[Initiation]
— Tammi Herren, Rune —
“Stand ready. The convoy is close. Wait for my signal.”
The readiness call came over the radio, through the earpiece Rune had in. Krieg had command at the moment. The bastard. He thought himself so high and mighty, so above the rest of them, just because he had contacts and connections in the old world.
It was fucking bullshit by Rune’s estimation. But she couldn’t deny that he was competent and committed to the cause. His interpretation of it, at least.
They were waiting for him to kick things off. Rune, along with Othala, Cricket, Stormtiger, and Alabaster, was lying in wait. Victor had overwatch with his stolen sniping skills, positioned on a distant rooftop with clear sightlines of the coming killzone.
Krieg, of course, took the leading role in the mission for himself.
“It’s what’s best for the mission, for the cause,” He’d said to justify his glory-seeking. “The heroes should know who they face. Other than Hookwolf or Kaiser himself, I’m the most immediately recognizable. Best suited for the vanguard at the moment.”
Bullshit. More of his bullshit. As if the heroes wouldn’t know each and every E88 cape by sight. Krieg just wanted to make himself as blatantly useful to Kaiser as possible.
He wanted the glory for this mission. He wanted the glory of rescuing Hookwolf from oppressive PRT hands. But Rune knew it wasn’t entirely selfish for him.
The Empire had politics at play, just like any other large organization. Some of those internal issues concerned ideology and how to best act on it, like Purity’s recent breakaway faction.
She was trying a more ‘heroic’ interpretation of the cause, or so she proclaimed. Rune knew half of her reasoning came down to personal disputes with Kaiser, though. Aster was adorable, and Rune supposed she could understand Purity’s motherly desire to distance the newborn from Kaiser’s influence.
Her own parents had tried the same, breaking free from the wider Herren Clan so she would have the chance to live outside it… Rune had ruined their effort there, thinking she knew better when she was just a few years younger and dumber.
She was the reason they’d had to come running back. That thought always stung. Fuck! They shouldn’t have run in the first place! Cowards! But… they’d still come back when she needed them. Fuck…
Other internal issues within the Empire cared only for strength. Strength was what allowed Purity to break away. Strength, both direct and indirect, was what solidified Kaiser’s rule. Strength was what made them all valuable — better than their unpowered lessers.
With strength, the Empire’s soldiers fell in line. With strength, they carved their place in the Bay. With strength, they earned connections and allies. With strength, the Empire could be as long-lasting and dominant as it was.
It was might that made right; the Empire was best served by that philosophy in Rune’s mind.
There, Kaiser might’ve been the emperor… but Hookwolf was king.
He was objectively the Empire’s strongest cape and best fighter, having gone toe to toe with Lung on several occasions. He knew how to use that strength, too. It won him respect and influence all throughout the E88.
Krieg may have been Kaiser’s chosen number two, but more of the Empire’s soldiers and capes looked to Hookwolf first. Only Kaiser was higher on the scale of strength, and only then because Kaiser cared for more kinds of strength than just his overpowering arm.
Now, with Hookwolf captured and in need of rescue, Krieg was looking to make a point. He would be the one to free Hookwolf, proving his strength and diminishing Hookwolf’s.
That was why he really took the lead. That was why he was making sure he’d be the first one seen. That was his play to make sure those who looked to Hookwolf knew their place in the Empire’s order.
‘What an underhanded shitstain,’ Rune sneered to herself.
Krieg was currently waiting on street level, while Rune was keeping the others hidden nearby. They were hovering out of sight in one of the big dumpsters Rune kept prepared and cleaned for use with her power.
That was essentially her sole purpose in the Empire: transportation. Bullshit. She could’ve done more, so much more. Not many capes could happily deal with a few tons of material telekinetically thrown their way.
She could’ve been knocking Armsmaster on his heroic ass, or smashing Assault and Battery into mush, or shielding her allies from Miss Militia’s firepower if the shit-skinned soldier cape finally decided to get fucking serious.
But instead of the versatile blasting Striker she could be, she was relegated to a pseudo-Mover role. Transportation in significant numbers was simply too potent to sacrifice for an organization with as many capes as the Empire.
That and her age kept her on the backlines of the Empire’s cape fights. She was the way in and the way out, but rarely anything more. Bullshit.
She was strong; she just needed the chance to prove it. When that chance came, Rune had long-since promised she would take it, no matter the cost. She would make the world remember her name.
“Velocity just sped past,” Victor called out over comms. “Didn’t notice anything. You’re clear, Krieg.”
Rune could practically see the plan playing out in her mind’s eye. The Empire had people sympathetic to the cause within the PRT. They’d tipped them off to the PRT’s plan to transport Hookwolf out of the Bay after the chaos that had been the ABB had settled enough to allow it.
The transport would take place in a guarded convoy destined for Boston. There, Dragon would pick him up and take him the rest of the way to the Birdcage on one of her regularly scheduled runs.
The silver lining was that the PRT didn’t have the resources to attempt the transport by air. It’d be quicker, but their only flyer capable of guarding it would’ve been Dauntless. With Purity and Rune herself on the other side, the PRT couldn’t take the chance. Without the objectively better option available to them, the PRT could only try their best to power through.
