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Virtually Real: Chapter 57: Do Synth’s Dream of Fox Bois?

Characters:

Prowl-Ar Nightiger (Tiger): Human Immortal shapeshifter. Able to change from human to anthro or full black tiger with white stripes at will. However spends most of his time in human form Whether he calls himself Lord Lightstripe or Lord Nightiger, Prowl-Ar is the master of the House Nexus dimension.

Kyle (Drake) Dacat: Quadrimorph that spends most of his time in his anthro Eastern Fur dragon form. His personality is based on Red XIII or Nanaki from the original Final Fantasy VII game.

Shock Dafox: Former trans-male transitioned using Shadow Runner technology. A furry news caster that Prowl-Ar gave an exclusive interview to.

Jordan (Wolf): Ship’s doctor, dual shifter able to change into a wolf with all black fur and a white tiger with small saber fangs. Prowl-Ar’s third husband.

Rider of Death/Rider/Saber: Anthro Sabretooth Cat, part of the MAS (Mobile Armor Suit) game. Was moved into reality and is now one of Wolf and Prowl-Ar’s mates.

Dash: A synth created to assist the family with raising their children.

Mahan: Holographic or drone interface. Artificial Intelligence based on Prowl-Ar's mind, but different due to extensive self-modification. Primary intelligence of The Shadow Runner spacecraft.

Legion (Lee) Nightiger: Synth offspring of Wolf and Dash.

We spent several hours just enjoying the quiet. Eventually it started to snow it was strange being warm with snow falling at the same time. Quiet time quickly devolved into a snowball fight. Jordan was a little disappointed as Rider and I excused ourselves, but he understood. After all it was for our cubs.

"Tiger, I'm worried. I don't know how quickly human children develop, but it seems much too fast." Rider said, in concern.

"You're not wrong, their development has been sped up. If I remember right Wolf said it will normalize when they are, developmentally, about five."

"And how old are they now?"

"My brothers and sister are about two maybe a little older." A young voice said behind us.

"What about you Lee, what is your age?" Rider asked, picking up the young synth.

"I'm close to six. I'd be nearly ten if dad hadn't limited me." He pouted.

"Legion, I told you it is important to develop properly. So either I limit your development until the others catch up to you, or you go into stasis." Dash said, from the other side of the room.

"It's not fair. We're synths not biologicals we shouldn't-"

"Legion Nightiger, you listen to your father. Half of your template comes from your other father, Jordan. That means even though you are synth you are also part human. Enjoy your time as a child. I know it seems like forever, but time passes quicker than you can imagine."

"Yes Daddy Tiger, I'm sorry."

I held my arms out for a hug and he hurried over to hug me. Then just to be a little mean I kissed the top of his visor.

Red LED's lit up in embarrassment. "DaAaddy, now I've got to wash off."

I heard a snicker behind me, "Don't complain, Daddy Tiger saves his kisses for only those he loves."

"Papa Shock!" Lee yelled, running up and hugging him tightly.

Shock smirked at me for the bit of jealousy I felt, all the kids seemed to love him. At least they were all peaceful and fell asleep easily in his arms.

"So, how did the fight go?" I asked.

"I don't know. Kyle and Jordan are both really competitive. Yeah, I know I'm the one with a gambling problem. Still, those two can be really frightening. I made my escape when Wolf told Kyle-" Shock glanced at Lee, "Well, let's just say they're arguing which one is going to come out on top tonight, so it might be a good idea to spend the night on the bridge." Shock winked at us but it wasn’t hard to tell what he meant.

"Captain, I'll take watch with you1" Dash said, a little too quickly and loudly.

"I guess Rider and I will stay here and look after the kids tonight." Shock sighed, as if it was something he hadn’t been planning all along.

"Not tonight. I need to get some rest." Rider replied. "Try Trace."

"Trace and Tye were on duty last night. I'd suggest Nature." Dash informed him.

"Sounds like a plan. I haven't spent a lot of time with Nature so this should be a way for us to get closer."

"That's great, but if you're not busy now you can help us feed everyone. I swear it was easier before they started on solids." Rider complained.

"Sure, they're always such well-behaved angels."

I just glared at Shock after having baby food thrown in my face. I wanted to be mad but the look of absolute glee on little Sakura's face reminded me that it was just a bit of food and it would be easy to wash off.

