by Eric Vall
“Defender Flynt!” Kurna called as he jogged over, and I manfully forced a warrior’s scowl onto my face as I turned his way. “I think we’ve gotten most of them. There’s only a handful left near the market, but they’re trying to make a break for it.”
“Shit,” I cursed as Big Guy and Big Red turned toward the market, and I ran at an all-out sprint to catch them. “Hold on!”
Big Guy already had two ogres impaled on his blade by the time I made it there, though, and Big Red was fixing to slice straight through the last three as he raised his arm high.
“Halt!” I ordered as I burst through the crowd of gaping mages, and Big Red froze in place before he could get a slice in. “No one fire! Let them go!”
“Mason, what are you--” I heard Cayla ask in confusion, but I sprinted past everyone as the last three ogres fled over the tracks and into the woods.
I could hear my women panting while they tried to keep up with us, and I forced my legs to pump faster as the ogres snarled and broke through every branch and bramble in their path. My heightened sight helped me keep track of them despite the endless darkness between us, and I was only yards behind when they abruptly vanished.
“There!” I gasped, and I crashed to my knees as I came to the spot they’d disappeared from.
Then I rifled through the leaves and brambles as I scoured the ground and rocks, and when I found nothing, I clamored toward the trees and began checking every inch of their bark.
“Wh-What are you doing?” Aurora managed when she came to a panting stop.
“Find the mark,” I ordered. “They vanished right here. It has to be somewhere.”
My women immediately began scouring the trees around us as they realized what I was after, and it took us several minutes of frantic searching in the dark before Deya gasped.
“Mason, it’s here!” the beautiful elf called, and we all ran over to crouch near a thorny mess of brambles surrounding two oak trees.
I ripped the brambles apart while their thorns tore into the tender flesh of my arms, but where the two trunks were wedged together at the base, I saw a distinct and freshly carved line. I dropped to my knees as I tried for a closer look, and it was only a single, slender line, but it was too distinct to be accidental. The line laid at a sixty-degree angle that would have been difficult to create in such a small space with all the thorns surrounding it, and it was about four inches long. Then I pressed my fingers against the freshly exposed wood, and I closed my eyes as I tried to focus on a different presence than what I was used to.
I didn’t know the name of this element, so I couldn’t summon its powers, and since it wasn’t made of any material my magery could connect to, I had to rely on my experience with rune magic instead.
Still, after a few minutes, I knew I sensed something in the wood, and while I couldn’t identify what it was, the presence grew heavier in the air around me the longer I focused on the mark.
“This is it,” I muttered under my breath. “This is the mark they used to get here.”
“Should we destroy it?” Shoshanne asked at once.
“Yeah,” I said, but I carefully studied the angle the line was placed at to imprint it in my mind before I nodded.
Then Aurora summoned her flames, and she lit the entire tree on fire as we all stepped back. We were still working to catch our breaths while we watched the enchanted flames build and devour the oak, but I was focused on the elemental line. I could sense its presence more clearly now that I’d familiarized myself with it, and I could feel it fighting against Aurora’s fire.
It was like the element knew it was being destroyed, just like when we removed runes from a person’s flesh, and I wondered if the Master could tell what we were doing. The rune he branded his soldiers with bore the same mark somewhere in the maze of elemental lines, and from my understanding, it functioned as a sort of contact point between them and this portal. If he could connect with the consciousness of those who bore his mark in order to control them, then it seemed logical he could connect with the other end of these elemental portals he was forming.
Part of me hoped he could, just so he knew I was onto his game. Keeping up with his every move seemed to make him act impulsively, and now that the Master had finally made his move, I wanted him to know I hadn’t let that lull distract me. I was still right here, waiting to counter anything he had to throw at me, even if it was an entire army of possessed ogres.
“Let’s go,” I muttered as I turned back toward Falmount, and my women silently followed after.
They could always tell when I was too tense to talk, and I appreciated the moment to collect my thoughts before we got to the village.
