Building Harem Town 8, page 3
“Will I just see you when we get there?” The brunette’s fingers twitched as she gripped the dragon’s scales, and I knew how much it would mean to her if I stayed.
“How about I ride with you?” I asked. “Flying with dragons is one of the ultimate godly perks, after all.”
“Really?” Nicola gasped with wide eyes. “Yes! If you’re sure, Jack.”
“There is nowhere else I would rather be,” I said as I hoisted myself up and swung my leg over the dragon’s scaly spine.
We shuffled close so I was wedged behind Nicola, and I kissed her neck gently as I held her slim waist.
“What a view,” I whispered as I leaned over her shoulder and glanced down at her cleavage.
“Jack!” Nicola giggled, but she shimmied in my arms playfully.
The dragon glanced back to make sure we were secure before it spread its enormous wings and shot up into the air. Nicola cheered as we soared upward, and a rush of adrenaline pounded in my chest.
The thrill of flying would probably never get old. Especially when I had one of my gorgeous priestesses perched in front of me. She sighed happily as she leaned back, too, and I stroked her hair as the dragon swung around to head south.
“Do you need to give it directions?” I asked as I looked down at the emerald trees below.
“She seems to know the way,” Nicola said. “Shit, I can’t believe we’re actually going to kill him.”
“What was he like?” I asked. “Before he took your family away?”
“Awful,” Nicola said. “But it was really my family who acted on his words. My stepmother told me I wasn’t good enough every single day. I remember how she shouted at me because I wasn’t praying properly or taking enough time to go to their stupid temple. Everything I did was wrong and never good enough, and it was all because Xomes apparently decided so. They made me feel worthless.”
My anger rose at every word. Fuck this guy for using his power to bully a kid. What did these assholes get from making their potential followers feel like shit? Would they never learn that you couldn’t terrify people into worshiping them?
It was going to be seriously satisfying to send him into oblivion.
We soared over the forest as the dragon moved at an insane speed. It was like the creature had been spurred on by Nicola’s words, and the landscape below us was blurry as we flew. The dragon carried us south of the mountains as if we were heading back to Evelhelm, but we veered slightly to the east before we approached the city.
I scanned my territory map as we flew, and I couldn’t help but grin at the hundreds of red dots we passed along the way. My followers were everywhere, the numbers growing by the day, and I wondered how many this Xomes asshole had. Probably not a whole lot if he was still treating every skeptic like shit.
The dragon started to slow down as we approached a stretch of land that wasn’t my territory. I hadn’t been this far south before, and I looked down as a walled village came into view. The perimeter was dark stone with ivy growing on it, and I could see a town square that sat in the center. But there didn’t seem to be anyone out and about. The cobbled streets were empty, but all the houses were well kept. It was like a ghost town, but it seemed too well cared for to have been abandoned.
“Where is everyone?” I asked as we circled above the village. “It doesn’t look ruined, but I can’t see anyone.”
“That’s strange,” Nicola muttered. “The square always used to be crammed full of market stalls. There were nearly a dozen bakers, butchers, weavers… and sometimes Evelhelm farmers would travel down with their wares.”
“Let’s get to the ground,” I said. “There’s a clearing down near the gateway.”
The dragon snorted in acknowledgement as it slowly spiraled down to the patch of exposed grass that led to the city doors. I helped Nicola down onto the ground, and I gave the dragon a grateful nod.
“Thank you,” I said. “We shouldn’t be long.”
The huge creature arranged itself so it was sitting in the sunshine, and it laid its massive head down with a contented grunt.
I looked up at the stone archway that led to the town, but I couldn’t hear a single set of footsteps coming from inside. The silence was bizarre and only broken occasionally by the contented snorts of the dragon.
“Why is it so quiet?” Nicola hissed as we approached the wall. “Do you think he’s left?”
“It looks like his followers have at least,” I said as we strode toward the gateway. “Or maybe they just don’t like going outside. Let’s see where this fucker is hiding.”
