《Skeleton Politics》


 Prologue - Death?

    The shot rang out, briefly silencing the chatter of the crowd. Soon after, panic broke out as people rushed to find safety. None of that mattered to Jack though. The only thing that mattered to him was trying to stem the blood flowing freely from the wound in his chest.


    Was this it? All the work his life had come to? All the political campaigns he''d run to get people in office. All the events he''d organized. Holding both hands to the wound, he gazed towards where the shot had been fired from. He saw a flash from the rifle as it fired again, and then nothing.


    And then, something? Jack looked around, finding himself inside of a void. Numerous dots of light littered the dark void around him, reminding him of the night sky.


    Funny. I remember several people I had to reassure under a night sky that looked just like that. There was Rob. He was running for the mayoral seat for that one town. If I remember correctly, there was a big pesticide company funding his rival''s campaign so they could open up a plant there. The pollution it would have caused would have killed off all the fish is the rivers over there. Damn. That company had put millions of dollars into that campaign and Rob was just a local guy that didn''t want that. He told me that night that there was no way he could beat them with all the smear campaigns they''d run on him. None of that info was true of course, but after a good pep talk that night, he did his speech and won the election. Well, that and all the town hall meetings I''d put together, the billboards and other things. The fact that he sued the company in a massive defamation lawsuit and won was just icing on the cake to be honest.


    Then there was Debby. I think she was running for city council. That''s right, there was a railroad company that wanted to build track right through the center of town, and they had paid off several of the council members to get it done. Unfortunately, she didn''t win the seat. That being said, the campaign I ran for her did get the people of the town aware of what was going on, so the whole project of the railroad company got derailed for a bit, the police got involved, and several of those scum got charged with counts of accepting bribery. In the end, the railroad company just paid a fine. I think they still ended building the track, but it had to go around the town. Unfortunately, I couldn''t win all of them.


    Ha! And then there was Sarah. She was running for governor! That one was great! Her whole reason for running was that several large companies were just dumping waste into the ocean. There were laws against it of course, but the fines for breaking those laws were established 50 years ago and the lawmakers back then never took inflation into account, so paying the fine if they were caught was cheaper than paying for proper disposal. Those companies also ran a massive smear campaign against her, saying that her claims were baseless, she just hated the companies and the people that worked for them, etc. The looks on the faces of the company executives when I came out with advertisements for her campaign showing video evidence of what they were doing was priceless. They tried to deny it of course, but the evidence was just damning. So of course, they flooded the TV, continuing the smear campaign against her. I had to set up so many town hall meetings. There were so many phone calls I made for that one. It was really tough to get the ball rolling, but once it got rolling, it really rolled. Sarah got elected, and that company went out of business.


    I guess I can understand why I got shot. All those bigshots I was upsetting. Well... now that I got my thoughts a bit more in order, where exactly am I? This isn''t quite what I expected the afterlife to be like...


    Looking around, Jack still saw the void and all the dots of light around him. Looking down, he noticed that he was still wearing the suit he had on during the rally he''d been holding. Kinda weird, but honestly, he was dead. With no knowledge of what was going on, who was he to decide what was weird in the first place?


    Suddenly, he felt himself being pulled in a direction, and he was being pulled very quickly. With a flash of light, he found himself before a very large skeleton with glowing eyes and dressed in ornate robes with skull decorations galore.


    "Greetings mortal! I am Necrovalis! God of Undeath on the world of Gyra! And you are going to be my champion in the oncoming fight against the Demonic invasion in one year''s time! And after that, you will show the world that I am truly worthy of their faith!"


    "Okay... Necrovalis... right? My name is Jack. Can we just start from the beginning here? I''m a little bit confused here..."


    "The insolence! If I could summon another then I swear..."


    "Calm down boss. I''m not trying to be rude here. If I don''t understand what your goals are and what we''re dealing with, I''m not going to be much help at all here. From what you just said, I''m the only option you got here... I think... so let''s sit down and talk about this."


