In Dungeons Deep

Here at last, the next installment of In Dungeons Deep. Thank you everyone who took the time to try out my story and are ready to venture farther into the Dungeon, you've been a strong motivation in bringing about this next chapter of Hogarth's journey and my own. Being an author has always been a dream of mine, a fantasy really, so putting a story together and finally sharing it with others has been exciting and invigorating to say the least. Comments and critique are greatly appreciated. I'm writing in my spare time, but if it turns out I can make something more with my writing maybe it'll lead to something more. One can only hope.

In the meantime however, danger! Excitement! Booty! Delve deeper into the Dungeon, Adventurer.

***

There is an urban legend on the internet of a mysterious dungeon, the likes of which could only be realized in games and television. A true sword and board, explore, fight and conquer dungeon. Obviously nerds sunk their teeth into it, spinning all sorts of stories and clues people found online into a rich lore of fantasy for the real world.

For a young man named Hogarth Carmichael, the realities of the dungeon were beyond anything the streamer theories could begin to grasp. His entry into the dungeon had been a chance encounter with a persuasive stranger, which led to the most stressful, exhilarating week of his life. He'd fought and killed rats of ridiculous size, discovered artifacts both magical and mediocre. Defeated a mighty (if somewhat smallish of stature) foe and drove his allies to retreat. He'd even scored a girlfriend, sort of. All in a week. Just as advertised, the dungeon offered death and danger and rewarded his survival with more than he ever had in as many years prior.

One of those rewards was that some mornings, at random, he would wake up in the very best of ways.

Sleep came so much easier since Lug joined him in the chamber. Though the cot wasn't especially comfortable, falling asleep with her head resting on his chest, feeling the weight of her plush curves laying atop him brought a deeper peace within that his previous mattress couldn't rival. He still woke up stiff, but it was a burden he could manage until they had a better bed to sleep in.

Sensations tickled through Hogarth's sleeping mind, blooming from his groin with a tingling heat that drew him towards consciousness. With warmth came the slow definition of details, pulling his focus slowly to the surface.

Fuzzy, tingling warmth became a moist heat, pleasure taking the shape out of dream fluff. Next came textures, slick and smooth with just the gentlest of tugging lathering the length of his dick. Plump lips formed a tight lock around his flesh and squeezed rhythmically back and forth. Strong, calloused hands cupped and fondled his sack while his cock was slurped and suckled at a deliberately leisurely pace.

Hogarth groaned and opened his eyes to look down into his lover's eyes, to instead find her bubbly bottom slowly wiggle this way and that. Lug had turned her cream colored, compact body around to lay on his torso and swallow his cock. Thick thighs split wide around his ribs, exposing rose petal labia puffed and blushing. His cock twitched and he watched her pussy clench hungrily as if to answer.

Since Lug was so devoted to his care, Hogarth took the opportunity return the favor. Starting at her thighs, he slid his touch from the pit of her knees to caress the shapely cheeks in front of him. He felt more than heard her voice vibrate into his flesh, sending a wave through his spine that ended in his hips thrusting unbidden. Filling his hands with her pillowy cheeks, Hogarth slowly kneaded and clenched, savoring the smooth texture and ripeness of her body.

Lug moaned deep in her throat, her husky voice at odds with her small stature. Cupping his jewels in a single hand, she liberated the other to grip his cock at the base and began to jerk and crank the base of his shaft. Her mouth clung to its prize, slurping and sucking hard at his head and glans. There was a hungry quality to her head that made it hard to resist, the erotic massage of her mouth squeezing and tonguing his dick in a slow yet direct line towards orgasm making him eager to reach it. He could feel the desire to please in each pulse that came when she flexed the power of her oral vacuum.

Since he couldn't resist, the best way forward was of course, to return the favor. Hogarth leaned in and smothered his face into her pussy. Lug sucked in an involuntary gasp that popped with an audible smack as lips pulled from skin. In that moment of reprieve he lathered her slippery folds in his saliva, a growl of conquest rumbling low in his throat as he tasted her juices and wormed his tongue over her clit. It had been an afterthought before but now he was glad her equipment was both compatible and familiar in design. He was able to press his tongue in shallowly and thrash the muscle around inside her before locking his mouth over her clit.

