I knew it from when I first bit into that man's arm whatever it was this urge was driving me to crave, that wasn't the way to go about it. But in the face of the instinct that it aroused I was helpless to do nothing but the hunger.

There were many more villages after that, everytime I would end up in that state, searching for prey. Honestly it wasn't just annoying to lose myself like that, it was dangerous too. There were a few times when a villager put up a fight that very well could've had my head caved in, if it weren't for the ferocity I can swing my axe and the sheer number of us undead.

It makes me appreciate that I'm mostly intact after the battle that took my life, my best guess is that the necromancer made sure his undead didn't go into a feeding frenzy facing off against trained soldiers, along with my luck to get ignored long enough for the necromancer to raise me.

I've been trying to fight against the urge, and to understand it. I think it has to do with what it is that's making me move in the first place. Death energy.

From what I know about death energy, it's akin to energy shed when a thing dies, used in Necromancy as fuel for their spells and raised minions.

As for why we zombies crave it so bad, I would compare it to food, whereas we need it for energy. The comparison is lacking though since I only ever feel the need to eat when around the recently dead and dying. Maybe it's more primal than that?

For now I can't make a proper conclusion, and on controlling myself, I'm unsuccessful.

On the upside, I'm fairly certain I could control myself, if the necromancer's influence was to be removed from the equation. His command to kill everyone multiplies the effect to a point where I'm unable to even offer a shred of resistance.

But this all will have to wait till a situation like what happened with the soldiers occurs, where he curbs this desire in us.

It might work to kill him, which wouldn't be very difficult, considering the nature of a necromancer is completely obedient undead slaves he wouldn't see me coming. However, I have no idea how that'll effect myself when he croaks as one of his minions.

What generally happens when the one controlling the undead dies, is that they too die, albeit over a period of time.

Think of it like a fire no longer receiving new logs and burning away till it sputters out.

For myself, a self aware fire, that is not a very desirable outcome.

Luckily we're approaching a town that I remember stopping by during the days before my demise, as we marched to that fateful place. There they have stationed soldiers, along with a palisade wall with stands along the inside for archers, so I'm sure that the necromancer will give us the command to ignore our hunger and focus on killing the civilized way. The civilized way merely being kill them all and THEN enjoy the spoils.

I also imagine that after this town we'll soon face the true wrath of the Empire, as the time we've rampaged has been over a week and mobilization of a subjugation force should already be on its way. It's only because of the remoteness of those villages that they did not evacuated before we fell upon them.

These past slaughters I've also found some interesting things about myself, and my relationship with the other undead. For starters, I can order them around some what. Nothing fancy, restricted to simple orders such as 'hold back' and 'don't eat that one' among others. I discovered it from the latter when I saw a particularly enticing morsel of a man bedecked with a few fat rolls, along side a scared and naked woman. Suppose a noble come to enjoy himself on those who can't resist.

Good thing I discovered that talent at the time, as it lead to my undead brethen dealing with the mans guards, five very thuggish individuals. They turned to babies when they were being eaten though. I myself enjoyed the flesh fat nobleman, along with his cries and whimpers. It might not do anything for me, eating him, but it certaintly feels good to appease the hunger and his pain filled screams only serve to enflame it more, like the sizzle of meat as it reaches perfection.

As for the woman, she as well was killed, although she was not eaten, the necromancer having begun raising the corpses and hers got to be one of them.

Talking about that, our friend Abs has been doing some work. I swear I saw a farmer shove a pitchfork towards his stomach just to see it fail to penetrate. The hell kind of work out did he do before he died?! Does he have an actual steel plate inside of him?!

Aside from that, our horde which at my joining had been 1500, with the addition of the 500 from the force I was a part of, had us at around 2000 undead. Throw in the numerous villages we've razed with average populations of around 50 people, and I'd say we're around 2300 and 2400. And lets not forget the contigent of 200 ghoul hounds, those adorable death machines. I say adorable if only because they're as close to a dog as an undead can get, their living counterparts far less receptive.

For the town we've set our sights on, which I estimate to have around 2000 people, with only a quarter of that being combatants, it should shape to be another slaughter albeit longer. We certaintly won't come out unscathed though, especially with the palisade that surrounds the town.

I don't believe we'll be using siege equipment, considering the lack of it, not even a ram. Course we may make a ram when we get there, since it's just a chopped down tree with its branches removed, but due to the region's disposition the tree's are hardy but they aren't very durable. Think of them like rats, you can kill it with ease with an axe. But in surviving? It's your superior.

And the palisade the town has isn't made from these trees, both due to the aforementioned lack of durability and a lack of them, with them being quite sparse. The wood used for the palisade is imported from farther south from the lumber camps of the Empire. Thick, strong, and plentiful, it's the mainstay building resource for all towns aside from the cities which opt for the incomparable durability of stone, even then still making up a good chunk of it.

So if we scratch out siege equipment, that leaves us two options to take the town. Full out frontal assault, using our nature as unliving creatures of death to death ball over the wall in a single concetrated mass, or to resort to devious means.

The issue with the first one, despite sounding like a lot of fun if looked at from a blood thirsty and violent angle, is that it fails to capitalize on our strength in numbers by allowing the opposition to strenghten their own defense at that single point we try to breach, along with immense casualties by being served kills on a silver plate. Don't even get me started on the archers having it easy picking us off this way.

This leaves us with the devious, the cloak and dagger, the knife in the dark, the also fun stuff from a cruel and calculating angle. I assume the necromancer will also choose this method, considering it's the usual operating method for them, myself in eager anticipation for what it is he comes up with.

It is only when we arrive a ways from the town that I was wrong all accounts yet so very close.

Our necromancer's friends from before, or new ones, hard to tell when they're hooded with no distinguishable features.

Behind them are behemoths of undead flesh, each over 5 meters tall with crooked, jagged teeth and boorish faces that somehow contained both a promise of violence and thoughtlessness.