Instead of simply killing them outright, Kain decided to have a little fun with the bourgeoisie and made a game of cat-and-mouse out of hunting them through the castle. To be sporting, he gave them a half-hour head start, and as they fled like overfed rats, he began to realize just how much more superior he was compared to either of his previous versions. This was not to say that the current Kain was neither of them anymore, rather the version that existed now was the perfect fusion of the Creator and Creation. Sure, he wasn’t as powerful as he had hoped to be, but Rome wasn’t built in a day, and to reach the heights of his power he would need time and effort.

As the minutes passed, Kain stopped his self-analysis and focused on trying to sense the lives of those who were still scurrying throughout the castle. The servants had been escorted out and thus would not be harmed by accident. It must have been quite the shock to be escorted by the very undead that were supposed to mindlessly kill any living human they came in contact with, and Kain was sure they were now very much in a state of confusion.

…

A half-hour had passed, and it was now time for the hunt to begin. The side of the current Kain that was the 'original' Kain was near baying at the gates in a frenzy-like state and was urging him to just run wild. Like the angel and devil on his shoulder, the Creator and Creation were like the yin and yang of his new existence, and the side that had the lingering will of Kain was urging him to cry havoc and unleash his power. The only thing keeping Kain from going full ‘beast mode’ and slinging spells like crazy was the residual will of the Creator, who was a calming and more compassionate force than the more destructive and wrathful will that came from the Creation.

Nevertheless, Kain had given the little pricks a suitable amount of time to hide, not that he would be unable to sense their location using his magical abilities. The vast majority of them had fled deep under the castle into what Kain assumed to be a network of labyrinthine catacombs that was seemingly brimming with potential subjects for him to raise into unlife. Why so many had chosen to flee to the one place in the castle that he would be most able to use his powers in was a mystery, but perhaps they just wanted to rest with their ancestors or thought the maze-like tunnels would render their pursuer lost. Such a thing was going to be impossible, but rather than go after the large number of fools who doomed themselves by hiding in a necromancer’s paradise, Kain decided to go after those who were hiding outside of the tunnels first.

Kain lazily walked down hallways and into rooms, pretending to be unable to locate anyone. On more than a few occasions, he would completely ignore the presence of people hiding in places that he had ‘searched’ just to give them the hope that he had overlooked their terrible hiding spots. By terrible hiding spots, Kain meant exactly that. Some were trying to hide behind drapery or under sheets and more than a few were literally just covered in random clothes that were piled up on top of them; all of these people stood out like sore thumbs.

Kain had to wonder whether they actually thought they were clever or if they just wanted to die already. What was this, a kindergarten game of hide-and-seek? Kain had hoped that they would try and hide somewhere inventive, but they were just acting like children who hoped that they could cover themselves up and therefore prevent the boogeyman from getting them. He sighed a breath of resignation; he was not going to get the game he wanted out of this, and that may very well have been the reason why their hiding spots were so god awful. Maybe all of this was just to spoil his fun, because if it was, then they did a damn good job at doing so.

Kain retraced my steps to each hiding spot and with a single word he set each bundle of clothes, lump on a bed, and bulging drapes alight and left each person to burn up to a crisp. They really took the fun out of this game, and rather than give them the quick and painless death Kain had intended he took out my frustration by letting them burn alive. Kain made his way through the castle, which now smelled of burning human flesh and hair, and entered the catacombs that spread out like a spider’s web beneath the city.

There were no exits or entrances to this network save the one he came in through and to make sure that no one managed to flee behind me he used a bit of Earth Magic to partially close off the way in/ out. There was enough of a gap for air to enter and exit, but not nearly enough room for people to do so. Sure, if there was a talented Earth Mage among those that cowered in the bone-filled tomb complex that Kain was entering then they could escape but he left another surprise just in case of such an event. A magical landmine was just waiting for an unsuspecting idiot to step on it, and with each step that Kain took he laid down another one just in case, there was a group that tried to rush out.

