Empire Builder 4: Breed, Populate, Conquer, page 8
But it did no good. The spear jammed up and through Nipper’s shoulder, the monster crying out with a roar of pain as the tip stabbed all the way through, coming out and barely missing Ben.
Nipper pitched to the side, tossing Ben off and sending him slamming to the ground. Ben scrambled to his feet to see that, to his relief, Nipper was still up despite being run through with the spear. While it had punctured all the way through the monster, it looked to have avoided anything major.
He needs to get out of here, Ben thought. He’s a sitting duck injured like that .
“Nipper!” Ben shouted. “Get out of the battle!”
Nipper turned to Ben, the look in the monster’s eyes suggesting that he wasn’t happy to leave his father alone on the field of battle.
“Now!”
Nipper snorted, then turned. Before the monster left, however, he had one last parting shot for the Black Army. He lunged forward and toward Lyra, bowling over the troops that stood around her and sinking his teeth into her armored horse.
Lyra’s eyes went wide with panic as the horse let out a horrible shriek. The armor was too strong for Nipper to bite through cleanly, but the shock of the impact was enough to make the horse buck and toss Lyra off and to the ground. The horse panicked and galloped off, leaving the general of the Black Army on the ground.
With that, Nipper turned to Ben one last time, let out a final snort, then hobbled through the battlefield and back to friendly lines. By then the Black Army was too broken to try to wound Nipper further, the remaining troops fighting for their lives as Ben’s army closed the circle around them.
When he turned back to Lyra, he watched as she slowly stood, her massive great sword still on her hip. She locked her blood-red eyes onto him, her posture tall and fearless. Now that she was off her horse, Ben could see how long and lean she was—about the size of Ben, and he was a taller man himself.
Her armor was beautiful, ornate and sculpted, pitch-black and embellished with small, horn-like protrusions from every joint. Lyra’s blade was massive, the size of her, and nearly at a right angle on her hip so that it didn’t drag on the ground.
Her eyes still on Ben, Lyra pulled the blade out effortlessly as if it weighed nothing at all. Then she took off her helmet and tossed it aside, her black tresses falling around her armored shoulders.
“Now,” she said, a slight smile on her face, “are you ready to end this battle here and now?”
Ben took his blade from his own scabbard and held it in front of him.
“More than ready.”
Chapter 9
Lyra heaved her great sword up, pointing at Ben. Her tongue shot out, red and thin as she sounded out a hiss, pulling back her full lips enough to reveal two rows of small, pointed teeth.
She flew toward Ben with surprising speed for someone wielding a blade of that size. When she was close, she pushed the end forward, Ben barely moving out of the way.
When Lyra had flown past him, carried by the momentum and weight of her sword, Ben swung his own blade, barely missing her. Lyra then jammed the blade into the ground, swinging around on it as if it were a gymnast’s pole, her armor-clad feet hitting Ben hard in the chest and sending him falling back to the ground.
Pain ran through him. He tried to take a deep, slow breath, but agony like fire ran through him. He could sense right away that her kick had broken more than a few ribs. Unless he used Healing Touch, he’d be a sitting duck.
Lyra yanked her blade out of the ground, the grin still on her face. Ben wasted no time placing his hand on his chest under his shirt and tapping into Healing Touch. He closed his eyes for a moment, able to picture the ribs stitching themselves back together, the bruises on his chest healing. When it was done, Ben was able to breathe once more.
But there was a problem—he’d used nearly all his remaining mana in the process. Only enough for a few spells remained, and there’d be no time to wolf down a chunk of mana crystal in the middle of the duel.
“What’s the matter, Emperor?” she asked as she sauntered toward him, her hips swinging from side to side. “Already on the back foot?”
Ben said nothing, instead rising to his feet and trying to figure out his next step.
That blade of hers is huge—but she wields it like it’s nothing. How the hell is that possible?
