Lov dusted himself off as he stood, taking a second to clean out the bottom of a scale before turning his attention on the approaching mob. His army was intimidating, and the mob slowed as they drew closer.
“Why are you chasing this woman?” Lov asked, shouting across the gap between the two groups.
The man who had physically restrained Sing stepped forward, entering the empty narrow strip of grass. “She's a witch. She threatened to burn down the village if we didn't give her our crops with no payment!” He yelled, glaring at the young redheaded man before him, and eyeballing the older woman on the ground. Lov just wasn't as intimidating as he was in his natural form.
The half-dragon laughed before shifting his form and becoming an orc. His bristly hair stood straight from his body, his skin a dark blue underneath it. “You say that as if magic were a bad thing.” Lov said as he admired the stunned looks on the villagers' faces.
“You're an abomination, too!” The large man yelled, pulling his sword from the scabbard on his belt. “Let's get these vile magic users!” He screamed at the mob, trying to goad them into attacking the much larger force across from them. A few people stepped forward, ten men and women, but the rest decided to head back to the village. The ones that stayed started to charge at Lov, and his Talons took up defensive positions.
His female guards were just coiling to spring and unleash death and ruin on their attackers, when Missy interfered. She opened a large black hole in the ground before the group's feet saying, “You done messed with the wrong man!” She amplified her voice as they rushed headlong into it, falling into utter darkness. “Think about what you've done!” Her voice boomed before she closed the hole.
After a moment Lov turned to Missy and said, “Bring them back, now! The last thing I need is farmers and townspeople to be chasing down my army to avenge their deaths.”
“Oh, yeah! Long time no see for me too, Lov. I'd really love to fill you in on the little war we had, but as you can see I'm quite busy at the moment.” Another hole opened in the ground and the mob of attackers shot into the sky one at a time. They landed in a neat pile. Missy glared at the people, making sure they all saw the look in her eyes. “Get out of here, and leave the poor cave hermit alone. She's not hurting you!”
Fear in their eyes, the group turned and fled back to the town. Nord walked from the army out of breath from running. He huffed and puffed as he asked, “What'd I miss?”
Missy took off, flying at the tall elf giant and wrapping her arms tightly across his entire face. “Oh, Nord, I missed you so much! Never thought I'd say this, but I've finally met demon spawn worse than you!”
Nord rolled his eyes before saying, “I hate fairies.”
The sun shone brightly in Lov's eyes when he stepped out of his tent, and he raised his arm to block the light. He hadn't been sleeping well the past couple of days, since releasing the woman and her friend. He had a nagging feeling that he just couldn't shake off as he slept, wondering if they were okay. She'd survived for years without help, but the people around her home were starting to become hostile, and Lov had advised her to move. He hoped she had listened.
Lov went about his day, pushing his worries away to focus on his men. Morale was good. The orcs were restless with no real battles, but competitions with the Anuunaki helped them relieve their aggressions. He watched as they trained, admiring how the orcs had learned to think of the ant beings' tails as an extra arm.
Lov watched an orc male and an Anuunaki female fighting. The orc ducked and dodged avoiding the female's lunges with her wooden weapons. The man was the quicker of the two, but Lov knew from personal experience that if the orc were to be clipped by the woman he would have bruises. The young general moved on, leaving the crowd to cheer on their favorite.
He found Sanche practicing with no shirt on, whipping his cleavers about, working through different forms with intense concentration. Sweat streamed from his chest. There was no wasted movement as Sanche flowed from stance to stance seamlessly and without any apparent effort. It filled Lov with envy. Whenever he tried to train, he felt like a stumbling and bumbling fool. In a fight the young half-dragon was brutal and efficient, but when trying to learn forms he just didn't have the coordination. He circled his old teacher, taking a seat on the ground a bit away from him. “It's beautiful to watch you doing that.” The young half-elf said, picking at the grass that surrounded him. “I've been thinking, Sanche-”
The old elf snorted, “You thinking, that's a dangerous proposition.” Sanche interrupted sarcastically while loosening his body. The elder elf dropped his cleavers from a ready position and spread his feet into a relaxed stance. He looked down on his young friend as he took a rested stance, “So, what were you thinking?”
