Necromancer Chronicles

Authors Note: Book four of the necromancer chronicles titled Warlock's Sacrifice. If you haven't read the posts in order, this won't make as much sense. Although it can stand alone, I don't go over a lot of info and facts you should have from the first three books. Lastly, copyright is still in effect from post one of this contiguous story, hope you enjoy it.

This book is about Jeremy, Bell, and another character from the previous books that I didn't name and had a very short part but the character kind of grew in my mind. After all, it's the necromancer chronicles... It has to have a necromancer in it.

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Chapter 1 - Jeremy

Damned humans... The warehouse I had ducked into to lose my pursuers was possibly the stupidest thing I'd ever done. There were pipes, bricks, and other junk flying around trying to flush me out while I huddled behind this low cement wall. I was shielded from their blasted mind powers, but not against the physical, I didn't really have the energy for both right now. It was just a matter of time before they found me.

"Where are you hiding warlock. I wonder where your demoness could be at."

I frowned. We had arrived in this city hoping for a little peace before we had to move on. The world had changed greatly since humanity had claimed its magic. Some was for the better, and some for the worse. For a few years I'd lived in peace in Chicago and made actual friends with many of the supernaturals in that city thanks to Hope and her family. Then one of the dumber and crueler warlocks had gotten caught sacrificing humans for power.

Most humans realized the truth, not all of us were like that. If I was honest with myself however, I knew most warlocks were. It was a plain fact that outside of demon summoning and certain offensive spells most warlock abilities and powers came from two sources. One was power sharing when a summoned and bonded demon snacked down on a soul during sex, the power was shared between the demon and warlock. The second way was human sacrifice.

I was something of an oddity, I never sought sacrifices. I stayed away from the second way except in special circumstances. Sacrificing in self defense probably sounds like a weak defense, or perhaps the objections of a psychopath, but there it is. I had no compulsions about putting my sacrificial knife in the heart of someone trying to kill me.

If I had, I'd be dead by now; it was the only way I could heal. That was the one exception to the two kinds of energy. I could do most things with either, but healing required sacrifice, a trade, a life for a life.

As far as the first, that sounded a lot worse than it was. Souls always recovered after a couple of weeks, even faster now that the humans had magic. I didn't see what the big objection was, sex with a demon was said to be better than any drug and worth the temporary affects. Now that humans had magic they even were aware of what Bell was. Sometimes there were problems, but unsurprisingly enough she hardly ever had trouble finding a willing meal.

Point was, there was a growing group of humans that took a perverse amount of pleasure in hunting warlocks down, and I was currently in deep crap with two of them. Luckily they were relatively few in number, if they had all been hunting me this would have been over a long time ago.

When the movement first started, the community had promised me I was safe, they would stand with me. And they did. I chose to leave when those very people started dying, I didn't need that on my conscious. They were my friends, I'd be damned if I'd watched them die in my place.

There really was no permanent escape either, not with them being able to distance view and find me wherever I went, so I had started globe hopping. At least humans couldn't teleport, and it gave me a couple of days of peace before I had to move on again. We had only been here a few hours; Bell had gone out to... eat. I wasn't even sure where I was, somewhere in Germany I think.

I was also worried about what he's just said; I'd called for Bell twice but so far no answer. I could still feel our bond, but something was keeping her from responding. I had enough power to paralyze someone, or toss them across the room. I could also crush their body to paste, call down lightning, or simply hold them still while I ran. Problem was, none of those abilities or the myriad others I had could get through a human's shield.

My dagger could get through their shields, but it would take a second. It was designed to absorb magic. The trick was I couldn't get close without being seen, it was only my mind that was hidden. A human's telekinesis, or TK, could turn me into paste before I got close. Even if I managed to get one of them that way, the other would kill me.

A warlock's strength really rested with their bonded demon, or demoness. And Bell was missing in action, sort of. I could feel her to the east about a mile away but our mental connection seemed weak. Normally we'd be able to exchange thoughts through the bond, but not right now. Most warlocks enslaved their demons. I had taken a different route, more of a business arrangement.

