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Carnal Combat II

Episode VIII - Cross of Changes

By FJE http://www.furaffinity.net/user/emerson/

7/10/07

Disclaimer: This story contains graphic sex between adults. There's likely to be bondage, hardcore sex, softcore sex, tentacle sex, ninja sex, ninja beatings, ninjas beating off, and other unspeakable acts. If you are not of age to view this stuff, or if it might make you cry, please don't read it. Thanks.

Fury overwhelmed Alexandros. Carnage surrounded him. An ally, a friend, lay dead before him, murdered at the hands of someone he was now sure was quite mad.

Yet, despite this, all he could do was hold his ground and stare down the monster that was Arrigan Adonis. Alexandros clenched his paws tightly around his staff, while the dragon sat in the Grandmaster's throne with the former Grandmaster's severed head upon the arm.

"What is there to talk about, Adonis?" Alexandros growled the question, barely able to form words through his rage.

"The new rules, demigod," Adonis said, standing up. "I need to complete one final battle to bring my plan to fruition. I've no more reason to let this farce of a tournament continue. You are to bring me Daichi in two hours time, here in the Throne Room. There will be Combat. Afterwards, I may very well let you all live."

"Out of the question," Alexandros snapped. "There will be no more Combat, not one-on-one. This is an act of war, you traitor."

The grin that spread over Adonis' muzzle nearly sent a shiver down Alexandros spine. "War? Not yet, you old fool. You have no idea what war is.

"Neither is this a request. It is an order. You will bring me Daichi for Combat, or a collection of lovely young ladies whom I have been acquiring may come to violent ends. Tell me, old one, are their lives worth it?"

"Why do you need to fight Daichi?" Alexandros tried to move past the dragon's implication that he had, and was willing to kill, the missing girls.

"A final test, if you will," Adonis said dryly. "That is all you need to know. The rules are set and my demand will be met...otherwise, there will be more than one head rolling around this throne. Am I clear?"

Alexandros tried one final time to call upon his Masters, to seek the authority and power to strike the vile dragon down. Once again he was met with startling silence. With no options left, he scowled at Adonis.

"I'll discuss it with my students. If they consider it a wise move, perhaps you will have your fight. If not, you will have death."

* * *

The meeting came together quickly, and the sense of impending doom and urgency that fell over those gathered seemed to have physical weight to it.

While Alexandros had faced down Adonis, M had quickly rounded up the remaining Combatants. Daichi, Spectre, Suki, and Ruin had followed the fox to the Throne Room, where they met Alexandros in the outer yard.

Alexandros was speaking with several guards when the group approached. The guards looked nervous, some even ill, and the doors to the Throne Room had been sealed.

"Good," Alexandros said once he saw the party approaching. "We've no time to waste. What has M told you?"

"He told us what you found when you went in there," Daichi said. "Nicodemus is...?"

"Quite," Alexandros said grimly. "Adonis has committed unspeakable crimes against the Gods, the law of the land, the traditions of Combat...it's unfathomable. We need to act quickly. I fear he has somehow amassed great power, beyond anything any mortal has ever wielded. And the Gods..."

"What about the Gods?" Spectre said, pushing forward a little.

"The Gods have gone silent," replied a clearly perturbed Alexandros. "I do not know why. I am but their ambassador. While my power is great, it would seem that Adonis may equal it. I fear he has cut me off from my Masters."

"Where is he now? What are we up against?" Daichi asked.

"He is demanding that someone face him in Combat, tomorrow night, here in the Throne Room. He claims to have Rhane, Winter, Hitomi, and Selena captured, and he intends to execute them if we do not comply."

"That would make sense," Ruin said grimly. "It also implies that Adonis has a small army here with him."

"Right," M said. "Khan, the ferret, the dark ninja, and Reiko..."

"WHAT?" Suki said, staring at M. "What do you mean he has Reiko?"

