Before I could issue any command to do so, Nameless swept over the heads of the enclosed monster horde, and I was able to do a quick tally of each kind of beast. There was more than one goblin shaman, and several crossbow-wielding kobolds, and at the very center of the dense crowd of creatures stood a massive ice troll. Among the animal-like monsters were staggering numbers of mutated men-like things, and everything contained inside the corral was covered in signs of disease.
As the dragon circled around the enclosure and returned to the section closest to me, I watched the horde surge against the fence restraining them. The shaking and banging of the wall in front of me pulled me out of the dragon’s mind-vision, and I retreated to a safe distance from the pen as I considered what I should do.
There was no way I could walk away with this many enemies ready for battle near any settlements, but if there were more of these enclosures full of mutated monsters around the realm, then I certainly had my work cut out for me.
It wasn’t anything the God of Time couldn’t handle, especially not with the amazing followers I had at my back.
Nameless didn’t retreat with me, and I heard him making strange noises at the corralled monsters. The sounds were almost bark-like with a fair amount of growling, and it reminded me of pitbull or German shepherd dogs. I closed my eyes and imagined myself connecting with the dragon’s eyesight, but I could sense the way was blocked from my flying companion’s end.
“Nameless!” I shouted above the noises his snarls elicited from the restrained horde, and I put all my mental willpower behind the words to make sure the dragon got the message. “Get back here and await my command!”
It had been a while since the dragon rebelled against my authority, but I’d quickly quelled his desire for control. I would do the same thing now, but I still hoped a simple reminder of who held the power would suffice.
The iridescent dragon lifted into the air, and I could see his head flicking from me to the enemies below him as though torn in an internal struggle. I could feel his bloodlust through the link between us, and I sent a conjured image of the two of us killing everything inside the fence if he would listen to me.
My appeal to his natural predatory instincts got through to him, and Nameless flapped his wings rapidly as he angled toward me.
With the dragon once more firmly under my control, I scanned over the outside of the enclosure in search of any weak spots. There didn’t seem to be any hinges to indicate a gate, and the hole the goblin disappeared through had slid upward. We would have to blast our way in, and then it would be hard to control the flow of the horde.
Nameless and I exchanged a knowing glance, and I realized he still had access to my mind. If he could block my path to him, then I should be able to do the same. I visualized a bubble around me that only approved things could penetrate, and the dragon suddenly jumped like he’d been zapped by a faulty outlet.
“We need to open up the fence,” I said as I withheld the urge to laugh at the dragon. “Blast away.”
Kill. Nameless chirped happily as he lifted himself higher into the air, and he landed a short distance from the enclosure.
I crossed the field to stand at his side, and I watched in fascination as the silvery dragon inhaled a deep breath. His
shoulders lifted, and he tossed back his head. I could see swallowing motions down his throat, and I marveled at his ability to conjure such powerful magic from inside himself.
Then Nameless released the pent-up energy he’d gathered with a blast so strong it sent both of us stumbling backward a few paces, but the percussive burst of lightning struck the enclosure straight on. The boards and studs supporting the fence exploded in all directions, and debris fogged our view of the damage. When the dust settled, I could see several figures looming toward the hole in the fence, but I also spotted a handful of corpses decorating the ground inside.
Chunks of wall stuck from torsos and heads, and a few were charred like they’d received the brunt of the lightning’s heat.
“Good job!” I cast an admiring glance at the dragon by my side, and his starry eyes met mine. There was a pride and confidence in his gaze, and any sense of rebellion was gone.
We made a good team, the dragon and the god, and I knew the enemies stumbling forward were easy pickings for the likes of us, but it would still be fun to annihilate everything together.
“Trust me?” I asked as my eyes flicked from the dragon’s face to the steadily approaching scattered remnants of the horde.
A chirp confirmed my question, and I smirked.
“Open your mind to me,” I instructed. “If we fight as one, we can be everywhere at once.”
The idea seemed to appeal to the dragon because his eyes filled with battle lust, and he gave me a quick jerky nod of his head. An instant later, I was inundated with sensations I couldn’t make sense of, and it seemed as though one eye was a strange warped mirror while the other could still see the dragon in front of me.
