SK4 - Chapter 20 - The Monsterfolk Maidens

[Author Note - God, I could not finish this forever, and in the end it bulked up to feel super long. Poor planning on my part, I could have split it in two but this was meant to really showcase all the monsterfolk girls, and while only three are named (currently), that may not always be the case. I hope you guys enjoy it, it's late but it's another very beefy chapter!]

The party left the dojo, and arrived at the open field. Lothar and his orcs were facing off against Fang and Luna, with the monsterfolk girls, Nick’s potential Maidens, while various shamans and even a priest and priestess sat on the sidelines ready for emergency healing.

Andross and Zarog could be seen, as well as their new star oni wives cheering them on from the back. Each were Fated with just one each, and even Lothar had an admirer. 

Nick was a little relieved that not every single one was Fated with him, but he still had a handful that they were certain it was him. For now, he had kind of kept them at arm’s length, lacking the time to quench their…insatiable thirsts. One berserking, needy oni was difficult enough to manage for the time being.

But he couldn’t hold them all off for too much longer. They were effectively stuck at level one, unable to progress as cultivators. A month or two more wouldn’t hurt, but he shouldn’t make them wait much longer than that. Surely, after he reached the third stratum…the floodgates would have to open.

Fang had lined up a dozen monsterfolk girls, from the evolved kobolds–the scalefolk, the evolved snakefolk–naga, and then several more wolfen. Their classes were just as varied as Fang, Luna, and Sable were, but many picked similar roles, as if following in their footsteps.  

Though Nick knew it had a lot to do with affinity and how Orion, the essence, itself responded to them. Many tribal monsterfolk held similar mindsets and upbringing, which led them to favor certain weapons, tactics, and magics and earn similar classes.

Watching the smaller monsterfolk girls fighting the same number of orcs was pretty surprising. The orcs had much more experience, talented in martial combat and gifted in physical prowess. In a pitched fight like this one, size and strength were often key. On top of that, led by their Warchief, they all received substantial bonuses. If they were being buffed by Agatha and her shamans, perhaps this battle wouldn’t be as close as it was.

But the monsterfolk girls held on. Mixing pack fighting, magic and feral essence into their attacks, they were able to match up well with a near equal number of orcs. Even though the shamans like Luna cast spells or used totems, they were no slouches in melee combat. Fang stood up against Lothar’s strength with her shield and ice-covered body, howling and sending shocking waves of frost into the enemy team. 

Enhanced by Luna’s buffs and the other shamans, the other allies wove in and out of the shield line, attacking with their spears and sending more waves of ice and frost, which slowed the orcs down and wounded them. Their bodies were their temples, but cracks started to form from the frost, even with many of them having similar cold resistance traits. 

Nearly all of the girls had some Concept Fragment, building toward becoming actual elites. Considering they had only been fighting and training for a short time, this was quite substantial. They couldn’t quite measure up to Zarog and Andross, but those two had much more experience and time practicing their Ideal. Thankfully, Luna’s icy protection helped counter their advantages, covering every ally covered in protective ice. 

Kaya’s tails flicked, a small grin on her face as she watched. “Those girls are pretty tough. They’ve nearly caught up with the orcs and in such a short time.”

Sable chuckled. “Yes. Compared to the men and women of their race who are still several levels behind and still trying to form their Concept Fragments, these girls are very driven. They have a firm goal in mind, trying to get the attention of a certain male.”

Eirwen shook her head. “It’s not just that, though. All monsterfolk have the instinct to grow stronger. They understand the importance of strength on Orion, that to be weak is to be dead, and that matches Orion’s Will–to constantly strive to become more. I’d say it was at least half their efforts and drive, and half Fang and you girls’ help to move them along.”

Sable chuckled. “You might be right. Fang was pushing them hard just as much as they might have been pushing themselves.”

Jasmine asked Nick suddenly, “Do any catch your eye, Master?”    

A few of the monsterfolk girls Fang had gathered stood out to Nick, and he realized they either held Early Mastery in their Concepts, guaranteeing rising to the Third Stratum, or he could tell they were rather close. This was a proof to him that they worked hard, and he had heard from Fang that several of them had actually completed the Fifteenth Floor with their teams. 

