Hey all! It's me again! Finally managed to get this out! Sorry for how short it turned out, but my finals are coming up, so I've had my mind on other things right now...
with that out of the way hope you enjoy!
Notstudying: Thanks! Glad you liked it! Though do be sure to study when you get the time. IN answer to your question... maybe. I'd be willing to take on suggestions so long as it isn't too crazy!
Chapter 4
Andrew looked down at the meat in his hand, his face screwed up in some levels of discomfort as he turned it over a few times in his hands. Labareda looked over to him, stuffing a large helping of meat in her mouth.
"Wassa maher?"
"How many times do I have to tell you to finish chewing before you start talking?"
Labareda contemplated that for a moment before she swallowed the thing whole, though Andrew knew she was capable of stuffing even more down her throat then that small sum of meat. Shaking his head to dispel his wandering mind, Andrew looked back to his first familiar when she started speaking again.
"I apologize master… anyway, I was asking if something was the matter with the food?"
Andrew turned his attention back to the hunk of meat in his hands. Then he turned his attention to the thing it happened to come from. The orcs the three girls had killed almost an hour ago. He had some reservations about eating something that seemed to be sentient, but at the same time, when Labareda had been cooking it; it had smelled like actual pork. Not that surprising considering what orcs where modeled after. It had smelled delicious, and he had been looking forward to it when he had smelled it. However, now he had reservations.
"No… nothings wrong with the food itself… I just… just have some problems with eating something that had been sentient not but an hour ago."
Looking around, Andrew saw that he was the only one who had this problem, Unoma eating her own small amount of meat, and Labareda and Serena pigging out on large hunks of leg. Serena swallowed what was in her mouth before she turned her attention to Andrew.
"Are you an idiot or something? Only fools don't eat good food given to them, no matter where it came from. Besides, those things are hardly sentient. All they do is eat, sleep, and fuck any female they come into contact with to bolster their numbers. I should know, they've tried to rape me a number of times since I've been down here… and I've happened upon a few of the unlucky girls who got caught by those things…"
Serena stopped for a second, as if remembering something painful before she shook her head and looked back to Andrew.
"Point is, they don't deserve a second thought. End of story."
Unoma nodded her head at Serena before she turned her attention to Andrew.
"She's right Dear Master. Orcs don't have the capacity for a higher range of thought, only following the basest of instincts. So please, eat up. I guarantee that despite how it may look, Serena cooked it to the point of being quite palatable."
The twin tail looked to Unoma, not sure if the witch was complimenting her or making fun of her. However, she wasn't going to give it much more thought before she looked to Andrew, a familiar look on her face… to him at least.
"So, we've been eating and minding each other for a while now, but I think it's time we started actually getting questions answered."
Andrew was about to take a bite out of the food he had in his hands, his mental fortitude having finally gathered enough to try, but he put it down when he saw that Serena was being serious. She obviously didn't want to wait around for answers anymore.
"*Sigh*… alright then. I guess it is time to go ahead and answer your questions… so, you wanted to know what the relationship is between you and myself right?"
"Of course. That's what I've been waiting for after all."
"Alright alright… well, let me go ahead and point out, you and I don't know each other personally. However, I happen to know of you. And before you ask, no, I'm not important enough to be well known. Just a random guy you would meet anywhere."
"Alright… so I'm well known… what for?"
For the next few minutes, Andrew tried his best to explain to Serena about her exploits in the games she came from, trying his best to make it seem like she came from a legend rather then a video game, though he was sure she wouldn't even know what a video game even was. Eventually, the explanation came to an end with Serena deep in thought. Andrew wasn't sure what next to say at this point, not being very good at the whole 'starting conversation' thing. However Serena let out a loud sigh before she turned back to him.
"Alright… so that's the gist of it then… It doesn't sound like your lying to me, and I get the feeling a lot of what your telling me is true. It also explains how I can handle myself in a fight so well despite not having any memory of it. Thanks for letting me know."
Serena smiled at him in thanks, causing Andrew to blush a little bit, an expression not missed by both of his familiars. Unoma and Labareda smiled to each other before the dark mage spoke up first.
"So… Serena… what's your plan from here on out?"
