Trapped in Another World With No Magic

Chapter 65: A Quiet Moment’s Drive

Daniel was met with exactly what he expected upon return to the Citadel. Hekate scolded him, just as the three dragon empresses had, and Wenlianna, Treia, and Gwenesphia expressed their worries as well. Vaergraes admits that he made a practical choice, and that she heard of Choul, the dragon known as the Grey Outcast, since he never got along with the Red Lord or his fellow dragons.

Now, Daniel is hiding out in the hangar, where he’s working on a ground-based all-terrain vehicle. Xyreko’s production facilities made the majority of the vehicle and parts from designs on Daniel’s phone, but because he had to modify for magic crystals to serve as a battery for an electric motor, he has to experiment and work through the principles. Xyreko is a fast learner, but she’s doing her own experiments to understand the electrical principles Daniel walked her through. 

He’s mainly killing time and getting some space after taking a verbal and emotional thrashing from his family.

Of course, as always, that very thought makes him happy. He doesn’t like that he worries them, but it’s profoundly different having someone to come home to than his life on Earth, where he returned home night after night alone.

Daniel files a thin metal cowling from the engine compartment, working to make it fit better and give better airflow across the motor. He hasn’t even been able to drive it yet, thanks to the motor overheating almost immediately. He underestimated how much airflow he’d need to allow in the engine compartment, and allowed it to be more compact with excess tubing and hoses present. But, each additional inch of tubing is an air restriction, which he’s cut most of them to proper lengths, and now he’s touching up metal.

“My Lord?” asks a male voice.

Daniel looks up from his work. He stands up, saying, “Ah, Choul. Did you need me for something?”

“No, my Lord. I was just trying to ensure that I am available to serve you.”

Daniel scoffs lightly. Geirahoel didn’t let any time be wasted in getting Choul contracted, and Daniel was only barely able to get her to agree to contract the grey dragon to Daniel alone. He’ll need to try to catch Ryuogriar alone and see if she can learn why Geirahoel hates him so passionately, since he finds it difficult to believe that she’s so upset that Choul put Daniel in danger. 

“I appreciate the dedication, Choul, but you don’t have to take it so seriously. If you want to go back to wandering the world, or trying to establish your own family, or basically anything you want, I don’t mind.”

“I appreciate that, my lord. As I said, though, my life is otherwise without a concrete purpose now that I dedicated so long to revenge.”

“Alright. How about a murky purpose, then? Shouldn’t you be wanting to flirt with the lady dragons who don’t like me? For the immediate future, we could use more dragons in the world. Though, we do need to establish some farmland and livestock around the Citadel, which means we need villagers.” Daniel sighs. He wants nothing to do with leadership, but he is one of the rulers of the Citadel, meaning he has responsibility, especially since he agreed to let people move into the surrounding areas. If he wants to keep burning through the Citadel’s stockpile of mana, he’ll need to also draw an income. Thankfully, he can make the ‘mana donations’ his form of taxes, at least until a more stable society is established under the Fievegal.

“Say the word, my Liege, and I shall round up all of the slaves you-...”

“No. There will be no slaves in the Fievegal. None. Even you and the other dragons with your contracts aren’t slaves. I will endeavor to never give you an order you can’t refuse. If I can’t convince who I need to cooperate and can’t drive them away, then I will execute them if and when that proves to be the only option. But, where I come from, disagreeable speech is a right. And, so is not being a slave. ‘Freedom’ was dubious at times, but outright slavery was considered a moral abomination.”

“I see…” Choul smiles softly. “If only you had come here centuries ago, my Liege.”

“From what I understand, the feldroks were rather [libertarian], if also a bit [isolationist].”

Choul cocks his head. “I’m afraid I don’t understand those words, ‘libertarian’ and ‘isolationist’.”

Daniel nods. “They’re words from my homeland. Libertarian essentially means minimal state involvement in people’s lives, but not lacking a governing body altogether. In an ideal libertarian regime, everyone lives their lives barely knowing the government even exists. [Isolationist] is a state mentality of keeping entirely to themselves, minimizing trade and foreign policy to almost none at all, especially in terms of war.”

“I see. So, not unlike how you seem to be running the Fievegal, yes?”

