Jamminrabbit

  We traveled without rest or break. Seeing Chief Donna run was quite the sight. She wasn't kidding about being able to keep pace. Neither rough terrain nor monsters in the wilds could slow her down, and we were up in the air without any sort of impediments. Sometimes, Donna stopped to beat the crap out of attacking creatures. Before we even had the chance to think about helping, she was already running again.

  The one time they stopped was to get a drink of water from the river. Even beastkin got thirsty, it seemed. Donna had spshed water on herself. All that moisture clinging to her chiseled body got me a little hot and bothered…

  It wasn't often I came across fit women. Selene might have been the closest muscle-head, but even she was surprisingly slim. Japanese in general didn't care too much about cultivating muscur physiques. They would rather fit in with everyone else. Koga had gotten incredibly buff, but he was an extraordinary case. He also wasn't a woman.

  Chief Donna had visible definition on her body. Those muscles weren't left to the imagination either, since she wore so little clothing. Never mind the biceps. Her six-pack abs could grind stone. Her thighs could crush stone.

  Why did muscur women have to be so hot?!

  "And it was then that Saeko thought, 'Oh, how I want to have my head crushed between those thighs!' Did I get it right?" Hana asked.

  "If you narrate my thoughts aloud again, I'm going to fling you away like Mio does," I threatened.

  "Heh… Hehe… I sort of understand where Saeko is coming from. I also want to know how it would feel to have my head crushed between her thighs," Lay said as drool slipped down her chin.

  "Chief Donna is rather well-built. However, there are many chiefs that boast her strength," Shayle added.

  "I don't need you all to chime in with your thoughts!"

  To escape them, or maybe as an excuse to get closer to Donna, I descended close to the surface until we were right next to each other. The beastkin chief nodded to me, and I nodded to her back. There was a degree of mutual understanding between us after she agreed to help. It was a lot different than when she had a cw to my neck.

  "Say… uh… What's the Shrine of Elements like?" I asked.

  "Not like a succubus to take interest in our culture." Donna chuckled. "Not that I mind. It's a very serene pce. Shamans and mystics often make pilgrimages there to seek guidance. Even those without any affinity to magic visit. The shrine is made up of rge, stone tablets embedded into the ground. An ancient nguage is inscribed into them, too old for any of us to read. What we do know though, is the etching of an element into each stone: fire, water, wind, lightning, and earth. The pce is brimming with magic, enough for your dark elf to do her ritual. But I better make myself clear when I say, don't screw around! It's an important pce to us!"

  "I get it! We promise there won't be any funny business."

  It wasn't long before we neared the Shrine of Elements. The terrain evened out. Large bluffs loomed over us. We had to travel the rest of the way on foot, entering a fissure which bisected the cliff side. The orange-red rocky walls were oddly smooth. Visible striations ran horizontally along the faces like veins of the earth.

  There were many knee-high stacks of stones that must have been done by humanoid hands rather than natural formation. When Donna saw me staring, she pointed at it.

  "Cairns. Some people want to leave something behind when they visit. I built a cairn the st time I came, too. Look." Donna directed my attention to a stack made up of five mostly ft and disc-shaped stones.

  "Does it serve a purpose?" I asked.

  "Not sure. We've been doing it for so long, even the elders have forgotten. For me, I feel more connected to the Shrine of Elements. Come on. It's not much further now," she said.

  As Donna walked ahead, I heard giggling from behind me. I turned around to find Hana carving into the wall with a rock. She drew a dick.

  "Hana!" I smacked her over the head.

  "Sorry! I can't help but mark my territory!" Hana cried defensively.

  We caught up with Chief Donna, who was stopped at the mouth of a rge hole. The natural geological space was mostly circur. An opening on the stone ceiling let moonlight flood in. A slow stream of water flowed past our feet, pooling in the abyss before us.

  "Here we are. The Shrine of Elements," Donna said as she entered.

  It didn't make sense to me until I followed the beastkin's gaze into the hole. It had a bottom, where four stone obelisks of different make from the cavern were embedded into the ground. Donna jumped in, and I followed suit right after.