"Reiko joined him," M replied. "She helped the ferret and the ninja capture Rhane. I'm surprised they didn't take me as well."

"Speaking of you," Spectre said, approaching the fox, "You seem to keep popping up at all the right times. You also seem to know a lot about what's going on here."

Alexandros raised a hand, cutting Spectre off and stopping M from replying. "M is the top member of the Grandmaster's Black Guard. They work silently, undercover to weed out traitors, threats to the Grandmaster, and other issues he may deem their involvement needed. He has been working on finding the missing girls, hence why he was there to try and stop the attack against Rhane."

"And before any of you say it," M said, crossing his arms over his chest, "We were doing our jobs. We knew that the ferret and the ninja were tied to Adonis. We just didn't realize how powerful Adonis was."

"Just how powerful is he?" Suki asked.

"Very powerful," M said. "Powerful enough to blind Alexandros' to the truth."

Daichi suddenly stepped forward and looked Alexandros in the eyes. "You said he demanded to face someone. Who did he ask for, Alexandros?"

Alexandros returned Daichi's gaze, his face deathly serious. "You," he said. "Are you so eager to fight him?"

"If it will save the girls, then absolutely."

"It may not have to come to that," M interjected. "We've got two our hours to find and rescue the girls. If we can do that, Adonis looses his bargaining chip."

Ruin looked to M. "Can you do this? Find them?"

"I've got to try," the fox said. "I've got a plan, at least. If you, Spectre, and Suki can work with me, Daichi can prepare for his fight in the event that we fail."

"It's the best plan we've got," Spectre said with a sigh. "Alexandros?"

Alexandros nodded, as did Daichi and the others. "Very well," Alexandros said. "I'll prepare Daichi. You four must rescue those girls. We need to swing the odds in our favor."

Everyone agreed, and began to depart. Daichi grabbed Spectre's arm before the skunk could walk away however, and he pulled his friend close.

"Spectre, listen...Rhane..."

"I know," Spectre said, patting Daichi's shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll bring her back to you."

"Thank you," Daichi said, and then he turned to leave the Throne Room with Alexandros.

* * *

"So what's the plan?"

M looked up at Spectre for a moment, and then back down at a large scroll he'd spread open on a table. "When Nobu Ra' Chi took over, it wasn't long before he disbanded the Black Guard. We were a bit too independent for him, plus his paranoia and our love of secrecy didn't go over well with the old bastard. Anyhow, after you kids took care of him, Nicodemus reinstated us. When we came back we'd found that Ra' Chi had made some significant changes to the Hall of Combat, adding secret rooms and passages and chambers.

"I had a team scour this place from top to bottom, and we know every nook and cranny now. I can promise you that we searched it all, and found no trace of the missing girls or any sort of base of operations for Adonis."

"So...that doesn't tell us what your plan is."

"What that tells me is that Adonis isn't operating out of the Hall. Yet, he never leaves the Hall. All of his lackeys are here too, because our security is tight enough that we can say that no one is sneaking in or out, least of all with an unconscious female over their shoulder."

"So what do you suspect exactly?" Ruin asked.

"That they're hiding themselves in the Hall, most likely through some power of Adonis. They have to be able to come and go freely however, so that they can do what they do. So, I'm going to get them to take me to the girls."

Spectre looked skeptical. "How do you intend to do that?"

M smiled. "I'm going to get caught, and Ruin is going to help me.

* * *

M had positioned guards inside and out of Reiko's quarters the moment he'd found out that she was working with Adonis. Now, he was personally searching her room and her belongings. He'd sent the guards away, leaving the room empty for about ten minutes before he entered.

The fox suspected that Reiko would be eager to return to collect her things now that she was ousted as being a traitor. As he stood there examining a rather large dildo she'd stored away in a drawer, the fox heard a noise behind him. He smiled to himself as footsteps softly approached where he stood.

