Uncertain Magic: Uncertain Conflicts

by Nuit du Loup

"I told you, your room would be bigger than ours," Sarah teased after the group had stopped long enough for Kat to stow her trunk and other things inside her room. "Almost twice as big I think."

"Okay, so you were right," Kat grinned, keeping up with the steady, running pace the group moved into once Major Wallova had them back outside in the afternoon sunlight. It was a bit hot, but nicely mitigated by a constant breeze. There were many more women and girls out now, and lively groups were heading in a thousand different directions. Some gave them welcoming smiles and others nods of greeting. All seemed to know they were the new guys. "But you saw who I have to share mine with."

"Yeah, she did look like an interesting one," Sarah said musingly. She seemed to have an impossibly bottomless stamina, because unlike Kat, she didn't even breathe harder when she talked and ran at the same time. Was having lots of sex good exercise or something? "But hopefully I won't be lonely in my room for long. Maybe the tighter space will make it cozier. "What do you think Cass?"

"How should I know how much space is needed for a harem?!" Cassie groused loudly, drawing interested looks from the girls running behind them. "Is it even that complicated?"

"Oh! Honey! Surely it is," Sarah laughed in delight. "It's so much more enjoyable when everyone is comfortable and having fun. That's why I have a no clothing policy for any and all visitors!"

"You just want to see everyone naked," Cassie complained, matching Kat's stride from between Kat and Sarah. When they had formed into lines again, Cassie had been silently determined to have that position, so they hadn't argued.

"Of course I do!" Sarah looked at Cassie as if that was the most obvious thing ever. "If it wasn't for the weather and such, I think we'd all do better without clothes. Nude is the natural and most beautiful state. It's also healthier."

"Any prospects yet?" Kat asked, amused. "I figure you've scouted some people out by now."

"A few," Sarah grinned, giving Cassie a pointed glance when she wasn't looking. "I've already met most of the girls on our floor, and they're alright for the most part. Only a couple of them were bold enough to talk to me first, but we'll see soon enough. Wallova even said they don't care where we actually sleep as long as it's in the dorm."

"It just means they have experience with previous succubuses," Cassie said as they split on either side of the road to allow a car to pass and then turned at a corner. They were heading back towards where they were processed in.

"Don't worry Cass," Sarah teased. "I'll let you learn about me all you want. We're going to be here together for years!"

"Who said I want to learn!" Cassie said, stumbling for a second before recovering and getting back onto the pace. Her face was red and she was looking determinedly at the ground before her. Kat grinned. Cassie was really obvious when she lied. Sarah had noticed as well, and looked quite pleased.

"I was making a free offer," Sarah replied, undaunted. Then she looked curiously around Cassie towards Kat. "How come you have a cape?"

"Because I look cool in one," she replied, unconsciously preening a little. The armor suit was unbelievably comfortable to run in. It wicked her sweat right off her skin and moved naturally with her body. The other two looked great too, and it amused her to see that Cassie's eyes kept straying to Sarah's chest or ass. It was clear Sarah noticed these glances, because she always turned just slightly to give Cassie a better or longer look. Cassie wasn't bad either, and looked graceful while running. Sarah didn't bother to hide her enjoyment of the sight.

"Well, it does look nice," Sarah agreed.

They all slowed behind Wallova when they were just short of the building with the Dining Hall sign. It was very large, square, and with an access drive for supplies that went around back. There were plenty of windows to provide maximum natural lighting. They had to go two-by-two through the doors, but the Major insisted on keeping order all the way inside. They entered a place designed to feed a thousand people at once.

"Attention children!" Major Wallova hollered, stopping them. There were many other girls already in the hall, and most had turned to watch them. It was a largely open structure with three tiered balcony levels and an open bottom floor. The food was being served from a long, two-sided counter island that thrust out from a pair of doors in the far wall. Food must be prepped in the kitchens and then brought out and then served by the men and women wearing crisp, white uniforms. It all looked so orderly and tidy.

"I know you are all hungry, as am I, so I won't hold you up long," Wallova continued. "The idea here is really simple. You have a credit for three meals a day at this facility, but if you really want to spend your living stipend on outside food, no one will stop you. However, you'll be missing out since the stuff served here is pretty great. Just walk up to the counter, swipe your Glass over the indicated plate so that you will be debited for the food, and then go down the serving line. You have an hour to eat. Go!"

Since no one had eaten breakfast this morning, there was little hesitation at the order. The serving people seemed to have expected them, because there was a lot of fresh, hot food just coming out of the kitchen doors. Kat, like all the others, eagerly followed her orders and got in line. Sarah and Cassie were right behind her. With smooth efficiency, they paid as instructed and slid down the line and received satisfyingly large portions. Like many Iskaran meals, their lunch consisted of a noodle dish, along with flaky, grilled fish, a pile of grapes, and a salad. At the end they all received large glasses of ice water.

The ground floor was already occupied by girls that had come before them, so Kat went up a wide set of stairs to the first balcony level and chose an open, circular table made of wood and glass. When Cassie and Sarah sat on either side of her, she felt a moment of happiness at already having new friends. Their personalities were vastly different, but they seemed to be coming together, even if Sarah was determined to seduce Cassie. Kat gave her winning odds on succeeding very soon.

As they ate, Sarah extolled about the regular dorm for the new girls. It seemed that it was only used for the first year of freshly entering students, and a little lacking in amenities for that reason. Like her own building, they had communal bathing areas, but also had study rooms, and something like a recreation room on the first floor. The dorms themselves were just large enough for a bed, a desk, a closet, and a tiny bathroom, with little, if any floor space left. Sarah moaned about this because she claimed it limited possible multi-person sex combinations. Kat's imagination failed after only a few ideas that she left unvoiced because her mind kept adding Eva into the mix.

Sarah also flirted shamelessly with both of them, but mostly with Cassie. Part way through the meal, Sarah turned a little and Kat felt a leg rest atop hers, just short of the knee. Cassie jumped in surprise, almost dropping her fork full of salad, and gave them both a dark look. Yet she didn't protest aloud, so Kat leaned over to look under the table. Somehow, Sarah had removed one boot and was caressing Cassie's legs with her bare foot and toes, almost right to the crotch. She was surprisingly dexterous, but Kat supposed that Sarah was experienced already in such things.

"How did you get your boot off so fast?" Kat asked when they were returning their trays.

"It's a trade secret I'm afraid," Sarah laughed, setting her tray with Kat's on a stack of dirties. Making their way back towards the entrance they found a few others that were already done. They found an empty area of wall and leaned against it, with Sarah automatically gluing herself to Cassie. She played with Cassie's riotous curls, smiling happily. Cassie only sighed in resignation and leaned into the taller girl without further complaint. "How much time do we have to wait?"

"Not long," Kat answered, checking her Glass. She needed to get a real watch when she got a chance. The other girls gathered in clumps of other groups of newly developing friends, and Kat noticed when the girl that really seemed to dislike her showed up, she deliberately moved as far away with her two new cronies as she could. One was a petite little girl, with a waspish body, a cutely rounded face, dark straight hair, and a sour, outward disposition. The other looked a lot like a tengu, with ash-colored wings, a muscular body, and dark skin, but her expression was severe, and there was something different about her. It was such a petty little move by Tarina, that Kat felt much more amused than annoyed. Eventually, the only person they were waiting for was Wallova herself.

The woman showed up, predictably, at the last minute. "We're all here?" she asked, looking the group over in a close inspection. "Good, because your afternoon is packed full of fun and we need to get started right away. We aren't huge fans of ceremony around here, except when it comes to great accomplishment and things like that, so we will be heading to your first class. Also, all of you need to understand that I won't be holding your hands like this after today. I am your CO and training advisor, not your mama, and when you take my classes, I will make you feel it, so make sure you figure out how to pull up your class list on your Glass. It will have all the times and locations listed."

Wallova gave them all a cheery, predator grin. "Now, we need to get to your introduction class. This year it's the Master of Technology and Magical Weaponry's turn, so it should prove interesting. It's a bit of a walk this time, so let's get moving!"

She was thankful that they weren't going to have to run just yet. The lunch had been filling enough that doing so during the hottest part of the day would have had them all sick. Instead they strode at a brisk pace, at Wallova's direction, like a gaggle of orderly ducks after their mother. No one else on the campus moved in huge squads, but Kat did see a few small groups of five or six. They walked for a while, probably a kilometer or two, and out of the area devoted entirely for the Valkyrie trainees towards a mammoth structure. From the outside it kind of resembled a sports stadium with truncated stands, and with other buildings attached to it in various ways.

Vehicle traffic was significantly heavier in this area, and the other structures looked much more industrial or practical, but the grounds were still green and well kept. They had to stay to the sidewalks, and cross streets when it was their turn, which felt odd after the relative quiet of the Valkyrie area of the campus. Overhead, the deep thrum of skyship engines drew her gaze and she watched a large craft cruise by from the direction of the Academy port. The whole place was beginning to bustle.

The entrance to the large building, or at least the one they used, was directly across the street from an elevated train station that looked very busy. People in uniforms, both regular military and mage, were everywhere, as well as professional looking civilians. Kat figured that this area must be where things really got done. But when the doors shut behind them, they found themselves in a cool, quiet lobby with little decoration other than potted plants. Wallova led them confidently down the only hallway. It was wide, well-lit, and with strange markings and directions posted on the wall.

All the doors they passed were extremely oversized, and Kat was mystified as to why the floor was plain concrete. She was given little time to muse over the little details, because Wallova stopped at a door, which would possibly be more accurately called a gate because of its size, or a hatch. She rolled it smoothly aside without difficulty and guided them into the single strangest classroom Kat had ever seen.

It was very large, rectangular, and with high ceilings. The walls were all bare cement blocks, and a stand of stadium-style seats rose from the floor in the back, leaving a large area of open space in the front. Set against the door-side wall were rolling chalkboards and a number of banged up tables. The strangest part about the room was the long alcove on the opposite side from the door, set deep. In it were a number of mechanical things. Some were humanoid looking, and many not, with cables and things hooked up to them. Right in the middle of the open floor was the largest of the mechanical constructs. It looked like a huge, armored mechanical man that was squatting and curled over its knees, with blades instead of hands on the arms. Its head was bowed as if it was serving penitence.

"Take a seat!" Wallova yelled, gesturing towards the end of the room. They began making their way over. Kat drifted curiously towards the machine thing. She wanted to see what it did. "Don't touch anything without being told to when you're in this building, and listen to instructions. This is where many new magical technologies are developed, and tested. That includes weapons, so there are plenty of things that can kill you. I'll return at the end of the class."

When the last girl was inside, Wallova closed the door behind them. Kat shrugged, since this seemed exactly like something their officer would do. They had already been left to their own devices once before, and they would be from now on, so why not now too? She climbed to the third tier of seats, and sat as close to the middle as she could manage to get a good view. This time Sarah sat to her right, between her and Cassie. They had to share armrests, which pleased Sarah. She immediacy placed her hand on top of Cassie's and began stroking her fingers. Cassie sighed, gave Kat a pleading look, and then just settled down.

"I wonder who teaches here," Kat mused aloud, getting as comfortable as she could in the wooden seat. It had little cushioning, so it was a challenge.

"Maybe one of the elves?" Sarah said with great enthusiasm. "Supposedly they live for a millennium, so they would know a lot about this kind of thing. They're also really gorgeous, if the pictures in my old textbooks can be believed. I'd be happy with a male or a female."

"Why would we have an elf?" Cassie scoffed. The longer Sarah stroked her arm, the more her eyes strayed towards Sarah's nearby breasts. Kat noticed, with a small laugh, that Sarah had slowly leaned towards Cassie to press them against her upper arm. Every movement of Cassie's made Sarah's chest move as well. "They live like monks in the middle of mountainous nowhere, and hate talking to other people. If you want to go that far you may as well suggest that it'll be a vampire!"

"What about that guy?" Kat pointed downwards, towards the door that had slid open momentarily to admit a strange figure. "A weird guy to teach in a weird room."

The newcomer was not at all human. Standing quite tall, he was a bizarre blend of feline and lizard. His face was very cat-like, with fur and tufted ears, but his nose was a pair of narrow slits. The front half of his body looked to be furry and mammalian, and yet his back was scaly, with a spinal ridge going down from his neck. He was holding his reptilian hands, with what looked like retractable claws, out in front of him as if unsure of himself, and assessed the room with several twitchy movements. A thick tail that was furry, but reptilian in shape hung down behind him. His uniform was of the Crows, black combat pants, belt with a golden buckle, and a sleeveless, crimson coat over a black shirt.

"Is the instructor here?" he said, in a clear, crisp voice. He sounded very cultured and effete.

"An Alhawashi," Cassie said softly in surprise. Kat had heard of them before. They were a small tribal species and known because the entire race had been artificially created many centuries ago. Their exact creators were unknown now, but the cat-lizards insisted that they had been made directly by the gods. Most people forgot about them after schooling was finished because they generally left everyone alone, and no one wanted to possess their homeland.

They lived on an island that was almost entirely mangrove swamp or marsh, except for the north where there was an active shield volcano. Because of the volcanism, and general environmental inhospitality, the human-type races had no desire to live there, so the Alhawashi thrived in quiet anonymity. They lived in elevated towns and cities, farming and fishing in the surrounding waters. All of it was quite peaceful sounding.

"He's kind of cute actually," Sarah mused aloud, leaning forward as if for a better look.

"I thought a succubus only mated with the human-like races?" Kat asked, rolling her eyes.

"Ah, but the Alhawashi are mammal enough to have live-born children, which means that guy has a penis," Sarah responded knowingly. "A penis means he can have sex."

"But, those scales would be so weird," Cassie said with a grimace, obviously not liking the idea. She also seemed a bit put out that Sarah's attention had wavered from her. Kat laughed quietly but didn't draw attention to it.

"It would be very different," Sarah admitted, putting her arm around behind Cassie to hold her possessively about the shoulders. Cassie seemed greatly mollified until she saw Kat smiling at them, which only made her pout adorably. Cassie was such an open book at times. "Maybe I should focus on my harem, hmm? It was just an idle thought."

Cassie blushed, but didn't get to respond because Tarina, the girl who disliked Kat so much, responded to the guy in her usual whine. "Aren't you supposed to be a Crow student?"

"I suppose, yes, for I am a male," the guy responded in a perfectly civil tone, as if sarcasm was completely beyond him. His teeth were sharp and crocodilian. "But I feel a mistake has been made. It is rather embarrassing, I hope you will understand."

