Page 69 of Nexus
We stared up in astonishment as the overlord’s legs kicked for a few seconds before going still. The magic I sensed leaking from the metal corpse was stronger this time. The guardian tossed the body and head aside and they landed with loud clangs. He glowered down at us when he realized I’d lied and that his foe didn’t have the fragment at all.
Aurora did the only thing that could save us and raced over to peck him on the toe again. This time, I didn’t have the strength to roll aside when the giant climaxed a few seconds later. Ruen leapt clear, but I became coated from head to toe in semen once again. I’d barely had time to put my hands over my face so I didn’t drown in it.
Ruen went into helpless peals of laughter at the sight of me dripping in jizz again. Badly wounded and bleeding heavily from being gnawed on, I weakly struggled to my feet. The vampire was leaning against the wall, unable to stand up properly as bloody tears rolled down his face.
Picking him up, I squashed his face between my boobs, rubbing the giant’s goo all over him until he was coated in it. “Now you know what it feels like,” I said vindictively and dropped him to the ground. He gaped up at me, then we were both laughing hysterically.
Chapter Fifty-One
AURORA WAS TOO WORN out from using her magic on so many beings to protest about getting sticky when I picked her up. Ruen grabbed our gear, then we scurried to the exit as quickly as we could.
“What’s going to happen now that the overlord is dead?” I asked, speaking in a whisper just in case some guards were stationed nearby. I couldn’t feel any, but I was rattled and in pain and found it hard to concentrate. The vampire had eradicated every soldier that had been in the cave.
“I have no idea,” Ruen replied. “I suppose someone else will have to step up and lead this realm.” We reached the exit and he paused to examine me. I was hunched over, with my wounded boob and gut throbbing in agony. “How badly are you injured?”
“The overlord didn’t chew his way through to my organs, but it freaking hurts. The bleeding seems to have stopped, though. I think the gunk is actually helping to seal the wounds.”
“Ogres are tough and I guess they heal quickly,” he figured. “The semen will cover our scents, which might confuse the trackers long enough for us to escape.”
“We should use a different way to get back to the gate,” I suggested. Aurora shook her head, then gestured towards the direction we’d come from. “We have to go through the crevice and the city?” I surmised. She nodded, talons grasping for purchase on my slippery shoulder.
“Come on,” Ruen said, still keyed up from the battle. “Let’s get as far away from here as we can before dawn arrives.”
Skirting around the compound, we headed to the cleft between the cliffs. It was easier for me to slide through the crevice this time, thanks to the sticky coating. I did my best not to scrape the areas where I’d been bitten, but it wasn’t easy.
It wouldn’t be long before someone would be sent to investigate the cave when the overlord didn’t return to the city. My wounds felt slightly better, but I was in no shape to continue walking once the sun began to rise. Ruen found a shallow cave a short distance from the road. He entered first and I had to crawl in after him. He died once the sun came up and I lay down beside him to shield him from the rays.
Aurora stationed herself in front of me to keep watch. The last thing I felt before sleep dragged me under was her brushing her wing over my cheek soothingly.
Hunger woke me up late in the afternoon. Aurora’s head was tucked beneath her wing and she was fast asleep. My bulk protected Ruen from the sun, but he would be exposed once I left the cave. I stuffed him into the sack, checking to make sure the scroll was still there. It was and it was still glowing with faint light. Magic had kept it intact for thousands of years, protecting it from dirt, damp and anything else that would have destroyed normal paper.
The giant’s emissions had dried and hardened. It was tempting to scrape it off, but Ruen’s suggestion that it might hide our trail stayed with me. Leaving it in place, I cautiously stretched when I emerged from the cave. My wounds were healing, but they still hurt like a bitch.
I couldn’t sense any guards nearby, so I went hunting for food. I threw rocks at a flock of hideous birds with leathery wings and mangy fur to knock them from a tree. I’d grown used to eating animals raw, so I tossed them into my maw whole. It might freak Aurora out if she saw me eating her distant kin, so I didn’t carry any of them back to the cave with me.
Even after eating a dozen birds and a couple of piglike beasts, I was still ravenous. Healing took a lot out of me, it seemed. I couldn’t find anything else to eat, so I trudged back to the cave shortly before nightfall.
Aurora was awake and was pacing anxiously when I arrived. She gave a glad cry and raced over to meet me. “I’m okay,” I said, tiredly scooping her up. “Did anything happen while I was gone?” She shook her head and snuggled against my chest, ignoring the caked-on goop that covered me.
The sack rustled, then Ruen cautiously stuck his head out. He snickered when he saw the dubious coat of armor I’d acquired. “I wish I had a camera to record this sight,” he said.
“You’re coated in it, too,” I reminded him.
His upper lip lifted to show his fangs. “I forgot,” he said ruefully. “How are you feeling?”
His concern was surprising, since I didn’t think he actually cared about me. Then again, he needed me to get him back to the gate safe and sound. “I feel a bit better,” I replied. “I did some hunting while you were sleeping, but I need more food.”
“Maybe you can steal some from the food stalls when we pass through the city,” he joked.
“Good idea,” I agreed, taking his suggestion seriously. “I don’t have the energy to run, so let’s get moving.”
“I need to feed,” he said, sidling around me to exit the shallow cave. “I’ll catch up to you.”
Sighing in resignation, I grabbed our gear while he went in search of a meal. Aurora didn’t argue about being stuffed in my sack. She probably felt safer being out of sight. I started trudging along the road and sensed Ruen coming a few minutes later. He’d found something to eat and was content once more. He also gave me a few bird carcasses to snack on.
It took us a few hours to reach the outskirts of the city. My sidekick walked beside me, easily keeping up with my slow pace. “Get in the sack,” I ordered, coming to a stop when we were close to the city.
Ruen grumbled beneath his breath, but he knew better than to argue with an irritated ogre. Now that we’d accomplished our task, I just wanted to go home. I planned to take a shower, eat a huge meal, sleep for a week, then spend the following week gaming. I deserved a break after my efforts and I was going to take it.