== VORTEX QUEST 2-5 ==
== THE WAY FORWARD ==
The pantheon took a fang from each of Mightfate's mouths as proof, then fell upon the Wyrm's hoard. Nectar was scarce. They took turns preventing each other from rushing the gulps, interspersing the consumption with drinks of water.
Stomachs sloshing, the men collected a jar of one dozen nectar buds, a sack of obols, the shadowblade safely wrapped in black leather, and a silk bag of gold bars.
Goro got settled with the gold and money. He'd need to find a way of covering up since he had given his clothing to Marcus. Chay's fundoshi had gotten sliced during the Wyrm bite and was irrecoverable, leaving three of them nude.
Goro was starting to love nudity.
He hadn't had as much of an exhibitionist streak as Xane had always shown but having his nudes spread against his will had ultimately awoken something in him. He couldn't risk the aegis giving him away, though.
They left through the main entrance, passing by Hellion corpses and torn meat bits. The death of Mightfate would become known across Phivvinum soon enough.
The track back promised to be another long one but Chay directed them off the crawlway to a platform. He took his Cinereant form – a vague man-shape of thick smoke.
Xane was still `covered' by his illusory schlong of silly proportions. Goro didn't judge him, tough. If he'd been able to give himself a massive dong, he'd have done it, too – just maybe not in front of the bros.
Goro covered his dick cage with their treasure bags as Chay approached a parked barge.
The flying ship, docked at the platform, was an assembly of black iron arches and thick chains bending over a platform, creating the impression of an upside down ship hull, about 60 foot long. Blue sails fluttered underneath on two iron spires.
The silver runes etched into the side called it `Ceiling Dancer – property of Lasher in service to Lord Prevlinnar'.
The crew of six was busy unloading chests. Four Aeobolds, one Ultrabold, one Glitzer – a faceless elemental of unrefined, white and blue crystal in a bulky humanoid shape.
Chay raised a smoke dripping hand. "Are you going toward Gele-Cruaa?" He gestured in the direction where the massive canyon dipped lower, a glint in the distance promising an urban area.
Goro noticed the leader was speaking Pandemonic. Most powerful beings wouldn't use Boldian casually even if they spoke it. He almost wanted to nod with approval.
The Ultrabold inside the ship lunged. The green skinned lizard-man with back spikes had crystals embedded in calves and feet which apparently let him jump like a demigod.
He landed gracefully in front of Chay. "You and three slaves? Five obols. We leave when our scheduled passengers are here. I'm Captain Lasher, welcome aboard."
Chay gave a curt bow and tossed the captain a penta-obol.
===***===
Deep red lightning flickered along the chains hanging between hull arches as the ship left dock. A stream of sparks trailed from the sails below, propelling the barge by expelling soul energy. Liners didn't just look upside down - they also worked in reverse to earthly sailing vessels.
Goro had no issue with heights, but flying was a different matter. Even when using his godly powers to attack from the air he preferred to have a target on the ground in mind first.
He stayed in the middle of the platform, keeping Marcus in line who kept leaning over the railing between the arches, rather un-slave-like.
Their final passengers were a triple of Trolls - their ridiculously massive backs forming a convenient blockade between the demigods and the crew – and a Wraith accompanied by two Hellions in casual robes. The dark, hundred-handed creature's metal plate head was hung with purple crystals and bones. It stayed in animated conversation with the Hellions, while Chay seemed to eavesdrop.
Goro stood perfectly stoic and breathing deeply as the realm-liner lurched. He reminded himself that he was able to fly. Nothing going wrong could possible cause him harm. He held onto Xane – to keep his aegis shielded and for no other reason.
The view from the Ceiling Dancer was admittedly spectacular, like a flight over the Grand Canyon, if the canyon also stretched overhead and was saturated with geodes the size of city blocks and skulls big enough to live in.
"Nervous, big guy?" Xane asked with a smirk, his head tilted to look at Goro.
"Fuck no," Goro said.
Xane put a hand on his taller friend's heart and felt the beat. He retracted the hand with a nipple flick. Goro nearly went into a rage with lust.
