Chapter 1
At the end of the day, all we can do is our best.
He awoke in complete darkness. Not a single glimmer of light. It smelt like damp stone, and felt just like it too. A cave…
He rose to trembling feet. The pressure against his throat and the clanking of metal broke through his foggy consciousness . His claws shot up to find a smooth band of metal encircling his neck. Quite snugly at that…
Still groggy and not yet panicked, Ximiao ran his claws over the collar. There had to be a way to remove it. Toward the back, a little to one side, a ring was felt. A chain was attached to it. He turned the collar so the ring was at the front. With frantic talons, he followed the chain's length. Two steps between the ring on the wall and the one on the collar. He tugged at it; tentative, then harder; the chain did not budge.
Ximiao let go of the chain and tentatively traced the wall. Lines. Squares. A brick wall. The ground…it was smooth. No loose rocks, no hard bridges, no sharp cuts. He sniffed the air, ears completely perked up. It stank of mammals…
The dog. He had done this. Broke the truce to have Bagual.
The rage was intense, yet the chain resisted all the frenzied pulling and biting; the wall remained impassive to all the kicking and punching; and the howlering didn't even make an echo. The only productive thing accomplished was the realization that they had cut off his claws. He had smooth little nubs at the end of each thick finger.
In sudden terror, he took the mauled talons to his head. They had also sawed off his horns!!! As if he was some low-class scavenger.
And then it hit him. The magic!! It was gone! Each time he tried to fare it up, it bristled away. Like sand between her talons.
He sat down, feathers bristled, a low hissy growl rumbling on his long neck. The dog was mad.Ximiao was a beloved warrior of the tribe, a valuable member of one of the oldest clans. He had the protection of the most important member of the Council. They would search for him; all of Mextli would wash through the canine army like fire through a dry field.
Ximiao flinched violently when the sound of metal on metal resounded in the darkness.
Rage disappeared, overcome by the instincts of a hard trained warrior. Feathers bristled, teeth bared, the crouched dragon faced the source of the noise.
Light blazed through the darkness. Ximiao recoiled with a shriek of pain, hands flying up to protect his eyes. Blinded, he relied on his nose and ears. Heavy steps…and the stench of a dog. A guttural growl rumbled on his throat.
“You're finally awake. I've been waiting a while."
“Karma!"Ximiao snarled. “You stupid dog! You'll unleash the war! We had a truce!"
“Speak Canid. As my inferior, you will speak a civilized tongue."
“...oh, you really lost your fucking mind…"
“Not quite. The Council has surrendered you to me, Ximiao. By the Laws of both of our people, you are my slave now."
Ximiao barked out a laugh, tail lashing and cracking like a whip.
“Why would they do that?! I did nothing wrong, and you're a dog. And the most pathetic one too!"
His eyes squinted against the blaring light. Eyes so lovely sculpted by nature to thrive in the darkness strained to adapt to the jarring change. But he endured the pain. Despite the defiance blazing in his heart, fear was gripping. Lies or not, Karma had a lot of reasons to want to hurt him, and he was helpless.
“...stop that. I'll wait…"
Ximiao closed his eyes, and forced himself to calm down. In time, he could bear the light, and was able to see his captor. The sight was shocking, and for a moment, he doubted this was the right dog.
Karma was a soft ridiculous creature. Chunky, flabby, and lazy, he would spend his days reading and writing under the shade of the trees. He hid under the ridiculous garments city mammals wore; thick, clunky and colorful. Even the way he walked, the way he would look at others, all spoke of an unthreatening nothing. A meal, if not for the protection of others…
But this dog looked down at him, his back straight, legs spread in a firm stance. He was still fat, but not flabby. A piece of leather covered his shoulders and the sides of his barrelled pecs, cinched firm against the skin by a thick leather strap below them. Heavy gloves covered his hands, and glistening boots encased his feet. Thick pants covered his legs, but there was a wide cut that left the inner thighs exposed. The dark leather contrasted with the light tanned color of Karma's short fur in a very appealing way…
Ximiao's ears perked up in his curiosity as his eyes approached the dog's crotch. They flopped down in disappointment. Karma's junk was protected by a leather pouch that hugged the bundle tightly. Mammals were degenerates,and if that cock was hard, then Ximiao would have a reason for why this was happening.
Ximiao looked up. Karma's dumb face was hardened in an expression so reminiscent of veteran mextli warriors that all defiance melted from his very bones. His feathers settled, and he flattened against the wall, ears flopped down, tail curled against his body. Maybe..this wasn't Karma. Maybe the Council was pissed and they were messing with him.
He looked at the source of the light. A rectangle…a door. There was another room outside.
Karma stepped into his camp of sight. Ximiao did not look up.
“Now then. On your feet." Even the way he spoke was all wrong. “Face the wall and put your hands behind your back."
Ximiao shivered, trying to grab onto logic. But when Karma stomped forward, threatening bulk looming over him, survival instincts took over. With blinding speed, the dragon's tail lashed out. The dog jumped out of its way, and lunged forward. He was slow, and the dragon darted away.