Whoever engraved that line strategically concealed it, and it was about sixty feet east of the tracks where none of my mages would tend to travel. More importantly, if there was one portal in my woods, there could be dozens of others, and the next attack would come on just like this one had. Out of the blue, with no warning, and numbers filing in with seemingly no end.
This meant I couldn’t do anything to secure my town now. I could enclose all of my land in a twenty-foot wall if I wanted, but the elemental lines would still be hidden all over the woods, and if something like an Osulla appeared out of one, we’d all be barricaded inside and completely screwed.
“Fuck,” I cursed under my breath as I shoved a branch aside, but then Deya was at my side, and she looped her fingers in mine.
“Did you sense the power of the element?” she asked quietly, and I could tell she was a little nervous to bother me, so I did my best to send her a reassuring grin as I tightened my hold on her hand.
“I did.”
“Dragir told me once this is a calling of the elements,” Deya replied. “I know you cannot wield its power without knowing what it is, but perhaps, since you’ve recognized its presence, you can locate any other marks that might be here?”
I nodded because she had a fair point, but this didn’t ease my concerns. There were miles and miles of forest surrounding Falmount, and I didn’t know how to scan for rune magic. I only sensed the power of the line on the tree because I touched it and was desperately trying to connect with it, but could I even locate a calling like that if I just happened to stroll past it? Maybe if it was engraved in stone or metal, but the Master would probably think of this and deliberately stick to using surfaces I couldn’t magically access.
Still, it was something to consider, and I shifted to pull Deya closer so her hand was looped around my arm.
“Thanks,” I muttered and sent her a grin. “That helps.”
Deya smiled sweetly as her violet eyes shimmered in the dappled moonlight, and I took a few deep breaths to clear my mind while we all crossed the tracks and jumped down to the lanes of Falmount.
Every house in the vicinity had holes torn through them or entire walls crumbled, and the torches the ogres had thrown all over the place destroyed several of the trees lining the lanes. The ground was shaken apart into deep fissures while the mages tentatively made their way through the wreckage, and a crew of Defenders were gathered in a huddle when they saw us coming.
Then Kurna grinned, and he clapped me on the arm as I joined them.
“How many casualties?” I asked, and the man sobered up as he glanced at Defender Urn.
“We’re still working on a count,” Urn replied. “So far, only ten.”
I nodded. “Severe injuries?”
“Thirty-two. The healers are already addressing their wounds.”
“Is Taru okay?” I asked next, and Kurna smirked.
“She’s fine,” he assured me. “A few bullets to extract, but I think Haragh’s made sure the mages won’t be making the same mistake ever again.”
“What a mess,” I muttered as I rifled my hair, but the Defenders chuckled.
“I don’t know,” Urn said with a shrug. “From where I’m standing, we did a hell of a job fending off dozens of crazed beasts twice our size with no warning, and I think you’
ll notice, these younger mages aren’t the worse for the wear.”
“He’s right,” Cayla replied as she came to my side. “I was impressed with what I saw out there tonight. Only weeks ago, many of these mages would have been slaughtered within minutes, but they fought admirably and acted well based on their best instincts.”
“Not bad at all,” Kurna chuckled. “Plus, they’re more than willing to clean up the wreckage, too.”
I smirked as Kurna sent me a broad grin, and when I glanced toward the lane at my back, there really was a crowd of mages all covered in soot and blood. Their eyes were alert while they stood ready for my orders, and considering the carnage, I couldn’t deny I was proud of their resilience. Half of them just had their homes brought to the ground while others lost their companions, but they definitely didn’t look shaken. They looked even more united and determined to fix this.
“Awaiting your order, baron,” Urn grunted, and Aurora nudged me forward as she sent me a small smile.
“You fought well tonight,” I told the mages, but then I grinned. “That’s not really fair, though. In all honesty, you completely kicked ass, and I can’t even express how proud I am. This was an attack we couldn’t have anticipated, but not one of you hesitated to do your parts in defending Falmount.”
