The feast was in a large courtyard. There were many tables, bundles of red wish balloons, over a hundred guests, and dozens of Sheeple servants. Antimogne was present at the front, though his visual magnetism effect was turned off.
The feast was both a celebration of Noah, Jori, and Sven’s bravery, and a funeral for Nymbus, Clement, and Natalia. Eulogies had been given, and the corpses of the fallen had been burned on a funeral pyre. Afterward, Jori’s flame heart was placed on the fire, and his body reassembled itself around the heart. He awoke from oblivion, screaming.
“Ahh! It burns! Why, brother? Why bring me back again? Let me die.”
“Come one, Jori. You know how dearly the Emperor would miss you if you died.” There was a subtle tone of sarcasm in his voice.
The people seated at the tables, including Noah, cheered when Jorimont was reborn. He was a hero.
“Now that Jorimont is back, I’d like to say a few words,” said Sven. The crowd listened intently. Sven was one of the Emperor’s champions and was held in high regard.
“Today is both a celebration and a mourning. Last night, three brave soldiers died fighting back the evil darkness that now lurks beneath our feet. What was supposed to be a simple eradication of a diggy infestation went bad. The diggies were building a nest. One of the diggies had already mutated into a mega-diggy. Thanks to the bravery of Nymbus, Clement, and Natalia, we were able to wipe out the nest and the mega-diggy before things got out of hand. They died honourable deaths, all of them.
“But the diggies were not the only threat we encountered. Nymbus died valiantly, taking on the mega-diggy so we could escape. However, at a vulnerable moment, we were assaulted by the shadowfolk. They have breached our borders, and slaughtered two of our soldiers: Clement and Natalia. Thanks to the bravery of Noah Turner, we had some modicum of revenge. He managed to kill a dozen of the creatures on his own, while I had only the strength to keep myself alive. Because of him, we rescued Jorimont’s flame heart.”
The rescue of Jorimont had mixed reactions in the crowd. Noah heard Moali scoff, and Noah balled his fists. What an asshole, thought Noah. I killed the shadowfolk that attacked us, Moali. Where the hell were you? Up on the surface, sipping beer in some inn?
Berenice, sitting next to Noah, was impressed by what she heard. She whispered to him. “Thou didst so, Noah? Verily? On thine own?” Noah, not wanting to talk while Sven was talking, nodded without taking his eyes off Sven and then nodded toward him, subtly telling Berenice she should pay attention.
“We have had some revenge, thanks to Noah, but it was not enough. What about those shadowfolk who escaped unharmed? How will they answer for their crimes? And what about the Shadow King, who only grows bolder with time? We must act now, before the shadowfolk grow audacious enough to once again enter our mines. For once they breach our mines, our homes are next.”
There was a murmur of agreement. Emperor Antimogne, who was seated at the head table, spoke.
Well spoken, Sven, my champion, I concur. This trespass shan’t be borne. So, soon, a troop Of horsemen shall pursue the shadowfolk Within our ‘stablished bounds. Preparations Are now in course. I praise Noah Turner Thee, Sven, and Jori, on courage shown. Let us enjoy this feast and honour, too, Our brothers, and our sister, fallen brave. And praise the Eye, may it protect their souls.
There was applause from the audience. People reached their hands toward him, making a peace sign. A religious gesture in honour of the Eye.
Sven and Jorimont rejoined Noah, Graven, and Berenice at the table. Servants walked between tables, handing out plates with wish balloons fixed to them.
Noah said, “Finally. I’m starving. I haven’t eaten anything since yesterday.”
“Ah, poor Noah. Thou shouldst take better care of thyself,” said Berenice.
Yeah, he should. But he couldn’t help it. As soon as he returned to his room last night, he spent a few minutes levelling up and then collapsed from exhaustion.
He had decided to take Shadow Step as his new class ability. The other options just weren’t good enough. Shadowdancer would have let him hit enemies with his weapon while in Ether Walk, but he could already swing his Tesla Rod while in Ether Walk to create lightning, so it wasn’t much of an upgrade. Shadowrunner just made him faster in shadow – not that great. And Shadow Walk was pretty bad: it would let him use his Ether Walk for free when in shadow, but he wouldn’t be able to use it otherwise. His Ether Walk was too critical for staying alive to give up using it when not in shadow.
Shadow Step would let him teleport between shadows while in Ether Walk, for one extra Favor. Noah couldn’t be sure how good the ability was until he knew the maximum range, but it sounded like a great escape option. Plus, he could teleport! He was excited to try it out.
After choosing Shadow Step, three new abilities appeared that he’d be able to take when he reached level 7:
[+ Teleport From Shadow [2 favor] - Use when in shadow. You teleport to any location you have been at before.] [+ Shadowfolk [2 favor] - Use when in shadow. You teleport a small shadow person from the dark deeps who will obey your commands. They return to the dark deeps after one hour.] [+ Shadow Steps (passive) At any time, you can step into a shadow as if it were a portal and emerge from any other shadow you can see. Replaces Shadow Step.]
These new abilities were all quite powerful. He couldn’t take them yet, but he would be thrilled to have any of them. He wondered how powerful the level 8, 9, and 10 abilities would be. Or 11, if 10 wasn’t actually the maximum.
He turned his attention to the stats screen again after choosing his new ability.
