Deus Necros

The transformation began with a faint crackle, like dry bark splitting. The wood darkened in fast waves, mold blooming across surfaces as if painted by invisible hands. Nails loosened, beams sagged, and the smell of rot rose thick and sudden, making Redd wrinkle his nose. Dust poured down in soft curtains, the hut collapsing into its own history in the space of breaths, turning cozy structure into brittle ruin and then into nothing.

Around them, the forest became more lush and thick; the voices of animals finally echoed, and life itself, which seemed to have been frozen, returned.

Green surged outward like it had been held back by force. Leaves thickened overhead, branches knitting together into a canopy that swallowed light in a natural way rather than an oppressive one.

Birds called, sharp, lively, and insects stirred in the undergrowth. The air filled with damp earth, sap, and the faint sweetness of growing things, and the return of ordinary sound felt strange after so long surrounded by death-river silence.

It was the effect of her Spatio Temporal lock being dismantled. The only way she could remain in this world was by stopping time and space from moving in this forest.

“LUDWIG!” A loud echo sounded from inside Ludwig’s pocket. It was the voice of someone familiar. The shout cut through the forest’s new life like a thrown stone. Ludwig’s hand went to his pocket immediately, fast enough that Tull’s attention snapped to him, and Redd’s ears lifted, alert.

He pulled out a communication crystal and revealed the speaker. It was Celine. She seemed to have been worried for him.

Celine’s face appeared with the abrupt clarity of the crystal’s glow, eyes bright with frustration and relief knotted together. Behind her, shapes hinted at stone and open space, the background shifting as if she was moving, unwilling to stay still long enough to calm.

“Where the hell have you been all this time? You didn’t even call! I finally got your signal.”

Her voice came out sharp, but the tightness around her eyes betrayed her. Her tone carried time spent searching, and the anger sounded like it had been rehearsed to keep fear from slipping into her voice.

“We were stuck in the sand kingdom; there was no signal there,” Ludwig replied.

He answered evenly, as if he didn’t want to give the panic any room to breathe. His gaze flicked once toward the tree line, then back to the crystal, as if even here he expected trouble to arrive uninvited.

“Is that Alexander?” she asked.

Celine’s eyes shifted past Ludwig’s shoulder, focus tightening instantly, her expression changing like a lock clicking into place.

“Oh, yeah, that’s him,” Ludwig said.

Alex lifted his hand in a polite, restrained wave, the gesture calm enough to look practiced. Even exhausted, he managed to carry the quiet composure of someone raised under constant scrutiny.

“Did you kidnap the prince?” The question dropped without cushioning, blunt as a thrown knife.

“Do I look like someone who’d do that?” he tilted his head.

Ludwig’s expression held offended amusement, his head tilt slow and deliberately, as if presenting himself as evidence. The snark was restrained, but it was there, the sort that suggested he’d been accused of worse and survived it.

She didn’t reply, and that meant that yes, she believed he would.

The silence stretched just long enough to sting. Redd’s mouth twitched as if trying not to laugh, and Tull’s expression tightened with the faintest, unwilling agreement.

“No, he’s with me, we were doing something. Anyway, what’s up? Looks like you’re outside the academy.” Ludwig pushed past it before it could grow teeth. His eyes narrowed at what he saw behind her, recognition settling into irritation the moment the academy entered the conversation.

“Yeah, I’m headed to Solania. There’s a big problem going on right now,” she said.

Celine’s voice dropped into seriousness, the earlier anger flattening into urgency. The movement in her background suggested she was already in motion, unwilling to waste a second.

“Tell me, what’s going on?” Ludwig asked.

His tone sharpened, the casualness evaporating. Even his posture changed, still, listening, like a man bracing for bad news he already smelled coming.

“The Dark Continent, there is a wave attacking right now, all the Tower Masters have been drafted, even Van Dijk is there. Seems like the attack is something too big to be ignored this time.”

The words landed one after another like weights. For even his master to be ordered around, these statements were too big to be ignored. Tull’s eyes narrowed at the mention, and Alex’s expression shifted, the name “Dark Continent” carrying implications even without explanation. And those two seemed to know more than the rest…

“I’ll head there soon, then,” Ludwig replied.

The response came too fast, reflexive, the kind of decision made before the consequences fully arranged themselves in the mind.

“No,” she shook her head, “Van Dijk has a mission for you.” She said.

The refusal was firm, and the head shake made it final. Celine’s eyes held Ludwig’s as if daring him to argue.

“What is it?” Ludwig asked.

His jaw tightened slightly, impatience flickering. If people were dying, being redirected better have a damn good reason.

“You’ll need to head to the Tower of Trials. There isn’t much time left for it to close. He said you’ll need to gain some experience there.”

The tower was mentioned again, and now it became more of a point of interest than a rumor in Ludwig’s ears.

“More experience than killing the Envious Death?” Ludwig grinned. The smile was thin, not friendly, more like a challenge tossed at the idea itself. Redd’s ears perked at the name, and Tull’s gaze sharpened, catching the detail like a hook.

“What? You killed another one?” Celine’s shock cracked through the crystal, eyes widening, voice lifting.

“Yeah, wasn’t easy. But what is this Tower of Trails?” Ludwig asked.

He didn’t dwell on her reaction. He pushed forward, hungry for the rules, the details, the cost, anything that made the mission something he could prepare for rather than endure blind. He needed information, and only she could provide.

“You’ll receive all the information you need once you get to the Black Tower Academy. The Dean is waiting for you there.” The mention of the Dean changed Ludwig’s expression immediately, like a bad taste in the mouth. Even the forest seemed quieter for a moment, as if the name carried its own unpleasant gravity.

“Ah…” Ludwig didn’t enjoy that; he wasn’t a fan of the Dean ever since he set foot in the academy, and especially when the Dean kicked him out without defending him even once.

His annoyance wasn’t loud; it was settled, old, and stubborn. The kind that didn’t fade with time, only fermented.

“Fine, I’ll head there,” Ludwig said. The agreement came clipped, forced through reluctance, as if he were swallowing his pride because necessity demanded it. And it was a request from his master.

“Wait, there is something you should know…” she said.

Celine’s tone shifted again, caution edging into it, the kind of caution that meant she expected the information to draw blood.

“What is it?” Ludwig asked.

His eyes narrowed, attention tightening, body still.

“Joana found out the location of Sebas and Evan. They’re working with one of Necros’s Former apostles…”