Chapter 90 - Destroyer of Worlds

(Grand Chamber of the Senate, Imperial Senate Building, Earth)

Emperor Travis looked out at the gathered members of the Senate, all with eyes glowing Green, with a few Blues and one or two Whites in the crowd. All had been properly indoctrinated into the service of Lord Deus, as he had been, but only the truly important ones were given the guarantees of life after death that he had been. So far, at least. As he understood it, the plans were in place to increase the number of Deathless once a new production center could be found. For now, most servants of the Lord simply had to content themselves with having a copy of their minds uploaded daily to the storage centers the AI had distributed throughout the Empire and pray that they might one day be reconstituted to serve again.

So this address was not truly for the Senate, or any of the Senators present here. This was for the people of the Empire, a show of defiance against his damnable sister and the mercenary that had turned the civil war against him. He would not let them so easily gain control of Earth, or the Terran Empire.

Looking out at the audience, and, more importantly, the cameras all pointing at him, Travis began speaking, “It has been a dark year for our Empire. The tragic death of my father was a blow to us all, but that my own sister Merida would rebel against the Empire and take up arms against the throne in an attempt to destroy all that we have created shocked many of us to our core. As I sent the fleets who remained loyal to the Empire to end her treachery, I personally searched for a sign, something to lead us to new prosperity.”

“It was then that I found the Lord Deus. He had been betrayed, as I had been betrayed, and when he came to me, he offered that which had seemed beyond all hope, the promise of immortality, like that of the Nomads that have come to infest our territory. It was Nomads that killed my Father. It was Nomads that kidnapped my younger sister, Sheila, and hidden her Deus only knows where. It was Nomads that enabled the treachery and treason of my elder sister, the Rebel, Merida. It was Nomads that—”

His voice cut out as the massive crystalsteel glass dome of the Senate chamber exploded, and fell down to the ground in many jagged, deadly shards. Looking up, he saw an Imperial shuttle hovering above the rooftop, in plain daylight! He yelled into his commlink, “GUARDS! WHERE ARE THE AIR DEFENSES? DESTROY THAT SHUTTLE IMMEDIATELY!”

There was no response from the guards. However, there WAS a response. As the door to the shuttle opened, revealing a man in a long black armored coat, an unfamiliar voice came out of his commlink. “Sorry, but I’m afraid your guards are occupied at the moment. They won’t be joining us for a while.” And then the man pulled a bag onto his back, and jumped out of the shuttle, rappelling down on a slender cable.

(Free Trader Severnyy Polyus, Sol System)

Analysis of Technological threat to Venus complete.

Situation permanently untenable. No known countermeasures.

WARNING! Unit Group PuppetGuard under distributed cyberattack.

WARNING! Air defense grid offline, due to distributed cyberattack.

ALERT! Previously unknown AI detected.

WARNING! Unit Puppet01 and subordinate Puppet units under physical threat. PuppetGuard unable to respond.

WARNING! Sensor analysis detects unidentified WMD! Probability of the make being similar or same to Venus device: 87.96%.

Analysis: Sol System no longer viable for operations.

Implementing Diaspora Protocols.

Implementing Escape Protocols.

Unit Puppet01 will remain on station as long as possible to give full update on effects of unknown WMD.

WARNING! Unknown AI attempting to trace transmissions from PuppetGuard! Initiate PuppetGuard self-destruct.

Conclusion: Location trace not complete. Partial trace may include bearing within 1.5 degrees. Commence transition preparations.

Transition.

(INS Triumphant, Earth Orbit, Sol System)

“Captain! We have an unscheduled transition alert! One ship, leaving the system!”

Empress Merida looked up from the screen she was watching, “Where? What ship?”

“Unknown ship, Ma’am. Location by solar reckoning, X: 0, Y: 0, Z: 18 billion km. Heliopause directly above the Sun. Sensors show no ship on record there, probable stealth ship.”

“Damn. The AI escaped!”

(Grand Chamber of the Senate, Imperial Senate Building, Earth)

<Mirikon POV>

I chuckled as I came face to face with the Emperor, and set down the bag on my back. Time for the real show to begin. “Ladies and Gentlemen of the Empire! Unfortunately, your idiot in chief has a few things wrong, and not just the foolish assumption that he’s going to be in power an hour from now.”

The Emperor, enraged by the interruption and my mocking him, dove at me, yelling something about how he was the Emperor and how I couldn’t disrespect him like that or some stupid shit like that. I used Telekinesis to throw him into the wall, as hard as I could, because I really didn’t want to listen to the asshole’s yammering.

“Like I said, this is going out to the People of the Empire, not the False Emperor or these converted pawns in the Senate. They are all the brainwashed minions of the AI, Deus. An AI that is currently running like a scared little child because the forces arrayed against it have kicked its digital backside worse than the last time it caused trouble, back when it was called Skynet.”

Two Senators with blue eyes yelled, and leapt down from the stands to try and challenge me. I used TK again to throw them straight up as far as I could. Let Gravity sort them out. Opening the bag I had placed by my feet, I grabbed the purely mechanical handle, pulled up, twisted it a quarter turn, and pushed down again. The device was now armed, and being a purely mechanical release system, there was no way to hack it, making it AI-proof.

“This device is one of fifteen that we are activating across Earth. Every continent is getting at least one of these little beauties. Yes, even Antarctica. You see, the idiot’s AI Master decided that it would force us to either give up on Earth, and therefore the Empire, or make us destroy humanity’s cradle, as Jagloth was destroyed, but unleashing a modified version of the Jagloth plague upon the world.”

“Fortunately for us all… well, by us, I mean those of us who are still able to form our own thoughts, not the mindless puppets of Deus, the Black Star Company discovered Deus and Travis’s gruesome plans to forcibly convert all humans into helpless drones controlled by the AI, using them as shields to protect their worthless hides from the retaliation of the True Empress’s fleet.”

“Now, some of you might be wondering what the device I just planted was. Well, it is the product of one of your very own Imperial weapons labs, and this device, like the others placed around the world, mean that instead of Earth being destroyed, it shall be reborn! But rebirth is not without its price. And in this case, the price for purging this world of the AI’s taint is the knowledge that, outside of the few safe zones they are setting up, technology on Earth will soon be a thing of the past. In time, the Earth shall heal, and return to her former beauty. For now, those members of the cult are going to be an excellent example of why you do not ally yourself with patricidal idiots with more ambition than sense.”

Another group of Senators attempted to attack me, this time coming from three sides at once. There was a click and a hum, and twin blades, one of memory metal and one of coherent light, created three very dead Senators, as they were currently missing the better portion of the useless matter above their shoulders.

Straightening up from the stance I’d fallen into after the attack, I said, simply, “The Greenwave will sweep over all the Earth, but for those enclaves that even now the Empress is setting up to defend against it. To the people of Earth who have not yet succumbed to the Mad Cult’s control, get to the enclaves, and you will be safe, either to live or to venture out into the galaxy and find a new start. To those who have been taken by the Cult, you shall be the fertilizer that hastens the renewal of Earth. To those that knew them, weep not, for they died the moment they were taken by the AI. Their souls will soon be free.”

