check the ballbusting updates here

Page 78 of 110 FirstFirst ... 2868767778798088 ... LastLast
Results 1,156 to 1,170 of 1644

Thread: Furry Ballbusting

  1. #1156
    Big Supporter Mythical Pain's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    In the dragon's lair
    Posts
    386
    Quote Originally Posted by SagaDC View Post
    As an aside, I went ahead and fleshed out my FurAffinity account a bit. Still figuring out how submissions work, but I re-editted the first chapter of my story (and finally gave it a name) before uploading it. My account name is SagaDC over there, just like it is here. Link is at http://www.furaffinity.net/user/sagadc/, for those who use FurAffinity.

    I actually just finished writing Part 4 a few hours ago, but I'm going to sleep on it. Need to go over it with a fine-tooth editting comb before I share it. :P
    Hooray! Good to hear. Looking forward to reading it. I'll go Watch you on FA. Are you on SoFurry as well? I'm way more active over there. They get my stories far earlier then FA, and sometimes, they get stories FA doesn't.

    FA is behind both my DitD Christmas "Outtake" with 4 great ball busts, and also the 7th true installment of DitD. Gotta post them over there eventually.

  2. #1157
    Big Supporter
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Online
    Posts
    148
    Quote Originally Posted by Mythical Pain View Post
    Are you on SoFurry as well?
    Just got myself set up there as well. Same name-

    Well, I just noticed that you already spotted the account, so I guess that makes this post moot. For anyone else on Sofurry.com, though, my account is under the name SagaDC like it is here. :P

    I must admit, though. The submission system on SF does seem to be a bit more intuitive than the one on FA.

  3. #1158
    Big Supporter Mythical Pain's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    In the dragon's lair
    Posts
    386
    Quote Originally Posted by SagaDC View Post
    Just got myself set up there as well. Same name-

    Well, I just noticed that you already spotted the account, so I guess that makes this post moot. For anyone else on Sofurry.com, though, my account is under the name SagaDC like it is here. :P

    I must admit, though. The submission system on SF does seem to be a bit more intuitive than the one on FA.
    Immensely so! That's why my stuff shows up there first lol.

  4. #1159
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    England
    Posts
    49
    Looking forward to your next instalment SagaDC!

  5. #1160
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    42
    I also can't wait

  6. #1161
    Big Supporter
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Online
    Posts
    148
    No pressure, right? :P

    But yeah, I'm re-editing it right now, so I should have it up soon. Part 4 introduces a few new characters, and the most time-consuming part always ends up being name selection. I mean, I know it's not a huge deal, but it never hurts to be careful.

    Since I've posted on SF and FA, I've also noticed that more folks tend to favor Part 1 and Part 3 over the second installment. Poor Rhaelyn, I guess he's destined for more pain than pleasure.

  7. #1162
    Big Supporter
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Online
    Posts
    148
    Apologies for the delay. While editing, I went back and changed a section of the story and a name of one character - but you know how it goes. Once I changed that, it meant that I had to change another part, and another, and then re-edit the entire thing. Maddening!

    On the bright side, Part 4 has apparently become twice as long as any of the preceding parts. Good, because it lets me fit in more story and more dialogue, but bad because it gives the overall story less punch. I'll have to see how folks feel about that.

    This chapter also marks the first time that other characters join the roster (however briefly), although one or two of them might find a recurring role in later stories. I suppose that all depends on feedback.

    At any rate, sorry to keep you all waiting so long. Rest assured that I'm posting it here first, for you fine folks, before I put it up anywhere else. I owe you all that much.

    A Gryphon's Tail, Part IV

    The Hunters

    "Kira, slow down!" Rhaelyn eased himself over another slippery, iced-over rock, leaning unsteadily against a convenient tree as he sought to regain his balance. "You know I can't keep up with you!"

    The gryphoness snorted, quietly enough that she hoped the panther wouldn't hear it, but she did slow her pace. Peering back over her shoulder, she could see that the male had indeed fallen behind by a good thirty strides, so she doubled back to rejoin him. "Well, it's not my fault that you bipeds are so slow."

    Rhaelyn grunted, leaning his weight against a makeshift walking stick as he limped forward to meet Kira halfway. There was a vague tinge of annoyance to his voice, but he was careful to mind his tone - the last thing he wanted to do was upset the gryphon again. They had lost an entire day to that nonsense already, and he really didn't think he could afford to do it again. In more way than one.

    "Don't start that again, please. You know that-" He hesitated, ears flicking back before he sighed. "You know that I'm wounded."

    Kira smirked faintly despite her best efforts to keep a straight face, her eyes sparkling and the corners of her beak curling upward ever so slightly. "Oh, you're still going on about that?"

    She turned back about, deliberately moving to keep the panther from seeing her expression before she set off again - albeit at a deliberately slowed speed, this time. "It's a wonder you catfolk still exist. A few bumps, a few bruises, and suddenly you're completely useless."

    The panther scowled some, trying to quicken his own pace so that he could move alongside the female, but with limited success. It was true, he still had some pretty nasty bruises that were slowing him down, but it didn't help that the hen felt the need to point them out every five minutes. He started to say something, but a second later he bit back the incensed retort that had almost reached his tongue. What was the point? "Hnf."

    Kira walked in silence for a few seconds, deliberately giving the male a chance to come up with a witty rejoinder or childish retort, but he didn't seem interested this time. She subtly increased her speed a half-step, her cat-like tail whipping back and forth behind her as she finally spoke up again. "A little battle damage, and it's all over. Can't fight. Can't walk. Can't breed."

    Rhaelyn winced a bit at that, but he shrugged off the hen's barb quickly. Honestly, he was getting used to them by now. The two had been limping their way through the frozen woods for the better part of the day now, and this was the fift- no, the sixth time she had made light of his injuries. At least the constant chatter seemed to be improving her language skills. She was learning so quickly that Rhaelyn might have almost been impressed, if he weren't so annoyed.

    He grumbled, shaking his head a bit as he debated how to respond to this latest jab. The hen seemed to take some warped sense of enjoyment in deliberately outpacing him, just so she could bring up his injuries over and over again each time he complained.

    "Right," the panther grunted. Passive aggression it was. "That must be it."

    The gryphon cocked her head, brow arched as she sent a glance back in the male's direction. She wasn't always keen on emotional subtext, but even she could detect the sullen note to the panther's tone. Her first impulse was to tease him about that as well, but she held her tongue. Perhaps she HAD been a little too hard on him.

    "Oh come now, Ser Rhaelyn..." Kira cooed, sympathetically. She slowed to a crawl, dropping back to walk alongside the male once more. She had bashed and bludgeoned him a good deal over the past two days, although she felt that she had more than made up for it in the interim. She had nursed him back to health twice now, and she had even backtracked a mile just to retrieve the feline's silly cloak after he kept complaining about his lack of coverings.

    She sighed, rolling her eyes a bit as she relented. "Well fine, then what were we talking about before you set in with the whining?"

    Rhaelyn curled his lip, baring a few sharp teeth as he- no, he bit back his first retort, and then his second. Drawing in a deep breath, he let it out slowly before staying on task. "We were talking about you. About why you left the Gryphon territories and became a rogue tracker."

    Kira stuck her tongue out a bit, the very tip of her pink tongue protruding from the curled edge of her beak. "Oh. Well." Head uplifted in aloof fashion, she sniffed faintly as she bumped her flank up against the male's leg - just hard enough to force him to stumble a bit. "I don't want to talk about THAT anymore."

    The panther almost toppled anyway, but he caught himself against a passing tree just fast enough to keep his footing. His weight settled back onto his walking stick as he eyed the hen. "Ah, just like that then. I want to stop talking about something and you hound me about it for hours. You don't want to talk about something, and-"

    "My rights as victor." She interjected, abruptly. "Twice over. No, make that THREE times over."

