Did I have a death wish and never knew about it? Something people wanted subconsciously until someone else pointed it out. If not, why didn't I bring back up to an obvious trap?

Esther hadn't told me not to.

Assuming she'd be using the cemetery's corpses as her army, I should've brought Preacher Boy and Aisha, at least. Zainab? Well... I mean... Maybe. I wasn't sure where we stood, even though we had a positive interaction the last time we spoke.

Arriving at Kinondoni Makaburini, I paid the auto-rickshaw driver before getting out of the vehicle. The icy wind struck my face and brushed my exposed arms, sending goosebumps all over my body. I should've worn a jacket. Not that it mattered. My fight with Esther would've ruined it, anyway.

I got close to the gate and the hair on my arms and back of my neck rose. A translucent magical membrane visible to keen sorcerers encased the cemetery in a box. Unlike a barrier, which prevented people from entering or leaving an area, a membrane prevented noise from leaking out.

Esther didn't want people to hear us and risk interference from other sorcerers. Smart. The quiet night meant sound traveled farther.

Passing through the membrane, the thick air inside made it hard for me to breathe. Alarms rang in my head: Danger! Danger! My gut twisted in a panic, trying to escape this unseen enemy. Every nerve in my body got on its knees and begged me to run away—this fight wasn't worth it, and I should've waited until tomorrow to confront the necromancer.

I stopped walking, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. Powerful sorcerers acted similarly to the point it was boringly cliche. Just like back at the church with The Supreme Leaders, Esther had released her raw magic energy to intimidate me. You'd think with my magic ability and history of kicking asses and faces, they'd know that a scare tactic wouldn't be enough to chase me away.

Covering my body with magical energy, the effects of Esther's power wore off. I was calm again, thinking better than ever. But it didn't last long. In its place came the natural world, merging with my senses. I took in everything at once: the stench of the dead, the sound of crickets chirping, and the wind's stiff embrace. It knocked the lights out of my mind. I staggered sideways but stayed on my feet.

Nausea engulfed me like a dirty blanket before I shook it off with a deep breath. I looked for Esther, finding her leaning against the perimeter wall with her arms crossed on her chest. Joni sat on a chair beside her, his body bound by rope.

I wanted to ask him if he was alright—a nod or shake of his head would have sufficed—but it would've been a waste. His milky-white eyes told me he was dead and gone. Fuck. Esther made vanas wear Joni's corpse like a glove.

It shouldn't have taken me this long to realize "possession" was one of Esther's abilities. An amateur sorcerer would've guessed after Brenda's encounter with the necromancer. I was off my game lately.

Esther peeled off the wall and came forward, stepping under the moon's watchful gaze. I connected to the moon's light and felt her pain and rage—a toxic combination that forced me to untether from the moon or I'd have gone mad.

No one should carry that much inner suffering.

It was poisonous.

"Why would you trick a grieving mother like that?" I asked. "How would you feel if it was done to you?"

Esther scoffed. "I don't give a shit. I'm not here to chat." She raised her hands before planting them on the ground, making it shake. Skeleton hands punched out of the ground one by one followed by skulls and the rest of their bodies.

I jumped on a marble tombstone when a hand tried to grab me. Within a few seconds, every corpse had come out of their graves, standing in front of Esther, acting as her bodyguards.

"Get her!" the necromancer barked.

The skeletons moved forward with unnatural speed—the magic energy covering them must've given them a boost.

I conjured a barrier around me. Some skeletons still charged ahead, while others dived into the ground like it was a swimming pool and appeared under me.

Shit!

This was barrier magic's weakness—it was a semi-circle forcefield. A clever sorcerer countered it by using the ground as a weapon.

Among the skeletons that dived underground, some came out and surrounded me, while others stayed below and held my legs in place with their maggot-covered hands. Yuck! I stomped them into pieces.

Esther came through the crowd and placed her palm on the forcefield. "You're so lame."

"Lame's my middle name," I said.

She sucked her teeth.

More skeletons popped out of the ground, making the inside of the forcefield overcrowded. I withdrew it, then closed my hand into a fist, activating my moon magic. It was time I kicked all their asses and faces.

I aimed one hand at the ground and the other in front of me. Lunar energy built around them, giving off a high-pitched sound before I shot the skeletons and disintegrated them. Esther would pay for desecrating the sorcerers' corpses. I swore on my life.

Turning to the necromancer, I fired at her repeatedly. She evaded each attack with ease. I continued, and the same thing happened. She dodged the beams like a trained dodger. Dodging artist? Whatever.

The thing that pissed me off to the point my eye started twitching was the smile on her face. She was enjoying this fight, and she hadn't even broken a sweat. In fact, she had her hands behind her back the whole time. Mxiu! The disrespect.

I couldn't let her have the last laugh. This bitch was going down tonight. No matter what.

Lunar beams weren't enough. I switched to lunar bombs, bullets, waves, and back to beams. Still, none of the attacks grazed Esther. The way she moved on the ground was as if she was on ice. She body-swerved and sidestepped each strike like a professional figure skater.

I didn't know a lot of figure skaters. Actually, I knew none. But the necromancer moved like one. I was sure of it.

While observing her movement keenly, I shot a beam at Esther. When her feet touched the ground, ice formed under her feet.

I knew it!

