DD3 -CH1-

- Beginning of the End -

“Good morning,” Lauren said, looking down from the palace balcony. Her bright blue eyes tracked from person to person in the crowd As if she were talking to each and every citizen.

The roar of the crowd was intense in response. No one in Dungeon had ever forgotten that Lauren had deployed her royal guards to defend the town from an invasion, when there was no hope for success.

She was wearing a perfect dress for the occasion that made her look beautiful, but not sexual. Her dark black hair was perfect, her clothing matched her station, and the location was on point.

Everything looked exactly as it should for a royal personage.

It’d only taken Ryker the better part of the night to put everything together for her to hold this speech.

It’d been two days since he and Lauren had made it into Dungeon.

Word had spread rapidly throughout the Queendom of Dale.

The Queen lived. She was holding court in Dungeon, and was planning to re-take her country

And the dungeon itself was on her side.

“-be working to retake the throne, and my crown. It was with a heavy heart that I fled the capital, but the treachery of the churches left me with no choice,” Lauren said, shaking her head dramatically. “They attacked us, sided with the false queen, and then discarded her as soon as it was convenient. At the same time, our own allies, betrayed us, and attacked us in our home.

“I think it’s quite clear that both the pantheons of the light, and the dark, are evil. They will need to be cleansed from our lands entirely before we can be safe.”

A deafening response from the crowd made Ryker’s heart shudder. It was like being struck by a physical force so loud was the roar of anger and agreement.

“To that end, I hereby announce as the rightful ruler of Dale, that both the pantheon of light, and dark, are banished from Dale,” Lauren said, hitting her closed fist against the railing in front of her. “That forever forward, any and every church must be formally approved by the throne, and all existing churches will have to undergo verification.

“Excepting of course the church of Dungeon. Led by our very own Paladin Robyn, I have the utmost faith in her, and the goddess Rike.”

“Of course,” Ryker muttered, watching this whole thing from the inside of the paladin. Leaning against the wall, he folded his arms against his chest and sighed.

“What did you expect?” Robyn asked. “Our goddess is righteous. She defends us and protects us from the foul evils of the world.

“Her sheltering hand was visible to one and all when the Church of Light attempted to turn on us after you were cursed.”

Ryker wanted to argue that point, but he knew Robyn was right.

He’d heard it a number of times since he’d returned home.

The Church had attacked, Robyn was defeated, Shirley’s avatar slain, the Vanguard laid low, Dungeon was exposed.

It was bereft of all it’s protections.

Rike showed up, and smote everyone who entered the city with evil intentions.

No one had attempted to raid, attack, or bother Dungeon sense then.

Pilgrims of Rike, refugees who claimed her as their goddess, and adherents of Rike’s faith, were allowed to pass by both Churches after that point.

Neither faction apparently was willing to go against Rike and her followers at that point.

“Yeah, yeah,” Ryker said, looking to Robyn.

She was wearing her “regular Robyn” avatar as he’d come to think of it. Dressed in clothes befitting a minor noble’s station, her dark-brown hair was pulled back from her face in a pony-tail. Dark-green eyes were latched to Ryker and seemed to never stray away from him.

The second his eyes touched hers, she gave him a beautiful and radiant smile. Since he’d turned her soul into a liquid paste with his own, she’d been ever present at his side.

“I mean, yeah, you’re not wrong,” Ryker said. Shrugging his shoulders he looked back to Lauren. “I guess it’s different for me since I wasn’t here for it.”

“Yes, but you had your own experience with her. She assisted you on your escape, did she not?” Robyn pressed.

“Yeah. She did,” Ryker said uncomfortably. He couldn’t deny that Rike had indeed stepped in for him when he needed a hand.

“Before that, did she not assist when we were attempting to limit the number of troops the Church could push through?” Robyn asked.

“What, the Dark Church? No. She had no part of that. We made them run through the valley,” Ryker said.

“-begin to re-establish our forces here! In Dungeon! And we’ll being working with the dungeon itself in our first effort-”

“No, when we were fighting the Church of Light,” Robyn said. “She assisted us then and there as well.”

