Chapter 42: Peanut
Sunday, April 2nd, 9:22 PM
Dungeon Ciara
By late evening, Mike and Todd had already fashioned more than a hundred weapons. Mike also finished his bow with Nita’s help, which was incredibly powerful as he’d predicted—though he could barely draw it.
Staves and handles took shape at the same ridiculous pace as metal pieces after I absorbed three Redwood trees, and deposited their wood in eight-foot lengths inside the mining tunnel. Todd and Mike eagerly hauled them away for their creations.
Their magically-enhanced components were quite sturdy and impressive. After a few rounds of testing, they determined that the wood’s original tensile strength, flexibility, and durability had quadrupled when mana-infused, and the same was true for metals.
Huh. Sven was right—I’m only able to raise melting points and reduce brittleness with my mana infusion, but those three can affect everything about the materials they work with.
Jeffrey busied himself making heavy cloth tunics, reminiscent of bulletproof vests. Rather than stitching with a needle, old Jeffrey gained the ability to intertwine fibers from separate pieces of cloth and tie them securely with magic alone. His skill worked so quickly that my inventory soon ran low on fabric.
Luckily, Jeffrey was tired enough to turn in by the time he finished his sixth piece of armor. Mike and Todd also called it a night.
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In the basement, Joe heard a gentle knock at his bedroom door.
It’s her.
“One moment.” He dried his eyes against his pillow, then let Siobhán in.
“Hey Joe,” she said, searching his eyes as they sat on the edge of his bed. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Joe lied.
“You don’t look okay.” She stood and hugged him.
Joe tensed and resisted for a moment, but thought better of it.
She means well.
He returned her embrace.
“I won’t stay if you’d rather be alone,” Siobhán whispered.
“I—” Joe stopped and considered for a moment.
Anna… Joe’s heart wrenched and he shut his eyes.
He could feel Siobhán’s warmth pressing against him. Her presence was soothing, but it reminded him too much of his late wife.
“I appreciate it, but I’ll be okay. I should spend some time alone.”
“O-okay.” Siobhán stood stiffly, pressing her lips.
“It’s not a good time.” Joe stood and hugged her again.
“Mm.” She patted his shoulder and turned toward the door with a strained smile.
Right. Be nice.
“Siobhán…” Joe caught her hand and embraced her from behind. “Don’t go off thinking that I dislike you. I appreciate that you stayed up with me last night, and I enjoy your company. I just need time to sort things out in my head.” He bent and kissed her cheek.
Siobhán turned and teared up as she touched the place where his lips had been. This time, her smile was genuine. Joe nodded, and she left.
I get it. We’re all doing the best we can.
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Overnight, I finished cleaning up the rest of the harbor and worked to claim the ocean floor further below the beach.
I’d salvaged a huge quantity of resources from the bottom of the harbor channel—nearly three times as much as before. I didn’t find any new materials, but my stock of rusted iron and steel was impressive.
Good thing I can separate the oxidized parts.
With cleaning up in mind, I checked Coconut Grove and found that I could claim the entire structure. I did so, and afterward, I consumed the entire Boardwalk along with Coconut Grove. But what I discovered packed into some of the ruins horrified me.
Thousands of jumbled human skeletons lay amid piles of ash. Most other structures I’d consumed had some dead people, but this was beyond abnormal. Most of the skeletons were male, and many were children.
Those sick bastards…
Sighing, I continued leveling every structure down to its foundation as I stored materials from buildings, roller coasters, and other rides. While doing so, I doubled the amount of snow and ice in my inventory.
After a moment’s consideration, I did the same for the entire beach flats area, sparing only the foundations of structures ruined by the bomb, while leaving the one that was intact—Monterey Bay Exploration Center—untouched.
A quick check revealed that my efforts at UCSC had borne fruit. Literally. The farm had not only recovered, but it was already laden with crops buried under the snow. Surprisingly, the freeze hadn’t killed their tomato plants or other sensitive crops as I’d assumed it would. Still, I consumed all the snow from that location to protect their food supply.
I had a very disturbing thought.
They’d better not be allied with the One World Order…
Fighting my Dungeon-half down as it spoiled for slaughter, I made that an issue for another time.
