Arriving back at my world involved a small amount of embarrassment. Since I was only bound to Alice, and could only return either with her, or through a portal, I had to go back to my apartment in South Florida. Eden and Promestein could of course just go back whenever they felt like it, and Promestein did, but Eden insisted on staying with me. I was sure that a goddess had better things to do than spend eight hours taking two train rides with me. Alice had been too busy to run this errand with me, understandably so. There were plans to make, monsters to contact, and telepathy wasn't working, which left teleportation. Still an incredibly fast way to travel, but only if one knew where to find the person they were looking for. Alma Elma had the greatest challenge in that regard. I wasn't sure if she'd found Granberia yet, but her last report said that she had been flying over the desert and had seen no sign of her. I wondered how her adventure with Sara was going. I was sure she must be dying of boredom. Well, she wouldn't be bored for much longer.
When we arrived back at my apartment, that's where the embarrassment kicked in. You see, the portal only opens from one direction, from the other world, Alice and Eden's world. Since it took the tiniest bit of magic to open it, even from my very stingy world, she could get it open, and even if she couldn't she could still get me back easily enough. Because of the bond, plus it was easy for her since she belongs in that world. So at this point I was standing in my apartment with Eden wondering what to do, since I couldn't contact anyone, nor open the portal myself.
Eden suggested we use the other method. The other method? Ohhhhh….. I wasn't sure how the rules worked. I was already bound to Alice as I was bound to Ilias before that. I didn't know what happened if I was bound to someone else. And although Alice had said I could have sex with someone else if it was for an important enough reason, I knew that Eden was a bridge too far.
Fortunately, I was bailed out by an unexpected savior. The portal in my living room opened and through it stepped Promestein. I did a quick, back of the envelope calculation. Four hours since Promestein left us means….A full day, perhaps day and a half? Being Promestein, she had of course anticipated my needs, doing the calculations much more precisely than I had. Although the idea of Eden and I having sex to get back amused Promestein greatly, she decided it was more important to deny Eden her fun. She didn't particularly hate Alice or me. But Eden and Promestein had a grudge that went back centuries, if not millennia.
I walked into my computer lab, which Promestein had already seemed to have claimed as her own. Well, a lot of it was her equipment, so why not, although I'd done a ton of upgrades.
"This is why I wanted access to your money," Promestein said, gesturing around the server room. "I had to beg, borrow, and steal all that obsolete equipment from your world. Look at how state of the art this stuff is! Why didn't I think of writing a book about my experiences?!"
It wasn't really state of the art. It was modern, but I was frugal and our operation didn't need the latest tech. Promestein's tech had been late 80s for the most part, mine was still about five to ten years out of date.
"So does that mean you'll have an easier time recreating the seal?" I asked hopefully.
"That's why I was so eager to get you back here," Promestein replied. "I need to properly set expectations. The seal is similar, but this is not the same situation. Not by a long shot."
Eden seemed interested in the conversation so remained in the room with us. She said, "You already made it quite clear that you weren't sure you could do it, yet the ever too kind Luka handed over some very expensive concessions to you anyway. I do hope that his expectations weren't much higher than my own."
"At least Luka will probably understand my explanations," Promestein snapped. "anyway, if you'll remember, I used a machine to hold the Monster Lord's body. I used a similar, less advanced machine to hold the Queen Ant. Here's the thing: the Dark God didn't use any machines at all. It was 100% magic."
"So where were their bodies kept? Where was Tamamo's real body all this time?" I asked.
"In subspace," Promestein replied. "if the bodies had been kept somewhere on this plane, they eventually would have been found and freed, or worse, destroyed. So it was in both the interests of Ilias and the Dark God alike that the seal be in subspace."
I remembered the concept of subspace from Star Trek. I wasn't sure how similar the concepts were. "So is subspace like a place where their bodies just floated around, aimlessly?"
"That's another thing," Promestein replied. "I'm not sure. We don't really know what subspace is. It's just what we call that place we go through when we teleport. It's also a source of magical power that leaks into this plane of existence. Most importantly, it's where your world and ours is connected. Whether you teleport from here to Sentora, or here to New York, you're doing it through subspace."
