A kiss from the Void

Story by Patrick Lambert on SoFurry

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You might call it a hunch what brought Bheni to explore a cave looking for the origin of a mysterious artifact. Or maybe some invisible strings pulled him into a trap set by an ancient being in need of a new herald.

A new commission for Rpadi. Bheni belongs to him. And Rivyn belongs to Teebs13. Both on FA:


"November 15. I have reached the Lia Lia caves. No matter what I do, the strange artifact recovered by the exploration team keeps leading me here. This is a cave system located in a region with no previous archeological discoveries besides paintings and carvings, none of them relevant enough for a in-depth excavation. Still, it's undeniable that the glyphs matches with the ones found here. Added to that, there are rumors of similar trinkets found in the Black Market, all of them recovered from excavations all over the world. While I can't verify that information, it can't be labeled as a simple coincidence either. There must be a connection."

The blue dragon took a egg-shaped stone from his backpack. He looked carefully at the glyphs marked on it. And at the picture of a man breaking it in half.

"These marks are nothing like I've ever seen before. First and most important, this language is completely unknown, and there are no other records of it over the world. The glyphs doesn't seem to be in a logical order, so it's hard to say what it represents. The best I can made from it it's a sort of ritual. Fertility, maybe? It could explain the shape. However, the paintings found on the surface level of the cave made no reference to fertility rituals or something similar. If I expect to find more evidence to support my theory, I must dwell deep into the cave."

Bheni pondered for a moment about how to continue, but decided to stop the recorder at that point. There wasn't a lot to add that he didn't have in his notes already--and the last thing he wanted was to record a bunch of meaningless lines. After all, he revised his hypothesis several times before taking the decision. The cave system hasn't been fully explored, mostly because nothing good was found. It was dangerous to advance beyond what had been mapped so far, which Bheni assumed was less than 10% of the entire cave. There were a lot of natural tunnels going on different directions. It would take an entire exploration team and several weeks to fully map it. And he wasn't ready to share his discoveries with anyone else.

Luckily, he was a natural explorer. He already had a passion for walking into unknown grounds since his childhood. Encouraged by his uncle, he though of himself as a modern tomb raider, and even made his own collection of "stolen treasures". As he got older, archeology became an important part of his life. Walking into an unexplored cave system wasn't new to him.

The blue dragon set a camp next to the cave the night before. The sun was rising behind him, illuminating the entrance and projecting a large shadow into it. The white fur from his head waved with the morning breeze. His short pants and his vest offered him enough mobility and several pockets for most of his tools. The plan for that day was to explore deep into the cave in search of paintings or any other evidence that matched with the stone egg he found. He carried only the essential, and nothing else.

Bheni pressed the record button once again. "I have a feeling that this might lead to a great discovery." He was sure of that.

As soon as he took his first step, he heard the generic tone of the satelital phone playing. He went through all the pockets in his short pants until he found it, just in time to answer. "Hi uncle."

"Hello Bheni. Did you get there? You didn't answer my message last night."

"I did, uncle. Sorry. I set camp and fell asleep right after having dinner," he explained, looking at the smoke coming from the cinders.

"Very well. Did you get everything?"

"You make it sound as if this was my first exploration. Of course I get everything." As he said that, the dragon decided to check again all his pockets only to be sure of what he said.

"Being cautious always pays off. I'll let you be, then. I believe you have a long day ahead."

"I was about to enter the cave, actually. And don't worry, I'll call you tonight."

"Ok, kiddo. Take care."

Bheni sighed. He expected his call earlier. He took it a signal of good luck. More reasons for him to believe something good would come from that exploration. 15 minutes of exercise and the blue dragon walked into the cave. He felt his usual excitement bristling the fur from his nape as he moved forward; like a child exploring for the first time. His tail lashed softly without him noticing it.

Although he had a lantern with him, Bheni always loved to carry a torch with him at the start. It made him think of the explorers he saw in movies and comics, dwelling into the unknown with nothing but his sharp intellect to survive. He hadn't found any deadly trap or something similar yet, but it was still exciting to imagine himself in a similar situation.

As he moved forward, the light coming from outside became weaker. So did the nature sounds; birds, trees, even the air went silent. His love for exploration and the excitement from entering a new cave didn't prevent the fear of what lied beyond--it wasn't precisely a fear of being in danger, but rather leaving the entire world behind that entrance. That cave was on another plain of existence, far from the reality he knew very well. And it was its own universe, as each cave had something distinctive that made them unique among the others. It was impossible not to fear that.

Engulfed in the heat from the dancing flame, the dragon followed the map. As he moved forward, he noticed the changes in the terrain. The ground was softer and more even compared to the entrance, and the air started to feel more humid. Some tunnels appeared on his sides, leading to unknown places or to a dead end. Bheni convinced himself that none of those paths were made for him, and followed the one his instinct pointed out.

"There is a treasure," he reassured to himself.

