• Solo • Mervani's Apprentice

[Zemos]

12th of Saun 720


Lonely-Hands, Lonely-Hands,
Trick or Teach? That is the question.

Make him confess his lessons Father!

So said the Egg, and Zemos had to agree, although he was less pessimistic about Mervani’s inclination toward harming his student. Afterall, he’d taken the step of initiating him into Necromancy. Such a blessed gift and treat. Every breath Zemos made after that discovery was a happy one, filled with twisted life. He could feel the bug of the spark grow inside him with every etheric exhalation. He wished to make it grow, to cultivate it. It was a friend!

”Yes, I’m ready for my lessons Professor! Teach us!” Zemos urged him, and then forgot that he wasn’t to command the powerful necromancer. Certainly, Mervani had proven himself of a disposition that wasn’t amenable to receiving orders, especially from a subordinate.

”I mean, if it pleases Professor!”

Lonely-Hands doesn’t look happy,
His chilly hands will curse us!

Zemos swallowed visibly as Mervani’s expression hardened, and he held his hands out to manipulate the ether. As if pulling on some puppet strings from afar, he began twisting his hands.

”Maggot, animate your fetch for me, will you?”

Zemos nodded, yanking the doll from his sash of Yithnai silk and placing it on the ground. Then the Sev’ryn began manipulating the thing, filling it with ether tasked to its animation, and the imitation of life. Sure enough, it began walking along the floor, much to the concealed delight of Zemos, as he hid a smile behind his hand, watching his magnificent puppet walk of its own accord.

”Pitiful.” Mervani intoned, and then began twisting his hands further. Much to Zemos’ chagrin, he lost control of his fetch in that moment, as the more powerful necromancer took hold over it. ”Remember, your thralls are only as useful as long as you evade a clash with a more powerful necromancer. That is why the Coven was a boon to us. It presented a hierarchy and gated the progression of talented mages. Yet by the same vein, also comradery through which we could support each other in our learning. There was protection in the Coven, and those who were talented were elevated. But then, politics happened, as it often does, and the meritocracy gave way to whoever would simper up to Ellasin…”

”Who is Ellasin Professor?” Zemos asked, crouching down as if in awe of the power of his mentor, watching carefully as the fetch continued to go about on his controls.

”A foolish woman who thought she was worthy of godhood. Her intentions in laying siege to Zuudaria and attempting to destroy Famula’s champion were in the right place, but her timing was off. She could simply have waited out Faith Augustin’s life, and then struck when Famula was lowest.

But instead, she forced the issue, and it brought us to the current chaos in our practice of necromancy.”

”Were you in the…”

”No, I was not a Coven member. I evaded their detection and was allowed to practice in relative safety. I urge you to drop any such lines of questioning in the future.”

Zemos gulped, and then nodded, swallowing his curiosity for the moment, as he waited to see what Mervani would do with his fetch.

[Zemos]

Inky black contagion, spreading from Lonely-Hands'... Hands!
Watch as they push and pull at our bedmate!"

Listening to the Egg's nonsense was all Zemos could do not to shout at it to shut up. Yet he didn't want to alert Mervani that he was hearing voices. The more secrets he kept close to his chest, the better. He hadn't learned under Mervani in vain. The Mage had taught him much about the value of discretion, especially as a necromancer. He knew they weren't welcome in society. Even these lessons were kept closely guarded against surveillance, supposedly. At least, Zemos thought they were.

The inky black ether did indeed infuse the fetch of Zemos'. Yet it was less than he'd expect of a great master such as Mervani. It was less than Zemos himself had spent to animate the creature. But it was enough as Mervani sent a pulse of black ether through the fetch to seize control. Then he pulled back with the ether supply after control was assumed. Once Mervani's ether entered, Zemos' energies were pushed out. It was a fascinating process to perceive, for the fledgling necromancer.

Yet Zemos failed to realize the purpose of this exercise, until it was too late, and the animated doll leapt at his face. It hugged his mouth and nasal passage, attempting to smother him as its little arms clung around his head. Zemos panicked at first. He tried to claw it off, but the power of the false life infused into the doll proved too much for his meager strength.

Finally, in the end, he managed to calm enough to try and pour ether into the fetch. Black inky tendrils crept into its limbs, as he began to try and reassume control of his thrall.

Bit by bit, as Zemos' ether touched and repelled the meager amount imparted by Mervani, he began to weaken the fetch's hold on his face. Before a dozen trills passed, and as Zemos began to lose his breath, he forced the little creature to stop hugging his face. Then, it fell to the ground, where Zemos bent down to pick it up. He held the fetch with a pout, looking up at Mervani in muted indignance.