Before Tarina could fling more of her verbal poison, there was tremendous metallic bang, and the hiss of escaping steam flew from the machine in the middle of the floor. Glowing green eyes flared to life in that mechanical, nearly featureless face and it looked up at the class. Noisily, it drew fully upright, standing over ten feet tall with layered armored plating covering most of it inner workings. It stepped forward with smooth, efficient precision and the hum of working hydraulics, coming right towards them. Responding to the growing panic in the room, Kat stood and tried to think of a way to damage the automaton. She began gathering magic, and a circle flared to life under her feet.

With shocking swiftness, the arm of the machine thrust out, the blade dissolving, folding in upon itself and transforming at the same time. A metal finger poked her painfully hard in the chest, and then pressed softly against her mouth to silence her furious shout. "My name is Ajax Erebus," said a deep, rumbling voice from the machine. "Your teacher." It withdrew the arm away from Kat, and held it up in a pose. Its voice changed to a childish sing-song. "But you can just call me Ajax."

Kat had no idea how to respond to this development. Sure, people have been using golems and similar magical constructs for centuries, but none of them were able to do this. If this machine was truly self-ware, then it was unique and certainly a first. The automaton turned and regarded the Alhawashi male with a severe, mechanical stare. Baleful glowing eyes regarded the student with unblinking intensity.

"What are you doing in a Valkyrie class?" the machine, Ajax, asked after a stressful pause.

"Reshik was assigned to this class," the guy answered nervously, twiddling his long fingers. He pulled out his Glass and showed the machine what was on it. "Reshik does not know the reason why, for he truly is a male. Yet Glass says this is the place to be."

Strangely, the machine gave the Glass a gentle tap, and nodded. "Okay," it waved a hand at the chairs, back to the child-voice. "Take a seat." Reshik moved up the tiers and Kat realized the seats to her left were open, and his obvious destination. He stopped, giving her a single spacing seat and a polite nod of greeting, and sat with care due to his tail. Ajax faced the class.

"Role call!" his machine eyes brightened, and his face scanned slowly from one side to the other, and his voice dropped to the gravely version. "Good, everyone is accounted for. As I said, I am Ajax, your head instructor for magical weapons and technology, and we will meet often in this room for class. This year, it is given to me, to also give this initial tutorial class on how things work here."

"First, since I know none of you will pay attention until you've had an explanation about me, I will give one. No, I am not a thinking machine. The machine that each Glass connects to is the closest reality to that idea, and even it is not fully self-aware, just smart and intuitive. I used to be human just like you squishy kids. During an experiment to control an automaton by becoming part of it, my soul was permanently trapped in the control matrix of that device. Inside this machine is that same device, and me."

"So, you could say I am the ghost in the machine," Ajax laughed in his child voice, before switching back. "Now sit still and listen as I tell you about how your life will be from now on."

He raised a massive fist made of shiny steel, and lifted a finger. "First, as the Major has been drilling into you, this is a military organization, not a kiddy school. We operate on a meritocracy, where the best and brightest lead us, and the hardest workers are the ones rewarded first. Even our Sovereign has said that anyone can challenge him for the throne if he is clever enough and strong enough, but all who have tried so far have been eaten. Hah!"

"Second," he lifted another finger, thrusting out his hand for emphasis. "You will be individually responsible for making sure you get to class. You will be given your schedule, so you can do whatever you want with your time outside of classes. Just be aware that your actions are monitored and noticed. Too much goofing off combined with bad performance will get you ejected. Extra work and outside study can be rewarded. So keep it in mind."

"Last, make sure you read the book of rules and regulations in your equipment trunk. Ignorance is never an excuse for breaking them and some carry harsh punishments. If the local mage teams have to respond to any of you, I will assure you that Wallova and I, if she hasn't killed you, will make you suffer for it. Do you all understand these three things?!"

"Yes!" said the class chorus, more or less together and with a few variations.

"Goodie!" Ajax said childishly gleeful. Back into his gruff voice, he continued. "Now let me tell you about how the Valkyrie school works. You will all stay here and train for a minimum of six years. This is because there is a lot you have to learn, and it isn't unusual for girls to stay longer than the minimum. As the years progress, we will help you focus on a specialty or area of military magecraft to which you are suited. You may become a weapons specialist where you will build and develop the tools mages and soldiers will use to fight, or be part of a combat team."

He began to tread back and forth, heavy feet stomping. "You will progress and be rated as individuals, but you will all end as part of a team of people who each play a different and yet important role. Responsibility for your success or failure lies entirely with you. Do any of you have any questions before we get into the meat of things?"

"I have one," Kat said immediately, raising a hand. Tarina sneered from where she sat, giving a dramatic sigh. It wasn't her fault the teacher had asked. "What is a mage rank?"

"A mage rank?" Ajax repeated. "It's a score given to mages to show how powerful and capable they are; it's like the warning labels on dangerous chemicals. It goes from the bottom 'F' rating up to an S right after the A ratings, for the Special cases. The higher the letter score, with the top being S for the super scary ones that pop up with thankful rarity, the more powerful the mage is. You are all unranked as yet, because you haven't taken the evaluation tests, but those with an 'A ' rank or higher are capable of destroying a city on their own. If you meet one, try not to piss them off. They can hurt you even easier than I can."

Kat groaned softly. She'd been exactly right in how far Eva outclassed her during their little bout. Eva was close to the top of the power scale, and she had no clue where she would be once tested. It pissed her off to know that Eva had just been toying with her. If she'd really wanted to, Eva probably could have KO'd her right off. Oddly enough, it also made her a little excited too. She really would be training with one of the best.

"What's wrong?" Cassie whispered around Sarah, who also looked concerned. Sarah's hand had dropped back down sometime during the explanation and was somewhere on Cassie's side of the seat, and moving.

"Nothing," she sighed. "It was just a little jolt of reality."

"Those do suck," Sarah laughed, nodding.

Ajax was already moving on since no one else asked a question. "While here you will become familiar with every type of spell used by the Valkyries as possible. Can anyone name the classification categories of these spells? No one?" He gave a disgruntled growl. "They are as follows: offensive, defensive, binding, field-effect, and support. Each of these has distinct sub-categories that you will probably come to specialize in. Some of you may become experts in strategic-level bombardment spells, and others may be proficient at healing the wounded."

"You will also discover important things about yourselves. Will you become a front-line striker? A center, around which a team forms and relies upon for guidance? Maybe someone that a team will know to be there when things go to shit? The possibilities are up to you and only you. Our job here is to guide you, train you, and bust you until we can call you a Valkyrie, and the world will know you aren't a person to be messed with. There is a reason Iskaran mages are both feared and respected, it's because we don't let them loose until they can be just that."

"Next item!" Ajax giggled. "Part of our job is also equipping you right. I see some of you are wearing the armor suit uniform. I can say proudly that that system is one of my better inventions, and will likely save your life. It synchs with your Glass so that it can borrow a little of your magic to keep you from harm during battle, and depending on what components you eventually add, it can do other things as well. It will soften blows that should kill you and even knock a bullet off course, or just shatter it."

"This is why mages still carry more traditional weapons, like swords and bows. The ones we build are actually machines and use magic in order to break through protections like the ones you are wearing that our enemies have developed. Guns that fire unmodified physical projectiles are at a disadvantage, but can still kill you if they break through by shear mass, or wear you down enough for the barrier to fail. Nonetheless, you are as protected as we can make you."

Kat thought about her fight with Eva more closely. It explained why Eva hadn't pulverized her into goo with some of her monstrous hits. She suspected now that some of the changes to her armor had been added specifically because Eva was her Mentor. Someone thoughtful had the foresight to give her some kind of protection against an opponent she would face on a daily basis. Now, if only they'd provided something to help her during the other times they'd be together. A chastity belt would be a lovely protection against her temptations.

"The other tool we gave you is your Glass," Ajax continued. "That little thing is the true gem of modern magical technology. Like I said earlier, the system on which they work is at least partially intelligent and they are all networked together in a way that allows for almost infinite organic growth. The more you work with one, the more it adapts and anticipates for you and becomes a better tool. They also aid greatly during combat for reasons you'll learn soon enough. Consider it a partner that will work tirelessly beside you."

"However! We will need to change venue now to give you your next piece of equipment," Ajax rumbled, waving an idle hand at the door. It slid smoothly open at the command. "Please follow me." He turned without further explanation and began striding out.

"Aww, and we were just getting comfortable," Sarah complained. Kat stood and saw what had been going on. Sarah's hand was caressing Cassie's legs in an obvious manner, even up inside her thighs. Surprising both of them, Sarah gave Cassie a quick kiss on the cheek before she withdrew and stood as well.

"What was that for?!" Cassie grumbled and her face flushed deeply as she rubbed her hand absently on the spot.

"Oh girly, that should be obvious by now," Sarah laughed. "But I'll be happy to explain in detail later. We need to follow the machine man."

They descended the stairs, and the Reshik guy followed right behind them like a curious puppy. Kat was terribly interested in how he had ended up here with them instead of wherever the new Crows were training. She figured it would probably be rude to ask, so she kept her mouth closed. When he saw her staring, he gave a little head-bob bow. "Greetings, young human female, I am Reshik, of the Sea-Star clan."

"Kat," she replied, amused at his impeccable way of talking. Each word was precise and carefully pronounced, as if this wasn't his native language and he was translating everything with great care. She waved over at her friends and introduced their names as well. At each, he repeated the bow movement. Then they were all following the massive form of Ajax down the corridor, which was easy since he boomed loudly on the concrete. "How did you end up with us?"

"It is a very strange story," Reshik said, with a hissing noise she took for a sigh. "My attendance at this wonderful establishment was arranged through our representative on the Iskaran Council. We send one of our younglings to this school every couple of years, so that we are not forgotten and the People will have strong defenders that know us. This year, Reshik was chosen to receive this great honor."

"Because the People are different from you soft human things, they say I needed to talk to a doctor first. I agreed and did see the doctor. He made funny noises, said lots of strange words that made little sense and marked things on his papers. Then I was done. When Reshik showed up at the processing, the commander was most confused, and checked on his Glass. Then he shrugged and told me I was to come here, as instructed. He says I am listed as a female!"

Sarah, holding her belly, erupted into laugher and had trouble walking for a few moments. The moment of humor spread like a plague and they all laughed with her, even Reshik, though he sounded like a leaky steam pipe. "How could they screw that up," Sarah asked when she could talk, though giggles still slipped out. Kat thought she had a pretty laugh. It lacked any cruelty and bubbled with her delight. "Couldn't the doctor see you have a penis?"

"I think he must have been confused," Reshik shrugged. "But he would not have seen me in that manner. I was not aroused by a female, so it was of course, retracted inside my body, as is normal. It would have been rude to display myself in that way to even a human male."

"Oh, that is just..."Cassie shook her head in rueful amusement. "The doctor must not have known that. Not many would have seen an Alhawashi before."

"So it would seem," Reshik said resignedly and then frowned in a way that looked odd on his feline face. "Why would any species want their genitals out where they can be harmed? It makes so little sense the way you humans work."

"I would have volunteered to help if I knew," Sarah giggled. "My race is good at that kind of thing."

"Oh? No, no, it would not have worked, not at all" Reshik laughed his strange laugh. "Why would one of the People respond to a succubus? You are so pale and squishy, with no scales at all! You may have a tail, unlike most human-things, but it's so skinny. You even smell funny."

"Pooh!" Sarah glowered for a moment, visibly unhappy at this revelation. Surprisingly, Cassie made a move for the first time that Kat had seen. She stepped closer to Sarah, and after giving Kat a resigned look, put her arm around Sarah's waist. Even Sarah was jolted by this, and she looked at Cassie in silent amazement. From around them, others giggled at this development of interplay, because they could hardly have missed all of what had been going on all day. Sarah closed her mouth, made a funny humming sound, and wriggled in visible happiness with her tail stroking Cassie's closest leg.

They came to a T intersection and Ajax turned left. This time, Kat decided very firmly, and silently, that she really was going to have to stop being amazed. It was not a simple corridor like the one they'd been down already, but an indoor road, complete with demarcated lanes. It had a gentle curve that matched the shape of the massive structure. Giant arches of concrete and steel lofted overhead and bright lights nearly matching sunlight for color ran at orderly intervals. On the wall opposite their entry tunnel was a list of directions to various places. Like: Mechanical Assembly Bays, R&D Storage 1, Immersion Simulators 1-4, and Arena.

"Great Granma's tits!" Sarah swore loudly, looking around like the rest of them.

"It's great, huh?!" Ajax rumbled and turned them down the wide walking path marked out on the left side. A honking sound came from ahead, and a truck drove slowly into view with a yellow light flashing on its roof. It sounded again, and the man sitting in the passenger seat gave Ajax a cheerful greeting as they passed by. A large pile of machine parts were piled up in the back. Ajax chuckled. "This place took ten years to build and is in a constant state of remodeling in order to match the pace of development these days. It's the single largest structure in the world by internal volume and square footage, and employs thousands of men and women. If you're lucky you'll get to see the top secret bowels someday."

They passed by a multitude of work crews and people driving by in trucks or other types of vehicles that seemed custom-made for the place. Ajax usually got greetings by name, but they also received some polite waves and smiles. When they went by a huge steel gate that was lifting up, Kat looked in and saw a large magical cannon in the process of being disassembled by a team of men in orange jumpsuits. A gantry lift unit hummed and pulled a section of barrel out that was several times longer than her body was tall.

She was so intrigued by it all, that she lagged behind a little, but a sniggering laugh from Tarina brought her back to the task at hand. Speeding up her pace, she caught back up with her friends. Reshik gave her a toothy smile as well. Cassie had an odd look on her face, but that might have been because Sarah's tail was getting very friendly on her leg.

"This is what I get for encouraging her," Cassie said, seeing her look.

"I hardly need it," Sarah laughed, but gave Cassie a curious glance. "Why the change though?"

"What change?!" Cassie responded indignantly, with perhaps too much force. "Why can't I cheer up a friend?"

"Is that what you were doing?" Sarah said with a knowing smile on her sensually plump lips. Her oddly self-mobile hair swirled a little in an unseen breeze. Just ahead, Ajax called them to a halt.

They stopped next to another of the huge, vehicle sized steel doors set into the walls, but this one had companion features nearby. There was a room next to the huge door with a glass window they could see inside. A small number of men and women were inside, and all were working with a professional quickness at various stations, but in silence through the glass of the window. Next to this was yet another door, except this one was sized to admit someone like Ajax and his students. Ajax touched the tip of his metal finger to a panel next to the door, and it rolled smoothly upward.

"Another training room?" Kat asked when they followed the instructor inside.

