Strange Times: A Day to Remember

Morgana had tried a lot of things to save her unhappy marriage to Chris. Nothing so far had worked and going on a multiday hike through a national park in Montana - part of the Rockies Chris was fond of saying - was a last-ditch effort to reconnect. They had no intention of radically redefining their relationship.

They were a day into the trip, and she noticed that Chris was already moving slow. Morgana's feelings for him were more complicated than she thought a wife's should be. She was overly critical, and she knew that, but she found it hard not to be. Chris did not grow into the man she expected when they married. They were too young, she thought, and her expectations were never realistic. He was an inch shorter than her, 5'7" to her 5'8", but that wasn't really what bothered her. What bothered her was just how soft he was.

She wasn't expecting him to start shooting roids and pounding iron or become some ridiculous image of masculinity. Ever since he'd cashed out at the height of the crypto boom, he seemed to have lost his purpose. Ironically, he had started going to the gym more frequently, but she couldn't really see the results.

Morgana blamed herself for her feelings. Chris was a wonderful person, and she truly loved him. That's why she suggested this, she was now starting to realize, ludicrous venture. The idea that somehow, he'd come out in the woods a mountain man was truly, deeply, stupid.

Yet here they were, Chris already slowing down, and her breasts squished inside of a sports bra that she was pretty sure was too small. It was hard to find one that fit, but she probably should've made more an effort. Just another regret added to the growing pile.

It's not like Chris would've ever said no - he desperately wanted to make her happy. She wanted to stay with him too, but she twisted up inside when she thought of her future. She envisioned many dark nights cuddling a pillow when she wanted so much more.

Morgana drank from her portable wine-in-a-box. She used to drink the fancy stuff, but lately she'd gotten less concerned about the quality. Camping wine, she reasoned, could come in a box.

"Whew," Chris panted. "Getting a bit chilly. I wasn't expecting that in April."

Morgana wrinkled her nose at the complaint and put the wine away, though she had to admit he was right. "It is unseasonable, isn't it?"

They had just reached a crest overlooking a valley when a deep voice came from behind.

"It's going to get worse."

Chris whirled around, and Morgana turned to locate the voice's owner. Chris gasped - a quiet sound, but one Morgana nonetheless heard and did not approve of.

The owner was a man approximately twelve feet tall. Well, no, probably closer to halfway between six and seven feet, but Morgana's first impression was that he was a giant. When they looked at him, the stranger's smile went all the way to his green eyes. His broad frame and thick shoulders carried a relatively light pack. He didn't seem to have much in the way of supplies, which was odd given how far into the woods they were. He was also wearing a flannel and jeans, which seemed pretty light weight.

Morgana briefly wondered if he was one of those types that just lived off the land with a bowie knife. She didn't spot one on him.

"How... how do you know that?" Chris stuttered. Morgana hoped this stranger wasn't dangerous - Chris seemed ready to bolt. Chris looked down at his phone, "I haven't gotten reception for... a while." Morgana controlled herself - he wasn't supposed to be checking in the first place.

"Mine works," the stranger replied, shaking his own device in his hand, before putting it back in his pocket. Despite looking older than either her or Chris, he apparently wasn't a stranger to technology. Morgana couldn't quite place his age though. Late forties, perhaps?

"Oh! Is that a sat phone?" Chris was, of course, more interested in the technology than the present.

"Yeah," the stranger gave Chris an easy grin, before turning to Morgana, and holding out a hand. "I'm called O-1/X-DAMON."

Morgana furrowed her brow as she shook his hand. "I'm sorry I didn't quite catch that. Did you say Owen Rex Damon?" He gave them his full name. Serial killer for sure.

"You got it," Owen grinned and shook Chris' offered hand, putting his other hand on her husband's lithe shoulder and giving it a squeeze. "Regardless of how we found out, a storm's coming."

"Well, I think we can keep going," Morgan smiled, though she wasn't pleased with the news. "We can probably make the next ridge before nightfall."

"Oh … I don't know," Chris bit his lip. He smiled and squeezed Owen's hand as he shook it. "Chris Weyland. This is my wife, Morgana."

Owen smiled and nodded to the two of them and motioned toward the valley. "There's an emergency shelter in the valley – that's where I was heading. I'm pretty sure it's fully stocked up."

