text: [Themes: grimdark fantasy, zombie]
  
  As you hear a shout, you pause.
  
  "Hold! You are under investigation by the Order of the High Elves!"
  
  "Bastard!" you hear Sir Trent swear under his breath, the first time you've ever heard him swear.
  
  You see about a dozen golden figures in armor appear around you. Eight have drawn bows, three have swords, while the last seems to have fireballs held in her hands.
  
  "What do we do?" Blaise says quietly.
  
  "I kill them, you raise them," Sir Trent says. "Killing's my specialty."
  
  With that, Sir Trent lunges into action as you cut open your hand and activate your blood stone. You see two fireballs heading towards both you and Blaise.
  
  > push Blaise out of the way
  You see the fireball hurtling straight towards Blaise, and you knock her out of the way. You scream as you're blasted by a fireball, flying backwards. You stand, wincing in pain, before getting back into the fray. You charge forward, slashing your long sword. Your sword smashes into the blade of one of the Elves, but he quickly parries, kicking your foot. You fall backwards, collapsing onto the ground. As the Elf prepares to stab you through the chest, he screams as he's hit by a blast of lightning to the head. Blaise rushes over, stabbing him through the neck. The Elf screams, before he shudders. Blaise releases him, and he stumbles off towards the other elves, mindless and zombified. You turn to see how the fight's going. Sir Trent has already killed a third of the the Elves, who are now zombified and rushing towards the other Elves. The fight lasts only a few more moments, with every dying elf rising again to join the fight on your side. After the final elf is beheaded, Sir Trent gasps.
  
  "Ah. That wakes up the rotting muscles," Sir Trent says, taking a few deep breaths. "Let's get back to walking."
  
  > Two Weeks Later...
  After two long weeks of travel, you arrive at Kashin. The town is a... about half a dozen buildings spread out among the massive Dwarven Mountain Range.
  
  "What's this? There's nothing here," You say.
  
  "Most of the city is underground," Sir Trent says.
  
  You walk up towards Kashin, up a small mountain trail. After about half an hour, you reach the city gates. Massive steel gates cover the tunnel down underground. The gates are guarded by a massive Orc, a Dwarf holding a battleaxe, and a massive giant humanoid creature chained to the wall.
  
  "What the hell...?" you say.
  
  "Jack!" Sir Trent shouts.
  
  Sir Trent walks forward, patting the massive troll on the back. To your surprise the troll doesn't tear Sir Trent's head off.
  
  "Hey! Get off Jack!" the Dwarf yells. "If you're coming into the city, just say so!"
  
  "Yeah, we're coming into the city, thank you!" Sir Trent shouts, as he strolls into the city past the opening gates.
  
  You follow him quickly, heading into the city. After five minutes of walking, passing dozens of stone buildings built into the underground caverns and tunnels which widen considerably into the massive cavern, you arrive at a small stone building.
  
  "Here's Tholi's house. She's an old friend from when I worked with Kai. She'd be happy to take you in until the heat's died down."
  
  You walk inside, before you're met with a tiny dwarf with long, curly red hair.
  
  "Hello, my undead ally. How's your life been? How can I help you, Trent"
  
  "I need your help," Sir Trent says.
  
  "You always do," Tholi says.
  
  "Kai always does. I never do."
  
  "Fair point. What is it you need?"
  
  "I need you to take care of these kids."
  
  "That's... a big request. Why?"
  
  "One the Necromancer's daughter, Lady Blaise. I need you to look after her."
  
  "And the Orc?"
  
  "He's my friend," Blaise says.
  
  "Alright, then. I'll take them in if the needs be."
  
  "Really? It's that simple?"
  
  "I owe you. You saved my ass far too many times."
  
  "Fair enough," Sir Trent says. "Children, I must go."
  
  "That's it?" Blaise asks. "You're leaving?"
  
  "Yes. They'll be searching for us, despite Kai's distraction. I'll head out and find him, and we'll head out somewhere. Without me, he'd be dead in a week. So I'm sorry, I must go."
  
  Sir Trent leans in, and hugs you both.
  
  "My debt to you is not yet paid, Lady Blaise. We'll see each other again, I'm sure of it. I wish the best of luck to you, Lady, and you too, Dagden," Sir Trent says, before quickly turning and rushing out.
  
  "Come on, I'll get you some grub, should I? You must be famished."
  
