Umbra, Chapter 1

Every man, from the wisest of sages to the dumbest of dullards, has had questions. About life. About the world around them. The desire for the truth may be there, but they never find a response, no matter how hard they try or where they look. Most would agree to this, I’d like to think.

It was a cloudy day. It was overcast, and the gray clouds hanging above the vast sea were being carried along by her breeze. Those swollen lumps went floating over a sleepy little fishing hamlet, cloaking the humble wooden homes in dreary shadow.

But that meant nothing for a man sitting in one home. His body was shrouded in a dark cloak, and he bothered not to take a proper seat, electing to simply plop down onto the creaky floorboards as he read the passage before him. The green hardcover in his lap was but one of the hundreds stacked around him like a ramshackle maze, but his focus was only on what laid before him.

Where do we come from? Are our fates really guided by some unseen order of deities? Is magic a gift from those gods, or a curse from devils? Where does magic even come from, anyhow?

And what of those strange, ancient devices you can find buried under the earth? Some wizardry circles are so fond of these relics that their entire focus revolves around unlocking their secrets, but nothing apart from a few shoddy imitations and renovations have been produced from those studies.

And don’t even get me damned started on just what the hell monsters are.

The man flipped a dogeared page, his hazy, icy-blue eyes dredging across the scrawling text.

Each of these astounding riddles leads you further down the rabbit hole, bringing you to yet another unsolvable enigma. That rabbit hole analogy would actually be more aptly likened to a mole’s burrow, perhaps. Nothing but dark, endless riddles leading to nothing but another.

I’ve studied the subject matters above for most of my life. I can roll around new inquiries and theories until the stars freeze over, but at the end of the day, I’m still no more enlightened than the fella who shovels pig slop for a living.

As fruitless as my search was, it was my passion. I gave up many things for it. The love of my life. My family’s respect. My own sanity, in many ways. I’m getting older every day, and now my health is failing me. I’m not going to be around for much longer, and I fear I’ve wasted my life.

Hey, but at least my studies helped me kick the juice, huh?

The cloaked reader was on the verge of tears, but he couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

A small part of me searching for comfort would like to think that most would agree that no man has ever found those answers at the bottom of an empty bottle.

So please, kid. Don’t make the same mistakes I did.

“Heh. Hehehe… maybe they just weren’t drinking enough…” the man stammered out, extending a shaky hand for a brown bottle and gripping it tightly. Forcing the nozzle between his lips, he gulped it all down before yanking it free with a loud pop, “Gods… I’m sorry, Gale… I’m… I’m such a fool…”

Extinguishing the last pathetic wisp of the candle casting away the dark, the man tossed the journal away and shambled to his feet. He stumbled through the maze of tomes and burst outdoors, not even bothering to lock the door to the little cabin as he hurried through the hamlet. As the reeking scent of alcohol and sweat wafted behind him, the residents both young and old shot him mixed looks of fear, pity, and disgust.

‘Why… why did you have to leave me…?’

He moved to a graveyard that lied at the outer edges of the town. The tombstones overlooked the shoreline, framing the cracked tombstones with the roaring waves. As tears flowed from his eyes, the cloaked man stumbled over to three shoddy graves and collapsed to his knees.

“Why did that bastard have to take you away…?”

Through the tears blotting out his vision, he read the names hastily carved into each. Douglas, Mierel, and Cordelia.

“H-how…? How could I… how could I have let this happen?!” he hollered through choked sobs.

The man was still haunted by their bright, happy faces. The image refused to budge an inch. The image of a smiling youth with gray hair, one arm proudly wrapped around the shoulders of a love-struck mermaid and the other arm holding their daughter, who had to be no older than four.

“Why…?”

He knew he’d never find the answers he was searching for, no matter how times he came back to consult with the familiar guts of a dry bottle. It didn’t even let him forget. Snarling like a wounded beast, the cloaked man rose back to his feet.

There was only one path left for him. A bitter, vicious, and barren road with no return. His lips curled downwards, his every ragged breath dripping out of his mouth like it was laced with a cobra’s venom.

“I’m coming for you, Lucero. I’ll gut you and put you in the fuckin’ ground if its the last thing I do…”

---

The cloaked man with cold blue eyes marched through a gloomy stretch of woods. The gravel path underneath his feet shifting ever so slightly each time the sole of one of his thick leather boots met it. Leaving a print in his wake with every step, the cold-eyed man continued with a single-minded determination down the trail.

But he wasn’t moving with a high spirit and cocksure smile. He both trudged and looked as though he was being escorted to dig his own shallow grave at knife-point. Rather, it was nothing but his own will that pushed him forward.

His cloak billowed with each gust of wind from the east. That strong breeze carried with it the scent of the sea, and for him, nothing but foul memories. Although it was merely the first step in his journey, the man shivered ever so slightly with each step, moving like the next step might be his last. The breeze flowing under his cloak and nipping at his skin wasn’t to blame for his shivering, however.

‘You… you can do this…’  the man fruitlessly tried to console himself as he marched on.