  The waters were up to our shins down here. My companions nded behind me and took an awe-struck gander at the four shrines surrounding us. Each obelisk was etched with the symbol of a different element. I certainly felt magic brimming from them. Judging by the looks on Lay, Hana, and Shayle, they also felt it.

  "Will this do, elf?" Donna

  "It certainly will. I'll begin the ritual now. It will take some time, and I absolutely cannot be disturbed. Is that understood, Hana?" Shayle gred at the succubus.

  "Why are you singling me out? What about Lay!" Hana redirected the attention.

  "M-Me?" Lay was taken aback by the accusation.

  We watched as Shayle produced a spell scroll from her bag. After a few minutes of chanting with her eyes shut, the parchment reacted with a profound kind of magic. The water rippled even though no one was moving. It seems to draw in the energy from the Shrine of Elements, but not in the way that took from it. More like sharing.

  I walked over to one of the obelisks etched with what was very obviously a symbol of fire. Just like Donna had described, it had a nguage written on the surface. The beastkin herself sidled right up to me, staring at the same shrine.

  "Bet your succubus kind doesn't have a culture as deep as this," Donna teased, intending for that to be a slight.

  "Maybe. But I'm not originally a succubus. I was actually a human once, and I came from a different world called Earth," I replied absentmindedly.

  "Earth?" She cocked her head like a confused puppy.

  Something suddenly screeched in the distance that made the hair on the back of our necks stand. It came from the entrance.

  "Hunter carrions!" Donna snarled.

  "Are those bad?" I asked nervously.

  "Large, flightless vulture-like monsters. They stop at nothing when hungry, and it sounds like they want to make a meal out of us," she expined.

  Ugly birds the size of cows stumbled into the shrine chamber. They threw themselves over the edge, nding with a hard thud and picking themselves up. Bulbous eyes stared at us with ravenous intent. One of them let out a screech, and the others joined. Razor-sharp teeth lined its inner beak.

  "Don't let them near Shayle!" I excimed.

  "Lay, throw yourself to the mercy of the hunter carrions!" Hana instructed right away.

  "With pleasure!" Lay dove head-first into the swarm.

  They started pecking the crap out of her. Their beaks stabbed into her like swords. At first, she cried in pain, then the voices coming out of her mouth quickly turned into pleasure.

  "She's a greater succubus… Couldn't you have told her to just… fight them?" I gred at Hana.

  "It's more fun this way! She's having fun!" Hana ughed.

  "Ow! It hurts a lot! They stab so hard… so good!" Lay screamed in pleasure.

  Hana shot me a 'I told you so' look.

  "Good work, Lay! Now stay there and keep their attention while we finish them off!" I excimed.

  Both Hana and I focused a fireball into our hands, but an absurd amount of channeled through us. Instead of a ball, it turned into a sun the likes of Hana's spirit bomb.

  "Watch it! The Shrine of Elements is overflowing with mana, remember!" Chief Donna shielded her eyes from the two roiling stars in our hands.

  "I'm sure Lay can survive this!" Hana was about to fling her inferno until I clocked her over the head.

  "This pce is sacred to the beastkin. We'll fight them the old fashion way," I said.

  The three of us charged in with our fists clenched. I might not have the Bde of the First Temptress anymore, but I still packed a punch. One hunter carrion stopped pecking Lay and turned to me— right before I slugged it across the beak. The monster toppled over. More continued to pour over the edge. A pair of carrions tried to skewer me on the way down, but I dashed back only to swoop back in to grab their heads and bashed them together.

  Hana had pulled out a giant wooden mallet out of nowhere to py whack-a-mole. She easily crushed their heads. Lay sat upright and got hit in the crossfire.

  "Uuu… I see stars…" Lay fell limp on the ground.

  "Oh. Oopsies!" Hana stuck her tongue out.

  A carrion suddenly flew past me. I thought it was going for Shayle until the monster rolled to a cold stop. Chief Donna had killed it. In fact, she was cleaning up. Her cws shredded into them like a knife through butter. Raw beastkin strength easily tore through the monsters. I stood there in awe.