    Rhaelyn's brow furrowed, "Excuse me?"

    Kira bounded forward a few paces past the male, twisting about to walk backwards so she could look at him at the same time. "My rights as victor." She repeated, all innocence. Her eyes were wide, and her voice was a cooing tone that was all butterflies and honeysuckles. It didn't fool Rhaelyn for a second.

    "Rights as...?" He prompted her. He already knew what she meant, and what she was going to say, but he figured that he might as well let her get it out of her system.

    "As victor!" There was a renewed bounce to the hen's step, and she seemed to have no difficulty navigating over ice-covered stones even though she wasn't paying any mind to where she was going. "It's an old gryphon custom!"

    Rhaelyn rolled his eyes halfway about, but he feigned curiousity. "By the gods, it is? You don't say!" The hen's eyes narrowed a bit, and for a second the panther feared he may have layed it on a bit too thick. He cleared his throat, subtly moving his walking stick to shield his crotch. "Er, so what does it mean, then?"

    Kira eyed Rhaelyn for another few seconds, her beak clamped shut and her expression dour. She wasn't actually irritated or anything, but she did so love to watch the panther squirm. Finally, she smiled again as she continued. "When a hen and a drake have courted , there are the trials of combat."

    The panther's whiskers twitched, but he didn't say anything. Not just yet.

    "The victor takes the lead in the relationship and makes the decisions for both." Kira continued, perhaps a little too gleefully. "So, we're not talking about me anymore, because that's my right as victor."

    "Yes, well..." the panther drawled, ears flicked forward and tail lashing restlessly. "If I recall my teachings properly, I can demand a rematch whenever I see fit, and that would let me retake the dominant role."

    Kira cocked her head, staring at the male. She had forgotten that he considered himself a self-taught expert on gryphon affairs. Given how often he seemed to have his foot in his mouth, it was astonishing to actually hear him get something right. "Yes, but only once a day. Elsewise, hens and drakes would just be fighting eachother all the time and no one would ever get anything done."

    Rhaelyn snorted at that, but he didn't say anything. Not a word.

    The hen's eyes narrowed a bit, but she kept a smile on her beak. "Why, did you want a rematch? I mean, I'm up for it, but there's no telling what I might break this ti-"

    "No!" Rhaelyn's ears were bolt upright, despite his efforts to maintain a casual demeanor. He gestured emphatically with his free hand, just to make certain there was no miscommunication. "No, ha ha, no... I don't think we need to do that. We, uh, should just be focused on finding our way back to the clan territories."

    Kira practically giggled, and she made no effort to hide it. Sometimes the beastkin truly did annoy her, but then there were moments like this that reminded her why she had become so infatuated with him. Er, not that she was infatuated with him. No. She had a purely professional interest, right?

    "Right." Kira muttered to herself, absently navigating around a brambleberry bush.

    The panther arched a brow, "Did you say something?"

    "What?" Kira seemed a bit startled, but she recovered quickly. "Ah, no, it was nothing. So like I said, we're choosing a new subject. I don't want to talk about myself anymore."

    Rhaelyn allowed himself the slightest hint of a smirk, his tail lashing again as he sensed the advantage. "No. No, I don't think so. I'd like to-" He paused as he stumbled over a protruding root. Had the hen actually just guided him into that to distract him? "I'd like to talk about this. About the trial, and about you."

    "Nope!" Kira spun about, facing away from the panther again as she trotted off at double-speed. "And it's my call! Rights as victor three times over!"

    She slowed, a dozen feet out, so that she could peer back over her shoulder at the male with the sweetest smile she could muster. "Unless... rematch?"

    "Wha- no. No rematch." The panther gestured broadly with his free hand - the one that wasn't busy keeping him upright. "There are no rematches, no trials, no combat. None. We don't have any need for any combat, trial or otherwise."

    Kira stuck her tongue out again, abruptly setting down on her haunches as she found a nice rock to perch upon. She lifted a forelimb, crooking a taloned finger as she pointed toward the male. "Spoilsport. But fine. Then what's on your mind? You said you still wanted to talk about...?"

    The panther came to a halt to stand in front of the hen, and it was evident that he was a good head and shoulders taller than her - despite the fact that she was clearly trying to sit up as high as she could manage. She had even selected a raised rock to perch upon, and she was still only eye-level with his chest. "About the trial of combat."

    "Which one?" Kira chirped, eyes wide and innocent. "There are lots."

    Rhaelyn smirked, jabbing the hen lightly with the end of his walking stick. She quickly batted it away. "The one you just brought up. The trials of courtship and domination."

    The hen was suddenly evasive, her head flicked down as she studied her talons. Tch, had she chipped the tip off of her smallest...? "Oh?"

    The panther smirked a bit more openly now, and he moved in for the kill. "Well, we're not courted, are we?"

    Kira eyed the male, just a tad uncertain on how she should be answering that question. Righteous indignation seemed appropriate. "Me? To a cripple like you? Please."

    Rhaelyn's ear twitched, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly at the hen's tone, but he chose to ignore it. "So the trial of domination wouldn't apply."

    "Well, I don't know," the hen muttered darkly. "You always seem so much more cooperative after I've softened you up a bit."

    The panther edged away from the hen a few steps, but he tried to do so as casually as he could manage. It wasn't cowardice, no, he just felt that he might be a little more comfortable in a spot that was just beyond the gryphon's reach. "Er, besides," he teased. "Since when do rogues concern themselves with the rituals of proper gryphon conduct? Do you also wear the flayed skins of your rivals, and dance about under the blood moo-"

    "OKAY!" Kira threw her hands up, talons spread wide. "Okay! Gods, you're thick!" She hopped back up onto all fours, twisting about so she could set back to walking. Anything to move along. "So we were talking about me, then!"

    Rhaelyn grinned, sharp teeth and all, but he was smart enough not to gloat. Instead he set back to limping along behind the hen, his tone a soothing rumble. "Right. We were."

    "Ugh," the hen grunted. "There's not much to tell. My mother died on a hunt when I was a hatchling, and my father sold me off to beastkin traders in exchange for a beakful of ale."

    The panther nodded slightly, one corner of his mouth turned downward in a slight frown. It was a sad tale to be sure, but hardly out of the norm for a gryphon. He prompted the hen again. "Right, you said as much. He sold you to, ah- you said they were Tan'ari traders? They're a tiger clan, aren't they? From the Deserts of Desolation?"

    The hen bobbed her head, her neck craned as she scanned the skies for any sign of other gryphons. There had been no trace of pursuers for the past day, but she couldn't imagine that the Queen's hunters would have given up so quickly. "Sure, I guess. I mean they are, but I didn't- I don't spend much time with them. I, uh, have a hard time dealing with other beastkin sometimes."

    "Oh? I hadn't noticed." The panther grinned, but he balked as the hen shot him a dirty look. His expression shifted back to a carefully neutral one, and he made a point of glancing skyward as well. Nothing but clouds. "Look, Kira, you're really one of the most... personable gryphons that I've ever met."

    "Really!?" Her head held high, the female peeked back at the panther for another scant second. She wasn't entirely certain what the word meant, but it certainly sounded like a compliment! Turning her eyes front, she hastened off to the lead again, absently thankful that her feathers and fur really kept any signs of her embarassment well concealed. "Well, ah, thanks!"

    Rhaelyn snorted, shaking his head in bemusement. The fur might conceal her blushing, but the tenor of her voice made it obvious. For a fleeting moment, it almost made her seem cute. "I mean, aside from the random fits of violence and sadism, that is."

    Kira's giddiness vanished, and she rolled her eyes as she looked back to the panther once more. "Oh please, we're not going to get into THAT again, are we? I thought we agreed that it was your own fault."

    "Well no," the panther lightly tapped the hen with his walking stick. She batted it away again. "No, we agreed that the FIRST time was my fault, and the SECOND time was entirely YOUR fault.