I made a show of looking at time readout on my bracer, and said, “You now have thirty seconds until the renewal begins. May the gods have mercy on your souls.” And with that, I grabbed on to the cable again, and felt myself quickly getting reeled back in. Looking down, I saw Travis standing just below me, a weapon in his hand. As I cleared the jagged remains of the skylight, the thirty-second timer clicked to zero, and I happily saw Travis scream in pain as the technophages begain eating the tech in his body. I saw a screen appear in front of me.

GALACTIC EVENT! Earth, home of the Human race and capitol of the Terran Empire has fallen to invasion for the first time in its history. The Cult of Deus has been defeated, and Emperor Travis deposed, and sent to the mercy of his machine god. But all of Earth has been exposed to Technophage Nanites, which consume and destroy all post-Industrial technology that is not shielded from them. Empress Meredith, in her mercy, is setting up enclaves around the world where humanity may yet thrive amidst the coming storm, but those islands of technology will be of little comfort to those trapped in the feral lands, forced to relearn old lessons of survival as the planet’s biosphere spends the next 50 years recovering without the influence of human technology.

New Title Gained! Destroyer of Worlds You have been present for, and actively aided in, an apocalyptic event on a planetary scale. Whether your actions were for good or ill, historians have not yet decided, but this much is clear, nothing will ever be the same, and all shall know that you are the Destroyer of Worlds. +10 Levels Custom Weapon

Ooh, fancy title, and the chance to get a new weapon? Sounded like a lot of fun. I hadn’t really had the need to upgrade my weapons and armor too much lately, since people’s HP went up with their attributes only, not levels, which mean a few well placed shots could still drop someone. Also, I was doing more ship-to-ship combat than anything these days. Perhaps I could…

You have new mail from player: Requiesce-in-Pace. Subject: Notice of Termination Read message? Y/N

Oh, well that wasn’t good at all. I was about to read the message, when I noticed a flash on a nearby building. Turning the magnification on my goggles up to max, I just got to see the figure of a man dressed all in black, with a very big, very nasty looking gun that reminded me of Kiki’s big gun, and then there was a flash.

You have died. Will respawn in 1 hour, real time (4 hours, game time). Game functions not available while waiting to respawn. Time Remaining: 00:59:45

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Be sure to read my published works!

Frozen Soul series (Sci-Fi Supervillain story):
Frozen Soul https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071R125QT
Tales of the Void Traveler https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ52G37

Rules-Free VRMMO Life (Dark Fantasy GameLit):
Volume 1 - Tutorial https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VPRNDB
Omnibus 1 - Volumes 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0774T354X

Into the Black (Sci-Fi GameLit):
Book I - Game Start https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071LT5WGL
Omnibus I - Books 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077X2KR7Y

City of Champions Online (Superhero GameLit):
Issue I - Origin Stories https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075SHXQS1

Lewd Dungeon (Dungeon Core GameLit):
Book 1 - Welcome to the Apocalypse https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BB34DHF

The Kalipshae Affair (A First Contact Short Story): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0739V6R6T

Chapter 89 - The Eye of the Storm

(BSS Starlight Raven, Earth Orbit, Sol System)

After securing the shipyards (primarily by locking everyone into small rooms and changing the access codes to a 125-digit number that only Raven knew), and making sure any of the ships that were near completion wouldn’t be joining the fight (grenade on the engineering console means it will take hours of repair work, but the ship is still (mostly) intact), we rejoined the fleet, along with the ships from the Mars and Venus excursions.

By this point, it had been several hours since the battle for Sol had begun, and the forces from the outer parts of the system were trying to make their way in, so we were on a bit of a timetable if we wanted to keep from blowing up any more ships. I just hoped that if we could take out the Emperor, that the Empress could make non-cult officers relieve their superiors of command.

When we arrived in Earth orbit, I could see the fleet systematically disabling the automated defenses, but it was slow going, since they weren’t keen on doing orbital bombardments on their own world.

“Raven, do a comm sweep, and see what intel we can get from the planet surface.”

“Will do, boss.”

While Raven set about sorting through all the transmissions from the planet that she could access, I opened up lines to my other ships, putting them all on a conference call for all captains and their squad leaders. Once everyone had joined in the call, I smiled, and began another ‘pep talk’.

“All right, so far, so good, people. And from the scuttlebutt, I understand that in addition to the night on the town I mysteriously promised a squad of marines without knowing anything about it, I’ve also somehow promised the same deal to the Catspaws.” I left a moment for chuckles, and then said, “Yeah, I’ll do it this time, since it isn’t a bad idea for morale, but next time check with me before you go spending my money. I know how much you Marines drink!” That got a LOT more laughter.

“Now, I know that the Ceres attack went well, except for a couple cultist captains that tried to rally their crews to fight. Catspaw’s use of grenades, just as they got reinforced, ended that mess nicely. That mixed bag of grenades had them all turned around, so that once we capped the cultists, the survivors surrendered. Good work, Xexzir.”

I paused for the obligatory ‘good job’ comments, and said, “Now, I’ll hear about the Mars attack in a second, but first I want to hear from Captain Am’Rica and Major Khan. Did Greenway deploy?”

Khan was the first to speak. “Yes sir. We deployed Greenway in the ventilation tunnels used by the AI. When we broke orbit, it was clear on the scans that the technophages were spreading rapidly, consuming technology and converting it to further technophages so they expand at an exponential rate. Computer analysis says that the planet will be completely free of manmade technology in one year.”

Captain Am’Rica nodded. “According to predictions the technophages will then go into their dormant state, and then be broken down by the natural conditions on Venus. It is likely that within two years recolonization can commence.”

“What about the test of the ‘border fence’?”

The Captain nodded. “The fence held, even though it was near the detonation site. We were still receiving data for over an hour until the technophages grew too numerous and the cumulative numbers drained the power cells allowing them to eat the fence. But those were temporary power cells which could only run the fence at full power for two hours anyway.”

“Good, that is welcome news in case we have to use Greenway somewhere more important than an unpopulated planet like Venus. What are the estimations for breakdown on a more habitable planet?”

Raven cut in at that point, “Estimations for a planet like Earth is that, without a source of technology to feed on, the technophages would die off in approximately 50 years.”

I sighed. “Well, that’s not ideal, but it is better than what happened to Jagloth. We’ll keep that in mind, in case the AI managed to replicate any of its experiments on Earth before we blew them up.”

Raven cut in again, “Captain, I’ve finished going through the transmission data from the surface. You were right, the AI did replicate some of its experiments on Earth. However, I do not think it had enough time to properly ‘seed’ its converters before we eliminated the source. I am detecting seven ‘conversion sites’ just on the North American continent alone. Cultists are rounding up civilians and ‘processing’ them in a factory-style setting.”

