Chapter 203
The hospital entrance that’d once been a small hole into the basement was now dug out and fully cleaned. The corpses that’d long since rotted away there from swarming nightmare creatures were long gone, and in place of them were stalls of ratkin and citizens of Brightsville alike while they traded with one another at the mouth into the underdark. Guard patrols from Deepnest and the Thane Necropolis were both present, taking turns escorting people to and from the two cities in caravans where the trips would last nearly three days in most cases due to the goods they traveled with.
Unless they took a spatial sack of course, but those were rare. Even in those cases, the threat of monsters and dwarvish ambushes were ever present - and one did not just simply walk into the underdark alone because of it.
Unless you were Riven Thane.
Riven casually strolled down the marked tunnels and pathways leading into the depths of the planet, humming to himself with his three demonic servants and Jackal’s canine form in tow. The mood was upbeat, in large part due to the hot cinnamon buns and meat-stuffed rolls he’d purchased at one of the vendors before heading down here, as the food was very good.
“I rate it adequate. This is acceptable.” Yattazi stated between snarfing some of the pastries down, wrapped around Athela’s humanoid form and waiting with open mouth as the other demoness fed her pieces one by one. “I need to start using this… sugar substance, you speak of. It is quite good.”
“Just don’t get diabetes.” Riven called out rather sagely with finger upheld.
“What’s diabetes?”
“A disease you get from having way too much sugar. Kinda. It’d take a bit to explain.”
The twists and turns stretched into enormous underground biodomes, chasms of space that were connected by numerous shafts, and various creatures that were far different from the norm above ground. Neon-teal grasses, enormous fungi, and molds were all seen in abundance with some mushrooms being taller than he was many times over. Numerous species of large insects, bats, scaled reptiles, rodents with various types of dark-vision, and occasionally signs of old battles between ratkin and dwarf were present along the path leading down. He passed one patrol of ratkin from Deepnest, who briefly stopped to question him before they realized who he was, and made quick time traveling through the underdark with only a few small exterminations to be had when he took a quick detour for curiosity’s sake and stumbled upon a small swarm of huge carnivorous centipedes.
They made good time.
At the end of the day, Riven found himself standing at the entrance to the nesting cavern where a backup of caravans were smushed together and waiting in a slow-going line where ratkin soldiers were inspecting goods.
“Come-walk faster!” One of the ratkin soldiers, a four foot tall specimen with brown fur wearing chitin armor and a spear, called out while waving a clawed hand. He bade three humans with lanterns attached to their carts to continue down the path towards the city in the background, when he spotted Riven at the end of the line wearing his full plate armor set.
The guard’s eyes went wide, and with a high pitched squeak he quickly prostrated himself. “K-King Riven Thane! Batkin warrior-mage of necropolis-friends! I-we make way for you to come-walk!”
The guard quickly got up and immediately started yelling at his fellow guards and the caravans to get out of the way, with many of the disgruntled merchants muttering to themselves until they saw who it was that the ratkin soldier was making way for. Many people upon seeing Riven were very familiar with the getup, and his demons Azmoth and Athela were pretty famous too. They’d been displayed numerous times on both local and world forums across the cortex of Panu, and the most recent battle in Dawn’s capital city of Mandon had left a very vivid image of Athela in particular when she’d taken her archdemon form to wipe out not only the vampiric leadership - but also the harbingers of gluttony alongside Riven.
The area immediately went silent, before whispers started exchanging across the lines of people waiting, and many of them quickly bowed or knelt. Many avoided eye contact, while others looked up at him with awe and curiosity.
He gave them a polite wave, shrugged, and walked ahead of the line to where a couple dozen soldiers at the tunnel’s mouth leading into the massive cavern containing Deepnest were waiting. “Thanks. I was hoping I could be escorted to Rashtalia, Brood-Mother of Brood-Tarrow in Deepnest. She recently visited me in Brightsville and is waiting for me at her compound now for an audience with the queen concerning the war effort.”
“You here-come to fight dwarf-killers?” The ratkin soldier who’d originally addressed him went wide eyed with delight, and smiles spread across many of the faces of the other ratkin around him. “I lead-show you to Brood-Tarrow! Come-follow, King-warrior of Thane Necropolis! Much respect-approval for helping us-we in our fight against killer-dwarves!”
