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The Sins We Carry

Entry 5: Avarice

From where we last left off, Solrent and Rex were on their way to target the next brother. Along the way, they met a kobold bard named Mr. Strings who accompanied them into the catacombs. Initially, Solrent found him to be distrustful, since Rex had admiration for him. Solrent saw some visions that foretold him what Rex and Strings would do in the future, but realized that these were purposefully set off by Emmerette with his hidden power. Still, the trio were able to defeat him, secure the gem, and now they are heading back to town.

"We finally made it back to town, guys. This has been one heck of a journey thus far, and a lot of turmoil on us. But, Mr. Strings, are you sure you are ok? You did take that arrow pretty bad."

"Mr. Strings is alright Mr. Solrent, the magical spells that he knows helped him heal enough, but mayhaps the spells that Mr. Strings has access to right now needs to be recovered."

"Yeah, I agree with you Mr. Strings. I know with my spells, I too have to recover all of my expanded spell slots as well. But you have access to such a variety of spells, I just wish I was a bard like you."

"No, no Mr. Rex. You are unique in your own way as well. Mr. Strings loves the knowledge and journey he has, and you are the master of your art. Be proud of the type of bard you are, and relish in the idea that no one else can be like you."

"Aww, thank you Mr. Strings, you are making me blush."

Solrent chuckled and shook his head. "Okay guys, you two can check in for us back at the guild and continue your conversation."

Rex tilted his head, "Hmm? Where are you going then Sol?"

"I want to talk with Athena. A lot of stuff happened in those catacombs, as you both can tell. I think I just need to clear my mind again, like what happened with Rubrum. I think Athena can help me with that. And besides, just being there makes me feel very calm."

"Oh alright then Sol, hopefully Athena can help you with that. So then, Mr. Strings, are you ready to go?"

"Actually, Mr. Solrent, Mr. Rex." Mr. Strings gave a bow to the two. "This is where Mr. Strings will take his leave."

"Oh what? You're leaving us already, Strings? But there was so much more I wanted to talk with you about."

"Mr. Strings appreciates that, but you two have helped him so much already and do not want to hinder you two on your journey anymore. But do not fret Mr. Rex, this will be Mr. Strings' checkpoint from time to time. You two work for the guild, so Mr. Strings will let them know that if you two are here and so is he, then we can always have a nice chat with each other."

"I understand, I'm going to miss you Mr. Strings." Rex hugged Mr. Strings tightly.

"Same here you little lizard, going to miss you too." Solrent reached down and patted Mr. Strings' head.

"Thank you two, and for now, Mr. Strings will be on his way." Strings started walking off into the town, heading towards the merchant district, waving goodbye and then singing a melodic tune with his lute.

With Mr. Strings now no longer a part of the party, Solrent and Rex started heading to the church. Once they arrived, they saw Athena tending to the garden out front. They waved to her, in which she smiled and waved back. Rex looked over at Solrent and informed him that he will meet him back at the guild when he is finished with her. Rex will report the events that occurred to Faladiel and see if he has any new leads on the next brother.

"Ok Sol, I'll leave you be with Athena then. Let me know if you find anything else new. I want to be sure you are ok."

Solrent scratched his head, juggling the two stones in his pocket as they pulsed with life. The feelings of desire and jealousy waved through him momentarily, but he took a deep breath and smiled. "I should be. For some odd reason, I feel like Rubrum, and hopefully Emmerette, actually want to help us now. At least, that is what I tell myself."

"I know what you mean Sol. When we were in that cave, I had an overwhelming amount of anger towards Emmerette, and I have a feeling that may be Spessart feeding into me. But I felt empowered with his help, so that should not be bad, right?"

"Maybe we should talk to Top about this, if we ever meet him again."

"Yeah, he will be tough to find. He was super cryptic in trying to find him. Oh well, I'll head over to Athena now, she looks to be impatiently waiting for me to come over. I'll see you later then, Rex."

"See you Sol, good luck." Rex quickly hugged Solrent before he headed towards the direction of the guild.

Solrent walked over to Athena and informed her of the previous experience he had. He explained to her the events that unfolded in the catacombs, the visions he saw with Rex and Mr. Strings, and what he felt when he defeated Emmerette. And now, with two of the gemstones in his possession, he has a weird feeling in his stomach.

"So you see Athena, I was hoping you could help me understand more about why these things happened to me."

Athena closed her eyes, rubbing her forehead in deep thought as she tried to analyze what was just told to her. "Can you go over it again? At least a summary of the events. I will try my best to give you insight about it."

"Of course Athena. It started with the first incident with Rubrum. Even though I was under the control of Rubrum, I honestly enjoyed the stuff that my body did to Rex. Mainly because of the strong feelings I have for him. I want to be more than just friends with him, Athena. I just have a strong desire to just be with him."

"Hmm...I see...keep going then Solrent."

"Then, with what occurred in the catacombs, I had visions of Rex and Mr. Strings being very intimate with each other. I had these overwhelming feelings of jealousy, like I wanted to be in Strings position and have Rex do those stuff with me instead."

Athena nodded her head, drawing a conclusion of what Solrent described to her. "I understand that it is normal to have these feelings for Rex. I mean, you guys have been partners for quite some time, and it is only natural for you to want to be close with Rex. You are afraid that you may be invading his boundaries and do not want him to be upset with you."

"Yeah, that sounds about right Athena."

"But knowing that, you have to be able to control those feelings you have for him. The first time was your hidden desire to be more than just _travel buddies_with him. And now, with what occurred recently, those feelings are even stronger. You honestly just need to take a deep breath and control those thoughts. Because..." Athena looked over at Solrent and noticed two ghostly figures approaching from behind. One of the figures, a green dragonewt, held a dagger to his hand and attempted to slit the throat of Solrent. Athena slowly rose from her seat, but then saw the other figure, a red dragonewt, grabbed onto the hand of the green one, twisting it with a bit of force and pain. The red one looked over at Athena and bowed in apology before dragging the green one away. Athena blinked her eyes again, and the two figures vanished without a trace.

Solrent tilted his head in confusion. "Uhh? Is everything ok Athena? You were staring intently at me for an awkward amount of time. Is there something behind me?" Solrent turned his head, but saw nothing but the walls of the church. "I don't see anything."

Athena's eyes shifted, trying to make weight of what just occurred before her. "Hmm, no everything is alright Solrent. This is a holy place after all, so it would not surprise me to see maybe some ghostly figures here and there."

"Oh god, do not tell me you are hallucinating as well."

"I would not say they are hallucinations Solrent. Not like the stuff you experienced back at the catacombs. This is more of maybe someone is watching over you, sort of like protecting you, I guess?"

"Really? That is strange. I honestly would have no idea who would be watching over me. That sounds a bit too far-fetched, don't you think?"

"Maybe, but I think I honestly have an idea on what is going on. At least with the visions and stuff you told me about."

Intrigued, Solrent scooted closer over to Athena. "Oh? Please tell me, Athena."

Athena smiled and gently patted the top of Solrent's head. "In due time Solrent. I have a hunch on what is going on, but let me look more into this. I apologize for being very secretive about this, but I just want to be sure I tell you the right stuff. I do not want to give you any misleading information or take you down a rabbit hole. But just know that acceptance is the hardest thing to do. Once you accept certain things, other stuff will be clear to you. And now, if you will excuse me." Athena got up from her seat and walked past Solrent, placing her hand on his shoulder. "I have some manners I have to attend to. I will be here if you need me Solrent, and I will try my best to discover the truth of the matter." Athena began walking towards the inner sanctum of the church.

Bewildered, Solrent watched Athena disappear into the church, before he got up and decided to head back to the guild as well. "Well, that gave me more questions than answers. Still, I feel like Athena gave me insight on some stuff. Sort of cryptic though with that last statement from her. Anyway, I should head back to the guild and meet up with Rex." Solrent then proceeded to leave the church and make his way back to Rex in the guild.

Once Solrent arrived back, Faladiel greeted him at the entrance. He told Solrent that Rex has informed him of their most recent success and that he will let them rest for today. He has an idea where the next brother will be, but the duo deserves a break for tonight. Solrent thanked Faladiel and headed up to his room. Inside, he met with Rex who had already dressed in his casual attire. Rex asked Solrent how things were with Athena, to which he replied that he would discuss all of that information after a quick shower. After some time, Solrent emerged freshly bathed and informed Rex of his time with Athena.

"So...it sounds like Athena still is not completely sure about you and what is going on."

"Unfortunately, yes. Athena told me she would look into it, but she has a bit of a hunch on what is going on."

"I swear, everyone we meet is so cryptic. First Faladiel, then Top, now Athena. Heck, no one wants to truly help us now, do they?"

"I don't see it like that Rex. I bet they just want us to overcome these tasks on our own, not always looking for a helping hand."

"I guess so, but still, it would be nice to get more help than just a thumbs up." Rex pouted and yawned.

Solrent yawned in response to Rex. "Heh, yawning is contagious. Anyway, it is getting a bit late, but there are a few more things I want to run over with you before we head to bed." Solrent pulled on his two personal stones, the Ruby and Emerald, along with Top's stone, the Topaz. As Solrent held all three stones closed together, he noticed the Ruby and Emerald pulse with life, but Top's stone stayed lifeless. "I know that we each have our own personal gemstones, but I am curious about Top's. It is not pulsing with life as the others."

Rex looked at the Topaz. "You are right, but I mean, it makes sense Sol. He's not dead."

"I know, I know Rex." Solrent chuckled, shaking his head. "But I mean, I wonder if there is something special about the Topaz in general."

Rex brought out his Spessartine and held it near the Topaz, his stone pulsing with life, but the Topaz remained still. "Hmm, well, who knows. No point in worrying about it now, it won't do us any good thinking about it." Rex then placed his stone next to his nightstand, before getting into bed and tucking himself in under the sheets.

