Champions of Mareth - A CoC Tribute (1/2)
Part 1/2 of my Corruption of Champions tribute! As Luke, the scholar, enters through the portal for the first time, he'll soon realize he's not the only Champion still actively fighting back against the demons.
Author's note: Why am I writing this? People don't read the notes anyway. I guess I can just write whatever the fuck I want on this, and no one would get angry at me. Okay, so, uh, I don't like cheese! Well, actually, I really love cheese, so, uh...Hitler was right? Yeah, definitely offensive enough! And you wanna know another thing? IKEA makes horrible furniture! I wouldn't know, I've, er, never bought anything from them, but...it's probably bad! Like, soooooo bad! Enjoy the story, person who probably didn't read this! I hope...
The Real Author's Note: This is a story based on the text RPG game Corruption ** of **** Champions **** , made by Fenoxo and its community. If you haven't played it, go try it, you won't regret it. I own nothing, Fenoxo's the head honcho on that shit, none of this is mine except for the champions that I describe. There are two stories here, one for a male and female counterpart of the same champion, so the two stories may seem...rather similar, perhaps to understate. If you want to read both, more power to you! There's plenty of variety in either one you pick! But the base story will be otherwise the same, except for some more critical moments.**
MALE CHAMPION: LUKE
The elder warned him of the dangers beyond the portal, as he prepares his equipment for the journey ahead. Luke knows that no other champions have returned from beyond the portal. The few citizens who end up sneaking into the portal, they return...broken, subsumed by whatever dark forces lie beyond. It only dawns on him now, though, that he's likely walking into his own deathbed, or perhaps something far worse. But that doesn't matter now. Luke wasn't just chosen as this year's champion, he strictly volunteered for it. He felt prepared to help the people he cares about. And that's exactly what he plans to do.
Walking into the cave, he can smell a foul lust in the air. The demons' magic is strong enough to pierce the very portal? Interesting, but at the same time, the ramifications are almost too horrifying to think of. He mustn't dwell here, the portal's just ahead. Luke brings a hand to rest against his trusty knife; he's a scholar, not a fighter, but it always helps to come prepared for anything.
In one courageous leap, he jumps through the portal, unsheathing his dagger, battle pose at the ready as he shouts, "Face me, demons!"
However, there're no evil entities or cosmic monstrosities waiting for him on the other side. In hindsight, maybe he shouldn't have announced his presence by screaming and brandishing a kitchen knife. Now he feels stupid. He composes himself, and spots a marvelously-decorated camp nearby. Quite the luxurious camp setup! He thinks to himself. His thought process is cut short, though, when he notices a shadow sticking out oddly in the sky. And it's getting closer, when realization dawns on him: That's not a cloud!
He leaps from the way as an armor-clad figure descends at breakneck speed, a plume of dirt wafting into the air. The very dust of the ground is making Luke's body feel uncomfortably warm! What manner of evil is this!? He doesn't take the time to answer it in his head, as the figure comes into view: A tall humanoid, at least 6 feet, clad in a hue of colorful green scales. His eyes meet with an equal green, gazing at him with a steely gaze that imparts wisdom, power, experience. His head imparts 2 pairs of foot-long horns, swept back in a fearsome, mighty appearance. Horns of a demon, no doubt! Luke, against his better judgement, pulls the knife against the figure again, who, in turn, lifts up a gigantic hammer, almost the size of Luke! "S-stay back, demon!" Luke shouts.
"Demon?" The figure laughs, setting the hammer down to his side. "So then, you must be that lunatic who was screaming before." Luke, out of panic, tries to stab at the large, scaled figure. He hardly even registers it as a pin-prick as the knife snaps against the armor plating, him grabbing the human's hand and snatching what's left of the dagger from it, before crumbling it into metallic dust. "I'd advise not doing that again."
Luke is paralyzed in fear, as the figure sniffs him. "Hmm, you don't smell like a demon. I still don't trust it..." He puts Luke down, assessing him. "You look human...why should I not think you're a demon disguised as one, or slave to an omnibus?"
"I-I'm not! I would never!" Luke shouts defensively. "I'm here to defeat the demons!"
