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Order of the Black Foot Chapter 2: Recruiting the Ice Mage For Blusky and Teryx By Draconicon

The rain dragon appeared in the middle of the encampment without issue, something he never thought he'd be able to say. Teleportation was so much easier when he was able to tap into the power of other, inactive mages.

But he had little time to think on that. The naked, dazed bear he carried was his immediate concern, and he dragged him through trampled earth towards one of the biggest tents in the encampment. If Draconicon wasn't there, Teryx was pretty sure that whoever was could tell him where to find the big black dragon.

As he dragged the bear along, he couldn't stop thinking of what had just happened. Possession in and of itself was difficult, but the way that it had happened in isolation...and what it had made him do...

You weren't in charge. You didn't rape the paladin, he told himself, even though just thinking about it sent a chill down his spine. He'd been helpless to stop it, wrapped in the pleasure that his body was experiencing, his mind shutting down to keep from thinking about it at the time. And now, as a result...

He glanced down at the bear. The paladin looked completely out of it, as though he had been dosed with some sort of drug, or hit with a confusion spell. There was so little coherence...

Draconicon had to know. Draconicon had to know what had happened, and what he could do to keep it away in the future.

Teryx grunted as he pulled the naked paladin into the tent with him, and sighed in relief at the sight of the near-naked black dragon and his ever-present assistant. The lynx female turned in confusion, while Draconicon seemed to smile.

"Ah, he's dealt with, then?"

"Dealt with? More like -"

"As long as he's ready for questioning, we can move on."

"Will you just -"

"I'm not going to question any methods that you might have used. There are few lines that we have to worry about crossing with the paladins, at this point. There's too many that they have already -"

"Just shut up and listen to me for two seconds!"

The tent went quiet, with only the sound of Teryx's nervous panting to be heard. Both the dragon and the feline were shocked to silence, and he realized just how loud he'd been.

Teryx took a couple of deep breaths, suddenly very conscious of the footprint on his chest, of how much trouble he could be in if he didn't tread carefully. The master of the Order could easily take control and make him do something remarkably unpleasant, if he didn't take care to be respectful. He bowed his head.

"I'm sorry, but...but there's something you should know."

"...Fair enough. I'm listening."

"Something happened while I was talking to the paladin. Something...entered me."

"A possession?"

"Something like that, and I know it wasn't you."

He didn't miss the shared look between the dragon and the feline. Their eyes widened slightly, and he swore that Hanna started to open her mouth, muttering something before Draconicon held up his hand.

"Describe it."

"It was...pure hate. It loathed everything about the paladins, and wanted to hurt them. Wanted to hurt the one I had as much as it could. It..."

He shuddered.

"It made me rape him. And...And it made me like it."

But did it? Did it actually make him like it? Or was that something that he enjoyed on his own? Of course he hadn't...right?

"What was it, Draconicon? What...what was it that made me do that?"

"Something that I hadn't expected."

"Please, I don't need vagueness right now. Can't you just -"

"It could be several things, Teryx, but right now, I can't be sure just which one it is. For now, we have other things to talk about. But I can tell you this. Whatever did control you won't be showing itself again for a while. There's something that it will be more focused on, for now. Trust me on that?"

He wasn't sure that he could. The answer was almost worthless, without some more information. If it was a simple spirit, then he could start putting up some defenses. If it was a result of the mark on his chest, then he deserved to know the risks. It was too dangerous a thing to go without information...

But Teryx bit back his questions. His gut told him that he had already gotten all that he would get out of the dragon, and he didn't want to push. No need to rock the boat just yet...and he had the feeling that Draconicon was being honest with him.

"For now."

"That's all I ask."

The black dragon waved him over. Letting Hanna take the bear from him, Teryx joined the black dragon at the table. The map of the Theocracy was spread out before them, and he let his attention be drawn to the desert along the southern border. A particular oasis was circled, and he cocked his head to the side.

"What's out there, besides sand?"

"A surprisingly powerful mage."

He blinked.

"How do you know?"

"Because I sent two people down to try and recruit him, and they came back almost as battered as if they'd run into paladins."

Teryx whistled. The mages in the Order were some of the more powerful in the world, considering their ability to draw on the energies of others in the group. It gave them abilities to cast spells that normally required an entire group of mages to cast, and it made them quite capable of handling themselves in most situations.

Draconicon passed him a small roll of parchment, and the rain dragon unrolled it, reading through it. There wasn't much in the way of information. Then again, considering how large the desert was, and how hostile this mage seemed to be, he was surprised that they had anything at all.