    The hen clacked her beak with rapidly growing annoyance. The beastkin was so perplexing at times - one second he was praising her, and the next he was laying blame. And for such absurdly inconsequential things, too! "Yes, well, I thought we had ALSO agreed that it needn't be mentioned again - to anyone! - once we're out of Shardclaw territory."

    "Well I don't mean to sound like a boor, but I thought it worth mentioning." From the panther's tone, he clearly seemed to think that SHE was being the unreasonable one. "Besides, we're still IN Shardclaw territory."

    "Right!" The gryphon fumed, eyes narrowed. "We're still in Shardclaw territory, so you should keep your stupid mouth shut so you don't attract every hunter in the area. I mean, unless you've been holding back and you really CAN fight."

    "Well I-" the panther started.

    "Shut up."

    "Excuse me!?" Rhaelyn really was a bit upset, this time. Kira had teased him, sure. Taunted and ridiculed him, even, but she had never been so abrupt and disrespectful. "Now look here, you filthy-"

    "No," the hen raised a taloned finger, her avian eyes opened wide as she scanned the trees around them. "Really, shh. Shut up."

    "What? Oh!" And the panther snapped his muzzle shut, ears perked as he took the hint. His triangular ears flicked back and forth, neck craned as he scanned the trees as well. It was quiet. Perhaps a little TOO-

    "Hsst, stay here!" Kira hissed, and she abruptly darted off into the underbrush.

    "What?" Rhaelyn repeated. He peered off into the brush in the direction that the hen had gone, but he had already lost sight of her. "What!?" He repeated it again, louder this time, but apparently Kira was already well and gone, so he was left talking to no one. Had she really just abandoned him in the middle of these horrible woods?

    "You're a noisy one, yess?" A voice hissed softly, from behind him.

    "Oh, thank the gods. I thought you'd-" Rhaelyn's voice died in his throat, and his heart sank. He hadn't even finished turning about and he could already tell that he wasn't talking to Kira. It was a gryphon, but not the one he had been growing accustomed to. He froze, half turned about, taking swift stock of this unexpected visitor.

    She was larger than Kira, but not by much. She stood about a dozen hands high at the shoulder, and three times that in length from the tail to tapered beaktip. She had a distinctly serpentine quality about her movements, and he could somehow simply tell that she was, well, a SHE.

    If Rhaelyn had to guess, he'd say that she was one of the so-called dragon or serpent gryphons. Her features were avian and feline, like any of her kind, but her feathers were like glistening green and red scales - long and triangular, overlapping like layered armor.

    Rhaelyn raised his walking stick. It was no more than a branch, really, but he wielded it as if it were a sword. "Who are you?"

    "Quetzyl." She hissed, an unsettling smile on her scaled beak. A snake-like tail lashed behind her, before it crooked to gesture toward another gryphon that was emerging from the brush with far less grace, and another that followed behind it. "Kerrik. Jarol."

    The panther felt his alarm rising. One gryphon he could handle, probably. Two? Well maybe, if he still had his sword and his bag of tricks. But three? "I, ah... what do you want, Quetzyl? And Kerrik, and...? I'm sorry, I don't think I caught your name."

    "Jarol." The third gryphon snarled. He was a large one, built like a leonine tank with rippling muscles that seemed ready to burst through his taut-stretched skin at any moment. He was a drake, and an eagle-lion crossbreed like Kira, but likely three times as heavy and five times as dangerous as she was.

    "Right, Jarol." The panther took a step back, and then another as the two began to circle to either side of him. Kerrik, a tiger-striped drake slightly smaller than Jarol, said nothing as slunk to the opposite side. In fact it didn't even look like Kerrik understood the beastkin's words at all, but Rhaelyn had to admit that he didn't look like the sort who might want to talk things out. Quetzyl had stayed right at the edge of the treeline, where she had first come into view, so Rhaelyn looked back to her. "And, ah, forgive me if this sounds rude, but... what do you want?"

    "You." Her tone was abrupt, as if to leave no wiggle-room for further negotiation, but she still made no move to advance on the panther. Instead she seemed perfectly content to watch as the other two gryphons, the drakes, finished moving about into flanking positions.

    Rhaelyn glanced furtively to one side and then the other, trying to keep all three of the creatures in sight. "Why me? What could I possibly have that's so compelling?" And, before she could respond, he hastened to add- "I'll have you know, I'm much more dangerous than I look!" It wasn't much of a threat, but he really didn't want to be eaten.

    Quetzyl laughed. It was an ugly, rasping sound that had none of Kira's charm to it. "I don't want you, but the Queen does. She wants you back, for more... di-plo-macy." The word seemed foreign to her, but she sounded it out carefully as if reading from a cue card.

    "Well yes, thank you, I appreciate that she has need of-" The panther jabbed at the smaller of the two drakes, as he strayed a bit close. "Back off! Away from me!" He glanced to Quetzyl again, his walking stick held at the ready, but she still hadn't budged. "I appreciate that the Queen wants me back, and I'm flattered, but please tell her that I have to decline at this time."

    Quetzyl's laugh trailed off to a faint, grating trill as she uttered a rasping growl. "No."

    Rhaelyn frowned, half-turning as he tried to watch the larger drake now - Kerrik? No, wait, that was Jarol. Kerrik was the other one. "What, just no? Surely we can- BACK OFF!" He lashed his walking stick at the smaller drake again, as it had once again tried to creep closer while his attention was elsewhere. It hissed and snarled at him, but cautiously backed away before it could be struck.

    The female straightened up, a forked tongue briefly flicking from her jagged beak as she studied her foretalons. The casual gesture reminded Rhaelyn of Kira's mannerisms - but again, Quetzyl wasn't nearly as cute about it. Her hissing voice was entirely impassive, now. She almost seemed bored. "No."

    "There's room for discussion here, uh... Quetzyl, was it?" The panther lowered his walking stick some, but the fingers of his empty paw curled so that he could lightly trace his thumb against the red-stoned ring gracing his smallest finger. "The Queen wants me alive, I assume, and if your friends here try to take me by force then I might just have to let myself die instead."

    Quetzyl arched a scaled brow, her wings ruffling behind her as she considered that. Had he just threatened her? Or, well... no, he had threatened himself? It was all very confusing, and made that much more confusing by the fact that she really hadn't mastered the beastkin tongue. She had never really had the patience for it. "Ah, yess?"

    "Right, and we've established that no one wants that." Rhaelyn concluded, eyes sliding back off of the female so that he could watch Jarol- no, that was Kerrik. Kerrik seemed to love trying to slip about behind him, and the panther was finding that to be a very unsettling habit. "So really, the only thing to do is to let me go, and- and then you can tell the queen to send a hand-written letter of request to the House of Clan fa Soren, and an adjudicator can..."

    "No." Quetzyl snapped her beak shut with a loud clack, adding a distinct note of finality to the clipped syllable. This conversation was stupid, and the panther was starting to make her head hurt with all of his stupid words.

    "Well," the panther stated mournfully. He found himself really wishing that he had his sword - and he was really beginning to wonder where Kira had wandered off to. "It was worth a try."

    "You talk too much." This came from the largest of the gryphons, the brooding hulk that was called Jarol. Apparently his patience had reached an end as well, because he suddenly began loping forward to close the distance between himself and his prey.

    Rhaelyn took another step back, but Kerrik swiftly moved to block any avenue of retreat. "Well yes, I've been accused of talking too much on occasion-" he rambled, "but really, I just think we need to- HA!"

    A soft snap of the panther's fingers sounded out, followed swiftly by a hollow crack of thunder, and the entire clearing was abruptly engulfed in a wave of fire. Quetzyl's wing and forelimb shot out to shield her face from the intense wave of heat, but Jarol and Kerrik weren't nearly as lucky. Caught just a few feet from their supposed prey, they shrieked as their feathers were set ablaze and the world burned around them!

