Chapter 1: The Beginning

 

I was born a girl of exile. My mother had died in child birth to my twin brother, leaving the two of us with our father and three older sisters. As a child, I was unruly, wild, and a trouble maker. But it didn't matter, because my father would never be called back to society to fulfill his dream of marrying off his daughters to royalty. I knew not of what he did. I wasn't concerned if I ever had my debut. If I recall, I only grew up with three new dresses a year. My father saved his money for my older sisters, in hopes that they would still marry well. Suitors came to visit our island, parading my lovely sisters on their arms to dinner and around the village, showing off that they'd possibly captured a rare piece of property. And that's all they were. I was saved for something different as my brother learned about the household, and how to run it. He would inherit should my father die. I was saved to follow my mother's legacy. The High Necromancer of Kittick. It was something I'd heard mentioned on several occasions, but never thought it would eventually apply to me. I started studying at age eight, and completed my training at 19 when I was stripped of my name and identity so I could perhaps serve the king and queen of Kittick. And so I did.

 

My name used to be Amariya Skitsavu, but now I go by Lady Necro. A clever name that my dear brother thought of. It was his parting gift to me. He was staying, and I going. The journey across the strait to the main land was about 2 days. The only time I was beneath deck was when I slept. The water at night was beautiful, completely different than sitting on the beach as the waves licked at my toes. I sighed with a heavy deepness in my body, a stabbing pain in my heart. My home was gone.

 

The doors opened before me, eyes of hundreds turning on me. These people of whom I now belonged to stared at me with cold expressionless faces, some with hatred, amusement, and the occasional envy. I carried nothing with me; all my possessions being in a carriage outside the palace. I silently approached the king, a slim and muscular man in his mid-forties. His hair was beginning to gray at the tips of the jet black locks, and his eyes were like black diamonds, smoldering with an inner heat that would never be extinguished. He stood, waiting. I curtsied to the sharpest degree of respect and honor due to His Majesty. His eyes twinkled in quiet amusement, obviously finding something funny.

 

"I recognize your kind when I see you, Necromancer. What can I do for you?"

 

"I've come searching for a position in which to work if I may put it so bluntly Your Majesty."

 

"You may." he said, grinning. "A position? It just so happens that my current Necromancer has left me for a better job apparently. You are welcome to take his spot. Although, you will need to pass a test for me." I sucked in my breath. Father had told me that I would have to do this. I knew I would pass. It was only that I hoped the king wouldn't recognize my methods, for they are the same as my mother's. We did it the old-fashioned way with the eight bells and the whistle. Nowadays it was magic, pointless and requiring little skill.

 

"I will take your test." I said, staring him in the eyes with the courage only a girl like me could muster. There a few gasps in the crowd at my frank and blunt words, as if somehow it was their fault I was this way. The king beckoned me to follow him out of the hall, and into a private room. A man a few years younger than the king trailed behind us, closing the door.

 

"This is my brother, Brennon." the kind started. "He will be sent into Death, by you, and in a few hours, retrieved from Death, by you. Understand?"

 

I nodded vigorously, saying, "Yes Your Majesty. I understand completely." Lord Brennon watched me with a level gaze as I pulled the fifth bell from my belt. Ritizon, bringer of silence and sleep. The warm, polished handle was smooth against my hand as I whispered its name, and then rang it. The note that followed was pure and solid, and as quickly as it started. Lord Brennon was gone from his body. Although the physical Lord Brennon remained, his soul was in death, waiting for the Black God's judgment.

 

I glanced up at His Majesty, and noticed that he stared at me in awe of my bell.

 

"I have not seen the likes of those in twenty-five years at the least. Where did you learn such a skill?"

 

"I was taught by my mother." He looked at me suspiciously. "I come from far to the north Sir. You cannot possibly know her." The frown on his face relaxed.

 

"I shall fetch a lady servant to lead you to a room that you can wait in for a few hours. My servants are at your disposal."

 

"Thank you." I left with a small curtsy and retreated into the hall, trying to blend in with the crowd. It didn't quite work. After I'd begun studying, my hair had turned silver from being in Death all the time. Father said people would react to my appearance. Although my hair was silver, I still maintained the healthy dark tan that I would have with dark hair. My eyes were bright blue, something I'd inherited from my father. I'd never looked like my mother. I'd compared myself to the paintings of her, and knew, that compared to her, I was no beauty. In my own opinion anyway. Many suitors coming to charm my sisters had wandering eyes, usually their gaze falling on me as I urged my stallion into a gallop, or when I swung my father's sword in a high swinging arc to push back my swords master.

