CHAPTER 15 – ROULETTE ROUND-UP
The Iron Church – Erebus
***
The Iron Lord Dikembe Solomon, Ex-Television Evangelist and former Ethiopian Warlord looked down upon his domain with a vicious smile, one of hunger and satisfaction in a dichotomous twist that rumbled from his entire massive six and half foot close to three hundred pound frame. He stood in his full plate armor whose weight was almost non-existent with the enchantments that had gotten another boost when the Growth Item had hit Iron. It’s white and gold magnificence made him a figure of intimidation as it should.
He stood upon the balcony of his now five story fortress in the shape of a massive fortified church. His walls had moved close to fifteen miles deep into the valley below. His Liberators had done a miraculous job and brought slaves continuously in large numbers allowing him to increase the ranking of his Settlement. They had been bottle necked at the Capitol Ranking for quite a while but still far and above anything currently on the rankings. As far as he knew they were the only Capitol Ranked Settlement on all of Erebus if the Faction Rankings that came out were accurate.
His fingers tightened on his maul whose head was planted on the ground in front of him as his mind moved to all the things that hadn’t gone as well as his plans dictated they should.
Teerin, the only Scion he had left and his Field Marshall, newly minted, stood ten feet away waiting to be acknowledged. He still had an endless number of Rare Classes but there was a significant difference between a Rare Class and a Scion. The Forerunner Title gave them boosted gains but it wasn’t just that. Add in the Bloodlines many received within the Elite Tutorial and more importantly the Titles and that was what truly separated them. Most Scions had at least 2 to 4 Titles while almost none of the Rare Classes he met had any or one at the most and Titles were exponential boosts to combat power. As far as he knew Teerin had at least four, nowhere near the six he had but close and a vast reservoir more than most.
Speaking of, he knew she waited to give him the reports he ‘d asked for. He took one last look upon the beginnings of his empire. A hundred yards out he saw some of his slaves being whipped by one of his Iron Soldiers which were the lower echelon of his military might, beneath his vaunted Liberators and even below his Auxiliary of Mercenaries/Slave Soldiers led by Deckard. The Iron Soldiers were all those with lower rarity Classes yet still in the Celestial Foundational, Uncommon and below.
He knew many of them hoped to be elevated at Silver where they had dreams of getting a Rare Class option. The reality mixed with his dreams of conquest told him most of them would more than likely be dead by then and be replaced by the endless fodder behind them. He saw one of the Iron Soldiers slide his blade through a young girl who had seemed to mouth off at him. His eye twitched. He marked the man and would need to speak to his superior about wasting a good tool. A beating would have been sufficient.
He finally turned towards his Second in Command. The Beastkin female was currently showing some of her impatience in the tapping of her foot. He expected nothing less. She might be subservient to him to a degree but he had no interest in weak fools or sycophants. And with those thoughts he smiled knowing his choice to make her wait a few more moments was petty and vindictive but such was the gift of absolute power as he pulled off his Iron Mask.
He cast his gaze on its mirrored surface with satisfaction. He’d finally had it upgraded by a few slaves at the price of a slightly better position and less beatings, a Moon Pillar Enchanter Class and a Forge Armaments Enchanter Class. They were both only Uncommon rarity but together had been able to give him what he sought with the help of an Ancient Ranked Catalyst he’d chosen as a prize for the finish of the Monster Waves, turning his Mask into a Growth Soul-Bound Ancient Rarity Mask. He threw [Identify] on it.
Iron Mask of the Iron Lord – Ancient – Enhances the Strength and Efficiency of all Celestial Powers +15% -- Growth Item (Soul-Bound) (Iron)
It had been at 10% and shifted up to 15% when he went to Iron. Not the strongest enchantment ever but it would do for now. His other two Growth Items, his Armor and his Weapon, had both gotten similar bumps. None of it compared to his greatest boost to power, his Sub-Class and Path, exponential by a far margin. They had massively empowered what he was capable of and he’d had several Epic Sub-Class Selections though they didn’t bring as much as a Main Class they certainly amplified what he’d already had.
When making the decision he had first pulled to mind what his Main Class [Grand Inquisitor] brought to the table which was restraining foes, making them weaker while making himself stronger. It seemed to be the overall theme of the Soul-Pillar not that there weren’t other tools within it’s environ. Besides his Titles and his overwhelming strength and weapon he hadn’t had a lot of offensive only focused tools that weren’t contingent upon something first. That narrowed down the choice from the three of Epic Quality he had available. It left really only one. [Executioner of Fate], an Epic Class that added three Ability Slots, two Offensive and one Control.
He hadn’t filled them all yet but the Class also focused on the Attributes he loved most, Strength and Body. And he had access to some secret information most would never have, choosing a Class that had some of the same Class Skills boosted the maximum rank of said Skill and gave it a boost as far as leveling like [Two-Handed Blunt Weapons].
Two of the three Ability Slots stood empty but that would come in whatever next Challenge the System was going to throw at them, of that, he was certain. He could confiscate some of his subordinate’s Ability Shards but he doubted he would find anything higher that Rare which would not be worthy of him. Teerin’s foot tapping reached a new level of irritated noise so he decided to show benevolence and not beat her to the ground for her temerity.
“Report.”
He sighed heavily as if to let him know she tired of his games. He liked the Beastkin, unlike the now more than likely dead Shade Elf, she didn’t shy from pushing the edge with him and she was powerful and would be a formidable opponent if they clashed. Her Sun magic was lethal in almost every Ability she had access to besides the caustic healing one but even that was offensive in nature. In the end she would fall but her strength and demeanor had his respect which was more than most could say.
They both knew he couldn’t afford her loss and it was starting to give her some iron balls. One day she would push it too far but today was not the day. It was a hefty shove though as she now made him wait for a moment before beginning. He would remember.
“Our population is up to roughly 33,000 though over 65% of that number are slaves. It could be a problem in the future if they ever quite grasp the truth of their numbers especially with most of your Liberators almost never in residence. As I’ve told you before I believe we should leave at least a cohort of them here at all times. Their numbers hold all our elites, well of the Celestial Foundational. I will not note where the rest of the elites reside as we have argued enough about it. Speaking of that slimy bastard, Deckard’s forces while efficient I still do not like any situation in which we have to rely on their loyalty to win the day. You might trust him My Lord but I do not. He is a cutthroat bandit whose only allegiance is to himself and the moment he has an opening to slither out of your forces and gain his freedom he shall take it. Also, one of our largest far range Liberator forces are several days late in their return. I have sent out a squad of scouts from the Iron Soldiers to see what they can find.”
He interrupted her at that point knowing her report wasn’t finished but he had to retort once again against her assumptions, the same circle of arguments they’d had numerous times already. His voice was a barrel full of blades edging towards murder.
