Empire Builder 3: Breed, Populate, Conquer

by Dante King

  “Come,” Ben said. “Tell me who you are and what you’re doing.”

  The goblin complied, pulling the crank on his mechanical platform and riding it down to greet them. He stopped when he was a dozen feet away and a dozen more up above them. Ben kept his sword at the ready, not sure if he’d need to use it.

  “You’re… you’re the new owner of his tower?” The goblin looked him up and down. “But you’re just a normal man! How the hell did you manage to take this place over?”

  “Tell me who you are now, or you’re going to find out just how not-normal I am.”

  Ben was already seeing a difference between how he and The One ruled. The One seemed to prefer ruling from afar, keeping his face hidden from his minions. So far, no one seemed to have noticed that they looked exactly alike.

  “Yes, yes.” The goblin pulled the crank and came down the rest of the way. “Keep your robes on, human.”

  When he was at ground level, the goblin hopped off his platform and approached. He was small, even for a goblin, barely coming up to Ben’s belly.

  “My name’s Nerve,” he said. “I’m the one who runs this little operation!”

  “The bestiary, you mean,” Ben said, looking around at the seemingly endless cages.

  The goblin scoffed. “If you can call it that. Look at what I’m working with! Disgusting set-up here, totally disrespectful to the beasts!”

  Ben arched his brow. “OK, tell me how you got here, and why you’re working in a bestiary you hate.”

  “I’m here for the same reason as everyone else—I’m a damn slave! Sure, the orcs and goblins have it a little better than the kin, but not by much. I was the wolf tamer back in my tribe, the Greasy Nails. When The One came to our village and gave us the same offer he did all the other slaves—work or die—he came across my wolf pens. He liked how I did things, and told me he had a role for me in his tower.”

  “So, he put you in charge of his animals.”

  “That’s right, but he didn’t give a damn about my methods! See, you can’t just shove them into cages like this! You have to give them space to roam, let them feel like animals! I told him that, and you know what he did? He used that telekinesis crap to lift me into the air, told me that if I ever questioned him like that again, he’d pull me apart like a roasted chicken! So much for respecting the skilled workers!”

  “We’re looking for two beasts,” Melody said.

  “That’s right,” Imogen said. “A small rock monster and a big purple cat.”

  Nerve cocked his head to the side. “Oh! The newbies. I let ’em roam as soon as I got word the big boss was dead. They, ah, didn’t take too kindly to getting put into cages.”

  “And that’s what you’re doing now,” Ben said. “Letting all the animals run free?”

  Nerve nodded, a smile on his face as if he couldn’t have been more pleased with his work.

  “If The One is dead, then screw him and his stupid cages! I’ll let these poor things run wild, and if they take out a few orcs on the way out, then so much the better!”

  There was still much to do, but Ben was already thinking about what things were going to be like once the tower was fully secure.

  “So, you can handle the animals?”

  “You’re damn right I can! Just give me some actual resources and I’ll put together the best damn bestiary you’ve ever seen!”

  Ben’s eyes moved along the cages. There were still many, many animals locked in them.

  “What about the ones still here?”

  Nerve sighed, shaking his head. “There’s another reason I’m letting them out. You leave an animal in a cage for long enough and they turn wild again, believe it or not. Can’t really use ’em for anything but, well, letting them rampage out of the tower. For most of these animals here, the best thing for ’em is to let ’em free. Not to mention, these were all created by The One breeding with the kin he kept in his little harem.”

  “What does that have to do with it?” Melody asked.

  “It’s strange,” Nerve said, putting his bony hands on his skinny hips. “For the best results with monster creation, you have to have a mom and dad who, well, like each other. Otherwise, the kids turn out a little weird. And trust me, none of the women in The One’s harem were all that crazy about him.”