It was very much like the training room in her dorm, but with many differences as well. First, it was immensely huge and open. Second, aside from the metal plates from before, there were a multitude of other little things inset into every surface. Lastly, there were several spherical machines floating around the room like metal soap bubbles that had dark glass domes on them. Close to the door were several large, low, and rectangular cabinet looking things made of a whitish and semi-metallic looking material. These were set on large, sturdy wheels and little bright lights glittered and blinked on the front right corner of each. Cables ran from these to an opened panel of sockets on the wall where the little room would be.

"So, you've seen one already?" Ajax asked.

"Yes, in my dorm," Kat said. "But it looked a little different than this one."

"Ah! I see," Ajax boomed towards her and any girl in his way scattered. Kat frowned in annoyance at the little power game and stared right up into his inhuman visage. He chuckled in a deep rumble. "So you are the one the Admin people are so worked up about? You don't seem all that scary to me." He held the pose tirelessly for several moments. "But yes, this room shares many of the properties of the training room in the mentor program's dorm."

He stepped back and looked over the rest of the class. "This is an Immersion Chamber. They have one like this in a lot of the training facilities on this campus, but the ones here are special and a bit more heavy-duty. However, that is less important than the reason we are here." He pointed straight at the huge bank of cabinets. "Please line up in front of those."

It only took a moment to do so, and then they all faced the strangely humming containers. A soft glow appeared at the tip of Ajax's finger and every cabinet gave a sharp hiss as pressurized air escaped when the lids cracked open. "I have for you lucky ladies, your very first weapon!" Ajax swept his arm towards the things. Then the lids slid back and hung down on the back-side of the cabinets. Again there was a set of hisses and the cabinets split into three layered trays, each filled with strange looking devices lying in neat lines on soft matting.

"These are weapons?" Tarina's tiny friend asked, sounding skeptical. She had a strange accent that curled her 'r' sounds. Her hair was coal-black, which matched well with her dark skin tone, and from the way she had her lips pressed tight, she didn't look like she smiled much.

"Yes, they are swords to be specific," Ajax responded proudly, sounding greatly amused. He had cause.

At first Kat was a little confused as well. Each of the things, and there was exactly enough for one per person, did have what looked like a hilt. There was a grip wrapped in a black material, with something that could be a cross-guard made of a bright, silvery metal made to look like the very vague shape of a dragonhead, but smoothed out and with its horn-spikes thrusting back around a fin-shaped flare of metal. At the base was a hexagonal pommel. But that was the extent of the sword-ness of the thing.

The hilt was attached to what was obviously a magical machine. It was blocky, and Kat could identify some of it components, like the high-throughput aether conduits snaking around a conversion unit. Much of the rest was new, with the look of proprietary customization. In all, it was probably just a bit longer than her arm in length. But then a realization hit Kat like a hammer. Nothing they had received so far had been as they seemed, and each time the equipment was amazing, and served its purpose, so these had to be swords somehow.

Tarina stepped up next to her crony. "Do we just take one?"

"They are all the same, so yes," Ajax giggled in his child voice.

Tarina grasped the closest hilt to her and tried to lift it up. Her face reddened with the effort it took to lift the thing. "How the fuck is this a sword?" she swore, visibly trying hard not to drop it on her foot.

Kat laughed aloud, because she was pretty sure about what was going on now. If these behaved like her armor had, then Tarina was forgetting a step. She walked forward, gently moving another girl she hadn't met yet aside, and stepped up to the cabinets. Tarina frowned at her and set her 'sword' against the ground and panted out, "What are you going to do?"

"This," Kat said, smiling when she realized that Sarah, Cassie, and a bemused looking Reshik had joined her. She grasped a hilt, and felt the texture of the handle settle in her fingers and against her palm. Then she grinned and thought a command at her Glass. <Synch new weapon.> There was a long enough pause to make her feel awkward, but then then her spatial field pushed 'forward' into visibility and a cheerful tone sounded inside her mind.

<Synching new weapon, mistress.> her glass said, and she could swear it sounded much less dead and mechanical. It was warmer, like the voice of a real woman, and it had used a title to address her. Concerns about the change would have to wait, because she felt the Glass reach deep inside to tap her magic like it did for her armor and this time she watched the process. It looked very much like it was building a set of circuits or conduits to carry the power to the sword in her hand.

With no warning at all, her body was limned in white light and her power crackled about her, caressing her skin, but it felt natural and safe. A circle appeared beneath her feet and magic thrummed in the air, with little streamers of power curling playfully around her body. Little lights awoke on the 'sword' body and she could feel it coming to life. Ajax had been right. This was not a simple sword. It was a machine, a weapon designed to join with its user as part of a whole. Another chime sounded. <Synch set-up. Ready to initialize.>

"Begin," she said both aloud and in her head.

The weapon vibrated in her hand, but she held fast and watched. First, several of the components of the machine folded away and sank into a storage space the sword was creating for itself. They faded from direct view, and then the rest followed at a fast pace, sliding or collapsing in upon themselves in a visually impossible cascade. Each part moved into the storage space, which was strangely and paradoxically located inside the hilt of the weapon. When the process finally completed itself, she held a long, narrow blade.

The top jaw of the 'dragonhead' cross-guard thrust forward a little over the top of the sword which was just as long as she had thought. It was a brightly polished silver color and straight until the very end which narrowed into a chisel point. She lifted it up with no difficulty and felt its welcome weight settle in her hand like it had always been there. The handle was just long enough that she could hold it two-handed at need, but it seemed so easy to move around. Then she felt an outside signal that her Glass accepted without her permission.

<Training mode activating> it told her. A white light shimmered down the blade, and when she inspected the edge, she discovered that it had just been dulled. <Safety lock-out in effect. A clearance code or emergency declaration is required for removal.>

"Beautiful," Cassie said, staring at the blade with a wholly new kind of reverence than Kat had ever seen on the girl. It was as if she was looking at a masterful work of art. Turning without another word, Cassie began the same process on another sword. Sarah laughed, gave Kat a wink and did the same. Reshik just nodded his thanks and followed suit.

"What?!" Kat turned to see Tarina glaring at her. She had her hands propped on her hips and a sour expression of damaged dignity "Why did it work for you?"

"I know," said another girl from the class. She was a bit mousy and a little soft in the body, but looking at Ajax eagerly. "It works just like the armor, right? And the Glass?"

Ajax rumbled a chuckle that echoed in the room. "That's exactly right, Miss Loren Batois. They are part of an integrated system. Your Glass will perform certain maintenance tasks and inform you of any needed repairs. It also controls the sword's internal workings." He turned and looked over the rest of the class. "Since you've seen how it's done now, please take turns in an orderly fashion."

"Why did it become dull?" Kat asked to no one in particular, getting out of the way of the others. She gave the test command, <scabbard> to her Glass, and reach out a hand. The air rippled and a scabbard made of a glossy, black lacquered wood and with a polished steel end cap and matching trim work, was there for her to grasp. The sword slid smoothly inside and settled with a distinctive *snick* sound.

Cassie and the others strode from the mob at the cabinets, their own swords in hand. They approached eagerly, Sarah grinning and hair flowing in a cyan wave. When they joined up, Cassie wandered absently off to the side a little and held out her sword in an assessing way, as if she had met an old friend she didn't particularly like. They all watched her move through a quick pattern of moves with the slick ease and precision of a fine machine. The sword appeared to move as an extension of her arm. She moved more like something built by a master watchmaker, with each change of arm, body, and hand appearing nearly perfect. The blade cut through the air with a sibilant hiss that was seductively beautiful, and undeniably deadly.

"You are quite good," Reshik commented, his head cocked to the side in appreciation.

"I suppose," Cassie said unhappily, looking a bit sad, and in one move she brought her sword up, gripped it with both hands and bought it down and around in a clean, obviously lethal cut at the level of a man's belly. There was no hesitation in her movements. Each was an old and tried memory.

"You already know how to use one, don't you?" Sarah asked softly, her eyes watching Cassie the way one would a great athlete with the added hint of open desire. It was clear this demonstration was only making Cassie more appealing to her.

Like Kat had, Cassie sheathed her sword and then held it at her side in her left hand. "I used to train every single day with a blade of some kind," she said with a small sigh of regret. Cassie held up her weapon, and her hand was absolutely steady. "This thing is amazingly balanced and unnervingly natural to hold. It's like it was made specifically for me."

Sarah took a step towards Cassie, but stopped and frowned at all four swords. Then she gave Cassie a sweet smile. "I wanted to touch you, honey, but all these weapons make me a bit wary."

"Maybe it'll be a good deterrent then!" Cassie laughed lightly, coming out of her dour mood.

"Sarah," Kat said with a bit of playful smirk, getting her friend's attention. She wiggled her sword for emphasis to her words. "I don't know if you noticed, but they purposely made them dull. So as long as Cassie doesn't want to stick the point in you, they are pretty safe at the moment."

"Oh!" Sarah gave her a grateful grin and looked to Cassie. "Gonna stab me?"

Cassie sighed and gave Kat an amused, betrayed look. Kat just smiled back, not hiding her own enjoyment. "No, I suppose I won't," Cassie said eventually, and settled her scabbarded sword into her belt. Sarah did the same with hers, and then glided smoothly forward and resumed her place next to Cassie, taking her arm possessively. Cassie simply sighed and let it happen.

"You human-things make such strange smells when you want to mate," Reshik commented, absently rubbing at his nose. He fiddled with his weapon, trying to fix it in place at his hip. A clip materialized and fastened it tight.

Cassie turned beet red under Sarah's very interested gaze. "People need to keep their fucking noses to themselves," she said crossly.

"I meant no insult, friend Cassie," Reshik said, sounding vastly confused. He pointed at Sarah. "I thought you were mate to the succubus. You both smell as if you are."

Kat laughed aloud, and was thoroughly enjoying herself. Cassie was spared trying to explain what was going on, because they all knew Sarah would do nothing to disagree with this, by Ajax making a whistling noise to get attention. Everyone now had their swords in hand, though from the sour look Tarina was giving her, Kat supposed she must have had trouble. She resigned herself to the prospect that the girl was going to blame her for everything that went wrong.

"Ladies!" Ajax began, booming around to stand in front of them all. "As you have noticed, your swords have been made safe until you have the training and proven responsibility to use them correctly. A butter knife is more dangerous than they are right now. You will have plenty of opportunities to use them, however. Weapon training is an important part of your education and you will spend long hours at it. If your Glass tells you something needs repair, I am the person to contact. Okay?"

The class murmured its assent, and he continued. "Now, I'll demonstrate the manner in which much of your combat training will be done. An enemy may be anyone and be fought anywhere so we strive to give you experience with all kinds of scenarios." He raised one, massive arm. "Begin!"

Kat waited, and ignored the other girls, who were looking around in confusion. A klaxon sounded thrice, loud enough that the sound could be felt as a vibration in the chest, and the strange flying spheres sped up their overhead orbit. Then, with no more warning than a waver to her vision, the room vanished from around them.

It was replaced by a high, howling wind, and sunlight so hot and bright that several girls' knees buckled from the shock and they dropped to a kneeling position. Then they yelped with the others who also discovered that they were now standing in a loose mob on a massive dune of sand. All around them was a desert wasteland, with no water in sight and only the very faint hint of a mountain range on the southern horizon. Kat felt a moment of vertigo from the perspective change, but quickly settled herself and tried to ignore the heat. The sun was like a blanket pressing down on her shoulders.

A new klaxon sounded, but few seemed to hear it despite the volume. This might have been because the desert was replaced in the next second by the frozen mountain glacier on which the suddenly found themselves. The air was dangerously frigid, and all around them was ice and craggy rock. Kat's lungs burned from the chill air, and her skin pebbled with goose bumps. A light snow was blowing in, and a mile below them down the slope, was wintery tundra that ran like a band from east to west. Almost everyone clasped themselves in a reflexive attempt to keep warmth in their bodies.

Then the glacier was replaced just as smoothly as the desert by an eerily real city. They stood atop a set of stone stairs in front of a grand building made of marble, and all about them was a teeming metropolis. Cars honked, people scurried and a man selling food from a stall was hawking his prices. From the nearby theatre building she could hear a crowd gathering and murmuring in eager anticipation. One girl didn't get out of the way of a pedestrian fast enough and they were all amazed when she was rudely shouldered aside hard enough to put her down on her ass.

Even as a cry of protest arose from the girl, their surroundings changed again. This time they moved to a triple canopy rainforest. Insects buzzed around them and the chattering of abundant wildlife provided a background cacophony. The air was swelteringly humid and there was no sign of human habitation. Girls were scattered all over the place, and the ground was bare of any paths. Kat was glad when it went away like the others.

Next was, as far as anyone could tell, an infinite plain of grassland. The stalks of grass stood to waist height and gave the appearance of a green sea with golden froth instead of white, sea foam. The landscape rolled very gently and the constant wind provided a musical rustling. It was an absolutely beautiful scene and Kat hoped she could revisit it later. But she smiled anyway when the change came, only to jolt with shock when they stood on a chilly steppe.

The shock came not from the rolling hills and vast, open desolation; but from the sight of a mob of men on horses just coming over a rise to the north. They were dressed in motley of leathers, but in a similar enough style to hint at something like a uniform. A rousing cry of battle came from the men and a variety of weapons were raised over heads. Kat spotted huge great-swords, long spears and menacing sabers readied for a fight, all coming right at them. The horses were mighty beasts, and as they drew closer, their hoof beats resounded like a continuous roll of thunder. The leader of the band, a tall man with flowing blonde hair, raised his hand and a glow of magic grew around it.

Kat found this strange, because she certainly did not feel magic being worked like that. Normally, whenever someone used magic near her, she could feel it and discern strength and distance. This then only confirmed to her, that this was all an extremely intense illusion that could get eerily close to reality, but not close enough. Like Ajax said, this was simply a training tool, and the men now leaping from their mounts to join them in battle were just dolls.

Drawing her sword, she strode forward, a bit annoyed at the instructor's way of messing with them and stood in front of the group. She had no idea how to properly wield a sword, but the principle goal was easy enough to understand. You use the sharp parts to cut your enemy. The leading opponent raised his rusty, curved sword above his head, and she took her own blade in both hands. Then she just rammed it forward and upward into his belly. There was some resistance, as of real flesh, and then she yanked it back out as the man gaped at his wound and collapsed off his horse. Her sword was coated in blood; and its sharp, coppery tang was in the air to make it strangely close to the real thing.

Then the rest of the attacking hoard was among them and many of the girls panicked. They ran like frightened animals, and the raiders howled in pursuit. Others tried to fight, and Kat smiled in amusement when enemy blows that struck home caused no wounds. The girls just screamed as if it hurt, and their attacker would vanish. Sarah and Cassie stood together, with the latter easily swatting aside incoming strikes. But Reshik was actually the most impressive. He hadn't drawn his sword, but was attacking with his long, deadly claws.