And with that, the ratkin excitedly began running into the larger cavern beyond - with Riven following at a more leisurely pace.
It was just like he’d remembered it, but was busier if that was even possible - give the amount of trade that’d erupted between his own city and this underground dwelling. The nesting cavern was enormous, spanning for a couple dozen miles or more into the earth directly in front of him - but due to the twists and turns in the distance it was hard to tell just where it ended. He certainly hadn’t explored all of it the first time he’d been here either, given the size.
Tens of thousands of bioluminescent vines hung from the cavern’s ceiling. Rivers snaked their way into the cavern through an absolute madhouse of activity, with hardly any organization to the mix-and-mash of city sprawled out before him. Most of the structures were created from dark brown wood, hardened clay, or stone. The structures were most often hills, for lack of better words, from the size of a house to many hundreds of times larger than that, each of them having small burrows or tunnels dug into them where ratkin scurried in and out. Overhead and connecting the mounds were large interconnecting scaffolding roadways created out of the dark brown wood, while the lower ground levels also had paths that zigzagged between the large mounds or followed the rivers flowing through the cavern.
It was good to be back. Perhaps this time around he’d have a little bit of time to explore before being burdened with meeting the vampires and the queen of Deepnest. He also wasn’t looking forward to slaughtering a bunch of dwarves, and hoped they’d back down quietly if he arrived. But at this point based on reports he’d received - he doubted they’d stop their asinine attacks without a severe ass kicking. They essentially thought the ratkin were lesser than they were as a species, and that kind of mentality was often drilled into people from birth. Regardless, he’d be finding out quite soon. Of that he was sure.
***
Fay put the plate down on her new master’s table, having cooked him a meal and being bade to sit to eat while they looked over the dark, damp industrial city of smokestacks she now called home. Her stunningly beautiful sky-blue features were scrunched up with a sadness that hadn’t left her ever since arriving, and her master - whose name was Ikarius - had taken notice that it’d become worse.
The old man gave her a friendly smile, pushed his fingers back through his graying hair, and picked up his fork before chewing on it slowly. “This is good, Fay. Thank you for the meal.”
She gave him a fond smile. “Of course. I’m glad you like it.”
Ikarius… was an odd man. He was an F-grade warlock and small-time crime lord, low tier one at best, and most of his time was spent trying to carve a better living for himself out of the slums of a vast city in a poorer part of the Nerius Empire. Wrinkles were appearing on his face as time went on, and he’d recently lost his daughter - who had been his sole companion for quite some time after his wife had passed. He wasn’t a bad guy, Fay thought, and surprisingly enough he hadn’t made a single move to touch her in any kind of sexual way ever since arriving. He’d merely wanted company, and after their interview had passed the initial phase - he’d chosen her when hearing her sob story in the nether realms. He’d even become something of a therapist for her.
“How are you holding up?” Ikarius asked casually, taking a sip of an alcoholic beverage one of his lackeys had delivered earlier that day. “I hope my men aren’t making you too uncomfortable with the way they look at you. I can send them off if they are.”
Fay glanced hesitantly at one of the younger thugs under Ikarius’s employment standing guard a few feet away, and the muscular man stiffened before turning his head to stare at the wall. She frowned. “They’re fine. I’m used to it.”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
“I’m sure you are, but that’s still not ok if it makes you uneasy.” Ikarius graced her with a kind smile, then put his hands together when he realized she was just staring down at her plate without making an attempt to eat. He let out a sigh, and closed his eyes. “Have you thought about what I said?”
Her frown deepened, and her lip began to quiver before she cupped a hand over her mouth. Taking in a deep breath, she let it out slowly. “Yes.”
“And?” He asked curiously. “What do you think? Would you like to meet him? My nephew is a very kind man, he’d make you happy.”
Fay’s black eyes turned upwards, and she shook her head no. “Thank you, master. But I’m not interested in pursuing any kind of relationship outside of my contractual obligations.”
He nodded just once. “Very well. Have you talked to your brother recently about how things are going over on… What was the planet called again?”
“Panu.” She stated simply. “He’s tried talking to me, as have my mother and sister, but I think I just need some time. I’ve exchanged pleasantries with them in short bouts, but nothing serious. I think it’ll be a while before I’ve truly moved on from this. Riven was… he certainly wasn’t perfect. But he was kind, and he was mine… Or at least I thought he was.”
