Post by Nian Gao on Nov 16, 2020 15:33:02 GMT -8
Blue flames flickered on sconces decorating the walls of the sprawling crypt, unnatural and seemingly as undying as the residents of the strange place. The stone was all dark, flecked with bright sparks of violet, gold and crimson depending on the room and area. It was all sturdy granite, well sourced and well shaped to construct this labyrinthine structure set beneath the ground. It was fairly dry and well cleaned too, very little in the way of cobwebs, moisture or dust. Some places even had rugs rolled out, down some shorter hallways or settled in the middle of some rooms.
Said rooms were often occupied by other examples of the undead. Dried out zombies, bleach boned skeletons, strange spectres who were transparent to opaque, all in a range of looks. Nian Gao couldn’t help but look into every open doorway they crossed as she followed Monroe through the winding stairs and hallways of the crypt, her arms stuck straight out ahead of her, barely able to move her legs at all and thus hopping on after him in a strange fashion. Rigor mortis he called it, they were going to see a Salisbury who would be able to explain better than him but...according to Monroe she was also dead, and it fit.
Her heart wasn’t beating in her chest anymore, and she could hold her breath forever if she wanted. At least she could hop pretty fast, and cover a nice bit of distance! It meant she could easily keep up with the withered corpse’s walking speed, her head turning to look into a room. There were three people at a table, one of them a skeleton that had painted their skull in a myriad of beautiful colors in a fancy pattern, sitting in a dress, they looked to be playing cards with the ghost and zombie also sitting at the table. So far, only the ghosts looked as ‘alive’ as hers, in that, while they were weirdly opaque or oftentimes tinted a certain color like blue or white, they at least looked like they had in life.
It was all rather surreal, but she kept hopping after Monroe who was talking again, snapping her out of it to try and pay attention. “Ah, sorry I didn’t hear that, could you say it again?” Nian asked apologetically as she watched him head up the stairs, before giving a good hop to climb up after him.
“Having a hard time paying attention?” Monroe asked, turning back to look at her. Even with his lips withered and seemingly not able to cover his teeth completely, he could still shift them enough to give her a wry little smirk.
“Ah, well...maybe a little. This is just…”
“A lot to take in. Yeah, don’t worry, a lot of us had some similar reactions. Those of us who weren’t expecting it at least. Heh didn’t figure you were going to be a surprised soul, did he not tell you much about what was going to happen?”
“Did...who not tell me much?”
“What? You know, Sauerkraut, the guy who rose all of us. Tall man? Has a thing for weird skull masks? Blonde hair?”
“Oh! You mean the guy who gave me that potion! Uh...yeah he uh...well he told me things, but I was under the impression I was going to...stay dead?”
Monroe just laughed, a hand going on his desiccated belly as he kept walking. “Well I hope it was a pleasant surprise at least!”
“Yeah it was but uh...it’s kind of hard to believe that it’s really been as long as you’ve said…”
“Well don’t take my word for it, you can ask Salisbury himself, he’s the big man’s brother, he’ll be able to answer any questions you have.”
With a nod she continued after him up the stairs, the two moving through another granite corridor before she heard a voice up ahead call out, “Out of the way! Move it!”
Monroe stopped, “Well looks like Salisbury’s come to meet us.”
Up ahead, around the corner, came a figure, or rather, a shape, a small shape. They were wreathed in crackling flames, proper flames, the warm, orange glow contrasting with the cold blues of the torches that filled the hallway. Said flames were wrapped around a skull, stripped of all flesh of any kind, from bleached teeth, to empty sockets lit up by the fire that wreathed the entire skull. Nian Gao had to admit, the sight of a flaming skull coming down the hallway did make her panic a little, coming to a halt, leaning backwards, and nearly falling over as her rigor mortis stiffened body refused to properly compensate!
Fortunately she didn’t fall over, as Monroe grabbed her shoulders, helping her straighten up as the flaming skull came to a halt a meter or so away from them both. Somehow, it looked like his bone structure shifted to replicate an expression as he looked her up and down. “Hey there Salisbury, how’s it going?” Monroe asked cheerfully.
This was Salisbury? Nian Gao blinked, before, “Um...hi there?”
“Hmph...looking pretty good for being asleep for three years.” The skull commented with a snort. “A bit stiff I imagine? My brother said you shouldn’t be as restricted as other Jiangshi, but right now you’re running on empty so you probably don’t have the strength to push back against your body. Come on, let’s go to the surface and get you something to eat.”
She wanted to ask a lot of questions, but his statement immediately made one singular concern come rising to the forefront of her mind as she just blurted out, “You don’t mean people do you?”
“What?!” The skull rounded on her and she yelped as she hopped backwards. The skull stared at her, before sighing. “No, I don’t mean people. Sauerkraut didn’t tell you much did he? Trust me, no one’s going to get hurt to feed you. Just follow me.”
“Um...okay…” She said, before starting to hop after Salisbury.
Monroe gave a wave, “Have fun there Nian! I think you’re going to be pleasantly surprised.” With those last words he went walking back deeper into the tomb, leaving Nian to follow someone else instead.
“So uh...how big is this place? I feel like I’ve been moving through a fair bit…”
“The surface is only one more floor up.” Salisbury commented, “You’ll get to see the sun again soon, lucky you, assuming you like daylight, it’s just the right time.”
“Right um...sunlight won’t hurt me will it?”
“Hahahaha! No, no it won’t. You should be just fine.” Salisbury said, leading her up another flight of stairs, just the one more if he was to be believed.
“Should?”’ Nian Gao asked as they went up, but Salisbury just chuckled, and eventually as she reached the top of the stairs, to her left, was a very different form of light from the cold-blue of the torches. Closer to Salisbury’s own warm orange glow. Her eyes widened as she saw it, before she turned to hop towards it, and out into the sunlight.
She winced as she emerged into the warm sunlight, a gentle breeze blowing past as she slowly adjusted to take in her surroundings. The entrance to the crypt was on a wide, rolling hill, with terraced rows of graves marking the way down, well kept stone paths winding through. There were other undead out here, just out and enjoying the sunlight. Ahead of her she could see more hills, but these ones had a more natural look than the terraced steps of the graveyard. There was sweeping trees, but to her right, from what the sun told her was the North, she could see fields, pastures with barns not too far away. It was a beautiful view, and for some reason it really did feel like it had been an age since she’d seen anything like this...even though she could swear just yesterday she’d been at home looking over her family’s wonderful farm. It was a...conflicting set of sensations to say the least.
“Beautiful place ain’t it? Come on, let’s keep going.” Salisbury said, floating past her to start soaring over one of the paths. Nian Gao blinked, before hopping after him, the sunlight felt nice on her pale skin, although she couldn’t really tell if she was any warmer or not. Could she still tell temperatures by touch? Hard to say, and so, “Hey, is it weird that I can’t really tell if I’m warm or not?”
“Nope! No idea if it’ll stay that way once you get some life in ya, but right now you’re just a hopping corpse. Can’t feel pain, can’t taste, probably can’t feel most things either.”
“I can feel my hat on my head!”
