Dungeon Bound Read online

  The scent of her arousal teased at his nose, and he drew in the stimulating fragrance, the spicy aroma filling him with lust. He pulled almost entirely out of her, then slammed forward again, driving his shaft as deep within her fiery depths as he could.

  One hand gripped her hip, guiding her back to meet his every thrust while his free hand traced along her fluffy tail. From root to tip, he teased his fingers along impossibly soft fur, sending shivers up her toned back.

  Grinding against each thrust, she growled into Sthuza’s sex. That drew a hissing moan as the sleek gorgon climaxed hard, her hands tangled in Cindra’s thick mane, pinning her.

  “I believe you have made your point, Massster,” Sthuza hissed, her voice sounding strange. As if it didn’t come from her open mouth, silently screaming her pleasure.

  Gabriel blinked.

  “Wh-what just happened?” he asked, opening his eyes to spot a blushing gorgon.

  And a very twitchy, howling hellhound. One who was furiously driving her long fingers deep into her gushing sex.

  “Uh, were you reading my mind?” he whispered, his cheeks hot enough to combust.

  “No, Master. It appears you blocked me out and proceeded to test me,” Sthuza said, her voice oddly heated and breathy. “At first, at least. Perhaps you got too excited by your… thorough imaginary performance. After several minutes of staring through me with sightless eyes, you began sending your thoughts into both our minds.

  “Quite aggressively, I might add,” she muttered.

  “I’m really sorry, Sthuza. I didn’t mean to disrespect or offend you. It just seemed—” he said before she placed a finger over his lips.

  “There is no need to apologize.” A small grin tugged at the corner of her mouth. “Well, maybe for how loud your thoughts were when you opened your mind back up, but I understand your intent.

  “Besides, while I am still not fond of the furry mutt, she did give her all to protect us.”

  Sthuza’s smile widened while her dark pupils flared, mostly shading out the green of her eyes. “And as our bonded Dungeon Master, it is your right to make use of our assets as you believe most… efficient.”

  Does that mean she’s open to a…

  He tried to ignore the furious sloshing sounds emanating from Cindra, but couldn’t block them from his mind. Combined with the not-so-subtle heat in the gorgon’s gleaming eyes, he swallowed hard, his mouth suddenly parched.

  “Hey, if he’s back, he’s gotta make her stop that! She’s getting her fluids everywhere!” Merideva cried from her hidden alcove.

  “Oh yeah, I forgot,” she said, her tone far brighter and less angry now. “While you were busy snoozing and playing magical footsies with your bonded, I was slaving away to make you your own room!”

  The sudden announcement gave both Sthuza and Gabriel pause.

  “Indeed, Lady Merideva? That was quite generous of you,” Sthuza said, then glared at Gabriel when he kept silent.

  “Uh, thanks?” he replied at the annoyed gorgon’s prompt.

  The glowing orb darted into sight, beaming her bright pink light on his face. Gabriel smiled at the excited Core. Then he noticed how the glow highlighted the masturbating hellhound.

  Damn, now that I’ve looked, it’s hard not to stare.

  Cindra’s glowing blue eyes were scrunched closed. Several inches of luminescent tongue lolling from her open mouth as she panted more than made up for them.

  Far more conspicuous, at least to Gabriel, was the flickering glow from between the lips of her sex as she continued to ride her spasming hand.

  I don’t recall her glowing down there before. Is it as hot as it looks?

  ‘I am quite positive I do not know, and I currently have no wish to root out the truth.’

  Shit, sorry.

  I’ve got to get a handle on private thoughts.

  “Why didn’t you make her stop yet?” Meri whined, diving to hide behind his back, out of view of the exhibitionist monster girl.

  “Um, Cindra, please stop.” To his mild surprise, her hand froze.

  “Okay. Cindra sorry,” she whimpered. Her huge blue eyes peeked open, and she flashed the most pitiful puppy eyes he’d ever seen.

  “Do not attempt to manipulate our Massster in that manner, you! You nymphomaniac!”

