War of the Races Ch. 37

"Thank you for your efforts on our behalf," I said sincerely.

"We will be retiring from this conflict," Sinaan replied, "I'm sorry that I can not wish for your success since that might lead to my sister's demise. However, having witnessed only a little of your power, I don't think you need my well-wishing at all. I ask only that you spare my sisters' lives should you overcome this army. I rather like you, Viridian Vale, you remind me of someone I once knew in another life. I would hate to have my sisters' deaths come between our budding friendship."

"I don't want to kill any of your people," I replied earnestly, "You must know that."

"I do," Sinaan empathized, "But, alas, conflict is inevitable. Still, I ask again, should the death blow present itself, please, I rather you take my sisters as your slaves than take their lives."

"I will not kill your sisters," I promised as I tightened my grip on his hand before releasing it.

Sinaan gave me a considering smirk, returned the squeeze of my hand, and then turned away to speak with the black-haired svartalf maid called Aldrnari. She placed a hand on her overly long crochet needle-like weapons as they moved away while talking quietly. Then, thirty minutes before the hour expired they quietly left us to our fate.

As soon as they left, Glenna and Hlina stepped up beside me. Both intertwined their arms around mine but it was Hlina who spoke, "Should I begin making preparations?"

Turning to look at my dark brown-skinned mother. My mother from my previous life reborn into the beautiful young body of a dokkalfar. I saw more and more of the mother from my previous life in her new features. Her dark-brown eyes were a completely different color than they had been before, but they still had the same twinkle. Her broad, plump mouth looked nothing like her mouth back on Midgard, but as her lips curled into an easy smile it was as if this beautiful mouth of hers was the only one I have ever known.

"A kiss for luck?" She asked and then leaned in and kissed me with a burning passion that fired up my belly and set my heart to thudding against my chest.

When she pulled back I whispered, "It is time. I love you. Be careful."

"Not without my kiss it isn't," Glenna purred as she pulled my chin around and pressed her lips and body against me so passionately that I felt my arousal rising and my member stiffening. When Glenna pulled away she purred, "Go and kiss the rest of your wives just in case this is our last time!"

I gave a sharp nod and turned and embraced Bastet first. As I hugged and kissed my wives Huxian was by far the longest and most luxuriant.

I was hugging and kissing Leandra when Bastet and Huxian circled back around for more. When Leandra noticed she stepped back and all of my wives encircled me but they didn't make a move for more kisses.

"What's going on," I asked because there was a look in their eyes that said they were ready to fight.

"We are not running away," Bastet declared.

"Not even I," Huxian added as she took Bastet's and Coella's hands in hers, "We are standing with you to the very end, come what may!"

"No!" I replied adamantly, shaking my head in denial, "Most of you are pregnant. Huxian, you just gave birth. What about our children?"

"We will live or die with you, my King," Shahad intoned in a pheromone telepathy that felt like a warm haze enveloping my senses before spreading down my neck and warming my chest and causing my groin to tingle.

"Do not worry for the children my bull," Tampa said softly but her stance and expression were confident, "I will tend to them and keep them safe."

"We may be newly wedded, Viridian Vale," Orsa added, "But, we are loyal. There is no way I am leaving you here to face this horde alone."

"Agreed!" Several others shouted in unison.

Burza walked up then and wrapped her wings around me as she leaned in for a very forceful kiss, when she withdrew she whispered, "We will all fight for you, my love."

Shaking my head I replied, "If you fight you might die. I can not live with that!"

"If we leave," Burza purred, "You might die, and "we" can not live with that either!"

I looked around but all I saw were determined expressions from each of my wives, and so, shaking my head I relented.

"Fine," I said, but then immediately turned to Hlina and commanded, "Hlina, castle us, my love!"

Hlina flashed a smile before running to her position. Carried along on her long shapely legs I couldn't help but admire the way her bottom jiggled with every stride.

A horn sounded in the distance signaling for Aalyn's army to advance at a walk.

Hlina stood firm in the center of the road that led from the Valelands to Olympia. She stood in the center of our camp which was due north of the Tunglvatn, Moon Lake. Roughly a half mile north of us was the Gaiavatn, Gaia's Lake.

Fitting that, I thought sardonically. To think that we came in the names of Seline and Gaia to stop this crowd, and now we were standing our ground between the lakes named for those goddesses.

Hlina stood as still as a statue only her ankle-length curly black hair moved in the wind that suddenly seemed to rouse and pick up. The earth trembled and shook, staggering everyone except Hlina. No matter how the earth moved beneath her she remained upright. Her feet sank into the earth to her ankles, and then suddenly she thrust out her arms, her wide open hands clenching into fists before the land suddenly heaved upward!

