by Dante King
Ben knew she was right. He’d reminded himself of back in college, when he’d cram for hours for his CS exams, only stopping when he realized he hadn’t eaten the entire day. College and exams—it all seemed like a lifetime ago.
“What about that Shrike woman?” Zito asked. “Makes me wonder what would happen to any guy who got frisky with her while her skin was magma. Yeowch!”
Melody didn’t waste a second before reaching over and slapping him upside the head.
“Gods, you’re such a brute, Zito! You wouldn’t be talking that kind of nonsense if you knew what we’d all gone through to get here.”
“Fine, fine,” Zito said as he rubbed the back of his head.
Ben, an amused grin on his face, stepped out of the elevator when it reached his floor. As he made his way back to his chambers, Zito and Melody exchanged ideas for how to handle the Moonbright situation.
“We need to do some damage!” Zito said. “We might not have the manpower to take on the Black Army, but we do have the manpower to make sure they don’t encroach on our territory. I say we liberate Moonbright, then draw a line in the sand. The Black Army needs to know we’re here and mean business!”
“And what if we all get killed in the process?” Melody asked. “The Black Army is nothing to joke around about. I don’t know why they haven’t attacked our tower yet, but if The One Who Rules All does finally decide to go on the offensive, it… it might not work out so well for us.”
“That’s why we need manpower!” Zito shouted, his voice carrying down the hall. “I don’t know how strong these Black Army jackasses are, but I can tell you right now they’re nothing compared to the Luminous Blades! Give me three fighters who’re decent with a sword, and I’ll turn them into killing machines!”
“We need spellcasters, too,” Melody said. “My elemental mage powers are still developing, but I’m certain I’d be able to train some magic-attuned in the art of spellcasting. I’d just need time.”
“We’re getting ahead of ourselves,” Ben said. “Right now, I’m thinking those monsterkin could be all the manpower we need to fight the Black Army. All of our efforts need to be focused on how to free them and bring them over to our side.”
“Right,” Zito said. “Not to mention they control the entire river region. Think about it—we take this region, and we’ll have a seaway all the way to the ocean!”
It was hard for Ben not to get carried away with thoughts of what the future might hold, but at that moment, he had one matter on his mind—the safety of Shrike and her kin.
An aurochkin was there waiting for Ben at the doors to his chambers, a tray in her hands and a steaming pot of stew on top of that, a tall mug of milk along with it. Ben thanked her as he took the tray.
“I’m going to do some thinking about all this,” he said. “When I meet you all for dinner, I’ll have a plan ready on how to handle the Moonbright situation.”
“Sounds good!” Melody said.[5]
Ben brought the tray into his room and out onto the balcony. There, he sat and ate and thought about the plan ahead. His eyes lingered on the tiny form of the tower in the distance, the place where The One Who Rules All commanded his Black Army. The other towers were visible, but they were mysteries to him, at least for now. For the time being, his attention was focused solely on the tower of The One.
“Now, Ben.”
Melody’s voice surprised him, pulling Ben out of his daydreaming.
He turned to see her bounding toward him, marching into the room like she owned the place. She was as energetic and eager as ever, her eyes sparkling as they always did.
“Yeah?” he asked, turning his attention back to the landscape. She stepped next to him, placing her hands on the railing and leaning forward.
As she stood there with him, he noticed that she was wearing different clothing than she had been. She was dressed in a thin, purple robe-like outfit, the waist cinched with a fabric belt. The material was thin enough that Ben could see the outline of Melody’s thong underwear—and that she wasn’t wearing a bra.
Melody cocked her head to the side, her purple eyes flashing with curiosity. She glanced down at what she was wearing, an expression of realization on her face.
“They are just clothes, my lord,” she said with a wink. “No need to stare.”
“Impossible not to stare when you look that good.”
A tinge of blush formed on her cheeks, and she looked away, shaking her head.
“Oh, stop now. Besides, I didn’t come out here to get you to ogle me.”
“Then why did you come out here?”
She shrugged, her shoulders bouncing up and down—and her breasts along with them. It was impossible for Ben in that moment to ignore how beautiful Melody was, from her delicate features to her perfect body. Just being near her was enough to make his cock twitch to life.
“I don’t know. We were in the meeting, and it was all business. Then when we were done, you marched off to your room and that was that.”
“I’m tired,” Ben said. “Got a lot to think about; a lot on my mind.”
“Oh, I know,” Melody replied. “It just… made me feel sad.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Because you’re the Forgotten Ruler—”
“—not yet.”
She cocked her head to the side, making a “come on now” expression.
“Ben, you’re the ruler—not a doubt in my mind. I can feel it being around you.”
Ben said nothing, wanting to not count his chickens before they hatched.
“And that means you’re going to be on top. This whole continent, this whole world is going to be yours. There’s going to be no one else like you. And it made me worried that you’d, well, get isolated. So, I wanted to come here to make sure you knew that you never had to feel that way. We’re not just your subjects, as happy as we are to serve you. We’re… we’re your friends, too. And I don’t want you to forget that.”
Her words warmed Ben’s heart.
“That’s kind of you to say, Melody.”