I shook my head to clear the ringing pain caused by the sudden onslaught of urges and thoughts. The strongest sensation being sent along the connection between us was the desire to kill every single thing inside the enclosure, and that was something we could agree on.
After a few deep breaths and a few practice movements to acclimate myself to my new dual vision, I jerked my chin toward the enclosure, but I didn’t even need to say anything else because the dragon was just as connected to me as I was to him.
We both knew we could devastate the entire horde with fire spells and lightning breath, but that would increase the chance of the surrounding forest catching fire, and I didn’t
want to place Meadowlark in any more danger. I’d have to handle this with more precision, and that required getting my hands dirty. Nameless understood my unspoken instructions, and he bunched his muscles as he waited for my cue. I stomped my foot to activate the fleetness ability in my enchanted dragonscale boots, and we darted toward the hole in the enclosure at blinding speed, and I was surprised by the dragon’s ability to keep up with my pace.
My panabas slid into my hands like an extension of my limbs, and I jumped over the crumbled debris piled around the hole. I twirled my blades as I came down amidst the horde, and I managed to slice two heads cleanly off their owners’
shoulders in one fluid motion.
My heightened senses threatened to pull my focus away from my enemies, but instead of fighting against it, I embraced it. I just took a quick breath and allowed the dragon feelings in. Without even realizing I had moved, my blades swung in an arc over my head to sever the spine of a goblin jumping onto my back. It was as though I stood in the middle of a sensitive bubble, and I could hear the breathing and heartbeats of all the creatures around me. The dragon vision in my left eye showed the pulsating heat waves coursing through our
enemies, and I marveled at the way the flying lizard saw the world.
“Let’s do this!” I shouted as I twirled my panabas, and a loud chirp of confirmation came from the other side of the enclosure.
I could feel the intense connection between us as I fought my way through the horde, and we started to flow into a unified attack formation. Nameless barreled into the horde and tossed creatures over his back toward me, and I met them with quick swings of my panabas before they even landed.
Any time we spotted the monsters gathering in dense pockets, we took turns blasting precise attacks small enough to not pose a threat to the nearby forest of either lightning or fireballs into their masses.
A sense of immense pleasure filled my entire being, and I surrendered to the dragon’s overwhelming bloodlust as we continued to cut our way through the horde.
Big one. Nameless’ telepathic communication was accompanied by the image of the large ice troll. Together?
“On my way.” I couldn’t help the shit-eating grin that spread across my face as I bounded toward the dragon’s location, and I chopped through a handful of mutations and
monsters before I reached the ground below his hovering form.
There were only handfuls of monsters in scattered pockets, but we could easily dispatch the remaining creatures once this big guy was eliminated. As long as he remained standing, he would inspire more violence in the other mutations.
Nameless and I sent a series of images and words through our link at rapid-fire speed, and it only took a few seconds for us to formulate our attack strategy. The dragon would limit his firepower to moments of dire need to avoid accidentally striking me with his lightning breath, and he would distract the creature from above while I attacked from below.
The dragon circled the troll’s head low enough to get its attention, and I struck at his feet the instant the long hairy arms reached into the sky to swat at the flying lizard. The beast roared and swiveled to face me, but a trickle of blood ran down his calf in the wake of my blade, and I managed to roll beneath the wild swing of his furry limbs.
The troll limped slightly as he released a powerful growl directly into my face, but I stood unfaltering in the face
of his attempt at intimidation. A god wasn’t scared of a giant hairy ice cube, especially not when I had a dragon at my side.
Nameless jumped onto the troll’s back when its attention turned to me, and he clawed and scratched at the lumpy shoulders until the ten-foot-tall creature couldn’t ignore the pain any longer.
Now! The dragon’s voice rang loudly in my head, and I didn’t waste any time taking advantage of the opportunity to attack.