Where there was nothing before a wall twenty feet thick and fifty feet high suddenly grew out of the ground in seconds. It was made of solid stone and ran from the Tunglvatn to the Gaiavatn. Then, Hlina took a breath and wiped the perspiration from her brow. She gathered her concentration and with another movement of her hands a ramp shot up behind the wall leading from the ground where we stood gapping to the top where she was.

"Amazing!" Orsa gasped softly in an awed voice.

Hlina smiled at her and for the first time I remember looked a little embarrassed. Glenna chuckled as she swished her tail and started up the ramp to the top of the wall that now separated us from Aalyn's army.

"Just wait, Orsa," Glenna purred provocatively, "I'm next. Let us see if they still have the stomach for this fight once they see the wrath of a goddess."

"Two goddesses," Hlina amended as Glenna joined her on the wall.

We all looked out at Aalyn's army and the svartalf warriors before us seemed more daunting than ever before. We were outnumbered several hundred to one.

"Oracle of Gaia," Burza called out as she looked down at the army from the very edge of the wall, "If you will make stones for us we will rain down death upon their heads from above."

Hlina nodded and a moment later stones started bubbling up out of the ground at the base of the wall like spring waters gushing out of the ground. They kept coming until the stones, most the size of a man's head, were piled some twenty feet high and were some twenty feet across for its entire circumference.

Burza let out a long trilling whistle then she took flight. She winged over the pile of stones just as three of her daughters joined her. They grabbed two large rocks with their talon-toed feet and leapt into the air. They soared high into the sky as the rest of my avian wives gathered their ammunition and disappeared into the heavens.

"Tampa, Coella," Huxian said as she waved for Orsa to join her, "Take the children and protect them. Orsa and I have our own skills to use in this fight."

"So do I," Coella retorted defiantly while patting the long knives belted to the small of her back.

"Yes, you do," Huxian agreed, "But, I need you to protect my children. It is my turn to protect you, and them."

Coella opened her mouth to argue but Huxian cut her off, "You protected me at Jordmodirbaer..."

Coella glared at Huxian but nodded. Huxian returned it then unslung the babes from her shoulders. Orsa did the same and Tsukino and Usagi took them.

"We shall help," Tsukino proclaimed.

"Thank you," Huxian said earnestly before turning and shape-shifting into a Fox before running up the ramp to take her place on the wall.

Orsa didn't say anything as she left her charges in the bunny rabbit's care. She just turned and ran.

The svartalf army advanced, Glen'nathel Moonlilly prayed for her goddess's power and blessing to smite those that would stand against her, "Seline! My Goddess! I beseech you! Give me your power so that I may show them the dark face of your wrath!"

With that, the face of the moon covered the sun and darkened the land while a glowing white beam of pure moonlight surrounded Glenna. It shot up into the sky for as far as I could see. Simultaneously, a beam of semitransparent darkness surrounded Huxian and likewise shot straight up into the sky. Then, as one, Huxian's black fur arrayed with stars, galaxies, and nebulae transitioned and faded to a moonlight white. Likewise, her mane of long white hair turned as black as the void of space and began to show scenes of stars, galaxies, and nebulae that her fur had shown glimpses of just a moment before. Meanwhile, Glenna's hair and skin color reversed as well, her black hair filled with scenes of the universe fading until it was glowing moonlight white while her skin turned black than midnight and revealed the starry night sky in a dazzling display of wonder.

----(!)----

Aalyn's army paused its advance when the apocalyptic eclipse covered the sun and the day was darkened. Murmurs of superstition and prayers to Arachne ran down the lines. Then they watched as the beams of white and black shot up into the sky.

"Parlor tricks!" One commander shouted.

"Don't not fear!" Aalyn yelled, "We outnumber them hundreds to one!"

As one Aalyn and her army let out a mighty shout and charged.

----(!)----

As Seline's Wrath overshadowed Glenna and Seline's Solace settled over Huxian, stepping to the edge of the wall, I fell into my internal world. Three great Wells of Soul hovered like suns above me. One was a vibrant blue, the other red, and the last yellow. Still further above the spheres that made up my Spirit Well, Soul Well, and Well of Power were two symbolic replicas of Earth and Moon which radiated energy that fell upon my Well of Power and Soul Well wherein I could feel Gaia and Seline's pulsating powers reinforcing me of their approval.

Below the Wells of Soul were three lecterns and upon them sat three tomes. Approaching the lectern that I instinctively knew held the Tome of Beasts I flipped through the pages and chose the form I wished to take, then for the first time ever I released my full aura.

The wall we stood on rumbled and all the women except Glenna gasped and stumbled as a green aura of power fell over them like a heavy blanket.

"By the goddess!" Glenna exclaimed once her transformation ended.

Turning to look at me in her newly acquired dark resplendence, and somehow I found her even more beautiful than before, "I think you're already almost as powerful as your father! Interesting..."

