* * * * *
Sara looked into the old man’s eyes and saw a light that had never been there before. Just days ago, she doubted he would live through the week, but something had changed in the man. “A gift?” she asked, watching as his face curled into a smile before it began to change.
Atop Hort’s bald head, hair began to sprout as the loose, wrinkled skin upon his body and face began to grow taut once more as it was filled out from within. His age spots faded as muscle tone grew beneath his flesh, and on his bare chest a wide round scar began to appear. Sara could not believe her eyes or her mind as she watched Hort transform, and looking down to the corpse of her husband at her feet she looked back up into his newly-formed face upon what was just seconds before an old man’s body.
Even as Sara climbed to her feet to be wrapped in Seth’s arms, great wings sprouted from his back as black cloth slithered around him like snakes, taking the shape of his breeches and tunic.
“I thought you were gone,” Sara admitted.
“No, Love. I promised you I’d never leave you again, and I intend to keep that promise.”
“But how?”
“I did as you suggested, and remade myself, though not as a god, just as myself.”
“And Hort?”
“He is a part of me now, he sacrificed his body, willingly, so that I could live.”
“What now?” Sara asked, still in shock.
“Now I teach that treacherous bastard a lesson.”
“Kill?” Sara asked simply.
“He’ll pray that I did,” Seth answered before leaping off the wall of the city.
Sara watched him flap his mighty wings, climbing into the air currents in the sky. Below, the loyal men and women of Drakenhurst were fighting upon the field of battle, having swarmed out of the city when their ruler fell.
Thinking Seth dead, the enemy’s army remained to finish what it started, with hopes of conquering Drakenhurst. Sara couldn’t help but grin through her tears of happiness, knowing that the enemy was about to get one hell of a surprise.
Chapter Five
Eying the Lycan training grounds with a scowl, Zorbin Ironfist stomped a path across the many-tiered courtyards of the castle complex as Xanth watched on from the shadows of the Mage tower. With the load of tasks on his shoulders already, the last thing he needed was a premature Choosing ceremony to finish out his week.
Already, children en route to The Choosing were filing into the city, running around the streets, and causing all sorts of chaos. These kids were too young to be in such a position. Already, mischief in the city was increasing by the hour with so many unsupervised young teens. Reports of vandalism were coming in from all corners of the city from the city guard, and the week was just beginning. By the twin full moons in six days’ time, the city would be brimming with the young and unsupervised by the thousands. Something would need to be done, and there wasn’t the manpower to do it. Against his better judgement, Zorbin only had one option, and that was to visit the king.
Approaching the guard at the gate to the Lycan facility, Zorbin grunted a greeting, telling the man to open up with a wave of his hand. Attempting to mentally prepare himself for what he faced, the dwarf took a deep breath, expelling as much anger and frustration as was possible before setting foot in what was his own personal hell.
Inside the scene was far declined from when last he had entered. The rows and rows of cages stacked one upon the other, making up the exterior walls, were brimming with Lycan young. So full were the cages he could only see writhing masses of moving bodies within them. Peering into the nearest cage, he gauged that these were the young, barely adolescent creatures, but not only the cages had changed.
In the courtyard of the Lycan grounds stood thousands of adult Lycans with barrel chests and humped backs. They moved in coordinated, choreographed fight sequences with wooden swords and shields, like something from another world. There were so many that Zorbin could not believe, and what’s more, they were bigger than before. It wasn’t that they were continuing to grow. It was the selective breeding that the king and all those pro-Lycan had decided upon. Already, those Lycans nearest to him were a foot taller than the first of the species with broader chests and heads and thicker necks.
Passing crammed row after row of hair-covered bodies, Zorbin wondered how any of the humans here could stand the smell. The whole place reeked of wet dog and feces. The Lycan numbers had grown well beyond the abilities of their handlers to keep up. To Zorbin, it appeared a dire situation. What if the creatures decided to turn on their masters?
Peering between rows of the Lycan soldiers in training, Zorbin sought out his king, finally locating the man after more than two dozen rows. Turning to stride between the rows, he kept his hand on the handle of his hammer and his eyes on the beasts as he passed. Reaching the king, who was in some sort of debate with a soldier Zorbin didn’t recognize, the dwarf did his best to wipe the disgust from his face, and appear unperturbed by their surroundings.
“Good Zorbin, how is my dear friend this morning?” Garret nearly shouted over the din of the training grounds. Zorbin judged the man and found him in a better than usual mood.
“Well enough, my king, but it is not for my wellbeing that I have come.” Zorbin watched the king’s expression like one judging the volatility of a venomous snake that is cornered and angry, but the king seemed truly jovial.
“What is it then, which brings you into this place that you detest so much?” Garret asked him, a show that more of Zorbin’s cards were on the table than he intended.
“I’ll get straight to it then,” Zorbin began. “The Choosing is but six days ahead, my king. Already, children be pouring in from the countryside, unsupervised, and we haven’t enough men in the city guard to keep ’em on their best behavior if ye catch my drift.”
“And if you had more men, what would you do with them?”
“Increased patrols would be first on me list, but a doubling of the guard would not hurt either.”