She got to hunt for energy; I got a share of it for bringing her here. There were both advantages and disadvantages to the way I'd done it. But what I hadn't imagined was that I'd ever care for her, or become friends with a demon. It was ironic but even though I was pretty well screwed here I was more worried about her right now.

I could hear them get closer and I muttered a few words under my breath and disappeared from view. Ironically their own noise as they searched for me covered my muttered words. I wasn't truly invisible, or I'd try and escape. It was more an illusion, if someone peaked into my hiding spot all they would see was empty floor.

I heard one whisper, "He's still here somewhere. He must be here somewhere, fucking roach is hiding."

I suppressed a growl, it was bad enough I was hiding, I hated it, but unless I wanted to die I didn't really have a choice right now.

The other said, "Well we need to find him, that witch we hired said she couldn't hold the demon for long."

Fuck, of course. She's stuck in a circle. How the hell did she fall for that? I considered it for a moment and pushed the rest of the magic I had remaining through the link between us. Now the question was would that help her break free before these assholes found me?

I held my breath and looked up as one of them walked around the wall and looked at the floor. He lifted a hand and a pipe flew around the corner and toward me. I rolled to the side and it missed, but I cringed at the sound of my movement. I saw his eyes narrow as if he were trying to see through the illusion, but of course he couldn't.

I lunged up out of the illusion with my knife leading. My knife stopped at his glowing green shield but I could feel it already drawing his power. I didn't stop and continued my lunging tackle and took him down. Before his back hit the ground, my dagger broke his shield and slid between his ribs and into his heart, where the magic was generated.

He died with a low gurgle and we were now both covered by my illusion. I held back a hysterical laugh, they shouldn't have split up, but I'd take it.

I'd have gotten more power if I'd done it in a ritual, with a circle to prevent any magic from escaping, but as I'd indicated earlier, I didn't do that sort of thing. Self defense sacrifices only. And it was enough. I felt my waning power fill and routed some of it into amulets. One that would heal me, the one that shielded my mind from others, and the other to hold the overflow of magic my own core couldn't contain, kind of like charging a battery for later use.

One of these days I'd carve an amulet to protect from physical harm, but for now I had to use a spell when I had the juice for it. It would take a long time to do right, and my life has been a nightmare of running for a long time now.

"Are you okay?" Bell's sweet toned voice entered my mind.

I felt a huge surge of relief as I heard her voice. It was always startling how much Bell seemed to care about me. She sounded truly worried, and she had saved my life more than once without me needing to ask.

I replied, "Got one, the other is still searching."

I felt her grim smile and she said in a hard voice, "I'll be there in a minute. I'm almost done with this witch."

I winced. What some people didn't know was sex wasn't the only way a demon could take part of a human's soul. The other way was rather unpleasant, and ended in death. Sex was their preferred method; it was enjoyable for both partners. Also, killing someone for it would thin the herd; the soul was a renewable resource, so they didn't really do it unless it was necessary.

I felt more energy flow through our link, my portion of the witch's soul, and I sent it all to my amulet. By the time the stream was finished I sensed her presence move to the warehouse. I grimly smiled as I heard the man's scream. A few humans might be a danger to Bell, but not one.

I stood up as I heard the clatter of all the flying debris fall to the floor. Bell was dropping the dead body to the ground. She looked perfect, not a hair out of place. She was timeless. She had long raven black hair, dark brown eyes, and a body built for sin, literally. She exuded a sex appeal that was undeniable. I returned her smile and she blushed rosily.

"Sorry about that Jeremy, I can't believe that witch got the drop on me."

We were close friends I reminded myself. I did that often in fact. She was ageless, and I was closing in on thirty. I had considered many times trying to change the nature of our relationship, but I honestly couldn't see how it would work. Sometimes though she gave me a look of caring so obvious I felt foolish about it.

