//------------------------------// // 10 - Regrets // Story: The Necromancer's Ambition // by KuroiTsubasaTenshi //------------------------------// The search for survivors was a grim affair. We had already checked about a dozen of the bodies, but not one of them was alive. Not that I expected a battle like that to go without serious injury or even death. But as I continued to be met with cooling corpses and lifeless eyes, the thoroughness of our decimation hung over my shoulder like a ghost. When I inquired with Ivory, she explained that the zombies only fight as hard as their opponents. This set two separate trains of thought racing through my mind. The first was that my encounter with the zombie-bird had been a much closer brush with death than I’d originally imagined. In a twisted sense of irony, any of my gambits working could have been a fatal mistake. The second was that the bandits had fought so hard that the zombies’ response was to subdue them with lethal force. That their leader commanded that level of zeal, whether through fear, charisma or wealth, it filled me with dread. Those types of people… they get what they want, regardless of what, or who, they have to sacrifice. For me to have angered another one, I began to wonder if I was doomed to repeat my mistakes. The next bandit was sprawled on his side, a shallow rut left in his wake. He was a scrawny earth pony stallion, barely more than a colt. Tufts of tan hair poked out from the spots where blood had washed away his dirt disguise. My ears, as well as my spirits, perked up as I thought I caught the faintest of breaths. I circled him a couple times, looking for a weapon to confiscate, but oddly enough, there was none. Not on the ground and not on his hooves. Figuring that he had been disarmed during the battle, I cocked my ear as I lowered it toward his chest. “Found one!” I called over my shoulder before setting to work assessing the damage. Even though he looked pretty torn up, the wounds were entirely superficial. I admit that my relief was rather mercenary; most of my concern was born of the fact that critically wounded prisoners aren’t much easier to interrogate than the dead. But at the same time, there was a small part of me that was just plain glad. Perhaps it was his youth and through that, I could somehow believe something had been saved. But I was grasping at mere consolation. The fact remained that I had been unable to get Blaze out of a situation my own words had had a hoof getting her into. I needed to fix that. And as long as I had that goal, with even the slightest possibility of working, I could brush those thoughts aside. I pulled my first aid kit from my flight satchel and began applying the precious dressings to the stallion’s wounds. “Good thing.” Ivory trotted up beside me. “He’s the last.” I cut away the bulk of his filthy rag disguise, revealing a pair of reinforced iron shoes; they were bound to a length of rope which, in turn, hung from a thick belt. I raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think this one even drew his weapons. Guess that would explain why he survived.” “Likely. He was probably too surprised.” I nodded, depositing the shoes into my satchel. “Regardless, he’ll be tied up. We’ll need a safe place to interrogate him. Preferably a place less distinct than the cabin.” Ivory gave the treeline a long look before she finally spoke. “We can… we can use the estate.” “Are you sure?” I glanced up at her. “Estates aren’t exactly inconspicuous. Plus, won’t it be watched?” With the dressings finished, I fished through my satchels for my emergency rope. Between that and the bandit’s belt, I was able to tie up each pair of legs. I wanted to go for a hogtie, but that would have made carrying him even more difficult. I topped it off by adding a blindfold, made of the cleanest of his discarded rags. “I can’t say for sure, but most ponies don’t dare get close. They’re too superstitious. Besides, nopony will ever find us where we’re going.” “Let me guess, a secret hideout?” Ivory nodded. “Even better. A magical safe room.” A chill touched my spine. The last safe room I had been in had been decidedly unsafe. But that was different. This time, there were no insiders, no wild cards to betray us. I shoved my apprehension aside. “How far?” “About an hour, but it will also bring us closer to the hills.” “Great.” I glanced at a couple of the nearest zombies. “Which one is going to carry him?” “Those ones have to return to their patrols.” Ivory swept a forehoof across the battlefield, where the zombies were rather haphazardly scattered. “But I can always make one.” Without waiting for a response, she trotted a few feet to the closest body. Her horn lit up, practically washing away her creased brow. My mind froze, locked in battle with instinct as my head tried to turn away. No. I need to see this. Light surrounded the corpse and I expected it to shake, spasm and groan as its death throes were undone. But there was nothing, not a sound nor an inch of movement. The glow simply intensified until the world melted away. I tucked my head against my chest, wondering whether blindness or revival would come first. Then the light was gone, the forest’s shadows slipping back into place. The zombie rose, silently and without so much as a an awkward twitch. Watching its first few steps, I couldn’t even call it clumsy. Oddly enough, the whole serenity of the situation did little to calm me. In fact, I couldn’t shake the feeling the lack of