Recycle and Renew

Leraje was off to work on Reala with a Runestone from the new network I'd had Citrinas whip up so I'd have some warning before their arrival, or if things went pear shaped...

Unfortunately that meant she had taken Morgana with her, which was a shame because I really wanted to study her for longer. Vampires were really weird. Definitely Undead but with some strong Therionic traits making them more of a hybrid, but the Goddesses had been super leery of trying to make me a hybrid. Something I really wanted to look into more, especially with my Nephilim children essentially being hybrids themselves.

Citrinas still wasn't pregnant, and not likely to be unless she insisted on it. With her advanced intellect and ability as a researcher I'd gone over with her everything I'd discovered so far with my abilities in breeding and we agreed that it seemed the power of the individual had no baring on the potential power of their offspring, only how powerful their race was. For all her high tier class Alanna's orc children had been no stronger than those of the other human women while Snow who was only a very low level fighter had birthed the powerful Mariliths. Strangely this also meant that the Champions of the Dark generally made for better broodmares than the Champions of the light with one exception. It turns out Amazons are actually their own race here and not just another flavor of human, and what's more one of the stronger light based races.

Halicarnassus's Dragon Succubi children had inherited her aptitude with illusions so she and they, each with their own Runestone for keeping in touch, were now working recon in the rain forest invisibly mapping out the conflict zone. Once I had the location of a isolated Hornet Queen I hoped to take her for better information on the Empress and more importantly I needed the locations of the Amazon villages so I could locate two key individuals for my plan with Alkadabuki. Also I needed to work on a nickname for the Amazon Queen, no way was I going to use that mouthful to address her. Buki maybe? Depends on what she found most humiliating I supposed. Maybe I'd just call her Tits.

Little Ria wasn't saying anything more than just "Master" still but she seemed a whole lot more aware of her surroundings than she had been. She was also really getting into her new role as my cocksleeve now, actively participating in sex instead of just taking it like a toy. Her really working for her breakfast had certainly motivated Brigitte and Shailynn in their morning ritual, though Mitsumine still remained an unhappy participant. Not it turned out because she didn't like dick but because she felt it was undignified. Less undignified than pretending to be a pet though apparently, she was quite scandalized at how the twins had accepted their new role. I figured they just found out being "petted" by a flock of Succubi felt amazing.

The dairy was going strong, especially now that all of Tisdora's original children were mature enough to join in on the milking. Fresh milk was our hottest trading commodity with both village and the Archipelago. Orchid told me it was fast becoming considered a delicacy among her people. I'd impregnated each of the village women with a pair of full cow kin girl twins, the dairy would almost certainly have grown big enough to have room for them by the time they matured the way my monster levels were growing and I could use the boost in production. Seeing how long it took a pure Beast Kin child to mature would be good data as well.

The fighting between Giant and Dwarf had slowed down quite a bit with the Dwarves staging a good sized army at this point and the Giants being smart enough not to charge head first into the meatgrinder. They hadn't backed off though and continued ambushing the Dwarves when they thought they could get away with it. I really needed to remember to ask Snow just who the hell she was for the Giants to go through so much effort to try and reclaim her.

I got word through Citrinas's network that one of Hali's daughters, Asmacarnus, had had a lucky break and found a badly wounded Hornet Queen. The lone survivor of a Amazon raid on her nest. I told her to bring her to Delta so she could heal and bind her and to try and gather half a dozen or so of the least damaged Amazon women's bodies. I'd had an idea and if it worked this could net me information on the Amazon villages as well and a way to capitalize on it.

Delta was waiting for me when I portaled into her Dungeon. I knew what she was going to ask, being so much like her sister.

"Yes I'll give you children and you could have just asked you don't need to earn them as a reward. Not that you don't deserve a reward holding fort in a war zone."

"Thanks dad, and it's really not that hard. The Hornets can't harm my soldiers and the Amazons are indifferent to anything not a Hornet. I'd hoped killing a bunch of the Hornets would draw out a Queen but they just stopped sending Hornets near. Nasty things that they are I don't miss them though." I could see that, mindless killing machines enslaved to the Hornet Queens hive mind didn't sound like great company. The worker drones wouldn't be much better if less violent.

We didn't have long to wait before Asmacarnus appeared holding the wounded Hornet Queen in her arms. She could almost be mistaken for human if not for her antennae and four insect like wings with pale skin, auburn hair, and pleasantly full breasts. Certainly not looking her best right now though, the Amazons had tore her up pretty good and she still had most of a spear embedded in her abdomen that Asma had wisely left in place.

Asmacarnus left to get her next target while Delta and I got to work. Delta's healing spells were better than the low level ones I had left so I left most of that work to her while binding the Queen with a Mark after removing the obstruction. The pain of having the spearhead removed from her guts woke her up though the spurting wound quickly faded but she was too weak to struggle, not that she'd have budged the hand of the Nephilim holding her still even at full strength. Strangely God's Eye didn't list a name for her while still giving me the rest of her information. Did Hornet Queens not have names? Once her Mark was complete and Delta had her good as new I lifted her to her feet.