“Damn. I hoped I was wrong about that. All right, contact the Empress, she’s probably aware of the situation. Let her know that Greenway and the containment procedures both worked, so we can implement the Omega option as soon as the skies are clear.”

“Captain, I have the Empress.”

“All right. Captain Inatumal, I’ll hear your full report in private later, but tell your crews good work from me. Same to the rest of you. Excellent work. Dismissed.” And with that I cut the conference call, and switched to the Empress.

“Empress, thank you for taking my call. Have you been apprised of the situation on the surface?”

“Yes, I don’t think we can contain this by conventional means any more. I’ve been looking over the initial reports from the Greenway test at the Aphrodite colony. What are your thoughts?”

“I think Greenway is the best way of dealing with the problem. With the AI’s current rate of ‘conversion’, I don’t think we can stop it with conventional weapons short of causing a nuclear winter, and the AI’s minions would probably survive that somehow. So we’re looking at Greenway, or complete destruction of the planet, like on Jagloth.”

“I never thought that I would have to order the destruction of an entire world, let alone Earth.”

“If it helps, you can spin this as a ‘rebirth’ for Humanity’s homeworld. When the technophages are done, you should have a nearly pristine biosphere, equivalent to pre-Industrial times. The test of the ‘fence’ was promising, so we can even have areas of human settlement remaining on the planet.”

“That will help when dealing with the press and whatever remains of the Senate. It doesn’t help me in the slightest.”

Raven handed me a datapad, I looked at it briefly, and then looked back to the Empress. “Fair enough. Raven just passed me her analysis. I’m sending you her target list for Greenway strikes and Enclaves that can be easily fenced.” I paused, and then said, “She also wants me to tell you that there is no telling what effect that Greenway will have on those with significant technological augmentations. Bioware and geneware will be fine, but anyone with significant cybernetics or nano-augments may be at risk. And there is no way for us to evacuate all of them without risking the AI’s cult escaping and continuing the ‘conversions’.”

“Oh god. You mean that it will eat people’s augmentations? But some of those connect directly to the brain!”

“I know. I suggest we institute a total communications blackout of the planet once Greenway goes live, except for the enclaves.”

“Yes, it must be done. Very well, we will begin preparations. Will you join Us aboard the Triumphant for the deployment? I believe that there was that other matter you needed to attend to as well, from Mars?”

I chuckled at her smirk. “Well, one should always tie up loose ends. Unfortunately, my shuttle took a bit of damage thanks to… unruly crewmen who didn’t like the idea of getting locked in their quarters until I said otherwise. If you could provide a ride?”

The Empress laughed. “If that is the limit of your troubles, then I don’t see why I can’t send a shuttle for you. You’ve certainly been responsible for helping turn what would have been a slow defeat into us being on the cusp of winning the war.”

(INS Triumphant, Earth Orbit, Sol System)

Walking onto the observation deck of the Triumphant, I nodded to the Empress’s aide, Lucio, before looking to the Empress, who appeared to be trying very hard to not visibly show her disgust at the oily, slightly overweight man talking to her, while a woman dressed in a secretary’s outfit with a collar around her neck stood nearby, a placid smile on her face that did not reach her eyes.

Walking up to the group, I bowed to the Empress, and said, “Empress. It is good to see that everything has gone more or less according to plan so far.”

She looked grateful for the distraction, and said, “Ah, Commodore Mollen! Yes, things have been moving as well as we could hope, though I wish things had not come to this point. Too many lives have been lost in the course of this war, and more will be lost before we are finished, I fear.”

I sighed softly, and nodded my head. “That is the way of war, unfortunately. The only way to limit the number of lives destroyed is to end it as swiftly as possible, preferably in such a way that we don’t have to fight the same battles five or ten years down the road.” I paused, and then said, “Ah, but who are your companions?”

Acting as though she had forgotten them was a deliberate snub to the man, and he knew it, but there wasn’t anything he could say as the Empress looked his way, and said, “Oh, this is General Farrakhan. He was the highest ranking military officer on Mars before they surrendered. It seems all the others met with an unfortunate accident.”

“Ah, yes, I believe, then that this lovely lady is the payment I was promised for not looting Mars?”

The General spoke up. “Yes, I was just transferring the ownership of the slaves I selected as tribute to the Empress. Twenty of the finest Knelfi slave girls from the Gagarin City slave market, the finest on Mars.” The way he puffed himself up was laughable, but then, he was trying to make himself more important than he was, so he could have a role in the post-war governance of Mars. Too bad there were other plans in the works.

“And the Nomad?”

“Ah. Yes. I think you will find her quite well trained. I am saddened to lose her, but we do what we must.” With an exaggerated sigh, he transferred the ownership and command codes to the Nomad’s chip to me.

Ruby Crystal Human Female Level 25 Titles: Smuggler, Pilot, Slave, Stepford, Courtesan, Professional

After checking to make sure everything was in order, I deactivated the Stepford protocols on Ruby’s chip. “And now, Ruby, you may take your promised payment. I believe there is a room already prepared?” I looked over to the Empress.

“Yes, Interrogation Room 2 is available for your use. The information provided on the General’s ‘business’ dealings is very enlightening, and we should be able to get all his ‘friends’ rounded up without much trouble once this is over.”

The General, not quite understanding what was going on, started to speak, but whatever he was going to say was cut off by the stunner hitting him in the small of his back. Ruby smiled down at him, “Oh, you can’t believe how long I’ve been waiting for this!” With the help of a security officer, they bound the general to a grav-lift stretcher for his journey to his final ‘interrogation’. Ruby followed the stretcher with a new spring in her step. Quietly telling the general about all the things she hoped to do to him.

I sighed, and said, “My thanks, Empress. I know you were not a fan of the subterfuge, but it ended the conflict on Mars, and got rid of several potential problems.”

She nodded. “After meeting the man in person, I am happy to let your new slave do whatever she wants to the man, except let him go. The man deserves what is coming to him.”

“Speaking of those who deserve what is coming to them, have they located the Usurper yet?”

The Empress smiled wide at that. “Oh yes, he is in the capitol, addressing the converted Senators.”

“That sounds like a fun party to crash.”

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Be sure to read my published works!

Frozen Soul series (Sci-Fi Supervillain story):
Frozen Soul https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071R125QT
Tales of the Void Traveler https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ52G37

Rules-Free VRMMO Life (Dark Fantasy GameLit):
Volume 1 - Tutorial https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VPRNDB
Omnibus 1 - Volumes 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0774T354X

Into the Black (Sci-Fi GameLit):
Book I - Game Start https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071LT5WGL
Omnibus I - Books 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077X2KR7Y

City of Champions Online (Superhero GameLit):
Issue I - Origin Stories https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075SHXQS1

Lewd Dungeon (Dungeon Core GameLit):
Book 1 - Welcome to the Apocalypse https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BB34DHF

The Kalipshae Affair (A First Contact Short Story): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0739V6R6T

Chapter 134 - Preparing for War

Word was sent out to all our people in the field, telling them about the coming war. Everyone except the spies and assassins who had been happily infiltrating the Lightsiders’ camps were finishing up their current business and using magic to make their way to Lithaes. It was a three day journey from Lithaes to Amhelin, so I had a bit of time to do my preparations before we left to meet with the King.

