Stupid fortuneteller. I don't know what she did to me that night, but my life has never been the same. All this talk about being a Hero makes me sick to my stomach, which is ironic considering I have been trampling through cemeteries these past few weeks to earn some extra coin. A fellow by the name of Victor met up with me one evening as I was passing through the Bowerstone Cemetery. He was shifty, but he offered me a drink and I'm not one to pass up free alcohol.
He stayed at the Cemetery Mansion, which had been falling into disrepair for years. There was evidence of an attempt to fix up the mansion, but whether it be from lack of coin or the importance of another matter, the wallpaper continued to chip and the holes in the floors seem to grow on their own.
We drank in the study. Surprisingly it was one of the better rooms of the house. Cobwebs filled the corners of the bookshelves that resided on the far wall and the table was scuffed and stained, but the fireplace was welcoming. Victor yanked out the cork of a dusty bottle of table wine and poured me a glass.
"It's rare I find anyone walking around the cemetery at night. Aren't you afraid of the hobbes and hollow men lurking in the shadows?" Victor pressed the bottle to his cracked lips and took a swig. I shrugged, downing my glass.
"It's better traveling at night. No one to bother you really."
"Where were you headed, if I may?"
"No where in particular. Just looking for a way to get some coin. I've got my eye on a cutlass back at the market that I could use."
Victor's seat creaked as he sat back in the chair. His brows were pointing downward in deep thought. "I wonder if…well…I don't know if you're the type of person I can trust…"he stood up and stared into the fire, rubbing his chin as he thought. "Yes, perhaps I could help you…er…with your coin shortage." Victor paused to take another swig of table wine.
"You see…I've been working on something…well…extraordinary. Something so unique that it will change the essence of Science as we know it! However, I need a few…parts to complete my masterpiece." Victor sat down and looked at me sternly. "Do you think you can help me?"
I sat back in my own chair, polishing off the last of my drink. I looked at Victor curiously. Questions flashed through my mind, but only one was spoken. "What's in it for me?"
Victor smiled as he pulled out a black drawstring pouch and tossed it in front of me on the table.
I had my suspicions of Victor as I brought him the first "piece to his masterpiece" that I acquired from a hobbe-infested cave in Rookridge. As I placed the bag with the lower extremities of a woman long deceased upon Victor's table, I was partially concerned about whether or not I was dealing with someone who cavorted with corpses. Though I could careless of the matter, he assured me that was not the case.
I attempted to question him about this experiment he was planning, but he only handed me instructions on the next location I was to visit and another pouch of coin. I will admit that the pay was fairly reasonable, considering, but I kept thinking about the whole matter on my way to the next location—a tomb in Wraithmarsh.
Victor was very pleased that I had managed to obtain the second part, the torso of this mysterious woman, for his scientific masterpiece without even a single scratch. I am sure he was curious of my mannerisms towards hollow men and forest trolls, but he never did ask. Instead he attempted to pry deeper into the mysteries of my life, just as he dug intently into the meat pie he was serving.
"I hope you acquiring these parts for me is not a burden. I would do it myself, but…I am not much of an adventurer. Not like you…at least."
I shrugged, washing my food down with wine. "No, it's not a burden. I don't have anything else to do with my life anyhow."
"How can an adventurer have no life? Aren't you free to do whatever you please?"
"That is what the world thinks. Honestly if you ask me…the life of an adventurer is no more exciting than a criminal or a pauper. There is no fame and fortune unless you are a Hero and even then…you've got nothing." I stuffed a spoonful of pie into my mouth so I wouldn't have to talk for a few minutes. Of course, that didn't stop Victor from prying further.
"Well you must have had a life at some point."
In that moment I realized what Victor was wondering about. I swallowed hard as a deep pain burned inside of my chest. At an attempt to stop the pain, I gulped my wine, but it only numbed the pain for a moment. Taking a deep breath, I sat back in my chair. "I did…and now I don't."
The final piece Victor needed for his scientific breakthrough was the head of the woman named Lady Grey, whose tomb rested in Fairfax Gardens. I had heard stories as a child about a woman by that same name, but I always believed it was a fairytale told by parents to teach children about right and wrong. But as I stood in front of the gate surrounding her crypt, I hesitated to enter.
