Gryff Boxset

by Sloss, Marcus

  I grunted in reply and he snorted to confirm my reply. I avoided correcting him on the King’s proper name.

  “Are you two men talking with noises?” Rina asked and I huffed in reply.

  He laughed and went to his group with Rina being tossed over his shoulder. I watched the TruthSayers spin a portal and then they walked into the swirling abyss of black. When the last one entered the portal blinked and then collapsed. The moment they were gone was the perfect time to spawn my new toy.

  I desired the blimp into existence and it poofed and filled a majority of the space inside the canyon. Damn. This thing was five times bigger than the real one the King had. Mysti ran to me in shock and jumped on my back.

  “This was the surprise and what the meeting resulted in. I had been dying to know. My goodness, it is huge!” Mysti said with joy.

  “That is what she said!” I exclaimed and nailed the joke with an included fist pump.

  Everyone who had been working on looting the dead stopped to inspect the massive blimp. I saw the King’s blimp lift-off outside the enclosed space and then fly our way. I watched as it landed and decided to wait for King Ptera to tour the inside. My team was already running into the new familiar and I let Mysti slide off my back. I swatted her plump ass sending her forward.

  “We can have sex on the ride home, go explore while I wait for his highness,” I said and went to be productive by helping Ossa with removing ogre hearts. Most of the dead had been picked through and she had a few dozen left to go at most, “Hey, Ossa.”

  “Hey Gryff, I got a few hundred levels, I am a four sixteen now,” Ossa said happily. She reached into a big burlap bag she had and pulled out a treasure chest. “One of the ogres dropped this. The rest has been blues mixed with greens. A few common familiars that were basic pets like house cats, and one was a mining goblin. I saw Barq drooling at that.”

  I accepted the small treasure chest eager to see what was inside… and it was silver. Oh well, every bit helped. Ossa stood as blood dripped down her arms and she removed the chest from my hands. It went roughly into the sack with a clank. I had nowhere to place it and the sack worked. I spawned a spear and went to the next ogre. I jammed my summoned weapon into the chest of the dead stinky ogre until there was a solid thunk instead of squishing noises.

  I reached in and rolled the orb toward Ossa. She snatched it up and into the bag it went. I obtained five bodies worth of orbs in my brutal removal technique before King Ptera arrived at my side.

  “I can just burn the rest want…”

  “Yes!” Ossa exclaimed before he could finish.

  The King grinned at getting to use his powerful staff and magic. There was a fire so hot I thought my hair would shrivel. The King pointed his staff and continued to incinerate the remaining ogre bodies not yet looted. Well, that sealed the deal for me, Ossa was getting a lightning staff and Desmond a fire stick.

  “Thank you, my lord, you are the best!” Ossa said appreciatively.

  Ptera smiled and directed his arm toward the blimp for me to take the lead. I stepped away from the stench of ash and happily walked to the airship. The first thing I noticed looking at the airship was the sheer size. I craned my neck vertically and realized it must be a hundred feet tall. Besides me, the King was doing the same thing while muttering curses of wonderment. The next eye-catching thing was the bubbled window like the king’s blimp except more of them and bigger. The warehouse brown boxy portion was tripled decked too from what I could tell. This was level one also and I could not fathom what it would upgrade into. I was amazed by this creation. Then again they did not get bigger and this was the best there was.

  “Legendary?” King Ptera asked as we started to walk up a ramp wide enough for the Queen’s Bitch to use.

  “Divine. Yeah, I know and I used it,” I said and he scoffed.

  “What level are you now?” He asked and I willed my number. “Nine hundred and nineteen. Damn. I will make ascended soon.”

  The King chuckled lightly at my comment but said nothing. The opening loading area was expansive with fake lighting lamps everywhere. Well, I had to assume they were fake because I doubted that my team had placed hanging candle holders throughout the seven or eight hundred feet of length. You could play sports inside of here with the double storied space. Our footsteps clomped as if on real wood and the noise echoed across the enclosure. There was a ramp for loading stuff up a level and a set of stairs further down the walkway. We went for the stairs while quietly absorbing it all.

