Mark 2.0: Book 2: Hate

by Prax Venter

“Where are you taking us again?” he asked, keeping his blind eye focused on the hurried plant-elf.

  “We’re passing through the maintenance tunnels on route to a teleport hub.” She turned her vivid green eyes up to face him. “You’re here to do quests, correct? Wasn’t your intended destination the Guild?”

  They drew closer to the door, and now everyone could hear moans… of anguish? He wasn’t quite sure anymore.

  Penda pulled open the door, and the muffled wailing people who were either being fucked or tortured shot up in volume. The gruesome dead rabbit-people on hooks before came front and center as he followed their Kalorplast escort into the next area, but Mark’s mind short-circuited once again.

  The whole right side of this new expansive corridor was a glass wall in front of pregnant bunny creatures being held suspended by vines. Some females were being fucked by muscular rabbit-men, some were being fucked by aggressive plants, yet all the nude, floppy-eared-women were being suckled by smaller versions of the mouth-like vine he saw a moment ago.

  He tore his eyes away from the chaotic and confusing orgy to check on his lovers’ reactions.

  Sasha was wide-eyed, but her tail was swishing and clearly growing aroused. Jezebel held her hand to her chest, shocked, and Abby stepped closer. The furry white creature with massive tits didn’t seem to notice her on the other side of the glass. Either it was some sort of two-way-mirror situation or the thick bunny-woman was lost in her own plant-induced world of ecstasy.

  The empathic antenna wedged into his skull automatically scanned the rabbit-woman, and Mark could feel a shadow of the maddening pleasure she derived as the slurping, sucking lips clamped on to her aching, fat nipples and pulled out gallons of sweet liquid from her swollen mammary glands.

  “They enjoy this process?” the petite abyssal horror asked over the din of ecstasy, but before an impatient Penda could answer, one of the Lagomorphs yelled “Yes!” several times farther down the long tunnel.

  “May I try your living pleasure chamber?” Abby followed up quickly, a big smile on her green lips.

  “This isn’t a tour,” Penda said, tilting her head. “I’m not here to answer questions about our dairy products. And, no, I’m not putting you in a milking chamber…” The small plant-woman sighed and waved her wand once.

  To Mark’s horror, he found that he could no longer move. The half-smile on his face remained locked in place as he tried activating every ability he had at his disposal, starting with his new magic shell and ending with a savagely erotic heal to incapacitate her… But nothing worked.

  “I could put all of you into a milking chamber for the rest of your life if I wanted.”

  His eye told him that she was lying. Or more accurately, she was trying to intimidate them. She wanted something.

  Sasha’s mind flailed against the edges of her skull in an enraged panic, and Mark tried to will her to relax. Penda continued.

  “I’m not sure you’re not spies yet, and no one knows you even exist. I could do all manner of things with you…” She waltzed over to Mark and ran her hand over his limp cock through his silk pants slowly, then she let her arm drop to her side.

  “But I won’t. I’m going to let you go now. If you try and attack me, you’ll wish for the sun to stop shining.”

  Her wand flashed blue, and he was released.

  Mark expected to be out of breath, but he was fine. He looked over as Sasha’s tail snapped with frustration.

  “Do that to me again, and I will find a way-”

  “Stop,” Penda interrupted the riled-up succubus and held up her wand. “Mark demonstrated his power on me. I only demonstrated my power on you. Now shut up and listen. I did both you and Duard a huge favor by letting you through, and I’m asking you to return that favor.”

  “What favor?” Mark said.

  One of the Lagomorph women belted out “There!” repeatedly at a higher and higher pitch, and the plant-elf waited until she stopped.

  “I am taking you to the elder Guild Master. With my introduction, he will give you access to a higher-tier list of available quests. On that list, you will find a quest to escort and guard a new Kalorplast Collector as she enthralls her first harem member- a wild Sacred Nut male. You will take this quest, murder the young Collector, and make it look like an accident. It’s a dangerous quest for her, and the crowns alone could easily be blamed for the-”

  Mark put up his hand, and she stopped.