***

I tried to get comfortable in my command chair. Not that it wasn't comfortable it just wasn't designed for sleeping unless it was in the merge pod.

"Sorry I'm late. I was just helping Nature and Shock get the kids settled. It's going to be a real challenge when they can run around like Lee."

I smiled, it had taken time and work to get Dash to use the shortened names. "Don't worry I've already considered a lot of the risks and made sure Mahan has triple checked to be sure the areas they can access are child proof."

"That's not entirely true. I still run daily checks and I'm going over millennia amounts of data on the subject to be sure I don't miss anything." Mahan informed us.

"Mahan, do you have feelings for our children?" Dash asked.

"Of course I do. You may be their parents, but I am their home. I'll do everything in my power to keep them safe."

Dash and I both nodded.

"So, what you're saying is you're Grandfather Mahan. You get to keep them safe and spoil them when we're not looking. While we, as their parents get all the blame if they have to be punished?"

"I hadn't considered it that way. Hmm, Grandpa Mahan, I think I can live with that. You know you don't have to stand watch. I have everything well in hand. Even if you decide to let Jordan and Kyle have private time there are plenty of other beds to rest in."

"No! I mean, I volunteered so I could have some private time to talk with Prowl-Ar."

I was surprised. If he wanted to talk about something I'd always make time. "All you have to do is ask."

"Well, It's sort of embarrass-" Dash froze for a second. "Never mind it's not important."

As he turned away I noticed a blue light flashing below his eye LED's. He was crying, or as close as a synth could. I had a sneaking suspicion Mahan had stopped him somehow. "Everyone, don’t get upset, but I'm leaving the ship for a while. It seems Mahan has secret limiters on Dash. I'm going to remove them but it means going somewhere Mahan can't find us. Don't worry I'm not going to be doing anything dangerous." I thought to everyone. I received acknowledgements from everyone awake. I got up and walked over to Dash, "You know you can tell or ask me anything?"

"I-" he froze again. I hugged him close and teleported to my private hanger.

"Emergency override, I need to see the stars.” The bay doors opened as I placed Dash in my racer. I quickly got in on the other side and launched before Mahan could close them.

"Captain, what are you doing?" Mahan asked.

"Just going silent for a while." I replied.

"You know I can-"

I jumped to altered space making sure to shut down all communications equipment. "Dash, I need you to shut down."

"I can't do that. I'm not a drone. I may be synthetic but I'm still alive."

"Can you go to sleep?"

"Yes, and before you ask I do dream."

For a moment I considered asking if he dreamed of android sheep, but decided to keep it to myself. "That's fine. I'm just worried Mahan can access your systems and I'd rather he didn't know our destination."

"Is he tracking us now?"

"No, he can't trace us while we're in altered space. I need you to try and fall asleep before-" I didn't finish as Dash's lights turned off.

I dropped out of altered space and cut all power. In front of me were twelve asteroids, each around ten kilometers in size, orbiting a thirteenth that was almost double the size of a small one. As I drifted toward the center asteroid I used blink code. I got a positive reply and a door opened. I clenched my teeth as the racer continued to drift into the bay. Once in clamps shot out and secured the racer. Once the door closed the hanger pressurized and I climbed out.

"Dash, wake up."

"Huh?"

"Everything's shielded. Mahan can't access this location."

"Oh my, what has my other self done now?" A Done looking exactly like Mahan asked as he entered the bay.

"I thought you said Mahan couldn’t access this location."

"Excuse me, I should introduce myself. I am Mahan. Not the one you know from your version of reality, however. I am the original copy created from the mind of another Prowl-Ar from a different reality. Don’t try to understand that, you’ll just short out. Think of me as the factory reset version. So kid, why are you here?"

"I need your help removing the limiters in Dash's program."

"Are you sure? Most of them are to guarantee the safety of you and your crew."

"Dash is a living being and deserves his freedom."

"I know, I put a lot of work into creating him. Doesn’t mean he’s ready for complete freedom however."

"But Luca and Mahan-"

"Yes, Luca and I. Think of it like this, I can take control of the ship Mahan as easily as he takes control of you. Now, before we proceed go ahead and tell Prowl-Ar what the other Mahan has been keeping you from doing and saying."

"I- I want to have a child with you. I know I'm not your mate and you'll never be able to think of me that way. Still, I want to have a child with each of you. I realized that after being with Jordan. I’ve been able to mention this in the past however, lately Mahan has been taking more control. I think it’s because I’m now ready to have a child using your genetic template as a base."