  That only made the chastened hellhound slump further, her gaze dropping toward her clawed feet.

  Sthuza moved between him and Cindra. “Gah, please look away, Master.”

  “Ah, yes, Lady Merideva, perhaps you could show Master his new room,” she said, flashing a twitching smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

  The little Core peeked out from around his back and bobbed several times. “Sure, follow me!”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  The three of them got up and followed the floating orb to the wall opposite the door, behind the altar. Before Gabriel could question her, Meri led them over to the left of her cubbyhole. She stopped in front of a smooth section of unblemished stone.

  Not wanting to insult her, he leaned close and examined the wall. No doubt constructed with magic rather than tools, the light-gray stone was smooth, with faint white streaks spreading throughout it.

  “You went through the effort of letting those smelly plunderers in here to let me harvest DE from them. So, I figured that it would be a unanimous act to make you a room of your own,” she said, brightening.

  Gabriel opened his mouth to point out her mistake, but at a sharp shake of his Prime’s head, he closed it again.

  “That was most generous of you, Lady Merideva. If I may, did you leave the wall up because you wished to let him pick out the door?” Sthuza asked leadingly.

  “Um, yeah, like exactly that was my reason,” Meri said in a rush. After a tiny pause, she muttered much more quietly. “I totally didn’t plan to have him tear it down to save Essence.”

  Sthuza’s undulating snakes flinched at the dejected Core’s whispering. “Did you have enough DE leftover to summon a Drone?”

  “Maybe? I don’t know how much they cost,” Meri confessed, her glow dimming.

  “What do you mean you don’t—,” Gabriel cut off when his Prime elbowed him roughly.

  When he glanced over to her, he saw her still standing out of arm’s reach, looking suspiciously innocent.

  Di-did you just poke me in the gut mentally?

  She shot him a sly glance. When she saw him staring, she winked mischievously. “Lady Merideva, it would be my honor to help you brush up on the more intricate aspects of your Dungeon Interface.”

  “Really? Thanks!” the now jubilant Core cried.

  “Please wait here a moment, Master,” the polite gorgon said, leading Merideva across the room and leaning close to whisper with her.

  Gabriel spent the next several minutes trying not to worry what the pair were planning. With no other distractions, that inevitably led his mind back to the fiery exhibition he’d watched earlier.

  Have to talk with Cindra about what happened. I didn’t mean for either of them to see that. Hells, I didn’t even know I could communicate with her like that.

  Mind racing with thoughts regarding his new power, he focused his intent and tried to project a question at the hellhound grooming herself.

  She continued without flinching, even as sweat gathered on his forehead while he strained to connect with her.

  So I can force her to watch crazy erotic fantasies, but I can’t use the bond to get her attention?

  “Did you get broken?” Meri asked.

  His concentration fled at her interruption. “What no, why?”

  “You had this funny look on your face like when one of the goblins ate something they shouldn’t have, and it was trying to escape.”

  I so do not want to know what she’s talking about.

  ‘Neither do I, Master.’

  “More importantly,” the Core said. “I have decided on the perfect door for your new quarters.”

  “That’s great, thanks again.�
�� An enjoyable sense of satisfaction warmed him when her pride and joy washed over their bond.

  The Core’s glow pulsed brilliantly once, almost blinding Gabriel. When the searing light vanished, a sturdy wood door stood centered in what was seconds before a solid wall. Composed of five broad planks and bound with thick bands of iron, it was a perfect match for several of the doors he’d seen elsewhere in the dungeon.

  Could be it’s the cheapest door available? How many other options are there?

  “After you,” Meri said, her voice filled with unrestrained cheer.

  He glanced at Sthuza, who nodded toward it, and pushed the door open.

  The room beyond lacked any source of light. Only the dim reflected glow from Meri shined within, though his new enhanced senses allowed him to see every detail. It was a completely empty, featureless square room, maybe ten feet across.