  “This will change a lot if you do trade runs. Like a whole lot. My mind is trying to calculate all the possibilities of what would be most cost-efficient and I am drawing blanks simply because we never trade in such quantities. There are undoubtedly some very wealthy merchants who will drool over this when you fly it into Remi. I would land outside the city the first time because this will beat my ship home and if you use the royal landing pad unapproved you may get shot down. Yeah, land outside for sure,” King Ptera rambled a tad as we walked up the stairs.

  “I need a navigator or instructions on how to use the orb.”

  “Divine?”

  “Yup.”

  “Of course it is. That one will be harder to find. Most of the universities that teach the course only accept students with access to orbs, while the schools charge insane fees to those who have to borrow the orbs. Then you have the crazy orb thieves. They attend school, get the legit license, and even manage to get hired on. Then disappear with a borrowed orb never to be seen again. Having a universe so vast does lead to problems of its own,” King Ptera paused as I saw a slightly bigger version of locked doors and contained storage.

  “Do you have anyone you can recommend?” I asked and he frowned.

  “I get we are somewhat friendly, but that line of questioning leads to work. I find if I help you that leads to me having to help you more, and more, and more. This is something as a King I learned a long time ago. Instead, how about this - because you have to remember in the end I am still only one citizen in this universe - tonight I will introduce you to some people who can help you far more than I can and you can pay them for their time. That works for us both and keeps my time, for me and my pleasures. I want you to set up shop here on Thur, the big thing is I would prefer you integrate yourself.”

  “I apologize for my request your highness. I am used to being an Emperor back home and people eager to please me. I do understand the value of time and most certainly appreciate your helpful gala to help me integrate. I will need to hurry back to Remi to get into proper attire,” I said with a genuine smile. A younger version of me may have found offense to his statement. I certainly did not. “What are these cells for?”

  I noticed some of the storage doors were different and appeared to be prisoner storage or maybe for animals. He walked to one of the cells that had only a small window on the front. There was a bottom slot for passing trays of food and buckets. Triple bolts adorned each door and there were slots for wooden jams over the tray openings.

  “Good money in moving convicts back to the worlds they commit crimes on to claim bounties, or even if you were a slaver in moving slaves to mines for instance. This ship moves fast and can hop between worlds. Not advocating slavery but it is legal in the vast majority of this universe with caveats, but that is for you to learn. If you do transport prisoners they have a different set of rules on familiars. Else they could scratch the floor with a fingernail and pop, everyone screams to the ground. They are treated as friendly guests. The same thing that happens when you for instance - accidentally dropped your weapon on the floor. Nothing occurs and you are fine. Which leads me to my next helpful advice tip since you are so kind to tour a King aboard your divine vessel.”

  “Get some gliders made and wear one at all times. You should have one on as the captain so you survive and the blimp does not die with you, but really the entire crew should. A bird collision will not despawn this mighty vessel. An angry dragon o
r a flock of sparrows intent on its destruction will. Again you should really be fine but you never know. The last thing you need is this thing to go poof and then you splatter down below. Risky move putting it inside you. Again I would have done the same. Oh, side note, some adventuring companies use these airships for rapid dungeon transitions on a planet. They despawn them in coordination from up high so everyone can glide down and avoid a sudden ejection from whatever assails you.”

  “There was a lot to take in there. I will try to be mindful to have my note-taker jot things down to add to my to do list. How about we go up and continue our tour?” I said and turned back for the stairwell.

  There was no door at the end of the hallway leading into the captain’s bubble and I figured it started a floor up. This blimp was not actually filled with air which had me wondering how the King’s vessel achieved lift. My guess was solidly in the magical air spell or familiar camp because I had seen the top floor was a suite. I focused on the stairs and we entered the fourth floor. There were a dozen doors down the hall.

