• Published 30th Mar 2013
  • 20,240 Views, 1,117 Comments

Souls Apart - GnollReader



Two enemies wind up in Equestria due to a major mishap. Will they come to terms with this world? Most importantly, will they be able to put their old feud aside to survive?

  • ...
31
 1,117
 20,240

PreviousChapters Next
Chapter 21: Only half the story

"What happened next?" Celestia asked with suspense. She felt slightly worried at the thought of him sending hundreds of rats into the mage guild.

"Well..." he sighed, "At first, I admit, I just wanted to get some revenge... You know, have the rats gnaw off a few ears, fingers and toes... maybe even the occasional cock." he chuckled before turning serious, "But my mother wouldn't have liked that... like I said, she was kind but naive... but she still was my mother. So I used the rats for something else."

A sigh of relief escaped Celestia, "So what did you use them for?"

A grin appeared on the necromancer's face, "I sent them to the library, and through their eyes, I learned. The basic spells were a breeze... the complicated ones were a bit hard at first..." he looked at his hands, "I had burns for weeks after my first high-tier fire spell... fun times."

He looked back at Celestia, "So I spent my time learning the secrets of magic on my own, studying the fields I found most promising... and one of the most intriguing ones was the art of alchemy." he sighed, "What wonders I discovered, potions of unimaginable effects and powers, all you needed were the right ingredients and patience. With the knowledge I gained from them, I was able to take my research even farther. Simple reanimation was no longer a problem now that I could use potions to lessen the necessary steps."

"You learned all of that by yourself? That is very impressive." Celestia smiled before a small frown appeared on her face, "But it is also very dangerous."

He scratched his head, "You don't say, my first healing potion was miserable. I grew three extra arms!" he laughed, "And they all tried to strangle me! But I was a quick learner, and with the books at my disposal and the rats running for my ingredients, I was able to make good progress. It was also in my first year of study, that I discovered the term necromancer."

"At first, I was simply intrigued by the term but as I delved deeper into the subject, I realized more and more that this was what I had become. So I dug up any information I could find on them, but most of it was simply rubbish."

"What do you mean?" Celestia asked.

He wave a hand, "It seemed most of them used their powers in an attempt to take over the world... You know, raise an army of the undead, spread plagues and terror over the world and watch it decay..." he chuckled.

Celestia gave him a mortified expression, "That's what necromancers do?"

"Pfff. Only the wannabe ones, all idiots if you ask me. The true purpose of a necromancer, is research."

Celestia raised an eyebrow, "What kind of research?"

"The essence of life." a broad smile appeared on his lips, "To uncover the very secrets that form it, to master death itself... in other words, to attain true immortality." he started to explain with excitement, "Raising a dead body and infusing it with what in essence is a soul, is simple. But at the end of the day, they're still just walking corpses. The real challenge, the true goal any real necromancer is devoted to, is to uncover the secrets of true reanimation! To bring the dead back to life!"

Celestia eyed him with shock, the raising of the dead was already a worrying issue, but to actually bring the dead back to life? In all her years she had never heard of something like that. "You can reanimate the dead?"

He shook his head with a tired sigh, "Nope... and it is unlikely that I'll finish my research now that I'm stuck here." he waved a dismissive hand around him.

She eyed him with mistrust, "Why?"

"Because, your subjects are too clingy of their dead. To finish my work, I need bodies to study and experiment on. The fresher the better. Sadly, that's considered a crime in this world... not to mention I never worked with ponies before." he rolled his eyes, "So that's that. Years of study and work down the drain... and I'm certainly not going to stoop down to grave robbing now."

Celestia watched his face for a moment, trying to contemplate why this was so important to him. "This still doesn't explain what happened during the morning audience."

He clapped his hands, "Oh yeah, this is were the real fun part starts. I continued my studies for several years, forgetting about the world above and concentrating on the art of necromancy only. Turned out though, my actions hadn't gone unnoticed."

"You were discovered by the mage guild?"

The necromancer gave a hearty laugh, "Those old farts? They wouldn't know I was there until one of my rats bit them in the ass! No. Unnoticed by me, a new order had been formed above. A bunch of religious fanatics with strange ideas of how the world should work, the paladin downstairs is one of them... though she hasn't delved as deeply into their madness as the rest of them, yet. She still believes that they represent everything good and true in the world... friggin' order of the light."

His face became grave, "I don't know who or what ticked them off, but imagine my surprise when one day a full battalion of paladins and clerics comes barging down into my home like an earthquake." he sighed, "They turned my lab and my home into nothing but rubble and ashes in mere minutes, and they put me in chains."

"How old were you when it happened?"

"Ten, eleven? I don't even remember... I was still lucky though. They believed I was just some poor, possessed kid the real necromancer used for his errands. They simply couldn't imagine a brat like me was capable of magic like that." he leaned his head on one of his arms, "And so, in an attempt to save my soul the paladins took it upon themselves to perform an exorcism on me. You know, what an exorcism is, don't you?"

Celestia didn't say a word, she only listened. She could see something familiar rise in his face, and she didn't like where his story was heading.

Suddenly, the necromancer clapped his hands and stood up from his chair, "Well, that's enough for today. See you tomorrow!"

"What? I want to hear what happened! What did they do to you that made you..."

"If you wish to find out more, visit me tomorrow or ask the damn paladin downstairs. I still have work to do, now that you're not going to blow me up... And on a side note, I moved the furniture before you entered."

"What is that supposed to..." before Celestia could finish the sentence, the necromancer snapped his fingers and the trapdoor opened beneath her.

---

Outside, while the paladin and Applejack were facing off Tobie, princess Luna and Twilight found themselves in a strange battle with the gloved hand. It was fast, much faster than the hand Luna had seen before... and it was clever.

The hand constantly used the gathered crowd as a cover, darting between the ponies' legs at incredible speed and making it impossible for Luna and Twilight to get a good shot at it.

The two mares stood back to back, frantically trying to pinpoint its location only to give off a yelp of surprise when it shot up from somewhere and gave them a good slap across their rears.

"I can't see it! Where is it?" Twilight called out, "This is insane! We need to... OUCH!" there was a loud slap as the hand dived into the grass, the rustling shooting off into the crowd.

"I'll have the necromancer scrub the ceiling of the great hall for this indecency!" Luna was only moments away from a meltdown, her flaming rear fueling her rage even further, "I hope my sister is not going too easy on that..."

Everyone present, even Tobie and the hand froze as a high pitched scream could be heard becoming louder.

The imp in front of the door looked up with a slightly surprised expression, "Was about time he threw her out." he mumbled to himself, some of the other imps nodding in agreement.

Before the ponies' eyes, a clap swung open on the side of the tower and a screaming princess Celestia shot out into the open, giving off a loud thump as she landed on the grass.

"I don't even know if I should be amused or insulted." Celestia groaned as she struggled to get up, "Paladin?"

The paladin gulped, what had he done now? "Yes, princess?"

"I'd like to have a word with you, now."

The silence of the moment was broken by another yelp from Luna as the gloved hand continued its work.

PreviousChapters Next