by Han Yang
“I couldn’t see well, but the good news is that Sprinkles is repaired. I can go back now and pick more off, assuming no one objects,” I said.
Tarla smiled, shaking her head and folding her arms.
“If it is an enemy army meant to kill us, I have no objections. If it was… Bell’s father who hurried to reinforce you with a mercenary army, then yeah,” Tarla said, and I hung my head. “What?”
“There’s almost no chance they’re anything besides Prince Tao’s troops. Or Toneba’s, honestly. I don’t know. I’ll do some scouting before killing. Or… I can hide and reveal I’m alive at the key moment of the battle,” I said.
“Or you kill the humans, attack the orcs, and toss bodies from both sides in each other’s camp,” Nee said and I snickered. “Goblins never get a chance to speak, we’re not all dumb.”
I nodded and replied, “Sprinkles is ready, and I’m not sure how long this storm will last.”
“Alright, any issues from the matogators?” Asha asked.
Since I had slowed our clearing of space, I ensured a full unit of matogators rotated the army as scouts. Asha knew that if any died or were hurt I’d be able to tell.
I laid back down, pulling into my magic.
During my upgrades, I noticed the amount of mana I had to manipulate increased, allowing my power to condense far greater than ever before. I swirled the magic in my core, wishing to repair all minions.
The spell answered my call, bursting forth.
No minions need repairs.
“Nothing to worry about. They’ll fight whatever gets near them that shouldn’t, unless they blend in. Now, hold in that retort, Tarla, I’m going to assume these humans aren’t coming to join our side of the battle,” I said, quickly laying back down.
I drew upon my magic, projecting out of my body. My spirit zipped across the landscape, finding a stationary Sprinkles. I twirled around his form, barely seeing the repairs.
Diving into his body filled me with euphoria.
I had almost lost my best minion. For whatever odd reason, I had grown attached to the big dumb skeleton. Thankfully, our adventures would continue.
My bliss ended when a small tree ripped free of the ground, smashing into my thigh. I fought what was likely a small forming tornado by crashing down. The jungle only slightly softened my blow for shelter.
For a moment, a calm washed over the area. The whipping tug on my leg abated, and if I had to guess, it was the eye of the storm. When I couldn’t see farther than a few feet, I grew concerned.
Rain still bashed down. When I glanced up, there was no eye or clear sky.
Okay, this isn’t the eye then. Maybe it’s the end of the ferocity, the tail end of the storm bringing calmer rain.
Ten minutes flew by, and the intensity abated, allowing visibility to increase.
Well shit, there goes my cover.
Hoping the humans wouldn’t race out of their tents, I stalked forward. Each step was delicately placed in the hopes of keeping my approach hidden. The wind gusts shoved me harder from up high, trying to topple my tall frame.
I glanced down, seeing the blurry outline of the road nearing. I contemplated grabbing a tree to use as a weapon or heading back for a shield. The sudden abatement of the ferocious storm left me agonizing over my mission.
A few steps later, the road materialized clearly and revealed only forty or so tents. Inwardly, I sighed in relief. This was a quick moving unit, not the human army of ten thousand plus.
Horses neighed from inside the tree line, fighting their tie-downs as I neared. Banners on tents snapped in the fading storm’s gusts. This confirmed it. Prince Tao had sent a small cavalry unit, likely to show support for his desire to earn my kill.
If I had to guess, he had whispered convenient truths into the orc chief’s ear about my worth. I would wager the orcs planned a double cross and Tao likely just wanted me, the threat to his father’s realm, gone.
This was war. These men had come here to kill me.
They wouldn’t spare Tarla or give a shit about Nee, Yermica, or even Asha. I just wanted to adventure in peace and earn Zorta killing mindless creatures. My attempts to swallow the guilt of killing men before they could raise a weapon or cast a spell worked.