The figure goes stiff. "Has it...really been a year already?" The figure takes a step backwards, the light more clearly shining onto him; his face is human! At least, mostly human; his eyes are...well, like a snake's, but his nose, his mouth, his facial features resemble that of a human. "It's been so long, I must've lost track of the days...right, sorry. The name is Eldrid. Follow me to the camp, you can meet the others there."
"M-my names Luke, and..." Eldrid doesn't stop to listen to Luke explain himself, as he flies off for the camp on a pair of powerful wings. What was that about? puzzles the scholar. Was Eldrid the last champion? There are others? What's going on?
A short walk to the camp, and Luke marvels at the decor: the tents and surrounding areas are covered in exotic rugs and tapestries, everything feeling so alive, so tranquil. Eldrid is waiting by a large fire pit, atop rests a cooking pot, bubbling away with some odd concoction. He's surrounded by...what in the gods' names are these things?! Mice-people, a shark-woman, a bird-lady; what kind of realm has he stumbled into?! He takes a step back, a cow-woman looking over to Eldrid with concern. "Sweetie, who's your friend?"
A lizard-woman with a flaming tail and chainmail bikini leans back against one of the logs, downing a whole mug of ale in one sitting. "And is he a friend, or a 'friend' friend, lover mine?" She asks with a mischievous smile.
Eldrid smiles in turn, standing to stir the pot, nodding to Luke to allow him to introduce himself. Luke stammers, "I-I'm Luke, a...ch-champion from the village of Ingnam..." Everyone in Eldrid's company start to mutter with each other, surprised at seeing another champion other than Eldrid. "It's..an honor to be here."
"Shit, another one?" A tall, winged warrioress says from nearby the pot, leaning against an impractically large battleaxe. "Doofus here's enough trouble as it is." She says pointing to Eldrid.
"You know what that means, right, Eldrid?" A small mouse-woman says, kissing him on the cheek. "It's nearly the anniversary of when we first met!"
Eldrid's green scales on his face blush a mix of crimson. "How could I forget, hmm?" He looks to Luke, then to the others. "As you may have guessed, I'm the champion that came before you. These people." He raises his arms towards the many people gathered around him, "are all the friends I've met during my time here. Amily," he ruffles the mouse-girl's hair, then pointing to others in respective order, "and that's Kiha, Marble, Helia..." Eldrid goes along naming off each of his friends and companions that are present, Luke in complete and total awe. So many people, all of whom seem to be perfectly polite, maybe save for that red-headed one with the wings. Eldrid finishes up, "and this fluffball here is Sophie."
"It's delightful to see a cute thing like yourself, Luke." The harpy coos. "Just let momma Sophie know if there's anything you need."
From a small ways off, a snowy-haired, horned woman observes the new arrival, her reptilic eyes watching his every movement. Luke looks uneasy as his eyes meet hers, and Eldrid walks over, patting his back. "That welcoming little lady there's Ember. Sorry, she's not a people person, but she has her better days." Ember turns around, walking back into her den, the sounds of children playing inside. "Dragons, am I right?"
"I heard that, doofus." Kiha says over her shoulder.
Eldrid rolls his eyes, looking back over to Luke, who still looks and feels nervous. Eldrid pats his back again, harder this time. "Hey. Don't panic about it. You'll feel right at home after a while." He walks back to the stew, pouring people bowls. "You actually caught us at a good time; dinner is ready. Here." He hands Luke a bowl of the strange, thick stew, which he tastes with his finger. Aside from the look, surprisingly delicious! Luke throws manners to the wind as he scarfs the delicious soup, Eldrid smiling. "Yeah, it's a mix of some spices I found while traveling. I insisted hothead here that I cook this time," he says, ruffling Kiha's bright-red hair.
"Zis is very good, Eldrid." Another cow-woman says, next to Marble. She's clearly struggling to speak clearly, fighting with her thick accent. "I vud love more."
"Yeah, yeah, it tastes okay." She admits, slurping down more with a smack of her lips. "Still not better than my cooking."
