Chapter 18:Unholy Round Table

John looked down at the tiny fairy who was now sitting cross-legged in his skeletal palm with eyes of fascination glued on him. John looked on in like a curious puppy at the miniature person whose soul he just corrupted and a thought ran through his mind. What is she capable of doing now that she is corrupted to the core? Will she reveal things that she kept hidden from him? Will she prove more useful than when she wasn't corrupted. Will she fall in line with his ideal family he never had. It was only a matter of seeing the further results of corrupting her very being and devising a counter plan for her incase she used or betrayed him again.

They had both stared at each other for a second or two after Dixie's weird reawakening words. John wondered if she had become a masochist but quickly just chalked it up to probable insanity from being driven to corruption. Although he didn't dislike this new Dixie he remained cautious.

"Any thoughts on the new you?" John said in his usual ghastly and unnatural voice.

Dixie looked herself up and down and said, "My skin looks beautiful in this black dress. Very gothic. I love it."

John walked to the large round table he had his zombies bring piece by piece from an alley behind an old museum that was in the middle of renovating. It had taken the whole duration of Dixie being unconscious for it to be finished being brought into the Grave Center and be rebuilt.

John sat down in his chair which was also present in the alley behind the museum and had taken a liking to it since it gave a certain flair to his role as the soon to be god of the undead. It was huge and black with intricate designs and carvings of people bowing in agony. John couldn't help but feel a certain attraction to it.

On the left armrest, John had a zombie who was skilled in carpentry make a small chair for her to be capable of sitting next to him. John had thought of it for when she finally woke up from her temporary coma.

As John had sat down both Joseph and Joselin had entered the Grave Center with 20 others trailing behind them. Instantly John could tell they weren't undead with his powers over necromancy which allowed him to sense those that are as well as those that were are alive as well. Both John and Dixie looked on curiously as they finished approaching the large round table that hadn't been there before they left.

"My Lord we have accomplished your task of re-sweeping through the sewers per your order," says Joseph bowing toward both John and Dixie.

"Hi Dad, Hi Mom we brought the survivor like you said to do." Joselin saying playfully while bowing and twisting cutely.

Staring at the people they brought back John took count of the survivors with interest. Before him stood 10 frightened children, 7 adult females around their early twenties, and 3 adult men. Some looked alike while some differed greatly showing they weren't related at all. Some were taller while some were short but none of it mattered as John only saw them as useful tools for plans.

John looked back at Joseph and said, "What do you, my General, propose we do with them."

Joseph stopped bowing and stood straight and said, "For the adults, my liege, since they are all either slender or well built I suggest we use them for espionage and assassinations after we turn them and I give them proper training. For the I'm not sure what to do about them, we could either use them as bait or infect them and use them as means of underhanded bio-magical warfare. If that's not on the table we see what Joselin has to say about this since she found all the children."

John liked what he had heard as he thought of it as all useful, but what stood out was hearing that Joselin had found all the children. Without him even having to ask Joselin said, " Yep daddy I found them our little hiding spot that the adult built for us in case DCS(Department of child services), CSS(Child social services), or CPS came looking to take us away. The other children often played there like it was a clubhouse, but they often hit and kicked me out because they thought I was weird."

John looked at Joselin with eyes of sadness as he heard what she had just said. He felt a connection that was strong and familiar. They both had lonely and sad childhoods and they both were outcasted in one way or another as leaving little to no one to lean on. While he had spent his whole life being held down by injustice and cruelness she still had the innocence of her youth, but he knew that it wouldn't last as she was going to have to be as useful as Joseph in order to achieve his plans. She would have to be slowly warped into a loyal and trusted member of his Unholy Roundtable. Right now she trusted him on blind faith but as she becomes smarter and more mature and later evolves into something stronger than an undead child he would need to gain her undivided faith and loyalty. Already John began to plan for her to become deadly as can be while also wishing to cherish the time he has to be like a fatherly figure to her.

Feeling a way to begin his plan to warp her innocence into something deadly he asks her, "Which one was the ringleader of your bullying?"

Joselin then points at the boy-girl who once bullied her and John asks, "Why did she bully you?"

Joselin looking at John says, "Because I think bugs and nature are beautiful."

John looked on and thought to himself for a moment that 'these were just kids doing what kids do', but he remembered that bullying leaves a lasting effect on people. Depending on how traumatic the bullying was could leave lasting effects on someone's mind unseen to many. John didn't want this for his daughter at all. So he thought of a way to quickly get her to accept death as ordinary as stepping on the grass when one walked with shoes on their feet.

Without warning, he restrained the 5 of the children which were all boys with black chains made from his {Darkness magic} and made them kneel before Joselin feeling a slight. The other five children whine in fear while the adults screamed for John to let them go before he yelled in his deepest and darkest voice yet, "Silence!!!!"