“But our weapons,” a young mage said uneasily, and he gestured to the revolver still clutched in his hand. “They didn’t kill the ogres.”
“I know,” I admitted. “We’re dealing with a threat that’s gonna take everything we’ve got and more, but I assure you, I’m already on top of the issue. For now, we know the revolvers and rifles will defend us against the Master’s mages so long as we keep our aim on target and don’t hesitate. All the same, without your efforts tonight, magery alone wouldn’t have saved us, so keep training, and know that the next time we face off with an army like this one, we’ll be more than prepared.”
The mages roared with approval as they raised their revolvers high, and four healers calmly made their way through the rowdy crowd to join me and the Defenders.
“Defender Flynt,” Mage Hellia said as she neatly clasped her hands together. Her conservative bun was perfectly arranged with not a hair out of place despite the harried flush of her cheeks, and she bowed in respect while her companions did the same. “We’ve attended to those who were brought to us in critical condition. They’re in bad shape, but they’ll make it through. We’ve only come to seek out any others who require assistance.”
I nodded as I turned to the mages. “Anyone who’s suffered even a minor injury, the healers can tend to you now. Make your way to the infirmary immediately.”
“I’ll help you,” Shoshanne told Mage Hellia, but the kind woman raised a hand.
“Don’t trouble yourself, Mage Shoshanne,” she insisted. “We are more than capable of addressing the situation.”
“If you’re sure,” Shoshanne replied, and she bit her lip anxiously. “I don’t mind at all. I can put something more appropriate on and be ready to help in--”
“Nooo!” someone immediately protested, and several snickers broke out in the crowd.
I narrowed my eyes at the mages as Shoshanne blushed and crossed her arms over her breasts, but then I caught sight of a younger guy brazenly devouring every inch of her while his two friends did the same.
“Actually, I’m not feeling too good, miss,” the guy said with a filthy grin. “Maybe you could--”
The mage paled on the spot when I abruptly made my way over, and I had about ten choice phrases I was ready to lay on him once I finished planting my fist into his face, but Shoshanne flipped around with her palm raised before I could get there.
Then she ruthlessly cinched his lungs in a vise, and when I glanced back, both Aurora and Cayla had bloody daggers drawn to match the deadly cast of their eyes.
Shoshanne calmly strolled forward, though, as the guy collapsed onto his knees and fought for air, and when he finally flattened across the dirt with his eyes bulging, the healer shamelessly splayed her thighs to slowly crouch beside him.
“Do you know who runs the infirmary in this town?” Shoshanne murmured, and the cruelty in her tone made my knees go weak as my jaw dropped.
The poor guy did manage a choking “you” while he spluttered against the dirt.
“That’s right,” the healer purred. “And do you want me to care whether you live or die?”
The man managed another nod, but he was turning blue, and I shifted uneasily while I tried to decide if I should intervene. If it was Aurora, I obviously would have because she’d killed men over less before, but at the moment, I couldn’t bring myself to say a damn thing on account of holy hell … Shoshanne’s scary side was way sexier than I had expected.
The cheeks of her ass plumed behind her plush thighs as the flames of the burning trees flickered across her caramel skin, and I wanted to be that leather thong right now. I wanted to both be it and tear it off in one fell swoop while she laid herself out on my flaming bed, and judging by Cayla’s grin, I knew the princess approved.
So, I did absolutely nothing to rein my woman in while she kept the mage on the brink of death for the whole village to see.
“I suggest you do the smart thing,” Shoshanne informed the suffocating mage, and both Cayla and I whimpered at the tone of her voice. “You and your friends are never going to say another word to me, unless you all want to die on my operating table of unknown causes. Understood?”
Shoshanne didn’t bother waiting for another nod since the guy was beginning to lose consciousness, but she did finally release her hold on his lungs, and she rose to her feet to leave him gasping in the dirt behind her heels.
