I returned his gesture with a mock salute and said, “Glad to have you aboard the Gorilla.”
“Where’s the important wife, the one who Machew values,” Warg said, his eyes searching for Gemini.
“Babysitting with my other wives. Where’s Rina?” I asked, noticing he’d arrived with soldiers, but no wife of his own. I was thoroughly confused by her absence. I would be the first to admit, I despised Rina, but… she was abused by Warg. To the point it made me sad.
He rolled his big rhinorc eyes with a snort. “Look, she’s gone. Not many people know and trust me when I tell you I am turning over every stone to find her. The fact you keep asking without flaring red assures me you sincerely care, which… oddly enough, makes me hate you a wee bit less. Now… I was in the field, raiding a dungeon for some quality air shields only to hear I have the harbinger himself at my doorstep. Whatever you said you had to give me, really set the fire to the messenger.”
“I bet you were leveling your necro orbs,” I said, guessing and his smirk confirmed it. “Well, get ready to shit your pants. Also, I try to never swear, I really do, but fuck you Warg.” I tossed him the divine necromancy orb.
He caught the ball with ease. His entourage that followed behind him gasped when he fell to his knees with an evil cackling. The orb was thrust high above his head triumphantly. The divine orb was showcased to those attending him. Not a moment later he ingested the orb and ran for the closest edge of Gorilla. He saw the town below him and grunted.
Warg turned to the deck of my ship that was mostly empty and spawned hundreds of thousands of undead minions. Yeah, those poor adventurers, they were hunched over ghouls now with long claws, jagged teeth, and feral eyes. They were converted for eternity into hideous monsters that would serve Warg. There were so many of them and then there were none of them as they winked out of existence.
“By the creator, Gryff. I’m at a loss for words,” Warg mumbled, his hands shook with excitement, or maybe astonishment. I decided it didn't really matter.
“I need support aircraft… say thirty fighters, a dozen scouts, and fifty bombers,” I said in a dry tone. Warg laughed while one of his lackeys jotted down notes quickly.
“Go!” Warg said, waving off the hired help. “This… actually, I will go with them. I need to get a better protection detail. We will be third if not second in rankings when the automated scoring updates in two days. Machew is going to resent giving me this orb.”
“He didn’t, and Warg. If you got some spare change, that’d be great,” I said, not sad to see him or the orb go.
He nodded, his smile was as permanent as my frown had been recently. “Gryff, a big sack of platinum and a few smaller blimps will be here in a few hours. Enjoy Irvinia. Oh, one last thing. The only thing more valuable than this orb is Rina. If you find her, I’ll happily pay for her safe return.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Fuck off Gryff. We all have our quirks, oddities, and uniqueness. Mine is a hate love relationship. I love that kitsune, please…” Warg said and I saw how pathetic he was without her.
“I don’t know, if I find her, maybe. But I can say for certainty, I have no idea where she is,” I admitted.
“I hate you sometimes more than you can ever understand. And yet, thanks for this Gryff. My whole life, all I ever wanted to do was to come to the master universe and be a being that matters. You’ve done that for me. But so help me, if you or one of yours is harboring my love I will come back to Prox and shit down your throat.”
I rolled my eyes at Warg. “Fuck off and get my goods. And Warg, I love you too.”
This got him laughing to the point his lackeys joined him in his jovial mood. The group boarded their little blimp and lifted off. The moment they were gone I pulled Nicole with me into the blimp. I saw the way she reacted when I mentioned Rina. That wily woman was up to something.
I waited until we were deep in our bedroom to ask her the obvious question. Nicole merely put a finger over her lips to hush me with a wink and said, “The less you know the better.”
I clenched my fist and growled at my wife. “Nicole! We’re this flipping close,” I exclaimed with a long exhale. “The last thing we need is to get into a pissing war with Warg. Plus, babe, I’m not sure I want to take her home anyway.”
“Just relax, it's already done. The less you know the better,” Nicole said with a stern look. “If you really want to know, ask me when we get back to Prox. You're not the only one with secrets.”
