The Dream That Turned Real - The Canine Underworld - Part 8
#8 of The Dream That Turned Real: The Canine Underworld
The Canine Underworld #8
Part of The Dream That Turned Real series
Earlier...
(First Person)
"So, now what? We go in?" Ryan asked me.
(Third Person)
"Sorry, guys, no go." Mike said as he lowered his head and tail and walked away, in the direction of the fort as he changed back to his Anthro form.
"Aw, Mike..." Ryan said as he followed the disheartened werewolf a time later.
The others looked at the town beyond the wall, then to the pair of Lycans in the distance. Gorn made the gesture for blowing one's own brains out, making the appropriate sound for it before grabbing the dingo and carrying him as they went to where they called home.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Moike, you are a fuggin' coward!" Dan said.
"Dan, don't insult him. You know what's gonna happen." Ryan defended as he watched Mike, who sat on a rock with his head in his hands.
"I know, but it kinda proves that your boyfriend has a weakness."
Mike cleared his throat in a low growl.
"We all have strengths and weaknesses. But it is our own decision to take that risk, of exploring the unknown, to face whatever comes our way." Gornak informed Dan. "Besides, we are not going to risk our lives if it isn't necessary."
Ryan sat down next to Mike and put his hand on the other Lycan's back. "You should ignore Dan, he's kinda screwy in the head right now."
Mike lifted his head and looked at his mate.
"Sooo, what now? What are we doing?" Lupo asked, looking around at everyone.
"I don't know, why don't you and Dan wrestle for a bit, entertain us?" Ryan told him. "Good training."
"I'd rather not. It's kind of embarassing, if you get where i'm going."
"Come on, show us your moves!" Ryan egged the wolf on.
"Unless you wanna have a go with me, Rai." Dan suggested, putting his fists up.
"Not happening." the werewolf said, folding his arms. "It'd be like you picking on Mike, then you get your lights knocked the fuck out."
"Well, damn it, what're we s'posed to do, other than wait for the next wave of Demons to rear their ass-fucking-ugly ass-faces?"
Lupo rubbed his chin. "Hmm... Hibernate?"
"Done that." Mike said. "Might do it again later."
"This one sounds a bit childish, but we could play either Tag, or Hide and Seek."
"Nope." Ryan told the wolf.
"At least there's some tactical value..."
"Rock-Paper-Scissors, see who gets to explore the depths of Valdov's butt?" Dan suggested.
"NO." they all told him sharply.
"Wow, being in Hell sure got us in the slump." Lupo said.
"Ain't that the way it's supposed to be?" Dan asked him.
"Well, i don't know about you guys, but Ry an' I are gonna hit the sack for now." Mike said, pulling Ryan with him, going into Gorn's house to pull some Z's, as they thought about stuff to do.
While the two werewolves slept, the other three tried to figure out what to do.
"So, this is what makes those things insane. Nothing to do, no ideas... Just.. sit on the ground, stare at nothing, and wait for time to end." Dan said in a trance-like monotone as he sat down on the ground, before getting a mighty slap across the face from the minotaur.
"Dan, do not speak like that!" he shouted as he picked the dingo up and shook him back and forth. "Should you continue like that, you are only submitting to those monsters. To your own evils."
"Well, what the fuck else is there?"
Lupo went to rouse one of the Lycans as Dan and Gorn argued on.
"Mike? Mike, wake up, please. Dan is suffering severe mental trauma."
"Tell him to stick it up his ass." Mike mumbled in a gravel-filled voice as he rolled over to hug his lover.
"No, Mike, don't be like that. I have formulated an idea to keep Dan active, but i need you and Ryan to help me with it. It's a good idea, i promise."
"Urgh, fine. Ryan? Hon, wake up, the lesser species just grew a brain."
Lupo took the insult, but never reacted as both werewolves got up again.
"Ugh, why do i feel like i got jet lag?" Ryan asked himself, shaking his head.
Lupo gave them full detail of what they had to do: Build an obstacle course, along with a twenty foot tall game of checkers, with themselves as the pieces in teams.
"Team-based multiplayer and speedrun a map?" Mike said. "That actually sounds interesting. Yeah, let's go do that!"
In what seemed like a few hours, they had it all set up. A full-blown obstacle course to run through, and the pillars were moved into a checkerboard spacing, close enough to safely jump from one tower to the next.
"I am such a slut when it comes to mazes." Gorn deeply chuckled as he saw the maze before him.
