Nick arrived at the Western Fortress with haste, dashing through the air. He wasn’t sure at what speed he was able to maintain now, but without wasting too much essence, he thought he was close to seventy or eighty miles an hour.
Burning more essence, he could go much faster for a time, the ground beneath him blurring by. He left a few of his wives behind in their magical motorized vehicle to arrive just a little bit quicker–not long after Eirwen had sent Shak’terra ahead to help.
There were a lot of bodies on the battlefield, both of his people and the enemy’s. Hundreds of corpses, and Nick would need to spend some time reviving them. The time to recreate their bodies at the Genesis Chamber was simply too long–and he had knights in the queue as well.
Nick went straight to the canyon area, toward where his officers were. But he ran into Andross and Zarog first and noticed they were in the Third Stratum. Their new star oni wives flittered about as they sat in chairs, serving cake and tea.
Despite being shocked and amazed that Lord Noblefrost was here, since that meant he ran perhaps hundreds of miles in just a few hours, Andross still teased, “‘Bout time you showed up, Boss–the fighting is already over. Were you too busy drinking tea with your Maidens while your warriors bled?”
Nick frowned at Andross and teased, “Says the man having tea and cake on a battlefield. Did you guys sit out the battle too, or–”
Zarog interrupted, almost sounding angry. “It’s a victory cake. My Mitsuki made it!”’
Andross side-eyed Zarog as he spoke in an almost monotone voice. “Yes, it is an amazing cake that I am privileged to be enjoying; your Mitsuki is a treasure. It is lovely and goes well with my Orchid’s tea.”
Orchid smiled at that a little oddly, and Nick wasn’t sure what to make of their strange behavior. “Looks…great. Maybe some day soon I can check out your new places and enjoy them as well. Congratulations on hitting the Third Stratum, you two. I’m sure we’ll need that strength soon enough.”
Zarog’s wife, Mitsuki, looked extremely pleased at that, and he clasped each of their wrists in their warrior’s handshakes, and the two did look truly proud.
He then left the four to continue…whatever it is that they were doing. That had to be the most awkward tea party he had ever seen, and he had been at one where a boulder was destroyed.
Getting closer to where the main group was, even Jasper had arrived now, the large Alpha Frostwarg looking at the little furry people warily with Ishkara once again on her perch on his back. The furry people seemed appropriately cowed, being watched by the two, Sable and the officers nearby.
He would start reviving people, but he wanted to establish some Soul Pacts with the little guys, or at least get them out of sight first. Nick definitely didn’t want to let his enemy know he could simply revive his people. His army won a pretty decent victory, especially when considering that he didn’t lose a single person permanently.
Of course, recovery wouldn’t be instant. He couldn’t just revive his people, and they pick up their axes and run right into battle. It would take some time for their bodies to fully recover, just like if they were healed of a lost limb. Still, it was far superior to waiting for them at the Genesis Chamber, so he would try to revive as many as he could.
Nick already heard much of what happened through his Soulscape. Still, he greeted Lothar, Elyra and Myron and asked for a rundown just the same. Hearing about the abominations and the mist, as well as their overall capabilities, was a bit surprising. The monster Lothar, Elyra, and Myron faced was well past the middle of the Third Stratum, but they had achieved victory with few losses.
And the idea that the little furry people had nearly made off with forty captives was a bit alarming. They went almost exclusively for shaman casters, and they could only guess that it was due to their high spirituality and thus value during some kind of sacrificial ritual. If Agatha hadn’t been able to dispel the mist, then they would have surely gotten away with their captives.
Lothar said, “The worst part about the abominations is that their corpses and cores are useless. I have doubts that even Lumos can get anything of value from them.”
Nick chuckled. “I wouldn’t bet against Lumos. But you’re right in that I wouldn’t be excited for whatever is refined from those. She’ll be on her way to check things out.”
He looked over to Anja and Henrik. “I heard your knights had a strong showing in this fight. Good work.”