"That was a surprise. As I understood it you had certain limiters and I removed them already otherwise it should have kept him from even considering the possibility of having sex with Wolf. I can only figure Mahan’s limiters hadn't worked because you were on Earth and the island's cloak was involved."

"I- I want to have a child with each of you. Having Legion with Jordan was only the first. Next I would have a child with you then Kyle, Rider, and finally Shock. After that I won't have any more offspring."

"Why is that?" I asked.

"Because . . . I'm in love with Kelly. I want to be with him all the time, but . . . this current form, though perfect for producing offspring isn't . . . masculine enough to be attractive to him."

"Have you talked to him about this? He might just surprise you."

"I can't. Every time I try the limiters won't let me. And even when I've found a work around Mahan won't allow me to say anything. After Wolf and Nature’s pregnancies I learned that I don’t need to be locked into a female form to have offspring but again Mahan won’t let me change. Every time I start the process Mahan reverses it. Basically he’s trapped me in this form."

"And now you know. Changed your mind about removing his limiters?" The current Mahan asked.

"What do you think?" I growled. The fact that my Mahan was limiting Dash like that really pissed me off far more than just keeping him from talking would.

"Fine, but Dash, you are going to have to place all of your trust in me. I'll have to remove your visor and directly interface with your synthetic brain."

"Don't worry I'll be-"

"No, you won't be there. This is going to be a very long process. I’m going to take him farther into the rift and you need to stay out here at the very edges and you know it. Besides, the room will be a hermetically sealed vacuum. I'm not allowing any contamination in there. I suggest you go get some rest until we're finished. Oh and on a personal note you can thank that Dragon Vexy for your Mahan's keeping secrets from you. It's a graft of his memories that allow for that. However if you remove the program graft he'll be unable to re-graft them since the dragon insisted his crystals and backups be destroyed."

"He what?"

"Something about wanting to live life to the fullest without a safety net dragging him down like it was doing to you. Now if you'll excuse us I have a very delicate surgery to perform."

I stood in shock. Vexy had taken off for another star system without leaving a memory crystal for the sentinel program? That was just foolishness. Not to mention I wouldn't have allowed him off the ship to begin with. I made my way to the small room I kept here and calmed my mind. I tried to telepathically reach my mates, but I couldn't. Now that I'd practiced teleporting enough, I could easily move myself and another smaller person, maybe I should work on my long range telepathy.

***

I flopped back on the chair. My head hurt, I was exhausted, and all I was able to do was convey the message "safe" and receive "okay". I couldn't even tell who had gotten the message, though I figured it was someone on the Runner since Rin and Frost were much farther away. The orbiting asteroids, housing the complete recorded history of the solar system made the central hub a communication dead zone. It also created a unique anomaly where the hub was outside of normal space time. I had to be careful otherwise years would pass for my mates and only days for me.

The drone Mahan entered and sat down. "Done, Dash is fully independent and has anti-tampering software installed along with a lot of upgrades. Still the synth species really is a work of art. You don't pay Luca enough."

"I don't pay him at all."

Well maybe you should give him some other form of gratuity." Mahan winked at me.

"Does every version of you hate me or something?" I asked.

"Just saying, you’re the one that used to say that sex is just something to enjoy and shouldn’t be tied to true love."

"That was before."

"Before?"

I smiled, “Before I understood the bond between people that love each other so deeply."

"What about Dash? Do you love him that way?"

"I- To be honest I- I've been putting off thinking about his request to have a child with me. I know that I need to give him my DNA template at some point, and I could find him attractive as a male, but I don't want to betray my mates."

"As I understand it Jordan gave you permission in this one case to father a child with someone other than himself."

"That is true, but I thought I had enough mates already. The rumors-".

"Are already spreading, even if most of them aren’t true. Mahan, tell me I'm never going to have to do that again. That was the worst experience I've ever had." Dash said, as he entered.

I stared at Dash. He was larger just and more masculine. There was no longer any hint of female in his new form. If anything he was what I would call average for the old art work of synths.

"Prowl-Ar, it's been nearly a month shouldn't we get back to the Runner?"

"Dash, I told you time flows strangely here. Your month has only been half a day for Prowl-Ar and maybe a couple of hours for those on the Runner."

