Nikita knocks softly on the door to the King’s chambers and waits nervously, in a t-shirt and leggings, paired with some black pumps. She releases a couple of mosquitoes and is greeted by Halpron with a warm hug, “Welcome Saviour.”
She moves to kiss him, but stops herself, sensing others in the room.
Angela smiles and hugs Nikita in greeting, her iridescent toga shimmering in the afternoon sunlight. Corven however is more reserved, in a well worn boiler suit, waving a greeting from the dining room.
“You asked to see us.” Angela says, taking a seat.
Nikita’s nostrils flare almost imperceptibly, when the flies taste Angela and Corven’s blood. “He is an engineer and a fair but hardworking man, who expects a lot from his people. She is one of the faithful, devoted to the order and its principles. She is ruled by the same fairness Halpron is. The both have a strong sense of honour. I think, I can trust them.”
She takes a seat, feeling a sense of peace and nodding to herself. “Yes, I appreciate you coming at such short notice. However, I think you will understand the need for urgency and discretion.”
Halpron leans forward, “Is everything alright Niki?”
Nikita smiles and nods, “Yes, your Majesty. If I am right, I have something of use for Atlantis. But first, a little explanation if I may?”
The King nods, gesturing that Nikita has the floor.
Nikita passes a small vial to Angela and asks, “How quickly can this be turned into a philosopher’s stone?”
Angela takes the vial and looks deep into the ether, “It is pure what you would call PCS.” She says absent mindedly, “Not as high quality as yours, however, it is very viable. Maybe an hour or so.”
Nikita nods, almost appearing in two minds, “Excellent. How much material would you be able to convert with it?” She asks, already suspecting the answer, from the knowledge Angela’s blood has given her.
Angela leans back in her chair and thinks, raising her eyebrows, “Depends on the original and converted materials, but for say, lead into gold maybe a fifty kilograms or carbon into steel maybe two hundred kilograms. To be fair, there isn’t much here.”
Nikita nods, taking a deep breath, “Medteqniq and Dr Lund, did horrific things to me.” She begins in a faraway tone, “They murdered me over and over again. They cut me. They bled me and they crushed my body. Now they are gone and I remain.”
Halpron sees the pain on her face, as she relives the ordeal as she speaks and sets aside decorum, to take her hand. Angela smiles supportively at Nikita, while Corven sees the gesture and smiles to himself, feeling a sense of happiness for the pair.
Nikita feels her breath catch in her throat at Halpron’s touch, but takes strength from it. “They sought to find the most efficient way to extract PCS from my body. This aided their research in the hunt for PCS as a medicine and cure all.”
With a wan smile, she continues, “That was one avenue of their research.” She nods to Angela, “That vial contains the result of another. It contains synthetic PCS that can was made from a gallon of pigs blood.”
Nikita pauses for a moment, letting her words sink in. With a flourish, she produces a device the size of a large microwave and sets it on the table, “This is Medteqniq’s last surviving PCS synthesizer. It takes about an hour to convert a gallon of animal blood into PCS.” Nikita pauses taking a sip of water from a bottle she produces, before revealing a USB drive with a flourish, “This is a copy of the schematics.” She says, sliding it to Corven.
She sits quietly for a moment to get everyone a little processing time, “This should secure the Alchemical future of Atlantis and maybe more.”
“You have no idea, what this means. We will never be short of philosophers stones again.” Angela says, stunned.
Nikita speaks, with a gentle smile, “My life has been defined by pain. By doing this, that my pain becomes hope. It is my hope, that it helps build a future.”
“Are you sure?” Angela asks, feeling light headed at the possibilities.
Corven takes the USB drive and plugs it into his laptop. His eyes flick left and right as he rapidly scrolls through the files and documents, “This is everything from specs to manufacturing guidance. Everything we need to make our own and maintain theirs. How were they able to make this? We have been trying for years to do something similar.”
“Best I figure, they looked at the processes in my body for the manufacture of PCS, then then replicated this in artificial fashion.” Nikita says, thoughtfully.
“It will take a while to tool our machinery however, I am confident with the information we have that we can have a bank of synthesizers running inside of six months.” Corven postulates.
“If we have an excess, we can begin to explore Alchemy in ways that we’ve never been able to before.” Angela says, her mind whirling with ideas.
The King turns to Nikita and shakes his head with a look of disbelief, “You are full of surprises. Is there no limit to how much you will do for Atlantis? In ending the war we owe you a debt we can never repay. However, an unlimited supply of PCS, the inspiration for energy shields and the key to spider silk armour are gifts of immense magnitude. How can we ever repay you?”
Nikita thinks on the question for a moment, “If you give me your word that all I have given will be used fairly and for the benefit of the peoples of Atlantis, her allies and earth, that will be enough.”
Without hesitation, The King drops to one knee and bows his head, “I hereby solemnly pledge that the crown will oversee the use of every gift you have given us, to preserve peace in Atlantis, protect our allies and earth and be wise in their use.” He pauses, taking a deep breath, “This is my pledge to you and my pledge in law.”
“Thank you, your Majesty. For my part, I pledge my allegiance to Atlantis and its peoples, to support the goals of protection, preservation and promotion of peace.” Nikita says solemnly.
Halpron rises to his feet and pours a glass of wine for each person present. “To the future.” He toasts, unable to conceal a glance at Nikita. Everyone assents to the toast and takes a draught of the rich beverage.
“High Priestess, how do you feel about having regular meetings to discuss the manufacture of a supply bank and special projects where our expertise may come together?” Corven asks, with a warm, friendly tone.
“I see the value in such co-operation and look forward to our discussions and the discoveries we have ahead.” Angela says, warmly.
“If we make a model from say, clay, could it be turned into a steel version?” He asks, curiously.
“Its possible but not quick, there are issues with energy release and compression which may occur when converting items in constructed form.” Angela confirms after considering the question. “In some cases it is easier to start with a block and transform it into useable form as part of the transmutation.”
“That is interesting to know. So if I understand correctly, you can take a block of anything and turn it into a pre fabricated ready to use form.” Nikita asks, with a thought slowly forming.
“Pretty much, yes. Provided we know the composition of the base material, we can prime the philosopher’s stone to transform it into a simple form.” Angela says with a shrug.
Nikita speaks slowly, trying to make sense of her thoughts, “So you could prime a stone, then give it to a soldier who could drop it into say water. The water then gets transformed to simple metal sheets, or fine mesh that could be used to make a shelter?”
“Potentially yes. The composition of water is a constant, the impurities would be filtered out and yes that could work.” Angela says, thoughtfully.
Halpron watches the exchange fascinated, “She is a catalyst for change.” He realises, “Since she has arrived, she has kick started everything. At this rate, Atlantis will be completely reshaped within months.”
“What are you thinking?” Corven asks, with a twinkle in his eyes.
“Not sure really.” Nikita says with a shrug, “Drop a stone in water and shortly after pull out an Orichalcum blade and chain mail.”
“Interesting. Would be a quick way to arm an ally.” The King says thoughtfully, “How hard is it to prime a small stone, to produce a set of Orichalcum chain mail from water. How long would the stone stay primed for and how long would the transformation take.”
“Chain is too complex, too many parts. Full plate armour would actually be easier, provided you have something to link the parts together. Would take about three hours to prime. Would stay primed for maybe a month and would take ten minutes and at least a hundred gallons of water.” Angela answers, recognising the King’s more official tone.
“How about two gallons of water, into hydrogen and oxygen?” He asks, with an idea forming.
“Five minutes to prime, last for a month and as you are transforming base elements the transformation time would be quicker, maybe a couple of seconds.” Angela confirms, rubbing the back of her neck.
He nods, saying “Thank you, that is interesting to know.” Whilst thinking, “Put a shard like that in a bullet and that is a one shot kill against pretty much anything. But I am not sure I can justify that order.”
The King turns to Corven for a moment, to change the subject, “How goes the roll out off Sheaths and upgraded arresters?”
“Very well thank you, your Majesty. Speaking of Sheaths, I have just dropped off some Sheaths for you Miss Green, with and without sleeves.” Nikita nods her thanks, while Corven continues, “We have upgraded ten thousand arresters, so far and have include a few optional modes on top of what was discusses.”
“Excellent.” The King says with a smile, then curiously asks, “What other modes?”
Corven’s eyes glint, when he announces, “In addition to safe landing, fire suppression and incoming threat negation, we have noise suppression, which suppresses all noise within a small radius rendering the user and their actions silent. We also have a radiation suppressor, which turns alpha, beta and gamma radiation into heat which is dissipated around the user.”
Halpron’s eyes widen slightly, “That is extraordinary. That gives us a lot of support options. Please thank your team for their hard work on this.”
Corven chuckles and simply says, “Save your praise for now. We made a few discoveries when looking at the repulsion of weak nuclear forces, which may enable the repulsion of gravity and a focused redirection of the force as kinetic energy. If we are right, we could be looking at flight.” Then his lips curl into a grin, “That is the next upgrade.” He laughs to himself, “My people are going to be so busy over the next few weeks.”
The King leans back in his seat and steeples his fingers in front of him. He parts his hands and softly speaks, “So, our soldiers will be wearing the toughest armour of any military force, be protected from fire, radiation, heat, kinetic assault, be able to fly and be silent if need be. This is absolutely first class. You and your people will save so many lives with this.”
Angela nods in respectful appreciation, “I have to admit, Guild Master these innovations are huge.”
“The Nikita smg is a game changer, however, I have to ask how feasible is it to have a separate fire mode for the gyrojet rifles, manual targeting and semi automatic for fire support?” The King asks, thinking of tactical options.
Corven nods, after a moments through, “Minor software update and absolutely feasible.”
“How about manual fire with third party targeting for indirect fire support?” The King asks, visualising the bombardment a company could release from cover.
Corven smiles, “I bet you want increased ordnance payload and range too.”
“I would actually. Also a longer range projectile, accurate to two miles without explosive, just a big hole puncher.” The King suggests. “I would guess Cassius has thoughts on offensive options, as well.”
“We have exchanged a number of messages on options he would like explored.” Corven nods and smiles.
“Sounds about right.” The King says, while covertly rubbing Nikita’s calf with his foot. “I think in light of the Saviour’s very generous bequest, there is a lot of preparation for you both to be doing and I need to have a conversation with Nikita about how we can repay her for all she has done. This has been most enlightening and rewarding. I look forward to the future.”
With the room once again to themselves, Halpron visibly relaxes, “I am so sorry about that, Corven is a genius and loves to talk about it.” He says warmly, embracing Nikita, “This is a magnificent gift you have bestowed upon us. Moreover that ending the war, this synthesizer changes the future course of this nation.”
“It’s like I said, a way to turn my pain into something positive.” Nikita says, giving Halpron a squeeze, “I trust you to do the right thing with it.”
“I will pray for the wisdom to use the machine wisely.” Halpron says softly, feeling her breast through his shirt and her breath on his neck.
Nikita rests her head on his shoulder and sighs softly, “We both know you don’t need prayer to be wise. Just listen to your heart and it will lead you straight and true.”
“Right now my heart sings in my ears, because of you. You enchant me.” Halpron says, huskily.
Nikita breathes slowly and dreamily whispers, “You inspire me.” She looks up into his eyes, drinking in the warmth and compassion in him. The releases him from her embrace and without a word, lets him lead her to the bedroom.
Revelation (M/F) (F/M) - A sequel to Devastation
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Shades of 'Doc' Smith, that was marvelous. It is the nature of many of us to wonder what transpired after the bedroom door closed. However, there is also power in leaving it to our imaginations. Fantastic, @wolfman.
A List of my stories:An Unlikely Savior Completed
Spy Task Force Completed
Tale of an Archer Completed
The Bandit Scout on Newhome updated 05/30/23
I agree @GreyLord at times it is the prudent course of action to let the reader´s phantasy do the work.
All in all a fascinating chapter: Nikita does a lot of good for her - and is reminded of what horrors Nikita went through so long ago. This shows once again how far she has come.
All in all a fascinating chapter: Nikita does a lot of good for her - and is reminded of what horrors Nikita went through so long ago. This shows once again how far she has come.
Thank you @GreyLord and @Caesar73. You are both two kind.
Whilst it is often best allow our imagination to paint a picture, the next chapter may show a peek behind the curtain
Whilst it is often best allow our imagination to paint a picture, the next chapter may show a peek behind the curtain
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
As Heinlein would say, waiting is.
A List of my stories:An Unlikely Savior Completed
Spy Task Force Completed
Tale of an Archer Completed
The Bandit Scout on Newhome updated 05/30/23
As Heinlein would say, waiting is.
A List of my stories:An Unlikely Savior Completed
Spy Task Force Completed
Tale of an Archer Completed
The Bandit Scout on Newhome updated 05/30/23
Halpron sits on the edge of the bed watching the undulations of Nikita’s body, writhing before him. Her hips roll softly with each slow thrust, in time to the beat. The taut muscles of her stomach flex and contract under her pale skin. Her breasts move hypnotically, tantalisingly showing themselves from under the black locks of her hair.
Nikita feels the base of the music pulsate in the base of her spine and trails her fingers across her body, imagining her fingers were Halpron’s. She caresses her breasts and strokes her stomach before her fingers find her labia.
Halpron rises from the bed naked, stepping behind Nikita. He wraps his left arm around her shoulders, pulling her on top of him. His large right hand engulfs her breast, caressing and squeezing, each touch coaxing a low soft moan from her throat.
Nikita feels his arms around her and yields to his touch. Pressing her body back into his and writhing slowly against his chiselled frame. She moans softly, feeling his attention move from her breasts to between her legs.
Halpron traces the line of her labia and gently strokes her clit. His lips find the sweet spot on her neck. Waves of pleasure radiate out from between her legs and where his lips caress her and meet in a crescendo of sensation.
Nikita bites her lip, feeling more alive in this moment that she ever has. “This man drives me wild. He knows exactly how to treat me.” She feels her legs buckle slightly as she begins to become overwhelmed.
Despite her weight, Halpron holds her with ease, when he feels her falter. With a sweep of his arms he scoops her up and lays her on the bed. He speaks softly, “I cannot repay you for everything, but if you place yourself in my hands, I will show you my appreciation as best I can.”
Nikita smiles dreamily and nods, “I am yours to do with as you wish, Your Majesty.”
“Please lay on your front, with your arms by your side.” Halpron asks, gently. Once she has moved, he takes a bottle from his bedside table and climbs on top of her, straddling her hips. He gently reaches forward, brushing the hair off of her shoulders.
Nikita sighs feeling the oil slicked hands of her lover, slowly travelling from the small of her back to her shoulders. “This is a herbal remedy that penetrates the muscles and releases all tension, leaving a feeling of warmth.”
Nikita purrs softly, “I am feeling it already.” She closes her eyes and allows her breathing to slow, when Halpron slowly kneads the muscles of her back. Heedless of time, she sinks into the feeling of his hands upon her. The only change she notices is when he uses his fingers to perform pressure point massage on several junctures of her back and focuses on certain knots in her muscles.
Halpron gives a final sweep of her back and lays a sheet over her, to keep out the chill. He moves himself down her body so he straddles her knees, the reapplies the oil to his hands and begins kneading her buttocks.
Nikita feels butterflies in her stomach, at his touch and sighs softly, “This feels so good.”
Halpron smiles gently and whispers, “It doesn’t end until I have paid tribute to every inch of your body.”
Nikita’s eyes widen, then a lustful smile creeps across her lips. She moves to get up, until he places a warm hand on her shoulder, “Relax. Let me do my work.”
Halpron resumes his ministrations, when Nikita lays back down. His hands, large and strong, show a gentility to the woman he loves, working her perfect muscles with a restrained and caring urgency.
Feeling him shift down her legs to her thighs and the backs of her knees, Nikita speaks softly, “This feels amazing. How did you learn how to do this?”
Halpron’s large powerful hands work the muscles of her thighs sapping all tension away, “Angela did her service in the Hoplite, before joining the Order. I did it the other way around, training in cosmetic procedures and physical therapy, before pledging to the Hoplite. I wanted to he able to help those who were injured.”
Nikita exhales slowly and in shock says, “I trained in hairdressing and massage after leaving school.”
Halpron shifts off of her kneeling at the side of her legs and begins working the muscles of her calves, “We are indeed similar, studying cosmetic and physical therapy before answering our callings in life.”
“I hadn’t thought of it like that.” Nikita exclaims, just before Halpron uses his fingers to kneed a nerve cluster behind her left knee. She bites her tongue, thinking “I had no idea that spot was so yummy.”
Minute by minute, she feels the tension drain from her body and as her body relaxes her mind becomes more and more still. Inner thoughts giving way to the surrender to sensation.
Without resistance, Nikita allows herself to be rolled onto her back and lays back waiting for his next touch. He sits by her legs and pulls her feet onto his lap, one by one, before taking the left in his hand and massaging the sole, from heel to ball with confident strokes, bringing relief where she didn’t know it was needed. His thumbs home in on the tension in the sole of her foot and chase it away like a breeze dispelling morning mist. Then he takes his time with each of her toes massaging and caressing with such tenderness she melts inside.
