The Tragic Art
"Necromancy is known by many as 'The Tragic Art', and for good reason."
A younger, more innocent Midnight Black listened to the elderly necromancer as he spoke, filled with the impatience of an idealistic youth who had a goal, but lacked the means of reaching it. It had taken her moons to find the necromancer in question, one well-versed in the art, willing to take on a student, and obscure enough to avoid the attention of the authorities.
But before he'd begin her tutelage, he insisted that she listen to this speech without interruption...
"It is an art based upon the defiance of death," he continued, his voice creaking, but less like the creak of a cemetery gate, and more like that of the hinges of a door, one that might seal the tomb of some great king of antiquity, the kind taller than five ponies and almost as wide, the kind that might require a team working together to open, and would do so ponderously and profoundly. It was old, but also filled with both power and meaning, and seemed to reverberate within the soul itself. "And to wish to defy death is to have experienced loss in some way. A lover, a mother, a father, a brother, a sister, a dear friend, a child, the population of a hometown or city, most necromancers have lost at least one, if not many."
The elderly necromancer shrugged, causing his old, dusty and tattered robes to ripple, and he added, "But learning necromancy after someone has died is the worst time to learn the art: It takes moons, if not years, of diligent study to learn to revive the freshest corpse, and by the time one has reached that point, well, the corpses of their loved ones will be well beyond that point. It is only within the first few hours of death that one can truly bring someone back to life. Ideally, within the first few minutes are best, before any sort of decay has set in. The longer a corpse decays, the more difficult resurrection becomes. Within half a day, true revival becomes a work of monumental proportions, and often fails to bring back the dead, instead bringing back something... else. This is why those who wish to simply bring back a loved one would be better served learning the art beforehoof, rather than waiting until after tragedy has struck."
With a dry chuckle, the black-robed figure added, "Better yet, they should have learned the healing arts instead: Healing spells are rare, precious, and difficult to perform, but a truly powerful healer can bring anyone back from even the brink of death, or up to within five minutes of the heart stopping. The healing arts are more readily accepted everywhere, and healers are looked upon with reverence, rather than disgust, if not outright hate. However, nopony believes that tragedy can strike until after it has, so nopony ever prepares for it, and thus, necromancy exists."
Midnight Black listened with annoyance. Yes, there was certainly tragedy in her past, and recently as well, but she was practical enough to understand that those who'd been lost, she could not expect to have brought back. She wasn't looking to the past, but rather, towards the future...
The future that she and the newfound Circle would create.
"The undead," the necromancer continued, finally reaching a subject that interested the young mare, "are in many ways a perversion of the art, or perhaps a sign of the art's decay. Yes, decay. That is a word every necromancer should become familiar with. Everything rots, and decays. This decay has created the undead, just as decay bring maggots and pestilence. Many have tried to bring the dead back after that half-day mark, and the results are often... mixed. Zombies, ghouls, wights, vampires, liches, and other, even darker things, are brought back when the art is used on a corpse that has gone too long. While these creatures can be powerful, they are also an abomination, a thing that should not be, and nothing like what it was in life."
Pacing, the necromancer began to explain, "A necromancer seeking from the outset to create and control the undead is rare, but they do exist. However, no matter how pure one's intentions may be, the truth is that handling such dark and corrupt magic is much like handling dung: There's no way you can do so without staining yourself in some way."
And that was what Midnight Black wanted: The Black Feathers used the undead willingly, and to great excess, during the Black Feather War. She thought it ironic that the corpses she had taken great pains to procure would be the first wave of corpse soldiers that would be used to safeguard Equestria's safety for generations to come...
The necromancy paused, then looked at Midnight. While his hooded robes obscured his features, a single green light glowed within, almost like an eye. "No matter how high your ideals, no matter how pure your purpose seems, you will be corrupted by the very arts you wield."
