Second Skin Omnibus

by M Damon Baker

  His disgusting diatribe was abruptly cut short when Wenflé stepped forward and slid a dagger into Gilfri’s temple. The King’s body immediately went slack, and he fell into his chair in an almost perfect seated position. But for his bowed head with the dagger still in it, and the steady flow of blood that dripped from its hilt and onto the floor, one might easily have mistaken him as having fallen asleep.

  “Forgive me for perpetrating such a heinous act in your presence, Empress,” Wenflé immediately apologized. “But the King’s words strayed into treason, and I was forced to act.”

  “Perhaps you were, Wenflé,” I replied as I recovered and seized upon the man’s tone. “But I think it’s also likely that you’ve been waiting for just such an opportunity for a while.”

  “I will not deny that,” he admitted before quickly averting his gaze and staring at the floor beneath his feet.

  “So, what now?” I asked the man.

  “Wenflé’s actions cannot go unpunished,” Líann responded as she recovered from her shock. “Although Gilfri’s words were treason, and his death was warranted, regicide comes with a price.”

  “I am ready to pay for my crime,” Wenflé stood tall as he braced himself.

  “Yes, well before we get to that, I’d like to know what happens to Olóra, now that Gilfri’s dead,” I inquired. “Who takes the throne?”

  “One of us,” Othil replied. “Gilfri was the last of his line and left no heir. By law, we must choose amongst ourselves for the next King.”

  “Very well then,” I rose and rendered my verdict. “Tási, please see to Gilfri’s body and ensure that it is made ready for transport back to Olóra. Considering what has happened, I imagine that our guests will need to return home quickly.”

  “Wenflé, for the crime of regicide, I sentence you to clean up the mess you’ve made on my floors. Perhaps this will teach you to consider the consequences of your actions, and to plan for them a little better in the future.”

  “It will be my pleasure,” Wenflé replied in relief. “But if I may, Empress, we will not need to bring… the body back with us. Please dispose of it however you see fit. You may claim everything he has on his person, I only request that you allow us to retrieve the signet ring he wears.”

  “Not the crown?” I asked, motioning to the gold band around Gilfri’s head.

  “No,” Wenflé responded in disgust. “Gilfri commissioned that detestable thing himself. Whichever one of us ascends to the throne will wear the old crown—the one that symbolizes the real Olóra, not Gilfri’s ugly visions.”

  Wenflé removed the ring, and Tási called in some of the guards who wrapped Gilfri’s body in a blanket before carting it away. Then, one of the liveried staff brought in a mop and bucket and Wenflé set about cleaning the floors while we discussed what the future held for us. Despite his best efforts, Wenflé left a streaky mess behind when he’d finished, and the woman who brought the bucket sighed as she took it away, flashing me a look that said ‘I’ll tend to it later’ as she left the room.

  Wenflé and his fellow advisors intended to leave at first light. Gilfri’s death would have released many from the onerous restrictions of the blood clauses he’d forced them to accept. Considering the mayhem that might already be going on in the aftermath of the sudden release of so many from those restrictions, they felt it best to return home and restore order as quickly as possible,

  There was still much for them to determine among themselves, so I let them return to their rooms and discuss their internal issues. Líann claimed to have an additional matter to address with them, so she left with the advisors while I retreated upstairs.

  “What did you do with the body?” I asked Tási as we started walking.

  “I wasn’t sure what you’d want, so I stashed him in one of the empty rooms,” she told me.

  “I may have just the thing in mind for him,” I stopped for a moment. “Something truly appropriate.”

  Tási looked at me with a puzzled expression as I came to a halt, but I signaled for her to wait for a moment as I reached out for Bane.

  ‘Bane,’ I called to him. ‘Gilfri’s advisor killed him and we’re trying to decide what to do with his body.’

  Are you offering me what I think you are, Sintári? He replied in my mind with a barely concealed sense of anticipation.