[Level 6]
[Stats:] [STR: 10 | DEX: 11 | BOD: 10 | INT: 15 (max) | SOC 10 | LUK 14 | MAG 0 | DIV 6]
[4 stat points available] [+STR | +DEX | +BOD | +SOC | +LUK | +MAG | +DIV]
[0/0 Mana] [6/6 Favor]
[Class: Heretic] [Class abilities:] [Patron: You have a powerful bond with one of the outer gods. Your current patron is: The Heart] [Second Chance (passive) - You get a +4 passive bonus to LUK when luck would be the difference between you living and dying.] [Ether Walk [2 favor] - Your Dash is replaced with an Ether Walk lasts for up to 6 seconds, but does not give you any increased speed. You are invisible and invulnerable during the Walk.] [Shadow Step [1 favor] - Use when in Ether Walk, and in shadow. You teleport to another shadow you can see.]
[She is coming.]
Next he had to choose his stats. Dexterity hadn’t been much of an issue for him. Jumping around like a ninja would be cool, but his Ether Walk and Shadow Step abilities also gave him maneuverability and the ability to dodge attacks. And his main weapon, the Tesla rod, didn’t require much dexterity to aim.
Strength and Body were still dump stats. Noah didn’t care about either. You didn’t need strength if you could shoot lightning bolts, and you didn’t need a robust body if you just didn’t get hit.
Social? He could see the appeal. He thought, maybe it would help him get Chastity back? Maybe she would be more attracted to him if he was a little less awkward, and a little less abrasive? He seriously considered it.
It was a risk, though, because it meant not putting points into things that might help him survive, which at this point would be Luck and Divinity. He didn’t feel limited by his current Divinity. Three uses of Ether Walk a day, or two uses and then two uses of Shadow Step, seemed fine to him. Then there was Luck. His luck was already an 18 when it came to avoiding death, thanks to Second Chance. Was it worth bringing it up to 22?
Luck or Social? Noah didn’t want to die. That was priority number one. But… Chastity.
[+ SOC] [+ SOC] [+ SOC] [+ SOC]
He immediately regretted his decision. 4 extra points in Luck would have been a lot. But Social could help him stay alive, too, right? Having more friends to protect you could be more effective than mere Luck at keeping him alive.
Still, he criticized himself for making levelling decisions based on his love for Chastity. He wanted her back, but it wasn’t worth dying over.
Oh well. He had made the decision, which probably wasn’t terrible. Now, he had to live with it.
Noah heard the popping of wish balloons all around him. He closed his eyes, focused on his desired meal, and popped his balloon. A plate of chicken fingers descended onto the table in front of him. Yeah, he wished for chicken fingers. So what? Nobody around him seemed to think it was weird. They didn’t know chicken fingers were seen as childish where he grew up.
“I’m the one who trained him! How come he’s getting all the credit,” Noah heard Moali grumble from the next table over. Noah glared at him until Berenice put her hand on his shoulder.
“Noah…”
“Sorry. I appreciate your concern, Berenice. It’s just, that guy is such a dick.”
“I know, Noah.”
“Are you talking about Moali Merv?” asked Sven, who was seated close to Noah and Berenice.
“Yeah.”
“You’re not wrong. The man is a narcissist and a slave driver. He expects perfection from everyone else, which would be fine, except he’s a giant, humourless rat with a hot temper. Kind of like you, right Jori?”
“How am I a rat?” asked Jori, unamused. He was sitting next to Sven. He had some kind of booster seat to make him taller. Since he looked so young, he would have been too short for the table otherwise.
“Besides the rat part, I meant.”
“I wish Moali had come with us on the mission,” said Noah. “I would have given him a nice shove into that blue shit.”
“The gleamspore?” asked Sven.
“Whatever that shit was called.”
“Maybe the man does deserve to die. I saw how he tried to blame the deaths of our mission on you, Noah. You’re lucky I was there to contradict him. That said, you should guard your tongue more. Moali has powerful friends. And even those who hate him may not be willing to overlook a death threat to an army officer.”
“Sorry. You’re right. Thanks, Sven. Thanks a lot. You have good advice. I need to control my temper better.”
“Or, just kill the man and get it over with,” said Jori in his usual monotone voice.
“I don’t approve of murder,” said Sven, “but something can probably be done about him, right?”
“The Emperor hath granted Noah covert permission to slay Moali once Noah’s training is completed,” said Berenice.
Sven replied. “Really? Now that’s an interesting tidbit. I wonder why old Antimogne wants the giant rat rid of.”
“You mean, you think he has some reason other than to be nice to me?”
“I was under the impression our beloved Emperor liked the tunnel-dweller.”
“Hmm,” said Noah. Why would the Emperor want Moali dead?
“He hath not mistreated thee at thy training of late, hath he?”
“No, not really. Though he’s still a hard ass. Not like Graven. Where is Graven, anyway?”
“Meditating, as he is wont. Anyhow, I knew the Emperor would bring matters with Moali under control.”
“Yeah. I’m not sure I have the same faith in him you do, Berenice, but I’m glad Moali’s not being a total monster anymore. I still can’t believe he just let him get away with all the horrible shit he’s done to me, though.”
“Tongue, Noah,” reminded Sven, smiling slightly.
“Oh, right. Sorry. I won’t make that mistake again. Thank you, Sven.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Sven paused for a moment, looking intently at Noah. He leaned toward Noah, and spoke in a softer voice. “You know, Noah, If you’d like to meet with a group of people with whom you could speak more freely about such matters, Jori and I would be happy to invite you.”