By the time he has finished her right foot, all she can do is lay back feeling herself sink into the comfortable bed. “I have never felt so relaxed.” She murmurs softly.
He smiles down gently at her, his body yearning for her, but denying himself, for the task at hand. When his oil slicked hands work up her legs, slowly moving towards her womanhood, she gasps. With his middle and forefinger, he slips inside her whilst his thumb gently rolls her clitoris.
All she can do is lay back and surrender to the pleasure that makes her whole body tremble with crashing waves of pleasure. She climaxes with a silent scream, the pleasure undiluted by physical movement from her totally relaxed state.
Halpron feels his heart skip a beat, seeing the beauty in her face when she climaxes. He knows she is awake, even with her eyes closed and continues with his worship of her body. Taking her left hand and massaging first her palm then her fingers, before working his way past her wrists, slowly exploring and purging her arm of pain and tension from fingertips to shoulder.
Nikita feels her senses clear, as he finishes her right arm and gently lays it by her side on the bed. She feels his weight shift on the bed and feels him place his fingers onto her scalp, taking more tension from it with each stroke.
Halpron tenderly caresses her cheeks and softly rubs her forehead, bringing our moans of pleasure, “You have no idea how this feels.” She purrs, feeling his hands under the back of her neck, popping the last tension knots in her body.
“Shhhh.” He whispers softly, “We are nearly there.” She lays back in silence, surrendering to his touch once again. His hands roam her chest, caressing her breasts and celebrating them with his touch, before her strokes every curve of her perfectly muscled stomach.
Nikita slowly breathes, feeling, for the first time in her life, total relaxation.
Halpron lays on the bed next to her and begins to whisper, “It takes a while but it is worth it. Between the techniques used and the herbs in the oil, you are completely relaxed. To the point where your muscles will not respond to you and you cannot even speak.”
He pauses, before speaking again, “This can last for anything up to a few hours, during which time you will feel completely relaxed.”
Halpron places a soft kiss on her lips, “The other effect is that anything you feel is heightened.” He says slipping his fingers inside her once more and rolling her clitoris with his thumb.
Nikita lays back unable to move or speak, all she can do is feel. She cannot resist the feelings of pleasure only submit to them. In her mind she is adrift in a sea of emotions, waves carrying her to new heights.
As his fingers slip in and out of her, he whispers in her ear, “No matter what you feel now, it is a fraction of what I feel, when you smile at me. You set a raging inferno inside of me. When I am by your side I see a glimpse of the man I want to be.”
Nikita hears the words, however is powerless to respond, when he continues, “Here and now, in my care, you are the safest you have ever been. I will lay down my life for you, without a second thought.” He leans down and softly kisses her lips, “The heart in my chest is no longer my own, for it belongs to you.”
He softly kisses her cheek and pulls her close. She feels like she is the sun ready to explode. Her pleasure building not in her core, but her whole body. In her mind she screams, her senses overwhelmed as her whole body climaxes.
The first thing she notices is the soft warm blanket wrapped around her. She opens her eyes slowly and looks up at the gently smiling face of Halpron. He is sat against the headboard of the bed, with Nikita cradled in his lap.
“Welcome back, my darling.” He says softly, “How are you feeling?”
“Mmmmm” She murmurs, actual words just beyond her grasp.
He leans in for a lingering kiss on her lips. Not a kiss of fervid passion, but one of slow burning desire. She moans softly, relishing in the feel of his lips and the aftermath of total bliss in her body.
Nikita feels her body moved slightly and feels the blanket around her unwrapped and then laid over her, before Halpron climbs under the blanket behind her.
“I am guessing you still can’t speak.” He begins, nervously, “That is probably for the best, so I can say what I have to say.”
Halpron composes himself and wraps an arm around her, pulling her close so he can whisper in her ear, “Every time I look at you, I see a new facet of your beauty. Every day you are more beautiful to me than the last.” She shudders with each word as his lips brush the soft skin of her neck, “But it is when I close my eyes and feel your heart, that your true beauty is revealed to me and fills my world.”
“I know how crazy this is going to sound. But I cannot help but say what is in my heart.” He speaks softly, his fingertips gently stroking her stomach, “I know it has only been a month, but I felt something the moment we met and it has only grown stronger with the passage of time. You make every part of my life better. Not just with what you have done for Atlantis but everything else.”
He shifts position, brushing her hair away from her face, “You are my first thought in the morning and my last at night and every thought in between that has meaning. I yearn for you when we are apart and I am enchanted when we are together.” He pauses, gathering his courage before he continues, “I am in love with you Niki. I love you with all my heart.”
Halpron feels a weight lifted from his chest, the moment he speaks the words in his heart. A heart that sings, when Nikita squeezes his hand and whispers, “I love you too, Hal.”
Nikita feels the base of the music pulsate in the base of her spine and trails her fingers across her body, imagining her fingers were Halpron’s. She caresses her breasts and strokes her stomach before her fingers find her labia.
Halpron rises from the bed naked, stepping behind Nikita. He wraps his left arm around her shoulders, pulling her on top of him. His large right hand engulfs her breast, caressing and squeezing, each touch coaxing a low soft moan from her throat.
Nikita feels his arms around her and yields to his touch. Pressing her body back into his and writhing slowly against his chiselled frame. She moans softly, feeling his attention move from her breasts to between her legs.
Halpron traces the line of her labia and gently strokes her clit. His lips find the sweet spot on her neck. Waves of pleasure radiate out from between her legs and where his lips caress her and meet in a crescendo of sensation.
Nikita bites her lip, feeling more alive in this moment that she ever has. “This man drives me wild. He knows exactly how to treat me.” She feels her legs buckle slightly as she begins to become overwhelmed.
Despite her weight, Halpron holds her with ease, when he feels her falter. With a sweep of his arms he scoops her up and lays her on the bed. He speaks softly, “I cannot repay you for everything, but if you place yourself in my hands, I will show you my appreciation as best I can.”
Nikita smiles dreamily and nods, “I am yours to do with as you wish, Your Majesty.”
“Please lay on your front, with your arms by your side.” Halpron asks, gently. Once she has moved, he takes a bottle from his bedside table and climbs on top of her, straddling her hips. He gently reaches forward, brushing the hair off of her shoulders.
Nikita sighs feeling the oil slicked hands of her lover, slowly travelling from the small of her back to her shoulders. “This is a herbal remedy that penetrates the muscles and releases all tension, leaving a feeling of warmth.”
Nikita purrs softly, “I am feeling it already.” She closes her eyes and allows her breathing to slow, when Halpron slowly kneads the muscles of her back. Heedless of time, she sinks into the feeling of his hands upon her. The only change she notices is when he uses his fingers to perform pressure point massage on several junctures of her back and focuses on certain knots in her muscles.
Halpron gives a final sweep of her back and lays a sheet over her, to keep out the chill. He moves himself down her body so he straddles her knees, the reapplies the oil to his hands and begins kneading her buttocks.
Nikita feels butterflies in her stomach, at his touch and sighs softly, “This feels so good.”
Halpron smiles gently and whispers, “It doesn’t end until I have paid tribute to every inch of your body.”
Nikita’s eyes widen, then a lustful smile creeps across her lips. She moves to get up, until he places a warm hand on her shoulder, “Relax. Let me do my work.”
Halpron resumes his ministrations, when Nikita lays back down. His hands, large and strong, show a gentility to the woman he loves, working her perfect muscles with a restrained and caring urgency.
Feeling him shift down her legs to her thighs and the backs of her knees, Nikita speaks softly, “This feels amazing. How did you learn how to do this?”
Halpron’s large powerful hands work the muscles of her thighs sapping all tension away, “Angela did her service in the Hoplite, before joining the Order. I did it the other way around, training in cosmetic procedures and physical therapy, before pledging to the Hoplite. I wanted to he able to help those who were injured.”
Nikita exhales slowly and in shock says, “I trained in hairdressing and massage after leaving school.”
Halpron shifts off of her kneeling at the side of her legs and begins working the muscles of her calves, “We are indeed similar, studying cosmetic and physical therapy before answering our callings in life.”
“I hadn’t thought of it like that.” Nikita exclaims, just before Halpron uses his fingers to kneed a nerve cluster behind her left knee. She bites her tongue, thinking “I had no idea that spot was so yummy.”
Minute by minute, she feels the tension drain from her body and as her body relaxes her mind becomes more and more still. Inner thoughts giving way to the surrender to sensation.
Without resistance, Nikita allows herself to be rolled onto her back and lays back waiting for his next touch. He sits by her legs and pulls her feet onto his lap, one by one, before taking the left in his hand and massaging the sole, from heel to ball with confident strokes, bringing relief where she didn’t know it was needed. His thumbs home in on the tension in the sole of her foot and chase it away like a breeze dispelling morning mist. Then he takes his time with each of her toes massaging and caressing with such tenderness she melts inside.
By the time he has finished her right foot, all she can do is lay back feeling herself sink into the comfortable bed. “I have never felt so relaxed.” She murmurs softly.
He smiles down gently at her, his body yearning for her, but denying himself, for the task at hand. When his oil slicked hands work up her legs, slowly moving towards her womanhood, she gasps. With his middle and forefinger, he slips inside her whilst his thumb gently rolls her clitoris.
All she can do is lay back and surrender to the pleasure that makes her whole body tremble with crashing waves of pleasure. She climaxes with a silent scream, the pleasure undiluted by physical movement from her totally relaxed state.
Halpron feels his heart skip a beat, seeing the beauty in her face when she climaxes. He knows she is awake, even with her eyes closed and continues with his worship of her body. Taking her left hand and massaging first her palm then her fingers, before working his way past her wrists, slowly exploring and purging her arm of pain and tension from fingertips to shoulder.
Nikita feels her senses clear, as he finishes her right arm and gently lays it by her side on the bed. She feels his weight shift on the bed and feels him place his fingers onto her scalp, taking more tension from it with each stroke.
Halpron tenderly caresses her cheeks and softly rubs her forehead, bringing our moans of pleasure, “You have no idea how this feels.” She purrs, feeling his hands under the back of her neck, popping the last tension knots in her body.
“Shhhh.” He whispers softly, “We are nearly there.” She lays back in silence, surrendering to his touch once again. His hands roam her chest, caressing her breasts and celebrating them with his touch, before her strokes every curve of her perfectly muscled stomach.
Nikita slowly breathes, feeling, for the first time in her life, total relaxation.
Halpron lays on the bed next to her and begins to whisper, “It takes a while but it is worth it. Between the techniques used and the herbs in the oil, you are completely relaxed. To the point where your muscles will not respond to you and you cannot even speak.”
He pauses, before speaking again, “This can last for anything up to a few hours, during which time you will feel completely relaxed.”
Halpron places a soft kiss on her lips, “The other effect is that anything you feel is heightened.” He says slipping his fingers inside her once more and rolling her clitoris with his thumb.
Nikita lays back unable to move or speak, all she can do is feel. She cannot resist the feelings of pleasure only submit to them. In her mind she is adrift in a sea of emotions, waves carrying her to new heights.
As his fingers slip in and out of her, he whispers in her ear, “No matter what you feel now, it is a fraction of what I feel, when you smile at me. You set a raging inferno inside of me. When I am by your side I see a glimpse of the man I want to be.”
Nikita hears the words, however is powerless to respond, when he continues, “Here and now, in my care, you are the safest you have ever been. I will lay down my life for you, without a second thought.” He leans down and softly kisses her lips, “The heart in my chest is no longer my own, for it belongs to you.”
He softly kisses her cheek and pulls her close. She feels like she is the sun ready to explode. Her pleasure building not in her core, but her whole body. In her mind she screams, her senses overwhelmed as her whole body climaxes.
The first thing she notices is the soft warm blanket wrapped around her. She opens her eyes slowly and looks up at the gently smiling face of Halpron. He is sat against the headboard of the bed, with Nikita cradled in his lap.
“Welcome back, my darling.” He says softly, “How are you feeling?”
“Mmmmm” She murmurs, actual words just beyond her grasp.
He leans in for a lingering kiss on her lips. Not a kiss of fervid passion, but one of slow burning desire. She moans softly, relishing in the feel of his lips and the aftermath of total bliss in her body.
Nikita feels her body moved slightly and feels the blanket around her unwrapped and then laid over her, before Halpron climbs under the blanket behind her.
“I am guessing you still can’t speak.” He begins, nervously, “That is probably for the best, so I can say what I have to say.”
Halpron composes himself and wraps an arm around her, pulling her close so he can whisper in her ear, “Every time I look at you, I see a new facet of your beauty. Every day you are more beautiful to me than the last.” She shudders with each word as his lips brush the soft skin of her neck, “But it is when I close my eyes and feel your heart, that your true beauty is revealed to me and fills my world.”
“I know how crazy this is going to sound. But I cannot help but say what is in my heart.” He speaks softly, his fingertips gently stroking her stomach, “I know it has only been a month, but I felt something the moment we met and it has only grown stronger with the passage of time. You make every part of my life better. Not just with what you have done for Atlantis but everything else.”
He shifts position, brushing her hair away from her face, “You are my first thought in the morning and my last at night and every thought in between that has meaning. I yearn for you when we are apart and I am enchanted when we are together.” He pauses, gathering his courage before he continues, “I am in love with you Niki. I love you with all my heart.”
Halpron feels a weight lifted from his chest, the moment he speaks the words in his heart. A heart that sings, when Nikita squeezes his hand and whispers, “I love you too, Hal.”
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Beautifully written, Grand Master @wolfman. You have expressed this as only a true artist can write. Thank you.
A List of my stories:An Unlikely Savior Completed
Spy Task Force Completed
Tale of an Archer Completed
The Bandit Scout on Newhome updated 05/30/23
I could not say it any better. I bow before you.
@GreyLord @Caesar73 , thank you gentlemen, you are too generous with your kind words.
I wanted a moment where we see Nikita let go and allow someone to take caee of her, the way she cares for everyome else. I am pleased with the way it haa turned out.
I wanted a moment where we see Nikita let go and allow someone to take caee of her, the way she cares for everyome else. I am pleased with the way it haa turned out.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
6 months later
Lyonesse battlements, Gatehouse tower.
The walls of the city stand tall. For centuries these walls stood strong against the forces of Mordred and Queen Maeve. But the Pendragon's always prevailed. No matter the challenge, the Pendragon Knights always rise above.
Until the Infernals came. Creatures of demonic visage, that feed on emotional pain and seek to harvest the populace. Mordred and his army fell in a day and Maeve's wild hunt lasted two. Everywhere the knights stood, the Infernals rose and slew them, feasting on their pain and fear, becoming stronger. Driving the populace back to the walled city of Lyonesse.
The night is calm and still. The two mile long causeway, glows lightly in the pale moonlight, flanked either side by dark foreboding waters. Soldiers watch the distant shore, with binoculars in trembling hands, each searching for the encroaching army, whose approach they have been listening to for the last eight hours.
“Last stand?” A squire dressed in modern assault armour says, offering a hip flask to his partner.
The partner sips, welcoming the meads warmth, “Hope not. Etya is expecting.”
The squire grins and hugs his partner, “That is wonderful news, Gre. You will make a great father.”
“Only if we live, Mar.” Gre says, resignedly. “What do you think about our orders?”
“Whatever comes across the causeway, hold fire unless instructed.” Mar scoffs, “The causeway is three kilometres long and two hundred metres wide. Without suppressive fire, they will form a wall when they come and will hit us like a train.”
“Can’t work out why they are setting us up to fail like this.” Gre sighs, hugging his rifle for comfort.
“No-one is saying. But rumour has it, that the Pendragon’s have called in help.” Mar says, cynically, then spits over the side of the wall. “No-one is coming to help us. They never do.”
“Maybe that’s why they don’t want us to fire, speed up our demise, get it over with quick.” Gre says, taking a sip of mead.
Mar nods towards the causeway, “I guess we will find out soon enough. Here they come.”
Both men look on in horror as thousands of Infernals pour onto the causeway, howling and breathing fire as they surge forward, in an almost slow motion wave
Two hours earlier, undisclosed location.
The sight never fails to impress the Saviour’s guards Field Commander. One thousand soldiers, dressed in Sheaths, matt black full face helmets and heavy boots, just as he is, all stood to attention.
“The most terrifying fighting force ever assembled.” He thinks, without voicing his thoughts for fear of hubris among the ranks.
“Brothers and Sisters, here we are again. Our allies call and we answer. We protect those who cannot protect themselves. Today, we aid our allies in Lyonesse.” Commander Apollo, barks, “They have been forced from their lands, back to their walled capital. This is their last stand against the Infernal invaders. That is where we come in.”
Nikita steps forward, black sleeveless Sheath showing her muscular arms, black hair spilling down her back, “Let’s discuss the enemy. The Infernals have excessive bone deposits, their skulls are twice the thickness of another humanoid of their size that we have fought. They have a double set of ribs, acting as armour for their heart and lungs. You want to put them down, aim for the throats, base of the skulls and up under the ribs. A wound to the stomach will slow them down, but will not stop them.