Bheni waved the torch in front of him to illuminate the path. Even when he knew the place was deserted, he expected something else to happen. But, by the look of it, that would be another common cave with nothing worth of attention.

The paintings and carvings reported by other explorers led the way. As expected, it was almost impossible to understand the meaning of them. The images didn't say anything in particular, and none of them had something different or new.

Bheni took his recorder. "I am intrigued by the paintings found in the cave. It is as if these images had been done randomly, and not with the intention of giving a message. If I had been the first one to find them, I would concur that this was purposely done by someone trying to gain some fame. But all of them has been authenticated in the past. While the reason of why someone would leave a random message still eludes me, I believe it's the most plausible solution, unless this cave could offer me a better answer."

As he paused the recorder, Bheni looked at the path ahead. He continued walking until he found a sign praying "Turn back. No more info after this", where the tunnel opened a little at that point, offering some extra space. It looked like the team working on mapping the area had the audacity to announce where they failed in their job. He added a new note to his recording. "I don't understand why the team decided to stop the cave's exploration. This cave system doesn't look particularly dangerous or impossible to explore," he looked around, finding some pieces of equipment, from helmets to pickaxes, "although they didn't care for their equipment, by the look of it. The report didn't mention a gas leak or any kind of structural damage that could put in danger the exploration, so it remains a mystery their departure and the reason they left so much equipment behind."

It did gave him a bad vibe. Bheni could think of a good number of horror movies that started with a similar scenario. As he checked his surroundings, the dragon realized that place was a resting point for the exploration team. There were some notebooks already ruined by the humidity, and dirty clothes with black stains. But no trace of violence or even a sign that they ran away from something. They just left, probably after thinking there was nothing of interest there.

Bheni put the torch on the ground and took the lantern from his backpack; it did make a better job than the torch, but lacked the explorer's touch. He pointed the light towards the tunnel ahead, finding more stuff left behind. "Guess they did explored further beyond this point," Bheni said. For a moment he considered to stop, but the idea of leaving behind a massive discovery told him to keep going. However, a voice in his head warned him and asked him to stop. There was no actual reason for the team to leave like that.

Some meters ahead, the path forked on two directions. Bheni noticed some paintings on the right tunnel. It caught his attention that one of them held a similar egg to the one he found. He approached and took a look at the rest of them; unlike the ones found before, those made a little more sense. He saw a male figure holding the egg in the air, followed by another one with a black liquid pouring out of the cracked egg. However, the rest of the painting was damaged.

"Looks like some sort of offering. But this doesn't resemble any of the gods of this region. It must be something else."

Bheni continued moving close to the wall, trying to decipher the words carved in the stone. He couldn't think of any known language that matched the symbols. But, as he ran his fingers across the surface, Bheni realized the carvings were "...recent."

He heard the dirt sliding, and immediately the ground under him disappeared. The dragon went down through a long, steep tunnel. Screaming, he tried to use his claws to stop his falls, but the walls were too soft for him to grab on. The fear of death invaded him, thinking how unfortunate he was for finding his end doing what he loved, victim of a natural trap he should have evaded. But as he blamed himself for his own stupidity, the tunnel ended and Bheni rolled across the ground until a boulder stopped him.

It took him a couple of minutes to fully go back to his senses. With a blurry vision and a buzz in his ears, he tried and failed to get up. His entire body was sore from the fall. The lantern flickered some meters away from him. Grunting, he tried again to get up, but his arms couldn't hold his weight. After a third, more successful and painful attempt, Bheni heard the contents of his backpack falling to the ground--the remaining ones, at least. Teared apart from the fall, the dragon threw the backpack away, and dragged his paws to pick up the flashlight.

A couple of hits stopped the flickering. Bheni looked at him and, only seeing his ripped clothes and some brushes, but no open wounds or broken bones. He illuminated the ground, following the trace of stuff left by his backpack--the broken camera lens reflected the light back at him--and found the hole from where he came out. Between the steepness and his sore body, he knew going back from there wasn't a good idea.

"This can't be real," he said. Despite the multiple times he prepared mentally for that kind of scenario, being finally trapped in a cave proved too much for him. For the first time he recognized the desperation of not knowing what to do. And all it allowed him to do was to stare silently at the tunnel while tears rolled down his cheeks. He was trapped.

"Guess I'm gonna have find another way out." He finally said after some minutes. It was easier said than done. Cleaning the tears from his face, Bheni took a good look around; the cavern in which he ended up was bigger than he imagined, and there were a lot of tunnels going on several directions. That alone was enough to discourage anyone. And as if that wasn't enough, he didn't know how long was the fall.

Bheni sat on the ground. While he waited for the pain to cease, he analyzed his situation. His uncle knew where he was, but even if he called a rescue team that night, it could take a couple of days for them to find him, assuming they could find the tunnel from where he fell. Waiting there was the most logical choice, if only his explorer spirit wasn't already calling him to continue moving forward.