  > Two Years Later...
  In the small city of Kashin, time flies. The community's large enough that there's always something new to do unlike back with Reaper Castle, and you begin to learn all of the town's secrets. The hidden stash of hallucinogenic mushrooms that you learn belongs to old Mrs DeAngelo, the old scouting tunnels that were used to spy for enemies, the barred off Dwarven Mines that lead to a nesting ground for bats, even the secret room behind the school that's being used as a distillery of a cheap knock off of Dwarven Mead. The heat for Blaise lasts for longer than expected, with some light patrols and even some wandering Heroes arriving in search for two refugees. Still, they're easy to hide from with the help of Tholi. As time passes on you begin reading some of the many books that fills the great library that Tholi has collected over the years, with your interests including the making of a fine ale to the history of the Orcish Tribes off towards the cold, inhospitable Northern mountains. You practice with your weapons and Blood Magic everyday, and Blaise eagerly collects any bandit corpses or dying carcasses to bring back to life and train with, before eventually allowing them to depart from this realm once she's finished. The time flies incredibly quickly. You wait patiently as fewer and fewer faces arrive looking for Blaise, and to a much lesser extent, you. The large WANTED: NECROMANCER posters that once plastered the town slowly give way to newer and more important issues, such as WANTED: BANDIT CHIEFTAIN or WANTED: FORGER as Blaise's name fades from the headlines. As well as this, you can tell from Newspapers that the so called "Alliance" has fallen apart without a threat to unite against. Orc Raiders attack human communities, humans expand into Orc territory, the Dwarves stay as xenophobic and isolated as ever and tension flares within the Elves as the Wood Elves demand peace, the Dark Elves embark on business ventures and mercenary works for the enemies of the Elves and the High Elves try to expand their empire. This quickly leads to infighting, before the Alliance falls apart. Minor skirmishes break out as soldiers class along changing borders. Not only is the Alliance dead, it's only a matter of time before wars break out. Still, this has little effect on the tiny community of Kashin, which continues to act as a home for the various Undead, Exiled and Scum of this plane.
  
  "Dagden! I need you to head out with Blaise to the market!" Tholi yells from across your stone home.
  
  "For what?" you reply with a shout.
  
  "There's a new shipment of flowers, fertilisers and seeds. I need you to pick it up from Mr Tabernius. There's coin and breakfast by the table. I've left some extra money for whatever you feel like doing, around 100 coins."
  
  Of course it's flowers and other gardening stuff. What else could it possibly be? Tholi is, quite ironically, a Plant and Life Mage. Blaise's love of gardening, which again is incredibly ironic for a master of death, has only got them to get along better than ever. The massive greenhouse, which is one of the few buildings that goes above ground in Kashin, is an impressive thing to behold. Through magic, skill and a lot of hard work, she's made an incredible and very impressive garden. From what you've heard, Tholi's made quite a bit of coin selling impossible to find herbs to the Merchant Caravans. You clamber out of your bed and quickly get dressed in a rough woolen tunic, before walking downstairs. Blaise sits there, eating a bowl of grapes. A second, untouched bowl sits next to her, which you eagerly grab and begin to dig into. You toss one to Stitches, who lies on the ground off to the side, half-asleep. You shovel the plump purple grapes into your gob, as Tholi appears.
  
  "Good morning," she says cheerfully.
  
  "What flowers are coming in, Tholi?" Blaise asks eagerly.
  
  "Ah, there's some Purple Dragon Tongue, Silver Bells, Sunshine Pitchers, Black Roses and some Daffodils, I think. You'd be surprised how hard it is to find good daffodils."
  
  "Cool," Blaise says, pushing her empty bowl away. "Are you ready, Dag?"
  
  You nod eagerly, your mouth full. You stand, pop on your boots, and begin heading out the door. Blaise grabs the bag of coins, and you walk with her. At this stage, you both know the town like the back of your hand. You pass the Grave, an Inn who's primary market are the many undead who once served Dante and now hide, scared to lose their "lives" for a second time in their existence. You pass the Silver Chalice Tavern, Da'qiq's General Store and several large stone homes build into the caves. You look up at the stone roof that would've plunged the cavern into darkness without the massive and numerous torches that covered the cavern walls and every building inside. You eventually find yourself at Mr Tibernius' Master Store. The building is unoccupied nine months of the year as Mr Tibernius travels across the world and, according to some, visits other planes of existence, collecting everything from ornate candlesticks to dark tomes that speak the name of creatures that could burn this world to ash if they simply noticed it.
  
  > go inside
  You walk inside, pushing open the dusty door. You're met with a familiar face. A tall figure wearing a top hat and a black coat with purple trim stands there, who you recognize easily.
  
  "Mister Chinkrinkski?" you say in shock.
  
  He turns, and you're met with the grinning face of Mister Chinkrinkski. He stands next to a pale-faced, terrified young man with black, curly hair that reached his shoulders, with green eyes and expensive robes with a wolf-skin cloak and a diamond, ruby and sapphire necklace. You glance around the room, seeing it's a massive store filled with dusty weapons racks, armor stands, bookshelves and shelves of various other goods.
  
  "Ah, children! Thank the Gods! Mister Chinkrinkski, I'm sorry to say I'll have to take care of these new... customers."
  
  Mister Chinkrinkski laughs, before slapping the young man, Tabernius, on the back. A row of bookshelves suddenly bursts into flames as Tabernius flinches.
  
  "Tabernius, you owe me the package," Mister Chinkrinkski says happily, as the fire begins to spread.
  
  "OK, OK! Please, you can take it!" Tabernius yells.
  
