Rebuilding An Empire (Private)

[LadyHarpy]

"As long as the Priestesses have remained in Durasis range of power, they should not be an issue for you to face. They are no doubt preparing for your arrival as we speak. All the same, caution never hurt anyone. After all, it was overconfidence that seems to have placed us all in this mess." Malcolm began as he shuffled from the trio and started to take a seat in an old armchair of sorts. He seemed drained from all the talking but was still very aware of what Filiz was asking.

"Preparations are up to you both. After all, on you, two will be allowed in the temple underground. Not even Devin or any of the others will be able to assist." The old skeleton replied.

"So then I have no choice," Colette muttered a little. "If I'm going to get answers- If any of us are going to get answers, then I must head down there and get the staff. Then, if I make it through that, we descend into the temple depths and face Durasis."

"You make it sound like we're sending you off to your death." Devin chuckled, only for his face to slightly fall as Colette shot him a heated glared.

"Alright, bad choice of words, but you have to admit that you didn't have much else going on at this point. You just wrote in your journal and helped the other's and myself go scavenging. If not now, you'll wilt away like the rest of us, though no doubt at a much slower rate than those who have been around the whole time." Devin commented before motioning to Filiz. "Besides, you have him too. He must protect you now."

"Indeed it is," Malcolm spoke up once more. "Colette, I can not tell you to leave; only what Durasis hopes that you go. More than ever, we are a dying breed. Without each other, both our goddess and we will leave this world in a sad whimper. If not for your answers, at least go so that we as a people might find peace…For now, why not get to know your general? Make a plan for your travels? After all, he's no doubt about as old as myself, just in much better condition."

"Ah, that's a plan!" Devin cheered. "Why don't we get Filiz settled into a room, and I'll help walk him through the last thousand years while helping you figure out what your next steps are."

"Well, I can't argue with logic. I should, at least, get adjusted to the idea before running off. Otherwise I'll be jittery and useless." Colette sighed, making Devin chuckle and clap his hands happily.

"Splendid! Let's get you two sorted out before you head out then." The undead commented in a chirp before starting to rush the other two out of the old library.

 

[Peregrine]

Filiz watched Collete's rejection of the situation with something between distaste and apathy. He could not truly blame the young woman for her uncertainties, or for her unwillingness to follow a path she had not chosen herself. However, he was also incapable of truly sympathizing with her. For as long as he had been alive, Filiz had been a soldier, an honorable warrior who had followed the orders of his superiors to the best of his ability, and acted in the name of Durasis. Seeing Colette act as though the responsibility that had been placed upon her was a burden rather than an honor, it left a bad feeling inside his soul, something that bordered between disappointment and frustration.

However, even from their brief interaction, Filiz recognized that Colette did not appreciate his attitude. Devin's almost playful attitude seemed to resonate a lot better with her, and while Filiz was incapable of mimicking such behavior, he truly did wish to accommodate her. She was his Empress, and he would do whatever it would take to serve her to the best of his ability. At the moment, that included finding a way for them to get along.

As Devin shepherded the two of them out of the library, Filiz glanced back at the undead, a flicker of concern dancing through his flaming eyes. "You said... a thousand years. Has it really been that long since the Emperor's death."

"It has," Devin agreed, obviously unconcerned about the length of time that had passed. Filiz supposed, for him, it might not feel like that big of a deal. "You didn't realize?"

Filiz shook his head. "Not at all."

True to his word, Devin escorted them to an empty building, before starting to walk Filiz through a quick summary of what had happened. After the Emperor's fall, the united armies of the other races had continued their rampage across the continent. However, the maddened undead and Durasis herself had managed to drive the armies from their land. The few intelligent undead that remained had hidden from the scouting parties that had explored the ruins of the Empire, and apparently deemed the place completely fallen.

Since then, it had been very rare for the other races to come to the Empire. The country was still protected by the Dark Forest and the monsters that dwelled within it, making it rare for any adventurer to find something worthwhile for the risk. That had allowed the undead to settle into small communities like this one.

Unfortunately, after so long had passed, there were no known communities left other than this little village. Many of the undead had fallen into mindlessness, while others had succumbed to injury or the lack of available food. Without the mound of bones being able to restore the fallen, the number of undead had plunged further, leaving them in the state that Filiz had seen today.