He put the matter aside, knowing he had more important considerations. Lyra, however, wasn’t about to give him a moment to get his bearings. She raised the great sword and brought it down hard. Ben pivoted out of the way at the last moment, the sword close enough that he could feel the rush of wind from the blade coming down.
Ben saw an opening, and with Lyra’s hands still on the hilt, he jabbed his weapon forward and struck a glancing blow against her armor. It didn’t do much damage, but it was enough to make her look up with shock and surprise. Ben then used Force Wave to knock her back, putting some distance between her and her great sword.
Ben seized the advantage with a flurry of strikes, bringing one after another down hard onto Lyra. She could do nothing but raise her forearm perpendicular to the ground, using the protection of her armor to block the attack. And when Ben ran out of steam for the onslaught, she was quick to turn her body and slam into him with her shoulder. Ben staggered backward, giving Lyra enough space to move.
And he was shocked at what he witnessed. Lyra shifted, her body taking on the long, curved form of a snake from the waist down. She slithered quickly to her blade, yanking it from the ground and hefting it with both hands. She was even taller in her snake form, slight fangs protruding from the side of her face like that of a cobra but even longer. But she was still strikingly attractive in her kin form, her face taking on a savage beauty.
“Let’s end this!” she shouted. “Come!”
She slithered toward him with surprising speed, crashing the blade to the ground once more. Ben moved, trying to focus to tap into Siphon to pull something, anything out from her. But there was only enough to cast one spell—he knew he had to make it good, whatever he chose.
The power he’d siphoned from the soldiers still coursed through him, and Ben put all of it into a quick stab forward. The tip of his blade pierced into her scales—but only by a few inches. Still, it was enough to cause Lyra to let out a cry of pain.
Then, as if by instinct, she swung her blade in a clockwise motion. And when she did, Ben felt his sword give in a strange way.
He quickly realized what had happened when he pulled his blade back—Lyra had sliced it clean in two with her great sword. Ben stepped back, holding the broken piece of his blade in his hands.
Lyra, when she’d realized what she’d done, allowed a wide smile to form on her lips.
“Now, you might be new to fighting, my lord,” she said. “But I’m sure you know enough to understand that you need a weapon for such things.”
A dart of fear poked Ben in the heart. Lyra moved toward him and raised her blade, ready to swing it horizontally in a manner that he might not be able to dodge.
“This battle might not have gone the way I’d hoped,” she said, “but something tells me that when you’re dead, it’ll be quite easy to turn the tide. Thanks for the challenge, however. You were much more skillful as a commander than I’d expected. Anyhow, it’s time to finish this.”
Lyra flicked her tail in the air. As she did, Ben realized what he needed to do.
“You’re right,” he said. “Let’s finish this.”
Confusion appeared on Lyra’s face. And as she stood, poised to strike, Ben activated Siphon, knowing just how he was going to spend the last bit of his mana. He searched through Lyra, finding her snake-shifting ability, and grabbing hold of it, he drained. Like in Lexi, her magical abilities appeared like a strange, alien organ. Ben drained all the power he could from it, the organ withering, and as he did so, Lyra began to shift out of her snake form and back into that of a human.
“What… what are you doing?”
“You wanted to finish it,” Ben said with a grin. “That’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
The strange power of the snake shift grew inside of him. It was an odd sensation, dark and slippery, one that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. But with each passing second that he possessed it, it felt more natural. Stealing Lyra’s power had given him a small burst of mana, and he used that to tap into his new ability.
Ben closed his eyes and focused, feeling his legs turn from two separate limbs to one. Scales spread out across his skin, his tongue growing forked. After only a few seconds, the lower half of his body was long enough to coil underneath him. It was strange to have only one long appendage rather than the legs and feet and toes he was used to, but it didn’t take long for him to grow accustomed to it.
The soldiers around him stopped and stared, unsure of what they were seeing. Ben was soon looming over Lyra, his upper body still human, his lower half that of a massive snake.