We walked through the archway, and I looked around at the cobbled streets lined with stone houses that had thatched roofs. Archborough was a very clean town, but the houses all had curtains drawn, or the lanterns were doused inside. We walked toward the town square and past a butcher’s shop and tavern. Both businesses were dark inside, and an eerie silence hung in the air around us.
“It’s the same as I remember,” Nicola muttered as she peered into the tavern. “But this place was always so busy with customers. I always used to come in here when my parents made me feel bad. The owners were so nice, and they had a girl who was about the same age as me. It’s so weird to see it all empty and quiet.”
“Well, let’s get this party started,” I sighed, and I strode into the center of the square.
Nicola shivered as she followed me and glanced around her old hometown, and then we came to a halt beside a dried-up fountain. There were two beautiful, winged women carved in stone, but they were covered in green moss. It looked like there hadn’t been water in the fountain for a long time, and the large basin had a few cracks running down to the middle. Purple worms crawled around the broken sculpture as we stared around the cobbled streets.
Then I raised my voice to a booming timbre.
“Xomes!” I called as I turned full circle. “I am Jack, the God of Ones and Zeroes, and I am here to destroy you. Come out from hiding and face me!”
I paused for a moment to see if any reply would come, but there were no signs of movement anywhere.
I started to wonder if Xomes was really still here. It seemed unlikely he had won more land than what he’d started with, but the whole city seemed too still.
Unnaturally still.
“Hey, asshole!” I called and let out a sharp whistle. “I know you’re too much of a coward to do anything about it, but I’m here to fight you and send you into fucking oblivion. Might as well get your slimy ass out here and take it like a man.”
“Yeah, asshole!” Nicola yelled. “Or do you only fight children?”
“Come out and play, Xomes,” I chuckled. “Or are you too scared to even look me in the eye?”
That did it.
There was a sudden flash of yellow light as a man appeared on the other side of the fountain.
He was a head shorter than me with long blond hair that was slicked back in a ponytail. His face was round with a red scar running over his bulbous nose, and he wore a bizarre suit of armor that had fake pecs and abs on the chest piece. Xomes’ expression was wide-eyed and nervous, and I snorted with laughter as he looked around as if for backup.
“This is not your land,” the god spluttered. “Leave! Leave now, and I will not have to hurt you! This is your final warning.”
His voice cracked as he spoke, and his armor creaked as he shuffled backward. The fake abs were almost embarrassing to look at, and I had a strong suspicion that his scar had been self-inflicted rather than the outcome of some violent brawl.
It was placed too carefully, like he wanted to look like a battleworn badass.
“You don’t look very immaculate,” I said as I took a lazy step forward, and Nicola snorted with laughter.
“I’m not surprised,” she said.
“Leave!” Xomes spat. “Or I will make you!”
His eyes fell on Nicola, and he suddenly tried to force his face into a sleazy grin. He ran a hand over his blonde hair as he looked her up and down.
I shuddered as his gaze lingered on her sculpted legs, and Nicola wrinkled her nose as he stared.
“Good morning,” he crooned as he tried to steady his voice. “Is this god bothering you?”
“Is he bothering me?” Nicola repeated as she folded her arms. “Is he fucking bothering me? No. Jack, the most powerful and caring god in existence, is not bothering me. You slimy fucker.”
“I can give you things he cannot!” Xomes said as he tried to stand up taller. “Come and be my priestess! I shall give you anything you dream of!”
“I would rather eat my own sword,” Nicola said. “Or the worms in that fountain. I would rather do literally anything else in the world than come near you.”
“Don’t be rude,” Xomes hissed. “I am a powerful god. Come to me, so I can show you what real power looks like.”
Nicola laughed, and the young god’s face fell into a furious scowl.
“Whore!” Xomes spat. “I shall kill you, too!”
“Really?” I asked with a grin. “Because it seems to me like you are the one who is about to meet a very quick and embarrassing death.”