"Ok, we will cross that bridge when we get there with these stones. But for now, I think it's best we get some rest." Solrent placed all three gemstones on his side of the nightstand before heading off to bed as well. "Night Rex, see you tomorrow morning."

"Night Sol."

The duo eventually went off to sleep, the moon shining brightly in the night's sky through the window. In the middle of the night, the light of the moon covered the gemstones on Sol's nightstand. The Ruby and Emerald pulsed with light, shaking and gravitating towards the Topaz. Once the two gemstones touched, a faint light could be seen within it, giving off a slow pulse as energy was flowing between all three. However, a portion of the Topaz remained dull, as if something was missing to give it the final push it needed to channel the powers together.

As night turned into day, the sun's rays replaced the light of the moon in the window. Solrent slowly rose from his slumber, stretching and yawning as he felt rested after yesterday's events. Rex woke up as well, mirroring the morning routine that is familiar between the two. Solrent looked over to Rex and smiled. "Good morning Rex. I feel very good today."

"Morning Sol, same here. Though, I really wished I knew Magnificent Mansion. I would die to sleep in that bed again."

"Heh, in due time Rex. I am sure you will have the ability to cast those higher level spells soon." Solrent cracked his neck before leaving his bed, stretching the rest of his body before putting on his armor. He looked over at the gemstones, seeing them all lay lifeless on the nightstand before pocketing them.

"I know, I just wish I could learn it sooner." Rex got up from his bed, stretched a little and then donned his bardic gear, grabbing his gemstone and pocketing it. "Anyway, we should see what Faladiel knows. I really hope it is not another cave. I am so sick and tired of heading to caves."

"Rex, we only saw two caves."

"Yeah, and every time we enter a cave, bad stuff happens to me. I am so sick tired of it."

Solrent walked over and patted Rex on his shoulder. "Don't worry, I will be here to protect you Rex. You know that."

"I hope so, Sol, but who knows. Our cave spelunking always seems to affect you more than me."

"Shut up Rex," Solrent said in a joking manner. "But yea, let's head down to Faladiel. Solrent grabbed onto Rex's hand as they both headed down the stairs to meet up with Faladiel. As they approached the counter, they saw Faladiel smile with them as he had his map laid out neatly for the duo. However, they did not see any camping gear for them to take.

"Oh, Solrent and Rex, I have really good news for you two. Come here, quickly, please."

The duo stood at the counter, seeing Faladiel smile with glee. "You seem to be a happy camper today Faladiel. I assume you found the next target for us, and this time with more information this time?"

"And please don't let it be a cave. I am so sick and tired of them," Rex said with exasperation.

Faladiel's smile twitched a little, but his composure remained. "Well, I guess the good news is that the next guardian is actually in this town. And it is right here." Faladiel pointed on the map the town's harbor area. "A lot closer than I actually wanted, to be quite honest."

"Oh that is close, so that means we don't need to travel. I guess that is the reason why you do not have any camping gear for Rex and I then."

"Yes, that is true Solrent. Because the target is this close, I think you guys are good to go with what you have, so the guild can save money on the supplies and give you some better gear for your next target after this one."

"Wait a second, you said, I guess. What do you mean by that Faladiel?"

"I mean...the good news, Rex, is that it is by the harbor. The bad news..."

"Oh gosh, please don't say it...please..."

"We discovered a cave..."

Rex stomped his foot onto the ground and threw his hands into the air. "Really?!? Another freaking cave." Rex started mouthing off unintelligible words as he paced around in a circle.

Solrent walked over to Rex and tried his best to counsel him. "There, there Rex. I know, I know, you really hate caves. But it is alright, I am here for you, don't worry about it. Look." Solrent grabbed onto Rex's shoulder and stared at him deeply in the eyes. "Hey, listen. It's alright. I know caves have not been the best for you, but I swear, on my life, I will protect you Rex, ok? Just take a deep breath and calm down. You got this, ok Rex?"

Rex took a deep breath and sighed. "Ugh, fine Sol, whatever. I just don't want to be in caves anymore. But I truly appreciate your support. I'm sorry about that."

Solrent leaned in and hugged Rex tightly. "See, you got it. Anyway-" Solrent turned to Faladiel. "-we assume the cave is what we will explore next then?"

Faladiel adjusted his glasses, nodding his head. "Umm, yes, Solrent that is correct. The cave was recently discovered, so we do not know how deep it really is. Just tread lightly and be careful of any traps."

"Yes Faladiel. We will be sure of that, right Rex?"

"Whatever, let's just get this done with. And Faladiel," Rex addressed Faladiel with serious eyes. "Please, no more caves. Let the next one be in a freaking castle for all I care. I'll even take a desert region. Just no more caves."

"Heh, I can't choose where these guardians will hide in, but I will try my best to not mention the c word as best as I can. Good luck you two." Faladiel bowed his head before returning to his work.

Solrent turned to Rex, held out his hand, and smiled. "So, shall we?"

Rex saw Solrent's hand and grabbed it. "I guess..."

Solrent and Rex left the guild and headed towards the town's harbor. The path to the harbor was quite quick, only taking about fifteen or so minutes to get there. There were fishing boats docked, with fishermen getting ready to set sail and see what the open ocean has for them. Rex pulled out the map and followed the path Faladiel lined out for them. Eventually, they reached a barren part of the harbor, noticing no boats nearby, except driftwood and rocks. In the distance though, they saw what looked to be a cave opening.

"Ugh, there it is, the bane of my existence. Another freaking cave."

"You need to really let that go Rex. It's just a cave."

"Easy for you to say. One cave you literally fucked me in and almost killed me. The other I was yanked by a tendril and was shot in the shoulder with a dart. With my luck this time, I bet a slimy tentacle of some sort is going to grab me and do weird stuff to me."

"Whoa there Rex! That came out of nowhere. I mean, the first two, yes, both occurred. But why would you assume a tentacle is going to come? And a slimy one? That feels extremely random."

"I am just putting stuff out there. It's a cave, anything can happen. And as for slimes and tentacles, I think most caves are slimy and disgusting and being near the water, you are asking for the tentacles."

"You honestly have a weird mind Rex, I honestly wonder what goes through that noggin of yours." Solrent gently tapped on Rex's skull.

Rex shoved Solrent's hand away from him. "Hey that hurts, stop that Sol."

Solrent chuckled a bit, enjoying seeing Rex being a little angry. "I can see why Spessart took a liking to you, you get angry really easily."

"Shut up Sol."

"Okay, okay, calm down. Anyway, we are here. So let's just..." Solrent scanned his surroundings, feeling something a bit off.

Rex looked over at Solrent and tilted his head in confusion. "Something the matter Sol?"

Solrent took up an offensive stance, pointing his spear behind a big rock near the entrance of the cave. "I know you are there, no sense in hiding."

Out of nowhere, a figure stepped out from behind the rock. The figure raised his hands in the air, to show no harm to the duo. He wore a tattered black cloak that seemed to leave off shadowy wisps on its edges. The rest of his attire resembled that of a captain on the high seas. He wore a black vest with yellow rings around the torso, with a white undershirt covering his chest. A red cloth was tied around his waist as the bottom half of his body had on leather pants. On top of his head looked to be a buccaneer's tricorne with a black feather. The figure showed his face, resembling that of a green reptile with cream undertones. "Please, I mean no harm."

"Who are you? What do you want then? Why are you here?" Solrent pointed his spear at the reptile's head.

"My name is Gael, and I am but a simple adventurer, just like yourself."

Gael Wynn

Swashbuckler Rogue/Gunslinger Fighter

Lizardfolk

Solrent stared intently at Gael, sizing him up and down. "I can sense another fighter when I see one. But, I feel that is only half true." Solrent kept his spear pointed at Gael. "What else are you?"

With one hand, Gael reached into his pocket and brought out a gun, giving it a quick flourish. With the other, he brought out a dagger and twirled that as well. "Heh, I guess a fighter can spot another one pretty well. But as you can see, I am both a gunslinger and a swashbuckler. And I am here because I am very curious about this cave. It is foolish of me to enter by myself, so I was hoping that any adventuring group that comes by, I would hope to join their party."

Solrent leaned down and whispered into Rex's horn. "Hey, a swashbuckler...isn't that a rogue...and he's also green...there's no way right Rex?"

Rex looked up at Solrent, shaking his head. "I highly doubt it. Gael looks to be more like a lizardfolk than a dragonewt."

"Ahem, I am indeed a lizardfolk."

Surprised, Solrent stared back at Gael, keeping his spear pointed at him. "Whoa, watch it there. I didn't ask you to listen into my conversation with my partner."

Gael bowed in apology. "Sorry, I cannot help it. Let's just say, being a rogue enables me to be more observant of other people. Anyway, like I said, I mean no harm. I just would like to ask for your assistance in seeing what lies within this cave. I only know the rumors of hidden treasures in there."

Solrent's eyes glinted hearing the sounds of treasures. "Oh hidden treasures you say? What sort of stuff is there? Money? Gold?"

"Calm down Sol, no need to be greedy. We are fine with the funds we have now."

"But Rex, think of all the stuff we can buy if there is indeed hidden treasure in there. We will be able to afford better gear and weapons."

"We don't know if this is even true, and we just heard this from a guy we just met."

"I don't blame your partner there for being skeptical. Like I said, these are just rumors. Even for being a rogue, I am not that interested in the gold or gemstones, but rather, I heard of a certain small sword that may have washed up here from overseas. I just want to see if it is true and be able to add it to my wares." Gael stowed away his weapons and walked up to the duo, extending out his hands. "So, would you like to go in together?"

Solrent reached out first and shook Gael's hand. "Sure, the name's Solrent."

Rex reached out and shook Gael's other hand. "My name is Rex, and if you do not know yet, I am a bard."

Gael nodded his head. "I could have taken a wild guess at that with what you wear. Anyway, my expertise is not much in fighting. I do have my trusty dagger and pistol, but I am more of the scouting type. There has to be traps, so I will do my best to disarm them."

