“You’d take me right here, if you could,” she said, and allowed her lower half to become solid, so that I felt her thighs around me, and the rub of my cock against her pussy. “But you know what?”

  “What?”

  “I’m just making a point, for now.” She laughed, floating up alongside me again, then behind as if riding how Lizzy had. The difference was that she wrapped her arms around my chest, simply holding me. “If you had any idea how many lives I’ve seen ruined because of a man’s cravings for the flesh…”

  “I’ve seen movies. Read books. I’m not surprised.”

  “In that case, you’d be smart to control those urges. Oh, don’t get me wrong. I’m not worried by it, but you never know who might be. I’ve noticed that ‘Milkshake’ can get a tad jealous.”

  “You and me both.”

  “There you go. Would you be willing to mess that up?”

  I shook my head, horrified at the thought. “Never, not in a million years.”

  She leaned her head against my back, caressing my chest. We rode in silence, following Void’s lead. But my mind was on Suiko, and how cool she was about everything. Maybe that was a wisdom or patience that came with age, or something that had happened in her life?

  “You’re not… possessive,” I whispered.

  “Of you?” She leaned back, then floated to move alongside me again, as if riding at my side. “When I met you, it was with a gaggle of girls. You were hardly mine exclusively, so I knew what I was getting into. If anything, it’s a relief. As if I’m joining a secret society. Some of the monsters, I think they might be used to this multi-person relationship situation, but there are still rules they follow. The fact that you haven’t used your totems on them says what kind of man you are, and I have no doubt you’ll treat them right.”

  “Them, you…” I adjusted my totem bracelet, wondering what use it had here, if any. Maybe to control those who were associated with the totems, but I wasn’t into that idea. “I’ll do my best.”

  I felt her lips on my cheek, and smiled as she became a ball of light, floating into my chest. Warmth flowed through me, and all the panic I’d felt at losing some of the team eased. My worry wasn’t gone, simply managed, focused more into determination.

  “How much farther do you think we have to go?” Koharu said, slowing to pull up alongside us.

  “Void, what do you think?” I called ahead.

  She turned her mount, watched as we rode up, then asked, “Can’t you sense them?”

  I wasn’t sure if she was talking to me, but I shook my head. “Not exactly.”

  “Try.”

  We had all come to a stop now, and I glanced at the other two, feeling the warmth of Basty on me, the calm from Suiko within.

  “Don’t hold back,” Void said. “You have some sort of connection to the power of the Iridant, don’t you? The spiritual plane.”

  I blinked, confused by that. “You… you know about that?”

  “Of course. The question is, how do you?”

  I decided being upfront was the best. “Back in our world, there was a man. He helped me, taught me to home in on the ability.”

  She stared at me, eyes focused as if trying to see all my deepest, darkest secrets.

  “We’re wasting time here,” Koharu interrupted the silence. “When I was in there, it was horrible. If the others are going through that—”

  “Worse, if they’re already being delivered to the hunters,” Void replied, snapping out of it. “We’re going, but I have to understand this. You’re saying a man in your world… He taught you to do this? To connect to the Iritka?”

  I shrugged, then nodded.

  “In that case, I might have to go back with you, if given the chance.”

  “The ability is so rare?” Lizzy asked.

  “As far as I know, yes. The bigger question for me, however, is if it’s possible I’m not the only one of the original seven remaining.”

  We shared curious glances, wondering if this woman had a connection of some sort to the man we’d come to know as Vaper.

  “I can sense them, and believe this ability is similar to what allows the trappers to find them.”

  “Like how the hunter could find them back home, until they were claimed,” I said, excited to be putting the pieces together and thinking of those early days with Kinara and Jalee.

  The others looked at me with confusion, and Lizzy asked, “Claimed? As in… they became your property?”

  “I’m not the one who made the rules, and no, not—come on, don’t start with that.”

  She arched an eyebrow. “Not the time, anyway.”

