Forest for the Dead (Akayuki)

[Rylok]

Something had drawn him here...some force had compelled him to travel from the coastal pickings and his mentorship, from the land becoming his stable home, from the ripe and easy pickings of the ancient ruins and temples...

Something dark was calling in the woods, and he had to answer it.

Simon picketed his horse Fairwind in a sheltered grove in the evergreen woods and proceeded on foot after the subtle siren song. The feeling made his back itch and the hair on the back of his neck stand up...something was calling, and he needed to find out what...or who.

The grey clad rogue picked his way stealthily through the shadows, hunting, aware that he could be being hunted. The feeling led him to a path in the woods, but he stayed parallel to it, preferring to remain in the undergrowth rather than expose himself to whatever it was that made him want to approach. As he got closer, he slowed, knives drawn, and teeth on edge. There was someone on the trail...

[Black Cat]

"I come to you to bring today,
Not a luscious rose bouquet,
I don't have tulips or even lilliiiies,
So accept this petunia, pleeeease~"

The lingering spirits haunting the place undoubtedly laughed very hard when a silver-haired girl who appeared about eleven years old happily traversed the path, singing a nursery rhyme.

Most would see a carefree ramble, accompanied by an infantile tune. The simple melody raced on the soft breeze that rolled over the lush green forest until it succumbed to the howls of hungry beasts that stalked the place in search of prey. Seemingly innocent, the tune obtained a sinister edge if one realized it originated from the little, out-of-place child who had traveled all alone despite the overwhelming dangers. Truly, small in stature, draped in expensive-looking, foreign robes that silently bragged about her privileged status, the child should have perished long ago.

A closer look revealed the apparition did not walk; it floated just above ground to avoid staining her sandals. Everything about the girl screamed unnatural, out of place. A little hand pale as snow held a massive heart-shaped lollipop and allowed her to munch on it vigorously. The smacks of her lips were deliberately vocal as if to voice her pleasure, indifferent to the charred, torn-apart horrors she left in her wake.

Many beasts and bandits had tried challenging the arrogant little creature along the way and that many had died, adding their bones to the pile and feeding the forest with their rotting corpses. They were nothing more than insignificant ants getting in her way – snuffing them out was no different than swatting annoying insects. Now their ghosts danced with the others for eternity, undoubtedly raging and complaining about the white-haired brat's overpowered lightning. She found the idea pretty funny and hoped she'd get to laugh in their face one day.

But a new challenger approached on the way, walking right toward her as if interested in an express ride to his doom. His looks said brigand. Unconcerned, the kid gave the lollipop another lick. It tasted sweet. Or so she thought. Ever since her first death and an eternity and a half in the afterlife, she could not tell if it actually tasted sweet or if her mind only thought it did. Just as her restless, easily distracted mind started to ponder the question, the sound of the approaching figure's footsteps his her ears and forced her to focus on him, if only momentarily.

The forward motion of her body had stopped before him, albeit she continued to hover above ground like a puppet on strings. Her red eyes scrutinized the man from top to bottom and a large grin spread on her face. Death practically flowed from him; his strings of life had been cut and now some other force puppeteer his corpse around. The little girl's free hand waved at him in an over-the-top fashion.

"How do you do, fellow undead! What a coincidence, huh?" She called out in an excited, outright disturbingly friendly voice. Like an actor in the middle of a play, she spun about in the air, her floaty black robes waving in her wake, and took a deep breath.

"Aaaah, the joy of unlife, right?!" The little girl squeaked with a massive beam that showed her perfectly white teeth. "What a fine day to be alive... and a better day to be dead! Ahahahaha~!"

It was a silly, stupid joke, it was her own, but she laughed at it anyway.

Her demented laughter filled the forest and the underworld laughed with her.

[Rylok]

Simon had resolved to leave as soon as the odd girl started addressing him as undead. The only people who'd ever pegged him as something other than human upon just looking at him had been mages attuned to death magic...necromancers. And for a little girl who looked so twisted, she was either incredibly powerful, incredibly crazy, or possibly both.