Daniel nods again. “That’s the hope. I don’t want to be completely isolationist, but I don’t think there’s a ‘right’ side in the war between the east and the west. The people living around the Citadel are no different in my eyes than the people I met in the east. They wake up every morning, work at their trades, especially if Xyreko or the other caretakers give them tasks, go home, share meals, celebrate, relax, bicker… It’s all the same. Basic people-stuff. There are social people and antisocial people. I understand the start of the conflict, but that’s gone too.”

“Wait… Do you… perhaps mean the Devourer, my Liege?”

“I do.”

“I had been meaning to ask why you were unconcerned with its existence, but… do you mean to say…?”

“It’s dead. Ryuogriar, Reignleif, Hekate, Xyreko and I actively worked to destroy it. Geirahoel helped a little as well.”

Choul cocks his head, stunned. He finally formulates a question. “Six… Six people was all it took?”

“Yes. But, until we develop more of a rapport, I would rather not say more about it.”

The grey dragon in human form stares at Daniel silently, his mouth hanging partially open. However, he shakes his head clear and nods. “Of course, my Liege. I shall endeavor to earn your trust.”

“Just what a spy would want,” jokes Daniel as he continues tinkering.

Choul smiles nervously, unsure how to respond.

“So, Choul, if you don’t mind my asking, does it bother you? That I’m the…” Daniel sighs. “The dragon emperor, being a human and all. And, please answer honestly.”

Choul hesitates, just about to appease before taking his time to think about a proper answer after Daniel added more.

“My liege, as you know, I am not… the most normal dragon. While the feldroks were ‘libertarian’ as you say, they did order me to stay away from feldrok girls. They were concerned that… with mixing blood, long-lived and rare species like us would eventually fade. You earned your place by defeating the former lord and earning the trust of those who chose to be in your harem, rather than taking them by force. Apologies for the long and uncertain answer, my Liege, but I don’t know for certain how I feel about the matter. Part of me would prefer to see dragons, especially the greater dragons, produce more greater dragon children with no dilution. But, the other part of me knows that you have more than earned the right to produce children with your harem.”

Daniel sighs. “It still feels weird hearing it out loud.”

“What does? Having children?”

“No. Saying that I have a harem. Never really dreamed of it. I wasn’t particularly popular before conquering the Citadel. It’s almost unthinkable that I’d have such a large family.”

Choul is respectfully silent for a moment. He nods, “Yes, well, as I said, I do feel you have earned your place here.”

“Thank you. And, to address your concerns, I wasn’t just floating the idea. If you can convince them, I’d like you to earn the trust of and, if it comes to it, try to find a wife among the other surviving dragons. I don’t know if they’ll hate you, or if you’ll need to earn achievements as my companion, but I definitely agree with you. We need more greater dragons to restore them to honor.”

“M-My Liege… I couldn’t possibly… Those women should…”

“I don’t like or dislike the others. I’m probably in over my head as it is with who already has pledged themselves to me. I’m asking you to do this, so that in the future, our unrelated children can choose from each other, ideally.”

Choul nods once more as he understands Daniel’s point. “I-If that… is truly my Liege’s wish, then I shall do my best.”

“Thank you. I’m not trying to force you or anything, but I really hope you’ll do it.” Daniel fastens the cowling back into place, checking some of the other components. It’s still pretty early in the morning, and Daniel can’t help but feel restless. He finishes off a water skin filled with milk, courtesy of Geirahoel, and he stores it in his ‘refill’ bag, one of many of the smaller magic void bags where he puts his lunch boxes and water skins that he had prepared ahead of time, finished, and now need refilled.

“Honestly, my ‘harem’ just kinda fell into my lap, so I’m flying by the seat of my pants. This is where I’m comfortable.” Daniel gestures at the off-road vehicle to illustrate his point. “Tinkering, repairing, troubleshooting. That’s what I know. Machines are easier to understand than people most of the time.” He smiles at Choul. “So, I have no interest in adding the rest of the dragons to my collection. I’d like to be friends with them, but I’m fine with being docile acquaintances with them. If you can woo one or all of them, they’re all yours.”

