Silvertree Chronicles Bk. 11

It confounds me as to how he got to be King, but he is our King for better or worse. I think losing all of our Moon Blades under his watch rattled his mind as he has only gotten more tyrannical since then. Why I am here and only a Commander after all of these years. He sees no reason to have a General out here. He considers himself the only General needed."

Nova nodded, "The other one who considered raping me into his consort harem. I told him I was not looking for an exception and everything I played for him was for men in the field and not the Palace, Sir."

He laughed, "You are luckier than most then."

Nova nodded, "Monnius was there as well. He is married to one of my father's former wives. They live in the Moon elf district because of his wife, but he keeps plenty of guards on his home. King probably did not think it wise to piss off the Silvertree family.

Knowing the trouble, he has had with rebels is already heated and the deaths keep mounting. What if he turned one of the largest Moon-elf families against him? Let alone all of the ones created by former members of our house. All for fucking a bard he did not want in his court in the first place, Sir."

He laughed, "You played him like your lute."

Nova smiled, "Sir, I am a bard and duelist. I can play at courtly politics and I can infiltrate. Perform for a King or the men. Hell, on a battlefield I am energetic and inspiring while graceful with an audience."

He nodded, "You waiting for dark?"

Nova shook her head. "No, I will use a ring of greater invisibility and a scroll of teleport and enter from over here. Find a target to assume. They would expect a nighttime strike. A daytime one works better. They are focused on the other side of the battlefield as they can see farther due to height, the ogres, and giants. I will need to be out of uniform for this, Sir."

She changed into an orc and then back to herself.

He chuckled, "Dismissed and good luck."

She saluted him and left his office.

She knew he had no love for the King. She read his surface thought long ago. He knew the Gold-elves were no match in number to the Moon-elves and thanks to this war the Moon-elves were battle-hardened. If the war ended they might turn on the gold-elf King.

The King had been keeping it at a stalemate for years and the Commander knew it. He did not know what the King's strategy was, other than getting people killed. She went outside mounted up and went to the sergeant's tent. She unsaddled her horse and stuck the saddle under a bunk. She woke her cousin.

Senna looked at Nova, "Cousin? I thought you were with child?"

Nova stood and Senna nodded, "Then you are back and a lieutenant now?"

Nova smiled, "Going on a mission, Senna. They wanted to promote me before I left to give birth. I proved I am in fighting shape. Anything happens to me, send my horse to the herd and the saddle is under the bunk."

She nodded. She pulled off her alert-self ring and stored it in a pouch. She pulled out a scroll of teleport. She crouched and laid out the scroll. Nova put on the improved invisibility ring. She used the points of her swords to keep the scroll open. She teleported onto the other side not far from the enemy encampment. She saw one tent off to the side that stood out.

She snuck over and took a look inside, there was a hobgoblin Captain giving orders. Nova memorized his walk mannerisms and some of his frequently used statements. She waited for him to be off communications and time hopped him.

Nova moved up behind waiting for when he would reappear. Ready to take off his head. He popped in and his head popped off. She gathered what intelligence she could from him and his communication crystals.

Nova pulled all magical gear and stored it all. She rolled out a portable hole and flipped his corpse into it. She rolled everything up and switched rings and assumed his form. She walked out and into the main camp. She spotted him before he spotted her.

She did not have a divine non-detection, not without the sword. An ogre barbarian champion. She got behind a tent and looked around and saw a ravine just two uses of dimension door spells away.

She thought, 'That should provide adequate cover. Tell me to stop and I will. Else I am removing this enemy of Corellon Larethian from the field. They can assume I died and I can move on to my next mission having caused total devastation as ordered. Else give me direction."

She heard the Lady of Dreams chuckle, "You are right where you need to be champion. Let them assume you died."

She ducked down and switched out to her other ring. She then took her 'alter self' and removed it and went back to improved invisibility.

She stayed concealed. She peeked out and tried a 'time stop' on him to no effect. It seemed to have alerted him. She tried again from the other side of the tent. He turned toward her direction. She dimension doored in behind him. He lumbered toward the tent.