Eldrid leans close, muttering to Luke. "Trust me, it is.." Kiha shoots him a look, and Eldrid goes back to stirring and serving food. "So, Luke, how about you go meet the others? I'm sure they'll love to see you."
Luke stumbles upon a more ornate tent than the others, noticing that, upon entering, the interior's so much larger than that of the outside! It's a scholar's paradise: dozens of magical tomes and ancient books, him awestruck at the discovery. As he peruses, he backs into a robed figure. He turns quickly, dusting off his own robes. "I-I'm sorry, sir!"
The figure giggles femininely, and pulls her hood down, an amused smile creeping across her lizard muzzle. "'Sir?' I haven't been called that for months now."
"W-well, I mean..."
"It's fine. I presume Eldrid brought you to our camp?" She turns to sit down, pulling out a book written in a language Luke doesn't comprehend. "I'm Arian, resident mage and scholar, at your service."
"Luke." He says, nodding. She doesn't look half-bad, this Arian woman. "It's, er...interesting to see a...uh, lizard-woman, practicing magic."
She gives Luke a confused glance. "The proper term is 'Lizan.' Did you assume that only humans like yourself knew magic?"
"I-it's not that, I'm sorry!" He says with a wince. "It's just...well, I wasn't expecting to see people like yourself here, only demons. It's...a rather odd shock to me."
"Is that so? You must be another of those champions, then. Eldrid's told us all about your village's yearly tradition." Arian smiles, reminiscing. "Mmm, I remember Eldrid first finding me in Tel'Adre. He nursed me back to health, you know." She flips through the pages of the strange book, her attention half on Luke, half on the book. "I was...also still a male back then." She giggles, Luke's eyes widening. What kind of sorcery can cause one's gender to change!?
He looks at the books across the walls, and inquires to Arian. "Madam, if it would be alright by you, might I...study some of your tomes?"
"By all means." She answers with a confirming nod. "Just be very careful; these books are older than myself. Dangerous magic within them." She assesses Luke's appearance, suspicion coming to her lizard muzzle. "From one scholar to another, are you certain you wouldn't want me to just teach you instead?"
"It's quite alright, I'll be careful." Luke assures Arian. He pulls out a red, leather-bound book, studying the pages closely. One page illustrates a searing ball of pure fire, catching Luke's attention. The words in it are in a language he understands, and quietly mutters the words aloud as he reads over it. Suddenly, a ball of fire starts to surge into one of Luke's palms, searing the side of the book! He panics and throws the fireball away from himself....and towards Arian, who blocks the fire with the book she's holding, shrieking in a shrill tone. After the panic subsides, Arian glares at Luke in frustration. "I-I'm sorry! It was a mistake!"
"It's...fine." Arian says with a hefty sigh. "Those priceless tomes...weren't so important anyway..."
Eldrid storms in, hammer at the ready, and nearly running Luke over in the process. "Arian! I hear screaming, are you alright? Are you laying eggs?"
"Just....please get your friend out of here, Eldrid." Arian replies, her voice sounding very defeated. "Before he burns my whole tent down."
"I swear, it was a fluke!" Luke shouts in an attempt to defend himself.
"Luke..." Eldrid rubs the bridge of his nose, looking incredibly frustrated with him. He grabs Luke by the robe, dragging him out of the tent.
Dragging Luke through the dirt, Eldrid puts the disgruntled scholar on a tree stump. "You need to learn to be more careful, Luke! You could've killed Arian in there!" He walks off from view, leaving Luke to think about his actions. Before long, the dragon-man returns after a couple minutes with the white mouse-morph he met earlier by the cookpot. "Jojo, our new friend here is having troubles with his self-control. I was thinking some time with you would help their case?"
"Any friend of you is mine as well." Jojo answers in a calm, even voice. Eldrid smiles, and walks off, leaving Luke and Jojo to face one another. The robed mouse crouches into a meditative pose, nodding for Luke to do the same. "I assume you've done meditation before, given your background?"
"Come again?" Luke asks in confusion.
"You're a monk, are you not?" Jojo counter-questions, pointing to the scholar's robes.
"No, I studied under the village mystics, with some help from Mr. Savin, during my training as champion." Luke answers.