  Ben glanced at the animals again. “So, if you had access to better resources and animals from good parents…”

  His eyes lit up. “Then I could train you a monster army! You bring animals like that to me, and I’ll teach ’em how to fight in groups, how to use their powers, and how to obey commands.” His face flashed with realization. “Like your rock monster and the cat—they were perfect. If you give me the chance, I’ll make a place where you’d be proud to keep them when you’re not leading them on missions or into battle.”

  “And I can trust you?” Ben asked.

  “What, you’re asking if you can trust me just because I’m a goblin?” He waved his hand through the air dismissively. “Please. Orcs and goblins just follow who’s the strongest—no real allegiance. Well, I have allegiance to the animals. You let me raise them how they’re supposed to be raised, and I’ll follow you to the end of the earth. Just one thing you need—”

  Nerve’s eyes went wide as he spotted something behind Ben and his party.

  “Look out!”

  Ben spun around to see a squad of four orcs at the entrance to the bestiary.

  “You’re letting the critters go!” one of them bellowed. “Nerve, I’ll crush you like a bug for this!”

  “Wait!” Nerve exclaimed, waving his hands. “The One’s dead! You don’t need to do any of this! Just get the hell out of here and enjoy your freedom? How about that?”

  The orc sneered. “Freedom is one thing. Smashing a little goblin pest on the way out only makes it even more fun.”

  “Oh, shit,” Nerve said.

  From the side of the entrance, a pair of figures rushed toward the orcs. One pounced on the nearest orc, sinking his teeth into the orc’s neck and killing it instantly. The other, a beast made up of several shapes, slammed hard enough into another orc to break its bones like twigs.

  Ben grinned as he realized who’d showed up—Brock and Nipper.

  The pair finished off the orcs, Nipper bringing them down with teeth and claws, and Brock smashing his rock body into them and reducing them to pulp. The scene was a mess of blood and gore. When Nipper and Brock were finished, the two beasts happily came over to their parents as sweet as could be.

  “Brock!” Imogen shouted as she rushed over to her baby and threw her arms around him. The rocks that made up his body were larger than before. “Did he evolve?” she asked, turning back to Nerve.

  “He sure did!” the goblin said. “With a little help from yours truly. Thanks for the save, by the way.”

  Nipper tried to lick Melody’s face, but she stepped back with a smile. “We can save that for when you’re not covered in orc guts.” Instead, she scratched Nipper behind the ears, the big cat not minding the attention one bit. Ben gave Nipper and Brock a little attention of his own, petting them both and letting them know he was happy to see them.

  “Now,” Nerve said, “if you’re fine with our little arrangement, I can let the rest of these poor beasts out. When that’s done, I’ll seal the place and get to work right now on making it a more suitable bestiary. Hell, I can even take the back walls out and build a little slope to give the animals some outdoor space to roam.”

  Ben nodded. “Let them go and seal the place up. We can talk about improvements when I’ve taken care of the rest of The One’s army.”

  “Perfect! Now, get out there and kick some ass! And happy to be on the team, boss!” Without another word, only a salute, Nerve pulled the levers of his platform and went up, returning to his work of opening the cages.

  Ben turned to his group and nodded. “Alright—we still haven’t won this battle. Let’s get out front and help Graven and the rest of the slaves finish
it off.”

  “Right!” Melody said.

  Imogen nodded, fierce determination on her face.

  Ben took the lead, and together they made their way down the hall with Brock and Nipper in tow. More animals burst forth from the bestiary, rushing down the hall and attacking whatever orcs were unlucky enough to still be in the basement.

  I wonder why they’re not attacking me? Ben thought. Do they think I’m The One?

  So much was running through his head in the wake of the conversation he’d had. One thing stuck out most of all—The One had only had Drain, while Ben had been able to use its more powerful form, Siphon.

  He knew there would be plenty more time to think it all over. He pushed it all aside and focused on the task ahead.

  They reached the elevator, and Ben prepared to give the command to go up to the main floor.

  Before he said the words, however, a thought occurred to him—Arabeth. The elementalkin he’d defeated in the arena was somewhere in the tower. He’d promised Graven that he’d find her.