I stalked away from the horses, seeing a half-asleep man stumble out of his tent to piss onto the road. He shielded his head from the rain with an actual shield. I found this humorous, but at the same time, I went rigid with concern.
When he finished relieving himself, he smacked his lips, turned the opposite way of me, and then went back into his tent.
If he had swiveled left instead of right, he might have saved himself.
My sneaky steps led me to the tent on the far left. I lowered myself onto the road ever so delicately. The trick I had learned killing matogators revolved around the slow squish over the hard smash.
I crawled forward until I loomed over a tent full of scouts. The nearby horses stirred, neighing with fright.
Bearing my weight on my left hand and knees, I swiftly drove my palm down until it was inches over the road. I could feel the startled humans begin to panic. Closing off my emotions, I applied enough pressure to finish the job.
The storm whipped the tent from the bottom of my hand when I moved forward. The next set of humans died just as quickly, never able to scream before I turned them into pulp. I repeated the process, killing down the line.
It was a slaughter, and an unfair one too.
I didn’t let the unfair fight bother me.
I proceeded to compress twenty tents before being noticed. A knight heading to care for the anxious horses spotted me with gore dripping from my immense palm.
“Attack! We’re under attack! Attack!” the knight cried out.
I surged to my feet, abandoning caution.
The second I was upright, I stomped a path down the tents, killing everyone who was too slow to escape.
The moment I crushed the final tent, I spun, running for my army.
A few dozen had survived. Instead of fighting them as they ran in the jungle, I had another plan. I ran Sprinkles in a path in front of our forces.
Yes, my run on the clearing day would give away that Sprinkles still lived, but there were bound to be humans who reported his survival to the orcs.
I found two groups of mounted orcs to smush before they could assemble a defense.
With those gone, I set Sprinkles to clearing the field of battle to a bigger zone. I left his body, watching him yank trees out before throwing them toward the river.
When I was back in my human body, I sat up, seeing the leaders who sheltered in our command carriage already gone. Tarla walked over and kissed me softly, attempting to drag me back to the bed now that we were alone again.
“I love you, Damien. Sorry I’ve been so judgmental,” she said.
Her sparkling brown eyes were filled with love. I wanted to rush outside, but instead I accepted a long kiss.
“No apology needed. Also, I… Prince Tao sent a few hundred cavalry to back him up. I killed all but a dozen and now need to finish the job,” I told her.
“How much Zorta do you have?”
I checked my stats and sighed. “It's low. Only 133 right now. I’ll need a lot more than that, though.”
Tarla put on her gator skinned cloak, handing me my version. She had made them to avoid the rain, and I didn’t accept her offering. I currently wore heavy plate armor, hating the lack of breathability the cloak gave.
“You’re going to get raw from the leather rubbing you while soaking wet,” Tarla said, giving sage advice that I ignored.
She didn’t press the issue, leaving our carriage. Zhograth hopped out the open door, taking off into the soft rain and brisk wind. I stepped out of the carriage and onto the muddy field.
Each of my steps caused a loud squish on the way down and a slurp on the way up and out of the mud.
A clattering of chains caught my attention. I saw Asha releasing my cat
army from their wagon, the animals carrying bloody sacks filled with meat. They held enough smarts to drag their bait to new sections of the jungle before going out to hunt. If we lived, we certainly would need all the Z we could get. Zhograth followed Lumpy, going to help with the hunting.
The momentary distraction faded as they tore across the muddy field.
I raised my voice so he could hear me, “Asha, ready the scouts, and then head to the north until you reach the road. Kill every human you find around the damaged tents and secure the horses. If you see the dead stir, you know why.”
Asha nodded, cupping hands to his mouth to shout over the wind. The elva pulled together his troops, readying to exploit the enemy when they were down.
I headed to the treasury wagon, trying my best to not have my boots entrench in the muck.
Yermica sat here, over watching a team of goblins who skinned squirrels, plucked birds, and stripped snakes. A pile of orbs rested inside a chest, and a larger stack of small animals rested nearby.