“Well, I’m not just being nice—I’m speaking the truth! You need to relax more, to enjoy the power that you’ve earned.” Her eyes flashed, a sly smile appearing on her lips. “And I think I know just the way to do it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, remember how we met?”
It seemed like a million years ago.
“Of course, I do. We were at that club, and I was drunk, and you were drunk…”
“I wasn’t that drunk,” she said, flicking her tail to make her point. “I couldn’t be if I was going to find you. But the club wasn’t what I meant—I was talking about what happened after.”
Ben grinned. “I remember. We went back to that hotel and…”
“And we had some serious fun. That’s what I want you thinking about.” She stepped closer to Ben, regarding him with a glimmer in her eye that was unmistakable. She licked her lips, drawing attention to her sensual mouth. Ben felt his cock move to attention.
“Being the Forgotten Ruler isn’t just about seizing territory and smashing armies—it’s about a little fun now and then, too.”
Ben smirked right back at her. “Yeah. Nothing wrong with a little fun.”
She winked. “Now you’re getting it.” She bit her lower lip and glanced aside, as if something had occurred to her. “I think you know what I want right now, Ben.”
Ben reached forward and placed her hands on Melody’s hips through her clothes. Her skin was soft and warm, and he wanted to touch more of it.
“The two of us in bed,” he replied. “It’s what I want, too.”
She shook her head. “Not quite. What I want is to make you feel good. So, just sit back and relax and let it happen, OK?”
He wasn’t quite sure what she was getting at. But before he could ponder the question for too long, Melody closed the distance between the two of them, stepping onto her tiptoes and planting her lips on his.
Her kiss was delicious, her mouth opening slightly and her tongue moving against his, darting and sliding in a manner that reminded Ben right away of why he’d been unable to take his eyes off her back at the club all that time ago.
He moved his hands up, squeezing her full, round tits through her gown, teasing her pink nipples until they went hard. Leaving his left hand on her breast, he moved his right down, down, until he was just about near her sex. But before he could touch her there, she placed her hand on his and moved it away.
Ben grinned through the kiss. “Don’t tell me you came up here just to tease.”
She shook her head. “Never in a million years would I leave my ruler in a state of wanting. Just the thought…” She turned her purple eyes back to his own gaze. “What I want is to make you feel good. And as much as I could easily kiss you all day, I have other things in mind.”
With that, she dropped to her knees, glancing up at him with a smile before grabbing the waistband of his pants and pulling them down. Before he knew what was happening, Ben’s cock had sprang out, fully erect. Melody wrapped her slender fingers around it, tracing its outline.
“You know, Ben,” she said, teasing him with her fingertips. “I don’t expect you to play favorites. But as the first member of your group of women, I would like to not have to go so long without seeing this.”
She leaned forward and placed her lips on the end of Ben’s cock. She kissed it slowly, her eyes on his, tingles of pleasure traveling down his shaft. Melody kissed him a few more times, the kiss turning from one with all lips to one that involved the tongue. She moved her hand down to his balls, cupping them and squeezing him firmly, her tongue not far behind as she made her way down his length.
Ben groaned with pleasure, weaving his fingers into her hair and forming a ponytail. Melody traveled back up with her tongue, and when she reached his head, she opened her mouth and wrapped her lips around it, covering him with her warm wetness. She formed a tight seal with her lips, her tongue lashing his head over and over, her hand kneading his balls.
Then she moved her lips down, taking more and more of him until all of his many inches were down her throat. Ben learned in that moment that Melody’s gag reflex was totally under her control.
She slid her lips back, his cock glistening with her saliva. A bit of precum formed at the end of his head, and Melody wasted no time dabbing it up with her tongue tip.
“Mmm,” she said, savoring the precum. “I’d almost forgotten how good you tasted, Ben. You’re going to have to give me more.”
“You want more,” Ben said with a smirk. “You’re going to have to earn it.”
She grinned right back at him. “I’m more than up to the challenge.”
Melody went down his length again, her eyes on his the whole time. She took all of him once more, then slid back. Melody repeated the process, deepthroating him again and again, her tongue trailing behind her.
It wasn’t long before she changed techniques, focusing on his first few inches with her mouth, her hands working together to stroke his length. Melody worked like a machine, like she was born to do what she was doing. And the triple sensation of two hands and a tongue and a mouth on his cock was almost too much to take.
She went down and kissed his balls, sucking on them as she stroked him. After a bit of that, she stood up.
“I think this might be a little more comfortable inside on the bed—what do you think, Ben?”
He nodded, and Melody took him by the hand and led him inside. Once they were by the bed, Melody guided him onto his back, then took position standing at the end of the bed.
“And speaking of getting a bit more comfortable,” she said with a smile. Melody reached up and slipped her gown off her shoulders, letting it fall to the ground and leaving her in nothing but a slender, black thong. She crawled onto the bed, crawling on all fours toward his cock.
When she reached it, Melody wrapped her hands around the shaft, stuck her ass into the air, and put his cock in her mouth. The view was perfect—her eyes on his, his cock in her mouth, and her heart-shaped ass rising up behind her.