  Ptera grew confused when a giggling Mysti and Zoey exited a door.

  “Your highness. Gryff. Mr. Red. Oh, yeah so ugh. When are we going to your real name again?” Mysti asked with a polite smile while she and Zoey wave us to them.

  We passed them and entered what was close to a fancy hotel room. I was curious as to why. We were still four floors of the ground which was a super long fall down if this despawned. Also sleeping with a glider on sounded horrid. Using the room for sex made sense but then again there were closets, a flushing toilet, and even a working shower in this private room.

  “Gryff works for now I guess. I think the Justicars and Inquisitors will have an issue killing me if I can get divine orbs that spawn armies. I don’t get why these are here…” I said while trying to find a reason.

  “This is an upgrade for the rare version. I have been on the maxed level blue blimps. Not nearly as nice nor are the rooms as large. Actually, they are inferior in every way. This shower is a real shower. Anyway, some crews deliver the goods to the trade planets and then stay up in the air until the cooldown window is ready on the atmospheric portal orb. They drop their goods and then avoid the city as it is too rough or there is citizen warfare allowed. You could stay up here for months and live like a king. Especially if you had an atmosphere like ours. This ship goes higher than any mount will fly so there is no risk of an enemy popping this blimp.”

  Then I realized it. There is limited oxygen the higher you go and it gets colder too. If someone had a dragon mount they would never get fifty thousand feet into the air without an air breather while I could tell the blimp had cabin pressure. I would need to consider if they had those. We stepped out of the room and found Barq and Shala waiting.

  “This is fantastic Red, there is so much to it. Are we riding this home and if so can we set some stuff in before we lift off?” Barq asked.

  “Yeah, sure I still have to see the main room, balconies, and the suite. There is plenty of space to spawn stuff in the warehouse below. For testing purposes spawn your cabin inside please and then let me know if it worked. Shala make a note that we need to buy gliders please or find a crafter. Thanks, guys. Up we go.”

  We passed Nicole and Cyrene chatting away happily. I went up while they went down. There were a few comments on how nice the blimp was. I figured I would eventually have to name it and set that aside for now. The main room was three stories tall and elegantly decorated. There was a dance floor, a massive central bar, and then seating for lounging as well as dining areas. I walked to a balcony on the second floor. There was an outcropping that allowed you to stand and watch the dancefloor. I noticed what looked like an end-stage for performances that had thirty foot curtains covering the interior. There was a door to an exterior balcony that I opened and went through.

  I saw something similar to King Ptera’s blimp. Large comfy recliners faced the exterior with a plush couch. There was clear bubble glass for excellent viewing and the floor above had a privacy divider. I stepped onto the bubble and saw I could see into the bubble left and right of me but there were curtains on tracks you could close to keep prying eyes away.

  “So much nicer than mine and I paid so much. Then again, even I would wail if I saw the price tag this familiar cost. I think we know where the event will be tomorrow night. Yup, in here and I will need a day or three to prepare, but boy oh boy will this make a scene and be so worth the effort,” The King then nodded more violently in his assertion this was the right idea. “Time and access. If we hurry we can make it back tonight. You will make it back in a few hours. I want you to go to the Blue Swan Inn. Let them know you have a code word, Buttercup in a Bowl. I know it is a phrase, but that is what it is. They will stick you in a nice suite so I can find you easily by runner. The next floor up is full of small rooms for servants and staff. Tiny but still probably awesome. Finally, you will have a humongous penthouse. I will let you give me a tour of that tomorrow night. Yes, this will be fun.”

  “Thank you for touring my new blimp with me King Ptera,” I said with a wave goodbye.

  “See you tomorrow. Remember, Blue Swan Inn, Buttercup in a Bowl,” he said as he left us.

