Order of the Lost Samurai Ch. 04

"From what? From who?" Nicky asked. "I'm so confused right now."

"Gol damn, gramps. Just tell him," Nicky Four said with a wince of pain as he struggled to get to his feet.

Shidoshi let out that long-suffering grandpa sigh again. "That's a risk I'm not willing to take. What if he says no? What if he decides he doesn't want to? What if he hasn't got what it takes?"

"Hey now," Nicky protested. "How am I supposed to know if I want to do whatever you think I need to do if I don't even know what it is?"

"Still," Shidoshi said resolutely. "I'm not going to risk it. You want to know what it is, you're going to have to invite us in. Only then will I tell you."

"And if I don't?" Nicky asked.

"Then you go back to your life; to your girls, and when the time comes, you die like the rest of us," the eldest Nicky said. "Because you're not going to be able to stop what's coming without some much needed help. And without the ability to stop what's coming, humanity will fall forever."

"What do you mean? What's coming?" Nicky asked.

"Invite us in and find out, Nick," Shidoshi said, standing tall and adamant.

Nicky paced back and forth. His mind was racing with indecision. "If I say no, what happens to me?" Nicky asked as he paced. "Do I still get powers?"

"Some," Shidoshi replied. "Not nearly as strong as if you had us, but still stronger than any other humans in your world."

"And if I say yes?" Nicky asked. "What kind of powers will I get?"

"Again, only the gods know," Shidoshi answered cryptically. When Nicky kept pacing but said nothing else, the old man continued. "As I said before, we know you, Nick. We know what's in your mind. Remember that video game you used to play where some guy brought down a spaceship with just his hands?"

Nicky stopped and looked at the eldest version of himself. "You mean The Force Unleashed?"

"Yes," Shidoshi said.

"What about it?" Nicky asked.

"If you invite us in," Shidoshi said with prophetic assurance, "with all of our combined powers, that act will eventually be like picking up a piece of lint off of the bathroom floor."

Nicky sighed in consternation. "What about the girls?" he asked. His hands were shaking with his anxiety. His heart was pounding in his reticence. His gut was churning with indecision.

"What about them?" Shidoshi asked.

Nicky thought he caught a hint of a small smile tugging at the corner of the old warrior's mouth, but he couldn't be sure as it was gone before it even registered in his brain.

"Are the four of them going to get powers as well?" Nicky asked. "They'll be my wives soon. I used to read comics and I've seen movies. I know what happens if Superman has sex with a normal mortal woman."

"Four!?" Nicky Three exclaimed, astonished. "Ve only got tree at ze start."

"Regardless," Nicky said, "I'm marrying four."

"My girls got powers at the beginning, so I assume yours will as well," Shidoshi said. "However, I can only speculate as to their strength."

"And humanity will die if I don't?" Nicky asked.

Shidoshi took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I never said humanity would die, only that it will fall."

"How very cryptic," Nicky deadpanned. "So, what? We're gonna be forced into slavery or something?"

The old man just shrugged noncommittally.

Nicky sighed in resignation. "Alright, fine. How do we do this?"

Shidoshi took off his right gauntlet and glove. He held his bare hand out to Nicky. Nicky removed his own right gauntlet and glove and took the proffered hand, noting the old man had a strong grip. "Now, just pull me in."

"How?" Nicky asked.

"Think of it like pulling me in for a hug."

Nicky closed his eyes and visualized hugging his eldest counterpart. Nothing happened at first. Nicky was just about to open his eyes and declare the attempt a failure when his hand suddenly started burning. It wasn't overly painful. It was more like holding his hand too close to a fire for too long. The sensation started traveling up his arm.

"What?" he asked, holding his hand out and away from him. He shook his hand as if trying to fling off the sensation that clung to it. "What's happening!?"

The other three Nickys looked at each other with some measure of uncertainty before looking back at Nicky. Nicky began to panic. As the sensation made its way to his shoulder, it felt like his entire arm was engulfed in lava. It began to spread across his chest and he tried to bat it away, but his hand only brushed across his armor. Nicky began to hurriedly strip his armor off as the smell of burning hair reached his nostrils.

"HOLY FUCK! I'M ON FIRE!" he cried.

"No, yer not," Nicky Four said.

"THEN WHAT THE FUCK IS BURNING!?!?" he screamed in fear.

"Nothing," German Nicky answered.