The small woman wiggled then screamed in sexual overload as he lashed smothered her little pearl with his taste buds. A splash of heat ran down his chin as she trembled and quaked. He could feel the contractions and slipped her a deep kiss.

Suddenly it was all he could do to savor his final moments as Lug inhaled his cock and bobbed furiously around it. Gone was the slow and steady approach, instead she gulped and stroked with strong fingers velvet lips, fast as she could go. His hips were rolling before he realized it, falling into her rhythm. Hugging his arms around her pelvis, Hogarth lost it within the slippery grapple of musky sex and jiggling flesh. She didn't let up even as he slid over the tipping point and burst into orgasm. Toes curled and his heels dug into the cot as she sucked the soul from his body, swallowing his seed with every gush.

Their bodies slumped where they lay, muscles gone slack as the storm of orgasm ran its course. He could feel every drop of sperm being kneaded and gulped away, sending jolts of pleasure that buzzed into stimulation overload. Lug was squeezing gently at his balls as if to make sure they were empty, while her other hand stroked the seam of his cock for any that lingered in the channel.

When he realized she wasn't going to let go of his cock, Hogarth tilted his head to the side and gave her right butt cheek a gentle bite that he then kissed.

"Good morning, Lug."

"Mmmng mmm mmmn."

Hogarth shivered, tempted to extend their morning a while longer. Instead he gently rolled her over and they disentangled with an audible pop.

"C'mon, Lug. Let's get cleaned up and have some breakfast." Hogarth patted her thigh then stood, turning to face her. Lug hopped to her feet on the bed and threw her arms around his shoulders. Leaning into her, Hogarth smiled as she eagerly puckered her lips and gave him a quick, smacking kiss.

"I make best breakfast." She then clapped her hands together and began rubbing them around in small circles. Hogarth stayed still where he was, watching intently as the tingle of magic sparked in the air around her.

Kitch magic, or green tricks as she sometimes called them. The females of the tribe picked them up because it made their lives easier, and made their hunter mates more successful. Usually. The magic she called upon now pulled the grit and grime building up in his hair to latch onto her skin like iron shavings to a magnet. She raked her fingers through his hair, scritching and scratching gently across his scalp and down the back of his neck.

Next she worked her way down tracing around the shape of his face, big brown eyes examining his skin studiously. He could see the dark goop gathering in her palms, sweat and dirt and dust, dead skin and as she played with the stubble forming on his chin, the very nectar that had splashed from her loins.

"Today we going down stairs? Gonna need to bundle up." She hmmed as her hands ran down his neck and dragged over his shoulders. It was a slow process, but effective enough to be worth it. She'd insisted on it after the first morning they kicked off their relationship. It pulled away the uncomfortable feeling of uncleanliness, though his hair still felt a little more oily than he liked.

The only downside was she had to use her hands to gather up all the yuck, which was probably grosser to him than her, but still. It also meant they had to wait as she finished his, then herself, then their clothes. Given how much down time they had it wasn't the worst thing, but it wasn't the fastest process.

It also wasn't the worst thing when she got around to the bottom front of him. It was strange and tingly, feeling the tickle of magic in her fingertips as she cleaned his tool. That discovery had the predicted outcome of Hogarth fertilizing her for a second time that day.

"Yeah, we'll have to figure out something." He said distractedly, his mind flitting back and forth between the sex they'd had and the naked woman tending to him now.

She hopped off the cot and held her hands over their waste bucket, the filth falling from her hands like rain off oiled leather. Her expression held a tension of excitement trying to hide behind a small, innocent smile. Her hands rubbed slowly together as she began to draw up the magic once more, bright eyes wide as she looked up at him and began to rake her fingers along the happy trail of light brown hair leading to his dick.

Hogarth held his breath when she reached his soft member and stroked around it meticulously. It was easy to get everywhere as the tingle of magic paired with her gentle touch and the not so subtle gaze of longing she held his eyes with. His dick slowly inflated into her hands until it was iron, a bead of pre cum presented at the very tip.

Her smile became a wide and dreamy as she looked back down at the cock in front of her and gave it a slow lick to steal away the droplet. "This part all clean..." She then smiled up at him again.

