The Mutant World (62 page)

“How old is Lord Jawara, again?” she asked smiling ruefully.

“Uh, about late teens to early twenties,” said Luther with a grin. “No more than twenty one, I’m sure. But he is strong,
very
strong.”

Beverly laughed and said, “The poor boy.”

******

Empress Beral III and High Lord Talos watched in pride as Lord Jawara’s host arrived at Alba…a portion of it that is. The rest were camped a ways from the city or scattered about the forest. That a youth his age could raise such a force was indeed impressive. Naturally, their daughter was by his side, but there were three other women present as well. One was a curvaceous black girl almost as tall as Miko, with a head of dark black curls and brown skin. She was topless and wore decorations of beads and gold. Around her waist was a decorated skirt with split sides for riding. She had a leopard’s skin slung over one shoulder and circular shield strapped on her back. A broad sword was at her waist. In her fist was a lance.

Another was a copper skinned girl with long black hair. She was of medium height and had a
very
thick and ample form, but despite her thick proportions she seemed quite strong and solid. She too wore gold and beaded decorations including a beaded choker around her neck, but the designs and patterns were of a different type than the first girl’s. Her brief open top, skirt and leggings were of fringed leather. She carried a painted shield and feathered lance. The war club hanging from her waist was of Native American design. It was of the type used by the warriors of the eastern woodlands, long and curved with a large knob at the end. However, where the original weapon used by the Earth Indians was made of ironwood, this version was larger and made of solid
iron
.

The High Lord chuckled. Even from this distance he could see the girl’s huge breasts as they bounced with each step of the horse. She was built much like his wife and probably had pretty much the same temperament, strength and
other
similarities as well. He both pitied and envied Jawara.

The third girl was light golden complexioned and had large loose blond curls, features that suggested Afro-European ancestry and blue, but oriental eyes. She was curvaceous, but short. She carried a bow and a curved sword hung from her waist. A round shield was strapped by her side. Like the other two girls she was wearing war paint, beaded jewelry and animal teeth.

All the girls were beautiful and all rode close behind Lord Jawara and Princess Miko. Behind them were the standards of three great tribes and their leaders, two queens and one king. Behind these were the standards of
many
lesser tribes and their warriors.

“So those are the three princesses that Lord Jawara had to marry to gain his allies,” said Talos. Then he grinned and said, “They’re all beauties! I’d wager not just any mutant could handle the thick one. She’s as big as
you
in certain places, wife.”

The empress sighed. He was probably right. Then she chuckled. Jawara had his work cut out for him. Her daughter alone would have been a handful, but those three as well? The empress was surprised Jawara was still able to ride a horse. She was impressed.

“Yes, they’re very beautiful, my lord,” said Beral III. “But they’re also some of the toughest looking bitches I’ve seen in a while. Their parents and people look like folk who are not to be trifled with.”

“If they’ve been fighting the Barratians, Mavie and who knows whatever tribes beyond our knowledge for generations, I’d imagine they’re pretty tough,” said Talos. “These Barratians are no pushovers. We’ve found that out the hard way.”

“Indeed!” said the empress. “That he could gain the respect of these people to such a degree speaks volumes of Lord Jawara’s character.”

“You mean ‘Prince’ Jawara,” said Talos grinning.”

“Quite, my lord,” chuckled the empress. “Shall we go and greet our new son-in-law?”

******

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
VICTORY AND OBLIGATIONS

T
he capital of Barrat was a large and well-fortified city for this region, but as predicted, unable to resist the forces arrayed against it. In fact, it didn’t even try. Messengers arrived under sign of truce at the imperial camp and surrendered the city willingly…to Lord Jawara. Indeed, they made it perfectly clear that they were surrendering not to the empire, but to King Roc’s most worthy heir. Needless to say, this caused some anxiety for the empress and her female ancestors and peers. As for Jawara’s legitimately sired siblings, Pantherus was now bound to the empire by marriage. Sandra was a woman and Tidor had taken a human slave girl for his honored mate. None of these people were acceptable to the Barratian leaders who remained. Hell, Tidor was unacceptable to almost everyone and as Jawara would learn later; his brother’s behavior had not been concealed by him after all and this had placed his father in a very tight spot before he died. His father’s agreement with the empire to placate the scorned princess’s kin, and his own actions, had placed
him
in a tight spot too.

Still, Jawara needed to settle with the remaining holdouts, so all agreed that they would deal with that after the job was done. Elder Terrence and his few remaining supporters had fled to his personal stronghold and this would be the hardest fight of the entire war.

Merkel was a formidable fortified town built high in the mountains. The area around and below it was heavily forested. It had waterfalls and other natural features that could allow determined fighters to successfully resist forces much larger than their own even before they reached the fortress town. Well, normally this would have been true, but what the Merkels were up against now was not the usual forces that would have normally been much fewer in numbers and much less motivated. Mile by bloody mile Terrence’s forces lost ground. Empress Beral III’s forces overran strong positions one after another. The enemy fought savagely, but were inexorably forced back or annihilated when they refused to retreat or surrender.

