Dead Rainbow

Graduation

At twenty-five, Redwing was tall and regal in appearance. His hair grew back but not completely and he made a habit of shaving it off. He had his mother's narrow thinly lidded eyes, high cheekbones, and an aquiline nose. Through his prowess in alchemy, he was able to produce material wealth at will and he took to dressing in fine tailored garments. 

When he burst through the door of the lighthouse, Øregård only minorly looked up from the massive book he was engrossed by. 

"Is he in?"

"You know it. He's in the lab."

"Great." 

Redwing stormed up the stairs two at a time in his finely crafted black leather boots. When he reached Melock's lab, his father was also engrossed in a large ancient-looking book. The mirror from his bedroom lay on the table next to the book. He didn't look up when his son came in. 

"I'm done with Luki. I've surpassed all my teachers and there is nothing left in the archive of interest to me."

"Consider this your graduation day then." Melock slipped a sheet of paper into the book he was reading, closed it, and turned his attention to Redwing. "You're looking very well to do."

"Yes, well, I'd like you to tell me about your experiences with the Necromancer; for my graduation present." Redwing pulled up a stool at the end of the lab table. 

Melock tapped the mirror twice and turned it facedown on the table. He exhaled a long slow breath and ran his hand down the length of his Fu Manchu. 

"What would you like to know?"

"You killed him, correct?" 

"To be fair, I accidentally released him from his dimensional prison. Teleportation can be a dangerous and tricky business. I understand you have mastered the site to site ability?"

"Yes, but don't change the subject. How did you defeat such an evil being?" 

"I had help. Øregård, who you know, and Sister Murphy," he paused at saying her name, "and a very peculiar rogue named Sabastian de Martín. Who no doubt you know of as he wrote the Tale of the Necromancer book that you clearly read."

"Indeed. Where are they today?"

The old wizard stood up walked over to his shelves of chemicals and poured himself a bubbling drink. He took a sip then sat back down with a small beaker in hand. 

"They're dead." 

"Killed by the necromancer? 

"Murphy was killed by the dragon, Luhng, some years later and de Martín disappeared among the Elvin people. By age alone, he must be dead some fifty years by now." 

"Was there anyone else?"

"Do you remember the gnome who visited us once? It was when you first came here after your mother died." 

"I thought I imagined him. I assumed he was one of your tricks to amuse me as a child." 

"No, he's real alright. Mr. Grimble is a tinkerer, a builder of mechanical marvels. He created fabulous constructs and took them into battle with us. A fine fellow. He lives off in the western woods."

"And he is still alive, then?"

"Oh, yes, gnomes live a very long time you know?"

"Tell me how you defeated the Necromancer."  Redwing folded his arms; done with the back and forth banter. 

"I'm not much for storytelling as you know but I'll do my best.

"As described in the tale you read, I unknowingly released the Necromancer when I ported into and out of his dimensional cage. It was an unexpected side effect. The former wizard of the Western Kingdom, Luculentus Dicax Sid, informed me of his return and ultimately paid the price for it."