Chapter 40: Chapter Thirty-nine – In which Ark has a small problem, and winds up being reunited with a former party member, for all the wrong reasons!

For three days, I actually worried that I might die.

You see, there was a problem in play that had been going on since the morning after I spent with Doll. I… couldn’t get an erection no matter what I tried. And in a panicked state knowing that my life was on the line if it was kaput, I tried a lot of shit to get it working, to no avail. It came to a point where the Old One and Prima got into an argument due to my inability to complete the task with the remaining three goblin. Old One, as a result, sent some kind of communique to that insanely powerful being called the Great Protector, who as a result, paid a visit to see what the trouble was… yet again.

I explained that I wasn’t at all trying to get out of giving the goblin tribe big seed, and in fact was diligently doing my best considering how I had given some leeway to make things better for the goblins. Prima was also present, and had explained a lot of what had happened that night with Doll that I wasn’t actually aware of and why my junk was in a funk.

I was expecting it to be furious or run out of patience. It did no such thing. To my surprise, the Great Protector was certain it knew how to solve my problem. That was good news. The bad news was how it was going to be solved.

Before I was captured, I was an adventurer. I was previously in a three-man party with a swordsman named Kairos, and a female archer named Stella. Now, to the best of my knowledge the other two were either captured or killed. In a few hours time I would come to learn the fate of one of my companions.

Because, as it turned out, the former was true of Stella.

The Great Protector had left goblin-home, only to return a few hours later. Stella, bound by ropes, gagged, and completely naked, was deposited on the raised bed in the middle of the breeding room. Now, I’ll admit that Stella was a human woman I did have some interest in, but that’s because she was one of those flirty types with a bangin’ body. Her personality needed some work, in my opinion, but when my only goal was a hole, certain red flags could be overlooked, right?

The Great Protector was correct in that it knew how to solve my conundrum. One look at her fully naked female body had my Fleshcalibur eager to slay once more. I couldn’t figure out why, though. Why after all the sex, and pretty enjoyable sex for the most part that I had with these goblins, was it necessary for me to see a naked human female in order to become aroused again?

“Breed her.” The Great Protector demanded.

I had seen the look in Stella’s eyes and they were bordering on broken.

“What have you done to her?” I asked as calmly and non-threateningly as I could. I was certain if I had yelled at the Great Protector, I would be lying flat on my back or worse.

“Just as you belong to the goblin tribe, this human belongs to me.”

“What about Kairos?” I asked, and a few teardrops falling from Stella’s eyes told me that answer. The Great Protector didn’t offer any answer to my question.

“I will loan the human female to you until you have finished with the remaining goblins. If it occurs again in the future, I will bring her once more. You have not disappointed me so far, human, so I have no reason to kill you as long as you continue your task.”

I was being told to force myself onto the woman I, up until recently, had been adventuring with. Furthermore, I was not allowed to refuse.

“If you are concerned as to whether or not she is pure, I cannot speak of her past. But she has not been touched otherwise since. I know you humans are particular about such things.”

This tall, horned, night gray skinned creature leveled a finger at Prima, who was present.

“Guardian, you will make sure the human I have given you does this. You may tell the Old One to summon me again when the human has completed the task with the remaining goblins.”

Prima lowered her head and swore.

“You may loosen this one’s bonds if he needs it done, but they are not to be removed. If she runs, kill her. If she refuses, it is unfortunate, but I don’t need a servant that doesn’t understand its place.”

That last line, I swear, was directed straight at both Stella and myself.

“Now, the Old One has said the tribe has increased again. Show me to the new ones.”

The Great Protector left together with Prima to go see Orchid and Lilac. I don’t think I have to worry about them, since this was clearly being orchestrated by the massively powerful being. But now I have a certain moral quandary to deal with.

Stella.

It’s one thing to rape a willing goblin. It’s another thing when it’s a human I know, and when it is almost certainly going to be against her will.

I walked over to her and removed the gag she had in her mouth, waited for hell to spew forth.

“Glad to see you are alive, Stella.”

It was the only suitable thing I felt I could say.

“Ark! Why are you here? I thought you were killed!”

“I should say the same… I thought you were also killed or captured. I only remember being knocked out by the… thing.”

She huffed.

That… creature. That was what did us in.”

“The Great Protector?”

“Protector? You mean Captor! I’ve been held captive for weeks! It’s threatened to kill me so many times… Ark! You have to help me escape!”

I sighed.

“I can’t.”

“Yes, you can. Let’s just wait until they fall asleep, and we can run away.”

“To where? Do you even know where we are? I have left the cave exactly three times, and I’ve never been allowed near the treeline outside. I have no idea which way the nearest town is, and there are dangerous wild animals out there.”

“Then… at least let me go. I’m not scared!”

I felt terrible, horrible, guilty, and all the shitty emotions a person can feel when they have to shut down any hope of escape their friend is holding on to.

“I won’t touch you for now, but I won’t be able to promise…”

“You… aren’t seriously going to do what that thing said?”

I laughed.

“Why do you think I’m still alive? This whole cave full of goblins? That’s what I’ve been doing. Putting babies in their bellies.”