"So subspace isn't a place you can stop in? Or get stuck in?"
"Both are possible, but I wouldn't know how to do either," Promestein explained. "The Dark God supposedly Is the only being in the world who can go there at will and remain there as long as she wishes. Ideally, we'd want to seal them all right back in subspace. Only permanently. Doing it my way has critical limitations."
"And those would be?" Eden prompted.
"First off, you destroyed my machine," she answered. "I'd have to make a new one from scratch. It would take me months, and that's just one! We need six if we do it that way! That's not the only problem. I have no idea how long my machines work. The one that held the Queen Ant just abruptly crashed after about three years. We never planned on needing to hold the Monster Lord for even close to that long. I think it was a better machine, but it would have lasted maybe five years."
"And we don't need to hold the Dark God for ten years," Eden finished. "We need to hold her for thousands. Preferably forever. See, I do pay attention. I may have been lazy about reading when I was busy training and leading Ilias' armies, but as the goddess I take my different responsibilities just as seriously."
"Getting stabbed because you didn't read my reports probably helped motivate you as well," Promestein said smugly.
"Easy now," I said. "So all of that sounds on the level of the Manhattan Project. Only we need this much sooner. Is there any chance of getting it done?"
"I still can't tell you for sure, but I can tell you what the next step is," Promestein said. "Remember those mini transporters that enabled Tamamo to bring all those monsters directly into the heavens?'
"I don't think I've ever seen one of those devices," I said. "I never did ask precisely how she did it. She just said that it was your tech."
"Well, I hope you still have one, because I need one to take readings of subspace. I can teleport from place to place, and in the fraction of a second that I'm in subspace, I can get data that might enable me to design another device that can transport things or people directly into subspace. The good news is,I think I can make portable devices for that. Perhaps even repurpose those mini transporters, if you have enough of them."
"I'll ask Tamamo what happened to them," I said. "It's not in her nature to toss useful things away. I'm sure they are still here somewhere. So is the end result here a portable device that puts the seal on whoever we're targeting?"
"Copying the seal is easy," Promestein replied. "Making the seal so that the Dark God can't just break it is the hard part. That's where you come in."
"Me?" I asked. "What can I do?"
She pulled syringe out of her lab coat. "Remember how we took some of your special sauce? We used that to make the white rabbit formula. Ilias wanted dark magic and light magic so that she could become the ultimate being. Black Alice and I planned to do her one better. We wanted dark, light, and your magic to create the ultimate ultimate being."
"Ah, so that's why Black Alice stuck me," I said."So why do you need it again?"
"The Dark God knows dark magic better than any being in this world," Promestein replied. "If I just copy her seal with dark magic, it's not optimal. I'm sure it can seal the Ancestors, but she can just undo the seals with little effort. We can get around that by doing her first, but I don't imagine she'll make it easy and it might not even be possible. Remember, she sealed herself. We don't know if we could seal her with her own spell if she didn't want to be sealed. But if we use your power to create a slightly different seal, but one that does the same thing...."
"She knows nothing about it, so can't simply counter it or undo it," I finished.
"I can see why people like you," Promestein said, touching my nose. "Smart and sweet. Unlike the Dark God, or anyone ELSE in this room, I am the foremost expert on the scientific uses of your power. I did countless experiments. It's why Black Alice had to go assault you later even though we already had access to you in the volcano. We ran out of your candy."
"You know, Promestein, I'm starting to think this was a good idea," I said. "I'm going to see about getting you those mini teleporters. Can I ask you one last question before I go?"
"Shoot."
"Do you have a theory on why the seals were broken?"
"You don't know?" she asked, surprised.
"Should we?" Eden interjected.
"What event last year resulted in tons of dark magic being released?" Promestein asked.
"There was lots of dark magic released," I said. "But Black Alice was managing it."
"Until she was killed," Promestein observed. "Then all that dark magic she'd been managing suddenly got loose."
"Why didn't it break the seals right away?" Eden asked. "Why the gradual weakening?"
"Probably the white rabbit formula," Promestein mused. "Black Alice's death, and Ilias' as well, sent up a huge amount of mixed energies, dark magic, holy magic, and Luka's alien magic. The dilution effect probably caused the seals to start to degrade rather than just break."
