My Necromancer Wife

Karim.

What kind of monster is this? Ace seems unnervingly calm.

His, or rather, my lips, start splitting into a creepy grin.

It looks like me, but a crazier and wilder version.

I gulp, shoving my hands deeper into my pockets to control their trembling.

"What...is it?" I ask, trying to sound casually curious, instead of afraid.

"No one knows what he is. He can take the form of anything".

I take a second to process that information.

Wicked eyes keep staring at me from behind the bars.

Then, he lunges forward swiftly and mouths, "Boo!"

I jump back in fright, crashing into the wall behind me.

The thing laughs, a thin and menacing sound that sends chills down my spine.

My heart is pounding against my chest, blocking out every sound.

The fake me grabs the prison bars, curling his fingers about them slowly. The bars begin to glow as he makes contact with it.

Runes start appearing around the bars, clear and unmoving.

They disappear once he uncoils his fingers from the bars.

The smell of burning flesh wafts to my nostrils.

Ace comes over and gives me a hand.

"What's with the runes?" I ask.

"It's an ancient trapping spell, that keeps him from escaping. The early founders of the school used it to seal him in place. It burns him if he touches the bars, or any of the walls".

I nod absently, my eyes fixed on my mirror image staring at me from the other side of the bars.

"So what are we supposed to do here?"

"We're supposed to keep it company. It's not so bad when you get used to it. There was once a time when it may have made me cringe, but not anymore".

I can't see myself ever getting used to keeping such a creepy creature company - often.

"Do you do this often - I mean, keeping it company?"

He shrugs.

"The school management wanted to force me into obedience by striking fear into me. As expected, it didn't work. Neither did their attempt at public humiliation. I emerged as the only guy who befriended the Presence".

The Presence? Is that its name?

Befriended?

I adjust my glassmask and watch the thing carefully.

"Does it always take your form when you visit it, or is it just trying to make me uncomfortable?"

Ace smirks and turns to his friend.

"Our guest is uncomfortable, P. Why don't you take on a more guest-friendly form?"

It slowly morphs into the form of a woman, but the creepy grin remains.

I take in it's brown hair, green eyes and round face. It is wearing the student's uniform.

I squint my eyes to see beyond the shadows cast by the firelight.

Morrow.

It took the form of Morrow?

How is this supposed to make me more comfortable? If anything, I am more edgy.

Ace glances at me quickly.

The glance is quick and sharp, but I catch the embarrassed look quick enough.

A slow blush creeps up his cheeks.

It takes only a moment for me to grasp what is going on.

Ace likes Morrow.

Its eyes snap to mine and our gazes lock through the film of glass.

I can't seem to look away - it imprisons me with its gaze.

Then, it slowly turns into a person I know all too well. The hollow ache in my chest confirms the image in front of me.

Arya.

I close my eyes to shut out the deceptive image.

How did it know?

Its too painful to look at her, knowing its not really her - she's not real.

When I open my eyes again, we are in an open garden surrounded by blooming flowers.

The sweet scent of roses and nectars fills the air. Bees are humming somewhere in the distance.

All three of us are sitting in a circle, each person entitled to a chair.

I jerk when I see a gruff looking man sitting beside me, leaning casually in his chair, his arms folded and his eyes closed.

At my other side is Ace, eyes closed as well as he listens to whatever he listens to with his headphones.

The sky is bright and clear above us, sparkling with rays of swirling dust.

The warmth of the sun feels real against my skin, even the caress of the warm air as it dances through my hair feels too real to be anything else.

I return my attention to the man beside me. He has dark brown hair, as long as a woman's, tied with a worn out strip of fabric.

His face looks unkempt from lack of shaving.

He is wearing a simple cotton shirt and faded jeans.

I glance down at his shoes - a pair of scuffed leather boots.

No belt, watch or accessories.

Is this its real form?

I feel so uncomfortable having him so close, even if it is an illusion.

