered, scooting back against an open dresser. His vision shifted between her and the door with uncertainty.

Acting like she was ignoring him, she moved to the back of the room, staring at the mirror; Ms. Bones followed her, standing a few feet behind her. She frowned at her nightwear, dimly lit by Ms. Bones’ flames.

I should probably put on some real clothes; I need to wait for him to build up the courage to run anyways. If he doesn’t go by the time I’m done, I could have Ms. Bones chase him out.

She turned and walked over to her open and rummaged through suitcase; Raul hurriedly scooted closer to the door, breath held.

Elinor ignored the action and smiled ruefully as she extracted a dress that fit her previous body perfectly with a front and back black leather tie to tighten where needed. The hoodie had a witch's point at the end, and the inside had a gothic patterned mesh fabric with a wood stitching design.

I can’t believe I took this on the trip. Mom was right; it would have been suicide to wear it in this heat, but … what about now? Is this artificial body affected by temperature … I’m very resistant to thermal changes, but my cold resistance is less than heat. Cool, I don’t have to worry about getting hot anymore. I don’t have any liquid in my body, so there’s no chance at sweat.

Her smile fell a little at the sight of the two black boots that she’d brought, her only pair of footwear. Man, that was such a bad idea.

Gathering the items along with a pair of black moon design socks, she went into the bathroom, Ms. Bones posting itself as a guard outside. She quickly changed, noting that she probably didn’t have to use tampons anymore; finished putting on the dress, she was halfway done with her boots when the door opened. Hmm, toad-people, or Raul running?

Doing a quick knot, she opened the door and hurried to the front opening; she slowly closed the door, trying her best to be unseen. Moving back to the curtains, she almost jumped as she heard a loud crack. Her head snapped back to find Ms. Bones waltzing on the glass without a care in the world.

Stop! Ms. Bones froze. Now that I think of it, she’s a freaking bonfire; they’ll be able to see the glow through the curtain. Go back into the bathroom and wait, and be careful! She added as it stepped on another chunk of glass.

Rolling her eyes, she looked outside; the night was still. The backs of several buildings faced the hotel, and there was a cross-street beside her building. Raul had tripped and was on his hands and knees beside Javier’s corpse, to the left of the window.

She could see the bright headlights of the truck. Raul was trying to cry, vomit, and speak at the same time which came out in a jumbled mess. The wind was almost still; there was only a slight rustle that touched the curtains Elinor hid behind.

Maybe this wasn’t the best idea. With the racket he’s creating, he’ll draw every toad here, but it’s not like I can go out and stop him now.

She looked around the visible area, lit by the low hanging moon overhead and dome of cracked multi-colored lights; it was surprisingly quiet as she examined the soft lights and humming truck next to Javier’s body, Raul crying next to him.

All the screams stopped, but they could have run down the road or into the jungle. If there are any toads nearby, then they’d probably come running to kill this idiot, but I guess he doesn’t know what happened to his friend. He didn’t see that monster; so, naturally, he probably thinks I did it.

Those toads, though … what if they’re smart? They seemed to be communicating, and he even smeared Javier’s blood on his body, like some kind of Indian ritual or something. Could they be waiting to see if anyone else comes out?

After a minute, Raul started to settle down and curled up next to the truck, gazing at the sky with a zoned-out expression. He shook and whimpered every once in a while, but for the most part, seemed to be conflicted on what to do.

Well, this is boring; how long should I wait?

Releasing a soft sigh, she knelt down to finish tying her boots; just as she was finishing the last knot, she heard Raul start stammering something unintelligible. Slowly getting to her feet, she peeked out from behind the drapes, lips becoming a line as she saw one of the toad-men.

This creature was a little bit shorter than the previous ones, and had no vest, showing a dozen bloody palm prints on his shoulders, chest, and left thigh. Its tough looking slick skin was dark greenish-brown with a different pattern to it than the previous toads she’d seen. There was a necklace strapped around its thick neck that seemed to round with its back; three black beads were above a glistening reverse arrowhead-shaped stone that dangled between its muscular chest.

One of the biggest differences about this toad-man was his weaponry. This one carried a battle-ax in its left hand; one side of it had a sharp pointed end and the other a curved razor’s edge. It seemed to be comprised entirely of a dull silver-colored metal that had a faint gray glow that pulsed weakly. On its back was a circular shield that was the same color as the previous toad-men’s spears.

It was crouching down several feet away from the man, amber eyes studying his fidgets as it shifted its jaw, three protruding fangs on each side folded its bottom lips back on every motion, and its nostrils flared every so often.

Raul had somehow managed to get a handgun from somewhere; Elinor noticed the bloody corpse of Javier was flipped over, and Raul’s hands and arms were stained red. He was backed up against the front truck wheel, the gun shaking in his hand as he aimed it at the creature.

Well, I guess there was someone nearby. Javier had a gun this entire time? Raul might have been waiting for me to come out and shoot me; he could have been trying to work up the courage to do it. How will a gun work against these creatures, though?