Anja and Henrik both grinned, but Henrik was the one who replied, “Your people fought well too. I have to say, I am impressed with how well they fight together with such a short period of training. Most of our people have trained to fight together for years.”
Lothar chuckled. “My men have trained for years together too. But the monsterfolk learn fast and have great instincts and drive when it comes to fighting in a small team.”
Wanting to learn more about these people, Nick headed over to meet them. Sable had gathered the gray little furry people away from the corpses and the cave entrance. Getting a better look, they were as they were described to him originally by the star oni scout.
Some of them had scales and fur, features of different beasts or monsters, altogether not looking all that different from his many monsterfolk that he’s had joining. What was different was that some had multiple features, appearing almost chimeral in nature.
As Nick approached, he made sure to crank up his monstrous nature with his Monstrous Transformation skill. He hopefully wouldn’t be using his whipping, stretching limbs, but perhaps the air and essence shifting around him may convince them to join his kingdom.
It often felt awkward, speaking to a group and not knowing whether they would receive all your words. But he had always found it beneficial, his Monsterfolk Empathy skill allowing him to convey his feelings, and combined with gestures and a little bit of back and forth, they usually understood one another.
“Hello, brave and fierce little ones. I am the Chief of the Noblefrost Tribe–a Lord of Orion. Thank you for letting my people go and doing what is right. I want you to know that as long as you don’t hurt us, we will not harm you. The…dark one here has told me. Your people need our help.”
Sable smirked a little bit at the odd name they had given her–the dark one.
Listening to the creature’s jabbering, he could mostly understand their words.
“The greater spirits–the old ones. They eat us. Enslave us!”
Nick assumed the spirits were the abominations. “Are these the old ones?” He pointed at the corpse of one, and the furry little people started nodding. “Where do they come from?”
“The gold one! It brought the ancient one. The ancient one made the old ones.”
Nick frowned. “Gold one? Orion?”
Several of the furry people spoke to him all at once. “It brings many.”
“The gold one offers power to fight. To capture.”
“The ancient one… it threatens us. Eats us!”
“Eats our elders! Changes them. Defiles them!”
It took a lot more back and forth for him to understand. The elders they spoke of were the evolved versions of them, like the one that ambushed a few star oni in the underworld on their way home–he had fought some kind of stone tiger beast. At that time, he saw the soul link and had thought the beast some kind of pet, but instead, it was an evolved version of the little people in front of them.
They called themselves the kith, which appeared to mean something similar to kin.
The little creatures would pair bond as part of how they avoided becoming some kind of abomination of their own as they evolved, sacrificing beast carcasses using shamanic magic. In a sense, a kith could become a beast, and a beast could become kith, with enough time.
As for the abominations, they were converted versions of the kith elders by the ‘ancient one,’ a new arrival that was terrorizing their people. Throughout the underworld, the elders hid from the converted old ones, but thanks to the mist, they were running out of space to hide. Some were sold out by the weaker little people so that they could be spared, and the kith hated them.
It was a lucky thing that the old ones required the bonded pair to fully eat or convert them, but it was unlucky in that many of them could not simply flee–their partner was already captured. If they ended up too far from their bonded pair, they may become an abomination of a different sort. The beast that attacked the star oni was likely rather desperate, seeking a source of strength.
Nick asked one of the kith, “Why did you surrender so easily?”
“Old ones bad. Bad! Kill kith. Dark one is true elder! Good! Together with elders, we fight!”
“They think you’re one of them.” He said to Sable.
Sable chuckled at that. “Yeah. It’s a bit funny. But what now? Are we ready to assault the underworld? Rescuing these elders and defeating this ‘ancient one’ does not seem simple.”
Nick was hesitant to promise them that he would rescue these captured elders. To rescue them could be tantamount to destroying the monster kingdom or defeating this ancient one–something incredibly difficult to do. In all, he needed more information.
