Alexey Yarovitsyn was an infantry captain, a reckless arquebusier who fought in dozens of battles. But one day the cards of fate lay in such a way that he was caught and died. Now he is the so-called mormilai - a weak-willed zombie, whose only purpose is to kill the enemies of his master, a young nobleman from the Velensky family. But perhaps the necromancer who stole his soul was mistaken? Or how else to explain the pain that the dead captain’s nature experiences? How to explain his mysterious dreams that the dead should not see?