“First, as I’ve told you before Teerin, I do not trust Deckard anymore than you do but I have given him freedom and license to do what he was born to do which almost any other Faction would curtail or at the very least any that would take him to begin with, which is not many. In fact, the Unchained or one of the Independents are the only ones I could see doing that. And only one or two of the Independents would give him the leash with the length I do. He also knows we are by far the most powerful of his options. We top both the Faction List and I, personally, the pinnacle of the Individual Power Rankings. I am by any measure the strongest individual upon Erebus and the Iron Church and the Sanctum, the strongest Faction. I will eventually rule this planet. He knows this intimately and any betrayal of me would be short lived and say whatever you would like about the fool, his survival instincts are his most finely tuned asset.”
As usual she didn’t looked convinced and it was one of the many things he actually valued about the Beastkin. Unlike the Sanctum as a whole, he had none of their prejudices and once again he found all their limitations in that realm hindering him wherever he turned. He had learned to side step a lot of it but he’d already been informed in a round about way that when the Third Challenge came, there would be a restructuring. His only answer to the hidden threat was for him to become so powerful he could ignore whatever plans they had to circumvent him. In their view the woman before him would never hold any position of power beyond middling purely due to her race. In fact even his own was looked down upon. Anything that wasn’t Eldarin considered weak but the less humanoid a race was the more discrimination they faced within the halls of power within the Sanctum.
He would need to change their viewpoints in such regard or eventually slaughter anyone that got between him and his plans. She had surprisingly stayed quiet while his thoughts had wandered so he spurred her to continue. He didn’t mention the missing group of Liberators as she’d already ordered what he himself would have. She was very competent in her position and he would not undermine it.
“Still no word on P’Skaar and his mission?”
Her response was immediate and held a certain amount of hidden glee. She wasn’t a big fan of the man in question. Not really because of his reputation of forcing women or anything along those lines, she did the same thing with both male and female slaves but something had happened between the two that had her loathing his presence anytime they were in the same room but she was a professional killer and never let it affect decision making or combat decisions so it was her own business.
“No. The fool as usual was probably over-confident and made irritatingly stupid decisions probably coming at the bitch directly. I highly doubt he is still breathing and in fact based on him no longer being on the Leader Boards and her name still present I would guarantee it. Say what you want about the Angelic Whore, she is a bloodthirsty beast when roused to conflict and according to my sources, meaning the Demon Bitch, she has a new lover, protector? One that is highly dangerous with strange mind magic. The System is still limiting what information can be shared within their Internet creation and the Demon Slut of the Unchained has lips as tight as her ass. She is still our best source of intel but I can tell she withholds much. Also the Temple just moved upon the Faction Leader Boards, at the bottom, sure, but there. That should be confirmation the idiot failed miserably. I also believe her Protector is on the Individual Rankings but I have not been able to ascertain his Identity yet to confirm and we don’t know who most of the people are on that list except those we have had direct dealings with and no clue to their identities as Faction connections are not a part of the listings.”
He knew his Second Scion was dead and a part of him still seethed at the Angelic Whore holding to breath but Teerin was not wrong. A’Deri was a formidable and lethal fighter and had held her own against him in the Tutorial, if barely. She’d ended up running and her lover sacrificing himself to save her ass but he had never and would never underestimate his enemies.
She was also correct that P’Skaar was overconfident and lacking in tactical acumen and seemed to have paid the price for it, and even more unforgivable, taking a weapon from his Lord’s arsenal. Dikembe had thought all the Rare Ranked Elites he’d sent with the Scion would have seen him accomplish what the previous assassin squad had not. He had been wrong and he was not above taking responsibility, at least internally.
He had learned early on as both a Warlord and a TV Evangelist, the man who always blamed everyone but himself when things went sideways would sooner or later be toppled and most likely repeat the same mistakes they kept avoiding responsibility for.
He had two choices now – To either let it go at least for the time being or double down and hire the Unchained to kill her but he wasn’t quite sure whether they would take that kind of commission this early in the Integration process. In fact thinking about it, he highly doubted they would, he certainly wouldn’t if he was in their position. They were attempting to curry favor with everyone for the moment, sticking to spying, selling information, and lighter duties, boosting Faction’s forces, guarding important resources and the like.
In addition, in this realm, the Sanctum’s reputation hurt his cause. The Sanctum’s oppressive and isolationist reputation made other Factions avoid working with them or anyone associated. The only exemptions he’d been told by his handler were the Academy and the Consortium who were neutral to all parties and of course the Issian Corporation which everyone avoided.
Even major Factions relied on the residuals they received from Multi-Versal streaming rights of their wars and various Celebrity Butchers the Factions called their own, and yes, the billions, trillions of Citizen’s had favorites even within the Sanctum. He sighed as he came to the conclusion he would need to let it go for the moment. He realized he’d missed whatever his new Field Marshall had said. He tilted his eyes towards her and she had a smirk on her face knowing he hadn’t heard her. He couldn’t keep the twinkle of amusement from his eyes and gave her a nod, point to her. She laughed and repeated what he missed.
“A new player has just entered the field. I have confirmed my Aide’s information. Bring up both lists my Lord.”
He was intrigued and did what she asked, first pulling the Faction Power Rankings.
EREBUS FACTION POWER RANKINGS
Brought to you by the Issian Corporation
Your one stop shop for all your entertainment needs in the Multi-Verse
1. Umbra Mortem – Faction Affiliation – Umbra Mortem (Native) – Settlement Rank – Prime
2. The Iron Church – Faction Affiliation – The Sanctum – Settlement Rank – Capitol
3. Sanguine Necropolis – Faction Affiliation – The Unhallowed – Settlement Rank – City
4. Frostholme – Faction Affiliation – The Wild Tribes – Settlement Rank – City
5. Tal’E’Ruh – Faction Affiliation – The Consortium – Settlement Rank – City
6. Hellspont – Faction Affiliation – The Abyss – Settlement Rank – City
7. Grundhelm – Faction Affiliation – The Draconian Empire – Settlement Rank – City
8. New Washington – Faction Affiliation – United Coalition of Earth (Native) – Settlement Rank – City
9. New Tokyo – Faction Affiliation – The Dragon’s Breath (Native) – Settlement Rank – City
10. M’Dir’Fen – Faction Affiliation – The Enlightened (Native) – Settlement Rank – City
11. The City of Endings – Faction Affiliation – The Endless Star – Settlement Rank – City
12. Issius – Faction Affiliation – Issian Corporation – Settlement Rank – City
13. New Hades – Faction Affiliation – The Unchained – Settlement Rank – City
14. Oklahoma – Faction Affiliation – The Shadow Conclave – Settlement Rank – City
15. Freeborn – Faction Affiliation – The Temple – Settlement Rank – Fortress
Umbra Mortem? How the hell did it rise from not even on the list to number one? And they had a Prime Settlement?!!! He’d been told by his Sanctum handlers there was no possibility of it until at least the 3rd Challenge had been conquered and the population consolidated into fewer Factions. And the name tickled something in his memory, mentioned in one of Teerin’s reports the week prior. He quickly pulled up the Individual Power Rankings.
