Published at 22nd of October 2023 9:42 am

Book 3: Chapter 1

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Beyond the clear glass of Garrett’s window the morning sun struggled to send its warmth through the thick fog that lay over the city, reminding him of the first time he had tried to look out of the window in the dream. All he was lacking to set the scene was a nightmare, though Garrett had plenty of those. The shroud of fog seemed fitting, considering the impending wave of undead that would soon wash over this district, however the gloomy air did nothing to dampen Garrett's mood. Withdrawing his gaze from the window and the thick mist outside, he glanced at Ryn, who was perched on the corner of his desk.

"Is everything ready?" he asked.

"Yes, though we're waiting for a couple of people still," Ryn said as she hopped down. "Francis has been grumbling in the kitchen for the last few hours, but he should be done with breakfast soon."

Garrett's gaze drifted back out the window to the foggy streets outside, his mind constantly churning as he considered the challenges that faced him and those under his authority. Eventually, he nodded.

"All right, let me know when everyone has arrived."

After Ryn had left the office, his gaze turned to the mirror on his wall. It reflected the office he was sitting in as it should, but every once in a while, he felt as if he was able to catch a glimpse of movement in it from the corner of his eye. The ghost mirror was a powerful, mysterious artifact, one that Garrett didn't quite understand yet. It contained a vast, hollow space formed of halls and rooms that looked like the inside of an abandoned mansion. Isabelle, the Dire Spirit who had become one of his guardians, lived in the space, along with a dozen pale fiends, the monstrous ghosts of people she had killed.

Despite his connection with Isabelle, the long-haired ghost still sent a shiver down Garrett's spine when he thought about her, and he was happy that she was on his side. She would be valuable in the coming days as he faced the many difficulties in front of him. The most pressing, of course, was the March of Lesrak, when the undead from the crypts would emerge to attempt to overrun the city. All signs pointed to the event happening soon, and Garrett was scrambling to marshal the Family's defenses. In the back of his mind, he knew that the Great Ruler, the Skeletal Hand of Lesrak, was coming for him, but unfortunately he didn't know what that exactly entailed. Overall, the lack of movement from the Great Rulers of the dream had been worrying him. Ever since he had slain the Chosen of Shalmoroth, he hadn't detected any movement from any of them, a fact that set his mind on edge.

But it wasn't just in the dream world that Garrett had problems. The number of threats facing the family was growing, outpacing the family's strength by a good margin. With a sigh, he turned back to his desk, taking a small black ledger from one of his desk drawers. Dropping it on his desk he opened it up, dipped his quill in the ink pot, and started to write. For a moment, he was distracted by how smooth his writing had become compared to when he had first started. Writing left-handed had taken some adjustment, but he felt himself getting used to it now.

Carefully, he listed down the main challenges the family was facing. There were the other gangs who controlled territory nearby. The Grave Walkers to the north had been temporarily neutralized as their leader, Cynen Death's Flame, and most of the awakened from her gang were currently trapped by Isabelle in the ghost's mirror. Unfortunately, the rest of the members were likely corrupted by Dark Hand, the cult of necromancers that worshiped Lesrak.

Garrett had detected a curse implanted in them that would activate upon an unknown command, transforming them into powerful zombies. From what he understood, the Grave Walkers had a few hundred members, meaning that once the wave of undead started, they would have to deal with hundreds of super-powered zombies on top of those hidden down in the crypts. But the Grave Walkers weren’t even the biggest problem when it came to the gangs. Many other gangs were starting to take notice of the family's explosive expansion, and none of them liked it. Ever since Delver's Butchers had joined the family, other small gangs had begun to entertain the idea of coming under the Klein Family banner, causing the Family to face more scrutiny than Garrett liked.

But Garrett's problems weren't simply confined to the city's underworld. Thanks to his connection, the legitimate business that the family engaged in was coming under scrutiny as well, and a powerful merchant had set his eyes on stealing all their business. Marcus Parrow, of Parrow's Fine Goods, had already made his first move, and though it had failed, Garrett was sure that the sharp businessman was going to make another. In fact, that second move was already in motion. Parrow had invited Garrett to use his factory, no doubt intending to rob the production methods that were used to create Ryn soap.

The only saving grace was that Parrow had no idea what sort of power he was fighting against. The incident with Parrow had also led Garrett to become embroiled in a fight between a few of the political powers in the city. The Exorcist guild who investigated and guarded against the supernatural, had already begun to fall under the family's sway, but now Garrett was embroiled in a three-way fight between the Exorcists, the Merchants Guild, and the City Guard.

This also brought him into greater contact with many of the nobles of the city, and it was only a matter of time before Garrett's identity was discovered. He had been able to hide from those who knew him as the prince's aide, simply because he stayed out of sight, but that was becoming more and more difficult. His only hope was that he had changed enough that they wouldn't immediately recognize him.

However, with all of the danger came opportunity, and it was this that Garrett was focused on. Thanks to the tireless work of the flower ghouls that crept through the catacombs under the city, the tunnels to the outside had been dug, and already goods were being moved. From Port Reverie in the west, past the city guards' blockade, and into the warehouses along the river.

Dodgson and Veroni, the two merchants that Garrett puppeting Viper had met up with, stayed true to their word. Now a steady stream of goods were passing into the Klein family's hands and being distributed throughout the city by Vincent Fenger, a fence and back-room dealer who ran in noble circles. The fight with Marcus Parrow was only just beginning, but Parrow's Fine Goods was a mercantile company of significant influence and sway, and Garrett had big plans for them. As for the close scrutiny from the gangs in the surrounding area, there wasn't really time to deal with them properly, and Garrett had no doubt that when the gang council convened, the Klein family would be a hot topic. His goal before that was to find one of the ten seat holders to join, though it would have to happen on his terms, or not at all.