Ice mage, sergal species, formerly from one of the mountain ranges in the Empire...Odd to have an ice mage in the desert...

He put it down after getting some of the estimates on strength. A quick glance at the map told him that the location was a few thousand miles off, well past any sort of normal travel arrangements. It looked like he would be teleporting again.

"I don't suppose you can tell me why I'm going on this trip, and not you?"

"Besides the fact that I'm the leader of the whole Order, need to organize everyone, and have another four meetings I have to do over the next hour alone?"

"...Really?"

"Yes. It might not look like it, but I'm dealing with more agents, more runaway mages, and more barely-controlled rogues than most of the big cities do in a year. So, do you really want me to take a day off and go and do this for you?"

Teryx slowly shook his head. After all, the Order was the only thing that was giving the Theocracy any sort of real threat at the moment. It was the nightmare of paladins, and he remembered how the holy warriors had been quaking in their boots when they realized that Draconicon was around. If he was really organizing them that much, then it was better to let him do what he did best.

"All the same...why me?"

"Because you are gentler than most of us."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, look where he is."

The dragon tapped the desert.

"Do you see any settlements anywhere near him? Do you see anything where people could come to see him? It's even well away from any of the trade routes that run through the desert. There's no chance that anyone could ever come to see him. This mage is terrified, and he's trying to stay away from everyone else around him."

"Maybe he's just a hermit."

"It's possible, but even then, someone that looks softer and nicer will get a better greeting than someone like me, or even Hanna. Would you want to let us in if we came banging on your door?"

Glancing over the dragon, from his head down to his toes, Teryx admitted that he had a point. Big and imposing, with white eyes that looked like they'd rip your soul out of your body if they stared at you for too long, Draconicon looked more like the sort you'd bar your door against.

"Alright...I'll get going."

"Excellent. Try and get him back here as soon as you can. I'd love to get him properly recruited by tomorrow, if I can."

"Recruited, like...marked?"

"It's a requirement, Teryx. For everyone."

"Can you really not trust anyone? If he's so powerful, he doesn't need the boost. Can't you just -"

"There's reasons. You have your assignment, now go."

This just wasn't his day when it came to getting answers. Shaking his head, the rain dragon gathered his magic, and pulled the teleportation spell together. It wrapped around him in a flash of light, and in a split second, he was gone.

The sand crunched under his feet as he arrived, and immediately he started sweating. The heat back at the camp wasn't exactly mild, but this was taking it to a whole new level of severity. Groaning, the rain dragon shaded himself with a hand and cast his eyes about, looking for the oasis.

On the plus side, it didn't take very long to spot. On the minus side, it was further away than he'd like, at least a mile off in the sand. He grumbled under his breath at where the teleport spell had dropped him off, shaking his head as he started walking. As much as he wanted to teleport the remaining distance, he didn't want to waste too much energy. That, and he knew that a sudden teleportation would startle just about anyone. If this sergal was as jumpy as he sounded, better not to surprise him.

It didn't take long for the sand to start burning at his soles. Even as a dragon, the heat was incredible, and he started to move a little faster, picking up his legs and almost running through the sand. His breath came fast and hard as he ran through the little hills that the sand had made of itself over the years, and he knew he was going to be exhausted by the time he got there.

But at least the oasis will be cool.

After a few minutes, crested the hill between him and the geyser of the oasis, and even though his feet felt like they were burning up, he paused, staring down at it.

It wasn't a geyser, he realized. The water of the oasis had been lifted upwards, and then frozen, creating a pillar of ice that stood firm against the overbearing heat of the desert. A pool of clear water puddled around the rest of it, looking like a shallow lake that bore the pillar aloft. Various windows were carved out of the ice, and through one of them, Teryx thought he saw a sign of movement. It was too quick to be sure, though.

He stared at the ice, marveling at the way that it actually seemed to avoid melting. There were no channels of water dug through the sides, no signs of it shrinking or coming apart under the sun.

Even more impressive were the small spikes of ice that were left on the ground, shredding through one section of sand. That must have been the engagement between the sergal and those mages that Draconicon had sent before, judging by the bits of blood on the tips of the ice spikes.

He shuddered as he realized just what must have happened. With the ice mage up in the tower, he had a perfect view of anyone on the ground. If he could summon icicles upwards like that, from the hot sand, it'd be like a minefield. A very spiky, very painful minefield...

This guy's got a lot of strength, alright.

