Metal Mage 13

by Eric Vall

  I grinned as I tucked an ink black strand of hair behind Nulena’s ear. “You sure you don’t want to watch from the sidelines? It should be one hell of a show.”

  “Full schedule,” the ebony woman reiterated.

  “Right. Well, then, you have my word. Let me get some paper to write a letter for Temin--”

  “Excuse me?” Nulena snorted. “I am perfectly capable of demanding information from kings without any permission slips.”

  “You’re not going to threaten him, right?” I checked as I heard the metal dragon approaching. “Because leading his defenses is my job, so it’d be ideal to keep everything professional.”

  “I will be polite,” Nulena mumbled and crossed her arms. “Happy?”

  “Very,” I chuckled. “Thank you for this. You’re only picking up forty elves from House Fehryn and another forty from House Quyn. It shouldn’t take long, but make sure the metal dragon flies above the canopy so no one sees any of this taking place, and you can have him deliver them here in the clearing.”

  Nulena nodded as we stepped out of range so the metal dragon could land, and as soon as he touched down, he parted his jaws to let out a metallic screech. I stopped him before he woke up the whole town, though, and he cocked his demonic skull to the side at the command.

  “Thanks, buddy,” I muttered as I headed for the hefty chains still piled near the volcanic platforms. “Let me get you all ready, and then you’re taking Nulena to pick up some more allies for me. Try to get there as fast as possible without putting her in danger, because I told the elves to expect you at dawn.”

  When I turned around, the dragon had his chin tipped up so Nulena could scruff him a bit, and I couldn’t help grinning when I realized the Baroness had a bit of a twinkle in her eyes while she did.

  “Normally, I don’t like beasts, but this one is charming,” Nulena admitted. “What have you named him?”

  “Oh, yeah, I better get on that,” I muttered, and I began crossing the chains over the dragon’s back. “He’s just so epic it’s hard to decide. He’s also my biggest invention yet, but I’ve got a distinct connection to him, so that matters, too.”

  The Baroness smirked. “You put this much thought into naming your machines?”

  “Sometimes,” I chuckled. “Mostly, I’m just trying to avoid letting Cayla name him Mason Jr.”

  “I like that one,” Nulena mused. “He reminds me of you for some reason.”

  I sighed as I climbed down from the dragon’s back, and while I summoned the platform over, I took in the full effect of my massive, flying death machine.

  “You know what he reminds me of?” I snorted after a moment. “I went to this Rammstein concert once, and they had these fucking masks on that shot fifteen-foot flames from their mouths. They actually had flamethrowers strapped to their instruments, too, it was probably one of the most metal nights of my life.”

  I chuckled merrily to myself as the nostalgia washed over me, and I could almost smell the stale beer and smoke from that night. Just the thought made my heart hurt a little as I realized I’d probably never get to mosh again, and I was sighing with a tinge of regret when I glanced over and found Nulena eyeing me.

  “I didn’t understand a lot of those words,” the Baroness said, and I cringed as I remembered she was the only one of my women who didn’t know I was from another world. “What is a Rammstein consort, and how does one partake in a night made out of metal?”

  “Those are good questions,” I admitted. Then I ducked under the dragon and instructed him to hover off the ground so I could secure the platform rather than answer right away. “It’s just um… music. I’m talking about music, and it’s not important, although I honestly think you’d be really into something like that. The point is, I’m naming the dragon Rammstein.”

  “Hmm… ” Nulena leaned her head around the dragon’s talons to get a look at me, and I plastered a casual grin on my face.

  “Ready to go?”

  “I suppose,” the Baroness muttered, “but you do realize I can tell when people are trying to avoid giving me clear answers. It’s part of my job.”

  “And you’re so good at your job,” I admired as I helped her up onto the dragon’s back. “So! Have fun, scare some elves, and did I mention how absolutely beautiful you look today?”

