Dragon Conjurer 2
Author: Eric Vall
Date: 2020-10-23 04:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Harem; Fantasy

Chapter 1

As the hot winds brushed my skin, I released a breath and stared into the gaping mouth of the pyramid dungeon that lay right before my eyes. The entrance was enormous and reached up to nearly half the height of the pyramid itself. An endless sea of golden sand sprawled out in every direction as far as the eye could see. It had taken my minions and I nearly two weeks to travel to Valasara by ship, and just hours ago, we had disembarked from the Sarpedon before it reached the city so that we could conquer this particular dungeon before we visited the city.

From the look of it, the pyramid had been here for centuries. It had been cursed by time, and the stones were crumbling. The rocks that formed the square base bore etchings of an ancient language that had been worn away with age and were barely decipherable. The structure stood isolated in the desert, with no other sign of civilization present, except for the capital city of Valasara far off on the horizon. Beyond the pyramid, nothing interrupted the seemingly limitless sea of glittering sands, not even trees. The heat was fearsome, and the sun’s rays beat down on us relentlessly, but I had faced far worse. I was, after all, one of the most powerful underdark deities the universe had ever known.

My immense power could have been even greater had the Holy Band of Mages not bound me to my dungeon with their dark magic.

Their imprisonment had not lasted forever though.

Four beautiful, but inexperienced, women: Annalíse, Rana, Morrigan, and Carmedy had ventured into my dungeon and released me after consenting to become my minions in exchange for the power that I alone could grant.

Now, on this new continent, our mission was not only to conquer each of Valasara’s dungeons, but to search for the sacred objects that were said to be hidden within them. Legends told that their fusion would unleash an ultimate power, one we intended to harness for our own ends. The power of the conquered dungeon combined with the power of the sacred objects would make me truly unstoppable.

“This thing looks like it’s gonna fall apart on us as soon as we walk in,” Rana said as she kicked at one of the stones on the bottom layer of the pyramid with her bare fox foot. “This thing is ancient. It’s probably over two hundred years old.”

The curly-haired thief frowned as she wiped the sweat from her brow with her sleeve, and her tail twitched in the air behind her in the way that it always did when something irritated her. The heat was getting to her, no doubt. As usual, the sarcastic fox wore her black trousers, dark blue vest, and her cream-colored long-sleeved shirt underneath was rolled up to her elbows.

“You consider two hundred years old to be ancient?” Morrigan asked nonchalantly as she stroked the beaks of Fea and Macha, the pet ravens on her shoulders. Despite the heat, the dark magic wielding elf remained shrouded in her usual black cloak and hood. The long white hair that cascaded from beneath her head covering was a sharp contrast against her dark clothing as was her pale skin covered in red mage markings.

“Well, yeah.” Rana shrugged. “That’s pretty old, don’t you think?”

“Not at all,” Morrigan said flatly. “You have forgotten the lifespan of elves far exceeds most other beings known to this world.”

“How old are you, Morrigan?” I asked, my curiosity now piqued. The blonde turned and looked at me silently for a moment before she spoke.

“Master, do you not know that it is considered impolite to ask a woman her age?” The tattooed elf raised a white eyebrow and a hint of mischief shone in her eyes.

Rana chuckled. “Whoa, did Morrigan just make a joke?”

“I do believe she did,” Annalíse said with a small smile.

“Now I really am curious though.” Rana grinned at Morrigan. “Seriously, how old are you?”

“If you insist on knowing,” the pale elf said blankly, “I am one hundred and forty-five years old.”

“Wow, you look good for that age.” Carmedy’s green eyes widened, and the rest of us burst into laughter at the cat’s comment. The sweet but scatterbrained alchemist never failed to amuse us. Her white peasant dress and green bodice had their usual multi-colored stains from her various chemicals and medicinal ingredients, but presently the stains were joined by crumbs and smears of what looked like cake. I wasn’t surprised. Desserts were probably the only thing that Carmedy loved as much as the world of medicine.

“I wonder what kind of stuff is in there?” Carmedy whispered, and she ran a hand through her short black hair as she joined me at my side.

“Oh, you know, the usual stuff,” Rana called out as she slung her pack over her shoulders. “Ghosts and mummies.” The fox wiggled her fingers ominously.

“You think?” Carmedy’s eyes widened.

“You never know.” Rana grinned. “With the stuff we’ve seen, just about anything is possible.” She was right. So far, we had endured worlds of illusion, hideous creatures crafted by dark magic, and an immense crumbling labyrinth that had teetered over a sea of lava. It truly did seem as though anything was possible.

The petite cat bit her lip nervously at that and started to wring her tail in her hands.

“Stop scaring Carmedy,” Annalíse said in her distinct raspy voice as she lit a torch and handed it to Rana. “There aren’t going to be any mummies roaming around in there. If there are any in there at all, they’re not exactly going to be taking strolls.”

With that, the freckled swordswoman lit her own torch. The courageous but somewhat impulsive warrior was pretty much the exact opposite of Carmedy. While the small cat was easily frightened, liked to dawdle, and was frequently messy, Annalíse, on the other hand, was courageous, hated to waste time, and cherished neatness and order. Today, like any other day, her chestnut colored hair was pulled into a neat braid that rested on one shoulder and her tunic, fitted black pants, and boots were pristine.

“How would you know?” Rana said with a wry grin.

“Yeah,” Carmedy said nervously. “What-if-whatever-deity-that-lives-in-there-put-a-curse-on-the-mummies-and-now-they’re-walking-around-inside-just-waiting-to-eat-us-and--”

“Calm down, Carmedy,” I interrupted the frantic feline’s rapid-fire stream of words. “A mummy isn’t going to eat you.”

“Indeed,” Morrigan nodded. “While there are reanimation spells that can be utilized to bring the dead back to the land of the living, I very much doubt that a mummy would feast on human flesh.” The elf’s voice was quite nonchalant as though she were merely discussing the weather. “Creatures and beings that are revived tend to feed on soul energy, not flesh.”

She was right of course, undead beings did indeed feast on souls, however, this information wasn’t exactly going to calm Carmedy’s nerves. The petite feline gulped, and her green eyes bulged in her head upon hearing Morrigan’s explanation.

“Well, that’s comforting,” Rana snorted. “Thanks for filling us in on the finer points of dark magic, Morrigan.”

“I was simply informing Carmedy of the inaccuracies she described,” Morrigan said plainly. “She has no need to fear that she will be consumed.”

“Oh, yeah.” Rana rolled her eyes. “We don’t have to worry about the undead tenants here taking a chomp out of us, we just have to keep in mind that, at any moment, our souls could be devoured.” The fox threw her paws up in the air.

Carmedy shivered at Rana’s words, but I put a cold, gauntleted hand on her shoulder. Perhaps it wasn’t as comforting as I intended.

“Don’t worry,” I said gently as I hoped my words would work better than the icy steel of my armor. “Everything will be fine. None of those things are going to happen.” Truthfully, I had no idea as to what sorts of obstacles awaited us within the pyramid dungeon, but no matter what monstrosities lay before us, I would allow no harm to befall my minions.

As I spoke, I eyed Rana and Morrigan as a signal for them to drop the subject. Thankfully, between that and my words, Carmedy seemed to calm as she gave me a small smile and nodded her head.

“If you all are done trading scary stories, maybe we can get a move on.” Annalíse gestured toward the dungeon’s entrance. “We don’t want to waste daylight, remember?”

“Annalíse is right,” I said as I moved to the front of the group. “Let’s get started.”

The others formed a line behind me as they always did. First Annalíse, then Rana, followed by Carmedy, and finally Morrigan. I peered into the mouth of the pyramid, it was completely pitch black in there, but as I looked over my shoulder to ask Carmedy if she could use one of her mixtures to give us some light, the ground started to shake, and a loud rumbling struck the air.

“Wh-what in the world is that?” Carmedy said anxiously as the five of us struggled to stay on our feet. We looked around to see what the cause of this sudden disturbance was, but there didn’t appear to be anything or anyone else around.

“I don’t know,” Rana said as she knelt down to keep from losing her balance, “but whatever it is, I have a feeling we’re not going to--” The fox’s words seem to catch in her throat as her eyes widened and fixated on an area of sand to the left of the dungeon. Something began to emerge from the sand, something big, and my minion’s mouths dropped open as a large arm burst from beneath the sand. Carmedy shrieked and jumped back in terror, and another identical arm appeared beside the other, both limbs seemingly formed from the very sands they emerged from.

“By the gods,” Annalíse breathed, and she gripped the hilt of the sword at her hip as the others looked on in horror. The humongous sandy fingers that had appeared so abruptly clutched at the air before they slammed their enormous palms down, then pushed up to haul the rest of the creature to the surface. First came the massive sandy head and two menacing, glowing red eyes. The creature opened its horrible mouth and released a roar that seemed to shake the pyramid itself. Then came the huge torso and two legs that resembled giant trees. Our party gaped at the sand giant as it rose to its feet, but we soon realized we had more troublesome things to worry about.

“Look!” Carmedy squealed as she pointed to the right side of the pyramid.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Rana breathed as the rest of us turned to see what had frightened Carmedy. “I mean seriously, we just can’t catch a break, can we?” the fox moaned.

Carmedy’s shaky finger pointed to another humongous pair of hands that had started to claw through the sand. No sooner had they appeared when two more sets of limbs erupted from the sea of gold directly in front of us. Within seconds, four of the behemoth sand monsters tore free of the desert dunes, each almost as large as the entrance of the dungeon. Their heights rivaled that of the massive trees that we had encountered in the forest dungeon, each easily over one hundred feet tall. With the pyramid at our backs, and the fearsome creatures in a semi-circle around us, we were surrounded.

My eyes darted to each of the sand monsters as they moved forward. Fea and Macha cawed loudly and flapped their wings restlessly as though they wanted to leave Morrigan’s shoulders, and the elf whispered to them in an effort to calm them. Annalíse moved to draw the sword from her hip, but I placed a hand on her wrist to stop her. She furrowed her brow at me, and I shook my head. Now was not the time to attack.

The beasts reared back their heads and released a chorus of earth shaking bellows and began to trudge toward us. Their footsteps thudded as they approached and tightened the half circle around us. There was only one way to flee, and that was into the dungeon.

“Ignore them. We’re not here to conquer sand monsters. We’re here to conquer the dungeon,” I said as I led the way into the dark dungeon. “Besides, if these monstrosities could emerge from the sand this way, it is safe to assume that they were capable of periodically disappearing beneath the sand to make surprise attacks. We needed to level the playing field.”

The others followed behind me without a word or any hesitation. The further we went, the more the darkness swallowed us. Rana and Annalíse had dropped their torches sometime during the panic, and they followed close behind me. As a being born into darkness, my eyes could pierce the gloom here easily.

“Oh-my-gosh-oh-my-gosh-oh-my-gosh,” Carmedy breathed as we fled. “This-is-so-much-worse-than-mummies.”

“I’m with you on that,” Rana agreed between panting breaths.

“What are those things?” Carmedy moaned. “And why do they have to bother us?”

“I don’t know what they are and I don’t want to stick around to find out,” Rana wheezed.

“They’re just part of the dungeon,” I said over my shoulder as I rounded a corner. “First line of defense. There are probably plenty of people that haven’t even made it inside.”

“D-do you think they’re going to follow us in here?” Carmedy asked shakily. As if in response to her question, a series of roars breached the darkness of the dungeon, and I glanced over my shoulder to see one of the sand monsters reach a hand inside the opening, though its immense bulk kept it from coming inside after us.

“Well, there’s your answer. I gotta say, this is quite the welcome wagon.” Rana gestured to the beasts behind us. “They’re too big to follow us.”

“We need to do something to stop them,” Annalíse puffed. “We can’t just keep running around in the dark like this.”

“Um, have you seen those things?” Rana said in disbelief. “In case you haven’t noticed, they’re huge. Plus, it’s not exactly like we have a large open space to attack them. Right now, I’m not liking our odds. Fighting them here and now doesn’t seem like such a good idea. Besides, they can’t seem to get inside.”

“Well, we have to do something,” Annalíse said in annoyance. “What else do you suggest?”

“Rana is right,” I said without turning to look back. “Engaging those monsters in combat on this battlefield is unwise. For now, keep moving,” I said as we continued to race through the darkness. “They are not our concern. Only the owner of this dungeon is.”

Annalíse didn’t argue with me, but I knew that she wasn’t pleased with my instructions. The swordswoman wasn’t the type to run, she liked to face her problems head on. I admired this about her, but this wasn’t the time for that sort of strategy.

The five of us continued through the dungeon passageway as the hulking sand beasts thudded and snarled behind us. Even though they were stuck outside, they hadn’t given up on us, and I had a feeling that they wouldn’t until they caught us. The good thing was that their immense girth made it impossible for them to come inside.

As we sped through the darkened tunnel, a thought crossed my mind that was cause for concern. So far, it appeared that there was only one passageway, the one that we were currently in. Typically, dungeons had various tunnels that branched off from the main one, but this pyramid didn’t seem to have any, at least not yet. It made me wonder if the giants were merely a means to funnel would-be adventurers along this path. I didn’t like it. I was almost certain that there would be some sort of trap ahead.

“Look, I see some light!” Carmedy exclaimed. The feline was right. There was a faint light somewhere up ahead, so at least Rana and Annalíse would be able to see more easily. The grainy behemoths continued to thrash outside, and the ground beneath our feet shook with every step they took. The tremors made our getaway more difficult, but we were far enough away to stay out of their reach.

The light from up ahead grew brighter as we approached it until finally the lone passageway let out into a large circular cavern. As we burst in, it became clear that the source of the light was coming from over our heads. To my surprise, it was a cascade of daylight that poured in through various holes in the ceiling to create a crosshatching of light through the cavern. Unfortunately, as I had suspected, we had been led into a dead end. My quick inspection of the cavern revealed that there were no other openings save for the one we had just come from. We had been herded into this cave as though we were mere livestock.

A twinge of anger flickered inside me. Whatever deity resided here, I already despised them. To attack those that ventured here with sand monsters and have them chased and corralled into a dead end lacked imagination and flair.

Intruders to my dungeon always suffered much more creative traps as was becoming of a deity of my level of panache.

“So, I don’t want to be a downer, but I’m not seeing any other way out,” Rana said slowly. “Please tell me one of you sees something that I don’t.”

“I’m afraid not, Rana,” I said as I scanned the rocky walls once more to double check.

As I spoke there was a great tremor, and the ground beneath our feet began to shake violently. Then the whole of the hallway we had just come through seemed to split apart as the stone slid downward into the ground, the walls, and the ceiling until the entryway was big enough to allow the angry sand demons passage. The towering monstrosities lumbered toward us, and while they were slow, this didn’t make them any less dangerous. It would have been foolish to assume that they could be easily conquered because of their lack of speed.

“Great!” The fox woman threw her paws up in exasperation. “Now what? We just sit here and get torn limb from limb by those things?”

“We’ll do no such thing,” Annalíse said with a certain fierceness in her voice as she drew the sword from her hip. “We’ll fight.” As she spoke, her eyes glimmered with blood lust, and her freckled face was fixed with determination.

The swordswoman turned to face the passage from which we’d come and planted her feet firmly on the ground. She reached over her shoulder and unsheathed the sword strapped to her back that she called Bloodscale, and its silver dragonscale hilt glistened in the light. The long, scarlet dragon’s tail that curled down each side of the sword looked all the more menacing as its features shone.

“I guess we don’t have much choice,” Rana sighed and shook her head. “You know, when I’ve imagined my last moments in this world, this wasn’t exactly what I had in mind. I was hoping for something a little less... insane.” The fox grumbled as she drew the leather bundle that housed her set of exquisitely crafted elvish daggers from her pocket. Each twisted silver handle resembled the body of a scaly serpent. The black gem eyes that were fixed to each of the creature’s head looked just as sinister as the sharp bat wing-like quillons. Rana chose two of the longest blades and gripped them in her paws, poised for attack.

The thundering footsteps of the sand giants grew closer with every second.

“We shall not perish here,” Morrigan said darkly as her eyes began to turn wholly black. “We shall not be defeated by such… trivial beasts.” Fea and Macha beat their wings and cawed as though in agreement. Once again the ravens looked as though they wished to take flight but Morrigan calmed them once more.

“I hope you’re right,” Carmedy said with fear in her voice as she untied a few bundles from the belt around her waist.

I nodded. “Of course she is. Recall the obstacles that we’ve overcome. You can handle this.” As I spoke, I drew the seemingly simple staff of the God Slayer from the depthless void pocket in my robe and struck it on the ground once. As soon as the three sinister blades protracted from the pole, I gripped the weapon tightly in my hand, confident I could annihilate these foes if need be, whatever they actually were. I wasn’t certain what manner of magic bound these creatures together, but once I determined it, there would be no escaping my wrath.

The booming footsteps grew closer and closer as the room itself shook. Suddenly, an enormous fist burst from the darkness of the passageway and slammed onto the ground with such power that the ground vibrated with such intensity that it knocked my four minions off their feet. With that thunderous entrance, the massive sand creatures poured out of the tunnel to fill the immense chamber.

“Annalíse, engage with the lead monster,” I instructed. “The rest of you hold back and wait for my orders.”

“Understood,” Annalíse said as she leapt to her feet.

The swordswoman tightened the grip on her blades and released a battle cry as she charged toward the beasts. The female warrior sprinted toward the first sand monster and brought her greatsword over her head and without hesitation, cut through the giant’s lower leg. Glittering grains of sand sprayed everywhere as Annalíse’s weapon glided through the hulking monster’s limb.

The huge creature groaned in protest as its leg slid away from its body. The monster swayed and tried to keep its balance, but Annalíse gave it no room to breathe. The freckled woman immediately sliced through the other leg with Bloodscale and jumped out of the monster’s path. The great dismembered sand giant timbered forward, roared, and then collapsed into a massive pile of sand.

“See?” Annalíse sniffed with self-satisfaction, turned, and called back to the rest of us. “They’re not as invincible as they seem.”

“Very good,” I said as I focused my attention on the next two sand-demons that were coming from the door. “Rana and Carmedy, it is your turn.”

“If Annalíse can do it,” the fox-girl laughed. “We sure as hell can. Let’s take one of these sand creeps down, Carmedy.” The fox-tailed woman glanced at the black cat. “You with me?”

“Right behind you.” Carmedy nodded with determination, and I guessed that seeing that the monstrosity had been so easily cut down gave the feline a bit more courage.

With remarkable speed, Rana ran at her enormous opponent. The sand monster hammered a cart sized fist down to smash her, but the fox-girl darted this way and that like a feather on the wind, avoided two of the creatures’ pummels, and slashed at its legs with her daggers.

The sand being bellowed and attempted to grab her with its giant hands, but the fox was still far too quick, and its massive hands only closed around empty air.

While Rana kept the thing busy, Carmedy undid the string on one of her bundles, poured its contents into another one of her pouches, gave the sack a quick shake, and pulled her arm back as she prepared to throw it.

“Stand back, Rana!” Carmedy shouted as she hurled her bundle toward the monster’s head. As soon as the small pouch made contact, it erupted into a fiery inferno, and sent sand flying everywhere. Then the headless giant tottered for a moment before it thudded to the ground and remained still.

“Yeah, that’s what I’m talking about!” Rana gave Carmedy a high five. “We’ll be done with these things in no time.”

Both the fox and cat turned to me, and their expressions inferred that they were eager for my praise.

“Good job,” I said. “Rana, your use of distraction allowed for Carmedy to set up a powerful hit.”

“That was the plan,” Rana said.

“Annalíse, finish it off before the third one comes through the door.”

“Of course, Master.” Annalíse grunted as she sliced through each of its legs and then stabbed it in the spine once it had toppled over. As the warrior-woman delivered the killing blow, I noticed a wild look in her eye. It was the look of bloodthirst in battle, and there was nothing like it.

The look made my heart skip a beat.

“Morrigan, destroy the last one,” I ordered as the creature emerged from the tunnel.

“It’s almost fun kicking their butts!” Rana called out to the pale elf. “Also, a little sad that they’re so pathetic, but still pretty fun.”

“Very well,” Morrigan shrugged, and she moved to approach the last sand creature. The pale elf seemed disinterested in engaging with the beast, but her ravens cawed loudly and flapped their wings when she neared the sand monster.

The white-haired elf raised her hands toward the sand monster. A dark red fire erupted from her fingers and seemed to seep across the air like spilled blood. The sand giant paid no mind to the magic, instead, it just lumbered toward the beautiful elf-maiden with both of its massive hands raised in the air.

Then the first sandy bits of its chest encountered the fog-like red magic.

The monster opened its mouth, and a panicked scream filled the inside of the chamber. Carmedy actually had to put her hands over her ears, and the other two women winced with pain. I kept my eyes focused on the last enemy, and then watched as the sand caught on fire, smoldered, turned to glass, and then seemed to shatter in an instant.

Then the beast tumbled in a prismatic spray of burning color and liquid glass.

“Wow,” Rana gasped. “When did you learn that one?”

“Master taught me,” Morrigan stated flatly. “It is called Death Fog, and it burns matter on contact.”

“Remind me not to piss you off,” Annalíse snickered, but the elf sorceress shrugged.

“We did it!” Carmedy cheered as she clapped her hands together. “We are getting really good at adventuring. I can’t wait to see what kind of fun treasure is in--”

“We have not won yet,” I interrupted. “The deity is playing with us.”

“Huh?” Rana said, and the four women turned to me.

“You four have gained some power under my tutelage,” I said, “but this was too easy. I expect that the owner of this dungeon tricks its victims into thinking that they have won, and then it slowly destroys them. It was a tactic that I often enjoyed using.”

Just then, some movement off to the side caught my eye. Annalíse must have seen it as well because her eyes were now focused in the same direction as mine. The first monster that the swordswoman had cut down had collapsed into a heap of sand, but now, the piles started to reform slowly as small streams of sand snaked out to connect the separated parts.

“Ahh,” I chuckled. “As expected. Although I am a bit disappointed that the constructs were re-formed from sand. This was a tactic I amused myself with when I first controlled my dungeon.”

“Uhhhh, so do we have to fight them again?” Annalíse’s eyes grew wide with horror as the sandy streams attached the reforming body to the base of the head, then slowly started to pull the head back to the rest of the body. It was as though the streams of sand were threads, and the sand monster was stitching itself back together. The same sort of strands of sand wormed their way from the piles that had been thighs to the dismembered lower legs. Just like before, the sand threads attached themselves and pulled the reforming limbs back into place.

“I should have known it was too good to be true,” Rana moaned as the first sand monster rose to its feet, perfectly intact without any sign of damage whatsoever.

“Now what are we going to do?” Carmedy cried out as she looked around at the sand monsters. “Are they just going to come back to life again no matter what we do?”

“Now, that is an excellent question, young kitty!” a voice suddenly said.

We whirled around to find the speaker, but there was no one else present except for ourselves and the sand monsters. Strangely enough, the great beasts stopped walking toward us. Instead, they knelt down on one knee and bowed their heads. Their horrible growling ceased and one by one they placed a mighty fist over their chests as though they were giving reverence to a monarch, or rather a god.

“Oh, how I love to see everyone’s faces throughout this process,” the voice laughed. “It’s exceptionally amusing, as you might imagine.” His deep timbred voice was agitating, unnecessarily theatrical, and he spoke with a superior tone that irked me. I already loathed him for the way in which he had led us here, his manner of speaking only fueled my hatred toward him. He spoke as though he reigned supreme over manner of life

I would soon prove that he was sadly mistaken.

“First, the brave adventures think they can just walk right in,” the deity droned on, “and then the horror creeps onto their faces when my sand demons show themselves. It’s absolutely priceless.”

His voice rose enthusiastically as he kept going. “And then they frantically race inside the dungeon only to be met with a dead end. That look, that sudden realization they’re trapped, it’s just hilarious. Oh, but you know exactly what I’m talking about now, don’t you?” The deity cackled. “Then the fight breaks out, and the mighty heroes manage to slay some of my sand demons, so they start to get cocky. That look of self-satisfaction, oh, I just love it.”

The god’s voice oozed with pleasure. “Now, let me guess, when you beat the first few sand demons, you were thinking, ‘gee, this dungeon must be a dud, we can be in and out within, oh, twenty minutes.’ Am I right?” The voice chuckled wickedly. “Oh but of course I am, it happens everytime. I must say, it’s one of my favorite parts. Now don’t go beating yourselves up about it, my sand demons will take care of that for you.”

None of us spoke, but we didn’t have to. Rana, Annalíse, and Carmedy had said as much. After the first creature had been taken down, they had all wrongfully assumed that their opponents were weak, and even I had begun to think as much myself.

“Enough with the chit chat.” Rana rolled her eyes. “Are you going to explain what we have to do to conquer this dungeon or not?”

“My goodness, such impoliteness.” The god made a clicking sound to indicate his displeasure. “Very well, you’re only rushing into your doom, but I suppose it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. You’re all going to die, anyway.”

“Get to the point,” Annalíse said impatiently.

“There is only one way to conquer my dungeon, and it’s quite simple.” The god sighed. “Now, you might have noticed my sand demons on the way in?” He said with a sinister chuckle. I felt my blood rise, he was utterly insufferable. We glanced around at the giant beasts that still knelt on the ground with their massive heads bowed in reverence to their master.

“Oh, yeah,” Rana snorted. “We may have noticed the gigantic monsters that crawled out of the sand and chased us in here. What about them?”

“Then you’ve also noticed by now that they can’t be defeated by mere brute force,” the haughty deity continued in an unmistakably arrogant tone. “All you have to do is figure out how to defeat my sand demons. Do that and the dungeon is yours.”

“We have to figure out how to kill something that can’t be killed?” Carmedy’s eyes widened.

“That’s right.” The god cackled maniacally. “Oh, and I’d like to mention the fact that no one has ever lived long enough to figure out to destroy them. I don’t mean to be a pessimist, but the odds are not in your favor.”

“There is actually a way to defeat them, right?” I asked. “This isn’t a rigged game?”

“Of course not,” the deity said in a mock offended tone. “I would never resort to such cheap tricks. There is indeed a way to defeat them, you just have to figure it out before you all get slaughtered,” he said sinisterly. “Good luck, you’re going to need it.”

Chapter 2

No sooner had the smug deity spoken than the monstrous sand demons slowly began to rise to their feet. They reared their enormous heads back and roared simultaneously in a chilling chorus. I studied the creatures as they came back to life. Brute force wouldn’t work, so I knew that I had to use some sort of necromantic skill. I just had to figure out the kind of magic was necessary to defeat these creatures.

“Perhaps I can cut them down again to give us some extra time,” Annalíse said quickly.

“No.” I shook my head. “You’ll only waste your strength.”

“Oh, how amusing,” the deity crooned. “I will give you credit for tenacity, but you will perish all the same. And then, you too shall become a part of my dungeon.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Rana said angrily.

“You’ll find out soon enough,” the god chuckled wickedly. A series of caws suddenly sounded, and I turned to see Morrigan’s ravens Fea and Macha leap from their master’s shoulders and take to the air. I watched carefully as the black winged birds flew around the sand demons and periodically opened their mouths to nip at their hulking bodies. The behemoths snarled and swatted at the ravens as though they were bothersome flies and proceeded to approach us with thundering footsteps.

I doubted very much that Morrigan had instructed her pets to attack, and the pet ravens never left the elf’s shoulders unless she asked them to do so, but it was almost as if the ravens were trying to eat the towering beasts.

Suddenly, it came to me.

I knew how to defeat the sand demons, and not only that, I understood how they worked.

“Maybe Carmedy can whip up something to blow them up or something,” Rana said hurriedly as she gestured to the bundles of chemicals around the feline’s waist.

“There’s no need,” I said as I took a step toward the sand demons that drew closer to us. “I know what manner of creatures these are, how to defeat them, and I’m going to handle this myself.”

“Oh, is that so?” the self-satisfied deity snorted. “Please, enlighten me.”

“Fea and Macha feed on the souls of the damned,” I said as I pointed to the ravens that still continued to torment the sand demons. Morrigan whispered something in her elvish language, and her winged companions cawed a few times before returning to her shoulders. “They are drawn to that sort of soul energy, at times they struggle to contain themselves when they detect it, particularly when there are larger amounts of it.”

“Why does this concern me?” the deity said with annoyance, but I detected fear in his voice. He knew that he had been found out.

“Fea and Macha seem to be rather fond of your sand demons,” I continued. “It is because you wove together these wretched beasts with doomed souls, most likely from your previous victims that ventured into your dungeon.”

“Really?” Carmedy looked at me with wide eyes before she turned her attention back to the sand demons.

“Of course,” Morrigan breathed. “Now it makes sense why Fea and Macha were behaving in this manner. It is indeed difficult for them to control themselves when there are large quantities of restless souls about. And it is has been some time since they have been fed. Their thoughts are harder to decipher during this time, so I was unaware of the cause of their behavior.”

“That’s- that’s complete nonsense,” the deity sputtered. “You know nothing.”

“Oh?” I raised an eyebrow in amusement. “Allow me to demonstrate.”

Without another word, I raised a hand toward the sand demon furthest to the left and proceeded to perform a soul exorcism. While this was one of the largest creatures I had ever performed the necromantic technique on, it would be no trouble for an underdark deity of my caliber.

The sand demon moved its head around in confusion and bellowed in protest as my dark magic overtook it. Within seconds the beast lost control of its body, and its enormous frame began to rise into the air. Now that the wretched creature was in my dark clutches I could feel the soul energy writhing inside of it. To my surprise, I felt not just one or two tormented souls housed within the sand demon, but several. It was no wonder that Fea and Macha had been so tempted. There were at least twenty souls within this single monster. As I tightened my hold on the demon, the souls thrashed as though they begged to be freed.

Without hesitation, I closed my grip and the sand demon immediately burst into a large cloud of sand. As the golden granules rained down, a mass of grey mist came into view where the monster had been only moments before. The mist quivered and stretched as though it was alive. Then pieces of the grey mass broke free and curled into the air like wisps of smoke.

“I-I-you can’t… how did you…?” the deity stammered.

“Your power is nothing compared to mine,” I said before I turned to Morrigan. “Let your ravens have their fill.”

“Yes, Master,” she said, and the black birds leapt from her shoulders.

I waved my hand across the remaining sand demons, and their bodies lifted into the air just as the first one had. Then I immediately closed my grip in the air once more, and the monsters exploded and filled the atmosphere with shimmering sand.

“Yeah! That’s what I’m talking about,” Rana pumped her fist in the air. “Guess this ended up being an easy dungeon after all. Now let’s get at that treasure.” The fox rubbed her paws together excitedly.

“You think this is over?” the god’s deep voice bellowed.

As he spoke, the grains of sand on the floor that had come from his extinguished sand minions began to gather together. The granules slid across the floor and formed small waves of sand that moved toward one another. Once the waves met, the sand came together and began to stretch into the air. Within moments, the figure of a tall man formed before our very eyes. Carmedy gasped as two sinister black eyes emerged from the head of the sandy frame. Its body now complete, the being flexed its fingers and limbs as though to test them before it clenched its fists.

“You may have vanquished my sand demons, but I am not so easily defeated.” The god’s booming voice came from the newly crafted being that stood before us, but the body had no mouth upon its face.

“On the contrary, you will be easily defeated.” I glowered at the sand god, and his dark eyes narrowed, but then I continued before he could speak. “I can sense that your strength has been weakened. You drew much of your power from your sand demons, and now that they’ve been vanquished, your threat level has greatly decreased.”

The sand god’s eyes widened, and I saw the fear within them.

How I craved that desperate look when my victims discovered that they soon no longer be a part of this world.

My opponent raised his hand above his head, and one of the mounds of golden sand began to raise into the air and move toward him. As he summoned the sand, the glittering grainy twisted to form a long sword. The weapon hovered into the deity’s hand, and the god pointed it at me threateningly.

A sinister smile crept across my face, and I gripped the God Slayer in my hand in preparation for his attack. This wouldn’t take long, this foolish deity didn’t know whom he had just challenged.

“Step away,” I said to minions, and they immediately moved to the far side of the cavern. “I’ll deal with this quickly.”

“It is you who shall be dealt with quickly,” the god’s voice shouted angrily, and his black eyes glowered at me. Without another word, he rushed at me.

As he came within a few feet of me, longsword reared back to strike, I snapped my fingers, and the god exploded into particles of sand. He stumbled, confused now that his body had been shattered. Then his eyes widened in horror as he looked down at himself and the realization that he was completely unprotected and outmatched dawned in his eyes.

“As I said before,” I smiled as I reached out and grabbed ahold of his very essence. “This will be over quickly.”

And it was.

Chapter 3

“Well, you certainly didn’t hold back,” Rana said with a wry grin as we exited the pyramid dungeon.

“He was insufferable, and there are other matters that are more deserving of my attention.” I shrugged. “There was no need to waste any further time on him.

“Fine with me,” Rana rubbed her paws together excitedly as a few large sacks floated out of the dungeon’s entrance and settled in the sand before me. As usual, I had instructed my shadow slaves to search the cavern for treasure. This time, however, it looked as though my invisible underlings hadn’t found much.

Rana looked back into the tunnel and then looked back at the two sacks at my feet with a frown. “Where’s the rest of it?” the fox asked as she furrowed her brow.

“This is it.” I gestured to the bags.

“Not every dungeon will be a treasure trove, Rana,” Annalíse said as she and Morrigan walked past us to feed our riding lizards.

“I know, but still, I expected more than this.” The fox-tailed woman wrinkled her nose, bent down to open the sacks, poured the contents onto the ground, and began to sift through them. There were chalices, gold coins, precious gems, and pieces of jewelry. The fox-girl squinted her eyes at each one, held them up to the light, and turned them in her paw for a few moments before she put it down and picked up something else.

We all knew what she was searching for. The fox sought the sacred objects. Rana had stolen from a particular sorcerer who had decided to force her to find the artifacts. When the fox had refused, he had ransomed her family for the sacred objects. We had decided that we would seek out the treasured items, but we wouldn’t turn them over to the sorcerer. We would take the power for ourselves and kill the sorcerer.

“Do you see a sacred object amongst these items?” I asked as I knelt down beside Rana.

“No, just the usual stuff,” the red-haired thief said with a sad sigh as she began to replace the items in the sack.

“We’ll find the rest of them, promise,” Carmedy said gently, and she placed a hand on Rana’s shoulder.

“That’s right.” I nodded. “We won’t stop until we find every last one.”

“Thanks, guys,” the fox said with a soft smile. She started to put a silver chalice back into one of the sacks when she suddenly paused. She blinked her eyes in surprise as she drew the chalice closer to her. “Well now, what do we have here?” the fox mumbled as she peered inside of the cup and stuck her paw inside.

“What is it?” Carmedy breathed, and she leaned forward with anticipation. Rana removed her paw from the mouth of the chalice and held out a black velvet pouch.

“Now, where have I seen one of these before?” Rana said with a wry grin. Carmedy gasped at the sight of the small black bag, and I too expressed surprise. We had seen this same sort of bag only once before. Having heard Carmedy’s gasp, Morrigan and Annalíse turned to see what the problem was. When Annalíse’s gaze rested on the velvet pouch in Rana’s furry grasp, her brown eyes grew wide.

“Is that what I think it is?” the swordswoman pointed at the bag.

“I think so, but Morrigan will have to confirm it.” Rana nodded to the pale elf who proceeded to step forward. The fox loosened the pouch’s drawstring and overturned it, and out tumbled a tiny sapphire sphere. Rana held out the smooth marble-sized ball for Morrigan to take, and the white-haired woman picked it up and eyed it carefully. She slowly turned the little orb in her hand and as she did so, the sun’s light reflected off its striking blue perfectly polished surface.

“It is indeed Dragnasí,” the elf finally said, and she handed the sphere back to Rana.

“That’s great!” Carmedy clasped her hands excitedly. “Now we have two of them.” Rana had found the first one among the hoard of treasure in my dungeon. At first, the fox had assumed the tiny sphere to be a jewel of some sort, but Morrigan had informed us that it was, in fact, something far more precious.

It was well known that dragons had long ceased to exist, but thanks to Morrigan, we learned that a few hundred years ago a group of sorcerers crafted a substance called Dragnasí. It was said that if a lizard swallowed Dragnasí, it could turn into a dragon and possess a dragon’s power including flight, but only for brief periods. Deeming Dragnasí unnatural, the Holy Band of Mages had destroyed most of it, but a few had been saved, and now, we had two in our possession.

“Now that we have one for both Scylla and Xerxes, can we feed the Dragnasí to them?” Carmedy pleaded with enthusiasm. “I really want to see them fly, and we can get to the city faster that way.”

“I am afraid not, Carmedy,” I said with an apologetic smile. “Remember, we still don’t know enough about it to use it. We don’t know how long the effects last or how many times we can use it.”

“Alright then.” Carmedy sighed, and her furry black ears drooped a bit.

“Cheer up, pussycat,” Rana tugged at Carmedy’s tail playfully. “We’ll find out how this stuff works soon enough, and before you know it, you’ll be sailing through the clouds with the wind in your fur.”

“I like the sound of that,” Carmedy said with a wide grin, and she closed her eyes for a moment as though she were imagining the sensation of flight.

“You can daydream while we ride to the city Carmedy.” I chuckled as I settled atop Xerxes’ back. “We have business to attend to. Like Rana says, places to go, dungeons to conquer.”

“Okay,” Carmedy said brightly, and she took her seat in front of me. Annalíse and Morrigan mounted Scylla, and since we didn’t have our donkey and cart on this continent, Rana climbed on behind them.

“First thing we do when we get to the city is buy another riding lizard,” Rana grumbled as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “I like you two and all, but this is a little cramped for my taste, and I’m sure Scylla isn’t exactly enjoying carting all three of us around.”

“We heard you the first ten times Rana,” Annalíse said with a raspy chuckle as our party began to move forward. “A new lizard is on our shopping list.”

“Just checking,” Rana shrugged. “It’s hot enough as it is out here, in fact I think my tail is starting to sweat, but this riding arrangement is only making things worse being all underneath each other like this.”

“Alright Rana we get the picture,” Annalíse sighed and glanced back at the whining fox.

“You know, I’m not so sure you do,” Rana tapped her chin. “You think I’m exaggerating about the heat don’t you?”

Annalíse didn’t say anything and simply raised an eyebrow in amusement.

“You want proof? Look at my poor tail, it’s drooping because of this insane heat,” Rana allowed her tail to go limp for dramatic effect and held it for Annalíse to see.

“You did that on purpose,” the swordswoman snorted, and she pursed her lips together in an effort not to laugh.

“I did no such thing,” Rana sniffed and turned up her nose as though she was offended. “And I’m glad to see that my suffering amuses you. I’m sticky and gross, and my fur is starting to feel all stringy,” the fox pulled at some tufts of her with a look of disgust.

“I look forward to an actual inn,” Morrigan said, and the three other women turned to her with surprise clear on their faces.

“What?” Annalíse said as she blinked. “Did you just say you wanted some creature comforts?”

“Cabins on the ship were small,” Morrigan replied with a shrug of her slender shoulders. “It was surprising, since we paid for the best two.”

“Exactly,” Rana scoffed, “and the three of us were in one of the cabins, while you and the Lord of Evil were in the other. By the way, what were you two doing all night?”

“What are you inferring?” Morrigan asked, and her cheeks began to redden.

“Our cabin had two beds, and I had to snuggle with Carmedy every night for two weeks,” Rana pointed out, and her mouth turned up into a smirk, “but your room only had one bed, so I’m just wondering what you both did all night.”

“It is none of your concern,” Morrigan said after she cleared her throat and fixed her dark eyes on the fox-girl.

“Ohhhh, I’m just curious is all,” Rana continued as her grin spread wider. “You did say that the rooms were very, very small, and I--”

“Oh!” Carmedy gasped as she raised her hand in the air. “I know what Master and Morrigan were doing in their room all night!”

We all turned to the cat-girl as a proud smile came across her face.

“Carmedy--” Morrigan started to say, but both Rana and Annalíse waved their hands at the elf.

“I so want to hear this,” Rana snickered.

“Agreed,” Annalíse said. “Please, tell us what they were doing in their cabin every night for two weeks.”

“They were telling ghost stories!” Carmedy blurted, and then she clapped their hands. “My ears are really sensitive, and I heard them practicing all night. It sounded really fun, and I was going to ask Master if I could join them for--”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait,” Rana said as she tried not to laugh. “Ghost stories?”

“Sure,” Carmedy said with a sage-like nod. “They were practicing being like ghosts.”

“I don’t know if I follow,” Annalíse replied.

“Carmedy, there is no need to explain it to them,” Morrigan said as she crossed her arms and fixed the cat-girl with an angry stare.

“Ignore her,” Rana said. “Tell us more about these ghost stories.”

“Sure.” Carmedy nodded. “First, Master would make all these wet sounds with his mouth, like slime or ghosts creeping through a dungeon. Then Morrigan would moan like she was pretending to be a ghoul, or zombie, or a ghost. She would go all ‘Ohhhhh, ahhhhh, mmmmaaahhhhhh!’ while Master made his wet noises.”

“That’s enough,” Morrigan sighed softly as she covered her face with her hands.

“But it didn’t stop there,” Carmedy continued. “Morrigan would start moaning and groaning louder until she was out of breath. She was really practicing hard, and then she’d let out a final loud gasp, then she would thank Master once she caught her breath, and then they would both take a break for a minute or so before they practiced again.”

“This is quite possibly the best story I’ve ever heard,” Rana giggled as she turned to look at Morrigan and me. “Morrigan, can you give us an example of what Carmedy heard? I’d love to know how you acted like a ghost.”

“Stop,” the elf sighed, and then she covered both of her eyes with her hands.

“You are turning red,” Annalíse pointed out.

“No,” my lover snorted.

“Oh, yes you are,” Rana giggled. “I can see it on your ears.”

“Awwww,” Carmedy sighed. “I’m sorry, Morrigan. I didn’t want to embarrass you.”

“I am not embarrassed,” the dark-mage hissed through her fingers.

“You just sounded like you had a great time practicing with Master,” Carmedy said, “and you seemed to get better every night that you practiced.”

“I really want to hear more,” Rana said. “What happened after their… uhhh… first break?”

“Oh,” Carmedy laughed. “Then it got really super spooky. Master would tell her to either ‘spread her legs,’ or ‘get on her hands and knees,’ or to ‘get on top.’ Then they would both start moaning together. Morrigan would go all like ‘Ohhhh, yeeeeessssss, masssstteeerrrr, sooooo gooooooooddd, ahhhhhhh!’ and then Master would be like ‘ummmmmm, hmmmmmmm, rawwwwwwwwrrrr, grrrrrrrrrrr,’ and they would go like that for almost an hour, sometimes even two or three. Finally, both of them would gasp and moan really loudly, probably because they both scared each other with their ghost noises, and then they would sigh and sound really happy. It seemed like they were both having so much fun, but it also sounded really spooky. That’s why I couldn’t decide if I should ask Master if I could practice with them. I wanted to have fun, but I also don’t like getting scared.”

At this point, neither Rana nor Annalíse could hold back their laughter, and they each practically fell off the lizards as they clutched their sides.

“I… I… I… Can’t… even…” Rana gasped, but Annalíse couldn’t speak through her own laughter.

“Are you two idiots done?” Morrigan hissed as she spread her fingers so that she could glare at them.

“Are… you… done… scaring… Carmedy?” Rana choked out, and then Annalíse actually did off the lizard in a heap of giggling armor.

“That’s enough, you two,” I said, but my words were like trying to plug a broken dam with fingers, and both Rana and Annalíse were both too far gone for my words to penetrate their fit of giggles.

“Did I do something wrong?” Carmedy asked.

“No… no… no…” Rana gasped. “You just keep being you, Carmedy.”

“Oh! Good!” The cat girl laughed a bit nervously, and then she glanced at me. “Ummmm, Master?”

“Yes?” I asked over the sound of the two women laughing.

“I was too scared to ask you on the boat, but when we get to the inn, can you teach my how to make the ghost noises? Morrigan sounded like she had such a good time, and she almost never has a good time doing anything.”

“Carmedy…” Morrigan sighed, but the cat-girl’s question pretty much destroyed Rana and Annalíse, and the fox girl rolled on the ground were crying from laughing so much.

“I can understand if you want Master to only teach you how to make the spooky noises,” Carmedy said apologetically as she waved to the white-haired elf mage. “I don’t want to interfere with the fun you both are having.”

“Ughhhh,” Morrigan groaned, and then her shoulders slumped as she turned to me. “You should teach her.”

“Yay!” Carmedy clapped her hands, but then Rana and Annalíse stopped laughing suddenly, and turned to look at the three of us.

“Hey! No corrupting the innocents, Demon-man,” the fox tisked as she wagged a finger at me.

“Well, if you want, maybe he can teach you first, Rana?” Carmedy asked innocently. “Or maybe he can teach both you and Annalíse and me at the same time? I’m sure it will be fun if Master makes us all moan and groan all spooky together. Maybe we can even hold hands while we do it.”

“Change of subject!” Annalíse hollered, and then she gestured to the desert as she jumped to her feet. “My, my, my, look at this beautiful sand! I bet there is a whole bunch more to see on our way to the city! Carmedy, how many dunes do think there are here? Can you count them all?”

“Ohhh!” the cat-girl gasped. “I can try, but it will probably take me a while.”

As we rode through the desert, and the sun climbed higher into the sky, their snickers finally subsided, and we all rode in silence as Carmedy occasionally updated us on her sand dune count. As we traveled, my mind began to wander. What adventures awaited us on this continent, and what perils would we face? Better yet, what powers would I rip from the deities whom I defeated? Upon defeating the sand god, I had absorbed his ability to control and manipulate sand, skills that would of course prove very useful in our present surroundings.

There was nothing tastier than the sensation of consuming another god’s power. Euphoric didn’t begin to describe it. My mouth watered at the recollection of the feeling. With the newly acquired sand god’s abilities at my fingertips, I had now taken the abilities of four other deities, and I couldn’t wait to add more to my collection.

Chapter 4

“Look!” Carmedy said excitedly as we neared our destination, “there’s the city!” The rest of us turned to follow her gaze. “It’s beautiful.”

“It does seem to have a certain… charm about it,” Morrigan said enthusiastically, her eyes shone with uncharacteristic awe and wonder.

The city by the sea was indeed a sight to behold. The golden sands of Valasara stretched out beyond the coast and glistened in the hot sun. As we entered the city by the gate nearest the harbor, I could make out the tops of a few obelisks and a handful of crumbling monuments that were probably raised in the honor of ancient deities or monarchs from times past. There were several other ships docked at the port but none nearly as big as the one that we had traveled here on. I gathered that these vessels probably carried goods and various supplies instead of travelers.

Everything here seemed noisy and busy. The dock teemed with arriving passengers and busy sailors going about various tasks. Greetings were shouted and warm embraces were exchanged between newcomers and those who were there to welcome them. Crewmen rushed this way and that with ropes, tools, and other various supplies and barked at each other in their seaman’s jargon. Just beyond the port was a bustling open-air market throngs of people moving to and fro like ants at work. There was a certain energy that filled the air here, and I liked it.

“Hey, there’s our ship! They must have made good time after they dropped us off by the dungeon.” Carmedy pointed toward the docks as our group dismounted in the area between the market and the port, and we turned to follow the cat’s gaze. My eyes scanned across the various vessels that lined the port when I finally noticed a large square-rigged ship with which I was quite familiar.

The Sarpedon was indeed docked there. In fact, it looked as though the ship had arrived not too long ago, as one of the crewmen proceeded to lower a ramp from the ship’s deck to the shore so that the passengers could disembark. As the people onboard began to make their way off the ship, I noticed Annalíse glancing nervously at the bustling port. Her eyes would linger there for a few moments and then darted to the passengers that disembarked. Then she’d glance over at the port again and then back at the people once more. She must have seen something that distressed her because her eyes abruptly widened, and she turned her back to the crowd quickly.

“I’m… uh, I’ll be right back,” Annalíse said clumsily and hurried away.

“Are we not meant to be gathering our supplies?” Morrigan raised an eyebrow as she called after the warrior woman. It was too late though. Annalíse had already disappeared into the crowd of people that filled the port area.

“Strange,” Morrigan mumbled.

“There she goes again.” Rana gestured in the direction that Annalíse had gone. “She kept doing that back on the ship and...” The fox’s voice trailed off as she glanced around at the passengers that had just disembarked from the Sarpedon and narrowed her eyes.

“What do you notice?” I asked.

“Those two guys over there.” The fox gave a subtle nod toward two men that were standing on the dock a few yards away from us.

“What about them?” Carmedy shrugged her shoulders.

“I remember them from our ship,” Rana said quietly. “Did anyone else notice that every time those two guys were around Annalíse up and vanished? She either disappeared without a word or made up some poor excuse to leave.”

“And she has done so once more,” Morrigan said with suspicion as she eyed the men.

“You’re right,” I said slowly and gave the men another quick glance. “I did notice that those two were often present when Annalíse would leave without warning.”

“I wonder who they are,” Carmedy mumbled. “They don’t look like your usual thugs. Not with that fancy-schmancy armor.”

The cat-girl was right, the men in question each wore a suit of rather impressive looking armor. It wasn’t likely for a brigand to wear such garb.

“Well, whoever they are, they aren’t from any of the nearby continents, that’s for sure,” Rana continued.

“How do you know this?” Morrigan asked blankly.

“The helmets they’re carrying,” the fox said casually. “You see how the helmets look like a bear’s head?” The fox’s blue eyes darted in the direction of the two men. She didn’t turn to look at them directly though and instead casually played with one of the buttons on her vest.

Carmedy, Morrigan, and I looked at them more closely. Rana was right, the headpieces did indeed resemble the heads of bears. The top was expertly carved to mimic a bear’s fur, and the gruesome mouth was opened wide so that the wearer could see out through the jaws. They were both fearsome and impressive.

“Only soldiers from Tintagal or Tamarisch, the twin glacial continents, have those,” Rana continued. “The bear is their emblem.”

“You’ve been there?” I asked curiously. My thousands of years of imprisonment in my dungeon had left me out of touch about modern kingdoms, and I found them fascinating to study.

After all, one day I would rule them all.

“No, but as you know, I’m an expert on fine metals and other valuable shiny things,” Rana said with a wry grin. “Let’s just say I’ve done my research, and people will pay a pretty penny for those babies. That armor is practically flawless, almost as good as elvish stuff. The thing is, not many people have the guts to try to steal some.” Rana ran a paw through her messy red curls. “You’d have to kill one of those soldiers to get that armor, and soldiers from Tintagal and Tamarisch are world class. Their army is like legendary, not to mention massive.”

“In my time, the glacial continents had a small number of inhabitants, and their army was far from impressive,” I said.

“Yeah well, in your time, they also didn’t have fox-beings and there were still dragons roaming the skies,” Rana said with a playful smirk. “A lot’s changed, demon man.”

“Do you think we should say something to them, Master?” Carmedy whispered as she glanced at the soldiers. The pair started to make their way through the crowd. “About the whole thing with Annalíse, I mean.”

“No.” I shook my head. “I want to find out what’s going on from Annalíse first. We don’t know precisely who they are or what they’re doing here. If Annalíse is trying to avoid them, it wouldn’t be wise to talk to them about her.”

Carmedy, Morrigan, and Rana nodded in agreement, but I had to admit I was curious. What were two soldiers from the glacial continents doing so far from home? And what did they have to do with Annalíse?

