Black Magus

“Now Amun,” Grandpa Lich said after guiding me through a shadow cast from the external walls. Naturally, my focus was aimed more toward my bearings, however. It was the first time I'd been permitted outside the walls and I needed to feast my eyes by craning them above.

It was a moonless night; if this world had a moon at all. More disappointingly, there was an immense emptiness in the night sky. There were no galaxies, nebulae, or star clusters to be found in the unpolluted sky. Only a few celestial bodies that may or may not have been faraway stars or even galaxies could be seen. Somewhere around a dozen of them. A far cry from the vibrant universe I saw resting in Telin’s hand.

I wanted to ask but was cautious due to the possibility of humanity having no concept of stars and galaxies in this realm. Being a gifted, genius child was one thing. Having knowledge of things I had no business knowing was another matter entirely. So I set aside my questions for later and lowered my gaze to rest on the winter wonderland around me.

In the gray tones of the night, I could see only a towering woodline of meters-wide trees that were spaced far enough apart to allow their smaller cousins to take root and form webs of creeping vines and towering shrubs. Mere anchors for knee-high snow and supports for icicles. There was hardly a sound or smell that fell into my senses from where I stood. Only the range of smells leaking from the trees and the ever-so-quiet pitter-patter of snow falling into my elven ears. No traces of fauna. No trails or indications of any humans coming and going. Only this dark forest and this slate wall at our backs.

"Before we begin, you must be aware of how dangerous it is to wield death.” Grandpa Lich explained, floating before me as a wraith. “Our sorcerous death stems directly from the Underworld. Its energy is detrimental to life itself. While our sorcery makes us immune to necrotic energies, such is not the case for others. Death will never distinguish between friend or foe. Regardless of your will or intention, it will affect all it touches. But that isn’t to say it will kill whatever it touches.”

“I understand.” I nodded truthfully.

“Good.” He grunted. Then began pacing as usual. “Death magic is the culmination of all darker magics. Poison, disease, decay, and darkness; to name a few. As such, its power is akin to a spectrum. Where on the lower end, it can be used to do as little as induce fear or inflict wounds. On the higher end, it can indeed kill something with but a touch. But it can also return something from the Underworld. Now then.” He stopped pacing to once again stand proudly before my tiny frame. “Any questions before we begin?”

“Yes.” I quickly nodded. “What are the passive abilities granted by our sorcery?”

“Excellent question!” He beamed with the clap of his hands. “Having an affinity with death makes us immune to disease; first and foremost. We are immune to cold temperatures as well, as the underworld is frigid beyond measure; this does not mean we are immune to ice, however. You can still be frozen without feeling cold. Aside from that, the only other benefit is that our connection to the Underworld causes the denizens of that realm to view us as sovereigns. Under no circumstances will any undead attack you. They wouldn’t dream of it, in fact.”

“I see.” I nodded. “So, no immortality?”

That got a boisterous kick out of him. But he quickly recovered his composure. “Have you forgotten the nickname you’ve given me already?” He laughed. “No, immortality is not a passive spell. I became a lich through other means.”

“Such as?”

“I’ll tell you when you’re older.” He grinned. “If in the event that you make it into the academy.”

“Why?”

“Because you are an inept Sorcerer. That’s why.” He spat. “You must first master the shadows before attempting to master death. And after that, there are many things you must accomplish before you attempt to become undying. Most of those steps you’ll have taken come your second or third year at the academy. So, I’ll tell you then.”

“Very well.” I sighed with more than visible frustration.

“VeRy WeLl!” Grandpa Lich mocked before laughing to himself. “Not as if you have a choice, Amun.”

“How old are you?” I scoffed, fighting back the urge to roll my eyes.

“478! But that’s beside the point.” He grunted out a chuckle before pointing to a nearby willow-like tree. “Withdraw a small amount of death mana and throw it at that tree.”

After taking a deep breath to calm my nerves, I faced the target in question before pulling mana from my well. While the tree itself was still large, it wasn’t as large as the sequoia-like trees that dominated the forest. It was easily what an Earthling or Saturnian would've considered unremarkable in comparison to what they usually saw. If not for the glowing ice-blue veins in the leaves and long waving branches of smooth gray-white bark.

