Play Testers Wanted Pt. 14

"I cannot pronounce the name of their race, and their planet no longer exists." I stated. "I do not know how I know that, but I do. Pity the loss of such a beautiful world. So rich in life of all kinds."

"Fear not, the Gardener, another Elder of the Universe, spent decades harvesting the plant life for preservation. He still sends me the wine his servants harvest and distill to remember them by." Taneleer stated as if he were reading off the menu of a fine restaurant. "He is so sentimental."

"What is with the amethyst necklace?" I asked and I thought I caught the sight of a genuine smile.

"It is not an amethyst. The stone is mined from the Second Plane of Hell. It is home to the succubus and incubus. The Plane of Lust is rich in those stones that pacify and pleasure those that carry them." He explained. "I call it pleasurable pacification. She has become addicted to it."

"It is true. I love how it makes me feel." Caiera moaned in my ear. "It seems my backside has aroused you. This is a good thing. Yield it to me!" She begged as she looked to her Master for permission. He nodded and his generosity was her deepest desire.

"Aw, what the hell." I cursed under my breath. I showed her how to work my armor and she greedily went to work. "What is it like?"

"Impressive!" She gasped before kneeling and teasing me. "Like? Imagine what I am about to do to you all the time. That is what it is like."

"Tell me about the pyramid ship you encountered." Taneleer asked as Caiera cupped my balls and licked the underside of my erection.

"My ship was being chased by two Kree cruisers, damn that feels good!" I began and any praise pushed her to do more. She undressed and alternated between her hands, her mouth, and her tits. "We jumped into the atmosphere of a gas giant and dove deep enough to keep the warships at bay for a bit."

"Wait, you jumped your craft into the atmosphere of a gas giant to elude warships, impressive indeed." He commented as he processed what I told him. I glanced down to see Caiera's lips touch the base of my cock. Saliva dribbled from her lips as she deepthroated me. "Go on."

"Huh, oh... we picked up what sounded like whale song and discovered sentient beings that were hydrogen based." I continued as I slid my fingers into Caiera's hair. I made a fist and began to pull and push her head forward and back. She submitted instantly and completely. She moaned as I took over. "Those beings nudged our ship down to a bunch of derelict ships. One of which was a... damn she is talented... the pyramid ship." I continued as she began to do something interesting with her tongue.

"Hydrogen based life! You are truly blessed!" The Collector said overjoyed. "I see Caiera is truly enraptured. Give me the coordinates of that planet and I will give her to you." He offered and a holographic screen appeared.

'Would you like to swap the lifeform designated as Caiera of Sakaar for the coordinates of the home world of a hydrogen-based lifeform?'

"Does that include the collar?" I moaned as her tongue drove me crazy.

"Of course, dear boy," he replied laughing. I did not take the term boy poorly since he was billions of years old. I hit the agree button and Caiera went for broke to make me climax. It felt weird having an ancient being watching me get my dick sucked. I cried out and she swallowed every drop.

"Shall I continue Master?" Caiera asked looking at me.

"Call me Ghost and let us take a break to conclude any further business." I gasped as she dressed and stood behind me.

"Caiera, go and collect your possessions. We have more to talk over. That's a good girl." He directed her before continuing. "Please, tell me about your time aboard the pyramid ship," Taneleer asked congenially as he refilled his glass with the near priceless liquor. I saw no reason to give him an edited version of meeting Amalgam and how we entertained her. He leaned forward and refilled my glass as well.

"Ha! Rumors no more!" He roared gleefully. "There have been whispers of corrupted Skrulls and now they are verified! Tell me more about the life cycle of these things."

"I will but know this, the Xenomorphs are not to be trifled with. I would hate to see Knowhere become a hive for those dreaded things." I warned and he grinned.

"Did you think that this paltry museum was the whole of my collection?! I have more secure locations for beings like these Xenomorphs that fill you with such terror." He said his voice carrying a hard edge to it. "Forgive me dear Ghost, you could not have known."

I took a sip of the alcohol before continuing. I told him how Amalgam had said how the mighty had fallen when she spoke of the aliens. I went through each stage from egg to drone to queen. I left it at that, but he knew there was more. He relented and I told him about the empress and her terrifying psychic attacks. He was amused and why not, he had survived since the first stars burned in the heavens.

