The next couple of days were slow, the camp waiting for Alaric to recover from his injuries. I had looked in on him several times, there were no physical wounds to recover from but whatever he had done to survive had taken an internal toll. Aidan was a fountain of knowledge about the current circumstances and was all too happy to fill me in. Even if I did get a few weird looks for asking some obvious questions.

  The situation is this: eight years ago a large Gate, yes I mean an actual physical gate, appeared in the northern reaches of what's called the Amon Plains. South of the Shifting Forest. From this Gate, demons poured out from the Hells and began to ravage the surrounding area. Killing and devouring. It didn't take long for everyone on the continent to realize that the situation could not be contained but by the time anyone was able to organize a response the demons had spread far and wide. Reproducing naturally as well as coming through the Gate.

  The Shifting Forest became charred and abandoned by all but its deepest denizens, and to this day has yet to fully fall but only three Elven settlements remain. In the human kingdom of Yulin nothing remains. There are two more kingdoms further to the east which is where we are apparently.

  The Kingdoms of Belrav and Relvan, sibling kingdoms that grew from the ashes of another, Belrav has held the line against the encroaching demons while Relvan trains soldiers and produces supplies. From a tactical perspective and a look at a map kindly provided, the new capital of Belrav sits between two mountain passes and has been able to create a massive chokepoint, further north Relvan is protected by what remains of the Shifting Forest. Everything to the West of them has fallen into ash and blood.

  It's horrifying and immensely surprising that anyone has managed to survive this. What kind of people are the ones that can survive this type of chaos? I wouldn't gain an answer from just the five people sitting around me, but I could get a hint. These people have been damn near raised to fight. None of them are older than twenty one or two. That's all that's left really of both kingdoms, the new generation. Besides learning about my new nature, I could take back a few ideas for how to progress in Riverrun in dire circumstances.

  Which brings me around to the thought I haven't been able to find an answer to, what am I supposed to be learning here? My only clue is that it has something to do with Alaric. But what exactly? I was growing impatient with the Trial quickly, I wanted out of this place as fast as possible. Every second would only add to the nightmares that were sure to follow me back to Riverrun. At least we knew when the attacks were coming.

  I stretched my arms above my head, letting out a grunt of effort and panned my gaze around the camp once more. Soon it would be time for Yurgin's turn on watch and I could finally get some sleep, or at least try to.

  My efforts for sleep were in vain, there was no issue falling asleep but staying asleep was an entirely different matter. I sat up from my bedroll, kindly provided by Yurgin when I woke him the previous night, and just stared at the morning dew. It was something simple but let my mind drift to happier memories. Though that's all they were now. Even when I got out of this trial I'd be going back to more fighting, just on more than one front. There were things deadlier than monsters waiting for me back home.

  My attention was drawn towards movement in one of the tents and the emergence of someone I thought would be unconscious for at least another couple days. Alaric took in his surroundings and stayed silent, grimacing slightly and holding a hand up to his head. He shook it blearily and his eyes locked on to me with a frown.

  "Who are you?" He asked, approaching me cautiously.

  "Crowley," I replied, standing to meet him, "Aidan and I dragged you out of some mess in the forest and brought you here."

  "How long have I been out?" He asked, fidgeting with his clothes like he was expecting his armor to still be there.

  "A couple days," I shrugged.

  He nodded and looked around at the camp.

  "Your gear is over by Annabeth," I pointed over my shoulder.

  He nodded his appreciation and made his way over there, waking Annabeth in the process.

  I watched the reunion detachedly, there was something to learn now and I didn't want to miss it. I doubted it was anything to do with his relationship, and more along the lines of his strange behavior. His stoicism was abnormal and the way his eyes moved over the camp was unnerving.

  "Alaric," Annabeth whispered, standing to pull her husband into a hug, "I can't believe you're alive. I thought I lost you."

  Alaric pulled her into a tight hug and laid his face against her shoulder, "You haven't lost me yet Annie."

  The pair stayed like that for a while, holding each other in their arms until Alaric began to speak again.

  "I have to go Annie," He pulled his face away and looked at her, "Something happened to me and I need to figure it out. I'll probably need an exorcism."

