Toofy Ch. 22

"Her master is taking too long." Toofy said angrily, shifting uncomfortable where she was lying on the ground. She still felt all kinds of odd. Both empty and fat, with her stomach flopping like a skinsack. Her hips still screaming.

Saia stood nearby, the two kittens on her shoulders and gnawing angrily on her horns as they swatted at each other. Tails straight up in the air as they play fought.

The succubus smiled tightly, "So... What now?"

"You will take them away. The kittens will be kept safe, somewhere else, with the Saia, until the story is done." Toofy stated emphatically. "She just... Needs to name them, first."

The succubus groaned loudly, "Seriously? I have to take care of your brats? I'd... Rather fight the emperor, Toofy."

She shrugged, "She doesn't care. Kittens get hurt, Saia will wish that emperor was the one she'd end up fighting."

"Yes, mistress." Saia muttered in irritation.

The catgirl looked at her two children proudly. She really did not want to send them away, but they were too young to face any of what was coming. They were hers, both of them, but their own stories would have to wait.

The half-human was the more skilled of the two. She had already got used to her magic. Already beginning to discover the strength of her spells, and the usefulness of skipping magic to go straight in to slug your enemy with a fist.

She might have been born second, but she was dominating her sister.

"Artema." Toofy named her, smiling at the little halfcat. The kitten turned her head, blinking her hold and blue eyes, as she heard the name, and felt it inside her.

Toofy could remember the wonder at that. When she'd first heard Efina call her Twenty Four, she'd felt the name burning directly into her. It wasn't something nekos spoke about.

The power of a name.

She turned her attention to the other kitten. The half-elf was more frail than her sister, at first glance. It was misleading. She was elven, which meant that she would be more graceful, more flexible, than her sister.

As a kitten, those things weren't easy to come by.

On the other hand, whilst she didn't have a good grasp of her magic yet... She put her mother's power to shame. Even with the blood of a dark god running in her veins, Toofy felt outclassed by the sheer strength of the cat's magic.

When the girl learned to control what was hers, by birthright, she wouldn't be treated like a halfcat or halfelf. Treating her as an exotic at all would be considered a hazard to your own health.

The kitten... She might well be on-class to becoming a demigoddess, even just hours after her premature birth.

"Ink." The mother cat declared, smiling at the kitten as she started to chew on her long and flowing hair. The little cat blinked in surprise, shook its head and then scruffed at its neck with a foot.

Toofy nodded tiredly, "It's time, Saia. Keep them safe... Master is in trouble. He would have come back. Toofy might not survive, either. Keep her daughters safe, no matter what happens, precious. What comes next."

"They will be safe with me." Saia stated firmly and then winced, "Me, safe with them, on the other hand... Probably not."

Toofy giggled and smiled tiredly, "Probably not... Because the Saia also needs to surrender her piece of Menes, before she leaves."

"Aw fuck."

The catgirl nodded, eyes beginning to close.

---

The emperor had been intending to simply work off all the frustration that had been building inside him over the last few days and weeks. All the irritations that had been plucking at him since he had let the neko survive.

Choosing to let Twenty Four live, to play with her, and to groom her towards becoming his concubine, had been one of the stupidest mistakes of his life.

He had made the assumption, when he had slept with her, that she was just some little cute thing. Too scared to know what to do. Terrified that he might kill her, terrified enough she'd do anything to please him.

He'd changed his mind on the matter, sending her off to die.

He had sent soldiers, and guards, and they had been utterly slaughtered. Speaking of the neko like she wasn't some timid little thing, but a screaming tomcat reminiscent of bucktooth.

Then, he had found her natural enemy. A salamander of considerable physical prowess, and a decent amount of magic as well. A dragon that, unknown to themselves, had been born of a royal line.

If you wanted something overwhelming in both physical and magical prowess, then that creature was difficult to overlook.

The only child of Irrlichdan.

He'd tested their physical strength for himself, repeatedly fucking them, and feeling out each of their muscles. Testing their balance, and ability to keep moving even under duress.

The salamander was everything he had hoped them to be, and their hatred of the catgirl ran so deep he had found it surprising. They had truly hated Twenty Four with every fibre of their spirit.