He turned away and began pacing again. "Ideals, in necromancy, are much like the corpses we work with: At first, you have something simple, and pure, and for the most part unblemished. Then, like insects, reality creeps in, and lays the little eggs of compromise within the flesh. Those eggs eventually hatch, and become ever-growing maggots of greater and greater compromise, which devour our ideals from within, ultimately leaving us with something loathsome, disgusting, and utterly abhorrent, something that we can no longer even recognize. I warn you now, and I will warn you of it every day, from now until your tutelage with me ends: You are making a mistake, learning necromancy, and sooner or later, you will become a monster..."
The necromancer pulled his hood back, revealing a skull completely devoid of flesh, with orbs of green fire glowing within the sockets. "...Just. Like. Me."
------------------------------------
Midnight Black catapulted awake, stifling a scream as she did so. Even now, years after, that nightmare still came to haunt her. She worked with corpses every day, some in far more loathsome condition than the old lich she had learned necromancy from, and yet that one moment, the moment when he had revealed the eventual fate of most necromancers, still haunted her.
She did all she could to forestall that fate: Purification rituals and other, more potent arts, were worked upon her body daily, to cleanse her body of the taint of necrotic energy. She never handled the undead without some form of protection, and always wore the appropriate charms to hold off the dark magics that might cling to a reanimated corpse. However, sooner or later, she knew in her heart that she would begin to rot away, and become a lich.
To reassure herself that she was safe, at least for now, she looked over at a nearby mirror that she kept at her bedside. She was not vain, or at least she did not think of herself as such, but it helped, knowing that she was completely devoid of any of the outward signs of necrotic energy exposure...
But when she saw a skeletal figure with glowing orbs of green fire staring back at her, she could not help but to scream, even in a body that no longer had a throat.
------------------------------------
Midnight Black catapulted awake, and after a brief second, took a deep breath. That last part was new. She'd heard of nightmares that seemed to end, and then struck again, harder, but had never experienced one herself before. Thankful to be awake, she looked down at her hooves...
And saw nothing but skeletal limbs before her.
-------------------------------------
Midnight Black catapulted awake... again... and again... and again...
And Princess Luna, with an expression that somehow managed to combine both loathing and pity, watched on. It was still two hours before dawn, and Midnight Black was going to spend those hours in a great deal of discomfort. According to Scarlet Wake's notes, this necromancer was, ironically, among the most idealistic of the members of The Circle, as well as one of the most zealous. However, he had theorized that she was also the most fragile member of the group because of that, and if the proper pressure were to be applied to her, it might cause her to break. The proper place to apply that pressure? Her health and her appearance. She was fastidious about maintaining proper safety procedures while using necromancy, since failing to do so could transform one into a lich accidentally...
And in spite of everything else that she had done, Midnight Black still harbored hopes of being able to, after the Circle's work was done, finding a stallion and settling down, possibly with another certain member of The Circle. A lich, being a loathsome abomination, has little hope of doing so.
The Circle had other necromancers, some of which were almost as powerful as this one, but without Midnight Black, they'd lose one of their most powerful magic users.
While Luna disliked doing things this way, she had to admit, Pan was right: It was a lot easier, and safer, than trying to capture Midnight Black in person at the moment. If handled properly, she could be taken off of the playing field before the true battle had even begun...
Since there were a few who thought that this fic was dead, I find it fitting that the latest chapter discusses necromancy and the revival of the dead 
.
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IT LIVES!!!
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MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
Hallelujah! Now to read.
Edit: Just read, Luna remains terrifying.
Also, how can anyone remain idealistic in that group?
i thought that you killed this fic with how long it had been...
from updates every few days to almost a year of silence...
still... happy as shit right now
6516552 It Lives.
Finally after 11 long months.
So... How long until the next chapter?
Hopefully not another 11 months.
While I love you and your fic and more than understand life can cause problems with writing, I dunno about this being 'alive' again. Maybe close to coming off of life-support. The shortest chapter yet doesn't quite move it to alive for me. Maybe like...a burst of brain-activity. I'm hopeful, but we'll see. Tracking til' then. Really hope it'll make a full comeback.
YAY!
damnit, i've forgotten all context on this fic!