"No problem Gael, I'll be our frontline for the team. I'm used to that between Rex and I."

"And I'll be the support. I'll heal and provide inspiration."

"Sounds like a plan you two, so let's head on in, shall we? I'll lead the way, if you don't mind." Gael brought out a torch and walked first into the cave.

"I guess he must be a bit excited to see what's inside, eh Rex? I just hope that we end up finding the brother and getting out with the gemstone unscathed."

"Whatever. It's another freaking cave. I just want to get in and get out. At least we have a person who said he is good at trap finding." Rex grabbed onto Solrent's hand and they both entered the cave.

The party traveled around inside the cave, climbing up ledges, walking down stairs, moving from one room to the next. Gael constantly checked the walls and floors for traps, but luckily the part did not encounter any.

"You sure look like you know your way around this cave Gael. Are you sure you've never been in here before?"

"Of course not, let's just say it is a rogue's intuition. I just think I know where the right path is, and just continue to move forward."

Solrent shook his head, "So you are telling me...we are lost..."

"...I never said that...now will I...But I have a feeling I think we are getting closer, so just put a little more faith in me. I'll be sure to...STOP!" Gael stopped moving, causing Solrent to suddenly stop as well, with Rex bumping in behind him, unable to stop his motion. "I think I suspect something, give me a sec." Gael looked to the walls down the hallway they were walking and noticed very small holes extending from side-to-side. "Aha, as I suspected."

Rex peered over to the side. "What's up Gael? Did you find something?"

Gael kneeled onto the ground, his clawed hand feeling each of the stones. He gently applied pressure to each one, and eventually, he found one stone that felt softer than the other. "That is what I expected. There is a trap here, look." Gael pressed on the stone, seeing it sink into the ground. As a result, small darts started flying back and forward between the walls, exiting and entering the holes on each side. After a few seconds, everything seemed to stop.

"Whoa, nice catch there Gael. I think Rex and I would have never found that."

Smiling, Gael tipped his hat towards the two. "My pleasure, now give me a second and I will disarm this." Gael reached into his sack and pulled out his thieves tools. He then looked at the trap and started disarming it. After a few minutes, a click could be heard. "There, that should do the trick." Gael reached down and pressed on the stone again, but this time no darts were being shot. "Perfect, I never cease to amaze myself."

Solrent walked over and gently patted Gael on the back. "Way to go, I guess. So this should be safe then?"

Gael looked over his shoulder and nodded to Solrent. "Should be, but let me walk first, just in case."

"Good idea Gael. Solrent, I think he knows what he is doing, so let the rogue do his thing then."

Gael proceeded to gingerly walk down the path, feeling the stones with both his hands and his feet. Even though he did notice more stones that did depress, nothing was activated or flown in their face. Ultimately, Gael made it to the other side and motioned for Solrent and Rex to walk down the hallway. "You guys should be good to go. I disarmed everything."

Solrent looked over at Rex, seeing him shaking a bit. "Hey Rex, it's ok. Just hold my hand tightly. Gael said everything is ok, I believe him."

Rex gripped onto Solrent's hand with vigor. "Ok, we got this. Just..." Gael took one deep breath. "take it nice and slow." Solrent and Rex slowly walked through the hallway, being mindful of the walls and stones on the floor. After sometime, they were able to meet up with Gael who chuckled at the two.

"I can see why you two are nervous, well at least Rex. Don't worry, I got you. I'll make sure no traps ever activate. Anyway, knowing that this place is indeed trapped, makes the treasure all the more worthwhile. So let's adventure further then." Gael turned around and continued pressing forward, with Solrent and Rex following closely behind.

At the end of the hallway, the party encountered an open space. They all looked at each other and noticed they were a bit tired. They all decided it may be best to take a bit of a short rest before continuing on. Gael noticed some rocks scattered around, a few of them flat on the top so that the three may comfortably sit. He gestured to Solrent and Rex, and all three of them sat and had a moment of reprieve. Gael looked over at the duo and noticed how close they sat together.

"So, just for curiosity sake, are you two..."

"Before you finish that sentence, I will just answer it, No. Sol and I just happen to travel and adventure a lot together, so we are very used to being in each other's company."

Disheartened, Solrent looked down at his feet as Rex continued speaking to Gael.

"What about you though, you asked us a personal question, so it's fair that I get a turn."

"Go right ahead Rex, what would you like to know?" Gael brought out a rag and started polishing his gun.

"I'm not into asking about relationships and whatnot, but why exactly are you here. You don't look to be a part of the adventurer's guild and Faladiel ensured that we are the only ones that know about this place. So why exactly were you outside waiting for adventurers like Sol and I?"

Gael stopped polishing his gun, and aimed it at Rex's head. Immediately, Sol brought his arm over to protect Rex and glared angrily at Gael, reaching for his spear. Gael chuckled and flourished his gun back into his side pocket before bringing out a whetstone and sharpening his dagger.

"Heh, I feel like you may be lying to yourself there Rex, with what you told me earlier just now. But anyway, I know what spells you would have access to, so I will just tell you as much as I am able to. You see..." Gael stowed his dagger, before leaning forward, cupping his hands together and holding his head on them. "...I want to join a particular guild. It's not the adventurer's guild, if that is what you two are wondering. This guild is more along the line of my expertise as a rogue, if you get what I am saying."

Solrent and Rex looked at each other, before turning back to Gael, nodding their heads.

"I do not want to say the name of the guild, because it is forbidden to mention it until you are actually in the guild. And even when we are in a desolate cave like this, there will always be eyes and ears everywhere. Still, I am just looking for an artifact that may be hidden at the end of the cave. If it is indeed there, I just have to retrieve it and turn it in." Gael leaned back and crossed his arms, smiling at the two. "Now, what say you guys. You know my main objective here, care to be a bit more specific about yours then. Hmm?"

Solrent lowered his spear and crossed his arms. "First, don't ever point that gun at me or Rex again. We barely know anything about you Gael, so if you do it again, you may end up being skewered and burned alive."

Gael chuckled, shaking his head. "My bad guys, I'll be sure not to do it again. Sorry friend."

"Ahem, anyway, Rex and I are here because there is supposed to be a guardian that we need to slay here. Whether or not he is guarding the treasure, we do not know, but our information told us that he is indeed here. With your help, Gael, we should be able to quickly dispose of him. You seem pretty tactful in ensuring you always have the advantage."

"Heh, then it sounds like you trust me in helping you slay this guardian then?"

"Trust is a big word, but I can say I have faith in you. I'll let Rex chime in for how he feels."

Rex takes a deep breath before looking over at Gael's eyes. "Hmm...I do not see anything malicious from you. So I will also put some of my faith in you. But yes, please don't point that thing at me again."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it. Anyway, are you guys just about ready to go?" Gael gets up from the rock and stretches his body.

Rex gets up as well, mimicking Gael. "Yeah, we do not want to waste any more time. What say you Sol?"

Sol looked up at Rex and Gael, both standing next to each other. He tilted his head before bringing out his hand and placing it under his chin, staring in deep thought. "Say...just wondering...but you two look exactly the same."

Gael and Rex looked at each other, sizing themselves up and down before turning back to Solrent.

"What are you saying Sol?"

"Yeah Solrent, how do Rex and I look the same?"

"I mean, you guys look to be almost the same build. If you ignore all the clothing, I would say you look like twins. The only difference would be your scale colors. Rex, you have your blue colored scales, with your lighter blue undertone. The same with Gael, your green scales and your cream colored undertone."

Gael and Rex once more looked at each other, trying to see what Solrent observed. The two circled each other, looking at their tails, arms, legs, and even face. After a few minutes, both turned to Solrent in disgust.

"I don't want to sound rude to you Sol, but Gael and I are not even the same race. He's a lizardfolk, and I am a dinosaur. I have not even seen anyone else of my race."

"I agree with Rex here. I am a lizardfolk, and I just learned that he is a dinosaur. Even in my travels, I never heard of this race. So, maybe let's focus more on getting to our goal, and less about how the two of us look."

Solrent rose from his seat and gently placed his arms on both of their shoulders. "Ok, you guys win. Maybe you don't look similar. But I still firmly believe that. Anyway, go ahead and lead the way then Gael." Solrent gestured his hand out.

Gael smiled and proceeded to lead the party forward, further into the cave. As the party walked towards the entrance to the next part of the cave, Rex looked down at his feet and felt them stick a little to the ground. He had to use a little more force to walk, noticing a bit of red slime being stuck to him. Rex just shook it off as the three continued their quest at hand.

As the party continued descending deeper into the cave, Gael managed to disarm more traps. He found a few saw blade traps, log traps and even pitfalls. Solrent and Rex were truly amazed at the knowledge that Gael had when it came to finding and disarming these dastardly devices.

"You are really good at disarming traps Gael. I don't know what would happen to Sol and I if we did not have anyone like your expertise with us."

Gloating proudly, Gael tipped his hat at Rex. "My pleasure there Rex." Gael brought out his gun and spun the trigger loop in his hand. "I started my training as a rogue, but eventually I found this guy to be a bit fascinating. So I decided to spend some time being a gunslinger as well. I find myself pretty well versed in being a fighter. But I am sure your companion there is a way better fighter than me."

Solrent chuckled and nodded his head. "Well, I would not say that just yet. I feel confident in my abilities as a fighter, but I am sure you have adventured way more than us Gael."

"Heh, maybe. I've been on my own for quite a while. I left my village to go out and about, discovering what the world has to offer. I know my fiancé is not happy about that, but it's alright."

Concerned, Rex solemnly said, "Oh...well I bet that they must be a bit sad to not have you around."

"Naw, he's used to it. He has a village to run after all. Being chief leader keeps him pretty busy."

Surprised, Solrent quickly chimed in. "Wait...he?"