He pretended to be caught up in his search as the mysterious figure snuck him behind him. The fox flicked his eyes up to watch the reflection of the room in the glass vase before him; sure enough, Reiko was getting ready to strike. He braced himself and waited, and then slumped forward as the wolfess landed a solid blow to the back of his head, knocking him out cold.

* * *

M regained consciousness slowly, and he watched the world fade in from black to...black? The fox shook his head as he senses returned, though he was dismayed to find that things weren't any brighter awake than they were unconscious.

In fact, there was only a single pillar of light shining down on him from above, illuminating little more than three feet all around where he sat. That was enough light to let him see the smirking face of Reiko standing before him.

He also quickly came to realize that he was sitting in a chair, bound tightly to it. His arms were tied behind him to the back of the seat, and his legs were spread apart and tied to either of the front legs of the chair. Not surprisingly, he'd also been stripped naked. His fat sheath and heavy balls were on display, and the way his arms were bound forced him to arch his chest slightly.

"You think you were so clever," Reiko giggled, tapping M's nose. "Searching Master Adonis' chambers for our little hideaway was smart thinking, but bad timing. Lucky for me, though! I think I owe you a little payback for your interference in our business with Rhane."

M flicked his eyes around briefly, and then looked at Reiko. "Poor me, huh? So where are the girls? You've got minimalist decorations here."

Reiko smirked. "What, I'm not enough girl for you?"

M had noticed that Reiko wasn't wearing much more than a smile herself, but he was purposely ignoring it. Partly because it wasn't important, but mostly because he just wanted to piss her off. It seemed to be working.

"You're a little green for me, kid," he said with the best shrug he could manage. "Look, if there's going to be torture, let's get to it. I've got an important meeting in a bit."

The wolfess grabbed the fox by his muzzle, and stared him down. "You won't be so funny when I'm done with you," she growled. "But, fine. I'm going to have my fun with you first, sexy little fuckfox."

Reiko turned and walked off into the darkness, making sure that the tod fox had a good view of her ass as she left. M waited until he couldn't hear her foot steps anymore, and then he took a deep breath.

The fox shivered as he exhaled, and let a fine gray mist pour out of his nostrils and mouth. The mist shimmered and collected in front of him, and as the last wisp left the fox's body, it began to take shape. In only moments, Ruin stood there before him.

"That was pretty creepy," M said, shaking his head. "Did you like it in there or something?"

Ruin looked around quickly. "It's a skill meant for Combat, not stealth. I'm surprised you lasted that long without falling to all fours and begging for a fuck," the ninja said. "Besides, she was with you the whole time. This was the first chance I had to get out."

"Well, whatever," M said. "Go find the girls, or open a way for Spectre and Suki to get in."

Ruin nodded and pulled a sharp blade from his tunic, but M shook his head.

"Uh-uh. Leave me. If Reiko finds me gone, you'll have no time to do anything. As long as I'm here, you'll have plenty of time to work."

Ruin looked uncomfortable with what the fox suggested. "You could be here awhile."

"I know," M said. "From the looks of it, I'll be kept busy. So do me a favor and hurry up, but not too much, got it?"

Ruin smirked just a little under his mask. "Understood."

With that, the ninja vanished into the darkness, leaving M bound and naked and waiting Reiko's return.

* * *

"Why me?" Daichi asked. "I don't mean to sound whiny, but why is Adonis insisting on facing me?"

"You nearly won the last Tournament, and it would seem you were well on your way to winning this one. Apparently Adonis wants a challenge."

They had moved into a private room, far away from the bodies of Adonis' revolt and the gruesome aftermath. Alexandros was sparring with Daichi, talking with the fox as he helped him polish his abilities and skills.

"That's what makes no sense, Master," Daichi said, deflecting a swift strike from Alexandros. "Why would he want to face the one individual who has the best chance of defeating him?"

"A little cocky, are we?" Alexandros said with a smirk. "His motives are unknown to me, but unless our friends can rescue those girls, then his motives are unimportant. You'll have to face him regardless of what his purpose is."

