The Nekromancer - 26. Chapter 26

His bag was weighed down, heavy with food. Jakun slid a new bottle of ink into the canvas, tucking it into a secure pouch next to a pen. He hoped Amnor Sen wouldn't be mad about the extra ten gold he'd spent for the ink. It would be simple to write out a scroll for the paladin to replace the money.

"You really need to stop worrying about upsetting him," Anya said beside him.

"That's easier said than done," Jakun replied, pulling a wool cloak over his shoulders. "Are we really going to do this?"

"A full sixteen hours of riding through the night and morning? Yep," Anya nodded. "You have the spells for it, I know you do. Just three summons."

Sighing, Jakun pulled his bag over his shoulder, before attaching his quiver to his hip, the arrows within rattling with a strange whisper. He was almost positive they were magic. It was the only reason he was still alive in his opinion. The shot that had taken Ivris' eye should have missed. But he was grateful it hadn't.

He felt a gentle pulse in the quiver, as though something was trying to reach him.

"Anya-"

The werewolf was beside him in a second, poking at the quiver.

"Okay, definitely a magic quiver," she concluded. "I doubt it's cursed though. A curse wouldn't have shot Ivris in the eye, it would have shot you in the ass."

"I… I don't know how to handle this information."

The cat stared at the quiver, frowning.

"Well, one thing's for sure, you're not gonna get anywhere staring at it."

Grunting quietly, Jakun finished gathering his supplies, stepping out of the bedroom he'd bought for the night. He'd had a good seven hour sleep, longer than he'd ever gotten before, and was feeling more refreshed than ever.

"Okay, I have it all planned out. I saw a map in the Mausoleum. We have sixty miles between here and the forest. Our mounts can make thirty in six hours if we push them. With an hour break to catch our breath, we won't be breaking any records, but we should reach the woods in less than two days. Then you can take that damned collar off."

"This collar saved us," Jakun reminded the werewolf, shaking at the memory of the slaver trying to grab him.

The claim was he was clearly undead. But Jakun didn't even feel undead. Aside from the whole negative energy healing thing. At the sight of the collar though, the woman had backed off quickly, letting him go about his business.

"Yeah, so, if you could stop getting lost in your memories, maybe we can get out of here?" Anya scoffed.

Sighing, Jakun headed outside, plucking a piece of fur off his head. It made summoning easier, and now that he had time to actually cast, he was going to explore the full experience.

"Iasau verth."

A tiger appeared, skin peeling under its saddle and Jakun gripping its tail. He blinked in surprise, before shrugging it off.

"So… not specifying the animal forces the spell to rely on the material used. Interesting," Anya said, as Jakun climbed on the tiger's back.

She vanished into his mind, and he mentally commanded the tiger forward, the animal settling into an easy lope through the city. It wasn't long before they were beyond the gates, Jakun letting out a loud cry of delight at the unadulterated sense of freedom pouring through him. He never wanted this feeling to end.

'We need to try to figure out how to make a living tiger,' Anya said smugly. 'I like its gait. It would be a shame for the paladin to destroy our summons. Again.'

Jakun shook his head, leaning against the tiger's body. It was shedding skin and fur with every bounce, and he knew the tiger wouldn't last longer than six hours, if that. Still, he figured the zombie would get them far enough in that time.

Hours passed, the neko zoning out as he let his mount move freely along the road. It really was a comfortable ride, but he still felt his gut clenching near the sixth hour, his body still working to stay on the tiger's back.

And suddenly, his mount froze, trembling. Jakun felt his control weakening, well used to the feeling of losing his summons. He slid off the cat, the tiger falling apart into dust as he collapsed in the road. Jakun crawled to the side of the road, his bag sliding off his back. He searched the inside for his waterskin, feeling parched after his ride.

"Shit, we forgot to fill it…" Anya scowled appearing next to him. "Okay… we can figure this out…"

"Water… Iasau pablo atonus…" Jakun croaked, raising his hand.

The sloshing of water filled the air, a small elemental appearing between the two. Anya blinked in surprise.

"You aren't possibly thinking-"

Jakun's mouth closed around the elemental's fingers, sucking at the water that gove it form. He spat suddenly, the salty water spraying out on the ground as the elemental laughed.

"Acrosha se lemaro," the creature smirked, stepping away from the amurrun.

"I think he just called you an idiot," Anya chuckled. "It was a good idea though. I wonder if we couldn't just summon fresh water?"

"Lo travellers!" a voice called loudly, drawing their attention.

The elemental fell with a muddy splash, water flooding the road before vanishing. Jakun whimpered slightly as the spell faded. He glanced up at a cloaked man on a horse, the bronzed person sliding off the mount.

"Mind if I join you for a time?"

Anya nodded.

"By any chance, do you have some water?" she asked.

"Of course. Though depending how far you're headed, you're going to hit the desert. Hopefully you stock up before you head out there."

The man looked thoughtful.

"Though… if we are close to Mechitar…"

He pulled a slender stick out of his cloak, looking over the gentle swirled knots in the wood.

"You probably have more need for this than I do. There aren't many uses left, but if you ration, it should see you through most of the desert."

"Really. And how much is this wand?" Anya asked.

"Let's settle on fifteen gold. That about what's left in here anyway," the man shrugged.

"How… how do you work it?"

Jakun's throat crackled, his mouth feeling more parched than before.

"Just say water in Draconic, and pray to the gods it works," the man said with a small smirk.

"So it works like one of Jeremy's spells. This might be difficult to use…" Anya frowned.

The man shrugged.

"Most of my spells are arcane in nature. It works for me just fine, and my magic is different than most. But, no sense in wasting a spell when I still have water left over."

He pulled out a waterskin, letting Jakun drink some of the precious liquid within. The neko coughed slightly as he finished, his throat still a little pained.

"Thank you," he said gratefully.

"Of course," the man smiled, offering the water to Anya.

The werewolf waved it off.

"I don't suppose you met an elf and a human riding north, did you?" she asked.

"No, I'm sorry. I came from the west. You won't catch me going through the woods…"

"The Axan woods, right? They shouldn't be too much of a problem, we're already basically undead. Or so people seem to think," Jakun sighed.

"Hey, it might help you in this case. But you'd be better off going around the woods in my opinion. Still, if your friends are heading to the woods… well, good luck," the man chuckled, not unkindly.

"Thanks."

Jakun handed half of his remaining gold to the man, taking the wand in his hands. He looked it over, a small frown on his face. It was a well crafted wand. But he doubted it could have more than a spell or two left in it. According to Anya, they should be at the woods by tomorrow morning, and Jeremy could cast this spell easily. It was probably a waste of money. Still, he was thirsty enough to take it.

"Well, I ought to get moving. I wish you luck with the woods," the man smiled, tucking the gold into his belt pouch.

He pulled himself back onto his horse, before trotting away slowly.

"Well, we have a little time if you want to rest, maybe eat something," Anya said. "Amnor Sen did say he wanted us to only bring twelve packs of rations."

Nodding, the neko took a small wrapped package out, nibbling on a bit of jerky. He'd take some time to eat before summoning his next mount.