by Han Yang
I chuckled. “Says the guy who jumped off a roof to attack a dragon. We do what it takes to win.”
“Indeed. Speaking of the nature dragons. We found out the plan. The goal was for Darri or Jasper to coat the deck in a pink sticky spell because he’s a trap mage. Once we were all coated, the dragons were supposed to capture us one by one, removing the option for revivals. They wanted to eat Jorma, flying her away, not to kill her and let her fall,” Nick said.
“Wow, I never saw it coming,” I said with a smirk. I shook my head while taking my seat. “Honest to the gods’ truth, I had no idea. I just got sick and tired of being nice to my enemies.”
Asha sat on my right, Nee on my left. On the left side, Ike, Jenovene, and Bell sat. On my right, Nick, Fernando, and Lotus sat.
Nee slid over a stack of papers while supporting personnel arrived to sit in the stands -mostly people like my squire, Jorma, Yermica, and a random dwarf to answer my Famo questions. Even a few runners positioned themselves nearby, ready to do our bidding. And, of course, guards and hounds roamed the corridors and side rooms.
When I felt ready, I said, “Cecil is late, but I know the power of my minions. Let’s start with diplomacy. I heard we took in refugees from the south, Pergot City that the bearfrii and the fairies conquered. Why, how, and their status?”
My question was aimed at Jenovene, but she shifted to glance at Yermica.
Yermica stood and said, “The refugees from Pergot were already outcasts. The undesirables of Garo Region flocked to the dangerous city to make a new home. Many were captured when it fell.
“We know Pergot will be retaken by the region. The city will be refilled with the next warrior who fancies himself a king or queen. The Garo City Nations will send their poor who need a new home, and the cycle starts all over again.
“The refugees came here with nothing. The Garo City Nations didn’t have the heart to kill them. After all, they are their ejected residents.
“Once we ensured they were fed, paid them for work, and gave them decent places to live - they turned over all the plants. Those spies are in prison under the north gate. I would consider the refugees as citizens, but that’s just my trusting opinion.”
“They had a chance to strike mid-fight today but none did,” Tarla said. Her stiff back and prideful tone caused me to smile. She really nailed the regal look. She caught my admiring gaze and blushed, further highlighting her freckles. “I’m with Yermica. Since they arrived, the three thousand or so lost souls have blended in. A worthy save of precious lives.”
“Thank you. Jenovene, thoughts on diplomacy with the Garo Region going forward?” I asked.
She glanced at her husband before me. “I - I, well, that depends on you.”
“Extrapolate, please,” I said.
“Of course, your Grace. The Garo Region did and did not unify to siege you. The defeat of the vamperia and the win against the blockade will rock the geographic political norms. Both defeats against the region will place most of the enemy on their back feet, and hopefully we will see some changes.
“For example, only the Inno Tribe sent an ambassador, a goblin who had nothing to say except they were told to come here. That is very telling because when we captured this city, we released dozens of ambassadors to child suckers.
“And yet, none came to you. I think if we remained in this city in a calm manner, and no ‘foes on all sides’ situation were present, then we would have earned diplomats. As it stands, a dozen city nations are allied against us,” Jenovene said.
She sipped a bit of water while a runner brought her a note.
“I know most of this. How does it involve me?” I asked.
“I was getting there. For instance, we lowered the red and flew the orange. A messenger braved the risk and brought a note. It says: the Uhon Nation of Trollocs will cease their support of the elva and offer terms of peace for three years if we release their prisoners.
“My Lord, what you do next will reverberate through the region for years if not decades. Do you want to rule the region, or do you want the region to leave you alone? And by you, I mean us,” Jenovene said.
I probably should have waited to ask about diplomacy last. After a sip of water, I said, “I will get back to that.” I shifted to gaze at my human general. “Ike, Marbern said King Korbi will be here in less than a week. How are the Podoni and the Jeer faring?”
