The New World
Copyright© 2024 by Dark Apostle
Chapter 38: A Helping Hand
Fan Fiction Sex Story: Chapter 38: A Helping Hand - The story follows James Smith, a man who dies and finds himself in a surreal afterlife courtroom, where his life is judged as "zero sum"—neither good nor evil, just utterly average. Dissatisfied with being consigned to eternal mediocrity, he manipulates the cosmic bureaucracy into granting him a second chance in a new world, where he is reincarnated as a child with his memories intact and perks... - edited by my lovely Steven.
Caution: This Fan Fiction Sex Story contains strong sexual content, including Ma/Fa Ma/ft Mult Coercion NonConsensual Reluctant Slavery Lesbian BiSexual Heterosexual Fan Fiction Farming High Fantasy Rags To Riches Restart Alternate History DoOver Extra Sensory Perception Body Swap Furry Magic Incest Mother Sister Politics Royalty Violence
James was in the field for the first time without Kael, trying every combination of spells he could think of. ‘There is so much more I have to learn. I wonder how long Kael will be gone. And now Fel is off hunting. There is no one to challenge me.’
His thoughts were interrupted by a noise in the trees. Looking up, he saw one of the town’s guards coming toward him. “Master James,” the guard shouted.
James waved and waited for the man to reach him.
“I am glad to find you. Captain Kenneth sent me to find you. He would like you to come to meet with him immediately.”
“Who are you, and why does the Captain want me?” James asked.
“Beg your pardon, I am Tom. I do not know why the Captain wants you. I am just following orders.”
“Where am I to meet him?”
“I was told to bring you to the castle,” Tom said.
“Well, let’s go.”
It was an interesting walk. Tom did not want to talk, and James felt constrained by having to walk so slowly. His mind churned with possibilities on why the summons. He did not think he had violated any of the city’s laws or offended anyone. After a while, he stopped obsessing over it and enjoyed the sun on his face.
When they reached the castle, James was immediately taken to the Captain, who stood when he entered the room.
“Thank you for coming so quickly. We have a problem, and I hope you can help. There is a cave bear that has attacked a village. The sheriff and his men are down south with a problem and will not be back for a week. You are the closest to a battlemage we have in the city.”
“I am not really a battlemage; I have only a few weeks’ training. But I have fought bears before. Let me get my equipment, and I will help with this problem.”
“Thank you, James. I will meet you at the gate in one hour with my men.”
James ran to the brothel where he had stored his sword and equipment. He hurried up the stairs, waving at Anna. “I wish I could stay, but Captain Kenneth needs help.”
When he reached the gate, he was surprised to see Kenneth with only eight men. The men were carrying lances or pikes.
“Why so few men?” James asked the Captain.
I can only spare a few. The sheriff took my extras, and I must leave men to protect the town. I cannot pull patrols from the street for this hunt. I do not know how long it will take to find and kill the bear. I have a horse for you, and we have two pack mules with supplies for two weeks.”
“While we are riding, tell me what you know about the attack,” James asked.
“This morning, a runner came from Briartown with the report. A large cave bear attacked the village, killing several horses and destroying two houses. The villagers are defenseless against such a beast, so they called upon us for help.
When you came to Castletown, I spent time to gather all of the information I could. I even went and talked to your parents at their farm. Garrick told me you were part of a hunt for a cave bear.”
“Kenneth, I was eight years old! I just help find the bear’s den.”
“You used magic to find the bear, so you can use magic again. And your brief time on that hunt is more than any of us here have.”
“If I am on this hunt, then I must be in charge. Chaos will descend quickly once we encounter the animal. Your men’s safety will depend on immediate obedience.”
“I agree. I will inform the men when we stop.” Kenneth said.
“What equipment did you bring? The lances by themselves are not enough.”
“We have axes, ropes, and shovels. I was not sure what was needed, but figured those would all be useful.”
“When I saw my first hunt, the men planted wooden stakes, rolled rock and used arrows. But the mage speared the bear with a sharpened log, allowing a warrior to stab the bear in the throat.” James recalled.
“If we sharpen a log, can you use it? Do we need to plant stakes? What can be done with so few men?” Kenneth spilled out a series of questions.
“Let’s scout out the bear’s lair and then decide how to proceed. I recommend we ask at the village for more information on the attack. Perhaps they know where the bear came from or why it attacked.” James counseled.
“Good points. May I ask how much training Kael has given you?”
“We spent a lot of time on the foundations and defensive magic. He has only taught me one purely offensive spell and promised more when he returned.”
“Hopefully that will be enough,” the Captain said.
A few hours later, the men reached Briartown. The damage to the houses was apparent. Doors were smashed, walls crushed, roofs sagging, and gardens torn up. The group was immediately met by the villagers. “Are you here to kill the bear?”
“Where are the rest of you?” Did you bring a healing mage?” and more.
The Captain stood up on his stirrups and called out with a commanding voice. “Lord Mallow has sent us to destroy the threat to Briartown. We have brought a battlemage to handle the cave bear. But we need to know where the animal is. Do any of you know where the bear is?”