“Fine,” I grumbled and let it drop. “I’m so happy to be done with that vile orb. I hope the next two go to Machew and I never see Warg again.”
Nicole snickered, walking over to our son who was sleeping. She ran a loving hand over Archer’s fine hair. She hesitated, eyes full of love. Her hand came off her little baby with a heartfelt sigh. She headed over to the bar giving me a stink eye.
“You sure about not wanting to see Warg again? You certain the last thing you say to Warg for eternity is ‘I love you’.” I wagged a finger at her for saying this, but came up empty on a witty retort. She grabbed a bottle of whiskey. “A drink?”
“Indeed. I think I want to go try flying one of those fighters once we arrive at this next planet. I’m still undecided on wyverns or ogres. I guess it comes down to how many spare coins Warg hands us,” I mumbled, accepting the drink Nicole poured me.
“Well, we should swing by Riza Stronghold, pick up what we can, and then decide. We may end up with a thousand new ogres who need basic gear or whatever. I’d rather stop at our old home more often than not. If Warg was right, we may not get to hand off the next two orbs. Your criteria for going home was specific. Adjust the rankings for a top three powerhouse,” Nicole said, tapping her glass to mine.
“Nicole, I love you. Let’s do that then. For now. How about we sit on the balcony and have a nice drink before a baby wakes up,” I said and we walked out to enjoy the sunny day that went well with the yummy drinks.
∞∞∞
Thur was dark when we arrived over Riza Stronghold. I looked out the large viewport to see the sun was coming up over the horizon. A blimp was coming in from Remi and our pilot crew slowed to give them priority. I guess I had time to kill before we were able to anchor this monster into a loading position.
My audible sigh was exaggerated as I gazed down on my old home. Every minute I spent waiting was another minute I was not fighting to get home. I had to tell myself a little bit of patience would go a long way. The wail of a baby seeking a new diaper or milk was hushed by a loving mother behind me.
The lingering sight of the city below revealed more activity than expected. I guess we were going to be picking up a lot of Prox refugees or Riza was doing something to increase the population here. I simply thought it would be a quick, pop in, load up, and head out; instead it was going to be another long day.
A knock on the bridge door came with the code the guards used. That was breakfast. I saw Mysti start to rise while holding Saffron. I walked over to kiss her forehead, letting her know I would get the food. Gemini, Nicole and Zoey were chatting around a table discussing reports. I could feel their side-eye stares to see if I was going for the knock. A simple thumbs up from me had them smiling.
I reached the secure door, moving the bolts until they slid open with clunks as they were seated. I caught the hint of a bacon smell and grinned. When I peeled the doors open widely, that grin fled my face.
My two guards were dead, crumpled on the floor. A lone spider woman had misjudged my height and had not expected me to fling the doors open. Not that it mattered much. She slightly lifted her crossbow as I lunged.
I crashed into the decoy platter she held, closing the distance. Her ten eyes in her head squinted in determination.
Her eyes displayed happiness with a hint of victory as I felt a whoosh of air and dizzying pain erupt in my neck.
The crossbow was silent, the others needed to know we were under attack. I bellowed out, “Under At
tack!”
My meaty fist was already locked to its target as I felt myself weakening. I tried to cry out more but gurgled. My punch felt frozen even with my applying magic. She was using some spell to slow my movements and I was only barely winning.
With desperation, I spawned my spear.
The magic firmed the weapon into existence at the perfect moment. The spider woman’s arm came up to block my fist and instead the tip of the spear punched through her forearm and into her face.
There was a squishing sound of her eyes being popped. The force that held me back lifted. My arm shot forward with a resounding crack as the spear split her skull, nailing the assassin to the wall. I staggered, feeling so tired and woozy.
An itch on my neck demanded that I scratch it. So I did the rational thing and found the irritation to free it from my body.
“No!” Nicole shouted at me.
