Liar King (Tower of Babel Book 2) Read online

  Cayden arched an eyebrow at that. "Returned?"

  "The mine in question is part and parcel of our ancestral lands, bestowed upon the Bonaventura family in perpetuity.”

  “I was... unaware of this.” He glanced to Roberta, who offered only an uncertain shrug by way of reply. “Who bestowed this land upon your family?”

  "Why, the Great Emperor himself." The Dame replied, her body drawn to rigid attention as if merely saying his name had stiffened her spine.

  To his right, Shifty offered a derisive snort, but Cayden continued without acknowledging it. “Hard to argue with that. Do you have the deed with you?”

  “The Deed?”

  “Is that not the correct word?” He cocked his head to one side as he rattled off alternatives. “The title? Contract? Bill of Sale perhaps?”

  Pride gave way to anger as Gustava's face twisted into a sneer. “The Great Emperor did not deal in anything so petty as paperwork.”

  "Well, I do. Indeed, the paperwork that I received with my claim of bastion explicitly grants ownership of all terrain and resources within ten miles of the city."

  “That mine-”

  “Was overrun by Beastmen as recently as this morning.” Cayden interrupted. “You must admit that somewhat weakens any claim you have to ownership. Possession being 9/10ths and all.”

  Hands clenched and nostrils flared, but to her credit, Gustava lingered just long enough in her reply to let her anger subside. “We did not have the force to hold the mine.” She admitted. “Which was why I rode for your keep when one of Duke Elazio's messengers informed me that you had taken possession of the ruins here.”

  “You've spoken to the Duke's messengers?”

  “Yes.”

  "Then you know why I was given possession of the keep, to begin with." He pressed.

  “I do.”

  “And why I would be understandably reluctant to relinquish control of a nearby iron mine?”

  “My Lord, your needs-”

  Cayden cut her off. “My needs are your needs.” One hand raised to gesture back the way she came. “You saw our walls upon your arrival, yes? All the work that has to be done if this citadel is to be even remotely defensible against what is coming.”

  “I did.” She responded curtly.

  “Then let us help each other.” He replied.

  That seemed to perk her attention. “And how would we do that, my lord?”

  “You have men who would be able to repair and work the mine, now that it is safe once again?” He waited until a nod confirmed his suspicions before continuing. “You have men with no mine to work, and I have a mine with no men presently to work it.”

  Gustava frowned. “You would have me pay for what belongs to me?”

  “My men risked their lives for what belongs to you. It seems only fair.” He retorted. “I would require the whole of the mine's production for one month. After that, my men will turn possession of it over to you.”

  She considered his offer for several seconds before she shook her head. "I would be sacrificing too much. Half the production."

  "You have to spend money to make money. Without my soldiers, you would have nothing." Cayden shot back. "But very well, 4/5ths."

  “Three-” Gustava started to say, the words dying in her throat as she saw his expression darken and she decided it was best not to press her luck. “One month?”

  “One month.” He nodded.

  “I would have this agreement in writing.” The woman's mouth twitched with the slightest hint of a smile. “A contract, as you said.”

  “A wise decision.” He chuckled. “I will have Roberta prepare the paperwork for you before the end of the turn.”

  “Turn?” She asked, eyes narrowing as a brief snicker ran through the assembled players.

  “End of the afternoon.” Cayden clarified with some embarrassment.“When is the earliest your men will be able to start?”

  “I can have them here on the morrow.”

  “Excellent.” He replied, ignoring Celia as she tented her fingertips in a decidedly Mr. Burns fashion at his choice of words. “Escort Dame Bonaventura to one of the sitting rooms to await Roberta.”

  As a pair of guardsmen peeled off to obey his instructions, Cayden ushered the last of the three Elan forward with nothing more than a beckoning of his fingertips. Not for the first time, Cayden marveled at how absurd it was for him to be ordering anyone around, let alone Elan nobility.