He tried to pickup his feet and turn to go, but he couldn't move. The prickling, acidic burn on his back-the demon face tattoo-heightened in intensity and began writhing under his skin. The creeping burn slithered around his torso, up his neck,  and onto his face, smothering him with its creeping sensation. The writhing, evil feeling sunk into him and-

"Lady of Bone and Ash, I greet you as a servant of your most illustriously shadowed father. This vessel was sacrificed to me, and I in turn gift him to you. His maker was not worthy, and this vessel is disappointingly avoidant of his purpose. Take him and show him what he was made for." The hollow, growling voice burbled out of the ghoul, then the possessing presence released him.

Simon blinked and staggered, confused. He had lost a few seconds of time, unaware that the demon tattoo had just offered him as a gift to the strange child. In fact, its odd tingling session had returned to its normal position between his shoulder blades.

"wha..where...uh what the FUCK did you do to me?" he snarled, still unable to get his feet to move. The girl had to be the cause of his inability to flee, right?

[Black Cat]

Her eyes widened as the foul creature before her spoke in an otherworldly voice. The zombie turned out no source of danger, though, quite the opposite. A present most unexpected from a secret admirer who clearly knew how to put a smile on her face. She giggled; a terribly girly, immature sound to accompany her eyes shining with child-like wonder. For all the dark messiah complex, Akayuki was most definitely a kid and bound to be one forever.

"Oh! A gift? For Akayuki? Thaaaaanks~!" She beamed a delighted grin at the mysterious presence and bowed her head slightly. And then the vessel opened his dead mouth and ruined the wonderful moment with a word so vulgar it caused her to shudder.

Her formerly friendly, amiable expression had twisted into an angry grimace. "YOU DARE UTTER A SWEAR IN MY PRESENCE?!" Gone was the sweet voice, now it boomed like a hale and she eyed the 'gift' with utter disgust. He had offended her and the only price to pay was eternal death. The little necromancer raised a hand, preparing to end it in one flick of a finger, and then, after the longest moment of deliberation, let her hand fall again. With the same flair for dramatics as she had displayed earlier, the miniature lich posed akimbo in the air and spoke as if delivering a speech before a crowd.

"I, Akayuki, future undead god-empress of this world and the next, Mistress of the Dark, Mistress of Death, Dark Lord of all Unlife, Daughter of Demons, Dark Messiah, Icon of Eternity, Bearer of Ancient Wisdom, in my infinite mercy, forgive you. Know that by permitting you to liv—eeeh, to continue your undead existence, I am responsible for all your future actions. Behave and watch your language from now on."

Her body descended ever so slightly and she leaned toward him with a mischievous spark in her eye and she winked. "My mercy is not infinite, you know!"

A soft, almost kind smile graced her pretty face and it almost appeared she wanted to encourage him to be on his best behavior. Alas, it occurred to her that his previous owner and original maker was described as unworthy. This begged the question of the zombieman's ability to comprehend. For that reason, the next time she spoke, the necromancer did so slowly, with perfect pronunciation, her neatly manicured eyebrows rising and falling steadily with every word.

"You have just been given to me by whatever deity or demon your maker worshipped. I am your new owner! Hello! Aren't you happy? Aren't you excited?"

A glimmer of sadism twinkled beneath her scarlet eyes and the smile turned into a devious grin.

"Akayuki sure is."

[Rylok]

Oh, shit she was one of the crazy ones. Simon mustered his will power and broke whatever was gluing his feet to the forest floor, but didn't immediately flee as Lady Whatsuminga whatever blah blah blah of the thousand titles went on in her explanation that she owned him; her tone suggested that she thought him stupid, but it was better to be thought stupid than to prove it true. If he turned his back and ran immediately, she'd be able to hit him in the back with a spell.  If he slowly backed away, facing her, he'd be able to dodge any incoming attacks.

"The only thing that idiot worshipped was his own sense of self-superiority," Simon started. He wanted to continue about how she bore a striking resemblance in that realm, but thought better of it.

But if Monmouth DID worship some sort of evil deity, that'd explain the demonmark on him...and if that deity owned him in a sense, it'd heal his injuries...so it wasn't implausible to connect the missed seconds, the burning tattoo, and this terrifyingly evil child treating him like he was her new favorite toy.

"Look, I'm glad you think you're happy to own me, but I'm actually really a lot of trouble...never even house trained, to tell the truth. And are you old enough to have a pet? Responsible enough? Have your parents okayed this? I mean, really, you can't just scoop up the first zombie you see running around the woods, slap a bow on its head and call it yours. Do you even know what kind of food I eat? Or which veterinarian I see? Way too much trouble. I'm not cuddly or anything, I don't fetch, I'm no fun. Cute little girl like you needs a puppy, not an old hound like me," If his feet weren't going to run, his mouth was. With as much casual dignity as he could hold onto, he kept stepping backwards slowly, hoping that he could break and run or distract her enough to sprint to Fairwind and ride the hell away from here and from her.

