Wild Wastes Omnibus

by Randi Darren

  “Too late to save your Dragon,” Vince said with a snicker.

  Reaching behind himself, he unhitched the rifle and gave it a quick once-over.

  Disengaging the safety, he pulled it up into his shoulder and waited.

  “Delay and hold. Delay and hold. That’s all I have to do. Don’t give in to the rage,” Vince said to himself.

  Curiously to him, though, the Tri-lliance soldiers had stopped.

  They stood about in the middle of the road in ranks. Unsure what was going on, Vince lifted his muzzle up an inch and pulled the trigger.

  A ball of plasma sizzled across the distance and landed in the middle ranks of the Tri-lliance army.

  Adjusting his aim, Vince pulled the trigger again. Shifting the weapon to the left an inch, he pulled the trigger once more.

  Two more balls of scorching-hot plasma whipped through the air.

  Detonating on impact, they tore holes in the formation wherever they hit.

  “Stupid bastards, stand there and let me kill you all then,” Vince muttered.

  Pulling the rifle to the right, Vince kept pulling the trigger.

  Plasma detonations continued to go off as the Tri-lliance soldiers milled about pointlessly.

  Taking losses and doing nothing.

  Finally, the rifle went dry.

  Standing there, Vince waited. As far as he was aware, he’d get another round almost every sixty seconds, give or take a few.

  Slowly, the Tri-lliance army began to march back the way it had come.

  “The fuck?” Vince said. Stalking forward, he kept the rifle ready.

  Occasionally, he tried pulling the trigger as he went. Without the helmet, he couldn’t tell when the next round was available.

  Another plasma round ejected from the end of the barrel, zipping forward and bursting amongst the retreating ranks of soldiers.

  What had started as an orderly retreat was rapidly becoming a full speed rout.

  Soldiers were dropping their weapons and packs, scrambling to get ahead of their fellow troopers and countrymen.

  The hell is going on?

  Moving the switch to the flechette position, Vince began to play the rifle back and forth, pulling the trigger in short, sharp pulls.

  Bursts of flechette rounds peppered through the ranks.

  Soldiers of every race in the Tri-lliance dropped as the hardened steel projectiles pierced their medieval armor.

  Finally, the rifle went dry and Vince came to a stop. He was standing only a few feet from where the enemy had been when he’d first started firing on them.

  He had no desire to chase them any further. Or at least, his paranoia wouldn’t let him.

  “Whatever,” Vince said, shaking his head.

  Turning around, he headed back to the Dragon corpse.

  He’d set up and wait for them here.

  If I’m lucky, I can eat more of that heart.

  Strange… I didn’t get drunk this time, did I?

  Chapter 26

  Vince waited in the road. The rifle hitched in the shoulder slot.

  The enemy hadn’t left, nor had they come forward again. As far as he could tell, they were waiting for something.

  “Vince?” asked a voice from behind him.

  Turning around rapidly, Vince unhooked the rifle and had it leveled in a heartbeat.

  Red stood there, dressed in leather armor.

  She looked paler than usual, and a bit leaner, but otherwise healthy and hale.

  “Red, you’re back. Did you find—”

  The Beastkin came forward and laid her hands to his Warden armor.

  “Bringer! Red is so very happy to see you. Most especially because she hungers very badly for you,” Red said, smiling up at him. She patted his armor enthusiastically.

  “Come, come away and feed Red immediately. Let the Orcs keep these Tri-lliance busy.”

  “Orcs?” Vince asked.

  “Yes, Red did not make it to Vegas or Yosemite. The lines have changed, and there are Tri-lliance commandos wandering around throughout Yosemite.

  “Red made it to Berten’s people, however. Red told them their lord, and brother to Berten, needed their help.

  “They assembled and came immediately.”

  Red grabbed him by the wrist and jerked him towards a clump of brush.

  “Come, Bringer. Let Red feed from you. Red will make it very enjoyable for both.