Better to ask if Joe and Mike will check it out, first.
For good measure, I removed snow from all the paths and roads on campus. Some had already been partially cleared, but it only took seconds for me to do what would take humans hours—especially with nothing but hand tools.
With a nod, I returned to the Dungeon proper and pondered how to improve my castle.
That thought made me smile.
I have my own castle. And a Dungeon with a Redwood Forest—underground.
The enormity of what I’d already accomplished sank in.
I’m living a childhood dream. I may not be a wildlife photographer, but I can make a difference.
I smiled and returned to work.
Except for their bathrooms and light fixtures, my castle’s bedrooms lay bare.
Time to spruce this place up a little.
While they were all slightly different, I had plenty of king-size beds for all eight of my castle’s bedrooms, and I set them up.
I added towels and towel racks to every bathroom, and I placed various rugs on either side of the beds. It wasn’t much, and it looked haphazard, but at least people could stay in those rooms.
Movement caught my attention as something leaped onto my harbor gate, then dropped to the bridge and bounded through the snow beneath a pre-dawn sky.
Ooh, a mountain lion. Pretty!
Then it hit me.
A mountain lion. Oh, crap. My humans!
[Joe. Mike. Girls. I need you. Now.]
[What need, Mommy?] Sunny yawned beside Siobhán, who sat up and stretched.
Sandy remained asleep beside Joy.
[There’s a mountain lion inside the walls.]
“What? Where? Nita, Sunny, come!” Siobhán’s eyes lit up. Nita dropped onto her as she leaped out of bed, racing to the basement stairs wearing nothing but her bra, underwear, and Nita, with Sunny on her heels.
Joe exited his room, buckling his belt. He gaped at Siobhán and Sunny as they ran past.
“What the hell?” Joe muttered.
[Soybean, wait! It’s a mountain lion!]
Siobhán replied, “I know, ProfCon, and I need to name another animal!”
[Oh. Well, you’d better be careful, sweetie. I don’t want to see you hurt. I might… lose it again.]
“I’ll be fine. Nita can handle a big cat if it gets aggressive. Just make sure you tell Joe and Mike to leave my kitty alone,” Siobhán yelled. Then she amended, “Unless it’s gonna hurt someone else…”
Siobhán burst into the castle after I opened the sliding stone door for her, and raced outside with Nita and her boobs swaying like mad while I relayed the situation to everyone else.
“Ugh, damn these tits!” Siobhán griped.
“Nita, could you help me out here, love?” Nita tucked her four middle legs beside Siobhán’s breasts and linked her long hind legs behind her. Nita’s strength easily restrained the jumbling of Siobhán’s chest.
“Thanks, Nita!” Siobhán smiled with her eyes as she ran.
“The girl’s got balls. Not too bright, but definitely balls.” Mike shook his head as he grabbed his bow and a quiver of tungsten-tipped arrows. “Tell her I’ll drop that fucker if it makes a move toward anyone who ain’t immortal.”
“Ciara, I need that toughness blessing, if you’re willing,” said Joe as he exited the castle.
[Done.]
Joe glowed bright blue.
[The mountain lion’s sniffing around the Crow’s Nest entrance.]
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“Yep. I already see it.” Siobhán called out as she neared. The cat snapped its head toward her. Its ears laid back as she approached, and it ran inside my Dungeon to hide in the fruit orchard.
Siobhán ran inside without hesitation, then paused at the bottom of the ramp. “Sunny, heel.”
My good girl obeyed.
“Nita, trap,” said Siobhán. Nita leaped to the ceiling and raced to the orchard’s entrance.
“No,” said Joe as he arrived beside her.
“I’ll catch your kitty.”
“Uh, hi Joe…” Siobhán turned red as Nita ran back to hang above her. After her run through the cold, Siobhán’s endowments stood proudly beneath her bra. She seemed to notice Joe staring, and covered herself with her hands.
Joe snorted. “Nothing I haven’t seen before.”
Siobhán smacked his arm and pouted, furrowing her brow. Then she said, “I wanna keep the big kitty safe. That’s why I sent Nita to—”
With a hug that made Siobhán fall silent as she sucked in a breath, Joe said, “Trust me. I won’t hurt the cat.” He placed his big hand against her cheek.
