Framework of the Frontier by Sain Artwell (top ten ebook reader TXT) 📕

A droning sound began to slowly grow in his head, but subsided when William moved his head. “Aha, so seeing only makes it easier to target, is that it?” It began to intensify again, but William kept moving his head as she confirmed his hypothesis. “Give up. I can keep this up all day.”

He did need to find a way to restrain her though. William looked to the woods. Still no sign of the kitties… Hope nothing happened to them.

There weren’t many options left. He let go of the siren’s eyes. Before she could manifest her mind blast he pressed a dagger against her throat.

She froze up.

“Alright, we have two ways to do this. Either we sit here with a blade against you until my allies get back, or you behave yourself long enough for me to tie you up. Which will it be?”

She scowled at him. “Ha! I have crushed their consciousness. They will not stir for many many hours.”

“Guess that means I’ll be sitting here for many many hours,” William said, a grin on his lips. “I don’t necessarily mind, but… well, you are a naked woman and I a mortal man. I’m not gonna get gropier than necessary in keeping you under control, but I can’t promise I won’t sport a hard-on after wrestling you for a couple of hours.“

Her expression blanked. She closed her legs and covered up her snatch with the tip of her tail as a rather visible flush began to grow on her pale cheeks. A distress grew in her eyes as her lips and nose began to twitch angrily. “Impudent peasant. The gall you have to suggest such disrespectful handling of a royal… You… You…” She drew a deep breath and gave him a death-stare. “Very well. I opt for bondage.”

“Excellent choice, your highness. Now, I understand you may be a big shot, in whatever siren kingdom you come from, but up here I am a Ranger of the law.” William nearly chuckled at himself. He hadn’t even finished the Ranger’s rulebook and here he was talking big like he was an old timer.

“Siren?!” Her aghast gasp managed to find a new depth in sounding offended. “I am no lowly siren. I am Rulu Ekh R’lyeh, an aboleth princess and no mere reef-born servant.”

“And I’m William Adams, a human and the Ranger of Nastall. Aboleth or siren, you’re under arrest. Now, try not to misbehave. I’m gonna take the knife off your neck—”

The moment he lifted the steel William felt the droning in his head.

C’mon bitch, you’re only hurting yourself here… He managed to avoid the mind blast and blind her. The grappling struggle to bind Rulu continued for many labored huffs. In the end, he had one securely hogtied, blindfolded, and gagged aboleth girl on her tummy next to the unconscious Ember and Rajza. It seemed to have calmed her. William avoided looking too closely at her struggles, feeling like a criminal for the pervy images going through his head.

“Nevija! Raia! Come back!” He shouted at the woods. “Where the fuck have they gone…” Glancing into the lake, William spotted the golem head walking on the bottom with tiny stone legs. “Fuck…There goes our free key into the Maze.”

“Good job mister Ranger,” said the soft voice of Nevija. “Looks like you’ve set-up the perfect outcome.”

Raia trailed her, followed by three more figures. The most striking was a short bulky diving suit crafted from crab-plates inscribed with round dot-like runes. Behind the rounded glassy windows of the former grab’s eye-sockets floated an ethereal creature with feminine features formed of multiple overlapping layers of bioluminescent jelly-fish veils. The other two new strangers were a man and woman, both half naked muscular tritons with several thin spears on their back. A black symbol of some kind of tentacle creature was branded at their hips.

“What the hell Nevija?” William could not restrain the annoyance in his voice. “Where were you and who are these supposed to be? I could’ve used help.”

“Ranger of Nastall, meet Aggaloth Ekh Ur’liuh, a generous benefactor of ours who helps extend R’lyeh’s reach to the surface through the outpost to our West.” Nevja gestured to the walking fish-tank.

A low humming voice echoed through the pink-rimmed ceramic plates, “It is my sincere wish to establish a long and mutually beneficial relationship with you, William of Nastall. We have much to gain from co-operating on these distant frontiers, forgotten by our nations.” Her wide shining eyes gave William bad vibes.

Rulu shouted muffled protests against her gag, squirming furiously.

Nevija’s tail swirled to match her wink. “Sharp kitty ears heard of your money troubles mister Ranger. What do you say, if for today you write down that the troublemaker of Palace Falls escaped your grasp. How sad. But, quite fortunate that you happened to come upon a bag of thirty black pearls.”

“Not black pearls. Depth pearls, purest and blackest of all the seas,” said Aggoloth.

William shook his head, growing increasingly wary. It was obvious Nevija and Raia had played him, again. They were obviously no strangers to betrayal and bribery. If things did escalate though, the odds didn’t look good. No way was he going to take the bribe, but considering this was a foreign agent, William wanted to appear polite. “I need to think about this. I’ve no concept of these currencies. I barely know what a clinker is worth.”

“Thirty depth pearls. That’s gotta be four to ten stamps depending who you sell the pearls to and buy the stamps from.” Nevija calculated with a finger to her lips.

Rulu was trying to flop on the stone, fleeing towards the pool like a landed seal. William crouched by her and placed a hand on top of her shoulders. Her whimpers began to take a pleading tone, a desperate tone.

This does not feel right.

“She is a