Looking over at Unoma, Serena couldn't help but cock her head in confusion.
"My plan?"
Labareda spoke up next.
"Yes, you found out what you wanted, so what's your plan from here on out?"
For a moment, Serena could only blink before the full effect of the question seemed to hit her.
"That's… a very good question actually… I had only wanted to find out who I was originally, but now that I have an idea… I don't really know?"
Unoma spoke up after that, seeing the girls stacked confusion and unrest.
"Then how about your travel with us for the time being? We could use someone else to help us in the event of another fight like this, not having a dedicated swordsman showed us we need a little more muscle. You also won't have to travel the labyrinth alone anymore since we happen to be on our way out. I also think our master would feel better if you came with us as well, his adoration for you being rather evident in his recounting of you."
Andrew looked at Unoma for a moment, a blush coming over his face.
"I wasn't 'adoring' her or anything. I just got a little excited telling her was all okay?"
Letting out a sigh, Andrew turned his attention back to Serena.
"Silly dialogue aside… we do happen to be on our way out. If you wanna come along, we won't complain about it, plus I think it would be safer for everyone if we all traveled in a larger group."
Serena looked from Andrew, to the other two, her mind quickly coming to a conclusion about all of this.
"That's fine. I'll travel with you guys until we get out. Plus, seeing how you acted in the fight earlier, you need all the protection you can get. And if your stories are true, then I can help out as a mercenary of sorts."
"Great!"
Andrew said a little more excitedly then he had meant to, a fact not missed by his two familiars. Reigning himself in with a cough, Andrew looked to Serena's hips, more specifically, to the odd katana's she had with her.
"By the way Serena… What's up with those weapons of yours?"
"Ah, These?"
Serena drew her attention to the weapons before she gripped the hilt of one of them confidently.
"I don't know what they are, but I found them while I was down here when my original sword broke in the jaws of some pig thing. I had to run for hours to escape that. Thankfully I found these in a room I stumbled across. At first, I thought they where the ugliest things I had ever seen, but when I picked them up, I was filled with a great deal of power unlike anything I had felt before. I also seemed to know how to use two of them at the same time, though I'm not sure if that was something I knew how to do or if the weapon filled me with that knowledge. Thankfully I found them when I did cause that pig thing came back and tried to eat me again. I cut it right in half with a single swing with this thing."
Serena looked rather pleased with herself, However, Andrew took a second look at them, there ominous look giving him bad vibes.
"You sure they weren't cursed or something?"
Serena simply shook her head.
"I have no idea, but for the past few days I haven't felt anything wrong. If anything, I may simply be getting stronger. Though don't get me wrong, I have tried to use other weapons I've found down here, but they are too weak and they break easily, or I can't use them due to how badly they're made. These have worked well enough, so don't worry about it… also, while where on the subject of things we each have… what was with those hands you summoned earlier?"
Andrew blinked in confusion for a moment, not sure what she was talking about.
"I'm sorry… what?"
"The hands, the things that crushed the pig guy earlier. When you started to go limp, those hands came out of nowhere and crushed it to death."
Andrew was genuinely confused at this point. Before he could press any further about it though, Unoma spoke up.
"How about we save that for a little bit later Dear master."
Andrew turned to Unoma, curious why she wanted to put it off so suddenly.
"Why is that?"
Unoma didn't answer immediately, but Labareda did.
"Because we need to try to figure it out a little bit more. Unoma and I don't want to give you any false information in regards to what we saw, and we think we need to debate it a little bit more before we fill you in on anything. We swear it isn't a problem for you right now though, but it'll only stay that way so long as you don't try to run off and do what you did earlier."
Andrew felt his gut sink a little at the mention of his previous action, though he was still curious about what they where talking about. However, he wasn't going to question it any further for now, it not being that important.
"Alright then. I'll wait for your answers then."
Both of the familiars couldn't help but grin at him. Serena noticed the amount of trust going on here, and felt that she may have also had the same such trust with others… or so she hoped. However, she couldn't help but notice a thing or two about the two familiars, Labareda in particular.
"So… it's not like I was looking or anything, and personally, it might not be any of my business… but why is she pretty much naked?!"
