With very little time left before Sebastion arrived, I had to complete any additional preparations now. I did not want to rely on the corpse of the dragon underground unless I had no other choice. That meant I needed something else that would force the man to use his innate talent.

The underground labyrinth was a good start but I needed something to draw Sebastion’s attention if he reached the end with energy to spare. I needed something big and I had the perfect idea for that.

Leaving the floating island, I walked to the edge of the city. A small reddish-gold bundle of feathers landed on my shoulder as I strolled down the road. The geometric design of the cut stones used the pave the path showed the care Svend had put into the city he called home.

I reached over to Sylvie as she preened her new colorful feathers with pride. Quickly forming a glyph, a small golden flame ignited. The small bird whistled in delight and swallowed the flame whole. I watched Sylvie carefully as the flame disappeared down her gullet. So far, there had not been any negative reactions to her transformation. I had not yet seen the extent of Sylvie’s new strength but it was safe to say that my experiment succeeded. The only downside was that I now had two hungry animals both clamoring for the golden flame.

Now, it was time to make that number three.

It was a long walk to the base of the nearby mountain. I could have gotten Donte to fly Dragon’s Nest over there but I wanted the opportunity to stretch my legs. Breathing in the brisk, cold air was refreshing. The light breeze played with the loose strands of my hair not contained by my ponytail. I waved at a few random people as they passed by on their way into the city.

It was peaceful here. Unfortunately, it was a peace that I knew would not last. My presence here had already attracted one enemy in Sebastion. I had no doubt it would soon attract the Demons as well. Their silence made me worry. There was nothing worse than a patient enemy.

Sebastion I could predict and counter but I had no idea why the Demons had not made their move on the realm yet. This was not their normal way of operating. What were they waiting for?

Lost in thought I wandered up to the base of the mountain where a large figure was waiting for me. “Hello Naga, are you ready to rejoin the ranks of the living?” I asked as I looked up at the giant form of the snake coiled around a large rock outcropping on the mountain.

The snake’s tongue flickered as it slithered down from the rock cliffside. The giant head moved until it was almost right up against me before falling still. Naga's giant eye watched me expectantly.

I hesitated slightly as I reached out and touched the cold scaly skin. Unlike Nox or Sylvie, Naga had been a Demonkin before I turned her into an undead. There was no guarantee that Naga would be as docile as the other two animals. I had far less command over the creatures affected by the golden flame. If I did this and Naga returned to her old murderous ways, I would only be creating another problem for everyone.

I shook my head furiously and threw away any doubts. There was not enough time to be careful. I would not be able to regain enough of my strength before Sebastion arrived. Even if I had months to prepare, I still probably could not beat the man in a fair fight. If I wanted to win, I needed to maximize every resource at my disposal.

Taking a deep breath, I focused on the giant body of the snake before me. Repeating the process I used on Sylvie was easier the second time. I activated my domain and drained all the green fire from the snake before returning it with the smallest wisp of blue flame. Luckily, the size of the body did not have any impact on my talent, or I would have needed all day just to circle the overgrown serpent. Within a minute, Naga had fallen asleep curled around her rock on the cliffside. She was so still that a random passerby would think she was a statue, not a beast that could crush a house without even noticing.

I let out a sigh of relief as the process was completed. So long as Naga awoke, that would make three. Now the question was, should I try the process on a human?

My undead animals were smarter than average creatures thanks to my connection with them but at the end of the day, they were still just animals. Their desires were simple. On a normal day, the only thing Nox and Sylvie cared about was filling their stomach. Humans were different. Humans were complex. Even as regular undead, humans were the ones most likely to resist my control. If I brought someone back to life with the golden flame, would they still be willing to follow me? Should I try and force them if they were not?

I pondered these questions the entire trip back to Dragon’s Nest. In the end, my answer was the same as it was when deciding whether or not to use the technique on Naga. I did not have time to be cautious. I had to roll the dice and take a chance.

Determined, I decided not to hesitate anymore. If something went wrong, I would deal with it then. Once, back at Svend’s manor, I gave the command and two undead appeared before me.