[Black Cat]

"Where do you think you're going, young man? Don't think you can just leave! I am your new master. You will accompany me. Hehe."

Even though she had finished with a little laugh, it was a statement. Akayuki's mind did not even consider other possibilities to exist.

A sudden surge of speed moved her levitating body forward, a motion as uncanny as it was unnatural. She had positioned herself right before him, within striking distance to further make a point there was no escape. A small hand was raised and rapidly descended upon the top of his head with a muffled and utterly ineffective slap. A look of feigned regret reflected in the little witch's eyes and she tapped in index finger over her lips in thought.

"You deserved it. I really didn't want to do it, but I had to. Because you are a bad, naughty, disobedient uncorpser. Can't you see I'm an incredibly sweet and kind and compassionate and tolerant master by permitting you to have your own free will? How many necromancers do that?"

As if to show what happened to the completely free-willed and independent raised dead who did as they wanted and not as she commanded, she raised a hand again, index finger toward the sky. Electrifying sparks started to dance over the deathly pale digit. Then, leveling it at one of the trees behind him, she unleashed a cute little bolt of lightning, almost just a spark. By some sort of miracle and despite all physical improbability, it bounced off the tree trunk, went straight in the path behind the zombieman, bounced again off the dirt, and headed right at his rear.

No escape!

Immediate punishment!

She was in complete control of the situation!

"And I don't like dogs. They always bark at me! Cats are much, much better. So stop your whiny barking, dog. Or I'll fill your mouth with mud and sew your lips shut. Or remove your tongue and feed it to the worms. I know Akayuki's the prettiest, loveliest lich of all time, but when I get mad... I'm angry when I'm mad! Please don't make me mad to avoid making me angry!"

[Rylok]

Oh for f-

Simon stopped himself from using the swear mentally, if only so that it didn't come out of his mouth. She'd caught on to his back pedaling and ZING tried to physically punish him with a zap of electricity.

Now...his muscles HAD twitched and he DID fall over, but if she expected him to hurt, it wasn't happening. Still...message received. The pint sized terror thought she was intimidating and horrifying rather than just insane and overbearing. The thief quickly weighed his options and rolled his eyes when he realized what he'd have to do.

"Okay, fine. Fine. But if you want me to call you Mistress or 'my Lady' or anything like that, then you're going to call me Simon. or Si. I'm not a 'thing' or an 'it' or a 'pet' or any kind of animal. You want me to be your henchman, I guess I can deal with that, but I'm not going to kill anyone unless I think they deserve it. Also, no body horror torture...please. If you'll...if you'll be kind enough to respect those things for me, I can," I can't believe I'm saying this... "I can be your perfect spy, or thief, or rogue. I fight best from the shadows, but my real skills are in thieving."

He hummed thoughtfully and took stock of the little monster. She was going to need civilizing if they weren't going to get cooked by the authorities.

"Actually, I think the best thing I can do for you is act as a cover story. You don't fit in with the locals...at all. You'll need someone to be a translator, or representative. All the lords and ladies have their advisors, so if you're going to be the Mistress of the Dead, then I guess you having a dead advisor makes the most sense. Now...may I please go get my horse? You can come with if you don't trust me yet. You can even ride him if you want. But if you're going to be mean to him, then I'm not going to let you pet him or ride him."

Somewhere along the way, he had slipped into the town of an indulging uncle admonishing his spoiled niece. He could play along with Delusional McCuckoo Pants for as long as he needed...she had to sleep sometime (probably) and he could get away from her then.

[Black Cat]

Her red eyes nearly bulged out as he went on and on about this and that and everything he said went in one ear and out the other. Patience wasn't among Akayuki's virtues. The tip of the red lollipop found itself on her lips again and she started to suck on it as vocally as possible, loud slurps wordlessly voicing her disapproval of everything he had to say. Before he even had a chance to finish, the child had removed the lollipop from her mouth and briskly pointed it at him.

