Mark 2.0: Book 2: Hate

by Prax Venter

  Mark 2.0: Book 2 - Hate

  By Prax Venter

  Cover by Jaka Prawira

  Edited by Celestian Rince

  Copyright © 2019 Prax Venter

  All rights reserved

  Author's Note: This is a work of fiction, and all characters depicted in sexual situations are 18 years of age or older. Characters with any resemblance to persons that exist now, or have ever existed, are purely coincidental.

  -= Special Thanks =-

  All my fans who recommend me on social media

  Your actions have immeasurable ramifications on my exposure, and I love you for it.

  Table of Contents

  Mark 2.0: Book 2 - Hate

  Table of Contents

  - Recap -

  - 1 -

  - 2 -

  - 3 -

  - 4 -

  - 5 -

  - 6 -

  - 7 -

  - 8 -

  - 9 -

  - 10 -

  - 11 -

  - 12 -

  - 13 -

  - 14 -

  - 15 -

  - 16 -

  - 17 -

  - 18 -

  - 19 -

  - 20 -

  - 21 -

  - 22 -

  - 23 -

  - 24 -

  - 25 -

  - 26 -

  - 27 -

  - 28 -

  The End

  ~ Connect with Prax Venter ~

  - Recap -

  With a little twist of concentration, Mark coated his left hand with black, vivid energy and tore open a doorway between worlds. Green trees and blue skies appeared on the other side, and in the distance, standing in the exact place as the red magic dome, he saw the primitive Awysai structure made of clay and sticks.

  It felt as if a bucket of ice water was poured directly on his spine when he saw the billowing smoke and fires though. Ahead of him, a Skeema Stone was shouting orders to a cluster of other short, four-armed men with axes, and he knew what needed to be done.

  Mark turned to see if his Enthralled could see as well and based on their wide eyes locked on the threshold into chaos he’d just created, it was a safe bet that they did.

  “Come on,” he said, turning back to the doorway. “Let’s take out these fuckers and save what we can.”

  The nausea hit him again as he dashed through, but it was easy to ignore this time. Mark summoned his sledgehammer and prepared to annihilate anything in his path. He sprinted directly for the Skeema who seemed to be in charge, ready to end his life with a precise strike to the glowing, True Strike spot on the side of his head when the Awysai Chieftain appeared between them with blinding speed. There, he summoned his own full suit of ethereal armor complete with a thin curved blade, ready to intercept Mark’s blind aggression.

  “Halt!” the jet-black dragon-man yelled, and Mark’s boots slid to a stop.

  He heard Abby chanting her Imaginary Laceration spell and knew she was only moments from ripping someone in half.

  “Abby, wait!” Mark yelled as he spun to face her. Her yellow eyes flashed to his, and her weaving tentacles dropped to her sides, letting the attack die on her dark-green lips. He caught the attention of Sasha and Jezebel, who were already standing down, but the blonde sex-demon’s spade tail cracked like a whip a few times, dissipating her unspent aggression.

  The cowering Skeema Stone peeked out from behind the chieftain, his eyes huge with terror.

  “What in the name of all that is foul…” he mumbled.

  Mark unsummoned his weapon and scanned the area. A crew of Stone Skeema stood in a fresh clearing, all staring at Mark and his Enthralled. Logs were stacked in piles, and smaller branches were being disposed of in controlled bonfires. A few of the four-armed Skeema were even paired with Awysai warriors working together to dig out holes. If he had to guess, they were in the first stages of a construction project.

  “I’m so sorry,” Mark said, turning back to the chieftain, who he saw had also unsummoned his ethereal armaments. “When I saw the fires, I kinda lost it a little.”

  “I shouldn’t expect to see you and your Enthralled back so soon,” the jet-black salamander said, with his too-wide smile. “I am glad to know you will rush to defend our home if you perceive it under attack.”

  “What is all this?” Mark asked, trying to calm his beating heart.