The first was The Sword Saint Sigmund. The second was Ragnar the Conqueror. Both of these undead had been domain-level fighters when they were alive. If I brought them back to life, perhaps that power would return as well.

First, however, there was something I had to do. Ignoring Sigmund for now, I focused my attention on Ragnar.

“In life, you were a conqueror. You attempted to recreate my empire and unite the continent. You died pitifully, proving you were never worthy of my title. Now that I have returned, are you willing to submit to me willingly?”

“Recreate your empire?” Ragnar asked with a shake of his head, “That was just something I told the people so they would follow me. All I ever wanted was war. Leading armies, outsmarting my enemies, and being outsmarted in turn brought me great joy in life beyond what any grand goal could provide. You say my death was pitiful, but I call it glorious. There is no greater delight than a strong enemy. Provide me that, and I will follow you anywhere.”

I could not help but chuckle at Ragnar’s response. Through the connection we shared, I knew he was telling the truth. Ragnar’s type was something I had seen many times before in the Thirteen Divisions. Compared to some paragon of virtue, a subordinate like Ragnar was much easier to control.

Crossing my arms, I smiled at Ragnar. “I have never had any shortage of strong enemies. Kneel and I will make you my general in the coming war.”

Without hesitation, the man bent his knees and lowered his head. With my talent, I could have forced the man to do so but with what I had planned for these two, I wanted Ragnar to remember he willingly agreed to serve me.

Reaching out with my hand, green flames ignited. Flickering in the dim light of Svend’s manor, the flames moved at my command. They wrapped around Ragnar's head and seeped into his skin forming a band identical to the one on Sigmund.

“This circlet of flames is proof of your agreement today. Betray me, and this circlet will destroy you, understand?” I said with the best regal voice I could manage.

Ragnar nodded as he continued kneeling. “So long as I have an enemy to fight, I will serve you faithfully.”

I pursed my lips in annoyance at the implications behind the man’s words. He might as well have told me that he would betray me if ever I ran out of enemies for him to fight. Luckily, with the thousand-year war against the Demons still raging on, there was likely to never be a lack of enemies.

Shaking my head, I focused on both of the men. I manipulated the circlets on their head so that they would work the same as Nox’s. These two men were icons of Kala. I could not afford to have them go through physical changes as Sylvie did. This was the perfect opportunity to test if it was really the collar that prevented Nox from bursting into flames the same way.

Repeating the process for both the men, I drained away all the flames in their bodies and added them back with the wisp of blue fire. The two men immediately collapsed as the green flame was drained away. I observed the process carefully with my domain. Even after the two of them fell into a deep sleep, I still did not look away.

If this really worked on humans, everything would change. I pushed my domain to the limit, trying just to keep it active for a little longer. I was determined to know how this process worked. Unfortunately, I was not strong enough to maintain my domain for more than a few minutes. Still, I did not leave. I spent the next several hours sitting, watching, and when I had enough strength, probing with my domain.

It was only when evening came and the sun began to set that my mom came and shook me from my observation.

“Come on, Wren. It is time for dinner. Whatever you are working on can wait till after.” She said with her arms crossed.

I knew it was pointless to argue with my mom but I still had trouble tearing my eyes away from the two men. I spoke in a small voice, barely above a whisper as my mom was about to chastise me.

“Mom, what do you think makes a person?”

“What?” she asked in confusion.

“Are people just a collection of memories or is there something more that makes us human?” I continued, “If someone loses all their memories and their soul moves to a new body would they still be the same person? I always thought yes but that leaves the question, if I brought someone back to life with all their memories intact, but a different soul, who would they be then?”

My mom fell silent as she pondered the question for several seconds before replying. “Does it matter?”

I blinked a few times in surprise, finally tearing my gaze away from the two men. My mom chuckled slightly at my expression as she continued to speak.

“People are always changing, all through our lives. We are not the same person we were a decade ago. We will not be the same person a decade from now but that is ok. The only thing that matters is to live a life without regrets. Everything else is unimportant.”

I felt like a weight was lifted from my shoulders as I smiled at my mom. “You are right. I was overthinking things. Let’s go get dinner. I am starving!”