The Sovereign Necromancer: System of the Dead

Lies on the Radio

The heavy wind from the helicopter blades whipped against my face, carrying the strong smell of burning oil and hot metal. My shadow gorilla stood tall behind me, its red eyes glowing through the gray dust. With over five hundred mana points coursing through my body, I could have ordered the beast to crush the two guards by the cabin door in one single second.

But Fanny held the small silver knife tightly against Samuel’s neck. The little boy did not move. His hands were shaking inside his oversized clothes, and the thick white bandages over his eyes were stained with gray dirt from the hospital rooms below.

"You think you are a big man now, Tobe?" Fanny called out, her voice loud enough to cut through the noise of the spinning rotors. Her red suit coat flapped wildly in the wind. "You got a fancy system. You got some dark ghosts. But you are still just a Mainland boy who cares too much about poor people. Drop the mana stones and step away from the girl."

Beside me, Amarachi did not lower the golden Vanguard rifle. Her fingers were steady on the plastic grip. The purple light in her eyes did not fade; it actually grew brighter, casting a strange glow across her cheekbones.

"Tobe, do not drop anything," Amarachi said. Her voice was flat, devoid of any warmth. The double tone inside her chest made the stone roof beneath our feet vibrate slightly. "He is just one boy. If we stay here, Chief Segun will kill thousands of people to use my core. The math does not fit."

I looked at my sister. My skin went cold. She was talking about an innocent fourteen-year-old boy as if he were just a broken piece of furniture. The purple core inside her chest was changing her mind, stripping away her empathy, turning her into a cold machine that only cared about survival and revenge.

"He is Samuel, Amara," I said, keeping my voice steady. "He did not do anything to us. He is just Chiamaka’s brother."

"And Chiamaka left you to die in a dark hole," Amarachi replied, her purple eyes locking onto Fanny with a dangerous sharpness. "Why should we give up our lives for her blood?"

A sharp crackle came from the canvas pouch at my waist. I had forgotten that the lead guard’s radio was still turned on, pinned to my leather belt.

"Fanny?" Chiamaka’s voice came through the small plastic speaker. It was shaky, full of sudden panic. "Fanny, what are you doing with my brother? Chief Segun said Samuel was safe at the Island clinic! He promised me!"

Fanny did not look down at the radio, but a nasty smile touched her red lips. "Chiamaka, you are a stupid girl. You really thought a billionaire like Chief Segun cared about your brother’s eyes? He brought the boy here because we knew Tobe would try to save his sister. A Mainland rat always runs back to his nest."

"You lied to me!" Chiamaka called out from the speaker, her voice breaking completely. "I did everything you asked! I left Tobe in the cave! I signed the papers! Give me my brother!"

"Shut up and do your job," Fanny snapped, her fingers pressing the silver blade deeper into Samuel's skin. A tiny drop of red blood appeared on the boy’s neck. Samuel whimpered, his small hands gripping his trousers. "Tobe! I am counting to three. Drop the rifle and command your beast to dissolve, or I will cut his throat right now and throw his body off this roof."

My mind raced. My mana counter was steady at 507/100. I had the power, but I did not have the speed. If my gorilla moved, Fanny would slide that knife before the beast could cross the concrete pad.

[Tobe,] Grim’s voice spoke up inside my skull, his tone very sharp. [The sister is right about the math, but she is wrong about the system. Look at your skill list. You unlocked an overcharge feature when you took those A-Rank stones. Look at the gray icon at the bottom.]

I quickly opened my system screen with a simple thought.

[System Expansion: Sovereign Shadow Swap (Level 1)]

[Cost: 200 Mana]

[Description: Trade places instantly with any shadow servant within your field of view.]

I looked down at Fanny’s feet. Because her red coat was flapping in the wind, it cast a long, dark shadow across the metal stairs of the radio tower. And inside that shadow, a tiny piece of my black ink was already creeping upward from the stairs. I had left a trail of mist when the gorilla broke through the roof.

"One!" Fanny called out, her eyes wide with a crazy excitement. She loved the control. She loved showing a Mainland boy that his new power meant nothing against her money and her status.

"Tobe, let me shoot her," Amarachi said, her finger tightening on the trigger of the golden gun.

"Two!" Fanny lifted the knife slightly, ready to make the deep cut.

"I don't think so," I said.

I focused my mind entirely on the dark patch of shadow right behind Fanny’s high heels.

[Skill Activated: Sovereign Shadow Swap]

[Mana Remaining: 307/100]

The world went completely black for less than half a second. The sound of the helicopter blades vanished, replaced by a sudden, freezing silence.

When my eyes opened, I was no longer standing next to Amarachi. I was standing directly on the metal steps of the radio tower, right behind Fanny's back. The cold wind hit my face from a different direction.

Before she could even realize the air had changed, I reached out my right hand, grabbed her wrist, and twisted it backward until her bones made a loud pop.

The silver knife flew out of her fingers, spinning across the concrete roof before falling into the dark alley below. Fanny let out a sharp gasp of pain, her knees hitting the metal steps as I shoved her away from the boy.

I grabbed Samuel by his jacket, pulling him behind my back. "I got you, kid. Stay down."

"Tobe?" Samuel asked, his blindfolded head turning toward my voice. "Is that you? Where is my sister?"

Before I could answer him, a loud, metallic clanging sound came from the opposite side of the roof. The heavy iron door of the stairwell did not blow up this time, it was literally melted flat, turning into a pool of glowing red liquid.

A tall figure stepped through the liquid metal.

It was Chief Segun. He was no longer wearing his polished gold armor. He wore a heavy, dark red suit made from the scales of a dragon, and his giant sword was covered in thick, black fire that did not produce any smoke.

Right behind him, Chiamaka crawled out of the doorway, her hands covered in soot, her face streaked with tears. She looked at Samuel, then at me, then at her boss.

"You are a very annoying bug, Tobe," Chief Segun said. He lifted his flaming sword, pointing the dark tip right at my sister, Amarachi. "But the game is over. The core is reaching ten percent. If you do not give her to me now, I will activate the barrier and let the entire Mainland burn."