  “I am proud to show you the future of our people. It wouldn’t have been possible without yours and Loa’s efforts.” The earless salamander put his three thick fingers on Mark’s shoulder and squeezed firmly. Mark could feel him swelling with pride. “I present to you the future Awysai airship hub.”

  - 1 -

  “What are the Awysai going to do with an airship hub?” Jezebel asked bluntly from behind Mark.

  The chieftain tilted his head to look at the armored satyr. “I know our world is vast, and there are many more goddess echo nests to be established where the above and beyond overlaps. I also believe it is time for the Awysai to finally join with the peoples of this vast world we all share.”

  The shorter, four-armed Skeema Stone who’d been hiding behind the black salamander stepped out and let out a sharp laugh.

  “This here chieftain is just looking to grow heavy with coin, like everyone.” He then raised his voice to address the gawking construction crew standing around them. “Back to work now!”

  Since there wasn’t a fight about to break out, the laborers quickly returned to their tasks.

  “Where in the Wrongside did you four come from, anyway?” the Stone continued, his eyes lingering on Sasha’s metal legs. “There’s no way I’d miss this finely forged beauty strutting onto my job site.”

  The succubus’s spade tail began to sway behind her, and Mark felt apprehension through their bond. She didn’t trust Skeema Stones after one tried to grab her and she’d Arc Bolted his face to ash. But this one was speaking her language.

  “The Wrongside is precisely where we came from,” Abby answered.

  The four-armed Skeema turned his focus to the abyssal horror, and his eyebrows raised a bit.

  “You got one odd collection there, Collector.”

  Sasha’s tail snapped once behind her.

  “Foreman,” the Awysai Chieftain hissed, “I believe you are paid coin to oversee the work, not my honored guests.”

  The Stone Foreman gave Abby a wink before walking away to do his job. “You call that a hole?” he bellowed. “Get it right, lads, or I’ll be forced to show you my mother-plough’n arsehole as reference!”

  Mark watched a construction crew chop at the trunks of the thick forest while others worked on clearing the stumps. Access to an airship could be a convenient way to access remote parts of this virtual world, and he was keen on spreading the influence of the Oral Sex Goddess feeding him malleable energy.

  “I wish you the best of luck,” Mark said. “And it was good to see you, but we have more shards to collect, so we best be on our way.”

  The chieftain nodded once.

  “Oh!” Mark added. “Do you know if Amina is in the dome?”

  “I saw her sparring, Collector. Just outside.”

  “I thank you,” Mark said, with a short bow, and the Awysai salamander gave him back a wide smile.

  He turned and shared a glance with each of his lovely monster-women before he led them toward the mud dome in the distance through a cleared path through the trees. After a short walk away from the new construction site, they found the main dirt road that curved around the still lake.

  “I assume your plan is to open an interdimensional doorway inside the dome here to gain access to the one in the Wrongside,” Jezebel said after a few steps down the path. “Is that going to work?” />
  “Maybe,” Mark said, focusing on the dome through the trees. “I need to find a crossing-over point between dimensions first. I can’t open these doorways anywhere I want. The last two crystals are supposed to be with those red object-hoarding people called Red Tortoises. I want to get in, get them, and get out.”

  Jezebel sighed. “Hopefully those are the only remaining Heart Shards brought over to that mirror universe. Reaching our goal would be… increasingly difficult if we needed to scour multiple worlds for all 108.”

  “It would obviously be favorable to breach the Wrongside’s red dome through Mark’s new ability,” Abby began, clomping her black boots in the dirt. “But before we discuss the assault further, we four must immediately elect my upgrade.”

  “Oh yeah,” Mark said over his shoulder. With all the He Who Judges nonsense, he’d almost forgotten these deadly beautiful creatures were filled to bursting with points to spend.

  “What skills are open to you?” Jezebel asked.

  Abby focused and then began to relay the information on her Enthralled interface.