She sees the seriousness in the eyes of the assembled soldiers and nods, “They are tough, armoured, strong and we have no confirmation of the effects of Orichalcum on their physiology. They are immune to heat and can breath fire.” Nikita pauses, cracking a smile, “Yeah, I know. When am I going to tell you the bad news, eh?”
A few of the soldiers, chuckle and snort with laughter, before she continues, “They have dense bodies and if they fall from height, they land hard. If they fall into water, they are too dense to float and cannot swim. Also they are so heavy that they cannot move faster than seven miles per hour and their flame breath only has a range of a few feet. We have the advantage of speed and range and will capitalise on both.”
“They are a species of agonide, that feed on physical and emotional pain. They are indigenous to this realm. At one time they were hunted by the forces of Queen Maeve, however, they hid in the wilds and the number of Infernals have grown, to massive proportions.” Nikita outlines.
“We have a plan, which will minimise exposure to their strengths and maximise our own. However, as always things change, if they do, adapt and protect yourselves and those around you.” Nikita barks, taking a more official tone, “Mission priorities are as follows. Draw Infernal forces onto the causeway. Halt their advance. Retake the causeway and secure it against incursion. Sweep the realm, culling outlying groups and confirm existence of their pain factory. Secure factory, release prisoners and go home safely. Any questions?” Nikita asks, knowing that the soldiers, will remain silent. “Commander Apollo, would you please brief the troops on the plan? I need to get started.”
The Commander salutes, “Of course, Saviour. God’s go with you.”
Zero hour.
Mar and Gre watch in horror, as the burning mass of Infernals charge towards the gate. Their weapons unable to hit the enemy at this range and unable to hurt them when they are close.
The lumbering, shambling, burning army advances slowly, but unstoppably. Whilst the guards eyes are fixed on the Infernals and their eyes are fixed on the gate, both parties are unaware of the almost thousand pairs of eyes watching events unfold from above.
The Saviour’s guards hang in the sky, by virtue of their gravity repellent arresters. Each has a gyrojet rifle pressed to their shoulders and a finger on the trigger. Apollo watches their advance closely.
The Infernals think nothing of crossing the red line that had been sprayed on the causeway. The guards of the city, tremble and ready their weapons as the Infernals advance to within range. Apollo simply says, “Now.”
All Saviour’s guards open fire. Their combat network calculates the area occupied by the Infernals and evenly distributes their rounds throughout the mass. Each volley detonates simultaneously, in one massive pressure wave tearing the creatures to pieces.
It takes less that five seconds, to turn several thousand Infernals into little more than shredded meat.
A hundred of the Saviour’s Guards, drop from the sky in formation, submachine guns raised and ready, near to the point when the causeway grants access to the city. The city guards watch speechless, as the soldiers erect a series of thick eight foot tall pylons, spanning the width of the causeway. The soldiers ascend silently back to the sky, and a second group drops at the far end of the causeway, to erect more pylons.
Then the bulk of the remaining forces drop between the pylons and ensure that the Infernals have been despatched, before flying silently away.
Camouflaged black against the cloudless night sky, the Saviour’s Guards split into predetermined squads and disperse across the lands.
Nikita roams the land as a dispersed swarm of Giant Asian Hornets. She keeps low and fast, following the scent of the Infernals back to their point of origin. She casts herself across the realm like a net.
“I n the early days, I couldn’t have done this, the men were too green. However, with the new gear and training regimen they are a different force. It helps that Apollo is such a good commander.” Nikita thinks, isolating several large cells of Infernals.
Nikitwo sits back and calmly reports the locations of the locations of all detected Infernals, in real time to fire teams who will eradicate the threat posed.
Across the realm, Infernals find themselves hounded through the night and slain where they hide, from on high. Some are torn apart by small arms fire, others are dragged into the sky and dropped onto jagged rocks while others still are dropped into lakes.
Just before dawn Nikitwo reunites with herself and Nikita crouches on a rocky outcropping overlooking a hidden valley. Under the canopy of the forest below, buildings crouch unseen, their basements burrowing down into cave systems.
She closes her eyes and takes slow deep breaths sensing the approach of the converging Saviour’s Guard. Unseen by the Infernals, they land silently, readying their submachine guns and close quarters weaponry.
Commander Apollo lands next to Nikita and places a hand on her shoulder. “How are you doing?”
Nikita opens her eyes and looks up at him, with a lop sided smile, “I am OK, so far this is quite routine. The caves will be a problem though.”
Apollo offers her a cigarette, which she declines, “What’s the issue with the caves?”
“Dark, tight caves. Possible issues with oxygen and ambient heat.” Nikita admits, with a shrug.
“That could be a problem.” Apollo says, handing her a vial, “As requested.”
“Thanks.” Nikita says, accepting the vial and cracking the seal. With a grimace she tastes the Infernal blood. “Can I have something for the taste please, please?”
Apollo nods retrieving a flask and passing it to her. She takes it with a shaky hand and has a hearty slug composing herself, “They feast on all forms of pain and are never sated. Without natural predators they are like a virus, they will keep coming back. They need to go.”
“Are you OK?” Apollo says, seeing the pain in her eyes, popping a button on his helmet to open his visor.
“Thought you were going to stay incognito.” Nikita says, with a gentle smile.
“Well, I thought you could do with seeing a friendly face.” Halpron says, concerned. “Are you alright? You don’t normally ask for a shot.”
Nikita nestles herself under his arm and lets him pull her close “Yeah, blood tasted foul.” She hesitates for a moment, “We have saved a lot of lives, but sometimes I wonder about those we take.”
“When the weak become prey, we become the predators of predators to save them.” Halpron says, remembering part of his military oath. “We have done the right thing. The lives of the innocent were under threat and we had the ability to help and have done so.”
“I know, it’s just.... I don’t know. I wonder if there is a better way.” Nikita muses, unsure of her point.
“Elysia is a barren world, we could try terraforming it and using it to relocate species to, but that could take years.” Halpron says, mulling the idea over. He gazes into her eyes seeing pain and fatigue and a part of him melts, “I have been blind, to the strain this is placing you under. I have let you down and I am so sorry.” Halpron pulls her close and hugs her tightly. “After this operation, I think you need a break.”
“We have too much on.” Nikita protests, taking another slug of scotch.
“Nothing that our Special Operations Guards cannot handle. We have five thousand King’s Guards for offensive operations and almost eight thousand Saviour’s Guards for rescue operations and anti incursion operations and more qualifying by the day. Because of you they are the best trained and most well rounded troops in the realms. Not to mention the best equipped. You can.” He pauses, “Forget that. We can have a few days off. Get away from it all.” Halpron says, gently.
Nikita knows he will not be swayed, “What did you have in mind?” She asks, taking another pull.
Halpron hugs her tight, “Maybe visit your family.”
Nikita’s eyes go wide for a moment, “I am not sure about that.”
“They will be missing you. I know you miss them. Maybe it is time to reconnect.” Halpron says, picking his words carefully.
Nikita wants to argue, but knows he is right, “I have left it too long. I will cop a lot of grief but maybe it is time. It would be good to see them again.”
Halpron kisses the top of her head, “I will be by your side. Every step of the way.”
Nikita downs a final pull of scotch, then takes a deep breath before kissing Halpron deeply. He pulls her close and dips her at the waist, before straightening with her. “I can face anything with you at my side.” Nikita says, smiling up at him, “Why don’t you get that visor down and we liberate this pain factory?”
“Sounds like a plan.” Halpron says, gazing at Nikita unaugmented, for a moment before deploying his visor with the flick of a switch. He thinks, fondly to himself, “She is the strongest woman I know. But in those moments that she shows her vulnerability, she shows her true strength and I have never loved her more.”
Nikita advances towards the entrance of the structure. The ziggurat rises above her carved from the basalt of the cliff. Roaring and screams of agony, meander from the depths of the pain factory.
With a ripple of flesh and bone, she is clad in ultra dense bone armour, capable of stopping military grade ammunition. Short thick spines cover her body and scythe like blades sprout from her fingers. Her fine features disappear beneath a layer of bone, leaving only her eyes showing. Underneath the sheath she smiles, feeling Halpron’s heartbeat, as he advances behind her, Liberator shotgun drawn.
She pauses and gives a subtle nod, then advances quickly. Halpron keeps pace, with rapidly landing troops bringing up the rear.
The first agonide steps forth to block her path, flame gouts engulfing Nikita. The blood she tasted, has imbued her with fire proof protection and she retaliates hard, striking with claws. They bite deep into the creatures armour but no deeper.
Nikita pulls back her claws and transforms her hand into a heavy bulb of bone embedded with spikes. She slams her right into the creatures chest and it pulverised its dense bones, sending it sprawling.
She turns to look at Halpron and winks, before growing a dozen tentacles, each tipped with a bone flail.
Halpron knows the signal and follows accordingly, breaking into a sprint to keep up with her, closely followed by a many tailed snake of soldiers, ready to sweep and clear.
Nikita leads the way, carving a swathe through the main passageways of the structure, allowing snakes of Saviour’s Guard to secure side tunnels and free prisoners, as they are discovered.
With Nikita at the head of the snake, most resistance falls to her flails, with Halpron finishing any who survive her attentions. The Guard move at a sprint, scouring every inch of the structure, guided by Nikitwo who directs them to pockets of the enemy or the tortured victims that they hold.
By morning, the cave system is clear and the last pockets of the creatures fall.
The last creature stands howling at the Saviour’s guards surrounding it. Their courage and inner strength leaving a bitter taste in the creatures mouth. It tries to run, but is too slow.
Sensing it’s end, the creature sinks to its knees and hangs its head. The squad leader steps forward and gently lays a hand on the creatures shoulder, “Easy now.” He says softly, “I’m sorry it has to be this way, but you are just too dangerous.”
The squad leader takes aim and the creature falls to a brace of shots to the back of its skull. There is no cheer, no ceremony. Only the soldiers quiet reflection on the lives that they have saved by the death of their prey. Before they walk away, the squad leader closes the creatures eyes and each man offers prayers to their own gods to speed the creature to a good afterlife.
Gre and Mar watch stunned, as the pylons on the causeway power down and a rag tag convoy of vehicles and carts begins to cross. Each vehicle is laden with the bodies of those thought lost to the creatures.
By the time the convoy reaches the gates, a crescendo of cheers has risen to greet those who are returned and those who have freed the realm.
Halpron and Nikita take a bow at the gate and begin applauding the Saviour’s Guards, while they escort the wounded to the safety of the city walls.
All of the settlements inhabitants, spill onto the streets to cheer the conquering heroes.
Halpron and Nikita walk hand in hand waving at the crowds with the convoy at their backs, bringing the procession to a halt at the Palace, under a thunderous cavalcade of applause, fireworks and gunfire.
Another mission accomplished.
Lyonesse battlements, Gatehouse tower.
The walls of the city stand tall. For centuries these walls stood strong against the forces of Mordred and Queen Maeve. But the Pendragon's always prevailed. No matter the challenge, the Pendragon Knights always rise above.
Until the Infernals came. Creatures of demonic visage, that feed on emotional pain and seek to harvest the populace. Mordred and his army fell in a day and Maeve's wild hunt lasted two. Everywhere the knights stood, the Infernals rose and slew them, feasting on their pain and fear, becoming stronger. Driving the populace back to the walled city of Lyonesse.
The night is calm and still. The two mile long causeway, glows lightly in the pale moonlight, flanked either side by dark foreboding waters. Soldiers watch the distant shore, with binoculars in trembling hands, each searching for the encroaching army, whose approach they have been listening to for the last eight hours.
“Last stand?” A squire dressed in modern assault armour says, offering a hip flask to his partner.
The partner sips, welcoming the meads warmth, “Hope not. Etya is expecting.”
The squire grins and hugs his partner, “That is wonderful news, Gre. You will make a great father.”
“Only if we live, Mar.” Gre says, resignedly. “What do you think about our orders?”
“Whatever comes across the causeway, hold fire unless instructed.” Mar scoffs, “The causeway is three kilometres long and two hundred metres wide. Without suppressive fire, they will form a wall when they come and will hit us like a train.”
“Can’t work out why they are setting us up to fail like this.” Gre sighs, hugging his rifle for comfort.
“No-one is saying. But rumour has it, that the Pendragon’s have called in help.” Mar says, cynically, then spits over the side of the wall. “No-one is coming to help us. They never do.”
“Maybe that’s why they don’t want us to fire, speed up our demise, get it over with quick.” Gre says, taking a sip of mead.
Mar nods towards the causeway, “I guess we will find out soon enough. Here they come.”
Both men look on in horror as thousands of Infernals pour onto the causeway, howling and breathing fire as they surge forward, in an almost slow motion wave
Two hours earlier, undisclosed location.
The sight never fails to impress the Saviour’s guards Field Commander. One thousand soldiers, dressed in Sheaths, matt black full face helmets and heavy boots, just as he is, all stood to attention.
“The most terrifying fighting force ever assembled.” He thinks, without voicing his thoughts for fear of hubris among the ranks.
“Brothers and Sisters, here we are again. Our allies call and we answer. We protect those who cannot protect themselves. Today, we aid our allies in Lyonesse.” Commander Apollo, barks, “They have been forced from their lands, back to their walled capital. This is their last stand against the Infernal invaders. That is where we come in.”
Nikita steps forward, black sleeveless Sheath showing her muscular arms, black hair spilling down her back, “Let’s discuss the enemy. The Infernals have excessive bone deposits, their skulls are twice the thickness of another humanoid of their size that we have fought. They have a double set of ribs, acting as armour for their heart and lungs. You want to put them down, aim for the throats, base of the skulls and up under the ribs. A wound to the stomach will slow them down, but will not stop them.
She sees the seriousness in the eyes of the assembled soldiers and nods, “They are tough, armoured, strong and we have no confirmation of the effects of Orichalcum on their physiology. They are immune to heat and can breath fire.” Nikita pauses, cracking a smile, “Yeah, I know. When am I going to tell you the bad news, eh?”
A few of the soldiers, chuckle and snort with laughter, before she continues, “They have dense bodies and if they fall from height, they land hard. If they fall into water, they are too dense to float and cannot swim. Also they are so heavy that they cannot move faster than seven miles per hour and their flame breath only has a range of a few feet. We have the advantage of speed and range and will capitalise on both.”
“They are a species of agonide, that feed on physical and emotional pain. They are indigenous to this realm. At one time they were hunted by the forces of Queen Maeve, however, they hid in the wilds and the number of Infernals have grown, to massive proportions.” Nikita outlines.
“We have a plan, which will minimise exposure to their strengths and maximise our own. However, as always things change, if they do, adapt and protect yourselves and those around you.” Nikita barks, taking a more official tone, “Mission priorities are as follows. Draw Infernal forces onto the causeway. Halt their advance. Retake the causeway and secure it against incursion. Sweep the realm, culling outlying groups and confirm existence of their pain factory. Secure factory, release prisoners and go home safely. Any questions?” Nikita asks, knowing that the soldiers, will remain silent. “Commander Apollo, would you please brief the troops on the plan? I need to get started.”
The Commander salutes, “Of course, Saviour. God’s go with you.”
Zero hour.
Mar and Gre watch in horror, as the burning mass of Infernals charge towards the gate. Their weapons unable to hit the enemy at this range and unable to hurt them when they are close.
The lumbering, shambling, burning army advances slowly, but unstoppably. Whilst the guards eyes are fixed on the Infernals and their eyes are fixed on the gate, both parties are unaware of the almost thousand pairs of eyes watching events unfold from above.
The Saviour’s guards hang in the sky, by virtue of their gravity repellent arresters. Each has a gyrojet rifle pressed to their shoulders and a finger on the trigger. Apollo watches their advance closely.
The Infernals think nothing of crossing the red line that had been sprayed on the causeway. The guards of the city, tremble and ready their weapons as the Infernals advance to within range. Apollo simply says, “Now.”
All Saviour’s guards open fire. Their combat network calculates the area occupied by the Infernals and evenly distributes their rounds throughout the mass. Each volley detonates simultaneously, in one massive pressure wave tearing the creatures to pieces.
It takes less that five seconds, to turn several thousand Infernals into little more than shredded meat.
A hundred of the Saviour’s Guards, drop from the sky in formation, submachine guns raised and ready, near to the point when the causeway grants access to the city. The city guards watch speechless, as the soldiers erect a series of thick eight foot tall pylons, spanning the width of the causeway. The soldiers ascend silently back to the sky, and a second group drops at the far end of the causeway, to erect more pylons.
Then the bulk of the remaining forces drop between the pylons and ensure that the Infernals have been despatched, before flying silently away.
Camouflaged black against the cloudless night sky, the Saviour’s Guards split into predetermined squads and disperse across the lands.
Nikita roams the land as a dispersed swarm of Giant Asian Hornets. She keeps low and fast, following the scent of the Infernals back to their point of origin. She casts herself across the realm like a net.
“I n the early days, I couldn’t have done this, the men were too green. However, with the new gear and training regimen they are a different force. It helps that Apollo is such a good commander.” Nikita thinks, isolating several large cells of Infernals.
Nikitwo sits back and calmly reports the locations of the locations of all detected Infernals, in real time to fire teams who will eradicate the threat posed.