Trying to shift his focus away from his detrimental thoughts, the man listened intently to the song of the woodland creatures around him and the simple crunching of gravel from below.

The darkness was suffocating, but he wanted to be alone. 

Suddenly, it all halted. The singing of birds and chirping of crickets from the recesses of the dark woods ceased. The sound of leaves and branches being snapped and crunched underfoot echoed through the brush and hit his eardrums.

Unnerved, he halted and turned. He wasn’t moving, but the crunching of gravel didn’t stop. Something was rapidly approaching from behind in a rhythm of four steps, the shifting of sand and stone accompanying each of its steps.

What really disturbed him was that whatever was approaching him seemed to be far lighter than any beast of burden, but far heavier than a fox or wolf. That only left very few possibilities of what the creature could be.

Turning fully around to meet the attacker, he spotted an ebony blur speed around the bend in the path from behind and come barreling towards him. He had but a moment to catch a glimpse, but it seemed to be a mess of dark fur with eyes an even deeper shade, two crimson dots glowering like two fiery stars in a black miasma.

‘Oh, that’s just fuckin’ perfect.’

The wind was knocked out of his chest as the creature tackled him. The man was hit with such force he flew through the air for a good few feet before falling back to the earth and skidding to a halt.

Hissing in pain and prying his eyes open, he found nothing but a beautiful girl staring back at him. Long ebony hair ran down to her shoulders, two fuzzy dog ears extended from the top of her head, and her razor sharp canines were displayed in a happy grin. Immaculately smooth, her skin was the same deep ebony as her hair and fur. Her features were fierce and sharp, but distinctly feminine.

Those two fiery pupils, before burning with the ferocity of a raging inferno, now simply flickered with a soft warmth, like a soothing campfire. She wasn’t a mindless beast, but she was far from human.  The man would’ve likened her body heat to a furnace, and he could already feel a few beads of sweat run down his spine as she sat atop of him.

“You’re a monster… a hellhound.”

“Yeah, I am! Hi.” the beast cooed after what seemed like an eternity, barely stifling a giggle as she did so.  

“Hi.” the man responded with a heavy sigh, finding breathing and speaking suddenly rather difficult with the dark beast seated upon his diaphragm.

She leaned over to the point where the very tips of their noses touched, holding his arms down with two fuzzy paws. Shifting uncomfortably, the man could do nothing but stare back up at her, his icy-blue eyes locking with her blazing-red ones.

“Uhm… you’re not going to fight back?”

“What’s the point in that?”

“Well, you have a sword. And not just the one in your pants~” she giggled, wriggling her inner thigh against the shortsword hung at his side, “Even with that dinky little blade, if you managed to stab through my brain or heart, you’d kill me.”

“Maybe I would. But I doubt you’d just sit still and let me. Not to mention…” the man struggled in vain against the hellhound’s iron grip, “That’s assuming I could overpower you.”

“Mm… so, you see how pointless struggling is, huh?”

“I wouldn’t say that.” the man groaned, settling against the gravel underneath his body, “I still have something that needs to be done before I’m ready to just give up on life.”

“Then why aren’t you fighting back~?”

“I just told you. You’re way too much for me to handle. No point in wasting my strength flopping around in the dirt… but don’t you worry. I’m not just going to sit back and resign myself to your little sex slave. I’ll find a way to get away.” snarled the cloaked fellow.

Tail wagging back and forth, the hellhound rubbed one of her smooth cheeks against his unshaven ones, “Mmhm… is that right~?”

“Thanks. I’ll try not to hurt you too badly.”

“Oh, don’t worry about me, babe. I know I look pretty scary already, but I’m even tougher than I look~”

“Good to hear. Now I won’t feel as bad about this.”

The hellhound cocked an eyebrow, “Oh yeah? Bad about what-“

Not letting her finish, the human swung one leg above her tail, stomping it down and grinding it into the gravel path beneath them. A soft whine escaped her lips as her back went as rigid as a board. She was far from injured, but it stung enough to make her reach around and grab her tail in reaction.

Grabbing two handfuls of gravel and dirt from below, the cloaked man sat up and tossed them right into the hellhound’s eyes. As she bent back, the man seized the opportunity by shoving the beast off his torso. He scrambled to his feet as the monster fell to the ground, rubbing the refuse out from her eyes with her two fuzzy paws.

The man’s cloak flapped behind him as he took off, gravel flying out from under his boots with each step. Sitting back up, tears ran down from the hellhound’s bloodshot eyes as she watched the cape of the man’s cloak around a turn in the path, disappearing behind the trees.

The hellhound flipped back to her feet, snickering all the while. Her tail and eyes stung but she neither injured or angry.

‘Oh… I haven’t felt this worked up in a while.’

Her eyes blazed like an uncontrollable wildfire, her tail wagging back and forth.

Her nose twitched, cementing his musky scent into her mind. She wanted him. A fire burned in her core, aching for the man’s love and affection. Settling down on all four paws, she couldn’t help but start breaking out into laughter. In spite of her intentions, it was a playful, joyous sound. 