Frowning, Ryker couldn’t argue that point. Rike had indeed helped them directly, and indirectly through Robyn.

“-begin retaking cities and towns currently under the oppressive rule of the Church of Light or the Dark-”

“Okay, yeah, she did,” Ryker said.

“Do not fear, Beloved,” Robyn said. She’d gotten much closer to him when he’d looked away. She was practically standing on his ankles right now. “Rike doesn’t wish you harm or ill intent. She respects what you’ve done, and how far you’ve come so quickly.”

“You’ve become overly fond of that pet name,” Ryker said, glancing at Robyn.

“Beloved? I heard Diane call you it once. I liked it. She doesn’t use it for you anymore, so I decided to,” Robyn said, being exactly what she always was and had been. “Besides, you’re my Beloved. We share a soul now.”

Insanely direct.

Except Ryker couldn’t deny her anymore, or even fight her very well.

The bit of her soul she’d left behind had saved him. It’d clung to his body, to be with him he assumed, even when his own soul fled.

Reaching out an arm he wrapped it around Robyn’s shoulders and drew her into his side for a firm hug.

“Shut up, ya stupid goodie-goodie,” Ryker grumbled. Then he pushed her away. “I’m trying to listen to my wife.”

“You are listening to your wife,” Robyn said, moving in close to him again. She pressed her cheek to his temple, her hands on his hips. She was taller, stronger, and physically far more imposing than he was.

“I’m not married to you. I’m barely married to Shirley and Lauren. The only one who actually has an official marriage certificate, was sanctioned by a church, the queen, and herself, is Adele,” Ryker said, feeling argumentative. “Even Diane’s is technically incorrect because her mother signed it as Queen.”

“Ours is of a higher calling, our souls are-”

“Yeah, yeah, one soul. I heard you,” Ryker said, pushing on Robyn’s shoulder when it seemed like she was going to try and push him up against the wall.

“-put the false queen in chains and give her to Duchess Diane. Through this entire ordeal, I’ve had three stead-fast supporters,” Lauren said. Turning she indicated the three women to one side. “My cousin, Adele Dale.”

Standing primly, ram-rod straight, and looking far more dignified than he’d ever seen her previously, the athletic nose-picking Adele inclined her head to the crowd.

Her short dark black ringlets were arranged around in a pretty fashion. Her blue eyes were ever brighter when compared to her dark hair. 

“Fuck, I’d never heard her last name said aloud,” Ryker muttered. “That’s an awful fucking name. Adele Dale. A dell dale. Her name is literally valley, valley.”

“-Claire Dale, whom you all know as Lady Ryker,” Lauren said, gesturing to Shirley.

Looking just like Lauren and Adele, Shirley shared many of the family traits that was such a heavy stamp on them. Dark black hair, blue eyes, and eerily pretty. Though Shirley had a much more impressive figure than either of her cousins. Shirley had apparently decided to wear a dress that also showed some of that off.

Lifting a hand, Shirley waved to the crowd briefly, who happily responded with cheers for her.

“She’s won the populace over. It was not unseen when she went to battle our enemies to retrieve you,” Robyn said, her arms sliding around Ryker’s shoulders.

Fucking pushy ass do-gooder Paladin.

Ryker grimaced and put a hand to Robyn’s chest and pushed her away a few inches. If he thought for an instant she’d get this clingy, he wouldn’t have brought her in for a hug to begin with.

“Get off me,” Ryker muttered.

“No,” Robyn said, pushing him up against the wall physically. She was pressing her entire front to his now, his shoulders were wedged up into her breasts.

“Damnit, Robyn, you big oaf,” Ryker said, fighting her off enough to look back to Lauren.

“-last, but not least, my staunchest ally. The only one of my vassals who threw in everything with me, Duchess Chas,” Lauren said, indicating the last woman in the line.

As she almost always was, Diane was a beauty on display in a flattering dress that emphasized her hour-glass figure. The newest change of course was her her hair was cut very short for her, but styled in a way that fit her pretty face almost too well.

He’d often thought of her as having won the genetic lottery. Not just in her looks, but in the way she was put together in the hips, waist, and chest department.