Across the realm, Infernals find themselves hounded through the night and slain where they hide, from on high. Some are torn apart by small arms fire, others are dragged into the sky and dropped onto jagged rocks while others still are dropped into lakes.
Just before dawn Nikitwo reunites with herself and Nikita crouches on a rocky outcropping overlooking a hidden valley. Under the canopy of the forest below, buildings crouch unseen, their basements burrowing down into cave systems.
She closes her eyes and takes slow deep breaths sensing the approach of the converging Saviour’s Guard. Unseen by the Infernals, they land silently, readying their submachine guns and close quarters weaponry.
Commander Apollo lands next to Nikita and places a hand on her shoulder. “How are you doing?”
Nikita opens her eyes and looks up at him, with a lop sided smile, “I am OK, so far this is quite routine. The caves will be a problem though.”
Apollo offers her a cigarette, which she declines, “What’s the issue with the caves?”
“Dark, tight caves. Possible issues with oxygen and ambient heat.” Nikita admits, with a shrug.
“That could be a problem.” Apollo says, handing her a vial, “As requested.”
“Thanks.” Nikita says, accepting the vial and cracking the seal. With a grimace she tastes the Infernal blood. “Can I have something for the taste please, please?”
Apollo nods retrieving a flask and passing it to her. She takes it with a shaky hand and has a hearty slug composing herself, “They feast on all forms of pain and are never sated. Without natural predators they are like a virus, they will keep coming back. They need to go.”
“Are you OK?” Apollo says, seeing the pain in her eyes, popping a button on his helmet to open his visor.
“Thought you were going to stay incognito.” Nikita says, with a gentle smile.
“Well, I thought you could do with seeing a friendly face.” Halpron says, concerned. “Are you alright? You don’t normally ask for a shot.”
Nikita nestles herself under his arm and lets him pull her close “Yeah, blood tasted foul.” She hesitates for a moment, “We have saved a lot of lives, but sometimes I wonder about those we take.”
“When the weak become prey, we become the predators of predators to save them.” Halpron says, remembering part of his military oath. “We have done the right thing. The lives of the innocent were under threat and we had the ability to help and have done so.”
“I know, it’s just.... I don’t know. I wonder if there is a better way.” Nikita muses, unsure of her point.
“Elysia is a barren world, we could try terraforming it and using it to relocate species to, but that could take years.” Halpron says, mulling the idea over. He gazes into her eyes seeing pain and fatigue and a part of him melts, “I have been blind, to the strain this is placing you under. I have let you down and I am so sorry.” Halpron pulls her close and hugs her tightly. “After this operation, I think you need a break.”
“We have too much on.” Nikita protests, taking another slug of scotch.
“Nothing that our Special Operations Guards cannot handle. We have five thousand King’s Guards for offensive operations and almost eight thousand Saviour’s Guards for rescue operations and anti incursion operations and more qualifying by the day. Because of you they are the best trained and most well rounded troops in the realms. Not to mention the best equipped. You can.” He pauses, “Forget that. We can have a few days off. Get away from it all.” Halpron says, gently.
Nikita knows he will not be swayed, “What did you have in mind?” She asks, taking another pull.
Halpron hugs her tight, “Maybe visit your family.”
Nikita’s eyes go wide for a moment, “I am not sure about that.”
“They will be missing you. I know you miss them. Maybe it is time to reconnect.” Halpron says, picking his words carefully.
Nikita wants to argue, but knows he is right, “I have left it too long. I will cop a lot of grief but maybe it is time. It would be good to see them again.”
Halpron kisses the top of her head, “I will be by your side. Every step of the way.”
Nikita downs a final pull of scotch, then takes a deep breath before kissing Halpron deeply. He pulls her close and dips her at the waist, before straightening with her. “I can face anything with you at my side.” Nikita says, smiling up at him, “Why don’t you get that visor down and we liberate this pain factory?”
“Sounds like a plan.” Halpron says, gazing at Nikita unaugmented, for a moment before deploying his visor with the flick of a switch. He thinks, fondly to himself, “She is the strongest woman I know. But in those moments that she shows her vulnerability, she shows her true strength and I have never loved her more.”
Nikita advances towards the entrance of the structure. The ziggurat rises above her carved from the basalt of the cliff. Roaring and screams of agony, meander from the depths of the pain factory.
With a ripple of flesh and bone, she is clad in ultra dense bone armour, capable of stopping military grade ammunition. Short thick spines cover her body and scythe like blades sprout from her fingers. Her fine features disappear beneath a layer of bone, leaving only her eyes showing. Underneath the sheath she smiles, feeling Halpron’s heartbeat, as he advances behind her, Liberator shotgun drawn.
She pauses and gives a subtle nod, then advances quickly. Halpron keeps pace, with rapidly landing troops bringing up the rear.
The first agonide steps forth to block her path, flame gouts engulfing Nikita. The blood she tasted, has imbued her with fire proof protection and she retaliates hard, striking with claws. They bite deep into the creatures armour but no deeper.
Nikita pulls back her claws and transforms her hand into a heavy bulb of bone embedded with spikes. She slams her right into the creatures chest and it pulverised its dense bones, sending it sprawling.
She turns to look at Halpron and winks, before growing a dozen tentacles, each tipped with a bone flail.
Halpron knows the signal and follows accordingly, breaking into a sprint to keep up with her, closely followed by a many tailed snake of soldiers, ready to sweep and clear.
Nikita leads the way, carving a swathe through the main passageways of the structure, allowing snakes of Saviour’s Guard to secure side tunnels and free prisoners, as they are discovered.
With Nikita at the head of the snake, most resistance falls to her flails, with Halpron finishing any who survive her attentions. The Guard move at a sprint, scouring every inch of the structure, guided by Nikitwo who directs them to pockets of the enemy or the tortured victims that they hold.
By morning, the cave system is clear and the last pockets of the creatures fall.
The last creature stands howling at the Saviour’s guards surrounding it. Their courage and inner strength leaving a bitter taste in the creatures mouth. It tries to run, but is too slow.
Sensing it’s end, the creature sinks to its knees and hangs its head. The squad leader steps forward and gently lays a hand on the creatures shoulder, “Easy now.” He says softly, “I’m sorry it has to be this way, but you are just too dangerous.”
The squad leader takes aim and the creature falls to a brace of shots to the back of its skull. There is no cheer, no ceremony. Only the soldiers quiet reflection on the lives that they have saved by the death of their prey. Before they walk away, the squad leader closes the creatures eyes and each man offers prayers to their own gods to speed the creature to a good afterlife.
Gre and Mar watch stunned, as the pylons on the causeway power down and a rag tag convoy of vehicles and carts begins to cross. Each vehicle is laden with the bodies of those thought lost to the creatures.
By the time the convoy reaches the gates, a crescendo of cheers has risen to greet those who are returned and those who have freed the realm.
Halpron and Nikita take a bow at the gate and begin applauding the Saviour’s Guards, while they escort the wounded to the safety of the city walls.
All of the settlements inhabitants, spill onto the streets to cheer the conquering heroes.
Halpron and Nikita walk hand in hand waving at the crowds with the convoy at their backs, bringing the procession to a halt at the Palace, under a thunderous cavalcade of applause, fireworks and gunfire.
Another mission accomplished.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Shades of E.E. Smith, @wolfman. You have done it again!
A List of my stories:An Unlikely Savior Completed
Spy Task Force Completed
Tale of an Archer Completed
The Bandit Scout on Newhome updated 05/30/23
-
slackywacky
- Millennial Club
- Posts: 2626
- Joined: 5 years ago
- Location: Canada
Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining (well, maybe a little), but I have a hard time keeping up with this story. It is more about the fact that the sheer quantity of chapters constantly has me lagging behind. Can't you go on a 2 month vacation, allowing me to catch up?
I'm not going to add a reply here that applied to a chapter that was released 2 month ago, but I am always impressed with your story. Keep it up (just give me a chance to catch up)
I'm not going to add a reply here that applied to a chapter that was released 2 month ago, but I am always impressed with your story. Keep it up (just give me a chance to catch up)
Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment.
Slackywacky, also @DeviantArt
My active stories:
Slackywacky, also @DeviantArt
My active stories:
- All in the family - Updated 24/04
- Bondage model by choice - Updated 10/04
- Hitchhiker - Updated 29/03
I must say, that is high praise indeed. I wanted to show a day in the life of Nikita and Halpron, with how they approach problems and face them together and also how they are recieved. Maybe a bit cheesy, but I am happy with the result.
Oh Slacky, one the one hand, i am sorry that you have trouble keeping up, but on the othrt hand, happy that you still have more to readslackywacky wrote: ↑6 months ago Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining (well, maybe a little), but I have a hard time keeping up with this story. It is more about the fact that the sheer quantity of chapters constantly has me lagging behind. Can't you go on a 2 month vacation, allowing me to catch up?
I'm not going to add a reply here that applied to a chapter that was released 2 month ago, but I am always impressed with your story. Keep it up (just give me a chance to catch up)
On a serious note, dont worry about commenting on older posts, I am cool you are still along for the ride.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Halpron sets his helmet on the table and sits in his arm chair to pull off his boots. Nikita crosses the room, still wearing her armless Sheath suit and kneels at his feet, to help him remove his boots.
She smiles, when he leans forward and softly kisses the top of her head. “You were amazing today.” He says softly, reaching down and cupping the back of her neck.
“I couldn’t do it, without you having my back.” Nikita confesses, “Mind you, if you keep going out in the field, Cassius will burst a blood vessel.”
Halpron chuckles, “I know, I shouldn’t but even after everything we have done, I still only find peace on the battlefield.”
“You are a great ruler. Your people prosper. Your allies sing their praises of your actions. You are a truly great King.” Nikita says, looking up at him.
“They sing of your actions too. If I am great, by my actions, then you are magnificent by yours.” Halpron says, warmly.
“All I have done, has been inspired by you.” Nikita says, thinking of the way her heart thumps when they are together.
“All I have done has been possible, because of you. All of my strength comes from my love for you. I love you, Niki.” Halpron says, his pulse racing.
“You have no idea, how much you give me. You make every day vibrant. You make my every waking moment a dream. You make me believe in myself and who I can be. You are the King of my heart and it will always be yours. I love you so much, Hal.” Nikita says, feeling her eyes prick with tears for a brief moment.
“I love you beyond my ability to put i to words.” Halpron guides her onto his lap and embraces her warmly, then places a tender kiss on her lips. “What do you say, shall we get out of our work gear and have a wonderful dinner to celebrate each other.”
Nikita senses a slight awkwardness in him, but lets it drop, “Sure. I would like that.” She says, thinking of what to wear.
“Shall we say an hour?” Halpron asks, lightly, while hiding his nerves.
“Perfect.” Nikita says, beaming a smile.
Nikita stands naked in her room, freshly shaved and pumice scrubbed, her skin tingles with freshness and she inhales slowly.
She pulls on a deep red thong and bra, before sliding on matching stockings. With a practiced twist, her jet black hair is elegantly pulled from her shoulders.
In three strides, she crosses the room and then pulls open the wardrobe, selecting a black dress with deep red detailing. The strapless dress hugs every curve of her body, accentuating her bust, whilst the subtle corsetry cinches her waist. The dress caresses her legs like a lover, slit up the left hand side to the hip, with a tantalising flash of skin.
She dons the elegant Orichalcum choker, with a sapphire heart pendant and matching clip on earrings that Halpron gave her for her birthday. She smiles to herself, catching her reflection in the full length mirror, “I look pretty good.” She thinks, surprised, transforming her lips to a deep red.
To complete her look, she slips on three inch heels in black leather, with an open toe.
With a last look in the mirror, she thinks, “Every day is like a fairy tale, but he makes it real. I have never loved anyone this way before.”
Halpron dabs the sweat from his brow, then sets down the pan and checks the table settings, “All is in place.” He whispers, then exhales slowly, “This is it.”
He pours two glasses of chianti and sets them in place by their table settings. He checks the cutlery and changes the spacing on each item before he stops himself, “Don’t worry about perfection. You won’t achieve it with the table settings. You only ever see perfection in her eyes.”
Halpron inhales sharply at the sound of Nikita’s knock. He shrugs his black suit jacket on, over his pale blue shirt. His polished shoes, click purposefully on his way to greet his most honoured guest.
Nikita beams a smile, when the door clicks open. Halpron smiles for a moment, before his mouth hangs open. Nikita’s eyes widen slightly at his reaction and she thinks, “He doesn’t like it. He hates the dress.”
Halpron takes her right hand gently and with a hand on the small of her back he guides her into the room and nudges the door closed with his foot.
Nikita stand nervously, feeling his eyes on her. Halpron shakes his head, “Just when I think I have seen every aspect of your beauty, you continue to surprise me.” He gently strokes the small of her back, “Thank you for coming.”
Nikita smiles, relieved, “Why do you always thank me for coming?” She asks, with a smile and a wink.
Halpron pulls her close and whispers, “Because every time I see you, is a blessing for which I am eternally grateful.” He places a soft kiss on her lips and for a perfect moment, the world stands still.
Nikita feels the sincerity of his words and melts into his embrace, before he guides her to the dining table. She takes a seat and looks on confused as Halpron retreats to the other room.
A moment later he returns with a plate in each hand, setting one before Nikita and the other at his own place setting before taking a seat. “Waygu A5 picana, with dauphinoise potatoes and steamed vegetables with a beef reduction. I had hoped to create a meal to match the occasion, but seeing how you look tonight, I don’t know if I have succeeded.”
Nikita takes his hand in hers and smiles lovingly, “This looks and smells amazing. Did you make this?”
“Yes my love. I prepared it as a tribute to you.” Halpron says, his head bowed.
“How about we eat before it spoils?” Nikita asks, picking up a fork, thinking, “He is acting kind of strange. Not sure what is up with him tonight.”
The first fork full of beef, melts on her tongue like butter, coating her mouth with the decadent, richness of the meat. They eat in comfortable silence, exchanging glances and gentle brushes of the hand as they dine.
With the last mouthful eaten, Nikita lays down her fork and gives a contented sigh. “I didn’t know you could cook like that.”
“Well you aren’t the only one with hidden talents, my love.” He says, playfully, “I only cook for special occasions.”
“Oh really? And what would the special occasion be?” Nikita asks, curiously.
Halpron takes a moment to gather his thoughts, then taking a deep breath, he begins, “Today, is the day that... Today is special because.... Today could be one of the most important days of my life.” He says draining his glass.
Nikita notices him move to fetch the bottle from the kitchen, but stops him with a gentle hand on his arm, “I’ll get the wine, then why don’t you tell me what this is about.” She says gently, beaming a smile at him.
He nods nervously and she rises from her chair and walks slowly to the kitchen. His breath catches in his throat, seeing her walk away and he knows what he must do.
Nikita pulls the wine from the cooler in the kitchen area of the Royal suite. She catches a glimpse of her reflection in the oven door. “I don’t know what is wrong, with Hal, but I am here for him. However bad it is, I will stand at his side.”
She takes a slow breath to centre herself and steps back into the dining room. Laying eyes on Halpron, she drops the wine bottle and her hand covers her mouth.
Halpron rests on one knee, looking up at Nikita, his right hand outstretched toward her. He gently takes her left hand and kisses her palm.
“Since the moment we met, I have felt a connection to you. More than the physical, more than a meeting of minds. Over the past few months, I have come to feel that when we are together, our souls are as one.” Halpron says, gently and softly, “You are my world and everything in my life that brings me joy. In your arms, I feel protected from all the ills of the world. Your touch, chases all my doubts and your love lets me see the man, I want to become and the future, I want to see.”
Nikita feels her eyes moisten with tears, feeling her hand in his, with this beautiful man kneeling before her, as he continues, “You teach me more about love with a single smile, than every book in the realm could in a lifetime. You are my first thought every day and my last thought at night and each day I go to bed with new dreams and each morning, I wake with a heart filled with love.”
Her breath catches, seeing the ring in his hand. “Nikita Green. I am here before you humbled, by all you give me. I have but one question.” He pauses, composing himself.
Nikita gazes down at him. With trembling lips, she whispers, “I love you.”
Those three words, instantly calm Halpron and he finds his voice, “All I have, I offer to you. All I am, I devote to you.” He gently squeezes her hand, “Will you do me the greatest honour of being my wife?”
Nikita feels the room start to spin slowly, unable to speak. She stares at the ring, gazes into the eyes of the man before her and sees nothing but love. She nods, slowly at first then more vigorously, when she finds her voice. “Yes. A thousand times yes.”
Tears form in his eyes as he slips the ring onto her finger and kisses it, before rising to his feet and embracing his fiancée.
She smiles, when he leans forward and softly kisses the top of her head. “You were amazing today.” He says softly, reaching down and cupping the back of her neck.
“I couldn’t do it, without you having my back.” Nikita confesses, “Mind you, if you keep going out in the field, Cassius will burst a blood vessel.”
Halpron chuckles, “I know, I shouldn’t but even after everything we have done, I still only find peace on the battlefield.”
“You are a great ruler. Your people prosper. Your allies sing their praises of your actions. You are a truly great King.” Nikita says, looking up at him.