He couldn't have designed for a better assassin.

So, the emperor had sent that one out to kill the bitch, as well. Days ago.

Now, balls deep in one of his favoured concubines, a woman who was as loud as she was determined to have his child, one of his eunuchs came to him, and told him that the dragon had returned.

Returned, arm-in-arm with her mortal enemy. An enemy she wasn't meant to return with, alive.

The catgirl was flaunting herself.

He pulled himself out of the concubine was a slushy plop, and sat on the edge of his chair. His hands tightened onto the arms, making the wood creak and groan.

The eunuch flinched and fell to their knees, bending their head and awaiting his judgement.

Kaden signalled to his concubine. The woman smirked at him, flicked her hair over one shoulder, and then took his cock effortlessly into her mouth, and down her throat.

He groaned contentedly, loving that her gag reflex was so weak.

The emperor felt his stress fading as he enjoyed the tongue so expertly slathering over him. Tasting her own pussy all over his dick, with such enthusiasm.

Not as good as the cat, when she'd paralysed him.

All the stress and anger came back, instantly.

This was not why he had come to the House of the Falling Leaves. He had come here to relax and be free, to enjoy his women, and the luxuries of his station.

Instead of dealing with a collapsing empire, spread too far and too thin. Subjugating the elves, the nekos, and now the orcs, was too much for any empire.

However, it would serve the purpose that he had meant for it since the first day he had taken the crown.

All of this, was aimed only at his ascension.

With the crown, and the deaths of the nekos, he had managed to touch divinity. To become acknowledged by the gods as a demigod. Someone worthy of being their brethren, but not worthy enough to join them.

It had been painful, and confusing. The gods had tested him, over and over. He had lived and died thousands of times. Hundreds of thousands of lives, growing old over hundreds of years. All of it experienced in a single moment.

Eventually, one of the gods had come to him, and acknowledged him as a son. Giving to him a blessing, and a single drop of their blood.

That was when the Emperor had realised that the blood of a demon, and the blood of a deity, were of the same source. That the term, dark god, was not merely sourced from fear, but the etymology was rooted in truth.

The concubine was extremely enthusiastic, despite his distraction. She was determined to serve her purpose.

The emperor pulled her head back, and rewarded her by planting a kiss on her before he pushed her away.

He was no longer in the mood.

The catgirl had returned to this city, flaunting that she had survived the assassination attempts of her emperor. She came back to the very seat of his power.

She could only have returned to attempt to challenge him, to serve as a pawn for the gods who did not wish for him to join their number.

"Issue an edict." Kaden growled, "All exotics of the species commonly referred to as neko, within the capital city and its surrounds, are to be summarily executed. No delays. No trials. No time for evacuation."

The eunuch touched his head to the ground, "As you wish, your grace."

"Any neko found within two days travel of the capital city, will have their citizenship revoked, and if they are enslaved, any property rights revoked, as well." Kaden replied, "The ministers will have to approve that one."

The result would be that being born a neko would now make you an outlaw. If you came within the distance of the capital, you could be beaten, robbed, killed or used without the law giving a flying shit.

If this catgirl thought that she could hide from him, plot her revenge on him, then she would have another thing coming.

This was exactly what he had done when Tamamo de Mae thought she could hide from him. He had wiped out nearly all kitsune within the empire in return.

If your enemy goes to ground, leave no ground to go to.

He blinked in surprise, "You're still here. You have something further to add?"

"We have received a number of... Concerning reports, from the Golden Mountain, your grace."

The emperor rubbed his face tiredly, "Of course the fucking elves have problems. What is it, now?"

"There are... Suggestions... That those of an... Exotic nature... Have grown unhappy with their treatment at the hands of their elven masters. Our own analysts of the situation suggest that a major insurrection is inevitable at this point, your grace." The man stated.

The ministers would be expected the emperor to pre-emptively dispatch forces to the elves, to help them keep the peace.

Empress Tresian would probably be expecting him to take an interest in her affairs. He could probably expect an official envoy from her in the coming days, someone who would be expecting to return to the Golden Mountain with a large military force.

Humans with the skills, and the lack of sympathy, required to utterly and brutally crush the spirits of the demoralised creatures now attempting to raise their heads.