“The fun is just getting started, babe~”

---

“Fuck, fuck…” the cloaked man panted, continuing to speed down the gravel path. “How did a monster like that even get this deep into Legion territory? Why didn’t the border guards stop her!?”

Coming to another sharp turn in the path, the man skid to a halt and spun on his heel, changing direction before he resumed sprinting away dashing to put distance between him and the hellhound.

‘Alright, calm down… where she came from doesn’t matter, getting away from her does… I can’t try to cut through the woods, I’d be easy to track and the overgrowth would slow me down more than it would her.’

The man ducked under a thick branch looming over the path just as the thought crossed his mind, not letting it slow his pace in the slightest.

‘Is there a pond or something nearby? I don’t know if hellhounds can swim, but it’d at least throw her off my trail and mask my scent. I don’t have enough time to reach the coast or any town before she could-‘

From out of the woods in front of him, the hellhound burst forth, landing on her hind paws.

“-catch up.” the cloaked man grunted out in frustration, taking a step back.

All manner of twigs and leaves were caught up in her fur, but that mad glint in her blazing eyes told him that she couldn’t care less about that. Slamming one fuzzy paw forward, her tongue poked out from her mouth and licked her plump lips.

“Not bad, babe. I won’t underestimate you again, though.”

Doubling back, the man reached into his cloak, pulling out a dull shortsword. It looked barely serviceable to skin a deer, much less be used as a viable weapon in combat.

“Oh my~ I thought you said you knew fighting back was pointless? Just give up… or go ahead and fight back. It’s more fun that way!”

“I’m sorry.” the man muttered, shaking his head back and forth, “I didn’t want it to come to this. I never wanted to kill another monster again… but there’s still something I gotta do, and I can’t let you stop me.”

The hellhound had a good chuckle at that, “Sorry, babe. Hate to burst your bubble, but you can’t beat me. Especially not with that little butterknife.”

“We’ll see…” the cloaked fellow growled, grabbing the hilt of the shortsword with both hands and holding it at his side.

The man didn’t budge an inch. Standing perfectly still, with every muscle tensed and breath drawn, he waited patiently for the hellhound to make her move. For all it was worth, the black beast found it rather amusing.

“Fine… I’ll bite!”

Pushing off the ground with a single paw, the hellhound burst forward with her claws pulled back, ready to sweep forward and smack the man into the dirt.

‘Now!’

Grabbing hold of the hem of his cloak, he ripped it from his body and hurled it forward with all his might. The black cloth landed on the hellhound’s face and effectively blocked her view. Stopping in her tracks, the hellhound grabbed hold of the cloak around her head, digging her claws into the fabric and ripping it in half.

But when it was gone, the man had already made his move. Stomping forward and ending up standing right before her, he reared his shortsword back, aiming it at her head. He was ready to thrust it forward, to put an end to his pursuer. Yet he stopped at just the very last moment.

‘Damn. What the hell is wrong with me?’

The man thought she was like a kid in a certain kind of way. Playful, in a regard. Not a care in the whole wide world. Even as he aimed his blade towards her, she still wore a silly grin, beaming at him like he was her best friend.

No matter how much rage and hatred he mustered up, he just didn’t have the stomach. It wouldn’t have even mattered if he did. The hellhound ripped that cloak off so fast she could have easily broken his ribs before he had a chance to finish her.

He was only able to step up to her and rear his sword back because she allowed him to. He dropped to a single knee, his shortsword soon following and assuming it’s rightful place in the gravel and dirt next to him.

“I… I can’t. I couldn’t. You win. I never even stood a fuckin’ chance. Just do whatever you want with me…”

“Really?  You’re just going to give up?” the hellhound gasped, incredulously narrowing her gaze at the man, “Aren’t you scared I’m going to eat you or something?”

“Heh… I may have been born in Legion borders, but I don’t buy that bullshit… well, not anymore, at least…”

The man seized up when she grabbed him by the chin, placing one of her claws to the heavy lump in his throat. he could have easily slit his throat. And staring into those horrifying infernos she called eyes, he had every reason to believe she just might.

Without the shadows of his hooded cloak masking it the hellhound wasted no time in drinking in the sight of his face. His hair was a wild mess of iron-gray, the same color an old man would have, but his face showed off his youth. He sat on the fine line between rugged handsomeness and gnarled, a commoner having clearly witnessed his fair share of mayhem.

The heavy bags under his eyes showed that he hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in quite awhile. He hadn’t shaved in awhile either, as evidenced by the beginnings of a scraggly gray beard on his cheeks. He was somewhere in his mid-twenties, no doubt.

“So… what’s your name, babe?”

“Aaron. My name is Aaron.”

The slightest blush appeared on the hellhound’s cheeks, her perky tone dropping for just a moment, “Aaron, huh? It suits you. I… I like it.”

The man’s eyes burst open as the monster dropped to her knees and pulled his chin down in a single swift movement, locking their lips together.

Pleasantly surprised, Aaron could feel his skin tingle and his mind melt as her tongue invaded his mouth, sharing her sickly sweet flavor with him. Her overwhelming heat flowed from her tongue and spilled down his throat, wrapping him in a cloak of warmth. Just as he could feel himself starting to lose control, she pulled away, a trail of saliva still connecting them.

