Chapter 1 - A Demotion to Happiness.

One week since the turning of Acherus.

 The great, floating fortress of the Undead had grown quiet since it's warriors had left, and although some remained, and others returned between new and wonderful missions, it had become clear that Acherus itself would never be the same again.

 It was too quiet for Sarah, with only the ringing of a cooling soulforge to drown out that horrible silence between her ears that had afflicted the Knight since the voice of her Master had been taken from her. Human by birth, Deathknight of the Scourge by rebirth, she had been beautiful in both lives, pale and pretty, golden hair now pure white, dark blue eyes now blazing, ice blue coals. 

 The others all feel, or at least said they felt, differently, either not caring for the freedom they had been given, or genuinely emboldened and joyous, as if the voice of their Master had been a cruel one. Sarah had never thought so, had never thought anything at all, which was, she knew, the point. She missed it already, the surety and safety of it, the reassuring weight in her mind, like an anchor that held her firmly in place. Without it, she was spinning and twirling and falling. It was horrible. 

 When Eirik found her she was digging her long-nailed fingers into her scalp, dragging them sharply back over the near-hairless sides of her attractively shaped skull, leaving pale lines, but not blood, of course. Her white hair had been spiked up in a crest, a mocking imitation of what an Orc or Troll might wear for battle, a sign of fierceness and martial intimidation that now, laying limp down one side, merely felt exposed and pathetic. Eirik still liked it, though now for different reasons, tutting under his breath as he took both of her hands and held them free of her scalp. No point letting her tear through her skull.

 "Enough. You're not doing any good..." Where she was fair, and remained so, he had been dark and some of that remained in death. Though his skin was now as pale as hers, his hair and stubble remained dark. The eyes were the same. The uniform was not.

 Sarah couldn't help but stare at her former colleague, warmate and lover. Gone was the black, hooded robe and plate, in it's place what looked like an Alliance military uniform, all gleaming chain and snarling lion's head in blue and white and gold. She still wore saronite studded rags and chains, and was suddenly acutely aware of it. 

 "Eirik... They took you back?"

 A nod, the grip on her wrists loosening. "They did...More or less. What are you doing here still?" She cast her eyes about the little corner of the Fortress she was hidden within, somewhere the stench of decay would keep her hidden. But not from Him. Never from Him. 

 "...I don't like it." She whispered.

 "Don't like it?"

 "The quiet. In here, the Voice still echoes. Out there? Nothing." 

 The hands returned to her head, though this time, calmed a little by his presence, they simply gripped at the crest of hair on top, and tugged gently. That, at least, was nice. Without the deadening, numbing presence of the Master, she could feel again, feel more than simple battle useful sensations. She could even taste now, and smell more than blood. But it wasn't enough, and not even the delightful tingle of the tug on her scalp could distract her from that empty silence. 

 Until he helped.

 Eirik cupped one side of her head, and, standing over her now, let her feel that tenderness he had shown her during those rare moments together they had shared before the Turning. Back then, simple killing machines delving into other vices when not in use. Now? Something else. Less hungry, more...Pleasant. His lips left hers, and he sighed, giving her a little smile he never could have before. 

 "I know. It's...Different. But...I think I can help."

"Help?"

 "Help. They...The Alliance, the Humans...Are letting us continue our work, in a way. Magic. Necromancy. Our brethren are summoning familiars, servants. There are rules, but... Well."

 Voice lowered, he tugged gently at her hair, the tingling sensation so much more intense when given by another. "I want you to be my Ghoul..."

-

 The knife drew a slow, pink line around her head, just above the eyebrows now quivering and twitching at the strange, but not quite painful sensation. Even for a Deathknight it should have stung, for Eirik was pushing with just enough force to push the tip of the blade through bone, but the enchantment now filling her could deal with such things. No blood fell, for she had been without it for years now, her cool skin parting easily. 

 "Try and relax..." He purred, clearly taking a certain amount of enjoyment in this. Strangely, so was she, a kind of perverse excitement growing by the moment, this emotion the first beyond fear and confusion she had felt in days. Better even than the fury she had once felt. Sarah sat still, teeth sinking into her lip to keep quiet and still, the faint light of candles casting long shadows about her. This was one of the now empty rooms within the Fortress, it's previous tenant on the pyre outside of Light's Hope. Private enough for this, at least. She was still moist and sated, having indulged in one last coupling in their current states before...Whatever would come next. It had been good.

 The blade finished it's circle, and the whole top of her head went numb. The unliving bodies of Deathknights could stand much, and as she had been told, the top of her skull would remain perfectly healthy and undead for long enough. One of his strong hands took hold of her hanging crest of hair, and tugged, and with a wet little pop, pulled away the lid of her head. Cool, grey-blue meat lay beneath, glistening in the candlelight almost romantically. 

 "Smaller than I thought." She could FEEL the smirk on his lips, even if she knew not to look up and see. He chuckled softly, running a cool finger along the strangely sensitive raw edge of the cut. "Jokes aside...Last time to say no, Sarah. I can cover this pretty little thing up again, stitch you back together." She risked movement, and gently shook her head, acutely aware of the way that motion made chilly Acherus air wash over her breached skull. "N-no. It's OK. I want this..."

 Smiling still, he lent down, and pressed a small kiss against the cool grey-matter, and although she couldn't feel it, the thought of the action was enough to make her thighs twitch and lips part. 

