by Dante King
Vinata shuddered slightly.
“We don’t have to talk about it if it’s too uncomfortable,” Ben said.
“That’s not a problem.” Vinata’s voice sounded somber. “You deserve to know our story after you rescued us from those savages.”
“I would gladly do it again. How did it happen then?”
“Well, the three of us, daughters of the priestesses of our tribes, were present at the council of the nymphs.”
“Wait, Lulu and Imogen are also daughters of priestesses?”
The dryad woman nodded. “That is why the three of us are already so close, and why we were present at the council.”
“What was this council?” he asked. There were so many questions running through his mind, but this was the first to come to the forefront and leave his mouth.
“The nymphs convened a council to discuss the Xurian Realm, which has begun encroaching on our lands. The priestesses gathered and expended much magic during the council in an attempt to halt this approach. We…have no way of knowing yet how effective this will be.”
That was also an interesting coincidence. “How long ago was this council, and where was it?” he asked.
Vinata looked at him curiously as they walked. “You seem to show a lot of interest in the council. But I can see no reason not to trust you about it. The council is over, at any rate. It took place a week ago, only a couple of hundred miles from here—a short distance in this forest.”
That was roughly when Melody traveled to earth. She did say she had to travel here in order to access enough magic to make the journey. Had the council of nymphs been involved in sending her to this world, and bringing him back here?
“Anyway,” Vinata continued. “The three of us wanted to commemorate our coming of age. That’s why we went out that evening to a town nearby to celebrate.”
“What does coming of age mean for your people?”
“Oh, uh, of course, you wouldn’t know about that.” Vinata’s cheeks went a darker shade of brown in the moonlight streaming through the tree branches, the mushroom illuminating her features from below. From the way she was attempting to hide her face, it seemed she didn’t blush very often. Ben had obviously hit a sensitive topic for her.
She seemed to quickly recover her composure and explained, “When a young nymph woman experiences her first night of pleasure alone, she is considered to be of age.”
“I…see,” Ben said, massively understating his surprise. This was a far cry from his own rites of passage—getting his license, turning eighteen, taking his first sip of beer. “And it was in this town where you were celebrating your coming of age, that you three got captured?” He changed the subject for both their sakes.
Vinata nodded. “We had been warned that this town had a bad reputation, but the council was just a bit too stuffy. There were too many old nymphs, and that meant too many eyes watching us. I swear, it was like we couldn’t take a step without some elder asking where we were going or what we were doing. And to make matters worse, none of our friends had been allowed to come along. Only the children of the high priestesses. It was all quite boring. A little danger actually sounded nice.”
“I can understand that.”
“Well, of course it turns out our parents were right.” Vinata sounded slightly frustrated being forced to acknowledge this. “At the tavern we were in, we received so many strange looks from the patrons. I supposed they weren’t used to seeing monsters like us among them. Anyway, we tried to relax and enjoy our drinks, but something strange happened. All of us got…woozy at the same time. Right as we asked one another what was happening, we passed out. When we awoke, we were in the back of a wagon, the null locks on us.”
“And what happened then?” he asked.
“They took us outside the town and sold us to the mountain ogres.”
“Where were they taking you?”
“To be sold to other slavers in the Xurian Realm.”
“Your parents must be worried about you.”
“I’m sure they are. Dryads are excellent trackers in the woods. I’m sure they are coming for us. They will probably find us within the next day or two.”
So, Ben would end up meeting more nymphs. Hopefully he could persuade them also that he was not a threat—the last thing he wanted was there to be some sort of misunderstanding. Though based on what Vinata had said about waiting for the Forgotten Ruler, it was possible that this encounter might go better than expected. Ben entertained the idea of enlisting the help of the Dryads in rebuilding his empire. He knew he’d need all the help he could get.
They rounded another bend in the forest path that they’d been following and saw the ruins surrounding the village, in the distance.
There came a crashing noise from the direction of the village, as if a large creature was making its way through the trees. Heavy footsteps thudded steadily toward them.
Ben quickly turned to Vinata. “Take these,” he whispered, pulling the tree flesh they’d harvested out of his rucksack and handing it over to her.He gripped his scimitar and crouched to one side of the forest path. Vinata hung back a short distance behind him, and they waited to see what was causing the commotion.
An enormous figure came into view, plodding methodically down the track. Was it another mountain ogre? He focused on his mana, trying to get a sense of how much he had at the ready. He felt strong, as if it had replenished substantially during their walk through the woods.
As the figure drew closer, the moonlight revealed more detail. The creature, whatever it was, was very short legged, and had two gigantic lumps where shoulders ought to have been.
Then the figure came closer and Ben gasped. It wasn’t a mountain ogre. It was someone carrying the corpses of mountain ogres.
The figure turned to the side of the path and disappeared into the trees a short way. Could that have been Melody? Surely the strength Ben had given her from the mountain ogres had worn off by now. Ben knew his had.
“Who could possibly carry those corpses?” he whispered back to Vinata. They both got to their feet. Ben hoped it was someone of the women from the camp, so there was no danger.
Ben shook his head, still standing at the ready in case there was danger. “Those corpses must be really fucking heavy.”