 

A man with coal colored hair and deep emerald eyes came up to me. He was dressed richly, wearing a deep blue silk tunic over a white blouse and black breeches tucked into tall black leather boots. He grinned, taking my hand and brushing my knuckles with a delicate kiss. I did not blush at all, maintaining a calm countenance.

 

 

"You definitely stand out in a crowd My Lady."

 

 

"And I thought to blend in. Silly me." I said, staring at him openly.

 

 

"May I know your name?"

 

 

"Lady Necro if you please or even if you don't please. And who might you be? I would hate to keep up the pretense of a dimwitted lady. It does not suit me well." The man chuckled.

 

 

"You are not a dimwitted lady. My name is Toran."

 

 

“Ah. A guessing game. Perhaps a Wheeler? Or maybe a Mason. Maybe even-“

 

 

“Your Highness! Oh! I did not realize you were back already!” cried a woman as she glided over towards Toran. I raised an eyebrow, watching the scene.

 

 

“Lady Delia; how nice to see you again. Let me introduce to you my companion, Lady Necro, soon to be my father’s High Necromancer. Lady Necro, meet Lady Delia von Yuso.”

 

 

“A pleasure.” We both murmured, Lady Delia bobbing into a deep curtsy. We continued in conversation.

 

 

“Your Highness, how was your trip across seas? I heard you had to sail by that dreadful island belonging to that exiled Duke Skitsavu. It must have been horrible!”

 

 

I gazed at Delia with level blue eyes. She glanced at me.

 

 

“Oh, you probably don’t know who I am referring to. Duke-“

 

 

“I know quite well, thank you. He provided me a place to stay as I journeyed here from Uruven from up north. Although, the duke never explained why he was exiled…” I said, hoping for Delia to take the bait.

 

 

“He was sent away about twenty-five years ago. Rumors say that he didn’t want to follow the God that the king was pushing for the whole country to follow. The Black God I think.”

 

 

I blinked. My father not wanting to follow the Black God? That was all my life was about! There had to be more to it than that? Surely Delia had it all wrong. My father was proud of me because of what I did. Then, I blinked again. The king? Toran’s father?

 

 

“Your Highness’ father?” I asked Toran, confused.

 

 

“No,” he started. “The previous ruler, my uncle.”

 

 

“Not the one I sent into Death?” Toran shook his head, grinning.

 

 

“That would be interesting. Perhaps you could say that he was too far gone… Or just leave him for the Black God’s judgment.”

 

 

“But he followed the Black God. Wouldn’t he be favored?”

 

 

“No, of course not. He forced others to follow his beliefs. That’s against the laws of the Mother Goddess.” I replied. Delia shrugged, her golden curls bouncing against her bare shoulders.

 

 

“Let us end this frivolous topic, ladies.” Toran said, smiling crookedly, a breathtaking smile that stabbed me in the heart. Delia noticed how I smiled back at the prince and frowned. “Lady Necro,

I believe your escort to your temporary room is here.”

 

 

I looked over my shoulder, glancing at the young girl behind me. She was perhaps fourteen or fifteen, although she was quite tall (but not as tall as I) and looked to be older.

 

 

“I am to lead Your Ladyship to your room.” I nodded and turned, curtsying to Toran and Delia. As I turned to go, Toran caught my arm, and whispered in my ear, “I’ll be coming to get you for this evening’s meal.” He let go of my arm, engaging Delia in a conversation over some dinner ball or another. I followed the young girl through the hallways, roaming people watching me as I walked past. Once at my room, the maidservant followed me in, closing the door.

 

 

“I’ve heard that you are to be the new High Necromancer. The previous one was kind to us servant folk.”

 

 

“What is this? An ambush of the maid folk?” I asked, sitting down in an armchair. She laughed, covering her mouth with both of her hands. I stayed straight faced, watching with miniscule amusement.

 

 

“I have a feeling we are going to be friends Lady Necro.” she said. “My name is Leticia, or Letty.”

“Necro is my name now. I was stripped of my old one after I finished my training.”

 

 

“I’ll help you come up with something.”

