Teuila and I converse, and like I said, the emotions come in waves. One minute, she’s cracking jokes, and teasing me, and in another minute, she’ll be fighting back tears, or admitting her fears. For my part, I’m doing what I can to maximize my sensory awareness, to increase my repertoire of powers, and number of mastered runes, and safe number of S P per day, as well as piloting us via telekinesis, and several other subconscious activities. One of those subroutines that I’ve set up include using internal electrokinesis to constantly filter out new mana as I cast spells, to make sure that it never reaches my true inner self to build up residue. Another is simply working on trying to minimize the awkwardness of using my internal electrokinesis in place of normal nerve signals. Yet another is trying to take microscopically short breaks into paused time, to take fragments of moments of extra time for retrocognition and analysis of everything that’s happening. And of course, on top of all the strides I’m attempting to make, the first and foremost thing on my conscious mind is my interaction with Teuila.
We can only make about twenty or so miles per day of progress on my charge of telekinesis as things currently stand. That’s approximately what we’d be making cross country on the plains if we were using our carriage anyway, under normal circumstances. Teuila remains antsy, more and more nervous as September first rolls around, but I’m getting a more and more accurate read on my upcoming demise as it nears. Part of the more accurate read is because of all the time I’m putting into paused time for analysis and retrocognition, another part is because I can feel my death looming, the slowly building ache in my heart. As long as I don’t receive any shocks to my heart, or injuries, I’ve got almost three weeks. Teuila is restless during our travels, because I beg for her to conserve her strength, in case we should run across a pack of hydra when my telekinesis is failing, or in case we should stumble across a dragon.
I understand how awful it must feel for Teuila to be watching me reduce myself to helplessness, day after day, knowing how near to my death that I am. I’d go mad with fear and grief if our roles were reversed. I’m beyond grateful for her resilience, and her force of will that’s allowing her to push onwards at my side, despite that pall that hangs over us. September second rolls around, and by the end of the day, I’ve mastered the telekinesis enchantment, but I’ve run out of safe level usage of S P for the day by practicing the last six runes. I need a quick nap, and then I’ll apply the enchantments to myself. I’ll finally have telekinesis, in a way that can’t be limited by my connection with Can’Z’aas, or charges in a staff, or concurrent usage of other spells in a staff.
I know that if I can find corresponding higher tier, higher quantities of the correct gems, I can layer on additional copies of the telekinesis enchantment. I’m not entirely positive what effects they’d have, but I imagine that they might tie in to my multitasking parallel processing sector of my brain to allow me to levitate more than one object at a time. Would it be as simple as a linear addition to number of simultaneous targets for my telekinesis? The prospect is vaguely exciting, but I’d have to do some research into gemology to know the exact appropriate order and quality of gems to use, then we’d have to have the appropriate quantities on hand. I’m fairly certain that I’ve got enough of the right gem dust to layer on a second use of the enchantment, but do I risk it, in our current conditions?
I ask for the opinion of the only person whose opinion on my risks matter right now. I ask Teuila, “What do you think Te? Should I layer it on twice, and see what effects I get out of it? Should we not risk using up the gem dust? Can you think of any risks of doubling up the buff?”
Te snarks, “With as scrawny as my Airhead is, you can buff up double as much as you want, and you still won’t get guns like these babies.” Teuila then kisses her biceps for emphasis, before we both break into laughter.
For all of her incredible power, Teuila’s muscles are lithe, sinewy, almost imperceptible when she’s not flexing them. There’s almost a transformation as she puts power into a motion, or flexes for dramatic effect. It’s not an egregious transformation, it’s subtle, but it’s several inches of muscle motion all told. I’m getting distracted by imagining Teuila’s raw muscles, which I haven’t gotten to see a lot of on Rayileklia, due to the constant acid rain, and our need to mud camp.
