“Actually, it’s just you,” Wick says like he’s about to flee. “She said you could ‘bring a plus one if you must’.”
“In return,” I continue, hating this more all the time, “we can use her airship.”
“Thanks, I hate it,” Mika says.
“Not loving the idea, either. But Wick doesn’t have any more leads and I don’t know how long we can lay low here without her Dusk’s friends tracking us down.”
“Not long!” She says cheerfully.
I sit back. “Thoughts?”
“I don’t see how we have a choice,” Mika says. “We’ve been through a lot, and we can watch each other’s backs. We can do this.”
“I agree.” Astra adjusts her glasses, pushing her strawberry hair behind her ears. “All we know is that, for some reason, she’s taken an interest in you.” She smiles. “I think I can understand that.”
“If she touches you, I’ll kill her,” Mika says with a little grin.
“But it could be that she’s heard, somehow, that we are competent. You and Syl completed a contract far above your level. Instead of hiring a higher level and possibly far more expensive player, perhaps she sees the use of her airship as a low price for whatever this job is.”
“That makes sense,” Wick says. “Word is The Ezio’s been in port for over a month. It’s just sitting there gathering dust.”
“Syl?” I ask, waiting for her thoughts.
“I do not like it,” she says. “Tactically, it is dangerous. Only one of us is required to guard the prisoner. Two of us should go.”
“Mm-mmm,” Wick says, shaking his head so violently I’m afraid he’s having a seizure. “You do not want to piss Kara off. She is… Creative… With her punishments when people make her angry. There are a lot of stories… Flaying people alive, keeping them conscious for days as has them tortured, all kinds of scary shit.” He shudders. “Even if only half of it’s true…”
“Even more reason to dislike this plan,” Syl says. “If she is so dangerous, why risk it?”
“Because people also say that she treats her friends very well. Friends that do jobs for her. And word is she’s forgiving of people who fail.”
“So no ‘You have failed me for the last time’ action?” Mika asks, making a choking motion at Wick.
“No,” he says, rubbing his neck. “By all accounts, she’s fair. Scary as hell, but fair. It’s why people work with her in a world where you can just kill yourself and respawn if shit gets really bad.”
“Okay. I think we should do it,” I say, standing and wiping my hands on my thighs. “We need out of the city. Fast. This sounds like our best bet.”
Syl nods, still clearly unhappy. “I agree. I do not like it, but I agree.”
“If you do this you’re a bigger idiot than I thought you were,” Dusk says, startling all of us.
“Why?” I walk up to her slowly, searching her eyes for… something. Some hint of the woman I saw under the haughty disdain back in Three’s.
She sneers as I search her face. “Because you’re newbs that are in over your heads? Because whatever she wants you to do will still put you in her debt? God, how green are you?”
“Sounds more like you don’t want us to take a possible way out before your buddies catch us,” I say.
“Yeah, don’t want your prey to escape, eh?” Astra stabs her finger at Dusk’s chest. “I’ll tell you this. If they do catch us, I’m killing you before they take us,” she snarls.
I gently lower Astra’s hand, still studying Dusk. “Is that it? You don’t want us to escape?”
She locks eyes with me for a split second, and I see it again. The barest hint of… something. But then she looks away. “Whatever. Think what you want.”
I sigh. “Mika, you’re with me.”
“I should watch your back, Sam,” Syl protests instantly. “I am the most dangerous warrior here. You need protec–”
“So does she,” I say, hiking a thumb at Dusk. “And Astra. And you. Mika will come with me. We can handle ourselves. We survived up to meeting you,” I say with a smile.
“Yeah, I can handle him,” Mika says, eyes flashing with double meaning. “You are the scariest of us. If shit goes south here, if they find this place, you have to get everyone out.”
Syl hesitates, and then nods. “As you wish.”
“Ooh, I know what that means,” Mika grins. “I’ve seen Princess Bride.”
“Me, too,” I say, kissing Syl’s cheek. I don’t give a shit what Dusk thinks. “I love you, too.”
