POVs are fun, MC again

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I expected some last ditch event to occur to try to change things so I am glad I am not disappointed when something does occur. The paladin screamed something about giving his life for the god of light and pulled out a chunk of stone from his pouch and attempts to crush it. The reason it is attempt is the activation of a little present on the roof of the room. There I had placed various magic circles meant to immobilize those inside the room. As the stone is brought out the array activates nd the paladin is halted just before he flexes his fingers. His eyes bulge out and spit flies from his mouth as the crossbow bolts impact the back of his head. These ones were forgotten in the battle as I had them withdraw. No one had the time to deal with them once the guards engaged in melee. The paladin’s body is held still thanks to the array causing his body to undergo paralysis and the bonds of air around his body.

Just incase as I want to make sure the wight drops his sword and takes a dagger from its sheath. Jamming the blade through the armpit, the mail covering it is pierced from the impact. The blade travels to where the heart should be and the body convulses more. Plucking the stone the wight carefully hands it to another black skeleton who then takes it away to a side room and closes itself in. I can retrieve the stone later on as I finish directing the skeletons. The bodies are stabbed to ensure that they are truly dead, one slumped against the wall makes more noise and is promptly finished off. I think he was trying to mouth something while staring at the paladin but whatever.

The command cadre are making noises about the bets that won or lost. Smacking them on the head to give them a nice distraction of actual physical pain instead of having their eyes get teary for a second from loss, I ask for the latest rough tally of forces. To sum things up we have lost all the spawn again and taking minimal losses with our actual forces which can be easily fixed. By the way this is not even mentioning the several thousand dead here and those buried elsewhere which I expect to be broken quickly once I turn these priests here. Even if I cannot get their souls thanks to that damm shielding effect of the holy magic, having so many corrupted priests can easily crack the wards inplace. Having the cadre start organizing clean up operations I move my conscience to check for myself how my prototype performed.

Contacting my prototype which I am calling an ossuary strider for now I check more indepth what both it and it’s subsidiary spirits have done. Suffice it to say a job well done, butchered levy fodder, silenced priests and mages, and slaughtered the knights. Good to see that it can assess threats, is familiarized with battle tactics, and is properly able to command. If I made a basic controlling binding then it would have probably wobbled around striking anything that wanders too close on instinct but with an actual semi-sentient pseudo soul the calculated carnage is certainly more than qualifying for me. I decide to grant this one a name(Gra’Stolat) and title(Nuntius Edictum) in honor of it’s successful execution of orders, as a note Cor’lothen,Or’tharn,Alberack all have titles as well planned or already given for when their souls are fully ignited(Or’tharn’s is praefectus primus).

Now that this stage of the battle is complete time to prepare for the next escalation, obviously I can expect more for this is a war and not just one battle. I have won the opening salvos but time to ensure that I continue to do so. At least now even if I cannot get those souls for myself I ensured a little more that no one else will be getting anything of worth either. I wonder whether a tenet of their faith is that the souls of those that follow them are sheltered with their god, well that is correct for a rather tiny minority for sure. Those that died in the first battles before I burned their icon down are certainly better off then afterwards not that I planned on getting them whole since that would be a rather large investment of creating mobile soul casks which are not a priority.

Souls even for the weakest are still a rather large glob of energy that takes specialized facilities to hold for long periods. Tearing fragments from prisoners is a much simpler task. Still preparing for such acts can come later. I do dislike pointless attrition so having the cheap and disposable units ready for larger battles is a must. I cannot waste this time if I truly want a break. I better win this since I have rather planned things such that even in death I get no sleep, rather literal being a necromancer with assorted back up plans. Things go on as they always do for even necromancers are not always stagnant beings and especially my conclave and domain.

Thinking about the next steps needed I return to my chambers to ponder once more, I am not one for celebration parties but checking on the conditions of the group including young David who while not happy at not getting to fight understands that he would not have done anything short of dying. Breaking the news to the old and new tenants about the deaths of their immediate persecutors I get a mixed bag of emotions, nothing that would suggest trouble for me other than heavy fear and awe of course.

Good to know that this lot will be most productive in working for me, I do not want only mindless minions around as having a kingdom of the dead sounds exciting but it is not practical. The intelligence level of a normal undead leaves much to desire, the same could be said for peasants but that is another discussion. I wonder what upgrades I can make to my forces with what I have available now? The drums of war will beat once more for the kingdom will not stay quiet once the annihilation of their precious crusade is discovered.

And of course the exploratory expeditions deeper into the domain, while me and the bean counters were busy directing the battle the other necromancers are busy expanding my realm. As they go further along this band of the field the undead grow stronger and more organized. This is not deeper into the realm so something else is allowing these undead to perform so. It is only simple probability that intelligent undead lurk somewhere in that region. Looking at the map of the explored region I mark the borders I plan to make, they stretch only a minimal amount into the kingdom’s territory. Most of the domain will be in the agros de mortis, hopefully I can implement such a border. The kingdom can rot itself to death once its armies are shattered, I can take in some people but I will not rule such a large territory.

I know my boundaries and hope I can keep within them, I prefer having time to be able to rest..... Sigh, I do not need your giggles at my expense my patron. I can flip this chess table if I felt like it. I follow your agenda where I see fit, I will not deny the entertainment value but that will not compromise my course. I feel pity at your life, what it must be to live for eternity. Death can be circumvented but only for a time, such an endless existence does not speak to me. Remember that....