We bypassed the hard-working group, stepping into blood-soaked mud. I arrived at the tailgate of the treasury wagon, seeing only four of the chests inside.
“That’s bad,” I said with a sigh.
“A thousand Z in reserves is not ideal, but spending before a fight certainly makes sense,” Tarla said.
“Yea, there should be more when the orcs bring the fight to us.”
I hopped into the bed of the wagon, flipping open all the containers with orbs. Most of them would only hold fractions of a Z, and all the hard work of the goblins and trolls was about to bear fruit.
“How much are you going to take?” Tarla asked inquisitively.
“All of it. Most of the humans should be revivable, but I may have crushed some too far. Even if I gain all their Z instead of them becoming my minions, oh well. My strategy for the coming fight needs spare Zorta to raise the dead as much as it needs more troops to fight the living,” I told her.
Closing my eyes, I spun around the chests with my dancing fingertips reaching down to highlight each of the orbs en masse. My prompt told me I had finished connecting to the orbs.
Consume 1130.337 Zorta (YES) - (NO)
I selected yes.
A necromancer can turn the dead into the undead from a distance, but it sure wasn’t easy. Knowing this could take some time, I sat down in the back of the wagon. The armor made crossing my legs impossible, so I found the best comfort I could, leaning against the back wall.
Pulling my magic into a condensed ball, I called upon my spell to connect to available orbs. The magic burst out of me in an expanding wave of black magic that rolled over the area.
You have connected to 4 pure humans, 17 humans beyond claim (Consume only), 102 humans, 42 squirrels, 12 parrots, 8 rabbits, 4 snakes (Consume or Claim). Would you like to Consume or Claim.
I selected Consume.
Would you like to consume (ALL) (GROUP) (SINGLE)
I selected group, taking a few minutes to highlight the consume only humans in the distance and all the dead trash critters nearby. The snakes lacked venom in skeletal form and the constrictors tended to break bones while squeezing from the lack of muscles, so I ingested them.
You have selected to consume 108.886 Zorta confirm (Yes) – (No)
My spell finished, adding the Zorta to my totals. I had to remember that a human only averaged three to five Z, almost the same as a troll. That cave of hydra wonders had me hungry, very hungry.
All I had to do was survive the coming fight first.
I reached out a second time, connecting to only available orbs.
You have connected to 108 available humans. Select (ALL) (GROUP) (SINGLE) and then select Claim or Consume.
Hmm… Interesting. The second attempt must have broken some resistance from the stubborn ones. I selected claim and then all.
You have selected to raise 108 human minions for 492.772 Zorta. This will incur Ostriva points. Do you confirm (YES) - (NO)
I selected yes, and reaper Randy my minion living in my core slithered out of my chest.
“Interesting. Such drab weather,” he commented.
“Yes, can you fix that? I have a fight to win,” I said in a snarky tone.
He smiled, enjoying the banter. “Afraid not, but congrats on leveling your cultivation again. You're turning into a fierce Necro Lord, one of the strongest to ever live. Maybe being the coward who only picks winning fights is smart. I do question this latest tactic, but at least you are adding more troops.” His head scanned the skyline. “Looks like someone is indeed manipulating the weather, but it’s not me.”
The rain stopped completely, as if his words triggered an event.
The horizon to the north crackled with incredible displays of necromancy magic. A thunderous roar told me that my new minions were feeding the ghouls of the pits. The magical storm and the storm on the horizon faded, and for the first time in almost a day, the sun beat the storm back.
“Find your weapons and armor, kill all the remaining humans, and then bring them to me,” I ordered with a grin.
My reaper’s faceless grin troubled me. The being returned to my chest with contentment.
“Is it over?” Tarla asked.
“For now, yes. I was wondering if you’d join me for breakfast. Some eggs sound -”
War drums thrummed from nearby, far closer than I ever expected. Two things happened at once. Enemy scouts fired magic through the canopy, trying to kill Sprinkles, and the ground itself trembled from the incoming charge of the enemy.