  I couldn’t agree more but wanted her to know that it wasn’t like that for me. All I could do was be myself and hope she’d trust me in that.

  “You can use that connection here,” Void said, turning her mount to ride again. “Not in the same way as in your world, I’d imagine. But… as the hunters do.”

  That struck me as on point, because earlier it had made them glow. Maybe that was somehow connected to a trace, as she was saying? We all started riding, and I was glad none of them said what I was thinking—here, it was like I was a hunter. That thought gave me the chills. Such chills soon faded quickly as I tried reaching into the spirit power within, and suddenly felt their presence.

  They weren’t all in one spot, though, and a very powerful, solo presence was nearby. A glance back from Void showed that she knew I’d connected and confirmed that we were close.

  8

  My spirit sight saw the first of my team not as a captive, but as a force of nature tearing through a wall of metal. I wasn’t sure what she was after, as I couldn’t see whatever was beyond that. And it wasn’t until we were close that I could see it was Devasla. She was in full form, like when I’d first met her. Covered in red and fire and armor, and maybe three times taller than any of us.

  Her attacks hit as explosive bursts of lava and plasma, melting metal, and tearing into it. At first, I wasn’t sure how she had arrived there, until I noticed the metal bits strewn about that might have been the legs of a trapper. Wherever the rest of it had gotten off to, I had no clue.

  “Need some help?” I asked, riding ahead of the others.

  I leaped from my mount, thrusting out my hand and calling on the hunter sword, looking for anyone I could strike.

  Devasla turned, peeling open a section of the wall enough for us to fit through. It was a defensive, external wall, so we were still outside when we passed through.

  “You’ll have fighting enough in there,” she said, glancing back and eyeing the others to see who was still with the group.

  “What’s within?” I asked.

  “Amabie.”

  I frowned, trying to look in with my spirit vision, but she wasn’t there. Then it hit me—I couldn’t see Lizzy or Suiko with it, because neither were monsters. When I tried shifting my focus, I was able to see another form, which I assumed to be Amabie. A glance back showed Lizzy, Koharu, and Suiko. Apparently, they were on another frequency of sorts.

  “Let’s get her then,” I said, starting for the opening.

  Devasla put a steaming hand in my path and pointed at Lizzy. “How’d you partner up with her but not Randi?”

  “When Randi was taken—”

  “She wasn’t taken,” Devasla cut me off. “She was pursuing them. She was the hunter, not the hunted.”

  I frowned, eyeing Lizzy. She had just arrived and had to have heard that part.

  “Did you know?” I asked.

  Lizzy glanced away, then nodded. “Randi will help if she can, but she’s here for one reason, and that reason rises above the rest. All that matters to her is finding her grandfather.”

  I grunted, acknowledging that, and nodded. It wasn’t like I should have expected otherwise from Randi, but still I had hoped for more.

  “And this woman?” Devasla asked, finally stepping out of the way.

  “A friend. Long story.”

  “I bet.” Devasla gave her a once-over, then followed me in, the others dismounting and close behind. All except Void, who stayed put on her mount.

  “I’ll keep watch,” she said, eyeing the wall with skepticism. “This… is a distraction.”

  “A distraction?” Devasla asked, growling and looking like she was about to send an attack back her way.

  “It’s okay,” I said. “She has her agenda, we have ours.”

  We turned back to the way ahead, where we came through the wall to find three figures with Amabie. She was held in metal bonds, a gleaming metal axe held high over one of her fins. Shit, they were fixing to have themselves some sushi! A quick glance showed they wore armor like that first hunter we’d killed—jagged, with spikes, and helmets covering their disgusting faces. Only their jagged teeth showed from beneath.

  That other hunter had been difficult to go up against back then, and now there were three. Then again, we had a bit of a different mix of teammates this time around. I wasn’t sure if that meant this would be easier or more difficult but seeing Devasla glowing at my side made me more confident.

