Oddly enough there was a large IronOak table set in the throne room. It was long enough to seat a large host of people; however, the vast majority of the seats were unoccupied. On one end there was the Spider King and his wife, the Lamia Queen, and on completely other end was a representative of the Human Volunteers faction. The man was recently elected by the humans to carry their voice and deal with any issues they experienced in the MegaFarm. The man in question wasn’t some sort of a newbie, he was our trusty old Bareth.
The King and his subject weren’t there entirely for business. There was plenty of food on the table, including dishes incorporating the newly acquired meat of a certain type of bird; which by the way didn’t taste like chicken at all.
“Let’s eat, fill our stomachs, and if you wish so, we will talk between the bites.” The King offered wishing to keep this as casual as possible.
Regardless, Bareth couldn't help but feel anxious. The humans had put a lot of trust in him, which he felt honoured to have, but there also was a lot of responsibility. And anyway, he knew he was selected because the other humans were terrified of the Spider King. He was once too, but with time he grew to respect him instead.
The Lamia Queen was the one who started gobbling up the food first. The way she ate it was far from what you would expect from royalty, let alone a lady. She didn’t use a nearby knife or even a fork preferring to rip the meat with her clawed hands and deposit the large chunks in her mouth. Bareth was taken aback ever so slightly by that sight.
He looked down at his plate, nearby at the sides there was a set of cutleries offered to him. As an ex-merchant, he was well versed in table manners, so he knew which knife and which fork to use for which meal, of which there were many. He glanced at the King, he too was eating with his hands.
“What's up? Is the food not to your liking?” He asked with a slight concern.
No, the food was perfect, he was just experiencing a culture shock. Ironically this reminded him of his childhood home, the table manners there were similar. A remembered a saying he heard a couple of times in his merchant circles: ‘At the Holy Emperor's table, you imitate his Holiness.’ The saying alluded not to the table manners per se but to the way to do business in the Holy Capital, and by extension capitals of many other Human Kingdoms which were a part of the Holy Empire.
Bareth ignored the cutlery and grabbed a chunk of meat with his bare hands and brought it to his mouth. The meat was surprisingly soft, it melted in his mouth filling it with delicious flavours; It was well-cooked, well-seasoned, high-quality meat. A dish worthy for a King.
“No, the food is… delicious!” He devoured the chunk in mere seconds. He ate it so quickly that it got stuck in his gullet, but only just a bit, he cleared it with a rough cough.
“Oh, there is my manners, we have drinks, of course.” The King looked up meaningfully to a high-ceiling web. “Do you prefer alcohol or…” He asked trailing it off.
No, he had to discuss an important issue, alcohol would do him no good.
“TomGrape Juice if you don’t mind…” he swallowed the meat, “my King.” He added.
“We have something better.” The King snapped his fingers.
A spider descended from the web carrying a small tray and on it was a single bottle. The glass of the bottle was crystal clear but the liquid itself was black like tar, and for whatever reason, even then stationary, the darkness inside bubbled and swirled as if trying to escape. The spider opened the dark bottle, the bottle let out a loud pop and a hiss thus startling Gareth.
‘Just what the hell is inside’ – he had to wonder. He even moved slightly aback afraid that whatever was inside might jump at him. Surprisingly, the dark liquid wasn’t too keen to escape the bottle. At least, not yet.
“Ha, ha.” The King laughed mirthfully. “Don’t look at it like that. it’s just a fizzy drink, ha, ha.” Apparently, the spider had fetched one for the King as well; Bareth had failed to see that up till now. The King raised the bottle cheerfully. “Spider-FizzPop™, to quench your daily thirst and fill you with life!” He said it as if it was a marketing slogan.
Bareth took a deep breath and upturned the contents in his mouth. He expected something close to a poison, his eyes went wide but not for that reason.
“King this is amazing!” He was taken aback by the sensation. “The bubbles dance on my tongue. It’s sweet, but not too sweet. And despite the rich taste, it feels light and smooth to drink. Huh… My stomach feels lighter! Is this some sort of medicine?”
“No, this is just a drink I came up with by accident.”
Bareth rolled the now empty crystalline glass bottle in his hands. “This is amazing! It would sell really well in the Human Kingdoms.” His eyes were filled with sparkles but those dimmed as soon as they appeared. “Ah… but the drink must need rare ingredients and hence must be very expensive.”