“They sing of your actions too. If I am great, by my actions, then you are magnificent by yours.” Halpron says, warmly.
“All I have done, has been inspired by you.” Nikita says, thinking of the way her heart thumps when they are together.
“All I have done has been possible, because of you. All of my strength comes from my love for you. I love you, Niki.” Halpron says, his pulse racing.
“You have no idea, how much you give me. You make every day vibrant. You make my every waking moment a dream. You make me believe in myself and who I can be. You are the King of my heart and it will always be yours. I love you so much, Hal.” Nikita says, feeling her eyes prick with tears for a brief moment.
“I love you beyond my ability to put i to words.” Halpron guides her onto his lap and embraces her warmly, then places a tender kiss on her lips. “What do you say, shall we get out of our work gear and have a wonderful dinner to celebrate each other.”
Nikita senses a slight awkwardness in him, but lets it drop, “Sure. I would like that.” She says, thinking of what to wear.
“Shall we say an hour?” Halpron asks, lightly, while hiding his nerves.
“Perfect.” Nikita says, beaming a smile.
Nikita stands naked in her room, freshly shaved and pumice scrubbed, her skin tingles with freshness and she inhales slowly.
She pulls on a deep red thong and bra, before sliding on matching stockings. With a practiced twist, her jet black hair is elegantly pulled from her shoulders.
In three strides, she crosses the room and then pulls open the wardrobe, selecting a black dress with deep red detailing. The strapless dress hugs every curve of her body, accentuating her bust, whilst the subtle corsetry cinches her waist. The dress caresses her legs like a lover, slit up the left hand side to the hip, with a tantalising flash of skin.
She dons the elegant Orichalcum choker, with a sapphire heart pendant and matching clip on earrings that Halpron gave her for her birthday. She smiles to herself, catching her reflection in the full length mirror, “I look pretty good.” She thinks, surprised, transforming her lips to a deep red.
To complete her look, she slips on three inch heels in black leather, with an open toe.
With a last look in the mirror, she thinks, “Every day is like a fairy tale, but he makes it real. I have never loved anyone this way before.”
Halpron dabs the sweat from his brow, then sets down the pan and checks the table settings, “All is in place.” He whispers, then exhales slowly, “This is it.”
He pours two glasses of chianti and sets them in place by their table settings. He checks the cutlery and changes the spacing on each item before he stops himself, “Don’t worry about perfection. You won’t achieve it with the table settings. You only ever see perfection in her eyes.”
Halpron inhales sharply at the sound of Nikita’s knock. He shrugs his black suit jacket on, over his pale blue shirt. His polished shoes, click purposefully on his way to greet his most honoured guest.
Nikita beams a smile, when the door clicks open. Halpron smiles for a moment, before his mouth hangs open. Nikita’s eyes widen slightly at his reaction and she thinks, “He doesn’t like it. He hates the dress.”
Halpron takes her right hand gently and with a hand on the small of her back he guides her into the room and nudges the door closed with his foot.
Nikita stand nervously, feeling his eyes on her. Halpron shakes his head, “Just when I think I have seen every aspect of your beauty, you continue to surprise me.” He gently strokes the small of her back, “Thank you for coming.”
Nikita smiles, relieved, “Why do you always thank me for coming?” She asks, with a smile and a wink.
Halpron pulls her close and whispers, “Because every time I see you, is a blessing for which I am eternally grateful.” He places a soft kiss on her lips and for a perfect moment, the world stands still.
Nikita feels the sincerity of his words and melts into his embrace, before he guides her to the dining table. She takes a seat and looks on confused as Halpron retreats to the other room.
A moment later he returns with a plate in each hand, setting one before Nikita and the other at his own place setting before taking a seat. “Waygu A5 picana, with dauphinoise potatoes and steamed vegetables with a beef reduction. I had hoped to create a meal to match the occasion, but seeing how you look tonight, I don’t know if I have succeeded.”
Nikita takes his hand in hers and smiles lovingly, “This looks and smells amazing. Did you make this?”
“Yes my love. I prepared it as a tribute to you.” Halpron says, his head bowed.
“How about we eat before it spoils?” Nikita asks, picking up a fork, thinking, “He is acting kind of strange. Not sure what is up with him tonight.”
The first fork full of beef, melts on her tongue like butter, coating her mouth with the decadent, richness of the meat. They eat in comfortable silence, exchanging glances and gentle brushes of the hand as they dine.
With the last mouthful eaten, Nikita lays down her fork and gives a contented sigh. “I didn’t know you could cook like that.”
“Well you aren’t the only one with hidden talents, my love.” He says, playfully, “I only cook for special occasions.”
“Oh really? And what would the special occasion be?” Nikita asks, curiously.
Halpron takes a moment to gather his thoughts, then taking a deep breath, he begins, “Today, is the day that... Today is special because.... Today could be one of the most important days of my life.” He says draining his glass.
Nikita notices him move to fetch the bottle from the kitchen, but stops him with a gentle hand on his arm, “I’ll get the wine, then why don’t you tell me what this is about.” She says gently, beaming a smile at him.
He nods nervously and she rises from her chair and walks slowly to the kitchen. His breath catches in his throat, seeing her walk away and he knows what he must do.
Nikita pulls the wine from the cooler in the kitchen area of the Royal suite. She catches a glimpse of her reflection in the oven door. “I don’t know what is wrong, with Hal, but I am here for him. However bad it is, I will stand at his side.”
She takes a slow breath to centre herself and steps back into the dining room. Laying eyes on Halpron, she drops the wine bottle and her hand covers her mouth.
Halpron rests on one knee, looking up at Nikita, his right hand outstretched toward her. He gently takes her left hand and kisses her palm.
“Since the moment we met, I have felt a connection to you. More than the physical, more than a meeting of minds. Over the past few months, I have come to feel that when we are together, our souls are as one.” Halpron says, gently and softly, “You are my world and everything in my life that brings me joy. In your arms, I feel protected from all the ills of the world. Your touch, chases all my doubts and your love lets me see the man, I want to become and the future, I want to see.”
Nikita feels her eyes moisten with tears, feeling her hand in his, with this beautiful man kneeling before her, as he continues, “You teach me more about love with a single smile, than every book in the realm could in a lifetime. You are my first thought every day and my last thought at night and each day I go to bed with new dreams and each morning, I wake with a heart filled with love.”
Her breath catches, seeing the ring in his hand. “Nikita Green. I am here before you humbled, by all you give me. I have but one question.” He pauses, composing himself.
Nikita gazes down at him. With trembling lips, she whispers, “I love you.”
Those three words, instantly calm Halpron and he finds his voice, “All I have, I offer to you. All I am, I devote to you.” He gently squeezes her hand, “Will you do me the greatest honour of being my wife?”
Nikita feels the room start to spin slowly, unable to speak. She stares at the ring, gazes into the eyes of the man before her and sees nothing but love. She nods, slowly at first then more vigorously, when she finds her voice. “Yes. A thousand times yes.”
Tears form in his eyes as he slips the ring onto her finger and kisses it, before rising to his feet and embracing his fiancée.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
That is perfect, @wolfman. Now we need to know if he is any good at tying her up. Does he have any Orichalcum rope that would be effective at restraining her. And how would Nikita take to a tug for fun? So much to learn!
A List of my stories:An Unlikely Savior Completed
Spy Task Force Completed
Tale of an Archer Completed
The Bandit Scout on Newhome updated 05/30/23
She has a history of surrendering to Halpron and definitely has a playful side. Who knows? Every so often you may see a regal TUG or two between the happy couple.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Storm clouds hang low in the sky, pregnant with rain. The distant lights of the city lend the clouds an ethereal otherworldly glow.
The heavens open, unleashing a deluge, leaving rain slick roads, cutting through fields and woodland. The rising wind lashes rain, against any who venture out on a night like this.
At this hour, the last revellers are in their beds and those working early shifts are still safe in their dreams.
However, not everyone sleeps. Some move through the world, claiming it as their own. Ruling deserted streets, with unchallenged impunity.
A thunderous roar splits the night. Like the strangled cries of hell hounds on choke chains. Rising and falling like an angry tide.
The British racing green Aston Martin, slices through the air like a knife, the roar of its engine echoes across the night, like a wounded lion, when it clears a roundabout at eighty miles an hour and climbing.
Steve Marks guns the engine and glances at the heads up display. The roads are mostly deserted, but he is not alone on the rural Hertfordshire roads. “Six vehicles inbound, at speed. This will be fun.” He murmurs under his breath.
His rear window fills with harsh blue light, the first police interceptor, swinging onto the road behind him. Steve brakes hard and slices down a side road on his left, accelerating hard as he straightens.
He smiles subtly, seeing another vehicle close from the right to intercept. A sharp handbrake, a twist of the wheel and a three gear change down and he tears round the corner and slips past the interceptor. He checks his rear view mirror, seeing the two police vehicles in his wake, one scrambling to turn and the other screeching to a halt.
The engine howls, as the modified sports car, eats road at the front and spits speed out of the back. Other blips close in and soon all six police interceptors follow at speed.
Steve shakes his head looking in his rear-view mirror, “Basic error, people. Bunched up behind me, instead of manoeuvring to surround me.” He says softly.
He guns the engine and guides the car past the hundred miles per hour mark. At this speed, even in the rain, it sticks to the road like glue.
The lead interceptor edges close to Steve’s rear bumper, but the driver panics when the runaway car’s brake lights flash for an instant. The interceptor driver slams on his brakes and skids across the road, spinning slightly.
The other interceptors hang back and peel around their recovering colleague, struggling to make up the lost ground. However, Steve is already opening up the gap between them.
Steve glances at the sign as he passes it at speed and nods to himself. “Change of pace, I think.”
Transcript from Traffic police radio communications.
“Suspect is driving a dark green Aston Martin. Has been observed driving erratically at speed. Vehicle observed to have joined M1 northbound. Over” A younger female officer reports.
“Confirmed, I have eyes on suspect approaching Junction 12 clocked at over a hundred and thirty estimated, over.” An older male officer confirms.
“Understood. Wolf pack in attendance. Estimate time to intercept, three minutes. Maintain observation until there are the numbers to bring vehicle to a halt safely. Over.” A focused sounding officer, orders.
“Received and understood, maintaining mobile O.P.” The older officer confirms.
After two and a half minutes of static the older officer speaks again, “Confirm eyes on Wolf Pack. You are clear to pass on the right, I will join from rear.”
The focused officer speaks quietly and calmly, “Acknowledged, we are on approach, at speed. When clear, pack 3,4 and 5 advance left, closing the door on approaching Junction. I will go to his left, 2 sweep right and get in front of them, 6 take his right. Additional support required closing the back door on box.” He pauses, before ordering , “Engage.”
“This is vehicle 3, we are locked in on inside lane, matching course and speed with suspect, time to junction 30 seconds.”
“I can approach from left, but road surface too uneven, cannot draw level or overtake, over. Without risk to myself and other road users” The female officer reports.
The focused officer speaks, “Understood, units 2 and 6, begin approach from right hand lane, I will move up to box him in then we guide into central reservation crash barrier for a controlled stop. Over.”
Steve nods appreciatively at the chatter and waits for the vehicle on his left to accelerate, then jinks the wheel right, jumping into the clear outside lane. He slams on the brakes, letting the interceptors streak ahead of him.
He sweeps into the inside lane and tucks in behind the vehicles covering the lane to block off the junction. To their credit, they break formation and attempt to surround him, at speed, but with a jink left putting him on the hard shoulder and sharp deceleration, they too zoom ahead.
Steve slips off of the motorway and gives a salute to the officers who would have stopped him. He drops his speed and swings around the roundabout at the exit and rejoins the M1 southbound.
Steve glances at the centre console as a call silent comes in, answering it with a smile, “Good morning, Inspector. How is it going?”
Inspector Hunter, the focused police officer chuckles, “Not too bad thanks, nice morning for a drive. Thank you for not humiliating the recruits too badly.”
“Not at all, Geoff. They did well for night one.” Steve says, lightly, “How are you finding the new all electrics?”
“Quite good, but this is why we need this training. They have a great top speed, but it takes a little while to get there.” Hunter confirms.
“Trouble is they have been upgraded with extra wiring for lights, radios and comms and fitted with weapon racks. This makes them heavy. It might be worth speaking to the manufacturer to get the drive train upgraded to compensate for the extra weight.” Steve says, with a shrug.
“Yeah, while I am at it, I could ask for gold plating.” The Inspector chuckles.
“If you ask nicely, you could get a coffee machine as well.” Steve adds, before saying, “I have sent you my dash cam footage. Reconstruct the whole chase with, my footage and your comms and review with the recruits. Pull it apart and send me any questions.”
“I really appreciate this Steve. We need live practice and pressure testing for the officers with the new vehicles and this is more helpful than you know.” Hunter says, earnestly.
“No problem, all part of the service. Drop us a line when you need another and either myself or Kate can do another session.”
“Thanks Steve. Will probably be a couple of days to assimilate lessons learned and prod the new lot into shape.” Hunter suggests.
“Sounds about right. In the mean time, swing by the canteen at Nirvana with the recruits for breakfast, on me.” Steve offers with a smile.
“Mr Marks you are a legend.” Hunter says, with a grin.
Steve’s tone turns more serious for a moment, “All joking aside, it is an open invite to all officers, paramedics, nurses, doctors and firefighters in the area. We will set them up with a good meal on us. We respect their service and honour what you guys do.”
“That is awesome. I will spread the word. That will make a big difference to a lot of front line staff.” Hunter says, humbled.
“We know people are hurting at the moment. It is a small thing but if we can help those who help society, it is all to the good.” Steve says, with a nod.
The drive home is much less hectic than the journey through the night and Steve stretches a little before checking his rear-view mirror.
He smiles at his new-born son Tommy and grandson Liam sat side by side in their child seats. Both with their heads back and mouths open, fast asleep.
“Works every time.” He says, filled with love, “Let’s get you boys home.”
Sasha sits back on the sofa under a blanket and reaches for the fresh cup of sweet tea. She inhales the floral scent of the Earl Grey, before taking a tentative sip.
Louise sits the other end of the sofa with her own cup and decides her tea is a little hot for now. “I am not keen on Steve taking Tommy out like this, but it really does get him settled.” She says, sensing a distance in the younger woman.
“Liam can be a bit fussy, but a car ride generally settles him too.” Sasha says, with a sigh.
“Is everything ok?” Louise asks, concerned for the young woman.
Sasha stares out of the window, as if seeking answers. Louise sets down her cup and turns herself to more fully face Sasha, “What’s wrong, love?”
Sasha runs her fingers through her hair and sits forward, “Take a wild guess.” She says, her words catching in her throat.
“Dani or Niki?” Louise asks, unsure which is on her daughter-in-laws mind.
“I think Niki is OK. She might be working through some stuff but I think she is alright. Dani is still not sleeping well but each day she seems a little better.” Sasha explains, with an air of fatigue. “I am worried about the girls.”
Louise frowns for a moment, “I thought they were alright. They passed their exams and were looking for options for study. Has something changed?”
Sasha nods, with a hint of pride, “They passed their GCSE’s two years early and by studying different A levels, sharing the knowledge and sitting the exams, they each have almost twenty A levels.”
“I sense a but coming.” Louise says, trying to read the younger woman.
“Oh yeah. They are too young for university, but they keep badgering us to let them join a Nirvana training program or join a rescue team.” Sasha confesses.
“I think we need wine.” Louise says, hopping up from the sofa.
“No, I really shouldn’t.” Sasha says, raising her hands.
“You are a grown ass woman, the little ‘uns are safe and the girls are in bed. You can have one glass.” Louise says, from the kitchen. A moment later she returns with a full bodied Merlot and two glasses.
Sasha relents and accepts the offered glass and clinks it with her mother-in-law, “I want what is best for them, but I don’t know what that is. It is great that they have an interest, but they are too young for military training.”
Louise has a distant look of her own, for a moment, “Let me have a wild guess. You have been talking to Alex, Rachel and Moses and you all feel that this is not the best place to raise teenagers.” Louise says softly.
Sasha sips her wine and nods, “They love it here but every day they see men and women prepared to travel the world over and dive into harms way.” Sasha pauses, taking another sip, “We are thinking of taking them somewhere away from here. Where they can have a chance at a normal life.”
Louise smiles sympathetically, “I can understand that, Steve and I have been having similar conversations about Tommy.” She pauses, taking a sip of wine and savouring it, before continuing, “I can step back as CEO and retain my shares, we could relocate somewhere quiet with good schools. If you want to come, your dad and I would love to have you.”
“That is tempting, I think we can probably get the girls enlisted with online universities for study if they wanted.” Sasha says thinking aloud, with a subtle look of unease.
“I sense another but coming.” Louise says, tipping up their glasses.
Sasha takes a large swig of wine and then chews her lip, “OK, I am worried about Dani. Every so often she wakes screaming from what that bastard made her do. She wont talk to me. Far as I know, she wont talk to anyone.”
Louise nods, downing a generous swig of wine, “It will take time, but when she is ready, she will open up. Until then, you gotta keep reminding her that she has you and all of us and we all love her very much.”