“I’m never happy, Sven.”
A secret meeting? That sounded fun. “Okay, sure. Thanks for the invite.”
“Of course. We will fetch you after your training tonight, if you are available?”
Noah nodded, and Sven sat normally again, and they resumed chatting about more acceptable topics. Noah munched on his chicken fingers while they chatted.
“Wait, so all the sheeple I saw in the throne room are these ‘Mamluks’?”
“Most of them. If they were armed. They’re not universally credulous like normal sheeple, though many of them are still fools. Nobody knows how the Emperor does it. It’s a closely guarded secret.”
“Lot of those, these days,” said Jori.
“Wait, so how come I can normally only see the Emperor when I go in the throne room? It’s like, no matter where I look, all I can see is him.”
“It’s a simple ring of stealth. Nothing more,” said Sven.
“What?”
“It has the opposite effect in the Toldenhold, of course. Making him impossible not to see. He uses it to spectacular effect for such a simple trinket. Nobody doubts the man’s genius.”
“Oh, cool. I wonder what other artifacts he has.”
“Well, he wears his Sun Armour, which is a legendary set of armour which casts an aura of darkness in the Toldenhold, and can repel attacks very effectively, or so I’m told. I believe he also has a poison dagger, which heals within the Toldenhold. Beyond that, I’m not sure.”
Jori spoke. “I know one of his guards, Edmund, wears a cloak that repels arrows. In the Toldenhold, it pulls arrows toward him, and so away from the Emperor.”
“Truly?” asked Sven. “Well, I hope nobody would be foolish enough to shoot the Emperor either way. What would the Empire do without him?”
After the feast, Noah walked with Berenice back to their rooms.
“Noah. I heard thou art to meet with Sven and Jorimont. Some manner of secret meeting? I’m not certain ‘tis a wise course.”
“I appreciate your concern, Berenice, but I’m just gonna talk to them. I’m sure it will be fine. You don’t have any reason to worry.”
“Ah, I see. Thank you. I thought I had cause to fret, but thou art correct. I do not. Yet, that Jorimont child doth unnerve me, Noah.”
“Yeah, he creeps me out too. Did you know he’s 35? And Sven is like eighty-something? Crazy, right?”
“Truly?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, might I return the favor and impart something that might pique thy interest, then, Noah? Yesternight, whilst thou wert on thy mission, an airship landed at the palace. And canst thou guess its origin? Hoomtree.”
“Really?” Noah’s heart beat quickly. An airship from Hoomtree? Chastity couldn’t be here, could she? He swallowed. “Were there any elves on the ship?”
“Alas, no elves were aboard. I’m sorry, Noah. But the airship was laden with elven gold and artifacts. Payment for more doses of the cure they need for their magical blight.”
“Oh,” said Noah, disappointed. He had thought he might have a chance to see Chastity again. He guessed if he ever wanted to see her again, he would have to go to Hoomtree at some point. When he was ready.
Berenice sometimes read books while lounging on the couches in Noah’s room. He appreciated the company. Normally, he’d nap or practice his training in the room while she was reading. But today, he wanted to try out his new ability.
“I want to try out my Shadow Step, okay? Can you hold up this blanket to make a shadow?”
“Ah, yes! Thy new ability! I am full proud of thee for levelling up, Noah. Thou art truly wondrous!” Berenice smiled at Noah and hugged him, folding the blanket he was holding up between them.
“Oh. Thank you, Berenice. I’m happy you are happy for me.”
She gave him one last squeeze, and then she took the blanket. “Alright, how am I to hold it? Thusly?”
“Yeah, and open the wardrobe door like that. Yeah, so it makes a big shadow. I’ll go out into the courtyard, in the shadow of that tree, and teleport through the window over here. If I can.”
“Good luck!”
Noah left the room and wound around to the courtyard. He positioned himself under a large tree with yellow leaves. On one side of the tree hung a swing that some of the children in the palace often used, though the courtyard was empty now. Noah stood under the shade of the tree on the other side.
“Ether Walk” he said aloud. He turned invisible. Next, he focused his mind on his destination. He could see Berenice holding up a blanket next to the open wardrobe, which blocked the light from the lantern and cast a large shadow on the bedroom wall. “Shadow Step” he said, and he started to fall.
“Ah!” he shouted as the ground beneath him vanished, and he fell into the shadow. He tumbled out of the shadow behind Berenice, and onto the bedroom floor.
“Noah! Art thou alright?” said Berenice, putting down the blanket and kneeling at his side.
“Ugh…” groaned Noah, holding his head where it had slammed against the rug. “I’m fine.”
“Wondrous! Thou hast disappeared there, and appeared here!”
“Yeah. I wasn’t expecting to fall through the floor like Portal. I thought I’d just instantly teleport.”
Berenice stood and started folding the blanket. “‘Tis an incredible ability. Methinks ‘twill be most useful.” She bent down and placed the blanket inside the wardrobe.
“Yeah, for sure.”
“Noah, what is this?” Berenice pulled something from Noah’s wardrobe that had been wrapped haphazardly in a small blanket. She started unwrapping the bundle.
“No! Berenice!” Noah shot to his feet and reached out for the bundle.
“Huh? Ahh!” She dropped the bundle to the floor. The blanket opened, and out rolled a bunch of pinkish-red tubes of flesh.