  ‘Yes I am, Bane.’

  Where is it? I felt his hunger in my mind.

  ‘I will bring it to one of the balconies; meet me there.’

  Tási led me to the room where she’d placed Gilfri’s corpse, and before I had Rhia–of course–and one of the other guards heft him away, I made a quick check for any special loot, but all he had of interest was his crown and a small coin purse, so I tucked them away as we headed for the nearest exit.

  The balcony on that level was rather large, as it was designed to be an extension of one of the gathering areas and intended to host outdoor events, weather permitting. We laid out Gilfri’s body on the stone floor, and Bane came to a landing next to me just as Rhia pulled the blanket from around his corpse.

  Do they know what I’m going to do with it, Sintári? Bane asked, almost self-consciously.

  ‘Do you want them to?’ I asked.

  I’d rather not.

  “Bane,” I said aloud. “Please dispose of this as you see fit. You may deposit these remains in the wilds or drop them on the mountaintop. The decision is up to you.”

  Thank you, Sintári, he replied in appreciation as he scooped up the corpse and flew off into the distance.

  As I watched him fly away with his prize, I hoped that he would gain the Aura he needed from Gilfri’s body. The last time he’d eaten a sentient, it had been one he’d killed himself. The Aura from that kill had provided Bane with the final energy he needed to complete his transformation into a true dragon. Although Bane still craved the flesh of sentients, neither of us knew precisely what consuming even more of them would do for him.

  When he finally vanished from sight, I headed back to my rooms again. It had been an eventful day, and its culmination with Gilfri’s death, while… unanticipated, put a rather happy spin on things for me.

  Once we made it back, I curled up with Tási and enjoyed the feeling of having succeeded in removing the threat Gilfri had posed for so long. Wenflé or one of the other advisors would be taking the throne of Olóra soon, and I was certain that their rule would be much more positively inclined towards my Empire than Gilfri had been. As we lay together, I opened my notifications to read the prompt that I’d noticed pop up after Gilfri’s death, but had chosen to ignore at the time.

  Quest, The Uniter, Advancing – You have successfully orchestrated the elimination of a rival for the first time. While your hands may not have wielded the blade, it was you who set the events in motion that led to Gilfri’s demise. For your devious, manipulative, yet necessary actions, you have been rewarded with 11,000 XP.

  You have gained a level! – You have earned sufficient experience to advance to level 34.

  You have gained three Attribute points. Two of your points have been automatically assigned to INT and CHA. You may assign the remaining point to any other Attribute as you see fit.

  I once more put my lone point into Strength and let the sarcastic message vanish from the screen. As the image faded away, Nentai’s face staring into mine came into view.

  “You look really odd when you do that, Dreya,” she commented offhandedly.

  “Don’t do that!” I startled as she was peering at me a little too closely.

  “Sorry, dear,” she replied unconvincingly. “It was just a little too curious for me to ignore.”

  “Well here’s something else I’m not going to let you ignore,” I immediately started in on the Goddess. “You keep popping up and then vanishing before I can get any real answers out of you. So, this time, I’m going first.”

  “Who’s toying with me through my notifications?” I asked, as the memory of what I’d just seen was fresh i
n my mind.

  “So, you’ve noticed that, have you?” Nentai grinned back at me. “Mostly Noxyl, but Lady Death has a surprisingly sarcastic wit as well. They’re limited by what’s left of the… interface? Do I have the term right? Anyway, it only allows some slight alterations, so they have to make the most of it.”

  “They have nothing better to do?” I sighed in frustration

  “No, not really,” Nentai replied flatly.

  Great, bored Gods were going to be taunting me through a crumbling game interface. Lovely. Just lovely.

  “Fine, whatever,” I gave up. “Tell me about what Raithe did to me when she transferred Saibra’s oath.”

  “Ahh, that was a surprise,” Nentai mused. “Honestly, even she has no idea what it will mean for you, but her only other choice was to kill Saibra outright, so she decided to give her to you instead.”

