Let the Games Begin
A sort-of prequel to the Survival tournament, when an alchemist's experiment takes him to a place he had never been before, he finds himself playing a game for his very life.
Let the Games Begin
Artemis looked at the faded piece of parchment for the third time, the arctic fox bit his lip as his finger traced over the symbols on it. What he had in his hands was what he thought was a recipe for a powerful alchemical substance, and even though the symbols on it were ancient he thought he had deciphered it to the point where he could actually make the potion. When he actually mixed the reagents together, however, instead of an alchemical substance a portal was created that pulled him through. One second he was in his lab, the next he stood on a black spire of rock surrounded by a swirling cloud of red and purple miasma.
"A teleportation spell with alchemical reagents as the key." He said to himself as he finally found where he had gone wrong in the translation. "That means this 'nexus' is the realm that I'm in... though there's really no mention on how to get back. Perhaps there is someone around here that can help?"
Artemis slowly moved forward off of the smooth rock, and as he climbed down off the initial plateau he quickly found a path that looked well used. It was a chance that there were people, he thought happily as he made his way through the rocks. As he rubbed a hand on the smooth stone he figured it to be some sort of volcanic glass, though it was opaque like it was covered in rubber. When he got further in though he reached a small valley where the strange smoke had settled into it, more swirls of red, purple, and some blue flowing like a thin layer of oil in water.
After about a minute of debate Artemis decided to venture forward, the road plunged right into it and if this was some sort of trans-dimensional waypoint then whatever the fog was shouldn't be hazardous to him. Even with his intellectual affirmation however he was hesitant to continue, he slowly moved down and used his foot to gently brush against the smoke. The breath that he had been holding slowly began to exhale as his foot didn't melt off or turn into some sort of tentacle, so once the test seemed to work out her continued to move into the miasma. To his relief it looked like the valley only dipped to the point where it came up to his knees, and once he was halfway through a small smile came upon his face as he played with a few of the wisps that came up as he disturbed the flat surface of the settled vapors.
When he got to the other side of the passage the wall of red and purple clouds that had been swirling around him the entire time seemed to break, opening up into a huge grassy field with more black stones that made large hills in the otherwise unbroken landscape. Even though it was bright like a sunny day the sky was as black as night with stars everywhere, though there wasn't a pattern of them anywhere he could see. He was stunned at the alien setting around him, and even though he was still unsure of where he was he wanted to explore further and still try and find someone to help him.
Before he could take another step though, Artemis suddenly found it hard to step forward. When he looked down he saw a rather disturbing sight, the fur on his legs at first looked matted own, but upon closer examination they appeared to be covered in a hard rubbery substance that had begun to spread up his legs. He continued to try and walk forward but it felt like his feet were made of lead, with every step it got more and more difficult to walk until his legs were completely fused in place from the top of the knee down. As he wiggled and squirmed he felt a similar weight on his hands, where they had touched the miasma the fur and flesh there also began to become covered in hard white rubber.
"Someone help!" Artemis called out as his arms began to stiffen in the same manner as his legs. Panic began to rise in his chest as the petrification process continued underneath his clothes, though it was also accompanied by a strange feeling of pleasure that caused his maleness to become erect as the rubber reached his groin. As his cock went hard the thick latex covered it quickly, which caused the uncovered parts of his body to shiver in pleasure from the odd sensations he was receiving.
"It looks like you're enjoying yourself quite thoroughly." A smooth voice said behind him as he felt someone touch the small of his back as it was assimilated. "So what do we have here, a little fox thief that wished to be a new statue for my front lawn?"
Artemis gulped slightly as he heard the voice chuckle lowly, he wished that he could turn to see the mysterious entity but with his entire lower body encased he could only turn his neck and the creature stood directly behind him. "Please, I was just following what I thought was a potion recipe!" The arctic fox said as he felt the hard rubber creep up his chest and shoulders towards his neck. "I came to your lands by mistake, if you can point me in the right direction I'll gladly go back. I'm not a thief or a lawn ornament, I'm just an alchemist that-" his pleading was interrupted as the white rubber snaked over his maw and clamped it shut, the only sounds he made were muffled noises.
