Telyos alerted all twelve Noble Necromancers. He assembled them in the flagstone meeting chamber towards the back of the building. While it felt secluded, they did have a broad window view over the bustling city streets.

I was standing in front of the room next to Betty, Wynn, and Telyos. All the Noble Necromancers pierced us with glares as they sat at the U-shaped table made of osseous steel. They were between the ages of forty and sixty. Half of them were men; half of them were women. Sweat puddled in the crevices of my arm, bleeding onto my undershirt. I fiddled with Nezalon’s crown in my pocket.

“Noble Necromancers, I’ve assembled you here because Nezura is about to be under attack by King Mozer. I’ve received information from these two that he’s currently heading south,” Telyos stated.

“Has Vera been alerted that the Silver Army is coming?” asked Zenzo, one of the oldest Noble Necromancers with thick lenses and a thick white mustache.

“No, she hasn’t because the Silver Army isn’t coming with the king,” Telyos said.

Bickering broke out among them.

“Are you suggesting that Mozer is coming here by himself? That’s appalling! Not even he is that daft to make such an attempt,” Zenzo said.

“Yes, he’s coming here by himself. I know it because I saw him on the move,” Wynn said. “I don’t think you know the king as well as you think you do.” She exhaled. “He’s a necromancer who’s managed to summon the remains of the Zevolra.”

They glanced at each other for a moment before snickering, except for Zenzo, who continued to stare at us.

“I gotta say, this is a good prank to pull right before the holiday weekend, Telyos,” said Maya, an older woman with a sharp jawline. “But you’re wasting our time.”

All of them stood up except for Zenzo. Telyos cleared his throat before he said, “This isn’t a prank. This is a real warning. Wynn is the Vyrux. She and Maximilian were, uh…” Telyos took a deep breath. “Wynn and Maximilian were trained by Akara.”

A brief silence passed. Everyone’s smile vanished.

“Have a good weekend, Telyos.” Maya waved as she led the pack of Noble Necromancers towards the doors.

Telyos turned to Wynn and nodded. She held out her palms, and a fireball burst into the air, floating over the table and increasing in brightness and size until they spun around. Their eyes widened. The miniature sun blazed and roared in the middle of the room and then disappeared with the snap of her finger. All of them stared and paused.

“I’m not sure what I just witnessed, but I’m sure there’s an explanation.” Maya shook her head. “Come now, everyone, it’s the end of the day. Let’s celebrate the weekend, and we’ll see where we’re at on Tuesday.”

I felt trapped and useless. There had to be something I could do to help. Telyos and Wynn had tried everything. I clenched my jaw, took a deep breath, yanked out Nezalon’s bone crown, and held it up in the air. My pulse thumped in my ear, and my mouth went dry.

“This was given to me by Akara after I proved my worth as a necromancer!” I shouted. “She told me one of you gave this to her before she left to storm Mozer’s castle!”

Maya gasped and gazed at the crown. She tried to form words but couldn’t. It took a moment for her to say, “Akara gave that to you?”

I nodded.

“Everyone, don’t leave just yet.” Maya approached me and lowered her voice so only I could hear her. “Please explain.”

“Akara said that it was symbolic for her to invade the castle with the crown by her side. She gave it to me,” I said.

“I thought she died in the castle?”

“Yes, but she performed the resurrection spell. She saw the future play out in between the plane of existence. But I think she’s gone for good now, unfortunately.”

“I always thought the resurrection spell was a myth, but if anyone could figure out how to do it, it was Akara. May I see the crown?” Maya asked.

I gave it to Maya, and she turned it over in her hands, tracing the designs with the tip of her finger. “I, and the rest of us, owe you an apology. Sorry.” Maya turned around, and she announced, “Let’s sit back down everyone, our two guests here deserve our assistance.”

The Noble Necromancers returned to their seats and gave us their full attention.

“I believe you,” Zenzo said, “but did you have a strategy in mind on what we should do?”

“Yes, all of you should shelter in place or evacuate the people. Leave the battle with Mozer to me and Maximilian,” Wynn said.

“I’m sorry, but we barely know who you two are. We have to be involved! We are the Noble Necromancers, and we will protect our people!” one of them argued.

“Let us join the fight!” another hollered.

“Yes, I agree,” another chimed.

“Enough!” Wynn shouted. “I wish more than anything that Akara was here right now to explain to you all how this is going to happen! We’ve received the necessary training. This is our battle.”

The room went silent. Then, discussions broke out among them, with Zenzo and Maya leading the conversations. Maya explained the conversation she had with me to the rest of them.

“We apologize,” Maya said. “We will follow your directions out of respect for Akara’s plan. But please forgive our skepticism. This is the first we heard any of this. Akara didn’t tell us much about her life.”

