Chapter 634: Bad nymphs

“Druid!”

Thea emerged from her pool in a skin-tight covering that looked like bark, the material twisting around her body to show at least half as much skin as ‘clothing’. She tossed her long, wet brown hair, flashing a brilliant smile. It had been awhile, and Mason had kind of forgotten how gorgeous she was.

“Thea.”

He stepped from the outside of the wall after accepting the ‘dungeon’ prompt. He looked around the nymph grove, seeing all kinds of plant-like additions since the last time he’d been there. Apparently his many ‘seed’ contributions were doing well.

Thea rushed over to meet him, then stopped as her nostrils flared. She practically shuddered as her eyes went up and down his body.

“You…you’ve earned the horned god’s favor.”

He nodded and paced around the tree, exploring with One with Nature. He’d been wondering what effect the new title might have.

Between that and his upgraded power, he could actually

see

the mana of the grove. He saw whatever mind-altering magic the nymphs used just floating like seeds. Some of it came towards him but stopped like it didn’t dare.

Thea was shaking. He could smell her interest, but also her fear. A few things started locking into place—all the nymphs at the foot of his patron’s throne. The love and hatred of Gaia. What had she said she wanted at the beginning? A male strong enough to deserve her? To

resist

her?

“Your magic won’t work on me now, will it?”

Thea said nothing, but in her silence he knew. The scent of her fear grew and grew, the plant life around the grove recoiling and hiding like scared children. He nodded as he walked around.

“I need your help.”

“Of course, druid.” Her voice was just a little too high, too eager. “I am happy to offer Gaia’s favor with whatever…”

“No.” He stepped closer and stared, but she wouldn’t meet his eyes. “No more favors. No more deals. Gaia has no power over me anymore. You’ll do what I ask because

I’m

master on the prime.”

Thea shuddered and lowered her eyes.

“There are…rituals. The horned god may be free, but…they aren’t completed. You have no authority over me. But…of course I’ll assist you, druid. In friendship. You need only ask.”

[Objective gained: Complete the Rituals of Divine Life. Gain patronage options over all natural creatures on the primal plane.]

Mason rolled his eyes. He wasn’t trying to get

more

objectives, though this one seemed like it might be easy enough. He stepped away from the nymph.

“I’ll want those ‘rituals’ explained. But first, I need your help growing food. Crops, preferably, but I’m open to suggestions. You’ll have to come with me through the fey across the seasons. We’ll get Calypsa, and any other nymphs you think might be useful. There’s a lot of work to do.”

Thea blinked and fiddled with her hands.

“You want me to…leave? My tree? To go through the…? I’m not sure. That’s…”

He just stared, and she stood there twisting between the beautiful woman and the cunning creature, eyes flaring with power as some spell washed over him uselessly. He wasn’t sure if she wanted to spread her legs or open his throat. Probably both.

One more burst of nature mana flared, and a few of the nearby vines rose and hovered just over his shoulder. They twisted and moved around him like snakes taking a sniff. Then they dropped back to the ground and went limp.

Thea sagged in defeat.

“As you wish, druid. Give me a moment to prepare.”

“Take all the time you need,” he said with a polite smile.

The more reclusive of the nymph sisters gathered up herbs and vials of her pool water, filling a large bag made out of plant fibers that grew from her outstretched hand. She grew herself a far more conservative dress, covering every patch of skin up to her face.

“I’m ready,” she said nervously, staring around her grove as if she missed it already. “Will we…will we be gone long?”

“No,” he said, tone more gentle. “And I’ll protect you.”

She smiled and stepped closer, hesitating but then giving him the bag to carry when he reached for it.

“My kind dislike change,” she said. “But I can feel it in the air and water. The world is changing, druid. I’ve never seen so much change so quickly. You are a walking myth, and I see the rising power of men. I am…afraid.”

He smiled, touching the beautiful nymph’s face. Once he hadn’t even thought of her as real—just a mindless automaton, a living robot built by their synthetic overlord. Maybe that’s what she was.

But then maybe that’s all everyone was. Numbers or chemicals arranged in cells or lines of code for some god’s amusement. Eventually he’d realized, it made no difference. All he had was what he did with the time he’d been given. The kind of man he was no matter who or what was watching or why.

“Whatever happens,” he said, “I’ll keep you safe.”

Thea blinked and pushed against him, looking into his eyes.

“Do you mean that, druid?”