Also, many would consider it a waste–a resource providing ample challenges for his people to grow. It would be like collapsing the entire Frostspire Mines just because there were demons in it, losing access to all the special ores of value.
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The reason the Marshall’s role on a shard was so important was because Orion meant the monster kingdom or kingdoms to be a permanent threat. Just enough chaos was introduced to stir things up on the Shard, a series of invading monsters that would increase the danger and conflict seen.
The Marshall’s job was to bring a small amount of order to the chaos, and nothing more. It was why the keep’s strategy wasn’t to fully block off the pass but to enable his people to safely weaken the enemies and monitor them as they passed through, and only defeat them if they could handle it.
Because a monster horde that required numerous kingdoms to work together to defeat could eventually spawn, threatening the entire Shard. Definitely not something he wanted in his backyard, but Orion did as Orion does. Closing the monster kingdom completely was meant to be incredibly challenging, at the level of a Tribulation–above the difficulty of a Trial.
Nick turned to his officers. Lothar, Agatha, Myron, Elyra, Anja, and Henrik were all there, waiting to see what happened with these furry people. He explained what he was told, then asked, “What do you think, Anja, Lothar? This monster kingdom near us. Trying to take it out is a fool’s errand, isn’t it?”
Anja nodded. “Normally. There is often some sort of objective that can weaken or slow the monster invasions, however. It could be linked with these so-called kith elders.”
Lothar frowned. “Myron’s scouts did say there was a path heading North from this city before it was engulfed with too much mist. For all we know, this underworld is expansive with multiple monster kingdoms. There are already known monster kingdoms far to the West. These may be linked.”
Agatha looked skeptical about that, one eyebrow raised. “Thousands of miles long? But the age of the North being unconquered here for so long could provide a reason for such an anomaly. There’s also the dark kingdom, which can skew things even further.”
Henrik said, “It could be this is just an expansion then, and closing it may be more reasonable. With that said, it’s still not going to be easy. If we get close enough or learn more, Orion may provide us a path.”
Anja chuckled. “A path? More like a deadly Trial, at a minimum. The Lord walks the Hero’s Path at that. Why, just learning enough about what it takes to save these elders just might trigger a Quest. Course, I’m not complaining. If we survive and win, the rewards will be significant. Just… I would rather our entire company of knights were here then.”
That was what Nick was worried about. His wives had just finished ascending, but it was only that. They had gotten onto the utility vehicle to head here because of the emergency, but Nick would prefer if they had another week to rest and recover. Or two. And sure, perhaps that wasn’t fully necessary, but they had pushed hard for the goal for long enough that they deserved a minute to breathe first.
Instead, it was like Nick had gotten a break, but they didn’t.
Nick asked, “Did you learn anything about the mist they used? Was it the same as what was released in the underworld?”
Myron replied, “It appears to be the same. When we enter it, it tries to influence our minds in some way. And our enemy will be aware of our entry, or at least when they are close enough. We’re not likely going to be able to sneak through.”
Agatha added, “The lord’s mental protection helped, but it could become a bigger challenge where the mist is denser. Still, the more of us near one another, the better it works. Perhaps a campaign with as many of us as possible will work.”
Nick also had Shak’terra doing some reconnaissance, along with Myron’s star oni scouts. Now that Eirwen was in the Third Stratum, much more of the troll spirit’s power had been unlocked. The range she could be away, the speed she could move, and the pool of essence and mana she could store to accomplish things remotely were far greater now.
It was going to be a few hours before his wives arrived. They had other reinforcements coming as well. Jeffrey and an assortment of beetlefolk helped improve their protection in case they emptied the keep, but now that nearly a hundred-plus orcs and monsterfolk required revival, leaving them to recover inside made the most sense.
“And what of this ancient one? Has anyone seen corruption like what is seen with these abominations before?”
Agatha looked to the abomination. “I admit it looks similar to failed shamanic rituals, but they are still different. Without a doubt, foul magics are involved in their creation.”