Andrew turned his attention to Labareda, having become so used to her nudity over the past few weeks that it hadn't bugged him… or it hadn't until he remembered that he had had sex with that very body not but a few hours ago. Suddenly, his mind replaying her soft body in contact with his caused his cheeks to flush and his gaze to veer away to Unoma. However, Serena had something to say about her as well, only she punctuated it with her gloved hand pointing at her, a blush rising on her face.
"And she might as well not be wearing anything at all with the way that loose rag is working! Seriously, what is with you guys! The only one decently dressed is the guy!"
Andrew could only laugh at her nervously, not having anything he could say in counter. Unoma and Labareda came to his rescue a moment later.
"I fail to see how it's that big a problem. The only ones who'll be seeing us are monsters, you, and our Dear Master. Monster die easily enough; Dear Master has seen us like this for several days already… so the only one who would be bothered by it is you."
Labareda could only grin at Serena.
"Do our bodies cause you some… discomfort? Most of us here are woman after all, and both of the familiars are fine with the way things are. Unless you have other reasons to be disturbed by this?"
Serena didn't miss the lewd grin on Labaredas face, her own growing hot in both anger and embarrassment.
"Oh shut it! All I'm saying is that it's indecent. You both should cover yourselves more if only due to the fact that you never know who or what you'll run into down here!"
Serena cut the conversation at that point, her mind unable to keep the argument up at that point. Andrew let out a small chuckle at everything that was going on. However, he quickly remembered that he needed to get something in his stomach. A little while later and everyone started to settle down for some rest. Labareda said she would keep watch in the event of anymore orcs, though Andrew knew she hardly needed sleep to begin with due to the fact that she could sustain herself on magic alone. Eventually, everyone went to sleep with Labareda keeping watch for a little while before she set some makeshift wards around the area and came back to rest next to Andrew. Said male was woken up a little bit later when he felt the pressure of something on him waking him up, Andrew being a very light sleeper. When he opened his eyes, he was almost surprised to see Unoma laying across him, her bust laying across his upper body. Almost was the key word here. What was unusual about the situation however was the fact that she had undone his pants and was using one hand to stroke his already enlarged member. A small grunt from him caused her to look up at him, though her hand never stopped pumping his dick.
"Ah, Dear Master, I was starting to wonder if I needed to try harder to get you up."
Andrew, finding it kinda hard to think straight with her hand pleasuring him, shook his head to momentarily dispel his mind from the touch.
"Unoma… what are you doing."
It wasn't a question, but a demand, albeit a weak one considering she never let up on her ministrations.
"Ara? I thought it would be obvious considering the situation, but if you want me to explain…"
Unoma moved her face closer to his before she lay her head down on his chest, a grin filled with lewd intentions as her eyes seemed to gleam at him in mirth.
"I'm getting you ready Dear Master."
Andrew wasn't stupid enough to ask her 'for what' considering what she was doing to his groin, but he was still curious about her intentions.
"Okay… I kinda see what you want to happen, but I'm curious as to why exactly."
Unoma moved herself even closer to his face, almost too close for his taste since all he would have to do was move his head and he could touch her nose with his chin.
"Easy, I want you to fill me with Mana the same way you did with Lab."
"I…*grunt* I hardly think that with your amount of power you would need a refill so quickly."
Andrew was trying his hardest to keep a neutral face, but her hand began to gyrate as she stroked him, the feeling changing pace between slow and quick, but never too fast for his body to take. She only looked up at him with a mock pout on her face.
"Now that's not fair master. I know Labareda was rather mana deprived, but even if I'm still chock full of it doesn't mean I'm not jealous of how you ravaged her little pussy the way you did. You think that after watching you two that I wouldn't want a turn?"
