by Jamie Hawke
We made it through the door to see the others sniffing and glancing back.
“Just a little fire,” I said. “Nothing to worry about. Keep it moving.”
Steph chuckled, and we took the lead. The gargoyles made loud thuds with each step, shaking the walls, and Shisa came running halfway up the stairs to meet us. I knelt to rub its head, then told it to come along for training. ‘It’? Maybe I’d start referring to the little guy as a ‘he,’ because that made it seem more real.
“I’d love to see what else you’re capable of, when your magic is enhanced,” I told Shisa. The little lion-dog gave a bit of a bark-growl in excitement.
“You’re starting to communicate!” Steph said, and laughed.
We made it into the old family room, and I glanced around, deciding to try something else. Usually, my transmutation didn’t extend to changing actual materials like real alchemy, or maybe I was limited by my mental ability to grasp such changes. But with the Avalon connection, I felt confident. My hand on the wall, I grinned as I felt the wood transform so that whatever substance I put there held a metallic gleam. My goal was something akin to the X-Men animated series version of their training room—although I couldn’t remember what it had been called or made of. Regardless, this seemed to work well enough. I stopped short of creating sentinels and the whole simulation aspect of their training room. We had real gargoyles and magic, after all.
“Holy hell,” Steph said, and glanced my way as if asking permission.
“Try,” I said, figuring I had a good notion of where she was going with that look.
She held up a hand and thrust, sending a massive blast of fire at the wall. It roared and the heat was intense, but when she ceased, there wasn’t even a scorch mark.
“While you’re at it,” Kordelia said, eyeing the wall and then Steph, “might as well do the whole house like that.”
Sometimes I hated when a badass idea wasn’t mine. Such as in that moment. I nodded, impressed, and said, “You all start training, but see that you don’t hurt each other. I’ll be a couple of seconds.”
“If anyone does get hurt, I can simply heal them,” Ebrill pointed out. “Usually, it isn’t too strong, but with this amplification, it shouldn’t be an issue.”
“There you go.”
I watched them form pairs and start sparring, lightly at first and then harder as they tried fire and other spells to see how much amplification there was. After a moment of this, I went ahead and started making changes to the house. My gut instinct said to change it up and make it look as much like the Haunted Mansion ride at Disneyland or something while I was at it, but I had to curb myself—this was not for cosmetic reasons, it was vital defense of the house. And I couldn’t change the outside much, or passersby would get suspicious. Still, I decided to have a little fun and redecorate. I imagined a room that had reliefs in the walls that showed the story of our adventures and fights so far, and made the rugs rearrange themselves into tapestries to show my ladies in all their beauty. I wondered what they would think of that! The fun kept going until I heard an ‘Oomph’ from behind me and remembered the training, so I quickly finished changing the walls and whatnot to fortress mode.
Ebrill was on her back, wings pushing her up, and Kordelia circled her with a grin.
“Even our physical strength is amplified when tapped into Avalon,” Aerona said.
“Apparently,” Ebrill added, cracking her neck and flexing her arms. Watching her muscles like that, this almost nude, beautiful gargoyle, I felt something else amplified. The power seemed to be affecting my sex drive, or maybe I was just getting turned on by these hot women kicking each other’s asses. Steph and Aerona went up against each other next, going spell-for-spell, and sure enough, I was like a horny teenager by the time they were done.
“You’re up,” Kordelia said, motioning me forward.
“Um, yeah… sorry.” I adjusted my pants.
She laughed. Ebrill smiled, and Aerona groaned.
“She meant ‘you’re up’ as in it’s your turn,” Steph explained, passing me and grabbing my package for emphasis.
“I can’t fight with this.” I gestured to my crotch.
“You think the enemy will care if there’s extra blood in your cock when it’s time to fight?” Kordelia retorted. “Now get out here and try not to poke out any eyes with that thing.”
I laughed, but held up a hand. “Let Shisa show us what he’s got first. If I haven’t had a downsizing by then, sure.”
They must’ve been curious, because they all stopped giving me a hard time and turned to Shisa instead.
