The Four Territories

by Stevie Collier

  There was a pause followed by the crunching of bone which made the audience go crazy with jubilee. The greowld must have stepped on the male’s head as there was a loud crunch noise followed by an explosion of blood that spewed like a fountain from the ground in a way Esh did not know was possible. He felt sick but couldn’t not turn away.

  Three furry beasts leaped from the holes, their hair covered in black soot. They were easily as large as any rektops but were creepier and unsettling than scary, which was horrifying in its own way. The greowld was known throughout all of Reah for its face, which resembled the face of a humanoid to a disturbing degree of detail. Each of these greowlds had a distinct feature, each as hideous as the next. One had a bulbous nose, another had a third deformed milky eye, and the last had melted ears all over its face. They moaned at each other and made pleasurable expressions as if they had just orgasmed.

  The walking blind male was now running in a panic which must have been what the greowlds looked for in a prey for when the bulbous nose greowld leapt at him the melted ear one head-butted it out of the way before it could make the kill. The bulbous nosed one fell to its side but hopped right back up, it’s face still in a state of strange ecstasy. The two greowlds moaned furiously at each other and started to circle.

  Esh saw the melted ear greowld, realizing it was being ignored by the other two, took this chance to attack the crawling twin. It pounced on his back snapping the spinal cord with a loud popping nose. The greowld hopped off of him, leaving the twin in a permanent backward arc, his mouth and eyes wide open. Esh hoped he was dead.

  The melted ear greowld walked around to the male’s head and sniffed it with its humanoid like nose. The twin’s eyes move with the greowld’s motion. With one swallow, the greowld consumed the male’s head inside its mouth. There was a slurping sound as saliva trickled out the sides of its mouth. Its jaws closed slowly and plucked the twin’s head completely off.

  The limp armed twin watched as the greowld devoured his brother’s skull. At first, Esh didn’t think the twin cared that his brother had just been eaten alive. That was, however, until the giant twin stood up and charged at the greowld swinging his dead arm from side to side and holding his fingerless hand out in front of him. It was a death wish.

  The greowld paid him no attention until the giant, using the momentum of his size, slammed his body into the feeding greowld. The attack was useless but Esh could sense the greowld was annoyed with the interruption. It turned its head, displaying bloodied sharp teeth. It caught the swinging arm in its mouth and ripped it clean off the twin’s torso.

  Again, the twin sat back on the ground in front of his brother, blood spewing like a fountain from the fresh gaping hole. He started to cry, laying his head on his brother’s body. Esh saw his body go limp as he died from the blood loss. The greowld moaned as it ate its fill.

  The two other greowlds were still circling each other, their mouths open revealing the same jagged teeth. Without warning, they jumped off the ground and met in the air with a heavy boom as their bodies collided. The bulbous nosed greowld gripped the third eyed greowld by the neck and shook violently, the other moaning.

  What happened next made Esh’s mouth drop. Metal gates on all sides of the arena shot upwards and malnourished slaves, males and females, were shoved outside by the king’s guards. The gates fell behind them. The slaves, having been kept in the dark for so long, were temporarily blinded by the sun. They had no idea what horrors awaited them. The greowlds hadn’t noticed them. Not yet.

  Esh pushed off the gate and strode over to the announcer. He had lost his patience. He gripped her by the back of the neck and lifted her into the air. The female screamed and dropped her list of names as she struggled with his grip.

  “You will tell the king to stop this nonsense!”

  “Gragralagh,” the female managed to spit out. Esh let her feet touch the ground and relieved just enough pressure so that she could speak. She coughed, her face red now from lack of air. “What do their lives matter to you! The king would never listen to a couple of peasants like us!”

  “What kind of king doesn’t open his ears to his humanoids? Come on, let’s go speak with him.”

  He shoved her head under his arm pit, pinning her to his body. His plan was to use her to get access to the king’s private quarters and force him to see reason. He had no idea where the king’s quarters were but he there had to be an entrance somewhere on the other side of the arena. He started dragging his hostage in that direction.

  Someone, perhaps one of the fighter’s, must have alerted the guards for he now heard their loud armored footsteps approaching. He didn’t quicken his pace.

  “Our lives are meaningless! You are going to get me killed!” the female yelled from under his arm. “Release me!”

  “Not until the king hears what I have to say!”

  The crowd’s cheers became loud in an instant and he knew the greowlds must have spotted the fresh meat and stopped their fighting.

  “Come on, we have to hurry.”

  The female tried to bite his arm several times but would stop as soon as he tightened his grip on her ears. A tall guard turned the corner followed by five more. Each wore beautiful purple armor, unique to anything Esh had ever seen. Each pauldron had one large spike that rose as high as the helmet which also donned a large spike. Even the spears they held were fashioned in the same way. They must have been the king’s secret guards.

  “Help!” the female screamed. Esh did not tighten the grip, it was better if these soldiers saw the severity of this matter.

  “Hand her over at this very moment or face execution in the name of the king,” commanded the guard that stood in front of the rest, his face barely visible behind his helm. Stationed on the male’s chest plate were ribbons which must have made him some sort of leader.