The Empire only had one chance if they wanted to keep Hookwolf in play. Here and now, as the PRT’s convoy reached city limits. The PRT knew that, and had pulled out all the stops to guard Hookwolf’s transport.
Armored PRT vans filled with troopers and mounting containment foam sprayers. Velocity scouting ahead to ensure the path was clear. Armsmaster riding vanguard, Miss Militia taking up the rear, and Assault sitting in the transport carrying Hookwolf.
The last was actually the most daunting for their breakout attempt, according to Krieg. Assault, once known as Madcap, who’d run Birdcage transport breakouts for a living. If anyone knew the tricks of the trade, it was him.
It was just about the most the PRT could spare with aftershocks from the ABB’s shattering still rippling through the city, and it still played right into the Empire’s best hand.
Both sides knew a cape fight was coming. Heroes vs. Villains. PRT vs. Empire, the only two groups truly in the running for control of the Bay. It was just like the good old days of… a few weeks ago. Before the Dragon changed everything.
But Ancalagon the Fucking Awesome wasn’t here to interfere. Rune didn’t know if the [IMPOSSIBLE] legend actually cared, even if it was his elven bitch who put Hookwolf into PRT custody.
He’d stopped the Empire from (rightfully) expanding into the power vacuum caused by Lung’s death, but he hadn’t gone after them with any real determination. The Empire had eyes on his tower to see if he started moving any time soon. But Rune had a hunch that, contrary to Krieg’s paranoia, Ancalagon really just… didn’t care.
Everything about the Dragon said as much, said that he was concerned with bigger, better, and fundamentally different things.
He was a Dragon, after all. A real one, unlike Lung — rest in piss. And he’d made it blatantly clear — at least to Rune — that he wasn’t here to play by any of the accepted rules.
THAT was strength… The power to say ‘fuck you all’ and flip the fucking board. The unquestionable audacity to go on and on about magic… and be fucking believed. The unflappable, unflinching, un-fuck-with-able might to change the world as everyone thought they knew it.
Ancalagon the Fucking Awesome was everything she-…
“It’s time, girl. Get out of your head,” Stormtiger growled, interrupting Rune’s train of thought.
Cricket rasped a chuckle through her damaged throat, “Let’s go free the boss. He’ll know who we should be fighting in all this.”
Alabaster just replied with a manic giggle, the high pitch of it eerie on his muscled frame. He did it on purpose, Rune knew, just to fuck with people. He was a mad fucking cunt who liked to play into his madness.
Othala shied away from Alabaster; Rune took a step in front of her oldest friend in the Empire to snap at him, “Watch it, Albino. I’ll drop you right fucking here and make you walk to the fight.”
It was a somewhat meaningless threat considering his power, but Stormtiger seemed to like the idea of it.
He laughed and shared a look with Cricket. They moved before Alabaster could react, picking him up and dumping him over the side of Rune’s hovering dumpster.
The mad cunt giggled all the way down, enjoying the fall and even the splat when he hit from three stories up. Four seconds later, he jumped back to his feet in perfect condition and started sprinting for the fight that was about to start.
“Fuck ‘im,” Stormtiger said. “He’s Krieg’s man through and through, meant to keep his mad eyes on us. Take us in, Rune, and be ready to get the boss out.”
Rune nodded. She didn’t feel anything for Alabaster’s enthusiastic date with the ground, but Othala looked a bit green. Fucker. He had it coming for upsetting her.
Rune knew Stormtiger and Cricket didn’t much care for Othala’s feelings. Alabaster looking to Krieg before Hookwolf for leadership was enough for them to fuck with him.
They weren’t dumb to the fact that Krieg was playing politics with Hookwolf’s rescue. With Alabaster gone, everyone Rune was carrying looked to Hookwolf first, even Othala through Victor.
They’d play along with Krieg’s plan, but it was wordlessly agreed that the boss would end up in Rune’s hands in the end.
Rune maneuvered the dumpster up and over the building they were hidden behind. As she did, Krieg had already stepped out into the middle of the road in front of the convoy. Armsmaster immediately sent his bike into a charge, halberd lowered like a lance.
As Rune got the rest of the ambush into position, she wondered what that was about. Armsmater was usually smarter than that. He had to know Krieg’s power was especially suited to stopping fast-moving objects in their tracks.
Krieg’s power found purchase on Armsmaster’s bike for just a moment before something shot out the front. Not something solid that Krieg would have been able to stop just as easily, but a liquid that coated the area around Krieg.
Armsmaster turned his bike sideways and let it slide. He leaped off as his bike turned into a makeshift projectile, anchored himself in the slick liquid, and tried to pin Krieg with a barrage of lasers from his halberd.
Krieg slowed the sliding bike just enough to step on top of it as lasers burned into his costume’s armor. He turned the makeshift projectile into a makeshift steed, keeping it moving erratically on the seemingly frictionless liquid.