Teuila teases, “Oh, not getting enough of my bare body? We could change that. Maybe take a break, find a hollow log, get out of these lovely traveling clothes…”
Teuila leaves a note of anticipation hanging in the air, leaving me gulping and blushing furiously. She flashes me her mile wide, close-eyed smile and derpily shakes her head side to side before grinning mischievously at me. She knows she has me flustered. Agh, this woman. I love her to bits, but she’s going to be the death of me, yeesh, my heart can barely take the embarrassment. Oh, wait.
Teuila’s eyes go wide with fright for a moment, before I rush to reassure her, “Te, it was an exaggeration, and a poor turn of phrase at that. I’m sure a bit of lighthearted teasing and embarrassment isn’t shortening my lifespan. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. That was an insensitive line of thought. There’s no way you would ever be to blame. I’m so sorry. Forgive me, please?”
Teuila gasps and pants in relief for a moment before socking me hard in the shoulder, exclaiming, “You big dummy! Making me think that. Jeeze. Besides, if I can’t tease you, maybe flash a little skin, what fun are you going to be having in the time you have left? Or would you rather not be reminded of what you’re missing out on?”
I breathe my own sigh of relief as I relax, after Teuila returns to poking fun at me. I try not to let my smile spread as stupidly across my face as it is, while I imagine Teuila’s form in its entirety. I fail, and my face contorts as the embarrassment and mortification fights the joy, waging a battle across my features. Teuila snorts a laugh at both my train of thought, and the facial expressions that come about from my losing emotional battle.
Teuila grins mischievously as she alights on the idea to pounce and capitalize on my embarrassment, her green eyes twinkling with amusement. Te waggles her brow while a playful smirk tugs across the corners of her lips. I gulp in apprehension, knowing where her thought train is heading, and my face heats up to my ear tips in advance, in anticipation of the upcoming onslaught of teasing.
Teuila capitalizes on a few key points as she flirts, her voice laced with innuendo, “What’s wrong there Tiger? Cat got your tongue? Or maybe a sexy imp of a gal took it? Oh you’ve gone completely crimson, and seeing you like this is far too entertaining to pass up. No need to clam up and keep your mouth shut, I could find your tongue for you. I promise I won’t bite, unless you ask me to.”
My eyes flash wide as Teuila alludes to Tiktik making out with us, though I’d passed on french kissing her, and mildly regretted it. I gulp and sputter, trying to come up with words as she presses herself more firmly against me, prodding my chest several times playfully with her index finger as it dances towards my chin, and then my lips. My heart races as my eyes swim in their sockets.
Teuila leans ever closer to my face, and as she knows she has me entirely at her mercy, having beaten me in this short, one-sided verbal sparring, she gleams with glee as her index finger pulls down my bottom lip. I’m helpless to resist, and flustered out of my mind as my heart flutters a thousand miles a minute.
Te’s voice is downright salacious as she hints, “Don’t worry, I’ll go easy on you. Maybe.”
Teuila’s waggling brow is almost comical enough that my desire to laugh breaks through my embarrassment. Almost. Her lips against mine however are anything but. Her lips are soft, warm, and inviting. Her emerald eyes are filled with mischief, and desire, and her mouth is filled with my lips. She partakes of me hungrily, and I submit to the passion she shares with me, and to the temporary reprieve from flustered anticipation.
As our lips continue to meet, again and again, with greater and greater passion, in a rhythm uniquely our own, I feel a tingle as electricity virtually, and literally zips up and down my spine. I respond eagerly, wrapping my arms about Teuila, taking the back of her head in one hand, to sift my fingers through her gorgeous hair, with her hood having fallen back during her teasing. Our tongues dance a passionate duet, as we both succumb to the desire for each other that we so rarely have gotten to indulge in, in these last few months.
The sweetness of Teuila’s breath is a heady elixir, intoxicating in a fashion, and it leaves me in a temporary daze, yet wanting ever more. I savor the taste of her, her motions, the supple response of her lips, and in far too short a time, we part from our kiss, panting for breath. Our bodies and foreheads remain pressed together, the air between the two of us as hot as the surface of the sun, between our mutual flustered faces, and our passionate sharing of body heat beneath warm traveler’s clothing. Our eyes lock, and my mind swirls in a whirlwind of emotion. I know there are so many things to think about, and deal with, but a moment like this is pure bliss, that I want etched into my memory for eternity.