Noah had brought home a bunch of copies of the sheeple vagina and stored them in his wardrobe, since he couldn’t make copies within the Toldenhold. The flesh printer wouldn’t work correctly under the effects of anti-magic. He had been taking one each night and using it to masturbate. After ejaculating inside it, rather than finding some way to clean it out, he just used the flesh printer to dematerialize it. Berenice found his stash of six remaining, unused vaginas.
Berenice screamed. “What are those?”
“Uhh…” replied Noah. He blushed and covered his face in embarrassment.
“Art those… lady parts? Didst thou create these with the flesh scanner?”
“Oh my God. Oh my God. Berenice, please,” said Noah with his face covered.
“Hmm.” She picked one up and wiggled it. She looked at the business end. “‘Tis not a copy of mine. Whose is it, Noah?”
“This is really embarrassing, Berenice. Can you just leave, and we’ll pretend this never happened?”
“Some other wench? If thou didst want a copy of mine, thou couldst have simply asked. Or mayhaps hers is superior in some fashion?”
“No, Berenice! It’s a copy of the one Moali put on me.”
“Oh! I see.” She started wrapping the vaginas back in the blanket. “I am sorry, Noah. I meant not to embarrass thee. I was but curious what lay in the bundle at the bottom of thy wardrobe. I thought not that it would be…”
“It’s okay, Berenice.” Noah took his hands from his face. His cheeks were beet red. “Just- okay.” He saw Berenice putting them back in the wardrobe. She stood to face him. “Sorry,” said Noah.
“‘Tis alright, Noah. I am not squeamish about lovemaking like some lamb. ‘Tis only natural for a man to have desires. Yet, I wonder… Why opt to use these, instead of me? Thou knowest thou hast my consent at any time, no? And I take great pleasure in it. Is the thought of bedding a sheeple woman truly so vile to thee, now that the Emperor hath put thee off it?”
“No, it’s just-“ Noah noticed Berenice had tears welling in her eyes. Was she really so hurt by it? “I’m sorry, Berenice. I didn’t know it would offend you.” Why was she so hurt by it? Was she in love with him or something? No, that couldn’t be. More likely, she’s hurt because he rejected her, and he’d rather have sex with a weird vagina tube than her. Noah understood how she could be hurt by that. “I’m sorry, Berenice. I promise you, it has nothing to do with you. I think you’re very attractive, and if it weren’t for Chastity, I would still be happy to have sex with you. I don’t share the Emperor’s racism towards sheeple. There’s nothing wrong with you. I just don’t want to cheat on Chastity. Okay?”
“Alright, I understand. Thou must truly love her.”
“I do.”
Berenice sniffled and wiped her eyes. She laughed a bit. “I know not why I weep. I am foolish.”
“No, I get it. I see how it could seem like I was rejecting you sexually or whatever. But I’m not. If it weren’t for Chastity, I would totally ram you. Get it? Ram?”
Berenice giggled slightly. “Aye, Noah. I get it.”
Sven dropped by and told Noah when and where to meet after his training. His training proceeded as usual. Moali was harder on him than usual, which Noah expected, but he wasn’t outright abusive. It left Noah in a foul mood regardless. Afterward, he headed back into the city. They were to meet in one of the deeper layers of the city, rather than the surface, but Noah had to ascend to the palace first anyway, since Sven had given him directions starting from the palace.
He followed Sven’s directions down a few streets, down a large staircase, around a corner and down a few darker streets, and down another, much smaller staircase. Now, two layers deep in the Toldenhold, it was dark everywhere. Some buildings were lit by lanterns or glowing signs advertising all manner of sins, but most buildings were not lit, and even the windows were dark. Noah walked past the occasional grubby-looking sheeple, and a group of sheeple miners carrying pickaxes and head-glowsticks.
Finally, he arrived at his destination. The Archback Casino. Going by the neon sign, it was called the “Ar ba asino”, since several of the letters were burned out. The building was blackiron, as were all the buildings inside the Toldenhold. There was a stained red carpet on the floor outside, and a strange-looking man guarding the red double doors.
He had white skin. Not caucasian, but actually white, like a piece of paper. His eyes were cyan, and so was his hair. And he had no mouth at all. His face was smooth where his mouth should be. He wore leather armour and had a shortsword on his belt. He shook his head ‘no’ at Noah, and gave him a thumb-over-the-shoulder gesture: the universal sign for ‘get lost’.
“Uhh, hello there. Hi. Yeah, I have a meeting inside. With Sven and Jori and them. Do you know them?”
The guard narrowed his eyes at Noah. He shook his head.
“Whatever. Let me in. I have a meeting.”
The guard just stared at Noah.
“Open the door, or I will be late, and it will be your fault I was late. Got it?”
After a moment, the guard relented and opened the door. Noah walked into the casino. While it had been quiet outside, inside, it was loud. There was loud, thumpy music, flashing lights, and people of all sorts dancing. Further back, there were card tables and dice, and rowdy people were gambling. Noah saw a sheeple woman who was clearly a prostitute or sex slave of some kind snort something off a table. He shivered. It was a seedy place. Maybe Berenice had been right, thought Noah. Maybe this was a bad idea.
He walked through the crowd. He just had to get to the purple door at the back. That’s where Sven said to meet them.