*proceeds to clear reading progress to start over*
Shorter than expected, but still. It's back!!
Until the calamity that is Fallout 4 ensnares us allHope you don't catch anything else bad, your luck seemed too down to write lately.Also
I believe you meant "necromancer".
6516561
The goal of The Circle was to protect Equestria, via any means necessary, even if it meant using the darkest arts, or working with the most loathsome and vile individuals on the planet. While some may have been corrupted by lust for power, or greed, Midnight Black has, in many ways, remained 'pure' in her intentions. She has created an army mighty enough to repel a foreign invasion, an army of murderous undead perhaps, but it is the army she sought to make from the outset. Her morality is different from yours or mine, but her guiding star is that Equestria's safety takes priority over all other considerations, even ethical or moral ones. But she also has a very strong desire to be able to settle down and live a normal life, something that, as a necromancer, she can't have. So, she's conflicted between this purpose and this strong desire. What Luna is doing is bringing that conflict to the surface. Midnight Black will have to choose between this purpose she's dedicated her life to, or the one thing she'd desperately hoped for in her heart of hearts. Of course, she's unaware, as is Luna, of certain events in previous chapters, so there's a possibility that when certain truths are revealed...
Well, let's not spoil anything.
Well, this story is in my "Graveyard of Lost Souls and Abandoned Fics" bookshelf. Maybe it's time to remove it from there.
Luna's having too much fun with this.
6516654
.
Given the context of the chapter, I'd say that's pretty appropriate
what happened while i wa... oh shit this updated? i almost forgot what this was about. but now i need to reread most of it again to refresh with wat tha fuck is goin on!
It is overdone, but I shall do it anyway. IT IS ALIVE! Looking forward to more.
Keep up the good work. Deus tecum.
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It lives
6516667
Not really. She's disgusted with the subject, but she still pities Midnight Black.
Funny story, I kind of got this idea after re-reading Sandman.
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Dream is one of the most feared of the Endless, his revenge is considered more terrible than that of 'Death'. After all, you can only truly die once, but the one who controls dreams, inspiration, and imagination has a whole bag of nasty tricks to play on those who slight him. However, my personal favorite is the first revenge he took in the series, 'Eternal Wakefulness'. Like Midnight Black is experiencing, it is a nightmare you keep 'waking up from', and every time you do, it gets worse.
Looks like someone gave this fic a
I'm so happy to see this story again. I didn't expected Midnight to be amongst the kindest of the Circle and possibly having sings of being a good person deep down. Hope to see more of this story along with Ambrose/Sombra's story.
IT'S ALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE!!!!!!!!
GAH!!! This would finally update while i'm on my way to work.
6516805 Like thinking you're safe at last from MRSA only to have 6 new boils erupt on your butt...
This was a Quality chapter!
Quality!
I admit I cheered when I saw this was updated.
Incidentally, I listened to this while reading this chapter:
In fact, I was listening to it even before reading this chapter. Talk about setting the mood perfectly!
And this chapter has a certain kind of terrifying.
"Thread so dead,
Writhing in pain,
Arise, arise to post again!"
6516654 It was in my hiatus folder as well.
It's alive!
New chapter!
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YEEEEEEEEEEEES!
I really am hoping that you'll be continuing/finishing this story, it was one of the first ones I read on this site and it's one of my favs.
yay!
I never thought I'd post a comment before reading the actual chapter. But here I am.
Why?
Edit: Aw.... no Pan. Just Pan's Plans (which is just as well received, because seriously: I hate those types of nightmares. Had them all the time as a kid. They just keep going, and going, and goi...). Here's hoping this bit of story Necromancy sticks.
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This gives me insight into my own story. I have a story that I'm considering of a pony who is a Medic. He heals his patient by any means necessary, even turning to Necromancy, but only in the most dire situations, and never to bring undead.
This gives me a different look, makes me consider having said Medipony of mine having to do cleansing rituals after using Necromancy. Also about the reviving thing, only able to be revived within a few minutes after heart stopping/death
... This fic is now a zombie.
