Westport fell with a whimper.
There were pockets of intense fighting, but as had happened so many other times, the ability to plant an entire army within the city was a game changer. So, in a way, Zeke understood why the gnomes had attacked him. His very presence – assuming that they knew about his ability to summon gates, which was almost certain – represented an immense security risk. So, of course they’d chosen to neutralize him.
The only issue with that strategy was that they’d swung and missed and made an unnecessary enemy. If they’d simply left him alone, things would have worked out very differently. Perhaps they might have even been allies. And failing that, at least they could have maintained their neutrality.
Because Zeke didn’t really want Westport. He’d had no intention of conquering the city. But due to the actions of the Circle of Mages, he was now beset by a host of new problems.
“This can be a good thing,” Eveline reminded him as he stood atop the plateau overlooking the city. In places, he could see a few ongoing battles, but for the most part, the fighting was finished. It had only taken a week, and despite the generally high level of the city’s ruling class of gnomes, there hadn’t even been many casualties.
For the most part, the everyday citizens didn’t care who was in charge. They just wanted to live their lives.
“Shortsighted not to develop some degree of patriotism in their populace,” Eveline remarked. “A little bit of propaganda goes a long way toward keeping a ruler on her throne.”
Zeke didn’t respond, but he knew she was right. The moment a population lost their patriotism, they became vulnerable. Sure, taking pride in one’s country of origin was a bit silly – especially when no state was free of corruption, both on a large and small scale. However, that same sentiment would push people to fight even against long odds, to defend a city when, by all rights, they should have been questioning why they should even care.
Of course, there were unjust rulers like the people in charge of the Imperium who were responsible for atrocities aplenty. Yet, Westport wasn’t like that. They treated everyone fairly, more or less. They’d just chosen the wrong allies.
“Your thoughts are a mess,” Eveline said in his mind.
“Because this all seems so pointless,” Zeke admitted. He hadn’t come to Westport as a conqueror, and yet, that was what he’d become. “Sometimes I feel like I can’t help but destroy everything I touch. The second I step foot into a new place, war feels inevitable. And the worst part is that I know why they attacked me. I might have chosen a different tactic if our places were reversed, but I get it. Just once, I want to go somewhere new and just experience it like a normal person.”
“You’re not normal, Ezekiel.”
“I don’t need you to remind me of that fact, Eveline.”
“I think you do,” she persisted. She manifested beside him, then continued, “Being who you are comes with a heavy burden of responsibility. Everywhere you go, you’re going to get attention. Some of it will be good, but for the most part, it’s going to be bad. Some of it will come from jealousy. Fear, too. They’re all afraid that you’re going to come in and take what they have. Even without your reputation, you are a massive threat to anyone in charge. And most of them didn’t get where they are by ignoring threats.”
“I know.”
He just wished things were a little different. It wasn’t even the killing that caused issues for him. There was that, but it was mostly that it was just all so unnecessary. He was committed to his war with the Imperium, but what had happened in Westport was more than regrettable.
“Next thing, you’re going to ask why everyone can’t just get along.”
“And? What would be your answer?”
“It’s the problem with people,” she said without hesitation. “They all want what they can’t have. They crave power. Possessions. Love. Riches. It’s all the same thing. It’s like we’re all hardwired for conflict, and the sorts of people who end up in charge are the worst of the worst.”
“I’m not like that.”
“Sure you are,” she said. “Everyone is. You have a code. A rough one, sure, but a code all the same. But if you think for one second that your motivations are any different than those idiots who attacked you…well, you’re wrong.”
Zeke’s first instinct was to refute her claim, but he stopped himself short and asked himself if she was right. There certainly were elements that fit. But why did he seek power? Was it for power’s sake? The sense of progression? For altruistic reasons? Or did he just want to be better than everyone else?
It was a good question, but one he wasn’t nearly introspective enough to answer.
Not honestly, at least.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
So, he sighed and asked, “You saw Tucker, right? He took that whole airdock by himself.”
“He is a powerful alchemist,” she agreed. “And his class is a particularly combat-oriented sort. Your other companions are powerful in their own right, but that man could cause more damage than anyone but you. Give him a few weeks to prepare, and he might even do much, much worse. With enough time, he could probably kill everyone on this plane.”
“You think so?”
“I know he could. Alchemists aren’t uncommon,” Eveline explained. “It’s not a difficult path to take. But to push it to its limits…that is a rare thing. Most eventually lose interest in progression. They burn out. Or they die from old age. As a semi-combat class, your friend gets the best of both worlds. Fast progression in terms of levels, with the slower, steadier growth of an artisan. He’ll reach the peak. I’m sure of it.”
“That can be said about a lot of people.”
“Your battles have given you a skewed perspective on the average level on this plane. Most people stall out in their forties. Exceptional fighters make it to the level seventy-five threshold. And the best of the best get past that. A tiny fraction of those end up making it to the peak.”