Gael stopped his movement and turned around. "Yeah, a he. The village chief is a male and I am engaged to him. Is that a problem? I'm a bit surprised coming from you two."

Solrent shook his head. "No, no. Nothing of the sort Gael. I just did not expect all of that."

Rex also shook his head. "What I think Solrent is meaning to say is that it must be tough for you to be away from him for a long time. It must be pretty lonely."

Gael shrugged his shoulders, walking backwards as he continued talking to Solrent and Rex. "It can be sometime, but I do my best to come back to the village every once in a while. Eventually though, I will retire from adventuring and settle down. But until then, I want to continue learning about the world. All the knowledge I gain on my travels I share with my tribe. You see, we are a bit secluded from society, rarely making contact with other races. I share what I learned with Vyth, and he utilizes that knowledge for the betterment of the tribe. Anyway, that's enough about my tribe, I'll tell you more once we fin..." *click*

Gael froze still, his right foot pressed on a stone that descended into the ground. His eyes widened as Solrent and Rex looked at him with confusion.

"Something the matter Gael? You stopped mid-sentenced."

"Yeah, like what Sol said. You were about to say something."

Looking past behind Solrent and Rex, Gael noticed something quickly approaching them. The sound echoed in the corridor they were walking in, the sound of a large object rushing to their location. Gael pointed behind them, seeing a large boulder rolling their way to them, wanting to crush the party. "RUN!" Gael screamed as he turned around and ran as fast as he could.

Solrent and Rex looked behind them and saw the boulder as well, running as quick as they could away from it. They both saw Gael a few strides ahead of them, but the boulder kept inching closer and closer to them. Rex felt like he was going to trip and stumble, his legs burning with aches and pain as he tried to keep running. Solrent briefly looked at his partner, noticing the pants and struggles Rex displayed on his face. He reached his hand out to Rex, which Rex gladly grabbed onto. Solrent pushed forward with his stronger legs, dragging Rex as best as he could.

Up ahead, they heard Gael scream at them. "JUMP!" Solrent saw what Gael meant. There was a wide gap that they needed to cross. Looking back at his partner, Solrent saw Rex struggle to move his legs. Solrent started to flap his wings, preparing himself for the leap of faith that bestowed upon them. Right as he felt his foot hit the edge of the pitfall, he jumped with all of his might, flapping his wings against the air as hard as he could, holding onto Rex's hand as tight as possible. Solrent strained and closed his eyes, concentrating all of his energy on his wings. What felt like an eternity, Solrent felt his body crash onto the ground. He opened his eyes and looked behind him, a smile flashing across his face. Rex was on the ground behind him, his legs dangling over the edge but glad they made it across.

Solrent looked forward, and saw Gael standing a few meters ahead of him, dusting himself off from the ordeal as well. As Gael started to approach Solrent to help Rex up, they heard the sound of a mechanism. Gael looked above him and briefly jumped back, the ceiling above him came crashing down, forming a wall between him and Solrent. Gael ran to the wall and started pounding on it, seeing if it would break, but it did not budge. Solrent panicked momentarily, hastily dragging Rex back onto solid ground. After assisting him to his feet, the two ran to the wall, and started banging on it too.

"Solrent, Rex, are you two both ok? I'm so sorry. I was a bit careless back there and should have spent more time looking for traps and less time talking."

"It's not your fault Gael. It's our pleasure to hear more about you. However, Rex has seen better days, but he is alright. Right Rex?"

"...Yeah...just a bit winded that's all...but what do we do now guys?"

"Hmm...I guess we are on our own for now. I'll continue the path ahead and see if we can find a place to meet up again. Just be careful you two. I'm not sure how many more traps there will be, but there cannot be that many more, right?"

"I hope so, Gael. We don't have much knowledge about traps like you, but Rex and I will try our best to avoid them. Let's meet up as soon as we can."

"Ok, see you guys soon." The sound of movement shuffling on the floor started to dissipate as Gael continued his journey forward.

Solrent looked over at Rex, who slowly dusted himself off and smiled back at his partner. "You ready Rex? We are on our own again. Not like we are not used to this."

"No choice now, we just have to press forward. Hopefully we will meet up with Gael soon."

Solrent and Rex entered the corridor to their right, with Rex casting _Dancing Lights_to summon fire orbs to light the path ahead of them. Luckily, they did not encounter any traps along the way. However, Rex started to notice something peculiar along the walls. He started to see red slime seeping through the cracks. Rex reached out to touch the slime, but saw it slightly retract into the wall. He managed to get a piece of it on his claws, examining it closely.

"Hey Sol, you seeing this?"

Solrent looked over at Rex, seeing his claws shine red with the slime. "Whoa, what is that?"

"I honestly have no idea Sol. I noticed it earlier as we left that rest stop. My feet were stuck with the slime, but I did not think much of it because, you know...caves have slime in them. But let me see if I can identify if it is magical or not." Rex closed his eyes and cast, Identify Magic, and hovered his other hand over the slime. After a few moments, Rex opened his eyes and frowned. "Hmm...not magical, so that is weird."

Solrent patted Rex on the shoulder. "Don't beat yourself up for that Rex, it could just be regular slime for all we know. We should just leave it alone."

Rex went over to the wall and smeared the slime along it. "I guess. Let's continue pressing forward, maybe we will find something up ahead, hopefully it's Gael."

Solrent nodded his head and they both continued walking forward. Creeping behind them though, the walls seemed to be covered more and more with the red slime, as if they were trailing the duo.

As the two kept their strides down the corridor, they noticed hearing some sounds coming down the hall. Solrent reached out his arm and gestured to slow their movement. He looked at Rex, who nodded in response, and they both crept forward. The noises started to get clearer, but at the same time, more muffle, like someone trying to talk through a pillow. Up ahead, Solrent saw bars along the wall, almost like that of a jail. He whispered to Rex to stand back as he slowly proceeded forward to investigate, holding his spear tightly by his side. When Solrent managed to look inside the bars, he froze still, his eyes widened in horror and shock.

Bewildered, Rex slowly approached Solrent, curious as to why his partner looked like he had seen a ghost. "Hmm, what's the matter Sol. You look like you've seen a ... what the..." Rex witnessed another soul, a civilian to his best knowledge. He looked to be like a dragonewt, similar to Solrent but not as buff. However, this dragonewt seemed to be on his knees, with his hands tied behind his back. Blindfolded and gagged, the dragonewt barely moved, only making soft moans sounds. The sight that shocked both Solrent and Rex was not seeing the dragonewt helpless, but what was going on below the belt. They saw a red tentacle engulfing the poor lad's cock, as if it was milking him. A faint sound of sucking and squelching can be heard from it, as they both saw another tentacle penetrating his tailhole, slowly pumping in-and-out. Rex was about to say something to Solrent, but the bound dragonewt started panting and moaning quickly before he gave off one long last moan, climaxing in front of our party. His cum can be seen inside of the red tentacle that continued to suck him off, traveling to who knows where as the tentacle emanated from the ground. In the midst of his afterglow, the dragonewt slouched, as if he became lifeless.

Rex quickly stood behind Solrent, grabbing onto his hand in nervousness. Leaning up to his horn, Rex whispered, "Sol, what the actual hell is going on here. What did we walk into?"

Solrent quietly walked down the corridor with Rex in tow, whispering back as well. "I have no idea Rex. This is beyond me. Like, I have no idea what we are witnessing right now. This is just wrong on so many levels."

As the two kept walking down the hall, they noticed more jail cells left and right of them. More bound citizens were locked up in each one. Ranging from kobolds to dragonewts to lizardfolks, all seemed to be in the same instance as the first. A red tentacle at their cocks, while another one penetrates from behind. Even a few had a tentacle instead of a ball-gag, and those ones had some unknown liquid being pumped into their maws. Not wanting to find out, the two hastily made it to the end of the hall.

"Dude Sol, like, is this some guy's fantasy with tentacles or something. Those poor civilians back there, they seem to be taken hostage."

"Rex, I think this quest has gone downhill really fast. Like, I know we are here to defeat the brother, but how are we supposed to rescue these citizens as well. Faladiel did not truly prepare us for this. And Gael...Oh god please no..."

"Shoot, you are right Sol. I hope Gael will be ok, and not end up like this."

The next room looked to be a repeat of the last, with more bound citizens in their precarious positions. However, all of the citizens that Solrent and Rex noticed had some weird red substance covering the lower half of their bodies. Upon closer inspection, Rex was mortified with what he saw.

"Umm...Sol...you remember that red slime from before..."

Solrent looked at Rex with concern. "Oh please don't tell me what I think it is..."

Rex gave off a big sigh. "I don't want to believe it either, but I think it's the red slime from earlier. It does not make any sense. I used detect magic on it, but it was not magical. Now I am afraid that it may actually be some weird lifeform. And look, the slime is covering half of their bodies. I'm more scared of thinking what would happen if it covers anyone from head to toe."

"Yeah, I don't want to imagine that either. I feel bad for these poor souls. We have to figure out something for them...wait Rex...keep quiet and look..." Solrent pointed at one of the cells. Two reddish figures were standing in front of a bound citizen. Solrent and Rex hid behind the wall, peeking as best as they could to see what was happening in the cell. The bound citizen was almost completely covered in the red slime, save for only his head being free. The slime continued to climb up his neck, inch by inch. The moment the slime got to the bottom of the snout, one of the figures removed the ball-gag while the other quickly removed the blindfold. As soon as that happened, the entire head was covered in the red slime. Both Solrent and Rex gasped in horror, seeing this citizen now completely covered in the red slime.

"What the hell Sol, that guy...he's completely covered in the slime..."

"I don't think that's the worst of it...look..."

As the two continued to observe, they noticed spots where the soul's eyes would be glowing a sinister purple. A weird rune was spotted on the forehead before the eyes fully became purple. Chuckles could be heard from the two figures before they reached down and unbound their new comrade. They helped him up and all smiled at each other, before leaving the cell room.

