“Mathi, my first in a thousand years. Swear your loyalty to the king and the kingdom before I rip you apart.”
Mathi looked up and frowned. There was something in Lilith’s eyes, much more than just the desire to help me. She’d had a reason for proposing to create this creature. If it called her goddess right from its ‘birth’, there would be no mistaking whom it was loyal to.
“My lord, please accept my humblest apologies. My mind is a jumble of thoughts and emotions. Please, grant me your blessing to serve you and my queens to the best of my ability.”
“You can stand, Mathi,” I replied and motioned for him to do so. The crowd was mostly silent, trying to understand what was going on.
“Mathi,” Katya said, interrupting me. I shot her a glance, but she looked at me apologetically and then stepped closer to the man. “I look forward to seeing you fulfill your duties. Don’t forget that all the people here are the kingdom, not just the three of us.”
“My lady!” he replied, head held high.
At their words, the crowd went wild. Be it kings or emperors, they always thought about their own safety first, but not us. We were safe enough. We would have the power to topple nations, once we had our powers under control. Why be afraid?
“Stand, Mathi, and show everyone the power you’ve obtained thanks to queen Lilith.”
The young man flexed his arms and walked past the crowd, to a nearby tree. With a single hit, his hand pierced through the 2 feet thick wood. With two more punches, he felled the tree. The crowd went wild and pressed closer to us. One after the other, they called out to be changed next.
Lilith turned to me and smirked.
“That was easy,” she said over our link.
“Yeah. Too easy. We need to talk about this goddess thing. There’s much more to the change than what you’ve lead me to believe.”
“Ever watchful. Very good. Can we talk about it once we’re done here?”
“Sure. Don’t forget that we need to do so.”
I stepped in between the crowd and my queens, holding my right hand up to silence the villagers.
“Today, Mathi is the only one who will get to change. Sleep on it, talk to your families, husbands and wives, children or parents. There’s no turning back from this. Tomorrow, same time, the first group will be changed. No more than twenty!”
The crowd burst into motion and started discussing this loudly, as I turned my back to them. Alpha got up and pushed them back merely by yawning.
“Back to work!” Mathi called out as he walked up to Alpha. “Whoever needs help, call for me and I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
The crowd dispersed immediately, just like the fog had, moments ago. I sighed and looked Mathi over once again. He was much wider in the shoulders, as well as taller. His arms and legs were thicker than before the change as well.
“They could make for good soldiers,” I said as we walked back home. Lilith put her hand in mine and leaned in close.
“You have no idea. They might not be as strong as us, but trust me, one of Mathi is worth twenty Kravnian soldiers. Those who inherit special traits, which sometimes happens, are even stronger.”
“Wait,” I said and forced her to stop. “So we’re basically creating a full warrior caste here? Or a hybrid one, in which case they’re both workers and soldiers in one. Hold on. Can they have children?”
Lilith looked away and shrugged.
“Nope. But that’s a small price to pay, wouldn’t you agree? Anyway, we’ll need cattle to feed the Harken, as I used to call them. They can have privileges and serve to give birth to children.”
I shook my head in disbelief. I seem to be repeatedly underestimating this woman. Her nature is a lot less merciful than I would like to admit. She’s demonic, through and through.
“We need to go and see the guild master. Things are happening much too quickly for my liking. And if we don’t move before the Kravnians do, then we’ll have major problems with supplies in the future.” With that, we headed out to get ready and Lilith flew us there.
“Guild master,” I said and offered my hand to the old man, not even an hour after Lilith had created Mathi. His palms were sweaty, while mine were as dry as sandpaper. I could feel his heartbeat quicken as he laid eyes on both Katya and Lilith.
“Kane. Such a pleasure to see you again so… quickly.”
“Forgive my rudeness,” I replied and cut him off. The captain frowned and put his hand on his sword’s pommel and narrowed his eyes at me. “We don’t have much time. In fact, I think we’re out of time already. The dark magician must have reached their forward base and asked for more soldiers. I doubt anything short of a legion will be sent after us this time.”
Both the captain and guild master's facial expressions became alarmed.
“We need to warn the king! I had no idea things were that dire!” the old guild master yelled and pushed back his chair. His two small hands curled up into fists, trembling with rage as he tried to mask his fear.
“We don’t have any proof. Short of sending a captured officer down south, nothing else would convince him. You might know me, but the king doesn’t. In any case, Homitage is the next target. You have two choices, from what I can tell. Relocate your guild to my… lands, on the northern isle, or die fighting. We have a plan no how to weather this invasion, so if you’re interested, please, let’s agree on a deal, here and now.”
“I… don’t even know where to start, Kane. This is all a bit too much for me, I’m getting far too old. How many people can fit on the island, anyway, and won’t they find you there, regardless?”
“They can’t find something they can’t see, guild master,” Lilith interrupted. “I’ve put up a dome around the island which prevents anyone from seeing the island, unless they’re two hundred feet from the shore.”
“A dome, you say?” the captain now butted in. “That’s ancient, very potent magic. How do you know how to do such a thing?”
