Chapter 551: You Smell Like Wet Dog: Redhome Interlude Part 1

While Ares' hideously maimed body was in the middle of becoming a frozen and buried corpse in Isaz, back over in Red Sun...

"Ahhhhh, home sweet home..." Bellona flopped onto a couch in the living room of Ares' house. She'd just returned from the Grecian lands after a long trip, comfortable admittedly thanks to the parting hospitality of their previous hosts who lent them a well furnished carriage, and was already bumming out on the sofa. She'd been worked like a mule in the Grecian lands by Enyo who wanted assistance with various criminal matters she was overseeing towards the end of the trip... That and Enyo, diddler supreme, had been extremely touchy after they went all the way a while back. It had already happened but that didn't stop Enyo from seeking to make it happen more and Bellona had, simply put, been bullied a fair bit. Enyo was currently out shopping for food, they still had some of Ares' deliveries stashed in spatial rings away but if they ran out it was best to be prepared to cook for themselves, so thankfully the demoness of all things lewd was out currently and not here to capitalise on Bellona slumping lazily on the couch. She certainly would have tried. Bellona couldn't help but get embarrassed just thinking about it and knowing Enyo would share all sorts of memories with Ares only made it even worse.

While she was out and about, Enyo would probably stop off at transmit to send Ares a Past-Present Polymerisation ball of light, one that stored memories, and reveal all the shameful deeds she'd committed on her own flesh and blood. Truly a merciless woman. Still, Bellona was at least 'used to it' now and wasn't as sheepish on the subject as she was prior to it happening. Not 100% acceptance, at least not yet, but definitely enough to not run away from Enyo when she was feeling feisty for whatever reason... Which was incredibly often. Her cheeks would flush, and she'd try and push Enyo away, but if Enyo was persistent she'd probably just fold and let it all happen eventually. Sometimes she even tried fighting back but it was pretty hard; Enyo was not an easy target by any means and had a way of taking control of the situation that born of experience Bellona was lacking. Bellona didn't quite realise just how much Ares had to put up with having this temptress on his case twenty-four seven until all of Enyo's energy was directed at her instead! How many times did Bellona catch Enyo half hiding around a wall, trying to use pleasure pillar magic to secretly wake up her libido before making a move on a more willing Bellona? Too many to count! It got so bad at one point even the Grecian servants patrolling the halls thought there was some kind of stalker prowling the palace; it took a lot of explaining before they were finally convinced it was just one unreasonably horny woman being a perv towards her own sister. In the defense of the workers, it was a pretty unbelievable claim and they had every right to be alarmed given the sheer aura of determination that lingered wherever Enyo scuttled on by. They were initially more inclined to believe there was an assassin running about!

Anywho, Bellona wouldn't know this, but Enyo's attempt at passing on home-grown triple X videos to Ares would result in failure. Normally Transmit were able to deliver anywhere, at any time, but Ares, unbeknownst to everyone, was currently buried underneath a pile of snow and thus made him an exception. He was buried deep too. Transmit could teleport into the region but the book warned them they were unlikely to find him due to his abnormal circumstances and, since there was no greater clarification afforded to them on the matter, they took their own employee's safety seriously by not having them pop up in a potentially dangerous situation. Loris Lax was rather strong, and Ares was an important customer for many behind the scenes reasons, so it wasn't necessarily impossible to send someone out there, but they were convinced Ares was fine without their assistance. Reports directly from a Transmit branch in the Isaz region mentioned seeing a giant furry wolf fist with destruction magic come cascading down towards the earth so it was obvious that whatever happened to Ares was at least partially his own fault. Knowing he was nearing bloodline awakening, and had been undergoing tribulations, allowed them to fill in the missing gaps and not need to activate code red status. Plus he was still alive, for now anyway, according to the book and that was good reassurance. In short, no delivery for now and she could try again later in a day or two.

Enyo accepted the fair reasoning and moved on, opting to send Ares a letter later when he took the initiative to send some form of correspondence after he recovered from whatever nonsense he was up to. Ares blowing everything, probably himself included, up was just standard practice at this point. He left a crater in the ocean when he travelled on the Federation, Xasca's Riddlemyd was still in tatters across the desert, as well as the existence of a region of sand tornados that never lost rotational force no matter what anyone tried, which was also his fault, and now he obliterated part of a longstanding wonder of Sheryashka over in Isaz. Ares leaving a trail of mayhem wherever he went? Say it wasn't so! Must be a day ending in 'y'... Enyo was going to have to 'have a word' with him again about causing so damn much chaos. He would argue it wasn't his fault, and he was just defending himself from problems that came his way irrespective of his intentions, but that was precisely the problem! Why did he always manage to find himself in these situations to begin with!? Enyo could only sigh, shake her head, and chuckle to herself as she reminded herself that was part of why she loved the clumsy doofus. It was good to know he was still up to the exact same shenanigans he was the last time she saw him.