  She stepped away from him and eyed him warily, "An exorcism?" Tears welled in her eyes, "One of those things possessed you?"

  He shrugged, "I don't know, everything after the village is muddled."

  Her hand drifted down to the hilt of her sword but it fell away from it, choosing instead to pull Alaric back into another hug.

  "I'll be alright Annie," He whispered consolingly, "The Bishop can probably help me or maybe someone from the Shaman tribes back home."

  She shook her head against his chest, "The Lone Peak Mountains are another one or two weeks west of here, how are you going to make it there on your own?"

  I saw an opportunity but held my tongue for the time being.

  He shrugged loosely, "I don't know but I'll have to try it."

  Annabeth pulled back and looked at him, she didn't want to agree but something about those tribes put her mind at ease. Did they trust them more than the Bishop of the god they followed? Or would the shamans actually give the exorcism a shot rather than just executing him? I didn't know all of the answers and I didn't see the point in learning them quite yet. For now, I'm an ignorant stranger.

  "All right, stay for breakfast and we'll all head out at the same time," She decided.

  He nodded his agreement and she helped him put on his gear.

  I looked away from the pair and instead took Yurgin's turn of watch so he could speak with one of his comrades. There wasn't much left of his shift but I could see that he desperately wanted to speak with his friend. And it's not like I was getting any more sleep. Time drifted on and the indistinct conversations happening behind me came to a stop when I turned to grab my portion of breakfast from Yurgin.

  "Lad, we have a favor to ask," He began, handing me a hard piece of bread, "Could you go with Alaric to see these shamans of his?"

  I nodded, "It's the least I could do."

  "Now I know we just met and this is a lot to-" He paused and looked at me strangely, "Wait, did you already say yes?"

  I nodded again, "I did. You guys have sheltered me for the last couple of days and it's not like I have anything better to do."

  Yurgin smiled broadly, "Well thank you lad."

  I returned the smile and wandered back to the group, Aidan coming past with a strange look to take watch.

  Annabeth and Alaric looked at me, "So what's your decision?" Annabeth questioned.

  "Lad said yes," Yurgin reported, "He'll accompany Alaric to the west to see his shamans."

  She nodded and Alaric looked at me quizzically, "Are you sure? We'll be crossing the Amon Plains."

  I nodded, "We're already in them so might as well keep going."

  Annabeth nodded her agreement, "We'll see the two of you at the Gate then," She looked over at Alaric, "Don't keep me waiting long." She leaned forward and gave him a kiss before returning to her military composure, "Gather your gear and let's get moving." She ordered the rest of the camp.

  Alaric and I watched them go, an uncomfortable silence stretching between us.

  "Why?" He said simply.

  "There's something to learn." I replied.

  He chuckled, "You sound like Aidan."

  "I suppose I do."

  We didn't talk much initially, content to start the journey silently. The Amon Plains were a desolate wasteland consumed by blood and fire. From what Aidan had told me it was the initial zone of conflict with the demons and it had paid the price. The sun wasn't lighting up the surroundings like it typically would either, instead it burned through ash driven clouds and gave the whole area a bleak look. Just what were the demons doing to maintain this kind of darkness over an area this long?

  Small talk was attempted and made during brief rests but overall the following days of walking were uneventful socially. Combat was a common occurrence, but mostly lesser demons as I had learned to call them, imps, hellhounds. It was difficult to not use most of my abilities around the cleric, that would have to be discussed. And if I get smited then lesson learned. On the fourth day things changed.

  Harbinger, in its mace form once more dissolved out of my hand, the latest imp ambush laying in puddles of gore. I looked around at our surroundings, it was evident that this was once some type of farmland. And quite expansive if I was guessing correctly. It probably housed a couple hundred workers at a time, just what kind of agriculture did this world practice in the past? I shook my head, I could muse about that later and when I was back in Riverrun. I looked over at Alaric who was standing still, his body rigid and his gaze locked onto a nearby corpse. I watched him, or more accurately I watched his soul. Soul Sight had become more of a passive with each System update, turning from needing to turn it on to it always being on.