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    "Hmm... Unfortunately, you are correct about the fact that you are my only option. And I suppose that you indeed will be more useful if you know what is going on. Very well. We shall... talk about this."


    "Okay. First things first. You talked about summoning me here. Can you elaborate on what that means and why I was summoned?"


    "Of course. As insolent as you are, daring to ask questions of me, the mighty god of undeath, Necrovalis! I shall answer this! A demonic invasion of the world is set to occur in one year on the world of Gyra. As such, we, the ten gods of the world have deemed that such a threat world cannot be dealt with as the world currently stands. The solution we came up with was to put aside our differences and to each summon a hero at random from your world of Eerth. Summoning such people gives them immense power. Enough to stand against this demonic force!"


    "To summarize what you are saying, I''m being summoned here to help fight off a demonic invasion, and the reason I was summoned was because the summoning process gives the summoned a large amount of power that can be used to fight off this demonic force. Correct?"


    "Yes. That is correct... Mortal."


    "Thank you. Now can you give me a brief overview of the world that I''m being sent into? Is there magic or anything like that?"


    "Ah yes. The world of Gyra has a system put in place by the gods to help the people grow. You can think of it as similar to the video game leveling systems of your world Eerth. Of course, you can''t view any stats or anything similar to that. We did try that out for a few brief centuries a few thousand years back. It turns out that if you show people their growth and how much experience they have left to reach that next level, they will do incredibly stupid things... So many people died thinking, the next level is only a few points away, I can keep going... Anyway. We took out the ability to view experience and just left it so people can see their mana and their skill levels. Anyway! Back on topic! To keep it short, if you do a task, you get experience in it. You get enough experience in it, and you level up the skill related to that task. Once you''ve leveled up the skill, you keep all the experience you put into it. If you slack off for a period of time without having leveled up the skill, the experience starts to fade away. There is a skill for basically every task, and some take longer amounts of time for the experience to fade, so I''m not going to describe all of that. But that, Mortal, is your explanation of the magic of the world."


    "Okay, that answers so much while leaving so much unanswered... Anyway, moving on... I guess. You mentioned that you and the other gods had to put aside your differences and work together. You also mentioned that you wanted me to show the world that you were worthy of their faith. Can you explain to me your relationship with these other gods as well as why the world needs to be shown you are worthy of their faith?"


    "Umm... well.... how to put this... Ahem! Well, Mortal! I will have you know, when we glorious gods put the system into place on this world, I deigned to put into the system my glorious gift of undeath! With which the great thinkers and philosophers could use to continue their contributions to this world! The great warriors could continue their battles! And furthermore, the mages could raise undead minions to perform tasks for the betterment of the world! I installed this into the system so deeply that no god, not even myself could change it! After all, every being on this world deserves the right to continue their goals after death!"


    "Okay... So let me make sure I have this straight. You put undeath into the system so that good people could continue their goals after death, and you made it so that anyone can access this ability... Let me guess... The majority of people who use your... gift... probably have very bad intentions with the use of it. I''m going to further guess that said evil people used this ability for evil purposes and did a lot of harm to a lot of people leading to the whole thing being labeled as something only evil people use. Furthermore, since all their followers were pissed off about the whole thing, the other gods probably tried to do something about the undeath aspect you put into the system but could not. Due to this, the best option they had was to declare you as an evil god and put an extermination order on all the undead to discourage the misuse of what you put into the system. However, since this demonic invasion is going to happen, they''ve lifted the ban temporarily in order to fight this world ending threat?"


    "That''s almost exactly it! How did you discern that mortal?"


    "Umm... Lucky guess. Anyway! Can you explain what my role in this is going to be?"


    "You will be summoned with the other heroes as a skeletal mage! Able to summon armies of skeletal and ghostly minions to do with as you see fit! Once the invasion begins, these armies you summon will do battle with the demonic forces, and the people will see how amazing the gift I granted them truly is and I will gain several followers!"


    "I''ll be a skeleton?"


    "Of course!"


