I can't help the solemn smile that crawls onto my face.

 

Today, as always, I sit by the rocks that prevent me from seeing the sun once more. I've learnt to tell the time outside by listening to the sounds the critters around make. It's always night-time when they're excitable.

 

Yesterday I took out a slew of rats. Yesterday I was happy. With [Animate Animal] I managed to kill about thirteen other rats and recover my mana regen as well as lose growling in my stomach. It was such a good day I even had the patience to start a fire; Turns out I only needed to dry the sticks.

 

But today, I wear a sad smile because it takes me all of thirty seconds of waking up from my full belly slumber to realize I have no water source. My tongue and throat dry, saliva not forthcoming.

 

I knew I was missing something with my roasted rodent. Who would've thought it'd be water? I'd been so focused on obtaining food I hadn't paused to think of my growing dehydration.

 

I suppose the blood of the first rat I ate has held me, and it's not like I roasted all the moisture off of those I ate last night. Still, my mouth is a desert and I can't stand it.

 

"Someone or something must really want me dead." I grumble to no one, or to my litter of rat corpses and cleaned sticks of meat.

 

I keep two rat corpses to hunt for more of their kind, the fire didn't burn off all the juiciness so I kind of considered them a food and water source now. Despite the mountain of hopelessness I weighing on me, there is some good news.

 

"Animate Animal."

 

[Animate Animal Successful]

 

[Necromancy Proficiency +0.5]

 

[Animate Animal Proficiency +0.2%]

 

I let my smile spill into a grin as I puppeteer the rat into a ballet performance. I hold hope that before I die of dehydration I'll get to see Anselm's skeleton do the same.

 

I have yet to summon the squire's spirit again, even on a full stomach I'm not all too forgiving. But I've begun muttering to myself, out loud, and at a wall. So entertaining some company won't be such a bad idea. Although that isn't my only reason for wanting to summon him.

 

I get up with my puppet and walk out to the Bear's pit. After the many scenes of cannibalism that took place, the rats aren't keen on hanging around here anymore so there aren't any scuttering as I walked through, heading for the single pathway I'd yet to scour through for food, water and an exit.

 

The day I killed the Bear I hadn't bothered with its corpse past kicking it back down the pit, instead I'd thrown myself into searching for food in the pathways accessible in the cave. All I came across that day were rats, critters and moss.

 

However, I am not done with my search. Even though a pattern of these expeditions deep within the cave was forming- rats, critters and moss- I can't afford to give up yet. This magic thing is starting to get exciting.

 

"Animate Animal." I mutter, reattaching my tethers to the rat. My favourite spell yet only lasts a minute, but I can't complain. In my expert opinion on necromantic spells it could rival Soul Drain, perhaps not in power but in its use. There's a reason I kee casting it even when I'm not hunting.

 

With a thought I summon the blue box describing the spells function and grin with anticipation.

 

[Animate Animal]

 

Upon successful cast, user gains control over an animal corpse.

 

At sufficient proficiency user gains control over the senses of the animal, each sense unlocked at certain levels of proficiency.

 

[At a 100% proficiency, user unlocks a special skill.]

 

With a full stomach I can tell that the first proficiency requirement for the first sense-sight- would be at 20%. Right now, I've managed to accumulate up to 2%.

 

I come to a stop in front of a boulder. It's large, heavy and nigh immovable, but the little hole at the bottom and the ever-present growling, munching and grunting coming from the other side tells me otherwise. The boulder can and has been moved. It even has a circular shape to it, perfect for rolling aside.

 

Of course, I'm not strong enough to move the boulder aside by myself. But now, I come with a full stomach, a plan and a curious mind.

 

My intent is to have my little puppets sneak through the little opening at the bottom of the boulder and be my eyes on the other side. Alas I am running out of time, dehydration would be upon me quicker than I can raise my proficiency.

 

On that matter something puzzles me, I thirst but these rats do not, the critters, the Bear and even the moss do not. So where do they get their water?

 

I'm betting water is right behind this boulder

 

If it is then a lot of things don't make any sense, like why was the Bear so far away from its only source of water? I can't answer that question, not yet at least but it's the last stone I've yet to upturn to meet salvation.

 

"Sense Death."

 

And I'd sell a soul if I had to.

 

"Summon Spirit."

 

As always, Anselm haunted me so I don't have to go looking for him now that I'm ready to entertain his company.

 

He sports the widest smile on his face as his feet touch ground and like the first time I summoned him, he stands in awe of his physical body.

 

"Thank you so much for this second chance, Great Asher!" Also like last time, he falls to his knees and starts kissing my robes.

 

"Enough!" I yell, incensed by his very face. Dude almost had me killed. "We've got work to do."

 

"Again?" he moans.

 

"What do you mean again? We'll have work to do whenever I deign to spend my valuable mana to summon you." I am not about to have a repetition of last time so I make things clearer and higher staked this time. "The previous deal is off."

 

"Wh-What?"

 

"A second chance at life is not something I'm willing to hand out so freely, Anselm, not after you almost got me killed."

