The Nekromancer - 64. Chapter 64

He was lost in the maze. Even Anya couldn't figure out how to escape, and Jakun couldn't find any of the caretakers of the library.

"This is it… near twenty four hours down here, and we're going to be stuck for the rest of our lives…" he murmured, staring blankly at a shelf made of bones.

"And you're just going to give up? That easily? Come on Jakun. This is utter horse shit. You're willing to kill yourself to end Loran, but you won't walk a little to get out of this place?" Anya growled.

"The more we walk, the more we get lost!"

"Well maybe you should come up with a plan instead of whining about it."

The amurrun growled at Anya, fur puffing in rage. Grabbing the fallen lantern, he stood up.

"Fine! We'll keep walking until my legs give out!"

He scanned the area, trying to remember where he had come from. Grumbling quietly, the amurrun picked a direction and started walking.

An immeasurable amount of time later, he felt a presence, walking beside him. Looking over, the catfolk flinched at the sight of a demon. A bird face stared at the cat, venomous fangs protruding somehow from the beaks. A pair of serpentine arms stretched from a scaly torso, one ending in a strangely marked shield, the other in a viper's head that looked almost like a whip.

"What… what are you?" Jakun shuddered.

Even Anya seemed to have fled, her fear feeding Jakun's own terror.

"Lost, are you? I can help you escape. But you have to give up something first…" the demon said, amusement thick in his voice.

"W… what do… what do you mean…?"

"This is the realm of secrets, of knowledge protected at all costs."

"I gave up my secret already…"

"We are made of secrets amurrun. You have plenty to share. How many know of your friend? Or of your quest for lichdom?"

"But you know those secrets-"

"Too many and they are no longer secrets. Those run that risk. Give me something new, something no one living knows. And then you may find your way," the demon hissed, fangs dripping dangerously close to the catfolk. "The alternative is to waste all your work, wandering through my lair until you die, no more than a week from now. And it will be a long, excruciating death."

Jakun bit his lip. Something no one knew… he was saving it for his phylactery, saving it to name his soul…

"My mother… she named my Zeimgas when I was born. It was my master who called me Jakun… when he bothered to use my name."

The demon hummed thoughtfully, nodding slowly.

"Your name will be protected forever. But it will no longer be yours to remember," he hissed.

There was a bright flash of light, blinding Jakun, and suddenly he was standing in front of a staircase, utterly confused.

"How did…?"

The amurrun rubbed at his eyes, trying to clear them of the bright haze. He had… forgotten something?

"Anya, what are we doing here?"

"There was a lich… I think we asked about the ritual?" the werewolf replied, frowning.

Jakun pulled out his spellbook, flipping through it.

"Yeah… there's fresh writing in here, in Draconic," he said. "I guess we got what we came for?"

The catfolk tucked it back into its dimensional pocket, hurrying back upstairs.

"I feel like we spent forever down there…"

"Jakun!"

Mythara hurried toward them, opening a portal behind the two.

"Go into the hole! Don't question, just jump!"

He slammed into the catfolk, Jakun falling back through the swirling portal with a yelp.

His back hit something soft, Jakun staring up at the ceiling of their room.

"What…?"

"Sorry," Mythara muttered. "I sort of maybe stole a copy of Eiron Drezel. They shouldn't call it a library if they didn't want to share…"

"No offense, but I think the murder holes in the entrance would have made that clear…" Jakun grunted, sitting up. "We're… back in our room?"

"Safest place for us both. I'll send the book back via portal once I'm done with it. He's a good read, and I wasn't aware he had done stuff with divination."

"You said divination wasn't worth the time."

Mythara frowned, shrugging.

"Yeah, only took me a couple hundred years to figure that out."

"A couple hundred…"

Jakun stared at the man in horror.

"Are you really a dragon?!"

"Yeah. And no, I'm not going to eat you," Mythara said instantly.

"I… I mean… you would have done that sooner…"

Jakun stood up, pulling out his book again.

"So I am assuming you got what you needed?"

The catfolk sat at their table with a nod.

"Yes. It's… hard to understand everything though," he admitted.

"Of course it is. You probably aren't ready for that level of magical theory yet. There is a reason most liches are wizards and not sorcerers. The sorcerer won't really understand the ritual without intensive training."

"But… I've never actually trained…"

Mythara shrugged, pointing toward a bookshelf.

"No time like the present. In fact, I can even slow time if you want to speed things up."

"You can do that?"

"Yeah, easy. But it doesn't last long. You might get an extra four hours a day if I do it," Mythara shrugged. "There is a lot you don't know about me, and it is best if you don't ask. Just know that I am on your side."

"That isn't exactly reassuring… but if it helps me learn, then sure, let's freeze time. I have a vigil spell that can keep me awake… if I read slowly. If I use that between your spells… I might actually be able to use the ritual in a couple months…"

Mythara grinned, pulling out a large book. He began running through it, looking up a few moments later.

"Idea. I have a glyph. If we chalk it on the door inside, this entire room will run on a normal timeline while the rest of the world is a little slower."

"Wouldn't it be easier to make the room a little faster instead?" Jakun frowned.

"Well… probably? Here, give me some time to work this out," Mythara said, flipping a page.

Jakun let out a quiet sigh, looking through his own book. The sooner he started, the quicker he could get through this whole thing.