That evening after leaving the company of the Prince, Nua sat in her office staring down at the paper on her desk. She had read none of it despite it sitting beneath her eyes for more than thirty minutes.
“Are you listening at all, student of mine?” Solution asked from over her left shoulder. She reached down and touched the wood elf’s shoulder and squeezed it tight.
She shook her head. “No… I’m sorry, Teacher. I’m still thinking about the Prince and his, ah… proposal.” Nua said and a flustered look came over her face when she looked up to one of the few she allowed to lay a hand on her.
“I said, I’m ready to go.” Annoyance passed over Solution’s face, “You’re worse than a virgin human teenager.”
“Teacher… he caught me off guard, that is all, I didn’t expect…” She closed her eyes gently, “Ugh, I would have expected it from Sado but not from Rasgen. At least I managed to put him off for now.” Nua shook her head and ran her hands through her hair, lingering on the dark strands that felt softer than a fox’s fur.
Solution rolled her perfect blue eyes and waved the words away dismissively, “You’re all ridiculous, is it useful for you to marry him? Then do so. Is it inconvenient if you do so? Then don’t. If it will cause problems either way, devise some way to kill him.”
“It isn’t marriage, it’s the other activities that go with it that bother me. He’s a human. You know where I come from, what it was like. How can I ever look at a human male and…” Nua cut the sentence off sharply as Solution began to laugh.
“You’d do it with Raymond, wouldn’t you? If I got him back for you right now?” She asked and squeezed her student’s shoulder tighter than before.
“Teacher, it was never like that with Raymond. It was more like it is with you, intimate in a way, but more like an intimate trust. I knew he’d never lie to me, never do anything that wouldn’t make me stronger. I never slept with him though, he never sought that, and I never offered. I just want him back because…” Nua thought for a moment, asking the only god she served for the wisdom to answer well. “...because he shouldn’t have died the way he did, when he did. He was a great man, a great hero… maybe he lived a lot of his life as the villain, but what of it? Who is good that isn’t also evil? Nobody I’ve ever met, except for maybe the weak or the impotent who don’t have the strength to do what needs to be done.” Her words were cast out with bitter revulsion as she thought of the way she held Sobella’s hand as the woman was torn apart.
“If Raymond were returned to me… I don’t know what would happen. I wouldn’t be the one he remembers anymore, but he’d be back, and that’s good enough for me… I think.” She said, then added reluctantly within her own thoughts.
Solution let out an exasperated sigh, “You’re as prudish as those people up in… what was that city called? Shog’nai? Don’t be absurd, especially here. If it gets you close to the throne before you officially declare Komestra to be reestablished after harvest, that’s reason enough.”
Nua immediately chose a change of topic, “So, you’re ready to go then? A little field trip with the Pain Children?”
“Yes, exactly. They need to become comfortable with the darkness as early as possible, and it is far, far easier when you get them young. I will give you credit… they were an excellent idea.” Solution said emphatically, but Nua only shrugged.
“They’ll be useful… by the way, how is Number Four adapting? I’ve been meaning to rename her, but she seems to like her name as it is.” Nua asked with a hint of pity and concern for the unfortunate foundling.
“Let me put it this way…” Solution said in her serpentine voice and went to Nua’s left side and crouched down so that she was even with the Duchessa. She touched Nua’s right cheek and turned the elf to face her. She then said enthusiastically, “I really… really like her attitude.”
“That bad, is she?” Nua asked flatly.
“By the standards of inferior beings, very bad. She thinks nothing of bloodshed and isn’t moved to pity by anyone’s pain. She takes directions well, and has no concept of mercy. She refers to you as ‘her new Crawlmaker’ as if that were just an everyday thing.” Solution’s chortle was not disconcerting to the elven assassin. However, she did feel pity for the unfortunate girl.
“If you want my opinion, you’d better collar that one.” Solution’s voice became harsh as she gave the guidance, and Nua’s eyes widened.
Nua immediately began to argue, “But she’s just a child, bringing her back ‘free’ is excellent for my reputation, and besides…”
Solution was in no mood to hear it, and she overrode her student, “Someone like that needs tight controls, she’s still finding her feet here, but it won’t be long before she’s worked out that not everyone around her is property. She’ll learn the difference between collars and no collars. Once she knows that? She’ll start killing, because that’s what she thinks those who have ‘freedom’ are supposed to do. I don’t care, if you want to dispose of a few bodies here and there… but as people go, that one is a fireball waiting to burn someone.”
