Chapter Sixty-Seven: Eruption

While I was as happy to have Tiana in my arms as she was to be carried like a princess, we both agreed walking through camp like we were probably wasn’t a good idea. Her shadow armor had some kind of enchantment to keep her naughty bits covered while she moved, but we’d learned the enchantment got a little more unreliable when someone else’s hands were involved. Mine especially.

I set her on her feet when the camp came into view and wrapped her up tightly in a cloak. The quick stop ended up not so quick when as soon as she was standing on her own two unsteady feet she found every excuse she could to run her hands across my chest and abdomen, and she all but refused to start walking again until I’d given her a kiss that ended up with me having to adjust myself before I could do any more walking.

Unfortunately for us, good ol’ Al was on watch when we finally stumbled into camp. Tiana was still flushed, smiling as wide as I’d ever seen her, and I wore a smile myself for once. Al, however, was his usual ornery self, though his gaze wasn’t fixed on us. He practically sneered in the direction of the trees.

“You seem to be in a good mood, Al,” I noted.

He shot me a glare that could have curdled milk. “You see Vivian out there?”

Tiana giggled, burying her face in my bicep, but I kept as neutral of an expression as I could manage. “We ran into her briefly. Why?”

He grumbled under his breath, then said, “she’s been going out into the woods a lot since we’ve stopped. No idea where she’s going or what she’s doing, but she’s been hiding her tracks too damn well to be a noble. I don’t trust her.”

“Al, you don’t trust anybody,” I felt the need to point out.

“I trust you to keep getting into shit that should kill normal people,” he shot back with a shrug. “Trust Yen to get into trouble the second I look away. Trusted Fel to be a right bastard at any given opportunity.”

“I stand corrected,” I said dryly.

He snorted. “I don’t trust the bitch. She’s up to something.”

Something about his attitude towards Vivian annoyed me. Considering I also suspected her of being considerably more than just a ditzy-yet-charismatic noble, I wasn’t sure why my hackles raised so aggressively. Maybe it had something to do with how I’d just flashed her in the forest or the image of her nipples poking through her sleepwear, one pierced and one not, that refused to leave my head. The way her expression had felt interested, frustrated, confused, and hopeless all at the same time. The odd, protective instinct that her expression had poked at.

But none of that was any of Al’s business. “Zoey and Reese have been nothing but helpful this entire expedition, I think that alone earns her the benefit of the doubt.”

He made a half-grumbling-half-growling noise that said he disagreed, but I’d had a good morning so far and I wasn’t about to let Angry Al shit all over it. “We’ll keep an eye out, Al,” I told him.

He pointedly looked from me to Tiana. “I’ll bet.” Then he went back to scowling at the forest like it had offended him.

Tiana and I exchanged a look, but she just shrugged. Unfortunately, the entire conversation wasn’t exactly out of the ordinary when it came to Al. Still, if Vivian was half as powerful as I suspected she might be, keeping Al from pissing her off might be something I’d end up having to do.

With Tiana happily on my arm, we threaded back towards the camp. On the way, we ran into Korey and Liana, who greeted us warmly. “Ren, just who I wanted to see,” Korey said. “Liana seems confident everyone we’ve rescued is ready to hit the road, and Pierce is as antsy to get moving as I am. Just wanted to get confirmation from you.”

“If Liana is confident, that’s fine by me,” I told him. His shoulders relaxed visibly. “I’m guessing you’ll want to get on the road as quickly as possible?”

He nodded. “I think that’d be best. We’ve had more than our fair share of excitement for this trip, and I really miss my bed.”

Tiana hummed. “I understand completely. I can’t wait to get in a bed myself,” she practically purred, her arms tightening around mine.

I was fairly certain both Korey and Liana’s cheeks darkened slightly, but other than that neither of them reacted. I managed to resist the urge to roll my eyes, instead saying, “I’ll let my girls know, and we can get moving as soon as everyone’s eaten breakfast.”