Lyra was back in her human form, only her red eyes, forked tongue, and scaled neck remaining of her shifting abilities. She frantically looked down at herself, then over at Ben. Then she closed her eyes and focused, trying to turn back into her snake form.
But nothing happened.
“What… what the hell have you done? Where’s my power?”
“It’s my power now,” Ben said as he moved slowly toward her. “And… what was that you were saying about ending the fight?”
Lyra gasped, then quickly went for her great sword. But Ben was too fast for her, moving in and wrapping her body in the end of his snake half before she could raise her weapon. She dropped her sword, and Ben raised her into the air.
The Black Army stopped fighting when they saw that their general had been taken.
Ben could only grin. The battle was over. He’d won.
Chapter 10
“How’s she holding up?” Ben’s voice carried down the dungeon hall, flames flickering along the walls.
“Well, you crushed her army and took her captive,” Melody said. “She’s not happy about it. What’s your plan for her, anyway?”
They turned the nearest corner, the jail cells here empty.
“She’s about to find out. What’s your suggestion?”
Melody placed her fingertip on her chin, giving the matter some serious consideration.
“Well, the first and most obvious solution would be to cut off her head and put it on a pike in front of the gates of Grand Zhameen. You know, as a warning to anyone else who might want to challenge your rule. Oh! And you’d probably want to find out who her lieutenants are and cut off their heads, too. And depending on how benevolent you were feeling, you could either execute the rest of the troops or perhaps put them in hard labor.”
Ben’s eyes flashed with surprise. “Uh, thanks for the suggestion. But that’s a little more, uh, brutal than I was planning on going with.”
She shrugged. “Suit yourself. I’m simply presenting the options that have the potential of making anyone else who might want to try to attack your empire think twice about it. Not to mention, you wouldn’t have to deal with the Black Army ever again.”
Ben smiled at her. “I’ll think about it.”
They made their way down the end of the hall. But before they could reach their destination, a familiar voice called out to Ben.
“You!”
Ben and Melody stopped in their tracks, turning to see the face of the wizard Uzax in the darkness. The formerly proud wizard looked rough, to say the least. His clothes were worn and dirty, his hand still withered and useless.
“You’ve left me down here,” he growled. “Left me to rot. Is that the fate I can expect?”
“You know,” Melody said, “you’re lucky that you’re even still alive. Ben had good reason to kill you on the spot for what you did.”
Uzax snorted derisively. “Death would be preferable to a fate like this. At least in that I’d have some dignity. Anything’s better than wasting away in this purgatory, going mad in the process.”
Ben knew that the wizard had a point. Leaving him to waste away in the dungeon was an act of lawlessness, and he wanted his realm to be a place of order—however harsh that order might be.
“Alright,” Ben said. “Sit tight. Tomorrow I’ll pass your judgment.”
Uzax cocked his head to the side as if he might not have heard Ben correctly.
“Is this some sort of game?” Uzax asked. An expression of understanding washed over his face. “Ah, I can see it now—you tell me that tomorrow will be the day I finally find some sort of reprieve from this purgatory you’ve left me in. I spend the evening excited, eager for release—whatever form that might take. Then tomorrow comes… and goes. Then the next day comes and goes, and so on and so on. Then, after a week, or however long it takes, I finally understand that it was yet another torture.”
Ben shook his head. “You’re wrong. I can’t say for sure what’ll happen to you tomorrow. But my empire is a realm of law and order. And you’ll be the first to experience that.”
Uzax cocked his head to the side. “Your empire ? What have you been up to since you tossed me down here, boy?”
“That’s not your concern. All you need to know is that I’m the greatest power on the northern continent. And soon, the world.”
The wizard narrowed his eyes skeptically as if trying to spot any sign of bluster.
“Very well, Ben. I’ll await your judgment tomorrow.”
There was nothing else to say. Ben nodded his head, then gestured to Melody to keep moving. They were soon on their way farther down the dungeon hall.
“That… that was an interesting thing to do,” she said.
“How so?”