"Don't do that."
Xane rolled his eyes. "Scared I'll blow our cover? They think we're figments. We're supposed to act a little kooky."
"I... I meant don't make me horny." Goro couldn't help but grin at the absurdity. "Unless you're gonna follow through. Or I'll rape your ass right here."
"Would love to see you try, dude, hehe."
Goro ran two fingers down Xane's glistening back and into his crack. Xane subtly poked his ass out to welcome the hook going in and slowly massaging his insides.
Never in a million years would Goro have thought he'd fulfill the wet dreams of all the fags and shipping-obsessed girls who kept leaving thirsty comments on his posts with Xane. If only he had known how much fun Xane's reaction would be.
The shorter demigods reciprocated, three fingers of a mage-hand digging into Goro's hole. All fear of flying was forgotten while the best friends tried to stay inconspicuous.
The Glitzer stepped around them, pulling chains to move the sails underneath. Arcane lightening sparked along the arcs overhead. The ship clinked and swayed. Goro took a broader stance as the massive crystal creature stomped past.
"Don't suppose," Xane said, "we can unpack a couple of those nectar buds?"
"Would love nothing more," Goro said. "But you know we can't. Emergencies only."
"If I start a fight with that Wraith we'd have an emergency."
"Really thinking like a junky, huh?"
"Just joking," Xane said, sounding humorless.
===***===
A ten minute walk after landing and the pantheon was back at Oldblue's lair, presenting her slain rival's teeth.
[Excellent,] the koi-head said at the end of their recounting. [You are as capable as expected. I have already referred you to my contacts, who should be on their way. Our business will conclude once you've been introduced.]
[Oh and,] the goat-head added, [unless you have somewhere to spend those gold bars within the next hour, you should drop the bag – outside my lair. The metal is cursed and will drain your strength continuously.]
"Are the coins save?" Chay asked. "And what about the blade?"
[Yes the obols are fine. Show me the sword.] The goat's serpent eyes went wide. [Oh! A voidblade. Haven't seen one in a long time. It is safe to touch but if you summon the blade it will strike you with the Carnal Craving Curse.]
[You'd be driven to consume,] the koi-head said. [Eat any flesh in proximity, even cannibalizing yourself, gorging for minutes. Several voidblade wielders have burst their guts from gulping more meat than they can fit. I'm amazed you're alive.]
"Well," Chay said. "The rules are a bit different for us."
[If you can wield it,] Oldblue continued, [a voidblade cuts better than the sharpest Elderite.]
While Chay pondered, he sent Goro to drop their gold bars off a cliff. The mania-warrior kept the silk and started ripping it into shape for a fundoshi.
His aegis glowed. Nothing in sight. The glow increased on the way back.
Goro raced for his friends to find them talking to a Daemon Fiend. Chay was courteously dimming their crotches with black smoke, fanning a tiny puff between Goro's legs as he approached.
The seven foot, red skinned guy with five short horns was a Fiend by the name of Sremnan. Despite being only a few centuries old, Sremnan was already a lieutenant to a lord who strove to become a champion.
The demonling's gray toga left little to the imagination. His fairly lithe muscles flexed as he gestured, his double dick bulged the cloth distractingly, his deep voice made Goro feel a tug in his stomach.
"...which would let Lord Chralloth rise through the ranks," the Fiend said. "Having warriors disguised as slaves makes our plans vastly easier and while we'd lose out if the vortices go down this is too good an opportunity for us. What do you say?"
"You had plans already?" Chay asked. "If that makes it easier for both sides we'll stick with Lord Chralloth's designs. How long do you expect it would take to hit all three vortex sites?"
While the faction leaders negotiated, Goro sat down with Xane who was turning black leather pieces into a shoulder belt for the voidblade. Baldness suited the short man, but Goro knew Xane disagreed. It wasn't his style.
"We're keeping the blade?" Goro asked.
Xane didn't look up. "Chay doesn't want to use it outside of emergencies but it's better to have than not. Plus we could all use it if needed."
