by Dean Henegar
“I think you’re right. I’ll get the army back to help,” Darkfallow said, running toward the battle against the legion. Sadly, it looked like Narbos was going to have to pull back just as things were turning his way in the fight against Raytak. The giant had fallen, and the massive skeleton’s demise had opened a gap in the line that his forces were exploiting. But he could fight Raytak later. For now, his focus was on the lurkers pouring out of the six portals that had opened.
The alliance between Narbos the Grimm and Zipzisilerpicazant has been dissolved.
“What is that little turd Zipp up to?” Narbos muttered to himself as more system prompts answered the question for him.
War has been declared between the Hypogean forces of the Zisilerpicazant clan and the zone of Bharga’s Crossing.
War has been declared between the Hypogean forces of the Zisilerpicazant clan and the zone of Ironloch.
War has been declared between the Hypogean forces of the Zisilerpicazant clan and the zone of Hayden’s Knoll.
The zone of Ironloch has fallen to the Zisilerpicazant clan.
Narbos felt a sinking feeling in his stomach as the true extent of Zipp’s treachery was revealed. He had his army impaling itself against Raytak’s while the imp was preparing his own conquest. The imp had convinced him to strip all his defenders out of Bharga’s Crossing to support the invasion here. There would be little more than token resistance to Zipp’s forces, and the news that the invasions included the whole Zisilerpicazant clan—whatever that entailed—didn’t bode well, either. He had faced and barely beaten Zipp’s sister, Lilly, in the fight to fulfill his contract with the imp. If she were now aligned with Zipp and had a force as large as the one Zipp had brought, both zones were in real trouble. Narbos didn’t care about Ironloch, but it was disturbing that it had fallen in an instant to Zipp and his clan.
At least he still controlled the transition point, without that—
The Zisilerpicazant faction has taken control of the eastern transition point of Hayden’s Knoll.
The Zisilerpicazant faction has taken control of the kobold mines in the zone of Bharga’s Crossing. The invaders must control the following critical locations to conquer the zone.
1. The city of Bharga.
2. The city of Haven.
3. The town of Tramwell.
4. Kobold mining pit.
5. Western transition point.
6. Eastern farmlands.
Visions of Hypogean creatures emerging again from the kobold mines to invade his zone were interrupted by the howls of the lurkers charging toward him. The rats had taken down the painweavers but were being overwhelmed by the fresh wave of lurkers even as the lurkers that had been attached to his army closed in. His executioners prepared to meet their charge, keeping themselves between them and Narbos. To help out his troops, Narbos activated the Boarding Party ability and a dozen pirate-looking NPCs materialized in front of the lurkers, engaging them with cutlasses and daggers.
Across the battlefield, Darkfallow had come through for him and the army was beginning to disengage from its battle against the legion, taking terrible losses as it withdrew. The first of the militia forces and reavers should arrive shortly. Hopefully Narbos would still be alive when that happened. The only good news was that the portals disappeared after disgorging up to twelve lurkers each. Still, sixty-plus lurkers added to the nearly one hundred already charging him would mean a tough fight for his executioners.
With eyes glowing red in their helms, the executioners swung their axes at the first lurkers to arrive. His bodyguards were up to the task, taking down the first few lurkers to arrive, axes hewing through the lurkers’ disgusting forms. The boarding party, easily outclassed and outnumbered by the monsters, wasn’t faring too well. Narbos didn’t expect the boarding party to stop the lurkers, only delay them while he finished casting one of his few offensive spells. A writhing ball of shadowy black tendrils grew in his hand. Once the spell was ready, Narbos cast the ball at the largest group of lurkers in range. Tendrils of shadow burst from the ground in a thirty-foot radius around where the spell had landed. The tendrils grabbed onto and bore into the flesh of the attacking lurkers, causing them to howl in pain as they tried to rip themselves free.
He had only snagged fifteen or so lurkers, and more of them were reaching his defensive line of executioners. The executioners fought without fear, attacking with their axes and giving no thought to defense. Lurkers and executioners began to fall by the score. Narbos had far more troops than the attacking lurkers, and it would only be a short time until reinforcements reached him.