A few had been lucky to impress and join Myron and Elyra in their climbs. Thanks to that, a few had actually gotten even higher than that.

The first that stood out to Nick was the scalefolk beast tamer–Thava. Evolved from the small kobold monsterfolk he rescued from the monster of the lake, the Noblefrost Scalefolk were not much larger than his wolfen wives, but seemed to be growing as they leveled ever so slightly. They all had blue scales on their arms past the elbows, and the same beneath their knees. 

With a lizard’s tail and some scales going up their sides and spine and wrapping around the neck and clavicle area, they were similar to, but stood apart from, the Noblefrost Naga. Many of the scalefolk girls had a smattering of scales on their face in random locations, almost like beauty marks.

Unlike the Noblefrost Wolfen, however, their hair did not turn a shade of blue, but rather had blue streaks through their hair. Thava’s hair was red with blue highlights, a strange contrast to her scales, but perhaps a holdout from her old red scaled skin.  

The Alpha Drake had imprinted on her as its mother when it hatched, and she had taken well to its care. Fighting like a huntress with a spear or bow by her side, she could support the beast even directly with her feral Body Essence. 

The beast was only a month or two old, but after quite a few high-essence meals and some hunts led by Thava and time spent in the Path of Kings Ordeal, the creature was already nearing the second Stratum. 

It took time for a beast to grow, even with the most ideal of conditions. Certainly, beasts grew much faster than cultivators and essence was supernatural, but there were still limits to how fast bone and flesh could grow. It fought alongside her, already the size of a large dog. It was kept out of this fight for now because the creature wasn’t well-trained enough just yet.

The second that stood out quite a bit was Zara. Originally from the Ironclaw Tribe, the wolfling had gained the iron stomach, claws, and teeth trait from consuming those metallic centipedes. Then, she had earned a cold trait within the Path of Kings, led by Fang helping them through, and evolved to a Noblefrost Wolfen. She had tanned skin, much like Sable, and her dark blue hair had a metallic sheen to it.  

She held many of the personality traits most of the wolfen held. High energy, high loyalty, and high happiness. And just like Sable, she was trouble–the kind Nick liked. Interestingly, she fought with her claws and fists rather than any weapon, much like Ironclaw had. 

Lastly, was Thelisse. Her light blue scales were nearly white in color, and her hair matched. Originally a river shaman of her tribe, she had mastery over water. That carried over after she became a Noblefrost Naga, and began to include ice within her list of powers. Her elemental totem would spray freezing waters over the enemies, and it would quickly turn to crystallized frost in mere seconds, restricting their movements and freezing them over.

Her personality was…a little strange. She seemed to always know when he was watching, swaying her upper body as if dancing to a song only she could hear the moment his eyes found her. She did this even if he was all the way across the training grounds, and not even where she could see him. Like a strange oracle or guru, she would say the strangest things, but she seemed sweet and somehow dependable, the other girls relying on her when Luna or Fang weren’t present.  

“I think if I had to choose who among them were most interesting, I’d have to go with Thava, Zara, and Thelisse.”

Eirwen hummed as she looked over them. “Hmm…Hubby’s choices are not all that surprising, in fact I expected them. These three seem the most driven, and two of them have that motherly feel.”

Sable chuckled. “Same here, those three were obvious to me, especially with what they’ll soon be doing, Boss wants the best mommies for his Heirs, and ones that we’re sure could recover and ascend still. But for beastfolk and monsterfolk, it’s instinctual anyway. All of them will be great mothers.” 

Jasmine nodded in satisfaction. “I approve of all of them anyway. Fang made some excellent choices. I can tell all of them will treat Master as they should, properly devoted to him and his kingdom’s interests.”

The rest didn’t really stand out to Nick, but what Jasmine said was true. The naga were more reserved, calm, and intelligent, and the females often chose hunter or shamanic roles. The scalefolk, perhaps because their race didn’t experience dimorphism, were more varied like the wolfen. But they used their strength and energy in powerful bursts, their stamina not at the same level. 

The scalefolks’ personalities were often rather brash and brazen, and this was one of the reasons why Thava stood out–she was not quite like the others. Most picked warrior-focused or beast tamer roles, even among the females, but he had seen them all among the converted kobold tribe. 