  “Tower—to the main floor.”

  The elevator went up, the doors opening a few moments later. The scene on the main floor was just as chaotic as the rest of the tower. Through the entrance, Ben could see the battle raging outside. The slaves, having surrounded the tower, pressed against the final line of orcs and mages that hadn’t abandoned The One. Yells and explosions and sounds of battle echoed in from outside.

  “We ready?” Melody asked.

  “Ready,” Imogen replied.

  “You all go on ahead. I need to get to the dungeon. Find Graven and let him know that we’ve nearly won, and that I’m searching for Arabeth.”

  “What?” Melody asked, turning around so quickly that her hair whipped back. “You’re going down there alone?”

  “They need you out there more than I need you with me. I can handle myself. Every advantage the slaves can get in their favor could lessen the number of casualties.”

  Melody pursed her lips together, as if she understood but didn’t like it. “Fine. Get down there, do what you need to do and hurry back up. This isn’t going to be a victory if you die in the process.”

  Imogen nodded. “We’ll tell Graven what you said.”

  “Good. See you all soon.”

  Melody squeezed Ben’s hand, then the group got off the elevator and hurried toward the battle outside.

  “Tower—down to the dungeons.”

  The doors to the elevator sealed, and the elevator descended. Ben gripped his blade tightly—he was ready to finish the fight.

  Chapter 20

  The elevator doors opened, the dungeon on the other side as grim and destitute as Ben had expected.

  And it seemed totally abandoned.

  The smell of death was in the air, no light visible but flickering, magical torches on the walls that cast the hallways in moody, orange glows. Ben found a barrel of torches in the corner on the way in and wasted no time grabbing one and lighting it with a quick jet of Flame Cannon.

  The light from the fire filled the area, casting a sphere of illumination around him. He made his way into the dungeon, taking in the grim sights around him. He soon passed cells, most containing corpses in various stages of decay.

  I’ve got a dungeon, sure. But it’s practically a country club compared to this place.

  He continued, noting how strange it was that no one was there. Judging from the weapons on the stone ground, Ben guessed the place had been evacuated in a hurry. Dungeon duty was likely one of the worst jobs in the tower, and the orcs that were unlucky enough to be responsible for it were most certainly the types to flee rather than fight.

  Anger filled Ben as he took in the sights around him, the bodies left to rot in the dungeons. He found himself thinking of Uzax back in his own dungeon. He made a mental note to speak to him when he finally returned to his tower, to subject him to justice rather than leaving him to languish. Justice, not wanton cruelty, would be a virtue in his realm.

  He made his way further into the dungeon.

  Finally, he heard something—two voices whispering to one another. He paused, listening more carefully. Right away he could make out that the voices were of two women. He moved more slowly, holding his torch out to see whatever was in the dark.

  It wasn’t long before he could hear what the voices were saying.

  “Keep quiet! You want to draw attention from whoever’s coming?”

  “They might be the best chance we’ve got! Not like anyone else is down here.”

  “Yeah. Except for him.”

  The word him was said with total dread, as if the speaker couldn’t imagine anyone more horrible.

  But more than that, Ben recognized the voices as Lexi and Shrike!

  “Hey!” he called out. “Lexi! Shrike!” He knew he was taking a risk in raising his voice, but he didn’t care. His heart thudded with excitement as he hurried down the hall, the light from the torch bouncing with each step he took.

  “Is that… is that Ben?” Shrike asked, her voice a pitch higher than usual.

  He stopped when he spotted Shrike in one of the cells. She was dressed in a simple tunic, null-locks on her wrists.

  “Ben!”

  He turned to see Lexi in the cell across from him. She was dressed the same way, the tunic short enough to see her lean, bare thighs. Even in the circumstances he couldn’t help but notice what a nice body she had—both of them, really.

  He forced himself to focus.

  “What’s going on?” he asked. “Are you two alone?”

  Lexi nodded. “Word spread fast that The One had died. No one was all that interested in sticking around.”