"Shh! I'll even give you my lollipop! Fruit flavor! Just... stop talking, will you?!" The adorable little terror snapped and sparks of irritation dangerously flashed over her irises. "What are you even going on about?! Stop being so frantic! First this demon tells me you are a gift to me. Then you say naughty words and start to whine and talk some nonsense about dogs. And then you reject me as your new master, even though I am infinitely better than your own master. And then, and then! And then you babble something about how you'll call me and be my henchman and blah blah blah, I stopped listening around that part."

Once her mouth started going, there was no end to her complaints.

Back into her mouth the lollipop went and she cherished the sugar rush.

"Juf' cawm 'owm," She spoke with a mouthful of candy. "Taek deef bweafs. Hmm. Wat do 'ou fant to du? Fanna go foume ow...?"

One of her hands removed the delicious speech destroyer out again, "Do you want to join me or not? If you want to return to your old master then by all means, I'm not stopping you. In fact, I don't really care what you do, as I have an old friend to save."

Her face turned serious, for it was a grave matter and infinitely important. The hand without the lollipop reached within the hem of her heavy robe and when it emerged, it held a small cloth doll. Its colors were faded, the clothes lovingly wrapped about it out of fashion and as foreign as Akayuki herself, and a nasty tear split its face open, a button eye barely hanging on a thread.

"I was hoping to find a talented seamstress to fix it. Would you happen to know where to find one?"

[Rylok]

He rolled his eyes and suppressed a heavy sigh. "My old master? F-...heck no. I ran from him and I've been my own master ever since."

She complained about him going on and on, but here she was, doing the same thing, except she was now rescinding her whole spiel about him belonging to her, being his new master, blah blah blah...And then she drew out a...doll? The rip was pretty severe, but after having had to meticulously repair all of his clothing since he was a teen made him pretty good with a needle and thread.

In response he motioned to his camp.

"I'm not a seamstress, but I've been sewing for almost twelve years now. I can fix it. My needle and thread are in my saddle bags."

He turned and started to lead her to Fairwind, praying to Lady Luck that he wasn't making a mistake. He wouldn't call her master. She was a spoiled brat. She was a spoiled child with a broken toy and nobody to teach her the right way to be. She was an evil, spoiled brat with a broken toy, nobody to teach her, and a necromancer.

...could he con her into working for him?

Now THAT was an interesting idea...

[Black Cat]

"You can sew?!" the white-haired child exclaimed in surprise. "But you're dead! Aren't your hands stiff? Unfeeling?"

She turned toward his hands with a soft smile as if the answer to her question was written on his gloves. This discovery was nothing short of shocking, enough to warrant a mention in a book or two she intended to write at some point. A zombie capable of the delicate art of sewing!

The little under terror levitated after Simon and followed into the camp. An easily distracted little lich with a fondness for pretty and cute animals, she immediately moved toward the majestic horse and slowly, carefully reached out to it with a hand, intent on petting its head.

"Simon. Did you know? Horses and other animals can also turn undead. Your animal friend can be your companion for eternity! Wouldn't it be beautiful if everything died and came back to life, perfectly preserved to retain its living beauty? But the ugly things would remain dead, ridding the world of all ugliness! I used to have a beautiful cat with a coat black as coal. Very large, too. I used my ingenious special technique to ensure his beauty and cuddly nature remained preserved forever. Perhaps he's still alive. I dunno. Last time I saw him was like a... thousand years ago. Maybe. I hope to meet him again someday. He was the best."

[Rylok]

"Unfeeling, yes, stiff, no. I work hard to keep my joints nimble. I only stiffen up if I lay around too long in the same place." He answered her, keeping his response short in order to match her attention span. When they arrived at his small camp, he took off his gloves, hood, and mask, then got out his repair kit from the pack.

"I didn't know that animals could turned to undead. My maker wasn't able to make pretty things;"

He threaded his needle with a fine, tan thread and began carefully using a mattress stitch to close the rip. The ideal thing about that stitch was that the seam hid the thread, making the repair almost invisible.

"It sounds like you loved your cat very much. Is he the friend you wanted to try to find? I could help you find your friend."

Step one of a con: be someone that your target trusts. She was already calming down about trying to dominate him. He would encourage the more human and humane parts of the lich-child, then try to turn the more inhuman parts towards his advantage.