“Excellent,” Korey said with a clap.

Liana bowed her head. “I’ll have my girls get to packing as soon as they’ve eaten. I can also pass along the message to Reese or Zoey so they can inform Vivian when she returns. We have a few girls capable of driving a carriage as well, so if you’d like we can offer our assistance to give Miss Cynthia, Tsuki, or any of your drivers a break, Mr. Pravl.

It took me a moment to realize she’d been talking to Korey, and I silently kicked myself for not bothering to learn his last name sooner. I’d come a long way, but it seemed my people skills still had a long ways to go.

“Sounds good. Same as before, make sure anybody who needs to ride does so. I don’t need anyone straining themselves trying to prove anything.”

“Of course, sir. I’ll enlist Iris, she’s very perceptive and can help with the new additions as well.”

“Thank you, Liana. You’re a godsend.”

Her cheeks darkened further. “Many of us would argue that is your role, sir.” But she bowed again and glided off before I could respond.

Korey seemed amused. “You’re good with them,” he noted.

“Them?” I asked carefully, uncertain if he was referring to them being demi-humans or something else.

He nodded. “The people we’ve saved. They’ve been through something horrible, but they’re already doing better than I would have thought.”

Ah, that made more sense. “Some of them might sense a kindred soul, but I suspect the truth is that many of them aren’t nearly as okay as they’re pretending.” When he shot me a curious look, I sighed. “The more I learn about this whole system, the angrier I get. I’d suspect many of them haven’t had much of a chance to process trauma in their lives. Right now they’re in survival mode, forced to focus on making it to the next step before they have the luxury of reacting to what they’ve been through.”

He grimace. “You sound like you’re speaking from experience, so I’ll trust you on it. If there’s anything you need from me, don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll start everyone else moving.”

He clapped the shoulder Tiana wasn’t hanging off of and headed off. We made it the rest of the way to our tent without being stopped. Inside, many of them were starting to get dressed for the day. Tiana gave me a kiss, then whispered something about helping Rhallani choose her equipment for the day before heading over to wake the Arelim still snoring soundly.

I earned a few amused smirks while she walked somewhat unsteadily across the tents, but I didn’t acknowledge them. Instead, I told them that we’d be moving out while I dressed. Nariko was nowhere to be seen, but Noelle and the twins remained. Tsuki was still completely naked, and I tried my best to keep my eyes on her own. It wasn’t until my willpower crumbled and I raked a glance over her small, curvy body that she finally started to get dressed with the slightest quirk to her lips.

I shook my head, still not sure what to do with either of the twins. Especially when I realized Ryoko was pointedly avoiding my gaze while her tail hung limply between her legs. I took a moment to rub her head between her ears and she froze, finally looking up at me. “We’re fine,” I said softly, smiling.

She relaxed immediately and her tail perked up. She nodded once, her own lips curving in a small, soft smile, then headed to follow her sister. She risked a glance at me, her golden eyes brimming with uncertainty.

Before I could look away she made a point of shedding the shirt she’d slept in then bending over to pick her clothes up, her tail swishing with just enough force to give me a rather tantalizing view.

I was caught off guard for the second time today, my brain simply unable to keep up with everything happening, so I didn’t look away. Her cheeks flushed when she straightened and realized I was still watching, but she turned towards me to finish getting dressed. Tsuki noticed, but she simply pursed her lips and said nothing and started to pull her clothes on.

Seeing them both naked next to one another I realized their hair wasn’t the only thing that was different. While Tsuki had a lithe body, helped by the physical nature of her class and skills as well as the training she’d been doing lately, Ryoko was much softer. A bit thicker in the thighs, ass, and waist than her sister, but no less attractive for it. They both looked so much healthier than when I’d pulled them from the Pens, and a primal part of me was very pleased by that fact.