"Well well, what to do, what to do..." the voice said as he felt a claw trace against his hardened cheek as the patron of the realm moved into his field of vision. If his jaw hadn't been cemented in place it would have dropped at the sight of the creature before him. It was a dragon, but his glowing eyes were a glowing red and he looked like he was covered head to toe in shiny black rubber. "Here I have a little foxy claiming that he's lost, yet I can look and see that you are certainly enjoying the treatment that I've been giving you so far."
Artemis let a little gasp as the rubber receded around his lips, which allowed him to gasp for breath even though his nostrils hadn't been covered. "You know, I think I may believe you." The demon dragon said with a smirk. "I have to say though that I could always use a good alchemist, plus I think that you look good in a set of scales. However I detest servants that aren't willingly a part of my realm, so how about we play a little game to see exactly where we go next. My name is Renzyl, yours?"
"I'm Artemis..." Artemis replied, grateful for the ability to speak once more though the rest of his body was still completely immobilized in the hard white rubber. "A game? Can't you just let me go?"
"Oh dear Artemis, what would be the fun in that?" Renzyl jeered. "Here's the deal, we play one game of my choosing, if you win then I will personally escort you safely back to whatever realm it is you came from. Plus I may even throw in a gift for entertaining me for a few hours. If you lose though, then you will willingly stay in this realm as one of my personal servants. Of course I could just turn you into a nice marble statue and admire you from my balcony for a few days while I consider whether or not you were an actual threat. What do you say?"
Artemis gulped slightly as he weighed over the options in his mind. It was clear that whatever stood before him was powerful, enough so that he had been completely immobilized by whatever substance covered him. Although it seemed like there was a chance that the demon would let him go, but if he could beat him in one game then it would be a certainty. Plus the gift was intriguing, though it was his curiosity that got him there in the first place. "Well, what's your decision then?"
After a few more seconds of contemplation Artemis nodded his head, which prompted the dragon to clap his hands and turn around. "Follow me then." Renzyl beckoned. A second later Artemis felt the feeling return to his limbs, though the hard plates of rubber remained on his body. He felt like he was wearing a suit of armor, though it was surprisingly flexible around his joints.
"Um, can I at least get rid of the rubber that's covering me?" Artemis asked as they were lead to a rather large estate in the distance. "I don't mean to complain but it's just... well, it's weird."
"I think that for what we're doing your new attire will be most fitting." Renzyl replied. "Are you uncomfortable?"
Artemis was about to say that he was, but when he thought about it the thick rubber was strangely good against his skin. As he walked into the doorway his hands roamed over the slick coating that covered his entire body, for once admiring the handiwork of what could have been his prison. The shifting polymer was rock hard but still light, something that he would have been hard-pressed to create on his own even with a recipe. If it was something that could be recreated he would love to have it for his own uses, which his mind reeled with the possibilities.
He was so lost in his thoughts that the arctic fox didn't even realize where he was until he looked around. The room they were in was rather unassuming, a balcony lined three of the walls where he saw that several strange creatures that had the same rubbery skin as his host watched from it as Renzyl led him to one side of the room. "Now just go ahead and stay right there on that square." The demon dragon instructed, Artemis looking down at the shiny black square that he stood on. "Once the others are ready we'll begin with you."
"With me?" Artemis questioned as Renzyl walked to the other side of the room, who just gave him a knowing smirk before he stopped on a white square directly opposite of him. The arctic fox remained confused until more of the creatures filed into the room, all of them reptilian in nature and covered in either black or white rubber. As all the beings that were white filed over to his side of the room he suddenly realized what was happening. "Really? We're playing chess?"
"Very good." Renzyl replied as the rest of the respectively colored creatures got into a familiar playing order. "We've got the lizardmen here as pawns, the rather large crocodiles as our rooks, nagas for knights, and raptors for bishops; all of them have graciously volunteered their time to be a part of this game. I'd also like to thank Sivilath for changing up the color schemes, and to Chrono for volunteering to be our guest's queen as well as Zander for being mine."