She was washing healing over me that was having no effect. I had yanked the bolt of the assassin free, opening my artery to spurt freely. There was a growing pool of blood on the deck that was mingling with the red puddles of my two guards. I cast a heal on myself to no avail. Wait…
My mind was finally understanding the situation. With panic I scanned up and down the hall. I could only hope this was a lone assassin who had lucked her way to me. That was the last thought I had when I collapsed beside my guards and bled to death.
∞∞∞
Dying was different. I have to admit, during my grand journeys, epic battles, and inevitable duels I had always won. I also had a shit eating grin every time an enemy yanked out an arrow or a blade from an artery. I always judged them so harshly for not making the right decision and keeping the pointy part in. I’d been that idiot this time.
I sighed, well, mentally sighed because I was without a body to breathe with. Where I was… well, that was a mystery. Of course, that mystery changed suddenly.
∞∞∞
I was myself, but in James’s suite and with my body. Yet I felt different. Off. Almost like a bad flu. The fish humanoid was in his pool playing some puzzle game. I wasn’t certain exactly what he was doing actually, but he did notice my arrival. I headed for the end table with the whiskey. The cloudiness of my vision along with death sensation abated, letting me focus.
“Hi James,” I said, filling a glass.
“Wow, you died… Hold on… Ha! To a spinda assassin. Yeah, they’re gifted. Oh you were poisoned too,” James said. Clearly he was replaying my demise somehow. I sipped my drink while shifting to sit on the comfy couch. “I’ve been hounded from talking to you. It is… frustrating to use the environment to send you messages.”
“Why not just have me die earlier?” I asked, slightly confused.
“You may think of a revival as a simple process, and to some extent it is, but it is not something that should be used often. For instance, Nicole has not been able to revive you after three attempts,” James said, exiting the water. His vacant lung locations always left me shuddering at his alienness.
My brain caught up to his statement and I spurted my drink. “Uh… I’m not dead, dead am I?”
“So… if they don’t figure out they need to open up your veins in the next two minutes you will be. However, they will, because I already told them the answer. Gryff, this is the one time we will be able to talk without interruption, and for once I am not desperate to be rid of you,” James said, toweling off before heading for a robe. He donned the black fluffy cover with a toothy smile.
“How is the whole, other universal managers thing going?” I asked with a frown. They had got in the way of him relaying information to me.
He chuckled and replied, “There was a council meeting. I was slapped on the wrist for giving you that orb. That physical superiority orb was… problematic. The real issue was you were supposed to come with all your powers converted into a way the gaming universe could handle them. Which you left the Prox verse as a god, well a partial one on a few levels.” He wagged a finger at this. “Not a master universe god either. A Prox god. Which is a legitimate thing and something we are beholden to convert.
“Except… you would have been the actual harbinger without any challenges. The fate defined without question merely because of how powerful you would have been. There would have been no stopping you. So… they allowed the orb to stay but went after all the other ways you could exploit it. Hence why you’ve struggled to find a javelin to use, or a leenspar spear.”
“Ah…” I said with a terse nod and another sip of my drink. “It felt like I was being conspired against. Will those orbs return when I depart?”
“About that… Well, how about we talk a bit more of other things first? So my punishment was I cannot make more deals with the fodder, IE you, and not my term. If you gave me something super juicy that I would normally leap at making a deal for, well, not anymore. But… our prior agreement is indeed intact. Sort of,” James said, pouring himself a drink before plopping down on the couch across from me.
“Okay we can come back to our deal. How is my family on Vin?” I asked eagerly. There was always a hope I would get to ask this question. It had been on my mind a lot and for this meeting to happen. Well, it was a bit of a dream come true moment.
When he deflated with a sputtering of his lips, I grew sad. That was not the kind of reaction you wanted to see when you asked about your loved ones at home.
“There was a brief power struggle. You will find out a lot of this on your own in due time. But I can give you some information since it is directly linked to my actions. Sending an immortality potion back was… smart, and chaotic. First let me start with an outside opinion and something that you should take with a grain of salt.