  Nulena narrowed her two-toned eyes at me without responding, and I summoned my powers to give Rammstein his directions. Then I added a side note about his new name, and I made sure he knew not to respond to any other names no matter how many times my women tried. As soon as I finished, I stepped back and ordered him to make a quick exit, and Nulena smirked as I smiled and waved.

  I was still waving when the dragon disappeared over the trees, but then my grin fell flat.

  “Smooth,” I sighed. “Lie to your murdery girlfriend. That’ll end well.”

  I turned back to the mansion, and I immediately made a mental note to fill Nulena in on my background once I finished handling everything else. I probably could have told her before she left, but with the first light of dawn already peeking through the trees, I knew I was running behind on the day as it was.

  Nulena was too detail oriented to not have a hundred questions, too, so the conversation would probably take no less than thirty minutes. I genuinely enjoyed learning about the elusive woman, though, and I wanted to take the time to teach her about myself, so while I headed to my shop, I tried to decide how I could naturally slip the topic into a conversation.

  Then I gave up and set the idea aside because I had an army of automatons to build before tonight, and I was determined to get half of them completed before I went to speak with Cayla’s father. I could still hear my women sleeping soundly upstairs, and without any sexy splashing around taking place in my shop, I figured I could probably double my production time.

  So, I shimmied my way between the four half-built bodies I’d made yesterday, and I found Stan sleeping at the end of the work table while Solana held him tucked under her wing.

  I didn’t want to disturb the little guy, so I quietly sat down before I took a deep breath, and then I began replicating steel plates for the automatons’ arms while I formed four identical helms with cutouts for the eyes. I aligned hinges and tested joint rotations while I sent each piece to their respective sentries, and when it came time to install their wiring, I managed to rig the copper wire of all four automatons at once.

  I was just about to start on the altered 1911s for their left hands when I remembered the way Cayla looked cuddling her AR-15, and the image was enough to bring a smile to my face as I decided to replicate the rifle instead. The princess would probably lose her mind and all her clothes when she found out, but this was only half the reason I decided to branch off from the original Bom design.

  After locating all the portals last night and finding out they were not only larger, but more numerous than I had expected, I was beginning to worry I’d underestimated how colossal the Master’s mass attack was going to be. For all I knew, he’d be sending out his soldiers by the thousands with the setup he’d come up with.

  I didn’t have those kinds of numbers, but if I was already building soldiers who couldn’t be killed out there, then I wanted to make sure they were as effective as possible so the others would have a better chance at surviving. Unfortunately, the fifty-five bullets I’d loaded into my other Boms’ forearms just wouldn’t cut it.

  So, instead of altering the AR-15s to utilize the automatons’ arms as magazine wells, I left them exactly as they were. Then I carefully runed each of them and fused the four new rifles directly to the left hand of each sentry, and this way, no one would be able to get a hold of the weapon during battle.

  The sight of the ten-foot tall machines with semi-automatic rifles was more intimidating than I was prepared for, but I calmly reminded myself this was what the Master’s minions would see before we wiped them out. That made it less unnerving for a while, and I was able to focus on forming enough magazines and ca
rtridges to cross every automaton’s chest in a giant X of ammunition. I made twenty extra magazines to set aside for Cayla as well, and then I lined the plating of the machines’ torsos with clamp mounts to secure their spare ammo.

  Now, I had four fully built Boms with death machetes, AR-15s, and twenty magazines strapped to their chests, and I stepped back to judge the final products.

  Then I spent about five minutes wondering if I’d lost my damn mind, but as soon as I remembered the teleporting minions we were up against, I decided I hadn’t. I was just way more prepared to kick the Master’s ass than I had been since I got to this realm.

  So, I checked to make sure I was still the only person around before I indulged in a low and maniacal chuckle, and once I got the evil genius moment out of my system, I summoned my metal powers.

  Then I transferred the sentries out into the clearing because I wanted to surprise Cayla with them once everything was finished, and it seemed like a good idea to wait on waking them up, too. The last thing I needed was some disagreement between the ogres and mages to set off their defense instincts, so until it was time to send them to the battlefront, they would have to wait patiently beside the mansion.

