Ecto

The smell of putrefaction was bad enough to choke him, but it didn’t appear to bother the crows and ravens. Things seldom did. The birds hopped among the scattered, decaying parts, busily trying to pick the bones clean, undeterred by the attempts of his new bosses to wave them away.

How they had managed to get the parts of one dragon—let alone several—was a mystery that Rayne wasn’t sure he wanted solved.

The young man stood in the corner of the vast, stone-floored room that was really little better than a large, empty cellar. His employers told him that they used the space under their workshop for their more…expansive projects. He had been working for The Necromancers for all of a week and Rayne was already beginning to have his doubts. Despite their vague successes, Lathae and Odile barely seemed to have the knowledge—and indeed even the competence—to pull off half the stunts they managed. So naturally, when they expressed the desire to create an Emperor Dragon of all things, Rayne had the gravest of reservations.

He looked on while Lathae lit candles and Odile feverishly drew a circle around the unlovely pile of specimens with a piece of old charcoal.

“…I don’t think this is a good idea.” Rayne said from where he stood, shoulders hunched and slouching terribly. As usual, Rayne wore an agonized expression of silent anxiety; his wide-curved mouth would have been a real asset if he ever managed to keep the corners up. Even his eyes—a dark maroon and framed by thick camel-lashes—were slightly down-turned, further adding to his almost comically lugubrious appearance.

“I dOn’t ThiNk tHiS is a GoOd iDeA.” Odile parroted mockingly as they haphazardly scribbled runes around the perimeter of the circle they had just drawn. Charcoal had stained the tips of their fingers and they were leaving smudges everywhere.

“HAW!" One of the ravens to his left barked out the sharp staccato sound and Rayne jumped. It sounded suspiciously like it was laughing at him.

With a resigned sigh, Rayne resumed his observation.

After all, an honest living’s an honest living.