[Hollow King] Chapter 3: Raise Undead (Patreon)

Why can I feel it calling to me?

Lucas leaned in closer and wasn't sure how, but he could tell the goblin's soul had moved on. All that remained inside the empty husk was a lingering ghost born from the goblin's hatred, whispering curses at him and the world.

I can hear the dead's resentment? Lucas placed his bone fingers on the goblin's chest and heard its ghost hiss at him. I wonder what my ghost sounded like when I died.

Lucas shook his head to dismiss that morbid thought.

"I'm really here, talking to a monster's ghost. I wonder what Anna would think of this situation?" Lucas mused, glancing up at the ajar door and imagining her poking her head around. "She'd definitely scream, just like that time she grabbed a dead mouse in the basement thinking it was a sponge."

A dry rasp that passed for a chuckle escaped his skull. He missed Anna and Sophie. All he had ever wanted was to provide for them and keep them safe. Be a great husband and an even better father. He'd stood up to those intruders to protect them, to save the life he had worked so many late nights to build.

"And now I've lost it all and left them to fend for themselves."

His bone fist landed on the deathly still goblin, and a realization struck him.

I killed the goblin and absorbed its soul to empower myself. If someone killed me, would they absorb my soul, killing me permanently?

He tightened his fist so hard it creaked.

I can't let that happen. I will find a way to learn magic to such a high level that I can reach my family, even if it's just to call them and let them know I'm okay and still alive out there... wherever this is.

A whistling breeze from the ajar door blew through the room as he stared ahead. The breeze strengthened, rattling the door.

I should close this door before another goblin comes in.

Standing, he dug his toes into the ice for grip as he pushed the heavy metal door back into place. The goblin had broken the lock, so shutting it was all he could do.

If a goblin made it up here, there is likely a settlement of them somewhere beyond the tomb. Hell, for all I know, they might be living at the bottom of the staircase. Lucas's attention drifted back to the corpse cursing him even in death. If I'm to survive, I need to figure out how to raise the dead. A scout I can send ahead will be vital to my survival.

He sat down beside the goblin once more.

"Alright," Lucas murmured. "Let's see if I can really raise the dead like I think I can."

It was hard to explain, but while this was an alien experience for his human mind, it felt oddly routine for his undead body. He laid his palm flat on the goblin's chest and felt no warmth or texture. His bone fingers lacked sensation, as if he were interacting with the world through thick gloves.

Oddly, the lack of sensation helped him mentally separate the bloodthirsty goblin from its corpse. This body wasn't living anymore—it was no different from a lump of stone to him.

The robber's bloody, broken face flashed in his mind. He dismissed it.

Now, how should I go about this? Lucas mused, but deep down he knew the answer. Just like with Death Touch, it all came down to the humming power in his bones. Focusing on it, he willed the power into his fingers, but this time he didn't twist the power into a cold that killed.

I need the corpse to stand and fight for me, Lucas thought as the markings along his fingers brightened. Can you do that for me, goblin? Even though you hate me, can you stand once more and help me?

Guided by pure instinct whispering from deep within his bones, Lucas did his best. He pushed the power out as thin threads of violet light that unspooled from his fingertips and sank deeply into the goblin's skin.

It's working! Holy shit—the violet threads flickered—no, calm down. Breathe. Focus...

Lucas carefully guided the threads to weave together inside the corpse's chest, crossing and knotting into a delicate lattice around its stilled heart.

"Okay, that's the heart secured," he said calmly. "Now for the rest."

If he could sweat, he would be dripping right now despite the cold. Was this what it felt like to be a surgeon? At least my patient is already dead. He expanded the threads around the goblin's still lungs, then moved on to the next logical place: the skull. As his threads climbed the goblin's neck, he realized how much power this skill was draining from his already limited reserves.

Harvesting the goblin's soul had given him just enough to stand and hobble down the steps on a broken leg. He had little to give, and the skill was taking everything he had.

Strength left his body as he slumped sideways against the doorframe, but he kept the threads moving. Just a little more. As the threads began to lattice around the goblin's brain, one of the goblin's fingers curled.

We have movement! I'm so close—

The hum in his bones went silent.

The threads frayed. The light guttered, and the lattice unraveled, dissolving into violet motes that dissipated into the air like smoke. The goblin's finger slowly uncurled.

[Skill failed due to insufficient mana]

Lucas slid down the doorframe until his skull rested on the frost, barely a hand's width from the goblin's face.

They stared at each other.

"Mana," he rasped. "So that's what the power in my bones is called."

***

He didn't remember passing out, but the sun was gone. The tomb was as dark as it was quiet. An unknown amount of time had passed. The goblin's corpse looked the same, no doubt because the layer of frost covering it prevented decay.

"Ugh," Lucas groaned as he tried and failed to push himself up. He noticed his robe had stiffened from the cold as he moved his hand in front of his face and clenched it. This was apparently the best he could manage.

"Hey, strange voice. How much mana do I have?" Lucas asked, but received no reply. It only seems to speak when I'm afflicted with some kind of status effect or learn a new skill. I'd really appreciate it if it could be more forthcoming...

Since the voice wouldn't tell him, he turned to self-diagnosis.