“But… I freed her.” Nua said and thought about everything from the moment she found the ranch.
“Maybe one day you can again. But as of now, by the law of this land you have the right to put her in iron. She is a foundling child, not of this city and with no family, you have noble status and brought her onto your lands. Don’t think I haven’t prepared for this, my student. I know you have a weakness for this kind of thing. You have the right to change her legal status, and if you don’t? Sooner or later that little monster in a human body will be found chewing on the corpse of a slave. She’ll be an excellent assassin. She may even bond with the others she works or trains with, but I promise you, Nua, she will turn on the rest of them.” Solution’s words were uncompromising, and almost uncharacteristic.
‘I already own dozens of others… what is one more…?’ Nua thought grimly. “Fine, tomorrow, bring her to my office.”
As if to distract herself, she added, “Enjoy your little excursion tonight, but they are children, they do still need their rest, give them the experience they need, and then let them sleep. I am responsible for them after all.” Nua said without thinking, and Solution chuckled in response.
“Not to worry, my student, the little Pain Children will be back in time to get a full night’s sleep.” Solution laughed harder and exited the office, “Speaking of, you should go to bed as well, I’ll join you later and tell you how it went.”
“That’s… yes, as you say. I am worn out, a good night’s sleep would do wonders.” Nua stood slowly, sliding the chair over the floor and heading for the door.
She moved slower than she usually did, but covered her lack of poise before the guard outside by stretching and yawning casually as she headed for her room. She stripped out of her clothing and briefly considered reaching for her night clothes, or summoning Kaiji or Priceless to assist her, then thought the better of it. ‘They deserve an undisturbed night, let them have that.’
She climbed under the thick covers, the faint rustling sound a comfort to her ears, and began to drift off much faster than she expected.
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Solution took four tall wicker baskets, each one half the size of one of her four children and laid them out in a neat row. She looked out over her little ‘Pain Children’, each of them dressed in deep blood red, with a cloak of black which they had put over their heads. They sat on their heels and waited while Solution gave them their instructions. “Each of you is going to get into one of these baskets.” She took the top off of each basket in turn and gestured to the empty space. “None of you are to move or speak until I give the order, you may end up with a few bruises, but nothing else will happen to you. You have my word, and what did I tell you about my promises?” Solution gave them a genuinely warm smile as she considered what she was going to see.
“Lady Solution never lies.” They repeated in unison.
“Very good.” Solution said and pointed to a basket in front of Number Four. “Get in.” She ordered, and Number Four stood up with passive indifference, approached, and stepped inside.
Solution put the top back on and closed a latch over it both front and back, sealing it up. She pointed to the next, in front of Veema, who did not need the order, she simply stood up, got in, crouched down, and waited while it was sealed.
Lenah and Straen however, were holding hands tightly and had inched closer together. “Please… Please not that, Lady Solution… Bracer did that to us… Bracer made us ride in bags on his horse… it was dark… it was…”
“Does Bracer own you?” Solution interrupted them. The question forced them to stop and think.
“If you could stab Bracer, and kill him, but you had to hide in a basket to do it, would you?” Solution pressed and crouched in front of the pair of twins as they clung to one another. Her sweet voice was enticing, her smile, warm, she reached out and touched their shoulders with each hand. “Your mistress defeated Bracer. She made him scream and cry, mutilating him so that he could never hurt you again. You may be frightened… but do you know what is worse than that?”
Their wide, innocent eyes stared at her attentively. “Nuh uh…” They said and shook their heads as one.
“Letting him continue to control you. I won’t ‘force’ you into those baskets. But if you get in, together… you’ll take back part of what he took from you. Do you want to grow stronger… or do you want to belong to Bracer forever? When you complete your training with me many years from now, you will be stronger than he ever was. Killing people like him will be a mere game to you. But if you don’t get in those baskets… everything stops. Then you’ll never repay your mistress for saving you, and Bracer will always have a place in your minds to rule as if you were still his.” Her hypnotic voice pounded into their ears, which twitched and they turned to look at one another.
“Hmpf.” They said after whatever eye-contact based conversation went on between the white haired girls was done, they dropped their clinging hands and made them into tiny fists. They then stood up, got in the baskets, and crouched down.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
“Good girls.” Solution praised them and patted their heads. She sealed them in and attached all the baskets to the sides of the horse at the front and back of the saddle. ‘That was easier than I expected.’