My panabas swung before I even finished my thought, and twin slashes caused streaks of blood to course down the troll’s legs. The beast roared as he fell to his knees, and I sheathed my weapons before I lifted my palms outward. I shot two fireballs from my hands, and the fiery orbs smashed into the troll’s chest. Nameless followed the spells with a blast of lightning that burned the flesh from the beast’s face, and its pained howl sent a shudder up my spine.
We had to finish this and eliminate the rest of the horde.
I summoned vines and pressed them to curl around the troll’s legs, and Nameless quickly caught onto my strategy. He kept the beast distracted by flapping his wings around his head until the massive creature was securely restrained. Then the
silvery dragon pulled away until he was only a few paces away from me, and we exchanged a knowing glance before we attacked in unison.
The combination of fire spells and lightning breath riddled the beast with dark smoldering patches all over his body, and he thrashed against the vines restraining his lower limbs. The troll’s eyes widened as panic set in, and his death cries echoed in my ears as I made the final fatal slash of my blades across its throat. The troll’s head flopped backward while the opening gushed blood, and his neck turned into a gory fountain.
Nameless and I retreated out of the splash zone, and a moment later, the troll’s body fell forward into the mud.
“We did it,” I sighed as I flashed the dragon a broad smile. “Now, let’s kill the rest of these fuckers.”
The excited chirp I received was more than enough confirmation that the dragon was ready to finish the battle, and we moved in sync through the remaining pockets of monsters.
The mutations and creatures started to run away from us, and they shoved others in front of them to use as body shields.
Even the men-like mutations still seemed to be out of their minds and acting on animalistic instincts, so I didn’t think they
had the ability to strategize a defense, but their desire to survive indicated some level of sentience. There were a few monsters among the crowd who hadn’t shown signs of infection, but they followed the movements of the others around them. We pressed on despite the increasingly frantic movements of the horde’s remnants, and I got a sick pleasure from the looks of terror on the goblins’, kobolds’, and other monsters’ faces.
Nameless shot bursts of lightning along the edge of the enclosure to herd the scattered mutated monsters into one big group, and we sent explosions of magic into the midst of the crowd until body parts were flying in all directions. A grim determination settled over me, and I prepared myself to face a similar, but likely larger, force.
The God of the Plague wasn’t going to limit himself to one horde when he could create mutated things out of seemingly any kind of creature, and the additional dangers of fighting an infected force weren’t far from my thoughts. Back on Earth, there would be protective gear to lower the chance of exposure or contamination, but I would have to make do with what was available in this world.
Our enemy’s numbers continued to dwindle, and I could sense the satisfaction coursing through the dragon who fought at my side. Nameless thoroughly enjoyed causing devastation and death, and I was glad he’d shown an ability to control his murderous urges until presented with an enemy to eliminate.
I knew all too well how dangerous a rogue dragon could be.
“Come at me, bro,” I taunted as I danced around the scattered monsters stumbling away from me.
Even diseased and out of their minds, the mutations that survived proved to be the second most challenging of our enemies after the troll. They were capable of dodging, and they showed off their nimble movements by evading our attacks. Nameless and I killed them off one by one, and it only took us a short while to clear the rest of the enclosure.
I caught my breath as I stood amid the destruction we’d caused, and I supported my hands on my knees. As soon as I stopped moving around the small battlefield, the swaying dragon vision made my head swim, and I took a few moments to focus on restricting the open link back to its normal boundaries.
Nameless plopped onto the ground at my feet, and even he showed signs of exhaustion. His chest rose and fell with obvious effort, and his tongue hung out the corner of his fang-filled mouth. I wondered if the mind-link was just as unsettling and tiring for him as it was for me, but I also hadn’t seen him use that much lightning breath in one battle. He was growing in power and strength, but so was I.
We made a good team.
As though he could still hear my thoughts, the dragon rubbed his head affectionately against my leg, and I cast a proud smile down at his star-filled eyes. Then I turned my gaze to the enclosure around us, and I didn’t see anything noteworthy besides the various sizes of monster chunks strewn all around us. My eyes settled on what appeared to be a small platform against the far side of the fence, and it looked like a stand for a conductor of an orchestra.
I could easily picture Plague standing there and spreading his infectious magic through the gathered masses inside the enclosure, and I shot a fireball at the platform that sent the wood up in flames.
