by Noah Layton
Tribe Master 5
A Fantasy Harem Adventure
Noah Layton
Copyright 2021 Noah Layton
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Epilogue
Chapter One
I pushed myself up against the headboard, yawning as I stretched my arms over my head.
Things were becoming a little cramped in my bed, but that was a natural product of sharing it with so many beautiful women.
Lara, my bow-wielding huntress, was always a welcome presence at my side; her purple hair was her second-most striking feature, right after her buxom chest that stood proudly on her tight frame.
Santana, laid by her side. She was a flawlessly pale-skinned beauty with luscious red hair that swept behind her in the breeze when she was tending to our horses along the edges of our land. She had been through a lot, but I had made it my job to keep her safe from harm.
To my right resided the beautiful and exotic Talia. She had seemed conniving when we had first met, and I had been right; when I had come into possession of a merchant ship as a gift from the tribe master of the sun-elves, I didn’t expect there to be a stowaway lurking aboard.
She had caused me more trouble than I cared to admit, but in defending our land she had not only held her own but fearlessly defended my people with her ferocious fighting skills.
That ferocity had only been matched by her feverish appetites in the bedroom, or the guard tower on the western side of our land for that matter. The pleasure and love that I had felt was still ingrained into my mind from the first time we had been together.
My blue-skinned nymph, Elera, resided right beside her, sandwiched between Talia and Ariadne.
‘I don’t have a problem with our sleeping arrangement,’ Elera opined. ‘More people to share means more heat. It’s freezing in here.’
Even if social customs in Agraria were a lot more relaxed than they been back on Earth, Elera’s previous life as a nymph in the forest had left her even more oblivious than I was used to.
Last but not least was Ariadne. Ever since I had rescued her from a slaver at the local trading post and provided her with freedom, she had been one of my most faithful companions. She had taught me how to wield a melee weapon and helped me survive my first few days in this strange land.
Sure, things were a little crowded, but there was no way I was complaining – waking up every morning surrounded by five beautiful women was a lifestyle most men could only dream of.
Every one of them had taught me something about the world of Agraria.
Sometimes I had to pinch myself to believe it was true, not just because of the comfort and companionship that I awoke to every morning, but because of all that had happened since my arrival.
I had taken on the role of tribe master after being summoned to a strange land,
built my tribal numbers to over 50 citizens, built houses, constructed defenses, gathered wealth, and set up food and supply chains that kept my people fed and safe from harm.
But that was just what took place on the land, the day-to-day activities that kept our community running.
Beyond our borders in the wilds of Agraria, things were much less peaceful and much more violent.
My first and primary objective was to take care of my people, and to do that I often had to do things that most people wouldn’t dream of.
War was a reality in Agraria, and I had to adjust fast. It came in many forms, whether it be in gangs of raiders, legendary beasts, sirens living beneath swamps, feral wood-elves who had kidnapped one of my wives, mercenary gangs, or even enemy tribes.
And from each of my adventures so far I had taken a souvenir to remind me every morning of just how lucky I was to be alive.
From the mother wolf that had attacked our land, I had taken a large fang.
From Werger, the psychotic trader who I had rescued Ariadne’s kin, the fox-people, from, a Brutal Limb Breaker that he had used to almost strangle me to death.
From the land of the wood-elves, a feather from the attire of their tribe master.
And from the mercenaries that had attacked our land, a dagger with an imperfect ruby embedded into its handle.
Every one of my souvenirs had been taken from the enemies that I had vanquished. They were trophies; reminders both of my victory over my foes, and the constant threat that lurked out there in the wilds of Agraria.
I was open to negotiations. I preferred to use words to settle disputes and to make arrangements.
And when that didn’t work, I didn’t hesitate to put the blade of my sword to the throats of my enemies in a swift, relentless swipe.
But there was one thing that I had realized about myself ever since arriving in Agraria; I wasn’t just a warrior, but a leader. I had to balance both duties in my place as a tribe master.
Being a leader meant making decisions that others didn’t want to, ones that were often difficult, and which sometimes had very dangerous consequences.
But I wasn’t in this alone; not only did I have my faithful women at my side, ready to support me and help me in managing the tribe’s endeavors, but I had a whole group of other companions within my tribe.
Of course, there was one other companion of mine that had been by my side this whole time and had taught me more than anybody.
‘Master Jack, Master Jack!’
But he certainly didn’t belong in my bed.
A sudden banging on the door to my treehouse home sounded. I pushed from my bed, much to the dismay of my wives, and crossed to the door in my underwear.
The bite of the cold struck my lean and muscular body immediately. I had been used to Agraria as a tropical land with luscious heat since I had first awoken in the forest, but a few days ago things had become colder.