Daichi ducked as Alexandros threw a high kick, and the fox countered with an attempt at a tackle, which Alexandros promptly dodged.

"It's not cockiness. It's concern. I don't like walking into what amounts to a trap," Daichi said, stepping back to break for a moment.

"I don't blame you, Daichi. It's unfortunate, but it is what it is. You, however, need to focus on the task. Anger will not help you win this fight. Control and focus will."

"I'm not angry...I'm just...determined."

"No," Alexandros said, frowning at the fox. "You're quite angry. Angry you lost last year. Angry you failed your House, and yourself. Angry that your anger caused you to be so ruthless in your fight against Rhane. Angry that despite your success, you're right back where you were last year."

Daichi reluctantly nodded his head. "Then Adonis is going to get the opportunity to feel all of that anger released."

* * *

Ruin stole silently through the darkness, cutting through the black nothing that seemed to stretch out forever in all directions. It hadn't taken him long to realize where he was, for it was a place that few ever saw and returned to speak of.

Limbo, the realm of abandoned souls, was a world between life and death. Many spirits wandered here, unable to enter the afterlife until they settled debts and deeds left behind in their mortal existence.

Yet, there were no spirits or souls around. Adonis had apparently managed to create some sort of bubble here where he could operate in secret. That alone made Ruin wary of what kind of power the dragon might command.

His first task was to find the Rhane, Hitomi, Winter, and Selena. Once he'd found them, he could open a door from Limbo to the mortal plane, where Spectre and Suki could enter and help him free the girls and M.

Opening the door would be easy. Limbo had no boundaries, nor set paths. Navigating the realm was a matter of willpower; only souls who knew what they wanted could find the path there. For a spirit cut off from their body, this was no easy task. For a mortal, navigating the plane was easy - if you knew how to to it.

It wasn't long before Ruin could hear a strange humming, and the sound of several females in apparent pleasure. As he approached the sound, a pillar of light appeared. There on the edge of the lighted area were several racks, each one bearing the naked body of one of his friends.

Rhane, Selena, Hitomi, and Winter were all bound tightly, being fucked hard by some sort of contraption that was pounding dildos out of their pussies. A pedestal sat in front of the girls, though there was nothing on the pedestal. Instead, a grinning Khan was leaning against it, watching the girls while Ruin silently approached from behind.

The ninja calmed himself and prepared to take Khan out. He would eliminate the tiger - perhaps permanently - and then free the girls, and then he would...

...no. Ruin stopped just a foot behind the oblivious tiger. He knew that the girls would likely be barely able to stand, considering how long they'd been in those wicked looking devices. Getting four exhausted females out of Limbo would not be easy without help.

Ruin's eyes met Selena's, and the lizard's face brightened as she gave him a pleading look. He lifted a single finger up to his lips, bidding her to be silent.

Khan noticed Selena's expression change. He caught the almost-hopeful look out of the corner of his eye, but he pretended not to notice. He just went on watching Rhane's tits bounce in rhythm with the dildo fucking her pussy...

The tiger spun around quickly and growled. Instead of finding someone behind him, as Selena's look had suggested, all he saw was the usual blackness of limbo.

"Fucking nerves," he growled, and then turned back to watch the girls. Selena was moaning and panting again, just as she'd been doing since her capture.

* * *

Reiko returned to find M sitting just as she'd left him. The wolfess grinned wide and made sure he was able to see the lubricant, gag, and steel rings in her paws.

"Master Adonis will be quite pleased to see I brought him a new toy," she said. "But he said I could play with whatever I caught first, so here you are."

"Here I am," M said, eyeing Reiko's toys. "You know, if you wanted a play thing, you could have just asked me. You didn't have to - you know - stab everyone you knew in the back."

"You haven't a clue what I did or why I did it," she said, flicking M hard on the nose. "And I don't expect you to. I figured you'd try to shove your presumptions on me though, since you seem to enjoy getting into everyone else's business. That's why I brought this."