Honeymoon phases were a hell of a thing. Lug squealed as he suddenly picked her up from the ground to pin her back against the wall between gear pegs. The little tart was already soaked again as he speared his cock into her, feeling every ridge and bump inside her cling with a slippery grip. Strong legs wrapped around his hips and shook as he hurried into a rigorous series of thrusts. Lug moaned and whined as she clung to his torso, her face buried into his neck. Quick, intense, desperate. She wanted to cum with his sperm in her, he wanted to blow while her body shuddered in orgasm.

They met in the middle, thrusting hard and bucking together until pleasure overwhelmed them both. Lug groaned deep in her throat and clamped her teeth into his shoulder as she peaked, hot and heavily. Hogarth impaled her in the same moment, sheathing his cock all the way down to his clenching balls as they emptied inside her. Their bodies didn't relax until the last flutter of her pussy and the last twitch of his cock signaled their orgasms had run their course.

"Oops..." Lug murmured, nuzzling under his chin. "I missta spot. Don't worry, I gonna geddit."

Hogarth chuckled and she joined in, giggling huskily.

***

The unlikely pair of adventurers made their way down to the second level sometime in the afternoon. Lug had stuffed his uniform full of loose cloth, making him look puffy. He had insisted she use some of it to wrap her feet and hands, as well as to wear one of the shirts he'd found underneath the fur tunic she had on when they met. The sleeves had to be rolled up and the front of it laced, but it fit her more or less like a smock would and created an extra barrier to the cold.

Hogarth had expected a chill, but it was outright frigid. The halls were dark and empty, the walls barren of torches to light their way. His breath fogged visibly under the glow of his own torch, raised up to extend its reach. Lug carried one as well, along with the targe kept close. She and her kin were able to see well enough in the dark not to need them, but Hogarth didn't have the luxury and the torches extended beyond what her eyes could do, so it was still a boon for both.

"Alright," he whispered, unsure how much attention they were going to get, "let's secure a space and check the map."

Lug nodded, and the two pressed onward. The halls were tall with wooden arches spaced several yards apart. Fewer doorways lined the walls, all of them in varying states of broken into. Places along the hallway bore the echoes of past decor, faded paintings and pedestals with nothing to show or the rare, cracked statue of some stranger with missing features.

When they stopped at the first one, Hogarth understood why. The room was large, with entire walls dedicated to shelf space and a single, shattered black board. What pieces clung to the frame hinted at the runic symbols and elegant, cursive-like lines faded to near invisibility. In front of the blackboard was a stripped down desk, every drawer empty or smashed to pulp. The floors were bare but for the remains of broken down wood that probably had been some of the desks. Given the nature of the dungeon he'd experienced so far, Hogarth had to figure someone had taken them away long ago to serve a purpose elsewhere.

Since the room was empty and there were no other doors, Hogarth took up a sentry position at the entrance then gestured towards Lug. She blinked once, then remembered his request and shrugged loose the pack to dig out the map. Spreading it out, she stared for a moment before nodding vigorously. Holding the leather wide, she hurried over and tilted it for him to see. Sure enough, the outlines of the rooms around them were coming into being, extending from the last point they'd left off.

With his mace hand, Hogarth slipped out his necklace to hold over the map. The crystal point tugged towards the first room on the map, touching the point that represented the door. He flashed a grin at Lug, then tucked the crystal back into his puffy shirt.

"Alright, let's get to exploring."

The next room was a mirror to the other, thought the black board was in better shape. The story it told was far less academic. Most of the writing was faded, but the way they were chicken scratched into the board was manic. Some of it had been written hard enough that where they faded, the rough indents remained. Whoever or whatever it had been, they were gone an age past.

When they peeked into the third room, they thought they'd found another dud. Something shiny flashed against the torchlight, giving him a moments pause to look it properly over. There in the middle of the classroom was a polished button. Hogarth knelt to pick it up, studying the simple bit of metal. What it had come off of he wasn't sure, but it had been polished enough to catch the light. He stepped behind Lug to probe through her massive mane of hair to add it to the collection back home.