Morgana rolled her eyes and looked at Chris. He gave her a small shrug, and a nervous smile. Morgana smiled, unable to resist her husband's charms, adorable as they were. She reached out and took his hand, squeezing. "Alright Chris, if you think that's best, we can go to the shelter." With the strange man capable of killing us both, probably easily, she decided not to add.

"Lead the way," Chris gestured to the large man.

Nestled within the forested valley was a reddish-brown log cabin. Outside of it was a stack of split logs, a small outhouse, and a separate tiny cabin atop a ladder.

Morgana didn't really know what any of these things were for, per se, though she thought she could identify them. She had read some blogs about preparing for a multiday hike in the wilderness, but it occurred to her that maybe she wasn't quite as prepared as she assumed.

Chris tried to break the ice. "So, Owen –"

"Oh, please, everyone just calls me Damon," the big man chuckled.

Chris nodded and smiled. "So … Damon. How do you know about this place?"

"I've been through here before. It's a place I really enjoy visiting to get some peace and quiet."

"I thought you said it was an emergency shelter," Morgana glanced at Damon then back to the cabin. "Doesn't that mean it's just for emergencies?"

Damon grinned at her and cocked his head, drawing his first word out. "Well … the way I see it, long as I make sure it's well stocked and fully equipped, nobody'll know the difference. Trust me, it's better to find what I left behind than cans of government cheese."

"Can't argue with that," Chris laughed, a light airy sound.

Morgana had a chuckle herself. "Yes, I suppose that's true." Damon didn't seem too threatening, yet part of her suspected that he was as dangerous as she first thought.

"I figure as long as I'm improving the world, instead of diminishing it, the rules just get in the way." Damon approached the cabin first and opened the front door for the others. He then stepped to the side and turned his gaze toward the sky. Chris walked through the door, offering thanks.

Morgana stopped at the door and stared at the sky with Damon. Dark clouds loomed over the trees, blocking the sun. "It's going to be big, isn't it?"

Damon nodded. "I hope you didn't have any plans on the next ridge."

Morgana snorted. "I don't suppose saving a marriage counts?" She walked inside.

After a moment to let her eyes adjust, she got a good look at the cabin. Chris was standing in the center of the living room gawking. Morgana walked up next to him and slid an arm around his thin waist. "I guess things could be worse."

"Right?" Chris grinned. "You'd pay good money for this, if you tried to get it."

There was a stairwell off to the side, leading up to a good-sized loft. There were a couple of other rooms on the bottom level – bedrooms Morgana assumed, and a kitchen on the far side of the living room. The living room itself was dominated by a wood stove, around which were several very soft-looking sack chairs on a huge fur rug.

Damon came up behind them and motioned to the loft, "Path finder's prerogative - I am claiming the loft." He chuckled. "I'm afraid the beds in the bottom bedrooms are far too small for me."

Morgana wrinkled her nose but nodded.

"That's fair," Chris smiled at Damon.

Damon clapped him on the shoulder. "Good." He headed off to the loft to drop off his supplies, while Chris and Morgana headed to the bottom bedrooms.

They stopped by the open doors and Morgana frowned. No wonder the giant thought the beds would be too small – they were singles, and on the small side of that. Weirdly, one of the rooms actually had a computer in it. Chris headed into that one, naturally.

"Well, not quite … what I would've had in mind," he admitted as he sat on the small bed.

"We can make do, I think." Morgana walked into her own room and began shedding her gear. "I hope," she added to herself. She took out her wine and took a long drink. Time to get the girls out of this horrible sports bra. It occurred to her that she didn't really have another.

As night fell, the snow fell in a flurry. Soon the entire valley was blanketed. But the inhabitants of the cabin were warm. Damon brought several plates out to Morgana and Chris, who were curled up on bag chairs in front of the warm stove.

"Dinner is served," Damon presented their plates with a flourish. "Sir and Madam."

Morgana and Chris laughed and took their plates, and Damon moved to the far side of the living room. Morgana furrowed her brow, then tried to ask as politely as possible. "And ahm … what … what is the … main course?"

"Ah it's beef ragout," Damon spoke in his best fancy sounding tone.

Chris laughed again and Morgana bit her lips to hold it back. "Is it really?"

"Ah … no," Damon shook his head quickly. "It is the government approximation of beef stew." He laughed, "I said it wouldn't be a can of cheese, I didn't say it would be fine cuisine."

