Home for Horny Monsters Ch. 114

Hi all! Annabelle Hawthorne here, and I'm back with the next exciting installment of "Monstergirls hitting people really hard."

New reader? Just go for it. Don't let the fact that this is chapter 114 or the fact that I typically average around 12k words per chapter deter you. I'm sure you'll figure it out. But if you're a completionist, you should at least go back to the beginning and read Ch. 001. It's all about how Mike (the main character) takes a bath.

Returning reader? It's so good to see you! Did you know this chapter will be the 150th post I've made on Lit? It's so hard to believe I've put that much content here, I still remember when I just had a few chapters and was so excited to see how many people were enjoying the story. This mad journey wouldn't have been possible without all your support, thank you so much for all the comments, stars, and (nice) emails.

This chapter promises to have some thrills, some spills, and the long-awaited return of GETTING LAID!!! It's been a bit of a dry spell, so I whipped up something special for you all. I super hope you like it!

As always, don't forget to check my bio for release schedules, I'm busy managing deadlines these days and don't want you all to be uninformed. I truly believe that the readers on this site are simply the best, and will keep working hard to give you the best content I can as long as you shamelessly keep encouraging me to do so. In that regard, it's almost like we've got some genuine

Family Bonds

The forest was little more than a blur, finally giving way to a large slab of rocks that extended nearly a hundred feet in the air. When Mike Radley stepped through the damaged hangar doors, it was to the sight of Bigfoot, Yuki, and Dana huddled up behind a concrete pillar that was now supported by an ice wall nearly ten feet thick. Dead mercenaries littered the area, and the remainder had holed up toward the back of the room in what looked like a control center. When Dana poked her head around the corner, a rifle cracked and she barely dodged it. Along the back wall, a cluster of shadows had captured Mace, the magical weapon motionless beneath the dark tendrils.

He frowned. There was no way this last group of men should be capable of holding off Yuki, let alone the three of them. Still unseen, he took a moment to scan the room to see what the actual problem was. He spotted it when he saw that Yuki's ice seemed to truncate in a straight line that crossed the hangar bay. With no effort at all, he examined the magic in the room and saw the truth.

Crimson runes blazed defiantly in his vision, combined into a giant, magical circuit that created a disruptive field. The runes weren't just inscribed into the surface of the walls, but ran deep beneath the ground. If Ratu were here, she could probably disable them by manipulating earth and stone.

The fairies circled up on him to hide inside his collar, and he felt a surge of ice pass through his skull. He raised the Grimoire up in front of his face to catch the bullet that came his way, then moved to crouch behind a pile of rubble. His heart raced as gunfire shattered the concrete around him, but he swallowed his fear and examined the book.

The Grimoire was indestructible, and the round had flattened itself along the cover. Mike peeled it off with the tip of his finger and then studied the tome. He thought back to all he knew about his own magic and what Beth had told him. While running to the secret facility, he had felt the magic of the land at his back. Something was happening inside of him, some deep epiphany that was about to rise to the forefront. By opening this book, there was a chance he was about to throw away something precious.

If he wanted, he could scorch the earth and leave nothing but ruin in his wake. But that was a path he didn't dare tread. What sort of spell should he ask the Grimoire for?

"I need the power to protect," he whispered, and the book obeyed. The pages flipped open to reveal several variations of spells that would protect him from harm. He studied these for a moment, then looked across the room. Shaking his head, he looked at the book again.

"To protect others." The pages flipped some more, and then his precognition pulled his attention to a small projectile that bounced off the stack and landed a couple of feet away. He scowled at the grenade and his magic shoved it into the air with a burst of light and static. The grenade burst halfway back toward its sender, peppering the area with shrapnel and causing Mike's ears to ring.

The Grimoire's spells swam before his vision, each one calling to him. He didn't like how some of them whispered seductively in his ears, promising him their power without revealing the cost. The book actually trembled in his fingers, causing him to pause.

A shadow creature bubbled up from the ground in front of him, forming a pair of bladed limbs. Mike glanced up at it in anger as the manifestation raised its arms and took a step toward him.

"NO," he said, and motes of light leapt from his body, punching holes in the dark spectre. Turning his attention back to the book, he felt his anger growing. He didn't feel like fucking around with the Grimoire any longer. Why hadn't Beth mentioned the whispering to him? Surely she would have brought it up.

