“Elise, I want you to go to our consulate in Koa and look around in case they moved her there, Shadow Intelligence has a large network there and if they are behind this then someone there will talk. And check in daily for messages.”
“Fantastic, warm tropical beaches, soft trade winds, waterfalls from towering jungle cliffs, ah paradise! And no snakes, except for the two legged variety, there is a God.”
“I guess that doing any work would be out of the question?”
Elise smiled her bad girl smile again, “Oh certainly, I’ll get right on it.”
She would to; he had confidence in her ability, but it would cost him if he let her know that.
“See that you do lieutenant.” Climbing on the dragons back, “OK, wurm lets go. The outskirts of Zengara city, anytime after night fall.”
The dragon leaped into the air and caught the wind as it lifted out across the Valley of the Oaks. Down below, Myst could see the land that he loved so well, and had fought so hard for. The mass of cottonwoods, oaks, and sycamores all just starting to turn colors in the center of the six mile wide valley. They would fill the impossibly blue skies with a splash of bright colors. Autumn in the valley was his favorite time, and once again he would miss it. He could see deer wandering on the higher rim of the valley, and stalking them, a large jaguar.
“* Kitty’s going to have venison for lunch *.”
“Some kitty, she’s at least twice the size of the more common cougar.”
They approached the border. The hill fort, The River of Wealth Castle, looked formidable and imposing, as it guarded the valley from Kushian invasions. The castle got its name, not from the small river that flowed through the valley, but from the wealth that flowed through it, on the only trade route for caravans leaving Kush and entering Surin. One full regiment was always on duty there, while at least one more patrolled the border.
A dangerous job for the Border Rangers; Star Elf smugglers, Half-Orc bandits, slavers, trolls, ogres, and of course the corrupt Kushian army which took protection money from the outlaws. It was by far the most active military zone in all Empire. Not even the Wildlands were this exciting; sure, highway bandits and Orc raiders were a threat up north, but weeks would go by there without incident. Here something happened daily.
The Kushian city of Noglus came into view, just as ugly from the air as from the ground Myst noticed. But then the smell wasn’t as bad, thankfully.
“* I thought you Elves only built cities of beauty in harmony with nature? *”
“It's a real cesspool alright. The dregs of Kush are drawn to the lawlessness of the border. The Chance to make money that they normally would not have within their Empire. This is the result of the corruption and greed that controls Kush, only here it's far away from the controlling influence of the capital city and its secret police.” Myst looked troubled and told the Dragon, “I’m afraid that it only gets worse as time goes by. The allurement of the border brings desperate people, some running from justice, others just trying to survive, or to make money, and that attracts the predators who feed on the helpless. Not all of the evil people in the world are Shadow Elves and Trolls; you can find evil in all of the races of our world, and they often find their way to places like Noglus.
“*Then can you find good in races like the Shadow Elves and Trolls as well?*”
“I believe that there is some percentage of the Shadow Elves that have a more neutral outlook on life, and even perhaps some who might be of good persuasion. Just like the Star Elves who seem to be the personification of neutrality, you find that persons of good or evil intent are not uncommon within their society as well.”
“* And the Trolls? *” Persisted the dragon.
“No Trolls are the creation of Evil, the Goddess of Death’s children. Shadow Elves are the children of the Creator and his Consort the Goddess of Nature, just like the rest of us. They were only tempted away with the power of the forbidden Death Magic, and so sold their souls to the Death Goddess for power. One day the Shadow Elves may be redeemed, but the Trolls are beyond, for they have no souls.”
"* The Orcs, Goblins, and Ogres are evil, but they have souls, what about them thinks you? *"
"They were created by the Three Gods, before the Death Goddess broke with the Creator and the Consort. They have souls, but they were made with the hand of the Death Goddess, and so follow her evil ways.
“* And what about Dragons? *”
“What about Dragons, for I have no clue about your race? There are so few of you, and you are the most removed from the world, living alone, we believe on the tops of the high mountains where there is not enough air for the rest of us to survive? But you, like most of the creatures of the world, were made by the Creator and the Consort, before the Death Goddess got jealous and took an interest in creating things.”
“*We are creatures of Air Magic and that drives our nature, we are like the wind. We need you other races only to get the beautiful GOLD, ahaa precious gold, we needs it, we wants it, its..... Do you have any gold Elf? *”
Myst rapped his fingers around his long dagger, preparing to drive the point through the back of the dragon’s neck. He thought to himself, “Now I’ve done it, had to talk to this unpredictable bag of wind. Really didn't want to die plunging to the ground, but if so this beast is going with me.”
“No, I don't like gold, too hard to spend or convert in small towns, and to conspicuous for someone in my line of work.”
“* Ah too bad, so so very very pretty! *”
They continued on in silence as the ground fell away, the mountains had became the broken hills of the dry bushvelt. Reddish brown earth with washed out vegetation streamed below. It was dominated by strands of the scrub oak and ironwoods along the dry washes and arroyos, hinting of the underground water to be found there.
Sunset came, and the drab desert bushlands once again took on the magical colors of twilight found in the semi-desert. In the distance sitting on a bay of the sea, was the glittering lights of Zengara.