Solution then mounted the horse and rode for the gate with her little ‘cargo’ hidden at the sides of her horse. Departure was easy, nobody paid much attention to those with enough money for a horse of their own. This was especially true when it was such an expensive mount. No simple draft horse, this one was black as night and towered over grown men. It was a warbeast suitable for the finest of Pas’en’s heavy cavalry. ‘For an inferior life form, it is majestic looking, even if it is limited by virtue of being alive for the moment.
She rode until she was well out of sight, and her acute senses found nobody else alive nearby. She then dismounted the horse, removed each basket, set them aside, a pair shifted as if preparing to emerge. “Not yet.” Solution hissed quietly.
She then approached the horse, it stared dumbly at her when she put her hand to its thick neck. A sadistic expression formed on her face, and she then pushed her hand through its flesh.
The hissing and popping of the burning horse flesh hit her nose even before its whinny of pain. It tried to buck, only to be held fast by her hold on the reins. The head thrashed and the fearless and powerful eyes were reduced to terror and pain in an instant while she killed it.
Within seconds, it was over. The horse toppled to the dirt road with a heavy thud, its legs spasming when the body tried to deny the unavoidable death.
Solution paid little attention to that to the meat that had once been a living being, instead she took out one of her many [Raise Dead] scrolls and used it on the body.
The unliving beast slowly stood up, it made no whinny or noise, its eyes were as lifeless as before, seemingly unaware. It simply ‘waited’ until its maker chose to use it.
Solution then resecured the baskets to the beast, mounted it again, and rode with the swiftness of the darkness that followed each setting of the sun. Cloaked in the night, she leaned forward, her perfect blonde curls picked up by the wind, they flew behind her as she raced over the ground, the pounding hooves created constant dull thuds like drums in the darkness. The pleasure of the coming blood was written on her face and she lost track of how long she rode, but she knew where she was going.
She followed turn after turn on the road, moving farther and farther east until the hint of her prey struck her nose. Solution sniffed the air, ‘He is close… so close…’ She licked her lips and turned her lifeless mount toward the helpless and unsuspecting target.
She slowed the horse down as the scent grew stronger, finally she crested a low rise and caught sight of what she was looking for. A distant light, and indications of a lone inhabitant. She rode more slowly, more cautiously. The undead beast was silent as the grave save for the soft thud of hooves over dirt road.
As she approached, the living horse belonging to her prey grew more anxious, spooked by the undead, it pawed at the ground, bobbed its head trying to loose the reins from the post it had been secured to. Solution eyed the little camp, a small but decent looking blue tent had been pitched by the road. A few feet away, an oar lay by the fire. ‘I didn’t really expect her to use that story.’ Solution snorted back a dry laugh and approached the tent.
She listened quietly, the sound of snoring told her what she needed to know.
‘The head is here.’ She thought, and dissolving away a portion of the fabric, she made a fist, and rapped down on the sleeping head hard enough to turn ‘sleep’ into ‘knocked out’.
She pricked up her ears again and sniffed the air. ‘Nobody for… how far? Yes, quite a way, and those are asleep if I’m one to judge.’ Solution approached the baskets, removed and dropped them to the ground, each girl grunted a little except for Number Four, who retained her silence.
Solution then undid each catch, removed the tops, and said simply, “Get out, my little Pain Children. Time for your lesson.” She gave it a delightful little sing-song voice, and one by one their little legs emerged out of the darkness of the baskets, and into the darkness of the night that covered their world.
“Lesson one, our target is here.” She pointed to General Leaman’s unconscious body. “I’ve taken care of the hard part, tracking him down and knocking out, but now here are your tasks. How should we disguise your involvement, you want him to disappear, but nobody to know why or how or that you had anything to do with it.”
“Eat him?” Number Four said instantly. “No body, no problem, right?” She shrugged, and Solution reached out and gave the little girl in the line a pat on her thick blue hair.
“Not a bad answer, but not really workable for you… and could you eat all that in one sitting?” Solution pointed out the bloated overweight body.
“No… that might take a long time.” Number Four said in a little girly voice of annoyance.
Veema pointed to the distant woods. “Put him there. Nothing will be left but scraps in no time.”
Lenah and Straen thought about that and glanced at each other before giving a quick nod. “Yes, that.”