One by one, each of my other minions had opened up about their pasts and the purpose of their travels. Rana needed to save her family, Morrigan sought revenge against the Holy Band of Mages, and Carmedy just wanted adventure and exotic desserts. Annalíse was the only one who hadn’t spoken of her homeland and her family. When she had been asked about her reason for traveling, the swordswoman had simply stated that she wanted fame, glory, and to become a great warrior. While the others had thought nothing of her explanation, I myself had been more skeptical.

I believed the last reason, but the first two I doubted very much. Someone as noble as Annalíse would not be satisfied with mere fame and glory. She struck me as someone who wanted purpose.

I studied the men carefully as they strode away from the dock. One of them whispered something to the other, and the other man nodded. The swords at their hips were of immaculate silver and the top of the hilts bore the same fearsomely carved bear’s head, as did their flawless breastplates. They walked tall and with purpose, but I expected nothing less of well-trained soldiers. They studied the crowd of people that meandered at the dock before they walked off in the direction of a very prominent building. I didn’t get the impression that they were wrongdoers, but there was obviously something about them that concerned Annalíse to the point of hiding from them.

“Ah, our braided warrior returns to us at last!” Rana snickered, and the rest of us turned to where the fox pointed and saw Annalíse making her way through the crow toward us. “Aren’t you going to say something to her? She’s definitely trying to avoid those soldiers, I’m sure of it now.”

“Not right now,” I said with a last glance after the soldiers. “If she is avoiding them, it is for good reason. After we get our supplies, we’ll discuss it in private.” I met Rana’s blue eyes. “But be on the lookout for any tricks. If they try anything, I will crush them and ask questions after.”

“Alright, I can do that,” Rana said with a shrug. “I’ll keep a close eye on them.”

“Thank you, my fox,” I said, and as I spoke, her cheeks flushed.

“You’re welcome,” she replied hurriedly before she looked away. Then I glanced at the two men with the intricately carved bear helmets one last time before they disappeared into the crowd.

“Let’s get started buying our supplies,” Annalíse said as soon as she had reached our group. “This market should have everything that we need. The sooner we take care of our business here, the sooner we can set out for the next dungeon.” The chestnut-haired woman’s eyes darted in the direction that the soldiers had gone before she turned toward the market.

“Hold on a second.” Rana grabbed Annalíse’s arm. “We’ve just been at sea for two weeks, and we just conquered a dungeon. I’d like at least a few minutes of downtime before we go off into the sandy unknown and plunge into another dungeon.”

As she spoke, the red-headed fox raised an eyebrow, and I detected mischief in her blue eyes. She was up to something. Rana had made a fair point, but I suspected that she had more than one reason for wanting to take it easy. Most likely, she would use the opportunity to get the truth out of Annalíse.

“While I too would appreciate a period of rest given the journey that we have ahead of us, I also agree with Annalíse,” Morrigan said calmly. “We have much to accomplish today. It is important that we gather our supplies and get in as much travel time as possible before the sun begins to set. The desert brings an unremitting chill at night. It would be most unwise to travel during that time, and in our best interests to begin making camp before the sun goes down as it will take longer than usual. It will take time to make the necessary adjustments to protect ourselves from the cold.”

“Didn’t you say you were looking forward to a bed?” Rana asked.

“I do not recall saying such a thing,” Morrigan stated.

“Sure you did,” the fox-girl snickered. “It was right before Carmedy told us about all the scary ghost noises that you and demon man were mak--”

“No,” Morrigan interrupted her. “I do not recall saying such a thing, so we should continue on with our mission. I recall you saying it will take eight or nine hours to make it to the next dungeon? We should leave as soon as we re-supply.”

“Alright, alright, I get it.” Rana sighed. “No rest for the conquering heroes.”

“Seeing as time is of the essence, it would probably be best if we split up,” I said. “We have more that we need to attend to than usual. Not only do we require our usual supplies and have to sell our loot, we also need an additional riding animal since we no longer have our donkey as well as something to replace our wagon. Not to mention the fact that we need attire better suited for the climate.”

“Ok then, I’ll take care of the usual supplies, and sell our loot,” Annalíse said impatiently.

“I’ll come with you,” Rana spoke up. “You’ll need my expert bartering skills of course.”

“Fine,” Annalíse replied with yet another of her countless nervous glances.

“While you two are doing that, we’ll purchase another riding animal and try to find something to carry our supplies,” I said. “I’m sure the people here have some sort of device to transport their belongings across the sand.”

“Alright then.” Rana nodded. “We can meet at that big red tent in about, say two hours?” The fox gestured to, well, a big red tent on the edge of the market.

“That sounds fine,” I agreed, pulled the bags of treasure from my void pocket and handed them to Rana and Annalíse.

“Why can’t we just carry everything in those big pockets of yours?” Rana said as she glanced at my hips.

“We can,” I said, “but my intent is to train you four to be capable minions who can overcome any challenge with the tools you have earned.”

“Soooooo, you are saying that lugging around our own supplies builds character?” Rana sighed.

“Yes,” I laughed. “I suppose I am.”

“Good, we’re all in agreement about everyone’s job,” Annalíse said with a twinge of annoyance. “Let’s go Rana.” She turned on her heels and walked off quickly toward the market.

“Gee, thanks for waiting.” Rana shook her head before she jogged away to join Annalíse.

“Gosh, Annalíse sure is in a hurry,” Carmedy cocked her head to one side before she gathered Scylla and Xerxes’ reigns in her hand.

With Scylla and Xerxes in tow, my minions and I made our way into the bustling open-air market. The new smells from the market immediately drifted to my nose and replaced the scents of the sea that I had grown so accustomed to from the past few weeks. The air was rich with spices and the smells of leather goods. Vendors called out their offerings and their prices in both foreign and familiar language and informed passersby of how much of a bargain they’d get. Proprietors animatedly haggled with customers and held up their goods for all to see as they explained how fine of quality their products were. Citizens rode past on the backs of lizards and camels, and the hump-backed steeds moved lazily through the crowds without the slightest sense of urgency.

The atmosphere of my new surroundings was lively and enticing. It was enjoyable, especially since we had been at sea for so long. I had seen so many places since I had been freed from my dungeon. Each had different smells, people, wildlife… they each offered something unique, but there was one thing that all these places had in common. They all spurred feelings of carefreeness, gratefulness, and wanderlust.

As we weaved in and out of the rows of colorful tents, I caught sight of glistening jewelry, a rainbow of colorful silk scarves, and tanned hides. Several stands had the roasted meat of some large animal for sale. The vendors that sold it shouted that it was called a zandabii. I had never seen or heard of this beast, but the meat from the large creature was enough to feed a family of four for at least a week. My mouth watered as I inhaled the aroma of the seasoned cooked meat.

I paused for a moment in front of the food stand. I was tempted to buy some even though we had more important things to attend to. It was imperative that we find an additional riding animal, something to transport our belongings, and clothing to shield us from the desert’s harsh elements. The zandabii meat smelled so tantalizing though, so I decided to indulge and make a quick stop to purchase some.

A sweaty man wearing an apron carved some meat away from the large roasted hunk on the spit. His knife sliced through the zendabii with such ease it was as though the flesh were made of butter. The vendor cut the meat into smaller pieces and slid them onto a long stick before he presented it to me.

Without hesitation, I bit into one of the morsels. I moaned softly as I savored the decadent bite, and the juices that slid down my chin. The zendabii meat was unbelievably moist and tender, and the heat of fragrant spices made my tongue tingle. I decided to purchase another as a surprise treat for Carmedy. Knowing that the feline’s mind revolved around food half the time, I knew she’d enjoy it.

I glanced around to see where Morrigan and Carmedy had gotten to and soon found them in front of some food tents not too far from me. As usual, Carmedy’s attention had been captured by edible delights. As I approached, I saw the cat’s jade colored eyes turn glassy as she ogled the culinary offerings. She licked her lips greedily as her gaze darted from tent to tent as though she were trying to decide what to sample first. The feline started to stray away from Morrigan once she caught sight of another zendabii stand.

“Ooh, that looks tasty!” The black-haired cat rubbed her hands together excitedly. “And look at the size of it,” she said as her eyes roamed over the huge hunk of roasted meat. Morrigan, however, wouldn’t allow any further dawdling, and she grabbed Carmedy by her wrist.

“We do not have the luxury of time today, Carmedy,” Morrigan said plainly as she pulled Carmedy through the market. “There is no time for your… adventures.”

“Aww, but there’s so many yummy looking things to eat,” the cat moaned, and she looked wistfully at the tents that we passed that were smoky from the preparation of the cooked foods.

“We have more important things to attend to than your stomach,” Morrigan replied nonchalantly, and she finally released the cat’s wrist. Carmedy looked to me with doe eyes as though she expected me to support her desire to roam.

“Morrigan is right,” I said to the cat with a soft smile as I presented her the stick of juicy meat, “but a small snack won’t hurt.”

“Oh, thank you, Master!” The cat clasped her hands gleefully before she reached out to take the snack. Then Carmedy blew on the seasoned morsels that glistened with moisture and then took a large bite. She closed her eyes and hummed with satisfaction before she took another bite.

“You’re quite welcome.” I chuckled, and Morrigan sighed and muttered something to Fea and Macha but offered no protests as we continued on our way.

Before we looked for something to carry our belongings, we stopped at one of the tents that sold clothing. Valasara’s sun was relentless and large amounts of exposed skin would result in very severe sunburns. Morrigan was already prepared as she always wore a hood and cloak. My robe and armor would provide ample protection against the sun’s rays, but Carmedy, Rana, and Annalíse would need something.

As Carmedy and Morrigan looked through the women’s clothing, I decided to take a look at the head coverings on offer. All the head coverings were of the same design, but there was a wide variety of colors. The vendor noticed me and made his way over to talk to me about the headpieces.

“We have a fine selection of kefficha,” he said as he swept his hand over his merchandise. “You see, each of the coverings is made up of a simple cloth folded into a triangle.” The vendor held up the headpiece for me to see. The man demonstrated how the item was worn by placing the cloth over his head so that it loosely draped around his back and shoulders. The material looked breathable and lightweight, most likely made up of cotton or something in the like.

“Wear the kefficha in this fashion,” the proprietor explained. “This way it not only protects the head from the sun, but it also shields the back of the neck as well.” He proceeded to place a small circle of black rope on the crown of his head to hold the cloth in place.

“This will do fine.” I nodded. “Help my beautiful friend with the dress.” The vendor bowed his head slightly and moved away to help Carmedy who was looking through a selection of robes.

The cat-girl’s simple peasant dress would offer no protection, so I suggested that she buy one of the colorful robes and matching head coverings on display. The cat purred with excitement, and the vendor proceeded to show her his most popular designs. After looking through the various selections, the feline decided on a green garment with gold leaf trim on the borders of the fabric along with its corresponding headpiece.

Once Carmedy had changed her clothes, the three of us made our way to a black tent that sold a variety of riding animals and transportation devices. There were riding lizards for sale like any other town. However, instead of the usual horses and donkeys that I had often seen on the previous continent alongside the lizards, there were camels here, and the furry brown humped animals looked at us with disinterest as we walked past them.

“Ooh, they’re so cute,” Carmedy exclaimed as she patted one of the camel’s humps. “Can we get one?”

“Excellent choice, ma’am,” the big cheeked vendor said with a wide grin. “This animal is just what you need.”

“No, it is not,” Morrigan said unamusedly. “Camels are exceedingly slow creatures in comparison to riding lizards and quite cantankerous. A lizard would be a far better choice.”

“Ahh, you are a smart lady!” The vendor wagged his finger. His Valasarian accent was thick, and he put great emphasis on his r’s. “May I interest you in one these fine reptiles?”

The plump man gestured to the five lizards that stood behind the camels. The first two reptiles were the smallest with brown skin with cream and black speckles. The next two were a little larger and had vibrant green skin and red eyes. The last of the creatures was the largest and by far the most impressive. Its eyes were a piercing blue that resembled sapphires, and its skin was a flawless white that was as radiant as freshly fallen snow.

Morrigan quietly walked over to the scaly beasts and studied each one for a few moments as she periodically whispered to Fea and Macha. The portly proprietor raised an eyebrow at the sight of the elf conversing with her winged pets but said nothing. I was sure he didn’t want to do anything might prevent him from making a sale.

“We’ll take this one,” Morrigan finally said as she pointed to the lizard with striking blue eyes and scaly skin as white as her hair. The reptile immediately took a step back from the elf and thrashed its tail back and forth across the ground.

Carmedy squealed as the reptile flicked out its tongue, and the frill around its neck simultaneously unfurled. It was as though it knew it had been chosen and it didn’t want to go. Morrigan, unshaken by the creature’s display, calmly approached it and laid a pale hand on its nose. She spoke to it in hushed tones, and as she did so, Fea and Macha bobbed their heads as though they too were involved in the discussion. While they were capable of speech, they chose to communicate with her through their thoughts.

The tattooed woman continued to speak to the displeased scaled creature and gently smoothed its skin. The great white lizard eyed the tattooed elf and slowly concealed its frill.

“You seem to have a way with animals,” the rotund vendor said curiously as he wiped the sweat from his ample cheeks.

“How much is this lizard?” Morrigan asked, ignoring the man’s statement.

“Uh, twenty gold pieces, ma’am,” the owner of the tent replied. The white-haired woman narrowed her eyes at the man and then walked over to me.

“I suspect that this man intends to cheat us,” Morrigan whispered with displeasure in her tone. “While I am not well versed in the ways of bartering, this price seems too high.”

“Do not worry about the negotiations, I’ll take care of this.” I moved toward the agitated vendor. By now, I had learned more of current prices and bartering from Rana. The fox was an expert on the price of pretty much anything that could be sold, and from what she had taught me, I knew enough to handle the situation in the absence.

“I happen to know that the appropriate price is no more than ten,” I said firmly.

“Oh, w-well, this is a very fine lizard sir,” the large-bellied man stammered in surprise. “You can see from its coloration that this is not your run-of-the-mill riding lizard. Why, such an animal should be ridden by royalty.”

“Then you will have to seek out such people if you wish for such a price,” I said sternly. “We will offer no more than ten. Accept this, otherwise, our business has concluded.”

As I spoke, the vendor blinked in surprise. He had no doubt assumed that since we were foreigners, we would be what Rana called easy pickings. He was sorely mistaken.

“Very well,” he finally sighed. “Ten gold pieces.”

“We’ll take those two lizards as well,” I gestured to the large green reptiles with the ruby colored eyes. “I’ll give you five gold pieces for each of them.” I reached into the void pocket of my cloak and pulled out the specified amount to hand to the man. The vendor nodded and pocketed the money.

“We also have need of a transportation implement,” Morrigan said after I had paid the vendor. “Something in which we can carry our possessions.”

“Ahh, what you need is a Valasarian sand sled.” The proprietor waved his hand to draw our attention to a row of wooden devices at the back of the tent. He motioned for us to follow him as he walked toward the sand sleds that he had indicated.

“Everyone here has one.” The round man patted the front of the device. “There’s no better way to cart your things around than a sand sled. They glide across the terrain with ease, they’re quite easy to repair should you ever have the need, and I can give you a very good price.”

I stepped closer to inspect the merchandise that the vendor had pointed out. The object did indeed resemble a sled, except its sides came up to contain what it carried more effectively. There were two hitches on either of its sides to secure to a riding animal. The sled seemed to be of good quality, and the pale colored wood that formed it looked strong and sturdy. I was certain that the device would serve us well on our journey.

“I’ll sell you one for…” he paused as he looked at me nervously. “Five gold pieces?”

I was silent for a moment. While I didn’t know the going rate for this unfamiliar device, the price that the vendor proposed was close to what Rana deemed a fair sum for the carts that our lizards normally pulled.

“Agreed. We’ll need five of them” I finally said and handed over the payment. The vendor showed us how to secure the sand sleds properly to our new lizards and then asked if there was anything else that we needed.

“I believe that is all we have a need for.” Morrigan turned to leave the tent with the alabaster colored lizard in tow. Carmedy followed her and led one of the green lizards. I took hold of the other scaly animal’s reigns and with my other hand I pulled the remaining sand sleds.

“Pleasure doing business with you,” the pudgy man called after us, and I heard him sigh as we strode away.

With our errands now complete, we headed back to the red tent where we were supposed to meet Annalíse and Rana. The swordswoman and the fox were already there ahead of us and carried various sacks and bundles in their arms. Like Carmedy, they too wore new robes and head coverings to protect them from the hot sun. Rana had chosen a garment that matched the blue of her eyes, and Annalíse had opted for a red one.

“Were you able to find everything that we need?” I nodded to the parcels that Annalíse and Rana held.

“We were able to trade our loot without trouble, and we did get everything on our list, except we ran into a little… snag with the water,” Rana said as she set her goods in one of the sand sleds.

“What do you mean by a little snag?” I furrowed my brow. Without speaking, the fox began to root through the items that she had placed in the sled until she came upon six water skins and held them up for the rest of us to see.

“Surely this is not all the water that you have purchased for our journey,” Morrigan raised a white eyebrow.

“Sorry, elfy, this is all we’ve got.” Rana sighed as she placed the water skins back in the sled.

“But this will not do, we shall need a much larger quantity if we are to survive the desert,” Morrigan said with a twinge of annoyance in her tone. “Do you not understand that it will be quite some time before we come upon the next city? This is not one of the forest continents, there are no streams and rivers running freely that we make take advantage of between here and the next city.”

“I know, I know, but that was the best we could do.” Rana held up her paws. “It will only take us nine or so hours to reach the dungeon, and then another nine to get back. As long as we don’t spend two or three days there, we should have enough to get back to this city.”

“What happened?” I folded my arms over my chest. “Surely it wasn’t a matter of money, our funds are plenty.”

“No, it wasn’t anything like that.” Annalíse shook her head. “There is a limit on the amount of water one can purchase.”

“A limit? How come?” Carmedy cocked her head to one side.

“There’s a water shortage in the city,” Annalíse said as she wiped the sweat from her brow. “In fact, there’s a water shortage throughout the entire continent.”

“How long has this been going on?” I asked.

“Apparently it’s been going on for several years,” Rana said with a somewhat somber expression, and she looked around at the people that passed by. “These people are suffering.”

“I understand that it doesn’t rain here often, but what of the oasis cities?” I pressed. “Have they run dry?”

“That’s the weird thing,” Rana said slowly, and a perplexed look spread across her face. “Annalíse and I wondered the same thing. When we asked the guy who sold us the water, he clammed up and wouldn’t tell us anything else. We tried to ask a few other people, but they wouldn’t tell us anything either. It was almost like they were scared or something.”

“How strange,” I mumbled. What had happened to the water in Valasara, and what were these people so frightened of?

Chapter 5

With everything else in order, we loaded the rest of our belongings onto the sand sleds and made preparations to leave the port city.

“Wow,” Rana breathed as she eyed the newly purchased ivory colored reptile. “I’ve never seen a riding lizard like that before.”

“Yes, he is quite unique.” Morrigan nodded as she smoothed the animal’s head with her hand. The elf opened her mouth for a second as though she were about to speak and then closed it.

“Were you gonna say something?” Rana asked as she looked at the white-haired woman curiously.

Morrigan hesitated for a moment before she relented. “Would-- would you mind terribly if I ride him, and you ride one of the other lizards we purchased?” the pale elf asked quietly, without taking her eyes off the white reptile. “I feel that I have a bond with him.”

“Um, yeah sure, that’s fine with me,” Rana laughed. “I’m happy you are taking such an interest in him.”

“Thank you,” Morrigan said softly as she looked into the creature’s sapphire colored eyes.

“No problem,” Rana said slowly, and she shrugged her shoulders at me before she walked toward one of the emerald skinned lizards.

“What are you going to call him?” I asked Morrigan as I mounted our other new lizard.

“I believe I shall call him… Tiberius,” the she-elf said as she climbed onto the colorless animal.

“I like that,” I said with a smile.

“I like it too,” Carmedy said brightly. “Welcome to the team, Tiberius! What are you going to call yours Rana?”

“I think I’ll call this lovely little beauty Anu,” the fox said as she gently petted her lizard’s vivid jade scales.

“That’s a pretty name,” Carmedy grinned. “What about you Master?”

“I think I’ll call mine Basilisk,” I said.

“Ooh, that sounds so noble,” the cat giggled.

“Oh no, not him again,” Annalíse suddenly said under her breath. Her fists clenched, and her lips pursed. I followed her gaze as she looked toward a crowd of people ahead of us. The throng of passersby began to part to allow someone to pass, and they bowed their heads. A man with exceptionally lavish and brightly colored robes approached us with a wide smile and a group of guards followed after him. Without so much as a glance, the affluent looking man shoved a group of people who had evidently moved aside too slowly. I recognized him as one of the fellow passengers from our voyage here, a wealthy man who had also engaged the Sarpedon for transport across the sea. Morrigan climbed down from Tiberius’ back, and our group gathered together as the man approached us.

“Ah, here you are,” the wealthy man said cheerfully as he smiled at Annalíse. He was a good head or so shorter than the tall female warrior. He was, however, a decent looking man. He appeared to be in fair shape and had perfect teeth as well as a head full of wavy black hair. His beard was perfectly trimmed as was his mustache which curled upward at the ends. As he drew closer to our group, the smell of exotic oils reached my nose. The scent might have actually been pleasant had the man not doused himself in it.

“I was most distressed when I discovered that you had deboarded early,” the rich man continued. “How fortunate that I have found you once more. Now, I do believe we have matters to discuss--”

“I told you, I’m not interested,” the freckled woman grumbled.

“I don’t think you understand how lucky you are,” the man said in his snooty accent. “It is a rare privilege to be invited to dine with someone of my… standing.” He topped his statement off with a self-satisfied smirk.

“No, I don’t think you understand,” Annalíse said through gritted teeth. “I said no, and I meant it. Now please, let me be.”

I grimaced at the sight of the dark-haired man. He had made a spectacle of himself almost as soon as we had embarked, and now he was bothering Annalíse. I didn’t like the way that he had treated the other people on board as though they were his servants for him to talk down to. In fairness, so did I, but whereas I was a nearly omnipotent deity, he was clearly nothing more than a spoiled brat who needed to be put in his place.

“Care to introduce us to your new friend?” Rana said with a twisted smile aimed at Annalíse. The swordswoman rolled her eyes and mumbled something under her breath.

The finely dressed man clasped his hands together exuberantly and proceeded to join our circle without invitation. “Oh, but of course introductions are in order. I am sure there were many rumors circling around the ship about me. Who is that handsome and mysterious man? What business does this illustrious looking gentleman have in Valasara?”

“Was anyone asking that?” Carmedy whispered to Rana, and the fox snorted in response.

“Well, allow me to finally put your minds at ease,” the dark-haired man continued uninterrupted. “I am Alistair IV, the great and benevolent king of Valasara.” When he finished speaking, he bowed slightly as he waved his hand dramatically.

Morrigan raised her eyebrows, either out of surprise or amusement, I couldn’t be sure. Carmedy’s eyes widened with shock, while Annalíse groaned slightly and rolled her eyes. Discovering that this man was royalty had not at all changed her opinion. In fact, she looked even more disgusted by him than before.

“Do benevolent people typically say they’re benevolent?” Rana muttered under her breath, speaking my thoughts for me. Her words indicated that she was unimpressed, but her eyes told a different story. They had a sort of hunger in them, and I guessed she had found her next mark. The fox-girl told me she never stole from friends, family, or poor people, only from people who could afford it, and this king most certainly could.

“I have been abroad on business,” Alistair drolled on. “Political matters you see, far too complex for you to understand. And now I am making the journey back to my palace.” He waved his hand absently. Annalíse pinched her freckled face in annoyance and mumbled something under her breath about political matters but I couldn’t quite make out what it was. Whatever she had said was most assuredly an insult though.

I took stock of the king’s bodyguards as he prattled on. The men were silent, rather large, and quite imposing looking, but they also appeared to be fairly miserable. They had kept to themselves during our voyage to this continent, and that made me think they were somewhat professional. They seemed almost as displeased as we were to be in the king’s presence. I couldn’t blame them. In fact, I pitied them having to be in the employment of someone so irksome.

“Now that you have been made aware of who I am, perhaps now you understand how honored you should be by my invitation.” Alistair gave Annalíse a toothy smile. “No other woman aboard that ship managed to capture my attentions, so you should be most flattered. I am a very particular man.” The king stepped a bit closer to Annalíse.

“Be that as it may, I haven’t changed my mind.” The freckled woman grimaced and took a small step back toward me to re-establish the distance between herself and the monarch. “Thank you for your invitation, but I respectfully decline,” Annalíse said sternly.

It was evident that she was neither flattered nor amused by Alistair’s advances, but Carmedy stifled a giggle at the rejection. The king didn’t seem to notice, the cat-girl laugh at him, since he was too busy staring at Annalíse.

“Y-you refuse me in spite of my standing?” the wavy-haired royal sputtered. He obviously wasn’t accustomed to rejection.

“Yes,” Annalíse replied quickly without the slightest note of sympathy.

“Oh c’mon, give the guy a chance,” Rana said with a snicker before her lips curved into a devilish grin. “He is, after all, the great and benevolent king of Valasara. An opportunity like this is one in a lifetime.”

“Indeed, it is.” Alistair nodded. “Listen to your friend, she speaks wisely.” Apparently, the king was not only accustomed to rejection, but he was also unacquainted with sarcasm as well.

“No.” Annalíse shook her head. “I don’t wish to offend you, but I’ve already told you of my decision.”

“But--” the king started to say.

“That’s quite enough.” I held a hand up to interrupt him. “She’s given you her answer, let’s leave it at that.” I had heard all I was going to hear from this pathetic king, and I wasn’t going to let this nauseating attempt at Annalíse’s attentions go any further.

Alistair glanced back and forth between myself and Annalíse until realization suddenly came to his face. “Ah, I understand now. You own her. This is the reason why she refuses me. I will gladly purchase her. I believe fifty gold coins should be a reasonable price.”

My blood began to boil. He talked about buying Annalíse so nonchalantly as though he were offering to buy livestock. The man’s impudence was infuriating, to say the least.

“She is not for sale,” I stated.

“Fifty gold coins is more than fair. You’d be foolish not to accept such an offer,” he said smugly.

“Listen to me,” I said as I narrowed my eyes at the dark-haired man. “I’m going to say this one more time. She’s not for sale. You’ve already made a frequent nuisance of yourself by your incessant pestering, now you add further insult by treating her as a commodity.”

“I-I did not mean--” he stammered in shock.

“You speak as though she were merely some object or animal that you can trade for,” I said angrily. “I don’t know how you run things in Valasara, but this is something that I won’t tolerate. Leave her alone or I will destroy you.” Just to be certain my point was made, I let a fraction of my dark power color my eyes jet black. As the darkness pulsated within me, I momentarily contemplated ending the insufferable king’s life, but I reigned in my dark abilities. He wasn’t worth my time, he was nothing more than a mere mortal, a weak figurehead who was unworthy of his title.

Alistair gulped when he stared into my eyes, and his body quivered a bit. His guards took a step closer to him, and one of them moved to step between myself and the king. Without hesitation, I wrapped a hand around the muscular guard's throat and lifted him off the ground with ease, and the big man trembled in my grasp as he grappled at his throat. I bore the man no ill will, but I wanted to get my point across to the king whom he served.

“Have I made myself clear?” I growled to the group of men. Both the pompous man and the other guards had turned pale and their lips quivered with fear.

“W-we shall take our leave,” the king said as he looked around uncomfortably. People had stopped to watch the spectacle and whispered amongst themselves.

I released the guard from my grasp, and the man plummeted to the ground. When he picked himself up and took a step back from me I saw the fear continue to well up in his eyes.

“I-I have business to attend to elsewhere in the city.” Alistair glanced around our group awkwardly and tightened his lips before he and his guards shuffled away into the crowd.

“Now that was just sad.” Rana chuckled as she shook her head. “Rejection, verbal bashing, and threats. All in all, a complete package of public humiliation, not too pretty.”

“It needed to be done.” I shrugged.

“I appreciate your help, but it wasn’t necessary,” Annalíse sighed. I would have thought that she would have expressed relief at finally being rid of the king, but I knew she had a lot of pride. “He would have given up eventually.”

I shook my head. “I doubt that. He’s shown his persistence, and he’s definitely the type that’s used to getting what he wants. He wouldn’t have stopped. The man needed to be dealt with.”

“You dealt with him all right,” Rana said with a twisted grin. “The way that went, I wouldn’t be surprised if he never showed his face out here again.”

Annalíse opened her mouth to say something but closed her mouth again. Then she opened it once more. “Let’s be on our way.”

Before long, we were on our way, the sounds and smells of the market behind us as we rode off into the vast desert. Miles and miles of golden sand stretched out before us without a tree or landmark in sight.

“Alright, as you might have noticed, there aren’t exactly any paths for us to follow,” Rana called back to the rest of us. She steered Anu so that she caught up to Annalíse who led our party, followed by Morrigan atop Tiberius, Carmedy, and then me. “I’ve done some digging though, and we should arrive at the next dungeon in a day or so if we keep heading north.”

“Excellent,” I said.

“Naturally, I have an excellent sense of direction,” the red-headed woman put a paw on her chest proudly, “but I have this little beauty just in case.” In her other paw, she jiggled a small compass.

Carmedy giggled. “I never thought I’d see a fox with a compass.”

“Go on, laugh it up.” Rana smirked. “I’ll have you know that--” The fox paused for a moment and stared behind us. I looked over my shoulder to see what she was looking at but saw nothing.

“Is there something wrong?” I asked.

“I’m not sure,” Rana said dubiously. “I feel like, like someone is following us, but everything is out in the open around here and there’s no one around.”

“Perhaps you made a mistake,” Morrigan said casually. “Perhaps our time at sea has affected your senses somehow.” I expected Rana to be offended by the elf’s words, but her expression was still one of concern and suspicion.

“Yeah, maybe,” the fox muttered. She continued to squint at the land behind us for a few more moments before she turned back in her seat. Even though Rana had turned around, her ears still twitched and her tails switched with frustration.

“Rana’s instincts had never been wrong before,” I said, and the fox-girl turned to me with surprised eyes. “Morrigan, send your ravens behind us to look for presuers.”

“Yes, Master,” the pale-elf said, and the birds instantly leapt from her shoulders, let out a caw of delight, and then pumped their wings to raise high into the sky.

“Everyone continue onward as if we are not suspecting followers,” I said, “but be prepared to fight.”

The four women nodded, and then we rode in silence. Each of us rested our hands on either weapon or potion, and the tension in the air was measurable.

The twin ravens returned after what felt like fifteen-minutes, and then they cawed softly into Morrigan’s ears after they landed. My lover nodded with her usual emotionless expression, and then she turned to the rest of us.

“They have not seen anyone following us, but they do agree with Rana and feel that there is something amiss.”

“Are they using magic?” Carmedy gasped.

“I do not know,” Morrigan said with her usual shrug.

“Master, what can we do?” Annalíse asked, and I was a bit surprised that she was asking me for help so quickly. Perhaps it was because she was unused to dealing with others that might have illusion magic.

“We continue onward,” I said as I nodded ahead. “It will be impossible to ambush them out in the open desert, so we will maintain our guard and hope to surprise them once we enter the dungeon.”

“That’s a good plan,” Rana said as her mouth formed a wicked grin. “I like surprising people.”

“Agreed,” I said, and the other three women nodded.

A few minutes of silence descended upon us, and then Rana dropped the pace of her lizard so that she rode beside me. Her green eyes met mine, and then she gestured for us to slow down a bit more so that there was a good thirty feet between us and the rest of the party.

“Is something wrong?” I asked.

“Uhhh, no,” she said, and her voice was barely over the sound of our lizards walking across the sand. “I, uhhh, just wanted to say thanks.”

“For sending Morrigan’s crows to investigate your suspicion?” I guessed.

“Yeah,” Rana said as she cleared her throat. “Look, I know we haven’t exactly gotten along, and there is no way in hell I’m going to call you ‘Master,’ but… uhhh, yeah. Anyways. That’s all I wanted to say.”

“Your instincts have always served us well,” I said. “I have told you before that I value you.”

“Yeah,” she said, and her eyes looked away from me. “I’m going to go--”

“Rana,” I interrupted her, and she turned to look at me. “You will call me Master soon.”

“Uhhh, nope,” she chuckled. “Not going to happen, demon man.”

“Not only that,” I said, “but I will have you as a lover, and you will enjoy the experience tremendously.”

“Ugh,” she groaned, and then pulled her paw over her face. “Now, I’m sorry that--”

“You have already thought about us being together,” I continued. “You have as much pride as Annalíse, but this is not a matter of pride. I care for you, and respect you, and we will give each other amazing pleasure.”

“Look, I have absolutely not thought about fucking you,” Rana said, but as she spoke her eyes strayed to my lips and her face turned almost as red as her hair.

“I am not speaking about fucking,” I said. “I would make love to you. There is a difference.”

“Why do I even bother?” Rana hissed, and her voice was loud enough to reach the other three women, and they all turned around on their mounts to look at us.

“When you are ready, you can come to me,” I said as I shrugged.

“Ugh,” Rana groaned again, and then she clicked her tongue twice to make her lizard trot ahead.

But as soon as she almost made it back to Morrigan’s side, the fox-girl turned around to look at me again. She saw me watching her, and her face turned a darker shade of red. Then she let out another loud huff before she stuck her nose up on the air, turned around, and then made her lizard trot up to the front of our caravan.

Her tail wagged the entire time.

Yes, Rana would soon be mine.

Chapter 6

“Is it just me, or is anyone else already sick of this heat?” Rana moaned a few hours of travel later. “I feel like one big sweaty mass of fur.”

“It is pretty hot,” Annalíse said as she wiped her brow. “It could be worse though. I heard someone say that today was actually the coolest it’s been all month.”

“Well that’s great news,” Rana grumbled. “Why couldn’t we have gone to one of the continents that has nice breezes and cool mountain air? That sounds more up my alley.”

“Because this was the closest continent, a fact you know very well,” I said with a dry chuckle.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Rana said absently. “I still have a right to complain though. It feels hotter out here than it did back at that dungeon with the lava.”

“Oh, that reminds me,” Carmedy said suddenly as she began to root through the bundles on her belt of alchemical supplies, now tied over her robe for easy access. “Can we stop for a sec?”

Annalíse brought our party to a halt and then turned to look over her shoulder. “Why did you want to stop?” Annalíse asked the black cat with a somewhat annoyed expression. The swordswoman frequently displayed impatience and always became agitated when something delayed our travels. Carmedy didn’t reply at first, and her mutterings to herself only increased as she pulled a few leaves from one of her pouches. “I can brew some salve to help alleviate the effects of the sun so our skin won’t get so blistery,” Carmedy said thoughtfully, as she scrounged around in her various pouches. “Let’s see, I have aloe, and some zinc, and…”

“Those might make it actually tolerable,” Annalíse said with a laugh. “The sun out here is no joke, especially since our water supply is limited.”

“Here you go,” the feline finally said upon completing her work.

After she climbed off Xerxes’ back, she handed me two leaves, one that held a white cream and another with the same mint-smelling pink powder that she had used to keep us cool in the lava dungeon. Carmedy proceeded to walk to each of the others to hand them some cooling powder.

“Remember, the effects of the cooling powder are temporary,” the green-eyed woman reminded us. “It’s only going to last for about an hour or so, and then your temperature will return to normal. You can take it now if you like, or you can save it for later. Just keep in mind that I can’t give you another one every time the cooling effects when off. I don’t know how long it’ll take for us to get to another town that has the ingredients I need to make more, so it’ll be best if each of us only take one per day.”

“You mean there’s only going to be one hour each day where I’m not dying of heatstroke?” Rana whined as she looked down at the leaf full of powder in her paw.

“Yeah, pretty much,” Carmedy said with an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, that’s the best I can do for now. The salve I gave you should help a little though.”

“It’s more than enough, Carmedy,” I said as I slathered the white salve onto my face. “Thank you.” The cream was soothing and had a fresh scent to it, and it did indeed make the heat a bit more tolerable. The black-haired feline smiled at me and nodded her head in appreciation. Annalíse and Morrigan also said their thanks readily as they rubbed the cream into their skin, and I gave Rana a look to hint that she should also show her gratitude.

“Yeah, thanks, pussycat,” Rana said with a sigh, and she also spread the salve onto her face. “I guess one hour of sweet cool bliss is better than none.”

“You’re welcome,” Carmedy said brightly as she climbed back onto Xerxes’ back. While the rest of us decided to save our powder for later in the day, Rana decided to take hers. I couldn’t blame her. Compared to Carmedy, who only had fur on her ears and tail, Rana’s more extensive fur had to make the desert heat near-unbearable.

“Ahh, much better,” the fox woman sighed after she dumped the contents of the leaf into her mouth. “Now I’m not going to melt into a puddle of fox goo.” Carmedy and I chuckled at that as we continued to ride through the desert.

There wasn’t much to see out here, save for endless hills of sand that reached out in every direction and the occasional rock. There were no trees, I didn’t even see any wildlife crawl amongst the sandy terrain. I raised a hand to my eyes and looked up at the cloudless sky, and even the birds were absent. Perhaps they were smart enough not to go into the untamed desert.

As if on cue, a hot wind blew across the glittering golden sand, and grains flew into the air. This heat was fearsome, but I had faced far worse things in my time.

Rana’s voice broke into my thoughts. “So, Annalíse, I’ve been meaning to ask you. Actually, we’ve all been meaning to ask you,” the fox corrected herself, “why were you acting so weird back on the ship?”

Annalíse said nothing in response to Rana’s question. Instead, she continued to stare straight ahead as we forged ahead through the merciless desert. The fox was silent for a moment and waited for the freckled swordswoman to offer an explanation but Annalíse gave no indication that she had any intention of speaking. Rana glanced back at the rest of us and gave us a look of disbelief. Carmedy shrugged her shoulders, and Morrigan waved her hand as though to urge Rana to continue her interrogation. Rana nodded and bit her lip with determination.

“Annalíse, come on. You can’t pretend like you didn’t hear me,” the fox said as she turned back around to face the swordswoman who rode beside her. Rana leaned over in her seat and poked at Annalíse’s shoulder repeatedly. “I’m not going to stop bugging you until you answer me,” the fox added in a sing-song voice.

Annalíse released a heavy sigh and was silent for a moment longer. “Are you certain we’re still headed in the right direction? It’s quite easy to get lost out here, many people have ventured out into this desert and never escaped it.”

“Really?” Carmedy said fearfully. “You mean… they died out here?”

“Yes,” Annalíse replied. “Every dungeon has its perils regardless of the continent, but the dungeons here, it’s as though there’s an added level of cruelty because you have to survive the journey to the dungeons before you even face what they have in store.”

“Okay,” Rana chimed in and held up a paw. “First of all, yes I am certain that we’re headed in the right direction. I hate to use this old chestnut but, have I ever steered you wrong?”

I chuckled at Rana’s words, she was right. In our journey thus far, she hadn’t made any mistakes in relation to her navigation skills. In fact, I very much doubted that the fox had ever gotten lost in her life.

“Second, we’re going to be just fine,” the curly-haired fox woman continued, “I admit I complained about the heat. It’s not exactly a picnic, but it’s going to take more than some sun to stop me from getting to those dungeons, and I’m sure the same goes for the rest of you. Third, nice try.” The red-headed thief snorted. “That was pretty slick changing of the subject like that, implying that I didn’t know where we were going.”

I was impressed by Rana’s perceptiveness. We all knew how offended Rana got when someone questioned her instincts or navigation skills, but the clever fox had seen through Annalíse’s plan.

“So, now that we’ve established that we’re not lost and not going to die,” Rana continued, “how about you tell us what’s going on with you?”

“Nothing’s going on with me,” Annalíse said a bit sharply. “I don’t know why you keep bothering me with this. You asked me while we were shopping at the market, and now, you’re bringing it up again. I told you before, there’s nothing wrong.”

“Really?” Rana sniffed. “So it’s perfectly normal that you were sneaking around the ship and ducking around corners pretty much the whole time we were on board? Yeah, sounds logical.” Even though Rana’s back was to me, I had a strong feeling that her words had been accompanied by one of her exaggerated eye rolls.

“I must agree with Rana,” Morrigan spoke up. “Your behavior throughout the duration of our sea voyage was quite unusual. Furthermore, it is unlike you to be so secretive and... what was the word Rana used last week?... shady.”

“How would you know what is and isn’t like me?” Annalíse turned around in her seat and narrowed her eyes at the pale elf. “You talk as though you’ve known me for years.”

“Hey, hey now,” Rana interjected. “No need to get hostile. We’re worried about you, that’s why we’re asking.” The curly-haired woman smiled calmly. “Sure, we haven’t known you for years, but you’re still our friend, and it’s obvious something is going on with you. Look, I understand you want to keep your secrets. I did it too. I kept this whole thing with my family and the sorcerer from you all because I thought that was the best thing to do at the time.” Rana’s voice was tinged with sadness as she spoke, and I recalled how reluctant Rana had been to tell us her troubles. “I figured I caused this mess, so I should be the one to fix it, and I didn’t want any of you to get hurt trying to help me. But you know something, when I finally did tell you guys, I felt a lot better.” Rana released a breath slowly and looked up into the clear blue sky.

“And we thank you for telling us!” Carmedy said.

Rana laughed and then winked at Carmedy before continuing. “Has the situation with my family changed? No, but I feel, I don’t know, stronger and more at ease now knowing that you guys have my back. I guess what I’m trying to say is, whatever’s going on with you, it’s not so big that you can’t tell us. We’re here for you.” The fox-tailed woman reached over to pat Annalíse’s shoulder sympathetically.

I was touched by Rana’s unexpectedly heartfelt words. The witty fox lived and breathed sarcasm and wisecracks, but her words to Annalíse had not only been gentle and genuine, but wise. Even so, Annalíse remained silent. I couldn’t see the human woman’s face from where I sat, but Rana’s speech didn’t appear to have had any effect since Annalíse offered up no explanation for her strange behavior.

Rana turned in her seat and looked back at me. “Help me out here. I’m getting nowhere with this.” I silently nodded to Rana in agreement. Since she had asked for my assistance, I was happy to oblige. We all knew how stubborn Annalíse was, she wouldn’t give in so easily. I would have to finish what Rana had started.

“Annalíse, I understand that you must have a reason for wanting to keep your troubles to yourself,” I said calmly. “As Rana said, she too had reasons for keeping her secrets. You are an honorable woman by nature, I know this for certain. That is why it’s all the more concerning that you’ve lied to us over and over again. You went to extreme lengths to hide from someone at the second town we visited, and we all noticed that you were avoiding those soldiers from the glacial continents back on the ship. There’s no use in trying to steer away from the subject.”

Annalíse was quiet for a while, and for a moment, I thought that she was still refusing to comment on the matter.

“Back at that town, the people that I was trying to hide from were those same two soldiers from the ship,” Annalíse finally confirmed with a sigh.

“Why?” Morrigan asked as she raised a blonde eyebrow over her almond eyes.

Annalíse hesitated for a moment before she continued. “They’re looking for me. They must have asked around and figured out where I was.”

“Okay, so why are these guys looking for you?” Rana asked suspiciously. “What did you do? For these guys to be hopping from continent to continent trying to find you, it has to be something pretty serious.”

“Did you… kill someone?” Carmedy asked slowly.

“No, no, nothing like that.” Annalíse shook her head.

“What did you do then?” I asked. “Did you break some sort of law?”

“In a manner of speaking, yes,” Annalíse said with bitterness in her voice. “All I’ll say is that I’m running away from something, I’m never going back, and it’s crucial that those soldiers don’t know my whereabouts.”

“Running away from what? And where won’t you go back to?” Rana asked, but Annalíse offered no more explanation. Evidently, she felt that she had revealed enough. Rana turned back to me and gestured to Annalíse in frustration. I shook my head to indicate that we would pursue the topic no further.

After all, I had granted Rana the same kindness to reveal the full nature of her problems over time. Annalíse would tell us the rest of her story in her own time, but she had opened up to us about some of what had been weighing upon her, and for now, this would do.

“Alright then,” Rana said slowly. The fox woman turned in the saddle to look at the rest of us. “I’ll change the subject since the current one is getting us nowhere. I heard that there’s supposed to be a sacred object in one of the dungeons on this continent.”

“Where did you obtain this information?” Morrigan questioned in her usual cool manner.

“I have my sources,” Rana answered with a wry grin. “I have absolute confidence that the information is good, I just don’t know which dungeon is the lucky winner.” The fox frowned.

“Well if it’s here, we’ll find it,” Carmedy said brightly before her voice dropped melodramatically. “For we are the mighty minions, and no dungeon shall go unconquered!”

“Loving the enthusiasm, pussycat,” Rana said with a chuckle. “I hope we’re able to find them all before…” The fox’s voice trailed off as she gazed sadly into the sky.

“We’ll find them,” I said reassuringly, my voice filled with the utmost confidence. “And once we do, we’ll combine them and obtain whatever power is summoned, we’ll put an end to that sorcerer and save your family.” The situation was indeed difficult, but together we would put everything right.

Under normal circumstances, I would have forgone the search for the sacred objects, sought out the sorcerer, and ripped the soul from his worthless body.

Fortunately for him, I had no clue as to his location, and the sorcerer had cast a spell that prevented Rana from finding him until she collected all the sacred objects. Only then would she be summoned to him.

“Thanks.” Rana gave me a soft smile and a nod. “I can’t wait to see that spell-casting freak’s face when we bust in there and use his precious sacred objects against him.”

“He will suffer for what he’s done,” I said darkly.

“Indeed,” Morrigan said with a slightly sinister tone as she petted the top of one of her raven’s heads. “He shall not live long enough to regret his actions. He shall spend his final moments pleading for his worthless life as his soul is stripped from his body.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” Rana said with a wicked grin. “I’d also like to point out that when you say spooky things like that Morrigan, it makes me all the gladder that we’re on the same side.” The fox chuckled.

“I am indeed an invaluable ally.” The white-haired elf nodded. As usual, she had failed to see the amusement in Rana’s remarks.

Rana laughed and shook her head while Carmedy stifled a giggle. I too laughed at the verbal exchange, but then my mind drifted back to the quiet. While we had gotten closer to the truth, the warrior woman had once again become tight-lipped. I wondered if perhaps it would be easier if I talked to the freckled human privately about whatever was troubling her. That had been what happened with Rana. Then again, I wanted Annalíse to tell everyone when we were all together. Our journey in Valasara had only just begun, there would be time to discover Annalíse’s secret.

Chapter 7

Our party continued to travel through the seemingly endless desert. For hours, we saw hill after hill of sand. The air was silent save for the sound of the wind blowing across the sand, and we came across no other travelers. We continued to stay on guard for a possible ambush from behind, and Morrigan sent her ravens out on half a dozen more scouting missions, but they always returned without seeing anything.

The silence and emptiness of the desert was both peaceful and eerie, so we eventually relaxed our guard and assumed that we would be attacked when we entered or exited the dungeon. Despite the void of life, the sand laden wasteland still felt alive somehow and held an air of foreboding. It was as if the desert itself was holding its breath, waiting to catch us unawares and swallow us whole.

Still, like every other place that I had visited since I had been freed from my dungeon, I found beauty in my surroundings. Yes, this place could be described as empty, but I also thought of it as raw nature, untouched and uncorrupted, or even a blank canvas. Yes, the silence was a bit strange since I had grown accustomed to hearing such a lively mixture of sounds, but the quiet is what made this golden sea of sand unique. I doubted that there were many places in the world that had this sort of silence.

We rode on as the sun continued to climb into the sky. As the hours crawled by, one by one the rest of us gave in to the heat and used the cooling powders that Carmedy had given us. Rana’s description had been spot on. The cool sensation did indeed feel like pure bliss, it was a shame that we could each only use one per day. At the same time, we had to count ourselves lucky. How many groups of travelers had someone like Carmedy with them that could craft such a concoction?

“If you look straight ahead across the scorching sand ladies and gentlemen, you will see our destination coming into view.” Rana’s voice shook me from my thoughts. “And a welcome sight it is if I do say so myself. I don’t even care if that dungeon is crawling with demons, it’s gotta be cooler in there than it is out here.” The fox fanned herself with her paw.

I glanced around Carmedy to get a better look, and sure enough, a massive rocky structure rose out of the distant sands.

“We’re almost there,” Carmedy said gleefully. “We made it!”

“Well, of course,” Rana said with a self-satisfied smile. “Was there ever any doubt? I mean you only have the greatest navigator of all-time leading the way.”

“Where would we be without you Rana?” I chuckled.

“Ah, probably lost and lying face down in a pile of sand,” Rana said with a devious grin.

“Do you truly think we would do that poorly?” I raised an eyebrow in amusement.

“Oh yeah, definitely,” the fox continued. “You guys wouldn’t last ten minutes without me. You’d be wandering around out here chasing mirages. You need me.” Rana let out a self-satisfied sigh.

“We certainly do.” I laughed and shook my head at the fox’s boastful words.

As we neared our destination, the details of the dungeon began to become clearer. What lay ahead of us truly was an impressive and enormous stone structure. It was essentially a mountain of rock that jutted out of the sand. A wide path cut through the sand to the dungeon, lined by a row of towering statues on either side. There were ten of them on each side of the path, and all the carvings seemed to be of men. This was certainly the most ornate dungeon that we’d visited thus far, and I was even more curious as to what waited for us inside.

As we made our way down the path, we looked up at the stone figures in awe. The carved figures stood straight and tall were roughly twenty feet in height and had been grossly disfigured by time and the elements. Each had a different physique and facial features, what was left of them anyway, and they all had different manners of dress. A few wore long robes while others were outfitted with armor from times long past.

Some statues were merely missing a hand while others had been robbed of an arm, leg, or had even been decapitated. The facial features of most of the figurines had been worn away, but those that I could make out seemed to wear a gruesome expression. Most likely these were previous monarchs or perhaps even fellow deities.

“This place is creepy,” Carmedy shivered as we rode by, and her ears pressed flat against her head as she looked up at the statues.

“That’s putting it mildly.” Rana wrinkled her nose at the monuments. “It’s like some freaky statue graveyard.” There was indeed something unsettling about this place. I could sense the darkness that loomed over this dungeon. Whatever awaited us inside was surely something sinister.

As we reached the entrance of the dungeon, the five of us dismounted. On either side of the entrance was another statue carved into the dungeon itself, but unlike the others, these were seated and carried weapons. The figure to our right was a man wearing an intricate headpiece and a spear in one hand. The figure to our left was a woman with a similar but smaller headpiece, and in her clutches was a great axe.

“Who are these people?” Carmedy breathed in awe as she stared up at the fearsome carvings.

“They are King Varakesh and Queen Saldarii,” Annalíse answered almost immediately. “They were Valasara’s first rulers.”

“You certainly know your Valasarian history,” I said as I raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, y-yes, I have a knack for those sorts of things, and history is one of my favorite subjects,” Annalíse said awkwardly.

The more I learned about the swordswoman, the more interesting the mystery surrounding her became. Previously she had displayed adept language skills. In fact, she had informed us that she was proficient in thirteen languages, and upon being asked as to how she had come to master so many she had been untruthful. Now I had come to find that she was also quite knowledgeable in the history of another continent. Then a thought struck me. This sort of academic prowess was common to people of means.

