SpellsRUs: Urge for Self Loving

"Ah, screw it. What're we gonna do, challenge every User in the world to fight it out?" I said to myself. The more I thought about it, however, the better that idea sounded. We could set up in some desolate area, terraform it into livable conditions, and challenge every User we could reach to come fight us! Shit, we could have a majority of 'em under our thumb, ripe for the crushing!

I finally found a rental location for U-Haul and got the biggest van they had. We were raiding Arnie's place for anything we could use, since we weren't going to let anyone else mess around with it. I got one of the sales reps to drive me back from the truck rental place, and drove off with the van. Back at Arnie's, I told Jay and Jackie about my idea. Both of them saw the merits in it, but what about the risks?

"One of those buttheads could get lucky, Peter. We could end up dead. Even worse, we could end up with the same kind of complex." Jay argued.

"Yes, but we could get rid of a lot of 'em that way, particularly if we enforce it with spells."

"You wanna take the chance that someone'll use the magic from the Master to scan for traps like that?" Jackie said.

"What about passive defenses, like the ones on the house?"

Both of them thought it over. "Now that might work. They won't even show up unless you try to cross them. Problem is, we can't make them selectively permeable, not and keep the fuckers inside. We'd have to be inside when it triggers, then all bets are off. If we do it right, even the Door won't work." They were thinking in series, finishing each other's thoughts. I was still amazed at how in tune we could be, sometimes.

"And with my weaponry, we'd stand a fair chance of coming out alive, you know. Not to mention the Master PC itself. We could use it to pump ourselves up to the best we can think of. A simple clause at the end would reverse it when we were done." It was a risky proposition. If we overextended ourselves, or even slept carelessly, we'd be fucked. Game over. "In any case, it's something to think over, right?"

Jay clapped me on the shoulder, and Jackie hugged me. "Besides which, most of these idiots seem to think in terms of muscle or mental powers, all of which can be countered. Geeks tend to be sci-fi nuts, not fantasy oriented like you are, Jay. They think of guns and psychicism, rather than sheer magic. The novelty alone probably gives us an edge."

"True, but do you want to go up against someone with Seraphic powers, like Dan?" Now THAT was sobering. Dan, the highschool computer teacher, had given himself the powers of an Angel towards the end of his story, and the worst part is that it didn't even give him an edge. "Not to mention, I doubt if we can scoop up all of the bastards. They're cagey and paranoid, not to mention seriously anti-social."

I heard their arguments, but I wasn't about to give over. Even if we didn't get all of them, I was betting that enough of them WOULD show up to be worth the effort. While we packed out the stuff of Arnie's that we didn't want to chance throwing through the Doorway, I plotted out what I'd need to pull it off.

Okay, logistics first; figure on a maximum of about 10,000 users total in the world. Of those, approximately half have either gone benign, gotten themselves killed, or blown into another plane of reality.

Of the remaining 5000 or so, assume they've all had the Master for 3 months or longer. They'd probably be getting bored with the same old routine. Make a slave, fuck slave, dispose of slave. Maybe they'd just acquired enough stuff and people to satisfy themselves. Still, the sheer power rush of exercising deific power was heady. A challenge would probably be welcome, and the last one standing would inherit the world, so to speak, in that most of their competition would be wasted. However, what was I going to do if the challenge attracted some totally benign User like Jay? He'd never altered anyone without them agreeing to it, and although I didn't think it likely, it could still happen that there were more like him in the world. Would we have to kill them? No, not if the ward-spells are done correctly.

Finally, where was I going to set it up? Nowhere inhabited, that's for certain. Maybe there was an island or two in the Pacific where we could set it up. No, I was going to have to give the destructive powers a little more credit. We'd probably end up wasting an entire island, right down to the bedrock, and I wasn't going to chance it on a volcanic landmass. Australia, maybe? The deep Outback was supposed to be desolate, and I knew for certain that not many people lived out that way. I could set it up on a few hundred miles of sand, and get the area ward-spelled to drive people away. Workable solution!

However, I still had to convince my co-husband and all of my wives to throw in on it, which was liable to require an act from the Almighty himself. After Jay had sacrificed himself to help Daphne, all of the wives in my marriage had taken a cue from Jackie and had gotten into the habit of stomping on any plans Jay or I made that might tempt us into throwing ourselves into the line of fire. Of course, their habit of extracting a promise from us while we were having sex didn't hurt the odds of their success.