Mervani rolled his eyes. "Well, you now understand, how it's possible to assume control of another mage's thrall. That lesson is done then. An important one, no mistake. But now..."

Mervani went toward a crate, and after prying it open pulled a small bag of... something. Something that was revealed when he approached Zemos, and rolled out a batch of dead rats onto the ground.

"Now, Maggot. It's time for you to learn to animate a group of dead beings. Don't get excited, at first you'll only command a mass of insects or rodents the size of half a human perhaps. But in time, you may come to command entire locust plagues." The barest hint of a smile played on Mervani's lips as he beheld the pile of corpses.

"Now, reanimate them. You know what to do at this point. But as you do, I want you to try and twist the ether in such a way as to preserve their bodies. As a mage of our stripe, you can preserve both dead and living flesh. You will demonstrate that now."

Zemos gulped and nodded, and with his hand extended, began to reach out to the pile of dead rats. He watched through his etheric awareness, as the blackened tendrils crept into the dead bodies of those rodents. He wondered, idly, if they'd crave cheese rather than living flesh when they awoke.

"Z, you will make a great conductor of locust plagues, I'm sure. I'm eager to see this magic at work."

[Zemos]

The first thing that happened, as the blackened ether entered into the fibers of those rodents, was a twitch. Twitching, a little kick of a leg, a jiggle of a jaw. There was a music and rhythm to necromancy that delighted Zemos. Like little drum beats, or a playful wind-chime. The creatures deprived of life came to dance again. And dance they did, as Zemos puppeted the small swarm of rodents around the room, racing each other in figure eights and other patterns of movement.

It was almost the case, that in the course of his playing with the corpses of the rats, that Zemos almost forgot one aspect of the lesson he was meant to employ. He reached deep into the fibers of their bodies, and began to empower them with preservation, keeping them fresh beyond their expiration.

Zemos twisted the ether inside the creatures, reinvigorating their dead flesh, faster than should have been possible. Mervani, Zemos could see in the corner of his eyes, seemed to take on a stance. A posture that showed his pride at having trained a necromancer. It was probably the happiest he'd seen the professor. Which wasn't to say much of Mervani's mood all told. The man had an emotional range of a limestone rock. But even so, Zemos could almost sense his mollification at having trained him.

"That's enough, Maggot. Direct them back into the sack. These thralls are yours to do what you will. Carry them in the sack, and bring them to life when you wish. You may have need of a swarm, sooner or later."

Zemos looked up at him, as if wondering if this was a trick. Yet there was no deception evident in the Professor's voice. Zemos took the sack, and lowered himself to the ground, ushering in the undead mice and rats into the sack. Then, without much fanfare, he was gone from the secretive training area that Mervani had selected for them.

[Doran]

Zemos:

Knowledge:
Discipline: Enforcing your will upon a set of thralls.
Necromancy: Preserve: A technique that can be used to prevent decay or aging.
Necromancy: Swarm: Taking control of a group of small animals that are dead.
Necromancy: Fetch: is as strong as the material and workmanship that went into crafting it.
Necromancy: Assuming control of another necromancer's thrall through greater skill and ether expenditure.
Necromancy: Modulating the amount of ether running through a thrall you're trying to possess.

Loot: A small swarm of undead rodents in a sack.
Lost: -
Wealth: -
Injuries: -
Renown: -
Magic XP: Yes, for Necromancy.
Skill Review: Appropriate to level.
Points: 10

- - -

Comments: I missed the Egg! I love what you did with that particular aspect of Lisirra’s mark. The Egg makes Zemos’ threads very entertaining to read, and it truly seems to have a personality of its own!

There is something quite unique about Zemos and his relationship with his necromancy spark. He always seems to be so happy, quite unlike what I’ve imagined a necromancer to be.

Mervani in contrast seems more like a typical necromancer to me, calling his initiate “maggot” and such – which is one of the reasons why their interaction is enjoyable to read.

When the animated doll “hugged” Zemos’ face, I was worried for a moment though. Fortunately, he managed to make it stop!

Now that Zemos mentioned it, I can’t help but wonder if zombie rats crave cheese rather than living flesh as well. Maybe, they wouldn’t mind a bit of cheese with mould on it?

I found it interesting that you mentioned the rhythm and music of necromancy. I don’t really think of necromancy like that. There is music to necromancy though, and some necromancers even channel the practice of necromancy through an instrument or their vocal cords!

Anyway, this was a very entertaining thread, and I wonder what Zemos will do with his new rats!

Enjoy your rewards – and your new mutation (provided that you use those Magic XP to level up)!

P.S.: It wasn’t clear to me where Mervani’s and Zemos’ necromancy practice took place. Could you be specific in the future, please?