I didn’t know anything about Annalíse’s family for she had never spoken of them, but given what I knew now, it seemed logical to assume that the female warrior came from a wealthy family. This would also explain the manner in which she carried herself, and her constant need to maintain a pristine appearance. There was still the matter of the soldiers from the glacial continents Tintagal and Tamarisch. What did they want with her? What could Annalíse have done that they would pursue her so relentlessly and who had sent them?

“This place,” Morrigan mumbled as she walked forward and placed a palm on of the statue’s bases, “this place is sinister. Do you not feel the evil radiating from its very walls?”

“I do.” Rana raised a paw in the air. “Not that I can sense evil magic or anything, but something in there is making my fur stand on end.”

I nodded grimly. “I can sense it too. There is indeed dark magic at work here.” The dark energy I sensed flowed around me and made me feel alive, but this was no time to get carried away. Whatever was inside that dungeon had to be dealt with.

Then I would take its power.

“I’m not so sure about this,” Carmedy said fearfully as she stared into the dark entrance of the dungeon. “I don’t think I want to--”

Suddenly, Carmedy’s eyes widened with terror. The tunnel that we stood in front of had been dark only moments ago, but now a glow from within appeared and seemed to move toward us. As the light drew closer, I realized that there were torches fixed to either side of the tunnel’s walls, and one after another, they were lit by some unseen force.

Once the last two torches closest to the dungeon’s entrance had ignited, Annalíse cautiously stepped forward with her hand on her sword hilt and leaned close to one of the torches to examine it.

“Seems fine to me,” the swordswoman called out. “They’re just torches.”

“Just torches?” Rana said in disbelief. “Didn’t you just see those things light themselves? They aren’t just torches.”

“Be that as it may, we must enter this dungeon,” Morrigan said as she stepped forward. “What if this dungeon houses one of the sacred objects? Do you not wish to claim it?”

“Of course I do!” Rana narrowed her eyes. “All I’m saying is that I wish it didn’t feel like impending doom was radiating from this place.”

“We also have our pursuers to worry about,” Morrigan pointed out, and then the three women looked at me.

“They will either attack us in the dungeon or when we exit with our treasure. Either way, they will not defeat us.” I shrugged casually when I finished speaking, and the relief was plain on their faces.

“Regardless, let us get going,” I said as I made my way into the tunnel. “The sooner we go in, the sooner we can get this over with.” Without another word, I trudged into the lit passageway. There was evil coming from this place, I could taste it, and that made me all the more eager to see what lay inside.

Annalíse silently followed behind me immediately. Carmedy hesitated for a moment, but took a deep breath and followed Annalíse as she nervously wrung her tail in her hands. Rana sighed and shook her head as she too entered the dungeon, followed by Morrigan.

“Well, whatever deity who lives here may be evil, but at least they’re considerate.” The fox nodded to the torches. “That little magic trick creeped me out but at least we can see easily.”

I turned to give the fox a wry grin. “That’s quite a positive attitude to have.”

“Yeah, I know I’m a ray of sunshine,” Rana said with a dry chuckle, but I could see the concern in her eyes. By now I was well aware that the fox often used her dry wit to relieve otherwise frightful situations. She felt fear just as any other mortal being, she just chose to deal with it differently.

As we continued to move through the passageway, the light from the torch flames flickered and sent quivering shadows across the rocky walls. My expression soured as an ungodly stench assaulted my nose. While it offended my avatar’s senses, to my godly self, it almost felt homely, for it was the stench of death. The further we moved, the more intense it became.

“Ugh, what is that?” Carmedy said in a nasal voice, and I glanced back to see the small black cat pinching her nose.

“It smells like something died,” Rana said as she raised her arm to cover her nose.

“That is exactly what you smell,” Morrigan said flatly. “What you smell is the scent of rotting flesh.”

“You know what, that’s exactly what I wanted to hear just about now,” Rana said with a snort. “Not only did we just waltz into the dungeon of doom complete with ghost torches, now there’s a pile of rotting corpses around here somewhere.”

“It is not necessarily a pile of corpses,” Morrigan corrected. “There is, however, a large amount of them given the intensity of the smell, but they may be scattered across the dungeon.”

“Thanks, Morrigan, that makes me feel so much better,” Rana groaned.

“I am glad to have eased your mind,” Morrigan said blankly.

Suddenly Carmedy let out a screech.

“What’s the matter?” I turned to her with concern, and the others crowded around her.

“I-I felt something brush against my foot,” Carmedy shivered as she looked around nervously.

“Are you sure? I don’t see anything,” Annalíse said as she glanced around.

“I know I did.” Carmedy nodded her head quickly. “It felt cold and… ugh what is that thing?” the feline squealed with fright as she pointed a shaky finger at the wall near Morrigan’s head. The rest of us quickly turned to look in the direction that Carmedy pointed.

On the rocky wall was a black scorpion. It fiercely opened and shut its pincers with a loud clack that made Carmedy jump.

“It’s only a scorpion, Carmedy.” Rana waved her paw as the cat backed away from the creature. “Just stay out of its way and it won’t bother you.”

“I wasn’t trying to get in its way, I didn’t even know it was there.” Carmedy cringed as the scorpion skittered along the wall and moved ahead of us. As the creature scurried past us, Carmedy gasped.

“It has a snake’s tail!” The cat’s mouth gaped open. Sure enough, the scorpion did have a snake’s tail, and it slinked and wriggled along the surface of the wall.

“By the gods,” Annalíse breathed. “What sort of creature is this?”

“I’m not sure,” I said slowly. “I’ve never seen such an animal, but I am interested to know if it evolved naturally or was created by magical power.”

“Ok, I’ve already been freaked out three times, and we haven’t even gotten out of the entrance tunnel yet, not a good sign.” Rana shook her head. “This place is all kinds of creepy.”

“While I do sense something sinister, we have to move forward.” I gestured ahead of us. “We must conquer this dungeon, and there is nothing that is going to stop us from doing so. These are mere parlor tricks designed to frighten children. If the deity here was so mighty he would not need to resort to cheap scare tactics. Do not forget that you are my minions, and we have conquered many perils. This will be no different.”

“He’s right,” Annalíse said determinedly. “We’ve come this far on our journey. We’re not going to let anything keep us from conquering this dungeon.”

Carmedy hesitated for a moment and then nodded her head in agreement though fear was still in her eyes. Rana and Morrigan also shook their heads, but they too had concern on their faces. I turned around and once more we began to make our way through the tunnel. The stench of decaying bodies intensified and now and then we’d see another scorpion-snake creature scuttling along the floor or the wall. We continued to forge ahead until I saw that the tunnel branched off into three passageways ahead of us. We stopped for a moment as I studied each of the tunnels, and then I turned to the fox.

“Rana, do you hear anything coming from any of these tunnels?” I asked as I gestured to the three passageways. Rana’s instincts had never failed us before and there were few things that could escape her superior hearing. If there was anything waiting to attack us in any of the tunnels, Rana would undoubtedly be able to detect it.

Rana moved to stand beside me and her ears immediately began to twitch rapidly. Her eyes darted from tunnel to tunnel, each of which was lit with torches just like the one we were currently in. The fox opened her mouth to speak when suddenly a voice suddenly called out.

“Help me, please,” a faint voice whispered.

“Uh, did anyone else hear that?” Rana turned slowly to look at the rest of us. Before anyone could respond, the voice spoke again.

“Please, help me.” The voice was female, and it sounded weak as though the person were unwell. The sound seemed to be coming from the center tunnel. To my surprise, Carmedy moved past me and made her way to the middle tunnel.

“Carmedy, what are you doing?” Rana hissed. “We want to move away from the spooky voice not toward it.”

“But there’s someone in there that needs help,” the cat said as she turned to look back at us. The petite alchemist’s green eyes were no longer filled with fear, but with determination and purpose. “She sounds as though she’s sick or injured, and if that’s the case it’s my responsibility to help. I won’t abandon someone in need.” Without another word, Carmedy hurried into the tunnel. The cat didn’t bother to look back to see if any of us were coming, and she walked quickly with her small fists clenched. She had a mission, and she was going to see it through.

The rest of us exchanged looks of surprise and followed after her. I had never seen the small feline speak in such a manner. She walked forward without hesitation and didn’t seem to notice when a few scorpion-snakes crawled past her.

“I’m all for helping people in need, but can’t we talk about this?” Rana whispered as we followed Carmedy through the glowing tunnel. “This could be a trap or something.”

“Maybe,” Carmedy replied without looking back, “but there’s also a chance that there really is someone in there who needs medical attention. I’m not going to ignore them.”

“But--” Rana started to retort but Carmedy interrupted her.

“You have a code as a thief, right? As someone who practices medicine, I also have a code. I can’t just stand by,” Carmedy said evenly. Her words seemed to get through to Rana and the fox quieted down.

“If there is someone in need, go ahead and do what you can to help,” I said. Though I had no real care to help myself, the cat-girl’s conviction reminded me so much of my Isolda. “But, everyone, be on your guard. We don’t want to be caught unawares.”

“Understood,” Morrigan and Annalíse said in unison and Rana nodded in agreement.

“Look!” Carmedy suddenly exclaimed. Up ahead, a shadowy figure lurched by and out of sight.

“Help me,” the pained female voice whispered.

“Don’t worry, we’re coming,” Carmedy said as she quickened her pace into a jog, and the rest of us hastened to keep up with her. “Just hang on!”

As we continued forward, I couldn’t help but notice that the foul smell of rotting flesh grew stronger still. Within minutes, we were finally out of the tunnel. Before us lay a vast circular cavern and torches were fixed the walls and lined its perimeter. Our group moved ahead with caution and our eyes roamed around the large cave in search of the distressed woman.

“Hello?” Carmedy called out as she gazed around the room. “There she is.” The feline pointed to a small cloaked figure slumped on the ground to the far left wall of the cavern, and she immediately rushed ahead.

“Carmedy, hold on,” I said, but the cat didn’t listen. As she neared the figure on the ground, she paused for a moment and looked around as though something had caught her eye. She suddenly gasped and raised a hand to her mouth.

“There’s more of them,” she yelled to us over her shoulder.

“What do you mean there’s more of them?” Annalíse frowned as the rest of hurried to join Carmedy. “More of what?”

Once we reached the cat’s side, we understood her meaning. Several yards ahead of us were countless figures leaned against the walls and lying on the ground. Each of them was shrouded in a black cloak and didn’t make the slightest movement, a hood draped over their features to hide their faces. “There’s so many of them,” Rana whispered as she cautiously stepped forward. “What are these people doing here?”

“Perhaps they are prisoners of this dungeon’s master,” Morrigan said as she glanced around at some of the figures propped against the walls.

“There’s no time to waste,” Carmedy said as she continued toward the small figure that lay ahead of her on the ground. “Everyone, spread out and check for pulses.”

“You think they’re all dead?” Annalíse’s eyes widened.

“It would explain the smell,” I said as I approached one of the shrouded persons leaned against a wall.

“Exactly,” Carmedy said as she knelt down before the person crumpled on the floor. “I suspect most of them are dead, but there may be some amongst them that are still breathing. If that’s the case, we have to do what we can.” The cat proceeded to speak to the person in hushed tones, and she picked up their arm to feel for signs of life.

I leaned over one of the huddled figures and pulled back the sleeve of their cloak. The person’s arm was a ghostly white, and their fingernails were discolored and had grown so long, they had begun to curl. I pressed my fingers to the underside of the pale wrist to feel for a pulse. I felt no heartbeat, and yet I felt something as soon as I touched the limb. Something stirred within this person.

“No live ones over here,” Rana called out from across the cavern.

“None here either,” Annalíse shouted from where she stood at the back wall.

“I do not sense life in any of the people whom I have examined,” Morrigan said, and she crouched down to inspect one of the bodies. “And Fea and Macha do not seem to detect any soul energy. I believe all of these people have perished. Judging from the deterioration that I have observed their deaths weren’t recent.”

“I don’t understand it,” Carmedy said as she studied the body before her. “I heard a woman call out, we all did. Not only that, we saw someone moving around in here.”

“Maybe whoever it was is hiding,” Rana shrugged. “With this many bodies stacked up, something tragic obviously took place here. Maybe there was some sort of massacre, and this person was the sole survivor. If that’s the case, I don’t blame them for hiding from us. They have no reason to think they can trust us, they’re probably just trying to survive.”

“That still doesn’t make sense though,” Annalíse said with a frown. “If they wanted to hide from us, why did they call out? And also, Morrigan said that the level of decay of the bodies indicates that these people have been dead for quite some time. How could someone have survived in here for so long? And why wouldn’t they have left?”

“Perhaps there’s some sort of magic that has bound them here,” I mused as my eyes roamed around the shrouded figure before me. None of this added up. Something was wrong here, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was. I had felt something stir within the corpse I had touched, something dark and ominous. It was almost as though… the corpse was both dead and alive. The sensation had been sinister and a little familiar. There was no doubt in my mind that there was dark magic at work in this place.

“Hey, guys, um... you might want to take a look at this,” Carmedy called out to the rest of us with fear in her voice. We made our way over to the cat who still knelt on the ground, and the shrouded body was in front of her. As I approached, I noticed that Carmedy had removed the hood that had obscured the person’s face. Morrigan was the first to reach Carmedy, and as she looked down at the lifeless frame, her eyes widened, and she murmured something in her elvish language.

“What is it?” I asked, but no sooner had I spoken the words did I see what had struck fear in Carmedy.

“Holy mother of...” Rana reeled back in disgust, and she covered her mouth as though she felt sick.

Now that the hood had been pulled back, I could see that the person who lay before us was, in fact, a woman, and her face was truly a gruesome sight to behold. The female’s facial features were mismatched and stitched together as though they were patches of a quilt. The two halves of her face were of different skin tones, one olive toned and one fair. Two rows of stitches ran down the center of her forehead down either side of her nose and stopped at her chin. Her nose was burnt from the sun and seemed far too large for her face, I suspected that it had once belonged to a man. The wretched creature had only one ear behind her matted black hair, and it was shriveled and decayed.

“By the gods,” Annalíse breathed. “What manner of evil is this?”

“I’ve never seen anything so despicable,” Carmedy shook her head.

I silently knelt down beside Carmedy and rolled the dead woman’s cloak up to her knees. The corpse’s feet and legs bore countless stitches and were just as mismatched as the woman’s face. One foot was several sizes larger than the other and was missing two toes. The left leg was almost a foot longer than the right one and both limbs looked to be bruised and diseased. Carmedy was right, this ghastly patch job was truly despicable. I felt an unexpected pang of pity for the stitched together female. Any beauty that this woman might have once had was long gone, whomever had done this to her had turned her into a monster. I only hoped that she hadn’t been alive when she had been sewn together.

“Who would do such a thing?” Carmedy said with a horrified expression as she looked down at the patched together woman.

“Some psychotic freak,” Rana said with a look of disgust. “Someone turned her into some sort of creepy rag doll. It’s sick. It’s absolutely--” Rana’s words seemed to catch in her throat when all of a sudden, the dead woman’s eyes flew open.

“She’s alive!” Carmedy screamed and crawled away out of the corpse’s reach.

“That’s impossible,” Annalíse said in almost a whisper and narrowed her eyes at the patched up female. “You checked her yourself, she wasn’t breathing.”

“I know, but look!” Carmedy cried out as she frantically gestured to the body. “How do you explain that?”

“This is undoubtedly the work of a master of necromancy,” Morrigan said darkly.

“What in the…?” Rana’s voice trailed off as her eyes widened with fear. The female corpse’s arms began to flail, and her legs thrashed against the ground as though she were having a fit. Carmedy and I stood to our feet, and we all took a few steps back from the animated body. Without warning, the dead woman abruptly sat upright. She slowly turned her head to look at us and tilted it to one side.

“Please, help me,” she whispered.

Chapter 8

It was the same female voice that we had heard call out to us before, but when she spoke, her lips moved in a stiff, unnatural manner.

“What on earth is going on here?” Rana gaped.

“Look!” Carmedy shouted as she pointed ahead of us, and the rest of us turned to look in the direction of the feline’s trembling finger.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” Rana said in disbelief.

The several dozen other bodies that had been propped up against the rocky sides of the cavern and slumped on the floor were now coming to life. Their limbs jerked and writhed as they sat upright, and one by one, their hoods fell away to reveal faces that were just as hideous as the female corpse’s whom Carmedy had inspected. Each of them bore terrible stitches across their faces and had mismatched features. They slowly turned to look at us, and their soulless eyes rested upon us. Then suddenly the bodies leapt into the air all at once as though they had been yanked upward by some unseen force. With their jaws slack, they hung in the air over our heads with their arms outstretched. The way in which they hovered in the atmosphere reminded me of victims of soul exorcism, but this was an entirely different form of magic.

Carmedy stared up at the floating bodies and wrung her tail nervously while Rana quickly fished her daggers from her pocket. Morrigan glowered at the wretched creatures, and her eyes went wholly black in preparation to summon her dark magic, and Annalíse scowled and drew the sword from her hip as well as Bloodscale from her back. I too prepared myself and withdrew the God Slayer from my void pocket.

Looks like it was time to destroy some undead.

“You think me to be a freak, young fox?” a sinister raspy voice suddenly called out, and it echoed throughout the cavern, and the five of us whirled around in search of the speaker. The voice wasn’t coming from any of the bodies, and by the building power I felt in my gut, I knew it had to belong to the dungeon’s deity.

“Ooh, I don’t like this.” Carmedy shivered, and her ears lay flat against her head as she glanced around fearfully.

“You call my work sick,” the disembodied god wheezed. “You do not understand, no one ever does. Your minds are too simple to comprehend my genius. You should be honored to have the privilege of gazing upon such magnificent creations.”

The bodies began to lower back to the ground, and once their feet touched the cavern floor, they stopped and raised their heads and hands to the air as though they were giving praise. I looked up to see that what the corpses gestured to was a figure shrouded in a similar black cloak that descended from the shadows above us.

The god descended until he was a few feet above the heads of the corpses and floated there. The hood that he wore obscured his face, but from beneath the darkness of his hood, I could see two piercing yellow eyes and a mouth full of jagged teeth that held a sinister glow. In each of his hands were several wooden implements that resembled small crosses. As he quickly moved his hands, the army of bodies lowered their hands and stood to attention.

“They’re- they’re human puppets,” Annalíse said with terror in her voice.

“Indeed, they are,” the god rasped. “These are my prized possessions. No other such collection exists in this world. What you see before you is my life’s work, centuries of craftsmanship before your very eyes.”

“Uh, no what I see before me are some stitched rotting corpses attached to some floating maniac,” Rana said with a look of disgust.

“Bite your tongue, you insolent fox,” the god bellowed, and Rana flinched in response. “You have no idea the skill, the very prowess that it took to create my puppets. They were nothing before I found them. Useless bags of flesh wandering around without purpose. I gave them a purpose. I made them beautiful, I turned them into masterpieces.” The god’s horrible teeth spread into a wicked grin, and his eyes glowed intensely. “You called them sick. That’s because you lack imagination. My puppets are works of art, each one unique and perfectly designed.”

“How did you come by these bodies?” I asked bitterly.

“Did you kill all of these people?” Carmedy said as she summoned up her courage and gestured to the army of human puppets.

“Hmm, some were already dead, and others, well, they weren’t truly living anyway,” the deity said with a hoarse chuckle. “Living or dead, if I see a body part that catches my attention, I take what I need.”

“You mean you chopped up dead bodies to stitch together these, these monsters?” Carmedy said with anger dripping from her voice. “And the others you killed them just to take their body parts?”

“Such ignorance,” the deity hissed. “They’re not monsters, but yes, that is how I came by my… supplies.”

“You can’t do this,” Carmedy said furiously. “It’s vile, it’s despicable it’s--”

“It’s art!” the god shouted, and he raised his hands to manipulate his puppets. The bodies jerked into the air and began to swirl around us. “See how I make them dance? I suppose I can’t expect any of you to understand.” He let out a raspy sigh. “Such is my curse to be a misunderstood artist. But no matter. You may not appreciate my art, but you soon will be part of my collection.” The deity leaned his hooded head back and cackled.

“I will give your lives meaning,” the deity wheezed as his yellow eyes roamed over Morrigan. “You are of high elvish descent are you not? I’ve never had the pleasure of working with elf parts before. Your white hair would look lovely stitched onto one of my puppets as would your pointy ears. Ahh and you’re a mage novice too, you’re a rare one indeed. It’s been long since I’ve come across skin with mage markings. Your body is quite perfect and elegant. Yes… I might just keep you intact as my plaything.”

“How did you know that I am a novice?” Morrigan gasped, and I tried to stifle the surge of anger I felt when the disgusting being talked about making her his plaything.

“And you!” The deity nodded to Rana, ignoring Morrigan’s question. “Fox parts are hard to come by. Your paws will do nicely. My goodness, how many pockets those paws have picked? That sorcerer picked the right fox to do his bidding.”

“How do you…?” Rana began to ask, but the god continued.

“Oh, I do hope your tail is in good condition. The last fox I used had lost his in battle.”

“Lay one finger on my tail, and I’ll claw your eyes out,” Rana snarled, and she placed a paw on her tail protectively.

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t struggle!” The god chortled. “I wouldn’t want such a fine tail to get damaged, but if you insist on being stubborn, I shall have to take it from you,” the deity said as he continued to make his puppets dance around us.

“You won’t be taking anything from anyone,” I said, but a small part of me wanted to hear more from this twisted entity who seemed privy to such vast knowledge. I had no doubt that my power was hundreds of times greater than his, but there were still things to be learned from someone who had focused their magic in such a unique way.

“Is that so?” the god narrowed his yellow eyes at me. “Hmm, there’s something different about you. I can feel the darkness pulsating inside of you. It rages within that husk you call a body,” the deity wheezed. “You’re like me, aren’t you?”

“You compare a kitten to a tiger,” I laughed, and I noticed the shoulders of my minions relax a bit when they heard I was not worried.

“Oh, but you are indeed like me, though not nearly as creative,” the god sang out, and he twitched his fingers so that his puppets moved to circle around me. “You are a fallen god just as I am, and you have minions just as I do, only mine have been made perfect by their creator, and yours are… pathetic.”

The shrouded deity cackled and flashed his gruesome smile, and the human puppets whirled around me in a menacing dance. They bobbed up and down and extended their arms out to me, and I swatted some of their hands away as they reached to touch me. None of the soulless servants attempted to attack me though, they just seemed to be taunting me for their master’s own amusement.

“I have no use for your body, I find it unimpressive,” the deity continued. “I will, however, relieve you of your head. I’m sure you won’t miss it, you’ve only just grown accustomed to having one.”

“Ridiculous.” I twirled the God Slayer in my hands and brought its blade down hard on the ground. A sound like thunder erupted in the air, and the force of my weapon sent the puppets flying as they scattered in every direction. My minions looked on at the corpses that lay lifeless on the cavern floor, and their eyes were open with shock.

“Did he kill them?” Carmedy whispered. No sooner had the feline spoken did the deity’s patched together minions spring to life. They writhed against the floor for a moment and then leapt to their feet all at once.

“Foolish cat,” the god said with a maniacal laugh. “My pretty puppets can’t be slain. Many have tried, and when they did, well, you see what became of them.” A group of the hideous puppets bowed in unison as he referenced his revolting works.

He wiggled his fingers to manipulate the invisible strings that bound his undead followers to him. With his movement, half of the puppets jerked into the air and landed behind us. Both groups began to march toward us, their soulless eyes fixed upon us. The bodies surrounded us and advanced with outstretched arms and heads tilted to one side. They moaned and snarled and gnashed their decayed jaws as they gazed at us with eyes devoid of life.

“I suggest you surrender.” The deity snickered. “You’ll only prolong the inevitable if you choose to fight. One way or another, you will all become part of my collection.”

The five of us formed a tight group and stood back to back to cover each of our angles.

“Now what?” Rana hissed as she tightened her grip on her daggers.

“We fight,” Annalíse said darkly as the puppets dragged toward us. I glanced at her and saw the flicker of savagery that always came to her eyes when she was faced with a challenge.

“There’s like fifty of them,” Rana grumbled. “I’m not liking our odds.”

“That just makes it more fun,” Annalíse said with a twisted grin.

Chapter 9

Without hesitation, Annalíse let out a battle cry, charged into the mob of puppets with her swords in each hand, and slashed at the disfigured creatures relentlessly. As two puppets attempted to grab her, the swordswoman sliced through their arms, and the limbs dropped to the ground. No blood spilled when the parts were severed, and the walking corpses merely snarled and continued toward her. The now limbless foes opened their decayed jaws wide while a few others slunk along the ground and grasped at her ankles in an attempt to pull her to the ground.

The first of the armless puppet to try to bite down on Annalíse’s shoulder collected a kick to its stomach. It went flying backward as my minion tore Bloodscale’s blade through the other’s neck. The female warrior grunted as she continued to tear through one corpse after another, and wicked smile spread across her face as she dismembered three more puppets and beheaded another. She seemed to be enjoying herself.

“Classic Annalíse,” Rana rolled her eyes as she jogged to join the fray. “She’s always gotta be in the middle of the fight.”

“Rana, look out!” Carmedy cried in warning as the fox ran toward the throng of snarling, gaping, undead creatures. Rana looked over her shoulder to see two puppets raise into the air and fling themselves at her. The fox narrowed her eyes and stood her ground. Just as the twisted puppets were about to jump on her, the fox ducked down, rolled out of the way, and came back to her feet in one smooth motion. The puppets crashed into each other and flopped to the ground.

“You’re a spry one, aren’t you?” the god wheezed in amusement. “I admire your spirit, but no more games. Now be a good little fox and stay still so I can take that lovely tail of yours.” He wriggled his fingers and swayed his hands, and within seconds, the puppets who had attacked Rana were back on their feet. Then they snarled and lurched toward her as they gnashed their teeth.

With alarming speed, Rana sent a series of well-executed punches into one of the puppet’s chest and head. She grabbed hold of its arm, twisted it around behind its back and severed its neck with her elven dagger. As the head thudded to the ground, and the corpse crumpled in a heap, the fox crouched down to the floor and swept her leg across the ankles of her other attacker which sent him crashing down. No sooner had the puppet collided with the floor, the fox-tailed woman pounced on top of him and stuck her dagger in between his lifeless eyes.

“You know, I hate to do this to you guys,” Rana stood to her feet as she spoke to the now-motionless corpse. “You’ve already been carved up like a roasted chicken, but no one’s putting their hands on this tail.” The fox smirked and swished her tail in the air as though to emphasize her point and then joined Annalíse in the mob of undead underlings.

Just then, something grabbed me from behind. One of the human puppets had leapt onto my back and wrapped her mismatched arms around my neck in an attempt to strangle me.

I casually grabbed hold of the woman’s wrists with one mighty hand and tore the corpse’s limbs away like I was pulling apart an over ripe fig. As the wretched creature fell to the floor, her arms were left in my hands. I tossed them away and walked past her to confront the dungeon’s deity directly. As I strode by, the armless female bared her teeth at me, hissed at me, and attempted to crawl toward me using only her legs. I ignored her and pointed the God Slayer threateningly at the puppet master god who hovered in the air above me.

“This ends now.” I spun my weapon in my hands and channeled my dark energy into it. The halberd began to glow with a sinister red light as my power fused with it. A humming sound ripped through the air as I spun faster and faster and gathered power. A disc of crimson light formed around the circumference of my spinning God Slayer, and the dark energy pulsated within it and myself as my palms tingled from the sensation of the fusion of our power.

This insufferable god would know my wrath. My weapon forged from dark magic would extinguish his soul, and his ashes would be spilled throughout the very dungeon that he called home.

With a fierce cry, I released the power, and the scarlet colored disc rocketed toward the floating puppet master. His yellow eyes shone beneath his dark hood as his lips formed a self-satisfied smirk. Just as my deadly disc of energy was about to split the puppet master in twain, he yanked suddenly on his strings, and a group of his puppets were pulled into the air to form a wall in front of their master. The corpses lined up side by side, linked arms, and formed row after row one until a barrier of ten corpses long and five deep stood between me and the puppet master.

My spinning disc struck the human wall, tore the puppets into pieces, and sent their body parts flying through the air. The energy of the attack was diffused, absorbed by the five-body deep wall, but a crackling edge of the disc managed to get beneath the deity’s hood and cut into where I presumed his cheek was. He yelped from the sudden impact, but then his eyes shifted back to the same look of defiance and complacency that they’d held before, and he shot me an evil grin.

He thought my attack hadn’t done nearly as much damage as intended.

He was wrong. That had only been the smallest fraction of my power, and I had thrown out the magical attack to see how he had responded. I wanted to learn how he used his powers, so that when I took them, I wouldn’t have to start from an uneducated level of learning.

Still, I didn’t need to let the idiot know what my plans were, so I scowled up at the shrouded god as Carmedy breathed from beside me, “They protected him. He treated them as nothing more than meat shields, and they protected him.” As she spoke, she hurled one of her pouches at a puppet that clawed at her, and upon impact, the stitched monstrosity was immediately engulfed in orange flames.

“Of course they did!” The deity burst into raspy uncontrollable giggles. “I am their master, they do as I tell them. Now, do you see? Resistance is futile, I cannot be beaten!”

“Don’t speak as though these people have submitted to you,” I snarled. “These wretched creatures have no will of their own. They have no minds, no souls. You control their bodies and force them to do your bidding. You were a god once, did no one follow you willingly and offer their reverence? Is this why you must create these puppets? Because no one would acknowledge you or worship you otherwise? You disgust me, true deities didn’t have to resort to such vile tricks to obtain followers. They achieve that by a combination of fear and respect.”

The deity’s eyes narrowed, and he bared his jagged teeth at me. “You know nothing!” the god bellowed.

“How are we supposed to beat him if the puppets protect him?” Carmedy asked fearfully as she threw another explosive bundle at one of our nearby undead enemies.

“Uh, guys, that’s not the only problem that we have,” Rana called out in a very concerned tone.

Carmedy and I turned to see Rana and Annalíse standing before piles of slain puppets while fending off the still-animated ones in an effort to keep them off Morrigan, who seemed to be standing with her hands at her side. Heads, limbs, and other appendages were strewn across the cavern floor. At first, I didn’t see the trouble that Rana had spoken of, it looked as though they had managed to defeat most of the undead beings.

Then I saw it. A few severed arms begin to twitch back to life, then one by one, the other dismembered limbs began to tremor and gather together. The fingers of the torn arms wriggled and dug their misshapen nails into the ground to drag themselves across the floor. Legs rocked themselves so that they stood upright and slowly hopped to join the other appendages. Puppets that had been severed below the torso crawled along the ground and screeched savagely. Two legs rolled toward one of the torsos and attached themselves to form a complete body.

“They’re stitching themselves back together,” Carmedy whispered, and her green eyes bulged at the sight, but the puppets didn’t stop at reassembling themselves. As the pieced-together body stood to its feet, two more arms dragged themselves toward it. The limbs crawled up the puppet’s body and fixed themselves beneath the arms that were already there. My expression grew dark as I realized what was happening.

The puppets weren’t just piecing themselves back together, they were merging together to form larger and more fearsome creatures. Carmedy gasped as a severed head rolled past her and knocked against the feet of another puppet that had already put itself back together. The undead creature bent down to pick up the head and pressed it onto the monstrosity’s shoulder beside its other head. Both sets of eyes blinked in unison and let out a blood-curdling shriek.

“Isn’t it magnificent?” the puppet master god cried out. “No other god can perform the miracles that I can. I warned you that your efforts would prove useless. Your incessant struggling only fuels the endless cycle of art, the back and forth between creation and destruction. I created something beautiful, and you destroyed it, only for my masterpieces to be transformed into something even more breathtaking.” As the deity wheezed, his puppets continued to piece themselves into even more horrifying beasts.

“We can’t keep doing this,” Rana yelled as she sliced off the head of another puppet that lunged at her. “If we keep fighting them this way, they’re only going to keep doing, well, whatever that is.” The fox gestured to a human puppet that had just stuck two extra arms into its shoulder and side.

“If we do nothing, they’ll overtake us,” Annalíse shouted as she brought her sword down on the head of one of the soulless monsters. “Morrigan, why are you just standing there? Do something!” The swordswoman frantically gestured for the tattooed woman to join the battle before she sliced through the torso of another puppet.

The pale elf still stood unmoving to one side while the rest of us had dealt with the relentless puppets. “There is nothing I can do.” Morrigan shook her head with a look of shame. “I cannot perform soul exorcism on these creatures as they are not living, and the Death Fog spell that Master taught me only works on living beings. I am not useful to you in this battle.”

“But you can be useful, Morrigan,” I called out to the white-haired woman as I used my halberd to cut down a puppet that flung itself at me. “Attacking them with mere weapons isn’t going to suffice. You must use death projection to disintegrate the bodies.”

“I cannot!” Morrigan shook her head again. “I have never used this technique in battle. There is too much chaos, too many enemies. I cannot risk harming one of you.”

“While we appreciate the sentiment, I don’t think we have much choice right now,” Rana said as she kicked away a lone arm that clutched at her ankle.

“I have an idea,” Annalíse said with a raspy grunt as she skewered a puppet’s head with Bloodscale. “Master, Rana, and I can cut them down and toss them out of the way, so that you can follow behind to finish them off, Morrigan. We can all work together to get rid of these puppets, and you won’t have to worry about putting us in harm’s way.” The female warrior side stepped a corpse who clawed at her face and ran her sword across its stitched together jugular.

“That’s an excellent plan.” I nodded to Annalíse.

“I am not sure that I--” Morrigan started to say.

“You’ll be fine,” I interrupted. “As Annalíse said, they’ll toss the puppets out the way. The rest of us will be out of your range. As long as you focus, there shouldn’t be a problem. We’ve practiced this countless times, you can do this.”

Morrigan hesitated for a moment and then nodded. “I shall not fail you, Master” the elf said with renewed confidence. Her eyes became consumed with blackness, and Fea and Macha cawed as though to offer their support.

“I can help too!” Carmedy said as she tossed one of her bundles into the throng of undead minions. The small pouch erupted into a cloud of yellow smoke that temporarily served to blind those that were trapped inside. The puppets moaned and rubbed at their eyes as they stumbled over one another.

“What have you got up your sleeve this time, Carmedy?” Annalíse said to the feline with a wry grin.

“You’ll just wait and see,” the cat said with a wink, and she knelt on the ground and proceeded to remove some of the bundles around her waist. “Keep them occupied while I cook up something extra special. He wants a masterpiece, I’ll show him a masterpiece!”

“You got it, pussycat,” Rana said as she, Annalíse, and I moved to shield the Carmedy from the ruthless patchwork beasts. The small alchemist got to work and began to mumble to herself as she always did while she brewed up one of her concoctions. Each time my fighters and I cut down one of our soulless adversaries, we hurled the bodies and parts to the side so that Morrigan could dispose of them. As soon as the puppets were tossed in Morrigan’s direction, the pale elf would raise her hand to the air and tighten her grip. The bodies would instantly begin to defragment and turn into ash that scattered into the air as she summoned the terrible power of death projection that I had taught her.

“Now what do you think of your little works of art? Your little cycle is falling apart.” Rana sneered at the deity as Morrigan turned one puppet after another into nothing more than grey dust.

“How dare you?” The god scowled, and his piercing yellow eyes filled with rage. “You will suffer for your impudence!” He waved his hands back and forth and guided his puppets with his wooden bars. By his command, a group of puppets flew toward Morrigan with alarming speed, but the elf showed no fear, only fury as she narrowed her wholly black eyes. The tattooed woman raised her hand to the corpses that sped toward her, and she clenched her fist. The puppets immediately exploded into a cloud of ash and rained down onto the cavern floor.

“Savor your pathetic life while you still can, for soon your worthless soul and your power shall be stripped from your body.” The pale elf glowered at the puppet master deity, but the sides of her mouth curved up into a slight grin.

She hadn’t believe she could kill the puppet corpses, but now she knew that she could. My minion was becoming more powerful.

The deity growled in frustration but said nothing as he continued to attack us with his so-called masterpieces.

“You know, I’m starting to love when she says stuff like that,” Rana said with a dry laugh as she tossed one of the two-headed stitched monsters to the elf.

“She almost never gets mad--” Annalíse huffed as she cut through a puppet-corpse’s torso and kicked away its lower half, “--but when she does, it’s great!”

“Done!” Carmedy suddenly shouted. The feline rose to her feet, and in her hands, she held several bulging bundles. From the way that they jiggled, I could tell that they were filled with some sort of liquid.

“Here, each of you take one,” the feline said as she handed the pouches to Rana, Annalíse, and me. “Everyone stand together. When I give the signal, throw these above the puppets’ heads, but don’t throw them until I tell you. And Morrigan, when we toss these little beauties, you do your death thingy, okay?” The cat gestured for Morrigan to join us as we began to take our places as per Carmedy’s instructions.

The elf nodded hurried over to us, and the five of us stood in a tight group with our backs to each other to leave no blind spots. The god maneuvered his invisible strings that bound his soulless slaves to him, and the puppets proceeded to surround us.

“You fools,” the deity cackled. “You allow yourselves to be trapped and you still resist me.” The puppets marched toward us and snarled and clawed at the air as they approached and tightened their circle around us.

“Carmedy, are you sure about this?” Annalíse said with a doubtful glance toward the feline. “What exactly did you put in these?”

“Just trust me,” Carmedy said confidently as the undead creatures drew closer. “Wait until I say so.”

“What courage,” the god said mockingly. “You truly think that you can stop me, little cat, how precious. There is nothing you can do, you only prolong your suffering.” The yellow-eyed puppet master chuckled menacingly.

The puppets drew closer and closer to us.

“Carmedy?” Rana asked nervously.

“Not yet,” Carmedy said.

“My goodness, what lovely eyes,” the yellow-eyed deity crooned to Carmedy in his revolting gravely tone. “Such a striking shade of green. I know exactly what to do with those. And those pretty little fuzzy ears, oh what works of genius I’ll create with those.”

The puppets were nearly upon us, if we didn’t act soon, we would miss our chance.

“Now!” Carmedy yelled. We immediately hurled our pouches into the air above the mob of monsters that surrounded us. As our bundles sailed overhead, they burst, and a green gooey substance rained down onto the heads of the puppets. The horrid beasts shrieked as their dreadful bodies were coated in the thick liquid. Steam rose from their bodies as the substance ate into their skin. Their flesh was quickly dissolved to expose cartilage, and then cartilage disappeared to reveal bone. The deity gaped as his terrible creations melted before his very eyes.

The deadly green liquid didn’t stop there. Whatever it touched, it destroyed, and it continued to tear through some of the bones that it had splattered upon until they disappeared altogether.

“No!” the puppet master god roared as his soulless deceased clawed at the air desperately before they dissolved into piles of sinewy goop. The smell of putrid corpses that already hung in the air was joined by the smell of burning flesh.

“What is that stuff? And what in the world did you put in it?” Rana asked Carmedy with a raised eyebrow.

“Just a little acid I came up with,” Carmedy beamed. “I used sulfuric acid, hydrofluoric acid, sodium--”

“Ah, maybe we can discuss the inner workings of your acid later, Carmedy,” I said to the feline. “Do you have any more of this substance?”

“Of course, I made extra.” The cat nodded her head, and she untied more of the bundles from around her waist.

“Good. The rest of you take care of the remaining puppets,” I instructed them. “I’ll handle the puppet master.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Carmedy said with a grin. The alchemist proceeded to hand Annalíse and Rana more of the acid-filled pouches, and along with Morrigan, they readied themselves for their next attack. Between Carmedy’s toxic mixture and Morrigan’s necromantic skills, I knew that my minions would be able to deal with the undead creatures without issue now, and the best part was that they had figured out how to overcome the challenge by themselves.

I was very proud of them.

But now it was time for me to fulfill my duty as their master and god, so I focused my attention on the shrouded deity that floated above me. His yellow eyes shone with rage, and his gruesome jaws formed a scowl as he moved his hands this way and that to maneuver what puppets he had left.

“My beloved creations,” he cried out. “You’ve destroyed them, you insolent wretches!”

“That is the least of the things you need to worry about,” I said as I rose to my full height. With a single pull, I threw off my cloak to reveal my majestic dark armor. Then I snapped my finger, and my demonic helmet materialized over my face. My rival’s eyes opened wide with surprise when he saw another small demonstration of my dark power, but soon he would be screaming.

I stretched my arm out in front of me with my palm facing upward. Carmedy’s acid had given me an idea about how I could put this vile deity down. While I could have used death projection as Morrigan had, or I could have used a simple hellfire blast, or a cone of ice-barren cold, or hundreds of other powerful attacks I could conjure with a small release of my power, I decided that the puppet master should suffer a similar fate to his stitched-up minions. I slowly raised my hand, and as I did so, I summoned the powers that I had taken from the lava deity. Two great columns of lava geysered upward to either side of me, and the scorching pillars of fluid rose till they were nearly ten feet tall. Beads of lava occasionally escaped and plummeted to the cavern floor scorching it in the process.

The god’s eyes widened as the fiery orange liquid bubbled and oscillated, threatening him with its pitiless scathing rage. I curled my fingers upward, and the two columns immediately bent and rushed toward the god. They curved and twirled around each other as they sped toward him with unimaginable speed. The puppet master quickly yanked one of his hands, and just as before, the last of his followers leapt into the air and formed a shield in front of him. This time, they would not help him. Just like Carmedy’s acid, the lava relentlessly devoured their flesh and rendered them nothing more than human mush.

The puppet master cried out as his so-called masterpieces dissolved and his yellow eyes shone with fear. The terror in his eyes made the darkness within me stir. I lived for these moments when my victims realized that their time in this world was fleeting and that their lives would soon be snuffed out by my hand.

They believed themselves immortal. They were not.

I raised my hands to the air on either side of me and once again summoned forth the molten lava. As I lifted my hands, a wall of the flaming liquid rose from the ground and towered above me. I quickly clenched my fingers, and the wall separated into two halves and flew toward the god. Just as before, the deity tugged at his wooden implements and attempted to form a barrier between us. This time, however, the shield only consisted of a handful of the human puppets. Carmedy, Rana, Annalíse, and Morrigan were tearing through the undead army, and the deity was running out of puppets. The two sheets of lava sped toward either side of the floating god and began to curve inward. Then the puppet master frantically looked back and forth between the two deadly waves. He knew he was trapped.

He attempted to float away to escape, but it was too late. His fate had been sealed. The two waves of lava stretched around both he and his puppets and surrounded them to form a solid sphere of the sinister molten rock. The deity shrieked as drops of the lava dripped onto his body, and as the glowing orb began to close and swallow him up, the god bellowed in both rage and terror. There was nowhere for him to turn. The sphere completed its formation, and I could no longer see the god or his puppets.

A smile came to my lips as I closed my grip, and the sphere began to shrink. I could still hear the deity’s terrible raspy screams as the lava consumed him. He begged and pleaded for his life, but his cries did little more than increase the size of my smile. I could feel the life drain from his body, and it made my skin tingle with pleasure. Before long, the god’s wails were quieted, and I felt his presence no more. I turned to see that my minions had dealt with the last of the puppets and around them were countless piles of bones, melted flesh, and ash.

“Well this has been an eventful day,” Rana huffed as she ran a paw through her messy curls. “When I woke up this morning, I didn’t expect that I’d be spending my afternoon throwing sacks of acid at human meat puppets. Then again, who am I kidding? It’s just another day in the lives of the dungeon conquerors.”

“That it is,” I said with a dark chuckle. “You all handled this quite well, I am proud of you.”

“Yeah, we are pretty amazing, aren’t we?” Rana said with a grin. “Carmedy’s death goop, Morrigan’s magic, not to mention Annalíse’s and my own superior combat skills, those puppets didn’t stand a chance.” Rana folded her arms across her chest and shook her head condescendingly at a pile of puppet glop near her feet.

“That’s for sure.” Annalíse smiled with satisfaction as she sheathed her swords.

“I too am pleased with our battle prowess,” Morrigan nodded. “We displayed great adeptness.”

“You did indeed, I’m proud of you all,” I repeated to my minions.

“Carmedy, what’s the matter?” Rana asked the feline alchemist. Carmedy didn’t seem so thrilled now that the battle had ended, her expression one of sadness.

“I just… I feel bad for all those poor people.” The cat gestured to the piles of puppet goo that littered the cavern floor.

“We had to dispose of them, Carmedy,” Annalíse said. “They would have killed us otherwise.”

“That’s not why I feel bad.” Carmedy shook her head. “It’s because of what that god did to them. He disturbed the dead and robbed them of their limbs and killed people to make his… art. There were so many of them, who knows how long he’s been doing this? It’s so... evil. To rip apart bodies for his own gain, it goes against everything that I believe in.”

“I understand your feelings,” I said gently, “but take comfort in the fact that we’ve put an end to him. He won’t be making any more puppets. Think of all the people whose lives have been spared and whose loved ones can rest in peace.” I patted the feline’s shoulder to comfort her.

Carmedy was silent for a moment. She seemed to be mulling this over in her head. “You’re right,” the cat finally said with a soft smile. “No one else will be hurt now. Thank you, Master.”

“There, see? All’s well that ends well.” Rana playfully tugged at Carmedy’s fuzzy ears and licked her lips. “Now, let’s see what golden goodies this dungeon got stored away.”

Chapter 10

As we emerged from the dungeon, the smells of death and burning flesh began to drift away as the hot winds welcomed us back to the desert sands. Morrigan, Carmedy, Annalíse and I ventured outside while Rana had decided to stay inside with my shadow slaves to seek out the dungeon’s treasure.

“Whoo-wee, look what we found!” Rana called out to us from the passageway. The fox emerged from the dungeon’s entrance with a large wooden chest in her arms, and six more treasure chests floated behind her carried by my invisible underlings.

“Gee, that’s a lot!” Carmedy’s eyes bulged as the containers were stacked into the backs of the sand sleds.

“It sure is,” Rana said with a wide grin as she set down her load. “It’s our biggest haul yet. There’s just gotta be a sacred object in one of these babies, I can feel it.” The fox rubbed her paws together excitedly. The five of us moved to each sand sleds, and together, we began to look through the treasure.

“Ooh, this is pretty,” Carmedy said as she fished a crown from one of the chests. The headpiece was crafted from pure gold and small rubies and diamonds circled around it. The cat placed the crown on her head, but it was too big for her so it slid down over her eyes.

“Uh, Carmedy, that’s not exactly the traditional way to wear a crown,” Rana quipped as she sifted through the items of another box.

“Aw, it’s too big for me,” the feline said as she took off the crown. Then she glanced over at Annalíse, and a smile came to her lips. “Hey Annalíse, I think this might fit you.” Carmedy held the crown out to the swordswoman.

“No thanks,” Annalíse said with a frown. “I don’t really like gaudy pieces like that.”

“But it’ll look great on you,” Carmedy said in a sing-song voice.

“I don’t want--” Annalíse started to say, but Carmedy was already placing the crown on the freckled woman’s braided head.

“There now, perfect fit,” the small cat said as she smiled with happiness. Carmedy moved back a bit to get a full view of Annalíse, and she nodded with satisfaction. “It suits you, and the jewels complement your complexion and your hair so well.” Annalíse shifted uncomfortably and snatched the crown from her head only seconds after Carmedy had placed it there, and she tossed back into the treasure chest.

“What’s your problem?” Rana raised an eyebrow at the swordswoman. “It’s just a crown.”

“I told you, I don’t like gaudy things,” the female warrior grumbled.

“Okay,” Rana said slowly, and she and Carmedy exchanged dubious glances. We all knew that Annalíse didn’t care much for extravagance. While her appearance was always pristine, the manner in which she dressed indicated that she preferred function over frills.

“I have found something of interest,” Morrigan suddenly said, and we turned to see what the elf had discovered. What the elf held in her hand was a small slingshot. Both the handle, and the prongs that curved upwards were crafted from gold. Attached to each of the ends was a thick band of green silk with gold markings embroidered onto the fabric.

“A gold slingshot?” Annalíse said with a dry chuckle. “Why would someone make such a thing? First off, gold is a horrible metal for weapons, it’s far too soft. Second, slingshots aren’t exactly the most fearsome weapons known to man. A sword or spear of some sort would have been a far more impressive creation.”

“Some king probably had it made for his spoiled brats,” Rana said with a wry grin. “You know how those rich types are, they always have useless stuff like that made for them.”

“Yes,” Annalíse murmured as she frowned at the fox for a moment before she turned her attention back to the slingshot.

“This is no mere child’s plaything,” Morrigan said flatly as she held the device up to the light. The weapon’s golden surfaces gleamed with radiance as the sun’s rays bounced off them.

“What is it then?” I asked the pale elf.

“It is an enchanted weapon,” the white-haired woman said with her usual lack of enthusiasm.

“How do you know this?” I said as my eyes roamed over the small item. It took me but a moment to shift the perspective of my vision, but then I could see the magical energy coursing through the material. My lover had been correct, but most mortals were unable to see the magical energies like I could.

“Because, like Rana’s daggers, this too was crafted by the high elves,” Morrigan said with a note of pride in her voice. “Centuries ago, this slingshot was stolen from the realm of the high elves during the third great war between ourselves and the lower elves of Alavesh. While we were able to defend our home, many of our foes escaped, and with them, they took some of our most prized weapons. This slingshot is one of them. It was highly coveted because of its magical properties. It is said that whoever uses it will never miss their mark and that the user can communicate with the weapon, in a manner of speaking.”

“To have come upon this, it is surely fated,” Morrigan said softly as she turned the slingshot over in her tattooed hand.

“It’s remarkable,” I agreed as I felt the elven magic flowing off the golden weapon. “I think you should be the one to keep it, Morrigan, as it seems to mean a great deal to you.”

The pale elf shook her head. “While it brings me great pleasure to have recovered something so precious from my homeland, I have no use for such a weapon. I believe Carmedy should carry it.”

With that, she presented the weapon to the small cat. The alchemist looked at her with surprise and hesitated to pick up the golden implement.

“Are you sure?” Carmedy asked. “I don’t really know how to use one of these things, and Master is right, it seems only right that you should keep it.”

“You have greater need for it than I,” Morrigan said as she placed the slingshot in Carmedy’s hands. “You are the only member of our party who does not carry a weapon. Not only that, it is best suited for your style of combat. While the substances you concoct are potent, your range is limited by how far you can throw them. This slingshot will allow you to further your range of attack. Your aim shall always be true, and this weapon shall never fail you.”

“Thank you, Morrigan,” Carmedy said brightly, and she threw her arms around the pale elf to embrace her. “I’ll use it proudly.”

“Y-yes, see that you do,” Morrigan said uncomfortably as she removed Carmedy’s arms from around her. Unlike Carmedy, the dark-eyed elf wasn’t used to public displays of affection.

I chuckled and shook my head as the cat-girl gleefully turned her new weapon over in her hands. “Any sign of the sacred objects?” I asked as I turned to Rana.

“Not from what I can see,” the fox said with a glum expression. “I was so sure that there would be one here.”

“Don’t give up hope,” I said reassuringly. “We haven’t made it to all the dungeons on this continent yet. We have one more to conquer here so there’s still a chance we’ll find something.”

“I hope so,” Rana said as she looked across the sands wistfully. “I’d hate to have come here and have nothing to show for it except gold and jewels.”