A sheeple prostitute wearing thick makeup, with wool dyed red, pink, and gold, stood in front of Noah. The live music was loud, so she had to yell. “Milord, wouldst thou watch me scream in pain? Wish thou to use me as thou deemest fitting?” She ran her hands down the sides of her body, and between her legs. Noah grumbled a ‘no, thank you’, and pushed past her.
The music was so loud he could only hear snippets of people’s conversations as he walked by.
“There’s no way they ever reach the Toldenhold, not with the Emperor-“
“-for fifteen brass pieces! Aye! I warned the bitch-“
“Strike me, master! Aye!”
“All in! I’m all in! Eye, please!”
Noah reached the purple doors at the back of the casino. They were unguarded. He pushed them open.
The doors led to a back room, where a group sat around a card table. There were also a few armed guards standing in the shadows around the edges of the room. At the table, Noah spotted Sven and Jori. Jori was sitting on top of something on his chair to boost his height.
Besides Sven and Jori, a longfolk noble was lying on his side on a lounge chair made specially for him. He had the same arrogant look as all longfolk, and was dressed in a fancy black and white outfit.
There were three others at the table. The first was a flower person. He had a green body, and a yellow face, which was surrounded by big, soft yellow petals. He had stubble around his chin, bags under his eyes, and was puffing on a pipe. His green body didn’t have armour or anything. Just normal, ratty clothes. He was a bit pudgy.
The other two were sheeple. One dressed in army-issue armour. The other dressed like the casino prostitutes, with thick makeup and dyed, multicolour wool. Her wool was mostly pink, with blue and yellow spots. The wool on her head was partly shaved, and what remained was shaped into a mohawk, which was also dyed pink. She, too, had bags under her eyes.
“This is the youth, Sven?” asked the longfolk.
“That’s him! Come in, Noah. Take a seat.”
Noah looked around the smoky room and saw a lot of tired eyes staring back at him. “Hi.” He pulled out a heavy wooden chair next to Sven and sat down.
“Sven claimeth thou art a true human. Is this so? Or hast thou beguiled mine wisest follower?” asked the longfolk noble.
“Yes, I think I am,” said Noah.
“Wherefore art thou here and now? Wherefore dost thou yet live?”
“Uhh… I don’t actually know how I got to this world. I just woke up here.”
The flower man scoffed.
“I see. Sven hath not conveyed unto thee much regarding this conclave, correct? Knowest thou our purpose here?” Noah noticed the longfolk wasn’t speaking all poetic like the others. Was he different, or was that just a thing they did when they spoke as an official of the Empire?
“Uhh, no, he just invited me to come…”
“Very well. Let us first make our acquaintances, and then we shall turn to business. I am Vincenzio Legaccio, an Earl and a Heretic of the Heart. Thou hast already met Sven.”
“And me,” said Jori.
“What is thy name?” asked Vincenzio.
“Noah. Noah Turner. I’m, uhh, I’m a Heretic of the Heart, too.”
Vincenzio’s face changed instantly. He raised his eyebrows. “Truly? Well, thou mayest be in accord with our quest after all.”
“I told you he was sympathetic,” said Sven.
“You said that about Mordred, too,” grumbled the flowerfolk. Sven didn’t respond.
“Instead of wagging thy tongue, Mead, why not introduce thyself to the youth yon?”
The flowerfolk sighed loudly and sat up straighter. He puffed on his pipe, and then introduced himself. “Petalio Zosimos. They call me Mead.” He reached his hand across the table for Noah to shake, which Noah did.
“And thy class?” said Vincenzio.
“How rude,” said Mead.
“Just answer. We’ve no time for courtesies.”
“Fine. I’m a Beastmaster. Of the Weremonster subclass.”
Noah waited for him to elaborate, but he didn’t. A weremonster? He could turn into a monster? What kind of monster?
“Venus?”
The prostitute sheeple spoke. “Hail, good-lookin’. Aye, I am christened Venus. Venus Cumhard. ‘Cause I can make thee cum hard, for the proper sum. Though I also be a skilled pilferer. No class, of course, since I be not mamluk. Nobles welcome me into their abodes, lured by the prospect of mine agonized cries. And then, I do fleece them utterly, as any proud sheeple would.”
“Oh, uhh, I see,” said Noah.
“What? Hast thou issue with women of the night, lad?” she said, aggressively. Her mohawk and thick makeup made Noah think she looked crazy, and he felt intimidated.
“No, it’s not that. I respect your profession-“
“I’m but fucking with thee, lad. Relax.”
“Oh,” said Noah. He tried awkwardly to smile. Everyone at the table looked toward the last person who hadn’t introduced themselves. The soldier sheeple.
“I am a Heretic as well. A Brain Heretic. I serve as the group’s intelligence department, and I am the sole member of this wretched party present against my will. My name is Mordred Spenser.” He shook Noah’s hand, too.
“Great, fine, done with the niceties now,” said the longfolk noble Vincenzio. “Onto the matter at hand. I reckon thou must have some qualms with the Empire, else Sven would not have brought thee in, correct?”
