The adventures of grave, p.34
The Adventures of Grave, page 34
“I . . . I could have done that,” the irritation about nearly being upstaged flowed out of the smaller woman.
Ramona nodded at the unspoken apology. “Marcus is right about one thing,” the blonde raised her nose in the air and inhaled. “It smells fucking delicious.”
“Do you want me to bring the food over, or just make plates here?” Marcus called from the kitchen.
Ramona just looked at Gabi for an answer.
“If you could make us plates that would be great,” she squeaked out.
“Sure thing,” noises started to echo from the kitchen as he dug into the platters for them.
“How did things go?” Gabi took the opportunity to get an update from Ramona while their man worked.
“Good. Got the ID and went to an eldritch shop,” she scowled a little at the end.
“What happened?” Gabi knew that expression.
“They pierced his veil,” she replied.
“Is that . . . like a sex act?” Gabi looked from the blonde, to the kitchen, and back to the blonde.
“I wish,” Ramona huffed. “No, it’s some magic thing. He has access to his eldritch power now, and we got some spells for him to work on. He didn’t tell me what he has planned yet, but he said we’ve got to train.”
“That’s smart,” Gabi nodded along. “He might have power, but we need to be able to work as a team. I need to get my equipment from Angel and build for the job he has in mind. Then, we all need to learn to be able to coordinate together in a stressful environment.”
“Whatever Marcus has planned, experience tells me it’s going to be big,” Ramona grinned suggestively.
“White meat or dark meat?” the man in question asked.
“I like me some white meat,” Ramona called back, which got a chuckle out of him.
“White please,” Gabi added.
“Speaking of a hunk of meat,” Ramona leaned in close. “You’re going to need to hop on that pogo stick soon, girlfriend.”
Gabi couldn’t help but blush. “I’m not able to just hop in the shower and entice a man to do me,” she scowled.
“Of course you could,” Ramona rolled her eyes. “Come on, Gabs. Chin up, tits forward, and shake that ass. That’s all it takes.”
“You’re boiling down all romance to three body movements. Something tells me you’re missing a step or two,” Gabi retorted. “Guys like to be wooed. They want you to pay for drinks. Buy them chocolate, and get tickets to the game. You can’t just stick your butt in their face and hope they just whip it out.”
“Normally, you’d be right,” Ramona conceded. “But, as smart as you are, you’re missing one crucial thing,” the blonde paused to see if Gabi would pick up on it. “Marcus isn’t your average post-Bad Times dude.”
“That’s . . . completely right. Shoot, how did I miss that?” Gabi nearly face-palmed.
“Mesmerized by the dick,” Ramona stated matter-of-factly. “Marcus isn’t going to be prissy about getting wooed like this is some romcom. He’s from a time when the ratio was one-to-one. Like I said; chin up, tits forward, and shake that ass, girl. He will be all over you in a heartbeat.”
“Could I at least throw in some conversation?” Gabi rolled her eyes.
“Whatever floats your boat,” the blonde leaned back as Marcus appeared with two plates piled high with food.
Gabi blanched a little at that many calories, but Ramona looked at it like it was a challenge.
“This looks delicious,” Gabi complimented him.
“I hope so, you made it,” he smiled at her as he placed the plates before them, and went back to grab his own.
“Jesus, Gabs. Pull it together,” Ramona shook her head and started to dig in.
Gabi waited politely for him to return. You were supposed to wait until everyone was served and the man was seated before you started eating. That was just good manners.
The food was good. The thanksgiving stock bundle had more than just the standard, raw material for the fabricator to work with, and that showed. After a few bites, it was also clear that Marcus had gotten her way too much food. Unlike Ramona, Gabi actually had to watch what she ate or she’d balloon. Not everyone could be an enhanced Neohuman.
She switched to the vegetables, and was busy moving corn around her plate when Ramona kicked her lightly in the shin and made head motions toward Marcus. The intent was clear; she needed to talk with him. Too bad talking to cute boys had never been her strong suit.