  I saw Mysti repeating the words in her head. I smiled and went up to a third floor balcony and found more of the same. When I stepped down to the first floor balconies I noticed they were more of a social gathering area as they lacked privacy. A frown crested my face when I saw the bar was empty as it was another thing to do that I needed to add to a list. I also needed to buy an outfit with pockets and a pen and paper. I glanced down from the bubble and saw Ossa hauling the bag of loot to her familiar. She tossed it inside and then despawned her cave to join us. The last of the team was coming aboard the ship.

  “What is on your mind Gryff?” Nicole said as she scooted up beside me.

  “A lot actually. How about we go see how this thing flies? We have a few hours until nightfall. Hopefully, this ride goes fast and the flight is smooth,” I said with a smile and left for the stairwell.

  I saw Mysti and Zoey leave the bar to join us while I could not find Cyrene. I then saw her wave from a balcony she looked down from. Shala and Barq returned to this floor and before we made it to the flight deck I saw Desmond, Dib, and Ossa.

  “My cabin would not spawn Gryff,” Barq said and I nodded.

  “Everyone seated please, and get comfy. There are nice rooms below with showers if you want to get the blood cleaned off. I bet the water is even hot,” I said and there were smiles beside Desmond who huffed with a frown.

  Ossa swatted his arm and then politely asked, “Gryff may we shower in your suite? The shower there is two stories tall. I can maybe fit on the fourth deck suites but Desmond will not.”

  “Oh yeah, I have no issue with that. I haven’t seen the suite yet, but if the room is as big as I was to guess it is, then we can partition the space maybe,” I said and Ossa did not hesitate as she dragged Desmond up. “Alright rest of you sit, Nicole with me. Once we’re in the air feel free to come in.”

  I opened the door and my stomach tightened. I was by no means afraid of heights. Stick me on a clear flooring forty feet above the ground and my butthole still puckers. I tiptoed and then regained my composure as I found the captain’s chair. Unlike in the real blimp, mine did not need to run wiring or levers and there was nothing besides a few chairs obstructing the view. There was an honest to god video game controller on the pedestal in front of the captain’s station.

  The left side was labeled collective and the right thumb had an engraving of cyclic above the joystick. I applied upward pressure on the collective and we went up with only a tiny sensation. I waited intensely for the forces of the wind to buffet us but there were zero external factors. Uh…

  “Wait, there is no wind effect?” Nicole asked while studying the snow whipping in the wind as it smashed against the clear outside. “We are clearly being beaten by strong gusts but are maintainin
g a perfect hover.”

  “Magic is amazing,” I said and rapidly increased our altitude.

  I put us a few thousand feet into the sky to avoid anything wanting to kill us and then applied some forward airspeed with the cyclic. There was a slight jolt of forward momentum but it was almost non-existent. I added additional forward airspeed as I steered us south with a slight turn. I returned the forward joystick to the middle and we slowed. A quick inspection and I found a lock switch so you did not have to hold the button forward the entire ride.

  We passed the King’s blimp within minutes of flying and I had us go full speed. Within ten minutes we were out of the snow and transitioned at least four days’ worth of wagon riding as we flew back to Remi. Any doubt I had of me being the holder of the divine dirigible was gone at that moment.

  “I can get us there Gryff,” Nicole said as she neared my seat. “Go bathe with Zoey and Mysti. They have been wanting some time with you.”

  I stuck my nose close to my body and gagged. Fair enough, especially if we were going back to civilization. Nicole leaned her cheek in for me to kiss as we swapped places. I exited the pilot’s section and again saw Cyrene brooding on the third floor balcony. I let her deal with that as Zoey and Mysti ran to me with their hands extended.

  “We are going down a flight of stairs to clean up,” Mysti said with hazel eyes dancing with lust.

  “But my suite!” I said with a fake pout.

  “Is occupied by two ogres and you did approve it. We can go up and join them but they may not want an orgy,” Zoey quipped with a grin.

  “Fourth floor it is,” I replied while slapping her taut ass.

  “There is a large cabin at the end of the hallway. The three of us will fit in the shower nicely,” Mysti said and started down the stairwell.