Shaking his head, Teryx descended the hill, waving his arms back and forth. Let the mage see him, make it clear that he wasn't trying to sneak up on him. Better for him, and better for the guy inside.

He made it to the bottom of the hill without incident, and he walked towards the edge of the water pool. Teryx hesitated, then stepped into it.

"Fffffffff-"

Even in his time in the villages, he'd never felt water that cold. The rain dragon forced himself to take another step, then another, submerging his feet in the near-frozen water. The mud beneath was thick, and almost swallowed his feet up. Only a small spell over the water kept him from getting drawn into it like quicksand.

That was close enough, he imagined. Holding his hands over his mouth, he called out.

"Excuse me? Excuse me, I'd like to come in and talk to you!"

Teryx felt the slight tingle of magic an instant before the spell was completed, but that was enough. He leaped back just as an ice spike shot up where he'd been standing only a moment before. A dozen more followed, chasing him out of the water and back onto the sand. Which, after being in the water already, burned like hell.

"Please! I don't want to hurt you! I'm just here to talk, I promise. I heard that there was something very, very strong here, and I wanted to see what you were like."

This time, there was no response. Momentarily, he considered using some of his magic to open up a door in the pillar of ice, but he squelched that thought. Not only would it be seen as an attack, but it might not work. Even with his own power over water, this mage had managed to create a pillar strong enough to stand in the desert sun. Who knew how powerful he actually was?

Suddenly, the mark on his chest heated up - warm even under the desert sun - and he heard the voice of his master in his head.

_Is there a problem here? I thought that you would be talking to him already.

And I thought that you had a meeting.

It was finished quicker than I thought. Surplus of time. Do you need some extra power to get through?

No, but...Do you have a spell that actually seeks out life? That lets me see where someone is?

Of course. Ah, hoping to see where he's hiding in the pillar, hmm?

If you don't mind.

Not at all. Here; this knowledge should help you._

The mark glowed again, and Terxy groaned as the incantation and gesture for the spell suddenly appeared in his mind. It wasn't painful, but it was slightly uncomfortable, feeling someone reaching that deep in him without any real warning.

Still, it was precisely what he wanted. Keeping his gestures minute, he cast the spell, and immediately a small glow appeared, just to the side of one of the upper windows. The other mage knew he was here, alright, and was listening.

"I'm going to come in, alright? Just say something if it's not okay."

As expected, yet another lack of response. Teryx smiled; perhaps the shyness was working in his favor. He started walking through the muck and mud, making his way through the cold water towards one of the carved openings at the bottom of the pillar.

It was then that he ran into an unexpected obstacle.

As soon as he stepped into the doorway, his breath just about shot out of his lungs. The sheer cold of the pillar left him chattering, shivering, everything shaking as if he was on the verge of collapse.

"S-s-so...cold..."

He forced himself to stand upright, pulling on as much of his magic as he could to get some warmth back. Adapting water to steam wasn't the easiest thing for him, but he managed it. Even though he had to use some of the linked power with the other mages to do it, he turned a little bit of the floor into steam, making it rush up around him and keep some of the cold at bay.

Still, Teryx knew that he didn't have much time. A rain dragon like him was used to the warm and wet, not the frigid and frozen. He took a few steps, already feeling the drain of energy from keeping the spell up, and the cold that was just outside of it, too strong to be completely kept at bay.

The rain dragon ran through the hallways, his breath coming in pants as he searched the bottom floor. He wanted more than anything to keep using the life-search spell, but there was no way that he could keep the heat spell and that one going at the same time. Keeping enough warmth around him to keep thinking was taking up almost all of his strength.

And even that was fading. He could feel it, the magical flow getting harder and harder to maintain as he ran from room to room. And the pillar was huge; it had to be eight stories tall or higher, and if each floor had the same dozen rooms or more as the bottom floor...

He slumped down on the stairs, halfway between the first and second floor, the steam fading away. The spell slipped between his fingers as he fumbled to keep it going, then went out. The steam was gone, and the cold returned, leaving his teeth chattering and his scales rapidly frosting over.

_M-master...

I'm here, Teryx._

He felt the footprint on his chest burn again, the pressure of someone else's magic pouring through him. The heat ran over his scales, making him gasp as feeling was returned in fits and bursts.

As his body started waking up again, he felt a spirit slipping into him, sliding down his arms and legs like someone putting on some clothes. Draconicon, he realized; the dragon was taking charge. He surrendered, desperate to be away from the cold as the other dragon put him on.