“Ramona said your time at the eldritch shop went well,” she stated, which wasn’t a bad start in her opinion.
Marcus grimaced, and Gabi shot a glare at her friend. She’d thought it was a safe topic.
“It did,” he quickly shook off the grimace. “They made me drink the most rancid tea in existence, and the process of bringing out my magic was far from enjoyable, but it went well. Honoka and Yume were nice.”
“Honoka and Yume are the spell slingers that run the shop,” Ramona clarified, and gave a brief rundown of meeting the proprietors.
“Are they going to help you?” Gabi tried to keep the conversation going.
“Yume said she’d help tutor me in the mystical ways,” he replied.
“Yume?” she mouthed the name to Ramona to get the four-one-one.
“Bitch,” Ramona mouthed back.
Okay, so something else had happened at the shop. Something that Marcus had missed, but it was clear Ramona didn’t like Yume. Gabi trusted her friend’s judgement on those types of things.
“Are you sure she’s going to be available,” Gabi followed her friend’s lead. “I know you want to do some serious training soon,” Gabi inquired. “Not everyone will drop what they are doing to help you.”
“I think so,” he picked up his plate and scooped the last of the stuffing into his mouth. “Anyone want seconds?”
“No thanks,” Gabi smiled as she waved him off, and waited for him to round the corner.
“What is the deal with this Yume?” she looked to Ramona for the scoop.
“She tried to move in on him once she realized he had the potential to be the first S-Class spell slinger. She was practically salivating all over his dick. He barely noticed, but the bitch was thirsty,” the blonde gave her the rundown.
“What do we do about her?” Gabi wanted to know the solution to the problem.
“I don’t think we can do anything,” Ramona shrugged. “Unless you know someone else skilled in the mystical arts? Who also just happens to be nice and fugly.”
“She’s good looking?” Gabi frowned as a hint of jealousy, and fear, eked its way into her mind.
“Not as hot as you, but good enough to be worried about,” Ramona’s reply made Gabi’s face fall. Her friend was trying to shield her, like she had done for most of Gabi’s life, but it was clear; Yume was hot.
“Crap.”
“Like I told you . . . get on that dick,” Ramona turned the last word into a cough as Marcus reappeared.
He had an entire second plate full to the point she thought it was going to break in half.
“So, what spells do you need to practice?” Gabi wanted to get as much information on magic, and this new woman, as possible.
He told her all about his selection and methodology.
“That is smart,” she nodded, and couldn’t help but swoon. She loved how his mind worked. “Especially if these spells can be built upon. You’ll be a force to be reckoned with in no time,” it was never a bad thing to compliment a man, and judging by his answering smile, she’d hit the mark.
“That was exactly my thought,” his smile was enough to ensure she needed a new set of panties tonight. She nearly sighed; like some girl in a high school coming-of-age tale, but caught herself.
“Now we just need to secure a space where we can practice without being noticed,” she scratched her chin in thought.
“I know!” Ramona grinned like a fool. “We’re not going to be able to do it around here. It’s not safe to throw around eldritch blasts in the city.”
“Agreed. Doctor Jones’s drones or sentries would pick up the energy signature and be on us in minutes. You need a permit to throw around the kind of power Marcus is capable of,” her second compliment landed just as well as her first.
“We’re going to have to head out of the city, into the country,” the blonde sounded like she’d already made the decision for everyone else. “We’ll be safe to train in the woods,” she shot a glance at Gabi that told her there was a reason to her suggesting the crazy idea of leaving the city.
“That sounds good. I’ll give Yume a . . .”
“No!” Gabi was as surprised as everyone else that it was her voice that called out. “I mean, it would be smarter to try the spells yourself to see if you can figure them out. People have different ways of doing things,” she scrambled for an excuse. “What works for this Yume girl may not work for you. Ramona said your first runemark was your eyes, and Yume’s was her hands. Nothing she says might work.”
“Then how does anyone teach anyone else magic?” Marcus replied with a logical question.