“Like I said, most things.” Salisbury replied as they continued along. He floated down the path before, “Oh, great timing.” He went soaring off, down towards a particular figure shuffling along.
They were dressed like an old woman, with a scarf wrapped around the top of their head and tied beneath the chin, in an old, fine dress, they had a basket hanging from one arm, and Nian could tell from hands and face that it was another zombie, wisps of dry grey hair sticking out from the scarf. “Oooh Salisbury, hello, hello!” The woman said brightly, “Who’s this adorable young girl with you? She is young isn’t she?”
“Ahh, she is, this is Nian Gao. Nian? Meet Miriam, one of the many fine folks here.”
“Ah, nice to meet you.” Nian said, smiling and attempting to offer a hand but, “Ah...sorry, I’m just...feeling sort of stiff.”
The woman’s withered eyes fixed on the strange talisman hanging from Nian’s head and, “Ohhh, you’re her! I was wondering what all the bustle today was about!”
“Yes, about that, Miriam, would I be correct in assuming that’s a basket of eggs you’ve got there?” Salisbury asked, jerking his disembodied skull towards the basket in her arms.
“Oh yes it is. Do you want one?”
“It’s not for me.” Salisbury replied, “But for Nian, I figured a little pick me up might help her last until later.”
“Later?” Nian Gao asked, as the old zombie woman chuckled.
“Ohoho of course.” Miriam replied brightly, reaching one hand down she moved the cloth covering the basket and pulled out a simple smooth egg. Obviously a chicken’s egg. She handed it to Nian Gao who sort of...twisted at her hips to reach one outstretched hand and turn it to take it.
“Thanks!” Nian Gao said brightly, “Uh so do I just...eat it raw?”
“You’re a Jiangshi so it should be less a matter of eating and more draining...just try...I dunno, gently biting and sucking?” Salisbury replied.
“I...okay.” Nian said, before..well, her brow furrowed as her arm twitched, struggling to bend and bring the egg in towards her mouth. “Nnn…” There was a stiff, unpleasant crackling and cracking as she slowly started to get her arm to bend.
“Oh do you need help dear?” Miriam asked.
“No I can...get it...but thank you.” Nian replied, managing to get a smile out at the woman as her arm slowly bent, fighting against its rigor mortis. She felt like she’d be working up a sweat if she could...still do that. Eventually though she managed to get the egg up to her lips, her eyes crossed slightly to look down on it as she considered. So, just...bite and suck? It felt weird, it was a raw egg, you weren’t supposed to just eat raw eggs but...she wasn’t really alive anymore, so salmonella? Probably not that much of an issue.
There was a faint cracking as she bit down, just faintly breaking the shell and...she sucked. Honestly she wasn’t expecting much to happen, but she did get something. A rush of energy, a strange feeling crackling down her throat and diffusing through her entire body. It was short and brief, but it was a jolt of energy nonetheless, making her eyes widen. It faded quickly and she blinked, her hand crackling as it went back to straight in front of her. “Whoa. That was...I couldn’t taste anything but I could…”
“Oh I’m sure it was quite the rush dear.” Miriam replied brightly, “I’d offer you another, but you don’t want to spoil your appetite for dinner tonight. It’s going to be quite the event!”
“Huh? It is?” Nian Gao asked, tilting her head to the side. Did she wake up on a holiday or something?
“Yeah, Nian, the folk in the graveyard have been waiting for you to wake up this entire time.” Salisbury replied. “You waking up is meant to be a pretty big deal. You’re Sauerkraut’s greatest creation, and more importantly, you waking up is supposed to be the first sign that he might return.”
“Where...did he go? How long’s he been gone?” He was gone? Why?
“Well...for about two years, spent a year making sure you were all set and built the way he wanted and then left.” Salisbury replied, “Speaking of, one of the things he left was a letter addressed to you. You can read it whenever you feel like it.”
“Oh.” This felt...like a tremendous amount of pressure suddenly placed on her shoulders. His greatest creation? What had she been created for? It felt weird to think of herself like that, she wasn’t created, she was born! Although...she had been altered a fair bit. Going by her stiff posture.
“I can hardly wait for more good news.” Miriam said brightly, “But I’ll leave you two to your business. I need to get these eggs put away.” Her hand reached for Nian’s and she took the shell from her. “I’ll get this thrown away while I’m at it.”
“Oh, um...thank you!” Nian Gao replied, before turning her attention back to Salisbury. “So um...where’s this...letter?”
“I’ve got it on me right now actually.” Salisbury replied, which drew an incredulous look from Nian Gao as she looked over his ‘body.’ That being, a disembodied flaming skull. “Whaaaat? Don’t look at me like that! You shouldn’t take things for granted in a place like this.” With that he opened his mouth, lower jaw dropping as...a cream colored envelope slid out between, sticking out between his teeth, miraculously untouched by the flames.
“I...oh...that’s...that’s incredible! How isn’t it burning?” Nian Gao asked, her expression lighting up, that was so weird, but so cool!
“Tach huh lehher.” Salisbury replied, nodding his skull towards her.
“Oh right, um...it won’t burn me will it?” Nian Gao asked, reaching a hand forward, before pulling it back.
“Tach huh lehher!” Salisbury demanded, making Nian Gao yelp before snatching it from between his jaws. “Criminy.” Salisbury said, rolling his jaw, “My flames are magical, they don’t inherently burn.”
“Right, sorry.” Nian Gao replied, as she brought her hands together to rip open the letter. It felt just the teeniest bit easier to move her arms now after that and…”Hey, why does eating an egg help me anyways? That doesn’t seem very alive, or like...what a jiangshi does.”
“Well that’s because eggs and seeds have an inherent spark of life to them.” Salisbury replied, “So, let me explain some basics for you.” He floated upwards, adjusting his jawbone before continuing. “Typically the best things for creatures like you to ‘eat’ is living things, seeds, eggs and such, meat or plants as fresh as you can get, or extremely rotten foods. When a cow is butchered, it’s life energy lingers in its flesh for a fair while afterwards, but fades. As it starts to rot, it’s filled with a large amount of fresh life energy, not as much as in life usually, but a lot as it starts to decompose and fill with tons of smaller living things. Get me?”
Nian Gao’s nose wrinkled at the thought of eating something rotten but, she nodded. “Right, that...I guess that makes sense? Kind of gross though. So does cooking food help or hurt?”
“Usually hurts.” Salisbury replied.
“Oh...well it’s not like I can taste anymore anyways.” She said with a shrug, before pulling the letter out of the envelope at last. It was time to see what Sauerkraut had left for her, and oh boy...it was a doozy.
Nian Gao,
I’m sure you must have questions. I have thrust you into what some might call a rather unfair situation. All I can do is try to assure you that there was a reason for deceiving you as to your ultimate fate, and that none of this has been for some whimsical or cruel purpose. You likely have many questions, but please, indulge me in clarifying this first.
I needed for this project, someone of the kind of pure hearted nature, that they would face even death with a smile, and you did just that. Perhaps you had doubts or fears, but at no point did you shirk from the consequences of the deal you made, and left your family with a strong, happy memory to look back upon. For this reason, I chose you.
