Neptune

Daedrin, ever alert as he was to keep an eye out for danger, could feel three unfamiliar minds coming closer to their cave. His hand shifted, curling around the handle of his sword as he turned his head towards the entrance of the cave. His blood red eyes narrowed for a moment when three figures came into view. For a moment, he thought that they were Celestials but his sharp eyes noticed the differences between these angelic figures and the Celestial’s he was more familiar with. Slowly, he stood up, turning to face towards them as they spoke. He glared down at them, not liking the disdainful manner in which they spoke about his friend. As if, by the very virtue of what he was, he had no sentience. No right to life, and no feelings like some kind of low life monster. Much in a similar way that Izanagi had treated that troll child. And if he wasn’t going to let Izanagi get away with it, without challenge, he certainly wasn’t going to allow these angels get away with it either. He didn’t like the dismissive way that they referred to him either, as if they thought of him as stupid. Infantile. It rattled him deeply, and it took every effort of will not to simply lash out at them. Instead, his tone was light, showing none of his inner feelings, “Why yes. Yes I know exactly who, and what he is. I know how dangerous, and powerful he can be.” His smile was pleasant, the corner of his eyes wrinkling slightly. However there was a subtle shift, and his smile turned as sharp as a knife and his eyes hardened, looking like a pair of hardened rubies in the darkness of the cave, “But he is under my protection. If you intend him any harm, or wish to perform an action that will bring him harm, then I will have no choice but to defend him, for he is my friend and I will not allow anything to befall him.” His voice continued to remain light and pleasant, but there was an undercurrent of confidence, as if he was sure that he could defend a demon from several angels. He knew that he was at an advantage here. They, like most people, thought of him as only a human. The Daedra side of him both recoiled from the angels, and yet hungered to taste their blood. His Eldyrannth side would prefer to end this peacefully, and yet was prepared to defend his friend if necessary. He hoped that they wouldn’t try and force his hand, though. He had no idea what effect their weapons would have on him.

When the two of them reached the area with the large rock placed in the middle, Daedrin was able to immediately see that there was someone sitting on top of it due to his hawk-like vision. He narrowed his eyes slightly as he observed her, seeing her purple hair and blue robes. There was something about her that made him instinctively want to shift form and snarl at her. But he held himself in check. He also didn’t mention anything about the woman, to avoid questions from Izanagi, like how he could see the woman from so far away despite her being but a small speck on top of the huge boulder. He kept Daegrin abreast with Lucky as the two drew closer and Izanagi was able to see the woman. He pulled the Aelda to a stop when Izanagi asked, still eyeing up the woman with a measure of distrust. He nodded at his friends request, “Alright.” He said as he took the reins of the horse, holding onto them tightly. The way the woman’s voice was being soft and alluring, it made Daedrin want to draw himself and the horses back. It was too sickly. Too fake. He had interacted with many people, and had learnt how to easily spot such fake platitudes. He was glad to note that Izanagi didn’t fall to it, either. He would have been disappointed if he had. When Izanagi whipped the woman back in place with his smartass comment, Daedrin couldn’t help the snicker that escaped him. But it seemed that neither of the two noticed. Despite his urge to help his friend, he did as he was asked and drew back, bringing Lucky with him as the two of them started fighting. While he was sure that Izanagi could handle himself, it still made him want to help his friend. His identification peaked his interest though, and he observed the feminine figure a little closer. His father would certainly be interested in her, to see how she operated. He longed to join the fight, but his instincts were telling him to stay out of it. That this was between the two of them. He had drawn himself some distance away, and had dismounted from Daegrin, still holding onto Lucky’s reins. He was no longer able to hear what they were saying to each other, but whatever she was saying seemed to be angering Izanagi. He shifted, getting an uncomfortable feeling. A feeling that Odium’s precaution could not have come at a better time. His free hand moved down to his pocket, feeling the Null Rune before he slipped his hand into his pocket. His bad feeling turned out to be right as he watched Izanagi shout something out before there was a sudden burst of air that pushed the feminine figure backwards. His eyes flickered down to the ground, seeing the grass burning to a crisp due to the intense heat. He could see the demonic magic circle appearing before everything was hidden from view by a sudden tornado of fire that formed around Izanagi and stretched up into the sky with an intense roar. He looked up as the land around them began to dim, and he saw that the sun was being hidden from view. Lucky let out a nervous whinny sound, and Daedrin petted her on her neck to try and calm her down. He could almost sense the change that overcame his friend. He could almost taste the rage that seemed to pour off of the man like a tsunami. If he was not as hardened as he was, he might have ran as fast as he could away from the scene. But he had seen the worst things in the universe, and had seen raging Gods. The two horses were not so composed and were shifting nervously behind him, but he kept a hard grip on their reins. The tornado suddenly erupted like a geyser before it dissipated, causing ash to float down almost like innocent snowflakes that danced on the breeze. He tried to see what was doing on, but not even he could see through the thick smoke. He shuddered a little at the sound of the roar, filled with so much hate and rage, before he could finally see what had become of his friend. There was almost nothing recognisable about him. His stomach lurched in uneasiness, not liking what he was seeing. “So this is the Wrathful Blazerker…” He muttered to himself, watching the scene very carefully. Odium had told him that neither of them could control this beast. It was the pure rage. Pure hatred. He could almost feel sorry for the feminine figure, had she not attacked them. The fight now seemed to take on a whole new level as the two seemed to use even more powerful attacks. But the blows that the feminine figure was dealing, seemed to have little to no effect on Izanagi. She was using up her energy while he seemed to merely tank the hits and come out of it with barely a scratch and without a drop of sweat. He became even more nervous when she began to glow and enlarge in size. He glanced down at Izanagi but he didn’t seem bothered in the slightest, which meant that he wasn’t concerned about what she was doing. When she had finished her transformation, Daedrin’s upper lip curled in a snarl. He resisted the urge to shift into his own Eldyr form and attack her. But he decided it would be best to leave the two going at it. And he was right to do so. Because even though she attempted her most powerful attack on Izanagi, it didn’t do anything. He watched as the demon fired some kind of projectile that hit its target straight on, causing a massive explosion that caused Daedrin to wince. But to his shock, the dragon survived the attack. He watched as her tarunoid form fell back to the ground, but she looked to be unmoving, her skin burnt. Daedrin was glad he wasn’t close enough to smell the burnt flesh, and he was certainly glad that he was standing upwind, rather than downwind. He watched, not even flinching as the Blazerker made sure that the woman was most definitely dead by blowing a hold clear through her head before impaling her through the abdomen before ripping the woman in half. If she wasn’t dead before, then she certainly was now. If she had been alive, then ripping her apart like that would have been intensely painful. He then became very alert when he could feel the Blazerker’s attention on him. The Aelda and Lucky seemed aware of it as well, as Daegrin let out a nervous sound. Lucky was not so restrained and let out a fearful whinny as she tried to tug at the reins, but Daedrin held them firmly in his grip. He did not flinch as the demon suddenly tore towards them. He pulled out the Null Rune, holding it within the palm of his hand. He splayed open his fingers, before using telekinesis to cause the Rune to float in the air. He remained rooted in his spot, waiting until the last moment before he clenched his hand into a fist, using the strength of his telekinesis to shatter the Rune. To his relief, it worked just as Odium said it would and the power of the Blazerker was ripped from the figure before him, and Izanagi fell to the ground unconscious. He then turned to Lucky, making soothing sounds as she still continued to try and pull at the reins. But after Izanagi was knocked out, she quickly calmed down. Daedrin patted her on her neck before he moved over to Daegrin and tied her reins tightly to the Aelda’s saddle. He then turned and moved over to Izanagi, kneeling down next to him. He reached out to touch him but stopped when he could feel the heat pouring off of the man. He was far too hot to touch. So he had to hope that the man would be okay. He stood back up and looked back towards the battlefield before moving over to it. He looked around, and to his amazement and relief, he found the sword and sheath that he had given Izanagi. They looked a little worse for wear, and in need of repair, but at least they were intact. He picked them up and returned to the horses, pushing the sword into the sheath and placing it on Lucky’s saddle. He then turned to Daegrin, who looked back at him, and said, “I’m going to need to carry Izanagi. I will try and stay out of Lucky’s sight, but please try and keep her calm. Go in that direction. If you spot a cave, let me know.” He pointed towards the mountain. Daegrin looked at the mountain before snorting and turning back and nuzzling Daedrin’s chest before he started off at a brisk run, pulling Lucky along with him. Daedrin waited for a little while before he looked back down at Izanagi. He then sighed and shook his head slightly before he shifted, turning into his Eldyr form, his red scales glittering in the meagre sunlight like wine. He made himself large enough to carry his friend, but not too large that he would attract too much attention. He could sense the two horses moving further away, and kept a tenuous link with Daegrin so that he could be alerted if they found what they needed. Using telekinesis, he lifted Izanagi’s prone form and gently put him on his back, mindful of the ivory coloured spikes. He could feel the heat through the scales, but since he was able to easily handle lava, this was nothing to him. He then spread his wings, crouching low before launching himself up into the air. His wings, far larger than the length of his body, snapped open to their fullest for their first important stroke that made them airborne. They quickly moved away from the scarred battleground, getting closer to the mountains that reared up ahead of them. He hoped that they would be able to find some shelter soon, before Izanagi woke up. It would be a little awkward to have to explain why he was riding on a dragons back. Daedrin would prefer to avoid those questions. After all, he wasn’t meant to be revealing who, and what he was. Thankfully, it wasn’t long before he felt Daegrin calling for him through their connection and he turned in their direction. He spiralled down before he could see an entrance to a small cave in the mountainside. He couldn’t see either Daegrin or Lucky so he assumed that they were already inside of the cave. So he swooped down, flaring his wings as he landed, his claws clicking against the stone surface. He shuffled his wings, folding them back to tuck them against his side. He craned his neck, turning to look at Izanagi with one large, red eye before he telekinetically lifted the man from his back and placed him gently on the ground. He then shifted into his human form and moved over to Izanagi and checked how hot he was. Thankfully, he was cool enough to touch now, as the cool breeze created by their flight, and the ease at which his scales absorbed the heat had cooled his body down. Daedrin picked Izanagi up, throwing him across his shoulders before he moved into the cave where he found Daegrin and Lucky waiting for him. He gently put Izanagi down against the wall of the cave before going over to Lucky and untying her reins from Daegrin’s saddle. He then pulled off Izanagi’s bedroll and spread it on the most comfortable spot on the floor before he went back over to his friend and picked him back up and taking him over to his bed so that he could get some proper rest. He tucked the man in before he moved over to Daegrin where he pulled out some of the sticks that he had saved for a fire. He used some of the rocks within the cave to make a small ring, before he made the fire so that it could keep them warm within the cool cave. Once that was done, he sat himself against the wall of the cave opposite Izanagi as he waited for the man to wake up. He had no idea when that was going to be, as Odium had not been too specific on that. So he was forced to simply wait.