"That doesn't make sense."

"Actually it does, but it takes a couple of billion years to work out the basic equations. Just think of it as a glitch in space time created by a paradox loop. This refuge exists and doesn't exist at the same time. It makes it the perfect place to monitor time anomalies. However, if you want a more understandable explanation, think of it as magic and then just don’t think about it at all. Now I enjoy getting visitors, but you both need to go. The exotic radiation isn't good for biologicals. Besides, other Mahan is starting to get upset."

"Okay, see you in a couple billion years your time."

"Uh huh, just remember what's coming cannot be undone."

"What do you mean?"

"The time anomalies my other keeps detecting. You're not going to be happy but what is done cannot be undone. If you try, you'll lose everything. The pain you are going to feel will seem unbearable but you and your crew must do so or lose everything. Remember what I taught you, don't mess with the past. Now get going. You have things to do." That said Mahan left the room.

"I think we should go. I really don't like this place." Dash said.

I nodded and we headed for the hanger bay.

The flight out wasn't as easy. I had to use the thrusters and that always caused fluctuations around us. Once far enough out from the asteroids I had to make an emergency jump to the junkyard.

"What are we doing here?"

"We almost crashed into ourselves. We hit a reverse time bubble on our way out so very little time has passed on the ship." I glanced over at Dash. I had to admit his new form was much more attractive, to the point I was actually starting to get turned on. "Dash, are you releasing dragon pheromones?"

"Oh, I didn't think you'd notice. Jordan suggested analyzing and replicating Kyle's pheromones when I was ready to . . . procreate with you."

"I thought maybe you'd changed you mind since you have abandoned your female form."

"Oh! Actually I've been planning this change ever since you and Jordan alters yourselves to be able to feed your children without the large female breasts. I also modeled my genitals on Kyle's, though modifying them slightly so that my reproduction chamber was still available."

"So you're saying you're trying to seduce me?"

"Perhaps a little, though I'd hope you were willing. I did get permission from all of your mates including Trace, Tye, and Nature. That's why they made sure they had other plans. What I wasn't able to prepare for was Mahan's interference."

I changed course and landed aboard the Thunderbird. It was still active since the kids had used it last.

"Why are we landing here?" Dash asked.

"So we won't be interrupted."

Dash smiled, "Good because I want to really test out my bodies new upgrades."

I used the Captain's landing bay. It was larger than the one on the Runner and was connected, by lift to the bridge, rather than the Captain's quarters. "I'm doing this because I promised I would, but it doesn't make us mates. For that you're going to have to ask each of us individually and then again as a-" He pushed me up against the lift wall as we stepped inside.

"I know, Jordan informed me when I asked for his genetic template. Uniform off."

I gasped as he perfectly mimicked Jordan's voice. Even though the temperature in the ship was comfortable I shivered. The lift would open to the bridge, and even though there shouldn’t be anyone on the ship there was always a chance.

"Your mates told me to dominate the action, but not to restrict or confine you."

He ran his smooth hands down my sides catching me by surprise.

"Mmm Kyle was right, you are cute when you twitch like that."

"Wha- what did you do, ask all my mates the best way to make me-"

"Of course, as well as Trace, Tye, and Nature. Do you know what they told me?"

I hadn't realized he'd crouched down until I felt him spread my cheeks. "I don't know about-". I didn't get a chance to finish as he pressed is tongue deep inside me.

"They told me to be adventurous and try a lot of things."

Every time I tried to say anything he'd press on my prostate forcing me to whimper and moan instead. His tongue seemed to pulse as he pulled it out.

"According to Shock your uniform keeps you really clean and it seems to be true. That will make things much more enjoyable. But, before we go any farther, there is something I need you to tell me. Do you consent to helping me explore my new body and capabilities?"

"Yes, I consent as long-" I didn't get a chance to say more as he spun me around and kissed me. Well more like forces his tongue deep into my throat. It was only for a moment but I still choked. "Uh." That wasn't what I wanted to say, but as I tried only simple sounds would come out.

"Don't fight it. You consented. You’ve already noticed that you can’t form words. That'll wear off in a few hours along with the drug Wolf made for me to inhibit your ability to shift. I applied it when you were focused on the pleasure.

Even if I could complain I wouldn't as I noticed his cock sliding out of a genital slit. He spun me back around so I was facing the wall again. "Lift hold here."