You have become one of the greatest works I’ve ever accomplished. Believe me, you are so much more than a jiangshi and capable of so much more. However, I would never dream of robbing you of choice. You can, if you choose, walk away from this, perhaps surprise your family with your return, or simply enjoy a quaint life in the graveyard or wherever you choose. If you would walk this path that I have built you for though, you should be prepared.
I will not be returning on my own. You will have to come looking for me, and doing so will attract the attention of various dangerous characters. Their attention might be the best way to track me down, so it might even be your best option to somehow draw a great deal of attention to yourself. Ultimately the choice is yours, and know that whatever you do, as long as it makes you happy, it was the right decision.
Sincerely,
Your Creator,
Sauerkraut
Nian Gao lowered the letter slowly as she blinked, her face screwing up as she considered this. Given how excited everyone was that her waking up meant Sauerkraut might finally be coming back. If she just...didn’t go looking for him, what would the people here think? Even if they accepted it..would she really be fine with disappointing them like that? Would they really be okay or just pretend? She sighed and Salisbury floated around her. “What’s wrong? What’d the letter say?”
“Ah...a lot, but basically. Sauerkraut can’t come back. I need to find him.” Nian Gao said, giving the skull a smile.
“What? Why? Does he say what happened?”
“Nope, just that...I apparently need to get a lot of attention to lure out the people who might know...and it’s implied will want to attack me.”
“Oh...I...might have a few ideas about who that might be, but perhaps we should talk about this later.” Salisbury said, “They’re going to be expecting you down at the fields soon.”
“Huh? Really? It hasn’t been that long since I woke up has it?”
“Ahah, not at all, but there’s plenty of other things we can do in the meantime, like dancing.” Salisbury said brightly as he started to float along, with Nian turning to hop along after him.
“Ohhh, I haven’t danced in awhile! That sounds nice.”
The skull laughed, “We’ll get you something more filling than an egg so you actually can.”
Nian Gao laughed along with him as they went down to the fields, past the pastures where a number of people were setting up for an event. A clear space of grass for dancing, lots of tables, and off to the side a lot of animals being prepared. Salisbury went flying over. “Hey! Can we get one of those goats over here for the VIP? Yeah, just let her drain the life out of it and then go prepare it for the flesh eaters!”
At his behest, a few zombies came over, leading a goat along. He seemed like an awfully placid and calm goat. Guess he’d likely been raised around walking corpses so it probably didn’t intimidate him that much. “You want us to put a bolt in him afore ya do?” One of the zombies asked, lifting up a simple boltgun, powered by pressurized CO2.
“Ah, yes please.” Nian Gao said, hopping up to the goat. She wasn’t a stranger to animals being slaughtered for food...although she’d never been allowed to help with it growing up, she’d gotten to help a couple times in those last two years of her...living life? Just life? What words did she even use to describe that time period. Her reverie was broken at the sharp snap of the gun, and the goat keeling over dead, a hole neatly in its skull. Nian Gao had seen this a...couple of times, although she had to admit she was way more used to chickens which...squirmed a lot more for a lot longer. Well she supposed she just...there was a stiff clicking as she tried to bend over, the struggle clear on her face.
“Do you uh...need us to haul it up for ya?” The zombie asked.
“Oh I’m fine...I should learn how to deal with this at some point, right?” Nian replied, giving a somewhat strained smile back as she just kind of...fell forward, arms pushed further upwards as her face fell into the coarse hair of the dead goat. Right, so she should just bite down right? Bite and suck like with the egg. At least she didn’t need to actually bite and drain blood, that was a big plus at the very least! So, she did that, she bit, ignoring the weird sensation of hair on her tongue, and started sucking. At least she couldn’t taste it, she didn’t imagine that goat hair tasted all that nice.
Once again, she felt that rush, only this time it was far more intense. It lasted longer too, flowing into her body as her eyes widened. Her jaw clamped down more firmly as her eyes started to drift shut. She looked rather pleased to the zombie and skull observing as she kept sucking, feeling that lifeforce, that raw sensation, flooding her body, pouring into her limbs. It was a bizarre sensation, surely something like this should make her heartbeat quicken, her breath come faster, but her heart remained stubbornly motionless, and her breathing..did come faster, simply out of habit and thought. The flow eventually tapered off, turning into a trickle, before ceasing entirely.
Reluctantly she lifted her head up. She felt more energized, her body felt lighter and remembering what she’d been told? There was a stiff series of cracks as her arms bent, pushing down on the goat and pushing herself up. There was an ugly crackling as she lifted one leg up, bending at the knee before standing up properly and sighing. Her arms immediately went out in front of her again but...it just felt natural to keep them there. “So, how do you feel?” Salisbury asked, while the zombie lugged up the corpse of the goat to carry it off for carving.
“I feel...pretty good!” Nian Gao replied, her arms bending as she moved her hands to the back of her head. There was more crackling but it was quieter, as if her body was slowly settling as she worked it. Then her hands shifted down to her hips as she squatted, bending her knees. “Gonna take some getting used to, but hey this doesn’t seem too bad! Although eating an entire goat seems pretty expensive.”
“Well it’s not like the meat is made useless!” Salisbury said with a laugh. “So it’s not that big of a deal, besides right now you’re basically starved, and there’s lots of sources you can use for food, it’ll be fine.”
“If you say so.” Nian replied, lifting her hands up above her head. She still felt unusually stiff, but she could move herself around properly. “Now...didn’t you say something about dancing?”
Hours later, the sun had started to set, and tall torches were set up around the fields, which had in this time transformed and become far more lively than before. Music played, skeletons and zombies with instruments in bony hands plucking at strings, or somehow blowing into brass despite a near, or complete, lack of lips. A jaunty tune was being played by that varied band, and a number of other corpses were dancing along to the beat. Tables were set up around, and set with food. From great haunches of meat carefully roasted over open fires, to raw flesh carefully arranged to not bleed onto the tables, and a great assortment of fruits, vegetables, seeds and eggs! There were beverages aplenty, including some a living person might find a bit...gruesome.
Nian Gao wasn’t sure she’d ever be trying a cup of fresh goat’s blood, but at the moment, she wasn’t going to begrudge anyone who might enjoy it! She was full of life, and in the midst of the dancing, a wide, beautiful smile on her face that just seemed to light up the darkening skies. She was arm in arm with someone else, already adjusted to the withered look of her fellow corpses, the two spinning around each other, before separating on cue with the music. They backed up facing each other, Nian Gao’s fingers gripping her skirt to make it easier to do the steps without tripping before they closed back in.
It was a new dance to the jiangshi, but she’d been a quick learner once she’d been able to get out of bed, and it seemed that remained true here. It hadn’t taken more than a few rounds for her to get the hang of it, and now she was dancing like she’d danced it her entire life, the two linking arms again before separating to link up with the next partner down the line. It was terrific fun, and something about these people, despite everything, just enjoying themselves and dancing made her feel all the more terrific. It helped that she was pretty popular too! While she was eating or drinking, people would always come up to say hello, and sometimes her partners would talk to her while they danced, eager to introduce themselves and express their admiration.