EREBUS INDIVIDUAL POWER RANKINGS
Brought to you by the Issian Corporation
Your one stop shop for all your entertainment needs in the Multi-Verse
1. The Iron Lord – Main Class Rank – Epic – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Inquisitorial
2. The Ice Queen – Main Class Rank – Epic – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Arctic Ocean
3. Giovanni Marcos – Main Class Rank – Epic – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Eldritch
4. L’Sana M’Ras – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Grave
5. The Gunslinger – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Armaments
6. The Blood King – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Grave
7. Vordok Maw – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Infernal
8. The Grand Dragon – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Karmic
9. The War Crow – Main Class Rank – Epic – Level Rank – Copper – Soul-Pillar – Umbral
10. The Demon Queen – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Infernal
11. Losin Fellheart – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Astral
12. The Captain – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Blood
13. Suzanne Peters – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Temporal
14. N’Vasi T’Nusa – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Void
15. A’Deri L’Shir – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Angelic
16. Teerin Vinetree – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Sun
17. I’Virsi P’ton – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Tempest
18. The Engineer – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Engineering
19. The Harvester – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Harmonic
20. Fiasa Deathblade – Main Class Rank – Rare – Level Rank – Iron – Soul-Pillar – Primal
The War Crow? How did he get that high of a Ranking and only Copper? Epic Class explained some of it but not all of it. A Scion obviously and War Crow? The War Crow, the light bulb went off, Gideon Sho, that was the name he was given when he went on his little tirade of killing people in the US. He remembered being irritated at the time as it messed with an aspect of his business. His target given to him by the Sanctum whom he thought was dead. His eyes hard pressed the Beastkin who was smart enough to take a step back. His maul for the first time came off the floor and up to his shoulder.
“You told me Gideon Sho was dead!!”
She took another step back which made him even angrier but then he realized she had just been stalling, waiting the few breaths for what came to hand, her Ancient Soul-Bound Staff of the Burning Sun, coming alive with white flames with gold tints. Her voice rolled out with authority.
“Enough Iron Lord!!!! I told you not long ago I will not tolerate anymore of your intimidation tactics!!”
Her body and battle-robes lit with the same whitish gold hue and her eyes lifted ablaze. He was of two minds, one, his maul coming down upon her head and crushing it, the other, a burning hunger to fuck her right then and there. Instead he laughed. Oh he loved the flames of this woman, the passion. He remembered now why he’d chosen to recruit her in the Tutorial. She had been the first. Her voice steadied and the flames went out though he noted she kept her staff out and ready. It was a beautiful staff and deadly in her hands. It looked to be made out of white ash with a thread of gold spiraled along it’s length and it ended in gold metal that formed the image of a sun encircled in flames.
“I told you it was rumored he was dead. That information came from the Governor/Demon Queen, take your pick as far as the Title she goes by. And ever from her own lips it was emphasized it was a rumor, that he hadn’t been seen in over a month.”
She took a step forward again and a gaze of irritation lit her eyes as her fangs upon her lips cratered more urges within him. He’d already bed quite a few of his Beastkin slaves and he’d started to get a taste for them. This one would be the prize of all prizes. He’d always liked the forbidden fruit. Back before the System his favorite concubines had been several blonde white women he’d bought from a trafficking ring out of the US. He’d enjoyed them tremendously. He ignored his insatiable appetite and allowed her next words to sift through his mind.
“It matters not Dikembe. All Faction locations are still locked down tight. So we have no clue to the whereabouts of Umbra Mortem or any other. The only portal connection we have is to the Unchained and even that we can use only with permission as the Demon Whore guards it heavily. She also doesn’t allow the few we sent as liaisons to exit the enclosed room the portal is placed within so they can’t mark any landscape or features. Say what you want about her and I often do, she is devious and very intelligent. We will have to wait till the World Council which is only a week away.”
Yes. He had thought the death of Gideon Sho had been taken off his plate. It made him smile to know it had been put back on. Two targets to whet his appetite for what was to come. The Angelic whore who kept eluding his attempts at taking her life and the War Crow. These were the meats of his joy. Hopefully they would not disappoint when he finally had them cornered.
***
Frostholme – White Forest of the Elder Frost – Erebus
***
The Ice queen was so far away from the rigid emotionless killer that her people knew and understood in the moment she found herself in most of her people would think she was a shape-changer who was impersonating their Queen. She didn’t care. She looked down upon her injured Mother who was barely holding on to life. She’d brought in every healer she could get her hands on including her Second in Command but they said she’d been beaten and abused so many times and malnourished and had been existing for too long in the Low-Red of Health, their healing Abilities were not effective. She had a debuff called Health Deprivation. All they were able to accomplish was to keep her alive. They said maybe if they were able to keep her alive until one of them could reach Bronze Rank their Abilities might be able to do more or if there was some form of Superior version of a Life Elixir, it might do the trick. As Jolie would say, grasping for straws in a cursed deck or something like that, some Human idiom.
Her Bloodline was punching through and wanted to punish the healers for failing but she clamped it down knowing the healers they had from the Nature Soul-Pillar, and a few from the Ocean side of Arctic/Ocean, were some of the best, most likely in all of Erebus currently. Jolie, the human whose Class was Rare, and a Scion to boot, could heal most things but had been the one that had informed her of the limitations. Jolie had exhausted herself to the point of Spirit deprivation. She had the biggest heart Yolana knew and was her biggest supporter since early in the tutorial, one of the first to join her. And as the Scion of Nature if she said she couldn’t heal her Mother, that was fact not speculation no matter how much it inclined her to furious denial.
Yolana had other things she needed to take care of. She’d already spent two days at her Mother’s side. She didn’t want to leave but she knew that was a child’s fancy.
Jolie entered the tent once more with her pet and best friend, before and after the System, a leopard she said she’d taken care of since it was a newborn kitten at somewhere called a Zoo where she supposedly worked. The System had made it bonded to her as a part of her Rare Class [Deep Forest Druid]. She remembered the first days of the Elite Tutorial with the mousy skinny woman and the big hunting cat that followed her everywhere.
Yolana had seen enough of it’s prowess in the Tutorial to respect the cat and her Momma more than words could say. She’d taken a Bloodline as well. She used to be a tall and slender human now she was called a Sacred Glade Nymph. Her skin had taken on a light brown tone and her ears, a shape similar to the Shade Elves, eyes, slit like her cat’s. Her black hair had shifted to the color of auburn. She’d also went from somewhat cute to stunningly beautiful. Her cat’s name was Shoza and he’d gone from maybe a hundred lbs when she’d first met the two to almost three hundred and up past Jolie’s waist. The leopard still held the same black and brown spots over a tan, light yellow base and his eyes a piercing yellow as he’d been since the beginning. He was a beautiful animal and well knew it. The image had a smile light her lips.