Zeke had known that, but it seemed like everywhere he turned, there was another peak power. Obviously, he knew it was selection bias, but it still resulted in the impression that it wasn’t difficult to reach the highest level possible in the Eternal Realm.
“What should we do next?” he asked. “I don’t want to rule this place.”
“I don’t think you have a choice. Your people have destroyed most of the government,” Eveline said.
He groaned. “Why did they have to be so stupid?”
Indeed, they’d made so many problems for him. Couldn’t they have inferred that he wasn’t the sort of person they wanted to attack? If he was vulnerable, he never would have gone to meet with the Circle of Mages in the first place. Surely that should have been a hint that they should rethink their actions.
“Hubris,” Eveline stated. “Or misinformation. Maybe both.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, if they knew who you were and what you could do, they probably just thought the reports were overstated. When you fought in the war against Adontis, you were much lower level than you are now. Likely, they never expected that you would progress so far.”
“They inspected me.”
“Oh, they knew your levels had grown. An impressive feat, but they likely assumed that you have a weak base that allows you to level quickly. It happens like that sometimes,” Eveline explained. “They most likely thought themselves your superior, especially when they were all together. It’s not an unreasonable stance. Some of them were quite strong.”
“Not strong enough.”
“Clearly.”
With a sigh, Zeke turned away from the city and strode toward what was left of the palace atop the plateau. It was still mostly intact, but it was also the site of the bloodiest fighting. The gnomes might have been at a disadvantage, but they’d fought with everything they had. That battle had claimed much of the palace, and very few gnomes had survived to be taken prisoner.
The only reason things weren’t worse was because Zeke had already killed many of the most powerful among them. Without that, a good many kobold would have been lost.
Those thoughts accompanied Zeke as he strode through the palace. There were plenty of signs of battle. Destroyed walls, splatters of blood, and scorched stones were among the most common, but every now and again, he’d pass a pile of bodies awaiting disposal.
The place was crawling with kobolds and beastkin, all conducting themselves with the discipline of career soldiers. The notion of loot or pillage was alien to the kobolds – they fought because he told them to, not for personal gain – and the beastkin had adopted a similar mentality. After all, they were given much better gear, food, and accommodations than anything they might take from the palace. They weren’t going to risk that for a few extra trinkets.
Eventually, Zeke reached the command center, which was only a little way away from the site of his battle against the Circle. That’s where the gate remained, but they needed a lot more space for a proper headquarters.
When he arrived, he saw many familiar faces. Silik directed the troops, while Kianma and Sasha tended to the minutiae of logistics. Even Jasper contributed by organizing the prisoners. Pudge, of course, was out in the city fighting. As was Adara. Zeke couldn’t have kept them from it even if he’d wanted to.
When he reached his army’s commander, he asked, “How is it going?”
Silik bowed his head slight, saying, “Ak-toh. We have taken most of the city. There are pockets of resistance here, here, and here. In addition, many airships managed to escape before Master Tucker subdued resistance.”
Zeke looked at the places Silik had indicated on the map. One was on the other side of the city, but two were close to the plateau. “Gnomes?” he asked.
Silik nodded. “The space mage defends this area,” he said. “The remaining members of the Circle of Mages fight in the other locations.”
Zeke shook his head. “Send the Inashi.”
Silik agreed, and rightly so. The group of former rangers had continued to develop, gaining levels at an accelerated pace as they proved themselves time and time again. They were a formidable force, comprised of fighters who could attack virtually unseen. And when they did strike, they did so with lethal force. Very few could stand against them.
After consulting Silik, Zeke spoke with Kianma. She and Sasha informed him that they’d lost more than four-hundred kobolds and almost fifty beastkin. A handful of others had died as well, and many more had been injured. It was a costly battle, but Zeke had expected as much. They’d not had any chance to truly plan, which meant that the situation wasn’t nearly as favorable as normal.
By all rights, taking a city the size of Westport and losing less than a thousand people was a great accomplishment, but Zeke still felt guilty about every time one of his people died. So, as happy as he was with the results, he still regretted so many deaths.
Once he’d received casualty reports, Kianma outlined their plan for integrating Westport into his holdings. They intended to follow a similar model they’d used with the various cities in Adontis and the Imperium, where they installed loyal locals to govern the city. There would remain a contingent of kobolds in the city, but for the most part, they’d be left to their own devices.
Of course, not much would change for the residents. They’d still be required to pay taxes – which would primarily be used to pay for services within the city. The only difference was that Zeke’s people would take whatever valuables they wanted from the conquered gnomes. That meant looting most of the palace.
The truth was that he didn’t care about holding the city. Nor did he want their wealth. He’d only taken it because they’d attacked first. It was all a headache that he just didn’t need, and it almost made him long for the dungeons he’d recently conquered.
But not quite.