Honestly it made her rather nervous. She knew why they were so interested after all, and she wasn’t sure what she was going to say, or when she should say it. So for now? She just kept dancing, an excellent way to avoid the problem at hand, even if she’d have to address it eventually, and it was terrific fun! Once again partners were passed around, and this time she found herself linking arms with a particularly striking figure. His skin was an almost shiny, taut blue, pulled over bulging muscles. There were stitches over his body keeping his skin from splitting over the muscle beneath which was wiry and taut, lacking the moisture to relax or loosen. He only had one eye, and there was a bandana wrapped around his forehead, and a string of prayer beads hanging from his neck. He was wearing a robe that slung up over his right left shoulder, but didn’t cover the right, showing off his withered pectorals. He was also...very tall, Nian Gao only came up to his chest!
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Nian Gao.” He spoke, his lips stretched back far enough that his teeth were perpetually exposed, although they were surprisingly well taken care of! “I am Oden, a protector of this humble gravetown you’ve become part of.”
“Oh! A protector!” Now that was interesting, “It’s nice to meet you!” What exciting thought, so he didn’t just look like a warrior, he was one!
“If you don’t mind me asking.” The two twirled around each other, arm in arm. “Sauerkraut left you a letter didn’t he? What did it say? People are eager for news of the man, and if there’s anything you might know, it would do much to cheer the people.”
“Ah…” She blinked at that, “Oh, I...well…” She probably should say something about that, although, were the people really in need of cheer? Everyone seemed happy right now but...people usually were during a special occasion. “I probably should say something about that.”
“No need to rush, there’ll be plenty of time for it.” The warrior zombie replied as the two kept dancing, drawing a nod and a smile from Nian Gao as the dance continued. Still, with those words in her head, it wasn’t going to be long before she separated from the dance, bowing out to go seek out Salisbury. A floating, flaming skull was not hard to find. He seemed to be unique like her, she hadn’t seen any undead that looked like him, just ghosts, zombies, and skeletons.
“Hey Nian, enjoying the party?” The skull asked, floating up to her as she approached. Her arms were back out in front of her. She could keep them down, but for some reason laying her hands at her sides felt...difficult, this was just her natural resting pose for her arms it seemed!
“I am! Although, I wanted to talk to you about something.” She said, hopping up to him. “How would I go about...making an announcement?”
“Hmm? Oh, thinking about that? Not hard, I’ll just filter word that you want to, and the musicians will stop the dance momentarily so you can say your piece.”
“Alright, alright let’s do that then.” Nian said, “I’ll uh...just wait here.”
Salisbury nodded, before floating off to talk to the band playing the music, and Nian Gao was left standing there, grabbing a peach off of a nearby table as she waited. She was just supposed to set them back after sucking...it was so weird. People here clearly valued cleanliness, but a lot of sanitation rules weren’t as big of a deal here. She supposed it made sense. Zombies and corpses didn’t need to worry about infection from cross contamination after all.
What was she going to say? She’d never given a speech before! Yet this was kind of just that. Well she’d just tell what she wanted to and that was it. Hopefully they’d be understanding, man, Sauerkraut had really put her in an awkward position, but she was just going to have to handle it! He seemed to clearly think she was capable at least. It was far too soon when the music stopped and she could hear Salisbury proclaiming loudly, flying up high, an obvious beacon to draw everyone’s attention. “Everyone! Our guest of honor, Nian Gao! Has an announcement to make! It’s rather important for everyone I think, so you’d best pay attention!”
As he spoke, one of the musicians walked up to her, “Please, come with me, you should speak where everyone can better see and hear you.”
“Oh, okay.” She said, following him along. She found herself hopping again just because it was easier, going up to the simple wooden stand the musicians had been playing on. She was led to the front, and she became a lot more self conscious about her hands sticking out in front of her, making a conscious effort to lower them.
“Ah, yes hello!” She said, making an effort to lift her voice and make sure it carried. For some reason, the stand itself seemed to help, as if something there was projecting her voice and...well given she was in a party of the dead, weird magic to make sound carry more was hardly that unbelievable. “It’s been wonderful to meet all of you, and you’ve done a fantastic job of making me feel welcome! This place has been an absolute delight! However, I’m aware of why this party is being held, and why so many of you hold such excitement.”
Alright, deep breaths, she didn’t need to breathe anymore, but it still helped her in some weird way. She could do this. “When I woke up, I was soon given a letter addressed to me, from Sauerkraut himself. While it did not detail where he had gone, it detailed a few other things. Namely, that he will not likely be able to return himself,” that drew a stir, a lot of muttering from the assembled folk, not the news they wanted, “but!” She wanted to stress this, “He can be found. I can find him, if I venture out into the world, and that if I can draw enough attention to myself, it could alert a few friends who might be able to help me piece together where he’s gone and what’s happened, and potentially, bring him back!”
The muttering persisted but she could practically feel the shift in mood, no longer as worried as from her initial statement. “I have decided of course, that I will do so! I’m going to go out and do my best to find him.”
“Where are you going to start?!” Someone called out from the crowd.
“Well that’s a...good question! Honestly I’m not sure yet. I’ve been asleep for awhile, but of course, anything that might be useful for building up attention would be good.”
Then a new voice called out, “You know! The 151st World Martial Arts Tournament will be taking place in less than 2 years. There is no event bigger or grander in all the world. If there was a way to drum up attention, that would be it!”
“Ah! That does sound nice, but I don’t know much about fighting! I’d need to learn!”
The speaker leaped up from the crowd, flipping through the air before he landed heavily on the ground in front of the platform. It was Oden! “I. Can teach you. When Sauerkraut shaped your deceased form he imparted upon you a number of gifts, and asked me, when you woke up, to offer you my mentorship. If you are willing, I can use this time to train you into the finest warrior I am capable of, and then you can set yourself into the world to find Sauerkraut!”
“Oh…” She blinked as she looked at him, even on the wooden platform she didn’t feel all that much taller than him, but still…”That...sounds wonderful!” She said, her face lighting up. It was perfect, it also sounded great, getting to learn martial arts and becoming a fearsome warrior on a quest to find her maker? That sounded like a dream come true! Like living out one of her storybooks! “Then it’s settled! Everyone, I will begin training under Oden, to head out to the World Tournament, and there, I’ll begin my journey to find Sauerkraut and bring him home!”
The cheers from the crowd of people was damn near deafening as she smiled, hopping off of the stage and next to Oden, who chuckled as he looked at fists thrown in the air and people exclaiming their excitement. He leaned in to say, “We start your training tomorrow, for now though just enjoy yourself.”
Nian Gao smiled, nodding, “You got it, master! I look forward to learning under you!” She’d always admired martial artists, but between her sickly life and the effort she’d put into helping her family in those last two years, learning any real martial arts simply hadn’t been on the table. So this? This was exciting, and nearly two years to prepare? That would ensure she was way better set to actually do what Sauerkraut was expecting of her. With that she went hopping into the crowd as several undead beckoned her to join in as a new round of dancing was prepared. She felt a lot more confident about this business now, and she was looking forward to tomorrow’s lessons, almost as much as she was enjoying tonight’s dancing! The people seemed just as bright and cheerful as she was. The already positive atmosphere had intensified. Sure, they were potentially going to be waiting several years for their beloved leader to return, but now they had at least something of a timeframe. Something proactive was starting, and she supposed that was a cheerful thought in and of itself.