Andrew let out a sigh, but it turned into another groan as she started to pump just the head of his dick, the growing sensitivity causing her hand to feel even more amazing then it did a minute ago. Bringing himself back under reign, Andrew sat himself up, Unoma falling a little off to the way side, directly stopping her hand from continuing. However, she had fallen in a way that left her looking sensual, her breasts hidden behind her hair with just the torn cloth she wore doing hardly anything to hide her uncovered pussy. She hadn't even bothered to wear underwear in her long time down here. Letting out a low sigh, Andrew looked down at her before he looked at the other two of his party. Mentally, he wasn't going to say no to her, hell, she had done a decent enough job of getting him up, so he might as well as take advantage of it. His concern was for Labareda and Serena though… actually, it was more for Serena really. Labareda probably would just watch on waiting for her turn, but he had no doubt that the red-haired twintail would say something about it. A moment later though and saw something thin seem to appear in the air between him and the other two. Looking back, he saw that Unoma had her hand up and that it was losing it's glow.
"Don't worry, I just used a spell that will muffle the sounds we make. You don't have to worry about waking them up. And now that that is taken care of…"
Unoma didn't say anything else after that. A moment later and she rolled onto her back and spread her legs wide. Andrew let out a low whistle, his dick suddenly throbbing as the sight of Unoma's glistening snatch. She didn't do him any favors when she reached down and spread herself wide, a look of lustful want on her face as she bit her lower lip in anticipation. Andrew didn't wait a second longer before he lined himself up with her, the tip of his dick just barely touching her lower lips. The hot wetness of that alone caused him to mentally throw his reasoning to the side, a wild beast of lust taking its place before he drove himself into her without a second though. Unoma clenched up at Andrews full length in her so suddenly, her mouth letting out a shout of surprise before it was replaced with a moan filled with inner pleasure. Andrew didn't even bother with going slow and started to pump into her, his lower half craving to drive itself into her womb. Unoma didn't resist anything he was doing, instead letting out moans and screams laced with all the desire she was currently feeling, her body almost scarping across the floor with how hard he was fucking her. He wasn't done yet though; Andrews eyes having watched her massive tits swaying back and forth each time he shoved himself into her. Not losing any of his speed, Andrew roughly grabbed her breasts and began to fondle and squeeze them. At that, Unoma showed no restraint in her lust and begged him to treat her more roughly, the assault on both her pussy and breasts too much for her especially after having no sexual contact for almost twelve hundred years. However, it didn't last very long. A few minutes later of this rough fucking and Andrew felt himself ready to blow his load right inside her.
Unoma could tell both from the feeling of emotions washing through her along with the way Andrews breathing started increasing that he was ready to come. IN the heat of the moment, Unoma wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him close, forcing him to drive into her womb as far as he could go. Andrew was sure he felt the tip of his prick pierce another set of lips, but it felt so good for him that his dick blew everything it had right then and there. Unoma felt white hot seed fill her body, the feeling of being filled up causing her to clench and achieve her own orgasm. For several tens of seconds, this is all either of them did, but Andrew was the first to stop, his body spent from that little bout of physical exertion. Andrew managed to sit himself back up and pulled out of Unoma, the sucking feeling on his dick telling him that she still wanted him inside of her. However, he was curious when he saw that despite pulling out, his cum didn't seem to flow out. He was too tired to think about it though and simply lay himself down next to her, wrapping an arm over her shoulders and pulling her in close. Though she was still enjoying her own after glow, she was surprised to see him pull her close, but she didn't say anything, instead opting to snuggle close. Andrew let out a small sigh before he looked to her.
"So… feeling recharged yet?"
"More than enough Dear Master…"
Unoma simply snuggle closer, Andrew obliging her by letting her rest her head on his collarbone.
"This is gonna be a frequent thing with you two isn't it."
It wasn't a question, but a statement, one that made his familiar laugh to herself.
"We will need to get mana one way or another, so I see it as being something that will happen often… but after that, you should get some more rest master. We have more distance to cover and I have no doubt myself and Lab will be needing to do this almost daily."
Andrew let out a small groan, though he wasn't complaining. It didn't take either of them long to go to sleep and get some rest, though a few hours later, Serena was the first to let it be known that she wasn't happy about what no doubt happened when she was asleep (the duo still naked and the smell of sex having still been in the air). Labareda only laughed at the situation before Andrew cleaned himself up, albeit with an embarrassed look on his face. Thankfully cleanup didn't take very long with the demon girls help and the group eventually got itself under way. For the next few hours or so, everything remained rather calm and quiet, the occasional bout with some creature breaking the boring march However, where Andrew was used to saying nothing for hours on end and Labareda and Unoma content enough with the silence, Serena found that since she had company with her, she wanted some noise, preferably in the form of conversation. However, several hours of none of this finally caused her to lose her patience.
