A New World

by Brendan O'Neill

  “You’re going to show me mercy?” Salazar asked with a voice full of desperate hope.

  “Absolutely,” I said in an almost friendly manner. Then my face went hard. Salazar’s face clearly showed his shattered hope as my voice suddenly became malevolent again. “I will grant you the same mercy that you showed the elves. My people have a saying: What goes around, comes around. You inflicted a hell on those women that could never be described or forgiven. It’s the kind of misery that has to be experienced to fully understand.” I leaned close and looked deep into his eyes. “Governor Salazar, I wish you to understand.”

  I turned and beckoned to Tallus and the scar-faced elf. She cast a glance at her king who still wore a look of satisfaction at my perceived failure, but it was now tinged with a hint of confusion at my intentions. Still, he nodded to her.

  I whisper in Tallus’ ear first. His face screwed into a mask of confusion, but he strolled off into the maze of buildings. When I whispered into the ear of the scar-faced elf, her expression slowly changed. The first smile I’d ever seen on her face spread slowly as she turned to Salazar. While she followed my orders, Salazar screaming bargains the entire time, I strolled languidly to the collection of non-combatant women and children.

  “How many of you kids can write?” I asked with an easy smile. No responses. “Come on, now. I know some of you must be able to write. Hands up, all those who can write.” Another handful of seconds passed where nothing happened. Then, one by one, a collection of hands rose into the air. I picked six random youths and, when Tallus arrived with his armload of goods, I had him pass them out to the kids. One quill, one vial if ink, and several sheets of parchment to each youth.

  That part of my plan complete, I turned to the scar-faced elf who was waiting near Salazar. She had him bent over a wooden platform, tied at the wrists and ankles. She also had the male combatants lined up behind him. With a wave of my hand, her knife flashed out and cut a clean line down the side of his pants drawing a shriek of terror from Salazar. The pants fell away to present his pasty and ugly fat ass.

  “Ok!” I said to the gathered crowd. “I’m sure we’ve all figured out what Salazar’s punishment will be. More than that, each of them,” I said pointing at the line of men, “will demonstrate on Governor Salazar the same skills they presented in the Lounge.” A roar of objections rose from the men behind Salazar. I turned to them, waiting a minute or so for the noise to die down before I spoke over them. “Anyone man who refuses to, or is unable to…” I paused as I tried to find just the right word, “…perform, will be executed.” I pointed at the collection of almost a dozen women guardsmen. “Just like they’re going to be.”

  Helpless wails from the on looking civilians accompanied a torrent of denials and protests that erupted from the guards. Both male and female captives proclaimed their innocence. Dozens of alibis filled the air.

  “We were under orders!” called some men. “I never was in there!” screamed others.

  “Women wouldn’t use such a place!” cried each female guard in one way or another.

  On and on they went, and the excuses got more and more ridiculous as they did. I let them scream themselves horse. Eventually, the excuses came down to several variations on one theme dependent on their sex. Men said they weren’t given a choice by the mages or their superiors, and women said they didn’t use the lounge.

  After they’d screamed themselves down to choking sobs, I stared hard at them and answered their pleas. “Each of you says the lounge wasn’t your fault for one reason or another. But whether it be through your actions or your inactions, you allowed a travesty to happen. That can never be forgiven!” I motioned to the elves surrounding the female guards and the twang of bowstrings filled the air. Gasps of shock and screams of horror rose from the other prisoners as the women slumped to the ground like grotesque pincushions.

  I turned back to the line of men behind Salazar. “Now, each of you will call out your name, place of birth, and town of residence clearly,” I said enunciating the word ‘clearly’ carefully and turned to the six youths. “Each of you will then write that name, birthplace, and home town along with whether they performed or had to be executed. And you will do this with a clear hand. I want people to be able to read this with ease.” I turn back to the line of men. “After you call out your name and home town you will pull down your pants and take your turn at Salazar. Those who can’t or won’t perform will be executed. Those who finish the act, have served their punishment and may collect their family and leave once everybody’s served their punishment.”