After attending to his wounds--that luckily weren't severe--Bheni decided to explore the surrounding tunnels. It was a waste of time staying there crying over his disgrace. He set up an improvised camp with what was left from his backpack, cursing leaving the torch behind. But as long as he didn't move too far from there, it would be ok. He had some glow sticks with him to mark his path, which should last enough. Now his question was, which path to follow? It looked as if the cavern was some sort of intersection point.

"Well... I did wanted a cave with dangerous traps," he expected the joke to give him some sort of comfort. "Apparently I found a tunnel leading down into a cavern. I don't know exactly how far I went into it, but all I can do right now is wait for a team to rescue me. I'll try to explore the adjacent tunnels, in hope to find a way out or at least more evidence of what I was looking for originally."

Choosing randomly, he dropped a stick on the floor and walked into one of the tunnels. His explorer spirit immediately brought his confidence back, thinking that was the discovery he had been waiting for so long. It was impossible for him to keep it quiet; each cave he explored made him feel the same way. Even if he didn't succeed there, it would happen on the next one.

"If there's a next one..." he felt bad for thinking that. There was no reason to believe a rescue was impossible, even when it was the first time that happened to him.

Some meters ahead, Bheni found bioluminescent mushrooms coming from the walls. A rare sight, considering those weren't usual on that region. He stopped for a moment to look at them; varying in size, their green glow was intense, enough to light part of the path. And there were more and more as he continued walking forward. He picked a sample and put it in a small sealed bag.

The dragon followed the path made by the mushrooms. Much for his surprise, he noticed how the tunnel started to change into a hallway, with smoother walls and ground. That kind of terrain rarely formed naturally--no, that was something done by someone. His heart raced. The mere idea of finding a living intervention in a place like that was exhilarating. And under that conditions!

The details became more notorious as he progressed. Bheni swallowed. He didn't want to jump into conclusions, but his mind was already making theories of the kind of civilization that had to live down there, and the type of tools and technics used to make a tunnel like that one. And in that region--that was the discovery he was waiting for!

And then he reached it. A chamber as big as a conference room. Bheni almost dropped the flashlight, amazed by such discovery. Five rows of stone tables covered the chamber. In the walls he found the same paintings that were in the surface, but more detailed and in better conditions. And more important, they were in order, making more sense.

"It's... it's here. I'm here. There is a chamber in the cave. Oh God I'm shaking. I can barely hold the recorder firmly. By the looks of it, this place seems to be a ceremonial chamber of some sort. There are... 30 stones tables," he made a quick count, finding some of the tables broken. In the edge of the closest one to him, Bheni found the same strange language. "They carved some sort of sentence in them, but I still can't decipher the language." He looked again at the walls. The paintings found before he fell were there, but there was more. The black liquid fell on one of the tables that had another male figure, then that figure appeared covered in the liquid. It covered him completely. "The paintings might be indicating an initiation ritual. All the figures are masculine, and the details in the paintings might indicate they are warriors. Which is weird, since none other archeological discovery found in this region points to a conflict of some sort. I must continue exploring this place."

He stopped the recorder. It was hard to believe. He found something beyond his expectations. That chamber was clearly part of something else. Something bigger. And he found it. It was a shame the camera broke during the fall, but there would be enough time to explore it properly and record better evidence. He could already see himself leading an entire team through the entire place.

At the opposite end Bheni found another hallway, illuminated by the same mushrooms. Following the path, the explorer continued making theories about the meaning of the ceremonial chamber behind him. If he was correct, it could change entirely what was knew of that region and the tribes that lived on it. And the fact that he would be responsible of it was... Bheni couldn't find a word for it.

The path forked again in three directions. Bheni took the left one, leaving another glow stick behind. The temple--assuming it was right to refer to it as one--covered a considerable area, considering the steps he took until the next room, where he found a broken shrine; a piece of boulder fell over it, evidence that time hadn't been gentle with the structure. The remains scattered across the floor were too damaged for him to make a mental image of what it represented.

"I can't take a wild assumption," he said, holding a piece of stone that could either be a tail or something else. "But the stone slabs placed here could mean this was indeed for praying or meditation. Huh, there are no paintings here. No finishes in the roof either. But there's a chance that this temple was dedicated to the warriors before their--"

The sight of a stone egg forced him to stop. Laying in the corner of the room, it was very similar to the one he found initially. However, a closer inspection show no paintings or words carved on it. And right after he picked it up, Bheni noticed a different texture. Rough and hard, but not like the stone one. No, it was another kind of material. And it was lighter too. With his eyes fixated on it, the dragon had a sudden urge to hold it against his chest. Something in his head told him to protect it, to keep it safe. Because it was unique, and it was for him... A soft buzz in his ears made him feel light-headed. And tired. And sleepy.