"Ah. Well, it is good to finally meet you formally, Luke." After Luke sits himself down, Jojo begins his instructing. "Now, the focus is to breathe in and out, slowly..." Luke begins to do just that, the action feeling rather calming, to no surprise. Luke's thoughts, however, dwell too heavily for him to focus properly.
"So what's Eldrid like?" Luke asks Jojo, interrupting the session.
Jojo sighs, displease that Luke isn't following his instructions. "Luke, this isn't a time for conversation."
"I'm simply curious, is all."
"Curiosity has no place in meditation." Jojo snaps, surprisingly out-of-character for the usually calm mouse.
"But-"
"Luke!" Jojo shouts suddenly, before breathing deeply. "My apologies, I...think you should go, Luke."
The human, feeling nervous for what would happen if Jojo lost his temper further, complies, and walks off. He just can't seem to do things right by these people...
Night arrives. Luke curls into the bedroll that was provided to him. Outside. Away from everyone else. This isn't a decision made by the others, but more by himself, as he doesn't wish to pester anybody further. Seems his first day as Champion hasn't proved all too well for poor Luke. Not only has he killed no demons, he also nearly set a lady on fire, and pissed off a monk. He volunteered, because he wished to help those in need, feel like a hero. Well, he's feeling like something right now, but it sure isn't like a "hero."
Luke turns and tosses in the bedroll all night. He's having troubles sleeping on a guilty conscience. He knows he should probably apologize to people, especially Eldrid. After all, Eldrid is the one who let him stay here. He needs to show a bit more respect for his host, of course; that's just what a polite guest would do. He crawls out of his bedroll, and proceeds to silently walk over to Eldrid's tent. He nearly bumps into a weapons rack, with a staff, Eldrid's hammer, and a beautifully-crafted sword placed upon it. Carefully navigating past that and the armor rack, he comes to the opening flap in Eldrid's tent. He's just about to go in, before he hears some stirring from inside, along with a voice that's distinctly not Eldrid's.
"Are you sure about this new one, my mate?" The other voice says.
"I couldn't tell you for certain, Ember." Eldrid states in reply. "He seems to mean well, but he's careless. I don't really know what to do with him."
Luke can hear a wet slapping sound, a stifled moan coming from the female voice following short after. A blush comes to Luke's cheeks as he imagines what's probably happening, not that he would need to. Ember speaks again, "Maybe you could train him?"
"I doubt he'd be good with a blade." Eldrid answers quick, a beastly growl erupting from his throat as the hip-slapping becomes louder. The whole thing is making Luke feel uncomfortably warm all over. "Magic, he seems to have an understanding of, but probably very scatter-brained."
Scatter-brained!? Luke thinks to himself in outrage. It was an accident, I explained that!
As Luke contemplates just going back to his bedroll, he can hear something from nearby the camp...and it doesn't sound like any of the occupants. Eldrid and Ember's love-making falls silent, as he hears the noises as well. "Ember, did you hear that?"
"Was it maybe Luke?" Ember asks back in concern.
"No, Luke's outside the tent." Luke freezes solid. Eldrid knew he was there the whole time!? Luke feels embarrassed for a brief moment, before Eldrid is up on his feet, the sounds of heavy footfalls coming from inside the tent as the dragon-man gets prepared. "Ember, head to the den, and keep an eye on the children. Val, you're with me."
"Aww, and here I was having fun watching you two!" a third voice seems to say from inside. Luke's confused, because as he walks over and looks inside, only Eldrid and Ember are in the tent at present, Eldrid putting on his armor, a peculiar blue goo enveloping him. Luke decides the less he knows about that, the better.
Eldrid walks out quickly, glaring at Luke. "Keep your head down, and don't do anything stupid," he seems to say, as he b-lines for the weapon rack, grabbing his hammer, then heading in the direction of the noise.