One of the screaming groups came close and Kat opened her mouth to shout a warning but it was too late. Tarina's other friend, the one with that looked a lot like a tengu, tripped while running backwards from an attacker and collided side-on with Reshik. Reshik whirled and his right hand flashed. The girl tried to move away, but three lines of blood dripped from her arm, as if he had just barely crazed it with his claws.

"You clumsy, fucking idiot!" the girl howled in rage. She turned fully towards Reshik and ignored the simulated combatants. "You cut my fucking arm!"

She stalked towards Reshik with fury contorting her face, and this time Kat did feel magic when light began to emanate from the girl's fist. Not even thinking about her action, Kat headed towards them at a rapid pace and felt a cold calm settle on her. She gathered her own magic and decided to use what she'd learned from her bout with Eva. Before the girl could complete her spell, Kat went running in with her magic humming around her with open threat and promise. She formed it into her strike like before and drove her fist into the girl.

Even though she only had the build of a thirteen year old girl, the effect this time was most satisfying. Magic detonated on contact with a bright flash and a loud bang, and the girl flew backwards, tumbling head over heels in an ungainly manner. When she stopped, the girl simply lay slumped, gasping for breath on the cold ground. This did not stop her from glaring menacingly at Kat.

"What did you just do?" Tarina accused, only a short distance away. Around them, the raiders had vanished as if they had never been. Tarina and her little companion were coming right at her with blades out. Even though she knew they were dull swords, Kat still felt her anger rise at this sign of a new threat. Tarina didn't get far though, because Cassie casually stepped up close and had her sword lain across the stunned girl's throat so fast it was a blur. Sarah walked up, laughing, and gave Reshik an assuring whack on his back so hard that he stumbled. Tarina was spitting mad, but held herself still.

"Cadet Kat!" said Ajax in a stentorian boom. Seemingly from nowhere, he dropped down in the middle of everyone and there was a loud 'whoomp' sound. The air rippled away from him in a sharp concussion and most of the class was knocked down. Kat, warned by his voice had faced towards him and had time to spread and instinctively brace her legs against the blast of air. It jolted her, but she remained upright.

Ajax's right arm flashed up, folding and changing shape at the same time. He pulled something metallic from a slot that opened in his side and slammed it into a socket that opened on the changed arm. It was leveled right at her, with a black opening in his hand aimed at her face. Steam blasted from a vent on the wrist and she heard the distinctive whine of compression rings inside the armor of his arm. Ajax was looking at her with unwavering attention. "Dismiss the war spell...Now!"

Kat looked down. Without even thinking much about it, she'd worked her missile spell when Tarina started coming at her. She had simply gathered the power needed and there was a slight scent of ozone in the air from the little crackles that arced around her body from the spell circle beneath her feet. Around her wrist, the three hissing missiles whirled as if eager to perform their designed task. She felt a tiny, but insistent nudge inside her head from her Glass. It was like a suggestion on what it saw as a problem with her spell, but she didn't have time for that now. Instead, she cut the spell and let it dissipate.

"Good," Ajax nodded. He dropped his arm, and something loud banged inside. A torrent of steam blasted from additional vents that slid open and Kat felt a great deal of magic being dumped into the local aether.

"Did you have a cannon pointed at my head?" she asked coolly, staring up at the teacher's metal face.

"Yes, because I believe you have already been warned about the deadliness of that spell of yours, and yet you seemed willing to use it," Ajax said unapologetically.

"I was," Kat confirmed and nodded toward Tarina, who was still held in place by a white-faced Cassie. She would not let idiots hurt her friends.

Ajax stared at her for a very long, quiet moment, and then made a waving gesture towards a place on the steppe. Two figures appeared there, and it didn't take long for everyone to see that it was her and the first guy she'd 'killed' at the start of the mock battle. The scene ran forward and stopped when her sword had fully penetrated the man and blood was pouring from him. "Why did you do this?" he asked simply.

"It seemed like it was supposed to be a battle simulation," she said, not getting what he was after. "Aren't you supposed to kill the enemy in this situation?"

"Hmm, but you didn't hesitate to kill that man?"

"Why would I?" she asked, feeling baffled. If someone wanted to kill you, it only made sense to kill them first and stop the threat if you were able to. One of her classmates was looking at the frozen image, and had her hand to her mouth as if she was going to be sick. Why? She hadn't even killed a real person, however realistic the simulation was. Ajax didn't answer her, and dismissed both the recording and the artificial environment. That left them back in the plain training room.

When everything was clear, Ajax pointed a large, metal finger at Cassie. "You can let her go now." Cassie withdrew, and sheathed her blade in a single movement.

Cassie snorted in repugnance. "My blade is just as dull as yours. Idiot."

Tarina dropped to her knees and glowered until Ajax stomped over and jabbed her hard in the chest. "And you. I never want to see classmates attacking each other outside of designated and supervised sparring. If I catch it happening again, those involved will be ejected, and prosecuted if you harm someone."

"But what about what she did to me?!" accused Tarina's winged friend, who Kat was happy to see was a bit wobbly on her feet. She was pointing at Kat, while doing everything possible not to look right at her.

"You were injured accidently, and your attempt to assault Cadet Reshik was unjustified," Ajax said, giggling in the child voice. "Cadet Kat stopped you, perhaps with a bit more force than necessary, but you seem unharmed."

"She punched me across the room!"

Ajax rumbled in disgust. "If that bothers you, than you're going to have a real problem during sparring sessions. I can assure you that what she just did will be the least of your worries and embarrassments while you attend here." His voice switched to the childish one. "Honestly, I have no idea how you girls could turn a simple demonstration of our simulation system into such a mess."

A chime sounded, and the door to the room slid aside to admit Wallova, who looked a bit peeved. Her gaze settled onto Kat with unerring swiftness. "Didn't I warn you earlier about using magic like that?"

"Yeah," she replied, since it was the only answer. It was clear that they were monitored all the time, so she saw no reason to lie. Besides, it wasn't as if she regretted her choice.

Wallova sighed at her calm answer. "Then please stop giving the command group fits. They aren't very happy when a student uses magic like that outside of designated training times and locations. Sorry to interrupt Ajax! But I gotta keep 'em in line!"

"Nah!" he laughed. "You're just in time for the fun part of the afternoon. Want to help?"

"Sure thing!" Wallova grinned at the mechanical man.

Ajax chuckled a bit more and addressed the class. "Now that your CO is here, I won't have to call in my assistants. The rest of the afternoon we will be doing physical training. A mage needs both a strong mind and a strong body, so we need to get off on the right track, by showing you how to train both. You will be doing some kind of PT everyday so get used to the hard work." He stopped and pointed at a spot on the floor in front of him. "Cadet Kat, as punishment, you will help lead. Stand there and face the rest of the girls." Kat shrugged, stowed her sword, and walked over. It felt weird to have a metal giant right behind her. He boomed right into her ear. "The rest of you, lines of five centered on Kat!"

As the rest of the class shuffled about and found places, Wallova came right up and stood beside her. The woman gave her a grin. "Looks like it's time for the fun part. You are going to be doing a lot of PT with me, so it seems suitable for your first day."

When the class was all lined up in a block made of girls five across, Wallova yelled loudly at them all. "Okay girls, time to get tired! First we have the world favorite, and it's called a push-up! Now let me show you..."

********

"Oh, by the gods above!"

Kat grinned at Sarah's complaint. Their physical training had gone on for three long hours, with interspersed rest breaks and time to get water, so none of them were feeling very fresh. Wallova had kept the intensity down for their first day, but it was still a lot of exercise for some of them. Her muscles had a kind of soreness she didn't often feel. But for Sarah, it had been a much different kind of exertion that she was used to. She was still caressing her legs in an attempt to alleviate the discomfort.

They had only just been released by Wallova and Ajax, and were walking through the evening shrouded campus towards the dining hall. Wallova had let them go for the night, with their only assignment being reading the rules and regulations, and looking over their schedules. Basically they were on their own now and it was up to them to make it to classes from now on, and to manage their own time. By mutual consensus of four empty bellies, they were headed towards dinner.

"It wasn't so bad," Cassie replied, smiling innocently up at Sarah, who was walking beside her.

"I do believe you must be joking," Reshik said, at the back of the group. He had shown little sign of being tired during the training. He performed with mechanical ease, but was walking a little stiff now, so Kat assumed he hadn't wanted to show it earlier. "I can feel it down to my tail!"

Kat had found herself in the lead of their little group and she didn't really mind at all. Using the map, she had found a different way back to the dining hall so that they could see more of the Academy, and she liked being able to set the pace. She'd spent most of the walk gawking like a tourist at all the different people and places. The place seemed to truly emphasize the cosmopolitan nature of the nation with its variety.

"Would you really have blasted that girl, Kat?" Cassie asked her, as they rounded the last corner and the large hall came into view.

"Sure," Kat replied easily, dropping back to talk. "But it was more of a reaction."

"I think our kitty is a little cold-blooded," Sarah chuckled.

"I do not get that expression," Reshik complained. "I know of reptiles that care for others of their kind."

"It's a generalization, Reshik," Kat replied, smiling a little. "A lot of those old sayings have little problems with them."

"You're avoiding the issue though," Sarah insisted, grinning.

"I've never really thought about it before," Kat replied, thinking it over now. "It's just, if someone is attacking me, I see no reason not to end the threat. That simulation guy wasn't even real, so it didn't bother me at all to kill him."

"Yeah, but you just rammed it in!" Cassie said, sounding a mix between impressed and horrified.

"That's because I know almost nothing about using a sword beyond using the sharp parts on the bad guys!" she laughed back. "I would have liked to do something a little more impressive, but I can't yet. That's why we're going to this school in the first place."

"Honey, I think people were plenty impressed by all that blood on your sword, however fake it might have been," Sarah laughed delightedly. "I saw one girl that looked a little sick, and few of the others didn't seem very impressed in the way I think you do."

Kat opened the door to the dining hall and held it open for the others out of reflex. It was a lot busier inside than it had been at lunch. There were plenty of girls and young women all over the place, and the conversational volume was proportionally much louder. Several glanced their way out of curiosity and some of those gave a wave or smile of greeting. She spied a few of their classmates already seated and eating, but thankfully a certain girl and her followers were not visible. "Smells so good!" she said in comment to the savory aroma filling the air.

"Fuck, I'm hungry," Cassie agreed, nodding.

"Then let's eat!" she headed straight for the food line and scanned her Glass at the reader. This time her tray was filled with a rich, saucy noodle dish with beef, grilled veggies, a small loaf of crusty bread that was still steaming hot, and a slice of lemon pie for dessert. It was quite a meal, but her stomach was saying that it was eagerly welcome. After choosing a large glass of milk, she searched for a table. The others followed right behind her and just as enthusiastically.

"Kat!"

A shiver shot right up her spine at the call of her name in a husky purr, and when she turned, there was Eva standing at the base of the stairs. Gods, she started to get hot at just the sight of the girl. Even among this multitude of other girls of all types, Eva was breathtaking and drew the eye. Eva walked towards her with a long-legged stride and supreme confidence, as if the rest of the world only existed because she allowed it to at the moment. Other girls were looking at Eva too, and then looking aside quickly, but she met that icy-blue gaze and felt herself getting wet when Eva's lips twitched up towards a grin.

"She's a scary one alright," Sarah said in a strange tone.

"She not so bad," she replied, just loud enough to be sure Eva heard as she got close.

"That's not what my record says," Eva said smoothly in that husky tone that was so damn arousing to hear that it confused her a little. She also looked great, just as before, in her uniform. Kat had to control her eyes firmly so as not to look down at those wonderful curves. Not that looking at Eva's face made her feel any less turned on. "You'll find out soon enough, how I am, little Kat."

She bristled immediately at the 'little' comment, and then fumed more when she realized that was exactly the provocation Eva had been aiming for. "I can take care of myself," she said in sharp reply.

"I am sure you can, and I'm counting on it," Eva said cryptically, but with a happy grin. "But I told you the rules. You eat your meals with me now, but I'll allow your friends to come too."

"How generous," she muttered, unable to do anything but follow Eva when she turned and headed back towards the stairs.

"She's just winding you up," Cassie said in a whisper.

"I know that!" she hissed, knowing she was being unfairly harsh to her friend.

"I do not think I would like to be alone with that one," Reshik added, rubbing his nose briskly.

They went all the way up to the top level, which was mostly empty on one side. Eva predictably headed right for that open area, at a table with just one tray sitting on it. Taking her place, Eva smiled magnanimously at her. "Have a seat." She pointed at the place right next to hers.

Kat sat without a fuss and got her stuff situated as she preferred. The others found places, and Kat had to smile at Reshik for taking the seat on the opposite side of the table from Eva. It was hard to fault him for simple prudence. Cassie took her other side, and naturally Sarah took the next place. Kat could see Eva watching her like a predator eyeing prey, so she calmly forked a bit of meat and noodles and popped it into her mouth, savoring the meal and putting any conversation onto Eva.

Eva simply smiled wider, acknowledging the game. "I heard you got yelled at again," she said as an opener.

"Does gossip get around this place that fast?" she asked, honestly surprised into speech.

"No," Eva pulled out her Glass and an image projected up into the air. It was a recording of the events in the simulation room. "As your mentor, I have access to all your records. I had fun watching this one. If he wasn't a machine, I think dear Ajax would have been excited by your little performance today. He only had to do half the work he normally does for his intro class."

"That wasn't the normal class?" Sarah asked, eating with one hand and petting Cassie's leg with the other.

"Well, normal is an ad hoc affair I'll admit, but they usually have to lead the class along by a string for the first couple of days like lost sheep," Eva gave a throaty chuckle and ate a piece of her bread. "You guys are above the average curve. Almost enough, that people in the command offices think you might be scary someday. You plowed right ahead the whole time. It's why that girl is so pissed at you. She's in the normal average for the class, aside from being a complete bitch, and resents that you're better."

"You've been watching me all day?" Kat asked, feeling angry again. She didn't like the idea of being watched by this girl all the time.

"Hardly," Eva snorted a laugh. "But I can watch any of your training sessions and those kinds of things. I can read Wallova's notes on you too, which is loads of fun."

"What did she say?" Cassie asked a bit warily.

"Oh, I'm not going to be telling everything for free," Eva replied, looking Kat in the eyes to convey some kind of second meaning to the words. Her mind quickly produced several candidates, but she squashed them down. Eva's lips twitched up again. "Maybe we'll talk about that when we are alone tonight."

"I don't know, I'm a little tired for talking," Kat said, trying to find something to change the subject.