“Nice to meet you, Aaron. My name’s Valerie.” 

---

‘What the fuck am I doing?’

Aaron couldn’t help berating himself as he stared blankly at the cave wall in front of him. Valerie had dragged him further down the path then off from it, breaking through the woods and eventually leading him to a small underground cave she called home.

She had been squatting in the cave for a few months, apparently. The place was littered with her various ‘treasures.’ Chewed-up animal bones, a wide range of broken craftsman tools, empty bottles, and various other containers, all lined up in a row. All were some manner of junk she had taken an odd interest in.

Aaron was seated next to a fire pit, the soft rays of the setting sun shining through a hole in the cave’s roof. While the stone below him was moist and cold, Valerie graciously provided him a stack of poorly stitched animal furs.

‘At least they’re dried properly…’ he thought to himself, settling deeper into the bear fur he was seated atop of. Valerie had left him alone, saying she wanted to go hunt some fresh meat for dinner.

Looking back towards the sloped entrance to the cave, he briefly thought about running away… but decided it’d be best not to. He had no idea how deep into the forest she was or how long she’d be hunting. Valerie could have found him missing a minute after he left for all he knew, then when she inevitably hunted him down, she wouldn’t be nearly as gracious as she was the first time.

From what he had heard, hellhounds were trackers by nature, and horny bitches by nature even more so. Not surprising, considering they were part canine. Aaron knew Valerie wanted him and she’d hunt him down to the ends of the earth if she had too. That much was abundantly clear to him.

So, he made up his mind. He’d sneak away while she was asleep, wash away his scent with the coast, and reach the nearby town of Tellum before she even awoke. It wasn’t exactly a flawless plan but as long as he managed to put a few hours distance between them, he knew he could make his escape.

But at that moment, he knew he’d have to just wait until she returned and give her what she wanted. He could only pray to the gods he wouldn’t lose sight of his goal in the incoming haze of lust.

‘Well, at least I’m getting a free meal.’

Having nothing better to do with his free time, Aaron began making sure all his gear and clothing was up to snuff. He sharpened his old shortsword the best he could with his whetstone, laced his boots, patched up several small holes on the back of his shirt and the knees of his pants. There wasn’t anything he could do for his cloak. It’d been torn clean in half and had five large holes punched in each side, making it effectively worthless.

Grunting in frustration, he tossed it to the side. He figured he’d just have to buy a new one at Tellum.

A few idle minutes later, Aaron was startled when several dead rabbits landed at his feet. They were all flayed and mangled, their fur ripped up and gushing blood all over.

From his seated position, Aaron’s eyes met Valerie’s long, toned thighs. Looking her up and down, he saw that both her fur and skin were caked in a filthy, sticky mixture of blood and dirt. And that was to say nothing of the rabbit twitching between her jaws.

She spat the poor creature atop the rest of its brethren. The bunny convulsed a few more times before slumping over and passing on.

“What? I had to dig down in their hole to get ’em.” she said, blood still running freely from her mouth and dripping from her chin.

While the scent of the forest and sweat still stuck to her, she smelled almost overwhelmingly like a slaughterhouse. The stench was so strong that it clung to the back of Aaron’s throat. He could taste the bitter iron flavor of it.

To the young man’s surprise, however, he wasn’t repulsed. In fact, under the stench of all that grime, the aroma of fresh burning hickory tickled his nostrils.

‘Is… that her natural scent?’

He would’ve thought a hellhound would smell like sulfur or something else of the fire and brimstone nature, not something so pleasant and earthy.

‘No. I’ve got to stay focused. Give her what she wants, then I’m out of here. Just one night.’

“Bon appetite.” she laughed, kicking the dead bunnies into a pile.

“It’s going to be harder to skin these after you mangled them like this…” the unamused Aaron mumbled, picking up one of the dead creature’s by its floppy ear, the appendage only barely still attached to its scalp.

“Oh. I’m sorry, babe… you’re not mad at me, are you?”

“No. I’m not mad.” Aaron assured her, taking his gaze from the rabbits to the fire-pit in front of him, “You want to go gather some wood to get the fire going while I’m skinning the rabbits, or do you want to-”

“Are you kidding? I’m a monster, but I still have some manners. We’re both wayyy too dirty and smelly to have dinner together…”

Blinking in surprise, Aaron lifted up his arm. He sniffed under his pit, then retched in disgust. He hadn’t taken notice he smelled like an old sweat rag. That shouldn’t have been much of a surprise, after all that running and sweating he did, not to mention he hadn’t had a good wash in a while.

Enveloping his wrist with her padded paw, Valerie yanked Aaron to his feet, dragging him back towards the sloped entrance to the cave.

“H-hey! Where are you taking me?!”

“We’re going to take a bath~!”

---

‘Oh gods. Its really coming to this, isn’t it…?’

“You’ll help me wash my back, won’t you, babe~?”

“O-of course, Valerie,” Aaron responded with a nervous stutter. Hellhounds were ferocious creatures, and while Aaron was unlucky to have run into one in the middle of Holy Legion territory of all places, he tried looking at the few positives of the situation. Most of her kin would’ve pinned him down and raped him on the spot.

