by Atlas Kane
Nodding, he acknowledged the truth of her words. No sense in regretting decisions I made in another life. Especially not with all I have now.
“Thank you. I know I’m lucky.” Still looking up, he added, “Lucky to have you, Minda, let alone the others. We didn’t have beastkin girls back on Earth, but if we did, you would be the hottest one.”
“And you aren’t so bad for a bald-faced monkey, Cade.”
He smiled at her reference, but grew somber once more. Then he turned to her. His eyes met the fire in hers and let it all go. There was little point in holding back. “I’ve known you for a little over a week, Minda. But I love you. I think about you constantly. You make me laugh. You’re brilliant and sexy too. So… yeah. I love you, Minda.”
Her purr filled the small space and the slightest smile stole across her features. Her eyes grew moist. He wasn’t sure if she was gonna turn away or start crying, but after a few moments, she replied in her own way. “In my world, we never spoke such words aloud. Only actions could show how one feels. I will make love to you, Cade. And yes, the hunt is sacred, but this is more of a recon, really.”
She rolled to her side and pressed her backside against him, her purr growing louder by the second. The rest of Cade’s anxiety fled like shadows from a flame. He pulled her into him and kissed the top of her shoulder. Her hands began to explore his body, sliding down the length of his thigh. Cade moved her white braids to expose her neck and kissed her there as well.
Minda arched her back, sighing with each long kiss.
Cade slipped a hand under her leather armor and cupped a breast. He stroked the fur of her belly and then moved lower, brushing over her mound before returning once more to her breast.
They tossed in the languid enjoyment of each other’s company for near an hour before they both grew impatient as one. Cade tugged down her leather skirts, and in a deft movement, caught the waistline with his toe as it was halfway down her legs and shucked them off entirely.
She tore her top free and flung it to the corner of the tent, giggling as she did so.
Cade had his own clothes off in a few more frantic moments.
Minda had remained facing away from him. One hand was tucked suspiciously between her legs and the other was reaching behind her, seeking out his manhood.
She found him ready, gripping his cock for a moment as if to relish in the strength of him.
When Cade moved closer, he found her cute little ass pushed back. He gripped himself at the base and pressed up, feeling her lips part. He ran the length of himself along her slit, wetting himself with her arousal and causing tiny shudders of pleasure each time he brushed her clit.
He found the nape of her neck again, tracing the tip of his tongue along a tiny patch of smooth skin that separated the fur on her neck and her white tresses. Then Cade latched down, his teeth gripping her nape. At the same time, he lifted his cock up, pressing through her folds and plunging into her.
Minda moaned. Her hands moved with minds of their own. One reached behind him and clutched his back, her tiny claws digging into his flesh. With the other she reached down, cupping the place of their union. “This is how I feel for you, Cade. This is how.”
A terrible urge to become frantic, to grip her pelvis and drive himself into her almost overcame his senses, but he restrained himself. This time, like every time so far with Minda, would be unique.
So he held her in his teeth and held her hip gently in his hand as he nudged himself deeper with each of their shared movements.
It was a slow torment, an endless crashing of waves on a distant shore. At last he climbed atop her. Minda invited him between her legs and gasped as he sank his full length into her sex. Again he fought not to clash or bang his way to a finish. Instead, he ground his mound against hers.
They kissed, not a lashing of tongues frantic and wild, but slow and methodic, a dance of their lips and very tips of their tongues alone.
He came first, a scalding outpour of fire that made him break the growing silence of the forest around them. She smiled, watching his pleasure unfold. Minda slipped her hand between them and teased herself, already on the brink, and in moments, she was gripping him with the wracking pleasure of her own orgasm.
Minda came long and hard, making his own efforts seem trivial. Cade laughed, and he stared into her eyes, visible now only by flecks of silver shining up at him in the dark.
“I’m just glad this wasn’t a real hunt,” he teased, and when she gave his chest a feeble punch, her laughter filling the tent, he knew exactly what she felt for him as well, words or no words.