"That's 'cause you're following the stereotype of your kind: You're gonna go in there, hide in the center, and wait for us to come and get you so you can mow us all down." Lupo said.
Mike opened his wings and hovered over the course, before some unknown force pulled him back down. "Whoa, let me go!" he shouted.
"Sorry, Moike, flyin's cheating!" Dan said as his whip held the werewolf in place. Mike let his eyes glow red with rage, and instantly he blasted a hundred-foot wide donut around the dingo, allowing no escape as the whip silently fell to the ground.
"How do you like that, shit-for-brains?" the werewolf called out.
"You're an ass, Mike!"
"Whadja just call me, dingo?" Mike said as he floated to the ground in front of Dan, touching noses with him as he snarled.
Dan nervously smiled. "I haven't a clue what you're talkin' 'bout. I-I was just thinkin' out loud by accident."
"ELBOW! KNEE! KICK! SLAP! KOH!!" Mike yelled as he hit Dan with each move he called. Koh basically translated into K-O, or knockout, final move, a hard right to the chin, sending the dingo flying out of the ring.
As Dan hit the ground, Ryan rushed to his friends' aid.
"Just leave me to die, already." Dan weakly said, tilting his head toward Ryan. "He's too much for me to handle."
"No, Dan, I won't." he said before turning to look at his mate.
"What?" Mike said, a look of unbound fury in his eyes, a stone-cold serious look on his face. "He had it coming. Did you hear what he called me?"
Ryan dug his fist into the ground. 'I thought he'd gotten that out of his system, already..' he thought to himself.
"Look, Ry, I know we are in a great deal of distress, but i think it would be best if Dan gave us some space. He should know already, I can't tolerate being called names! Especially 'asshole', I fucking HATE that one!" Mike said, his voice roaring across the wasteland.
Ryan looked at his mate. "Y'know, I was friends with Dan first before you."
"Does that mean you don't want me anymore?" Mike replied, feigning a look of shock upon hearing his words. "If so, just say the word, and I'll go serve myself up to those Demons on the other side'a the wall." he continued, nonchalantly as he pantomimed himself leaning on a wall, his thumb pointing in the direction of the wall.
"No, Mike, that's not happening!" Ryan teared up as he brought Mike and Dan in a close hug. "I love you both the same, and I am not letting you put yourself in danger."
"Oh, what's become of us, guys? We're kickin' each other's butts left an' right!" Dan sobbed while they hugged.
"Let us be thankful that we're not getting attacked every now and then by those monstrousities right now." Gorn said to himself, watching the three make up.
"You guys want another shot at the course? If not, Valdov wants to go Godzilla on it." Lupo asked, coming out of the maze.
"Let'im, we weren't gonna use it anyways." Dan said.
"Okay... Val, let'er rip!"
===================================
Awhile later, after the dragon demolished the obstacle course, everyone piled up on Gorn as they slept, leaving Valdov with guard duty. Not that he minded it, he needed something to protect.
All was quiet for a long time, as the dragon looked around, his vision sweeping across the barren wastelands. Suddenly he sensed something, and proceeded to wake the others up, by roaring, stamping his feet, and lightly whacking the house with his tail.
"Whoa, whoa, Valdov, calm yourself. What's happening?" Lupo asked as everyone raced out to see what spooked the dragon. Valdov then used all his brainpower to link up with them all.
'I.. sense.. strong magic, nearby.' he said.
"There are other mages near? Where?" Gorn asked.
'Cannot tell. Coming from everywhere!'
"DAN! DANNIE!" a voice shouted. Everyone looked around, trying to find the origin of the voice.
"Wait a minute, I know whose voice that belongs to!" Dan said. "RIIICCK!!" he shouted.
"YEAH, IT'S ME!" came Rick's reply, followed by a bout of relieved laughter.
"WHERE ARE YOU?" Dan asked.
"IN THE MORTAL REALM, AT YOUR BAR!" came the reply after a second.
"THE INNE? GREAT! WHERE IS MY MATE?"
"RIGHT NEXT TUH ME, GIVIN' US A BIRDS-EYE VIEW OF THE ACTION GOING ON DOWN THERE!"
"Dannie, it's Kraig! Are you alright?" the young fox said.
"YEAH, WE'RE FOINE! I FOUND YOUR DAD! HE'S WITH US!"
"DADDIE! Are you there?" Kraig asked.