Reiko smiled and held up the wooden ball gag. Then, much to the fox's dismay, she lifted a footpaw and placed it carefully on his balls. "Open up, sweetie."

The fox decided that discretion would be the wiser avenue, and so he opened his muzzle for the wolfess. She shoved the gag into his mouth rudely, and then strapped it in place. Unable to speak, M resigned himself to weathering the wolfess' attention...at least until Ruin saved the day.

With the fox silence, Reiko knelt down between his open legs and carefully grabbed his sheath. She smirked at him as she started to rub it, working her slender fingers up and down the firm, furry tube. M grunted and started to squirm, finding himself fattening up quickly.

"Look at that," she cooed, letting the fox's sheath go. "I didn't peg you for such a slut." The wolfess watched M's sheath plump up, and then part as his ebony cock started to slide out. She quickly gathered up the steel rings she'd brought, and she stacked them atop his sheath, around where his dick was emerging.

Reiko began to rub the fox's bare belly and fondle his balls, watching intently as his cock hardened. Slowly it slipped out, growing fat and thick as it pushed up through the rings and into his belly fur. He moaned around the gag in his mouth, though soon the pleasured gasps turned to uncomfortable groans. As his cock hardened, it filled the three steel rings. Each ring was slightly smaller than the previous one, with the widest one now squeezing around the base of his erection, the second squeezing around the belly of his dick, and the third tightly wrapped around just under his cock head. They kept him hard, and he knew well that they'd keep him from cumming.

As the wolfess began to kiss his stomach and squeeze his balls, M whimpered and bucked his hips. He hoped Ruin wouldn't take TOO much time coming to his rescue...

* * *

"How is she?" Suki watched Spectre as he sat down beside her in by the Meditation Pool. The mephit had just returned from checking on Kassidy, electing to pay the collie a visit in the healers rooms while they waited on word from either Ruin and M or Daichi and Alexandros.

"She's better," he said. "Adonis gave her quite the beating. It seems extra pointless, considering he wasn't even interested in the Tournament."

"It all seems pointless," the rabbit said. "Fighting through two matches, plus Khan's fight, just to toss it all away and basically declare war."

Spectre shook his head. "It's not war, not yet. That's what this is all about. The right to declare war."

"It won't come to that. There are too many good souls fighting against it now. I don't care how strong Adonis is, he isn't going to be able to stand against all of us.

Spectre smiled. Suki was always the positive one amongst the Combatants, which seemed ironic considering the lot she'd drawn in the previous Tournament. He was about to answer her when a cold wind made him shudder. Suki did the same, hugging herself quickly.

The wind was quick and sudden, but it was absolute. It chilled them to the bone, even through their thick fur coats. Then, they watched as a swirling black void appeared overhead and a few feet in front of them. It bubbled and oozed a thick, vile black liquid, and then a familiar figure dropped through it.

Ruin landed gracefully on the landing where Suki and Ruin sat, while the portal bubbled above him.

"I've found them," he said. "But we need to hurry. Time is running short."

* * *

"This seems counter-productive, since we're trying to not die," Spectre whispered, slipping through the black nothingness behind Suki and Ruin.

The ninja had briefly explained the situation to them, and then they'd quickly followed him into Limbo. It was a strange experience to be sure, but nowhere near as uncomfortable as Spectre had imagined. He wondered if death would be an equally uneventful experience.

"There they are," Ruin whispered back, and sure enough Spectre could see a single shining pillar of light just ahead. As they got closer, he was slightly surprised to see the four missing girls quite naked and quite ravaged, despite Ruin describing it just so.

Ruin looked around quickly. "Khan is gone. Let's get them down and out of here before we find ourselves with unwanted company.

Suki and Spectre nodded, and then rushed up to the girls. All four of them moaned in excited relief as they saw their friends sneak up and work at their bonds. The cuffs and locks were tight, but they were clearly meant more to keep a captive in, not to keep rescuers out. Spectre silently wondered if that provided some sort of insight into the way Adonis worked.

