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Flash Butterfly
9e1847
"Because he gave up everything for me. It's the least I can do to bring him back. And maybe, in doing so, I'll find more answers about myself."
"If you say so. Still think it's foolhardy myself, but I can't fault you if you're still going to do your duty as well."
I check myself, the thought occurring that if I'm undead, that must mean my body isn't alive. Fortunately, this doesn't seem to be the case. I don't know if it's because of the Lantern, but I do seem to have a pulse, and my chest rises and falls with every breath I take. I would assume, then, with my body at least being alive, that food and drink shall become necessary at some point. Still...
"You know, it's going to be difficult to hide what I am with this Lantern dangling from my arm." I rattle the chain, and by extension the Lantern, just to illustrate my point. Galdrick sniffs in disdain, clearly unwilling to allow that he might have missed something in all this.
"Well, that's hardly my fault. Most necromancers wore robes for a reason, I would assume."
I can't help but fix him with a reproachful look, to which he merely sniffs again. It seems I'll get no help from him regarding keeping my secret, but now that I'm on the topic, it seems appropriate to bring up his overall lack of aid.
"So... am I getting any help for this task of yours? I hate to say it, but the Assistant to the Secretary doesn't seem all that helpful..."
"Assistant to the Assistant to the Secretary! And yes, I've been given permission to grant you the gift of a potion, selected from three elixirs, all very rare, that you may use as you see fit in your duties. And you should be grateful for it, normally such things aren't handed out so freely, especially such precious methods of creating higher undead."
The ghost reaches into himself and draws forth three vials from within his own body, each differing in appearance and containing fluids just as diverse. Each floats gently within his ethereal grasp, and he drops a few feet to give you a proper look as he presents each in turn.
"This is a Tonic of Vampyrism. If you cannot deduce its use, I shudder for our future. As one might expect, the imbiber is, over a few days, transformed into a vampyre." The vial is long and thin, filled with a blood-red substance that seems to cling ever so slightly to its container, staining it red. "This particular brew will birth a vampyre lord. Most of the common methods used to ward against vampyres will hardly trouble a lord of their kind, including sunlight. Overall, a vampyre is hardly the most powerful of the higher undead, both physically and magically, but they can easily hide among humanity, and have a range of abilities you may find useful."
The second is then held up before my gaze. The container itself is round and made of what appears to be obsidian, such that you can't see the liquid within. "This is known as Death's Embrace. A rather potent poison to the living, a single drop could render an entire lake's water supply fatal for months. A whole bottle fed to a corpse, however, will bring the dead back as a revenant. The highest form of what one might call a zombie or skeleton, these undead will retain whatever skills they had in life, while boosting their physical abilities far beyond what any mortal would be capable of. Mind, any wounds they had in life will never heal, and they will be ashen skinned and ebony eyed. Clear signs of being... inhuman. Best given to someone trained in the martial craft. It is this elixir that gave rise to the old Death Knights... not that you'd know what those are."
"Lastly, and certainly not least..." The last vial is offered forth for my inspection. The vial is clear, almost invisible, and within seems to be a mist rather than a liquid. "Vapor of Souls. Give it to one of the living, and their soul will be torn from their body, then bound in the form of a wraith, powerful ethereal spirits. One might consider them the spies and assassins of the undead. Quiet as a whisper, and capable of stealing the very breath from the living. They are weaker in open combat, however, as suffocation takes time and concentration. Perhaps most importantly, it is very easy to identify a wraith as being unnatural."
Each elixir is held floating in front of me as Galdrick floats back up to his usual height, returning to his arrogant posture. It seems he's content to leave the matter for my consideration.
"Remember, only one. Those are precious, and we haven't got much of those left. I wouldn't advise drinking them yourself, either, it would just waste the potion. There is no higher form of undead than a necromancer."
I wave away the ghost's concern, eyeing each critically. They'd all be useful, in their own ways, and I don't want to make a choice without proper consideration. Silence descends as I regard each, weighing my options, and perhaps just to break the silence, I feel a question that's been eating at me burst from my lips.
"Galdrick, shouldn't you know who I am? Surely, with all those deaths, someone should know who I am?"
Silence greets my question for a moment, then a ghostly sigh. Galdrick floats back down, actually coming down to my level to regard me head on. His change in demeanor steals my attention, and all thoughts of potions gone as his intense gaze becomes apparent.
"I can offer only a name and a scrap of your past. It won't be much, for the Lord of the Dead does not like meddling within the affairs of the deceased. But you are owed more than just being thrust into the world. If that's acceptable, then I shall tell you."
I nod, not trusting myself to speak. A name is better than nothing, and I will gladly take whatever scraps of my past I can gather together.
"As you wish. Your name is..."
>Name Yourself, and select a fragment/family name:
>House Cambrin, a noble house.
>Westlin, a merchant family
>Lavril, a servant family
>Select a boon:
>Tonic of Vamyrism
>Death's Embrace
>Vapor of Souls
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