But as much as I’d like to, I couldn’t stand around and ogle the girls in my tent all day. Noelle had finished dressing already, and she walked over to help me. I raised a brow when she buckled on my sword belt, her hand brushing against my erection that was really struggling surrounded by all these beautiful girls, but she just flashed a small smile at me. When I got to the parts she couldn’t really help with, she just stood at my back and leaned into me. I’d just finished lacing up my boots when I heard a dramatic gasp.

“Zaren!” Rhallani called, storming over with a journal in hand and nothing on her lower body. “Tell me everything!”

For a second I wasn’t sure what she was talking about. My paranoid brain went first to Ryoko’s orgasm this morning, then to the moment that had lasted an eternity where Vivian’s eyes had been glued to my junk. They my eyes drifted to Tiana, who was smirking.

“The Link?” I asked carefully.

“Of course the Link!” Rhallani said sternly, dropping to sit with her legs crossed and her journal on her lap. A brief flash of pleasure crossed her face with a light moan and she shook her head. “Fuck, sat right on the plug.” She shifted, her hand disappearing beneath her, then sighed happily. “Right, spill mister.”

I told her everything I remembered while everyone else got dressed. Then, before she could yell at me for forgetting, I checked my Soul Essence. I was only seventeen short, which meant Tiana’s Link had only cost twenty before whatever I’d regenerated while fucking her ass into oblivion. When I told Rhallani as much, she frowned.

“I wonder if twenty is the new normal or if it’s something else. I wonder if this shimmer has anything to do with it. You’ve still got no idea what it could mean?”

“Not in the slightest.”

She nodded. “Well, we’ll have to keep an eye out for more shimmers then.”

I made an uncertain noise. “It’s hard to see unless I’m focused on the soul for a period of time. It isn’t really something I can just glance at a soul and see.”

She nodded again, this time more emphatically. “We can figure it out when we get to the capital, then. Until then, we can just be happy that you’ve Linked your whole harem.” Then she shot a grin at the twins. “Your current harem, at least.”

I wasn’t sure which sister blushed darker, but both of them very pointedly turned to start packing their things away. Neither of them showed any signs that they didn’t want that though, which made my poor, tired cock stir a little in my pants. From the soft chuckle behind me, I wasn’t the only one who noticed. It was so rare to hear Noelle come even close to laughing that it took me a moment to place the sound.

But, for the twins’ sake, I felt the need to redirect the conversation. I turned my gaze to Serena. She saw my look and paled. “Hang on a second, Zaren,” she said quickly, holding her hands up.

Too late. I grinned. “Serena has a new skill, and not one from leveling up.” Rhallani froze, her head turning slowly in Serena’s direction. “According to the level two Link, it’s a ‘Soul Tempered Skill.’ She didn’t want to tell me what it did, though.”

A strangled noise fought its way from Rhallani’s throat. “Serena! You’ve been holding out on me?”Serena shot me a dirty look. “I was going to tell everyone, I just haven’t had the chance yet. It’s called [Allura’s Kiss]. I can create a bond with someone else and use it to sense their status. Health, mana, and in Zaren’s case, Soul Essence.” She gave me a pointed look. “That means no more hiding injuries from your priestess.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I promised.

She smiled. “It also makes my healing more effective on you.”

“And the Link? How does it feel?”

Serena blushed. “I can feel him even more than before. I have to really focus to get anything of substance, but when I’m around him I feel like I can more accurately intuit how he’s feeling. And when the Link leveled…” she trailed off with a blush, pressing her fingers to her mouth and smiling.

Rhallani turned to me and I chuckled. “Same for me, actually. And yeah, considering what we were doing when the Link strengthened, it was quite the experience. I felt what she was feeling, and I tried to push some of my own feelings across the Link.”

Serena’s blush deepened and she strode across the tent, her head angled down, and right into my chest where she buried her face and wrapped her arms tightly around me. Noelle stepped back to let her, keeping a single hand on my back below where Serena’s arms were. I returned Serena’s embrace, running my fingers through her hair.