“Uhh, yeah.” Noah felt uncomfortable with everyone staring at him, but he continued. “I think the Emperor is cruel. He let me be abused and get raped by my trainer, and he heartlessly executed a sheeple girl right in front of me. My friend, Graven, says he’s wise, and he united the Empire and all that, but I don’t think that justifies slavery or a lack of due process or whatever. He’s an asshole. I hate that powerful people in this world can just do whatever they want and hurt whoever they want.” He wasn’t really sure that he hated the Emperor as an Emperor. He did understand that a certain degree of tyranny was probably necessary for holding a medieval empire together. And even if he thought the Emperor was cruel, he wasn’t sure he was let’s-topple-the-Empire cruel. He wasn’t really sure. But he knew he wasn’t happy with the Emperor.
The nobleman smiled. “Well, thou art certainly unafraid to utter thy thoughts. Thou art not the sole one who hath marked the tyranny of the Emperor, and the Empire in its entirety. We art a rebel band against the Empire. Our aim is to overthrow the Emperor. Should we fail in that, we at least aspire to thwart his many horrors, however we may.”
“Okay. And you want me to join?”
“That doth remain to be seen. What bring’st thou to our table dark? Save being a true-born human?”
Noah’s first instinct was to defend his usefulness and list his artifacts and abilities as proof. But then, he had a thought: If he did that, he would seem desperate to join. Why not make them convince him to join? He was, after all, a true human. Maybe he wasn’t super powerful now, but maybe he would be later. In actuality, he wasn’t even convinced he wanted to join their resistance group. Why not let them try to convince him?
“Well, I’m not sure I even want to join your group. Why should I join you? A bunch of wannabe rebels sitting in the back of some casino deep under the Toldenhold.” Noah saw a look of surprise on Sven’s face, but he continued. “How do I know you’re all anything more than roleplayers, pretending to be a bunch of cool resistance fighters, when really you’re not gonna accomplish anything?”
That got them fired up.
“Hey!” shouted the flower man, Mead, as he stood up, pushing his chair back, and reached across the table to grab Noah.
“Mead!” shouted Vincenzio. The flowerfolk’s anger melted, and he flinched at Vincenzio’s powerful, gruff voice. “Sorry, Vincenzio. Sorry.” He put his hands in the air. “But someone needs to teach the kid some manners.”
“Nay. The youth hath a point. Who are we to demand his merits? To bid him prove himself, when we’ve not done the same. Sven, wouldst thou disclose unto him our plans?”
“Is that a good idea before Noah has decided to join? If we tell him, and he doesn’t want to join…”
“Do it.”
“Alright. Noah, are you familiar with Annatto?” Noah shook his head no. “Annatto is where the Emperor keeps all his most valuable treasures and artifacts. He also keeps his craft mages at Annatto, so their valuable schematics don’t need to leave Annatto. We are planning to infiltrate. Not just for the treasures, but because Mordred has said that’s where the Emperor keeps his secret artifact that allows him to imbue sheeple with souls and make them free.”
“Oh, so you want to free all the sheeple then?”
Vincenzio answered. “Aye. If the sheeple were freed, the slaves would revolt, and with their newfound ability to level, the Toldenhold would weaken and fall to its adversaries.”
“Wow. Wait, this Annatto place… If the Emperor had a cure for a magical disease, would he keep it there?”
“Yes, I think he would. He keeps all his secret schematics there.”
Vincenzio spoke, moving his long arm to stroke his pointed beard. “I see thou art well-informed. Thou dost speak of the elven blight.”
“Yes!”
“Elven blight?” asked Sven.
“The elves in the distant south are afflicted by a vile magical sickness. The cure is known to the Emperor’s craft mages. Instead of giving them the cure, the ruthless bastard doth sell them individual doses on a recurring fee – enough to treat, but not to cure. The initial payment hath just arrived in the Toldenhold: an airship laden with gold and artifacts. He’s to drain the sickly elves of everything.”
“That bastard,” spoke Jori.
“Well, if we can steal the cure, that would be a great opportunity to do some good,” said Sven.
“I did suspect we might chance upon the cure while we steal from Annatto. Though securing the sheeple-freeing artifact taketh precedence. Why dost the plight of the elves concern thee, Noah?”
“Oh. It doesn’t, really. It’s just like Sven said. We could do some good by stealing it. If I decide to help you.”
“Well, now thou art privy to our goal. Art thou in, or out?”
“Well,” said Noah. “I guess it sounds like a good cause. But I want something in return, okay? As payment.”
“Payment? I thought thou wert in this for the good of the Empire?” Vincenzio glared at Noah, but Noah stayed resolute. If they wanted him to help, he wanted their help in return. It was only fair. He wanted to get the elven cure, but he didn’t really care about taking down an Empire. It wasn’t his fight.
“Good lad. Let him not coerce thee into working for free. I erred in that way for far too long,” spoke the prostitute, Venus.
“Venus! Thou art aware I could simply bewitch thee again, art thou not, wench?”
“Not if thou desirest Sven to remain,” said Venus. Vincenzio sighed.
“What do you want, Noah? I brought you here because I thought you were a good person. I thought once you heard about our mission, you’d want to help us,” said Sven.
“Yeah, I do, Sven. It’s just… You’d be doing a good thing by helping me. My trainer, Moali. He raped me and beat me. I can’t just let him get away with that. He’s acting all nice now. Relatively speaking. But he needs to be punished for what he did.”
“Punished?” asked Sven.
“I want him dead,” said Noah.
“I’m in,” said Jori instantly.
“Good kid,” said Mead. “I think we can help you with that.” He nodded his head in approval, and his giant yellow petals shook.
“Is that all?” asked Vincenzio. Noah nodded.