[Black Cat]

Curiosity and caution alike reflected in the girl's large crimson eyes as she observed him equip the right instruments. An audible gasp escaped her lips as the needly pierced her doll's deformed face. Gone was her interest in the horse and she peered over his shoulder to ensure the little thing was taken care of properly.
 
"Hmph. I have never seen a zombie handle a needle before." Akayuki commented with a degree of skepticism, her mind already racing with the infinite possibilities of punishment should his hand slip and ruin the toy even further.
 
"If he really loves me, he will return," she stated in regards to the black cat, mild indifference and almost annoyance creeping into her tone. "Eventually. And how exactly would you want to find a specific cat? And would it even recognize me after, I dunno, thousands of thousands of thousands of years or something?"
 
The littlest lich pursed her lips tight, eyeing his handiwork intently and scrutinizing it for any sort of imperfection that would serve as a funny excuse for punishment.
 
"You worry your undead head about my doll. Make it look good. Your eternal unlife is on the line, you know~"

[Rylok]

It took all of his considerable strength to not roll his eyes at the threat. This was her doll, her friend.

"I swear my best work to her. She is special and deserves care," he promised, checking his work carefully. The stitches were small, the fabric was pulling together neatly, and she was beginning to look like a doll again.

He carefully tucked her stuffing in and finished the invisible seam. The button eye received his care next. He rethreaded with black thread so that the eyes would match, then carefully repaired the dangling eye.

"And there she is. What do you think?" he asked, offering the doll back to Akayuki.

[Black Cat]

"Hmph. Acceptable." The Terrible Young Lich nodded in approval and took the doll in her small, frail hands. A heartfelt hug followed.

With no warning and for seemingly no reason, Akayuki threw the doll up into the air, as high as her painfully short arms managed.

Two fingers pointed in the doll's general direction and a sudden blast of lightning cut through the air and tore the toy into countless pieces.

"She deserved a proper sendoff," Akayuki explained as the smoking pieces of the old toy descended all around them. "I didn't have the heart to discard her all torn. Alas, this was bound to happen. I am several hundred years too old for dolls."

Old, useless things had to be discarded to make way for the new. With that sentiment in mind, she turned to Simon.

"Now, for your 'reward'..." the child stated ominously and cast a grin half mischievous, half sinister. Akayuki rose above the ground, levitating high enough to make her taller than Simon, and the terrible power within her swelled.

Her hair and clothing fluttered and floated as though caught in water. The skies darkened as if on command. Bolts of electricity coiled around her arms like snakes and crackled. The deep crimson of her eyes glowed with the power of darkness. Her madness, or at least partial perversion, seemed beyond dispute.

"Oh, I am afraid your days as an unfeeling zombie are over, poor Simon! Now, you shall witness what true power is like!" The evil grin grew wider and her voice sank rather than mounted.

"Ah, poor Simon, the demon power once in charge of your body isn't going to kill you, hehehe..." she started to giggle, and then the terrible sound of her high-pitched villainous laughter filled the forest. "MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The lightning around her arms dissipated, the skies brightened, and the white-haired terror ceased laughing, now merely grinning.

"And neither will I! But I'm gonna reward you by returning sensations into your body, so you better prepare."

She did not give him any time to prepare. A simple motion of her finger and every single feeling returned to Simon's undead shell, a white-hot explosion of infinity as the long-dead nerves suddenly switched on and screamed in agony. Akayuki, in a typical Akayuki fashion, paid his discomfort no heed and raised her arms high above her head instead.

"Praised be Akayuki, future undead god-empress of this world and the next, Cutest Lich of all Time, Infinitely Merciful Red Moon, Mistress of the Dark, Mistress of Death, Dark Lord of all Unlife, Daughter of Demons, Dark Messiah, Icon of Eternity, Bearer of Ancient Wisdom, Oldest Enjoyer of Sweets, Bestest Villain Ever Conceived, Timeless Threat to all Living, Snow Red the Deathless,...

[Rylok]

A muted protest died in Simon's mouth, unuttered when the 'cutest lich of all time' began redoubling her power. Instead of grousing, mouthing off, or even fleeing for his life, he sat transfixed, captured by an unholy fear and fascination for whatever was about to happen...

Before he could process what Akayuki was saying, it was happening!

The bright, brilliant, unholy surge of energy through him gnawed through the numbness that he had almost gotten used to, worming its way into his flesh. Beautiful, brilliant pain exploded from every wound that had ever magically healed.