In a dark stretch of the desert, just off the main north road, the dragon came to land. Night had fallen and the great moon had yet to show and cast its blue tinted light across the land and the small moon was far on the horizon. Myst hopped off the dragon, and silently it flew away.
“Thank the Creator, solid ground.” Myst slightly relieved. The two hour walk to the city ahead would be much preferable to the six hour flight he had just survived with the unstable dragon. “A little too much Air Magic in those Dragons! Sure does seemed to have made them a highly erratic creature.” He hoped not to need to get on the back of one again; his nerves didn't much care for it, and the Crown Treasury can’t afford too much of those rates. Two days at two hundred Gold Dragons a day, came out to eight thousand Silver Crowns. That was more than some people make in a year. It was over two months’ salary for a Colonel of the Intelligence and Security Service.
“I need to get myself a pair of wings; it would be an easier way to make a living.”
He found the road and started his long walk into what was one of the wickedest cites that could be found on the face of the world. He rather liked it actually; nothing like that level of hedonistic greed and vice, in a completely corrupt city of unimagined power and wealth.
The beaches were quite nice to, not as nice as where he had sent Elise to, but not bad. And a stay at the Hotel Imperial at government expense would certainly be better than his last mission, sleeping in dive taverns or worse, out in the cold rain. The Imperial was the best grand hotel in a city known for its extravagance and excesses.
Well, how to stay alive and complete his mission would certainly be an adventure that he looked forward to.
CHAPTER 4
Night enveloped Zengara, greatest and most wicked city of the known world. Zengara the Depraved, Zengara the Corrupt, Zengara the Whore, it was called these many things and worse, and certainly all of her names were well earned. Wickedness and vice stalked the streets, and violent death was
always a possibility. Myst loved to visit Zengara, but he certainly would not want to live here.
In Zengara, no Elf walked the streets unarmed or unguarded, and even then it was often not enough to save one's life or gold from the thieves and assassins. Tonight, like every night here, theft, corruption and greed knew no bounds. Silk clad nobles enticed the nubile wives of their friends and competitors into their beds. Hot-eyed wives plotted the seduction of husbands, rarely their own. Rich merchants bought and sold beautiful slaves, but only after having tasted the fruits of their wares. Prostitutes beyond counting, plied their lustful trade in brothels and dark alleyways. Perversions never before known, would be contemplated and carried out in this dark night. In brightly lit marble rooms, elegant parties would degenerate into orgies of flesh and excess. In dark towers, forbidden magic would be practiced by insatiable mages. The bodies of two dozen persons murdered in the night would be found in the morning; another dozen bodies would never be found. Of the countless robberies, thefts, abductions, and rapes, the numbers would remain unknown. Here, this night, like every other night in Zengara, wealth untold was made and lost. Debauchery made common place, violence became routine, and extreme excesses of hedonism committed without shame.
“Well it was certainly a city with attitude …”
Myst walked down the north road to the gates of the city; sixty foot tall polished granite walls gleamed in the bright moon light. There was still a good deal of traffic coming and going from the capital city, but hen there was always a hustle of activity in this city of well over a million persons. Only about half were Star Elves, the rest a mix of both free and slaves from around the world.
The guards looked bored, leaning against the great bronze doors. They had on the dark purple military trousers and sleeveless tunic, with the light purple dragon blazoned on the center of their chest. Their Elven pikes, a five foot pole with a two foot long wicked and heavy blade on the end, were being used to keep the guards from falling over. They had on the silly looking bronze helms with purple ostrich feathers on the top. A fashion must for all Star Elven soldiers.
Two officers were against the wall playing stones, a bizarre game that only Star Elves, and the mad, understood. One had the single silver star of an ensign, and the other the two gold stars of a captain. Nice to see that they were paying not the slightest attention to their work, not even shaking travelers down for their accustom bribe or ‘Bite’ as it was colorfully known. It made his job easier and that was always a good thing as far as he was concerned.
Into the city of sin he passed; the wide main boulevards cut across the city, with the tight rat warren of alleys and streets that make up most of the place, spiraling off in random order. The Imperial palace on the hill overlooking the center of town was lit up with magical light and seemed to glow a soft pale light. A soft 'purple' light of course; he had forgotten the purple mania of Kushian Star Elves. Another sure sign of the genetic madness that most others are convinced they suffer. The Nyan Star Elves have a similar fascination with the color of jade.
He headed for the wealthy district just between the palace and the merchant’s quarter. The main boulevard would take him up to and around the palace, and another main street would deliver him to the hotel. The street lights that were hung high above the main roads sizzled as their magic gave off the bright light that really was not necessary. On most nights, the large moons provided plenty of light to read outside, and in the semi desert, cloud cover would not have been a problem. So why go to the vast expense to hang these two foot diameter globes up and down the streets -- for the sparkly color light they gave off, pretty purple light.
He was passing though the wealthy section; large palaces, each trying to out grand the others, marched up and down like gilded temples to wealth and extravagantly questionable taste. Here lived the Masters of the Noble Houses of Kush, those merchant princes who really controlled the Empire.