“It worked,” she said softly.

The expressions of all my girls were wistful, and I felt the need to say, “we still don’t know a lot about how the Links work, but I don’t think it’s solely based on how close we are. I think how long the Link has been active plays a role as well.” I checked across the Links. Sure enough, the newer the Link the weaker it felt. “Serena’s was always the thickest, but I’m pretty sure it was just because hers was the first I forged. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that all four of you will be level two before long.”

That earned me a barrage of dazzling smiles. This time, my heart was the organ jumping a little. Rhallani stood, then went to stow her journal once more. Her ass was pointed right at me, a bright blue gem winking at me from between her cheeks, and my blood was back to surging southward. She stood in a way that made me think she hadn’t even done it on purpose, which made me chuckle.

“Alright, so we’re heading out then?” she asked, hands on her hips.

“Rhallani?” Noelle said, holding out one of Rhallani’s skirts pointedly.

Rhallani looked down like she honestly hadn’t realized she’d been walking around baring her lower half to the tent, then simply shrugged and donned the skirt. She pointedly didn’t put on any underwear, winking in my direction to make sure I was aware of that fact.

I adjusted myself in my pants for what must have been the hundredth time today. “You all are killing me.”Rhallani just grinned. “What a way to go, though.”

# # #

I thought that we were breaking camp down fast before, but with all the extra hands we were on the road faster than ever before. By the time we were rolling, Vivian had returned from her trek in the woods and donned her standard attire, covering her body from the neck down with her hair cascading down her back. It still didn’t have quite the shine it used to though, and the layer of makeup under her eyes was thicker than I’d seen it.

She was clearly avoiding me, and I couldn’t exactly blame her. I wasn’t good with people on a normal day, so finding my way back from the ridiculous situation we’d found ourselves in seemed an impassable hurdle. Whatever the case, I figured trying to push her right now was a bad idea, so I resolved to give her the space she needed for a day or two. We still had about a week to go before we reached the capital, so there was time.

Serena remained by my side the entire day, a smile never far from her face. Rhallani and Noelle had both decided to spend the day with Safina and Valith, while Tiana rode the wagon with Cynthia and the injured. They spent most of the day talking in hushed tones that had me curious, but I figured they’d tell me what they were discussing when they were ready.

Around noon, though, Valith and Alice hunted me down to tell me what they’d found when they went searching for any sign of the flame archer. The short version? Not fucking much. But—and Valith made a point to say that they’d never have found it without Alice’s boosted sense of smell—they did find one thing. A small bit of metal that smelled like woodsmoke and honey, a strange combination that I found oddly alluring.

The metal itself was no more than a few centimeters long, and on either end was a small red gem. The second Valith dropped it in my palm, I felt the faint hum of magic. She said she’d shown it to Rhallani already, and that my Scholar seemed to think it was some kind of node in a larger array. It wasn’t inherently magical—which meant we had no real way to discern what its purpose might have been—it was a receiver for some other magical effect.

Both girls admitted they had no idea what the metal might be, and Serena seemed equally as confused by it. Something about the piece was vaguely familiar to me, but I wasn’t sure why. Not for most of the day, at least. Then a possibility occurred to me that caused a myriad of emotions to smack me upside the head. The longer I looked at the bit of metal, the more I thought my idea was insane. Unfortunately, the harder I thought about it the more I was sure I was right.

But it wasn’t the kind of theory I could voice, especially since it was mostly based on guesswork and intuition, so I eventually banished the bit to my storage and thanked Valith and Alice both for their help. Valith nodded curtly, though I thought Alice might have brightened a bit when I thanked her. They took their leave and headed back to Rhallani, Noelle, and Safina.