Back at the house, Bellona was lying on her stomach with her bent legs rocking back and forth off the edge of the couch. She sipped on a kiwi flavoured bubble tea in abject boredom, wishing she had something to entertain herself with as she stared blankly at the wall ahead of her. Ares, preferably, would be the ideal source of entertainment. She missed him and wanted to complain to someone about the crap Enyo had put her through! Multiple times! Plus Ares, other than listening to Bellona's rants, mentioned he would bring back plenty of gifts and that she would be extremely happy with them. souvenirs from his journey aside, if she knew what Ares had seen in the outside world, and the kind of entertainment paradise he was planning on bringing her too in due time, she would be throwing her fists in the air and rejoicing like nobody was watching. Breaking free from the Blade barrier, and becoming one with the kind of modern, high tech and sporty culture out there, was the sort of thing Bellona needed in her life and the current slovenliness she displayed proved it.

There really wasn't anything for Bellona here in Red Sun, nor the rest of Sheryashka for that matter, so at least if the husband she loved were here they could spend time together and distract her from the void of entertainment she wallowed in. He could show her all his new magics and they could play around in the garden on the fresh grass like usual... And maybe now that bedroom hijinks were becoming common place that aspect of their relation could grow too, embarrassing for her though it was. Part of Bellona was excited to try it but she also recognised he would be a considerably different beast compared to Enyo... Who was also a beast, that couldn't be overlooked or denied, but it was a different sort of vibe. Enyo had gifted Bellona all sorts of memories of her time with Ares and though she couldn't really pinpoint a difference if put on the spot and asked about it, other than the obvious phallus Enyo did not have, she was acutely aware she was going to be in far more 'trouble' than she ever was with Enyo. Even if only perspective wise. Enyo was like a pest, a friendly fly hovering around her and constantly asking for playtime. Ares felt like serious business in contrast. Enyo was love, all day every day; Ares was Love, in the moment and very deliberate. It was nerve wracking to some extent.

All that aside, Bellona had enjoyed her little vacation. There were ups, there were downs, and even the early stages of a Torchbearer plot that was cut off before it could become a notable threat, but now she was back home at long last!... And yet taking a nap, practicing her magic or close combat, or cultivating were her only real options right now and that simple fact had devastated her will to get up and do anything. Even the options actually readily available to her sucked for a variety of reasons. She was somewhat sleepy, sure, but worried Enyo would ambush and assault her if she closed her eyes in a vulnerable position, training was great and all but she'd done plenty of that to stave off boredom as of late and was fed up of it, plus Sadie wasn't around to train with as she'd been whisked away and snuck off to the Umbra planet to go see Aym, their training instructor, and have fun with him, and cultivation was... Well, she had a similar opinion on 'locking herself in a room in seclusion' to Ares so she was loathing the thought of getting up to go do that. Less loathing, more loafing! Again, Bellona had cultivated plenty during her stay in the Grecian Lands too and her cultivation was already plenty high as is. She was in the transition realm and even knew how to fly now! The last time she'd gotten into a fight, publicly or in front of Ares, she'd still been all the way back in mental accumulation! The amount of cultivation she'd done in the background for the last few months was monstrous and she wanted a break! A break by Ares' side! Bellona was tempted to fly over the ocean, double her speed repeatedly with her magic, and go say hi to Ares today but she wasn't sure she had the mana reserves necessary to cross all the way to Isaz without drowning half way through. Sure there were plenty of safety measures she could take to guarantee safety no matter what but Ares would never let her hear the end of it if she did something so foolish and risky just to see him a few days earlier than she would otherwise. Point being, right now Bellona needed a miracle. Something to just pop up and appear at the doorstep that could hook her attention and give her something to distract herself with!