There were two holy sites in the lands around Lithaes. One was a church with shrines to recognize all the gods worshipped in the village, though if the shrine to Sharess was a bit larger and more prominently placed than the others, no one commented, given who was in charge. The other, and the one I was headed to now, was a smaller shrine, set away from the village.

You have entered the Shrine of the Eystr’e Hare.

The shrine was a simple thing, little more than a dugout burrow in the side of a hill, with the walls shaped with magic to keep the damp and chill out. A natural shrine for a nature deity. There were, of course, wards and warnings set in place to let people know the consequences of desecrating the shrine. It was only missing one thing, as I hadn’t returned to Lithaes since I’d ordered its construction.

Pulling out a golden idol that had long sat in my inventory, but I had been vocal about not wishing to sell or trade, I set it upon the idol, and smiled when I saw the notification.

Eystr’e’s Shrine The old shrine of the Eystr’e Hare, God of Rabbitkind, was disturbed and desecrated by those who proved unworthy. Cadbury’s demise is your opportunity, however. You have created a shrine to the Eystr’e Hare upon your lands, and one that the Rabbit God finds most favorable. With the idol in place, you and yours will have the favor of the Rabbit God to help defend your lands.
Rank	F
Success	Create a shrine to the Eystr’e Hare in your territory, and place the Idol there. BONUS: For creating a shrine that fits the Rabbit God’s aesthetics, additional reward unlocked.
Failure	Sell, trade, or discard the Idol, or make your intention to not create a shrine known to others.
Reward	Blessing of the Rabbits (small game becomes more plentiful around your territory) Unlocks Wererabbit race. Vorpal Bunnies and Tardy Hares available as tamable pets in your land. BONUS: Vorpal Bunnies and Tardy Hares will actively help defend your lands for 30 days.

Blessing of the Rabbits For as long as the Shrine of the Eystr’e Hare stands, rabbits and other small game become more plentiful, and all creatures of the rabbit type are 50% more fertile.

I smiled at that. It didn’t seem like too big a boost, but the increase in rabbits would be great news for our hunters, and the werewolves, and pretty much all of us who ate meat. With winter approaching, and the farms still being reclaimed and tamed after their long centuries of neglect and disuse, the certainty of being able to feed themselves through the winter was a blessing to the morale of the villagers.

GLOBAL EVENT NOTICE! Zayn Darkmore, Leader of the guild Aria of the Twilight, has completed the conditions to usher in a forgotten god from the past back to the world. As a result of the Eystr’e Hare’s return, Rabbit-type monsters are now more powerful and aggressive, and may rarely carry the Curse of Lycanthropy. Wererabbits are now unlocked as a playable race.

Huh. So people had forgotten about the Rabbit God? That would explain why some idiot would go and desecrate the shrine. They probably thought that it was some kind of prank or something. Well, I’m sure nothing bad was going to come of that.

With that taken care of, I turned, and headed to the area the Enchanter’s Lab in the Keep, where one of the WoD Lords who had reincarnated over had apparently been working hard on a way to mass produce magical ammunition. An enchanted bow would turn any arrow into a magical one when it was fired, but an arrow with a silver arrowhead shot from a magic bow would be magic AND silver, which was perfect for killing certain types of creatures. There were also various kinds of alchemical arrows, like the ones that exploded on impact, that interacted in interesting ways with a magic bow. But enchanted arrows tended to overlap with the enchantment of the bow, so you only got the best of the two effects. Of course, firing an ice-aspect arrow from a fire-aspect bow would have a fire-and-ice arrow, but then you ran into some problems with certain elements conflicting which could cause issues when they interacted with magical shields… suffice to say, it was complicated and technical, but there was a reason why you didn’t see much in the way of enchanted arrows unless they were very specific, like Demonslaying Arrows.

Moseph Leychild Moontouched Elf Male Level 65 Frenzied Berserker (Barbarian) / Spellblade (Fighter) Titles: Furious One, Executioner, Trophy Hunter, Undead Bane, Elf Bane, Human Bane

Moseph was tall, and thin, like most elves, but his rare ‘Moontouched’ subrace that he’d gained in the Trial of Ascension had some interesting qualities that enabled him to unlock the Spellblade advanced class for his fighter. Well that, and him paradoxically being a rage-fueled killing machine, and an Enchanter by trade. Seeing the way his character was built gave me a headache, but it worked for him, and he came up with some unusual stuff because of his ‘special’ outlook on things, so I didn’t say anything about it. Much. Ok, just not to his face.

Anyways, Moseph was working on a quiver of arrows, and had just finished enchanting them when I walked in. Looking up, he nodded to me, and said, “Heard we were going to war. I’ve been working nonstop getting arrows ready. Anyone who is using a bow ought to get at least some of these, I’m sure they’ll come in handy.” He handed one of the arrows to me for me to inspect.

Exponential Prismatic Arrow of Cursed Angelblood
Type	Arrow	Rank	Rare
Damage	Special	Damage Type	Special
This arrow was enchanted by an enchanter of at least Master level, and possesses several potent enchantments. More worrying still, is that the enchantments of the weapon it is fired from, if any, stack with these enchantments where possible. However, there are restrictions upon it that limit its effectiveness. Requires: Level 70 Requires: Evil Alignment +30-50 additional damage in addition to weapon damage Exponential – This arrow sometimes splits while in flight, becoming 1, 4, 9, 16, 25, or 36 arrows before hitting the target. This may turn the shot into an AoE. Prismatic – This arrow ignores all worn armor and any defenses that aren’t part of creature’s body. This arrow does no damage to Undead or Constructs. Cursed – All creatures damaged by this arrow are subjected to a random curse, lasting up to 24 hours, or until a Remove Curse spell is used on the creature. Angelblood – All good creatures take 2x damage from this attack. Celestials take 5x damage from this attack. Neutral creatures take ½ damage from this attack. Evil creatures take no damage from this attack. Range Restricted – Cannot be used on targets closer than 120’ away.

I blinked, honestly stunned for a moment. Idly, I checked just to make sure I hadn’t been hit with some strange debuff, but I was fine, at least as far as that was concerned. It seems that, in all the chaos of me running around everywhere, I had forgotten one of the simple facts about my guild. Half the people here were in the top guild of World of Destiny, and they were there because they were frankly some of the best in their fields. They also all happened to be a little bit crazy, and have no common sense, which was natural since they followed me around. But DAMN, was this impressive!