  “Uh, Penda- right?”

  The lettuce lady with the powerful magic wand tilted her head, then nodded.

  “First, we aren’t murdering anyone. Second, I want you to know I can tell when you are lying. This was supposed to be a test, but it won’t really work on me.”

  Mark tapped the scar that ran through his eye, and she squinted at him.

  “You’re a seer?” she asked, the pink petals over her eyes raising slightly.

  He shrugged, “If that’s what you want to call it.”

  Penda put her palm on her verdant hip. “I had three cranberries and two spiders for breakfast.”

  Mark grimaced.

  “It’s true,” he said, looking over at Sasha, “she eats spiders.”

  “I’ve been a Coercer for 538 seasons,” the suspicious plant-elf said, and Mark felt a hint of a lie whisper into his mind.

  “Close, but untrue.”

  Penda looked visibly shocked. “That’s remarkable. It’s really 565.”

  Mark shook his head. “Try again.”

  She stared into his eye, and he felt her frustration rise.

  “566.”

  Mark nodded. “As far as I know, you believe that’s the true number.”

  “That’s… a powerful ability for a Lover,” she said. “How did you come by it?”

  Sasha had enough. “You aren’t a tour guide, and we aren’t spies. Now let’s get on with what you really want from us and stop playing games.”

  “She’s right,” Mark said. “I know you’re taking a risk with us and that you need our help. How about the truth this time?”

  Penda nodded. “Fine. Everything I said was true except the Collector is my sister, and I want you to help her tame her first Enthralled. My father wants her to stay on our family estate forever and germinate many grandchildren, so he’s only authorized a minimal reward compared to everything else on the Guild Master’s list of posted quests. No one wants to take on a moderately dangerous escort quest for a new Collector. She’s a Fighter Class on top of everything else!”

  Mark’s brow came down hard, and his brain felt like bursting from all the questions he had, but it all scattered when another one of the furry, milk-laden Lagomorphs began to groan in the throes of another orgasm.

  “Can we go somewhere… less distracting?” he asked.

  The spunky plant-woman shook her lettuce-wrapped head and crossed her slender arms.

  “Not if we want to talk.”

  “Fine,” Mark chuckled as he pointed the strange erotic insanity virtually pressing against his face. “Let’s start with that then. If you want our help, you will answer a few questions for us. What is going on here? Why did I see dead versions of this… species-”

  “Lagomorphs,” Jezebel offered, helpfully.

  Mark started again. “Why did I see dead Lagomorphs hanging from hooks?”

  “Are you serious? Can I just say, ‘mutually beneficial arrangement’ and your seer eye dings with truth- or whatever?”

  Mark blinked. She was smart, and he could see she had been seriously spoiled by her father. She was given a spacious dwelling at a young age, her pick of season-mates, lavish Seed Day parties… There was a brief flash, and he saw hatred for her father. She needed to help her sister escape the same fate or Penda herself would never be free to float among the wind-

  “I get the milking,” Jezebel said, breaking him out of his unintentional deep dive into this small creature’s mind. He shook it off and resolved to keep better control over his enthusiastic mental probing.
They all watched the nearest rabbit-woman caress the red-lipped vines draining her massive breasts as she got plowed from behind by a rabbit-man weightlifter.

  Then the inquisitive satyr shook her head and got to her real question.

  “But does… the vaginal stimulation help the process in some way or is it just for fun?”

  Penda moved her eyes to Jezebel. “Yes. The Lagomorph produce sweeter milk if they are brought to orgasm while we extract the product.”

  “They all look pregnant,” Sasha said, turning her scrutinizing blue eyes on their escort.

  The Kalorplast gave her a small shrug. “Was that a question?”

  “Do you eat them?” Abby asked.

  “I don’t,” Penda sighed and rolled her eyes. “Really? I’m giving you access to an elder Guild Master and his bevy of star-tier quests, and you four want to ask infinite questions about our livestock industry. The good news is I am now reasonably certain you aren’t centaur spies.”