“Battlelines! Battlelines! Battlelines!” I cried out. “Minions not in the army, return to me.”
A horn blared, telling my goblins and trolls on foot to rush to form ranks. Sprinkles retreated across the field, sticking to our right flank. The left held the river.
The situation was bad for a retreat but great for a fight to the death. The only way for us to run was through the jungle and back toward the hills we had crossed not too long ago.
Based on the jarring from the charge, the enemy was only a few miles out, giving us time to adjust. Their cries for war sent the minimal birds scattering.
I saw the scattering flocks of jungle birds increasingly near, like a wave heading for a beach. Battle was coming and I could only hope our preparations would be enough.
Motion from my right revealed Asha and his scouts arriving on the right flank with a hundred human skeletons. A long line of warhorses fought being dragged behind the big trail of matogators.
I exhaled heavily, knowing I needed to make a big decision about the horses. War horses were terrific and terrifying all on their own. However, the human skeletons had heavy cavalry armor over their boney frames. They carried lances, swords, and shields. They were clearly ready to fight.
The horses hated the fact their former masters were skeletons, nipping at the humans who clung to memories. You could see the pain in both parties because of their new realities.
Easy fix for a Necro Lord. Decisions, lessons, and risks; the life of a battlefield commander.
“Humans, suppress memories. Minions, kill the horses,” I commanded.
“Damien!” Tarla gasped.
Like a flipped switch, the massacre began. Sprinkles stomped, gators chomped, and bolts from crossbows snapped.
The horses fought the ropes that bound them, jerking and pulling with all their might. The poor creatures neighed, cried, and died to the last one.
I reached out with my dark magic, enveloping the orbs. The connection was immediate, and they lacked the ability to withstand my power.
You have connected to 137 horses. Select (ALL) (GROUP) (SINGLE), select Claim or Consume.
You have selected to raise 137 horse minions for 812.669 Zorta. This will incur Ostriva points. Do you confirm (YES) - (NO)
I scoffed that the horses were worth double the knights. I could certainly use some undead cavalry. I selected yes.
The reaper fled my chest, casting a curtain of magic so daunting tha
t it stalled the orc’s charge. The storm of clouds returned, the darkness enveloping the battlefield until you could only see glimmering cracks of the sky. Reapers plunged down from above, diving down to smash into the muddy field.
“So amazing. Sad to see them become the undead, but I understand, sorry I complained,” Tarla said from my side, admiring the reapers feeding the ghouls from below. I snickered, and she wrapped her arm around mine. “This will help us win for sure. Famo should be -” Eight snaps of catapults launched river rocks in a high arc. “There they go.”
“Knights, get into your saddles and join the right flank,” I ordered.
“Nice little bonus before the fighting begins,” Tarla said.
We watched the rocks close on the enemy inside the tree line. I had to guess, because it was hard to see into the jungle, but only so many orcs had arrived. The boulders cracked, smashed, and shattered everything in their path.
I nodded, immediately closing my eyes and focusing on my ability to connect to orbs.
You have connected to 3 orcs and 2 wargs. Select (ALL) (GROUP) (SINGLE) and Consume or Claim.
“Famo hit something inside the jungle,” I said with a grin, selecting all and claim.
An orc has resisted your claim attempt. You have selected to raise 2 orcs and 2 wargs as minions for 12.220 Zorta. This will incur Nordan points. Do you confirm (YES) - (NO)
I selected yes, and the reaper left my chest with a mad cackle.
“Finally, you use your power as you should,” the reaper said.
“Hey… so… can I call you Randy?” I asked.
“I have no name and don’t want one,” he replied, snapping his boney fingers.
A worm of ghouls leaped out of the ground, arching over the jungle canopy. The hideous creation slammed down, devouring the new minions in the distance.