Or maybe she couldn't. She had warned him that the power was addictive, a free ride to greatness. Perhaps she hadn't heard the whispers, or the promises the book made. Was it the book itself, or the spells within that threatened to trap him?

"I see," he muttered, understanding the trap that had been laid. The Grimoire of Morgan Le Fey was a compendium of power without judgment. He knew very little about the ancient sorceress, but understood she would have no reason to omit spells because of the danger they posed. Ultimately, it was the burden of the person using it.

Another grenade came. This time, a lightning spider jumped off his shoulder and grabbed onto the projectile, carrying it back the way it had come. Mike winced at the loud boom, then turned more pages.

It took some digging, but at last he found a spell that didn't promise power, didn't whisper to him like some insidious Shadow Man. It was a spell powered by his own magic and desire to protect the ones he loved. Rising from his hiding spot, he stepped to the left to dodge a quick burst of rifle fire and curled the fingers of his left hand upward.

His magic fled into the floor, raising a wall of silver and gold light that stretched to the ceiling. A squadron of shadows by the wall exploded into nothingness at the appearance of the wall, and fired rounds fell harmlessly on the other side. The others stepped away from the concrete pillar, looking at Mike in relief. He rose from his hiding spot, his whole body feeling strangely hollow. Though his intent was noble, he had stepped outside of his magical boundaries, and the price for doing so had left him drained.

"Thanks," said Yuki, then made a fist and created a large icicle which she pounded into the wall. The crimson circuits flickered in response, then sent out an arc of magic that tried to push her away. Dana ran to Mace's aid, cutting away the shadows to free the magical weapon. Bigfoot stood, his fur matted with blood. The cryptid moved toward the hangar door.

"The kids already escaped," he said, stumbling for the exit. "We need to catch up to them."

"Shit." Mike looked back at the opening. "Should we all go?"

"No." Yuki slammed a chunk of ice into the wall again, and the circuits faltered once more. "They'll only pursue us and make things worse. Once I break these runes, we'll make sure they can't."

Dana crossed the room to Mike's side. Her hair had turned gray, and there was a dangerous hunger in her eyes. "Tick Tock is chasing some of them through the other levels," she said. "Death and Cyrus are outside with the kids, but Elizabeth went after them."

"Fuck." Mike looked at Yuki. "Do you guys have this?"

"We do now." The kitsune winked at him. "You probably don't want to be around to see what I do to these guys." Yuki glanced at Dana. "Or her, for that matter."

Dana said nothing. However, she did lick her lips.

Mike nodded, trying hard to keep his gaze away from the corpses at the edge of his vision. It was clear that many of them were no longer intact. He caught up to Bigfoot, who was struggling to walk.

"You look like shit," he said.

"Eat a dick." Bigfoot snorted. "The last time I got shot this many times was when some idiot mistook me for a buffalo."

"I thought bullets couldn't hurt you?"

Bigfoot shrugged. "There were a lot of bullets tonight. Some of them were bigger than others. It's a numbers game."

"Will you be okay?"

The cryptid nodded. "The forest takes care of its own. Its magic will help me. Go find the kids. I'll catch up when I can."

Dana ran up to Mike. "Yuki says you'll need this." She placed a small, crystalline compass in his hand. "It's pointing at Cyrus' bracelet."

"Thank you." Mike looked at the direction the compass pointed and started running. A dark mass of arachnids chittered in frustration as they arrived at the facility only for Mike to leave in another direction. Their sounds of protest faded behind him as he ran into the forest.

He was perhaps half a mile into the woods when he heard a scream, followed by an explosion to his left. Stopping in his tracks, he turned and saw the eerie glow of flames across the treetops. The compass pointed away from the flames, but the thought of following the compass filled him with an icy dread that made him sick to his stomach.

Growling in frustration, he turned toward the blast and sprinted toward the flames as if his own life depended on it. All four fairy girls flew ahead of him, illuminating the trees. Mike could feel the forest crying out in pain as distant trees ignited. It didn't take long before he found himself in another valley, this time with a figure shrieking on the ground and sending flames in every direction. From where he stood, he could tell that it was a woman who was missing most of her face.