Thanks to the clear weather, we made good time. Many of the captives from the gnoll camp were walking without any issue, though Suriel still spent the day on the wagon with Sola and the other injured. Many of the girls from Feng’s camp spent the first part of the day walking, many of them clearly marveling in the knowledge that they weren’t in a cage any longer, but many of them had to call it quits and hop on the wagon by the end of the day.

When the day’s journey finally came to an end, camp went up just as fast as it had been taken down. Left with nothing to do, my household ended up in the center of camp providing entertainment. Pierce joined me for once and together we worked with Zoey, Serena, Yen, and Safina on improving their technique. Yen was skilled at defense, but her offense was severely lacking. Safina relied far too much on brute strength and raw power, so working on control was the main goal for her.

While we worked on the martial aspects of our classes, Valith and Reese worked with Nariko, Tsuki, and Alice nearby. Nariko was a master at moving unseen, but when it came to combat she was almost entirely self-taught. Alice, like Safina, had skated by on natural ability and class skills, but she was extremely eager to learn how to utilize her enhanced physical abilities to move stealthily. Tsuki, looking more determined than I’d seen her so far, eagerly soaked up every lesson they gave.

They weren’t the only ones working their skills, either. Tiana, it seemed, was something of a natural born teacher. She’d spent the first two years with her class learning every single aspect of her spells and mastering their use, and she used that expertise to help both Rastra and Lana do the same. It helped that Lana’s water and ice affinity helped anytime Rastra’s unruly fire magic got out of hand, and by the time dinner was ready the flame mage was already seeming more confident.

Their training had an added effect. Watching out of the corner of my eye, I confirmed what I’d suspected. Rastra’s fire magic was completely different than the flame archer’s in every way. The wildness in Rastra’s magic came from the fact that as soon as she’d cast the spell, she no longer had any attachment to it. She could create and initially direct the flames, but as soon as they’d been cast they became nothing more than mana infused fire. The archer’s flames had felt alive. I’d seen the way they’d curved in midair to hit the Rathum, and Rastra simply didn’t have that level of control.

The students collapsed gratefully onto the ground or folding chairs when dinner was served, and the sea of spectators were quick to shower them with compliments and praise. It seemed a day of travel had improved the morale of the camp drastically. Laughter and light conversation dotted the entire caravan, and by the time three of my four paramours dragged me to bed there was a happy tiredness in the air.

Though there were two notable exceptions.

Al, as always, was still Al, though he was slowly getting more blatant in his distrust of Vivian. The one time she showed her face tonight, he made sure she didn’t leave his line of sight. Vivian, in comparison, also seemed to be struggling. She showed up just long enough to down about half a bowl of food before she retired to her tent. She paused when her eyes met mine, and I was shocked by the tiredness I saw in them. I felt a rather sudden urge to find out what was wrong, to try and help with whatever issue seemed to be ailing her, but she was gone before I got the chance.

Noelle had returned to bunking with her friends. Kili was uncomfortable sharing a tent with a man, and she and Noelle had already become fast friends. Noelle returned to her tent with the twins and Nariko in tow, though not before she slipped close enough to leave a dark bite mark on my shoulder with a grin. After that I made sure the other three members of my harem were well sated, but after they’d all drifted off to sleep I couldn’t help but summon the little piece of metal that Alice had found. The smell of smoke and honey still clung to it, but so much about the little thing eluded me. I thought I knew what it might be, but I had no idea how to confirm my theory without causing a number of other problems.

Three more days passed in the exact same fashion. Wake up, usually to one of my girls “enjoying themselves” using my body, which I never had any complaints about, eat breakfast, travel for a day, stop, train, eat dinner, go to sleep wrapped in the two girls I knew I loved and one I was very quickly reaching the same point with.

The attitude in the caravan was shifting as well, but I wasn’t quite sure which direction it was leaning. On one hand, it certainly felt like the women we’d saved were recovering from their ordeal, physically if not mentally. Fewer and fewer of them were having to use the wagon during the day, and even Sola had started walking. She still rarely spoke, but she stuck close to Rastra and Yen most of the time. But even as I felt the freed women growing more comfortable, there was a rising tension that I couldn’t quite figure out.