Goro huffed. "He's lacking in offence. But I get that it's a liability."
Xane chuckled. "Pretty sure he just doesn't want to fucking tongue bath your asshole, dude."
Goro shrugged with a half-grin. "His loss."
"Hehe."
"Can you help me make a new fundoshi?" Goro held up the white silk sack.
"What is it with you and fundoshi? Fetish?"
"They're practical and an ancient part of my culture."
"And your fetish."
"Maybe. I look hot as fuck in them and they show off my dick print like briefs never could."
Xane put the shoulder belt down. "Well well well, that's the most information I've ever gotten out of you in one sentence. Abyss turning you soft?"
Goro punched his friend in the arm. "Would get hard instead if I could."
===***===
They had to wait for transport and were nap-ready anyway.
With no convenient holy spire to retreat to, the pantheon camped in the mouth of a water-crying skull after kicking out some chameleon slugs. Xane had his four butterflies circling a steady light above.
The men were naked and standing at the edge of the skull's jaw, overlooking this geode-shimmering valley of the abyss, the aurora shining teal overhead.
Marcus raised his arms to his neck and pissed. Xane joined in.
"Weird," Marcus said, "how I've always had a shy bladder but since the aegis I can spray anytime, anywhere."
"Ugh. And on anyone," Xane said, annoyed. "At least don't turn my way, dude."
"You mean like that?" Marcus asked and turned further to Xane. Just as he did, his cage randomly splattered forward, all over the mage's chest.
"Oh you asked for this," Xane said and magically straightened his stream to shoot right into Marcus' face.
The sputtering Filipino rose into the air with bent legs and moved his crotch right into Xane's face as he rained piss at random.
With Marcus out of the way, Goro got the full might of Xane's directed stream. He had been fine just relieving himself without entering the struggle but couldn't let that stand.
Goro grabbed Marcus by the regrown, pale white mohawk and flipped him upside down mid-air to shoot his own random stream in the athlete's face. He hadn't thought through where Marcus' crotch would end up since he got a faceful of the animus-fighter's piss.
Marcus grabbed Goro's head and pushed himself behind Goro, shoving the sputtering bodybuilder into his shorter friend.
The pissing hunks collided and Goro grabbed Xane by the neck to move him between his legs and jump over. But Xane fought back, ending up with his face stuck in Goro's crotch, getting splattered. As revenge, he magically redirected Goro's own stream up into Goro's face.
At some point, Chay became a casualty and revenge-pissed in every face going.
Pie ran wild circles between them, causing even more chaos as every drop of piss bounced off her `fur' as a spray.
The four of them were levitating, spraying in a loose snuggle until the last demigod ran out of ammunition.
"Not how I remember pool parties going," Marcus said as they sank to the ground.
Goro laid on his side and fingered his hole until he remembered that he was cursed to derive no pleasure from his own actions.
"Someone do me," Xane said.
"Return the favor?" Chay asked.
Xane grunted. "Too beat. After nap?"
Chay was still breathing hard from the `pool party'. "We... got nectar buds?"
Marcus chuckled, uselessly wiping his wet chest. "Shouldn't you be the resolute leader and ration them when needed?"
Chay exhaled. "Yes, I should but I'm getting no shut-eye like this. How about we only use two. Two get nectar anally, the other two lick."
"I'd say ew'," Xane said, "but we've all rimmed each other before so... Still ew'."
"Fifty percent chance to get an injection and a rimming," Goro said. "Fifty percent to drink a bit of nectar. Logic dictates I accept those odds."
Chay sat up. "Rock paper scissor for who gets to shove demon cum up his ass, go."
The winners were Xane and Chay. Goro was less fond of the odds after the fact but dutifully lapped every drop of gold from Xane's crack, keeping his friend ass-up-face-down, while Marcus had his head buried between Chay's legs.
Every drop of the melted nectar bud was heavenly and while he wouldn't have admitted it, getting to experience the nectar-pleasure of muscle sex getting hammered into his mind while having Xane's insanely sculpted body right there was no detraction.
He still hoped he'd get to win the next game.