Akil ran after the woman, leaving me, Agnes, and Felandria to find the rest of them.

Which is fine, I guess. We definitely didn't need a scout or whatever.

We quickly bound the hands and feet of the monsters on the ground. I also tied the leader's tail down to a wooden post, just as an extra precaution.

I stood up, stretching, and then looked around the area.

"We need to find the other captives." I told Agnes and Felandria.

Agnes nodded, Felandria tilted her head at me. "I don't see any reason to. They're probably all happy where they are."

The two of us stared at her.

"...I guess we could take a look..." Felandria murmured.

It wasn't too hard to find some trace of where they could've gone. We just had to follow the trail of footsteps in the sand, or the claw marks on the ground. It appears there was some kind of scuffle in the streets between the Gnolls and the guardsmen, so hopefully there will be a few humans safe somewhere. Maybe a few even escaped...

Most of the buildings were intact, although abandoned. Which, while I don't know what code of honor a Paladin typically has... I must admit I feel an urge to loot a few places...

Well, I mean, what good are these items to people anymore? They've probably either fled or something, so if it was left here... it couldn't be THAT important, right?

I relented to my "gamer instincts," and entered a large building, now hunting for loot.

Agnes followed me, Felandria flying just over our heads.

It was rather dark in there, Agnes casted her Light spell, and I got a better look around.

This seemed to be a library of sorts... books were cast aside or torn apart on the floor, shelves were knocked over, vases were smashed, seems Gnolls don't have an appreciation for the finer arts.

However, I found several books intact.

One was a cookbook, which sat open on a table. The edges of the pages looked a little torn, like claws had gripped the sides of it.

Two more books were left lying on the ground. One was a children's reading book, meant to educate children on reading and writing, as well as to help develop language skills, and the other was a book on how to keep a home tidy and comfortable.

The last untarnished book was sitting on a shelf. I picked it up. The book was bound tightly together with a leather covering. It had some strange sigil on the front of it, but when I opened it, the pages were blank.

Agnes looked over my shoulder. "What is it?"

"I don't know..."

She reached out her hand, and I gave her the book. She flipped through it.

"It's blank." She handed the book back to me.

"I know. Weird, right?"

Felandria flew overhead. "What's in it?"

"Nothing." I said, "the pages are blank."

"Huh." She flew down, her head just above my shoulder. She peered down at it. "Why would anyone have a blank book in a library?"

"I don't know... maybe it's enchanted or something..." I said.

I pocketed the book. Maybe I could find a mage or someone who can find enchantments or something.

"Hey... do you guys hear that?" Felandria asked.

"Huh?" Agnes and I turned to her.

Felandria's ears twitched.

Agnes and I exchanged a glance and closed our eyes, listening intently.

"I don't hear anything." Agnes said finally.

"You don't hear it?" Felandria's ears twitched again, "I hear people speaking... just a few houses down that way." Her wing gestured away from us.

Well, that's handy.

We bolted outside, following Felandria as she led us to a small house near the center of the town. The door lied on the ground, ripped off its hinges, and there was a large hole in the roof, but other than that, it was intact.

We crept into the building, not knowing what to expect.

A voice was now audible to me and Agnes, but the words were hard to make out. As we got closer, the voice stopped altogether.

We heard a low growling sound, and a Gnoll jumped out from behind a corner, snarling at us. I unsheathed my greatsword, and Agnes clutched her holy symbol.

"What's going on Delilah?" a man stepped out from the corner. His hair was messy, and he appeared to be in the process of fastening on his pants. Thankfully he was almost done, cause I didn't really want to see a naked man today. He looked at us, his eyes widening. "Wait! Wait!" He raced in between us, "don't attack her!" He raised his arms up, standing in front of the Gnoll.

I looked at Agnes, who was staring at the Gnoll. She looked back at the guy, and warily lowered her symbol. Felandria sighed with relief.

I lowered my sword.

The Gnoll snarled at us, but the man put a hand on her shoulder. She looked over, and her demeanor softened somewhat.

"Please, don't hurt her." The man looked us over, and his eyes locked onto Felandria.

Agnes and I stared at the Gnoll, who let out a low growl, her eyes glowering at us.

"I see you understand a bit about monsters as well..." the man began, "surely you understand why I can't let you hurt Delilah."

I looked him in the eyes, and I saw them filled with determination, and love. I nodded, and the man's face softened. "Are you alone?" I began, putting my sword away.

"No. Most of the townsfolk fled when we saw the horde approaching, but the guards are still here. The men, well, they're in a situation like me, but the women are... well, Delilah here explains it, for the most part."

I looked over at the Gnoll, who was eyeing us warily. Her eyes were filled with primal savagery, but unlike most of the Gnolls I've encountered, there was a little more hidden underneath.

