I Don't Like Violence Ch. 03

I'm not aware of the moment I wake up next, instead gradually coming to my senses. It takes me a moment to identify the warmth against my stomach and thighs as the body of a tiny, curled-up goblin. I give her ear a rub, which makes her squirm awake. She glances over her shoulder at me, stretching, and her eyes go wide for a moment. "Oh gosh," she says with a brownish blush. "We... sleep together?"

I chuckle and give her a little rub at the back of her head. "Yeah. I picked you up after you dozed off and brought you here. You're so cute I couldn't resist."

Her ears droop, though her expression is anything but a sad one. "Everyone calling me cute now."

"The other goblins didn't?" I ask curiously.

She shrugs her shoulders, "Other gobbos not really think I much cuter than them I guess." She shifts to lay on her other side and takes a moment to stare at my chest, rubbing it with her hands. "So this why I never like gobbos before... Wow..."

"You mean you're not into girls?"

She nods. "Mhm. Never understanding why. Never thinking of humans. But now Nunu understand." She grins up at me. "Waiting for Leo!"

I laugh and lean in to give her forehead a kiss. "Maybe I was waiting for you too." I really do consider it. She's truly adorable, and good company as far as I have seen. But such things ought to take a little more time. Still, she positively glows at my words as the two of us get up.

Srakira is apparently on her way to the tent as we emerge. She straightens up and glances between us and it, then makes a huffing sound. "You are a bold prisoner," she says with a cocked brow.

I bow my head apologetically. "I'm sorry, I didn't know it was yours, chieftain. I was really tired and not thinking straight."

She hums pensively and gives her head a dismissive shake. "You be careful for your time here. You are doing well, but we do not trusssst you yet. But I do undersssstand you are tired. Nunu told me ssssome of sssstory. And alsssso you bedded entire tribe. Is normal to be tired from that." She clicks her teeth humorously at that.

"I thank you for your understanding."

She glances at Nunu then. "Nunu is free to sssshare my tent. Sssshe is monsssster kin and cute. I will be happy to keep her if sssshe does not want to go."

Nunu shakes her head. "Lizard chief nice, but Leo nicer. I go with him."

Srakira makes a noise I interpret as one of mild displeasure, and passes us, the conversation apparently over. Around us I can see the other lizard girls going about their business. As one passes by me I notice her chest-sacks expand slightly, with a deliberate glance my way. And downward.

"It seems I made an impression," I comment to Nunu.

She hugs her chest and pouts, which makes me chuckle. "Hey, you saw how I snu-snu earlier. You'll always have my attention."

She's slightly encouraged by that, but it's still clear she's jealous of the attention I'm receiving from the other women. Well, herms.

I spend the rest of the afternoon entertaining the saurians that remain within the village border. They come and go, carrying about their tasks, but clearly still have the time to sit and let the human entertain them. After a few more flirty interactions I opt to put my clothes back on, but the sexual tension remains. Hardly any of the women of the tribe are able to hide their dicks for the rest of the day, genital slits parted to let their semis hang heavily down. I never before imagined I would find dicks so attractive, but my eyes go down to them as often as they do to their pseudo-breasts.

They're kind enough to offer dinner when the time comes. The sun is beginning to dip lower, but the heat of the day has yet to dissipate. I've learned much about them in that time. They aren't cold-blooded like actual reptiles, but they are colder-blooded than humans. Their chests are indeed a mating feature- odd that they resemble human sexual traits so much. They, like the goblins, also travel on occasion, though apparently mostly when necessity dictates. They're omnivorous but particularly partial to fish. And that's largely what dinner consists of.

They solicit me for spices, but I hadn't brought any that wasn't already on my dried beef- which I was now out of, no less. As such it's a rather plain meal. They are confused at first when Nunu and I stick our fish over the fire to cook, while they virtually swallow theirs whole and raw, but they quickly understand. Some of them even try it, but they complain it makes it taste dry, to the humored reaction of their comrades.