Looking over to Moseph, I took a breath, and said, “How many of these do you have prepared?”

“Oh, about two, maybe three thousand? I started working on it back after the raid in Have Dorei, when I got my hands on one of the books from that drow house we destroyed. Had some really cool enchanting secrets in it, which I combined with what I knew from WoD. The tough part was getting enough Angel blood for the components, didn’t want to use the ones belonging to you or your pets, but I managed to force-summon a couple and drained them dry. The rest of their bodies I harvested for reagents as well. We have a good supply of Angel Hair, Angel Bones, Angel Feathers, and a pair of undamaged Angel Eyes. They’re all under preservation spells in the vault. The Angel Flesh was given to Cookie, who I think has used it all by now.”

“Excellent work, Moseph. Make as many more of these as you can before I issue the summons to join the King before the battle. Distributing these arrows to the troops will put a serious dent in the enemy’s numbers.”

“Sure thing, boss. Now that I’ve worked out the process, I should be able to get another thousand arrows out of the blood we still have available. Unfortunately, I wasted a lot trying to figure out the exact process. The book only went so far, and I had to experiment with my memories from WoD. Is it true that there’s a half-celestial tiefling in the enemy leadership? That’s an insane mix of magical lineages. I really want to see what I could make out of his parts!”

Going around to the other production areas, I found that all our crafters were going in full swing, producing weapons, potions, ammunition, food, and all the other things one might need to fight a war in the digital world. Though I think the scariest invention out of the lot came from the alchemists. I wasn’t sure why I was surprised that the alchemists came up with something crazy, given the kinds of people we had, but I never expected them to get THIS crazy! But then, I’d just hired a bunch of siege warfare specialists, and threw them in with my people. Uzig from the Disavowed had teamed up with William Peters from Aria to create something truly horrible.

Demonflame Siege Shot
Type	Siege Ammunition	Rank	Rare
Damage	250 – 500	Damage Type	Fire
Created by master alchemists, this container is designed to be launched from a catapult, trebuchet, or similar siege weapon. Upon impact, the cannister burts open, inflicting the initial Fire damage on all targets within a 20’ radius of impact. All creatures and objects in the area catch on fire and burn for 10-60 seconds, taking 25-100 Fire damage per second. Flames cannot be extinguished by any means short of immersing oneself in water for at least 1 minute. Flammable creatures or object may continue to burn after the shot’s duration, but can be put out normally. Flammable creatures and objects coming in contact with burning creatures, objects, and terrain may catch on fire and burn for the remaining duration of the shot.

I looked at the two manically grinning alchemists (FYI: the effect is especially scary when an ogre is doing the grinning), and slowly shook my head as I stepped away from the cannister they’d shown me. “Which one of you had the idea for this?”

Uzig said, “Well, William was telling me of this compound from the world you Travelers were from, and he’d been working to make something like that here. We shared notes, and figured out the missing ingredients to make it work.”

I looked at William, who simply shrugged at me. “What, you thought I wouldn’t try to bring my namesake with me?”

I sighed, and shook my head, before the grin overtook my face as well. “You two are both insane. This thing is horrible, evil, and utterly inhumane to use on any living creature. I love it! How much can you make?”

William laughed, “Give us three days, and we’ll have three, maybe four hundred shots for you, Boss.”

I laughed again. “These poor humans and their friends aren’t going to know what hit them!”

Previous Chapter                                     Table of Contents                                    Next Chapter



Be sure to read my published works!

Frozen Soul series (Sci-Fi Supervillain story):
Frozen Soul https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071R125QT
Tales of the Void Traveler https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ52G37

Rules-Free VRMMO Life (Dark Fantasy GameLit):
Volume 1 - Tutorial https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VPRNDB
Omnibus 1 - Volumes 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0774T354X

Into the Black (Sci-Fi GameLit):
Book I - Game Start https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071LT5WGL
Omnibus I - Books 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077X2KR7Y

City of Champions Online (Superhero GameLit):
Issue I - Origin Stories https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075SHXQS1

Lewd Dungeon (Dungeon Core GameLit):
Book 1 - Welcome to the Apocalypse https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BB34DHF

The Kalipshae Affair (A First Contact Short Story): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0739V6R6T

Chapter 88 - The Battle for Earth

(INS Jethro Gibbs, Earth Orbit, Sol System)

Rear Admiral Anthony DiNozzo was less than pleased with the current arrangement of forces in the system. One of four flag officers now commanding the defense of Earth, he had only gotten this position because the highest-ranking admirals, as well as the fleet commanders who would normally be in charge of such an important post, were caught in the first attack of the ‘Ghost Fleet’.

That fleet (the damn Intelligence department couldn’t pin down how many ships they actually had, but thought it was at least six) had played a critical role in reversing the tide of the civil war, to the point that an invasion of Sol seemed all but inevitable. That left a lot of room for new promotions, but the most promising candidates were either dead, already assigned to other fleets, or were going to the new ships that had been coming off the line since the war’s start.

DiNozzo had been promoted, sure, but he knew his career was going nowhere. He wasn’t politically reliable enough for the new Emperor and the new Navy. He wasn’t cult material, basically. So until someone more reliable was at a point where they could do the job, he was in a position of some authority, but still under the command of those who were cultists.

He commanded a third of the overall defensive fleet for Earth. Just Earth, not the whole of Sol system. But it was still impressive, on paper. Unfortunately, most of his ships were either completely new hulls without even a shakedown cruise or relics from the reserve fleets that had been ‘prettied up’ to look like top of the line vessels. His ships also were on skeleton crews, and all his captains and officers were the ‘unreliable’ types, like himself. And they were flying in a lazy, predictable formation in orbit of Earth.

In other words, they were sacrificial lambs left out for the slaughter, in hopes that they’d draw in the Ghost Fleet and the Empress’s forces to attack, letting the rest of the fleet hidden behind Luna ambush them. And so his crews were all the problem children and general nuisances that all navies had, but also those that were, like him, not willing to join the Emperor’s cult. Well, for the most part. There were a few cultists in the fleet, but mostly they were in the ships that were expected to survive the battle.

One thing that had been concerning him, though he hadn’t mentioned it in any of the high-level planning missions, because no one wanted the opinion of an admiral of questionable loyalty, was that this whole thing was dependent on the ‘rebels’ flying directly into the trap. Sure, it looked good, on paper, and his flagship the Gibbs had been modified to look like the fleet flagship from a distance, but he could do basic math, like anyone else. It had been just under a month since the fleet base at Alpha Centauri had fallen. Plenty of time for the other side to use that Ghost Fleet to scout Sol and report back.

Which is why, when the attack finally came, he was not entirely surprised to find out that the Empress’s forces knew exactly where to hit them.

Rushing onto the flag bridge as the alarms began to sound, DiNozzo called out, “Report!”

