“He’s made a few,” she replied, pulling a necklace out to show me. Hanging from it was a little trinket that reminded me of a vial, but when she angled it, I saw a little piece of stone with circuitry around it. “Three, actually, but he’s working on more.” She gestured to the table of us. “You think I would’ve let this happen without?”

  “Smart,” I replied, then frowned at Fiare. “Meaning, you wouldn’t need to be linked.”

  “Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t want to,” she replied, laying it on thick.

  My eyes darted to her cleavage, then to the annoyed look from her sister.

  “The irony is,” Jalee told the table, “my sis here has always been more of a muffin diver.”

  Fiare frowned. “New Earth term?”

  Jalee nodded.

  “I’ll assume I know what that means and explain it for all here while making my case. Yes, if muffin means pussy, I love it. Nothing wrong there. But Ferris has proven himself in many ways, not the least of which is as a lover. I find myself both inspired by him and intrigued by the stories I hear.”

  “Stories?” I asked, feeling my cheeks flush.

  “You dog,” Arturo said with a laugh.

  “Sorry,” Koharu spoke up, “were we not supposed to tell her how amazing you are? Her and all the others?”

  I shrugged, reminding myself how they viewed sharing stories like that as a true compliment.

  “Moving on,” I said, but paused at the way Fiare cringed. “Not that I don’t want this to be discussed, but maybe back at the mansion? Maybe you ladies can discuss among yourselves?”

  “Eh, I’m open to her joining us,” Kinara said. “Gotta wonder what a dragon tongue feels like down there.”

  Fiare grinned, flicking her tongue out briefly.

  “Agreed,” Koharu said.

  “Ladies,” I protested, then felt a salt packet hit my head. I turned to see Arturo with another, wagging a finger at me.

  “Dude,” he hissed, “know when to shut it.”

  He had a good point. Fiare was gorgeous; why would I do anything to impede her joining us in the bedroom? I held my hands up in surrender.

  “Does anyone here oppose?” Ahlaksiz asked.

  None did, but Bloodsong cleared her throat. “To be clear, am I in, or…?”

  “Of course you are,” Ahlaksiz waved her question off. “Just, never when I’m in the same room. That’d be too weird.”

  Bloodsong nodded, eyeing me with a bit of shy excitement. “Agreed.”

  “In that case,” Ahlaksiz continued, “to make sure it’s clear, both of you are officially going to be welcomed into the fold when we return.” She patted Bloodsong on the back, then leaned over to shake Fiare’s hand. “It’s going to be fun.”

  Fiare was watching me hungrily, and when her eyes darted to the bathroom door, I had the feeling she was about to propose we not wait. I was too full, however, and the smell of grease and burnt meat was starting to get to me.

  As much as I was excited to have some time with all of them, this wasn’t it.

  Seemingly sensing this, Bloodsong spoke up. “So tell us your plan with all this STP stuff?”

  “Right.” I took a swig of my root beer, ate a Dorito, then leaned in, elbows on the table. “Way I see it, STP arranged this, so… what if they’re in with whatever this other group is?”

  “I thought STP was trying to stop monsters or something?” Arturo said, clearly getting an under-the-table handjob from Shelice.

  “That’s right. Except, what if that’s only part of it? If they tried to hand us over, for whatever reason.”

  “And you think we can find answers there,” Ahlaksiz said.

  I nodded, finishing the root beer.

  She leaned back, considering this. “For all we know, it could be over. At the same time, we had plans to take down STP anyway.”

  “Right.”

  “And if we get in there, we might find these answers?”

  I shrugged. “What do you think? Someone has to know something. Worst case scenario, we take them down, but nothing happens. Best case, we find out how they’re connected, then use it to put an end to this bullshit. Cut off their means of transport before they have a chance of getting to Earth.”

  “And stop them from ever returning to the monster world,” Fiare said, leaning back with an arm up on the chair next to her, where Jalee sat.