Location: Craethiel Wilds, Southern part of Idgara Forest. Rayvenne paused when she was tying the saddle beneath Maedoc’s stomach as the rabbit girl mentioned Raeghan in a little hat. She was about to make a comment, but Raeghan beat her to it as he cawed out, “Only if it’s a good looking hat!” He then cawed as if in amusement. After a few moments, Rayvenne snorted in a small laugh, shaking her head, finding the entire situation surreal. They had just been attacked by bandits, and the two of them were talking about dress up of all things. In all of her century of life, she had never encountered something so surreal. She finished up saddling Maedoc before she pulled herself up into the saddle, “Let’s get going. It’s dark, so watch yourself. Don’t lose sight of me.” Rayvenne said, nudging Maedoc into a walk. As it was so dark, it was dangerous to move faster than that as one could not see obstacles in the road beyond. At least they had a road in which they could travel along, rather than taking a chance the forest itself. If that was the case, then Rayvenne would have insisted on waiting until they had sunlight to light their path. They could, of course, attempt to use torches to light the way but there were numerous problems with that. It did not provide enough light ahead of them to see properly, for a start. And it would be a beacon to all bandits in the vicinity. It would not make for an ideal situation. Once they reached the road, Rayvenne pulled Maedoc to a stop for a few moments as she listened out for anything. Finding nothing but the usual sounds of the forest at night, she started the huge stallion again, his black hooves thudding against the compacted dirt of the dry road that lead to Lake Kelrak and thus Kalath. If they were lucky, they should reach the bridge by midday. That was providing that they didn’t have anymore trouble with bandits. She glanced behind her, to make sure that Luna was following as she should before turning her gaze back to the front again. She had spied Raeghan still on his perch on top of the wagon, where he was keep an eye out for any kind of danger.

Ruby wiggled her fingers slightly before she pressed the button to open up the video. She sunk further down into her bed as she watched the induction video. Hero OS? She had never heard of such a thing. She rarely kept an eye on the news, as there was little of interest in it. So she had no idea that this was part of a new ‘defence program’. Still, she found the contents of the video to be absolutely fascinating. Not to mention fun. It almost sounded like she could run around and be a hero. Not that it mattered much to her. As long as it was thrilling, and gave her something exciting to do, she didn’t care. Although why she would get something that was intended for the security forces, she didn’t know. Perhaps it was a mistake. If it was, she wasn’t about to tell anyone. Screw that. Not if it meant that she could have some fun. She straightened again on her seat, pressing her back against the headboard as it went through the features of the shop, including upgrades for the arm computer and to Game Images. She watched her way through the rest of the video before closing it down and opening up the store which she took a nose through. At the moment, she couldn’t afford any of the upgrades but that didn’t matter too much. A lot of them looked interesting, and she couldn’t wait to see if she can try them out. She then opened up the map feature, but saw that there were currently no alerts which made her pout a little. She was hoping that it would have some fun for her. If there were no alerts right now, then what was the point? With a sigh, she closed it down and instead opened up the text file. Her eyebrows crinkled a little in confusion, as she had no idea what the hell this meant. It looked like some kind of poem. A poem of which held no meaning to her. Why the hell was this included? She was expecting many things, but this was not one of them. She then shrugged, decided to not bother with it. She wasn’t a scholar, after all. She wasn’t interested in sitting there and trying to delve into the meanings of poems. It was boring. She would much rather be out and doing something exciting. She closed down the text file, her lips pursing into a slight pout before she sighed. She slipped out of her bed and headed into the kitchen where she opened the fridge and saw the leftover pizza. She snagged a slice before picking out the orange juice that was in it. She munched on her pizza as she poured herself a glass. She put the carton of juice back into the fridge before she finished off the slice and drank the juice. She put the glass on the side before she went into the bathroom and got herself ready for bed. Once she had finished, she went into her bedroom and stripped herself before slipping into her bed. She sighed contently as she rolled herself in her duvet and settled herself to get comfortable. Her eyes opened for a moment when she heard the front door open and close, indicating that her father had returned from his run. She closed her eyes again and settled down to get some sleep.