The future was looking pretty bright.
(6,040)
Said rooms were often occupied by other examples of the undead. Dried out zombies, bleach boned skeletons, strange spectres who were transparent to opaque, all in a range of looks. Nian Gao couldn’t help but look into every open doorway they crossed as she followed Monroe through the winding stairs and hallways of the crypt, her arms stuck straight out ahead of her, barely able to move her legs at all and thus hopping on after him in a strange fashion. Rigor mortis he called it, they were going to see a Salisbury who would be able to explain better than him but...according to Monroe she was also dead, and it fit.
Her heart wasn’t beating in her chest anymore, and she could hold her breath forever if she wanted. At least she could hop pretty fast, and cover a nice bit of distance! It meant she could easily keep up with the withered corpse’s walking speed, her head turning to look into a room. There were three people at a table, one of them a skeleton that had painted their skull in a myriad of beautiful colors in a fancy pattern, sitting in a dress, they looked to be playing cards with the ghost and zombie also sitting at the table. So far, only the ghosts looked as ‘alive’ as hers, in that, while they were weirdly opaque or oftentimes tinted a certain color like blue or white, they at least looked like they had in life.
It was all rather surreal, but she kept hopping after Monroe who was talking again, snapping her out of it to try and pay attention. “Ah, sorry I didn’t hear that, could you say it again?” Nian asked apologetically as she watched him head up the stairs, before giving a good hop to climb up after him.
“Having a hard time paying attention?” Monroe asked, turning back to look at her. Even with his lips withered and seemingly not able to cover his teeth completely, he could still shift them enough to give her a wry little smirk.
“Ah, well...maybe a little. This is just…”
“A lot to take in. Yeah, don’t worry, a lot of us had some similar reactions. Those of us who weren’t expecting it at least. Heh didn’t figure you were going to be a surprised soul, did he not tell you much about what was going to happen?”
“Did...who not tell me much?”
“What? You know, Sauerkraut, the guy who rose all of us. Tall man? Has a thing for weird skull masks? Blonde hair?”
“Oh! You mean the guy who gave me that potion! Uh...yeah he uh...well he told me things, but I was under the impression I was going to...stay dead?”
Monroe just laughed, a hand going on his desiccated belly as he kept walking. “Well I hope it was a pleasant surprise at least!”
“Yeah it was but uh...it’s kind of hard to believe that it’s really been as long as you’ve said…”
“Well don’t take my word for it, you can ask Salisbury himself, he’s the big man’s brother, he’ll be able to answer any questions you have.”
With a nod she continued after him up the stairs, the two moving through another granite corridor before she heard a voice up ahead call out, “Out of the way! Move it!”
Monroe stopped, “Well looks like Salisbury’s come to meet us.”
Up ahead, around the corner, came a figure, or rather, a shape, a small shape. They were wreathed in crackling flames, proper flames, the warm, orange glow contrasting with the cold blues of the torches that filled the hallway. Said flames were wrapped around a skull, stripped of all flesh of any kind, from bleached teeth, to empty sockets lit up by the fire that wreathed the entire skull. Nian Gao had to admit, the sight of a flaming skull coming down the hallway did make her panic a little, coming to a halt, leaning backwards, and nearly falling over as her rigor mortis stiffened body refused to properly compensate!
Fortunately she didn’t fall over, as Monroe grabbed her shoulders, helping her straighten up as the flaming skull came to a halt a meter or so away from them both. Somehow, it looked like his bone structure shifted to replicate an expression as he looked her up and down. “Hey there Salisbury, how’s it going?” Monroe asked cheerfully.
This was Salisbury? Nian Gao blinked, before, “Um...hi there?”
“Hmph...looking pretty good for being asleep for three years.” The skull commented with a snort. “A bit stiff I imagine? My brother said you shouldn’t be as restricted as other Jiangshi, but right now you’re running on empty so you probably don’t have the strength to push back against your body. Come on, let’s go to the surface and get you something to eat.”
She wanted to ask a lot of questions, but his statement immediately made one singular concern come rising to the forefront of her mind as she just blurted out, “You don’t mean people do you?”
“What?!” The skull rounded on her and she yelped as she hopped backwards. The skull stared at her, before sighing. “No, I don’t mean people. Sauerkraut didn’t tell you much did he? Trust me, no one’s going to get hurt to feed you. Just follow me.”
“Um...okay…” She said, before starting to hop after Salisbury.
Monroe gave a wave, “Have fun there Nian! I think you’re going to be pleasantly surprised.” With those last words he went walking back deeper into the tomb, leaving Nian to follow someone else instead.
“So uh...how big is this place? I feel like I’ve been moving through a fair bit…”
“The surface is only one more floor up.” Salisbury commented, “You’ll get to see the sun again soon, lucky you, assuming you like daylight, it’s just the right time.”
“Right um...sunlight won’t hurt me will it?”
“Hahahaha! No, no it won’t. You should be just fine.” Salisbury said, leading her up another flight of stairs, just the one more if he was to be believed.
“Should?”’ Nian Gao asked as they went up, but Salisbury just chuckled, and eventually as she reached the top of the stairs, to her left, was a very different form of light from the cold-blue of the torches. Closer to Salisbury’s own warm orange glow. Her eyes widened as she saw it, before she turned to hop towards it, and out into the sunlight.
She winced as she emerged into the warm sunlight, a gentle breeze blowing past as she slowly adjusted to take in her surroundings. The entrance to the crypt was on a wide, rolling hill, with terraced rows of graves marking the way down, well kept stone paths winding through. There were other undead out here, just out and enjoying the sunlight. Ahead of her she could see more hills, but these ones had a more natural look than the terraced steps of the graveyard. There was sweeping trees, but to her right, from what the sun told her was the North, she could see fields, pastures with barns not too far away. It was a beautiful view, and for some reason it really did feel like it had been an age since she’d seen anything like this...even though she could swear just yesterday she’d been at home looking over her family’s wonderful farm. It was a...conflicting set of sensations to say the least.
“Beautiful place ain’t it? Come on, let’s keep going.” Salisbury said, floating past her to start soaring over one of the paths. Nian Gao blinked, before hopping after him, the sunlight felt nice on her pale skin, although she couldn’t really tell if she was any warmer or not. Could she still tell temperatures by touch? Hard to say, and so, “Hey, is it weird that I can’t really tell if I’m warm or not?”
“Nope! No idea if it’ll stay that way once you get some life in ya, but right now you’re just a hopping corpse. Can’t feel pain, can’t taste, probably can’t feel most things either.”
“I can feel my hat on my head!”
“Like I said, most things.” Salisbury replied as they continued along. He floated down the path before, “Oh, great timing.” He went soaring off, down towards a particular figure shuffling along.
