Jezebelle probably had it pretty bad against General Chopper, too. It didn't look good. Their only chance at salvaging a victory out of the day was by capturing Dorothy. The Empress of Oz was the key to ultimate victory.
Her eyes locked on her foe below.
Dorothy was almost to Scarecrow's position, but Glinda's magically animated general was nowhere to be seen. It took her a second to find him. She shook her head. That man was resourceful, and really good.
Scarecrow was circling around behind Dorothy, mostly by crawling under, around, and sometimes straight through both Imperial and Sa'Kor soldiers. He moved through that maelstrom of death with astonishing speed and skill. For the thousandth time, she wondered how that wonderfully devious mind worked.
Well met, Scarecrow. Help me capture Dorothy, and I'll give you your heart's desire, she thought. Of course, knowing Scarecrow's appetites, and the depraved nature of his corrupted mind, he'd ask for a threesome with her and Dorothy. Deliver Dorothy, and you might get that wish.
Glinda altered course to land in front of Dorothy. She couldn't wait to see Dorothy's face when she found her waiting instead of Scarecrow. By that time, Scarecrow should be in position to pounce. The Empress of Oz wouldn't know what hit her, until it was too late.
Ka-Boom!
All she knew was a heartbeat of white hot fire and excruciating percussive power. Crying out, Glinda fell through the air. It took her jumbled mind a second to realize an especially powerful thunderbolt had pierced her arcane shield and destroyed her flying carpet. Her wand drew runes, even as she muttered her spell. Glinda's fall stopped just feet above the hard ground, allowing the Witch to ease down feet first.
Better luck next time, Olivia.
The mundane battle raged all around the Witch as she quickly took stock. Besides losing her flying carpet, Glinda lost more than half her clothes. The explosion left what remained on her body in tatters. She tapped her head with the wand, sending a bright halo down her body, head to toe, leaving her usual pink and white outfit sheathing her body. It was good enough for sorcerous battle.
“Let's see how well you like it,” she snarled, and cast a lightning bolt at Olivia.
The Good Witch effortlessly took the bolt on her shield, but it did slow her a bit. Diana split away, and even Olivia veered the other way. Glinda recognized the tactic, but she wouldn't allow them to get her in their crossfire. She summoned a huge pink bubble to encapsulated her, and then shot straight up.
Wanda came flying back in at that time, but went after Diana. Glinda felt a moment of relief. She'd have to deal with Wanda at some point. First they had to deal with those meddlesome Good Witches. Only then could she claim Dorothy.
Glinda smiled. Poor Wanda. She was a woman torn. Dorothy and the Silver Shoes were within reach, but her army teetered at the edge of annihilation. She had to break off from Diana to concentrate her attacks on the Gillikins and Imperials, but then Diana attacked and Wanda had to defend herself. Glinda only really had to worry about Olivia. Scarecrow would take care of Dorothy.
“Shall we finish this, sister?” Glinda called, dropping into a fighting stance and pointing her wand at the Good Witch of the North.
“My pleasure, Glinda,” Olivia replied. Eyes narrowing, “You of all people should know that ultimately Good always prevails.”
“Actually, it has been my experience that evil usually wins, but Good fights back to even the odds. Good rarely truly triumphs or vanquishes evil. But the Wickeds have vanquished the Good Witches several times in the past.”
In all of the history of Oz, only Dorothy Gale ever managed to kill both reigning Wicked Witches. Glinda knew Dorothy had never intended to kill either of them. Both killings were fortuitous accidents.
She won't catch me off guard like that.
“It is sad how Scarecrow corrupted you,” Olivia said. “You were once the shining beacon of all things Good.”
That comment brought back memories. Cora, the reigning Wicked Witch of the West had captured her during the last War of the Witches, before Cora killed the then reigning Good Witch of the South in personal combat. During her captivity, Glinda learned so much at Cora's knee. Well, mostly while kneeling before her and answering the Wicked Witch's every depraved desire. Her sexual servitude continued even after the Land lifted Glinda to Good Witch of the South.
She had been forced to bend knee to the ruling Wicked Witch for over a hundred and sixty years. But the Land created her and the new Good Witch of the North to be extra powerful, so together they shrugged off the yokes of the ruling Wicked Witches and restored the Balance once they came into their full power.