“We’ll find something at the next one.” Carmedy gently placed a hand on Rana’s shoulder. “I can feel it in my tail, and my tail never lies,” the cat said with a wriggle of her furry black tail.

“Well I can’t argue with that,” Rana conceded with a hint of a smile, and we all began to place the loot back in the chests.

“We’d better get a move on,” Annalíse said as she placed a hand over her eyes and looked toward the sun. “The sun’s going to set before long. It’s going to be awhile before we make it to the next city, but let’s try to get in a little more travel time before it gets dark.”

“Alright then, a few more hours ought to put us at a good stopping place, then we won’t have too far to go tomorrow,” Rana said with a quick glance across the terrain. The rest of us voiced our agreement. We quickly finished replacing the treasure and were soon on our way to ride through the vast desert. While the temperature had lowered in intensity since we had first set out, the heat was still quite uncomfortable, and Rana made a point of telling us so.

“Carmedy, are you sure you can’t give me any more of the pink cooling powder?” the fox whined as she swayed in her saddle atop Anu’s back. “I’m melting, and I think my fur is sweating.”

“Fur doesn’t sweat, silly.” Carmedy giggled and waved her hand. “And remember, I said I only had enough for us to each have one per day. You already used yours. You’ll just have to wait until tomorrow.”

“But I might not last until tomorrow,” Rana moaned and threw her head back dramatically. “Can’t I use my powder for tomorrow right now?”

“We have to use Carmedy’s cooling powder wisely,” Annalíse said over her shoulder. “If you use it now, you’ll be complaining tomorrow even more because you won’t have one at all.”

“Well, if one of you could find it in your hearts to--” Rana started to say slowly.

“Oh, no, you don’t,” Annalíse shook her head. “You already tried to bribe Morrigan and me for our powders when the effects of yours wore off earlier today.”

“You tried to bribe them?” I raised an eyebrow in amusement.

“It wasn’t a bribe.” Rana turned to me and rolled her eyes. “It was just… an arrangement that I proposed.”

“What sort of arrangement?” I said with a laugh.

“Well… I, uh...” the fox scratched at her head awkwardly.

“She proposed an exchange,” Morrigan said blankly. “In exchange for our powders, she offered to steal any object of our choosing in the city that we are currently traveling to.”

“Rana,” I chuckled as I shook my head, “has it really come to that?”

“I was desperate.” The fox huffed, and she crossed her arms over her chest. “You guys don’t get it, I have fur on my feet and a bushy tail. The heat that I’m feeling is like one hundred times the heat that you’re feeling.”

“We won’t be traveling for much longer today,” Annalíse said as we continued across the dunes of golden sand. “The heat will go away as the sun sets. When night time comes, you’ll be whining that it’s too cold.”

“No, I won’t,” Rana replied. “I’m well equipped to deal with low temperatures.” The fox gestured to her sleek body. “I welcome the cold with open arms.”

“I’ll keep that in mind when our travels take us to a snowy mountain dungeon, and you complain about the cold,” Annalíse chuckled, but Rana just stuck her tongue out at the warrior woman.

“Remember, we suspect we are being followed,” I said, and the women turned to me. The looks on their faces convinced me that they had forgotten, but I chose not to remind them that they dropped their guard. Instead, I nodded to Morrigan, and both of her ravens took to the air so that they could scout around us.

Then we continued our journey.

We traveled through the seemingly endless desert for a few more hours, and my mind began to wander as time dragged by, which in truth helped to keep my mind off the heat. I smiled to myself as I recalled the puppet master’s final moments. His terrified screams still rang in my head, and my mouth watered at the recollection. I savored the pleas of my victim.

Just as the malevolent deity had his collection of human puppets, I too had a collection of sorts. I remembered with extreme detail the shrieks and looks of horror of every person whom I killed in my lifetime. The memories were forever stored within me, and when I played them back in my head, it brought me such bliss. Not only did I have this array of memories in my head, but I also had a steadily growing collection of deity powers in my grasp.

And they were quite interesting.

Once I had extinguished the puppet master god, I had acquired his unusual skill to see into people’s souls. Now that his power had melded with my own and pulsed through my veins, I understood it better. The monstrous god hadn’t been able to read our thoughts per se. He had been able to see into our very beings and see the events of our pasts. As I had absorbed his power into my body, pictures had flashed across my mind that were unfamiliar to me. It had taken me only moments to realize that these were the puppet god’s memories. A bizarre ability to have, but I was quite certain that in time it would prove to be useful.

As we continued on our way, my thoughts wandered to Annalíse. I momentarily contemplated using my newfound abilities to extract the truth from her. I could easily do so without her knowledge, but I ultimately decided against it. While I was indeed a dark and all-powerful being, and she my minion, for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to see into Annalíse’s mind without her consent.

Perhaps it was because I had grown to respect her, or perhaps it was because when I thought about it, I wouldn’t have been pleased if someone scoured through my memories. No, I wanted Annalíse to tell us her secrets of her own free will. I would not use my abilities against my minions unless they truly forced my hand.

Before long, the sun started to descend, and we stopped to make camp. Rana and Annalíse had purchased a large tent in the port town, and we set to work pitching it. It took some time to figure out how to put together the tent, but after a few tries, the work was done. The tent was made of a sturdy red cloth material, and it stretched across its wooden frames to form a dome shape. As we moved our supplies and the lizards inside, I noticed that the center of the tent’s ceiling had a small circle cut out. I gathered that the hole was there so that the smoke from the fire we lit would be vented outside.

I settled down on the ground and leaned my back against my lizard Basilisk to rest. In the center of the tent, Carmedy got to work lighting our fire while Annalíse began to prepare our meal. Morrigan sat off to one side and knelt in front of her white lizard Tiberius. She gently patted the reptile’s nose as she alternated between speaking to it and Fea and Macha. I glanced over at Rana who stood near the open tent flap. The fox folded her arms as she stared outside, and her tail twitched back and forth in the air. Something was troubling her.

“Anything?” I called out to the fox. My voice got the attention of the others, and they too turned to look at the curly-haired woman.

“I still feel like we are being followed,” Rana said without looking back at us.

“Morrigan’s ravens didn’t see anything when they did their last patrol.” Annalíse shrugged.

“Well I’m getting that same feeling again, but just like last time, there’s no one around here but us.” The fox-tailed woman furrowed her brow as her eyes scanned the hills of sand. “The whole time we’ve been traveling, I’ve kept an eye and ear out for anything suspicious. There isn’t anyone around, but I still have this weird feeling. It just doesn’t make sense.”

“Maybe you’re psychic,” Carmedy clapped her hands together, “like one of those oracles that can foretell prophecies and tell people their fates.”

“Seriously, Carmedy?” Rana said in disbelief as she placed her paws on her hips.

“Well, how else do you explain it?” The cat tilted her head to one side. “You said yourself your instincts are never wrong. Maybe you’ve gotten so good, you can tell that something’s wrong before it even happens. It’s a premi… premer…”

“A premonition?” Morrigan raised a white eyebrow.

Carmedy snapped her fingers. “Yeah, that’s it! A premonition.”

“While I do admit that I have superior instincts, I draw the line at seeing into the future,” Rana said with a chuckle. “This isn’t one of your fairy tales, Carmedy. And in case you’ve forgotten, I have no magical abilities. I’m just an incredibly amazing mortal fox.”

“Oh! Maybe some magic from inside the dungeons has worn off on you,” Carmedy gasped.

“That is absurd.” Morrigan shook her head. “That is not the manner in which magic works. Either one is born with magical abilities or they are bestowed by a more powerful being. Magic does not simply… rub off on someone.”

“Morrigan is right.” I nodded. “A mortal can utilize enchanted objects, like your slingshot,” I gestured to Carmedy’s golden weapon that she had fixed to her belt, “but a mortal being can’t simply be in the presence of magic and acquire its properties.”

“But what other explanation is there?” the feline asked.

“Truthfully, I’m unsure, but I very much doubt that Rana has become a magic fox due to exposure.” I smiled at the petite cat.

“Maybe it’s the heat,” Annalíse chimed in. “People that travel through the desert often see mirages, and those are more or less illusions caused by nature. Perhaps it’s something like that, only instead of your eyes being tricked, it’s your instincts.”

“Yeah, maybe that’s it,” Rana mumbled, and she took one last look outside before she closed the tent flap. The fox furrowed her brow and ran a paw through her red curls as she walked further into the tent.

“Annalíse’s explanation is logical,” I said, “but we will trust in Rana’s instincts. Do not let your guard down, minions.”

“We won’t, Master,” Carmedy said seriously as she held her fist up to her chest.

Within the hour, night fell upon us, and the heat of the day was replaced by a bitter chill. Even though our tent kept some of the cold at bay, brisk air still managed to breach through the fabric that surrounded us. Taking note of the harsh cold, I summoned my shadow slaves to keep watch outside so that we could remain more comfortable inside throughout the night without concern. After we finished our evening meal, each of us wrapped ourselves in the thick wool blankets that Annalíse and Rana had purchased for us.

“Now this is much better, nice cool air against my fur,” Rana sighed as she nestled beneath her blanket.

“Nice cool air?” Annalíse’s teeth chattered as she frowned at the fox. “This air is neither nice nor cool. It’s freezing!”

“Now who’s complaining?” Rana shot the freckled woman a devilish grin. “It’s not that bad, just a little chilly. It’s soothing.”

“This is not at all soothing.” Morrigan shivered beneath her blanket and pulled it closer to her pale chin.

“Now you guys are getting an idea of how I felt today.” Rana yawned as she stretched out on her back. “Not so pleasant being at the mercy of the elements now is it? You know a few hours ago, I was losing my mind, I was starting to wish I had skin all over to replace the furry bits. But now, I’ve gotta say it’s great to be me.”

I opened my mouth to offer the fox a witty reply when something suddenly caught my attention. My shadow slaves sensed movement near our camp. I hastily pushed back my blanket, stood, and walked toward the tent flap.

“What are you doing?” Carmedy called to me.

“There’s someone outside,” I whispered over my shoulder, and the others jumped to their feet and hurried to my side.

“Yeah, I can hear them approaching,” Rana said as her black-tipped fox ears began to twitch.

“Hey, you have good hearing too?” Carmedy gasped. “Does that mean you also heard Morrigan and Master practicing their spooky noises on the--”

“Where are they?” Annalíse interrupted as we peered out of the tent opening. “How many of them are there?”

I was silent for a moment and studied the terrain in front of us. The moon was in its waning phase and shone down on the sea of sand that spread out all around us. While there were no trees or bushes to hide behind in the desert, the sand dunes themselves cast hulking shadows across the wasteland.

“There!” Rana suddenly whispered, and she pointed in the distance to our right. I narrowed my eyes and observed two men with swords in dark clothing sneaking toward us through the dunes. The kefficha that they wore were also dark with the cloth wrapped around their faces in such a way that left only their eyes visible.

“There’s only two of them, we can take them,” Annalíse said with a raspy hiss. She started to move forward as she reached a hand toward the sword at her hip.

“No wait, there’s two more over there.” Rana grabbed hold of the swordswoman’s forearm and nodded to our left. I turned my head to see two more of the shrouded men approaching us in the darkness with spears in their hands.

“Are they going to rob us?” Carmedy asked fearfully as she glanced around.

“Well, they certainly aren’t sneaking toward our camp in the dark just to have a chat,” Rana snorted. “These idiots don’t know who they’re messing with. If they think they can get away with mugging us, they’ve got another thing coming.”

“Master, what is our plan of action?” Morrigan laid a hand on my shoulder.

“Don’t attack them, not just yet,” I said to my minions. “Let’s go outside and see what they want with us first. If they do indeed intend us harm, then we’ll deal with them accordingly.” With that, I led the way outside.

“I’m really going to lay into these guys.” Rana cracked her furry knuckles as she and the others followed me outside. “I was nice and cozy in my blankets and here these guys go spoiling everything.”

As we all gathered outside our tent, I raised my hand to indicate that we stop where we were. The cloaked men darted back and forth amidst the dunes as they approached us with their weapon in tow. Suddenly Rana’s ears began to twitch rapidly, and the fox frowned as she turned to look behind us.

“There’s two more come from behind,” she whispered.

Sure enough there were two more men dressed in the same manner as the others, and they carried large bows in their hands as they stole through the shadows. I kept careful watch as the three groups began to spread out and form a circle around us and our tent.

As they drew closer, I observed that one of the swordsmen had a dark red kefficha while the others wore black ones. No doubt he was the leader of their party, something confirmed for me when he raised a hand in the air and closed it into a fist as they drew close. The other men slowed their pace and cautiously began to walk toward us with their weapons pointed toward us. When they were just a few yards from us, the leader grunted something in a foreign language, and the men stopped.

Annalíse kept a hand on her sword hilt, and Rana raised her fists warily, while Carmedy cowered slightly behind me. Morrigan, however, shared at least the outward calm and lack of concern I showed to our evening visitors. I simply leveled a calm, commanding gaze onto the leader and waited.

“Who are you, and what business do you have here?” the leader yelled at us after a moment under my gaze. I could tell that he was a native Valasarian from the way that he rolled his r’s.

“We are simply travelers who have stopped to camp for the night,” I shouted back to him. One of the men hissed something angrily at me in their foreign language.

The leader narrowed his eyes. “My friend thinks that you are lying to us.”

“What reason would we have to be untruthful?” Morrigan said with a note of irritation.

“Perhaps because you are mercenaries of the king, sent here to wipe us out. We know that the king has bounties out for our heads,” the man with the red kefficha retorted.

“Are you crazy?” Rana looked at the man in disbelief. “We’re not mercenaries. We don’t even know who you are why would we want your heads?” The fox rolled her eyes, and she folded her arms over her chest in agitation.

The man was silent for a moment, and then he muttered something to his men.

“We will not simply take your word that you are not the king’s sellswords,” the head swordsman said bitterly. “Can you prove to us that you are not employed by him and that you are as you say, mere travelers?” As the man spoke, he squinted his eyes and studied each of us for a moment. I had a feeling he wouldn’t be so easily convinced.

My minions and I glanced at each other and moved closer together for a quick discussion.

“What are we going to do?” Carmedy asked as she glanced at the surrounding men. “We have no way of proving who we are.”

“We do not have to prove anything,” Morrigan said with a little fierceness in her tone. “We owe them no explanation. Let us vanquish them and be done with matter and return to our tent.”

“I don’t think it necessary to attack these men,” I mused. “I don’t think they’re dangerous, I believe they see us as a threat and this is why they came to our camp.”

“Um, they’re pointing weapons at us!” Rana threw her paws in the air. “If that’s not dangerous, I don’t know what is. Honestly, I don’t even know why we’re having this discussion. I for one am with Morrigan. Let’s get rid of these guys and go back to sleep.”

Annalíse didn’t offer her opinion to the rest of us, but she held her chin as though she were deep in thought. Then without another word to us, she walked toward the men.

“Well, do you have proof of who you are?” the leader of the party asked as he pointed his sword toward Annalíse. The freckled woman didn’t seem the slightest bit bothered by the threatening gesture.

“I’m sure that you’re well aware that in most areas of the world, it is against the law for women to be soldiers or hold any other sort of occupation that calls for violence.” Annalíse casually folded her arm as she spoke. “There are only two continents that allow women to join the ranks of their military forces. Valasara is not one of them, nor has it ever been.”

She glanced among the men in black confidently. “Now, I’m not native to this continent, and it’s been long since I’ve visited. Perhaps your customs and laws have changed over the years, so I will ask you this, has your king decided to alter the laws of this nation and employ female soldiers or mercenaries?” The swordswoman challenged with a raised eyebrow and she stared at the leader intently.

The men exchanged looks and spoke to each other in their native tongue before they slowly turned their attention back to Annalíse.

“No, our laws have not changed,” the leader said, and he lowered his weapon slightly. “The king does not employ women.”

“Even if he did, there’s no way we’d work for that arrogant creep,” Rana called out with a smirk. “We had the… displeasure of meeting him, and I’ve gotta say, the guy is as pathetic as they come, strutting around like he forged the continents or something.” The leader with the red head covering began to chuckle, and he signaled to his men to lower their weapons.

“On that, we can agree.” The lead swordsman nodded, and the look in his eyes shifted from fierceness to kindness. The man said something to his followers, and they each pulled down their scarfs so that we could see their faces. The men’s shoulders had been tensed and poised to attack but now they relaxed, aware that we weren’t their enemies.

“My deepest apologies,” the leader said with a slight bow. His skin was extremely tanned from the sun, and the lower half of his face was covered in a thick jet-black beard. The other men had equally tan skin and dark facial hair. “When we saw you, I’m afraid we assumed the worst. We have to, otherwise, we wouldn’t survive out here.”

“Let’s talk inside.” I gestured for the men to enter our tent. I sensed no ill will in these men, and anyone who despised King Alistair couldn’t be all bad. The men followed us into the tent, and together, we all sat around the fire.

“So, who are you guys? And why does good king Alistair want your heads?” Rana asked as she leaned her back against Xerxes, her arms behind her head.

“I am Makar, this is Tal, Kala, Nivir, Vish, Shekiim, and Rashi,” the leader said as he knelt down and pointed to each of the men, and they nodded as their names were called. “These men are members of the rebel army, and I am their leader.”

“Rebel army?” Carmedy tilted her head to one side. “No offense, but there’s only six of you. That’s not much of an army.

“There are many more of us.” The bearded man chuckled at Carmedy’s words. “Our camp is not too far from here. The five of us only came because you were within close proximity, and as I said before, we thought you to be a threat.”

“Hold on a second,” Rana said slowly. “By any chance were you guys following us earlier today?”

“No.” The rebel leader shook his head. “Though we were aware of your presence many hours ago, we did not approach you until night fell.”

“I see,” Rana murmured.

Annalíse cleared her throat in an effort to steer us back on topic. “You were going to tell us why King Alistair wants you dead?”

“Yes.” Makar nodded to the swordswoman. “We fight against the tyranny of the king and seek to place a worthier monarch in his place. The king has been made aware of our efforts and strives to kill all those who conspire to overthrow him.”

“What has he done that you wish to overthrow him?” I asked the rebel leader.

“The king is ruthless and greedy,” Makar said gravely. “He taxes the people into destitution. I gather that you have been to the port city before coming here?” The rest of us nodded silently. “Then you are aware that there is a massive water shortage.”

“Yes, we heard about the water shortage.” Annalíse furrowed her brow. “When we tried to ask people what had caused it, they seemed afraid to tell us.”

“They are afraid,” Makar said darkly. “Our water shortage is the fault of the king. The people are forced to live on unreasonable water rations, all because the king hordes it for himself. He uses it to tend to his lush and elaborate garden within his palace. Meanwhile, the continent is suffering and countless die of thirst day after day.”

“That’s terrible,” Carmedy breathed.

“And this is why we formed the rebel army,” the bearded man said with a somber expression upon his face. “The king must be stopped. If things continue in this manner, our civilization shall die, I’m sure of it.”

“That man is unfit to be a ruler,” I said bitterly.

“I agree my friend,” Makar said with a sad shake of his head. “I pray that soon King Alistair’s tyranny will be stopped once and for all. Our nation’s future depends on it.” He forced himself to smile as he looked over us. “But now, enough about this. Please, tell me about yourselves and the purpose of your travels.” Makar shifted his position so that he sat crosslegged and gestured for us to speak.

My minions and I quickly introduced ourselves and explained our quest to conquer each of the continents’ dungeons, as well as our mission to save Rana’s family. Makar and his men listened quietly with wide eyes as we relayed the adventures that we had experienced thus far.

“I admire your tenacity. To conquer all the dungeons in existence, this is no easy feat, my friends.” Makar chuckled. “And you say you plan to travel to the next city tomorrow?”

“Yes, that’s right,” I replied.

“Then let me be of some use to you. There is an inn near the center of the city called the Golden Lamb. It’s run by a man named Kifi, he’s a dear friend of mine. When you get to the city, go there, mention my name, and he will make sure that you’re well taken care of. He’ll give you a fair price, and rest assured, you’ll have a safe place to lay your head for the night.”

“Thank you, we appreciate it.” Annalíse smiled softly. “I wish there was something that we could do to help your situation.”

“That is most kind of you, Annalíse,” the rebel leader bowed his head slightly, “but this is our fight, and we shall emerge victorious.” His utmost confidence in his men and his cause was plain. I could tell that he was strong-willed and the rebel army’s cause was unwavering. Both were admirable qualities, particularly in a leader.

As Makar continued to speak to us, a thought randomly crossed my mind. The unexpected presence of these men would be of some benefit to me. I had decided not to use my newfound ability acquired from the puppet master god on Annalíse. In fact, I refused to use any of my godly powers on any one of my minions. These men, however, didn’t have that privilege, and this would be the opportunity to test out my new mental prowess.

Unbeknownst to all others in the tent, I summoned the power of the puppet master. One by one, I peered into the rebels’ souls and pictures of the past flashed across my mind. As I had suspected, Makar’s soul was quite pure. He had been entirely truthful with us, and I could see the anguish that he and his people had suffered. He was a selfless leader and put the needs of his family, followers, and nation before his own.

I studied the minds of Tal, Kala, Nivir, Vish, Shekiim in turn and found them to be honorable men as well. They had all suffered injustice by the hand of the king and had served under Makar well. However, when I finally looked within Rashi, I sensed darkness.

As I rooted through Rahi’s memories, to my surprise I saw the man speaking with King Alistair in his palace and shaking hands. Just a few months ago, Rashi was one of the king’s top assassins, and he had been instructed to infiltrate Makar’s camp under the guise of a fellow rebel. His mission consisted of three parts. First, he was to gain the leader’s trust and rise amongst the ranks. The next step was to spread rumors amongst the rebel army that Makar was, in fact, loyal to the king and intended to turn his followers over to the royal guard. Finally, Rashi had been instructed to assassinate the rebel leader. Such a plan would assuredly leave the rebel army in utter shambles.

Without hesitation, I turned to Makar. “This man is a spy for the king,” I said as I pointed to Rashi. Makar turned from his discussion with my minions and stared at me in disbelief, as did the others, all except Rashi who gaped at me with unmistakable fear in his eyes.

“Th-this isn’t true,” the traitor stammered. Makar glanced at Rashi and then turned back to me.

“Indeed, this is nonsense, Rashi is loyal to our cause.” Makar shook his head in disbelief. “Why would you say such a thing?”

“I have looked into his mind, and within his memories, I saw him conspiring with the king,” I said bitterly. As I spoke, Rashi’s eyes grew wide, and his hands began to tremble.

The rebel leader folded his arms over his chest. “Have you proof of this supposed treason?”

“Indeed I do,” I intoned with a grave nod. “Upon looking within him, I learned that those employed by the king are forced to get a distinct tattoo of a red bird on their upper arms. All of Valasara’s soldiers have them, correct?”

“Yes this is true,” the bearded leader said slowly.

“Assassins employed by the king bear the same mark,” I said as I gestured toward the traitor. “Check his arm.” Makar hesitated and then slowly turned to Rashi.

“Raise your sleeve,” the rebel leader said as he narrowed his eyes.

“This is foolishness,” Rashi sputtered. “We don’t even know this man. For all we know, he is a supporter of the king just as you suspected before.”

“Raise your sleeve,” Makar said more firmly. Rashi gulped, and his cheeks began to flush. Without another word, Makar grabbed hold of Rashi’s wrist and tore away the sleeve of his robe. There on the man’s arm was a small tattoo of a red bird just as I had said.

“Traitor,” Makar hissed. The other rebels gasped in surprise and then their shocked expressions quickly shifted to looks of hatred.

Rashi’s eyes darted back and forth between the Makar and the tent flap. Suddenly, the would-be assassin wrenched his arm away from Makar, and as he clumsily rose to his feet, he knocked the rebel leader to the ground. The treacherous man attempted to make a break for the tent opening, but the other rebels whom he had once called comrades barred his way.

“You are going nowhere you treacherous scum,” Makar sneered. Though he spoke with anger, I could see the hurt in his eyes from being betrayed by someone whom he’d trusted.

The rest of us rose to our feet and watched as the man skidded to a halt and looked around desperately. There was nowhere for him to turn. With a wild look in his eye, Rashi whirled around to face me. He bellowed and suddenly charged at me, undoubtedly the most foolish choice that he could have possibly made. As he flew at me and attempted to draw the sword at his hip, I reeled back my arm and sent a punch right in between his eyes.

For a few moments, the man blinked in surprise, as if his mind was trying to process the power of the blow I had landed upon him before he crumpled to the floor in a pathetic heap. Makar muttered something to his men in Valasarian. They immediately yanked the unconscious man to his feet and bound his hands behind his back.

“I can’t believe that guy,” Rana sneered as she shook her head. “I mean what was he thinking? Where was he going to run?”

“Desperate men commit foolish acts,” Morrigan said blankly.

“I thank you for exposing this treacherous snake.” Makar folded his hands and bowed to me reverently. “I am indebted to you, if you ever have need for anything, anything at all, please do not hesitate to ask.”

I nodded regally. “You are most welcome. When I have need, I will call upon you.”

“Now, we shall take your leave, we have intruded upon your time for long enough,” Makar said as he rose to his feet. He walked toward the tent flap and gestured for his men to follow, and the rebels filed behind him with Rashi in tow. Once he had reached the tent’s opening, Makar paused and then he turned back to look at me. The other rebels halted seeing that their leader had stopped.

“One more thing,” the rebel leader said as he proceeded to dig through the pocket in his coat. He pulled out a small glass orb that fit in the palm of his hand, and he handed it over to me. “When that time comes, simply look into the glass ball and speak my name. This device will allow me to speak to you no matter the distance between us.”

“Thank you, Makar,” I said as I placed the small sphere into my void pocket.

“I hope that we meet again.” The bearded leader smiled at me and shook my hand firmly. With that, he and his followers left our tent, and the sound of their footsteps quickly disappeared.

“Sand demons, human puppets, rebel armies, and assassination plots,” Rana said as she laid down on the ground and covered herself with her blankets. “I don’t know about you, but it’s been a very long day.”

“Those poor people,” Carmedy said quietly as she rested on her side and pulled her covers to her chin. “That King Alistair is so mean, hogging all that water to himself just for his silly garden.”

“It’s despicable,” Annalíse said bitterly. She remained beside the fire and stared into its flames as she spoke. “That man is unworthy of the title of king. A ruler is meant to lead their people and protect them. To be the very cause of their strife, it’s… contemptible. If only there was something we could do.”

“You heard the words Makar spoke, it is their fight not ours,” Morrigan said as she nestled beneath her blankets.

“And I also heard him say that the people here are suffering and dying of thirst,” Annalíse retorted with a bit of sharpness to her tone. “Don’t you feel pity for these people?”

“We have our own matters to attend to,” Morrigan said unfeelingly. “Everyone cannot be saved, Annalíse. This is none of our concern.”

Annalíse turned to me, and properly so, as I was the final arbiter on the actions of my minions. “Don’t you think we should do something?” the swordswoman said, and she folded her arms over her chest as she waited for my reply.

I was quiet for a moment before I finally spoke. “Makar has shown us kindness, and it’s most unfortunate that the people here are suffering under the rule of such an inadequate ruler.” I raised a finger. “I will think the matter over and inform you of my decision later.”

Annalíse pursed her lips and released a dissatisfied sigh but said nothing and turned back to flickering fire.

I offered no other words and laid down beneath thick warm blankets. Rana was right, it had indeed been a long day, and I needed to rest. Though I was certain the human woman was now fully pleased by my declaration, she knew her place well enough not to press further and laid down to sleep with the rest of us.

Before long, the fire began to die down, and its quivering flames faded away along with the shadows they threw against the walls of our tent. My eyelids began to droop as I mulled over the events that had transpired today. It was hard to believe that so much had occurred between the sun’s rising and falling. We had gotten closer to learning the secrets that Annalíse hid, but the freckled swordswoman still remained a mystery. During our confrontation with Makar, the female warrior had revealed her knowledge of foreign laws and customs as well as the fact that she had traveled to Valasara before, something that she had failed to mention before.

And then there was the matter of the rebel army and King Alistair. I pitied the people who lived here, and I understood Annalíse’s desire to help the citizens of Valasara. Still, while it was the honorable thing to do, was it the wisest decision to aid the rebels directly? I folded my hands beneath my head and watched the smoke from the fire pillow out of the roof’s opening as I mulled over the pros and cons.

If we got involved in this uprising against the king, it would assuredly delay our travels. We gained nothing from this act, and I wasn’t the type to be selfless, but perhaps it would be fun. My mind went back and forth on the matter, and before long, I drifted off to sleep still unsure of what path to take.

All that I knew for certain was that the fate of this continent rested in my almighty hands.

Then I realized something else.

If I unseated the king from his throne, I could take his place.

Chapter 11

We awoke the next morning to brilliant sunlight streaming through the hole in the top of our tent. After a quick morning meal, we broke camp and set out for the next city. The unremitting chill had been replaced by the all too familiar desert heat, but before Rana could launch into another one of her comical but long-winded complaints, Carmedy passed around our daily cooling powders and salve which kept the fox relatively quiet.

The hours crawled by, and as the sun climbed into the sky, the outline of the oasis city began to come into view. When I first laid eyes on the large city, I thought it was a mirage for a few moments. Tall buildings with dome-shaped roofs stretched across the sand, surrounded by bent palm trees that wriggled before my eyes. The myriad of colors blurred together in the heat shimmer of the horizon. It was a beautiful and welcome sight to behold something, anything other than endless hills of sand, but was it truly there or was the heat showing me what I wanted to see?

I rubbed at my eyes. blinked several times, and my vision began to focus. The buildings and trees that laid before us began to settle, and the sounds of the city soon replaced the silence of the desert. We had finally reached the oasis city of Ficcha.

As our party rode through the streets, I gazed around and took in my new surroundings. This place was such a stark contrast to the harsh desert that we had left behind. Ficcha teemed with life and energy, and the surrounding buildings were so tall that they seemed to reach into the sky. The material from which they were crafted seemed to be some sort of clay designed specifically to withstand the heat of the desert environment. The walls were colored a wide variety of shades. Pink, red, yellow, orange all mixed in my eyes. Women leaned out of windows above our heads and flapped their sheets, dumped buckets of discarded food and wastewater, and called out to people whom they knew in the street. Camels plodded by lazily as their riders urged them on and riding lizards slunk in and out of the crowds.

“Does anyone see anything that looks like a place we can sell our loot?” Rana frowned as she raised a paw to her eyes and looked back and forth between the rows of buildings. “I can’t make anything out, all the signs are written in Valasarian.”

“There’s a place,” Annalíse said casually and pointed to a shop a few buildings down from us.

“How did you--” the fox began to say.

“I’m good with languages, remember?” The swordswoman shrugged as she steered Scylla over to an available hitching post.

“Right.” Rana stretched out the word to indicate her suspicion. Carmedy and Morrigan steered Xerxes and Tiberius over to the hitching post and the five of us dismounted and discuss our plans.

“Alright, so who’s going to stay behind and watch the lizards this time?” Annalíse asked as she looked around at the rest of us. Carmedy opened her mouth to speak, but Rana held up a paw to stop her as she shook her head.

“Don’t even think about it, pussycat.”

“But I--” the feline started to say.

The fox gave the cat a knowing look. “Save it, not gonna happen.”

“Actually, Rana, it’s been a while since you’ve taken a turn,” Annalíse said. “Why don’t you do it?”

“But you need me to help trade the loot,” the fox-tailed woman whined. “I’m the haggling expert.”

“And that’s always your excuse for why you shouldn’t be the one to stay outside,” I said with a chuckle, and the fox squinted her blue eyes at me.

“We can manage without you just this once,” Annalíse said as she moved to pick up one of the treasure chests from the back of the sand sled.

“Oh, alright, you guys go ahead and have all the fun,” Rana moaned and puffed her bangs out of her eyes.

“We won’t be gone long,” I said with a smile and made my way to the sand sled to pick up a few of the wooden boxes. Carmedy and Morrigan retrieved the ones that remained, and we began to make our way to the trade shop.

“You better not, or you’ll never hear the end of it!” Rana called after us as we strode away.

It didn’t take us long to sell off our goods. The proprietor offered us reasonable prices which sped things along and kept us from launching into an extended battle of bartering, and within half an hour, our haggling was done. Once a deal had been struck, we traded our loot for some of Valasara’s native currency called Yaraa. The shopkeeper counted out rectangular pieces of paper of various colors, each color indicating a different monetary value.

This form of currency was new to me, and I quickly deemed it favorable. The paper bills were thin and lightweight, far lighter than gold coins. The Yaraa was not only easier to transport than gold pieces, but they were also less conspicuous. When paying for various goods and services, I always had to remove bulging bags of coins from my void pocket. This act drew unnecessary attention, not only from those nearby but from the person whom we were paying. While anyone who was foolish enough to try to rob us would have their body and soul crushed with my dark powers, it was an annoyance that could now be avoided. As we walked back to the hitching post where we had left Rana with our riding lizards, sounds of music began to fill the air. The music was pleasing to the ear, and I glanced around to see where it was coming from.

My eyes soon rested on a crowd that had started to form on the other side of the street, and I saw that in front of the crowd was a group of performers. A tall lanky man swayed back and forth as he played a sprightly tune on a wooden flute and a short bald man sat cross legged beside him and banged on a large drum that looked to be almost as big as he was. A woman with long blonde hair accompanied them on a tambourine. As she danced to the rhythm, she spun with glee and twirled the colorful skirts that she wore around her creating a mystifying dizzying rainbow.

The lively show was entertaining, but Rana was waiting for us to return, so I turned away from the music.

I noticed that Morrigan and Annalíse had also paused to watch the performers, and I gestured to them to get their attention. Annalíse turned to go, but then she stopped again.

“Wait, where’s Carmedy?” the swordswoman asked as she looked up and down the street.

“She cannot have gotten far,” Morrigan said as she studied the people that bustled in the street. I too began to search the area for the small black cat.

“Not again,” Annalíse groaned as she stood on her tiptoes to see over the heads of the people. “How many times do we have to tell her--”

Morrigan cut her off as she pointed. “There she is. I should have guessed as much,” the elf said under her breath.

No sooner had my gaze followed the direction in which the pale elf indicated, I spotted Carmedy and I did my best to stifle a laugh. To my amusement, the cat had joined the street performers. In the short time that it had taken us to find her, the feline had taken up a tambourine and proceeded to dance. Carmedy giggled and tapped her tambourine on her hip and attempted to follow the dance steps of the blonde woman. It didn’t take the petite feline to pick up the steps and soon, she and the female performer were dancing in sync to the jaunty tune.

My heart skipped a beat as Carmedy moved her hips to the music. I somehow found her dancing alluring even though I knew she hadn’t meant it to be. As I watched her, my thoughts drifted to Isolda. She had loved to dance and had often goaded me into joining her even though I was unskilled in such things. That hadn’t seemed to matter to her though. Isolda had seemed satisfied enough just because I had tried.

A sad smile came to my lips, and I forced my mind back to the present. Carmedy was quite talented, and I wouldn’t have expected the messy scatterbrained alchemist to be such a good dancer. The crowd that watched them laughed and clapped in time to the music and tossed coins as the entertainment ensued.

Morrigan raised a white eyebrow, her usual blank expression still in place that made it near impossible to tell whether she was amused or annoyed. Meanwhile, Annalíse sighed, shook her head, and then began to weave through the crowd. Once the freckled woman had reached Carmedy and the group of performers, Annalíse wasted no time grabbing the green-eyed cat by the wrist and pulling her away.

Carmedy barely had time to hand her tambourine back to the dancer before Annalíse steered her back toward us.

“Carmedy, what have we told you about running off?” Annalíse said with the cat in tow as we made our way back to Rana.

“Um, you said I should never do it, and that it wastes time or something like that,” Carmedy tapped her chin, “but I promise that I only meant to stay for a second. I just wanted to watch, and then that girl handed me a tambourine and invited me up there to dance. I couldn’t say no, that would have been rude,” the cat said innocently and shrugged her shoulders.

Annalíse mumbled something under her breath and continued to pull Carmedy along the way that a mother did a child. When we finally made it back to Rana, the fox was leaned against the side of the sand sled with a look of extreme boredom upon her face.

“What took you guys so long?” Rana said once we reached her. “Did you have trouble trading our loot? I told you, you should have brought me along.”

“No, someone decided to have a little adventure.” Annalíse nodded to Carmedy who gave the fox a sheepish grin.

“What did you do this time, Carmedy?” Rana said with a wry grin. “Chasing after pies again?” I chuckled at Rana’s speculation and was reminded of the last time that Carmedy had run off. We had scoured the streets for the little feline and had found her devouring desserts in a bakery.

“No, there were some really cool street performers, and they were playing music and dancing… but now that you mention it, I am getting kinda hungry,” Carmedy said as she rubbed at her stomach. “Did anyone see any places to eat around here?”

I chuckled at the feline. “Why don’t we find a place to stay first and put our things away? Then we can find somewhere to eat.”

“Okay, I guess I can wait till then,” Carmedy said with a thoughtful glance down at her belly.

“What was the name of that inn Makar told us about? The Golden something?” Rana asked as she ran a paw through her messy red curls.

“The Golden Lamb.” Annalíse nodded. “Makar said it was near the center of the city.”

“Well, this place is pretty big,” Rana said as she glanced around at the towering buildings that lined the busy street. “I’ll ask around and get some directions to save us some time.” The fox quickly disappeared into the crowd that filled the sandy road, and within a few minutes, she returned.

“So, is it far from here?” Annalíse asked as Rana approached us.

“Just about a fifteen-minute walk,” the fox-tailed woman said as she thumbed over her shoulder toward the center of town. “The guy I talked to also said the Golden Lamb has a stable to keep our riding animals, so we don’t have to worry about leaving them outside or anything.”

Rana then turned to Carmedy with a grin. “And you’ll be happy to know that the Golden Lamb offers some of the best food in the city.”

“Oh, yay, I can’t wait!” The black-haired cat clasped her hands together excitedly and licked her lips. “I’m going to order everything on the menu.”

“Carmedy, does anything else occupy your mind besides food?” Morrigan raised a white eyebrow.

“Well, of course, silly,” the petite feline waved her hand. “I think about herbs, and medicines, and chemical reactions and…” Carmedy prattled on, and relayed her extensive list to Morrigan, but my attention soon shifted to Annalíse. The female warrior squinted her as she stared into the crowd of people a few yards down the street.

Suddenly, her eyes widened with fear.

“Let’s get going,” the freckled swordswoman said hastily. “Rana, which street do we need to take to get to the Golden Lamb?”

“It’s always rush, rush, rush with you Annalíse.” Rana sighed as she shook her head. “You always have to hurry on to the next place. Don’t you ever just want to slow it down for a bit and enjoy the journey? You know, stop and smell the roses or whatever.”

“Just tell me what direction we need to take Rana,” Annalíse said impatiently as she glanced back into the crowd nervously.

“Alright, alright no need to get testy.” The fox raised her paws in the air defensively. “We just need to take this street until we get to that yellow building and then turn right.”

“Fine, then let’s--” Annalíse stopped speaking, and her freckled face turned pale as she stared past me.

I turned to look over my shoulder to see what could have caused her to react so. It only took me a moment to find it. There in the crowd were the two soldiers from the glacial continents, and they were headed in our direction. The two men carried their fearsome looking bear’s helmets as they looked up and down the street.

Suddenly, one of the men’s eyes rested on Annalíse. He grabbed the arm of his companion as he spoke to him and then pointed our way. The other man turned his head in the direction in which the soldier had indicated and his eyes narrowed upon seeing the tall female warrior.

Like me, Rana had turned to look, and when she saw the soldiers, she gave me a quick glance before she turned back to Annalíse and opened her mouth. Before the fox could speak, Annalíse hurriedly turned on her heels and took her first running step.

Then my fingers closed around her bicep.

“Let me go!” she hissed as she tried to yank her arm out of my grip. The warrior woman was incredibly strong, but she might as well of been trying to lift a stool into the air while she sat on top of it. My fingers could crush coal into diamonds if I so desired.

“Stay here,” I said. “I will take care of them.”

“No, I--” the warrior woman started to say, but then her eyes darted toward the two men. They were a few dozen yards away, but she still reached for her weapon.

“Annalíse!” Rana hissed when the warrior pulled Bloodscale from her back.

The surrounding citizens screamed at the unexpected sight of the weapon and panic spread. People rushed this way and that, clutching their shopping bags and their children’s hands as they ran away. Some tripped over one another as they fled. Others rushed down the street to seek sanctuary while some concealed themselves within the confines of the buildings.

In mere moments, only I, my minions, and the soldiers remained in the street.

“Who are you, and why do you pursue her?” I shouted to the men as I nodded to Annalíse.

“We’re here to reclaim the princess and return her to Tamarisch,” the tallest of them yelled back to me.

Carmedy’s eyes widened in surprise. “Princess? Wait, you’re a princess, Annalíse, like with a crown and everything?”

Rana and Morrigan also wore shocked expressions, but Annalíse didn’t respond to the small feline. Instead, she addressed the men who pursued her.

“I’m not going back!” Annalíse shouted as her eyes darted back and forth between the three groups of soldiers. She pointed each of her weapons at one of the different groups as they approached, and I realized that I was still holding onto the arm that didn’t hold the sword. I let go so she could have freedom of movement, but then she just reached for her second sword.

Watching for a brief moment, the tall soldier who had spoken before raised a hand to signal the other men to stop. Seemingly satisfied by something, he then made a quick hand gesture and the soldiers began to walk forward with caution, their weapons still sheathed.

“We’ve been given strict orders to return you to our kingdom,” the lead soldier explained as he and the others tightened their formation around us. Both he and his men had the same chestnut colored hair as Annalíse. “Stop this nonsense and come with us this instant.”

“If you want to take me, you’ll have to kill me,” Annalíse seethed, “because the only way I’m going with you is if my body is cold, and my soul has left this world. Otherwise, I’m not going anywhere.”

“We were ordered to bring you back unharmed,” the head soldier replied, but from the way he narrowed his eyes at Annalíse, I suspected that he was considering disobeying his orders.

“If she doesn’t wish to return with you, she stays here,” I said firmly.

“You dare to interfere, peasant? Stand aside, this matter has nothing to do with you.” The tall man drew his sword and pointed it at my chin. The other soldiers drew their weapons as well and pointed them at Carmedy, Rana, and Morrigan.

“Gee, pointing swords at women, you really know how to treat a girl,” Rana snorted in disbelief.

Carmedy squealed, and her green eyes widened with fear at the threatening weapon. “Y-you wouldn’t hurt us, would you? We’re Annalíse’s friends.”

“I don’t care who you are,” the tall lanky soldier sneered. “If you attempt to stop us from taking the princess, we will cut you down without question. We were instructed not to harm the princess, but this courtesy has not been extended to you. I won’t tell you again, stand aside.”

As the man spoke, he attempted to shove me aside, but I grabbed hold of his upper arm and yanked him toward me so that we stood eye to eye. The soldier looked at me in surprise before the glare returned to his eyes.

“And I won’t tell you again,” I hissed, “she stays here.”

Before the soldier could offer up a retort, I punched him square in the jaw, and felt most of his teeth crumble into dust along with most of his jaw. The hit sent him flying backward, he crashed into the soldier who had accompanied him, and they both crumpled to the ground in a clumsy heap of limbs.

I thought that my punch would have knocked the man out, but he flipped to his feet as if my blow and merely been a slap, and then pointed at me.

“Take the princess and kill the others!” he roared, and his broken jaw wagged from side to side like a dog’s tail and spewed blood everywhere.

Without hesitation, the soldiers bellowed and charged forward. As they thudded and clanked toward us in their impressive armor, the men placed their sinister bears helmets on their heads.

“Wrong choice,” I clicked my teeth as I shook my head.

In one fluid motion, I drew the God Slayer from my void pocket and raised it to block the leader’s attack while I kicked the other soldier in the stomach and sent him reeling. A sharp clang resounded in the air as the head swordsman’s weapon struck my own. While his partner was on the ground curled up in pain, he seethed at me and attempted to push forward, but I held my ground.

I glowered back at him used a small fraction of my strength to push him back. My efforts proved far more successful than his as I sent the soldier stumbling back with a shove. As he attempted to regain his footing, I tore the blade of my halberd clean through his right arm. His armor was impressive, but God Slayer cared little about such trifle things, and its blade ripped apart the metal as if it was paper. As the limb dropped lifelessly to the ground and blood sprayed from the remaining stump, the leader howled in pain. He dropped his weapon and clutched at what remained of his arm and glared at me intensely. I walked toward him and raised my weapon to point at his throat.

“I warned you,” I said to the man in a menacing tone. “You realize I can’t allow you to live.”

“There will be others sent here to retrieve her,” the lanky man hissed as blood from his wound trickled between the fingers that clutched it and dripped down. “Someone will find her just as we did. There’s no use in continuing to run. Our king will not stop until his daughter is brought back,”

“Why did Annalíse run away?” I commanded. “Tell me now, and I’ll grant you a quick death.”

The soldier ignored my question as he rambled on, weakened from his rapid blood loss. “It doesn’t matter where she runs, she will be found. She must fulfill her duties as the princess of Tamarisch.”

I grunted in frustration. He wasn’t going to give me any further information, he was no longer of any use to me, so I gripped the God Slayer in both hands and guided the blade through his neck. His suffering ended quickly as his severed head fell away from his body and dropped to the ground.

Meanwhile, his companion finally got back on his feet, gaped at his now-dead superior, and then flew at me in a rage. He attempted to slash at me with his sword, but I parried his attack and knocked away the weapon. Before he could make another move, I brought the God Slayer down on his helmeted head. The soldier wailed in agony as the bear helmet crumpled beneath the sudden impact, and my spiky blade drove through it and into his skull. With a hard yank, I unstuck my halberd from his head, and the tip of the blade dripped with his blood and brain matter.

The man swayed for a bit, blinked lazily in disbelief, then dropped stone dead to the ground.

I looked over my shoulder to see how my minions had fared and saw that they had nearly disposed of the remaining men. Two were on fire, Carmedy’s doing no doubt, while two more were lying in pools of their own blood, victims of Rana and Annalíse’s blades. The last was suspended in the air before Morrigan, caught in the merciless clutches of her dark magic. The soldier’s helmeted head slacked to one side as his soul was extracted from his body. Within seconds, his lifeless frame plummeted to the ground.

Morrigan quickly whispered something to her ravens, and they flew from her shoulders to feed on her victim’s soul energy. Not only did they feed on him, they fed on the rest of the felled soldiers. The ravens were doubtless hungry since there had been no souls to feast on during our sea voyage here.

“You know, all I wanted was some downtime, a little peace and quiet,” Rana said as I returned to my minions. “I was looking forward to a comfy warm bed, a nice meal, and I don’t know… not having to get into a brawl with some crazed soldiers on the street. We’ve been in Ficcha for less than two hours, and we’ve already gotten ourselves into trouble thanks to the undercover princess over here.” The fox gestured to Annalíse.

“I didn’t intend for any of this to happen,” Annalíse sighed. “I-I’m so sorry I put you all in danger for my sake.”

“We are aware that you would never intentionally put us in harm’s way,” Morrigan said flatly as Fea and Macha returned to her. “However, I believe now is the time for you disclose what you have been concealing from us.”

I placed a reassuring hand on Annalíse’s shoulder. “Let’s get to the Golden Lamb. Once we’ve settled in, you can tell us your story.”

The female warrior nodded solemnly, and the five of us gathered up our riding lizards to make our way to the inn. We finally knew who Annalíse really was, and at long last, we would discover the true reason why she was on this journey.

Chapter 12

Rana led the way through the sandy streets of Ficcha to the Golden Lamb, and the fox took a few extra twists and turns here and there just in case we were being followed by more soldiers. I too took a precaution and dispatched a handful of shadow slaves to the surrounding area. There didn’t appear to be anyone pursuing us, and we met with no other trouble on our way to the inn.

As we stood outside of the inn and tavern, I could tell the Golden Lamb was appropriately named. Its sign indeed bore the symbol of an intricately carved golden lamb. Before we entered, we stabled our lizards in the area behind the inn, and once inside, we were met with smells of fragrant spices and roasted meat. I recognized it as the scent of zendabii meat, and my mouth began to water at the recollection of the taste and tenderness. After the events that had transpired today, I looked forward to feeding my empty stomach.

The room we entered was bathed in sunlight that reached through the framed windows. The knotted wooden floors were dotted with grains of golden glittering sand that had been tracked in by various patrons. An unattended bar stood to one side of the room, a few barrels of ale stacked behind it. Above the bar were shelves stocked with green bottles filled with a light colored liquid I guessed to be mead.

Six or so circular wooden tables sat in the middle of the room, only a few of them were occupied by men who nursed mugs of ale and calmly chatted amongst themselves. The men glanced up at our group when we came in, and I saw their eyes linger on my minions in appreciation before they noticed my dark plate armor. Then they glanced down at their drinks and drifted back to their conversations. Other than the voices of the patrons, the inn was fairly quiet. It was unexpectedly peaceful, and given the past few days we’d had, I was glad for that.

On the back wall was an unlit fireplace which would assuredly be a welcome amenity come nightfall while various tapestries decorated the remaining wall space with what I assumed depicted Valasara’s major wars and historical events. The vivid pieces of artwork showed scenes of armies engaged in battle, dragons of days past soaring through the clouds, and a few familiar deities. One tapestry, in particular, caught my attention, and I walked over to inspect it. It was of a man with a rather sinister looking horned helmet and coat of furs pointing a spear at an enormous brown worm creature that emerged from the sand. The beast’s mouth was opened wide as though it were attempting to devour the man whole with several rows of large jagged teeth.

“Ew, gross, what is that thing?” Carmedy said from behind me, and I turned to see the petite feline wrinkle her nose.

“What’s it look like? Obviously, it’s a giant worm,” Rana shrugged.

“Look at those teeth,” Annalíse said with wide eyes as she and Morrigan walked closer to look at the tapestry. “I’ve never seen such a creature.”

“That, dear lady, is a Valasarian sandworm,” a voice behind us called out. We turned to see a small bearded man emerge from a door off to the side of the room. His bald head was shiny from sweat, and he pulled a handkerchief from his vest pocket to pat away the moisture. “These fearsome creatures have roamed the sands of Valasara for centuries. Sadly, they have become an endangered species.”

“Aww, poor worms, how did they become endangered?” Carmedy asked with genuine concern.

“Poor worms?” Rana snorted. “You just called them gross and now you feel bad for them?”

“I did think they were icky, but that doesn’t mean I want them to go extinct,” Carmedy stuck out her lip.

“The king has… perhaps it’s better if I don’t say.” The man hesitated and lowered his eyes to the floor.

“Why?” Rana asked as she leaned against one of the walls. “What’s that creep Alistair done this time?”

“Y-you do not favor the king?” the bald-headed man said slowly as he looked at each of us suspiciously.

“No way, we can’t stand him,” Carmedy said with a sour expression. “He’s a real jerk.”

“And we know about the water shortage,” Annalíse said to the man in a hushed tone.

I nodded gravely. “Yes, a man called Makar told us about everything that’s happened here. In fact, he’s the one who sent us to stay here.”

“Ah, you are friends of Makar,” the bearded man sighed in relief. “Any friend of his is indeed a friend of mine. My name is Kifi.” He extended his hand and firmly shook mine. “Come, let’s get your rooms sorted out. I will give you my four best rooms, and you shall sample the best Valasarian cosine Ficcha has to offer.”