There were several seconds of silence as Raul, and the toad-man stared at each other. After a time, the creature lifted its ax and dropped it against the ground, making a soft thud. It did this a few more times before making a low vibrating rumble with its throat.

What’s it doing? It doesn’t look like he’s threatening him, but that sound seems threatening. Is it telling him to show him something?

“Wha-what—what are you?” Raul questioned in Spanish. “Are—are you like that girl inside? Did the light change you? It—that girl, she—she killed my best friend…”

Crap … well, I didn’t expect that. I thought they’d just jump on him and eat him or something. It would need to have night-vision to actually see me, though … well, my eyes glow a bit, but they’re so small that … I don’t know how good toad vision is, though. This could be a problem, but if he…

Raul lifted his empty hand and pointed right at the window she was in. “There—she’s in there! She’s a ghost-zombie!”

The toad-man’s head tilted toward the building. It ceased its pounding and opened its mouth, showing no teeth other than the three protruding fangs on both sides of the upper jaw. A large pink tongue slid around its wet mouth before its jaws closed again and it seemed to swallow, but turned its head back to Raul.

Elinor breathed a sigh of relief. Is it even intelligent? Maybe it’s more animal-like.

Raul’s voice began to quiver. “What—no, there’s…”

The toad lifted his ax and threw it in one fluid motion; it sailed through the air and smashed through the side of the building; wood struck Elinor’s face as it splintered under the force. The ax spun right by her head, but she didn’t flinch. The sound of the mirror shattering cut past the other sounds.

She looked down at the floor as a long lock of her hair, just above her ear, dropped to the ground. Her head lifted to glance at the toad before turning to follow the ax’s path; she saw it through a hole it had created in the bathroom sheetrock and wood, shattering the mirror and embedding itself in the brick wall behind it. A lump dropped down her throat as she felt a bit of her energy being used to reconstruct the lost hair, slowly growing back to its original length.

She felt a little panicked, but it was quickly subdued as her mind worked on the situation. Ms. Bones was fine, but she had to mentally force it not to jump out and attack the toad.

That throw was precise; it knew exactly where it was throwing that ax. I bet it was really close to Ms. Bones too.

Her ghostly eyes widened as she watched the light glow around the ax increase and it shot back, forcing her to move further right into the open window, exposing herself to the toad; it spun through the air at a rapid pace before stopping in the toad-man’s grip.

Elinor took a deep breath, cold eyes centering on the creature as it continued to stare at Raul; the moment the ax was back in its hand, he began tapping it again.

This thing is definitely intelligent. That was a warning shot; it wants me to come out. Well, this was a terrible plan … have the kidnapper lure the creatures away, but no, he just ratted me out. I guess I don’t have much of a choice, but how many more might be hiding around the area?

Telling Ms. Bones to accompany her, Elinor moved to the door and opened it, walking through. She didn’t feel nearly as nervous as she should have.

Raul swapped his weapon to her as she exited. “You—you monster … you did this; you killed Javier!” He yelled, pulling the trigger. He shot at random; hands quaking, he emptied the entire clip.

Elinor kept walking forward as he shot, feeling an odd sense of security. I know I should be scared, but at the same time, it’s not like shooting a magical construct will do anything.

The toad-man jumped back eight feet as the firing started, whipping out his shield from around his back within a second; he stood still watching the man shooting her, screaming his grief.

She stopped several feet away from Raul; every shot missed but one, and it so happened to hit her left temple. A light sigh left Elinor’s lips as a hopeful smile lit his lips which soon fell as the bullet was ejected from her skull through the hollow opening before closing up; her hand lifted, visually telling Ms. Bones not to attack.

“H-how? I—right in the—the head?” He seemed to lose strength in his body as his arm fell, but not before a blur snatched the gun out of the air as it left his hand.

Elinor glanced left; the gun seemed to be stuck to the toad’s long tongue as he fluidly slipped his shield strap back on over his shoulders to free up his hand. He squatted down, studying the piece of metal.

Her lips bunched as she looked down at her clothes. “Well, at least you didn’t ruin my clothes.”

“H-how?”

She huffed, glaring down at the babbling man. “I’m not a zombie—idiot.” She muttered, now able to speak almost fluently; however, her tone was much more detached and cold than she remembered. “Also,” her vision moved back to the toad. “Those toad creatures killed your friend, not me. You’re making me regret not killing you back there.”

Elinor hummed softly as she watched the toad-man flip the gun around in its hand; it was surprisingly dexterous.

He has a super-fast tongue, can throw an ax through two walls and embed it in brick, and he seems to have fast reflexes. Well, this is a shitty situation. If I can get Ms. Bones close to him and lock him in a…

Her thoughts broke as the toad’s head snapped up and a loud threatening rumble shot through its throat, but at the same time, something smashed into her head, burrowing into her skull. Mentally she recognized that something else had struck Ms. Bones at near the same time. Out of the corner of her eyes, she watched Raul collapse as blood spurt out of his head, spraying across the truck door above him.