  Unwilling to make a snap judgment, he traced his eyes over the walls, ceiling, and finally the floor. All of it smooth, unworked, natural stone. Every surface was the same gray-and-white stone.

  “Uh, thank you, Meri.”

  Sthuza stepped up beside him and nudged him in the ribs.

  “Your generosity is humbling, Lady Merideva,” the gorgon said smoothly.

  The Dungeon Core grew bright, her pink hue deepening like a blushing maiden.

  “Oh, it was nothing, I hope you enjoy strengthening your bond,” the Core squeaked out rapidly before darting back out the open door.

  Stunned at Meri’s quick retreat, Gabriel stood still as his Prime closed and barred the heavy wooden door.

  She stared at him, dark-green eyebrows furrowing. “Master, you simply must learn to be more sensitive to the emotions of those bonded to you.”

  “Um, sorry?”

  Sthuza blew out a lengthy sigh that set her head-snakes to hissing.

  “Yeah, Packmaster, Lady Glows-a-lot was super proud to give you this huge room,” Cindra said, her deep voice filled with disappointment. She flashed him a brief look of disappointment, then turned to face the wall.

  Oh gods preserve me, the one that was busy masturbating in public five minutes ago is lecturing me on awareness.

  That cracked the frowning mask on Sthuza’s face. She smirked, shaking as she chuckled.

  The hellhound continued to inspect the room, sniffing along the walls and floor.

  Obviously, Cindra didn’t hear my thoughts.

  When no answer came, he felt confident he’d kept his unspoken words private that time.

  “Well, we have a space where we can lay out the bedrolls without worrying about goblins crawling over them now,” he said and looked at the gorgon. “At least, I hope they’ll stay out.”

  “Of course they will. They serve Lady Merideva, and she crafted this room for your private use. She would be most cross with them if they were to intrude uninvited.”

  Sthuza shot the distracted hellhound a sharp look, causing Gabriel to wince.

  “Yeah, Cindra,” he called out, getting her attention. “No bringing any goblins into this room.”

  A frown crossed her face for a split second before she nodded and flashed a hungry grin his way. She glanced over to her fellow bonded.

  “Now that Packmaster has a private space. We can start the mating?” She waggled both of her gray eyebrows as she spoke, causing Sthuza to giggle, while Gabriel just shook his head.

  When neither of them agreed, or began stripping, the energetic and still naked monster girl visibly deflated.

  “First, we need to decorate the room a touch,” Sthuza said as the silence grew too painful. True to her word, she walked around the barren chamber twice before opening her satchel and pulling out dozens of odds and ends.

  Gabriel watched flabbergasted as she pulled a chaise lounge and a three-cushion sofa from the small bag she held in one hand.

  “Sthuza, just how much stuff can that bag hold?” he asked, distracted by pondering the level of magic required to craft so powerful an enchantment.

  Containers with spatial enchantments were common enough magical items. His mother had used one during her adventures, and they had many such cabinets and trunks at the Academy. But he’d never seen one so small which could hold so much.

  Never heard of a slender woman pulling furniture out of them one-handed either. Hopefully, she doesn’t have too much more. Otherwise, this place will end up more cluttered than her lair.

  Unperturbed by his shocked expression, she smiled at him. “It holds most of my less commonly used belongings, Master. The larger, low-value items, mostly furniture and perishables.”

  “Wouldn’t it have been wiser to store your more important items in such a powerful artifact?”

  Her smiled twitched, and she shook her head. “I understand the confusion now. My mistress bound this bag to the dungeon many years ago. It can hold a stupendous volume of items, but on balance, the value of any single item must remain ‘mundane.’”

  “I’ve never heard of an enchantment like that before,” he said, thinking over the strange item’s description in his head.

  Maybe it draws power from the high-density Aether inside the dungeon instead of from an attached mana supply. Similar to a leyline tap?

  “Does that mean it needs to stay inside the dungeon or risk the enchantment failing entirely?” he speculated.

  “It would, but Mistress Iylara was a very skilled enchanter,” Sthuza said wistfully, her green eyes misting up. “She constructed the enchantment to merely go dormant if removed from the dungeon for too long.”