  He did a hand signal in the air and the other guards encircled Esh. Another hand signal and they had pointed the tips of their spears at Esh’s stomach ready to stick at their leader’s command.

  33 - The Magnificent King of Reah

  “I will give you until the count of five to hand her over and give yourself up… or you both die.”

  Esh could feel the female start to tremble under his arm. “Please… no…” she begged, her feet going limp as she tried to pull her head out of his grip. “No…”

  Esh stayed calm and used his head. His first job was to analyze the enemy. This wasn’t a very effective leader, he had broken too many tactical rules, rules that Esh knew better than to break. His Master had taught him to never give the opponent a count down because it gave them ample opportunity to react at a random segment in the downward count. Also, each soldier was equipped with just one spear which was great for medium range but never for close combat.

  “One,” the soldier said in a calm manner. Esh waited.

  “Two.” Esh still waited.

  “Three.” There was a foul smell of urine coming from the female.

  “Four…”

  “Wait!” exclaimed Esh, “All I wanted was to see the almighty king!” A new plan had suddenly popped into his head. He released the announcer who fell to her hands and knees in a puddle of her own urine. She quickly tried to crawl away.

  “Seize her!”

  One of the soldiers grabbed the female by the hair and pulled her up with a hard jerk, her mouth open in a silent scream of pain as she now struggled with her new capturer.

  “She had nothing to do with it, I was just using her! It was a horrible idea,” Esh said, his hands now out in a mercy like position. Xep had taught him well in the art of fake being. If he hadn’t been wearing a helmet he could have pulled off a rather realistic scared face.

  The leader eyed him carefully and then back to the female and then back to Esh. He stood there taking his time and pondering the situation. He walked closer up to Esh, his young face now visible beneath the purple bars of his helmet. He was young, probably the same age as Esh. He must have had a high ranking
father or some other status to have been promoted to his current standing.

  “Disarm him and bring them both,” he said, turning his back in a quick precise movement. He started to march.

  Esh allowed himself to be grabbed from behind and his borrowed greatsword unclipped from his hip. He was shocked that they didn’t even tie his wrists together, relying fully on strength and ego. He felt more confident now that he knew he could make his escape at any moment.

  They were led around the arena like prisoners being taken to their cells. They must have been getting closer to the king’s quarters for guards began to appear more and more frequently. They would address the young leader as captain and ask if he needed their aid. He would wave his hand and decline with a confident laugh. Another mistake, never misjudge the capabilities of your captive.

  They reached a door which was guarded by two bored looking soldiers. Upon seeing their approaching captain both snapped to attention and saluted, pulling the door open for him.

  “Wait with them here. I will speak to the king and see what he wishes of these two.”

  The leader made his way in and the two guards shut the door behind him. The female was whimpering, tears of fear pouring out of her eyes.

  “Please let me go! I had nothing to do with this!”

  “Shut it wench!” said one of the guards kicking her hard in the shin. She tried to fall but the guard holding her hair would not allow it.

  It was a long wait. The guards did not speak to one another. Esh looked at each individually and noted that they were all much older than their captain. They probably weren’t too happy that such a young male could capture such a high rank over them with little trouble. That was how the real world of Reah worked.

  There was a rapping on the door and the two guards stepped back and opened it. The leader did not exit but only gestured all of them inside.

  “The king wishes your presence,” he sneered. He was no longer wearing his helmet, but held it at his side. He had a perfect face, free of any scar tissue unlike Esh’s. He was a good looking male with perfect teeth, a sign of prosperity. His dark red hair was cut into a military fashion, short on the sides and semi-long on the top. Esh could tell this humanoid had not seen much action and if he had he had not been part of it.

  They all entered and Esh and the female nearly tripped on a flight of stairs that had been impossible to see in the darkness. The guards laughed and shoved them along. Esh had no trouble with the stairs but the female had been overweight and started to wheeze after the tenth step. She must have been paid enough as director of the arena to eat whatever she wanted.

  It wasn’t long before she gave into her exhaustion, collapsing under her own weight and forgetting about the guard who still held her firmly by the hair.

  “Captain, I’m going to need a little help with this one.”

  “Drag her,” replied the leader without even turning around.

  The guards shrugged and each grabbed an arm and they drug her like an animal. Esh could hear her plump face smacking hard on each step.

  The female had slowed them down tremendously, without her they could have made this climb with little effort. Esh bit his lower lip in frustration at his situation. Would he even have time to save even one of the slaves from seeing the insides of the greowlds’ bellies?

  A guard put his hand on Esh’s chest to stop him from going any further. Esh’s eyes had adjusted enough to the darkness that he could make out another door guarded by another two more soldiers. The king was not taking any chances.

  The door was opened and light made everyone, including the guards, flinch. Esh was shoved forward and the female was drug up one last step. Esh looked down at her and his body stiffened. Her face was a bloody mess, both eyes were black and her nose had become dislocated sometime along the climb. She looked almost maniacal from the pain she now suffered. He should have felt guilty but he didn’t. She was only worried about herself, not for anyone else. She had turned her back on innocent lives as they tried to claw their way back into their cages.