She repeated her machine-like sucking, soft, slurping sounds filling the air. Ben groaned, barely able to hold back.
“Give it to me, Ben,” she said between sucks. “I want to drink down every last drop.”
Ben decided not to hold back any longer. He released, the pleasure incredible as he pumped his seed into her mouth, the flicks of her tongue against his head bringing out every little bit he had. A few drops of his cum trickled down his shaft and onto her hand. But otherwise, she kept it all inside.
When he’d given her all he could, Melody slowed down, finally taking her mouth off. She opened it with a smile, letting him see all he’d left inside of her. Then she closed her eyes and, with a hard swallow, brought it all down her throat, and opened her mouth one more time to let him see it was all gone.
She licked her lips, letting an “mmm,” of satisfaction as she turned her eyes to the little bit of seed on her hands.
“Not a chance I’m going to waste a drop,” she said, bringing her fingers up to her mouth and sucking off what bit of his cum she hadn’t gotten the first time.
All Ben could do was recover, the pleasure having been incredible. Melody curled up next to him, purring softly as his thoughts meandered, feeling more relaxed than he had in a long, long time.
As Melody reclined on the bed, Ben walked back to the balcony and looked at the tower in the distance. He needed manpower, and he knew it, but there was nothing to do at that moment. The monsterkin along the river were his best chance at starting the process of forming an army, but he’d need an army to free them. It all reminded Ben of applying for jobs when he was a teenager, how they all required experience that one would need a job to gain in the first place.
The idea of marching an army to the tower was appealing, but not an option. He’d have to think of another way to get to The One Who Rules All. Ben knew he might not have the power to take him down with an army-on-army battle, but one-on-one could be another matter.
He thought more about the situation, his mind going back to his flight over the tower. He’d seen so many workers there, so many slaves pulling the trees from the ground and strip-mining the earth. Then he thought about what Shrike had said, how countless monsterkin had been sent to the tower to work there, likely until the last bit of strength had been sapped from their bodies.
It hit him. If he didn’t have any army, he’d have to make one.
Ben finished his meal and then went for a soak in his tub, knowing that once his plan was put in motion it’d be the last bit of luxury he’d have for a long while. Dinnertime came around, and when it did, he went to the council room to see his allies there waiting for him.
Silence fell over the group as he took his place at the table.
“Well?” Zito asked. “What’s the plan?”
“We leave tonight,” Ben said. “We travel to Moonbright. And from there, we let ourselves fall into the clutches of The One Who Rules All.”
No one said a word. It was obvious to all that Ben’s plan, whatever it might be, would be a hell of a risk.
Chapter 7
The sun was setting by the time Ben and the rest of his group were ready to leave.
To his left were Melody, Lexi, Shrike, Lily, and Nipper. Zito, Imogen, and Brock stood to his right. Their packs were full of gear and supplies.
There was nothing to do but move. Sir Gallant the Elder, the Younger on his shoulder, approached Ben. Lulu, Vinata, and Sybil, along with the rest of his allies were there, all having come to see him and the rest of the party off.
“We’ll ensure the place runs smoothly without you,” Sir Gallant the Elder said. “You can focus on the mission at hand.”
“Yeah, that’s assuming the Black Army doesn’t attack in the meantime,” said the Younger.
“Idiot!” hissed the Elder. “With Ben among the enemy, he’ll be able to see the Black Army move, if t
hat’s indeed what they’re planning.”
“Then what?”
Ben didn’t like the idea of leaving his people, and his tower, alone while The One Who Rules All and his army loomed in the distance, a threat that would strike sooner or later. But he had to gamble—there was no other choice.
“If we find out that the Black Army is on the move,” Ben said, his eyes on the far horizon, “then we cut the charade and do whatever it takes to get back here. Then we make our final stand.”
Silence fell over the group. The last thing Ben wanted to imagine was a hopeless final battle between the Black Army and his forces. If it came to that, he was confident that he and his allies would be able to do some serious damage to any attacking force.
Only problem was that his army, such that it was, would be obliterated in the process.
He pushed all of that out of his head, knowing there was no point in imagining worst-case scenarios.
“Let’s move,” he said. “We’ve got less than a day to get back to Moonbright.”
“Stay safe, young leader,” Sir Gallant the Elder said.
The Younger piped up, “And I’ll be hard at work while you’re gone! You’re going to go insane over all the amazing things I’m going to be whipping up down below.”
“Just try not to destroy the place in the meantime,” Ben said.
Sir Gallant the Younger winked. “Don’t you worry about any of that.”
Sybil stepped forward, Minnie at her side. “And we’ll make sure the affairs of the tower run smoothly. All you’ll need to do is focus on your mission.”
“We’ll be back soon,” Ben said. “And when I see you all again, we’ll be all the closer to conquering the Black Army’s tower.”
He turned his eyes toward the road ahead. Their mission would be difficult. The tower and its comforts called out to him, but he knew what needed to be done.
The group said their goodbyes as Ben and his party started in the direction of Moonbright. Shrike, her skin the cool, solid magma form, said nothing as she marched. Ben watched her for a time, and it was easy to sense that she had nothing on her mind but returning to her home and ensuring her people were safe.