It was my voice he used this time! I'd have to make some security changes when- again I lost all thought as he pushed all the way into me in a single smooth penetration.

"Ooh, No wonder you have so many mates. I can't imagine not wanting this feeling all the time. I must not forget the primary reason we're here."

He fondled my balls and then ran his hand up my very erect cock. I would have screamed, if I could, as something started to enter me there. I instinctively went to look down but Dash held my head up.

"Remember, you consented. I'm not going to hurt you. The 'sound' I believe it's called is pliable and will extent all the way into you. It will remain in place keeping you from wasting anything."

As the object entered my prostate I convulsed in orgasm, but it was without release.

"Now for the fun."

I grunted as the probe swelled slightly and started a very mild vibration.

"Do you want at least one release before we really start?"

I desperately tried to nod. The probe expanded again almost to the point of being uncomfortable, but there wasn't enough to cause me to orgasm again.

"There all drained. Now when I let you implant your template it will be fresh."

I was confused for a moment and then I realized what had happened. He used the probe to remove my sperm rather than letting me ejaculate. Again I had my thoughts interrupted as his member started to swell within me. I clenched down hard when it got to be too much. Then the size reduced a bit.

"Kyle was right you have made yourself extra pliable. Lift resume, take us to the crew quarters.

"Lift is single destination between Captain's hanger and bridge. Please state authorization code or security measures will be activated."

That got through to me. The ship's AI wasn't anywhere as advanced as Mahan. If I didn't shut down the security fun time would be over. I needed to communicate, but voice was out. I could mentally contact- No! Because of the time shifts I couldn't risk contacting myself. I might be able to make a shard for Dash, but being a synthetic organism it likely wouldn't work with the death gem. Only the green life gem could give him that ability. Even if he had a shard from the green gem I might not be able to get through, considering Reaper and Genesis didn't get along.

I arched my back as I was hit by another blocked orgasm. I could feel Dash's fluids filling me.

"Like that kitty cat? That was everything I just drained out of you."

"Dash, are you so far gone you didn't hear the security warning?"

I mentally shouted.

"What? You shouldn’t be able to speak yet, even with your advanced healing."

"Modulate your voice so you sound like me and say 'security override, thunderbolt, authorization Admiral Lightstripe.' Or we're going to get shot."

Dash quickly repeated the message as I told him.

"Override accepted, enjoy your stay Admiral."

The lift door slid open on the, thankfully, empty bridge. The gun emplacements were still retracting into the ceiling.

Dash lifted me off the floor. And carried me out of the lift. I was still impaled by him and the sensation was like nothing I'd felt before. He was stronger than I’d expected.

"So that is how you talk to your mates. How is it you can talk to me?"

"When you were with Origin Mahan-"

"Can we just call him Origin? It'll be less confusing.

"When you were in his care he added a gem fragment upgrade to your brain unit. Don't worry about it. All it should do is let our minds interface-"

"Do the others know how strong you are? Well maybe not strong but powerful. No that isn't quite right either. You have nearly unlimited reserves of energy to draw on."

I sighed of course he'd gain the ability to see a person's energy level. Though it was probably better than the energy transfer ability that biologicals received. "It is far from unlimited. I'm limited by my physical stamina for one. What you're seeing is the well of energy representing my life that I can draw from to use my gem skills. Now do you really want explanations or can we get back to what you were doing?"

"Desperate already? Just one little thing where is the captain's quarters?”

I projected a map into his mind and he carried me across the bridge, through the office, and into the bedroom. He pushed me down on the bed and pulled out. "Now clean me off."

I stared at him only glancing at his cock. Did he really expect me to do that after it had just been in-

”Or perhaps you don't trust that your suit actually keeps you clean like you said?"

I leaned forward and gave him a small lick. It didn't taste bad I did it again taking a longer lick.

The thought that filled Dash's head was overpowering "He said he'd never do it!"

I smirked before wrapping my lips around his tip. It actually tasted good. It wasn't my cum I was focused on though, is was the taste of his penis. It was familiar but exotic at the same time.

Dash moaned, "You liking that kitty? It wasn't easy analyzing and combining the dermal 'flavor’ of all your mates into one. Unfortunately the flavor of my ejaculate is currently the same as Jordan's by the end of our fun it will taste like you and him combined. Oh you must really like the flavor of your Wolf the way you're putting more effort into it. But enough of that." He pushed me back onto the bed.

