by Eric Ugland
The long answer was noooooooooooooo. The chains could not come off. At least not with the tools or skills at hand. The magic involved in the chains was very powerful. I worried they’d be pretty much permanent until death.
Harmut and his dwarves chiseled the chains out of the wall, and I just dragged them around with me as I made my way around The Master’s lair.
There was the large carpeted dining room. Directly behind the dining room was a crude kitchen dominated by a deep fire pit with a metal grate across the top. Perfect for whole-corpse cooking.
On one side of the large chamber was The Master’s quarters, which was a strange place. It had trunks upon trunks, all full of clothing. All different clothes, too, from all sorts of cultures, and in all different sizes. Ballgowns, tights, hose, hobnail boots, tunics, tabards — it was an incredible collection. We found some magical items which I had packed up and sent to the treasury before anyone could get any ideas.
Then there was a large pool of saltwater. Not like ocean water — more gentle than that, in terms of salinity. And of course, there were the heads. Rows of glass jars filled with heads suspended in some preserving solution.
Of the eighty-three heads found in The Master’s chambers, plenty were from my people in Coggeshall. Emeline, Nikolai, the cleaning lady, several guards. But thankfully, no children. There were also several dogs, a cat, and three different birds. There didn’t seem to be any sort of predilection for races, as the collection represented every type of race I knew. Save minotaurs. No minotaurs. I wondered if that was because of their size — maybe because they couldn’t fit down the chute, The Master didn’t feel the need to take any.
Bear, Skeld, Ragnar, and Tarryn showed up just a few minutes after the hirð notice went out. I could see Ragnar’s wet face. He wore a smile, but I could see the sadness.
I hugged the little guy, and he grabbed onto me.
Skeld did as well.
Then Bear.
“I don’t hug,” Tarryn said.
Skeld reached out and snatched the warmancer into the hirðhug.
We remained like that for a moment.
There just weren’t words.
Nikolai had been there since the beginning, more so than anyone else in my life. And now he was gone.
“I don’t suppose Fiends’ Night is over,” I said.
It was not.
I hiked up all the stairs with the heavy chain wrapped around me, actually feeling the immense weight after the first few steps. It was grueling. I needed a shower, and then I needed to get to thinking.
We needed a chancellor. And we needed to prepare for whatever madness was going to come after Fiends’ Night. We had to make sure we had food for the winter. Make sure we could finish the wall, and the fort to guard the wall before winter was over and fighting season began. I had to figure out what the fuck was going on with the fucking Emperor, and what I would do with my vote. And, given how much pressure there seemed to be coming onto me, it wouldn’t be the worst idea to think about making some overt gestures of romantic interest in someone.
Just as I was about to enter my room, I ran smack into Darius, my face hitting his chest.
He looked down at me, a rare smile across his face.
“It’s happening,” he said.
“I need a bit more information,” I said, trying to extricate myself from the big guy and make my way more toward the shower and bathroom.
“The egg,” he said. “It’s hatching.”
“You’re kidding,” I said.
“I’m not, look!!” He pointed, and, sure enough, I could see small cracks forming across the shell.
“Your grace!” came a call from behind me.
“In here,” I yelled back, my attention on the egg, wondering what sort of monster was about to come through.
“There’s a challenge being called at the doors,” Nathalie said, out of breath from running up the stairs. “A devil calls you to fight, or he will destroy Coggeshall.”
I leaned back, staring upward, and shook my head.
“Motherfucker needs to take a fucking number,” I shouted.
Ready for Book 11?
I definitely am.
KILLING THEM AWFULLY
But The Bad Guys resumes August 12, 2021:
Back to One
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Author’s Note
February 19, 2021
Friends and other folk,
Thank you for joining me on this journey of stories. I’m having a ball writing in this world, playing with all these creatures and people and things. It’s definitely me gotten me through a lot of the monotony of quarantine, and I hope my books provide a little escape for you too.
Despite most everywhere else having a cold winter, it’s been surprisingly mild here in Oregon — no snow for us. I’m one of those weird ones who likes snow. If there were trees, decent pizza, and high speed internet, I’d probably consider Antarctica as my next home. Can you imagine how fun pet penguins would be?
Actually, a friend of mine broke into the London zoo once, and wound up getting bit by a penguin. So maybe not that fun.
I am moving this summer, so there’s going to be a bit of time where I’m not super connected to the world. But y’all are still more than welcome to email me. Especially if you feel like you need someone to talk to.
Life is hard as fuck these days, and there’s just so much going on. Are you doing okay?
I hope so. I care about you all. You are all awesome.
Time for me to go pound out some more words. Lots of fightin’ and battlin’ in this next book. Gotta go duck into the trenches and make war.
Smooches,
Eric
Also by Eric Ugland
The Bad Guys - Epic LitRPG/GameLit
Scamps & Scoundrels
Second Story Man
Skull and Thrones
War of the Posers
Seas the Day
High Gloom
Roseland - Private Investigator Mysteries
Series One
Series Two
Series Three
About the Author
Eric Ugland ran away from Seattle to join the circus. And then he came to his senses, and moved to Manhattan. Now he's a novelist in Oregon, trapped by trees and snow and bears. Mostly bears. SO MANY BEARS! You know, oddly enough, apparently a cougar lives along the creek that runs behind my house. How did that happen? Time to head back east to civilization…
The Good Guys and The Bad Guys are continuing LitRPG series I’m writing in the world of iNcarn8. They are discrete series, so you don’t have to read both, but if you do, you’ll get more from it. Join my reader group and be the first to know when new books come out.
Reviews help other readers find books. Please post a review on Amazon, even if it’s only a line or two. I appreciate all feedback, whether it’s positive or negative.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Chapter 82
Ready for Book 11?
Author’s Note
Also by Eric Ugland
About the Author