  Stan was waking up when I settled in at my work table again to start on the next series of automatons, but after taking a confused look around the empty shop, he buried his head under his scrap metal pile like he was pressing snooze on this day.

  “Same,” I chuckled, “but rest assured, everything is going according to plan. The dwarves should be here soon, and Nulena’s bringing us some elven warriors.”

  Stan buried himself deeper into the scrap pile, and I nodded.

  “Yeah, I get that,” I muttered.

  Then I summoned some fresh steel from my stock shelves, and as I started back at the bottom with four identical sets of treads, Alfred arrived with a steaming plate of breakfast.

  “Good morning, sir,” the butler said with a pleasant smile. “Lady Ruela has been let out for her morning hunt, your water spawn have been fed, and your women have awoken. I hope you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of suggesting they bathe in your sex jungle this morning since you’re making remarkable headway in here. You mentioned the need for optimum productivity, and your productivity rate is fifteen percent lower when they’re naked.”

  “Damn, fifteen percent?” I asked with some chagrin, and Alfred nodded in the affirmative. “Well, shit. I’m glad I’ve got someone around here to keep my head in the game, then. Is there anything you can’t tackle?”

  “No, sir, there is not,” Alfred replied.

  “Damn right, there isn’t,” I chuckled as I admired the pancakes, double helping of bacon, buttered bread, and freshly squeezed juice he’d prepared. “I’m expecting another drop-in of allies this morning, so can we get word sent to the mages on the lookout towers? I want to avoid another clanging bell fiasco.”

  “Certainly sir. Shall I update you periodically as to the time, so you remain on schedule?”

  “That would be amazing,” I mumbled through my pancakes. “Let’s work by half-hour increments. There’s too much going on today to live by the hour.”

  “Very good, sir,” Alfred agreed, and he gave me a deep bow before he turned on his heels and left the atrium.

  Then I ate my bacon by the handful while I formed more central bearings and steel plates, and when Stan peeked over at my tray, I tossed him half a pancake so he could hop around on it for a bit.

  While I worked, I listened to my women giggling in their waterfall, and even though their detailed discussion about favorite sexual positions was distracting, it was less so than trying to keep an eye on all their breasts at once, So, I was able to power through the sentries without any interruptions until Alfred returned with my first update.

  “Thirty minutes has passed,” the butler announced at the door.

  “Thank you, Alfred,” I replied as I stood up, and I finished securing the helms of the four automatons. “I think I’ll head to town and touch base with the generals before the dwarves arrive.”

  “Shall I allow your women to see you, before you depart?” Alfred asked. “They’ve become rather insistent even though I’ve served them several helpings of chocolate cake for their patience.”

  “Yeah, send them in,” I chuckled. “Thanks for keeping them happy for me.”

  “It’s no inconvenience, sir,” the butler assured me before he left.

  Less than a minute later, I heard my women running in a pack through the halls, and they kept right on running until they slammed into me and pinned me to my work table.

  “Good morning, handsome,” Cayla purred, and her teeth sank into the nape of my neck.

  “We missed you,” Deya pouted.

  “I thought you like working with us around,” Shoshanne added.

  I tried not to lose my footing while the four of them covered me in kisses, and all their groping and biting made my spine tingle with arousal despite my best efforts to stay focused.

  “You know I love working with you,” I assured them. “I’m just trying to keep up with the day, that’s all. I got four automatons completed, and I’m nearly done with these four. Then I’m-- ”

  Aurora’s tongue cut me off as she managed to shove her way through the others, and I gladly let her hog my attention while Cayla slid to her knees and began undoing my belt.

  “I’m actually on my way out,” I mumbled against Aurora’s lips.

  “But you haven’t cum in any of us all day,” Deya pointed out.

  “It’s not even eight o’clock yet,” I snorted, and I managed to get my belt buckled up again even though Cayla glared at me for it. “I’d love to cum in all of you, you know I would, but I have a hundred things to take care of, including visiting your father. Remember?”