  “Leave the armor for the Orcs. They might need it more than you.”

  ***

  Looking at the empty trench works south of Vegas, Vince wasn’t quite sure what had happened here.

  There were signs of extreme violence, craters, and broken bits of what could only be equipment.

  But there was no sign of his army.

  Nor that this had occurred recently.

  Vince had swung this way mostly to check in and see how things were going.

  “Someone said they saw you wandering around out here, Lord.”

  Turning to face the voice, Vince couldn’t help but smile.

  “Thera. You’re looking lovely,” he said.

  Then his eyes moved down and he saw a definite swell in her belly. “And looking more pregnant.”

  “It does indeed seem I’m showing much faster this time around. And more so.

  “I begin to wonder if I’m having twins now. The Dryad did warn me she thought it might be possible.”

  Walking over to the Dark Elf, Vince wrapped her up in a tight hug.

  “I’m glad to see you’re safe,” he said, crushing her in his embrace.

  “Likewise. Why are you up this way, though? Are… are you here to pay your respects?”

  “Respects?” Vince asked.

  Leaning back, he eyed Thera curiously.

  “I wanted to see what was going on at the front. Though it seems it isn’t even where it used to be.”

  “Ah… n-no. It’s much further south now,” Thera said, her face turning pale. “The artillery, Wardens, and our second army from the east turned the tides.

  “We’ve pushed them all the way back to the original border for now.

  “There’s still another army in the southwest that hasn’t done anything. Nor have we heard from the armies in the west.

  “And most distressing—apparently the enemy army in the east defeated Richard. He’s now a government in hiding, working to retake his country from the shadows.”

  Raising his eyebrows at that, Vince was a bit confused.

  He must have underestimated the Tri-lliance and gotten his teeth kicked in.

  “And what did you mean by respects? Did we erect a monument here for the fallen?” Vince asked.

  Thera licked her lips. She clearly looked unsettled.

  Unsettled and unhappy.

  “You don’t know then,” Thera said. It was more a statement than question.

  “Know what?”

  “Petra died,” Thera said, her face twisting up in clear misery. “We found her. She’d been cornered in a small crevice between hills not far from our original line.”

  Vince felt his heart fall out of his chest as his stomach flipped over on itself.

  “She was… she was surrounded with what looked like thirty or forty dead enemy soldiers.

  “From what we could tell, she killed them all… then died of her wounds,” Thera said. “She left a note for you. No one has read it yet. It was sent to Yosemite along with all her possessions.

  “Her body was interred in a mausoleum where we found her. It’s become somewhat of a pilgrimage for the soldiers to visit her grave.

  “Pay their respects.”

  Vince nodded his head woodenly, his mouth dry.

  Daphne, Karya, Green, Petra, and Ramona.

  “I think I’d like that. Could you… could you take Red and myself there?” Vince asked.

  “Of course, Husband. I visit her often by myself. She taught me so much that I can never repay.

  “I’d like to name our daughter after her,”
Thera said, a hand going to her stomach.

  “A daughter? It’s a girl?”

  “Yes. And we’re naming her Petra,” Thera said, her voice firm.

  “I have no problems with that at all, and I think it’s a good idea,” Vince agreed.

  “Come, I have horses. We can be there quickly in a day or two if we put them through their paces,” Thera said.

  It really did only take a day or so to get there.

  Even with that amount of time to think about it, Vince didn’t feel prepared as he walked down a very well-trod road.

  “When news spread about her fall, the Dwarves rushed out here. As did a great many Orcs,” Thera said, walking along beside him.

  “She spent a good deal of her time in the Dwarven mines and tunnels,” Vince said. “She said it reminded her of home.

  “For the Orcs… they loved her because she treated them as valued soldiers. Not fodder or cast-off forces, but soldiers she could count on.”

  Vince shook his head. The trail they were walking down seemed open, not something that would be a problem to get out of.