A part of it was Al. The guy was really starting to wear on my nerves, and even Pierce had had to pull him aside to talk once or twice already. Al wasn’t fond of strangers, and all the sudden over half the caravan was made up of just that. Plus, his animosity towards Vivian had only grown. It had spread to a severe mistrust of both Zoey and Reese as well, and Vivian’s sharp tongue and intense (though usually rather entertaining) passive aggressive demeanor towards the man weren’t helping in the slightest.

That wasn’t the only factor adding to the tension, though. The demi-humans had all been getting better in some ways, but worse in others. More than a few of them looked like they weren’t sleeping well, and when I’d inquired about it to Liana she’d merely told me in a somber voice that many of the girls were suffering from some pretty bad nightmares. I could hardly blame them, but I wished there was something I could do to help.

But while I might have been powerless on the demi-human front, the Al and Vivian issue finally came to a head.

It was Alice that came and sought me out, barging into my tent in a panic. “Ren, you need to come quick, Al and Vivian—”

That was about as far as she got before she realized the position she’d found me in. I was currently balls deep in Rhallani’s ass while Serena sat on her face in an attempt to keep her moans quiet. Tiana was behind me, one hand caressing my front while the other rubbed circles around Rhallani’s clit, her lips and teeth doing a number on my neck, jaw, and shoulder. No sooner had Alice barged in than Rhallani came, clenching around me hard enough to draw out my own release. Alice watched with wide eyes and her mouth hanging open while I filled Rhallani’s ass to the brim with my seed, and it wasn’t until my release had passed through that I found it in me to answer.

“Alice, I’m afraid you’ll have to give me a moment,” I panted.

Extremely red-faced—and rubbing her thighs together—Alice nodded and slipped backwards out of the tent, her eyes never leaving where I was buried inside Rhallani. I pulled out with a groan and gave Tiana a kiss. “Better go make sure Vivian doesn’t murder the shit out of Al.”

Serena dismounted a blissful Rhallani. “You’d better go ahead, we’ll catch up,” she said.

I sighed heavily. I’d known this was coming, but did it have to happen while I was in the middle of something? “No, you three keep going. I’ll handle this.”

I threw on some pants and was still pulling my shirt on when I walked out. I’d expected Alice to be unable to meet my gaze, but instead she was eyeing me hungrily. I saw the way her eyes flicked down to my throat more than once and made a mental note to ensure she was fed after I dealt with whatever the hell was happening right now.

“Vivian was trying to leave the camp, but Al wouldn’t let her until she told him where she was going,” Alice said quickly, heading towards the opposite end of the caravan. “She refused, threw a couple of subtle insults at him, and then they started arguing. That’s when I came to get you. Um, sorry for interrupting.”

“It’s fine,” I promised. “Sorry if you got an eyeful back there.”

While normally I wouldn’t have been able to hear it, it was dark enough that I caught her mumbled, “I’m not,” that she said under her breath.

When they came into view—surrounded by a few onlookers—I came to a stop. I’d expected two people shouting at one another, but when I got a good look at Vivian I realized things were a bit more dire than I’d expected. Al was a step above his usual angry unpleasantness, but Vivian’s sickly sweet smile was cold. I knew the look of someone dangerously close to snapping. I’d worn the look more than once, and it had never ended well for its recipient. Vivian was on the verge of losing it, and instinct told me there weren’t many in the camp who could take her on if things went poorly.

It was time to defuse like a motherfucker.

I patted Alice’s shoulder to signal her to hang back and walked up to the couple. Reese and Zoey both flanked their employer. Where Zoey was locked onto Al, her hand on her weapon, Reese was watching Vivian’s every move with hawklike eyes that had me moving just a little quicker.

