by G. R. Cooper
“Help me, and I’ll help you,” said the prisoner.
Wulfgar looked to him. It was a larger version of the one he’d just fought. Its cloven hooves splayed as it twisted, trying to get out of the chains, “Hurry,” it repeated, “I’m in as much danger as you. It will eat me next. To gain my power.”
Wulfgar frowned, “How can I trust you?”
“I give my vow.”
Wulfgar thought for a moment. Demons were notorious, in literature at least, for having to follow their vows to the letter. The oath that it had just given, however, was meaningless. There was nothing to it - no request had been made, therefore no service was required. No quid pro quo, no contract.
Wulfgar’s mind raced, he looked to the opening on the other side of the room. He didn’t see what choice he had; certain death or probable death. Either way, dead is dead.
Reading his thoughts, the prisoner reiterated, “Hurry. It will be back soon. He is healing and you have no chance of defeating him alone.”
Wulfgar looked to the creature. “On these conditions. You will serve me as long as I require, until I release you. Both in this realm and in any other. You will serve my best interests to the letter and spirit of any command I give you. You agree that even though this contract is made under duress and is unconscionable, you will follow all tenets of it.”
Thank you Business Law 101! thought Wulfgar. Agreeing that a contract was made under duress didn’t make it a legally binding contract, but Wulfgar was pretty sure that this would never go before any sort of judge. At least, not today.
“Agreed,” muttered the demon, frowning.
Wulfgar removed the latches from the demon’s arms and it fell to its knees. It began massaging its wrists, and looked up at Wulfgar with a combination of gratitude and anger. The human stepped back, waiting for it to oath-break and begin attacking.
It didn’t.
It stood and looked to the human, “We don’t have long.”
Wulfgar nodded, “I can’t use my blade, and my magic isn’t powerful enough to help. If you open the door, I can get my companion. A werewolf. He can use his fangs and claws.”
“The spirit of your command is obvious. You require me to help you defeat this creature,” he pointed at the passageway, “but your order is not in your best interests. Your best interest is to let me take this creature on my own. I can feed on its power. You, and your companion, cannot. It is therefore in your best interest that I follow the spirit and not the letter of your command, and refuse to open the door for you.”
Wulfgar sighed, “Why?”
“Because if I open the door, it is almost certain that my father will know that I have escaped. You, I, your companion, and even my little evil brother all together can’t defeat my father.”
“Your father?”
“The lord of this plane. Lilu. You would have passed through his throne room below to get here,” it smiled, “and how you did that will be an interesting story for another time.”
It turned its head, to watch for the return of its sibling, “I am a cambion. I am the son of the incubus lord and a captive human female. My father’s wives take the seed from their victims, and pass it on to my father, who uses it to impregnate one of his slaves. That results in me, or my brother.”
“Why didn’t you attack your brother earlier? Why were you chained? And what is your name?”
“My bindings limited my power. It took all of my effort to simply close and hold the door against you. I was chained because my father can have but one son at a time. I was in disfavor, and he had spawned my brother to replace me. After it had done with its mother, the little bastard would have done similarly to me. Ingesting my flesh and my power. My name is Tief.”
Before Wulfgar could blink, Tief launched over the bloody corpse and rocketed into his little brother, who shot from the darkened corridor. The room thundered as the pair met and exploded into battle. Lightning flashed and the smell of ozone shot through the room as both took damage. Multiple bolts played over the intertwined pair as they swirled through the air above the plinth.
Wulfgar tried to target Tief, to heal him, but the two were moving too fast and he didn’t want to mistakenly heal the little demon. Again.
As quickly as it began, the fight ended with the newborn falling dead into the bloody gaping womb of its mother. Smoke rose from the woman’s shattered stomach and Wulfgar turned, trying not to retch. He forced himself to look back and raised one hand, spending mana to heal Tief. The demon nodded thanks and lowered to the floor, folding its wings into its back. It walked to Wulfgar, who marveled at the strength and power he’d just witnessed.
“Thanks,” said Tief. He stretched and smiled, “Where was I?”
“You were explaining who you were and were about to fully explain to me why you couldn’t obey the letter of my command.”
Wulfgar was shocked; Tief actually looked dismayed. “My lord. Thank you for allowing me to explain. As I said, my father was replacing me. It was he that locked me in this room. If I were to attempt to leave, or indeed, even open a door, he will likely know. He will know and he will come to inspect. Then he would rebind me, impregnate another slave and restart the process. After killing you by giving you to his brides, of course.”
“Won’t your father investigate the noise of your fight?”
“It’s possible,” Tief shrugged, “but more likely if he heard anything he’ll assume that it was my brother killing me. If he does come, we are lost. I can’t just leave through the front door.”
“Then how can you escape?”
“I can prepare a plane travel. That is the only way. I cannot take you or any other mortal with me.”
Wulfgar nodded, that tracked with what Bael had explained to him.
“And the instant I open the portal,” Tief continued, “my father will be alerted. As soon as I am prepared, I will open your door for you, then my portal. You will have to hide before my father comes to inspect. He will have no reason to assume that I have been helped. He will assume that I have escaped and murdered my brother on my own.” He looked up at Wulfgar and smiled, “I hope.”
