Chapter 9

Things went smoother than Nevermore anticipated. Here he was with Raven as they gave Jinx a tour of her new temporary home. There was no fight, no freaking out, nor any accident. Jinx sort of just accepted it and now here they were showing her around.

The house he was giving her was one of dozens of tree houses he had grown these last few months and it had all the amenities anyone could ask for. From indoor plumbing to air conditioning, it had it all but biological and magical rather than technologically done. Jinx got to have one of them while went off and made a home she’d like to have.

“So this’ll be my new home. Sweet.” Jinx replied as she inspected the home and hummed appreciatively. She poked at the walls and let her magic lose but the walls repaired itself without much problem

“It’s more of a temporary home really while I go make a better home for you and I’d appreciate it if you don’t break them. I made some tree huts for future settlers to use before they move into more permanent dwellings.” He replied as he inspected the damage. Feeling her magic was weird especially when he was intimately connected to her through her magical core. He could copy her spell but he’d rather not do it now.

“Meals are served every morning, noon and evening and don’t worry about the time difference. I follow Earth time.” He then added before giant dog sized crabs came scuttling as they came serving well… boiled crabs. He should have really thought of the menu a little better.

“Yup, I’m definitely going to like it here.” Jinx replied as she plopped down on my of the foldable beach chairs while the Servant Crabs served her with food and pried opened some coconuts with their claws before adding in some straws and a little umbrella.

‘’You are oddly ok with this.” Raven replied as she stared at her while her arms were crossed across her chest.

“Oh yeah, I’m liking it actually. I have a home by the beach, I get to eat amazing food everyday, and I don’t have to worry about a single thing. Money? Yeah, it’s fun and all but I now have all the luxury in the world, literally.” Jinx replied as she applied just the tiniest bit of weaponized bad luck upon the crab legs to crack the shell while leaving her with the majority of the meat. She took a bite of it and moaned out in pleasure.

Raven’s eyes twitched at her lewd display before replying “So you're fine with being a pet.”

Jinx grinned back at her before pawing at her like a cat and firing back with a “Meow.~” She giggled as she took one of the coconuts and started drinking the sweet treat through the straw. “Kidding aside, I’m just trying to stay positive here.” She then said as she got comfortable in her reclined chair.

“I still don’t get why you’re fine about it.” Raven replied.

Jinx sucked on her drink obnoxiously hard before setting it down and looking at Raven. “Ok, let me rephrase it so you can understand.” She then said as she stood up before walking off close to the beach before adding. “Thanks to my connection to your man, I might just be the strongest magic user on this side of the galaxy. I’m not just taking the magic of one leyline here but all of it. Observe!”

With a flourish, she aimed up high at the sky above. From the tip of her finger formed a ball of magic as she started pulling from their connection. I could actually feel a slight dip as the light shone brighter to the point that it was almost painful to look like. As the light reached an oppressive harshness, she let loose.

Like a crack of a lightning, a beam of light thicker than she was fired up at the sky. The clouds parted as the air started rumbling from the intense beams of magic passing through the atmosphere. He was impressed at the display of might but Raven only had this contemplative look on her face as the light died down.

Blowing the tip of her finger like the barrel of a smoking gun, she sauntered back to her seat. “There’s also the fact that I can have a solid gold home, any clothes I want, and lobster for dinner but those are just the cherries on top of a very big cake.” she then said as leaned back and ate her dinner.

“Wait, I didn’t agree to this…'' he replied. He could make a solid gold home but that felt a bit excessive. There was also the matter of clothing which he felt would be a pain to make.

“Well I didn’t agree initially to being your familiar when I was dragged here but here we are. Now, I want to get pampered.” She fired back with a catty grin on her face. He felt his own eyebrow twitched as he lightly glared at her but she did have a point.

“A bit uppity for a familiar.” Raven grumbled as she turned away and walked off but it seemed that Jinx was the type of girl that wanted to have the last word when it comes to these things.

“I mean, he did mark me down below so I guess I can see why you’re jealous.” Jinx taunted making Raven stop and turn around with a pissed off look on her face. He had been with her long enough to know that the flat look she was giving was the closest she has to apoplectic rage.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“Raven…” He called out, trying to defuse the situation before it came to blow but Jinx wasn’t stopping.

“Oh did that hit a nerve~? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to catch your man's attention.” Jinx said, adding fuel to the fire.

“Jinx!” He warned her. Things could get messy and he was ready to cut Jinx off from the tap if she started slinging spells.

“Like look at the little tattoo he placed on me.~ Kinky.” Jinx replied as she unashamedly lifted up her dress to show off the large tattoo emblazoned below her navel.