She picked up the fork in front of her, and then slowly pierced some of the food before bringing it to her mouth to chew solemnly. She swallowed, then slumped her shoulders and leaned onto her elbows while her fingers dug into her head - trying to hold back tears. Hiccuping once, and wiping away some of the water welling up under her eyes, she sniffed. “Sorry. I don’t mean to be like this.”
The old man smiled sadly. “You remind me very much of my daughter, you know that?”
She gave a lighthearted laugh despite the accumulation of tears. “Yes, you tell me all the time.”
“Well I mean it.” He leaned back in his chair and looked over the balcony on the city streets far below them. “I remember a very similar situation with her. She’d fallen for this boy named Havuski. He ended up choosing another woman over my little girl, and she ended up finding someone much better for her before the end of her life came to an abrupt stop in that accident. Despite that, I believe she always regretted that she couldn’t be with her first choice. It haunted her until her dying day, even while loving the man who was better for her in her own way - and it pained me to see her like that.”
Ikarius turned his head and tilted it to the side. “You say you loved this man? This, Riven?”
Fay nodded but then hesitated with a shrug. “I… I think I did. I think I do. I was happiest when I was with him, especially near the end. But it doesn’t matter because he chose her over me when I gave him that ultimatum. He is my person, but I am not his. It is that simple, and I need to accept that fact before I drag myself into a deeper pit of despair. And I… Ugh. I just wish it’d been someone else. If it’d been anyone else other than Athela, I would have been ok with it. But she just… she intimidated me. She was one who already held his heart, and I knew it. Maybe I made the wrong choice in leaving.”
Ikarius tapped his fingers on the wooden desk thoughtfully. “I think you should talk to your brother. It sounded to me that you two ended on a very sudden, abrupt note and in my opinion - it’d be wise to have more closure before moving forward. At the very least, you could pass a message to this Riven through Tupper and let him know how you feel. Get your feelings off your chest, and have an outlet for the emotional pain you’re keeping bottled up inside. It is unhealthy to remain in this mental state, Fay, and you shouldn’t allow yourself to wallow in such self pity.”
She didn’t look up, but absentmindedly played with her food using her forks - ignoring the stare from the hired thug in the background that continued to undress her with his eyes. “I think that might actually be a good idea. It all happened so fast… and there are still things I want to say. Thank you for your advice, Ikarius. I’ll take some time to think about what it is I wish to convey, and then I’ll let you know what happens afterwards.”
The old warlock smiled in approval, taking another sip from his cup. “Very good. I look forward to hearing the news.”
***
High Queen Nephridi stood overlooking her great capital on the usual balcony she used in meditation. It was in the highest tower of her sprawling, gothic palace, and her slender hands were clasped behind her back when she heard the faint footfalls of her invited guests.
The rays of sunset cast orange-red hues on her otherwise white dress that hugged her skin, and she turned her crimson eyes on the three newcomers while they bowed in submission. One was a young man, the one to be wed to Allie Wraithtide after his parents had won the bidding war on her hand in marriage, and the other two were those same parents. They were all pureblooded vampires, pale with eyes like her own, all of them wearing red and orange robes with the symbol of a green flame decorating the front of their clothes as a symbol of their house. All had pitch black hair, and their gazes were excited and expectant when she bid them rise.
She nodded in approval. “Duke and Dutchess Barimont, and your youngest son - Lord Justo Barimont. It is a pleasure to meet all of you in person outside of formal affairs. I do believe this is the first time?”
She tilted her head to the side, trying to remember if she’d ever talked to any of them outside political gatherings.
She hadn’t.
“High Queen Nephridi!” Dutchess Barimont stated fondly, stepping forward to bow low. “I thank you so much for allowing our child the hand of the princess in marriage! I promise that we will not disappoint you, and will bear many offspring with the gift in your name!”
The Duke looked absolutely thrilled to be here but let his wife take the lead, having heard rumors that Queen Nephridi got along better with females - which wasn’t entirely true, but even the queen had heard them. Meanwhile, the young buck they’d dragged along out of their backwater solar systems was jittery with excitement. To land the hand of Allie Wraithtide in marriage meant a massive increase in standing for their family, who’d only recently risen to nobility after conquering some neighboring factions in a coalition effort, and they’d originally started off as merchants dealing in weapons of war.