Location: Craethiel Wilds, Southern part of Idgara Forest. “I’m fine without sleep, so I guess we could move in if you’re not up to sleeping…” Rayvenne said slowly, feeling a little off balance from the little woman. Thus far, in her entire life, the only other person that had made her feel like that was Maed, her old friend. To her irritation, she was starting to see a certain resemblance between the two of them. Maed seemed just as free from worry as Luna was. Able to easily shrug off any kind of annoyance or irritation. Always seeming to laugh at the world around her as if it was some large joke that only she could see. At least, Rayvenne certainly couldn’t see it. To her, the world was quite a bleak place and there was little to laugh at. She heard Raeghan cawing in laughter, before Luna’s other words registered in her mind. She snapped her head back towards the rabbit girl and asked, “Dress up? Me? In a dress?” She stared blankly at the smaller woman for a few moments before she said, “Don’t even think about it. The chances of you getting me into a dress are pretty much zero.” Raeghan laughed even harder before he said, “I would love to see that. You in a dress.” “Don’t even bother thinking about it!” Rayvenne snapped at the bird before shaking her head and moving over to Maedoc where she silently started to saddle him. The last time she had worn an actual dress was when she had crossed the Dynx desert. Since then, she had thrown away any semblance of her feminine self and decided to embrace the creature that she had been forced to become. After all, she wasn’t able to have children. What hope was there for her, to be a woman? To become married, and to create a family with her husband? No. This was the life that fate had given her, and she was making the most of it.

Location: Craethiel Wilds, Southern part of Idgara Forest. Rayvenne was glad that Luna took no insult from Raeghan’s rather crude flirting. She wasn’t sure if she would be able to deal with the embarrassment if Luna had became offended. At least those two were getting along well. That was some saving grace here. It made her feel that Luna would make a very good companion witch to a familiar. She looked up from cleaning her sword when Luna disappeared into the wagon. She looked over at Raeghan who shuffled his wings in an approximation of a shrug. A few moments later, Luna came back out and Rayvenne paused in the cleaning of her sword. Luna looked like one of those mad scientists. “Mm! I like this outfit, too!” Raeghan said, his blood red eyes fixed on Luna’s tail and naked back. Rayvenne had to resist the urge to face palm and settled with sighing. She finished cleaning her blade, before tucking the cloth away again and sheathing her blade on her back. She then turned and watched the rather gruesome display of Luna extracting what she needed from the bodies of the bandits. It almost looked like the desecration of the dead, but these bandits had attacked them and Rayvenne felt little sympathy for them. Besides, she had no belief in the afterlife thus she didn’t believe that what Luna was doing, was going to hurt their chances of meeting their maker. That is, if that was what they believed in. At least Luna decided to bury the bodies instead of just leaving them to rot. It would have been unpleasant to spend the rest of the night looking at them. When Luna was done, Rayvenne thinned her lips a little before crossing her arms against her chest, “What now? That’s up to you. There’s still a few hours before morning, so I am going to remain on guard. Sleep, or not. That’s up to you.” She glanced over at the two horses, who were still where they were earlier, content in each other’s company, “At least I don’t need to go looking for the horses.” She turned back to look at Luna once again.

Location: Craethiel Wilds, Southern part of Idgara Forest. Rayvenne spun on the spot when she heard the shifting of earth behind her. She turned just in time to watch the bandit that had been sneaking up behind her sink into the ground until only his head was visible. His eyes were wide and a look of shock and fear was plastered across his face. She then heard another cry and turned to look at the blind bandit as he was pinned to the forest floor by tree roots. She then turned to look at Luna before she paused as she could see that her bedsheets clung to her body, revealing her form in what would be considered an almost lewd manner. Not that Rayvenne was too bothered. The clothes she normally wore was considered to be lewd by many, but she didn’t care. She hated dresses, and would only wear them if absolute necessary. “I’m perfectly fine. Thank you for watching my back.” Rayvenne said, pulling a cloth from her pocket and wiping the blood from her blade. Raeghan swooped down to land on top of the wagon, peering down at Luna with interest, “Well. What an absolutely delightful outfit, Luna. I like it.” He said. “Raeghan.” Rayvenne said firmly, but the raven ignored her as he continued checking the rabbit girl out. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes before she looked back at Luna once again, “Well, at least you can get whatever ingredients you need from them.” She said, ignoring the rather pathetic whimpers that were coming from the two captive men. She then added, “It’s likely we got attacked so soon, because this is a well known camping area for traders. And since I was the only one on watch, they thought that we were easy prey. A big mistake.” She said with a slight smirk, finding it satisfying when people underestimated her and paid the price for doing so.

Rose felt a little concerned with what was coming out of the girl’s mouth. She didn’t find it exciting at all, to be so afraid. She hated it. She hated the feeling of her stomach coiling, her insides freezing like ice. The breaths that didn’t seem to last and the desire to run. To run as far and as fast as she could. She loathed that feeling. It made every muscle in her body ache from how tense they were. The corner of her mouth twitched a little as Anhara continued to calm her cheek, wishing that she could pull her face away. But there was nowhere that she could go. Her eyes then widened a little when Anhara claimed that she was going to have to watch as Anahra’s father raped her. Just what kind of sick family was this?! Rose shook her head slightly, not quite believing what she was hearing. Her expression turned to disgust as Anhara spoke about how she could feel her father’s cock inside of her already. The expression deepened when the girl began to rub herself. Her stomach rolled in disgust. How this girl could get so turned on by the thoughts of having sex with her father, Rose could never guess. The thought of having sex with her own father made her want to gag in disgust. She was even more confused when the girl seemed to be turned on about being abused by her own father. Was this some kind of sick game? Was this the result of years of abuse from her father? She coped with it, by getting turned on by it? Rose was now quite firm in the belief that this girl needed help, quite badly. She shook her head a little in denial as Anhara claimed that Rose was going to help this sick bastard ‘love’ Anhara. She shook her head again when the girl stopped speaking, “You’re insane.” She whispered, “I… I don’t want to know about this. I don’t want to watch!” She said, wriggling once again as the dog on the other side of the room whined softly, catching onto her distress.