  “Exactly.” Eyeing the table, I took a swig of Milrae’s milkshake, cringed at how over-the-top sweet it was, then said, “Who’s ready to go on the offensive and show these STP punks what we’re made of?”

  Pounding on the table and cheers came as my answer. Whoever was working the back, to their credit, stayed out of sight, and the counter girl did her best to ignore us.

  “Only one rule,” Milrae said, snatching her milkshake back. “Get your own damn shake.”

  I laughed, pointed at her, and said, “Deal.”

  17

  Everyone was finishing and resorting to stories of growing up and where they came from when Arturo returned from going to the bathroom. He had his phone out, eyes wide as he said, “Dude, dude, dude…” He made his way over to me, putting the phone in front of my plate.

  “What...”?” I started, then saw what was happening and picked it up, watching explosions and that all-too-familiar platform. This was the hunter. That female hunter we’d gone through to stop, to keep from further hurting the monster world.

  Not only had she shown herself, but it looked like she had company.

  “It seems our timeline has just moved up,” I said, handing the phone over to Ahlaksiz. At curious and confused looks from the others, I explained, “That main hunter is here. Others, too, attacking.”

  “Meaning, she either brought more over…?” Jalee asked.

  “Let’s hope not,” Bloodsong chimed in. “Actually, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were some already here. Junior hunters who followed other monsters through, and either weren’t sure what to do so went into hiding, or knew exactly what was happening and stood by, awaiting orders.”

  “That seems far-fetched,” Fiare said, scratching her chin. “But better than the alternative—the idea that they have another way of getting through. Let’s hope for the less likely, then.”

  “And STP?” Koharu asked. “Are they there?”

  I frowned, looking over Ahlaksiz’s shoulder. “I don’t know.”

  “Is it possible this is a distraction?”

  That was a weird way to see it, and if true, I was glad we had the others back at the mansions for protection.

  “Arturo, we gotta drop you off, man,” I said. “Sorry.”

  “Hey, do what you gotta do,” he replied and grinned at his lady friend.

  She, however, was looking at the rest of us. “This fight… when do the rest of us join?”

  “Actually…” Ahlaksiz shifted to face her. “It’s not a bad idea to get some of you involved sooner than others.”

  “I can vouch for them if that’s the concern,” Fiare noted.

  It definitely was. But another thought hit me. “We’d have to keep them close to those with Greg’s items, right? I mean, those who aren’t claimed.”

  “Linked,” Fiare noted. “I like the sound of that more.”

  I nodded, seeing her point.

  “It’s agreed then,” Fiare said. “I’ll pick out some of the ones I think will be most useful, and we’ll either choose to link them, or assign them to groups with the items.”

  “None of this will be an issue once the hunters are gone, right?” Kinara asked.

  “Maybe, but I was able to use my connection to the spirit realm to see you all,” I countered. “If others, like that witch Void, can also do this…”

  “Good point,” Jalee said. “Better to be safe.”

  Milrae growled, and we all turned to her. She had her claws in what was as close to fists as they could be.

  “Are you okay?” Koharu asked.

  “It’s the idea of Ferris and…” She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.

  “Actually,” I said, eyeing Arturo. “It wouldn’t have to be me. Or not only me…”

  “Wait, what?” He had been snuggling his six-armed lady, whispering something in her ear.

  “Ferris here just suggested you fuck a bunch of monsters to help them not be traceable,” Bloodsong explained with a laugh.

  His cheeks turned red, but the lady with him laughed.

  “I’ll see that he does,” she said.

  “What?” He guffawed.

  “Sure, there’s no reason not to. Should be fun.”

  He gulped, turned his eyes to me, then gave me a subtle nod. It was likely to say thanks,’ but I thought he was also a bit overwhelmed by the idea. Why shouldn’t he be? Some of those monsters were quite intense.

  “Don’t worry,” Ahlaksiz said. “Not all have to be linked, and I’m sure we’ll end up taking on another one or two.”

  “Enough talking,” Milrae said, still frowning.

