Necrophobia (43 page)

“How do you feel commander?” He leaned in closer to her trying to see if she was unwell.

“Reborn.” She replied with a confused expression and met his gaze. He held it for a few seconds and looked away. Even without the glowing eyes it was a difficult stare to match. “It’s so clear to me now.”

“What is?” Reiner’s eyes narrowed as he looked at her. Her voice and mannerisms remained the same as he always knew as did her face.
Maybe she was unaffected?

“You’ll see.” She smiled at him and stared out the window by her bed. Before she could elaborate further the attending nurses and priests gathered around her and blocked her from view. Reiner shrugged and kept his distance. He wasn’t sure he liked the sound of that.

The clean air of Caelholm’s forests and mountains was a welcome change as Claire trudged through the snow. The scent of ash and industry tended to clog your nostrils after a while. Caelholm hadn’t changed much since she’d left. It never did. She walked through the forests and towards the mountains passing by a stream trickling downhill and crossed a small wooden bridge over it. Sevaur followed behind her in silence, like her he appreciated the peace and quiet after the hectic pace of life in Kriegsfeld. They continued uphill for an hour or more before coming to a halt before a snow-covered stone structure in a clearing of fir trees.

“Are you sure about this?” He asked standing beside her in front of the grey-white stone.

Claire nodded and stepped forwards brushing snow and lichen off the sealed door. She noted with a flush of relief that the door remained intact. The seals unbroken in decades. She set to work easing the stone door open and shifting the heavy weight aside. The mausoleum opened to the fresh wind and light snowfall allowing the stale air to rush outwards.

“It’s intact.” Sevaur breathed a sigh of relief. “I’d hoped that…you know.”

“So did I.” She admitted. On the journey back she’d been deeply worried that the body inside would have been resurrected by Morveil and Haures’ atrocity. Trapped and forgotten about for weeks. There was no flash of green flame. No movement. No body.

Sevaur reached for a dusty torch off a bracket on the wall and lit it with a snap of his fingers. He passed it to her and stood by the entrance. The flickering torch light illuminated the cobwebs and untouched dust. In the centre of the mausoleum laid a coffin. Claire remembered it vividly. It was hard to forget a thing like that. She moved in closer holding her breath. The lid was thrown to one side and the coffin itself was empty other than an over-sized spider sat in a web staring back at her.

“It’s empty. She’s not here.”

“You sure?”

Despite the trepidation she felt Claire couldn’t help but laugh. “There’s not a lot of room for error.” She waved the torch around the small and empty mausoleum. Sevaur stepped inside and peered into the empty coffin and stared up at her.

“Doesn’t hurt to be sure.”
Claire’s heart raced. The body had been sealed here she remembered it. Her father confirmed the body was that of her mother before it was interred and many villagers witnessed the burial ceremony. There were no signs of forced entry and no body or undead thrall to be found. It was just as Haures said; she’d not stayed dead for long.

“Take a look at this.” Sevaur waved her over to the inside of the door and she waved her torch over it.

The texture of the stone was rough and craggy, water seeping in freezing and thawing over the decades had not been kind to it. She peered closer and saw what Sevaur had seen. Scratched deep into the stonework words were scrawled across different parts of the door. Most were illegible but some were readable. There was one word she recognised, it almost leapt out at her once she saw it.
Morana.

“I don’t understand. How did she get out?” Sevaur searched the door for further scribbles and markings.

“Mist perhaps?” Claire bit her lip. The cracks and dents in the stone proved it wasn’t completely water-tight. “Or she could have opened it from within and re-closed it.”

“So what now?”

Claire smiled at her old friend and gave him back the torch.

GLOSSARY

Adranos:
The god(dess) of vengeance, destruction and justice. Takes the form of an angel wreathed in holy fire. Associated with the sun and fire, Adranus is believed to be located within a volcano. As a god of loyalty and justice Adranos’ intermediaries take on either an angelic or a canine form.

Adranite:
The followers of Adranos whose powers reflect those of their god. They’re known for their use of pyromancy and manipulation of light. They’ve been known to use gigantic canine mounts into battle.

Aeromancy:
A field of magic focusing upon the control of air molecules, wind, storms, weather and lightning. Any magic user may learn how to channel their powers into aeromancy but it remains a signature ability of the Caelite order.

Avatar:
The term for a person that has undergone the sacred rites and transformed into a conduit of the god’s power. The process is dangerous and though temporary it leaves a permanent mark upon any that survive the ritual. Whilst transformed the body manifests divine powers far beyond a normal mortal. They are the will of the gods made manifest.

Caelus
: The god associated with storms, skies, lightning and fate. Takes the form of a vast black dragon born from lightning clouds, all types of dragons through Vesta are believed to be its offspring.

Caelite:
The followers of Caelus. The Caelites are an order of knights under the control of the church whose powers and believes derive from their god. They focus on aeromancy using control over lightning and the air itself to mirror the god of storms. Spears and polearms are their most notable weapon of choice but they often carry a backup sword or bow.

Cataclysm:
The most recent magical apocalypse that terraformed the surface of Vesta and reduced civilisation down to small fragmented groups. The cause of the cataclysm is unknown and scholars spend decades researching what happened and why. Recent evidence suggests it is the only latest cataclysm not the first.

Dark Gift:
An umbrella term for the process or curse that transforms a human into a vampire. The curse is not transmitted by bites but by a dark and arcane ritual.