  “First, Mind Fuck. This channeled spell will trap anything with a mind in an erotic illusion. While under its 30-second effect, the target is assaulted with powerful hallucinations so pleasurable that they cannot move, act, or think. Second, Mind Crush. An instant spell that lingers, inflicting small amounts of continual mental agony over 10 seconds. Can only be active on one target at any given time.”

  “Abby, sweetie,” Sasha began, an eyebrow raised. “Could you cast that Mind Fuck spell on say, Jezebel?”

  The emerald-eyed satyr shot her a glance. “What?”

  “Conceivably,” Abby answered.

  “I vote Mind Fuck,” the succubus said, her blue eyes shining with mischief. “We would finally have a way to get back at Mark for all those heavenly Heals.”

  Mark shook his head. “I’m in, I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to have two types of crowd control spells.”

  Jezebel sighed. “Well, I may be in the minority, but I think the damaging ability would be more practical for our survival.”

  “I concur,” Abby said quickly. “I desperately wish to augment my current damage throughput.”

  “Okay, so, how do we handle a tie?” Jezebel said, holding up one of her palms.

  “I’m obviously changing my vote to the crushing one,” Mark said and then looked over at his ex-AI assistant. “Come on, we can’t pick shit just to psychically fondle each other.”

  “I can, and I will,” the sex demon said with a devious smirk.

  “Mind Crush locked in,” Abby said after Sasha was outvoted. “However, Mind Fuck lies on a branch I can permanently access. Perhaps one day I’ll be able to bounce on Mark’s cock while also inflicting terrible pleasure on his mind.”

  “A man can dream,” he said. “What about you Jez, anything big?”

  The doe-legged satyr blew a shock of strawberry-blonde hair out of her face as she accessed her abilities.

  “I could always strengthen Vines. It’s not terribly expensive, and I’d have some essence points to bank for the next level of my bear form. Savage Roar is an option too and will force nearby enemies to flee in terror, or if they resist, force them to fight me.”

  “I lost my Cry of Unshakable Terror ability when Mark fixed me,” Abby said. “It was quite effective when surrounded. However, your roar appears more chaotic.”

  Mark looked over at the petite abyssal horror and saw her yellow eyes focused on the ground as they walked past the mirrored lake near the Awysai dome. He didn’t feel disappointment from her, only fierce contemplation on the best battle strategy for her new collective.

  “I remember that ability,” Sasha said. “And I remember being impressed that you were able to drive me away from Mark so soon after reuniting with him.”

  “What do you want to pick, Jez?” Mark said after another handful of quiet steps.

  “Abby is right. Savage Roar could lead to potentially dangerous situations with enemies randomly running everywhere. I think we should boost my Vines and start building up my current set skills.”

  “I like it,” Mark said.

  Sasha and Abby each gave approving nods.

  “Done,” the thick-thighed satyr said, her luminous green eyes crossing slightly as she focused on her interface. “At level 3, I now should be able to hold creatures as large as the giant Skeema variants.”

  “What about you, Sasha?” Mark said, bumping his hip into hers as they walked. She shot him a fanged half-smile in return.

  “Since we’ve traveled deeper into my Lightning tree and boosted my agility, I’ve unlocked an interesting one called Static Escape.”

  “Consider me interested,” Mark said.

  “I can shift five feet backward, leaving an afterimage of pure electricity in my place. It remains for five seconds, and anything that touches it will get the fucking zap of their life!” Her spade tail snapped like a whip as she finished the description.

  Mark looked at his feet as he imagined how that would play out in a fight.

  “I’m envious,” Abby said, her sharp eyebrows coming down. “I will need more essence immediately.”

  “Yeah, it’s a good one,” Jezebel agreed. “Can you use it after spreading out your wings?”

  Mark stopped walking, and his Enthralled stopped with him. He cast his eyes over to the brilliant research AI, nodding as he tried to picture a spread-eagle Sasha made from electricity.

  “It sounds like we are all in agreement,” he said. “Pick it, and let’s test it right now.”

  Sasha didn’t hesitate and focused on a place a few inches from her face.