"AGH! Enough of this!"
Andrew jumped at the sudden shout, but he only remained startled for a moment before he turned his attention to Serena.
"Um… enough of what?"
"This quite! Is this all you guys have been doing this whole time?! Not saying anything to each other? It's driving me crazy!"
Unoma, who was currently riding on Andrews back as per the norm, looked to the twintail and simply shrugged her shoulders.
"I don't see the issue here. We've done well enough without any kind of conversation so far."
Labareda nodded her head in agreement, though Serena looked like she was ready to pop a vein.
"It may not be an issue for you guys, but It's driving me nuts here! Say something at least! Try to make some conversation!"
Andrew let out a small chuckle internally before he looked at Serena.
"Well… I guess your right in that it's pretty boring for normal people to not say anything for so long… so why don't you go ahead and bring up a topic for us to talk about? I can't really think of anything on the spot myself… unless you two wanted to throw in some conversation topics?"
Andrew looked to both of his familiars, though neither one of them seemed to have anything themselves. Serena found that everyone was looking at her now and she suddenly realized that she was going to have to do this. Surprisingly, a blush started to form on her face before her temper seemed to elevate.
"I-Idiot! Why would I bring it up if I thought I could think of something! I'm missing memories in case you forgot!"
Andrew found himself laughing again, this time out loud, causing Serena to blush even more deeply while she bristled at him.
"Sorry sorry… I just didn't expect you to act so much like in the ga- Legends is all. I swear I'm not picking on you."
Labareda poked at Andrew, a sly grin on her face.
"Your grin says otherwise."
"Aw shaddup… Anyway, I'm sure I can think of something we can talk about… ah, I got just the thing while we walk. I happen to like a lot of kinds of food, but I think my particular favorites are things along the lines of pasta. Like noodles and the like. Something about baked noodles really makes my mouth water. How about you guys?"
Unoma thought about it for a moment before she nuzzled her face into Andrews neck.
"I like your taste Dear Master… but if we're talking about real food… I'm rather impartial to most things, though a good cake of sorts would have me put a little extra effort into everyday life."
"Like actually trying to walk?"
Unoma looked at Labareda and gave her a smug smile.
"You're just jealous because I get piggyback rides all the time."
"I won't deny that."
Andrew couldn't help but chuckle a little bit to himself before he asked his first familiar the same question.
"How about you Labareda? What kind of food do you like to eat?"
The Infernal thought about it for a moment before she answered.
"I don't really care much for human food… but if I was to say… more than likely it would be Masters mana."
Serena cocked her head in some confusion at that.
"Mana?"
Andrew saw her confusion and decided to explain a little bit.
"Right… even in your previous world you didn't have anything like this so you wouldn't know anything about this. Both Labareda and Unoma are my familiars… basically contracted magical servants. They do things for me, and in return, I provide them with Mana… which I have a lot of apparently."
Serena looked on at him for a moment before she nodded her head curiously.
"Huh… that's interesting… So how does that work? The giving mana part I mean?"
Andrew felt his cheeks go red from his memory of how that now works, but Unoma spoke up before he could try to work around it.
"Easy, he has sex with us to inject mana into our bodies."
Andrew turned his head quickly, but Serena's face started to do an imitation of an apple.
"Wh-what are you-! That explains what you were doing this morning you horny bastard!"
Andrew felt himself start to clam up at that, though Serena looked over to Labareda before she pointed at her.
"Even with a girl this small?! She practically looks like a child!"
However, Labareda got her attention by clearing her throat.
"Excuse me Serena, but I'll have you know that despite how I may look, my age far exceeds that of one so short lived as you. I'm more then old enough to be considered your senior in many regards."
However, Andrew started to speak up after that.
"it's not so much the age thing Labareda so much as the physical implication. Most humans would consider having sex with a minor disgusting. Or it did in where I came from anyway. I don't know how that holds up here."