Yolana had utter trust in her not only for the obvious reasons but also cause the Nymph was her lover and Jolie’s entire nature was built upon loyalty and empathy. It had been recent, the move from friend to lover but the thought that her Bloodline had killed her passion and ardor had been laid to rest quickly. She had just needed the right spirit to ignite it. They had shed blood together within the Tutorial and since, in the Monster Waves and more.
Jolie stepped in and immediately leaned into the taller Yolana lifting her head and kissing her while Shoza almost bowled the Ice Queen over looking for his share of attention. He really did a number on her image as the Ice Queen but he knew she couldn’t resist his charm. She scratched behind his ear then returned another passionate kiss with Jolie. Jolie’s voice was a purr in her ear.
“I’ll watch your Momma lover. You have our allies waiting for you in the throne room.”
She gritted her teeth but said no more. If anything her Mother had taught her responsibility. It was a weight that needed to be lifted regardless of circumstance. She fell out of her own room where she had her Mother and immediately two of four Frost Wardens fell in step behind her. She didn’t bother learning their names. It was a different pair each day and the elite of her armed forces were up to five hundred or so now with another few thousand of the lower echelon fighters who were called Ice Guardians. She hadn’t named them but didn’t care enough to mess with it. Half of them were always out of the City patrolling her lands. The main defense of the City were the Ice Guardians, she guessed, the source of their name.
She’d clamped down upon the simmering fury she had held for over a week. When the people waiting on her had first approached the gates, brought to her by one of her scouts, her hope had risen like the tides.
She’d been told they had information on the woman they’d heard to keep an eye for, her Mother. Ever since the end of the Monster Wave she’d had her people populating her Mother’s description to everyone. It had cost a good amount to get the System to cooperate but it turned out they had neighbors, a Settlement a bit over two days southwest of Frostholme located in the hills neighboring their forest.
The Faction was called Tides of Freedom, what the System called a Native Faction with no affiliation to any Multi-Versal Faction but it was led by two Scions which had been interesting. One was a male Beastkin, Losin Fellheart, a big fellow even for one of her kind though in reality she was no longer one of them, a hard thing still to get her mind around, the memories of her horrific form still a heavy backdrop to her history. The other by her frame and the coloring of her skin she’d been able see, was Human. She always wore a hood and a deep blood red and black mask and she called herself the Harvester.
Stolen story; please report.
The Ice Queen couldn’t really comment on giving one titles. The need to constantly cover her face however pushed memories of her childhood and so made her irritable the few times she’d been in the presence of the woman.
Losin had told her a group of their people who’d been out hunting and foraging had been taken by slavers in golden and white armor and when the two Scions had tracked them down with a group of their fighters they had seen the woman she described amongst many, far more then they’d taken from them.
They had to have at least four hundred people chained up moving them in a long line through the hills heading north and the forces guarding them were too much for the smaller Settlement to deal with. It was a group of heavy armored soldiers with numerous elites that easily numbered close to a hundred and fifty. The Tides of Freedom was a small group who had just transitioned into Fortress Rank and could only field a hundred fighters, most of which had only uncommon weapons and armor and Uncommon Rank Classes or less. Many of their population could not even claim that. They took in everyone which meant they were riddled with the old, infirm and an endless sea of orphaned children.
When she’d met them they described her Mother and told her that her Mother and many others were barely hanging on. While they’d spent two days studying their enemies, they saw an endless amount of abuse, beatings and rapes, males and females both. Her Mother was one of the ones barely cognizant being helped by other Beastkin to keep moving. Any that couldn’t move were killed and left by the wayside. The room’s temp became winter as she listened.
In less than an hour after hearing those words the Ice Queen and two hundred of her Elites were upon the road. She would have left the two Scions and their ragtag group behind but they had demanded they be a part of the fight. She had allowed them to bring twenty of their best and that was it.
Two days later she stood over the corpses of the Slavers, the people who had hurt her Mother. It took her but a moment to get to the small group of Elites whose sole job had been to secure and protect her Mother. She had a moment where she thought she would break when she saw her. Tears streamed down her face at the state of her, her Mothers body covered in badly healed welts and deep bruises and malnourishment. She was doubly shocked when even in this new form, barely conscious, her Mother knew her instantly, had screamed out her Daughter’s name and deliriously whispered over and over her eternal love, her own tears an ocean.
Then the Ice Queen’s heart truly froze in that moment when her Mother screamed out she could pass the wheel now that she knew her little Snowflake, her Daughter lived. Yolana could see the resignation to the hand of death in her Mother’s eyes as if she had been hanging on by a thread for one purpose and one purpose only, to see her Daughter one last time. Yolana, the Ice Queen refused her passing, literally, emotionally, and spiritually.
Covered in blood and flesh from all the death she had wrung from the bastards who had done this to the most precious person she’d ever known, she screamed for Josie. Her lover came running along with Shoza, having been on the other side of battle, and she’d taken only one look in one breath, seen Yolana’s tears, and then her Mother and leapt with the green energy of life in her hands. It was in that moment Yolana had truly understood how much she loved and needed the woman.
As she entered her Throne Room he knew inside she had much to thank these two for, not only leading her to her Mother but for fighting on the battlefield as well. They’d lost two thirds of their fighters who hadn’t been very strong while Yolana herself had only lost maybe twenty percent of her forces. The two scions themselves had been formidable on the battlefield. They deserved everything for helping her save her Mother, for finding her Mother. Her Bloodline urged her to kill them, to kill the threat their power represented but she’d gotten used to clamping it’s more primal urges down, especially since her and Jolie had gotten together. The Virigir were not known for mercy or sharing or well most things that fell in the realm of nice. She’d also had the two Beastkin Males and one Older Female Beastkin who’d been seen helping her Mother survive. They would also be getting gifts and whatever they desired within her power.
The predatory dominant energy of her Bloodline had helped her through the Monster Waves and consolidating her Kingdom but not much else. On top of that, her Class [Sorceress of the White Winter] also had inclinations towards arrogance and cool detachment. Both together had made her put more of her Free Attributes into Will than she would prefer but in the end, a necessity if she didn’t want to alienate everyone around her. At the very least it boosted her Ability to resist mental Manipulation though Intelligence also added to that and to a smaller degree Faith and Potency.
She kept her pace even and didn’t even use [The North Wind] as she usually did. She was too emotionally wrung to want to appear superior as her Bloodline urged. Two more Frost Wardens stood at the ornate doors leading to the throne room in the private hallway leading from her bedroom. Everywhere she looked was the motifs of Winter from the white and pale blue coloring to statues of her that were made without her desire for them. She had a Human Governess, Vivian Cordette, that dealt with running the Settlement, a Rare Spiritual Class of the Moon Soul-Pillar who used to work at what was called a Museum. She said it added to the aesthetic and reinforced the name Frostholme.