“You might be surprised.” Daedrin said softly at Odium’s doubt in regards to any kind of God helping him. But then, he knew that Odium knew nothing of his own Divines. Who they were, and their power. He knew they would come to help if he asked them of it, and he was half Daedra. Half a demon in the eyes of many who would know. So he did not feel the same doubt that Odium felt. But he tilted his head a little, following Odium’s gaze to the extinguished fire. He raised an eyebrow when the man said that there was another option. He watched, keeping quiet as the demon moved over to the campfire and picked up a single stone before returning to stand in front of Daedrin, who was watched with avid interest. He raised his eyes, locking them back with Odium when he said that Daedrin needed to listen carefully. So he did, paying attention even to the way Odium spoke. He nodded his head slightly in an absent manner as Odium spoke about the Null Runes. He understood the basic concept of them, even if he had never encountered anything like them before. When Odium opened his hand, Daedrin looked down to see the changed stone and his blood red eyes glimmered in interest. When Odium offered it to Daedrin, he glanced up at the demon who spoke of his reluctance. He nodded and said, “I understand your reluctance. I would in your position. I won’t abuse it, I promise.” He took the rune from Odium, tucking it safely away so that it was out of sight. The last thing he wanted, was for someone to steal it from him and turn it against Izanagi and Odium. “I understand.” Daedrin said when Odium explained its use and limitation. He pressed his right hand against his chest, over his left heart before bowing his head slightly in a respectful gesture. He then watched as Odium went back to the bedroll and went back to sleep. Daedrin watched him for a few long moments before he climbed back up into the tree and settled himself back down to keep watch. He had a feeling that while Izanagi trusted him, Odium certainly didn’t. At least not yet. It must have taken a lot of convincing of himself to give Daedrin that kind of power over the two of them. And Daedrin could certainly understand that reluctance. It was putting control over yourself, to someone else. He was similar to his father’s. He preferred being the one in control, especially over himself. It would take him a lot of pride for him to hand over something like a Null Rune. It wasn’t as if he could repay the favour, either. Daedra didn’t work like that, and as he was a natural born Daedra he knew how to control his abilities. The only way he could lose control, is if he went into an Eldyr’s rage and ended up attacking everyone, and anything. Friend or foe. In that state it mattered little. And there was little Izanagi could do to stop him if that were to ever happen. There was one way, but he lacked the resources for it. A powerful enough sedative would stop his rampage and he would wake up in control of himself once more. But he didn’t have said sedative on him. Then there was the problem of a delivery. The safest way would be to use an arrow of some kind but if he shifted to his Eldyr form, that might not even be enough unless Izanagi was somehow able to get a barrel of the stuff down his throat. And considering the kind of fire the Eldyr’s used, Daedra corrupted ones at that, it was extremely dangerous. He shook his head a little, finding such thoughts a little fruitless. He would just have to make sure he kept his anger in check, that’s all. When his watch was over, he climbed down the tree and pulled his shoes and gloves back on before he woke Izanagi, “Your watch.” He said before moving over to his own bedroll and rolling in it himself. He decided that he would not tell Izanagi about the Null Rune. He wasn’t sure what knowledge this Wrathful Blazerker could pull from Izanagi. And if he knew Daedrin had the Rune, it would make it harder for him to use it. It would be his and Odium’s secret, for now. When morning came, they reheated the remains of the fish stew and ate it before they broke camp. Daedrin, as always, made sure that there was little evidence of their presence here. While there was only a few humans that were foolhardy to delve this deep into the forest, he was a little paranoid what remained of the Hounds and Torak’s Worshippers tracking them down on some kind of revenge quest. That would become very annoying, very quickly. Once their horses were saddled, they left their camp and headed towards the mountains once again. Daedrin lead the way, travelling along some of the tracks that the forest game had left. It meandered through the trees and often split off at places, but Daedrin kept to it. The land began to slope up and the forest began to break. The trees were becoming more sparse and shrubbery and grass became more common. They then emerged from the shade of the forest into a grassy plain. The mountains rose up before them, majestically reaching into the sky to disappear into the clouds that danced around the huge peaks. Daedrin looked at his travelling companion and said, “Not long now. We should reach the mine either tonight, or tomorrow morning.” He turned back around and started across the large, grassy plain that marked the boundary between forest and mountains.

Location: Craethiel Wilds, Southern part of Idgara Forest. Rayvenne followed Luna’s lead towards the clearing. In what meagre light was left, she looked around and saw signs that this was often used as a campsite. But then that would not be surprising as this was a well travelled trade route. It was a well placed campsite. Of course, that also made her a little nervous as no doubt bandits knew of this location. She was certainly not going to let her guard down, not when they knew that could be expecting trouble. Once the group stopped, she climbed down from Maedoc’s back. As Luna made her preparations, Rayvenne unsaddled Maedoc so that he could enjoy the freedom to move around without developing sores. Besides, she wanted to brush him down to help keep his coat thick and healthy looking. She moved over to her pack and opened it up. She looked up when she heard Luna’s voice. She nodded back to the small woman, “Sleep well. I’ll bang on the wagon if anything happens.” She said, before looking back down into her pack and rummaged through it until she found the brush. She straightened and moved over to Maedoc where she began to brush him from snout to tail. She took her time with it, as she had the entire night to occupy herself. She glanced up and saw Raeghan sitting in the large tree, keeping a lookout. At least with the tree, they had one side somewhat covered and blocked off from any attackers. When she had finished brushing the stallion, she patted him on the neck and moved over to her pack where she put the brush away. She pulled out a strip of dried meat and stood up, moving around on silent feet as she kept every sense alert as she ate her snack. She heard the faint rustling of the leaves as they were stirred by the gentle breeze. There seemed to be an owl somewhere, as she could hear its cry drifting away from them. She heard Maedoc stir and glanced at him as he moved over to Luna’s smaller horse and seemed to nuzzle his shoulder in greeting. She turned away again, her dark eyes looking into the darkness. She could feel a tenseness to her muscles, and the niggling feeling that they were being watched. Raeghan let out a cawing sound before he launched himself from his perch and flew off into the dark. Clearly he had seen something and went to investigate. A few moments later, a caw drifted from between the trees. It was a cry she knew well. A cry to sign of danger. Reaching up, Rayvenne slowly drew her steel blade. She left her secondary blade within its sheath, as it was silver coated and more suited to be used on monsters than mere bandits. She saw a shift in the darkness, and knew that it was a bandit moving around in the dark as he tried to sneak up on her. There was a few moments of silence before there was a subtle twang of an arrow being released from a bow. A whistling sound reached her ears, informing her that the fletching of the arrow was not set properly. It allowed her senses to home in on the projectile and quickly side step causing it to thud against the wagon. She reached back, banging on the wagon three times before she lunged forwards as there was a shout from the trees. Two bandits came rushing out, brandishing rusted swords that they yielded clumsily. With speed that far outmatched theirs, she avoided the swing of the first man, spinning as she drew her blade across his stomach. He let out a cry of pain and surprise as he seemed to melt before her as he crumpled to the forest floor, his guts spilling from his stomach. She raised her sword, blocking the blow from the next man. Despite the fact that he was a foot taller than she was, and built with heavy muscles, her sword did not waver as the two blades collided. A brief expression of confusion flickered across the man’s face, as he should have been able to easily overpower her. But his look melted into shock as she actually pushed his blade back against him before pushing at him hard and making him stumble back. He looked up at her, lips curling back to reveal yellowed, crumbling teeth, “I’m going to fucking slit your throat, bitch!” He snarled. “Try it.” Rayvenne replied in a calm down of voice. She heard the scream of a man and switched her gaze to another man. It was the one with the bow. He was screaming, his hands reaching up to claw at his face as Raeghan pecked his eyes out with brutal efficiently. He then flew up with a loud caw as the man fell to his knees, shaking and crying out in his pain. The man standing in front of Rayvenne growled again before he tried to take advantage of her distraction. He swung his blade down, but she sidestepped easily. He growled and brought his blade back up and swung at her again but she stepped back to avoid the tip of the blade. He tried a few more pathetic swings before she became tired of this. She used her sword to slam against his, the strike so hard that it caused the blade to fly from his fingers. Rayvenne then stepped forwards, swinging her blade back towards him before easily cutting off his head. His body slumped to the floor as the head rolled off to the side, the eyes bulging and the mouth agape. She then looked up towards the archer as he was scrambling along the forest floor, groping blindly. So focused on him that she didn’t notice another bandit sneaking up behind her on silent feet with a dagger raised high to strike at her.