Glinda wagged her brows. “Even then I wasn't that good, Olivia. I've always had a very naughty bent. Ask my Ladies-in-Waiting.”
A roar echoed across the battlefield. Glinda looked past Olivia and spotted Lion racing toward them. Actually, he looked like he intended to help Dorothy. She couldn't allow that, so cast her spell.
A bright pink “rope” of energy erupted from the end of her wand and went out to lasso the charging shifter. She missed his neck, but snared his left rear leg. Lion snarled and chomped down on her magic rope.
Boom!
The spell exploded, but Glinda was ready for it. She disengaged at the last second, so Lion took the full brunt of that magical backlash. Glinda threw extra energy into her bubble before Olivia's fireball arrived. Then the Witch spotted various weapons lost or discarded on the battlefield below. Another spell seized a round Sa'Kor shield behind Olivia, and hurled it into the Good Witch's back.
Olivia grunted, knocked off her flying carpet. She recovered quickly, landing on her feet near Lion, who lay unconscious. Olivia replied with a pair of fireballs. Glinda's bubble shrugged them off easily. But it gave the Good Witch time to summon her carpet and become airborne again.
The two Witches glared at each other.
A blood-curdling roar thundered, followed by a second roar. Glinda whirled around to see a pair of flying dragons passing through a rip in space and time.
What the hell are you doing, Wanda?
The Wicked Witch of the West shouted commands, and the two dragons split up to attack the Gillikin and Imperial armies with dragonfire. Hundreds of men were incinerated within minutes. Both armies broke and ran.
She saved her army, but at what cost?
Summoning a single dragon could lay a Cardinal Witch low for a few days. Wanda summoned two. Glinda couldn't imagine she had the strength to control them much longer, if she could even keep herself airborne. But then Wanda barked her final command, before she took off after her own fleeing army.
The dragons split up, each locking eyes on a different Good Witch, and roared. Olivia made the most pathetic squeaking sound, and tore out of there. Diana was already halfway to the protective wards of Emerald City.
Glinda smiled. All of the Cardinal Witches had fled. The field was hers!
She dropped down to the ground near Lion. He was just beginning to stir, so she had to move fast. The Witch rushed up beside him, muttering her spell, and then tapped his thickly maned neck with her wand. A silver collar appeared around his neck, flashed brightly, and then she watched his body stiffen. Lion's eyes fluttered open.
“Hello, old friend. You belong to me now. Shift to human, kneel, and submit.”
Lion roared, rolling onto his back in his struggles. She had to retreat a little and give him room, less she be bowled over. Amusement filled her eyes as she watched him fighting the powerful spell. But even a shifter couldn't shrug off an obedience spell. At least not one of hers.
Growling, snarling, and writhing, Lion fought with all his might. She watched him slowly shift from lion to half-human. Still he fought before ending up on all fours before her. He glared murderously at the Witch, but then he shifted again. Fully human, naked, his fingers dug into the soil and his back arched up like a spited cat, before he slowly calmed down.
Lion looked up at her with baleful eyes, “Glinda, I am yours.”
“Yes, you are, my pet,” she purred, moving her right foot forward. “Kiss it.”
Lion stared at her white thigh-booted leg. She saw him tremble, fighting the compulsion to obey. Then his cock rose, becoming rock hard. She arched a brow. Really? And finally, Lion crawled up, lowered his face, and gave the toe of her booted foot a little kiss. And then a lick.
“You must obey my every command, Lion.”
He gave her boot a lick from toe to knee, and then locked eyes with her. She didn't see any defiance left in his eyes.
“I am yours to command, Mistress.”
Chapter 32
“Holy crap!” Dorothy cried. “Dragons? Since when does Oz have dragons!”
She watched the two dragons split up, and then chase Diana and Olivia away. Diana went toward Emerald City, but Olivia veered off to the west. Dorothy prayed the Good Witch knew what she was doing, because the dragon was slowly gaining on her. Diana would make it behind Emerald City's magical shield with time to spare.
The Witches were out of effective range of her guns, so Dorothy continued her onslaught toward Scarecrow. Only, he'd vanished in the melee. She frantically searched the chaos around her. Dorothy couldn't imagine the evil scarecrow running away. He was half-again too brave and brazen, and she knew he desired to claim her in the worst way.