Rex looked at Solrent with bated breath. "Those slimes are turning people into their own slaves. Almost like they are making them their host. I have never seen anything so sinister like this before Sol. This is completely out of our league."

Solrent took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "I know what you are saying Rex. The last few encounters we had with the brothers were not as bad. Emmerette was an interesting one, but I feel like this has just scaled out of control real fast."

"Now I am even more nervous for Gael. What if he ended up being captured. What if he ended up being bound. Or even worse, what if he..."

"Don't finish that thought Rex. I don't want to think what would happen to my fellow fighter like that..."

In the distance, the two heard a loud scream, a voice familiar to the two. Solrent and Rex stared into each other's eyes. They knew that voice. They knew who it belonged to. They just did not want to believe it, but they knew it. One of the worst outcomes that happened, fate had already decided for them and their other companion.

Solrent and Rex rushed to the entrance of the area. Upon entering, they found some rocks they could use as cover and hid behind them. They peeked as stealthily as possible to bear witness to a sight that spread horror in their eyes. In front of them, they see a cloaked figure, dressed in black, with only his hands, feet and tail visible. The scales of this figure looked blue from the distance the two could see. Standing next to him looks to be a very tall, dark red slimed dragon. Solrent and Rex could barely make out a figure within the slime, but the coloring of the slime made it hard to tell. It stood like an executioner getting ready to send the next victim to the gallows. In between them, the very companion that journeyed with Solrent and Rex lay bound by the red tentacles, almost his entire body engulfed in the red slime.

Gael struggled as hard as he could, but his arms would not move as the tentacles and slime held him in place. He was forced to be on his knees, unable to even shift his hips if he wanted to. Another sight caught Solrent and Rex's attention, the lower half of Gael. A slime tentacle was seen slowly gorging his cock, sucking it with such vigor as another tentacle wrapped itself tightly around the shaft, squeezing and rubbing endlessly. One more tentacle penetrated his rear, causing Gael to moan in both pain and pleasure. However, Gael still fought back at his captor, not wanting to give in. "...You...will not...break me...you fiend...I will...escape here..."

The cloaked figure chuckled and leaned in, caressing Gael's cheek with his hand. "Mmm, yes, keep struggling. What's that? Oh yes Master, he will succumb soon. I will give you all of the life essence you desire. Mmhmm, I know Master, he is a feisty one. I cannot wait for him to join our army as well." The figure stood back and allowed the slime and tentacles to continue to have their way with Gael, urging him to cum and release all of his milk.

Solrent looked over at Rex and whispered, "You don't think that is a brother, do you? I cannot see from this distance, but judging by what we can tell so far, it has to be him."

Rex nodded in response. "I believe so; but we still have no idea what this brother is capable of. But...if I were to guess, perhaps he is a magic caster of some sort. He doesn't look like a wizard, so maybe either a sorcerer or even a warlock."

Solrent signed deeply. "Ugh, magic casters. Not my strongest things I can fight against. That seems to be your expertise over mine."

"Sol, I am not used to combat fighting as you are. Just because I can cast magic, doesn't mean I know how to fight against it. Anyway, should we help Gael? Or should we just watch and wait?"

"I honestly don't know. I want to help him, but we can't just jump in blindly and get ourselves in the same predicament as well. Ugh. If only we knew if these slimes had a weakness or something, then maybe we can use that to our advantage."

"We better think of something quick, or else we will lose Gael to this psycho."

As the two continued to converse with each other, Gael gave off louder moans, still trying his best to prevent himself from releasing. The tentacle in his rear continued to pound him, pressing onto his prostate with every forward thrust. In response, Gael's cock continued to pulse and spew more pre into the receptive tentacle, sucking in as much as it can, wanting the true life essence. The coiled tentacle was relentless, continuing to squeeze and pump his cock, wanting to get that life essence as well. Gael maintained his composure, gritting his teeth as he stared as his captor.

"You! I will... get you for that... When I escape...I'll make sure to give...you what you deserve..."

"Mmm, I really do like this fighting spirit in you...And so does Master...Mmhmm..Yes he does. Just continue to keep struggling my dear lizard. It'll make extracting everything from you all the more worth it for Master. And...oh really Master? Thank you, Thank you." The figure bowed in front of Gael. "Master says I can keep you personally. Mmm, all the fun things I can do with you." He leaned in and gave Gael a quick kiss on his cheek before observing the tentacles that he summoned to continue to fuck him.

Gael remained steadfast in his composure, not allowing this creeper to get what he wanted. Seeing that determination, the figure whispered to the slime dragon next to them. The dragon nodded and positioned himself in front of Gael. Fear filled in Gael's eyes as he noticed the huge dick that was presented in front of him. The dragon proceeded to tease Gael's face, poking the large cock at his cheeks.

Gael continued his struggle, trying to avoid his newfound assailant from shoving that member into his maw. "No...this will not happen...I will not give you...the pleasure you deserve...and that thing...it's so gross...covered in slime and all that..."

Laughing maniacally, the figure gently patted our lizardfolk on his head. "Mmm...I did not want to do this, but Master suggested this will help speed things up. So just relax and let my dragon take care of you. Soon, you will join him, slime and all."

The slime dragon gripped tightly onto Gael's head, holding his jaw wide open as he slowly slipped his monstrous dick inside. Gael struggled mightily, wanting to chomp down with his sharp teeth, but the girth proved too much for him and he felt the tip hit the back of his throat. Gael started to tear, his mouth full of pain as the dragon began to fuck his face, pistoning his cock in and out like a jackhammer.

The figure smiled as he observed his future plaything being tended to by his dragon. "I do like it when my toys are having fun with each other...Yes Master...I agree...Master also enjoys it as well."

Gael's mind started to grow hazy, his jaw becoming numb from the constant pounding his face received, on top of the care his rear and cock were getting. The dragon started thrusting faster and faster, stretching Gael's jaw to the limit; his gag reflex already gave way as the tip continued to bruise the back of his throat. The figure smiled evilly, whispering another command to the dragon, nodding in response. With one last thrust, the slime dragon pulled back, his cock aimed at Gael's snout as it unloaded all of its slime cum onto him. Gael tried to close his eyes, his tears mixed in with the slimy cum as he was bathed entirely. Once the dragon was done, it stood back and the two observed the work they did on the new toy. The figure looked down, and frowned, stomping his feet again in anger. Gael still has not cum, but he noticed that his cock started to pulse and spew a bit more pre.

"Mmm...a lot of fight in you. No matter, this should do it then." The figure whispered once more to the slime dragon, who nodded again and moved to Gael's rear. Gael was too exhausted to make a sound or a move, the slime covering his face made it near impossible for him to open his maw. "Heh, seems like you are losing that resistance after all. Only a matter of time now. I'll be sure to enjoy breaking you down and building you up, my precious toy." The figure blew Gael a kiss while the dragon behind Gael's rear removed the tentacle and grabbed onto his hips, positioning his cock now at the entrance.

Weary, Gael attempted to move, but his body refused as the dragon slowly penetrated him. All he could do was face ahead and stare at the figure, his bottom constantly violated by the thrusting dragon. His cock continued to pulse a lot more, more pre spewing into the receptive tentacle sucking him hard. The one coiled around it continued to sensually rub against the shaft, coaxing him to release all of his pent-up essence. Gael's constant tears down his eyes fueled the energy his captor wanted. He wanted to not give in, to not let this monster and his greedy master capture him. The dragon did not let up, as it thrusted faster and faster inside of him, pounding into his prostate. After one last pull back, the dragon slammed one final time, hilting into Gael before unleashing a torrent of slimy cum, filling Gael to the brim. Gael moaned loudly, never being under this predicament before as his body finally gave way. One final moan left his lips as he came so hard like he never did before. He shot rope after rope of his seed into the receptive tentacle, the substance pooling within the base. The dragon continued to pound him, trying to stimulate him to release all of what he could. Eventually, Gael came as much as he could, his mouth panting as he looked exhausted from the ordeal. The dragon pulled back as its slimy cum slowly dripped from Gael's rear onto the floor.

The figure clapped in glee, gently patting the head of Gael. "Master is going to be pleased. Yes he is. Are you pleased master? You are! I am so happy. Besides the hunk we have here, Master, I think you will enjoy this addition to your army." The figure rubbed Gael's head one last time before he stood back. The slime around Gael's neck crept up closely upon his face until it engulfed it entirely. Where his eyes would be, a sinister purple glowed. However, the purple light started to fade, with Gael still struggling internally, fighting off the influence of the slime as best as he could with his last stand. Frowning, he yelled to the sky. "No, No, No! This is not what Master wants. You, you will join us...Oh yes Master? Oh ok. Well, it's your lucky day then lizard. Looks like Master wants to keep on seeing you struggle. He is going to enjoy slowly breaking you. Now, you-" as the figure pointed to the dark red slime dragon, "-take him to the special room and we will let Master personally take care of him. But before you do that, I believe Master wants me to address our two special guests that were a bit too curious for their own tastes."

All of a sudden, two tentacles appeared behind Solrent and Rex and they wrapped themselves around their waist respectively. The duo struggled, trying to pry away the tentacles, but they were soon lifted into the air and thrown towards the center of the room. Solrent and Rex groaned in pain, as they slowly stood up, seeing the figure smile creepily down at them.

"Mmm yes...it's you two. Master has told me that you two will eventually show up. Well...master and of course Em. But, seeing you here now, means that Em was not able to do his job. I guess it is up to Master's must humble servant Zain to finish the task at hand.

Zain

Fathomless Warlock

Dragonewt

"You...so you are indeed one of the brothers."

"Of course. You can call me Zain. But you won't remember that name for long. The only one you need to know is Master, since he will be the only one in your mind."

"Like hell we will become one of your slaves. Right Sol?"

"Yeah, we will rescue Gael and everyone else here! You and your tentacles can go back to the bottom of the ocean."