The mock battle ended as the warriors on both sides ran out of essence and mana. It became too risky to continue, but everyone had benefitted from the experience. The spare shamans and clergy of Seraphara rushed over, removing ice and healing the numerous bruises and wounds gained throughout the battle. 

Despite the few hunters among the packs switching to using spears for melee combat, they had handled altering their roles for the group training battle well. All the huntresses were archers who could fight well in whatever combat found them. 

Lothar congratulated everyone on a great mock battle, giving pointers to warriors on both sides. Luna offered some encouragement to the monsterfolk shamans who participated in the battle, and Agatha added onto that. The girls put away their training weapons and gear, leaving them wearing tribal outfits, with skirts and tank or halter tops for most of them. It seemed the scalefolk chose shorts instead, because of their thick, long tail that hung often parallel to the ground. 

Eventually, the group came united over to Nick, led by a proud Fang and Luna.

Fang’s tail was wagging. “Boss! Did you see? They’re all so strong now.”

Nick couldn’t help but chuckle at seeing all their hopeful, but happy and proud faces. Tails were wagging and ears were whipping about, as if to gather some hint about what he might say.

“I did. I’m glad I made it on time to see it.” He smiled at each of them, taking time to meet each of their eyes. The idea that so many strong, talented and beautiful girls had worked so hard just to please him and get his attention was rather exciting. 

Still, he felt a little bad. He had prioritized others over them, making them wait. He had watched them from afar, doing little more than introduce himself these past several months since Fang had made the group and grown it to a…difficult number of girls to deal with.

It’s not like he truly owed them anything. Fang was the one who might have gotten them worked up, stoking their desires and perhaps setting their expectations incorrectly as she gathered more for Nick’s pack. If anyone needed to apologize to them for having to wait, it was her. 

He knew this wasn’t necessarily the case, but usually monsterfolk relationships moved fast. These past few months were like an eternity to them, and he knew that Luna was probably the one who helped improve whatever expectations they might have.

At the same time, as a Lord of Orion, Nick always wanted to return loyalty and devotion with his own. He certainly didn’t disabuse them of the notion that he would eventually take them as his mates, but he also hadn’t done more than implied he wasn’t rejecting them, or set a timeframe. He would fix that today.

“I have watched you all from afar these past months, and my Ladies have told me about many of you. I am proud of how far all of you have come, and how driven you all are. None can question how hard you’ve worked, and how you’ve produced results, excelling among your peers. You have become more, all with pleasing your Alpha in mind.”

The few wolfen girls’ tails started to take off in excitement–they could tell from his tone alone that something good was coming. Zara had a wide grin, puffing her chest out in pride. The scalefolk girls thumped their tails on the ground, and seemed to barely be able to contain their excitement, a few of them grasping onto each other for support. 

Other than their breathing picking up and wide smiles on their faces, the calm naga didn’t show as much excitement, but he definitely saw pride in their postures. Thelisse had her hands folded in front of her, nodding to herself as if she knew what was coming somehow.

“And I am pleased. So today I will reward you all for your efforts and for your patience. Soon I will enter the Path of Kings, and so I don’t have a ton of time. But I will spend much of the day with you together, both before the event and after.”

If the four wolfen girls’ tails were wagging quickly before, now he thought they might somehow take off and fly–this was Orion, so he wouldn’t say that wasn’t possible. Fang’s was the same, basking in the shared joy of Nick’s pride in the pack she was creating for him. The girls all began to ‘woo’ and clap, and the nagas even began to bob up in down in happiness.  

Nick chuckled, joining them with the clapping, and his wives joined too. He had started the tradition because he thought the sound and action of the wolflings was funny with their padded paws, but they continued it because they thought he enjoyed it. “I forgot about that.”

Sable noted, “The naga and scalefolk can finally woo! It was all weird gasps and hissing before.”

Fang nodded. “They always did their best!”

Luna got the girl’s attention, “We don’t have a long time before the ceremony, so we need to get moving. Let’s head to our home for very chaste rewards, understand?”

