3 The importance of being burnished

It was well into the early morning hours when the lich returned. The dripping wet, hooded figured stood ominously on the doorstep like a grim reaper... complete with dead body. "Cerberus, a little help please.." they called from the doorway. Cerberus whined and got up from his warm spot at the fireplace to assist Zion. He quickly took to Zion's side helping them balance.

"Here just take the sleeve and drag the body in. I'll follow right after." Zion said as they dropped the body and clutched their side where a glowing green fluid could be seen oozing out. Cerberus grabbed the sleeve of the dead body and dragged it in. Zion leaned on the counter obviously in pain. "I didn't even have to rob a grave this time. This one I pulled out of the river. It's probably only a few hours old based on the lack of decomposition."

Cerberus barked.

"Why do you always ask that? No I don't know how it happened. My guess is probably drunk driving and hitting something big in the road like a fallen tree. I saw one on my way back." Zion answered slightly annoyed with the question.

Cerberus barked again.

"Really, you're worried about cops when I literally have power over death?"

Cerberus growled and barked.

"Well what do you suggest we do? If I don't start keeping a spare stash in the basement soon we'll keep running into issues like this." Zion hobbled over bracing themselves against the wall, a trail of glowing green fluid dripping all over the floor with each step. "It's not like we're killing them, and it's not like they have any use for these bodies anyway. I consider this recycling. We are helping the environment."

Cerberus returned to sulk by the fireplace.

"Oh c'mon, don't get all salty with me. If you didn't want to deal with dead bodies you shouldn't have become best friends with a necromancer. Now give me a hand here." Zion said forcing themselves to stand up straight their hand still clutching their side. Their normal glowing eyes were starting to flicker as they gestured weakly with their free hand to light all the candles in the room.

Cerberus got up and grabbed a satchel from the wooden roll top desk. Zion took out a special purple glowing vial and placed a few drops on an ink stone. They began to draw a circle with foreign words inside the circumference that started to glow like fire as they chanted under their breath. They drew a star in the center positioning the dead body inside. Then they started counting down from "10" as black flames started to form burning out of the lines of the star and out of Zion's fingertips. "9" chattering and and wails could be heard. "8" the house started to shake. "7" the wind outside began to pick up. "6" the room started to feel cold. "5" red light was blazing outside the circle. "4" all the lit candles started to flicker. "3" a dark fog started to settle. "2" a gate opened up filled with swirling and howling spirits pulling energy in like a vacuum with green flames funneling off of Zion into the gate and a reflection of their soul staring back at them. "1. Nature is cruel but I have stolen the key. Transfer what's mine to the dead vessel I set free." They reached into the gate, grabbed their soul which writhed in their hands, and shoved it into the lifeless body. The body they were in crumpled to ashes as the wandering soul of the body they brought home was pulled into the gate. Then everything that had started from the countdown stopped and there was a calm silence as Zion got up in their new body. They started to laugh "Hahaha what a rush. I swear my soul gets more squirrelly every time I resurrect. It's all like 'no no let me go' and then whoosh this is your brain on magic. Oh goth, the feeling when you turn to ashes too.." They picked up the metal gauntlet that was now lying in a pile of ash, dusted it off with a quick spell and put it on.

Cerberus whimpered.

"Oh come on, you know when they're fresh I have to do a dispel. You don't want me randomly possessed, do you? I know some liches get addicted to them, but I just don't understand it. The last time I was possessed it was the worst trip of my life. I started writing sonnets. It was back in the 1600s so that was really emo then."

Cerberus barked.

"I know every new body changes me a little, that's inevitable. Life itself changes people. Why do you think I wear the metal glove? It's something non living and static that keeps me normal."

Cerberus barked again.

"Normal in a manner of speaking, thanks dictionary police..Hey, who peed on my chair?"

Cerberus pretended to not know anything about it as Zion cleaned it off with another spell and sat down. They mumbled an incantation and pulled a key out of thin air. From there they opened a drawer and pulled out an ornate, burnished metal box that played a very sombre song. A bittersweet smile crept up on their face as they opened it. They took an ancient coin out from it and pressed it against their chest. "Grant me the serenity to cheat death and people I don't really like. Give me the strength to resurrect those who can't that I really do, and the wisdom to know who's a total creep so I don't accidentally teach them anything useful. Amen." With that they put the coin back in the box and it started to glow. Their eyes began to take on the fiery glow they had in the previous body only brighter this time. They closed the box, locked it away and said a spell that made the key disappear. "There we go, all done. I'm hoping the basement will be up and running next week and we can keep some bodies on ice so I don't have to do this last minute find a body business. I mean, look at this one. It's so fall 2008."

Lucky watched from her windowed tunnel flush with the ceiling. She was unnerved by everything she just saw. Had she just made a deal with a devil?