Location: Along with Ageon River, North of Rosayia Forest. “Oh, I’m going to exploit you, Natia. Exploit you for all the sweetness you have.” Rowan said in a joking tone, as he wasn’t serious in the slightest about exploiting her. Unless it was for her hugs and kisses, which he wasn’t sure if he could ever get enough of them. Her lightly stroked her back before he said, “You need to be strong-willed in my profession, Natia. I wouldn’t make a very good merchant if I gave up, or accepted the first proposal sent my way. I need a strong will to be able to hold out in negotiations. As I said; not every person would decide to capture and sell you. In fact, I would hedge to bet that most wouldn’t. Otherwise most of the population of the Kingdom would be bandits, or pirates. But most are simple villagers and farmers. Honest, but humble people.” His hand came up to play idly with her white hair, “I don’t think you owe me anything. I’m certainly not going to demand anything from you. Other than to ask you stand up. We should start moving. We can talk while we’re riding.” He said, glancing up at the sky where the sun was hovering to the east. He heard a snort from nearby, and he absently said, “Stop complaining, Baellator.” He rolled his golden eyes and looked at Natia, “I think he’s feeling a little restless.” There was another snort, this time almost sounding like a confirmation. The snort was accompanied by the pawing of a hoof against the grass. Location: Craethiel Wilds, travelling past Lake Ryomar. “Very well.” Rayvenne said with a slight nod before she nudged Maedoc forwards again so that he was once again in front of the wagon. At least travelling wasn’t taking as long as she had thought. They might even reach Kalath sooner than she anticipated which would be a relief. She only hoped that finding the dragon that Luna wanted the scale of, was just as easy. The sun was almost set by the time they reached the edge of the forest. There was almost an immediate change the moment they slipped underneath the trees. The forest seemed a little quieter than the grasslands, and warmer in a more comforting fashion. Rayvenne rather liked the forests, although she personally preferred mountains. She couldn’t explain why she did. Almost as if she had a deep, instinctual urge to travel the mountains despite how treacherous it could be. She glanced around, but couldn’t immediately see any threats. Of course, that didn’t mean that there weren’t any. She glanced up at Raeghan as he flittered among the trees, but he didn’t seem all that concerned. So she allowed herself to relax a little, but she didn’t completely drop her guard. She would keep an ear out. Forests were a good place for bandits and other nefarious individuals to hide within to ambush travellers. She allowed Maedoc to slow down until she was riding beside Luna again, “We should set up camp somewhere nearby. You can go to sleep, while I take watch.” She said, not taking her eyes off of the forest. She wasn’t bothered by the prospect of spending the night awake, as she could easily go for several days without it before she was in dire need to rest.

Zack tilted his head slightly as he heard the slip of the tongue. For her mother, huh? Then it was obvious that she was being blackmailed into this. Not that he particularly cared for that fact. And while the girl might not think that she was this kind of girl, she soon would be. She was going to have to have sex with countless men, and that would eventually erode this shy, innocent young woman. She will become the type to drop her knickers at the first rustle of money notes. Not that he cared much about what happens to her once they parted ways. Her fate had been long sealed. It was pointless contemplating about her, and what was to become of her. His thoughts were disrupted when the girl squirmed on his lap, grinding hard against his cock. It caused flickers of pleasure to race up his spine, and his cock twitched in response. It made him want to thrust his hips up into her, but he controlled his instinctual urges. He had time enough for that. Right now, he was concentrating on the movements of his hands as he forced pleasure upon her. He felt his lips curve in a smirk when she cried out, and asking why he was doing this instead of just taking what he wanted. He let out a deep chuckle against her ear, “All in good time. I will take what I ultimately want. But right now, what I want, is to make you cum. Believe me. It will make it easier when I finally fuck you.” He said, before lowering his lips and kissing along her smooth, pale neck. The fingers that were playing with her clit increased the pace of their movements, aiming to make her cum hard and fast. The smell of her arousal was filling the room, and he found it intoxicating. His other hand groped her breast, tweaking the nipple as he continued playing with her, watching and listening intently to her every movement and sound.

Rose watched as Anhara lifted the phone to her ear, and started to talk. All she could hear from the other end was a drone of a voice, but the words were unintelligible so Rose couldn’t hear exactly what Anhara’s father was telling her. At first, Anhara seemed to be pleading sweetly with him. But when Anhara started to grind against her, she felt a sliver of disgust coil in her stomach. Anhara looked excited, in a way no girl should be when talking to their father. It was even worse when it was Rose that Anhara was grinding against. She wanted nothing more than to slide away from the girl sitting on top of her. She wanted nothing to do with this sick and twisted situation. Rose almost wished that the phone conversation wouldn’t end, mainly because it kept the girls interest off of her. But Anhara hung up, looking quite pleased with herself from Rose’s point of view. Her lip curled a little in disgust as her small nose wrinkled. She didn’t want to know what it was that had gotten Anhara so ‘riled up’. She shook her head a little when the girl asked if she was excited to meet her father. She was perfectly happy with the world she currently lived in. Anhara’s world seemed to be a world of monsters. This made the whole situation seem almost like a mythical tale. Of the world of monsters, where Anhara was a recruiting slave for the monster that was her father, sent out to bring back innocent young girls to be forced into servitude. To corrupt them from the way of God and to the path of the Devil. That was who they were working for. The Devil. She couldn’t let them corrupt her, to stop her from joining the Holy Father in heaven when it was her time. Her attention was brought from her thoughts when Anhara asked her another question. Again, she shook her head, “N-not really… besides it… it sounded… private.” She said, hoping that would discourage the other girl from telling her. But she had the feeling that she was going to be told, regardless. It made her wonder just how disgusted it was going to make her feel.