Aside from possession, necromancers also had spirit magic. They could channel, summon, and use the power of spirits to achieve their goals. Esther must've channeled an ice spirit (a dead sorcerer with ice magic) into her body to gain its abilities. It would last for a few minutes, but she could use it all night seeing as we were in the cemetery's sorcerer section.

Gahdamn it! Why hadn't I seen this coming? It was so obvious.

I sighed. "It doesn't matter. You can't beat me."

"Oh?" Esther smiled again. The kind of smile someone with more tricks under their sleeves gave.

I stomped the ground. Thousands of lunar spikes popped out, tearing apart the skeletons, heading for Esther. She backed away, but they caught up to her. Before the spikes pierced her body, the hundreds of skeletons behind her tore their limbs and formed a stairway for her to climb.

Fuck! She was good.

Clapping my hands twice, two lunar pistols materialized on my palms. I shot at Esther immediately while chasing after her. She danced her way up the skeletal staircase, spinning and twirling like a ballerina. Her lack of care bruised my ego, and I almost pulled out my joker card.

The pistols wouldn't last for long. They consumed a lot of energy, and I needed to keep some in reserve. I unsummoned them, then raised my right hand. Thousands of lunar arrows appeared above me, waiting for me to thrust my hand down for them to impale my target. Esther had no escape route. This was it for her.

"Goodbye, necromancer," I said, then brought down my hand.

Before the rain of lunar arrows tore her to pieces, Esther dropped from the skeletal staircase. "I was waiting for you to reveal your last move before I showed you mine."

This was it: the moment of truth.

I clenched my hands, anticipation eating my insides.

Esther placed her hands in a prayer stance and inhaled. Upon exhaling, our surroundings turned pitch black. Fuck. She had trapped me in a pocket dimension. Where had she gotten this power? Only high-level reapers had it. Was she one? A solo reaper? I hadn't seen her with a scythe. Maybe she used to be one? There were a lot of reapers who changed careers later in life. It wasn't unusual.

A bright light materialized above us before a magic circle with symbols appeared under our feet. My eyes widened as I noticed the zodiac signs. Shit! For the first time in my life, I was fucked. And not in a good way. Why couldn't it be in a good way!

The magic circle had three levels: Upper, Middle, and Lower.

Each level had four zodiac animals with their powerset written below them:

Upper: Rat—Animation, Dragon—Elemental, Rabbit—Super-speed, and Tiger—Yin/Yang.

Middle: Ox—Superstrength, Snake—Invisibility, Horse—Healing, and Sheep—Weather.

Lower: Monkey—Shape-shifting, Rooster—Telekinesis, Dog—Immortality, and Pig—Heat Vision.

Esther clapped her hands, and the sections started spinning. The Upper and Lower sections spun clockwise, with the former going faster. The Middle section moved anti-clockwise, spinning slower than the other two.

When the sections stopped moving, the zodiac signs behind Esther were Rabbit, Ox, and Monkey.

The necromancer didn't waste time. She dashed at me. I tried using my magic abilities to protect myself but failed. Fuck. It was either the pocket dimension or zodiac magic that nullified my powers.

When Esther pulled her arm backward, I crossed my arms in front of my face, anticipating her punch. She shrunk in size, then ran between my legs at supersonic speed before appearing behind me. Turning around, I was too slow. I couldn't block the incoming attack. Her fist had grown ten times its normal size. She struck the lights out of my eyes, sending me tumbling to the ground.

Every part of my body hurt. I hated getting hit. A few punches here and there were fine. But this was another level. A level I hadn't encountered in a while. I had become relaxed. Fighting low-level sorcerers and monsters tricked me into thinking I was something more. My father had always urged me to seek stronger opponents and never settle for mediocrity. Esther proved I had already done so. Damn.

Standing, I caught the necromancer heading my way. I was prepared for her this time. When she thrust her fist in my direction, I used both arms to block it. It wasn't a misdirect this time. My arms, hands, and eight fingers shattered on impact. Only my right hand's index and middle finger remained unharmed. Adrenaline kept the pain away.

There were three types of sorcerers: Physicalists, Mentalists, and Chanters.

I was a physicalist—a sorcerer who activated their magic abilities through bodily movement. I couldn't fight back or heal with two fingers. Also, I didn't want to run away. It was cowardice. But she got me. She got me good. Her zodiac magic caught me off-guard. I always knew necromancers were powerful bastards with crazy magic.

Esther was on another level. The pocket dimension was enough proof. I needed to leave and regroup for the actual fight tomorrow. All my doubts about her had evaporated. I thought I was stronger than her. Maybe I still was. But I was done underestimating her.

The time to use my joker card arrived. I couldn't believe Esther had forced me to do this. Alas, I was out of options.

When I created the voodoo dolls, they got their own magic power: teleportation. Unlike me, any power-nullifying magic couldn't stop them. They were also resistant to all magic attacks. It was why they were my joker card—they required a lot of magic energy. I only used them in severe cases. This was the second time in my life I called for their help.

Crossing my right index finger over my middle one, I summoned the dolls. They popped inside the pocket dimension, holding each other's hands—it was the only way they could activate their power.

The dolls didn't ask questions. They glanced at Esther, who seemed shocked at their appearance, then came to me. They touched my leg and teleported me out of there.

I landed inside my house with a thud. Adrenaline washed away, and in its place came the pain. It was sudden and all at once that my body and mind failed to handle it. I had used up all my energy. My body would take time to heal itself. Thankfully, with the dolls there, they would protect me from unforeseen enemies. And so, I lost consciousness.