"Actually, Dear Master, where I come from, it was morally correct to take young wives and impregnate them for the sake of survival. Many humans died young when I was still walking around on the surface. If one didn't have magical ability, then the longest most people would expect to live was only about forty and some odd years of age. Making it to sixty was normally only normal for the wealthy and nobility. Demons don't have any kind of regards for sexual maturity, so Labareda doesn't see any issues with her current body. And I doubt you do either Dear Master seeing as you didn't really hesitate when it came to 'injecting' mana into her."
Andrew could only sheepishly look away from her to Serena, who looked confused and maybe some parts… disgusted? Horrified? He couldn't tell, the mix of emotions on her face was hard to read. However, a moment later and she only shook her head and let out a defeated sigh.
"You know what? It doesn't matter to me right now. You guys are free to fuck whoever or whatever you want so long as we get out of here… but I'm going to go ahead and say this up front! Tell me before you do that kind of… stuff… alright? I don't want to be around when you do."
Andrew nodded his head.
"I got it… and sorry if this made you uncomfortable."
"Whatever…" was her only response.
A few minutes of silence passed after that, which gave Andrew time to go over the conversation they just had before he realized something.
"ah, right. Serena."
The girl looked at him in response.
"What is it?"
"You never did mention if you had a particular food you liked."
She only stared at him for a moment before an annoyed look crossed her face.
"I have no idea. I don't have a lot of memories right now remember?"
"Oh… right… Well, I guess when we get out, we should see about finding something you might enjoy."
For a moment, she wasn't sure how to respond to that, but she then faced forward saying mostly to herself.
"Sure… fine…"
Feeling a small smile grace his lips, Andrew was surprised to see both of his familiars giving him smug grins.
"And what are you two looking at?"
"Noooooothing."
They said in unison, which only made him more suspicious. Deciding to leave it at that, Andrew spent another second thinking about something said before something mentioned by Labareda crossed his mind.
"Oh yeah… by the by Labareda… when you said you liked the taste of my mana, where you referring-"
"To the taste of your semen? Why yes indeed I was."
That smug grin got wider while Serena spluttered. Andrew let out a sigh at that. After that, the group found itself falling back into silence, hoping that Serena's thirst for conversation had been slacked for a time. Thankfully, they did not encounter anything else before they decided it was time for a break. Andrew sat Unoma down before he also sat down. A moment later and Labareda sniffed at the air for a moment before she seemed to find something.
"Here we go. I'll be back shortly master, dinner isn't too far away."
"Alright then, be careful as always."
Serena looked on at the exchange in for a moment before she spoke out.
"Ah… hold up."
Curious, Labareda and Andrew looked at her.
"What is it Serena?"
"Are you going to get food?"
Labareda nodded in answer.
"Yes I am. Why do you ask?"
"Do you mind if I come with you? This is one of the reasons you brought me along right? To Help out?"
Labareda curiously cocked her head to the side before she looked to Andrew, the question etched into her irises. Andrew thought about it for a moment before he nodded.
"Sure, take her along. It never hurts to have an extra set of hands around. Though do be careful alright?"
Labareda simply nodded her head before she waved, Selena not very far behind her as the two of them went to fetch something to eat. For a little while, nothing was said between either of them, Serena simply following the demon girl further and further into the labyrinth. However, that changed when Labareda stopped suddenly and turned around to face Serena, a curious look on her face.
"Alright, we're beyond far enough for any prying ears."
"Huh?"
Labareda chuckled to herself.
"Let's not play this game alright? You obviously came out here with me for a reason. I'm just saying now's a good time to go ahead and get it out of the way is all. Or we could keep walking until we find something to kill and take it back with us, upon which you would still be filled with the growing feeling of wanting to say something to me in your gut. Then we would have to do this whole thing all over again. Trust me, better to get it off your chest now rather than wait days from now."
Serena only stared at the demon girl for a few moments longer before she let out a long sigh.
"Well… you're not wrong about that… though truth be told, what I wanted to talk to you about was the guy… or Andrew."
"Oh?"
Genuinely curious, Labareda cocked her head to the side to listen.
"Are you sure it's okay to not tell him about that hand thing? He didn't seem to be aware of what it was, and the fact that you and… Unoma… seemed rather skeptical about it tells me that it isn't anything good. I can't see a reason to not tell him, though I can tell it's not really any of my business."