  Give her to me? That better not mean what I thought it did.

  Just in case it did, I dropped the matter, rather than discuss it any further with Tási right there.

  “Bane,” I said switching to my last, and probably highest concern.

  “He’s doing what he needs to do,” Nentai replied. “You did the right thing by letting him dispose of Gilfri’s body.”

  That was good to know, and I appreciated Nentai’s discretion. She hadn’t mentioned what Bane was actually going to do with the corpse in front of Tási, keeping the secret of his compulsion from getting out.

  “Thank you,” I offered sincerely. “I’m sorry if I was a bit gruff with you.”

  “Never mind that,” Nentai chuckled. “I’ve come to expect and even look forward to your straightforward manner.”

  “I’ll try not to disappoint you then,” I shared her laughter as I smiled back at her.

  “You seldom do,” Nentai replied, almost affectionately.

  “Which brings me to why I am here today,” the Goddess explained as she rummaged through the pile of my gear that lay atop my dresser.

  “This,” she said as she finally withdrew the short sword that Hilgreth, Renn, and Georl had made for me, “may be a fine weapon, but it is simply not up to the standards I require for you.”

  Nentai drew the blade and then ran her finger along the sword’s spine. As she did so, a bright light traced along with her movement, and a blue sheen glowed brightly, gracing the metal in the wake of her touch. When she finished, the metal continued to shine for a moment before it absorbed the last of the magic she’d imparted to it. Once it had, she sheathed it again before handing the sword to me.

  “I cannot gift you with any more Artifacts,” she admitted with obvious disappointment. “But I will make sure that you have the best I am able to provide.”

  I took hold of the sword as she gave it to me and read the description as it appeared in my vision.

  Short Sword of Sharpness – This blade has been imbued with the ability to cut through most barriers with ease. Its edge will never dull, and armor will provide little defense against it.

  She’d turned a what had been an excellent blade into a truly deadly weapon, and I appreciated her continued generosity immensely.

  “Thank you, Nentai, that’s most impressive,” I replied gratefully.

  “You’re welcome, Dreya,” Nentai replied quite warmly. “Now that you are finally appropriately equipped, I will leave you two alone again.”

  She gave me a knowing wink as she shimmered and disappeared into thin air once again.

  “She’s gone now,” I said to Tási as the wavering air where the Goddess had been cleared.

  Tási lifted her head and looked at me once I let her know that Nentai had departed. She would have knelt before the Goddess, as she usually did when one of the Pantheon appeared to us, but since we were lying on the bed, all Tási had been able to do was bow her head in respect.

  “What did she do to your sword?” Tási asked, barely able to contain her excitement.

  I handed her the weapon and she looked it over for herself. Once she recognized its enchantment, Tási handed the blade back to me in awe.

  “That’s quite impressive,” she observed. “Between your bow and that blade, I don’t think anyone will be anxious to face you at any distance.”

  “I think that’s the general idea,” I chuckled as I replied.

  As I spoke, I felt Bane’s presence returning to his room next to ours. So, while I lay silently with Tási, I called to him with my mind.

  ‘You got something from eating him. Tell me what happened.’

  I did, Sintári, but I am unsure how to explain it. I do not even fully understand it for myself, but I am certain that I… absorbed a portion of his essence and it has strengthened me somehow.

  ‘That’s a good enough explanation for now,’ I replied. ‘I will provide you with as many of my enemies to feast upon as I possibly can, Bane. Anything to make you stronger and keep you from harm.’

  Thank you Sintári.

  I sensed his tiredness and let him rest, and Tási and I fell asleep quickly as well. Once the excitement drained away, exhaustion set in almost immediately, and I faded away without even slipping under the covers.