“She’s a demon queen and bound to me until I die. She can’t hurt me or anyone close to me. She’s sworn herself to our new kingdom and to protect it.”
“Kingdom? That’s blasphemy!” the captain growled and drew his sword.
“Captain!” the master yelled and got into the larger man’s face. “Don’t you think he deserves to be heard?”
The captain’s face turned to stone as he put away his sword.
“I have sworn allegiance to one king. I can’t do the same with a second, as long as the first still draws breath. I’m taking twenty of my men out of here and reporting this to his majesty within the day.”
“As you wish, captain. Try not to regret it later, when the kingdom starts crumbling around you and the screams of the dying won’t leave you during the night,” I said and offered him my hand. He narrowed his eyes at me and huffed.
“Good luck, oh false king.” With those words, he left the room.
Over the next half an hour, we’d explained everything to the guild master and a handful of sub-masters of different professions. Two were against going, but five were for it. Even though we hadn’t gained anything yet, I felt much better knowing that someone was willing to see reason.
“How many are there in the guild’s family?” I asked, as the food was brought in and dared a glance at both Katya and Lilith, who were sitting to my left and whispering about something.
“Three hundred, more or less,” one of the sub-masters replied. He was a thin and short man, with a thick goatee and square glasses.
“And how many ships of provisions do you have here?”
“Now that’s something you don’t need to know, young man!” the same man replied.
“He’s a king now, not a young man,” the guild master said angrily, reprimanding his subordinate. “It sure does matter if he asks, so answer the question!”
Square-eyes scowled but regained his composure pretty quickly.
“Enough to feed us for two years. All of us.”
“Mak
e that three to four, once my people have undergone the change,” I added readily. The food would last much longer than that, we’d make sure of it.
The guild master shook his head sadly and took a sip of his drink.
“Don’t play at being a god, my child. What you’re doing…. It seems unnatural.”
His words made me distinctly uncomfortable. Before I’d managed to reply, the guild master put up his hand, as if to stop me doing so.
“We’ll go with you and establish the guild. However, we will keep our neutrality in your… kingdom. We will work together, and pay whatever we need to, but we will not be bullied. Can we agree on this?”
Whatever I’d been ready to respond with angrily was quickly forgotten. The guild had a lot of skilled men and women in it, be it farmers, fishermen, herb gatherers, or miners and builders.
“I’m looking forward to--”
“Guild master!” a guard called and stormed through the door. “There’s an enemy army marching on the city! They’re half an hour out!”
28
“So, they’ve come,” I murmured. In no way was I looking forward to fighting today, but it wasn’t up to me. “Guild master. We’ll buy you whatever time we can. In the best case scenario, we will hold them back, and in the worst, we’ll have to run. Start loading the ships and set sail toward north-east.”
Katya and Lilith got up and stood beside me, looking like avenging goddesses. I felt much more comfortable with both of them next to me, since that way I could see they weren’t up to any mischief.
“How long can you give us?” the guild master asked as he got up and motioned for the rest to do the same. The small group got up and stood behind him, eyes focused intently on me. It remained to be seen if they were up to the task, but in the worst case scenario, they would all just end up dying.
“We need to go out and see what we’re dealing with. In any case, I’ll have the city guard and militia man the walls and rain arrows down upon them. It will be just us four, so unless we can keep them all busy, there will still be groups of soldiers attacking the gate and walls.”
“I see,” the old man whispered. “And the guild’s soldiers? Will they make any difference?”
I shook my head slowly. He knew what I meant by it even before I gave him an answer. He sighed and nodded.
“No, master. Have them help load the ships. Don’t bother much with gold and coin, in my kingdom there will be no poor and the rich, only equals.”
“But in order to trade with others--”
“Yes, I apologize,” I cut the old man off. “Make sure there’s some gold as well. Now, masters, I bid you farewell. We have a battle to fight.”
With that, the three of us stormed past the group of elderly men and were rushing through the gate within minutes.
“Lilith, you go get Al. Maybe Mathi as well, if he’s up for it. We can test just how strong you’ve made him,” I ordered. My demon queen winked at me and nodded once, before wings sprouted from her back and she took off toward the island.
“Wings. Really? And what should I sprout for you, my king,” Katya mockingly asked. “A second set of tits and another pussy?”
“That’s so inappropriate, my lady,” I replied and made an incredulous face. She couldn’t help but smile back at me and give me a big hug. Days had gone by, without us even catching up properly, or talking things through.
The smell of her hair and the perfume on her neck sent me weeks back into the past, when none of this had been real and the worst of my problems had been how to get the necessary gold to pay for Katya’s debt to the madam.
“I’ve missed you. So badly,” I whispered and pressed myself against her. “I’ve missed you in the last few days more than I had all the time before.”
Katya put her hands through mine and leaned her face against my neck. There was something serene in this moment of mutual acknowledgement. I just hoped it wouldn’t be the last intimate moment we’d share before this war was over.
“Do you want to come with me? Or stay back on the walls?” I asked, hoping she would pick the latter option. She must have felt my hesitation and opted for the second choice.
“I’ll stay here, but you better not die out there, all right?”
I pulled away from her and looked into my other queen’s emerald green eyes.