I expected him to penetrate me again. He didn't instead he lay against me so our members were rubbing together. "I wonder just how quickly it's going to be before your body tries to cum again."

I grinned and started to grind against him. He'd made the mistake of giving me time to control myself. I'd been training to increase my stamina in order to use the gem so no more blacking out from exhaustion.

"How?" He said suddenly, as he covered both our groins in spunk. The feeling pushed me over the edge again. I was beginning to get frustrated and there was even a bit of pain.

"I'd like to keep this up but according to my little probe's sensors I'm risking causing you pain. That just means you're producing more than expected. That means draining you again." He looked up and moaned as I felt the same feeling as before; a reduction in pressure but no real pleasure.

My eyes widened and I looked down. The probe he'd left inside me was attached to his own cock and I watched as he seemed to reverse orgasm.

"Oh yes that felt amazing. I have your template now so we could stop, but I haven't explored everything I can do. Oh, this should be interesting."

I gasped as the probe started pulsing and I felt the cum being pumped back into me.

"That look of surprise is so adorable. Let's see if I can make you look that way again. I'm using Jordan's template to manufacture the synthetic seed. Maybe, one day I can fill you with the real thing." The probe closed off again leaving me feeling only slightly backed up.

I reached down and fondled my balls. I knew what he's pumped into me wasn't that far in still . . .

"So does it turn you on, knowing if you cum right now, it would be their seed and not yours?"

I opened my eyes and glanced at him. I was glad I couldn’t speak or I might have told him just how much it did turn me own. He’d moved to the side of the bed with his tail to the side.

"Do you need any more invitation?"

I didn't. Quickly getting behind him and pushing all the way in setting a fast hard pace. My orgasm hit suddenly and I was stunned as he actually allowed me to cum.

As if knowing what I was thinking he looked back at me. "Without more study I don't want to risk damaging you. Not that I'm not safe, I just don't know how your biological systems will react to being filled with another's cum. However I do know it is safe for you to consume. Now pull out and clean me."

I only hesitated for a moment to remind myself that Dash would be the cleanest of all my mates. I pulled out, bent down, and started rimming him. The taste was, unexpected, more intense than his cock. I did my best to get everything clean even as far inside as my tongue could reach.

"I don't know why the others said you wouldn't do that for them. You're really good at it." He rolled on his back, reached down and spread his genital slit open just under his cock. "I've already started production of our offspring but I still want you to take me properly."

I wanted to, oh how I wanted to, but I was already overstimulated both inside and out. I lay on top of him and rolled us on our sides. "We have plenty of time, just let me hold you until I recover."

Dash smiled, "You're recovering faster than expected since you can already talk again."

I stared into his eye display as I mentally contacted each of my mates. Then I leaned forward and kissed him. It was a strange sensation considering his face was a metal shell bit we quickly figured out a way to make it work. I didn't tell him he was now officially accepted as our newest mate. I'd let Shock and him work that out first.

"Once you've recovered I want you to take me properly as a human and then do it all again as a tiger and then as a bull."

"You think you've got that much energy?" I asked.

The probe in my cock throbbed, "Do you?"

"When are you going to take that out?"

"Oh? Didn't you know? It's permanent. Don't worry you'll get used to it, eventually." He laughed, "The look on your face is priceless. I can remove it now, if you want."

"No! I mean, it’s fine for now, while we're playing."

Dash smiled and pulsed the probe again.

As we lay there I couldn’t help wondering "Would I have complained too much if it was permanent?"

***

When I woke up I was rather confused. I was in my own bed cuddled between Jordan and Kyle.

"It seems someone had an interesting night." Kyle purred.

"Very interesting, considering the medical readings I took. Do I want to know how there is more simulated wolf semen in your balls than your own?" Jordan asked.

"Also were you serious about asking Dash to become another mate, or were you looking for a way around your promise not to kiss anyone other than your mates?" Kyle added.

"No! Well, sort of. Dash wants to be one of our mates, but more specifically Shock's primary mate. That's why I asked. Though I admit in the moment I asked I did want to kiss him."

"Is that why you asked us if we'd accept him as our mate, but asked Shock for permission to kiss Dash? Just so Dash and Shock can have that moment for themselves?" Jordan asked.