As she entered as usual with the Wild Tribes the room was filled with the higher ups of the Settlement, drinking, carousing, in various states of dress or undress as the case may be, numerous Shade Elves which seemed to gravitate towards the Sidhe Foundational more than any other and since the System had opened up the Network and everyone had moved to recruiting, more and more of them had slipped into the City.
They went through a screening process but once approved the System itself in the last few weeks had seemed to shift and would automatically teleport them from any place that had a System Store to their new Settlement once they’d officially became a Citizen. The System seemed to want the population centralized into Factions for whatever reason. The Academy and the Consortium were offering neutral places with System Stores for people to find homes. She was sure they benefited from the economic surplus of it but she didn’t care. She allowed Vivian to handle all of it.
The Settlement in question designated the location they appeared in and for Frostholme they went through another last screening before being allowed to leave, this time led by one of her, hmm, she forgot the name of them...War Witches or something. People of at least Rare Rank in Glamour, usually pure Spiritual or Intellectual that had some way of shifting truth.
She took another step then had one of her flashes, everything drifting to black besides a white and light blue pillar in the middle of the backdrop of night emanating waves of cold that soothed her. She felt at peace and one with the Pillar. Her eyes snapped open and one of the Frost Wardens near the door held her arm. She supposed she had almost fell. Her eyes flashed the pale cold of winter and he stepped back and bowed. He was a shade elf. She stamped her Bloodline’s reaction to the touch and gave him a brief nod of her head. She swept past him up the dais and ignored the sudden quiet that had enraptured the room.
She’d had those strange flashes more and more as of late ever since she’d entered Iron. It was equal parts disturbing and intriguing. She felt there was a truth there, a power waiting for her to grasp. Once she’d figured out a way to heal her Mother she would spend some time figuring it out, and oh yes, slaughtering every Sanctum member she could find. Those were who the people were that raped and beat her Mother. They would all be shattered ice by the time she was done.
She sat upon her Throne which was an audacious piece made of metal but painted and decorated to look as if it was constructed of ice, a pale blue and white of an arctic blizzard. It was the one thing her Governess had made that she actually liked. It also appeased her Bloodline who always purred in her blood when she sat upon it. Her gaze took in the crowd who had gone back to their carousing after her incident. She quickly spotted the two Scions standing off to the side, the Beastkin Losen enjoying one of the numerous libations available.
He was the Scion of the Astral and a Martial/Intellectual Class who had some strange Abilities which made sense with the Soul-Pillar he belonged to. And unlike the usual history of her people with their tribal leathers and pelts he wore a very well forged set of light chain mixed with a sky blue leather. His darker bronzed Beastkin skin went with the image well. He carried a curved sabre at his side and during the scrap with the Sanctum she’d seen him utilize the bracer on his left arm as a focus for his magic. The masked Harvester on the other hand by the constant movements of her covered head was constantly taut, a predator clearing her line of sight at all times of threats. She used twin short swords that were in back sheathes criss-crossed and though she was a Martial/Intellectual Class as well, she had a more Rogue bent. It was a strange amalgam considering she was the Scion of the Harmonic Soul-Pillar but it was effective.
She’d slaughtered Sanctum at a prodigious rate according to some of her officers who had fought near her. She could mess with peoples equilibrium as she fought them among other subtle debuffs. Her fighting style was blitzing people and utilizing her harmonics to debilitate them, keeping them on their back foot while she slaughtered them. She looked to the side at her Governess who as usual had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Yolana would some day have to ask Vivian about it at some point or another.
She motioned towards the two Scions. The Beastkin led the way while the masked woman still kept her head on a swivel, hands itching as if she spent every waking moment worrying about someone attacking her. Yolana knew the coming of the System and monsters and more importantly other Citizens were a constant threat but she had a feeling, similar to herself, there were long worn scars precipitating her behavior.
They both came within about ten feet and didn’t bow as most did but the Astral Scion did dip his head. Her Bloodline urged her to punish the temerity and several in the crowd gasped at their lack of deference but she waved them silent and again clamped down on her Bloodline. These people had brought her Mother to her side, gave her the chance to heal her and keep her life this side of the divide. She knew if had been a day or two later her Mother would have been gone permanently. For that and that alone these two deserved everything but she was not unintelligent. She might have been a malformed and hideous monster in her youth but she was still the Daughter of a Queen. Her voice of winter rolled across the sudden quiet that had been instilled by the loud clang of Vivian slamming her Lunar Staff of office upon the tile.
“You have done me a personal favor beyond measure in helping me return my Mother to my side and saving her anymore degradation by the expiring existence of the Sanctum. I grant you each a boon that if it is within my power I shall grant. Ask what you will but also understand I am a Queen raised by a Queen and I have a responsibility to those who I rule so do not ask what I cannot give.”
The Beastkin Astral Scion, Losin, stepped forward and this time went to one knee pulling his sabre as he did so and placing upon the ground in front of him. His voice like many male Beastkin was a low toned bass and gutteral.
“I ask only one boon my Queen, to give my people succor, to take them all in and continue to take those who need shelter as we have done. I know it is much to ask, as many of them are not fighters but all of them are good people, willing to work hard. I realized with this latest debacle I can not provide for them all nor protect them all. I am not a Champion of a God nor do I have the lack of morality as people like the Sanctum to just take what I want. I ask this and the only thing I have to offer is my own blade and power to your cause. I have spent the last few days talking to many of those under your rule and though you are harsh against those who sow dissent or do not follow your laws, you take care of your people. They have shelter, freedom to the extent any can have freedom in this new world and are mostly content. They are given opportunities based on their skills and shelter and none go hungry. I ask this of you as my boon and hope my own strength is enough to balance the cost.”
She was sure her advisors and many of the more powerful would whisper complaints about it. It was not that they didn’t take in most but in the end they were a militant City, full of revelry yes, and with families and people who were not fighters but they were few and far between. And he asked not only to take his people in but to adopt a similar attitude to what brought down their own Faction and kept it from growing by opening their doors to all the weak and old and children.
Her Bloodline was adamant in attempting to twist her mind to scoff at his demand, to kill him for his temerity and her Class while not as ardent with the urges for blood similar in the need to reject the idea of taking upon Frostholme the weak, whether young or old. She’d had months now of domineering both voices, chaining them to her own desires, the desires of a lonely girl who just wanted a friend. Jolie’s face shimmered in the back of her mind.
It was that woman at her side and her new Path and Sub-Class that had helped finally lock most of the ever-prevalent push of her Bloodline. Her Path seemed to be a bone tossed to her by her Goddess and she was grateful. Her Goddess was renowned for her murderous rages but Yolana also had found an infinite compassion and mercy within her as well.