  Esh was shoved from behind. He stepped out of the stairwell and onto the elevated platform. It was well shaded and crowded with brightly dressed humanoids which must have been the king’s regal guests. They paid Esh no attention. He guessed that there must have been five to ten slaves assigned to each one of them. His Master was right, there would be no persuading the king. Slavery was far too developed and ingrained in the minds of the rich in the city of Zel.

  There was an enormous chair riddled with different types of jewels. He was pushed once again and he made his way around the side of the chair. Seated was the magnificent king, but there wasn’t anything magnificent at all about him. What Esh saw was a bridle old male dressed in a heavy looking red cloak which was also covered in the same jewels as his throne. The king’s face looked to be half dead, covered in moles, lesions, and liver spots. The females Esh had seen the king enter with were now half naked and were rubbing sensually over the disgusting male’s body.

  And there it was, the liquid enclosure Esh had seen from down below. The glass was completely see through showing the most beautiful blue he had ever seen in his entire life. The liquid moved and rippled smoothly at the top. He instantly felt his mind become boggy with wonder and it took a lot of willpower to shake it off. He would need his full attention in the moments to come or else he could very easily end up dead.

  A hand appeared through the blue and touched the glass from the inside. The fingers were webbed completely and the skin was very pale. Esh stared as the ripples of light from the sun above dance over the hand.

  “Welcome!” The king exclaimed, both of his arms in the air in a sign of greeting. Esh had to tear his attention away from the cage. The king smiled from ear to ear, his arms still in the air in a wide welcome. There was no fat on the arms for all the fat had settled itself around the king’s midsection. However, there was a lot of extra skin that jiggled with each of his movements.

  “You make excellent sport, young male!” the king croaked with a smile. “I thoroughly enjoyed the part where you cut that male in half. Excellent work, wouldn’t you say, Yemesh?”

  The leader replied automatically, “Oh yes your highness, excellent work indeed.” He said this without any emotion and his face was blank.

  The king laughed joyfully, his belly jiggling. “Yes, yes, I cannot wait to see more of your work. Now, what can I do for you?”

  With a flip of the king’s hand the guard behind Esh released his wrists. “I’ve come to ask that you spare the slaves from the greowlds. They have nothing to do with this competition.”

  “What slaves?” the king asked, waving his hand out in front of him. “I see no slaves.” A smile slid across his face.

  Esh turned and looked down into the arena just in time to see the last slave alive, a female, running for her life. It was a futile attempt as the bulbous nosed greowld jogged right beside her, moaning happily.

  The greowld struck the female’s gut with one paw sending her grey innards out in front of her. She stood in a daze. Esh watched her pick up her own organ trail and coddle it like a newborn.

  The melted eared greowld ran up and joined in on the fun. It bit down on a part of the colon while the bulbous nosed one grabbed the other end. The female died as they played their game of tug of war.

  Esh wanted to avert his gaze, he wanted to stop watching. He felt like he could smell the blood, smell her innards, and he felt puke rise into his throat. But he would not look away. This was life in Reah.

  The greowlds grew tired of the game and both laid on their paws to go to sleep. They had killed for sport, not for food. From the looks of all the uneaten bodies, this female had not been the first game.

  “Is this your idea of entertainment?” Esh asked the king, his attention still on the arena.

  “You fucking scum! You will address your king on your knees and with proper—”

  “Silence Yemesh! This male obviously has an affection for s
lave life.” The king took a sip of hot slag before continuing. “Probably is a slave or comes from a slave background. Am I right, young male?”

  Esh did not answer.

  “You will speak when the king addresses you!”

  Esh heard the blow coming, the wind gusting over the spear’s shaft. He felt a sharp smack across his helmet and swayed only slightly. His anger was blinding the pain, his teeth clenched so tight his jaw started to ache far worse than his head did. He needed to calm down. He needed to clear his mind.

  “Yemesh! I order you to lower your weapon! One more outburst and I’ll see you removed. Am I clear?”

  “Yes, your graciousness,” said Yemesh in the same automatic response. He backed away and took the king’s side. The female slaves would coo even louder when the king gave his orders.

  “Now… I see that I was right, wasn’t I? You were or are a slave… Who sent you, young male? And can I have a name?”

  “What kind of king sends innocent lives to die for mere entertainment? I understand dying through combat but… not this…”

  Yemesh started forward, his nostrils flaring, but stopped himself when the king started to laugh uncontrollably. The king laughed so hard he sent himself into a coughing fit, spitting up phlegm accidentally onto one of his female slaves. She took it as a gift and rubbed it on herself.

  Once the king calmed himself down, wiping his eyes he said, “These lives mean nothing! They have no currency! No obsidian or granite! They don’t even have a soul! The only meaning they have in this life is dying for me, their king! It gives them a sense of meaning in life! That is their value! For example… Yemesh.”

  “Yes your absoluteness,” Yemesh answered, placing himself in front of the king and taking a knee.