“Not so fast, ugly freaks!” Darkfallow shouted.
His friend had returned in an explosion of gore, emerging again from the corpse of a fallen executioner. Narbos didn’t know how Darkfallow’s magic worked, but the necromancer’s mana was now well below half as he worked to complete another spell. When his friend finished his cast, a dozen of Narbos’s fallen executioners stood up as zombies and fell upon the closest lurkers. Reavers and militia that had been fighting against Raytak began to enter the fray. The horrifying lurkers never gave up, single-mindedly attacking despite being outnumbered. Fighting to the last, they exacted a terrible toll on Narbos’s already-battered forces. By the time the last had fallen, Narbos had lost almost two hundred executioners, all his rats, dozens of militia, another score of reavers, and all four of Darkfallow’s necromancers.
“I knew that Zipp was up to no good. What do we do now, Narbos? Finish off Raytak’s army and hit back at the imp?” Darkfallow asked.
Narbos would love to do just that, but he feared that he no longer had enough of an army to accomplish the task. Raytak had taken losses as well, but nowhere near what his forces had endured. If he did roll over the legion with his still-superior numbers, he would have nothing left to fight Zipp with. The imp had the support of his whole clan, which included not only the forces Zipp had brought to Hayden’s Knoll but also enough of an army to conquer Ironloch and begin to assault Bharga’s Crossing.
“There’s no way we can beat Raytak and Zipp,” Narbos admitted. “Even if we could, by the time we fought both armies, Bharga’s Crossing would be lost. Zipp may be a lot of things, but he’s not stupid. He wouldn’t have planned to stab us in the back like this unless he was absolutely certain he could win.”
“So what do we do? Just give up and reroll? No way. You and I both have put too much time into these characters and have done too much in-game to throw it all away,” Darkfallow said angrily.
Narbos agreed, but he had to think of the best way for them to handle it. He needed to buy time to secure Bharga’s Crossing and rebuild his zone. Once that happened, he could think about taking on Delling again. For now, it looked like they had a common enemy. In fact, the idea of working with his classmate just might be as much fun as trying to conquer him.
“I think it’s time for us to cut a deal, Darkfallow,” Narbos said.
“A deal with Zipp?” Darkfallow asked incredulously.
“No, with Delling and Raytak. We work together to beat Zipp and his clan, or at least not fight against each other. I’ll try to get them to agree to a truce, and then we can run the army back to Bharga’s Crossing to deal with the invasion there. I have a feeling Raytak will keep Zipp busy and off our backs while we restore order in our zone.”
“That might work. I agree that Zipp is the bigger threat and protecting Bharga’s Crossing is more important than trying to fight against Delling and Raytak, at least for now,” Darkfallow said.
“Okay, find some kind of white flag and see if we can parley with Raytak over there,” Narbos said. He was frustrated with what happened, but he also had a feeling that there might be quite the gaming experience ahead of him.
Chapter 17
“Parley? Ye want a parley? Well . . . I’d be amenable to that, should ye be willing to call off your dogs, little imp,” Filthy Ike, the captain in charge of the force of scallywags, said. Zipp knew he had the upper
hand. As soon as Lilly had messaged him and said that she was ready, he declared war. His forces were already poised to take the eastern transition point, and the paltry one hundred guards stationed there fell easily to Nharia’s surprise attack. She should win an award or something for the most times fighting over a single transition point.
As soon as the war was declared, his troops turned on the forces that were still loyal to Narbos. Sadly, that included the Bharga’s Crossing town guards who had been attached to his army. Over the next hour, if things went as planned, the town guard, militia, and even the lowly conscripts would be loyal to the Zisilerpicazant clan.