There was a round of applauses as Artemis looked over at the snake man that stood next to him on his left, who looked back at him with a smile as he reached out to shake his head. "It's nice to meet you Artemis." Chrono said as the alchemist shook the clawed digits. "I can sense that you're a bit nervous, but you shouldn't worry. Master Renzyl will make sure that you are given the full immersion experience of our little game and if really if you lose you'll still win in my opinion. You know how to play chess, right?"
"Yeah, I do." Artemis replied nervously. "So this is basically a game of life-size chess? I think we could have just as easily done with a normal chess board, far less intrusive."
"I wouldn't worry about being intrusive, especially considering this is Renzyl... I'm sure he has something rather special in store for you." Chrono replied with a laugh. "My only suggestion is to have fun, it's only a game after all. It's your move to start."
Artemis stifled a small sigh as he looked over the board towards the grinning demon dragon. Though Chrono's kind words helped he knew what they were playing for, and it didn't stop him from being nervous as he told one of the lizardman pawns to move to D4. The white rubber reptile nodded and moved forward two spaces, and a few seconds later one of the black latex-coated lizardmen moved towards them and sit right in front of his. "Hey Chrono, just how good is Renzyl at chess?" He asked before he told another lizardman to move two spaces forward as well to E4.
"Oh, he's pretty good." Chrono replied simply, then a smile appeared on his muzzle as the black lizardman moved diagonally into the space occupied by the pawn he had just moved up. "I would watch this, I'm sure it's going to be the best part of the game."
Artemis looked forward to what was about to happen between the two lizardmen when he suddenly felt as though his body was tugged forward and everything went dark for the briefest of seconds. When he was able to see again he found his perspective had changed, instead of looking out at the pieces from the back he was suddenly in the center of the board. He tried to move his body but found himself unable too, instead it seemed to move for him as his stolen gaze looked at the black latex covered male in front of him. He quickly realized that he was somehow feeling all the senses of the pawn that had just been captured, and before he began to wonder if he was supposed to watch him get walked off the board something began to shift and distort the synthetic skin of the other male.
If the arctic fox's jaw could have dropped it would have as several black tentacles came out of the lizardman's mouth and shoved themselves into the body that he currently possessed. Artemis could feel everything, the slick appendages that slid down the white-scaled throat and up his tight rump. The lizardman looked down as the thick tentacles continued to push deeper in to his body, his own cock beginning to grow erect before it was engulfed by the wiggling coils of the other creature's mutated member. As the complete penetration continued Artemis suddenly found himself in his own body once more, looking out in shock as his captured pawn's eyes rolled back into his head from pleasure.
"Wha... what the hell?!" Artemis cried out as a thick black substance began to leak out of the white lizardman's nose, mouth, and tailhole while the tentacles inside him shoved him towards the side of the room. "What are you doing to him?"
"Oh, I thought I would spice up the capture process a little bit." Renzyl replied with a smirk as the tentacles withdrew from the overstuffed lizardman while thick rubber continued to cascade down from his head and torso and envelop his body. "As you can see your pawns are equipped with tentacles that completely encase the opposing piece before discarding it to the side of play. The other pieces also have some fun surprises as well, but we'll leave that for when we finally get to use them. Also, since I fully believe that chess is a simulation of war and that generals should always know what their men face I decided that you'd get to experience their capture first hand. Now, if you don't mind, I believe it's your move."
Artemis gulped slightly as he looked over the board once more, trying to figure out a strategy that would minimize his own potential losses. "I see he's already gotten into your head." Chrono said with a smirk. "I wouldn't let this new aspect of the game change your playing style if you can help it."
"How could I not get rattled by that?" Artemis replied as he gestured towards the frozen image of his former pawn. "I mean, look at him!"
"Oh, that?" Chrono said, a slight smirk on his muzzle. "He's fine, probably enjoying himself quite thoroughly. You don't have to worry about the pieces you lose, they all volunteered to be part of his game for a reason. Now go ahead and make your next move, I'm guessing one of your bishops?"
Artemis nodded and announced for the bishop that he had just unblocked to move to the center of the board, hoping to take control of the center early on. He watched as the white scaled raptor moved diagonally, though it was immediately countered by Renzyl moving one of his pawns to counter. The moves continued in that fashion for quite some time, Artemis attempting to use his bishops and knights to gain an early advantage while the demon continued to use pawns and eventually his queen in order to try and gain tempo over him.