  I had to agree, so stood, left a tip, and motioned everyone to follow. Soon we were on our way back for a quick stop by the compound to figure out who else we’d take to the fight.

  Jericho was checking on Lizzy at the front door when we arrived. To my relief, she seemed to be doing much better. We quickly briefed him on what was happening, and he assured us he and his team would be there, ready in case the enemy struck.

  The rest of us gathered in the living room, other monsters who’d recently joined us starting to file in. I glanced around and asked about Arturo, but the humored smile I received from Bloodsong told me he was already helping to bond some of the monster ladies. I’d wondered if he needed to be a summoner for it to act, but apparently not—as long as they were linked, their old spiritual energy connection was severed.

  It was quickly established that male monsters who wanted to join the fight would team up with those holding the devices, and those Arturo was linking with would join us. We only had two of the hunter platforms, one from before and one new one we’d brought over. Therefore, it wasn’t like we would be able to take too many with us. The rest would remain at the mansions.

  “How do we know where to find them?” Kinara asked. “The attacks had to have ended in that spot where we saw them, right?”

  “I have a theory,” Greg said, joining us with a tray of fruits and cheeses. He grinned, clearly excited to be part of the group. “I’ve been filled in that some of STP might be working with the hunters, or those who they work for. So, my thought is—they might not only have been trying to stop monsters but accumulating them. Turning some, or whatever. Point is—”

  “There will be a bunch in one spot,” I said, catching on. “So, if we’re close enough, I should be able to spot them.”

  “Exactly. They never told me where STP’s base of operations was, but I picked up a thing or two.”

  “And…?” Ahlaksiz asked.

  He held the moment for anticipation, then said, “Ladies and gents, and of course all you amazing monsters, we’re going to a little spot known here as Hawaii.”

  “The fuck?” I laughed. “Really? Why there?”

  “At first, I kept hearing about it and thinking people were taking vacations, but after the fifth or sixth time, I became suspicious. It wasn’t until I met your lava friend that I started putting it together, especially with talk of lava gods. Tectonic activity, volcanic eruptions, they all have their basis in science, of course, but what if they’re related to something else happening? Portals and monster tests, or monsters trying to break free? It might be nothing, but I’d be willing to bet that if we head over, we’ll find what we’re looking for.”

  “But the attack earlier, where was that?” I asked.

  Arturo had his phone and checked. “San Diego.”

  “Not far from here,” I said, frowning. “But also, not super far from Hawaii, I guess. What was the point of that attack?”

  “I know that one,” Bloodsong chimed in. “I wasn’t sure at first, but did a bit of research, looking over my notes, and I’m ninety-nine percent certain that was where one of the main monster orgs is based. They cross over all the way down to Rosarito, using crime along the border as cover for some of their more nefarious activity.”

  “My bet is they were either looking for new recruits or food,” Ahlaksiz offered with disgust.

  “Exactly.”

  I leaned back, let out a deep breath, and shook my head. “Fine, we ride out and get ourselves some spam for dinner, with a topping of STP for added flavor.”

  Greg chuckled. “Man, I envy you all. Traveling the world, kicking ass.”

  “Or getting our asses handed to us,” I pointed out, standing and motioning to the doors. “Let’s ride.”

  “Wait,” Milrae said, eyeing the group of monsters Fiare had lined up. “I just found our next recruit. We need to bring her in, ASAP.”

  “Huh?”

  “And my sister,” Jalee noted.

  “Ladies, we’re in a bit of a rush,” I pointed out.

  “Fine, we do it on the way over. You can manage, right?”

  I gulped, looking around, and saw Fiare approaching.

  “The other, maybe,” she said. “He and I can take care of it while the rest of you gather everyone up. It’s a simple bonding, right? Shouldn’t take more than like thirty seconds.”

  “Hey,” I started to protest, then shrugged. “Yeah, I mean, if that’s the goal.”

  “This time, it is.”

  Milrae grinned. “Good, get her in, get mine on the ride over. Let’s move.”