Kifi gestured for us to follow him to the bar, and after we had paid for our rooms and he’d handed us our keys.

Then Annalíse brought up the matter that we had previously been discussing.

“Before, you were about to tell us how the Valasarian sand worms became endangered,” Annalíse said. “You said it had something to do with the king?”

“Yes, there were once many on our great continent, but little by little, King Alistair captured them all for his own sick uses,” Kifi said sadly. “He uses them as steeds for his mercenaries or pits them against each other for sport, so they’ve died rapidly through the years. Now there are said to be only a handful left in existence.”

“How terrible,” Carmedy breathed.

“It is indeed.” The bald man nodded. “Just yet another reason why King Alistair must be overthrown. Our nation was once great. Our people were happy and thrived under the rule of Alistair’s father and his father before him. But Alistair is ruthless, greedy, and cares only for himself.”

“He has to be stopped,” Annalíse said bitterly as she looked at me.

“He will be,” Kifi said with hope in his voice and a small smile came to his lips. “The rebel army grows stronger every day, and I’m confident that they’ll put a stop to him and make our continent a place of pride once more. Now, no more of this talk. Please sit down, and I’ll have our cook prepare something for you.”

Kifi waved a hand to the tables, and he quickly disappeared behind the door beside the bar. The five of us sat down at one of the tables near the unlit fireplace.

“Boy, that king sure is a menace,” Rana said as she settled down in one of the creaky wooden chairs. “Wiping out a species, taxing people to death, hoarding water, being a creepy creeper on our ship for two weeks, and stalking Annalíse like a creeper. It doesn’t get any eviler than that. And that’s just the stuff we know about, I’m sure he’s done loads more terrible things.”

“Why did he have to be picked to be king?” Carmedy huffed as she drew circles in the table with her finger.

“Kings don’t get picked Carmedy, you know that,” Rana said. “They’re born into that sort of thing.”

“I know, but couldn’t things have been done differently just that once?” Carmedy winced.

As she spoke, a tiny woman with short blonde hair and a crisp white apron came toward us with a tray of ale mugs. She placed a cup in front of each of us and bowed her head slightly before she walked away.

“The next king is always the first-born son of the previous king,” Annalíse said after she took a long gulp from her mug. “It’s just like Rana said, his title was set in place as soon as he was born. There was no way of knowing Alistair was going to be a tyrant when he was born.”

“Speaking of royalty,” Rana narrowed her eyes at the female warrior, “time to come clean Annalíse, if that is your real name.”

“I withheld the truth of my status, I didn’t lie about my name.” Annalíse rolled her eyes and took another long sip of ale.

“Well, go on,” I urged, my voice firm. “Tell us what happened.”

The swordswoman looked down at the table, avoiding our gaze and hesitated for a moment before she spoke. “My full name is Annalíse Sophia Decathmor,” the chestnut-haired woman said with a sigh.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Rana waved her paw. “Decathmor? As in the Decathmors?”

“Yes.” Annalíse nodded glumly.

“I can’t believe it, I had no idea you were… I mean…” Carmedy breathed, unable to finish her thoughts. Morrigan didn’t speak, but she blinked at Annalíse in surprise.

“I take it the Decathmor are well known?” I was unaware of the significance of this name, it must have been some noble house that rose since my imprisonment, but the others seemed quite moved by its mere mention.

“That’s an understatement,” Rana said with a dry chuckle. “Her father is the king of all of Tamarisch, not to mention most of Tintagal.”

“Didn’t we already establish that?” I said with a frown. “The soldiers mentioned that he was a king.”

“No, he’s not a king, he’s the king,” Carmedy said, her eyes filled with awe as she continued to look at Annalíse.

“Isn’t that the same thing?” I said slowly.

“Let me explain,” Annalíse said with a displeased look. “Most other continents only have one king to rule over them. The twin glacial continents Tamarisch and Tintagal, however, have a hierarchy of kings. There are six altogether.”

She held up one hand with fingers spread. “Five of them are what we call subsidiary kings. They are each equal to each other in power and rule over a single country within the continents.” She then held up the index finger of her other hand and placed it above the other. “They are all under my father, High King Ainmere, who presides over both continents. Both Tamarisch and Tintagal used to have a ruler for each of their countries, but one by one, my father conquered each of them and absorbed their land into his own kingdom. In fact, there is only one country in Tintagal that is not under his thumb.”

I nodded slowly. “I see.” I was somewhat impressed that Annalíse’s father had conquered so many countries in his lifetime and managed to spread his domain. It was a very pleasing concept to me, one I thought I might indulge in myself now that I was free of my dungeon.

“Alright, now that we’ve finished with our history lesson, let’s hear that explanation of yours,” Rana chimed in. “Why in the world you leave a cushy life in a castle filled with servants, fancy food, and basically anything you could ever want in this life? I mean being a princess is already pretty luxurious, but to be like the top princess, c’mon. There’s gotta be some perks there.”

“Of course there are privileges to being the daughter of the High King,” Annalíse rubbed at her forehead with a look of frustration, “but as a princess, there are particular things that are expected of me. I have certain… obligations that I’m expected to fulfill. Seeing as how I am my father’s only daughter, those obligations weigh even heavier upon me.”

“What do you mean by obligations?” I asked the princess.

Annalíse opened her mouth to speak but then shut it when the blonde woman with the apron returned with a large tray filled with food. The serving woman set down steaming plates of sizzling zendabii meat, vegetable soup, freshly baked bread, and ripe fruit. Carmedy’s eyes bulged at the feast, and she licked her lips greedily.

“Ooh, I’m starving,” the cat said as she piled her plate high with roasted zendabii and bread. The rest of us proceeded to serve ourselves and began to eat. For a few minutes, the only noise that came from our table was fervent chewing and the occasional clatter of dishes. Once we had tamed our hunger, we returned to our discussion.

“Explain this obligation that you spoke of,” Morrigan said to Annalíse as she raised her ale mug to her lips.

“Like other princesses, I’m expected to marry well.” Annalíse shook her head disapprovingly. “My mother calls them advantageous marriages.”

“So, you have to marry some royal rich pants, what’s the big deal?” Rana shrugged as she bit into an apple.

“It’s a big deal because I have no choice in the matter.” The female warrior frowned. “It’s not a simple matter of me only being allowed to marry someone of royal breeding, my husband is chosen for me.”

Carmedy scrunched her nose. “Well, that doesn’t sound very romantic. Falling in love is just supposed to happen on its own, you can force it.”

“It’s not about love, Carmedy, it’s about acquiring wealth, power, and territory,” Annalíse muttered as she gripped her ale mug tightly between her hands.

“So, you ran away from home because you disagreed with this?” I asked the swordswoman.

“Yes, but there’s more to it than that,” Annalíse said as she plucked a plump grape from the vine and turned it in her fingers for a moment before she popped it in her mouth. “My husband was recently chosen for me.”

“So, what, you don’t like the guy or something?” Rana put her elbow on the table and cradled her chin in her paw.

“That’s putting it mildly,” Annalíse grumbled. “For one thing, he’s old, even older than my father. He’s about thirty years older than I am, which unfortunately is common in royal marriages. For another, he’s a cruel man. He’s so vile and greedy that he’d give Alistair a run for his money.”

Rana raised an eyebrow. “Now that’s pretty disgusting, I didn’t even think that was possible.”

“I know, but his lands comprise the only country left in Tintagal that isn’t under my father’s rule,” Annalíse replied. “Not only that, it’s the largest country within the continent, almost as big as the whole of Tamarisch, and their army is quite large and impressive. Naturally, my father wants it, and rather than wage war and risk the loss of countless soldiers on both sides, he decided that joining our kingdoms through marriage would be a better choice.”

“Why would this other king agree to this and submit to your father?” I asked. “Wouldn’t he rather become the High King himself?” I know I would have, were I in his position.

“It is true the position of High King is highly coveted, but my father would not be so easily overthrown,” Annalíse explained. “The other king, Baoth, would have to enter into battle with our entire kingdom, and while his army would put up a good fight, ultimately, they would be defeated.”

The warrior shrugged. “My father so much as told him so. Baoth may be despicable, but he’s not stupid. Like my father he doesn’t want to lose so many soldiers. It was in his best interest to agree to this arrangement. Besides, along with my hand in marriage, my father offered him other things to sweeten the deal so to speak. It’s all been decided without a single word of mine.”

“Well, that’s not fair,” Carmedy said with a small frown.

“Did you not attempt to speak with your father on this matter and explain your misgivings?” Morrigan asked.

“I tried, but it didn’t make any difference,” Annalíse said with a note of anger in her voice. “He only lectured me on what my duties are as a princess and that I should be honored to take part in something of such high importance to our nation. I’m nothing more than a political pawn to him.”

“I don’t blame you for running away,” Rana said with a look of disgust.

“Neither do I,” I said gently. “You felt trapped. We all know the feeling.”

Morrigan, Rana, and Carmedy all nodded at my words.

“Exactly, I felt like I had no other choice,” Annalíse said with frustration plain on her face. “So that’s why I’ve been sneaking around. I knew that my father had sent soldiers to each of the continents to look for me and bring me back. The negotiations between Baoth and him can’t proceed until I’m brought home. I can only imagine how angry he is now that I’ve thrown a wrench in his plans.”

A small self-satisfied smile came to the princess’s lips as she spoke. The thought seemed to give her great pleasure.

“I have to ask though, how is it that you came to be trained to handle a sword?” I asked Annalíse. “I know that times have changed, but I can’t imagine that is common practice for a princess.”

“I was never one for fancy dresses and needlework and grand parties,” the freckled woman said with a twisted grin. “I have three older brothers, and when I was younger, I wanted to do everything that they did. I wrestled, I climbed trees, and I played in the mud, much to my mother’s dismay. But what I wanted most of all was to train to be a warrior as they did. Each of my brothers was taught to fight at a young age as is customary for royal sons in most any country. I, however, wasn’t permitted to join them. Instead, I was instructed on the finer points of art and music and social airs and graces.”

Carmedy tilted her head to one side. “What’s wrong with those things? They sound nice to me.”

“There’s nothing wrong with those things,” Annalíse said gently. “It’s just… it’s not what I wanted. My refusal to wear dresses and roughhousing was already problem enough to my parents, but to train with swords, they found it unacceptable. So, I used to sneak and watch the soldiers train. I’d study their movements and practice on my own in my room with one of my brother’s old toy wooden swords.”

The princess chuckled at the recollection. “One night, I decided that I wanted to practice on the training field like the others and use a real sword. So, I snuck out of bed and went down there thinking that there was no one around. I borrowed one of the swords that I’d seen my brothers train with and took some whacks at one of the practice dummies. I was only ten at the time, and of course, I wasn’t used to the weight of a real sword so my first few attempts didn’t go too well.”

“I can imagine,” I said with a smile.

“Well, it turns out that I wasn’t the only one there,” Annalíse continued. “I was caught by Kalon, the man responsible for training my father’s warriors. I was terrified, and I thought he was going to tell my father what I had done, but he didn’t. Instead, he critiqued me on my fighting and explained the mistakes I’d made. You see, he’d noticed me watching the training sessions many times before.”

A wistful smile played across the chestnut-haired woman's lips. “Kalon said I wasn’t too bad for someone who hadn’t had formal instruction, but that if I was willing to work hard, he could turn me into a true warrior. Every day after that, we’d train in secret after he’d finished with the soldiers and my brothers.”

“Every day?” Morrigan raised a white eyebrow in surprise.

“Yes.” Annalíse nodded. “I have wanted to become a warrior for as long as I could remember, and Kalon started me on that journey to becoming one. It would have been hard enough to find someone to train me. Most continents don’t allow women within their army’s ranks and being a princess only made it all the more difficult. I was grateful to Kalon and still am. And when this… business with my marriage to Baoth came up, I thought perhaps it was fate. I figured it was the perfect opportunity for me to go out into the world and become a great warrior.”

“That’s the spirit, princess.” Rana clapped Annalíse on the back. “You belong with us, out here conquering dungeons, not sitting on a throne next to some dusty old king.”

“That’s right,” Carmedy said with a giggle. “We’ll never let any of those soldiers take you away from us.”

“No, we certainly won’t,” I said conclusively, not hiding the dark tone in my voice, a promise of a violent end to any who would take my minion from me, and Morrigan nodded in agreement.

“I appreciate that,” Annalíse said and gave each of us a small smile. “And again, I’m truly sorry that I put you all in danger.”

“Eh, don’t sweat it. We know you didn’t mean for all that to happen.” Rana waved her paw casually. “Plus, I think I speak for all of us when I say we’re used to frequent danger. It’s kind of our thing now.”

“That is true.” Annalíse chuckled, and the rest of us laughed in agreement. As Rana continued to make her usual humorous remarks, the small woman with the apron came to clear away the dishes on our table.

“So, what’s for dessert?” Carmedy asked the blonde woman as she patted her belly with satisfaction.

“Carmedy, don’t be rude,” Annalíse hissed. “There are more polite ways to ask than that.”

“It’s no worry,” the woman with the apron said with a lyrical laugh. “There’s some peach cobbler in the kitchen, will that suit you all?”

“That’ll suit us just fine!” Carmedy rubbed her hands together excitedly. The server smiled and nodded her head and disappeared behind one of the doors.

“Thanks for speaking for all of us,” Rana said with a smirk. “I’m actually not too crazy about peach cobbler, it’s too sweet for my taste.”

“There’s no such thing as too sweet,” Carmedy gasped but then her expression shifted to a look of realization. “But, since you don’t like it, I’ll be happy to eat your piece for you.”

Rana rolled her eyes. “Gee, how gallant of you.”

“Just helping out a friend.” Carmedy giggled. The server returned within a few minutes and placed plates of thick cuts of pie before each of us. As the server walked away, Carmedy reached over and pulled Rana’s plate toward her.

“Thank you very much!” The cat licked her lips and began to dig into her dessert.

I laughed, shook my head, and then turned to face Annalíse. “Annalíse, all this talk of your father taking over other territories and extending his kingdom got me thinking that I would wish to do the same. I too want to form an empire and gradually spread my reign across each of the continents, and I think I will start with Valasara.”

“So now we’re not just conquering dungeons, we’re conquering the world one continent at a time?” Rana broke in with a wry grin. “I like the sound of that.”

“I recall you saying that you were afraid of the evil we would unleash upon the world if we freed Master,” Morrigan said, and the corner of her mouth turned up a bit as if she was fighting a smile.

“Oh?” Rana said as she bit her lip and glanced at me. “I don’t remember--”

“Ohhh! Ohhh! Ohhh!” Carmedy waved her hands in the air as pie crumbs cascaded out of her mouth. “I remember. Rana was all ‘I’m super grumpy. I don’t want a master. Even if he is really handsome, and dashing, and super evil, and has lots of treasure.’ Then Annalíse said ‘we should do it because he could have killed us at any time, but he seems nice, and I like his muscles and his long polearm because I’m a tough warrior woman who likes strong men.’ But then Morrigan was like ‘Ohhh, I’m a super scary dark witch, and Master is a super scary dark god. I want to give him my soul and learn how to make spooky ghost noises,’ but then Rana was all worried and said ‘I’ll go along, but he’s going to end up conquering all the realms and enslaving everyone. When that happens you should all remember that I told you so.’”

“I do not remember the part about me--” Morrigan began, but Annalíse cut her off.

“Yeah… that’s not a hundred percent correct, Carmedy.”

“I never said he was handsome!” Rana groaned. “You got it all wrong, kitty cat.”

“It’s right enough,” Annalíse laughed, and then she turned her eyes to me. “Let’s say you were going to take Valasara. What is your plan?”

“By ridding this kingdom of Alistair,” I said darkly.

The others blinked at me in surprise, but quick-witted Rana was the first to find her voice.

“I’m game,” she finally said. “That guy is a menace.”

“I am as well.” Annalíse nodded. “In the process, we’ll be helping Makar and the other people of Valasara as I already wished to do.”

“Me too!” Carmedy said gleefully through a mouthful of cobbler.

“As am I,” Morrigan said unenthusiastically, but her dark eyes flashed with a certain fierceness.

I nodded slowly, pleased to see my minions in agreement. “Good. Now, the first thing we need to do is find the location of the king’s palace.”

“Perhaps I can help with that,” Annalíse spoke up.

“How so?” I asked the princess as the rest of us turned to give her our attention.

“I’m sure you remember me telling Makar that I’ve been here before,” Annalíse began.

“Yes, I recall,” I urged her to continue.

“It was a few years ago. I traveled here with my family to visit the lord and lady of this city. Lady Tamsin quite liked me actually, and she said whenever I came to Ficcha next that I absolutely had to stay with them. I’m sure she’d be willing to help us.”

“Alright then, so we just need to go to this Lady Tamsin’s place so you can talk to her,” Rana said casually as she took a sip from her ale mug.

“I can’t be the one to go.” Annalíse shook her head. “Talking to her personally isn’t the best idea given my present circumstances. I don’t know if she, her husband, or their children are aware that I’ve run away and that my father’s soldiers are searching for me. If they are, someone may disclose my whereabouts. Even if they aren’t, I can’t risk it. Most likely my father would catch wind of my visiting, and we’ve already drawn enough attention today as it is.”

“So, what are we going to do then?” Carmedy cocked her head to one side.

“I’ll send just one of you to where Lady Tamsin lives, sending all of you together might look suspicious. Whoever goes will just need to say that they’re a friend of mine, and it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“That’s a good idea,” I said to the swordswoman. “So, who are you going to send then?” Annalíse bit her lip, and her eyes studied each of us.

“Sending a man might raise too many questions, so I can’t send you,” the princess said slowly as she looked at me. “Lady Tamsin is very kind, but she’s a bit nosy. She’d probably assume that we’re… more than friends and she’d ask about a lot of questions about who you are and how we met, and we don’t have time for all of that.” She coughed awkwardly and blushed a bit. “We’d have to make up some sort of backstory for you, which is still risky.”

“Understood.” I nodded. I found the unexpected bashfulness charming, particularly because Annalíse wasn’t easily embarrassed.

“I can’t send Carmedy…” The chestnut-haired woman’s voice trailed off as she watched the petite feline devour her dessert. Carmedy’s lips and cheeks were dotted with globs of peach syrup and somehow, she had even managed to get some of it in her short black hair.

“Aww, why can’t I go?” the green-eyed cat asked as she licked the crumbs from her fingers.

“Because you don’t exactly look like the type to hang out in Annalíse’s posh crowd.” Rana chuckled as she took in Carmedy’s less than pristine appearance.

“I’m afraid not,” Annalíse said with an apologetic smile.

“I’m not exactly a good fit for this mission either,” the fox continued. “I don’t talk like one of you bluebloods. You know me, I’d probably say something incorrectly, or I’d make some wisecrack and end up offending someone.” Rana laughed.

“Yes, I’m afraid that would draw unnecessary suspicion which means that you’re the best choice Morrigan,” Annalíse said as she turned to the elf.

“You choose me by because everyone else is an ill fit?” Morrigan said e as she raised a white eyebrow.

“No, well, yes, I’m not choosing you because you’re the only one left,” Annalíse said hurriedly. “Out of everyone else, Lady Tamsin would be most likely to believe that you’re a friend of mine because of the way that you speak and carry yourself.”

“You mean superior and condescending?” Rana elbowed Morrigan’s ribs playfully, and the elf gave her a look of displeasure.

“No.” Annalíse narrowed her eyes at the red-haired fox. “Composed and refined.”

“Oh, I-I see,” Morrigan stammered. She seemed a bit surprised by Annalíse’s compliment but nodded with approval. “I suppose I am indeed the most logical choice. I am after all of high elvish decent which is, of course, a higher standing than mortal royalty.”

“I was just teasing, elfy.” Rana waved her paw. “You don’t act superior or condescending… at least not as much as you used to,” the fox murmured the last bit under her breath.

“Thank you,” Morrigan said, “but I must insist that you refrain calling me this name.”

“C’mon, you know you love it,” Rana said in a sing-song voice which caused Morrigan to grimace.

“I think it’s a cute nickname,” Carmedy spoke as she chewed on another piece of her cobbler which sent crumbs flying across the table.

“Annalíse, why don’t you tell Morrigan where Lady Tamsin lives so that we can get that out of the way?” I interjected. “The sooner we find out, the sooner we can leave for Alistair’s palace.”

“Right.” Annalíse nodded. “If I recall the Lord and Lady’s castle is on the edge of the city.” The princess turned swordswoman began to explain to Morrigan how to get there. Rana pulled out a piece of paper and pencil from her pack, and together, she and Annalíse created a map for Morrigan to follow. Then she pulled out a thick golden ring and handed it to the elf-maiden.

“This is my signet ring,” Annalíse said. “She might not ask for it, but if she does, you can show her.”

“Very well,” Morrigan said. “I shall return within the hour. I shall leave Fea with you, should anything unexpected transpire so that I may communicate with you.” As the white-haired elf spoke, Fea leapt from her shoulder and fluttered down to rest on Annalíse’s. With that, Morrigan left the Golden Lamb and sought out Lady Tamsin.

“So, once we find out where that creep lives, what’s the plan?” Rana asked as she leaned back in her chair andsignaled for the server to bring us another round of drinks.

“The next step is to gather intelligence on how to infiltrate the palace,” I replied. “Naturally, it’s going to be heavily guarded, so we’ll need to figure out the best way to go about getting in.”

Rana wiggled her eyebrows. “Now that sounds like a job for me.”

“But how will you find out that kind of information?” Annalíse asked. “The people here aren’t going to give up that sort of information willingly for fear of retribution. Besides, something like that isn’t going to be known to your common everyday citizen.”

Our group grew quiet when the small woman with the apron came over to bring us fresh mugs of ale. Once she had left the room once more, we resumed our conversation.

“I know that,” Rana said with a glance to the door the server had disappeared behind. “That’s why I’m going to discover this city’s seedy underbelly. I’m sure there are some low lives around here that will tell me what I need to know, for the right price of course.”

The fox-tailed woman’s lips twisted into a grin. “Just about any tidbit of information can be bought if you’ve got the money. We’ve got plenty of money to bargain with, so it shouldn’t be a problem. While I’m at it, I can see if there’s anything I can scrape up regarding the sacred objects.”

“Sounds like a plan.” I nodded to the fox.

“How long do you think this will take?” Annalíse leaned forward on her elbows.

“Hard to say.” Rana shrugged. “Most likely it’s not just going to take a few hours though. I have to do some digging, find out who’s the go-to for stuff like this, talk to a guy who knows a guy, you know what I mean?”

“We can’t just stay here while you’re doing all of this though.” Annalíse furrowed her brow. “Don’t forget we still have another dungeon to travel to.”

“Perhaps Rana can remain here in Ficcha until she finds out what we need to know while the rest of us go on to the next dungeon,” I suggested. “Then she can catch up with us later. Morrigan can leave one of her ravens to communicate.” I nodded to Fea who was still perched on Annalíse’s shoulder.

“That could work, divide and conquer,” Rana said as she gave me a friendly punch on the shoulder.

“Aw, I’m gonna miss you, Rana,” Carmedy said with a slight pout as she dug into her third slice of cobbler.

“I won’t be gone long, pussycat.” Rana laughed as she playfully tugged at the feline’s furry black ears. “It’ll only be a day or so, and I’ll be back before you know it.”

“Okay,” Carmedy said quietly, but there was still a somber look in her green eyes.

“Think of it this way, Carmedy, we won’t have to hear Rana’s whining about the heat for a whole day,” Annalíse said with a twisted grin, and the fox rolled her eyes.

“That’s true,” Carmedy covered her mouth as she giggled.

“Yeah, yeah, that’s enough of that,” Rana said mockingly. “You know you’ll miss me too, princess.”

“Maybe, but then again, I think I’ll enjoy the peace and quiet,” Annalíse said with a mischievous look in her eye.

We settled into a companionable silence as the remained of the hour passed. Just as she had predicted, Morrigan returned at the end of that hour, almost to the second, and walked over to our table.

“So, did Lady Tamsin tell you where Alistair’s palace is?” I asked as the tattooed woman sat down beside me. Fea flapped over to her and rested on her shoulder as Morrigan took a long sip from my ale mug before she spoke.

“Yes, after a rather lengthy discussion,” the white-haired elf said with a look of exasperation. “That woman talks unceasingly and asked me several questions about my homeland and my family. You were right to send me of course. She was quite impressed when I told her of my descent, but her incessant questions were--”

“Morrigan, the palace?” I interrupted the elf’s rant.

“Yes, my apologies, Master.” Morrigan bowed her head slightly before she continued. “Fortunately for us, the king’s palace is approximately a day’s journey beyond the next dungeon. So, we may stop there before proceeding to the palace without going out of our way.”

“That’s perfect.” Annalíse nodded and quickly told Morrigan of our plan to leave Rana behind in Ficca to gather information.

“I find this to be an agreeable strategy,” the pale elf said flatly.

“Then it’s all settled,” I said.

“There is one more thing,” Morrigan spoke up again. “Amidst Lady Tamsin’s endless chattering, she informed me that the next dungeon is a sort of oasis.”

“You mean like there’s water around the dungeon?” Carmedy tilted her head to one side.

“No, the dungeon lies beneath the water,” Morrigan said darkly, and the others blinked in surprise.

“Of course, it does.” Rana threw her paws in the air. “We’ve experienced a dungeon with a labyrinth teetering over a sea of lava, a dungeon with an entire forest not to mention a whole ‘nother sun inside of it, and our most recent adventure was with walking meat puppets. Why wouldn’t there be an underwater dungeon?”

“Not everyone is aware that the dungeon is within the oasis,” Morrigan continued without acknowledging Rana’s comments. “Some have passed by it all together, while others are said to have been lured into the water and never seen again.”

“What do you mean?” Carmedy said with fear in her eyes.

“Lady Tamsin said that people have told tales of water demons enchanting passersby with their voices,” Morrigan went on. “They lure them to the water’s edge and pull them beneath the waves. Strange as it may be, only humans seem to be affected by their songs.” The elf pointedly glanced in Annalíse’s direction.

“Oh, well, we don’t have to worry about that because none of us are--” Carmedy started to say, but then she too looked at Annalíse. “Oops, sorry I forgot.”

“Was Lady Tamsin certain of this?” I questioned Morrigan.

“Indeed, she has heard several accounts, some of which came from personal friends,” the white-haired woman replied. “It seems that those who were unaffected either left their human companions to perish or they themselves perished attempting to save them.”

“I see,” I mumbled as I mulled Morrigan’s words over in my head.

“There has to be a way around this.” Annalíse placed her hand on the table determinedly.

“Perhaps it would be best for you to stay behind with Rana,” Morrigan proposed.

“No, that wouldn’t be wise.” Annalíse shook her head. “Given what happened today with those soldiers, it’s better if I move on.”

“But you can’t just waltz in there and let water demons serenade you into a watery grave,” Rana said with a smirk. “What are you gonna do, put your hands over your ears?”

Carmedy suddenly looked up from her dessert and snapped her fingers. “Not cover them, plug them!”

“What are you talking about, Carmedy?” Annalíse said somewhat dubiously.

“If you plug your ears with candle wax when we get there, you won’t have to worry about those nasty water demons,” the cat said. With a confident smile, she scraped up the last traces of cobbler off her plate with her fork and licked the eating utensil clean.

“That’s an excellent idea,” I said to the petite feline. “Candle wax will most certainly do the trick.

“That’s great, but how are we going to travel beneath the water?” Annalíse chimed in. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I can only hold my breath for about a minute or so, and I think it’s going to take a little longer than that to conquer the dungeon.”

“Don’t worry about that, you just leave that to me and Master,” the cat said with a wink.

Chapter 13

We left the dining room of the inn shortly after and went up to our rooms. We were all staying on the third floor of the building, but as we walked together, we passed a sign indicating the bathing rooms.

“Ohhh, I could really go for a scrub,” Rana said as she nodded her head at the sign on the doors.

“As could I,” Annalíse said, and both Carmedy and Morrigan nodded.

“Let me check it out,” the fox-girl said, and she opened the door, peeked her head inside, andthen turned around with a wide smile. “Two doors. One for men, and one for women.”

“Is there not a water shortage?” Morrigan asked, and one of her crows let out an annoyed cackle.

“Maybe it is just showers.” Rana shrugged. “Either way, I feel like I carrying ten pounds of sand on my tail. I’m going to see what’s going on.”

The rest of us followed her through the door, and then I went left through the men’s entrance while the four women went right through the woman’s door.

The men’s bathing area was thirty-feet wide by forty-feet long. On one side there was a cedar bench with a stack of buckets at the nearest end. On the other side of the room was a long tile tub that looked like it was wide enough to fit six or so people. Each side of the wall hand pump faucets arranged, but a sign hung above them with words inscribed in various languages. One set of writing I recognized as “Please do not waste water,” and I nodded to myself at the recommendation.

“Awww! The water doesn’t work!” Rana cried from the next room, and both Annalíse and Carmedy let out loud groans.

I walked over to my nearest pump and pushed down the lever a few times. Sure enough, my pump didn’t work, and I shook my head with a bit of disappointment.

But then an idea came to me, and I cleared my throat.

“Minions, I have a solution to our problem,” I shouted near the wall. “Might I come over to your side?”

“What’s your solution?” Rana asked, and her voice was filled with skepticism.

“Just come over,” Annalíse said. “We haven’t taken our clothes off or anything.”

I exited the men’s side and then walked over to the women’s area. Their bathroom looked similar to mine, except the tile had a bit of a rose hue, and there was an additional seating bench.

“What’s your plan, devil man?” Rana asked as she crossed her hands over her chest.

“Observe,” I said as I reached toward the large tub and let a bit of my power trickle through my form. A few moments later a small pool of water appeared at the bottom of the tub, and then the four women gasped when a human sized figure reached a hand out of the pool, grabbed the side of the tile, and then pulled itself up into the tub as if it was pulling itself out of a portal to another dimension. Its body was made out of shiny reflective water, but its eyes glowed a deep red.

“What the heck is that?” Rana gasped, and I heard her pull her daggers out of her belt. The other women also stepped away, but I waved my hands toward them to indicate it was okay.

“It is a minor water elemental,” I stated. “They can be difficult for mortals to control, but it is almost effortless for me. The real issue is the environment where you summon them since they tend to leak through soil and sand.”

As I spoke, water poured from the being’s body and slowly began to fill the tub, with in a minute, the pool was about half-filled, and Carmedy hesitantly moved to the side so that she could dip a finger in.

“It’s cold,” she said after she touched the liquid.

“I have a plan for that as well, my minion,” I said. “Do not worry.”

“Wow, we have the best Master ever,” the cat-girl giggled, and then she ran to get some buckets from the other side of the room.

The tub soon filled to the brim, and I gestured toward the wall that separated the two bathing spaces. “Go fill up the next tub, and then return to your dimension, servant.”

The elemental nodded, and then stepped out of the pool with a wet plop. A few moments later, it had moved to the next room, and I walked to the edge of the large bathtub.

Then I reached my hand into the clean water and called upon the barest fraction of my powerful fire magic. A small smile crossed my lips as the heat flowed from my outstretched hand and into the water. A normal person probably would not have had the level of control required to heat water this way, but for me, it was as simple as breathing.

“Okay, I’m impressed,” Rana said when the water began to steam.

“Of all the feats our master has performed, this is the one that impresses you the most?” Morrigan asked as she raised an eyebrow.

“What can I say? I like baths!” Rana laughed, and then she carefully reached her hand into the water. “This feels great.”

“Good,” I said as I pulled my hand from the now steaming bath. “I will now do the same for my bath. See you all when we finish.”

“Thank you, Master,” Morrigan said as she bowed her head.

“Yes! Thank you, Master!” Carmedy clapped.

“Thank you, Master,” Annalíse repeated.

“Yeah, that was useful.” Rana rolled her eyes at the other women, and then she moved to unbutton her armor. Then she seemed to realize that I was watching her, and her cheeks turned a bit red before she turned away from me.

But she didn’t ask me to leave.

I did leave though, and by the time I made it to my bathing area, the elemental had just about finished filling my tub. Once he was done, I gestured him away with a wave of my hand, then warmed the water using my power. Five minutes later I was finished lathering up with soap and had rinsed myself off with a bucket of steaming hot water. Now I was soaking in the tub, andas I lay there letting my muscles relax, I heard my four minions let out loud groans of satisfaction.

“I love Master,” Carmedy sighed. “He takes such good care of us.”

“He does,” Morrigan agreed.

“Why didn’t he tell us he could summon water whenever he wanted?” Rana whispered, though I could still hear her. “We were all worried about traveling across the desert with such a small supply, and--”

“Why do you give him such a hard time?” Annalíse whispered back. “He’s done nothing but help us.”

“Since he imprisoned us in his dungeon,” Rana hissed.

“You said you wanted to help him defeat the king here,” Annalíse replied. “Also, you like him, so stop pretending.”

“I don’t ‘like’ him,” Rana huffed. “I’m just not in love with him like you three are.”

“I never said I loved him,” Annalíse replied.

“I’ve seen the way you look at him,” Rana said, and her voice held a twinge of amusement. “You don’t have to hide it.”

“You look at him the same way,” Annalíse scoffed. “And I’ve never hidden my feelings. I’m just more reserved because of my upbringing.” A listfulness had entered her voice as she’d spoken, but it disappeared when she seemed to realize where she was. “Anyway, as I said before, it’s obvious you ‘like’ him, so you may as well stop being mean to him.” Her voice turned questioning. “Or are you trying to woo him by being mean to him?”

“Look, just because I don’t bat my eyelids at him like a love sick--”

“Well, I love Master,” Carmedy said. “He gets me all the food I want, and scratches me behind the ears, and… I dunno. He makes me happy to be around. He’s protected us and--”

“And you love everything.” Rana laughed. “That’s why you are so cute.”

“Awwww,” Carmedy giggled. “Thanks Rana, that’s nice of you to say.”

“See, Annalíse, I can be plenty nice--”

“I also love Master,” Morrigan said suddenly. “He has taught me many useful things.”

“Of course you do,” Rana laughed. “You are making ghost noises with him every night.”

“You seem jealous,” the elf replied flatly.

“I’m not,” Rana huffed.

“He is excellent at that as well,” the sorceress said. “You should allow him to pleasure you. It will probably adjust your negative attitude.”

“I don’t have a negative attitude,” Rana huffed, and then I heard her take a deep breath. There was silence for a few minutes before Rana spoke again. “I’m sorry. I know he’s nice. I’ve just been betrayed before, and I--”

“We get it,” Annalíse said knowingly. “We’ve all been hurt.”

“For the longest time, I’ve only trusted you three,” Rana continued. “I’d trust you with my life, and I know I can trust Master as well. I just wish we knew more about him.”

“He’ll tell us, in time,” Morrigan said. “I think it is less likely that he is keeping secrets and that he is simply so far beyond us that he does not think to tell us. Every single time I have asked him something, he has told me.” I heard her shift around in the water. “So, if you wish to know more about him, you should simply ask him. He will likely appreciate your interest.”

“Yeah, Carmedy piped in. “Master is always so kind and thoughtful when he asks us things. It’s like he truly wants to get to know us.”

“Yeah, well...”  Rana laughed. “I guess I just fear super powerful magic guys. I’m worried about my family. I need to find these sacred items or--”

“Master will help you!” Carmedy interrupted. “He said he would. We’ll help you too.”

“I know,” Rana sighed. “Sorry. I’m trying to be nicer to him.”

“I think he knows that,” Annalíse said. “Honestly, we are lucky he took pity on us and made us his minions. We were way out of our league trying to take out dungeons by ourselves. Now we have plenty of money, and a nice hot bath.”

“Cheers to a hot bath,” Rana grunted, and then they grew silent again.

I leaned back in the water and let my mind wander a bit. Each of my minions delighted me in their own way, and while Rana had been a bit of a tough nut to crack, I knew she was coming around. She admitted to trusting me, so it was only a matter of time before she also admitted to loving me.

I cooked in the bath for another ten minutes, and then I dried myself off, gathered my clothes, and went to my room. I heard the women exit the bath as I was walking out the door, and I guessed that they would soon adjourn to each of their rooms.

A few minutes later, I was in my own room and inspecting my armor. The dark metal was nearly impossible to damage, but it never hurt to ensure that my equipment was in perfect working order. After I found no damage, I examined God Slayer, and then retracted the blades into the haft.

A knock sounded at my door, and I guessed that it was Morrigan coming to spend the night with me. Instead, I opened the door to find Carmedy carrying several sheets in her hands.

“Hello Master!” She giggled, and her smile was bright enough to light up cold winter day. “I’m ready!”

“Ready?” I asked.

“Yep!” she said as she walked into my room carrying the sheets. “I’m a little nervous still, but Morrigan said I would have a good time, and that I shouldn’t worry.”

“Worry?” I asked, and I couldn’t hide the confusion on my voice.

“For the ghost noises?” she asked me as the smile faded from her face. “You said you would teach me. Remember?”

“Oh,” I chuckled, and then I closed the door behind her.

“I went to Morrigan’s room, since I didn’t know if you were going to practice in her room or yours, but she said that she could take a night off so that I could just practice with you.”

“She said that?” I asked as I raised my eyebrows.

“Yep!” Carmedy nodded. “Then I asked if we needed costumes, and she said that you and her normally ‘practiced between the sheets,’ so… yeah.”

“I am amused,” I chuckled, and I imagined the pale elf trying not to laugh as she directed the cat-girl to come to my chambers.

Carmedy had no idea what she was getting into, but I would soon show her.

“Oh, she said it would be lots of fun, and that I should relax, let you work, and enjoy yourself.”

“Interesting,” I said.

“Yep. Morrigan is so nice. I know she likes practicing with you, but she didn’t seem upset at all to just let me work with you alone. I do have to admit that I’m a little scared though.”

“Carmedy,” I began as I reached up to scratch her behind the ear. “I think you have been slightly mistaken.”

“Oh.” The cat-girl’s eyes met mine, and her tail drooped. “You aren’t going to teach me?”

“Let me explain,” I said as I gestured for her to sit next to me on my bed.

“Sure,” she said, but she was having a hard time fighting her frown.

“The noises you heard were not Morrigan and I practicing spooky ghost noises,” I said.

“They weren’t?” she asked as she tilted her head to the side.

“No. They were the sounds of Morrigan and I making love.”

Carmedy blinked five times in a row and then her mouth opened in an “O” shape.

“Ohhhhhhh,” she said, andher cheeks began to turn bright red. “Ohhhhh! I’m so dumb! So sorry, Master! Eeeek!”

The cat-girl’s face was almost as red as a fire now, and she pressed her hands up to her eyes as she let out a nervous giggle. “Of course that’s what you both were doing! I’m so stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid Carmed--”

“You aren’t stupid,” I interrupted her as I pulled her hands away from her blushing face. “You are incredibly intelligent.”

“I am?” she asked.

“Of course,” I said. “Think of all the unique potions, powders, and herbal concoctions that you expertly craft. I doubt there are many in the world who could do that.”

“Well, I have practiced a bunch,” she said. “I dunno if that means I am smart. I know I’m kind of scatterbrain--”

“You think about your work constantly,” I said. “It is what distracts you from the mundane things around us. Still, you are there for your friends when they need you, Carmedy, and you never let your friends down. I am your all-powerful master, so believe me when I tell you that you have an incredible genius.”

“Awww, thanks,” the cat-girl said as she let out a long sigh. “That really makes me feel good. I’m super embarrassed that I didn’t realize that you and Morrigan were together.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I chuckled, and then I reached up to smooth the hair away from her cheek. Then my fingers moved behind her cat-ear again, and I started to scratch where I knew she liked me to scratch.

“Hmmm,” she sighed, blinked her eyes a few times, and then leaned into my shoulder. “I guess I should go back to my room. I was looking forward to learning how to make ghost noises. I’m so silly sometimes. Master, thank you for putting up with me.”

“You aren’t going back to your room,” I said. “I intend to make love to you tonight.”

“Wahhhh?” she gasped and then pulled away from my shoulder so that she could gawk at me.

“Yes.” I smiled at her. “Did you not say you wanted to learn how to make ghost noises?”

“Well, yeah,” she said, “but you’re with Morrigan, and she--”

“Told you to come to me,” I said as my fingers traced down her ear and teased the ties on the back of her dress. “She is your friend, and she knows you love me. She wants us to have pleasure together.”

“She does?” Carmedy’s green eyes opened wide.

“Of course,” I said. “Why else would she send you?”

“Huh,” the cat-girl mused. “She did have a funny grin on her face when she handed me the sheets. Now that I think about it, I thought she was just happy that she got a bath, but I think she wanted this. It doesn’t seem like she was trying to play a trick on me...”

“Morrigan doesn’t play tricks,” I said as I pulled on her dress tie. The cord came undone, but the maid-looking outfit still clung to her shoulders.

“Yeah,” Carmedy agreed. “Especially not on her friends. Especially not on you, Master.”

“Exactly,” I said as I traced my fingers up along her back and then moved to her shoulder. Her skin was smooth, creamy, and warm to my touch.

“But, but, but, but,” Carmedy stuttered when I touched her shoulder. “Master, I do love you, but I don’t know how to make love.”

“I will teach you,” I whispered as I leaned into her neck.

“I just don’t want to disappoint you,” she whispered, and then my lips touched the base of her neck where it met her shoulder, and she let out a small gasp of surprise.

Then her gasp turned onto a purr when my tongue began to trace small circles on her skin.

“You won’t disappoint me,” I whispered after I had kissed down her shoulder and pulled her dress away. “Just relax your body, and let it do what it naturally wants to do.”

“I’ll try, Master,” Carmedy said, and then her lips found mine as I pulled her dress down.

Her breasts were full in my hands, and her nipples hard when my fingers traced along them. After our tongues had danced together for a few moments, I brought my mouth down her chest so that I could explore her with my mouth. Carmedy gasped with delight when I kissed, sucked, and licked her nipples, and her fingers moved to take off the shirt that I had donned after my bath.

She had on a small pair of lacey underwear, with a hole cut out of the back for her tail. She wiggled her hips from side to side to assist me in sliding them off her, but then she moved her hands to cover up her vagina.

Her bashfulness only made her more alluring, and I traced my mouth, lips, and tongue across the skin of her thighs, hips, and stomach until each of her breaths were coming out in frantic pants.

Then I pulled her hand away from her womanhood and gently pushed her down on my bed. She had a small triangle-shaped patch of black hair above her vagina, and her lips already looked aroused.

“Just let the pleasure come,” I said as I kissed down her flat tummy.

“That feels so good, Master,” she whispered, but then my tongue slid around the small pearl-sized nub of flesh at the top of her womanhood, and a loud moan escaped her mouth.

“Ohhhh!” she gasped again. “Ohhhh! I made the ghost sou-- Ohhh!”

My tongue continued to work on her, and her body gently twisted on my bed as she tried to contain her pleasure. As I licked, I moved my hands up and down her naked body, and eventually found myself playing with her nipples while she groaned. When I looked up into her face, I saw that her eyes were wild, opened wide, and staring at me with absolute adoration.

Then she bit the side of her hand as the first orgasm slammed into her.

“Mmmmmuhhhh,” Carmedy growled as her hips bucked, and her eyes rolled back into her head.

I held onto her and continued the movements with my tongue while she thrashed against me, but I was careful to stop licking her as soon as it seemed she had peaked. Once she had, I gave her a few long and slow licks, and then pulled my mouth away.

For a few moments, Carmedy had trouble catching her breath, and I caressed her hips with my fingers to help her calm down. She finally managed to gain control over herself, and a long exhale left her body with a small afterquake of an orgasm.

“Master,” she whispered as she opened her big eyes to stare at me. “That was… that was… It was wonderful.”

“I’m glad you liked it,” I said as I stepped away from the bed and began to pull down my pants, I was soon naked, and the cat-girl’s eyes focused on my penis as if it was the largest piece of cake she had ever seen.

“That will fit inside of me?” she asked with equal parts awe and hunger.

“Yes,” I said, “You are very wet. Can you get on your hands and knees?”

“Yes, Master,” Carmedy agreed, and then she flipped over on the bed so that she was on her knees with her hands pressed into one of the pillows on the bed. Her ass faced in my direction, and her tail swung from side to side like a lazy pendulum.

Then Carmedy looked back at me, and she bit her lower lip as I moved to grab her hips.

“Oh, Master,” she sighed as soon as my tip pressed between her vaginal lips. Then she moaned when I slowly slid inside of her.

I felt her hymen give me a small bit of resistance, so I pulled out a bit before easing back into her. Then I repeated the movement a few times before pressing past the tightness. The cat-girl inhaled a sharp breath when I penetrated her with my entire length, but then her body relaxed, and she pressed her ass back into me.

“Master, you are inside of me,” Carmedy gasped.

“Yes, Carmedy,” I replied as I slowly began to thrust.

“It… it… it feels so good.” She accented every word with a pant that turned into a half-purr.

“It feels very good,” I agreed, and my own voice was a moan.

“I didn’t think it would feel this amazing,” Carmedy gasped. “Morrigan was so nice to let me do this. I can’t wait to thank her.”

“Just focus on this for now,” I laughed, and then I pulled her hips a bit so that she would adjust to my rhythm. She did so, and our words became moans, gasps, and cries of pleasure for the next hour or so.

I ensured that Carmedy orgasmed half a dozen times before I allowed myself my own climax, and then we lay on our together on my bed afterward basking in the glow of our pleasure.

“That was wonderful, Master,” she purred in my ear once we had taken a few minutes to recover.

“I’m glad you enjoyed yourself,” I said, and then I gently kissed her full lips.

“I almost can’t believe it,” she giggled. “Yay! You are such a great master, and I love you so much. Ohhh. The feeling of your warm cream inside of me… it makes me feel all sweet and stuffed and warm and cozy and wonderful.”

“Well, if that is--” I started to say, but she continued talking.

“I really hope I have cute babies! Oh. My. Gosh. They would be the cutest ever. But the best part will be when I’m pregnant. I’ll have so much fun!”

“I actually did not put any seed in my--”

“I’ll be able to eat so much delicious food!” she continued. “That’s the best part. When a woman is pregnant, she can be all like ‘I need to eat this chocolate pastry; it’s for the baby, don’t you know.’ and then I can say ‘ohhh, of course I’ll have an extra helping of carrot cake. My baby needs all the vitamins and minerals in those carrots.’ But then I can also be like ‘Look at how big my belly is! It’s because my baby is healthy, not because I’ve just eaten thirteen donuts in the last half-hour. What kind of donut do I prefer? Well I love the cream-filled ones because it reminds me of when Master makes love to me, and fills me with his seed, but I really like jelly filled, or the ones with rainbow sprinkles on top.’”

“Carmedy, I don’t think people will want to know about--” I started to say, but the beautiful cat-girl had now propped herself up on my chest and was gesturing with her other hand while she continued with her monologue.

“No one will say ‘Carmedy, you can’t eat all that food. You are going to get a tummy ache.’ Instead, they will be all like ‘We can’t wait to meet your baby, Carmedy, here is a delicious snack for you to enjoy. Do you want more? That’s great! We’ll feed you all the delicacies that you want. What are you going to name him or her?’ And do you know what I will tell them, Master?”

“Uhhh, no, I--”

“Well, if we have a boy, I’ll name him ‘Hot Dog,’ since that is one of my favorite foods, but if we have a girl… Ohhh! I just don’t know what we’d name her. There are so many great names. I really like ‘Cinnamon,’ but maybe we can call her Chocolate, or ‘Vanilla’-- ohhh, ‘Vanilla’ kind of sounds like a boy name though, but it could work for a girl. Maybe ‘Sugar?’ I like that name, and I love sugar so much. But maybe it should be more sophisticated since you are a great and powerful Master. How about ‘Dark Chocolate?’ Ohhhh, I like the sound of that. I hope she has your red eyes, they are so pretty, but speaking of eyes, I maybe we should name her ‘Cupcake’ because I really love cupcakes, and they can come in all sorts of different flavors, and have lots of different toppings.

“How did eyes remind you of cupcake--” I started to ask, but the cat-girl was beyond excited now, and I knew there was no stopping here.

“Maybe she’ll have brown hair, and I can call her ‘Peanut Butter Brownie.’ I know it is a long name, but again, you are a Grand Master, and I think your offspring should have a long and prestigious name. Maybe we can call her ‘PBB’ for short. I also really like tarts, but that seems like too short of a name for someone, so maybe we can call her ‘Lemon Tart,’ or ‘Raspberry Lemon Tart,’ I ate one of those a year or so ago before I had met Rana, Morrigan, and Annalíse. They were so yummy.”

Carmedy now rested both of her elbows on my chest, and her eyes were glazed over. I guessed she imagined either a small child or a table full of deserts. The words continued to pour out of her mouth, but while part of my mind listened her plan for our child’s name, the other part of me contemplated how much I adored the eager cat girl. She was so carefree, honest, and grateful for everything in her life, and I realized that I never wanted to go a day without her.

Nor did I want to go a day without Morrigan, or Annalíse, or Rana.

The centuries of solitude and anger had made my heart grow cold, but now I knew that I cared deeply for my minions, and I wanted them all to be happy.

I wanted them all to be happy with me.

“Carmedy?” I asked, and somehow my questioning voice interrupted her explanation of why she thought ‘Blue Berry Ice Cream’ was a better name for our baby than ‘Strawberry Ice Cream’.

“Yes, Master?” she asked.

“Do you really wish to carry my child?” I asked.

“Oh yes.” She nodded, and her eyes filled with adoration as she looked at my face.

“Morrigan also wants to bear me a child,” I said.

“Oh,” Carmedy said, and her face fell a bit.

“No,” I chuckled. “That doesn’t mean you cannot have the opportunity. As far as I am concerned, you can both carry my offspring.”

“Ohhhh!” she said as her face lit up. “Then we can eat all the yummy sweets together, and we can pat each other’s bellies, and say ‘your tummy looks so good and beautiful, your baby is going to be so wonderful, and I can’t wait for our babies to play together. Oh. My. Gosh. They will be siblings. Does that mean that Morrigan and I will be sisters? She’s so sophisticated and pretty. I think that I’d be all shy introducing her to everyone as my sister because--’”

“Please let me finish,” I chuckled, and Carmedy gave me a meek grin.

“Yes, Master.”

“We have much work to do,” I continued. “I have complete control over my body, so while I filled you, there is no seed, and you will not become pregnant from tonight’s pleasurable activities.”

“But?” she asked as she bit her lip with anticipation.

“When we have conquered all the dungeons we need, and increased my power to fulfill my ends. Then I will give you a child to nurture and love as much as you love me, Annalíse, Morrigan, Rana, and food. In the meantime, I need you to perfect your alchemy arts, improve your combat prowess, to serve me faithfully, and make love with me often. Will you commit to that agreement?”

“Yes, Master,” Carmedy purred as she threw herself down on my chest and hugged me. “Yes. I will do all those things. I don’t even need to think about it. I am so happy right now. Thank you for being so kind to me.”

“Of course,” I said as I wrapped my arms around her. “Now let us sleep.”

I waited for Carmedy’s response, but she didn’t then I leaned my head down a bit so that I could look at her face.

She was already asleep, and a wide smile was painted on her face as she dozed.

“Good night, my beautiful cat-girl,” I whispered, and then I joined her in slumber.