The rest of the convoy tried to rush through, but their potential roadblock wasn’t as incapacitated as they were likely expecting. The armored PRT vehicles slowed to a crawl as they entered Krieg’s range. The containment foam sprayers on the vans opened up, working in tandem with Armsmaster to hem Krieg in. Troopers began to pile out of each and take up tactical positions at the edges of the fight.
By then, Rune had her dumpster in position. Stormtiger and Cricket leaped off into the fray, aiming for the main transport. Rune kept herself and Othala just out of the fight, waiting for her opportunity.
Miss Militia tried skeet-shooting Stormtiger and Cricket out of the air. A warning shot from Victor’s sniper made her duck for cover behind her own bike. Alabaster rushed in behind her a moment later, and for once, Miss Militia was free to go as lethal as Rune knew she could be.
A quick shift of her power. Her weapon became an automatic shotgun. Miss Militia pulled the trigger and held it. Four rapid-fire buckshot rounds opened up Alabaster’s chest like a bloody blooming flower.
Miss Militia used the guaranteed four-second respite to make distance, but another long-range shot from Victor kept her from regrouping around the stopped main transport. Then, Alabaster was up and rushing her again, dual-wielding pistols to keep Miss Militia honest.
His shots were wild. Mad. They kept Miss Militia ducking, but she was completely cool under the manic fire. Shifting her weapon again, she dropped him with sharpshooter precision, a single AR round to the head.
He went from a full sprint to skidding along the pavement on his face. Rune couldn’t help but take some pleasure in seeing the mad cunt taken down so hard.
But Alabaster was doing what he did best: being a delaying nuisance that Miss Militia couldn’t take her eyes off for more than four seconds. During those four-second breaks, Victor’s sniping kept her from slowly but steadily working her way into the rest of the fight.
Meanwhile, Stormtiger and Cricket were tearing their way into the transport carrying Hookwolf… and Assault. The latter drop-kicked Cricket as soon as Stormtiger carved the transport’s back door open.
Her powered reflexes were quick enough to brace herself, but she couldn’t dodge the superspeed kick. She went flying, twisting herself in the air to come down on her feet and rush back at the transport.
Stormtiger laid into Assault with his claws of air. Even dodging, Assault did all he could to stay in place, to keep guarding the convoy’s valuable cargo.
He bounced about inside the transport, manipulating his momentum to and fro. Behind him, Hookwolf was immobilized in hardened containment foam. The Empire had a way to deal with that confinement. But they had to get Hookwolf out of the action first.
That was Rune’s job. She watched the fight play out. She waited for her moment, Othala at her side.
Victor and Alabaster kept Miss Militia pinned. Krieg kept Armsmaster and the troopers busy. Velocity came racing back toward the now-stopped convoy, but couldn’t find a good opening to help Armsmaster.
Stormtiger and Cricket worked hard to dislodge Assault from his defensive position within the main transport. Stormtiger ripped apart the interior while Cricket engaged Assault with her blades. He was hard-pressed to keep up with the two-fronted assault in such limited space.
Eventually, Cricket got in a cut that pierced the armor of Assault’s costume. As he flinched from the pain, Stormtiger threw him aside with a rushing wall of air.
Rune sent herself diving in the moment Assault was clear. The runes drawn on her costume carried her, sturdy linen in a telekinetic grasp bearing the weight.
She couldn’t quite fly with just her costume, but she could certainly fall with style.
The fight against Assault had turned. He was now the one trying to get into the transport, while Stormtiger and Cricket were guarding it to ensure Rune had room and time to work. Like a diving falcon, she slipped into the transport around Stormtiger’s imposing defense.
In the back of her mind, Rune called her dumpster down to the ground. She’d have to drop it from her control for a few moments, and she didn’t want Othala getting hurt because of that.
Within the transport, Hookwolf was completely covered in a man-shaped containment foam cocoon. Not even his head was exposed; containment foam could be breathed through, even if that process couldn’t be pleasant.
Rune set to work immediately, entrusting her back to Stormtiger and Cricket. She drew one of her runes on the hardened foam cocoon. Her power was Manton-limited, but foam wasn’t flesh. It took valuable seconds to attune her power to the cocoon.
In those seconds, Assault rushed the transport again, more like a bouncing rubber ball than a man. He out-juked Cricket, despite her enhanced reflexes. He slipped past Stormtiger’s airy defense, getting a wicked gash along his side for the trouble.
Rune finished her attunement just as he reached her. Assault bounced himself into her and bounced her off him. She flew into a wall of the transport. It drove the air from her lungs and would undoubtedly leave a gnarly bruise all down her back. But Rune had her weapon.
Hookwolf’s cocoon slammed into Assault. The counter sent him flying right back into Stormtiger’s tender mercies.
Rune pushed through the bruising pain, gasping to get breath back in her chest. She let Hookwolf’s cocoon lead her way out. It stopped rubber bullets from Miss Militia as Rune exited the transport behind it. Then, the soldier cape had to focus back on Alabaster, and Rune’s escape was free.
She leaped back into her dumpster. She pulled Othala with her as she ducked down for cover from the sides. Hookwolf’s cocoon was laid down flat in the space that remained. Rune dropped her connection there and hurried to reestablish it to her dumpster.
