Len decided she’d had enough of the competition for the day. Her head hurt, she was grumpy, and she really didn’t need to see any more people getting brutally maimed or killed. She had the general idea of things. She was pretty sure that they’d be up against the Orcs in that next match, if she’d read the brackets correctly, and that at least was a relief. They really might not need to use her ability that much in that fight if that were the case. She tasked the goblins with keeping an eye on things and scouting out any serious fights, then made her way out of the arena.

The winding maze of corridors beneath the coliseum were a bit more than she was prepared to handle in her current state though, and she quickly found herself lost and very much alone. It should have made her more nervous than it did but she frankly couldn’t be bothered to give a shit. The headache wasn’t getting worse exactly, but her patience for it was rapidly running out. She trod onward, not really paying attention to where she was going, just wanting to find a private little hole to hide in for a while if she couldn’t find her way back. This reverie was broken when she heard a retching sound from a darkened halfway she passed. She saw an average-sized figure in the shadows, hunched over and looking miserable.

“Hey buddy, you doing all right?” if nothing else, it was a distraction.

“Oh yeah, just dandy,” rasped a less than human voice. “Just puking my guts up over here, don’t mind me.”

“Ah, can I get you something?”

“Sure, I’ll take a cure for undeath and/or the sweet release of true death. You got either of those handy?”

“Um… not last time I checked she said,” walking towards him a bit cautiously.

“Then fuck off, I’m really in no mood to deal with a rando right now,” he turned his wretched face towards her, and she saw flesh sagging on his face, and was hit with a wave of stench and rot.

“Wait a second,” she said slowly, a bit out of it, and strangely detached. “I know you.”

She looked him up and down. He was indeed that guy that she’d thought to be a human from her first proving. He was on Krel’s team.

“Oh hey, it’s you,” said the zombie, not particularly interested. “Krel wants us to kill you on sight. Fortunately for you, I only take orders from him in the arena.”

“Well… that’s nice. How did you end up working for him? I thought you did as well as me, shouldn’t that have entitled you to your own team?”

“It was an option, but frankly it was easier to sign up with him. Less chance of being saddled with a team that couldn’t handle itself. This way we’re pretty much assured good placement and I don’t have to deal with any of that leadership crap.”

“I suppose, but the tradeoff’s working for an utter bastard.”

“Eh, par for the course. What Army have you been paying attention to? I just need to get through this shit, get some half-decent posting in the middle of nowhere, then maybe I can finally be left alone.”

“Tell me about it,” muttered Len. “Just about the only thing I want is to be left alone right now. Makes me wish I’d just dropped out at that last Proving so I could be done jumping through hoops. Say, if you don’t mind my asking…”

“What’s with my face?” he smirked.

“Yeah, I mean only if you don’t mind telling me.”

“Eh, ‘s no big. Part and parcel with the whole ‘zombie’ life kit. So long as I keep myself properly fed, I get to hold onto a mostly human appearance. Miss a few meals and, well, I get to start decomposing. Still get to keep my faculties, but I become more of a freakshow by the day.”

“That’s pretty fucked up,” she said. “What’s keeping you from eating?”

“Got a pretty unique diet that isn’t generally approved by my peers. Haven’t had an opportunity to indulge in a while.”

“Ah,” she said, dropping it. “I have to say, you’re not exactly what comes to mind when I hear ‘zombie’ you’re, ah…”

She trailed off, realizing what she’d been about to say.

“Not a complete gibbering mess,” he offered politely. “Yeah, I’m a bit of an odd one as far as Zs go. Hell if I know why, though.”

She thought she saw a shadow pass over his face at that but shrugged it off as a matter of lighting.

“Did you have to kill him,” she asked after a moment.

“Who?”

“That ogre. You looked like you’d already beaten him. What was the point in killing him?”

“That was Krel’s idea,” he said, shadow flickering over him again. “Wanted to make a proper impression on folks. Not really my style, but orders are orders, and all that.”

“Not sure I get the impression that you’re the sort to blindly follow orders.”

“Look, I’d rather not talk about it with a random stranger, let alone someone I might end up having to fight in a few rounds. Suffice it to say that I didn’t have a choice. Hell, he’d have probably thanked me, if he’d known what Krel would’ve had in store for him.”

“Fine,” she said. “I’ll let it drop. Name’s Lenore, by the way,”

She stretched out her hand to shake his. He looked at her skeptically for a moment, then gingerly took her hand in a firm grip and shook it once.

“They call me Zed.”

“Zed… the zombie,” she said in a flat tone.

“Yeah, and what of it,” he asked huffily.

She fought back a chuckle.

“Sorry, it’s just funny is all.”

“Of course it is,” he snapped. “Doesn’t mean you have to laugh.”

This declaration only had the effect of drawing more laughter out of her. After a moment, she got herself back under control and wiped a tear from her eye. She tried to apologize for it, but then caught the smirk on his face, this had been intentional.

“You’re a strange one, Zed,” she said with a smile.

“Yeah, so show me someone who isn’t,” he countered.

“You really think we’re gonna end up fighting each other?”

“Eh, probably. Assuming you can keep up that little trick with your goblins. Never seen anything quite like that. How do you manage it?”

“Painfully,” she muttered.

“Hrm?”

“Never mind. Yeah, I expect that I’ll be keeping it up for most of the tournament. Lord knows I paid for it, I sure as hell am gonna use it.”

“Cool. I mean, I’m not gonna go as far as to tell you to drop out before you get to us, but you should know that Krel’s got a major hate-on for you. You humiliated him. I’m not saying I didn’t love hearing about it, but you’re in pretty deep shit if he gets his hands on you.”

“And of course you’ll be by his side when he does.”

“Yup. Sorry, but a fight’s a fight. Sure, the guy’s an asshole, but if it’s within the rules, I’ve pretty much gotta obey.”

“Well, you’re honest, at least. I kinda wish I didn’t have to fight you, though. You seem pretty cool.”

“Right back atcha, elf. Hey, who knows? Maybe we’ll find a way to thread through this without seeing you dead. Wouldn’t mind chatting with you again. It’s not every day I meet someone who can look at me in this state and not scream in horror.”

“Buddy, you’re not half as scary as some of the shit I’ve seen. If I get the chance, I’ll have to tell you about some of the monsters I’ve known in my day.”

“I’ll look forward to it,” he said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I think I have a chunk of small intestine that wants to escape through my throat. I’d advise moving on before I get into it.”

She nodded, and did exactly that.