"Yes, my son, I am here. I will be waiting for the moment when we can be together again!" Lupo said.
"Kraig?" Dan said.
"Yes, Dannie, i'm here. We're gonna get you all out of there!"
"THERE'S A FELLOW HERE WHO DEALS A BIT IN MAGIC; HIS NAME IS GORNAK, A MINOTAUR, AND HE IS CURRENTLY ADJUSTING HIS HORNS FOR MAXIMUM RECEPTION. WE'RE GOING TO TRY AND LINK UP WITH WHATEVER MAGIC LYCAON'S WEAVIN', SEE IF WE CAN GET A VISUAL ON EACH OTHER."
========================= 1111111111111111111111111
"Wait a minute, the diamond!" I said, teleporting over to the crystal and quickly zapped out a sphere the size of your standard disco ball.
========================= 3333333333333333333333333
"What are you guys doing right now?" Kraig said.
"Can you see us on Lycaon's screen?" Dan asked. "Mike's carvin' up a big'ol diamond that we found. Can you see it?"
"Yes, i can. What's he making?"
"Mike, what're you making?" Dan asked the wolf.
"That's for me to know and you to find out, let's put it that way." Mike said as he resumed shaping the desired object.
"Looks like a disco ball...." Dan told Kraig before realizing what it was. "Oh, wait. OH! I see it now, he's making a crystal ball so we can see you guys!"
"LYCAON!" Ryan shouted.
"Yes, Ryan?" the wolf-god answered.
"Could you shoot a projection of someone over there? Anyone, just try it!"
After a short time, the crystal ball in Mike's hands started to glow amber, then a bluish-white. Then, the ball started floating out of the werewolf's hands and away, before a Doberman faded into view.
"D'wahh.. brbrbrbrb." the Rover shook his head.
"Blitz!" Ryan called. "IT WORKED!"
"AHH, not in my ear! I need that, you know." Blitz said, rubbing his ear.
"What's the Blitz over on your side doing?" Dan asked.
"I have put him in a immobile trance-like state; A physical ghost of him now walks among you."
"Does that mean, if I punch him here, he can feel it there?"
"In a way, yes."
"Don't." Ryan said.
"Too late!" Dan said as he punched the Doberman on the arm.
"OW, YOU PUNK!" Blitz shouted as he began to chase the laughing dingo around, before slamming into Mike, in all his Feral glory. Screaming, the Dobie tried to run, before running into the Minotaur.
"LYCAON, GET ME OUTTA HERE!"
In a second, Blitz disappeared, replaced with the glass ball from earlier.
"Why'dja do that?" Dan asked Lycaon.
"You guys were being mean to me, that's why!" Blitz replied.
After a short time passed, the ball began to glow again, as a tall Springer Spaniel stepped out of the light, clutching his chest before seeing someone run up to him.
"Rick!" Dan said, running up to the figure.
"Dan!" Rick replied, bringing the dingo in a tight hug.
Breaking the hug, Rick was approached by someone he had also lost touch with a long time ago.
"Ry- uh, Officer DuBon!" Rick snapped straight to attention and saluted the werewolf.
"There's a name I haven't been called in a long time, Springfield!" Ryan saluted back.
After introducing Mike, Gornak and Lupo to the trucker hound, they went inside the house to discuss thier plans. That is, until Rick's form started to fade away.
"Oh, shit! What's happening?" he struggled.
"It seems that you cannot travel very far from the object used in your transversion to this realm." Gornak explained.
"Dan, get the ball, if you could." Rick said.
Dan went to grab the object, when it burned his hands the very second he picked it up.
"YEOW! How the fuck is that possible?"
"Perhaps only the Creator of the Sphere can wield it." Gorn said.
"Then it looks like I'm up." Mike said.
============================== 111111111111111111111111111111
I walked over and slowly closed my hand around the glass ball. I could feel the heat eminating from it, yet I was not harmed by it, it did not burn when i touched it.
"I got it!" i said in weak triumph.
"How is it only you can touch it, and I can't?" Dan asked.
"Methinks it hath trust issues." I replied in a sneer.
"That was so funny I can't even laugh at it."
I growled deep from my throat, letting him know full well who he was dealing with, posing like I was about to lunge at him.
================================= 33333333333333333333333333333333
Mike picked up the ball, and they went inside Gorn's house to talk about the escape plan.
