by Simon Archer
But sometimes, well, sometimes, none of that would work, and she’d lay waste to the whole fucking planet, or turn the sun into a nova and incinerate everything, or… well, the list just sort of went on like that.
Which was why I’d had some experience dealing with the fairy queen. See, I don’t exactly take kindly to be extorted by assholes who like to bully others. While I wasn’t sure exactly what was motivating the fairy queen to come here and grant the Oranges magic to come to fuck up Thera’s people, I was willing to bet I had something to do with it.
Whether that was because I’d been gifted powers by Mab remained to be seen, but either way, I was putting a stop to it now. If I didn’t, she’d just keep hurting people until she got what she wanted, and if I knew anything about the Queen of the Summer Court from Terra Forma, what she wanted was my death.
That’s where the Spike came in. Titania, after all, was a being of summer, of heat, fire, light, and all that entailed because she had been forged in the heart of Fae’s Forge and all that nonsense that didn’t much matter in the real world or the game world. What did matter, however, was that in Terra Forma, she had been weak to ice magic and dark magic. Now, I had a weapon of pure ice and darkness.
It should do the trick.
Assuming, of course, I could actually get to the fairy queen.
To do that, I needed to find her.
“Any luck?” I asked Queenie over the link.
“Yes, master,” Queenie acknowledged. “Thera was able to secure the knowledge quickly. We are now at the weapons hut preparing for war.”
“Oh, that was fast,” I said as I headed in that direction, and as I approached, I saw Thera standing there covered from head to toe in blood.
“It did not take long at all, master,” the Ant Queen continued in my head. “When they refused to tell us how they had gotten here, Thera sliced open the leader’s belly and spilled his entrails to the floor, then waited in silence as he died in a mess of his own blood and guts. It was glorious.” Queenie bristled excitedly as I approached, then switched into words since I was now close enough to hear her speak. “Then, she asked the others if they would like to live or die.”
“They chose to live.” Thera shrugged. “It was a completely unforeseeable turn of events, to be sure.” She nodded back toward the holding tent. “Who would have thought they’d given up the location of the mysterious Fire Giver so easily when faced with certain and painful doom?”
“Let me guess, the Fire Giver was kind of a bitch?” I laughed.
“Yes.” Thera nodded. “The Oranges are as much a slave to her as they are helping her. It seems she ravaged a great many buildings and boats and burned a good deal of their stored food. Then she demanded their assistance in destroying us.” She sighed. “I would probably have taken her deal as well before I saw my people scorched and burned.”
“Yeah, I can see how that would be a pressing argument.” I looked at the sky, somewhat frustrated. “But that means that we shouldn’t just recklessly slaughter the Oranges.” I turned back to Thera. “After all, they’re not doing this of their own free will.”
“Pfft!” Denno spat. “Everyone has a choice. They chose to fight us rather than the Fire Bringer, so they deserve their deaths.”
“It is not always so easy to make certain choices,” Thera said as she put a hand on Denno’s shoulder. “As I said, in their situation, I may have done the same.”
“Right, well, I’m sure it will be fine,” I said with more confidence than I felt. “Once we beat the Fire Bringer, everything will be okay.”
“Do you really think it can be done?” Thera said as she turned to look at me.
Thera has offered you a quest. Defeat the Fire Bringer. Would you like to accept? Yes or no?
It wasn’t even a choice. I accepted the quest and then nodded to Thera. “I don’t know if it can be done, but I’m sure as hell going to find out.” I felt my face grow grim and determined. “So, where is she?”
“Far.” Thera frowned. “She has made her home in the great volcano far, far to the east. That is where we are likely to find her…” she paused. “It is also likely why the Oranges were the ones to make contact with her. They revere the volcano as a god.”
“A god that tells them to loot and plunder the forests because otherwise everything would be turned to ash.” Denno’s words made me frown deeply.