Nova dimension doored closer but still behind him. She got his back lined up with the command tent entrance. She ran both blades up through his back. He swung around and knocked her into a far-off tent breaking a few ribs with the club this champion used. An alarm sounded.

She dimension doored away before his next blow came down upon her. He went for a healing potion as he could not find her because of the improved invisibility. She leaped, locked her thighs around his head. That stopped the potion from going into his mouth. He fucking bit her!

She chopped through his legs and tossed his body into the command tent. She dimension doored once and then the second as the explosion hit but she was in the ravine before the shockwave got to her. She shut down the connection with her horse.

She pulled a crystal and used a human male voice. "I need to speak with Nova."

She heard a gasp, "Who is this?"

She responded, "Nova now! In private."

She heard Jan's voice, "This is Nova, I am alone. I thought you were dead?"

Nova responded through the hissing pain, "You taught me well. Novella just exploded; Nova lives."

She heard Jan sigh, "Good luck Nova. Ask for Nova like always. Contact me back in 2 days. Let us see what the fallout is from Novella's death."

She stored the crystal and dimension doored at maximum range until that wand ejected. She moved into some underbrush. She switched out to her alter-self ring while she kept her improved invisibly for now.

She made herself a battle-scarred human male in dirty leather armor and rapiers. She put in another wand of dimension door and got to the high ground. She looked to see the elven Army routing the enemy. She cast up a tiny hut and crawled inside.

She used psychometabolism ability to repair the damage from the fight. Resetting the bones and speeding up the regeneration of the damaged tissue. She then used a few charges from a healing wand as well. She removed her gear and rested.

---

King Goldeagle got a report from a gold-elf spy he had at the front, "Your Majesty. The commander sent a Lieutenant Novella Silvertree, a battle bard duelist across to do an infiltration mission at the enemy encampment. There was an explosion from what we suspect was a champion. No signs of her surviving the explosion. The Commander just sent forces across en mass. We have routed the enemy forces and they are fleeing the area. The stalemate is broken."

King Goldeagle was livid, "I want the Patron for House Silvertree here immediately. I want you back in the city now! You told me she was a bard duelist. She had been out on maternity. When did she return?"

The spy responded, "This morning and she was a bard duelist. I am on my way, Your Majesty."

An hour later and the King looked at the Patron and his guard son in his court. "Why did you hide the fact that your house had a champion on the field?"

The Patron looked up, "Your Majesty, I was unaware of any champion within my family being on the field. Did something happen?"

The King looked over, "You and your son are under arrest. I will get answers on what you did and did not know. Keeping a champion hidden from the court was an unwise action on your part."

The Patron looked over, "Your Majesty, I don't know much about a champion being on the field. Did someone see the explosion? Could it have been two of our enemy champions getting into a fight instead? Again, we have no knowledge of our house having a champion on the field of battle. All champions have made themselves known to the royal family in the past. This makes no sense."

The King pointed, "Guards, Take them away!"

The King's Spy he met in private and killed the man himself for failing to identify her as a champion. He sacrificed the man in the name of his Demon Lord.

He heard from Abraxus, "Find out what you can from this patron. Be careful about how far you discipline the elf, you might turn your people against you and it is too early to have them turn on you. Keep your army in the field. You don't want unfriendly battle-hardened houses in the city right now.

It is way too soon for you to try and deal with them. Your gold-elven followers are too weak to deal with your military. Keep them on that front. Cut the pay in half if you half to keep most of them away from the Capital. She did not set off any psionic detectors and she was a bard and duelist.

You can handle that if she reappears. It could have been two enemy champions dueling it out for all we know. I still fear a psion attacking or getting into your mind. Keep your metal protection up. This could just be some kind of decoy.

The gods have done that before with the ones known as Charlus and Ginnar. You have no proof she was even a champion, only that she was on a mission. You did not see her as one. One enemy champion could have killed another while trying to kill her.

