3000 CE Ch. 02.5: Moonlit Passions

Author's Note: Read endnote if you're confused about continuity.

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Ness and the slave girl rode across the wasteland, dim hazes of light drifting by like a dream. The whirling storms of the apocalypse thundered and flashed around them, as they passed the myriad ridges and canyons.

The duo paused at the precipice of a large, jutting crag. Their path ended here; the dilapidated bridge long collapsed under the slow erosion of acid rain. Ness looked back at her companion. She had put on a short T-shirt and jeans that had been packed into the bike beforehand, riding with her arms wrapped around Ness's slender shoulders.

"Ready?"

The girl smiled, dirt coated face beaming like Spring sunshine. "Of course; scared?"

Ness blew a strand of short hair out of her eyes. "You wish." Revving the motor, she sped toward the cliff. With a spray of gravel and mud, the bike cleared the chasm, and Ness felt a brief moment of weightlessness, a void within her stomach. And then they were there, the bike whirring as the duo slid gracefully to a drift across the sandy dunes.

The girl behind her, Bella, had grown used to this remarkable woman's abilities. Surprised at first, after what seemed to be a relatively diminutive girl around her age singlehandedly saved her from her captors, she had been further astonished by her reflexes and skill around both machine and man.

Before they reached the dusty waysides betwixt cities, they had passed numerous settlements, where Ness appeared to comprehend every bit of information, every minute detail behind the peoples of the wasteland. It had almost seemed to Bella as if this strange traveler was far older than she appeared.

And the small key this woman carried... though she made clear attempts to hide the device, Bella could sense the emanating energies; it pulsed with power, and it seemed to be interacting with the traveler in a strange way.

She will remember to keep an eye on it.

Ness looked back at Bella. "So, how about it? Wasn't so scared after all, was I?" She wore a bemused smirk.

Bella grinned back. "After all I've seen you do? Hell I would be surprised if you didn't make that."

Ness looked back at the ridge. Rocks continuously tumbled off, echoing as they struck the ground a kilometer below. "I don't know, Bella. It's quite the drop."

Bella reached over and kissed her cheek, making Ness grin involuntarily. "Shut up and drive, idiot."

Kicking the bike into motion again, Ness replied. "Yes ma'am."

They sped off once more into the storm.

The dust whirled around the duo as they progressed down the old path. Ness seemed to be an expert at navigating the dusty wasteland. They were on an old paved road initially covered in a thick layer of sand, but that later thinned out to reveal an old "Interstate" - a strange name Ness had told Bella after she asked. That only gave Bella more questions. What's an interstate? What is a state?

They drove onwards for a few lonesome moments. For a moment, the storm would abate and reveal a fleeting image of the stars beyond. Wafts of cold wind and Passing moonlight gave their journey an almost mystical, dreamlike feel.

Ness turned to a stop at the side of the road. Bella looked after her as she slid down the seat and landed lithely on the dusty road. Only a small outcropping of rocks marked any interesting landmarks in the area, which Ness headed towards.

The wind screamed across the dusty plains as rocks and small debris was sucked high into far-away cyclones of earth and fire. Bella turned her arm against the wind, long since used to the conditions after a lifetime amongst an inhospitable desert.

"Where are you going, Ness?" Bella hopped down as well, landing on the packed dirt. She stumbled, a stack of mud collapsing under her weight, however insubstantial. How did Ness stay balanced all the time? She shook her head in disbelief. Remarkable.

"We need shelter. And these rocks once led to an old spring. Follow me."

They soon reached the outcropping. It was a semicircle of granite, and there was no opening as far as Bella could see. She squinted at Ness questioningly. They still had miles to go, and stopping here will not ease their passage. About to turn back, she noticed Ness draw her energy pistol.

Bella covered her ears hastily, but there was no need. It turned out that the weapons were silenced.

The rocks were blown asunder by just one beam, the supercharged light melting a hole, hot with magma, through the layers of stone that led to the cave. After a minute, the stone cooled, and Ness glanced at her companion.

She tilted her head towards the entrance, and without another word, dove in.

Leaping down after her, Bella arrived at what appeared to be a large chamber. To her astonishment, they could even hear water dripping in the distance. Ness walked over to the source of the sound. There was a small pool of crystal clear water, reflected off the obsidian rocks around the room. The room branched out, dimly lit corridors marked in a strangely calming blue glow.

Ness turned around, and sat on a nearby rock. She waved out a hand, gesturing toward the outcropping of rocks opposite to her. Bella tentatively took a seat as well.

They sat in wearied silence for a minute, Bella still breathing heavily from the exertion of the walk over. Nessa broke the tension, hands moving to undo her armor.

"So, what's your story?" Ness fiddled with her harness, slowly unbuckling it. Bella tracked Ness's fingers as they leapt across her body, undoing minute fasteners and nanoweave. Her eyes lingered on Ness's loins.

"Hello? I usually only get these types of reactions from men," Ness smiled, with a tease in her voice. Bella spun to attention, face hot with embarrassment.

"Uh.."

"Yes?" Ness blinked her eyes at Bella, bemused. "If we're to work together, we have to trust each other first. Where were you born?"