She seemed to want to respond but then the svartalf army charged. While Glenna was diverted I concentrated on my transformation. A rectus snarling insectoid screech rolled over the approaching army and flattened them to the ground.

----(!)----

"Damn!" Aalyn growled as she picked herself up off the ground, "I think Forelain may have been correct!"

Thurdain and Illglan agreed with appropriate hand signals.

Rastof shot her commander a startled glance but Aalyn only nodded before shouting, "Full charge! Rastoff, send battalions north and south to get around that wall!"

Rastof nodded, tapped the earpiece coiled around her right ear, and transmitted Aalyn's commands.

Aalyn drew her sword and hefted her shield. along with her troops.

"Arbalest! Form up! Covering fire!" Aalyn yelled.

----(!)----

As the svartalf army closed my body contorted and grew as it changed into something like an apidae-alfari. I became a long and lean hybridization of bee-like humanoid with a chitin exoskeleton. Shoulders that were exotically broad set on a thick chest that slimmed down to a waist that seemed too small before sweeping out to angular hips. My long golden hair became spiky and grew to cover my shoulders and the upper part of my back. My legs grew long and my feet changed into something resembling something alfari and insect. My arms leaned out and lengthened while my fingers grew talons where my nails used to be.

Inhaling dramatically, I screamed again but this time it was in pain as a second set of slimmer secondary arms grew out beneath my primary arms and unfolded into hardened chitin blades, then filmy gold wings grew from my back and unfurled before rapidly drying out.

"I will fight with you, my King," Shahad proclaimed so definitively that even though I objected I knew she would not obey me if I told her to stay behind.

Testing my wings generated a loud buzzing sound before my last and most painful change. My ass burned like a firebrand had just been shoved up my rectum as the tailbone of my exoskeleton grew and expanded into a small bee's insectoid abdomen. Once my transformation was complete I launched myself from the wall as Glenna held out her hands and called on the power of her goddess.

A hundred beams of black Moonfire rained down out of the moon-shrouded sky and struck one hundred souls. Those svartalf warriors glowed as white as the moon for only an instant and then they disappeared. Nothing was left except a weapon here or there. A leg somewhere else, or a foot, hand, or arm. The only things left were what was not caught in those beams of pure black energy.

Several feet away Orsa and Hlina tore chunks out of the wall, sharpened them to spinning spear points, and hurled them at the enemy. Huxian yipped and growled as she launched balls of blue-tinted Foxfire. When they hit they exploded and whoever was nearby was instantly engulfed in blue flames.

The front lines of the svartalf soldiers staggered as they were burned away but the army's advancement did not slow.

High above Burza and her daughters circled the army above. They caught thermals that carried them higher and higher until Burza knew that the stones they carried would kill anyone they hit. Then Burza sang a battle ballad as her daughters joined her and they released their ammunition to deadly effect.

Shahad charged out with me but in my rage, I outpaced her. I was a streak of buzzing golden light that raked clawed hands across faces while my secondary sword arms severed arms and legs from bodies, or disemboweled. For every hundred soldiers Glenna burned out of existence I killed twenty to thirty more. I ripped through their lines and then cut back in from the back and worked my way to Shahad who was not as fast as me.

Together we cut through soldiers until I found Aalyn and her sisters.

"We must remove Aalyn and her sister from combat," I transmitted to Shahad, "Do not kill them. We should take them to Sinaan and Matron Forelain!"

"Yes, my King," Shahad agreed with a sharp nod, then added, "I will take Aalyn if you will grab her kin."

A volley of stones laid waste to troops on my left while blue Foxfire exploded to Shahad's right. Moving in unison, there was a brief "tang tang tang" of swords meeting chitin blade arms.

Aalyn screamed as Shahad grabbed her arms and thrust both her sword arms straight through Aalyn's belly. Aalyn gasped and then she slumped as I screamed, "No!"

It came out as a shriek of rage.

Heedless of my anger, Shahad picked Aalyn up and flew as fast as she could up and over the svartalf warriors toward Sinaan and Forelain who stood on a hillock overlooking the battle while I found Thurdain and Illglan, weapons raised and ready before I summarily slapped them out of their hands and bashed their heads. Picking them up, I followed Shahad to Sinaan's location.

"Your sisters," I voiced though it came out as insectoid clicking while my thoughts were transmitted via pheromones.

Fjallindae and Ra'Shaal were already casting healing spells over Aalyn who was fighting to get to her feet.

"Don't make me disembowel you," Shahad communicated so grimly that Aalyn settled down as Shahad continued, "My regards, General, you were a skilled opponent, but alas, I am a Queen while you are merely a General."

Shahad turned away and left Aalyn. As she approached me she gestured toward the on the back lines where the priestesses were healing those fallen but not dead, "My King, we must stop them or we will be defeated."

"Agreed," I replied, "They are our next target. Defend me once we are among them."