Great [Monster] Journey 4

Galen’s nose twitched. It had started itching for some reason. Mumbling, Galen shifted his position, hoping it was just the wind bugging him. The itch returned. Something fuzzy was scraping against it, teasing little strokes that disappeared the moment he swiped at them. Again he turned his head, trying to get comfortable and go back to sleep, but he wasn’t to have his rest. The tickling returned, no matter how much he swiped or scratched. With a groan, he finally opened his eyes and lifted his head from the tree he’d been sleeping against.

Crouching down in front of him was Seira, smiling. When she saw him open his eyes, she lifted a paw, opening and closing it, showing off her fluffy fur and soft pads.

Galen couldn’t find it in him to do anything but smile. He only wished he’d been able to do it first.

“You’re a heavy sleeper. I was able to crawl down here and walk around without waking you up. It even took a while with the nose to do it.” She flicked at her own nose, smile widening. “I could’ve done just about anything I wanted to while you were like that.”

Blushing, Galen stood up, checking the sun. It wasn’t much past dawn. He would’ve gotten up on his own soon, anyways. No real sleep lost.

The morning air nipped at him, but he enjoyed it like that. He glanced back at Seira, making note of her leg and arm fur. It was probably useful during mornings and evenings, especially with how little she wore. The lingering scent of maple filled his nostrils as he took a deep breath, letting the morning air of the new day invigorate him. Today they would make it to Silere and he would be the one to find the lost Toneruth! He jogged in place to loosen up his muscles then started stretching.

“Is this your routine?” said Seira, walking up from behind him.

“Yup! Gotta have a good morning routine so you know the day’s gonna go well! I always make sure to wake my body up before doing any heavy work, get those muscles stretched so I’m not sore the day after.” He took a few hops, controlling his breath as he went up and down.

“I forget how fragile human bodies are sometimes. Monsters are naturally athletic, though exercise certainly doesn’t hurt.” She put her paws on her hips, smirking as she leaned in toward Galen. “You’re not one of those goodie-goodies that does everything mom says, are you?”

“I sure am!”

Seira raised an eyebrow, the smirk turning into a curious simper. “No shame?”

“My mom’s always known what’s best for me. Why wouldn’t I do what she says? I’m pretty happy with how I’ve turned out. I’m about to be a great adventurer, after all.” Striking his fists together, Galen ended his morning routine. “Alright! West we go to Silere!”

The time passed mostly in silence. Galen kept an eye out for food--any edible berry or plant--letting a out a sharp exaltation whenever he spotted something. Eventually he had collected enough for a couple days. Though they may have had a lead on the lamia, smoke would pinpoint their location and likely give away their destination as well, meaning cooking meat was out of the question. Still, Galen enjoyed watching the forest wildlife, occasionally spotting a bird or rabbit and pausing to observe for a moment before moving on. He hummed a tune to himself, something his father often did while splitting wood in their yard. He wondered what his dad would say about his traveling with a monster. One that attacked him when they first met, too.

Seira kept a few paces back from, always watching him. Each time Galen turned around, he caught a hint of a smile on her face. He was a bit curious as to what she was watching him for, but content to leave the question unspoken.

He found himself more curious about who she was. After the lamia attack, he half-expected her to explain everything. Maybe she was a criminal before they met and the lamia were law enforcement. Maybe she was a rogue who broke a contract and her employers were looking for compensation. Galen liked to imagine she had dark secrets and mysterious powers which she would reveal, leaving him in awe. His realistic side told him things were likely simpler, that she had gotten on the wrong side of the wrong person. Or monster. Whatever secrets she did or didn’t have didn’t bother him, though. They were companions after all. She’d tell him if she wanted to.

“I had you figured for the more talkative type,” said Seira, emerging at Galen’s side.

“I’ve got plenty to talk about if you want to hear it!” he said with a grin.

“That’s alright. I wasn’t asking for it.”

Galen poked her in the shoulder. “Then you talk.”

“Are you sure you want to hear about me? It may not be as interesting as you think.”

“Yup!”

“What do you want to know, then?”

“Hmmm.” Galen tapped his chin. “What’s your favorite hobby?”

“Manticores don’t really have hobbies.”

