I acquired all the information I needed. Viknesh is the Dread Necromancer ruling this sector, and intriguingly, he made no attempt to retreat with the others. I am confident in this knowledge, for the girl persisted in her insistence even as I began drowning her in oil and set her on fire. Of course, I promptly extinguished the flames, but she was unaware I would. Throughout her agonizing pleas, she spoke nothing but the truth. I derive no pleasure from such methods as I would prefer to reveal the truth to the infidels. However, there are instances where the ends justify the means. I now know who is in charge, where he is located, and that he commands a dragon forged from bones and decayed flesh. I also know he lacks the protection of Allah, making him as good as dead.

  Pressing forward, I followed the unmistakable tracks of the others. They made no effort to conceal their path, leaving behind bloody footprints and several lifeless, unanimated bodies. I took care of some lingering crawlers along the way. It didn't take long before I caught up to an exhausted Nazir, visibly out of breath and panting heavily.

  "Where are the others?" I asked.

  "They kept… going," Nazir said.

  "I told you guys not to split up!" I exclaimed. Nazir opened his mouth again, but I abruptly interrupted. "Shut up and take these," I said as I removed one of my rings and handed it to him. "It's meant to heal wounds, but it will also reinvigorate you. Follow me and stay close, but not too close. We will never catch up to the others; you're too slow. We're going straight to the Dread Necromancer."

  "You know where he is?" Nazir asked.

  "Without a doubt, though he has an animated corpse of a dragon," I said.

  "I believe we should wait for the others. When we fought dragons, I had access to my magic," Nazir reasoned.

  "No need. Think about it, if he has a dragon guarding him, it must either be a very small dragon or a very big room. If the dragon is small, I'll destroy it. If it is large, it has no chance to fit into the narrow halls. I just need one good arrow on Viknesh, and his heart will stop. He won't see us coming."

  Nazir sighed, "you will be the death of me, friend. If not today, then someday soon."

  "Your lack of faith will be the death of you. Allah guides my bow and my blade. I am the one who sets up the meetings for him, and he is the one who judges. Our God is much more powerful than a dragon. There's a reason it's a corpse."

  "Oh, so you're saying you're fine fighting it by yourself?"

  "What the heck?" I gasped. "Shut up, I never said that. Don't put words in my mouth. I said Allah is more powerful; I never said I was."

  "Exactly, you're just proving my point. Anything could happen. What if we're being chased by a hundred wights, and the only exit is towards the bone dragon?" Nazir reasoned. He had a point, and I had no way to combat that, but I was still determined to do it my way.

  "Then, we are screwed, my friend. But we're going anyway. What are the chances that we will encounter a hundred wights anyway?"

  "Pretty good, actually. That's what has been happening all day when I was cleansing nests with Z'albor. The only reason we didn't have trouble handling that is because each group had an essence user."

  I opened my eyes as wide as my mouth. "Okay… okay… we will wait. Let's get the others before we get ourselves captured or killed."

  We continued with our original plan to regroup with the others, but Nazir was taking his time. "Hurry up, you lazy scoundrel! They're going to get too far, and Viknesh might get bored and leave." In truth, I was just scared.

  "You don't want to die with a friend?" Nazir taunted.

  "My friend, you will die alone. I will run faster than the second animal trying to enter the ark."

  Nazir laughed. "Even as Sultan, you never fail to amuse me. I know you would stay. We've been through too much, after all. Like all those times we've been captured together and faced disaster. We have a brotherly bond."

  "No, no, no, you give yourself too much credit. But I will make sure to retrieve your remains and give you a proper burial while you enjoy yourself in paradise. As for me, it is not yet my time. God still has a plan to use me, and I intend to complete this task before I perish. I will make the sacrifice of staying in the world so I can save others."

  We laughed as we engaged in this pointless banter, just two men enjoying the company of a friend, even in a place like this. But I tensed up as I sensed something was wrong. Not in the same way Nazir would normally sense it, using Essence to feel the presence, but as a predator noticing it is being watched. Nazir either sensed it too or watched my face change, but rather than become quiet as I had, he continued the banter. He likely thought it wiser to surprise our assailant by not letting them know we were aware of their presence. Usually, I might agree, but I wasn't sure if these thralls were conscious enough for it to matter and if it were a higher-level jinn... I don't think I could protect Nazir. But he fully trusted me, and I believed it would be better to be unified in our plan to optimize the chance of success. So I obliterated my grimacing face and patted my friend on the shoulder, waiting for whatever was watching us to commit to a strike. It didn't take long.

  I could hear the wind whistle, but it was nearly pure instinct that caused me to dive and tackle Nazir to the floor. I couldn't see my foe, but I knew we were up against some form of invisible jinn, and likely multiple of them. Our Janissaries are generally equipped with helmets to see these demons, for these mid-grade jinn often plagued the deserts of Calazan. I didn't need this; I had Allah to guide my hand.