  “Don’t move,” she said and then snapped open her red-and-black leathery wings. A moment later, a wall of lightning appeared where she had been standing. Mark winced as blue arcs of power danced around the familiar form of his beloved succubus. Behind it, he saw the real Sasha clomp her black hooves in the dirt as she walked around the five-foot span of crackling energy in the middle of the road.

  All three of Mark’s monster-women moved by his side to observe the statue of lightning, and after five seconds, Sasha’s voluptuous afterimage faded out with a few final motes of buzzing light.

  “Let them try and touch me,” she whispered.

  Mark turned toward his succubus, and his good eye was pulled to the darker scar on her smooth pink skin. His other, truth-seeing eye looked past it and into her mind, searching for the source of buried pain that now bubbled closer to the surface.

  Layers of black smoke plumed around this point of perspective inside her- what? What was this swirling funnel of whispers and repression? Thoughts, emotions… memories? What “truth” was his eye trying-

  “Just be careful with using it,” Jezebel said in her most motherly tone. “That stationary wall of lightning will be invaluable when used strategically, but we all need to be conscious-”

  Sasha rolled her blue eyes and started walking down the road again.

  “Don’t worry your little poof of a tail, Jezzy Bear. We’ll be fine.”

  Mark shot a glance back to the frowning Satyr before he followed his sassy succubus toward the massive brown dome peeking over the trees. He picked up his pace until he was alongside Sasha. Seeing the Skeema Stone working with the Awysai had seemingly reopened a wound in her mind. The next time he had her alone, he was going to try and talk about this past life she lived without him. He needed to know.

  “We should fight each other,” Abby said after a few quiet steps.

  “You mean sparring?” Jezebel asked, and the young abyssal horror continued.

  “When I was perpetually observed by the All Mind, His gaze would administer exponential agony until my sisters and I earnestly tried to wound each other. If there were no Players assaulting our spawn location, we would learn a great deal not only about our own abilities but also the others’. The activity led to more fluid collaborations between us- resulting in more blood spilled.”

  Mar
k expected Jezebel to chide them on how unsafe such an activity would be, but she surprised him.

  “I’m in,” she said quickly.

  “Let’s hold off on that idea for a bit,” he said.” Abby, you could probably lop off arms by yourself. I don’t think any of us are skilled enough yet to hold back our own crazy superpowers without, you know… killing each other.”

  As if to provide direct proof, they stepped around a curve in the path and found hundreds of sparring Awysai warriors. Their ethereal weapons and wiry muscled bodies gracefully flowed from swift offense to impenetrable defense. Most females were a sleek mass of tightly wound power while many males were dense and robust, their smooth black bodies each rippling with compact strength.

  Mark’s attention snapped to a specific clashing pair of warriors to the right when he recognized what he believed were the round hips of the chieftain’s daughter. She circle-strafed her sparring partner while using her glowing staff to deflect the swift jabs of a male’s spear. He used his thick tail to counterbalance his thrusts, but the female shoved each attack away with a nudge from her summoned weapon. Her sleek snout and vibrant face patterns came into view, and Mark was now sure it was Amina.

  He led his party toward her, and she noticed him before they got close. Amina stepped back from her partner and put up a three-fingered hand to call for a stop. The male turned to look over his shoulder, seemed to recognize Mark right away, and then took up a position outside the stick-drawn ring behind her. Others in the area also turned to watch the first non-Awysai to ever wield their power. By the time Mark stood before the warrior-salamander named Amina, a crowd of curious onlookers had begun to form behind her.

  “I greet you, Mark.” Her phosphorescent blue eyes held him for a moment before she addressed the monster-women behind him. “Sasha, Jezebel, and again someone new?”

  Mark nodded. “Say hello to Abby, my third Enthralled. Abby, this is Amina, a good friend.”

  “I greet you, Abby.”

  The petite abyssal horror smiled. “I return your greetings, Amina. Also, you appear martially proficient enough to physically challenge Mark without killing each other. I wish to see the two of you engage in mock combat.”