Syl’s fingers rest where my lips brushed her scales. “Come back to us.”
Astra wraps Mika and I in a tight hug. “Yeah. If you don’t, I’ll find a way to resurrect you and then I’ll kill you again.”
Mika brightens. “Ooh, Wick, are there raise the dead spells here? I never thought of that, and if there are–”
“Nope,” he interrupts. “Remember? Real life consequences!”
Her face falls. “Damn.”
“That’s okay,” I say, taking her hand. “We won’t need it.”
Dusk watches us quietly for a change. There’s something so pensive in her expression. So sad behind her anger.
“Is there anything you need?” I ask her.
She recoils in disbelief. “Anything I nee–” she shakes her head. “I need you to let me go home.”
“Soon.” I hook an overstuffed chair from behind me and drag it to the corner, replacing her stool. “Sorry it has to be this way. It’ll be over before you know it.”
She looks at the chair like it’s personally offended her. “Well… Good.”
“Okay, Wick. Got my potion.” I snap my fingers. “You know, I could really use a goddamned weapon. Anything we can snag on the way over?”
Wick scratches behind an ear. “Yeah, I think I can rustle something up as long as you don’t wonder too hard about where it came from.”
“Don’t ask, don’t tell. Got it.”
“Alright. Let’s roll.”
I take a last look at Syl and Astra. “I’ll be back.”
The AI forces a smile. “You’d better be.”
“Take care of him, Viera,” Syl says.
Mika bobs her head. “I will.”
I take a last look at Dusk. She stands, perfect and cold and impossibly beautiful, watching us like she wants to say something. Then she turns away. Again.
That’s fine. Like I told her, this is almost over.
“Alright, Wick. Lead on.”
I take a last glimpse into the apartment as we leave and smile. The last thing I see is Dusk slipping into the chair.
19
Acheryx
Madam Kara’s
Player: Sam
Level 4
Standing in front of Madam Kara’s front door for the second time feels like walking into a trap. A trap that you know is there, and for some reason decide to stick your foot into, anyway.
The vibrablade Wick secured me doesn’t make me feel much safer. It looks like an oversized machete, and though it certainly seems scary, it doesn’t feel that intimidating compared to some of the insane weaponry I’ve seen since arriving in Lifestream. Wick assured me that, when I grab the handle and it starts buzzing things would ‘die real good,’ but I think I’ll rely on my mind powers if the shit hits the fan.
“Are we really doing this?” Mika asks. “I mean, we could figure something else out. Leave the city. Level up. Wait for Wick to find another lead… There has to be something.”
I stare at the nondescript door, shivering at the memory of Kara’s eyes on me. How they seemed to dissect me in an instant. Her last words which I now realize were prophecy.
Still, I don’t see that we have a choice. “Astra said the patrols are up. You’ve seen more Obsidians in the street on your watches, and we don’t even know how many guilds they have under their thumb. And Wick claims that Kara hates Obsidian… So, it’s an enemy of my enemy is my friend kind of thing.” I gird mysel
f. “I think this is our best shot.”
“Okay.” Mika’s hand is warm in mine. “Let’s just… Let’s be careful.”
“That’s been my mantra since around the time I woke up naked next to a frighteningly sexy, devastatingly intelligent Asian girl some time ago.”
“Really?” She pokes me in the ribs. “When do I get to meet her?”
Wick ducks around the corner of the building and darts up to us. He flits from shadow to shadow, his fur blending in with darkness cast by the towering buildings that surround us. A smattering of stars peeks through the dark sentinels that watch over a street that smells too clean to be real. There’s no stink of vehicles or garbage, and the lack of grime and dirt under our feet just underscores the fact that none of this is real. Instead, everything is pristine, and the gentle scent of plant matter and food wafts on a slight breeze. It’s all so fantastical, so unreal, that I have to remind myself that we can really die here. That this is happening.
That’s it’s been happening since I careened off that mountain pass a lifetime ago.