"I'm sure I can inspire you to stay awake," Eva replied but was distracted by Reshik sneezing. They all turned to see him rubbing his nose, and looking at Eva warily. Eva frowned in confusion. "My kitten seems to have found herself a kitty lizard. It's strange to have a male of any race here, least of all an Alhawashi."

Thankfully, Eva focused on poor Reshik for a bit and mercilessly interrogated his story from him. This gave Kat the time to guiltily eat her food while she had the chance. His tale was longer than when he recalled it to them, and when she saw him give her a little smile, she realized he was doing it on purpose. He was momentarily sacrificing himself to let the rest of them eat. After maybe twenty minutes had passed, Eva blinked and pulled out her Glass. It was flashing.

"Ah," Eva said, with the same emphasis one would give a curse, and looked right at Kat with a considering expression. "It seems I must go and speak with someone."

She stood and Kat held her ground unflinchingly when Eva moved around behind her. Warm breath tickled her neck when the girl crouched close to her head, and Kat could smell her a little. She was a little musky with a hint of something tempting, but not bad at all, and it sent all the wrong signals between her legs. Soft lips claimed her left ear, teeth nibbled along the edge, just short of being painful as a strong shiver of undeniable pleasure shot down her spine to join the first jolt.

"Kat," Eva said softly. The rest of the world seemed to fade from focus, even though she knew in her mind that her friends were only feet away and other Valkyrie cadets were all around them. She felt her cape being moved open, and a hand stroked firmly, but enticingly up her side to cup her left breast and then caress it lovingly, and that felt so fucking good that she began to ache for more attention like it. She grinned despite herself at the raise in stakes and pushed her own hand back against Eva's firm thigh, and began to gather a little magic. This brought a chuckle from Eva, but she didn't stop her hand.

"See, I'm not a subtle kind of person," Eva purred in clear amusement, and gave a little hum of pleasure that made Kat quash a fleeting feeling of being appreciated. "You know what I intend for us?"

"I'm fairly sure I have a good idea," she replied wryly. She took her hand back off Eva's thigh and put it on the arm that was feeling her up, and using magic sent a tiny jolt of power between her fingers like a spark. Eva's muscles twitched reflexively, but she stayed firm and laughed.

"Not gonna work that easy," Eva said, and gave her ear another little bite. "Once you come back to the room, we're going to get to know each other better. But...if you really want to run away from me, there is an easy way out."

"Oh?" she was proud of how calm and composed her voice remained, despite being both aroused and competitively angry at the same time.

"All you have to do to get away from me is call up Wallova and tell her about the bad things I'm promising to do to you," Eva said, ending in a laugh. "They'll find you another place, and I'll get another reprimand. But deep down, we'll both know you were just giving up!" She ended the statement with a little nip to her ear that was just barely painful.

"Who says I want anything to do with you?" she said, cursing internally. The girl was fucking right, and had guessed the trail of her thoughts.

"Are you going to tell me you aren't wet right now?" Eva said very softly, and chuckled. "I know for damn sure that I am, just from touching you, and tasting you a little. There's something...about you and I that just...clicks. So no. I know you won't back down, and you'll be in bed with me tonight, and I can guarantee you that we'll both enjoy every minute of it. You can't do anything else, right?"

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck! Kat kept on swearing away in her mind. Eva was right and she hated it so much. It pissed her off that she knew that she couldn't back down from Eva, not even an inch. The girl was burrowing into her nerves and digging in with each word she spoke. That just made her want to prove herself against Eva even more, and every path but surrender led to the same place, and those same hot, carnal thoughts that burned in her brain. That realization sent a rush of desire through her body.

Eva felt it, and pressed through her supple armor, against her hard nipple with a single finger. "See? I don't know how you made your way to me, my Kitten, but we were doomed to this the moment we met. I needed someone just as scary as me, and they sent me you." Eva turned her head and their faces were so close Kat thought Eva meant to kiss her, and she clenched her jaw.

"Oh, that's not what I was aiming for," Eva chuckled, and their eyes locked. "You'll give me those cute lips all on your own. I have no intention of taking them, except by your own free will. I just want to get one last good look at you before I go. Call it a morale booster."

Eva's gaze was intense, but she slowly withdrew to stand tall, and picked up her dinner tray. "I'll see you later, Kat!" With that she simply strode to the stairs and disappeared down them. It sounded like a sincere promise, and one she had no doubt Eva would do everything possible to fulfill.

"I thought, that one was your mate, like these two," Reshik gestured at Sarah, who had slid her chair close to Cassie's so that they were almost side-by-side. "But she smells so strange. Maybe she is like the mantis and wants to eat you?"

"I really don't like that girl, Kat," Sarah said darkly, looking in the direction the Eva had gone. "She gives me the chills, and I don't mean that as a racial slur."

"At least you aren't stuck with her every day from now on," Kat sighed, still highly strung from the encounter. It was like Eva was still feeling her up. "I'm going to be living and sharing the same bed with her."

"Wait a minute!" Sarah said, eyes widening. "You didn't say anything about sharing a bed earlier!"

"Yeah, well, that room you saw for the both of us only has one bed in it," she sighed. "As far as I can tell, girls like me have fairly intimate relationships with their mentors. I think the idea was for them to form a trusting bond. It just turned out that I got stuck with Eva for mine."

"Why can't you just do like she said, and talk to Wallova?" Cassie suggested. Sarah's hand was far up the leg of her armor, but she seemed perfectly okay with that at the moment.

"Because I'm not going to lose to her that way!" she scowled. "I'm not going to give up just because she offers me the way out!"

"Yeah, but what about the rest of what she said?" Cassie asked, blushing and lightly resting a hand on Sarah's as if she was worried the other girl might stop.

"I'll just have to fend for myself," she grunted, not having a better answer.

"I've got a better idea hon', why don't you quit that silly mentor thing and come live with me and Cassie?" Sarah said, perking up considerably. "I'll have plenty of room for one more."

"What?!" this time it was Cassie's turn to be startled. "I'm living with you? Why?"

"Why ever not dear?" Sarah grinned, and leaned in to plant an affectionate kiss on Cassie's cheek. "I really don't want to leave you all alone down there."

"Down there?" Cassie asked incredulously. "I'm only two doors down from you!"

"Which is much too far away," Sarah insisted firmly. "I'll be lonely without you."

"Oh," Cassie said, visibly unsure of what to do.

"See, Kat?" Sarah plowed on, as if the matter with Cassie was decided; and perhaps it was from the way Cassie's face was turning pink. "Just come over with us and we'll have our own fun."

"I can't," she shook her head firmly. "I won't let Eva make me back down. I'll just deal with her on my own terms, and fight in my own way."

"That sounds lovely and all, but it doesn't take a succubus like me to know what she wants," Sarah replied.

"I know all that too," she said, ignoring how aroused she still was.

"So, she is not your mate?" Reshik asked, sounding baffled.

"No!" Kat replied emphatically "She's my mentor. Can we please finish eating so I can think?"

"Sure," Sarah sighed, and conversation pretty much died for a little bit. There was an undeniable air of tension in the room, and from Reshik's looks toward her as he rubbed his nose, she was the direct cause. She couldn't help it though. While she was intensely furious at Eva for pinning her into this corner, she was almost painfully turned on. There was a part of her that wished Eva had made her move now, instead of leaving, and she wasn't sure she liked that.

So they ate mostly in quiet, though Sarah kept leaning in to murmur things to Cassie, who blushed each time. Once, and she was pretty sure Cassie didn't even notice herself, Sarah fed her a bit of bread by hand, making sure her fingers touched Cassie's lips. Reshik seemed content to have a chance at eating, and was fastidiously clean about it. When they were done, they returned their trays and made their way outside, where sunset was fast underway.

"I think we should go for a walk," she said, thinking that she wanted more time before she headed back to her room, and Eva.

"Are you done being Miss Gloomy?" Sarah asked instead, leaning back against the stone façade of the building. She had one arm around Cassie on her right.

"It's not doing me any good," she admitted, turning to look idly down the street. Other girls were heading in multiple directions toward their own homes, talking and chattering away. "I want to see more of the campus island, and hold off on going back to my room just yet."

"What about that little curfew that Wallova mentioned before she let us go?" Cassie asked.

"Curfew?" she scoffed, honestly surprised. "I used to skip out of my room back home all the time. Even if we get caught, all we'll get is a stern talking to and maybe some punishment exercise."

"I would also like to see more," Reshik added, siding with her. He spread his clawed hands when the other two looked at him in surprise. "This place is much different than my homeland. I am interested in seeing more of it, and it is not all that late yet."

"Oh! All right!" Sarah moaned and pushed away from the building. "I'm just as curious as you two are, but I was looking forward to lying down in my comfortable bed, among other things."

"What?! You're agreeing to this now?" Cassie said in surprise, staring at Sarah. "But I thought we..."

"Oh, we will," Sarah said cheerfully, snuggling up to Cassie. "Kat is right, the risk isn't that great of getting into any big trouble and it sounds kind of fun. I'll even promise to make it up to you later."

Kat smiled at this bit, knowing now what their little murmuring conversations were about. Somehow, Sarah had clinched the deal with Cassie, and from the looks of things, Cassie wasn't opposed to the idea anymore. She thought they were lucky. Sure Sarah had spent the day seducing Cassie, but it was more like Cassie needed the older girl. It was nice, unlike her and Eva so far.

When she was with Eva, there were lots of sparks and plenty of heat, but she was bothered by the hungry lust that grew between her legs. Eva pushed just the right buttons that pissed her off, and at the same time she wanted to strip the girl of her clothes. Her body was tense from the strain of competing emotions, and she needed some kind of release. If she went back to the room now, she knew with certainty that she would find Eva nearly impossible to resist, but she wasn't ready for that yet.

"So, where should we head to first?" Sarah asked, still holding a mollified Cassie.

"I don't know really," she said, getting back to the moment at hand. She pointed down the street, which headed south and towards the academic portion of the island. "Let's just start going that way."

"What's that way?" Cassie asked curiously.

"No idea, which is why I pointed that way," she laughed, pushing her worries aside for now. "We may as well see some of everything if we can."

"I think that'll take more than one night, but I'm okay with it," Sarah agreed. "Reshik? You're awfully quiet over there."

"I simply have no objections to the idea," Reshik said, giving a hiss of laughter.

"Great! Then let's go!" Kat said, already moving at her own words. Someone barked a laugh, but the others followed on her heels.

********

Giving out a long, annoyed groan, Eva strode into her new dorm and didn't bother to turn on the light. She absolutely hated going to meetings, especially unscheduled ones, and double especially when they involved more work. Because of her current class standing and skill rating, she was supposed to start helping with the campus patrols. But her CO had called her and all the others that qualified this year in for an 'essential' meeting on the very first day of the new class year.

Why they couldn't have done that during their normally scheduled times, she had no fucking idea. Now she was finally home, and the same fire of excitement that had carried her through the day was sizzling in her blood. Little Kat wasn't home yet, but very soon, she would have the girl alone and without interruptions. She'd seen the desire in Kat's body and eyes, and knew it was inevitable for them to be together. Just that thought alone was enough to start getting her hot again, and she wasn't sure she could get any wetter. Her panties were getting pretty damn uncomfortable too.

"This one is going to work out," she said softly, idly discarding her uniform across the floor until she was down to a pair of dark purple panties, visibly wet in the crotch, and a matching bra. The rest of her body was clothed only in nighttime shadow. Had there been enough light, her arousal would have been obvious, but she thought she could smell herself a little too. Kat certainly had when she'd held her at dinner, and she had liked the positive response.

Her hand itched in remembrance of the feel of the girl. Kat was so responsive to her, that she knew this was the one she hadn't known she'd been waiting for. Not only that, but Kat was physically stunning in her opinion. She and Kat were perfect for each other and she knew it was inevitable that the other girl would figure it out too.

<Attention!>

She paused at the familiar intruding message and the soft pinging in her mind as her Glass asked for her. Sitting on the bed, she pulled it out of her private space. "Yeah?" she asked, with her mouth and mind. The bed felt good, and knowing what she would be doing in it very soon made her smile.

The surface of her Glass flashed to life and a projection window opened before her. On it, a young woman in the uniform from the Campus Command Dispatch, gasped and blushed at seeing her almost nude, but collected herself and carried on. "Senior Cadet, it has come to the Administration Office's attention that your charge has exceeded curfew, as well as her three companions. You are instructed to retrieve them."

Smirking, she pulled up a map in another window and queried Kat's location, and laughed aloud when she saw it was almost all the way to the causeway to the main island of Iskar. "She travels quickly," she commented, impressed they had gone so far after a bout of physical training.

"Ah, yes," agreed the woman, who was one of the Dispatch Officers on duty, giving her a pandering sort of smile. "Please retrieve all four and return them to their assigned dorms."

"It's a bit far," she grinned back. "Flight clearance?"

The officer sighed mightily, as if she had expected the question. Maybe they had talked before. "Temporary clearance is granted. No side jaunts."

"Wouldn't think of it!" she replied, standing and summoning her armor. It enfolded her body in its familiar, protective hold. The window followed her as she opened the balcony door and stepped out. "Heading out now!"

She gathered her power around her body, and as always she enjoyed the way her magic made the world seem more alive. Tendrils of it wafted away from her skin in a faint haze of luminescence. Grinning, she rocketed into the sky like a lovesick meteor for its home, and laughed when faces turned up towards her. Altering her trajectory slightly, she headed to pick up her lost kitty.

********

The campus turned out to be much larger than Kat had initially thought, the size of a small city in itself, and it didn't take long to realize they could only see a tiny part of it. Once they had exited the military areas and entered the academic ones, there was a lot to see. The academic students were all civilians, and adults of both genders going to school to learn all sorts of things. They passed bus stop signs with maps on them for different areas. There buildings for a medical college that sprawled on the map, a business school, and all sorts of other things.

Once they were out of the military and government areas, the atmosphere changed as well. Gone were the plain, utilitarian buildings and impressive military machines. Here there were carefully tended regions of greenery, lush trees of a variety of species, and the presence of animals. Chipmunks and a large species of squirrel seemed to be competing for the nut bearing trees, and sea birds of all kinds filled the air with their wings and cries. The boldest seagulls came right up to them to demand handouts with loud squawks.

There were many students out and about too in styles of clothing from every corner of the vast nation, and their Valkyrie armor earned them a lot of curious stares, but also a few respectful nods and smiles. Sarah naturally drew the men with less self-control to her like a magnet, since she looked like a sex goddess on legs, but she had some strange method of turning them away without making them angry. Instead they seemed oddly pleased with themselves. They did stop at an open square where a group of musicians were playing to a crowd, and even tossed a few coins each into their donation box.