“No, not really. Aside from the glass bottles, it is very cheap to make. Do you really think it would sell well?”
“Is that so?” The sparkle was back in his eyes. ”Absolutely!”
“Then I’ll pitch that idea to the Lord G Blink.” He paused for a moment. “Thinking about it, you haven't been to the Spidery Delicious. I should take you some time, you’ll tell me what you think”.
“Meh, sss, most meals are made of mushrooms. It’s mediocre at best.” The Lamia Queen didn’t seem too impressed.
“Shut up, you... The Drow love it, and so do I! You are underestimating the Forbidden Sauce and its power!”
“Considering the sss-source it came from, sss, I didn’t put any on my food.” She said offhandedly.
“OMG! That’s why you didn’t like it. You must eat the sauce!”
“Spidery Delicious? Forbidden Sauce?” Admittedly Bareth was lost and couldn’t follow the passionate argument the King was having with his wife. Anyway, Bareth had almost forgotten, he came here for a reason.
The King was continuing his spiel. “It doesn’t matter if it comes from a breast or not, what matters is…”
“King, if I may?” He interrupted a rather passionate King, but he had to, otherwise the conversation would get sidetracked even more.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
“Yes, what is it?”
“It’s about the reason I requested a meeting with you.”
“Oh, yeah, I had almost forgotten.” The King looked at Bareth, that goofy look he just had was all gone and he had that ‘I’m all business’ aura back.
”It’s about human volunteers…”
The King put his elbows on a table and crossed his fingers together. “I’m listening.”
“Well, how do I say this…” He paused. ‘Bareth, this isn’t a time to hesitate…’ He decided to cut straight to the point. “Human Volunteers want your permission to emigrate to Dark Fortress.” Here, he said it.
Yeah, there was that. The why was obvious, actually. Humans just weren’t big fans of spiders, quite the opposite, they found the MegaFarm like some sort of private hell made just for them. Bareth knew that that opinion was misguided, but he understood where they were coming from. He was in similar shoes quite a while ago, but now, he had learned to appreciate the spiders and he also respected the King. He was a good ruler. These humans too would understand that in time; Bareth was sure of that. But he did understand their feelings. Putting some space between overwhelmed humans and the horde of spiders and other monster races will do them good. And then, after that, they could build amicable relations with everyone slowly from the Dark Fortress.
The decision was slightly inspired by the story the Bareth heard from the Drow Assistant. A long time ago, that group of people had also decided to leave MegaFarm, they were equally spooked by spiders at that time. They made a home in a seemingly hostile and barren environment with no trees and sunlight, The Oberon Undermountain. But look at them now, all proud and prospering. Bareth hoped that volunteer humans could forge a similar fate in the Dark Fortress. Of course, he won’t be going himself, he had his Centauri here, but he will help his fellow humans with whatever he can.
Long introspection aside.
“So, King. Can you permit us that?” He asked the King who felt silent.
“I wasn’t expecting that. So, you knew I desperately needed people in the Dark Fortress and decided to volunteer? As expected of Human Volunteers!” He praised. “But are you aware of the challenges? Not even the spiders are willing to deal with frigid temperatures. The environment is rather hostile.”
“The humans had made their minds already. And I assume, my King, you will assist us in that conquest.”
“Ha, conquest. I like how you word it. It sounds so positive. Of course, I will provide all the equipment and potions necessary.”
“So, we have your permission then?” He asked just to be sure.
“Of course! I’m very happy with this outcome!” The King even stood up from his chair, presumably from excitement. “And anyway. Sure, they did very well during the Darkness War, but after that… They’re just useless as farmers, have zero skill and all that.” He frowned. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend. You yourself are irreplaceable to me, Bareth. Thank you for everything you have done so far.” The King even bowed.
He took no offence, the volunteers weren't good at farming, not in the slightest. Admittedly, most of them were banished corrupt nobles and the stubborn upper middle class. King Aurelius II was rather harsh in his decision, sending entire families down here. Sure, these people here weren’t exactly innocent and in normal circumstances, Bareth might even approved of Aurelius II decision. But he was here, in MegaFarm, and he had intimate knowledge of their suffering. They had reflected and repented enough, and they weren’t bad people anymore. What was that word? – ah yes, rehabilitated. However, that didn’t mean they, the upper middle class and the like, were suitable for farming. Nor that they would be any good at hunting birds, but somehow they preferred that option better. Bareth trusted in their decisions, the volunteers weren’t foolish, he knew that they had all the motivation needed to make do in the Dark Fortress.