  My priority was making sure that axe didn’t connect with Amabie. I charged forward, sword swinging, and hit with my vibration ability at the same time to throw them off balance. I clicked my tongue, swung, and the axe moved through the air. I connected, but not to block the axe as planned. Instead, I hit armor. The sword went through the armor and lodged into bone, causing the axe to drop. It was still falling for Amabie, and she yelped through the constraints on her face; that was when Suiko intervened, giving enough of a push that the axe lodged into the rock next to Amabie, only drawing a small line of blood at her thigh.

  Devasla plowed into one of the other hunters, and Basty did his thing to scare off the closer two before Koharu managed to join us. She hit the hunter in front of me, while I pulled my sword free. Another swing missed, and I saw a shadow showing where a strike was coming for my head. With no time to get out of the way, I turned my armored side into it and braced for impact. The blade hit and sent me stumbling back. To my surprise, the armor wasn’t even scratched—perhaps I’d have to rethink the idea of avoiding more of it.

  “Watch out,” Koharu shouted.

  I spun, only then seeing the three flying disks headed my way. Worse than that, a platform had scooped up one of the hunters and he knelt, drones flying out from it. Turning to take in our situation, I noted Devasla kneeling over one of the hunters, his body now a bloody pulp of bent metal. She looked up and I nodded, knowing she would take care of the drones. As Koharu and Suiko worked to keep back the other hunter, I’d take out the platform with the help of Basty.

  My legs burned as I sprinted and pushed myself up, sword digging into the platform so I could leverage myself up and over. As I landed in front of the hunter, I was almost stopped by the sight of his disgusting face. Apparently, Devasla had gotten in a shot that had split the helmet. Half the helmet was stuck to his head, smoldering, the other half gone. The part of his face that remained was dark green, skin like thick leather with jagged bone ridges along the cheek and jaw.

  “You’ve made a mistake coming here,” he said, and stood.

  I was about to show him he was wrong, when pillars on the platform rose around me, runes lighting up on them, then blue electricity forming walls. It was like our own little boxing ring.

  “You think this will hold me?” I asked, laughing. “Thing is, I’m not trying to run away.”

  “Perfect.”

  The hunter held his arms out and the electricity redirected to hit me with so many bolts I thought I would shit myself. Pain wracked my body, my mind almost unable to think of a way out of it, until Suiko appeared at my side, helping to divert some of the attack.

  That was enough of a distraction that I could focus on hearing Basty’s yelping of pain. Apparently, he didn’t do so well with this sort of attack. I pulled him free, tossed him up, and said, “Attack with all you’ve got!”

  In that moment I rolled back and recalled my sword, striking at one of the pillars. It hit, and as the electricity faltered, Basty connected with a mental strike that sent the hunter to his knees, hands to his head. The whole platform veered out of control, slamming into a domed metal building and throwing us clear.

  I landed on the dome on my back, staring up at the open sky, then realized I was slipping. Panicking, I managed to turn and get hold as Suiko flew up next to me and braced herself. There, she reached and took my hand, helping me the rest of the way. Basty was zipping about as a flash of dark essence but came to me when I held out my hand.

  There he was, his little hairball self. And below, the hunter had crashed, exploding in a burst of electricity and flames. The last of the three was going strike for strike with Devasla, proving himself to be the strongest of the group. As they fought, Koharu was working to free Amabie.

  “Can you get me there?” I asked.

  Suiko nodded, and said, “Jump,” before sliding down into the path. I went for it, feeling as if I’d landed in a cloud, and we swept down to the other side of Amabie to free her.

  “Ferris,” Devasla called out, and I looked back to see that the hunter had her pinned in place with what looked like a series of blue energy fields. None of her strikes would do a damn thing.

  “Let me at them,” Amabie growled, and we had her free. She was up, leaping and spinning with her fish tails taking over for her legs as she grabbed the man and pulled him. They flipped through the air, water from the river reaching out to meet them and pull them under its surface.