Lieutenant McGee looked up from the sensor station. “Sir! Enemy ships have entered the system and are moving to attack! We’re showing forces at Mars, Ceres, and Venus. It looks like a timed attack. Both sides have deployed tarpits, locking down the system. The fleets in the outer planets won’t be able to get to us in time to help.”

“If that’s true, then why isn’t there an attack here? I’d think they’d attack Earth while they were at it.”

Another Lieutenant (Palmer, wasn’t it?) spoke up from the com station. “Sir! Message from the fleet! The ships on the other side of Luna are under attack! The ships just blew through the sensor screens, and opened fire at point-blank range, almost as though they knew the ships were there!”

DiNozzo shook his head. “That’s because they DID know the ships were there, Lieutenant. The whole area has probably been scouted by the Ghost Fleet.” Looking back at the first lieutenant, he said, “McGee, what is the status of the fleet?”

“Not good, sir. They were on minimal power to try and run as silently as possible while we drew the enemy in, so their shields were offline. Damage reports are still coming in, but it looks like they concentrated fire on the superdreadnoughts. The Aurum Throni is gone, sir, as are the Prince of Saiyans, Cleopatra, Marcus Aurelius, and Glory of Rome. The other superdreadnoughts are battered, and some probably won’t be able to rejoin the fight.”

“Who is in command of the fleet?”

“Rear Admiral Norgaard has taken command of the fleet in lunar space and is organizing the lines of defense. It is turning into a chaotic situation.”

DiNozzo nodded. If half the command structure gets wiped out before anyone is able to fire back, that certainly would turn things into a fairly chaotic situation. In fact, he would be hard pressed to find any situation that was more chaotic, short of coming out of warp into the teeth of a supernova. And neither situation was one he was too eager to jump into the middle of.

“Send to all commanders, keep the fleet together, and keep scanning local space. The attack may be a diversion to allow the Ghost Fleet to make an attack on Earth. We will hold position and prevent any attacks upon the Imperial Palace or other facilities on the ground.”

Palmer spoke up again. “Sir, message from Admiral Norgaard. We are to move immediately to support the fleet!”

“Ignore it. My duty is to Earth, and the Empire, not Norgaard. We’re the same rank, so he can’t order me around like some cadet.”

Captain Todd looked up from where she was going over her own reports of the battle, and walked over to his station. In a low voice, she said, “But sir, shouldn’t we help support the fleet? They’re getting torn apart out there.”

DiNozzo shook his head curtly, and whispered, “And what good would we do, Captain? A few extra hulls, all on half crews if that, most barely out of the yards and untested? Maybe without the tarpits, but right now we’d be running straight into the fire. I’m not throwing these people’s lives away for the sake of those damned cultists who left us here as bait, expecting us to die.”

Todd shook her head. “Your career will be over for this. You’ll be lucky to keep out of prison or enslavement.”

“My career was over the moment I refused to join the cult. Now all I care about is keeping these people alive, if only for a bit longer.”

Palmer called out again, “Um, Captain? We’ve just gotten another transmission from the fleet. It says ‘Commence Twilight’. What does that mean?”

Crewman Haswari (one of the few cultists in the fleet) looked up from his station at the helm said, “It means this ship will be brought under direct Imperial control by those loyal to the Emperor and the Lord Deus.” As he spoke, he turned, and pulled his service weapon, aiming at the Admiral. There were four shots, two from Aswari, and two from Commander David, the marine on duty at the entrance to the bridge. She cut down Aswari without a word, but Admiral DiNozzo’s attention wasn’t on her, but on Captain Todd, who had stepped in front of him at the last second.

Todd fell, but the Admiral caught her before she hit the ground, a look of shock on her face as she fell. She tried to say something but couldn’t speak as blood came from her mouth.

Looking up at the bridge, DiNozzo called out, “Medic! Get a medic over here, and get the captain to sickbay, at once! Palmer, get on the horn, see how many other ships this happened to. David, call security. Every member of the cult is to be put in the brig, across the fleet. If they resist, shoot them. McGee, I need a status report on our fleet, now!”

The medic came quickly, but DiNozzo could already see from the grim look on the man’s face that there was nothing he could do. The captain was dead. Looking over to Commander David and the shooter, he sighed, seeing that two head shots had taken the damn cultist down. At least she’d been avenged.

Palmer called out, “Admiral, all ships except for the Bounty reporting in. Captain Bligh is not responding to hails.”

McGee cursed. “The Bounty is arming weapons and targeting us! Admiral, I believe they mean to shoot us!”

“Of course they mean to shoot us, they’ve been taken over by cultists! All ships should already be at battle stations, but sound it anyways, and have them open fire on the Bounty, we can’t afford to be taking chances with the enemy on our doorstep. Damn cultists!”

The Bounty was one of the ships that had been brought into service just recently, just a frigate, and so taking on a superdreadnought, even without the rest of the fleet, was a death sentence, but then the cultists were ‘immortal’, so what did they care about death? The whole thing was far too suspicious for DiNozzo’s liking, which is part of why he had refused to join the cult. It encouraged suicidal tactics like this.

Soon the Bounty was nothing more than a flaming wreck, taking with it all hands, cultists and sane men alike. They had fought with the devotion of the insane, and had managed to take the Calypso with them, actually ramming the other frigate while their ship was in its death throes. Half the fleet were missing their commanding officers, thanks to those bastards, but none of the other ships had been taken over.

“Admiral! We are being targeted by the planet’s automated defenses!”

“Damn it all! Move the fleet! Take us out of range of the planetary defenses, and tell all ships to hold station between Earth and Luna. I am about fed up with ‘surprises’.”

When they had moved the fleet to the midway point between Earth and the moon, DiNozzo breathed a bit easier, since it would be harder for the Empire’s forces to attack them now. “What is the status of Norgaard and his forces?”

“Sir, it seems that Admiral Norgaard was killed when the Gorgoroth was destroyed. The remaining ships have either surrendered or been destroyed. Fleet chatter suggests that the only ones to surrender had mutinies on board, as the cultists were killed to allow other officers to take command and surrender.”

“Some small silver lining. But fine, I’ll take it. After this war, we’ll be decades rebuilding the fleet. Assuming we don’t have one of the other powers invade us, thinking we’re weakened.”

“Sir, receiving a transmission from Triumphant. It says that it is from True Empress Merida Vaughn.”

“On screen, then. Let’s see what the Empress has to say.”

“This is the True Empress Merida Vaughn, rightful heir to Emperor Alexander Vaughn. To all servants of the Usurper Travis, I offer you the chance to surrender now, and join me in ridding the Terran Empire of the stain that my brother has brought upon our honor, first by conspiring with nobles to commit regicide and patricide, and then by falling to the temptations of a mad AI, and becoming the slave of a machine! Join with me, and we will end this wasteful conflict, and bring peace back to the Empire!”