Again, long introspection aside, “King, I’ll let them know the good news. I assure you, you made a good decision.”
“Wait, are you putting this on me? I don’t want to be blamed if anyone comes and starts complaining about Bad Juju. This was their decision, so let's keep it that way, please.”
Bad Juju? – anyway… “We’ll start preparing right away.” He simply bowed again.
“And I’ll get the gear ready.”
…
A large group of humans had gathered in front of one of the spider warehouses. Defining them as ‘a large group’ was an understatement because there were more than a thousand. There were young and old, men and women, even children. But all of their faces were bright and full of hope.
The King was slightly taken aback by their good mood. “Do they really know where they are going?”
Bareth nodded. “I explained all the dangers. They understand it well.”
“I can see young children and women… Isn’t better for them to wait until the men settle?”
“No, King. The families were firmly against getting separated.”
“It’s definitely not safe for children, so let’s keep them here.”
A nearby mother hugged her child closer, her face was filled with horror.
‘What? Do they think I’m going to eat them or something? I know I’m being only reasonable here.’ – he thought to himself.
“…”
“King, once again, I strongly advise against it.”
“But if they die…”
“You won’t be blamed. They know the risks.” Bareth said it with a straight face.
“Okay… A hardy bunch then. Doing something the spiders can’t…”
“Thank you for the compliment.” Bareth smiled.
“Okay, I have all the gear you’ll need. There is a lot to carry so the spiders will help you.”
“King, I think that is unnecessary. They can carry it.”
But then the women would be carrying too…
“No, I insist on spider escort! You don’t even know where the Dark Fortress is.”
“We could ask the Kobolds.”
“No, that’s non-negotiable. In the gear packs you will find Squirrel Fur Suits, they are enchanted with Ice Resistance and have Heating Plates in them. You’ll need those on the mountaintop. Oh, and please don’t fiddle with the plates, a leak can prove fatal.”
The humans nodded in understanding.
“Also, I’m giving you a provisional supply of Resist Frozen Potions. We don’t have too much but don’t be afraid to use them if you notice any clouds of IceShard Plankton. Speaking of which, it will be your job to grind all the IceShard Bird Bones into powder. That is the main ingredient for the said potion.”
The humans nodded in understanding.
“On the matter of jobs and responsibilities. It will be your duty to maintain the Dark Fortress and hunt the IceShard Birds. All the gear necessary is already there and the spiders will instruct you how to use it. You’ll have to harvest the monsters for the precious materials and store those in the Catacombs. But that's basically it.”
“King, I’d had told them all that already.” Bareth bowed.
“Good. The monster is formidable. Don’t die!”
The humans nodded in understanding.
The King thought they would be more scared at his harsh words of ‘Don’t die!’, but for whatever reason all he could see was resolve. “Anyway, if anything goes wrong send a messenger straight away. You will be supported.” He nodded happy about his little speech.
The humans nodded in understanding. Everyone was doing a lot of nodding…
And then the crowd was made to part. A spider carrier rushed straight past it and stopped abruptly right in front of The King scattering ripped balls of ground in an emergency stop. The spider clearly came here in a hurry. A kobold was tied by ropes to its back.
“King, King! I have a message from the Kobold Leader!” The kobold screeched way too loud.
He wondered what the urgency was about, and why the kobold had to be tied to a spider.
The kobold continued to shout. “He needs your assistance in battle!”
“Battle? What happened?”
“Rebels, yes-yes. We have to fight the Rebel Faction! He needs your help! More jelly please!”
“So is it jelly or an army he requires?”
The kobold stopped shouting and said in a more muted tone. “I’m only a messenger I don’t know… I want to go home, please. The sky will fall on me. I know! No-no!”
That’s not a very well-informed messenger. He had to find out what was happening first.
“Bareth, I leave the rest to you. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to see you off.”
“No need. I have it, King.” He bowed again.
“[Shadow Walk].” The King disappeared towards the mountain.
“Spider! Carry me home! The sky will eat me!” The kobold messenger screeched.
“Understood!” The spider kicked at the ground launching itself to a sprint.
The humans nodded in understanding. They were ready for their trip. New hope awaited them.