“Let’s get out of here,” I said to the dragon, and I went in search of my skittish horse.
I’d have to get Leaf back to Atticus soon, and I was eager to get my reliable warhorse back beneath a saddle.
Goliath would have faced all our foes with confidence, and the dusky mare could learn a thing or two from the white stallion.
Once I located the mayor’s horse, I placed a hand on her neck, and Nameless leaned against my side as soon as he realized my intentions to fast travel.
We returned to the outskirts of Meadowlark in a blip, and when I arrived at the ramshackle mini mansion, I was beyond impressed by the changes that had taken place in my absence. The clear windows of the house were illuminated by lamps and candles, and the sound of chattering voices and laughter emerged from the open front door.
The garden had even been cut back until the path was clear, and I left Leaf and Nameless on the street as I made my way inside. Akina, Zenda, Tiff, and Elissa were all laughing and talking to Ayma as they sat around a small table, and I could tell the wooden surface had been quickly assembled.
They jumped up to greet me as soon as they noticed my arrival, and after a few quick kisses and hugs, a seat was pulled out for me to join them at the table.
I summarized my experience in the forest outside town, and I watched the soldiers and healed people moving about the house fixing things. The work continued despite the quickly failing sunlight, but it seemed everyone was in high spirits. I’d spent most of the day hunting the goblin through the woods, and it was now late afternoon, but it seemed as though the work was far from over.
After I explained everything I’d learned, we all shared another round of stew before we got back to the task of fixing up Meadowlark so the survivors could have a home again.
Evelan even gathered enough strength to leave her bed, and I found her sweeping the upper level with a straw broom and a smile.
“Would you like to see your father?” I asked after I knocked on the doorframe to get her attention. “My job here is done. My followers will continue to help the people of Meadowlark until the town is back on its feet, but you’re welcome to join me when I return to the capital. I’m sure your father would be overjoyed to see you healthy and well, and you’ll be much safer behind the city walls.”
“That sounds lovely, Your Greatness.” Evelan swiped a hand across her sweaty forehead as she shot a grateful smile
my way. “Thank you for saving our town, but I’d like to stay here with the others. They took care of me and protected me when I was on death’s doorstep, so I owe them my life. I know my father will understand.”
“I can respect that.” I stepped into the room and looked around. “Things are already starting to look much better, and I can tell you’ve been working hard. Just promise me you won’t push yourself too hard?”
“Yes, Your Greatness.” Evelan nodded crisply as she held her broom handle at attention. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”
“You’re very welcome.” I tilted my head like a courtier, and the young girl blushed. “I’ll let you know when we head to Vallenwood.”
I’d have to evacuate the entire village before father and daughter would be reunited, but I couldn’t help admiring Ralf and Evelan’s sacrifices and strengths.
Then I met back up with my wives, Theodora, and Ayma, and we discussed what the best step forward would be.
The apothecary and soldiers would remain with Ayma in Meadowlark until everyone in town was well enough to travel,
and they’d continue to assist in any necessary construction for the town’s revival in the meantime.
My wives and I would go to Vallenwood to catch the queens up on everything we’d learned about the threat Plague posed. Once we were all on the same page, we would formulate our defenses and attack strategies, but first, we all needed to be in the same place.
I gathered the women, dragon, and Leaf together, and we blipped to Lake Balerno in a roundabout route to the capital. The horse seemed pleased to see her master once more, and she eagerly trotted into her clean, hay-filled stall. I smiled as I watched the mare chomp down her food, and I shook Atticus’ hand before I left the lakeside town again.
Another blip later, and my wives and I arrived in the throne room of Vallenwood. The room was nearly empty except for a handful of guards, the herald, and the two queens, but then I spotted Ralf sitting against the far wall with his chin resting against his chest. I knew the queens would have offered him a more comfortable space, so he’d probably insisted on staying here until I returned despite the discomfort he felt.