Nodding once, open-mouthed as she gazed into Joe’s eyes, Siobhán stammered, “O-okay.”
“Have your spider close the orchard off after I go in. I don’t want it slipping out past me.” Joe waved a hand as he stepped through the doorway and a growl came from the fruit orchard.
“Sure, Joe,” Siobhán said with a wide smile as she watched him go. She quirked her mouth to one side as she pressed her lips and sighed.
My Soybean likes him so much... I hope Joe gives her a chance.
Nita ran to the entrance and weaved thick sheets of silk across it to serve as a net.
“Ciara, please have one of your dogs catch a fish and bring it for me,” said Joe.
[Ah, I see what you’re up to. Good thing you can heal yourself, big guy. The cat’s pissed. It’s inside the restroom to your left.]
“Yep. I’m aware,” Joe replied.
[Sunny, go get a nice fish for Mommy!]
[Swim time!] Sunny bolted past Mike, who’d just arrived. She raced out through the entrance and, with a single leap, sailed thirty meters through the air before splashing into the harbor.
“Uh, hi Mike.” Siobhán had her arms up while Nita wrapped her bare torso with silk.
“Huh. Maybe we can get Nita to help us with body armor,” Mike mused.
“That’s not a bad idea,” Siobhán raised her eyebrows and nodded.
“Lovely dress, hon.” Mike snickered.
Siobhán rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I know. You’ve all seen my tits, so… whatever. They’re just bags of fat, anyway.”
Mike chuckled and waved away her comment.
Her eyebrows raised and Siobhán asked, “Please, Mike, don’t hurt the kitty unless someone’s in real danger?”
“Good. We’re on the same page,” said Mike.
After thinking for a moment, I sealed the toilet off, so the big cat couldn’t get its head stuck.
Joe reached the bathroom entrance and the cat screamed at him as it backed away. It sounded like a woman in distress as it reverberated in my fruit orchard.
Assuming a wide stance, Joe stalked forward as the cat growled and snarled. It bared its teeth and swiped at the air in front of it.
When Joe was within two meters of the cat, its eyes widened and its haunches twitched.
Joe’s eyes narrowed.
The mountain lion leaped forward, trying to slip past Joe, but he caught it midair and pinned it to the ground on its side. The big cat screamed and tried in vain to scratch the hell out of his empowered arms. Its hind feet raked hard, claws skittering across the stone as it strained to bite.
After about ten seconds, the cat seemed to realize that Joe wasn’t harming it, and it stopped resisting, though it continued to growl.
The scratching had drawn a bit of blood, but Joe sniffed with a smirk that made him look amused. “Dungeon, this is nuts. The cat’s fully-grown and strong as hell. But once I got it pinned, it feels like I’m restraining an angry housecat. Tell Siobhán to come and name this thing. Have Sunny bring me that fish if you can.”
I relayed his words to Siobhán, and Sunny was already standing beside her with a one-meter salmon that hung limply from her jaws.
Nita quickly tore down and ate the silk she’d used to block the door, and Siobhán raced inside with Sunny.
“Nice dress.” Joe grinned appreciatively at Siobhán while the big cat growled.
“Yeah, it’s kinda nipply out.” Siobhán snorted.
Joe cracked up for a moment, then he grinned. “Careful, girl. You sound an awful lot like a marine.”
She laughed and walked behind Joe.
“Where are you going?”
“He’s a boy,” said Siobhán.
Joe replied, “Oh. So am I, but there’s no need to go lifting up my skirt.”
Siobhán squeezed her eyes shut and snickered. Then she messed up Joe’s hair as she moved past him. “Never know, Joe. I might need to check you out thoroughly, just to be sure. I mean—from what I can see, you’ve got an enormous pussy.” She beamed at him.
Joe shook his head, grinning.
Sunny arrived to stand in front of the cat, and it stopped growling to stare wide-eyed at her fish.
Siobhán nodded. “He’s hungry. If not, he wouldn’t be out while it’s this cold.”
She tapped her chin for a moment.
“Peanut,” Siobhán said, and the cat glowed.
“Huh?” Joe wrinkled his brow.
“His balls—they look like peanuts.” She said matter-of-factly.