“Ah, but I didn’t ask about manticores. I asked about you.”

She shot him a flat look, but he fought right back with a smile. She shrugged. “Fine. I enjoy fighting and sparring. Sometimes I’ll head out and look for the strongest monster I can find, then challenge them. Manticores are aggressive monsters, so we like to get our paws dirty, some more than others.”

“What do you like to do that other manticores wouldn’t?”

“Are you trying to be obnoxious?”

“Nope!” Galen skipped ahead, swinging out his arms. “You wanted to talk, so we’re talking. And I’m curious.”

Seira crossed her arms. “I never said I wanted to talk.”

“My dad had a word for when people do something like you’re doing. What was it?” Galen tapped his head, thinking back to the island. “Oh yeah! Skirting. You’re avoiding something because you don’t like it or you’re afraid of it.”

“I didn’t say--“

“It’s fine, you know. You’re my companion. It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about something. I won’t hold it against you.”

She opened her mouth to reply, but Galen had already bounded ahead, shouting. “Look! Silere! We’re here!”

Sure enough, the trees thinned to almost nothing, revealing the crumbled ruins of what was once a small, yet bustling village. Moss and vines had taken over everything, the only real sign of a town once existing the piles of rocks and withered wood that were once dwellings. The grass grew tall and wild, hiding much of the smaller bits of rubble. Had they not been expecting to find Silere there, they might have passed through it as nothing more than another field. Seira caught up to Galen at one of the larger ruins, what might have at one time been a town hall. He was crouched over, inspecting one of the smaller rocks as if it might tell him more about the ruins. Seira stood in silence, though Galen could feel her eyes on him again, watching for his reaction. As he stood, the wind picked up, tossing Seira’s hair and braid about and rustling through her fur in waves.

He showed her the rock. “Lizardman.”

“Huh?” She looked between the rock and Galen, trying to figure out what he meant.

“That’s the secret, the thing I know. Look for something with a lizardman on it. That should lead us to Toneruth.”

She glanced over to the pile of rubble before them. “That’s a lot of rocks to be turning over. And how do you know these lizardman symbols haven’t been scraped away or lost? It’s been over four hundred years, you know.”

“Magic. My father told me the secret room where Toneruth is held was created with and sealed with magic. Meaning, anything associated with it would almost certainly be immune to wear.”

Stretching her arms, Seira stood up on her tip toes and yawned. Galen looked away, blushing. She looked kind of cute when stretched out like that.

“I’ll take that pile over there,” she said.

The two got to it. Galen carefully removed each rock in turn, inspecting it, and made a separate pile of rocks he’d checked. Most were small enough to pick up with one hand, but some of the larger ones took serious effort. He checked on Seira, gaping when he saw her method. She’d look at the rocks just like Galen did, but once she determined there wasn’t a lizardman on it, she’d just toss it over her shoulder, using that crazy manticore strength of hers. It reminded him of how she moved through the forest earlier, destroying everything in her way. Galen hoped those discarded rocks weren’t getting mixed with other rocks they’d need to check later.

The work was repetitive and exhausting, but Galen found a calming enjoyment in it. It’d been a few days since he’d been able to get in a good, honest day’s work. While he’d hardly been resting the past couple days, it felt satisfying to use his own two hands like this, especially knowing the reward. When his mind went to Toneruth and the concept of actually acquiring it and holding it in his hands, he surprised himself with his first thought. It wasn’t about recognition, or becoming a true adventurer.

He wanted strength.

The seed had been planted back when he met the Kraken. The fact that she could have so easily ended his journey right there, holding Galen to her whims--he didn’t want to be in that position ever again. It happened again when Seira had downed him with a kick and mounted him, showing how weak he was even when he had his sword and a chance at a true battle. The worst, though, were the lamia. Beaten, crushed, insulted and nearly killed simply because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He hadn’t even heard them approach him before he was coiled up in their tails.

Galen’s knuckles turned white with the strength he held the rock in his hand. He wouldn’t be that powerless little human, not again. He would find Toneruth. Then he’d be strong. Only then could he continue his adventure.