Smiling, Diane also presented the crowd with a wave, much similar to how Shirley had greeted them.

“And last, but not least, a man you all know. One who asked me not to bring him up here. Or to discuss him at all. He pleaded with me you know,” Lauren said, looking out to the crowd again. There was a low chuckle that seemed to spread throughout.

“Ah fuck,” Ryker said. “Quick, get off me. Lauren’s going to call me up there. I begged her not to do this. She promised me she wouldn’t. Fucking bitch.”

“What? Oh. Oh, alright,” Robyn said, finally releasing Ryker. The big paladin seemed as pleasantly neutral as she usually was. Patting his shoulder, she eased him over to the doorway that led onto the balcony.

“-promised him I wouldn’t call him out here. So I’m not going to because I did promise. But I am going to talk about him,” Lauren said.

“That’s good,” Robyn said, her arms immediately snaking around Ryker from behind, drawing his back up into her chest.

Damnit. I think I’d almost prefer going out on the balcony.

“I swear to shit Robyn you need to-”

Robyn leaned her head down and kissed his cheek, her arms tightening around him.

“Hush,” she murmured in his ear, and then stood up straight again. She hadn’t released him in the slightest.

Annoyed, frustrated, but unwilling to really push Robyn away, Ryker stood there. Frustrated.

When the hell can this be over?

“-single handedly crushed both armies front-lines by himself. It was a display one can’t really explain in words or even begin to attribute a value to,” Lauren said. “To the point that both Churches fled the field rather than deal with him. You know him as your count, and I know him only as my husband.”

“Ugh, this is awful,” Ryker said, feeling uncomfortable. Shaking his head, he looked away from the balcony. He wanted this over and done with. There was so much else left to do as well.

“She’ll be done soon. Besides, if she doesn’t honor you, who would? You don’t speak of your own exploits,” Robyn said.

Whatever.

***

Lauren, Adele, Diane, Shirley, and Ryker, all sat down at a table laden with everything needed for a royal lunch.

“I must say,” Lauren said, leaning forward over her plate to eye everything laid out in front of her. “It’s so… nice… to be able to eat all these comfort foods. I had no idea that you could get them here.”

“He can’t,” Adele said, immediately starting to load her plate up rapidly. “He has all this created specifically for us.”

Ryker grimaced at that statement. He thought he’d been rather sneaky about the whole thing. Diane and Shirley had never said anything previous to this.

“Yes,” Diane said, daintily setting what looked like fruits and cheese to her plate. “If you look closely and consider some of things here, there are things that are so out of season, let alone availability, that its painfully obvious.”

Shirley’s eyebrows came down as she looked at the other two women. Her eyes were sharp, and it looked like she wanted to fight both of them.

“Though I’m not complaining,” Diane continued, looking up and smiling at Ryker. “I’m flattered that he goes to such lengths to show his care. Though I might be a hint jealous. There’s an entire section of the table near Shirley that looks like it came out of her own lands.”

“Anyways,” Ryker said angrily. “We should probably talk about something useful. Like dealing with the little problem of getting back the throne for Queen valley over there.”

“Valley?” Diane asked softly, looking to Adele.

“Dale. Valley. He’s trying to be funny,” said the swords-woman back to Diane.

“That’s rather true isn’t it,” Lauren said at the same time. “I suppose it’s a good a time as any to discuss our strategy.

“Should we ask the Queen of the Fairies and Imps to join us? It would be inappropriate without her, wouldn’t it?”

Hah.

“Hush. She still truly doesn’t understand what the dungeon really means,” Marybelle said in his mind. “Besides, they get along so well. Let Wynne have her fun for the time being. No harm is being done.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Ryker sent back to the Hobgoblin. “You start working on that stuff I asked about? Moving the whole death dungeon underground?”

“I have. It’ll take some time and effort on both our parts, but we can certainly do it. I take it the time of the death dungeon is at an end?” Marybelle asked.

“For the time being,” Ryker said.

“-right here,” Wynne said, pulling up a chair directly next to Ryker’s.