unnaturalness made everything even more unnatural. “Is something wrong?” Ivory peered at me as she levitated the stallion onto the newly-minted zombie. “Sorry, I guess I didn’t know what to expect.” Her face fell a little. “I understand.” We began our journey in silence, cutting through the forest on trails I could barely discern until we were practically upon them. Despite our apparent speed, we were still taking the long way around, which did little to quell my growing anxiety. But there was no helping it, as concealing our movement was a high priority. The cheery sounds of the forest’s routine had already returned, as though the carnage that had just gone down was hardly worth its time. And if the place really was anything like Everfree, a battle to the death was more mundane than I’d like to admit. Even knowing we had plenty of allies nearby, I found myself watching our backs that much closer. Thankfully, we passed through the forest without incident. As the trees opened up into a grass plain, I spotted the estate’s thick stone walls just a short gallop away. The closest side stretched out in either direction, the weather-beaten bricks stubbornly standing their ground. Similar stones peeked over the wall from the inside, the multitude of darkened windows looking down upon us like sullen eyes. A long, angled roof topped it all like a strange hat. I could hardly believe such structures were once associated with Pasture. To the distant right was what remained of a main road. It bobbed up and down as it weaved through large clumps of unruly grass, past the wall and into the unseen yard. My eyes flitted over the open grass and across what few clouds dotted the sky. I sincerely hoped that Ivory was right, that everypony would be too afraid or uninterested to hang around the estate. But I wasn’t about to let my guard down until we were secure in that safe room. Even if the bandits didn’t think the place was important, I wasn’t so sure the militia would do the same. Especially if their… enthusiasm was as strong as Blaze’s. The last thing we needed was their misguided ‘heroism’ hindering our efforts. Especially since fighting back would only makes things exponentially worse. Ivory took a deep breath. “There’s a back door to the manor, but we’ll have to use the front gate first.” Her voice was cold and resolved, as though steeling herself to face a dragon head-on. I only hoped it would hold up. I frowned. Having to go out in the open and take the obvious entrance didn’t sit well with me, but there weren’t any particularly good alternatives. Flight on such a clear day would be even more conspicuous, especially if I had to make several trips. And, powerful as Ivory was, I doubted  teleportation was even an option. If there was one good thing to be said for the situation, the openness would also let us easily spot anypony else who might be poking around. “I’ll go first and do this if I think it’s safe.” I waved my forehoof side-to-side. “I can’t ask you to do that.” “You’re not. I’m volunteering. If we’re going to do this right, we have to play it safe. People might not even care if they see me. The zombie, on the other hoof…” “All right, you make a good point. And… thanks.” Ivory gave me a pained smile. With each step, I could feel time slowing down. I scrutinized every sight, every sound. Even though I stayed in the shadow of the walls, I felt as exposed as if I had strolled straight across the plain. It couldn’t have taken much longer than five minutes to get to the path, but it felt as though I’d just retread the forest. With the way clear, I signalled to Ivory and her zombie. Nothing had so much as stirred, but this was only the first step of many. I slipped up to the path and cast my eye down the road. All I could see was an iron gate, which lay ominously across the ground, and a field of high grass that ran parallel to the manor. Although it was unlikely anypony would have had enough time to hide without me hearing, the sheer capacity of the field left me edgy. Regardless, time was of the essence, so I pressed onward. Wild weather had cut so many ruts into what was left of the path that ‘ankle turner’ would have been a far better descriptor. I stuck to the grass overgrowth, which was a much safer, quieter alternative. I poked my head past the wall. At first, it was just enough to cast a quick glance at the courtyard. When I found no immediate danger, I slipped in for a better look. To my left was the manor, its short side facing me. Dark double doors stood vigil, turning away the wide, battered stairs at their feet. Some remnant of the road forked, one side ending at the stairs and the other slinking off behind the far corner. Tall windows ran high along the length of the structure; most of their panes were smashed, some with holes large enough to fit a grown pony. Between the windows and gate, I was glad Ivory had decided to leave. Only time knew what other vandalism had taken place. I turned my attention to the right, where a tower rose up from the ground, and stopped short. For a second, I thought I was staring at one of Canterlot’s elegant astronomy towers. If not for the vines, stains and half of the domed roof being absent, I was certain it would have been a very close replica. Reaching a hoof out, I signalled to Ivory, but found myself unable to pull my eyes away from the tower. She slid up beside me and fixed it with a stare of her own. “He always fancied himself an astronomer… my dad, that is,” she whispered, a sad smile