Ike flicked through his reports, landing on one he wanted. “I don’t have much to tell you, unfortunately. The Podoni army is fighting a breach not far from where they assembled to march on us. I wouldn’t rely on this completely, but my assumption is that the rising wurm lords have taken them out of the picture.
“To the south, the armies split, or at least are giving the impression they are folding. Losing those fleets will be devastating. Not to mention we grew more powerful. Since we lack a spy network, I would assume they know that the wurm lords are bursting out of the ground. If I’m a city manager in charge of their small nation, I’d be recalling my troops to defend the homeland in case the wurm lords breach in our region,” Ike said.
“Please confirm. The way it stands right now, the north is occupied, the south is fracturing, and the elva fleet will arrive without a siege in place,” I said.
Ike glanced at his daughter who nodded. “Confirmed as of today’s scouting reports.”
“Nick,” I said, gaining my friend’s attention. “What is King Korbi?”
Nick glanced at Asha before sighing. Asha rubbed his temples. Both of them soured from this question.
“I have rumors. Nothing concrete. Would you still like to hear them?” Nick asked.
I nodded and replied, “The stars are pointing to him not being an elva. I doubt he is going to sit down with me and explain it all nicely. So, let’s go with what we can guess at. I was told to kill him in a place where gods die.”
“Interesting,” Asha said. “Let me start, please.”
“By all means, go first,” Nick said.
Asha continued, “When the mists came, they rose to our valley. We never risked sending anyone in. Not once. We received a message via dragon from King Korbi of the Willow Woods. He said a change would take place and to hunker down until the mists rose. After that, our immortality would fade, being replaced with the need for a minor consumption of an unknown magical essence. Spoiler, that is Zorta.
“The message grew grim, telling us to not fight unless provoked. We simply lacked the numbers to confront the endless tides of enemies. The world was changing, and not for the better. You need to understand, Nordan had vast ranges of quiet forest where we lived in harmony with nature and avoided conflict with the other species. Those days were coming to an end.
“On a brighter note, we were given a mission to regrow our population. The great drought of limited births would be fixed by new magics. We were told to redouble our efforts to hide our den while honing our defenses.
“You see, before the lowland fog faded, he knew the Ostriva hordes would be arriving. He knew. He never explained the how or the why, but King Korbi had insider information that even King Hartinger didn’t have.”
I frowned. “They worship the creator. Maybe he sent word of the coming calamity,” I guessed.
Nick cleared his throat and said, “King Korbi is a god and not one of the six or six thousand. Instead of his people earning magic, he earned it all. When he casts his spell, he grows into an indestructible titan.
“He is vulnerable almost all the time, but when he is a massive elva that towers hundreds of feet tall, he’ll become a god with impenetrable skin. If he dies, a random elva will be chosen to be his successor and will become the next King of Elva on this continent.”
I groaned. “That’s why he wants to kill Jax. Last thing he wants is a demon becoming the king of the elva.”
“Rumors. The magic stuff with the elva are all rumors,” Asha said with an unhappy huff. “No one has ever seen any elva do magic, ever. If King Korbi does possess some i
ncredible powers, he has hidden them diligently.
“But… this might be worth exposing himself. We do know that the leader of the elva is chosen by the creator, and if the current leader dies, the successor can be any elva who is alive. A halo wraps around their head in a glimmering golden circle. Jax could be the next leader of the elva.”
“A titan with what magic type?” I asked.
“Unknown,” Nick said.
“How do I get a five-hundred-foot tall elva into an eight-foot door?” I asked.
Jorma stood and raised her hand. “If the building has an active portal, the churches’ doorway shrinks the traveler in size. I’m assuming you’re talking about using a portal to send King Korbi to the other side of the planet.”
I snapped my fingers, having an epiphany. I wrote down a long list of instructions and handed them to Nick.
He read them once, then twice, before grumbling. “I guess. Come Asha, we have work to do.”
“Is it bad?” Asha asked.