  “Ah, that’s impressive,” he said, a little unnerved at the gorgon’s sudden distracted state. And the painful wash of grief, fear, longing, and shame that assaulted him as Sthuza’s attention shifted to the past.

  “My apologiesss, Massster!” she hissed, her face pale. “I did not mean to make you think—”

  He placed a finger to her cool lips, silencing her. “There is no reason to apologize, my Prime,” he said with a shake of his head. “It was just surprising to see how important she was to you.”

  Confident that he was actively concealing his thoughts again, he let out a mental sigh.

  I’ve got to get used to sensing their emotions and shielding them from mine.

  Still ruffled, her snakes cowering behind her head, hissing sadly, Sthuza refused to meet his eyes. Instead, she busied herself with pulling more household goods from her sack. She began sorting them once she ran out of items to extract.

  “Cindra, would you please help her arrange the furniture?” Gabriel asked after several minutes. He’d grown tired of watching the gorgon reposition one bedroll after another.

  “Sure thing, Packmaster!” Cindra yipped enthusiastically before leaping onto the gorgon’s current focus.

  “Cccindra!” Sthuza cried as the sofa she was dragging to one side bowed ominously and slammed to a complete stop.

  She gave another half-hearted tug at the pinned furniture before hissing in exasperation and glancing back at Gabriel.

  “Wasss that truly necccesssary, Massster?” she asked, though with the hint of a smile as she finally looked him in the eyes.

  He chuckled, grinning smugly. “Apparently,” he said, waving her over to him.

  Her dark-green lips pursed, tugging to one side, but she obeyed.

  As soon as Sthuza drew near, he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight.

  His mouth next to her pointed ear while her head-snakes flicked their tiny tongues along his face, he whispered. “Relax, my Prime. I knew you were older and more experienced than me before we bonded.”

  She shivered and emitted a single soft sob as she clung to him.

  “And I know you still miss Iylara. Don’t worry, I’m not offended, and I’m willing to wait as long as you need before we do anything more.”

  He pulled his mouth back from her ear and pressed a tender kiss to her flushed cheek. “Now, how about we just lay everything out and arrange the furniture once we get settled in?” he asked.
/>   CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  Sthuza gazed at Gabriel for an uncomfortably long time, her green eyes hooded. When he couldn’t handle it anymore, he swallowed and opened his mouth to speak.

  Before he could, her head snapped forward, and she smashed her cool lips to his as her strong hands grasped his head.

  They’d kissed before, so how wonderful she tasted was no surprise to him, nor was her slight coolness compared to a human woman. Last time she’d shown masterful skill as she teased, sucked, and licked him senseless, a passionate but refined experience.

  This time was the complete opposite. Sthuza’s long, slender tongue thrust itself into his open mouth with all the subtlety of a hellhound in heat. Her strong, limber fingers tangled themselves in his hair so tight that he winced in pain.

  Sthuza didn’t notice. Instead, she pulled her tongue back as suddenly as it had violated him. Able to breathe again, he drew a deep breath, then blew it out in shock when she bit his lip. Hard.

  Having grown intimately familiar with the flavor of his own blood during recent events, Gabriel didn’t flinch as its heat flooded across their lips. Her agile tongue flicked out, seeking his taste, licking up each drop of hot red blood and devouring it.

  Desire flickered in her eyes as she pulled back for a moment, studying the flavor, savoring it.

  Still surprised at her aggression, but with his arousal growing, he slid his hands down her back to cup her firm ass. He acted first this time, pulling her tight against him and recapturing her lips.

  She moaned into his mouth, her tongue licking every inch of him, as he squeezed her round flesh. Thoroughly enjoying the sensation of her lithe body pressed against him, he ground his erection against her flat belly. At the same time, she lifted up on her toes to deepen their kiss, all but climbing into his mouth.

  Across their bond, he sensed nothing but lust, passion, a hint of love, and overwhelming need.