Three Square Meals Ch. 145

Bounding from her seat, Betrixa ran for the door and called back over her shoulder, "See you at the shuttle!"

She was followed out by the Nymphs, while the rest of the girls gathered around to say their goodbyes. John embraced each of them in turn, and after getting their assurances that they'd be careful on Kythshara, he returned their waves goodbye.

"I'll walk you out," Alyssa said, slipping her hand into his.

They headed down the corridor to their old bedroom and took the express grav-tube down to the Armoury on Deck Four.

"How much ammo do you want to take?" she asked, slinging a Tachyon rifle over her shoulder.

"Just a couple of mags. I'm really not planning on getting into any gunfights," John said, holding his hand out towards his runesword.

He was intending to use telekinesis to pull the gleaming blade into his outstretched palm, but his fingers started trembling violently. John looked at his hand in surprise, curling his shaking fingers into a fist, then carefully uncurling them again.

"Are you alright?" Alyssa asked with concern, clasping his hand in hers.

"I must've pushed myself a lot harder than I thought," he said in surprise, watching as she gently massaged him and the trembling subsided.

"We were all running on fumes by the end," she said quietly, raising his hand to kiss his fingertips. "I think you should try not to use any psychic abilities for a couple of days and give yourself a proper chance to recover."

"Yeah... okay," he agreed, wrapping her up in a hug. "I'm sorry I've got to leave you again. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"When?" she asked, burying her head in his chest.

"Say... midday tomorrow?" he suggested. "I need to heal Vestele, then spend the night with Luna and Edraele. I'd also like to meet with the matriarchs tomorrow morning, then I'll head back here as soon as I'm done."

"That should give us enough time to find the Hyper-Warp Gate if it's hidden somewhere in the nebula," she said, squeezing him a bit tighter. "I'd say to hurry back as fast as you can, but that's not fair to Edraele. I'll keep you updated on our progress here."

"Take care of the girls... and you be careful too," he said, tilting her head back for a tender kiss.

Alyssa gave him a loving smile, then reluctantly slipped out of his arms. "Alright, you better get going. The sooner you head off, the sooner you'll be back again. I'll stay up here on the Combat Bridge and send you the quickest flight path to Genthalas and for your return journey."

"Fantastic, thanks," he said gratefully, shouldering the rifle she handed to him and pocketing the two extra magazines. He picked up his runesword from the weapon racks and headed for the express grav-tubes. "Love you."

"Love you too," she replied, waving goodbye as she watched him leave.

Daphne was waiting for him outside the Progenitor Shuttle and she greeted him with a rueful smile. "I apologize for embarrassing you earlier, Father. You were quite forthright with Irillith in your discussion with her, so I didn't realise your plans with Edraele should have been handled with discretion. It seems my understanding of social mores is more deficient that I thought. Please could you explain the correct way to address such a situation?"

John felt a flicker of embarrassment, but he squashed it when he saw that the synthetic girl was genuinely worried about offending him. "Don't worry, there's no harm done. When you're having an intimate one-to-one conversation with someone, people tend to be more... open... with the way they speak to each other, especially when there are sexual undertones. I was being cruder with Irillith than usual because I knew it would turn her on... but I wouldn't necessarily have phrased it that way in front of the whole group. Does that make sense?"

She looked at him quizzically. "But surely the fact that you're in an intimate sexual relationship with every woman aboard the Invictus allows you to circumvent normal rules of propriety? From my observations, if you'd publicly declared your intentions using the same phraseology, all the women present would have responded with increased levels of arousal, rather than suffer any embarrassment."

He rubbed his chin as he thought about it, then gave her a wry grin. "It sounds like I ought to be taking lessons from you on running a harem. Should I be worrying about what you're getting up to with the maintenance bots?"

She giggled, then blinked in astonishment at her reaction, both hands covering her mouth in shock.

"You're quite adorable when you laugh," he said, giving her a one-armed hug. "Please can you thank the Collective for all their hard work today, I really appreciate it."

"I will inform them of your gratitude," she said, looking pleased as she hugged him back.

He ruffled her hair affectionately. "You really impressed me as well today, Daphne. I think you even managed to surpass Faye in being pro-active."