    The panther didn't waste any time, since he knew the spell would last for but an instant, and even before the glowing stone on his ring had gone black he was already springing into action! The flames had already dwindled, but they had been intense enough to sear a nearly perfect circle into the surrounding terrain, leaving only a single patch of unscorched dirt at it's center.

    Rhaelyn stepped out to the left first, ash and charred wood crunching underfoot, and he strode swiftly toward the largest gryphon. It sent a twinge through his gut as the rapid movement reminded him of each and every bruise on his person, but he ****** his focus elsewhere. Without slowing at all, he swung his walking stick smartly into the stunned drake's throat-

    -and the branch promptly snapped into three pieces. This left him holding less than a foot of dry wood, but the important thing was that it had gotten the job done. Now the drake was choking for breath, blinded by fire, and lashing about aimlessly as he tried to fight back!

    Behind the beastkin Kerrik rolled back to his feet, smoldering but no longer ablaze thanks to his swift reflexes. With an inarticulate snarl he hurled himself at the panther's back - only to be intercepted by twenty stone of fur and feathers. The gryphon- no, two gryphons crashed into the brush and out of sight.

    The panther's eyes widened with surprise, but understanding swiftly set in. "Kira!"

    "Rhaelyn, run!" Kira thrashed and tore at the struggling drake and he lashed out at her in return, with both of the creatures quickly becoming bloodied by the exchange. Kira was on the winning side of the conflict for the moment, but she knew her lead would only last as long as the tiger-striped drake remained disoriented.

    "Kira, I-whoof!" The panther's words were cut off as he was bowled over, and he hit the ground hard. His head struck smartly on an errant stone and charred shards of wood cut into his back as Quetzyl planted both of her forelimbs firmly onto his chest.

    "Yess, run!" The hen hissed viciously, although she clearly had no intent on letting him go anywhere. "Sstupid beastkin!"

    "Off me!" Rhaelyn grunted, abandoning the quarter of a walking stick that he still had in his grasp, in favor of grappling with tooth and claw. It was almost laughable, though, his own claws being only a tenth the size of the hen's talons - but at least he was fairly certain she wasn't willing to kill him. Or, uh, that she wasn't SUPPOSED to kill him, anyway.

    Quetzyl was nonplussed but also incensed, and her first impulse was to gut the squirming panther. But no, if she gutted him, then the Queen would almost certainly gut her in turn - so she showed as much restraint as she could while she viciously cuffed the beastkin on the jaw. His claws were small but they still stung, and her patience had long since dwindled to nothingness.

    The panther almost went limp on the spot, the blow striking hard enough to loosen a tooth and send stars swimming across his vision. Another blast of fire, one that he had been intending to shoot across the hen's face, instead went wide before set a swathe of the snowy forest ablaze. Kira had to duck just to avoid being scorched by the errant jet of flame. "Hey!"

    Kira might have been upset by the errant spell, but Quetzyl was even less pleased. Although the spell had missed her, it had still been enough to send her reeling back several steps, but she was quick to close back in. Perhaps it was true that she couldn't kill the panther, but surely the Queen couldn't complain if he was tenderized a bit, could she? Or maybe missing a few pieces?

    The serpentine gryphon's predatory mind worked quickly - the panther was disoriented, and she could certainly keep bashing him in the head to keep him that way, but then he might die from being bashed in the head too much. She could gouge her talons into his muscles, but no, then he might run out of blood. She couldn't help but snort derisively at that thought - beastkin really were disgustingly fragile creatures.

    He was favoring his wrist, possibly from an older injury, so she went for that instead. Taloned fingers wrapped about the limb and twisted until she heard the joints pop and the feline yowled beneath her. Her eyes raked down along his body as she sought out any other weaknesses to exploit, and she quickly noticed that he seemed to be favoring another injury at his-

    An ugly smirk slipped onto Quetzyl's jagged beak as she suddenly understood why the male had been limping, and she balled up her taloned fingers into a scaled fist. With the speed of a striking snake her forelimb shot out, driving her knuckles viciously into the crux of the beastkin's legs. The panther yowled again, albeit in heightened pitch, and he bucked violently against her.

    For Rhaelyn, it was like the world had just burst around him - he had been struck in the genitals before, certainly, but rarely with that level of malice or intensity. It was like he had been kicked in the gut with a hobnailed boot, and he could already feel bile rising in his throat. His eyes bulged in the sockets, ears bolt upright and then slicked back against his skull in the span of a fleeting second, and his jaw snapped shut so fast that he almost bit off the tip of his tongue.

    He really wanted to fight back, but that suddenly seemed to be a thousand times more difficult. The pain in his wrist, already sprained and now probably dislocated, was agony - and the throbbing in his balls was even worse, as if they had just been trod underfoot by a careless centaur. It was a horrifying sensation as the pain bloomed through his gut and into his tensed muscles, and for a moment he really did feel like he might die.

    And then she punched him again.

    The panther shrieked this time, as Quetzyl's sharp knuckles crushed into his fragile eggs with even greater precision. She had torn aside the remnants of his cloak with her first punch, and now she had one eye fixed on her targets as she mercilessly pummeled the dangling organs. She was nowhere near as naive as Kira might have been, when she had first chanced upon an accidental strike to the male's genitals. Quetzyl knew EXACTLY what kind of response it would get, and what kind of damage it would do, and she was more than happy to take advantage of that.

    Rhaelyn bucked again, only held in place as the serpentine hen threw herself halfway across his body. His eyes rolled back, his lip curled, and foamy flecks of bloodied saliva sprayed from between his tightly clenched teeth as the panther's lungs emptied in an instant. He found that he couldn't breath - the hen's fist felt like a meat tenderizer, and her knuckles each drove a spike of pure agony up into his gut as she gleefully set about grinding them into his impossibly sensitive flesh.

    "Hhurtss?" Quetzyl practically spat at him, twisting her body to keep it atop the thrashing male. She could feel his glands trapped under her forelimb, like two beetles desperately trying to escape the crushing pressure, and she tensed her muscles as she ground them even harder against the bone of his pelvis. The Queen be damned, she was going to teach this upstart a lesson! "Goood!"

    She gave the male's crotch another harsh rap with her knuckles, before scrabbling for a handhold. Her talons raked against furred flesh, almost hard enough to split skin, before she managed to trap the panther's kittenmakers in the palm of her hand between her scaled palm and the smooth contours of her clawed fingers.

    "N-... no, don't!" Rhaelyn was breathless, but his rising panic gave him a voice - albeit cracked and pitched with desparation. He had felt a female's fingers wrapped about those tender spheres in the past, on more than one occasion, and nine times out of ten he knew exactly what was to follow.

    "Oh yessss," Quetzyl hissed gleefully, and she bore down on the handful with all the strength she could muster. Instantly, the panther was rigid with pain beneath her, and his protests choked off to a shrill whimper. This just goaded her to squeeze even harder, and within seconds she could see taut bubbles of nutflesh welling up between her straining fingers as she crushed the life out of them.

    "Nnhh... ohh gods, oh gods... stop...!" Rhaelyn didn't have the breath to scream anymore, so he whispered instead, repeating the same mantra of pointless phrases as his thrashing grew weaker by the second. It was like his testicles were caught in a vice - a particularly vindictive vice, that knew just how to grind his berries to a pulp without tearing them off entirely.

    Quetzyl wrenched at her grip, twisting and yanking the firmly trapped gonads away from the male's bucking hips until his lightly furred sac was stretched tight. Her fingers were clenched so firmly that her entire fist was trembling, but she still reveled at the sight of the panther's swollen gonads bulging from between her talons. She could have ********* him almost without effort, but this was so much more satisfying. "No godss here, sstupid cat!"