His enthusiasm was getting away from him again, he knew it. He placed the rock in the pile with the other’s he’d looked at, releasing a long breath as he did so. Now wasn’t the time to get worked up, he had a job to do. Seira was helping him, too. He didn’t want to be a slacker and let her do all the work. Punching his fists together, he got back to it.

They worked through the rest of the day, stopping on occasion to rest, drink, and eat. Galen liked to call out to Seira and see if she found anything, only to get a “Not yet” back. He’d been hoping to get more of a rise from her, but she was too focused on the task at hand, somehow more than Galen. Seira searched through a few minor dwellings while the larger ruin took Galen almost the entire day to search. As the sun began to kiss the horizon, Galen started worrying about what would come next if they searched all the visible ruins and still found nothing. It would take days, maybe weeks of digging to find the rest of the burned-down structures, not to mention the lamia would probably find them by then.

But now was not the time for despair. He’d come to that hurdle when they reached it.

“I like to study how humans and monsters interact.”

“What?” said Galen, raising his head from his search.

“You asked earlier what I like to do that other manticores wouldn’t. I like to watch towns and cities and see how things function. How people and monsters function. Sometimes I’ll bump into a monster who has taken a husband out in the wild and learn from them as well.”

“That’s pretty neat. I hope I get the chance to learn a lot about that too on my adventure.” He wiped the dust and sweat off his face, smiling as much as he could despite the fatigue. “Do you think you’d be able to help me with that?”

She paused, setting down the rock she’d been inspecting. For a while, Galen was worried her answer might be no and he’d offended her somehow. It seemed like a simple question to him, but it obviously meant more to her. He started getting up to walk over to her when she spoke.

“Alright. I can do that.”

He pumped a fist. “Great! How about we start now?”

“Sure, why not?”

“Why did you not want to rape me when we first met?”

“Again with that?”

“I’m just curious.”

She stared at him a moment, then waved him over. Galen leapt up and jogged to Seira, wondering why she wanted him to come.

“Take a seat.”

Galen sat cross-legged, squeezing his ankles in glee. “Oooh, is it story time?”

“What? No. No story time. I just need to see your face to answer you properly.”

“Okay.”

“As you have learned, monsters enjoy human semen. There are some very rare monsters who aren’t interested or don’t include it in their diet, but we can ignore those for now. Manticores,” she said, placing a paw on her chest, “are generally regarded as aggressive monsters who would sooner tackle a male, milk him, then either leave him to look after himself or take him away, depending on how much they enjoyed him. But there’s more to it than just the milking. Well, to be honest, to most manticores, that’s really all they care about when it comes down to it. Anyways, when I’m looking for a meal, I’m not just looking to swoop down, eat, and leave. That’s boring, and honestly the look of a guy just looking to get off is nauseating. There’s no fight to it, no thrill.” She scooted closer to Galen, pointing at her face. “Now look here. What do you see?”

“Your face?”

“Yes, my face. But what does it tell you?”

Galen scrunched up his lips, scrutinizing Seira’s face. Her lips were straight, eyes open yet dulled. Her cheeks were smooth and un-dimpled, eyebrows leveled. She had quite an attractive face, now that he got a good look at it. Feminine, but not exactly gentle. Her eyes… wait, they weren’t dull any more. She’d closed them a little and her eyebrows were slanting downward a bit. The her lips widened, spreading across her face, dimpling her cheeks as the edges curled upward. Her nostrils flared out and her nose started to wrinkle as her eyebrows continued to slant. Her face was moving closer, too. Galen gulped, leaving his mouth hung open slightly. His breaths grew heavier, but he couldn’t tell why. When Seira breathed out, he could feel it splash against his face and enter his mouth and nose like an intoxicating smoke.

When her paw touched his knee, he jumped back, yelping in surprise. When he got his balance again, he found her tail hovering in front of him, dripping as it opened. He could feel his face making those subtle changes like hers did. His mouth slipped into a gaping, aghast frown that bunched up his chin and wrinkled his cheeks, his brows turned upward, and his eyes opened wide at the sight in front of him.

“When I hunt, I want to see recognition. I want someone who knows all that can happen to them and their face to animate when their eyes land on me. I want to twist that horror into desire and pleasure. But it all starts with fear, Galen. The exact sort that was just on your face.”