The newly named general absorbed the information with a serious expression, before sighing somewhat sadly and shaking his head. "I understand," he said softly, and somewhat sadly. The other races hadn't been wrong. The Empire of the Undead truly had fallen, and if Colette didn't take action, the few remnants of their race would soon follow suit.

"Thank you for the information," he continued, offering Devin a nod. "And for helping me settle in to the house. Can you give me a bit of time alone with Colette now? We've... probably got a lot to discuss."

 

[LadyHarpy]

Colette had followed but remained silent for the duration of the conversation. After all, there was little she could add to it. Devin was going into far more detail than he had ever given her, but the woman was a newborn. She had no memory related to any of the Empire of the Undead. Trying to explain what had happened in the fall would probably be useless information, if only because she had no basic understanding of several terms. Things that were commonplace for the undead were not so for humanity.

Still, the information she was overhearing was some stuff she was familiar with. However, the details in this version made Colette realize that maybe things weren't really as she had imagined in her mind. If it was that bad in comparison to before then why hadn't someone like her been brought back sooner? On top of that, why hadn't there been something set up for such instances? Were they all that blind to just how much of a threat they could appear to be?

As they sat there in the old building, She found starting to feel upset. It was hard to say for what reason but the feeling in her chest was almost suffocating. Her soul seemed to waver as if something was trying to disturb it from the inside. As Filiz spoke, it stopped, and that strange feeling in her chest subsided into Colette's usual lack of interest.

Devin smiled at his good friend, glancing to Colette a moment as the girl was sitting a little away from the two men on an old crate of some kind. Her arms crossed over her chest as she stared off into the distance. Leaning in, he whispered to the new general. "Do go easy on her. Empress or not, this is more than she bargained for. We have time, as much as Malcolm thinks we'll all die in a day. The rest of us didn't just sit around waiting to get saved. If you both need some time to plan, we'll just keep doing what we always do."

With that said, the other skeleton left, stepping out of the building and only giving Colette a gentle wave to which she returned with a small one of her own.

 

[Peregrine]

Filiz nodded slightly at Devin's whispered suggestion, the light of his soul briefly growing and then shrinking as he considered the matter. He knew what the other undead had told him was accurate, but that didn't mean he knew how to 'go easy on her'. Filiz had always been a man of purpose, driven to perform, always striving to exceed the expectations placed upon him. The idea of 'not doing' was as foreign to him as the memories of his previous life would be, were they ever to be returned to him.

However, he was a general now. Durasis had chosen him to serve the new Empress, and he couldn't expect anyone, let alone Colette, to simply start handing him orders. Right now, his task was to find some way to relate to this young, innocent, confused undead. He just wished he didn't feel so woefully under-prepared for the task.

For a second he simply watched her, before his teeth clicked a couple of times and he forced himself to speak. "What would you like to do, my lady?"

No, that was not being helpful. That was just expecting more things from her. He had to offer suggestions. "Do you wish to start preparing for the trip already? Or would you like to... speak for a while? Or you could show me more of the town."

It wasn't the best collection of ideas he'd ever thought of, but at least it was something. An ice breaker, something that might ease the tension between them. Or, at least, so he hoped.

 

[LadyHarpy]

"You've seen all of the town; there isn't much else out there." Colette dryly commented.

It was clear the girl wasn't too keen on anything that got placed on her shoulders. First she was a plain ordinary newborn, now she was am Empress. That was a big leap, even if she still had all her memories from her human life. She had been a farmer, not even a speck of royalty in her blood. Now she was supposed to lead the Undead into a revival of their long-gone empire.

That was not exactly how she planned to live out the rest of her immortal existence.

Reaching up with a tired hand, she rubbed her face slowly, trying to think of what she could do to fix this mess. In truth, there was no way around the Empress issue. That was set in stone by a Goddess who also wished to see her. Another item on a growing list that seemed designed to make her panic. It had been hard enough the first week getting used to her lack of skin, meeting a god face to face would no doubt make her heart stop, or soul considering she also lacked a heart of flesh.

Sighing, Colette glanced up at the new man beside her. He was massive, or so it felt that way. Maybe she was just petite for an Undead. Another thing that made her wonder how she even inherited a position of power. How could she intimidate anyone if she was half their size? The only thing she could be grateful for was that he wasn't hammering down upon her with demands to handle the issues right away. He seemed like he wanted to try and get on the same level as her. Looking back down at her lap, she motioned with a small hand for him to take a seat on one of the crates.

"We should probably talk…figure out a plan or something. I already died once; I don't plan on doing it again."