She, for whatever reason, was attempting to seduce him, albeit quickly and with all the subtlety a woman of the night would use to try and wring coin out of her clientele.

Valerie had dragged him to a nearby brook. The instant he saw the gentle, still waters reflecting the rays of the setting sun,  he knew it was the place she’d make her move. It wasn’t very deep at all, only about three feet.

Valerie wore practically next to nothing in the first place. Some sort of odd set three-pronged metal bits covering her breasts and a simple pair of black underwear. They did very little at keeping her modesty, but Aaron could still feel his loins stir as she undressed.

Aaron’s gaze was drawn as she moved her paws over the metal bits clinging to her breasts. Waving her hands over them and letting them fall into the grass, her dark nipples were exposed to the chilly air.

But the spike in adrenaline he got from that was nothing compared to the one he got next. She slowly shashaed around, dropping her underwear an giving himd an eyeful of her plump, naked behind. Unfortunately, his view was soon blocked by a dark and fluffy tail.

“Such a naughty boy… do you want to go ahead and start with me all covered in guts and mud?”

“U-uh… no! Of course not!” Aaron stuttered, his face turning red the instant he was caught. Looking around, he found them and only them for as far as the eye could see… nothing but grass for miles around and the woods behind them, “Uh… Valerie? Nightfall is coming soon. Don’t you have a tub and spot to heat up the water around? I’ll catch a cold bathing outside, you know.”

“Don’t worry about that, babe.” she snickered, stepping into the water, “I’ll keep you warm… I promise.”

At that, two small streams of flame appeared at the corners of her eyes. Aaron’s own eyes went wide as he doubled back from the spectacle.

“Whats wrong? Are you scared of fire or something?”

“N-no… I’m fine. J-just hold on a second, alright?”

Aaron had undressed in front of a few women in his life, but never in front of one of such otherworldly beauty and power. It made him almost feel like a stuttering virgin all over again.

“C’mon, show me some skin, babe!” Valerie snickered.

“Alright, alright…” Aaron muttered, first taking off his white, long-sleeved tunic. Underneath that lay a collection of various scars from what appeared to be a variety of different bladed weapons… but they all paled in comparison to the large, white scar across his abdomen. He must have taken a stab from a sword at some point or another. 

The scar may have been nasty, but what really drew Valerie’s eyes was the thing wrapped around Aaron’s neck.

“Oh, is that a seashell necklace? It’s so pretty…” Valerie muttered, laying eyes on the trinket.

The necklace’s frame was nothing but a thin leather strap, but it held an assortment of shells, each one immaculately shaped and gorgeously colored. 

“Its a gift… from my niece.” he explained with a deep sigh, removing it and setting it atop his tunic. He unlaced his boots and kicked them off, then removed his wool socks.

Next to go were his plain brown trousers, leaving him in nothing but his loincloth.

“Woohoo, take it all off!” the hellhound cheered with a wolf whistle.

“I’m not  a showgirl…” Aaron grumbled indignantly, removing them and tossing them into the pile. Now naked as the day he was born, Aaron’s face lit up as he felt Valerie’s gaze home in on his manhood.

All pretenses of modesty had vanished. The deep blush still on his face, Aaron picked up his washcloth and soap and strode forward, shivering as a cold breeze blew by and sent a shiver down his spine.

“Hurry up, babe. Like you said, you’ll catch a cold out here!”

Valerie moved to the side as Aaron settled down into the water, immediately regretting stepping in as the stream washed ice-cold water all over his body.  

‘Cold, cold, too freakin’ cold…’ Aaron mentally screamed at himself, ready to spring out of the freezing water. But just as he was about to evacuate, two paws wrapped around his chest, keeping him firmly locked in place.

The deep chill freezing Aaron to the core was soon driven out, replaced a soft warmth. Valerie’s body was hot enough to the point where it even heated up the frigid water around them.

“See? I told you I could keep you warm.” she smirked, pulling him in even closer. Aaron went rigid as he felt her soft breasts and hardened nipples poke against his back.

The gray-haired man couldn’t help but sigh in relief as he felt her soft heat flow into his core, then travel outwards from his head to the very tips of his toes. The hellhound ran her padded paws up and down his chest, sliding from under his arm and up to his shoulders. 

“Babe, you’re so pent up!” she cried in mock surprise, rubbing the knotted muscles on his shoulders. “Just relax and soak with me for a little bit…”

Valerie was the first to rinse off, taking the soapy cloth from him and scrubbing the grime from her wet, matted fur. The vile mixture of soap, blood, and mud broke off and formed clumps that drifted further down the stream.

Aaron’s hot breath steamed the otherwise chilly air as he watched Valerie. Watched her generous chest lightly jiggle as she took her sweet time washing her breasts.

Watched her dark little nipples harden and peek out from the layer of suds surrounding her fleshy mounds. Watched as she rubbed the soapy cloth down between her tits, along her navel, below the water line. The soft jerking motions of her shoulder and rippling water didn’t leave a mystery as to what she was doing.