"Do you not have a name?" I asked her.

"Of course I do." She responded and a sweet floral scent filled my nose. Well sure, how was God's Eye supposed to show me that. Silly bugs.

"Okay great, well I can't pronounce whatever that is so I'm just going to call you Clover, got that?"

"Of course my King, whatever you like." Asma popped into view again and Clover jumped at her appearance. She was holding the large muscular bodies of two Amazon women riddled with what looked like stab wounds. Hornets were nasty. Asmacarnus dropped them at my feet and with a salute disappeared once more.

I examined the bodies while Clover watched dispassionately and Delta came over to help. Not that much blood loss surprisingly, probably the poison was what did them in. With the number of wounds it was pretty amazing they'd not succumbed to the poison earlier though, Amazons were just as tough as advertised apparently. Still their mostly intact forms were perfect for my plan. Asmacarnus had had the foresight to bring their weapons along with them as well, even better. Amazons apparently didn't wear much in the way of clothing and no armor at all so hopefully a few holes wouldn't be a problem.

"How many Amazon's attacked your hive anyways Clover?"

"Around a dozen or so. No idea how they found me, they just showed up out of the trees giving me no time to escape and with only a few hundred Hornets for defense. My Hornets did better inside the confines of the hive once they couldn't use their elemental spirits, but they still got to me. I managed to take down the last of them and thought I made it until their leader planted my own spear in my guts before she went down. Who are you anyways?"

"Your new Master" I replied while inscribing a large circle in the floor "And your mother's Master when I get my hands on her. Speaking of which do you know where she is?" Interesting the Amazons couldn't use their spirits inside the hive. Would they be stopped by a fortress as well?

"Of course, that's where most of my Hornets were. Supporting her in the main drive against that bitch the Amazon Queen. My Hornets will have gone mad when I lost conscious so she likely thinks me dead at this point."

I'd finished the circle and the runes outside. Now to move the bodies inside. The first was a lanky green haired girl with bow and sword, Ranger probably. Second was a burly purple haired woman with a greatsword as tall as her seven foot frame. Asma handed my the third and I glared back at her not having noticed her return. She just grinned. Whatever, third was another green haired woman but this one had a huge axe. Asmacarnus placed the fourth down next to her, a black haired woman with two swords. Each of the women was very tanned with huge tits.

"What did their leader look like?" I asked Clover.

"Long dark blue hair. She had a sword and shield before I disarmed her, then she took my spear from me." She grimaced at the memory "The other two that made it to my chamber had red hair, she'll be easy to spot." Asma took the hint and disappeared with another salute.

"Good, now while we're waiting for her to return Alpha can go back and get my onaholes for me."

Alpha appeared next to me looking indignant "What?! How did you know I was there? I waited until after you left to go invisible and follow."

"I knew when you and your sister didn't complain about being left behind you were up to something, and I knew when you passed through the Portal. So go get my toys. Now"

She stomped off into the glowing doorway as I turned back to Clover "So the Empress is leading the fight against their Queen?"

"For all the good it's doing her. We'd have already worn down the others if it wasn't for that bitch. Thousands and thousands of Hornets sent against her and it's only slowed her down."

"Why not make a move on their villages then? Cut off their support."

"Ha! Yeah we tried that, hell we went after their villages first. Their strongest spirits are protecting the villages, burned the first group of Queens and their raiding party to ash when they tried. We've just been trying to blunt their retaliation since then. I'm not the only Queen that's gone to ground trying to hide from them either you know. Though most can't resist the Empress's call to arms. We all should have fled long since but she's gone crazy, thinks she can take on the world when only a single Champion of Light is going to be our doom."

"But the Amazon's have taken loses as well surely?"

"Oh yeah, their Queen can only be in one place at a time. They've taken losses and can't replenish their numbers quickly at all. Their efforts have definitely slowed down but it's only a matter of time before they call in allies. Should have before now but Amazons are more stubborn than Dwarves."

"Certainly a bad situation. Guess I'll have to do something about it." Alpha was back with my mana batteries now looking more sheepish than indignant, and soon Asma was as well holding the biggest Amazon woman yet. The rest had their hair cut fairly short but this blue haired beauty wore it long and lose down to her hips. Very nice.

I put her in the center of the circle with the other four arranged around her. I didn't actually need a ritual for this next part but I wanted to return these woman as intact as possible so hoped the extra effort would be rewarded. I chanted the words that had come to me when I leveled while focusing my will upon the bodies before me. The room grew dark and still then so black it blocked even my sight as the chant drew to its end and I poured mana into their recumbent forms. When the light came back I could see the women stirring and soon all five were standing before me. The first four looked fairly normal, the Hornet wounds having faded to pale scars, though with God's Eye I could tell they were now Zombie Lords. Mostly mid level Fighters but I was right about the Ranger and two also had levels in Shaman as well. Their leader however stood out as her eyes glowed with a blue fire and blue flames occasionally danced over her body, Otrera the Juggernaut was now a **** Knight in my service.

I guess I was wrong about Create Greater Undead not being useful.