"Thank you, Promestein, that was very informative. I'll get you what you need and leave you to your work."
Grand Noah was expected to be a highlight of their journey. Luka had always spoken of it as the highlight of his own, at least until Alma Elma went and ruined it. When Granberia had heard what Alma Elma had done here, she was livid. The person she was back then had no problem with Alma Elma defeating Luka in the colosseum and raping him in front of an audience. Luka had known what he was getting into. But to torture him, try to force him to reveal the "true" nature that Granberia already felt she knew by that point, was too much. She knew Alma Elma enough to know why she would think that about Luka, but there is a wide gulf between thinking something about a person and trying to bring it out through torture. Even if it was a hellishly pleasurable torture. Once again, she thought a little less of Alice because she had doubted Luka. Granberia had known early on that the boy was what he appeared to be. No one could pretend to be that naïve.
Alma Elma had received a thorough dressing down from both Granberia and Tamamo. She hadn't really needed it. Although she tried to play it off, she had been affected by the experience in much the same way Granberia was later affected by nearly killing Luka. Granberia knew she had been no better. She had merely hurt Luka in different ways. Alma Elma with pleasure, Granberia with pain. And yet somehow, Luka had grown to love Granberia anyway, while feeling a hate for Alma Elma that was in fact out of character for him and in fact did expose a bit of a dark side.
Grand Noah was probably the city in this world that had changed the least. Despite the fact that it had been initially overrun by the forces of heaven, despite the horrors in the colosseum that Luka's heroism had barely averted, despite the new world in which rape wasn't okay, the games still went on. The only concession to the new morality was that no one could technically be raped. The victor had to get permission first. Most males chose to give that permission, so the entertainment was still the same, and the women still loved to watch it.
It wasn't all bad, however. Inspired by Luka's example, by his dubious victory at the Queen's Cup Tournament, more real human warriors had chosen to participate for the joy of competition, rather than to get their rocks off. Of course, they still lost to monsters nine times out of ten, and no human had yet won a single tournament. Granberia hoped to change that. She wanted Sara to compete. It's true that Sara had monster blood, but she was still mostly human. Many humans had monster blood and didn't know it.
"Do you really think I can win?" Sara asked eagerly.
"That would depend on the competition," Granberia replied honestly. Although she was growing to love Sara, she was not the type to sugarcoat the realities of combat. Granberia had no idea who was in the latest tournament. It could be a cakewalk for Sara, or she could get flattened in ten seconds. "Alma Elma often competes here. You would not stand a chance against her. If she is not competing, and there are no other particularly powerful monsters here, then you should give a good account of yourself. That is all I expect. Do your best. There is no dishonor in losing, only in failing to give it your all."
"Granberia, why don't you compete, too?" Sara asked.
"I do not fight for the entertainment of an audience," Granberia replied. "More importantly, if I participate, you cannot win."
"It would still be fun!" Sara teased. "you can defeat me and then take me in front of the audience."
"I do not make love for an audience, either," Granberia said coldly. Well, that was true only as far as it went. She did not make love, per se, but she had often humiliated men in front of their peers after defeating them if she felt them arrogant or if they'd attacked her with intent to do harm. There was no reason to do that in a gladiatorial competition, however.
"Fine! You don't have to ravish me! But please, enter! For me! Not just for me, but for them! You're a war hero! Do you know how much of a thrill it would be for them to see you in action? You've never appeared here! It would make them so happy!"
Granberia had constantly maintained that she would never, ever, compete in the colosseum. Alma Elma had wanted her to do so for years. The truth was, the queen succubus was the biggest reason she didn't want to compete. She thought of telepathically calling to Alma Elma to find out if she was competing. She rejected the thought. She'd probably say no and then enter late, entrapping Granberia and forcing her to walk away from a fight, which would have been disgraceful.
"Very well," Granberia said reluctantly. "Just this once. For you, and for the people. We are on vacation, after all. A vacation is a time to try things one normally wouldn't try."
Sara rushed to hug Granberia. "Thank you! It'll be so much fun, you'll see!"