But it's back anyway. Shuffling along. Man, what's it doing back?
(clicks on new chap)
(remembers that I have forgotten almost everything)
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HAZZAH!!! mister nonesence, this is the story that led to my discovery of you, and Life-support decided to finally start back up again! (So happy)
And now that i read this chapter, i will reread this story (and comment again[my skills have improved{yay}]) since i have no memory of Midnight Black (DAMN YOU MEMERY BANKS!!! YOU HAVE FAILED ME!!!)
It's back... It's back...
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Crap... Reading 'Pandinus' confused me on the gender and which character bio's to correlate to... There's another fimfic, The Substitute Demon, with a changeling queen with the name of Pandinus as well.
On another note:
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HOORAY! It's back!
Traditionally, "healing arts" are a subset of necromancy - knitting bone and melding flesh, purging rot, killing pathogens, and generally moulding the animate forces to your will. Most forms of golemcraft are necromantic as well, for the same reasons.
Undead are the results of failures, both in the sense of the attempt failing and their creator being a failure; a healer knows when to stop and stays within the rules as part of a code of ethics, but ones people call necromancers have, obviously, chosen to ignore those rules and the ethics that guide them. But those ethics and rules aren't just for the sake of the patient; they include best practices that keep the practitioner safe as well.
The reason necromancers become tainted isn't because the magic itself is harmful, but because they are a group of people who reject the rules that protect them from harm. They threw out best practices right alongside the code of ethics. They're pretty much like those nurses who refuse to get vaccinated, wear masks around sick patients, or wash their hands.
Necromancy can be done safely - the more conventional subsets are considered quite safe - but the people using it are unsafe by nature. Given a few hundred years of dedicated people researching safety and best practices the taint problem would go away, but at the moment they cut for stones.
It's been so long that I forgot the players of this game. Can you give a summary of Midnight Black and what she did in the story?
6516552 I think necromancy could be done in a nice way.
I mean necromancy is magic that has to do with death.
Summoning the dead is cool, but what if the purest form of necromancy was to be a link between the dead and the living.
If so many people knew the basic of this one form of necromancy, the dead and the living would gradually become indistinguishable.
6516552 AAHH!!! Necromancy! Quick, beat it with a stick. Wait! cancel that we want the fic to continue! Just chain him to a desk instead.
This fic...
This fic...
IT LIVES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ahem, HALLELUJAH! A FANTASTIC FIC HAS ARISEN FROM ITS ASHES AND IS WORKING TO CLAW ITS WAY BACK INTO MY BRAIN! Well dear story, lets see how well you do.
..... Would creating an artificial soul count as necromancy? Or cutting off small pieces to feed t other souls? Might need to know some of tis stuff for a fic i have in mind.
Oh and yes; WOOHOO, THE FIC HAS RISEN AGAIN!!!! BEHOLD MY EXCITED DOUBLE ARM PUMP!!!
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XD So who learned Necromancy to bring this back from the dead? The irony is real.
An Update? Nonsence!
No, really! It's kindda Bucking Got smarter and retured to 'ling fics we (or At least I) love him for!
Idealistic necromancers are a strange and rare lot.
Easily tricked and misguided by their ideals, they can be dangerous fanatics driven by their belief that they are doing the right thing. And yet, it is this staunch idealism that gives them the chance to resist the taint and corruption of their art. They are simultaneously a powerful ally, and a terrible enemy.
It all comes down to where their morals fall.
It LIVES!
Love the insight into Lady Black's head, and the cycle of nightmare waking into nightmare is creepy and clever. The first wakeup-into-another-dream brought to mind Star Trek First Contact. Was that intentional? Kinda hoping that they can turn or neutralize her, and maybe get some valuable intel in the process.
Oh, such a great idea - torture her 'till her mind snaps! I think Pan (for this plan) and Luna (for the execution of this plan) will fit in Circle very good, like lost pieces of puzzle.
The writer is not dead. Long live the story!