“They forced themselves on you?” She asked.

“I might still be able to think of myself as a human being if they had. The first one did… sort of. But the rest… no, I did it willingly to survive.”

“Ark, we’re adventurers, they are just goblins. We can kill them all and you can forget about whatever abominations they would have. We can survive this. You can go back to your family. Isn’t your mother a grand mage? She could ask the tower to send a punitive force to kill that fucking thing that captured us… to get revenge for Kairos!”

Stella was doing her damnedest to appeal to any aspect of my humanity that might see her free, but she also wanted to live. I couldn’t help her, because setting her free was sending her to death. Possibly to my own death as well.

“My children aren’t abominations. If you want to die, I can promise to kill you as painlessly as possible.”

“Ark? What are you saying?”

“The second I untie your ropes, you are dead. That’s what I’m saying. If I kill you, maybe they’ll just tie me up again and use me until I join you… but I’ve felt the power that thing has. I doubt even my mother could combat it without the other nine great tower mages. And you know how likely it is for them to cooperate.”

“So… you’re going to do what that thing says?”

Stella began to laugh.

“Of course you are going to. You have me all tied up and you can defile my body however much you want to. You filthy coward!”

She spat the insult at me, but I took it in stride. I understood her position. I really did. Because it was the same position I was in when I woke up in this cave, in the pitch black darkness with Prima practically on top of me.

“Kairos wouldn’t have even hesitated!” she yelled angrily at me.

“And maybe that is why he’s dead, or captured like us…” I offered, because I had nothing to console her with.

“The room over there is mine,” I pointed to the room adjacent to Vera’s, “You are free to use it to keep your privacy while you are here. I’d offer you some kind of clothing but all I have is a pair of underwear and they won’t go up your legs while you have those ropes tied around your ankles. That being said, I just built a bath, so if you want at least one creature comfort, I can provide you with that. You don’t have to worry about food, though your diet is going to be mostly meat. Cooked meat.”

She had already tuned me out. It was clear on her face that she wasn’t listening to me anymore. I can’t really blame her, but it’s a shame. At least if she was willing to look at her situation, it wasn’t as terrible as it could be. It’s still terrible, don’t get me wrong, and I’m definitely going to be the villain here in her life’s story from this point on. But at least she isn’t being given to some fucking male goblins who wouldn’t even try to treat her kindly. At least… she’ll be carrying a human baby inside of her. Of course, I’d be happy if she doesn’t end up pregnant. The word breed is flexible, I think. There are loopholes to be found in it, and maybe she can get out of it with minimal… intrusion on my end. Of course, if I don’t do the job right… someone or something else might. I wasn’t sure what kind of hand to play where the Great Protector was concerned. I only know that I’m no match for it. Even if I had my quartz focus orb and spirit-tree wand and brought the whole cave down on it… I just don’t know if it would be enough to kill it alongside throwing my life away in the effort.

Prima had returned, and with me being polite enough not to stare at Stella’s naked body, my erection had decided to take a break as well.

“When will you breed her?” Prima asked.

I sighed.

“No mercy at all from you, huh?”

Prima frowned.

“Tell Prima Husband not be big-stupid.”

“I’m trying not to be. But your Great Protector or whatever just condemned me to become a monster. So I’d appreciate you being a little bit understanding, even if you don’t care to know why.”

“What problem? Goblins need wait while Human get big seed first.”

“Yes, Prima. That is the problem.”

“Big seed is problem?”

“No. It’s… a human problem.”

“Speak. Prima listen Husband.” Prima said firmly.

I walked over to the table and sat down. Prima joined me and I began explaining the human condition and civilized behavior between men and women. All the things that are supposed to be just and fair, and all the things that make humans no better than goblins. Of course the primary topic was about rape, and why is was a horrible thing.

“...so that’s the problem. It’ll be one moon before we even know if she’s carrying a human strong one, it’ll be nine moons in total before it is ready to come out, and then for roughly six moons after that, it’s stupid and unable to do anything but cry, shit, piss, and drink milk. Then you have the problem with the mother. She’s been given big seed by someone she will hate for being forced to take it, forced to carry the strong one for nine moons, and then give birth to it. She might hate its very existence and refuse to care at all for it. It’s not like with goblins… if she doesn’t actively pick it up and put it to her breast, it won’t be able to drink milk and it will die. It is born with no teeth, so forget about giving it something complex like meat. At best you would have to smash berries and scoop it with your finger, hoping it might want to suck on it. But even then… the likelihood it would get enough inside of it to not starve to death… is high.”

“Why human strong ones stupid?” Prima asked after I explained it all in detail.

“I wish I could tell you the right answer to that. I don’t know the exact reason. It could be because of how our ability to think develops, or due to how long we live naturally… I don’t really know about the other races of the world. I’ve lived among humans most of my life, rarely seeing any others… and when I had, they were all older. I mean, it takes about six times the number of moons that you can count on your fingers and toes before human females are even able to take big seed in order to make a strong one for the first time.”

“What Husband do? Great Protector say need breed human. Mean Husband must put seed-stick inside, give big seed, make belly fat.”

“Actually, I might not have to do it at all…”