  I glanced around the crowd as I sat on a pile of scrap wood. I looked at the man standing behind Salazar and waved at him expectantly. “Waiting on you,” I said sounding unconcerned, even bored.

  The man looked down at Salazar’s bare ass as he called out his name, birthplace, and home. He glanced around at the audience for a moment before working the nerve to pull down his pants. His legs started shaking visibly as he looked back and forth from his own dick to Salazar’s several times. Finally, he looked to me. “I… I’m not sure if I can,” he whined.

  “Well I strongly suggest you find the motivation,” I said. “You know what happens if you don’t.”

  He babbled and whimpered as he stared at Salazar. He tried everything, even talking to his dick. After another glance at me and the growing annoyance on my face, he started slapping his dick in desperation. Still nothing.

  I stood and started slowly toward the man, glancing toward the king and his associates on the way. The king stared impassively at me, the dwarves next to him in their armored faceplates that made them unreadable. My eyes found the man I was approaching. He was alternating between slapping and yanking his flaccid his dick even more desperately as he saw me coming. I stopped about six feet from his left and reached behind me for my pistol. I did promise Shieldwall a show after all. My arm rose and pistol barked.

  A fine red-pink mist erupted from the side of the man’s head and he fell away. I looked to the next man. “Ok, slugger, you’re up.”

  Things went much more smoothly after my little demonstration. The bargaining almost entirely ended and they seemed to accept their fate. I was surprised at just how many men could get it up. More than three quarters managed an erection. The others were beheaded by the elves. Salazar proved to be surprisingly resilient as well. He screamed through his first four sodomizers, then went silent. He survived the ordeal, although he was almost catatonic by the end and I had little doubt he’d have severe health problems for the rest of his probably short life.

  After the procedure was finished and the survivors prepared to clear out, I had the six youths sign their names along with the names of their fathers at the bottom of every document. I collected the six documents, and took them to the king.

  “One for the elves, one for each of the dwarf nations,” I said handing over the first three copies of the document, “and I believe I heard there were three major human empires?” The last three documents found their way into the king’s hands. Tallus wore his usual easy grin in spite of the circumstances. Nothing seemed to get that guy down. Although, looking around, I saw all the elves wore some kind of smile. Even the scar-faced elf carried a small smile from my inventive punishment.

  Rangers and Royal Guard alike, all the elves were laughing and clapping me on the shoulder like a war hero or long-lost brother. I’d earned their respect. I kept getting invites to various functions. One was to some form of ceremonial tea drinking that seemed to be a tradition held by the elf officers after victory. Another invite was to a wine party, which was the enlisted version of a wild night out.

  The king’s was the only elvin face that wore a glower, but it vanished quickly. His former big but empty smile returned to beam at me.

  “My friend, Jacob!” he boomed. “Today, you have truly shown your loyalty to the elvin peoples. But this action will not go unanswered by the human vermin. We will need allies, and I can think of no one better than yo
u to speak to them on our behalf. I know it’s a great deal to ask of someone who’s already done so much for our people, but you have proven yourself both resourceful and inventive. You are definitely the most qualified person to fulfil this expedition. Will you do this for the good of the elvin peoples?”

  For a second, my eyes narrowed at the man. A nasty feeling started creeping up the small of my back, but I had to ignore it.

  “I’d be honored,” I said pasting my own empty smile on my face. “What do I need to know?”

  “A war with just one of the human empires would devastate our people. Should the three great empires form an alliance, they’d slaughter us into extinction,” said the king. His head rolled back so he could look down his nose at me while his smile mutated into a superior smirk. “We cannot stand alone, but there are powers that would make even the human empires tremble.”

  “You mean like the dwarves,” I said. I knew the dwarves wouldn’t join unless the empires forced their hand; I already had that conversation with Shieldwall. The other dwarf empire was likely in the same mindset. But I wanted to see how gracious the king would be toward their predicament.

