Chapter 042: The Lost Tribe - Part 2

Tower Floor 10

"You're alive?" asked a befuddled Sadie, pointing her rusty short sword at Carter's neck. Carter touched the tip of her sword, pushed it down to his chest, and smiled.

"Who are you?" said Captain Willis as she pushed Sadie and her sharp sword away from Carter. She blatantly looked him up and down with fear on her face.

"Just a passerby," said a hood-covered, serene-faced Carter.

"Are you with these two?" said Willis as she pointed to Cleo and Phoebe, who wear fettered at the wrists.

"I regretfully had the opportunity to meet these two, but I am not with them," said Carter as he winked at Phoebe.

Captain Willis saw this and said, "Bring her with!" She turned around, stormed to the front of this motley group, and led the way through the ravine.

Sadie walked behind Carter and pushed him on his back. He didn't move, and she fell into him.

"Ah, come on. I'm sorry I killed you," said Sadie as she pushed off Carter's back. Sadie reminded Carter of his step-sister Ivy.

Carter started walking, and a smile came to Sadie's lips.

The long trek took turns and twists down tunnel after tunnel. Carter tried to memorize the path as best as he could, but there were no landmarks, only dirt. They walked out into a large cavern filled with waterfalls and those ubiquitous glowing plants. Between the plants were holes in the walls, ladders, stairways, and inhabitants. They were living in the walls.

Captain Willis pointed to a small metal door and said, "Place them in holding until we know what to do with them."

As Carson opened the door, Sadie and Imsolo pushed the three prisoners toward the little holding room. Sadie had given up using her sword on Carter and was pushing him with all her strength. She was very small compared to him, and it was almost comical to watch.

"In you go, you big brute!" screamed Sadie. Her hands pushed against the giant's back with all the force she could muster. Her hands touched muscle after muscle, giving her an uneasy feeling of poking a Dire wolf with a stick. Carter walked in slowly, not allowing Sadie to force him anywhere. Carson stopped him and looked through his rucksack and haversack and found nothing.

"You don't have anything, do you?" said Carson as she seemed peeved.

"Not unless you want to give me something?" said Carter as Sadie grunted, pushing him with all her might toward a small bench carved into the wall. Sadie released him as soon as he sat down and fell on the bench in exhaustion next to him. The room was small but not cramped.

Imsolo looked at Carter momentarily and wondered how she got this far in the Tower without any equipment or food.

"She must have ditched it before we found her. We'll look for it later," said Imsolo as she walked out the door.

Carson forcefully pushed Phoebe and Cleo onto the benches, which was uncalled for since they weren't resisting.

Sadie was staring at Carter with her mouth agape. This woman intrigued her with her size and demeanor, and let's not forget about the resurrection.

"Sadie, your turn," said Carson as she closed the door.

Sadie's brain had a momentary spasm, and she realized they just locked her in here. She stood up with a loud moan and shouted, "It's not!" She pounded on the door several times and finally gave up. She sat down next to Carter again and looked at the floor.

"Does anyone want to tell me anything?" asked Sadie as she looked up. Sadie seemed out of place in this Lost Tribe. She seemed young and naive, but Carter knew better. All these women are centuries old.

"How does she know it's my turn? We've never had anyone locked in the holding cell before," said Sadie to herself. She stood up and started taking off her armor, throwing it into the corner.

"Just because I've been thrown into here several times doesn't mean I'm the expert interrogator," said Sadie. Her sweat-drenched shirt and skimpy underwear left nothing to the imagination. Sadie acted like a spoiled child, but her womanly figure told a different story. She sat on the bench and spread her legs apart to air out any moisture she had built up. The smell made the group of prisoners wince.

"It's going to get hot in here," she said as she sat back up. Her ample breasts slipped out from under her wet shirt.

Carter could feel his chest start to warm up. A smile came across his face, and he thought, "Not today." He peeled his eyes away from the essentially nude woman and noticed Phoebe and Cleo, the resident werewolves, still naked, were looking at him strangely.

"What's your problem?" asked Carter with a small smile.

"Are you feeling—good?" asked Phoebe.