The arctic fox's next surprise came to him when his bishop took one of Renzyl's pawns a few moves later. Since he was the one taking the piece he thought that he would be safe from having to witness first-hand what was going to happen, yet as his bishop moved into the square he felt his spirit once more jump forward and his perspective changed to where he was looking down at the black rubber lizardman from the eyes of his raptor. At first he thought he was going to experience the other side of the tentacle experience, but as he felt the creature's insides shift he realized that he was in for something completely different.
The raptor took the lizardman and kissed him deeply, Artemis could feel the reptilian tongue begin to stretch out unnaturally as it filled the pawn's throat, whose eyes widened before they rolled back in pleasure. Though it was hard from his perspective he could see the lizardman's skin begin to bulge out as the thick appendage continued to push into his mouth and down his throat. For nearly half a minute the fierce make out session continued and by the time it was done the arctic fox could swear that the strange tongue had gotten all the way down to the captured piece's stomach and had deposited a copious amount of its saliva into the creature's body. When they finally detached Artemis could see the tongue, which had turned a semi-opaque white and looked rather almost like gel as it retracted into his mouth.
The black lizardman looked at the raptor slightly in surprise until he looked down to see his stomach begin to shift, his black, rubber scales sagging slightly as several patches began to turn white. The pawn's cock begin to grow stiff as well, and as Artemis regained control of his own body he could watch as the captured piece began to stroke himself as a white gooey substance began to drip from his nose and tail. It took a bit for the alchemist to realize what was happening, but it became very apparent when the afflicted lizardman's muzzle began to droop unnaturally and his legs melted into a puddle on the ground. Even though he was turning to goo it didn't stop him from continuing to try and pleasure himself, a loud gurgle came from his maw as his jaw melted into his throat, his arms merging with the lump that was his torso as he sank into pool that his body had become.
As the last of the lizardman's muzzle disappeared down into the gooey puddle it suddenly disappeared, Artemis looked over to the area where the first lizardman had been pushed into and saw a semi-translucent white figure of a lizardman that stood next to the other four lizardmen that he had already taken earlier in the game. It was still odd that to see such human trophies just sit there, even though they did sport full erections and blissful looks on their faces. "I do hope that the stimulation isn't putting you off your game." Artemis suddenly heard Renzyl say. "I meant it to be a perk, not a disadvantage."
"Of course not!" Artemis tried to sound confident as he denied it. "It's just... it's something that I just am surprised at is all, it's not every day on my world that you see someone get turned into an amorphous slime creature."
"It's not?" Renzyl replied with feigned surprise in his voice. "Well that sounds no fun at all, perhaps a visit is needed in order to change such a thing." There were snickers in the balcony as Artemis looked at the crowd that had gathered to watch them, though his attention was quickly brought back to the game by the silver latex raptor next to him. "I was just asking because you fell so completely into my trap."
The arctic fox's mouth dropped slightly as he watched the rook that had been moved next to Renzyl's queen several turns ago was instructed to move up. The huge, four armed crocodile lumbered forward with his already erect cock jutting straight out and grabbed the rubbery raptor in its arms, Artemis bracing himself as his vision shifted once more into the restrained bishop. He arrived just in time to feel the rock hard yet still supple scales of the crocodile rub against the raptor's back as something began to push against his exposed tailhole. A wave of pleasure cascaded through their shared body as the rook's thick rod began to push into their tight opening.
If Artemis had control his entire body would have been clenched from the intrusion, thankfully the rubber anal muscles of the raptor stretched easily around the huge cock as it began to push deeper and deeper into him. One of the two hands that wasn't wrapped around the white bishop's chest had begun to fondle his own quickly growing arousal while the other latched onto his stomach and pressed him close to his own six pack of abs. As the crocodile rook began to plow into the raptor in earnest Artemis felt and saw a peculiar thing happen to his bishop's cock, the rubber of the thick erection turned even shinier as it grew hard and black. Even though he couldn't see it he could feel it happening to art parts of his body as well, the raptor's body petrifying in the crocodile's grasp in what Artemis could only describe as a strange, creeping pleasure.