Eldrid continues to set off in the direction of the sound, holding his hammer close to him. As if he even needs to guess what sort of person would interrupt his camp's sleep at this time of night. He can smell it too: the smell of pure lust, devoid of soul and subsumed in corruption. It's only when a figure exits from the forest brush that his suspicions are true: a lowly omnibus, adorned in a seductive set of steel armor, and proudly showing off a gleaming cunt and two huge, dangling demon cocks. The demoness walks in a seductive gait, as do they all, the inhuman, purple dots atop uniform-black scleras that serve as her eyes, her gaze as soulless as it is deviant. "Why hello, handsome."
Eldrid sets his hammer down to the side, a lasting reminder to the visitor what will happen should she try to pull anything stupid. "I'd ask why you're here, but something tells me you're not here to mix business with pleasure."
She demoness giggles in a none-too-comforting way, her massive breasts heaving against her metal corset. She sashays toward Eldrid, drawing a clawed finger across the scales of his chest. "I might, if you want me to..."
"I'm still not joining you, before you ask." Eldrid states dryly.
"Aww, you're no fun." Her hand starts to slowly reach down towards Eldrid's groin, cupping at the armor protecting it from violation. "I can already feel your lust, stud. All you'd have to say is yes, and I'd make all your-"
Eldrid growls, the omnibus having the right sense to space herself from him. "Call me mad, but the prospect of having my soul ripped from me isn't very appealing."
The demoness shifts in tone, from flirtatious to ice cold. "No matter. We're not here for you, Eldrid."
"My reputation proceeds me, I see." He answers in gest. He gives her an odd look, though, after mention of more than just herself. "Wait, what do you mean, 'we?'"
A deadly glint in the omnibus' eyes answers Eldrid, as a chain net drops from one of the trees, ensnaring him! Eldrid struggles against the chains, but the more he struggles against them, the weaker and more...sensitive he becomes. The demoness sets a horn-heeled foot against his chest, as he groans and wriggles underneath her, her toes rubbing against the crotch-guard of his armor. "As I said, we're not here for you, but you _will _be a lovely bonus. We want the human."
"I...I have no idea what you're-" Eldrid's stopped short at the sight of a halberd pointed at his face. His arm tries to wriggle free and reach for the hammer, but the omnibus knocks it away from his reach.
"Do not lie to me, mortal." She speaks with deadly intent, all down to even how she looks at him; the promise of death in the face of noncompliance. "We've known about this portal for many a year. Each time, without fail, another silly human, dreaming of grandeur, walks through it. Zetaz was a fool to let you slip free, but the same mistake won't be made again." Eldrid struggles further, attempting to gather the strength to yell, to warn his friends. But the chains wrapping even tighter around his form prove to plan otherwise. "Do you like it? Enchanted to sap away the willpower of anything caught in it." She violently pulls at the chains, causing Eldrid's body to get jerked around with it. "These can hold a minotaur. What makes you think you'll be escaping?"
"Wh-why the sudden interest?" He squeaks out from beneath her.
"Oh, it's simple. You alone have proven to be a pest for our operations here. One escaped 'champion' is enough; two..will prove to be problematic.." The omnibus leader snaps her fingers, and 4 dozen more demons arrive at her side, all sporting comically-overgrown breasts and dicks, armed with maces, swords, bows, and whips. "It's a problem we'd like to solve before it gets out of hand, surely you'd agree. You wouldn't mind if we combed over your camp for them, would you?" The dragon-man isn't even within his right mind to conjure a response, and the demoness knows it, patting him patronizingly on the head. "Of course you don't. Lethice will certainly enjoy breaking you. She might even promote me, perhaps share in your Lethicite."
"I wouldn't try it, bitch." The fiery warrioress, Kiha, says as she lands, having followed Eldrid closely. She heaves her axe up at the ready, rearing to start lopping heads off. "What, was Lethice too busy getting fucked up the ass to come get doofus herself?"
"My queen has more important matters than to deal with a self-proclaimed 'champion,' girl." The omnibus looks Kiha over for a minute, her lips curling into a terrifying grin. "Ah, now I remember you...Kiha, how long it's been. Lethice misses you, you know."
"Yeah? Well, tell her the feeling's mutual." Kiha huffs, holding her axe high. "I've been meaning to have a little 'reunion' with that slut for some time now."