Labareda blinked a few times at her words, her eyes seemingly looking through her while her mind seemed to be running what she said a few times. She then smiled at her and let out a low chuckle.
"He he… worried about him I see… It's fine to think that way. Truth be told, we should tell him about it… I mean, despite my study of the shadow labyrinth and knowing the best ways to maneuver it, I have no idea what else is down here or what may happen. He could very well get himself into a situation like the one with you again. Then it may get to a point where Myself or Unoma can't help him… but honestly though? We want to keep him away from that knowledge… we want to keep him ignorant of his power for as long as possible…"
Serena cocked her head in a puzzled fashion and was about to pose the question of why, but the expression on the demon's face stopped her. It was sad and filled with what looked to be deep regret. Serena stopped what she was going to say and simply kept quiet, Labareda continuing on.
"I appreciate your concern… it shows you have a good heart as a human… but I ask that you please stay quite about it for a time… Unoma and I will do what is right when the time comes. Until then, I simply ask that you help us protect him."
It was a request, but Serena simply nodded her head at the familiar.
"Alright… that's why I'm here anyway… I'll help you guys out while we try to get out of this creepy dungeon… though… I gotta say this though… you must really like him if your words are anything to go off of."
Labareda let a cocky smile cross her face.
"It's not just 'like' twin-tail. Familiars like myself, once bound, can't help but love our masters. It may seem like I'm being forced due to a contract, but know that I do love my master from the very depth of my demonic being. And I honestly wouldn't have it any other way. Now come on, we promised to find something to eat, and we will as quickly as we can."
For a little while, Serena followed Labareda, the demonic familiar using some unknown method to track and scout passages ahead of them. Eventually though, Labareda managed to sniff something out. It was a massive boar of some kind, it's tusks as long as an average human being and as thick as a small log. Serena had no doubt being gored by those would result in immediate death, but Labareda didn't seem to be afraid of the creature nor of it's tusks. Pulling out her scythe with a flourish of fire, the familiar jumped out of hiding, surprising the boar. It didn't take very long for her and Serena to surround and kill it, the finishing blow having been dealt by Serena when she cut it's head off with a single downward stroke. After that, it was simply a matter of dragging the carcass back to the monetary camp that they had set aside for themselves. Thankfully that didn't take very long either, and by the time they got back, Unoma had just started to get hungry. Andrew had to cock his eyebrow upward at the size of the boar they had caught though.
"Good lord… that thing is massive… Though good job you two… I take it you both stayed safe?"
Labareda gave Andrew a victory pose.
"Of course. Now that we have something to eat, let me go ahead and roast this thing for what it's worth."
Noticing that Labareda had flames in her hands, Serena spoke up.
"Ah! Hold up a second."
The rest of the party looked ot her in a confused manner.
"Whats up Serena?"
"Do you guys mind waiting a little bit? I was going to go ahead and skin it "
Andrew looked at her curiously, but he gave her a nod in confirmation.
"Sure, go ahead. We can wait an hour or two."
Serena nodded her thanks, though Andrew had to admit, watching her skin the massive boar was kinda gruesome. She seemed used to it though, but Andrew had to ask if this was something she just now remembered how to do. Her only answer had been that she 'just knew how to do it.' After about an hour of her taking her time with the boar, Serena was proud to see that she had managed to extract a good deal of the skin with little damage. After that, she had pulled the large skin away from them and had begun working on cleaning off excess fat and meat from it. Labareda got to work on cooking the headless pig, but Unoma and Andrew where left to watch Serena as she busied herself with the flayed flesh. After a little bit, Serena had to ask for Unoma to help her, but in regards of her using magic to help her treat the hide. Andrew watched on for a while longer, watching as Serena would cut some sections out of the large fur for some personal use before after a few hours, she had successfully managed to make a large hide out of some of it, while having set aside about five other cut out pieces of it for something else.
Serena wiped the sweat from her brow as she got back up, smelling slightly of animal and blood from working with the hide for so long.
"Well… not my best work, but it'll do for now."
Labareda, who had gotten done roasting the boar, looked on at all the furs curiously.
"So whats all this for?"