With each step Kain took, he went deeper into the massive underground cemetery that spread out like a cobweb beneath the city. Each step filled me with more dark power, as the essence of death that remained in this place flooded into me. If Kain wasn’t powerful enough beforehand then he was certainly more powerful than ever now that he was surrounded by the remnants of tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people.

If Alistaira were here she would be through the roof with excitement. Didn’t these people know how dangerous it was to gather bodies to this degree? Even if you blessed them once they were interred, the proximity to other bodies would gradually render the measures taken in order to prevent the dead from rising completely impotent. The fact that there were no undead throughout the entire complex meant that either the clergy routinely came down here and blessed every single body one by one or that armed soldiers routinely came down here and destroyed anything that rose from the grave. There was one other possibility, but the odds of it being the case were so astronomically small that it didn’t even bear acknowledging.

Kain took several detours to launch a few explosive Fireballs and Pressure Bombs at the few people who were separated from the main group but eventually decided to save his growing magical reserves for taking out the main group all at once. Thus, he spent a few dozen minutes making mincemeat of those who he came across and then proceeded to make my way towards the center of the web, where the largest mass of life signs resided.

The group Kain found there was more kitted out than any other group of Francusian bourgeoisie that he had seen, aside from the knights that had ridden into battle against his army a while ago. Their armor had obviously been made for them when they were less rotund as the coverage it provided was piss poor at best. Bulging stomachs were barely covered by iron breastplates that had been hastily put on and looked more like metal bibs than actual armor. The hands of the men grasped weapons that were more suited to be used by people who were in good physical condition, as the thin thrusting blades they had just barely fit in their oversized fingers.

With a good smack to the hand, it would be easy to get them to drop their weapons due to how poorly they gripped them. In fact, they looked less like cornered wolves and more like cornered manatees with how blubbery and comical they appeared. The noble ladies were no better off, hiding behind the circle of men while barely able to stand up straight due to the low ceiling and their elaborate hairstyles both trying to occupy the same space. Their corsets were making the act of bending over even more difficult and they had to dirty their fancy dresses by kneeling in the dirt, which angered them to no end.

Aside from those two types of people were the entirety of the clergy, who were desperately trying to restore their mana pools amidst the swirling maelstrom of negative magic that flowed like a whirlpool around the center of the catacomb network. The swirling mix of Darkness, Death, Curse and Blood Magic that flooded the center of the tomb-complex made their endeavor fruitless, as there was no Light or Nature Magic mana that could get through the roaring typhoon of negativity that bubbled and boiled in this place without it having been thoroughly corrupted.

Kain was surprised that the tornado of negativity that purveyed this place was not directly focused on the center, but rather underneath it, but he set the curiosity he felt in regard to that aside for the time being. As the massed menagerie of meaty men made a movement against him, Kain met them with massed volleys of magic missiles. Explosions rocked the underground, and while he would normally have been caught up in the damage due to his closeness to the impact zone, he had prepared ahead of time by generating a magical shell around himself to negate any collateral damage.

Kain couldn’t be sure if the first volley had done the job as there were still some residual life signs, but after another couple of rounds of hammering the group with all manner of destructive spells the last bits of life faded from his senses. He was just about to leave when the ground directly beneath the broken and smoking remains of the high society twits burst open and a wave of negatively charged mana erupted from the open hole like a volcano. A lone entity rose from the crater and let out a bloodcurdling shriek. The figure’s feminine form brought to the surface memories from Kain’s life and the words that the voluptuous individual spoke were filled with a powerful dose of Curse Magic designed to both enthrall and horrify.

“For over a thousand years I have lain dormant; slumbering in self-imposed exile for the sin of letting my beloved fall into that unending sleep! Who dares wake me, the Crimson Empress of the Midnight Aristocracy?! With such noise and violence, which fool dares disturb my slumber? I am Alexis Draculina Nekronus von Darksol, and whosoever has awoken me from my rest shall pay dearly for your transgression!”

As the words came from her mouth, Kain let out a small utterance.

“Lexi? Is that really you?”