You and me both, buddy thought Wulfgar.
“Can you help me in any other way? I mean, how do I get out of here? I entered through the lake entrance.”
“I thought as much. The way out is through where my brother healed. There should be no further hindrance to you in that regard. Once my father has returned to his throne room, that is.”
Wulfgar wondered if he would be able to take advantage of the distraction to free the elf prince. He’d have to keep that in mind.
Tief continued speaking softly, “It was I who provided the meals for my father and his wives. My role was to leave this plane and take prisoners for them to feed upon. They are partial to elves, as they have the greatest life force. The exit is a plane shift and will take you into a small wood near the elven kingdom.”
“And you can’t just leave like normal?” asked Wulfgar, pointing to the far passage.
“My father would easily track and capture me were I to do so. The only hope I have is to travel into one of the furthest planes, but that trip will not be easy or safe. It will require some time and effort to make my way back to the mundane world. But if I survive, I will and I will find you.”
“I will be in Marchstone.”
Tief nodded understanding and agreement. “My form in your world is of an old human male. I will introduce myself when I see you, liege.”
“Once in my world, do you have the ability to close off the exit to this place? To prevent others from using it?”
“It will take much of my power to do so, but yes I can.”
“Then that will be your first command. As soon as you get back into my realm, close off this place. Shut it down,” he smiled down at Tief, “but make fucking sure I’m out of here first.”
Wulfgar sprinted down the little hallway as Lilu’s screams of rage tore from the throne room. He pushed through the
closet doorway and closed it quickly but gently behind him. In the darkness, he moved to the rear of the room.
“Get as far away from the door as you can,” he whispered into the black. Once he felt Nop move in next to him, he targeted the Canis Arcturus and conferred Stealth onto him again.
“Congratulations! You have gained a level in Sorcery!”
Fear drove elation from his mind and all he could think was, at least now I can fire off two Fire Shot without waiting for mana to regenerate, and I only have a five percent chance of failing at Confer now.
He quietly and quickly brought Nop up to date, warning him not to activate Stealth but prepare for it in case the door opened on them. As he finished, and leaned back against the wall, he heard and felt the passing of Lilu through the hallway.
Wulfgar jumped as it sounded like the door into the birthing room exploded, then he shuddered at the primeval scream of fury from Lilu when it saw his newborn dead and his eldest escaped. He heard nothing for a minute, and assumed that the incubus was searching for his son throughout the room and passageway out of its lair.
Fear coursed through his veins as Wulfgar saw quiet shadow move into the dim light coming from beneath the door. The door across the hallway slammed open and the hiss of the angry incubus filled the air. After a moment, the shadow grew larger and Wulfgar activated Stealth. He hoped he didn’t have to tell Nop. He was too afraid to even whisper.
The door slammed open, filling the closet with light. Wulfgar felt a wave of relief wash over him as he saw that Nop was not visible in the corner of his eye.
Lilu stood, framed and backlighted by the doorway. His eyes burned red in anger as he hissed, glancing through the small cubby looking for any accomplices his son might have had. He leaned in, sniffing. He stepped forward, crouching as though in preparation for battle, and his wings spread, filling the small room.
He sniffed again, looking around the little room.
Wulfgar felt a new wave of terror and nausea flow over him. This demon was so far above his level that surviving combat was unthinkable. He began to pray that Lilu’s curiosity would be satisfied before Nop’s Stealth timer ran out - Wulfgar wasn’t sure if he had the nerve to unmask himself and engage in combat with the incubus if the demon attacked the werewolf.
After what felt like much more than the seventy seconds that Nop could remain hidden, Lilu turned and slammed the door shut, storming down the hallway to return to his throne room.
Wulfgar expelled a sigh of relief at the welcomed darkness, and leaned back against the wall. He wasn’t going to turn off Stealth until the timer did it for him.
Just in case.
After waiting for several minutes through apprehensive silence, Wulfgar activated Illumination and looked to Nop. He smiled and sighed, chuckling inwardly at the werewolf’s look of relief.
“That was intense.”
Nop nodded agreement, “I just want to say that I’m glad that you shut out the rest of the party. I’d hate to have to fight that thing in a stand up battle.”
“You and me both, brother. Just be sure to point that out to the drowning victims once we get out of here.”
Nop nodded and leaned onto the side wall, turning to face Wulfgar.
“What’s next?” asked the Canis Arcturus.
“We’ll go introduce ourselves to the orphans across the hallway. Let them know that today is the day they get out of here.”
Wulfgar sat back against the wall and sighed, “There shouldn’t be any problem. The room to the right is the only thing left between us and the exit. You shouldn’t have to use Stealth again. We should be able to get going in about an hour.”
“If I’m not going to need to Stealth again, why do we have to wait another hour for your Confer cool-down?” asked Nop.
Wulfgar smiled grimly, and spelled out his plan to complete the quests.
