“Though we have come far,” Hsin said, “we are yet beholden to necromancy. Its practitioners still may exercise control over our bodies should we stray into their sights. Living necromancers, oddly, have no regard for the undead and treat them as little more than minions suited solely to advance their power.”

Hsin looked around at the undead that stood silently nearby. “It takes a great deal of effort to…educate a newly-made member of the undead to their potential. To awaken within them the potential to once again reason and advance. Once pulled under domination of necromancy, all that progress is lost and once again we are left with mindless vessels fit for little else but violence.”

He held up a hand and slowly twisted it toward his right. All of the undead around him eagerly rushed toward the spot his hand now indicated, falling silent and twitching their heads to look around after a short distance. “Little else but violence,” he said softly, dropping his arm and leaning forward onto his cane.

“So you’re fighting…necromancers? And I’m your front line because they can’t control me?” William said.

“Correct. We were losing ground. A few more potent lords sought to turn whole cities of ours into armies, and so we have enlisted the aid of demons to aid us in these troubling times.”

“I see. Wait, what was that last part?”

Hsin smirked. “I see your new master has yet to explain your plight. Little mind that now; we waste time chattering here. We move at sundown.” With that he turned and departed.