by Jeff Inlo
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Sazar had sent Chal to listen to one of the human messengers. When the serp heard the offer of surrender, he commanded Chal to change certain provisions. He would not meet the mayor at the border of the city, but rather several roadways deeper just north of the city center. In order to guarantee his safety, he would have his shags and spiders move from their current positions to the very edge of the city limits. That way, if anything happened to him, his followers would be in position to exact retribution. His hook hawks would remain overhead, but would stay at high altitudes, and his massive goblin horde would not move one step closer to the city. The mayor could either accept these changes, or expect the entire horde to enter the city within moments. Sazar knew the answer before another human messenger returned with the acceptance of Sazar’s demands.
The serp now stood in front of Mayor Flisher listening to her chatter on about women and children within the center of the city. The useless sentiments bored Sazar, but he appeared to be interested in order to carry out the final stages of his plan. He nodded here and there, raised an eyebrow and did his best to appear considerate.
During the meeting, the sky became much brighter and the sun appeared to fight for dominance through the cloud filled sky. The snow storm quietly diminished into a small flurry and though the ground was fully covered, the depth of the snow lacked any true significance. The light wind that made the earlier snowflakes dance had since died completely away, and the air was silent and still. Everything appeared peaceful and calm, covered by a thin blanket of white, everything of course but the dark horde that encircled the city.
“I would also like to send our cavalry out of the city and past your goblins unmolested,” the mayor remarked. “I will order them out of the area completely. They will not attack your followers. Instead they will leave through the south and then turn east and head out into the plains.”
This was the first thing the woman said that actually sparked an ounce of interest in the serp. His head nodded back and forth for a moment as he made certain considerations of his own.
“Granted,” Sazar allowed. “Send word to them immediately. They must leave now without delay.”
Captain Tevor could not remain silent. “May I have a moment with you mayor, before you agree on this?”
The mayor looked to Sazar for his approval and when the serp nodded to her, she moved back several steps to confer with the guard captain.
“Why would you send our elite forces out of the city?” he demanded with a tone he tried to keep respectful. “You are leaving us defenseless.”
“We are already defenseless against these goblins. Look, I’m actually doing this based on your recommendations. You said if we were going to fight, you would have sent the cavalry out in an attempt to escape, so I’m just following your plan.”
“That was if we were going to fight,” Tevor corrected, “not surrender. Many of the men you expect to leave have families here. They will not wish to go.”
“I appreciate that, and for the sake of their families you have to order them to go,” Mayor Flisher stated in an almost pleading fashion. “We have one chance to get out of this and that’s to give the serp what he wants and hope he leaves us alone. If he doesn’t, we are going to need help. If your cavalry can get to Fort Nebran without casualties, they can warn the forces there of what we are facing. Perhaps they can come to our aid and the cavalry can return in full force. What other choice do we have?”
Realizing that with dozens of shags and nearly twice as many bloat spiders already at the city borders, there were no choices left for them, the captain agreed.
“Give the order right away,” the mayor demanded. “I want to get them out before he changes his mind.”
While the mayor and Captain Tevor discussed their options, Chal could not restrain his own curiosity.
“Why would you allow the human forces to leave?” the goblin asked of Sazar.
“Very simple,” Sazar said in a tone that almost hummed with satisfaction. “I wish to conquer and control this city, not destroy it. This cavalry she speaks of is the most dangerous contingent of humans I face. If I remove them from the area without violence, I reduce casualties on both sides. I also diminish their forces without diminishing my own. Finally, with less of their militia within the confines of the city, there will be less insurrection among these humans. They will be much more willing to follow my orders.”
The mayor returned to the serp before he could say more.
“I have instructed Captain Tevor to give the order to the cavalry. They are already mounted so they will be leaving in moments. Please instruct your forces to let them pass peacefully.”
“I shall do so now.”
The serp did not move. He sent a command to all his forces not to interfere with the human contingent on horseback. He also sent another command, one to his bloat spiders. With this complete, he turned his attention back to the human leader of the city that was assuredly now under his control.
“What else is it you would like to propose?” the serp asked.
“Will you not send a message to your forces regarding our cavalry?” the mayor demanded with an alarmed expression.
“I have already done so,” Sazar responded as he raised an eyebrow. “Perhaps all of you here should understand that I do not need to move from this spot to command my entire army. I do not need to speak to communicate my desires. If you doubt this, then all you have to do is listen. You will hear no clamor to the south, no screams, no sounds of battle. Your cavalry is moving right now as we speak out of the city. I see what my forces see and so I know it is true.”
Both the captain and the mayor eyed the serp with suspicion but then turned an ear to the south. Indeed, they heard nothing that would indicate any disturbance. They allowed long moments to pass and still all remained quiet.
“I will ask again,” Sazar interrupted them, “what else would you like to propose?”
The mayor appeared momentarily flustered but quickly regained her composure.
“I would ask that you leave the citizens within the city center alone. They are civilians.”
“They are humans, I will do with them what I will.”
This answer stunned Mayor Flisher even further. At first she didn’t know what to say. Eventually, she hoped to make another plea toward mercy.
“You asked what my proposals were. I will turn over whatever supplies you require without resistance. I will restrain the citizens and the armed forces to the center of the city so that you may take what you want without harassment. I will have supply carts gathered for you and allow you as much time as needed to load them with whatever you want. Take what you will, but leave the citizens unharmed.”
The serp stared into the mayor’s eyes and almost laughed.