"At tut tut, Kiha, so hostile," The demoness says in a motherly tone. "Surely, you'll come to reason and give us the human? At least, if you care about your friend, here.." She stamps her foot harder into Eldrid's chest, making him wince. "One 'Champion' for another. A fair trade, yes?"
"And let's pretend, for a moment, you don't think I'm stupid." Kiha remains in a battle-ready pose, her eyes dancing with a fury she does little to restrain. "We both know you'll have us all fucked into demons, given your way."
The omnibus leader sighs, directing her halberd towards Kiha. "I suppose this was going to end in blood at some point..." He raises her hand towards the other demons, who all begin to approach. Kiha swings viciously at the omnibus, who blocks it with her halberd. "Kill or capture anyone you find in that camp. The human is your priority!" Kiha tries to stop the other demons, but fighting off their leader draws much of her attention away. "I'll be having a talk with darling Kiha here..."
Luke paces in concern. Shouldn't have Eldrid been back by now? He even asked Kiha to go see what was wrong, and she hasn't returned yet, either. His concern, however, erupts into full-blown panic as he sees the small army of demons storming toward the camp. His eyes widen, as he screams in terror. "EVERYONE, WAKE UP! DEMONS!"
Many occupants of the camp are already awake, those who weren't already now are thanks to Luke's word of warning. The demons flood into the camp, as everyone does their hardest to fight back against them!
Amily nimbly dodges the sword of an incubus foot soldier, as she readies her darts and fires one into his neck. He plummets to the ground, and another comes up behind her, firing lust-tipped arrows at her! She ducks behind a nearby rock, her small form allowing her to hide easily, as the demon reaches closer, closer still. Amily then rolls out from her cover, firing one into the bowman's leg. She sticks her tongue out at the now-unconscious demons, but not before more are upon her.
Demons surge into Ember's stone den, a busty one holding a whip the first one entering in. The dragon-woman growls at them, her children hiding behind her, as an elemental glow emanates from her throat. "Get...OUT!" She unleashes a powerful blast of fire, the cone of flames knocking back the demons from the sheer force, scorching and even burning alive many of whom that were unfortunate enough to make the mistake of crossing the mother, protecting her young.
Helia grabs her sword and unleashes a blood-curdling cry, rushing headlong into a group of the demons. She hacks and cuts off any appendage that's unfortunate enough to get within range of her (mostly their dicks.) One of the demons blindsides her with a mace, knocking her onto the ground. The deviant incubus rips at the salamanderess' chainmail, planning to violate her womb with his elephant trunk of a cock. When suddenly, Isabelle slams her shield into the demon's skull, sending him right to the ground to join the rest of the fallen invaders. The bovine gives Hel a hand up, and the two stand back-to-back as another 8 of the demon horde surround them. "Ready to crack some skulls?" Hel shouts over her shoulder.
"Dah!" The battle-ready cow-woman replies, and the two unleash havoc on their foes. Hel flails her sword through the air like a psychopath, as Isabelle knocks back blows. Just witnessing the complete massacre is enough to send anybody running!
All throughout the chaos, Luke does his damnedest to avoid the demons. Whenever one would find him, he immediately runs the other way, only to run into yet another demon. Eventually, a succubus snags him by the leg with her whip, tossing him into the weapons rack. Her body intones an aura of lust around it, causing Luke's body to heat up once more in a rather unpleasant way. She looms over the human, her wet sex glistening and dripping corrupted juices all over his robes. "Why fight it? We could make you feel so good..."
Luke, in a moment of clarity, reaches back against the weapons rack, grabbing the staff and hitting the demon over the head with it as her guard is down! She staggers, giving him a short time to think. What was that incantation from Arian's book again? Luke finds himself out of time to brainstorm, as the succubus recovers and cracks her whip out at him. He weaves and ducks as well as he can manage, as another demon comes up from behind, to which he's thankfully saved by Hel and Isabelle's warpath through the enemy ranks, Hel lopping the foul creature's leg off, Luke having the intelligence to move in time. I've got it! _He finally remembers, shouting the word aloud with the staff aimed at the succubus' face. Instead of a fireball, however, the staff amplifies the spell, creating a powerful jet of flames that fully engulfs the demoness, her screaming as she tries to take flight. She burns up in-air, though, her body raining down as ash over the camp. Luke, now well-armed, proceeds out the direction he last saw Eldrid go, the others having the rest of the demons covered. _I'm coming, Eldrid!