"Kraig really misses me, doesn't he? I can only blame myself for bringing up that idea of having that one-night stand with you." Lupo told Dan as the two sat down, the others standing, or leaning on a wall.
"Okay, so what's the game plan that the old man's got to get us outta jail?" Ryan asked.
"Well, he's got us a convoy of vehicles, bikes mostly." Rick started, "He's gonna set up some kinda wormhole between Earth and here. Me and the others'll ride down here, grab you guys, and goose it back. Simple yet complicated, I know, but it looks like you cleaned house on whatever monsters you were fightin' with, so shouldn't take too long."
"What kinda rides're we gettin'? " Dan asked.
"There's gonna be about twenty bikes, all the same thing, Horscht an' I're gonna carry ten each on our trucks; Zeke and Bane are gonna drive two cars down, Plee-a-dees, if I'm not mistaken. The Road Rovers have thier own rides, and, uh.. Y'probably don't know this, but there's three others who're taggin' along with us."
"Three others?" Mike said. "Can you put that into more detail?"
"Since you asked. One's a wolf, like you guys, the second one's a bird, and the third is a bear, like Horscht, but he's got more muscle."
"Hmm... who do we know that fits that description?" Mike asked.
"Can yuh look through your crystal ball over to Lycaon's side?" Rick hastily asked in an annoyed tone, without thinking. Mike pinned the trucker with a lethal stare, unmoving.
"I only asked a question; there's no need to be offended by it."
Mike did not answer; he still sat there with that cold look in his eyes.
"Okay, I'm sorry! What?" Rick asked, starting to look nervous now.
Dan looked at Mike, waving his hand in front of him. "Uh-oh, I think you ticked him off somehow."
"Well, I'm not pickin' any fights, so if you could do something to get him to at least take his eyes off me, I'd breathe a little easier."
"Uh, Mike? Mikey, you okay, hon?" Ryan cautiously approached. Mike quickly turned his head in Ryan's direction.
"Why don't we go outs- oh, right, only Mike can handle the ball. Damn!" Dan said, snapping his fingers.
Gornak stepped in between Mike and Rick, and swiftly kneed Mike in the gut, followed by a 'crack' sound as he butted heads with the Lycan, knocking him unconsious.
Ryan gasped. "Gorn, what the fuck was THAT for?!"
"He was about to attack our guest, your friend. Do not worry, I didn't kill him, I only knocked him out for a short time."
"You better be right, Gorn."
"Anyways..." Rick continued, "I don't know where the wormhole's gonna open up, but when it does, stay clear of it."
"So, those 'three other guys'? You didn't give us their names yet." Dan said.
"Greyfus, the wolf; Beakwood, the eagle; and Teddium, the bear."
"Greyfus..." Ryan echoed.
"Rick, your visit is over." Lycaon told the trucker.
"Alright then, Scotty, beam me up!" Rick said, making the others laugh a bit as he faded out of view, the ball's light dimming before going dark.
"Aw, Mike." Ryan sighed, looking at the other Lycan.
"He brought it on himself. His motives are unknown to me, aside from whatever it was that our messenger said to trigger his reaction." Gorn said.
"Well," Ryan said, cracking his knuckles, "Let's see if True Love's Kiss can wake him up."
Ryan picked up the other werewolf, cradling him in his arms, then brought his lips to Mike's in a slow, passionate, driving kiss that lasted a few minutes, sharing his saliva with his lover.
After breaking the kiss, he set Mike down and waited.
Mike slowly changed into his Feral form, claws extended several inches, and slowly came to as his skull mended, whatever brain damage Gorn caused disappeared.
"Mikey, are you okay?" Ryan asked.
>, Ryan?"
"Mike's talking in Spanish; How do we fix him?"
"How did that come to be?"
"That would be my doing, Sir. Mike was about to attack your messenger, so I subdued him, by knocking him unconsious." Gornak explained.
"Daniel told us that you can control Magick as well."
"I can."
"You must search him for the soul controlling his voice, and eradicate it."
"And what method do you prefer I use?"
"Tap into his MindLink. Search through his memories between after he lost consiousness and before he woke up."
"I shall try my best, Sir."
======================
Gornak instructed Ryan to restrain Mike in the form of a friendly hug, then placed his left palm to the possessed werewolf's forehead, and in a low rumbling voice, called forth his magick to search through Mike's subconsious memory.
"Hm... Where are you, vile being? Show yourself..." the minotaur muttered, his eyes darting about as he looked at various parts of Mike's mind.