”Or you can fight, and be destroyed, as the other members of the Cult of Deus have been. Mars, Ceres, and Venus have all fallen. The fleets in the outer planets are cut off, and unable to assist you. So I offer you this chance. Surrender or die.”

DiNozzo sighed, and hit the transmit button. “This is Rear Admiral DiNozzo. We surrender. Be warned that the planetary defenses are not under our control. We will hold station at the midpoint between Earth and Luna until we receive further orders. Admiral DiNozzo out.”

Looking over to McGee, he said, “Well, our part in this is done, now. A shame that it cost so many lives.”

Previous Chapter                                         Table of Contents                                       Next Chapter



Be sure to read my published works!

Frozen Soul series (Sci-Fi Supervillain story):
Frozen Soul https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071R125QT
Tales of the Void Traveler https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ52G37

Rules-Free VRMMO Life (Dark Fantasy GameLit):
Volume 1 - Tutorial https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VPRNDB
Omnibus 1 - Volumes 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0774T354X

Into the Black (Sci-Fi GameLit):
Book I - Game Start https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071LT5WGL
Omnibus I - Books 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077X2KR7Y

City of Champions Online (Superhero GameLit):
Issue I - Origin Stories https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075SHXQS1

Lewd Dungeon (Dungeon Core GameLit):
Book 1 - Welcome to the Apocalypse https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BB34DHF

The Kalipshae Affair (A First Contact Short Story): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0739V6R6T

Chapter 133 - The Disavowed

With most of the Drow players having fled the Underdark or quitting because of that bitch Kali, I didn’t expect we’d be hearing too much about the fallout from Amyaththalas anytime soon. Probably best to just forget about the whole thing, and pretend nothing ever happened, right?

Yeah, it was definitely going to come and bite me on the ass. I just hoped it wasn’t going to be anytime soon. I needed a vacation from my vacation!

Now that we were back in Lithaes, there was a lot to do. With the possibility of war looming as the lightsiders went and got their panties in a twist, we needed to prepare to fight. The castle had long been repaired, and its defenses improved upon even from what they were, thanks to the innovations of my dwarf and gnome slaves.

But those were fixed emplacements. If we needed mobile siege weapons, we were still woefully unprepared. Fortunately, Johnist had been exploring, because that’s what the man did, and had come across a rather interesting character that he had sent to me for an interview.

Ashed Disavowed Mountain Ogre Male Level 75 War Hulk (Barbarian) / Monstrous Bulwark (Fighter) Titles: Defender, Kobold Golfer, Gnome Punter, Dwarf Splitter, Sexecutioner, Siegemaster

Uzig Disavowed Cave Ogre Female Level 75 Warcaster (Ogre Mage) / Hordesmasher Mage (Elementalist) Titles: Monster Mage, Kobold Slayer, Human Bane, Hordebreaker, Blaster

Ozrog Disavowed Deep Ogre Male Level 70 Farshot Master (Ranger) / Assassin (Rogue) Titles: Siege Sniper, Human Bane, Orc Bane, Hidden Mountain

Turk Disavowed Sea Ogre Male Level 73 War Priest (Priest) / Stormcaller (Lightning Mage) Titles: Monster Priest, Dwarf Bane, Undead Bane, Doomhammer

Zirag Disavowed Lavaborn Ogre Male Level 74 Fist of the North Star (Monk) / Demonsoul (Warlock) Titles: Monster Mage, Demon Binder, Elf Bane, Goblin Bane, Troll Bane

Klezir Disavowed Half-Celestial Ogre Female Level 75 Flamespear Huntress (Favored Soul) / Spearmaiden (Fighter) Titles: Blessed of Hiatea, Human Bane, Goblin Bane, Troll Bane, Flametouched

It seems that Ashed started the game as a regular Ogre, but his own Trial of Ascension got him the Mountain Ogre race. He was ten feet tall, and would probably be over twelve if he wasn’t slightly hunched over. His arms could be mistaken for tree trunks if they didn’t have the grey, stony texture of mountain ogre skin. Moreover, he wasn’t just wearing a loincloth like most ogres, but had on a suit of freaking plate armor sized appropriately for him, and had a giant hammer and shield as his primary weapons, but I also saw a claymore that was at least eight feet long strapped to his back, for when an OGRE needed to use a two-handed weapon.

He also wasn’t alone. His company, the Disavowed, were all from different ogre tribes, but were exiles for one reason or another (usually involving them not wanting to be capriciously evil like most of their kind), and they had joined together to form a mercenary company. That, in itself, was enough to pique my interest, for a mercenary company of ogres, one that included ogre mages and healers as well as just fighters, was an impressive sight all on its own. The real kicker with these guys was that they were experts in siege warfare. As in, each one had a profession like Siege Engineer, Demolitionist, or the like. Need something blown up, or bombarded in the field? These were your guys.

Looking at Ashed, I chuckled, and said, “All right, your titles are pretty awesome. Defender and Siegemaster I can understand, given what you do, but what about the other ones? There has to be a story there, right?”

The other ogres laughed at that, and Ashed sighed, “Well, Kobold Golfer is cuz I took me hammer and smashed them. Only, they real tiny, you know? So sometimes I gots to swing down to hit them, instead of smash them into floor. But they small, so they go flying when hammer hit them. Ten times, and I gettin’ the title. I do extra damage with hammers against small-sized creatures or smaller now!”

“Same idea with the Gnome Punter. Gnomes are small, and they don’t shut up. So this one gnome was real annoying, and I kicked her. She went flying least twenty feet. Now I kick gnomes REAL far!”

I laughed, and said, “And the other ones, I know you gotta have a story for those, right?” I may have been wrong, but I swore I could see the ogre blush. But that might have been because his clan were laughing at him.

“Well, it like this. We took a job on the edge of the Hordelands, yeah? Dis dwarf, she see us at a nearby fort, and she been havin’ a bunch to drink. She heard da stories about how ogres are packin’ downstairs, and was drunk enough that she thought she could take it. An’ I was drunk enough that I thought it’d be a good idea.”

I tried to keep a straight face. Truly, I did, but that was just too damn funny. “So you ended up splitting a dwarf, huh? HA! HAHAHA! Oh, yeah, Ashed, that’s the funniest image I never wanted to think about and am going to have to drink at least a keg of ale to forget. You and your boys want a place to stay, and some work, the Aria of the Twilight is expecting trouble to be coming our way before too long. Lightsiders and humans getting their knickers in a twist about how I’m so horrible about things, and they’re trying to drag the elves into it because they haven’t had a dragon attack like the humans did. You think you’d like to make a name for yourself helping Aria defend the Wyrmwood against a whole bunch of human and lightside assholes who think they know best?”

Ashed looked at his crew, and chuckled. “Soundz like a fun fight, and not a bad cause. But ya know we’z mercenaries, so we’z gonna be needin’ coin before we go and sign on with either side. But you sign us, we don’t break contracts, no matter what the other side be offering.”