  As I shielded Nazir, the jinn struck with a stone that ripped through the air. Rolling to the side, I drew my large saber and swung it at blinding speed, aiming for what should have been its legs. The blade connected with a screech, and blue fluid stained my weapon. Switching the momentum, I thrust higher, causing severe pain to the jinn as blood spilled from its mouth.

  Going for a killing blow to behead it, I heard another whoosh, this time targeting Nazir. I shielded him with my blade, swinging a diagonal cut the demon would have to pass to strike my friend. Though my blade missed, Nazir retaliated with multiple shots, hitting the jinn near the open wound of the other demon.

  Despite my difficulty breathing, I channeled my strength to end the fight quickly. Rising up with an upward strike, I cleaved through the evil creature and came back down, splitting the one who had injured me in two. Turning to the one I had wounded previously with a thrust, I knew demons were not slowed by debilitating blows. It avoided my attack and unleashed a flurry of its own blows. I managed to parry them somewhat, using the clues from its wounds to anticipate its movements. Determined to retaliate, I struck back, my saber meeting the jinn's claws in a dance of steel and malice.

  "Jahan, step out of the way! I'm trying to get a shot!" Nazir's urgent shout echoed through the chaos.

  "I'm a little busy right now!" I retorted, my words strained by the ongoing struggle.

  My broken rib held me back, a nagging reminder of the recent blows that slowed my every movement. Despite the pain, I managed to parry two more attacks, but the relentless assault continued. A third strike landed with brutal force on my right eye, the sensation as if it were nearly torn out of its socket. A wave of agony surged through me, causing me to momentarily drop my blade as I instinctively guarded my injured eye. In that fleeting moment, I knew it could be the last mistake I ever made.

  The world around me blurred as pain and disorientation took hold. I didn't witness the unfolding events. However, a sudden bang reverberated, and a sharp pain seared my left buttock, adding insult to injury. I screamed in agony, the sounds of additional gunshots piercing the air. Amidst the chaos, I managed to gather myself and looked up to see blue blood splashing around.

  With a quick, instinctive motion, I snatched my shamshir from my belt. As Nazir ceased firing, I slashed high, a fountain of blood following my blade, accompanied by a loud thump a second or so later.

  Defeated and battered, I collapsed to the floor, gripping my sword with one hand and what remained of my eye with the other.

  "Damn! You shot me in the cheek! What the f..."

  "I'm sorry, my friend. Here, take your ring back. You'll be good as new in no time," Nazir said, trying not to laugh. He was right, but the pain was agonizing right now. I took back my ring and just sat there.

  "The others can wait. Give me five minutes. I need a short rest."

  We set out once again after I did not have to worry about keeping my eye in its socket. The vision in my right eye was still blurry, but I could see, and my rib was healed entirely. Only a few short minutes had passed. I've had far worse wounds, even before I received this Ring of Regeneration, mind you. It's just part of fighting the good fight. These flesh wounds would not stop me from doing God's work.

  As I turned one of the corners, a Shambler grabbed me, but it posed no real threat. Attempting to bite my neck, its feeble assault was thwarted by my maille coif, impervious to such trivial attacks. With a swift shove, I dislodged it and dispatched it with a headbutt from my migfer. A few more approached, but a single slash from my 6-foot saber effortlessly cleaved through multiple, as even the armored ones found their steel defenses laughable when confronted with the mighty weapon of a sultan, enchanted by the arch-infidel Z'albor himself.

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  In a matter of seconds, a score of shamblers lay lifeless on the floor, devoid of any movement or groans. Allahu akbar. While there were several more shamblers and lesser jinn along the way, neither Nazir nor I felt threatened by their presence.

  "Took you guys long enough," a familiar voice chimed in. Tavien stood just a short distance away, joined by the others.

  "What a beautiful display," Lurantis remarked, observing the demon massacre around me.

  "It was about 15 minutes at most, and if you think that's long, you should have found us. There are more of you, so why couldn't you slaughter the jinn faster than us?" I taunted.

  "Honestly, we got lost. Apparently, when Tavien isn't specifically tracking someone's footsteps, he has no sense of direction," Ousmane confessed.

  "That's not true. I was merely... sightseeing."

  "Oh, sure. Lots of lovely corpses to see around here. The air has the wonderful scent of death and rotting corpses," Lurantis mocked.

  "Come, we know where the Dread Necromancer of this nest is," Nazir said.

  "How can you be sure he hasn't moved?" Tavien inquired.

  "Because he hasn't," I declared.

  "But how could you possibly know that?"

  "Because he is protected by an undead dragon and feels perfectly safe," I explained.

  "Heh, he thinks an undead dragon is going to keep him safe? There's a reason it died in the first place!" Lurantis remarked.