So much for a human winner. At least it wasn't the Queen's Cup tournament. It was just a small, weekly tournament, one that usually didn't even draw the best fighters, instead mainly involving local fighters, or warriors just passing through, like herself and Sara. And Granberia did long to swing her sword. Perhaps a little meal wouldn't hurt either, should a human opponent be willing. She hadn't eaten since Edgar.
Since it was a weekly tournament, getting in was easy. Luka had required a special concession to get a position in the Queen's Cup tournament. Alma Elma had also entered late, but as a top draw, there was never any question of keeping her out. Granberia had never gotten a straight answer as to whether Alma Elma had known Luka was in the tournament. She strongly believed that the succubus had to have known. Her assault on him had been too well planned.
Since it was a small tournament, it involved only eight combatants, all fighting in one day, like one of the original UFC tournaments. Granberia loved to watch mixed martial arts, especially the UFC. The downside to those events had been the constant injuries ruining the tournaments. The humans of that world were strong, but apparently rather fragile when subjected to each others' beatings. Monsters, by contrast, were tough enough to batter each other for long periods of time and still have plenty of fight left in them.
Sara was in an opposite bracket, which Granberia preferred, since it would at least enable Sara to get to the championship round. She had her first fight before Granberia. Granberia was annoyed when she was told that she couldn't watch, even more annoyed when she was told that her enchanted sword wasn't allowed. She cursed her stupidity. Luka had run into the same problem, and thus had to go in unarmed on the first day. Granberia gave the idea some thought, before noticing an extremely cheap training sword hanging on the wall. She decided to borrow it.
Sara came into the waiting room ecstastic. She had won her first round battle! It had been merely a human opponent, but human men weren't used to being bested by human women, so the crowd of mostly women had deeply appreciated her valor. A couple of more fights followed. Granberia was not allowed to watch, but she heard the aftermath of one of the battles, judging by the cheers of the women and the "Rape! Rape! Rape!" chants. The postfight festivities tended to last much longer than the actual fights.
Finally, Granberia entered the colosseum for her first contest. She carried the training sword, but decided she would go hand to hand if it was more advantageous. She had really grown to enjoy unarmed combat, although the sword would always be her first love.
Coming out from the opposite waiting room was a small man, as small as the pictures in the former San Ilia had portrayed Luka to be. The man was young, although clearly an adult, just small of stature. She hoped this wasn't just a little pervert trying to get himself raped. If he wanted that from her, he would have to earn the privilege. She'd heard that before Luka, some male contestants would enter already naked. At least he looked like he was here to fight, wearing light leather armor and carrying a short sword.
He bowed to Granberia and assumed a ready position. Granberia acknowledged him and did the same. "A dragonkin?" he said. "I've always wanted to slay a dragon like a true hero."
"These fights are not to the death!" Granberia said.
"You get the idea," he responded. "Just talking trash, that's all."
The whistle sounded and their swords clashed. The man was fast, perhaps the fastest human she had ever seen who wasn't powered by elements. His technique was strange, but sound. It was giving Granberia some problems. She decided it best to focus on defense until she could feel him out a little more. While she had little doubt that she was far above him, she had no desire to underestimate him and make a critical mistake that would get her humiliated in front of a large crowd.
After an inconclusive exchange in which neither had hit the other or given much ground, she paused. "Where did you learn to fight like that? I have never seen that style."
"I am a member of the assassins' guild," he said.
"That's legal here?"
"We only play at being assassins," he said sheepishly. "But the combat skills we learn are very real."
"I can see that," Granberia responded. "This is an unexpected treat for me. Come, show me everything you have!"
"I will crush you, monster!" he shouted, flinging himself at her. He was skilled, but also an annoying little shit. If he trash talked her one more time….
A few more exchanges of swordplay followed, but she had taken his measure and was landing blows. Since she was only using a training sword, they hurt more than they did actual damage. She would probably have to finish this another way, and soon. His sword was for fighting, and although she was sure he was skilled enough to defeat her without killing her, she had no desire to suffer an injury.
Then he really took her by surprise, landing a flying kick to her knee that hurt like hell and caused her to fall. He tried to strike several blows while she was down, but she parried them all. He stopped and looked down at her. "Surrender, foul beast!"