Galen turned to Seira, now on all fours. The atmosphere around her… it was nothing like he’d felt before. Her eyes had darkened and that smile of hers had widened, but at the same time twisted with wanton desire. Galen scrambled away from her on his rear, scooting as fast as he could. She crawled toward him with such liquid-smooth movements she appeared to float, keeping up with Galen despite how quickly he moved. His eyes flashed to his sword, but he didn’t really want to harm her, he just wanted her to stop. One of his hands slipped on the slick grass, almost allowing her to overtake him, but with a warning kick he placed just enough distance between them to allow him to breathe.

“A-are you feeling okay?”

“Okay? I’m feeling wonderful.” Her tongue slipped out of her mouth, running slowly across her lips, never moving her eyes from Galen’s.

Something was wrong. Something had to be wrong. “W-why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

She juked forward, startling Galen in to backing up again, grin growing upon seeing his reaction. “But this isn’t sudden at all. I’ve always been like this toward those I see as a meal. Remember when we met?”

“I remember you having no interest in raping me, and I’d kind of grown accustomed to that!” He cautiously took his feet underneath him to get up, a razor-sharp stare locked on Seira, watching for the slightest movements. “Why am I a meal, then?”

“You’re slow about some things, aren’t you?”

“Hey, I’m perfectly--“

Seira bounded forward, scaring Galen into a backward leap. His feet still weren’t in the right position, however, so it didn’t get him near as far as he wanted. His feet hit the ground while his momentum was still carrying him backward, causing him to lose his balance and fall to the ground. Seira had already begun to close in. Yelping, Galen started scooting backward again. His back slammed into a tree, dazing him. Even as he recovered, he knew it was over. The tree had sealed his fate. That one slip-up, that was all Seira needed. She’d probably been teasing and coaxing him into it the whole time.

Nevertheless, he tried to get up. A paw slammed into his chest, pushing him back into the tree when he was only halfway up. The pressure she was able to apply with just one paw was incredible. If she wanted, Galen felt like she could crush his lungs. The paw dragged him all the way up till his feet were dangling a couple inches off the ground. Seira’s wings unfurled as she inspected her prey, burning that zealous, flirty smile into Galen’s memory. The way her eyes angled and those lips curled up just enough, it was as if she was showing concern for a meal right before devouring it. He could see her arm muscles flex, but from her stance and attitude, she acted as if holding him there didn’t require the slightest effort from her. A single claw extended, playing across Galen’s cheek.

He swallowed, trying to push away from the claw. His fingers twitched, but he could decide whether or not to reach for his sword or the arm holding him up. A glance downward betrayed his intentions.

“Look at you, still thinking you can escape, still thinking there’s a way out of it. Go on. Reach for your sword. Try it.”

“S-Seira, I don’t really want t-to hurt--“

“Do it,” she hissed.

With a gulp, he looked back and forth between his sword and Seira, silently pleading with his face, but her own never wavered. He’d have to try.

In flash, his right hand was on the hilt, drawing the sword free. Before he’d even got it halfway, her paw ripped through the air, smacking his hand free. A second later he heard a thunk and a rattle. The sword had been thrown with the force to imbed it in a nearby tree. With that option gone, he went for Seira’s paw to try and pry it off, but she snatched both his wrists quick as lighting in her other paw and slammed them into the tree above his head. In a matter of seconds, she had rendered him immobile and unable to fight and done it effortlessly.

“Fu fu, look at you, hanging from the tree like that. Are you sure you tried to fight back? It was awfully easy to get you there.”

Galen squirmed under her grip, but her strength held him in place easily. His chest rose and fell rapidly, breaths growing frantic. The paw on his chest loosened up just enough to let his feet touch the ground, and as soon as they did, he threw a kick straight for her groin. One of her foot-paws caught the blow, grabbing his foot and slamming it into the ground next to his other foot. As his struggles weakened, he realized he had never stood a chance from the moment she laid eyes on him. He was utterly and completely helpless. Seira had only ever been toying with him.

“C’mon, S-Seira, I think that’s far enough n-now.”