It was called Path of the Serene Mind and was B+ Ranking. It gifted her a +10% increase to her Will, Intelligence and Insight as well as gave her a once a day Ability called [Broken Cages]. It would rid of her any malignant effect on her Body, Mind or Spirit. She had a surety it would more then likely save her life multiple times and if this was what a Path brought she realized it would be making everyone more of a threat not to even mention a Sub-Class. Her Bloodline churned up at the thought and this time she did not quell its message as she agreed wholeheartedly. Any that went against her she would utterly destroy.
Her Sub-Class was another boost to her already prodigious strength. Shed chosen an Epic Rank Sub-Class, one of three options at that ranking she had been presented. She knew she had needed to balance her Main Class while also sticking to synergy and continuity while at the same time shoring up some obvious weaknesses, mainly physical confrontation. She couldn’t afford to spread her Attributes out as some had chosen to do. She felt it would be a mistake, diluting her power in combat. So with that strategy she had chosen the Epic Class [The Claws of the Eternal Night]. It merged perfectly with her Main Class. It was a Martial/Intellectual Class with a slight bend more towards the Mage side with boosts to Intellect and Potency while helping in the other with Body and big bump to Agility. It gave her two Offensive Slots and a Defensive Slot. She’d already filled one of the Offensive and it was perfect, [Claws of the Wendigo]. Vivian touched her arm bringing her back to the now. Losin still on knees looked as if wanted to lift his head, afraid the lack of response meant he would be refused.
Her wintery eyes took in Vivian who did her best to hold a smirk well aware of the Ice Queen’s penchant to become lost in her own thoughts. Time to give him the answer he waited for and one many would not like. Her voice and the words caused whispers amongst the gathered.
“Your Boon is granted Losin Fellheart. I will send a contingent of Frost Wardens and a War Witch to escort you and establish a portal to Frostholme. You will move your people here where they will be given hospice and a way to contribute. As long as they pass the screening of the War Witch and hold no enmity towards us they shall be accepted. At that time you shall dissolute your Settlement back to it’s Stone which shall be fed to Frostholme to strengthen your new home. You yourself shall be given a rank and responsibility commiserate to your strength and status as a Scion. Rise and take your weapon. Where we walk you shall need it for I vow here before you all that the Sanctum shall be ended for the temerity of attempting to enslave that which is ours.”
He did as she bade and the Governess waved him to her side which he did, standing a bit behind and to the side of Vivian. His strength would be a great asset to the wars she knew were coming. She wasn’t an idiot and knew how powerful the Sanctum and the one that led them were. She would need to do what she had not wanted to do and find allies at the upcoming World Council. She realized the Harvester still stood, her black and red mask under the similar colored hood that disappeared into the neck of what was obviously her theme of black and red leather armor she wore. Yolana gave a motion to Vivian who beckoned the Harvester forward.
The Ice Queen’s voice was frigid winds.
“I figured your boon would be a part of what he offered?”
She still had never heard the woman really speak. She had been a silent observer and a lethal killer. Her voice when she finally uttered words held a wariness and deep weariness in every syllable.
“No. I have helped Sorin cause he and his people needed it. I go where I must and where I am led. I kill those that need killing and help those that deserve it. I belong to no one and will only give my allegiance to one person, who earned it long ago. The Boon I ask for myself is I be allowed to accompany you to the World Council. What I offer while there is to stand at your side in whatever fashion that requires. My blades and strength yours for its duration and for one other time you require it when it ends.”
What she offered was great indeed. The reasoning behind the request was what had her mind intrigued along with eluding to only one she would give allegiance to. This girl was a conundrum and she could tell once she spoke how truly young she was. Though in the new reality age had less to do with anything than the power one could wield and this woman according to her sources was even stronger than Losin and more deadly. Having her on the hook for one task would be a boon with little cost. Josie and her had already decided she couldn’t come as she needed to maintain the healing on her Mother to keep her this side of the grave. Yolana had only planned on bringing Vivian as she had no other Scions under her purview than Losin just now would have been the second candidate. Having two Scions at her side would be a show of strength she could use but the Harvester would work just as well.
“Boon granted Harvester. Now be merry for the rest of the day and tomorrow Losin you can head out with what I promised to bring our people to their new home.”
***
New Hades – Home of the Unchained – Erebus
***
The Governor, the Demon Queen, the Head of the Unchained on Erebus felt like she was juggling a thousand sharp edged blades that were covered in holy flames. It was all, a lot. She gritted her teeth and just kept stepping, kept juggling, and hoped to keep all her fingers intact.
She’d kept her Mercenaries out of anything too heavy, mostly guard duty or helping some Factions cleaning out and destroying residual Dens from failed Settlements during the Monster Waves that were too close to existing Settlements. Then of course, her personal addition, her spy corps, which had provided the greatest windfall. She had gotten them trained as fast as she could and sent them out as quickly as possible as far and as wide as she could.
They were in groups of three to cover themselves against any roaming Flora or Fauna or the aforementioned Dens that could pose a threat though in most circumstances they would just slip past. Only people oriented towards a rogue or some mage types with stealth capability were chosen as that was the point of the whole division. Gather information and eventually use them in espionage, thievery and the rest as the division and her vision of it expanded. For now, information, was her gold ticket with the Web or their version of internet put together by the Issian Corp giving little to none, though in their defense, they were restricted by the System itself in that regard. She believed they called it the Network. So most of their profits were coming from her sharing what her cadre of spies could gather. She also controlled what information she was willing to give.
She had gotten other requests, ones that could be lucrative if she was willing, several for forces to be used against other Factions but so far she had rejected those, much too early in the game for her and the Unchained to be creating animosity and enemies.
The issue was the Shadow Conclave which normally ruled the roost in the overall Multi-Verse when it came to assassinations but had given up their interest in that arena. No one organization had filled the vacuum. Many attempted to go to some Faction called Mors Immatura, some kind of ghost elves but they too had gone through some kind of restructuring and repurposing of intent and mission and also were no longer dealing in hired death. So across the Multi-Verse the Unchained had been approached to fill the void but the issue here was most Stealth type Classes were not sought after by the Faction as they were well, Mercenaries, hired to fight wars, skirmishes, guard things or people, not assassinate people. In fact, her forethought when explained to her Naga Boss, had first elicited skepticism but now was being instilled in ever facet of the Faction on a Multi-Versal level.
Her training programs were being charted and organized and disseminated through the hierarchy. That was neither here or there as far as the reality she swam within during the now. The World Council was fast approaching, a week out, and she had heavy agendas on the dockets.
If all her plans came to fruition the Unchained would be a permanent marker to Erebus and a solid outpost for the much larger Faction within the keynote planet of the current age. It would be a delicate dance but she was uniquely suited for such. She’d even began to think her close proximity to Oklahoma and Umbra Mortem could in the long run be an advantageous position for the Unchained. Of course that required that the two said Factions not only remain amicable to them but firmly tethered to each other but that seemed to be the way the road was being built brick by brick.