Choul chuckles. “It may prove difficult, but I’ll keep it in mind, Sire. As you say, I had no vision for a time upon completing my revenge. Perhaps… I probably often didn’t consider it because I believed, deep down, that I wouldn’t survive our confrontation. That is to say, with Morthybargaron, of course. Or, that I would be slain in the aftermath, even if I succeeded.” Choul holds his hands out in front of him, about the right spacing to cradle an egg, if he had one. “Envisioning my own child… I… I can’t say it ever really…”

“Believe it or not, Choul, I understand,” replies Daniel gently, so that Choul doesn’t have to force his thought all the way out. “Before… I came here, I had pretty much given up on the idea of family and children myself.” Daniel looks out of the hangar’s massive open doorway, where the sun is just starting to peek over the horizon. He looks at Choul, sporting a bit of a devious grin. “Choul, let’s go for a test ride. You and me.”

“P-Pardon, Sire?”

Daniel gestures with his thumb at the rover he has been working on. “I’m pretty sure it’ll work this time. I’ve been working on the cooling all morning. Let’s test her out and go as far as we can. Just the two of us.”

Choul is stunned, but Daniel wastes no further time climbing into the driver’s seat of the rover. He calls out, “Get in, Choul. Not an order, but a darn strong suggestion.”

Choul hesitates for a moment longer. He hesitantly jogs over, climbing into the passenger seat, sitting as Daniel does while looking around. Daniel walks him through putting his seatbelt on, and then he starts up the rover. It doesn’t make any obvious noise, since Daniel didn’t care to put the beepers and chirpers modern cars of Earth used to alert the driver that the electric motor was ready.

“Alright. Let’s do this,” replies Daniel. He shifts the rover into reverse, backing it away from his workbench. It successfully runs, humming as the engine whirs at a comfortable volume when it’s supplying power. It has a bit more torque than he expected, which jostles him and Choul, but it’ll be fine once they can make an open run, and he can govern the acceleration a bit more to make it smoother later.

Choul grips what he can to keep himself steady in his seat as Daniel turns and drives forward, driving down the ramp that Xyreko had the goblins, ogres, and orcs build leaving the hangar specifically for land vehicles. It’s a long, precarious road with a cliff on his left side as he hugs the wall, driving cautiously down the slope toward the ground far below them. But, they’re making excellent time thanks to the modest speed Daniel would estimate at around 30 miles per hour.

“Th-This carriage… It’s… I must confess, I’m not sure how this is possible, my Liege!”

“Just imagine that I crammed the buckrokhs into a tiny box in front of us, and they’re running on… damn… we don’t have hamster wheels here, do we?” Daniel chuckles as he continues driving, and Choul continues to clutch to the door and the center console.

“Your home country… I cannot say I can imagine where in the world it is, my Liege. I thought I had travelled far, and yet, I have never encountered anything like this or your strange staves.”

“Trust me, that’s probably for the best for now. It’s a big leap.” The ground is close, and Daniel accelerates, picking up speed, which only causes Choul to grip tighter and press himself more firmly into his seat. “My Lord! I must say this mode of transportation does not give me comfort!”

“You’ll get used to it! It’s safer than horse drawn, trust me. It’ll take a higher caliber of bandits to bring us to a stop, and they won’t outrun us.”

“B-Begging your pardon, but… would we not simply annihilate them?”

Daniel sighs with amused exasperation. “You and Xyreko. If the buckrokhs get murdered at the outset, we’d still be screwed. Imagine bandits trying to figure out how to stop this thing.”

Choul is silent for a moment, but he nods as he pieces it together. Since he can’t work out how it’s moving forward, and he’s sitting in it, bandits would have even more trouble forcing it to stop.

Daniel designed the rover after a cross between one of his favorite concept SUVs that was designed with two hemi engines built into it and had the capacity to be a rock crawler off the assembly line, but with the bed of a pickup truck and a turret mount over the extended cabin. On that mount, there’s currently a 40 millimeter repeating grenade launcher, since the rover would be more likely to need to deal with crowd control than piercing dragon scale if they were to run into issues. A machine gun would be fine, of course, but with big creatures like the gulpoxen, visible explosions should be enough to frighten them and drive them back. 

