Blackrock Mercenaries

No one stopped us as we made our way inside, though we had to push through the group of townsfolk who were crowding around the exit. By the time we reached the front, Penny was outright threatening people and Father Thed was shouting loud enough to be heard above the angry muttering.

"This is a holy place! I beg you all, let's not forget. Floranian loves all her children and we are all her children. Please, do not shed blood inside such holy walls."

"They tricked us!" a voice next to me yelled, a younger man carrying a pew leg like a club.

He gestured with it, drawing my attention to the windows. Once again, they were simple stained glass windows. None of the previous monsters or liches remained, though I spotted several lights reminiscent of the Trickster Sprites hovering around outside. Their illumination made the windows shine, throwing strange colours into the church, which did little to make the biggest threat in the room less terrifying.

Opposite of the townsfolk stood Bethel, or what had once been Bethel. She stood now at seven feet, with four thin, almost emasculated limbs, poking out of a torso covered in blue chitin. Large semi-translucent wings sprang from her back, one covering Nethlim, who stood nearby.

Her eyes, which had transformed into insectoid shaped orbs of multicolored lights, watched the crowd with disdain. In a breeze I couldn't feel. Her blonde hair floated, almost tendril like as they reached out to her daughter.

Janice was on the floor next to Clarince, everything but her face washed with a light that constantly shifted between hues. The light seemed to stretch and undulate. I noted some of the other children who were watching her, worried expressions on their faces.

Rita marched forward, her sword held at the ready. She reached Father Thed before Bethel held out one of her hands, a swirling ball of light appearing in it. As she did, I spotted that the wedding ring I had seen earlier remained on her finger. A hiss came from Bethel.

"Take another step, and I'll cast enough spells to destroy everyone here."

"You're a Chaos Queen, leader of this hive of Trickster Sprites, aren't you?" Rita's voice was curt, and when I turned to check on Penny, I found she was gone.

"You know about us?" Bethel smirked, but she didn't drop the ball. "Then you know I'm not bluffing. There's enough chaos in the air now that I can level this building."

Father Thed looked stricken, and Rita nodded, her ponytail bouncing as she did. "Agreed. We don't have to fight in here."

"We're not fighting at all. This is my hive's home, through the right of marriage and conquest. My daughter will transform and rule here as queen in all but name." Bethel's proclamation brooked no arguments, and her tone was as cold as an icy river.

"Never!" several townsfolk cried out as one.

A woman nearby shouted. "This is our home, not the den of monsters!"

"You can't take us all!" a man cried out, and someone followed with. "We'll get our licks in!"

As they continued to shout, Bethel and Nethlim shifted to cover Janice, who shifted about. Clarince put a hand on her head and gave her a worried look. I wasn't sure why. Her expression was one of joy, a big smile crossing her face. Though as I thought back to the monotone and rather gloomy girl, I supposed it might be an odd sight. The smile was wide enough to look like it would hurt a human face.

An idea came to mind, and I wrestled with it as I saw Sasha standing nearby. The alchemist was sorting through her bag with a frown and I wondered what she was going to grab. With no way to get to Rita without putting myself in danger, I pushed my way over to her. While the two groups continued to shout threats at one another, she looked up at my approach.

"Chad?" she asked, her voice low enough that I had to strain to hear. "What's the plan?"

I leaned in as I answered. "Rita wants to fight her, I think, and Penny is somewhere. What are you looking for?"

"Anything that might help. But I didn't exactly prepare for these creatures. I'm useless."

"No." I shook my head and clapped her on the shoulder. "I have an idea, or a thought rather. Someone mentioned that chaotic events strengthen her. Is that true?"

Sasha's eyes furrowed before she nodded. We both glanced towards Bethel. A pair of floating swords made of light now floated over her as Rita slipped into a combat stance. I didn't know if the swords were real or illusions, but I knew I didn't want to be this close to any battle those two had.

Rita, I trusted to be controlled, but Bethel? Her daughter was at stake, but self preservation was quite the thing. If it was her life or her daughters, which would she pick? The fact she hadn't simply slaughtered everyone to keep the girl safe made me think it was the former. That, or perhaps the process, wasn't over yet?

My gaze fell onto the girl in her glowing lights. The form bulged, as though another pair of arms were growing from it. Did whatever process she was undertaking require more energy? Was the mother empowering her daughter as much as she herself at this moment?

"What's the opposite of chaos, then?" I asked, as Rita stepped forward and slung.

The light blades fell to block the blow, and I heard mad giggling from the sprites outside. People in the crowd roared, their bloodlust and panic rising. Clarince winced and moved to shelter Janice. Nethlim followed suit.

As the battle continued, sword against sword, I could see Bethel changing. She was growing taller, the swords around her growing more real. A bang, Penny's weapon, sounded out, and Bethel shifted as a wound appeared in her shoulder. The Chaos Queen laughed as the whole leaked with a steady stream of orange blood. When it hit the ground, floorboards warped and flowers bloomed.