The girls were still just as eager, following Nick and his family through the city toward the Path of Kings. Already, the streets were filled with stalls and carts, the numerous people beginning to gather for the event later. There was a lot of excitement, the people only knowing there was a significant announcement later. 

As they neared his monolithic home, the stage was being set up, Rebecca and the many priestesses preparing the plaza. Nick wasn’t looking forward to having to address his people later, but it was necessary. It was a part of his Path, one way or another.

They arrived inside the house, and even their presence inside alone was a big deal, a privilege to them. The King of Frosthaven did not have many visitors to his home, and that they walked through the front door meant witnesses would have some expectations of them being close to his family. 

Odds were, all sorts of rumors would spread about these girls now, if there wasn’t already–they definitely weren’t keeping their desires a secret. And Nick already had a reputation for having many wives. It was already well-known that several Heirs were on the way. News about his Ladies and Maidens had reached the ears of many, and this was encouraged. 

Because a Lord’s bloodline, his progeny, meant stability on Orion. The Lord of Silverbook was an elf, so he was long-lived, but he had not created Heirs. This generated concerns among the people that their lord might fall and they could experience significant turmoil. The mayor was set up as a sort of next-in-line following similar footsteps, but he simply did not have the same support as Lord Silver with his father. Without an Heir, the kingdom was always at risk. The weakening of the kingdom could lead to a nearby Kingdom challenging it in Conflict.

Knowing that the Noblefrost Kingdom had several Heirs on the way filled them with confidence and filled them with relief. This was especially so among his hundreds of Followers. If he fell, his Soul Pacts would carry over to them, the Heirs continuing their protection.    

Jasmine had already prepared the living room, having expanded it to be able to accommodate so many visitors. To allow Thava to relax, she took the Alpha Drake off to the side to feed it a snack.

The living room had grown to be more sprawling with several more couches, enabling the twelve monsterfolk girls and his wives to sit in the same area. It still had the more cozy core area gathered around a large coffee table, but a few more couches were added off to the sides.

Nick sat down in the largest sofa, after Jasmine helped peel off the plastic-like armor from his body, leaving him in just his robes. It was Luna, Sable, and Fang that quickly found his sides, and Eirwen and Kaya took the chairs nearest, after selecting a soothing tune on their magical music slate. 

They directed Zara, Thelisse, and Thava to sit across from them, and the rest quickly found their spots throughout the room, most gathering together.

“Good job, Fang. You’ve worked hard for me.” He started with rewarding his little buff fluff. Bringing her into his lap, he scratched the base of her ears on top of her head. 

She leaned into his touch, vibrating in happiness as her tail wagged. Her smile was wide, and he could feel just how pleased she was. Still, she brought her tail to a stop, allowing him to brush it as they always did. Her smaller, yet strong body hugged onto him tightly, as he reached down to brush her whole tail without difficulty.

“It’s just, I want your pack to be big and powerful, just like you, Boss. These girls are all great and all work so hard for you… and…I wish you’d hurry up and make them your mates already!” Fang pouted, blushing as she looked away from him–as if not wanting to meet his gaze. 

It seemed her very mild criticism of him not meeting her desires was actually difficult for her to accomplish. She was his biggest cheerleader, having difficulty even imagining that he could do something wrong. He was The Boss, and everything he did was perfect, according to her.

That went to show how much she wanted him to eventually mate with these girls she had collected for him. 

It wasn’t that Nick didn’t want to have sex, or to mate, with any of the monsterfolk girls in front of him. In fact, they were all quite attractive, like most cultivators on Orion–he knew he’d enjoy it very much. 

It was that he was stretched too thin, and far too drained. He found that breeding was…absolutely exhausting. 

He had relaxed with the priestesses in their sanctum, and he had made six more of them his Maidens, for ten in total. Three more of them were also now pregnant, and he enjoyed benefitting from a few more of their loving attentions–their worship. His heroic energies were building with him, perhaps almost double from the tithed amount.

But each time he did, it consumed plenty of his time, halting much of his swordsmanship and Soul Forging progress. Often not for just one afternoon, but two afternoons when he made another Heir, thanks to his need to recover, his body filled with exhaustion from expending so much essence. It had nearly taken a full week to fully recover from that one special night, and he was actually afraid of trying to repeat it.

