Reive couldn’t believe his eyes. He had been aching with the desire to bring Angelina to the Twilight world but now he didn’t have any idea what to do next. All his suspicions were confirmed. The girl had inherited the golden blood.
As soon as they had appeared here, everything had become clear. In the world of dark gods, a necromancer’s anarel pulsates, ready to make full use of the ever present Dark. But the opposite effect applies to mages whose energy source was fainter than black. Their own magic began to maintain their energy, while the Dark slowly sucked life out of them.
Only a necromancer could walk freely around the Twilight. For others, this place became a huge leech which sooner or later would suck out all their blood. It was just a matter of time.
With Angelina, everything turned out quite interestingly. Her necromantic powers had increased many times, but the black anarel inside her chest had started to flash a bright green-
How? How did we get here? The huge palace was too far out. Now, they were standing by its entrance. The high wall and the moat-bridge now lowered in welcome. The wide Arch of Blood that would only allow in guests with a noble’s insignia.Could we get in there today? Right now?I cast a nervous look at my outfit. Of course, in my dress by the best tailor of Ihordarrine, I looked good enough for anyone to take me for a high-born noble. However, for some reason, that didn’t bolster my self-assurance.“Reive, how should we prepare or dress up...”The necromancer eyed me up and down skeptically.“Looks like you aren’t naked.” Then, he examined himself the same way and added, “Me either.” There was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes again. Then he took me by the arm, signing to the zombie to follow us, and said, “That means everything’s okay. So, my dear fiancée, I think it’s h
"Firel. My castle. My blood...”The dark stone castle rose in front of Reive. It was shining in the sun. At the same time, it seemed to be absorbing the sunlight, its stone able to concentrate the Dark within itself. No, not to accumulate it. Incredible efforts would have been needed to do that. It was impossible to create something of such a size, but many years ago, the Undead King had created something else.The stones of this huge complex were enchanted to such a degree that Firel compelled all the surrounding Dark to flow slowly into its walls. It attracted the Dark, allowing the magic to freely circulate inside the castle. As a result, any necromancer who happened to be within the walls of the castle, found his own power significantly intensified.Of course, it wouldn’t make a strong necromancer out of an ordinary man or return to Reive his former power. But within the walls of his own home, it was much easier for the Undead King to work
Reive raised an eyebrow, not quite understanding what was going on. However, when the groom walked away, she came up to him, standing on tiptoe, holding her breath. Turning his head, the necromancer’s glance fixed on the high breast peeping appetizingly from the décolleté. As if Angelina was pressing more closely against him on purpose, until her lips reached his ear. By this time, Reive was ready to go down to the depths of Twilight, if he could be there alone with Angelina. If he could tear her away from outside eyes and cover every inch of her body with kisses to die for. He was eager to kiss her soft, smooth skin, her moist hot lips that right now touched his earlobe as if by accident. The necromancer closed his eyes and exhaled sharply, trying to concentrate and not pay attention to the feverish hammering in his temples. Angelina was trying to tell him something. “I don’t know how to ride, Reive,” she whispered. Her breath scorched him. She
I felt incredibly well. A fresh breeze blew on my skin; and even cooled my over-heated head a little. Reive was sitting behind me, and I felt how he was almost hugging me. I felt his hands, chest and hips. I even felt his breath at times when the wind hushed and the horse seemed to walk on by itself. I didn’t turn round to check but, if I closed my eyes, I could imagine him lowering his head to my neck. I felt his lips pause just an inch from my shoulder.Nonsense. Nevertheless, I wanted to believe it.The afternoon had already passed, and the sun had begun to edge towards the horizon. Reive rode beyond the fortress wall, but not through the main gates. He chose quite a different way.It seemed strange that, as an earl, he didn’t know the heraldry and genealogy of his family very well. It could partly be explained by having secluded himself somewhere in the depths of the country and by the peculiarities typical of any necromancer. However, something
“Why cows? Though there’s nothing terrible about that.”“Don’t talk nonsense. Who needs healers?” Reive knit his brows, popping another grape into his mouth. “No power, no intellect, no imagination.”There was so much poison in his voice I straightaway wanted to argue with him. But I was watching his lips almost without looking away. I watched him bite on another berry and then lick his lips.Sweet lips that can kiss so hotly...Damn it.What was he saying?“Healers save people,” I muttered hesitantly. “And necromancers deal only with the undead.”Reive pursed his lips.“And what would a healer do if a hungry undead attacked his wife in the middle of the night? Or if a burglar ready to cut your throat for a piece of bread gets into your house? Or if...”“I got it, Reive,” I interrupted him, waving my hand. “But what abou