Plus there was the whole eating my soul part during sex, if I did go there our... activities would be extremely limited. There was also the link, I wasn't sure how that would factor in if we slept together either. Lastly, I really wasn't sure I'd be able to handle the way she fed if I let myself fall for her. I was very careful to suppress the jealousy I already felt as it was, after all, it was the reason she was here.

"What?" she asked, kicking me out of my wandering thoughts.

I shook my head breaking eye contact, "Any idea how they found us so fast?"

She shrugged, "Local chapter? I don't know, I just know warlocks are becoming a lot rarer."

I nodded, "Should we just stay then a couple of days?"

I figured if we took out the local ones it would take time for the other warlock hunters to get here. I also felt a little guilty, when we'd first made the contract humans had no magic, and were rather clueless. It had been a safe feeding ground for her. Sure, we had to dodge other supernaturals. Warlocks weren't exactly welcomed by sorcerers, shifters, or witches for the most part either. But it had been much safer regardless. About the only more hated group had been necromancers.

Whenever I brought up the idea of letting her go home though, where it was safe, she rejected the idea out of hand.

She nodded thoughtfully, "Sure, let's get out of here though. After the witch I won't need to feed for a while, I took most of her soul before allowing her to pass on."

Another side effect to always being on the run was that it prevented me from finding a real job. I didn't even have to ask as Bell surrounded us both with shadows and we disappeared from the warehouse and appeared in a living room. There were leather couches, hard wood floors, a large television, and bay windows facing the street.

Bell said in a matter of fact voice, "The witch lived alone, and she was doing quite well for herself. The coven she belongs to won't miss her for a week until their next gathering, so we should be fine here until we move on."

I nodded and walked around the house. There was a full kitchen and plenty of groceries. Bell didn't really have to eat, but she enjoyed the experience of it. When Bell fed on a soul she got quite a bit of information as well. It wasn't something we let get spread around though, I imagined less men, and women, would be willing to sleep with her if they knew she'd walk away with all their banking information. Not to even mention all the skeletons in their closets.

While I whipped up a dinner, she was logging on the women's computer and initiating a number of bank transfers. I didn't really like being a thief, but I did what I had to survive. At least I only stole from the people that tried to kill us. Those men I spoke of earlier were quite safe, and what they didn't know actually wouldn't hurt them in this case.

Bell walked in with a smile, "You up for a night out?"

I replied absently as I put dinner in the oven, "Sure, that sounds good, what did you have in mind?"

She replied, "Drinks, live music, dancing? I need a break from hunting, both those after us and mine."

I nodded and turned to her, "It does wear after a while doesn't it? Did you have a place in mind?"

She grinned, "Sure, how about Milan, we'll give them whiplash when we come back here at the end of the night."

I smiled at her excitement, "Anything you want. After all, you're driving."

She snorted, "When will that be ready?"

I looked at the clock; it was already close to eight, "About forty minutes."

She said, "I'm going to get ready now then, we'll go after dinner."

I heard her head upstairs and the shower turned on. I grunted, she'd be gorgeous beyond belief in a paper sack, I had a feeling getting ready meant irresistibly sexy. It was going to be a fun, but very long night...

Chapter 2 - Katrina

Celane stood their patiently. There was no other way for her to do anything of course, she was my slave. One of the fae I had bound to my will a few years back and the only one I bothered even conversing with. She was a step above a simple zombie, as a revenant she had limited choices and full access to her fae magic. I was curious what she had to say, but I was focused on my workout.

I was jogging on the treadmill; I didn't get out all that much, at least, not in my own body. I usually chose to inhabit one of my liches when I started to feel stir crazy. But I needed to stay in shape. Despite taking care, going out was just too dangerous. My entire home was protected, as were my minions, from both far seeing and mental searches thanks to the fae I'd acquired. The question was what were the hunters doing here if they couldn't find me?

I sighed as the treadmill's timer went off and started to slow and asked, "What's your report?"

Celane said, "The two hunters are dead, they may have come here looking for you, but a warlock and his demon showed up and they went after them."

I pondered that for a second. I knew the idiotic human hunters went after warlocks as well as necromancers, but I'd never really given it much thought before.

