Chapter 4: Brain Pain

It hurt like hell, My brain hurt like hell. I was trying to put control of my skeletons onto one but it's a painful process, at least now I have less pressure on my brain. I had transferred ownership from myself to my first skeleton who I will call from now on 'one' for simplicity. One took two and three under his leadership and it seems like giving him more control has made him smarter or something because I can feel our connection get stronger and that he understands my orders better. After I drink another potion to refuel my mana I get up and start heading forwards, of course, I have my skeletons lead the way. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off though, the deeper I go inside the dungeon I start to feel kinda fuzzy, it was as if somebody is tickling my brain with a feather. But I decided to put that on the back burner for now and we keep going deeper and deeper and we keep destroying lone skeletons along the way but soon we come across a small crowd of them, 6 to be exact.

Without even a moment to think I saw a fireball coming right at me, I doge and so do my skeletons before they engage in battle. I realize that there's a skeleton mage in the middle of the skeletons! I thought it was also a normal skeleton but looking closer its eyes were glowing a wisp of white and It's holding a staff. I mentally command One and make him only attack the mage as I take out my wand and fire a necrotic bolt toward one of the almost broken skeletons and… it heals. "Fuck! I forgot!" I yelled as I realize that obviously necrotic energy heals undead and I start firing necrotic bolts at One, Two, and Three. That was the difference between winning and losing, after a relatively short battle all the opposing skeletons were dead except for 2 nearly broken ones. I sit down cross-legged and start the process of controlling them then giving over control to One. I named these Four and Five.

I healed Four and Five with Necrotic bolts and realize my mana was running low, and because I didn't want to waste all my mana potions I stay sitting and begin to meditate to bring my magic to its peak. It hasn't been long since I actually cast my first spell so the feeling of being empty on mana was relatively new to me. Of course, I haven't forgotten the feeling of my first time filling myself of mana and I realize that mana from potions and mana from the air is different. I write my thoughts down in my grimoire for later and put a reminder in there to study alchemy when I get the time.

For now, I clear my mind and breathe in the mana around me, refining it into a useful substance in my body and separating the impurities in it, and letting that stay in the air. I was tempted to try using those impurities in magic but I was warned in one of my classes that Impure magic was a forbidden art which I thought is Ironic since he's an arch-necromancer. Soon enough I fill my body with magic again and stand up only to realize that there's a mountain of bones around me. "Oh…" I said softly before hunger suddenly struck me. How long was I meditating? This drove me more to research how mana potions work because it should have taken at most an hour to regain all my mana in my body.

I look around and see my skeletons are missing some limbs and decided to fix that with a few necrotic bolts. And watch as bones from the giant pile get added to the skeleton's bodies. And I decided to try making my own undead from the pile. And look through my grimoire, flipping to the page to the relevant subject. The spell was called 'Raise Skeleton' and I started to perform it, it was less a spell and more a ritual. The book said that the more bones the better to make a stronger skeleton so I thought this would be good. I bite into my finger and chant the words as I draw a circle around the large pile of bones with my blood, as I chant I feel my mana seeping out of me as a green mist and enter the pile and slowly bit by bit all my mana was taken from me before I started coughing up blood which turned into more magic and added to the pile. I collapse to my hands and knees as I try to stay conscious and my skin turned pale at a slow pace, blood streaming from my eyes, nose, and ears as well as… other places just as long as it was an opening to the body.

Soon enough though after the blood toll was exacted for the use of excess magic the bones in the pile melt and my body was stained with my own blood as I saw a skeleton take shape. When the process was over I felt a sharp pain in my skull and yell out as the brand was made on the skeleton, the more powerful the skeleton obviously the more painful it was, and adding onto the fact I was weak I could barely even stay conscious so it was much worse and I risked dying here by my own skeleton. Out of all the pain, I stood up shakily "I can't die here" I mutter to myself "Your mine!" I yelled to the skeleton as my second wind came to me and finally, the brand was completed. Immediately after it was completed I felt a huge pressure on my brain and pass out.

When I came to consciousness I found my skeletons standing around me, protecting me from any threat and I see the only one that doesn't have a weapon and stand up, I could barely stand up as the pressure on my brain was commenced even though the connection was weak. I look at my grimoire and read the warning on the spell "why do they put the warnings after the spells?" I say before reading the passage of how novice necromancers should not try a large pile of bones as it would deplete them of their mana reserves and may lead to death "well no shit" I sigh and sit back down. I pop a food pill in my mouth, food pills are small pills that provide a full meal's worth of sustenance. Hard to make but very popular among adventurers and mages alike, even monks love them because sometimes they have to go into meditation for months and have to take them so they don't starve to death.

I read how to de-summon a creature and de-summon the skeleton I made, turning it to dust and finally relieving me of that huge pressure on my brain. I mutter to myself about how stupid that was and took a health potion since I still can barely stand and the color finally returns to my skin. I sigh and keep going deeper until I reach the boss's room, and decide to make a small camp there so I don't go in unprepared. Once Im ready I head in front of the boss room and sigh "here we go" I say before pushing the door open.