Wulfgar leaned back, underneath a shelf of various housekeeping supplies, and looked across the small space at Nop. He was glad to have to wait for the cool-down timer on Confer. It gave him an opportunity to grill the Canis Arcturus. The human smiled inwardly, glad that the werewolf hadn’t noticed or mentioned the fact that the plan to complete the quests didn’t technically require Nop to wait for the cool-down.
“Why me?” he asked the werewolf. He laughed lightly, “And don’t start asking me questions like why me what?”
Nop smiled, “A continuation of our previous conversation?”
Wulfgar nodded.
“Why you,” stated the Canis Arcturus, “is complicated. You have the qualities we’re looking for in a candidate.”
“A candidate for what?”
“That, I’m afraid, I can’t tell you. Yet.”
Wulfgar frowned. There seemed to be a rule against telling him anything specific to his own case. He decided to step back, to open up the questioning.
“How many other species are there?”
“In the study? Three. My people, the Arn and Clive’s people.”
“Who are Clive’s people?”
“The Old Ones. That is, roughly translated, their name for themselves. They have been moving among the stars since the stars were young. They enlightened both the Arn and my people, as well as many other peoples throughout the galaxy.”
“Throughout?”
Nop nodded, “The Arn and my people are local to your own. Relatively speaking. Our homeworld really is what your astronomers call Eta Bootis. A little under forty light-years. Practically next door neighbors in galactic terms.”
“Where are the Arn from?”
“It’s not a secret, but it wouldn’t be considered polite for anyone but an Arn to reveal that to you.”
“It’s not like humans can jump into a space ship and jump there.”
“Outside of the Omegaverse, that is,” agreed Nop, “but I can confirm that humans haven’t found the Arn homeworld in the Omegaverse either.”
“OK. What is the Omegaverse?”
“It is the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in which we live. It’s not a computer server or a game, though the Old Ones have the knowledge needed to craft portions of it, frequencies really, to conform to game-like rules.”
Wulfgar nodded, “OK. So, how many races are there outside of our own little corner of the milky way?”
“I don’t know,” said Nop flatly. “The Old Ones quarantine sectors from each other. Why they do that, I also don’t know. But I have my suspicions.”
“What are your suspicions.”
Nop thought for a moment, “As each species reaches the technological level where humans currently stand, they invariably begin to approach the singularity.”
“Where artificial intelligence surpasses our own.”
“Yes,” agreed Nop. “That is, almost always, a very bad thing.”
“Why?”
“Myriad reasons. It leaves the people at the mercy of their creations, and their creations are never created to have mercy. Even in those cases where the AI does not come to the conclusion that their creators are no longer evolutionarily viable, the creators usually get there on their own. They come to rely on their machines for everything. They devolve. At best, they wallow in bacchanalian nihilism.”
“At worst?”
“They become slaves. Literally. Their machines use them until they can no longer find a use for them.”
“After which they are disposed of.”
“It has happened time and time again. The Old Ones have seen it over the billions of years that they have moved through the galaxy. So they keep sentient species segregated within quadrants until each of the species within that quadrant has advanced enough to become enlightened.”
“What is that enlightenment?” asked Wulfgar.
“The Omegaverse itself. Or the ability to move within it. You have been told of the difference in the advancement of time between our little world,” he spread his paws, encompassing the fantasy land around them, “and the physical world where we evolved, correc
t?”
Wulfgar nodded. He thought that Nop seemed more open to the discussion than earlier. He must have received permission from Clive to give more information.
“Think of it in terms of computer cycles.” Nop smiled, “It’s not, but it works as an analogy. The Omegaverse is just operating at higher frequencies than the worlds we evolved within.”
“And even within the Omegaverse, there are different levels of cycles. Of frequencies.”
Nop smiled, “Yes. We are in this little corner of the Omegaverse operating at a much higher frequency than the outer Omegaverse.”
“Why?”
“Good question. As a candidate, we have tests to run on you. These tests would take too long to complete in the outer Omegaverse which, as I’m sure you’ll understand, operates on a frequency matching the physical world.”
“Because players move between the two.”
Nop nodded, “By simply donning or removing a helmet. Yes.”
“What are those tests that you’re running?”
Nop just smiled and shrugged.
“Fine,” sighed Wulfgar. He moved the topic back toward the beginning. “How long have the Canis Arcturus, the Arn, and the Old Ones been studying Earth? When did your people become enlightened?”
“My people were moved forward around one thousand Earth years ago. We began taking part in the observations of your people roughly around that time.”
A flash of insight hit Wulfgar, “That’s about when the mythology of the werewolf became popular.”
Nop smiled, “It is. Since humans were pre-technological at that point, we had no choice but to observe within the physical realm. Sometimes, we were seen. Even though we typically operated at night.”
“During the full moon?”
Nop laughed, “Yes. We see better than humans in the dark, but we still need the light of the moon to help us.”
Wulfgar thought, running through his perfect memory.
“But Petronius also mentioned werewolves. That was in ancient Rome.”
“A coincidence. It’s not hard to imagine why a civilization who believed their founders were suckled by a wolf would think up that kind of story, is it? Especially since human religions had frequently used human-animal hybrids to depict many of their gods. Herodotus mentioned them as well, long before Pertronius.”