Click

The sound of the front door opening opened a world of possibilities in Bellona's mind as this could be the exact sort of convenient development she was hoping for! Though unlikely, that could very well be Ares returning already! He said he was going somewhere else after Xasca but if he gave up on that, and decided to come home sooner rather than later, he would have been able to beat the Federation here and arrive even before Aejaz. There was a very real possibility Ares was back and though she knew better than to think that way she did anyway as she leaned up an dover the couch's armrest. Who would walk past the living room entrance, in the hallway, and reveal themselves? The most likely answer was either Enyo, Allie, or Trixie as they finished up their shopping outside... But that didn't mean it was guaranteed to be true! Bellona crossed her fingers on one hand as she used her other to keep sipping her bubble tea. Please be Ares, please be Ares...

thudthud thudthud

Two sets of feet! Whoever entered the house did so alongside someone else and that meant Bellona's chances of seeing the person she was hoping for had doubled! What's more, one set of footsteps were much heavier and louder than the other and so Bellona was certain one of them was male! Enyo would be wearing her armor, probably, so Bellona would have heard the clanking and stomping from a mile away if it was her. Trixie was usually stealthy on her tippy toes and didn't make much noise when she walked, so the chances of her being one of the two new arrivals were slim, and that meant there weren't many options left! Maybe Ares had met up with that 'Sandy' woman he mentioned on the way back and they'd come into the house side by side, ready to uplift Bellona's mood with tales of a foreign land and all sorts of wacky Ares-adventures? Even though Bellona wanted to spend time alone with Ares she would be ok with him having a tag-along if it meant he was at least actually here! 

A shoe appeared in the doorway and Bellona's face quirked up as she realised it was definitely not a woman's shoe! It wasn't one of Ares' regular footwear, she didn't recognise it as such, but that didn't mean he hadn't picked up a new pair while he was out and about and chosen to wear it! He usually wore his Utilitarian boots but maybe they were damaged and out for repair with Dabble? Maybe he'd taken them off for something more comfortable now that he wasn't out exploring and didn't need to be rough and ready for any unexpected combat encounter or development? Maybe maybe maybe. Either way, the body hidden behind the wall still could very well be Ares' and that uplifted Bellona's mood for all of two seconds until Aejaz stepped forward with Allie positioned to his left. Bellona deflated with a groan, burying her head into the couch as her hand clutched the now empty bubble tea that was of no use to her. Aejaz and Allie were holding hands and Bellona was jealous her own hand was glued to some pitiful cup instead. She new she had to get used to Ares going off on his own adventures like this but it still sucked big time!

"Hey Bellona!" Aejaz, happy to finally be back in the safety of his own home, AKA Ares' home, gave a polite wave and a joyous smile. Seeing Allie again made his heart flutter, his chest leap for joy, and put him int he best mood he'd been in for the last few weeks. The trip he'd been on was relaxing towards the end but it's not like he didn't have his fair share of struggles. His friendly greeting was met with instantaneous rejection from a defeated Bellona though.

"Get lost." With her head still stuck inside the couch, Bellona lazily flopped her waving arms towards the duo like she was an agitated cat swiping away annoying pests. The happy, rainbow and sunshine exuding, couple and their PDAs were just making her less happy than she was before... And that was already not much! Though, begrudgingly, Bellona did realise Aejaz' presence was an opportunity to hear about what he and, more importantly, Ares had been up to on their own vacation. Ares wasn't here himself but she could get a feel for the sort of silly antics he'd been up to, and put Aejaz though by extension, by asking his brother instead. Plus she didn't actually resent the hand holding marshmallow-aura radiating couple, she just wanted Ares to come back so she could be in the same position! "Tsk, look at you two sappy, doe-eyed creatures. Gonna give me diabetes. Whatever, how've you been?" Bellona used every fibre of her being to push herself up and make space in the living room for the two to sit down and talk.

"Ah... That's a long story..." Aejaz wasn't even really sure how best to describe how he was doing. On the way back, during his second stay on the Federation, he'd been unable to sleep properly. Even though Hunter's technological inventions were in place, and prevented depth draggers from popping up from under the floor, he couldn't get over what happened to him the first time around. Without Ares there to act as assurance cowardly Aejaz basically stayed awake the entire time and was now incredibly sleepy as a result. Thankfully his cultivation was already in the later stages of the transition realm so it wasn't a big deal, and he could shrug it off, but how was he supposed to explain he'd been cowed into sleepless nights by over friendly dead dolphins? It was far too embarrassing... Plus there was the succubus incident in the Riddlemyd he was worried Allie would find out about. He'd initially been sure she'd be ok with it but he had a feeling in his gut that Allie had gotten a lot more outspoken and protective recently, after he'd been away for a while, so there were landmines he didn't want to carelessly step on if he could avoid it! He was thinking about how to start this talk when he was interrupted by the sound of knocking at the door.