“You’ve got it, Rune,” Othala softly, kindly encouraged.
She did, thankfully. Long seconds that seemed to hang with tension later, she had the dumpster under control and raised it into the air. She didn’t hesitate, didn’t wait for the others, quickly getting herself, Othala, and the boss out of dodge.
They flew away victorious, their mission completed. Rune ripped out her earpiece as soon as they were clear. Fuck Krieg and whatever orders he might have for her.
Othala pulled out a small, painstakingly sourced vial of containment foam solvent and began to apply it to Hookwolf’s cocoon.
The foam dissolved. Hookwolf emerged coughing and swearing, “CUNTS! Fucking cunts! I’ll tear every last one of those PRT fuckers limb from fucking limb!”
“Easy, boss,” Rune said. “You’re out. You’re clear.”
“Fuck…” Hookwolf exhaled heavily. “Fuck, what’d I miss?”
“Uhm…” Othala hesitated. “Kinda a lot…?”
“Lung is dead,” Rune told him.
That brought Hookwolf up short, falling still and silent and shocked, “… He’s what?”
“Dead, boss,” Rune repeated. “Everyone’s seen the video. The Dragon’s Daughter killed and cremated him.”
“Heh, dragon on dragon viole-…” Hookwolf started to chuckle to himself before pausing in confusion. “Wait, what the fuck are you talking about? Dragon’s Daughter? Who the-?”
“Othala?” Rune asked. “Can you pull up the video? And boss? You might want to see this for yourself.”
She helped him stand. She didn’t have to do much more. Hookwolf’s attention naturally gravitated to what she wanted him to see, that new feature in the Bay.
The tower split the sky in two. Hookwolf couldn’t tear his eyes away from it.
“What the fuck…?”
Rune snorted, “Yeah, that about sums it up, boss. The bitch who took you down? She works for a real fucking Dragon. That’s his work. He’s kinda flipping everything on its head.”
“The ABB’s done for with Lung dead,” Othala quietly explained. “The Dragon’s Daughter was responsible for that, and the Dragon’s Tower is looming over the city. Now, the Dragon is going on and on about some Adventurer’s Corps and a Battle Dungeon beneath the tower. Everything’s changed so drastically in just over a week.”
“Battle Dungeon?” Hookwolf asked, his interest piqued.
“Some infinite magical gauntlet,” Rune said. “All the fighting and adventure you could ask for, according to Ancalagon the Fucking Awesome. And… a way for anyone to get stronger.”
Even shocked by everything, Hookwolf couldn’t keep the grin off his face at that, “Fuck yeah. What’s Kaiser doing about all this? Tell me we’re getting in on that.”
Rune shook her head, “Don’t really know. That’s kinda the problem. He’s been distant, and Krieg’s using the chance to flex his influence. I don’t think either of them realizes the game has completely changed. I barely realize it myself…”
“It all seems… unbelievable,” Othala said. “Magic and a real Dragon and… well, everything since they appeared. Victor bets Kaiser is gonna try to play the situation like it’s still a pure cape game. But I… I really don’t think it, uh… is anymore.”
“Magic, cape shit, whatever. It’s all the fucking same to me,” Hookwolf scoffed. “Who and when do we get to fight? That’s what matters.”
“I don’t know, boss. That’s the problem,” Rune repeated herself with a huff. “Kaiser’s playing conservative.”
“Well, fuck that,” Hookwolf stretched with a vicious grin on his face. “I like the sound of this ‘Dungeon’. And I like the sound of the boss monster at the end even more. How do we get a piece?”
“K-Kaiser’s not going to like that,” Othala meekly warned.
Hookwolf scowled, “He’s pussyfootin’. Probably Krieg’s influence, that ‘wait and see’ approach. I’m real fucking tired of the bastard’s bullshit. And I can’t help Kaiser if he doesn’t see he needs the help. Fuck ‘em, we’ll focus on us.”
Rune let go of some tension she didn’t know she was holding at Hookwolf’s decision. With him back in action, the Empire’s Strength faction had leadership that wouldn’t hesitate. And it seemed he was quick to see what she saw in the Bay’s new situation…
The Dragon was an opportunity. He’d offer them all the chance they needed to grow stronger, to make the world remember their names.
IIIII
— Ancalagon —
“My lord, I have a request, if you would indulge me.”
Late in the afternoon, Belladonna came to me simpering and smiling as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth.
I glanced at her. Innocent on the surface, but undoubtedly up to something. I glanced back at what I was doing: simply lurking on PHO. It wasn’t truly important. I pushed the lurking to the side. This should be good.
“I might,” I replied to her. “I suppose it depends on what your request is. Tell me, Belladonna, how can I help the freakiest of my Hoard?”
She smiled brightly at me, “My lord, you’re always a great help. But my request today is thus: I wish to put on a practical demonstration for my students. A lesson of gloriously abnormal sexual education, and of loving themselves, and of the Legend you and I have forged together. Will you grant me that?”
“Hmm,” I hummed, quickly realizing her goal. “You wish to show off your Dao.”