Simon lost himself in the roiling whitewater rapids of agony; there was a kind of bliss as he recognized the peppering of arrowheads in his back, or the hangman's noose that had broken his neck, or when a crow had pecked his eye out, or the broken ribs from a beating, or the myriad of other small damages he had sustained in the last year and a half. Most terrible were the purposeful, grand agonies that Monmouth had inflicted on him. His mind flickered in and out of being as he struggled through the repeated assaults on his brain that his former master had inflicted on him.

Through the journey of torturous sensation, he dimly heard himself screaming...or was he laughing? Crying? Angry? Terrified? ...in pain? The sensations that were overwhelming him roared through his flesh and made him feel gloriously alive again, even through the fires and freezing, the stabbing of the pine needles on his face as he writhed on the forest floor, the raw feeling of the air on his face like sandpaper...he could FEEL!

His lungs caved in from lack of air and he could feel it...it wasn't like when he'd been alive...oh no, he was still dead, but now he could FEEL things again! The weave of his shirt, the rock he didn't know was in his boot, the sensation of BEING! And she did this!

Akayuki had blessed him with sensation once more, when he'd been told before it was beyond the power of a necromancer to undo the works of another...she'd remade him, and made him better...

She was batshit crazy, but she had remade him. What else could she do? Simon found himself wanting to see, wanting to follow, wanting to find out. As the storm raged through him, he found himself realigning his mind and mastering the overwhelming and familiar rush of feeling. It was like picking a familiar lock...it took him seconds to recognize the mechanism of feeling again, and he had mastered himself moments after the initial surge of power ebbed. To his surprise, he was wheezing with maniacal half-screaming laughter. The insanity of the sound seemed right, and he trailed off before pushing himself up to a kneeling position before the lich. Wide eyes, manic, remade, and...ready to serve.

"My lady," He started, voice hoarse and full of wonder. He bowed low to the ground before the child-lich. "I was a stupid zombie before, but I see your power and understand now. How may I best serve you?"

A small part of him was incredulous that he should serve a child. A petulant, maniac of a child who was as insane as the day was bright, but...it'd be foolish to not side with such power when all of the world would see you destroyed, now wouldn't it? She, at least, could remake any destruction the world could inflict on him...

[Black Cat]

Although a gleeful sadist by nature, Akayuki had found herself incredibly offended by Simon's sudden screams. Her diabolical brain, too brilliant for this world, had not considered the possibility of putting the zombie through infernal agony. Even as she watched him, she did not comprehend the reason behind his antics. A frown darkened her face.

"Ah, yes, typical. Scream your lungs out." Akayuki shook her white-haired head and rolled her eyes. "No gratitude, I swear," she rumbled, almost sadly, her soft voice drowned in the screams. And it went on and on and on with no end in sight. Somewhat nervous by the prolonged display before her, she took a glance in every direction as if in search of the perpetrator behind Simon's state.

"Here I am, rewarding you, yet do you raise up your arms and praise Akayuki as sensations return to your undead flesh? Nay! You wail and scream--most ungrateful!"

A glimmer of anger came over Akayuki's gentle features. If he wanted to scream, she could always give him a good reason now that his ability to feel pain had returned. A nervous twitch in her fingers gave away she was not far from turning her thoughts to reality.

"Seriously, dude! Cease the theatrics! Who's hurting you? Nobody's doing anything to you! I didn't even touch you; you can't blame anything on me. Nuh-uh!" the littlest necromancer yelled at Simon and shook her head vigorously as he writhed in unspeakable agony.

The red eyes of hers continued to watch as he slowly calmed down and made up for his lack of proper etiquette by kneeling before her. The little lich puffed her cheeks, finally receiving the validation and acknowledgment she deserved. It took him long enough! For a moment the child did nothing and merely observed him.

"From now on...," her voice trailed off as her mind came up blank with what she should have him do. "You will have the honor of carrying me on your back. And follow my every command. And you will hate the Mordecais as much as I do because they hate me and they hate you too and they hate everyone because they are hateful--bad people. And together, we shall take over the world!"

An idea crossed her mind.

"But first..."

Two childish hands reached out toward him, opening and closing excitedly. She stared right at Simon with a smile slapped right across her face.

"Hug Akayuki! Hug hug hug~!"

[Rylok]

"Easy enough to hate the Mordecai...they turn me mindlessly feral," he agreed with the lich.