"I do feel dog tired," said Carter as he chose his words carefully. The women seemed uneasy at being naked in front of him. They kept their legs crossed and their arms covering their breasts, unlike Sadie, who was wiping dirt and grime off her naked breasts right next to him.

Phoebe frowned for a second. "You know what I mean. Any aggression? A feeling of wanting to kill us?" said Phoebe. Sadie stood straight up and leaned towards Phoebe, excited by the banter.

"Lust?" asked Phoebe as she turned red.

"Shoot. They do know," thought Carter as he smiled. "Nope," said Carter.

A frown came over Cleo's face as she removed her arms and jutted out her impressive breasts. "No Lust?" asked Cleo.

It took a little more than that for Carter to give in to his lust, even if there was some external force somewhere exacerbating that feeling with a chest full of pleasure.

"Really?" asked Cleo again as she spread her legs like Sadie, giving Carter a full view of her naked state.

Carter felt pangs like you couldn't believe. Not only was his chest on fire, but his blood was boiling, too. A quiet voice in his head kept repeating, "Kill! Sex! Do it!" They were testing him.

"Stop instigating, Cleo," said Phoebe.

"You know that voice in your head? The one screaming at you? You can't stop it. It's controlled our lives for so long!" said Cleo.

"It is quiet now," said Phoebe as she looked at Cleo.

"What are you guys talking about? Lust? Are you all lovers?" said Sadie as she stood up and looked at Phoebe and Cleo.

"Naked women everywhere," thought Carter as he remembered Fable's quote. He stared at little Sadie's butt as it wiggled around as she talked to naked Phoebe and Cleo. The voice in his head got louder as his blood started pumping. Carter closed his eyes and refreshed his mind. The voice quieted down, and he became content.

The door opened, and Captain Willis walked in. "Sadie, out!" she screamed.

Sadie ran for the door and then remembered her clothes. She turned around and grabbed her smelly armor and underwear. Captain Willis shook her head in exasperation and looked at Carter.

"See you in the morning, ladies," said Willis sarcastically while closing the door behind her.

"What did she mean by that?" said Phoebe as the lights went out.

It became awkward inside the room as no hint of light shone in, and a small whimper broke the silence.

"I don't like this," said Phoebe to Cleo.

A spark lit up the darkness and grew into a small ball of light. It floated to the ceiling and stopped.

"Is this you?" said Cleo as she looked at Carter.

Carter just shook his head up and down and pulled out some cooked Manna. He threw one in his mouth. He looked at Cleo and Phoebe, who were practically salivating like dogs.

"Want some," said Carter, pulling out a few handfuls. They both jumped off their benches, sat next to Carter, and grabbed the food. The food didn't last too long.

Phoebe playfully grabbed Carter's haversack and looked inside. "You wouldn't happen to have any clothes in there for us?" asked Phoebe.

"You haven't ever been around a male, have you?" said Carter.

They both looked at each other and frowned. "No," said Phoebe.

"Isn't Carom a male?" said Carter.

"Not really. He gave that up when he became the Tower Master," said Cleo.

Carter touched Phoebe's hand and moved it off his bag. He pulled out two red robes, taken from the Mansion, that were too small for him.

Phoebe's eyes went big, and she snatched the robe cannily, slipping it over her slender body.

"That's a Red Spider Monk's robe!" gasped Cleo as she leaned over Carter and grabbed the other one.

"Aerofat used to wear them," said Phoebe as she ran her hands up and down the robe.

"You know Aerofat?" asked Carter.

"Why— do you know her?" asked Cleo. The robe muffled her voice, which was caught around her neck. She was having trouble squeezing her robe past her oversized breasts.

"I met her a while ago," said Carter, leaving some details out, like how he killed her doppelganger and became the real Aerofat's master. He rubbed his Thrall symbol on his hand.

"She was our mentor and friend," said Phoebe.

Carter became quiet after that revelation. The real Aerofat never reached the top of the tower, so they didn't know that one. They must have met the one who tried to kill him: The Doppelganger Aerofat that Carter killed.

Carter lay down on the bench and fell asleep. He had many questions to ask Phoebe and Cleo about his lycanthropy, but it could wait till tomorrow.