Somehow, Belladonna’s smile widened, practically outshining the sun, “Indeed, I do. It’s time that they see for themselves what I have to teach them. They will come to know my freakishly proud Dao.”
“As I thought,” I chuckled. “Well, this should be amusing. I’ll indulge you, Belladonna. Shall we?”
“I sincerely hope we shall,” Belladonna giggled.
I looked to the rest of my Hoard, still gathered on the top floor of my tower. Just to check in on them. The Goblins had already run off on their journey outside the Bay. I’d seen them off with well wishes to thieve to their hearts’ content.
Pyrite was up this morning, but not quite about. She was currently alternating between PHO and gaming. Calamitas was still dedicating herself to moderating the PHO thread, answering questions about the Corps and the Dungeon. Dharla was doing the same, though she spent more time preaching than answering questions.
Glory was doing a casual bit of inventory for the little treasures taken from her Age. Advanced technology and minor Spirit magic artifacts that could be of use to her in her desire to heal instead of hurt. Her supply was limited for now. If she wanted more, she’d likely have to set up production in this Age. I would give her all the help she might need for that, but she wasn’t quite there yet.
Jenevelle, meanwhile, saw Belladonna’s request to me and sighed, “You might as well, Sire. If you don’t indulge her now, she’ll be insufferable. She’s gotten this idea in her mind. We both know she won’t stop until she sees it through.”
“There’s no need for jealousy, darling~…” Belladonna teased.
Jenevelle rolled her eyes, “As if, slattern. You may be fine showing off your personal time with our lord, but I prefer to keep such time private and intimate.”
“A shame,” Belladonna earnestly remarked. “Your own Dao would’ve been educational for my students to see.”
“Yours alone, in all its essence of Freakishness, will have to suffice,” Jenevelle deadpanned. “I’m sure it will be more than enough.”
Dao… My Hoard’s Daos, won from Legends of Mounting the Dragon that was me…
Even by my standards, by all I’d seen through four Ages now, it was an odd concept. But as ridiculous as a ‘Dao from Dragon Fucking’ sounded, there was truth and power to it.
Essentially, a story to define each relationship I held with my carnal partners. Legends, that they’d forged themselves to and through lying with me. The achievement at the end of those Legends was always the same — to Mount the Dragon — but the narratives leading up to it and the enlightenment pulled from it were unique and tailored experiences.
The Legends led to Dao, and the Dao retroactively justified the Legends. Enlightenment and ataraxia — self-actualization — drawn from Dragon Fucking. A Magic and corresponding mystery uniquely grasped by my Hoard.
Jenevelle’s Dao, for example, was an intimate mirror to all she thought she owed me and a shining showcase of repayment. Her reason for Mounting the Dragon was selflessly selfish, born of unimpeachable, unalienable gratitude.
Her narrative of Mounting the Dragon imparted that Dao upon her, and now, the Dao was reflected in the narrative, cemented in Legend forevermore.
Our first time together, she’d come to me in the night, climbing the mountain of gold in my lair with determination in her heart and loins. She pushed herself through trepidation and excitement. She woke me with a gentle touch, leaning her head against the scales around my eye so she was the first and only thing I saw.
Then, she thanked me for saving her as best she was able. She gave me her body, her heart, her mind, and her soul. She truly became part of my Hoard that night.
I insisted it was hardly necessary, of course. But Jenevelle would have none of that. She wouldn’t be denied the chance to show her gratitude, paying back all I’d done for her in the most primal way.
We did not sleep that night. Nor the next day. All that mattered was Jenevelle’s personal Legend of Mounting the Dragon and the Dao she derived from it. She was Mine, giving herself so fully and willingly and gratfully that she wrote it as a personal yet fundamental law of Creation.
My other partners had similarly unique narratives connecting them to me. It turns out that Mounting the Dragon truly was a Legendary feat, worthy enough to forge a brand of Dao unique to my Hoard: Daos of Dragon Fucking.
“Sire, shall I begin to organize the Dungeon’s beta testing?” Jenevelle asked, looking for something to do while Belladonna and I were preoccupied with the planned lesson.
She hid it well, but I could hear the forlornness in her voice. I’d have to make time to focus on her, too, just as I was making time to indulge Belladonna.
“Do as you see fit. The Dungeon is ready enough for a test dive or two,” I told her. “You have all of my trust, Jenevelle. Always.”
Jenevelle blushed but nodded, “I won’t betray that trust, Sire. Never. I’ll arrange a beta testing party. Those Uber and Leet boys, if they pass my muster. Those New Wave girls you seem so fond of, too, I’d think.”
I chuckled, “I’ll admit to some fondness there. They’re amusing, quintessential examples of this Age, now introduced to the Turning we’ve brought to it. And it doesn’t hurt that they’ve grown comfortable enough to interact with me honestly.”
“They’re… acceptable, I suppose,” Jenevelle sniffed slightly, her standards even higher than mine.
“More than acceptable,” Belladonna insisted. “One of those New Wave girls is a student of mine. Amelia has… much, much potential, indeed~…”
“Well, we shouldn’t keep her and your other students waiting,” I said. “What form of mine would you prefer for this practical demonstration?”
