162 Different Stars (1/2)

I walked over, clicking the center of Torix's gray suit. My power armor folded off me. I set the gray square that was left on a night stool beside the bed. I laid onto her. As I did, my real armor molded over us both, creating a sphere. As I pressed against her back, I whispered in her ear, ”Always.”

Althea giggled, ”Your armor's gotten way better at that circle thing since we first did it forever ago.”

I smiled, ”It had to. Otherwise, we'd be waiting for the metal longer than we spent time actually doing it.”

She rolled her eyes, ”If only. Your stat sheet isn't the only thing with a lot of endurance.”

I snickered while wrapping my arms around her. She smelled my arm, ”You smell like iron, stone, and fire. You're like a blacksmith.” She squeezed my upper arms, ”If I press down hard enough, I can feel the fibers of your armor under your skin. They're like cords of steel.”

She rubbed her hand across my arm. I pressed my face into her hair, breathing in, ”Well you smell like lavender...Man do I love your shampoo.” I squeezed her, ”And every part of you feels soft to me. From the top of your sleek shoulders to your nice, sexy ass.”

She wiggled her hips, smirking at me with pride. She raised her eyebrows,

”I do a little touch up with my shapeshifting powers.”

I raised an eyebrow, leaning up, ”Really now? I'd never of guessed.”

She flipped over towards me, lifting her hands overhead. I pulled her dress off while she talked,

”I mean its nothing big or anything, just little improvements here or there. I think of it like makeup or exercise.”

Her voluptuous boobs bounced as her clothes passed over them. I leaned into them,

”I appreciate the effort.”

She coiled her arms around my head, her body shivering at my touch. I dwarfed her enough to wrap one arm all the way around her. Althea loved that though. She told me I made her feel safe.

I let out a deep breath, tracing my lips between her breasts. Electrical sparks shot up her body, her hands and feet twitching. I enjoyed teasing her, relishing in the sensations of her body. She left her hands over her head, closing her eyes. She loved the sense of freedom. I loved the sense of domination.

I pressed my lips onto down her neck, to her shoulders, then her side. Althea was ticklish around her stomach. I took full advantage, kissing down towards her navel. She shivered as I tongued her belly, her mind racing in anticipation.

With a gentle touch, I caressed my hands down hips. Like lightning fired into Althea's fingers, she writhed and grabbed the bedsheets. She let out a soft moan, surrendering herself to me. My own excitement built, my hands moving faster.

A carnal hunger raced up into my head, urging me on. I pressed harder against her, feeling the softness of her skin. She tasted a little salty and sweet, her body warm against me. She arched her back, pressing her most intimate place against mine.

She wrapped her arms around me, nibbling at my neck. I pressed myself against her, her tender body fitting against me. I thrust myself into her, Althea biting her lip and scratching down my back. Her lips quivered as she gasped.

She tightened against me, pulling me in. Sopping wet, she pushed her hips to me. I nibbled on her ear. She rewarded me with several breathless gasps. I sped up my pace, her body sucking on me. She pulled as I pushed. I grabbed her wrist, holding her down.

She wrapped her legs around me, pulling me into her. Her moans turned to yelps as she let go. Her hips rocked with me, the bed shaking. I growled, pressing my teeth against her shoulders and neck. I sucked on her, her chest sensitive.

She bit her lip and panted, ”Ah, I love it when you touch me there baby.”

I nibbled on her nipples, her body spasming in pleasure. She jolted with each pulse, her body constricting mine. I forgot about everything else, her smell and taste consuming me. I heightened my senses, savoring each move of her body.

She gripped my back, her body tightening. Her moaning gasps quickened before she yelped, her body squirming in place. She placed her hands on my chest, letting out labored breaths. She clenched on me, squeezing me tight. I clenched my teeth, euphoria spreading over me.

I let out deep breaths with my arms shaking. I finished as Althea did, each of us losing tension. I laid on her, supporting some of my weight on my arms and legs to not smash her. She whispered into my ear, ”That was amazing.”

I grinned, ”You were amazing.”

I lifted myself up, moving one her boobs out from under me. She giggled,

”I remember when you used to lay on top of them. It hurt so bad I'd squeal.”

I nodded, ”And it scared the shit out of me too. I didn't know boobs were that touchy.”

She played with my hair, ”That's not as bad as the time I kneed you right in the balls while I was cumming.”

I winced, ”Jesus Christ. Don't remind me.”

She leaned back laughing. We laid together for a moment, just enjoying the intimacy. After a minute, she grabbed the back of my hair, ”Ready for round two?”

A devilish grin ran up my lips, ”Let's make it a bit more adventurous.”

*****************************************************************

With Althea asleep, I floated myself up out of bed. It turns out that magic and sex made for a solid combination. As I stepped towards a desk in the corner of the room, my armor molded back over me. As it did, confidence surged in my chest. It was my second skin after all, and I was naked without it. Literally and metaphorically.