  Especially since Petra could practically scale any surface with a bit of work.

  Soldiers and citizens were walking the path in the opposite direction. Apparently having accomplished what they’d set out to do.

  Slowly, the mounds on each side of the path became high walls, and Vince could see a depression up ahead.

  “We think she tried to scale her way up and out. They were right on her though,” Thera said. She lifted a hand and pointed to one side of the walls.

  A black scorch mark that looked like the strike of a fireball was obvious.

  They ran her down like a pack of dogs.

  “We also found numerous arrows along the path and in the walls.

  “They were quickly collected and turned into relics before we could stop it,” Thera said.

  “That’s fine,” Vince said. Everywhere he looked were signs of violence.

  Torn-up dirt and grass.

  Obvious blood stains.

  “Red sees much combat here. How many did Petra take with her?”

  “Something just shy of forty. I don’t know the exact number. I’ve… I’ve been trying to distance myself from it just a bit,” Thera said.

  The path in front of them fell away.

  A green field lay in the middle with a small pond to one side.

  The sides of this place were chewed up. As if something had been madly trying to climb its way out.

  And getting shot at the entire time.

  You… you damn bastards. I’ll kill every single Tri-lliance I find.

  Every—single—one.

  Vince had to suck in a deep breath as the red curtains began to swing into place over his vision.

  In the middle of the field, a silvered statue sat on a large stone plinth.

  Without getting any closer, Vince already knew the statue was Petra.

  It was an almost exact replica. Even from this distance, it looked like a silver version of her in life.

  A number of people stood around the statue.

  Some had clearly left items on the plinth; others merely stared at the statue of Petra.

  One and all took notice of Vince coming, and immediately left.

  Soon there were only Vince, Red, and Thera moving toward the monument.

  “Red will wait back where the road meets the basin,” said the Beastkin.

  “I’ll join you, Red,” Thera said.

  Vince barely managed a smile and looked over his shoulder at the two women.

  “Thank you,” he said simply.

  Coming to stand in front of the statue, he stared into Petra’s face.

  “It really does look just like you,” he said to no one. “I half expect you to smile, declare that ‘This one has missed you’ and show me too much affection and embarrass yourself.”

  Looking down to the plinth, he saw an inscription there.

  “Here lies the first general of Yosemite, Petra. Without her guidance, dedication, and example of heroism, our nation would not exist.

  “Stalwart general, beloved mother, dedicated wife, and deeply missed friend.

  “Survived by a nation,” Vince said in a shuddering voice.

  Nodding his head, he sobbed once.

  “It’s all well and good, but that doesn’t make me miss you any less, you stupid hard-headed idiot.

  “I mean… really? I know you were worried about what you could still do, and your age and mortality… but I would have liked more time with you.

  “Any time at all, really, would have been better than this.

  “But in the end, you went out the way you wanted. In battle, in a war, defending your homeland and eliminating the enemy.

  “I suppose there’s something to be said for that. But why? Why you, too?

  “We’ve already lost so many.”

  Sniffling, Vince wiped at his eyes and nose with his hands.

  Realizing the futility of it, he let his arms fall to his sides.

  Then he collapsed forward and laid his head against Petra’s abdomen.

  And began sobbing loudly.

  ***

  Several days later, Vince and Red walked into Yosemite without anyone else with them.

  Much in his usual fashion, he did it without fanfare, warning, or notice. He just showed up at the gate and waved his hands at the gate guards.

  Who of course immediately knew who he was. Seconds after that, a fleet-footed Beastkin messenger from Kitch’s division was off in a flash.

  A minute after he’d set foot on the familiar streets of his home, Snorg showed up.

  The big Ogre gave Vince a toothy grin and settled in behind him, along with several other Heavies in full armament and their equally heavy-armed but smaller Orc “light” unit.

  “Morning, Snorg,” Vince said.

  “Morning,” said the Ogre. Then the big man’s face turned into a frown inside his helmet. “Sorry about Petra. She was a good woman.”

  Vince swallowed and nodded his head.

  “That she was. I’m heading home right now. I don’t think you’ll be on guard duty long,” Vince said.

  Snorg shrugged his shoulders.

  “Doing job. Happy Kitch, happy life.”

  Moving through the streets, Vince didn’t manage to gain any sort of anonymity.

  Snorg and company might as well have been a flag that Vince had returned.

  Streets magically cleared around him, citizens moving to the sides to watch him go.

  A few began wishing him well and offering him condolences. Then more did. And more.

  Until everyone was wishing him well and sorry for his loss as he walked amongst them.

  Some even cried as they cast their apologies toward him for Petra’s death.

  Unable to deal with this amount of emotion so soon after the outpouring at the monument, Vince tucked his chin into his armor and hurried along.

  It wasn’t until he slipped past the guards at the gates to his home that he felt like he could lift his eyes.

  Only to find Berenga and Meliae waiting for him.

  “Welcome home, husband,” Berenga said with a grin. Her missing arm and leg had been replaced with what looked like metallic versions of them. “Your brother apparently took it as an insult for me to move around with a cane and gave me these.”

  Berenga looked to her arm and leg, then back to Vince with a wider grin. “I like him very much. He’s a good brother.”

  Smiling, and feeling very indebted to Felix, Vince hugged Berenga tightly.

  “I missed you, Fes.”

  “Not Fes anymore, remember? I stepped down. Yaris has taken up the mantle now. Especially after Petra fell.”

  Vince hugged Berenga tighter for a second at the mention of Petra.

  Then he released her and took two steps back to look at the ever-pregnant Meliae.

  The very, very pregnant Meliae.

  As if sensing his eyes on her midsecti
on, she pressed her hands to her flowing dress under her belly and stood sideways.

  “Knocking me up with triplets. Such a bad, horrible husband,” Meliae said with a smile for him. Her eyes started to turn a faint glowing green.

  “You’re horrible,” Vince said with a snicker. “Triplets this time? You trying to push out more children than we have Dryads?”

  “I have to keep up. We talked about this. I need to provide leaders for every possible location. Our children will be the grove-mothers,” Meliae said, then gave him a very heated kiss.

  Patting him on the cheek, she smiled up at him sadly.

  “I asked… everyone else to leave you be for now,” she said. “We figured you’d like some time to yourself before we move forward again.”

  “Hm, a day maybe? No rest for the wicked. We have too much to do, and too little time.

  “Like killing every single living Tri-lliance member I can.”

  “Mm, you were right,” Meliae said, stroking Vince’s cheek tenderly.

  “What else do you expect from our husband? He will make them all pay for those they’ve taken from us,” Berenga said, closing her metallic fist in front of her with a clank. “Did you not hear them out there?”

  “I did,” Meliae said, her eyes holding Vince’s. “They were consoling him. For we’ve suffered losses just as the common citizens.

  “We are all bound together in our losses, and stronger for it. But if we fall to hatred, we are no better,” Meliae said with a soft sigh. “I’m not saying do not kill them, as I myself would go out of my way to kill them.

  “But if given the chance for mercy, I think we both know what Petra would tell you to do.

  “Whether a surrendering soldier or a citizen who isn’t involved, Petra was always the immaculate warrior and soldier, was she not?”

  Vince nodded, Meliae’s hand acting like some type of calming magical instrument on him.

  “Good. Now. I’d like nothing more than to—”

  A loud roar sounded from the walls.

  It was immediately picked up by a number of other roars, and Yosemite went into a flurry of activity.

  All around the manse and walls, soldiers went about their duty as the citizens all went home.

  More than likely to arm themselves.

  Everyone in Yosemite had served in the military or the reserves. It had been deemed that mandatory service in either branch was a requirement.