I asked curiously, "Are they still here?"

She nodded, so I reached out and put a ghost to watching them. Before human magic I would have confronted them about being in my city, but those days were over. Now the best I could do was keep a low profile. I had a large number of revenants consisting of fifteen fae, two witches, and a sorcerer. I also controlled close to forty vampires, two of which I had turned into liches.

I also had twenty empty shell zombies to keep things running around the place, and close to two hundred ghosts to keep an eye out for threats around the city. It may be ironic being surrounded by so many beings, but I was often lonely.

I may have been a necromancer, but I didn't go around collecting every supernatural that died either. Still, I wasn't as foolishly high minded as that irritating Hope. All the ones I had taken over had at one point or another attacked me and tried to kill me. They got what they deserved, and now they ensured my protection, letting them go would be weak and foolish. But ultimately they weren't good company for that very reason, they were forced to serve.

Celane was about the only one that I didn't get hostile vibes from, which is the reason she was here. I wasn't sure why, but more often than not I felt both amusement and resignation through our bond. I could force her to tell me why, but I hesitated to do so, she might start hating me too if I did that. I used to have my hatred to keep me company, but lately... it hasn't been enough.

The vampires, my sorcerer Neal, and the two witches Neda and Fran were my oldest. They were the first I had taken. I was just sixteen when they attacked and turned my life upside down, when I got my revenge and took over the city, and now they served me. Yet, all that was six years ago. My rage had longed cooled at the loss of my parents and since then my grief as well.

Although the fae were more recent, that threat wasn't personal, they were trying to destroy the whole world, not just kill me and my family. Still, I had grabbed them at the time with the intentions that they could protect me from other fae if they showed up. Ironically I was now using them to protect against the very people I was saving when I took them to begin with. Humans...

I hated these walls; I was going to go crazy sooner or later if something didn't change.

My ghost reported back my visitors were going to Milan to go dancing, and then they'd be back. I bit my lip in consideration, the human hunters were out of hand, perhaps I could find an ally in those who were also hunted. Surely they would appreciate what I could give them, hiding them from the hunter's sight would be simple for me with my fae. A warlock and demon would come in handy as well as allies for me; they would open up more possibilities. We may even be able to fight back. But could I trust them?

I considered that long and hard, it was true they would be useful allies, but I wondered if I was just searching for excuses to reach out and make a connection to someone I didn't own. In short, was I just lonely?

I shrugged. Did it matter? If they betrayed me I'd just have another couple of slaves. Either that or I'd be dead...

"Celane, I need a portal to Milan, make it happen."

I also sent a few ghosts there, to find the warlock when they transported there. Even a ghost can't keep up with a teleport. The fae were handy in more ways than one. Intra-realm portals were much easier than crossing worlds, I had a room dedicated to it along with four fae would could adjust the target spot at need.

It wasn't as convenient as teleportation though, I'd need to return home from the same spot I arrived at. I also couldn't go directly between two other places, I'd have to come home, and then have them aim it at the new destination which took a few minutes... Still it opened up possibilities for me, not least of all an escape plan.

Celane replied respectfully, "At once mistress, are you going in person?"

I thought about it and shook my head, "No, I'll take Katie."

I wouldn't risk my true self on a first meeting, especially not on a whim because I was lonely. Katie was one of my liches. She was five foot eight with light blonde hair, green eyes and a shapely body. She also looked my age, twenty two, and was more appropriate for clubbing and had a nice girl vibe and a pleasing voice.

My other lich, Allie, was just about eighteen when she had been turned vampire. She had a major Goth look, piercings, black clothing. She also had the perfect voice for confrontations. I usually wore her when I needed to go kick some ass.

The really ironic part of all that is Allie's personality is sweet and generous, although she hates me. I can't really blame her, but still, her fault for attacking a child and helping to kill my parents. It had occurred to me that she was under orders from her master vampire, and maybe I would let her go someday, but although I wasn't living on rage these days I was long way from forgiving. The catch though was once a lich, always a lich. I could never sever that bond, only the enslavement bond.