"Wake up, Phoebe and Cleo! Someone is here to see you," said Captain Willis as she entered the room. She had a big smile on her face.

Behind her, a young half-elf with long, curly red hair entered the room.

"Master!" screamed Cleo as she jumped off the bench into the waiting arms of the beautiful Aerofat. Cleo stood up slowly, grabbed Aerofat around the waist, and hugged her.

"My children, you've been through a lot! Come and tell me everything."

She slipped a look towards Carter and frowned. "We'll get to you later," said Aerofat as the door slammed shut, and he found himself a prisoner in the dark again.

Holding a magic torch, Little Sadie walked in a few hours later and brought him a plate of food. At least, that's what Carter thought it was. It tasted like dirt.

"Can you believe it! We haven't talked to anyone from Tower command in almost two centuries, and down comes Mage Aerofat, 3rd in charge," said Sadie as she sat down next to Carter. She picked a few morsels off his plate and ate them. She had a carefree attitude towards the world and didn't find Carter as scary as the Captain. She smiled several times as she looked at Carter's covered face.

"If they let you out of here, maybe I can show you around," said Sadie. Carter reached out and touched Sadie's gold, curly hair. It had been recently cut to shoulder length.

"They made me bathe and cut my hair. You should have seen me fight! It took Carson and Imsolo to hold me down!" said Sadie with a few punches in the air.

"It looks good," said Carter, grabbing the last piece of food before Sadie could.

She smiled and said, "Thank you."

The door opened, and Carson and Imsolo appeared in the doorway. "Sadie? You know you're not allowed in here! She is dangerous!" said Carson. Imsolo's dark hair was braided behind her head into a long ponytail. She was wearing brown armor that seemed to be cleaner than before. Carson was taller than the others and was still much shorter than Carter.

"Stand up!" shouted Carson as she placed some metal shackles onto Carter's hands.

"Do you have to put those on?" asked Sadie.

"Aerofat's command," said Carson.

They grabbed Carter's arms and walked him outside the large cavern. A long line of dark-leathered armored women stood with gold-tipped spears on a path leading to a large arena in the back of the cavern. They watched Carter with bitter eyes filled with anger. They all seemed vexed to Carter.

"Defiler!" screamed one of the women as she spit on Carter from the side of the path.

"What did I do?" thought Carter.

Several globs of spit later, he finally reached the arena, where Aerofat and Captain Willis were waiting. Torches and hundreds of armored soldiers encircled the arena. More than he had thought lived here.

Aerofat had a sadistic smile plastered across her face as she was surrounded by Captain Willis, Carson, Imsolo, and Sadie. Two semi-clad women, rather tall, stood behind Aerofat, holding large swords. Their faces showed no emotions. They wore a backless, spaghetti strap, double split-thigh, black dress that made them look out of place.

"Hello—Carter," said Aerofat in an ominous tone.

"Miss," said Carter back.

"Miss? You know me! Mage Aerofat. You can call me that."

"Is it now?" asked Carter with a smirk.

"We all have our secrets, don't we, Carter?" retorted Aerofat in a low whisper. The other doppelganger of Aerofat knew he was a male. She must have passed that information on to this one.

"Yes, we do, Mage Aerofat," said Carter. A wicked smile came back to her face.

She looked around the arena and shouted, "Very good, Legion of Vanguard! You have accomplished your mission. This is the human Despoiler. The Transgressor!"

The women in the arena looked at each other and started laughing, cheering, crying, and a gambit of different emotions.

Aerofat raised her hands to quiet them down and said, "But you have another mission to complete! Kill the Despoiler in arena combat!"

The cheering went quiet as the women looked at each other in confusion.

Captain Willis walked up to Carter and placed the tip of her spear into his chest. "Why don't we just kill him now!" screamed Willis. The cheers became loud again as Willis shoved the tip into Carter's skin.

Aerofat touched the spear with her pallid-colored hand and said, "It's not fair."

Captain Willis looked back at her and said, "What do you mean? This is the Despoiler, prophesized as the defiler of the Tower. Stealer of the sacred treasure! Why should he get a fair death?"

Aerofat looked into Carter's eyes and said, "You're mistaken, Captain. An arena fight would give you and your Legion a fair chance."