Foul beast? Granberia didn't take it too personally. He was fooling around, a young man having a lot of fun in nonlethal combat. He seemed to almost consider it play. She guessed that maybe it was. It was a sporting event, after all. Still, it was annoying. With a roar almost befitting a full dragon, she rose up and tackled him. His sword shamefully flew out of his hands. He may have been skilled at swinging it, but to lose it so easily? He had much to learn. One lesson she planned to teach him was humility.
Since he was no longer armed, she dropped her own sword and put her elbow on his neck, partially cutting off his air flow. He gasped and struggled before signaling his surrender. She switched to get behind him and propped him up in a sitting position. When she was declared the winner, the chants began and the floodlights came on. "Rape! Rape! Rape!"
Granberia bent and whispered in his ear. "Do you hear them? They want to see you humiliated. Would you like to be humiliated?" She was a loyal servant of the Monster Lord. She would not violate the law. But if he let her, she was going to bring back a little of the old Granberia.
He trembled at her sweet breath and the hotness of it in his ear. He nodded his assent quickly. His erection was already threatening to poke a hole in his shorts. With one hand, she tore his shorts off. The crowd cheered. She slowly put her hand around his shaft and squeezed. He gasped at the softness of it. Her hand was so silky and soft she didn't need any lubrication as she slid it up and down. He came quickly, in less than a minute.
"You pathetic little man," she whispered, making him shiver in ecstasy even more. "Letting all that out from just my hand! Let's see if we can get more."
The crowd roared as she made him shoot out stream after stream of semen onto the ground. She wasn't sure when he passed out, but after five ejaculations, he was clearly unconscious. A stretcher carried him out as the crowd gave her a standing ovation. She basked in their approval. Maybe this was worth doing, she thought as she licked semen off her hand.
Sara was defeated in her second fight. She'd drawn a dullahan and been completely outclassed in swordsmanship. Dullahans were renowned for their skills. Granberia felt that a dullahan in the finals with her would be a very good workout. Her own second match had not been all that interesting. It had been a minotaurus. She could match, even exceed, Granberia in power, but was just too slow. Granberia defeated her in less than a minute. She was on to the finals.
As she prepared for the championship match, the dullahan entered the dressing room. She had been defeated. How disappointing, Granberia thought. Unless the one who defeated her was particularly strong. She froze. Could it be? It was cheating to ask about the opponent, but she had to know. The penalty for cheating was disqualification. She intended to withdraw anyway if it was Alma Elma.
"Excuse me, dullahan warrior," she called.
The dullahan turned towards her, holding her head in the crook of her arm. "Oh! Aren't you the Heavenly Knight, Granberia?"
"I am," Granberia replied.
"I hear that you are good friends with the hero Luka!" the dullahan replied excitedly. "I fought him in the Queen's cup! He defeated me! Without even using a weapon!"
"He defeated me that way as well," Granberia replied. "His grappling skills are incredible."
"He is also an honorable opponent," the dullahan added.
"By any chance, was the one who defeated you a succubus?"
"I can't talk about it because of the rules," the dullahan said. "But just between you and me, it's not. It's a completely new entrant. I've never quite seen a monster like her before. I've bent the rules enough. I cannot tell you more."
"That is more than enough, friend," Granberia replied. "As long as it is not a succubus, I have no worries."
"I know! That Kyuba! Impossible to even touch! But she can sure touch you! And that touch! Oh my!"
Granberia was well aware, but had no desire to talk about it. Sara had left the dressing room earlier to watch from the stands, since she was no longer in the tournament. An unknown monster that could best a dullahan? This might be a championship match that was worthy of her!
Tamamo assured me that she knew exactly where the devices Promestein had requested were. She would get her a whole box full of them to use. I still couldn't get over Tamamo's true appearance. I'd thought I'd gotten used to hanging around beautiful women thanks to this world, but it was easy to see why men had sold their souls to her. I hoped her effect on me would wear off soon. I'd gotten used to Eden's extraordinary beauty. Mostly, anyway.