Location: Laundry Room, Naughty Cow Dairy Alvina remained where she was until David had explained the problem to her. Unconsciously, she glanced up but lowered her gaze again. But she then looked back up as she realised that while she could hear David, she couldn’t see him. She couldn’t help but to let out a sigh of relief because otherwise she doubted she would have been able to help her, because she was too distracted being embarrassed. She wasn’t like her mother, who seemed to have a towering confidence. She was quite shy, and what made it even worse was that she was still fully clothed. She certainly wouldn’t refuse David, if he asked, but she herself wouldn’t ask. She was too shy to. Especially when David had far more interesting women to ask, such as her mother or even Evelyn outside. Why would he even look at her in that manner? “I-I’ll try and look at it.” Alvina stuttered before clearing her throat and moving over to the dryer where she saw the clothes. Since there were other dryers, she figured that he had attempted to use the others with a similar success rate. She looked up at the screen and saw that he had not set the program before setting it off, “Oh. I think I see what went wrong. You didn’t set the program properly. Are your clothes cotton, or synthetic materials?” She asked, sounding a little more relaxed now that she was concentrating on the problem, rather than the naked man.

Daedrin felt the glare of energy, and froze for a moment before he looked over the branch and down where he could see Izanagi moving around. He then noticed the strange markings around the man's head and right arm. He resisted the instinctual urge to shift form, and merely sat very still, observing the man. He was barely even breathing, making his sound signature very small. He wondered what Izanagi was doing, and decided that it would be best to just watch him in the meantime. When the man called out, Daedrin tilted his head to the side. He caught that the man just almost called him ‘weirdo’ which suggested that it was Odium that was in control. His eyebrow rose when Odium expressed the desire to speak to him. He hesitated a few moments, before he shifted and allowed his legs to hang over the edge of the branch before he pushed himself and dropped down. Despite the drop being four metres, he didn’t even feel a twinge of pain. When he straightened, he tilted his head slightly and stared down at Odium, patiently waiting for the man to speak. He listened carefully, since he figured that Odium wouldn’t even want to talk to him if it wasn’t important. Daedrin gave a slight nod when Odium asked him to remember the fight against the Hounds. His eyebrow rose again when Odium said that Daedrin had no idea what Izanagi was capable of. He had already figured that, that was not the height of their powers. Not that he could even figure out what the height of that power would be. Although it was nothing that either Izanagi or Odium could control, then it couldn’t be anything good. He frowned a little, feeling more than a little worried and not just for Izanagi. At the two questions, Daedrin crossed his arms across his chest and narrowed his eyes slightly as he analysed Odium closely with sharp eyes, his gaze penetrating. After a moment he said, “I consider him a friend. I think he is a good man, if troubled. I don’t really want anything bad to befall him. If he transforms into this Wrathful Blazerker, then I will do everything within my power to help him return to normal. Even if I have to make a plea with the Divines themselves. That is, if it is even possible to do so. Is it?” He then asked.

Location: Craethiel Wilds, travelling past Lake Ryomar. Rayvenne blinked a little as Luna suddenly rushed and had everything tidied away and she was on her wagon before the dark haired woman had chance to even utter a sound. Raeghan cawed, sounding amused. She sighed, shaking her head as she shooed Raeghan from his perched. He let out an indignant caw before he launched himself up into the air and flew in circles around the two of them. She then let out a soft sigh as she moved over to Maedoc and mounted the huge, black stallion. She gripped the reigns, turning him and nudging him over to Luna’s wagon, “Follow me, then.” She said, before kicking Maedoc’s flank a little and nudging him into a trot. He moved out in front of the wagon and began to lead the way. It wasn’t long until they could see the water of Lake Ryomar glistening in the afternoon sun. She kept them away from the waters edge, though, just in case they were attacked by Drowners or something similar. She looked out at the lake, and saw that there was a fishing boat in the distance where someone was bravely fishing. Perhaps to sell, or perhaps to feed his own family for that night. Either way, it was foolish to risk themselves like that. She turned her attention to the road in front of them as they slowly moved around the lake. By the time they passed it by, the sun was heading into the evening. They were still in glassland, but she could see trees ahead of the Ildgara Forest. She looked up at the sun before she drew back to the wagon and asked, “Do you want to reach the forest before setting up the evening camp? Or settle somewhere close? The Ildgara forest is relatively safe. About the only things you need to worry about are the occasional bear or wolf pack.” She glanced up where she could see a black spec where Raeghan was circling them, keeping an eye out for them just in case someone, or something decided to try and jump out at them.

Devlyn watched quietly as she stood on wobbly legs and moved over to the table where she bent over it and lifted one of her legs to rest it on the table surface to completely expose her pussy to him. He chuckled again at her words as he straightened himself and came up behind her. He gave her arse cheek a firm spank before he groped it harshly, “Such a good, submissive girl. You will make a fantastic little fuck pet for me.” He told her, gripping the thigh of the leg that rested on the table before he pressed the head of his cock against her dripping pussy. He then slammed himself completely inside of her in one thrust, burying himself inside of her tight cunt in one swift movement. He sighed softly in pleasure as he could feel the wet, velvety flesh caressing the length of his cock. He could also feel the tight pressure against the head of his dick as it pressed hard against her cervix. The hand on her thigh moved to her shoulder, gripping it tightly as the other hand gripped her hip, his nails digging into her fur. He then began to thrust his hips against hers, slamming his cock deep inside of her. He used his grip on her shoulder to thrust her back into him, as he angled his hips as he probed deep inside of her for that pleasure spot that he knew would make her go wild. Since she had been such a good girl, he was going to reward her by making this as pleasurable as he could for her. He sped up the movements of his hips, slamming them against her as he fucked her hard against the table that she served customers on. It felt good to take this little virgin and to bring out her inner slut. He had honestly expected it to take longer than this, but clearly she had been needing a good fucking to bring out that inner slut of hers. She was so malleable in his hands, and he wondered if he could manipulate her into doing other things for him. To be his little spy among this primitive, stinking population.