I truly had doubts that a tiny bit of death mana would be enough to kill it. But I chose to trust my grandfather for the time being and watched the energy fall through my affinity core, fall through the layer of darkness, and plummet into the necrotic core like a worm chewing its way through an apple. As instructed, it was only a sliver of energy to be pulled out of the core and guided up my arm to concentrate at my fingertips. Amounting to a smoky gray-black marble held between my middle finger and thumb. Ready to be flicked.

Like a small wad of wet paper, the spell cleanly arced through the air before landing on the smooth bark and splattering like a water droplet. And in the very next moment, the entire tree just sort of… deflated. Wilted. Its leaves immediately lost their luster and faded to an ashen gray before simply fading into dust. A prelude to the tree's main act mere moment's later, wherein it withdrew on itself like a deflated ball until all that was left was a pile of black dust subjected to an aerial assault of white powder.

“This is the power of death, Amun.” Grandpa Lich said gravely. “Always use it in moderation.”

I had to admit, I was a bit shaken after seeing the results of my Death Bullet. If even the smallest touch was enough to negate life then I could take no chances with this type of magic. Spells would have to be carefully developed and collateral damage would have to be heavily considered before it was used.

Excepting necromancy, I supposed.

‘If that’s the case.’ I prepared my fingers again before withdrawing more mana from my well. Only this time, I allowed the mana to flow through the entirety of my affinity core.

Instead of the dense coldness of darkness or the intense aura of death; the abyssal void gathered in my hand had remarkably no feeling to it at all from an external perspective. No aura of energy leaked from it, not even mana. Besides the empty region of space held between my fingers, there was no indication that I was preparing a spell at all. There was simply, nothing.

I noticed Grandpa Lich staring intently at me, so I flicked the bullet at the dead tree's neighbor, watching intently for the results.

It was slow and tiny; about the same size as the death bullet but twice as slow. The stark difference, however, was that when it reached the intended target, it just sort of… stopped in place. The tree didn’t even move. At first. The sphere of emptiness only appeared to merge with the bark and come to rest halfway inside it. Then, the sound of creaking, cracking, and splintering wood began ringing throughout the forest. I could see the tree tilting on its side as I watched on. Tilting faster and faster until the thin strands of wood holding the tree upright gave way. And so, the tree fell into that void. As if thrown down a hole, the trunk disappeared over the edge, never to be seen again. Forsaking its branches and leaves to fall and uproot to the snow while its body fell into that eternal darkness.

Grandpa Lich managed to activate his Wrath Form in time to spare him from the worst of the temporary blizzard. After belatedly activating mine, the snow simply phased through my body and plopped to the ground. Freeing me to float forth to assess the damage. Even after the snow settled, the Void Sphere was still there. Floating. Waiting. Hoping for something to cross its horizon and be erased from existence without so much as a sound. Not to say it wasn't already happening. For, before my eyes, I could see a cascade begin to form before my eyes.

“Incredible.” I heard the gasp of my forefather after dispersing the spell.

“Yeah.” I sighed in horrific admiration. ‘It may be a while until I can learn to use this freely.’

After a few moments of silence, Grandpa seemed to have awakened from his stupor and knelt beside me to give me a prideful pat on the shoulders. “In all honesty.” He ferally beamed. “I never thought teaching you magic would have been this easy, Amun. You are truly a gifted child. Blessed by mana and natural-born genius. I have nothing left to teach you, son.”

“My training is over?” I somewhat dejectedly asked.

“Your training is never over. For now, however, only you can train yourself.” Grandpa smiled reassuringly. “Once you turn fifteen, you’ll attend the awakening ceremony and be screened to see if you’re capable of attending the academy. So until then, continue training and developing your skills. I’ll return sometime before you come of age to check on your progress and train you further.”

“When are you leaving?” I asked blankly.

“In a few weeks.” He grunted. “Before I do, I’ll be introducing you to your first vassals. One has been trained as a knight page. The other has started an education in politics and finance. They will be moved here to continue their education and serve as your wings; your left and right hands. Ensure you treat them well. And better than that, ensure you teach them how to best serve you.”

‘Oh, I most certainly will.’ I grinned to myself, yet gave my progenitor a respectful bow. "Understood. Thank you for your time, Grandpa Lich.’