I want to go home but, when I remove my rose-tinted nostalgia goggles and do the mental math, it seems obvious I can't make that my priority. In terms of balancing risk and reward in preparation for the big battle, there’s a clear winner among my options.

It’s time to face Charlatan Forest.

I turn to my girls and say, “Gabby, Suka, Dura, and Spindle, come with me. Everyone else hang tight, guard the hut, and try to avoid trouble.”

Suka puts her ears down and tilts her head to the side like a confused Doggin. Spindle stares at me with her bottomless amethyst eyes. Dura rolls her arms and takes a step toward me before realizing the others aren’t falling in line. Cottontail bites her lip as if knowing what I’m about and not liking it one bit. Gale blinks in bafflement while Megan clings to the Harpy’s leg with a worldly yet powerless expression.

Gabby sighs, shoulders slack, and says, “Alex, before you go off on another crazy adventure, please explain what this is all about. You can’t intend to insert yourself into a conflict between two third-tier powerhouses, right?”

Ah. I’ve kind of been in my own head for a while, this morning. “Actually, yes? Am I supposed to sit back and watch the region fall into chaos?”

“…Maybe?” The little green shortstack adjusts her spectacles. “Think about it, Alex. We have time. Bunny Patron Longevity can extend your life by decades. We’ll find a quiet place to spend the winter, have our children, and raise them before needing to worry about the region. Gathering power at a steady pace will ensure the greatest chance of success. Play the long game.”

“But, everyone—”

“—You must think me cold, ignoring what this region is coming to,” Gabby says with a heavy tone, shaking her head, “But this has been going on for thousands of years. Alex, you have the potential to make a difference, set your sights higher, and lift all of us with you. Don’t make the mistake of getting killed on the cusp of greatness. Think of your wives.”

The Goblin girl motions at my harem listening to us with varying degrees of understanding and sympathy. I know all of this is going over Gale’s head, but she looks worried that we’re arguing. It hurts to think I’d be putting them in danger.

I should’ve expected a monster to plead for putting clan above country, so to speak. Sure, I was born a powerless human girl, raised to be a mere Monster Breeder with no higher aspirations, but we humans never forgot what once was. We used to rule the world. We can do it again by banding the monsters together with a common cause.

“No, Gabby, I don’t have time! I can’t watch as Bruke or the Wolf Lord leads an Incursion against my Hometown. I won’t let the Harpies starve or allow them to continue preying upon the Fuzzies, and I won’t hide from Elder Grand Claw. Call it selfish, but I won’t surrender or delay my goals to avoid risking what I already have. I’ll grab all the power in reach and make life my bitch!”

Suka grins wide, Dura cracks her knuckles, and Spindle chuckles to herself. Cottontail gives me a wobbly smile as if she knew what I’d say all along.

Gabby’s mouth is a tight line as she motions for me to come close. I kneel to put my face in her reach. She puts her small hands on my cheeks, pulls me in for an intense kiss, and after we finally part she looks me in the eyes and says, “Alright, you beautiful moron. Fine. If that’s what you want, then let us fight with you. Let us really work with you. Talk to me. Tell me what’s going through your head so we can strategize.”

I hug my amazing little Goblin, grateful for the support when the stress was starting to get to me. I take a minute to explain all my plans and problems.

“The point is I need power fast. That means an aggressive strategy. If I could be in multiple places at once, I’d scour the ocean, recruit the Fuzzies, find Opal’s Lizardmen tribe, research Dark Magic, and explore the Misty Grove, but I can’t.”

“Is the idea truly so impossible?” Gabby asks with a twinkle in her eye. “Let’s start from the top:

“Your plan to forage in the forest for resources makes a lot of sense, but you don’t have to bring your heaviest hitters. Alex, as long as you have backup, you’re probably enough to handle most of Charlatan Forest on your own. If, in the worst case, you encounter a high-tier monster, you can retreat. It’s not like your purpose is to conquer the Forest in a day.”

That said, what’s the harm if I happen to push through to the other side…?

“From yesterday’s report, returning to the caverns beneath Harpy Mountain would be excessively dangerous. I wouldn’t feel comfortable without a large group of us organizing a proper raid. A stealth mission might be feasible, though.”