His voice amplified by magic sent shook the walls and ceilings making little dust fall here and there, but that wasn't what made them silent. When John had yelled he subconsciously sent out aura filled mana like continuous waves that brought everyone he wanted to their knees excluding Joseph and Joselin. This made a bright red light appear around him while darkening everything around them ensuring he was the focus of attention in the room. Not even John knew how he did it once he let up. All he knew was that Dixie had used telecommunication as if she was in his head currently and said, "Impressive."

Ignoring Dixie, John manifested a floating black serrated dagger in front Joselin and said, "Joselin, as my daughter, you hold the responsibility of taking that dagger in front of you and punishing a few of those who caused you pain and made you lonely. Through this you must learn to never let anyone harm you and make you lonely again."

Feeling conflicted and afraid Joselin said, "What about you and my old mom and brother? You harmed me and took them away from me."

John felt pride from adopting his daughter and said, "Smart child, but ignorant as well. If your mother and brother truly loved you they would have stopped these children from hurting you and bullying you even if you kept it from your brother your mother should have paid more attention like a loving mother. So I took you away from them and am giving you the love that should have been given while making you stronger than leaving as a weak sewer urchin."

Although she was young she wasn't stupid either and completely understood the words her new father had told her and felt pressured as the fear from made by the conflicting situation had vanished and she gripped the knife in reverse in her right hand and left hand on the butt of it and stabbed the boy in the chest as screams went out as she repeated this four more times with a hint of anger slipping onto her face.

After Joselin had finished with the last boy she stepped in front of a girl crying who was crying on the ground for her mommy. Before Joselin got carried away and killed her John intervened and said, "Now now now, you killed the unnecessary pest that bothered you. Now for the girls that are stuck on the ground crying like disgusting vermin, scratch them and make them into beautiful bugs and add them to your collection and learn to control them like I control the other zombies. I personally believe they would look beautiful as spiders."

Joselin smiled with blood on her face from the blood splatter and turned toward John and said, "Thanks daddy!"

Joselin proceeds to order some zombies to carry her like a princess while carrying the other girls like sandbags into a separate room as she knew that John had more things to talk about with Joseph.

As Joselin leaves the room John looks back at Joseph and says, "Proceed to turn them into our assassins, and if you feel it would be beneficial grab a few more zombies to make up the bulk of this new unit."

"Yes, my liege," said Joseph as he proceeds to scratch their arms aggressively and escorts the crying and frightened group of adults to another room to await their transition from the living to the walking dead.

John wished he could sigh as commanding and manipulating was difficult to a newbie like him. Without warning, Dixie says, "What the hell John you haven't been taking care of yourself at all since you opened my eyes to the beauty of darkness and life without morals have you. You know you reached the max level again and can evolve now."

Surprised John checks his menu and sees he's reached lv.20. With all that has been happening he had forgotten to micromanage his stats while scheming and inching closer to his goal. He looks at his stats.

Name: John Carlton

Species: Magical Skeleton

Stats: Level: 20

Str: 97 Wis: 225

Dex: 75 Mana: 9530

agility: 75 Hp: 195

Int: 205 Luck: 30

Stat points: 30

Feeling excited to evolve he threw the points into his luck stat increasing it to 60 and proceeded to view his potential forms. As far he could see he had three option which were labeled Grand Magic skeleton, Magical Grim Skeleton, or Demonic Magical Skeleton. Although he felt that he could guess where these evolutionary forms could lead him he wanted to think long term as he needed to be leaps and bounds ahead of those that would oppose him later down the road making him cautious with each step he takes. Believing the Demonic Skeleton as more powerful and beneficial he chose it, but something unexpected happened. A mini menu appeared saying 'Luck stat has triggered special evolution option: Combined Evolution.

Confused he looks at Dixie and she who had her jaw agape with awe. It was the first time seeing her this way which made John feel as if something amazing had happened. Before he could say anything she speaks up like always and says, "Your luck has triggered the insanely super rare evolution option that most monsters and other species pray for but only one had ever had the chance to obtain it."

"You make it sound like you didn't know the Luck stat could do such," John says while looking down at Dixie.

Dixie looked from his screen to him and said, "Not even the gods know how such works other than the Goddess of Creation who has never revealed how it works. Hurry and choose it before it disappears now! Huge stat boost will occur making you insanely powerful and crazy overpowered for the likes of this world!"

Seeing her reaction he knew this had to be big, although he still wanted to be cautious of her until he could tell she was completely loyal thanks to his corruption of her soul but he needed the power. Without out further hesitation, he quickly pressed the button and everything around him went black like before except this time Dixie said, "Enjoy the insane boost in stat along with increased pain from the special evolution. Yea I kinda forgot to add that info. Just see it as revenge for corrupting me. Hmmm can't wait for the punishment when you wake back up."

After hearing Dixie's comment he was sure she was under his control. All that was left to do was think of a way to punish her after waking back up from the pain he'll have to endure first.