I shook my head in admiration of the stubborn father, and I let him rest for a little while longer as I headed to the throne dais. I would deliver the good news soon enough, but I needed to make sure we had a plan before I turned my attention to anything else. I couldn’t be everywhere all at once, so I needed my team to work to cover my blind spots.
The queens both gave me deep kisses in greeting, and after all the women had exchanged hugs and hellos, I cleared my throat to get everyone’s attention. The only woman missing was Mahini, but she was needed more in Bastianville taking care of my children.
“Plague had an enclosure filled with close to fifty mutated monsters,” I explained. “I have no doubts that he has more forces like this in other locations, and there’s no way of knowing which ones he will release first.”
“They could be anywhere,” Tiff said. “He knows Sorreyal well.”
“Not as well as me,” I countered. “And as far as I know, he can’t fast travel anywhere in the kingdom.”
“But the people in his path cannot blip to safety,” Eva pointed out. “We need to protect them.”
“It would be much easier if everyone was inside Vallenwood’s golden walls,” Caelia murmured. “It would be nice if they could all blip here, but I know it’s going to take a long time to get everyone gathered behind the safety of the walls. It would be crowded, but we can manage.”
“I can help with that,” I reminded her. “I can travel with many people at a time, and I can spread a message even faster than that.”
“So, we’re going to evacuate all the people in the entire kingdom?” Tiff frowned. “Not only is that a huge undertaking, but it could end badly if Plague manages to hit inside the city.”
“I won’t let that happen,” I argued. “We can protect the capital, and we can keep everyone safe at the same time. We just need to hurry.”
“Start in Bastianville,” Zenda said. “It’s the furthest to the west, and you’ll be able to focus on everyone else much better once you know your children are safe in the palace.”
“Good point,” I agreed. “I can work my way around the map from there, but I’ll focus on the places furthest away from the capital first. It would take them the longest to get to Vallenwood.”
“We will send messengers to all the towns close by,”
Caelia suggested. “It will also be easier to recruit soldiers to protect us if all the people are together. The common goal of saving the city will bring people forward to volunteer. I’m sure of it.”
“The rest of us should go back to Bastianville with you to help prepare the people for evacuation,” Zenda suggested.
“It will take some time to mobilize everyone.”
“Good idea.” I nodded. “I also need to get Evelan and Ralf together now that she’s feeling better, and I’m sure I can bring all the residents of Meadowlark to Vallenwood in one blip.”
“It sounds like we have a plan,” Elissa said with a bright smile. “We can do this. The people need us.”
I resisted the urge to bring all our hands in for a sports-team-esque cheer, and I crossed the throne room to the resting father leaning against the wall. Ralf’s face was covered in several days’ worth of beard growth, and he looked dead to the world, but some empty dishes sat beside him, so I knew he’d at least gotten some food before he fell asleep.
“Ralf,” I said in a gentle voice as I squatted down in front of him, but I had to shake him awake by the shoulder
before he opened his eyes to meet mine. “I have good news for you.”
“Evelan?” The worried father blinked back emotion as he straightened himself up. “Is she okay?”
“Better than okay,” I confirmed. “And ready to see her dad.”
“Wonderful!” Ralf gave me a grateful smile. “I will leave right away. Could I trouble you for a fresh horse?”
“You won’t need a horse,” I chuckled. “I’m going to bring everyone here to Vallenwood. The villages outside the capital aren’t safe anymore, and I need to protect the people.”
“The sightings?” Ralf frowned. “Did you figure out what it was?”
“Yeah,” I sighed. “There was a massive number of nasty creatures just outside Meadowlark, but even though I killed them all, that doesn’t mean the town is safe just yet.”
“What can I do?” Ralf stood up and cleared his throat.
“I am at your disposal.”
“Get some more rest until I come back with Evelan,” I instructed. “The people of Meadowlark will need someone to
look after them and speak for the town, and I have a feeling they would all support you as their leader.”
“Consider it done, Great One.” The stubble-faced father snapped a brisk salute.
“Now, find yourself a room and a bed,” I instructed. “I know the queens offered you someplace better to sleep than the floor of the throne room, and you’ll be of more use to me and others if you’re at full strength.”