Just like all the times before Artemis got shunted back to his body as the capture process reached the raptor's head, though he could swear he still felt that thick member in his own tailhole as he watched his bishop become fully encased in hard black stone with a look of pure pleasure on his face. The rook walked the captured piece as the now frozen raptor was bobbed up and down on the thick reptilian pole that stuffed his tailhole, the crocodile giving one last grunt before playing it with the rest of the pieces that Renzyl had captured. "Don't let it get you down." Chrono said as Artemis continued to look at the crocodile in shock over what happened. "Master Renzyl loves traps more than anything else, and he's very good at setting them."
Artemis nodded numbly as he directed his pawn forward to try and retake the ground that he had lost. It became clear to him that he had the very real possibility of losing this match, and he could only imagine what would happen if he was checkmated by two or more of those creatures. It also appeared that while the pawns got more of a brush off transformation his specialty pieces got a far more intimate removal, something that caused his arousal to rise despite himself. The arctic fox was thankful that he had a plate of rubber covering his crotch as he moved his naga knights out, the serpentine pieces slithering around the other pieces to get to the spots they were needed.
There were a few more moves and several pawns taken on either side, once the arctic fox managed to get a bit of tempo on his side. He even managed to get one of Renzyl's rooks, though it cost him one of his bishops in response. As they moved further along in the game he realized that the raptor's words were true, he was just about to move Chrono to take a knight and put Renzyl into check when he realized that the demon dragon had positioned his bishops to both take his queen and put him into check as well. As he took a few minutes to reconsider his strategy and look around the board, and saw a secondary trap behind the first one, which caused his eyes to widen.
"Wait, I think I might have him." Artemis said as he took a second to look around the board once more. "He has two traps set up to get me, but I think I can not only bypass them but put him into checkmate as well. Unfortunately that means that I'm going to have to sacrifice you..."
"Ah, don't worry about it." Chrono replied with a grin. "There's a reason I volunteered for this, it's all good and fun. You do what you need to do."
Artemis nodded and began his move, ordering Chrono out into the middle of the board. He allowed one of his few remaining pawns to get captured before he moved his queen out and took one of his knights. The arctic fox braced himself as his consciousness shifted. He knew he was in the raptor's body, but as the naga looked at him he could feel his body begin to shift. Chrono let out a roar as his body shifted, the latex scales melted together as his entire body began to grow. His cock began to grow erect as a pair of wings sprouted from his back, the meek raptor's form filled with muscle as it turned into a powerful dragon.
Before the naga could even react Chrono pounced on top of him, the surprised serpent let out a loud hiss as the new, nearly foot and a half long member pushed its way into his rubbery depths. Artemis wished he could do something, but all he could do was ride the wave of unbelievable pleasure as Chrono began to thrust inside him. The second his cock had entered the rubber naga the black scales around his anal vent turned white with black, runic markings. It took Artemis a second, especially with the lustful feelings that threatened to overwhelm him, to realize that the naga was undergoing a very demonic transformation.
As the dragon Chrono grabbed the naga by the scaly body to bring him in even closer the naga's body began to distort as well, his fangs growing sharper as a pair of horns pushed out from his forehead. The black knight's coils thrashed around the cock inside him as his body grew a line of spikes down his back and his reptilian eyes turned a deep red. The most significant change was similar to Chrono's though as a pair of latex wings sprouted out from his back as well, though they were much more sinister looking as Chrono stroked the naga's cock while his own was hilted inside him.
It was less than a minute for the transformations to cease, but for Artemis it seemed to be an eternity before the pleasurable sensations finally stopped. When he was returned back to his body he saw that the demonic naga had been deposited to the side of the board with all the rest of the pieces. His gaze was quickly brought back to the board however as Renzyl called out his next move. Zander, who had undergone a similar transformation to Chrono when he took several of the arctic fox's pawns, moved over to the recently transformed raptor and invaded his square. Chrono didn't even have time to turn around as the rubbery black dragon wrapped his arms around him and lifted him up, Artemis's vision shifting once more just in time to feel that slick spire of latex flesh slide into the white dragon's tailhole.
