The Beginnings Omnibus: Beginnings 1, 2, 3 & Legend of Ashenclaw novella (Realm of Ashenclaw Beginnings Saga)

by Gary F. Vanucci

  “Take that to the incineration chamber,” Phaera ordered, directing her instruction to another pair of elven males, who moved to obey her without question.

  She was more than a little concerned how her mother, the greatest Aspect of Lilith, would react to this influential and authoritative man.

  She dismissed the thought and hoped her mother would understand and appreciate the type of power that this man exercised.

  She certainly did.

  Megnus hid a somewhat sickened look from them all by donning his helmet once more. He was a simple warrior who fought with sword and shield and felt what he had been seeing of late was simply incomprehensible and troublesome in nature. He secretly hoped that his father knew what he was getting into with regards to Zabalas. As he considered this, a portal opened up where Phaera stood, and it glowed with mystical energy, pulling Megnus’s thoughts to the circumstances at hand once more.

  “Impressive,” Zabalas confessed as Megnus, too, was startled by its appearance. Though, Megnus had been privy to events such as this, with the numerous Wayfarer mages that inhabited his home of Shadowmere.

  Phaera bowed almost dutifully, which seemed strange to Megnus to do within the walls of Ulthon where she was born.

  The succubi society worshipped the Demon Queen of Pandemonium, Lilith, who Megnus knew to be the first of her kind and the mother of the succubi. Phaera was the eldest daughter of Nahemia Sine, and second in command of the Sine brood, as well as possibly the entire enclave of Ulthon, Megnus considered.

  He followed the others as they stepped through the portal and out the other side.

  Alana drained the waterskin and then cautiously poured some down Rolf’s throat. He was awake finally, but still in obvious pain.

  “You are still in discomfort,” Thaurion observed as he leveled a sorrowful look at his fellow acolyte. His beard was caked with dried food and wet with water now as they tried to nurse him back to health as best they could.

  “I am sorry, Rolf. Both Alana and I have tried to heal your wounds, but they are too great. The necessary power lies beyond our feeble abilities,” Thaurion admitted, brushing a hand through his curly, blonde hair in an attempt to remove some of the sweat and grime. He had been trying to channel healing abilities into Rolf several times now, but had not succeeded beyond simply stabilizing his condition.

  “I do not expect to survive this,” Rolf bravely admitted through a cough while clutching his broken right leg. He knew it was painful, but couldn’t determine how bad the break really was. The priests had tied it in a rudimentary splint and let him rest as much as possible now, channeling healing power through and around the wound as often as they could to at least maintain and treat the injury so that it did not become infected.

  “Nonsense,” Thaurion started. “I am thinking long and hard, trying to formulate a plan as to how we can escape this…foul place. Admittedly, I haven’t had any convincing ideas as of yet, but I’m sure The Shimmering One will grant me the inspiration when he chooses to do so.”

  “Have faith,” Alana spoke to Rolf, reinforcing Thaurion’s words. “We will get out of here. Somehow we will find a way.”

  With that, Thaurion moved away from the others and began devising a strategy.

  Barguth finally entered the treasure room on the back of his worg and headed straight for Grubb.

  “I told all the search parties on both levels that the command post is now here,” Barguth explained as he leapt off the worg and landed firmly in front of the orc commander.

  “You are a most useful goblin,” Grubb congratulated. “Now, you may take whatever you can fit on your person as a token of my gratitude. The shiniest of treasures is yours for the taking.” He pointed out all of the treasure in the room. Barguth’s red eyes widened.

  “Mine?!” Barguth cried, as he ran off into the treasure chamber and started to go through it all with the glint of greed reflected in his eyes. Grubb actually chuckled as he watched the covetous little goblin sifting through the valuables.

  “He is capable for a goblin,” admitted Shaman Tukk as he removed his rather large helm and scratched a spot on top of his bald head. Flakes of his skin fell to the ground as he did so.

  “Yes, he is…and a capable warrior for a goblin, too,” Grubb added. He noticed another goblin was standing within earshot and had heard the entire exchange between the two orc leaders. It frowned noticeably at their comments.