Staring in horror, he watched as she sent ropey blasts of hellfire out in a circle, then rolled onto her back and clutched her skull in pain. Her cries were garbled, due to her missing lower jaw. The flames were avoiding the woman, but had spread outward into the forest. Uncertain why his magic had led him here, a single word from the other side of the valley cut through the woman's screams.

"Grace!"

"Cyrus," Mike whispered, then ran a wide circle around whoever was casually burning down the world. The flames made the terrain difficult, but he managed to circumvent them. The woman was unaware of his presence, and he crossed the valley to find a wall of smoke. Covering his mouth, he walked into the burning woods toward the sound of the mage's voice.

"Grace! Get down from there!"

When Mike found Cyrus, the old mage was on his knees at the base of a tree, clinging to it for support. Up above, the Arachne was staring at the flames in terror. Cyrus was covered in blood and ash, his features ghastly in the fire's light.

Grace had climbed up into the tree and was nearly fifteen feet off the ground. She was panting with exertion, clutching Jenny tight against her chest. When Cyrus screamed again, the Arachne acted like she couldn't even hear him. Flames from a nearby tree caused the child to hiss and scoot away.

"She's disoriented! Fire blinds her kind." Mike moved to the base of the tree. Cyrus turned to look at Mike, his eyes shimmering with thick tears.

"Oh, thank the gods," Cyrus said, then pointed up. "I'm not entirely sure what happened. We were fighting a witch and I got knocked out. I think Grace dragged me here, but got scared and now I can't get her down."

"She might not be able to hear you." Mike frowned at Cyrus. The old man was in rough shape. Looking up at his child, he could see nothing but terror in her eyes. "Does Callisto have the bracelet?"

"Yes." Cyrus groaned and leaned forward as if he was going to puke. "I thought I could get them out, I--"

"You did good." Mike put his hand on the tree and closed his eyes. He could sense the tree's fear of the flames, but there was nothing he could do for it. The Grimoire whispered softly to him, so he tossed the book on the ground.

Give me back my child, he said, pushing his will into the tree. The tree trembled in response, and then the large branch supporting Grace shifted away from her and she lost her balance. The Arachne was silent as she fell, and when Mike grabbed onto her, she let out a hiss and bit him.

"It's okay, sweetie. Daddy's here." He clutched his child tight and pulled the compass from his pocket. It pointed back in the direction he had come, which would also take him away from the flames. Mike tucked the compass in his pocket and knelt to pick up the Grimoire. When he looked at Cyrus, it was to see the old man steadying himself as if he was drunk. "You need a hand?"

"Go, I'll keep up." The mage chuckled and spat, briefly vanishing behind a waft of smoke. "Promise I won't just lie down and let those flames burn me."

There was smoke everywhere, and Mike lost his way more than once. The fairies left the safety of his collar and glowed brightly from above as they took him back in the direction of the field. When he arrived, it was to see that the woman who had been screaming and spewing hellfire in every direction was being tended to by a dark figure who rose at his approach.

"Mike Radley." Elizabeth glared at him with eyes he didn't recognize. Her skin was peeled up in several places, revealing dark scales beneath. Ominous shadows clung to her like leaking oil, slowly pooling beneath her feet. With the flames at his back, Mike watched as his own shadow shivered and melted, flowing in the witch's direction.

"Elizabeth." Mike kept his face neutral. "You're looking well."

"How are you even here?" The witch glanced down at the woman on the ground, who was now silent. Mike realized that the faceless woman had been wrapped up tightly in shadows like a cocoon. "I thought you were in Hawaii?"

Sensing an opportunity, Mike took it. "Didn't you know?" He summoned his magic, creating an electrical light show of dancing sparks all across his body. "My name is Mike Radley and I'm the fastest man alive."

"I'm glad you've kept your sense of humor." Elizabeth stuck out her hand and a staff burst through the ground at her feet. Atop of the stick was a large ruby held in place by coiled roots. "It'll give me something else to carve from you other than your heart."

"There's only one of you and eight of us."

The witch sneered. "All I see is a dead man and his child."

Mike looked back to make sure that Cyrus had kept up with him. The man was in a crouch, using his hands to keep from toppling over. Unless the old mage was faking an injury, it was clear that he wasn't a threat.