Solution raised a finger then pointed around the area. “Good. So we first need to take him there, but… what about his camp and his things?”
The girls looked befuddled, finally Veema spoke up, “Could we… maybe toss it in a lake or river?”
“If we had one, that would be a good answer, but assume you don’t have that as an option.” Solution replied and let them chew on their lips and tongues while they thought.
“We got a fire here… burn some of it maybe?” Number Four suggested, shuffling her feet as if she wasn’t sure if the answer was good.
“Good, the tent can be burned, and the wooden stakes can be mixed with the firewood. What about his money and possessions?” Solution asked.
“Well, woods, but…” Straen thought it over, “Once, big sister said I took one of her toys, but it wasn’t me, it was Lenah, the toy just was where I slept.”
Lenah blushed. “Wasn’t on purpose.”
“I still got spanked.” Straen pointed out.
“I see, so… get other people to take things like his horse?” Solution asked, and when Straen nodded, Solution gave her a pat on her white haired head as well. “Good, good. Now, follow me.” Solution took the former noble by the foot and dragged him to the undead horse.
She then flopped him over one side, the girls stared at the undead beast with shock, fear and awe for a few moments.
Solution laughed, “Magic, necromancy, the most worthwhile of all magics to study. Not to mention one of the most useful, but don’t worry, this beast is under my control, just walk beside it and get comfortable.”
Accustomed by now to obeying her, the four did as Solution instructed, taking the unconscious man off the road, over the green field of grass and plants, and taking him into the dense woods.
The branches whipped around, foliage crunched underneath, nobody felt the need to ask Solution if it was safe, as there was no real doubt.
By and by, Solution found a suitable place. The trees overhead blocked out much of the light from even the brightest stars, leaving the whole area wreathed in shadow.
Solution removed from her pack a short length of rope, secured it to his wrists, tossed it over a thick branch, and hauled his body upright. She then went to the saddlebag of the horse and procured four knives.
“Line up.” Solution said as she turned around and held the knives up in her hands like playing cards ready to be used in a game.
“Now, this is your next task, this man has to die.” Solution said in a slow, patient teacher voice.
“For eating? Who’s eating him?” Number Four scratched her head, confused.
“No… because…,” Solution thought about it for a moment, “do you like hot baths, hot meals, warm beds?”
Number Four nodded emphatically. “Uh, huh!”
“Well, this man tried to kill the woman who got all that for you. If it were up to him, you would still be in your pen with the eatmen.”
Number Four scowled at the old nobleman.
He didn’t say anything, the unconscious seldom did.
“And you, Lenah, Straen, do you remember what we talked about with Bracer? The things he used to do with you, and make you do?” Solution laid it on thick, the twins instantly grasped one another’s hands.
“He tried to kill the woman who saved your life, who gave you everything, avenged your mother, your sister, and if he had his way… well, you’d have been sold, separated, and would never see each other again. You might have ended up with someone just like Bracer…” Solution pointed to the old noble again, “and he wouldn’t have cared.” Two scowls matched that of Number Four.
“And Veema… that’s the woman who gave you freedom, who saved you from the person who hit you and took you from your mother… and saved your mother from a fate worse than death. He tried to kill that woman, who gave you everything… now what did I say was the proper response to those who try to do that?”
“Take everything.” All four said together in perfect harmony.
Solution handed out the knives one by one, and a low moan sounded from where General Leaman hung by his wrists.
“What… where…” Leaman was looking around, frantic and anxious, when he caught sight of the five people in front of him, and realized his hands were bound.
“Oh good, you’re awake.” Solution said and casually approached him, her hips swaying sensually in the faint light that made it through the few cracks in the tree canopy above.
“I was afraid you might sleep through this. I’ve always believed that people should know why they’re being killed, the bitterness adds spice.” Solution said with a quick licking of her lips, her sweet voice did not match the smile of cruelty that followed. Her hand darted up and grabbed his jaw, she began to squeeze hard enough to crack the bone.
“You made a serious mistake, Leaman. You crossed the Duchessa Aiwenor, my student. Nobody else has any claim on her but I or the god of death. Curse your fate, curse your foolhardy efforts, they’ve all come to nothing. You’re about to die, and your Prince? Your Precious Rasgen? If he does what you hoped, he’ll join you. I guess we’ll see about that. Well, you won’t… you see, I am busy educating the next generation, and you are my practice dummy. The Duchessa’s girls will finish you off.”