They were dressed like an old woman, with a scarf wrapped around the top of their head and tied beneath the chin, in an old, fine dress, they had a basket hanging from one arm, and Nian could tell from hands and face that it was another zombie, wisps of dry grey hair sticking out from the scarf. “Oooh Salisbury, hello, hello!” The woman said brightly, “Who’s this adorable young girl with you? She is young isn’t she?”
“Ahh, she is, this is Nian Gao. Nian? Meet Miriam, one of the many fine folks here.”
“Ah, nice to meet you.” Nian said, smiling and attempting to offer a hand but, “Ah...sorry, I’m just...feeling sort of stiff.”
The woman’s withered eyes fixed on the strange talisman hanging from Nian’s head and, “Ohhh, you’re her! I was wondering what all the bustle today was about!”
“Yes, about that, Miriam, would I be correct in assuming that’s a basket of eggs you’ve got there?” Salisbury asked, jerking his disembodied skull towards the basket in her arms.
“Oh yes it is. Do you want one?”
“It’s not for me.” Salisbury replied, “But for Nian, I figured a little pick me up might help her last until later.”
“Later?” Nian Gao asked, as the old zombie woman chuckled.
“Ohoho of course.” Miriam replied brightly, reaching one hand down she moved the cloth covering the basket and pulled out a simple smooth egg. Obviously a chicken’s egg. She handed it to Nian Gao who sort of...twisted at her hips to reach one outstretched hand and turn it to take it.
“Thanks!” Nian Gao said brightly, “Uh so do I just...eat it raw?”
“You’re a Jiangshi so it should be less a matter of eating and more draining...just try...I dunno, gently biting and sucking?” Salisbury replied.
“I...okay.” Nian said, before..well, her brow furrowed as her arm twitched, struggling to bend and bring the egg in towards her mouth. “Nnn…” There was a stiff, unpleasant crackling and cracking as she slowly started to get her arm to bend.
“Oh do you need help dear?” Miriam asked.
“No I can...get it...but thank you.” Nian replied, managing to get a smile out at the woman as her arm slowly bent, fighting against its rigor mortis. She felt like she’d be working up a sweat if she could...still do that. Eventually though she managed to get the egg up to her lips, her eyes crossed slightly to look down on it as she considered. So, just...bite and suck? It felt weird, it was a raw egg, you weren’t supposed to just eat raw eggs but...she wasn’t really alive anymore, so salmonella? Probably not that much of an issue.
There was a faint cracking as she bit down, just faintly breaking the shell and...she sucked. Honestly she wasn’t expecting much to happen, but she did get something. A rush of energy, a strange feeling crackling down her throat and diffusing through her entire body. It was short and brief, but it was a jolt of energy nonetheless, making her eyes widen. It faded quickly and she blinked, her hand crackling as it went back to straight in front of her. “Whoa. That was...I couldn’t taste anything but I could…”
“Oh I’m sure it was quite the rush dear.” Miriam replied brightly, “I’d offer you another, but you don’t want to spoil your appetite for dinner tonight. It’s going to be quite the event!”
“Huh? It is?” Nian Gao asked, tilting her head to the side. Did she wake up on a holiday or something?
“Yeah, Nian, the folk in the graveyard have been waiting for you to wake up this entire time.” Salisbury replied. “You waking up is meant to be a pretty big deal. You’re Sauerkraut’s greatest creation, and more importantly, you waking up is supposed to be the first sign that he might return.”
“Where...did he go? How long’s he been gone?” He was gone? Why?
“Well...for about two years, spent a year making sure you were all set and built the way he wanted and then left.” Salisbury replied, “Speaking of, one of the things he left was a letter addressed to you. You can read it whenever you feel like it.”
“Oh.” This felt...like a tremendous amount of pressure suddenly placed on her shoulders. His greatest creation? What had she been created for? It felt weird to think of herself like that, she wasn’t created, she was born! Although...she had been altered a fair bit. Going by her stiff posture.
“I can hardly wait for more good news.” Miriam said brightly, “But I’ll leave you two to your business. I need to get these eggs put away.” Her hand reached for Nian’s and she took the shell from her. “I’ll get this thrown away while I’m at it.”
“Oh, um...thank you!” Nian Gao replied, before turning her attention back to Salisbury. “So um...where’s this...letter?”
“I’ve got it on me right now actually.” Salisbury replied, which drew an incredulous look from Nian Gao as she looked over his ‘body.’ That being, a disembodied flaming skull. “Whaaaat? Don’t look at me like that! You shouldn’t take things for granted in a place like this.” With that he opened his mouth, lower jaw dropping as...a cream colored envelope slid out between, sticking out between his teeth, miraculously untouched by the flames.
“I...oh...that’s...that’s incredible! How isn’t it burning?” Nian Gao asked, her expression lighting up, that was so weird, but so cool!
“Tach huh lehher.” Salisbury replied, nodding his skull towards her.
“Oh right, um...it won’t burn me will it?” Nian Gao asked, reaching a hand forward, before pulling it back.
“Tach huh lehher!” Salisbury demanded, making Nian Gao yelp before snatching it from between his jaws. “Criminy.” Salisbury said, rolling his jaw, “My flames are magical, they don’t inherently burn.”
“Right, sorry.” Nian Gao replied, as she brought her hands together to rip open the letter. It felt just the teeniest bit easier to move her arms now after that and…”Hey, why does eating an egg help me anyways? That doesn’t seem very alive, or like...what a jiangshi does.”
“Well that’s because eggs and seeds have an inherent spark of life to them.” Salisbury replied, “So, let me explain some basics for you.” He floated upwards, adjusting his jawbone before continuing. “Typically the best things for creatures like you to ‘eat’ is living things, seeds, eggs and such, meat or plants as fresh as you can get, or extremely rotten foods. When a cow is butchered, it’s life energy lingers in its flesh for a fair while afterwards, but fades. As it starts to rot, it’s filled with a large amount of fresh life energy, not as much as in life usually, but a lot as it starts to decompose and fill with tons of smaller living things. Get me?”
Nian Gao’s nose wrinkled at the thought of eating something rotten but, she nodded. “Right, that...I guess that makes sense? Kind of gross though. So does cooking food help or hurt?”
“Usually hurts.” Salisbury replied.
“Oh...well it’s not like I can taste anymore anyways.” She said with a shrug, before pulling the letter out of the envelope at last. It was time to see what Sauerkraut had left for her, and oh boy...it was a doozy.
Nian Gao,
I’m sure you must have questions. I have thrust you into what some might call a rather unfair situation. All I can do is try to assure you that there was a reason for deceiving you as to your ultimate fate, and that none of this has been for some whimsical or cruel purpose. You likely have many questions, but please, indulge me in clarifying this first.
I needed for this project, someone of the kind of pure hearted nature, that they would face even death with a smile, and you did just that. Perhaps you had doubts or fears, but at no point did you shirk from the consequences of the deal you made, and left your family with a strong, happy memory to look back upon. For this reason, I chose you.
You have become one of the greatest works I’ve ever accomplished. Believe me, you are so much more than a jiangshi and capable of so much more. However, I would never dream of robbing you of choice. You can, if you choose, walk away from this, perhaps surprise your family with your return, or simply enjoy a quaint life in the graveyard or wherever you choose. If you would walk this path that I have built you for though, you should be prepared.