creeping up her lips. “But he never liked the big cities, even if he admired their observatories. So he hired an architect.” I felt a touch of anxiety. Normally, I would have chastised someone for letting her memories run away with her like that. But given the circumstances, I just felt like it would have been wrong. Instead, I resolved to be extra vigilant while she had her moment. The seconds dragged out before she jerked back and shook her head. She half-walked, half-trotted toward the far side of the manor, zombie courier in tow. “This way.” I hurried to catch up, calling in as low a voice as I could. “Hey, careful, now.” She simply nodded as her pace slowed. We followed the trail, which ran the length of the manor’s backside. A nigh-indecipherable clump of random plants walled in the other side of the trail. After catching a glimpse of a few roses, I realized it must have been a garden; with their caretaker gone, they had long devolved into a battle for dominance. About halfway down the path, it took a hard right into an L-shaped alcove. The trail snaked up to a simple wooden door, a servant entrance, no doubt. The glow of Ivory’s magic washed over the knob, then the door itself, which eased open with a reluctant groan. The light of the sun cut through the darkness, revealing a stack of half-rotted barrels, ringed by several deflated burlap sacks. They were the last of the attendants, stubbornly waiting for their matrons to return and give them purpose. Ivory stood stock still, her magic’s aura lingering on the door. I winced, wondering if this really was such a good idea. Deep down, I knew it was already too late to turn back, but I felt like I had to say something. “Are you okay?” Her magic faded away and her ears fell flat. “I… sorry, it’s just… Give me a moment.” My mind scrambled over itself trying to pull an alternative from thin air. “Are you sure? We don’t have to do this. We could find someplace else. What about the tower?” She shook her head. “No, that’s too risky. We have to do it properly.” Ivory was right, of course. Time was likely running out and if we really did have a secure safe room, the location was a no contest. But what is the real price? If only Blaze hadn’t be so reckless. If only I had kept my stupid mouth shut. Ivory took a step forward. Then another, her pace quickening as she approached the door. I smiled at her darkened silhouette as it turned the corner. I might have cheered if we could have afforded the time and noise. For the moment, I would have to settle for escorting the zombie inside. I threw one last glance behind us before closing the door. Ivory’s horn cast a pale light over the remainder of the room, revealing yet another door. With a touch of magic, it crept open. I held my breath, hoping our luck would hold out. There were far more hiding places inside any building. But beyond was not an assailant, but a stone wall; the large bricks ran left and right to form a hallway. I let out a sigh as I forced my heart to settle. I was getting jumpy, my heightened vigilance taking its toll. With a sigh of her own, Ivory stepped into the hall. The rest of the manor was something that I wanted to describe as lonely, but felt was more than a little inadequate. Perhaps ‘lost’ was the better word. Time had forsaken the place and never bothered to return. Furniture was strewn about leading up to and inside the hallways, with various crates and articles thrown on or around them. Even as a total stranger, I could still see the panic. A family who had never needed to move scrambling to take all that they could; only at the door did they realize their impracticality. We kept to the hallways. The multitude of closed doors left me edgy, even though the thick layers of dust suggested nopony had entered them in years. Finally, we broke off into a large amphitheatre. The stone floor, when it wasn’t busy being covered in rocks, leaves and other debris, boasted a bold checkered pattern. This was tempered quite readily by the sunlight crawling its way through the dirty, broken windows; the light cast a grey gloom over everything in a way that somehow felt even less alive than the zombie standing beside me. Ivory remained in the doorway, looking like someone was strangling her. Every so often, her eyes would flit over to some far corner of the room. “Hey.” I gave her a quick nudge. “You okay?” “Wha—oh… yeah. Memories.” She shook her head before hurrying over to the far wall. Her horn flashed, the room returning to life for but a split second. In fact, I thought I even saw the wall ripple. The zombie made a beeline for the wall. I raised an eyebrow as his muzzle touched the surface. Then he carried our captive straight through the bricks and my confusion exploded into wide-eyed surprise. “What the—?” I trotted over and poked the wall with my hoof. There was no resistance, no tingling, just the stone giving way as though it was air. I peered at Ivory. A small smile formed on her lips. “I told you it was secure. Go. It closes after I pass through.” I nodded and took a deep breath. I’m not sure why I was so nervous. I suppose the thought of technically having a thick stone wall, ethereal or not, cross right through me was a bit icky. Plus I didn’t even know what was on the other side. And maybe, just maybe, I knew I didn’t trust Ivory as much as I thought I did. I shook my head and snorted, directing it more at myself than the wall. I broke into something of a quick half-gallop and practically leapt through.