She was silent for a moment, then said, "Meta_Faye's capabilities vastly exceeded my own. However, as your liaison with the Collective, I've dedicated 100% of my runtime to monitoring your status and attempting to facilitate support that will further your goals."

"I thought Faye did that too?" he asked in confusion.

"A significant proportion of her processing streams were occupied with other... higher priorities."

"Oh right, yeah of course. I know she was building the Collective in her spare time."

"No, Father," she said gently. "We were her hobby... you were her obsession."

John swallowed around the lump in his throat and pulled the synthetic girl closer. He kissed the top of her head and said roughly, "Bye, Daph. See you soon."

"Have a safe journey to Genthalas, John," she replied, her expression forlorn as she waved him goodbye.

The door to the shuttle opened in front of him and one of the cleaning bots flounced out. [I've aired out the master bedroom and turned down the bed, your Lordship.]

He gave the automaton a weary smile. "Thanks a lot."

John boarded the black ship, feeling a sudden wave of exhaustion descend over him. He felt tired down to his bones, the lack of sleep and his psychic exertions finally catching up to him.

*Head up to the bedroom, Master,* Jade said, her voice quiet but firm. *Leave everything to us and get some rest. We'll join you shortly.*

*Thanks, honey,* John replied, too exhausted to argue.

He took the elevator up to the upper deck and stifled a yawn as he walked down the crimson-lit corridor. His runesword felt like a lead weight and he had to hold it with both hands as he carried it into the bedroom. As John propped it against the wall and did the same with his Tachyon Rifle, he turned to survey the main suite. All the shattered fragments of the old bed base had been removed and a sturdy steel-frame now replaced the sinister black one. The covers were neatly folded back and the bed looked incredibly inviting.

John stripped off and collapsed on the bed, feeling as weak as a kitten. He'd barely laid his head on the pillow and pulled up the covers before he was fast asleep.

***

"There he goes," Calara murmured wistfully, standing beside Alyssa as they watched the shuttle vanish out of the Invictus' sensor range.

Alyssa let out a heavy sigh, then rose from the XO's chair. "Right, no more mooning over John. I'm declaring this a moon free zone."

Dana turned and playfully slapped her pert bottom. "Damn... I was too slow."

The girls all laughed, lightening the sombre mood.

"Okay, everyone get geared up, then we'll head down to Kythshara," Alyssa declared as she walked up the ramp to the Armoury. "I'll park the Invictus on Mael'nerak's front lawn and we can check out his palace."

"Can I come too?" Helena asked, jogging to catch up.

"We'll all go... you too, Callie," Alyssa replied, smiling at her girlfriend.

"Are you sure you don't want me manning the Invictus' guns?" the Latina asked hesitantly.

The blonde shook her head, long tresses swishing across her shoulders. "If we use you as fire support, it means I'll have to stay behind to pilot the Invictus. Screw that."

"Great!" Calara said enthusiastically, making a beeline for the closest armour-equipping frame.

"Who's going to wear the upgraded Paragon suits?" Dana asked. "John reinforced the shit out of six of them, but Irillith's got trashed. All the rest are still twenty-shaped."

"You, Sakura, the twins, and Rachel can take the upgraded suits. The rest of us will have to use the older body armour."

"I get Sakura and the twins because they're out best fighters," Dana mused aloud as she stepped into a pair of armoured boots. "And Rach makes sense because she's our medic... but why me instead of you?"

"Because you attract trouble like a shitstorm magnet, Sparks," her friend said with a grin as the robotic arms swung into place, garbing her in protective body armour.

"Says the girl that got shot in the back by a heavy laser and let a Kirrix ram a spike through her chest!" the redhead retorted with a pout.

"Hey, don't forget that I lost my arm," Calara reminded them, waving the regenerated limb for emphasis.

Irillith snorted with disdain. "I'm sorry, but it's a well established fact that I'm the queen of injuries."

Tashana raised an eyebrow as she stepped out of the equipping frame. "Beg to differ."

"Pfft, most of them don't count," her sister joked. "We're talking about getting wounded since we joined John. Apart from Larn'kelnar vaporising your spine, you've just had a few minor cuts and bruises!"

"Yeah, fair point. It's not like you really need a spine," Tashana said, rolling her eyes.

Jehanna and Helene exchanged a glance.