Wick skids to a stop. “Coast’s clear. I let them know around front that you were waiting. Still think you coulda just gone that way.”
“Dude, only one of us can respawn, remember?” Mika squeezes me tighter. “We’ll take the careful approach, thanks.”
“Yeah, yeah. Anyway, should be any second now.”
Something occurs to me. “Wick, what the hell were you doing in a brothel, anyway? Aren’t you too young to… You know…”
“You’d be surprised how little porn there is, these days,” he says. “Ever since the snakes cut off access to the internet.”
“So, you mean…” I trade glances with Mika. “Ew.”
“Hey, just because I can’t touch doesn’t mean it’s not worth lookin’,” he says. “A man’s gotta make his own fun. Until I got caught, that is.” He shudders. “That was the first time I died. Lost a level six.”
“Okay. There’s no part of me that wants to explore… Like… Any of that,” Mika laughs.
“Yeah. I mean, how did you sneak in any–”
“None of that,” Mika warns, shaking a suddenly flaming finger at me.
“Right. Probably for the best.”
We wait in silence a moment longer. I can’t shake my sense of dread, but I can’t think of any alternatives.
A chill of ice runs down my spine. Somewhere, out there, the Shepherd’s still prowling. Still hunting. He hasn’t made his way here, yet, but it’s probably only a matter of time.
When he finds this place, I want to be gone.
The door opens without warning, swinging wide without sound. We’re bathed in soft red light and the scents of perfume and sex as our eyes adjust. I expect the same guard robots that greeted us the first time, so I’m taken aback when I realize that it’s a girl.
She’s short and petite and wrapped almost entirely in straps of black leather. Various buckles and rings hang from the material that hugs her slim curves, leaving tantalizing swaths of flesh exposed. That includes her little tits, only covered by black X’s of masking tape that only partially cover her nipples. Her dark hair is cut short in a punk rock bob, and her nose ring and black lipstick complete the look.
The only thing that breaks the illusion is her serene expression. She’s not subdued, but her face is utterly composed and polite. When she speaks, I half expect her to be sassy and full of attitude. Instead, she’s quiet and sensual. “This way, please. Madam is waiting.”
Without waiting, she turns and moves off with an exaggerated sway of trim hips. She’s a vision of sexual desire, and I can already see how men would be lured by her. By a place where the girls can look like anything you want them to.
Mika and I trade wry glances. Temptation might be as big a risk as our hostess.
“Alright, Wick, keep watch. If we’re not out of there in… an hour?” I look to Mika. She purses her lips and shrugs. “Yeah. An hour. Get the others.”
“Will do, boss,” he says, eyes lingering on the ass of the punk rock girl. “Sure you don’t want me to stick around…”
“Go, before they teach you another lesson and we’re short a guide.”
“You’re no fun,” he says, his voice trailing behind him as he vanishes into the shadows opposite Kara’s.
With a final squeeze to Mika’s hand, I mount the steps and pass into the brothel. She follows, tugged along a moment until she closes the distance to us and presses into my back. “For the record, I think you’re fun.”
“Old man Sam? You sure? Because Wick seems to think I’m a few days away for screaming at kids to get off my front lawn.”
“Still hot. I’d do you.”
“Hey, maybe you should concentrate on the mission instead of my ass,” I sass. “Or not. I mean, we are in a whorehouse.”
“Never know how the night’s gonna end,” she says, slapping my backside.
My return quip dies as we round the corner to the wide steps I remember from our first time here. The steps that Kara descended.
Punk rock girl stands at the foot of the steps, staring at us unabashedly. “Wait here, please.”
A thousand possible conversation starters die on my lips as I try to stare anywhere but at her. She’s absolutely stunning, and something about being fully clothed while she stands there half naked, tits out and unashamed, is unbelievably awkward. At the same time, it’s unbelievably sexy, almost reminiscent of Eleria on the rooftop.
Okay, Sam. Get your mind in the game.
The room’s basically as I remember it, aside from one detail. The cages are empty, now. The only people present are us and her.