Much colder.
I opened the door to a blustering gale of wind that swept in. Elera shrieked and pulled the covers over herself, not at the sight of our guest but at the chilling cold that presented itself.
‘Master Jack, there you are!’
‘Where else would I be at this time in the morning, Alorion?’
Alorion, my faithful imp companion, had been my guide ever since I had arrived in Agraria. He took the form of a green monkey that stood no more than two feet tall, but looks were deceiving; if it wasn’t for his knowledge about the workings of this land, I would probably be dead already.
I had also discovered that he had
a certain way with the ladies – for an imp, anyway.
‘You’re letting all the heat out buddy,’ I continued. ‘Well, whatever heat we have. Get in here.’
‘Thank you, Master Jack.’
Alorion rushed in and I closed the door, barring it quickly against the wind.
‘Oh!’ Alorion continued, seeing my wives in bed and averting his gaze. ‘I didn’t know whether you were out of bed yet. Apologies, ladies…’
‘You don’t need to be shy, Alorion,’ Ariadne smiled. ‘We’re all friends here.’
‘Indeed,’ Alorion replied awkwardly, turning to me. ‘Forgive the intrusion, Master Jack, but Captain Archibald has returned from his trading voyage aboard our vessel.’
‘Already?’ I exclaimed. ‘Wow. He might be a drunk, but at least he’s a hard worker.’
‘I believe you told us a name for that in your world, husband,’ Santana spoke from the bed. ‘What was it? Functioning alcoholic?’
‘Let’s go help him,’ I smiled to Alorion, finding my clothes quickly before turning to my women. ‘I’m going to need you to go and wake everybody. The sooner we get around to getting these resources onto the land, the sooner we can be warm again.’
Not one of my women hesitated, no matter how comfortable and warm it was beneath the sheets. They all climbed from our bed in their nakedness, pulling their clothes from their inventories and catching them as they appeared, as if from thin air.
‘Uhh…’ Alorion stuttered, turning sharply away. ‘I shall wait outside, Master Jack. See you there.’
Before I could even say goodbye, Alorion scuttled up the walls of my treehouse and disappeared over the precipice of the hollowed trunk, returning to the land.
My home was built into the center of a huge tree that sat at the center of my land, the front door being the only way in or out.
Well, that and the upper reaches of the tree four yards over our heads where the canopy began.
Alorion was the only one who could enter that way, and he never did anymore. Talia was the other, who had made it up there to spy on me after following us back to our land in secret.
I had already noticed her impressive stealth and climbing skills, not to mention her ferocious fighting abilities. But that was just Talia; each of them possessed remarkable and individual skills that made them fierce and invaluable.
I dressed quickly, pulling on my heavy boots, my leather pants and a vest, over which I wore an overshirt and a jacket.
We were not yet outfitted properly for the cold, but we were about to change that for everyone.
Before stepping out of the door of my home, I took one final thing – my sword.
I hadn’t been precious over my weapons since I had arrived in Agraria. A long blade had been my tool of choice for fighting my enemies since the beginning. I had taken quickly to the brutality of combat, the strength that it required, and the combination of bravery and intellect that I had to muster in commanding it.
Occasionally I had resorted to wielding its power in a single hand alongside my power stones, and while it required sharpness of mind, commanding that combination had turned me into a formidable fighting force alongside my people.
I had swapped it out on certain occasions for a new blade, but my style remained the same.
Straightening my clothes and tightening my belt at my waist, I opened the door onto my tribal land.
The landscape had changed completely in a matter of days. What had once been luscious fields of crops dotted with workshops and houses in the northern parts of my land, and a flawless pasture in the southern parts with even more domains for my citizens, was now almost unrecognizable.
The land was blanketed with crisp, thick snow. The crop fields were buried beneath it, and the roofs of houses were stacked with sheets of whiteness that needed to be constantly shifted to deter the prospect of any roofs collapsing into homes, or any flooding that might occur.
Ever since it had begun a few days ago my citizens had been tireless in keeping things moving. Not only had we worked double-time to harvest the crops in their entirety, amassing more than enough food to see our 50-strong tribe through a winter spell, but we had kept the network of homes scattered about the land safe from the cold and properly networked; we had been systematic about keeping a series of paths open and clear of snow, allowing free movement from building to building so that we could keep everything moving as smoothly as possible.
Those weren’t the only plans that we had made, though.
‘How long does winter last again?’ I asked Alorion.
‘Seasons in Agraria are unpredictable,’ he replied. ‘Perhaps a week or two? Maybe more, maybe less. Winters do not often tend to last long.’
‘Two weeks at most? That’s not the worst.’
‘No… Although it could extend for longer. And, of course, the snowfall could become heavier.’