Every mage surrounding us either stared while the healer walked away or desperately tried not to, and I was right there with the former group as Shoshanne strolled past me with my women and a bloody Ruela happily trailing along behind that fine ass of hers.
Then Haragh nudged me hard in my ribs to get my brain churning again.
“Your whole town’s in a shambles, baron,” the half-ogre reminded me.
“Sure.” I nodded. “Umm … three groups, seven Terra Mages each. One crew repairs the houses, another can handle the market, and the rest can do repairs on the streets. Ignis Mages restore the torches and squelch any leftover flames. Flumen and Aer Mages assist at the infirmary. Defenders, lead the crews for the repairs and get an ammunition count so we can restock tomorrow. Everyone reports back to Haragh.”
“Huh?” the half-ogre grunted blankly.
My feet were already taking me down the lane, though, as I kept my eyes glued on the sway of Shoshanne’s hips, and even Haragh dogging after me in protest did nothing to derail me.
“You’ve got this,” I assured him. “It’s not too hard to oversee shit, and I trust you to make sure everything’s handled. I uh … I have some stuff I’ve gotta do.”
“Seriously?” Haragh growled. “Whatever it is can wait ‘til this mess is cleaned up!”
“No, it definitely can’t wait,” I mumbled as I waved him off. “It’s baron stuff. Super important.”
“Sure it is,” Haragh snorted.
“I’ll get you knighted if you do this for me,” I said without a second thought.
“Deal,” Haragh replied, and he promptly turned around as he rubbed his big green hands together.
I could tell from the tone he used on the mages that he was already enjoying the authority, and he had them all organized into three clean up crews with Defenders at the head of each group by the time I caught up to my women.
Then I swiftly hooked Shoshanne by the waist and hoisted her over my shoulder, and she giggled when I pinched the meat of her exposed ass for good measure.
“You’re ridiculously sexy when you wanna kill a man,” I chuckled.
“Yeah, you’re suffocating me tonight,” Cayla informed the healer.
“Not if she suffocates me first,” Aurora cut in, but I shook my head as I shoved the door of our mansion
open with my boot.
“Sorry, ladies,” I sighed, “barons first, and I’m gonna be busy with this one for quite a while.”
“Can’t we watch, though?” Deya begged.
I grinned. “Of course, you can.”
“I call first cage!” the elf announced, and she sprinted past us with Aurora in hot pursuit.
Oh, yeah … my women made me hang iron cages from our bedroom ceiling during our week off, too.
It was one hell of a vacation, if I did say so myself.
Chapter 3
“Well, if we’re not sure how to completely secure Falmount, then what do we do next?” Cayla asked as she scooped some more water over her breasts, and the women surrounding her looked at me expectantly.
All four of them were languidly bathing in the enchanted waters of my workshop while I flipped through an endless pile of parchment for a solution, and Stan anxiously paced across the table in front of me.
Even after explaining my concerns about the Master’s unknown element being present all over my land, my women still insisted we weren’t completely fucked yet, and I wanted to believe them. So, I lined up seven potential layouts for Falmount that I’d been working on over the last week, and while Aurora began washing Shoshanne’s hair, I did my best to focus on the paper before me.
Still, my eyes kept wandering toward the fountain, and I couldn’t believe I already wanted to go back to bed. Last night should have more than satiated me, but something about snapping those leather straps against my women’s plush curves while they gasped with pleasure was impossible to forget, and I almost regretted tearing their ensembles to shreds while I pounded into them.
Almost.
“Mason,” Aurora said with a grin, “did you hear Cayla’s question?”
“Yeah!” I hastily replied, and I thoughtfully scruffed my chin while I pretended to study my designs. “There’s just a lot to consider.”
“You’re blushing,” the half-elf informed me, and the other women began giggling.
“The details I’m considering are super complicated,” I mumbled. “It’s a taxing process.”