The single biggest Fairy in existence, Wynne topped out at five foot four now. She was wearing a dress that matched Lauren’s equally, but emphasized her impressive figure. Her wings fluttered lightly behind her as she turned her head to Lauren with a smile.

Her black hair was drawn back in a single pony-tail, and her dark eyes were eager. Happy.

She’s delighted that she’s being included as an equal.

“Yes, she is. She’s rather enamored with Lauren,” Marybelle said.

“Great,” Lauren said, smiling. She looked around the room, making eye contact with each person. “The first order of business is discussing what we have available as resources.”

“Anything Dungeon has, I guess,” Ryker said with a shrug of his shoulders.

“Yes, but what is that? How much does it account for and how much can we use?” Lauren asked.

Those are all… relevant questions.

“I can put all that together for you, Dear. For the time being, just tell her that we can easily field an army that would be equal in size to twenty-five thousand with a refill rate of two-thousand soldiers a day,” Marybelle offered.

“No. Join us, and tell her yourself. Or send Benni since she’s apparently my secretary now,” Ryker growled back.

“We can get the hard numbers for you later,” Wynne said. “For now, we could easily field an army equal to twenty-five thousand soldiers. Reinforcements of two-thousand every day.”

“That’s… and you can sustain that? Indefinitely?” Lauren asked, staring unbelievingly at Wynne.

“Yes, but it’s only within the vicinity of the dungeon, and those who have declared war on the dungeon. Both Churches have done so, so they’re valid targets,” Wynne said.

Ryker cleared his throat and held up a hand.

“This is where my previous thought and plan comes in. If we turn the entirety of the Queensland into a dungeon, all one big massive dungeon, than that limit is… everywhere that would matter,” Ryker said.

Wynne nodded her head once at that.

“And as I previously said, I’d have no interest in anything other than Dungeon, the Fairies, and the Imps,” Wynne said. “We definitely have the means to take over most the Queensland today with cores.”

“Most?” Adele asked around a mouthful of cheese.

“Most,” Wynne said with a small nod and a sigh. “We could take over perhaps… eighty percent of Dale today. We’ll need more cores. It’s lightly we’ll find more as we go, and could buy them from merchants that come to Dungeon, but that’s not something I’d really want to bet on.”

“No… that’s not something I’d want to wager on either,” Diane said.

“So… we just take over the eighty-percent that matters,” Shirley said with a shrug of her shoulders. “Skip over areas with no value, and take everything that matters. It’s not as if an army is going to do us much harm hiding out in a forest. The moment they leave it, we’d know anyways, right?”

“We would,” Wynne agreed.

“Then there we go,” Shirley said, looking to Lauren.

“It definitely solves the problem and provides us with a workable solution and answer,” Lauren said. “Though I’m not exactly keen on the idea of leaving armies around in our back-line, or in the woods.”

Neither do I but… this seems like the best solution for the time.

“Then we just look a map, and figure out which eighty-percent of Dale we want right now. Then we just take those parts and push them into a part we hold until we get more cores,” Adele said, then coughed as she inhaled something. She’d been talking and chewing again.

Hitting her own chest twice, she coughed again and a half chewed clump of cheese splattered onto her plate.

“Shit,” she said, then took a drink from her cup.

“Yes,” Lauren said, looking away from Adele, a frown on her face. “I suppose that’s the best option then, with the best usage available to us.”

Ryker couldn’t help himself and started laughing. He’d been the one with the worst table manners and had been badgered by almost everyone until he ate like a civilized person.

Only for a princess to make his manners look saintly in comparison.

“What?” Adele asked, already chewing another massive mouthful of food. 

“Nothing,” Diane said, patting Adele on the shoulder. “Should we put this on hold until we can reconvene with a map in front of us of the Queensland?”

“What?” Adele asked again, her tone getting louder. “We’re all family here. It’s not as if we won’t see each other till we die of old age. Why do I have to have manners? Stupid prissy puss bitches.”

Lauren opened her mouth, then closed it. She shrugged her shoulders, and her posture immediately fell apart. Picking up a handful of grapes she stuffed them in her mouth and started chewing in a very less dignified manner than previously.

“Yeah, let’s do that,” she said, taking up Adele’s approach to heart.