“You were gone for almost two and a half years before your message reached your wives. You had some on your harem guard you never… locked to you, understandably feeling isolated. Since they were childless they were sent to quell problems within the Empire. Surprise, you have problems when you get back to Vin. Lucy and Freya splintered to join a new faction. Yeah…
“They are deeper in the Universe with a sample of your immortality potion aboard a physical ship. Yup, that was a bad idea, but hindsight right. There is not much more to it than a force wanting to build their own empire lured them to their side. I will never know their motives, maybe you will one day. I do know there is an ogre rebellion in progress, there was a coup attempt that failed, and Empress Amber, with the support of the local gods, has been ruthless. That woman… gives me nightmares when I contemplate if she came here. Which returns back to you.
“Outside of you losing two wives to start a separate Empire, well, you’re missed. Dearly. And you’re hated by my kind and fellow managers. The master universe is about to see its first big overhaul in eons. In case you were wondering, the seismic shift that is about to occur is only favored by the guy or girl I get my marching orders from.”
I fidgeted and sighed. Okay I could process this. Home had turmoil, but beside a few minor defections things were going strong. Donnie didn’t raise a rebel flag and march with half the griffins or something. There was a defection, and still tons of universe at home unexplored. Two wives who left to form their own faction was something I could stomach. The problems they would cause were unfathomable, but at least they were a known factor. There wasn’t a multidimensional rift that was spawning demons or something diabolical like that.
My wives and children were safe, and Amber was ruling with an iron fist. While all the news wasn’t sugary goodness I could live with that.
“Thank you for sharing. I really appreciate that,” I said earnestly. “I’ve… been so happy knowing I’m going home soon.”
“Well soon is relative. You have a lot of problems coming down on you right now. Problems I can only marginally help you with. You should finish those two dungeons. They’re everything to you getting home quicker. Honestly, I can send you home right now. You’ve fulfilled your end of the bargain,” James
and my eyes widened with disbelief. “Yup, as of the moment you gave Warg that necromancy orb the Justicars dropped to third and the TruthSayers to second. The splintering from the Inquisitor Alliance is already in motion. But -”
He held a clawed hand out trying to stop me from reacting. Of course that wasn’t going to do much to a bulldozer like me.
I blurted, “Why the hell am I not going home this instant?”
“You want to go home alone?” He asked and I frowned, shaking my head ‘no’ immediately. “Moving that damn blimp is going to take help. Help that comes at a cost, or… more importantly comes out of an act of desire. You can lay low or get the orbs. If you get the orbs, there are managers that will get off the sidelines to help you leave. Machew is not the only being in this massive cluster that is willing to help your exit along. We…”
I twisted my head in confusion. “I can go home now. Except, you’re saving power to send me home in the blimp. I could go hide on a backwater planet like Wealo if I wanted?” I asked and he nodded. “Even if I do absolutely nothing, when you have the power I could go home with everyone.” Another nod. “Or... I can keep stirring the pot until others get fed up and want me gone too.
“By doing that you get help from other managers to send me and my Prox refugees home earlier. What exactly are in these dungeons? They would have to be something brutal?”
“Armies of dragons and ogres would turn the tide of any battle in the master universe. To the point that yes, the damage would be staggering. Honestly, it will take me another six months to generate the power to send you home solo. I’ve thought about pleading with you to hide. The problem is…”
He grunted, throwing the glass against the wall in a rare sign of losing control. The shattering glass cascaded down in a showering display that halted mid fall. The pieces raced to his hand to reform and the container filled with the honey brown liquid again.
“You okay?” I asked rhetorically.
“I’ll be fine. Thur is doomed. Joran has set in motion the conquest of the planet.” I went to interrupt but his steely stare halted me. “The rules of old are being ignored. The fragile peace that held war into boundaries with rules and regulations are going to disappear. It is the age of the harbinger after all. So you need to get your people off that planet and flee. Then get those damn orbs,” James said with a heavy sigh.
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