  The next morning, Tási and I shared breakfast before we went our separate ways. In addition to her usual duties, Tási had the unenviable task of integrating Saibra into my personal guard. The woman’s skills were incredible, and she’d nearly taken out my entire detail before I’d stepped in and shot her with a powerful Bolt, but it was that exact encounter which would make things so difficult for Tási. Two of my sergeants had actually fallen in that fight, and I’d been forced to raise both Nomi and Tana afterwards. I couldn’t help but feel that their resentment would make Saibra’s introduction quite difficult. While Tási reluctantly headed off to fetch Saibra, I sat down with Talína to see what she might have for me that day.

  Most of the matters she had for me were quite routine. Agricultural and mining reports, notes on the newest of the settlers that continued to trickle in, and the like. Then, only after Tási was long gone, Talína handed me a letter.

  “This came from Líann late last night,” Talína informed me as she handed over the sealed parchment.

  Her letter asked for a meeting over lunch. I expected some thinly veiled excuse to mask her need for me to assert myself over her again, but instead she claimed to have news regarding her meeting with the Olóran advisors. Her words made me recall their intention to depart early that morning, and I inquired about that with Talína.

  “Yes, Empress, that was the final item I had for you today,” she replied. “They left a letter for you before they departed, expressing their regret for not staying long enough to bid you farewell.”

  Good enough for me, I thought. We’d settled almost everything the night before, and I had no need to stage some overly formal goodbyes on the Palace steps once more.

  With everything taken care of, I thanked Talína and headed downstairs towards Líann’s suite. The Queen had not only helped me unsettle Gilfri, leading to his demise, but had also been the first of my advisors to regain her composure after the shock of his death. She had also been invaluable in the discussions that followed. So, rather than make her wait for lunch to tell me her news, I decided to pay her an early morning visit to express my gratitude.

  As I wound my way downstairs, I considered our last meeting. In some ways, the actions I took made me feel uneasy. They recalled just a little too closely what Nedd had done to me back in Tula, and I wondered if perhaps I should find some other way to deal with Líann’s unique cravings in the future. But as I considered things, I realized that my doubts were misguided. Unlike Nedd, my actions were consensual, on both our parts, and were not done with any real malice. In fact, the emotions involved were quite emphatically the opposite of that.

  Líann’s desires were just so unique and perfectly tailored to my own need to vent my anger that it gave me pause to think. In comparison to Líann’s desperate need to feel dominated, Tási strove to be my equal. Despite h
er weaker tendrils, she gave her all when she was with me, and never just let me take over.

  Venna was almost the opposite of that. Although some of our liaisons were mutual affairs, most of the time I simply took pleasure in exploring her body and pleasing her with my powers. She seemed most happy on those occasions, finding great satisfaction in just how much joy she brought me.

  Then there was Ella. While most of the time I spent with her was simply to ensure that the fractures in her core remained sealed, on the occasions that our visits strayed into something more, they were also quite unique. Ella had no powers to match mine, as Tási did, nor was she content to remain idle while I enjoyed her as Venna was. Our passions were an almost entirely physical affair, and I limited the used of my tendrils a great deal, as she preferred me to do.

  Each one of the women I’d become involved with were so different, and so unique unto themselves. It seemed like they all appealed to a different facet of my personality, and satisfied a particular need of mine, it was almost as if…

  FUCK!

  None of them had come to me by accident, I realized. The four of them were too perfectly tailored to me for any of it to have occurred by mere chance. Each one of them drew on a different aspect of my personality through their desires, and brought out the best of me as they did. I didn’t know whether I should thank the fates or curse them, but I knew in my heart that there would be no more to follow—with the four of them, I was complete. At least I would be eventually, once I settled in and truly accepted the rather unusual personal life that had been orchestrated for me.

  I shook my head to clear it as I instructed my escorts to wait for me outside Líann’s suite. There was no need for them to follow me inside since the threat of hostilities between Líann and I were no longer a possibility.

  “Empress, I wasn’t told to expect your arrival,” Thelmé was quite flustered as she greeted me.