Carrying her? He could buy her twenty horses with the gold he had saved from dungeon delving. And helping her conquer the world? They'd need an army...

But first-

Simon was surprised that the girl's request for a hug, but responded as she wanted. He was surprised to feel that she was cool to the touch, like he was.

"My lady, if I may suggest...the Queen of the Dead should have a fortress to begin amassing her army. I have the money to buy property for you, if you wish." His mind began to race with possibilities. He had been born a whore's son street rat...but if they were going to do this...to try and take over the world...he could become the second most powerful being in the realm if things went well...and if they went poorly he'd be destroyed. Eh. He'd gambled on worse odds before.

His mind again began turning with strategy and possibility. He was a thief...and thieves easily could become assassins. Assassins made plenty of dead bodies...dead bodies that a powerful lich could raise as her puppets. They could rule from the shadows...if she ever was motivated to work instead of hug zombies and eat candy.

This adventure into the darkness may be harder than he first thought.

[Black Cat]

"First off; Mistress! Address me as mistress! I may not be big enough be a lady, but I am strong enough to be a mistress of life and death!" Akayuki established and pushed an imaginary pair of glasses up the ridge of her nose, trying to sound formal and educated to make herself look smarter.

It was very important to appear smart.

The white-haired lich went on to explain her plan, floating back and forth as she did. "I want a fortress! But if I take one, the Mordecais will come and smash all my toys! Again! That is why I won't be making an army. Besides, any graveyard or battlefield can give me an army if needed. But I do want—no, I need a fortress of my own. I am a bit homeless right now and it's most shameful for someone of my stature."

So embarrassed she was by admitting this her undead cheeks turned rosy. Akayuki hoped Simon would not notice and so quickly unveiled the sinister plot she had harbored inside her head for the longest time.

"My brilliant and ingenious plan is to create a plague that will kill everyone and raise them as perfectly preserved, intelligent undead! This world and the next will become one! No more hunger, no more pain, no more suffering! Just peaceful undeath in which all can hold hands and be perfectly happy forever and ever!"

With the sweetest of smiles, Akayuki grasped her hands together and formed a heart shape with her fingers.

"Or, or! I could kill all kings and queens and immediately bring them back to life as my undead slaves! New laws to allow necromancy and make undeath a socially acceptable state of being! No more would the dead be oppressed by the living!"

She spun dramatically and threw her arms out, face ecstatic.

[Rylok]

He wasn't going to comment on the homelessness...first off it would be hypocritical of him because he also had no home. Second, he didn't find it shameful, though by her blush Mistress Akayuki did, and third, he knew better than to shame her. Instead, he considered her options.

"Perhaps, mistress, you could turn a local baron and have him introduce you to the court as his newly adopted child...this would give you access to so many noble families to play with and to turn to our cause. And then if any of the nobility oppose you, you could unleash a plague in their lands? Then, both of your wonderful plans could be enacted."

Ego stroke, check.
Bettering his own position, check.
Getting back at Lord Monmouth...On the way, he thought with a sly grin.

[Black Cat]

She liked it. She liked it a lot.

Akayuki's index finger tapped her lips and she closed her eyes in thought.

"Yeeees... good idea! Let's go with that! Find a childless, older noble and melt my way into his heart." The littlest necromancer giggled and nodded in approval as her face adopted a serious expression and her eyes fluttered open. "Ah, very fitting for me to join the ranks of nobility."

And off her mind went, weaving overly complicated plots to achieve the goal, and still considering the grave threat of the Mordecai.

"Even if the Mordecais seize me and drag me away, I heard they only scold kids like me." She revealed with a devious little smile.

A little scolding had never killed anyone. And it had never stopped the great, apocalyptic evil either. So Akayuki considered herself pretty safe. The same did not go for her possible undead underlings, but whatever, she could always make new undead friends.

"Magic baaaaaaad! Ansgar gooooood!" Akayuki parodied and stuck out her tongue playfully. Still in levitation, the white-haired child started a mock dance above ground, complete with an intentionally silly tune and song.

"Good mages always follow the will of Ansgar!
Be a good mage! Don't use magic, it's bad!
Bad mages use magic as they please and disobey God!
Bad mages get punished!
Be a good mage to avoid punishment~"

Akayuki evidently had a bone to pick with Ansgar and his faithful.