“Do your thing,” I told the lion-dog.
Shisa shook its head, a mixture of stone and fur, and then stepped out into the middle of the room. It looked at each of us, waiting.
“Oh, we should send an attack,” I said. “Got it.”
Throwing out an ice blast, I watched as Shisa braced and an energy wall shot out around it, deflecting the attack right back at me! Steph hit the ice with fire, so that the result was me simply getting drenched as the remaining water hit.
“Your turn,” I told Steph, wringing out my shirt.
She shot out fire and dodged immediately, so that when it rebounded, it hit the wall and didn’t do any damage. We went at this a few more times, trying with Aerona and then seeing that the shield worked on us, too, and then watched as Shisa shot out energy attacks from its mouth and performed a wicked claw strike that left my shirt torn and some cuts that Ebrill had to heal.
“I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” I said, glad to feel that the water and pain had caused my boner to subside.
“What you’re ready for is a change of clothes and some rest,” Kordelia said with a laugh. “But… let’s see what you’re made of.”
I stepped into my best defensive stance. “Bring it.”
“Jericho,” Steph said, clearly trying to stifle a laugh. “You’re not going to be able to take her without magic.”
“But my magic would tear her up,” I replied.
“Fuck you.” Kordelia charged me, picking me up and slamming me into the far wall with a thud that knocked the wind out of me. “Do your worst.”
My eyes bugged, my lungs burning as I gasped for air. They couldn’t seriously want me to hit her with my magic, could they? She slammed me again, and this time it was instinctive—the Liahona appeared in my hand, the ice claw shooting out. It went for her arm but she released me, rolling back. As the Liahona formed into a glowing ball, my next attack came as a burst of those ice claws, shooting out at her and attacking from multiple directions with what looked like glowing chains connected to me.
She spun, knocking some aside with her wings while others hit her, covering her in sections with ice and scraping flesh in others. Her roar filled me with dread and I cancelled the spell.
Ebrill was there in a flash, hand to Kordelia’s head and green light pulsating between them. Kordelia’s wounds healed, the ice gone, and both looked at me with wide eyes.
“I—I’m sorry,” I said, hand gripping the Liahona tight.
“Don’t be,” Kordelia replied. “That was exactly what I wanted from you.”
“It was badass,” Steph added, nodding enthusiastically. “Even Aerona was impressed.”
Aerona nodded, stepping over to me, hand going to the Liahona. She ran her finger along it, then met my eyes. Apparently, she had realized how suggestive the situation was, and pulled her hand away as her golden cheeks turned rosy. I dismissed the ball.
“Again,” Aerona said. “Let’s see how it does against all of us.”
“It?” I shook my head. “Me.”
“Sure, okay.” She winked, stepped back, and then chanted a spell. Blasts of fire and striking light shot out at me, while Kordelia and Ebrill took the hint and leaped up, circling around me to follow up on the attack.
I had the Liahona again in an instant, parrying magic and shooting out a wall of ice, followed by yet another, then causing crackling
electricity to leap from it with my elemental strike power. The electricity shot out and took Aerona in the chest to send her spiraling back, and then I turned to block a strike from a wraith knight.
“Not fair,” I said as six other wraith knights came at me, Kordelia and Ebrill along with them. Then again, it was pretty fair I realized as my magic energy surged. With a blast of energy, I sent them all back to the walls, where my magic held them in place.
“What now?” I shouted, playfully. Seeing that they weren’t looking amused at all at being frozen in place like that, I released the energy and then, awkwardly, the Liahona. The wraith knights faded.
Ebrill stretched her wings, glanced my way, and chuckled. “With that sort of power, I don’t think we’ll have much to worry about.”
“Never underestimate the enemy,” Aerona said.
104
Following the ass-whupping I had given my team, I would have thought they would be annoyed, or maybe timid. Instead, they were all eyeing me with curiosity or lust, depending on the lady. A bit of both, mostly.
“Maybe,” Steph started, but then shook her head. “Nah, it’s stupid.”
