The baseball missed by a mile.

But that didn’t stop me. Another ball was in my hand and infused in moments. It was on target, though the poundage was off.

Another.

And another.

And then…

50.0 lbs of force

I actually stared at the hit marker, watched the target go grey, and still couldn’t process that I’d done it.

I did it!

Lacy threw herself into my body and it was only Red’s quick action that kept me from tumbling to the floor. She pulled away in surprise and embarrassment.

“Sorry, sorry!”

“HONK! Let’s go, Dirk!”

A grin split my face ear-to-ear and I grabbed Lacy and pulled her in tight.

“Who knew hitting some targets with a baseball would feel so fucking good?”

Then I saw Kurian wave his hand and the ten targets flashed from grey, back to their original form. A pit formed in my stomach and my grip around Lacy tightened.

She looked up in question. “What is it—” She finally noticed the targets and whirled on Kurian. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding!”

“Again,” he said simply.

I drew in a deep breath, held it for a five count, then let it out slowly. Shoulders squared, chin up, I moved to collect the baseballs spewed around the room.

Mid-step, I turned to Lacy, flashed her a wink and smiled.

“I got this.”

***

The second time through was exponentially easier, and the third time through, I got each target in one try except the final one—which took two throws.

And a beautiful—so fucking beautiful—notification filled my vision.

Your Nascent Affinity: [Mass], has upgraded from High to Peak Tier — +15 Strength, +15 Endurance, +15 Agility

“It worked,” I muttered in disbelief.

“What?” Lacy asked at my side.

I turned to her with wide eyes.

“It worked! My Mass Affinity hit the Peak Tier!”

“Hell yeah!” she shouted with a light slap on my arm.

To the side, Lex had been napping on the table. He startled awake, his goose eyes tracking fitfully across the room until he found us.

“Dirk upgraded his Mass,” she told Lex.

“HONK! About darn time!”

A slow pitched, mass-reduced, baseball smacked off the table right in front of him, sending him up into the air with a flutter of feathers.

Lacy and I laughed as Lex called me every PG appropriate name in the book.

While we were celebrating, the lingering high of that achievement making us slightly giddy, Athena came from my Personal Space.

As soon as she saw how much of a good mood we were in, a smile formed on her face.

“What the hell has you all in such a good mood?” Then her brow furrowed. “Wait, have you been in here the whole time!”

I nodded with a big grin, as if that was the best thing in the whole world.

“Dude…aren’t you the one always telling me to ease off?” She turned to see Kurian standing there unmoving. “You gonna make him take a break or what?”

He shrugged. “I believe he’s about to do that all on his own.”

That only seemed to confuse her more, so I filled her in on the details of the training session and the gains I had finally made.

She shook her head with a smile.

“Congrats, but holy shit, dude. You’ve been in here for hours. And that’s after six hours of fighting imps and babysitting those refugees.” She reared back and furled her nose. “Oh my God, and the smell.” She waved her hand in front of her face pointedly.

“Yeah…” Lacy started. “I wasn’t gonna say anything but…”

I leaned down and sniffed an armpit. A smell that can only be compared to the sulfurs of the ninth ring of Hell burned my nostrils.

“Holy—that’s bad.”

Lacy chuckled lightly behind her hand and nodded agreement.

“Go use my shower. It’ll blow your mind.”

Those words stirred something in me and I met her eyes.

“Could you show me how it works?” I suggested softly.

Her eyes went wide, then a small smile touched her lips for a half-second.

“What are you, an idiot? Who am I kidding, of course you are,” Athena mocked. “The little knob that says cold gives the cold water, the one labeled hot gives the hot—”

She cut off suddenly, perhaps picking up on the energy passing between Lacy and I.

“Oh, no. No, no, no, no.” She put her fingers in her ears. “La la la la la, I’m not hearing anything, I’m not seeing anything.”

I grabbed Lacy’s hand in mine and we walked past Athena, who was pointedly looking away.

As we went through my door, I looked at Lex with a sudden realization. He seemed to read my mind perfectly.

“Don’t mind me. I’ll be in the Staging Area looking for some wares. The bond will be basically smothered over those distances.”

I clicked my tongue and turned to follow Lacy.

We were into the hallway and heading through her Personal Space door when she stopped and turned on me. Her face was flush, but her excited breathing told me she wasn’t having second thoughts.

“Um, what about Red?” she whispered, as if that would do anything.

“Shit!” I regarded the magical cape and she picked up on the situation immediately. She sent me an image of a bear crawling into a snowcapped cave, preparing for the winter hibernation. Then, she went limp and I felt her presence dim down to a pinprick in my mind, our connection temporarily extinguished.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“She went into hibernation,” I said with a smile. “I never thought I’d need to say this to a lady, but all my bonded companions have fucked off.” I reached out and pulled her in tight, our lips touching lightly, then harder.

My body stirred at her touch and I blindly reached over to open her door.

A voice down the hall made us both jump.

“Whoa, uh, my bad. I, uh…I’ll just—”

Lacy suddenly pulled me into her room with a laugh and I flashed Byron a wink before the door slammed behind us.