“What do you think?” Nick said sarcastically, not actually wanting an answer.
“Not going to mention the plan? These guests are vetted,” Tarla said.
“I can’t, and the note also used hidden talk. Fernando, please tell me about the captured ships,” I said.
“We’re struggling to move them into the harbor because it is, or was, filled with prisoners being processed. Many of the ships are salvageable, and we can immediately put them into use,” Fernando said positively.
“And if we had a sea battle with King Korbi?” I asked.
“Uh, we’d be defeated quickly,” he replied.
I smiled tersely, already knowing this. “I know you're excited to have ships. I am too. But how do we use these prizes to best defend this city?”
“Oh, that is a problem, your Grace. Those that float will take time to scuttle, strip, and then process into something usable. We estimate there are over a hundred wrecks on the seafloor that would be better candidates.
“I recommend stripping the siege weapons off decks to place them somewhere higher. Even if this king elva guy is impenetrable, his allies won’t be. We have these great defensive spires. I recommend fortifying them with our limited time.
“As for the ships, I would remove the sails and oars. That way we can clog our harbor, making it harder for the enemy to land troops. We’ll stick them there or in the maze. And, of course, this is only a short term recommendation,” Fernando said.
“I take it, with time, you could fully crew the ships?” I asked.
“Absolutely. Right now, we have seven, eight if I stretch it, battle ready ships,” Fernando said proudly. “The rest simply takes time.”
“I’ll have my minions start breaking down the wrecks and hauling the ships in their entirety to the surface. Even the korb complain they need more wood for their walkways,” I said.
“And where do you want the derelicts?” Fernando asked.
“Tie them to the pillars in the maze, and leave the harbor open to those who navigate it. An ample field of fire is prudent,” I lied. I needed that space open for my plan. “Alright, let’s move onto Nee. I see you have my report ready.”
“Near the bottom,” Nee said with a smile.
Tribe Members Living: 92,073 - not counting your living minions.
Goblins: 40,555 - population put on control. One baby a year now.
Trolls: 5,007 - surge from refugees.
Korb: 1792 - a few births, no deaths.
Orcs: 1969 - surge from refugees.
Minotaurs: 1 - Nick.
Dwarves: 1269 - a few births, no deaths.
Gnomes: 659 - a few births, no deaths.
Elva: 2 - Asha + Jax
Humans: 40,819 - returning refugees caused an increase and a baby boom. It’s been ten months since we left rasker lands.
Livestock:
Boars: 2842
Horses: 4833
Elk: 1122
Rams: 186
Sheep: 397
Geese: 621
Ducks: 933
Pigs: 459
Tradeable Supplies:
Camping Supplies
Wagons
Fletching
Arrows
Crossbows
Crossbow Bolts
Required Supplies:
Metal
Livestock
Hide
Cloth
Nuts and bolts.
A home - not anymore. This one is golden. Added this again on purpose.
Treasury:
250,000 Zorta. - There’s more hidden in case of emergencies. Most went to fund the bank.
2 wagons of Gold.
1 wagon of Gems.
“Who’s running the bank?” I asked in confusion.
“The nobles. They have a council, and I have oversight. So, I get to see if any of them have sticky fingers,” Tarla said.
I bobbed my head in thought, almost afraid to ask this next part. “How long until we can flee the city?”
Jorma laughed with a snort from the bleachers. Her parents fixated on her.
“Sorry, I told them you were going to run, and they said I was dead wrong,” Jorma said.
I stood, placing my knuckles on the desk to lean forward.
“The elva will outnumber us by multitudes we cannot withstand. What good does having the city full of citizens do us?” I asked.
Ike frowned and said, “This is their home. Nordan is violent, savage, and having walls normally means safety. If you kick them out, that changes - drastically.”
“I… I understand. I really do. If King Korbi can emit a fireball the size of this keep, it will shatter the shield mages resistance and incinerate the entire population, a scenario I’d wager he would be willing to accept,” I said.