The tougher toss that led her to the image of juggling flaming sharp blades was most of her plans required her to somehow stay out of the War Crow’s cross-hairs and at some point doing her best to deliver now President Davis into his hands which to her mind was the only ticket she had to keeping herself off his target short list. She’d already been contacted numerous times by President Davis’s representatives to hire mercenaries and she’d allowed a few smaller contracts through to keep him on the hoof while she plotted his downfall. Luckily with her new Bloodline and the appearance that came with it she’d been able to keep her true identity hidden going by the Governor or Demon Queen so that her former running mate was none the wiser.
If Gideon Sho ever found out how involved she’d been in covering up all the misdeeds of the then Senator Davis and his cohorts or it was her that masterminded the media coverage and hunting down of the War Crow, it would not only ruin her plans but end up with her own existence in deep jeopardy. She knew she was powerful but there was something about Gideon Sho that told her to never be on the violent end of his attentions. She was within the hard press of a Devil’s handshake and had to make sure she ended up on the right side of that coin. Speaking of devils as she sat her now bountiful and luscious booty in her wondrous recliner in her newly minted office adjacent to her upgraded personal suite, she could hear the cackling hi-jinx of her wayward children coming down the hall. She sent a pulse to both of them to get their tushies in here and they knew better than to ignore her.
They were still bottled mischief she kept guzzling to see how many headaches she could achieve. She herself had reached Iron Rank at last a week before with the help of the Captain and a select squad of her elites as she joined them on contracts to end rampant Dens that were messing with a few Factions who didn’t want to risk their own fighters, the few they had, namely the Issian Corp, the Academy and the Consortium.
She’d gotten her little rug rats their last Ability as well though she was curious when they hit Iron if they got a Sub-Class as well. They themselves didn’t know or if they did the knowledge had been scrubbed out by the ever present System and its censoring of information and data. They rumbled through the door falling over each other, then as always dropping into a wrestling/biting match. Ugh. She let them go at it for a couple more minutes then finally held out her hand until two chocolate chip cookies appeared and they froze in mid-punches. Her voice was a whisper.
“Only if you behave for Momma children.”
They both twisted from viciously punching each other and oblivion anger to sweet sharp tooth leering grins that were their best approximation of cute innocence or as close as two demons could get. She handed them each a cookie which they seemed to never get enough of and wrapped them both with her tail, lifting them to the top of her desk as she threw a couple more cookies out.
They were adorable to her new demonique eyes, her Bloodline surging in motherly love. They were violent killers from some hellish landscape but they were her violent killers from some hellish landscape and she knew by all measures, with her Bloodline, she was now a violent killer from some hellish landscape or at least had the appearance of one. Her close to seven feet of height, devilish tail, exquisite horns upon her head and voluptuous curves that would entice Jesus himself to cracking an erection were every bit her tools as her Class and Racial Abilities. And now with Iron Rank and her new Sub-Class, all of it was accentuated, all of it weapons in truth.
She threw each of her boys the rubber chickens they also loved. It took them at least ten minutes to tear them apart and kept them out of trouble. She’d had to have them enchanted just to last that long.
Her Sub-Class double downed on her ability to charm and was a Rare Class called [Hell’s Concubine], another Intellectual Mage Class with a focus on manipulation and shoveling Attributes towards Agility, Intelligence, Potency and Will, giving her two Control Slots and a Utility/Support Slot though she hadn’t filled any of them yet. Her boys final Ability Slots were a done deal but worried her greatly. They were considered Summons and only had two-third her Level so were still Copper and though she could bring them back if they died she still worried.
Even within her own realm and moving up to Iron, gathering a Path and a Sub-Class and the added development of her Abilities by moving into Iron and everything getting more expansive it gave her the feeling at some point she would run into someone who could do more than just kill her babies.
While they were occupied she pondered their final Abilities and what she could do to help them against any horrific future. Jinx rolling right along with his theme got [Impish Fools] which allowed him to teleport within a hundred yards leaving a bomb of Hellfire in his place. Well, it didn’t quite fit the whole Saboteur theme except in a very Jinx way. She’d forbidden him to use it within the Settlement. He’d so far mostly followed that rule. There had been the one time where he blew up one of her mercenaries who’d attempted to manhandle her baby for stealing her towel when she’d gotten out of the shower but she’d only been somewhat maimed before a healer could get to her. Some burn scarring on both of her legs, she’d get over it.
Toto on the other hand had gotten something that was constantly fraying her nerves. It was called [Simulacrum’s Envy] which let him make a copy of himself that he could control. It had no physicality to it which meant it could run through walls, sink through floors and other things but he could inhabit it and laugh, and run and cause a whole lot of issues. Even with all the bullshit they brought she would slaughter anyone that that thought to hurt them. She would need to figure out some added protections for them but so far her mind was a blank. The System wouldn’t allow them to use any equipment or armor for some reason. They couldn’t equip things. It was frustrating to say the least and another unexplained vagary of the Systems’ bullshit.
While they were tethered to their rubber chickens gnawing on them she had business to take care of, the largest one chasing down and confirming that one Gideon Sho was back. His possible death had seriously had her nerves on a tightrope of everything falling to pieces then her spy had slipped a small message saying rumor abounded that he reappeared earlier in the day but was supposedly very injured. The Demon Queen didn’t care if he was injured, it meant life and she had no doubt he would make a full recovery.
She would always place her bet on the War Crow. It had been confirmed a few hours earlier when he and Umbra Mortem had appeared on the Leader Boards. That he was still Copper was a conundrum and a worry with the World Council at their doorstep but she was sure he would figure it out. He also had the whore at his..she quickly admonished herself. If she was going to bring him to her side and eventually to her bed and his cock between her thighs she would need to start schooling herself in the mentality that would see it so.
She’d come to the hard conclusion that she was not strong enough to actually rise to the very top. It was difficult with her Bloodline pushing against it but when she slid to the secondary strategy of manipulating and controlling the man who would? To control a man one needed to control his cock and she was a master of that game and doubly so with her Bloodline, body, and Abilities. When she’d shifted to that image her Bloodline practically purred. That was it’s natural inclination, to puppet things behind the scenes. Yes. She would still be the Queen of Erebus, it would just take careful maneuvering and seducing a cock inbetween her thighs. Well withing her skill sets. It made her wet just thinking about it. She used the System to send a message to one of her Beastkin Captains. She has a use for his massive meat.
***
Infernal Salamander Den – Near Freeborn – The Temple – Erebus
***
Giovanni Marcos, Ex-Mob Enforcer, Ex-King of hookers and the homeless and current #3 on the Leader Boards for the entire world of Erebus was wiping lizard guts of his fav blade by the name of ‘Fang’. To be exact, Infernal Salamander Lizard guts but still lizard guts and ‘Fang’ being the name of his fav blade. A large falchion shaped blade with a jagged sharp edge meant more for tearing than cutting but his numero uno boy to go along with ‘Esmeralda’ his lovely lady that just so happened to be an Eldritch Rune Pistol. She was beautiful and he told her that numerous times a day even if his new Queen, damn, that was hard to get his head around, looked at him funny for talking to his weapons and even more so for naming them.