Bellona sprung up immediately to go open it because she was hoping it might be Ares yet again! Enyo and Trixie didn't need anyone to open the door for them so maybe Ares, after reaching bloodline awakening, needed a new set of identification? The sect used blood and essence but if there was a substantial enough change to it, and Ares had yet to talk to sect HQ and logistics about this change, he would need someone else to open the door for him until then! Bellona was really stretching her imagination here but it wasn't unfeasible! Of course the more likely explanation was that a neighbour or guest had shown up after seeing Aejaz. They might either say hello, for old time's sake, or ask if Ares was also back and could restart the sale of Shock Beads now that they'd run out of their stocked supply. Nobody had been in this home for a while now so the sight of Bellona, Allie, and Aejaz all showing up at once might mean Ares was also back. Nobody else knew he was in Isaz currently so it could also very well be that Rud and Yulo were here looking for him regarding running the sect. It was far more plausible someone other than Ares was at the front door but Bellona threw herself headfirst into the inevitable disappointment on the off chance salvation from boredom graced this house. She opened the door with a wide smile but it froze when she believed she'd been pranked. There was nobody here! She looked dead ahead with dead eyes because this was arguably worse than nobody showing up at all!

Woawf!

... "Woawf?" Bellona looked down at the source of the noise and her brain took a moment ot recalibrate itself. Shark? Dog? Sharkdog? An adorable little blue dog with a shark fin and a toothy grin was wagging its tail as it looked up into Bellona'[s eye with an innocence that borderline divine.

Woof! Bark!

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! YOU'RE SO CUTE!" Bellona's earlier wish for something interesting to spontaneously show up at the door had come true. She didn't know what on earth this sweet creature was but it deserved to be hugged regardless! Like Ares, Bellona had a soft spot for all things cute and Nibbler was very much in line with her preferences. Now that Nibbler was staying at the sect with Onno, he'd taken the chance to come and say hello to all the new friends Onno assured him he would make. Nibbler knew this was Ares' house so, even if he wasn't here right now, greeting those who also lived here was in order. He wanted to see Hunter's soul every now and then so it was ideal if the other residents also knew of him and could let him in whenever he popped around for a visit. Nibbler had been in a better mood lately, coming to terms with the fact that Hunter was gone but not permanently. He needed to be a good boy and wait patiently for his dad to be brought back so he was slowly but surely returning to the merry pup he'd been before the incident that shook up his life. Plus everyone he met at the sect so far was very nice to him, point in case Bellona was rubbing her cheeks against his and he was particularly content to nibble her flesh gently in return. This tickled Bellona but the real issue was that Nibbler wasn't supposed to be allowed to eat flesh or he'd get hyper! The sneaky bugger took advantage of Bellona's lack of knowledge about his species, and her weakness before his overwhelming adorableness, to break his house rules! After receiving a surge of energy, Nibbler leapt into Ares' house and zoomies overtook him as he darted around in the hallways and nearly even barreled over a confused Leo who'd been minding his own business. The tiny tiger looked bewildered at the strange invasive blue blur of a creature that was running around and banging into walls like a crazy monster! Bellona chuckled as she chased after him, glad she had someone to play with as she eventually grabbed him, returned to the living room, and had Aejaz explain who Nibbler even was while he was seated on her lap.

All was well in casa del Ares but, elsewhere, in the heart of Red Sun, there was a rather public disagreement taking place. A knightly woman in full armor was accosting a foreign traveller covered head to toe in bulky desert-traversing garb. The knight had basically ambushed the confused fellahin, aggressively sniffed her all over, and declared loudly and proudly, on a busy road no less, the following. "I smell my husband on you!" This naturally stirred quite a scene as she then proceeded to ask, while huffing in excited and perverse breaths, "Did he slobber all over you?!" Apparently the scent she was picking up like a bloodhound was rather intense but, to be honest, her own line of questioning, and the stance with which leaned over this foreign woman, were all incredibly forceful and far more intense! Sandy had no idea who this crazy knight was but she was fearful for her life! The chaotic aura coming from this woman was a threat unlike anything she'd ever seen or felt before. The people outside of Xasca were scary!