  "Well met, Field Marshall." The red-haired man began, a thick but impossible to place accent tinging the words as he strode forward. One hand rested on the jewel encrusted pommel of a sheathed blade, but there was no threat to it, just the calm collectedness of a well-trained swordsman. "I am Azazi, of the Forty-Nine Blades."

  The words meant nothing to Cayden, but they meant everything to Silver, judging by the way the young woman gasped in surprise and made her way up to stand beside him.

  “Someone I ought to know?” He asked.

  "An NPC mercenary band." She whispered low enough not to be overheard. "They start showing up in quest chains at floor forty and up. Tread lightly."

  Cayden nodded, then turned his attention back to the green-eyed warrior. “Well met Azazi, of the Forty-Nine Blades.” He said. “How can I be of assistance to you?”

  “It is quite the reverse, Field Marshall.” The man replied with a hint of bemusement. “Unlike your other guests, I have come not beg of you, but to offer my services to you.”

  “And what services would those be?”

  The forward nature of the question was the right reply, judging by the smirk that continued to spread across Azazi's face. “They are Two-fold.” The man explained. “I am here on behalf of the Blades to offer services of some of our... lesser companies, to your cause, should you have need of them in your upcoming battles.”

  “A way to spend our Zenni, if nothing else.” Cayden murmured under his breath before raising his voice to be heard once again. “And the other?”

  "The opening of Tombs has opened new possibilities as well." Azazi's smirk became a wolfish grin that Cayden found far from reassuring. "There are opportunities available during this war that my organization requires assistance to exploit fully. Well paying opportunities."

  A quest giver as well then. They'd expected something like this to come along, if only because it wouldn't be much of an event if the only people able to meaningfully contribute were those selected to run the various fortresses.

  “And where would we find you, assuming we want to take advantage of these services you are offering?” Celia asked.

  Azazi turned his smile in her direction, its edges softening as his eyes studied her in a decidedly less than professional fashion. “Admittedly, I had hoped your Field Marshall would provide me lodgings.”

  "So you do want something from me," Cayden said wryly.

  “Quite right.” Azazi laughed. Even his laughter seemed to hold a hint of that accent, each chuckle a distinct 'ha' as he dipped his head in defeat. “You have caught on to my plan. So what shall be my punishment?”

  "A room in the tower I would think." It was impossible not to laugh alongside the man, though Cayden wondered just how much of it was an affect rather than genuine humor. "We have an abundance of offices as well If that will suffice."

  “You are most gracious to this lying man.” He nodded.

  "Well, you can return my gratitude with an answer."

  “Anything within my knowledge.”

  “Are you the only one of your organization who has presented himself?” Cayden asked.

  Azazi shook his head. “No. There are ten of my brethren dispersed throughout the floor.”

  Well, there goes that plan. Cayden sighed. Having access to the only quest giving NPC could have given him leverage to dictate a more comprehensive strategy to the other players. No such luck.

  “Thank you Azazi.” He said at last.

  “It is my pleasure, Field Marshall.” The man replied.

&n
bsp; “These men will-”

  "Forgiveness, but I have one final gift for you as well." The warrior's left hand went to his side, where a scroll was tied to his hip. Deft fingers loosened the knot without looking before he tossed the roll of parchment neatly into Cayden's lap. "Call it an offer of good faith."

  Cayden reached for the scroll, then stopped. “This isn't anything dangerous, is it Azazi?”

  One red eyebrow raised in reply to the question. “What harm could a scroll do?”

  “You would be surprised.” Silver said, taking a half step away from Cayden as the young man began to unroll the document.

  What he found was a map. With all the time he had spent stooped over the War Frame, it took only seconds for Cayden to recognize the area, and correctly orient the page. The map showed Bastion and its environs, out to perhaps fifteen or twenty mile. All the landmarks he expected to find were there, along with a few others his scouts had yet to report, a small keep nearby labeled Bonaventura, as well as a spot several miles distant marked, ominously, with a skull.

  “I'm probably going to regret asking this, but what is this skull?”