The sheer variety of the Academy was a little overwhelming at first glance; as it represented a microcosm of the best students their nation had to offer. The Academy had a mechanical school for building, flying, and maintaining skyships, biological studies, teaching and law schools, and the gods only knew what else. It was also very tidy and organized with tasteful signs for directions, which she also liked, and there was a whole network of public transportation so that walking distances were cut drastically. The buses ran on a clockwork schedule, and there were at least two more train stations other than the one they'd already seen, not including the freight lines for the industrial areas. Laughing crowds got on and off these trains and buses, having apparently enjoyed some fun times in the vast city that lay just across a narrow bit of water.

Time got away from them quickly however, and it grew quite late a lot faster than they expected. The streets were quickly becoming more deserted as the students sought beds or company. Now they were headed back north a little, down a little road towards what looked like a sizable park with big, mature maple trees. Overhead, the sky was almost perfectly clear except for a couple stray wispy clouds, and the moon was close to full. Otherwise, they were shrouded in darkness and the occasional pool from one of the decorative streetlights.

"I thought this would be a short little trip," Cassie complained, walking next to Sarah. It seemed natural already for them to be constantly paired together.

"It was," Kat laughed easily. "But I'm tired too, which is why we're heading back."

"I would like to listen to the music more," Reshik said. He had greatly enjoyed the buskers. "The ones here are very talented, and different from home. It costs far too much for us to import brass instruments, so they were a new sound for me."

"I just hope the park up ahead has some comfortable benches to sit on for a bit," Sarah groaned a bit overdramatically and then laughed a little at her own jest. "I forgot how tired my legs were."

The wind picked up slightly in a brief gust from almost right ahead of them, and the breeze felt refreshingly good. Before she could enjoy it for long, Reshik made a strong hissing noise of displeasure and looked around wildly. "Something smells very bad," he said in a low voice.

"Reshik, you have been complaining about smells all fucking night!" Cassie groaned.

"Lots of moaning and groaning, my dear," Sarah agreed with a laugh.

"Shut up!" Kat said firmly, but in a calm tone that nonetheless silenced the other two, though they did look at her questioningly. Something about Reshik's posture and voice was telling her he wasn't just complaining this time. He looked...wrong somehow. "What is it you smell?"

"It's very bad!" Reshik snorted, as if trying to dislodge the terrible odor. "Like many dead things, rotting things, and very bad things all together. Ohhhhh. It won't go away!"

A scream, a shrill man's scream, howled into the night so strongly that the voice of the source cracked with the effort. They all froze in place, trying to guess where it had come from, but it cut off with the sharp finality that they all knew, came with death. The large, shadowed buildings around the group took on an unexpectedly menacing appearance and a chattering sound echoed in from multiple directions. On one building, a two-story block of offices to their right, something scurried and peered over the edge of the roof, occluding stars with its body. Cassie and Sarah were looking right where she was.

"I saw it too," Cassie said, absolutely serious and moving slightly closer to Sarah. Who was protecting who didn't seem to matter.

Scuttling sounds grew up around them, and they walked just a bit faster towards the park. Somehow, the idea of being out in the open made them all feel exposed. She kept turning to try and see what was going on, and spotted a dark shape when it slinked from under a parked car on the road and scurried on all fours towards another a little closer to them. It had been almost humanoid, having the right number of limbs, but unfamiliar too. More like something that didn't belong than a living creature, or at least not a natural one. Its shape had been peculiarly off and strange.

Almost as soon as they were under the concealment of the trees, Kat nearly gagged when a stench like old, rotting meat assaulted her nose. It was so strong that her eyes watered for a moment. Almost without thinking about it, she pulled her sword out and held it out before her as her eyes adjusted to the change in light and she blinked away tears caused by the nauseating stink. The others did the same, but she flung up a hand to halt them in place when she caught sight of something appalling. Ahead, in a clearing in the trees, a foul mass of writhing creatures were gathered around an area paved in stone squares.

There were a couple dozen of them, with their shapes partially hidden by the darkness and the cloth shrouds they wore, but some looked strangely human too. In the center, a massive, hulking shape with odd protuberances coming off its giant-sized body, was snuffling at something on the ground and began to glow with a dark, ruddy light. From the clump on the ground, a new voice screamed in agony and little wispy streamers flowed up the arm pinning the unfortunate man, over the massive creature, and into one of the things on its body. The other creatures started to bob up and down, making a chanting noise as if excited by what was happening.

A shadowed man in a full cloak that hid his clothes strode into view amidst the mob, hooded and tall with a slim sword at his side. It was too dark to see his features, but it was clear he could see them because he pointed right in their direction, and snapped his fingers with a sharp pop. At once the mob turned and slobbery growls filled the night, and a flurry of shaking leaves announced the existence of more in the trees above them. She also received a disconcerting message from her Glass.

<Warning, neural net connection has failed. Local autonomous network established for the duration of outage.>

"This is really not good, Kat," Sarah said softly, still standing tall and beautiful despite the situation. Despite that, both she and Cassie had inched closer to her unconsciously seeking safety in numbers.

"They make my nose burn!" Reshik complained, with a vigorous rub to the front of his snout.

Kat ignored them, because the rush of a fight close at hand was coming back to her. The trickle of adrenalin that would soon become a river was already pumping into her blood. They had literally walked into something they shouldn't have, but she didn't feel afraid like she knew she logically should be. She was aware this wasn't normal at all, but she didn't care because that little kernel of anger that lived inside her was getting its chance to grow and let loose. It felt really good, and she unconsciously licked her lips in anticipation.

"Cassie," she said calmly, cutting off whatever her friends had been saying. She held her sword forward with the point down for the moment.

"Yeah?" Cassie replied, sounding nervous.

"Can you really use a sword?"

"Yes."

"What about you Sarah? Can you use one? Can you really fly?" she said, moving on.

"I learned a little fencing of all damn things, back in school," Sarah laughed uncertainly. "Not useful really, but I can at least hold a sword the right way. And sure I can fly."

"I have some skills as well," Reshik said quickly when her gaze settled onto him. He eagerly twiddled his fingers. "I was chosen to come here because I am a great shaman of my people. I can fight."

"Why are you asking us this stuff, Kat?" Sarah asked, watching the creatures warily. They were milling around and walking closer, still unsure of the nature of their prey.

"Because we are going to be fighting these things in a second," she replied steadily, not taking her eyes off the many bad guys. "Think you can take the ones in the trees?"

"How should I know?" Sarah gave a laugh and shrugged. "But I get what you mean, honey. I'll show the boys up top a good show."

"Good," she glanced at Reshik again. "Whatever you can do, you may as well start."

"I shall!" He agreed, and then held his arms in a strange pose before his body, and began chanting rhythmically. She had no idea what it was supposed to do, but from the feel of the magic he was gathering, it took a lot of power.

One of the things scuttled forward, testing them. It strayed into some moonlight, and she wanted to vomit. It had pasty gray flesh that was twisted and sickeningly moist and little bits of machine joined to its body in strange places. Limbs longer than a human's propelled it along quickly, so she held her stomach in check and took a step forward to meet the thing, and gathered magic. Timing it carefully, she kicked hard and caught the thing in the head. Her power exploded into the thing and she felt a crunch, even as it was flung right back into the others, causing a ruckus of growls.

"Kill them!" she growled as well, glaring at Cassie and Sarah to get them moving. She ignored Reshik as he was busy with his chanting and strange glowing lights floating around his body. The fight was on now, and there were more important things to be concerned about.

"Got'cha!" Sarah yelled back and her bat-like wings quadrupled in size in an instant, catching the air with a loud whoompf. Two more strong strokes launched her up into the trees. At the first branch, Sarah flicked out an elegant hand, and a dark creature thing dropped to the ground with blood pouring from its throat. Then Sarah was moving on and upward.

"Keep Reshik between us," she ordered Cassie, putting her back to the strange cat-lizard guy. Something ran forward and she punched out with a thrust of her sword, it grabbed its face and howled in anguish. She tried to think a command at her Glass. "I think this counts as an emergency!"

<Emergency declaration will be reported upon renewed contact to the neural net. Confirm life-threatening emergency situation?>

"Yes!" she shouted angrily, whacking another attacker across the skull with her dull sword. "Confirm for all four of us!"

<Emergency declared under Cadet Katerina Genaria! Removing weapon restrictions.>

White light flicked up all their swords at the same time, and Cassie's next stroke cleanly removed the reaching arm of her newest opponent. It screeched piercingly and thrashed on the ground with blood pouring out in a puddle that seeped into the cracks between the pavers. Kat was not so elegant about her fighting. Two rushed her together, so she kicked one low in the knee, crunching its leg like a stick, and drove her sword down with both hands into the neck of the other, almost in to the shoulder. She was surprised when the sword cut through everything effortlessly, and blood coated her arm to the elbow when it splattered and sprayed from a severed artery and the force of the blow.

"Incoming!" said a cry from Sarah above. A creature crashed down only a foot away with a strange, meaty cracking sound upon impact with the ground. It was still barely alive and tried to claw at her. With scarcely a thought for the task, she punched her sword through its back to finish it off, because more and more of the things were gathering around, chanting themselves up into a frenzy. There were well over two dozen left.

Behind her Reshik gave a shout in a language she couldn't understand, and something like a shadow or a cloud of smoke burst out from him and dove into the ground. When nothing seemed to happen, the creatures that had stopped surged back forward, with hungry, slobbery growls. Kat braced for the attack, but the ground fountained upwards in a massive upheaval, and something humanoid, but made of stone leaped into the fray. One arm was bigger than the other, and more like a gorilla's. This limb snapped forward with unnatural swiftness and smashed the first foolish creature to approach with an unpleasant crunch.

"What the fuck is that?!" she yelled. The thing looked sort of like a human made of a collection of rocks, but with glowing pits for eyes in an otherwise featureless head. It waded into the fight with the fearless determination of a machine, and just as brutally. It was so stunning that in only a moment a swarm of the attacking creatures tried to bury the thing with their own bodies in an attempt to kill it.

"A golem!" Reshik rasped tiredly. "They can only break it, because the animating spirit cannot be killed. It is my power as a shaman."

There was a sharp pop from her left, and something hit her in the shoulder like a solid punch. When she turned to see what had happened, she saw the barrier made by her armor flash brightly over her chest as another invisible fist hit her there, and something glowing spalled off onto the ground where it and the last one were lighting the dry grass on fire. Looking into the mob, she spotted what looked like a man pointing a gun at her, but his face was slack and his eyes were empty. Three more shots in rapid succession hit and were deflected painfully away.

"Fuck this!" she grunted, feeling the bruises forming already. Raising her sword hand to point at the gunman in the crowd, she gathered magic and grinned when she felt gentle nudging and suggestions from her Glass about the spell slip into her mind. Following the directions, this time, her spell formed much faster and the three fizzling missiles spun around her wrist at a rapid pace, but felt much more stable, and most importantly, she could aim them after a fashion. The first roared away in the direction she pointed with a painfully loud ripping paper sound, and detonated on impact like a small bomb.

Creatures and pieces of them flew in all directions, and the tree near the now very dead gunman shattered entirely at the trunk and began to fall away from everyone. The magical explosion had also generated enough waste heat that the falling tree began to burn as well, illuminating the chaotic battle in umber radiance. Smoke joined the rank smells in the air, which made her cough harshly, before rising up into the night.

"Sarah!" she yelled out as loud as she could in warning. "Two more shots incoming!"

A dark, winged shadow leapt from a perch overhead into the night sky, and Kat laughed. She pointed at another group and even though they tried to turn and scatter, it wasn't fast enough to avoid her spell bolt and many died in a second explosion that ripped a good sized crater in the earth. Before she could fire the third, the one massive enemy creature thing reared up and roared a battle cry, flinging the lesser ones out of its way. Kat turned her aim and fired.

The behemoth snorted and the glass containers that seemed to be growing from its back flared brightly, and Kat's spell shattered into ineffectual sparkles. More of the creepy-looking humans crowded forward when her last spell missile was blocked, and they moved in uncanny coordination. Some carried more guns, but others had knives and other sharp implements like glass shards.

"Over there!" Cassie rasped, out of breath from defending her side. She was pointing up into the trees. Kat spotted a new kind of creature. It was humanoid as well, and with the disgusting mechanical additions, but with exaggeratingly long limbs and fingers. It perched on a branch, smiling right at her with a much too wide smile that showed cracked, yellow teeth, and twitched its fingers in a strange pattern. Below, the strange humans shoved forward as if at the thing's command.

"Sarah!" she pointed at the tree thing. "Kill it now!

"You're so bossy when you're angry!" Sarah yelled back and pounced from the sky, but the thing leaped astonishingly fast and was gone. Sarah swore and turned. "There are more of these crawly things coming down the street! And another big one!"

"Wonderful!" she laughed. Several of the strange humans rushed her and she was forced to smash at them with the hilt of her sword. One cut at her with some kind of funny looking knife and she saw her barrier part for it with tough reluctance, right before it kissed her left shoulder and a line of pain flared there. Furious, she cut the man-thing down, and made sure to mark any more that had those weapons if she could. She knew they were probably going to be overrun and killed, but she couldn't stop just yet. Even as her bones ached with exhaustion from the too-long day, she wanted to keep fighting. It felt good.

"What do we do?!" Cassie gasped, clearly closer to the edge of exhaustion that she was.

"Just keep killing them," she said, surprised at her own calm. She was covered in blood and more objectionable matter, was bleeding down her left arm, and had bruises forming from those gunshots, but she felt amazingly alive. "There's only dozens of them left."

The behemoth ran in a lumbering gait at Reshik's golem and the two oversize combatants pounded at each other like titans. One of the glass things shattered, and the glowing wisp inside shot dead-on at one of the dead looking guys, and instantly turned him into black, falling dust with a flicker of bright light. The big creature bellowed in pain, and drove a massive fist through the golem. It broke below the waist, but the top half clung on tight and kept fighting.

It was then a strange sound registered to her abused ears. It was a bit like the sound of a hissing steam pipe, and getting ever louder. When she spared a glance in the direction it was coming from, she saw something surrounded by a blue nimbus streaking through the air towards them like a rocket. A multitude of scintillating spheres appeared around the mage, and Kat shivered at the feel of the magic. It sang inside her body and was tantalizingly familiar.

"Eva?" she whispered disbelievingly.

The spheres flung away from Eva with streaks of light, making it look like a blooming flower was in the sky for just a moment. They fell all around them in the streets, in the trees, and in areas around the battle free of friendlies. At each impact site, there was a loud pop, and everything within ten feet or so was instantly frozen solid. Before a rime of frost could do much more than kiss the attack points, there was a following bang from above those places, and even the frozen trees shattered like plate glass. The surviving creatures turned and howled or hissed their displeasure, only to be impaled on blue glowing spikes that dropped out of the sky and pinned them to the ground.

