Chapter Eight Wilde #2
Fyodor was first in line. I stared at him for a moment, taking in his large tusks and green muscles. He was smart and knew how to follow orders, and I’d worked with him before. He was an obvious choice, but I couldn’t single him out in front of the other applicants without causing trouble.
“What do you think of a man who would kill his child for power?” I asked.
Fyodor stared at me for a long time, dark eyes narrowed. “Not much of a man.”
“You’re hired.” I gestured for him to stand off to one side.
He showed no arrogance or shock at this announcement. He only stepped aside as instructed, his orcs gathering around him, and watched the rest of the interviews with interest.
The next person in line was another human. He stepped forward eagerly, an answer already forming on his lips as he anticipated the same question.
“You stumble upon a harmless maiden in the woods. What do you do?”
The man’s mouth dropped open, allowing his prepared answer to escape. He swallowed and tried to collect himself, then said, “I’ll capture …” He paused, eyeing my feminine face and dress. “Umm … pass?”
“Leave.”
“Yes, ma’am sorry, ma’am,” he muttered before scurrying out the door.
The next was a lacertian. They were harder to tell apart, since all lacertians were tall with green scales, yellow eyes, long tails, and muzzles full of sharp teeth. I couldn’t tell if I’d met this particular lacertian before or if they were a new applicant.
“Same question.”
“I would report her whereabouts to you, so you know there’s an intruder on the premises,” they hissed.
“You’re hired. Next.”
The lacertian and their crew joined the orcs off to the side.
Next in line was a manticore. It growled and lashed its scorpion tail at me. There was a large gap between the manticore and the other minions.
“I don’t have enough meat to feed you.”
The manticore lunged for me, the point of its tail aimed straight at my heart, its enormous fangs aimed at my neck. It would try to pump me full of venom while it ripped my throat out.
I teleported out of its way.
The manticore soared through the air, its wings flapping behind it, but it was too heavy to change course midair. It landed several feet away, long claws gouging the polished floor as it skidded to a stop. It roared a challenge and raced toward me.
A spear punctured its left wing. The manticore growled in pain and shifted its focus toward the new threat.
One of the lacertian’s stood a few feet away, their hand still outstretched from their throw. Their yellow eyes widened as they realized they’d only wounded the beast, not killed it.
The manticore lunged toward them, mouth opened wide.
Fyodor ran up to it and smacked it with his club, sending it into the crowd of minion hopefuls. The humans screamed at the monster in their midst and scattered.
The manticore’s tail lashed, striking at least one of the fleeing humans. They made it a few steps before the poison slowed them down and they stumbled, falling face first onto the floor.
“Mimsy,” I called.
The imp appeared near my shoulder.
“Do we have any manticore antivenom?”
“I’ll check!” Mimsy zoomed off.
The orcs and lacertians had cornered the manticore.
One of the orcs grabbed its tail, holding the stinger up and away from everyone while the manticore lashed out with its fangs and claws.
The flapping wings smacked two other minions in the face, keeping them at bay as they tried to wrestle the beast into submission.
“I found some, Mistress Wilde!”
“Apply it to the human, if he’s still alive,” I said, waving toward the manticore’s victim. “But save some in case our new hires need it.”
“Yes, ma’am!”
One of the lacertians finally plunged their spear into the manticore’s heart. It gave a pitiful roar before its body fell limp and slipped out of its captor’s hands.
I stared down at the manticore, wondering how it had gotten here in the first place.
Was it one of the creatures inhabiting the cursed forest?
I’d never seen signs of it before, but the forest was vast, and I’d rarely wandered outside of Traumstead before assisting Trey with the quest. Had this beast always posed a threat to him?
“Your lordship?” an orc tentatively approached me.
“Yes?”
“Can we eat it?”
I stared at the orc for a long moment. “Isn’t their meat poisonous?”
“Not to orcs.”
“Then yes, you may eat it.” I thought of the kitchen fiasco from last time and added, “Do you know how to use a stove?”
The orc nodded eagerly. “I wanted to be a professional chef,” he informed me proudly. Then his shoulder slumped. “That … didn’t work out.”
“Very well. I am assigning you kitchen duty. You will guard it from everyone else, especially the imps.”
The orc beamed with pride, shoulders thrown back as he nodded eagerly over his new assignment.
Fyodor watched me with narrowed eyes. I waited for him to comment, to argue that they were here to fight, not cook. He said nothing, turning away to help his companions gather up the manticore.
“Be careful when extracting the venom sacs,” I ordered. “I may need to refine it into more antivenom.”
“Yes, Your Lordship,” the minions answered dutifully.
I turned back to the minion hopefuls who had neither fled nor helped during the fight. They were under no obligation to help until they were under contract, but I now had an excuse to get rid of them. “You’re all dismissed.”
Several left without question. A few lingered, their hands flexing as they considered venting their frustration. Or perhaps they thought they could prove their worth through violence.
The lacertian and orc captains stepped up to either side of me, silently adding their support to my order.
The remaining interviewees left. I didn’t know what shadows they crawled back to, but I hoped to never see them again.
Once I was alone with my minions, I relaxed and pulled off my wig, running my fingers through my hair. “We’ll review the contracts tomorrow. You’re welcome to any rooms that aren’t already occupied. I’m turning in for the evening. If anyone needs me, my rooms are on the third floor.”
Fyodor nodded and quietly promised, “We won’t need you.”
He kept his promise. Not a single minion bothered me for the rest of the night.