Serena pointed to the larger fur on the ground first.
"I decided that we needed to stop sleeping on the cold hard stone, so I opted to take the boars hide and make something of a makeshift lying rug out of it. I had Unoma help me to cure it so that it wouldn't rot on us. Normally that takes several days, but I had her speed up the process with her magic. As for the other pieces… well… I'm not done with them yet. If your willing to give me another two or so hours, I'll be able to make something out of them."
Andrew thought about it for a moment. He personally didn't have any issue with sitting for a little while longer, but he wasn't sure how his familiars might feel about it.
"Labareda, Unoma, how do you feel about waiting a little bit longer?"
Unoma, who had pretty much taken to using her master as her own personal body pillow simply yawned in disinterest.
"I don't care either which way…"
Labareda put a little more effort into her thought process before she shook her head.
"I'm fine with waiting a little bit longer."
Andrew simply huffed in amusement at both of their replies and looked back at Serena.
"Well, there's your answer."
Serena smiled at him gratefully before she quickly got back to work on the next set of skins. This left Andrew and his two familiars to wait it out for her, simply watching her as she worked. It wasn't until halfway through that Andrew realized what it was she was doing, though it became easier to figure out when she pulled out a needle and several spools of string. In less time then she had said it would Serena laid out what looked to be a long coat and some kind of barbaric looking covering.
"There we go… Labareda, these things are yours."
Serena pointed to the two coverings on the ground in front of her.
"And the long coat is for Unoma. Now you both don't have to walk around naked anymore."
Andrew was a little surprised by the offer, his mind having come to the conclusion that she was making them for herself. However, Labareda and Unoma both seemed rather shocked at first. They quickly became pleased when they saw that the work, though somewhat rough and hurried, was still quite good for the base materials she had. Labareda quickly out her own pieces on, the covering for her chest and lower half giving her a more decent appearance while also still allowing her a decent range of movement. Unomas piece was still good, but it certainly wasn't something that looked to be worn in a warm climate. She wasn't complaining though and both of them looked to her.
"Hey hey… this is a pretty nice pair of clothing your giving away… keep this up and you'll have the favor of a demon in your pocket."
Unoma put her piece on and was content with the way it made her look like a thick woolly creature, though she was in no way complaining about it.
"Thank you darling. Though I didn't need it at all because I can use magic to control my body temperature, your offer is still greatly appreciated."
Andrew smiled to himself at seeing his two familiar's reactions before he turned and gave Serena a wide smile.
"Thank you kindly for that. That saves us having to look for something immediate, and when we do finally leave we don't have to worry about the stares we would get."
Serena let a small blush creep up on her face at his praise, but his smile seemed to make her heart palpitate a little more quickly then what she was used to.
"Eh… uh… you're welcome… though don't expect me to do that all the time…"
"Got it."
Looking away curiously, Serena couldn't help but put her hand to her forehead to check and see why she suddenly had a large increase in her facial temperature. However, it was quickly forgotten as the group quickly began to feast on the boar in celebration of another day traveled… somewhat. Using the large lying rug that Serena had gone through the trouble of making, everyone found it to be a very nice alternative to the cold stone floor they had been using previously. Thankfully it had a large amount of space, just enough for four people to lay on it and still have enough room to keep comfortable. However, seeing as Labareda and Unoma liked to cuddle up to there master, this left Serena with plenty of space to call her own if she opted to sleep with the four. However, she was the first to take watch while everyone else got rest. Letting out a low sigh as she put her back to the wall across from the rest of the group, she simply watched on in silence. However, the job of watch was a boring one, and Serena found herself drawing her attention to the group again, this time to the only male. For some weird reason, she felt a little… happy around him… but it was also met with a desire to challenge him to a fight despite her knowing that she had seen him in the fight with the orcs. She wasn't sure what her mind was thinking in regards to this, but she couldn't help but be drawn to this idea more then once throughout her shift.
"Maybe he could do with some training… is that why I keep thinking about that?"
Not sure about it, Serena simply watched on for the rest of her shift, the thought simply lingering in the back of her mind the whole time…
Hope you enjoyed! Leave a like or a review telling me what you thought! Until the next chapter! peace out!