Soon enough, he found it: A physical experience between Mike and a Demon. He found the Demon's point of view, as it's soul was sucked from it's body... out of it's rear, and into Mike's genetalia.
Gorn yanked his hand away from Mike, accidentally whacking Dan, who was walking behind him at the time.
"OW! What was that for? I didn't do anything."
"Dan, you may be right. Mike is channeling a Demon that never got fully absorbed as nutrition. You probably do not want to know how he got it."
"Mike took a Demon up the creek, remember? He showed us the one that turned to stone after he sealed the deal." Dan said, rubbing his head where Gorn hit him. "Ahh, dammit, that hurt."
"Mighty Lycaon, I found the demon's corrupt soul. How do we get rid of it?"
"Have you any incantations for this task?"
"We were hoping that you knew of such a spell, for I have none at the moment."
"Hmm... " Lupo said to himself, trying to figure out how they were going to remove this apparition from the werewolf without completely obliterating him. "I think, what we need, is a basic Exorcism-type ritual, then see where we go from there."
"Ya heard that, Lycaon? We need an exorcism spell." Dan said.
"I shall tap into Mike's subconsious, then you can channel your energy through me to Mike." Gornak told Lycaon.
"If you see this as a 'good idea', then I shall try."
Gornak performed the same MindLink as before, then told the wolf-god that he was ready. In a few moments, he was flooded with Lycaons' incantation, which the minotaur was passing onto the werewolf.
The others watched as Gornak's eyes glowed a light teal color as Lycaon remotely worked his magic.
"Ohh, please tell me this is gonna work." Ryan said, worried.
The tension was thick in the air, as the exorcism took it's toll on Mike and Gorn, the Lycan growing weary, the Minotaur doused with sweat, keeping his stance constant, until he sensed something within Mike's being: The demon was losing the battle, and tried jumping into Gorn as another host.
Gornak pulled his hand away again, Dan well out of his swing radius, and growled, wrestling with the entity as it tried to overpower him. He was not one to be underestimated, as the bullman conjured forth his most powerful dark magic, and forcefully expelled the Demon from himself, expiring the demon instantly.
Dan, Ryan and Lupo all jumped back and held each other as Gorn faced them.
"My friends, today marks a milestone for us, as we have sucessfully exorcised a demon!"
They applauded as Mike finally came to.
"Ugh.. what happened?" he said as Ryan came up to hug him.
"You... had a bad ghostie trying to posess you, but Gorn kicked it's ass and sent it packing. That's what happened. Remember that demon i caught you with?"
"Yeah."
"Well, somehow, you pulled some sort of cock-vore on it, but instead of taking the whole demon, you only took it's soul."
Mike widened his eyes at the news: he thought he was just mindlessly fucking a demon, yet he hadn't known that he was capable of such a feat.
"Holy fucking shit. Lemme get this straight: I... cock-vored a Demon's inner being just by doing what i did to it?"
"It appears so." Gorn said.
"That... is disturbing." Mike said before turning to Ryan. "Now I know how you feel."
"You don't know the half of-- Oh, wait, you do." Ryan replied. "Welcome to my current dilemma." he then said, a sheepish smile on his face.
"Soo," Dan said, looking around, "Now what do we do? What else can we think of that everyone can have fun doing?"
They went through thier options again: Eat, sleep, have sex, chase the dingo, play around in Valdov's droppings, race each other, build or destroy stuff, wander about the wasteland...
Everyone knew that the possibilities were somewhat as endless as it was in the mortal realm, yet in a limited form. They could do anything they wanted, but could not find any form of motivation, nor inspiration to get them to carry out thier desires.
"Damn. S'like we can do whatever, wherever, whenever, but it's like we're completely powerless to do anything. Friggin' sucks." Mike said.
"If all this clamoring is for activity, why not train yourselves to become stronger, more effecient.. Less whiny?" Gornak stated, getting evil stares from the Lycans.
"He is right, though. We have been doing more talking than taking action." Dan told them, "I noticed we've gotten a tad lazy since the Demons stopped attacking us."
Ryan and Mike both agreed on that cold fact.
"We have this unlimited freedom, right?" Ryan asked. "But there's no technology, no pre-made entertainment or food, no electricity.. all the stuff we used on Earth, we don't have over here."
"You know what?" Lupo asked, snapping his fingers. "It's like living in the days way before Benjamin Franklin even discovered electricity, even before he was born! We are living like our ancient ancestors."