After that comes another inevitable round of love-making. The other saurians join each other this time around, though three of them immediately pounce on me, stripping me of my clothes. Nunu protests, but there isn't much I can do when three herms that are all both taller and stronger than me have me pinned down by their amorous advances. She gets her own turn though. By the end of the festivities, while I haven't bedded every last one of them, it's certainly been more than half. And I finally got to be on top, introducing them to the wonders of doggy style. The way their tails curl around my waist is almost surreal, and makes me wonder about human girls with tails. Srakira also doesn't miss a chance to join in, asserting her dominance right toward the end. Unlike the others, she insists on pushing me down and riding me herself. That doesn't stop her from cumming until she's unsteady on her feet though.

I clean up as best I can with exhaustion weighing me down, and finally settle in for a proper night's sleep, with Nunu happily cuddling with me once more. The cost of the tent we use is one I pay willingly- its owner curled up against my back, soaking up my warmth. She clicks her teeth as we settle in, telling me how she will suffer the others' jealousy in the morning. It's harder to get to sleep, fairly soon after my deep afternoon nap, but I'm eventually able to, lulled by irresistible weariness.

Boy do I feel well-rested the next morning though. Apparently the saurians were happy to let me get my rest, because they're already about their duties. Rashanna, the one with whom Nunu and I had shared a tent, is out gathering supplies.

Srakira approaches me as I leave the tent. "As we promissssed, you may go." I detect disappointment in her tone. "But we hope you will sssstay."

I shake my head apologetically. "I would love to, chieftain. Your way of life is a nice one, but as an adventurer, I'm afraid I have to keep moving."

"Aventurer," she says pensively. "You told ussss about ssssuch things. You have, hmm... Quesssstssss?"

I nod, "I don't have any yet, but yes, in general adventurers do the things other people need done."

"Other people, like saurians?" she asks. She inclines her head in a gesture I take to mean hopefulness.

I nod. "I think so, yes. What do you need?"

She huffs through her nose and glances around hesitantly. "Humans are danger to ussss. We are sssstrong, we can fight, but they are many. We are not." Her slit, lizard-like eyes return to me. "You are not fighter. But you are good human. You talk well, you convinsssce well." She pauses, still hesitating. "I give you quesssst. Ssssave us from humans. I do not care how."

I exhale heavily, taking it in. "There is no way I can refuse," I tell her right away. "After living with your for a day and a night, this is the right thing to do. But how to do it... Give me some time. I'll go to the nearest town and gather information. But I will be back when I think of something."

Srakira nods slowly. We stand in silence for a moment, then I add more. "Maybe one of you can come with me. If the humans see me with one of your own, it could help."

Her eyes narrow. "That is very dangeroussss. Is very big rissssk." Her frills rise with her apprehension. "I will assssk. Maybe one will come." She turns her head to one side then the other pensively. "Gather your things. Get ready to leave. I will return with tribe's ansssswer before you leave."

"Okay."

Nunu and I do as instructed. We bathe in the river one last time, then pack what we have left into my sack. I insist on taking it first, given we have to cross the river. Nunu's hair has gone black by now, her powder-dye having washed out over the course of the last day and a half. She seems slightly distraught about it, but makes little fuss about it after realizing she can't do anything about it.

"Hair powder is like gobbo name," she tells me. "Make mix only you know. Marks you. Feel naked without." She paws at her hair then sighs. "But Nunu not gobbo anymore. Still small, still green, but not gobbo. Humans not wear powder, so Nunu okay to not wear powder too."

I smile and rub her hair affectionately. She smiles and leans into it, certainly getting used to all the head pats she has been receiving lately. Not just from me, but the fond saurians as well, Srakira most of all.

We idle on the bank for a little while until finally Srakira emerges, flanked by two lizard women. "These two ssssay they will come if you want," she informs us. I recognize one as Rashanna- her markings have some orange to them, and her eyes are a particular icy blue color. The other I don't remember the name of.

"Two saurians," I mull, pondering my options. One would be safe, but two was a gamble. On one hand, it would be more alarming to humans in town, but other the other it could also be more persuasive- showing them that even in strength, saurians are willing to befriend an outmatched human. Eventually I make my decision. "We will go with just one. Two is more of a risk- the last thing we want is for the humans to get scared. Scared humans do stupid things." The saurians all click their teeth in humored agreement. I smile. "We'll take Rashanna, since we know her better. But more may come with us when we return, if things go well."

The saurians grunt their approval, as well as some disappointment, and finally prepared, the three of us set out. Rashanna has packed her own belongings as well, including some stone tools and weapons.