 

 

I stepped out of Death, breathing hard as the sudden rush of energy rushed through me and threw me to my knees.

“Congratulations Amariya. You are finished.” my father said, a look of seriousness on his face. He never seemed overly excited about my accomplishments, yet I knew that he was proud. I stood, wiping the sweat from my brow. I’d been into the deepest level of Death, and it was excruciatingly hard to return. The temptation was hard to resist; to be with the Black God forever was what I wanted, but I knew that I could not end that way. My duty was to serve the Kitticken king, and serve him with undying loyalty.

“Your name is no longer Amariya Skitsavu my daughter.” Father muttered a few words beneath his breath, and turned, walking away. Had the same thing happened to my mother?

 

 

 

“Did you hear me?” Leticia asked, pulling on a gold braid. I shook my head, apologizing.

 

 

“I’m sorry Letty. It’s been a long trip and I am exhausted. I just want to get this test over with so I can move into my new rooms and go to sleep.”

 

 

“But you have to go to the evening meal with Prince Toran first.” Letty said. I looked up, glaring.

 

 

“You heard that?” I demanded.

 

 

“Of course, he practically shouted it across the Hall. I’m surprised Lady Delia didn’t throw a fit.” Leticia walked over to a table with a bronze pitcher of water, and poured some into a bowl. She handed it to me. “Water helps wake up the mind.” I sipped at the water, and a bit of the lethargy drained from my body. I sat straighter, eyeing Letty with an observant eye. She was pretty in a farm hand way. She was muscular, and round cheeked. Her cheeks were rosy, and her eyes a light shade of green. She wore her blonde, almost white, curly hair in a tight braid that draped over her left shoulder. Leticia wasn’t an eyesore at all.

 

 

“You’re staring at me.”

 

 

“I’m memorizing your face for when you die so I can recognize you. Happy?” I retorted with complete sarcasm. I fell back into the depths of my mind, examining my magic levels. They were all high, none depleted at all. My father had a tutor brought to our island to teach my all the spells that go along with bringing back the dead and raising undead armies. Not that I had any need of it.

After I finished the bowl of water, I set it down on the small table next to me and closed my eyes. There was a knock and a few words exchanged between Letty and another voice. Leticia closed the door and said, “Would you like a tour of the castle? You’re going to have to learn how to find your way around without me.” I sighed.

 

 

“Sure.” I said standing. My midnight blue cloak settled gently over my dress. I unbuttoned the cloak and draped it over a chair, revealing a deep green Uruven gown. It was a three-quarter length sleeved, with the back in a deep V down my backside. The waistline was right at my hips, accented with gold embroidery. From there, it flared out, reaching the ground. I heard Letty’s sharp intake of breath.

 

 

“You will be married by the end of the year if you keep wearing dresses like that one Necro.”

 

 

“Thank you. Unfortunately, I only have two more like this; a blue and a gold one.” Letty nodded.

 

 

“Come on, the tour will take a while, and we only have a few hours.” I followed Letty out the door, staying close behind her. I had left my shoulder belt of bells on, and you could almost hear the faint jingle of the bells against their restraints. My stomach growled loud enough for Letty to hear.

 

 

“We will stop by the kitchen.” She said, looking over her shoulder.

 

 

“I’m fine. Dinner will be in a few hours. I can wait. Honestly.” I assured Letty. She shook her head, laughing.

 

 

“You don’t seem to be the martyr type Necro.”

 

 

“I wasn’t raised on snacks.” Eventually we reached the kitchen where a large and beefy man blocked the entrance.

 

 

“Cook doesn’t want Death in her Kitchen.” He said, pointing a meaty finger at me.

 

 

“Calm down Jonivin. Cook wants to meet Lady Necro.” Leticia lied, her face blank and calm. The man glared at me suspiciously and I smiled. After a minute or two of speculation, he moved, and Letty and I walked into the kitchen.

Reviews

[Shay Lyn]

This was fun to read. Intriguing ideas with a lot of possibility. Lady Necro's character is a bit mysterious. I like it!

[Larry Dyson]

very good ..just came upon it..I like your wrting style ,I will be reading the rest.

[LivingHope.]

Yeah it would. I just copied and pasted this off of a Word document so I didn't spend anythime editing it. Thanks :)

[Alya Usman]

Nice... i like where the thing is going. however, don't you think that dividing the long paragraphs into short ones would grasp more more of the readers attention?