“Scarecrow! Stop hiding from me, you hay-stuff craven!”
“Why?” Scarecrow's voice came from behind her. “Are you ready to grovel and beg at my feet?”
His insane laughter filled her world, allowing her to follow his swift movement through the fight all around her. How did he move so swiftly and effortlessly through that close press of fighting humanity? By the time she could rein her mount around to face him, Scarecrow was a dozen feet to her side. It did sound like he was getting closer. Spiraling in toward her?
Despite his odd tactic, Dorothy knew she didn't have to go find her foe. Scarecrow was coming to her. She grimly stared at the surrounding fight. Dorothy might enjoy a certain visceral thrill in combat, but she didn't want to live her life like that. She wanted peace for Oz, her people, and for herself. The people of Oz deserved peace, at long last.
“Come to me, old friend,” she whispered, eyes narrowing. “Let the fires of your passion to possess me be your undoing.”
Movement off to the south caught her attention again. They were so far away, but was that Glinda with some man kneeling before her? No, he was licking her boots. Dorothy rolled her eyes and shook her head.
What is wrong with these people? Even Glinda is obsessed with sex, domination, and submission, she thought. Wait, is that…
Dorothy wasn't allowed to complete that thought. A man came flying out of the writhing battle beside her. She recognized him as Scarecrow, just a fraction of a second before he slammed into her side and swept her out of the saddle. She hit the hard ground with a pained grunt, but managed to keep the air in her lungs. The fact Scarecrow landed atop her wasn't as bad as she'd feared. The scarecrow wasn't that heavy.
She lost hold of her sword upon impact with the ground. Scarecrow pounded fist after fist into her, but she rolled and quickly got the upper hand. Straddling him, she pounded his face with her fists. He giggled.
“Stop. That tickles,” Scarecrow cried, writhing beneath her. Then she felt his erection trapped between her legs. “Oh baby. Yes. Yes. Beat me. Bite me. Make me squeal like a Kansas farmgirl in love!”
“You disgust me,” she shouted, leaping off him. Dorothy pulled both pistols, and fired a dozen rounds into Scarecrow's face and chest. Again, he writhed and giggled. “I'll find a way to end you, dammit.”
Kicking his feet up, Scarecrow flew up off the ground and dropped into an aggressive fighting stance. He held two curved swords, and a wicked grin on his face.
“You're going down, Dorothy,” he sneered. Scarecrow's eyes raked her body a few times. “The only question is which of my three swords will I impale you upon?”
He thrust his hips to emphasize this question. Her eyes dropped to his bulge.
“You're a sick and depraved asshole,” she said.
“Those are my better qualities,” he replied, taking a step closer.
She quickly scanned the area. Her men were slowly winning the fight, due more to overwhelming numbers more than anything else. Still, a victory was a victory. She faced Scarecrow in a small pocket of calm, with her horse still trapped in the clear space. But she knew the horse was gone the second he spotted an opening.
Dorothy holstered her pistols. The Null Stone was inside her saddlebags, and with Glinda and Wanda in the area, she needed to stay close to it. Her katana lay on the ground just a few feet away. She glanced at it. Scarecrow glanced at it. He grinned evilly.
“You poor, delusional thing,” Scarecrow said. “The sword can't kill me, either. You're all out of luck, Dorothy. If you kneel, submit, and give yourself to me, then I'll be merciful. If you fight me, well…”
He took another step closer. There was no way she could reach the katana before he skewered her. Dorothy knew she'd never get away if she tried to run for it. Scarecrow had her.
“I beg for mercy,” she said, bending her left knee to kneel. Scarecrow relaxed, a big smile spreading across his wicked face. And then she pushed off with her right leg, propelling her toward the katana. “But not from you!” Dorothy spun to face him, sword in hand. “There's not a merciful bone in your body.”
Scarecrow shrugged. “Actually, there's not a single bone in my body.”
Yet, he could stand, walk, and fight like a man. Hell, he even had a fleshy cock.
Magic is the bane of my existence.