And finally, while the March of Lesrak that would soon sweep this part of the city was the most immediate danger, it also provided the greatest opportunity for the Klein family to expand if they played their cards right. Slowly, carefully, Garrett mapped out his plans. The various dangers and opportunities were etched out by his pen, his quill scratching lightly against the paper. There was something about writing out these things that helped him process and by the time Ryn knocked on his door to let him know that everyone was waiting for him in the great room, Garrett felt as if his mind was clear.

After blowing on the ink to dry it out, Garrett tucked the ledger next to his legs and wheeled himself out into the hall where Ryn was waiting for him. She helped push him down the hall, past the kitchen, and into the great room. There, Garrett found the Klein family's upper echelon waiting for him. All of the Awakened in the family sat at three tables in the middle of the room, roughly divided into groups. The first contained those Awakened who served the family unquestionably. Viper, one of Garrett's guardians, sat next to Abbius, a ranger who had been transformed after being infected by a zombie's bite. Next to them was Obe, and two of the Black Raven assassins Garrett had converted, wearing their red masks. Vale would have been sitting at this table as well, but he was overseeing the transfer of goods under the city with the other two red masked assassins, and wouldn't stop unless the entire city collapsed.

At the next table were the Awakened Dreamers, those members of the family who spent most of their time in Dreamer's Rest, exploring the dream version of the city. Asher, his face as pale as always, sat with his hood up, a clear sense of doom surrounding him. Next to him was Maren, who had taken the same path as Garrett, the path of the Watcher. Estel and Kinsley sat across from them, while Pax sprawled out in her chair, one arm resting on the table, and the other holding a massive mug of ale.

The third table is where Ryn took her seat. She was joined by Maximus, Leff, and Helger, three of the Awakened that had been recruited into the family. With them was Gavin, former leader of Delver's Butchers, who had brought his gang to join the Klein family. These Awakened made up the main muscle of the family, and operated as the visible force of the family while the others took a more subtle approach.

Scattered around at the other tables were the members of the Family who were still mortals, but contributed in leadership roles. The composition of the family was different than that of normal gangs, and there were a number of people present who looked more like shopkeepers than gangsters, precisely because they were. Since day one, Garrett had been insistent that members of the community who joined the Family would also get to participate in leading it, and though, at the end of the day, Garrett's word was law, they still were invited to join the meetings and listen in, and give their input when they had an opinion.

Many of them looked quite nervous now, partly because of the faint pressure exerted by so many Awakened in one room, but also because they seemed to be able to sense the air of fear that had begun to shroud the city. Garrett couldn't blame them. Rumors of undead had been popping up with increasing frequency, and word had spread through the population that a repeat of the terrible night two decades prior, when the undead rose and washed the city in flame, was about to occur. Breakfast had been set up in a long buffet on the bar, and seeing that there were a number of family members in line already, Garrett waved for them to get their food. He waited until everybody was seated before lifting his hand to get their attention.

"Thank you all for coming on such short notice. As has been mentioned, this is an emergency meeting of the Klein family," Garrett said calmly, looking around the room. "What I don't want you to do is panic. There is no need for that. But what I am about to tell you does need to be considered deeply, acted on quickly, and kept close to our chests."

As Garrett spoke, most of the members of the Family put their forks down, fixing their eyes on him. Pausing for a moment to consider his next words, Garrett decided it would be best to be straightforward.

"Some of you remember the event that happened two decades ago."

A faint gasp rose in the room as everyone connected the rumors they had been hearing with Garrett's words.

"Unfortunately, it is highly likely, in fact inevitable, that there will be a repeat of that tragic event. The good news is we know it is coming, and we can prepare for it."

A murmur broke out in the room, but Obe clapped his hands, calling for quiet. As everyone settled down, Garrett cleared his throat lightly.

"Ahem. As I was saying, because we know it is coming, we can prepare for it. There are a number of considerations, but for the foreseeable future, we will be operating with the highest level of awareness and coordination. What do I mean by that? I mean that we will be instituting a curfew, we will be increasing the number of patrols, and we will be establishing a system by which we can ensure that everyone will be notified in the case of an event. Furthermore, we will be establishing protocol for what to do when this event breaks out."

Pausing again, Garrett let his words sink in as his gaze swept the room, lingering for a moment on each individual person.

"Because, and I want to reiterate this, it will happen. There is no question about whether we will have to face an uprising of undead. It is only a question of how great the impact will actually be. It is our fervent hope that we will be able to mitigate the majority of the damage, and that we will be able to preserve the lives of every single member of our family. However, it is important that we do not underestimate the risk of what we face."

As Garrett spoke, he exerted a subtle mental pressure, filling the room with his Shaper-level energy, and allowing his soul spark to make itself known. Because there were so many other Awakened, it was impossible to tell where the pressure was actually coming from, allowing Garrett to hide what he was doing. His soul spark, shaped like a figure sitting on the Dreamer's throne, brought a sense of stability and control to the room, causing many of the unawakened family members to unconsciously relax, despite the dire news Garrett was sharing.

As he continued to explain the family's plan, many of the listeners found themselves nodding along. All of them carried one or more dream flowers, granting them a connection with Garrett. That connection was reinforced by the stability, by the feeling of comfort the Dreamer's throne, his soul spark, was expressing. For the next two hours, Garrett carefully explained everything that they would be doing. To mitigate the damage of the undead wave when it arrived, they had to prepare. Unfortunately, they didn't have an exact date, and there was no way they could simply shut everything down until after it passed. Instead, they would continue with life as normal, but with increased patrols and safety protocols to ensure that when the wave did come, they were able to deal with it smoothly.

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