From above, the fairies descended en masse, landing on top of Mike's head. They were bouncing up and down on his scalp, blowing raspberries at the witch. It was clear that he wasn't going to impress Elizabeth with numbers alone.

"I've also got this." Mike held up the Grimoire with one hand. Elizabeth faltered for a moment, her eyes dropping to the tome.

"You wouldn't dare," she said, her gaze shifting to Grace. "If we fight, I will try to kill your child. You can pretend to have the upper hand all you want, but we both know that nobody here can help you. Every single one of them is a liability."

"Hardly. They're my strength." His magic churned in approval of his words, but he was painfully aware how little of it remained. The Grimoire started whispering to him again, but he ignored it. "You and your people are always underestimating us, and it's only going to continue."

Elizabeth opened her mouth to say something, but the bundled figure behind her let out a cry of agony. The woman paused, clearly fighting the urge to look back. Mike recognized it as concern, but was a little surprised to see it on the witch's face. There was only one person in the world he knew of that she could care that much about.

"That's Sarah, isn't it?"

"You are not to speak of her." Elizabeth's eyes became wild. "You killed her."

"Technically, a plant did that, not me. But that's her soul in there now, right?" Mike narrowed his eyes. "Which means she's alive. The two of you have a chance to walk away. So what will it be? Do we put each other's children in danger, or agree to--"

Elizabeth thrust her staff forward, and the shadows beneath her ripped free of the ground, forming into serrated spikes. Opal burst free from her flask, shoving Mike and Grace away as the slime girl caught the bladed barrage. Though unharmed, the slime girl was now tangled up in the rigid shadows.

Mike leapt away from the next attack, and a third one that followed. His magic churned in alarm as dark flames circled around his feet, sucking the heat from his body.

The fairies flew at the witch, but were immediately batted aside with the staff. Mike ran for the edge of the clearing, but the ground was ripped away from beneath his feet. He stumbled and fell, clutching Grace to his body. The little Arachne hissed loudly, her eyes scrunched up tight. An ominous wind blew across Mike's back, and he rolled over to see Elizabeth standing over him, an imperious grin on her face.

"It looks like you weren't the fastest man alive after all." The skin of her lips split, revealing more of the macabre vision that hid beneath the surface. She cackled and held up a hand full of dark fire, ready to smash it down on the two of them.

Then the spiders came. Dozens of them at once, ballooning through the air on silken strands. The ones that landed near her wrist were immediately consumed by the flames, but the rest landed on her shoulders and head, immediately scurrying around and finding anything they could bite.

THE BROOD MUST SURVIVE,, they declared as one. Gossamer strands stuck in the witch's hair as hundreds more of them came, landing on the witch and immediately seeking out sensitive flesh.

Elizabeth flinched, then let out a cry of pain and grabbed her side. She slammed her staff on the ground and covered herself in flames, but that just forced the spiders to seek refuge anywhere they could fit. When Elizabeth screamed in fury, several of them crawled inside her nose and mouth.

Somewhere through the smoke, Cyrus let out a strangled cry of his own, but Mike couldn't see what was wrong. He got to his feet and ran away from Elizabeth, but looked back to see a dark carpet of arachnids had emerged from the forest, the swarm caught up to him at last. They flowed across Sarah's new body, and she struggled to free herself from her mother's magical bonds as they sank their teeth into her as well.

Looking away from Elizabeth and the burning forest, Mike ran with Grace toward safety. He made it to the treeline and then threw himself to the ground to avoid a blast of hot green fire. When he got to his feet, it was to see the witch standing over him with shadows stretched out behind her like wings. Large tendrils had sprouted from her shoulders, each of them wrapped securely around the struggling form of Sarah. The witch's face and hands were bloody, the skin already swelling from all the bites.

They looked at each other for less than a moment, but an understanding was reached. There were no more words to exchange as Elizabeth raised her staff and pointed it in his direction. The book practically screamed for his attention, but Mike recognized the danger. Even if he had time to open it and cast something, there would be a price down the road, one far worse than this.

"NO," he said, and the book obeyed. Elizabeth froze up for a moment, as if in obedience. Shaking her head, she sneered and finished casting her spell.