    "Rhaelyn!" Kira sprang to her feet again, but she gasped as she was dragged back to the ground by her opponent. She couldn't see what was happening, but she had heard his blood-curdling shrieks. Now that they had gone quiet she could feel fingers of cold dread gripping at her heart, and it gave her new strength.

    Kerrik was bloodied, but he was still stronger than the smaller hen. She had torn ragged holes in his side, bruised his ribs, and gashed his forehead open but he was still fighting like a rabid badger. Kira lashed her talons against his face again and blood filled his eye, but he managed to slam the hen down onto her back before moving in to gut her.

    "Nf, Rhae-" The hen twisted, and she kicked a hindpaw up as hard as she could. Her heel crushed into the drake's low-slung sheath with enough force to crush it up into his muscled abdomen, hard enough even to lift his hind legs a good half-pace off the ground.

    The drake's face twisted, his good eye clenched shut as he stumbled unsteadily. It was like a swift kick to the gut - well no, it WAS a swift kick to the gut - but slightly worse. He was already woozy from blood loss and now there was a sickly nausea running through his insides and seeping insidiously into his knees. He swiveled his lower body away from the hen's legs in an effort to avoid being kicked again, but as he did she tore her talons across his face again. Blood colored his beak, spraying into his good eye and compounding his blindness.

    "Hsss, bitch!" It was the first time Kerrik had uttered a word, and it was in the gutteral language of the gryphons. The word was a common profanity, co-opted from the canine beastkin of Amazonia, but from his tone the meaning was clear.

    Kira sneered as the drake reeled back, blinded, and she rolled beneath him again as he tried to find his footing. Beak ducked down, she carefully picked out her targets before launching both hindpaws up this time. She would have to thank Rhaelyn later, for helping her come up with the move.

    Kerrik's eyes went wide, temporarily blinded or not, and his slit pupils shrank to half their normal size as he felt the hen's heels hammering up into his genitals. One thick footpaw missed the target entirely, thumping into his inner thigh and leaving a nasty bruise, but the other struck home - lower than the first strike and dead-center on his tight pouch. Agony exploded through his gut and pain through his loins as he was physically lifted off the ground once more by the brutal kick.

    Kira rolled back to her feet, panting as she watched the drake collapse heavily onto his side. He was twitching some, but the fight seemed to be kicked right out of him and his beak was working almost silently - oh yes, that sound was familiar. Like the panther's mewling, but perhaps a bit squeakier given the avian part of Kerrik's lineage.

    The hen allowed herself a scant second to enjoy the sight, but she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. One kick was all it had taken? At least with Rhaelyn she could generally count on getting a decent workout- oh! Oh gods, she had forgotten Rhaelyn!

    Kira hastily hooked her talons into the drake's side, ripping through flesh and muscle to hobble the unfortunate gryphon while he was helpless. It was hardly sporting, but there wasn't much room for mercy on the battlefield. Once she was satisfied that he wouldn't be able to chase after her she twisted about and bounded back into the clearing. "Rhaelyn, I'm coming!"

    The larger drake, Jarol, moved to block her path. His eyes were red and watering, but he could still make out Kira's frame against the smoldering treeline. She didn't even slow down, though, instead using her momentum to barrel into him at full speed. Her talons plunged into his chest, deep enough to grate against his ribs, and she smartly rapped the top of her skull against the underside of the males beak. He grunted and fell back, winded and bloodied, but he managed to lurch away from the smaller hen before she could press the advantage.

    The drake growled menacingly, but he couldn't help reconsidering his position. His vision was still blurred, his throat bruised and his chest torn open by the hen's claws - and now he could see that his packmate was obviously down for the count. This hen, a tiny runt of a thing, seemed to be disproportionately fierce for her size, and Jarol had to grudgingly admit that he wasn't entirely certain he could take her.

    He flicked a sideways glance back into the clearing - but he was disappointed to see that Quetzyl was still mangling the beastkin. She could have been using all this time to cart the panther off, but she seemed intent on torturing him instead - so Jarol abruptly came to a conclusion. "Fine," he growled, working his beak carefully to make sure Kira hadn't broken anything. "Fine, but this isn't over!"

    "Ugh, whatever." Kira turned away from the male as he slunk off into the woods, watching him with one eye just long enough to make certain that he wasn't circling back. She knew he might return, though, so she hurried into the clearing where-

    "Don't moove!" Quetzyl hissed, one long finger pointed at the smaller hen. "Don't moove, or I tear them off! Bleed him dry, and kill him!" She was straddled over the male, seated on his chest to keep him from escaping, but she still had one taloned hand wrapped securely about his sac.

    "I, uh..." Kira winced, her eyes drawn to the threatened area. She was familiar with that ugly shade of bruising, and that choked mewling that she could now pick out. Her tail lashed behind her in irritation. "Rhaelyn, you idiot."

    Quetzyl leered at the other gryphon, her hand lifted a bit as she gave the male's balls another firm tug. The male whimpered and squirmed beneath her, but he really couldn't find the energy for much more. "I will! He will die, and yoou will be left alone he-rre. And then what will you do?"

    "Well, uh... kill you, I guess?" Kira eyed the serpentine gryphon, taking on a very matter-of-fact tone. After she had spent all day chatting with Rhaelyn, she was fairly certain she could talk circles around this scaley moron. "Or you'll kill me, and then the Queen will kill you? Or you'll flee from Shardclaw territory, somehow evade the Queen's hunters, and then House fa Soren or their allies will kill you?"

    Quetzyl blinked, her head cocked a bit. "Uh..."

    "So really, any way you look at it you'll be dead or worse." Kira continued, plopping down on her haunches. She tried to look casual. "But you and I both know that the Queen won't make it quick, and Beastkin Clans probably wouldn't much care for the gryphon that ********* their own, so you'd probably be better off just letting me kill you. I can promise I'd make it quick."

    Quetzyl blinked again, cocking her head to the other side as she looked down at the panther. "Hss, I coould kill them too..."

    "Ha!" Kira laughed, throwing her head back. "Ha ha, right, you'll kill the Queen! Gods, how stupid are you? Or did you mean you'll kill House fa Soren? And then all the other Houses and their armies as well? A one-hen assault on the three cities of the catfolk! I'd really like to see that!"

    Kira lowered her head again, pushing back up onto her feet and taking a step forward. "Or you could do the smart thing, and just give him back to me."

    Quetzyl's scaley feathers bristled, her wings lifting as she flared them out menacingly. "Hhhsss! I could ssstill kill him, whether I die or not!" She hefted her handhold again, fingers tensed hard enough to let the nutmeat bulge from between her talons. "No clo-sssser!"

    Kira took another step forward, rolling her shoulders as she kept her tone even. Her eyes were fixed on the male's sac, though, the obvious grotesque distortion of those little glands bringing back some fond memories. "Okay, yeah. Go ahead. I'd like to see that."

    Rhaelyn groaned, desparately, his voice pitched like that of a newborn kitten. "K-... Kira!?"

    Kira clacked her beak, grinning wickedly. Or, uh, no - that was supposed to be a reassuring grin. "Oh! No, not the part where she castrates you, but the part where she takes on the Queen and your beastkinsmen all by herself." She snorted derisively, a brow arched as she deliberately goaded the other hen. "It's no wonder her packmates have already run off. She's an idiot!"

    Quetzyl narrowed her eyes, furiously, then widened them again as she peered about. Her first instinct had been to throw herself at this young upstart, so she could flay her alive, but no - sudden realization gave her reason to pause. "Rrr... Jarol? Kerrik? Come out he-rre!"

    Kira took another step forward, leaving only a dozen handspans between herself and the other hen. "Sorry, gone. Hell, I'm pretty sure I killed one of them-" And she paused, an eartuft perked as she listened. A sickly moan wafted from the brush, followed by the sound of retching. "Okay, so I didn't kill him, but he's not coming out here to help you either."