***

The shower had been amazing, but if I’m being perfectly honest…I had other things on my mind. It was later—I didn’t know how much—and we lay in her bed in contented laziness. Her head rested on my chest, her hair still damp across my face.

I didn’t mind. In fact, I was soaking up every second of it. It had been so damn long since I’d been able to just relax in someone else’s presence.

Of course, all good things come to an end.

A knock sounded at the door and Lacy’s head snapped up, butting me in the chin.

“Ow, fuck. Sorry!” she said, sitting up in a rush. The curving lines of her naked back drew my eye invitingly and a smile touched my face.

“That’s fine. Just keep doing what you’re doing,” I replied huskily.

She glanced over her shoulder to see me checking her out. Laughing, she bent down to pick up her clothes and started pulling them on.

“Noooo, bad Lacy. Bad!” A thought occurred to me and a moment later I was clutching my head in mock pain. “You know, I think you headbutted me harder than I thought. I might even have a concussion. If only there were a beautiful woman nearby to tend to me…”

“Dirk, be serious!” she said, half-scolding, half-joking. “There’s someone at the door!” She leaned in and whispered. “What if it’s Mama G?”

I let the act drop and shrugged. “So what if it is? She ain’t your mama.” Then I narrowed my eyes. “Wait, didn’t you literally knock her out earlier? Now you’re worried she’s gonna catch you in flagrante delicto?”

“Dirrrrrrk, please!”

I could literally see the red climbing up her neck and flushing her face.

“You’re so cute when you’re embarrassed.”

She’d apparently had enough, because she reached over, grabbed a pillow, and proceeded beating me with it. She was half naked as she did it, so I can’t say I resisted too hard.

When she realized I was enjoying the naked pillow fight, she threw it with a final huff and finished getting dressed.

“Fine, fine,” I grumbled. “I’m up, I’m up…”

When Lacy answered the door a minute later, we were fully dressed. I sat at her kitchen table, peeling a banana that had been on the counter—not trying to hide, but also not not trying to hide.

“Hey Jerome,” I heard Lacy say. “What’s up? Everything good?” She was very obviously angling her body to block the door.

He grunted. “Message from Waterstone.” That perked my ears up and I pushed the chair back with a scrape. Lacy’s head shot toward me with a wide-eyed stare before quickly turning back to Jerome.

“Be right there!”

Before Jerome could respond—not that that was likely—the door was slamming in his face.

I casually took another bite of my banana and regarded Lacy’s flushed panic.

“Lacy Wu,” I said as I chewed. “Are you ashamed of me!?” Of course, I was joking, but she flinched at that all the same.

“No! Not at all…” She trailed off and my joking demeanor slipped off in an instant.

“Oh my God. You are ashamed of me!”

Her face set and she gave me a sincere look. “No, that’s not it. Really. I’m just…I don’t know…worried, I guess,” she stammered.

I crossed my arms, not completely mollified.

“About…?”

She looked away, her damp hair falling across her face. She didn’t say anything for a moment and I was starting to feel…I didn’t know what. Annoyed? The temptation to cycle my Fate energy and read ahead of the conversation niggled at me.

“Lace, c’mon. You’re killing me here.”

She looked up at me through her hair and I could see her biting her lip. After a moment she sighed.

“I’m afraid that I’ll lose—ugh, it sounds so stupid in my head.” She whirled away and stomped over to the bed. With far more passion than the task required, she began making it. Sheets flew, pillows were aggressively fluffed, and the edges of the comforter were tucked under the mattress with clinical precision.

I let her work through her thoughts, though it was killing me to wait.

After a minute, she turned back to me, a resolved expression on her face.

“I’m worried that they won’t respect me anymore—the others, I mean. That’ll I’ll lose the authority I’ve been building, the rapport, you know? When they recognized me as a leader, it…it felt like a defining moment for me and I…”

“You don’t want them to think you’re screwing the boss?” I asked lightheartedly. “That you’re a fraud?”

A sad smile touched her lips and she shrugged noncommittally—which might as well have been a resounding yes.

Nodding, I approached and put my hands on her shoulders.

“Lacy, you’re one of the strongest people I know.” I stared into her eyes, willing her to feel the truth of my words. “Do you even realize what you’ve accomplished since the Apocalypse hit? Christ, Lace, you’ve literally saved me three times—we might even be tied, now that I think about it.”

Her brow furrowed. “Three times?”

I held up my hand and started ticking up fingers.

“Last run before the Tower opened, you led the party—who hated my guts, by the way—and saved me from an imp ambush. The battle where we beat Yuri, you did the same damn thing, turning an impossible fight into victory.” I ticked up a third finger. “And when you were still wrapping your head around Craig’s control, you managed to save me a third time against Turok.” Chuckling, I shook my head. “Damn, I think you do have me beat.”

She lightly swatted my chest, a wry smile on her face. “Who’s the damsel now, bitch?” Her tone was light, but distracted.

“Come here,” I said, pulling her in tight. She resisted for a half-second, then fell against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and whispered into her hair. “You’re a fucking badass, Lacy. Don’t you ever forget it.”