Teuila flashes a sly grin and mutters, “Such a way with words, Tiger. The running commentary was nice this time too.”
If I could willingly instantly pass out form mortified embarrassment, I would. Teuila can’t keep a straight face, after so thoroughly flustering me, and she begins giggling in delight. I can’t fight the smile that spreads across my face, despite my mind reeling from Teuila’s antics, and her abuse of Kitten’s nickname for me. My smile is so wide, and so stuck in place, that my jaw and face hurts. I can’t help chuckling slightly though.
Teuila reminisces, “We haven’t done that nearly as much as I have with Lin. She’s not quite as great at it as you are though. Maybe it’s because she’s not as embarrassed, so it doesn’t quite mean as much, and I can’t fluster her the same. Or maybe it’s just because you’re my Airhead, my Air. Why haven’t we done that more Air?”
I pause a moment to ponder back over the course of my life. For a long while, I was worried that I might have the emotional maturity of a youth, and that’s still a possibility, with such short lifespans in linear time that I have memories of. I think Magnus was my first sort of romantic kiss, and he initiated that in a surprise, without my knowing it was going to happen. I guess even though I didn’t feel that way about him, that that kiss still sort of woke up the part of me that craved to feel my lips against others. I still wasn’t quite ready, but just after that, events started to snowball. We parted ways, with the gals being the guardians of the contingent, and me and Lil ending up meeting the cat tribe, and the chameleonfolk, and the nagas. The Temple of Time really screwed with my head, and left me second guessing myself every minute of every day after that, until the point when I could finally put the pieces together, for when to go back in time to send all the messages that needed to be sent.
During much of that time, Teuila and I were apart, so we didn’t really kiss until, um, I think it was after we did our scouting missions, when she was drained by that strange plant that attacked her, and left dehydrated. Yeah, Te woke up to me being distraught, seeking comfort in Linti, by kissing her. Then Linti got it in her head to try to “steal my girl” as she put it, and Teuila played along somewhat, enjoying the experience all the while. We really didn’t get a chance to explore our love on that level, before Can’Z’aas was slated to end. The end months were so busy, with me bleeding out from magic, and then, well, then we died.
Teuila and I nod somberly, recalling how our lives were cut so very short, from a linear point of view. Arriving on Rayileklia didn’t help matters in the romance department between the two of us. We had a lover’s dance in the moonlight, or as close to it as I could arrange, and we always slept near each other, but even for a large portion of our journey, Dawn was between us, always more comfortable with Teuila than with me. Then we lost Dawn, and we were both brokenhearted, and just plain broken. Then suddenly Tiktik joined our lives, and now we’re here.
Teuila repeats, “And now we’re here.” She then asks, “Where is here anyway?”
I picture the map from the Altross manor as best I can, and offer, “We’re at the very edge of the Jaggedfen Bog, but there’s a stretch of marshy plains after a bit of a break. We’re currently on a bit of an isthmus, but this one’s a few miles wide, instead of the really small ones we’d been crossing with the refugees. About half a week to a week from now, we’ll be past the marshy plains, and into the foothills of the mountain range that becomes the Spine of the World. It’ll probably take about a week of navigating those foothills, and early sides of the mountain range to find the Mountains of Solace and Solitude, marked by the M’ah’ruke Obelisk. On one of those two mountains is the Medusa falls, an endless cascade of water, no matter the weather. Somewhere near there is where we’ll find Lil, Lu, and Lucky. I don’t know how, but I’m sure of it. And we know they’re dealing with dragons, so they’re our best bet at keeping me alive.”
Teuila’s excitement is almost palpable, realizing how concrete our goals are. She jokes, “Well then hurry up Airhead, what are you waiting for? Enchant yourself, double up, buff up, go go go, what are we waiting for? Hustle hustle!”