Artemis knew that had he been in his own body he probably would have been split in half by the huge member that invaded Chrono's depths. Instead though the rubbery form of the former raptor gave easily to the intrusion and as he looked down at himself he could see his scales turn black around his groin save for thin white lines. Artemis was thankful that Chrono had begun to lustfully stoke his own cock, the arctic fox felt the strange sensation of what felt like his own tool being pleasured but yet knew it wasn't, as the transformation progressed rapidly. Thick black horns and spines sprouted from Chrono's form as Zander's draconic hands massaged his inflated pectorals, all the while he continued to thrust into the restrained raptor-dragon.
"Well well, looks like you lost your queen." Renzyl said with a smirk as the demonic dragon Chrono appeared at the side with the rest of the pieces with a hungry, lustful look in his eyes just like the naga that he had turned a few moments before.
"So have you." Artemis replied before he commanded the knight that he had hidden at the side of the board to move into the space that Renzyl's queen occupied. It was the only piece that he hadn't experienced the full effects of, and by now he was more curious then not about what was going to happen as his vision shifted once more. His senses were restored just in time to watch as the draconic Zander looked in surprise to see the huge naga wrap around his body and constrict him. When only his head was exposed the white-scaled naga unhinged his jaw and struck downward to cover his entire head in one gulp. If the fox had his own vision he would see the outline of Zander's head in the snake's throat as the combined action of the coils and the muscles in his maw quickly pushed the helpless black queen piece further into his maw.
The arctic fox was extremely surprised when he felt the rubbery scales press against the slick latex interior of the naga's maw. It was by far one of the most bizarrely pleasurable things, he could only watch as his knight's scaly lips continued to slide down the muscular dragon's neck and shoulders. He watched as Zander's arms became pinned to his sides as he was engulfed further, the naga's eyes locked onto the large, black rubber member that throbbed hard against the white scales of his captor. When his scaly snout bumped against the spire of flesh the naga tilted his head back, his thin rubbery tongue wrapping around the sensitive flesh as it joined the rest of his body inside the large male.
"Well well, an excellent parry, I did not expect that." Renzyl said as he scanned the board once Zander appeared next to Chrono on the side of the board, completely encased in what looked like a rubbery shell. "It appears this check is just about absolute, I do not wish to extend the game any further by merely moving myself around the board. Congratulations, let's get you cleaned up so I can honor my end of the deal... though if you don't mind staying for a meal perhaps I could persuade you into a rematch afterwards..."
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"Well, this has certainly been fun Artemis." Renzyl said as he and the arctic fox walked towards the rocky area where Artemis' journey started, the demon dragon had waved his hand and the mist that protected the area parted for them. "It's a shame that you won, I could always do with another alchemist in my service, with time you could even become one of my higher-ups. Are you sure that I can't persuade you to reconsider my offer?"
"Thank you, I'm sure that what you'd give me is very generous, but I really must return to my shop." Artemis replied as he clutched the crystal decanter with the demon dragon's gift in it. "This trip was very much unexpected and I would hate to think of what would happen to it if I left it for such a prolonged period of time without prior planning."
"I understand." Renzyl said with a nod. Once the two of them reached the top of the plateau Artemis took his place in the middle of the circle that was etched into it and took one last look at the domain that he was leaving. At the same time Renzyl stood off to the side and touched the edge of runes with his talon, which caused the entire glyph to begin to glow with a red light. "If you ever change your mind, you know where to find me."
Artemis nodded and gave the dragon a thumbs-up before the demonic energy swirled around him and his body disappeared from the circle in a flash of light. Once the arctic fox had disappeared completely a silver raptor hoisted himself up to the plateau and stood next to Renzyl. "I'm surprised that you let him go so easily." Chrono commented as he looked at the now-vacant spot. "Like you said, we can always use another alchemist and he seemed like he only needed a gentle nudge to push him over the edge into our favor."
"Ah Chrono, this isn't some mere conquest or recruitment to gain more followers or resources." Renzyl replied as he started to walk back down towards his manor. "The willing gain so much more power than those who are taken my more forceful manipulations. Plus it's always fun to have such a good opponent. I expect that we will be seeing him again very soon..."