Finally, we got all of the loot into the back of the van, even down to the supercomputer, even if we'd crammed it so tight it'd take us twice as long to unpack it. I sighed in disappointment. You'd think that with all of the seemingly impossible things sorcery is capable of, a little teleportation would be easy, but noo, all we've got is a doorway that opens up into any place we've seen into. Now I was stuck driving this damn truck halfway across the country with enough demonology gear in the back to give a Satanist the hives. Mercifully, Jackie was going to ride with me while Jay went home through said Doorway. We said our good-byes, and Jay vanished.

"Well, how long do you think we'll be, doll?" I asked Jackie.

"Probably going to be a day or two. We'll probably end up sleeping in cheap motels between here and home. Probably don't even have Cable." She smirked. "Nothing to do but have sex or read. Think you can stand it?"

"Oh, I imagine I could. I'm just worried about what that goofball Wizard we married is going to be doing while we can't stop him." Ever since he'd been resurrected, Jackie and I had been watching Jay like a hawk. Understandable, I hope, but it still made me nervous to have him running around on his own.

"Be nice. You know the wives won't let him get into anything without at least calling us." Jackie smiled. "We've been all over him like stink on shit for the last year. Let the poor guy have a break. Besides which, we've not had any private time with each other in a while, and I intend to enjoy it." I never could resist her whims, not when I could easily make her happy. We hopped into the van, and with a final spell from Jackie to make people leave the lot alone for at least a year, we started driving home.

JASON'S PERSPECTIVE

I shut the door behind me and sat down in my chair with an explosive sigh. Finally, some privacy! I love all my spouses, but they were starting to get under my skin. All of 'em had been checking up on me for so long I was almost afraid to nick myself shaving for fear of causing a panic. I understood, it's not every day someone comes back from the dead, but Goddamn, a guy needs some privacy! On that note, I locked my lab door, giving me a little solitude.

The more I turned over Peter's idea in my head, the better it sounded. My previous objections aside, if we could screw a few of these idiots out of their copies of the Program, I'd sleep easier at night. Hell, the UPS deliveryman almost got a face full of sword a week ago when I was practicing with it. Mercifully, I calmed down enough to set it down before I opened the door. A knock on the door jarred me back to the present, and I called out "Who is it?"

"Daphne. You busy?" Something in her voice told me this was serious. I dissolved the spell on the door, and gestured it open. Daphne walked in like something out of my teenage dreams; beautiful blonde babe, wearing one of my shirts and a pair of cutoff jeans. She plopped down on the floor in front of me, resting her arms on her knees.

"What's up, doc?" I slid out of the chair and mirrored her on the floor.

"I'm worried, Jay. You and Peter and Jackie are getting so jumpy lately the rest of us have been walking on eggshells." She continued in a rush. "You've all been so busy that even making love has been rushed, not satisfying for any of you." She thumbed her wedding ring nervously. "When's the last time you had sex that took more than 15 minutes?" She had me there. I couldn't think of a single incident. "You've been using your powers to satisfy our bodies, but not our hearts. You in particular are worrying us."

I heard the door open, and when I turned around, my three other wives came in. I gestured them to sit down, and they joined us on the floor. "This whole war you're waging has become personal. That last guy you took down before this North Dakota trip wasn't just turned, you ass-fucked his life. You gave him such a complex against technology he's a Luddite."

"I'm trying to protect my family, Daph. You girls, David, Jackie, and Peter are all I have left in the world. I'm not risking you to these other bastards." When I heard what spilled out of my mouth, I was taken aback. I'd become vindictive, just like Daphne said. Things said in emotion have a truth of their own, and I'd just said things I'd not even articulated to myself. My wives crowded closer to me, closing me into a circle of their bodies. Suzanne, who was sitting behind me, took hold of my shoulders and pulled me back against her breasts.

"We know that, Jason. You've been cut off from your birth family, but you're taking out your frustration on your enemies. That's not who you are, my love." Her hands wrapped around my chest. "You might worry about losing us to outside influences, but we're afraid of losing you to your cause." I started to speak, but Rebecca laid a finger across my lips.

