The Bargainer 17

The Bargainer
Chapter 17

-VB-

With the list of names I received from Saath’s only reliable leadership, I left the city in search of the nearest of the delinquent worshipers.

I sped towards Morosh, the closest of these “warlords” and supposedly one of the few who were still loyal to Saath.

Morosh used to be a lesser city-state compared to the powers of Braavos and Qohor, the two city-states easiest to reach. It remained a good trading partner of Saath.

However, since one of my followers went and conquered the city in what Saathians were calling the “Three Day War,” Morosh rose and became a powerhouse in its own right.

I think I knew exactly why.

I came to a skidding stop within a viewing distance of the city. A walled city greeted me in the distance with lights made with electricity and not fire. Surrounding the city was the Morosh Delta, an area that came to be named after the city. The villages surrounding the city turned the entire delta into a giant farmland.

‘A city where Tinkers have gained power,’ I thought before speeding forward again in my Battle Wolf form.

My eyes widened when I suddenly felt danger, and came to a skidding stop once more just in time to watch two robots rise up from dunes.

“[Exotic energy source detected],” one on my right droned. Its squat and four legged form as well as the high caliber turret on top reminded me of that one zerg building/unit. What was that thing called again? Oh right, Spine Crawler*!

“[State your name and intent],” the second one said as it finally cleared the last of the dirt and The one on my right rose up. It looked like a standard metal golem found in most fantasies. It carried a rudimentary cannon barrel. Hmm. What a horrible design.

“Beast,” I grunted. “Here to see my disciples.”

For a moment, the machines in front of me froze.

“[‘Beast’ is not a name on our list of individuals on lord-class threat list.]”

Threat?

Okay.

I’ll give you a threat.

I allowed myself to transform from less energy intension young Battle Wolf to a very energy-intensive but much greater powerhouse that was an older Battle Wolf. I quadrupled in size.

And growled.

The two robots almost shorted out on the spot.

“{I-Is that you, Oh God?!}”

I paused.

I recognized that voice. It was one of my followers from Saath when I handed out my “blessings.”

“Soman. I am here to demand why you and your peers in this city are not in Saath. I am here to demand,” I growled. “Why you have ignored my decree.”

“{Please wait, we will be right out!}”

“No,” I snapped. “I will go to you. Be there at the southern gate to receive me.”

I took one step back as the two robots, each as big as a two-story middle class suburban American house, dug back into the ground. Ignoring them, I jumped and bound across the delta.

A Battle Wolf proved its ridiculousness here. Instead of landing on the ground and jumping away with craters in its wake like a creature bigger than a blue whale, I landed on the gentle water and jumped away while leaving only a quiet ripple of water. A leaf falling on water would have made a similar ripple.

And I, in this Battle Wolf form, did this again and again and again.

‘Utterly ridiculous,’ I thought to myself while keeping an eye out for my energy level, which remained consistently moderate: nowhere near emergency levels but also not high enough to let myself jump into, let’s say, a Tyranid-Imperium battlefront.

I made it to the city of Morosh faster than any other living thing could, and - after a whole trip where I left nary an evidence of my travel - landed with a force of a bomb going off and left a crater behind.

Oh look, the run away children were here to greet me.

To my surprise, there were three of them.

“Tobar. Yauna. El.”

The three of them, dressed much differently from the other natives who came out with them and also from each other, bowed.

Tobar, an elderly man in a rudimentary power armor, bowed first. Yauna, a very young girl, wore a priestly attire and bowed quickly after Tobar. El, a young man whose features were similar to both Tobar and Yauna, bowed low at the same time as the girl.

“You three left Saath. I am giving you all a chance to offer an explanation.”

Tobar looked up to me first. “It was my idea, God of Beasts. I convinced my family to leave Saath during the Great Riots.”

Great Riots? That was not something I heard… Wait, was that the power struggle between my worshippers and the local elites?

“And?”

“A-And?”

“And what have you done with your time here? I have given you a chance to explain yourself in full because I consider you and your family to be the three of the seven loyal followers outside of Saath.”

He bowed, this time nearly prostrating himself. “A thousand thanks for your mercy!”

“Then get to explaining why you haven’t moved back to Saath after the so called ‘Great Riots’ ended.”

“... Because this city had suffered just as Saath did before you came, oh god. I could not bear to leave this city, not when I could do something about it.”

I scoffed before sitting down. “Good.”

There was a pause before he looked back up at me.

Before he could ask or speak, I spoke. “You didn’t forget my command. I know that you have sent families and wealth back to Saath to support it and help it grow. You did not fatten yourself on my blessings, ignoring others who are less blessed than you. This ‘Great Riot’ was not something I foresaw when I granted all of you my gifts, but one I understand. You took the initiative to spread something good.” I leaned my snout down. “For that, I grant you forgiveness for the sin of abandoning Saath, an act directly countering my decree. In exchange, I give you a new one. Morosh might not be Saath, but it is a city that you and your family found worth in. Raise it up along with Saath.” I finished it with one warning. “I do not offer forgiveness for the same sin twice for I am not a merciful god.”

And then I left, bounding away once more, and this time, I set my sights on a minor city on the Omber that came to host a belligerent heretic.

If Morosh was a show of mercy, then Omber would be a show of wrath.

-VB-

*artist: Luke Mancini