He felt giddy. His muscles were aching like a wolf who’d been chasing prey half the night but still hadn’t caught any. His palms still felt the softness of the young girl’s skin, his body tensing and feeling a burning need to touch her again. To have her cuddle up against him. Hot. Shuddering from his conscious, careful movements.Reive wasn’t going to act hastily. He wasn’t going to lay her out on the grass and cruelly take her right away. That was no longer his plan. He wanted to… touch her.His hands moved by themselves. As soon as she came close, he quickly lost all control.He could explain why. He could understand the reason, but he couldn’t control himself.It was a good thing that Jeff Rinelon, the owner of the tailor shop, had arrived in the nick of time before the necromancer finally lost his head.Reive got to his feet, pulling the blushing girl along with him. Angelina was adjust
It seemed like my heart was about to jump out of my chest from excitement. Then, it would leap along the road like a March hare.“We must give a present to his majesty, mustn’t we?” a dark grin appeared on the necromancer’s beautiful lips. “And this present will be an amazing horse ‘of a rare color, riding on which, a prince would not feel ashamed’,” Reive copied Jeff Rinelon’s words and intonations.“Errr... Reive, the horse will be dead,” I said with hesitation, looking at the dead body in the cart.“Little one, this will be its special appeal,” Reive answered with saturnine pleasure. “Okay. Enough talk.”The necromancer turned to me, and his face immediately became serious.“To read the invocation of the sixth level, you’ll need to keep a really strong thread of the Dark in your hands. A really weighty, tough and unyielding one. If you lose cont
I’d never heard anyone speak Ashgenrian so fluently. The necromancer’s pronunciation was marvelous. Each word was like music. Each letter was a flowing stream echoing in my breast, either with the murmuring of a wild beast or the thunder of a hungry abyss.I tried to repeat every expression with manic accuracy. I listened attentively to Reive’s strong voice and channeled it through myself. And I pronounced the invocation putting everything I had into it.I really didn’t want Reive to think I was a loser. A weakling, which in fact I was, but he was the only one who believed that I wasn’t. And that I was capable.After the third stanza, our surroundings changed subtly. The air became denser. The necromancer behind me flinched.I wanted to open my eyes and watch what was happening. But Reive still didn’t take his hand away, keeping me close to himself. And now, he kept me closer than ever.Suddenly, I felt my
***Five years later the kingdom of Aldenor was renamed ‘Empire of Shadow’.Reive and Angelina were awarded the titles of emperor and empress. A year later their triplets were born, two boys and a girl. All three possessed a strong dark gift for twilight magic. In time, they entered the academy their mother had founded, CYANIDE— Central YOUNG Academy for Necromantic Ideology and Demonology Education.Therefore, the royal couple introduced a new fashion for necromancy. Henceforth, all influential families in the empire dreamed of sending their children to CYANIDE, still sometimes jokingly called ‘Academy of Death’.Twenty years on, necromancers had become the main combat unit of the army of the Empire of Shadow. Not one of the neighboring states would even dream of transgressing the borders or otherwise offending the continent’s most dangerous empire.Until the day of his death, Reive saw Ulfricus from time to tim
The order in Ashgenrian sounded more powerful and confident that ever before. Shivers ran down my spine.That very second a small pale shadow formed beside me, a few seconds later it acquired an outline.“Byelndevir!” Reive exclaimed, his eyes opening wide. Such a wide smile appeared on his face that I felt truly happy.“I’m sorry I nearly bit your head off,” the little spirit said, spreading his wings. Real ones, not bones.The dragon was of human size and so took up an impressive amount of space. However, that was nothing in comparison to his former dimensions. I knew his size could now be changed at will – bigger or smaller.“Fantastic!” the necromancer gasped and struggled, then succeeded to stand up from the bed. He went up to the ghost and carefully touched his wing, as if they were blood brothers. “And I didn’t take offense, my friend.”It seemed to me that
“Yes, it can.” I nodded, “When the dead opened their mouths to sing, the earth was filled with the voices of Twilight itself. It was horrifying and amazing at the same time. With each second that passed more and more ghosts appeared. Their numbers grew and quickly surpassed the numbers of the Union Army. They were dressed like military, in ancient cuirass and such like armor. Their sounds were like thunder as they moved amongst the troops of our enemies. Then the living dead on our side moved into their ranks, joining in the song, but not attacking. The warriors of the Union soon began to throw down their weapons and retreat. Several spirits surrounded each of them, shaking their swords and drawing closer as if they were thirsty for the kill.I sighed deeply, shaking off dark thoughts and continued, “And Ulfricus appeared beside me. He introduced himself, I hadn’t known what he would look like. The druid smiled sadly, laid his hand on my shoulder