“So,” I drawl. “How… Is this… Your place here. How do you like this… what you do?”
Mika winces. “Nailed it.”
Punk rock girl covers her mouth to stifle a laugh.
“Sorry. Let me try again,” I say with way more confidence. “What’s your name?”
“Vera,” she grins.
“You seem happy here,” Mika says, eyes raking the other woman.
Vera doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, she puffs her chest out toward Mika and takes a slow step forward. “Fuckin’ love it, actually. This is my first week. The wait to work here is endless.”
Mika blinks. “Wait, you wanted to be here?”
“Why wouldn’t I? Real world blows.” The corners of her eyes tighten and she looks away. “You know what I mean.”
“Yeah,” I say, throat tight and suddenly aware of the trauma every person around me has suffered. Trauma I avoided by being conveniently dead during the worst tragedy in human history.
“Anyway, this job is great,” Vera says, snapping me out of my reverie. “I love sex. Pay’s amazing. No STD’s in Lifestream. Madam takes great care of us, ‘specially when we’re incap.”
“That’s…” Mika opens and closes her mouth a moment. “That actually sounds kind of great.”
“Thinking about applying?” I tease.
“Nah. I doubt the boss would be cool with a girl that only services one client,” she says, bumping me.
Vera’s smile shows a lot of teeth. “I like you two. Not sure what Madam wants with you, but come find me after, eh? Won’t even charge ya.”
“That’s… Generous…” I manage, knowing what I’ll see when I turn to Mika.
“It’s a date,” Mika says, winking.
“Anyway, let me go see if Madam’s ready for you,” Vera says, starting up the stairs. “She said she wouldn’t be long.”
When she disappears, Mika shakes her head. “I guess Bombor was right. Sex sells in Acheryx.”
“Considering the girls we saw when we first came here, I’m not surprised.”
“Yeah. Monster girls, am I right?”
“It’s not something I ever considered…”
“...but…”
“...til we came here.”
Mika laughs. “I knew it. You tease me for being a freak but you’re just as bad. You’ve
just got… you know. What do they call them?” She grins. “Oh yeah. Manners.”
“Hey. Doesn’t hurt a guy to be classy, does it?”
She embraces me in in a blanket of flesh and coconut. “Not at all.”
“Anyway, I think that ship sailed the second we double teamed an alien with a prehensile tongue, don’t you?”
“Mmm. Don’t stop talking. I’m almost there.”
“If so, you’ve come to the right place.”
The voice spills down the stairway like molasses, caressing us in an almost physical way. Madam Kara stands at the top, staring down at us as Mika hurriedly releases me. Almond eyes take us in, and her expression is languid with an amused turn of her lips. “By all means, continue. We have rooms aplenty, here, and many of us love to watch.”
Vera appears from behind Kara, resting her weight on one leg in a way that draws the eyes along her long curves. “Like I said… I could join in.”
“Perhaps later, pet,” Kara says, running long fingers down Vera’s side. She lingers at her ass and squeezes before sending her down the steps toward us with a gentle push. “Go and watch the front door. Master V is supposed to be along shortly. He’s requested you for the second time this week.”
Vera grins cheekily as she passes us. “Told you. This place rocks.”
“Please, join me,” Kara says, turning on her heel and not waiting for our response.
Mika and I start up the steps together. Warnings blare in my mind; that Kara’s too easygoing. That Vera’s chillness is a facade meant to lull us. That a dozen killer robots are about to bust through the walls to take us prisoner.
I push all that aside and squeeze Mika’s hand. “Be ready for… Anything.”
“Don’t have to tell me. Not after everything we’ve been through,” she whispers.
When we mount the steps, Kara’s halfway down the hall, waiting. She inclines her head. “Please observe as you walk with me. Though I know your price for the service you will provide, my club offers a variety of… Services. You may alter your preference before our negotiations finish.” Her words are tossed casually over her shoulder in little, breathless volleys that heat my blood almost against my will.
Aspirant 2: A Sci-Fi Harem Adventure Page 36