Lug caught his arm and pointed urgently towards the front of the classroom. Rather than finding another blackboard, they discovered that the desk had been pushed aside and a gaping hole in the stone formed a tunnel into the unknown. Stepping closer, Lug pointed again. There at the mouth of the tunnel was another button, as well as a few bits of carved marble that looked a bit like chess pieces. She breathed in slowly through her nose, then turned her gaze back to him. "Skitter and Rockbite. They musta put holes in my pack. Losin' little treasures."

Shifting the grip of the targe so she could hold the torch as well, she gathered up each bauble then offered them to him with a small smile. He accepted, then stowed them away in the pack. "Is that the way back to your home..?" He asked, eyeing the tunnel. It was tall enough for him to walk at a crouch if he chose, but that was a big 'if'. Lug shook her head.

"Somethin' got after 'em. We follow Stoneriver ways. Lead to lots of places. This lookin' like a big rat hole." She shuddered visibly, and he could tell it wasn't from the cold. Hogarth had the same feeling, and signaled a retreat. It was one thing to fight them out in the open hallways, but a confined tunnel? That was a different sort of beast he wasn't ready to tackle.

Deeper into the floor they went, pausing every so often to get a look at the map. When she described the area as 'twisty ways', he should have realized Lug spoke in as literal a sense as she knew how. The halls did seem to twist and branch, snaking around and splitting like antlers into dead ends.

The rooms spread out even further, some of the paths they took leading around for several minutes before ending without so much as a broom closet for their trouble. They kept on this way for a few hours, all the while Hogarth growing more uneasy.

"Didn't you say there were lots of rats and...creepy crawlies down here?" He finally asked in a low voice.

Lug shrugged, clearly uncertain. "Maybe they all hidin'? Rats gettin' skinned and chopped for eatin' by the pack, got afraid and don't wanna bite no more."

It was true Lug's pack had been hunting here. Maybe all the losses and attacks they'd been dealt put them back on the cautionary side of wild. They feared man again. It was probably wishful thinking, but it took the edge off his nerves.

They were about to give up and turn back when something tickled at Hogarth's adventure instincts. In a game, there weren't just empty rooms, or levels without some kind of danger or conflict. Since they hadn't tripped over any danger and there'd been nothing to cause alarm, he realized it had to be that he was overlooking something.

Holding his torch high, Hogarth studied the hallway stretching endlessly around them. When still used by their living residents, the halls had been richly decorated in statues, paintings, and tapestries. Most were marred by abuse or time, their depictions blotched and faded, stone cracked and worn. Though a good number of them had been stripped from the walls or rotted themselves away from the bottom up, quite a few tapestries and cracking painting frames remained on the walls. Many of them taking up space where a door might.

Turning back, Hogarth paced briskly to the last wall feature he remembered seeing and stopped in front of a portrait that was twice his height and half that in width. He tried to pull the frame from the wall, but it creaked and rattled in place. Frowning, he tried studying the remains of the painting. Given its size it could have been many things, but what remained were hints of trees, the shadow of a woman resting beneath something, half of a smiling man's face that had been cut through with something sharp. Several scratches in fact had vandalized the picture, and when he looked closer found where the woman's eyes would have been bore a single scar in the wood.

Hogarth suspected something personal had driven the deed, but then again, maybe the mad scribbler had done it as well in a fit of rage. More snippets of history with no context, just forgotten echoes of the past.

He tried pulling from different angles, even put all the force he dared into one of his attempts, but nothing. The thing didn't want to budge, and He wasn't keen to start smashing open anything if he could help it. Not yet anyways.

"Pull not working, maybe push instead?" Lug offered, pressing her shoulder against the left corner and grunting with effort. Something clunked heavily into place and the frame budged a half an inch to the right.

Surprised into taking a half step back, Lug looked up at Hogarth, then back to the frame. They both hurried to push against it again, Hogarth high and Lug low, maneuvering awkwardly with the equipment they bore and trying not to burn each other or themselves. It was slow going as long disused latches and rusted ball bearings resisted them.

At last the painting had been moved far enough to reveal what stood behind it, a metal and wood door similar in kind to just one other he had found since coming here. As his eyes traced their way up to the top of the stone arch the door was set into, he found the familiar socket design with a small crystal set in place. He blinked as the mineral flickered briefly to life, green light sparking at its center for just a moment before going dull once more.