Zack found her whimpers and protests to be one of the cutest things he had ever heard. Especially when she had wriggled on his lap, only causing friction for his aching cock which was begging for some kind of attention. But he was ignoring it in favour of concentrating his efforts on the nameless girl sat in his lap. His smirk widened when she claimed that she didn’t like him touching her clit, and yet he could feel her pussy becoming quite wet. He chuckled down into her ear, “You don’t like it, hmm? Then why are you getting so wet, so quickly? I think you’re enjoying this far more than you claim.” He told her, allowing his breath to ghost over her ear. The fingers on her clit moved down her slit, spreading her pussy lips apart as they became coated in her sweet, virginal juices. He lightly ran his fingers against the entrance to her vagina, feeling the slight resistance of her hymen before he pulled back and moved back up to her clit. Now that she was wet, he was able to quicken his movements. He could feel that her clit had swollen slightly due to his ministrations, and he began to press a little harder against the button, swirling his fingers around as he stimulated it. His cock twitched against her, remaining rock hard as he pleasured her against her will. It almost felt as if he was raping her, and for some reason that thought didn’t make him recoil in disgust. He had never thought himself capable of raping someone, but it seemed that the anger towards his wife and the long period of time in which he had not had sex was bringing out a darker side of him that was actually relishing the resistance of this girl. Enjoying her humiliation and enjoying staining her innocence. His other hand continued to grope her breast, his fingers pinching her nipple hard enough to cause pleasure but not hard enough to hurt. He was aiming to humiliate her, not cause her pain. At least, not much pain. He did tighten the pinch every now and again to cause small amounts of pain as he enjoyed hearing her whimper. But with the stimulation of her clit, he hoped to really confuse her, and to make her squirm on his lap. He doubted that he could make her beg for his cock, but he certainly hoped to make her cum hard.

Daedrin looked back over at Izanagi as the man began to talk, responding to his comments about the mountains. He smiled a little as Izanagi commented that a visit would be a good idea, as everyone needed a break now and then. The problem was, was that Daedrin couldn’t visit his homeland. Not for a very long time. Izanagi would be long dead by that point. Granted, from his perspective, it would be no time at all compared to his life span. But he still had to wait for a while. He continued to listen, rolling his stew in the bowl before looking back up when Izanagi mentioned his mother, and his wonder as to how she was. It made him curious as to what had happened between mother and son. An argument perhaps? Or he had run away? Even though it wasn’t really any of his business, he couldn’t help but to be curious but he didn’t ask any probing questions. After all, if Izanagi wanted to talk about it, he would. Not sooner, or later. He focused back on his food, almost finished by the time Izanagi questioned about night watch. He nodded, “Yes. It is my turn for watch.” He confirmed, watching as Izanagi moved over to the sleeping bags and settled in his own, “Good night. Sleep well.” Daedrin said, turning back to the fire as he finished eating the stew. He looked into the pot and saw that there was still some left, and decided to leave it until morning. They could use the heat of the fire to warm it back up to be more edible. He gathered up the bowls and went over to their bags where he washed them and put them aside to dry. He then stood up and looked up at the tree, analysing it. It was a straight up trunk, with the first thick branch at least four metres from the base of the trunk. Perfectly climbable. He glanced at Izanagi to make sure that he was asleep before he stripped off his gloves and carefully stripped off his shoes before climbing up the trunk of the tree and settling on the thick branch. He stretched his legs out before him as he pressed his back against the trunk as he stared off into the distance. It was freshly dark, with the only source of light being their dying fire. Daedrin had decided to leave it as it was, as it would soon die on its own merit before the night time monsters started to become active. He crossed his arms against his chest, his sharp gaze shifting through every inch of the forest as he kept vigil for his sleeping friend.

Location: Craethiel Wilds, near Lake Ryomar. “Oh there is a lot of money to be found trading in alchemy ingredients, especially if you have the right connections. Most alchemists are found in Selil. That’s where the real money is at. The competition is fierce there, especially with the rarer ingredients. Some people will pay thousands of gold coins for something like a dragons eye. So, if you can get your hands on the right ingredients, there is a lot of money to be made. Mainly because the job of collecting them is so dangerous that only the really strong, or the really foolish go out to hunt them down.” Rayvenne told Luna, reaching out and stroking down Raeghan’s back. The bird ruffled his feathers a little but allowed the caress. Rayvenne then looked back up at the girls next comment, before raising her eyebrow. After a moment, she said, “Most wild dragons are feral, Luna. Diplomacy wouldn’t work on them. You would be very lucky to find a dragon that is intelligent enough to even understand your words, let alone be open for diplomacy. The only dragons I’ve ever encountered that meets those two criteria, are Eldyr Dragons and even then, they’re not completely dragons. So don’t get your hopes too high, Luna. Most dragons fall under the category of monster, or wild animal.” This girl was almost painfully optimistic. She seemed to think she could almost do anything, and had little idea as to the reality of the world that she lived in. Craethiel was a wild, untamed place filled with dangerous monsters. One could not expect to be so… naive. Rayvenne would feel envious of her, if it wasn’t for the fact that her attitude could get her into serious trouble. It made her wonder how Luna had survived this long. Still, she kept these thoughts to herself as technically Luna was her employer and Rayvenne was careful never to piss her employer off, unless she had some serious issues with them that violated her principles. She moved the hand that was stroking Raeghan to beside her leg, causing the raven to hop onto it. She then moved it up to her shoulder, transferring her friend to his new perch before she stood up in a single smooth, graceful movement, “We should perhaps get going. Did you need to visit Taiom, or can you wait until we get to Kalath which will have more buying options?” She looked over at Luna for her answer.

Location: Along with Ageon River, North of Rosayia Forest. As Natia explained the concept of their balance, Rowan was quiet as he listened carefully. It certainly was a little more complicated than what he was thinking. To him, the natural was merely the natural world such as the trees and grass, but she was talking about something completely different. He had no idea what this balance would be for his species, but he was one that believed that the Keza’s weren’t created by some deity so he doubted his species would follow this rule. Their current theory was that they were created by the Eldyrannth, especially since some of their very early records seemed to support that theory. So could he still had this balance thing she was talking about? For that matter, how could one tell their own balance, or the balance of others? So how would Natia know if her balance had been disrupted? Merely because of the consequences? Surely there was some other way she could balance herself out. So deep into his thoughts, he almost missed what she went on to say. At her questions as to why he didn’t just rape and sell her, he raised an eyebrow at her before he said in a rather mild tone, “Not everyone is willing to give up their morals for money, Natia. I’m not one to trade in forced slaves. That is beneath me.” His tone then became softer, “I could not in good conscious do something like that. Especially not with someone as sweet as yourself. I don’t think that you’re a burden, at all. In fact I am really enjoying your company. If I just sold you, then I would be missing out. To me, Natia, that is worth far more than the money I would make by selling you to be a slave.” He held her closer to him, kissing the top of her head before tucking it under his chin so that he could wrap his arms fully around her in a protective cuddle, “But, I can’t really do much to try and find your family right now. But I can keep an eye and ear out for you while I’m doing what I need to do.” He doubted that she could actually help him with what he was doing, as he was doing what he did best. Information gathering, and she didn’t have the kinds of connections that he had, not his natural talent of spying on people. But her company would be all the help he needed and he was quite happy with that. Location: Craethiel Wilds, near Lake Ryomar. An eyebrow raised at Luna’s assurance regarding the wagon. Perhaps she had some spell that took care of it and hid it from view when they were travelling paths that the wagon could not traverse. But, whether it was some spell, or she left it behind at a town, Rayvenne didn’t really care. As long as it would be no problem. Because there was no way she was going to try and help push a damn wagon through mountainous territory. She didn’t bother asking and merely remained silent as she finished her stew. Once it was finished, she set it aside and watched Raeghan who was pecking at the last few pieces of his own food. Her eyes moved back over to Luna as she went on about the monsters. Rayvenne tilted her head to the side with a small nod, “Yes, they are immensely useful. There are numerous species that reside within the mountains. With a good hunting expedition, you could come back with enough alchemy ingredients to last you a few years.” She said as Raeghan once again jumped up onto her knee now that he had finished with his food. He ruffled his feathers as he turned around to look at Luna again, “Quite likely. The same with the forest. It’s dangerous work, but well worth the effort. Such ingredients are worth a lot of money on the alchemy market.” “Yes. I’ve done it a few times myself. I hunt after the monsters that everyone else is too scared of even going near.” Rayvenne said with a slight shrug of her shoulders. It was actually quite profitable, but she preferred to avoid becoming just a hunter as it would confine her to the areas most populated by monsters and she liked to travel around the entire country.