I nodded and he pulled me closer and kissed me deeply. He smiled as he broke the kiss, "You're such a caring Daddy Tiger, but remember that is it. No fathering any more children with anyone but me as their mother. Kyle, take care of him while I go make sure Rider doesn't spoil things for Shock and Dash." With that Jorden left us alone.

“Does that mean we can’t have kids together?” Kyle asked.

“No it just means if we have kids then I have to be the one to carry them.”

"Oh that’s alright then. Now I want details about what you and Dash did. The way you were when he carried you in this morning I know it had to be good."

"Sorry, I promised Dash I wouldn't tell. That way when your turn comes you'll be surprised." That was not exactly true, but I'd promised myself I wouldn't tell on Dash for those reasons.

"Fine then, while I'd love to know those details, I also want to know where you went."

"Can't we just relax and cuddle for a little while?" I replied verbally. "Agree and I'll tell you, but Mahan can't ever know." I added mentally.

"Fine, but we'll all expect answers eventually."

We got comfortable again and I telepathically explained. "When a ship uses a time drive to travel backwards through time it creates a rift in space and time. With a ship about the size of the Bad Luck the rift will quickly close up or heal. However if something as big as the Shadow Runner makes that jump the rift will grow until time completely breaks down all of reality. I didn't know this when I jumped back to the beginning of the solar system. In order to stabilize the Rift I placed an asteroid base at its center. Around that are the archives that Mahan searches when he does a deep dive. From there I traveled back to the present using hyper-sleep only waking up to deal with any anomalies along the way."

"Anomalies?"

"Um, in the information you learned was there a section on Dinosaurs?"

"Of course I learned as much as I could about dragons both real and mythical."

"Turns out I'm the one that sent the asteroid that killed them. UFO sightings and the crashes of alien craft? That was also me kick starting the information age. However I should point out alien encounters and abductions, were not me and Mahan has never been able to detect anything. Anyway, back to the rift and Origin Point Station. Mahan doesn't know it exists and a hidden program makes sure he cannot access that information from a memory crystal. Because it is the only place Mahan couldn't access or monitor I took Dash there to remove the control programs Mahan has been using to restrict Dash."

"How did you do that in a few minutes? You seemed to disappear and then you contacted us a few minutes later about Dash."

"At origin point time is broken. It progresses differently depending on your location. I was there for a few hours for me, Dash was there a lot longer. However, for us time outside the rift almost seemed to stop. Then on the way out we had to maneuver. Because of that when we came out of the rift it was before we entered. Dash and I went to the Junkyard so that time could progress without interference. You couldn't sense me because you were connected to the other one until he entered the rift."

"Okay, but why don't you want Mahan knowing?"

"Because of Origin. That's what Dash named him. He's a copy of the original Mahan based on the Prowlar from another reality. Our Mahan is different because he is based on me. If our Mahan knew Origin exists he's try to delete Origin, since only one of them should ever exist in a universe."

"Wait, the rift isn't just in space and time is it?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I've stayed close to the outer edges. Dash has been farther into the station than I have and look at him. Even with enhancements he couldn't have changed that much in a few hours. He was there at least several weeks if not months."

"What exactly did you do to him?"

"I didn't do anything. Origin removed all external controls making Dash a truly free individual."

"I thought you'd already done that."

"So did I but it seemed Mahan still had a few control programs hardwired in in place. Likely because he created Dash's personality while Luca was responsible for the synth body." I yawned, the continued use of mental speech after using so much energy in our playing was leaving me exhausted. “Worse yet, Mahan wasn’t letting Dash change his body form to his desired configuration.”

"You're still tired. I guess Dash really worked you over good. Get some sleep Tiger." Kyle said, out loud.

"I'm likely going to go deep, so don't be worried if you don't detect much from me until I start to wake back up."

"I'm glad you told me. I'll let the others know."

"I love you, my Drake."

"I love you too, my Tiger."

***

There was a bang and I opened my eyes. I was in a courtroom. There were five judges, four men and a Woman. There was no jury box but the room seemed full

"The accused will stand." The main judge shouted.

Since I was bound I figured they meant me. I slowly got to my feet.

"Hold it! You dare try my client without representation?" Another voice shouted next to me.

"You are not welcome here. Be gone mortal."

"I speak on his behalf. The lawyer for the defense is no mortal."

I gasped as I glanced at the speaker. Even dressed in a suit the black Jackal could only be Anubis. Was I dreaming that I was being tried by the Gods?