“Noah, it’s not right. It’s murder.”
Mead responded to Sven. “Oh, gimme a break. You murder people for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! The blood of a thousand mamluk runs through your veins.”
“I kill only when it’s necessary! For the greater good!”
“Whatever,” said Jori. “It’s just one piece of shit rapist. Who cares? We’d be doing the world a favour. I could breathe my fire down his lungs, if you want? Then he would live in agony for eternity.”
“No,” said Noah. “I want him dead. If he’s alive, he’ll take out his anger on me. And I can’t get the Emperor to get me a new trainer. He has to die, and it has to look like it wasn’t me.”
“Very well,” said Vincenzio. “‘Tis agreed. We shall aid thee in dispatching thy trainer. Sven, thou mayest abstain from the deed. In return, Noah, thou joinest our group. Agreed?”
Noah nodded. He smiled internally. He could have just joined for free. But now they were going to kill Moali for him! Moali was as good as dead now!
“I’m not happy about it, but as usual, I’ll comply,” said Sven.
“Can I have some friends of mine join the group, too? Right now, they think the Emperor’s this amazing guy, but I’m sure if I tried to convince them…” He was thinking about Berenice and Graven.
“Nay. We art highly selective in who we let in. And if they bear not already sentiments against the Empire, ‘tis a certain nay.”
“Sorry, Noah.”
“It’s alright. It was just a thought.” It was probably for the best. Berenice didn’t seem keen on combat, and Graven was basically in love with Emperor Antimogne. He would be a hard sell.
“Worry not, lad,” said Venus. “Thou canst forge new friendships here.”
Vincenzio addressed the group. “We shall plunder Annatto three days hence. Be prepared. We’ll convene and review plans beforehand for Noah’s sake. Until then, the sole issue at hand is this affair with Noah’s trainer. Sven, thou mayest take thy leave.
“Oh, I have a question about Annatto. Where exactly is it?” asked Noah. He figured it wasn’t in the palace, or he would have seen or heard of it.
“Typical male objectification of women,” scoffed Venus.
“What?” asked Noah.
Mead smiled, revealing stained yellow teeth. “It’s not an ‘it’, lad. It’s a ‘she’.”
“Oh?”
“Annatto is the name of a legendary bird. She soars ceaselessly, high above the Toldenhold. Suspended below her hangs a platform wherein the Emperor hoards his treasures and stations his high-level craft mages. And below that hang dozens of cages where criminals, yet of use to the Emperor, are confined. We must tread carefully, lest some among us find ourselves in such cages.”
“Or just dead,” replied Jori.
“Life itself is a cage,” said Venus. “I yearn to be set free.”
“Well, I’m not needed here any longer. Enjoy your murder, Noah,” said Sven. He stood up, and walked out the purple doors.
Vincenzio turned to look at Noah, speaking to him down his pointed chin as all longfolk do. “So, Noah, how wouldst thou have him meet his end?”
The next day, for the first time, Noah was happy while he walked to his training. He couldn’t stop smiling to himself. This time, he would get the better of Moali. His heart beat rapidly. He was energized. But not afraid. He fiddled with the blue metal ring in his palm. It belonged to Venus. It was nice of her to lend it to him. It would make this whole thing go a lot more smoothly.
He saw Moali shadowboxing in the ring. Noah glared at him. What a waste of a life you had, mole man. You treated everyone around you with cruelty, Noah thought. Now, you’ll finally get what’s coming to you.
Noah stepped into the large training ring and latched the wooden door behind him.
“Finally, you’re here.” Noah was on time, but Moali was probably in some mood. As usual.
“Sorry, sir,” replied Noah meekly. Best to keep up the act, for now. Noah put his Tesla rod on the table and started putting on the magical boxing gloves. He slipped Venus’s ring onto his finger before he put the gloves on.
“Suppress Abilities”, Moali said pre-emptively, touching Noah’s shoulder. It was a precaution he always took. “Have you been practicing your footwork with Graven, like you said? You’re not going lazy on me, are you?”
“No, sir!” He feigned fear, to his own internal enjoyment.
“Why don’t you drop and give me twenty?” Moali shouted. Noah did as he was told. “One! One! One! I’m not gonna start counting until you start doing real pushups. Come on! Are you a man or a girl! One! One! One!”
After forty or so pushups that left Noah’s arms feeling like jelly, Moali let him get up.
“Pathetic. Okay, son. Now, we’ll spar for a while, and then when you give up as usual, we’ll see how your footwork is. Got it?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Louder, son! My ears aren’t as big as those big monkey ears you’ve got on your ugly head!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Good. Come on. Try to hit me.” Moali hunched into a boxing stance. Noah followed suit.
Noah threw a swift jab, which caught Moali on the trunk. “Ah, a lucky hit. Come on, keep going!” Moali threw a few lazy hooks, designed more to keep Noah alert than to actually hit him. Noah evaded them easily. Noah threw another jab, and then a hook, which caught Moali on the ear. “Oof. What are you doing, son? You call that a punch?”
Tired of being shown up by the pathetic human, Moali stepped up his game. He started bobbing and swerving to avoid Noah’s punches, and throwing punches of his own at full force. Noah was doing better than usual, thanks to Venus’s ring of dexterity, but it was still a struggle to keep up with Moali. He caught a kick to the stomach that sent him skidding backward.
