Page 55 of Tethered Thrones

My entire harem leaped in the direction I pointed, making easy way with our allies towards the tall metal gates gleaming in the distance in the afternoon sun.

Bracken led the way, clearing those who tried to stop us as they became less and less concentrated, the majority falling behind us. The battle was already primarily at our rear and what felt like victory was before us, close enough to taste.

Soon, only the wide stone path into the city lay ahead of us with nothing and no one barring our way. They'd thought their soldiers would stop us. Ha! They underestimated me, my harem, my supporters and the goddess Tsuki. Just like the many battles I'd taken part in before, being underestimated would prove to be our greatest weapon.

“Get those doors open!” Jia shouted to her comrades as we drew nearer. They hurried ahead on horseback, arrows pointed to the watch boxes.

As a group, we slowed to a stop, waiting.

No one appeared in the boxes to tell us we were not welcome, and no one opened fire on us.

“They're hiding,” she said in disgust. Then, louder, she shouted. “Open these doors, or we will do it ourselves!”

Silence rang in response.

“Open the doors!” she instructed her men.

Without hesitation, arrows were shot over the top of the door. They had hooks attached to the front with ropes attached to the ends. They had planned this part better than I had, after all, I had a flying beast to carry me over the wall. But going in with the large group would be better for us. If we charged the palace as one, there would be no way for the palace guards to stop us.

Heart pounding, I watched as the many ropes were gripped and pulled taut.

Still, no alarms sounded. No one appeared to stop us.

“On three!” Jia shouted and when the number was announced they all began to pull as one.

For a moment, there was no response and then with a great, metallic creak, the doors began to part.

Still, silence.

Had the city been evacuated? By now, they had known we were coming. Was all of this effort for nothing?

But no... It hadn’t been long since General Hideyoshi had taken our side. That wouldn't be enough time for an entire evacuation. If the entire populace of Kari had left, wouldn't we have heard or seensomething? Wouldn't Jia have heard something?

The towering doors pulled further apart, the momentum suddenly swinging them with more force just as I finally realized.

“No!” I shouted. “It's a trap!”

The moment the words left my mouth, a chilling, inhuman sound reverberated through the air, so loud that all other noise was drowned out. It was like the clicking of a thousand locusts surrounding us and with it, like a swarm, countless nocs came spilling from behind the walls. Every type of bug-like monster, coming toward us, the mass so thick that it was hard to see where one ended and the next began.

And from their midst, a creature so large and hideous that I gasped, emerged.

It was a noc unlike any I had ever seen. Its body stretched as tall as the very walls surrounding the city, long and thick with small legs, hundreds of them, and at the top, a misshapen, hideous human face.

“Daaku!” Hadi shouted and I could scarcely believe it. This was the new noc king. The one who had taken Hadi's rightfulplace. He was terrifying, absolutely intimidating, but it was hard to fathom strategy coming from such a monstrous creature.

“Run!” Jia shouted, but it was too late. The nocs were upon us and another battle beginning, but all I could think as Jia’s horse reared in fear and as I swung my weapon at anyone who came too close, was that Emperor Gaulu had exposed himself.

He was letting the world know that the current noc king was his ally. Why else would he be here, fighting to protect Kari and the emperor himself?

If we could make it out of this alive, everyone would know the truth. No one else would try to stop us.

This was good.

The moment I thought the gloating thought, a scream tore through the air, piercing me, and I knew without even seeing that it was one of my nocs.

My blood went cold as fear shot through me.

I searched in vain to see where the sound had come from and saw at the last moment as Bracken fell from the sky.

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