Chapter 14

The next morning, we said our goodbyes to Rana along with Fea and Anu at the Golden Lamb and set out for the next dungeon. As we rode through the sandy streets of Ficcha atop our riding lizards, the bustling and noises and smells of the city gradually began to fade away. Before long, we were back in the untamed desert and with it, the extreme heat, since the sun was no longer kept at bay by the shade of the tall buildings. Carmedy passed around salve and cooling powders for each of us, and just like before, we each opted to save them for later.

As Carmedy handed me my leaf of mint-scented pink powder, she gave me a wide smile, batted her eyelashes at me, and then blushed when I returned her smile. We didn’t speak of last night, but it was clear that she was delighted with the progression of our relationship.

“It’s a lot quieter without a certain fox around,” Annalíse joked after we had traveled mostly in silence.

I thought of Rana, and a smile came to my lips. Annalíse had been right, it was indeed much quieter without the smart-mouthed fox. I had grown used to her quick-witted remarks, and now that she was gone, I realized how much I missed them and her. Her unfiltered comments and unique sense of humor always seemed to make long stretches of travel time go by more quickly. I knew that it was best that Rana stayed behind in Ficcha, since she was most suited for gathering intelligence on Alistair’s castle defenses, but I still couldn’t help but wish that the red-headed woman was here with us, complaining about how miserable the heat was or telling us how lost we would have gotten without her.

The hours crawled by, and the sun climbed higher and higher into the sky. I was thankful for the salve and the cooling powders that Carmedy had concocted as the heat was even more relentless than it had been yesterday. As we continued our desert journey, we only came upon two men riding on camels toward Ficcha. Other than them, we encountered no other signs of life.

“Are we almost there?” Carmedy moaned after several hours had passed.

“We should be soon,” Annalíse said as she looked down at the compass Rana had leant her. “It should only be another hour or so.”

“Are you certain that we are traveling in the right direction?” Morrigan said to Annalíse.

“Yes, Rana said the next dungeon is just a straight shot from Ficcha,” Annalíse reminded the elf as she raised a hand to her eyes and looked at the terrain ahead of us. “As long as I keep the needle pointed north, we’ll be fine. According to Rana, it’s so easy, even we can handle it on our own.”

“I’m glad that Rana is so confident in our abilities,” I said with a dry chuckle.

Annalíse turned around in her seat to look back at Carmedy and me. “She thinks we’re so helpless without her. Wait till she hears that we got to the dungeon with no trouble at all.”

“She’ll be so proud of us,” Carmedy giggled.

“If I know Rana, she probably won’t believe us,” I said with a dry chuckle. “She’ll probably say that we wandered around aimlessly for hours before we got there.”

“That’s true.” Carmedy giggled.

With the compass in hand, Annalíse did, however, take us in the right direction, and just as she had said, we arrived at the oasis within the hour. What Lady Tamsin had told Morrigan was indeed true. All that lay before us was a large body of water surrounded by palm trees. The hot desert winds caused the palm fronds to sway and sent ripples across the water. It was quiet here, almost peaceful.

“While we are here, it would be wise to take advantage of the oasis and replenish our water supply,” Morrigan said as she removed a few of the water skins from the sand sled attached to Tiberius.

“It’s a shame about those water demons.” Carmedy shook her head as she climbed down from Xerxes’ back. “If it wasn’t for them, maybe the people in Valasara could use this oasis as a source for water. Then again, maybe they tried and they ended up getting dragged down there.” The cat glanced over at the body of water.

“Speaking of which, Annalíse, you better put that candle wax in your ears,” I said as I turned to the freckled woman, but I spoke a few seconds too late. Annalíse had already fallen under the spell of the water demons.

While the rest of us had been talking with one another, the princess had dismounted from Scylla’s back and had started to walk toward the water slowly. Though I didn’t hear anything myself, Annalíse had become entranced by the water demons’ song. Their siren calls only affected humans just as Lady Tamsin had said, and while I looked human, this body I had formed was immune to such frivolous powers.

Annalíse’s arms hung limply at her sides as her feet dragged forward through the sand. The swordswoman’s expression was blank, and her brown eyes seemed void of life. Her head slacked to one side, and her mouth gaped open as she continued to shuffle toward the water.

“Carmedy, where is the candle wax?” I called to the petite cat as I rushed to stop Annalíse.

“Oh, uh, it’s in the pocket of Annalíse’s robes,” Carmedy cried back as she pointed at the female warrior.

Fortunately, I could run far faster than she could shuffle, and as soon as I reached Annalíse, I grabbed hold of her wrist and reached into her pocket. The stubs of candle wax were there just as Carmedy had said, and I quickly stuffed one of them into Annalíse’s ears. Even as I held on to her, the human woman continued to try to move forward toward the water and the voices that called out to her.

No sooner had I plugged Annalíse’s other ear than the freckled woman’s eyes fluttered, and she broke out of her trance. She looked around at us with a slightly dazed look and shook her head fervently as though to shake away any remaining traces of the strange magic.

“Boy, that was a close one,” Carmedy breathed. “I didn’t think the water demons would try to lure us in so soon.”

“They certainly do not waste any time,” Morrigan said with a slight frown.

“I could hear the water demons,” Annalíse shouted in her raspy voice, unaware of how loud her voice was.

“We already know that, silly.” Carmedy waved her hand. “It’s a good thing that--”

“It happened so fast, I’m not even sure when they started singing,” Annalíse yelled, inadvertently interrupting Carmedy. “I can’t really remember. I just remember hearing beautiful voices. It was like something from a dream.”

“Ooh, that sounds lovely,” Carmedy said with a soft sigh. “I wish I could have heard it… except well, you know.” The cat giggled at that.

“What did you say?” Annalíse said loudly. “I can’t hear you guys.”

“Just hold on,” I said as I held up a hand as a gesture for the princess to wait. Annalíse nodded, and she stood quietly. As I turned to speak to Carmedy, the small feline was staring at the water with widened eyes.

“Look,” the green-eyed alchemist whispered. “Maybe it’s them.”

Morrigan and I turned to follow Carmedy’s gaze, as did Annalíse when she saw the rest of us turn to look toward the water. A swarm of bubbles churned on the surface of the water. Something was coming. I slipped my hand into my void pocket and gripped the handle of the God Slayer, just in case the water demons had gotten upset that they’d failed to lure Annalíse into their watery depths and decided to use more… forcible methods.

As we watched silently, two ashen heads rose from the water side by side to reveal two pairs of obsidian-colored eyes. The water demons rose no further, their noses and the rest of their bodies still below the surface.

As water droplets rolled down their bald heads and pointed ears, and they blinked at us curiously. Without a word, Carmedy crouched down slightly and slowly began to walk forward as though she were approaching an unfamiliar animal. As soon as the feline took a step, the colorless creatures narrowed their eyes and abruptly disappeared beneath the water. Bubbles began to form on the water’s surface once more, and then one by one, they popped and left no trace whatsoever that they had ever been there.

“What exactly did you think you were doing?” Morrigan turned to Carmedy with a raised eyebrow.

“I just wanted to look at them more closely,” Carmedy said absently as she examined the water.

“You’ll have plenty of time to see them once we’re down there,” I said.

“And how exactly will we get down there?” Morrigan asked as she stroked Macha’s beak.

“Carmedy, I believe you had an idea about how we can achieve that?” I said as I turned to the feline alchemist.

“Yes, I did!” the cat said excitedly, and she knelt down on the ground and began to remove some of the pouches from her belt. “Just give me a few minutes.” With that, Carmedy removed a small mortar and pestle from the pack she had slung over her shoulder and began to pour the contents of various bundles into the little stone bowl.

“We have to figure out a way to get down there!” Annalíse shouted, her hearing still obscured by the wax.

I silently pointed to Carmedy who was busy mixing things together and mumbling to herself.

“Oh, that’s right, Carmedy said she’d figure something out.” The freckled woman nodded, and she silently clasped her hands behind her back as she watched the feline work.

A few minutes later, the black cat stood to her feet with the little bowl cupped in one hand. She reached down to untie another bundle from her belt, andfrom it, she pulled what looked like a small wooden object. The device had a straight handle, and at the end of it, the wood curved around to form an open circle.

Carmedy motioned for me to come toward her. “Master, I’m going to need your help for this part.”

“What do you need me to do?” I asked curiously as I approached the feline.

“Do you think you can sort of… pump some magic into one of my concoctions?” Carmedy asked enthusiastically, and she nodded to the bowl in her hand. I glanced down to see that it was filled with some sort of clear fluid.

“Yes, of course, but what sort of magic do you require?” I asked carefully.

“I don’t want to spoil the surprise,” the cat wiggled her eyebrows mischievously, “but I need you to imbue my mixture with magical energy to make it more powerful.”

“Alright,” I said slowly. I wasn’t sure what Carmedy had cooked up, but I had faith in her alchemic abilities.

“Good, I’ll tell you when to do it,” Carmedy said with a grin, and she playfully jiggled the wooden tool in her hand.

Without any further explanation, the cat dunked the circular end of the wooden object into the clear liquid. As she removed it, I observed that the clear fluid had somehow filled the center of the circle and the sun’s rays bounced off it causing little glimmers of rainbow colors to appear. Carmedy’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she silently looked at the colors for a moment. Then she breathed in deeply and parted her lips as she blew into the center of the wooden circle. The fluid that had stuck to the center of the wooden circle began to stretch away and gradually took on the shape of a large sphere that was roughly the size of a melon. Within seconds, the bubble separated from the wooden tool and hovered in the air.

“Now,” Carmedy whispered to me. “Fuse some of your magic with my mixture.”

I nodded silently and raised my hand to the air. Then I channeled my dark energy into the translucent bubble as the others watched intently. The colorless sphere trembled as it floated in the air, and for a moment, it seemed as though it would pop, but it held its shape. My energy now transferred, I lowered my hand.

“Perfect,” Carmedy said gleefully.

“How is this perfect?” Morrigan said nonchalantly. “The bubble has not been altered.”

“Oh, hasn’t it?” Carmedy said with a twisted grin, and she walked up to the bubble that still hung in the atmosphere. She set down the bowl and wooden implement at her feet and slowly moved her hands toward the hovering sphere. The cat cautiously placed her hands on either side of it and instead of the bubble immediately bursting from her touch, it stayed firm, and the feline held it up for us to see. Annalíse and Morrigan raised their eyebrows in surprise.

“Pretty neat, huh?” Carmedy said proudly.

I nodded. “It is indeed.”

“Well, hold on, because I’m not done yet,” the cat said eagerly. “Check this out, it’s the best part.” As she spoke, the alchemist lifted the bubble into the air and began to lower it onto her head. The bubble seemed to have become a sort of gel substance during my part of the process, for when Carmedy poked her head through, the sphere only jiggled in response. The feline removed her hands and the clear bubble stayed in place and rested between her shoulders as if it were some sort of helmet.

“Remarkable,” I said as my eyes roamed over the bubble that surrounded Carmedy’s head. The fact that the feline alchemist had come up with something so innovative was quite impressive.

“Thanks!” Carmedy beamed. Her voice was a bit muffled, but I could still hear her. “With these babies, we’ll each be able to breathe under water.”

“This is all quite splendid, but how long will the air bubbles last?” Morrigan said dubiously as she walked closer to observe Carmedy’s latest invention.

“Uh, that’s the only thing,” Carmedy winced. “I’m not completely certain.”

“You would have us plunge into the depths of an underwater dungeon teeming with water demons with this as our only source of air, and you say you are not completely certain?” Morrigan furrowed her brow.

“Well, I’ve never fused any of my concoctions with magic before,” Carmedy said with an apologetic smile. “My best guess is an hour at least.”

“It may take longer than that to conquer this dungeon,” Morrigan said gravely. “I am not comfortable taking such a risk.”

“But we have no other way of getting down there,” Carmedy replied.

“We’ll use Carmedy’s bubbles,” I interjected. “Should they pop prematurely, I will make sure that you all make it to the surface safely.” While Carmedy’s creation was untested, it was the best, and most likely the only option that we had.

Morrigan hesitated for a moment as she glanced back at the spherical object on Carmedy’s head.

“Very well,” the pale elf finally said, but I could still see the concern in her eyes.

“What are you three talking about?” Annalíse shouted. “Shouldn’t we be making our way to the dungeon?”

“We are, just hold on a second okay?” Carmedy yelled back to Annalíse and gestured for the princess to wait, then she stopped down to pick up her bowl and wooden tool once more.

Annalíse nodded, but she tapped her foot impatiently. The black-haired cat dipped the wooden implement into the mixture once more and blew into it to create another bubble. As the orb bounced in the air, I transferred my dark energy into it just as I had with the last one. Once the process was complete, Carmedy cautiously plucked it from the air and squeezed it a bit test its firmness. Once she was satisfied, she walked over to Annalíse with the large bubble in her hands. Upon reaching Annalíse, the small feline stood on her tiptoes and raised the translucent orb over the human woman’s braided head.

“Take the candle wax out of your ears!” Carmedy shouted to the swordswoman.

“What?” Annalíse yelled back as she wrinkled her freckled nose.

“Take the candle wax out of your ears!” I shouted and gestured to the princess’s ears.

“I’m going to take the candle wax out of my ears, I can’t hear you at all,” Annalíse said loudly. Carmedy and I exchanged glances and chuckled as Annalíse removed the wax. As soon as the female warrior had done so, Carmedy placed the clear orb onto Annalíse’s head.

“Can you hear us now?” Carmedy giggled.

“Yes, but what about the water demons?” Annalíse asked in a muffled tone and glanced at the water quickly. “What if they try to lure me in again?”

“They can try all they want, but it won’t work,” Carmedy said in a sing-song voice as she rocked back and forth on her heels. “Not with this on your head.” The cat tapped lightly on the bubble that she had placed on Annalíse. “You notice how things sound from inside your bubble?”

“Everything sounds a little muted, as though I’m underwater,” Annalíse nodded.

“Exactly,” Carmedy said with a grin. “I don’t think their magic songs can’t work on you if your hearing is impaired.”

“Good thinking,” I said with a smile. “As I told you last night, you are quite the genius.”

“Awww, thanks Master, but it was nothing.” The cat waved her hand nonchalantly. “Now I just need to make some for you and Morrigan, and we can get going.”

“Do not forget Macha.” Morrigan nodded to her winged companion perched on her shoulder, and Macha cawed as though to support Morrigan’s words.

“Of course, I’d never forget about Macha,” Carmedy crooned to the raven. Carmedy quickly created two more large bubbles for Morrigan and me and a smaller one roughly the size of an orange for Macha.

“Everyone ready?” I asked once our magic infused bubbles were in place. Morrigan nodded silently and Carmedy grinned and gave me a thumbs up.

“All set,” Annalíse placed her hands firmly on her hips.

“Good,” I said as I walked toward the rippling pool of water. “Let’s see what lies beneath.”

Chapter 15

I approached the water’s edge and cautiously dipped a foot in to test the depth. It was deeper than I expected.

“It looks as though the sand just stops where the water begins,” I said as I pulled my foot from the pool, “so wading in won’t be an option.” I peered into the shimmering water, but it was so dark underneath that even I couldn’t see anything.

There was no telling how deep the water was or if those water demons were below waiting for us. They hadn’t attacked us earlier, but I wasn’t sure if that was because they had chosen not to or because they were constrained to the water. I had a feeling that one way or another, we’d soon find out and if the water demons turned hostile.

I’d be ready for them.

“Looks like we have no choice but to just dive in,” Annalíse said enthusiastically as she jogged toward the water. Without hesitation, the female warrior raised her arms over her head and did just that, leaping into the unknown waters without care.

“Oh, I don’t know about this,” Carmedy said nervously. “I really don’t like water, and now I’m going to be surrounded by it.”

Morrigan raised an eyebrow. “You knew already knew this. Why are you suddenly afraid?”

“I got so excited about my little invention that I sort of forgot where we were going to be using them,” the feline said awkwardly as she glanced at the body of water. “Here’s an idea, how about I stay up here? You know, watch the lizards and stuff just in case someone comes by and tries to rob us,” the alchemist said sheepishly.

Morrigan sighed, shook her head, and promptly dove in after Annalíse.

“Come on,” I said gently and reached for Carmedy’s hand. “Everything will be fine. And I bet there’s lots of interesting things down there that will make you forget all about the water.”

The petite feline gave me a soft smile and nodded. Then she took my outstretched hand, and together, we plunged into the dark waters. I allowed myself to sink for a few moments as my eyes adjusted to the gloom. Once I did so, I released Carmedy’s hand so that I could tread water, and I quickly found Annalíse and Morrigan a few feet in front of us.

“By the gods, this place is incredible,” Annalíse breathed as she gazed around.

Though few things could truly amaze me, I too was awestruck by our new surroundings. The watery domain was much larger than it appeared from the surface. What sprawled out before us rivaled the vastness of an ocean. As far as I could see, vibrant blue waters stretched out in every direction, green seaweed swayed back and forth beneath the currents, and the area was teeming with colorful fish.

Black-and-white striped fish that appeared to be rather flat and no bigger than the palm of my hand swam past us, their yellow fins waving back and forth. A school of striking orange fish with translucent tails darted past us and gradually disappeared into the blue beyond. A couple of turtles swam past us in no particular hurry and paid us no mind as they made their way toward a coral reef far below our feet. Everywhere I looked there were vivid colors and fascinating creatures.

As I had predicted, Carmedy was quickly engrossed by the surrounding wildlife and seemed to forget her distaste of water quickly. The black cat turned her head every which way whenever a new animal went past. She even swam toward a brown fish with tiny spikes jutting out of its skin that she found particularly amusing and the small creature inflated to a larger much rounder shape nearly three times its original size.

“Yikes!” Carmedy squealed as she reeled back to avoid the fish’s prickly points.

“Carmedy, stop bothering the fish,” Annalíse said as she shook her head in the way that mothers often did.

“I just wanted to look at it,” Carmedy said with a slight pout “I wasn’t… hey, look at that!” The cat pointed to something over our shoulders. A few leagues away from us, an enormous underwater cliff rose up, andon top of this cliff was a city covered by a translucent dome.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Annalíse said breathlessly.

“Nor have I,” Morrigan whispered. “I expected an underwater cave of some sort, not an entire civilization.”

“Let us take a closer look,” I said as I swam toward the underwater city. As we drew closer, I was able to see how truly spectacular it was. The clear dome that protected the city was flawless, and toward the bottom of the dome were four large turquoise stones placed equidistant from each other around its outside perimeter. They appeared to be jewels of some sort that glowed and pulsated in a rhythm that reminded me of a heartbeat.

The buildings inside the dome were unlike anything I had ever seen before. The narrow structures appeared to be made of gold or at least something that resembled it. They each looked to be almost one thousand feet tall, gathered around the city in clusters. Fixed to the top of each building was a large sphere etched with intricate markings. I noticed that mazelike lines ran down the length of each building and pulsated with the same turquoise light as the jewels that were fixed to the dome.

“This place is beautiful,” Carmedy said with wide eyes as she marveled at the towering structures.

“Yes, I must admit, this architecture is quite extraordinary,” Morrigan said quietly as we continued to swim toward the city. “I wonder what the purpose of those large stones are?” As she spoke, the elf pointed to the turquoise gems that were fixed to the edges of the dome.

“I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough,” I said as I glanced around. Where were the water demons? I found it very odd that we had traveled this far and hadn’t yet come across any of the pale creatures.

We had seen two emerge from the water earlier, and there were assuredly more than just two of them, yet the surrounding area was free of the creatures. Not only that, but as we swam closer to the city within the great dome, I noticed that there didn’t seem to be anyone in there either. It was strange. Had the city been abandoned? If so, what had become of the water demons that we had seen earlier?

“Does anyone see a door or something?” Carmedy asked once we arrived at the base of the dome. We all looked around in search of a way to get inside.

After that brief search, Annalíse shook her head. “Not from what I can see.”

“There has to be a way inside.” Carmedy pressed her hands against the dome and squished her nose against it as she peered inside. “Hello, anyone home?”

I chuckled at the small cat. “If anyone is at home, I doubt that they’d heard you from out here.”

“Looks like there isn’t anyone there anyway,” Carmedy said as she turned to me.

“I wonder where everyone is,” Annalíse said suspiciously as she scanned the city that lay before us then let out a dry chuckle. “Was there a party somewhere, and we missed it?”

“Why don’t you ask them?” Carmedy said, and the rest of us quickly turned around to see who she was referring to. It seemed that our presence in the underwater domain had finally been acknowledged, someone was coming to greet us though I was unsure of how friendly the greeting would be.

A group of ten water demons sped toward us through the water with inconceivable swiftness. As the creatures kicked their feet, a torrent of bubbles trailed behind them. Within seconds, they had us surrounded. My minions gaped at the beasts that circled around us.

Each of them had pale skin that resembled fish scales which shimmered as the beasts encircled us. Jagged pale blue markings on their arms and legs reminded me of veins. Their large dark eyes blinked slowly as they began to swim around us in a circle and resembled Morrigan’s when she used dark magic, only much bigger and almond shaped.

In fact, each of the water demons looked identical down to the fitted black pants that came to the tops of their ankles. All appeared to be male, and their bare muscular chests bore more of the pale blue markings.

“Come with us,” one of the water demons said in a slow and lyrical tone. As he spoke, the small pale blue fins on either side of his neck, ankles, and forearms lazily flapped back and forth. The demon then pressed a webbed hand onto the dome.

As he did so, the large turquoise gems around it began to pulse rapidly. A hissing sound came to my ears, and to my surprise, a small doorway began to slide open at the base of the dome.

Water began to rush into the opening as the water demons quickly herded us through the entrance. Carmedy gasped as we passed through, and Morrigan and Annalíse’s eyes widened in shock. Quite unexpectedly, the inside of the dome wasn’t filled with water, and our feet quickly touched down on solid ground.

“How strange,” I breathed. I had already been curious about the dome when I had first laid eyes on it. I figured that it was merely some sort of defense, but now that we were inside, the lack of water made the dome all the more intriguing.

Equally fascinating were these scaled men that had escorted us, not only because of what they were, but because they hadn’t attacked us, at least not yet. While I could have dealt with them easily, I wanted to know more about them and this strange underwater home of theirs.

And of course, once I learned of their ways, I could use the knowledge to take their magic and increase my own power.

“I am not sure that it was wise to follow these creatures,” Morrigan whispered once we and the water demons were all inside.

“We didn’t really have much choice,” Annalíse replied. “Besides, we have to find out what’s going on here.”

“She’s right, we must locate the deity who lives here and figure out how to conquer the dungeon,” I replied as I glanced at the pale dark-eyed men. They seemed completely unbothered by the conversation that we were having, in fact they hardly even made eye contact with us.

I glanced at the door as it began to close, and once it had, it was as though the door hadn’t appeared at all. The water demons walked around us and formed a tight circle once more.

“What are they doing?” Carmedy said in a hushed tone, and her eyes darted back and forth between the scaled men. The water demons stood at attention as though they were soldiers in an army and offered no explanation. They stared straight ahead without so much as a glance at any of us.

Before I could respond to Carmedy’s question, the blue-finned creatures knelt down on one knee and raised a fist to their chests as they bowed their heads. I raised an eyebrow as I looked down at the water demons. It was an unexpected gesture though not undeserving being that I was god. I was sure however, that these creatures couldn’t have known what I was just by looking at me, it was curious.

“Oh, well this is nice of you all, but you don’t have to bow to us. We’re not royalty,” Carmedy said hurriedly. “Well, actually, Annalíse is, but I’m not sure if you’re supposed to bow to princesses. Do you only bow to kings? Or do you bow to all the--”

Annalíse elbowed the rambling feline and nodded ahead of us. “They’re not bowing to us, they’re bowing to him.” I turned my head to see who Annalíse was referring to.

The large door of the nearest building had opened wide, and a water demon with a crown atop his head strolled out. He looked quite similar to his brethren, but he was much taller with a long white beard sprouting from his chin to match the wrinkles around his dark eyes. More importantly, the aura that emanated off the crowned demon told me that this was the deity of this underwater domain.

This fallen god not only had a dungeon, but a city and subjects to preside over. It was an attractive concept, and one that I soon hoped to employ.

The deity held his head high as he approached us with two rows of water demons that trailed behind him carrying spears that looked to be crafted from silver. Once he was but ten feet from us, he stopped, andhis followers followed suit. The old deity’s eyes roamed over each of us curiously and silently for several moments.

“I see that we have unexpected guests, Miren,” the god said in a deep rumbling voice and nodded to the water demon who had spoken to us before.

“Yes, my lord,” Miren replied with his head still bowed.

“Quite peculiar,” the deity mumbled. “I see before me an elf, a cat, a human, and you…” He paused as he looked at me. “I know what manner of creature you are. Explain to me, Miren, how these people came to be here. Particularly this human woman, why was she not captured?” As the old god spoke he absently nodded to Annalíse without breaking his eye contact with Miren.

Annalíse narrowed her eyes at the deity but held her tongue for the moment, as did I. How these water creatures acted, how this god treated us, it still had my curiosity primed to hear more.

“I-I am unsure as to exactly how they ventured down here, though I believe that those strange bubbles on their heads may have something to do with it,” Miren said.

“Oops, I forgot we were still wearing these,” Carmedy mumbled as she removed her helmet, and the rest of us followed suit.

“As for the human woman, somehow she was immune to our calls,” Miren continued to explain.

“Immune? Impossible.” The water god squinted at Annalíse. “She is only a human. There is precious little that humans are immune to. This has never happened before.”

“Only a human?” Annalíse said bitterly. She opened her mouth to speak again, but I raised my hand to signal her to stay silent.

“You are surprised that we’re here,” I addressed the deity directly. It grew to annoy me that he had barely acknowledged us and had more or less spoken to Miren as if we weren’t at all present.

“I am indeed,” the god said slowly, and he eyed me as though he were sizing me up. “No outsider has ever ventured into our waters on their own accord. When one of my subjects detect nearby humans on the surface, they call out to the humans, lure them to the water’s edge, and then drag them down.”

“Yes, we heard about your… songs.” Annalíse glowered at the king. “Why do you do this?”

“We require humans to live,” the old deity said in his deep voice.

Carmedy cocked her head to one side. “What do you mean?”

“We water demons feed on human life energy,” the bearded water demon said unapologetically. “For centuries, our people have had a cycle so to speak. We lured humans into the water and captured them alive. Then we breed them for continuous energy sources. We only need to feed once a year, but naturally, it’s necessary to keep a steady supply. There are many citizens who reside here after all. When the humans are ripe, which is at roughly twenty years of age, we consume their energy. We capture them, breed them, and drain them. The cycle has served us well.”

“That’s disgusting,” Annalíse said furiously. “It’s despicable, it’s--”

“Our way of life,” the old god finished for her with a shrug. “We do what we must in order to survive, as does any other species.

“You said that we’re the only ones who have ever made it down here?” I questioned.

“Yes, that is correct.” The tall water god nodded. “Over the years, many groups of travelers have come to the oasis. There was always at least one human in the party, and one is often enough. They’d quickly become entranced by our calls, andsometimes, their non-human companions would attempt to save them. Admirable but still quite foolish. Upon diving into the water after their human companion, they would soon give up the chase because, of course, they could not breathe underwater, nor could they swim fast enough to catch up to my subjects. Those that did attempt to pursue their captured friend would drown within minutes. Of course, other beings are of no use to us, so we’d dispose of them.”

“That’s horrible,” Carmedy breathed.

The bearded god raised an eyebrow. “Is our entire race meant to die out so that a measly handful of passing humans may live?”

“Well… I, uh…” Carmedy scratched at her head awkwardly. “I didn’t mean quite like that, but can’t you, I don’t know, consume something else?”

“This is how my people were designed.” The deity gestured to the men around him. “This is how things are and how they always will be. Speaking of which, are you sure you can’t be persuaded to hand over that human you have there?” The bearded god stroked his beard, and he nodded casually to Annalíse who scowled in response. “We have no use for the rest of you, so I can assure you that we won’t harm you. It’s far too much trouble to dispose of unnecessary bodies.”

“She is mine, so you won’t lay a hand on her,” I said firmly, and I allowed my dark power to flicker in my eyes for a moment to emphasize my point. While our conversation had been civil so far, I wasn’t going to allow the pale god to mistake my patience for weakness.

The deity raised an eyebrow in surprise, then he sighed. “Very well then.”

“Now that we’ve discussed your eating habits,” I said impatiently, “I will explain that my minions will now conquer your dungeon. Then I will take your power as my own. Minions, prepare to battle these--”

“Wait,” the water god said as he held up his hand to interrupt me. Then he stroked his long white beard as though he were deep in thought.

“I sense your power,” he finally said. “I do not know how you escaped your own prison, but a battle between us would probably destroy this beautiful city and kill my followers. I care for them much like you care for yours.”

“I’m assuming you have a point?” I asked.

“If you complete another task, I will hand over my power to you,” he said after a few more moments of thought.

“Perhaps a suitable task would be to slay the sea titan, my lord,” Miren spoke up.

“Excellent notion, Miren,” the pale scaled god said in his low timbre voice. “Bring me the head of the sea titan, and my dungeon shall be conquered.”

“Where is this sea titan?” I narrowed my eyes.

“There is a large cliff much like the one our fair city rests upon several leagues away in that direction.” The god pointed to his left, off into the distant blue waters. “There you will find what you would more properly consider a dungeon and within it, the sea titan. Miren and his men will take you part of the way. I must warn you, this is no easy task.”

“Nonetheless, we will accomplish it,” I said determinedly, “and once we do, your city’s riches, as well as your power, will belong to me.”

“Yes, yes, I am aware of how this works.” The water god said, and his eyes met mine. “When did you fall? What is your name? I once believed that I was the most powerful, but there is something about you that is--”

“It is none of your concern,” I interrupted, and then I gestured for my minions to leave.

“Hold on,” Annalíse said as she stepped forward. “There’s something else that I’d like in addition.”

“And what, pray tell, is that human?” the deity asked slowly.

“I want you to release the people that you keep prisoner here for your… meals,” Annalíse said unflinchingly. While I didn’t share the swordswoman’s strong desire to save lives of the human prisoners, it was admirable nonetheless, as was her courage to address a deity in such a manner.

The great water demon stared at her for a moment and then threw his head back and laughed. “If that is what you wish, little human, it makes no difference to me. Should you succeed in killing the sea titan and conquer my dungeon, my people shall be freed from this place. Then they will be able to return to the oceans where we truly belong. If you fail, we will continue to ensnare humans such as yourself with our melodies. Either way, we shall thrive.”

“Then it’s settled.” Annalíse glared at the god. “We’ll kill the sea titan.”

Chapter 16

“How much further is it?” Carmedy moaned. “I’m getting hungry.”

She, Morrigan, Annalíse and I had left the dome city and were now on our way to the dungeon in a cart pulled by two seahorses that rivaled the size of land horses. The two creatures navigated through the water swiftly as Miren and a handful of his men swam beside us.

Miren sighed and rolled his eyes. “It won’t be much longer.” Annalíse and I exchanged amused glances and tried to hold back our smiles. This had been the fourth time Carmedy had asked this, and it was clearly starting to annoy the water demon.

“That’s what you said last time,” the feline said suspiciously, her voice muffled by her bubble helmet. The cat and I had made new ones for each of us before we left the underwater city just to be on the safe side.

“Well, perhaps if you didn’t ask me every few seconds…” Miren said with irritation as his voice trailed off.

“What did you say?” Carmedy cocked her head to one side.

“I just said that we’d be there soon,” the scaled man replied.

“Oh, alright,” the petite alchemist said, and she leaned an elbow on the side of the cart as she looked around at the surrounding waters.

“I must ask,” Morrigan said blankly, “if your people are able to breathe underwater, why is your city contained within that dome?”

“We are not able to remain underwater constantly,” Miren explained. “Our species must inhale air for at least eight hours per day. Once we have, our lungs are refilled, and we are able to roam the water again.”

“Couldn’t you just come up to the surface for air when you need it?” Annalíse pointed out.

The water demon shook his bald head. “No, we cannot. We can only be exposed to the sun and heat for short periods of time, both of which are quite harsh on the surface of the oasis. We wouldn’t be able to stand it for eight hours. Being exposed for even a few minutes is pure agony.”

“Sounds like Rana.” Carmedy giggled, and I smiled in response.

“Our city has always been protected by the great dome,” Miren continued. "We are able to live within it without worry of running out of air or suffering from exposure. Not only that, it protects us from the sea titan.”

“I see,” Morrigan said as she glanced back at the city that grew smaller as we sped away from it.

“This is as far as we’ll take you,” Miren said, and the seahorses came to an abrupt halt. Several yards away from us was an immense cliff, just as the water deity had described, and its base was a gaping hole that I presumed was the entrance.

One by one, we piled out of the cart, Miren and his men bid us farewell, and the four of us treaded water as we gazed upon the dungeon. I had expected it to be dark, not just because most dungeons were, but because it was at the bottom of the vast body of water. There was, however, an emerald glow coming from within the underwater cavern.

Carmedy cocked her head to one side. “I wonder what that weird green light is?”

“Only one way to find out,” I said as I began to swim into the mouth of the cave.

“Wait till Rana hears about this.” Carmedy giggled as we entered the glowing cave. “She won’t believe it.”

Annalíse chuckled. “Given the things that we’ve seen, I think she will. She’ll probably say it’s just another day in the lives of the dungeon conquerors.”

The cavern’s entrance was extremely wide, so wide that the four of us were able to swim beside each other and still have plenty of room. As we swam deeper into the watery passageway, the odd green light grew brighter. Stranger than that light was the utter desolation. There had been countless water beasts on the way to the dungeon, but the closer we’d gotten, the less I’d seen. Now, there weren’t any at all. The absence of wildlife only served to add to the air of foreboding. Was this sea titan truly such a great disturbance that even fish wouldn’t go anywhere near it?

We continued to venture through the passageway, and as we swam on, the passageway began to slant upward. I squinted my eyes as I paddled up through the cave, the further I went the more blinding the green light became. With a final stroke, my hands were met with cool air. As I lifted my head from the water, I blinked my eyes quickly as I adjusted to the brightness. The passageway had led us to a vast, partially submerged chamber of the cavern. I motioned for the others to follow me and swam toward a rocky ledge. Upon reaching it, I grabbed hold of the edge and hoisted myself from the water. A quick glance around revealed that the green light that we’d seen had come from a glowing green mossy substance that coated the walls.

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Annalíse said as she pulled herself onto the rock-solid ground beside me. “How is it that the city, this dungeon, and everything else here are underwater, but now, all of a sudden, we’re in a cave that’s only partially filled with water?”

“One word,” Carmedy said with a twisted grin as she lifted herself out of the water.

“Don’t say it,” Annalíse groaned.

“Magic!” The cat spread her fingers dramatically and giggled.

“She’s right actually,” I said as I helped Morrigan out of the water. “That is the only plausible explanation.

“See?” Carmedy grinned and playfully stuck out her tongue as we all removed our helmets.

I took a moment to look around at the vast cavern that we had found ourselves in. We stood at one end of the cave with a wall at our backs, and the rest of the cave stretched out so far that I couldn’t quite see where it stopped. The perimeter of the cavern had thick rocky ledges every so often, one of which we currently stood upon. In the center was the immense body of water that we had emerged from, and this too stretched several leagues.

“So, this sea titan is supposed to be somewhere in this cave,” Annalíse said as she scanned the water. “I don’t see anything.”

“Neither do I,” Morrigan said as her dark eyes roamed the cavern.

“Maybe it’s hiding.” Carmedy shrugged.

“I don’t think that--” I started to say but stopped myself when Carmedy’s green eyes suddenly grew wide with sheer terror, and her face turned pale. I turned to follow her fearful gaze when a thunderous roar struck the air and echoed throughout the cavern. The water bubbled and churned violently as waves began to form. As they grew, they crashed onto the surrounding rocky surfaces. Then the waters parted to reveal the doom that awaited us. A pair of enormous sinister black eyes slowly rose from the water followed by a gigantic scaly head.

Several leagues away, an enormous, monstrous beast emerged from the water.

Chapter 17

“By the gods,” Annalíse breathed as we beheld the great monster before us. The sea titan continued to rise from the tempestuous waves until its gargantuan body was in full view.

The hideous thing roared and reared back its massive ugly head. The sea creature was easily three times the size of the ship that had taken us to Valasara. In fact, the Sarpedon would have easily fit in its horrible razor-like jaws. Its skin was a sickly greyish-green hue, and it blinked its soulless black eyes as each of its ten tentacles thrashed at the water. Each strike created another enormous wave which only added to the already tumultuous conditions. Water rolled down the creature’s skin as it rose from the churning waves.

“Is that the… the…?” Carmedy gulped, unable to finish her statement.

“Yes, it is a sea titan,” Morrigan said blankly as she narrowed her eyes at the humongous beast. “If memory serves me correctly, they rule the seas, or so they seem to believe.”

“I just remembered, I think I read something in a book a few years ago, that they had gone extinct,” Carmedy said with her mouth agape.

“Well, this one looks very much alive, Carmedy,” Annalíse said once she had regained her composure. “We can’t just stand here staring at it. We have to slay it so that we can conquer this dungeon.”

“Annalíse is right,” I tried to shout over the sea titan’s bellows and the relentlessly crashing waves. Another large wave came careening toward us, collided into a nearby wall, and poured water over our heads. “We need a plan.”

“What do you want us to do?” Annalíse asked, and I realized that the lessons she had learned had stuck with her, as before she would never be so quick to ask for my guidance.

“Why don’t you tell us what you think the best plan of action is?” I said to the swordswoman, and she bit her lip and looked at the sea titan as it thrashed its great tentacles against the water.

“I won’t be much help defeating that creature,” the female warrior finally said, “but you, Morrigan and Carmedy can deal with it, I’m sure.”

“Me?” Carmedy gulped. “Are you sure? I mean, I don’t think I’ll be much help against that thing.” The cat shivered as she gaped at the mighty tentacled monster.

“You’ll be of more help than you think,” Annalíse said with a quick nod. “Trust me on this.”

“If you s-say so,” Carmedy stammered, her eyes still fixated on the sea beast.

Annalíse had made a wise decision. The swordswoman was skilled in many arenas, but unfortunately, her talents wouldn’t be of use against the sea titan. The tentacled beast was several leagues away, and we’d have to fight it from long range before it got too close.

Just then, the sea titan let out another deafening roar that seemed to shake the cavern to its very core. Carmedy shrieked in terror as the creature began to swim toward us at an alarming speed. Even with the immense size of the cavern, I guessed that it wouldn’t take more than five minutes for the sea titan to reach us. We had to act quickly.

“I’m not so sure about this,” Carmedy yelled as she covered her ears. “Are you sure you don’t want to take my place, Annalíse?”

“Sorry, Carmedy,” the freckled woman shouted back. “We need you for this plan.”

“And what is that plan?” Morrigan called back with an arched eyebrow.

“You and Master are going to use death projection,” Annalíse said to the white-haired elf.

“Are you certain that you wish me to do this?” Morrigan raised an eyebrow. “I have never used that technique on such a large target. Will a soul exorcism not suffice?”

I shook my head. “No, Annalíse is correct in her choice. Performing a soul exorcism on something that big would either drain you to the point that you would either collapse or even kill you,” I said darkly. “Death projection is the best way. There are few beings in existence that could perform a soul exorcism of that stature and live through it, myself being one of them. There have been novices, even proficients that have foolishly tried, and their bodies were ripped apart by the very magic that they wielded due to the strain.”

Though I was sure that Annalíse was unaware of the implications that I had spoken of, so far she had strategized wisely all the same.

“Understood,” Morrigan said nonchalantly, but I could tell from the look in her dark eyes that my words had frightened her a bit.

“I know that you’re worried that you don’t have the strength for this task, but I have faith in you,” I said to the pale elf reassuringly. “You’ve practiced this countless times, and I’ll be here right beside you.”

Morrigan gave me the faintest of smiles and nodded.

“What about me?” Carmedy chimed in. “What do you want me to do?”

“I need you to mix up something that will create a big enough explosion to cause that sea titan some damage,” Annalíse said to the green-eyed cat. “Do you have anything like that?” Carmedy bit her lip as she quickly glanced at the scaly monster and then looked down for a moment at the bundles of chemicals that were tied to the belt around her waist.

“Uh, y-yeah I think so,” the feline stammered. “How am I going to use it, though? There’s no way I can throw anything far enough to hit that thing, andwe can’t just wait till it gets close enough.”

“Yes you can,” I said. “Remember, you have your new slingshot.”

“Oh yeah,” Carmedy said thoughtfully as she removed the golden weapon from her belt. “But I’ve never used it before, is now the best time to--”

“Remember that this slingshot will ensure that your aim is always true,” Morrigan said.

Carmedy nodded, still nervous. “Alright.”

“Good, we’re going to hit and hit it hard.” Annalíse pounded her fist into her hand as she turned to Morrigan. “We’ll need Macha’s help too.”

“How can he be of use to you?” the tattooed elf asked. She quickly glanced at the sea titan that was rapidly approaching. It wouldn’t be long now.

“Once Carmedy mixes up her concoction, Macha can fly it over the sea titan’s head and drop it.” Annalíse gestured to the raven on Morrigan’s shoulders. “Will she do it?”

“She would be happy to oblige,” Morrigan said, and Macha bobbed her head as though in agreement.

“Excellent.” Annalíse nodded. “Carmedy, you go ahead and get started, Master, you and Morrigan can go ahead before the titan gets too much closer,” the swordswoman shouted as great waves collided with the rocks around us sending torrents of water raining down on our heads and bodies.

I nodded to Annalíse and motioned for Morrigan to follow me to the end of the rocky ledge.

“Oh, uh, okay,” Carmedy called out nervously as she knelt down to get to work. She untied some bundles from her belt, mumbled something to herself, and got to work mixing her various chemicals and substances.

I could have taken care of the monstrous sea beast myself, but I figured this was the perfect training opportunity for my minions. They had been forced to think and act quickly. I’d be ready to take over the situation should the need arise, but I was confident that they could rise to the challenge. Annalíse was already doing well, her plan was quite solid. Even though Morrigan and I were going to work together to use death projection against our tentacled foe, I wasn’t going to use my full strength, at least not yet. I would let her do the bulk of the work and only assist as needed.

“Alright, tell me what you see,” I said to the elf once we reached the rock’s edge. My request was a reminder of my teachings to her, but to me, it was a remembrance of our first night together. A dark smile curled on my lips as we faced the sea titan directly. It was time to see just how much my minion had learned.

Morrigan narrowed her eyes at the gruesome monster that tore through the dark waves toward us. It bellowed and gnashed its teeth at the air as it approached. The elf, however, stood calmly and sized up the creature.

“We cannot know for certain its precise measurements as its body is partially submerged. However, I approximate it to be one-thousand feet wide and two-thousand long. It approaches us at roughly one league per minute.”

“Good.” I nodded. “Let’s begin.” Morrigan had come a long way with her death projection training. It was crucial to make estimates that were as accurate as possible in relation to the target’s measurements, and her calculations were precisely what I had ascertained.

Both the elf and I raised a hand to the air toward the sea titan. The whites of Morrigan’s eyes began to turn black. Then the red mage markings on her skin began to glow and pulsate intensely.

“We’re each going to take a tentacle from one side,” I instructed.

Morrigan said nothing, but I knew that she understood.

“Ready, now!” I shouted to the elf.

At the same time, we began to close our grips in the air. The sea titan lurched to a halt and bellowed in protest as two of its humongous tentacles began to disintegrate into grey ash from their tips to their roots in its body. The beast roared in pain, but despite that, it began to swim toward us once more, eager to snuff the cause of its suffering.

“Carmedy, how’s it going back there?” I shouted over my shoulder. I kept my voice calm, I didn’t want to cause Carmedy to make any miscalculations. I didn’t understand her modern chemicals and substances, but even so, I knew that an incorrect measurement could result in catastrophe.

The small cat muttered to herself as she worked. “Roots of belladonna, a bit of nitric acid…” I could only take that as an answer as I refocused on the approaching titan. “Again, Morrigan!”

The she-elf nodded grimly as, with supreme focus, we expanded our death projection to the next two tentacles. Once more, our combined dark power reduced the extremities to gray ash, but still, the titanic beast pushed onward. Truly, I could see why these monsters once ruled the seas with such unyielding might.

Not that it would save the creature in the end.

“And that should do it!” the cat said triumphantly.

I turned then to see the mixture Carmedy had in her mixing bowl began to turn green. She picked up two little glass orbs with corks in their tops, removed the stoppers, and then poured the goopy green contents of the bowl into each of the balls. Once she had restoppered them, the dark-haired woman held up the spheres and smiled with satisfaction at her work. Carmedy then carefully placed each orb inside of a small sack, and she tied to the tops with string.

What Carmedy had crafted wasn’t at all large, especially in comparison to the sea titan. However, I had no doubt that what the feline alchemist had whipped up would be enough to stop the beast in its tracks. She really was a miracle worker when it came to chemicals and medicine, and I knew that just because Carmedy’s pouches of mixtures were small, that didn’t make them any less deadly.

“Here we go,” the green-eyed cat said proudly as she approached Morrigan and me. Carmedy’s courage always seemed to return when she did what she did best. “Two Carmedy explosive specials, prepped and ready to go!”

“Good.” I nodded and once again focused my attention on the sea titan. Though it was wounded, it still had great speed and would be on us soon.

“Morrigan, have Macha fly one of the bundles over,” Annalíse instructed the elf.

The white-haired elf said nothing, but her winged pet immediately leapt from her shoulders and flapped down to grasp one of Carmedy’s pouches of chemicals in its talons.

“There’s just one thing.” Carmedy held up her hand quickly. Fea flapped in place with the bundle in her clutches as though she were waiting for the cat’s explanation.

“It’s not just an explosive,” Carmedy said quickly. “It’s an extremely potent poison too, atropa belladonna to be exact, otherwise known as deadly nightshade and--”

“Carmedy, we don’t have time for an in-depth explanation right now,” Annalíse interrupted her.

“Right, sorry.” Carmedy winced. “Um, the short version is I added poison to the mix, the effects will be most, well, effective if the mixture is digested. Meaning, Macha will have to drop this into the sea titan’s mouth. Not only will this method be more efficient, but the explosion will also be more or less contained.”

“Will that be a problem for Macha?” Annalíse glanced at Morrigan and her winged companion.

The elf stayed silent but shook her head.

“Alright then,” the princess said firmly. “Wait until you take out two more tentacles, then send Macha over.”

The tattooed elf nodded once to show that she understood, but her eyes were still fixed ahead in supreme focus on her magic.

“Now, just like before. And, squeeze!” I shouted to the white-haired woman.

Morrigan and I tightened our grips once more and attacked the ferocious monster with our flesh-eating dark magic. Nothing, not even a creature such as this could escape death projection. The great sea beast bellowed and ground to a halt in the violently churning waters as two more of its tentacles started to disappear into grey dust. The swirling particles scattered into the air before they rained down into the water.

“Send them now!” Annalíse shouted, and Macha took to the air without hesitation with Carmedy’s lethal bundle in tow.

Annalíse’s plan was superb. I knew that she wanted the next phase of her plan to be put into play while the sea titan was temporarily distracted by its pain. It would be easier for the raven to do its job if the tentacled behemoth was in one place rather than speeding toward us.

“Release your hold,” I instructed Morrigan. “I want you to be able to focus on Macha for now.”

“I am capable of carrying out tasks simultaneously,” the elf said quietly.

“I’m well aware of that,” I said with an authoritative tone, “but please do as I ask.”

Morrigan pinched lips a bit in frustration but obediently lowered her hand. Her eyes remained wholly black as they always when she used her shared sight with Macha. She would now be able to see everything her raven saw.

I kept my hand in the air, ready to exert my power in the event of a mishap. While I had used this perilous situation as a teaching moment, I wouldn’t allow things to spin out of control and let harm come to my minions. This sea titan thought that it ruled the sea, and it was sadly mistaken.

Carmedy and I watched silently as Macha sailed through the cavern with the bundle in her grasp.

“Make sure Fea doesn’t drop it,” Carmedy said nervously as she clutched her slingshot in her hand.

“She will do no such thing,” Morrigan said with a slightly offended tone.

“How close is she?” I asked in an effort to keep the elf from breaking her concentration.

“Approximately half a league away,” Morrigan said evenly. “Macha is swift.” Just then, the sea titan bellowed once more and shook its great head. It looked as though the repulsive creature was about to move toward us again.

By now, Macha was so far away that we could no longer see her.

“She has reached the creature,” Morrigan said suddenly. “She is maneuvering to hover over its mouth. Seeing it within such close proximity makes me all the more grateful that we are attacking from a greater distance.”

The white-haired woman let out a sharp breath. Not much seemed to frighten Morrigan, but I couldn’t blame her for feeling a bit fearful. After all, she was the one seeing the sea titan up close. Then my lover sucked in her breath and regained her usual cool composure.

“Alright, Carmedy, get ready to fire the other bundle,” Annalíse instructed.

Carmedy nodded and placed her pouch of chemicals in the band that was tied to her slingshot’s prongs and squinted her eyes as she stretched it back. “Morrigan, tell me when Fea is about to drop the bundle, and Carmedy, you’ll fire immediately.”

Morrigan was silent for a few moments and then she finally spoke.

“Fea is about to release the bundle… now.” No sooner had the words left the she-elf’s mouth then Carmedy fired her slingshot, and her chemicals whizzed toward the sea titan’s mouth.

Since I could no longer see Macha or Carmedy’s projectile, I had no way knowing when exactly the sacks landed in the beast’s gigantic mouth. The four of us watched as the sea beast grunted and gnashed its teeth in the air. To my dismay, the titan began to swim toward us once again. Had Carmedy’s mixture not been enough to do any damage?

I turned to Carmedy quickly. “How long will take for the explosive to go off, or for the poison to kick in?”

The petite feline opened her mouth to reply, but then she looked past me for a moment, and a grin started to creep across her face. I looked back to the water and immediately saw what the cause of her elation was.

The massive tentacled monstrosity had lurched to a halt and appeared to be in great distress. It roared in anguish and thrashed its remaining tentacles in the air and against the water. Its large dark eyes started to dilate, its greyish green skin started to become flushed, and its enormous body began to convulse. The sea titan whirled its head around in every direction and let out a mighty groan.

“Carmedy, what did you put in your mixture for it to behave like that?” I asked slowly as I lowered my hand. “It is supposed to be behaving like that, correct?”

“Yep.” Carmedy nodded her head proudly. “What you’re seeing are the effects of atropa belladonna. Oh, I forgot to mention that belladonna kinda has a smidge of hallucinogenic properties.”

Satisfied, I turned back to look at the tormented sea titan to drink in the moment of its delectable agony. Its entire body shuddered uncontrollably as it wailed in pain. Every so often, the monster would move a bit in one direction, then it would pause and move in another.

Carmedy tapped her chin absently. “I wonder what sorts of crazy things it’s seeing right now.”

“Belladonna is just a smidge of a hallucinogen, huh?” I raised an eyebrow and returned her smile.

“Okay, more like a lot.” Carmedy giggled. “The entire flower is deadly, but the roots of the plant are the most dangerous. I’ll have to find some more somewhere, I used my whole supply on that thing.” The cat pouted slightly at that.

“Don’t worry.” I chuckled. “We’ll find you so more.”

“Was the creature not intended to explode?” Morrigan asked coolly as her eyes returned to normal. I wasn’t sure if her question stemmed from the fact that she was unimpressed or if she was concerned that the explosion hadn’t yet occurred. Just as she spoke, Macha finally returned and fluttered down to rest on her owner’s shoulders.

