Western Brisshal The Dreadfleet

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"It would seem the logging process has been going smoothly, from what we gather the resins required to keep up with the project are a touch more problematic to manufacture, we may have to outsource that." It was a report given by an undead, wearing a long noble coat and a fine hat on it's head. Gloved hands poured through pages of a notebook running numbers and going over trade values as he reported back with progress on a big project. Of course the undead in question wasn't a simple skeleton, instead with blackened skin on it's head, and only a porcelain mask for a face, the man floated with no legs below the knee, instead levitating as fog wafted down from his coat as he paced while making his report as concisely as possible.

"On my side security is fine. We've pulled back our security to point B to tighten the net. We've corded off the site with Paladins stationed around within sight of each other. I don't think there's anything to be worried about, business as usual when on alert." The second report came from an Elven woman covered in thin and graceful heavy armor. Despite being thickly protected, she didn't have any problem casually gesturing as if the armor simply weighed nothing. Though her grey skin and red pupil-less eyes made her identity as an undead as clear as the floating Wraith King before her, she was much more solid and at least could pass as living at a glance.

The meeting was taking place in a large clearing, a noble woman's tent not far from the table they were discussing around. Despite all being at the table though, while the Wraith King paced and the Wight Queen stood in heavy armor, only one person sat, cup in hand, taking casual sips from a cup of coffee while she heard each report out. The woman unlike the rest was very much alive, and anyone with investigation mode would know she was a player. Lucia glanced from one undead to the other as she exhaled the steam from her coffee as she nodded along as they spoke. "Alright... I suppose all we can do is start trying to buy resins externally. We just have to solve the issue of the lack of corpses now... This's been a costly venture, I can only hope Morgana rises to the same level as you both by the end of it." Lucia commented with a burdened breath. All of this work had been for one of her undead, one of the higher level ones, trying to fix and grow undead was always a costly process, this time would be no different.

Of course, even as Lucia and her two most trusted subordinates discussed the progress of the process, wood was still being chopped nearby by teams of skeletons. The lowest tier of undead just mindlessly cutting, carving and refining wood into lumber and planks for work before dragging them to a large pile of messily piled materials. The Resins from the trees being drained and managed the best they could before plopping those jars and bags down as well. The most unusual of which were the teams of occasional teams of knights who would be seen dragging in corpses of goblins or kobalds and throwing their bleeding remains onto the materials as well. For Lucia it wasn't unusual but the grizzly sight of corpses being piled among building materials would be unsettling for some.

@Herrscher
 
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The Shadow Reaper


While in the region of Western Brisshal, Herrscher would practice her ability to "Shadow Jump." It involves her diving into the shadow of something and appearing out of another. So far, she has only been able to travel short distances. But at some point, she believes that she will be able to master the skill and cover larger distances.

While being the clueless person that she is, she had accidentally ended up finding herself in an area infested with undead. Noticing them, she stayed by the shadows and tried to find a way out. Unfortunately, she had only moved herself deeper and deeper into foreign territory, eventually arriving at this clearing where a tent was erected.

"Uhm... Sh-Should I be here...? I mean no harm!"



Just as Lucia finished listening to her undead followers' reports, she could hear someone's voice not too far from where she was. With her keen perception, she would eventually find this young woman standing by a nearby tree. The woman did not really look like an assassin but she somehow managed to pass the Animancer's security and place herself within the camp. She wears a black dress. Underneath, she had a white suit which included a bow and tie. She also wears these boots that reach her knees. Finally—and her most notable piece of accessory—she had a black leather eye patch that covered her right eye.



@Lucia Mierz
 
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The guest was different, but not necessarily unwelcomed. Her security after all was quite tight, if someone wasn't allowed in even if they made an effort to transition through some type of teleportation or alternative means of travel, there were still the wraiths and specters out there under the Wraith King's guidance to stop trouble. The open door policy however, applied to any recognized as a player, that naturally included Herr whom her summons could differentiate from her status.

It was why when she appeared, the noble floating Wraith King was the first to turn his head in her direction, followed by the knight woman when she poked out from her hiding place. Lucia on the other hand, perhaps the last to notice purely because she wasn't as much of an investigator or roguish type herself only sipped a bit more of her coffee before beckoning for the girl to join her. "It's alright dear, my people won't stop a player from coming in, as long as no one's attacking them needlessly." Lucia chuckled a little at the girl's anxiety, offering a charming smile and a welcoming atmosphere one might not expect from a Necromancer.