The egg dropped from his hands, and Bheni snapped after hearing it clashing against the floor. "Fuck," he pointed the flashlight at it. The egg broke in half, and some kind of black ooze came out of it. "So this is what they pictured in the ceremonial chamber." Using one of the glow sticks, he picked a sample to take a better look. With a tone and consistency similar to tar, the question of how they managed to put it into the egg arose. There was no visual evidence on the remains of the egg that suggested they pour it in after it was made. "Fascinating," he mumbled, his motivation to find an answer bigger than before. He leaned his head, watching the goo dripping from the glow stick. Slow, steady, Bheni imagined if that was what the warriors saw while the priest poured the goo over them. How would that feel? Would it be painful? Or was something they looked forward to? His arm slowly rose, getting the substance closer to his face. He licked his lips with anticipation...

The sound of rocks sliding caught his attention. Bheni dropped the stick and looked back to where he came from. That kind of sounds were common in a cave like that one, but it was still creepy. A quick glance at the egg reminded him it was ruined, and now he had to find another one. Bheni decided to move forward, hoping there were more eggs like that one somewhere else in the temple.

Moving on, the temple started to show more signs of damage, with more mushrooms coming through the stone slabs. Chamber after chamber, he found no signs of what was the real motive for that temple, nor did he found another egg like the last one. There were no humanoid remains either--not that he expected to find some, but at least it helped him to discard the idea of a sacrificial temple.

Now and then he had to stop. There was an annoying buzz in his ears, and it became louder with every passing minute. A side effect of the pressure, and while it wasn't painful, it did made harder to concentrate. He stopped and laid against a wall. His paws were already sore after walking for so long. And for how long had he been walking, actually? Less than an hour, he was sure of that. But then why his body felt so tired? Long walks were a common thing for him, even since he was a kid. But at that moment it felt as if he had walked an entire day.

"I should head back for now," he muttered. He thought about taking one more note, but his recorder wasn't in the usual pocket. Bheni searched through the rest of his pockets, but he couldn't find it in any of them.

Cursing, he went back through the hallway he came from, trying to remember if he put it somewhere else. Maybe in the chamber that resembled a library, or the big one that reminded him of an arena. He was so glad for the glow sticks marking his path.

Eventually, Bheni reached one chamber with some paintings in the wall and roof. There, in the ground, was the damn recorder. He remembered doing a quick note about the technique and type of paint used, only to end it after realizing he talked about it on a previous note. By that point he was already getting anxious for the lack of information he was getting.

His hand stopped half way. There was something black covering part of the recorder. The substance didn't reflect the light, but its consistence reminded him of the goo kids played with. Around the recorder, he found little drips of the same color, as if it had just splashed around... A huge drip fell right in front of him, shooting the black goo in all directions. Bheni moved away and tripped. He quickly pointed the lantern to the roof, just in time to watch a weird substance falling from there.

The size of a balloon; the substance remained innert for some seconds before moving, much for Bheni's surprise. It agitated briefly before growing in size. Frozen by fear, the dragon saw how the strange goo got bigger right in front of him, quickly reaching half his size. It was not logical. It went against all rules of nature. And the lack of an answer stopped his body from reacting.

Two arms appeared from both sides and held the shapeless slime in place. Its round aspect started to transform into something similar to a torso, with the remaining goo moving to the lower part. Soon enough, the muscles and two huge breasts became notorious under the goo, as if it had been vacuum sealed. A purple tone appeared in the middle of the breasts, and it grew across the front part of the torso, defining its shape. Bheni heard a loud scratching, and saw a set of sharp claws piercing through the goo hands; unlike the rest of the "body", the claws were solid.

The headless torso crept towards him, placing one hand after the other. Its movement was erratic, with the arms trembling as if they couldn't held their weight. And despite the well-defined chest, it continued dripping goo as it moved forward. A hole opened where the neck was supposed to be, and a head emerged slowly, with two scarlet eyes glowing and looking right at him.

Bheni couldn't move. He tried to scream, only to hear a weak tone coming out of his open maw. And his hand shook more violently as the creature got closer and closer. Tears rolled down his cheek. A fear of an imminent death grew in his head, and the image of his uncle, his brother, and his friends flashed before his eyes. He regretted not having a chance to say goodbye, and carried with the blame of the suffering his death would cause them.

But as the creature get a grip of his ankle, he realized how selfish it was for him to give up. Bheni dropped the flashlight as he pulled his leg away from its grasp. The sharp claws scratched the skin, but the creature didn't hold him strong enough to stop him. As soon as he got up, his instinct commanded him to run as fast as he could and put as much distance as possible between him and that monster. And he ran through the dark passages, following the glow sticks left behind. The rush of adrenaline erased the soreness of his muscles and enhanced his senses. He briefly stopped only to look for the next glow stick.