“It should be going off any second now,” Carmedy said cheerfully as she rocked back and forth on her heels. That was precisely when the sea titan’s eyes began to bulge.

“Ooh, it’s starting!” Carmedy clapped gleefully. “Gee, I wish I could see everything setting off in there!” There were few things that gave the furry-eared woman more excitement than seeing her experiments in action.

I watched in joy as wisps of dark smoke started to emerge from the sea titan’s mouth. The terrible sea giant’s eyes grew wide, and it groaned in pain. Its movement grew sluggish then the titan seemed to bob helplessly in the water. Then, without warning, the sea titan exploded into a massive cloud of grey-green mist mixed with red.

“Now that’s what I call fun,” Carmedy said with a giggle. “I have to say, that was definitely my best explosion yet.”

“You were excellent, Carmedy,” I smiled at the petite feline, and she beamed with pride. “As were you Morrigan. I didn’t doubt your abilities for one second.”

“I appreciate the compliment, Master,” the pale elf bowed her head slightly. Though she spoke with her usual nonchalance, her dark eyes gave away her delight.

“And Annalíse.” I nodded to the swordswoman.  “That was a superb plan.” “You acknowledged the fact that you would need to rely on the rest of us instead of your skills, and your strategy effectively utilized everyone’s strengths. Very nicely done.”

“Oh, thank you very much,” Annalíse said, and her freckled cheeks began to turn a bit red. “I did my best.”

“Um guys, I think we have a little problem,” Carmedy said slowly.

“What’s the matter? Did you see something else in the water?” Annalíse hurriedly asked the petite black cat as her eyes darted across the water.

“No, no, it’s not that. It’s… well… weren’t we supposed to bring the head of the sea titan to the water deity?” the green-eyed woman said with a wince. “Because there kinda sorta isn’t any head left.”

As she spoke, the alchemist gestured to the water that had become stained from the sea beast’s blood and innards.

“You’re right, there’s nothing left of the head,” Annalíse murmured as she looked across the cavern, and then suddenly her eyes lit up. “How about a piece of a tentacle instead?”

The princess nodded to the far-left side of the vast body of water. There floated the tip of one of the sea titan’s tentacles. The limb was charred, and blood flowed from the severed end creating a crimson pool around it.

“I think that will do just fine,” I said with a dark smile. I jumped into the water and swam over to retrieve the piece of tentacle. It was nearly the length of my body and almost three times as wide which only served to emphasize how truly massive the sea titan had been. I wrapped my arm around the tentacle tip and swam back to the others with it in tow.

The colossal beast had been slain, and soon the water deity’s power would be mine.

Chapter 18

Having claimed proof that the sea titan had met its demise, we made our way back through the underwater tunnels, backlit by the green light. Upon exiting the dungeon, we were met by the bearded god and a crowd of water demons. They floated before us in the water several yards away from the dungeon. Most likely they had been curious whether we’d triumph but still wanted to maintain a safe distance in case we had failed, and the sea titan appeared to wreak havoc.

As we emerged from the wide passageway and swam out into open water, a collective gasp rippled out from the throng of water demons followed by enthusiastic murmuring. The old god raised an eyebrow in surprise but said nothing as we approached.

“I’m afraid there was nothing left of the beast’s head, will a piece of its tentacle suffice?” I asked as I presented the detached limb to the deity. He was silent for a moment but finally reached out to take the tentacle tip from me.

“It will indeed,” the water deity said softly as he gazed at the charred, bloody stump in awe. He clutched it in his hands and turned to his band of followers.

“We shall be tormented by the savage sea titan no more,” the god bellowed as he raised the tentacle above his head in triumph. “Not only that, today have we been granted the most precious gift this world has to offer, our freedom!”

The crowd of pale scaly men raised their fists to the air and roared in a cheer.

“What about the prisoners that you have kept here?” Annalíse broke into the shouts of victory.

“I am a god of my word. These were the terms that we agreed upon and so it shall be.” The water deity nodded. “Of course, you shall also have the treasures that we have acquired over the years as we discussed.

“And your power? Do you give it willingly?” I asked with firmness in my tone.

The old god chuckled. “Take it, it matters not to me. The predicament of my imprisonment was that the monster was my warden. Now he is dead, and I have been granted freedom. That is of far greater value to me.”

As he spoke, a small pale blue orb of light slowly emerged from his chest. The sphere contained the essence of his power, and after a moment, it separated from his body and began to float toward me. Once it reached me, the glowing blue ball pressed into my chest until it had disappeared inside of me. My fingertips tingled, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as the water deity’s power fused with my own. I closed my eyes, my heart pounded, and my blood raced as newfound strength coursed through me. I released a blissful sigh as the sensation began to wear off.

Now I had the power of six gods within me.

“What’s happening?” I suddenly heard Carmedy say, and my eyes flew open. While the water deity’s power had been working its way through me, the bearded god and his people had begun to fade away right before us.

Annalíse pointed ahead. “Look, even the city is disappearing.” The entire golden city along with the great dome that protected had also started to fade away.

“Do not be alarmed,” the water god said calmly, “we are simply returning to where we belong. The sea.”

The bodies of him and his men gradually became translucent, and their pale frames quivered as they became one with the water that surrounded them. The deity released the piece of the sea titan’s tentacle that he grasped, and the limb floated down until reached the grainy floor.

“Thank you,” the water deity whispered. He raised a fist to his chest as he bowed his head slightly, and his crowd of followers mirrored the gesture of reverence. And just like that, they and their domed city were gone as though neither had ever existed.

“Wow,” Carmedy breathed. “Now if that’s not magic, I don’t know what is.”

“I won’t argue with you on that one,” Annalíse mused as we continued to tread water.

“Should we not make our way to where the city was located so that we may retrieve the treasure?” Morrigan spoke up.

“Yes, you’re right,” Annalíse agreed, and the four of us began to swim to where the golden city beneath the dome had once stood. “We also need to get the prisoners as soon as possible. They may not have devices that allow them to breathe underwater like we do.”

We swam as fast as our arms and legs could propel us through the water. Without the seahorses to give us a ride, it took longer to cross the distance between the dungeon and the city, but we still made fairly good time and before long we had reached our destination.

There was no trace that the golden city had ever existed atop the cliff save for the circular outline that the dome had left in the grainy sediment. In fact, there didn’t seem to be anything there at all.

“Does anyone see the treasure or the prisoners?” Carmedy furrowed her brow as she looked around the area. The rest of us joined in her search, but after a quick look around, it was clear that no treasure had been left here.

“It seems as though that decrepit god deceived us,” Morrigan said with bitterness in her voice, and she narrowed her dark eyes.

“But why would he do that?” Carmedy tilted her helmeted head to one side. “He said he didn’t really care about the treasure, and he promised to free the human prisoners.”

“Well, I guess he was lying.” Annalíse shook her head with a look of disgust. “And he said he was a god of his word, complete hog swallow.”

“I didn’t get the impression that he was being deceitful,” I said.

Annalíse gestured to the open water around us. “Then where is it? Where is the treasure and the poor people that they were feeding off of?”

“Don’t worry yourself with this,” I said calmly. The treasure wasn’t here, andneither were the human captives, but I had a hunch where they were. “Let’s get to the surface, don’t forget Rana is supposed to meet us. We want to be topside when she arrives.”

Without another word, I began to swim upward. Carmedy and Morrigan followed suit, and after a bit of indecipherable grumbling, Annalíse did as well.

As we climbed through the waters, a school of bright blue fish with yellow-tipped tails darted by and quickly disappeared behind a vibrant orange coral reef. At the same time, a cloudy white jellyfish bobbed by, its thin translucent tentacles pumping up and down propelling its body through the water. Part of me wished that we could stay in this place for a bit longer. The creatures were fascinating, and I had never before ventured into the briny depths.

While I longed to explore the hidden sea further, I pushed those thoughts from my mind as we continued to swim for the surface. As much as it would have pleased me to stay, we had more important matters to attend to. I had a king to overthrow after all.

Before long, we poked our heads out of the water and were met with brilliant sunshine once more.

“Look, there are the prisoners!” Carmedy pointed to the dry land.

There beside the oasis was a crowd of about fifty or so humans, all of whom looked worse for wear. Every man, woman, and child was dressed in ragged clothing. The garments seemed to have once been robes like the ones that we ourselves currently wore, but the prisoners’ clothes were worn and faded with age. Most of the people had abnormally pale skin, most likely due to lack of sunlight for such a long period.  The humans looked around at their new surroundings with widened eyes and murmured to each other in confusion.

We swam for the water’s edge and pulled ourselves from the oasis. Once safe on the sands, we removed our bubble helmets, and as soon as we did so, they popped in our hands.

“Everyone, listen,” I said loudly as I held my hands to the air to get the crowd’s attention.

The concerned chattering amongst the group of humans gradually died down, and they each turned their attention toward me.

“My companions and I have successfully defeated the dungeon that laid beneath these waters, and as part of the agreement that we had with the deity who imprisoned you, you have all been granted freedom.”

Some of the people looked at me dubiously while others whispered to each other. “Where is the water god, and the rest of the water demons?” one man said as he raised his voice above the noisy throng.

“He is gone,” I said, and my words were met with several gasps. “He and his people have returned to the ocean. You’re all safe now.”

The humans gave me looks of disbelief, but soon, reality began to set in. Their expressions shifted into looks of joy, and they began to cheer and shout our praises.

“What are we going to do with them?” Annalíse said to me in a hushed, raspy tone as the people continued to celebrate. “We can’t leave them in the desert without the proper supplies, but we also can’t take them with us.”

“I’ll contact Makar,” I said as I removed the small glass orb that the rebel leader had given me. “He said if we ever had need of him to get in touch with him. Perhaps he can provide them shelter until they can return to their homes. I’m sure that he’d be happy to help his countrymen.”

“Good idea,” Annalíse said.

I held the colorless glass ball up to my face and as I gazed into it, I spoke Makar’s name. No sooner had I uttered the name, the orb began to fill with swirls of vibrant colors. The multicolored ribbons slowly began to twist and swirl around each other. At first, it seemed as though there was no purpose to their movement, but soon the rainbow of streams began to form what looked like a face. Makar’s familiar features gradually started to come into view as did a backdrop of black tents, his camp I presumed.

“Hello, my friend,” the bearded man nodded to me and smiled. “I am pleased to see you, I did not expect to hear from you so soon. This is not a call of distress, I hope?”

“No, Makar, but we are in need of your assistance if possible,” I replied. I quickly summarized the events that had transpired once my minions and I had dived into the oasis, and I finished by explaining the current situation and the predicament that these people were now in.

“I see.” Makar stroked his beard. “Of course, I would be happy to assist. Unfortunately, my camp is too far for these people to travel to without the proper supplies. There is, however, a smaller secondary camp closer to your current location. Send them back in the direction from which you came, and I’ll have my men meet them halfway and escort them the rest of the way safely.”

“That will be fine,” I said. “Thank you.”

“The pleasure is all mine,” the rebel leader said earnestly as he bowed his head slightly. After he had spoken, his face slowly began to defragment into the colorful ribbons. The pieces wove in and out of each other and spun around until they disappeared, and the glass orb was once again colorless.

“That’s a pretty handy device.” Carmedy looked at the translucent sphere in awe. “Can I have one too?”

“Maybe later, Carmedy,” I said with a smile to the petite feline before I turned to speak to the jovial crowd of humans.

“Everyone, may I please have your attention?” I attempted to shout above the noise.

The crowd didn’t seem to hear me as they continued to cheer and talk amongst themselves excitedly. I couldn’t blame them. They had been granted freedom, I knew as well as anyone how priceless that was, but I needed to get them on their way so that they could meet with Makar’s men.

“Everyone, I need your attention,” I yelled once more, but this time I added a bit of magic to my voice.

This time, several heads turned and after some elbowing and hushing, the throng of humans was silent and waited expectantly for me to speak. I quickly went over the discussion that I had just had with Makar, and the people seemed grateful and very pleased with the arrangement.

“What direction do we follow?” a woman asked. I hesitated for a moment. We only had one compass, and both we and the human prisoners had need of it. As my mind began to muddle through possible solutions to our problem, Carmedy stepped forward.

“Here, use this,” the green-eyed woman said as she reached a hand into her robe pocket and pulled out a compass. She walked over to the woman who had spoken and handed it to her. “Just make sure the needle is always pointed south, okay?” The cat gave the woman a smile and made her way back over to us.

“I did not know that you carried an additional compass,” Morrigan said once Carmedy had rejoined us.

“Rana gave me one too, she said just in case Annalíse lost hers or something.” The feline shrugged.

“Oh, for the love of…” Annalíse muttered and rolled her eyes.

“You all had better get going,” I said to the crowd.

“Thank you for all that you’ve done,” the woman with the compass said. “We are ever grateful to you.”

Several other echoed their thanks and once we had given them some water to take on their journey, the group began to move back in the direction of Ficcha. As they walked further and further from us, their excited voices began to fade into the wind, and the mass of people appeared smaller and smaller until they were just a mere speck in the distance.

As we began to wring the water from our robes, I turned back to look at the oasis. I still found it interesting that from here, the body of water only resembled a small lake while an entire other world laid beneath it.

“I don’t believe it, the treasure is here,” Annalíse breathed from behind me.

I looked over my shoulder to see the swordswoman standing underneath one of the palm trees and at her feet were well over ten large wooden chests. The princess lowered to her knees and hesitated for a moment before she pushed back the lid of one of the boxes. There inside were numerous items of precious metal, gems, andother trinkets.

“I guess he didn’t lie to us after all,” the swordswoman said quietly.

“Didn’t I tell you not to concern yourself?” I said with a dry chuckle. When I had seen that the treasure was nowhere to be found where the golden city had once stood, I had figured that the old god had sent the treasure to the surface with the last of his power.

“Yes, you did tell me that didn’t you?” Annalíse said with a small smile as she began to remove some items from the chests. “I’m going to start looking through these things. I remember the descriptions of the sacred objects that Rana gave us. Let’s hope there’s one amongst all of this.” The female warrior gestured to the mass of gold and silver goods within the box in front of her.

“Morrigan, why don’t you help Annalíse look through the chests?” I suggested. “Carmedy and I will fill up our water skins and any other containers we have with water from the oasis.”

“I will aid her shortly.” The tattooed elf nodded as she continued to squeeze the water from her long white hair. Macha beat her wings and shook her head in an effort to rid herself of the dampness.

“Maybe we can contact Makar later on and tell him about this place,” Annalíse called out as she scooped some coins out of one of the wooden boxes. “Now that it’s safe for humans to be near it, I’m sure the Valasarian people could get good use out of it. That place was practically a freshwater ocean. With that much water, the people here would never go thirsty again.”

“Hey, that’s a great idea,” Carmedy said brightly as she walked over to the sand sled to retrieve the water skins. “I’m sure they’ll be thrilled to hear about it.”

“That they will,” I said as I turned toward the sand sled. Suddenly, Morrigan grasped my arm.

“The oasis, it… it is…” the pale elf uttered in disbelief. The rest of us turned to see what she was talking about, and to my surprise, the oasis began to fade away. The whole of the body of water began to shiver and sway as though it were a mirage. The vibrant blue of the oasis gradually disappeared and within seconds, it was gone without a trace, leaving only sand behind.

“H-how… why did…?” Annalíse stammered.

“Magic,” Carmedy gaped at the place where the water had once been.

“I suppose we will not be informing Makar about this place after all,” Morrigan said flatly, her eyes still focused on the now empty space of sand.

“It is unfortunate,” I said grimly, “but the people will have their water soon enough w I ddal with Alistair.”

“That is true,” Morrigan said as she turned around to face me.

“Since there isn’t any water to collect, we can all help Annalíse sift through the treasure,” I said to Morrigan and Carmedy.

The two women nodded in agreement, and we walked over to the tree beneath which the princess sat with the chests. Like Annalíse, we too remembered the descriptions of the sacred objects that Rana had outlined for us, and we busied ourselves with the task of finding one.

Given the amount of loot we’d received from the underwater dungeon, it took longer than usual to look through everything. Nearly an hour had gone by, andno one had unearthed anything that even remotely resembled one of the sacred objects, though the piles of gold, silver, and jewels were impressive in and of itself.

“I guess there’s nothing here either,” Carmedy said dejectedly as she closed the lid to the chest in front of her. “Rana’s going to be so disappointed. She was so sure that there was going to be one somewhere in one of Valasara’s dungeons.”

“We’ll keep looking for them, and we won’t stop until we find them all,” I said with the utmost confidence.

“That’s right,” Annalíse said with determination, andshe too lowered the lid to the box she had just finished searching. Morrigan, however, didn’t close the chest that sat in front of her. Instead, she gazed into it intently and furrowed her brow.

“Morrigan, did you find something?” I asked her.

The elf said nothing but slowly reached her hand into the chest. The rest of us leaned in closely as she removed what had caught her attention. She held out a golden necklace in her pale hand for us all to see. At the center of the chain hung a solid golden orb, and around it were two thin overlapping rings. On the rings, swirling symbols were etched into the metal.

“I do believe that this is one of the sacred objects,” Morrigan said quietly. I removed the piece from the lover’s hand and squinted my eyes as I held it up to the light.

“It does indeed fit the description of one of the sacred objects,” I said to the others. “Well done, Morrigan.”

The mage-marked elf nodded in gratitude. “Shall I contact Rana to let her know what we have discovered?” She gestured to Macha.

“Why don’t we wait till she gets here and surprise her?” Carmedy said excitedly.

“I think that’s a good idea.” I smiled at the petite feline. “Rana will be very pleased.”

With that, we finished replacing the rest of the loot into the wooden containers and placed them onto the sand sled. After we fed our riding lizards some dried crickets, we were on our way. We decided to travel for a few more hours as the sun had already started to descend in the clear blue sky. It would be sunset soon, and hopefully, by then, Rana would have returned with information on how we could infiltrate Alistair’s palace.

Our damp robes temporarily kept us cool from the sun’s relentless rays, but our garments quickly dried, and once again we were at the mercy of the desert heat. One by one, we each took the cooling powders that Carmedy had given us, and the temperature became more tolerable, enough so that we could press on through the day.

At the first glimpses of the onset of the setting sun, we stopped to make camp. In short order, our tent was set, a much easier task now that we were familiar with it, and we settled down to rest inside. I reclined with my back against Basilisk and gazed out the open tent flap as the sky shifted into vibrant pinks, oranges, and yellows. My minions set about preparing our meal, andsoon the smell of roasted zendabii meat drifted to my nose, and my mouth began to water.

Once the food was ready, I closed the tent flap, and we all sat around the fire that Carmedy had lit and proceeded to talk amongst ourselves. We had only been eating for about ten minutes when I saw the silhouette of a person approaching outside of the tent.

I raised a finger to signal the others to stop talking and pointed to the figure. We silently watched the shadow grow larger as it drew closer and closer to our tent. Annalíse instinctively gripped the handle of the sword at her hip, and Carmedy clutched at one of the pouches on her belt. Morrigan and I knew who it was already, but kept the smile to myself as the shadowy figure reached the tent flap and started to pull it back.

Chapter 19

“Hey guys, miss me?” Rana popped her curly red-haired head into the tent and grinned at us all.

“You scared me, Rana,” Carmedy said as Rana joined us beside the fire and helped herself to the food we’d prepared. “We thought you might be a bandit or something.”

“Who, little old me?” Rana chuckled as she led Anu into the tent. “And just what were you planning to do to me? Attack and roast me over that fire there?”

As she spoke, Fea flew from the fox’s shoulders and fluttered down to rest on Morrigan’s shoulders.

“No, silly, I’d never eat fox! You’re not plump and juicy enough.” Carmedy giggled, and she wiggled her eyebrows mischievously.

“Very funny, Carmedy.” Rana said mockingly, and she shot the small black cat a wry grin.

“So, did you find out what you needed in Ficcha?” I asked the fox.

“You bet I did,” Rana said as she grabbed some of the cooked meat. “It’s, uh, going to be a little trickier breaking into the palace than I expected.”

“Even for a world class thief like you?” I asked with a twisted smile.

“Yes, yes, I’ll admit the defense that Alistair has got going is going to be a challenge.” Rana waved her paw. “Not just for me, for all of us,” she added.

“How so?” Annalíse said as she reached for another piece of bread.

“So, I was thinking the palace was going to have tons of guards around the perimeter archers posted on the battlements, maybe a moat filled with ten-foot-long poisonous snakes,” Rana started to explain.

“It doesn’t have those things?” Carmedy spoke through a mouthful of food and tilted her head to one side.

“Oh no, it has those things,” Rana went on. “I mean, not the moat of poisonous snakes, but the other stuff, yeah, but there’s even more than that. There’s some seriously strong magic surrounding the palace to protect it. Apparently, Alistair had some magic muckety-muck set it in place after the uprisings started with Makar’s group. It’s supposed to be nearly impossible to get past.”

“This is unfortunate news,” Morrigan said blankly as she stroked Fea’s feathers.

“Now hold on,” Rana said with a devilish grin. “I said nearly impossible, not impossible.”

“So how do we get in?” Annalíse asked the fox-tailed woman.

“By finding the weak spot,” the red-headed thief replied.

“Weak spot?” Carmedy wrinkled her nose in confusion.

“Like everything else in this world, magic has its imperfections,” I explained as I already knew of what Rana spoke. “Magical barriers always have a weak spot somewhere in the structure, you only have to find it.”

“Exactly.” Rana nodded. “There are some murmurings going around about the weak spot amongst Valasara’s, shall we say, less than honorable citizens. Everyone has a different theory about where it is.”

“No person has ever located it successfully?” Morrigan questioned.

“Nope.” The fox shook her head, and her messy red curls bounced in response. “Those that have ventured over to the palace and tried to find it were quickly stopped by the guards. Even if they had been able to get inside, there would have been more of the king’s goons waiting right behind the barrier.”

“I see,” I said slowly, and I started to mull over our options. Like Rana, I hadn’t expected Alistair to have such a formidable defense, but it wasn’t unconquerable. With some careful planning, we could get past it. The five of us sat quietly for a few moments as we each thought possible strategies.

“I think we’re going to need some distractions,” Annalíse finally said with a devious smile.

“What have you got circling around in that braided head of yours?” Rana raised an eyebrow.

“I say we divide their forces by creating distractions in other areas around the perimeter of the barrier. I think a well-crafted explosion or two might draw their attention,” Annalíse said with a wink aimed at Carmedy.

“Ooh, sounds like fun.” The petite alchemist clasped her hands together excitedly.

“Then maybe Master can create some illusions and send them to another area of the barrier,” Annalíse continued.

“That’s an excellent idea,” I said to the swordswoman. I felt a surge of pride as Annalíse laid out her plan. Under my guidance, the impulsive princess that I had first come across in my dungeon was turning into quite the strategist. “I can also use my magic to determine the barrier’s weak spot.”

“Perfect.” Annalíse nodded. “Once you’ve done that and all our distractions have been set in motion, we can infiltrate the palace. Between the five of us, we should be able to handle any remaining soldiers that are patrolling the perimeter as well as any that are waiting for us once we’re inside.”

“Then after the guards are out of the way, we can get rid of good King Alistair,” Rana said as a smile spread across her face.

“Precisely,” Annalíse replied.

“I see no fault with this strategy,” Morrigan said nonchalantly. “You have my approval.”

“Mine as well,” I said to Annalíse before I turned to Carmedy. “If we time everything right, it should work perfectly. Is it possible for you to leave one of your explosive concoctions in one area of the barrier and delay its reaction until we’re ready to infiltrate the barrier? You’d, of course, have to be with us when we went inside.”

“I think I can work something out,” Carmedy said, and her green eyes shone with exhilaration.

“So, what have you guys been up to all day?” Rana said as she reached for another piece of bread. “How was the water dungeon?”

“It was amazing,” Carmedy said, and she enthusiastically began to tell the fox about our adventure beneath the water. Rana’s eyes grew wide as the cat told of the bubble helmet that she’d created. The fox’s eyes grew wider still as Carmedy described the golden city within the dome and how the water demons lived off the energy of humans. When the petite feline finally relayed the account of the sea titan, the red-headed woman gaped in surprise.

“Sounds like you guys had quite an eventful day.” Rana shook her head after Carmedy had finally finished. “I don’t think I would have been too crazy about battling it out with a sea titan, but I do wish that I could have seen what it looked like beneath the water. It sounds incredible. Too bad it all disappeared.”

“Oh, that reminds me, we have something to show you,” Carmedy said to Rana.

“What is it?” the fox said curiously, andshe looked around at each of us in anticipation. Carmedy, Annalíse and I exchanged smiles but silently waited for Morrigan to remove the gold necklace that she’d found from her pocket. The pale elf clutched the piece in her fist as she rose to her feet and quietly walked over to Rana. Morrigan slowly opened her hand to reveal the sacred object that she held.

Rana’s blue eyes grew wide in shock. “Is… is that…?”

“It is indeed,” Morrigan said softly. The white-haired woman gently took hold of Rana’s paw and carefully placed the gold necklace in the fox’s furry grasp. The curly haired thief gulped as she looked down at the item that she held. With quivering paws, she held it up closer to her face and scrutinized it.

“I can’t believe it,” Rana finally whispered. “Thank you, all of you.”

“We all helped look but Morrigan was the one who found,” I gestured to the tattooed woman.

“Thanks, elfy,” Rana said as she reached an arm around Morrigan and blinked rapidly to hold her tears back.

Morrigan opened her mouth and then hesitated. I gathered that she had been about to remind Rana how much she disliked that nickname, but she seemed to decide against it.

“You are most welcome,” Morrigan said as she gave Rana’s shoulder a quick awkward pat before the fox released her hold.

“That’s two down and five more to go,” Rana said cheerfully, and she hastily rubbed at her eyes with her robe sleeve.

“Then we can save your family?” Carmedy asked.

“Yep. Just hold on a little longer,” the fox-girl said quietly as she stared at the golden orb with the overlapping rings and then she finally placed it around her neck and concealed it under her robe.

“I told you not to give up hope.” I smiled. “Before long we’ll find the rest, but in the meantime, we’d better get ready for our siege against the palace. Carmedy, you’d better start thinking up some ideas for your part of the plan.”

“Actually, I already have something in mind,” Carmedy said with a mischievous grin.

“Excellent, do you think you have everything that you need for your explosive mixture?” I asked.

“Yep, I’ll get to work on it right away.” The black tailed cat quickly gulped down the last of the piece of bread that she’d been munching on and began to untie several pouches from the belt around her waist.

“Uh, Carmedy, don’t you think it’d be better for you to mix up your little concoctions away from the fire?” Rana’s eyes quickly darted from Carmedy to the flickering fire. “I’m not exactly in the mood to get blown to bits at the moment.”

“Oops, sorry about that!” Carmedy said hurriedly. The petite woman gathered up her supplies and moved to the far side of the tent well out of the fire’s reach.

Rana sighed in relief. “Thank you.”

“Speaking of preparation, it’s been a little while since you and I have trained with your elvish daggers Rana,” I said to the fox as I rose to my feet. “Now would be the perfect time to continue. Most likely there won’t be any time between now and when we get to the palace.”

“Aw, c’mon right now?” Rana groaned. “I’ve been chatting up low lives all day, then I traveled for like hours, and I just got here. I barely finished my food. Isn’t there some sort of rule about not training so soon after a meal? It could be bad for my digestion.” She looked to Carmedy for support.

“Sorry, there’s no such thing as far as I know.” The cat grinned.

“Says the cat who believes that literally everything is caused by magic and fairy dust,” Rana grumbled as she stood from the ground.

“You know this is important,” I said with a stern smile. “You want to master the art of using daggers in combat, don’t you?”

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Rana said as she dragged her feet toward the tent flap. “A little break would have been nice though. You might wanna bundle up, by the way. It’s a little cold out here for you furless people.”

“I’ll be fine.” I chuckled as I bent down to pick to pick up three of the wooden treasure chests that we had taken from the underwater dungeon.

“What are those for?” Rana wrinkled her nose in confusion.

“You’ll see. Pick up a few and follow me outside,” I instructed. Rana furrowed her brow but then shrugged her shoulders and picked up two of the boxes. Together, we walked outside.

She had only just exited the tent when she paused and looked around at the sea of sand that sprawled out around us with a frown on her face.

“Is there something wrong?” I called back to her. The fox woman hesitated for a moment before she finally spoke.

“No, it’s… it’s nothing,” Rana said with one last intense look at the surrounding dunes before she walked to join me.

The moon had now taken its place in the dark sky and shone down on the sands that surrounded us. As the wind picked up, it blew glittering grains through the air. I led Rana several yards away from the tent and set the chests that I carried down in front of a sand dune and gestured for Rana to place hers beside mine.

“Care to fill me in on why we’re stacking treasure chests?” the fox asked after she had finished.

“Just follow me,” I said plainly, and I motioned for her to walk back with me toward the tent. Once inside, I picked up three more of the wooden containers and directed to Rana to pick up one as well. The curly-haired woman sighed but obeyed. We walked outside and arranged the chests in rows and piled them on top of each other.

“Wait here for just a moment,” I said and jogged back toward the tent. Within a minute, I returned with one of Carmedy’s bundles in my hand.

“What’s that?” Rana pointed to the pouch that I held.

“To be perfectly honest, I’m not entirely sure. I asked Carmedy if she had anything remotely similar to paint, and this is what she gave me.” As I spoke, I untied the bundle and dipped two of my fingers inside of it. When I removed my fingers, they were coated in a black tar-like substance. I walked up to the chests that we had stacked, and I proceeded to draw rings on the front of the top ones so that they resembled targets.

During our sea voyage, each day Rana and I had trained aboard the Sarpedon with the elvish daggers that she had gotten from one of the previous dungeons. Out of all my minions, Rana was the only one who had initially chosen to defend herself without the use of some sort of weapon.

At first, the fox woman had been reluctant to use them, or perhaps it was better to say she had been defiant. She had felt that the only weapons that she needed were her paws and feet. While the wisecracking fox was extremely skilled in hand to hand combat, I had insisted on her training with the elvish daggers. She wouldn’t always have the luxury of an opponent that was without a weapon.

It was imperative that she have a variety of ways to defend herself. Each of my minions was skilled, but they still had to improve. The dungeons that we had encountered while in Valasara had grown more and more perilous, andit wasn’t going to get any easier moving forward.

“Alright, so what are we working on today? More close-range attacks?” Rana asked once I had finished painting the bullseyes.

“No, I think we’ll skip close quarters combat today.” I shook my head as I pulled a cloth from my pocket to wipe my fingers. “You seem to have mastered those quite easily.”

“Yeah, I have gotten pretty good, haven’t I?” Rana grinned.

“You have done well.” I chuckled as I focused my gaze on her. “Don’t get overconfident though. There are other crucial techniques that you have yet to learn.”

“Such as?” Rana puffed a few stray hairs from her face.

“Today, we’re going to focus on long-range attacks,” I said plainly. “You are going to be trained in the art of knife throwing.”

“Long range isn’t, uh, really my thing,” Rana muttered awkwardly.

“I know, that’s why it’s important that you learn,” I said firmly. “You must be able to fight at any range and fend off any kind of attacker. I will not allow you to become easy prey simply because you’ve mastered one and not the other. Furthermore, this skill will undoubtedly prove useful during our attack on the palace.”

“Okay, I guess,” Rana said slowly. “How’s this going to work then? Are you going put an apple on your head and let me throw daggers at you?” The fox folded her arms over her chest and gave me a twisted smile.

“No, I’d rather keep my head attached to the rest of me thank you,” I said with a laugh. Though my avatar’s death would only be a short-term inconvenience, it would take much time to not only create a new one but catch up to my minions from my old dungeon’s core. This was time that I didn’t want to waste, and I also didn’t want to leave my minions unattended should something happen.

“We’re going to use these treasure chests.” I gestured to a group of wooden boxes that we had set up in a neat row. There were three sets of the large wooden containers each stacked three high.

“Alright,” Rana nodded. “Looks easy enough. I can handle a few measly boxes.”

She reached a paw into one of her pockets and pulled out the leather bundle that held her blades. The fox undid the string that wrapped around it and unfolded the leather like a workman’s toolkit. In a certain sense, that’s precisely what it was, if the goal of one’s work was death.

Though I had beheld Rana’s eight elvish blades often now, I still couldn’t help but marvel at their exquisite intricacy. Each twisted silver handle resembled the body of a scaly serpent. The black gem eyes that were fixed to each of the creature’s head looked just as sinister as the sharp bat wing-like quills.

Rana removed four of the daggers and rolled the leather bundle up before she placed it back in her pocket. She held two knives in each paw, and her lips formed a tight, confident line as she narrowed her eyes at the wooden chests before her.

“You want me to just throw my knife at the chests?” she asked, and I nodded. “You’re not going to explain proper technique first?” She raised an eyebrow at me.

“I want to see what we’re working with first.” I waved her on. “Go ahead.”

“Whatever you say, demon man. Now, prepare to be amazed.” Rana hurled one of her knives at the first set of large wooden boxes. The dagger’s hilt slammed against the chest’s side before it bounced off and landed in the sand next to my feet with a soft thud.

“Oh, I’m certainly amazed,” I said as picked up the blade and walked back to Rana who gave me a sheepish grin.

“Sorry, um, maybe the second time's the charm?” she offered.

“Perhaps, but this time I’d like to show you the correct technique before you try that again. I’m going to teach you something called the spin technique. You’ll need to hold the knife by the handle.” I gripped the dagger in the proper place lifted my hand for Rana to see.

“Handle, got it,” the fox female murmured as she mimicked my hand position with another of her daggers.

“Good.” I nodded. “Now, if the knife is thrown properly, it will make a complete rotation. You must determine how far you need to stand from your target, the distance the blade needs to make a full rotation.”

“How do I do that?” Rana furrowed her brow a bit.

“You’ll have to play with your distance, so to speak, and make adjustments accordingly. Let me show you something.” I walked toward the first set of treasure chests and gestured for her to follow. I stood to the side of the stack and held the knife at an angle so that tip of the blade pointed upward toward the target. “If the knife hits the target and is pointing up like this, then that means that it didn’t spin completely which means you’re standing too close.” I then tilted the dagger so that its sharp end pointed down toward the target. “If it’s pointing down like this, the blade has spun too far which means you’re standing too far.”

“Okay, I guess that makes sense,” Rana said slowly.

“It will take practice, but with time, you’ll get used to it and will quickly be able to judge the distance,” I said as I walked away from the large wooden containers. “Now that we’ve covered that, let’s discuss how to throw them properly.” I eyed the first stack of boxes and estimated the necessary distance I needed to hit my mark. Once I had I placed my feet firmly one a little in front of the other.

“Position your feet like so, and bend your knees slightly,” I explained.

Rana shook her head and bit her lip as she watched intently. Normally, the fiery-haired fox always had some snappy commentary to offer, but when we trained, she said very little and focused her energy on honing her skills.

I held the elvish dagger by the handle and raised it in the air. “When you throw the dagger, don’t flick your wrist. If you do that, most likely the blade will spin too much. What you want to do is release the knife with a smooth motion. Let it slide out of your hand, err, paw,” I corrected myself and moved my wrist back and forth in a fluid motion to demonstrate.

“Understood.” Rana bobbed her head.

“Good,” I said. “If you keep all that in mind, with some practice you should be able to hit your mark most every time.” With that, I pulled my hand back and threw the dagger. The blade left my hand and spun in the air in a complete circle, and the blade stuck into the center of the target.

“Wow,” Rana breathed.

I turned to the red-headed fox. “Do you think you can do that?”

“Of course I can,” Rana said with determination. She positioned her bare fox feet as I had and raised one of her daggers to the air. She moved the blade back and forth a few times as she carefully sized up her target before she released it. The knife collided off-angle with the treasure chest and plopped into the sand. Rana let out a groan as I appraised her technique.

“You’re flicking your wrist.” I shook my head. “Remember, smooth motion. The dagger is an extension of your arm. Try again.” I demonstrated the fluid gesture once more to remind her.

Rana nodded her head and pinched her lips together tightly. She took a deep breath, moved her blade back and forth a few times, and released it. This time the tip of the weapon lodged near the top left of the container.

“Yes!” Rana pumped her furry fist in the air triumphantly. “I hit it!”

“Indeed you did,” I chuckled, “but you can do better. You didn’t hit the target and your blade is pointing downward... which means what?”

“I’m standing too far away, or I put too much rotation in it,” Rana said with a sigh.

“Exactly,” I said as I walked over to unstick the blade that she had thrown, recovered her first thrown blade, and then walked back to stand beside her. “Move a little closer and try it again. Keep making adjustments until you find the right distance.”

“No problem.” Rana shrugged, and she moved forward a half step. “Bet I can hit the bullseye in less than three tries,” the fox said, wiggled her eyebrows, and gave me a smug grin.

“That I’d like to see.” I folded my arms and gave her a smile. “Let’s see what you can do.” I was certain that it was going to take more than a few tries for Rana to hit the target, but she was a quick study, and I admired her tenacity, nonetheless.

We spent the next few hours practicing, and while Rana didn’t hit the target in less than three tries, she made surprising progress. In fact, she managed to hit the edge of the outer ring on one of her last shots.

“Yes, bullseye!” the fox pumped her furry fist in the air. “Well, sort of,” she chuckled as she unstuck her blade from the treasure chest.

“You’ve made some improvement,” I agreed and motioned for her to try again.

“Some improvement?” Rana raised an eyebrow in amusement. “C’mon give me more credit than that, I think I’ve done better than just some improvement.”

“Your progress has been decent, but you can do better,” I said with a crooked smile.

“Is this what passes for praise?” the red-headed woman glanced at me as she took up her stance and steadied the weapon in her paw.

“I’ll reward you with praise when I’ve decided that you’re deserving of it, meaning when you hit the center of the target,” I replied.

“Gee, thanks,” Rana said under her breath. The fox squinted her blue eyes and focused on the bullseye and slowly moved her arm back and forth in preparation. After the fourth time, she threw her dagger at the treasure chest, and the blade thwacked against it against it before it dropped into the sand.

“Not again,” Rana groaned as she ran a paw through her curls, and her tail twitched in frustration.

“You’re flicking your wrist again,” I said as I retrieved the dagger from the sand and walked over to her.

“No, I’m not.” Rana wrinkled her nose. “The dagger just sort of… slipped out of my paw that time.”

“Is that so?” I said dubiously.

“Yeah.” The fox-tailed woman shrugged. “I can do it, you saw me.”

“Yes, you were able to hit the edge of the target, but it was only once,” I said patiently. “You need to hone your skills to the point that you’ll be able to hit your mark consistently. Secondly, you didn’t actually hit the center of the bullseye. As I said, you’ve made improvement, but you still have some work to do.”

Rana sighed. “I know, I know.”

“Here, let me show you.” I moved to stand behind her and bent down so that my head was just a bit over her shoulder. As I did so, her soft red curls brushed against me. A flicker of desire stirred within me at the sensation, but I continued on with our lesson. I placed one hand on her shoulder, and with the other, I gently reached down to grab her wrist and pulled it up so that it was at her eye level. With her wrist in my grasp, I slowly moved her arm back and forth to display the movement once more.

“Remember, what you want is a nice fluid motion all the way through,” I said as I repeatedly showed her the technique. “Do you feel the difference between what you just did and what I’m doing? No abrupt movement at the end. Smooth until release.”

“Y-yeah, I can feel the difference,” the fox-tailed woman stammered. Her eyes shifted to me nervously, and her face began to turn red.

Then I felt her tail brush against my legs. It was wagging from side to side.

“Go ahead and try it again.” I nodded to the stacks of chests I let go of her wrist but kept my other hand on her shoulder.

“Sure, no problem,” Rana said with another quick awkward glance at me. She took a deep breath and pursed her lips as she slowly began to move her arm back and forth. With one swift graceful motion, she flung the dagger, and it pierced the center of the target with a thud.

“Ha! I did it!” The fox jumped up and down and pumped her furry fists in the air in celebration. “I told you I could do it.” She turned to me with her arms folded over her chest and gave me one of her twisted grins.

“I never doubted your ability.” I chuckled softly. “I only said that you could do better, and I was right.”

“Pfft,” she scoffed. “So, maybe you are right some time.”

“Your tail is wagging,” I whispered as I rested my hand on her shoulder.

“No… it… isn’t,” she whispered, but she didn’t bother to look back at it. Instead, she looked at my hand, her bit her lip. “I’ll uh, take that reward that you so kindly mentioned earlier.”

“Reward?” I whispered as I slid my other arm around her slender waist.

“Yeah,” she purred. “You know. You do something nice with your mouth. Maybe it could be praise, but maybe it could be something else…” The red-headed woman cleared her throat. As she stared up at me, her sapphire eyes shone in the moonlight, and the icy wind tousled her hair. The unexpected aroma of sweet cream and exotic spice reached my nose as her untamable curls quivered in the frigid breeze.

As I gazed down at her, I slowly raised one of my hands to cup her chin. I gently stroked her and slid my other hand down to her narrow waist. No sooner had my hand reached her waist did I draw her closer to me so that there was hardly any space between our bodies.

Rana’s face began to flush again, but she didn’t pull away from me. The fox-tailed woman bit her lip softly as she looked up at me and gave me a twisted grin. I felt her hips sway a bit as her tail wagged furiously behind her.

I returned Rana’s smile and bent down to kiss her, and she stood on her tippy toes as I did so. She closed her eyes just as our lips met, and she breathed a sigh of pleasure. Her lips were so warm and inviting, and now that I was even closer to her, the scent of her intoxicating perfume mesmerized me.

Rana moaned softly as we kissed each other passionately. I lowered my other hand to wrap around her waist, and I pulled her to me so that her body pressed against mine.

We pulled apart for a moment and as we separated, Rana released a soft sigh. We held each other’s gaze, our faces only mere inches apart. The curly-haired thief glanced down at the ground awkwardly, her face still a distinct shade of crimson. A cold gust of wind sailed across the desert terrain picking up sand along the way and tossed it into the air. The fox’s red hair whipped around her and blew into her face, andshe tucked the stray curls behind her ear as she looked back up at me.

She gave me a small smile and opened her mouth to say something but before the fox woman could speak, the sandy ground us beneath started to quake. A deep rumbling sound struck the silent evening air, and the terrain on which we stood tremored so intensely that we nearly lost our footing. We held onto each other and whipped our heads around to see what was causing it.

“What in the world is that?” Rana shouted as she raised a paw to her eyes and squinted at the surrounding area.

“I’m not sure,” I yelled back. “It feels like some sort of earthquake.”

Rana furrowed her brow and slowly lowered her gaze to the sand beneath our feet. “This doesn’t make any sense. There’s no way…” the fox mumbled as her voice trailed off.

“What did you say?” I asked the fox woman, but she was so occupied by her own thoughts that she didn’t seem to hear me. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide with realization, and she gripped my arm tightly.

“There’s something--” Rana paused and whirled her head to look at the area of sand several yards to our left.

Without warning, a huge geyser of sand burst into the air sending a spray of golden granules everywhere. I raised a hand to shield my eyes from the flying grains and focused my gaze on the fountain of sand. Suddenly an enormous worm creature erupted from within the geyser. The eyeless beast reared back its head and released an eerie high-pitched cry that sent vibrations through my entire body. The humongous worm turned to face us and spread apart its gaping mouth to reveal several rows of large jagged teeth.

“It’s a Valasarian sandworm,” I yelled to the fox woman as the beast’s mud-colored body wriggled to and fro.

“Yeah, I kinda guessed that,” Rana glanced at me with fear in her eyes and then looked back at the terrible monster before us.

I had no idea the full length of the giant worm as part of its body was still beneath the sand, but the length of the worm that we could see spanned that of a two-story building. Though they were worms, the fearsome things did not at all appear vulnerable like their smaller counterparts. Their slick brown hides seemed quite thick and impervious to common attacks.

Just then two more geysers of sand erupted from the terrain, one to our right and another behind us. Within seconds, two more immense sand worms burst forth and gnashed their teeth as they met with open air.

We were surrounded.

All three of the monstrosities released a series of resounding high-pitched cries and gnashed their deadly teeth at the air. I quickly reached into my void pocket and drew out the God Slayer. With a tap of the pole into the sand, the weapon’s deadly blades immediately sprouted. Beside me, Rana quickly regained her composure and pulled out two of her daggers.

“Rana, I want you to run back to camp and warn the others,” I whispered to the fox woman. While Rana was skilled, I knew that she wouldn’t be able to defend herself against these gigantic worms adequately, even with her daggers.

“No way, I’m staying right here,” the red-headed woman hissed. “There’s no way I’m leaving you with these… these things.”

“I’m perfectly capable of handling these creatures on my own,” I said as I eyed the massive beasts that encircled us. “Do as you’re told. I’ll provide you with cover, then I want you to run.”

“Fine, have it your way.” the fox-tailed woman bit her lip in frustration. Suddenly one of the towering monstrosities let out a ferocious hiss and stretched down toward us with alarming speed. It bared its horrible jagged teeth and widened its mouth as though it intended to swallow us whole.

I held up a hand in front of me and slowly curled my fingers upward. As I did so, the lava I had summoned forth appeared around me in the form of three large, bubbling columns. The worm halted its attack and reared back with a screech of protest as did the others.

“Run,” I whispered to Rana. The fox immediately turned and sprinted in the direction of the camp. The worms moved their huge heads in the direction that she had run, and that was their mistake. In the split second that they were distracted, I tightened my grip in the air and sent the boiling pillars of lava toward each of the beasts’ heads. The worms released angry hisses as the streams of flaming orange twisted toward them and drops of lava broke loose to scorch the sand.

Just as the columns of fiery liquid were about to strike my enemies, brilliant orbs of violet light surrounded each of the worms. The torrents of lava crashed into those purple spheres and sent globs of lava raining down everywhere. I narrowed my eyes as the orbs flickered and disappeared.

The giant brown worms swayed back and forth and snarled at me, completely unscathed. This was the work of dark magic, I could sense it in the pit of my gut. The worms bellowed and curled their brown bodies in the air, ready to strike, when a shout caused them to stop their wriggling and lower their heads toward me.

As the massive creatures bent downward, I noticed that one of the worms had a person harnessed to the back of its head, the source of the shout no doubt. In fact, they all did. Once their heads were close to me, the humongous eyeless beasts angled their bodies so that they appeared to be looking down at me. Now I could more clearly see the men that sat atop the Valasarian sandworms.

The men were shrouded in dark robes and wore head coverings that were wrapped in such a way that only their eyes were visible. They each carried a spear in their hand and pointed the weapons straight at me.

“Foolish man, your magic tricks won’t work on us,” one of the men shouted as he glared down at me.

“You’ve only seen an ounce of what I’m capable of.” I sneered back.

“Many men have made such bold claims, and all have perished, you’ll be no different,” the man snarled in a thick Valasarian accent. He shouted something in his native tongue, and the worms immediately plunged their heads toward me with open jaws.

I gripped the God Slayer in both hands and spun it over my head. As the weapon twirled, I pumped my dark energy into it and a disc of crimson light formed around the spinning halberd. The circle of light began to stretch downward and around me to form a dome. It glowed intensely and hummed loudly as my sinister energy pulsed through it.

The Valasarian sandworms roared and one by one smashed their heads into the radiant dome. It shook from the sudden impacts but remained intact. One of the men shouted a new command, andthe worms moved to attack once more. They bashed their bodies against my magical barrier repeatedly, but to no avail.

As I laughed at their foolish impudence, the gigantic monstrosities screeched, their enormous fangs dripping with drool. Their shrouded masters glowered at me from atop their monstrous mounts, and I recalled that the only Valasarian sandworms left in existence were kept by the king. These men had to be Alistair’s mercenaries.

They had no idea with whom they were messing with.

I spun the God Slayer once more, faster and faster over my head. I grunted as I channeled more of my dark power into the weapon. The men atop the worms were forced to shield their eyes as my magical barrier glowed brighter and brighter until it radiated with a blinding blood-hued light.

With a mighty cry, I pushed the crackling sphere of power out toward the worms and their riders. An immense wave of red light shot out from the dome and stretched toward the enormous creatures. One of the mercenaries shouted something to the others in Valasarian, andjust as before, violet orbs surrounded the worms, but this time I anticipated this.

The burst of light collided into their magic-infused shields and pressed against them with great force. The men grunted from the impact, and the gargantuan worms hissed furiously. My power pushed harder and harder against the purple barriers. Just then, a resounding cracking sound came from the spheres. Jagged cracks started to form and stretch across each of the orbs. Their amateur magic had been no match for my unbridled power.

With one more push, my wave of energy slammed into the shields. Suddenly, the violet orbs shattered from the force. Lavender shards scattered into the air, andthe men reeled back in horror.

As the dark energy I beckoned forth flooded past the broken shields, it wrapped around the bodies of the worms as well as the men that rode them. The worms screeched in protest, andthe mercenaries wailed as my power engulfed them. One of the men desperately lifted his hand to the air and shouted something in his native tongue, but his frantic screams were stifled as the sinister red energy squeezed him tightly.

Within seconds the man’s face and features were no longer visible, his body completely consumed by my dark magic, andhe was nothing more than a flailing red silhouette. The other men’s cries became muffled just as their companion’s had as my power crushed them. The behemoths that they sat atop roared and writhed in the air, but their screams too were silenced.

With one last clutch, I squeezed my victims even tighter, andone by one, I felt the life draining from their bodies. The mercenaries stopped floundering, andthe sandworms stopped their thrashing. The men slid from their seats, andtheir bodies plummeted from their perches and thudded to the ground. Only seconds after, the massive monsters started to tilt forward like felled trees. They came crashing down on top of each other and sent torrents of sand into the air.

Having put a stop to my enemies, I released my grip on my attackers and their steeds. The ruby stained magic that had consumed around them started to fade away, andas it dissipated, the stripped carcasses of my adversaries was all that remained. As I looked over the immense skeletons of the Valasarian sand worms that lay before me, and the crushed bones of their masters, I wondered why they had been sent.

Without a doubt these were Alistair’s mercenaries, at least, they had been. I knew that the pompous king undoubtedly despised me after the incident that had taken place in the port city, but even so, it didn’t make sense for Alistair to send killers after me just because of that.

Suddenly, I heard a ferocious roar and a series of shouts coming from the camp. My breath caught in my chest as I turned around to see two more monstrous sand worms near where I knew the tent was, beyond a rise of dunes. As I sprinted toward the camp, I raised my hand to douse the enemies with my necromantic power, but just before I made the gesture to summon my dark abilities, the gigantic creatures curved in the air and dove into the sand. Within seconds, they had disappeared into the sands once more.

Moments later, I arrived at our camp. Morrigan stood silently in front of our tent and gazed at the sand before her while Carmedy was helping Rana off the ground.

“Is anyone hurt?” I asked breathlessly as I looked around at my minions.

“No, no one got hurt,” Rana said bitterly as she rose to her feet, “but they took Annalíse.”

“They what?” I whirled around to look at the general area where the worms had tunneled into the ground. “We’ll follow them. There’s still time.”

“We can’t--” the red-headed woman started to say, but as soon as I turned, I immediately knew what she was going to say. I had expected to see gaping holes in the sand, but there was no trace that the worms had ever been there. With no mounds or any sign of disturbance, there was no way to tell which direction they had gone.