“Far enough?” The paw on his chest slipped up just high enough for her to wrap a digit around his neck. “But I haven’t even started. You’ll like it once I start.”

Galen got an idea. He stopped his struggles and relaxed. “Oh, yeah, okay. I’ve always wanted to know how this went anyways. Go ahead.”

“Are you trying to act like you did before? Ruin my appetite? If you wanted that to work, you never should have shown me that face of yours.” She moved her face closer, close enough for Galen to taste her breath on his quivering smile. “Sweating, shaking, that unmistakable reflection of fear in your eye, and the best part?” She moved to his ear, whispering her next words. “The anticipation.” Her paw left his chest, but the ones on his wrists and feet still held him in place. She reached under his shirt, groping at his chest and bringing his shirt up to expose him. She took it up over his head and left it holding his arms together. Galen shivered as she blew on his neck, then bit lightly where his goosebumps popped up.

“Seira…”

Ignoring him, she slid her paw back down his chest, seizing his pants and yanking them downward. His erection throbbed freely in the evening air, declaring his arousal for Seira to see.

“Hora, hora, look at you. It was all just an act, wasn’t it?” She stepped forward, his leg now captured between her thighs and her breasts embracing his side. With an easy motion of her hips, she began grinding into him, forcing his erection harder and higher with each movement. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of, all men like it.”

“B-b-b-b-bu--“ Galen gasped, unable to even get the word out.

She bit his shoulder, silencing him. Her teeth didn’t dig in enough for it to truly hurt, but she left a mark after moving away. “I won’t keep you waiting. I know what you want.” From behind her back, her tail emerged, hovering back and forth like a snake.

Galen’s eyes widened so far he feared they would fall out. That tail, the dripping, twitching, soft pink cavern of pleasure just waiting for him was the same he’d seen with fear in his eyes the first time. Its spines flicked out, then slowly retracted before flicking out again. Seira ran her paw digits over her tail as if it was some pet she was about to sic on its prey. With a swipe of her claw, she collected some of the goo dripping from her tail, rubbing it between two digits. She turned to Galen, showing off the substance as her tail moved in. It seemed to take forever, slithering through the air, closer and closer to Galen’s tip until it was mere inches away. His heart beat so hard in his chest he thought it might explode. This was it. It was actually going to happen! One last time, he fought against Seira’s strength, even knowing it was futile.

“I love that look of yours.” Her half-lidded eyes watched only his face, her soft smirk showing she was only all too pleased with his reaction.

And then it was on him.

Seira, not a manticore of subtlety, swallowed Galen’s entire member with one thrust of her tail. The wet, soft walls immediately seized Galen, balls, shaft and tip, and began sucking. It felt like a cavern of a thousand tiny, delicate fingers massaging him, dedicated to making him come as fast as possible. His entire body stiffened, such pleasures he’d never known wreaking his body without remorse. He started thrusting into her tail, completely unable to hold himself back.

“They usually last a little longer before they start doing that,” said Seira, running her paw up his chest, letting her claws dig into his skin ever so lightly. “But I don’t blame you.”

Galen writhed in pleasure under her grip, wishing there was some way to thrust deeper into that tail, to feel more of it with greater intensity. Seira showed no mercy, her tail sucking as hard as it could, pulses of pressure running up and down Galen’s member as it worked. This was true helplessness. Seira held even Galen’s will according to her whims. He would come if she wanted him to. He would thrust if she wanted him to. He would stand there and accept her rapturous torture, or play like he never wanted to feel her tail, whatever she wanted.

Grinding her chest against his, she nipped at his neck, a little harder this time, playing her tongue against his skin. Galen wanted to embrace her, to grab that tail and force it harder onto his cock, to play with the ample breasts pressed against his chest, a hundred different things with his hands, but she kept them imprisoned, gleeful at demonstrating his powerlessness. Her tail tightened further, the fleshy barbs caressing his member along every inch. He couldn’t take it any more. Yelling out to the sky, Galen gave a heavy thrust forward, pleasure exploding along his shaft as he surged into that wondrous tail. True to its purpose, it swallowed every last drop, never slowing, taking his orgasm for everything it was worth.

Seira took in a long breath, smiling in contentment as she absorbed his release.