While Izanagi disappeared off to hunt for some meat, Daedrin set up the campfire and constructed a spit which he hung their cooking pot from. He took their sleeping bags from the horses and lay them down near the fire, closer to the protection of the tree but allowing them to benefit from the heat that the fire generated. He then returned to the fire and began to prepare their stew, pouring water into the pot from their own water supply. Luckily, he knew that there were several fresh water streams in the mountains that they could take advantage of. Certainly tastier than river water, that was for sure. As he was preparing them, he looked up as he could sense Izanagi returning. His red eyes lit up in appreciation at what his friend brought back, “Those are some fine fish you have there.” He commented with a grin as he took the fish and looked at them closer, “Certainly enough for the both of us.” He said before laying them down on a nearby rock. He finished what he was doing with the vegetables before picking up a flattish rock. He inspected it for a few moments before brushing it clean and putting it close to the fire to heat up. He then turned his attention to the fish, pulling out a dagger. At first, Daedrin used the blade of the knife to descale the fish as he knew that wouldn’t be particularly appetising. He then sliced the fish open, gutting it to remove the guts and other unpleasant organs that they wouldn’t want to eat. He then neatly sliced the flesh off, taking off as much of it as possible before slicing it up into smaller pieces. He placed them on the flat rock, giving them a slight sear on the surface before he threw them into the pot. Once he had finished all of the meat, he threw the rest of the ingredients into the pot and put the lid on, “A good fish stew. I haven’t had one in a long time.” He said before he picked up the leftovers of the fish and carrying it a distance from the camp. Using telekinesis, he dug out a small pit before burying the disgards. He then returned to the camp and washed his hands before taking a long drink from. He then returned to the fire and sat himself down, turning his red eyes towards the mountains as if drawn to them. A slight smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he felt a feeling of nostalgia rise up inside of him. Without even realising it, he started to speak, “I have a very special love for mountains, you know. I grew up in a mountainous valley, in a castle keep. It was a very peaceful place, and I feel quite privileged to have grown up there. It was so beautiful. The mountains were always capped with snow, no matter the time of year. And at the very bottom of the valley was the clearest lake you could have ever seen. So clear you could see the bottom of it, and all the fish that swam within it. And just beyond the valley was a forest that stretched as far as the eye could see… I rather miss it.” He let out a soft hum, not taking his eyes off of the mountain before he then added, “I will go back, one day. It won’t be for a very long time, though.”

Zack couldn’t help the smirk that tugged at the corner of his lips as he heard the waver in her voice as she practically pleaded with him to be gentle. Ultimately, he had no desire to be gentle with her. But by the time he got to that point, she would be in no position to be begging him to stop. Now that she was tied up, he felt like he could do anything to her. The feeling of having this power over her, knowing that she was helpless to his whims was thrilling. He could simply walk out, leave her like this. Or even just throw her out on the street like this. While the thought was amusing, it wasn’t what he wanted. He had an aching erection and it was demanding to be satisfied by using her body. But first, he wanted to make sure that she was ready. Not because it would minimise the pain for her, but for himself. He hooked a finger into the ropes tying her arms and pulled her backwards slowly so that she wouldn’t trip. He sat down on the bed before moving his hands around her waist and pulling her onto his lap. His hands then moved down to her thighs, taking them firmly and spreading them so that her legs fell down on either side of his thighs. Due to the fact that his legs were longer than her own, it would make it hard for her to close her legs on him. He leaned down, kissing the skin of her shoulder almost tenderly before he smirked against her as his left hand came up and cupped her breast, groping it gently before he allowed his fingers to run over the nipple. He then gently took it between his forefinger and thumb and pinched it a little before rolling it around to create enough pressure to make it pleasurable. He kissed his way up her neck until his lips were beside her ear, “Sometimes it’s not always about pleasuring the client. Sometimes they like to pleasure you.” He told her softly. His right hand moved from her thigh to between her legs. He ghosted his fingers over her pussy, feeling that right now she was dry. Considering how scared she was, it didn’t surprise him. Zack shifted his fingers until they were lightly pressed against her clit, before he applied more pressure to it before he began to rotate in slow circles. He knew with someone this tense, immediately going in full throttle was a bad idea. He needed to work her up to that point. It not only got her wet, but might also relax her. In her ear, he told her, “If you feel like moaning, don’t hold back. I want to hear them.” While sometimes he liked women trying to be quiet, he didn’t want this one to be. He wanted to hear all the lewd noises from such an innocent looking girl as he defiled her completely and made her into a woman.

I do agree that it's a good idea ^^

Location: Craethiel Wilds, near Lake Ryomar. Rayvenne paused when Luna said that cooking and alchemy had similar concepts to one another. She had to admit that the bunny girl was quite right. They did share numerous qualities with one another, such as requiring a specific method, ingredient amounts and cooking times to get the result that was desired. Anything that deviated too much from the norm, and it would create something entirely different. Perhaps even ruin it all together. So she quietly agreed to that with a slight nod as she spooned more of the stew into her mouth and chewed on it. At Luna’s next question, Rayvenne’s eyebrow raised a little but she didn’t say anything at first as she still had her mouth full of food. When she swallowed, she said, “I doubt it would take much effort to lure out bandits. With a wagon, and only a singular guard - a female guard at that - you would no doubt be thought of as an easy target. At the moment we’re neat Lake Ryomar… there is the village of Taiom over the river but that’s just a village. It won’t attract much attention from bandits. However, if we continue to travel along the river towards Lake Kelrak, we will be able to cross the bridge to Kalath. The bridge is an idea spot to be ambushed by bandits. It’s considered a bit of a weak spot, as the guards don’t patrol that far from the town. Plus we can make sure that we are stocked on supplies before we head to the mountains. It would be a good idea to leave your wagon there as well. Enutpen’s Glory is not a very smooth mountain range. Wagons are impossible up there.” Raeghan lifted his beak from his bowl and said, “She’s right. The mountains are treacherous, even in the best of weather. The quickest way to move around is with a horse.” “Of course, that’s not mentioning all the monsters in the mountain ranges. Dragons aren’t the only being that inhabit the mountains. You have other monsters like mountain trolls. Not the easiest to beat, but I can handle them. Hopefully we won’t have to venture too far in to find what you’re after.” Rayvenne said, adding to what Raeghan said before eating another spoonful.