I have Rashanna put on a cloak to keep her modest. Hidden as her sex is, and non-functional as her breasts are, humans tend to be prudish. I explain this to her as well, and she naturally finds it ridiculous. Nevertheless, for the sake of possible good future relations with humans, she accepts my instructions. Plus, privately, I wonder if she might gain a taste for clothing once she's tried on something she likes. It's doubtful we will find anything particularly nice at the small town up ahead, though.

As we travel, it's Rashanna's turn to tell me more about her home. She points out territory markers and secret messages that humans wouldn't be able to read. She doesn't tell me what they actually mean though, out of interest for secrecy, which I perfectly understand.

She visibly grows on edge as we go along, the frills on her head and upper neck slowly rising, and eyes darting about. "Ssssoon we will arrive in human land," she tells us soon after I notice her behavior. "Many men passss thissss way. Ssssometimes on their horsssses, with their ssssharp metal and hard sssshells. Ssssaurians have to be careful."

"You have to stay calm," I tell her gently, before placing a hand on her arm. She exhales and does her best. Her frills do not dip all the way, but they do drop slightly. "If you are nervous, that will just make it harder to convince them you are not a threat. When we get to the human land, you will have to do what they tell you. It will probably not be nice, but we don't want them to see you as a threat, so that's the best you can do for now. If they attack you, don't fight back, just dodge, get out of their reach, or if you have to, run."

She nods slowly, clearly not pleased. "If humans come to our camp we would not be sssso nisssce."

"Well, you actually were," I chuckle, which makes her look away with a snort. "That's actually not a bad example. Be like I was. Try to entertain them, do things that will make them laugh and have fun, distract them from the danger they think you pose to them." I pause. "Uh... But don't show them your dick like I did," I chuckle. "The men won't be happy if they find out yours is bigger than theirs."

She clicks her teeth, "Ssssaurians alsssso like to be bigger. I get jealoussss too. I undersssstand."

The forest is dense, so we come upon an outpost almost as soon as we see it. I stop and gesture for the girls to stop behind me, out of sight. "Here," I say, leaning down. "I'm going to carry Nunu. It will make you cuter and less threatening to them."

Nunu's ears bob with uncertainty, but she acquiesces, clearly accepting me as the leader of the party. She holds up her arms adorably and I pluck her up and set her on my shoulders. She clenches my hair tightly and I wince, "Ow, easy there."

"S-sorries," she mutters, "Gobbos climb trees, not humans. Not drop me."

I chuckle. "Grab the bag instead. You've got some room to lean back on it and it's stable enough, you'll be fine." She does so and hums in what I take to be agreement. Her thick thighs on either side of my head make me blush a little, and I'm conscious of the fact there is a rather large penis right behind my neck, though the thickness of the furs she wears makes it impossible to actually feel. I actually feel a little disappointed by that fact.

Now properly totemed up, we approach the outpost ahead. It's a small stone brick tower with an arch straddling the road. A large wooden door stands open, good for stopping carts and horses that rely on the road, though anyone on foot could simply find a way around.

A pair of guards watch us approach with a mix of curiosity and confusion. Neither of them particularly looks intelligent enough to figure out what's going on.

"Oi. Wot's this then?" the taller of the two, a balding, skinny man with black hair, speaks up.

"Adventurers," I tell them. "I'm Leonard of Duzille, and these are my companions, Nunu and Rashanna."

"Your companions look a lot like monsters," he says. His stouter compatriot nods, an ill-fitting helm wobbling on his head.

"Only on the outside," I say, patting Nunu's knee. "They're adventurers, same as I am. Haven't you seen monster-kind adventurers before?"

They shake their heads.

"Well, no matter," I say with a shrug. "Here's my card," I say, holding out my Hedge Guild membership certificate. "Everything should be in order."

They glance from it to me, then to each other. "Pab, you think we should let them in?" the tall one asks the other.

"I dunno. We never let monsters in before."

"I don't see no 'arm in it. It's just two of 'em."

"But suppose we get in trouble anyway? We're supposed to guard against their kind."

"Well," I pipe in, "Would you really rather stand here on your feet arguing between yourselves and us about it, or would you rather just let things play out? Odds are nobody's going to care and you'll just carry on in your duties without a bother."