"I suppose the robot is not for sale." He touched upon the subject gingerly.

"No, I have not had the chance to examine it in any great detail." I replied a bit more than tipsy. "I take my passion from learning how things function and their properties."

"If you were an Elder, I would name you the Artisan." He mused and his eyes caught and reflected the amethyst light from Caiera's collar. That did not take her long. She wore tight fitting dark alloy armor and carried a double-bladed glaive made from the same light absorbing metal. I knew it well. She was wearing shadow forged steel. The design of her armor was the best of protection, speed, and manuverability. My mind launched into how to improve it and I laughed. Taneleer tilted his head to the side and I explained. Caiera thanked me and adjusted the small pack on her back that held the rest of her few possessions. "Know this truly Ghostfire, few beings earn my respect. In your case your reputation carries great weight. I want you and your Ravagers to work for me. It will involve theft, spying, and exploration. What do you say?" There was something about the way he spoke the word respect that encompassed not just monetary gain but something deeper. "The first mission will take some time to prepare. I will contact you when all is ready."

"I will look forward to it." I said as Taneleer pushed one hundred thousand units across the table in what I took as a good faith measure. "Come on Caiera... Spindle... we have to meet up with the rest of the crew." The three of us returned to the elevator where it waited for us. The same girl that had been our guide greeted us. We took the glass elevator down and the interior of the collection had changed. "The collection is different."

"My master bores easily. The tower is designed and programed to shuffle his collection to amuse him." She explained. There was that word again tied to a long lived being. Amused. Caiera and Spindle followed me out to the merchant district of Knowhere.

"Caiera, if I were to free you where would you go?" I asked.

"Freedom," she spoke the world as if she stood upon a great precipice.

"How long have you been part of Taneleer's collection?" I asked and it took her a while to transcribe memory and the present.

"One hundred and twenty-three years," she whispered. "A long time yes? He can manipulate it. He lives outside of the normal flow Master."

"Yes. I would prefer that we were friends rather than owner and object." I explained.

"I like being the object of your desire though," she said her fingers stroking the collar.

"If I locked the collar away, what would happen?" I asked and she panicked. "No! I am not threatening you. I want you to be happy and free."

"You are kind. Please give me time and we will work things out together." She said as tears streamed down her cheeks and those small pouty lips of hers quivered.

We shopped and I purchased clothing for her. It did not matter what she wore I found her extremely attractive. She drifted towards the color black, or other dark shades of cloth, silk, or other more exotic fabrics. Caiera finally settled on silks and other soft materials. She chose a black spider silk blouse, dragonskin slacks with matching boots to wear for casual wear. As the clerk folded her slacks, I noticed irregularities along both legs. I was about to complain when Caiera laughed and explained the slits were in fact built in dagger sheaths. The soft yet incredibly durable leather was perfect for such things. She waved off the clerk, stripped down to nothing and put on her new clothing. The way the blouse and slacks clung it seemed to me she wanted to show off without being blatant. Was it an effect of the collar? Two traditional daggers hugged her hips, while several throwing knives adorned those long ass legs of hers.

"They are staring at me," she whispered in my ear. "They want me. They want to breed me."

"Yes." I agreed. The collar was the center of her existence right now.

"Boss." Void's voice came over my comm link. "We are all done. Where do you want to meet up?"

"Let us meet at the bar. I made a new friend." I warned them.

"I bet she is gorgeous." Gimmick laughed.

We reached the bar at roughly the same time. I did introductions and none of them recognized the name of Caiera. While they ate and drank, I looked over the Ravager message board. It was meant for captains only. I informed the others that we were free and if a job became available, we were available. I also shared the news about Taneleer being a patron of ours. They liked the sound of that. I joined the others and observed how Ynariel and Caiera interacted. They got along quite well. The same attraction I had felt so had the she-elf. The first kiss was tentative but soon blossomed into a blistering embrace. Ynariel's arm slipped around the Sakaarian's waist and held her close.

"I see why he likes you." Ynariel gasped as she broke the kiss.

"You like me too, this is a good thing," Caiera grinned and kissed the other's neck gently.