With each sprouting petal, the queen seemed to shine and grow. The nubs I had seen before were without a doubt new arms for her daughter. Janice was laughing too, and Clarince was putting a hand to her head as Nethlim whispered to him. Father Thed cried out again, but the crowd shouted him down, baying for blood.

"Calm? Order?" Sasha gestured to the queen, as she pulled out a potion that I recognised as the same one she gave me in the woods. "Why?"

"Because we need to bring that before this goes totally out of control, I have a plan. It's a bad one. Question. How do you feel about threatening children?"

"What? No, we… what?"

"Good enough. Pass me that potion. I need every bit of my wits that I can get. Do you have anything to make me louder? Also, do you have a match?" I asked, as we snuck around the edges of the church. Each time we passed a stick of incense that wasn't lit, I struck a match from the box she gave me, filling the room with the smoke.

"Chad, what are you—"

This time it was my turn to cut someone off, as I stepped up to Janice, pulled out my gun, and aimed it at her laughing face.

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!" I roared, using every trick I knew to project my voice.

They did. Rita sidestepped a blow, and retreated instead of pressing the attack. Bethel looked at me, her eyes impossible to read, but her face controlled with anger. Nethlim stood up, but another shot from Penny made him pause. I smiled and flicked my gaze to the other corner of the room. Though I wasn't sure that was where she was hiding, I hoped so for my sake.

"Ladies and gentlemen," I said, into the shocked stillness, and words flowed out of my jittering body as the energy from the potion raced through me. "My name is Chad Burling of the Blackrock Mercenary Company. If no one has any issues, I would like to lead this meeting about the eventual ownership of the town."

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All the eyes on me showed how insane they thought I was. Zelene, the labourer, was the first to speak.

"What do you mean meeting? This is a fight!"

"No. It's a meeting, a town hall style meeting, if I believe. This is a church, and we shouldn't be fighting here. Isn't that right, Father Thed?" I glanced at the priest, giving him the slightest of nods.

To my relief, he picked up what I was doing and spoke in the tone of voice I was used to hearing in sermons. "That's right. Floranian has no interest in her flowers being plucked before her time. This quarrel does not belong in such a holy place."

"She was going to desecrate it!" A townsfolk called out.

"No." Father Thed held up his hand. "I don't believe so."

I jumped in. "Agreed. That is why we should discuss this, in a civilised manner."

"You have a gun pointed at my daughter," Nethlim said, tone dark.

"And your wife is a monster threatening to destroy the building." I matched his tone, my hand not wavering. "Let's agree that we may not be using a classic definition of civilised here."

Clarince looked between Janice and me with clear worry, and I could see in his face he wasn't sure what to do. When our eyes met, I gave him a small smile that I hoped he took as reassurance that I was bluffing. I wasn't, but he didn't need to take a bullet for the girl.

Zelene stepped forward, a makeshift spear clutched in his hands. "I don't want to talk terms. We—"

"The chair, that's me, hasn't said you can speak. There are rules for a town meeting. We need order, and that means following the procedures." I glanced at Rita and I saw a spark of recognition in her eyes.

She moved back, not sheathing her sword, but slipping into a defensive stance near the priest instead of her previously aggressive one. People were complaining, and I knew I needed to start this meeting properly. My attention moved to Bethel, who I swore was standing a few centimeters shorter than she had been moments ago.

"Your Highness. As the chair, I give you permission to state your claims. My companions will make sure no one gets interrupted during the process."

She looked a touch bewildered, and then angry. Her words came out as a scream that pierced my ears and blew my hair back. "This is my town through the right of conquest and marriage. This will be my daughter's home and her children. She will rule as queen."

"I see." My words were stern, though I had to wait for my ears to stop ringing. "Father Thed, is that true?"

"Is which bit true?" He asked and shifted towards Rita.

"The marriage." I gestured with my free hand between Bethel and Nethlim. "Did they marry here?"

Father Thed smiled, almost wistfully. "They did. It was a beautiful ceremony, though most thought the mayor marrying a traveller he met three months ago was strange."

"Thank you, Father." My attention shifted to Zelene. "And you wished to speak? The chair sees you."

A grumble came from the crowd, but Zelene stepped forward. As he did, I saw a thin thread of light lash out from where Janice lay. It connected to her mother, and once again, Bethel appeared to shrink. I smiled. It seemed Janice's transformation would take from wherever the most concentrated chaos was in the area. With the people falling into familiar routines, that appeared to be Bethel.

"We want her out of our town!" Zelene called and gestured to the crowd, who raised weapons in agreement. "You can call this a meeting all you want. But we aren't letting her stay here after her stunt. She goes or we make her!"

The thread shifted to the townsfolk, and I could see the anger and fear in them drain away slightly. That would be the key, I knew. If Janice's power was literally eating the chaos to empower her, then I needed it focused on her mother. That meant keeping the townsfolk happy, a difficult prospect given their pro-monster killing agenda.

Not that I blamed them. After being stuck inside the church and menaced by the undead, I would be just as vengeful. That didn't mean I could let them act on it. I needed them to see reason. The easiest way to do that was to take someone else's idea and reframe it for them.