    "Okay... I guess I can deal with that. The armies I can summon. Will they be the skeletons of ghosts and people that lived in the world?"


    "Do you want them to be?"


    "Preferably not. I doubt that people seeing their dead relatives being raised up to fight would be very good for your image."


    "Great! I was worried I would have to add a whole new set of skills to the system to allow that to be the case!"


    "I thought you said that you couldn''t change the way you put undeath into the system."


    "Of course I cannot Mortal! Adding new things to the system is entirely possible though! To better explain it, when you summon a skeleton or other undead, it is spontaneously created underground and crawls its way out. Ghosts just appear there in the air with some cool fog effects I made."


    "Okay. Got it. I can work with this."


    "Do you believe you can help save the world Mortal?"


    "Well, at the very least I have to try since otherwise everyone living on the world is going to die... or worse..."


    "And do you think you can help me... gain followers"


    "Oh that? Who do you think your talking to here? I''m going to be the best PR guy you''ve ever worked with. Now let''s get this ball rolling!"

 1. A discussion of sorts

    Necrovalis laughed. "You will do just fine Mortal! However, before you go, I''m obligated to tell you that this is the last time we will probably ever speak to one another face to face. The gods have a very strict non-interference clause with mortal. Normally, we''d be able to talk after you die, in your case your soul is being sent straight back to your planet of Eerth. Its slightly sad to be honest, but a deal is a deal. Anyway, feel free to use your newfound abilities as you see fit to save the world and hopefully increase my standing among the mortals of Gyra. Farewell... Mortal." With that final statement, and a flash of light, Jack was thrown from the realm of Necrovalis towards the world of Gyra to prepare for the demonic invasion.


    Jack blinked. He found himself in an intricate and ornate circle comprised of several letters in a language he didn''t understand. Looking down, he found himself just as Necrovalis told him he would be. A Skeleton.... wearing a business suit. Well, I guess I get to have some style in this life too. Jack thought as he unconsciously straightened out his tie. Looking around, he found his circle was in a ring of ten circles, with a giant glowing opaque barrier surrounding them. Each ornate circle was on a raised platform, and each circle contained an occupant as confused and as strange looking as himself.


    Hmm, Necrovalis didn''t exactly tell me much about the other gods, assuming that the look of each person is directly related to the deity they were summoned by, four people look to be comprised of Air, Earth, Water, and Fire, so maybe elemental gods there. I''m a skeleton, which accounts for the god of undeath. That one looks to me like a tree person. Hmm... Nature or life. More than likely. That one is blindingly bright, So light? Then that person over there is probably dark? That one person just looks really pale... and has bright red eyes? Going to be honest. I have no clue what that person is supposed to be. And the last person.... appears to be an egg. A very large egg. Well. Hope you hatch soon pal. Hopefully you''re something neat and not a giant chicken.


    The barrier flashed once, bringing each of the summoned members attention to it. It flashed a second time, and then finally at the third time it flashed out of existence, revealing to them a massive cathedral. Ornate banners hung proudly on the walls. The ceiling had to be at least a thousand feet high, and every inch of it was decorated in intricate paintings depicting what Jack could only surmise was the history of this world. Looking down, Jack noticed what appeared to be an entourage of fifty knights led by what Jack could only guess was a king, judging by the crown and the gaudy clothing worn by the portly man.


    "Greetings Heroes!" The man loudly announced. Everyone''s attention focused on the king. "My name is King Delmont the Third! Welcome to the world of Gyra! We only have a year, so if you all would be so kind as to step forward to be given your designated zones for the invasion! We will debrief you on your roles once you have departed" Jack narrowed his eyes. What kind of game are they playing at here? Just immediately sending us to train? Hmm... getting us to the zones immediately and separating us before we get to know one another?