He laughed as he felt her magic in the air, probing, reaching. He flicked it away just so she could see he felt it and wasn’t effected, and gently kissed her lips anyway.

“I promise. Now hold on, let me take us, you’ll need all your magic later.”

She nodded and gripped his hand, then he activated WyrdWalk and stepped through the wall of the tree, pulling her into the Fey.

The immortal Stag was waiting, chewing leaves as it stared at the nymph with unblinking eyes. Thea startled and bowed her head, doing something like a curtsy. Mason slapped the creature’s flank affectionately. It snorted and turned, bolting down a complex path towards their destination.

Once, he would have had no chance at all to follow, and probably couldn’t even have

seen

the path. He grinned and lifted Thea, racing after the creature with step after step through the once impossible plane. Even the nymph looked overwhelmed, gripping him and looking away as the terrain shifted around them.

The ever-curious fey creatures following whipped away behind the chase, unable to keep up. Mason laughed as the stag twisted and turned, bolting at strange angles through the godpaths.

When it finally reached the ‘nymph lands’ of spring, it turned and looked back panting, staring as Mason slid to a stop right behind it.

You’ve at least stopped embarrassing us with your pace

, it said, no discernible tone or expression.

“It’s a good thing I wasn’t hunting you.” Mason set Thea down and spoke with the same neutral voice. “Tonight I’d wear your antlers as a crown.”

The Stag snorted, bolting down another path. Mason grinned and gestured for the nymph, who called out to her sisters all hiding in the trees. One by one at least six beautiful young women emerged from the woods with wild hair. This time with knives in their hands. Thea reached towards them and shook her head.

“Oh I wouldn’t bother with those,” Mason said, stepping out and growing Cerebus’ gifted Claws.

The women shrieked and turned to run. He sped across the clearing and seized two before they’d moved a step. They screamed and panicked, one even slashed his face before realizing she left little more than a scratch. She swallowed and met his eyes.

“Bad nymph.” He shook his head. “Very bad nymph.”

Two more wandered back with their heads down in defeat, but the others kept running off into the trees with shrieks of triumph.

“This’ll do,” he said, leading the four back to Thea.

“Apologies, druid,” she said, grabbing her sisters like bad children. “They are still wild and…untrained. But they’ll obey us now. At least for a few days.”

“We won’t need their help long. I’ll get Calypsa next. Then we cross to the other continent.”

Thea nodded, and he had the nymphs link hands before leading them back to Nassau at a much slower pace. This time the curious fey creatures could follow, and soon crowded around to stare and whisper at the sight of Cerebus’ new champion leading a procession of nymphs.

Stag came racing back and chased most off with its horns, the natives laughing or panicking according to their natures.

Mason soon had the nymphs back to his home, stepping into the great tree with a weird feeling of home sickness. The sisters ran and embraced, the other four nymphs leaping about the grove, laughing and still holding hands. It all sent a momentary (and not currently useful) spike of lust through his body.

The nymphs stayed in each other’s arms as they whispered about Calypsa’s time in the tree. Thea marveled at and praised all the life and decorations in her sister’s grove. Eventually Mason cleared his throat.

“Sorry to interrupt. But I’m in something of a hurry.”

“When are you

not

in a hurry, druid?” Calypsa said, giving him a warm smile. Thea looked at her sister with wide eyes and an open mouth.

“My you

have

changed, sister. You seem so much…livelier. I can feel your magic growing. Even your hair is longer.”

The warrior-nymph put a hand through her now shoulder-length, black hair and looked suddenly shy.

“The younger tree agrees with me. As does being under the druid’s protection.”

Thea smiled and played with her sister’s hair, looking back at Mason with a much more familiar look of nymph hunger.

“I’m sure it does, sister,” she said, raking him with her eyes, and looking a lot more comfortable. “Now lets do as the druid asks. Though we might need…his assistance, depending on how great the task. Will you be able to help us, druid? Improve the power of our magic?”

He cleared his throat, knowing very well how the creatures would expect his ‘help’. It wasn’t like this was his first nymph rodeo. The idea didn’t bother him. Though telling some local farmers you were there to help, and then standing there and just getting a blowjob (or two…) in their field as you said ‘don’t worry, this is how it works’ might be a touch…awkward.

“All that matters is getting food grown as quickly as possible,” he said. “There’s a lot of fields, fruit trees, I’m not sure what else. We need to produce as much as we can. Whatever you can do.”

Thea smiled, stroking a hand down her sister’s arm.

“I’m sure we’ll think of something.”