Lov glared at Sanche before continuing to speak. “I'm thinking that I want to split my army.”
Sanche considered this young leader, casually picking apart blades of grass. “Why would you want to do something like that?” The elder asked, getting back into form and starting with basic moves.
“I don't think we'll be able to force our way into Heart. The only thing that saved us from the Titans at the edge of the desert was my mother, and even then, she took just as many of us as them.” Lov dropped the grass from his hands and stood from the ground. “Force isn't going to win this war for us. I want you to select our finest warriors, take a team and try to infiltrate the palace. Kill Martell if you can, but don't touch the Breath of the Titans. I've learned power corrupts, and I'd rather not put your soul through another test like that.”
Sanche stopped his practice mid form, looking to the young man. “Are you sure?” He asked, giving Lov an appraising look. “You know how I feel about this world, are you certain you trust me to come back?”
“If you kill him, I don't care if you come back. Just don't touch the Breath of the Titans. I'm afraid it would overwhelm you, my friend, or that whatever is using Martell as a puppet would take control of you.” Lov stepped forward, hugging his old friend and mentor. “That can't happen. You've been through enough hell already, and I know I'm sending you in for more. But there's no one else I can trust to do this.”
Sanche dropped his swords, gathering this young man in his arms. He thought back on all the memories they'd shared through life, the things he had taught the young half-elf. The elder elf remembered giving Lov his first chance to shoot a bow, over the protestations of Tyrosh. Remembered feeling vindicated, happily accepting her anger after watching him hit the target seven shots out of ten. Impressive for a young boy of nine. “Alright, lad, I'll do it. Give me a day or two to test a few people out. I won't take more than ten, and I'll only keep the Anuunaki I need.”
Lov stepped back, wiping a tear from his eye, “Take whatever time you need. I'll let Nord know what you're doing.”
Sanche waved it away, “Let me talk to him. He should know these soldiers better than I do, so I want to hear his suggestions on who to bring.”
The young half-dragon nodded, “Before you go, we need to have one more archery contest. I haven't challenged you in a few years, and I'm still sore from the last time.”
Sanche grinned at his young friend, licking his chops at the thought of competition. No one had beaten the old ex-general since he was a young boy. “Anytime, Lov, name the place.”
The young half-elf left with a laugh, heading back to his reports of the comings and goings of the army. It was nice to have Missy back, though Tinkle had become hard and mean. Lov had snatched her from the air when she had shown him a bit of an attitude, and the woman had bit him! He probably deserved it, but it still hurt! He entered the tent, saw the stack of papers waiting for him. With a sigh resigned himself to looking at the figures. Lov wasn't sure why he did it, other than long years of meticulous training by Sanche and his uncle. Someone needed to do it, and for all of the great things Nord did with the army, keeping them moving quickly and together, he was no good when it came to figures and words on paper. The tall elf could ha
rdly read, but he was a demon on the battlefield, and inspired hope in his warriors.
That left the work to Lov, since Jaxon preferred hands on work as well. The little man could do the figures, and had no problems reading, but he hated to do the work. He'd rather build or grow or even fight, anything but sit and do paperwork. And since he was already using the halfling's money, Lov couldn't well force him to do this, too. He buckled down and got to the grindstone, losing himself in the numbers.
The stars were shining brightly in the sky as Lov stepped free of the tent, happy to be done with all of the paperwork for the day. He stretched, hearing his shoulder crack as he reached for the stars. Lov twisted and cracked his back before heading towards his tent. His ever present guards walked with him. The young half-dragon was thankful Marta wasn't amongst them. Yesterday she had brought him stew, and it had tasted like dung.