Zain walked over and knelt down to Gael, kissing the slimed cheek. "Mmm, Master won't release his newest addition. Master likes this one too much to give it up. But Master will like to have you two though....Yes Master?...I agree...Yes, Master says that he will enjoy breaking you two and taking all of your life essence."

Shocked at the imagination of that scene, Rex yelled, "Like hell we will let that happen. What are you even doing with our life's essence anyway."

Zain chuckled and clapped his hands together. "You don't need to know...oh yes Master? You sure?...Ok...Well it looks like Master is a bit nice right now and is willing to tell you. Master just says that he just wants it. And that is all you get to know."

Enraged, Solrent gripped his spear and pointed it at Zain. "That is barely an explanation of anything. You are just greedy aren't you."

"Greedy you say? Maybe a hint of avarice? Whatever Master wants, he gets. And now, he wants you two." As Zain said the last words, a tentacle from behind swung quickly at Solrent and Rex.

Rex noticed the tentacle and managed to jump over while Solrent was not nearly as lucky. The tentacle slammed hard into his chest, knocking him to his feet and leaving the red residue all over him. Solrent gasped for air, shocked from the hit, but the damage was minor. He brought his hand to his chest and wiped the slime off of him.

"Sol! You ok?"

"I'm alright. It hurt a little, but not too bad. I guess you are pretty dexterous after all. But man, that still stung a little."

"Do you want me to heal that? I think I can expand a slot for you"

Solrent shook his head. "Naw, I'm good. Save it for this bastard." Solrent pointed at Zain.

Zain smirked, pointing his claw back at Solrent. "Heh, this will be easy. Now..." Zain commanded the slime dragon. "...go get that stupid dragon. I will take care of that strange lizard over there." The slime dragon then rushed towards Solrent, fist ready, a punch aimed at his head. Meanwhile, Zain stood to the side, using his tentacles to force Rex to the other side of the room.

Separated, Solrent looked over to Rex as his partner was constantly dodging all the tentacles being slammed in his direction. Meanwhile, Solrent barely managed to dodge to the side as the fist came flying next to his face, a bit of slime brushing against his cheek. As soon as Solrent turned around, another fist came at him. Luckily, Solrent brought up his spear to parry the blow, standing his feet firm to the ground as the fist connected to him, both sides pushing back towards one another. Up close, Solrent can barely make out the figure deep within the body, seeing what he believes is a dragonewt encased inside. After a moment, the two jumped back, Solrent panting a little for air as the slime dragon just cracked its knuckles.

Over with Rex, he continued to dodge all the tentacles being thrown at him. Jumping, ducking, and pirouetting, all Rex could do was avoid the attacks, unable to make any countermeasures. He saw Zain standing at center, with Gael's enslimed body still next to him. "You don't let down, do you?"

"Heh, Master wants me to capture you two. And I'll make sure of that. Not like my other brothers, all of them were a bit useless in trying to get you. Rubrum and Spessart could not capture you, and I was a bit surprised that Emmerette failed as well. Emmerette is the only one that understands me, so I am glad he gave me a heads up about you two. I know your strengths and weaknesses, and I know you have no way of defeating me. Now just stand still and let me capture you." Zain shot out more slime tentacles from behind him, heading towards Rex's body.

Rex luckily jumped and dodged the attacks thrown at him, using his body to easily slide over and under the tentacles. Rex countered back with a spell, casting magic missile. All of a sudden, three purple glowing darts aimed where Zain stood. Right as they were about to hit him, he motioned his hand and a tentacle took the blow, receding into the ground. However, another tentacle sprouted and took its spot.

"You are going to need to do better than that to defeat me. Master has given me this power, and I will be sure to use it properly to serve him, and make you serve him as well." With that last statement, Zain shot out another tentacle, aiming for Rex's arm.

In the meantime, Solrent continued to exchange blows with the slime dragon. No matter how much he wanted to go on the offensive, all he could do was parry each of the punch attacks from the slime. Fortuitously, Solrent saw an opening as he dodged an attack and aimed his spear for the shoulder of the dragon. He smiled as he felt the point of the spear connect with his enemy. However, that moment was short-lived as he noticed his spear was firmly lodged onto the dragon. He tried to yank it out, but it barely budged due to the slime covering the head. Seeing him struggle, the dragon smirked and aimed for another punch at Solrent's skull. Solrent managed to bring up his arm to block most of the damage, but the force reverberated throughout his body as he was forced to jump back a little, rubbing his head. He looked up, a bit of blood seeping down his horn as the slime dragon reached over to the spear and easily pulled it out of his body before tossing it to Solrent's feet. The dragon then taunted Solrent, beckoning him with a finger as Solrent picked up the spear, wiped off the slime and lunged himself forward for another attack.

As Solrent slowly approached the slime dragon, he quickly tipped his spear to a crack in the ground and used the momentum to initiate a strong dashing kick to the slime dragon's body. As his clawed foot made contact with its chest, Solrent firmly believed he dealt a strong blow to the creature, yet it just stood there, smirking back down at him. Slowly tried to break from the dragon, but realized that he made a grave mistake. His foot was now bound to the dragon and he could no longer escape. "Dang it, this was a rather stupid move." Solrent continued to struggle to break himself free, but the slime dragon went forward and embraced Solrent in a hug, covering his entire body in the slime. "Bah, what is this, get off of me!" He tried to push back with his arms, but they would not obey his commands. After sometime, the slime dragon smiled and pushed Solrent back, falling to the ground. He looked at his body, and he noticed that he was covered from the neck down in the slime suit, his armor slowly eroded from the nasty substance. The slime dragon stood over him and brought both of his legs up, exposing his tail to him. Solrent looked down at the dragon and noticed his cock protruding from his groin. Solrent bit his tongue and shook his head, but the slime dragon just slowly nodded back. "No! Stop it! Don't do this!" Solrent yelled to the best of his abilities, but the dragon licked its snout with its tongue and slowly prepared to penetrate him. Solrent quickly looked over to his side, and his eyes widened. He screamed to the top of his lungs as loud as he could. "STOP! LEAVE HIM ALONE!"

*************************************

The tentacle latched onto Rex's arm. No matter how much he tried to pull himself away, the tentacle would not budge. He muttered another spell under his breath,magic missile, and purple darts started flowing from behind him onto the tentacle binding him. Luckily, the tentacle shivered and relaxed its grip, letting Rex go free.

"Heh, you will eventually run out of spells my fellow reptile. But unlike you, Master has given me an unlimited amount of power. As long as I serve him properly, he will grant me everything I want. And once you are under his whim, we will rule the entire world. Hehe."

"We will never let that happen. Sol and I will make sure you will crawl back into the cave you came out of. And you can keep you, your master, and your creepy tentacles all to yourself. I am sure you enjoy pleasuring yourself with that anyway."

"Pleasure you say? Mmm, Master will definitely enjoy taking quick pleasure from your body. We have never seen your race before. All the more for Master to explore. Hehehe..."

"Just shut up already." Rex closed his eyes and sent another _magic missile_towards Zain.

Zain easily blocked it with another tentacle. Mockingly, Zain said, "That trick never gets old. But let me show you the same idea, but better." Zain muttered under his breath and 4 tentacles immediately latched out and grabbed onto each of Rex's limbs.

Astonished, Rex struggled as the tentacles bounded to him and suspended him in the air. "What the? Where did this come from? You fiend!"

"Heh, I was pretty sure you were a bit more observant than that. Emmerette told me you were the one that always paid attention to things, but I guess even you can miss a few things. I just had my tentacles setup for the perfect moment you closed your eyes to cast your little missile spell against me. But now...mmm now...I cannot wait to explore what you are. Shall we begin?"

A tentacle sprung up from below Rex as he was held helpless in the air. Rex pulled against the tentacles, but to no avail. He saw the one below his feet slowly slither up to him and coiled itself around his legs. He tried to move away from it, but it wrapped itself to his pants and slowly tugged downwards, pulling down his bardic attire to the floor. Rex shuddered as the cool air of the cave brushed against his scales, his naked lower half now exposed to the demon in front of him. Even though his cock was flaccid, Zain was a bit joyous in what he saw.

"Mmm, I'll be sure to explore everything and get as much of your life essence as I can. And once I drain you of everything, including your will, I'll make you the perfect pet for Master and I. Now, let's just loosen that hole of yours and fill you up with my own slimy mixture." The tentacle that pulled down Rex's garments slowly made its way back up to his leg, slithering around, leaving a slimy trail behind. Eventually, it arrived at its destination and teased the entrance, eliciting slight moans from Rex. "Mmm, it sounds like you are a bit eager for this. Want to be my pet that badly?"

"Shut up! I will not succumb to this."

"Keep telling yourself that, it'll make breaking you even more fun for Master and I." The tentacle continued to encircle Rex's hole before slowly nudging its tip at the entrance and making its way in. The moment Rex felt the penetration, Rex yelled, "GET IT OUT! GET IT OUT!"

*********************

"STOP! LEAVE HIM ALONE!"

Zain looked over at Solrent, seeing him too trapped by his slime dragon and held helpless against the floor. "Heh, just submit defeat. You two lost. Just allow your bodies to become one with the slime so that we all can serve Master. Or, if you want to keep struggling, Master will enjoy the slow break as well. Whichever you two would prefer."

Solrent looked over at Rex again, seeing the tentacle continue to penetrate his partner. Rex started moaning and crying, which resulted in Solrent crying as well. He did not want to see his partner like this. He did not want to see his partner be molested like this. He knew he had to do something, but he felt helpless. He could not save the lizardfolk they recently met. He could not save the dragons being held captive by this creep. He could not save his partner. And worst of all, he could not save himself either. With tears still in his eyes, Solrent turned and stared at the slime dragon in front of him. The dragon continued its smirk, but started to lean forward, forming a kissy face as it wanted to give Solrent one big, slimy smooch. He felt its cock slowly tease his hole before penetrating it with just the tip. Solrent accepted his fate, his partner's fate, everyone's fate in the room. He tried his best to save everyone, but instead, everyone around him ended up in danger. He closed his eyes, and just decided to let whatever happen, happen...