That meant, thanks to his visits there to have three more children, he had lost more than an entire week in being able to progress properly on his swordsmanship and in his other methods out of the past month. Sure, he still made efforts even during those days, but he could feel how he wasn’t getting a lot out of the actions until he fully recovered. 

To be fair, their worship did benefit him quite a bit too, but it was like each bit of worship he received, he had to go eat a mountain of demon cores to counteract the light he just gained, too. He had even taken to doing so before the act, to load himself up on the darkness. He no longer had any bandits to judge, so the cores were his only source of darkness at this point.

While he enjoyed it, he had other goals he needed to accomplish. And he was concerned if he started sleeping with all of these eager monsterfolk girls too, and then the star oni girls, then he’d really fall behind his targets. In all, he was hoping that things might be a little different once he reached the third stratum, so now he was taking his time to get to know them.

Then, Shara was making it difficult for him to spend much time with any of them. The monsterfolk girls were hierarchical too, so seeing Shara’s displeasure was not something they would simply ignore. When she was around, they would stop their flirtatious advances, and be much more reserved, not wanting to draw her ire. And even still, before long, Shara would drag him off to reassure her, so now he had to find means to distract her just to be with them.

Being a lord with many Ladies and Maidens was tough. Still, he wouldn’t trade it for anything, but his psyche was getting a bit weary if he was telling the truth.

Soft breaths filled the room as the family relaxed, and he gave Fang a chaste kiss before he moved her off his lap. “Don’t worry. I won’t make you…or rather them, all wait for too much longer. After I enter the third stratum, I’ll be less rushed.”

He brought Luna into it to take her place. “Thanks for always watching over and guiding the others, my mate.” 

Luna rubbed her head into his hand, giving him easy access to scratch. “Mmm…Anything for my mate and his pack.” His tender lover enjoyed his touch and the brush, but her peaceful nature soothed him as he took gentle strokes along her tail. Her spirit touched his with a loving caress, 

Sable was next, and she stoked the flames as she gyrated her butt on his lap, rubbing herself against him as if giving him a lap dance as he began. She got a chuckle out of Zara, as well as a flash of desire in her eyes. 

He did his best to ignore her teasing as he focused on rewarding her–she enjoyed that part just as much as the task at hand. “Thanks for watching over them too, Sable. I know you’ve taken several of them through the hunter Ordeal.”

She chuckled as he continued to scratch her ears and alternate brushing her tail. “It’s no problem at all. Sometimes teaching others helps move your own understanding forward. These girls don’t have the affinity for controlling shadows, so I had to bring things back to the basics.”

Nick considered that. Perhaps he should spend some more time with Kaya over the coming days, to help her move closer to becoming a master. It may help him further, besides.   

Looking over at their witnesses, Thelisse and the other three naga were swaying a bit to the gentle music, it seemed they couldn’t help but dance a little. The four scalefolk had some restless energy in them as they spoke to each other softly, but they watched Nick’s actions with rapt attention. The three other wolfen girls bounced in place as their tails wagged lazily.

Grooming activities were definitely a family thing within the beastfolk and monsterfolk, so their presence in this room was a big deal, a reward all on its own. Even if he didn’t pamper them at all, they would be happy for this privilege. Of course, Nick wasn’t going to leave it at just that.

Kaya was next, the girl blushing a bit as she took her place on his lap in front of the others. It was a stark contrast to the much smaller women that just graced the spot, her body much larger and thicker than the others. Her tails were even fluffier and longer, though she thankfully kept them down to three.

She loved the brush just as much as the other girls, but was a lot less vocal about asking for it, and did her best to hide her enjoyment. However, one time, it was like new tails kept sprouting after he finished each one, as if she didn’t want him to stop.

Kaya did her best to puff her chest out proudly and nonchalantly, folding her arms as he brushed her tails. But before long, her breaths were coming in heavily, nearly moaning as his brush gently scratched the base of her tail, and leaning into his every touch. 

“Enjoying yourself?” Nick asked.

“It’s…yes.” She tried to deny she was enjoying herself, but quietly agreed–as if all the wolfen couldn’t hear her response anyway.