3
Who is Hunting Who… or Whom?
They woke with the brilliant chatter of a thousand birds, the forest coming alive just as the sun began to rise.
Finding their clothes and emerging naked to dress, Cade winced at the cold mist that covered everything. It was nothing at all like living in the glade below them. Their peaceful home was more sheltered. Morning came later, the tall mountains blocking the sun’s progress, but it also didn’t allow such a dense covering of fog. He could see no more than twenty feet before him.
It was a sobering effect, and the two had their breeches and armor back in place in a matter of moments. Speaking also felt wrong, even given the myriad voices of the wildlife around them. There was an unspoken tension in the air that had Cade and Minda packing up their tent and moving on toward their destination in utter silence.
Bringing up his map, Cade saw they were a few miles away from the odd clearing they’d found on their first trip. Minda walked ahead of him, her limp gone and confidence returned. No doubt, she’d already checked her own internal map and had found a route that was suitable.
The dense foliage opened up as they traversed up the side of the mountain. The soil grew red with clay, and tall shoots of bristling bamboo shot up at odd angles. It was the same blood-red bamboo present when they had fought a pack of abyss cats before finding and founding Camp Casmeer. The reminder had Cade’s hackles up, and his eyes darted about, wary of any movement.
They stopped and ate quickly, not wanting to waste any more time for fear of having to remain away for another night. Satemi, Ketzal, and Bellows waited for their return. Should they be forced to stay one more night on this journey, Cade had no doubts that their fellows would mount a search party. That would be a logistical mess if nothing else, all of them bumbling about in a forest searching for one another.
Cade spotted a new species of edible plant growing up from the ground nearby. It had a stiff stalk that blossomed into a bright flower. Below were small clusters of berries.
Chinri Berries
Consumable Flora
Food Source
Cade plucked away the berries that felt plump and came free easily. But when he went to toss one in his mouth, Minda stopped him. “Don’t be a fool. Just because you can eat it, doesn’t mean you should. I know little of this plant and should like to study it. Who knows? It might cause gas or mild hallucination.”
Remembering their shared experience with the Lycani nectar, more than a mild hallucinogen if he were to describe it, Cade stored the berries in his Inventory and agreed to her caution.
Then they continued on their way. The day warmed quickly, this new terrain more exposed to the sun. By the time they had reached the clearing at the mountain’s crest, the day was sweltering, Cade’s clothing and leather armor clinging to his body.
The tracks were easy enough to find. Three long toes tipped in claws facing forward and a single, shorter toe behind, the tracks looked like those of a massive bird. Again, Cade thought of facing such a freakishly large avian and chills ran down his arms. Chickens are basically idiot dinosaurs that will peck each other to death if given a chance. How devious could one be if its feet are bigger than mine?
Minda scanned about their position, collecting a few stray plumes. Then she came close and whispered in his ear. “I think the tracks lead that way, into the stand of bamboo. I can’t be
certain though. Whatever this thing is, it has been all over the place.”
“Its lair must be nearby then. Nest? I don’t know, but let’s find it. Something this close to our camp we should at least know about.”
She agreed, and they walked toward the dense patch of fiery bamboo that covered half the mountain. It grew so close together they had to retrace their steps several times, trying to find a way into the foliage. At last, Minda came to a game trail winding through its midst, and their progress sped up once more. Yet as they neared, feathers and tracks showing up more frequently, Minda grew more cautious.
Silently, they crept through the bamboo forest until at last they came upon an area that had been cleared away, the stalks literally shorn off a few inches above the ground. It looked as if someone with a machete had done a day’s labor here, or someone with a beak.
At the end of the tiny clearing, sitting oddly on top of a nest of flattened bamboo, was indeed a nest. It was a mess of leaves, sticks, and even bones, all woven together by a twisted little mind. It was large enough for Cade to recline in. Every fiber in Cade’s body shouted for them to take off, sprint back the way they came. Though the bird beast wasn’t there, it would be soon. The proof of such a thought lay gleaming inside the nest: four massive eggs, each the size of a man’s head.