..."So this is how you want it to end huh? Is your desire to be with your partner not strong enough to overcome this obstacle"

Solrent opened his eyes and saw nothing but white emptiness around him. He swore he was just being raped by a slime dragon, while his partner was being molested by tentacles all around him. Solrent looked left and right, but could not see anything. He looked behind him, and nothing but the same white background he saw.

"Hey, over here you big dragon. Look ahead."

Solrent turned his face back forward and was shocked by what he saw. Two dragonewts stood in front of him, one red and one green, as they both crossed their arms in disgust.

"I know we recently just met, but I feel like I know you are better than this. Your strong feelings for your partner, that should help you right now. You may be a bit envious towards those tentacles and want to do that stuff with Rex, but focus on rescuing him first and having fun later."

The red dragonewt shook his head. "Now's not the time Em. We have to be serious about this."

The green dragonewt chuckled and shrugged his shoulders. "Well, it was the right moment for that Roo. But I'm sorry. I'll take it seriously now. Ahem. Anyway Solrent, you cannot give up. Not right now."

Still on the ground, Solrent said, "Wait a minute. Aren't you two...?"

"Yes Solrent, it's me, Rubrum. And you know this is Emmerette."

"But wait, I thought I defeated you two."

"You did, and I will say, that spear of yours really hurt. I still feel a bit of a sting in my shoulder. But mine was not as bad as Roo. You really just stabbed him from behind without him knowing."

"Roo? Em? Are those your real names?"

"Don't worry about it Solrent. Those are just special names that we call each other. We prefer if you just address us by our actual names. Right Em?"

"Yes Roo. But that is not really important right now. What is important Sol, is that you win the fight against Zenny."

Solrent brought his knees up and curled forward. "But how? I assume you guys saw what happened. I can't defeat that monster. And you." Solrent looked up at Emmerette with an angry stare. "You told him all about us, and made it even harder for us."

Emmerette scratched his back in apology. "Well, that was before...like you know, when I was actually trying to kill you. You had to expect that I would inform my brother about you if I lost. Still, I am not here to antagonize you about that, I am here to help you, just like Roo here."

"Yes Solrent, Em and I want to help you. And I know you may be thinking that it sounds crazy, but all I can say is that you trust in us right now."

"And why should I do that? You tried to make me rape my partner and your brother made me see things that I did not want to see."

Rubrum bowed in apology. "Look, I know that looked bad, but that is in the past. Just water under the bridge. And besides, if you do not want to do it for us, can you at least put trust in Top."

Solrent's angry gaze at the two slowly dissipated, a slow wave of calmness surrounded him. "And what does he have to do with this?"

"Top is the reason why Em and I are here. He rescued us and in return we were tasked with helping you. We are a part of you, Solrent. Your lust and envy for your partner is what fuels you right now. It sounds really bad when I say it like that, but don't take it as a sexual matter. Just think of it as the strong desire to rescue your partner and the spite you have towards Zenny being the fuel for all of it."

"That's right. You have our two powers within you. And now, the last power you need is what Zenny has."

Confused, Solrent tilted his head. "And what power is that? What possible power could your brother Zain have? And what about Spessart? Where is he?"

"Spaz is not a part of you. He is a part of Rex. You know your partner is a rather wrathful little dinosaur. Spaz is trying his best to not let Zenny overcome his body. But he can only help him so much in the ethereal form. It is you though that will rescue him. And as to how? Well, you have the answer inside of you already."

"Yes Solrent, Roo and I know you have the power within you already. The last piece of the puzzle is the greed you have for your partner. Greed in the sense, you want what is best for you and what is best for your partner. I know you do not want to share him with anyone else, but that drive is what makes you very protective of Rex. Someone who he can depend on, knowing he has his back, even though you do get a bit careless."

Rubrum gave off a big sigh. "Did you really have to add that at the end Em?"

"Come on Roo, I'm a rogue. I have to be a bit sly and enjoy things here and there. But here, Solrent." Emmerette reached out with his paw. "We can do this. We can help you defeat our brother. Just let those strong feelings of greed and_envy_ give birth to your new power."

Rubrum reached out with his paw as well. "Yes, Solrent. Your lust to be with your partner also fuels you. This is the fire you desire. Let it build the flame that you always had. Just let it build and release it. Release the fire all around you. Pool all of your emotions together and set it ablaze. This is how you will defeat Zenny."

Solrent nodded his head and reached up to grab onto their hands. They helped him back to his feet and he looked more determined than ever to fight back. "Thanks guys, I guess?"

They both patted Solrent on the back. "We will be with you every step of the way. Isn't that right Roo?"

"Yep, so just look forward. Towards your new destiny that we will forge together. We will defeat Zenny, and rescue everyone here. Oh and one more thing. Top wanted us to tell you to keep all of this a secret. Don't tell anyone about us, not that sister or even your partner. There are reasons behind it, so just keep that promise with us for now. In due time, others will learn about us."

Solrent looked back at Rubrum and Emmerette and nodded his head. Solrent then faced forward and saw a light up ahead. He ran towards it, and kept running, thinking of nothing more than to rescue his partner. Solrent felt his body changing, his whole body covered in light as he felt a new fire within him, a new fire that will help him change and evolve to a partner that Rex can be proud of...

..."What, what is that light? It's blinding."

"Sol..."

Solrent's body erupted in white light as the slime dragon slowly backed off of him. The slime that encased Solrent receded, allowing him to freely move his body. After a few moments, the light disappeared and Solrent stood firm on his two feet, his spear standing next to him as he faced both the slime dragon and Zain.

"Heh, this must be some kind of trick. You must have had a magical scroll or something. No way you can cast magic like that. Doesn't matter. Slime dragon, get him."

The slime dragon nodded and began his approach again towards Solrent, smiling and forming fists with his hands. Solrent smirked and braced himself. He closed his eyes, taking deep breaths as he allowed a strong, burning feeling build up inside of him. Just as the slime dragon reared back and threw a punch at him, Solrent opened his eyes and maw, letting out a huge blast of fire towards the slime dragon.

The fire was a direct hit against the dragon, propelling him backwards and sending the body to the ground. As the dragon was encased with the fire, the slime slowly melted away, freeing the captive dragon from the inside. Zain looked over at his pet dragon and his eyes were filled with horror. "You! What have you done to my slime dragon?!?"

Solrent stood up proudly, smirking and stretching his arms and legs. He looked down at his body and noticed that, despite still being naked, he felt stronger and more powerful. His figure may not have changed on the outside, especially downstairs, but he knows inside he feels like something within him awakened. He looked over at his partner, still violated by the tentacles that Zain had held him to. He took a deep breath, inhaling as much as he could, before exhaling with all of his lungs, creating a ring of fire aimed directly at his partner. The circle hit all 5 tentacles on Rex, causing an immense amount of pain to them, letting Rex go from the air. As he started to fall to the ground, Solrent quickly dashed to his partner and scooped him into his arms. He looked down at Rex, who smiled back despite all of his energy being drained from him.

"Whoa Sol...you look amazing. What happened back there exactly? And where did you learn to breathe fire like that?"

Solrent leaned down and kissed his partner on the forehead. "To be honest Rex, I have no idea. I just felt that you needed help and I wanted to be there to protect you. My desire to protect you, the spite I have towards Zain for violating you, fueled everything I need to ensure your safety. I want you Rex. And not to sound greedy, but I want to always be there for you Rex. My feelings for you, I just have to fully let you know how much you mean to me."

Solrent

Holy Lancer

Dragonlord

"Heh, I already knew that about you Sol. But I guess I can consider more about that. But first...we have to take care of that guy over there."

Both Solrent and Rex looked over at Zain, who grew more agitated with every second. "You! What have you done? Not only have you taken away my slime dragon, you took away my pet. I will get you. Master and I will make sure you will succumb to us."

Solrent chuckled and shook his head. "Like hell we will let that happen." Solrent looked over at Rex and gently laid him on the ground. "You rest here buddy, I'll end this quick." Rex nodded his head and closed his eyes, conserving his energy as best as he could. "Now, how would you like another taste of my fire?"

"Shut up! Now just stand there and let me have my way with you!" Zain closed his eyes and channeled as much energy as he could. Eight tentacles flung from behind him, aiming their way towards Solrent and Rex.

Solrent easily dodged every tentacle that tried to grab him, maneuvering his body around like a ballet dancer. Frustrated, Zain commanded the tentacles to go after Rex. Seeing the tentacles redirect themselves to grab his partner, Solrent quickly inhaled as much as he could, saying, "Oh no you don't." Immediately afterwards, he created a fire tornado around their bodies, disintegrating all eight tentacles in its path. Once the fire dissipated, Solrent stared back at Zain, who started to retreat backwards in fear. "Not so tough are you now, without your playthings."

"No! This cannot be! Master, he got rid of your power you have given to me...Master?...Master???"

"Aww, looks like your so-called Master has abandoned you."

"You! You don't get to talk to Master like that. I will defeat you. Master is just...making a strategic retreat. That is all."

"Sure, keep on pondering about those thoughts, cause..." Solrent immediately dashed towards Zain, reaching out with his arm and grabbing him by the neck. "...I'll be too fast for you to escape."

Zain struggled in Solrent's grip. Kicking and flailing as he was held off of the ground. "Let me go! Let me go you monster!"

Solrent chuckled. "Heh, calling me a monster. Says the guy who plays with tentacles all day. You aren't even that powerful unless you have others fighting for you. Now, take this!" Solrent swirled Zain before throwing him towards the wall.