    The serpentine hen clacked her jagged beak once, twice, thrice, and then she abruptly relinquished her grip on the beastkin's delicates. Her talons twitched restlessly as she longed to tear back into him, but sadly her sense of self-preservation had finally overpowered her sadistic urges. "Hsss, fine! But thiss iss not-"

    "Yeah yeah, this isn't over. I get it." Kira rolled her eyes, padding forward to finish closing the distance between herself and Quetzyl. "The big guy said that, too."

    Quetzyl retreated, shrinking back from the smaller hen's approach, but she took a moment to vindictively plant a heel onto the panther's crotch as she deliberately trod over him. Grinding briefly, she braced herself against the tender bits and pieces before she sprang away to the edge of the clearing. "Hssss!"

    "Yeah, you already said that too!"

    Quetzyl paused at the edge of sight, her beak hanging open as she tried to think of a clever retort, but then she bounded off without another sound. Words were stupid, she thought to herself. In fact, that's what she should have said! Stupid words for stupid... stupid, *********... stupid beastkin that-

    Kira giggled as she heard the serpentine hen utter a frustrated shriek a hundred paces out. A second later, she could just barely make out Quetzyl's form as the hunter took to the sky. "Idiot."

    Rhaelyn wasn't nearly as mirthful, and he had taken the first chance he got to curl up into a furry ball of misery. He favored his wounded wrist, but the other hand was firmly entrenched against his freshly brutalized manhood as he mewled breathlessly. "Ohh, gods... nngh..."

    The hen shook her head, heaving a dramatic sigh as she padded about the male in a short circle, inspecting him for any other injuries. She really felt as if she should be concerned for the state of his genitals, but she seemed to be having a hard time taking his injuries seriously. They certainly looked intact from where she was standing, but the panther was moaning as if mortally wounded.

    "Oh Ser Rhaelyn, you really need to learn how to take care of yourself better." She sighed, her tone less sympathetic and more exhasperated than the beastkin might have liked. "I really don't see how you can afford to get yourself so bruised and beaten every time you get into a fight."

    The panther just groaned, ears slicked back and his eyes closed tight. He feebly pawed at his poor, useless nethers, and left the hen's critique go unanswered. Rhaelyn certainly could have tried arguing the point, but he was fairly certain that if he opened his muzzle he'd just end up vomiting until he died.

    "Hmf," Kira grunted. It wasn't as much fun when he couldn't talk back. For that matter, it wasn't as much fun when it was someone else who had put him on the ground. She frowned, drumming her talons against the ground as she gave him a moment to recover. "Well, can you walk?"

    Rhaelyn coughed, swallowing down the bile that was rising in his throat. He gasped harshly as he tried to even out his breathing, and after a long moment he braced his good hand against the charred ground so he could try to push him upright. His whole body trembled with the exertion and a second later he collapsed back onto the ground, unable to muster the strength to even sit up. Panting again, he moaned. "Gods, nf... n-... no, don't... don't think I can..."

    Kira groaned with annoyance, shaking her head as she looked down on the male. "Well we can't stay here, so either you're going to have to sac up-" she stifled a giggle, "or I'm going to have to drag you again. So-" She brightened as her keen eyes picked something out, and she bounded off. "Oh, hey!"

    Rhaelyn tried again, and this time he actually managing to get himself propped upright. It was a mild accomplishment, at best, but at least it was progress. "Nng... K-... Kira?"

    The hen returned a second later, dragging a cloth-wrapped bundle in her beak. She jerked her head once she was close enough, unceremoniously plopping it onto the male's lap with just enough force to set him gasping and squirming all over again. "Here you go!"

    The panther doubled, an arm wrapped over his gut. The world was swimming around him, and for the slightest second he felt that he might just pass out. Or throw up. Or both. Fortunately, he managed to find the heroic resolve necessary to keep himself from doing either, although that didn't stop him from drooling into the dirt as he groaned.

    "What?" Kira chirped, trying to feign confusion at Rhaelyn's antics. "Oh right. Sorry." She giggled, ducking her head in to snag the bundle with her beak so she could pull it back off of the squirming male's lap. It really WAS more fun when she was the one doling out the torment. "Honestly, you're such a kitten. I barely even touched you."

    The panther cringed, as even the slightest motion sent waves of agony back through his undoubtedly shattered testicles. He swallowed hard, eyes hopelessly crossed as he tried to find his voice. It suddenly seemed important to remind the hen that he rather valued his kittenmakers - although he suspected that she already knew that. She was just choosing to ignore it.

    Kira snorted, her head cocked as she watched the male squirm for a moment longer. Had the other hen really mangled him so badly? A sharp pang of jealousy shot through her, but it was tempered by the slightest hint of concern. She didn't have time to tend to the male's bruised pride at the moment, so she tried to take his mind off of it instead. "Seriously, you'll want to look at this!"

    Rhaelyn coughed a few more times, but he finally stirred. Wiping the drool from his chin, he managed to force open one of his watering eyes and fix it unsteadily in her direction. "Nf... wh-... what is it?"

    "It's your stuff!" Kira beamed. "I think that's how they followed us! You kept dropping all of your things everywhere, and it must have left them a pretty clear trail to follow."

    The panther scowled, but he didn't object to the hen's phrasing. Really, she had been the one who had left all of his things behind, but- "Oh, thank the gods, that's... ng... that's my backpack. G-... give me the bottle in the, ng..." He sat up, but gasped as the abrupt motion sent another sharp twinge through his gut. He clutched at his crotch, hissing through clenched teeth. "Top left. C- cloth-wrapped bottle."

    Kira quirked a brow, but she followed his instructions. She peeled the pack open, awkwardly fumbling with the buttons, before fetching the requested bottle. It was a long, gracefully tapered affair with a label written in- well, she didn't know. She couldn't actually read the beastkin language. It had never been a priority. Whatever it was, though, it was carefully stoppered with a runed wax seal to keep the frothy white liquid inside from escaping.

    The male eagerly accepted the bottle, breaking the seal with a claw and then guzzling down a third of the bottle's contents. Grimacing, he wiped his muzzle clean with the back of his sleeve before offering the bottle to the hen. "Ugh, disgusting. Here, you have some too."

    The hen shied back, eyeing the bottle warily. "What? Why?"

    Rhaelyn coughed again, swallowing back a bit of the vile liquid as it tried to come back up again. Although really, he was really having a hard time keeping anything down at the moment, given the roiling pit of agony in his gut. "Just drink-... look, it's a healing potion, okay? You're hurt."

    Kira looked skeptical, but she took brief stock of her person. It was true, Kerrik had torn her up a bit; claw marks were sheared along her underbelly and all the way down one side, and her left wing had gotten tattered at the joint where the wicked little drake had bitten her. The wounds were painful, but nothing had gotten through her dense musculature. Still...

    "Healing...? Well, uh, no offense Ser, but it doesn't really look like it's working..." She crooked a talon, gesturing toward the panther's swollen and discolored genitals. Rhaelyn blushed, furiously, but quickly swept what little was left of his cloak back over his nethers.

    "It's not- I just- it doesn't work that way." He sputtered at the hen. "It's not instant. Vital wounds take longer to heal than, ah... look!" He flexed his injured wrist, wincing as it made a grinding sound, but even as he moved it the bruises just dimly visible beneath his black fur were receding. A second later he flexed his wrist again, this time without difficulty.

    Kira snorted again, still looking skeptical. "So, uh, your balls are vitally wounded...? That's a shame."

    Rhaelyn closed his eyes, drawing in a deep breath before again letting it hiss from between clenched teeth. "Just... drink the potion, before I change my mind. This stuff is expensive."

    The hen snickered, but she obediently plucked the bottle from his grasp before holding it poised near her beak. "Okay, fine, but we're talking about this again later. I really want to know about how all this potion stuff works, and why your balls aren't-glk!" She choked a bit as the panther reached out to tip the bottle into her beak, the frothy liquid spilling down her throat.