Vinata smiled, her expression putting Ben at ease. “I think I might know who would be capable of it.”
Just as they started walking back, the figure emerged from the trees again, without the mountain ogre corpses. It was Imogen the oread, the mountain nymph.
Ben could see her better in the light now. Her frame was as slender and small boned as he had originally thought. The tightly wrapped white upper garment that she wore revealed how skinny she was, and the white skirt she wore accentuated the defined muscles of her round but modest ass. There was no visible evidence of the strength that would allow her to carry what must have been five times her own body weight at least.
Imogen laid eyes on them. A faint smile appeared to tug the corners of her lips, but her pupil-less eyes were wide, and she hurried back to the village.
“Imogen is shy and needs much time to warm up to strangers,” Vinata explained. “But as you can see, she is capable of powerful magic. The oreads are a very strong race.”
“If Imogen’s magic is anything to go by, I can see why the mountain ogres needed null locks for the three of you.” Ben laughed.
A hint of worry crossed Vinata’s brow at that mention, but then she smiled. “Like all nymphs, we three have our magic. We would have been formidable foes at another time.”
“I don’t doubt it.” Ben smiled at Vinata, and they headed back into the village.
Lulu met them in the clearing as they returned. Her shoulders were slumped, and she looked exhausted. But her smile was cheerful.
This was the first time Ben had seen her properly in the light. The short skirt she wore was made of stiff strips of some greenish material. Seaweed, perhaps. That seemed appropriate for a wa
ter nymph.
The triangles of gold cloth that held her breasts looked regal. Of course, she was the daughter of a priestess, so that was no surprise.
The garment held her two enormous breasts in place, though it did little to hide them. Lulu was very buxom. Ben had not realized in the darkness of the hut, just how large her rack was. But the inviting impression her gigantic bosom made was contrasted frighteningly with the lustful glint in her piercing blue eyes. He reminded himself not to get too comfortable around this man-eating water nymph.
Lulu gave us both a tired smile. “Thank you for returning with food,” she said. “We are all starving by now.”
“I take it the mountain ogres didn’t feed you particularly well,” Ben ventured.
Both women shook their heads.
“Well that’s behind you now,” he said. “Time to eat.”
“Imogen and I are both exhausted,” Lulu explained. “We have cleared out a hut to ourselves.” She gestured behind her to the other side of the clearing. “We thought you and Melody might appreciate the evening to yourselves.” She gave Ben a sly smile. He assumed she must have worked out what relationship he and Melody shared, though that wasn’t entirely clear to him at this stage.
“That sounds like a good idea,” Vinata replied. “I’m exhausted too. Here, Benjamin, take half of the food we harvested, the rest will suffice for the three of us.”
She held out some of the tree flesh they’d brought back, and he took several strips.
“How do we cook it?” he asked.
Vinata looked taken aback. “This food is best eaten raw. Besides--”
Ben held up a hand. “Don’t tell me. You dryads never cook your food, because a fire would be too risky in the forest.”
Vinata smiled. “You are learning quickly, Benjamin.”
Lulu cocked her head and looked at Ben and Vinata curiously.
“Which hut is mine?” he asked.
“The one you found us in.” Lulu pointed to her left. “We tidied up the hut and cleared up the campsite as well.”
“I saw that,” he commented. “What Imogen did was incredible.”
Lulu smiled. “We nymphs have our magic.”
“I’m beginning to see that. Well, you all have a good night of rest. I’ll see you tomorrow. We can discuss what exactly we’re going to do about getting you home then.”
The nymph women both said goodnight and headed back to their hut. Ben couldn’t help watching them both as they walked away. The way their asses swayed atop their long legs was like a magnet for the eyes. The moonlight gleamed in their strange hair colors, giving them an even more otherworldly appearance.
With his free hand, Ben pinched himself again. Here he was in another world, in the ruins of his former empire, watching a trio of monster women, whom he’d rescued from giant mountain slavers. And now it was time to return to the catgirl who’d brought him here, and the monster egg that she had generated after their union.
Ben shook his head and walked back to the hut. He had a feeling that as strange as the day had been, it was only the beginning.
Chapter Seven
Ben made his way through the clearing in the center of the village, carrying his scimitar and some of the tree flesh he had harvested with Vinata. He headed back toward the hut where Melody was waiting for him. Once he arrived, he saw that the women really had done a remarkable job of cleaning the place up. Aside from the smoldering ashes of the campfire, there was nothing of the mess of half gnawed bones and rubbish the mountain ogres had left behind them. No sign remained of all their corpses after he and Melody had slaughtered them either. Imogen’s work clearing those away had been impressive.
Without the harsh shouts and angry arguing from the drunken ogres, the ruined village even felt more respectable. The huts looked a little less disheveled. Ben looked about him, wondering what he might be able to do with the place. Melody hadn’t said how long they’d be staying here, but she did say it was an important site of power for him, so perhaps he’d be able to rebuild it to some extent. Establish it as a base of empire-building operations, perhaps?
He smiled to himself as grand schemes of demolition and rebuilding started to fill his mind. Then he went over to the hut where Melody was waiting. He pushed open the door and walked inside.