“It’s only the first lesson,” Belladonna demurred. “Your Dragonkin form will be best, so I’m not throwing my fledgling freaks straight into the deep end.”
Nodding, I began to shift, asking a question as I did, “And the setting for today’s lesson?”
Belladonna grinned, eager and enthusiastic, “I have a space prepared, my lord. One of the arcane workshops I’ve claimed has been set up for… such purposes, you might say.”
Jenevelle sighed. “Of course. You would have a smut laboratory already set up…”
“Indeed,” Belladonna proudly stuck up her nose. “Envy my wisdom and foresight.”
“Envy? I dread it,” Jenevelle shot back.
I stopped them from bickering further by placing my newly humanoid hands on their heads, “I am ready, Belladonna. Jenevelle? Wish me luck.”
“Always, Sire,” Jenevelle immediately and instinctively replied. “I’d say you don’t need it, usually, but… well, good luck with the Freak.”
Belladonna preened at our joking wariness of her ‘Freak’. She was, as always, shameless and proud. It was her Dao, after all.
“Come, my lord,” She said. “And indulge me to my Dao’s Freakish satisfaction, please.”
She reached up to the hand I had on her head, intertwining her dainty, witchy fingers with my clawed ones. Gently, she began to pull me along behind her. I followed after an amused wave sent toward the rest of the Hoard.
Swaying hips marked the path. Crimson skin glowing with sheer enthusiasm. A light bounce to her behind with every step. Belladonna tempted and teased as easily as she breathed.
Her witchy robes hugged a generous figure, not so much concealing as the opposite: revealing sensual grace with every silken shift. She looked over her shoulder, fluttering eyes at me from beneath her droopy hat and behind wire-rim glasses.
I enjoyed the show, feeling fires of Lust already being stoked in my Draconic core. That Lust was Mine, Nature kept under strict Authority, but I wasn’t opposed to indulging it as I indulged Belladonna.
The tower’s lift took us down a few dozen floors to Belladonna’s prepared ‘smut laboratory’. All through the ride down, she molded herself to my side.
Her head only came up to my ribcage, but that didn’t stop her from clinging and groping and rousing. Soft, demonically-tinted skin pressed against smooth Draconic scales. Almost idly, she ran her hands along the muscles beneath.
A blissful, eager, anticipating shudder ran through her as she traced corded flesh and interlocking scales.
“Thank you for indulging me, my lord,” She whispered breathlessly. “As always~…”
I hummed wordlessly in reply and acknowledgment. The sound rumbled from my chest into Belladonna’s core. That was on purpose. If I didn’t know how to drive my freaky witch to maddening arousal by now, I would’ve wasted quite a lot of time over our Ages together.
When the lift arrived on her claimed floor, Belladonna exited, pulling me behind her with a fair bit more urgency.
I exited the lift with a ground-eating initial step. It took me back to her side instead of following behind her. There, I pulled her back into my side. My hand possessively squeezed a full and perky breast before falling to her supple behind.
Groping, kneading, driving Belladonna to the heights of anticipatory arousal with a mere taste of pleasure.
“A-Ah… My lord!” She said with a gasp. “As much as I wish we could start immediately, I still have to gather my students for the lesson.”
“Quickly, then,” I rumbled.
Those simple words sent Belladonna scrambling, so eager that she almost fell over herself in her rush to the multi-purpose orb artifact mounted on the wall.
I let her handle that and found the stage she’d obviously prepared for the lesson. It consisted of a throne and little more. An actual throne. I snorted to myself in amusement.
At least the throne was a lounging thing, with the back at an angle that would put the occupant on full display. Every inch of it was covered by cushions enchanted for comfort. It was perfectly, purposefully tailored to my Dragonkin form. Upon sitting in it, I settled immediately.
At her orb, Belladonna was giggling to herself. The grin on her face was the kind that would frighten lesser men, women, and monsters. It plainly stated that Belladonna was the predator in the room. Or that she would’ve been, if there weren’t a Dragon sitting like a king behind her.
“Oh, Amelia,” Belladonna spoke to herself as she wrangled her group chat. “It’s adorable that you think you’re getting out of this.
“No, no, Sveta, this is a lesson for you, too. It’ll be good for you.
“Your shyness is adorable, Winged One, but I know you’re curious. Perhaps this lesson will be the bonding experience you need to finally share your name with us.
“Oh my, Fortuna. You’re the newest of us, but that enthusiasm is impressive. You’ll fit right in.
“Yes, Ciara, I’ll make sure it’s worth your time. Do you not wish to see the Dragon in action?
“Ah, Madison, my darling, my best student. Don’t change a thing. But yes, you’ll need privacy for this. It wouldn’t do to share our secret sisterhood with everyone around you.
“Fufufufufufufufu~!” She finished her preparations with a step back and a shamelessly freaky, nigh manic laugh. Belladonna was utterly in her element.
The orb lit up to show it was now streaming live. Belladonna threw her arms wide up, cocked her hips in a sensual invitation, and began.