  Azazi only smiled. “That would be a sub-tomb. One positively brimming with Warden Troops.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Day Two – Morning Turn

  Resources – F – 260 +10, Z – 260 +10, M – 130 +10, I – 190 +20, P +17, R +10

  Completed – Lower Township Repair II

  “There you are.” Silver said. “We've been waiting for you in the courtyard for twenty minutes. We're going to be late.”

  Cayden looked up from the War Frame. "It's only..." He started to say before his eyes caught sight of the actual time on his display "Okay, yeah, I'm late."

  The look of dismay on his features tempered Silver's irritation, her expression softening as she studied the palpable frustration upon his. "Still trying to puzzle it out."

  “Thought I'd give it one last go before we headed out, yeah.”

  “And no luck?”

  “None.” Cayden sighed, waving her over.

  It was a familiar sight, one they'd spent much of the previous evening looking at from every possible angle. A Warden tomb thirteen miles from the keep, with three small stacks of miniature soldiers filling the hex before its entrance in what Valserys had termed a Division.

  A division was formed when multiple formations occupied the same hex and could be created from up to ten separate formations. It offered no direct statistical bonuses over formations spread over multiple hexes, but there were plenty of strategic or other tactical advantages. You could 'hide' vulnerable units, such as archers within a division, using screening tactics to force enemies to engage your defensive units first. Likewise, you could compress a much larger force into fewer hexes, minimizing the danger of things like hit and run tactics.

  Also, a division would only vacate their hex entirely once all units had been individually forced to retreat, which was, near as Cayden could guess, the primary reason for the Warden division. With three units directly in front of the tomb, it would be that much harder to dislodge them and gain access.

  Half a dozen windows were open on the War Frame, but the one dead center was the first to catch her attention.

  Warden Infantry (Formation)

  Type: Infantry (Warden)

  Level:?

  Unit Count: 100/100

  Formation Bonus: +6

  HP: 100/100

  MP: 0/0

  TP: 100/100

  Move:?

  Attack: 1800 (10 base, + 6 Formation, +1 Leadership, +1 Warmaster)

  Defence: 1700 (10 base, -1 Racial,+ 6 Formation, +1 Leadership, +1 Warmaster)

  Special: Construct Traits

  Resistances: ???, ???, ???

  Weaknesses: ???.

  “Is this accurate?” Silver asked.

  “I don't see any reason for it not to be.”

  “But... how?” She frowned, looking down to the Frame itself. “We didn't get information like this on the beastmen until we fought them.”

  "Tried something new." He explained, directing her attention to a single banner several hexes away from the Warden forces. At a touch, it expanded to detail an individual Elan soldier with only two remaining HP.

  Silver examined the soldier's information for several seconds before it finally clicked. "You sent one of the scouts in by himself."

  “Like an IP ping.” Cayden nodded. “We get the same information whether we send a single soldier or a formation. I gave him orders to retreat immediately once the battle was joined, then used all of his movement to get him as far away as possible.

  “Clever.” Silver admitted grudgingly. “But isn't he still at risk? That is only seven hexes.”

  A frown crossed his face. “If they go after him he is done without question, though it will put either one formation or the whole division out of position unless they have a lot more movement that we expected.”

  "Acceptable losses then." She asked. As his frown deepened, she reached out, placing one hand on his wrist and squeezing gently. "Look, about what I said the other day..."

  “Nothing to say.” He reached out, swiping away the Warden statistics. “We're going to have casualties. You were right.”

  “And you're okay with that?”

  Cayden sighed and shook his head. “No. But I can't see any way around it.” He pointed to the frame as he spoke. “Three hundred Warden infantry in a single division. We outnumber them by a full hundred, and between Valserys' warmaster bonus and their racial penalties, we hit a hell of a lot harder, but there isn't anything to finesse here. Nothing but us slamming our units into theirs until they go down.”

  “No easy Coup de Main.” Silver said.

  “Exactly.”

  “A half-assed Kobayashi Maru.”