“My dear husband,” Tarla said with a scowl but a level tone. “The citizens love victory. You asking them to flee instead of fight will be a mixed bag.”
“We have wagons, livestock, and plenty of cavalry. The elva will harry us, but… and a big but here, if this city falls, we can build another once their supply lines run dry and they starve,” I said.
“You want to kite out the elva? Yookree will reinforce their needs, and they are the trading leaders of the region,” Jenovene said.
Tarla scoffed. “Not if we sack a city or two on our trip away.”
I danced my fingers across the table and said, “I needed to know what King Korbi is. I didn’t get that, but the assumption is that he is too much for me. I have a plan, but if it fails, we need to kill a titan with six days to prepare. There really isn’t another option. Last chance. Tell me, how do we defeat a titan elva?”
“We don’t know for sure that is what he is,” Tarla said.
I pointed to Lotus and said, “Oreng, what has he said about the potential fight?”
Lotus smiled and said, “Thank you for calling on me, Sire. If the elva are sailors, fighting near the water is at a disadvantage. Transitioning from sea to land will take time, even with allies. You have edrino, and they are the key to your continued success.
“A city with a five-hundred-foot tall church is easier to trap a titan than what you have now. Thousand-foot thick walls are harder to break than the ten-foot thick walls you have now. Oreng talked over all this with me. He mentioned that the other cities may not like a horde of elva trespassing.”
“Ike?” I asked.
“If you give up our city, it won’t go over well. The last month and a half have been altering the city into something that fits our needs. However, the edrino change a lot. They can build us a small wall at every camp, and in the meantime, they can build a massive fortification. I really like the idea of the mountains nearby, the underground tunnels to new cities, and increasing this city, but who cares what I like if it falls and is destroyed.”
“Really, I’m surprised,” Nee said. “I hate the idea, but your generals are saying to retreat to fight on better grounds. We make the motto that we are building a better tomo
rrow, in a custom home, all before winter. I can sell that to the people.”
“As can I,” Jenovene and Yermica said almost in unison.
“My plan might work, but if it fails and we don’t prepare the people, then I’d never forgive myself,” I admitted.
Tarla stood and said, “Who stays and who goes?”
“Cecil, you, Freninick, Oreng, and the nobles go. I will stay with Nick and… Asha will go with you as well. I will keep Nick, Ike, three quarters of the minions and a quarter of the live troops. That should give me enough to hold out for a while and you enough to defeat Garo Region,” I said.
“And if things turn south, how do you catch up to us?” Tarla asked.
“The minions will carry the living on their shoulders. Or we run. Or we hide. We will do whatever it takes. Since Asha and Jax are going, even if I’m defeated, King Korbi will keep coming,” I said.
“No, Damien,” Tarla said sternly. “Asha, Jax, and Yermica stay with you. I’ll not have it any other way. Same with the other infants. You have to think about more than you. If you fall, your minions vanish. If the elva know the reason they hunt us is defeated, the rest of us can build a nice home. I - I - I'm sorry, but I have to put my foot down.”
I opened my mouth to debate her when Yermica stood and said, “We understand, my Queen. This is the final stand. I can accept that. If you will excuse me, I will say some goodbyes before I start marshalling the lower residences.”
I watched her leave and bit my inner cheek to keep from fighting Tarla about this order. I hated that she was right - to my very core - but she was right. If I died and the elva kept coming, so many innocents would perish.
“Ike, ensure you explain to those who stay behind what they are signing up for. Tarla, Nee, Jenovene, and the rest of us will tell our people that we race for the swamps. Marbern and the edrino will build a massive city if we lose, and everyone can find a semblance of normalcy if we perish,” I said sadly.
Tarla sauntered around the table until she stood on her tippy toes to kiss my cheek. “Be positive, my husband. You’ll win, and we’ll build a mighty empire with Moonguard City as the capital.”
“One can hope,” I said, scooping her off her feet to smash my lips to hers.