Daniel races down across the open plains surrounding the Citadel in the massive dale where the mountainous castle rests. There are miles and miles of open land ahead of him, virtually untouched by civilization, with mountains circling the horizon, the Citadel at his back, and the massive lake spanning beyond it. Daniel steers to follow the lake as he travels northwest, having no true destination, but feeling profoundly relaxed just driving forward.

Choul is able to relax more as well now that they’re on relatively even ground, and he looks at Daniel a couple of times before remarking, “You… seem rather more at ease than I’ve seen you so far, my Liege.”

Daniel sighs with a smile. “Yeah… Between you and me, it’s… a heavy weight. Not a burden, per se, but… I feel the pressure…”

“The pressure of being Emperor?”

Daniel nods. “That, as well as…” He sighs again. “The guy surrounded by a bunch of women… specifically ones that actually want to be with me. I… I’m afraid I’m going to screw up and not live up to their expectations.”

Choul is respectfully silent for a moment as the plains race by. Daniel is probably driving between 50 and 60 miles per hour, which is extremely fast over unpaved terrain. But, thankfully, the big tires, robust shocks, and fairly soft and smooth ground provide little turbulence on the drive so far.

“You were focused on your purpose… to the detriment of everything else,” remarks Choul softly.

Daniel nods. “Yeah. It… was lonely if I kept wishing and hoping for change in those other departments. So, I shut that part out. Now, it really has… fallen into my lap.”

Again, Choul is silent for a long moment, which Daniel breaks by adding softly, “Do you want to know the real reason I didn’t kill you, Choul?” Daniel glances over at him for a moment. Choul cocks his head, replying softly, “I was fairly convinced you had been truthful.”

“Mostly. But also… I… don’t really have any friends. Anyone that I can just talk to. Everyone I’m close to…”

Choul realizes what he’s getting at, and he smiles. “Ah, yes. They are those you don’t wish to falter before.”

Daniel nods softly. “Yeah…”

“Then, allow me to say, my Liege, that I understand you in this scenario. A life of purpose… no, a life of obsession… it’s a lonely path to travel, but only when you are able to look away from the obsession.”

Again, Daniel nods in agreement. “Once I realized we were on the same side, as far as not wanting to bother anyone else, I hoped you and I could be friends. Just friends. Drink together, drive together, spar, gamble, play games, compete in friendly competition. That kind of stuff. You know, when I just need a couple hours to unwind. I love them all to death, but… it’s exhausting at times.”

Choul chuckles. “I am honored you spared me for such an important task, my Liege.”

“It is scummy of me, isn’t it?”

“No, not at all. I am thankful to have been spared. And, I do hope that I can sort myself out and eventually have a family. Admittedly, I have more time than you, I assume, but… your problems that you just described… sound like good problems to have, my Liege.”

Daniel chuckles. “Well, now that I’ve got a buddy to do guy stuff with, you bet. I wouldn’t trade them for anything. But, every now and then, I just want solitude again.”

“If… I may, my Liege; where did you learn your craft? The wisdom and outlook you have,... It seems much larger than that of the typical human or human-kin, and even any of the shorter-lived demon-kin.”

Daniel has been dancing around the topic with Choul. He’s not sure that he has made the right call with any of the numerous people who know who and what he is, or rather, where specifically he came from relative to the world of Zenkon. If he’s ever captured, he surely wouldn’t hold up under torture, and he’d be forced to create his inventions for people with darker intentions. He genuinely believes his current inner circle has good faith intentions for the future; the dragons are all but obsessed with having children and little else, the goblins Skloe and Shek are basically the same, and completely innocently happy with their new high station. Kera'tai mainly only wanted to look after her villagers, who are thriving in the Citadel’s village, and Aoloan is practicing recipes and mastering her cooking craft for both the large family and for the village when she wants to perform extra tasks. While Aramellianna is a wild card as far as Daniel is concerned, there was nothing he could do to hide his nature from her, and Wenlianna would pursue every technology Daniel can teach her if it means the betterment of people in the world of Zenkon. Likewise, Vaergraes just wants the world to stay in balance as much as possible, and Gwenesphia and Treia came to be with Daniel, already knowing that he’s an otherworldly summon.