“I appreciate you, both for your strength and talent, but also for how you support my kingdom. Many of the warriors of Frosthaven look up to you, and now walk the Samurai Path with you leading the way. Not even Lothar can stand up to you now.”

Her tails beat against him a bit in happiness as they flickered around, the girl happy to receive his praise. Before she got too worked up, he gave her a kiss on the cheek and called Winny over.

Last among his wives, it was Eirwen’s turn. Jasmine, as always, did not want Nick to really serve her in any way, beyond letting her tie him up for sleep. Where she would serve him instead. The Alpha Drake now curled underneath Thava though, resting from its meal.

The brush worked through Eirwen’s curly but very soft, wooly fur. Running his hands almost reverently through her silken locks on her head made her giggle a little, with her ears wiggling.

“Did this get even softer?”

“Hehe, noticed that? I’ve been practicing one of the Ideals from your mother’s books! Over time, my whole body should get a little softer for you.”

His eyes went to the obvious soft location–her breasts. He nearly reached for them, but barely stopped himself, causing her to giggle. “Yes, even those, or perhaps especially so? It goes along with the flexibility I’ve been working on, that you very much enjoy. That reminds me…we’ll have to give some of those books and techniques over to your potential Maidens over there…” 

They seemed to get quite excited about that, causing him to chuckle. “Thanks for always looking out for us, Winny. I think I’d have died of exhaustion by now if not for your delicious cooking or you managing our schedules.”               

Eirwen looked pained at that, a flicker of guilt on her face. “I wish I could help you a little more, Hubby. I can feel how exhausted you are. I know you’re doing your best to be a hero for everyone, but I hope this doesn’t go on for too much longer.”

“It’s not so bad, I am in fact enjoying my time–like right now. Unfortunately, we have threats on the horizon. Today we’ll become safer than ever, but if I cannot beat Blackthorne when he arrives, it’ll all be for nothing.”

They had finally gotten some news from their westward scouts, and it wasn’t all good. He was going to go over the findings in the event. 

He continued pampering his first wife for a while, adding extra hugs in the mix to feel her softness, which she very much enjoyed hugging back. It was a strange duality because he knew there was a lot more muscle in her arms and legs after all her cultivation and hard work–she was very fit now. And yet, they felt even softer and more cushiony in areas than even an overweight girl.

Getting one more kiss from his lovely sheep wife, now it was time for the other girls.

“Alright. Now, we will get to everyone eventually, but we only have time for three before the event. There are three of you who have performed above the rest, nearly forming your Concepts before the rest. You should be rewarded for your effort and your talent, and the other potential Maidens should strive to be your match.” He motioned over to those across from him, and the the other girls all started to clap and woo again.

Thava clapped excitedly. “Yay! Oh, that’s wonderful. Just what is our reward?”

Nick motioned for Jasmine to come over, and she held out a platter to him. On it, was some oil and a brush meant for the scales of the girls, as well as towels and fruits. 

“You just watched me pamper my Ladies. So I will let you choose how to spend a few minutes with me. Would you like me to pamper you, or hug and hold hands, or similar? This is your reward, so I’d like you to decide. I would like to learn more about all of you.” 

Zara hummed. “Hmmm….my, I’m struggling to choose. One of you two should go first.”

“Ohhhh, I think I would like to go, yes, that would do nicely.” Thelisse nodded to herself. She spoke in a slow voice, calm and alluring. The girl undulated toward Nick, took his hand in hers. Her steely gray, serpentine eyes met his. “You pampered so many, but nobody took care of you yet. It’s just not right, no, no it is not. Mind lying down and taking off the top of your robes, for me? I need to check you.”

She motioned for him to lay down, and he opened his robes pulling him to lay flat on his naked chest, and grabbing the throw pill for him to lean on. He allowed her, and she immediately got to work, pressing her fingers into his back gently. The end of her tail started to coil up his leg a little, but it seemed like she didn’t realize what she was doing–or maybe she did.

Of course, Jasmine gave him plenty of massages, whether he asked or not. But Thelisse sent soothing waves of energy, a cold sensation that worked deep into his muscles. It didn’t take long before she stopped in her motions, her voice filled with worry. “Oh no, this will not do. This will not do at all.”