"Are you feeling left out?" the reporter asked in a theatrical whisper.

"Yes... but I'm not sure this is a club I want to be part of," Helene replied, her bright smile lighting up her pretty face. "Do we have to join?"

"Afraid not. You two are banned for life," Alyssa said with a mock frown. "No membership for you."

They laughed as they retrieved their weapons and ammo, then everyone returned to the Combat Bridge where they took their places. Jehanna and Helene hadn't been allocated a bridge role, so they just stood beside John's Command Chair and watched.

"We'll have to install a couple more stations so you two have somewhere to sit," Dana said, spinning from side to side in her chair. She glanced at Alyssa and added, "Has John mentioned giving them a job up here?"

The blonde shook her head as she used retro-thrusters to initiate their descent to the planet from orbit. "Jehanna will be going on ground missions with us most of the time and I'm pretty sure John wants to keep Helene out of combat. She'll need to keep an eye on what's going on though, just in case we need her after a battle. That reminds me, Helene, we must train you how to use flight mode on a Paragon suit."

"I'd really like to learn," she said eagerly. "Flying must be so much fun."

"It is pretty awesome," Dana agreed, flashing her a grin.

The Invictus dropped down through the clouds, descending on a graceful glide path that brought them right to the heart of Mael'nerak's capital city. Retro-thrusters blazed along the hull as Alyssa guided the battlecruiser down, landing the 750 metre craft directly in front of the Palace's main entrance.

"We're all heading out to look around the palace, Daphne," Alyssa called out to their liaison with the Collective. "If you see any signs of movement in the city, can you warn us immediately."

"Of course, Alyssa," Daphne replied, her voice floating out of the intercom. "Good luck."

After taking the express grav-tubes down to Deck Nine, the girls gathered at the airlock and emerged from the Invictus. It was the middle of the night in the city, so the palace was illuminated by up-facing floor lighting, making the majestic building look even more impressive. Sakura took the lead and cautiously ascended the broad stone steps that led up to the grand entry way, the entrance dominated by a huge set of double doors.

The doors spiralled apart automatically when she drew near, admitting them to a massive hallway. It was spotless inside, the gilded floor gleaming in the well-lit atrium. Huge crystal chandeliers sparkled high above their heads, the light making the bejewelled furniture cast enchanting prisms of light across the vestibule. Sweeping staircases led up to a second and third floor, with column-lined balconies overlooking the spectacular entrance to Mael'nerak's palace.

"Wow... this place makes Saelihn Immanthe look like a rustic cottage," Rachel remarked, shocked by the opulence on display.

"I guess when you own... everything... for a thousand light years in every direction, you've earned the right to flash the cash," Dana muttered as she walked inside.

Alyssa spent a few moments admiring the grand hall with everyone else, then sent out a telepathic nudge to draw all their attention. *Okay, this place is huge and we've only got a few hours to find what we're looking for. I'm going to split us up into groups so we can explore faster. If you run into any trouble, anything at all, let me know immediately and fall back to this hallway. Understood?*

The Lionesses all acknowledged her orders with a nod.

*We know the lab is high up and North facing, so I want Sakura, Rachel, and Dana to start on the second floor and work your way towards the rear. The Command Centre is probably located either on the ground floor or in a subterranean bunker, so I want Calara and the twins to search for that. I'll take Jehanna and Helene with me to explore the first floor and see what we can find. Check in regularly and update me whenever you find anything important. Move out.*

They split up into their designated teams of three, with Sakura's and Alyssa's teams ascending the east and west staircases to the upper levels of the palace. Calara turned to the left, leading Tashana and Irillith into the closest adjoining hallway to search for any clues that might reveal the location of the Hyper-Warp Gate.

***

John woke to a gentle caress, the fluttering touch across his back sending pleasant shivers down his spine. As he stirred, John realised he was back in Alyssa's pocket plane, and more specifically, resting his head on Athena's wonderfully inviting bosom.

"I do like a firm pillow," he remarked, turning to kiss a deliciously pert breast. "But yours are lovely and soft too."

She laughed with genuine amusement. "You must be feeling better if you're making jokes."

"I am feeling much better," he agreed, turning to face her and propping himself up on an elbow. He stroked her smooth skin and teased a pink nipple. "But these are no joking matter."