  The princess rolled her eyes. “It’s not as if my father would notice whether I’ve swallowed a gallon of your--”

  “Alfred!” I hollered out of desperation, and I fought against my raging erection while the women kept kissing me and prying at my belt.

  “Ladies,” the butler cut in as he appeared in the doorway, “Baron Flynt has commissioned me to arrange a more challenging regimen for you in the training hall this morning, and it requires the use of your flails.”

  Aurora gasped as she looked at me. “Mason, how did you know I wanted to use my flail for this battle?”

  “Lucky guess,” I said with a grin. Then I casually nudged her toward the door. “Now, I expect that hall to be trashed by the time I get back, alright? Make me proud.”

  “Gods, I love when you let us destroy our training hall,” Cayla murmured, and she got up off the floor as the women began chatting enthusiastically about their morning exercises.

  As soon as they were gone, I swiftly grabbed my gun belt from the wall, and by the time I made it to the door, I could hear stone shattering down the hall as Alfred brought me my sword.

  “Quick thinking with the flails,” I muttered under my breath.

  “I have several things up my sleeves, sir,” Alfred assured me. “Never fear.”

  “Well, tuck a few ideas up there for me, too, because if we’re being honest, I’m worse than all of them combined,” I admitted.

  “I’ll endeavor to think of something, sir.”

  “Thank you,” I chuckled. “I’ll be back in thirty minutes. Try not to let Cayla get a look in the clearing, though, I’m working on a surprise for her.”

  Alfred bowed his head before I ducked out the door, and I was about to take a minute to say good morning to my water spawn, but then I heard the rumble of a train approaching, and I broke into a run.

  Chapter 9

  “Right on time,” I muttered as I tried not to run any mages over, and I made it to the platform just as Bagneera pulled into the station.

  My three generals were waiting at attention to greet the dwarven troops, and when I came to a panting stop beside Haragh, he smirked at the state of me.

  “Hangin’ in there?�
� the half-ogre chuckled.

  “Surprisingly, yes,” I snorted. “I finished everything I needed to last night, and I’m off to a good start today. As soon as the elves arrive, I’m leaving for Cedis, but we’ll go over everything when I get back.”

  “You’re bringin’ elves here?” Haragh furrowed his brows. “With the ogres and all else?”

  “Of course, I need to send them to the Orebane and Illarian tunnels,” I replied.

  “Hope they won’t be in town long,” Kurna muttered from Haragh’s other side.

  I rolled my eyes. “You can’t hold Dragir’s actions against his entire race, Kurna.”

  “I’ll be the judge of that,” the brawny mage countered, but I ignored the remark since the doors of the train were opening.

  Then the Arms of Aurum marched out onto the platform, and all of us instinctively straightened our postures as we watched the armored dwarves form one tight line after another.

  Beneath their helms, every soldier sported a bushy beard and a weathered scowl, and they all had dwarven swords in their hilts and stout, iron maces propped up on their left shoulders. The shields they wore strapped to their backs bore the crest of the Elders of Aurum, and they were rimmed with roughly honed rubies as well. Their chain mail and steel armor rattled so loudly, the mages in the streets gathered to watch, and when the platform was too full to fit any more soldiers, the rest of the dwarves marched into the lane to form the next five lines.

  Once the last dwarf marched into place, all two hundred of them saluted in unison, and one man stepped out of rank to approach me while the others remained stock still.

  “Defender Flynt, I presume?” the dwarf said in a gravelly voice, and when I nodded, he saluted me before he removed his helm. “General Kralok of the Arms of Aurum, at your service, sir.”

  “Welcome to Falmount Rift,” I replied. “These are Generals Urn, Haragh, and Kurna. They’ll see to your needs for the day. We expect to move out by two o’clock, but until then, feel free to make yourselves comfortable here. If you’d like your own barracks, I can arrange for my mages to construct something for you in only a few minutes.”