“Your luck is running out, monkey man!” shouted Moali as he threw more punches. But Noah avoided them deftly, and punched Moali in the face again, following it up with a kick to the body. Moali grunted in pain, but kept fighting.
Noah threw punch after punch, each more rapid than the last, and Moali couldn’t dodge them. And he dodged most of Moali’s punches, which Moali responded to by getting more aggressive and throwing a bunch of punches at full power. Noah had to be careful and took a few hits, but the fight was mostly one-sided. He essentially kicked Moali’s ass for ten minutes. Eventually, Moali made a gesture to indicate he wanted a time out, and put his hands on his knees. Noah was outlasting him. Noah smiled.
“Give me a minute, son,” said Moali, breathing heavily.
“Come on, sir. Do you think your enemy is gonna give you time to catch your breath in combat?” asked Noah in a teasing voice. He hit Moali with an uppercut. Moali groaned.
“I guess I deserve that. But no more. Give me a minute. I’m old, son.”
“Do you think your enemy is gonna give you a minute?” asked Noah again. He kicked Moali’s legs, tripping the rodent man. He grunted on impact.
“Ow! Hell, when did you grow a pair? Point taken, but I’m not the man I used to be, son. Give me a minute to rest.”
Noah spotted the group coming out of the indoor training gym and slinking silently toward them, out of view of Moali.
“Get up, sir! You think your enemy is gonna let you lay down and rest. Get up! We always get up!” Noah started kicking Moali. Because of the magical boxing gloves Moali wore, the kicks stung but wouldn’t injure, but Noah still found it satisfying.
“Alright, you insubordinate little shit!” shouted Moali. “Stop, now! That’s an order! Or I’ll tell Antimogne and have you beheaded for real this time, got it?”
“Oh no!” said Noah in mock fear, and then he smiled and kicked Moali again, this time in the balls. Moali moaned.
“You son of a bitch, I’m gonna- Hey! What the hell?”
Moali’s arms were grabbed on either side by Mordred, the sheeple, and Mead, the yellow flower man. They were both strong enough to hold Moali in place on his knees. “Who the hell are you?”
Jori and Venus came around to stand with Noah.
“Oh,” said Noah, “You didn’t think your enemy would be stupid enough to fight you one-on-one, did you?”
Moali looked to his side. His face looked fearful. He spoke to Mead. “Hey, I know you. You terrorist piece of shit!” He looked around at the group, and recognition dawned on him. “You brought a bunch of terrorists here? Why?”
“It should be obvious,” said Jori. “We’re gonna kill you.”
“What? If you kill me, the Emperor will have you beheaded for sure, Noah! And the rest of you, too! If you kill me, the Emperor will hunt you down and kill you all!”
“He will?” asked Venus, suddenly looking a bit scared.
“Relax, Venus, he’s talking shit. Noah here told us the Emperor was already going to let him kill Moali once his training was complete.” Venus calmed down. He turned to Moali. “It seems the Emperor’s regard for you isn’t as deep as you thought.”
Moali’s eyes went wide. “No. Vannoccio… It can’t be. Why? My old friend…”
“Apparently, even your old friend wants you dead. How unfortunate!” said Venus, laughing to herself.
Moali’s face hardened. He looked up at Noah. “Just get it over with.”
“Hold on,” said Jori. “There’s one thing we have to do before we kill you. To make sure your death can’t be pinned on Noah. Brace yourself. This will hurt.”
Jori walked up to Moali. He was as tall as Moali, even though Moali was on his knees. He held Moali’s trunk in his hand and pulled it up, exposing Moali’s mouth. He pressed his lips to Moali’s and exhaled. Noah saw the inside of Moali’s mouth glow with fire, and the red glow spread down into his lungs. Moali screamed in agony as this happened. He fought to get away, but Mordred and Mead held him in place. His tiny black eyes were wide as he screamed a muffled scream.
While Moali flailed, Noah took the magical boxing gloves off him, setting both pairs on the table.
Jori stepped back. Over the next minute or so, Moali transformed. His fur turned black, and his eyes, mouth, and the tip of his trunk started to glow intensely with internal fire. With every exhale, black smoke came from his mouth and trunk, and he howled in pain.
“Do you want to do the honours, Noah?”
“No, I’m not supposed to. I’ll get a penalty.”
“Very well. I’ll do it.”
Jori stepped toward Moali, who still writhed in pain. He made brief eye contact with Moali, and punched forward. A burst of fire was emitted from Jori’s hand as it drove into Moali’s chest. Jori pulled out a glowing heart of fire. Moali’s blackened body sagged, and Mordred and Mead dropped him onto the dirt. His eyes and mouth no longer glowed.
Jori threw the heart down onto the dirt. He raised his foot above it and, in a burst of flame, drove his foot down onto it, crushing it to ash.
“There.”
Noah looked down, smiling slightly, at Moali’s dead body. Finally. Finally, he had vengeance for the rapes and torments Moali heaped on him. Finally, Katherine had vengeance. It was over.
“Leave his body untouched. They will know a flameblood did it. They should not suspect you.”
Noah nodded.
Noah handed Venus her ring. She smiled and winked at Noah. She and the others walked off in the direction of the Toldenhold.
Noah looked down at Moali. He lay in the dirt where Noah had been raped. Where his disembodied dick and balls had sat, baking in the sun while he hid in shadow. But it was over now. He closed his eyes and exhaled. It was over. It felt like it had been too easy.