It had been over an hour since Alaster gave the Undead their orders. The Zombies and Skeletons were sent back into the tunnels to hide while they strengthened themselves however they could. Taking initiative, they began sparing against each other. The Zombie Commanders' soldiers against the mobs of the Lichs' Minions.

The Zombies only had to kill to become stronger, it did not matter that it was a Minion, or that it was the same Minion over and over again. The Minions did not provide nearly as much power as a Native Undead or living creature, but it was a safe way to train.

The Ghouls were tasked with getting behind the siege camp of the Demons. Alaster called it Psychological warfare. The Ghouls' task was simple.

"Feed. Terrorize. Grow."

Alaster had no ill will against the Demons as a Race. But they were an enemy. Alaster figured the best way to preserve the lives of soldiers on both sides, would be if one side gave up and left. The best way to cause this retreat was through targeting their morale.

This was the task of the Ghouls. All they had to do was what they would do normally. Pick off the ones that leave the group. Consume them, leaving the bloody and open remains to be found by their comrades. The Ghouls understood how this would help Alaster, so they had other plans to further terrify. But they were glad to do it.

Ordinarily Ghouls hunted individually or in small groups. Hiding out in graveyards and crypts, forced to scavenge what little flesh they could from rotting corpses and marrow from their bones. It was too risky to do much else as anything more would cause them to be hunted by Holy Mages and Paladins.

Now, they were being given permission to hunt not mere rabbits and rats, but full grown Demons. Not just permission, but cover, shelter to recuperate, and even reinforcements.

After eating, Ghouls hibernate for a few hours to consolidate the meal, regardless of the meal size. This was were they were most vulnerable. And their hunters often knew this, waiting before they attacked. Having a "safe" place to hibernate was a great asset.

As for the two Death Knights, they were tasked with following Alaster everywhere. Lezrum's reaction to hearing that their entire Order wished to pledge themselves to Alaster was an indicator of their power.

With the Death Knights tagging along, Alaster was not able to teleport around using his Shadows. Luckily, most matters that required Alaster's interaction was being done by his Undead or handled by his…Death Knights.

He needed a new name for the Twelve.

Alaster decided to ask them himself, 'Hey, if any of you have been paying attention to my activities recently, you would know that I just found Native Undead Death Knights. Knights willing and desiring to pledge themselves to me. Since I have been calling you Twelve my Death Knights, it will be a bit confusing. And considering their name is also their Race, I would say they have dibs. What would you like your name to be?'

John was the first to respond, taking a moment away from managing Undead transporting crates of supplies to think.

'Super Ultra Warriors!'

Or maybe he wasn't thinking.

'Shut up John!' four of the others shouted.

John grumbled, but remained quiet.

A few of the other suggest names, but ultimately, they just decided to be practical. They each led a Legion of Forgotten, and while they had yet to see any action, they all knew this was their primary role. To lead where Alaster was not. They eventually decided on the title of Legion Master.

A simple title, but one that would set them apart from the others.

Once the new title was decided, Alaster found a small office that appeared to belong to one of the evacuated citizens. From the looks of it, the owner dealt mostly in fabric.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

The room was situated on one of the streets near the Common Square. There were various small cuttings of different fabrics, but no stockpile, so Alaster assumed that this was the office customers came to when they wished to purchase in bulk.

Not that it held any importance to Alaster.

Ignoring the miscellaneous papers and fabrics, Alaster sat down behind the desk and motioned to the two chairs across from him.

"Sit, I wish to know more about your Order."

The Death Knights did as they were instructed, though the chairs creaked as they strained to sustain the weight.

"What would you like to know?" One of the Death Knights asked.

"Lets start with how its organized."

"We aren't."

"You said they were all coming here with the desire to pledge themselves to me, and that there were ten thousand of them."

"Correct. You see, we Death Knights, while any Skeleton can figure it out on their own, are almost always mentored by an already existing Knight. The old Death Knight will share their Mana with the Skeleton, gradually seeping into their bones and, if they are willing, turning them into a new Death Knight."

The second one continued on, "Due to this tradition, we Death Knights have a stronger connection to each other than most other Undead. We have no organization, only mere agreements."

"What sort of agreements, and why would you share your Mana with a simple Skeleton?" Alaster asked, there had to be a selfish reason for it. Undead were anything but charitable.

"The tradition is that a Death Knight will take on an apprentice after a Decade of self-practice and exploration, and they will train their apprentice for another Decade. The reason we would want to take an apprentice is that as they grow in power, we receive a small portion of that power for ourselves.

For mortal standards, the amount is not worth the effort, but for Undead, who do not age or grow ill, each apprentice, as the centuries pass, continually passing on a small amount of power to their teachers. It pays for itself."

"And there is no limit to how many apprentices you can take?"

"Only one at a time. This is to ensure that they are comfortable with their Abilities and understand their position in the wide Deep. If they are destroyed, a portion of our own power is sucked away by the one who killed them, so it is in our best interest to ensure the apprentice is capable.

However, once the decade long apprenticeship is complete, and they go out on their own, we are allowed to take another apprentice."

"How many have you taught?"

"I have taught sixteen, two have been destroyed, one without repaying the price of Mana. I just finished teaching my last apprentice a few months ago and was just about to take another when I sensed you." The first Death Knight explained.

"And you?" Alaster asked the second.

"Fourteen, one destroyed, but not before providing more Mana than it took. I too was soon to take an Apprentice when I sensed you."

"And you just grab a random Skeleton that has not begun progressing towards another Race?"

"Not random. We observe them for a while, examining them for a willingness to fight and mental endurance. Though admittedly, few do not meet our needs."

Alaster nodded in understanding. Here he was sitting before two Death Knights, each one over a thousand years old.

"What about these agreements between Death Knights you spoke of?"

"Very simple. Do not interfere with each other."

"That's it?"

"None of us had any desire to conform to a power that did not meet our standards, as you do. This included each other. However, if we happened upon a Knight in need, we would often provide aid. You never know who their teacher was, and perhaps they would be generous if you helped their former apprentice."

"Then why call yourselves and Order?"

They both shrugged, "Mortals call similar groups of Knights an Order, so we merely did the same. Perhaps there is a better reason, but none that we know. Our Order is much older than the Great Sinking."

Older? Their Order existed before the War even began? Before the continents were sunk?

"What's the oldest Death Knight you know of?"

"I know of one that is nearly three millennia old."

Three thousand years.

"I know one that just over three millennia."

Incredible.

"Is that the oldest in your Order?"

"No, but it is the oldest we know within our Order. While we rarely converse, I know of much older, though I am unsure just how much older."

Alaster leaned back in the chair, kicking his legs up on the desk, "And you said they were all coming here? To pledge themselves to me?"

"Correct. They will perform their own brief examination of you, but they have heard the same stories about you, they can feel your aura, and with us already bound to you, it is doubtful that any will reject you."

"When my Lich assistant heard that you were all coming here, he seemed almost afraid. Why is that?"

"We before you are quite weak, but the majority of our Order are most in their element when in the midst of large battles. We are the natural bane of Liches in this manner. We two Races avoid each other, but not because we Death Knights fear them. We avoid Liches because they are a pain to destroy and the power we gain from it is minimal.

Is it not natural for prey to quiver when they hear of a migration of their predators?"

Alaster would swear the Death Knight would be smiling if he had lips.

"This should be fun."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.