‘Worse than this?’
‘Perhaps,’ Alorion nodded thoughtfully. ‘Master Marlo used to speak of a great winter centuries ago, when the snow fell so hard that it buried the tops of the trees.’
I gulped.
‘Well, let’s hope we don’t see that again this time. Come on.’
Master Marlo, I thought. The tribe master that had commanded this land before I got here. A fat lot of good that jerk had done for me. First he goes crazy, then he burns his land to the ground.
But if it wasn’t for him summoning me through a portal, I never would have ended up in this amazing place at all.
I rounded to the southern area of our land, passing my totems with Alorion at my side. We made our way quickly to the southern gates. They were standing open in the cold, snowy light of the morning, watched dutifully by the attendant at the southern watchtower.
‘Good morning, Master Jack,’ the fox-man on duty in the watchtower called down to me. ‘I hope you do not think me overstepping the line for bringing the horses around. I was not abandoning my post, only-’
‘You don’t need to apologize for anything,’ I cut in. ‘Thanks for taking the initiative. My first priority right now is to get our supplies back to the land so we can get warm. You did the right thing.’
Ariadne’s kin whom I had rescued from the psychotic slaver Werger several weeks ago were a loyal people. The fox-people had informed me early on that they naturally stayed warmer than most; while they still needed fire and shelter, they withstand the cold. With that in mind, I had quickly resolved to send them on a secret mission with our resident sea-faring drunk (or functioning alcoholic, as Santana would say), Captain Archie.
After the first flakes of snow had begun to fall several days ago, I immediately needed to assess our strengths and weaknesses.
We had enough food and shelter to last a bout of freezing weather, but there was one other important matter to consider, and that was warmth.
While the homes built upon the land were stable and could weather plenty of storms, the falling temperatures were a force to be reckoned with. Every home would therefore need its own independent heating system beyond the small stoves that many of them already had.
I headed through the southern gates to see Captain Archie approaching.
‘Tribe master!’ Captain Archie called out. ‘Never have I been so glad to see your face.’
‘You’re not always glad to see my face?’ I joked.
‘I’m just saying…’ He chuckled, ‘Our past voyages have consisted of traversing the Black Patch and commandeering a merchant ship that was almost pursued by mercenaries. Still, this land is a bastion of safety compared to the world out there. Joining your tribe was the best thing that ever happened to me.’
‘I take it the rivers are choppy?’
‘Not choppy, just freezing. Colder than the heart of the bastard that took my beloved Coria from me…’
Captain Archie’s past was rooted in a love unrequited. It was why he had left his tribe of high-elves in the first place, to make something of himself.
True, our Gatsby-wann
abee had taken to drinking his days away on a fishing boat as opposed to building his fortune, but I hadn’t forgotten about the tale he had told me.
Deep down, I really wanted him to get the girl.
Everybody loves an underdog, after all.
‘That still on your mind?’
‘It will always be on my mind, tribe master. It is my one drive, after all.’
‘One day, man, one day. You’ll get her.’
‘Now that I am the captain of a ship belonging to a tribe master such as yourself, that day has come ever closer.’
‘I’ll bet. Come on, let’s get everything inside.’
With the carts back at the storage structure and the fox-people returned to their homes for some rest and warmth, I headed to my Building Totem and brought up the menu.
It had taken few hundred gold pieces of unlocks to finally find what I was looking for, but in the building interface it finally appeared, listed amongst a scattering of other items.
Hearth – Iron bar x30
Chimney – Iron bar x60
With tens of citizens now residing upon my land, as well as more than twenty loyal warriors at the new land to the north-west, that meant around 1000 iron bars would be needed in order to build all of the fireplaces to keep all of my citizens warm and safe from the sudden and vicious snowfall that had come down upon us.
Fortunately I had planned ahead.
The moment the snow had started to fall, I sent Captain Archie out on a trek to a trading post down river in order to acquire what we needed before two things happened – a) demand rocketed, and b) the price quickly drove up.
3000GP sounded like a lot, but we were still sitting on around 20,000 gold pieces to last us the winter, and keeping my tribe warm was an endeavor where price was immaterial.
To further ensure that warmth, I had also invested in a set of winter clothes for every one of my tribal members. They consisted of tough, thick pants, heavy padded coats, thick leather gloves, and heavy boots to fend off the cold that resided outside of their homes.
My outfit consisted of one similar to theirs; boots and pants, several thick shirts covering my undershirt, and a heavy brown coat with a thick collar that covered my neck. I spent more time outside than many others, and I would need to be well-dressed – as would my wives. I had also grown out the usual stubble that crowded on my cheeks, nursing a beard to keep my face warm.