Titania had to have known that when she showed up that the Oranges saw the volcano as a god, and it would be easy enough, especially given her power, to convince them she was, in fact, their god. I sighed. This was going to be annoying at best.
Then again, I myself was a god, and I sure as hell could kill a fairy masquerading as one. Besides, if I’d learned anything from humanity, killing gods was our specialty.
“How far is it?” I asked as I turned to the east and found I couldn’t even see a volcano. That did not bode well.
“Several days walk from here,” Thera replied. “But do not worry, for we will come with you.” She looked me in the eye. “After all, the Oranges are still feathered, and they require aid.”
I should have replied to her, but all I could do was think about what she had said because it meant Titania had set things in motion before I had come here, and as I thought about that, I realized that she must have been the one to force open this portal.
That was bad. Double bad even because it meant that there might be many more traps waiting for us before we got to her.
Still, I had to fight her, had to take her on. If I didn’t, well, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself, especially after what she had done to not just Thera’s people, but the Oranges as well.
There was just one other problem. I wasn’t actually sure how to… well, hit Titania. Theoretically, my Spike would take her down, but I was worried that in a direct confrontation, she would just use her superior speed and strength to stop me. When I’d killed Queenie in the dungeon long ago, we’d been about the same speed and strength, so a bit of quick movement had allowed me to take her down. Titania wouldn’t be that way. It would be more like those fights in The Flash, where everything looked like it was in slow motion to him.
That’s when I remembered what Mab had said. She had told me to check the Accords. And that… had been a curious piece of advice. I quickly opened my link back with the Halls of Research and reached out to whoever was available. Thankfully, Veronica picked up a moment later.
“What’s up, Garrett? Do you need some rocks examined?” Veronica said with a giggle. “‘Cause if so, I’m your gal.”
“Actually, I just need someone to access the database and pull up something for me. Can you do that?” I asked as I tried to remember what Mab had told me.
“Oh, yeah, that’s no problem at all. Let me just pull it up.” There was a pause. “Okay, I’m ready, what do you need?”
“I need you to open the Fairy Accords. There should be a copy, hopefully...” If there wasn’t, I wasn’t even sure of how to acquire one. Jane, maybe?
“Hmm…” Veronica said after a moment. “There technically is one, but we cannot access it.” There was another pause. “Oh, well, I guess we can, but it costs money.” She told me a number that hurt my soul.
“That’s highway robbery,” I squeaked as I saw all my earnings from the Amorphie dungeon go up in smoke. “Why is it so much?”
“Well, apparently, it’s licensed via the Court of the Cold and Dark. For some reason, we do have access to the Dark Fairy Queen’s library, but every book we check out comes with a price. Though once we get it, we can check it out again for free.” Veronica sighed. “What do you want to do?”
“Just get a copy,” I grumbled. “Then look up page three-thousand two-hundred and forty-eight, then find paragraph eight and read me sentence three.”
“That’s very specific. Give me a second.” Veronica did some typing I could hear over the comm. “Okay, I’ve got it here. This is a section about champions… um… it says, ‘And the Accords, writ
ten into magic itself and stained with the blood of the royal queens decrees as such: ‘Should a queen move against a champion directly, should the champion so wish, the queen will be required to lower her strength to a level commensurate to the champion’s strength.’ Then it goes on to describe stuff,” There was a pause, and I got the impression Veronica was reading silently. “I guess all you have to do is to let the fairy queen in question know you want her to do it.” She sighed again. “That seems a bit ridiculous.”
“I agree, but that’s the fae. They are very… capricious and chaotic,” I mused as I thought about it. If I could let Titania know somehow that I wanted to face her as Mab’s champion, then she’d have to drop her level down to my own. That was interesting. “Is there like a command phrase or something?”
“Not as such, but there’s a reference to another page. Give me a second.” There was another pause as Veronica presumably looked it up. “Okay, I got it. Yeah, there are a couple of challenge phrases in the index. Apparently, they aren’t required, but it says something about how the meaning of these phrases has no ambiguity as they have been agreed upon by the royal houses of both Light and Dark. Does that mean anything to you because it just sounds like nonsense to me?”