I can’t help laughing at Teuila’s sudden complete lack of decorum, and she flashes a derpy grin my way. I do as she suggests though, and enchant myself with telekinesis, making it permanent as I do, oof, that’s something like a hundred thirty or so S P gone, if I do it slowly, or over two hundred if I quicken it. She’s right though, something that could take me an hour if I do it slowly to conserve S P, or something that takes me just under two minutes at double the cost, it’s worth it to double the cost. As I work the rose carnelian paste into the proper runes to place the permanency enhancement for the telekinesis spell onto myself, I feel my horizons broaden. With the spell becoming an inherent part of me, the sense required to operate it is more baked in, and integral to my knowledge of my surroundings as well. I work to cast the spell on myself again, again quickening it down to around two minutes, rather than over an hour of casting time, and once again I apply the permanency enhancement to the enchantment, using a different tier, and quality of gems, hoping that I’ve guessed correctly. Thankfully, it seems like I have.
Teuila nudges me, her excitement still evident as she prompts, “Well?!”
I crack a smile as I nod, lifting the both of us into the air with two separate subprocesses of telekinesis in my mind. Teuila whoops for joy, and struggles to reach out to me to clasp on to me, to hug me in congratulations. I jokingly, teasingly keep us just barely apart at our fingertips for only a moment. Immediately after though, I send us spiraling about each other with our bodies pressed tightly to one another, as I levitate us in the direction we need to go. Teuila melts into my embrace, more submissively than I’ve ever felt her before, and the pride that she feels for me hits me like a bullet as her stormy ocean of emotion rages beneath her surface.
With Teuila, I get passion, and pride, and with our telekinesis, we can take an almost sweet joyride. Our success won’t be denied. We’re fast, and free, and young. We’re such fortunate ones, all things considered. Time might not be on our side, but we’ve got a new fire in our hearts, and eyes. Our bonds that tie us together are stronger than ever. We just need to not let anything stand in our way.
As my senses acclimate to the power, I’m already cooking up ways to abuse applications of the telekinesis in ways it wasn’t intended. It’s almost as if a specter generally looms within my mind, highlighting what my telekinesis can affect, and how. I can form the telekinesis into a simply solid spot, at any point within my range, which is only thirty feet for one of my telekinesis lines, and sixty for another. I’m surprised that they’re different ranges, but I’ll adjust.
I offer, “Teuila, what if I told you, that you can now double jump, and redirect your leaps?”
Teuila’s Shellcracker family squee pierces the air all across the landscape for a moment before her lips find mine. When our lips meet, hers refuse to let go until she has to gasp for air, dozens of minutes later, due to her Can’z’aasian otterfolk lung capacity. She raises an eyebrow, querying why I’m not also gasping for breath, so I tap the neckchain of the everbreathing.
I joke, “I cheated. Kept breathing while kissing, sorry babe.”
Teuila laughs and responds, “Hah, is that the first time you’ve called me babe? I can dig it. Only, won’t, because then I’d get muddy. Hehe, oh Tiki. Sigh. She fought her compulsions to be able to focus on being a hero with us. You know that, right?”
I nod in agreement. I’d thought as much, and Tiktik admitted as much to me at one point. She’d admitted how hard it was for her to exert that much self control. I hope she gets to be her normal, zany self soon. I miss the little goon that pulled a goose out of nowhere for a gag. Teuila giggles at my thought train, and I can’t help breaking into a chuckle.
Our days will still include me practicing runes, but we’re also practicing the mental and emotional signals we’ll use so that Teuila can request a telekinetic stepping stone in the air. Our repertoire is expanding conjointly. We’re both progressing, and our hearts are just that little bit lighter, feeling a tiny bit more capable of taking on dragons. My next spell will be great shadow evocation, since conjuration spells have been giving me a headache lately.
Now that we’ve reached the marshy plains of Jazbath, we can ride our ghostly steeds, instead of using my telekinesis. They won’t be able to make any more progress than my telekinesis could, due to the difficult terrain, but it frees up my telekinesis to practice with Teuila. We’re fast approaching the middle of September now, and we’re in the foothills of the Spine of the World. I can’t help the feeling of anticipation as I wonder what lies in store for us in the days ahead.