Faunus:
God(dess) of nature, animals, plants and fertility. Takes the form of a gigantic reindeer with horns formed from trees and roots. The Faunus forest is named for this god and people believe either the god exists beneath the forest itself thus explaining its divine powers or it is a gift from Faunus. Deer, reindeer, plants and earth elementals are known to guard places sacred to Faunus.

Faunite:
Follower of Faunus. They wield terramancy - controlling the earth, rock and soil to attack or defend themselves. Their magic also extends towards plant life and has found numerous uses in agriculture and farmland practises.

Golem:
A magical construct animated by powerful magic. Typically either made from stone, clay or certain types of metal. They’re given limited sentience and the ability to carry out basic instructions. They’re considered far more ethical than resurrecting corpses.

Knight-Errant:
A man or woman who has received a knighthood from the church but has yet to serve a master or order. Given that most knights are quickly inducted into the ranks of the Caelites and other religious orders or taken under the wing of a noble family a Knight-Errant has become a rarity.

Inquisitor:
An elite member of the Inquisition that wields absolute authority over the empire’s subjects. They seek to route out criminals, heretics and any threat to the stability of the Empire. They answer only to high-ranking Inquisitors and the Kaiser. They’re each highly trained and gifted individuals whose skills and methods vary wildly from each other and are pragmatic to a fault. Defying them or their retinues is considered treason. Inquisitors are free to requisition any resource they want in theory but in practice it’s more complicated than that.

Magus/Magi:
A graduate of the Lohrheim Imperial Academy of Magic. The most well-known and respected magical institution in the empire.

Necromancy:
An ancient form of magic that was once the ‘mere’ method of communicating with the spirits of the dead. In modern times the practice extents to the resurrection of dead bodies into servants or mindless thralls. Perfect resurrection and immortality is the ultimate goal of most necromancers but such things do not come without a cost. Retrieving the soul of their resurrectee is far more difficult than animating their flesh.

Nereus:
God of the seas and worshipped by seafaring folk, pirates and sailors. Nereus takes the form of a gigantic leviathan said to lurk in the deepest trenches of the endless ocean. Others claim it to resemble a gigantic whale. It’s associated with water, sea and knowledge. Nereus and Caelus are said to have a rivalry and any storms out at sea are their disagreement. Nereus is believed to test mortals crossing his oceans with sea storms and monsters so that only the worthy or the faithful may cross.

Nereuite:
The mortal followers of Nereus, this term can include especially religious seafarer's. The most devout are said to wield powerful hydromancy and the ability to breathe underwater. It’s rumoured they have some degree of influence over the aquatic terrors that plague the seas as a result of their pact with Nereus.

Sorcerer:
A common term for anyone who uses magic, in particular those who study and refine magic. The term is gender-neutral but some people prefer to be called a sorceress.

Spellstone:
An electric-blue crystalline substance formed from magic build-up deep below the ground. It can be used as both a power source and a magical restorative in small doses. Larger doses when not immediately fatal become addictive and lead to a degenerative sickness that destroys the user’s mind. Victims of Spellstone sickness develop electric blue discoloured veins, breathing difficulties, paranoia and mania before dying. Certain types of animal are known to produce small amounts of Spellstone within their cells to power their own magic.

Terramancy:
Magic that focuses on controlling the earth, rocks and soil. It can also manipulate plant growth and the fertility of soil. Besides the Faunites, farmers are also known to use mild forms of Terramancy to enhance their crop yield.

Thrall:
A person robbed of their freewill by psychic or vampiric means. They will serve their master and lack any sense of free will or self-preservation. They exist to serve in any way they can. It is believed to be incurable and permanent.

Undead:
The overarching term for any person or creature resurrected by magic. Resurrection varies wildly by method and person and may result in a mindless zombie or the product may be indistinguishable from someone alive.

Vampire/Vampirism:
Any mortal that has been cursed by the Dark Gift and transformed into a vampire. Vampires sustain themselves on blood and the transformation triggers an almost uncontrollable blood-thirst that requires time and a strong will to suppress. Vampirism halts the ageing process and locks the body into a form of stasis, wounds heal and reverse and their appearance becomes difficult to alter. In exchange they become superhumanly fast and strong, their perceptions sharpened beyond normal limits. Vampires often gain psychic powers and are known for their ability to compel or enthral weak minds. Vampirism comes with a myriad of weaknesses from blood-thirst, mutation and an aversion to light, water and silver. Some of which can be overcome.

Vamprey:
A specific vampire mutation triggered by unknown means. The curse transforms the victim into a bulkier more durable form encouraging massive muscle growth and the formation of a Lamprey-like mouth used to drain their victims. Their skin thickens and develops scales in places and oozes a viscous grey slime that protects them against water. A Vamprey is no longer weak to exposure or immersion in water and their physiology adapts to become more aquatic including fins and gills. The transformation is painful and happens over several months, the victim loses some of their intelligence and freewill along with any psychic powers they once possessed. Their strength and regeneration far surpasses a regular vampire.

Werebeast:
A curse that varies wildly from victim to victim. The type of creature a person transforms into is specific to that person and believed to reflect their personality. The transformation is not always voluntary. The werebeasts can either turn into an exact copy of a specific creature of a hybrid form of both, a greater level of control is required to choose which form they wish to take. Among the most common werebeast forms are bears, wolves, boars, and owls. Since werebeasts are shapeshifters they can regenerate from almost any injury not inflicted by fire or silver. Werebeasts are not to be mistaken for sorcerers who alter their shape through magic although the two appear similar.