However, the empire had their own problems. An insurrection among humankind was also inevitable, at this point. They were about to be attacked on a large scale by orcs and the undead. They were starving, and poor.

The ministers would be calling to depose the emperor, any day now.

He would sacrifice them all, to get what he wanted.

The Golden Mountain would have to take care of themselves.

---

Magic burned through his veins, stretching his muscles to breaking point, tearing into his organs. His body was self-destructing as it tried to maintain an impossible level of prowess.

It was simply not within the realm of realistic expectations for Sai to win this battle.

He was one man, fighting to defend four injured, or dying, idiots who could not be expected to hold their own in a one-on-one fight. He was up against what he estimated to be two columns of forces.

Two hundred men and women. Some trained in combat magic, others simply in warfare. All of them armoured, coordinated, and seeking only to kill or disable him - an easier goal that eliminating both columns.

He could be outmanoeuvred and ended, even if he didn't make a single fucking mistake.

This battle reminded him too much of fighting the hooktooths in the north. They had survived that more by chance than by skill. He and Westcolm should have fallen, there.

Yet, in this battle, Sai had nobody by his side.

The smell of blood, bile and faeces filled the poorly ventilated city. The sound was an echoing roar of flames, explosions, and the clashing of weaponry. The dull thunk as leather turned steel, the sharp clank of steel-on-steel, ever accompanied by the grunting and cries of fighting.

Sai's palms sweated as soaked leather ribbons dragged at them from his hilt. His shoulders ached from the repeated blows that had added a half dozen notches to his blade.

Sweat ran in rivulets down his back as he dived to block and turn another spell sent towards the terrified and bleeding women under his protection. Stone exploded, shards embedding themselves into his face.

He tried to wipe the blood dripping down into one of his eyes away with his elbow, but that was a battle already lost.

Esmerelda was somehow still on her knees, still intermittently casting a barrier. Though, the barrier was now infrequent, and barely covering Taudry, and no one else.

The elf's distinct lack of self-preservation, devoting all of her efforts to the halfcat, had already become a problem.

He didn't know how she was still casting, but it wouldn't last.

Esme was missing one of her ears, the eye beside it, and most of the skin. She'd taken a fireball directly to the face, and the result had chargrilled her.

Her hair was still smouldering.

Sai spun as he saw a reflection in the elf's eye, grabbing the forehead of the guard who had rushed in. The man's helmet disintegrated as the magic of the thunderstep was channelled directly through his skull, turning his brain to mush.

He missed the caster who had ordered the charge. An icicle exploding a moment before it struck and ended him.

Sai followed up with a fireball, whilst trying to place whoever had just saved his life. It wasn't Esme, she was practically down for the count. It wasn't the cats, they were completely out of the game.

Taudry was bleeding out her nose and ears. She was probably already dead, or close to it, despite the elf who was so desperate to keep her alive.

He was still distracted when the spear went through his right shoulder blade, blowing the bone apart before sinking into the ground in front of him and pinning him in place.

Sai closed his eyes and whispered, "I'm sorry, Toofy."

---

Trician yawned and waved a hand at the timid girl, "Go ahead. We're waiting."

The elf was sitting, surrounded by a bunch of bored dragons, all of them looking expectantly towards the human with the bright eyes, as she hesitantly lifted the staff that was taller than her.

Orli put both hands on the twisted bone, took a deep breath, and then her eyes flashed as she reached into her magic. Those eyes, already so bright and deep, glowing, was enough to make Trician feel uncomfortable.

The blue stone on the end of the staff lit up with the same colour as those incredible orbs, and Trician raised an eyebrow, waiting for the display of power.

She wasn't sure what she expected. Up until this point, the only spell that Orli had managed to demonstrate was a transference of magic. Did she even know any spells?

Trician sighed heavily, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Wait for it." Orli said through gritted teeth, "It's like an orgasm. Got to let it build up, first."

The elf really regretted sleeping with the human. She'd been making overt sexual references ever since. As if her timidity towards Trician had evaporated.

Trician found it to be... Infuriating.

She jerked her head back and shielded her face as she suddenly found herself dazzled by a light that was so bright it hurt at the backs of her eyes.