"To turn around something you said to me a long time ago, babe, the whole affair hasn't been all bad. If it weren't for Sherman, you and Jackie would never have met me or Pam. We wouldn't have married you, and we'd probably still be screwed out of anything remotely resembling a normal life. You gave us back our humanity." She took her finger away and laid her head down on my lap, staring into my eyes. I couldn't take it, and looked away first. Pam took up the conversation.

"You still can't believe this is all real, can you?" I quirked my head at her. What was she getting at?

"Peter told me that sometimes he can't believe the last couple of years have really happened. He still keeps expecting to wake up alone, back in the life you used to have. You still think enough like him to make the argument valid. Do you ever think that?" I thought about it, and realized she was right. I nodded, struck speechless. She took my hand, and held it between her own against her heart. "Well, lover, I hate to tell you, but you're awake. This is all real, and we're not going anywhere. We're real women, and we love you more than you know, but you're pulling away from us." Tears filled her eyes. "It seems like you're so afraid for us to be real that you're distancing yourself to keep your dreams alive." Tracks of moisture fell down her cheeks. "Your problem, however, is that we're not dreams. We're flesh and blood, but more than that, we're your wives. You might not have claimed us as chattel with the Program, but you still claimed us with your heart." I felt my throat closing up. "You left us once, and it almost killed Peter and Jackie. Now, after all this time, it feels like you're going away again. This time, however, it'll probably kill all of us." She moved so close I was able to count her eyelashes, and the others followed suit, enclosing me on all four sides. "Don't leave us, Jay."

Suzanne put her oar in. "You've taken us into your heart, and into your home. Ultimately, you married us, for better or worse. This is the worse part of that agreement." My scrying crystal, which had been quiescent, flashed with an auditory message from the Wizard.

"Listen to your wives, apprentice. You've done great things, and will do many more as time goes on. Do the greatest of them now." The sphere went dark again. If the Wizard was taking a hand, matters must have been getting seriously grim. I took his advice, and pulled my wives to me. They cried on me while I thought back over what I'd been doing. They were right; I'd lost track of my humanity, somewhere along the way. I had become a war machine, focused only on maintaining my dreams of eliminating the 'competition'. My God, I'd become a crusader. Even my magic, which I'd once thought of as a life-affirming tool, was becoming nothing but a weapon in my hands. I looked at my hands, seeing the metaphorical blood that covered them, and shivering. That wasn't who I wanted to be, and I was bringing my twins down with me. Peter had made almost nothing but weaponry for the last year, instead of labor-saving devices. Even Jackie, who had loved me enough to carry me beneath her heart for nearly a year, was becoming aggressive.

I shook my head in shame. "My beloved wives." Their heads all turned to me. "You're right. I've been blind." I laughed weakly. "Jackie did the same thing you've done, more than two years ago." I stood up. "I'm sorry. This is why I made Peter and Jackie, and I've outdone myself by marrying 4 other women that have enough sense to smack me when I'm being stupid." I held my hands out. "Come on, I'll make you all lunch." They took my hands, and I pulled them up in pairs before leading the parade out to the kitchen.

I used the opportunity to practice a little culinary magic of the prosaic sort, whipping up a lunch of gourmet standards. My wives were teasing me as I did, pulling off their clothes and teasing each other to a state of sexual excitement. Daphne and Suzanne pulled some things out of the fridge, vanishing into the next room with them. I shrugged, finished with the meal preparation, and when I went to put it on the dining room table, I found Rebecca splayed out on it, covered with whipped cream, sauces, and fruit. I raised my eyebrow in a silent question.

"I've always wanted to try this, ever since I read about it in a magazine." Her smile was effective, and I threw caution to the wind. A simple levitation and suspension spell on the food kept our lunch ready while we played.

I was leaned forwards, licking the strawberry jelly and whipped cream from over her right breast, Pam mirroring me on the opposite side. Our rasping tongues were driving Becca to distraction, and she was shuddering with anticipation. Daphne was taking care of the stuff on Rebecca's stomach, leaving brown and white smears of chocolate syrup and whipped cream in her wake. Suzanne was watching the whole scene from the kitchen doorway, rubbing her cock through her sweatpants. I raised my hand and waved her over, switching places with her. Then it was my turn to stand back and admire the tableau. One of my wives was covered in delectable goodies and her co-spouses were all engaged in cleaning her off. Too bad Jackie and Peter weren't here, they'd get into it. I stepped from the room long enough to snag one of Peter's cameras to capture the moment for posterity. When they saw the flash, the women all turned from their play.