  And there was someone stronger than her called the Pridemother? Just what were these beastkins made out of?

  All of the carrions had been dealt with. Our only casualty was Lay, and it was Hana who knocked her unconscious. Chief Donna met my stare and offered an acknowledging nod of approval at the dead or dying monsters around my feet.

  The ground rumbled. Another burst of magic erupted outwards from Shayle. I wasn't ready for it, and the force knocked me back. Chief Donna caught me. Her arms held onto me tighter than I expected, like she was trying to protect me. When the rumbling stopped, we separated awkwardly from each other.

  "Found it! The chronomancer's hidden themself with invisibility magic. Thanks to the ritual, I know where they are now!" Shayle excimed, cutting the awkwardness short.

  "That's great and all… but why couldn't we have done that from the start?" I asked.

  "Did you happen to know a pce brimming with magic beforehand? Because I certainly didn't. That spell scroll also costs a small fortune. You're lucky Queen Elendir ordered me to pull out all the stops to help you," she sassed back.

  "Oh…"

  I need to find a way to really thank Queen Elendir when we get back to Earth. Since Hana was the one who knocked Lay out, she had the responsibility of carrying her unconscious body. We got what we were after for within the Shrine of Elements. There might have been a little mishap, but Chief Donna was going around smashing the heads of each hunter carrion. She really wanted to make sure they were dead, it seemed.

  As soon as we left the cave, Donna began to sniff the air frantically. Some scent lured her over to a matted patch of grass that looked to have been stepped on by a lot of people. Or big things.

  "It can't be…" Donna muttered to herself.

  "Is something wrong?" I joined her side but couldn't discern what she noticed.

  "Chief Balta. I know his scent anywhere. He rules a rival tribe in these parts that vie against mine for territory. They have attacked my people on several occasions. He's also not one to care for our culture, as evidenced by his brazen attack on the Shrine of Elements. These tracks… if I'm not mistaken, they are headed in the direction of my tribe. You have what you need. I have to hurry back to help them!" she excimed and took off running.

  I was about to follow after Donna until Shayle grabbed my shoulder.

  "We have the location of the chronomancer. We should just leave. The beastkin's concern is no concern of ours," Shayle said.

  "If it wasn't for them, we'd still be searching like headless chickens. They led us to one of their most sacred pces, Shayle. We're going to help them. I'm also giving you a chance to do so by your own choice, and without me needing to charm you." I folded my arms.

  "Tch. Fine, Queen Saeko. I am yours to command." She sighed.

  We had to get into high gear to catch up to Chief Donna, who was cutting across the fields at breakneck speeds. I managed to intercept her, and she grinded to a stop before running into me.

  "Out of my way!" Donna growled. "My people are in danger. If I'm fast enough, I might be able to reach Balta's raiding party first."

  "We have a faster way to get there. You can warn your tribe and prepare them," I expined.

  Shayle caught up to us and showed Chief Donna the mirror artifact. She channeled a little bit of magic into it, creating a portal for us to step through. The beastkin hesitated though.

  "You're helping me?" Donna raised a brow.

  "You helped us. It's only right to return the favor, right?" I asked.

  "Huh. Any other succubus, and they would have fucked right off. I'll take your help then, but don't think it's because I need your help or anything," she said with a finger to my chest.

  Damn it. For some reason, Donna being a tsundere felt like a bonus. We all hopped through the portal and came out the other end back in the beastkin tribe. Many of the fires had gone out. Her people were beginning to turn in.

  We made it back before Chief Balta's raiding party got here. Right away, Donna started rousing everyone awake and readying them for battle. The able-bodied warriors donned their masks, grabbed spears and bows, and formed a line outside the tribe.

  Something kicked up dust from afar, and whoever they were, there were many. Soon, a hundred flickering lights from torches came into view. Riders were mounted on hulking wolves, raptor-like beasts, and the same hunter carrions we fought earlier.

  At the head of the pack, a broad-chested beastkin with the features of a lion rode on a rge gray wolf. His lips were peeled back, revealing a big grin. But that smile flipped into a scowl when he saw Donna. That must be Chief Balta.