  It took a bit to get used to, seeing souls everywhere and all that, but it was starting to become an invaluable tool for reading people and my surroundings.

  The fist sized ball of light in Alaric's chest was spinning and moving in short abrupt motions. Was it agitated? An inky black seemed to coat half of it, that part seemed to be agitated as well, lashing outwards with tendrils.

  His eyes though were staring at the corpse not in disgust or anger for what the Demons had managed to accomplish here, but in hunger. Taking that into consideration and my own trial I looked at the corpses with a different perspective. I didn't feel anything when I looked at the demons, these things were just another monster to be killed. There was no hunger, no anger, there was some disgust, but that was mostly to do with what had happened and the surroundings. What about this man pertained to me? I mentally sighed at the lack of revelation thus far in the Trial.

  Alaric shook himself and seemed to regain control over whatever was happening. Looking at me he managed a grim smile.

  "You never get used to the carnage," He said, "You'd think after years of fighting you would but everything feels like it's looked at with fresh eyes."

  I nodded my agreement despite not sharing the sentiment. "How has anyone survived this long?"

  Alaric shrugged, "I don't know. Most of us were lucky to escape the Amon Plains when it happened, but out of a few million, only a few hundred made it far enough west to be considered safe."

  "You and Annabeth lost someone?" I asked.

  Alaric shook his head, "No, not to my knowledge. Both of our boys are safe and sound," He chuckled and we resumed our trek, "My oldest Aidan, is actually in the Lone Peak Mountains. He was staying with the Shamans to learn our family heritage when the attack came."

  "What about your other son? Is he back west?"

  Alaric nodded, "He is. His name is Alric, named after his grandfather."

  "I can't imagine what it's like raising a family in this," I said.

  "What about you?" He interrupted, "Do you have a family?"

  "Nothing around here," I replied, "I have a younger brother but that's about it." I still wasn't sure if I actually had another younger brother, and I'd probably never know.

  Alaric nodded, "I hear the other continents haven't been affected as much by this. What brought you here?"

  "I was passing through and hadn't heard about what was happening," I hesitated, wondering if I should be truly honest, deciding against it I continued to spin a tale, "I didn't realize it was this level of catastrophe."

  Alaric nodded, "We didn't have much time to send word out to warn anybody or request any aid. You must've arrived with the latest foreign ship."

  I nodded.

  His soul jumped slightly and he looked me up and down, he knew I was lying. But he didn't press the issue.

  "Maybe the Shamans can help you with whatever you came here looking for," He finally said, "Unless you're a warlock or something," He half joked.

  "No, just a Necromancer." I replied.

  He frowned and stopped, looking at me, "A Necromancer?"

  I nodded.

  "I can't say I've ever had any friendly interactions with those," He said, his hand drifting down towards the handle of his mace.

  "I've never met any other Necromancers," I said, stopping and looking at him, "But I can already say that I'm different from most and I'm here to find out why I am what I am."

  He frowned, "What do you mean by that?"

  "I didn't choose this," My hands moved as I talked, "It chose me for some reason."

  "A sorcerer?" He asked, "You're a Sorcerer with death affinity?"

  I blinked, "Yea sure," I said, "It's all very complicated and I'd like to figure it out."

  His hand closed around the handle.

  I sighed, "You're not squeaky clean yourself, I can see the taint on your soul Alaric and I can see the temptations it's giving you. You almost gave in back there."

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  He stared at me before wordlessly releasing the handle of his mace.

  "Once we're done with this trek I'll kill you the next time I see you," He said, his voice strained, "Necromancers cannot be suffered in this world, let alone with all of this death around."

  "Fair enough." I replied.

  We walked, a new tension between us but now I think I might be catching the wisps of why I'm here, following this man to some mountain range.

  In the distance were the smoldering ruins of what once was probably a great city, sprawling in every direction for miles. I admired it for a moment, and silently mourned the people who had lived there. Death was becoming something of a common thing for me, we all know it's a common thing but to witness it so much within such a short amount of time. It brought things into perspective. And made me conscious of the effect I could have on it.