The chain clanked noisily as it jerked Ximiao to an abrupt stop. Winded and on his back, the dragon thrashed like a panicked cat. Without his claws and superior speed, however, it was all for nothing. Karma dropped his bulk onto him. Winded, he was flipped onto his stomach, and his snout- razor sharp teeth the only defense left-was seized in an unforgiving grip and pulled back.
Neck in a taunt arc and body pinned by a suffocating weight, Ximiao tapped the ground frantically to surrender. Karma didn't let go, but didn't cause him further pain either. He was sliding something over his muzzle. It was a leather pouch. A muzzle!
Ximiao groaned as his head was allowed to drop down. He tried opening his snout, but it was firmly held shut. Reflectively, the dragon tried to go for his face, to free himself from the offending item, but his wrists were seized, and his arms were twisted to his back. Ximiao felt them being bound. As Karma got up, the whimpering dragon assumed it was over.
The dog sat down on his back again. Ximiao grunted and squirmed when Karma's powerful thighs pressed firmly against his body, the boots now resting against his lithe shoulders. Karma was binding his legs together.
Ximiao's tail was still mostly free. It waved belligerent in the air…But it would not strike….It was over. Karma had won, and all Ximiao could do was lay down and wait until the dog decided to leave him alone.
“You're a smart beast.." Karma said. Ximiao hissed, feeling restraints being wrapped around his ankles. The dog got off of him, but didn't let go of his feet. “The quicker you accept me as your better, the sooner we can get to the nice side of things."
Ximiao squirmed on the ground as Karma continued to touch him. He was threading rope underneath his arms and tying them tighter together . He wanted to protest; he couldn't move already, what was the point of more restraints. But Karma ignored him and tightened the ropes until his arms were quite taunt. Ximiao felt another thug on his legs, felt Karma's hands on his feet, and then, finally, the dog moved away.
Then he realized: he had finished his work by tying his feet to his arms. He couldn't lower his legs…he was stock laying on his stomach.
Afraid and humiliated, Ximiao turned his head to face the wall, whimpering in his misery.
“This is called a hog-tie, Ximiao. And I need you to understand how much worse I can make it." The dragon's heart skipped a bit. Karma's voice had faltered! Mercy and hesitation….this was not some sick twisted trick from the Council. A mextli warrior would have made it much worse and laughed about it. He turned his head and looked up at the dog towering over him. Karma was blushing… “Ahem…I'll give you the evening to digest the situation. I expect to be met with proper respect tomorrow morning."
The dog turned and walked to the opened door. It was gently closed, and Ximiao found himself alone in the dark again. Confused and bound…but hopeful. Karma was still just a dumb dog. Whatever this was, would end soon.
************
Karma's façade dropped as soon as the door was closed. Sliding down to the floor, he covered his blushing face in shame. It had been frighteningly easy to act like a thug. And arousing too. His cock hurt. It was hard, straining painfully against the tight leather pouch that contained it. Had he not been such a disciplined creature, it would be out already, getting rubbed out of its agony.
"What did you do."
The horrid sizzling voice sobered him up instantly. The squashed erection forgotten, Karma jumped back to his feet and swallowed the lump on his throat. The dragon's presence felt like a frigid breeze and the stench of blood it carried never failed to make his nostrils flare. Karma was careful to not even glance Shilao's way.
“What we said I would. Ximiao knows now what's to be."
“Good dog. Go home. Sleep."
He refrained from airing any concerns about Ximiao being left bound and unattended all night. One could not ask questions to a dragon elder, not even one as “lenient" as Shilao. All Karma could do was bow his respects and hurry to obey.
Outside, the sun neared the horizon. Not a single cloud in the darkening sky. The lands surrounding the house were vast and as green as grass could be. All the way to the mountains, swallowed then by forests and snow. A gentle tepid breeze blew, carrying the scent of flowers. Birds sang the last merry notes of the day.
Karma was offended by such serene beauty. The rational world was in peril, and nature couldn't care less.
“Bork! Bork!"
Dogee ran towards him across the meadow, barking all the way in that weird way of hers. The 80 pound feral stopped two steps from Karma, the nub she had for a tail waving frantically and her round butt swinging as the beast hopped from side to side. Such was her happiness that all of her had to express it.
“You silly monster of a dog, you." Karma said, kneeling to hug the mighty beast. Dogee melted on his arms, starved for affection. “You should stay home when I come here. Shilao's in there. I don't know if she would eat you."
The mere thought sent a shiver up his spine, and Karma glanced back at the house before hurrying away towards the small barn.
The House. It had been built as a safe place to conduct his experiments, 6 Km away from Freedom Town. It would be annoying to have to ride back and forth-with all the imposed risks of such a trip in these wild lands- but Bagual would not be able to move in with them for a few weeks, and the thought of being apart for so long was physically painful.
As was the massive hard-on still nestled on the crotch-pouch. There was no-one around, but Karma still felt the need to be inside the barn before releasing his throbbing member. Alone now with Dogee and a feral horse, he jacked off, the memory of Ximiao's shy gazes and pained whimpers haunting his mind.