  "That's what I said!" I exclaimed.

  "Well, it might. I don't want to fight him with a dragon by his side, or the thing that killed the dragon," Tavien added.

  "You may be old, but your faith is young, Tavien. Allah will guide us, for this beast is no match for his champions," Ousmane reassured.

  "How many of you have fought a dragon before? Just Jahan and Nazir, right? Do you guys realize why you don't know a lot of people who have faced off against a dragon, even those who've lived for hundreds of years?" Tavien inquired.

  "Because they're rare," said Lurantis.

  "False. If they were that rare, why has almost every Llevian seen one? I myself have seen more than half a dozen and have heard of nearly a hundred encounters. Admittedly, most were probably fake, but they are not as rare as you think. You don't hear about people fighting them because they die. We aren't their preferred prey, and since they're actually smart, there's no need to fear them if you have no ulterior motives. This is an undead dragon. It's stupid and will try to devour us, maybe even spew acidic bile at us if it still has its insides. This is far from ideal," Tavien ranted.

  "Relax, Tavien, else you'll begin to sound like a Christian. This one is all bones, I think. At least, that's what I gathered from the source I interrogated. And we don't need to fight it; I only need you guys to keep any jinn that tries to disrupt my shot off of me while I aim my bow and release an arrow through Viknesh's skull. He's only a man. One opening and one good shot is all I need, and we all know how good of a shot I am. Nazir can attest to my aim," I explained.

  "This is true. When we were battling the armies of the previous Sultan, one of the generals was attempting an escape on horseback. We thought he got away, as he reached the peak of a hill that was at least half a mile away and began to descend. Jahan was busy handling some infantry he was surrounded by, but when we just lost sight of this general, Jahan drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and released. Without pondering further, he simply put the bow over his shoulder and continued to fight the infantry men. When our cavalry, who were chasing the general, made it over the hill, they saw his corpse with an arrow pointed downward through his collarbone and lungs. Obviously, it was enchanted, but this was before he received the seeker enchantment," Nazir retold.

  "That was luck. You cannot hope to replicate that nor expect your first shot to land where you want it. Even if you could, depending on how close he was to the dragon, it could react and get in between the arrow and its master," Tavien said.

  "There is no such thing as luck, Tavien. There is Allah and His will," I reassured.

  Tavien let out a sigh. "If you say so. Let's get on with it, then."

  The five of us began to march to where I was told Viknesh would be hiding. Did I expect an ambush? Absolutely. Viknesh was not a stupid man, and he knew we were here; thus, we did not have the element of surprise for him as we did with the other Dread Necromancers Nazir faced earlier. Was he strong enough to use magic against the antimagic field? Not likely, but even if he could, we could retreat and cut him down if he chose to follow. He probably set his minions into formations and the strongest guard the entrances near him. He wouldn't have them in the same room, for he must have felt comfortable with the dragon defending him. All these thoughts raced in my head as we grew closer and closer to where he resided.

  "We must stay vigilant," I said. "We can expect battle with several mid-grade jinn here, maybe even a few high-grade. Just before finding you three, Nazir and I defeated two obscure apparitions."

  "They won't get the jump on us. I'll see them from a mile away," Lurantis stated.

  "Very good, though it would have been welcome to have that available half an hour earlier," Nazir said.

  "Better late than never," she said.

  "That's fine until being late causes someone to expire," Tavien mocked.

  "Shut up, we have an important mission at hand," I said as we turned another corner.

  "Wait," Lurantis stepped forward with her right hand raised. "I actually agree with Jahan, so let me take the front."

  I nodded in approval. It was a logical choice; she was far more durable than us, being the only Drokkar present. Moreover, she possessed the ability to sense the Dark Essence that jinn released from afar and could see creatures invisible to the naked eye due to her helmet.

  As we walked through the hall, each step echoing in the corridor, the air was thick with the pungent smell of rotting flesh and the unmistakable dampness of moss. Insects scattered about the moist cobblestone, their frenetic movements adding a layer of discomfort to the already oppressive atmosphere. For the first time in a while, there was an eerie quiet, broken only by the clank of our boots and armor as we moved slowly forward. It was evident that Lurantis sensed something, and with the deliberate precision of her steps, it had to be something powerful. As we neared Viknesh, even short seconds felt like drawn-out hours.

  In that tense moment, she shifted her stance and braced herself just in time. A sizeable slug-like jinn tunneled through the stone, striking her shield with formidable force. Tavien responded swiftly, releasing arrows in rapid succession at the wicked creature while Nazir managed a barrage of shots. However, the attacks were absorbed by the jinn's muscular form as it began to morph, shifting into a 3-meter-tall bipedal figure.

  "It's an Ehktem! Don't let it grab you, or it could regenerate any harm we cause!" Nazir's urgent warning echoed through the corridor.