His renewed energy didn't last for long. The pain came back, and it was more intense than before. Added to the sore paws, he felt his legs burning under the skin. And each breath of air was like sandpaper moving up and down his throat. He had no choice but to stop when his body couldn't take the effort any longer. Laying against the wall, Bheni tried to recover his breath, only to feel more exhausted. But at least, the creature was no longer there.

"Wait... where am I?" He asked, and found no glow stick in any direction. Trying not to fall into panic, Bheni made an effort to remember the path he took, but the exhaustion and the doubts slowly erased the route from his memory. Surrounded by the glowing mushrooms, the dragon knew he was lost.

Dragging his paws, he backtracked until he reached the last turn he took. He found a glow stick in the distance, but he couldn't remember where that tunnel led to. In fact, since before he found the beast, he had lost track of his path. Bheni knew he put a considerable distance between him and the creature, but not knowing where it was only complicated things.

And what was that thing in the first place? How could a blob turn into something like that? He saw it taking a humanoid shape. There was no creature in the planet capable of doing that. So the only possible answer was an alien. The thought of that word sent a shiver down his spine. A real alien creature. No, it was a stupid idea. And that was what make it the most reasonable choice. Because his mind couldn't find a logic answer to what he saw.

"Ok. There's the risk that I walk into that monster again if I try to go back, and even if I manage to reach the camp, I'll be a sitting duck there. But this temple seems to be bigger than what I anticipated, and there's no warranty that I could find another exit. Not to mention that walking aimlessly would difficult the rescue labor. Although I can't really say if that's a safe option now."

Despite not having his recorder, talking to himself was something he always did to relax. It didn't work as he imagined at that moment, sadly. Bheni realized he didn't have a lot of viable options. He was already having troubles to maintain his sanity. Yet, he decided to go back to the camp and try at least to ascend through the tunnel he came from. All he needed to do was find the right path through the labyrinth of passages and chambers.

He started following his memory, then the markers, and when the distance between each marker became larger, he picked blindly. Paying attention to any potentially warning sound, he moved as slow as possible. But the temple was in silence, with his paws dragging across the ground being the only thing he heard to.

Eventually the pain from his leg forced him to stop. While he couldn't see it, running his fingers across the skin revealed the claw wounds left by the creature. Even when it wasn't bleeding, it was priority to treat it in fear of an infection. And what kind of infection an alien creature could carry? He was wondering about that when he heard a loud stomp.

Something approached at his left. It was huge and heavy, judging by the sound of its steps--probably bigger than the hallway itself. But as soon as he tried to run away, he thought about stopping in place. He needed to run and save his life, and the only thing that his body listened to was "stop". Shaking, he heard the creature closer and closer, and the idea of staying there turned into a female voice in his head. A female, husky voice saying "don't move".

"Stay".

"Behave".

"Obey".

It stopped right behind him. Bheni heard the loud breath of a beast, and the sharp fang that dangerously moved up his neck. He wanted to do something, but his body refused to follow his orders. Was it fear? The dragon couldn't understand what kept his body from acting even when his life was in danger. It was as if something else had control over him. But that was impossible... or that's what he thought, because even when he felt the warm breath at his nape, his body stayed still.

And only then the thought came to him. It lasted less than a second. For less than a second he took control. Enough to pull the flare from his pocket and light it. He saw a sharp maw pulling away from the light. Bheni crawled in between its legs and ran past it, holding the flare in the air to light his way. For a minute, that light would keep him safe. He heard a loud shriek behind him, followed by the loud stops of the creature following him. Bheni prayed to lost it in the labyrinth that was the temple.

Just as the flame started to die, the dragon reached a massive and illuminated chamber, with broken pillars around it. Bheni saw the hundreds of mushrooms of different sizes growing in the walls and ground. Its green light was a relaxing gaze. He dragged his paws into the center of the room, his eyelids sleepy and his body no longer sore. He thought about staying there, just watching the mushroom glow in the huge chamber. As he turned around like a dancer, a black painting in the wall caught his attention, enough to wake him from his stupor.

It was the same painting he found when entering the temple, where the priest poured the goo from the egg over the warrior. The substance covered his body until it was entirely black. However, Bheni found there the remaining sequence. They depicted the warrior changing into something else. He grew in size, and his body started to took a draconic figure. Until he saw the creature that pursued him, standing in the altar and being worshipped.

"... it's a sacrifice."

The sound of steps attracted his attention. Bheni ran and hid behind a pillar, just as the beast entered the chamber. Even from there, he heard it sniffing the air and growling. Bheni covered his mouth, afraid that even his breath could give his position away. The creature walked slowly, stepping hard enough to make the ground tremble. Against all logic, Bheni peaked from one side of the pillar. In the middle of the chamber, the giant creature advanced slowly, studying its surroundings in search of its prey.