“Let’s store these in our Inventory and find a place to hide. When that thing comes back we can ambush it. I’d rather fight it here than get surprised by it in the future,” Minda said, and though his fear still called for him to do anything but consent to the plan, he agreed.
The bamboo was over fifty feet tall in all directions, some of the shoots as thick as Minda’s thighs. Yet they managed to shimmy up into the canopy, the lower branches of the bamboo weaving together and forming small platforms. Cade squatted on one, Minda on another, and they waited for their feathered friend to return.
Cade’s legs were numb, and his back ached, when an hour later, it returned.
It wasn’t the size of the avian beast that came padding up, its head darting forward with each step. No, it was the fact that somehow, for some terrifying and heartless reason, the creature had been crossed with a puma.
Its fur shone tan and golden in the sunlight, and two stubby and useless wings jutted from its body. Thick and powerful legs held it up, fur fading to scales about halfway up. Its face was the strangest of all. The eyes and ears of a mountain cat changed into a huge, hooked beak.
It wasn’t a very graceful chimera. Nothing at all like the noble gryphons Cade had seen in movies or read about in books. But its form was functional and deadly. Low to the ground, yet huge, Cade knew if he had to face the beast alone, he might not survive such an engagement.
Minda gave him a look. It was now or never, and the thought of retreat seemed hopeless. It sniffed the air and darted forward. Seeing its eggs were gone, the beast became frantic. It opened its mouth and bleated, a chirping yowl. Great, the bird-cat-thing sounds like a damn raptor. Well if that won’t top off my nightmare tank, I don’t know what will. Out of habit, Cade inspected it with his UVS.
Guinea Gryph
Level 5
Scavenger Fauna
Only a scavenger, huh? Well fuck me with a three-sided broom. At least we’ll have chicken tonight, he thought, and prepared himself for the attack. But as Cade unslung his axe, the beast jumped up on top of its nest and crowed again. The mother guinea gryph stretched up its paltry wings in despair, searching the bamboo thicket for any signs of its eggs.
Minda hopped down first, and Cade followed. It was a sad thing that they were about to kill a grieving parent, but this was Antinium. No holds barred.
Cade aimed his blast staff at the beast’s chest and waited for Minda to make the move. Before she could, a shadow fell from the sky, crushing their prey and smashing the carefully made nest.
The two sprang, shielding their eyes against the cloud of dust that flew out in all directions, then stared as a massive spider buried its mandibles into the gryph’s neck and stung it several times. Of course, the guinea gryph tried to fight back. It reared back and smashed the spider against the cane wall of the forest, a few of the long stalks cracking from the impact. It thrashed, trying with surprising strength to dislodge the creature, but in only a few moments, its movements grew sluggish.
A sound too close to weeping came from the gryph’s beak, a repeating caw as the animal bemoaned its impending death. The call made Cade’s stomach knot with guilt that they too had been intending to kill this thing. It wasn’t a threat, not at all. Perhaps if two idiots snuck into its nest and stole its eggs it might be, but had they left it alone, all might have been well.
The newcomer, however, was another matter entirely. It had the bulky frame of a tarantula, but four of its legs were long and thin. If stretched out, Cade thought they might be ten or twelve feet in length. The monster had twice his mass, and its core was surrounded by bristling hairs. The hair stood on end, thick at the base, appearing sharp enough to pierce flesh. That nasty bitch is getting no hugs today.
Scanning the deadly creature, Cade’s fear boner reared its ugly head. We. Are. Screwed.
Horde Spider Scout
Level 6
Predator Mega Fauna
Cade moved toward Minda with the intention of whispering in her ear that they had to get the hell out of there. His first step caused the spider to react, however, and it dropped the gryph’s body to the ground. The bird lion crashed to the ground, still breathing but largely paralyzed. Then the spider lifted up its front legs, swiveling side to side as if scanning them.