  “We’re the only prisoners here,” Shrike added. “When the chaos broke out in the dining area, one of the wizards had the orcs slap null-locks on our wrists and throw us down here to get us out of the way.”

  “And these things work,” Lexi said, raising her hands and showing off the lock. “Otherwise, we’d be long gone.”

  “OK,” Ben said, sticking the torch into a holder on the wall and preparing to cast. “Let me just melt the bars and—” He summoned Flame Cannon and pointed his hands at the lock of Lexi’s cage.

  “Ben, no!” she called out—but not soon enough.

  The flames bounced off the lock, shooting in a wild line like a bullet in a ricochet. Luckily, the fire lost its power and faded before anyone was hurt.

  “These bars were enchanted,” Shrike said. “Only one way to get through, and that’s with the key.”

  “OK,” Ben said with a nod. “Then where’s the key? I’ll get you out of here as soon as I can.”

  The two women regarded one another with a look of apprehension.

  “The jailer has it,” Shrike said.

  “The jailer?” Ben asked.

  She nodded. “He’s the only orc still left, the one in charge of this place. He’s sick, a sadistic freak.”

  “We’ve been here for barely an hour and have already seen what he’s capable of. When word got out that The One was dead, he started killing prisoners and whatever orcs didn’t manage to flee.” Lexi’s voice trembled. Even the horrors she witnessed as a bounty hunter didn’t seem to compare to what this orc was capable of.

  “And where is he now?” Ben asked.

  Shrike nodded further down the hall. “He’s in the torture rooms. He showed them to us when we arrived, told us he couldn’t wait to test them on some fresh meat.”

  Rage pulsed through Ben.

  “Is there anyone else here?” he asked. “I’m looking for Arabeth, the elementalkin I fought in the arena.”

  “Yes!” Lexi said, her eyes lighting up. “He has her in there.”

  Ben nodded, not a doubt in his mind what he needed to do.

  “I’m going to get her, then I’m going to free you both.”

  “No, Ben,” Shrike said. “You can’t risk yourself for us and her. You need to go to the battle and make sure that we win.”

  “
If I go now, there’s no guarantee you’ll all be alive when I get back. I made a promise to Graven that I’d make sure his daughter was safe. The One is dead, and the battle is in our favor. Together, we’ll go to the surface and finish the fight.”

  Lexi and Shrike regarded one another, and Ben sensed they weren’t sure whether to assent or to argue.

  “Good luck, Ben,” Lexi said. “We’ll be here.”

  Shrike reached through the bars and placed her hand on his shoulder. “I already know you’re going to be a better leader than The One. He would never risk his life for his people the way you do.”

  Ben allowed himself a small smirk. “Let’s wait until I come back with the key before we start congratulating me for being a good guy.”

  Shrike squeezed his shoulder, leaving her hand there for just long enough that Ben knew there was a sentiment present other than gratitude.

  “Good luck, Ben. Keep going down the hall. Follow the smell. You won’t be able to miss it.”

  He nodded, taking his torch back and giving the women one last look before starting down the hall. He made his way slowly, keeping his wits about him in case any orcs remained that might try to get the drop on him.

  The further he went, the more orcs he found—dead ones. Bodies littered the hall, all of them facing the way out, their wounds fresh and raw. There was no doubt they’d been killed while trying to run away.

  The stench of death and the metallic tang of blood was thick in the air.

  Ben spotted an arched doorway at the end of the hall, a strange humming sound coming from the room on the other side. It wasn’t just a humming—there was a grinding noise, the sound of metal-on-metal. He continued, reaching the archway and peering into the room.

  The scene was like something out of a nightmare. There were torture implements of every kind, iron maidens and racks and stretcher tables—all covered in dried blood, some red, some brown, some black. Flickering torchlight cast shadows on the walls. In the far back of the room an orc stood, his body big and bulky like the rest of them but with one shoulder hunched and his posture twisted.