Melody was leaning over the table in the middle of the main room, scrubbing. A wooden pail of water sat on the ground beside her. The room was dimly but warmly lit by a couple of torches burning on the walls.
That reminds me, he considered, I’ll have to get used to a world without electricity. Magic seemed like a reasonable compensation to Ben, but it would still be an adjustment. He would have to learn how to make more of these torches for instance, to ensure they didn’t run out. The medieval equivalent of a blackout, he supposed.
His mind went back to the glowing mushrooms in the forest—the ones that Vinata had used to light their way. He imagined them gathered in bunches and stuck up on top of poles among the village like primitive streetlamps.
Melody looked up from her work. She had on an apron, woven of a coarse gray material, which stopped just short of her full bosom. Her purple hair was tied back by a red ribbon.
She smiled warmly at him. “You’re back.” She scrubbed at the last section of the table surface and dropped the sponge in her hand back into the pail of water.
She pointed to the corner of the room, where a half barrel sat on the floor, steam rising out of it. “I prepared a bath so we can wash before eating.”
“Good thinking,” Ben said. “After all that walking and two fights today, I’m filthy.”
“So am I.” Melody laughed, removing the apron she’d been wearing to do the cleaning. The skirt and top she wore underneath were the same ones she’d worn in the club last night. Her clothes and Ben’s were not in the best condition after all the marching and fighting they’d done that day.
“I found some clothes for us both in the hut here too.” Melody pointed at a neat pile by the wall. “I hope they fit.”
“Good idea,” he said. “I’ll check them out in a minute.”
Ben held up the tree roots he’d harvested. “I brought some food. I hope you don’t mind raw tree roots.” He said the words with a shrug as he laid his scimitar on the floor by the door.
Melody made a sour face, but then cocked her head to the side in consideration. “I’m too hungry to object right now.”
“We’ll find you something more substantial tomorrow, don’t worry.” He put a reassuring hand on her arm as he deposited the tree flesh on the table with the other.
Melody put her hand on his. “Thank you for getting food, Benjamin. We will have plenty of time to gather other stores soon, while we are searching for the ancient relics.”
“Looking forward to it.” He grinned. “The battles we fought in today made me want a bigger taste of my former power. Where do you think we’ll find the relics?”
Melody shrugged. “Archmage Kamila did not say. It is not often that anyone from the Xurian Realm ventures into these dangerous lands. We will have to search them out for ourselves. I only know that these ruins have a large amount of magic present, which is why I expect to find the relics somewhere here.”
“Do others in the Xurian Realm know about the existence of these relics?” Ben asked. “I’m guessing if he knew about them, the Usurper would have tried to steal them all to stop me gaining my power.”
Melody looked sly. “The Realm has tried to bury all rumors about the relics, but I was able to learn much from digging in the archives of the Arcanarium.”
“What did you learn?”
“Many expeditions were in fact sent out to find the relics. But almost all the soldiers who were sent never returned. Eventually they assumed that if they could not recover the relics, you would not be able to either. At least that’s the advice the Usurper was given by his counsellors.”
Ben grinned. “Then we’ll have to prove them wrong then. But…how did you get
the relic you gave me in the hotel?”
Melody furrowed her brow. “Archmage Kamila refused to even speak to me of how she acquired it. She told me everything I needed to know for my mission, she was always chasing after me to tell me more history or lore about the Forgotten Ruler that I might find useful. So, for her to keep this a secret must have meant that she really couldn’t trust anyone with that information.”
“Interesting,” Ben murmured. He might have to ask the Archmage for the story in person one day, if they ever met.
Melody grabbed the trousers and tunic she had found for him and held them out. “Anyway, these look like they should fit you. Time to wash and get changed so we can eat.”
Ben grabbed them and held them up against his body, not too close, as he didn’t want to get them dirty as well. “I think you’re right. They’ll certainly do for now.”
With a groan of exhaustion, he unbuttoned his shirt and slipped out of his jeans. Both were crusted with dirt and blood. He cracked the window open and threw them outside. They wouldn’t be worth salvaging at this point, and figured he could properly get rid of them the next day. But Ben found his eyes lingering on his jeans and shirt. They were one of the few reminders of Earth, and they’d soon be gone. But he tore his eyes away from them before too long. To his surprise, he’d been more than ready to leave his old life behind.
He lowered himself into the bath. It was a large, wide barrel, with plenty of room to spare. The warm water soothed his aching muscles the moment he was under the surface. For the first time that day, he was able to fully relax. He felt better than he would have expected after so much exertion, but the hot water was still a welcome relief. For a few moments he just stared at the wall in a stupor, allowing his tired brain and body to unwind.
“Lulu mixed up some herbs to make a cleansing liquid for us,” Melody said from behind him as she too undressed. A vial sat on the rim of the barrel. It contained a golden liquid that sparkled in the torch light.
Melody also tossed her skirt and tank top out the window as Ben started scrubbing himself down with the cleansing liquid Lulu had made. The liquid cleaned his skin like nothing he’d ever used before. His skin felt fresh, and the dirt dissolved and disappeared.