"Now that's more like you, my husband." Becca sat up on the table, condiments running down her front. "Come to momma, baby." She opened her arms to me after coming to the edge of the table. I gave a mental sigh for the state of my wardrobe when she was done, but I did it anyhow. She kissed me, infusing it with all of her emotions. The others took advantage of my distraction to strip me bare, and I jerked my head once in thanks. All of a sudden, there was the sound of breaking glass behind me just as I felt something hit my back. I spun around, putting myself between my wives and whatever it was. I tracked the defense spells' activation, and found something surprising waiting for me; a bullet, wrapped in the blue lightning of magic. I sprinted over to the window, but I couldn't see anyone with a rifle. Shit! I'd forgotten to enchant the glass to resist impact from bullets! A look at the floor showed me the first bullet, the thing I'd felt hit my back. Peter's tattoo had absorbed the kinetic energy and flattened it out.

The women asked me what was going on, but I gestured for silence. I took hold of the second bullet, still sheathed in my power. I incanted a spell, and I got a linkage to the gun that had fired it. It had been fired by a dark-haired man in his early 30's, wearing a brown business suit. I firmed my grip on the spell linking me to the gun before I let my attention swing back to the women.

"Girls, get dressed, now! Grab David and a set of clothes for me!" They scattered, taking off down the interior staircase we'd installed in the living room. I ran into the kitchen and used a little water and a paper towel to clean up. 'Why does this shit always have to start right when I'm trying to be intimate with my wives? Is there an alarm somewhere that goes off whenever I get a hard-on?' I groused to myself. Pam came running with a pair of jeans and a T-shirt for me that I took with a kiss en passant and pulled on with haste. I bellowed out for them to move their asses, and I availed myself of some of Peter's weaponry while they finished up. Finally, I went to the lab and grabbed my laptop, threw it in it's case, and I was ready to go. My wives were all waiting in the living room, little David in his armored carrier, overnight bags packed with gear. "This sort of shit is what makes me paranoid, girls." They tittered nervously. "But we're going to put an end to this little charade right now. Let's get the car." I encased us in a globe of force while I activated the nastier defenses on the condo. Mercifully, we'd gotten the last of the other tenants moved out months ago, so I didn't have to worry about casualties. We trooped out to the Suburban, Peter's wedding gift to us all. He'd given it the same makeover the Beater had, so I knew we'd be pretty safe inside it.

Once ensconced inside the Suburban, we were all set. I pulled the bullet out of my pocket, and gave Suzanne directions. "North half a mile." "West, mile and a half." After twenty minutes or so, our quarry stopped moving, giving us time to catch up. When we finally had him in sight, a Murphy's Law spell made his tires go flat. He pulled off on the side of the road, and we pulled up behind him. "Stay in the car, girls. Suzie, if anything goes sour, get out of here! The Wizard'll give you sanctuary." I reassured them all of my love with a mental caress. Then I opened my door and got out.

"Having a little trouble, friend?" He was pulling the spare out of the trunk when I started talking, but when he laid eyes on me, he dropped the tire and started fumbling in his coat. A spell stopped that.

"Now now, I'm just trying to be helpful." His eyes widened in shock. As far as he knew, I was toast. I pulled the tire off the ground where he'd dropped it, and pulled it over to replace the flat. I manipulated him like my puppet the while. I used the wrench and pulled off the nuts. "Now, why would you try and put a bullet between my eyes, hmm?" A simple lift of the wheel and it was off, quickly replaced by the spare.

"Orders." He ground out the word as if he'd like to spit it in my face. "You and the others of your kind are a threat to national security." I got up, and he tightened the nuts down on the spare.

"And what kind are you referring to, sir?" We'd both stood up straight, apparently having a normal conversation to any onlookers. "Black haired men with five wives and a co-husband, stay at home recluses, or science fiction fans?"