“I’m actually following it.” I laughed. “What’s the challenge phrase referenced?”
“The Knight of respective court wishes to take the Queen of respective court,” Veronica replied. “There are two examples given, so I’ll just read them to you.”
“Sounds good,” I said.
“The Knight of the Court of the Cold and Dark wishes to take the Queen of the Hot and Bright.” She paused to take a breath. “The Knight of the Court of the Hot and Bright wishes to take the Queen of the Cold and Dark.”
“Thank you,” I said when she’d finished. “That’s perfect, actually.”
“Hopefully, it was worth all that gold.” Veronica sighed. “That was a lot of money.”
“It was, but it was worth every last penny. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some very interesting rocks to look at.” With that, Veronica signed off.
“Well,” I said as I turned back to everyone else, “I think I know how to stop the Fire Bringer now. We just need to get to her.”
“Then we should leave soon, for it will be a long journey wrought with danger and peril, even for someone as strong as you, Garrett,” Thera said. “I will have a caravan of supplies prepared.”
“Thanks,” I replied, “but there is no quicker way? I’d hate to put out the village so much.”
“There is not unless you could somehow avoid the jungles, rocky mountains, and the dangerous predators along the way.” Thera shrugged. “Do you have a way to do that?”
I didn’t, but I still thought about it, and as I did, I looked up at the sky and saw something that might just make things a little easier.
“So, out of curiosity, how far away is it as the crow flies,” I said as an idea I really, really, wanted to try popped into my head. “A crow is a type of, well, flying bird. Because that would avoid all the danger, yes?”
“It would definitely be much faster,” Thera said as she puzzled over the question. “Mostly because we would not have to traverse the dangerous terrain or have to deal with wild beasts.” She stared at me for a long moment before turning her attention to Queenie, “But I am unsure how we would manage such a trip unless Queenie can carry us all?”
“I could not carry everyone,” Queenie confirmed. “But I will try if that is what master wishes.”
“Nah,” I waved my hand dismissively as I pointed toward the flying creatures in the distance, “but I bet those could carry us.”
35
“I didn’t realize Quetzalcoatlus came so close to the camp,” I said as I watched the massive birds snapping Samlon out of the river. We were several miles upriver from the camp, but even still, I’d have expected to have to travel much farther to find them, but unlike most pterosaurs and whatnot, they didn’t actually live near oceans, preferring to eat freshwater fish from rivers and lakes, as well as rodents and dying animals.
“This is a good feeding area for them,” Thera said as she crept forward through the foliage, her massive club in one hand. It was crazy watching how easily she could move through the brush and make no sound. I mean, I was no slacker when it came to stealth, but she was crazily impressive.
“And you don’t worry about, I dunno, them attacking your tribe members or carrying away children?” I stared at the massive birds as they divebombed the Samlon. The smallest one had to be around a hundred seventy kilograms, and the bigger ones seemed easily double or triple that with thirty-foot wingspans.
“They are not quite that brave,” Thera said as she looked at me. “A bigger one might be able to take a very small child in its claws and fly away, but that would also involve them attacking a village full of creatures much larger than their prey.” She gestured at the birds. “They are mostly opportunistic hunters and scavengers.”
“Ah,” I mused as I watched them. “That makes sense.”
“Once we get closer, we will have to be careful. Quetzalcoatlus is easily spooked, and if that happens, they will fly across the whole of the world before they touch down again, and unfortunately, we don’t have the means to chase them through the air.” Thera nodded toward the clearing. “We will go up to the foliage at the edge and wait for our chance.”
“Okay,” I said as I edged up along her. It seemed to take forever, mostly because I wanted to watch the magnificent ancient birds do their thing. It was scary in a way I’d not often experienced back on earth because the sight of these massive predators was something else entirely. What happened if they swarmed and attacked with those freakishly huge claws and beaks? I shook my head. I wanted no part of that. Hell, I didn’t even like dealing with angry cuccos in Legend of Zelda.