hree months have passed since I became Queen of Aldenor. Reive has spent the best part of this time lolling about in bed and has only now begun to rise himself. See, I’ve taken upon myself the none-too-easy burden of governing the country.To tell the truth it hasn’t been very enjoyable. Especially having to resolve conflicts with the not inconsiderable number of disgruntled people who wanted to see someone else in power. I had much help. Advisors, mages, military leaders. Those who had come across to our side when things had quieted down a little. When it had become clear that we had a rightful claim to the throne. Reive was the enthroned ruler who had never renounced his crown. And I... I was the Gerhard Ayris’ bastard. The only illegitimate daughter of the recently deceased king.This became widely known not just to the highborn nobles, but to the common people. And, as I understand, not without the help of Asper Glane.The day after t
There were screams of horror from somewhere to the side. I turned round and saw the gates finally open and the drawbridge come fully down. Now, crowds of the transformed undead – frightening, strong and dangerous – were slowly crawling out. Even from here I could see their empty eye sockets flash with hunger and hear their sharp teeth clatter in their skulls.However, the undead weren’t hurrying to attack. There was no longer anyone to give them the order.I began to panic. I closed my eyes and forced myself to slowly breathe out.My hands were shaking. The chain in my hand was twitching, its links rattling barely audibly.Suddenly, behind my lowered eyelids I saw the threads of the Dark. In their hundreds and thousands, they were stretching out from Reive to the subjugated undead. They were chattering and tightening, demanding the order that couldn’t come.Nevertheless, there was also something else. Almost unnoticeable. Al
Dark and Twilight, how could this happen? Why?!“Duchess Myria Clarian Castro-Arcs broke away from the ranks of the main army and raced through the rows of our zombies under her own initiative,” Glein answered gloomily, drawing his sword uncertainly.It seemed I had asked the last question aloud. The garrison commander, Reive man who had been covering our rear all this time, didn’t know what he should do now. How he could bear arms against the woman he had formerly sworn to protect. Gerhard Ayris’s sister, the Princess of Aldenor.Also her own brother’s lover and my mother. Nevertheless, it was hardly likely that would be known to anyone.“And all this for the sake of killing Reive?” I moaned, struggling to help Glein keep the necromancer on his feet.The Undead King lost consciousness, and I could feel how heavy he was. I wanted to make a joke like: ‘you couldn’t tell by the look
Angelina smiled confusedly but didn’t let him distract her, “You must stop this battle. Right now. You started it, so you stop it.”Reive pursed his lips, thoughtfully rubbing his chin with one hand while continuing to hold Angelina’s wrist with the other, “Hmm... The battle’s already started. The Council is continuing its attack despite the throne guardian’s death,” he was deliberating. “I suppose either they don’t know that, or someone else is acting as supreme commander. But...” he made a short pause and then smiled and winked at the girl. “But I have a plan.”He clicked his fingers and the canopy of the Dark above them dispersed like mist.“Your Dark Majesty, it’s dangerous,” broke in Glein, standing at a respectful distance from Reive all this time. “The arrows, the magic, the flying beasts. We may not reach the walls of the fortress.”He looke
The Ashgenrian words left Reive’s lips, immediately breaking the higher undead’s attachment spell. Now, Biellendevir was attached neither to him nor to Angelina.The huge beast opened his mouth wide and cried aloud. A terrifying roar tore through the surroundings, freezing the wide-open eyes of the soldiers and chilling the hearts of the living.A bloody film clouded the gaze of the higher undead. No one controlled him now.It was no longer the same Biellen the necromancer’d known all his life. It was a higher undead, incredibly strong and incredibly hungry.“Forgive me,” Reive repeated, creating a ghostly noose and throwing it over the dragon’s neck.One movement – and the huge monster’s head drooped, his bones creaking.Biellendevir was roaring, making sounds like the howl of the cursed Abyss. No one dared to approach the three of them at that moment. Neither the enemy’s soldiers nor th
All the last day flashed by like a whirlwind before the eyes of the necromancer. He saw himself coming out of Angelina’s room. He saw the broken potion bottle, and Zomzom’s crippled body hidden behind the flight of stairs.The necromancer didn’t have any time to search for the killer just then. He ordered the zombie brought to his laboratory, promising himself he would find the brazen mage who had decided to make such a stupid joke with his personal servant.Now, the puzzle had come into place. This brazen mage was Livia Rendan. She had turned out to be a much stronger opponent than he had realized. The woman hadn’t only been able to delay the effect of the curse but with time might manage to completely neutralize it. Reive saw she was already able to speak perfectly well and even get to her feet. It was worthy of admiration. Reive had always respected strength of mind.However, Livia didn’t want to live. She had something els