  For a long moment, the two were gone; then finally she emerged, red water dripping from her skin, visible by the bright glow from Suiko and Devasla.

  “Done?” I asked.

  She nodded. “All taken care of. The rest?”

  “Next.” I turned and motioned to Devasla, Suiko, and Koharu there, with Lizzy at the broken wall. Void stood behind her, hand on her mount’s neck.

  “You might have found a back way into wherever those trappers are taking your friends,” Void said, pointing to the river. It led to the rocky cliffs nearby, but it seemed to go through a bit of a cavern. Possibly one wide enough to walk through.

  “Save the introductions,” I said, and we didn’t waste any time other than me taking Amabie in my arms for a quick hug; then, after Devasla managed to calm herself enough not to burn me, I embraced her, as well.

  It was a quick journey, leaving our mounts on the other side of the river. I tried my spirit sight again and saw blurs ahead—enough so I could assume more than one of the monster gals were in this direction.

  Finally, we reached the end of the river, but stood there taking in the sight ahead.

  What we stared up at reminded me of a high-tech version of Angkor Wat, the multi-tiered temple in Cambodia. As if it had been built in Tokyo more recently, instead of who knew how long ago in a third-world country.

  “There’s our destination,” Void said. “And the rest of your friends.”

  9

  Devasla pulled me aside, her intensity nearly burning my skin as we touched. Her eyes were fiery, hair even more so. The others had just started to work their way forward, moving toward the fortress.

  “I can explain about the new lady,” I started, but she held up her other hand, cutting me off and motioning to Amabie, who had lingered and was now looking our way.

  When Amabie joined us, Devasla said, “Your new friend isn’t some random straggler. I know her.”

  “Void?” I asked, as if there could be anyone else she was referring to.

  “That’s not her name.”

  “Oh, I know. We decided to call her that.”

  “You know her name?” Amabie asked Devasla.

  The Ifrit shook her head. “No, but I know she has many given names in these parts. We don’t have time to get into it now, clearly. But suffice it to say, she has her own agenda. I also think she could have torn through those hunters back there without a second thought.”

  “You think she could betray us?” I asked.

  “All I’m saying is to keep your eyes on her and be ready for anything.”

  I took note of that, quickly moving to Amabie’s side and taking her hand. She looked down at our hands clasped together and gave mine a squeeze, then pulled hers away.

  “While I appreciate you coming to my rescue,” she said, “I’m not your typical little lovey-dove gal who needs hand holding and petting. Let’s keep our affection to the emotional connection we share, and lovemaking in appropriate locations and at appropriate times.”

  This was more how I’d expected Amabie to act. Maybe it was because she had been so much more playful than I’d assumed she would that I had now acted this way? I could be okay with different styles of affection, especially with the promise of some physical reminder of our love when the time and place were both right.

  “For the record, I’m pleased to see you,” Amabie said, and she placed a hand on my cheek. “And when we do have the opportune time and place, I plan on showing you how much I appreciate you all coming for me.”

  I grinned, loving how she smiled, enjoying the view as she turned and walked to join the others. Yes, part of her ass was covered by the fish tail, and that was weird—but not any weirder than what was becoming my norm lately.

  We all crept forward, emerging into a bit of a forest that went around to the left of the fortress. The trees grew along the rock wall, almost meeting what looked like a garden ahead. With my spirit vision, I saw several of our team on the far side, but at least one or two closer. It wasn’t easy to know exactly what I was looking at.

  One thing I noticed as we moved, however, was that Lizzy had stopped awkwardly checking me out. Maybe it was the risk of being caught, now that more of the ladies were with us, but I thought it was more to do with the growing used to it. As strange as that idea was, two attractive people who had only recently met could run along naked with each other and start to feel that it wasn’t strange. True, when I looked over and noticed her breasts bouncing as she ran, it was hot. But not in the “Oh my God, she’s naked” sort of way.