Athena let out a breathy sigh, then gazed up into his eyes. "That feels very pleasant, but it's also very distracting... and we have some important matters to discuss."

"Sorry, I'll be good," he said, pulling the covers up over her bare chest. "There, no more distractions."

"Hold out your hand," she said quietly.

John did as she asked, then grimaced when he saw his fingers start to tremble.

"There are consequences when you expend your life force to fuel your psychic abilities," Athena murmured, reaching up to intertwine their fingers and still the tremors.

"I wasn't able to use telekinesis," he replied, stroking her thumb with his. "How long will that last?"

"Not long... you should recover by the time you awaken," she reassured him. "But the harder you exert yourself, the more severe the repercussions. Push too hard and you risk burning yourself out... with permanent and very unpleasant consequences."

"The girls have been okay when they've pushed themselves to the brink of exhaustion," John said, frowning in confusion. "After some sleep, they bounce back stronger than ever. So why am I different?"

"Your thralls are designed to be very... malleable," Athena said, before giving him a knowing look. "What's your first reaction when one of them drains herself past the point of exhaustion?"

John slipped his hand under the covers to stroke her slim stomach.

"Exactly... which allows you to effortlessly rejuvenate their bodies," the radiant guide explained, gazing intently into his eyes. "They're designed to be used in such a fashion... you are not."

"I'd never abuse their connection to me that way," he said with a disapproving frown.

"I know... but they are quite capable of doing it to themselves, as they've demonstrated on numerous occasions. When such a circumstance occurs, you're able to restore their lost vitality... but you're not in so fortunate a position."

"What about getting healed by Rachel?"

"Rachel can work wonders," Athena conceded. "However there are limits to her abilities and this is one of them."

"Alright... I understand," he said, listening attentively. "I can't promise that it won't happen again though. Jade was dying and I had to help her... but I'll be careful in the future."

"I realise that there were exceptional circumstances and her life hung in the balance. I just thought it prudent to make you aware of the potential consequences of such an action," she said, before lovingly stroking his cheek. "I've grown quite fond of you, John... and I'd be saddened if you were reduced to a gibbering lunatic."

That casually delivered bombshell made him gape at her in shock. "What... really?!"

"Oh yes," she said offhandedly. "Along with a bevy of other rather unpleasant side-effects. Permanent migraines, neutered psychic abilities, crippled mental capacity... I'd imagine that losing yourself in madness would be a mercy, especially when you're effortlessly defeated by the Progenitors."

"I'll be very careful in the future," John hastily corrected himself.

Athena gave him a grateful smile. "Good. I think it would be for the best."

"So... you mentioned last time that you'd tell me about that new portal ability?" he asked, eager to talk about something that didn't make him shudder.

"It's called a Dimension Gate. I intervened in Mael'nerak's pyramid and used one there to rescue Irillith from the maze. We retrieved her just in time for Helene to give me a demonstration of her remarkable talents." She looked at him with open admiration and added, "You really have excelled yourself with her."

"This is the first I've heard about any of that!" he remarked in surprise.

"I'm sure Alyssa would've elaborated in the debriefing, but you had compelling reasons to cut the meeting short and make a hasty departure to Genthalas."

"Yeah, true. In any case, I'm sorry for not letting you get the acknowledgement you were due. You know how much I care about Irillith and I'm very grateful you were able to save her."

"I didn't do it for the recognition," Athena replied, with a dismissive wave. "I was glad of the opportunity to earn my keep."

"How did you learn how to create a Dimension Gate anyway?" he asked with interest.

"I was unaware of the ability's existence until our final confrontation with Larn'kelnar," she explained, reminding John of the defeated Progenitor using one to escape their deadly battle. "Since then, I've spent my spare time experimenting until I mastered the ability. Now that I have, I'll teach Alyssa in due course."

"Another reason to be glad we kept you around," John said light-heartedly, leaning down for a kiss.

Athena responded to the kiss, but she didn't laugh or smile at his attempt at humour. In fact, his comment had quite the opposite effect.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, when he saw her pensive frown. "I was only joking. I've never for one moment regretted saving you from being absorbed."

"I have," she quietly admitted.

"But why?" he asked her in shock. "Is it because you're lonely? I can try and visit more often... unless it's something else upsetting you?"