Zain's back collided against the wall, a loud grunt of pain echoed in the room as he tried to slowly get back to his feet. A bit of blood can be seen on Zain as his legs shook. "You! Just die, why don't you." Zain attempted to charge at Solrent, rearing his leg back to give a powerful kick at the last moment against Solrent's side. Zain felt contact, but when he looked up, Solrent looked down at him unphased. "What?"

Solrent reared back his leg, smirking back at Zain. "Let me show you how it is done." He then propelled his leg forward with force, hitting Zain in the stomach and sending him flying across the room.

Zain coughed up blood as he tried to get up. His body felt weakened from the tremendous strength that Solrent now has. Zain looked over at Solrent, who stood proudly and then at Rex, who laid peacefully on the ground. He knows that if he tries to attack Solrent, he will be badly beaten. And if he were to go after Rex, Solrent would immediately intercept. Zain only had one thought left in his mind, one thing that could potentially let him see another day. Zain started to make a break for it and run away. However, he tripped on some slime that was near him and fell to the ground again. He turned around and noticed Solrent cracking his neck and slowly approaching him. "No, I was supposed to get our revenge on you two, for defeating my other brothers. It was I who would claim victory."

Solrent leered and took a deep, concentrated breath, inhaling with all of his might to fill his body. He closed his eyes, feeling that fire building up inside of him again before unleashing one last fire blast towards Zain. Zain tried to run away, but his foot was caught in the slime. He tugged on his foot, but it held firm against the slime as he saw the fire coming his way. Panicking, Zain started to scream, "No! Master! Please save me. Save your humble servant. I don't want it to end like this. No! Master! Master!! MASTER!!!"

The fire connected with Zain's body, lighting him up as the fire slowly engulfed him. Solrent watched as his new power lit up his foe, slowly disintegrating the body and turning it to ashes. What was left of him was nothing more than a mere stone, a rather brilliant blue sapphire. Solrent walked over and picked up the stone, feeling it pulse with life as feelings of greed wafted through him, but those thoughts only focused on one thing. He looked back over at his partner and quickly ran to his side again, holding up his neck and looking down at his eyes. Rex opened his eyes and smiled, knowing that his partner has saved him once again.

"You did it Sol. You always are there for me when I need you most."

"Of course Rex, you are the best partner a dragonlord can ever ask for."

"Dragonlord? What do you mean dragonlord? Aren't you a dragonewt? And also..." Rex looked down at Solrent's naked body, staring especially towards the lower region and blushing hard.

"It's a bit complicated to say the least. But I think I may have evolved. You know, like some sort of promotion." Solrent saw where Rex's eyes wandered and gave off a sly chuckle. "You sure you want to look at that?"

Confused and flustered, Rex let off a big sigh. "Ugh, we will talk about this later, let's just make sure everyone else here is safe. Especially..."

"Heh, don't worry about me you two. No one can capture good ole Gael."

Solrent and Rex both looked in the direction of that voice and smiled. There, they saw Gael standing a few feet from them, exhausted and naked. He twirled his dagger and flourished his pistol, nodding his head and giving the two a bow. "I do have to say though, you two are my saviors. I am in debt for what you guys were able to do for me back there. That weird, creepy dragon dude with his tentacles and whatnot. He sure was a character. But..." Gael reached behind him and pulled out a small short sword. "This was what I came here for. This wakizashi is what will help me get into the guild. So I owe all my thanks to you two."

"No problem Gael, we are glad you are safe. We saw what he did to you and we both wanted to jump in, but we couldn't come up with a plan to safely get us all out without endangering anyone."

"Yea, we are sorry about that Gael. Usually, Sol and I come up with good plans, but we were stumped this time around."

"No need to apologize for that. Things happen and let's just be thankful we all made it out...And who is this? A new friend of yours?"

All three looked over and saw a rather intimidating dragonewt slowly approached them. He stood about eight feet tall, with muscled arms and legs. His chest was not as ripped, and his stomach was round, like that of a dad bod. Despite also being naked from head to toe, all three saw what the dragonewt was packing downstairs. Even though it was flaccid, the cock looked to be about twelve inches at the minimum. All three blushed at the sight, even Solrent who thought he himself was pretty big amongst the current party. The dragonewt crossed his arms at the party and grinned.

"Hmph. I got to say, not what I expected of my rescuers. But I do appreciate any help I can get. So thanks for rescuing me and my crew. We were stuck down here for ages. I honestly cannot remember what happened though. One day, my crew and I were rummaging this place to look for gold and other materials to help craft some new weapons and armor. But one of my men mysteriously disappeared. When we sent a team to look for him, we saw him tied up, with his lower half all covered in slime. You guys can pretty much guess what happened next to the rest of us. Anyway though, I should introduce myself, the name is Smith."

Smith

Battle Smith Artificer

Dragonewt

"Nice to meet you Smith. My name is Solrent. My dinosaur buddy here is named Rex and our lizard friend over there goes by Gael."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. But you guys do look a bit weary and tired. I think with that tentacle guy gone, I can take it from here. You three go back to the surface and rest up. Oh, and another thing..." Smith brought out what looked to be a broken spear. "I found this back there and I assume it belongs to one of you two."

"My spear. Oh...that weapon has been with me through it all. It sucked that it had to break like that."

Smith brought his hand to his chin. "Hmm...well, tell you what Solrent. For rescuing me and my crew, why don't you visit my shop in a few days. I should be able to setup and get things back to normal after I get my entire crew out of here. It's located next to the church, a few stores down. You meet me there and I'll be sure to see if I can get something to replace this spear of yours."

Solrent smiled and nodded his head. "I would appreciate that Smith. Thanks."

"All the thanks belong to me. Trust me, now get out of here you three. Get some rest, you guys had a huge day today. I'll take care of everything here and rescue the rest of my guys. I'll see you guys later." Smith turned around and walked back towards the prison cells, his fists at the ready in case something were to jump out at him.

The three all looked at each other and gave off a big laugh.

"Man, that sure was something today, wasn't it Gael?"

"Yeah, you can say that. I know both of you guys had a rough time as well."

"All that matters now is that we get the heck out of here. I freaking hate caves. Let's just leave, Sol and Gael. Please. For my sanity at least."

Solrent and Gael gave off a big chuckle, seeing Rex flustered and agitated for being in the cave longer than they wanted to. The three started to depart the cave, going back the way they came. The traps were no longer active, making it an easy navigation back to the entrance. The only thoughts in their heads was to get back to the center square, back to where the guild and church is and they can finally rest for the day.

*******************************************

Four dragonewts were chilling and resting in the hot springs of Top's home. All four gathered on each side of the springs, enjoying the warmth it offered to them.

"So, sounds like you guys did your job, right Roo and Em?"

"Well of course Top. Why wouldn't we. I mean, I know Em had a fun time messing around with Solrent here and there, but we pulled through and helped him evolve."

"Hey, I want to at least tease the guy who literally defeated me not too long ago."

"Yeah, and you had to let that sister back at the church see you do something stupid like that. If I did not bow and apologize to her, I bet she will use some magical force to beat the living shit out of you again."

"Hey, hey, calm down there Roo. I may have had a bit of animosity still towards him, but I understand how important Solrent is. I am glad that we did help him as best as we could. And you Spaz, you looked like you had a fun time there with Rex and Zenny."

"Bah, I can only do so much. All I can do for Rex is to not let that creepy tentacle of Zenny violate him. And speaking of Zenny, where is he Top?"

"Oh Zenny? He should be coming any time..."

Right as Top said that, the blue dragonewt opened the door to the springs. He looked at all four of his brothers and smiled. He looked over to Em, who kindly waved back and beckoned him to join them in relaxing. "Oh...hi guys. Nice to see the family again. Roo, Spaz, and Top...And oh Em, I am happy to see you here safely." Zain slowly entered the hot springs, murring softly as the hot water calmed and relaxed his body and mind.

Emmerette slowly embraced Zain in a side hug. "I haven't seen you in a while. You sure put up a huge fight though against Solrent. Sorry that it had to come like this, but we had to fight against you."

"I know, I know. Top filled me in on everything...So we are really going up against dad?"

"Of course Zenny. You know dad is controlling all of you guys. He never bothered with me due to my lazy attitude. But I cannot see him controlling all of you guys. We are a family and eliminating our dad is the only way we can live peacefully together again. But I do have to say, you three helped with Solrent's evolution. You three all live within his personality and I hope you will continue to help support him as best as possible."

"No problem Top. You rescued Em and I. And now you even brought Zenny here with us as well. And I know Spaz also appreciates it as well. Just have to convince Chubbs and King now."

"Yeah. Chubbs I am not too worried about, but that will be based on how voracious Rex is. But for King, that will be a challenge. You know how prideful he really is. I may have the physical strength amongst all of us, but King is on a whole new level with how he presents himself."

"Well, you got this Spaz. I'll be sure to help you and Rex as much as I can. Em, Roo, and Zenny deserve a bit of rest."

"Alright Top, I'll be sure to give our little dinosaur friend all the encouragement he needs. I'll try my best with Chubbs and King, and once all three of us are here, we can help Rex with his next step and then we can finally take down our dad."

"Oh, by the way Top?"

"Yes Zenny?"

"Is it alright if I bring Master and his powers with me here?"

"And that is my cue to leave. Have fun guys."

"Wait, where are you going Top?"

"What do you mean, your cue to leave?"

"Oh Zenny, please not here, not in the water."

As Top rose out from the hot springs, tentacles started to form within the pool. Each one latched out and held firmly onto each of the other brothers. One gently wrapped itself around Rubrum's neck, another wrapped firmly around Spessart's arm and the last one wrapped tightly against Emmerette's leg. One tentacle approached Top, but just gave off a friendly wave as Top shook his head and looked back at the group. Three of his brothers were struggling and causing a mess in the springs, while the fourth was clapping his hands together in glee, enjoying the family bonding time they were having. "I should really tell Zenny no tentacle porn in this house. But I am feeling rather slothful to do anything. I am sure they will all be fine, heh."