“What?” I asked.
“I was just thinking, wouldn’t it be cool if you could somehow use the Liahona without that awkward way you hold it?” She glanced around, noticing the remnants of a desk in the corner. “Like if you had it attached to a staff.”
“A true mage’s staff!” I exclaimed, loving the idea already. Kneeling beside the desk, I caused two legs to morph together and then twist until it looked like a proper staff, and this time when I summoned the Liahona, I made it so that the metal ball affixed to the end of the staff. The same amount of power surged through me, then a bit more.
“It’s helping you focus,” Aerona said, nodding at Steph with respect. “I should’ve thought of that.”
“It’s nothing,” Steph replied with a blush.
Wand waving, I created a circle of ice above my head, then let it burst out to slam into the walls like spears. This was going to be so epic. But for now, I released the Liahona, keeping the staff because it was fun to hold. Gave me a sense of mage-ness.
“That was… hot,” Kordelia admitted.
“We should rest,” Ebrill said, stepping close and then running her hand along my waist. “The enemy could fall into our trap at any minute.”
“I could watch,” Aerona said, then bit her lip, followed by a laugh. “I mean, keep watch. For the enemy.”
“You and Shisa,” Kordelia said.
My eyes snapped to Kordelia with a confused excitement. “You…?”
“You’ll join us?” Ebrill asked.
Steph eyed the large gargoyle, clearly as excited by the prospect of her joining as I was.
Kordelia tilted her head in consideration, then nodded. “It might be some effect from the magic, I don’t know. But… don’t try to talk me out of this. I’m ready.”
“No argument here,” Steph said, wrapping her arm through mine. “Should be… fun.”
“Fun,” Kordelia replied, eyeing the petite woman on my arm with a new hunger. “I want to watch him dominate you.”
Steph blinked, turned to me, and shrugged with a hint of a smile. I stood tall, not wanting to appear meek or any less of a man in front of Kordelia but having no idea what ‘dominating’ someone really meant. After a quick breath and knowing all eyes were on me, I cast my new staff to one side and stepped forward, kissing Steph passionately and grabbing her by the ass.
“Agh, too romantic,” Kordelia said, and then grabbed Ebrill by the wrists. The latter smiled wide, into it. Kordelia turned her around, pinning her hands to the wall, and said, “Like this, and then just… do it.”
I couldn’t help but notice the way Steph watched them excitedly, so I went full into the role. My fingers wrapped around Steph’s wrists and I spun her around, pressing my stiffening cock against her ass as I pinned her hands to the wall. Next, I reached one hand down to lift her skirt and pull down her panties, then free my cock. Kordelia let out a sharp breath at the sight of it, her hands massaging Ebrill as she watched me slide into Steph.
In that short amount of time, Steph had gotten surprisingly wet. My cock slid in, tight but lubricated, and she reached down and under to grab my balls. I had to help by moving my pants more, and then Ebrill was there helping me. Kordelia ripped my shirt clean off with her nails, so that suddenly I was fully exposed, fucking Steph from behind while two huge gargoyle women caressed the two of us and each other.
“Now me,” Kordelia said after enough to get her hot and bothered. I slid out, kissing Steph on the neck as I turned to Kordelia and waited to see how she was going to dominate me. It took a second to realize she still wanted me in charge, which felt slightly off considering how large and intimidating she was. But, I supposed that was part of the appeal, so I went with it. I tore her armor off, took one of her breasts and engulfed her nipple, then slapped her ass hard. The cringe that followed as I anticipated retaliation annoyed me, but not enough to break the mood. She was into it, and Ebrill seemed impressed.
When I tried to shove Kordelia to the bed, she kind of played along, but it was clear my shove hadn’t done shit. Instead, she shrugged and pushed me on the bed—a bit too strongly—and said, “This will be easier.”
Suddenly, she was on me, wings spread out behind her and flapping as she sank onto my cock, riding me. I was trying to hold my own, at one time sitting and grabbing her huge, muscular ass and working with her, at another with her taking me like a plaything and lifting me to spin me around and have me go at Ebrill for a little while she went to Steph. I wasn’t sure if it was funny or scary that Steph eyed this large gargoyle anxiously, but when both were moaning a moment later, I realized we were all having a blast.