But the fear that initially tried to keep him alive succumbed against the sudden curiosity for the beast. Rather than the ferocious monster he remembered, a huge female dragon lurked, with a muscular body covered in the dark slime. Her breasts remained firm whenever she turned around. Bheni bit down his lip at the sight of her thick thighs, and the way the muscles reacted with each step taken. Her tail was massive, moving almost on its own, whipping the floor hard enough to raise a cloud of dust with each hit. Instead of hair, the beast had tentacles that moved slowly from one side to the other, with the purple tip glowing.

A breath-taking body, that was the first thought that crossed his mind. He couldn't understand why, but there was a strange and impossible to ignore appeal in her body. Even the expression in her face was alluring. Rather than the face of a cold killer, he saw two purple eyes glowing in desire.

"Come here, little one."

A female voice again. Stronger. His entire body trembled just by the sound of it. He went back to hiding by shear instinct, but it was undeniable the effect such tone had on him. It turned him on.

"Don't hide from me. I won't hurt you."

There it was again. In a chamber like that, anyone could from where a sound came from. But that voice Bheni heard came right from where he was standing. He heard it in his head, as if it had been his own thought. It was scary, but at the same type, the husky tone aroused him.

"You woke me from my slumber. It is only fair from me to reward you."

His legs trembled. He felt that strong sensation in his crotch as his manhood grew in size, pushing against the clothes. An urge to touch himself took over him. To touch and look once again the body of that creature.

When the claws appeared over him to hold the pillar, the reasoning left on him snapped him out of that trance. He saw the maw poking from one side, and swiftly moved to the opposite direction, just in time to avoid the beast. Bheni noticed the huge tail looking on the pillars behind her, dripping some of that black goo as it moved.

"Isn't this enough to please your sight? Perhaps there is something else you look for."

Having her that close was exciting and scary in a way impossible to explain. The sound of her loud huffs and the claws scratching the pillar almost pulled him out of his hiding. He wanted to see her. To answer her call. To find out how could she reward him. And what truly scared him was not knowing why he wanted to do such thing.

When the beast moved to the next pillar, Bheni took the opportunity to run to another hiding spot. Evading the slimy tail, he jumped behind some rubbles, from where he had a better view of the creature. And much for his surprise, he pleased himself with the view of her hips swaying from one side to the other. Slowly. Steady. Without changing its rhythm. What a glorious sight that was. The blue dragon drooled over the rocks, and his hand moved on its own to find his bulge. Just rubbing his cock over the jeans sent a shock of pleasure across his entire body.

And her hips continued moving from one side to the other as she looked behind every pillar. And Bheni got captivated by the perfect motion of her body. It wasn't exaggerated nor faked. It was a natural movement. A slow and sensual wobble, a display of an erotism none other female could match. She danced for him. Left. And right. And left. And right. And left...

And the dragon matched her pace with his head. Left. And right. And left. And right. And left...

Bheni smiled, eager to follow her steps as long as he could kept on watching the perfect movement of her body. A body perfectly shaped, like an hourglass, whose hips begged to be embraced and worshipped. And his eyes followed the trace made by her long tail, whose purple tip mimicked her hips, swinging from one direction to the other right in front of him. Left. And right. And left. And right. And left...

The beast turned and looked at him, but instead of fear, the blue dragon felt blessed for having such a beautiful dragoness laying eyes on him. She called him with a finger, and Bheni couldn't do anything else but follow her call. The horny dragon, with his bulge visible, approached slowly to her. Much to his delight, her shape started to change. Her body took a more stylized and feminine shape, just like the features of her face; all of this without losing her dominant aura and the purple glow from his eyes, from which Bheni couldn't look away.

"Aren't you a cute one?" The voice in his head asked. Her lips didn't move at all. Still, it wasn't something Bheni cared about. As he continued walking, all he wanted was to be closer. "I wasn't expecting a handsome dragon like yourself. How lucky could I be?"

Bheni stopped. He didn't know why. The thought just popped in his head. Leaning his head, he admired the feminine shape of the dragoness, only to see for an instant the tentacles behind her head extended in all directions to form a circle, with the purple edges glowing. And then she was back to that hot, attractive figure he was drooling for.

"What are you doing alone in this forgotten place?"

"I... I got lost." Bheni felt tired. He felt as if it had been days without sleeping. All he wanted was to lay in her arms and sleep.

"Poor thing. Alone and lost in a place like this," one claw ran carefully across his chin. It made the dragon shiver. "We better get you out of here. But not yet. We should have some fun first. I'm Rivyn"

Bheni smiled and nodded. He couldn't see the real shape of that creature. The extended tentacles that lured him out. The glowing eyes that captivated him. The tip of her tail pushing him closer. The goo dripping from her hand. The massive tongue licking her lips. He couldn't see any of that. Instead, he nodded to the sexy dragoness, eager to follow her commands.

"And you are...?"

"B-Bheni..."

"What a cute name you have, Bheni." Her maw got close enough for him to feel and taste her warm breath. "I want to play with you. I want a handsome dragon like yourself to play with."

"And what are we gonna play?" The dragon asked shyly.