  Mark flashed her a smile. Despite the continual barrage of insanity, he liked this little sprout.

  “Penda,” he said, “does your sister want to become a Collector?”

  She looked at Mark and his bonded monster-women with renewed scrutiny.

  “What hole did you people fall out of that you know so little about everything?”

  Mark felt a red embarrassment from both Jezebel and Sasha. They clearly conveyed that they both not only knew this answer but now felt bad for not explaining it to him sooner.

  Abby cleared it all up quickly, though.

  “The four of us originate from beyond all dimensions, and partially through my actions, our consciousnesses are all stuck in here with you until Mark unites the red crystal shards and restores system-level access.”

  Penda’s tiny mouth hung open, and Mark noticed she had a dark-green leaf for a tongue.

  “They’re both joking,” Jezebel said, unconvincingly. “Everyone knows Collectors are rare and chosen by fate when a willing individual comes of age.”

  It was Sasha’s turn to roll her eyes.

  “The question remains valid,” she said. “Does your sister understand the responsibility of risking her life to collect essence? Is she ready to commit to that lifelong bond?”

  Mark could tell Sasha was speaking from experience, but it didn’t quite feel as if she was thinking about the other Mark- which felt good.

  The direct personal questions snapped the plant-elf out of her shock.

  “It’s all Cel talks about! She trains with her useless wooden axe every day- which angers my father, and his frustrations sour our household. She spent many seasons with her nose in everything from bestiary treatises to societal temperament studies and discovered that she wants to… bond with a rare arcane monster. If I have to hear her drone on about ‘phase-perfect’ compatibility statistics one more time…”

  “And why aren’t you helping to get her nut with your magic stick?” Sasha followed up quickly, her arms crossed.

  “I’m a Coercer. I can’t just abandon my post for a few days to go on an adventure with my little sister. We’re at war, remember? Speaking of which, I need to get back to my platform soon. You know what I want. Do it or don’t.”

  Mark held up his hand when he felt Jezebel about to launch into more questions. He locked eyes with each member of his team and felt that none were explicitly against it.

  “I’m not promising anything,” he said, “but we’ll look into helping your sister get her sacred nut.”

  Penda nodded. “Then follow me. And by The Solar Radiance, try and act normal.”

  With that, she spun on her green heel and began walking toward the door at the end of this noisy hallway.

  He shared another look with his team before they all followed their guide out of the industrial milking area and past a few off-shoot tunnels before walking along a broad root lying on the bottom of a flying expressway chasm. Penda began jogging at this point, and Mark encouraged everyone to keep pace with her despite the dazzling sights above them.

  After another few more turns and hallways, they came to a chamber with honeycombs of blue crystals coating the walls.

  “Open the hub interface, and tick the group option,” Penda instructed as she tapped something in the air only she could see. “My clearance will take us straight to the highest guild branch.”

  Mark blinked.

  “What interface?” he whispered, but then there was a neon-green window filled with text hovering in front of him.

  - 9 -

  “I can see it!” Mark shouted, his eyes bouncing around trying to read everything at once. Most of the translucent menu listed on the interface were locations within the colossal tree, but the section labeled “Common Destinations” caught his eye.

  Barktown

  Celestial Petal Row

  South Market District

  Nagging Good Grubs

  Endrin’s Exquisite Eels

  Vash’s Ashes

  …

  “Collector!” Penda shouted to get his attention. “Please tell me I’m not sending my sister to die in the hands of a buffoon.” The tiny sprout of a woman looked back at Sasha specifically for an answer.

  “Call Mark a buffoon again, and I’ll snap that tiny twig of yours.”

  Mark rolled his eyes and then reached out to select the box labeled join group in the upper-right corner.

  “Sorry,” he said. “Just a small-town boy getting lost in the big city is all.”

  Penda looked Mark up and down again before she sighed and faced forward.

  “At least the women around you seem capable… you are cute, though.”