  The Ehktem, a grotesque and formidable creature, slammed its arms against Lurantis' shield with brutal force. The impact was seismic, and even someone as robust as Lurantis was gradually being forced backward, her shield groaning under the overwhelming assault. I tightened my grip on my saber and swung it; each blow met with the sensation of cutting through a solid wall of steel despite my enhanced strength and speed.

  Ousmane, lacking the strength-enhancing gauntlets I wore, launched mace attacks that the Ehktem's robust muscles shrugged off. In retaliation, the creature struck back with a devastating blow that sent Ousmane crashing into the wall. The force of impact cracked the stone, and Nazir rushed to his aid, shouting his name in concern.

  I had no time to check on Ousmane's well-being, as the Ehktem's relentless assault demanded my full attention. Every strike felt like a contest against an immovable force, and the corridor echoed with the thunderous clash of weapons, the tortured groaning of stressed metal, and the occasional cries of pain.

  Lurantis thrust her spear deep, burying it just a few inches under the ehktem's grotesque mouth. The creature responded with a gurgled screech, violently jerking its head in all directions. Despite Lurantis's impressive strength, she struggled to maintain her footing against the relentless beast. With a sudden, mind-numbing blast, the Ehktem unleashed a wave of disorienting energy. The innate ability of the Ehktem, not relying on magic but tapping into primal, animalistic advantages, clouded my mind, rendering me oblivious to Lurantis being flung across the hall.

  As the Ehktem approached me, I was barely aware of its intentions before it latched onto me, draining my blood. My shouts and struggles proved futile against its relentless assault. Nazir, usually capable of conjuring the electricity needed to devastate such creatures, was hindered in this antimagic field. The fog in my mind threatened to pull me into unconsciousness, but the grim reality kept me fighting. Desperation led my hand to my quiver, and I plunged an arrow through the creature's tongue. Yet, it refused to let go. In a desperate frenzy, I stabbed repeatedly, only finding relief when Lurantis leaped onto the Ehktem's back, tearing its face apart with an enchanted kukri. It screeched, allowing Tavien to seize the opportunity and release an arrow that tore off its tongue.

  With my saber in hand, I swung at its head, the blade burying halfway through. However, the Ehktem retaliated by hurling Lurantis at me before retreating. The weight of both Lurantis and the leech parasites draining my strength made it difficult to respond. Lurantis lay immobile, and I couldn't aid her until I got her off me and dealt with these leeches before they sucked the life out of us.

  Thankfully, Tavien emerged unscathed and swiftly pulled Lurantis off me. As he removed her armor, he meticulously plucked out the leeches that clung to her. I followed suit, crushing the vile creatures under my boot before their paralytic saliva could take its toll. These leech jinn, sinister parasites, drained the life force slowly, withering their victims until their bodies dried up. Their poison prevented weaker beings from mounting any resistance. The Ehktem had managed to slip away, but its respite would be short-lived—we were determined to vanquish both it and Viknesh.

  In the aftermath, I retrieved a bottle of oil from my bag—a potent healing tonic crafted with special herbs and imbued with Essence to hasten the mending of wounds. As I poured the soothing elixir over my injuries, the scent of medicinal herbs filled the air, providing a momentary reprieve from the stench of death that lingered in the corridor. The Healing Essence seeped into our wounds, knitting flesh and bone with an agonizing burn that felt like thousands of needles pierced my flesh.

  "Everyone who needs it, use this. We need to be at full strength to fight the undead dragon, especially if the Ehktem returns," I declared, extending the healing tonic.

  "Ugh, I really hate those things. Give me some of that," Lurantis grumbled, reaching for the tonic.

  "I think I injured my brain," Ousmane complained.

  "That would be impossible, my friend. You would first need a brain for it to be hurt," Nazir teased.

  "What's taking you guys so long?" came a voice from behind. I turned to face the speaker and saw none other than Z'albor.

  "How did you get here?" I inquired.

  "What do you mean, I simply teleported. I do that often."

  "But how did you get past Nazir's shield?"

  "What shield? I didn't see a..." he paused momentarily and let out a prideful grin. "Ah, I sense it now. It's a suitable barrier for a human. I commend you, Nazir."

  "Thank you, Archmagus," Nazir responded.

  "In the end, the barrier can only hold those close to the same power range as Nazir. Despite my age, if I had not performed my rituals, I would have had no chance to get through this barrier. However, I have the might of a powerful Deva, several thousand years old, and the might of my friend Hamza, and..." he paused again, the smile fading from his face as he took on a more stern and stoic visage. "And I have the might of a corpselord. My blessings and curses make the difference between me and Nazir. Now, I want you all to wait here; I will handle the rest."

  I usually did not like being told what to do, but having narrowly escaped death multiple times today, I decided to shut up and follow the lead of this infidel. In a situation like this, having him on our side was far better than the alternative.