  Fiare took my hand, pulling me with her, while the rest of the team watched with humor, Ahlaksiz making a sign like pointing at a watch that she didn’t wear.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “Hey, just because it’s going to be short and sweet, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be special,” Fiare said. “To the balcony. When I was out there watching that show, it was all I could think about.”

  “While watching a show about death, blood galore?”

  She grinned. “Yeah. Sexy stuff.”

  I blinked but wasn’t about to argue. We emerged onto the balcony, and she wasted no time. With her clothes out of the way, she pulled out my cock and turned, hands on the railing. Ass out—a peach of an ass, with dragon tail lifted out of the way, curling around me and pulling me close. Her golden wings spread, too, and she reached back to caress my balls for a few seconds before taking my hard cock and guiding it in.

  Her pussy was tight but wet. I worked the tip in slowly, having to ease it in and out a few times before I could get fully in, then she was moving her hips with the motion. I was able to reach around and caress her clit with one hand, grabbing her breast with the other, though the wings were pressed up against me. One fluttered, pushing me back, and I nearly lost it.

  “Careful there,” she said, tail pulling me back in.

  “Sorry, this is different,” I admitted, considering that Kinara’s wings were connected to her arms, and Milrae’s weren’t so full as this.

  “Let me… speed things up for you,” she said, then took my hand, pressing it harder against her clit. “You go faster and harder, I’ll do the rest.”

  Sure. Of course. Harder and faster. Easier said than done, considering how tight she was, but I went for it, giving it my all. It worked for her, bringing her to a quick climax. To my surprise, when she started to cum, her whole body heated up and she erupted with a burst of flames from her mouth, making me damn glad I was taking her from behind. What I hadn’t expected was the surge of warmth that flowed through me at that exact moment; as her flames erupted, so did my cock. I nearly fell into her, gripping both breasts, and burying my face in her neck. Her wings folded back around me, and for a second I held her like that, body convulsing, cock throbbing.

  Cheers rose from below. I pulled back to lean over and see the team there, two hunter platform vehicles ready, all clapping and looking up our way.

  A glance over showed Jericho at his mansion, shaking his head and laughing.

  “You all are nuts,” he called out.

  I waved, having no response, and slid my cock into my pants. “Ready?” I asked Fiare.

  She turned, pulled me in for a kiss, then said, “Now I am.”

  18

  “My girl’s turn,” Milrae said excitedly as I reached the car. We all piled in, though Ahlaksiz took the other one to drive, leaving her daughter and me to figure out this one. Milrae gestured the others aside and said, “Give them room, give them room.”

  “Wait,” I protested, eyeing the only unknown monster girl in the car with us. A woman surrounded in black, but for her white hands folded together in front of her, and bright yellow hair sticking up and in all directions. Her face was dark as if covered by a shadow, hair covering half of it and one bright pink eye staring out at me.

  If someone had told me she was a cardboard cutout from an anime, I would have almost believed them.

  “We don’t have time to wait,” Milrae said, already moving to try and undo my pants.

  “At least let us get off the ground.”

  “Give him a break,” Kinara interjected.

  Bloodsong laughed, getting the car into motion, pulling away from the mansion and into the air. “We all did just watch him get off. You really think he’ll be able to again so soon?”

  “He’s proven quite able so far,” Suiko noted, floating up from the dashboard, so she was like a head resting there at the front of the vehicle.

  “Ladies…” I cloaked the car, then turned to Milrae. “Maybe… introduce us first?”

  She frowned. “Sure, Ferris meet—”

  A burst of growling sounds came from the yellow-haired lady, eye pulsing with that pink light.

  Milrae hesitated, then said, “She doesn’t want you to know her name yet.”

  “No?” I turned to the friend. “But you’re okay with…?”

  Milrae growled a few incomprehensible words, then nodded. “She is, considering what it gets her.”

  I guffawed and shook my head. “This is too weird.”

  “You have to. So that when the fighting starts, we don’t have to worry about her being tracked.”