I will not be returning on my own. You will have to come looking for me, and doing so will attract the attention of various dangerous characters. Their attention might be the best way to track me down, so it might even be your best option to somehow draw a great deal of attention to yourself. Ultimately the choice is yours, and know that whatever you do, as long as it makes you happy, it was the right decision.
Sincerely,
Your Creator,
Sauerkraut
Nian Gao lowered the letter slowly as she blinked, her face screwing up as she considered this. Given how excited everyone was that her waking up meant Sauerkraut might finally be coming back. If she just...didn’t go looking for him, what would the people here think? Even if they accepted it..would she really be fine with disappointing them like that? Would they really be okay or just pretend? She sighed and Salisbury floated around her. “What’s wrong? What’d the letter say?”
“Ah...a lot, but basically. Sauerkraut can’t come back. I need to find him.” Nian Gao said, giving the skull a smile.
“What? Why? Does he say what happened?”
“Nope, just that...I apparently need to get a lot of attention to lure out the people who might know...and it’s implied will want to attack me.”
“Oh...I...might have a few ideas about who that might be, but perhaps we should talk about this later.” Salisbury said, “They’re going to be expecting you down at the fields soon.”
“Huh? Really? It hasn’t been that long since I woke up has it?”
“Ahah, not at all, but there’s plenty of other things we can do in the meantime, like dancing.” Salisbury said brightly as he started to float along, with Nian turning to hop along after him.
“Ohhh, I haven’t danced in awhile! That sounds nice.”
The skull laughed, “We’ll get you something more filling than an egg so you actually can.”
Nian Gao laughed along with him as they went down to the fields, past the pastures where a number of people were setting up for an event. A clear space of grass for dancing, lots of tables, and off to the side a lot of animals being prepared. Salisbury went flying over. “Hey! Can we get one of those goats over here for the VIP? Yeah, just let her drain the life out of it and then go prepare it for the flesh eaters!”
At his behest, a few zombies came over, leading a goat along. He seemed like an awfully placid and calm goat. Guess he’d likely been raised around walking corpses so it probably didn’t intimidate him that much. “You want us to put a bolt in him afore ya do?” One of the zombies asked, lifting up a simple boltgun, powered by pressurized CO2.
“Ah, yes please.” Nian Gao said, hopping up to the goat. She wasn’t a stranger to animals being slaughtered for food...although she’d never been allowed to help with it growing up, she’d gotten to help a couple times in those last two years of her...living life? Just life? What words did she even use to describe that time period. Her reverie was broken at the sharp snap of the gun, and the goat keeling over dead, a hole neatly in its skull. Nian Gao had seen this a...couple of times, although she had to admit she was way more used to chickens which...squirmed a lot more for a lot longer. Well she supposed she just...there was a stiff clicking as she tried to bend over, the struggle clear on her face.
“Do you uh...need us to haul it up for ya?” The zombie asked.
“Oh I’m fine...I should learn how to deal with this at some point, right?” Nian replied, giving a somewhat strained smile back as she just kind of...fell forward, arms pushed further upwards as her face fell into the coarse hair of the dead goat. Right, so she should just bite down right? Bite and suck like with the egg. At least she didn’t need to actually bite and drain blood, that was a big plus at the very least! So, she did that, she bit, ignoring the weird sensation of hair on her tongue, and started sucking. At least she couldn’t taste it, she didn’t imagine that goat hair tasted all that nice.
Once again, she felt that rush, only this time it was far more intense. It lasted longer too, flowing into her body as her eyes widened. Her jaw clamped down more firmly as her eyes started to drift shut. She looked rather pleased to the zombie and skull observing as she kept sucking, feeling that lifeforce, that raw sensation, flooding her body, pouring into her limbs. It was a bizarre sensation, surely something like this should make her heartbeat quicken, her breath come faster, but her heart remained stubbornly motionless, and her breathing..did come faster, simply out of habit and thought. The flow eventually tapered off, turning into a trickle, before ceasing entirely.
Reluctantly she lifted her head up. She felt more energized, her body felt lighter and remembering what she’d been told? There was a stiff series of cracks as her arms bent, pushing down on the goat and pushing herself up. There was an ugly crackling as she lifted one leg up, bending at the knee before standing up properly and sighing. Her arms immediately went out in front of her again but...it just felt natural to keep them there. “So, how do you feel?” Salisbury asked, while the zombie lugged up the corpse of the goat to carry it off for carving.
“I feel...pretty good!” Nian Gao replied, her arms bending as she moved her hands to the back of her head. There was more crackling but it was quieter, as if her body was slowly settling as she worked it. Then her hands shifted down to her hips as she squatted, bending her knees. “Gonna take some getting used to, but hey this doesn’t seem too bad! Although eating an entire goat seems pretty expensive.”
“Well it’s not like the meat is made useless!” Salisbury said with a laugh. “So it’s not that big of a deal, besides right now you’re basically starved, and there’s lots of sources you can use for food, it’ll be fine.”
“If you say so.” Nian replied, lifting her hands up above her head. She still felt unusually stiff, but she could move herself around properly. “Now...didn’t you say something about dancing?”
Hours later, the sun had started to set, and tall torches were set up around the fields, which had in this time transformed and become far more lively than before. Music played, skeletons and zombies with instruments in bony hands plucking at strings, or somehow blowing into brass despite a near, or complete, lack of lips. A jaunty tune was being played by that varied band, and a number of other corpses were dancing along to the beat. Tables were set up around, and set with food. From great haunches of meat carefully roasted over open fires, to raw flesh carefully arranged to not bleed onto the tables, and a great assortment of fruits, vegetables, seeds and eggs! There were beverages aplenty, including some a living person might find a bit...gruesome.
Nian Gao wasn’t sure she’d ever be trying a cup of fresh goat’s blood, but at the moment, she wasn’t going to begrudge anyone who might enjoy it! She was full of life, and in the midst of the dancing, a wide, beautiful smile on her face that just seemed to light up the darkening skies. She was arm in arm with someone else, already adjusted to the withered look of her fellow corpses, the two spinning around each other, before separating on cue with the music. They backed up facing each other, Nian Gao’s fingers gripping her skirt to make it easier to do the steps without tripping before they closed back in.
It was a new dance to the jiangshi, but she’d been a quick learner once she’d been able to get out of bed, and it seemed that remained true here. It hadn’t taken more than a few rounds for her to get the hang of it, and now she was dancing like she’d danced it her entire life, the two linking arms again before separating to link up with the next partner down the line. It was terrific fun, and something about these people, despite everything, just enjoying themselves and dancing made her feel all the more terrific. It helped that she was pretty popular too! While she was eating or drinking, people would always come up to say hello, and sometimes her partners would talk to her while they danced, eager to introduce themselves and express their admiration.