    Noticing everyone else beginning to step up, Jack decided to speak up to get to the bottom of this. "Excuse Me!" He loudly shouted. Everyone turned to look at him, and Jack noticed King Delmont''s face briefly scowl before resuming the pleasant expression he had on previously. "Ah! The Skeleton Hero of the God of Undeath Necrovalis. I''m sure you have many questions, but they will have to wait until you''re on the road to your designated zones. We can''t afford to waste any time in preparing for the invasion after all!" Jack maintained his demeanor while scowling internally. They don''t want us to have any interactions with each other. Hmm...


    "With all due respect King Delmont, we have a year to prepare for the invasion. An hour spent getting all us heroes to know one another would be beneficial in preparing for this invasion and it wouldn''t hurt anyone." The other heroes (Except for the Egg) looked at him. Some with a bit of confusion, some looking annoyed, and a few nodding along with his suggestion. "Well, we have the carriages arranged and prepared already. To delay now would require the horses to rest, and we would lose an entire day in your training. That day could be the difference between life and death in the coming war you see!"


    Jack had dealt with people like this. It happened a lot in his previous life on earth. A politician or major corporation wanting to push something through with little dissent will often say that something is absolutely necessary or something terrible will happen if you don''t do something. Or vice versa. However, Jack was used to dealing with people like this. And he knew that the best way to deal with it as well. "So let me get this straight. We all get summoned here, and less than a minute after we get here you want to split us all apart, so we have no interactions with each other at all. Is that correct?" The other heroes all had shocked expressions on their faces. Yep. As soon as I point out the obvious and they think about it for a second, they realize what I realized at the beginning.


    The guard next to the king angrily shouted. "You dare to question King Delmont! You... insolent bag of...!" Jack angrily cut him off. "Yes, I dare to question him! As far as I can see, your goal is to separate us from one another immediately without allowing us to speak to each other at all! As for the why, that is a question I can''t answer definitively, but your whole thing of a single day''s training can mean the difference between life and death is bullshit. If that is the case, then this world is doomed anyway!"


    At this point, King Delmont was angrily glaring at Jack, but Jack was glaring right back. The other heroes were also looking at the King questioningly. "Choose your next words carefully skeleton..." The King Started to say. "Or what? What will you do? If the fate of the world hangs so closely in the balance. Do you intend to get rid of me? To silence me because I dared to question you? And then what? Be missing one of the ten heroes when the demonic invasion happens?"


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    "Silence you filthy bag of bones! How dare you talk to me like that! Your insolence will not go unpunished! As for the rest of you heroes, fall in line if you don''t want to end up like this foul abomination is about to be!" King Delmont angrily shouted with spittle flying out of his mouth. The knights began to approach Jack with swords drawn. Oh.... I didn''t think that he would be crazy enough to actually attack me. Isn''t the world at stake here?


    At the moment the Light Elemental hero stepped between Jack and the knights. "The Skeleton Hero is correct. You intend to separate us before we get to know each other at all? I didn''t realize what you were doing at first but now I see it clearly." The knights paused seeing the Light Elemental Hero in their way. Seeing an opportunity, the darkness hero also stepped in. "Yes! At first, I was convinced that we had a time crunch, but seeing how this is all playing out, I can''t help but agree that something more nefarious is going on!" The other heroes, seeing the lead the Light and darkness heroes had taken, also started to chime in with agreement.


    King Delmont, livid with rage at this point, pointed his finger at the group. "The Insolence! Daring to question me like this... Why they, why they... Knights! Kill them! Kill them all! I want all of them dead! We can always summon more heroes! Yes! More obedient ones! They will defeat the invasion, and then... and then..." Jack noticed the knights moving and stepped up. "And then the world will die to the demonic invasion!" The knights paused. "Your King claims you can just do another summoning. This is false. I talked to Necrovalis prior to getting here. More heroes cannot be summoned. Should you kill us then your world is doomed. You will die. Your friends will die, and your families will all die a painful and gruesome death at the hands of the demons. All because you decided that your king''s ego was more important than the worlds safety!" The knights all hesitated at that. "You fools! Don''t listen to the skeleton! Do you really think that the gods would leave everyone to die. Of course not! They would have to send more heroes of course!"