Instead, I waited till morning and acquired some reading material from the bookstore in the Bowerstone Market. According to the history books, Lady Elvira Grey became the Mayor of Bowerstone after she allegedly murdered her own sister for the title. She was ran out of town for killing her sister and later killed by an angry mob accusing her of being a witch. For the crimes and accusations against Lady Grey, her body was torn apart and buried in separate locations so that she would never rise again. On the adjacent page, a detailed portrait of Elvira Grey seductively smiled at me.
As I made my way through Lady Grey's tomb, I could not contain my thoughts and questions—all of which the answers kept leading to Victor. I assumed he was going to attempted to bring back Lady Grey, but for what purpose and how was he going to achieve this? Reanimating corpses had been tried many times over with failed results, but maybe Victor managed to find the right combination to successfully bring someone back to life?
I only had theories. However soon I would have proof. After a long and tedious battle against a tomb full of annoying beetles, I finally held the last piece I needed to uncover this mystery that I was playing a part in. Of course now, Lady Grey's face was not as appealing as her portrait, but I could still imagine what she would have looked liked—especially with the help of the page I tore from the history book before I returned it.
As I entered the Cemetery Mansion, I could sense Victor's excitement. I called to him and his voice drifted up from his laboratory that was set up in the lower part of the mansion. I descended the steps and watched as Victor assembled Lady Grey's body inside of a renovated Iron Maiden that rested on a table.
Victor paused as he saw me enter the room; in my hand I held the drawstring bag I had placed the Lady's head in for easier travel. It seemed as if Victor was at a loss of words, standing before the last piece to his puzzle.
"I…I feel I should be a bit more honest with you, considering how much you've done for me these past months..."
"While normally I wouldn't give a damn about explanations as long as the pay was good, but I'll admit…I'm rather curious." I held out the bag towards Victor. His hands were a little shaky as he gripped the bag and held it tightly to his chest.
"You see…I'm not only doing this experiment for Science…I'm also doing it for love." Victor sighed as he opened the bag and pulled out the rotting head. "I've…well…been in love with Lady Grey since I was a little boy. As I got older, my love for her grew. Then…I cam across this." Victor handed me a few pages from an old journal—Lady Grey's journal.
"It was Lady Grey's last entry before the angry mob put her to death. I…I was fascinated by her journal so much that I stole it and read it over and over again" As he placed Lady Grey's head upon the table, he stroked what little hair was left on the corpse.
"But how can you bring her back? She's not in the best of shape…"
"Through extensive research and countless attempts, I have manage to find the right combination of science…and magic to give Lady Grey back the life she deserves to live!"
"What sort of magic?" I questioned, wondering how Victor was able to use magic when no one had seen or participated legally in any magical attempts in over a century. Victor's hand hovered over the switch.
"It is a reanimating spell that also serves as a love spell. As soon as she realizes that I have successfully brought her to life, Lady Grey will love me for all eternity and I will treat her the way she deserves to be treated!" Victor laughed excitedly as he motioned for me to step back before he slammed down the switch to activate the reanimation process.
Never before have a I seen something as amazing as watching a corpse become reanimated with life, which is saying something considering I have the power to raise the dead. But as Lady Grey sat up and stretched on the table before me, I could not help but feel a surreal feeling in my gut.
Lady Grey was no longer scattered pieces of rotting flesh. Her skin was pale a snow and looked soft as a cloud. Her hair looked like gold string cascading in curls upon her shoulder and her eyes, though dark in color, sparkled with delight as she gazed upon me.
" You…brought me back?" She asked as she slid off the table and stood in front of me, looking into my eyes with admiration. Victor noticed what was going on and became flustered.
"Oh no! The love spell works on whomever she sees first! Please you must leave so she will see me!"
Victor begged me to leave, but I could not look away. She was even more beautiful than the folded portrait that rested in my trouser pocket. I felt a smile grow on my face as she smiled at me.
"Please! You can't do this to me! She's mine I tell you! Mine! I went through all this trouble! Please! Lady Grey! I brought you back! Not him!"
"Forgive me, but I feel as if I could love you for the rest of me life." Purred Lady Grey as she caressed my face lovingly.
I placed my hand on hip and pulled her closer, never taking my eyes off of her. Even Victor's constant yelling and pleading didn't stop me from sealing our fate. As our eyes shut and our lips met, my hand rested firmly on the flintlock pistol in my belt; without a moment's hesitation, Victor was lying face down on the basement floor.