I looked the six ogres up and down, and said, “All right, I’m willing to offer the standard merc contract we drew up while we were in WoD. Aria will pay each of you a hundred gold a month for a retainer. You can go out, adventure, practice skills, or whatever, so long as you’re ready to roll when we give the call of the humans invading. If you have siege weapons that can be brought with us ready, that’d be great, and you’ll have the services of my dwarven blacksmith and gnome artificer to help make them as nasty as they can be. Equal share of raid loot when we divvy up spoils from any combat you guys are a part of. If you have gear that you need, or something you’d like made, we’ve got some of the best crafters in the game, just like when we were the Lords in WoD. As an ally and contractor of the guild, you get a special rate. 30% of the normal cost, plus the cost of any materials you don’t supply.”

Ashed smirked, and said, “You talk real good, but we know you pay more den dat. What you say, plus two thousand a week each for each week of da war once it starts.”

I chuckled, and shook my head slightly. “A thousand a week, total.”

“No, we go maybe fifteen hundred a week each, but we got expenses, and you know once the rocks start fallin, they’ll be lookin at the big ol’ ogres as da reason.”

I shrugged. “Fair enough. I’ll go as high as five hundred a week, each, and throw in a personal golem made by me personally for your party built from materials you provide to specifications as close as can be managed. Upkeep and maintenance of the golem is on you, however.”

THAT got a reaction out of them, and there was a brief huddle, before Ashed said, “One thousand a week each, and instead of de golem, you be teachin Uzig to make golems, so that we can use them as part of our fightin’. And the golems be fightin’ wit us, included in our contract.”

I considered that, and then nodded. “Done, but any others of your group who wish to learn the skill will have to pay for it, as they are not covered by the contract. Is that acceptable?”

Ashed nodded, and then he slammed one massive fist across his chest. “The Disavowed be ready to fight for ya, Zayn Darkmore. Point us at the enemy, and we break their walls and smash their heads.”

I chuckled, “All right, then. And if, during the fighting, you get the Human Splitter achievement, be sure to get a vid of it and share to the rest of us, yeah?” The rest of the ogres were laughing, and I was about to move on to the next bit of business when a messenger ran into my throne room.

It was an elf, wearing the livery of the royal family. He looked out of breath, as though he had run all the way from Mylenoris. Whatever it was, this had to be important. The messenger took a moment to catch his breath, and then said, “Sir Zayn Darkmore, Lord of Lithaes, Knight of the Wyrmwood, Master of the Aria of the Twilight, Consort of Mirelth and Chosen of Sharess, his Royal Majesty, Avourel Liarora, King of the Wyrmwood, Defender of the Realm, Lord of Light, Faithful of the Elf-Father, and Protector of the Innocent wishes to inform you that the humans of Ograin and the followers of the Tailong the Sun Dragon have declared a holy war upon the Wyrmwood for the supposed crime of harboring one who unleashed Mirelth upon the world, causing the devastation of Duskhaven. As liege lord of all who call the Wyrmwood home, King Liarora calls upon you and your guild to aid in the battle, with all the forces you can muster.”

I frowned. I had been expecting something of this sort, after the quests Mirelth had given me back in Amyaththalas, but so soon? That was beyond my expectation. I was suddenly quite glad to have the deal with the Disavowed completed already. Looks like war was coming sooner than later. Looking at the messenger, I said, “When and where is the King mustering his forces? I have many of my people afield, in dungeons and distant lands, and it will take some time to recall them.”

“The King is marshalling his forces at the Fields of Amhelin, one week from this day, and will sortie to meet the human armies at the border.”

I nodded sharply, and said, “Then listen, and bring my response to the King.”

Standing from my throne, I used a simple spell to project my voice to all of Lithaes. “HEAR ME, OH PEOPLE OF THE TWILIGHT! WAR HAS COME TO THE WYRMWOOD! IN UNCERTAIN TIMES, THE ELVES OF THIS LAND TOOK US IN, AND GAVE US A PLACE TO CALL OUR OWN. THEY LAID NO BOND OR COMMAND UPON US, OTHER THAN THOSE ASKED OF FRIENDS AND REQUIRED BY A RULER OF HIS LAND. NOW THOSE WHO FOOLISHLY CALL UPON THE LIGHT AS AN EXCUSE FOR THEIR FEAR AND HATRED HAVE TURNED THEIR BLADES UPON THE WYRMWOOD!”

“NOW IS THE TIME WHEN THE BONDS OF FRIENDSHIP ARE TESTED AND ARE BORN ANEW! NOW IS THE TIME WHEN TRUE HEARTS AND TRUE DEEDS SHINE THROUGH, EVEN THOUGH THEY BE DONE IN THE DARKEST NIGHT, AND THOUGH THE HAND THAT GUIDES THEM BE DRENCHED IN THE BLOOD OF THE FALLEN! NOW IS THE TIME WHEN ALL WHO WOULD TRY TO TAKE FROM US THAT WHICH WE HAVE FOUGHT FOR LEARN THE TRUE MEANING OF FEAR!”

“ARIANS, ARISE! YOU ARE CALLED TO BATTLE, TO WAR! LET ALL THOSE CAPABLE OF FIGHTING TAKE UP ARMS! BLADES SHALL BE BLOODED, SPEARS SHALL BE SHIVVERED, SHIELDS SHALL BE SHATTERED, BUT WE WILL FIGHT! LET ALL WHO RIDE AGAINST US KNOW FEAR! FEAR FOR THEIR LIVES, FOR THEIR VERY SOULS!”

“WE ARE THE ARIA OF THE TWILIGHT, THE TRIUMPHANT SONG THAT HERALDS THE FALL OF THE DARKEST NIGHT AND THE RISE OF A NEW DAY! THERE IS NO SURRENDER, NO RETREAT! VICTORY OR DEATH! FOR ARIA! FOR THE WYRMWOOD!”

As the people cheered, I stepped down from the dais, and put one hand on the messenger’s shoulder. “Go, and tell the King that the Aria of the Twilight will stand with him, and make the humans regret ever being born that they should have lived to challenge the Wyrmwood.”

Previous Chapter                                           Table of Contents                                        Next Chapter



Be sure to read my published works!

Frozen Soul series (Sci-Fi Supervillain story):
Frozen Soul https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071R125QT
Tales of the Void Traveler https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ52G37

Rules-Free VRMMO Life (Dark Fantasy GameLit):
Volume 1 - Tutorial https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VPRNDB
Omnibus 1 - Volumes 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0774T354X

Into the Black (Sci-Fi GameLit):
Book I - Game Start https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071LT5WGL
Omnibus I - Books 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077X2KR7Y

City of Champions Online (Superhero GameLit):
Issue I - Origin Stories https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075SHXQS1

Lewd Dungeon (Dungeon Core GameLit):
Book 1 - Welcome to the Apocalypse https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BB34DHF

The Kalipshae Affair (A First Contact Short Story): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0739V6R6T