For the next seven days, we cleared every tunnel, little side cavern, and numerous passageways. The process was insanely tedious and the amount of wounded we took was staggering. I mandated that everyone must wear metal helmets and carry shields. This resulted in the troops only having exposed feet. I had even placed a metal dome protector over my noggin to avoid crossbow bolts. Apparently crossbows were badass compared to higher-level trolls flinging arrows. Nicole used a revive every day and we still lost eight dwarves and a newly recruited orc to the lowbie goblins.
The issue was that we had to kill at least thirty dungeon routes that were inside the valley. There were just so many openings and each one was stuffed with nasty goblins with pointy bolt throwers. A part of me wanted to move on to another dungeon but we stayed because of what we found. Inside the mines were ore, as in super nice veins of ore, and even better ore that the dwarves danced in the rain over. Enough to fund an army with new armor and weapons as well as a whole lot of awesome orbs. I knew the moment we saw the zadium veins there was no turning back. When the King said that zadium ore should not be here I replied to send more high-level roaming bosses to lowbie spots. Above the mines on the actual mountain face scouts found our desperately needed quarry. The process of dragging the chunks of stone down into the valley presented its own problems but we had the best of both worlds with a little bit of work. We merely had to dig out tens of thousands of goblins.
Leveling was going fantastic. I got sick of being the primary tank and pulled Frooska, Garataur, and Desmond to the front lines. Desmond trained them while I had my bruisers smash down side passages. We fought, we bled, and we murdered almost infinite goblins. My entire army was leveling and there was no shortage of foes to kill. That was until I reached the final boss room of the massive cavern entrance.
We had been in this last dungeon run for over two days. The fighting had been the fiercest in these wide corridors. The final boss was an orc mage, because of course, the goblins would not be running a mining operation without an overlord. There was a full army down in the expansive cavern protecting him. The opening was wide enough to let me march in our full army and dressed neat formations of infantry with ranged support. The problem was we hit a ranged stalemate due to the orc overlord being an air shield caster. We tried to time my spear throws with crossbow bolts but the orc had a mechanic where my spear would pass through and the bolts would be blocked by the shield.
The orc shaman kept killing a few goblins every volley to gain more mana. I certainly wanted the mana drain spell he was using. Also, the process of watching him siphon out clear mana from goblin bodies was fun to watch as they shriveled and died. The shaman managed to evade every throw I launched his way as he was dug in behind solid cover. The stalemate had lasted long enough for my tastes. Nicole had her resurrection ready and I was prepared to go balls to the literal wall.
Crossbow bolts quit smacking the cliff and wall behind me. I rolled until my back faced the sloping cavern side. The signal for the infantry to charge was me flying off a twenty foot cliff for the boss. I propped myself up hastily and used the ten foot long platform to get as much speed as I could. I soared in an arc when my feet propelled me off the platform.
“Advance!” was bellowed out by Groz and the drums thundered across the enclosed space in an echo.
I saw my target start siphoning extra goblins the moment he realized what was happening. The problem for him was that I had an angle for my spear throw. Mid-flight I summoned my spear and hurled it with as much force as I could. His air shield cracked and then shattered as my weapon tore off his right leg. I landed with a tumble and immediately was stabbed in the back. I cast self-heal and then summoned Kor.
Kor maniacally cackled in glee as he squished the orc boss. The five-headed hydra screamed out, “Die goblin scum! Get in my belly!”
With our infantry charging, their commander dead, and a legendary hydra eating the orc’s personal guard, the goblins started to surrender. Ten days of fighting was coming to a close with one brash reckless move. I cackled out a short laugh.
“Kneel!” I commanded and revealed my display to the cowering goblin army.
A lull settled over the battlefield as the dwarves went from a trot to a walk when the goblins began to lay down. I looked for the one goblin that mattered; the new commander who could accept my demand of submission. I found him with his legs halfway down Kor’s largest head. The torso was desperately keeping the jaws from clamping shut on the large goblin.
“Kor I need you to spit that one out,” I said.
“But the belly!” Kor complained.
“Spit that one out, I need him. Eat any of the others,” I said and Kor huffed at me with a sassy side eye.
“You suck Gryff, this one is already tasty and his boots are nice,” Kor said while vomiting the new goblin commander.
Bile soaked the poor sod as he was projected to land close to my feet. I watched him stand and defy me. There was a fire in his eyes that I did not like at all.
“We want to surrender…” The goblin said when I picked him up and hoisted him high in the air.
The goblin tried to squirm out of my firm grip as I held him over my head. I brought his body down in a swift motion and broke his back over my knee. As he screamed out in pain while wiggling on the ground I used a size fourteen boot to cave in his skull. The sound of his brains flying out of his skull echoed across the cavern in a loud squishing noise.
“KNEEL!” I screamed with unbridled rage.
That did the trick. A large goblin not far away bent the knee. The rest of the army stood and bent the knee. A few seconds later the lead goblin dematerialized as did his army. An orb rocked in the spot the goblin had once been. And so the Dungeons of Una had been conquered and were now the Mines of Una.
“How have you been Kor?” I asked as my adrenaline started to fade. “We should do this more often.”