Not only was something in her head, but she felt something squirming; however, it shortly ceased, and she felt her body rejecting it. She looked down at Raul as she watched what seemed like red vines squirming out of the opening where blood pooled.

What the hell was that?

She looked back at the building, lifting her head to see five toad-men crouching atop the roof. These toads were more green than gray or brown and had spiral patterned slick skin. Their eyes were purple, and they seemed to be of slimmer stock than the toad with the ax or the previous toads with the spears.

Three of them held two-foot long sticks in their hands that gave her the impression of bamboo and seemed hollow, while two had small flute-like instruments in their hands. They each had a big pouch sewn on their vest that appeared to be carrying small objects. On their sides were similar daggers as the first group she’d seen, but the bone hilts were painted with black spiral patterns that matched their skin.

A new group of toads? How many different types and groups are there?

She looked down at the ground, searching for whatever had been ejected from her head but couldn’t find anything. Pulling around her dress’ large witch’s hood, she found a small yellow spiked ball the size of a marble; it was pulsing gently.

On closer inspection, she saw that each spike had a small hair-like tendril on the end that quivered. Her vision returned to Raul as he began to convulse, causing her lips to purse; the tendrils of red vines seemed to be closing up the entry wound.

These things must need some kind of liquid to grow. What’s their purpose, though? To burrow in and kill someone if the first blow doesn’t do it?

Elinor almost was too stunned to notice Ms. Bones running off toward the building to give the toads a piece of its mind; she forced Ms. Bones back, feeling a little bad that she kept restricting it from the one thing it wanted to do—attack anything that attacked her. She needed her skeleton close in case she needed to run, though. She noticed a hole in the back of Ms. Bones’ skull with a deep frown.

They hurt my original body … why does that make me so mad? Is it just because … well, it’s the last thing of me. I don’t want it to get hurt, but I don’t see me getting out of this without a show of force. I can heal this artificial body, no problem, … well, there is that energy loss I felt earlier, but it’s not that bad. However, if my skeleton gets damaged … it stays damaged.

Her attention was pulled back to the toads as each of them began to communicate, and it didn’t seem like they were that friendly. The battle-ax toad took a step forward, brandishing the gun at them before slamming his ax on the ground with loud thumps while the blowgun toads responded by making strange swimming gestures in what almost seemed a mocking way; both looked like they’d completely forgotten about her.

A chill ran down her spine as she felt Ms. Bones detect another threat; a high-pitched musical noise began to play as she turned to see Raul twitch before getting to his feet. He lurched toward her, veins popping with a dull red glow.

You have to be kidding me! Zombie plant musicians? I mean, if he’s dead, though…

The dull expression on Elinor’s face didn’t falter as she lifted her hand, green fire licking down its length. Easily dodging around zombie Raul’s jerky lunge, she tapped his head with the flames, and he lit like a turkey doused in lighter fluid.

Zombie Raul collapsed at her feet as the high-pitched music ceased. She coldly examined the burning corpse as she bent down, knowing the fire wouldn’t burn her clothes. The flames consumed the flesh, blood, muscle, and fat, but left the plant completely unharmed. She watched in fascination as the plant seemed to wither as it was exposed to open air.

“Hmm, fascinating,” she mumbled, poking at a vibrating piece. A portion of her energy was used in creating this new skeleton that was much more apparent than her previous reanimation of Ms. Bones.

Her glowing green eyes moved to Javier’s corpse. I might as well raise it while I can; I’d rather use their skeletons to attack than Ms. Bones.

Throwing out several small sparks of green flames by waving her hand in Javier’s direction, the embers struck and lit the body aflame. Within a matter of seconds, they were rising, green fire attached to their bones.

How many skeletons can I control at once … three, perfect. What about this energy drain? Hmm, what about … how do I get energy back … by absorbing the remaining Life Energy from the deceased. If I do that, then I can’t raise them from the dead, though.

Getting the energy from the recently deceased is weak energy; what about the living … yes, Life Tap. I can drain the life force from someone alive, but they aren’t paralyzed while I do it and can fight back. It might be fairly easy to interrupt, then. Still, at least it’s something.

Rising to her feet, she looked back at the toads; each of them was in a cautious stance as they focused on her. She couldn’t help but smile a little at the withering vines weakly clinging onto Raul’s skeleton, and with a thought, the skeleton ripped the plants off of its bones and tossed them aside.

I’m pretty creepy now; maybe I can scare the toad-men off. They did see me shrug off that spikeball attack like it was nothing, and I just raised the dead, taking control of their puppet. That’s scary, right?

Her voice was ice, but her insides squirmed with hope. “How will you deal with me when I can raise the dead?”

The toad with the ax dropped the gun on the ground and pulled the shield off his back, making thunderous threatening sounds that seemed to be more directed at the toads above them than at her. As he lifted his ax to throw it, there was only one thought going through her head.

Crap.

He threw the ax, and it smashed right through Javier’s skeleton as it jumped in front of the path; the weapon cleaved her neck from her body before she could even duck, and her senses went back to the void.