Nicky stood naked before the three others. He watched in horrified fascination as the hairs on his arms began to singe and fall away from his body. When the lava sensation reached the middle of his chest, it exploded outward in a silent shockwave as it flooded every cell in his body. All the hair on his body shriveled up and fell away in an instant, making him appear to be some sort of unfinished sex doll.

As soon as it had begun, it was over. Nicky looked down at himself as his skin cooled. He was completely bald on every inch of his skin. He let out a relieved chuckle when it struck him that he was still alive. Then, he blushed profusely when he saw that his cock stood painfully erect. For whatever reason, he looked up at the youngest version of himself, noting that the young man had licked his lips and was now nibbling on his bottom lip. Nicky rolled his eyes.

"Keep it in your pants, kid," Nicky said.

"Can't help it," Nicky Two replied. "It's been too long. However, at least I know about the differences in dick size now." He grinned with excitement.

"Vat happened?" German Nicky asked. "You said you ver on fire?"

"I was," Nicky replied as he put his clothes back on. He left the armor on the floor. "Hang on. Where's Shidoshi?"

Nicky and the others looked around the small hut. All they saw was two sets of armor on the floor at Nicky's feet.

"IT WORKED!!" Nicky Two exclaimed excitedly as he jumped up and down and clapped his hands.

"How do ya feel, kid?" Nicky Four asked.

Nicky took a mental stock of himself. He could feel his blood pulsing in his veins. He felt stronger, faster, and more durable. Not only that, but he felt more refreshed than he'd ever felt before.

"I feel amazing!" Nicky said with a grin. "I feel like I could take on the world... and win!"

"Easy there, tiger," Nicky Four said. "You still got three more to go and I'm next. Ready?"

"Bring it on, Duke," Nicky said with a grin.

"Boy, you look creepy with no eyebrows. Who is Duke?"

"John Wayne?" Nicky asked. "Only the most prolific western actor to grace the silver screen."

"Never heard of him," wild west Nicky said. "Take my--"

Nicky had grasped the older man's hand before he even finished talking. It was easier this time, as he was successful with barely any thought. It was the same as before, only now it seemed as the combined wind forces of an F-5 tornado and a Category Five hurricane were assaulting his hand. His hand twitched violently and uncontrollably as the invisible wind forces roiled like a boiling pot of water inside him. His arm jerked of its own accord as the raging storm moved steadily up his arm. Nicky calmed himself as best as he was physically able as the storm continued its invasion of his body.

When it hit the middle of his chest, he felt the same explosion. Only this time, his body jerked and spasmed as if he were having a seizure. He fell to the ground as he bounced around like a Mexican Jumping Bean. After what seemed like an eternity, he stilled. Nicky groaned where he lay on the ground.

"Fuck," he whined. "That hurt like a bitch."

"My turn," German Nicky said as he approached.

"No," Nicky protested. "Wait."

German Nicky ignored his objections. He bent and placed a calloused hand on Nicky's bald head. Nicky didn't even get a choice this time as his body just seemed to automatically absorb the older man. He whined piteously as he felt like what could only be described as a megatsunami and a megamaelstrom combined landed with blunt force to his brain. His eyes rolled into the back of his head and he started foaming at the mouth.

The remaining otherworldly Nicky watched on in helpless terror as Nicky convulsed and writhed in what could only be described as his death throes from the continued assault on his body and mind. He was lying on his side as he convulsed, he arms close to his body as if he were a T-Rex. His legs seemingly moved of their own accord. It looked like Nicky was trying to get away from whatever was happening to him, though his body only moved in a circle as he walked on his side.

When it was finally over, Nicky lay still, barely breathing, yet whimpering involuntarily in his unconsciousness. Nicky Two knelt by his side, being careful not to touch him skin-to-skin for fear of triggering another absorption and the man's possible death. Nicky Two was suddenly apprehensive about allowing himself to be absorbed to save their combined worlds. He wondered whether or not the price was just too great of a risk.

The fabric of the door fluttered and Nicky Two looked up to see his Mayumi and Nicky Three's Tamiko entering. They were followed by two Kasumis and three Sakikos, all aged and wrinkled, though none of which were from his world. The eight of them knelt by the unconscious savior of the universe as they knew it. The seven women placed reassuring hands on Nicky, waiting patiently for him to awaken.

~ ~ ~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~ ~ ~

Nicky's whole body ached. He felt like he'd been run over by a steamroller, re-inflated with the afterburners of the space shuttle, then had all of his internal organs rearranged by a toddler with ADHD. He groaned as every part of his body screamed in protest. Even his hair hurt like a son-of-a-bitch. He was vaguely aware of others in his vicinity, though he didn't know who it could be. His brain felt like it had been tossed in a blender and liquified before being poured back into his skull through his ear.

