The Necromancer's Stone; Epilogue

"That's how your mommy and Daddy got to be where they are today."
"But what happened to the Assassin?  They never beat the Assassin; did they kill her or did they let her live?"
"In a way, both.  Watching that bit of magic, and seeing a totally new form of life definitely scared her a bit; and it set her off guard.  Your daddy and the new being managed to hold her down and your mommy did a little magic on her."
"But she couldn't destroy anything; you said the Assassin was blocking it, right?"
"There is a lot of magic that doesn't destroy things.  Your mommy used some of it to decide whether or not to kill the Assassin, and the magic said to let her live."
"Like a discernment spell or something, so she could make a better decision?"
"No, your mommy doesn't need help making the right decisions; at least, not from magic.  She put a curse on her; the most dreadful sort imaginable."
"Did she make her incapable of eating, or drinking?  Oh, I'll bet she made it so that she'd fail at anything she tried, no matter how badly she tried."
The storyteller laughed.  "No, she could still eat and drink, and your mommy wanted her to succeed.  No, she did something much, much more dangerous."  She paused, watching the little blonde girl, staring eagerly as she waited with baited breath.  "Your mommy made her care."  She kept going, narrowly cutting off the child's objection.  "And for an immortal who has to kill other immortals, caring is the most painful thing she could have been made to do.  It meant she would feel guilt and distress for everyone she killed, but she still had to kill them.  And she'd get close to people, then have to live without them when they died.  It meant she couldn't be who she had been before.  So in a way, your mommy did kill her.  But your mommy and your daddy, they didn't just leave her there.  They kept her close, and they gave her something to care about.  Your daddy taught both her and your mommy how to be better people; who didn't just kill people.  And eventually, when your mommy and daddy had kids, they made her take care of the kids."  She set the book down on the nightstand and bent over the bed to kiss the little girl goodnight.  "And sometimes, they even made her tell them stories."
"I don't think that's such a bad curse Auntie Rea.  I think its a pretty good curse."
"I think its very, very bearable.  G'night Cyssie, don't let the boogieman get you."

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Thousands of years later...


Liss stumbled over a loose cobblestone.  The gothic quarter of Stormguarde was basically dominated by them, it added to the dark, grim aesthetic of the place.  The ghoul maid had just been trying to run one of her mistress' errands, a simple matter of picking up some necessities for after tonight's party.  The contents of the bag were her responsibilities, and it was none of her business what the mistress and her handsome husband had planned for the evening.  She had never anticipated running into this sort of difficulty.
"Stop running from us, we're only trying to send a message to the Countess."
"Yeah, its not like you're using that brain anyways, why'd you need all that head on your shoulders?"
"Stop, please, I'm just a servant.  I don't know why you think she'd care what happened to me.  Shouldn't you go after one of her nephews or nieces, someone she actually cares about?"
The crowd of cloaked figures, red eyes glowing from the shadows in which they lurked, began to snicker.  "Now that's the thing, isn't it?  She does care what happens to you.  The rest of the ghouls are nothing, but you, you're special.  And we were rather hoping you'd help us understand why."
One of them pulled a butcher's cleaver from behind his back and leaned in, the dim light of the gas streetlamps exposing his vampiric smile.  Liss began to cry for help and he brought the blade over his head to strike.  Then there was a flash of lightning and she saw another cloaked figure standing over her.  Unlike the others, his cloak was brown, and there were mud stains across the bottom.  His boots were worn and the scabbard at his side had seen better days.  But his sword gleamed with a brightness of its own, and was forged of a purple crystal that called to mind the nails of a Gravagan.  She saw the cleaver begin to come down, and then fly off behind the stranger, still held in her assailant's hand.  He began to cry out, but the sword seemed to glide through him as though he were air.  And then she was left, stunned, at the foot of the stranger; and the remaining vampires stood at a distance, watching their comrade's inanimate corpse turn to ash and mix with the dirt between the cracks of the stone street.
"Lovely weather we're having."  The stranger said, straight-faced and solemn.  His eyes burned, but his demeanor was calm.
"Kill them both! What are you waiting for?"  Shouted the lead vampire.  The rest drew pistols and began unloading on the stranger.  Rather than making an effort at dodging, he helped Liss back to her feet and wrapped her in his cloak.  She could feel the warmth of his breath, a welcome change from the cold of the vampire controlled district, and even from the chill of the Palace.  And she noted for the first time his age.  It was rare to find anyone in Stormguarde with any apparent signs of age; neither vampires nor elves grew facial hair, and few immortals appeared older than their early twenties.  And yet his beard was flecked with grey, and there was slight wrinkling around his eyes.
"Next time, I'll bring you your crown milady.  Tell me, death or life?"
"I just want them to leave me alone."
He turned around, facing the crowd.  She could see that the back of his shirt had been destroyed by the hail of blaster fire, but any marks that they would have left on his skin were fading rapidly.  He was immortal then, even vampires wouldn't stand much chance against him.  And sure enough, with a mere seven motions, his sword had extinguished all but the leader.  The final vampire's gun clattered to the ground. The stranger began to speak, and he froze, whether he was paralyzed by magic or fear Liss could not tell.
"In the name of the Empress, Dark Lady Thalia Immersfeld Von Gravaga, and by the authority invested in me as Supreme Commander of her armies, Lord Executioner of her enemies, Grandmaster of the Dark Hand, and Prince Consort; I order the death of the rebel vampire Cortez, for treason against his mistress."  The crack of a pistol echoed about the street and Cortez collapsed, slowly dissolving into ash.  "May Death's embrace bear you to sweet eternal peace."
The stranger reached out and grabbed her by the shoulder.  "Don't worry milady, Kate is doing everything she can.  You'll understand it all soon my love."  Then he turned and vanished in the same step.  A woman stepped out of the shadows from behind the pile of ash that had once been a vampire.
"Wonder what all that was about.  And where's he off to now?  Some guide he is."  Then she ran off up the street.  Liss pulled the cloak tighter over her and retrieved the bag of things her mistress had requested from where they'd fallen.  As she started towards the Palace her only thought was that she hoped he'd come back for the cloak.