  Death was a part of a cycle, its energy made manifest by my class and race, was it simply a tool for me now?

  I followed behind Alaric, staying a few steps away while I contemplated the question. I shook my head and absently wondered if anyone else with my class was going through similar lines of thought. Or had they taken to the new existence with more amplitude? That made me think about Riverrun, I knew from seeing their souls that not everyone was adjusting well to the new environment and way of life but they were adjusting. They accepted their classes and in turn used them far more effectively than me, but they couldn't fully accept their new situations. Whereas I was having trouble accepting my new class and race, but had no issue adapting to the new situation.

  There wasn't anything for me to look back on and miss, I died in my old world. There's no going back, there's no unfinished business, and this new situation is simply my new life. My second life.

  Alaric halted and looked back at me with a curious gaze before saying, "We'll camp here tonight, and make our way through the city in the morning."

  "Wouldn't it be safer to go around the city?" I asked, dropping the pack I had been given onto the ground.

  "It would, but it'll be faster to go through it," He dropped his pack and stretched his arms to the side, "And we're going to need more supplies, if we keep having to fight our way through the plains like this then we're going to run out of food before we make it to the base of the mountains."

  I nodded, "You're the boss."

  Alaric grimaced but nodded, "I'll take the first watch," He began to say but I waved my hand dismissively.

  "No need, I'll set some undead on it," I said, "You're going to need as much rest as you can get, that contamination grows stronger by the hour on your soul."

  He frowned, "Just what kind of Necromancer are you? Talking about my soul like you can actually see it."

  "I can," I replied simply, extending my hand outward, "And it's not doing well, it looks like two sides are fighting for dominance." I looked back over at his soul, "Two sides fighting for dominance," I muttered. The temperature dropped around us with frost creeping along the ground as a Winter Bound emerged from the frost specs in the air and dropping to one knee.

  "My lord," He greeted me.

  "Hold," I replied, "I'll be summoning more of you shortly."

  He nodded and stood, stepping to the side and standing at attention.

  Alaric watched me summon four more Winter Bound and set them to creating a perimeter around the camp, the zombies I had trailing us since we separated from Annabeth and her party arriving an hour later. And to my delight, the shade of that spike demon.

  Alaric frowned, observing my various minions. "Are they all undead?"

  I shrugged, "I'm not entirely sure what the Winter Bound are but the others are yes."

  "What do you mean you're not entirely sure? Why are you summoning them if you don't know what they are?" He asked with alarm.

  "They're loyal and that's all that matters," I replied, "And I haven't had many opportunities to work with them yet. I was too busy panicking back at that village massacre and fell into old habits, I barely remembered to create a shade."

  "A shade?" He narrowed his eyes, "You bound a soul?"

  I shook my head, "No."

  The spike demon crawled out of my shadow awkwardly, its limbs moving with rigor mortis.

  I crouched down and looked at it, the runes and channels I had carved into it had barely worked from the looks of it, but the soul core I had created using death energy was placed correctly. There was sentience behind those darkened eyes.

  "What the fuck?" Alaric exclaimed, "You bound a demon?"

  I held up a finger, "No, I raised its corpse. There's a difference." Well I hoped so at least.

  "You're insane," Alaric said, "I can't believe it. That thing's going to kill us in our sleep."

  I raised an eyebrow and looked at my Shade questioningly. And it shook its head.

  I chuckled while Alaric threw up his hands in frustration but glanced down at his bound bedroll.

  "Fine, but you better keep an eye on that thing," He scowled and laid out his bedroll, lying back on it and staring at the sky.

  The Shade watched him curiously and I wondered absently about the development of the soul core, as I had taken to calling it. Elden never really gave me an explicit name for what I was doing with the Shades.

  "All right buddy," I said, reaching out a hand, "Let's fix up those channels."

  The shade laid down in front of me and went limp, allowing me to begin the long process of fixing my rush job. I took my time with it, confident in the Winter Bounds abilities to keep the area safe from immediate threats.