“I will take the city itself,” the serp stated gleefully. “You think I am here simply to raid your supplies and be on my way. I have some very unhappy news for you. I am here to stay. That was my intention from the beginning.”
“But what would you want with our city?” the mayor asked frantically.
“Everything. The structures of this place shall house my minions, your supplies will feed them and arm them. The people of this place shall serve them. This place will become the first human city to fall under my rule.”
“You can’t be serious!” the mayor cried.
Captain Tevor said nothing. He considered all that had happened in the past few moments and realized that if the serp wanted the city, there was very little he could do to delay him, let alone stop him.
“In fact, it is truly already mine,” Sazar stated with confidence. “I want you to see something. Walk with me now.”
Sazar turned about and headed north back to the outskirts of the city. After passing a few alleys and side roads, he could see one of his bloat spiders apparently dangling in the air suspended over the main road that led out of this section of town and into the northern plains. As they walked closer, it became a
pparent that the swollen body of the spider was actually clinging to an enormous web that stretched across the street from one end to the other. The few remaining snow flakes that drifted out of the sky stuck to the web strands, making them appear thicker and of uneven size.
The mayor and Captain Tevor stared at the hideous creature in the center of the web. Its dark brown body was heavy and very round with small patches of thick hair protruding from different areas. Its six legs were narrow and seemed inadequate in strength to hold the disproportionately sized body. At its mouth waited the tips of two small fangs that protruded out of protective sacks.
“A bloat spider can make a web of this size in a very short amount of time. This one started the moment you gave your order to the cavalry to leave. Others have since begun making similar webs all around your city. At this point, they are close to successfully blocking nearly every road exiting the city. You could not escape if you wanted to. I know which areas remain unblocked and I have ordered my shags to guard them. My goblins will now use these to enter the city.”
Sazar then gave a mental command to the enormous shag that served as his body guard. The monster dashed out of a dark alley and quickly took hold of the bewildered mayor. As the monster ran toward the web, she froze in terror in the grip of the shag.
“Captain,” Sazar commanded, “do not do anything rash. For the sake of your men that are waiting at the city center, you need to be alive to ensure their survival.”
Captain Tevor was forced to watch as the shag threw mayor Flisher into the web very near the face of the bloat spider. The creature’s two front legs pulled the mayor closer toward it as the remaining four limbs clung to the web to keep it supported. The spider wasted no poison on its victim for it was too hungry. The fangs pierced the mayor at her left side just above her waist and the arachnid began to feed immediately.
Without poison to numb her, the mayor felt everything and her screams could be heard far into the distance. She flailed with the one arm that had not been caught in the unbreakable grip of the spider’s web, but it only made dull thuds against the creature’s thick hide. After agonizing moments that seemed more like an eternity, her screams died down to whispered cries and then silence.
Sazar looked to Tevor and spoke without glee, without satisfaction, but with a tone of unheralded seriousness.
“Captain, I’m allowing you to live because of all the people in this city, I believe you will understand the situation the best. You would have preferred to fight than to surrender, even if it meant death. Death in the clutches of a bloat spider, however, is not quite the same as death in battle. The truth of the matter is that I now control your city and battle is no longer an option.
“Your elite fighters are now gone. Access to the city is under my complete power. The spiders have restricted access and shags now control the streets. My hook hawks and razor crows provide surveillance and can strike at any point in the city. The full complement of my goblin horde is now entering the city through the only clear passages my spiders have allowed. They now take cover in your very structures.
“I am aware you have foot soldiers that were moved from outer entrenchments into the center of the city to protect the civilian population. They are truly insufficient in force. There is no way they could possibly break out of the city to escape, thus they are stuck where they are. The interior of your city has suffered the most damage from the dwarves and it is not truly a defensible position. Put simply, I would not even have to attack the remnants of your militia. I could cut off the supplies, pick off your inhabitants from a distance with goblin crossbow fire, send in my hawks, or simply burn the interior of the city to the ground. I’m telling you this so you understand the situation.”
“I understand it fine,” the captain growled with hate.
“Actually, you don’t,” Sazar corrected him. “I am aware that humans cling to hope, even when hope is small. The hope I give you is this; I will allow the people of this city to return to their normal activities, at least for the most part. The farmers will return to their farms to grow food, miners will return to the hills to mine metals, and your artisans will be set to do the work they are trained to do. The only difference is that they are now doing their work for me.
“Your city suffered a great loss in numbers from the dwarf attack. That much is obvious. With a reduced population, your farms around the city provide a great surplus of food. The people of this town will continue to be fed. The surplus, however, will belong to me and my army. What the miners take from the ground will be used to make armor and weapons, and again, they will belong to me. Those humans that do not farm or do not mine will be required to work toward making weapons, supply carts, armor, or anything else I need.
“Do not mistake my offer as a chance for escape. The goblins will patrol the farms, the shags the hills, and my flying minions will remain in the skies over and around the city. Anyone that is caught trying to escape will be thrown to the bloat spiders. Anyone unwilling to work will be thrown to the bloat spiders. Anyone trying to disrupt my supplies will be thrown to the bloat spiders. If anyone disobeys any of my rules, they will be… well, you get the idea now, don’t you?
“You can look at it that I am taking everything from you, or you can look at it as I’m giving you a chance to live. You will wake, work, eat, and sleep, and yes it will be toward my benefit, but you will live. As long as you live there is hope that one day you might be freed. I suggest you take the proper perspective.”