  “Our friends have concerns that have forced them to remain apart from our struggles,” the king said, “in spite of the fact that the humans will obviously turn their attention upon them after we are no more.” Several dwarf heads twitched in his direction at the less than diplomatic statement, but they said nothing.

  “There are others who we might call on, although it will be quite an ordeal,” the king said. “Few individuals have the skills necessary to win the trust of the three powers who can rival that of the empires.”

  A dark glint flashed in the king’s eyes. “There’s a mage who, while human, holds no more allegiance to the empires or Academy of Magic than you do. She’s peerless in her ability to control the weave, even surpassing the skills of our own superior spellcasters. Should she join, the Academy wouldn’t dare become involved.” Apparently that description was enough for the gathered to understand who he spoke of and they weren’t happy. Surprised and horrified gasps came from the mixed crowd.

  “Another are the darklings of the Dragontooth Mountains,” he said. “They breed in numbers that could sweep over the lands of the empires like a tidal wave of evil. Their cruelty and cunning make the humans seem like songbirds.” Shocked and angry grumbling rose from the crowd, but the king raised his hands.

  “My friends, I know these decisions are wild in the extreme, but now is the time to be decisive and bold,” he said with his usual empty smile. Then he looked to me. “But before both darklings and mage, before anything else can be done… there is a ruined castle at the Weald’s northeastern border that was ancient even when I was born. That, which was once the beacon of humanity’s blossoming influence, is now a ruin infested of undead abominations. It’s exceptionally difficult to kill that which is already dead, and adding their numbers to our own would be a priceless benefit.” This time there were no protests. Only stunned silence and bewildered faces. The crowd was aghast at the king’s list of hopeful allies.

  The scar-faced elf was livid, her face bright red and lavender eyes burning with rage. She turned to the king to complain, but the king spoke first.

  “These radical actions will ensure the survival of our people. I know they’re unpopular, but they are, also, an unfortunate necessity. And I have nothing but confidence in our hero, Jacob. So much so that I will send an honor guard of twelve Rangers along with him headed by our illustrious Lanisa here.” The king placed a hand on the shoulder of the scar-faced elf as he spoke her name. “Between them, I believe they will not fail!”

  The king finished his speech with a roar to his voice, obviously hoping for a resounding cacophony of shouts from the gathered in his favor. There was only silence. The support he’d hoped to garner was lost in the shocked silence from his outrageous statements. The entire crowd just stared mutely at the king. Except one man.

  Tallus walked forward to stand directly in front of his father. “I’ll go with them as well,” he said standing erect.

  “No, my son,” the king responded with a shake of his head. “I will need you to begin preparing our troops for war. The empires may strike before we have our allies, and we will need our people to be ready.”

  “But father…”

  “NO!” the king roared back. “I have made my decision and you will abide by it!”

  Tallus glowered at the king, then turned and stalked out of the compound.

  All was silent for a few heartbeats, before the king walked to me and placed his hands on my shoulders. “Come, my friend! We have plans to make and, more importantly, a celebration to throw in your honor. We shall celebrate your deeds until the coming dawn.” He turned to the dwarves. “I trust our honored guests will stay for such an important tribute?”

  “The representatives from Anvilston would be honored to attend,” came Sheildwall’s voice from behind her metal faceplate. “More than that, I would be honored to join in this diplomatic effort.” The king’s eyes flashed and a storm raged across his face at that statement for just a moment. “I believe I could help teach Master Jacob some of the finer points of diplomacy in these delicate proceedings,” she finished with a surprisingly regal bow given her full body plated armor.

  The king stared hard at the dwarf woman only for a heartbeat more before his large empty smile came back. “Of course, you’re welcome to join this noble endeavor,” he said. “The elves are always happy to have the cooperation of our dwarf allies. Now, come! We have a celebration to prepare for.”

  The king marched off flanked by his generals and advisors, giving this or that command to prepare for the celebration. He and his followers laughed as they went over ideas for my ‘tribute’ celebration, leaving me, Lanisa, and the dwarves to trail a few steps behind him.

