The steady pace of the horse out front pulling the cart created a mesmerizing rhythm. Eisel and Manrin sat on either side of Lily – their luggage sat across from them. Eisel would occasionally try to lean over onto Lily’s shoulder. Lily would respond by scooting over closer to Manrin resulting in a pained stare from Eisel. It was a warm day. The sun sat high above the group, casting little shadow. Swirling clouds danced in the sky, enjoying the day with childlike glee. Unlike in the past, the group sat in silence on their current journey. Everyone had lost much. The Great Labyrinth Outbreak had taken much from many and was the subject of much remembrance. This pain was what brought silence to the now subdued adventure group.

  “You kids should be able to see the village after we go over the next hill.”

  The elder cartman’s voice broke the painful silence. Just as he said, as the cart came over the final hill a small, impoverished, village came into view. The village was made up of just a few wooden homes, a brick church, and a small mill. The clopping of the horse’s hooves came to a stop as the carriage pulled into the small village. Lily stood up, holding out her hand to Eisel, who took it to pull herself up. Manrin gathered up their bags – handing Lily’s rucksack to her – and hoisting his bag and Eisel’s bag onto his shoulders. Lily and Manrin jumped off of the back of the cart. Lily helped Eisel down.

  “How are you doing?” Lily asked Eisel.

  “I would have been better if you let me sleep on your shoulder.”

  “Just be happy I am being this considerate of your wounds.” Lily responded with haughty annoyance.

  Manrin walked towards the front of the cart and held out several coins, dropping them into the cartman’s hand.

  “Thank you, sir.” Manrin said with a smile.

  “Be careful, kids.”

  As the horse-drawn cart moved off into the distance the group stood alone amongst the quiet village. Some men could be seen in the distance, but the villagers in their homes seemed to be weary of the travelers. The trio slowly walked towards one of the larger buildings which they assumed to be the town chief’s home. As they came within a few feet of the door it suddenly opened, a haggard middle-aged man came out to greet them. The man eyed them wearily before speaking.

  “You must be the adventurers that the guild sent?”

  “That’s right, are you the chief of the village?” Lily asked, moving slightly closer to the man.

  “Aye, after the death of my father I inherited that position.” The man answered, “come in and let us speak about the request that we have made then.”

  The man moved aside and motioned the group into his home. Lily nodded in thanks and the three adventurers moved into the village chief’s home. The interior of the man’s house was littered with dust on most surfaces and held a smell of old cheese and stale bread. The man moved towards a large table and motioned towards the chairs around it.

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  “My name is John by the way, please take a seat.”

  The trio of adventurers moved around to different chairs, readying their seats.

  “My name is Lily, and this is Eisel and Manrin.”

  John nodded his head as he took a seat with the rest of his guests.

  “We have heard a summary of events from the guild, but we would like to hear your take on what is happening around this village.” Manrin said with a diplomatic tone.

  “Right.” John took a deep breath, “About three months ago we started finding undead on the outskirts of town. It’s not completely unheard of to find a zombie occasionally, especially on land far from a barrier. However, over the course of three months nearly every person that ever died in this village rose from the dead – some who have been dead for many decades.”

  John seemed to struggle for words for a moment before continuing.

  “The zombies and skeletons have never been particularly aggressive. However, the rate is unusual. We are worried that there may be someone behind these incidents.”

  “That is odd.” Eisel entered into the conversation. “Were the villagers the one’s to put down the undead?”

  “Yes, the men of the village were able to dispatch the undead. We were hoping the guild would be able to investigate the cause.”

  Eisel, Manrin, and Lily all traded glances. Killing the undead was easy enough, but finding their source would be much more difficult. The request was still within the bounds of the original contract with the guild, so they would be bound to at least make an attempt.

  “We understand, we will venture out at night in order to attempt to find the source.” Manrin said.

  “Do you have a place we can stay to rest and eat until then?” Lily asked.

  “Sure, sure. We have an open house, just walk down two houses to the east of mine and you will find it. Feel free to let yourself in.”

  The man stood, signaling to his guests that it was time for them to leave. Lily and her group stood, thanking the man, and taking their leave. The group walked down to the house that they were given for the night. The house was similar to John’s house – full of dust and the smell of must. The group found different places to sit. They all began completing their own preparations. Lily tightened the straps of her leather boots. Manrin cleaned his glasses, and Eisel began to change into leather and scale armor.

  Eisel lifted her shirt, taking it off to replace it with a cotton undershirt. Magicians would often use pure cotton clothing as their undergarment so that if they were burned their clothing would not melt onto their skin. Manrin turned away – seeing Eisel change out of the corner of his eye. Lily looked towards Eisel’s lower stomach. A fresh scar worked its way up from her lower abdomen. During the defense against the Great Labyrinth Outbreak Eisel was severely wounded by a Zombie King that had taken her by surprise (how exactly that was possible was unknown, as her contract should have reacted on its own to defend her). The Zombie King had stabbed her in the lower abdomen. This was the reason she was unable to call forth her contracted power any longer – her contract with the elder being had required her to host its spawn in return for its power. The wound she incurred rendered her unable to bear children. Therefore, the contract was nullified – death for a warlock.

  Even without the contract Eisel was still a powerful magician and was able to carry her weight in the party – though she was no longer a match for Lily or Manrin. She knew this and it weighed on her heavily, but she was happy that Lily had accepted her, she was happy that even after all of the teasing their friendship turned out to be real.

  “Alright, let’s hold our strategy meeting and get going.” Lily said.