//------------------------------//
// 7. The Witch. 
// Story: A Noble Cause 
// by mari tech 
//------------------------------//

Chryssie looked to the old crone with disbelief in her eyes.

"Why, yes. I am Twisted Thorn." She gave a small chuckle. "But just Thorn is alright dearie."

"Thorn here is a trusted friend of Celestia." Conrad turned towards the mare. "And we have need of your services."

"Then, by all means, look around and I'll do my best to assist you."

Conrad leaned down to Chryssie and pointed towards a large showcase that also functioned as a counter like in jewelry shops. Chryssie gave a nod and made her way over to stare and the long wooden tools. They all looked old as Chryssie noticed. 

"Find anything dearie?"

Chryssie swears that she felt her undead heart jump. "Um. I'm not exactly sure what I am supposed to look for, to be honest. I was told I would need a wand... but I don't know what to look for in the first place."

Chryssie took a look towards Conrad. He was busy looking at violins. She noticed that Thorn was gone from her seat. In fact, so was her seat. It seemed to have teleported along with her.

"Of course child, I will help you with your woes." Thorn began to give a scrutinizing look over Chryssie. 

Chryssie felt uncomfortable under the gaze of an ancient being like Thorn could see her past, her present, and her future at once.

"I see." The Witch suddenly announced. She almost immediately went to the back room where a large number of products were heard shifting around. It was only a few seconds before the Witch had come back to the chair she had left behind. She placed a heavy yet small wand case in front of Chryssie.

"Try it."

Those two words had set Chryssie on edge even more. She had briefly forgotten her magic as she reached a shaky hoof towards the intimidating box. She slowly lifted the latch on the dark box and could immediately feel the power from inside reaching out to touch her hoof like static. Shocked, but still continuing, she had finally been given the privilege to gaze upon her new focus.

It was remarkable. In the box upon a plush lining was a wand made of rotting wood. It was filled with holes yet it looked sturdy enough to fight with. The wood used to be a lush mahogany heartwood that had been artificially rotted out with magic. Chryssie picks up the wand in her hoof and instantly felt a connection as if the wand was a second horn. 

Raising the wand, she aims towards the wall and put the ever so slightest of magic power towards the wand. The rotted wood started to glow a malignant green as smoke began to pour off it. Before Chryssie had a chance to say anything, the wand blasted a ray of pure rot at an upturned scarecrow and reduced it to a goopy sludge. 

"Woah..."

"It seems that I have made a good choice for you."

Chryssie wasn't so sure that it was a good choice. Before she could voice her concern, Thorn had already moved over to Conrad and had gotten engaged in a rather heated conversation with him. Chryssie returned her attention to the rotting wand.

"Well... she is a professional."





"I am telling you, Thorn, bone is a perfectly acceptable substitute for wood!"

"Not at all! Bone is good for aesthetics, but it carries acoustics like hot garbage."

"It doesn't need to carry acoustics well because magic does all the work!"

"But then anypony with half a mind in the music business could call you out on your instrument."

Twisted Thorn was nose to missing nose with Conrad. Conrad had felt this conversation before, back when he was first raised, and when he needed a replacement violin. 

"What about wood shaped to be like a bone?" 

Conrad and Thorn had turned to Chryssie. She was plainly tired of the shouting already. 

"I swear, your yelling could wake the dead."

Chryssie had immediately thrown a hoof to cover her mouth. Conrad was ecstatic. Chryssie's expression had lowered into disappointment in herself. Her hoof dropped.

"Buck."

"You did fantastic for your first undead pun."

"I want to die."

"A little too late for that don't you think?"

"Let's just get this over with and go home."

Chryssie looked over her new wand.

"I suppose it's getting late. So Twisted Thorn, as my companion suggested, wood sculpted to look like bone?"

"I can't see a reason why it wouldn't work."

"Celestia will pay in the usual way of course."

"I'd expect nothing less. It will be delivered to you when it is ready."

"Fantastic, have a good evening Twisted."