“So, what we will need to do is throw a bola,” Thera said as she produced the object from her pouch. It was exactly what she claimed it to be. Two heavy stones attached by a piece of rope. “Hopefully, we will bind them up long enough to run in and crack its skull open.”
“How often does that work?” I asked as I looked at the bola. It really didn’t seem heavy enough to keep a Quetzal down, assuming you didn’t wrap one of its wings.
“Not often with Quetzalcoatlus, but it works well with Pteranodons because they are smaller. We will need to pray for luck and hope we get a wing.” She gave me a determined look. “I’ve done it before.”
“I believe you,” I said as I watched her ready the bola. “Or, and hear me out, we don’t do that.” When she gave me a confused look, I smiled at her. “How about we just kill one from here?” I gestured at the dinosaurs. “They’re not that high level, really, mostly green and light yellow.” She looked more confused. “Right, nevermind. Just, like, what happens if you hit them in the head?”
“It is very hard to hit them in the head with a rock or a spear.” Thera shrugged. “I have not seen it done. The bola is the best way.”
“What about with arrows, like a bow and arrow?” I asked and again received a puzzled look.
“I’m not sure I know what that is, Garrett,” she said after a moment. “Bow and arrows?”
“It’s, um, a weapon that flings tiny spears at great speeds,” I replied as I stretched out my hands and did a pisspoor job of miming shooting an arrow.
“We do not have anything like that.” She thought for a moment. “We do have slings we use for hurling spears, is that what you mean?”
“No.” I shook my head. “Just, um… let’s go back that way.” When she nodded, I headed back a few hundred feet so we wouldn’t disturb the Quetzals. That was also why it was just the two of us since they were easily spooked. Now, though, I had a better idea.
“So, what is your plan, Garrett?” She looked at me hopefully. “If you have a better way of hunting Quetzalcoatlus, I would love to know it. That knowledge would be a great boon
to my people.”
“Right, okay,” I said as I summoned my highest level Hobgoblin Archer from my Auric Pocket. “That’s a bow.” I pointed at his weapon.
“Oh.” Thera stared at the bow. “I have not seen anything like that, though its construction seems simple enough.” She moved closer and inspected the hobgoblin’s weapon further. “But where is the pointy part?” She looked back at me. “You said it throws tiny spears.”
“Show her an arrow,” I said, and the Hobgoblin hurried to comply, quickly pulling an arrow from his quiver and offering it to Thera, who took it carefully. She spent a few moments looking at it before handing it back to the hobgoblin.
“I am surprised we have not come up with something like that. It seems little more than wood and twine.” She seemed annoyed. “How does it work?”
“Actually, don’t feel bad. It took a long time for the people on my planet to invent bows and arrows. It came way, way after spears.” I smiled at her. “When we get back, I’ll have one of my archers sit down with the weapon maker so he can learn how to make them.”
“I would appreciate that,” she said before she gestured at a tree a little way off. “Now, I would like to see a demonstration.”
“Okay.” I nodded to the Hobgoblin. “Hit that tree with a Stealth Shot.” I pointed to a tree that was about the same distance as we would be to the Quetzals.
The summon complied, loosing an arrow that shot through the air, silent and deadly. It struck the tree with enough force to bury itself to the halfway point in the tree’s trunk.
“So, yeah, will something like that work?” I asked as Thera stared wide-eyed at the tree. Then she made her way forward and examined the tree with the arrow stuck inside it.
When she turned to me, she had a huge smile on her face. “I think this will definitely hit, assuming your summon can hit the Quetzal.” She frowned. “Can he hit something like that?”
“Can you?” I asked the Hobgoblin honestly.
“It is likely that I can hit it.” He nodded. “Shooting game is why I became an archer.” He smirked. “Well, that, and getting to kill my enemies from a distance before they knew what happened.” He grinned.