Did Ace pull us into his Spatial Domain?

How does he feel comfortable bringing such a creature in here?

"Can't you be quiet? I can hear you." Ace says in an irritated voice, eyes still closed.

Hear me? I haven't uttered a single word.

"You're in my Domain. I can hear your thoughts, silly. Relax, P's harmless".

How much power does Ace have in his Domain that he can hear my thoughts?

The Presence's eyes snap open.

It doesn't utter a word, but its silence speaks volumes.

I instinctively shift on my seat.

"In my Domain, I'm like a god. How do I put this...it's like my own private universe. I can control everything inside it, including you".

"Can you control him?" I ask.

Ace still doesn't open his eyes. Instead, he slides further until his head is resting on the neck of the chair.

"Control is a powerful word. I can't control him, per se. But, I have power over his physical actions while in my Domain".

I turn to it.

Black eyes snap to mine immediately, a wicked grin carving into its handsome features.

I look away immediately. It has eyes like the sea at night, capable of pulling you into its depths and sinking you.

What is its true form? I keep wondering.

"Who was that woman from earlier? It must be someone you know - someone dear to you. P only assumes the form of people you... care about". He nearly chokes on the last part.

Knowing he can hear my thoughts, I ignore his question and think of something else.

"Your girlfriend?"

I give him a warning glance, indicating that I have no intention of discussing the woman in question.

His eyes are wide open now, staring at me with unnerving intensity.

He even pulled his headphones down to his neck.

Why the sudden interest in my affairs?

I fold my arms across my chest and stare at the primroses and daffodils colouring the environment.

"She's his wife". The Presence volunteers.

Ace's eyes widen in shock.

"You're married? You look too young to be married".

His reaction is nothing new to me. I have received the same reaction from a lot of people.

But, how did it know? Was it able to read my mind in that brief moment?

"He likes to say he's a god, that nothing is beyond him. He can corrupt and infiltrate any mind or body, he can take on any form, human or animal, he can speak any language, and there's plenty more he can do that I haven't seen. And he does this by making eye contact, no matter how brief."

If all that is true, how is he so comfortable around it.

"I'm only comfortable now, because I know how it works. Weakness is always in the eyes. Your eyes are the gateways to your mind. Once in your mind, everything about you is subject to the invader. I understand this too well, because I have a similar power. I make people slaves to themselves by manipulating their minds - that's all it takes."

His power is perfect for what Furuno and I have in mind. If he could infiltrate the minds of those monsters, he would buy us enough time to kill them physically, while they are trapped in his mind.

But, would he accept to join our unorganized, yet determined quest to rid the planet of those beasts?

"Having Morrow on your side would be more beneficial to you, than having me. My power is only limited to human minds. I can't pull animals or... beasts into my Domain. But Morrow would be able to stop time long enough for you to defeat them. Not only her, there are a whole lot of talents you can explore in the school".

My heart sinks at his words. I had been warming up to working with him.

"What about him? If he's not human, how are you able to pull him into your Domain?"

Ace tilts his head, eyes narrowing on the man lounging beside me.

"What are you really?"

For the first time, the thing opens its mouth. The sound isn't a voice so much as a vibration - low, crawling into my bones, making the air taste like iron.

It doesn't hurry. It stretches its arms, casual, almost bored, before looking at both of us with those black, endless eyes.

"I'm nothing you can grasp," it says slowly, lips curling into that familiar, unshakable grin. "Yet everything you fear."

The words hang in the air like smoke, heavy and suffocating.

I swallow hard, but the taste of roses is gone. The flowers wilt in an instant, their color bleeding into black ash. Even the sunlight flickers, dimming until the Domain feels too small, too fragile to contain the weight of his truth.

Beside me, Ace finally opens his eyes. For once, he doesn't look smug. He looks… unsettled.

And if Ace is unsettled, then I know one thing for certain - we're sitting in the presence of something that doesn't belong in this world.