Conrad left the building with Chryssie in tow. She was still looking over her wand.





It had been two days since the encounter at the shop. Conrad had just been delivered his new violin. It was a beautiful piece with wood as pale as bone and twisted into a grim skull. Conrad had a bow for it already done in his own time.

Chryssie was still entranced by her wand. She had gotten be a fair shot with the ray of enfeeblement. Hitting a target 30 feet away had become foals play to her by this point only because the ray seemed to do most of the work for her. Beyond that however was a far different story, she struggled to hit anything but air at further ranges.

Conrad was in his room stringing his new violin and tuning it properly when Chryssie entered. She had a grim look upon her.

"Sir. Permission to speak freely?"

"Granted and encouraged."

"I'm beginning to have second thoughts on this necromancy business. The wand is great and all, but the energy it emits is... sickening. I think it might be throwing off my aim."

Conrad put a bony finger to his chin in thought. "That is a problem."

"And another concern... it seems cruel to rot a creature. I... I never killed, even while I was alive. It seems too brutal to use even for me." Chryssie held the wand out to Conrad.

Conrad grabbed the wand and inspected it. "I see. Thank you for bringing up the concern to me. Follow." Conrad suddenly got up and ran out of the castle. 

Chryssie broke into a sprint to catch up to the rather nimble skeleton. She ran through town and through markets, past ponies, griffins, dragons, and more before she broke out into a clearing. She had the feeling of the need to pant even though she didn't need to breathe. Chryssie managed to catch up enough to run right into Conrad's leg and knock herself to the ground.

Chryssie sat up only to have her jaw drop. Beyond Conrad was the beginning construction of a noble estate. The frames had gone up and already it's looking to be a grand spectacle. It had 5 stories to it and spanned at least 5 rooms to either side of the main entrance. 

"Woah..."

"Indeed. The workers so far are gathering a stockpile to build the foundations, but I had them build something for us in the meantime." Conrad moved past the construction with Chryssie in tow.

"Workers?"

"The skeletons we made a few days ago. They are great all-rounders. A jack of all trades. They can build, they can fight, they can craft. As I said, they are gathering more materials at the moment."

"I see, so what did they build for us in the meantime?"

Conrad stopped abruptly and extended his arm to show a depression in the ground of about 2 feet deep. The floor is covered in sand and the walls are braced with timber. Among the sandpit was a few training dummies that seemed to animate at approach.

"A training area?"

"With dummy golems. They react like real combatants and are enchanted to be affected by magic as if they were alive."

"How is this supposed to help with my problem?"

"While it won't help your accuracy." Chryssie pouted at that. "It will help you understand necromancy."

Conrad raised the wand towards a dummy golem and fired a ray at it. The golem seemed to become extremely lethargic and slow as it moved around.

"Necromancy is likely the most chaotic school of magic. How it affects things differs incredibly. As you see, your standard ray spell only slows your target, but against organic material, it just rots."

Conrad pulled an apple from his pocket and threw it into the sand before blasting it like he had the golem. The apple rotted near immediately. 

"Case in point. Negative energy has no clear rules on its effects. It flows and acts like negative energy, which flows and acts like negative energy, and so on and so forth. There is no other energy like it so it is hard to compare it to something to help explain."

Conrad gave the wand back to its owner. "Now remember, a ray of enfeeblement is one of the lighter necromancy spells. It is simple and direct. There are far crueler spells that can be used."

Conrad turned back to a dummy golem that was bumping against the low wall. He raised a bony hand towards the golem and clenched his fist. The effect was immediate. The golem grabbed at its chest as Conrad's hand began to smoke. Conrad proceeded to quickly open his hand and pull it back to his chest. In an instant, the golem fell like a pile of smoking fluff appeared in his hand.

Chryssie was in shocked awe of what she just witnessed. 

"The clutch of Orcus. If it was a real target, I would be holding their heart right now."

"What... that's horrid!"