“Lonely, I do not talk much anymore. Can you get a lady hydra for me? Not one with ugly heads. Big backside is fine. Ugly heads no good!”
“I can look for sure, no promises, and I doubt you would be able to talk in the orb. I have a friend I can ask for you though. Oh, shit. Yeah, I will make it a priority because when we go home, I think you are free of that orb.”
“I would like to go home with Gryff,” Kor said with each head speaking a different word all with happy tones.
“I know buddy, I know. Thanks for the help. Time to go into my belly!” I said to my friend playfully mimicking his tone from earlier.
“Fuck your orders!” Kor said with a jolly tone.
He went to tackle me with a flipper when I returned him to orbit around my core.
I walked to the dead orc shaman that had been squashed flat. There was the bonus that Kor had mushed his heart so four orbs and a familiar sat on his ruined chest. I knelt down and Nicole joined my side.
“What did he drop?” Nicole asked while I studied the familiar.
“I think this is a quarry station, but I'm not sure. Kata, over here,” I ordered and the naga slithered from the back of the ranks where she was chatting with others. I handed the familiar to Nicole who passed it back to Kata when she arrived. “An epic mana drain orb! Probably the best thing he can drop. A blue air shield times two and an evil voice enhancer for controlling pets I think.”
“This familiar is only a blue and my identification orb is informing me it is a quarry. No idea how it works but I think a few of the dwarves will,” Kata said while handing me the familiar.
“I can help there,” Groz said while handing me the orb of the goblin army. I put it in a leg pocket and he continued. “You spawn the familiar into the rock face or stone spot and then the quarry allows you to start cutting blocks out of the area with mana consumed. I have a basic smelter and one of the highest levels of the dwarves. I could probably take it.”
“Probably not the best idea if you have to stay beside it all the time and then have to manage an
army also. Come outside Groz, let me show you what I have planned.”
“Okay, and Gryff we have teams already mining away so there should not be any respawns. Am I good to have smelters dropped in the valley now?” Groz asked and I patted him on the back.
“Yes it is time to build our stronghold but I want to cover some things first,” I said as we walked up the tunnel for the valley.
Ten minutes of walking and the sunlight greeted us. The oval valley was filled with familiars being spawned. I saw dwarves vigilantly guarding the pass directly across from me with wooden towers being constructed nearby. The numerous side caverns had miners already heading into them and when the majority of the army left the cavern there was a cheer in celebration. The battle had been won and the mines were now ours. The cost was lives and coins to the King that we all were more than willing to pay. I continued to walk toward the pass opening and then spun to face the massive entrance of the dungeon.
“That mountainside is where all the granite and marble are correct?” I asked Groz while pointing above the canyon walls.
“Yes, there will be many challenges bringing it down here into this valley,” Groz replied with a huff.
My eyes glazed over as I started thinking about the possibilities of carving our stronghold into the actual mountainside. Getting up and down would be a huge pain. Maybe we could build an elevator. King Ptera said the dwarves could salvage five blimps too. The concept of a rapid flying fleet would make getting to an elevated base easier if it became a reality. There were just as many logistical headaches getting building materials that high. On the other spectrum, there were many issues with getting the stone down.
“Ah, I got it. That is him in a zone out!” Kata said excitedly. Her joy at catching me in deep thought pulled me back to the situation. “Sorry, please continue.”
“Well, there are more issues for Groz. Groz I want to build the stronghold into the mountainside,” I said while drawing out a rough shape with my finger from beside his head. “As in a nice castle that would be hard to get to from any angle.”
“Funny enough the lads were mentioning something similar. If we build platforms off the mountain to stack pre-cut stone we can do it. The process will be lengthy and slow, but aye building a castle in the mountainside can be done,” Groz said with a confident nod.
“What about the valley?” Nicole asked.
I waved her forward and went to a smithy that was building tools. My retinue followed me as I snatched a newly smithed shovel off a rack. There was a team of dwarves drawing trench lines in the dirt to anchor our new temporary wooden buildings into. I dove the shovelhead into the ground and flung the dirt.
“No, sir!” A dwarf grumbled at me and I shrugged with a ‘what did I do wrong expression on my face’. “We have wagons to load the dirt onto. Here fill mine. That way we don’t end up with piles of dirt having to be shoveled twice. My momma said to work smarter not harder.”
A wagon with no top and a single horse spawned not far from me. The bed of the wagon would work perfectly for piling dirt on. The dwarves continued to indicate their trench lines as I went to shoveling dirt. A few others grabbed shovels and started to pry the ground free and into the wagon.
“You do intend to answer me, correct?” Nicole said with a charming smile that made me want to do naughty things to her. She caught my lustful glare and smacked my ass playfully. “Easy killer, don’t want you flinging dirt on these fine robes you just bought me. You spoil a girl when you get her legendary velvety robes. I almost wish I could purr for you, lover of mine.”
“Ha! That ties into this valley in a round booty way,” I said and Zoey snickered from behind me.
“You are so cheesy with your word pun Gryff, I love it!” Zoey said while spawning her skeleton rhinorc. I watched the animated bones grab a shovel and start digging. “Pretty epic! Being a necromancer is so awesome.”