    The knights looked hesitant. Jack took that moment to step in. "You know, I find something really strange here. Despite the fact that the world is in danger here, only one nation''s king is present. What''s the deal with that? Does King Delmont lead some kind of empire or something?" King Delmont grimaced. "Just end them! Don''t listen to the skeleton! It is an abomination after all!" The knights still didn''t move. Jack grinned. He had them now. "Okay! I get it now! If you truly had an empire at your disposal, we wouldn''t be greeted here by just fifty knights and a king. A building this large? With so few people? There is no way. No. If I were to guess, you all are here for a meeting between various nations in regard to summoning the heroes. If I were to further guess, you initiated the summoning ritual early, with the plan to get all of us to your nation as quickly as possible. You were going to just leave all the other nations to die weren''t you!"


    The knights looked at Jack in shock. That was all the confirmation Jack needed. Jack continued, with even more confidence now that he had the full grasp of the situation. "Let me tell all of you what is going to happen here. If you choose to kill us, you won''t be able to summon more heroes, and everyone on this world will die a painful and agonizing death to the demonic invasion." The knights continued looking at Jack while King Delmont ranted in the background telling them to kill the heroes. "The good news for you is that your families won''t have to die by the demonic invasion though." One of the knights, sword shaking as he thought about what the future would hold for them, shakily asked "Why wouldn''t our families die to the demons?" Jack grinned. "Well, that is a really easy question to answer. Imagine you are the various other nations who are now doomed and going to die a horrible death because the heroes all died. That would make you fairly angry, correct?" The knight thought about it for a bit. "I suppose that I would be angry, yeah." Jack nodded. "And what would you do to the nation that caused the doom of the entire world if you were in their shoes?" The knight thought about it a bit more, and a look of horror donned on his face "I suppose I would go wipe that nation off the map entirely..." Jack nodded again.


    At this point, all the knights were frozen in place, not wanting to listen to their king, but not knowing what to do in this predicament they found themselves in. This could still be really bad. King Delmont can still convince them to kill us and hide the evidence. When the summoning doesn''t work, King Delmont and the knights would be the only ones who would know why. I need to give them a way out.


    "Let me tell you all how we are going to move forward!" Jack shouted over King Delmont continuing his rant on kill the heroes. Good. He had the attention of the knights again. "First off. Here is the story. Your king, in a fit of madness, rushed off into the cathedral by himself, and summoned us, by himself." The knights looked a bit confused, but Jack could see them mulling it over in their heads. "We, the heroes, all saw the king by himself, claiming that we all were to go to his nation alone to defend it from the demonic invasion." The heroes looked at Jack with a bit of confusion, but all nodded along with the plan for the time being. Jack then pointed at the knights. "When you all arrived, you found the summoning had already occurred." The same knight that had spoken to Jack earlier once again asked a question. "What exactly does this accomplish." Jack folded his skeletal fingers together. "That''s easy. You all can arrest King Delmont and bring the summoning to the attention of the other nations. The blame for the summoning would fall squarely on King Delmont''s shoulders rather than that of your entire nation, since you, the knights of the nation in question brought him to justice."


    Jack gestured to his fellow heroes. "Do you all agree that this summoning was done solely by the King, and that the knights had nothing to do with it?" I am sweating bullets here people. You all need to nod or something, cause if these guys think we are going to rat them out then we are so screwed. Fortunately for Jacks sanity, the other heroes all nodded. "Yep, I agree that it was just the king that did this. The knights definitely came in to save us from that guy." The Air Elemental Hero chimed in.


    The knights looked at each other. And nodded. One of the knights signaled to another. "Sir Enric. Alert the guards that our King violated the treaty by summoning the heroes and that we have the king in custody." Sir Enric gave a salute and rushed off to inform the guards. The other knights converged on the king. "Traitors! You are all traitors! I will see you hang for this!" The knight putting restraints on the King sighed. "Maybe you will. But at least the world won''t burn."