“I’m not saying she won’t be needed. I’m just saying there is value to trying things yourself, and developing your own processes before having to rely on another,” Gabi was familiar with that exercise.
It was the same with her tech. She could copy or build upon other mad scientist tech, but learning the process from the ground up, her own way, made her more knowledgeable; and better able to handle issues that popped up.
“That makes sense,” Marcus nodded. “Let’s do this tomorrow. It’ll be too last minute for Yume to join us anyway.”
“Gabi has work . . .”
“I’m free. Tomorrow works great!” Gabi talked right over her friend, and smiled as she ate a bite of turkey.
The dinner continued, and she was happy that it looked like Marcus enjoyed himself. He ate three plates, so the food couldn’t be bad. Eventually, the tryptophan in the turkey got the best of him after a long day, and Gabi went to grab him some new sheets. Her blush when she remembered seeing him that morning was enough to set the linen closet on fire, but she got it under control before she returned. She’d spend the night in the upstairs bedroom again, and Ramona would return to her city apartment.
“Thanks again for dinner, and giving me a place to stay,” Marcus lingered at the top of the stairs, the sheets in his arms, as he gave her a smile that made her knees weak.
“Yeah,” she knew she had a dreamy expression on her face, but she couldn’t help it. He had such a good smile. “Goodnight!” she squeaked, closed the door, and put her back to it until she remembered how to breathe again.
“Smooth. Real smooth,” Ramona watched her from the table where she licked some cranberry sauce from her finger.
“What did you expect to happen? Am I supposed to just walk down there, change his sheets, take off his pants, and do him?” even as she said it, it didn’t sound like a horrible idea.
“You could have,” Ramona gave her a look, “but that awkward goodbye ruined it. Plus,” she seemed like she was looking off into the distance for a second. “I don’t think it was time yet. I’ve got it on pretty good authority the woods will be the time and place.”
“The woods,” Gabi blanched. “I don’t think a pinecone stabbing me in the butt is sexy.”
“I wouldn’t be worried about a pinecone,” Ramona reminded her. “You won the bet. His dick is a lot bigger than a pinecone . . . and thicker too.”
“You’re not helping?” Gabi sighed, as she took a seat and placed her head in her hands.
“Then here is me helping,” Ramona walked up to the fabricator, put in a small amount of stock, and made a selection. While it hummed away, she turned to Gabi. “You don’t need to woo him, or make some big, romantic gesture. Use what god gave you.”
“God didn’t give me . . .” Gabi pointed at Ramona’s chest.
The big blonde just rolled her eyes. “Your brain, stupid. You still have that telescope, right?”
“Yeah,” Gabi would have to dig it out of her closet, and make sure it was clean and calibrated, but she still had it.
“How does this sound,” Ramona laid it out. “We get in some kick-ass training, but we run late. It’s too dark to head back, we’re tired, but we packed some food and can camp in the woods. I’ll make myself scarce. I’ll blame it on the food we bring, and pretend to have raging diarrhea.”
“I don’t think that’s necessary.”
“Whatever the case,” Ramona kept on charging forward. “You bust out your telescope and start to impress him with that big brain of yours. You snuggle closer, put your arm around his shoulder. He looks at you. You look at him. You have your first tender kiss right there under the starry sky. Then . . . you go down on him.”
Things had actually been pretty romantic until that last part.
“I . . .” Gabi blushed.
“Oh, I know,” Ramona cut her off. “I know your mouth-to-cock experience is nonexistent. Which is why,” the fabricator dinged, and the big blonde grabbed the food.
It was a big, fat banana.
“We’re going to practice tonight,” she finished.
Gabi blanched at the sight of the fruit. “That’s . . .” she didn’t know what to say.
“Not as big as he is,” apparently, Ramona did.
A dog started to bark like crazy a few houses down, but Gabi ignored it. “Okay,” she took a deep breath. “What do I need to do?”
“Welcome to dick sucking one-oh-one, Gabs,” Ramona grinned. “Do exactly what I tell you, and you’ll give Marcus a magical night in the woods he’ll never forget.”