"Unnn huh!" The she elf whimpered.

Ding! Incoming Message.

'Be at these coordinates, message will follow.' Aleta's voice whispered in my head. 'Get going Ghost.'

"We got a job!" I called out. "I will cover the tab." I said and as they headed for the ship while I paid the bartender and gave him a good tip.

"Incoming transmission from the Boss Lady!" Grit called out from the copilot's chair. He had taken well to his life outside the Plane of Shadows. It was Ynariel that had shown me how to perform the ritual that allowed me to take him on as hired help. As part of the crew he received his share of the haul and that covered the cost detailed in our contract. He was as ruthless as he was amusing. "We are in the vicinity of a Kree transport ship."

"Lay in an intercept course Mr. Grit," I ordered.

"Aye, aye, Captain!" The shadow imp declared. "Course plotted and we are ready to go."

"Yautja to the teleporters! Engage stealth field! Punch it!" I called out the orders and everyone involved performed their duties flawlessly. It had not always been this smooth. It took an entire month of drilling to get this level of competence. The predators are a proud race and do not work well with others. But after teaching them to drink, whore, and fight as a unit they were formidable.

The Dancer shifted into hyperspace and intercepted the Kree ship before it could drop back into normal space. It was that amazing Svartalfar technology that allowed this to happen. Since we never left survivors it became a mystery as to how these ships were attacked and arrived empty and littered with bodies. We latched on once we were close enough and my Yautja shock troops softened up the defenders until the rest of us had a chance to join them. Gimmick made sure they never got out a distress call by jamming their communications or launching a beacon. In my humble opinion I had the best crew among the Ravagers. They had earned their patch a dozen times over. The ship's mascot leapt onto my shoulder and clung tightly.

"Tell me you aren't taking that little pervert with you... again?!" Ynariel asked clearly unamused at the small tentacle monster perched cheerily on my shoulder.

"Aw come on, look how happy he is!" I replied with a wicked grin. "He sniffed out the girls held in the hold of that Tanarien slave ship."

"Fine, but don't come crying to me if he gets a tentacle shot off." She laughed and kissed the cheek farthest from Hentie, the tentacle monster.

I stepped onto the teleport pad and joined the predators and instantly sensed something was wrong. The sounds of multiple weapon fire gave me a general direction of travel. I readied the Darksaber, activated my holosuit, and warily made my way towards the sound of battle. I found two injured Yautja and the third engaging what could only be a Kree Accuser. The Kree was devastating with his universal weapon. The young predator charged him and like the others was sent flying backward from a blast from the ancient weapon. What the hell was an Accuser doing on a cargo ship?! Answer. This is not a normal cargo ship. There was something extremely valuable on board, but what and how much could we get for it?

"You cannot hide from me Ravager scum!" The Kree growled with as much menace as he could muster.

"That is the same thing your sister said just before..." I taunted him as he leveled his universal weapon in my general direction and fired off a blast. I absorbed most of it and partially charged the relic attached to my armor. "...she sucked me off." Hentie took refuge on my back and cheered me on. His lewd battle cry filled the area.

"What in the same of the seven gods is that thing?!" He asked making a disgusted face.

"Your sister's favorite sex toy," I replied as I ignited the Darksaber. "I was on my way to Hala to return it to her."

"Die!" He roared as the fight began in earnest. Unlike Ronin the Accuser's weapon, this Kree's weapon was more a metallic battle staff than a Warhammer. The surface of the weapon was covered with characters I assumed were Kree in origin. It was a beautiful weapon and I looked forward to adding it to my collection. I was not surprised that the staff resisted the blade of the Darksaber. Any weapon worth its salt would and could. The only limit was our confined area, and, in this case, it favored the shorter weapon. "My sister could best you with one arm tied behind her back." He snorted while our weapons were locked together.

"Funny you should mention tying arms behind her back," I laughed. "She has a thing about bondage." I grunted barely blocking a well-executed riposte from the Accuser. The conversation continued and then faltered. I mentioned a birthmark I had noticed on a certain Kree girl I had bedded a few weeks earlier when we were selling stolen Skrull goods on Hala, the Kree home world.

"That little whore!" He screamed as he doubled his efforts to slay me and restore his family honor.