They glance at each other, and raise their brows in unison, then step aside. "Welcome to Plurilly, sir and madams."

We walk right through, Rashanna clutching her cloak nervously. We can hear the guards continuing to mutter behind us. "You see 'ow the green one looked at me?"

"I thought she was looking down at that guy's 'ead."

"Not that green one, the tall one. One wi' the tail an' the stripes."

"No, I didn't see 'ow she looked at you. Honest to tell ya, I was wonderin' 'ow tall the little one was. Kinda cute, that one."

Their voices grow indistinct as we go, though I can hear them rising a little. Probably arguing over their taste in women. I chuckle privately.

The town itself has no fortifications, little more than a cluster of houses spread over what was once a forest, and occasionally separated by logging mills and waterwheels on the river. The people stop and stare, particularly at Rashanna, as we pass through, and it isn't long before a few guards jump to their feet and approach us, hands at their hilts.

"Hey you, stop!"

We do.

"Uh... Who are you and what's your business here?"

"As a matter of fact, we were looking for the people in charge," I tell them adopting a more upbeat and eloquent tone. "I am an adventurer currently on a quest, you see. One which involves the local nobility. You see, this fine young lady here, dressed in a cloak, is a Saurian emissary."

They nod, half dumbstruck. "Never seen a lizardfolk come in through the front door before," one comments. "Usually come up by the river, snatch up our babies."

I shoot Rashanna a look before her frills have a chance to rise and she nods back to me in understanding, keeping a level head. I continue, "That was before, but things are about to change, and you have the perfect opportunity before you, my good men. For you are the ones to usher in a new age of safety for this town." I had few options to go for, but given they're guards, safety struck me as being more persuasive than 'interspecies relations'. "The Saurians are tired of being hunted and tired of being killed, and above all, tired of having to kill the poor humans just to get by. They never really wanted to, you see, but monster life outside of the safety of human living, with guards on the watch and walls to protect them, can be so difficult, as I am sure you can imagine."

The poor men are completely in over their heads, but they are nodding along. I'm keeping things just simple enough for them to follow along. I pause for a moment, as if expecting them to speak. "Why don't you see? They wish to become human! Naturally, they cannot change their scales, but they wish to make peace with humans- no more snatching up babies, and no more of their eggs being hunted. The cycle of violence will end. How easy would your jobs be then? And how much would you be paid for being the ones responsible for ending this plague of Saurian attacks, eh?" I nudge the one up front with my elbow, who scratches at his nose idly.

"Of course, in order to make this happen, you fine gentlemen must bring this important visitor to the village to the one in charge. The local baron ought to hear about this and consider for himself."

"So what you're saying," the one I take to be the captain says, "Is they want to live with us?"

"We can work out the details later, but that's certainly on the table. For the time being, trade agreements and a non-aggression pact will be the foremost items to consider. Saurians are fantastic hunters and fishers, and very interested in human crafts and perhaps architecture too. There is much mutual gain to be had. To you in particular, captain."

"I... suppose that's true," he says, nodding along.

Rashanna is staring at me wide-eyed, frills totally relaxed. I step away from the man now and put my hand around her shoulder. "Now Rashanna, I've done a lot of speaking so far, you ought to say something to these fine men."

Her frills jump up, but more in alarm than out of hostility. "Oh, um..." She chitters nervously and nods. "I am Rashanna. I hunt for my tribe. Oh, and I am... emissssary for my tribe. Yes. We are tired to having to hide from humans." I mime her some advice. "And very, very tired of having to attack humans to ssssurvive. We like humans, sssso we regret what we have done."

"Why did you attack us before?" the captain asked.

"You were scared of ussss sssso we could not trade with you," she says falteringly, twiddling her claws nervously. "We had to fight to ssssurvive. B-but it is not sssso now. We can be ssssafe together instead. Like I ssssay, we like humans."

"And just like them," I add, sweeping dramatically back toward the guard, Nunu yelping at the motion way up high, "us humans have had to do some nasty things in order to get by, haven't we? We've had to cut down the homes of birds, dam up the fish's rivers, but all of that we did because we had to. If we could make a treaty with the animals to make sure we didn't hurt them, we wouldn, wouldn't we?"