[Book II Chapter 20] ROSE: Salazar Rook

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Rose took a deep breath, the red of the Crimson Flame dancing her hand. Gently, she reached towards the skeleton before her, letting the fire graze its form. Channeling full force, she restored singed bones while focusing on integrating the two disparate magics. Sweat rolled down her brow. As she neared exhaustion, there was a flare up and fire engulfed the undead. Rose panicked before realizing this is what she wanted. She’d succeeded.

“Congratulation on crafting your first burning dead.” Roxanne said. “Eventually you’ll be able to summon them directly instead of setting them aflame.”

Elation washed over Rose. It was strange. She sensed the hostility, the hatred, simmering in her creation, yet her dominion over it was exhilarating. It’s the rush some feel when holding a lethal weapon, except amplified.

Since Nero had taught them to summon the dead, Rose had been obsessed. Manipulating the monsters that had assaulted them in the Field of Graves was simply intoxicating. Part of her worried she found it such fun, however her rational side had come up with all manner of contrivances to justify the indulgence. It’s a powerful tool which would be foolish not to master. Plus these will be our opponents in the future. There’s no better way to learn about them.

Wise had gone through the same experience, to an extent. With his foresight satisfying his curiosity and dampening his enthusiasm, he had just about returned to normal. Basically he mastered it quicker and then lost interest. As for Rose, she was still immersed in the exploration.

Following their initial lesson, Roxanne had taken over, patiently sating her thirst. She’d learned to summon various forms and give them skills. It hadn’t been enough, so she’d pestered her mentor to teach superior manifestations. Today, Roxanne had relented.

“The addiction has really taken you more than most.” Roxanne observed.

The truth of these words struck Rose like a cold shower. She could only mutter a “Sorry” in response.

Roxanne sighed. “It’s fine. Everyone goes through it.” She walked over to examine the fiercely burning undead. “I suppose now is as good a time as any to give you the warning. Be extremely careful if you decide to make one permanent.”

“Why is that?” Rose asked. Ghostly apparitions were used as guards and servants throughout Xarst, so much so that Rose had considered making her own.

Roxanne guessed her thinking, “You do remember that they’re tame inside the Black Mountain? It’s different outside. Undead are fundamentally different from others summons.”

“Could you explain this?” Rose pressed. Her intuition told her it was important.

“There’s a bond between the soul of a summoner and their summon which aligns the beliefs and values of the former with the latter. Essentially, summons will like the same things and think the same way. This is why they are considered an extension of their masters.”

“Isn’t that a form of brainwashing?” Rose hadn’t pondered this angle before.

Roxanne shook her head. “Aside basic traits of their type, summons come as blank slates. They were never their own entity, so it’s not the same as tapering with a free mind. At least that’s how I see it. Some share your reaction and sever the bond, but that’s another story. We’re getting off topic.”

“The point is,” Roxanne stressed. “Undead are different. They have two bonds, one of them with the Abyss. This second one can never be cut and influences them all the same. This isn’t an issue in fresh creations, but the longer a minion remains on Enera, the more the Abyss seeps in. Unless you’re diligent about reasserting your control, they will turn on you——or, even worse, on others.”

Rosanne glanced to the side, “We have a visitor.” This room was one of many training arenas on this floor. White runes covered the walls everywhere except for the entrance where Lucy was waiting quietly. Since Xarst’s interior is a deathless zone, only healing enchantments are needed.

Rose pursed her lips. It’s rare for her to intrude on us. “Let’s see what she wants.” She reluctantly banished the burning dead.

“Wise will be returning in a minute. You probably want to hear what he has to say.” Lucy reported. She then walked out expecting them to follow.

Roxanne smirked as Rose frown. For her part, her mentor found it all amusing.

It’s a little aggravating when someone acts like they know what I will do. Despite this, she let Lucy lead them through the luxurious living space they’d enjoying for the last couple of months. Meant for candidates seeking the Mask, it had everything they could wish for. It’s not quite nepotism. Rose could see herself donning Xarst’s supreme artifact. The knowledge it contained appealed to her. However, it would have wait until after the dark age.

They stopped in front of the pillar which ran up through Xarst. Soon Wise walked out, lost in thought.

“So, what did you learn?” Rose asked. Since meeting Radin, Wise had been making short trips to the city. Time down there moved at regular speed, so these absences were noticeable. When Rose had confronted him, he’d revealed he was spying on Torak’s acolytes, relying on All-Knowing Grasp to uncover hints of their plans.