  Cayden's eyebrows raised. “Never took you for a Trekkie.”

  “I'm not. My dad-” The girl winced, a sudden fragility to her features as the board suddenly absorbed her attention. “The point is, maybe this is the Developer's way of teaching you that you aren't going to flawlessly win each battle. It wouldn't be the first time he's included something to help players psychologically adjust to something that would be horrifying in the real world.”

  "Don't suppose you can think of any good way to cheat," Cayden said after considering her words.

  “Afraid not.”

  He lingered briefly before replying. “Worth a shot. Let me just lock in the orders before we go.”

  Their battle plan was simple. A road ran to within two hexes of the Sub-Tomb, and as he had learned during his initial estimates for how long it would take the enemy to reach Bastion, travel by road was greatly accelerated. His units gained an additional hex of movement for every two they spent, which would allow them to travel most of the distance to the Sub-Tomb in a single turn. Once the midday turn started, they'd go off road, stack into a single division and march on the Wardens.

  The Third and Fourth would take point, a terrible pun as Celia had been delighted to draw attention to, with orders similar to those they'd used on the Beastmen. A defensive stance aimed at minimizing casualties, while still drawing the win. Their goal was to force a retreat out of the entire Warden division, to allow Cayden and his group to lay claim to the tomb entrance. Which was where their quest came in:

  Event Quest

  Halt The Awakening

  Requirements: Defeat the commander of the nearby Sub-Tomb and return his ceremonial weapon to Azazi of the Forty-Nine Blades.

  Reward: 22,000 XP.

  The quest had been the last of Azazi's 'gifts.' The mercenary, shockingly, had ulterior motives in telling them the location of the active Sub-Tomb, he wanted something from inside it. Even though he knew the Elan man was effectively programmed to behave in this fashion, it didn't keep Cayden from feeling like he was kind of a dick.

  Still, the information had informed their strategy. The quest called the enemy boss the 'commander' of the Sub-Tomb. It was a bit of
a stretch, but he hoped that by killing the boss, they could rob the enemy forces of their Warmaster bonus. Perhaps if they were lucky they'd even go all Phantom Menace and shut down entirely.

  A man could dream.

  “We've got this.” Silver offered her most reassuring smile as she saw Cayden's hand lingering over the War Frame.

  "I wish I had your confidence." He murmured.

  Only a small amount of book-keeping remained once he had set the orders. As promised, Dame Bonaventura had sent engineers to begin repairs on the mine. At ten Production per turn, the mine should be up and operational by the following morning, which was better than he could have hoped for.

  Even without it, the completion of the second set of Lower Township repairs had increased their total production to seventeen, and as expected, had opened a new option:

  Lower Township Repair

  Lower in class as much as location, this district grows the backbone of any fledgling town. (3/6)

  Cost: 60 Production

  Civilian Housing: +750

  Production: +3

  The repairs were nothing if not consistent.

  Cayden selected the third set of Lower Township Repairs as his next in queue item after the completion of the upcoming tower repairs. It'd take a little bit over a day for this one section of repairs, and likely longer still for the ones after that, but he was hoping that seeing one of the lines of repair through to its conclusion would provide something more than the linear increases that they'd seen thus far. If it didn't, at least he'd still see continuing boosts to Production which should help them in the long run.

  Finally, he turned his attention to the last remaining window.

  This action will cost 200 Grand Zenni. Are you sure? Y/N.

  The action in question, was the hiring of one of Azazi's mercenary bands, an option that had appeared on the War Frame the previous evening, shortly after they had accepted their first contract from him. It was an expensive proposition. Even with the one hundred Grand Zenni, they had earned from their site search of the mine, two hundred was nearly enough to wipe out the entire treasury, and even that would only earn them a single day's worth of assistance.

  The soldiers were worth it, of course. Even their most basic units had equipment and experience that far outstripped anything Cayden could field. Bringing them along would vastly reduce friendly casualties, but he'd hesitated all the same. He could do this with his own troops without spending a dime, after all.