“She didn’t want to,” Zenzo added. “Just wanted to be known as the hero of Nezura and Lavarund. I don’t even think we know half the spells she could do. Her magic was something else.”

All of them nodded and took a moment of silence.

“As far as evacuation and shelter-in-place go, I don’t see it happening,” Maya said. “It’s a holiday weekend, albeit not a major holiday, but most people have Monday to rest, so they’re out and about celebrating the Necromancer’s Primacy.”

“This fight is about to take place on the anniversary of the first recorded necromancer summon, how prophetic,” Wynn said. “Well, it’s worth a shot to alert the people. We will need space for this battle. Maximilian and I think it would be best to lead King Mozer to Caster’s Court. So, please, try your hardest to keep people away from there.”

Maya sighed. “We can put up blockades, but the people aren’t going to like it.”

“Better to have a bunch of angry people than lives lost.” Wynn shrugged.

“How long do we have until Mozer’s arrival?” Zenzo asked.

“Uh, I think we have a few hours at least. The Zevolra can fly, but it was pretty sluggish.”

“A few hours?” Zenzo uttered.

“Oh no, this isn’t looking good,” Maya said. “If we had a day to prepare, that would be better, but people aren’t going to want to lock themselves up or leave with such short notice. They’re out there partying like animals!”

“We better make an announcement from Skull Tower now, as we would for emergency weather,” Zenzo suggested.

“Good plan.” Telyos pointed. “Anything else we should discuss?”

“No, I think it’s best if we get a move on,” Maya directed.

“Great. I’ll make the announcement from Skull Tower,” Telyos said. “Wynn, Maximilian, and Betty, I wish you three the best of luck, for it seems our welfare depends on it.”

“We’ll be up at Caster’s Court!” Wynn turned to me and whispered, “Thank vlark that’s over. Let’s get outta here.”

Betty, Wynn, and I jogged out of the Municipality Building. We headed towards the south side of town, where Caster’s Court stood over the rest of the city. As we weaved through the bustling crowds of drunks, laughing necromancers, and street performers, people stopped and craned their necks upward.

“I didn’t know it was supposed to rain today?” said people among the crowds.

A gentle drizzle came from the sky as clouds thickened by the second. Betty stared at us and lowered her back as if to say, “Hop on.”

Climbing on her back, Wynn sat up front, and I wrapped my arms around her. Once we were seated comfortably, Betty sprinted faster than a horse towards Caster’s Court.

A horn blew from the top of Skull Tower. Telyos’ voice boomed through the streets of the whole city. “Seek shelter immediately or evacuate. Everyone must seek safety for an emergency storm, and a dangerous situation has arrived that’s being investigated. Those that stay outside will endanger their lives. Don’t panic. You have enough time to get back home, even if it’s on the other side of the city. Get home safely. We will announce when it’s okay to come out again! The current time frame is unknown for the restrictions. Have food for the next few days in your house. Caster’s Court will have a bone-wall around the perimeter and will be strictly off-limits. If you’re currently at the park, please leave immediately. I will repeat this announcement as needed.”

***

“It only seems like a gentle rain?” was the sentiment among the conversations we passed, riding on Betty.

Some scurried into their homes, while others continued to party on the streets.

“Should we tell them? Should we do anything?” I asked.

“They’re going to figure out soon enough they shouldn’t be outside. There’s only so much we can do!” Wynn said.

Betty weaved through the skeletal horses on carriages. The smooth stone streets were freckled with puddles. As Betty splashed through them, I shivered. The sun was setting as Betty ran all the way south down Homunculus Street, a wide road with many stone buildings of shops, restaurants, and pubs. As we approached Caster’s Court, droves of people were moseying away from the park. However, there were still crowds hanging around, playing sports with their skeletal dogs, cats, and other small animals.

“Everyone, get the vlark out of the way!” Wynn hollered as we entered Caster’s Court on Betty’s back, but no one seemed to notice us. “Listen to the message, dammit!”

The announcement continued from Telyos at Skull Tower, and all of them stopped and stared north.

“It’s only drizzling,” one teen protested.

Suddenly, bone spears emerged from the perimeter of Caster’s Court.

“Oh vlark, guess we better go,” the teenager said to his friends, and all the people jogged away. Some of them shrieked hysterically.

“Good, that takes care of that.” Wynn dusted off her hands, and we hopped off Betty’s back. “Great job, little dino-girl.” Wynn scratched underneath her jaw.

We were in the barricaded park alone. I gazed at the northern horizon; gray clouds obscured the land beyond Nezura. Peering through, I didn’t see a flying Zevolra.

“Keep an eye on the sky, will ya? I’ve never actually read this plaque before,” I said to Wynn as I approached the stone tablet in front of the Akara fountain.