 Soon the silence would be all gone.

 Eirik got to work, gently, carefully separating her brain from it's casing, the supports cut away and gleaming skull revealed. Finally, and with a sort of felt, rather than heard snip, the stem was severed, and the world turned....Vague.

 Organs of all kinds were not of the utmost importance to the dead. After all, the wisest among the Forsaken, the Litches and their ilk, were simple bone and magic, hollow skulls filled with the dancing lights of necromancy rather than squishy meat. Still, for Sarah, the loss was more than a simple absence. As strong hands lifted the heavy meat from between her ears, the sudden sensation of lightness, of emptiness, almost overwhelmed her. Thoughts slowed, but refused to halt, and she couldn't tell just what it was that was doing the thinking now, some arcane connection, or lingering imprint of her brain still sitting in the now empty bowl of her skull. 

 Carefully, he hoisted it up, fingers gently caressing the whorls and wrinkles. "Beautiful... " With a wicked gleam in his eyes, he took a finger, and PUSHED, pressing it into the soft and yielding meat. Her eyes crossed and mouth formed a perfect O, as enforced sensation overcame her, moistening the stone beneath her as the now brainless Knight quivered and twitched in wordless bliss. A connection then...Interesting.

 But they were far from done...

 Slowly, as the waves of impossible pleasure slithered through her, he lent down, and placed her now slightly...Dented brain in waiting hands, letting her cradle it in her lap as her empty skull lolled side to side, slowly coming down from the heights of pleasure that touch had brought. When she came, she did so with gusto. Always had, always would, and even in her current state it left lingering stars in her vision, and a purple glow on her cheeks. 

 "F-feels...It feels so good..." She mumbled, eyelids low as he returned to his work, and gathered up the other tools and regents for the ritual. With a firm hand, he held her open head in place, clutching her by the ear and pouring in the first of the regents, corpse dust, fine and pure. Next, as the dazed Knight mumbled and panted, a lead coin was placed within the bowl of her skull. Penultimate, and of the most purely magical importance, was a single bead of Saronite, the wicked, whispering ore that would be the focus for her...Restructuring. 

 Eirik clicked his fingers before her dimly glowing eyes, drawing her attention, and dredging her mind up from the murky, lustful depths it had been cast into, helped along by the involuntary squeezing of her fingers around her own faintly sensile brain. With a gasp, her eyes focused, and a little laugh escaped her lips. "I...Look ridiculous, don't I?"

 He could only smile. "You look beautiful." Before stealing a quick kiss, and standing once more. He had been naked for some time now, never having bothered to re-dress fully after the pre-ritual coupling. Now, already hard, he let his length press lightly against the tip of her nose, the flesh of his manhood ever so slightly warmer than the rest of him, enough so that her cold nose made him shudder in pleasure. 

 She knew what to do, as she had so many times before. With a cool breath, she shut her faintly glowing eyes, and took him into her mouth, cheeks hollowing as she drew him in. Those strong hands held her wonderfully light and airy head, and helped guide her movements, keep her from spilling the small pile of regents waiting for the final 'drop' to finish the spell. Sarah, nails dragging lightly over her own now extant grey-matter, indulged herself, taking her time to use tongue, lips and throat to seek her final reward, all the while basking in the low, pleasured sounds her future Master let fall from above. 

 For a moment like this, it was all worth it.

 Finally, as his muscles began to twitch and the low heat that grew in him threatened to boil free, he tightened the grip on her head, and held her back, head tilting forward as with a wet slurp, he freed his pulsing length from her lips, and let it rest on the cool rim of her open skull.

 Eirik came, and what little remained of Sarah's mind was washed away in a torrent of white bliss, cum spurting into the open bowl, and bringing the mixture to life. For a moment, her pretty blue eyes BLAZED, bright enough to drown out the candles...Then dimmed, and went out, leaving only the blank and iris-less white orbs of the truly Undead. Jaw slack, she made a sound, a low, throaty purr that spoke of utter contentment, the near-animal sound lingering as her new Master pulled back, panting and smiling, and returned his now half-rigid, lazily pulsing length to her lips. 

 He didn't need to speak. The words simple appeared within her consciousness, an ORDER to total, so direct that it became the very core of her being, filling the empty space within her with perfect, wonderful obedience. 

 Clean Master's cock.

 And she did, slowly, languidly, movements slow and near-worshipful, blank eyes staring, the off-white fluid in her skull bubbling. Sarah was, finally, happy. And had her MASTER to thank. 

 Her scalp was returned to her, the lid of her still light, but not quite empty head lowered into place. With deft fingers, he stitched it back with fine thread, trusting that her unliving body would soon hide the scar...Mostly. A reminder would remain, a sign of her obedience, her perfection. She could move again, and did so, a wide smile on her lips as she turned her head to feel the sloshing of her Master's gift, the new 'voice' within her. 

 Again they kissed, and again, he teased at the rim of her now closed skull, still tender, the scalp now merely numb, but sensation returning, pale white hair draped lazily to the side. 

 There was only one last thing to do.

 The order was given, and with all the bliss that willing obedience could bring, the new Ghoul, his new servant and eternal lover, devoured her own brain. She wouldn't need it anymore, after all, that was what Master was for.

 As the last of it was squeezed down her waiting throat, Sarah was finally, and completely happy.