"I came to fetch you, Kitten!" Eva called, alighting on a spell circle that appeared beneath her feet, right in front and above Kat in the air. "But you went and found trouble."

"I never asked for help!" she yelled back.

"So true," Eva grinned. "Which is why you owe me now."

The behemoth had ignored the cold spell and even protected a small circle around itself. It bellowed a war cry and flung the golem aside, squashing a couple of the remaining crawly guys. Eva frowned down at it. "That one is a bit of a pest."

"It shrugs off magic at least," Kat replied.

"Does it?" Eva asked coyly. She waved a hand down at the huge creature and a spell form appeared beneath its feet. It tried to lunge away, but a spear of stone punched up from the ground and punctured right through its middle. It slumped forward and sagged, lifeless, and all the glass containers broke as one. Each of the wisps tried to find bodies like the last one, and each destroyed the one it found.

<Network connection re-established!> chimed her Glass, apparently in response to the death of the behemoth. She had no idea how or what had happened, but she was glad the thing was down.

There weren't many survivors of Eva's devastating attacks, and most were quickly running off into the dark. Eva dropped near a group of these and shot them all down with more of the blue spikes. Kat and her friends joined her in finishing off the ones they could catch, because the idea of these things running around freely didn't appeal. Cassie looked a bit sick at the job, but she did it.

Kat tried to ignore the damage around them. The park was in complete shambles, and mostly because of her. There were bodies everywhere, small grass fires and two trees blazing merrily away. Her missile spells that worked had torn up the ground pretty good, and there was a metal bench partially wrapped around a tree. But the worst was all the bodies. On Cassie's side there was just a wall of bodies missing pieces, or gashed open along her line of defense.

"You know, you are supposed to be cleaning up after me," Eva said, approaching her once they were sure nothing else was attacking them. For the first time, Kat got to see her in her armor, and she was more stunned about it than about the attack. Like Kat, she had a cape, but the black material conformed enticingly to her body in a way that made Kat almost immediately aroused. She had gloves with forearm bracers that went almost to the elbow, and the long, skintight bottoms. No matter what she did, she couldn't stop her eyes from drinking it in, and even had to stop herself from licking her lips when Eva bent over to look at one of the monster things and displayed her ass to great effect.

"You say that like this is my fault," she replied, feeling tired now that the fighting drive was settling down inside her, but still very much awake. She attributed that to her other kind of growing excitement from Eva's proximity.

"Who decided to ignore curfew?" Eva laughed, looking up as Sarah flew in, and settled gracefully on the ground near Cassie. Her wings shrank back to their previous size, and she rolled her shoulders as if to work out stiff muscles.

"All the bad guys went running," Sarah sighed, wrapping an arm around Cassie. They leaned into each other in obvious relief at being safe and alive. Cassie looked pale, and a little nauseous at all the dead things around them. "They pretty much scattered in every direction once they realized they were losing all of a sudden."

"Hmph," Eva grunted, sounding pleased. She walked right up to Kat and for a long moment they just looked at each other without saying a damn word. Kat was filthy in so many ways, but she could see the arousal and lust in the other girl, and her own body was responding in kind without paying the least attention to what she wanted. Without looking away, she stowed her sword back in her pocket space and waited to see what Eva would do. Finally, Eva just smiled and said, "You do owe me, Kitten."

She didn't know how long they might have kept at that, just watching each other like two strange animals that were testing each other. They were broken from the intense game by the sounds of approaching sirens, and the arrival of a small, very fast skyship overhead. Around them, soldiers dropped from rappelling lines and ran around yelling obscure military things at each other. Once they appeared satisfied that no more fighting was going to occur just yet, a second skyship painted a garish red color arrived and mages onboard that one started casting spells on the fires to quickly put them out. The five of them were held, not quite at gunpoint, by a squad of the soldiers carrying rather large caliber weapons.

More mages arrived in the area, but these didn't land. They appeared to fly in search patterns, and occasionally one would drop down or call in soldiers. It was almost an hour of just standing around before Wallova arrived, looking haggard and tired. She glowered at them in annoyance.

"Did it have to be my girls caught up in this crap?!" Wallova complained when she stopped in front of them.

"We weren't trying to be attacked," she replied, trying to sound helpful.

"Says the girl coated in blood, and the gods only know what," Wallova said with a dark chuckle and wafting gesture under her nose. "You're just lucky that I approve of your using that spell this time."

"You don't seem very surprised, or freaked out by all this," Eva observed dryly, crossing her arms beneath breasts that looked mouthwatering in her tight armor.

"Because I'm not!" Wallova grinned. "We've found little pockets of these guys throughout the country, but more heavily here on the Capital island, for months. This is just the largest group we've seen so far, and the first one to attack so aggressively."

"So we really are at war?" Kat asked, hardly unable to forget the attack on her own home island.

"No one has any gods-be-damned idea if that's the case yet," Wallova sighed. "The Empire has been descending into a chaotic mess these last few years, and little tin-pot warlords have been popping up there like weeds. They are only the biggest suspect in a potential pool of many. There are plenty of nations and rulers out there that want a piece of our economic might, and would consider destabilizing us. Now, are any of you hurt?"

"Nothing here," Sarah said with a proud grin.

"Just bruises from the guns," Cassie said after a moment to look herself over.

"And you?" Wallova asked, looking at Kat. "Any of that mess yours?"

"I've got a little cut on my shoulder," she answered, but was surprised when she found the armor where she'd been cut had healed itself shut. "Or I did."

"Hmm," Wallova pulled out her Glass and checked something. Then she laughed. "Looks like someone added level-1 medical functions to your armor too. I wonder who paid for that one. It's not standard yet and costs a bit."

"Are we going to be detained?" Cassie asked in a quiet voice. Sarah was stroking her stomach with the arm she had around her, and it seemed that Cassie needed the comforting. She was pale and looked exhausted.

"Detained for violating curfew?" Wallova asked incredulously. "Shit no! I'm just gonna make you run until you want to puke sometime this week when you least suspect its coming."

"I think she meant about all of this," Sarah elaborated, gesturing at the general devastation Kat had wrought. "It's not as pretty anymore after our bit of advanced redecorating."

"Nah, mage battles are always this messy, and with lots of collateral damage," Wallova said dismissively. "It's why we train in shielded rooms or designated proving grounds. I'm not saying the Academy's President will be happy this park got blown to shit, but you won't be in trouble for defending yourselves."

"So what happens now?" Kat asked.

"Finally, the right question!" Wallova grinned. "You will be driven straight back to your dorms, where you will be permitted a shower, and then straight to your rooms, from which you will not emerge until morning. Then, if any official person feels like talking to you, it will probably happen tomorrow. During all this, I don't want to hear your names come up at all. Understand?"

"We do," Kat answered for all of them.

"Good!" Wallova pointed over towards the closest street. "There is a large truck idling there. Get in it, and go home. Now."

Silent and tired, that is exactly what they did.

********

The truck turned out to be a military troop carrier, and about the size of a city bus. The soldier driving said very little after getting them seated in the back, so it was a fairly quiet ride through the Academy. Kat claimed one of the back corners of the long, u-shaped bench that ran the perimeter, and wasn't at all surprised when Eva sat right next to her with a tired smirk on her lips. Sarah quickly grabbed the other corner and with no prompting at all, Cassie laid sideways with her head in Sarah's lap. Reshik sat a polite space away from them, using a scrap piece of cloth a soldier gave him to clean his claws.

Since traffic at night was very light, they made quick time and ten minutes later they had pulled up in front of the female dorms. Reshik would have to stay aboard and be driven to his residence. When she climbed down the little ladder mounted on the back of the truck, she found they had an audience to their arrival. There were girls looking out doors and windows all up and down the street, and she could already hear them talking and exclaiming about her bloody and horrifying appearance. A familiar face caught her eye, and when she realized she'd been spotted, Tarina ducked back inside her window.

"This is going to do wonders for your reputation," Eva chuckled amusedly, coming up beside her.

"It wasn't doing that great to begin with," Sarah added, helping Cassie down.

"Thanks for the support, Sarah!" Kat snorted a laugh. She probably looked like a crazy killer. "See you tomorrow, Reshik!"

"I would prefer there not to be another battle, when we next meet," Reshik replied with a laugh of his own. When they were all clearly off the truck and out of the way, the soldiers put it back into gear and rumbled away to drop him off, leaving the four of them the center of attention.

"Can we go to bed now?" Cassie moaned, absolutely wiped out with exhaustion in Sarah's arms. It looked like the fight, and more probably the killing, had taken a large mental toll and it was settling on her friend fast.

"Those were our orders," Eva smiled in agreement.

"Then I think we will head there," Sarah said decisively, smiling at Cassie. "I'll look after her."

"I'm sure you will," Kat smiled, which she knew had to make her look crazier, given her current state. "We don't have anything tomorrow until after lunch so we can check out our gear and stuff, so sleep well, and meet me at breakfast."

"You really are a bossy one," Sarah laughed. "G'night love!"

Sarah escorted Cassie straight to the door of their dorm, and ignored the gawkers. Those blocking the way quickly moved clear and let them pass unhindered. Both gave her a little wave and then they were gone, and Kat figured Cassie was in good hands. She would end up in Sarah's bed, but after this night, they both probably needed whatever would happen. But that left just her and Eva.

She simply started walking, and almost had to grin at how fast girls got out of her way. There was no way to know what kinds of rumors were spreading, but she was sure something had gone out. One older girl, who had to be closer to twenty, even looked a little afraid of her, which was a bit ridiculous when she thought about it. The young woman's age meant that she'd been here for years and was vastly more experience than she was, and should be able to best her without a problem. It didn't help when Eva moved into easy step beside her, because she looked every inch the beautiful, sexy, and victorious warrior in her armor.

"How am I supposed to clean this?" she asked, to make conversation, pointing at her armor.

"Heh, its waterproof, and there's a bottle of detergent for it in your trunk," Eva replied, laughing lightly. "There's also some in a supply room in the bottom floor of our dorm, so you'll know where to get more. You'll use it a lot, since you'll be cleaning mine from now on too."

Kat grunted at that, having deliberately forgotten about having to serve Eva in that manner. It sounded like it would be a pain, but there wasn't really much of a choice about it, except to join with the rest of her classmates. That would be another way of giving up, and she couldn't do that at all. She would just have to grit her teeth and grind through the less pleasant parts. The only consolation was that Eva did seem to be a strong and capable warrior, and might be able to really show her how to fight.

At their dorm, the few girls out all stood in pairs, and there was a lot less fear and hostility. It was more like a professional assessment from a group of peers. The elder of each pair were also giving Eva an open look over. Some clearly knew who she was, and were frowning thoughtfully between Kat and Eva. They let them through, and they made their way up towards their room without any additional followers. Eva stopped her at the door to their room.

"As much as I love looking at you like that," Eva began. "You are not going to get whatever is all over you in the room. It would take forever for you to get the smell out. So you head for the showers, and I'll grab our crap."

It was hard to argue with that, because she was a complete mess, but she wasn't sure she liked the idea of Eva going through her stuff. Except her skin was starting to itch, and she wanted to be clean again. "Fine," she agreed, and turned to continue down the corridor. When she didn't hear the door open right away, she glanced back and saw Eva watching her with a knowing smile. That just pissed her off again, so she walked faster.

At the door to the showers, she met another pair of older girls who were just leaving. Both were wearing fluffy robes of blue and green respectively, and the younger of the pair was nice enough to hold the door, despite her clear curiosity. Then she was alone, and she made a straight line for the back of the shower room. She started up two showers that were right next to each other in the back corner and began peeling off her armor.

It was a disgusting task, seeing as some of the filth had started to dry, but each item came off, one after the other. Then she set them all in the spray coming from one of the showers and left them there, heading towards the small bathroom alcove set into the side of the shower room. After using the toilet she came right back and into the other shower to let the hot spray pour down her sweaty, dirty body. She closed her eyes and just let it cleanse her for a bit, idly twitching the curtain shut. Just standing there, rinsing off the large majority of the blood and grime, made her feel a hundred times better.

She must have zoned out a little, because she was jolted back to full alert by the curtain whipping loudly open. She tried to spin about and face whoever was intruding, but her tired body was slow and the hand she had instinctually struck out with was snatched tight in another strong hand, and was then yanked sharply upward, exposing her entire body. Her water fuddled eyes caught sight of pale skin over an athletically toned female body. "Eva?!" she gasped, burbling the words through the water falling down her face.

"I couldn't resist," Eva grinned at her. "As your mentor, I've decided I need to show you how to clean up after a fight."

"I don't need your help!" she growled, and used her free hand to pinch the vulnerable point between Eva's thumb and forefinger. When the hand automatically slackened, she yanked her own water-slick hand free and shoved Eva back. Eva recovered her footing easily, with a fierce grin, and Kat stalked out of the confining alcove after her. "I think I can manage to bathe myself!"

Eva stood proud and tall, totally nude and facing her in a stable, legs slightly apart stance. Just looking at Eva made Kat's poor pussy throb with the primal need for attention, and her eyes kept trying to slip to those deliciously round, pale-skinned breasts. They were so full and firm looking, as if inviting her hands to touch them, and large lightly-pink nipples were perky and hard, and it made her salivate to think of having them in her mouth. It was an all-out assault on her sexually excited mind and body and she had little strength to resist it.

"Nonsense!" Eva chuckled, striding confidently towards her on long, muscled legs. Eva's body was so flushed with arousal, that even Kat could see it. Eva's mound was more prominent than her own, and her labia were equally more pronounced, pink and engorged with sexual need. It was entirely bare and utterly mouth-watering and fascinating. "You're all mine, remember?"

"That doesn't mean you can just—Ahh!" she resisted backing away from Eva, but she cut off because the girl had simply reached out and captured her right breast, and gave her nipple a sharp, delicious pinch between a pair of fingers. Her pussy sent a twinge of warning of an orgasm soon to come. She simply couldn't understand how Eva could get her so wound up, so fast.

Grunting, she ignored the new, hot slickness sliding down her leg and roughly whacked Eva's arm up and away. Careful not to use any magic in the unprotected shower, she struck out in a palm strike towards Eva's belly. It connected into firm muscle and soft skin, drawing a small noise from Eva that wasn't quite an acknowledgement of pain. Eva responded with a counter-punch, and she crossed her arms to block it, but it was a faint and Eva took a strong hold onto her right forearm and pulled hard. She stumbled forward on exhausted legs and Eva's other hand quickly went around to grab her ass and give it a good, thorough fondle.