"If you're this unfamiliar with the terrain though, you must be new here mm?" she offered with a small nod, as if it were the explanation for why the girl seemed so lost and unaware of where she was. At least, as far as Lucia was aware most of the veterans from before the game closed knew her camp could be found at one of three locations at least. This just happened to be one of them that the woman wandered into during their project.

@Herrscher
 
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The Shadow Reaper


When Herrscher steps out in the open, she is immediately greeted by the gaze of Lucia's undead followers—the floating Wraith King and the female knight. This brought her to act cautiously. One wrong move and she could find herself in a lot of trouble. It is also apparent that they knew she was coming hence their calm acknowledgement. As much as it eradicates the factor of upsetting the camp's residence by trespassing, it shows just how powerful they were as undead spawns.

Lucia's presence gave the young Shadowmancer a mix of emotions. She felt intimidated, nervous, timid, curious, and etc. Herrscher jumbled all of these emotions and eventually puts them aside. She needs to calm down. With a heavy to compose herself, she proceeds to speak in a more proper manner. No longer stuttering or showing clear signs of anxiety.

"I am relieved to hear that. You are also correct in assuming that I am new."



It has been a few weeks now since Herrscher logged into Terrasphere for the first time. She has an idea to how the game works thanks to first hand experience and the stories of others. Still though, she struggles to be independant.

"My name is Herrscher. Would it be possible to learn your name? Perhaps even your reason for setting all of this up?"



Herrscher gulps before asking her about a few things. She wasn't exactly sure if she was in the right position to ask someone as powerful as Lucia questions just because she is curious. However, she could not help herself. Meetings like this always made the inexperienced Shadowmancer want to learn. Especially if they are a player that just so happens to use a similar form of magic like hers—or gameplay rather.



@Lucia Mierz
 
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The girl seemed like a dear caught in headlights. A little unsure of her thoughts, Lucia tried to offer her a seat at the table with her using a gentle hand gesture. "It's alright, there's nothing wrong with being new. The only reason I ask is because most of the veterans are pretty used to me and how I work. The worried and shy ones are usually new to the game." Lucia explained, it wasn't as if she were psychic after all. She learned a lot about her surroundings thanks to Astramancy sneaking up on her was incredibly difficult but that didn't mean she was a mind reader. It was all just educated guesses and a lack of familiarity.

When she was welcomed in though, the Wraith King was the one to set down a second chair for her and ensure she was comfortably seated. The steward was as accommodating as possible when it was clear Lucia didn't have any opposition to the woman. When asked why she set everything up though, Lucia shrugged her shoulders in thought. "Mm, it's a bit of a long story. The relevant parts I guess, I wanted to build an undead kingdom, but trying to produce such a thing from scratch takes a lot of effort. You don't just build a castle and call yourself a queen after all-- not that my goal was ever becoming one either. This is just the beginning, you could say. I've developed a population, a culture, some methods of growth. Some wouldn't call it a kingdom but it's a work in progress." Lucia offered as if it weren't a big deal.

As for who would one day be leading her kingdom, it certainly wouldn't be her. For now she was the leader purely because she hadn't found a proper successor to try and crown, the time also wasn't quite right either. She'd keep leading up until the point that things stabilized and a proper undead queen or king could inherit that crown from her. "My name is Lucia Mierz though, Priestess, though I like to think of myself as a Saintess." Lucia chuckled at her moniker.

@Herrscher
 
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The Shadow Reaper


As Lucia clears things up, Herrscher is feeling more and more relaxed. Eventually, she is offered a seat which she shortly occupies thanks to the assistance of one of Lucia's undead followers. It is clear that Lucia has been here for a long time or at least played so much, she reached peak or near peak power. All was impressive to Herrscher—from all the undead workers outside the camp to the Necromancer's hospitality. Though what really caught her attention was Lucia's answer to her question.

Building an army was one thing. Building a whole kingdom is another. Lucia wishes to do both which sounds like a very tasking feat. Though deep down, Herrscher wanted to do the same thing for her own reasons. Though knowing that dark magic is not exactly accepted in the major populace, she is afraid of what sort of troubles she might've encountered or will encounter eventually once her task is done.

"That's incredible... I-I actually wanted to do something similar. I doubt I am able to build something as great as this but I wish to conjure enough followers to establish some sort of... safe haven. For the people that were left behind or players that simply want to feel safe."