"They're turning women into-"

"It- It's bad, I know..." the man stammered, "but there's nothing we can do to revert them. I know it might seem strange, but I won't let you kill them."

The Gnoll- Delilah turned to the man and licked his face, a low whimper coming up from her throat.

"My name's Ezekiel," the man held his hand out. "In a better situation, I'd be pleased to make your acquaintance, but... this situation's not ideal."

"Where's the rest of the guards?"

"Well... follow me."

Ezekiel led us out of the house and down a large street, taking us to what appeared to be a large manor.

"Things are a little quieter now..." Ezekiel looked back at us meaningfully.

We didn't say anything. Sure, a lot of them were still alive, but not all of them...

A wave of guilt passed over me.

He opened the doors, leading us inside.

The main hall was ruined. Claw marks on the walls, stains I'd rather not think about on the carpet, torn tapestries, scattered and smashed jewelry, this place was completely wrecked.

As we went deeper and deeper into the building, I saw more and more destruction. Furniture shredded and thrown everywhere, broken glass on the floor, small bones scattered on the ground, just everything was a mess.

We arrived at a staircase descending downwards, and Ezekiel turned back towards us.

"Be on guard. Most of the Gnolls down here have already claimed a man, but they might get a bit defensive, like Delilah." He looked over at her, and she snarled at us.

"Hey, enough." Ezekiel said sternly. Delilah grit her teeth and growled.

"Don't you growl at me." He looked her in the eyes, and the two of them stood there for a minute. Then another minute. Then another.

We sat there, watching these two have the most intense staring contest I've ever seen. This was no ordinary staring competition. I felt the electricity. This was a battle for dominance.

At this point, me, Agnes, and Felandria pushed past them and went down the stairs. Ezekiel and Delilah followed behind us, still not breaking eye contact.

One of them has to give right? Or at least trip.

We walked through the cellar. It was dark and damp in here. Agnes casted her Light spell, so it wasn't too bad. However, it was still somewhat dark, and it wasn't long until we began hearing... interesting noises. My ears grew hot.

Agnes at this point was practically glowing red.

I turned to her, but before I could say anything, she said "I-I'll be f-fine. We've gotta save everyone we can, right?"

We crept past a doorway, and I took a peak inside.

A naked man was sleeping on a large pile of furs, surrounded by six naked Gnolls. Some were sleeping, others seemed to be picking their teeth with fragments of bone that had been strewn about, and others were digging into what appeared to be the flank of a large cow. It was a gory sight, and I averted my eyes.

They had no table manners either. Aside from the sounds of sex further in, the sound of flesh ripping from bone and the smacking of their lips as they devoured the carcass was the loudest thing in the room.

We continued onward, the Gnolls taking no interest in us. Several more rooms passed us on our path. A lot of them held giant orgies between a man and multiple Gnolls. Just how many did this pack have?

We then arrived in a large, damp room. Ezekiel and Delilah stepped past us, still glaring at each other.

"This is it." Ezekiel said, not breaking eye contact with the Gnoll, "the captives are in here. Now, if you'll excuse me..."

He leaned forward, right into Delilah's face.

Delilah softly growled at him, but he continued forward until...

He smashed his lips into hers.

Delilah's eyes narrowed, and she pushed into him, knocking him down.

At this point, the noises they were making were pretty graphic. They REALLY went at it, like they were trying to eat each other's mouths off.

They began rolling around on the floor, and Delilah clawed at Ezekiel's pants. At this point, Agnes was about to blow a fuse.

"H-Hey, could you guys do that literally anywhere else?" I asked, trying not to look at them.

Delilah looked up from her kiss and snarled.

The second her eyes were off Ezekiel's, he pushed her to the ground, pinning her.

He looked up at us. "Sorry, we'll get a room." He smiled apologetically and picked Delilah up, and the Gnoll began thrashing about, growling and snarling.

"Delilah, come on, we're going." He said, and she glared at him.

He carried her off, leaving us to some form of peace.

"Alright. So where are the captives?" I pondered, wandering around.

Thankfully, it didn't take long to find them.

Several naked women were kept strapped to poles, their bodies quivering.

"Holy shit." I muttered, and Agnes cried out in shock.

They looked up at us, and I saw a feral glint in their eyes. Their mouths were frothing, like Agnes's was when the venom took hold. They began struggling, trying to break free from their bindings.

Alright. They don't look like Gnolls yet... so maybe their transformation isn't complete. Maybe I can do something...

Lay On Hands.

But that would require touching a naked woman. Now, I'm not opposed to the idea. In fact, I'd love to, but I'm in the presence of two other women, one of which is a holy woman. Not to mention, I'd rather not grope women who are clearly not in their proper mind...

Agnes rushed forward, and the women snarled. One of the ropes binding them snapped as they strained against it.

Agnes grabbed her arm, and began muttering an incantation.

The struggling women seemed to calm down, the fury draining from her eyes.