It wasn't looking good. Power, or mana as this world called it, had returned to his bones, but only enough to keep his skeleton together and to move. He felt more lethargic than he did after the goblin fight, and there were no nearby corpses to harvest for more mana like last time.

He focused deeply, tracking his mana, and eventually noticed it was increasing. If harvesting the goblin had been a flood, this passive mana recovery dripped slower than the sink he had put off fixing.

Anna will have to deal with that faulty sink now. Does she even know where the tools are or who to call? Lucas wondered while staring at the frosty dead goblin. Man, this sucks.

***

It wasn't until morning sunlight streaked into the tomb that Lucas recovered enough mana to walk around. His broken leg was getting worse, so that evening, when he had recovered a little more, he sat on the throne and pulled up his robe to inspect the damage.

He burst out laughing. Bodybuilders joked about lifters having "chicken legs" when they skipped leg day, which left their legs comically thin compared to their torsos. But Lucas had never appreciated just how thin leg bones were until he found himself staring down at his own.

I can wrap my fingers around them easily, god... I see the need for the long robes now. I wouldn't even take myself seriously without them. It felt good to laugh. Once he'd calmed down, he focused on his left leg. It had taken quite a blow. The joint was heavily cracked and was leaking violet light.

"I didn't realize I lost mana from injuries like this," he muttered, clasping his fingers around the joint as if to stop the wound from leaking. "I should fix this before trying to raise the goblin again."

He fed power into his hand, and the markings on his fingers flared brightly for a moment before settling. Pulling his hand away, he was surprised to see the joint looked brand new.

That was easy.

[Skill learned: Bone Mending (I)]

[Bone Mending (I) -> Bone Mending (II)]

My second learned skill, and it already upgraded. Lucas grinned as he tested his leg, pleased that the phantom pain was gone. But that one felt far more instinctual and easier to use than Death Touch and whatever skill I used to raise the goblin before I ran out of mana.

He leaned back against the throne and sighed.

My mana is depleted again. Damn, this is annoying.

***

It took two days for his mana to recover to almost full. Two whole days. While he'd spent three days processing his grief, he had been occupied by his thoughts and waiting to wake up, so time had passed in a blur.

This time it was worse than watching paint dry.

Life as an Elder Lich sucked. He couldn't sleep or eat to break up the passing of time, so he sat motionless on the throne because movement cost him mana.

The only moment of excitement had been something clawing at the metal doors last night. Lucas had leaned forward, ready to fight another goblin to the death to break up the monotony. Alas, whatever had climbed the stairs gave up and left.

He wasn't sure why it turned back, but knowing something was out there only motivated him further to raise that goblin as a scout before daring to leave his tomb. Had he become paranoid? Maybe a little. But if magic existed, so did powerful monsters. What if a dragon lived down there, or a nest of carnivorous insects?

His valiant goblin soldier would find out in his stead.

I think this is enough. Lucas peeled himself from the throne, a thin layer of frost breaking as he did so. Any more waiting and I'll actually be driven insane.

Walking across the tomb on his newly healed leg, he noticed how much easier it was to move. Walking on icy patches was still a no-go, and he had to concentrate to avoid stumbling, but it was night and day compared to two days ago.

Kneeling beside the goblin, he placed his palm on its head this time. His previous attempt had failed, but it hadn't been a waste. Over the past two days on the throne, he had realized why the skill drained his reserves so much—he'd been trying to raise the goblin as a zombie rather than a simple skeletal undead.

The heart, lungs, flesh? Useless. All he needed were the bones to obey his commands.

Power thrummed through his arm and into his fingers as Lucas threaded his mana into the goblin's skull and throughout its skeleton. Cast away your flesh and stand as an undead. Understanding his intentions, his mana began feeding on the goblin's frozen flesh, melting it into what was likely foul-smelling goop to fuel the markings that carved themselves into the bones.

Lucas couldn't look away, not if he wanted the skill to succeed. But he desperately wanted to. Even without a stomach, he spiritually felt bile rising in his throat at the scene.

[Skill learned: Raise Dead (I)]

[Goblin Scavenger has risen as a Lesser Undead]

Lucas pulled his hand away and stood. For a moment, nothing happened.

Did the skill fail? He guessed. But the voice said I succeeded—

The goblin suddenly sat up in a series of jerks, its frozen joints cracking like knuckles as they were forced to bend. Its head lolled on its neck before turning toward him.

I did it! Lucas cheered internally, but on the outside his expression was likely as blank as the goblin's. Its face had melted away to reveal a yellowed, vaguely rat-like skull.

"Stand," Lucas commanded, and he noticed the faintest sliver of mana leave his body and flow into the undead. It twitched at his command and awkwardly rose to its feet like a barely functional animatronic. That's when he noticed its wrist was still broken.

Lucas didn't care. So long as it could walk in a straight line, it would serve its purpose. He guided it toward the door like he used to with Sophie when she was sleepy.

He pulled the metal door open with a screech and poked his head around. Beyond was a wide stone corridor ending in a flight of stairs going down. Roots and vegetation grew between the cracks in the walls and floor, covered in a layer of frost.

The stairs lead down? Does that mean I'm higher up than I thought?

Lucas pulled his head back and nudged the goblin outside.

"Go on," he whispered. "Walk down the stairs for me."