"Thank you!" Chris blurted out with a grin. "Really though, you've helped us a lot." He spooned a large serving into his mouth.

Morgana cracked open another wine, which gave Chris a moment of pause. She shrugged at him and took a drink before joining him in the meal.

Damon looked between them then took a bite. "There's a cache outside, there might be something less mysterious in it, I'll check it tomorrow."

"We really do appreciate all you've done for us though," Morgana smiled. "Based on how hard the snow's been coming down, I suspect we might have been in real trouble out there."

"Like I said, I just try to make sure I'm improving the world. Besides, sometimes life takes you in strange places, at strange times. Sometimes you just have to make the most of it … but it can be exactly what you need, you know?" Damon shrugged and took another bite. "Honestly, most of my life's been like that."

Morgana cocked her head to the side. "Are you … I mean, forgive my assumption, but … ex-military?"

Damon snorted and nodded. "Am I that transparent? Honestly, I'm kind of an ex-a lot of things, but I did some time in the Corps."

"Oh, you were a Marine?" Chris asked between bites.

Damon nodded and smirked. "Still am, really."

"Oh, uh," Chris looked down at his plate. "Sorry."

"Hey, don't worry about it, Chris," Damon shook his head. "You can't know everything about a person without talkin' to 'em first."

Chris smiled and Morgana cut in. "I noticed that you travel pretty light. Do you, kind of, do a live off the land kind of thing?"

Damon laughed, "No, Morgana, I don't live off the land. I was just traveling light because I was planning on coming here, and I didn't know about the storm before I came." He nodded. "I like where your head is at though. Trying to make sure I'm on the up and up."

Chris blinked, and Morgana swallowed. "Are … are you?"

Damon furrowed his brow and then laughed. "Yes." He got up, moved to a closer chair and sat back down. "Guys, really. I saw you needed help, I knew a storm was comin'," he motioned toward the stove. "I figured you could use a warm place to stay. I just want to help."

Chris sighed in relief and finished off his plate. "Yeah, thanks again, for that."

"You don't gotta keep thankin' me," Damon grinned. Chris nodded, a light blush spreading across his cheeks. "But I appreciate it."

Morgana nodded and relaxed a little. She took another drink of wine, feeling pretty good about the situation really. Damon seemed so incredibly genuine, and he really had probably saved their lives. She wasn't so smug as to think they could've made it through this storm.

"So … you two coming out here for a vacation?" Damon asked. "I mean, I suppose I better make sure you're not like …" he struggled for an example then finally went with, "You know, a serial killer. Couple. A serial couple."

Chris laughed and Morgana snorted. "Look at you, you're a mountain," she smirked. "Have you ever actually met someone who could threaten you?"

Damon laughed and nodded, "Oh god, my combat instructor. She barely came up to my chest, but I swear that woman was the most frightening creature ever put on this Earth. I once saw her make a grown man weep in fear."

Morgana laughed, but Chris was incredulous, and had to ask. "It wasn't …"

Damon rolled his eyes. "Me? No. It was this guy … what the hell was his name? Oh, fucking Larry. Oh god, right – so after this we called him LSD Larry. The only guy I've ever met dumb enough to get high before he went into combat training."

"What!" Chris laughed. Morgana shook her head in disbelief.

"I mean, we could tell almost immediately that he was pretty fucking off. And this instructor – I don't remember her real name everyone called her 'Alda' – at first, she just starts asking the guy a bunch of questions. We just think, well he's done. But instead of just marching him off to medical and getting him shit canned, she starts screaming this weird wailing scream."

Damon started waving his arms. "Then she starts waving her arms around and saying how she's gonna eat his soul." Damon laughed, along with Chris and Morgana. "Larry fucking freaks. He is immediately out of his mind, and just crawling around, he starts throwing things at her, but like, the only thing there are punching pads. I'll never forget the sight of this tiny woman standing over this massive dude screeching, while he cowered in a puddle of piss throwing pads at her."

Chris laughed again. "Oh my god!"

"What happened to him?" Morgana grinned.