“Spindle doesn’t think that’s a good idea. Webling threads are essentially tripwires. Regarding herself, her sisters will be hostile against this corrupted evolution, or seek to harness it for their own purposes.”

“Hmm, yes. As for the ocean, none of us are equipped for aquatic battles—”

“—Except me,” Olindia the Jellyfish Slime interjects from a pseudopod she extends from my pussy cave. That still gives me the piss-shivers.

“Ahem,” Gabby continues, “So, you’ll have to explore the sea without us at some point. Now, contacting the Lizardmen tribe is essentially a search mission. While your Partner Tracker would be valuable, you’re not the only one who can follow a trail.”

“You said this Opal of yours went east?” Our resident Cinderwolf steps forward and taps the side of a nostril, “This isn’t an ordinary nose, you know! Only one night since they left and no rain to spoil the trail? Don’t make me laugh.”

“We don’t know anything about the Eastern Desert. It could be dangerous…”

The Ogress in our midst cracks her knuckles. “Sand not scare Dura! Get back Alex lizard b’fore supper.”

“Exactly,” Suka nods, then prods my chest with a finger. “You think I’ll be content to catch a ride clinging to your tail? I can’t stand the thought of getting outdone. I’m not some lazy-ass mutt!”

“A Harpy lookout wouldn’t hurt,” Lucinia adds with a quiet, helpful smile.

I have to admit they have a point. I can’t honestly expect to do a much better job navigating the desert than Suka and Lucinia working together. And Dura is volunteering as a bodyguard…

Gabby moves to the next item, “For the Misty Grove, if it were only Large and Swarm Slimes in residence, I’d consider sending someone, but the shrouding mists strike me as suspicious.”

Nodding, I add, “Yeah, I think I saw something in there yesterday. It’s not just Slimes inside.”

Lucinia surprises us by piping up again. “Not even Mother knows what the mists conceal, though I think Elder Grand Claw mentioned something about it once.”

Ooo, I’ll have to ask Aello about that. “Shit, I need to return to Harpy Mountain before anything else today. Not that I don’t trust your mother, Gale, but she seems like the kind to take the slack she’s given. While she wouldn’t dare disobey me so soon, if I don’t check in today or tomorrow, and the battle is the day after, then that’s four days before I find out what was done about my instructions. Even tons of evidence could be hidden in that time…”

“Momma can be sneaky and bad sometimes,” Gale admits, “But she’s good deep down! Momma will do what Alex says! Still, checking on her and my sisters seems like a good idea. I can fly you there and back in an hour!”

“Great, that shouldn’t impact my schedule much.” I consider the remaining bullet points. “I wish I could send a message home with the Harpies, but asking anyone else but me to do that job is a recipe for disaster. The defending monsters patrolling my Hometown are hostile to ‘Ferals’ as we call them. Anybody that isn’t human will be skewered with spears or run out of town before they can get a word in edgewise.”

“I concur,” Gabby says. “Which brings us to the last item, recruiting the Warren. This essentially boils down to bullying Peter the Bunny Patron into compliance like Aello. That shouldn’t take more than an hour. Afterward, a few of us can stay behind today and tomorrow to whip the bunnies and mice into something resembling a fighting force.”

Frowning, I object, “It’s one thing to take an hour visiting Harpy Mountain, but subduing Peter isn’t as simple as a quick dip underground. I’d have to rearrange my marks to get a stature that’d let me fit through the tunnels. Then convincing the Fuzzies to follow me and fight on our side could take who knows how long. Not to mention how the travel time navigating the tunnels adds up. Between this and checking in on Aello, I’ll have wasted half the day or more. Stacking the travel time to the Forest on top of that leaves me, what, an hour or two for foraging? I need to focus my efforts or else I won’t get much done in the woods.”

“Or we could fight Peter for you.” Gabby adjusts her spectacles, and they catch the light of the rising sun on the crack in the right lens, a sharp-toothed Goblin smile on her lips. “How tough can a Bunny Patron really be?”

My blood runs cold as I recall that time I nearly died fighting my first tier-three monster. “He’s tougher and stronger than he looks, not to mention smarter than he lets on. He has Earth Magic and can Summon a big fuck-off carrot club. It’s a rougher battle than it seems on paper. Big monsters like Dura and Suka can’t fit through the tunnels…”

“Spindle loves squeezing into tight spaces.” The Webling laces her words with silky innuendo. “If she is there, Vermillion can relax. Never underestimate her Dark Magic threads.” Spindle brims with confidence as she weaves runic cat’s cradle figures in sooty purple lines of energy strung between her four hands.