“Please, Seira, please, don’t,” said Galen.

“Don’t what?” She turned an ear to his mouth.

“Don’t stop.”

“Is that what you were worried about?” She wrapped an arm around him and pulled him in, crushing their bodies together. “That was never going to happen.”

Somehow, the suction on his cock increased. It had grown so powerful Galen thought Seira would suck up his entire body. He didn’t care, though. All he wanted was more. The tail bobbed up and down, at some points focusing the entirety of its attentions on his tip. After his last orgasm, he was so sensitive he almost came from that alone. When he began thrusting into her tail once again, she matched his rhythm, slamming her tail down and withdrawing it exactly how he wanted.

“Does it feel like you’re fucking a pussy? No, it probably feels much better.” The claws on the paw holding his body shot out, burrowing into his skin. He knew they’d gone deep enough to draw blood, but he simply didn’t care any more.

Her tail enveloped everything again, cradling his balls as that magnificent, terrible suction intensified. She stopped thrusting her tail, instead making the insides squirm and stroke Galen’s oversensitive member. The addition of a squeeze was too much for him. He cried out, moaning, thrusting his hips as hard as he could into the tail as a white-hot bliss shocked his body. He came so hard he thought Seira’s tail would be blasted away, but it only clung tighter to the taste of semen. Unlike the first orgasm, Galen kept spurting, his load and pace dictated by the tail. Pulses of cum traveled down Seira’s tail as it milked him over and over.

Galen had trouble keeping his eyes open. The tail had begun to suck away at his consciousness, but just as he felt darkness overtaking him, it withdrew. So did Seira’s paws, leaving Galen with nothing to hold him up. His legs collapsed like jelly and he crumpled to the ground. Panting, he stared at the ground, his mind readjusting to the fading light and cooling breeze of the evening. He swallowed, watching beads of sweat drip from his face onto the ground.

“There, there. It was just a little milking.” Paws grasped Galen’s shoulders, helping him to his feet. Seira took one of his arms and laid it over her shoulders, allowing him to lean on her. “You know, I’m usually not so nice to my meals after a session. You should be grateful.”

Galen attempted to smile, but all he succeeded in doing was make his face twitch in a meaningless fashion. Words would have to do. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” She looked over him, then fixed his shirt and pulled his pants back up, smiling when he was properly clothed again.

They trudged back to the ruins. Seira took notice of a single structure sticking out against the rest of the ruins and figured it made a good a place as any for camp. Progress was slow with Galen trying to get feeling back in his legs, but Seira had no trouble holding his weight. Glancing over, he saw more than the usual contemplation and mischievousness in her smile. She actually seemed content. It reminded him of her face in the candlelight of the previous night.

Galen lost his footing, almost falling over as his legs turned to jelly once again, but Seira caught him. “Whoops! Take it easy now. I know I take a lot out of men after a milking.”

“Yeah. Sorry.”

Seira chuckled. “That’s the first time someone has apologized to me after rape.”

“But I thought it wasn’t rape if--“

She covered his mouth with a paw. “Hush. You’ll ruin it.”

He said something else, but his mouth was still covered so Seira couldn’t make it out. She shook her head, wondering if some things didn’t just go in one ear and out the other with him.

They soon made it back to the structure. It turned out to be the remains of a fireplace. Seira picked out a soft-looking spot on the grass and plopped Galen down. He groaned as his back hit the ground a bit harder than he was expecting. Arching his back, he shot Seira a stink-eye.

“You’re supposed to be gentler with someone you’re helping out.”

She shrugged, finding a nice limp of dirt to elevate her head on and leaned back onto it. “You’ll be fine.”

She expected a quip back from him, but when she heard nothing, she sat back up and looked over. He’d fallen straight to sleep. Easy to sleep, hard to wake, she guessed. She grinned, knowing exactly what had exhausted him so.

Lying down, she rested her head in her paws, letting her tail swing idly back and forth. She closed her eyes, but reopened them when she caught sight of something. It was a part of the fireplace next to where Galen was sleeping, but it caught her eye because something had been scratched into it. Squinting, she leaned toward the rock. A small lizardman stared back at her.

“Huh,” she said, lying back down. “How about that.”