This is a fountain devoted to our beloved Akara.

Everything a necromancer should be is what Akara embodied.

She graduated 25th in her class of 300 Necromancers. If you include the other two schools, she probably finished 75th. But that never stopped her from working hard to become one of the most talented necromancers that have ever existed.

She taught at Nezura Tertium at the beginning of her career. And that’s where she strengthened her abilities through her educational craft.

When she realized her power had grown significantly in a couple of years, she left Nezura to journey independently and experience life in a necromancer excluded world. This is where she discovered the remains of a unicorn, brought them back to Caster’s Court, and did the unthinkable by raising them up in front of a crowd of 40,000.

But her talents didn’t stop there. The Silver Army Spy, Kyra, known as the Necro-Hunter, was discovered and defeated by Akara.

Because of her heroics, she became one of the thirteen Noble Necromancers. Around this time, she discovered groundbreaking spells, not just one, but multiple.

Most Notably:

Bone Lance—a magic projectile to shoot at an opponent.

Amplification—a spell that boosts the power of a skeletal warrior.

It’s likely she mastered other spells without any record. In which case, they were probably deemed too dangerous for public use.

Her vision was to see necromancers live freely among Lavarund, united with the world outside our metropolis. On her own, she summoned an army of skeletal knights to challenge King Mozer by herself. While she lost her life, her memory will never be forgotten. She was our benevolent leader, and may this fountain keep her memory alive as a pillar of kindness we all strive to be.

“Have you ever read this before?” I yelled over to Wynn.

“No, I haven’t,” she said, still petting Betty.

“It’s a nice write-up. I didn’t know about those spell discoveries. Makes you wonder what else she knew.”

A loud groan boomed through the air. Squinting at the sky, I saw the silhouette of the skeletal Zevolra. Its massive skull faded in through the clouds, flying closer to Nezura as the rain poured down.

“Looks like this is it!” Wynn shouted with a crazed grin and twinkle in her eye.

“What’s the matter with you? Are you excited about this?” I asked.

“Vlark yeah! I love the rain, and also, I wanna flex my Vyrux-ian muscle. This is the plan. I’m going to fly up and hurl some fireballs at him, get a feel for what we need to do, and then I’ll lead him towards Caster’s Court, and we can take it from there.”

“What should I do?”

“Are you serious right now? Akara trained you, but even I know what you should focus on! The bone-crushing curse, dude! She made sure you mastered that, right?”

“Oh, uh, yeah.” I nodded, wiping the rain away from my eyes.

“So then try to kill Mozer when he’s distracted or going on some long-winded speech. I don’t know; we’ll figure it out, gotta go!”

“Good luck!” I yelled.

“Bye, Max, should anything happen, just know I love ya, buddy.”

“I love—”

Wynn rocketed off the ground with a burst of wind shooting out her heels. She dashed up the air as if leaping up multiple steps at a time.

“You too.” I looked at Betty and waved her over. She approached me and tilted her head curiously. “Let me hop on your back again. I could use the ground speed.”

She lowered her tail and held her head up proudly.

* * *

Mozer cruised towards Nezura. The City of Ivory, he thought. After I’m done, it’ll be The City of Dust. Yes, we’re going to squash their stupid Skull Tower into rubble, and we’re going to demolish the Municipality Building. My beautiful Zevolra. We’ll lay down at the east and roll all the way to the west, crushing everything, taking souls as we go along. This tops any birthday celebration I’ve ever had.

Whoosh!

The Zevolra bone crown was rattled by a punch of flames in the blink of an eye. Mozer stammered backward but clutched onto the wall of the cage.

“What the vlark was that?” Mozer scanned his surroundings as the Zevolra continued flight as if nothing happened.

Another blast of flames struck the bone crown.

“Dammit!” Mozer flinched, but he stroked a spear from the crown and cracked up. “Go ahead, I know it’s you, Vyrux. Keep ‘em coming; I can do this all day!”

A fireball smashed against the crown again, and Mozer howled with laughter. “You’re good, you know that, you vlarking bitch. Let’s kill you first, so I don’t have to deal with a pestering fly as I perform my magnum opus.”

The Vyrux hovered in front of the bone cage, grinning and winking. “The name’s Wynn! Nice to meet ya!”

The Zevolra bellowed a whale-like sound and swung its massive left claw at Wynn, who narrowly dodged the attack in between its talons.

“Gonna have to do better than that!” Wynn shot a fireball at Mozer, exploding against the crown. She cackled through the hammering rain.

Lap it up while you can, Mozer thought. Wynn skated on the air towards Caster’s Court. The Zevolra continued to follow, paces behind, but lockstep with Mozer’s mental commands. That fountain looks like the perfect landing spot.