"He appears to be in so much pain," a female voice with a german accent said.

"Yeah," another female voice quipped with obvious scorn. "He told your Nicky to wait but your Nicky decided to be an asshole!"

"Hey," another female with a german accent protested. "It is not our fault. Do not blame us."

"Sakiko, er, Three? is right, Mayumi," Nicky Two said. "It's not their fault."

"Maybe not," Mayumi grumbled. "But it was still their Nicky that did it."

"So blame him, not them," Nicky Two said irritably. "I get that you're upset. We all are, but that's no reason to be a bitch to those that aren't responsible."

"Fine," Mayumi grumbled. "Sorry."

"Apology accepted," Sakiko Three said.

"So, now what?" Kasumi Four asked.

"I suppose we just continue to wait," Sakiko Four replied.

"Agreed," Nicky Two said. "We'll wait til he wakes up and is ready before initiating the final absorption. Those two back to back nearly killed him."

"I'm... awake," Nicky wheezed. His voice was barely audible but the room quieted after he spoke. "Can someone..." he swallowed what felt like gravel, "help me... sit up? Gently."

"No," Sakiko Five said. "Just lie still until you're not in so much pain. Is there anything we can get you?"

"Water," Nicky croaked.

Sakiko Five got up and left the hut. She came back a few minutes later with a bowl of water. Handing the bowl to Mayumi to hold, she knelt behind Nicky's balled up form and cradled his head tenderly. Nicky winced in pain until she got his head settled into a stationary position so he could drink.

"Here," she said, taking the bowl from Mayumi and putting it to Nicky's lips. "Small sips. Make sure it's not going to upset your stomach."

"Too bad our powers do not vork here," Tamiko Three said. "I could heal him vith a snap of my fingers."

"If wishes were horses," Nicky Two said.

"So, Two," Nicky croaked from the comfort of Sakiko's palm. He took another sip of water and sighed with relief when the cool liquid coated his throat. "Not that I'm judging, but, you're gay?"

Nicky Two grinned. "Was wondering when you might bring that up."

"Well," Nicky said hoarsely, "since were going to be here for a bit before I let you inside me, I figured I'd strike up a conversation."

Nicky Two barked a laugh. "Was that a gay joke?"

"Don't make me laugh," Nicky said, wincing. "It hurts to laugh."

"Still, that was a good one," Two chuckled. "Yeah, I'm gay."

"How'd you die?" Nicky asked.

Nicky Two sobered. "It was on my first mission. I was dispatched by the world consulate to the Danakil Desert on the Horn of Africa."

"World consulate?" Nicky asked.

"Yeah. I know. It's different on your world. The world consulate is the head of state for every country and continent in the world. They are tasked with keeping the peace throughout the world, similar to your U.N. Additionally, they act as a mediator for international conflicts, required before declaring war, as well as mediating the terms of surrender that end the war, thereby making sure every party is justly compensated and people are treated with care and respect when the war is over."

"Sounds like something our world could use," Nicky said.

"Agreed," Two replied.

"So you worked directly for the world consulate?"

"More like they worked for him," Mayumi said with a grin.

"Yeah," Two said sheepishly. "When they realized they couldn't control me, they agreed to a 'mutual partnership for the betterment of the inhabitants of the planet'. Their words."

"Sounds like government drivel to save face."

"My thoughts exactly."

"So, Danakil Desert," Nicky said. He was still curled into a ball with his head in Sakiko Five's lap. As his pain slowly subsided, he began to relax into her care. She didn't seem to mind. He was comfortable, so he remained.

"The locals had been complaining of a monster in the desert that had been eating the livestock, draining rivers, and even people went missing. Entire buildings would just disappear overnight, with no trace of them having ever been there the next morning."

"Sounds scary," Nicky commented.

"It was," Two replied. "But I was dubbed the 'International Hero', so I had to go investigate."

"What'd you find?"

"A big ass sand worm," Kasumi Two said as she entered the hut.

"SISTER!!!" Mayumi shrieked and rushed to tackle the other woman in a fierce hug.

"Hi, sis," Kasumi said with a grin as she held her sister close. Then, she frowned at Nicky Two and growled, "Pole dancer," by way of greeting.

Nicky Two grinned at her. Nicky figured the insults would bother his counterpart, but they just seemed to slide off of him like water off a duck's back.