Chapter 16
After six hours of hearing Xavier’s muttered curses, Ranger resolved himself to the fact that the experiment probably wasn’t going to be ready for the next day. That was unusual, but it wasn’t the first time Dr. Jones had underestimated something. Ranger new better than to poke at his teammate’s pride, so he left him to it. He doubted Xavier even saw him leave; but even more pressing, he couldn’t sit around any longer. As one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful, Neohuman on the planet; that wasn’t an option.
“Tell me when it’s ready,” he requested the female robot acting as the doctor’s assistant; as he returned his tablet to his pocket and exited the subterranean lab at the edge of Arch City.
A minor exertion of his power, and he was back in the air. “This is Ranger. I’m back online.”
No earpiece would ever be able to stay in his ear when he broke the sound barrier, and no one would ever be able to hear him speak over the sonic booms as he accelerated toward whatever needed his attention. Doctor Jones had built some special equipment, that worked off vibrations in his bones rather than audible speech; and equipped him with it decades ago. That way, as the morning breeze whipped around him as he ascended, he could hear communications from the Arch loud and clear.
“Roger that, Sir. Glad to have you back,” the analyst on duty pinged him immediately.
“I will be heading back to the Arch. Does anything require my attention?” Ranger came to a hover over the city. He didn’t have superhuman senses to take in all the sights and sounds of over ten million people all gathered along the expanded shores of the Mississippi, but it was one heck of a view.
“There is an armed robbery in progress on the corner of Ross and Sunview,” the analyst replied. “Sentries have been dispatched, Guardians have been informed, and local police are on their way. ETA three minutes.”
“I can be there in two,” when he said two, he meant two seconds.
An aspect of his power, that not many people realized, was that he had a flawless sense of direction. That, plus a lifetime of serving the city, and he quickly oriented himself toward the little bodega he knew inhabited that corner. With a minor exertion of power, he moved.
Everything stopped around him as he blasted forward, and in one point seven seconds, he dropped back to normal speed. Even from half a block away, the woman playing lookout was nearly knocked off her feet by the gust of his arrival. As she recovered, she looked up to find Ranger’s iconic fatigues staring her directly in the face. Ranger could move fast even if he didn’t use that aspect of his power.
“Fu . . .” she began. She didn’t even get to raise her gun before Ranger’s hand curled around it and crushed it. Even if the woman had pulled the trigger, it wouldn’t have done anything but click harmlessly on some bits of bent metal. “. . . ck,” she finished as he ripped the gun from her hand.
A lot of time and practice had gone into developing methods of disarming people that weren’t superhumanly strong and durable. Those were times when his incredible strength was a hindrance. His fights with Slaughterhouse were brief blips in a very long career; and his responsibilities, as the response team commander, went beyond slugging it out with rival powerhouses that threatened his city, or the world. Stopping petty crime like what was going down at the bodega was a much larger part of his job description. He made sure to torque the gun in a way that didn’t rip the woman’s arm off. She still broke her finger on the trigger guard, but maybe that was the lesson she needed to learn before turning back to a life of crime after this was over.
She barely got the chance to scream before he brought up two fingers and tapped her on the head. It was very much the lightest tap he was able to muster. To him, he might as well have been brushing her skull with a feather. To her, it was lights out. She dropped like a stone, but he was there to catch her, and checked her pulse. Strong and steady; she was only unconscious. He sighed to himself as he turned her on her stomach, took a zip tie from his pocket, and restrained her.
The ratio disparity between men and women was a problem for a lot of reasons. For one, the very existence of the human race was very much at risk. One male to a hundred and fifty females was nowhere near enough to break even on birth and death rates. Every year, the ratio was getting better, but not the population.
The Department of Population Control was trying to push harem marketing campaigns across the various city states that made up the new UCSA. They were also paying large sums to men who would donate sperm. Before long, IVF pregnancies were going to outnumber natural ones. Heck, even the church was getting involved by making their rules about sexual congress perfectly clear. They’d even made a little jingle out of it.