Silence stretched between them as an uneasy tension hung in the air. The two stared off but Jinx was the first one to break as a blush started spreading across her cheeks. The smile that slowly formed on Raven’s face only infuriated the once confident girl as Jinx sneered at Raven.

“Nevermore, let’s get out of here.” Raven then said as she leaned back to one of his tentacles. He reached up to catch her with one of his bigger tentacles. Reaching out for one of his mouth stalks, she gave him a kiss as he opened up the ground below her before pulling her down below. He didn’t miss the smirk she sent to Jinx while she kissed him.

“Hey! You can’t just walk away from me!” JInx shouted as she ran after both of them before the ground above closed up leaving him in privacy with his beloved. He barely heard what she said before she was cut off with his focus shifting to parts deeper inside the tunnel system he made inside his crystal.

Far away from the hubbub of the world above was their private home together, a mansion deep beneath the ground. He might have taken some inspiration from Greek Architecture when he made Raven’s home. Cave walls pulsing with flesh pumping magic up to the surface, Raven’s home was bathed in a purplish hue.

Raven pulled away from his lips as her feet finally touched the floor below. She headed straight for her room still annoyed from the earlier encounter with Jinx. Jinx was… extremely confrontational and prideful from what he’d seen so far. He didn’t know what it was with her when she saw Raven that set her off but it was there and he was going to be dealing with it for better or for worse with how familiar connections were made. Only a familiar getting stronger than the master could end it and there would be no chance for that in the near future.

“I have a feeling that she’s going to be a handful in the future.” He commented as his focus followed her deeper inside their home. Like outside, the halls of her home were dimly lit giving the place a sleepy and peaceful atmosphere. While it was dark, there were no corners that were plunged in absolute darkness.

“She already is.” Grumbled Raven as she practically stomped ahead while looking away at the eyes opening at the walls of her home.

“Raven?” He called to her as her pace picked up. The sound of the radio could be heard from a distance with the songs being played coming from the radio station from Eden Prime. There was some delay but the soothing 24/7 orchestral music was well worth the expensive price of such long range radios.

She kept quiet as she threw the doors of her bedroom open before tossing herself upon her fluffy white bed. While it looked made of cloth, it was made of thick tentacles bundled together to make a circular bed for her.

He gently poked her cheeks as she laid down on the bed but she was adamant about keeping quiet. She turned away from him with a huff.

“Raaaven.~” He called to her once more as his tentacles rose to hold her. Coming from behind, they gently wrapped around her for a hug. There was resistance from her but she soon gave in as she pulled his tentacles in closer.

“Jinx is a bitch huh?” He asked to which Raven grumbled in agreement.

“Just cause she has a stupid tattoo.” Raven mumbled to which Nevermore blinked in surprise.

“Wait.” He called out as he started piecing things together. “Are you actually jealous?” he asked with an amused tone. The way she blushed made his heart melt and not even the cold glare could stop him.

“No” She lied to him but her body did not lie. The dark blush she had over her cheeks was all he needed to see to know how she truly felt.

“Oh god you are!” he shouted as Raven groaned as she reached up and covered her face to hide her embarrassment. She did not appear happy with how she was feeling right now. Jinx somehow got under her skin in the most surprising way.

”Stupid, sexy, bitch.” Raven muttered as she dragged her palm across her face before pouting.

“Come on Raven, you know you’re my number one. I wouldn’t trade you for the entire universe.” He replied as he gave her a peck on the cheeks.

Raven then grabbed one of his eye stalks and stared back into him. He started to sweat a bit at the intensity of her stare before she replied, “I want you to give me a tattoo like that ok?”

Who was he to deny her that request as he chuckled and nodded in agreement. Before he could reply any further however, a loud piercing sound echoed throughout Raven’s home. It was clear as day and no mistaking it. It was the sound made by an emergency broadcast.

With their attention on the radio, the following message was soon broadcasted “This is not a test. This message is being broadcast by the Eden Prime Colonial Militia Office. At 2 am standard Earth time, Multiple unidentified ships were confirmed to have entered Eden Prime’s Atmosphere. Their intent is unknown but citizens are obliged to listen to the following instructions. For your safety… ”

As the broadcast went on, a certain feeling of dread descended upon him. While he was confident of his and Raven’s ability, he was still anxious about what was happening. It was finally time. Even after hundreds of hours of training, he still wasn’t quite sure of himself. Still, it was show time and now there was no way but forward.

“This day has just gotten a whole lot more exciting.” He declared to which Raven nodded.