Spectre caught a limp, gasping Rhane as the vixen slumped forward, free of the fuck-assembly. He carefully lowered her to the ground, even as Suki and Ruin did the same with Selena, Hitomi, and Winter.

"You okay?" Spectre asked Rhane. The vixen nodded, hugging Spectre tight.

"I w-will be...but...m-must warn...Alexandros and N-N-Nicodemus..."

Spectre frowned. That would be a tough one to break to her, he thought. "Rest a second, Rhane."

The vixen nodded, and then smiled weakly at Spectre. "Men..."

The skunk made a face, confused. He looked at Suki and the rabbit winked, nodding down to his lower regions as she helped Hitomi down. Spectre took a gander south, and realized he was sporting a rather large tent in his pants. He shrugged, and smiled at Rhane.

"Pretty girls, devious devices...can you blame me? Just don't tell Daichi."

Rhane's face seemed to display a sudden rush of conflicting emotions, and Spectre quickly patted her paw.

"He sent me for you. He would have been here himself if he could have. Trust me."

"I fucking knew it!" Shouted Khan, causing Spectre, Ruin, and Suki to spin around. Behind them stood the tiger, as well as an incredibly slinky-looking ferret femme and a black ninja that looked to be the dark opposite of Ruin.

"I knew I fucking heard someone sneakin' around in here!" Khan growled at the three intruders, while Kalli slipped around in front of him.

"So you did," she said, her voice soft and warm. "Come to rescue their lovely girls, no doubt missing their wonderfully warm little bodies." The ferret sucked in a quick breath and squirmed a little where she stood. "We're out of racks, but I think we could find other uses for three more captives."

"Oh, fuck this," Spectre rumbled.

"Good idea," Suki said, and lunged straight at the enemy trio. She leapfrogged the empty pedestal that all of the racks seemed to be connected to, driving her heels straight into Kalli's chest before tackling the ferret.

Spectre and Ruin quickly joined the rabbit. The mephit went right for Khan, only to find an inky black shadow slip up between him and the tiger. He didn't particularly care who he beat down, and so Spectre surprised the black ninja by casually slamming the heel of his palms into either side of the ninja's face, staggering him back.

Ruin, meanwhile, circled with Khan. "Yer' a fuckin' hypocrite, you know that?" Khan growled, throwing a straight punch at his former ally. "You worked for Ra' Chi fer' years, and now suddenly you wanna' be a hero and fight Adonis?"

"We all seek redemption," Ruin said, catching Khan's paw firmly in his own grip before he rolled, tossing the tiger over his shoulder and several feet away. As Khan landed, Ruin reached up and released the clasps of his mask, tossing it away. For the first time in many, many years, he stood there with his face revealed for all to see. "Change must come from within before it can be shown on the outside."

Khan growled, rolling around as he got back to his feet. "Wraith, switch up!"

Spectre was having a hard time with the inky shadow-ninja. Half of his strikes landed in empty air, and the others seemed to be absorbed into the ninja's body. Wraith was just about to grab the skunk's throat when he heard Khan's call, and he quickly poured his frame down onto the ground, slithering with frightening speed towards Ruin. Spectre then found himself face-to-face with Khan.

"This is what I was trying for to begin with," Spectre muttered, and met the charging Khan head on.

Suki was having better luck with Kalli, though it was a struggle each second. The ferret was unnaturally fast, and incredibly alluring. Even in the heat of the fight the rabbit found it hard to take her eyes off of the other female's bouncing breasts. She guess that the strange feeling had something to do with how each of the other girls had been captured so quietly.

The ferret ducked under a backhanded fist from Suki, and then slipped up right against the rabbit, wrapping her arms around Suki's torso. Kalli grinned as she squeezed, trapping the bunny in a tight bearhug, crushing the air out of her lungs. As Suki gasped and struggled, Kalli licked her fangs and cooed. "Too bad I didn't get to catch you, little rabbit..."