Kiha's heated battle with the the omnibus leader isn't faring well into her favor: the demon, as expected, is quite skilled. As Kiha goes blow-for-blow with her, Eldrid lays limp in the net, as his goo armor struggles to break loose of him. Oozing through the chain links, the sentient armor known as Valeria takes a grip at the net and tries to drag Eldrid away unnoticed. "You...really need to lay off the carbs, partner!"
Meanwhile, the omnibus is struck from her guard, as Kiha lops her halberd in two. The demon has one final trick up her sleeve, though, and as Kiha winds up for the killing blow, The omnibus smashes a lust draft into the dragoness' face, making her reel back in weakness. The armor-clad trickster grins, standing over her new prize. "How long has it been since I saw you taking a demon dick into that little muff of yours?"
"F-fuck you." Kiha says from the ground, feeling taut and sensitive.
The demoness grins deviously, stroking herself openly. "That's the idea, darling..."
But before the evil embodiment has the chance to corrupt Kiha, a torrential blast of fire slams into her, sending her backwards into a stun. Luke has arrived just in time, the staff wavering in his grasp only slightly as he swallows the fear he's experiencing. "Get away from her!" He shouts as he closes distance between himself and the omnibus.
She shakes off the attack, staring down her new opponent with mild surprise, then seeming amused. "Seems I needn't look far for you." She ominously approaches, muttering unintelligible words in a strange, ancient tongue, as Luke shouts the fireball spell at her once more, pointing the staff. An aura of black rips around her claw-like fingernails, piercing the air in a dark haze that reflects the fire harmlessly to the side. "Did no one of your pathetic village tell you not to fight a demon with magic?" Luke backs up cautiously, continuously shouting the spell, each hit bouncing off her shield of dark magic uselessly. Luke, having overexerted himself, falls back in exhaustion, the demoness gripping him by the throat and lifting him up. Her pseudo-claws dig into his neck, her grin widening in malicious glee. "So much trouble to find one little human, and you save me the trouble by bringing yourself to me." She tears against Luke's robes with her other hand, reaching for his slowly-stiffening human dick. "Beg me to spare your life, and maybe I'll let you feel what it's like to be one of us..."
"I'm..not scared of you..." Luke hoarsely speaks under the choking grip of the armor-clad entity.
"Oh, but you should be, mortal." The omnibus intones in a both sultry and terrifying manner.
"It's _you _who should be afraid."
The voice from behind the demoness makes her drop Luke, growing stiff as a hot breath brings chills down her neck. She turns around to a semi-naked Eldrid; unarmored, wearing an undershirt, but no pants, his body still wracked with lust from the demons' foul enchantments, as seen from his raging, knotted erection. The demoness, for a brief moment, hopes that she's about to be fucked by the champion. But the raised hammer in his hands and the vicious bloodlust in the dragon-man's eyes say otherwise. The fiend desperately mutters an incantation to protect herself, but it does little to save her.
_ THOOOOOM! _
The very sound of the hammer impacting into the demon with such great force sounds like a thunderclap, the sounds of steel and bones breaking piercing the air for miles around. The omnibus' body soars several feet out, landing close by. Eldrid's powerful form stands unwavering, setting the hammer back down to approach the crumpled form of the demon. He grabs her by the throat, staring her down with a furious, homicidal fire raging in his steely gaze. "Leave. Don't come back here." He throws the lowly creature to the ground, sneering. "And tell Lethice: I _am _coming for her, and when I do, I _will _kill her. So she better be prepared."
The once-cocky (both figuratively and literally) omnibus scrambles to her feet, fighting the immense pain coursing through her broken form. "Th-thank you, oh merciful champion! Y-you have my word!" The remaining demons that aren't dead follow their leader's suit, taking wing and exiting into the forest brush. Eldrid's body relaxes, the tenseness of his form fading away slowly. He sighs in a mix of anger and relief, happy that no one was mortally injured...but angry that the camp is practically destroyed. Walking over to help Kiha up, Eldrid looks to his companions; all worn, but thankfully unscathed. Then he looks to Luke, a faint smile approaching his grizzled expression.