    Kira coughed and gagged, pushing the bottle away after she had swallowed down a few swigs. Shoving it back against the male's chest, she balled up her taloned fist before thumping the panther's crotch. It was a half-hearted gesture, but she still hit hard enough to illicit a shrill squeak. "Ass."

    Rhaelyn, curled back up on the ground, clutched at his freshly throbbing manhood. "Nngh, gods damn it, not the balls! Hff... th-... they're still healing!" He groaned weakly, massaging his poor, aching testes. He slowly rocked back and forth, teeth clenched tight as he waited for the gut-wrenching ache to subside once more.

    "Tch, such a kitten." Kira shook her head, licking her tongue over her beak to lap up a few errant drops of the potion. Stretching out her wing, she perked up a bit as she could almost see the torn flesh around the joint healing before her eyes. "Oh, wow. This stuff is great! What is it?"

    Rhaelyn groaned, straightening up slightly as the pain subsided. Well, no, it didn't really subside so much as it dulled to the point where he could at least regain control of his arms and legs. "Nngh... t-... told you, it's a healing p-... potion."

    Kira snorted, flicking her freshly healed wing out neatly to whip the male's sac with her wingtip. He squealed and promptly curled back up. It was a little cruel, perhaps, but she had just remembered that she was supposed to be mad at him. Besides, she was sure he could take it. "No, you ass. I know it's a healing potion, but what's IN it?" She flexed her wing again, ignoring his renewed mewling and rolling about. "Wow, it's like it was never hurt at all!"

    The hen didn't really expect the male to answer just yet. She was starting to grow quite adept at gauging his recovery time. So instead, she began to take stock of her other injuries. The long clawmarks along her side were gone, and the ones at her belly had subsided to faint scars. Even the scabbed over sword-wound on her flank was gone without a trace, but her feathers were still scorched - so flying was still out.

    As the panther stirred, she eagerly leaned in. "So what is it?"

    "It's... ngh..." Rhaelyn kept his paws over his crotch this time, having apparently learned his lesson after the first two times. "Look, stop HITTING me and I'll tell you!"

    Kira cocked her jaw, eyeing the male briefly as she considered whether she should be punching him again. Nnnno... probably not, since there were still two hunters out there. "Well, tell me what it is, and I'll stop hitting you. Besides, I'm just trying to prove a point."

    Rhaelyn snorted, softly, but he finally remembered to mind his tone. "What, that you're a-" He stopped, drew in another deep breath, then continued more calmly. "That... ah... you think I should treat you with more respect?"

    The hen shook her head, grinning. "No, not that." A pause, before she nodded instead. "Well wait, yes. That too. I mean, not that specifically, but you should be doing that anyway! The point I'm trying to prove THIS time is that you can't defend yourself!"

    "What!?" The panther was incredulous, but he made an effort to curb his rising temper. "I was doing-... under the circumstances, I think I was doing fine! If I'd had my sword, or any of my other spells, I could have killed all three of them!"

    Kira stuck her tongue out, sitting up on her haunches before holding out a forelimb to help him back to his feet. "Here. Up. Anyway, that's no excuse. I don't have a sword either, and I took care of all three of them!"

    Rhaelyn took the hen's hand with both of his own, pulling himself unsteadily onto his feet, but the second he got there the gryphon's wing shot back out to smartly crack up between the male's legs, the thin bone striking with enough force to lift him onto his toes. His eyes went wide, then crossed, and then he was back on his paws and knees. "Nnnghh... oh, GODS!"

    The hen sniffed, patting the cringing beastkin lightly on the head before she pushed away from him. "That's for calling me filthy. Don't think I forgot about that."

    Kira paced about the clearing, briefly scouting the surrounding woods before she paused beside the battered male again. "But you see? Point proven! You're always so worried about being *********, but you never do anything to stop it from happening!"

    The panther coughed, hard, and for a second the hen had to imagine that it was because his balls were caught in his throat. No, wait, that's not how balls worked, was it? Er... no, of course not, that was stupid. A quick visual check confirmed that they were indeed still between his legs. Still, the mental image made her giggle.

    "Nngh, are you fucking kidding me!?" Oh, hey! Rhaelyn still had enough energy to talk back this time! Kira was actually impressed for a few seconds, before she remembered that he had just drained half a bottle of that healing goop. And he STILL hadn't told her what it was.

    Kira grinned, peering off to one side of the clearing for a moment as she caught sight of Kerrik. The tiger-striped drake was still lingering about, just beyond the treeline, but only because he was clearly out of sorts. "No, I'm not kidding you, Ser Rhaelyn. I could have ********* you, that other hen could have done it too, and honestly I'm getting a little tired of it." No she wasn't, but she certainly couldn't say that out loud. Or, uh, shouldn't. Could, but definitely shouldn't.

    "So you need some serious lessons in self-defense. Excuse me for a second."

    The hen loped over to the edge of the clearing, ignoring the panther's plaintive moans as she checked up on the hunter. Kerrik had found his way back to his feet, but he was clearly weak and hobbled, and at the moment he seemed preoccupied with throwing up in a ditch. Kira arched a brow, deliberately clicking her talons on rocks and branches as she moved up behind him - she knew that she should probably be killing him, but he seemed a little too pathetic at the moment.

    "Q-... Quetzyl...?" The drake croaked, his head still lowered into the foul ditch. His talons were gripped at the edge, to keep him poised over the pit, and his hindlegs were straight but trembling like dead leaves in the wind.

    "Nope! Sorry." Kira chirped brightly, before she kicked him over onto his side. He squawked in protest - shrieked in fury! - but none of that stopped the hen as she pinned the wounded drake down so she could get her hindpaw where she wanted it.

    Kerrik fought back, of course, but he had been badly brutalized - he was woozy from blood loss and the hen had torn up the muscles along both of his haunches. He tried to bring his talons into play, but Kira locked her own hands with his and drove them to the ground.

    "Are you going to beg?" The hen purred, letting the hopelessness of his situation sink in. He could have snapped at her with his beak - maybe torn at her face, or bitten at her throat - but it was obvious to both gryphons that Kira would see it coming if he tried. Still, he puffed up his chest with defiance and held his tongue.

    Kira wrenched him onto his back before thumping her carefully poised hindpaw into his soft spot. The drake's eyes bulged as she put most of her weight behind the blow, but he still didn't utter a sound. Scowling a bit, the hen ground her heel into him even harder. "Ugh, you drakes are never any fun."

    Kerrik cringed and the motion ran through his entire body, but he remained stubbornly silent. Not to be dissuaded, Kira bounced harder, unsteadily lifting her other hindpaw to bring even more weight to bear. She thought about asking the drake if he still thought she was a bitch, but.... well, obviously she kind of was. She couldn't really hold that against him, could she?

    The drake finally uttered an agonized squawk as she bounced harder still, his beak wide as his eyes rolled back into his skull. Kira grinned, "Oh. Guess I can." She paused and peered about, because for a second she really thought that someone - Kerrik, or maybe Rhaelyn - would respond to her random verbal statement. It really didn't feel right when no one commented on it, but that was probably normal. Right?

    "Right!" She chirped to herself. It was always nice when she could agree with someone, even if it was just herself. She leaned down, fixing one predatory eye on the shivering drake as she felt his nethers slosh underfoot. "So... uh..."

    Kira blinked. "Did you just pass out? Hello?" The hen huffed indignantly, but the drake did indeed appear to have fainted dead away, and even the hardest bounce and grind of her body barely illicited another soft squeak.

    The hen slowly lowered her other hindpaw, easing her weight off of Kerrick's goods. As she did, she absently wriggled her toes against them, rolling his berries beneath the pads of her foot- no, that wasn't right, was it? His berry, singular. Brows arched, Kira gaped her beak as she worked her toes a bit more vigorously. Had she...?