  The commander shot the goblin a dangerous look. “I would not stand there very much longer if I were you,” Grubb cautioned. With that, the goblin took off toward the treasure pile again, heeding the orc’s advice.

  “Yes, I see good things in that one’s future,” Grubb concluded, nodding at Barguth as he watched the goblin roll around in the copper coins for several minutes.

  “Though, he is a goblin. It would be wise to remember that,” Shaman Tukk counseled as he moved away, tapping his spine-shaped staff along the wall playfully as he departed.

  Grubb turned his attention once more to Barguth and walked over to stand beside him.

  “Barguth, I need you to take a scouting party to the cavern entrance to bring me news of the weather,” Grubb announced to the distracted goblin. He spun Barguth around to face him, staring into his eyes to make sure he’d heard the orders. “And do bring me favorable news,” Grubb finished with a harsh expression, narrowing his yellow eyes, which made Barguth shudder, forgetting momentarily about the treasures that lay scattered about him.

  “And while there, use that same crew to scout the outer perimeter for any signs of activity,” Grubb added. Barguth nodded and scooped up a few choice coins and stuffed them in a pouch and more in a sack. He strapped the sack to his worg and then gathered two goblins, an ograth and four orcs. Together they started off toward the upper level and the outer cave mouth.

  He truly hoped that the snow was clearing as he recalled Grubb’s wishes over and over in his mind.

  Zabalas’s group emerged from the magical portal from within the lower Subterrane, and was now at the threshold of Ulthon. The enclave was made up of lodgings carved into and around the natural stone walls and formations. The succubi were unique in that if they did not possess the skills to execute a specific task, they could find the means quite easily. And so their homes and décor were shaped by the hands of their countless slaves over the past decades. In the center of the city was a colossal and ornately carved statue of the Demon Queen, Lilith.

  The chamber room of the Aspect Nahemia was dank and cold, Megnus considered, feeling the chill beneath his heavy armor. The group entered the main chamber of the Sine quarters and now stood face to face with the Aspect Nahemia, sitting upon her throne with a pair of large wings curled about her. Many thralls stood nearby, mostly males wielding weapons. They were ready to do her bidding if called upon, Megnus knew. There was one ogre brute by her side also, hunched over with a club in its grip that seemed out of place here, too.

  Nahemia’s appearance resembled the demonic form of the succubi which Megnus had been accustomed to seeing, except that hers was a bit more fiendish than the half-demons.

  Her white skin stood out against the deep crimson and black of her clothing that could be seen from beneath her wings. A pair of curved horns protruded from the outer edges of her forehead. But instead of advancing in a vertical direction, they coiled around her head, following the shape of her skull and simulating what Megnus likened to that of a crown of ivory. Beneath her horns could be seen vibrant red hair, which was again different from the white-haired succubi. Her deep red lips and red-glowing eyes completed her menacing facial features.

  She unfurled her wings as she stood from the throne to display that they were indeed extremely large in size when compared to the succubi, indicating her to be the purest of demonic origins. The wings, Megnus observed, ranged in color from pale white at the inner section to pitch black toward the tips with various shades of gray in between. She held a curved sword in her clawed, right hand and a scourge
in her left. Again, this was similar to what he had observed among all of the other succubi, and what must have been the preferred weapons with which they were trained to employ over decades, if not centuries, Megnus presumed.

  “What,” she began as she stood and paced back and forth in front of her throne, “is it that you need from me?”

  She glowered at Zabalas as her shrill voice echoed off the walls. He stood before her confidently, covered from head to toe in his flawless black armor. She collapsed her wings and sat upon her throne once more, awaiting an answer from the warlord.

  “I have come to ask you to join my forces that will soon supplant the Races of Order, and help administer a much deserved judgment upon them,” Zabalas reasoned as he removed his horned helmet, setting his long, dark hair free to flow over his shoulders.

  “That includes the complete extinction of those races including the humans, dwarves…and elves,” he continued, knowing full well that the succubi hated elves, which was the word he’d chosen to accentuate as he spoke.

  “While it would satisfy me to slay each and every member of the races you mention—especially the elves—I have a responsibility here to my brood and to Ulthon,” replied the Aspect Nahemia, stroking the arms of her throne.

  “As you may not know the hierarchy of law in Ulthon, but the Daughters of Asmodai are the most powerful brood in all of Ulthon. We number the most thralls within the entire enclave, and that signifies authority amongst the rest of the Aspects—as Lilith demands!” Nahemia explained, now rising from her throne again and expanding her wings. “I am ruler of the Sine brood as I am the direct descendant of the purest of demons. I am a direct result of the coupling of Lilith and the demon lord Asmodai.”

  Aspect Nahemia explained this not only to Zabalas, but to the entire audience, as she clearly wanted them all to understand their history. “If I join your endeavor, I would have to divide my thralls and brood between the two evenly. This would mean my brood would lose its control over Ulthon….”

  The pure-breed demon began pacing, her clawed feet padding softly across the stone as the surface of her wings shimmered in the torchlight of the room as she spoke. They spread wide, displaying an intricately designed robe that displayed much of her milky white flesh. An oval was cut out from her neck all the way to her belly, similar to Phaera’s, except that Nahemia’s exposed quite a bit more skin.

  Megnus could not help but stare and he noted that despite her obvious demoness physique, she was unequivocally attractive. He wasn’t sure if it was her powers or if she actually was that stunning.

  His eyes continued to fall over her, observing more details. She sported silver belts crossing each other, hanging low on her shapely hips, which currently stored the sword and scourge combination she had held earlier. He had to fight a suddenly overwhelming desire to throw himself at her and he was sweating profusely now, fighting an impulse to run toward her! And then, without warning, he was in complete control of his actions once more.

  “Well spoken, mother,” congratulated one particular succubus, sitting on the arm of the throne.

  “This is Hasna Sine, my next eldest daughter after Phaera,” Nahemia introduced proudly. “And this is Hazelle and Saamea.” All three Sine cambions huddled around the throne, all were Phaera’s immediate ‘sisters’. Megnus gave consideration to this and recalled Phaera’s brief explanation that she and her sisters were offspring of one particularly important male. He could not recall who, exactly, though she had offered that information at one point.

  The Sine daughters each wore their white hair slightly differently, and they displayed the traditional humanoid appearance instead of the demonic facade that their mother exhibited. They, along with Phaera, were the heiresses of the brood and apparently, the most cherished by Nahemia.

  “Of course I would not want you to relinquish control of such a powerful position within your order, Nahemia,” Zabalas agreed after a long pause. He looked back and forth between Megnus and Prishnack, the now corporeal djinni covered in flowing, shimmering robes. He nodded, seemingly admiring their courage in the presence of this demon. Zabalas spun on the Aspect and finally finished his thought.

  “However, once we accomplish what I have set out to achieve, your political structure here won’t be nearly as important a position as you will be part of something much grander.”

  There were a few audible gasps, mostly from the daughters of the Aspect, as Nahemia stared coldly at the warlord, her red hair dancing and seeming to come alive with her anger.

  He be provokin’ her, Megnus observed from afar, noting the hard glare from the demon’s red eyes. Phaera even stood wide-eyed in shock, not knowing what to expect next.

  “How dare you speak to her like that?” admonished Hazelle, the youngest of the four Sine heiresses, if Megnus recalled correctly. Everyone in the chamber seemed to tense at the words, except Zabalas. The thralls stirred as if some unseen force compelled them.

  “I mean no disrespect,” Zabalas soothed in response.

  He crossed his arms defiantly over his chest for effect, indicating that he was not concerned for his own well-being, even in the presence of so many deadly succubi and their thralls. Phaera quickly ran to the center of the room, somewhat enjoying seeing her mother’s vexation, but not wanting her youngest sister to perish at the hands of this mighty warlord.