A part of Herrscher felt nervous as she explains her own reasoning as to why she wanted to build up her own army and "kingdom." It might sound like a poor idea to the experienced Necromancer. Maybe she can learn one thing or two about how to do all this. After all, not only is Herrscher new to MMOs but also to kingdom building related content.



@Lucia Mierz
 
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Lucia chuckled and nodded along in understanding. Even as they talked, the Wraith King, noticing where things were headed, turned to prepare for a guest that might be staying for a long talk it seemed. Pouring and setting down a cup of coffee for the girl, the Steward even began setting down a platter, retrieving a blade from his lapel to start carving fruits and other items with deft hands. Though unlike the Wraith, the Armored undead Elf, grabbed a seat of her own, turning it around to sit and lean forward against the back while Lucia spoke to the new comer. As if all of their work would briefly pause until Lucia was ready to continue.

"Mm, we have the same goal then. My thoughts were a place for the living and undead to mingle, for more frowned upon things to be accepted and practiced in safety. It's more dangerous in my opinion to consider things taboo and push them to dark dirty basements and alleys rather then create a scholarly manner of safely peeking into things methodically under supervision." Lucia tried to explain her philosophy on it. Though in her mind no power was inherently bad or good, they simply ran on different types of fuels. "I don't really have any intentions of being a queen though, in my heart I believe an undead kingdom should be governed by undead, once I find a qualified successor, I'll likely retire from leadership roles to play a part of a moral advisor." Lucia tried to explain her lack of ambitions.

Even if she was one of the more prolific necromancers among the players, Lucia wasn't one who wanted fame or authority. Provided there was an undead with the potential to lead properly with a finely tuned moral compass, Lucia would be satisfied with a more modest role of a spiritual guide suiting her Priestess class. "An important part of summoning in large numbers however is fuel efficiency dear. If you can't solve this problem I'm afraid you'll struggle to provide a place for more then a handful of creatures." Lucia offered, it was the biggest weakness of summoners, one that she invested a lot of resources into solving.

@Herrscher
 
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The Shadow Reaper


Now served a cup of coffee, Herrscher looks to Lucia's follower and shoots them a nod of thanks. Shortly, her attention is brought back to the Necromancer. There, she learns more about her purpose here. And all the things she said were very admirable. In the eyes of Herrscher at least. She too wants to form a place where people can get along. Though as she expected, Lucia was so many steps ahead of her when it comes to these sorts of things. Lucia's experience shining onto her in just one conversation.

"Wow... You thought of doing all that? But how? I-If you don't mind me asking, what inspired you to do all this?"


"Fuel efficiency... I never thought about that... I just remembered that these summons require mana and I can't exactly afford to maintain hundreds of undead creatures.. Not even ten at this stage. Haah... I have a long way to go."



Herrscher drops head, clicking her tongue in annoyance as she rubs the back of her head. Like her previous encounter with Kaede, she too missed out on important things when it comes to be both a player and a leader of sorts. To carry so many responsibilities and to come up fine plans is going to be difficult for the young Shadowmancer.



@Lucia Mierz
 
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When asked how, Lucia's smile softened. It was like looking at a younger version of herself, though perhaps a bit sweeter and less regal in personality, even at her weakest, Lucia tried to maintain a certain sense of dignity in those early days. While Lucia was lost in nostalgia though, the Wight Queen hearing the words also smiled, placing an armored hand reassuringly on Lucia's shoulder, causing the woman to briefly exchange a glance before continuing. "I began in this game as an archer with curse magic, I thought only of fancy cursed arrows and trying to fight and be strong. I was a bit greedy though, and didn't really want to pay my way with an inn so I took advantage of the kindness of some churches to sleep since I didn't want to log out." She explained, they were nostalgic memories even if they weren't necessarily proud ones. "There, I did some kind acts to earn what I ate and where I slept, I learned a lot about Synra, Goddess of Undeath and second chances. If undead can be revived for second chances, they should have intelligence, heart, and spirit to be able to experience that sense of regret, loss and hope after all. Once I started thinking like that, the undead everyone treated like enemies became more sympathetic." She spoke with a small nod.

"Since realizing that, I wanted to canonize them as a player race, I worked hard to try and culture them in hopes that one day the game will recognize my efforts and make them a trusted race like humans or Faerin or Elves. I felt they had the potential and the rights to a chance just like any of us do." She nodded and offered her words and dream with a gentle hand gesture as if hoping the girl would agree with her and be likeminded enough to take up that torch as well, at least passively.