“I understand.” Ralf cast me a sheepish smile. “I just didn’t want to miss any word of Evelan.”
“I know.” I patted him on the shoulder. “I’ll be back with your daughter before you know it.”
I joined the women who were heading back to Bastianville with me, but I instructed Nameless to stand guard over the city while I was gone. I didn’t expect Plague to launch a frontal assault on the golden-walled capital just yet, but I wasn’t going to leave that up to chance. I needed to get everyone to safety, and then I could focus on hunting down the madman spreading disease and fear.
After a quick blip, we arrived in Bastianville, and the women immediately jumped into action. The castle was a
bustling center of preparation and organization a short while later, and the weakest members of my town were brought together. I made a few trips back and forth to the capital, and it didn’t take me very long to get the most vulnerable population to the safety of the city. Wagons full of supplies were loaded up under Elissa’s supervision, and the army split into various platoons to carry out the rest of my commands. The men would march to the other holdings in my territory, and they would spread the word of the necessary evacuation.
Once I moved the weakest to Vallenwood, I blipped back to Meadowlark to rescue the remaining villagers. Ayma met me at the front door of the mini mansion, and a frown of concern creased her brow as soon as she saw my serious expression. I quickly explained what was going on, and the older woman wasted no time in gathering all the people still in the small town.
Theodora and the soldiers who had remained in town helped the injured and weak people gather in the lower level, and I clasped Evelan’s hand warmly as we blipped to Vallenwood.
“Evelan!” Ralf’s excited voice called out as soon as we materialized in the throne room, and the older man looked
much more energetic than he had been.
“Father!” the young girl sobbed as she dashed into her father’s arms, and the smile on his now clean-shaven face made all my efforts worthwhile.
There were more than one set of moist eyes watching the heartwarming reunion of father and daughter, and I stepped back to let the rest of the people of Meadowlark reconnect with the man who’d helped save their lives. If he hadn’t reached Vallenwood when he did, there was no telling how many survivors would have remained by the time I arrived in the small village.
Meadowlark was empty now, but I knew it wouldn’t remain that way for long. Once I won the war against the God of the Plague, the people could return to their homes and create a new life for their small town. I would make sure they thrived from now on, and my chest filled with determination to conquer the threat against the realm.
I made a new save point before I continued the work of evacuating people, and the throne room rapidly filled with refugees displaced from their homes. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits despite the fear and confusion the evacuation
caused, but I hoped they trusted in their god enough to follow me through their fears.
I had no intention of failing them.
I worked my way across the map from Bastianville to Carleone and onward to Ivywood and Wyndvale, and after a few blips back to the capital, only soldiers remained in my territory to man the walls and other defenses. Once my territory was secured, I arrived in Bullard to explain to my father-in-law what needed to be done.
The Duke of Bullard listened attentively to my brief explanation, and he quickly promised to prepare his territory for evacuation. Even though the stone-walled fortress would be easier to defend than the villages without protective barriers, I hoped finding empty town after empty town sparked some anger in Plague.
An angry enemy was easier to manipulate.
With evacuation efforts proceeding in Bullard’s territory, I moved around the map to the other strongholds. I met with Ako in Arginold Hold, Duke Quin and Duchess Ira in Mistvale Keep, and Duke Fester in Edinburg Manor. It would take some time for them to gather the people within their territories and prepare them for evacuation, but I wasn’t
sure how much longer it would be before Plague started his attack.
The faster the holdings acted to protect their people, the more time we would have to prepare Vallenwood for the final assault. Plus, it would be a lot easier to feed and clothe the masses with assistance from the liege lords who ruled over them, and this was one of those times where everyone needed to pitch in.
After I circled the farthest edges of Sorreyal, I began to spiral my way inward, and I discovered multiple holes in my memory-enhanced fast travel ability. I had to start taking Goliath with me so I could ride into the small villages I’d never explored before, and every moment I was on horseback made my challenge take that much longer. I was a little frustrated with how much time slipped past me, but I had to remind myself that Rome wasn’t built in a day, and evacuating an entire kingdom was an impossible task for one day.