“You’re doing okay?” Ebrill asked as I slid into her.
I nodded, getting more into it. “Hopefully nothing’s bruised,” I joked, but then realized it quite possibly could be. It had happened once—down there.
I quickly expelled the thought, instead focusing on how amazing Ebrill’s hot pussy felt on my cock, how our bodies were moving together with sweat and passion. Someone’s hands moved along my leg and cupped my balls, another massaged her clit so that Ebrill shouted out with bliss a moment later.
Then I turned back to Kordelia and brought the passion her way, working every trick I could think of to make her cum. When it happened, her body shook and I thought there might have been an actual earthquake. Her fist made a dent in the wall, and then she fell back, still at last.
Steph took me in her hand, stroking me, loving the feel of my cock, before riding me again. When she had cum twice, she laughed and stepped aside, holding up a hand and saying she couldn’t take anymore.
Ebrill leaped on me again, mouth going to my balls and hand working my shaft until I came all over her chest. Mid O-face on my part, Aerona burst into the room. She paused only briefly at the sight of us.
“It’s time.” She turned, hesitated with a glance back, and chuckled. “Nice,” was all she said before charging back out of there, presumably toward the roof. It was as good a place as any to fight.
We threw on our clothes and I grabbed my staff as we made our way up, me wishing we’d thought this through and had time for a rinse, considering I was all sweaty and smelled like sex. I hoped Ebrill had found some way of dealing with my cum.
Moving the house as I went, I turned our path into a direct route up onto the roof. We emerged moments later, me with my staff at the ready. I had to be cautious with how often I called upon the Liahona, but the weapon did help me focus, and I could use it as an elemental strike weapon when needed.
Sure enough, enemies were incoming or already on the roof, waiting. Those damn runes apparently weren’t strong enough. At least the power of the building was keeping them out. In order to amp up our defenses, I set up a few wards with the “Ddogelu” spell, then called out “Tarian” a couple times to direct more defensive boosts at ou
r team.
Three of those winged creatures from before lunged at me and I knocked them back with an ice claw at one’s throat, saying “Elfenol Streic” to shoot lightning from my staff to take down the next two—but they kept coming! Seeing another go up in flames at Steph’s attack, I went with the flow and called out “Elfenol Streic” again to use fire next. That did the trick. These fuckers weren’t fans of flames.
Kordelia was a powerhouse, tearing through them and even ripping off one head, at least, tossing it at another and dazing the latter. Ebrill focused on defenses but used her claws more than once, while Aerona had a barrage of magic working on those trying to reach us from above. My XP was rising by the second, to the point that it was coming damn close to another level increase.
A roar sounded and the moon vanished. No, not vanished, but was blocked out by a large creature with a massive wing-span. A griffon!
The griffon charged right through the magic, seemingly impervious, and clawed at Kordelia. Next to that thing, she looked downright tiny. I struck with my elemental strike, but the magic attacks only seemed to fuel the beast. As Kordelia struggled to not be torn apart, Ebrill hit her with healing spells fast enough to at least keep her in one piece. Steph’s wraith knights charged the griffon, but they seemed to run right through it, vanishing on impact.
“What is that thing?” I shouted
Aerona turned to me with eyes full of worry. “Glitonea—one of the Nine.”
“Fuck,” I said, horrified as the griffon slammed Kordelia with a blow that sent her flying toward the edge of the roof, only to be attacked by a handful of those other winged creatures. A second later, the same happened to Ebrill.
I wasn’t about to let another strike land, so I summoned the Liahona, called every attack spell I knew that I thought would work, and aimed with all my power. As below, the barrage of ice claws and other attacks flowed out. This time, however, the target seemed to relish the attack! Even as the griffon grunted in pain, it seemed to grow and then… was laughing?
“No!” Aerona said as I prepared a second strike.