Suddenly, a sharp, mind-numbing pleasure consumed him as he felt a soft, fluffy pad latch onto his erection. The last of his doubts shattered as the hellhound began stroking him up and down.

“Dammit…” groaned Aaron, securing himself by latching onto Valerie’s shoulders. A small giggle bubbling up from her chest, Valerie grabbed hold of Aaron’s hip with her other paw.

Valerie kept on stroking him off, biting her bottom lip as she watched Aaron’s face contort with each slow, deliberate movement. The pads on her palm and fingers were soft, warm, and seemed to shape around his cock, giving the man a unique pleasure he’d never had the privilege of feeling.

“Babe… are you going to fuck me, or not?”

That was all Aaron’s lust-addled mind needed to hear. 

Too far gone to worry about the repercussions of his actions, he grabbed hold of Valerie’s tail, using the other hand to rub against the hot lips of her pussy.

“Ah… ah…”

Grabbing a handful of his hair, Valerie yanked Aaron’s head down, smashing their lips together to force their second kiss. 

With his strained thoughts, doubts, and reservations all scattered to the wind, Aaron was finally free to let himself go wild. With one hand still tightly clutching the base of her tail, he rubbed her lips with his middle and ring fingers, feeling her hot, warm flesh open up as he played with her pussy.

Valerie broke away from their kiss, a heavy blush on both their faces. While Valerie had stopped stroking him for a moment, Aaron stopped his ministrations and stuck the very tip of his finger up inside her cunt.

It was burning hot. It clamped down on his digit like a vise-grip, and it almost felt like he was hovering it above a raging flame; for a few moments, he was afraid of being scalded.

“Eek! S-stop teasing me, babe! Or I’ll have to show you how we hellhounds fuck when we’re on to-top-… EEEK!”

He wasn’t sure what was water from the stream or a cascade of sweat anymore, but he wasn’t about to surrender to the heat. Totally swept up in the act, Aaron jammed two whole fingers up her pussy, her tight walls immediately gripping down and contracting around the prodding digits.

“Ah~! Babe, babe… you’re so dirty…” she cooed, grabbing hold of his cock with her other paw in return. 

The human shivered in delight as he felt the second paw join in to please him, the first one running up and down along his length with even greater vigor while the second wrapped around his head, surrounding his sensitive tip in her warm pads. Seeing his reaction, she began rubbing her palm against it in small circles.

While he was swiftly losing both his mind and body to lust and pleasure,  Aaron did his very best to keep up. He thrust his fingers into her cunt even faster, the walls of her pussy responding in kind by clamping down on his fingers with renewed strength.

“Ha… ha… is that all you got, babe?”

Going until his wrist was sore, Aaron fought through the pain and rubbed his thumb against her clit. Her molten walls clung to his fingers even tighter, greedily sucking on them.

She squealed, splashing him in the face with water as her hands left his dick and shot up in reaction. Val’s face was twisted in delight, her deep blush glowing even hotter.

Aaron couldn’t believe it… he was winning. At that moment, nothing mattered to him other than proving himself and bringing the hellhound to a noisy finish. Val’s lips trembled, feinting an angry face as she dunked her paws back under the water to continue the pawjob.

But it was too late for her.

Now with an evil smirk on his face, Aaron continued to pump his fingers in and out of her cunt, now rubbing against her engorged clit with his thumb. With each pump in and out, her own pace on his cock slowed down, her grip slackened.

As soon as her paws left his cock, Aaron went in for the kill. Pulling out his two fingers until everything but the tips were in, he added his ring finger to the bunch, then shoved them all back in.

“Ah~!”

The gouts of fire shooting from Valerie’s eyes flared up. With a lewd moan, her rough tongue unfurled between her lips. Her knees buckled and her toes curled up. And it was hard to tell with his hand submerged in water, but with her pussy wildly contracting around his fingers with an even greater fervor, he was fairly certain she had just cum. Her body heat skyrocketed, and Aaron was certain he saw a few gouts of steam blast up from the bubbling water.

Aaron didn’t know if his sudden confidence boost was from making a woman cum with some finger play or the fact he had made such a powerful, exotic beast of a woman cum in the first place, but either way, it still put a big, stupid grin on his face.

Valerie didn’t like that. 

“Y-you think you’re so good just because you made me cum?! I-I’ll show you, you stupid little human!”

Aaron nearly fell over in the water as Valerie placed two palms on his chest, pushing him over to the edge of the stream. Scrambling in reverse, he fell on his back and ended up laying down in the grass, legs still dipped in the cold water.

Valerie jumped on his midsection just as she had a few hours prior. Only this time, Aaron’s heart was racing in anticipation, not fear. His dick pressed up against her ass, dripping with pre and pulsing with excitement. Her heat spiked and radiated, sending a soft warmth through his own body.

“Now it’s my turn.” she chuckled, rubbing her slick lips up and down his cock. Her disposition had changed dramatically, from playfully jovial to frighteningly aggressive.