The Star Elves are the most male dominant of the Elven societies; here the men rule absolutely, just as the women rule the Shadow Elf lands. The elegant sounds of parties could be heard drifting over the high wall that protected the wealthy. If he remembered correctly, those parties would be a cross between a high formal costume ball, and a cat house orgy. While traditional eleven law limited males to four wives, the Star Elves legalistic minds saw nothing to prevent them from having as many mistresses or slave girls as they could afford. Their poor wives frequently were neglected, and had only themselves, or strong male slaves, or house guards, or their husband's friends, or… for entertainment. This was all of course behind closed doors; in public, they were always the picture of proper established families.
Finally, the great circle that split the boulevard around the palace hill; he took the left, and then took a right and down the Avenue of Gold. Leaving the Nobles residences, but before the start of the business and banking district, was the Palace Hotel.
The grand hotel was a magnificent edifice of great stone brick. Around the front was a fifteen foot iron fence tipped with gold leafed spear points. The gates were guarded by half a dozen very alert city guardsmen. He walked up to the entrance door, a massive art work made out of cut crystal. Two liveried dwarves in the black loin cloths and iron collars of slaves, pulled open the doors and bowed low. Their gleaming bald heads and massively muscled bodies shone with fine oils.
The lobby was huge by any standard; a double row of great round columns of polished marble, that marched across the room. Each soaring forty feet into the air and capped with gold leaf on top and bottom. The marble columns and marble floors were of a bright, rich, pink marble. Well they had tried at least, but pink was as close of a color to purple as marble will come it seems.
He checked in at the front desk and was assigned a small suite on the fifth floor. Another slave, this one a Nymph lass, led him to the elevator and took him up. He watched the rhythmic sway of her hips as he followed her to his room.
“Very nice,” he thought to himself. He looked, but he drew the line at taking advantage of slaves. A Sun Elf had to have some moral principle, otherwise he would be a Star Elf, or so the joke went.
She led him into his suite, very nice. He would enjoy his stay here, oh yes. The sitting room was nicely laid out with purple couches and chairs, a fireplace, and a breakfast table. Out to the balcony they went; she showed him the views of the pools and gardens, no ocean/beach view, oh well he would just suffer…
Back inside to the bedroom; standard Elven bed, purple, that could have slept at least six without problem, and most likely frequently did. She showed him the large bathroom with oversized marble tub and commode. The pile of soft white towels; he looked again, yes white, someone must have screwed up somewhere.
Back into the sitting room she led him. She dropped to her knees and bowed her head to the floor. “Master, if it pleases you, I have been assigned to you for your stay here. If I am not to your liking, another will be sent up for you. You may use me as you see fit; the management only asks that if beaten that there be no permanent marks.”
“What is your name child.”
“I am called Renna, Master.” She looked up at him and he noticed that she had the darkest blue eyes he had ever seen. They were framed by a mane of dark rich black hair and a pale lovely face. She seemed tall for a nymph about four foot eleven or so, although she had the same highly inspiring body that all nymphs have. Their stimulating looks are the result of natural selection; the females having to attract mates in a highly competitive field, only one in twenty nymphs being male Myst thought he remembered.
“You are most pleasing Renna, but I will only need you for your,.... er, normal, ah,...I don’t need you for sex, but thank you.”
“I can arrange for a...boy if that is what pleases you Master.”
“How did I know that was coming.”
“No thank you Renna, it is just that I am a Sun Elf and we do not believe in having slaves.”
She had a puzzled expression on her face; she pro
bably could not conceive of the high and mighty Elves not having and abusing slaves. Well, there were not many Elves on this continent that were not Star Elves, only the few Sun Elves in the tiny corner of Surin, a few bands of Wild Elves living near the waste, and a small county of Moon Elves running around the woods in far Tuscan.
She had a mischievous gleam in her eye, “As you command Master. Would you like me to draw you a bath? I will wash your back, and then perhaps later a massage?”
“That sounds fine Renna.” So she was going to play this game was she; nymphs seem to have the maturity level of a twelve year old, albeit a precocious one. Life for them is a big game, without problems, no worries, endless days of fun and excitement, always living for the moment. How they survive slavery is a mystery. With life spans the same as that of Elves, well over five hundred years, it must be beyond bearable for them.
He sat down at the table, and began to work on the cheese and fruit plate that had been provided. Tomorrow he would have to contact Moss Blackforge and start the search. He did not really think that the Ambassador was still alive; it had been about four days with no ransom demands. The odds were against it, but he would find out what happened, and he would kill those responsible.
We must make our enemies fear us or they will not hesitate to destroy us in belief that we are weak and impotent. We must also instill in our own people the confidence that we will protect them at all cost, and if they are killed, we will revenge them in overwhelming destruction. Not an eye for an eye, but ten for one. And the revenge for the murder of a high level Ambassador would touch the ruling houses of those responsible. That this would touch off a war is the price we must pay, then so be it; there are indeed worse things than war. Indeed, it was the persons who attacked the Ambassador who started the incident; this will only be the inevitable and necessary response to it.
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