 

His chubby face scrunched up with a pitiful pout, "So, what now? What do I have to do to get a second chance?"

 

"You must please me." I say, thinking myself a monarch to be served.

 

"Ah jeez. I really don't want to do that. Anything but that."

 

"What? Wait no! That's not what I meant!" I wave my hands , as he begins turning away. "I meant you have to do exactly what I say and help me out however you can. You're a squire, right?"

 

"Yeah?" he mutters, still regarding me with suspicion.

 

"Well think of me like your Knight, or better yet your King. You must work in my service to convince me of your worth."

 

He sighs and mutters something under his breath about already being dead and nods, "Fine, I'll serve you to the best of my ability, Master Asher. I will prove my worth at a second life to you in my servitude."

 

Perfect!

 

"Now then, my second task for you. Scout the area behind this boulder." I slap my palm against the boulder for emphasis, "And report to me. Don't mess it up this time, I don't give third chances at second chances."

 

He gives a curt nod and takes a deep breath, his body begins to turn transparent again, starting from his feet then rushing all the way to the top as he begins to float.

 

As he begins hovering to the boulder alarm bells start going off in my head and for some reason, anxious that the spell was about to end.

 

As though on cue the spell ends in a flash.

 

Its end is so abrupt and early that [Sense Death] is still active. "The hell?"

 

Wait. The same thing happened with the Bear. When Anselm had it possessed, he was cast out because the spell ended, it ended early then too. And now there was this ringing like an alarm going off in my head warning me that the spell would end soon, and it did.

 

"Summon Spirit." I mutter, stabbing Anselm with a shot of green mana.

 

"I think the special ghost abilities draw on my mana…" I say out loud. Anselm's waiting demeanour changes to a confused and curious one.

 

"Wait, you mean you don't know?" he asks.

 

"Of course, I do. Shut up and get back to work." I shoo him away and focus on the quiet humming in the background of everything as he walked through the wall.

 

It seems I don't only get alerts via the blue box. Then that would mean my near-death experience wasn't entirely Anselm's fault. The alert came in as a budding wave of anxiety and is gone once the Spell ends. With a Bear towering over me I doubt I would have noticed another wave of anxiety.

 

It's a shitty alert system. Who built this thing?

 

I spend a few more minutes again before the wave comes over me, alerting me that the Spell has ended and Anselm is no longer physical or under the influence of my mana.

 

"Sense Death." Mana flows into my eyes and I'm greeted by an anxious, scared looking Anselm. "Summon Spirit. What's wrong? What did you see?" I waste no time interrogating him.

 

"Monsters! Short, large, thin little green monsters!" He gasps.

 

Monsters? Green monsters. I couldn't help but imagine little green, oval-headed space aliens.

 

"Did you see water?"

 

"Yes, a water fall. Fresh water too."

 

Forget the space aliens. I have to get my lips wet with some water. "Is there no way to push open the boulder from the other side?"

 

His eyes widen as he nods, "Two giant, mean green monsters stand guard right beside it. They look like they push it open."

 

Guards? These monsters are civilized?

 

"Do they have weapons?"

 

Again, he nods. "Spikes, spears, and clubs."

 

The picture gets clearer and a lot familiar. Instead of green space aliens now I see something I'm certain I don't want to meet; Goblins.

***

 

I'm a big fan of magical worlds and all the diversity they bring to the table. In fact, one of my favourite strategy games takes advantage of this very diversity to create wholly different factions for players to pick from and battle out on a world with a rich history.

 

However, what I am not a fan of is meeting these things up close. Goblins have are depicted across a large spectrum of good to evil, and with the many things I've come to realize in this world, you can't tell what will happen.

 

Usually, RPG's give you a close up encounter with these creatures. It may be a tutorial fight or they may be your mentor, otherwise you find out from the many NPC's you're forced to talk to about the creature's alignment. More often than not, they are the bad guys.

 

In this situation, I'm hoping they aren't. Even though Anselm cries definitively that they are monsters of the greatest evil. I can't seem to trust his word on anything we may have to fight.

 

After the big discovery, I spent the whole day raising the proficiency of [Animate Animal] I gained another 2% when I realized that using a single type of animal will only give depreciating results until it stopped giving result at all.

 

Stuck at 12% proficiency, I failed to unlock access to my puppet's eyes. This put a considerable wrench in my plans to spy on the Goblins and come up with an actual plan. Now all I have is Anselm and his mana expensive ghost abilities.

 

"Why can't you phase through walls without my mana anyway?" I ask the squire. We sit together around a fire roasting rat on a stick.

 

He turns the pike to the other side, making for a complete roast. "Well, I don't know actually. I never left my body until you summoned me, not because I didn't want to but because I couldn't."

 

"What do you mean you couldn't. You haunt me every time I don't have you summoned."

 

He chuckles, "Well sorry, you're then most interesting thing in here that I can follow." He plucks the rat off the pike and inspects it, nodding with satisfaction he piles it onto the other two roasted rats I am intent on eating. "I used to be able to move, in fact there were two of us." He jerks his thumb to the other skeleton, the one right beside his.