“So four or five hundred men, perhaps?” Garret asked, one of his thick eyebrows rising.
“Aye, but such men are not to be found, your Majesty. There’s naught to be done. I thought of sending a request to Raven’s keep, but I doubt they would be able to send us more than a few dozen men at such a time as this.”
“Yes, dear Zorbin, the kingdom is depleted of men, but it seems that your problem is my solution. Rolph and I were just discussing the problem of housing the Lycan troops until the facilities in the city are completed. But If I grant you the use of a thousand Lycans, you split them into two shifts, and rotate them, and it will allow us more space to train and continue our program.”
Zorbin felt as if he been stomped on by a giant. How could he have not seen this coming? It was as if his worst nightmares were coming true. Lycans? Guarding the city and keeping order? Was such a thing even possible? Could these creatures even fathom what civilized meant? It seemed like too great a trust to place in a species that was literally just a few months old. “Aye, Garret. Two birds, one stone.”
“You do not like the idea?” the king asked.
“Tis not that I don’t appreciate the allotment of so many bodies. Tis that they are untried, untested, and…”
“You do not trust them.”
“Aye, my king.” And there it was, Zorbin’s last card was played. There was nothing to be done about it. How could he trust the creatures?
“Yet it was you who would not let me slay them,” Garret reminded him.
“Aye, but I did not expect this, my king. Mercy be one thing, but this… this be another thing entirely.”
“And if I can prove to you that they are loyal to me, to us, and our city?”
“Then I suppose I’d be in agreement,” Zorbin said reluctantly. He watched as the king turned, looking for something across the crowded yard.
“Kanth!” the king boomed. Within seconds the king’s pet Lycan, the one that seemed to be in charge of the creatur
es, appeared.
“My king,” the beast growled, its head bobbing slightly and shifting from side to side as if seeking prey out of hiding.
“Bring me your favorite bitch, the one who you enjoy the most and who has borne you the most children.”
Without so much as turning or speaking, Kanth nodded as just a moment later a great beast of a bitch appeared. She was wide of hip and large of breast and even now, currently heavily laden with pups. Zorbin looked over the Lycan female with wonder. She was huge in comparison to those first females, and judging by the immense swelling in her belly, she carried an immense litter as well.
“This her, my king,” Kanth said, raising a clawed hand in gesture.
“Good, Kanth. Now kill her.”
Without so much as a moment’s hesitation, the Lycan fulfilled his order, leaping upon the Lycan female and driving her down and onto her back with a scream. Prying her head back with one clawed hand, Kanth grasped her shoulder with the other as he lashed out at her exposed flesh with her teeth. In a single bite he tore open her throat, spraying blood across the grass and upon his own fur. He held her there, pinned for several seconds as her life’s blood poured from the grievous wound. When she had finished thrashing, he released her, turning his attention to her abdomen.
Zorbin watched as the Lycan used his clawed hands to tear into the bitch’s belly, rending the flesh apart before pulling out a semitransparent sack filled with fluid and something dark. Tearing the sack with his teeth, Kanth extracted the pup, biting through the umbilical cord before hanging the tiny beast upside down. Within seconds the babe began to stir, wriggling and flailing, and Kanth placed it in the grass before pulling another from the dead bitch’s abdominal wound. Over and over Kanth repeated the process until eleven pups lay squirming on the grass.
“My king, pups are small, but strong. Will live,” the creature known as Kanth said to his master as he rose to rejoin them, blood and gore dripping down his chest.
“You see, Zorbin?” Garret said with increased gusto. “They follow orders without question. Their loyalty is undeniable.”
Zorbin was both impressed and disgusted by the display. What it really showed him was the Lycans’ disregard for life, though he supposed if one was brought up in a place where life was cultivated at such a rate as the Lycans had been, the creatures’ understanding of it might be twisted. They might follow orders, but what was their agenda? What was their angle? Everyone had personal desires. What was theirs? Without knowing, it would be all he could do to keep an eye on the creatures as best he was able and do his best to keep the people safe. “If you think it wise, my king.”
“That settles it then,” Garret grinned. “Kanth, select a thousand Lycan to begin patrols and city watch. You will split them into two shifts with the job of keeping the city safe and maintaining order both day and night.”
“Yes, King.”
“Also, Kanth, you will be their captain, and report directly to Zorbin Ironfist. Stay at his side, and learn his ways. Do as he says. He is an honorable man, and will show you the way of the guard and of our patrols.”
“Yes, King.”
“There you go, Zorbin. What else troubles you?” Garret asked.
“That is all, my king.”
“Good, with this matter handled you can focus better on preparation for The Choosing.”
“Indeed I can,” Zorbin agreed, knowing he would be too worried about the Lycans patrolling his streets to concentrate on anything else.
“See. It will all work out. Already the Lycans have become an invaluable resource. Can you imagine what we can utilize them for in a month’s time? Two?”
Zorbin didn’t dare voice his opinion on the matter, although he had plenty to say. Instead he tried his best to match the king’s grin, and nodded, very much mimicking the man named Rolph who still stood at the king’s side.