Eden had decided to remain in the server room with Promestein to chat. This seemed in character for Eden. If she was going to pardon Promestein, then she would try to bury the hatchet. Promestein seemed to be warming up as well, so excited was she about the work she was doing.
As I walked the halls trying to decide what I should do next, as I seemed to have no task to perform, Salamander appeared in front of me.
"I've been continuing the classes even with you not there," she reported. "Those two are showing remarkable improvement. I've also taken the liberty of informing Gabriella of the reasons for your absence. Alice had neglected to inform her. Understandable, given the circumstances."
"Thank you for that," I said. "I don't really have much to do right now, so if you're holding a class, I guess I should come."
"I'm glad to hear that!" Salamander replied. "In fact, class is about to start right now! Since you called me back into your heart a couple of days ago, I've been able to keep track of you better. This class is going to be a little different. No exercises. The time for that has passed. It's time to remind you who you really are."
As we entered the training room, Nanabi and Cindy were already sparring, with swords, which surprised me.
"Ah, yes, I started them on sword lessons just yesterday," Salamander said proudly. "They needed a change of pace since their sparring sessions with their natural assets were getting repetitive."
They stopped and greeted me. "Hi, Luka! We've been missing you!" Cindy said.
"We heard what was going on," Nanabi added. "We've been training even harder so that we can be ready if it comes to a fight."
"And doing a great job of it!" Salamander exclaimed. "Luka, you in particular will be happy to know that they are practically sisters now."
"Nanabi's teaching me how to help her groom!" Cindy said excitedly. "And since I don't have an easy place to go wash my shell, she hoses it down for me and scrubs it!"
"Now that we've made Luka thoroughly happy," Salamander said. "It's time to really get serious. Nanabi, Cindy, you will both be facing Luka at the same time."
"Both of us?" Nanabi asked. "But he still loses to us more often than he wins. How is he supposed to beat both of us? He's not going to be allowed to use that magic, is he? That magic is scary. I don't want any part of that even if I can use my own."
"No, not magic at all," Salamander said. "But it won't really be a two against one fight. You two are actually the ones outnumbered. So just to make things more interesting…. Gabriella! Yao! Chrome! Come on in!"
The lamia, the kitsune, and the…. I wasn't sure what Chrome was, entered the room. Was I supposed to take on all five of them? I felt I knew what Salamander had in mind, but five opponents was still a tall order!
"This fight will be no holds barred, except for lethal spells or moves. Luka, you won't even use a sword. All magic, all elements, all pleasure attacks, are legal, except for your special power, Luka."
"Even my necromantic spells?" Chrome asked hopefully.
"Especially your necromantic spells," Salamander replied. "Our enemy is likely to wield very powerful necromancy."
The five of them surrounded me. "Now, Luka, call the spirits," Salamander ordered. "It's time to ride with you again."
My contract allowed the spirits to instantly come to me no matter where they were, at least as long as I called them in this world.
"Come Sylph!"
"Yay!" she exulted, as she entered my heart, the feeling of a gale spreading through my body. "We get to play again!"
"Come Gnome!"
Gnome was silent as usual, but I felt the added strength and protection immediately.
"Come Undine!"
"It's good to be with you again, Luka," Undine said. "I heard you had some fun with Erubetie a few weeks back."
"Come Salamander!"
Salamander dramatically and joyfully leaped into my chest to join her fellow spirits. She stopped long enough to poke her head out. "The fight begins now!"
I immediately entered the flow and saw the attacks that were poised to target me. Even in the flow, dodging a combined fifteen fox tails, not to mention Cindy's charges, Gabriella's tail, and Chrome's spells was too much to ask at my level of mastery. I was even more concerned that I couldn't even see any attack from Chrome in the flow. Was she waiting, or were her necromantic spells impossible to see in the flow?