“That I can do. If we relocate, we will invite Dani to join us, wherever we go.” Sasha says, fondly. “She has been amazing with the girls and just helping out I must confess that I don’t know how I would have coped without her these past few months.”
“You.” Louise says, topping up their glasses, “Are too tough on yourself. You’re there for everyone and you never ask for anything. You also need to remember that you aren’t alone.”
Sasha looks sternly at the newly filled glass with a raised eyebrow, before taking a deep draught, “Thanks Lou, I needed this.”
Louise winks knocking back more wine, “No drama, us young mum’s have to stick together, eh?” She raises her glass in a toast, “To days without drama, may they come soon.”
Sasha clinks her glass and they drink deeply.
Steve eases the sports car to a gentle stop outside of the family home. He quietly steps out of the vehicle and folds his seat down before lifting the child seats out of the rear of the vehicle.
He takes advantage of the lull in the storm to take the babies inside. He smiles to himself seeing his wife and daughter asleep in the sofa, with two empty wine bottles on the coffee table.
In short order he puts the little ones to bed with a gentle kiss on the cheek, thinking, “Glad that Sasha and Lou have been able to unwind a bit tonight.”
He stands at the threshold to the living room watching his wife and daughter sleeping. He considers carrying them both upstairs, but decides to leave them settled.
Instead, he lays a blanket over each of them and turns down the lights, before wearily heading to bed.
The heavens open, unleashing a deluge, leaving rain slick roads, cutting through fields and woodland. The rising wind lashes rain, against any who venture out on a night like this.
At this hour, the last revellers are in their beds and those working early shifts are still safe in their dreams.
However, not everyone sleeps. Some move through the world, claiming it as their own. Ruling deserted streets, with unchallenged impunity.
A thunderous roar splits the night. Like the strangled cries of hell hounds on choke chains. Rising and falling like an angry tide.
The British racing green Aston Martin, slices through the air like a knife, the roar of its engine echoes across the night, like a wounded lion, when it clears a roundabout at eighty miles an hour and climbing.
Steve Marks guns the engine and glances at the heads up display. The roads are mostly deserted, but he is not alone on the rural Hertfordshire roads. “Six vehicles inbound, at speed. This will be fun.” He murmurs under his breath.
His rear window fills with harsh blue light, the first police interceptor, swinging onto the road behind him. Steve brakes hard and slices down a side road on his left, accelerating hard as he straightens.
He smiles subtly, seeing another vehicle close from the right to intercept. A sharp handbrake, a twist of the wheel and a three gear change down and he tears round the corner and slips past the interceptor. He checks his rear view mirror, seeing the two police vehicles in his wake, one scrambling to turn and the other screeching to a halt.
The engine howls, as the modified sports car, eats road at the front and spits speed out of the back. Other blips close in and soon all six police interceptors follow at speed.
Steve shakes his head looking in his rear-view mirror, “Basic error, people. Bunched up behind me, instead of manoeuvring to surround me.” He says softly.
He guns the engine and guides the car past the hundred miles per hour mark. At this speed, even in the rain, it sticks to the road like glue.
The lead interceptor edges close to Steve’s rear bumper, but the driver panics when the runaway car’s brake lights flash for an instant. The interceptor driver slams on his brakes and skids across the road, spinning slightly.
The other interceptors hang back and peel around their recovering colleague, struggling to make up the lost ground. However, Steve is already opening up the gap between them.
Steve glances at the sign as he passes it at speed and nods to himself. “Change of pace, I think.”
Transcript from Traffic police radio communications.
“Suspect is driving a dark green Aston Martin. Has been observed driving erratically at speed. Vehicle observed to have joined M1 northbound. Over” A younger female officer reports.
“Confirmed, I have eyes on suspect approaching Junction 12 clocked at over a hundred and thirty estimated, over.” An older male officer confirms.
“Understood. Wolf pack in attendance. Estimate time to intercept, three minutes. Maintain observation until there are the numbers to bring vehicle to a halt safely. Over.” A focused sounding officer, orders.
“Received and understood, maintaining mobile O.P.” The older officer confirms.
After two and a half minutes of static the older officer speaks again, “Confirm eyes on Wolf Pack. You are clear to pass on the right, I will join from rear.”
The focused officer speaks quietly and calmly, “Acknowledged, we are on approach, at speed. When clear, pack 3,4 and 5 advance left, closing the door on approaching Junction. I will go to his left, 2 sweep right and get in front of them, 6 take his right. Additional support required closing the back door on box.” He pauses, before ordering , “Engage.”
“This is vehicle 3, we are locked in on inside lane, matching course and speed with suspect, time to junction 30 seconds.”
“I can approach from left, but road surface too uneven, cannot draw level or overtake, over. Without risk to myself and other road users” The female officer reports.
The focused officer speaks, “Understood, units 2 and 6, begin approach from right hand lane, I will move up to box him in then we guide into central reservation crash barrier for a controlled stop. Over.”
Steve nods appreciatively at the chatter and waits for the vehicle on his left to accelerate, then jinks the wheel right, jumping into the clear outside lane. He slams on the brakes, letting the interceptors streak ahead of him.
He sweeps into the inside lane and tucks in behind the vehicles covering the lane to block off the junction. To their credit, they break formation and attempt to surround him, at speed, but with a jink left putting him on the hard shoulder and sharp deceleration, they too zoom ahead.
Steve slips off of the motorway and gives a salute to the officers who would have stopped him. He drops his speed and swings around the roundabout at the exit and rejoins the M1 southbound.
Steve glances at the centre console as a call silent comes in, answering it with a smile, “Good morning, Inspector. How is it going?”
Inspector Hunter, the focused police officer chuckles, “Not too bad thanks, nice morning for a drive. Thank you for not humiliating the recruits too badly.”
“Not at all, Geoff. They did well for night one.” Steve says, lightly, “How are you finding the new all electrics?”
“Quite good, but this is why we need this training. They have a great top speed, but it takes a little while to get there.” Hunter confirms.
“Trouble is they have been upgraded with extra wiring for lights, radios and comms and fitted with weapon racks. This makes them heavy. It might be worth speaking to the manufacturer to get the drive train upgraded to compensate for the extra weight.” Steve says, with a shrug.
“Yeah, while I am at it, I could ask for gold plating.” The Inspector chuckles.
“If you ask nicely, you could get a coffee machine as well.” Steve adds, before saying, “I have sent you my dash cam footage. Reconstruct the whole chase with, my footage and your comms and review with the recruits. Pull it apart and send me any questions.”
“I really appreciate this Steve. We need live practice and pressure testing for the officers with the new vehicles and this is more helpful than you know.” Hunter says, earnestly.
“No problem, all part of the service. Drop us a line when you need another and either myself or Kate can do another session.”
“Thanks Steve. Will probably be a couple of days to assimilate lessons learned and prod the new lot into shape.” Hunter suggests.
“Sounds about right. In the mean time, swing by the canteen at Nirvana with the recruits for breakfast, on me.” Steve offers with a smile.
“Mr Marks you are a legend.” Hunter says, with a grin.
Steve’s tone turns more serious for a moment, “All joking aside, it is an open invite to all officers, paramedics, nurses, doctors and firefighters in the area. We will set them up with a good meal on us. We respect their service and honour what you guys do.”
“That is awesome. I will spread the word. That will make a big difference to a lot of front line staff.” Hunter says, humbled.
“We know people are hurting at the moment. It is a small thing but if we can help those who help society, it is all to the good.” Steve says, with a nod.
The drive home is much less hectic than the journey through the night and Steve stretches a little before checking his rear-view mirror.
He smiles at his new-born son Tommy and grandson Liam sat side by side in their child seats. Both with their heads back and mouths open, fast asleep.
“Works every time.” He says, filled with love, “Let’s get you boys home.”
Sasha sits back on the sofa under a blanket and reaches for the fresh cup of sweet tea. She inhales the floral scent of the Earl Grey, before taking a tentative sip.
Louise sits the other end of the sofa with her own cup and decides her tea is a little hot for now. “I am not keen on Steve taking Tommy out like this, but it really does get him settled.” She says, sensing a distance in the younger woman.
“Liam can be a bit fussy, but a car ride generally settles him too.” Sasha says, with a sigh.
“Is everything ok?” Louise asks, concerned for the young woman.
Sasha stares out of the window, as if seeking answers. Louise sets down her cup and turns herself to more fully face Sasha, “What’s wrong, love?”
Sasha runs her fingers through her hair and sits forward, “Take a wild guess.” She says, her words catching in her throat.
“Dani or Niki?” Louise asks, unsure which is on her daughter-in-laws mind.
“I think Niki is OK. She might be working through some stuff but I think she is alright. Dani is still not sleeping well but each day she seems a little better.” Sasha explains, with an air of fatigue. “I am worried about the girls.”
Louise frowns for a moment, “I thought they were alright. They passed their exams and were looking for options for study. Has something changed?”
Sasha nods, with a hint of pride, “They passed their GCSE’s two years early and by studying different A levels, sharing the knowledge and sitting the exams, they each have almost twenty A levels.”
“I sense a but coming.” Louise says, trying to read the younger woman.
“Oh yeah. They are too young for university, but they keep badgering us to let them join a Nirvana training program or join a rescue team.” Sasha confesses.
“I think we need wine.” Louise says, hopping up from the sofa.
“No, I really shouldn’t.” Sasha says, raising her hands.
“You are a grown ass woman, the little ‘uns are safe and the girls are in bed. You can have one glass.” Louise says, from the kitchen. A moment later she returns with a full bodied Merlot and two glasses.
Sasha relents and accepts the offered glass and clinks it with her mother-in-law, “I want what is best for them, but I don’t know what that is. It is great that they have an interest, but they are too young for military training.”
Louise has a distant look of her own, for a moment, “Let me have a wild guess. You have been talking to Alex, Rachel and Moses and you all feel that this is not the best place to raise teenagers.” Louise says softly.
Sasha sips her wine and nods, “They love it here but every day they see men and women prepared to travel the world over and dive into harms way.” Sasha pauses, taking another sip, “We are thinking of taking them somewhere away from here. Where they can have a chance at a normal life.”
Louise smiles sympathetically, “I can understand that, Steve and I have been having similar conversations about Tommy.” She pauses, taking a sip of wine and savouring it, before continuing, “I can step back as CEO and retain my shares, we could relocate somewhere quiet with good schools. If you want to come, your dad and I would love to have you.”
“That is tempting, I think we can probably get the girls enlisted with online universities for study if they wanted.” Sasha says thinking aloud, with a subtle look of unease.
“I sense another but coming.” Louise says, tipping up their glasses.
Sasha takes a large swig of wine and then chews her lip, “OK, I am worried about Dani. Every so often she wakes screaming from what that bastard made her do. She wont talk to me. Far as I know, she wont talk to anyone.”
Louise nods, downing a generous swig of wine, “It will take time, but when she is ready, she will open up. Until then, you gotta keep reminding her that she has you and all of us and we all love her very much.”
“That I can do. If we relocate, we will invite Dani to join us, wherever we go.” Sasha says, fondly. “She has been amazing with the girls and just helping out I must confess that I don’t know how I would have coped without her these past few months.”
“You.” Louise says, topping up their glasses, “Are too tough on yourself. You’re there for everyone and you never ask for anything. You also need to remember that you aren’t alone.”
Sasha looks sternly at the newly filled glass with a raised eyebrow, before taking a deep draught, “Thanks Lou, I needed this.”
Louise winks knocking back more wine, “No drama, us young mum’s have to stick together, eh?” She raises her glass in a toast, “To days without drama, may they come soon.”
Sasha clinks her glass and they drink deeply.
Steve eases the sports car to a gentle stop outside of the family home. He quietly steps out of the vehicle and folds his seat down before lifting the child seats out of the rear of the vehicle.
He takes advantage of the lull in the storm to take the babies inside. He smiles to himself seeing his wife and daughter asleep in the sofa, with two empty wine bottles on the coffee table.
In short order he puts the little ones to bed with a gentle kiss on the cheek, thinking, “Glad that Sasha and Lou have been able to unwind a bit tonight.”
He stands at the threshold to the living room watching his wife and daughter sleeping. He considers carrying them both upstairs, but decides to leave them settled.
Instead, he lays a blanket over each of them and turns down the lights, before wearily heading to bed.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
I needed that gentle reintroduction to the family, @wolfman. The old synapses don't fire as well as they should. It will be great to get the family back together if that is the direction you are heading toward. Whatever you do, it will be great.
A List of my stories:An Unlikely Savior Completed
Spy Task Force Completed
Tale of an Archer Completed
The Bandit Scout on Newhome updated 05/30/23
I thought after so long in Atlantis a little interlude back home would be a nice change of pace. We will be catching up with a few of the family and what they are up to. After that, who knows.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Damn my comments always seem to come in broken stages, I do wish you’d consider adding a few of us at the beginning of the chapters, I hate missing a heart beat of this tale, whether it be packed with action or intrigue, or more calming and gentle, it’s such fun to read and enjoy
A fair point and i will consider adding names moving forward. Glad you are still onboard and enjoying this tale. I hope you are well.Bandit666 wrote: ↑5 months ago Damn my comments always seem to come in broken stages, I do wish you’d consider adding a few of us at the beginning of the chapters, I hate missing a heart beat of this tale, whether it be packed with action or intrigue, or more calming and gentle, it’s such fun to read and enjoy
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Have some catching up to do, so I started with your latest chapter @wolfman - I love the introdcution, the atmosphere you create with describing the weather. Somehow the elements seem to reflect what is going on. Steve is a great teacher it seems - or legend, as Hunter puts it. The conversation between Louise and Sasha is a most intriguing one. We learn how deeply Sasha cares about her siblings - and I hope Dani finds the courage to open up to somebody to share what she has gone through.
Thank y0u for your comments my friend. I wanted to show a little of how life has gone on for the famiky since Nikita left. I am really pleased with the end result. I felt it made sense to have Lou and Sasha bond over motherhood and reach out to each other for support. With Steve, i just wanted to have a little fun and i liked the idea of a police chase at speed with kids in the back to get them to sleep.Caesar73 wrote: ↑5 months ago Have some catching up to do, so I started with your latest chapter @wolfman - I love the introdcution, the atmosphere you create with describing the weather. Somehow the elements seem to reflect what is going on. Steve is a great teacher it seems - or legend, as Hunter puts it. The conversation between Louise and Sasha is a most intriguing one. We learn how deeply Sasha cares about her siblings - and I hope Dani finds the courage to open up to somebody to share what she has gone through.
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
Next chapter and I have tagged regular commenters, if you wish to be added to list, please let me know
@Bandit666 @GreyLord @slackywacky @Caesar73
Dani wakes slowly. She reluctantly opens her eyes and stares at the alarm clock. “Five? Damn it.” She says under her breath, thumping the snooze button on her alarm.
Turning over she frowns, “Why hasn’t my alarm stopped?” She closes her eyes and starts to settle before she thinks, “I didn’t set an alarm.”
With a start she snaps awake, grabbing her phone. “Hello?” She asks, too bleary eyed to see who is calling.
“Morning, babe.” Nikita says nervously.
“Niki? Is that you?” Dani asks, sceptically.
“Yeah. What time is it there?” Nikita asks, detecting the burr in her sisters voice.
“Five in the morning.” Dani says, sitting up and lighting a cigarette.
“I am so sorry.” Nikita pauses, and sighs, “I’ve messed this up.”
Dani smiles to herself and sends a plume of smoke towards the closed curtains of the window, “Behave yourself. I have been waiting for a while for this phone call. How are you?”
“I’m doing OK. Been busy, but things are good.” Nikita admits, with a smile, “How are things with you?”
“Can’t complain.” Dani says with a verbal shrug, “I’m guessing that the trouble you were facing is over now.”
“Yes babe.” Nikita says before, chewing her lip.
Dani senses a nervousness to her sister and speaks softly, “I don’t care why you are calling. I have no idea what you have been up to. If you want to tell me that would be great, but if not, it is all good. I just want to know if you are safe.”
“I want to tell you everything, but not over the phone.” Nikita says, pausing once more, before adding, “I was thinking of coming back, for a visit.”
“The door is always open babe, you know that. It would be great to see you.” Dani says, feeling a sense of relief wash over her.
“It would be great to see everyone.” Nikita says, feeling her heart thump as a tear leaks from her eye. “I have missed you all so much.”
“Everyone has missed you too.” Dani says, gently, before blurting out, “I’ve missed you.”
“Missed you too, Dani.” Nikita says, with a smile, “Should be there for about six this evening.”
“Really? That is amazing. Can’t wait to tell everyone.” Dani says, imagining everyone’s reactions.
“Could you keep it to yourself until I arrive?” Nikita asks, with a smile, “Would like to surprise everyone.”
“Sure. It’s film night and by that time we will be gathering at Sasha’s.” Dani says, before quipping, “There will be enough food for an army, but if you could bring some wine that would be awesome.”
“I think I can do that. Do you need any duty free?” Nikita asks, with a grin.
“Ooh, I am good for smokes and we are well stocked for booze, but if you could get some nice perfume for the girls, they would love you forever.” Dani says, thoughtfully.