Lov walked to his tent, entering and stripping his clothes off before climbing into bed. Something about paperwork really tired the young man out. Maybe it was the monotony and the fact that there was no action.
Lov was just drifting to sleep, wondering what kinds of dreams he would have tonight, when he felt the sharp edge of a knife press against his balls. He opened his eyes, looking down to see the woman from the other day pressing it firmly against the skin of his sack. “They took Crusher!” She said, madness lighting her eyes. “They took my friend, and you're going to help me get him back. Then you're going to make sure they never try to harm us again.” She pressed down harder with the knife and Lov felt it dig into his scales. “Promise me!”
Lov could see she wasn't in her right mind, and he was more concerned with how she had snuck past his guards than he was with his own safety. “How did you make it past my guards?” He asked her.
“Promise me, before I lose my temper!” The last she all but screamed, and the guards on Lov's tent poked their head in. Seeing the woman with a knife pressed against their leader's manhood, they moved to act. Lov waved them away though, he didn't want this woman harmed, or her knife to slip.
“I'll help you. But not because you're threatening my everything.” He sat up, looking down at where she held the blade against his thigh. He reached down, offering her a hand up. “But you will need to move. I'm not going to slaughter a village just to keep you safe.”
The woman dropped the knife, which Lov snatched from the air, before collapsing against the half-dragon. Tears streamed from her eyes as she cried out, “Thank you! He's my best friend, and the only person I know worth anything!” She gathered Lov into a hug, and they left the tent to start the rescue mission in motion.
Chapter Thirty Three
With Sanche already gone, Lov talked with Nord and Missy about what to do. The plan was to either negotiate and intimidate the villagers enough to make them too afraid to attack and harry Lov's army, or they could just send Missy in. Lov wasn't a fan of that idea though. He knew if the fairy saw them torturing that poor druid, she would blow her top. After coming back from defending her homeland she had become hard, almost cruel. Lov wasn't sure if he would like that situation or not.
Missy was known for being a hothead. More than once she had shown a penchant for cruelty. Earlier, she had punished an orc that had stolen from his tent mate by making him feel as if he had lost his hand. Even now the man would whimper and rub at his wrist to make sure it was still there. Lov expected him to die if they ran into the Titans. He'd be useless in battle, the Anuunaki had trained him to be a kitchen aide, but Lov couldn't afford any useless mouths on this trip. He might have to leave the poor man in a town they passed by.
Back to the matter at hand, Lov wanted to go into the town himself, try to use the same technique he used to escape his own cage. Literally walk up and walk out with the bear. The problem was, getting him to trust Lov. Sing solved that problem by offering up her cloak. She knew that Crusher would smell that there was no fear when she handed it to this strange young man. For some reason, she found herself trusting him completely. She knew he was honest and wouldn't betray her trust, as long as she remained honest with him.
Lov accepted it, asking Missy to drop him outside of the town. She was so sullen over not being the hero, she almost refused in a huff. Then with no warning, she ripped a hole, dropping Lov through it right outside of the town. The young half-elf looked around, assessing the atmosphere. He heard shouting coming from the town square and set off at a run. He rounded a corner, seeing the poor druid trapped in a cage. He roared and swiped at the villagers with his paws, but they danced just out of range while taunting him with sharp sticks and spears. Lov could see blood where someone had gotten too close.
Crusherkun looked like hell. Patches of his fur was matted to him, thick and congealed with blood. Still he fought on savagely, and Lov was amazed to watch as some of the bear's wounds healed before his eyes. Whoever this man was, he was powerful in magic. He felt a kinship with this furry beast, something connected with Lov. As he watched a man stab Crusher in the hind leg, Lov's dragonhunger roared within him. Before he knew what he was doing Lov had forced a crack down the center of the town. And he had worried about what Missy would do.
He strode through the trench he had created, covering the men who had been torturing his friend with dirt. Casually he opened the cage, offering the bear to go first, then offering support when Crusher had trouble walking. As they left the town, Lov uncovered the men of the village, calling out behind him, “You shouldn't torture people. No matter who they are. Maybe I'll send the orcs here first after the war, help to teach you all some tolerance and manners.”