The young god’s eyes darted between me and Nicola, but then I saw movement out of the corner of my eye.
Two young men had emerged from one of the houses, and they stared at me with open mouths as they stayed close to their doorway. They were both broad-shouldered and stocky with fiery-red hair, and their clothes were worn and tattered. Their skin was so pale that they didn’t look like they had seen the sun for a long time.
“Hello,” I called. “I am the god Jack. I’m here to kill this piece of shit excuse for a god.”
The two men looked at each other, but then they suddenly broke into excited grins. The taller one slapped the shorter one’s back, and I spotted another door slowly creaking open on the other side of the square. A middle-aged woman with curled horns shuffled onto a doorstep, and her pink skin contrasted violently with her red dress. She had long talons and beady eyes, and she eyed me warily as she gripped a broom.
Her eyes fell on Nicola, and the horned woman gasped. I figured they must know each other, but the priestess was too focused on the god to notice.
“Good morning!” I called with a friendly nod, and several more doors slowly opened as more residents appeared in the town square.
There was a range of different species, but they all seemed to be worried about coming too close or making too much noise. I had a strong suspicion they had been punished before for existing too loudly, and I watched Xomes as he glanced around at his followers.
Not a single one of them looked like they had any interest in coming to defend their god. It was almost sad how little they seemed to care about him.
Almost.
“Get back inside,” Xomes snarled. “You pathetic worms. I am your god, and I demand you return inside! Lanterns off until it’s time to pray! You don’t deserve the sunlight!”
The horned woman scowled deeply at her god, and she threw her broom to the side as she folded her arms.
“Stay and watch if you wish.” I sent the pissed off woman another friendly smile, and her scowl softened a few degrees. “In fact, if any of you would like to join my followers once this weasel is gone, you are more than welcome. Do as you please, though. Live your lives, light your lanterns… it is no concern to me that you breathe and speak and do as you like. I only ask that you not interfere while I dispose of this shit stain excuse of a god. He is… lacking… to say the least.”
“But Jack is an amazing god,” Nicola called to the people around us. “He is powerful, while also kind. He knows when to deliver true wrath with a sense of justice, but never punishes those who are good and deserving of his love. We are all so well looked after as his followers, and none of us live in fear.”
“Jack,” the horned woman said thoughtfully in a gruff voice. “We’ve heard of you. The one who saved Evelhelm from the storm, yeah? I’ve heard stories from the elves on the road. Stories that say you’re their savior. That you’re the one true god who deserves all devotion.”
“He slays evil gods,” one of the red-haired boys hissed. “I’ve heard of him! It’s really him!”
“They say he has an army of wolves, too,” the other boy said in a whisper of awe. “Can you believe that?”
“Oh, he has wolves.” Nicola smiled. “Dragons, too.”
There was a sudden explosion of excited chatter, and the two red-haired boys looked like their eyes might burst from their skulls.
“Silence!” Xomes shrieked as he stepped toward me. “You will all pay for your disobedience! I have sent you so many times to find me a priestess, and none of you could find one like her?”
“She’s beautiful,” the horned woman said. “Which is why I doubt she would ever glance in your direction favorably. I reckon you have to be a god like Jack to win the heart of that kind of priestess.”
“Well… there’s that… and the fact he didn’t seem to give a shit about me when I lived in this very city,” Nicola scoffed.
Xomes’ eyes flared, and my brunette lover smirked as she crossed her arms.
“Yes, I didn’t think you’d remember,” she purred in a lethal tone. “I’m sure all the outcasts who have been thrown out of their families on your account just all blur together over time. Can’t handle anyone who isn’t blindly devoted, can you?”
“Hah,” the horned woman snickered, and she looked at Nicola with a spark of admiration.
“Silence wench!” Xomes seethed. “She speaks nonsense!”