“What is it?”

“Your soul aura flow is in retro-drip, and the negative energy is bringing your id out of alignment! We need to remove the kink from your tail root right away. Right away, I say. Yes.” She nodded to herself. 

Nick frowned into the cushion. “Tail root? Is that a thing? You mean the darkness I build in me?”

“Yes, oh yes. It is very real. And no, not the darkness, the negative energy! But relax, do not worry. I shall take care of it and you shall suffer no longer.” Thelisse paused for a moment, her hand running along his back. “Such a loving, strong soul aura, I can feel it now that I’m so close to you.”  She patted his back, then ran her fingers along his spine, and he shivered from her cold touch.

Nick couldn’t help but glance at Winny in the corner of his eye at that. She was stifling a laugh, covering her mouth. She was enjoying this interaction very much. Kaya was just confused. 

Everything Thelisse just said rang true according to his Soul Sense–she completely believed every single word she just said. But as far as he knew, she was totally out of her mind–there was no way any of that was even real, on Orion or otherwise.

Thelisse retrieved a crystal from a pouch at her waist, and energy began running through it. It caused his soul to thrum, vibrating a little in his chest as a result. The crystal gave off a cold, magical energy, and she moved it around the base of his spine in lazy circles. The sensation was strange, almost like a pressure, but it was one that held no weight.

Thelisse began to hum, singing a wordless song as she swayed to her movements. Eirwen was watching her, and there was some form of soul energy being transmitted using her magic crystal, and it did appear to be soothing him.

Moving the crystal up and down his back with one hand, Thelisse used her other hand to knead his back, really putting her weight on him in different areas. He enjoyed her efforts for a couple of minutes, until she stopped. “There! The negative energy is gone now! Here, you can sit up now.” She uncoiled her tail from his leg, and helped him rise and get his robes back up and closed.

Nick was in a daze, and couldn’t hide his disbelief–he absolutely did not believe it. He actually did feel better–a lot better. His weariness somehow just drifted away, and he felt even better than he did after a bunch of the energy whiskey, or a full night’s sleep that he never seemed to get anymore.

“Mmm, mwah!” She kissed his cheek, Nick barely being able to respond to what she just did. “I loved my reward! You know, I think I know what we should do, us Maidens. We should make a special spa, to take care of our Alpha and the Ladies! A spirit lodge. Yes, I think that would be for the best. Don’t you think that’s right, girls? I will reach out to my aunty, and then…”

To Nick’s even greater shock, as if a foregone conclusion, the girl left as she was talking to herself. She slithered out the front door, as if her action was the most normal thing in the world.

The wolfen girls had seemed to just tilt their heads in response to the spirit lodge mention, even Sable, Fang, and Luna. But the scalefolk girls and Thava, and the naga girls all bobbed and nodded, clapping and getting excited about the idea, even as she went down the hall and disappeared.

Jasmine fixed his robes a little more for him a little after the massage, and he said, “Huh. Well, I guess she…enjoyed her reward. I know I did. Which of you two girls is next?”

Zara almost seemed to want to dive over, but Thava wrapped her tail around her waist, stopping her and giggling as she went over to Nick’s lap first. “Me! Thelisse is a little strange like that, her mind is a little…flighty like a bird? But she is very sweet, always having something that helps us. I think Zara got a little too excited seeing you without a shirt, so I thought I should go next.”

The wolfen girl huffed and looked away, but had a small smile on her lips as her tail wagged. Sable gave her a knowing look, smirking.

“As for how I would like my reward…you don’t have any lovers with scales yet, do you?”

Nick nodded. “That’s right. But I did read a bit about it.” 

“That’s so sweet of you! In that case…I would like you to explore mine. However you like. And maybe… I’d like you to use some of that oil on some of my scales. I haven’t had a chance lately.” She gave him a warm smile, and offered her hand.

Her hand was covered in tiny blue scales. He grabbed onto it, and put pressure on the palm like he was giving it a massage. She flexed it and pushed some essence through it, and it went from being just as soft and smoother than human skin, to being hard. The scales even shifted to where they felt rough, and going against the flow of the scales were actually sharp and could cut. This allowed them to deflect blows from weapons.