Grabbing hold of his cock with one paw, she lifted her hips up, placing his head right up to the lips of her pussy. Pressing it in with a small grunt of exertion, she slowly brought her hips down, taking in his thick erection.

Not to mention her cunt took his breath away. It was far tighter than any human woman he had been in, and the sweltering heat that burned inside her slick pussy took him to cloud nine. 

Yet, he knew deep down it wouldn’t burn his genitals. The fire and heat were intense, but it only went as far as to softly lap at his skin, never daring to go as far as searing him.

“Ha… ha… you like that, human? Well, you better keep it in until I’m finished! Got that?!”

Aaron wanted to make a snide remark with all his heart. Maybe ‘But you’ve already cum before me!’ or ‘Speak for yourself, puppy.’ But the paw laying above his windpipe that could’ve easily crushed his whole throat and leave him gurgling on his own blood told him that was a bad idea.

“Y-yes ma’am.” he stammered out.

He had a feeling he was about to see the true nature of the hellhounds he was told stories about. The wild, uninhibited side that would ride him until he was bone dry and she was filled with cum.

“C-c’mon, give it to me, you bastard!” she grunted as she rode him. She bounced up and down with no rest, spreading her legs out further, not breaking her stride in the process. 

Answering in kind, the human grabbed hold of the monster’s hips, now thrusting up whenever she slammed down. Their tempo soon broke when the hellhound changed up the pace, gyrating her hips around in a wild swivel. The burning heat in her core increased by the second, enveloping his dick in an overwhelming heat.

The hound didn’t relent, repeatedly slamming their groins together. Every time he entered her, her greedy snatch eagerly clenching down and attempting to pull him in even further.

Aaron had never experienced such an intense feeling. He realized he hadn’t a good orgasm in weeks and no proper sex in almost a year. His pent-up balls finally churning, his vision went blank as his orgasm rapidly approached. The sweltering heat encompassed him, and his entire body was going slick with sweat. Her greedy, burning snatch finally teased a reaction out of him.

Aaron’s world was flashing white.  He felt his prostate tighten, and everything melted away in a burning haze. His better judgment, his anger, his sadness- everything was gone, replaced by an irresistible need to finish inside of the hellhound.

“C-cumming…” he managed to stutter at the last moment, his fingers curling and releasing his grip on Valerie’s hips.

“Fill me up, babe…” she pleaded, biting her bottom lip and placing her hands on his chest, fully enveloping his cock deep into her hot snatch.

His seed shot into her womb in large, thick wads, quickly piling up and filling her to the brim. Valerie cried out in bliss. Even with her ridiculously high internal heat and slick walls, she felt each of the hot, sticky strands stain her womb white.

Aaron, whose eyes were nearly rolled to the back of his head, could only give a few final pants and moans as he pulled his wet, softening member out from her pussy.

Both of their bodies gave out in exhaustion, Aaron’s arms falling to the side as Valerie collapsed atop his chest. The girl rose and fell to each of the human’s breaths as his chest lifted her up and down. Both were fully content, Aaron’s twitching cock slumping over and Valerie feeling more sated and satisfied than ever before.

“T-that was… different than human women.” Aaron finally said, breaking the silence.

“Better?”

“Oh, definitely. Not even a contest.”

‘Funny’, he thought. The first joke he’d cracked in a few months, and it was too a monster that more or less coerced him into sex. Pleased with his answer, Valerie smirked and nestled into his moist, naked chest, “Let’s go home, babe. I’m starving.”

---

Returning to the cave, Aaron had quickly skinned the rabbits while Valerie set up a spit roast and ignited her little indoor firepit, the smoke rising up and exiting through the hole in the roof.

Averting his gaze up from the crackling flames, Aaron watched the red flesh of the rabbits, sizzling as they turned a delicious golden brown. The gray-haired man hadn’t eaten all day, and his stomach grumbled as the sweet aroma of the cooking meat wafted up into his nostrils.

“NRAGHF!” 

His appetite, however, was somewhat dulled as he watched Valerie from across the fire, ripping into raw, bloody rabbits with a predator’s fervor, munching up and swallowing their organs and bones along with their flesh. The only thing she left behind was bloody fur.

“What’s the point of having a fire-pit if you can warm yourself naturally and eat all your meat raw?”  Aaron asked, half curious and half sick at the gory display.

Stuffing the last bit of raw rabbit into her mouth,  a series of loud crunches and squishes sounded as she chewed it to mush and swallowed. Letting out a content breath and tapping her full belly, she answered the human, “Whew… I keep a firepit in here because sometimes I like to cook my meat for the taste.”

“So you were just too hungry to wait?” Aaron asked, rotating his rabbit around so the other side could finish roasting.

“Yup.” she replied, licking the blood from her fingers and palms.

As Valerie went to wipe herself clean, Aaron removed his share of the roasted rabbit from the fire. Three of them, all not nearly as large as he would like, but serviceable enough for a meal. 

Tearing into the hot meat, he was nearly scalded by their juices, but he didn’t care. He was absolutely starving and probably wouldn’t have a hot, full meal in a while. So he continued to tear in, staining his tunic in the process until there was nothing but bones left.

“Damn, babe. I sure wore you out, didn’t I? You must’ve been pretty hungry after our bath.”

Aaron looked back over to his right, seeing Valerie squatted down next to him, her arms wrapped around her knees and her tail merrily wagging.

“Well, that and all the walking.” Aaron grunted in response, rearing back his right hand as he prepared to toss the bones into the fire.

“NO! Let me have ’em.” Valerie cried, snatching the bones from his hand, “Jeez, humans are so wasteful…”

“Yeah. In some ways, I guess we are.” Aaron agreed, watching Valerie’s tail increase its pace as she nibbled along one of the rabbit’s ribs, “Although I don’t see the practicality of chewing on bones…”

While Aaron had found himself far more untrusting of his own species than what was healthy in these past few months, he was still wary of Valerie. Although, he realized, not as nearly as he should’ve been.

‘Yeesh… I thought hellhounds were supposed to be vicious murderers. I know most rumors about monsters are bullshit, but I’ve heard some pretty nasty first-hand stories of hellhounds. Valerie’s been pretty nice to me, especially considering I threatened to kill her…’

Aaron threw a passing glance the monster’s way, watching her bum and tail wag back and forth as she bent over to sort through some of her things. Seeing her head swivel around to look back at him, the gray-haired man quickly turned away in fear of being caught sneaking a peek.

‘What the fuck am I talking about?! She attacked me! I was just defending myself… and I only had sex with her because she would’ve raped me if I hadn’t agreed.’ Aaron scolded himself, his face contorting with inward confusion and rage.

“Babe? Is there something wrong?”

“W-what?” 

Broken from his thoughts, Aaron found himself staring at Val’s breasts. Blushing and tearing his gaze away, the man asked, “Valerie? Why didn’t you just rape me? Out of all the stories of monsters I’ve heard, hellhounds are supposed to be both the fiercest and care the least about a man’s consent.”

Valerie chewed on a rabbit femur in thought, “Well, that’s just not true. Dark elves, amazons, ogres… yeah, we’re up there with the most forceful, but I wouldn’t say we care the least about the guy’s consent. But the reason I didn’t just rape you on sight is because you were sad.”

“I was sad? Was it that obvious?” 

“Yeah. I could smell it on you. Sweat, tears, and alcohol.”

“You can smell tears…?”

“Yup! Err, in a way, I mean. My village elder said that humans emit certain pherecones when they’re upset, usually to the point of crying.”

“I think the word is pheromones. Don’t quote me on that, though. My old neighbor Gale told me something along those lines too, but I could be remembering it wrong.”

“Whatever they were, I could smell ’em on you. But even under that hood, I could tell just from looking… your eyes were so puffy and baggy… like you hadn’t gotten good nights rest in a month. They still are.”

“So? What’s your point?”

“My point is that I thought you might cheer up if I let you initiate.” she responded, crawling up behind him and snuggling into his back, “So? Do you feel better now?”

“No. I’m sorry. I appreciate the thought, though. But I really don’t feel like- UFF!”

The hellhound wrapped her fuzzy paws around Aaron’s chest, lifting him high into the air. It was almost a comical sight, the tall and muscular man being lifted into the air by the lean girl a whole head shorter than him. His back creaked as she squeezed him like a fruit.

“W-what are you doing?!”

“I’m hugging you.” she said simply, grinning up at him, “And I’m not letting go until you tell me what’s bothering you!”

“Alright… alright… I’ll tell you…” Aaron wheezed, struggling to get free before Valerie dropped him. Stretching out his sore back, he fell to his rump on the bearskin.

With her tail merrily wagging behind her, the hellhound plopped down on the bear fur next to Aaron but didn’t stay there. She deftly snuggled up to his chest before he had a chance to protest.

Figuring his chances of prying her off were little to none, Aaron accustomed himself to her tight grip and settled into her warm body.

“Alright… well, I have a brother named Douglas… h-had, a brother named Douglas, I mean…”

“I’m sorry… what happened to him?”

“He was killed. Murdered by a man named Lucero.”

“So that’s what you needed to do. You’re trying to track him down and avenge your brother.”

“More or less…” Aaron confirmed with a deep grumble, “But it’s not that simple. Lucero’s not an ordinary man…”

“Why? What’s so special about him? Tell me, babe.”

“I’d rather not. I’ve already said more than I would’ve liked.” Aaron murmured, staring blankly into the flickering campfire before them.

“Pretty pleeease?”

Aaron looked up from the campfire, their deep crimson flames replaced by the eyes of the hellhound. She was listening quite intently, her eyes sparkling with both empathy and curiosity, her ears perked up to listen, and a small smile urging him to continue.

‘She really is concerned, isn’t she?’

“With sugar on toppp….?” she mewled, pushing her breasts together and batting her eyelashes.

With a deep grumble, Aaron finally relented to her whims.

“Alright, alright, fine…  it’s funny, you’re the first person I’ve told this to. Well, it all started because our father had passed away from an illness. If that wasn’t bad enough, our family fishing boat had been damaged not long after in a storm, so Douglas and I were hurting for money something fierce…”

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