“Mewcy! Wash pwomised mewcy!” Leaman’s eyes bugged out of his head as he shook with pain at the tight clenching and slow burning of the flesh around his jaw as she dissolved her way through it.
“This is mercy Leaman. The Lady Aiwenor worships the god of death, and death is a mercy to those in agony… those like you.” Solution said, and pain shot through his body as his jaw was removed entirely.
“Hawgaha hawahagawah!” he bucked and flailed as his tongue flopped about almost completely useless, dangling from the hyoid bone, the connective tissue that secured it to the jaw was gone, most of its motion was gone with it.
“It’s a mistake to let your enemies live, most of the time. And we do not tolerate mistakes, we correct them.” Solution said casually and stepped aside from the dangling, swaying, groaning man.
Solution clapped her hands and in a sing-song voice she said to the four, “Alright, my little Pain Children… attack, and remember, if he lives for more than five minutes, I’ll let him have another try at ruining your lives again.”
Little howls of fear and frustration from three throats rang out in the woods, they were more beastial than human. Number Four however, was quiet and calm, as they surrounded him, he tried to speak, to plead, but his tongue could not form proper words.
‘No! It isn’t true! I didn’t! You can’t! Please don’t!’ He didn’t know if the thoughts were translated into comprehensible words, pain was filling his world, he barely registered the little predators. He swung about on the rope, his wrists felt like they were on fire. In vague desperation, he flailed out, kicking at any of the four to come too close to him. His eyes bugged out of his head in terror.
Number Four was the first to land a blow, her knife went straight into his kidney. He shrieked and bucked, kicking at her despite his agony and striking her hard enough to knock her down. Her blue hair fell among the grass, and it was like it was a signal to act. “Shi-” He started to cry out… only to be cut off as...
The other three raised their knives up as they’d been taught, and charged from all sides, Number Four joined them a moment later when she got back to her feet. They hacked, stabbed, and slashed at the obese former council member. Blood and organs spilled from his guts as his body was opened from one tearing wound after another. They could see very little, and felt little injuries on themselves as their knives, slick with blood and viscera, caused their grips to slip and cut their own flesh.
But the spectre of fear and hatred that Solution had laid out before them drove them on, it was artless, it was clumsy… but the knives were sharp, his flesh was soft, and they did ‘try’ to hit the points Solution had taught them to aim at.
Leaman was dead well before Solution threatened to tell them they were running out of time.
“Good girls, very good girls.” Solution said, ‘Alright it was shit… but it was a first kill, and they did take to it quickly, so that is praiseworthy to encourage further learning.’
She went to each of them and patted their heads, three of the four looked about to cry.
“We’re safe, we did good? He won’t take us away, he won’t hurt the mistress?” Lenah and Straen asked and Solution stroked their cheeks.
“No, no he won’t, everything will be just fine, you can trust me.” Solution smiled at them, and then added, “Now, typically you would need to clean yourselves as well, after all you wouldn’t want to be ‘caught’ looking like you’d murdered someone. Especially if you’ve actually done so.” She giggled a bit at the dark humor and let the girls take a moment to look one another over, they were a grim, bloody, and slippery sight.
“However, since you’re wearing black and red, the blood blends in, and since cities stink, you’ll go unnoticed as long as you don’t have any on your skin where people can see it.” Solution gave them their hands-on instruction, then took them through wiping themselves down, cleaning away all evidence of their actions, until their faces, hands and visible hair were all as if they’d just emerged from a bath.
Solution cut down the body to let it fall into a bloody heap where it would be picked away and torn to shreds by beasts. She then took them through the disposal of the campsite. Driving away the horse had been as easy as releasing it from its bonds. Thanks to the presence of the undead, the mount required no more motivation, it ran and ran and ran far beyond sight and sound.
She then had the children return to their baskets, secured them tightly, and rode back to Pas’en as fast as she’d left it. Stopping out of sight of the opposite gate only to remove the girls, once they were out, Solution emptied the contents of the saddlebag, held the horse by the reins, pointed north, and said simply ‘Run’.
It began a high speed gallop that it would not stop until someone, perhaps thousands of miles away, killed it a second time.
“Now… we go back home, and get a good night’s sleep.” Solution said to them, wondering idly if any other than Number Four would sleep well at all.