"Are you alright?" Agnes asked her.

"I... I'm... fine..." the woman seemed exhausted. That venom pumping through her system must've kept her up, "save... the others..."

And then she passed out.

Great.

"Lesser Restoration works on them." Agnes said, turning to me. "So whatever magic you used on me should as well. Hopefully..."

Okay... with her permission, I approached one of the other women. There were four in total, so three left.

I approached the one closest to the cured one. Same thing. She snarled and growled, and I reached out.

I was intending to touch her shoulders or arms, but she pushed her chest out towards my hands, and I grabbed onto something different.

Soft...

Squish. Squish.

It took me a second to realize.

My eyes widened, and I was sent flying to the side by an energy bolt.

"Wh-what are you doing!" Agnes said, "d-don't touch her there!"

"It's not my fault-" I began, but she wasn't listening to me.

She casted Lesser Restoration on the second one. Again, she calmed down, and fell unconscious. This one didn't even try speaking to us. Thank god... I really didn't want to have that conversation.

I shakily stood up, but as I approached the third one, Agnes shot me a look.

I also felt a burning gaze on my back as well, and I turned around to see Felandria sitting in the shadows, glaring at me.

Agnes's light spell keeps her from going too crazy, but I could sense that other side of her slowly creeping out while she sat there.

The third one looked a bit... different than the other two. The savagery in her eyes was more fierce, more defined, and I noticed her teeth had started to look sharper, and more fang-like.

She growled and snapped her jaws at me, but I managed to grab ahold of her head and try to cast Lay on Hands on her.

At first, nothing changed, so I put a little more juice into it, focused a little harder...

Gradually I saw the savagery fade from her eyes, but her teeth remained the same. She too, fell unconscious almost immediately.

The final one looked to be in the most serious condition. Her bloodshot eyes were filled with an insane ferocity as she struggled against her bindings. Her teeth had already sharpened into fangs, and they were beginning to take on the black coloring of a Gnoll's incisors. Her ears seemed to be growing tufts of fur, and her hair was changing color from a dark black to a brownish color.

She snarled at me as I reached out and touched her head.

I put everything I had into this Lay on Hands.

Nothing. Not a single change.

"Shit. Why isn't it working?" I muttered.

Agnes stood beside me. "It isn't working?" She asked, a concerned look on her face.

"Yeah... Lay on Hands isn't doing anything."

"Hm." She reached out, and began reciting an incantation.

Her holy symbol glowed gently.

Still no change.

"Oh no..." Agnes murmured.

"What is it?"

"She may be too far gone..." Agnes looked over at me.

I looked back at the woman. "Are you sure there's nothing we can do for her?"

Agnes looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry... but there isn't much more I can do at the moment... I don't have the current capabilities to cast anything stronger..."

"It's alright." I tried to comfort her, but she just smiled weakly at me. "So... what should we do with this girl?" I turned back to her, "surely we could do something!"

"There isn't much you can do." Felandria called from the shadows, "just let her turn. I promise you it isn't all that bad." Her voice had strengthened a bit in the darkness.

Agnes clutched her holy symbol and reached out to the woman again. She recited another incantation, and I watched the woman fall asleep.

"There. At least we can give her some rest." Agnes said softly.

We looked at the other three women. I cut their bindings.

"So... how do we get them out of here?"

"Hm... indeed..." a voice said from behind me.

I whipped around, startled, and slammed my fist into whatever was behind me.

Akil went flying backwards, skidding across the floor as he slammed into the wall.

"Ouch..." he groaned, and slowly stood up, "that's quite the punch you've got there..." He laughed sheepishly. "I suppose my Roguish talents aren't the best for approaching people non-stealthily." He dusted his trousers off. "Anywho, I'd like you all to meet Layla." He stepped aside to reveal a blushing woman wearing simple, tattered clothing.

I recognized her as the woman we saved from the Gnolls.

"Th-thank you for saving me... I didn't want to become one of those-" she looked over at Felandria and let out a scream.

Felandria looked genuinely hurt.

We explained everything to her, but she still eyed Felandria with fear and suspicion. But at least she stopped screaming.

Felandria was now hovering beside me again, looking at the ground.

I reached back and gave her a supportive pat on the head. Her ears twitched a bit, and she smiled a little.

"So... we've got quite a scenario here, hm?" Akil stepped towards the unconscious women, "we gotta get them out of here, and-" his voice trailed off, and he walked towards the back of the room.

"What is it?" I asked.

I followed him, and my eyes widened.

"Holy shit."

Part of the floor had given way to sand. At the center of this hole, a purple glow had begun to emanate, with veins of deep indigo slowly creeping outwards from the center. The sand was turning a pale purple color. The whole area was tainted, I could sense that already.

"Looks like we've got an even bigger problem on our hands..." Akil muttered.