 

"But soon after we died and were exploring the cave and world outside. Haunting and spying on people, the both of us were suddenly drawn back here, to our rotting bodies. And the next thing I saw was the brightest light. My knight was prepared, in fact he was ecstatic about being taken, but I fought it."

 

"So, it left you here, all alone."

 

"I didn't think I'd be alone. After the light left, I tried leaving the cave only to dropped back at my body. I've watched all sorts of people come into the cave, I even watched when those men dumped you in here. Then you turned around and change everything, gave me a body with your mana," he smiles softly. "Even if it's only for two minutes."

 

For a moment I begin to see him no less than I do another human, I can sympathise with his plights. There is likely a lot he's missing out on, both here on this world and in the afterlife.

 

He's been forsaken though, thrown aside for his ignorant defiance, it's an all too familiar situation.

 

This light he speaks of expects all dead mortal men to long for it and not the several things they've built relationships with. For the first time since I woke, something other than a desperation sits in my chest, a righteous indignation and at God no less.

 

"Well, you can follow me about then, I'll try to summon you a body more often."

 

"You sure?" His face lit up with joy.

 

I shrug and take a bite out of my roasted rat, "Yeah, I need the practice anyway." I dust myself off as I get to my feet, pocketing the remaining two rat-kebabs, "But to ensure that we need to get out of here. I don't intend on eating rats the rest of my life."

 

He gives me a curt nod, jumping to his feet, "Yes, so what's the plan?"

 

He wouldn't like the plan I've come up with. No, no he wouldn't frightful as he is, for a moment I contemplate tricking him into it, but I see no use in doing so. The main goal now is getting through the boulder and into the goblin camp and to do that I need someone to open it up from the inside.

 

"You'll have to possess one of the guards." I mutter, studying his reaction.

 

He looks like he's going to scream with fear, he even takes a deep breath. But at the end he lets it all go, breathing it out and steeling himself with a grim look on. "I'm ready."

 

I smile. He's gotten me to change my view of him twice in a single setting; right now, he doesn't look so frightful.

 

***

 

We stand once again at the boulder, Anselm of course is frightened. I don't bother reminding him that he can't get hurt by physical means and I am a lot more frightened than he. Though I'm shaking and shivering, I'm plenty scared of getting my skull bashed in.

 

He gives me an unsteady gaze and nods.

 

"Summon Spirit." I mutter yet again, shooting his spectre with green mana. "Two minutes, less once you start the possession. Remember, push the boulder out of the way by any means necessary."

 

He says nothing and pales out of my view, likely phasing through the walls. The plan is, as always, simple; Step One-Possess the guard and push the boulder out of the way. Step Two…? Well I'm still working on that part, but if there was to be an altercation, I find myself more than prepared.

 

I wait a few seconds, pushing mana all round my body, invigorating me and assuring me of my defence. At the slightest sign of attack, I'll activate [Soul Drain].

 

Luckily, I don't have to. Fear floods out of me as the boulder rolls to the side to reveal a dim lit room, upright with what look like tents, tents filled with green creatures of all sizes-all asleep.

 

The creature that rolls the boulder away in the first place is an ugly towering being, it sports a fat but hard looking shiny green potbelly, below its torso is the only article of clothing on its body, and it barely covers what it should.

 

"Anselm?"

 

The creature groans and grunts, affirming its identity. "Might want to pop out of there in case the spell ends and wakes him up." I get another grunt as a response before I take my first steps past the boulder.

 

There is little difference inside to out. The ground is a wet squelch of moss, yet also crunched when I step on the crystals that illuminate the room. The most notable difference however is the loud endless pouring of my treasure; water. I can't help but laugh.

 

The water fall pours endlessly into a pool that glistens beautifully underneath the moonlight, yes, I finally lay eyes on the sky and it's wonderful.

 

There is something so brilliant about having the fresh night breeze wash over you after breathing in the stuffy air of a closed off cave.

 

I run over to the pool, splashing into it without a care and gulping down near gallons of water down my dry throat. I sigh with satisfaction as I stare down at myself. A stranger looks up at me. I'm taken aback as it dawns that this is the first time, I've seen the face of the body I inhabited.

 

I look no older than twenty, despite all the time I'd spent without proper hygiene in the cave, my chin had trouble producing the barest stubble. My hair dark as midnight and my eyes glow a deep mysterious green, matching the sick colour of my Necrotic mana.

 

The colour of my eyes scares me the most, and I realize, as though I'd forgotten, that I am in another man's body.

 

With my belly full of water and heavy with food, I begin to wonder the life of the person who owned this body. The man who is aged over a hundred years of age yet sports a boyish look. The man who'd been given a moniker entrenched in his renown practice of pyromancer and likely his worship of the lesser god of burning.

 

Fear racks through my body, not only because I'm finally getting out of the cave and into a world I know nothing of, but also because within the reflection I laid eyes on the angriest Goblin I've ever seen and this one sported a club.