“I can do that.” Nikita says lightly, before becoming more nervous, “It will be OK me coming back, won’t it?”
“I told everyone that you were working on a secret project and would only be able to have limited communication. I didn’t tell them everything. Not that I know anything.” Dani confesses.
“Thanks babe.” Nikita says, choking back tears, “I will tell everyone everything, when I get there.”
Dani takes a deep drag on her cigarette, before saying, “There is no pressure. The important thing is you coming back safe.”
“I can’t wait to see you. I have missed you so much.” Nikita says, regretfully.
“Don’t worry, we’ll have a good catch up.” Dani says, whilst thinking, “You have no idea how badly, I need to talk to you.”
“Yeah we all will.” Nikita says, pausing for a moment, “I am sorry to cut this short, but if we are on for later, I had better finish packing.”
Dani stubs out her cigarette and smiles, “No worries. If you don’t mind, I will head back to bed.”
“I am so sorry to deprive you of your lay in. I hope you have a nice lazy day. See you later.” Nikita says, warmly.
“See you later, babe.” Dani says, with a warm smile. “You can call me anytime, day or night.”
“Laters babe.” Nikita says, ending the call.
Dani set down her phone and feels a wave of relief wash over her and she allows the tears to flow. “She’s safe, she’s coming home.”
After a pee and another cigarette, she returns to bed. She enjoys the feeling of peace, knowing her sister is returning and closes her eyes to sleep. She feels her body relax until sleep claims her once again.
Sasha feels the warmth emanating from the heating and slowly opens her eyes and stretches. She shakes her head to try to break free from the fog in her mind, before she remembers the events of the previous evening.
“Jeez, we hit it hard last night.” She chuckles to herself. Moving slowly, she sets the blanket aside and heads to the kitchen to turn on the coffee pot.
While she waits for the pot to be ready, Sasha downs an ice cold glass of orange juice. She smiles to herself, feeling the fog start to lift.
“My kids need a better place to grow up.” She thinks, “I will speak to Moses and the Mitchell’s tonight so we are all on the same page.”
She inhales the deep scent of the fresh coffee as she pours two cups and returns to the living room. Setting them on the coffee table, she gently rouses her step-mother. “Morning.”
Louise opens her eyes gradually, stirring slowly, “Morning “ She slurs, struggling to sit up.
“Thanks for last night. I needed it.” Sasha says with a smile, before taking a sip of the coffee.
Louise gathers her blanket around her and reaches for her cup, “You’re welcome. I needed it too.”
They sit in silence for a few minutes, before Sasha speaks in a low tone, “I am going to speak to Ali and Anya’s parents tomorrow. This place has been good to us, but is not the healthiest place for the girls to grow up. That said, they have a right to be part of the decision.”
“I think you are doing the right thing. They are not kids anymore, they will appreciate being included.” Louise says, taking a sip of coffee.
“They haven’t been kids since Santander. They are so focused, that it’s scary.” Sasha says, with a hint of pride, “If they put their minds to it, they could change the world.”
Louise smiles and nods her ascent, before draining her cup and seeing the time, “I think I had better get back to Tommy and your dad. What are the plans for later?”
“Meet here around five, will have food and drink ready and I think dad might be picking the films.” Sasha says, then savours a mouthful of coffee.
Louise rolls her eyes and snorts a chuckle, “He has been working on his choices all week.”
“Dare I ask?” Sasha asks, running her fingers through her golden blonde hair.
“Not sure, but I think maybe a Chinese action film and a thriller.” Louise speculates.
“Never a good horror film.” Sasha shrugs. “Shame, would like something to scare the girls.”
“Maybe next weekend.” Louise says with a wink.
Sasha looks up, hearing Liam grizzling upstairs. She sighs, “Had better sort my little man out.”
“I had better get to mine, too.” Louise says, hugging Sasha, “You can always talk to me, love. I will always listen.”
“Likewise, Lou. Thank you for last night. First time I have relaxed since Liam was born.” Sasha says, hugging her back.
In the dojo area of Sasha’s home, Kim flips to her feet, recovering from a thunderous body slam. Tara rolls to her side, to minimise the chance of a counter attack. Ali dives at Kim, as she rises. All of the girls are dressed in tracksuit trousers and t-shirts.
Kim grabs Ali’s collar and belt in mid air and flips her head over heels. Ali pitches forward, winded, a split second before Anya’s tackle connects with Kim’s back.
Anya straddles Kim’s pinning her down, while she reaches for her sisters right arm. Kim twists her arm but finds it forced behind her with a steel cuff attached.
Ali rolls hard and leaps at Anya throwing her arms around her sisters shoulders. Her technique is sharper than her sisters, pulling her arms back and snapping a steel cuff onto each of her arms above the elbow to pin them behind her.
Ali raises another cuff to Ali’s right wrists but is thwarted by Tara vaulting over Kim and trapping her sisters arms to her sides with her legs in a powerful scissor lock. Ali bucks and squirms, but can’t gain enough leverage, before Tara wraps a heavy duty zip tie around her waist, trapping her arms in place.
Tara rolls back, narrowly avoiding a kick to the back from Kim. They face off against each other. Kim keeps her sister firmly in her sights, taking the loose cuff dangling from her wrist and locks it in place above the other cuff on her arm, so it can’t be used against her.
Kim lunges forward aiming a jab at Tara’s face. Tara sidesteps delivering a light shin kick to Kim’s left leg. Kim pirouettes away, wary of getting caught on the back foot. She bobs and weaves, waiting for her sister, only to have her legs swept from under her by Anya.
Tara leaps like a gazelle when Ali tries the same on her. She lands hard, straddling her legs and lashing her ankles with another heavy zip tie.
At the same time, Anya’s attempt to straddle Kim’s legs and cuff her ankles is stymied by the restriction of the cuffs on her elbows and her sisters speed. Kim locks an ankle cuff to her left ankle and pulls the chain between through the chain connecting her elbows, then manhandles her right leg so she can lock the other cuff in place.
Kim rolls away as Tara, finishes securing Ali’s arms to her side with the last of four zipties from her hips to just below her breasts.
Ali tries to flex her legs but the zip ties at her ankles and above her knees prevent much movement. She sighs and settles back to watch the end of the fight, glad she is not Anya.
Anya grunts in discomfort, with her feet pulled up level with her forearms and her back severely arched. She does not complain, but the sheen of sweat starting to form on her brow and moistening of her eyes, speak volumes about the discomfort she is in.
Tara takes a boxing stance and circles left, away from Ali, closely watching Kim circling. Neither speaks. Both are on task, with a desire to win.
Kim ducks and sidesteps, avoiding a brace of jabs from her sister. Tara takes a defensive stance and blocks a flurry of hooks and jabs, taking a couple of hard knocks to the jaw.
Tara feigns a body slam forward, Kim dips back instinctively, stepping on Ali’s stomach and stumbling back. Tara leaps forward attempting to pin Kim, but only trapping her left arm. Kim, is too slow to stop the cuff snapping around her wrist but manages to keep her right wrist clear of being secured.
Knowing she will not be able to hold Kim like this for long, Tara jams her thumb into the crook of Kim’s left elbow and snaps the loose cuff to her sisters upper arm, forcing it to stay bent.
Kim brings her knees up sharply striking Tara in the back, then slams her feet into the ground to buck her sister off of her, narrowly managing to regain her feet, before Tara tackles her again.
Tara smiles and nods respecting her sisters escape, then circles to her right to try to find a weak point on Kim’s left side. Kim keeps both arms in a boxing stance, albeit involuntarily in the case of her left and tries to keep moving.
Kim feigns a right punch, forcing Tara to raise her left arm, exposing her ribs, for Kim’s left shin to slam into. Tara grunts feeling a the full force of the blow and lashes out with a right, catching Kim squarely in the jaw.
Tara keeps her left arm by her side to protect from further damage. Kim sees the colour draining from her sisters face and pulls back, “Are you OK to go on?”
Tara nods, “Yeah. You kick like a donkey, but I am good.”
Kim nods and shrugs, “If you are sure.” She moves forward, keeping her hands high. Tara ducks back from the crescent kicks her sister is aiming at her head, until she feels the bars of the climbing wall at her back.
Instinctively, Tara catches Kim’s right foot, then snaps a cuff around her ankle. Kim’s eyes go wide and she lashes out with her right fist but, cannot connect with her sister.
Kim grunts in frustration, as Tara secures the lose cuff to a bar at head height. Tara twists right, avoiding her sisters free hand to stand with her back to the room. Kim hops as fast as she dare to face her sister.
Tara moves in for the kill, Kim lashes out with a jab, however her sister blocks it with her left forearm and rams her right fist into her upper arm, stunning the nerves.
Kim watches in dismay, while Tara pins her numbed arm to a bar above her head and locks it in place with a pair of handcuffs. She knows the fight is done and doesn’t resist when Kim forces her left leg back again the bars and locks it in place.
Tara steps back and breathes a sigh of relief as Anya claps, Ali taps her feet on the floor and Kim knocks her right hand against the bar it is locked too.
“Well done. First victory.” Kim says beaming. Normally Kim or Ali win with their backgrounds, or Anya with trickery
Tara takes a bow, “I haven’t quite won yet.” She says, stepping towards Anya.
Anya shakes her head and tries to twist away. Tara snaps cuffs on her wrists and then removes the cuffs on her upper arms, using them to lock her ankle and wrist chains in a looser hogtie. “Would have been too harsh for you to stay like that for the full hour.” Tara says, gently.
“Thanks babe.” Anya days relieved, thinking, “All of us have to stay locked up for an hour. No way I could have handled that, it was too painful.”
“Hey what about me?” Kim says, with a chuckle.
Tara exaggerates rubbing her side, “If you’d pulled your blow, I would consider it.”
Kim’s face drops and her lip quivers, “Oh damn, I am so sorry. Are you alright?”
Tara nods and chuckles, “Don’t think anything is broken, will just be sore for a couple of days. Seriously though, will you be OK?”
Kim tests the limits of her movement and nods, “If it gets too bad, will flourish myself free.”
“Fair enough.” Tara says, then turns to Anya, “Will you be alright?”
“Yeah I’m good and Ali is asleep already.” Anya says, rolling on to her side.
Tara gives her a thumbs up and checks on Ali finding her laying on her back with her arms still pinned to her side and fast asleep. She takes a couple of towels and rolls them up, before slipping them under Ali’s head.
With a thought, she shares her experiences of the fight with the others and a moment later Kim and Anya do the same.
Kim smiles to herself, thinking, “Every time we practice, we get better.”
She closes her eyes and reflects over the past few months, “It has been a long road, but we have mastered the teachings from Dani and Fey’s books, mastered several languages, learnt coding, sciences and basic engineering, and pushed ourselves in so many ways, but what is the end game?”
She casts her gaze past Tara to the training grounds and then looks at each of her sisters in turn, “We can go toe to toe with the best. We have faced our own mortality and fought for our lives.” She thinks to herself, sadly, “This is a lot of fun, but do we really want a life in the firing line.”
Kim closes her eyes for a moment, shielding her thoughts from her sisters, “ For all the good we could do with our abilities, don’t we have a right to step away from the battle and live a life?”
Sasha hums to herself and rocks gently back and forth, with Liam in her arms. “Today is a good day, sun is shining, bubba’s been so good and all the food is on for tonight.”
She glances at her son, finding him dozing in her arms and breezes into her bedroom. “If I can get him down, I might even have a chance at a cheeky nap.” She thinks, gently shifting him from her shoulder and cradling him as she lays him down.
Gently she kisses her fore and middle finger and gently brushes his cheek, softly whispering, “Sleep well, little one.”
Sasha crosses the room silently to close the door, stopping herself as she glances into the dojo. She shakes her head in dismay, “So much for a nap.”
Tara nearly jumps out of her skin when Sasha enters the room and softly says, “Does someone want to tell me what is going on here?”
Tara looks into her adopted mother’s eyes, and gulps, seeing the disappointment, “I won. Losers stay restrained for an hour.” She blurts out, feeling suddenly ashamed.
Sasha raises an eyebrow, looking at the other girls nods of agreement. She stays silent, returning her gaze to Tara.
Tara feels herself wither inside, thinking, “The silence is worse than her shouting.” She coughs softly to clear her throat, “This helps us to capture a person and resist being captured and aids in pressure testing our abilities.” She explains awkwardly.
Sasha pushes the door of the dojo closed, then steps forward into the centre of the room, “Show me.”
Tara looks to her sisters for support, but feels her focus pulled back to Sasha, when she says, “You beat them and they are tied up, they are of no help. Time to show me what you have learned.”
Sasha waits in an open stance, as Tara approaches warily. Tara raises her hands in a defensive stance and gets ready.
“Don’t worry, I wont hit you.” Sasha assures the teenager, producing a coil of rope in her left hand with a flourish. She doesn’t break eye contact with her opponent, as she takes the loose end of the rope in her right hand and begins to circle.
Tara circles keeping her distance, unsure of what to do. She launches a tentative kick, aiming low, narrowly missing Sasha’s knee.
“If you are going to attack, commit to it.” Sasha says in a soft, almost friendly tone.
Tara takes a breath to relax and lunges forward with a powerful right haymaker. Sasha brings up the rope and wraps it around Tara’s wrist in one move.
Tara tries to pull her arm back but her wrist is held fast and she only manages to pull herself closer to her opponent.
With a twist, Tara find her arm pulled behind her back. She gasps, when Sasha wraps the rope around her neck with the flick of her wrist, keeping her arm in place.
Tara panics, thrusting back with her left elbow, only to have her left wrist entangled and bound to her right wrist.
Sasha pulls Tara back then grabs her around the waist before laying her on her front. Tara slumps her shoulders and knows she is defeated, showing no resistance when Sasha bends her legs one at a time and binds them tightly.
Kim watches in awe and psis, “That was like four seconds. That’s shocking. Are you OK babe?”
“There was nothing I could do. That was mad.” Tara psis, with an image of her shrugging her shoulders.
Sasha crouches next to Tara, “Are you stuck?”
Tara nods feeling the rope around her throat, “Yeah, you got me.” She says, trying to hide her humiliation.
“Good.” Sasha says, with a smile. She pulls on a couple of ropes and Tara is free as quickly, as she was bound.
Tara looks up confused, “Losers stay restrained for an hour.”
Sasha winks at her adopted daughter, “That wasn’t a fight, it was a demonstration.” She extends her hand to help Tara to her feet, before giving her the rope, “Now you get to practice.”
Tara nervously fingers the rope and sceptically asks, “Really?”
“Really. If you just practice against each other with the techniques you know, you will never learn anything new.” Sasha says gently.
“Is this a trick?” Tara asks, hoping Sasha is serious.
“No tricks. We will start at quarter speed and I will talk you through it, then we will increases speed until it becomes more fluid and natural.” Sasha says, “Liam is asleep at the moment, so we can practice until he wakes or Kim, Anya or Ali free themselves.”
Now it is the turn of Kim and Anya to shake their heads in dismay, knowing that their freedom means the end of the lesson. Ali would think the same, but she is still asleep.
“The truth is, I have been too focused on Liam and have left you to figure out things on your own. I think it is high time we changed that, starting with this.” Sasha explains.
Tara drops the rope and hugs Sasha, unable to say why, but feeling this moments importance, “Thank you Sasha, I would love that.”
“No problem love.” Sasha says hugging the girl, “And no tricks. Not till later anyway.”
“How do you mean?” Tara asks, reflecting the confusion of her sisters.
“When you share what you have learned with Kim and Anya. Then Ali has the shock of her life when she next faces you guys.”
Tara shakes her head with a laugh, “No we couldn’t do that to her. No matter how funny it would be.”
“The choice is yours.” Sasha says with a shrug and a gentle smile, “Now, pick up that rope and let’s begin. Depending how we get on, we might have time for a few techniques.”
@Bandit666 @GreyLord @slackywacky @Caesar73
Dani wakes slowly. She reluctantly opens her eyes and stares at the alarm clock. “Five? Damn it.” She says under her breath, thumping the snooze button on her alarm.
Turning over she frowns, “Why hasn’t my alarm stopped?” She closes her eyes and starts to settle before she thinks, “I didn’t set an alarm.”
With a start she snaps awake, grabbing her phone. “Hello?” She asks, too bleary eyed to see who is calling.
“Morning, babe.” Nikita says nervously.
“Niki? Is that you?” Dani asks, sceptically.
“Yeah. What time is it there?” Nikita asks, detecting the burr in her sisters voice.
“Five in the morning.” Dani says, sitting up and lighting a cigarette.
“I am so sorry.” Nikita pauses, and sighs, “I’ve messed this up.”
Dani smiles to herself and sends a plume of smoke towards the closed curtains of the window, “Behave yourself. I have been waiting for a while for this phone call. How are you?”
“I’m doing OK. Been busy, but things are good.” Nikita admits, with a smile, “How are things with you?”
“Can’t complain.” Dani says with a verbal shrug, “I’m guessing that the trouble you were facing is over now.”
“Yes babe.” Nikita says before, chewing her lip.
Dani senses a nervousness to her sister and speaks softly, “I don’t care why you are calling. I have no idea what you have been up to. If you want to tell me that would be great, but if not, it is all good. I just want to know if you are safe.”