He tried to explain once but her look of confusion stopped him halfway through. She’d gotten the same look when he attempted to explain his ‘Fuck you’ fighting style. Some people just didn’t appreciate the finer things in life. He might be some ex mobster and thick as a door post but he had layers upon layers. He chuckled as he pulled ‘Esmeralda’ and shot the hurt lizard that had tried to sneak up him in the face, the eldritch energy disintegrating the Peak Copper creature’s entire head, face included.
“That’s right baby. Show these fuckers what we do to the shit stains that step on our territory.”
Her smooth melodic voice shocked him.
“You talking to your weapons again Gio?”
He turned and grumbled then leaned in to whisper to Esmeralda.
“She doesn’t know what she’s saying lovely. Don’t take it personal.”
He glanced up and threw a wink at the drop dead beautiful woman in front of him, her wiping the blood and guts off her double stabby whatever her weapon was, twinsword thinga-ma-jig. Both their armor was also covered in the lizard blood but what ya gonna do? He was still as always thrown for a loop that she could actually sneak up on him.
She was the only one he’d ever met who could somehow mask her mind from his ever present Slotted Ability [The Eldritch Mind of the Old Archaic]. The strangest fucking shit about it was when he’d asked her about it she said she had no clue why. He wasn’t sure he believed her but he’d been a down in the gutter street offal and now he was a god damn weird ass Mind Knight with a magical gun and magical sword and magical armor. And he still kicked ass in both worlds which was the best part.
He turned around again after his inner-monologue which was tits gold if he said so himself cause he sensed another lizard attempting to sneak from a side tunnel in the large cavern they were in. Even without his ever present ever kick ass Passive these guys sucked blue balls at sneaking. They were eight foot long bright red ass lizards that glowed like a rave stick with heat. Fucking retards thinking they were gonna go ninja anything.
He holstered his hunny bunny ‘Esmeralda’ as he watched A’Deri slaughter the smoking lizard in holy flame and the glittering edges of her double-sword Jedi stick. They’d almost finished up clearing this Den. They now just needed to find the crystal thingy that was it’s core.
The first few they’d cleared they’d just destroyed the thing but his little Gold Dragon overlord God guy that he was the Champion/Hero of sent little birdies in his ear giving him a better option. So the last couple they’d taken the core and little Miss Angelic Princess here had shoveled into their own City Core to get a big kick in the ass boost. Their City had gone from nothing all the way to Fortress Rank. He wasn’t sure it was the smart move but he approved anyways when his new Queen started taking anyone and everyone.
All those with no home, the broken, confused, children, anybody. They’d also gotten all the Celestials the Sanctum hadn’t recruited or kidnapped and quite a few defectors who weren’t into the whole slavery kick.
Granted they’d immediately taken the few they could trust and had them keep an eyeball out on traitors in their midst but personally Giovanni thought it was too early for such as it had only been half a week since they’d killed the second assassin squad the Sanctum Leader, the Iron Bitch, had sent after his new Queen, again, that title difficult for his head to get around, and only a day and a half since he’d personally tracked down their leader who’d turned tail and ran.
The fucker even attempted to hide when Giovanni had cornered him not understanding to him his thoughts were like a church bell ringing out his exact location. He’d give the man his due, he was a tough bastard but not tough enough and he fought with fear. Some judicious application of ‘Fuck you’ bitch slaps with his helmet nutting him in the face and lo and behold, he went down like a street hooker with a few green hundreds in hand.
The World Council was almost on them and A’Deri was really amped for it. Granted, she literally wanted to go to just tear the fucking head off the Iron Bitch and he seriously was attempting to find a good reason not to just pin the fucker down for her and let her go to town but he highly doubted the System would have a World Council and allow people to just start killing each other. There had to a be a lot of hard core grudges worked up through all this shit.
Now trying to explain to her that reality had been too much of a challenge. Once she got her blood pumping she was a hard case to get to simmer. He had a guess her angel blood she’d chosen to pop into had something to do with it and her combat Class.
He’d never gotten a Blood transfusion himself. What they called a Bloodline, sounded pretentious as shit to him, never having gone to an Elite Tutorial but his Class gave him urges, big fuck you urges whenever he saw injustice or anyone getting bullied. He came out of another mind toss to see she’d found and was pulling out the core to this Den off a small pillar that had risen out of the ground.
She threw it in her storage ring then did the heroin blinky thing that told him she was staring at some System bruhaha. Her voice threw him for a loop when the question came.
“Do you know who Gideon Sho is?”
The words splashed against his brain. He’d totally fucking forgotten the old geaser, the kung fu hustle dragon lizard who was his Boss, Godfather, whatever the hell you want to spitball it as. Really the big honcho hadn’t contacted him since the day he’d willy nilly tossed the whole Champion shit on him and a compass saying to save ms Angel Girl’s tushi., except for the bidy message about the Den cores.
He caught her eyes staring at him with that irritated look she got when she thought he was ignoring her. He had to admit there were times she was right and he was ignoring her. She was a good woman but damn, demanding. She’d been some big rebel leader leading the peasent/slave Shade Elves against the ruling nobility who according to her were a bunch of slavers, rapists and over-all assholes. Good cause as far as he was concerned but it meant she was used to snapping orders out like twenty hammers to one small fucking nail.
He didn’t mind supporting her and doing good work with helping people like she was doing but fuck a whore sideways, he didn’t jump to anyone barking at him. Even his old Bosses knew better than to yammer at him. They knew he’d do what they’d ask but they knew well enough to ask, phrase it as a request and be damn respectful.
And that was back then, before he’d been King of the New York streets and protector of the homeless, hookers, runaways, drug addicts, the forgotten and broken.
He would support her angelic ass but he didn’t bow to no one anymore. Back to the whole Queen title she’d taken sticking in his craw like a three day old tuna sandwich. Ugh, not his best metaphor but they couldn’t all be wing dingers. Gideon Sho. Kung-fu Dragon man said he needed to reach out and connect to the fucker.
He’d pass that message onto the Angelic Queen and let her get her panties in a twist over it. As far as he thought, the guy still sounded like a pansy. Went by the title the War Crow, like fucking seriously, how anime simp could you get? At least at his hot stuff Queenie’s urging he’d finally gotten his Abilities filled up on a full tank and miraculously had stepped into Iron Rank. She kept giving him shit with a grin about she’d done it over a week before him. He gave her a wink then knowing she’d blow her top after ignoring her and he’d definitely been ignoring her. She reminded him of his Irish Lass, both of them were good girls except this girl was more of a drop dead get his cock pressing against his drawers woman then a girl but he’d been doing his best to ignore that reality. He was only semi-successful when she raised her eyebrows with a grin looking down at his traitor erection.