“They’ll be departing soon.” Wise answered. “Also, someone heard them mention Salazar Rook. Is Nero around?” He paused, then answered his own question. “No, he’s not. I must speak with him.” With that, he turned and disappeared into the black stone.

That was underwhelming——. “Salazar…” Roxanne sneered. “As bad as it was last time, at least he wasn’t involved.”

Oh… The name Salazar Rook had come up several times when Rose studied history. Each time it was a different conflict, spaced centuries apart and never in the same location. She remembered thinking it strange, but could it be that these were all the same person?

“Who is Salazar Rook?” She asked

Roxanne and Lucy looked at each other. “I’ll leave this to you.” Lucy said. “I’m going to join Wise.”

“Sure,” Roxanne sighed. “Come with me, this will take a while.”

Once seated at a table in the garden, Roxanne continued. “Salazar’s story goes all the way back to the founding of Xarst. Have you heard of ‘impure reincarnation’?”

“That’s the spell which reanimates a corpse by reconstructing the soul from the pieces scattered in the Abyss.” Rose answered. “It’s useless because it produces abominations.”

“Correct, except for one aspect. Impure reincarnation doesn’t always produce abominations. Remember, there are souls so depraved they remain whole after death. When those are brought back, the result is a flawless resurrection akin to those Sola performed.”

Rose eyes widened, “Salazar is…?”

“One of those, yes,” Roxanne nodded. “He was part of the first batch recalled as part of an experiment at the Black Citadel. Those running the study were fascinated, not only because he was an oath taker, but also because he displayed no deviant behavior. All the other subjects were abhorrent individuals with no redeeming qualities. Unlike them, he appeared sane.”

“When investigating his history, they found that he had indeed committed reprehensible acts in life, but there were extenuating circumstances. Salazar had been drawn into the losing side of a existential war and had gone to despicable lengths to delay the inevitable, ultimately failing and dying a saint.”

“This left researchers in a bind when it came time to wrap up the study. Unlike the others whose vileness was unmistakable, Salazar seemed to present no risk to society. Outside wartime and under orders, Salazar had never harmed a soul. More convincingly, he also confirmed, with words which could not lie, that he had no motives to do so. Disposing of him was ruled out as an option.”

“In the end, they kept him under watch for some years before finally releasing him. He departed and everyone soon forgot about him. It wasn’t until decades later that people began noticing a pattern. On the world stage, small players unexpectedly launched successful invasions of their stronger and wealthier neighbors. In simmering conflicts, the weaker side suddenly rose up to achieve swift, decisive victory. Investigations revealed two common factors preceding these upsets: the arrival of a new adviser and a drastic decline in the regional population. Someone was approaching rulers and offering to turn ‘lives’ into power.”

“It was at this time that Salazar published his first book, ‘The Path To Power’, detailing all his techniques and showcasing their effectiveness with everything he’d done. Villages transformed into suicide cults to ascend a chosen fighter, clan members empowering themselves by eating each other, children pitted against one another in battle royals, torture-enhanced human sacrifices… It wasn’t just death, Salazar had leveraged the depths of depravity to produce his results, and his creativity knew no bounds.”

“He was swiftly hunted down and killed, but it was too late. In his writing, Salazar had left instructions for a ritual, based on impure reincarnation, which would allow anyone to bring him back. Since then, he’s returned again and again to serve new patrons, expanding his expertise and publishing new books every few incarnation.”

“Why would anyone rely on a madman?” Rose was fascinated.

“Many reasons.” Roxanne explained sadly. “Salazar has a sublime vagary called ‘Every Life Is Precious’, which amplifies the effects of his methods. For a ruler intent on replicating them, his presence means fewer sacrificed.”

“He’s also an immortal now, one of the strongest, and is utterly loyal to whoever calls him. For the desperate, he is a last hope, one who often delivers.”

Rose sat back to absorb what she’d heard. So that’s why Wise was so shaken… A realization hit her. “He’ll want to leave Xarst and track Torak’s Acolytes…”

She grimaced. While her brother was approaching the limits of what he could learn here, she hadn’t. He also had the Necronomicon to further his knowledge, something she didn’t. But I don’t want to be left behind…

“If you go, I’ll follow.” Roxanne offered.

“Really?” That would be ideal.

Roxanne laughed, “Teaching you is the only thing keeping me from rejoining the sleepers. Besides, there are people I’d like to catch up with. It’s been two thousand years…”