Dorothy didn't want to meet Scarecrow on his terms, so she attacked. The katana's razor-edged blade sliced deep into the scarecrow's arms and legs, and she even managed a thrust through his chest. All that in the first fifteen seconds, and then Scarecrow took control. Bones or not, Scarecrow's blows were fast and powerful. She parried with her sword, and the force of his strikes radiated up her blade and into her arm. She almost lost hold of it a few times.
“Not so smug and self-righteous now, are you, Dorothy?”
Fighting someone using two swords proved more difficult than anticipated. Dorothy struggled to block and parry, while continuing to back away. She tried to reassert herself, but he brushed her aside effortlessly.
“You can't win. Surrender to me,” he said, leering at her. “I'll treat you well. Promise.”
“I'm going to burn you up, Scarecrow,” she said, hating the fact she was almost too breathless to speak. He had her huffing and puffing, body hot and sweaty, arms feeling like lead. “And then feed your ashes to pigs.”
“Ooh, burn,” he sneered. “Your threat game is weak, old friend. As are you.”
Scarecrow lunged at her, thrusting one sword at her belly. Dorothy slashed down and across her body, parrying his thrust aside. But he brought his other sword around and caught hers just in front of the guard. The katana was ripped from her suddenly numb fingers.
The point of a sword nicked her neck, right under her chin.
“Kneel to the sword.”
Dorothy gawked at him, eyes huge and mouth open in astonishment. For the life of her, she couldn't think of anything to do. Hell, she could barely think. He arched a brow, his arm tensing.
“I surrender,” she whispered, dropping to her knees.
Scarecrow relaxed, a look of wicked depravity spreading across his burlap face. She wondered why Glinda kept his mouth half-sewn shut, but then spotted the fangs. Yeah, he was a biter. But then he pulled the sword back from her throat.
Dorothy didn't hesitate. She kicked out and swept his feet away. Instead of going for her sword, she pounced upon him again. This time, she seized an arm and ripped it off his body. Scarecrow screamed like a gut-stuck pig. So she took the sword from his lost hand, and drove it hard through Scarecrow's chest and deep into the ground below him.
“Nailed to the ground,” she said.
“I'
m going to nail your ass!” he screamed. “Let me go!”
A rope of pink energy whipped past her, wrapped around the hilt of that sword, and yanked it out of the ground and out of Scarecrow. Dorothy spun around to find Glinda Upland smiling back at her.
“Forget about him, my dear,” Glinda purred. “I'm the Witch you're looking for.”
Chapter 33
“Glinda!”
“In the flesh,” the Witch said, giving her a sultry look. “Miss me?”
“I won't this time,” Dorothy snarled, pulling both pistols. “Die, Witch!”
Dorothy didn't hesitate. She pulled both triggers, over and over. Glinda dodged to the side. For a second all Dorothy saw was strawberry blonde hair whipping around, and then the Witch dropped to one knee, wand pointing at her. Her pistols swung over to threaten the Witch, while Glinda muttered her magic and drew runes in the air.
The former Good Witch froze, tense. Even Scarecrow froze with big eyes. But Dorothy's bullets had no effect. Then she noticed the faint pink bubble surrounding the Witch. A magic shield that could stop bullets? Glinda grinned and stood up.
“Your magic lead slinger was an interesting challenge, but I figured out a shield to protect against it,” Glinda said. “Surprise.”
“Now you face two who are immune to your foul magic, Dorothy,” Scarecrow said. “You will not escape us again.”
“Escape? I don't think so,” she replied. Baby blues narrowed. “I'm here to kill you.”
“Our sweet, innocent little girl from Kansas isn't so sweet anymore,” Glinda said. The Witch looked her up and down with lecherous eyes. “And I've heard, not anywhere close to being innocent. Rawr, girl. I hear you prefer threesomes with two big, strong men.”
Dorothy just blinked at her. From the looks in both Glinda's and Scarecrow's eyes, she had no doubt what they'd be doing to her if captured.
Her eyes darted briefly to her mount, still trapped in the small clearing within the larger battle. Her only hope was hidden in her saddlebags. Getting to the horse was the problem. Scarecrow stood between her and the horse.
Wrath of a Wonderfully Wicked Witch (Return to Oz With a Vengeance Book 2) Page 19