She retracted the essence. Having got a good feel, he got some oil in his hands and rubbed them together, and then actually began to work it into the scales.

“That feels very nice. Really put some pressure, my scales are thick and strong.”

Thava watched him intently, and her tail behind her wagged a little bit, lazily, as he worked the oil into her scales on her arm up to the elbow, repeating the process on both hands.

She cleared her throat. “You know, I usually take care of the ones on my sides easily. It’s the ones on my back that I have the most trouble with. Would you mind?”

Nick chuckled. “I don’t mind, but the tail will have to be for next time. I’ll do the ones on your spine though.”

“Drats, you knew. Well, that’s probably for the best. I know we don’t have much time.”

She lay herself down over his lap now, and he started on the scales on her upper back. The halter top was nearly backless, with a tie at the top of her neck in the front and barely having a band across the back just under the shoulder blades.

Thava “Mmm…I love that. Your fingers are so strong, but somehow gentle. Ahhh…” She moaned. “That’s the spot. Wow.”

He continued down her spine, and she really seemed to enjoy the attention, her body twitching in response when he found a good spot and put just the right amount of pressure on it. Her tail coiled around his leg for support, and perhaps to keep it from smacking him instead.

Spending a little more time at the spots she enjoyed, eventually, her time ran out and he toweled his hands off. He helped her up, and said, “How was it?”

She gave him a lazy smile. “It was wonderful. Thanks, Boss. My, I’m going to have to work hard to return the favor.”

Strangely, the three scalefolk girls had finally frozen in place some time ago–no longer restless. He could tell they were quite excited to hopefully receive the same attention. The remaining three naga looked thoughtful, probably considering how they wanted to spend their time later when they got it.

Thava went to go sit back down, but sat with the scalefolk girls, talking in hushed whispers as Nick was struck by a dark bolt–Zara. 

She sniffed him with her arms around his chest, his arms somewhat pinned to his side in a hug. “It’s no fair that this has to be chaste! You just smell so good. But I think…I’ll just have to be a little boring. I’ll take those scratches–all the scratches you’ll give me. For now! Until I can…do something a little more fun next time. Look forward to it!”

Nick chuckled, and he obliged, scratching the top of her head between her fluffy, dark blue ears. 

“Ahh…yes.” She sighed. “That is good…”  She started to move her hips until she was facing away with him, and he realized this girl was also trying to tease him a bit, despite her words. Zara was fit, much like Fang, and the smaller girl felt amazing in his lap. 

She leaned against him as she seemed to try to turn him on with her movements, but Nick stopped her. Every time she moved her hips on his lap, he stopped scratching.

Zara huffed. “Meanie. Fine, I’ll be good…for now. I can be a good girl for you…but a bad girl is fun too, isn’t it?”

Nick chuckled. “That’s true. I’m glad to have both.”

He continued his attention on the firecracker of a wolfen girl for a few minutes, but eventually, Jasmine tapped her wrist. It was time.

Nick patted her waist, dismissing her back to sit down on the sofa and stood. 

“Alright, that’s it for now. I feel bad that Thelisse left, but today’s reward was a part of me finally acknowledging you girls. I promise you girls that I’ll make you my wives, my Maidens, once I reach the third stratum. So keep up the hard work, and soon that promise will be fulfilled.”

Thava tilted her head. “But…you didn’t have to reward us. You’re our Alpha, our Boss. If you’re not ready to mate with us yet, that’s okay. Luna told us the truth, it’s not that you don’t want us, it’s that your time is too limited, and that’s okay. We wanted to get stronger so that we wouldn’t be a burden, but one of your strengths.”

One of the snakefolk girls spoke up, her voice smooth and eager. “Yes, we were so happy we could help in the assault of Shadowvale, and helping come get you in the mountains.”    

Zara tapped her lips. “Mmm… of course, going all the way would have been better. Still, all that hard work was really worth it. Now that I can see the goal more clearly, I think us girls are going to try even harder! It’s really different when he has his attention on you.” She noted, saying more to the other girls.

Nick went to get changed, Jasmine helping prepare him for addressing his people. It was time for his people to meet their king, some for the very first time.