Honestly it made her rather nervous. She knew why they were so interested after all, and she wasn’t sure what she was going to say, or when she should say it. So for now? She just kept dancing, an excellent way to avoid the problem at hand, even if she’d have to address it eventually, and it was terrific fun! Once again partners were passed around, and this time she found herself linking arms with a particularly striking figure. His skin was an almost shiny, taut blue, pulled over bulging muscles. There were stitches over his body keeping his skin from splitting over the muscle beneath which was wiry and taut, lacking the moisture to relax or loosen. He only had one eye, and there was a bandana wrapped around his forehead, and a string of prayer beads hanging from his neck. He was wearing a robe that slung up over his right left shoulder, but didn’t cover the right, showing off his withered pectorals. He was also...very tall, Nian Gao only came up to his chest!
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Nian Gao.” He spoke, his lips stretched back far enough that his teeth were perpetually exposed, although they were surprisingly well taken care of! “I am Oden, a protector of this humble gravetown you’ve become part of.”
“Oh! A protector!” Now that was interesting, “It’s nice to meet you!” What exciting thought, so he didn’t just look like a warrior, he was one!
“If you don’t mind me asking.” The two twirled around each other, arm in arm. “Sauerkraut left you a letter didn’t he? What did it say? People are eager for news of the man, and if there’s anything you might know, it would do much to cheer the people.”
“Ah…” She blinked at that, “Oh, I...well…” She probably should say something about that, although, were the people really in need of cheer? Everyone seemed happy right now but...people usually were during a special occasion. “I probably should say something about that.”
“No need to rush, there’ll be plenty of time for it.” The warrior zombie replied as the two kept dancing, drawing a nod and a smile from Nian Gao as the dance continued. Still, with those words in her head, it wasn’t going to be long before she separated from the dance, bowing out to go seek out Salisbury. A floating, flaming skull was not hard to find. He seemed to be unique like her, she hadn’t seen any undead that looked like him, just ghosts, zombies, and skeletons.
“Hey Nian, enjoying the party?” The skull asked, floating up to her as she approached. Her arms were back out in front of her. She could keep them down, but for some reason laying her hands at her sides felt...difficult, this was just her natural resting pose for her arms it seemed!
“I am! Although, I wanted to talk to you about something.” She said, hopping up to him. “How would I go about...making an announcement?”
“Hmm? Oh, thinking about that? Not hard, I’ll just filter word that you want to, and the musicians will stop the dance momentarily so you can say your piece.”
“Alright, alright let’s do that then.” Nian said, “I’ll uh...just wait here.”
Salisbury nodded, before floating off to talk to the band playing the music, and Nian Gao was left standing there, grabbing a peach off of a nearby table as she waited. She was just supposed to set them back after sucking...it was so weird. People here clearly valued cleanliness, but a lot of sanitation rules weren’t as big of a deal here. She supposed it made sense. Zombies and corpses didn’t need to worry about infection from cross contamination after all.
What was she going to say? She’d never given a speech before! Yet this was kind of just that. Well she’d just tell what she wanted to and that was it. Hopefully they’d be understanding, man, Sauerkraut had really put her in an awkward position, but she was just going to have to handle it! He seemed to clearly think she was capable at least. It was far too soon when the music stopped and she could hear Salisbury proclaiming loudly, flying up high, an obvious beacon to draw everyone’s attention. “Everyone! Our guest of honor, Nian Gao! Has an announcement to make! It’s rather important for everyone I think, so you’d best pay attention!”
As he spoke, one of the musicians walked up to her, “Please, come with me, you should speak where everyone can better see and hear you.”
“Oh, okay.” She said, following him along. She found herself hopping again just because it was easier, going up to the simple wooden stand the musicians had been playing on. She was led to the front, and she became a lot more self conscious about her hands sticking out in front of her, making a conscious effort to lower them.
“Ah, yes hello!” She said, making an effort to lift her voice and make sure it carried. For some reason, the stand itself seemed to help, as if something there was projecting her voice and...well given she was in a party of the dead, weird magic to make sound carry more was hardly that unbelievable. “It’s been wonderful to meet all of you, and you’ve done a fantastic job of making me feel welcome! This place has been an absolute delight! However, I’m aware of why this party is being held, and why so many of you hold such excitement.”
Alright, deep breaths, she didn’t need to breathe anymore, but it still helped her in some weird way. She could do this. “When I woke up, I was soon given a letter addressed to me, from Sauerkraut himself. While it did not detail where he had gone, it detailed a few other things. Namely, that he will not likely be able to return himself,” that drew a stir, a lot of muttering from the assembled folk, not the news they wanted, “but!” She wanted to stress this, “He can be found. I can find him, if I venture out into the world, and that if I can draw enough attention to myself, it could alert a few friends who might be able to help me piece together where he’s gone and what’s happened, and potentially, bring him back!”
The muttering persisted but she could practically feel the shift in mood, no longer as worried as from her initial statement. “I have decided of course, that I will do so! I’m going to go out and do my best to find him.”
“Where are you going to start?!” Someone called out from the crowd.
“Well that’s a...good question! Honestly I’m not sure yet. I’ve been asleep for awhile, but of course, anything that might be useful for building up attention would be good.”
Then a new voice called out, “You know! The 151st World Martial Arts Tournament will be taking place in less than 2 years. There is no event bigger or grander in all the world. If there was a way to drum up attention, that would be it!”
“Ah! That does sound nice, but I don’t know much about fighting! I’d need to learn!”
The speaker leaped up from the crowd, flipping through the air before he landed heavily on the ground in front of the platform. It was Oden! “I. Can teach you. When Sauerkraut shaped your deceased form he imparted upon you a number of gifts, and asked me, when you woke up, to offer you my mentorship. If you are willing, I can use this time to train you into the finest warrior I am capable of, and then you can set yourself into the world to find Sauerkraut!”
“Oh…” She blinked as she looked at him, even on the wooden platform she didn’t feel all that much taller than him, but still…”That...sounds wonderful!” She said, her face lighting up. It was perfect, it also sounded great, getting to learn martial arts and becoming a fearsome warrior on a quest to find her maker? That sounded like a dream come true! Like living out one of her storybooks! “Then it’s settled! Everyone, I will begin training under Oden, to head out to the World Tournament, and there, I’ll begin my journey to find Sauerkraut and bring him home!”
The cheers from the crowd of people was damn near deafening as she smiled, hopping off of the stage and next to Oden, who chuckled as he looked at fists thrown in the air and people exclaiming their excitement. He leaned in to say, “We start your training tomorrow, for now though just enjoy yourself.”
Nian Gao smiled, nodding, “You got it, master! I look forward to learning under you!” She’d always admired martial artists, but between her sickly life and the effort she’d put into helping her family in those last two years, learning any real martial arts simply hadn’t been on the table. So this? This was exciting, and nearly two years to prepare? That would ensure she was way better set to actually do what Sauerkraut was expecting of her. With that she went hopping into the crowd as several undead beckoned her to join in as a new round of dancing was prepared. She felt a lot more confident about this business now, and she was looking forward to tomorrow’s lessons, almost as much as she was enjoying tonight’s dancing! The people seemed just as bright and cheerful as she was. The already positive atmosphere had intensified. Sure, they were potentially going to be waiting several years for their beloved leader to return, but now they had at least something of a timeframe. Something proactive was starting, and she supposed that was a cheerful thought in and of itself.
The future was looking pretty bright.
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