I sighed loudly, announcing my presence. “Al, what on earth are we shouting about right now? It’s far too late for this.”

He turned his body to me without taking his eyes off Vivian. “This deceitful bitch is trying to sneak off to do who knows what, and I won’t let her put the caravan in danger.”

Well then. A part of me wanted to just let Vivian have him, but the rational part of my brain pointed out that, while he was being a supreme ass about it, Al was just doing his job. “Al, hate to break it to you bud, but Vivian here doesn’t have any contracts with me, Korey, or Pierce. She’s a companion of convenience, which means she doesn’t owe us her secrets.”

He growled. “She isn’t what she seems.”

Vivian’s smile widened. “And what exactly am I, Alrik?”

Al stiffened, and his hand went to one of his blades. “I don’t know, but I know I’m not letting you creep off into the night anymore. Not without knowing what you’re doing. A noble wouldn’t know how to shake a ranger so easily.”

It was Vivian’s turn to stiffen, though I wasn’t sure exactly what had set her off. “As Zaren here so kindly pointed out,” she said through clenched teeth, “I am under no obligations to you. I will go where I please you incredibly unpleasant man.” Something about the words didn’t fit with the look in her eyes. For some reason, I expected a lot more vulgarity. The disparity was almost enough to make me miss her using my full name.

Almost.

Al took a threatening step forward and Zoey did the same. Vivian didn’t so much as twitch, though. I sighed again, stepping close enough to put a hand on his shoulder. “Let it go, Al,” I told him.

He shook off my hand. “Why? Because she’s spreading her legs for you, too? Or are you hoping to win her over by fighting her battles for her?”

“Oh, I’m not doing this for her,” I said. Vivian’s eyes flicked to me. “I was just in the middle of something and really don’t have the time or patience to clean up whatever’s left of you when she’s done.”

I wish I could have bottled the moment up to enjoy it later. Zoey sucked in her breath and Reese balked. Al opened his mouth to say something else likely hateful, but then closed his mouth in confusion as my words finally registered. Then his gaze flicked back to Vivian and his eyes narrowed before he took a step back cautiously, but I wasn’t looking away from Vivian.

Her expression was still that sweet smile, but it felt more like she was frozen in time than anything else. Her eyes stared at me for a while, her gloved hands clasped tightly in front of her, her jaw clenched so tight I worried Serena might have to work some magic on her poor teeth.

Then she blinked.

Then she blinked again.

“You…” she said finally, but the word trailed off. Before my very eyes, I watched the visage of Lady Vivian Cross shatter into a million pieces. Her smile fell first, then her brows came together. Her barely controlled expression melted into something much more akin to fury. The intensity and emotion in her eyes made my heart race.

And not out of fear.

“You…” she said again.

“Lady Vivian…” Reese said, her tone dripping with caution.

Then she took a step forward. “You motherfucker!”

Oh boy.

She took another step and I was very suddenly aware that I was within arm’s reach and I felt everyone but Reese and Zoey take at least two steps back. “How fucking long have you known?” she demanded.

I’d known that the mask Vivian had worn wasn’t anywhere close to who she really was, but I hadn’t quite expected this fiery version of her. It took a second to find my tongue. “I’m afraid you’ll have to be more specific.”

Her hand shot out and grabbed the front of my shirt, yanking me in close with a surprising amount of strength. Reese and Zoey both took a step forward, but they froze when Vivian snarled. Snarled. A sound I found myself liking considerably more than the airy giggle she’d seemed so partial to only a few days ago.

“Vivian!” Reese called again, her hands held out in front of her as if trying to calm a wild animal.

“How long have you suspected me, you slippery fuck!?” Vivian demanded.

[Giant Killer] seemed to flicker, like Vivian was still trying to decide if I was an enemy or not. The surge in my primal wasn’t as pronounced as it had been before, but logically I knew I should still be at least a little worried about the very angry Vivian in my face.