“Back to the point. We have achieved a lot with hard work and there is so much more to go. The Awesome Adjective Annihilators are ready to start smashing bigger dungeons and soon we will be venturing to other planets. Eventually, we will be forced into campaigning on warring planets to get the funds and orbs we need to not only succeed but excel. However…” I said with a pause and I chucked a mound of dirt into the back of the wagon. “It all starts right here with building a solid foundation. I believe in all of you. I believe we will rise to the challenge and drag down the big Inquisitors and mighty Justicars. First, we must turn this valley into an industrial area and then that mountainside into a home those in the Prox universe would be proud of.”
“Ugh screw digging in the dirt,” Zoey said with disdain. “Spawn the airship with the jacuzzi so we can have a harem orgy…”
∞∞∞
Location: Planet - Ashrini, City - Ashrini Prime
“For the fifth time, I simply do not want to hear your excuses,” Joran hurled the phone into the wall. The device smashed into bits and pieces that cascaded to the ground. “Fucking elitist bullshit. I swear trying to get your allies to the same table is more effort than having them as allies is worth. Even the ranked twenty-fourth Dickmunchers sent a representative.”
A merman frowned at this and then said, “Maybe if you called us Dastardly Masters like our company was actually titled the boss would show up.”
“Can the moxie you insignificant worm,” Joran said. Joran was a humanoid bear with white fur and towered above the table with the gathered leaders. He had earned the top spot as the boss of the Justicars eons ago through victories, hard work, and forging lasting alliances. Alliances he was always complaining about, but that was Joran’s personality in general. “Okay, we go with us five. Combined we are five of the top twenty five companies out there. My head recruiter tells me the harbinger is alive and in the warring universe. That is all he could tell me and I need to know more.”
“He is on a non-warring planet consolidating his forces and flooring up a small army of dwarves. My spy informs me he can convert dungeon armies into orbs…” the ogre speaking was halted.
“How reliable is that information?” Joran asked as his interest in the matter went from assassination to an abduction scheme.
“Would I ask you how reliable your certain spies are?” the ogre quipped back.
“Basra, I swear to the creator. Do I look like I want stupid rhetorical questions? Our armies are losing since the Inquisitor alliance deployed their damn flying fortresses. The Inquisitors with their endless numbers have steamrolled fourteen of our outposts the last two days alone. Recruiting is slowing and the enemy is growing stronger.” Joran slammed a mighty thumbed paw against the table.
“Deploy the dragons,” a scorpioid said.
“Vixor, don’t you think we would if we could. The dragons were an unneeded expenditure and reduced to contracted purchases a million years ago. Every breeder I contact has minimum stock. The fucking Inquisitors bought all the dragons before launching their new offense. If they weren’t the enemy I would congratulate them for the foresight,” Joran replied while rubbing his temples. “Look we need those orbs that can spawn armies to level the numbers game. That will be this alliance’s highest priority besides halting the Inquisitors’ gains. I ask again Basra. How reliable is your spies’ information?”
“Not very, reports have been minimal at best. We actually were getting second hand information that was relayed to us. I do not know what happened…”
“He is actively recruiting,” the merman said and then continued before Joran could reply. “After he showed up in the arena we tracked him back to a planet called Thur. He is not far from the capital and is doing minimal if not zero screening on his recruitment. It is laughable because our last report indicated they were losing troops to a level one hundred dungeon.”
“Jhinie may the creator bless your snarky soul. Finally, useful information. All of you send operatives. Every one of your companies will stage spies for us to use. We must get into his organ
ization and track him,” Joran said confidently. “Boosini!!!”
A kitsune secretary who was at the side of the room stood and said, “Yes boss!”
“Display Thur on the holodesk,” Joran ordered.
“At once master,” Boosini said and the desk came alive.
A single planet rotated around a small star. The planet was a Class B in size with a population of a few hundred million. Joran’s eye grew determined and you could hear his jaw grinding as he calculated his options.
“I am tempted to toss the planet into the sun,” Joran said in a deflated tone that indicated he would do no such thing. “If we weren't on our back foot from the Inquisitor alliance I just may.”
“We can raid him when he is vulnerable,” Basra said and there were nods around the table.
“Hence inserting the spies. We will not attack him directly on this Thur planet. No, we do not need the negative public relations raiding a non-warring planet would bring. We will bide our time and strike when the moment is right.”
“On behalf of the Dastardly Masters, I vote we toss the planet into the sun, and blame the Inquisitors,” Jhinie said and swiped a hand across the display which caused the planet to plunge into the sun.
“No, we will try to get him alive and in our employ. He could literally change the tide of the ancient war against the Inquisitors. We need him to ascend to victory and unify the warring verse. Any other dumb ideas,” Joran asked and when no one spoke up he proceeded. “Okay, that settles this Gryff the Pretend Harbinger problem…” Joran said and was interrupted.
“Pretend? I thought you said you did not know much about him and now you claim he is a pretender?” Vixor asked with his clawed thumb snapping in confusion.
“If I told you the why, how, or what regarding this Gryff; I would have to kill you,” Joran said.
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