The end was coming for Lord Terrence and he knew it as he looked over his walls and saw the legions below. Large towers could be seen in the distance being moved into position, but they didn’t worry him. His spies had told him some time ago that the empress had called in airships and crack specialist armed with killing tools that offered little glory and would diminish the honor of anyone who used them, but they would assuredly get the job done. Such weapons were almost never used in war on Bellasaria except for the one exception. But they were now here…and Terrence knew why. Using a gun had been the biggest mistake of his many mistakes since he decided to overthrow King Roc. No matter the difficulty, the empress and vassal rulers had every intention of fighting this out to its bloody conclusion by sword and bow, but he changed the rules by using a gun.

Worse of all, by using such a weapon, he became despised in the eyes of even his own followers. They abandoned him by the thousands and he now had only his own clan and those who saw him (flawed as he was) as their only hope against domination by the empire. He had supporters in the empire, which is how he acquired the pistol and teleport device, but he had not heard from them in weeks. To prove to his men he was with them to the end, he destroyed the teleport device. To prove his resolve to fight with honor he did something else. The smuggled in firearms he had would not amount to much against what the empress now had and he dared not use them even once. Before his entire army he had them all smashed and then sent to Beral III as proof of his intent to fight within the rules. However, if Beral III didn’t believe him she would blast his defenses to dust killing hundreds. Terrence knew that he was now seen as utterly without honor. Indeed, even less than the now dead usurper, Stragg. No one would blame the empress for not believing him. All Terrence could do now was pray.

******

Jawara and Talos looked over the map of Merkel City. It didn’t look good. The ladies Gorgo, Bellasaris and Empress Beral III entered the room and looked at Talos who shook his head, then to Jawara.

“Merkel’s position is strong,” said Jawara. “It’s built right into the mountain thirty feet up. The lower wall is a first line of defense where the barracks of the warriors are located. This town is the home of the ‘All-Males,’ the homosexual warrior societies.” Talos made a face and then snickered. “I warn you, Father, others have made the fatal mistake of underestimating them and those who lived to tell the tale now speak of them with respect. These men are not to be scoffed at…at least in war.”

“I’ll try to remember that,” said Talos.

“The second wall here,” said Jawara returning to the map, “is where the commoners and slaves live. The first wall and dwellings can be breached with catapults and siege towers with difficulty. Just getting our towers and battering rams up the steep slope to the wall is going to be a real pain in the ass. They might be effective in taking the higher defenses as well, but the main keep where the nobility and their families live will be impossible to reach by towers. It goes up in a winding path here with sharp angling corners. It was made in such a way as to expose an attacking enemy to missiles from above while leaving the defenders protected. It is much too narrow for towers or siege engines. That job would have to be done with warriors on foot under fire from above. Naturally, they will be prepared for attacks from above by our flyers.”

“Impressive,” said the empress. “I’m surprised that
this
wasn’t your people’s capital.”

“It was,” said Jawara, “until our population and territories outgrew it. My family trusted Elder Terrence and loved him like family. He was given these lands and the old capital in reward for his loyal services and to hold if we were ever faced with…well, a situation like this. We never dreamed he’d be holding it against us.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask you,” said Bellasaris, “Lord Terrence…what is his story? Why does he hate women and fear female rule so much?”

“The elder doesn’t hate women,” said Lord Jawara. “And
none
of us wants to be dominated by women.” It didn’t go unnoticed by the empress and the other women that Jawara had said this last part with some degree of pride.

“In fact,” continued Jawara, “until his mate was killed by the Mavie at the infamous peace celebration, along with my grandmother and other kin and vassals, he was the one most open and outspoken for peace and compromise. Hell, he even wanted reunification and the forming of one nation I was told. But after the murder of his mate he forswore peace and equality and became bent on Mavie’s total destruction. He became the outspoken advocate of not letting women get even a
sliver
of power here least they make us their slaves again.”

“You say his mate was killed?” said Bellasaris. “Were they bonded?”

“Yes,” said Jawara. “They grew up in the same village and had known each other since before they could speak a full correct sentence or walk without stumbling. Frankly, we are surprised that he didn’t ultimately begin to decline rapidly and die soon afterwards, them being together for centuries and all…that or go mad with grief.”

The women looked at each other sadly and Bellasaris said, “Poor man. Poor, poor man.”

Jawara looked at Bellasaris and the other curiously at this. He couldn’t understand this strange new sympathy for the traitor.

“I can see your confusion, child,” said Gorgo. “Not surprising for one such as you, a baby who has not lived for even a half century. Your elder
is
mad.”

“Impossible,” said Jawara firmly. “The elder was the picture of wisdom and reliability for years. It was his wise council that served my grandfather and father best once the war with the Mavie resumed. He never showed any signs of being unstable.”