Suki moaned as the ferret started to nuzzle between her breasts. Oh yes, she thought. This is how she caught them. She's almost bewitching.

It took all of Suki's concentration to not wrap her legs around the ferret's waist and beg to be fucked. Instead, she focused on the notion that this female had something to do with the corruption of her friend, the dark seduction of Reiko. With that thought blazing in her mind, she managed to find the strength to pry her arms free of Kalli's grasp, gaining room to breathe and quickly sneak away.

Ruin was having a better time with Wraith. The black ninja had a much harder time dodging the equally skilled Ruin, who was slowly beating the dark canine back.

"You think that removing your mask frees you from Our order," Wraith hissed in a hollow, soulless voice as he deflected one of Ruin's kicks. "You are just like Us. We have always seen it in you."

"Then you see nothing," Ruin said coolly, narrowing his glowing white eyes as he suddenly lunged forward, ramming his forehead into Wraith's. The dark ninja crumpled, a look of shock in his own glowing eyes as he went down.

Ruin turned his attention to his allies. Spectre was applying a solid beating to Khan, and Suki was just squirming free of a tight bearhug that Kalli had applied. He was about to go help the rabbit when suddenly Kalli collapsed in a heap at the feet of a startled Suki.

The air behind the fallen Kalli shimmered, and Selena came into view, holding a long bamboo pole she'd apparently broken off of one of the racks. "I...had to get...one shot in on her," she panted, and then looked at Ruin in shock. "You lost your mask."

Ruin smiled, and then turned back towards Spectre. The skunk had Khan in a choke hold, and was bringing the struggling tiger around to face Ruin.

"What should we do with them?" Spectre asked, grunting as he held onto Khan; the tiger was starting to ease in his struggling as he saw he was now the last one standing.

"Eye for an eye," Ruin said, nodding towards one of the racks. Khan's eyes widened, even as Rhane stood up on wobbly knees and reached for one of the cuffs on the rack she had been bound to.

"Good idea. Bring the kitten over here."

While Rhane and Spectre started to strap the raging Khan onto the rack, a weak Hitomi and Winter came up to the canine. Hitomi was smiling softly, her blindfold gone and her sightless eyes staring into space. She ran a paw over Ruin's face and nodded.

"A much better look for you," she said.

* * *

Ruin and Suki found M tied tightly to a chair, with a throbbing erection sticking up out of his lap, caged in steel rings. He was squirming hard and moaning around a ball-gag, looking less like a spy and more like a slave. Suki stifled a giggle as she approached the fox.

"Where's Reiko?" Ruin asked, looking around cautiously. Suki slipped the ball-gag out of M's mouth so he could answer.

The fox flexed his jaws a bit. "She left to get something new to torture me with, but never came back. I could hear you kids causing a ruckus from here, so apparently sound travels better than light does around this lovely place. I'm guessing she took off."

"Too bad," Suki muttered. "I was hoping I'd get my paws on her next."

"All in good time," Ruin said. "We've got the girls. Spectre got them back safely to the mortal plane. We need to alert Alexandros now."

M nodded. "You'd better hurry, then. We may already be too late."

"Agreed. Suki, stay here and help M. I'm going to inform Alexandros."

Ruin reached out a paw, and opened a rift in the air, connecting Limbo to the mortal world. He stepped through, leaving it open for Suki; he'd told her it would stay open for only a few minutes on it's own.

The rabbit turned her attention back to the bound fox, and smiled. "You look cute."

M smiled back. "Thanks. Can I look cute back amongst the living, and without the ropes?"

"Sure," Suki giggled, quickly undoing the ropes that bound the fox to the chair. The steel rings around his cock would be a trickier matter. "Let's get back first, and then we'll deal with making you presentable."