  Death energy flowed through me and out of my hands, gently urging the channels to expand or in some cases narrow, establishing the correct flow of death energy and mana. I noted that I was performing an interesting cycle with my passive ability to absorb death from the surroundings. Energy flowed into me, passed through my channels, out of my hands, into the shade and flowing through its channels, and the excess went back out into the area and made its way back to me. Restarting the cycle over again.

  It brought to mind the circle of life, you're born at one point, become a child at the next, become an adult, and then die. Ending the cycle. My Wight nature put me at what was after death but before it as well. Was there another cycle? A cycle of death maybe?

  I hummed to myself while I worked and what felt like maybe four or five hours later I was finished and my Shade now had proper channels. It stood on all fours and stretched languidly, almost like a cat before looking at me and disappearing back into my shadow. I felt refreshed after the experience rather than drained, that cycle of energy had kept me in prime condition. I'd have to remember that in the future, take my time when I'm able so I don't drain myself.

  I sat back on the ground and looked out at the city. There was nothing to do but keep watch and think. I decided to pull up the System screen with my minion cap to see what I was working with.

  Current Minions: 9

  Five Winter Bound, three Zombies, and one Shade. It wasn't much but was well enough for the skirmishes we were having. I looked out over the city again, though I'd probably want more going through there. But what type of minion to use?

  The System threw a screen in front of me.

  Skill selection available.

  Right, I had completely forgotten. I accepted the prompt and took a look at what new options were available. If there weren't any good ones I could always go back and select something I passed over before.

  Skill: Call of the Blighted Beast With a guttural growl that seems to resonate from the very earth, you unleash a twisted call that pierces the veil between the living and the dead wild. From the shadows of the forest and the chill of the grave, a creature of nightmare and nature's decay answers. It rises, a predator sculpted from bone and rot, its eyes burning with the spectral teal fire of your power, ready to tear into your foes with the ferocity of a starved beast and the unnatural resilience of the undead.

  Skill: Corpse Weave You seize control of the fallen, not merely to animate them, but to reshape their very forms. With a surge of death energy, you knit together bone and sinew, twisting corpses into grotesque parodies of life. A wall of fused undead rises to shield you, a monstrous abomination lunges forth to attack, or a cage of ribs and spines imprisons your foes, all born from the remnants of death and your unholy will.

  Skill: Spectral Sight You peel back the veil of the mundane, focusing your senses to perceive the lingering echoes of the spiritual world. The air shimmers with unseen energies, revealing the faint trails of passing souls, the lingering residue of powerful magic, and the hidden forms of those who exist between worlds. This is not mere sight, but a glimpse into the tapestry of existence woven from life, death, and the unseen.

  I looked at the three new options, they all had a certain appeal. But I dismissed Blight Beast, I didn't need another minion skill. Corpse Weave would be really interesting to use but I didn't have enough zombies to make worthwhile and they weren't the best for fighting demons so I hadn't planned on raising more of them.

  Spectral Sight sounded like an upgrade to Soul Sight. The biggest difference between them was the fact that yes I could perceive the souls of others, both living and dead, and glean some basic information from them. Like Alaric's corruption.

  Spectral Sight would allow me to see even more and I wouldn't need that ritual to show me what types of Specters were in the area. I looked back at the ruined city and all of its twists and turns.

  Skill: Spectral Sight has been obtained.

  I blinked and focused on the skill, the world around me shifting into a bizarre replication. Spectral energy flowing rapidly throughout the landscape. Fierce red fire illuminating the sky. And the actual physical people of the soul orbs wandering around.

  I grinned, I could see everything that existed. I looked at Alaric and stared in disbelief. I had gone along with his assumption that he had been possessed by a demon, after all he was the Cleric and the one experienced in fighting them. But I could tell that the red fire was hell fire, directly correlating to demonic magic.

  What flowed around Alaric was black and inky, a void, gripped with a ravenous hunger.

  I stared in curiosity and confusion, all around us was the evidence of demonic energy. And he, and I, had assumed he had been possessed by a demon. But it was something else, it had to be.

  But what was it?

  Alaric began to stir in his sleep and I turned my gaze away, deactivating Spectral Sight.

  Morning was coming soon and we'd be heading into that city, I could answer the question of what was afflicting Alaric in time. For now, I wanted to see what was going on with that city.

