"I DO NOT FEAR DEATH! I WIELD IT!"
The shout cracked the air in the little study nook; the lamp flame guttered, then steadied. Power rasped against the warding of the lantern, a cat's back raised and crackling.
"You don't even have a say in your own life or death now," Ludwig shook his lantern with the Lich inside it. "Don't tell me about wielding death when you can't even leave this lantern without my will."
He did not raise his voice. The mildness made the barb sink deeper. The lantern's glass fogged and cleared in a quick, angry breath.
"It wasn't for the lack of trying," the Lich said.
The sudden drop in volume brought the temperature down a fraction. Ludwig's fingers stilled on the Codex.
"…"
He let the little question hang, not dignifying it with more.