They stepped through the portal, both of them shivering as they emerged in the Meditation Pool. M stretched as he came out, relieved to be free again. Before he could plan his next move, Suki tackled him down into the warm water of the pool itself.

The fox spluttered and rolled onto his back, staring up at the rabbit. "Hey, dinner first!"

"You are dinner," she said with a grin, squeezing his balls. "That damn ferret got me all fired up, and you need to get these rings off, right? We've got time to save the world."

M had a hard time disagreeing as the lovely rabbit used the water to help her work the rings off of his erection, one by one. Her soft paws fondled and caressed him until his cock was free again, and he was laying in the water, moaning. Suki reveled in the way the male squirmed under her touch, and as she slipped her clothes off and slid herself up his naked body, she couldn't help but love how naughty she was being. As her wet pussy rubbed against his dick, Suki ran her lips over the fox's jaw line.

"Shouldn't be but a minute," she giggled, and M grunted.

"Less than that. You don't know how long I was in that chair," he said, slipping a paw over Suki's bare ass before he slapped it, and slipped his cock into her pussy.

* * *

Daichi walked silently down the corridors of the Hall of Combat. Alexandros had ordered the Hall guards to quietly and discreetly evacuate as many guests as they could, and to send word back to the other Houses of what had transpired. For the first time in the two years that Daichi had been to the Hall of Combat, everything was silent. There were no soft footsteps to be heard in any direction. He could not hear the sounds of sparring occurring in any of the practice rooms. The lounges and dining hall were quiet, lacking the sound of happy conversation and laughter. Even the common sounds of lovers and strangers engaging in various carnal acts had ceased.

All he could hear was his own breathing, and his own footsteps. Even Alexandros, who walked beside him, made no sounds. He had never noticed this until now. In way, it comforted him, as it was a slightly supernatural effect that reinforced the notion that Alexandros, who he had learned much from, was here on behalf of the Gods. The Gods were with him.

They made their way through the Hall, and into the secret center of the complex. From here a long corridor led to the quiet courtyard that preceded the Throne Room. Normally there would be many guards here, as well as the Grandmaster's favorite guests, enjoying the serene beauty of the regal surroundings.

Now, however, there was nothing. Just the sound of the wind blowing and the bubbling of the small creek that cut the courtyard in half. Daichi stopped for a moment on the footbridge that crossed the creek, looking at the water.

"I had hoped they would save the girls," he said to no one in particular.

"They will," Alexandros said, looking at the fox. "Just not in time to save us this task. Don't well on that now, however. Trust your friends to perform their task, as they are trusting you to perform yours."

Daichi nodded and looked ahead at the large wooden doors that led from the courtyard into the Throne Room. He had never realized how large and ominous they were.

* * *

Ruin rushed down the corridors of the Hall, making his way for the sparring room where Alexandros had said he and Daichi would be. The canine knew that they were out of time now, but he'd hoped to catch Alexandros and Daichi. Hoped that luck would be on his side and he would catch the two in the corridor, and tell them that Adonis no longer had a bargaining chip, and that Alexandros would be free to call down whatever wrath he commanded on the dragon and avoid what was sure to be disaster.

Instead, he found the sparring room empty. He dashed out, heading towards the center of the Hall, towards the Throne Room. One last chance, one last chance to set things right...

Ruin nearly crashed into the doors that led into the corridor that would then lead into the courtyard; he nearly crashed because the doors were locked tight. His breath came in pained, ragged gasps as he leaned against the door in despair, banging on it once.

They were too late. Everything now rested in the paws of Daichi.

~END~

Story (c) 2006 F.J. Emerson.

Carnal Combat and Carnalities are (c) 2006 F.J. Emerson, unless Ed Boon or Midway call up and yell at me.

All characters are created and owned by F.J. Emerson.

Special Thanks: Setta Flamowitz (for creative input), Christin (for support), and everyone else who has been consistently reading this drivel!

CARNAL COMBAT!