"That's a crazy idea, Loop." Dan said after some moments of silence.
"No, really, iit's true! If i still remember my History correctly, we are currently living life like it was back in the Stone Ages."
"How so?" Gorn asked.
"Gornak, look at your house; You built it out of stone. Your furniture are made from the skins of the Demons you've slaughtered over time."
"Huh, I've never once realized that." the bull-man said.
"Out of the simplest resources at our disposal, we can create the stuff that we used to have. Shit, we can invent the wheel, as the cavefurs did long ago..."
As Lupo gave his speech on the resemblance of this incarnation of Hell to the Stone Age, Dan slipped away to do a little 'creating' of his own. Walking around, he came across some Demon carcasses twice his size, still intact.
"Ah... Here we go. Hmm.."
The dingo looked around for a good rock about the size of his fist, and picked one that felt solid, grinding it against a boulder from one of the nearby pillars until it turned into a blade. Testing it's sharpness, Dan accidentally cut himself. He winced as the pain died down some.
"Damn, that's sharp!"
Dan then went to work, slicing up the Demon for its' skin, to make into leather strips, finding that he had done an excellent job sharpening the stone, it cut through the hide with ease. After that, he found a slab of stone half his height. He envisioned his whip as a stone-shaping grinder, and it took on the shape of the tool. He further shaved and shaped the block of rock until it looked like a skateboard.
Checking its' weight, he found it was still quite heavy, so he shaved it to where it was light enough to work, yet thick enough to not break under even Gorns' weight, re-checking the weight every few passes.
Taking a few bones from the Demons' remains, and the leather strips he made earlier, he strapped the bones to the stone board to become its' axles. Transforming his whip back into the cutter, he shaped four wheels out of solid rock, balancing them as if they were car tyres, shaving thier weight before mounting them to the skateboard.
Stepping on the device with a light touch of his foot, Dan slowly put his weight on it, until he fully stood on the board. He smiled at his conquest as he tried its mobility; he had everything just right, the wheels didn't bind, the bone axles were strong as steel.
"Well, those who fail history are doomed to repeat it." Ryan said as Lupo continued on about the things they could make.
"And what better place than here?" Mike replied before Dan zoomed past them.
"Now what's crazy dingo doing?" Ryan asked, a confused look set upon him.
Dan rolled over to the others and kicked the board up from under him, grabbing it mid-air, and stood it up as he leaned on it, smiling. "Guess correctly, an' I'll let you use it."
They looked at the object, then at Dan. "It's a skateboard." they said in unison.
"Wow, how'd you all know?"
"We know what a skateboard looks like." Lupo said.
"Okaay... 'Ey, Mike, couldja build me a half-pipe?"
Mike shot him a fake posessed look, eyebrows furrowed like he was going to break the dingo's skateboard.
"Pleeease?"
The werewolfs' face twitched a bit, smiling as he let his breath leave him in a sigh. "Fine. But only 'cause I'm bored."
As Mike created the skate ramp, Dan pulled a few ollies while he waited. The others watched, Ryan yawning, Lupo itched his neck, Gorn standing like a statue.
The young werewolf jumped on the top of the halfpipe, and fired his heat-vision, glassing the surface for the dingo to ride on.
"Here we go, one half-pipe! Happy, Dan?"
"As happy as a truck in a mudbog." Dan said as he tested out the trick-ramp.
Mike watched as the dingo flew around the half-pipe, whooping as he caught air.
-------------------------------------------- 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
'Well, this actually looks..... fun.' I thought as I watched Dan on his skateboard, zipping through the halfpipe he requested.
--------------------------------------------- 333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333
"Wow, he's actually having fun on that thing." Ryan said. "You should give it a try, Mike.
"Naw, I can't." he replied.
"Why?"
"Skateboarding's not my thing. I'd rather have a bike."
"Okay... but don't let me remind you."
"Ryan... Just looking at you alone is enough to do that."
"Aww, you do care."
"So... i ask again... what do we have for... activities?" Dan asked, launching off the ramp.
"I just thought of something.. Dodgeball, using a Demons' skull!" Gornak said as he held up a small skull, getting a creeped-out look from the dingo. The minotaur winked at him.
"Wanna..." Lupo told Dan, followed by a few hand gestures and a high to low whistle.
"Hmm.. not really." Dan replied, turning down the wolfs' 'special' invite.