  We were silent as he blathered on. The dwarves were taciturn when not drinking and marched in step like perfect toy soldiers. Lanisa was brooding over the king’s plan and I was glad that it wasn’t me, for once, that upset her. And my mind was racing far too quickly as it tried to puzzle out the king’s latest bullshit for any words to form.

  This whole plan of his stank like week-old sweat socks. I was wily enough to know the king was planning on my failure and imminent death. I didn’t know exactly how bad this was going to be, but he didn’t leave me much of a choice. If I hadn’t agreed to help he’d have used it as an excuse to alienate me which would have left my sister and I stranded in this world. Even if I die at least now she might make it home.

  Elf troops set the compound on fire as the last of their fellows filed out. Flames leapt into the night sky as the wooden buildings and palisade burned, loud cracks echoing for miles as pockets of moisture shattered wood. It was a farewell conflagration that lit our backs as we melted back into the elvin forest.

  The Revelation

  Never before or since that celebration, have I ever been that wasted. It started with the tea ceremony. The elvin officers neglected to tell me that it was something of a controlled substance. After two cups I was tripping balls pretty hard. When I arrived for the wine party thrown by my adoring elf troopers, I drank close to the standard 750ml with them. So, add all that to the wine I had at the actual celebration, then combine in the last of the dwarf ale, and I’m surprised my liver didn’t pack it in right then.

  I remember dancing with so many women that I couldn’t begin to count them all, and being so drunk that I stepped all over their feet. One woman in particular stood out because of her uniquely radiant auburn hair, though I was so drunk I couldn’t remember anything else about her. I think we only shared one dance before she disappeared like smoke in a breeze.

  I was told I didn’t do anything too embarrassing after I blacked out, but I had reason to doubt that since I was found sleeping naked under a pine tree next to the stream where I practiced. On the plus side, next to me under that pine tree was that perky and beautiful blonde I must have
met during the banquet.

  In the face of both hangover and elvin smirks, I managed to make our departure area just as the morning sky just started to lighten. The king was there to greet me and gave me my own set of lamellar armor, sword, and bow in a grand ceremony. Pomp, circumstance, and lofty music accompanied the ceremony to antagonize my raging headache.

  While the rest of the elvin nation was cheering my ‘heroic venture’, the king pulled me aside to give detailed instructions about the vampire who governed the Deadlands, and the different creatures to watch out for. Or as detailed as he could possibly be given he claimed to have relatively little information on the leadership in the Deadlands. He also handed me an ornate looking envelope. The terms of concessions to entice the undead into an alliance he’d said. Their eyes only, not mine. Ever the statesman, the king once again took center stage. After a long and public talk about how I held the fate of the elvin peoples in my hands, he gave me another very public embrace before leaving to meet with his advisers.

  Once the king finally shut the hell up, I found Kinsey waiting. She told me it was her and Melina that carried me out of the party, and that Tallus was conspicuously absent for the festivities. I’d been trying to figure out how to tell her she wasn’t going with me when she beat me to it. Everyone told her it was a simple diplomatic mission so she’d asked if she could remain behind. She actually tried to justify her need to stay and study with the elves rather than join me on a ‘dusty march into who the hell knows where’. I gave a show of looking disappointed before relenting.

  While numerous elves took the time to wish me luck on the journey, I glanced over at the ten Rangers that would be our guard. They stood off to the side getting instructions from Lanisa. A surprising member of their group, a beautiful young woman with uniquely radiant auburn hair, gave me a warm smile when our eyes met.

  Just after dawn the last of the procession finally arrived. True to her word, Shieldwall joined the procession along with five of her own Invincibles from Anvilston and another five Invincibles from Deephome. When I asked how she managed to get dwarves from Deephome she grinned at me. ‘Diplomatic cooperation and racial harmony’ she’d said with a grin. With Lanisa and her Rangers surrounding the party as an honor guard, we departed the elf city. Eleven dwarves in full metal armor along with thirteen elvin Rangers in cloaks made for an impressive retinue.