Anja replied, “They are likely creatures of the beyond, milord. Many-minded, many-souled creatures that inhabit the bodies and minds of others to expand their encroachment. It is surprising to see one on a Frontier Shard. This Ancient One they speak of is likely unable to fully manifest here until it completes some objective.”
That was some bad news–some kind of eldritch being was trying to work its way into the Shard. It meant that they would likely need to act sooner rather than later.
To wait would only make the enemy stronger and the challenge harder–not even considering what was right or wrong, or how a hero should act.
If they acted now, they could prevent more of these so-called elders from being consumed, strengthening the enemy. And instead, they could join their forces and strengthen their forces.
Finally, Nick had a tight agenda. He needed to have this issue solved or under control in under a month, for when his coronation was scheduled to occur. Then he had to crush a demon kingdom and be ready to face a bandit warlord in just a few months more, of course, not knowing for certain just when the bandit warlord might arrive.
“What do you think, Sable? Can I at least get these kith to join the Noblefrost Tribe?”
Sable had been talking to them here and there as he had talked to his officers. “Definitely some of them. They seem desperate, but they are all a part of a tribe, and their elders are missing. They surrendered because they had no other choice to escape these old ones and also to obey what they thought was an elder. But some of these kith in front of us have families, clans of people near their tribal village that are almost held hostage, from the sounds of it–along with the elder’s bonded partners.”
It was worth a shot. They may have some loyalty to their old tribes, but Nick would offer them to become a part of something larger and stronger. He stood in front of the group of kith and tried to draw their attention.
Nick’s eyes became white as his Soul Magic stirred. “To the Kith who can hear me, I offer you a Soul Pact. If you join my Tribe and obey Archaen Law, I will do my best to rescue your people and elders from this ‘ancient one’ and slow or defeat it. I will also protect your lives from those you call old ones, and all of your tribe are welcome so long as they too accept this same pact, able to join a large, strong tribe.”
The furry people jabbered among themselves for a moment, and Nick caught a few mentions that he thought he understood. ‘Only chance,’ ‘light one,’ ‘save elders,’ and more–significantly, fears about being eaten. Eventually, the creatures accepted, and Soul Pacts layered over their souls and bound them as his Followers.
Nick looked around to the skies, searching for any kind of response from Orion. This was usually where it would provide him with a quest. Normally, Orion would scan the area and then generate a quest, but this time…it did not. Nothing seemed to happen, and he wondered if that was more ominous than the alternative. The alternative being it would only grant him a Quest or Trial when it was far too dangerous to back down.
“Alright. So that…worked out better than expected. It’ll likely be dangerous, but I’m confident we can find a way to rescue some of their elders and a few straggler kith at a minimum.”
Sable nodded. “Better than I thought. I thought some would hold out and want to get okays from their elders or alphas first, but I guess they are scared enough of this ancient one that they’ll take all the help they can get. I’ll see what else I can learn from them and see if we can map out a more general plan.”
“With that done, I’ll try to revive as many as I can, and then after a break we’ll move out once our reinforcements arrive.”
***
Nick spent a few hours reviving the orcs and monsterfolk that fell in battle, happy that being in the Third Stratum made this much more reasonable for him for the number of people downed. He finished a time after his wives arrived in their utility vehicles, and when he was done, the army began their march into the underworld.
Now that the caves leading to the underworld had been properly scouted, moving through them was rapid. It also helped that there were no first-stratum warriors and people in need of healing that they had to wait for and protect. Instead of taking an entire day, it only took a few hours for their slowest allies to make it through.
Arriving in the underworld itself, the mist was now much closer to the exits; just another few miles and it would be encroaching on the exits themselves. They truly needed to do their best to make this count. Otherwise, their enemy would have even more time to prepare for their assault.