“Well, you could’ve killed him on the spot. No one would’ve known or cared. But you didn’t do that. You decided to subject him to something like… like a trial ?”
“I mean what I told him. I’m the emperor of this land, and what I say is law. But the important thing is that there is a law.”
“One that you come up with and enforce.” She followed this up with a crisp nod as if understanding completely. But… you know what this means, right?”
“What’s that?”
“You’re going to have to come up with the law, and then you’re going to have to enforce it.”
Ben let out an “ah” of understanding. “And that means, because I won’t be able to handle every matter that comes up, I’m going to need to have people underneath me in charge of carrying out my law.”
“That means judges and enforcers and all that. A whole judicial wing of your empire.”
He knew she was right. Even if he was the one declaring law from his throne, he’d still need people to carry out his will.
“You’re right. But that’s something to worry about when I’ve secured more of my empire.”
“Good point. Don’t overwhelm yourself. But in the meantime, keep an eye out for people who might work well as your immediate court. The faster you take care of that, the faster you can get back to the matter of conquering and expanding. Not to mention, having more fun with your inner circle .” Melody placed her fingertip on Ben’s forearm and dragged it up slowly. Just her touch was enough to make his manhood take notice, and in the low, flickering light of the dungeon hall, Ben could make a sly smile on Melody’s face that left no question as to what was on her mind.
But the smile quickly faded as if she’d realized something.
“Sorry—I shouldn’t distract you before something as important as what we’re about to do.”
“There’s not going to be a we about it,” Ben said. “I appreciate you coming along, but speaking to the general is my duty. I only want you there if something goes wrong.”
“Of course! I’m here for whatever you need.”
They made their way farther down the hall, and it wasn’t long before they found Lyra’s cell.
“Emperor Ben,” she said, her red eyes faint in the dark. “Or whatever it is you call yourself.”
Even in her post-battle, bedraggled state, Lyra was still beautiful enough to give Ben pause. She was dressed in a simple black tunic, one that clung to her full breasts and ample hips, her slender arms bare.
Without her armor, Ben could see more patches of scales—some along her neck, others on the back of her upper arms. But they did nothing to detract from her stunning looks. To Ben, they seemed more like tattoos than scaled flesh.
Her hair was mussed, tussled around her angled face. And despite the fact that she was a beaten general, most of her army slain, she still wore an imperious smile that made it clear she feared nothing—not even the man who had just beaten her in battle.
“ My Lord will do just fine,” he said.
“Who says you’re my lord ?” Lyra replied. “Just because you managed to crush my army doesn’t mean that I’m your subject . Quite haughty of you to think so.”
“Unless you want to be executed on the spot, then that’s what you’ll call me.”
She let out a derisive snort. “Maybe I’d rather die than declare loyalty to some upstart emperor who got lucky on the field of battle. You know, if you ask me, it was quite unfair what you pulled back there. Stealing my power? That was a low trick.”
“Siphoning is one of my gifts. No more of an unfair advantage than being able to transform into a snake whenever you want.”
“Well, I don’t have that power any longer. These scales are all that remain of my former abilities. I hope you’re enjoying them, Emperor .” She flicked her eyes over to Melody. “Now, as impressed as I was by this little minx’s moves on the battlefield, I can’t help but wonder why she’s here for our meeting. Why don’t you send her packing, Ben?”
Melody hissed and narrowed her eyes, her tail flicking. Ben raised his palm, wanting to calm the situation before anything came of it.
“That’s Emperor ,” he said. “And she’s here because I wish her to be here. I can only guess what kind of stunts you might have in mind.”
Lyra shrugged, seeming more curious than anything about Ben’s comment. “ Stunts ? You think that I’m going to try to kill you or some such, Ben? No, despite whatever preconceptions you might have about snakes, I’m a woman of honor. That means you beat me on the battlefield, and that’s that. No assassinations; no deception. I’m here before you, awaiting whatever it is you have in mind for me.”