I held her for a few moments, content with taking in her smell and the press of her body, when I felt her begin to shake against me. Pulling her away, I craned down to see her sobbing gently.

“Hey, hey,” I whispered. “What’s wrong?”

Through red eyes, she shook her head, her words punctuated by sobbing breaths. “I-I’ve just n-never been val-validated like that b-before.” She took a deep breath, her voice hitching. “T-thank you. Really.”

I didn’t say anything, just pulling her back in tight. Nothing needed to be said—I’d felt these exact feelings for most of my life. It was the reason I had pushed so hard in sports as a kid. The reason I had tried so hard to excel.

In my mind, Lex’s bond flared bright and I could feel him coming back through the Staging Area door into my Personal Space. Through his eyes, I saw the entire team gathered there, waiting impatiently for us to come out.

Seemed that play time was over. I lightly stirred Red with a thought and the magical cape immediately started sending me lewd images that I promptly ignored.

“The others are waiting,” I said softly into Lacy’s hair. “You okay?”

She sniffled once, pulling away. With a nod, she wiped at her eyes, then smiled up at me.

“Nothing a little illusion magic can’t fix.”

A haze passed over her face, removing the red eyes, the trailing make-up—when did she have time to put on make-up?—and any other signs of her crying. After a moment, she looked bright as rain.

“After you, fearless leader.” I bowed dramatically at the waist and waited for her to pass.

She lightly tugged my hair as she went by and a flare of excitement rose up inside me.

“I prefer Queen Lacy,” she mocked, turning over her shoulder to give me a wink.

My mouth hung open as I watched her hips sway as she went to the door. She noticed my gaping look and her joking demeanor melted in confusion.

“What is it?” Her hand went to her face. “Did I mess up the illusion?”

I shook my head, trying not to say the words I was thinking.

No, you’re perfect…

We weren’t ready—no, I wasn’t ready—for that. Slow and steady was not my motto—quite the opposite, actually—but I knew enough about myself to know that I had a penchant for screwing things up.

Don’t scare her away, Dirk!

“You look great,” I said. Then I punctuated it with a thumbs up…and immediately debated committing seppuku right then and there.

She gave me a wry smile and flashed me back a thumbs up. I nearly died.

Goddamn, I feel so cringe. Might as well take love advice from Byron…

“Then let’s go,” she said.

I nodded and we went out together. Lex was just waddling into the hallway and paused when he saw us. His beak opened and shut twice, but no sound came out. I could feel him resisting so hard not to honk. It was a herculean effort, I could tell. But a goose can’t change his feathers…

“HONK…HONK, HONK, HONK! OMG, I’m so happy for you two. Is it official or we on the down-low? What’s the status? What’s the sitch? What’s the—”

I closed the distance between us in a single Friction-enhanced step. My hand clamped around his beak—gentle, but firm.

“All of the words that just came out of your mouth will never be uttered again. Agreed?”

He was trying to say something past my grip, so I slowly released the pressure and stepped away.

“Roger that. Loud and clear…but, um…are we naming the first born Lex? Lexie if it’s a girl? It’s a strong name, I’ve been told. Well, okay, no one’s told me that. But it feels strong, y’know—”

I chased him back into my Personal Space and he took to the air with erratic pumps of his wings. He burst past everyone and they startled at his sudden arrival. I stopped chasing him as he landed behind Athena, peering at me behind her legs anxiously.

“Sorry about that. Lex things.” I turned to Jerome. “You said there was a message from Waterstone?”

He grunted. He was a habitually surly individual, but I was getting the impression he was particularly unhappy with me. It didn’t seem like jealousy, but more of that big brother energy that implied he’d break my legs if I broke Lacy’s heart.

Well, that wasn’t gonna happen, so I ignored him and turned to Byron.

“By’?”

He looked between Jerome and I, then tracked Lacy’s arrival a moment later behind me. When he realized the tension he was feeling wasn’t going to explode, he answered.

“Ms. Waterstone called and left a message on the cell she gave you. Appears the President is scheduled to meet with the Governor in a few days and…”

He looked a bit abashed, so I prompted him.

“And?”

He coughed into his fist, realizing no one was going to save him from whatever it was he was sitting on.

“Well, she, uh, requested your presence, would be the best way to put it.” He shrugged. “Guess the President wants to meet the Dirk-meister.”

I looked at Lacy to gauge her reaction, then flipped back to Byron with a pained expression.

“No, my guy. Just…no.”

Byron nodded in understanding, as if he knew it wouldn’t land as soon as it left his mouth.

“What do you think?” I asked Lacy, then turned to encompass the group. “Any reason to say no?”

“Say no? To the President?” Byron asked in disbelief.

“Mate’s a wanker, even by American standards,” Amos added helpfully.

“You’re not wrong,” Lacy said. She turned to me. “But getting the President on our good side could be a huge bonus before we hit the Second Floor.”

As much as I hated politics, she was right. Snubbing the President would have some dire consequences. But getting in his good graces could really smooth the road before us.

I nodded, my decision made.

“Guess we get to meet the President.”