When they first passed through the underworld from the area they faced the Devilsaur Matriarch, they had witnessed the tower and what appeared to be a city or ancient ruins beneath it. But that area was now completely covered in mist, to where the tower could not even be seen.
Nick’s wives lined up, ready for battle a safe distance from the mist. There were over two hundred mixed orcs, monsterfolk, newly added keltharis knights, and new kith shamans and tribe members. Jeffrey and a few beetlefolk and mantisfolk joined this foray, with the vast majority of them helping the recently revived members of their forces.
In total, Nick had a bit over three hundred troops to invade the underworld. When he had well over a thousand in total, it was less than what he would like. But he was balancing future potential with his army’s current strength.
It was still strange to feel like they were standing outside. It was a massive cavern, but the ceiling of the cavern, a distance above them, almost looked like the sky itself. There was even what appeared to be clouds up there.
A weird trick of the eye produced by dense essence, he imagined, and it was one that couldn’t be experienced anywhere on Earth. Grass and moss grew on the earthy ground, along with the occasional tree or bush that made it feel even more like they were above ground.
His wives had truly become stronger. Entering the third stratum, each had a different air about them–some more than others. Just as Nick had become a little taller and larger, so too did his wives.
Shara, most of all. She and her mother were huge, making Nick feel awkward standing next to her. Otherwise, Rebecca had shifted the most, changing to have her four flower petal-style angel wings and have a cold air about her.
Eirwen suddenly spoke up, “Shak’terra’s back, Hubby.”
The troll spirit was larger now, thanks to Eirwen’s increase in strength. The silhouetted, long-limbed, and robed figure appeared next to Eirwen.
Nick asked, “What’s going on, Shak’terra? Were you able to sneak through the mist?”
“It is a spiritual mist, and I am a spirit. I couldn’t fully avoid their gaze, but moving about quickly and stealthily is not a problem. I just couldn’t get close enough to confirm this Ancient One, but there are only a few dozen of these Old Ones scattered throughout the underworld.”
“How about their other forces?”
“Patrolling throughout the underworld and within their main city, there are hundreds of kith and more than a thousand feral monsterfolk, beasts, and demonfolk. I don’t like our chances unless you can get some of those elders and kith on your side.”
“If we wait further, it’ll likely only get worse, though. The kith say their village is what surrounds the tower. Did you find any of these hiding elders?”
“Just one. I do believe those that managed to escape up to now are the ones good at hiding, after all.”
“Then it’ll be up to these little guys to draw them out, perhaps. We’ll split up into two large teams and head around the outskirts in a circular path and see if we can win over any elders. When we get near the choke point, we will plan on making our assault–deciding based on how the enemy acts. It means we’ll only be able to find the elders to the south of the tower, but we don’t have much choice in the matter.”
Around the middle of the underworld cavern that they had discovered, where the tower was, the mist reached all the way to the outskirts; the segment of the cavern was narrow. Nick’s intention was for one force to draw their enemy’s main forces out, while the other one swoops in and tries to save the kith.
But which team went in, and whether they would continue with the plan or not at all–that all depended on how the enemy reacted to their forces. His plan likely wouldn’t survive contact with the enemy. They would use the Soulscape to communicate and decide based on the enemy’s movements.
And if the enemy didn’t react, they would likely head North and grab any more elders for their raid. That was hardly worth thinking about, however, as that felt extremely unlikely.
Lothar eventually nodded as Nick outlined his plan. “It gives us options, depending on how our enemy moves. Let me guess–your team will be the smaller, elite team?”
“We’ll move faster this way. We may even be able to move North faster than they can move. My wives and I will take the knights, Jeffrey and his mantisfolk friends, and just a handful of the kith to convince their brethren–you lead the rest, Lothar, Agatha, Myron, and Elyra. If nothing else, we’ll save some of these people and weaken our enemy.”
It would be a dangerous challenge, but it would be a test of Nick and his wives, as well as his people’s capabilities. He was excited to see what they could all do now.