  Before Mark could blink, the world was a blur, and it felt as if he were moving faster than should be possible. Then, the five of them were standing in what appeared to be an echoing cathedral.

  Stained-glass windows twenty stories high saturated the cavernous interior extending forever before them. Polished, rich-brown wood was everywhere, and Mark’s eye was climbing up an impossible wall of bookshelves that rose up so high they seemed useless when sudden boisterous laughter wrenched his attention to a group of three creatures joking together as they approached.

  “Quickly,” the little sprout said as she stalked out of the chamber into the immense hallway. Mark hurried his steps but something about the way the trio moved close together… They were all very much in love.

  One was a male and part-weasel with dented iron armor, another was a fish-type woman with a pearlescent gown, and the final woman was a voluptuous eagle wearing a mean-looking crown of iron thorns.

  Mark couldn’t quite put his finger on it. The odd feedback sensation bouncing between the three felt…

  “It’s another Collector and her Enthralled,” Jezebel whispered into his ear as she pulled him along with the group. He turned away from the winged beauty with black-and-white feathers to see the excitement dancing in his satyr’s emerald eyes. “If we are in a major quest hub, we should see a lot more!”

  After walking around a giant chessboard made from moss and dirt, Penda brought them to a raised section of floor along one of the smooth wooden walls. They passed under an archway and entered what appeared to be a small botany museum lit by glowing orange mushrooms. Glass cases held various specimens of plants, insects, mosses, berries, and all manner of detritus found on the ground in the wild.

  Penda led them past it all to an ornate wooden desk to the right of the arch. Behind the desk was a wall of thick green vines.

  “Master Noma!” their snarky guide called out, tapping her foot.

  An old man’s voice whispered, “Penda?” from behind them, and Mark saw an elderly Kalorplast peek around one of the many glass cases. He was ancient, and where Penda’s body was taut and pliant, his was stiff and wooden. The star-tier Guild Master hobbled closer, and Mark began to notice gray bark spreading across his body- almost like a disease. Shriveled roots hung from his gnarled face in limp strands, and both of his eyes were a pure milky-white. De
spite his unsettling appearance, the old plant-elf exuded goodwill and curiosity.

  Penda stepped away from the desk and waved for Mark and his team to meet the hobbling master halfway.

  “It’s been 40 decacycles, my student. Don’t tell me you’ve decided to feed your passion for treasure hunting.”

  The lettuce-wrapped woman sighed. “No. But I brought a Collector and his Enthralled to hopefully help with my sister’s quest, so please grant them access to your job board. I must go back to my post. It was good… being here again.”

  She locked her neon-green eyes on Mark and then waved to everyone before jogging back out into the enormous hallway.

  He waved and turned back to notice the back of Abby’s long silky hair wandering out among the leaves and berries. Mark tried to ignore the fact that she was probably stealing everything and held out his hand to the ancient plant-elf smiling up at him.

  “I’m Mark,” he said and waited for Master Noma to take it, but the creature only bobbed his head.

  “A Lover, I see. Bonded to a unique Succubus, a unique Satyr, and a completely unknown and previously uncategorized being. There is something altogether off about you four, yet the winds did whisper of angry children sowing such strange, strange seeds near my roots.”

  “Uh,” Mark started, not knowing where to go from there when Abby spoke up from a few cases down.

  “I require contact with one of these pretty red crystals!” she shouted.

  Mark felt a mixture of frustration and excitement wash over him when he saw that Abby was trying to pull the glass top off one of the cases with a huge bear-trap grin on her face. He couldn’t see them, but he could guess what was in there.

  Jezebel and the ancient Kalorplast moved to join Abby while Sasha shot Mark a half-smile, exposing one of her fangs.

  “Come, my love. Let us fulfill our virtual destiny.”

  Mark took her hand and leaned into her sarcastic attitude. He wanted to get away from the Crystal Heart Shards for a while, but it seems this game really wanted to be played.

  “Abby, sweetie,” Jezebel said, once she reached the case. “Let’s get permission before something breaks.”