"So you're threatening a violent revolution if Nethlim and his family stay to manage the town? How many people are you willing to lose to this pursuit before a group of trickster sprites inevitably wins?"

"Well… I mean. We don't want to lose anyone." Zelene sounded nervous, and several of the crowd behind him took a step back. When he spoke again, his next words held a hint of apprehension as Bethel preened at the idea of her victory. "Nethlim's been a good mayor. But we can't have a monster doing this to us? How can we feel safe?"

"A valid concern." That got both sides watching me, and I nodded to Zelene. "Thank you for bringing that point up."

"Um, you're welcome?" He said, as he stepped back.

I turned to the mayor, still kneeling beside his daughter, hands hovering as though unsure if he should touch her. "Nethlim, and Your Majesty. How do you intend to guarantee the safety of the townsfolk during your time leading this village?"

"Their safety? I don't care about that, this is our home by right!" As Bethel spoke, the thread moved from the townsfolk to The Chaos Queen. She shrank again, losing another inch of height.

Nethlim shook his head. "No. I don't see why things need to change. Why would they? If we stay, then we will continue the same way we always have."

"What do you mean?" Bethel appeared confused. "We will rule as the queens of old."

"We won't be the subjects of monsters!" Zelene shouted.

The thread of light that ate the chaos in the room shifted, and the townsfolk were once more being drained. I watched the energy fade from them. Several turned a rather ghastly shade of pale, and I wondered if Janice was draining more than chaotic power.

I held up a hand. "So we agree that subjugation is off the table?"

"Never!" Bethel shouted, and the thread jumped to her.

"Darling, please." Nethlim looked at his wife and reached out, taking one of her hands, the one with the ring. "We have to make a compromise here. For our daughter."

"Who's to say she won't grow into the same monster as her mother!" Zelene shouted before I could call on him.

More voices joined the chorus, and soon I found myself without control once again. Bethel and the crowd were shouting at each other. Janice was feeding and growing once more, and I stepped back, my gun still aimed at the girl, who was becoming almost as tall as her mother. Clarince moved, though he stayed near her side.

My attempts to get back control failed, and I watched someone from the crowd faint. Sasha rushed to their side, but no one else appeared to notice. Nethlim glanced towards me, and I could see the worry on his face. Perhaps I wasn't the only one to spot what else was happening here.

We needed a solution, and fast. With no other recourse, I aimed my gun upwards and fired. The bullet smacked into the ceiling and drew eyes back to me. My face twisted into a snarl as I glanced at both groups.

"This fighting empowers them." I waved at the person who fainted. "Everyone needs to stay calm and we can work this out. The next person who speaks is getting shot by Penny."

"You can't do that!" A man shouted, before a bullet took him in the shoulder and Penny stepped out of hiding, her gun raised.

Everyone went silent. Bethel stared at me in shock as Rita watched me with anger. The same anger when I had gotten Tobias injured back at Myrtles inn. This would earn me a talking-to, but I wanted everyone to survive until then. I pointed a finger at Nethlim, who returned his attention to me, his expression telling me he had better like what I was selling.

"Can you give me any guarantees that you and your family won't take over the town with an army of trickster sprites?" I asked, not bothering to try for subtly now.

Nethlim straightened as he continued to kneel beside his daughter. "I won't allow it."

"Won't allow, or can stop it? Those aren't the same thing."

"I can't make any guarantees." He looked at his wife. "She won't do it. Will you, dear?"

"My daughter is a queen," Bethel said, her words low.

"She's going to rule this town." Nethlim gestured to his daughter and to Clarince sitting beside her. "The question is, do you want her to have to fight for it?"

"What do you suggest, then?" I asked, my voice low.

"We step down. Give her the town. My wife and I act as advisors, and we integrate the sprites into the populace. You just have to convince them it'll work."

My gaze flicked to the boy, and I sighed. "Let me try."

"Clarince, I have a question." My words were loud enough to draw the attention of the crowd, who were no longer being drained by Janice. When he glanced my way, I gestured to the nearly transformed Chaos Queen on the floor. "Would you follow her if she led the town?"

"Yes." His words were full of conviction.

"And Zelene, Father Thed. If you acted as advisors, a council of sorts like they have in Yuliosa, would you be comfortable with her ruling?"

"My daughter is a queen," Bethel said again, shrinking as her daughter drained her magic.

"And queens often have a ruling council." I let my attention shift over everyone in the room. "You have seen what type of monsters are out there. Wouldn't you like one that works with you? One loved by the townsfolk?" I gestured at Clarince. "Or would you prefer to lose people in an effort to subjugate them? You can't fight them bloodlessly. I promise you that."

Conviction filled my words, and I could see the townsfolk glancing around. Without a single blow, they could see people already being tended to. The fight was leaving them.

"We want full authority over who goes on the council," Zelene said.

"Nethlim?"

"Agreed."

"Alright." I smiled as I gestured to the office. "Let's all figure out how this is going to work, shall we?"

Before we could leave, a burst of light filled the room, and at long last, Janice stood up. Her laughter made my ears ring, and she spread her arms. Then, without speaking, she turned to Clarince and lunged at him.