“I’ll keep us all safe, no worries. But you have to promise me something as well. Don’t get too carried away with Lilith. Let’s say that I’ve bitten off much more than I can chew.”
“I’ve noticed. She’s very dangerous, but I think she likes me, so--”
A thunderous explosion rocked the plain and was accompanied by a black cloud, to the west of Homitage. A foul stench filled the air before I could even make up my mind about what to do. Katya turned to the wall and threw up what little she’d eaten. I was about to do the same as a renewed explosion filled the air with yet more of the foul odor.
“Get up on the walls and study the situation. Once Lilith and Al are back, send them west. I doubt it’ll be hard to find me.”
Katya’s hand shot out and grabbed hold of mine. She stopped me from rushing off, and instead pulled me toward her. With a deft move, she leaned in, kissed me on the lips and ran up the stairs. I chuckled at her childish nature, but I loved it to death.
“All right, then. I guess today is as good a day to die as any other,” I whispered and ran through the wide open gate. The guards scurried about, trying to close it. I rushed past them and nodded at the captain I’d bribed only a week prior. He scowled and turned away from me. I didn’t care. It wasn’t like he really mattered.
I was as fast as the wind, as I leaped over and over again. A sense of dread and urgency filled me. Someone was fighting the Kravnians, but who? I sighed and raced along the plains. Smaller explosions made me shudder as I neared the designated area. Shouts and cries were an unwelcome change from the explosions.
“Soul Forge, activate,” I said and reached out toward my battle scythe. Wielding the weapon, I felt like death incarnate as I rounded on the nearest soldiers. Blood splattered my weapon, my hands and my clothes. Gore spilled all over my boots and the sand beneath my feet, but I didn’t care. I wanted to kill and destroy everything that moved, to kill the hundreds, no, thousands of soldiers that scurried about on the open field. At the center of all of them stood a single man.
“Oh shit, is that the captain from the guild?” I whispered in confusion and awe.
Lightning flashed with every slash and cut of his sword, ripping into the armored soldiers. Stone projectiles, rods of lightning, and whirlwinds of air were smashing into the captain. With a practiced ease, he deflected two of the attacks and moved to the side to evade the third.
“He’s wounded and won’t survive for much longer. Either help him, or leave. It’s a disgrace to stand by and watch someone you know die.”
“Says the demon. Why do you care, anyway?” I asked.
“I don’t, but you do.”
I sighed and cracked my neck, shoulders and fingers. No, this wasn’t something to fear or feel bad about. This was war, and in war, the good had to kill the bad. And so I would. My mind was all over the place as I approached the enemy from the back. However, I was determined. I didn’t have any special magic that could take on a great number of opponents, but what I did have was my good throwing arm.
“Captain! Duck!” I yelled, as loud as I could. Astaroth’s power amplified my voice, which was a good thing. I’d have embarrassed myself if I hadn’t been heard by him. I shoved all thoughts aside and planted both feet firmly in the sand, took the scythe in both hands and hurled it at the mass of soldiers in between myself and the captain.
“Took you long enough!” he called back and followed the scythe’s path. It slashed through armor like it was air. Heads, limbs and torsos fell to the ground, followed by agonizing screams. It went in a straight line. The group of soldiers nearest to me recovered quickly and rushed me. I didn’t have any other weapons to fight
with, and if I summoned the scythe back, it wouldn’t be able to do its job. So, there was only one thing I could do. Run.
I dodged the first few attackers and bee-lined past them toward their right flank. Just as the scythe passed over the captain’s head, I recalled it. The wicked weapon never even lost a fraction of its speed. Within seconds, it was back in my hands. The captain made his way to me through the narrow gap. I knew he wouldn’t make it, so I darted in and did what I did best: killing people.
I brandished my scythe like it was a small dagger, and not a huge instrument of death, blocking blow after blow, and cutting people to pieces. More lightning flashed from the captain’s sword as he made his way closer to me. Then, she appeared. The black magician from Ithice. She lifted her palms in our direction and shot out two beams of pitch black energy.
“Deflect the energy!” I yelled, just as the captain turned toward the powerful spell. With his left hand, he brought up a kite shield and planted it between the beam and himself. It struck the piece of metal head on. For a moment, I thought it would hold, but it wasn't to be. The shield cracked under the enormous power behind the dark magic and caught fire. A dark, all-consuming flame erupted on it.
The captain threw the shield aside and rammed his sword into the large crack that had formed. Dozens of splinters and pieces of burning metal struck the nearby soldiers. One after the other, the fire enveloped them. Discipline became a thing of the past as they slammed into their comrades and spread the fire through their ranks. The stench of burning flesh was nauseating.
Screams of terror and death assaulted my ears. Was this how it felt to be hailed as a monster, a destroyer? I could feel Astaroth writhing within me, enjoying the sight of them. And it sickened me to my core. After all, one day I would become just like him… if I let myself fall so low.
“We need to retreat!” I called out to the captain.
“Oh really? And here I was thinking we should stay and enjoy the barbeque!”
His sarcasm was uncalled for, but whatever. The man had narrowly avoided death.
Lillith Page 16