Bella looked at Ness, still tired from the journey through shifting sands. "Well... I don't remember much. I've been sold and traded for most of my life it all seems like a blur. Either I'm working for one taskmaster doing manual labor or I was running away from another." She sighed. "it's been chaotic. In fact, I had almost given up altogether. Until I met you, of course." Bella looked up, wide amber eyes glowing with gratitude.

Ness sighed. "The world has changed once again, Bella. It was not always like this; I thought that humanity had finally fixed it's problems a few thousand years ago... but this again?" Bella was shocked. How old was this traveler?

Ness looked up and smiled sadly. "Lets just say that we always find some way to torture each other."

The duo sat in silence for a while, Ness lost in thought. The water dripped from obsidian-hued stalactites while sapphire light filtered serenely from the ceiling, dust particles drifting dreamily through the surprisingly clean air.

Bella began laughing. At first it was just a chuckle, but soon grew into a heaving giggle.

Ness felt another smile spread across her lips. "Bella, what is it this time?"

Hiccuping, the girl slowly stopped. "It's just..." she took a deep breath, recovering from the sudden surge of mirth. "Here we are, in a cave in the middle of the wasteland, sitting and having a right little existential crisis."

Ness chucked with her this time. "Yeah, it's been quite some time, hasn't it?"

Bella looked at her in earnest this time. "That's another thing. Who are you? You talk as though you've walked this land for decades, if not centuries. Are you one of those Neo-tech cyborgs we hear so much about?"

Ness laughed and shook her head. "No, no I am not." She took a moment to gather her thoughts. "I... I am flesh and blood." She recalled her earliest memories, which seemed to twist and shift like shadows in the recesses of her mind. She remembered a lifetime hidden away, in slavery and servitude. She remembered her ancient master Malachar...

"It was a much different age when I was cursed with immortality." Ness offered. "A man locked me away and... broke my spirit. Things have been different ever since." She paused a moment, noting the silence, and ventured a glance up; Bella had been hanging on to every word. The traveler smiled.

"But a story for another time. Come, sweet maiden. Why don't you help your savior undress? I think we should turn in for the night." Inwardly disappointed, Bella nevertheless stood, and made her way over. "We have been travelling all day after all, hmm?"

"I'm sorry Ness, I didn't mean to pry - "

The girl waved her aside. "No worries. It's up to me to make peace with my past. Now, c'mere."

Bella smirked. She walked over slowly, arms raised over her head. Swaying side to side, Bella took off her T-Shirt, tossing it behind her, revealing her perfect nipples, both pierced with wasteland-irons labelled "slave." As she lifted one leg, pulling her jeans off one by one, she flashed her tattoos alluringly, painfully scrawled over her taut skin. "Slave," "Slut," "Cum whore." Ness winced. At least her branding had been artistic, even beautiful. This just looked brutal, a feverish display of lust, on a barren ball of dust.

She could appreciate talent when she saw it though.

Bella noticed Ness's attention. "Like them?" She tossed the jeans aside, now fully naked, and dove into a mocking curtsy. "You want this bony ass? You'll have to catch me."

"Bella, that's not what I - "

But it was already too late. Giggling, the young teenager ran off, barefoot, into the nearby caverns. Cursing, Ness chased after her. She should know better, these caverns could be dangerous. These girls born in the wasteland did not know a thing about common sense.

Her agility boosted by her stealth array, she soon caught up with the naked girl, tackling her to the ground. Bella shrieked playfully as they fell into the water, Ness's arms wrapped tightly around her waistline.

Bella and Ness held each other tightly, hands gripping bony shoulders with fervor, looking deep into each others' eyes. Silky human skin embraced synthetic nanoweave in a harmony between ages.

Something happened then, an electric pulse seemingly charging the air. They both sensed this; it took their breath away and made their skin crawl with strange delights. Bella moved first, closing the gap. The two truly embraced at last, hands holding each other, tongues and legs intertwined in a lover's embrace. Bella lurched sideways, gasping in lust. Ness ran her hands, still enmeshed in nanofiber, up and down Bella's now clean and silky body. She felt her perfect ribs, the curve of her waist, the tone of her muscles. She reached down and felt how wet the girl was ... and gasped with shock. It seemed that Bella's skin wasn't the only thing that got wet in their little scramble.

It was the first time Ness had felt alive in millennia. What this simple wasteland girl did out of raw passion, was more effective than centuries of surgical treatments and cutting-edge technological innovation. It seemed the human spirit will, in the end, always prevail over metal instruments.

Bella was the instigator here. She grinded her clit against Nessa's fist, moaning in lust. Their mouths intertwined again, greedily devouring each other with wild abandon. Once again, she felt the fires of lust in her heart, and reciprocated, pushing her other hand against Bella's round boobs, squeezing gently. Chilled cave water splashed over their silky bodies, providing a cold shock to their warm bodies. Gasping in shock, the naked wasteland girl recoiled, but was pushed against a rock and embraced once again by Ness.

Passion again overtaking her, Bella moaned and reciprocated, almost pushing Ness over in excitement.

The two girls made love in the soft moonlight, silver-sheened water lapping at their silken forms.

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Author's Note:

This was meant to be published much earlier but the illustration took too long to be reviewed so I just resubmitted it normally. This chapter goes between #2 and #3.