I sat in a desk in the corner of the room. I pulled my grimoire and set to work. With the extra knowledge Eonoth unlocked, my cipher skills overshadowed what they once were. It was high time I took full advantage of my new abilities even if I feared them a little.

It also helped that my perception was just over 2,500 now. The cipher shored up weak attributes faster than high ones. The dungeon cores helped accelerate this process even further. This rapid attribute gain meant fixing issues with my build proved simple. That's why I wasn't worried about the televised tournament. Only classers would know who I am and that was if they specced into perception.

I doubted that many classers watched tournaments from small towns like Icosah either. They'd be too backwater for them.

Either way, my attribute gain satisfied me for now. I wanted to unlock other parts of Schema's system. His trees and perks gave multipliers and conversions that vastly improved my abilities. If he did it, I could too. Even more so, I might make a new skill or spell that might help round out my build. It never hurt having options after all.

With those ideas bouncing around, I played around with the cipher. Instead of focusing on precision and clarity, I emphasized the fluidity of it. After several hours, I learned a few tricks and tips for creating more efficient runes.

I rewrote my perception runes, plastering them onto my forearms. After I finished the runic work, I stood up and put on my metallic disguise. Torix's power armor folded over me, keeping me hidden. I walked out of our room, leaving a written note. Althea hated waking up alone, but a note helped ease the sting.

I walked around town, buying a few traveling supplies. With Icosah's tournament handled, we'd all be shuttled to the next city, Yildraza. I figured processing some of the logistic work would take the edge off of Torix for once.

After setting down my supplies, I returned to our rented room. Althea woke up as I opened the door inside the room. She rubbed her eyes as I set down an armful of foodstuffs, snacks, and trinkets. I walked over, giving her a morning kiss,

”It's good to see you.”

She gave me a lazy grin, hugging her pillow, ”Same here.”

After an exotic breakfast of Giessian junk food, we trecked to the Empire's branch in Icosah. The receptionist guided us to the back of the imperial building. After passing a few fancy hallways, we got to the armory and integration room. Both of the areas focused on teaching espens the proper use of imperial weaponry.

We reached a meeting room, fancy furniture clashing with high tech gear. Kessiah, Caprika, and Torix talked to two members of the empire. Garnered in fine, flowing robes, they spoke with the same red masks covering their faces.

Both of them outsized Caprika, their features masculine. Collars of crimson wood tamed their wild tufts of fur, the same material as their masks. The tallest of the two wore red, the other green. They both kept their hands hidden under by pressing their sleeves together. As we walked up, they both turned to us.

Caprika paced over and gestured towards me, ”This is Daniel, the warrior I selected. This is Althea, a physically imposing assassin.”

I raised a hand, ”Yo.” Althea waved at them.Caprika pointed to the red-robed one, ”This is Muro.” She pointed to the green one, ”This is Unoc.”

Muro nodded at me, ”Ah, there you are. This is the warrior we've heard so much about.”

Unoc leaned towards me, ”Was it magic that let you fell such a titanic beast?”

I nodded, raising a hand, ”Yeah. Gravity.”

Unoc and Muro nodded to each other in excess while affirming each other,

”Undoubtedly so.”

”It's as we predicted.”

”Most certainly so.”

”But of course.”

It got old quick, so I pointed at them both, ”Why are they here?”

Caprika sighed, ”They're trying to help me win the tournament this year to accrue favor with the royal family. Their concern is kind but unneeded.”

She glared at them both as she finished. They both leaned back, Unoc whispering, ”You're always such a snappy sister.”

”It does your impression in courts no good.”

”You've no suitor because of it.”

”Even though you're so beautiful.”

”It is such a shame.”

They finished each other's sentences. I looked at them both,

”You guys are twins?”

They nodded. I gave Unoc and Muro a thumbs up, ”Your sister's doing fine.” I turned to my friends, ”You guys ready to go?”

Torix nodded, staring at this status, ”Of course.”

Kessiah was reading a local booklet about Giess, ”Yeah.”

They both lacked agency, but it didn't matter at the moment. Caprika put her clawed on her hips,

”Then we'll be using one of our vehicles transport. Will that suit you all?”

Althea nodded. I shrugged, ”We usually run everywhere, so this is a step up. It's actually a lot fewer steps, but you get what I'm saying.”

Caprika looked up at me, ”You...run everywhere?”

I spread out my arms, ”We all do. For the most part. Either that or I use my magic.”

Unoc leaned towards me, ”It takes a mind of steel to transport like that.”

Muros continued, ”You must have quite the willpower stat.”

”It was wise of our sister to choose you.”

”She's fortunate.”

”Do treat her well, won't you?”

”The empire will reward you handsomely if you do.”

I raised my palms to them, ”I will.” I turned to the others, ”Let's go kick some ass.”

We walked off, Caprika's brothers doting on her while she tried escaping them. Though annoying, their concern for their sister warmed me up to them for the most part. Once we got rid of them, we walked into a garage at the back of the building.

Inside of it, numerous technicians and mechanics worked on vehicles of varying sizes. The largest car was covered in the skin of some marine animal. I frowned at it,