  I mentally grabbed the connection between my shade and I, ordering it to scout the perimeter of where I assumed we'd be entering the city. It set off immediately, disappearing into the shadows of the crimson night while I laid back and caught an hour or two of sleep.

  The morning came sooner than I would've liked and my Winter Bound roused me, an anxious shade waiting to give its report. Another Winter Bound went forward and began to wake Alaric while I received a chilling report.

  Apparently the city was covered in webs, linking buildings together and hiding the sky in some areas. Cocoons were abundant with various contents, my shade had taken the liberty of slicing one open and consuming some type of humanoid corpse. So there were thousands of corpses stashed away for later consumption which matched I suppose with spider behavior.

  I hadn't made it a practice to understand the arachnid behavior patterns but I'm sure we've all seen one in action from time to time.

  The shade had seen quite a few spiders scuttling around across webs or hiding in buildings, as well as obvious demons. Though not any I had encountered yet, these ones were bipedal and geared like a typical soldier.

  Unfortunately it couldn't get any more detail than that.

  While I considered our options, Alaric had awoken with a start and barely stopped himself from lashing out at the minion who had awoken him. Which was a pleasant surprise, I figured that one was a goner the moment it decided to wake the cleric.

  He stood going through a morning ritual of readjusting the straps of his armor and checking all of his gear as he repacked it. I followed suit after several minutes.

  We stood and observed the city, packs thrown over our backs and ready as we could be to survive the frontier before us.

  "Did you send any of your undead to scout the path ahead?" He asked, breaking the silence.

  "I did," I frowned, "It sounds like it's been turned into a massive spider nest."

  His eyebrows furrowed in response, peering down at the topic in question, "I don't see anything from here."

  "From what I'm told, it matches the natural materials quite well. My shade didn't know what it was walking into until it was already in the city."

  "Hmm," Alaric hummed, "It might be more dangerous than I thought," He muttered.

  "How long would it take us to circle around the city?" I asked.

  "Longer than I'd like, but it might be the same amount of time going through it," He replied thoughtfully, "I can't say I'm confident in tackling something that big."

  "Neither can I," I agreed, glancing around at my minions.

  Alaric grimaced and coughed violently, I stepped back in response. A dark viscous liquid expunging itself from his mouth.

  "You uh, all right there?" I said, hesitantly reaching a hand out.

  He nodded slowly, releasing another cough before standing upright again, "We need to go through the city."

  "What?" I blinked, "I thought we just got done talking about just how bad of an idea that would be?"

  He shook his head, "You don't understand, I need what's in that city. It's either it or me." He mumbled the last of his statement.

  I frowned but nodded, "Sure, we'll go through the city. Though I may need more minions than I have."

  "Make them on the go," He growled, taking heavy steps forward.

  I watched him trudge ahead and muttered, "Well there goes my brand new way of conserving energy I guess."

  I shook my head and followed after him. The Winter Bound forming a loose circle around us with the zombies trailing behind. My shade making itself comfortable in my shadow.

  It wasn't long before we were standing at a massive breach in the walls surrounding the city, and we could see the adhesive mess that was the streets.

  Alaric drew his mace and began to march forward, no verbal communication or warning.

  My Winter Bound looked to me for orders, I scowled and gave them the mental go ahead. There was no reason we couldn't do some more scouting before we just trounced in like we owned the place.

  I gave my shade the order to stay in my shadow unless I was in imminent danger. It would be my safeguard.

  I stepped in behind Alaric and activated my Spectral Sight, the mana drain was minimal and I would need every advantage I could get in this predator's den.

  I could see hundreds if not thousands of soul trails, distorted bodies, and the demonic energy coursing through the place like blood through a body. And I could see the countless spiders hiding. We were so screwed. They waited until turning back and running for the hills wasn't a viable option anymore. And when they pounced, none of us were ready for the sheer numbers and aggressive tactics.