There was a buzz of voices as the villagers talked among themselves. After a few minutes, the villager elder admitted that they did not. “We think it came from there,” he said, pointing to the west.
Kenneth thanked him, “We will return once the bear is dead. Hopefully, you will be able to salvage the meat and fur after we have finished.”
He then led the men toward the west.
After they left the village, Kenneth turned to James, “Please take over and find the bear.”
James nodded and pulled the Ring of Finding from his pouch. Concentrating, he slowly turned in the saddle, searching for a cave bear. Feeling nothing, “Let’s move further away from the town. I recommend we head for the foothills. There may be caves there that the bear could take refuge in.”
Once an hour, the troop stopped, and James searched for the bear. Finally, Kenneth recommended that they camp for the night. The troop stopped by a stream, and everyone removed the saddles and prepared the horses for the evening.
James talked with Kenneth about the camp. James asked, “Should we post a guard? If we do, the men’s sleep will be interrupted. If the bear approaches, the horse should give us warning.”
“We must have a sentry. If the horses smell the bear, they may panic and run off. And even if the horse’s panic wakes us, we would not be a competent fighting force coming out of sleep. I will have each sentry serve for two hours.”
After an uneventful night, the troop continued to the west. At midday, James felt the first stirring of a connection with the bear. Excitedly, he informed Kenneth that he felt the presence of the bear through the ring. James confirmed that storage devices were securely strapped to his arms and legs. Checking, he was pleased that he had subconsciously kept the devices fully charged.
After two more hours of travel, the troop came to the foothills. James raised his hand, and everyone stopped. I sense the bear up ahead. Let me climb a tree to try to locate his cave. Twenty feet up, he saw the cave opening. Climbing down, he conferred with Kenneth. “The hill is steep there, and it won’t be possible to roll a rock on top of the cave’s mouth to injure the bear. Let me try magic first.”
“Should we sharpen a tree trunk for you?” Kenneth asked.
“No, I intend to tame the bear. If that works, I will have complete control and will lull the bear into sleep so we can kill it with a sword or axe. But it must be done quickly before the spell connection is broken by the animal’s panic.”
“You are in command. Let me know how we can help.” Kenneth said.
“I just need quiet.”
He strapped on his sword and started the taming spell. Reaching out, he connected to the bear and exerted control. A roar came from the cave as the bear charged out. The cave bear was huge, at least ten feet tall and probably a thousand pounds.
James held his ground as he noted the guards scattering in panic. Drawing on his stored power, James struggled with the bear, trying to overwhelm it and complete the taming. Seeing the bear was not slowing down, James stopped the spell and erected a deflecting shield. The enraged bear slammed into James. Several things happened: James went flying backward, the bear came to a complete halt, and Kenneth charged in with a lance to protect James. Rolling, he popped up to one knee, rebuilding the shield and staring at the bear. He waved Kenneth away and opened the components for the lift spell.
Taking a calming breath, James cast the spell and was rewarded with the bear suspended five feet off the ground. He sought out a ley line to maintain the spell, fortunately finding a Green one. He immediately started tapping the line to keep his power reservoir filled. Panting, he called out, “Start stabbing the bear with the lances. Make sure you are out of range of the arms and legs. One hit and you will be dead.”
Kenneth quickly organized the men, and they started thrusting into the bear. Each time they struck, the bear roared and fought against James, who struggled to maintain the spell. Slowly, agonizingly, the bear started to weaken. One of the guards grabbed the axe and hacked at the rear of the bear, cutting deep furrows in the rear of the animal. For a brief moment, he considered drawing his sword and joining in the fray, but he knew that the spell would collapse if he diverted his attention.
James started to rotate the bear onto its back, so the lances could spear other areas. As the bear shifted, an axe struck the flank. Seeing the bear weaken further, James used the grab spell to break the vertebrae in the back, paralyzing the animal.
“Captain, get axes, the rear of the bear is paralyzed. Your men can inflict more damage with the axes, and the bear cannot protect itself.
Shouting instructions, Kenneth pushed a couple of men to the pack mules for more weapons.
James watched as the men screamed while hacking into the thrashing bear. Eventually, the bear stopped moving. When Kenneth confirmed the bear was dead, James collapsed. Hours later, he woke next to a campfire. Throwing off the blanket, he stood on shaky legs and sought out water and the captain.
A jubilant captain embraced him and started to sing his praises. “This entire victory is yours! We would never have succeeded without you. That bear was huge, much bigger than I thought. The villagers were right, we brought too few men.”
After drinking deeply, James replied, “Kael is going to kick my ass. This should have been straightforward. Instead, a single distraction, and the bear would have reached the ground and would have killed all of us.
“But you did not,” Kenneth protested.
“But that was from sheer luck. There were many times I thought I would lose all control. The taming spell failed, and I have only used the lift spell for a couple of days. I was stupid. I charged in without a plan and no fallback. You let me run the battle, and I did a poor job.” “Perhaps, but my men will make sure you never pay for another drink. They are all going home unharmed.”
“You realize I own a tavern. I always drink for free,” James joked.
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