"You and I are perfect, just like this," Eva pronounced without a hint of doubt, looking down with those ice-blue eyes, and startling intensity. The hand on her ass slipped purposely further, playing with the sensitive skin inside her cleft. "Deny it all you want, but you're just as aroused right now as I am. You want me, Kitten, and I can feel it. I want to taste it, but you're absolutely filthy. It's a good thing I brought the soap!"

"Fuck!" she grunted, wrenching hard in an effort to break free. Eva laughed and moved with her, and then pulled her in even tighter, shoving a thigh between her legs so that her already needy pussy ground against it. She was already wet enough that she slipped on that leg and moaned loud in an involuntary response she couldn't restrain fast enough. Eva felt so damn good, and it seemed like her body was betraying her at the opportunity to sate her lust.

With no warning, she felt Eva's magic, and before she could comprehend what was going on, a magic circle appeared in the air above them and from the corners of a square drawn inside, four coils of blue light snatched her wrists and yanked both arms up. Not enough to cause strain, but easily immobilizing her and exposing her entire body.

Eva barked another laugh and moved her face an inch from Kat's, and she fought hard against the part of her that was wishing Eva would just kiss her with anger. "As you've already probably figured out, I'm kind of a bitch, but in a way, so are you, Kitten. I saw how you fought against those things. You have no idea how long I've waited for fierce, amazing girl like you to come along, even though I never knew what I was really looking for until now. Suddenly here you are, and I know we are exactly what we need."

"How do you figure that?!" Kat growled. She gathered what pitiful little magic she could muster at the moment, and carefully formed it in her mind. With a series of sharp sizzles and pops, several arcs of electricity jumped from her raised hands to the water coating the floor, and more importantly, towards Eva. It was an indiscriminate spell, and she felt its bite as well, but she gritted her teeth and grinned at the surprised look on Eva's face. Then there was another pulse of magic from Eva and all the electricity Kat was flicking out leapt straight for the grounded drain instead of using anything else as a short-cut.

"That right there is exactly why," Eva smiled, and nipped the tip of her nose in a clear admonishment, and a hand played with her breast again, tugging and pulling on the nipple in an exploratory manner, which made Kat bite her lips to restrain her pleasure noises. "Look at you!" Eva insisted. "Even now you fight, and you're so turned on that I can smell you through all this steam and you're dripping down your leg onto mine. I'm going to taste you soon, but we need to clean the filth off you first. Think of it as payment for my saving your cute ass earlier!"

"I never agreed to that!" she argued as fiercely as she could manage, trying to ignore the heat between her legs.

Eva pressed harder against her, and leaned in close to her ear. "Here's your choice, Kat, because one way or another, I'm going to have you. Either you play nice, and we have some fun here in the shower, or, I will be the one having most of the fun and you'll be a lot like you are now."

"You're going to keep me tied up?!"

"In a way," Eva teased, sliding their bodies together enticingly.

Kat knew she was stuck, and her arousal was beginning to cloud her judgment. Eva felt so damn good against her that it was hard to think straight through the cloud of exhaustion and sexual need. She wanted a release badly, and the part of her that desired all Eva was offering, won. "Fine!" she grunted with a glare for good measure, conceding the win. "I'll do it your way for now."

With that Eva simply let her go so abruptly that she almost fell to her knees. She caught herself, and stood, shaking, realizing she'd almost had an orgasm again with nothing more than what Eva had been doing. She also realized that they were in the open and anyone that came in would have had a free show. Just the thought sent a new shiver down her back, or maybe it was Eva standing naked and coming closer with a toiletry basket.

Evan naked, Eva was impressive and wore her bare skin with the same confidence she had wearing armor. Her stride was sure, and her long, athletic legs led up to curved hips and bare lips. Eva caught her looking and smirked knowingly. "You act so innocent," Eva taunted in her sexiest purr, "and yet here you are staring at me like you want to devour me. It's a good thing for you that is exactly what I want too."

"I never said I was innocent," she retorted.

"Good, because we both know it would be a massive lie," Eva set down the basket at the edge of the cubical, and pulled out a large bottle of liquid body soap. She squirted a generous amount into her hand. "Now be good for a bit and get back in the shower, and raise those arms up high for me!"

Gritting her teeth, she complied, wondering what Eva had in mind. Eva approached, careful not to let the shower spray off the soap in her hands, and moved around behind her. She really didn't like that, and it made her nervous, so she jumped a little when both of Eva's strong hands settled on her waist and moved up her back. Fingers curled into and scrubbed her armpits, and then Eva went right up her arms with the same firm pressure. When she reached her hands, Eva stroked and played with each finger individually.

"W-why are you doing it that way?" she managed to get out. It felt far too incredible to be real.

"I intend to know every tiny centimeter of your body," Eva replied frankly, and the purr in her voice was oddly deep with desire. "We are going to spend long hours together, so we may as well know what we can of each other, and that includes our bodies." Eva picked up the soap bottle again, and this time she drizzled it all over Kat.

"Can I at least lower my arms now?!" she cried, twitching when Eva pressed up against her back, and she felt hard nipples tickling her skin.

"Not yet," Eva replied, and this time her hands were on Kat's stomach, scrubbing in circles up to her breasts, which she caressed and massaged with great relish. Kat could feel herself almost melting into the sensations, and her mind fogging. Eva wasn't being at all gentle about her cleaning, but it felt amazing, and the fingers teasing around her nipples weren't helping. Then she felt lips on the back of her right ear and when Eva gave her a little bite, her vaginal muscles twitched in warning. It was so close an involuntary tremor rolled down her body. It only got worse when Eva said. "Close your eyes," in a sexy, burred whisper.

She did, just before fingers started to scrub her face and neck. True to her words, Eva seemed intent on touching every part of her. Having her eyes closed only reinforced the sensations when Eva went low again, and with both hands, kneaded her ass. She thought she heard Eva making little pleasure noises too. Then one hand invaded her cleft and fingers scrubbed firmly down it, finding her asshole like it was a prize. "Hey!" she yelped, feeling her pussy muscles twitch again.

"I said every part of you," Eva chuckled, not stopping. That hand stayed right there playing with her ass, while the other took care of her legs, stroking and feeling up her thighs. She squirmed, writhing, and was disgusted by the loud moans slipping out of her mouth. The incredible sensations only got better when her muscles slowly relaxed and she felt the long finger push insistently into her ass. Eva kept it buried there, wiggling it slightly, for a long, agonizingly pleasurable minute, and then yanked it back out with a new laugh because Kat's pussy was obviously soaked. Even she could smell their sexual excitement in the air.

Then Eva stood, pulled Kat in close again, and she realized there were only two places left. Eva walked them both into the spray, and the sudden sensation of water pummeling her skin was almost a sensory overload. It was enough to stun her for a second. A lid popped while she was left under the water, and something cold but smelling slightly of peppermint was poured onto her head.

For the second time in one day, Eva gave her what she could only describe as an erotic scalp massage. It didn't really make her any more aroused than she already was, but that was only because she was already riding the hair-thin line separating her from the orgasm she was beginning to crave like a starving woman for food. As if reading her mind, Eva whispered, "Soon" in her ear, before washing the rest of her hair.

"T-that wasn't part of the d-deal," she rasped out.

"You're telling me you want me to stop?" Eva chuckled, and moved her back into the spray to rinse the shampoo out. It smelled nice, but her body badly wanted some kind of release. Eva turned her again, to face her. "Open your eyes."

She blinked them open, flicking away some stray water, and looked right into Eva's face. It was set into a smile pure enjoyment. Then Eva pulled her into a hug so that she was looking over Eva's shoulder. She was wondering what the girl was doing, but then lips found her neck and began kissing, sucking and nibbling all up and down it. Her protest turned into a series of gasps, moans and sensual groans, and she was so distracted that it took a second to feel the hand that went between her legs. A shock went down her spine as her body declared its own readiness for a climax.

Eva's lips found a place along her shoulder and just as a pair of fingers stopped on her very aroused clit and began to squeeze and release on it in rapid pulses, teeth bit down lightly on the healing cut from the battle. She felt a pinch of pain and Eva worked harder on Kat's pussy. The combination was more than enough to set her off. The hammer of pleasure finally slammed home.

Hot wetness coated her thighs and her leg muscles let go as the orgasm slammed through her like a pile driver. She collapsed into Eva and was only distantly aware of a pleased laugh. Wave after wave of delicious pleasure coursed down her nerves. "Fucking Gods!" she swore loudly, regaining her legs, and some of her wits. She felt like a wet noodle, and Eva was just about the only thing keeping her upright. She'd never cum that hard with just her fingers.

"That was fun," Eva purred happily from next to her head where she kept licking and biting at her neck. "Can you even walk now?"

"No idea," she said tiredly, feeling conflicted. On one hand, what Eva had done made her masturbation sessions pale in comparison, and then there was the sense of defeat now that her mind was clearing a little. She'd let Eva control the situation, and that made her angry again. It was a strange dichotomy, anger and the strange calm that always settled on her after a strong orgasm.

"Such a fierce little Kitten," Eva chuckled, having seen and felt her muscles tense up. "For tonight only, I'm going to give you a little break. I'll take care of the armor next door."

"How generous of you," she replied sullenly, trying to think of a way to salvage the situation. Separating from Eva, she made her way unsteadily to grab a towel and then plopped ungracefully onto a bench to dry off. She was certainly a lot cleaner now, but it pissed her off to think that she'd caved in so easily to Eva, and she wanted to know how the girl could press all of her buttons like that. It was like Eva could read her body and play with it to take her wherever she wanted.

"Stop looking so sour!" Eva laughed when she eventually came into the dressing room about ten minutes later, drying herself as she went. "You're acting like you didn't enjoy what I did."

"That...That wasn't what I wanted!" she nearly shouted back in frustration, knowing Eva was getting to her.

"Then what do you want, Kat?" Eva replied, her smile turning cryptic. "What about having sex with me do you dislike? Because you and I are going to know each other as intimately as anyone can, and I know exactly what I want from this. I might even tell you, if you can figure yourself out."

"Is that supposed to make sense?" Kat argued, not touching the question about the sex. There was no way she could say that she hadn't liked it, when all the evidence proved that she had. By the gods she still felt so good!

Instead of answering, Eva came right at her, and she was too tired to fight it when Eva pulled her up and over into a fireman's carry. Eva ignored her shout of protest and strode right out the door. In the outer corridor there was another pair of girls heading towards them with their own shower kits, and their eyes widened at seeing Kat being carried by Eva while they were both completely naked but for towels that covered nothing.

"Hey!" she popped Eva hard on the ass, marveling at the firm softness and complete lack of any jiggle.

"Not going to work!" Eva crowed, and nothing Kat did was able to make the girl let her back down. Eva even managed to get her Glass out for the door. Inside their room, Eva dropped her onto the bed and walked over to the pair of mannequins. Placing a hand on each, both their armors materialized on them as they would be worn. Then she turned back around and Kat glared back.

"I am capable of walking!" she said by way of complaint.

"Yeah, but you would have spent all night back there arguing with me," Eva chuckled, sitting next to her and running her towel one more time through her silky, white hair before tossing it onto the floor. "It was easier to just take you to bed myself."

It was then, that where they were really settled onto her. This was the bed she was going to share with Eva, who had all but promised that they would be having sex here, at dinner. "But you already had your fun," she protested, scooting back on the bed.

She only got a short distance before Eva pounced and had her pinned, and then straddled her over her stomach. The wet heat of Eva's slit pressed against her bare belly, and her arms were trapped by the weight and strength of the older girl's arms. All of Eva's gorgeous body rose above her, and her breasts hung tantalizingly close to Kat's face. "No," Eva replied eagerly. "I showed you how to have some fun. Now I want something too. I promise it won't take long."

"Then you'll let me sleep?" she asked irritably, inwardly pushing down the desire to get a chance to touch Eva. Her mouth was watering from the close proximity of Eva nipples to her lips. A couple more inches and she'd be able to have them.

"Then we'll both sleep," Eva promised with a grin. She snapped her fingers with a quick flare of magic, and rings of light encircle Kat's wrists. When Eva lifted away, she was held in place by them more strongly than a set of manacles. "Relax," Eva laughed at seeing her face, sliding down her body and leaving a wet trail. "You'll enjoy this just as much as I will. I'm just making sure you sit still long enough for it to work."

"I doubt that...Oh fucking gods!" she swore, as Eva intertwined their legs, and pressed their crotches tightly together. They were both really wet still, and Kat groaned at the feel of slick labia rubbing against her own.

"See?" Eva chuckled, and moaned a little herself, arching her back in pleasure. "You feel so good! Kat!"

Eva started rotating her hips, grinding their pussies, but she quickly shifted and pulled them both into a half sitting position. Kat had thought it felt amazing at the first, but this position had both their clits rubbing and slipping against each other constantly. She found Eva's other motivation for the change when the girl reached across to snag one of hands, which she freed, and placed it on one of her proud breasts. Kat groaned in chorus with Eva, and could not stop herself from groping the girl. She even began to move her own hips in counter to Eva and didn't move away when she noticed that her other arm had been freed as well.

"That's it!" Eva called, smiling wide.

Eva pumped her hips much more rapidly, and Kat felt herself rising back up with her new lover, matching her pace. Eva gave a great shout, and she felt something hot smearing onto her thighs. Her own orgasm, her third for the day she realized, hit right after Eva's, and they both fell back against the bed sheets, panting ridiculously in a tangle of limbs. Coming so soon after the orgasm in the shower, not to mention a day filled with training and an unexpected real battle, Kat felt strung out and exhausted.

She was so out of it that she didn't have much thought left to protest when Eva gently laid down behind her, and pulled her in close. Instead she closed her eyes and just let sleep take her. She could deal with Eva's affection for her in the morning. It was easier that way, and she had to admit, if only in her mind, that it felt good to sleep next to someone.

She awoke briefly in the middle of the night at the insistence of her bladder and was disturbed by how comfortable and restful it felt to be nestled tight to Eva, who was sound asleep. She had to squirm free of the girl's grasp in order to find the toilet, but when she got back and climbed into the bed again, she paused and looked at her sleeping mentor. It was impossible to deny how good Eva made her feel, and how much she came alive when the girl was near and touching her, but she was also so infuriating to deal with. She just could not stand losing to her either, which, if she was honest with herself, made no sense at all.

Asleep though, Eva was peacefully beautiful like some sort of snow queen, and tangled casually in the sheets. Curiously, she ran a hand over the girl's sleeping form, confident Eva wouldn't wake, and just enjoyed how she felt. Then she snorted in sleepy amusement at her own fallibility and moved over to an empty part of the bed, where she claimed a free pillow. She went back to sleep, vowing to do better the next day.