"I never said necromancy was pretty or graceful. Necromancy is about getting the job done. It is up to people like us to not abuse such power over life and death."

Chryssie looked at her wand in thought. 

"I will leave you alone to think Chryssie. Just remember, you can control what spells you cast. You never have to cast such cruel spells if you don't want to. Not even I wish to cast them." Conrad put a hand on Chryssie's back in reassurance before leaving to oversee the stockpile of materials. Chryssie looked back to the dead golem in the sand.





"I thought I told you numbskulls to only take what was needed!"

The skeletal pony in front of Conrad turned its head slightly.

"How am I going to tell Celly..." Conrad put a hand to his chin.

As it turned out, Conrad wasn't clear enough in his instructions. The skeleton had interpreted his command to gather materials for the manor as a request to deforest the area.

"I wish I had figured out how to allow the equine skeleton to talk just so I could hold a stern conversation with you."

Conrad gave a sigh as he looked at the mountain of logs in the stockpile area. "I guess a separate building for production isn't that bad of an idea... maybe a tavern for old time sake..." Conrad was lost in a reverie of older times and didn't notice his spymaster approach him.

"Conrad, can I ask you a question?"

Conrad nearly jumped out of his bones as his daydream was interrupted. "Yes, Spymaster Chryssie?"

"Is necromancy evil."

Conrad knew that it was a statement rather than a question. He had been asked this many times as a diplomat and braced himself to tell the truth.

"Yes, Chryssie. It is."

Chryssie's eyes popped open.

"But... so is all magic."

Chryssie raised a confused eyebrow. "Explain."

"If we are to base our concept of good and evil on whether magic can be used to brutally maim and kill another creature... then just about all magic can be labeled as evil." Conrad gave Chryssie a sigh as he braced for the worst part. "Healing magic can extend the pain and suffering of another or save lives. Using this logic, it is evil. Fireball can be used to protect the innocent... but it can turn villages into a burning inferno. Using this logic, it is evil. Telekinesis can help the disabled take control of their life... It can also be used to rip someone apart limb from limb. It can be used to swing a whirlwind of weapons. Using this logic, it is evil. Control emotions can be used to incite a frenzy in a man that drives him to attempt to kill any that get near him, or it can be used to help a paranoid patient calm down. Using this logic, it is evil."

Conrad stood straight up. "Magic cannot be labeled in such black and white ways Chryssie. To do so would be unfair... and stagnant. It is why our sovereign opened a college that teaches all magic in her city. It's also a reason why she has no tolerance for paladins. She hates stagnation and by extension, we should too. To stagnate is to recede is what she would say because if you were to stay still while everything else moved around you... then you would lose ground."

Chryssie looked down in thought before looking back to Conrad as he continued.

"So Chryssie. Yes, necromancy is evil. But it is also good. The answer is really up to you and how you choose to wield it."

Chryssie looked at her wand with newfound respect. "I think I understand. Thank you, Conrad. I believe I have all the answer I need."

"I'm glad I could help."

"Also, Celestia is coming by because she heard something about deforestation." Chryssie grinned.

"Fuck..."





"So Conrad, mind telling me why you needed so much lumber?"

Conrad was sitting in the royal dining room once again. 'If I come here so often, I might have to get my own chair.' Conrad had thought.

"Alright listen, it was a complete accident I swear. Apparently, the order I gave was too broad and too open to interpretation."

Celestia gave a small chuckle. "I believe you, try to be more careful next time." 

"I'll do my best to wrangle those boneheads. I just wish I figured out why they can't talk. The spell should've worked perfectly."

"Of course. What is the project you needed so much wood for anyway?"

"Building a manor. But with so much wood... I could build a production facility and a tavern." Conrad looked down at his hand before clenching his fists and giving her a sigh. "So many memories from the tavern..." Conrad gave a sad chuckle. 

Celestia put a wing upon Conrad's back. When he looked at her, she gave him a small nod. "My apologies princess."

"There is no need. I understand the struggles of immortality."

