Empire Builder 1: Breed, Populate, Conquer by Dante King (free e books to read online txt) 📕

to be seen in small amounts, and mental energy, or intelligence, was in very limited supply indeed.

Even so, the number of intersecting strands quickly became overwhelming. The interconnecting web was confusing to follow, like trying to understand network traffic. A drop of sweat ran down his brow and onto his eyelid, forcing him to blink it away. He felt a dull ache forming in his stomach. This was consuming a lot of power.

“Mana,” he whispered with a groan. He needed more mana.

Melody didn’t hesitate. He heard her rustle in the satchel at her belt, and a moment later, felt her press a chunk of mana crystal to his lips.

Ben opened his mouth and took the whole chunk between his teeth. It was a little too large to chew properly, but he managed nevertheless, breaking it down and swallowing small pieces, that faint toffee flavor filling his mouth, until he felt his mana levels begin to rise.

Then he got to work. He pulled on various strands, absorbing energy from each of the mountain ogres in turn, taking enough to weaken them, but not enough for them to notice. He quickly started to fill up. His torso began to feel like a balloon, as the energy inside him bounced around, threatening to make him burst.

Ben was learning quickly that his capacity for absorption was not yet very high. He realized he needed to use his body more like a vector, holding the energy for a short time before passing it on to others.

But the mountain ogres at the other side of the fire were too far to reach with his spell. Holding in all the energy he had absorbed, he quickly dashed to the other room of this hut. The sensation was like holding his breath while trying to run with a tray of fine china balanced on his head. With every step, the magical energy threatened to burst out of him.

Ben crouched down in front of the window, gazing out onto the campfire again. Perfect—he was less than eight feet away from the leader of the mountain ogres now.

He pushed the energy he’d absorbed back out into the network, taking from some mountain ogres and giving to others. He redistributed their strength and emotions, until he had the levels just right. If his observations of their interactions had been correct, all he needed to do now was wait.

Ben closed his fists, cutting off the flow of his Drain spell, and relaxed back on his haunches. He took a deep breath, waiting for his plan to unfurl, hoping that it would work.

There was still a chunk of mana crystal remaining unchewed in his mouth. He broke it up and swallowed it, topping off his mana level. His stomach felt a little queasy, but that was a price he had to pay for the time being. He needed his full strength for the coming conflict.

He crept quietly back to the other window and knelt beside Melody again.

“Is it done?” she whispered, her eyes wide and eager.

Ben nodded. “I took a shitload of physical strength from the others and gave it to the big motherfucker in the middle.”

Melody appeared puzzled at the word “motherfucker,” but she followed his meaning. He suspected he would have some difficulty explaining slang like that from his world, but that was a problem for another time.

“Then I took the anger and frustration from the others,” Ben continued, making sure to keep his voice low, “and gave it to the two smaller assholes on this side of the fire.”

Melody smiled slyly. “That was devious. Now they will start a mutiny against their leader.”

He was impressed at how quickly she picked up on his plan. He would have to thank this Archmage Kamila later for choosing such a good guide.

It wasn’t long before his efforts paid off.

Ben heard the two high-pitched voices from before, complaining even more loudly. Then he saw them gesticulating, their faces angry, their arms flailing around as if they were mad, but didn’t quite know why.

This time, the burly alpha ogre in the middle responded with more than one syllable. A vigorous argument broke out. The alpha jutted his thick finger toward the smaller ogres in an accusing way, his ruddy features knotted with rage. A couple of other ogres attempted to intervene, but quickly saw sense and stayed quiet.

Then the burly ogre got to his feet. Ben had thought he was big, but he was wrong. He was colossal. He was at least eight feet tall. His shoulders were six feet across, and his arms were the size of tree trunks. Ben was grateful as hell to have a spell that he could use to fight from a distance—no way in hell he’d be able to take on a beast like the alpha one-on-one.

The skinny ogres got to their feet as well. They were tall, sure, but the leader of the group towered at least a foot over both of them.

If he’d been them at this point, Ben would have been keeping his mouth shut—probably running the hell out of there. But the dose of anger and frustration he’d given the mountain ogres was enough to override whatever pea-sized frontal lobes they possessed.

They stood side by side, their tones rising to the breaking point, hollering and pointing. One of them began thrusting his hips and making obscene gestures. Perhaps he was insulting the leader’s mother.

Whatever he was doing, it had the desired effect. With a roar of rage, the burly leader stepped forward and picked the offending ogre up in both hands. The extra physical strength Ben had given the alpha allowed him to hold his victim lightly above his head.

With a loud angry grunt, the alpha pulled the other ogre in half. There was a loud pop as bones and tissue were torn asunder. Blood poured out and hissed on the fire. Entrails spilled out on the ground with a plopping noise.

Ben heard Melody gasp beside him. He almost gasped himself—not having been prepared for