I wasn’t about to give up, though, even when I began to feel my stamina wearing down from the constant blips across the map. The God of Time could accomplish anything he set his mind to, and this task would be no different.
Once word had been spread throughout the kingdom, I took a break to shovel some food into my mouth, but then I returned to Bastianville to check on the state of the evacuation there. I immediately encountered wagons filled with parcels and bundles lining the street, and soldiers moved about in all directions like bees swarming a hive.
“We’re ready to go,” Mahini said as she came up behind me, and I swiveled to see the desert beauty with our son lashed to her chest. A sack hung down her back from her shoulders, and her icy-blue eyes were filled with determination. “I think Celeste should go with us during the next round. The sooner we can get the babies situated in the palace nursery, the faster Elissa and I can join your efforts to protect the people.”
“I like the way you think.” I grinned. “I’ll feel much better about focusing on Plague if I know my family is safe.
I’ll grab the others, and we’ll head to Vallenwood in a moment.”
I made several more trips from Bastianville to Vallenwood, but thanks to the organization and speed of communication from my women, all my other holdings had already gathered in my main settlement. All I had to do was
blip back and forth, and I quickly worked my way through the throng of people filling the main street of Bastianville.
As soon as my women arrived in Vallenwood, they all got to work on various necessary tasks. Caelia directed the wagons full of supplies to the most appropriate places to store goods, Eva had the guardsmen condensing the population by having people share their homes with others, and Akina directed the flow of traffic pouring through the gates to where they needed to go. Mahini and Elissa showed the weakest people to rooms in the palace while Tiff and Zenda compiled maps and notes onto a large table in a room adjacent to the audience chamber.
It seemed like they were handling everything else while I focused on moving the people to the golden-walled city, so I was able to streamline a lot of the process. I blipped back and forth to all the places I could remember around the realm, and I checked on the progress being made in the other strongholds.
Everyone in the smaller towns had migrated to the closest city, and I used the castle courtyards as a launching pad for my fast travel trips. I made sure to take a break every few rounds to make sure I didn’t overly exhaust myself, but it would all be worth it at the end of the day.
During what I considered my final blip, I sensed fear and anxiety in the people crowded inside Vallenwood’s audience chamber, and everywhere I looked, they stared back at me in wide-eyed terror. I’d ripped them from their homes and told them a powerful enemy was on the way, and the rapid-fire changes had obviously traumatized them.
I needed to help them regain the strength of their faith in me.
Time for a godly speech.
I gathered as many people as I could into the audience chamber, and I stood at the front of the dais with the empty thrones at my back. Everyone looked up at me with scared but hopeful eyes, and I cleared my throat as I prepared to comfort them with my words.
“This is a strange time for all of us,” I said. “We are all experiencing new things and extreme changes, and I know how hard that is on all of you. My first priority is ensuring everyone’s safety, but letting fear and despair take over is one of the most dangerous things you can do. I need every single citizen of Sorreyal to band together against this threat, and if we can manage that, then I know we will usher in a new era of peace and prosperity for all.”
Loud cheers rang in my ears, and I watched as the faces filled with fear shifted to more hopeful expressions. I let out a sigh of relief as I watched the people start to accept their current predicament, and I knew they all believed in my ability to keep them safe.
Now, I just had to show them that their faith was well placed.
I headed to bed only when my limbs resisted any movement, and I collapsed face first into the mattress with a groan. I fell asleep a moment later, but I felt much more human when I was woken up by a knock on the door.
I squinted my eyes at the wooden door for a moment, but then it opened to flood the entryway with light from the hallway. Two feminine forms were silhouetted in the doorway, and it only took me a moment to recognize Eva and Caelia.
“What are you doing?” I asked in a sleepy voice.
“You’ve been working so hard all day,” Caelia said in a soft, sultry voice.
“We decided you deserved to be taken care of as well,”
Eva added.
“Let us pleasure you, please?” Caelia asked and batted her eyelashes.
“Get over here already,” I chuckled as I patted the bed beside me.
Being the God of Time always came with the best perks, and being pleasured by two gorgeous queens was definitely a nice benefit of the job.