“Welcome! Welcome, my dear, darling, delicious students! I have a true treat for you today. We are blessed, for my lord has agreed to indulge me and assist with the first practical demonstration of our course together.
“I have much to show and teach you. Today, all you must do is watch and take notes if you decide to. I expect your full attention, though, for many things I demonstrate here will be useful in the future labs and tests I assign you.”
The chat for the private stream appeared as illusions projected by the recording orb.
Panacea: Labs?? Fucking what? When did this become an actual class? Dragon Fucking 101?
Hat_Lady: No idea, but I’m very glad I decided to audit it. Definitely signing up full-time.
Winged_One: What a strange, strange life I’ve begun to live…
SpecificProtagonist: Fuck college. This is everything I’ve ever wanted. I mean, just LOOK at him back there! FUCK. YES. Sensei is spoiling us. This is all the goon-… err, educational material I could ever ask for.
GstringGirl: Is this… okay? Should we be doing this?
Feychick: Should or should not, it seems we are.
“Now, first we should thank our model for today’s lesson,” Belladonna said, still smiling freakishly. “My lord is indulging me. Indulging us. And I will not raise ungrateful students.”
SpecificProtagonist: Thank you, Lord Ancalagon! Thank you, thank you, thank you! You’re the king of kings! The Dragon of Dragons!
Hat_Lady: Thank you, Lord Ancalagon. We value your contribution to our education, be sure of that.
Winged_One: Thank you, Lord Ancalagon, as… strange as this is.
Feychick: Thank you, Dragon Lord. You honor us.
GstringGirl: Err, thank you?
Panacea: Fuck, peer pressure’s a bitch. Thanks, I guess, Ancalagon.
“Thank your teacher, too,” I chuckled. “She’s the one who requested my participation on your behalf.”
“Fufufufu~…” Belladonna chortled. “Only the best for my darling students.”
Panacea: Dammit, this is… fucking depraved. How did I find myself here?
SpecificProtagonist: Luck, Amy! ALL THE LUCK! We’re blessed by the lordly, hot-as-hell Dragon! Look at that man, that lord, that MONSTER-FUCKING GOD! Thank you, Sensei!
GstringGirl: Blessed is… certainly one way to look at it. I’m mostly just glad I have some private time for this, err, blessing.
Winged_One: He does cut a striking figure.
Hat_Lady: Most striking. No complaints. None at all.
Belladonna nodded, “Good. Very good. To begin today’s lesson, I believe we have some groundwork to cover. A syllabus, so to speak. The intended lesson of the day that you’ll require to truly appreciate my lord’s demonstration.”
She turned and strutted her way towards me. The orb’s streaming view followed and focused. It highlighted her swaying hips, the bounce in her step, and, as she glanced back over her shoulder at her students, the gleefully excited grin on her face.
Belladonna sat herself in my lap. She draped herself there as queen and concubine. Sitting sideways so she could look between her students and me, there was plenty of room for her.
Soft Tiefling curves weighed me down, a sinfully comfortable thing. Belladonna ground herself against my crotch ever so slightly. I allowed my body to stir in reply, the reaction hidden by her sinfully smothering flesh.
She teased me, and I teased her right back. A shiver, a shudder, and Belladonna molded herself closer to my rousing form.
But Belladonna gave her students attention first, continuing the groundwork for her lesson, “Welcome, students, to Dragon Fucking 101, as dear Amelia so accurately dubbed it. In this course, you will learn to accept yourself as you are. You will learn the glories of monstrous attraction. You will learn to find your limits and push past them. And most importantly, you will learn to forge your Legend and draw a unique, personal, and tailored Dao from that Legend.”
SpecificProtagonist: Dao, Sensei?
“A way, a law of Creation all your own, it is a magic unique to those who successfully Mount the Dragon,” Belladonna explained. “Creation recognizes such an achievement for what it’s worth and rewards it dutifully.
“I intend to show you mine, so that even if you choose not to use this course to its full potential, you will always know that potential exists.”
Panacea: More magic. Of course. Magic from Dragon Fucking. Why not? Dammit, Ancalagon…
“Don’t look at me for this,” I chuckled. “The Daos of Dragon Fucking are unique to my Hoard. They are the experts in the field. I am merely the Dragon they Mount, the achievement that allows them to reach this odd personal enlightenment. I’m afraid that even if I sit in on your class as an assistant and model, I won’t be much help for what Belladonna actually intends to teach.”
“As my lord says,” Belladonna nodded. “The Dao of Dragon Fucking is not his domain, even if he plays such a pivotal role in its realization. Ultimately, it falls to us as mere mortals daring enough to attempt something impossible and take a sliver of his Power and Importance onto ourselves.”
Hat_Lady: Sounds like there’s much more to this than just Dragon Fucking. I won’t turn away this strange little chance at magic, at infinity, though.
Winged_One: Neither will I, though I feel I probably should…
Feychick: This does seem a bit advanced for a first magic, Teacher.