"It is going to be a shame when I take your head and return to Hala to comfort her when she learns of your death..." I did not get a chance to finish. The accuser combined an elegant parry with a blast from his staff. I flew back and my back struck the bulkhead. I heard Hentie let out a blustery gasp, but his plastic nature made blunt damage highly ineffective. I on the other hand found my health bar down by half. The reason was clear, the artifact was full and could hold no more. The problem is that in these confined spaces any of my energy-based attacks would do as much damage to everyone and not just to him. I converted some of the energy to healing but it was designed to harm not heal. For every ten points I spent on regeneration I got one point out. I let my healing factor take over. I focused on taking out the Accuser.

I charged him and my battle music began as the gifted warrior and I crossed arms in earnest. Despite the hindrance of space to swing his weapon he compensated brilliantly. Pity I had to end him. The rude verbal exchange had stopped as we focused on murdering each other to death. The damn staff's force blasts proved efficient in such limited room of the ship's corridor.

"We are running out of time Captain!" Ynariel warned me.

"I got this." I replied and the Accuser smiled in defiance. "I know something you don't know." I informed him.

"And what is that?" He asked wary of trickery.

"Just this." I laughed as I activated the ghost blade of my weapon and with a spinning attack lopped the poor guy's head off. I deactivated my weapon and caught my breath. I collected the Universal Weapon and the Kree's head. For to leave it behind would be dishonorable and I would lose face with the Yautja. I looked over the staff and grinned. "Mine." While I could not use his weapon, I could handle it enough to add to my inventory. "Let us find out what is so damn important a god damn Accuser is onboard!" I snapped as I healed the three fallen Yautja and myself.

The rest of the defenders were already dead. They had been sliced to ribbons. As we made our way to the cargo bay, we found Caiera waiting. The cargo bay was filled with containers, too many for the Dancer to take on. To focus our efforts, I tossed up one of Gimmick's prized inventions he crafted for just this sort of occasion. I flung the metal sphere into the air. It hovered to the center of the bay and released a highly focused energy pulse. He explained it this way. Each container is coded for easy location. In that code is the content and value of said container. Along with the sphere was a concise program that quickly isolated and ordered the cargo by rarity and value. A pirate's dream in situations like this.

"We'll be done in one minute on our end... what the fuck is that?" Gimmick replied over the commlink as the teleport beam targeted prized cargo.

"What the fuck is what?" I asked.

"Turn left thirty degrees, take six steps." Gimmick urged and I did as he said.

"Blank wall," I informed him.

"Check for a secret door or hologram," he continued. I stepped through the holographic wall.

"Well?" Gimmick queried.

"We have a naked human on ice, setting teleport beacon." I said as I placed a small disc on the cryo tube. A moment later the tube disappeared in a flash of the teleport beam. The only thing remaining was a black metal suitcase marked with the insignia of the Kree Imperial Militia.

"Time to go," Ynariel stated and a moment later I was back on the Dancer.

The ship lurched a bit as we disengaged from the Kree vessel and initiated the Bifrost drive. We headed for our rendezvous with Captain Aleta on the edge of Shi'Ar space. As one of the founders of the Ravagers and the provider of coordinates she was owed a cut of our profits. I kept the knowledge of the woman in the cryogenic tube to myself. I wanted to find out why the hell the Kree had taken a human captive. I moved the tube from the hold to the dojo. It was the least likely place Aleta might search if she came aboard the Dancer. I looked down at the woman with that nagging feeling like I should know her.

"Is it her tits?" I muttered aloud. "Traci, do a full scan and tell me if anything strange comes up."

"Right boss," she giggled. "Her breasts are exactly the same size and shape, that is odd." Traci joked. "She is in the pink of health."

"I can see that. She is a natural blonde too." I joked.

"She isn't entirely human. Bio scan indicates she is a Kree-Human hybrid. There is also a strange energy reading coming off her. Checking all available records." There was a short pause before she continued. "According to my earliest records, she is emitting the same energy signature as an artifact collected from the ocean floor by S.H.I.E.L.D. back in the forties."

"Artifact... what artifact?" I asked.

"The Tesseract." Traci replied with a lilt in her voice. "Close your mouth your jaw is on the floor."