Soon, he was walking further into the ice pillar, making his way down a tunnel. The walls were smooth, but not reflective, as he half-expected. They were a deep blue, though, rather beautiful in their own way.

The only reflection they actually gave were of the darkened footprint on his chest and the goo that he wore around his waist, keeping his body from being completely exposed. Those bobbed along on the walls as though they were disembodied items, floating on their own. In his barely awake state, Teryx found that rather amusing.

As Draconicon walked him down the corridor, feeding his body magic and warmth, Teryx slowly woke up again. He could feel his fingers and toes after about ten minutes, and after twenty - as they started ascending a large staircase - he could feel everything again.

Most importantly, he could think.

_Master, I think I can take control again.

I can tell that, physically. Do you think that you can handle the spell and keep your attention on this other mage?

I'm pretty sure I can. And I think I know how to handle him.

Don't start a battle here. I don't know how much help I can give you, considering the distance.

It won't come to that. I hope.

Alright._

And as suddenly as Draconicon had come, the spirit slipped out of him again. Teryx almost collapsed as he hurriedly got hold of his body again, grabbing the wall to keep from falling over.

"Gaaaaah, so cold..."

He pulled his hand back quickly. Even with the warming spell, he could still feel the chill in the air, but at least it was only unpleasant. It was no longer debilitating.

Shaking his head, he glanced this way and that, looking for the signature glow of another person's life. Soon enough, he found it. It was high above him, only visible with its size because of the way the glow stood out against the blue ice. He smiled, and continued climbing the stairs.

#

Two hours later...

Teryx leaned against the wall, shaking his head as he pumped some of his last bits of energy into the warming spell. It was getting harder and harder to stay awake in the consistent cold, and even now, he was fighting sleep. He knew that if he gave in, he'd slumber in the ice until it took his life away, and it'd be his own stupid fault.

But he was close now. Very close. The ice mage was in the next room, and there wasn't even a door. It was open, just waiting for him.

Now, if he could just not screw up.

Gathering his wits and his strength, Teryx walked through the archway into the room, tapping on the wall as he did. The sergal at the window - dressed in little more than his fur - whipped his head around, and magic energy started gathering around his fingers. Not in anger, but in fear; his face was twisted in terror. The rain dragon lifted his hand.

"Wait, wait, I'm not here to hurt you."

"Everyone wants to hurt me. They always want to hurt mages."

"I'm a mage, too!"

The sergal hesitated, and Teryx took that moment to hold out his hand. Rather than fire, the usual trick, he summoned light. Light, spinning in a little circle over his palm, before bouncing between his fingertips.

He dismissed it quickly, already feeling it eat through his limited reserves, but it seemed to be enough. The sergal slowly let his own spell fade.

"I...What are you doing here? How did you know -"

He touched the footprint on his chest, but surprisingly (or not so surprisingly) the sergal frowned.

"You're with...them?"

"They saved me."

"They know where...where I am?"

He nodded.

"They sent you?"

He nodded again.

"Why?"

"Because the head of the Order wants you. He knows you're strong, and he thinks that you could help him a lot. Help us a lot."

The sergal shook his head, the magic coming back to his hand. Teryx winced, realizing that he'd taken the wrong tack. If he didn't come up with something good soon, then he'd be a living icicle. For a little while, at least.

"Wait, wait. What's wrong? I mean, I know there are lots of stories about the Order -"

"They hate. They want to kill. I just want to be left alone."

"Well..."

That was true enough, he supposed. He couldn't deny that there was a lot of hate with the Order, a lot of anger towards the paladins and their Church. But there were reasons.

He took a step forward, only for the sergal to hold up both hands. They swirled with the magic of winter winds, of ice and cold. He stopped in place. What could he say? What could he do to...Wait...It was a slim chance, but -

"Do you really want to be alone?"

The ice mage paused. An opening, and he took it.

"Do you want to be out here, all alone, where nobody can ever see you? This place..."

He gestured to the blue walls, a blue that he had never seen in any other place, a beauty that was impossible for anyone else.

"This beautiful place...Do you want to be here alone for the rest of your life? Do you want to never let someone else see how much you can do? How much...how much amazing things you can do?"

"A-amazing?"

Teryx would have smiled at the sergal's blush at any other time. At that point, however, he was more focused on staying a dragon instead of an ice sculpture. Nodding, he slowly took a step forward, continuing.