Joe roared with laughter, and the cat struggled again.
“No, Peanut. It’s okay, buddy. Joe’s a friend,” Siobhán said softly, petting Peanut’s head.
The growling and straining stopped as the big cat locked eyes with Siobhán.
She scritched behind his ears, then gave Peanut a slow blink.
Peanut returned her gesture.
“Good! Are you hungry?” Siobhán asked.
Peanut licked his chops and stared longingly at the salmon.
“Sunny, set the fish down, sweetie.” Siobhán patted Sunny’s shoulder when she obeyed.
“Okay, Joe. Let’s see if Peanut listens,” said Siobhán.
“Peanut, as long as you don’t attack, nobody will hurt you.” Siobhán explained.
“Here’s hoping my giant pussy can understand you. It’s cold, wet, and I’ve had my fill of squeezing it.” Joe grinned.
Siobhán snorted and rolled her eyes, then winked at Joe.
“Oh, would you have Nita seal this place off again, just in case?” Joe asked.
“Already done,” said Siobhán.
Joe smiled and shook his head.
“You ready?” she asked Joe.
He nodded. “Any time.”
“Right. Let him go.”
Joe released Peanut and stood aside.
Peanut remained where he was. He got his feet under him, then glared at Joe.
“Are you gonna come eat, Peanut?” Siobhán asked. “The fish is yours, and nobody’s gonna hurt you.”
Peanut looked at Siobhán, then at the fish. He took a careful step forward, then growled at Sunny.
“No, Peanut. Sunny is a friend. She’s a good girl and she doesn’t mean any harm.” Siobhán scritched Sunny’s head, and the Lab blinked slowly at Peanut.
The mountain lion stared Sunny down, then cocked his head and gave Sunny a half slow-blink in reply.
Siobhán stepped forward and Peanut’s attention shifted to her.
“It’s okay. We’re all friends, and you’re safe.”
She reached a hand toward him, and Peanut stepped forward to rub against her outstretched fingers. “Aww. You’re just a big, sweet, furry pussy, aren’t you?” She scritched him behind the ears and Peanut purred for a second until Joe took a step forward.
Peanut growled.
“Easy, big fella. I’m not gonna hurt you.” Joe kneeled and extended his hand, copying Siobhán.
Peanut scratched Joe, snatched the fish, and scrambled for the exit.
“Hah. I figured that might happen,” said Joe as he healed the shallow wounds.
Peanut rebounded off the silk blocking his path. He growled, then hid in the grass to tear into his salmon.
“Yeah, he’s not tame. It looks like he’ll only listen to me for now. Maybe after he eats we can try again?” Siobhán shrugged.
“Well, it seems I don’t have a lot to fear from wild animals.” Joe chuckled.
“I guess, but I don’t wanna see you get hurt.” Siobhán placed a hand on Joe’s shoulder as she locked eyes with him.
“You’re cute, all tied up in silk. Weird, but cute,” Joe mused.
She turned a deep red and offered Joe a shy smile, then wrapped him in a hug.
Joe returned her hug and they embraced for a few seconds. He shut his eyes and pulled her close before his eyes snapped open as he seemed to realize something.
He pulled away, pressing his lips and nodding while Siobhán looked at him open-mouthed. Her eyes went to his groin, then back to his face as Joe averted his eyes.
“Um, that was quick,” she said, then bit her bottom lip.
“Ah. Yeah. You feel—uh… naked,” Joe replied, keeping his eyes off her as he closed his hands twice.
Siobhán’s eyes widened. She covered herself with her hands and shivered a bit, then met Joe’s eyes as he looked at her again, “I don’t mind that, Joe. You’re warm.”
Joe turned his head a little while keeping his eyes on Siobhán’s.
He took a deep breath as she came forward to wrap him in another hug.
Joe’s arms reached slowly around Siobhán, touching her back just under her arms as she nodded and pressed herself firmly against him. He stopped and backed away when Peanut snarled.
“No, Peanut. Joe’s my friend.” Siobhán groaned.
Siobhán and Joe shared an eye-roll, then sat down beside Sunny to talk softly while the cat ate.
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Floors: 2
Minions: 212/240
Residents: 12/12
Denizens: 54700
Traps: 6/10