"Oh, I believe you already have an idea." Rivyn placed one hand over Bheni's bulge. The dragon yipped, then moaned. "Oh dear!" She exclaimed without moving her hand away. Up and down, she rubbed the throbbing bulge to her delight, pleased with the sounds and expressions made by Bheni. Unlike any other sex encounter he had before, the touch of that dragoness was electrifying, a direct assault to his senses, to his pleasure and lust. He took her other hand, the one that caressed his chin, and kissed it in return, conscious that that wasn't enough for all the pleasure she provoked him.

"You are an eager boy, aren't you?" She asked, moving closer to him.

What he saw then was Rivyn passing by his side and holding him from behind. In reality, already able to change the consistence of her body, the slimy body walked through him and hardened once again. Holding him firmly against her chest with just one arm, she held one claw in front of Bheni. "All this cloth is in the way," she said, and proceded to cut the shirt by simply passing her claw through it.

It was terrifying to see how easily she disposed of the shirt, cutting it as if it was butter. And yet, Bheni let her claw dance so close to his naked skin, entrusting her his body and safety, for there was nothing to fear in Rivyn's embrace. "You are quite the handsome male. I couldn't ask for a better savior," she said, while circling around him before stopping once more before him. The dragon giggled, not knowing the correct way to respond to her compliments. He tried looking away to hide his embarrassment, but such a simple task proved to be impossible with the beautiful, glowing eyes attracting his attention.

Without a warning, Rivyn's long tongue ran across his neck. Another loud moan came from the dragon's voice, one that the dragoness muffled immediately with a deep kiss. With her huge hands keeping his arms in place, Bheni couldn't do nothing but feel the massive tongue invade his maw. The sheer intensity and passion made his body tremble. And the strong embrace that followed made it impossible for him to escape--assuming that's what he wanted. Bheni couldn't even follow her pace, as no one had ever kiss him like that. All he did was allow Rivyn to "devour" his maw in a noisy, messy kiss.

And it was exciting. His cock pressed hard against the short pants, begging for its release. A stain of pre continued growing, his response to how much he enjoyed the kiss and the massage the dragoness was giving him. Already drooling from the sides of his maw, the dragon surrender completely to her. He didn't notice the black goo he mistook for saliva, nor the one she made him drink directly from her maw. All Bheni noticed was a sexy goddess making up with him, the mortal that woke her up from her slumber.

His worries vanished one after another. His mind had only space for the sensual female that was kissing him. He closed his arms around her massive figure to kept her close to him, afraid that she might vanished in thin air. And, much to his surprise, she took the gesture with joy, and hugged him as the lover he was for her. Rivyn gave him very little space to breath during the kiss, a danger Bheni embraced and took for a proof of her desire.

When Rivyn broke the kiss, Bheni shoved his face in between her warm breasts. A soft smell of flowers invaded his nose.

"Do you like my scent, boy?" She asked in that husky tone that sound like a murmur in his head.

"Yes. I like it," Bheni replied without thinking.

"Good. Smell it. Enjoy it. It's all yours."

And so he did. Placing both hands over her boobs, Bheni inhaled Rivyn's scent. He took deep breaths to engrave it in his mind, making sure nothing could erase it. And when his excitement became too strong for him to handle, his tongue licked the purple skin of her chest. A soft salty taste of sweat made the trembling boy moan in delight.

"My scent shall stay with you. Follow you. It will be a part of you forever."

Deeply sunk into his fantasy, Bheni didn't notice the tendrils coming from behind her head. When they closed around his ankles and wrists, he thought it was Rivyn holding him in place. And when the tentacles picked up his body, he saw the dragoness placing him into a soft mattress. Suspended in front of her, she tore off the rest of his clothes, leaving him just with his tight boxers. The size of his cock managed to get a gasp of surprise from her, along with the strong smell and the pre already dripping from the tip.

"A marvelous specimen, indeed. And such a weak mind." A twisted smile grew as the tentacles tightened its grip around the naked body of her prey. He took for a kiss the tentacle that invaded his mouth, and for a playful finger the other one that entered his anus. "You make an excellent host."

A tentacle wrapped firmly around Bheni's bulge, and she was pleased with the immediate response from the dragon. The tentacles kept him in place, despite the strong struggle he put from the strong pleasure that suddenly took over him. His cock throbbed inside the tight grip, and the tendril pressing his prostate had him at the verge of his climax. But the one she truly cared about what the one "kissing" his host. It was the one feeding him.

With the tentacle deep into his throat, Bheni had no choice but to drink the slime Rivyn was giving him. It was the scent he would carry forever. It quickly invaded not only his body, but each corner of his mind. With the pleasure weakening his will, the dragoness--the creature born from void itself--tainted his spirit with her malevolent presence. The goddess she kissed so passionately slowly vanished, leaving him in a pitch-black space where only his body was visible. Her voice came from each and every direction.

"Surrender."

"Submit."