“When the worms tunneled back into the sand, those magic creeps did something to pull the sand down around them,” Rana explained as she joined me at my side. “There’s no telling where they went.”

“Tell me exactly what happened,” I said as I forced myself to keep my anger at bay.

“After I left you, I came here to warn the others just like you said,” Rana said gravely. “Not too long after, two more of those worm monsters popped out of the sand in front of the tent. We tried to fend them off, but nothing we did worked. My daggers and Annalíse’s swords were no match for those worms, our weapons just bounced right off.”

“I wasn’t much help either, I’m afraid,” Carmedy said somberly. “I tried to use my slingshot to hurl some explosives at the riders, but every time, they’d put up these… these purple shield things and deflect my attacks. I didn’t leave a scratch on them.”

“They were utilizing dark magic,” Morrigan said grimly. “I too attempted to thwart their attacks, but I am ashamed to say they were far more experienced than I. My necromantic assaults dealt no damage.”

“I see,” I mumbled. “Did the men say anything to any of you?”

“No, they just kept attacking us,” Carmedy said with sadness brimming in her green eyes. “And one of them trapped Annalíse inside of this big glowing purple ball.” The cat gestured to mimic a spherical shape with her hands.

“Then those goons in black dragged her down with them,” Rana shook her head and ran a paw through her messy red curls. “This is all my fault.”

“No, it isn’t,” I said to the fox woman. “You all did your best to--”

“That’s not what I mean,” Rana pinched her face in frustration. “I knew there was something wrong from the moment that we left the port town. I kept feeling like someone was following us, and I was right, it was them all along. I should have known, I should have trusted my instincts, I should have…” Rana’s voice trailed off as she stared down at the sand. “If only I would have figured it out, Annalíse would still be here.”

“It’s not your fault, Rana.” I placed a hand gently on her shoulder. “You had no way of knowing. We only found out about the sandworms recently, andeven so, we couldn’t have guessed that they were following us.”

“I guess,” the fox-tailed woman grumbled and looked off to the side ashamedly.

“Um, why were they following us?” Carmedy asked quietly.

“You recall that Kifi from the inn told us that the only Valasarian sandworms left in existence are kept by the king?” I said to my minions.

“Yes, Kifi informed us that that pathetic man uses them for sport.” Morrigan nodded.

“And as steeds for his mercenaries,” I added.

“So those were the king’s men?” Carmedy’s eyes widened. “But why would Alistair send mercenaries after us and kidnap Annalíse? Does he really like her that much that he’d take her against her will?”

“I don’t think that’s why he did this.” I frowned. “I think he did it for money.”

“What do you mean by this?” Morrigan raised an eyebrow.

“The king is greedy and covets gold,” I said to the others. “And remember, there is a large reward out for Annalíse’s return to her kingdom. Alistair must have found out about it. That’s why he had his men take her.”

“Why that little… I can’t believe this,” Rana said and threw her paws in the air furiously.

“Poor Annalíse,” Carmedy said mournfully, and her furry black ears drooped. “I wish there was something we could do.”

“There is,” I said with the utmost confidence. “We’re going to get our warrior back.”

“But how?” the feline asked. “We don’t know which way they went.”

“Yes, we do.” I nodded. “I’m certain that those men took her back to Alistair’s palace.”

“And we know its precise location,” Morrigan said as realization flooded to her face as well as the other women’s.

“Exactly,” I said to the elf.

“Okay,” Rana said slowly as she rubbed at her chin, “so we’re going to go ahead with the plan Annalíse came up with, only now instead of a siege, it’s a rescue mission as well.”

“Yes,” I said. “The plan should still work effectively. We’ll just have to locate Annalíse once we break through the palace’s defenses.

“I think we can handle that,” the fox said with a wry grin. “I already hated the guy, but he made a big mistake coming after one of our own.

“He will pay for his treachery,” Morrigan said with a fierce look in her eye.

“We’ll break camp immediately and set out for the palace,” I said as I walked into the tent. “If we leave soon, we can be there before daybreak.”

“Hey, what if we use the Dragnasí?” Carmedy suggested as she glanced at Xerxes and Scylla who were curled up beside the flickering fire. “We could get there a lot faster if we feed them to Xerxes and Scylla.

“We only have two of them though, remember?” Rana said as she doused the fire with sand to extinguish its flames.

“Yeah but maybe the other lizards could ride on their backs or something,” Carmedy replied.

“While it is important that we get to the palace as soon as possible, I still think it unwise to use the Dragnasí when we still don’t fully understand how it works,” I explained to the petite alchemist as I loaded our supplies onto the backs of the sand sleds.

“He is right,” Morrigan said flatly. “There could be side effects or consequences that we are unaware of.”

“Don’t worry,” I said to the feline. “We’ll make good time if we really push. We leave as soon as everything is packed up.”

Part of me wanted to go along with what Carmedy had suggested. Part of me wanted to take the risk and descend upon Alistair’s palace on the backs of dragons and lay waste to his stronghold. I couldn’t risk the others’ safety though. We’d get there as quickly as our lizards could carry us and save Annalíse. Then I’d rip Alistair’s soul from his worthless body, and I’d savor every minute of it.

Before long, we had packed up all of our belongings, and I tied Xerxes’ reigns to my saddle so that the lizard would walk beside mine.

“Alright, everyone,” I said as we set out for the palace, “Let’s go get back our princess.”

Chapter 20

Rana and I led our party through the moonlit desert as we journeyed to the king’s palace. The night air was frigid, and the relentless icy winds cut into any exposed skin. We had wrapped ourselves in our woolen blankets before we had started out, but the air still managed to break through whenever a fearsome gust blew across the sand. Carmedy and Morrigan shivered as they swayed in their saddles and sat in hunched over positions with their blankets clutched to their chins. Rana was the only one who was totally unbothered by the elements.

While the cold was fearsome, we had no choice but to press on. We couldn’t afford to dawdle or stop. We had to get to Annalíse before she was sent back to Tamarisch, or before someone came to retrieve her.

“Carmedy, were you able to figure out something to use for our siege against the palace?” I called over my shoulder to the feline alchemist. “Remember, the reaction time must be delayed until we infiltrate the barrier.”

“Yes, I managed to work something out just before those worms attacked the camp,” Carmedy replied.

“Will it be a big enough explosion to catch the guards’ attention?” I asked.

“They couldn’t miss it even if they tried,” the black-tailed cat said with a grin.

“Good.” I nodded. “You’ll set that up on the east side of the palace wall. I’ll send my illusions to the north wall.

“That’s pretty sneaky, sending the fakes in for a frontal attack,” Rana said with a devilish smile.

“We’ll draw more attention that way,” I explained. “Rana, I want you to go with Carmedy just in case she needs some backup while she’s working. Morrigan, you’ll join me at the west wall while I determine the barrier’s weak spot. Send one of your ravens with Rana and Carmedy so that we can keep each other informed.”

“Understood,” the tattooed elf said calmly.

I nodded grimly. “The fact that our assault is taking place at night should work to our advantage, but still, don’t assume that your presence will be completely undetectable simply because it’s night time. Stick to the shadows and stay close to the wall as you move around.”

“Hey, I’m a thief, remember?” Rana chuckled. “You don’t have to explain the finer points of stealth to me.”

“I know,” I said to the fox woman. “I’m just making sure we’re all on the same page. Now, as soon as your explosions are set up, Carmedy, you and Rana hurry back to join Morrigan and me. I should have determined the barrier’s vulnerability by then.”

“Then we bust in, kick some royal behind, and get Annalíse back,” the curly-haired thief said as a sudden gust of wind sent her curls into a frenzy.

“Precisely.” I nodded. “I want you all to stay sharp and follow the plan exactly unless I say otherwise. Am I understood?”

“Yes, Master,” Carmedy and Morrigan said simultaneously.

“You got it, oh dark one.” Rana raised her paw to her forehead in a salute.

We continued to ride through the night and were silent throughout the duration of most of the journey. My mind raced with the tantalizing possibilities of how I could end Alistair’s life. There were so many delightful choices, I couldn’t decide on only one.

There had been very few times that I had unleashed the amount of power I planned to use on mere mortals. For the most part, I saved my particularly gruesome tricks for the dungeon deities. This day, however, I would make an exception. Soon, my dark power would consume the worthless man, and his last desperate shrieks of terror would be added to my collection.

After hours of travel, the king’s palace finally came into view. The massive structure stretched out before us, and its imposing stature sent hulking shadows across the sand. A great wall surrounded the palace preventing us from getting a full view, but we were able to see the top halves of the buildings within. At the center was an enormous dome crafted from a material whose color resembled ivory. Several towers of the same shade of white reached up around the sides of the main building, and at the top of each one was a dome with a small golden point erupting from its top. As we drew closer, I glanced at the top of the wall and took note of the guards that strolled back and forth with spears and bows in hand.

“We’ll stop here.” I raised a hand to bring our party to a halt. One by one, we dismounted and began to talk over our plan.

“I count twenty guards at the north wall, and those are just the ones I can see,” Rana said as she studied the fortress.

“Alright then, I’ll send my illusions to the front. You two wait until the enemy is engaged to move to the east wall,” I said to Rana and Carmedy. The two women nodded in agreement, so I slowly raised my hand in front of me and got to work crafting my illusions.

I would have to use a good amount of my energy if I was going to make enough magic copies to keep the guards occupied, but I had plenty of energy to spare. I had already decided on what my illusions would look like, and what I had in mind would assuredly cause a disturbance.

My minions watched silently as an immense cloud of gray dust began to materialize in the air in front of me and separated into fifty fragments. Each piece then began to swirl and stretch. The fragments twisted round and round as human figures started to take shape. First pairs of sandaled feet, tanned limbs, dark robes and head coverings, and thick black facial hair. Each of the men was dressed identically except for the one at the front who wore a red head covering.

“Hey, that one looks like Makar,” Carmedy pointed to the man with the red kefficha. “And the other ones all look like Tal, Kala, Rashi, and uh, the other guys.”

“What better to draw the guards’ attention than the rebel army,” I said after the last illusion had formed. “Is everyone ready? You all understand your roles?”

“Yep,” Rana said as she and the other minions nodded. “Operation Princess Snatch Slash King Eradication is a go!”

“Good,” I replied. Without another word, I commanded my rebel copies to arrange themselves into a battle formation. The black cloaked men marched into their places and formed a large rectangular formation ten men wide and five long. Each of them stood at attention with spears, swords, and bows in their hands.

I made a quick gesture and dispatched my army of illusions. Without hesitation, the men sprinted into the night toward the king’s palace.

“Morrigan, send one of your ravens to fly above them so that we have a better eye on things,” I instructed the pale elf.

The white-haired woman whispered something to Macha, and the black feathered bird leapt from Morrigan’s shoulders. The raven sailed into the sky and over the heads of the army that sped toward the immense structure. Morrigan’s eyes became consumed with darkness as her sight became one with Macha’s.

“The army is swift,” the tattooed woman said with a note of surprise. “They shall reach the palace within minutes.

“How are they running so fast?” Rana furrowed her brow. “Not that I’m complaining or anything mind you.”

“What else do you expect of illusions crafted by, what did you call me earlier, a dark lord?” I said with a raised eyebrow. “Naturally they’d be swift.”

“Naturally.” Rana grinned.

Our group was quiet for a little while as we waited for Morrigan to update us.

“The illusions have reached their destination,” Morrigan finally said. “Some of the guards have spotted them and have alerted the others.”

“Looks like they’re causing quite a ruckus,” Carmedy giggled as she looked toward the palace wall. While we didn’t have the close up view that Morrigan did, from where we stood, we were still able to make out some of the frenzy that had ensued upon the arrival of the fake rebel army. The guards rushed around and shouted to one another as they spread out to take up their defensive positions along the wall. The magically crafted rebels spread out their ranks as well as they approached the wall with battle cries.

The attack had begun.

The king’s guards hurled spears at the men below and sent arrows whizzing past them, and my copies returned their fire with arrows of their own. I gathered that a few of my army’s arrows had managed to hit their marks as I watched a few guards’ bodies topple from the wall and plummet to the ground. My rebels may have been fakes, but they were quite capable of dealing real damage.

“We have managed to eliminate five guards thus far,” Morrigan updated us.

“That’s great and all but, they’re not really making much of a dent,” Rana said as we continued to watch the fray. “Only the illusions with the arrows have a chance of nailing one of those guys, the ones with swords and spears can’t really do anything.”

“Oh? I hadn’t thought of that,” I raised an eyebrow in amusement. As I spoke, I crafted one more illusion, one that unbeknownst to the others, I had already planned for.

“You have spoken prematurely Rana,” Morrigan said as a small smile came to her lips. “Several ladders have appeared at the base of the wall.”

“Several what?” Rana and Carmedy said in unison and craned their necks to see. Just as I’d planned, the replicas started to clamber their way up the side of the wall. The soldiers leaned over the sides and attempted to knock the ladders down but those that tried were met with swarms of arrows from the assailants below and were either disposed of or backed away before they tried again. Some of my rebels managed to make it over the wall and once they had, the manic energy on top of the wall only grew worse.

“Well I’ll be,” Rana breathed.

“It wouldn’t be much of a rebel attack if they were stuck fighting on the ground now would it?” I said to the fox woman with a sly grin.

“I should have known,” the red-headed thief chuckled as she shook her head.

“The soldiers are losing control of the wall,” Morrigan calmly informed us. “The rebels have managed to diminish their forces, the soldiers are calling for reinforcements.”

“Then now is the time to make our move,” I nodded. “Morrigan, keep Macha where she is for now. I want to have eyes on the situation for as long as we can. Once Rana and Carmedy get closer to the palace wall, then you can send Macha over to them.”

“Understood,” the white-haired elf replied.

“You all know what to do,” I said to my minions, and they shook their heads in affirmation with eagerness in their eyes. “Good. I want you to destroy every soldier that you see, but leave Alistair, he’s mine.”

Chapter 21

The four of us split up and raced off into the night toward the king’s palace. Carmedy and Rana broke off toward the east and Morrigan and I to the west. As the elf and I sprinted past the sand dunes and drew closer to the towering fortress, the sounds of the soldiers’ cries grew louder. Frantic orders and the clanging of sword against sword rang in the air as my shadow rebel army continued to fight.

“Some of the rebels have been eliminated,” Morrigan reported as we sped through the night. “I count six so far, but even their casualties have aided in their defense. When the soldiers struck down some rebels, they were in shock when the illusions turned into clouds of ash. The other members of our army used this to their advantage and extinguished even more of our adversaries.”

“I expected that would happen,” I said as we continued our sprint across the glittering sands. We were nearly fifty yards away from the palace wall, and so far, everything was going according to plan.

Suddenly, the sandy terrain before us started to quake. I raised a hand to signal Morrigan to stop, and together, we skidded to a halt. A deep rumbling joined the raging sounds of battle that filled the air, in time with the tremoring ground beneath us.

“Sandworms,” Morrigan hissed as she narrowed her eyes.

No sooner had the elf spoken did a semi-circle of four geysers of sand erupt from the land before us. The familiar high-pitched screeching struck the air as enormous eyeless sandworms issued forth from the spewing fountains of sand. Their brown bodies swayed as they hissed and gnashed their rows of sinister jagged teeth. Just as before, riders were saddled to the monsters, and the silver faces of their spears flashed in the moonlight. Rana’s intel hadn’t included a frontline of Valasarian sandworms, but I expected no less from a palace that was fabled to be so impenetrable.

“Why do they show themselves now?” Morrigan whispered to me as she eyed the enemies before us. “Why did they not attack the illusions?”

“I suspect that our enemies were unable to detect them,” I said to the tattooed woman as I drew the God Slayer from my void pocket. “Most likely they lie in wait beneath the sand. The worms must be sensitive to vibrations on the surface, and when they sense something, that’s when they attack. My illusions created no such vibrations, so they were able to sneak past without notice. Our plan may have failed otherwise.”

As I spoke, I tapped my weapon in the sand, and the deadly blades sprang to life from the pole. The flawless intricately carved faces of the jagged blades that jutted out from either side shone with a menacing glow, and I gripped the pole firmly as I glared at the men atop the worms.

One of the mercenaries narrowed his eyes at us from his seat atop his monstrous steed. “I recognize this woman,” he said as he turned his spear to point at Morrigan. “The abduction mission that took place hours ago, she was one of the princess’s companions.”

“Is that so?” the mercenary on the far left said bitterly as his worm hissed at us. “Two of our comrades didn’t come back from that mission.”

“Indeed, they did not,” I said without a shred of remorse. “They died by my hand, quite painfully I might add. I tore the flesh from their very bones and left their skeletons and those of their worms scattered across the sand.” A dark smile came to my lips as I recalled the sight of my victims’ carcasses.

The men gaped at me in surprise but then quickly regained their aggressive demeanor.

“You’ll pay for their deaths with your own blood,” one of the mercenaries shouted furiously as he raised his spear to the air. The four massive worms reared back their heads and sounded a series of high-pitched screeches.

Then the eyeless creatures curled in the air and dove into the sand.

“How can we fight them if we cannot detect their presence?” Morrigan growled. She whirled her head around in every direction to look at the sand that surrounded us. “They have the upper hand.”

“They think they do,” I said calmly, and I started to spin the God Slayer over my head. “They don’t know all of what I’m capable of.” As my weapon turned faster and faster, sinister red light trailed from the blades to form a disc around the arc of the halberd’s spin.

“Remarkable,” Morrigan breathed as she gazed up in awe as the blinding blood-colored light as it stretched around us to form a protective dome. She cautiously raised a pale finger to touch the light and blinked in surprise when she realized it was solid.

In anticipation of the worms’ underground attack, I continued to stretch the light beneath our feet so that we were completely sealed inside. The barrier was complete within moments, just before three of the gigantic creatures burst from the sand. The elf woman flinched slightly as the beasts screeched ferociously and hurled their heads toward us with their malicious jaws stretched wide. They attempted to bite through the dome before they bashed their heads against its sides, but none of their feeble attempts could damage my impregnable defense. My dome wouldn’t be shattered by mere brute force, if they wanted even a chance at vanquishing us, our enemies would have to resort to more creative methods. Not that they would succeed.

Seeing that my magic infused barrier couldn’t be penetrated, Morrigan relaxed her shoulders for a second before she tensed once more when something slammed against the underside of the dome. We looked down to see the fourth sandworm beneath our feet. The vile creature snarled in protest and opened its jaws to reveal its rows of jagged teeth. It attempted to crush the dome and us inside it with its mighty jowls just as the others had, but to no avail.

“We cannot remain here,” Morrigan said as she clenched her tattooed fists. “We must move ahead with our plan.” The dome crackled with dark energy as the worms continued attacked us from all sides.

“Have Rana and Carmedy been intercepted by mercenaries and sandworms as we have?” I whispered to the elf.

“No, they continue to make their way to their destination without issue,” the white-haired woman replied.

“Good,” I said as I continued to twirl the God Slayer over my head. “I have a plan to get us out of our current situation. I want you to use Death Fog. Most likely the mercenaries will deflect it with their magic, but I only need you to keep them busy. Keep their attention on us.”

“Alright,” Morrigan said as she raised a tattooed hand to the air, “but what do you intend to do in the meantime?”

“Don’t worry about that,” I said quickly. “Just focus on keeping their attention.” I had a new ability that I wanted to test out, and these men were the perfect victims to unleash it on. I would just need a little time to set it in motion as I ensured to keep sufficient power to maintain our defenses as I worked.

“Understood,” the elf said. As she spoke, her red mage markings glowed and pulsated as her dark powers surged within her.

A dark red fire erupted from her pale fingers and crawled upwards into the air and through the dome, allowed by my will. As the sinister fog snaked toward one of the worms, the creature reared its head back in anticipation of the attack. True to form, its rider waved his hand in the air and conjured an enormous purple sphere around the worm. The fiery magic struck the gigantic orb and flared up for a moment before it dissipated.

“Foolish woman,” the mercenary sneered as he dissolved the barrier he had created. He shouted something in Valasarian to one of his nearby comrades, and the man shouted back in response. Then the two mercenaries raised a hand to the air before them, and as they did so, small spheres of purple light burst into life above their palms. After a moment of building power, the men reeled back their arms and hurled the violet orbs at us.

The spheres of volatile power collided with the scarlet dome and exploded. Though the barrier vibrated intensely, it still held. Then the men looked down at us with unbridled hatred brimming from their eyes as they began to conjure more explosive blasts to hurl at us.

“Continue to engage them,” I said to Morrigan.

The tattooed elf nodded determinedly and raised her hand to the air once more to call forth the Death Fog. Morrigan unleashed incantation after incancation of dark magic, and just like before, her magic was deflected with a simple gesture. In return, the two sorcerers kept up an unending assault on my barrier as the worms bellowed and continued to bash their heads against the dome in sync with the mercenaries’ assaults.

Obviously frustrated by their lack of progress, the last two worm riders began their own intricate spell under the cover of their comrade’s constant barrage. I remained unalarmed, annoyed only slightly by the constant rattling that made concentrating on my new powers a mild challenge, as streaks of purple lightning began to take shape in the palms of the chanting riders. The jagged lightning stretched and grew as their power built to a crescendo. At its height, the mercenaries unleashed all the pent-up power in one simultaneous blast of lightning.

As the streaks of lightning flew toward us with alarming speed, they sizzled and sparked with malevolent energy. They struck the barrier that surrounded us with a resounding crack as it crawled over the crimson barrier.

The jagged fragments of lightning let out a loud buzzing sound as the electrical glow intensified, and the outside of the dome was covered in oscillating streaks of purple light that made the walls of the dome look like a sky tormented by a thunderstorm. The dome shuddered around us as the lighting crackled furiously.

“Master, I fear that the barrier will not hold,” Morrigan said as she continued to launch her fiery magic at our adversaries.

“It will hold,” I said firmly.

“I do not understand.” Morrigan furrowed her brow. “My magic is not enough to break through. It seems we are at a stalemate. What do you intend to--” The elf’s concerned voice trailed off mid-sentence when she saw what was rising from the sand behind the attacking worms. A large arm of sand burst from the desert terrain, and another identical arm popped out right the other. Enormous sandy fingers grasped at the air and suddenly slammed their palms onto the surface. The worms abruptly stopped their assault on us and turned their heads in the direction of the sudden disturbance as did their masters. The mercenaries murmured to themselves in surprise as the arms hauled a titanic sandy head with two piercing red eyes rose from the ground. As soon as its mouth was free, my sand demon let out a thunderous roar. The men shrank away in fear, and the worms reeled back and hissed defensively. As the sand demon hauled up its huge torso and tree-like legs, another gigantic pair of hands clawed their way through the sand. No sooner had they appeared when two more sets of limbs erupted from the golden glistening sea. The mercenaries gaped at the creatures as one by one they tore free of the dunes. Now on solid ground, the sand demons that I had called forth thudded toward the mercenaries and their worms with a chorus of earth-shaking bellows.

One of the mercenaries looked back at us angrily and hissed something to his companions. Then he let out a battle cry as the other men raised their spears overhead right before the worms that they rode immediately leapt into the air. As the creatures’ bodies snaked out of the holes they had burrowed, I could now see their full size. The beasts were almost as large as my sand demons. The worms hissed as they landed with a crashing wave of sand, then charged toward the gathering sand demons.

And then the mighty battle was joined.

The sand beasts let out a mighty cry as the worms hurled their bodies at them. The worms gnashed their teeth at the sand monsters, bit them, and curled around their bodies in an effort to strangle them. The hulking demons roared as they gripped at the worms and attempted to tear them apart.

“There now,” I said as I stopped spinning the God Slayer and slammed it on the ground beside me. The protective dome that I had created immediately flickered away. “My sand demons will be able to handle them.”

With that, I replaced my weapon in my pocket, motioned to Morrigan, and we resumed our sprint to the palace once more. We would be at the palace wall in no time. As we sprinted across the sand the worms’ ear-splitting screeches, the sand demons’ monstrous roars, and the men’s frantic shouts continued to ring in the air.

“Where are Rana and Carmedy?” I queried as we left behind the fray of demons versus sandworms. “They should nearly be in position by now.”

“They are indeed,” Morrigan replied. “They reached the wall not too long ago and are currently making their way along its side.”

“Good,” I huffed as we continued to race across the sand. “Check in with them and let them know our status.”

“Of course,” Morrigan said flatly. As soon as she’d spoken, a series of red markings quickly flashed across Fea’s feathers, and the bird opened her beak wide. We heard nothing but silence for a few moments, but finally, a voice called out from Fea’s mouth.

“Rana and Carmedy, the conquering heroes, how can we be of service?” I heard the fox’s familiar voice yell.

“We have nearly reached the palace wall,” Morrigan said as we approached our destination. As we neared, the sounds of the battle between my illusionary rebel army and the palace guards swelled. Several of the enemy’s corpses were scattered on the sand near the wall’s base while others were slumped over the wall’s side. My copies had performed excellently so far.

“What do you mean you’ve nearly reached the wall?” Rana said in disbelief. “What did you guys do, stop for a picnic and a romp in the sand?”

“That is absurd,” Morrigan said with irritation in her voice but her cheeks flushed. “We were attacked by some mercenaries and their sandworms, but they have been taken care of.”

“Are Master and Morrigan okay?” I heard Carmedy’s muffled voice emerge from Fea’s mouth.

“Of course, they’re alright,” I heard Rana reply. “Now, if you guys are done playing around, maybe we can get back to our mission, if you don’t mind?”

Despite the fox woman’s words, I could sense by her tone that she was relieved that Morrigan and I were safe.

“I have already informed you of the events that caused us delay.” Morrigan narrowed her eyes as she spoke.

“Yeah, well--” Rana started to retort, but the elf interrupted her.

“We have reached the wall,” the white-haired woman said nonchalantly at the exact time that we came face to face with the massive barrier.

“It’s about time,” one of Rana’s snorts sounded from Fea’s open beak.

Upon reaching the massive wall, we immediately turned our direction to run along its side. I could definitely sense the magic that protected this place. Though I couldn’t see it as I did the wall, I could feel the energy of the magical barrier surging, a tingling sensation across my skin. To have crafted a shield so large and so strong… whoever had created it was no mere novice of dark magic.

The thought excited me, and I looked forward to destroying them.

As we raced along, I focused my energy on uncovering the magical barrier’s weak point. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take too long to find.

“I think this is good,” I heard Rana said breathlessly. “Go ahead and set up here, Carmedy.” I heard the feline’s muffled reply and then her usual mutterings when she went about her work.

“Ask Carmedy how long it will take for her to put together her mixture and how long the delayed reaction will be,” I said to Morrigan. The elf nodded and repeated the message for the others to hear. Carmedy mumbled something in the background, but I couldn’t make out what she was saying.

“She said it’ll take her a few minutes to mix everything up, and it’ll take about one minute for the explosion to go off,” Rana said. “Uh, how exactly are we talking here? I don’t want to get blown to bits.”

“You’ll be fine,” I heard Carmedy murmur.

“Tell her to remember to wait till I tell her it’s time to set it off,” I said to Morrigan as we continued alongside the wall. The magic was still incredibly strong where we were, but I could sense now that we weren’t too far from the weak point. Morrigan relayed the message, and the alchemist assured us that she understood.

In the time that had passed, the moon had gradually drifted out of sight and had been replaced by the early signs of dawn. The sky transitioned from inky black dotted with stars to a horizon stained with vibrant pinks, purples, and oranges. Our cover of darkness was now gone, but we wouldn’t need it for much longer.

“Here,” I finally said and raised my hand to signal Morrigan to stop. We skidded to a halt, and I placed a hand just above my head on the cold stone wall.

The barrier of magic that surrounded it was thin here, and I nodded to Morrigan.

“He has discovered the location of the barrier’s vulnerability,” the elf spoke to the others calmly.

“Finally, some progress on your end.” Rana chuckled dryly. “For a minute there it looked like we were doing all the work.”

Morrigan said something in response to the fox woman’s snide remark, but I had begun to summon my power, wasn’t fully listening. I would need the utmost focus to break the shield that surrounded the palace.

With a deep breath, I pressed my fingertips firmly into the wall and allowed my power to flow through them. Now that I was in direct contact with the barrier, the skill that had been used to create it was even more apparent. Whoever had crafted this defense was truly deserving of the title of master of dark magic.

Still, while they may have been a master, I was a god. Never before had I met with something that couldn’t be conquered by my almighty hand.

The barrier would be broken.

I grunted as I pushed more of my energy out through my hand. Suddenly, the outlines of the stones that made up the wall flickered with a bright green light for just a moment. The magical defenses started to crack beneath my will, but I needed to use more of my power. As I placed my other hand on the wall and channeled more of my peerless might into it, the emerald light flashed along the stones once again, but this time, the light stayed.

“Okay, the wall is glowing,” I heard Rana say. “I’m going to assume that the weird green light is a good thing and that the wall isn’t going to erupt into a fiery inferno or turn into some kind of monster.”

“Tell Carmedy to do it now,” I commanded, ignoring the fox, and Morrigan repeated the order. The feline’s reply was barely audible but I could hear her ecstatic tone and seconds after I heard the loud sizzling sound of her chemicals reacting.

As I poured out more of my strength, the green light intensified as the magic barricade crumbled. Then, all of a sudden, swirling arcane symbols of a similar shade of green appeared on the stones beneath my hands, and a low humming sound came to the air. Then the symbols spread to the stones that were on either side of my hands. The jade-colored runes stretched out in each direction along the wall until the structure was covered in them.

“Master,” Morrigan gasped uncharacteristically, “you are amazing, and I guess you are only using a small amount of your power.”

“Woah, we’ve got some funky patterns popping up,” Rana huffed. “Please tell me that’s supposed to be happening.” From the sound of her voice, I could tell that she and Carmedy were now running toward our location.

“Everything is fine,” Morrigan answered. “The presence of the symbols are an indication that the magic is coming undone.”

With one final push of might, I sensed the barrier collapse from my will. The green symbols etched into the wall’s stones started to flicker rapidly, and with one final, brilliant flash, they slowly faded away.

So it was that, with a whimper instead of a roar, the intricate enchantment had been broken.

“Hey, guys, long time no see,” Rana said, close now. I turned to see the fox woman and Carmedy standing behind Morrigan, both bent over trying to catch their breath.

“It took you quite a while to arrive here.” Morrigan raised an eyebrow as Macha flapped from Rana’s shoulder and landed on her own. “Did you stop to partake in a picnic?”

“Very funny,” Rana said mockingly. “I’m terribly sorry that it took us more than five seconds to run along the wall of a massive fortress. I don’t think we’d be dragging our feet seeing as how we’d get blown sky high if we did.”

“Speaking of which, where is this explosion?” Morrigan frowned as she looked in the direction from which Carmedy and Rana had come. “Should it not be… exploding?”

“Oh, it should be going off right about...” Carmedy’s voice trailed off as she paused for a few moments and bit her lip excitedly. Just then a thunderous boom sounded from the direction of the east wall, and we turned to see a massive mushroom-shaped cloud of orange smoke erupt in the air. Joined by the orange cloud was a flurry of crumbled stone and mortar. Evidently the alchemist’s explosion had taken out a chunk of the east wall.

“Not bad, huh?” Carmedy giggled.

“Yeahhh, and this one of the reasons why I’m glad we’re friends,” Rana murmured as she gaped at the enormous cloud while Morrigan raised an eyebrow in surprise. A series of shouts came from the other side of the wall as well as the sound of running footsteps.

“Well done, Carmedy,” I nodded to the petite feline.

“Thanks!” The cat smiled brightly. “Hey, by the way, what happened to the green pictures?” Carmedy leaned an arm against the wall.

“I’ve managed to break through the barrier,” I said as I gestured to the wall in front of us. “Nothing stands in our way now.”

“Nothing except a huge stone wall, you mean,” Rana said as her eyes roamed up the barricade’s side.

“Breaking down the magical barrier was the more difficult task,” I scoffed. “Destroying a tangible one is child’s play. Now, everyone, get ready.”

Rana pulled her elvish daggers from her robe pocket while Carmedy loaded one of her pouches into her golden slingshot. Morrigan’s still wholly black eyes shone with bloodlust as her red mage markings glowed. My minions were ready to follow me into battle.

I stretched my palm out in front of me and curled my fingertips upward to call forth the power of the lava deity that I’d slain. Fiery magma materialized on the stones in front of me and oozed and poured down the wall in the rectangular shape of a door. The lava easily melted away the thick stones until a hole remained. As I eased my power, the molten rock cooled rapidly and left only blackened slag behind.

“What was I thinking?” Rana said dryly. “Of course you’d melt the wall.”

“Indeed. Now, wait just a moment.” I held up a hand, and my women followed my order.

No one emerged from the opening to challenge us, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t anyone waiting on the other side, so I gestured for my minions to stay where they were as I cautiously walked through the opening. The hole I had created was only just wide enough for me to fit through, and the wall itself was several feet thick. As I crept through the small tunnel that I’d created, I kept my ears alert for any sudden sounds nearby and looked through to the other side. All I saw was open ground, but just then, several arrows whizzed into the opening and flew straight toward my chest.

Foolish mortal weapons. I raised a hand to catch the speeding projectiles and snatched them from the air just before they struck my armor, then I snapped them in my mighty fist as I emerged from the opening. With my view unobscured, I could now see several rows of armored men in the courtyard beyond, armed with bows and arrows trained right at me. There had to be at least one hundred of them.

They didn’t hesitate to release their arrows. The storm of projectiles rushed toward me like a deadly cloud, but I raised my hand in the air, tightened my grip, and the arrows immediately disintegrated into ash before scattering in the wind.

Their simplistic weaponry was no match for my magic power.

A series of gasps came from the throng of soldiers, and they began to reload, but they were too slow. I tightened my grip even more and unleashed my dark magic upon the guards.

My death projection started to eat its way through their ranks. The soldiers wailed in agony as their arms, legs, and pieces of their heads started to disintegrate into ash. They looked at their rapidly disappearing bodies in horror, and many writhed on the ground in anguish.

Satisfied that my minions would be safe, I called back through the opening in the wall, “Follow me.”

My minions filed through and joined me.

“How are we going to find out where Alistair is, and Annalíse?” Carmedy said as she winced at the howling soldiers.

“I’ll ask one of them,” I said as I walked toward one of the bowmen. With one hand, I scooped up one archer off the ground by the neck and held him up so that he was eye level with me. Then I momentarily slowed down the process of my flesh eating spell so that I could gather what I needed before the man wasted away entirely, at present there wasn’t too much left of his wretched body.

The guard moaned and shuddered from the relentless pain of having been whittled down to only his torso, his legs, and half of his face. Summoning up the puppet master god’s power, I looked into the man’s fearful eyes and explored his memories through the pictures that flashed across my mind. After a few moments of sifting, I saw a scene of Alistair addressing his men as he walked behind the palace, and that was when I knew where he was. It wouldn’t be long now before Alistair’s desperate tormented pleas joined the air.

“He’s in the garden,” I said to the others as I carelessly tossed the stump of a man to the ground with his screeching brethren.

“Where’s that?” Rana said as she glanced around the area. “This place is huge, it’s even bigger than I imagined.”

Now that we were inside, we could see the full makeup of the palace and the surrounding grounds. Great towers stretched into the sky all around us, and I could just barely see their glistening gold dome tops. Countless palm trees were scattered around us, and their healthy vibrant fronds swayed in the breeze. The massive ivory-colored palace spanned three floors at the center of the grounds. Its gold-domed roof glistened as the sun rose in the sky, as did the numerous windows that appeared to be trimmed in the same material.

“This place is beautiful,” Carmedy said in awe as she gazed around.

“We are not here to take in the views,” Morrigan said as she turned to me. “Where is this garden that you spoke of?”

“It’s behind the palace,” I said and pointed to the area in question. I had only just spoken when a series of shouts called out from beyond the towers to our left. A large group of soldiers armed with swords emerged from the closest one and sprinted toward us. Then more shouts joined them from behind the palace. Within seconds, another large group of sword-wielding guards paraded out to join the charge.

“Halt in the name of the king!” some of the men yelled as the two groups approached us.

“Let’s go,” I shouted to the others, and we ran toward the back of the palace, “and kill them all. These soldiers do the bidding of such a treacherous king, they’ll die with him.”

As we forged ahead, I raised my hand to the air as the swordsmen prepared their attack. Before they could finish their charge, I closed my grip on the air, and the mob of swordsmen started to defragment before my eyes. As their screams and ashes filled the air, I shoved past the tortured mortals. Their suffering whet my appetite, but I had a bigger prize to claim.

I looked over my shoulder to see Morrigan wipe out a wave of soldiers with her death projection just as I did. With a look of ferocity in her wholly black eyes, the elf curled her pale fingers in the air and the swordsmen began to disintegrate. As the white-haired woman watched her tortured victims, a small wicked smile curled onto her face.

The sight of my beautiful lover murdering so many brought me pleasure.

Carmedy yanked one bundle after another from the belt around her waist and launched them at the men that raced toward her. One man’s body was engulfed in fiery red flames. He cried out as he frantically rolled on the ground in an effort to put out the flames. Another was showered with the feline’s green acid, and the man let out a sound that resembled a tortured animal as the skin started to melt away from his bones.

The cat-girl was brave now, and I was very proud of her development.

And the destruction she brought.

Rana darted in and out of the attackers with such swiftness that none of them could catch her. The fox woman sent perfectly executed kicks into the men’s necks, the backs of their knees and other weak points, as she wove in slashes of her daggers into areas of exposed flesh, splattering her opponents’ blood across the sand. Her movements were reminiscent of a deadly dance as she dodged back and forth with speed and agility as she sliced through the guards.

She even threw her twin dagger, and their points found the eye sockets of two different men. As she retrieved them, she flashed me a marvelous smile, and my pride warmed my chest.

Before long, our combined whirlwind of death had laid waste to the entire complement of guards, and no additional troops came forth to support them. It seemed that no one else stood in our way now.

“This way.” I gestured for my minions to follow me as we raced toward the back of the palace. Upon rounding the corner, we were met with an enormous lush garden. Large palm trees, leafy green plants, and exotic flowers of blues, yellows, purples, and reds, sprouted from the ground. Towering marble pillars and massive trees wrapped with thick vines lined the right and left sides of the garden and provided ample shade. Ivory colored marble statues of robed goddesses were arranged around the garden as were pristine ornately carved white benches that appeared to be crafted from the same flawless marble.

In the middle of the garden was a square fountain that was so large its parameters resembled a lake, and atop the fountain was an intricately carved white statue of Alistair. The figure depicted the king with a fearless expression, and his arm reeled back with a spear in his hand. The edge of the pool stretched far in the opposite direction and seemed to curve downward like a waterfall to signify that there was another level of the garden below us.

And there on the fountain’s edge sat the king himself.

“So, you’ve reached me at last,” the dark-haired man said calmly, and moved his hand back and forth in the water as though he hadn’t a care in the world.

“At last?” Rana snickered. “Tore through your guards like they were made of gingerbread.”

“When I learned that the rebel army was at my door, I thought that it was just another one of the rebel’s senseless attacks.” Alistair rose to his feet with an unbothered expression. “Then I was informed that the rebels disappeared into clouds of ash, and I thought, perhaps they have recruited a sorcerer to join their merry ranks. But when I heard about giant creatures carved from sand attacking my mercenaries and then an explosion that took out a good part of the east wall? Well, I was mildly impressed.”

“I’m glad you liked my explosions!” Carmedy’s lips curled into a smile upon hearing that bit of information. “Now where is our friend?”

“Congratulate yourselves,” the king said as he looked us condescendingly. “You have managed to do what was deemed to be impossible. You have broken an unbreakable barrier.”

“Yeah, yeah, we’re legends we know. Now, where is Annalíse?” Rana said threateningly, but Alistair ignored her.

“I will give credit where credit is due, he told me no one short of a god could break his barrier,” the lavishly dressed man said as he stroked his mustache. As he spoke, his voice began to deepen into a menacing rumbling and almost indecipherable snarling tone. “It is a pity that you will die after such a triumph. Then again, those that choose to make such foolish decisions do not deserve to live.” The color of the man’s skin started to shift into a dark shade of green, and the texture became slick looking shiny resembling scales.

“What in the world?” Rana breathed as we all looked on at the unexpected sight with widened eyes. Suddenly, the king’s neck stretched upward at an alarming speed, and it curled around in the air as it grew to be the width of a tree. At the same time, each of his limbs retracted into the openings of his robe, and his garment fell away to reveal the rapidly growing body of a giant snake.

An evil smile crept across Alistair’s face as a large forked tongue flickered from his mouth. The women continued to gape as his head gradually shifted to match his body, and his yellow eyes flashed. His transformation was now complete. The fifty foot snake narrowed his piercing yellow eyes, and his tail thrashed against the ground causing the garden to tremble.

“You shall die here, you impudent oikssss,” the enormous serpent hissed.

Chapter 22

“Ugh!” Carmedy cringed as she beheld the massive serpent king. “That’s disgusting.”

“Actually, I think he looks better now than he did before,” Rana snickered, but I could see the fear in her eyes.

“What manner of magic is this?” Morrigan narrowed her eyes at the gigantic snake beast.

“Sssso glad you asssked,” Alistair hissed as his body curled ever higher in the air. “You see, the sorcerer that created the magical barrier around my palace that you so rudely breached is a good friend of mine. So good in fact that he gifted me thisss.” The monstrous creature maneuvered to tilt his great green head downward so that we could see on top of it. There, embedded in the center was a pulsating green gem. “Your power may be great but it’s nothing compared to mine. Tuzakeur has truly made me the most powerful king that has ever graced the continents. I have been made a god.”

“Tuzakeur?” Rana said with widened eyes and then her expression quickly shifted to a look of rage. “That’s the sorcerer who took my family!”

“Ah, so you’re the little fox that he has working for him,” Alistair said with a deep chuckle. “He told me about your adorable little family. Too bad you won’t be able to save them. I’m sure he’ll be disappointed that to hear that you’re dead, but no matter. He’ll find another thief.”

I was slightly impressed by what I had just heard. To not only have the skill to create such an impressive barrier, but to have magical objects such as the king’s gem in his possession, the sorcerer was far more powerful than I had imagined. That hint of respect turned to anger that surged through my veins as my blood began to boil. While this Tuzakeur was indeed strong, he would be stopped, but first, I had to deal with Alistair.

“I want the rest of you to leave here and go find Annalíse,” I said to the others darkly. Morrigan and Carmedy turned to go but Rana stayed where she was.

“But this son of a bitch knows about the sorcerer and my family,” Rana said defiantly. “I’m not just going to--”

“Go, now,” I said firmly as I turned my head slightly to look at her. “Do as I tell you.” My lips formed a tight line, and I clenched my fists tightly.

The fox woman hesitated for a moment, gave me a nod, and turned to join the others. As soon as they were out of sight, I turned back to the serpent king who flickered his tongue in amusement.

“How very droll,” the scaly king said with a raspy laugh. “You actually think you’re going to sssave that girl. Sssuch foolishnessss. You should be more concerned with sssaving yourself.”

“You think yourself to be a god,” I snarled. “Let us see if you can fight like one.”

Then I thrust my hand into the air and called up a power that I had not yet had a chance to use in the desolation of the deserts.

The power of the old forest god.

The massive trees that lined the garden started trembled as their hearty wood groaned and crackled. Alistair turned his head in surprise as the trees all started to bend and stretch to meet each other in the air above the fountain. Once the trees touched at the center of the garden, their trunks twisted together as they sprouted upwards.

As the mass of trees grew, the enormous figure of a man started to take shape. The roots from the trees tore away from the ground and bound together to form two gigantic legs. The vines snaked along the growing plant monster and gathered together to form thick claws on the ends of each arm. The creature continued to grow until it was as tall as the first story of the palace. At last, its massive head was woven together by the remaining vines, leaves, and bark, and two golden eyes blinked open. The plant giant raised its claws in the air and released a thunderous roar that seemed to shake the palace so hard that I thought it would crumble.

Alistair’s yellow eyes were widened in shock, but he quickly regained his composure. Then he immediately flung his long serpentine body into the air at the demon I’d crafted, and he opened his mouth to reveal a pair of sharp fangs. Upon reaching my monster, Alistair bit into its arm with a loud wooden crack. Then the serpent king wrapped himself around the length of the plant demon’s arm and squeezed hard.

The wooden giant bellowed, grabbed at Alistair’s tail with its other clawed hand, and ripped the snake away. As the king’s fangs were torn away from the limb, chunks of trees broke away and sailed into the air before they came crashing down. Alistair hissed in protest, angled his head at the plant beast’s neck, and moved to strike with remarkable speed. The serpent widened his horrible mouth once again and gnashed his deadly fangs.

The tree monster roared angrily as the great serpent clamped down on its neck before the leafy beast grabbed hold of the hissing king with its viney claws and yanked him away. The plant giant let out another bellow as it snatched Alistair by the neck with its free hand before hoisting the immense snake over its head. The scaly king made a gagging, hissing sound as the wooden creature then began to pull with all its might in an attempt to rend the snake asunder.

The snake king attempted to wriggle from his assailant’s grasp but it was no use.

Alistair’s yellow eyes bulged in his green head, the tip of his tail thrashed helplessly, and his forked tongue wriggled desperately.

I smile darkly as I watched my creation torture the king, and my skin tingled as I watched him writhe and struggle.

Then I couldn’t help but laugh.

With a final yank, the plant demon tore the enormous snake in two and sent torrents of blood raining down on the garden. The two halves went slack in the creature’s huge hands before it tossed them down in front of me. The pieces thudded as Alistair’s lifeless yellow eyes, still stuck open, stared up at me. Blood continued to gush from his wounds and pooled around my feet, and I inhaled the fragrant smell of death with satisfaction.

The serpent king thought he was a god, but now he was dead.

Just as any would be who stood in my way.

Chapter 23

With a quick gesture, I dismissed my plant monster, and the trees and vines of its body began to fall away and plummeted down into the garden. They crashed into the various statues and columns and shattered them like delicate sugar cubes. One of the trees managed to fall directly on the figure of Alistair in the fountain, and a smile came to my lips as it was smashed into pieces.

As I turned to leave the garden, I saw my minions rushing toward me, Annalíse thankfully in tow.

“I’m glad to see that you’re alright,” I said as the others joined me.

“Thank you,” the freckled swordswoman nodded, and her face flushed for a moment. “I never doubted for a second that you’d rescue me, that you’d all save me, rather.”

“Of course he’d save you!” Carmedy gushed. “He’s our master.”

“I was not alone in this,” I said as I gestured to Morrigan, Rana, and Carmedy. “Your friends all came to your aid.”

“Oh, we definitely deserve praise.” Rana smiled as she folded her arms over her chest. “We went through some serious stuff to save your royal behind.”

“And that’s Rana’s way of saying she missed you, and she’s glad you’re safe,” Carmedy giggled, “and so are the rest of us.”

“Thanks, ladies,” Annalíse said as she bowed her head to her friends.

“You are very welcome, princess,” Morrigan said.

“Princess? Ugh.” The female warrior groaned. “I never thought I’d be one of those princesses locked up in a tower.”

“In a way, you contributed to your own rescue, Annalíse,” I said to the princess. “Your plan to take the palace worked perfectly. Your skills in battle strategy have improved greatly.”

“Have we not made strides in our training as well?” Morrigan raised an eyebrow as she gestured to herself, Rana, and Carmedy.

“Indeed, you all have,” I said. “I’m proud of you all, my minions.”

“So, now that we’ve established how amazing we all are, you wanna tell us what happened here?” Rana said as she pointed to the torn in half serpent king.

“I’ll explain later,” I said. “First, we need to take care of the rest of the soldiers here.”

“Already taken care of.” Rana waved her paw absently.

“Is that so?” I raised an eyebrow in surprise.

“Yep, I gave them all a taste of my elvish daggers,” the fox woman said as she patted the pocket where she kept her blades. “They didn’t know what hit ‘em.”

Morrigan then cleared her throat and gave Rana an unamused look. The fox woman released an exaggerated sigh. “Alright, alright, Morrigan and Carmedy helped too. Elfy here went into full mage mode and wiped out hundreds of those guards with that crazy fog of hers.”

“Very well done,” I said to my minions. “Since that’s taken care of, I need to contact Makar and inform him of what’s happened.”

“Oh, that’s right, the people of Valasara can have their water back now,” Carmedy said triumphantly. “We saved the continent!”

I reached into my void pocket and pulled out the clear glass sphere that Makar had given me. I held the colorless glass ball up to my face, and as I gazed into it, I spoke Makar’s name. Just as before, the orb filled with multicolored ribbons that slowly twisted and swirled around each other until they gradually pieced together the rebel leader’s familiar features.

“Greetings, my friend,” Makar said brightly. “What can I do for you?”

“I have good news for you,” I said to the man. “Alistair has been vanquished, all the soldiers that guard the palace have been slain as well.”

Makar’s eyes widened, and he murmured something in his native tongue.

“I-I cannot believe my ears,” the bearded man stammered. “How can this be? The palace us impenetrable.”

I quickly told him all that had transpired, and the man continued to look at me in disbelief and he gaped when I relayed the account of Alistair’s transformation and the sorcerer Tuzakeur.

“Praise be to the gods,” Makar said as he lifted his head to the sky. Considering my divinity, he was not entirely wrong in his praise. “You have saved our country. Our people has suffered for so many years, and now thanks to you, it is finally over. How can I ever repay you?”

“There is one thing you can do,” I said with a smile.

“Name it and it shall be yours, my friend.” The rebel leader bowed his head slightly.

“This country no longer has a king,” I said. “I have claimed Valasara as my own, but I can’t stay here to preside over it. I have other business to attend to on other continents, so I want you to rule in my stead as regent.”

“Me?” Makar breathed in surprise. “B-but I cannot--”

“I trust you, and you are fit to lead these people,” I interrupted the man. “I plan to create an empire that encompasses the world, and I’m starting here with Valasara. I need someone to run things from here for me and report back to me periodically.”

“But I can’t possibly--” he started to say.

“I have faith in your abilities,” I said confidently.

The man thought for a moment and stroked his beard before he finally spoke. “If that is what you wish, it shall be so. I am honored to rule in your stead.”

“Thank you.” I nodded. “Tell your men and bring them all here as soon as you can.”

“It will be done,” Makar replied. “I am curious though, my friend, after you leave the sands of Valasara, what continents will you take next for your empire?”

“Tamarisch and Tintagal,” I said with a dark smile. “I hear there’s a high king that needs to be put in his place.”

“What?” Annalíse gasped.

“Yes,” I replied as I turned to the warrior-woman. “I can’t have men hunting for my minion.”

“But, my father has an army that is--”

“We will deal with it,” I said, and then I smiled to the four women. “We will deal with it together.”

“When will you leave… Master?” Makar asked.

“In a few days,” I replied. “First, we will take what we want from the treasury…”

“Ohhh!” Rana gasped as she clapped her hands together.

“The armory…” I continued.

“Yesss!” Annalíse laughed.

“The library…”

“Splendid,” Morrigan said as a soft smile spread across her lips.

“And the kitchen,” I finished.

“Hooray!” Carmedy cheered, and as expected, her cry of delight filled the dawn sky like a trumpet of victory.

Then I wrapped my right arm around Morrigan’s narrow waist, my left around Carmedy’s hips, and led my beautiful minions back toward the castle.

End of Book 2

End notes

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Copyright © 2018 by Eric Vall