Though hearing that she could do 10, Lucia rolled her head in thought, for a moment flashing a bitter smile. "Hm, 10 huh? I suppose they're probably Tier 1? Unintelligent, almost puppets?" Lucia asked, almost musing. Though when she mentioned trying to become stronger to summon more, Lucia felt she should erase that hope before it has a chance to be harmful for her growth. "Summoning more, perhaps, but if you tried creating a Tier 2 undead, they would cost more energy, and if you try as high as Tier 3 it's even harder. Even then the stronger you become, the stronger your creations, the more they require to move usually. Unless you don't plan on increasing their quality, you won't see much increase in quantity." Lucia tried to teach with a dry smile. It was ambitious to try and summon hundreds of skeletons with one's own powers.

If Herr wanted to ask why Lucia could summon so many, the woman would nod and point upwards towards the sky. "I used Mana once as well, but I'd be drained like a withered leaf if I tried to summon this many with my own power. Instead, I use a small amount of energy to connect them to the stars and then they feed on that energy instead of mine. If you want to achieve quality and quantity, you'll need a method of your own to effectively feed them."

@Herrscher
 
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The Shadow Reaper


Herrscher nods her head slowly every now and then as she acknowledges the things Lucia says. Though the way she started the game interested her. She believed that staying in this game for too long was scary but it seems Lucia is more than willing to remain logged in for so long. Either she was brave or simply crazy.

"You're trying to turn a race to canon? Jeez I... That's amazing. You're trying to accomplish so many great things and here I am just walking around, too puzzled to do anything. I wish I had the courage and intelligence you have."



The Shadowmancer sighs with a friend. Other than feeling sad, she also felt a hint of jealousy. Why couldn't Herrscher be like Lucia? Then again, it was about experience which Lucia clearly has. Herrscher just got the game recently so she still has much more to explore. Maybe on the way in her travels she will find more pieces to create her story.

"My own method... Well, other than mana, these creatures rely on spirits. Or the soul. I just... well, they usually use their own but they do not last long so I end up using my own mana instead if I wish to keep them standing. For the meantime, I let them rest in my shadow domain. Basically they become a part of my shadow so sometimes I get weird looks from the common folk when they spot a glowing eye or two appearing to see what is happening around me."



Herrscher realizes that she would need more power to achieve her goals of building a nation. But her method, though having an idea, seems a bit more controversial and less creative in comparison to the experience Necromancer.



@Lucia Mierz
 
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"To canonize them, yes." She spoke with a chuckle, unsure if the distinction needed correction, but making it just in case. Her goal naturally was to crown Undead as a playable and potentially good-friendly race. For Lucia at least, she had high hopes that if she kept working, the game might recognize their potential for good and allow players to participate in that as they did in others. Of course being complimented so heavily made her a touch bitter. Shaking her head, Lucia tilted her gaze up towards the sky as she took a sip from her cup. "I don't know if I'd call myself intelligent or courageous... At least not courageous. I'm trying to do a lot of things, how successful I'll be though will be another story. I'm sure you'll have your own grand goals, and things you hope to accomplish, people or summons you want to cherish and protect, in that regard we're all in it together." She chuckled sweetly, trying to be modest despite the slim chance of her ambitions becoming a reality.

The talk of relying on spirits or souls Lucia nodded, it was a method she considered and used in the past as well. Though she'd changed to Astramancy after she had to surrender Martial arts with the game patch. "It's a good idea. If you use soul power to keep them active it'll require less of your own power to fuel the process." Lucia nodded in support, glad that others were finding their own way and having their own attachments to undead. The weird looks though was also something she could relate to though. "Those kinds of looks mm? It's why I tend to stay here out of town, taking what I need and trying to refine it myself. My subordinates don't hide quite as well save for maybe Mortimer." She added with a nod glancing to the Wraith King who nodded with her musing as well. For Lucia who's summons she turned loose to act like NPCs and actual citizens she didn't try to unnecessarily conceal or pack them away since she'd desired for them to make their own way.

She was glad for all of Herrscher's work though, seeing likeminded people made Lucia feel like her work was making progress in it's own way. "I'm glad you're doing so well though, try not to worry too much about the small details, you'll get stronger in time. As for being creative or finding means of creating higher Tier undead, I can always lend you some assistance. After all, if you're hoping to create an undead territory, we'd make more progress working together right?" She asked, kind and charming, hoping the girl would be encouraged and supported. Lucia at the very least didn't want her to feel disheartened in the face of such a grand goal.

@Herrscher
 
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