Nicola smiled at the pink-skinned woman, and it was abundantly clear that Xomes had no loyalty or control over these people. Not really. I could tell that he hadn’t changed from the days when he’d tormented Nicola. And if he didn’t give respect to his followers, then he shouldn’t be shocked when they didn’t give it back.
“Do you remember her?” I asked quietly. “This beautiful woman is the little girl you used to bully. Her family ostracized her under your bidding. They tormented her because of your hideous influence.”
Xomes scowled at Nicola, and he shook his head with a shrug.
“I don’t remember,” he spat. “If she was punished, then I’m sure she deserved it. They all deserve it. Not one idiot who has lived in this city deserves me as their god.”
“Can’t argue with that,” I growled as I took another step. “Nobody deserves to live under the rule of a little coward like you.”
My blood boiled as I stared at the blond-haired god.
Nobody fucked with my priestesses and got away with it.
I drew the Wrath of Jack from my hip, but then I almost choked on my laughter as Xomes pulled out his weapon.
It was the saddest little blade I had ever seen, and it was barely longer than a bread knife. There was no gleam or shine to it, and I wasn’t sure it would even do well against a woodland creature. The hilt was a dull brown that looked like it was rusting from age, which made me wonder if the shittiest gods were stuck with the shittiest weapons as time wore on?
It sure seemed that way.
“Is that your god weapon?” I scoffed. “This is the blade that you think will hurt me?”
Xomes swung his pathetic dagger around wildly as he stumbled backward, and quiet laughter echoed around from the city’s people.
“Kill him,” one of the young men called. “He doesn’t let us do anything! Our lives are miserable because of him! We gave him our devotion, and he ruined our town and our businesses!”
“Well, we can’t have that, can we?” I chuckled.
Then I strode toward the young god, and he raced around the fountain to try and escape me. His head was glistening with sweat, and I smirked as he stumbled on the cobblestones. There was no grace or strength in the way he held himself. It was almost uncomfortable to watch a god with no trace of bravery or pride.
The horned woman lit a pipe as she leaned against her doorway, and the rest of the people were clearly ready for a show as well.
“It seems that your own supposed followers want to see you die,” I said lazily. “That might be the most pathetic thing I’ve ever heard about a god. If you even qualify as one.”
“I am a god!” Xomes spat as he waved his dagger. “Stay back! This is my land!”
“Not for long,” I said. “Shall we fight? Or are you going to keep running away like a scared little rabbit? Maybe there’s a child around here who would be a fairer opponent for you.”
“I do not fear you!” Xomes howled. “Leave! Or feel my mighty wrath! I wear the scars of the gods I have slain!”
“No, he doesn’t,” the horned woman snorted. “He fell onto his own blade and cut his ugly face open.”
“Shut up!” Xomes screeched. “This is a war scar! I have killed every god I have ever met.”
“Very believable,” I said with a mocking nod. “Almost as believable as those metal muscles you’re sporting.”
The crowd roared with laughter as the young god turned scarlet.
I could tell he was going to keep running around the fountain like a kid playing tag, so I leapt up onto the stone sculpture with a grin. Xomes yelped as he stumbled backward, and his arms shook as he waved his blade at me.
“I think the Hodges are more intimidating,” Nicola said as she twirled her dark brown hair. “Not so scary now that a real god is here, eh?”
“Fuck you, whore!” Xomes spat, and my expression darkened immediately as I loomed over the asshole.
“Apologize to Nicola,” I growled as I looked down at him. “Apologize, and I might make your death slightly less humiliating. Those are your only options at this point.”
“I have nothing to apologize for,” Xomes snarled. “If she was punished, then she deserved it.”
“Oh, come on, now,” I sighed. “Not even a little ‘sorry?’ What about all these people you’ve caused pain to? Do any of them get an apology?”
“They are all worms!” Xomes howled. “I am a god! I deserve this! My legacy shall live on forever!”
“Well, no, it won’t,” I said with a careless shrug. “It definitely ends right here, right now. That’s been decided on.”