  "Tch. Weren't you just at the Shrine of Elements? Doesn't matter. Run them down!" Chief Balta roared with primal ferocity.

  "Want me to throw Lay at 'em?" Hana asked.

  "Can you stop trying to kill Lay? I know she likes the abuse, but we want her alive! I'll take care of this." I nded in front of Donna's warriors, surprising her and the approaching raiding party.

  "What are you doing? You're going to get trampled!" Donna warned.

  I already made friends with one beastkin tribe. It would probably be okay to show some hostility to the next one. The second Chief Balta locked eyes with me and gasped. My greater succubus aura extended to its limit, and I exacted a wide-range charm that reached him and his people.

  They came to a stop within a stone's throw away from us, and both sides were baffled by the sudden halt. Chief Balta blinked a few times, unable to move or command his beast to continue the charge.

  "What… is going… on?" the beastkin asked stiffly.

  "I don't appreciate attacks on my allies, especially not against ones who went out of their way to help me. Sorry, but you just happened to attack on a day where a couple of succubi were around," I said.

  "Well, well. Looks like making nice with a succubus queen has its perks. So, you wanted to raid my tribe while I was out?" Chief Donna put her spear down and cracked her knuckles instead."

  "Y-You bitch… Chieftain Kiara won't look kindly on you siding with succubi—"

  "Huh?" She grabbed him by the throat and yanked him down from the wolf. "Who says I'm with them? We have a little arrangement is all. As for you, maybe it's about time I beat it into you that I'm done with your shit!"

  Chief Donna proceeded to beat the ever-living shit out of Chief Balta. She whistled for her tribe to do the same, setting aside weapons for their fists and cws instead. I stayed out of their quarrel, figuring I had intervened enough. By the time they were done, a hundred beastkins y unconscious with all manner of bruises, broken limbs and noses, bck eyes, and numerous other injuries enough that none of them would be getting up any time soon.

  "If there's one thing I got to hand to beastkins, it's how utterly down right brutal they beat each other down." Shayle grinned, having thoroughly enjoyed the show.

  "I'm gd to be a succubus, otherwise I could have been on the business end of those fists…" I shuddered.

  Chief Balta was thrown over our heads and nded with a thud inside her tribe. Warriors quickly jumped in to restrain him.

  "Out here, we all rule by strength. It's the Pridemother's way. Thanks to you, I've absorbed Balta's tribe. That makes my tribe sizable enough to fend off others who might want to scrap with us. As for Balta, I'll be teaching him a lesson in the beastkin hierarchy." Chief Donna stuck out a hand, and I grabbed it to shake.

  "See? Even succubi and beastkin can work together. But… I guess this is where we say goodbye? Shayle already has the location of the chronomancer, so we can use the mirror artifact to transport us close to them," I expined.

  "Well…" The beastkin woman seemed reluctant to let me go just yet.

  "Why don't you all stay?" Elder Shuwa pushed through the crowds and suggested. "Tonight, the tribe has nearly doubled in strength! That is worthy of a feast and celebrations!"

  "Feast and celebrations!" Hana cheered.

  Some of the defeated beastkins belonging to Balta's tribe rose to their feet and cheered. There didn't appear to be any bad blood. In fact, Donna's tribe threw their arms around those that they were just fighting with, like they had been friends all along or something.

  "Eh? Weren't you guys just trying to kill each other?" I gasped.

  "This is as the Pridemother expects. She had conquered and defeated all the beastkin tribes of Elza in order to unite them to face the Demon King's might. We may all be under her same banner, but she has all chiefs do the same to prove their own strength," Shuwa expined.

  As the celebrations picked up, and beastkins of both tribes joined hands in the festivities, the mood went from tense to joyful at the snap of a finger. People brought food and drinks out, lit the bonfires, and pyed music with primitive instruments. A slightly bashful Chief Donna sidled up to me with two cups made from the hollowed out horns of what was once a rge monster. The biting smell told me it contained alcohol.

  "Would you… care to drink with me?" Donna asked, handing me one of the cups.

  The fg had risen. Now was my chance!

  Jamminrabbit