Gregor believed he had been doing a good job of being king. It was difficult work, that was for certain, but he felt he did well in the administrative aspects of the job. Now unfortunately he had a difficult day ahead of him, as his own nose had unfortunately just fallen off.

"Oh bother." He said as he heard the thud upon the floor of his modest apartment above the building he used to do his duties as king. Such a sad little lump of flesh, he thought glumly as he picked it up. Being a walking corpse had its disadvantages at times.

He could not allow this to impede him, however, as he still had to address everyone that was gathering outside in the square. Being without a nose wasn't the end of the world, considering the amount of skeletons in the population. If anything it would likely improve his approval ratings with the undead citizenry.

Dressing himself in the normal moth tattered robes of his station, the motley looking royal adjusted the tarnished golden crown upon his head. When they had obtained more funds in the coffers, he would perhaps splurge on some new clothes that made him look more kingly. These of course had sentimental value to Gregor, as they were the clothes he was buried in, so perhaps not just yet.

Going out to the balcony of his two story building, he addressed his subjects gathered outside in a warm and polite tone. "Hello there, I am glad to see so many came out to hear my decrees!" His vocal chords were starting to become effected by the rot, which was a shame as his normally placid voice was turning crumbly, like he had rocks in his throat. Soon he would have to have the special enchantments to retrieve his voice, just like the other such skeletons.

"We have much news from the other cities and settlements of our fair Ludonia." He looked quite well for an undead, most of his skin was still intact, his eyes were milky but not yet liquefied, and his gray hair hair was only now beginning to fall out. There were a few new faces out there, but there were always new faces in a land dedicated to the undead.

"Name?"

"Um, Saki.... Saki Monmida."

"Looks like you're one of us. You a refugee?"

"Wh-what? No! I, er...."

"Ya got the look. Got infected, family turned ya out. Happens every day. Was it that 'triple gay' thing again?"

"Y-yes...."

"Sheesh, yeah, that one's been goin' around. Whatever wizard came up with that is a real joker, ehh? Go on through."

"Uhh, okay then...."

The zombie administrator's gravelly voice shook Saki's bones when he spoke. Would her voice end up being that way, too?! It was still high pitched and girly for now, but what if her body kept decaying.... it better not get like that! The girl started to walk out of the little building where travelers were being processed, but then stopped and turned around.

"Hey, uh, mister.... I don't, well.... I don't really know where to go," she said sheepishly.

The older zombie gave her a pitied look, like she was a lost puppy. Which was pretty much accurate.

"Yeah? Well, the king is giving some speech today. Follow the crowds, can't miss it. Ask me.... wait 'til it's done, then try for an audience with him. Play up the cutesy stuff, maybe he'll give you some cash to get started, or a job sweeping up body parts, or something."

"Sweeping up--body parts?!"

"Yeah, you know. The ones that fall off of us? All the time? Everywhere? No civilized society walks around in its own limbs."

"Eeek!!"

Saki looked at her own arms and legs to make sure they were still attached. They were--for now! She better get moving and get to the king before they fell off! Fleeing from the building and out into the streets, she did as the man suggested and followed the throngs of slow-moving dead towards whatever public square the king was speaking from. Though she was faster than most of them on account of her youth, Saki still couldn't help but notice how painfully sluggish her movements seemed, she felt like she was out-and-out sprinting yet really she couldn't go any faster than a regular person's jog. At the same time, though, she didn't have to worry about getting tired or catching her breath.... Which was good, because her breath was probably horrible! At least she couldn't smell it anyways!

"Agh! I hate being dead!"

"First I must make you all aware of a group of knights terrorizing the countryside." Gregor found bad news was best given first, as it allowed for the masses to digest and process it for a while, thud making it not as bad. "They call themselves the Silver Lances and have been running people down without provocation. If you see them, do not approach them, and instead alert your local authorities of their whereabouts. We will see to it these cowards receive justice."

King Gregor would ponder much of why the human factions felt it was so necessary to engage in these little skirmishes. Hardly any of his subjects were military, most of them were simple folks trying to live their deathly lives in peace. Many of the stereotypes created by the humans themselves have done much to damage the image of the undead. Gregor has hardly ever seen one of his people with the capacity for great evil, much as the rumors would have people believe.

Now for something a little more positive than murderers in the area. "Mrs. Worshire has decided to cancel her re-entry into death and instead is opening up her home for her new business of bone painting. If you wish to put some spice into your unlife with whimsical colors on those exposed skeletons, then please go see her as I am told she has reasonable prices for her work." It's important for the undead to have a job, a purpose in their life, in which to help tether their minds to reality. Without it, they tend to apply for the state sanctioned executions, and that always drops the spirits of the others for days afterwards.

Judging by what he saw, many of the people of Ludonia were pleased with these news, especially the groups of skeletons scattered throughout the crowd. They were usually the oldest, or most damaged of the undead, so she was sure to see some regular customers for her work. With more jobs in the private sector, the economy would start to shape up, and they might even be able to attract those fabled Flesh Sculptors from the Western Marshes Gregor had heard so much about. Of course it was hard for an economy to develop when there were bands of murderous knights killing your workers. Just another challenge for Ludonia and her king.

"I believe that is all the news for today. If any of you wish to speak with me, I will be in my study, making tea. Thank you all for coming and may you have a day full of purpose." Undead subjects were slow to emotional responses like clapping or cheering, so the most Gregor received was some 'your welcomes' and 'have a nice day' with an occasional nod thrown into the mix. Such was the life of an unliving creature, but it was one that he had grown accustomed well to. Now of course was the time to speak with his subjects as well as try to figure out an idea to stopping the knights and their evil rampage through Ludonian lands.

After putting a kettle above a fire, he laid out a map of Ludonia on a table in front of some chairs in his study. It was a nice enough place, though it could definitely do with some restoration. Another time, once it was in the budget of course, and now he must await his possible subjects as he delved into this difficult problem.