I burst through the woods heading west, I could see the cornfield in front of me. A few hundred more feet and I could almost certainly lose them in the field, maybe drop into the caves and work my way south before heading back towards home base. I had dropped the food sack I was carrying a while ago, I wondered if I could find it again.

We were at the tail end of peak and I figured I stood a chance of getting to one of the food drops with more premium items in it for the first time in a while. Of course, a pack of werewolves had been waiting for a fetcher. Fortunately, they had gotten too greedy and had alerted me before I was completely boxed in, amateurs.

I hadn’t figured out how many there were, at least four, maybe one or two more. I dared to hope it wouldn’t matter if I could just get into the cornfield. It's not really corn actually, it just reminds me of it from back home in my universe.

I heard movement behind me, they were breaking the tree line now and had line-of-site on me. Must go faster.

No man can outrun a werewolf, but if you’re good, and maybe just a little lucky, you can outmaneuver them. By the time I made the first row of stalks my lead had evaporated into maybe a hundred feet. That’s not much when it comes to evading predators at the reserve, and most runners would probably accept the inevitable by now.

The moment I felt certain I had broken their line-of-site I adjusted my course about forty-five degrees southward. We had a few dead drops in the cornfield, and I was going to need a de-scenting potion soon if I wasn’t caught in the next few moments.

I heard heavy rustling to my right overtaking my position along my original vector. They were catching up, I’d have to start being quiet soon. I’d also have to lose my scent soon, or else I was sure to be ferreted out, there were simply too many of them.

I slowed my pace as I came to a familiar box in the middle of the field. The unassuming vessel contained a small smorgasbord of useful items, including a couple of de-scenting potions. I greedily downed one and strained my ears for clues.

Most of the activity seemed to be coming from my right still. I could make out at least three independent wolves moving about the field, searching for me. Suddenly I heard another rustling to my left. That was not good. It meant they were spreading out, which meant it was probably only a matter of time before one set upon me by chance. I needed to get underground.

The cornfield sat atop a series of caves on the western side of the reserve. There were several holes in places that enable one to enter or exit the caves via the cornfield. I was reasonably close to one such entrance, but I’d have had to be quiet. Despite no scent to latch on to, wolves still have excellent hearing.

I moved slowly, constantly listening for clues as to where my pursuers were. The ruckus was dying down, they were shifting from running blindly to trying to track me. Fortunately, I knew the field well, and they did not. Moments later, I was at an entrance and I slipped quietly down into the dark.

The caves can be dangerous, but also rewarding. There were plenty of places for some of the larger and/or slower Mageni to ambush a runner. Oftentimes, this is the place that lamia and arachne and the like cme to hunt. It also provides the most cover for runners and is one of the trickiest places at the reserve. Today, it seemed the caves and cornfield were going to be my salvation.

I wasn’t far down my chosen path when I heard commotion back from where I had entered. The werewolf pack had found the hole. Uh oh. Had I left some clue that I’d gone down it? I wasn’t sure.

At least two wolves dropped into the cave system, not good. About the time they were dropping I was at another crossroads. Straight ahead was towards the cavern entrance facing south. That was my intended route, but I’d have been a fool to continue running straight with a pair of wolves following behind me. If I could hide in some nook somewhere, they’d probably never find me down here.

I opted to go right instead. It was a smaller path, tight in some places. Tight enough a werewolf might even struggle to get through, they are somewhat bigger than me after all. The downside was that it opened up into one of the larger spaces where some of the ambush types like to dwell. I figured it was a fair trade, giving up a definite threat for a potential one.

I squeezed through the tightest space and worked my way into a small nook as I heard the pair approach the divide. I froze, barely breathing, trying not to make a sound.

The lead wolf tested the air and, I assume, stared down her options. Straight towards the entrance, the path I was hiding in towards the right and left, which ended in a dead-end, not that they would know that.

They split, one headed south, and one headed down the dead end. She would be back in a few minutes after finding it went nowhere. Hopefully, she would continue south with her pack mate. Like I said, I’m not sure they could have fit in the path I took, but I’ve seen dedicated Mageni to amazing things. In short, I wouldn’t put it past them to figure out a way.

When I felt reasonably sure they were out of earshot I continued down the path I was on. Moments later, the passage opened up and I found myself in a large open area.

There were plenty of holes cut into the caves for runners to get just enough light to see, but was still dark, and I couldn’t make out much in the cavern, my eyes were still adjusting. Figuring I had nothing to lose, I strode confidently into the chasm towards another path that I knew would lead me to another hole. I figured I could climb back out to the cornfield and make a break for the trees. If I was really lucky, I might even recover my sack of goodies along the way back to camp. Now that would be a treat.

I walked into the narrow path and crouched down to listen for any wolves that may have worked their way back towards this side of the caves. I didn’t think it was likely, but that would be just my luck. I heard nothing, and with a shrug, I stood up and attempted to walk further down the hall-like cave.

My right foot wouldn’t raise off the ground. Frowning, I turned to investigate. My shoe was caught in something, it was tough to tell in the low light, although my eyes were starting to adjust finally.

It suddenly occurred to me that it was webbing, an arachne was nearby. Fuck.

Arachne are large, spider-like monstergirls that have the upper body of a woman attached to the front of a powerful, spider body. Despite their size and strength, they’re surprisingly light, albeit still far heavier than a human. They like to spin webs and lay traps for their prey. They’re considered one of the more intellectual species, which, I agree with given my experiences. I also consider them quite mischievous, some even say sadistic, although I find that a tad harsh.

My shoe seemed to be encased in a fallen trap line as the rest of the webbing was on the ground too. It wouldn’t do much good for its owner like that, and I figured it was a lucky break on my behalf, even if I was about to be down a shoe.

I retracted my foot and looked about the cave more cautiously. If there was one fallen trap, there would almost certainly be others that were serviceable. I continued towards the hole.

Not thirty feet later, I stopped just inches short of another line draped across the width of the path at chest level. It was difficult to see in the low light, but my eyes had finally adjusted. Having so narrowly missed the trap, which would probably have jiggled the line and alerted its owner I was caught, I allowed myself a soft chuckle. Two narrow escapes right after pulling away from a pack of werewolves, it had been an eventful few minutes.

There was a sickening snap, and I was only able to just barely process the webbing as it came flying off the wall back towards the large cavern. It got me in the chest and continued to be pulled back the way I had come. Damnit.

I was bound up by a single strand of webbing, but that was probably going to be enough. I tried looking for a sharp rock somewhere while cursing myself for disallowing runners to carry weapons. A knife would have been wonderful.

As I was getting dragged past my shoe, I attempted to grab it. I figured I might as well, what else was I going to do. I failed to dislodge it as I was pulled unceremoniously back into the large cavern. My thoughts drifted towards my forfeited sack of food I had dropped. Several people were gonna go hungry for a while longer, myself included it seemed, at least until the morning.

A moment later, I was hanging upside-down in front of a large arachne. Even in the low light, I could make out several of her features. Her spider half seemed pretty standard, albeit large. It appeared strong and quite capable of withstanding, or administering, a lot of abuse. This worried me; arachne could be intense lovers, and they weren’t afraid to use their bulk during coitus, which could get a bit overbearing. Remember, many folks consider them somewhat sadistic.

In stark contrast, her human half looked very soft, inviting even. She had a deceptively slim figure with a smooth stomach. As my eyes traced up her torso I realized she wasn’t wearing any clothes, her large, pale breasts were completely exposed. Her arms, including the one that held me, looked smooth and slender, yet they had surprising strength behind them. She had long dark hair that ran down her back, it was tied into a sort of ponytail. Her eyes, wow her eyes. I’m a sucker for beautiful eyes, the windows into the soul some would say. Hers were big and sported a deep blue color that really seemed to accentuate her dark hair and light skin.

I waited, offering nothing. I wasn’t sure what to expect with this woman, and I’ve found it's often in my best interest to lay low until I’ve felt out my captor somewhat.

“Hmm,” She pondered, looking me over and appearing somewhat unamused, although somehow motherly as well.

“I almost let you go, human, I really did. But then you had to go and have a laugh at my handiwork and now… well now just look at you.”

I thought back to the mild chuckle I’d had in the passageway. It hadn’t really been at her expense so much as my good fortune, but I wasn’t going to try and explain that to her, at least not now. Something about this whole encounter seemed off, why would she let me pass without attempting to grab me? Did she not find me attractive or something? For a Mageni, the thought actually stung my pride for a moment. I waited.

“Hmm, I have some questions for you human, and I want you to answer honestly,” she stated in a calm, sultry voice.

She hadn’t asked an actual question yet, so I remained silent, trying to figure out my situation. I had been upside-down for a few moments now and the blood was rushing to my head, which made thinking all the more difficult. As if seeing this thought play out in my mind, she rectified me such that I was right-side-up and facing her, albeit still suspended off the ground.

I stared at her expectantly, waiting for her questions. She regarded me, looked me up and down, and then adjusted her gaze straight into mine. Despite her being nude, I felt like I was the naked one.

“You are a slave, forced to work here for our amusement, yes?” came the question.

You should understand, I love my new life, this world has been kind to me, maybe even kinder than my own world was, albeit far stranger. That said, if there’s one feature about my new home that I find positively repugnant, it’s the human slave trade. Mageni are exclusively female and require human men to fuel their magic, breed, and sometimes feed. I understand why the practice exists, and I would find it utterly intolerable if not for the fact that most men seem to love living in Mageni territory once they get used to it, even as a slave. Still, I find the whole thing aggravating. Her words put me in a rare, aggressive mood, and I imagine the rage was evident upon my face.

“No man here is FORCED to work,” I said angrily, “and w—“

I was cut off by her placing a soft finger on my lips. It was gentle, yet firm, indicating I should be quiet.

“Hmm,” she mused, “I see this is a sensitive subject.”

She looked at me almost understandingly, and then looked downward, “speaking of sensitive,” her soft hand dove underneath my tunic and wrapped itself around my testicles firmly.

THAT got my attention, and I stiffened immediately, complying with what I thought she wanted, my eyes pleading with her in horror not to hurt me. I thought about Helasia and the other guards, wondering if any of them were nearby. I might need some help.

She peered at me softly, far more softly than I felt matched the situation, “Now, look around, your owner isn’t here, I am NOT your wife, your master. All I want is for you to be honest with me. Can you do that for me?” she accentuated her question with a brief gripping of her hand sending shockwaves up and down my body.

I nodded enthusiastically, still horrified at the situation. What the hell did this woman want?

“Ok, so, the runners working here are slaves, yes?” she asked.

I simply nodded, acknowledging her supposition.

“Gooood,” she chimed, trying to sound almost reassuring, “and, how many of them are happy with their arrangement?”

I looked at her in even more horror, if possible. How was I supposed to answer that? It was such a subjective question. Do I go into our vetting process? Did I talk about deals we made with runners too scared to get caught? The pred-free zones? Th—

“Just… in general. Are you happy here? Being husbands to us Mageni and working here?” she added.

Husband is a strange word. On my own planet of origin, husband and wife is indicative of an equal partnership, two people who are neither above nor below one another. Here, husband is a slaves term, and wife a colloquialism for a master. I, being a free man, do not like the terms. Back home, I would consider Enko to be my wife, and I her husband. Here, in my new home, we are simply partners. Being called a husband by this woman did not sit well with me, but I was NOT about to make a fuss about it while her hands were wrapped up in my most sensitive of parts.

I regarded her thoughtfully, I spoke quickly, almost forcibly, “No, we don’t regret this life. All of the runners here have gotten a choice. It’s true that on occasion one doesn’t want to be hunted shows up and makes it through the vetting process, but even then they usually get to stay in the pred-free zones, or man a spotter tower, or something that they’re content with.”

I stared at her, pleading with my eyes that my words were acceptable. She looked thoughtful. Then, she came to regard me again.

“What about you? Are you happy with your… arrangement? Do you regret your life as a slave?” she asked this last part almost sheepishly.

I couldn’t help myself any longer. Even wrapped up as I was I could hardly abide being called a slave, particularly in error. Having had an extra moment to assess my situation I didn’t think she meant to harm me. I certainly hoped not anyway.

“I’m not a slave,” I practically blurted out, “I mean, most of the men here are, but I’m not.”

She just continued to stare at me, looking rather confused. I debated on whether or not I should continue when she suddenly appeared to have a revelation.

“Your Enko’s hus… partner, aren’t you?” she asked.

The question caught me off guard a bit. I knew I was getting to be well known amongst the regulars, but just how many people knew my name? I also noted her avoidance of the word husband, which I appreciated. Unfortunately, the moment didn’t last as I completely glossed over the fact she had asked me a question. Annoyed at my quiet she gave me another squeeze which jolted me into action.

“Y-yes, I’m sorry.”

“How interesting,” she replied, looking quite contemplative.

Her grip loosened and her hand fell away from me. I was visibly relieved. Then, she set me gently onto the ground and dislodged the webbing from around me. She looked sad, but determined to… let me go? I was confused.

“I… I just can’t do it,” she stated sadly, almost sobbing, “my poor husband. He… I can’t do this, you’re not even a slave and I still can’t…” she trailed off looking ashamed.

She turned me about and gave me a gentle nudge towards the exit, “go on, I won’t hold you here against your will, I-I can’t.”

My body set about in motion towards the exit. I was trying to understand what had just happened. My first thoughts were about how many times other runners had been let go. Not escaped, but actually let go. It seems to happen to me a lot, and I’m not sure my experiences are typical.

My next thoughts drifted towards her actions. All in all, she actually seemed quite… sweet? For an arachne at least. It occurred to me that she hadn’t wanted to hurt me, just make sure I was, what, cooperative maybe? Arachne process information differently from humans; it's not quite fair to judge them by the same standards.

Then I thought about the conversation. She had mentioned her husband, was she thinking of renting him here? What was giving her pause about hunting? Not to mention, why was I so unappealing? I must admit, my pride was still a little stung.

I turned around deciding I was going to get the record straight. It was my turn to ask questions, and if she wasn’t going to keep her catch, well, I wanted to know why.

Seeing me stride in caught her off guard a bit, but she didn’t make any moves against me. She seemed to be wiping away tears. I locked eyes with her intently, and then averted my gaze while raising my hands in an explanatory gesture.

“I’d like to ask you a few questions now, if you don’t mind,” I said venturing further into the space.

She locked her sad eyes onto me before giving me a gesture indicating I could ask my questions. I stared at her a moment before shrugging.

“Well, I guess first, I’d like to know how someone comes here to hunt but then can’t. Surely, your husband isn’t offended at your being here, is he?”

In my world, couples are decidedly less promiscuous. Many relationships are even destroyed by one individual venturing to another for physical enjoyment. Mageni are far less territorial in that way, but I suppose it wouldn’t be impossible. Even still, I found it unlikely this woman would be here at all if her husband didn’t approve. Slaves or not, men do carry a fair amount of respect in relationships here.

She looked a little taken aback at the question but seemed to consider it earnestly. I waited patiently for a moment before she spoke.

“No, he, well, he wouldn’t have minded. I’ve even been here before,” she added.

I was about to continue my query when I realized something stuck out about her response.

“Wouldn’t have?” I asked confused.

In one continuous flow of emotions, I watched her go from upset, to somber, to sheepish before finally slumping her shoulders and turning away from me. She looked… ashamed, maybe?

“I… I lost him… recently.”

It was my turn to look ashamed.

“I’m sorry…”

She shook her head gently as if to absolve me of my guilt. Then we both sat there, somber in thought for a few moments. It occurred to me I still couldn’t make sense of her reluctance to hunt.

“So uh, if I may then, you still haven’t told me why you won’t hunt me. I don’t mean to come across as conceited, but I—“

“I wish I had released him like Enko did for you,” she cut me off, “I mean, I tried, but I couldn’t…”

Now look, I’ve made it no secret that I find the slave trade to be the single most distasteful feature of my new home. Enko went through a lot of trouble to free me back in the day, I was lucky like that. Others aren’t so lucky, as most Mageni don’t seem to care about a slave's desire for freedom. Therefore, any Mageni that tries to free their husband is alright in my book.

“What stopped you?” I asked somewhat clumsily.

“The governor,” came the reply.

The governor is the local authority for the region. She’s a werewolf, but near as I can tell she lacks any real empathy towards the humans in the region. In addition to the formidable fees associated with freeing a slave, the governor has to personally sign off on the action effectively agreeing to grant citizenship to the person in question. It's fairly well known that she tends to reject these requests, even as infrequent as they are. I know Enko managed to get mine granted to me, but even she had to fight for it. At the time she didn’t even know me all that well. For that, and about a million other reasons, I’ve come to love that woman, mind body and soul.

“I tried, I really did,” she said, almost pleadingly, “but I failed him.”

I watched as she started to practically sob in front of me. I didn’t think much about it, I simply walked up to her and wrapped her up in a hug as best I could. It would have been impossible had she not been sulking so low. Even still, I had to awkwardly wrap around her mid-torso.

“You didn’t fail him,” I offered, “you would have succeeded, eventually, and I’ll bet he knew that.”

She returned my hug, tears falling onto my shoulder. The difference in our size was becoming something of an obstacle.

“Thank you,” she said earnestly, “but see, having failed to free him, knowing how much he craved his own freedom, how could I possibly hunt another slave. It just wouldn’t be right…”

I took a few moments to regard her. She seemed genuine in her words. Arachne are often regarded as somewhat sadistic. I’ve long believed they merely process information much differently from normal humans and other Mageni. This woman and her convictions reassured me my theory was sound.

“I’m not going to try and tell you what you ought to feel or not feel,” I started, “but at least with regards to the men here, they’re free in the sense that they get to choose whether or not they’ll be hunted. Enko and I work hard to make sure nobody in the park doesn’t want to be here.”

“I suppose that is a relief,” she said, releasing me from our embrace, “still, how am I supposed to hunt a slave after... It seems so hypocritical.”

“The men here have a choice,” I offered again before shrugging, “I can’t free them all, but isn’t that the essence of freedom? The ability to choose.”

“Perhaps…” she said with a soft chuckle.

I began to pace about the cavern, venturing deeper. I turned back to face her, she was looking visibly relieved, maybe even happy.

“So… does that mean you have chosen to stay with me for the evening?” she asked, perking up to hear my response.

I was somewhat surprised at how fast her mood was able to change, once again highlighting some of the differences between arachne and humans. I decided to go with the flow.

“I have chosen to work inside the park today, that means risking getting caught by a predator. I’m not opposed to getting caught, but I should avoid it if I can, that’s the game, and it's one I like to play.”

She let out another soft laugh before gesturing widely about the cavern. She had the faintest glimmer of a predatory look in her eye.

“Look about you human, you’re already caught.”

“Then come and get me,” I taunted.

That did it. She came forward towards me. I suspect she figured I was simply teasing, and that I was prepared to give myself up. She obviously didn’t know me very well.

As she approached me I took note of how her spidery form walked, judging the timing and distancing between legs. A moment before she wrapped me up I made my move, diving down below her and rolling gracefully through the maze of legs towards the other side. The move caught her off guard and she spun wildly. One leg caught just enough purchase to knock me gently off course, but I was through nonetheless. Correcting my angle towards the passage I bolted as fast as I could run. I was going to let her catch me eventually, but she’d have to work for it.

It was a dirty trick she pulled next. The mouth of the tunnel was too dark to see the matte of webbing she had placed as a pseudo net. I saw her pull on a run of webbing that stretched upwards into the darkness before realizing too late that a mass of sticky netting was dropping on me as I tried to run into the passageway. It tangled me up and I fell to the ground, still struggling to keep moving. I kept trying to move even as the inescapable truth hit me, I was caught, and by a classic arachne trap, maybe I was the amateur.

She strode up to me looking quite proud of herself, chuckling mildly, albeit in a friendly manner. She looked down on her prize with a big grin before setting about working on me. I was hoisted into the air as she produced more webbing to form a cocoon around me. This is a classic arachne technique to prevent prey from escaping them, I also happen to find it quite sensual. I smiled as she wrapped me.

“There,” she exclaimed as she finished cocooning me, “no more running. Last chance,” she said coyly, “ask me, and I’ll still release you…”

For what it’s worth, I believed her a hundred percent, but fair is fair.

“No, it’s a fair catch, I’m yours,” I said as I looked into her eyes.

She smiled softly back at me. The look in her eyes betrayed a plethora of emotions. All in one continuous stream, she went from slightly saddened by her thoughts, to perked up and resolved, to engaged and lustful. I was looking forward to this somewhat, if for nothing else because I felt like she probably really needed this.

My cocoon was carried deeper into the cavern where she had an intricate series of webbing strung up. I was placed gently on the wall such that we were about even at the head. She peered at me and closed the distance between us. Her hands casually stroked about the cocoon midway down my bound arms and she looked passionately into my eyes.

A hand came up to caress my cheek. I responded in kind by gently pressing myself into her hand and closing my eyes. A moment later her mouth was pressed against mine. We shared a long, passionate kiss with each other that felt less sexual and more like an introduction, albeit a hot one.

I find that most encounters are somewhat forgettable. There’s a simple formula they usually follow that I’ve often felt lacked any real passion. An easy way to be memorable to me is a good old-fashioned kiss, or touching my face, or even cuddling and other non-explicitly sexual interactions. It just makes the experience so much more enjoyable for me, them too I’d hope. Too often, I feel like I’m being used and discarded. Don’t get me wrong, that’s the job, but the game is so much more fun with the right partner.

The kiss that followed was decidedly more erotic. The only introduction here was her tongue into my mouth, which I accepted greedily as it explored me. She was starting to fall prey to her lust, and I was preparing myself for what was to come.

Arachne are similar to lamia in a lot of ways. They’re large, they like to ambush their prey, and unlike many other Mageni, they use a combination of an aura and venom to prime the men they capture. Also, like lamia, the relative strength of each seems to be somewhat dependent on the individual. That said, arachne typically have weaker auras and stronger venom, although I’ve experienced counterexamples to both.

Her aura was barely perceivable, at least by Mageni standards. I assumed I was in for a trip with her venom and steeled myself for what was to come. She reared back and from what I could tell was about to bite me, when she paused. Her eyes found mine, and I could see the hesitation within her. She was still worried. Worried that this wasn’t something I wanted, and I could see her struggling with it. Damn, I think my heart melted for this woman.

I nodded slightly, reassuring her to continue. My eyes spoke to her, telling her to do it. She smiled, on the verge of tears, produced her fangs, and sank them into my neck. It didn’t hurt. What was more surprising was that her venom didn’t seem particularly strong either. To this day, I have a theory that psychology has an effect on the efficacy of a Mageni’s venom, but I’ve never confirmed it academically. Either way, it was enough, and I found myself ready to be used.

After her venom found its way into my body, her attitude finally shifted into full-on lust. Now she was beginning to act like a typical Mageni. Ordinarily, I’m a little weary at the start of these encounters, particularly with the larger species. In this case, I didn’t feel much concern for my wellbeing, this woman seemed quite pleasant. Even still, you might say that arachne like it rough.

She peeled back a part of the webbing exposing my erection but maintaining the restrictions on my other appendages. From there, she didn’t waste much time brining her hips to mine and engulfing me within her. The weight of her massive form did not go unnoticed as she thrust herself upon me. In my home world, I’m a little larger than the average man, but here, I’m considered to be exceptionally stout. How some of the smaller men in this world are able to survive making love to a Mageni I’ll never know.

With each thrust, I was pushed helplessly further into the cave wall. Even still, it didn’t take long before I felt the telltale signs of an impending orgasm. I tried to muffle my gasps so as not to encourage her further. I failed.

Gasps of air escaped me on several thrusts and it only fueled her desires more. My hips were already starting to burn, and I was helpless to move any more than a wiggle. The pressure was getting to be overwhelming, I tried to settle down, I really did, but I came anyway.

The first orgasm in these encounters has always felt like sticking your foot into cold water to me. Sure, you’re technically in the water, but it's about to get a whole lot worse before it gets better. Water analogy aside, men get sensitive after an orgasm. Despite the tricks a Mageni can pull to keep a man primed and ready, it does nothing to alleviate sensitivity. Couple that fact with my current restraints and a massive spider girl going to town and well, the sensations went way beyond overwhelming.

I let out gasps and groans and tried my hardest to move my hips around to alleviate some of the sensations. My efforts were somewhat effective, but ultimately in vain. Then I tried a different tactic, albeit one I knew could backfire, pleading with the predator.

“W-wait, a lit—“ I gasped as she thrust upon me again yanking another orgasm from my body, “a little less, s-s-slower, I-I…”

A finger came to my lips to hush me. Much to my relief, she did grant me a respite and stopped pounding me into the wall. A layer of sweat had already formed upon my brow, but I couldn’t wipe it off.

“Now, my little prize, I already offered you your chance to run. It’s not my fault you didn’t take me up on it,” she said in a somehow seductive manner, I found myself turned on and alarmed at the same time.

“You’re mine little one, until I let you go or you escape, aren’t those the rules?”

I opened my mouth to speak but the same finger came back to shush me before I could even say a word. I was still somewhat amazed at how quickly her mannerisms had shifted. She was definitely in full-on hunter mode.

“No, no, don’t speak, I already know the answer, now,” she accentuated this last bit with another hard thrust pinning me to the wall again and eliciting an unintentional moan from within me, “give me what I want.”

She was clearly enjoying herself, and I suppose, in the end, that’s what I wanted. Might as well go for broke, I thought, before uttering a word no runner in their right mind ought to say if they’re truly looking for mercy.

“Please,” I started, “it’s too mu—” I was cut off by a long, intense kiss that honestly caught me off-guard.

She sat still for a few more moments kissing me, I was quite happy for the break. Then, she started into me again, her mouth still on mine. Gentle hands caressed my head while large, spidery appendages moved to my shoulders to pin me even harder. The thrusting pulled another orgasm from me and I moaned pitifully into her mouth, which only seemed to excite her further. I was hers now.

She must have had me on the wall for a couple of hours. I wish I could say I maintained my composure, but she was good, really good. The natural result was a whole lot of moaning, borderline screaming. The ruckus must have been pretty over the top because at one point something caught my eye enough to break me from my trance. It was a sort of light near the entrance to the cavern. No, I take that back, two lights, small, and a distinctive shade of orangish-yellow.

It took me a moment to realize it was Helasia staring at me. Helasia is a dark hound and by far my favorite guard at the park. All the commotion must have alerted her to me. The arachne, who was facing the other way, couldn’t see her.

She gave me a look that asked if I was ok. Even as large as this chick was, I have little to no doubt Helasia could have kicked her ass if I’d have been in any real trouble. I shook my head gently back and forth as subtly as I could to tell her I was fine. She gave me a nod and started to back away. Just before she took her eyes off of me, I gestured downward with my eyes and gave her a seductive wink. I saw the brilliance of her eyes flare briefly before she averted her gaze and moved away, shaking her head. One point for me, I thought.

Helasia and I have shared in a few nights of passion. That said, when she’s on the clock, she’s a pillar of discipline. Me being me, I like to try and tease her and elicit a response like I just had. See, a dark hound's eye flare is loosely correlated to their emotional status. On the clock, Helasia almost always has dim eyes. By pointing out the overtly sexual acts, I was in the middle of and tossing her a wink, I had successfully gotten a reaction, not usually a simple feat. I figured she would make me pay for that one later. Too bad, I thought, she would jus—"Gah!" I screamed as another orgasm was forced from my poor body.

For her part, the arachne was still thoroughly enjoying making me scream and moan, but I think she was starting to get bored of simply having me up on the wall. It wasn’t long after Helasia left that she pulled me from the wall, still bound.

“Time for bed?” I asked panting, and only half-joking.

She didn’t answer, instead, placing me onto the ground and securing my hands above me. Not bedtime, I thought as she started unwrapping me and securing my arms and legs. After I was well and truly stuck on the ground she paused for a moment to gaze down upon her prize. In that moment, I became aware all over again just how much larger she was than me. This was gonna hurt.

She straddled me and then brought her weight down upon me. It's worth noting that arachne are surprisingly light for their size, but keep in mind they are still extraordinarily large, particularly this one.

I grunted as she slowly descended her full weight upon me. The look she gave me signaled both annoyance and concern. Arachne are strange like that. I did my best to give a subtle nod indicating I was ok. After that, she took off, now using gravity to her benefit.

It wasn’t long after that began I started to wonder if I should have gotten Helasia to pull me out of here. The sheer size difference between us was becoming more and more of a burden. I found myself wondering once again how some of the smaller men survived these encounters. Maybe it’s because I am so stout I end up in these positions.

About an hour later, much to my relief, she finally started to show signs of slowing down. Then, without a word, she plucked me from the ground and carried me back into the cavern where she had her pseudo nest built up.

I was cocooned and secured into the nest before she herself climbed up placing her large form in the webbing. Then she brought her human half adjacent me, wrapping me up in her arms and placing her head on my chest.

“Mmmm, I think I needed that,” she said softly, her eyes closed.

“That was uh… intense,” I offered back.

She picked her head up and gave me a kiss on the cheek before placing her head back down and starting to sleep. I was so exhausted I’m pretty sure I was out before she was. From there, we slept like that the whole night, not a care in the world.

The following morning was pretty tame by comparison. I was gently woken, freed, and then fed. I even managed to get my shoe returned to me. It was her last morning in the park so I asked her to escort me to the spa where I could catch a soak and a shower. She joined me in the spa for about thirty minutes before giving me a kiss, a thanks, and then leaving.

I found myself hoping she would return because that would mean she found some peace. I enjoy most of the customers that come through the reserve, but to this day, there’s a special place in my heart for Mageni that support freeing slaves, whether they’re successful or not. I sincerely hope she’s doing well.

After enjoying a shower, I walked up to Enko and I’s room where I found her pouring over the books. I gave her a kiss and hug before sitting down beside her. It’s all just another day at the reserve.