The lurkers and troggs had carved through the startled and unprepared town guard. Most had broken and fled. The remnants were even now being chased down by some of his more overzealous creatures. The reavers and executioners were caught by surprise, initially falling in droves to his army. Eventually, they reformed and fought back, causing Zipp some casualties that he really didn’t want to absorb just yet. Still, taking them with his army had given him a chance to further thin the forces loyal to Narbos right at the start. The remains of Narbos’s troops were going to supplement his meat supply for the coming campaign. You never could have too many rations, Zipp figured. As for the kobolds and the scallywags, he could use them both here and in Bharga’s Crossing.
“That’s right, friend. We’ve got no beef with you or the kobolds,” Zipp said, gesturing toward the remaining kobolds. They had thrown down their weapons and tried to surrender at the first sign of trouble. “The little guys are practically useless in a fight, but I expect my clan’s forces to . . .”
The Zisilerpicazant faction has taken control of the kobold mines in the zone of Bharga’s Crossing. The invaders must control all of the following critical locations to conquer the zone.
1. The city of Bharga.
2. The city of Haven.
3. The town of Tramwell.
4. Kobold mining pit.
5. Western transition point.
6. Eastern farmlands.
“There we go. Right on time. We control the kobold mines now and, by extension, the kobold miners,” Zipp said to the scallywag as the kobolds gathered their makeshift weapons and fell in with their new master’s forces.
“Good timing ye have, matey, but ye’ll not take the prize of Bharga so easily as a kobold mine. The captain’s council is beholden to whoever rules the city,” the scallywag advised.
“Yeah, yeah, I get sticking to an agreement, but since when did pirates do that? As a matter of fact, your council and I have already come to an agreement. They helped hide a small force of my troops who should even now . . .”
The Zisilerpicazant faction has taken control of the city of Bharga.
The notification happened sooner than he had expected, which was a good thing. He really did love all the morally flexible folks in this surface world, folks like the pirate’s council. They saw the writing on the wall and realized there were only a handful of guards left in the city of Bharga after the army moved out. With the help of the pirates, a small force of Ikbose, backed up by a score of lurkers, was tasked with storming the city and claiming it for his clan. All of his careful planning was starting to pay off. There were a lot of variables, so he knew problems would pop up, but for now, the plan he and his family had come up with was working. He turned his attention back to the pirate forces attached to the army. While they would be inclined to follow the wishes of their council, their loyalty needed to be secured here in person.
“You boys got a choice here. I want you to help me in this war, and in exchange, I’ll nominate Filthy Ike to a position on the captain’s council. Your other option is to fight my whole army and get fed to the tunnel wurms. Which way are you going to go, Filthy?” Zipp said, motioning for one of his tunnel wurms to close in.
A flash of fear crossed the pirate captain’s features before he once again plastered on a disingenuous smile, twirling his long mustache as if contemplating his options. “It looks like we’ve reached an accord, Zipp. I pledge me swabbies to yer cause in accordance with what ye be offering to us,” Filthy Ike said with a bow.
“Great. Welcome aboard, Filthy. Now let’s see . . . We got our rations,” Zipp said, motioning toward the corpses of Narbos’s troops. “We got our allies, and we’ve got an appointment to keep in Holdfast. Let’s get moving, folks. I don’t want my dear sister to get there first.”
Zipp waved his forces forward. They had already made good progress, having pushed hard toward Holdfast ever since leaving Narbos and the rest of the army. He could only hope that Raytak and Narbos had gutted each other; it would make things so much easier if they had.
Nharia would leave some of her elves behind to reinforce the transition point after they hopped over and took the one on the Bharga’s Crossing side. The garrison would respawn under his control, but he needed the extra muscle to help prevent either Raytak or Narbos from making a play for it. He was also expecting a prompt telling him of the conquest of Tramwell and the eastern farmlands. He didn’t have too many forces pre-positioned there, but at Tramwell, he was relying on the loyalty of the kobolds that worked the nearby mining claim to assist his troops. They were on a roll, and it was conquering Hayden’s Knoll or bust for the Zisilerpicazant clan.
***
“Slow down, Cuddles. You’ll get an upset stomach by eating so fast,” Lilixzisilerpicazant said to her companion. Her razorbunny, Cuddles, was going to town on the corpse of the last human defender of Ironloch’s southern transition point.