“Very well, then. I’ll let you get to it, and I’ll expect a report on their performance tomorrow.”
“Consider it done, my king,” Zorbin replied before turning on his heel. Striding away from the king, Zorbin was acutely aware of Kanth following just a few paces behind. As he passed between the ranks of Lycans, he noted as they reorganized, some of the beasts taking up places nearer the gate ahead while others moved further into the training field.
When he reached the gate to leave, Zorbin turned to assure himself that Kanth was still with him, and looking back witnessed as a great mass of Lycans marched towards him. Counting quickly, he noted they had fallen into ten ranks of fifty Lycans. This, he supposed, was his day shift.
* * * * *
Anna sat in her favorite corner birthing stall inside the Lycan training grounds. Although she had spent much of the day assisting in the birth of more than two hundred pups, her mind kept wandering back to her latest conquest.
It had taken the guard hours to find the tasty little servant girl, but Anna was well away before they had. The fact that they were looking into their own ranks for the culprit gave her pleasure to no end. So long as the castle guard were suspicious of one another, she was free to do what she pleased without fear of anyone prying into her daily activities, not that Garret would let them anyhow.
Rising from her stool, she patted the momma Lycan on her shoulder and praised her for the litter of twelve beastly looking offspring. The creatures were beautifully hideous, and she imagined them as abominations like herself. At least in that aspect, they were the same, for every other way they were far different. Anna couldn’t fathom raising a child, let alone a dozen. She saw every day the toll these pups took on their mothers, literally draining the life from their tits until they were barely more than bones and skin. Once weaned, the mothers recovered, but with each litter the females became less than before. Anna wondered if the same would be for her, though she doubted it with her amazing ability to heal. In any case, she was fairly certain she would never bear a child. Perpetually a virgin, and having only bled once before her change into a monster, she was not surprised that her many lovers, especially Garret, had not put a child in her womb. It was her fate to be a half-developed woman for all time, and for that she would see the demon prince and his bloodthirsty bride pay.
Striding around the crudely built wall of her stall, she peered down the row of bloody birthing rooms to where Ashton stood, concentrated on something in his hand. Curious to see what held the devious little man’s attention, Anna crossed the distance swiftly, capturing his attention as well as that of the guard posted nearby.
“Ashton, how do you fare today?”
“Anna! Good to see you. I didn’t realize you were here.”
“Just doing my part,” Anna smiled, gesturing to the blood-covered smock she wore.”
“And Lonna?” Ashton asked.
“She’s working her own stall today. It’s getting hard to keep up.”
“That’s what I was just looking at,” Ashton revealed.
Anna glanced down to the man’s hand at what he had been previously viewing. It appeared to be a report of sorts with numbers and mathematical figures she was never burdened with the knowledge of. “What is it?”
“Just updated calculations.”
“Is everything on track? I’d hate to bring Garret more bad news.”
“Better than on track actually. Through selective breeding, we’ve already doubled our production for the short term, which means exponential growth down the line so long as we can keep up.”
“Which we can’t,” Anna professed, knowing full well that the healer Balantine was already being pushed well beyond her limitations, and all the city’s healers were taking shifts just to rejuvenate her and keep her working.
“I agree, but even if we can only maintain the pace established today, we’ll be adding nearly two thousand Lycans per day.”
“How many is that in a month? A year?” Anna asked, angered at her own ignorance.
“Those are precisely the calculations I was making. At this rate it is sixty thousand ne
w pups a month or seven hundred and twenty thousand in a year. Not adding, of course, any natural breedings that may come, just those we speed to fruition.”
“We need more Balantines,” Anna said, knowing her entire plan hinged on a future war campaign led by her lover.
“That is very much the same discussion I had with Garret just yesterday. He says he has a plan that may help, but we’ll need to be patient.”
Anna thought over the healer’s words. If her soon-to-be husband had a plan, she needed to know what it was so she could find a way to use it for her own devices. Although she was supposed to be busy planning a wedding and helping Ashton when she was able, Anna knew that in order to get what she most desired, she needed to know all the inner workings of the city and its military plans. Although she could likely ask Garret what it was that he was planning, it was best to not pry too much, and play her role of lover and soon-to be-bride. A queen’s role was not war, but the people. And who loved the people that could give her military info? The dwarf… But how to get him to talk? They needed a common enemy. Not Garret, obviously, though the two were often at odds. Not Ashton either, though it was obvious that Zorbin hated the healer. No. Neither would do. And then she had it. Just this day, a few hours before, she had heard that Garret had assigned the dwarf a legion of Lycans to patrol the city and take positions in the guard. It was no secret the man disliked the Lycans. Perhaps if she pandered to his fears of the creatures, and made him an ally in that way, at least temporarily, she could get the information she wanted. It was certainly worth a shot.
“Well I certainly hope the king comes through, as I know he will. Without a means to speed the growth of all these new pups, he won’t have the soldiers he needs to kill the demon prince,” Anna stated.
“A fear we all share, m’lady.”
“I’m afraid, dear Ashton, that I have a wedding to plan, so I may be scarce in the days to come.”
Age of the Gods: The Complete, twelve novel, fantasy series (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) Page 196