"Yes. I've never seen anyone do things with ice like this. It's hard enough to hold it together in the middle of a wintery place, but here, in the middle of the desert? This is true skill. And you've made it so beautiful; the corridors are soft and welcoming, rather than cold and oppressing. The color is so calming, so...so serene. It's pure peace."

"I...I just did...what felt good."

"And you did it so well."

Flattery. True flattery, admittedly, but it was obviously something that the sergal had never had. The rain dragon smiled as he took another step as the ice mage's hands dropped, offering his hand.

"If you stay out here, all on your own, you'll never see any danger, yes. But you'll never have someone appreciate your skill. You are too good, too amazing, to stay out here where no one will see your work."

The blush was spreading, and Teryx congratulated himself. He'd found a way to get this man to not want to freeze him, at least.

Still, the sergal didn't look happy as he glanced at the footprint again.

"Why...why is someone like you...helping them?"

Why, indeed? he thought to himself. He was being forced, that much was true. He hadn't wanted to join, and he still didn't want to have himself controlled. Even if he...if he somewhat enjoyed it. There were true points to Draconicon's Order of the Black Foot, admittedly, even if he was more violent than Teryx would have liked.

But now he was trying to pull others in. Trying to get other people to serve the Order, when he himself didn't want to. Why?

It came to him.

"Because I can't do nothing."

Teryx shook his head, slowly taking the sergal's hand. It was soft and fuzzy, warmer than anything else in the room. It felt nice.

"I don't want to fight. I want to be left alone, too. I want to just go somewhere and play with my magic, and live normally.

"But the Church won't let me. If it finds me, it'll kill me. If I try and live normally, I'll always remember what I used to have. If I try to leave the Theocracy, then they'll either catch me at the border and kill me, or I'll have to serve in one of the other countries in the way they want.

"The Church won't let us just do nothing. We can't forget who we are...so we have to fight, even if we don't want to."

He was figuring it out as he went along, puzzling out his own feelings even as he tried to tell them to the other mage. It wasn't right, to have to choose between two things that he didn't want to do, but when it came down to it, fighting to live how he wanted was better than the alternatives.

He squeezed the sergal's paw.

"Will you come with me? I don't want you to be alone out here."

"Will...will I stay with you?"

Teryx paused, thinking about it. He didn't have much in the way of clout with the dragon back at the encampment, but for this and the paladin...well...

"I'll try and arrange it. I think Draconicon will let me make that happen."

"...Alright..."

The sergal squeezed his paw this time, giving him a small smile.

"I...I'll come with you. But...just with you, okay?"

"Okay."

Please don't turn me into a liar, Draconicon. This guy doesn't deserve that, he thought as he pulled the magic together, wrapping it around the both of them. He had to draw on so much through the link, and he shivered as he realized just how tired he was.

Teryx waited outside the tent as the marking ceremony went on. As much as Halley - the sergal mage - had wanted him to stay around, he knew better than to intrude on that. Being sealed to the Order of the Black Foot was something that should stay private, something that you kept with you for the rest of your life.

Still, he couldn't help but blush a bit as he heard the moans from inside the tent. He imagined Draconicon's large foot pressing down on Halley's crotch and then over his chest, leaving the goo behind that would mark him as part of the Order. His own cock twitched at the thought, and he had to force himself to ignore it, to wait as if things were completely normal.

That was easier said than done, as the initiation went on and on. It must have been ten minutes or less, but it felt like much longer before the sergal stepped out of the tent again.

Teryx smiled at him, pulling him into a gentle hug before looking him over. The ice mage had a footprint on his chest, the same as him and Hanna. It was the mark of an officer or a mage in the Order, someone that was higher up than the foot soldiers that were marked on the belly, or the grunts that were marked on their crotch directly.

The sergal had more clothing now than he had had before, his crotch covered in the same black goo. His sheath was swallowed up in it, but it was skintight enough to show through the layering, and his sac was even more obvious. Without the fur in the way, it looked rather...plump, large enough that Teryx wondered how he had managed to miss it in the ice pillar.

Draconicon stepped out a minute later, chuckling.

"He told me that you promised that he'd stay with you."

"I did make that promise, yes."

"Water and ice. A promising sort of combination. I see no harm in it."

The rain dragon let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. At least he wasn't going to be made a liar...and maybe he could protect Halley from the worst of things. He didn't know why, but he felt like he should.

"The two of you will be busy for a while, though. Do you think you can masquerade as a couple?"

"What?"

"W-what?"

The two of them stared at the dragon, their faces getting redder and redder as he started describing his plan. Teryx groaned. What had he gotten them into this time?

The End