She felt like the scene in front of her had been physically burned into the lenses of her eyes.

All around her, she heard the dragons making a fuss. Most were roaring in defiance, a lot of them were sounding like they were blindly trying to hit something, and a tiny few were yelling in pain.

The last were probably the stubborn ones that had refused to close their eyes.

Even if the light was the only effect of the spell, Trician could see a variety of uses for it. Especially if Orli could deploy it during night combat.

Trician snapped her hands together, creating a small sphere of darkness, before she stretched it to surround herself. She glared out from the shadow, but the mage was no longer where they had been.

There was a small crater in the ground, and nothing else.

A voice whispered in her ear, husky and low, "No one could see it if you kissed me, right now."

Did the human know what Trician had said, in the throes of passion? Did she understand that the elf had confessed that she truly did love them?

She struck an elbow backwards, and heard the human gasp and wheeze as Orli completely failed to see it coming. Trician turned, looking at her haughtily, "A long wait for such little effect. Is that really the best you can do with a godforged staff of power? Kinda sucks."

The human leaned on the staff, "You're being mean. I... I don't... Like it."

"This is war!" Trician yelled angrily, "Do you think we have the time for your bullshit games, Orli? If the fucking cat dies, so do we! If she dies, the gods themselves disappear from the future! If you fuck up, then there will be no tomorrow!"

The girl stared at the ground, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.

Trician refused to be baited, to give in just because she had fallen for them, and she crossed her arms. "You are young, anomaly. But the gods chose you for this. The gods armed you for this. So grow up, and take it seriously. I may be willing to die for the gods, but not if that death is without meaning!"

Orli looked up at her, hurt, "I just... I'm trying, Trick. I just don't know what I'm doing! Two days ago, I was dating a god and knew nothing could hurt me. Now... Now I'm dumped, and expected to fight in a war when I've never even punched anyone. I... I hate violence."

"Then use peace." Trician growled, "Stop trying to force something that isn't there."

"Huh?"

The elf sighed, "Anything can be a weapon, human. Magic is a thing of extremes. Make someone feel at peace, they stop fighting, even if their enemies don't. They can be cut down. But magic is more. Keep pushing, and they won't just stop fighting. They'll sit down, lie down, go to sleep. Push it even further and they'll stop thinking. Stop perceiving. Stop breathing. Heart stop beating. Push it far enough, you don't need the army."

Orli stared at her in horror.

Trician shrugged, "Unlike the rest of us, human, you don't seem to actually have a limit to how much magic you can channel. You're weak as shit. Can't fight for shit. But, with the right opportunity, the right creativity, not even this draconic army could stop you. And that is what the gods chose you for. So, again, grow the fuck up. I don't want to die, and I need you to be the powerful sorceress you are. A sorceress who dwarfs my abilities in every way."

There was some grumbling from a few who overheard her.

Orli swallowed weakly, "I... I'm trying."

"Trying gets you dead. Do or don't. Hesitate, and you're fucked." Trician sneered at her, "Nobody else can do it for you."

The girl ran away, crying.

Trician shook her head angrily, and then froze up as she felt a furry tail brush her cheek. A voice speaking in amusement, "Do you really think if you make her hate you, that you'll escape the pain of her death? That it would have saved you if you'd hated Kaleid?"

She swallowed nervously, "I do not know, my goddess."

"I gave you Orli so that you would fall in love with her." Mischief continued, "At least she doesn't reject my presents. An eighteen year old, peace-loving, human girl who was raised in a town without war and famine, picked up a magic staff and tried to cast a weapon. She did that, for you, ungrateful elf. She doesn't even realise you love her, yet. Unrequited. Who is really the one who has fucked up?"

With that, the goddess was gone.

Leaving Trician alone and guilty in a sea of warriors preparing for battle.

---

"Oh, Xiv." Elizabeth groaned, feeling all of her stress disappearing as the gentle finger probed into her slit. Her hand maiden kissed her cheek, as she slowly slid it inside.

The woman smiled and kissed her again, "M'lady has had a very stressful day."

"I have. Don't bring anything up." Elizabeth cut off that particular line of flirting, "All I want, right now, is the woman that I love, adore, and can finally name as my mistress."