== VORTEX QUEST 5-6 ==
== HGAAN'S GHOUL ARENA ==
The Nephilim did their part, preparing Winter Key fakes wrapped in priming-diagrams and stuffed into gourd bottles.
The demigods did their part, pleasuring themselves and each other, drinking cum milked from each other with the plug, abusing the plug till it was empty of souls, then pleasuring themselves again. They found time for a nap, too.
Maybe they were turning too sex crazy to function. Was that a concern? They were still on track for the mission *so far*.
Marcus was more satisfied than ever, with the right mix of action, banter, friendship and sex in his life. Xane felt similarly but also used thaum-magic as creative outlet during down time which was good for him. Goro, aside from indulging in his 'beast nature' fantasy, had grown superhumanly loyal to his friends and almost saw himself as their protector, if they needed such a role in the group.
And Chay himself? He couldn't turn his umbra-skills on his own mind so he had to use good old introspection.
He had practically everything he ever wanted in spades. Nobody gave him a pat on the shoulder for being a great leader but he could feel their trust and devotion. And he was literally saving the world from demons!
Not to mention that earth could never offer him a sex life like that.
He only worried that finishing their grand quest would leave them without a higher purpose, mindlessly indulging in fisting orgies and monstercock chasing while their humanity wasted away.
Not now, though. Right now he was having fun racing down plasma chutes, holding onto Marcus' abs from behind. With the lack of friction on chute walls and the extreme slope in some areas, they often approached the speed of free fall in the black tunnel where Xane's light orbs made the spiraling stone flicker like a stroboscope.
After a few more climbs and rides -- or chutes and ladders as their kung fu hero called it -- they reached another illusory dead end their aegises let them power through.
Being 'sequestered' was no death sentence. Lord Hgaan was reachable from various crawlway entrances, but all the easy ones were blocked by King Pwen'Gllach's magic to ensure containment. The lord was allowed his domain, but no more.
The pantheons made it through the false wall, into a series of caverns, lit by red shimmering orbs festering on the ceiling like egg sacks dripping onto small bubble-spewing shrubs. The men hopped over fields of blue-purple ferns, lush with glittering spore clouds.
Chay carried the gourd bottles on a banister across his buff chest.
Goro now carried his hair shoulder long again, tied up with strands of itself. His vision ring was now a choker around his neck, metal-shaped to fit by Xane, the purple gem matrix holding three souls of thralls who'd been killed in the fury attack.
They had left their clothing behind. The plug, too.
It was difficult for an abyssal city to look 'in ruins' since they were all ancient ziggurats and obelisks with a smattering of cracked skulls, but Hgaan's city was lifeless and overgrown with gnarly root webs.
At the center was a golden statue, dedicated to the realm's king, depicted as an abstract demon with dozens of arms, covered in eyes. Around the statue were the only inhabitants -- Trolls.
As the demigods approached, one of the seven-foot-something greenskins met them halfway, swaggering with inhuman width, waving his spear. A thick ring glistened on his bull nose, more on his ears. His tattooed neck was decorated with a string of thick black beads. The root of his dick was visible on the low hanging leather pouch.
Chay raised a hand. He leaked smoke as a cape to appear powerful and mysterious. Xane kindly added an ominous glow.
"We want to see your lord," the leader said in pandemonic, "to fight in his arena."
The massively muscled troglodyte raised his nearly neck-less head and let out an animal scream. An alert of sorts, but not a war cry. A gong far away answered him. Multiple Trolls rose from their activities.
"Zlennrop will get you there," the Troll answered. "We will watch."
While the Trolls prepared to march, a huge, winged creature descended in front of the pantheon. Their aegises glimmered.
Hellions were one of the rarest folk to become demonblooded. But the resulting Bonemaster was terrifying to behold. Pale white and covered in a lattice of bones, buff with a wide chest and lean muscles, eight foot tall. Skeletal wings, wider than a Daemon's.
The Bonemaster's centerpiece was his spine. It protruded from his back as spikes, had outgrown the body to give him a thick, long neck and a thin, swiping tail. His arms were long enough to reach the ground as he stood, long legs bent into a stable stance.
His dark eye sockets... He was mustering them. He was... incredibly intelligent.
"You are not abyssal," he stated, skull-head tilted to glance at their crotches.
"Correct, Bonemaster Zlennrop," Chay said and let the smoke flow cover his aegis. "But we would like to fight for your lord's amusement regardless. I'm sure you can surmise what we hope to gain."
He subtly jiggled the gourd bandolier but the Bonemaster had already figured that out.
"And you came in from... a dead end."
"Correct again," Chay said. "We'll leave the same way. *If* we survive, of course."
"Of course," Zlennrop said. "It's just been a while since we've had volunteers. You're..."
"Chay. These are Xane, Marcus, Goro."
"From Earth?"
Something was off. Not in the sense that they were in danger. Hgaan's lieutenant was going to lead them to the arena, but... he was filled with... hope. He wanted them to succeed. So they could... help him... to leave, too? Yes but... indirectly.
Chay decided to lay the bait.
"Yes, Earth. But we understand the rules of the abyss. Making deals and alliances is still possible. If there's something outside of the sequestration zone you need..." He left the rest hanging.
The Bonemaster gave a light nod. "Just a message to deliver. Postal routes from here are unreliable."
"Sure. We can do that. Supposing our survival."
After a second of silence, the lieutenant glanced at their crotches again. "A heavenly artefact and... an open signature. Lord Hgaan won't be too pleased with either."
"We can take care of that. Xane?"
"On it boss."
Zlennrop flew ahead while the pantheon marched along the road with the crowd of Trolls.
A butterfly landed on the leader's cock cage and melted into an illusory package, covering the glow, the cage and the signature line.
"Not really an infiltration this time," the thaum-mage said, "but does remind me of the good old times."
Xane had given him a flaccid dick at the border of the anatomically plausible. Chay's thick eight inch softie was slapping between his thighs with every step, fortunately without the discomfort of having a real dick free flying.
The next four minutes were spent strategizing while Xane refilled his motes.
The Ghoul Arena was a crumbled dome, maybe the size of a small town football stadium, but round. The demigods were ushered in by Troll guards, entering through a tunnel onto rough, gray sand. The smell of blood and mercury hung in the air. Braziers were lit along the field's rim, oozing the smell of heavy oil.
The only feature interrupting the ranks all around was a square platform big enough to park four cars on. Below it, leaning on the most crumbled part of the field's wall, was a runic stone ring, leaning at a 30 degree angle.