They were essentially arms dealers.
High Queen Nephridi put on a smile that didn’t touch her lips. “Yes, well you were the ones who paid for it after all. To the highest bidder gets the spoils. So long as your son does just that, and produces sufficient heirs, I have no qualms.”
There was a pause, and when his parents didn’t seem to know what to say next - the younger man stepped forward with a bow of his own. His suave locks of black hair were gelled back to the right side of his head, and he looked a little too smug for his own good.
“My queen…” Lord Justo Barimon said with a wide grin. “I appreciate your consideration. I truly do! And in the light of wanting to pursue your goals early, perhaps it would be in all of our best interest that we start trying sooner rather than later.”
There was yet another pause in the conversation as the queen considered the young man’s words.
Nephridi raised an eyebrow and a small smirk. “Oh? You do realize that the integration of their planet still has another four and a half years left. That amount of time is but a blip on the horizon of our life spans, young man. Do not let your hormones get ahead of you.”
Seeing the queen’s demeanor change for the better, the parents of the young lord both gave nervous laughs of their own.
“I do realize this.” Lord Justo Barimont replied eagerly, smoothing out his red and orange robes with a quick motion. “But you see, I am in the F-grade as well. Only level 78. Please correct me if I am wrong, High Queen, as I do not mean to offend. My information may be outdated or just flat out incorrect, but if it is possible - I could potentially travel to Panu on my own. If I were older and stronger, I know this wouldn’t be doable - but system restrictions concerning the trade communes would probably allow me passage. I wish to introduce myself to my new fiance, to let her know in person what has transpired here. It would be a true shame if she were to find out through someone else, and I believe Kathrine - the lesser princess of House Crushada whose family has claimed Riven - would be able to set up a meeting now that we are on better talking terms with the two lost Wraithtide heirs.”
High Queen Nephridi rubbed a finger along the edge of her lips in thought, eyes narrowed. “You do realize what Allie Wraithtide’s demeanor is like, I hope?”
“Oh yes, I’ve kept track of the broadcasts that the system allows out! It is a very popular thing to watch amongst both the commoners and nobility.” Lord Justo Barimont replied with a beaming grin - displaying his fangs. “She will make a fine wife!”
Nephridi snorted. “I see. Very well. Just be sure to have guards there when you break the news to her.”
The young lord furrowed his brows in concern, glancing to his parents before looking back at the queen. “... Your majesty?”
“You must remember.” The queen continued, turning back around to stare out over her great city once more. “That Allie and Riven Wraithtide were not brought up as children in the Blood Moon Requiem. They do not have the same obligations, experiences, thought processes that we here in our homeland do. She might take the news well, you are a good mating prospect for her, but part of me believes that she may need to be slowly prodded into the mindset of knowing her place here in the empire. She may be a high princess, but just like everyone else of the royal bloodline - she has a duty to fulfill. Even I do. So until you are sure that she has accepted her place, be sure to have the guards with you at all times. She can be rather bloodthirsty and violent… a positive trait to be certain, but not when it is directed at you.”
“Even if she doesn’t wish it, surely she should acknowledge her duty and the right that we paid for.” The younger man’s father, Duke Barimont, stated with a frown.
High Queen Nephridi nodded without looking back, hand still clasped behind her. “Yes, she should. One way or the other, she’ll come around - even if I have to send a fleet across the cosmos to take that tiny insignificant planet after the five years are up if a worst case scenario occurs. I am not saying no to your son, Duke Barimont. He can visit Panu whenever he wants and has my blessing to do so. I am merely saying that he should be careful when offworld on a planet where she might not take kindly to the news - where not even a single E-grade or above from our empire is there to protect the little lord. You may supply your son with protective treasures to subdue her if she chooses to get violent, but I’m sure you’re well aware of the incredibly steep taxes to Elysium that come with anything above F-grade during planetary integrations. Some items are even banned.”
The young lord’s mother, Dutchess Barimont, grinned. “Oh yes, we’ve already looked into that. Our son will be outfitted with the best if you give your approval of his leave to visit our future daughter in law, though I hope that he doesn’t need to use it. We hope above all else that she falls in line and realizes the amazing opportunity she is being presented by joining with our esteemed house. Do not worry my queen, we will raise her to the expectations you have set for her - and we will create a proper lady of the court out of her just yet.”