"The whole platoon thought, come on man, you can't possibly stick around. After that you gotta just bail right? Not fucking LSD Larry. Next day, he goes right up to Alda, asks her for her number - somehow gets it - and later on ends up dating her." He shook his head. "Fuckin dude thought the whole thing was funny as hell. I swear, nobody anywhere in the world thought less of what people thought of him than LSD Larry." Damon chuckled and opened his canteen, taking a long swig out of it. "Sometimes, you just have to go for it, and not care what the world's gonna think."

Chris laughed, then stretched out his arms. "I'll clean up, then I'm going to head to bed." He gathered his and Morgana's plate, then held out the stack for Damon's.

Damon put his plate on the small stack and smiled, "Thanks."

Chris nodded and headed back to the kitchen. Damon and Morgana stared at the glowing stove for a little while, until Chris finished cleaning and came out with a cheerful, "Good night!" before he headed into his room and closed the door.

"Good night!" Damon offered just before the door closed. He furrowed his brow at the sudden exit.

"Getting on that damn machine," Morgana grumped.

Damon tilted his head to the side. "You wanna talk about it?"

"God yes," Morgana replied immediately then just as quickly bit her tongue. "I... I shouldn't I'm sorry I just met you."

"Hey, it's okay, I asked for a reason."

Morgana squeezed her eyes shut, as part of her brain tried very hard to silence the more intoxicated part. She took a drink and stared at the stove. Damon took a swig from his canteen, and the two sat in silence for a few minutes, quietly drinking.

Morgana finally broke the silence. "I love him so much... but I just, I just wish he'd... he'd be different than he is." She shook her head. "S'not fair, but... I just don't want it to have to be me that decides."

Damon nodded. "You're looking for something different, but you don't want to leave Chris behind."

Morgana pointed at him. "Yes - yes! Exactly. I want to... I want things to change. But I want him too. Does that make sense? But it seems wrong. Like I'm the bad guy."

"Yeah, it makes a lot of sense. You know, long ago people used to organize society, and their families, differently than today. Things changed for a lot of reasons, many of them good actually, but that doesn't mean things can't change again."

Morgana tried to make sense of what he was saying. It was possible the wine was a little stronger than she thought. "Yeah, but Chris'he..." She trailed off.

"Chrissy what?"

Morgana let slip an intoxicated giggle. "Yeah... sometimes Chris isalil' Chrissy."

Damon smiled. "Have you asked if Chrissy is getting what he wants? Maybe Chrissy wants something different."

Morgana wrinkled her nose, "Nahhh," she shook her head. "Sorry, I'm... I'm pretty tired." She went to take the last drink from her wine and discovered it dry. "Uhm."

Damon chuckled. "It's okay Morgana, tomorrow's a new day." He reached out his hand and helped her to her feet. "Here, lean on me."

Morgana obliged, thankful to have the strong mountain to lead her to her room. "I'm really glad we met," she got out as they entered her room.

"Me too," Damon tucked her into bed.

"Thanks Damon," a sleepy smile spread across her face.

"You're welcome, Morgana," he whispered, and backed out of her room, then closed her door.

Chris had indeed found the damn machine, but so far out in the woods there wasn't an internet connection of any sort. It made him wonder why someone would have a machine like this out here in the first place. So naturally, he turned it on and began exploring it.

Chris knew that this trip was important to Morgana, and he did desperately want it to go well for them both. He knew she was unhappy, and he wanted to make things right. But it was so hard for him to focus on their relationship. He kept getting distracted.

For example, earlier in the day he had found something very unexpected. A computer filled with porn. All different kinds, in lots of different media.

He knew that he should've spent the night talking with Morgana, but it had been so long since he got to enjoy himself.

Now, Chris had a video on that he'd found particularly exciting. He tried to make sure the audio was only quietly coming out the speakers. He did want to hear it though, as he found the moans sexy. There was a taller woman, with massive breasts, and a large cock. He loved futa porn and this was a really exciting one. She was face fucking a smaller guy who clearly enjoyed it. The futa had a real grip on the guy, who looked like he could barely breathe.

Chris stripped out of his clothing before sitting on the chair in front of the computer.

As the cock slid in and out of the guy's mouth, Chris stroked his own cock. His was smaller than the futa's, just about a handful, and his hands weren't very large. He groaned as he watched the porn and rubbed his cock.

Chris was snapped from his reverie by the sound of the door opening then closing quickly. He whirled around in his seat, his cock still in his hand, and he gaped at the entrant. "Damon!"