"I never really got over those memories..."

"Do you wish to talk about it?"

Conrad looked out the window for the time. "Yeah... I've got time."





The tavern was alight with much commotion. It was a day to celebrate after all. The first of the season's adventurers were set to head out today. At the front of the celebration was a beefcake of a dwarf, a slender elf, a halfling in robe and wizard hat, and a human clad in dark clothes all drinking before setting out onto the road.

"Conrad! Come get your drink on! Tyr knows you need to get the stick out of your ass." The dwarf yelled across the room.

The human, known as Conrad, was trying to calm his nerves with a glass of Kobold Kooler, a functionally non-alcoholic pink fizzy drink. "Not tonight. I need to be in sound mind for the adventure."

"Forget that, well be fine! We are well trained to face anything we come across. Even the elf is drinking!"

"I know, and it disturbs me."

Conrad looked over to the elf that was dancing half-naked on a table and cringed. "If alcohol does that to her, I'd hate to see what pipeweed would do. But no thanks, I'm not drinking tonight."

"Suit yourself, more for me."





"What happened after that?"

"We were set on our first adventure, navigate through a swamp, and clear out a cave of goblins. Nothing too difficult, perfect for new adventurers. But that swamp was what threw all that out the window..."





Left, right, left, right was the march of the adventurers. The path through the swamp should've been cleared already with the heavy traffic. It was a complete fluke that we met our match.

"WRAGH!" The dwarf had screamed as he jumped with a heavy ax only to get battered out of the air.

The halfling cast spell after spell, thankfully you didn't have to aim a magic missile.

The elf had let loose arrow after arrow but couldn't pierce its flesh.

Conrad was petrified with fear at the sight of his current foe...

The Froghemoth...

The oversized frogs' three eyes and lashing tentacles had disturbed him, much less than the fact that the two-ton frog had snuck upon him. With a speed unexpected by the monstrosity, it swiftly grabbed the halfling and swallowed him. He couldn't even put up a fight. In a few seconds, the screaming had stopped. The elf was next, she was quick enough to dodge the swipes, but she tripped climbing a tree and fell into it's waiting grasp, and met the same horrid fate as the wizard. The dwarf was the only one left in the fight, he had turned to his old friend, a frown upon his face.

"This is... Umgak..." With a roar like thunder, the dwarf took his last leap... behind the froghemoth. The froghemoth sensing opportunity turned to pursue the dwarf deeper into the swamp.

Conrad was finally able to move again so he ran. He ran as far as possible in the opposite direction. He ran until his thighs burned and then he continued until he reached a new town. He fished a noble's attire out of his backpack and masqueraded as a noble until he could make a new life for himself. He had to change himself deeply to avoid recognition. He was no longer Conrad the rogue that cared for his teammates. He was Conrad the noble that went out of his way to put others under him.





"The event was so traumatizing and I had changed myself so much that my new self stuck." Conrad put his head in his hands. "I don't even remember their names..." Conrad made a sound akin to crying. "Not even the dwarves... My best friend..."

Celestia looked upon her friend with newfound respect. She said nothing and let him cry despite the lack of tears.

"Now..." He wiped his face out of pure habit. "Whenever I go to the tavern or a bar, I buy extra drinks for them..."

Celestia looked out the window. Watching the moon rise as she lowered the sun. 

Conrad sighed, he seemed to have cried all of his ghostly tears out. "Thanks for listening Celestia... I haven't told anyone about what happened. I needed to be the strong face of my people."

"That, I can understand. It's getting quite late. I'm sure your spymaster is looking for you."

"Yes, her. I never get a break when it comes to Chryssie... No rest for the dead I suppose."

Conrad got up and moved out of the dining area. Celestia yawned and went to her room. 'I should do something for him...'





"Will the plan work?"

"Of course it will! That sad sack of bones won't know what sideswiped him."

"Are the mercenaries paid?"

"After our plan, they will. If they survive at least."

"And the forgeries?"

"All done."

"Good."