"What you did was stupid, and could've gotten you and Kiha both killed. Worse, even." Luke fears for the worst, drooping his head down and ready to accept his scolding. But instead...Eldrid pats him on the back. "But I'm glad that you did it. You saved not just my life, but Kiha's and potentially everyone else's."
"R-really?" Luke says, confused.
Kiha stumbles around weakly, Isabelle and Hel coming over to help her stay on her feet. "Doofus has got a point." Luke is surprised to see the ill-tempered dragoness actually...agreeing with Eldrid. "Had you not have kept the bitch busy, she would've likely fucked me silly, and have taken Eldrid." She breaks from the other's supporting grip, coming closer to Luke to ruffle his black hair. "So...thanks, I guess. You're not half-bad, for a doofus."
Eldrid chuckles, leaning on Kiha's shoulder. "Aww, I thought _I _was your doofus."
"You're both doofuses," she answers in a strange mix of humor and cold seriousness.
As everyone takes a head count, Luke is the one to ask the question. "...Now what?" The question causes silence among everyone, all looking towards Eldrid for an answer. The more experienced Champion looks deep in thought, his gaze centering towards the human scholar.
"Now, we rest," he finally answers, grabbing his hammer. "But tomorrow..."
5 WEEKS LATER
Luke stands in front of the straw dummies, holding his staff with a firm, two handed grasp. Arian and Eldrid look on from the side, as do the rest of the camp's occupants, seeing how the young mage is progressing. He focuses his thoughts, aiming at the center dummy and concentrating. Just remember to breathe, Luke, _he thinks to himself. _Just breathe, and... Luke shouts an incantation, the staff crackling and surging out in a powerful bolt of lightning, surging from one dummy to another, torching them down to the sticks they're propped upon. When the spell's carnage wanes, where the dummies once rested are now charred husks of their former selves.
Eldrid and the others clap, thoroughly impressed by Luke's performance. "Bra-fucking-vo, Luke! Excellent work!" Eldrid shouts.
"You're excelling well into your studies, apprentice." Arian adds. "Your ability reminds me of my former apprentices in Tel'Adre."
Luke walks over to the two, bowing to both respectfully. "Thank you, Eldrid. Thank you, Mistress Arian." He hands the staff to Eldrid rather ceremoniously, and the dragon-man takes the staff over to the rack. "You both have taught me well."
"Just think," Kiha interjects, leaning against her axe. "Soon enough, doofus 2 here is going to be roasting demon ass like a real champ."
The others laugh, Luke smiling to Kiha. "Thanks, Kiha. So, Eldrid," he begins in changing the subject, the dragon-man listening to Luke closely, "what happens once I'm ready?"
"If you were to ask me? You already are." Eldrid says in confidence. "And it doesn't seem like Lethice is in any hurry to send more demons back here to get killed, so time is on our side here."
"But do we even have a plan?" Luke asks further. "Any sort of strategy of attack? Do you think we're all ready for her army now?"
The humorous atmosphere starts to die down a little, everyone looking to each other. Eldrid contemplates, "I don't know for sure. Perhaps we may never be completely ready for her, there's a lot we can't factor into this, a lot that can go wrong." He looks to everybody else, a fierce determination in his eyes. "But when it comes time, we're all going to be doing our part. Mareth _will _be free!"
Everyone cheers at Eldrid's mini-speech, feeling inspired. Luke, as well, cheers alongside everyone else. Kiha slow-claps, laughing. "That's really damn nice, Eldrid, but can we actually _do _something? I'm fucking bored."
Eldrid chuckles, "Alright, I can think of some...group activities we can do."
Luke blushes, knowing all too well what these 'group activities' imply. Putting his vow to purity aside, he grins mischievously. "Will that be including me?"
Eldrid cocks a brow, but smiles all the same. "I'm sure we can think of something."
Link to part 2: COMING SOON