I was not. Not in the slightest, and I had no clue why.

I tried to fight it. I really did. Unfortunately, I failed. A grin slid onto my face, and I said, “well, probably sometime around ‘Lady Vivian Cross. A pleasure.’” I should not have enjoyed the rage mottling her cheeks quite as much as I did. I shrugged. “What can I say? I’m a very paranoid person.”

She growled, but my grin only widened. “You fucking read me that day with the tents. Fuck I knew it!” Her grip tightened, and suddenly she was nose to nose with me. There was a fire in her eyes, and her face seemed to glow with rage. “You godsdamned—”

“Vivian!” Reese called again, but Vivian was on a roll.

“—arrogant, reckless, bull headed—”

“Lady Cross!” Zoey yelled, trying to break through to her.

“—paranoid, clever, motherfucking—”

“JACK!” Reese shouted.

Vivian/Jack whirled towards her. “WHAT!?”

Reese just gestured towards where Vivian/Jack was gripping my shirt. Both of us looked down and I realized she wasn’t glowing, but rather reflecting the light of the fire between us. The fire that coated her entire hand and arm down to her elbow. Fire that didn’t frighten me nearly as much as it probably should have.

Like water had been dumped over her, Vivian/Jack hissed and jerked back, putting space between us. She didn’t look up at me, though. Instead, she stared at her hand in shock. I couldn’t see any part of her flesh past the gold and crimson flames that danced and swirled in a mesmerizing fashion. The same gold and crimson flames that had eviscerated the Rathum.

Her face twisted in concentration and I realized I’d slightly misunderstood. Her hand wasn’t wrapped in flame, it was flame. Before my very eyes, I watched as the flames slowed and condensed, dimming until they’d settled back to the golden tan of her skin. Where the flames had been the glove had burned away, which was slightly insane considering I knew they were enchanted to be flame resistant.

She looked at her hand in shock, panting slightly, then her eyes shot open. She stepped back towards me, a panicked look on her face, and pressed her now-bare (and no longer made of fucking fire) hand to where she’d gripped me a moment ago. Her touch sent fire racing through me (metaphorically speaking) but didn’t hurt me at all. In fact, despite the annihilation of her glove, my shirt wasn’t even singed.

Vivian/Jack’s look of panic was replaced by one of pure confusion. Her brow furrowed, not in anger this time, and she ripped my shirt up to see the skin underneath. No burns there either. Only then did she seem to realize what she was doing and turned an alluring shade of scarlet that complimented her fiery hair quite well.

She released my shirt and took several steps back, shaking her head. “I…I didn’t…” She swallowed, then turned on her heel and strode back towards the center of camp, ducking into the tent I knew Zoey and Reese shared.

When I turned back to the two owners of the tent, they were watching me intently. From the tightness of their bodies and their stances, I figured they were waiting one me to react poorly to whatever the fuck had just happened. I just jerked a thumb towards where Vivian had gone. “Might want to go check on her. I don’t know how her class works, but I’ve only got so many tents and I didn’t think to invest in the fireproof ones.”

They both gaped. “You’re not…” Zoey started.

I shrugged. “We’ll deal with it later, preferably when she’s had a minute to calm down.” Then I pointed at Al. “And you’re going to give her space. She already doesn’t like you, and you don’t seem very fireproof to me either.”

Al paled, then stalked off to resume his watch while muttering to himself. It was about as good as I’d get to an agreement from him. I looked back to the two of them. “Well? Like I said, I’m really not in the mood tonight. We can all talk more tomorrow.”

They exchanged an incredulous look, but they didn’t argue. They both sped off after Vivian and I just shook my head, running my hands through my hair. My reactions to literally everything she’d done had been far from normal, which was something else I was going to have to deal with. For now, though, I was going to blame it on still being incredibly horny and the knowledge that three very beautiful, very naked women were currently waiting on me to fix that.

I could deal with the rest tomorrow.