"Nonsense!" yelled Willis, pushing the spear tip in deeper. She didn't want to kill this woman like this, but she wanted to go home.

Carter pulled his arms apart, breaking the flimsy metal shackles, allowing him to grab Willis's spear before it went deeper. He lifted his leg and kicked Captain Willis in the chest. The sound of ribs cracking could be heard throughout the arena as Willis landed thirty feet away on the hard ground. Her breathing became labored as she coughed up blood.

Carter misjudged how hard he hit her. He was used to fighting monsters and their bone-shielded bodies. He would have to soften his hits if he didn't want to kill anyone else.

"Ulysses! Help Willis while we take care of the Despoiler," said Imsolo, visibly shaken from either fear or anger; Carter couldn't tell and doubted if she could either. A small woman dressed in a purple gown strolled out of the crowd and walked past Carter. She looked up at him with her blue eyes and aloof expression. She had long, blue hair tied up in a fancy style that Carter had never seen before. She showed the crowd that she wasn't afraid of the Despoiler.

Ulysses placed her hand on Captain Willis's chest, and a white glow appeared. The crowd was silent and not moving. Aerofat still had that grin as she looked Carter up and down.

Captain Willis sat up and looked toward Carter. Her eyes were still glossed over, and she had difficulty standing. A cheer went up when they saw their leader was still alive. The cheering went to jeering as they started screaming for Carter's death.

Aerofat raised her hand as Carson and Imsolo started walking toward Carter. "Stay your hand, my legion of warriors!" screamed Aerofat as she pushed Imsolo backward.

"That Orc-looking bitch almost killed our Captain! We want retribution," said Imsolo, flailing her arms around. The anger could be seen on her face as spit dripped from her lips.

Aerofat looked back towards Carter, wondering if he could hamper his hits and not kill them all if it became a free-for-all situation. She read the notes of her doppelganger sister on him. She knew what he was capable of. If his newest affliction manifested, he could tear each one of them up in an instant. Her pets, Cleo and Phoebe's mistakes could kill them all.

"Carter? Are you up to the challenge of an Arena fight with rules?" said Aerofat.

Carter touched his chest where the spear went in. A glob of blood marred his fingers. The voice in his head started pushing to come out. His hand and arm changed into a beast's hand. He pushed back against the voice. He knew if it took over, he would no longer exist.

Aerofat's eyes grew large, and she hastily added, "A prize if you agree! The Thralldom of the legion of the Vanguard!"

Carter frowned for a moment as he heard the groan of the surrounding women. He didn't understand what the appeal was of Thralldom. He didn't get anything out of it. He was busy with his life and didn't need to tell anyone else how to run theirs. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "I'd rather just kill them all," said Carter. He was lying, but it seemed an appropriate response.

Aerofat then added, "And a trip to the top!"

Carter struggled to eliminate the monsters on these higher levels of the Tower. They were getting harder and harder to fight. This prize intrigued him, and he answered, "Deal."

Aerofat held her hand and said, "By Nature's grace, the bet is made." Carter placed his hand on hers, and the bet was made.

Aerofat had a look of satisfaction on her face as she held up her hand again. "An arena fight to the last fighter! You are out when you can't move or unconscious. There will be no death!" said Areofat to the crowd. A loud jeering occurred at that statement.

"What do we get if we win?" said Captain Willis as she walked over to Aerofat in the arena.

"What you've always wanted, of course. You get to fulfill your mission and come home," said Aerofat.

"Just like that?" said Captain Willis.

Aerofat's smile faded, and she said, "Of course."

Captain Willis smiled and asked, "Do we choose a champion?"

"No," said Aerofat with a wide grin. "It will be all of you against the Despoiler," said Aerofat as she pointed at Captain Willis.

Aerofat walked over to Carter and touched his beast hand. "If any of my children die, our contract will be voided," she said to Carter. Carter just shook his head up and down. His hand turned back to normal.

"We begin in one hour!" said Aerofat. She looked at her Amazonian guards and tilted her head towards Carter. They grabbed his arm and directed him toward the holding cell.

"Another fine mess," said Carter as he shook his head.