    "Kira? Is everything alright?" Oh, hell! Apparently she had completely misjudged the panther's recovery rate this time. She eased herself off of the drake entirely, then went about snapping the bones of his wings with her talons. It may have seemed cruel, but she felt it was a small mercy given that by all rights she should have torn his throat out and been done with it.

    Rhaelyn winced, but he stayed back to let the gryphon work. His backpack was dangling from one shoulder and his sword hanging from one hip. It felt good to be armed again. His ears twitched back as the crack of hollow bones reached them. "Oh, uh... my, is that really necessary?"

    Kira snorted, stepping away from the maimed drake as she trotted back over to the beastkin. "I already told you, this is mercy compared to what I COULD have done. By all rights, I should have just torn out his throat and been done with it. He's our enemy."

    "I, uh..." The panther looked on, quizzically. "No, you didn't tell me that, but now that you mention it I suppose it makes sense. Are you sure we shouldn't just kill him, then?"

    The hen considered that, briefly, before she grinned. "No need. It will be months before he recovers," And she glanced back at the fallen drake again, before musing. "If he recovers. Maybe he won't. Who cares?"

    "That's... harsh, but I get it." The panther uttered, rubbing the back of his neck with a paw. He knew all too well just how durable a gryphon could be, having fought his fair share of them. Perhaps he was over-reacting. "I'm just surprised, is all."

    Kira brushed past him, gazing skyward as she regained her bearings. She was thankful that the other two hunters had tucked tail and run, because she was beginning to think that Rhaelyn - cute or not - really didn't have the stomach for this. "Well now you know why your Clan hired me. Any other questions? I'm sure we have all day."

    Rhaelyn started a bit at that, but he quickly followed after the hen- still with a pronounced limp, she was happy to note. He wasn't particularly happy with her tone, but he was also a little too nervous to confront her about it. It was remarkable how quickly she was able to switch from being disarmingly cute and monstrously terrifying. "Er, no. I guess not. Sorry."

    "Good," the hen snorted. She eyed the male's crotch, although he had slung his cloak back about his waist so there wasn't much to see. She really wanted to ask him about his nethers and why they were still so obviously bruised. Had they really been THAT badly injured? Did healing potions just not work on that part of the body? Or, uh, had she hit him a little too hard...?

    She held off, though. There would be time enough for that later. "And about your fighting skills?"

    The panther flushed a bit, self-consciously lowering a paw down to block the hen's pointed stare. He was starting to feel like he was back in the Academy again - all the gryphon needed was a faculty uniform and a yardstick, and the illusion would be complete. "Er, right, I suppose I could use some pointers on that regard. I, uh, understand that you have some suggestions...?"

    Kira bobbed her head sharply, the grin back on her beak. "Yes, we'll practice tonight after we've set up camp. No, scratch that, we'll practice EVERY night until you get it right!"

    Rhaelyn felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. He wasn't really sure that he liked the sound of that, and he had a sneaking suspicion that he knew what the lessons might focus on, but he wasn't about to argue with the hen. Not right now, at least. "Er... of course."

    The hen stopped, eyes wide as she suddenly remembered something. Twisting about, she jabbed the male's gut with one talon, smirking as he stumbled back several steps before righting himself. From his expression, he had obviously been expecting her to take another shot at his nethers - but she didn't want to be TOO predictable. Besides, she was saving that for later.

    "And WHAT was in that damn bottle!? Tell me right now, or I'll punch your balls right up into your throat!" It took Kira everything she had just to avoid giggling at that. Gods, the imagery! But no, she was on a roll so she had to keep a serious beak on!

    The panther fidgeted, turning slightly as he glanced about the woods. Honestly, he was thinking that he might not mind another ambush about now. "Oh, ah... well, that's complicated."

    Kira arched her brow, head cocked. She really wasn't sure why the beastkin was hesitant - was it really something that vile? That seemed a little silly, given her propensity for eating things like raw fish or steaming entrails, but the important thing was that he seemed to be faltering. "Right up into your throat." She reminded him, curling the fingers of one taloned hand into a fist as she fixed the male with a steely gaze.

    Rhaelyn flushed again, but he leaned in to whisper conspiratorially into Kira's ear. "Well, the main ingredient is a dragon's..."

    The hen blinked, her tongue flicking about the edges of her beak as he reluctantly rattled off the ingredients. "Oh?" And another second, as she let that sink in. "Oh! Uh, well... huh. I wonder how they get that."

    The panther made a face, as if the thought was distasteful. He looked back to the woods, picked a direction, and started walking. "I really don't like to think about it."

    Kira chased after him, laughing as she found a distinct bounce to her step. "Well, at least it tastes pretty good!"

    "It really doesn't!" Came the panther's reply, but he didn't look back.

    "Better than yours!" The hen chirped, giving the male her widest smile when he DID glance back at her. He seemed ready to say something but then apparently thought better of it, instead turning back to focus on trudging a path through the woods.

    Kira giggled to herself, allowing the panther his moment of stoic silence before she called after him. "Um, Ser Rhaelyn? You're going the wrong way."

    Gods, he was so thick. But... well, she had to admit that it was one of his better qualities.

  8. #1163
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    42
    I loved it I can't wait until you write more of this

  9. #1164
    Big Supporter
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Online
    Posts
    148
    A few new pictures floating around on FA:
    https://www.furaffinity.net/view/9835393/ (M/M)
    https://www.furaffinity.net/view/9846061/ (F/M)
    https://www.furaffinity.net/view/9851189/ (F/M)

    And one on a website that's been collecting Manga images:
    http://board.sweetnote.com/redcampan...05114854851002 (F/M)

  10. #1165
    Big Supporter Alec Anaconda, A1's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    660
    I’ve just managed to catch up on my reading.



    Thank you for your exceptionally good stories, Mythical Pain and SagaDC.
    Alec Anaconda

    Please click on book covers to read extracts.


    eBooks_by_ALEC_ANACONDA

  11. #1166
    Big Supporter Mythical Pain's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    In the dragon's lair
    Posts
    386
    Quote Originally Posted by SagaDC View Post
    A few new pictures floating around on FA:
    https://www.furaffinity.net/view/9835393/ (M/M)
    https://www.furaffinity.net/view/9846061/ (F/M)
    https://www.furaffinity.net/view/9851189/ (F/M)

    And one on a website that's been collecting Manga images:
    http://board.sweetnote.com/redcampan...05114854851002 (F/M)
    Some nice pictures in there! Went and Fav'd all 3 of the FA ones. Need to get an artist some day, to do me some non-anthro dragons being kicked in the balls by human women, hehe.

    Love to see some anthro coyotes getting kneed and kicked, too.

    Haven't had a chance to read Part 4 yet, but planning to do so on SF one of these days!



    Quote Originally Posted by Alec Anaconda, A1 View Post
    I’ve just managed to catch up on my reading.

    Thank you for your exceptionally good stories, Mythical Pain and SagaDC.
    Thanks, glad you enjoyed! Trying to cram a few ballbusting stories in there between DitD writing sessions lol.

  12. #1167
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2012
    Location
    Finland
    Posts
    37
    Another one of extremely rare pony pictures!


  13. #1168
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    42
    Here's a link to a video on ballbusting from ice age dawn of the dinosaurs

    http://www.reelballbusters.com/927/i...nosaurs-2009-2

  14. #1169
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Midwest USA
    Posts
    77
    Wow, nice site Jay. They also have Alex getting smashed in 'Madagascar' ^_^

  15. #1170
    Junior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    42
    Quote Originally Posted by beaktooth View Post
    Wow, nice site Jay. They also have Alex getting smashed in 'Madagascar' ^_^
    Thnx I found that website a while back but forgot th URL

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •