Alex weighed the risks in his mind, then took a step forwards. The tomboys with him didn't even question the decision. "If Selana was here, she'd ask ya why you thought about it so long," Astrid teased him.
"Thankfully, her tits are too big to run ahead," Alex joked, mimicking the sound that would make by smacking the palm of his hand against his chest.
Yahui chuckled behind an elegantly raised hand, "She might need a sports bra."
"NEVER say that word in my presence again!" Shuddering head to toe, Alex felt a genuine aversion take hold of him. For a moment, he was confused why he was that upset by the concept. Obviously, he did not like bras. The nudism was his right! Still, that was a bit intense. "Huh," he reclaimed control over his mind. "I think my incubus blood is reacting very poorly to the idea."
"Y-you don't say…" Sara muttered in the most adorable, sarcastic quietness.
The distance to the totem and the ruins around it was swiftly crossed. The remnants of houses were completely useless. They had been built on a ground that had gradually eroded by the magma flows beneath and the ash rain above. What remained were walls sunken into the dirt, the roofs collapsed and burned to ash alongside the rest of the contents.
The Necklace of Regulation was once more their saving grace. Without it, their eyes would have dried up and their lips cracked from the heat. Even with it, Alex stopped a solid ten metres away from the heart of it all. The titanic totem was radiating immense heat. Its base was surrounded by a solid stone altar.