“I can dual-cast, now,” Gabby points out, brandishing an Apprentice Rod in each hand, one tip glowing green and the other brown. “I’ll counterspell his Earth Magic with one hand while rooting his feet to the ground with the other.”

“I-I’ve gotten stronger as well!” Cottontail asserts while unconsciously running her fingers over the bust of her corset teddy. “I do feel a bit faster with this on.”

Suka approaches to inspect the fabric. The Cinderwolf girl hooks a claw on Cottontail’s pantyhose and pulls it several inches without piercing through, then nods. “It’s not real armor, but it’s something.”

It strikes me as funny that Cottontail’s outfit tears easily enough when predators need to access her clitty or posterior. Must be a survival adaptation. I guess the heart-shaped cutout around her rosebud in the outfit’s second iteration is proof enough Cottontail can alter its properties to some extent by will alone.

“I’m not letting you face dad alone,” Megan asserts while adjusting Cottontail’s bowtie, then the little mouse girl hooks her arm through her bunny sister’s. She turns to address Gabby and says, “You’ll need both of us to convince folk to follow predator monsters out of the Warren peacefully.”

I sigh. I’m happy my girls are all so brave and confident, but there’s no way this goes smoothly, right? “Not to downplay all of your considerable competencies, but there’s one problem with all of this. Not a single one of my plans has gone off without a hitch! Something crazy always happens while I’m in the middle of whatever. I’m going to be worried the whole time we’re apart that you’ve gotten in over your heads.”

“Perhaps I can address your concerns,” Flou says as she reconstitutes herself from various articles of clothing to bunny-eared balls of fur-covered Slime and hops to the fore… all three of her. ““One mind, three bodies,”” the Swarm Slimes say in unison.

“No,” I whisper in disbelief, then repeat in a louder and incredulous voice, “No way! You’re not saying what I think you’re saying, right?”

“I’ve been considering my nature,” the left Flou says as she hops west. “And, though I haven’t been able to test the theory,” the right Flou says as she hops east. “I don’t think there’s a range on this,” the middle Flou says, indicating the expanding distance between her bodies.

“Long-distance communication,” Gabby concludes with avid interest.

“You’re like ancient human walkie-talkies!” I exclaim. “We can stay in contact even if we split up.” So I can run to anyone’s rescue if they need me.

“Don’t forget I can do this,” Flou adds as she re-merges with Cottontail’s Playmate outfit and a stream of red Slime flows into the bunny’s right hand to become an elegant ruby dagger. “My power grows the more blood I draw.” The rest of Flou forms a furry glove on the bunny girl’s left hand. “And never forget the classics.” The glove’s palm morphs into a jagged-toothed maw that gnashes its teeth. “I’ll protect my cousins.”

I have to admit, I’m somewhat impressed by this motley crew. Maybe they can handle Peter without me.

“Don’t die. That’s your number one priority, okay?” I meet Cottontail’s heart-stopping blue gaze and take her gloved hands in mine. “I’m the only one allowed to be your predator.”

Cottontail blushes bright pink as her eyes sparkle.

Gabby and Suka both cough loudly into their fists while Spindle bares her fangs in a fearsome grin. Dura places hands as big as plates on the bunny girl’s shoulders as proof of dominance.

Even our cute Harpy bristles as she fluffs her feathers to seem bigger. “Gale is scary too!”

“Everyone…” Cottontail dabs at the corner of her eyes and flushes a deeper hue. “I promise not to let another predator steal me away! E-especially not my asshole dad!”

“We’ll face him together,” Megan says while holding her sister’s hand.

“As a family,” Flou adds.

D’aww!!!

Okay, this might be overkill but, if I’m right about something always going wrong, then it’s necessary. It’d be just like that tricky bunny bastard to get one hit in before being taken out. “I’ll only agree to this plan if Olindia goes with you.”

I feel a gallon of Slime flush out of my core. The Pink Jellyfish girl quickly manifests to her full size, including her oversized dress. She looks at me like I kicked her Doggin. “You’re evicting me?”