“My lady, the zone is secure, and the army is ready to move. What are your orders?” one of her lieutenants said.
She had made an effort, despite the constant hunger of her razorbunnies, to keep several of the humanoids in Ironloch alive to serve her. The tribe of trolls she had found in the marshlands caught her eye, and she assigned them as leaders of her various forces. It also helped that if a razorbunny or one of her other creatures took a nibble off of one of them, they regenerated quickly. Only fire or acid could keep a troll down permanently.
Lilixzisilerpicazant—or Lilly, as she preferred to be called—had been skeptical of her annoying brother’s plan. Somehow, he had convinced their parents that the time was right for the Zisilerpicazants to grab a foothold on the surface world. She had to admit, the initial results were promising. Her brother Zipp was even now conquering Bharga’s Crossing with the forces that her parents had gifted him, and over the last few weeks, her army had easily conquered the zone of Ironloch. The previous ruler of the place had stepped down, and the zone was thrown into civil war as various factions vied for control. With any forces that could have opposed her fractured and depleted from the infighting, Lilly emerged from the Hypogean realm and overpowered the feeble opposition that the zone had cobbled together.
She had purposely held off on taking the transition point leading to Hayden’s Knoll to avoid sending the announcement that she was now in charge of Ironloch. With Zipp’s invasion underway, it was time to join her dear brother and take Hayden’s Knoll from the Imperium. With three surface zones under their control, the Zisilerpicazant clan would have the foothold as well as the economic base necessary to continue their conquest of the surface. For too long, the deep denizens of the Hypogean realm had bickered over limited resources when everything they desired was up here on the surface. They had but to reach out their hands and grasp what they wanted.
“Karbo, rally the troops and begin our invasion. The bats will carry across the first waves of the assault. Once we’ve secured the transition point, have them ferry over reinforcements as the deep gnomes repair the bridge,” Lilly ordered, watching as the troll Karbo carried out her wishes.
“Mistress, I have a message for you from the Hypogean realm,” one of the trolls she hadn’t bothered to name said, disturbing her review of the army. There was a lot of fighting still ahead, so she resisted the urge to have him killed for disturbing her.
The troll knelt and held up a
scroll with an ornate seal. Lilly plucked the scroll from the troll’s hand, noticing the family crest etched on the seal. With a snap, the seal vanished, and Lilly began to read. She was almost disappointed that the troll or one of her other troops hadn’t tried to open it; the explosions that were triggered when a nonfamily member opened one were enjoyable to watch. Amusement would have to wait, though; she had work to do and needed to see what her father wished.
Dearest daughter Lilixzisilerpicazant,
Congratulations on your recent victory and for adding this place called Ironloch to our family holdings. I have had one of your disgusting minions hold this message to give to you as soon as you were victorious. If he was not prompt in his delivery, please painfully kill him as a favor to your dear old dad. Your brother’s plans continue apace, and despite his initial successes, your mother and I would feel much better about the invasion if you would keep an eye on him and assist in any way you can. You have always been the most levelheaded among my surviving children, and with only two of you left, I would hate to lose one.
Please begin your part in the invasion of Hayden’s Knoll immediately. I have placed additional forces under your brother’s command to facilitate his takeover of Bharga’s Crossing, and it’s only fair that I add a similar force to your army. The reinforcements are already on their way and should arrive within a day or two, but don’t delay and wait for them, as I am confident that you have more than enough forces on hand to begin your attack. Speed is essential. The other families are watching to see if they should join us in the conquest of the surface or strike at our clan while the bulk of our forces are away. Success breeds success, and failure is death. Best wishes, my dear daughter. I would hate to see you fail. You have always been my favorite.
Your father, Zonzisilerpicazant
Lilly had a powerful army, but with limited experience on the surface, she was glad to have any additional forces her family could provide. She did a quick review of her forces and the ones her father had just pledged to her command. With her newly enhanced army and the forces her brother commanded, the conquest should go smoothly.