"Obey."

And the voice became louder and louder. And he noticed her presence getting closer and closer. And he continued feeling that intense pleasure over everything. A pleasure that sent him to his knees. Weakened, he looked around and found the purple eyes of the creature that lurked in the darkness. And in that brief moment of lucidity, he knew he was his prey.

One instant later, she was over him. Her warm insides clenched firmly around his cock. The dark slime dripped over his body as she leaned to kiss him once again. Rivyn fondled his body as the movement of her hips stimulated the already sensitive cock of the broken dragon under her. Bheni clenched his fists, already overwhelmed by the pleasure she caused him. It was frustrating. And maddening. He knew none other male or female would please him the same way Rivyn did.

"This is for you," she said in his head, as she took away his breath during that deep and lethal kiss. "This is my blessing. This pleasure will be yours whenever you want. But only if you obey."

His climax was getting closer. Outside his fantasy, his body struggled against the tentacles in an attempt to stop that torture. Already leaking through the boxers, the pre only made easier for Rivyn to rub and squeeze his bulge. She was more than pleased with his pitiful fight. There was nothing more delightful than the desperation behind a broken spirit trying not to turn his back to his principles. But they were still mortals, easily tempted and corruptibles. And with the slime delaying his climax, standing at the edge of was the easiest way to break a male's spirit.

And they always surrender at the end.

Bheni arched his back and his entire body went rigid as the seed of his orgasm pierced the wet boxer. While he bred Rivyn in his fantasy, the dragoness admired his potent climax. She rubbed his bulge quicker to get the last drip of cum out of him, pressed his prostate to ensure the maximum pleasure, and gave Bheni the rest of her own toxic scent to drink, until black slime leaked from the sides of his maw. By the time his orgasm ceased, Bheni's will was entirely broken.

"You're not like the others that came before you. You are an excellent host. And the perfect herald." He heard the voice in the distance. But he couldn't look from where it came. All Bheni could feel was the cold ground under his paws. "Now, bring them to me. Make them worship me once more." When the dragon noticed, he was alone at the cave's entrance. He passed out under the moonlight.

"So far, we can say this temple was a ritual of passage. They believed this substance had some special properties, and surviving the ritual was their next step to reach maturity. While we don't have a sample to determine the attributes behind this liquid, we theorize some of them were more susceptible to its effects, resulting in either injuries, secondary effects or, in the worst case, death. Due to the conditions in which the temple is, and the access to it, our investigation had encounter several delays. But we're optimist."

Bheni smiled. A group of students listened with enthusiasm to the details of the exploration he led back into the temple. Some would be chosen to be the next members of his team, after a small group decided to leave during the night some days ago.

"Is there any chance other temples like this one could be around the region?" One of the students asked.

"It's a possibility, but for now our attention goes entirely to the one we know exists. Bear in mind, this is a huge temple, so we don't know how much it would take us to find all its secrets."

The questions continued, and Bheni was pleased to answer all of them. But as he talked, his pulse accelerated, and a cold sweat ran down his back. The sides of his sight darkened, and the voices became distant. He swallowed. Rivyn appeared among the students, watching him with a twisted desire. A mist of lust covered his mind as the dragoness played with her body, covering the students in her thick goo. And they took it gladly. The drank it and smeared it all over their faces. And they knelt to adore the dragoness, just like the others Bheni offered before, and who now roamed freely with the scent of the void in their bodies and minds...

Bheni put both hands over the table. "I believe we should take a quick break," he announced. The students shared confused looks, and the voices became a murmur as the dragon rushed out of the conference room.

Locked in the last bathroom stall, Bheni jerked himself off for the third time that day. What started as a lingering dream became a vivid fantasy over the last month since he got rescued from the temple. Everyone attributed his encounter with Rivyn to a hallucination caused by the mushrooms, and Bheni took that as the truth. But the dragoness started to appear more often, distorting his reality until he submitted to his never-ending lust.

His cock throbbed in his hand while he pictured the sexy dragoness torturing him with her slick tentacles and the slippery tongue. His hand got slowly covered in that black, thick slime, until he knew it was her the one masturbating him. Not even his pleasure was under his control at that point. Rivyn pulled the strings of his body and mind from within, using Bheni's body however she wanted.

And the dragon loved that. Too ashamed to admit it, Bheni only allowed that thought to surface whenever she took control. Because she wanted him. And he wanted her. And that goo covering his body was the closest he could get to an embrace from his goddess.

Ignoring where he was or if someone was around, Bheni moaned loudly as he reached his orgasm, shooting his load against the door's stall. His legs trembled, and he leaned against the wall to keep his balance. All of his senses had enhanced since the encounter, resulting in more intense and noisy climaxes. And it got worse every day. The dragon knew that he was one climax away of losing his sanity.

As the goo from his hands merged back into his body, Bheni licked some of it and smiled. He couldn't think of a better way to lose his mind