“You said it yourself,” said the empress. “His entire outlook and behavior changed after his wife was killed, yes? Barrat was his best friend I understand?” “They were like brothers,” said Jawara. “Barrat freed him.”

“But he didn’t lose heart after Barrat was mutilated, his son killed and finally Barrat himself. I’m certain many dear friends and comrades had died over the years at the hands of the Mavie. But it was when his mate was killed that he changed.”

“He seemed stable to you and the others because his madness was focused on vengeance towards the Mavie…like everyone else’s,” said Talos. “You all were susceptible to his misogynistic suggestions because of the pain of that betrayal…and the empire entering the conflict on the side of the Mavie. However, when your grandfather began to mend his fences with the empire, and later, with your father furthering relations by implementing reforms and giving women back some of their freedom, Terrence began to become nervous. Then came this great summit and your brother bonding with the Mavie Queen and the added union with my daughter. With peace looming and the prospect of the Mavie surviving, thus robbing him of his vengeance-”

“And national reform and total freedom for your women,” added Bellasaris, “forced by close ties of marriage with the empire.”

“He finally lost it,” said Talos. “You had bonded with our other daughter and your father had made an agreement with us that we will discuss later. You’ve probably guessed the nature of this already. In any case, you, his last hope, was now lost to Terrence. With all the kings sons now tied to the empire, soon to be or disgraced, Terrence became desperate. I understand that it was he who helped the late king in choosing a mate for Princess Sandra?” Jawara nodded. “It is no coincidence that this is the same man he persuaded to usurp the throne. It seems to me that he was already seeing to it his former master’s bloodline survived. With you unable to succeed because of your birth and the younger sons’ potentials uncertain he would have insurance with your sister’s children. Stragg would be eliminated once he’d fathered his heirs, possibly Sandra too… eventually. But the bloodline of Terrence’s beloved master would continue through their sons. And he would step in as their surrogate father/chief advisor, making sure that they had the right mentality for a Barratian King. However, Stragg bungled everything. And Terrence is now beginning to become truly unstable, irrational. His actions at the duel and the gun are proof of this.”

“Indeed, he is mad,” said the empress. “Cunning, true, but mad. We cannot hate him now.”

“But we cannot just walk away and leave him either,” said Bellasaris. “I won’t have him dragged through the streets of Dinos and Illia, but he still needs to be put down…mercifully.”

“Agreed,” said Jawara, who really couldn’t care less if Elder Terrence was crazy or not. All he knew was that this man was behind his father’s murder. He would have his head. “I’ll take Merkel down stone by stone if I have to. Elder Terrence is mine!”

******

The battle went pretty much as everyone expected. The Bellasarian host stormed the lower defenses under a hail of arrows and stones from above, but not one single shot from even a primitive M-16 was fired. Secretly, the imperial command was disappointed. If the scum had held back any forbidden weaponry and were crazy enough to use even one, they could have taken the city easily using advanced military tech and the battle would have been over in just a few hours, if that. However, since the enemy wasn’t using advanced tech, they couldn’t either and had to do things the hard way.

Lord Jawara and his warriors watched in awe as giant stone warriors pushed the huge siege towers forward. The arrows that managed to reach them bounced off harmlessly or fleshed themselves shallowly in their tough hides beneath the stony skin or scales of their bodies. Among them were great cats and other beast, also of stone and equally impervious to enemy missiles. Behind and around them were other giant warriors of stone with large shields and war-hammers, clubs and maces.

“They are of the House of Stone,” said the empress to Jawara, “your kin by Lord Cato through the Ladies Gorgo and Hilda. Also, Hilda’s twin brother was mated into another clan and eventually we mated his descendants into our house, thus uniting that clan with the main house. They are the huge warriors pushing the towers and loading the catapults.”

“Impressive,” said Jawara. “Are they so huge all the time? They cannot mate with anyone outside of their own kin if so.”

“No,” said the empress. “In human form they are much smaller. Most are about my lord’s size,” she said nodding to Talos, “but some are a little bigger or smaller.”

Jawara chuckled. That was still pretty damn big. A stone giantess caught a glimpse of him and smiled. She raised her huge arm and waved. Jawara acknowledged the greeting and the 12ft tall girl turned and got back to work.

“That was the Lady Trina,” said Gorgo joining the two. She too was fully transformed and armed with the huge club she was famous for. “She has her sights on you. Do you like what you see?” Immediately, Jawara’s wives began to look nervously at one another, but none would dare say a peep to the old mother. Jawara on the other hand was not so old and venerable. He would get more than a mouthful later if he said the wrong thing…and he knew it.

Jawara swallowed and looked at the big Bellasarian girl again. The giantess’s body was covered in greenish scales of stone. Nothing jiggled or bounced in that form, but her figure was still
most
impressive. In human form she could give even the empress and great elder Gorgo herself a run for their money. Jawara was certain that one night with that girl would be incredible, exhausting and utterly worth it. But he already had too much on his plate and this in itself was proof that it was bound to get worse.