They left the town behind, stopping at the road sign outside of it. Lov reached into his pouch, pulling food and water out for Crusher. He tossed the bear his meat, and Crusher grabbed it straight from the air. Lov wasn't sure how to offer the bear water, so he just held it out. Crusher took it carefully between his two paws, bowing his head in thanks to Lov before drinking. “I'm sorry they did this to you.” Nothing else was said between the two of them, and slowly the bear's wounds began to heal.
Missy showed up to collect them as the sun sank below the horizon. She dropped them into the middle of the camp, and Sing ran forward giving Crusher a bear hug. He groaned in pain, then wrapped her in his arms purring softly to her, like a cat. Jaxon blew his nose into a handkerchief and wiped his eye at the sight. He was sensitive like that.
Lov walked over to the middle aged woman, “Remember, you need to move away from this village. Staying here is going to be bad for your health.”
Sing smiled up at the young man before her, a twinkle in her eyes as she replied, “Of course I'm moving. I've decided I like you. You're the first person that makes me want to leave my cave. It's as if you have a bright golden aura around you, young man.”
Lov chuckled at that, thinking off all the times he'd been called a little black storm cloud throughout his life. While his normal scale color was a dark grayish blue, when angered or embarrassed, Lov's scales would become a dark midnight blue. So dark it looked black. It was funny to him that she said he shone like the sun, and filled him with hope that he may still have some good pieces left to his soul after this ordeal.
He stretched as he entered his tent, cracking his neck before climbing onto his cot. Lov crossed his feet and closed his eyes, looking forward to sleep. He felt a slap on the middle of his forehead, and opened his eyes, glaring at the orc women that surrounded him. “You left us behind again. You went to get the bear, and none of your Talons were taken! You need to learn respect for your elders soon, boy!” Lov began to sit up and protest, but they smacked him on the back of the head with a bag of sand, and he momentarily lost consciousness.
When he came to, they had tied his wrists and ankles together with multiple thin strips of leather that had been soaked in water. Marta laughed a little before she pointed to his trunk in the corner. “I believe it's time to give you the old mothers' punishment to rude little boys who forget to tell their mothers where they are going. A
n hour or two should suffice. At least I can guarantee it'll be peaceful in there for you.” They lifted Lov to his feet roughly, stuffing a dirty sock into his mouth when he tried to protest. Marta kicked open the trunk, positioning Lov in it carefully. “Don't struggle too hard, or we'll just have to make you fit. If you work with us, I promise no lasting harm will be done.”
Lov glared at all of the women, regretting that he had promised to place himself under their care. His honor required him to suffer their punishments. This was a good orc punishment, and Lov knew it would actually raise his status in orc society. Still it was barbaric, and time consuming. He resigned himself to whatever fate awaited him, and the women managed to position him carefully in the trunk without breaking anything. One thing they were right on, it was peaceful. Even as uncomfortable as he was, soon Lov was asleep in the box. He knew the time would fly with rest, and he was tired anyways. Why should he make the torture last?
Lov was at peace as they pulled him from the box. Though anger seemed to smolder in his eyes, he was actually very calm. Being locked in there had given him time to consider the options before him. He could continue as he had, forcing this army across the farmlands, hoping they didn't run into a Titan army. No matter what, when they reached the walls of Heart, they would have to force their way into the city. Lov had seen the walls, and wasn't sure how his army would breach them.
The young half-elf stretched sore muscles, rubbing his bald head and twisting his neck to get the kink out. “Tell Nord I need to speak to him.” The first words he said to any of his honor guard. It wasn't feeling like much of an honor right now. “And we need to have some discussion about these punishments. I'm your leader, so I don't understand how you can do them.”
Breath of the Titans: The False Titanbringer: Complete Trilogy Page 47