Of course, Daniel could be extending too much trust, but he doesn’t get any untrustworthy vibes from his inner circle.

And, though they got off to a rocky start at first, Daniel doesn’t detect any untrustworthy vibes from Choul.

“The truth is, Choul, and you can NOT tell the ladies about this; I’m… not from this world. I’m a divine summon.”

Choul cocks his head as he does his best to process the information. It’s the same reaction Daniel gets from most anyone who knows of the concept of divine summons -which is a lot of people in this world-, and that Daniel is Daniel, possessing no magic of his own.

“So… the others do not know…” murmurs Choul. Daniel did unintentionally mislead him on that.

“No, no, they definitely know. But, if you tell Geirahoel that I told you…”

Choul goes pale. While he’s probably stronger than any of the other living dragons, at least in Daniel’s vicinity, he would be against three of them all at once if he picked a fight. Intentionally or unintentionally.

“Yes, now I see what you meant. Apologies for misunderstanding.”

“Nah, that was my fault.”

“It does make sense now, Sire,” starts Choul as he thinks. “Your power defies the logic of this world. I can detect very little magic in your presence, and yet you were able to not only withstand my attacks, but I felt my life flash before my eyes when your staff was aimed my way.” Choul lifts the bangs of his slightly long hair, showing a fairly freshly-healed wound on his forehead. Daniel hadn’t noticed it at the time, but Choul was bleeding from his head, likely where Daniel’s round from his rifle grazed through flesh or deflected off of Choul’s skull. When the dragon didn’t fall, Daniel assumed the latter, and that the rifle wouldn’t be enough, especially with Choul’s armor.

“If you had to switch from the staff that was able to do this to me to another one, then I surely would have died had your attack connected.” The dragon chuckles in amusement. “I’d never actually felt that feeling before. The feldroks raised me well, my master was always careful while training me, and I never got into real fights with Morthybargaron or his kin. And, I dare not challenge the women, as their lives are too precious at that point and now.” He grins at Daniel, joking warmly, “It’s nice to experience new things from time to time.”

They both chuckle together.

And, of course, Choul begins to ask the question. “My Liege, I hope I’m not intruding where my mind doesn’t belong…”

“Feel free to ask me anything at any time, Choul. I’ll let you know after the fact if I don’t want to answer, but it’s extremely rare I’ll be bothered by being asked. And, I won’t kill you for it.”

“Very well. Thank you, my Liege. My question is; what will the Lady Empresses think when they find you… tested this chariot with me, of all people?”

Daniel laughs a little, knowing he’s in for another scolding -but thankfully, a far lighter tone- once they get back. “I’m sure I’m in for another lecture, but we’re just doing some light reconnaissance, scouting areas for farmland, testing the rover, surveying the terrain, exploring invasion routes… You know, emperor stuff. You’re my guard.”

“Yes, it’s those last two parts that I know they will take contention with. Are you not concerned that they will have wished to participate?”

Daniel scoffs. “You know I’m just making up crap, Choul. Those are called excuses. Besides, they know I’m safe. Or, I’ll be able to convince them. Not only are you with me, even if you’re probably not back up to one hundred percent, yet, but Xyreko has been stalking us the whole time.”

Daniel points with his thumb up and behind them, and Choul looks. His eyes widen, as he can likely detect Xyreko’s magic.

A moment later, the golem appears in the middle-row of seating, directly under the turret hatch. “I was certain you were unaware of my presence, Daniel.”

Daniel chuckles. “If you want to fool me, Xyreko, you should have been hanging all over me up until we left, or at least appeared to send me off. Of course, I was going to expect this no matter what. Everything alright?”

“Indeed. I have had my wing golems following from above in case the engine overheats once more, or something else goes wrong. I have also been recording data on speeds and terrain management.”

“Sounds good. I haven’t noticed any major issues. The steering’s a little over-reactive, so we’ll have to tone it down a touch, and I think one of the shocks is at an uneven height. Feels like we’re leaning a little.”

Xyreko nods, making note of Daniel’s observations.

“You can tell all of that just from this ride?” asks Choul.