In which case...she is likely dead. Your Commander failed you by taking advantage of it and routing the enemy, but you cannot go after him. That was 'the goal' of the army after all. Keep him away for now and watching for the enemy's return."

---

Nova awoke hungry the next morning. She got into her dry rations she kept on hand for just such a time. She removed the improved invisibility ring and put her alter self one back in place. Nova started walking south and away from the battle site.

Juna 23rd 10254

Nova contacted Janella, 2 days later as requested. It was worse than expected. Janella spoke with her, "The Patron and his son have been imprisoned. House funds cut in half; even taking funds from the champions estate. They have no proof that you were a champion, yet they got a 5-year sentence for deceiving the crown. He could not go any more severe without facing the wrath of the people. Especially on an unsubstantiated claim of you being a champion."

Nova sighed, "I will save whatever I am forced to steal and give the excess to those 2 upon my return. I am sorry they got singled out for this.

Gold Elves consolidated into the Palace district over the next few weeks, except the one left in charge of the army and a few other officers. Monnius did not relocate because of his impure children who were not allowed in his court. Neither was Brena, his wife. The King kept the elven army from returning or downsizing, he was afraid of them getting close to him and overwhelming the Capital.

Nova spent the next year traveling as a human male learning the mannerisms, males, females, elf-bloods, disenfranchised away from the kingdom, and some of the lesser races. Then she became Viper.

---

Nova had figured she had learned enough about human mannerisms and those of the disenfranchised. She took on the form of a tattoo clad human woman with snake tattoos up her arms. She did freelance work killing extremely bad people and robbed their estates while killing them and their guards. Several members of a thieves guild caught up with her and informed her she had to join or else. She asked, "What is required to join?"

The leader of the guild smiled, "You're going to service me sexually and my lieutenants. We will see how well that ass and cunt of yours works."

She smiled, "I kill for a living, but if sex is what you want. We can work that out."

He took her back to his hideout in the city. She had 3 naked men and 4 armed guards to make sure she did not pull anything funny. She got undressed and they searched her body. The men used no lubricant and searched her cunt and ass with their entire hands.

The leader slid into her cunt and rolled her over to be on top while one man stuck his cock in mouth and the other shoved his cock in her ass. The guards laughed. But not for long. She locked down all three orifices and sealed them shut. She amputated the cocks on all 3 of them.

They went to screaming as the guards drew weapons and got hit with a mind blast. She jumped to her feet and worked to kill the 4 guards in the room and then the 3 screaming leaders that she let bleed to death. She ejected all of their manhoods from her body and then shoved them into each other's mouths.

She left one guard alive, with a forefinger and one thumb to hold his cock and his other hand severed at the wrist. His memories altered to forget about the mind blast and had her move lightning fast to get her swords.

She had cut down the three other guards easily enough as they were out cold from the mind blast. She cut the name 'viper' into the survivor's forehead and his chest. Then did it to all of the others. She killed every guard, rogue or assassin in the hideout on her way out. She robbed the place blind.

She did this repeatedly in 4 other major cities and one had a female leader. She turned her hand into a sword that went 4 feet long. She killed her by fisting the woman to death with it. It was long enough when she was done to reach the woman's lungs and heart.

Some cities she just did seduction and assassination work, practicing different altered Psychometabolism forms to use for killing them as she altered her body into different abominations depending on the target and position she assumed during sex with the subject.

---

She spent her alone time between cities reliving every experience and questioning every action she took as she became this monster of a killing machine. All in order to do this one job, killing the half-dragon who killed her father. She constantly questioned the monster she was becoming.

The Lady of Dreams tried to console her, "Remember you are learning these things for the greater good of the elven people. We know it is difficult, but even Charlus killed for us."

Nova though back, "I have his memories. He killed, but it wasn't for you. He killed because of you. I am killing because it was what you designed me to do. To be a fucked up weapon of destruction."