“I want to tell you everything, but not over the phone.” Nikita says, pausing once more, before adding, “I was thinking of coming back, for a visit.”
“The door is always open babe, you know that. It would be great to see you.” Dani says, feeling a sense of relief wash over her.
“It would be great to see everyone.” Nikita says, feeling her heart thump as a tear leaks from her eye. “I have missed you all so much.”
“Everyone has missed you too.” Dani says, gently, before blurting out, “I’ve missed you.”
“Missed you too, Dani.” Nikita says, with a smile, “Should be there for about six this evening.”
“Really? That is amazing. Can’t wait to tell everyone.” Dani says, imagining everyone’s reactions.
“Could you keep it to yourself until I arrive?” Nikita asks, with a smile, “Would like to surprise everyone.”
“Sure. It’s film night and by that time we will be gathering at Sasha’s.” Dani says, before quipping, “There will be enough food for an army, but if you could bring some wine that would be awesome.”
“I think I can do that. Do you need any duty free?” Nikita asks, with a grin.
“Ooh, I am good for smokes and we are well stocked for booze, but if you could get some nice perfume for the girls, they would love you forever.” Dani says, thoughtfully.
“I can do that.” Nikita says lightly, before becoming more nervous, “It will be OK me coming back, won’t it?”
“I told everyone that you were working on a secret project and would only be able to have limited communication. I didn’t tell them everything. Not that I know anything.” Dani confesses.
“Thanks babe.” Nikita says, choking back tears, “I will tell everyone everything, when I get there.”
Dani takes a deep drag on her cigarette, before saying, “There is no pressure. The important thing is you coming back safe.”
“I can’t wait to see you. I have missed you so much.” Nikita says, regretfully.
“Don’t worry, we’ll have a good catch up.” Dani says, whilst thinking, “You have no idea how badly, I need to talk to you.”
“Yeah we all will.” Nikita says, pausing for a moment, “I am sorry to cut this short, but if we are on for later, I had better finish packing.”
Dani stubs out her cigarette and smiles, “No worries. If you don’t mind, I will head back to bed.”
“I am so sorry to deprive you of your lay in. I hope you have a nice lazy day. See you later.” Nikita says, warmly.
“See you later, babe.” Dani says, with a warm smile. “You can call me anytime, day or night.”
“Laters babe.” Nikita says, ending the call.
Dani set down her phone and feels a wave of relief wash over her and she allows the tears to flow. “She’s safe, she’s coming home.”
After a pee and another cigarette, she returns to bed. She enjoys the feeling of peace, knowing her sister is returning and closes her eyes to sleep. She feels her body relax until sleep claims her once again.
Sasha feels the warmth emanating from the heating and slowly opens her eyes and stretches. She shakes her head to try to break free from the fog in her mind, before she remembers the events of the previous evening.
“Jeez, we hit it hard last night.” She chuckles to herself. Moving slowly, she sets the blanket aside and heads to the kitchen to turn on the coffee pot.
While she waits for the pot to be ready, Sasha downs an ice cold glass of orange juice. She smiles to herself, feeling the fog start to lift.
“My kids need a better place to grow up.” She thinks, “I will speak to Moses and the Mitchell’s tonight so we are all on the same page.”
She inhales the deep scent of the fresh coffee as she pours two cups and returns to the living room. Setting them on the coffee table, she gently rouses her step-mother. “Morning.”
Louise opens her eyes gradually, stirring slowly, “Morning “ She slurs, struggling to sit up.
“Thanks for last night. I needed it.” Sasha says with a smile, before taking a sip of the coffee.
Louise gathers her blanket around her and reaches for her cup, “You’re welcome. I needed it too.”
They sit in silence for a few minutes, before Sasha speaks in a low tone, “I am going to speak to Ali and Anya’s parents tomorrow. This place has been good to us, but is not the healthiest place for the girls to grow up. That said, they have a right to be part of the decision.”
“I think you are doing the right thing. They are not kids anymore, they will appreciate being included.” Louise says, taking a sip of coffee.
“They haven’t been kids since Santander. They are so focused, that it’s scary.” Sasha says, with a hint of pride, “If they put their minds to it, they could change the world.”
Louise smiles and nods her ascent, before draining her cup and seeing the time, “I think I had better get back to Tommy and your dad. What are the plans for later?”
“Meet here around five, will have food and drink ready and I think dad might be picking the films.” Sasha says, then savours a mouthful of coffee.
Louise rolls her eyes and snorts a chuckle, “He has been working on his choices all week.”
“Dare I ask?” Sasha asks, running her fingers through her golden blonde hair.
“Not sure, but I think maybe a Chinese action film and a thriller.” Louise speculates.
“Never a good horror film.” Sasha shrugs. “Shame, would like something to scare the girls.”
“Maybe next weekend.” Louise says with a wink.
Sasha looks up, hearing Liam grizzling upstairs. She sighs, “Had better sort my little man out.”
“I had better get to mine, too.” Louise says, hugging Sasha, “You can always talk to me, love. I will always listen.”
“Likewise, Lou. Thank you for last night. First time I have relaxed since Liam was born.” Sasha says, hugging her back.
In the dojo area of Sasha’s home, Kim flips to her feet, recovering from a thunderous body slam. Tara rolls to her side, to minimise the chance of a counter attack. Ali dives at Kim, as she rises. All of the girls are dressed in tracksuit trousers and t-shirts.
Kim grabs Ali’s collar and belt in mid air and flips her head over heels. Ali pitches forward, winded, a split second before Anya’s tackle connects with Kim’s back.
Anya straddles Kim’s pinning her down, while she reaches for her sisters right arm. Kim twists her arm but finds it forced behind her with a steel cuff attached.
Ali rolls hard and leaps at Anya throwing her arms around her sisters shoulders. Her technique is sharper than her sisters, pulling her arms back and snapping a steel cuff onto each of her arms above the elbow to pin them behind her.
Ali raises another cuff to Ali’s right wrists but is thwarted by Tara vaulting over Kim and trapping her sisters arms to her sides with her legs in a powerful scissor lock. Ali bucks and squirms, but can’t gain enough leverage, before Tara wraps a heavy duty zip tie around her waist, trapping her arms in place.
Tara rolls back, narrowly avoiding a kick to the back from Kim. They face off against each other. Kim keeps her sister firmly in her sights, taking the loose cuff dangling from her wrist and locks it in place above the other cuff on her arm, so it can’t be used against her.
Kim lunges forward aiming a jab at Tara’s face. Tara sidesteps delivering a light shin kick to Kim’s left leg. Kim pirouettes away, wary of getting caught on the back foot. She bobs and weaves, waiting for her sister, only to have her legs swept from under her by Anya.
Tara leaps like a gazelle when Ali tries the same on her. She lands hard, straddling her legs and lashing her ankles with another heavy zip tie.
At the same time, Anya’s attempt to straddle Kim’s legs and cuff her ankles is stymied by the restriction of the cuffs on her elbows and her sisters speed. Kim locks an ankle cuff to her left ankle and pulls the chain between through the chain connecting her elbows, then manhandles her right leg so she can lock the other cuff in place.
Kim rolls away as Tara, finishes securing Ali’s arms to her side with the last of four zipties from her hips to just below her breasts.
Ali tries to flex her legs but the zip ties at her ankles and above her knees prevent much movement. She sighs and settles back to watch the end of the fight, glad she is not Anya.
Anya grunts in discomfort, with her feet pulled up level with her forearms and her back severely arched. She does not complain, but the sheen of sweat starting to form on her brow and moistening of her eyes, speak volumes about the discomfort she is in.
Tara takes a boxing stance and circles left, away from Ali, closely watching Kim circling. Neither speaks. Both are on task, with a desire to win.
Kim ducks and sidesteps, avoiding a brace of jabs from her sister. Tara takes a defensive stance and blocks a flurry of hooks and jabs, taking a couple of hard knocks to the jaw.
Tara feigns a body slam forward, Kim dips back instinctively, stepping on Ali’s stomach and stumbling back. Tara leaps forward attempting to pin Kim, but only trapping her left arm. Kim, is too slow to stop the cuff snapping around her wrist but manages to keep her right wrist clear of being secured.
Knowing she will not be able to hold Kim like this for long, Tara jams her thumb into the crook of Kim’s left elbow and snaps the loose cuff to her sisters upper arm, forcing it to stay bent.
Kim brings her knees up sharply striking Tara in the back, then slams her feet into the ground to buck her sister off of her, narrowly managing to regain her feet, before Tara tackles her again.
Tara smiles and nods respecting her sisters escape, then circles to her right to try to find a weak point on Kim’s left side. Kim keeps both arms in a boxing stance, albeit involuntarily in the case of her left and tries to keep moving.
Kim feigns a right punch, forcing Tara to raise her left arm, exposing her ribs, for Kim’s left shin to slam into. Tara grunts feeling a the full force of the blow and lashes out with a right, catching Kim squarely in the jaw.
Tara keeps her left arm by her side to protect from further damage. Kim sees the colour draining from her sisters face and pulls back, “Are you OK to go on?”
Tara nods, “Yeah. You kick like a donkey, but I am good.”
Kim nods and shrugs, “If you are sure.” She moves forward, keeping her hands high. Tara ducks back from the crescent kicks her sister is aiming at her head, until she feels the bars of the climbing wall at her back.
Instinctively, Tara catches Kim’s right foot, then snaps a cuff around her ankle. Kim’s eyes go wide and she lashes out with her right fist but, cannot connect with her sister.
Kim grunts in frustration, as Tara secures the lose cuff to a bar at head height. Tara twists right, avoiding her sisters free hand to stand with her back to the room. Kim hops as fast as she dare to face her sister.
Tara moves in for the kill, Kim lashes out with a jab, however her sister blocks it with her left forearm and rams her right fist into her upper arm, stunning the nerves.
Kim watches in dismay, while Tara pins her numbed arm to a bar above her head and locks it in place with a pair of handcuffs. She knows the fight is done and doesn’t resist when Kim forces her left leg back again the bars and locks it in place.
Tara steps back and breathes a sigh of relief as Anya claps, Ali taps her feet on the floor and Kim knocks her right hand against the bar it is locked too.
“Well done. First victory.” Kim says beaming. Normally Kim or Ali win with their backgrounds, or Anya with trickery
Tara takes a bow, “I haven’t quite won yet.” She says, stepping towards Anya.
Anya shakes her head and tries to twist away. Tara snaps cuffs on her wrists and then removes the cuffs on her upper arms, using them to lock her ankle and wrist chains in a looser hogtie. “Would have been too harsh for you to stay like that for the full hour.” Tara says, gently.
“Thanks babe.” Anya days relieved, thinking, “All of us have to stay locked up for an hour. No way I could have handled that, it was too painful.”
“Hey what about me?” Kim says, with a chuckle.
Tara exaggerates rubbing her side, “If you’d pulled your blow, I would consider it.”
Kim’s face drops and her lip quivers, “Oh damn, I am so sorry. Are you alright?”
Tara nods and chuckles, “Don’t think anything is broken, will just be sore for a couple of days. Seriously though, will you be OK?”
Kim tests the limits of her movement and nods, “If it gets too bad, will flourish myself free.”
“Fair enough.” Tara says, then turns to Anya, “Will you be alright?”
“Yeah I’m good and Ali is asleep already.” Anya says, rolling on to her side.
Tara gives her a thumbs up and checks on Ali finding her laying on her back with her arms still pinned to her side and fast asleep. She takes a couple of towels and rolls them up, before slipping them under Ali’s head.
With a thought, she shares her experiences of the fight with the others and a moment later Kim and Anya do the same.
Kim smiles to herself, thinking, “Every time we practice, we get better.”
She closes her eyes and reflects over the past few months, “It has been a long road, but we have mastered the teachings from Dani and Fey’s books, mastered several languages, learnt coding, sciences and basic engineering, and pushed ourselves in so many ways, but what is the end game?”
She casts her gaze past Tara to the training grounds and then looks at each of her sisters in turn, “We can go toe to toe with the best. We have faced our own mortality and fought for our lives.” She thinks to herself, sadly, “This is a lot of fun, but do we really want a life in the firing line.”
Kim closes her eyes for a moment, shielding her thoughts from her sisters, “ For all the good we could do with our abilities, don’t we have a right to step away from the battle and live a life?”
Sasha hums to herself and rocks gently back and forth, with Liam in her arms. “Today is a good day, sun is shining, bubba’s been so good and all the food is on for tonight.”
She glances at her son, finding him dozing in her arms and breezes into her bedroom. “If I can get him down, I might even have a chance at a cheeky nap.” She thinks, gently shifting him from her shoulder and cradling him as she lays him down.
Gently she kisses her fore and middle finger and gently brushes his cheek, softly whispering, “Sleep well, little one.”
Sasha crosses the room silently to close the door, stopping herself as she glances into the dojo. She shakes her head in dismay, “So much for a nap.”
Tara nearly jumps out of her skin when Sasha enters the room and softly says, “Does someone want to tell me what is going on here?”
Tara looks into her adopted mother’s eyes, and gulps, seeing the disappointment, “I won. Losers stay restrained for an hour.” She blurts out, feeling suddenly ashamed.
Sasha raises an eyebrow, looking at the other girls nods of agreement. She stays silent, returning her gaze to Tara.
Tara feels herself wither inside, thinking, “The silence is worse than her shouting.” She coughs softly to clear her throat, “This helps us to capture a person and resist being captured and aids in pressure testing our abilities.” She explains awkwardly.
Sasha pushes the door of the dojo closed, then steps forward into the centre of the room, “Show me.”
Tara looks to her sisters for support, but feels her focus pulled back to Sasha, when she says, “You beat them and they are tied up, they are of no help. Time to show me what you have learned.”
Sasha waits in an open stance, as Tara approaches warily. Tara raises her hands in a defensive stance and gets ready.
“Don’t worry, I wont hit you.” Sasha assures the teenager, producing a coil of rope in her left hand with a flourish. She doesn’t break eye contact with her opponent, as she takes the loose end of the rope in her right hand and begins to circle.
Tara circles keeping her distance, unsure of what to do. She launches a tentative kick, aiming low, narrowly missing Sasha’s knee.
“If you are going to attack, commit to it.” Sasha says in a soft, almost friendly tone.
Tara takes a breath to relax and lunges forward with a powerful right haymaker. Sasha brings up the rope and wraps it around Tara’s wrist in one move.
Tara tries to pull her arm back but her wrist is held fast and she only manages to pull herself closer to her opponent.
With a twist, Tara find her arm pulled behind her back. She gasps, when Sasha wraps the rope around her neck with the flick of her wrist, keeping her arm in place.
Tara panics, thrusting back with her left elbow, only to have her left wrist entangled and bound to her right wrist.
Sasha pulls Tara back then grabs her around the waist before laying her on her front. Tara slumps her shoulders and knows she is defeated, showing no resistance when Sasha bends her legs one at a time and binds them tightly.
Kim watches in awe and psis, “That was like four seconds. That’s shocking. Are you OK babe?”
“There was nothing I could do. That was mad.” Tara psis, with an image of her shrugging her shoulders.
Sasha crouches next to Tara, “Are you stuck?”
Tara nods feeling the rope around her throat, “Yeah, you got me.” She says, trying to hide her humiliation.
“Good.” Sasha says, with a smile. She pulls on a couple of ropes and Tara is free as quickly, as she was bound.
Tara looks up confused, “Losers stay restrained for an hour.”
Sasha winks at her adopted daughter, “That wasn’t a fight, it was a demonstration.” She extends her hand to help Tara to her feet, before giving her the rope, “Now you get to practice.”
Tara nervously fingers the rope and sceptically asks, “Really?”
“Really. If you just practice against each other with the techniques you know, you will never learn anything new.” Sasha says gently.
“Is this a trick?” Tara asks, hoping Sasha is serious.
“No tricks. We will start at quarter speed and I will talk you through it, then we will increases speed until it becomes more fluid and natural.” Sasha says, “Liam is asleep at the moment, so we can practice until he wakes or Kim, Anya or Ali free themselves.”
Now it is the turn of Kim and Anya to shake their heads in dismay, knowing that their freedom means the end of the lesson. Ali would think the same, but she is still asleep.
“The truth is, I have been too focused on Liam and have left you to figure out things on your own. I think it is high time we changed that, starting with this.” Sasha explains.
Tara drops the rope and hugs Sasha, unable to say why, but feeling this moments importance, “Thank you Sasha, I would love that.”
“No problem love.” Sasha says hugging the girl, “And no tricks. Not till later anyway.”
“How do you mean?” Tara asks, reflecting the confusion of her sisters.
“When you share what you have learned with Kim and Anya. Then Ali has the shock of her life when she next faces you guys.”
Tara shakes her head with a laugh, “No we couldn’t do that to her. No matter how funny it would be.”
“The choice is yours.” Sasha says with a shrug and a gentle smile, “Now, pick up that rope and let’s begin. Depending how we get on, we might have time for a few techniques.”
View my latest story, Revelation, here;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=8719
To view it's prequel Devastation, please click below;
https://tugstories.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7458