Daniel nods. “I can. We had these in my homeland, so I know what it’s supposed to feel like. The steering just means that, if I make a quick movement, it could turn too sharply and roll us over. The shocks aren’t too big of a deal, though it can affect steering as well, since the weight is distributed unevenly. Oh! Which reminds me, we’ll need to tune down the acceleration more, Xyreko. In the wrong circumstances, the torque could cause the tires to spin, and they’ll dig themselves right down into the dirt if we’re not careful.”

“Really?” asks Xyreko, surprised as well.

“Yep. Especially soft soil like what’s around us now. The grass helps, but if the tires start spinning and can’t escape their own holes, they’ll dig straight down until the chassis is resting on the ground and the tires have no more traction.”

“Fascinating… I’ve made a note of it, so we can perform service upon your return, your Grace.”

“Thanks, Xyreko. Oh, and I don’t know what I can give you, but I will pay you not to tell the others about what Choul and I discussed today.” Choul looks at the golem a little nervously, and Xyreko cackles softly. “Is that a fact, Master? Because I have something I want, as it turns out.”

Daniel hesitates, glancing over his shoulder at her for a moment. “Please let it be something within my capabilities. I know you know them well.”

“I do. And, it is. Especially with a dragon trained in what I believe to be a school of necromancy magic.”

Choul flinches a little, but he nods. “I… I am far from a master, but necromancers specialize in causing death just as much as reversing it. Though, as you saw, it can be dangerous and costly, even to the caster.”

“What is it you want, Xyreko? For us to kill someone? To bring back Big Red again?”

“No, my dear precious Daniel. I got my fill of Morthybargaron. I am content. However, after analyzing the archives on your phone and something you said to Ladies Geira and Reina,... I had a connection of information that I had dismissed long ago.” She leans forward to look at Daniel’s face, and he slows to a stop so he can look at her and give her direct attention. She says softly, “Daniel… I want to be alive again.”

Daniel cocks his head, definitely surprised by this declaration. “You do? Are you not…? Huh… No, more importantly, I assume you have a plan to accomplish that?”

“I do. It was your idea, actually. ‘Meat golem’.”

“Meat golem… wait… Ugh… You were watching that whole time?”

Xyreko makes an obvious deflection when she replies, “My beloved Daniel, I should begin preparing zoning for our new farmland and residential areas. I will attempt to find the source of my information on what you’ll need to give me what I want. I discredited the information because it mentioned an artifact capable of light and dark magic to create an empty living vessel into which a soul can be transferred using the soul arts the feldroks mastered. They produced the vessels, but the transfers always failed, and the souls were lost. But, I trust you to come at this problem with a perspective not available in our world.”

Daniel nods. “Alright. May I ask why?”

“Isn’t it obvious, my master?” teases Xyreko softly. She pets Daniel’s head, chuckling as she relaxes back into her seat. “Immortality is more challenging when riddled with envy.”

“That’s one of the seven deadly sins,” jokes Daniel. “Yes, well, I’m hoping to maintain my status as Prime Minister of the Citadel. I just want to be able to smile again. And, a few other things.”

“If it’s your request, Xyreko, then I have no choice.”

“And, the blackmail helps.”

Daniel chuckles as Choul watches them banter. “I take it you’re aiming for a promotion to empress.”

“I suppose I shouldn’t keep secrets from the Empresses and Queens…” murmurs Xyreko leadingly.

“Forgive me, Xyreko. But, are you sure you want to be restored to life for me?”

She stares at him, replying dryly, “Master, you refused a potentially unlimited wish from a goddess, prompting her to magically evolve Lady Shek so you could make her a queen instead of an empress.”

“In my defense, I tried to explain that to Shek, but she lights up when she hears herself called a queen. Who am I to crush that?”

“An emperor worth coming back to life for, your Grace.”

Daniel, having followed the shoreline of the lake for a fair number of miles, turns the rover around to begin heading back to the Citadel.

As a final word, though, Xyreko teases deviously, “My beloved Lord, I will caution you; you and Sir Choul might want to concoct an excuse or lie for what has transpired here. My silence has not been paid for yet, and your beloved consorts have noticed your absence.”

Daniel sighs. “Alright. Tell them Choul kidnapped me…”

“Sire!?”

Daniel and Xyreko both laugh as Daniel drives towards the Citadel.

***