  Alaric stepped on a piece of webbing a few steps ahead of me, shrill shrieks and the clacking of mandibles echoed through the streets, reverberating off the walls and traveling down the webbing. My shade threw out a spike that impaled a spider that had leapt from a nearby wall and had been completely silent throughout its arc. Coarse acidic blood sprayed out from the wound as it tumbled to the ground, scuttling away hurriedly when it found its footing. The webbing began to sizzle and smoke rose from where the blood made contact.

  Alaric shouted some jumbled words and a radiant light sparked into existence, spreading out in a sphere fifteen feet in diameter.

  My Winter Bound stepped back hurriedly, the light searing them. I joined their retreat, my shade sharing their weakness and I couldn't give up the eyes on my back.

  Alaric swept forward in a blaze of glory, bringing his mace down on any spider foolish enough to cross into his sphere of influence. The acidic blood losing its properties within the sphere.

  Meanwhile my Winter Bound formed a tight circle around me fending off the onslaught with their swords of ice and frost magic. Spikes fired from my shadow at a rapid pace, but were unable to deal any fatal wounds. The spiders were simply too fast, but I had confidence my shade would adapt. That was the point of a soul core afterall.

  I drew Harbinger in the form of a spear, a pointed cross guard at the base of the blade to prevent the spiders from sliding down the pole. It was similar to a boar spear in design, but much shorter.

  I jabbed out between my Winter Bound, halting the advance of a spider here and there for them to finish off. And applying Mark of the Grave on any that escaped wounded, hoping it would be enough to fight the regeneration prowess that seemed so common to the Abyssal forces.

  I glanced over at Alaric and saw that he had made progress down the street, heading towards the center of the city.

  "What are you doing?" I shouted towards him, "We need to get out of here!"

  He glanced back at me and shook his head before continuing on his path.

  "What do you mean no?" I muttered, fixing my gaze on his soul. The inky void was taking up more space than before but I couldn't get a read on it fighting off the abyssal arachnids.

  "Dammit Alaric," I growled, jabbing my spear into the chittering mandibles of a spider and gritting with effort to hold it through its thrashing. An icy sword slammed down into its thorax before the Winter Bound conjured a fresh blade and continued his fight.

  I glanced around, this was a battle of attrition and if I was going to be fighting these things alone then I needed to change the rules. Mark of the Grave would take time to work, I could summon more Winter Bound but I would need time. What could buy me time, specters? No, I wasn't willing to just bind souls even if I did intend on releasing them after the fight. I threw a death bolt at a fleeing spider and watched with satisfaction as it withered and its legs curled in on itself. I was hoping to break my reflex to use Animate but it seemed like the answer here. Unless I could make a ghoul out of these spiders. I stepped back to avoid an acidic blood spray and nodded to myself.

  "If Create Ghoul doesn't work then I'll use Animate," I muttered, extending a hand towards a withered husk.

  Energy built up and flowed through me, connecting to the corpse and, it pushed back?

  Demonic Essence is resisting skill [Create Ghoul] Expend additional energy to circumvent?

  "How much more energy?" I frowned, mentally accepting the prompt.

  It turned out to be a decent amount of energy. I coughed and heaved as the energy was pulled from me, reaching out a hand to accelerate my absorption of death energy.

  Unique Undead created. Abyssal Arachnid has been raised.

  I grinned through my heavy breathing and gave it the mental command to slaughter and create more of its kind. Highlighting Alaric as a friendly in its mind.

  It rolled off its back and spread its many pointed legs, creaking ominously before leaping at another spider, releasing spores from Mark of the Grave and afflicting it. The new spider convulsed, the bite spreading whatever it was that the ghouls spread. Overriding the regeneration that was remaining and causing another message to appear.

  Abyssal Arachnid has been raised.

  I laughed maniacally and gave the order to move after Alaric, my small circle of Winter Bound tightening and moving at a snail's pace.

  While my unique ghouls went to work.

  Skill [Create Ghoul] has reached Tier 3.

  I dismissed the message and continued to jab through the line, halting advances and providing the Winter Bound with an easy kill. My Shade was becoming more accurate with each passing encounter as well. I doubted we'd actually manage to eliminate the spiders but we may just survive the onslaught at this pace. Given that Alaric doesn't get us all killed.