The Lady of Dreams did not respond. Correlon heard the exchange and cautioned the Lady of Dreams, "Don't try and draw parallels with him. She knows his mind only before you fixed the issues. Not after. That was your fault for having Charlus get his mind read by that dragon.

Now it is biting you in the ass again as she holds all of his anger at you for what you did with his wife's fertility, and then her own fertility in order to do this job. She sees the parallels, but what we are demanding of her pales to the tasks we put forth to Charlus.

We never guided him to kill a particular person. We left it to every champion to tackle these tasks, she is having to do it alone. With no support. You have been guiding her to be a hand of death in this training. To use her sex as a weapon. Keep her focused, but do not lie to her. She is not wrong in her view of things. She is the weapon we need for these enemies."

---

Nova had spent the time as 'Viper' working on seduction skills on some of the sleaziest men and women she could find. She left the dead hobgoblin in one man's bed with his cock buried in the mouth of the hobgoblin's severed head.

Another man's corpse minus his head was found balls deep in the ass of the dead decapitated hobgoblin. While the hobgoblin looked to be balls deep in that human's own head. The man was an heir to a human throne and corrupt. She killed all whom she took to bed and took what valuables they had.

She thought back to the previous and unanswered response she gave the Lady of Dreams months ago, "Charlus never had to use sex as a weapon. You fought for him to have multiple wives. You stripped my fertility after having 2 with a man I did not love and marriage will likely never be an option for me. No point in it.

Sex is a method of killing. That is what you have taught me, or should I say what I have been teaching myself following your horrid direction. I have killed 84 men and 7 women while having sex with them. Charlus had 3 children and you wanted more...yet you wanted me to only have 2.

You only wanted Jazzia to go through 2 pregnancies. Instead, she got one where most died young. Ginnar had no children and was not expected to have love in her life at all. The same with me. Your approach to women champions sucks. I think I have that part down now.

I have 8 abjuration forms in mind for killing this half-dragon depending on what I can do to get him in a compromising position. I think it is time to move onto something else before I find myself totally irredeemable."

The Lady of Dreams sighed as she was afraid of losing her. Everything relied upon her surviving this and being judged worthy to wield the blade. Nova was right, it was time to move on, "Move on to the next phase. Become the disenfranchised bard. Entertain people and build a reputation as an entertainer.

We can back off the killing for now until it is needed for the main targets. Only one of which should require this. I can feel the toll this takes on you. Use it for some of your songs or stories. Embellish it. Create a legacy for this viper. She is a part of you, but only a part of you. Not all of you. You are still doing this for a greater purpose."

She could feel Nova soften her position but only slightly. She still doubted her own self-worth given everything and everyone she had killed to get this far. Those that did not threaten the elven people but were used for target practice. Nova worked her way haphazardly in the direction of the Savage Coast.

---

Janella and Brocken returned to Quatarsia when Nova started performing. The rules were less strict and they had fewer eyes upon them. She kept in contact with the family in the city, they formed contacts into the resistance.

Brocken knew a few names of close friends in the resistance. They stopped short of joining using the Patron's imprisonment.

Nova kept safe mostly with one ring that was built just for her, a detect poison, poison immunity, petrification immunity, and freedom of immunity ring all in one. It had a draconic non-detection on the ring to hide its enchantments and a chameleon aspect to hide it into her hand to be unseen. It was one of the first items built by the new Master Enchanter for Nova with funds from her parents' estate left to her. Her own will left it to the next Blade Wielder and was held by Jan.

That ring saved her from several close encounters. She switched to Nova Silver the disenfranchised elven bard, Temptress, seductress tease, and teller of stories and singer of songs to build a reputation. Going from local towns along the Savage Coast. She had sex with a few in each town to establish her seductress ways but kept it to those in wealthy circles and mostly women or married couples. One night only before leaving for the next town.

With just a few elven songs. She worked original pieces about the lives of humans. Good, bad, pretty, and ugly. The stories mattered and the characters were important. She wrote of the 'rumors of Viper.' She took a lot of artistic licenses.