  “Please!” Phaera shouted. ”Isn’t the goal that we rid Wothlondia of the elves!?” All eyes were now upon her. “Lilith would be rightly served by that, mother,” Phaera reasoned, trying to further defuse the situation, and redirect the discussion to a more productive route again.

  “I do not appreciate guests in my own chambers speaking to me in this manner!” Nahemia protested, turning her anger once more upon Zabalas, who stood assertively in the center of the room still. The many male thralls that stood at attention around the outer edges of the chamber moved forward a step in unison. Megnus placed his hands on the handles of his axes, preparing for a fight after sensing the reaction of the slaves.

  “Perhaps I am being a bit disrespectful, Nahemia,” Zabalas offered, trying to pacify the Aspect’s anger. He certainly did not want to kill her. After all, he wanted her help. Zabalas quickly tried to appeal to her in a non-threatening way.

  Megnus and Prishnack stood at the ready behind him, not making any moves of hostility yet. They were ready to act, however, if things escalated.

  “I am merely saying that if you aid me in my pursuit, I can help you not only maintain your rulership here, but I can expand it to any place that you could ever want. The possibilities will be endless!”

  Aspect Nahemia visibly calmed after hearing that statement. The offer intrigued her as a smile crept across her face

  “Mother,” Phaera began to say. I know you appreciate your word as law. Now imagine that loyalty applied to anywhere of your choosing! Commanding an entire city of elven thralls…?” Those words set her smile even wider. “Yes…that appeals to you greatly. You will stand out as the most prized Aspect of all, and Lilith will surely look favorably upon you, gifting you with even greater power!” The look upon Nahemia’s face changed completely to one of distinct pleasure by the time Phaera had finished her diatribe.

  “What is it that I can do for you?” Aspect Nahemia rephrased her original question, displaying a wide and wickedly fanged smile.

  “I will let you know when the time comes,” Zabalas began to explain. “Regardless, I want everything you can offer when I call for you. That includes any and all other Aspects that will follow you, as well as your brood and thralls,” Zabalas leveled with her.

  “And will you carry on in your absence from my side, dearest Phaera, and allow Hasna to continue on as the heiress to the Sine brood?” Aspect Nahemia teased her eldest daughter. She was clearly not pleased with her daughter’s decision.

  “I will, mother,” Phaera responded. “I believe this to be the will of Lilith. We are to help Zabalas in his quest and, when it is over, we will have the
complete adulation of the demon queen!”

  “You seem sure, dearest sister,” Hasna encouraged, obviously wanting Phaera to stay away. Hasna was just as wickedly beautiful as her sisters, Megnus observed, who fixed Phaera with a lively stare. There surely was an unspoken rivalry between them for one reason or another.

  “Go then and pursue that which the demon queen demands,” Nahemia accepted with a wave of her hand. It was quite obvious to Megnus that she admired her daughter’s independence and, quite probably, the spoils that independence might bring to the Sine brood.

  “Before I leave, understand that I have already received a vote of support from King Dolgrath Bloodstone and his entire people,” Zabalas added, waving a hand toward the slagfell warrior, who stood proudly before the beautiful demoness. “I have plans that involve the both of you.”

  “Then it is best if you have an Aspect of Lilith within your ranks as well,” Phaera agreed. “If the Bloodstone clan has offered their support, then we must attempt to match that. I wouldn’t want the slagfell to be able to claim a greater reward than we succubi!”

  “Very well, I will contact you when the time draws near,” Zabalas directed toward Nahemia before moving to join the rest of his traveling group.

  “Maldagan will send you on your way,” Nahemia gestured toward a human mage who also stood near her throne in front of the massive ogre.

  With a few spoken words in an arcane dialect, the man summoned forth a glowing portal similar to the first one they had stepped through when they entered the Aspect Nahemia’s chambers. The group walked through it and exited into the caverns, once more at the entrance to Ulthon.

  As they departed, Megnus overheard the chatter of the succubi as they exchanged cackles and planned their next strike on the surface of Wothlondia as they no doubt planned to secure more thralls.