Belladonna agreed, “Advanced, and not, for a Dao is a personal thing. It affects you more than it affects the world around you. It is a magic focused on individual wisdom, cultivated understanding, and inner peace of mind. It will write your name into Creation with grand achievement. It will set you into Legend, even if that Legend is only known to you and Creation.”
She continued, “Magic of Dao is a field I’ve researched through my years in Ancalagon’s Hoard. Its mysteries lie in understanding through achievement. One of those achievements would be Mounting the Dragon. Others may be Conquering the World, or Discovering New Ground, or anything else worth the notice of Creation.
“So even if you do not decide to Mount the Dragon, you’ll have all the tools you need to grasp your own Dao by the end of this course. It is not an easy path to magic. Certainly not as easy as my lord’s spiritual awakenings. But it can coexist alongside anything and everything you do, enhancing you however you live.”
I was honestly surprised by that statement of intent for Belladonna’s teachings. At first glance, her class seemed purely focused on the sexual kind of ‘Freakishness’. But she was a complex creature, and enthusiasm for magic of all kinds was another kind of ‘Freakishness’ she chased.
She wasn’t solely grooming her students for Dragon Fucking. It was just the most practical example of a Legend that she could teach. The Legend she knew best, giving rise to her Freakish Dao.
I’d never gotten deep into Dao Magic, preferring the mysteries of Authority, Nature, and Spirit. It was most similar to my Draconic Mantles — perhaps even the same outright: ways and laws of Creation that one personally embodied — but I’d never taken the time and effort to delve into Dao Magicks more than that.
It seemed I’d be learning something from this course Belladonna was teaching, just like her students.
GstringGirl: It’s not just Dragon Fucking, then? We can do… anything, so long as it’s worthy enough, to get to… Dao?
Winged_One: Fascinating. Magic grasped and forged, not simply granted. I wonder what Legends we can potentially achieve.
Feychick: This makes the most sense to me, of all the magicks I’ve seen from the Dragon Lord. Legends are magical, of course. But the magic comes from what we comprehend and internalize from those Legends. It is a magic of enlightenment.
SpecificProtagonist: Okay, but Dragon Fucking is still on the table, right? Right?! PLease, SensEI! Don’t leave me hanging!
“Your freakish enthusiasm does you credit,” Belladonna chortled. “Worry not. For all the varied lessons that you may learn from this course, I do still intend to start it with a show of my own Dao and Legend.”
SpecificProtagonist: Yesssssss! Dao of Dragon Fucking!
Panacea: Wonderful. Just when I was starting to think this might be a useful and wholesome magical education. I guess I was expecting too much from the freaks.
SpecificProtagonist: Don’t cap! I know you’re one of us!
Panacea: Lies. Lies and slander. Just because I’ve been dragged into this group chat without kicking and screaming too much doesn’t mean I’m into this depravity.
Winged_One: Can you not leave at any time? Block the chat? I haven’t tried, personally, but I didn’t think Belladonna was keeping us here against our will.
Panacea: …
Hat_Lady: Her silence is telling.
“She is, of course, free to leave and lose out on the gloriously freaky knowledge I offer,” Belladonna smirked. “She won’t. I recognize kindred souls when I see them, and I have chosen my students well.”
I prodded her with a claw, amused as I brought her back on track, “Don’t distract yourself by bullying Amelia. You have a lesson to teach. I’ve been patient so far, but I do have other things I could be doing if you’re intent on wasting my time.”
“Of course, of course, my lord,” Belladonna demurred. “I only needed to establish the purpose and ultimate goal of my teachings.”
She turned back to her students, purring, “Now, class, shall we begin~?”
Panacea: … Fuck. I guess we’re really doing this.
Hat_Lady: I’ll be recording this lesson for… posterity.
Winged_One: … Same.
SpecificProtagonist: My heart and loins are READY, SENSEI!
IIIII
[AN: Ended up pushing the actual smut lesson to the next chapter. It’ll be the arc-end interlude (3.x). But I think I’ve properly set the stage for some fun, and even character/plot-relevant, smut.
Dragon Smut was always a consideration for this story. But I don’t want it to be purposeless. Not just horny for horny’s sake. So I’m trying to integrate the smut with character arcs and worldbuilding.
When trying to think of a way to tie plot and ‘plot’ together, I had the ‘Dao of Dragon Fucking’ thought, and it just clicked. There’s Magic at play in Dragon Fucking. Kinda obvious when you think about it, ‘cause you’ve gotta be Fucking Legendary to fuck a Dragon.
Of course, the actual smut will still be raunchy, freaky, hot-and-heavy monster fucking. But now, there are narratives around it. It’s not just “And then the Dragon Fucked”; there’s plot foreplay (the tailored Legend stuff), then Dragon Fucking, then plot afterglow (Dao Magic, character consequences, etc.).
I’m hoping that the way I’m doing this is unique and interesting, but it’s also kinda experimental lol. We’ll see how it turns out. I want the smut to be just as hot in context with the wider story as it is hot on its own.
It’ll be a WIP, I think. I’ll probably be putting more thought and effort into the smut than I usually do for that. So stick around for more ‘Dao of Dragon Fucking’, and hopefully just some good quality smut, too :]