As he had done in the past, Cade began the fight with a Slug Shot to the head. The hardened ether bullet bit into the mass of eyes that clustered its head.
The ugly thing hissed at them and bounced to the side, using its longer legs to propel its bulky frame quickly. Then it jumped at Cade.
He attacked, swinging sideways with the hammer side of his weapon. Cade used Culling the Pack at the same time. His body crashed into the disturbingly large spider, weapon splintering one of its legs and smashing into the side of its thorax. And though his counter attack caused the spider’s intended bite to miss, the spine-packed body smashed into his chest.
Sure enough, the hairs were like foot-long needles, and when he tumbled to the ground, the spider’s mass far outmatching his own, he felt a few dozen of them burning in his ribs and sternum.
Minda ran to Cade’s side and cast her Leaf Storm skill. A mana-infused wind swept over the spider, pushing it back just long enough for them to regain their footing. Cade backed away, urging his mana battery to recharge. Another shot or two to the head and this thing might die. Though where to target its brain was a mystery.
No longer needing to remain quiet, and regaining his senses, Cade roared out an Alpha’s Call and triggered his Wyrm’s Wrath.
His body sang with the stacked buffs, power and vitality flushing his veins with hope.
He screamed at the spider to pull its attention away from Minda, and she used her grasping roots skill.
The spider’s long legs prevented the spell from truly entangling it, but one of its long, hind legs was caught in a root’s grasp and broken in two.
Cade didn’t hesitate. He lashed out with quick attacks, scoring hits on the spider’s legs and another to its thorax. His axe blade cut another leg in half, and even when the blade clanked off to less effect, a deep blue ichor sprang from the wound. Droplets spattered to the ground, and terrifyingly, burned the sandy soil.
The end of the battle was within sight. Just a few more minutes of harrying the great beast, removing its legs one at a time, and they would have victory. But of course, the spider had its own plans.
It shuddered horribly, and for a moment, Cade thought the loss of its fluids would prove enough to kill it then and there, but when a pale-blue light surrounded the spider’s core, he knew otherwise.
Anticipating an attack skill, Cade jumped back, waving Minda off as well. Yet as they watch
ed, the spider’s carapace splintered, chunks of the chitinous armor falling to the ground.
What emerged was an alarmingly healthy spider, smaller in form, but with new and unscathed legs.
When it skittered toward Cade, he knew they were in trouble.
Cade dropped a Double Tap into the spider’s eyes and blocked an incoming attack with the butt of his axe. Another of the long legs struck down after, though, its point aimed directly at Cade’s chest. He triggered Shroom Shield and caught the blow on his buckler. The skill reduced most of the force, but the bones in his arm still rung with pain.
Minda slashed a nearby leg with her dagger and retreated, trying to turn the beast’s attention away from Cade. Its focus was iron though. It knew Cade was the strongest in battle. Most of Minda’s skills related to enchanting plant life. The next time she leveled up, which hopefully would be soon, he would recommend she choose something with more teeth.
As it was, Cade was barely able to keep dodging, the smaller spider somehow faster than the last. To make matters worse, his Wyrm’s Wrath would deplete soon, leaving him stuck at normal speed.
Cade switched to his hammer, intent on crushing the spider’s head. If he could deliver a significant injury, they might still walk away with only a few injuries to show for their troubles. Yet try as he might, the spider scout moved away from his heavy weapon.
In a show of intelligence, the spider parried a side swipe, shoving Cade off balance. It struck with a long foreleg, the appendage sinking into his shoulder and pinning him to the ground. Then the beast lurched toward him, mouth opening wide to finish the kill. If it clamped down on him, the stinger would come next.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Minda run up the nest and vault in the air, a bamboo spear in her hand. He had no idea where she’d found the odd weapon, but as she landed on the spider’s back, the spear drove through its body and sunk into the ground.