"Gorn, you were able to turn Valdovs' mood, and channel Lycaons' powers. How is it that you cannot use your magic to create stuff, or imbue our weapons?? Lupo asked.
"The extent of my powers are not as you think them to be." Gorn explained. "As I have only learned but a few simple tricks."
Dan launched the ramp one last time before sticking a landing near the Minotaur. "Well, if you knew every spell ever made, y'woulda passed the power level of whoever rules this dump. Then we'd be in even more trouble."
"You'd be wise to think that." Gorn said in a light laugh.
"Creepy." Ryan said, shaking his head before looking at Dan. "Can I have a turn on that thing?"
"What's the password?" Dan replied in a cocky tone.
"Hmm... Please?" Ryan angrily snarled in the dingos' face.
"Ah-ah, say it nicely, now."
Ryan slapped the dingo down and took the skateboard that was spinning in the air. "TOO BAD! It's my turn and you know it."
As Ryan played around with the skateboard, Mike dragged the limp Dan back into the fortress with Lupo in tow.
"You're never gonna learn from your actions, are you, Dan?" the werewolf asked.
"What good's a brain if you're not using it, man?" Lupo said as Mike neatened the dingos' fur.
"So, Dan wrecked both your rides... and Kraig told you to kill yourself because he wanted Dan over you. Not to offend, but that's just fucked up." Mike told Lupo as Dan went on the demonhide bed.
"Well, he didn't explicitly say that... It was... subliminal, to label it."
"Okay, continue."
"Dan didn't wreck my bike; it was broken when I gave it to him, the engine threw a rod, and killed one of the cylinders." Lupo told the Lycan. "The car, though, was completely accidental. Dan's bike coughed up the back tire, and he hit a pothole or a rock or something."
"And still I wonder how you were able to remember all that, from so long ago." Dan said, sitting up to look at the wolf before Ryan came in, holding Dans' skateboard, now broken in half.
"Hello, is this quality control? I need to make a complaint." he said.
"Yeah, well I got one for ya too, Ry." Dan said under his breath.
"Are you okay, Ryan?" Mike asked.
"Oh, I'm fine... well, maybe a little hungry."
Dan and lupo both had scared looks on thier faces.
Ryan smirked. "Don't worry, I ain't gonna eat you guys, I love ya too much to do that."
"And just how do we fix the munchies?" Lupo asked as Gorn came up behind the werewolf.
"You eat... That's the only way." the bull-man said.
Everyone stayed their positions for awhile. Dan coughed a little, breaking the silence.
"We're running out of things to do, aren't we?" Mike said, shedding a lone tear.
"We are, sadly." Ryan said, watching Mike's tear fall to the ground. "It's a zigzag pattern I've noticed: Activate, then procrastinate. We try an activity until we're tired of it. S'the downside to the ol' phrase, blah blah blah, repitition, yadda yadda yadda."
"And then we decide to sleep it off, which the question bugs me -- " Mike paused. "Anyone have any... dreams, lately?"
"Funny thing, that. We haven't had any. At least, nobody willing to share aside from you, Mike." Dan replied.
"I may as well share one, while we're on that topic." Gorn said, crossing his arms as he leaned on the wall behind him. "I had a dream that took me into the Medieval ages. I believed that I had been living in that time period, ironically, as a slave-driver. As most of my dreams, it... had a bad outcome."
"Ohh, you got..." Dan said.
"I did. Sent me to the guillotine, they did. That I remember the most, feeling that blade come down on my neck, sending me to an everlasting slumber as they sent their swords tween my eyes... Cheering their victory over my rule forevermore."
The minotaur looked around, everyone wide-eyed, Mike even shaking from listening to his tale.
"Something troubles you, Mike?" he said.
"I think Mike's a lightweight when it comes to horror stories. I swear, if he were wearing boots, he'd shake'em to bits." Dan told Gorn before looking at Mike. "Don't worry, I'm not making fun of you. I mean, you've gone through so much already."
"Good going, now he's not gonna be able to sleep anymore because of that." Ryan told the minotaur before tending to his mate.
"That was kinda harsh." Gorn mockingly said.
"I wouldn't say anymore, Gorn, 'till we get Mikey all better." Dan told the bull-man.
Dan, Gorn, and Lupo left the shelter for awhile, to let Mike recover, and split off to do their own thing. Dan was rebuilding his skateboard, Lupo tended to his dragon, and Gorn was weightlifting with boulders.