“No!” I take Olindia’s hands in mine and lock my gaze with hers. “I’m depending on you to protect those I love. I’m trusting you with this responsibility.”

Her eyes glisten with pink Slimy tears. “No one’s ever… I’m a fuckup, Alex. You can’t seriously be—”

I silence her by pressing my lips against hers, the soft and slick Slime still warm from my core’s body heat. It’s a chaste kiss of honest affection rather than the lusty affairs I’ve been laying on my women. “I know I don’t need to promise you a prize or punishment, but you’re definitely getting a reward when you bring them back to me safely.”

Megan steps forward and says, “Can I ‘hold’ her? I don’t really have a way to fight on my own.”

Olindia releases my hands to turn and address the diminutive mouse girl with tentative care. “Hey, um, short-stuff. I guess I’mma get in you now. Like, brace yourself or whatever. I’ll try to be gentle and shit. Think of it as a preview for tonight,” she says as she waggles her eyebrows. “Now, bend over.”

Having literally asked for this, the mouse girl musters her resolve, about-faces, bends over, and lifts her tail in the air. I don’t have long to admire the view before Olindia melts into a wave that funnels into Megan’s feminine nether hole. The mouse girl’s spine arches as she’s forced to widen her stance to take it all in.

“Oh, fuck, hold my hand, she’s a lot!”

Cottontail holds Megan’s hand as she slowly collapses to the ground, slumping onto her arms and knees as her belly distends. The process is taking longer than usual for me, but the mouse girl is several sizes smaller than anything Olindia has had to squeeze into since her ‘Large’ evolution.

“Ahhhnnn!!!” Megan cries as she climaxes from the insane penetration.

“At least you’re enjoying yourself. Try moving from a four-bedroom penthouse to a studio apartment!” the Pink Slime says as she finally manages to stuff most of herself inside the mouse girl. “Not to mention I have to share space with a ‘roommate.’” Good, Olindia knows better than to disturb my and Cottontail’s Fuzzy offspring.

Megan’s belly bulge recedes as she regains her feet on wobbly knees. Then the Jellyfish tentacles that don’t fit inside Megan curl about the mouse girl’s body to form a ruffled pink top and skirt combo made of Slime tentacles. The outfit highlights Megan’s petite cuteness while nicely cupping her C-cup breasts and sexily baring her shoulders.

Suka gives a wolf howl and I wish I had a penis equipped so I could pop a boner. Spindle has a hungry look in her eight eyes, but I swat her away before we end up in another bondage situation. Playtime later!

“Alright, you’re no Alex,” Olindia says, “But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit you’re a cozy little mouse. I don’t hate this.”

“Megan, you’re so pretty! I love you!” Gale exclaims as she gives her wife an exuberant hug while squishing herself against the jellyfish dress. The two of them kiss and fondle each other as we finalize plans.

“Vermillion, if you wouldn’t mind, Spindle would like to have some of her demonic bindings adjusted.” I raise an eyebrow in confusion, though I recall that, as the Wicked Weaver’s mistress in the hierarchy of magical restraints binding her will, I previously gave her instructions to limit the damage she could cause. Her monster instincts as a corrupted being are to cause as much chaos and mayhem as possible, though her mind and heart are loyal to me. I motion for her to continue. “Please instruct Spindle not to allow your companions to come to harm. It will help her avoid any unfortunate loopholes in your commandments.”

That’s right, ‘Binding a demon by verbal contract is impossible, no matter how convoluted the wording—unless she is willingly bound.’ That’s what Spindle told me. “Yes, Spindle, I demand you do everything in your power to prevent my companions from coming to harm.”

“Sssss, aaahhhnnn!” Spindle hisses and moans as new magical bondage falls upon her. Shivers run through her body as she croons, “Delightful.”

“If that’s settled, I can give my approval. First, we all go to the foot of Harpy Mountain. Suka will catch the Lizard-folk’s scent and travel east with Dura, Flou1, and Lucinia. Gabby, Spindle, Cottontail, Flou2, Megan, and Olindia will go underground to the Warren while Gale, Flou3, and I check on Aello. Take the Fuzzies to the hut and we’ll meet you there so Gabby and I can head into Charlatan Forest together.”

“That’s using your harem properly!” Gabby nods in satisfaction.

“Didn’ Dura say Alex start’n clan? Dura told so.”