Since Yao possessed the most numerous dangerous attacks I chose a position where I could avoid everyone else but allowed hers to hit me. With Gnome's help, they would do almost no damage. Everyone who was able to attack me missed except for Yao, as planned. Also as planned, the tails' impact were mostly ineffectual, only lightly stinging me. With Sylph's aid, I moved around her at lightning speed, trying something I'd seen on a cartoon as a kid. I was going to tie her tails together. I got five of the eight tangled up in an ugly mess before she could even react. She responded by doing something that could not be seen in the flow, and which I should have remembered that she could do. She used my own earth power against me. I sprawled flat on the ground, unable to move. But this time, Gnome knew how to release her power in a second. Yao was too tied up, so to speak, to effectively follow up, but she had allies, and Cindy was the most eager to exploit my temporary setback. She moved over me with her giant shell and sought to grab my arms and pin me. With Gnome temporarily out, there was no chance to get out from under her once she got me pinned. Even with Gnome I had never done it before. Sylph was the spirit to get me out of that predicament. I rolled under Cindy and repeated the move Salamander had done, kicking her in the backside, catching her legs while they were still in the air, and flipping her over. Salamander's power of fire had enhanced my power sufficiently to pull the move off.
Gnome came back only five seconds after she had shut her power off, which was good, because Chrome's magic indeed did not show through the flow. I exited the flow and saw the dark magic more clearly. With Sylph still providing the gale, I dodged most of them and Gnome prevented the others from causing damage. Nanabi was right behind me, however. I was too close to her for her to quickly use her tails, so she did something unusual. She tried to wrap me up with her arms and suckle on my ear as a pleasure attack. Even without Gnome she wouldn't have had the strength to hold me that way. But I decided not to simply break the hold. Instead, I flipped out of it, getting behind her and grabbing her legs, turning her over to her side. From there, I dragged her over to where Yao still struggled, and tied some of Nanabi's tales to Yao's.
That left the two most powerful magic wielders. Gabriella had been biding her time, waiting for an opening so as not to injure her allies. She was not combat experienced, so I'd known that she would not likely emerge as a real threat until the field cleared a bit. With three opponents prone on the ground and me standing straight up, she cut loose with bolts of dark magic of her own, and they seemed much faster and more dangerous than what Chrome had been firing at me. Chrome was continuing her assault, while moving and evading quite well. She had some pretty good speed of her own, especially in an open area where she had room to maneuver. She was not the spirit of wind, however. I picked her little form up and tossed her onto the pile. She was unhurt, but didn't seem too eager to rejoin the fight.
I faced Gabriella alone. She feinted with a spell, then wrapped me in her tail. She was as innovative as her niece, if not nearly as powerful, because she tied her tail in a knot to make sure I could not break out even with Gnome. I feared struggling too hard lest I break her tail. I wasn't sure this was fair of her.
"I've never partaken of a man before, but now that I have you wrapped up, perhaps I should make you my first," Gabriella said. "I have to confess, I've always been curious to find out how freshly squeezed semen tastes."
She seemed way too smart to talk rather than do, so she must have been up to something. She wasn't kidding about the pleasure attack, however, as she put her hand down my pants and began to play with me. I noticed her tail loosening even though I hadn't really started struggling yet. In fact, she'd untied her tail knot. She was definitely setting me up for a trap. She intended for me to break out. I let her pleasure me with her hand for a bit longer to see if she might get impatient. She did not. If she won this way, she'd be happy to take the win.
"I see you like that," she purred. "Don't tell me that just this is all it takes to make you submit? I'd been told you were stronger than this. You've experienced the hellish pleasures of succubi, and the incredible skills of my niece. I've never even used my hand on a man before. This can't be so great."
It was actually quite impressive, but she was right. I wasn't in danger of critical ecstasy yet. I could have let her go on at least a few more minutes. I was looking to try and figure out what the trap was. So I got impatient for once. Even though I had another few minutes in which I could endure her hand, I worked my way out of her tail hold, but as I escaped I tripped and fell backwards. The trap sprung. A cage appeared in midair and dropped onto me. Or at least where I would have been, had Sylph not been available to me.
Gabriella cursed as I grabbed her and added her to the monster pile, tying her tail around Chrome, Yao, and Nanabi. Cindy was off to the side, still struggling to right herself.
"That's it!" Salamander exulted. "It wasn't perfect, but add Angel Halo and your magic into the mix and you should be the most powerful being in the world! Cute way to win, too! Now go get everyone untangled and help Cindy up!"