  The fire goes out, and Mister Chinkrinkski smiles. Tabernius hurries and gets a small black box from a hidden safe, before quickly passing it to Tabernius.
  
  "Here, take it!"
  
  "Thank you, Tabernius. Goodbye, Children. I'm sure we'll meet again." Mister Chinkrinkski smiles, before walking out of the store.
  
  "Thank the Gods you arrived. That monster would've... ah, no matter. How may I help you?"
  
  "I'm here to pick up a package for Tholi."
  
  "Tholi... the flowers, right?"
  
  You nod, and Tabernius quickly finds a large box and puts it in front of you. You pay for it, and find yourself with 100 Coins change, as Tholi said.
  
  "Ah, more coin, have you? Feel free to spend it here. There's some signs that'll show you everything there is to have."
  
  > look around
  A dusty sign points off to a much smaller room that's locked, with the words "TALK WITH A DEMON-25 GOLD COINS" engraved in the wood, which could be of interest.
  
  A large plate holds a large cooked steak, with a sign underneath it. "ANCIENT DRAGON STEAK-25 GOLD COINS" the sign says. It does like quite tasty, you admit.
  
  Next on the shelf is a large book covered with bloodstains with a title you can't read that's available for fifteen golden coins.
  
  There's a small Oak table with a seat next to it covered in cards, with a sign over it. "FORTUNE TELLING-25 GOLD COINS". Huh, that twenty five gold coins thing is becoming a trend.
  
  On a small shelf is a large goblet of Spiced Wine from across the Great Sea, available for only ten Golden Coins.
  
  Next is a large silver ring, with a silver skull on it, both it's eyes studded with rubies, that's available for fifty Golden Coins, although it clearly wouldn't fit on your large fingers.
  
  Finally, there's a Golden Helmet which stands on a stand. It's sign calls it the "Helm of Knowledge" and although it's not for sale, you can "Try it on and gain its knowledge" for only twenty five golden coins.
  
  > buy the Ring
  You buy the ring, and hold it in your hands, staring into the skull's ruby eyes.
  
  "Hey, Blaise," you say, and she walks over.
  
  "Yes?"
  
  "Here," you say, giving it to her.
  
  "Oh! Is... is this for me?" she says in surprise.
  
  A dusty sign points off to a much smaller room that's locked, with the words "TALK WITH A DEMON-25 GOLD COINS" engraved in the wood, which could be of interest.
  
  A large plate holds a large cooked steak, with a sign underneath it. "ANCIENT DRAGON STEAK-25 GOLD COINS" the sign says. It does like quite tasty, you admit.
  
  Next on the shelf is a large book covered with bloodstains with a title you can't read that's available for fifteen golden coins.
  
  There's a small Oak table with a seat next to it covered in cards, with a sign over it. "FORTUNE TELLING-25 GOLD COINS". Huh, that twenty five gold coins thing is becoming a trend.
  
  On a small shelf is a large goblet of Spiced Wine from across the Great Sea, available for only ten Golden Coins.
  
  Next is a large silver ring, with a silver skull on it, both it's eyes studded with rubies, that's available for fifty Golden Coins, although it clearly wouldn't fit on your large fingers.
  
  Finally, there's a Golden Helmet which stands on a stand. It's sign calls it the "Helm of Knowledge" and although it's not for sale, you can "Try it on and gain its knowledge" for only twenty five golden coins.
  
  > try the Helmet
  You pay Tabernius, and he offers you the helmet.
  
  "This helmet will give you massive amounts of knowledge, some of which might be... detrimental to your health. Put it on for as long as you want."
  
  You nod, and put on the helmet. Knowledge floods into your mind. Sailing Tips flood into your mind, before every Speech written by the Kings of the Kingdom of Man. A brief bit of information about the lifespan, diet and nature of Turtles hits you.
  
  > keep the helmet on
  You keep the helmet on, and more information floods in. Dwarven Accountancy, the lives of Elvish Peasants... then, several brutal images of horrific murders, rapes and torture scenes committed by a brutal Dwarven Serial Killer enters your minds, and you wince as you realize they're all children. Those images are burned into your mind before the information stream changes to the nutrition values of wine.
  
  > keep the helmet on
  More information floods in. Archery tips, hunting tips, how to bake the perfect cake, the location of every map of the Great Sea, the biology of Dogs. You feel something important is coming up, and struggle to think whether it'll be good or bad.
  
  > keep the helmet on
  Escape into the Abyss
  
  Faces. Horrible faces flood into your mind. Creatures of such immense size and power they could purge your world from existence with less strength that you use in breathing. But they're not going to do that. You can tell what they're going to do. They're going to cause a pain so unbearable, so unimaginable, to even contemplate how bad it is might be driving you insane. They've noticed you. They've noticed you learning about them, learning what man was not meant to know. They're coming. Everything you love is going to pay for your curiosity. You rip off the helmet, drawing your bone dagger. You quickly plunge it into Blaise's heart, killing her instantly. Thank the Gods. You've saved her from the pain. You turn the blade around and plunge it through your own heart as you escape into the abyss.