"Hey Kas," Two greeted the newcomer.

"I'm so glad you're finally here," Mayumi said, happy tears in her eyes.

"Yeah, it wasn't fun, that's for sure," Kasumi Two said. "Tam did all she could, but, in the end, I told her to leave it be. It was time for me to join my sister in the afterlife."

"Getting old iz for ze birds," Tamiko said.

"Dying is the worst of it," Sakiko Four said in her southern drawl.

"Though once it's over," Kasumi Five said, "the relief is bliss."

Nicky let the two sisters enjoy their reunion until they quieted. Sakiko Five stroked his hair as they waited for the two aged women to calm down and join the rest of them.

"So, a sand worm, huh?" Nicky asked when the hut had gone silent again.

"Big ass bitch," Nicky Two said. "Twenty feet in diameter and five times as long."

"Did you kill it?"

"Didn't even get a chance to see much of it," Two said with a shrug.

"Then how do you know how big it was?"

Two tapped his temple with an index finger. "All knowledge slammed into my brain upon death. As soon as I died, I knew how big it was, how it got there, and what its purpose was."

"Fascinating," Nicky said. "What was its purpose?"

"To consume the world," Two said with a shrug.

"It took a few years, but we finally killed it," Kasumi Two said.

"Yeah," Nicky Two said. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to put it down before that happened."

"So, you finally feel bad for not fucking us?" Kasumi Two growled.

Their Nicky sighed and looked at his two women. "For what it's worth, yes," he replied after an uncomfortable silence. "In my defense, I just wasn't sexually attracted to you all." When Mayumi opened her mouth to protest, Nicky held up his hand to stop her. "I know. That's not a valid defense. However, it is what it is. I can't change it now, no matter how much I would like to."

The two women scowled at him, but visibly relaxed.

"So, how did it happen?" Nicky asked.

"What? My death? Or the death of the worm?"

"Both."

"Well, I died, obviously, in part, because I wouldn't have sex with the girls. If I had, they'd have developed more powers than what they got and we could have taken the thing down together. As it was, I was alone in the desert tracking this thing when it rose up from the ground and ate me alive. You'd be surprised how silently that thing could move underground."

"Ouch," Nicky winced. "Harsh. And the monster?"

"They dropped a nuclear bomb in its maw that pretty much destroyed the northern part of Africa," Kasumi Two replied.

"And everything else in a two hundred kilometer radius out from the blast," Mayumi added.

They way they so easily fell into commenting after each other made Nicky miss his own sister girls. He felt a longing for them as Sakiko Five continued to stroke his head. He moved to sit up but she held him fast.

"I'm feeling better now," he said to her. "I can sit up."

"Please," she replied. "Just let me have this. For a little longer, at least. It's been so long."

The longing in her voice pierced his heart. So, naturally, he relaxed once more.

"Almost the entire country of Somalia has been wiped off of the face of the planet," Nicky Two stated. "Only the southern tip near Kenya remains."

"Damn," Nicky said, recalling his geography of the area. "So the entire Horn is gone."

"It's called the Bay of Dabar, now," Mayumi said.

"Which means 'extinguish' in Somali," Kasumi said.

The conversation died down at that point. Nicky felt the need to get the final absorption over with, but something in his gut was telling him to be patient. He relaxed totally in Sakiko's care, allowing her to love on him as long as she needed. He also noticed that the Two sisters still stared daggers at their Nicky.

Nicky Two sighed as he looked at his girls. "What's it going to take for you two to forgive me?" he asked.

"Your cock!" they said in unison.

Nicky Two groaned. "Seriously?" he protested. "I told you I'm not sex--"

"Then you better figure out a way to pretend," Kasumi Two growled as she interrupted him.

"You can even put it in my ass if that makes you feel better about it," Mayumi offered with a growl of her own.

"Ladies," Nicky said, inserting himself timidly into the conversation. They shot glares in his direction. Normally, that would be enough to shut him up. However, he was starting to get anxious about getting back to his own girls. He had an idea on how to placate the two women for the time being. The Two sisters had waited this long. What was a little longer? "If I may, I may have a solution that will benefit us all."

Sakiko Five paused in stroking his hair. "What's that?" she asked.

Nicky took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He looked at the Two sisters, directing his comment to them but intending it for the benefit of all of the women. "You're all here for a reason, right? I assume, based on my own experience so far, that when all four of the women of one of your planets has passed away, you'll all be here to summon the counterpart from my world?"