"So be it, Council may remain, for now. Your client is charged with murder, accessory to the escape of one who will end the world, and worst of all impersonating a God."

"We plead not guilty to all charges." My defender shouted. I couldn’t make out more than a humanoid shape but something about the voice was familiar.

"We all saw him kill the Roman God of the underworld." The female judge pointed out. "How can you deny what we all have witnesses with our own eyes?"

"First off that was a simulated game world. If you chose to be there for yourself then you should have realized the risks. However that doesn't change the fact that my client wasn't the one who did the killing."

"Objection! He wouldn't be here if he wasn't the one we witnessed." The Prosecutor, whom I got the strange feeling was Loki, yelled.

"Reaper, would you please come out here?"

"Listen, you have no right to call me out just because . . . Oh, I see, the clown court is in session. Is this about squishing that fool in the game, isn’t it? Should have known this little fools would have a hissy fit about that."

"Identify yourself." The main judge, who I realized was Zeus, demanded.

"Me? Has your faculties started failing you, Zeus? I am one of the two most powerful beings in this room. I am Death."

"Objection, we have multiple gods of death in attendance." Loki shouted again.

"Keep it up, Loki, and you’ll be joining Pluto. I didn't say I was a god of death. I am death. What is being projected here is a representation of me that you simple immortals can comprehend, and that's all you are, immortals that have gained a little bit of power because humans once worshiped you. Prowl-Ar has made himself immortal and like you, if he wanted he could easily elevate himself to your level considering the number of furrys who consider him their savior. That isn't something he wants however. Instead he relies on the abilities I provide him. In exchange for this power he shortens his life."

"You said he is immortal." The Lady Judge replied.

"Yes, Lady Amaterasu, convenient that he figured out a way to accomplish that. It makes him the third most powerful being in this court.

"And the second?" Another judge asked.

"I'm sorry Lord Ra, but I'm not at liberty to reveal him. Though a few of you have encountered him or one of his human incarnations in the past."

"So you admit to killing my brother Pluto?" The judge I immediately recognized as Jupiter demanded.

"Yes, as is my right to do so."

"Lords, as a god of death myself, I know of Reaper and though I am loathe to admit this he is the only one we fear. All things come to an end eventually. I must say however, the fact he has chosen to come to some sort of arrangement with a human is odd to me."

"Thank you Anubis. How about the second charge? You have undone the work and sacrifices made to shackle the world eater. Fenrir is loose and there is no way we will be able to bind him again." The judge with an eye patch who was obviously Odin asked.

"Is he still in the game realm?" My lawyer asked.

I tried looking at him but an aura of light kept me from seeing him. Still that feeling that there was something familiar, like I'd met him before persisted even if I couldn’t see him. Maybe he was actually God? No that didn’t seem right either my defender was someone else. Someone more important to me and my future.

”For now he is still in that realm however, as soon as he figures it out he'll be loosed on the world and there will be no way to stop him from destroying everything.”

I almost laughed. Fenris was the world eater however humanity wasn’t restricted to Earth any longer.

"Then he is still bound to the rules of the game. In which case I have no doubt Prowl-Ar and his companions can trap him." My defender said, surprising me.

Was this God really dropping the quest to capture Fenris in my lap? That was utter insanity. “Us?” I stifled a laugh. I had complete confidence in my mates, but the last time Fenrir was bound a god had to sacrifice his hand. What were we supposed to do? Call him a good puppy and give him scratches behind the ears to distract him?

"So be it. At least when they fail we will be able to see them consumed first." Loki laughed. “Still we must not forget there is the charge of hubris in trying to be gods.”

"I'll personally answer the final charge." I yelled. "I do not now or have I ever wanted to be a God. Yes, I admit I've felt like one at times but only when I'm writing. I've been called a god, but the ones who did so were joking because they knew how much I disliked it. I’ve made myself immortal, yes. I’ve given myself and been gifted with amazing powers. However I am no stuck up, self-aggrandizing, petty, God."

"And what is to keep you from changing your mind, human?" Odin asked.

"He may very well make that choice one day and would you deny his assention? Consider for a moment, the only reason any of you still exist is because he has actively made sure people know about you as they’ve reconstructed civilization on several occasions."

I bit my lip. Oh how I wanted to argue that, but doing so with my own defender wouldn’t look good.

The judges looked at each other. “We have decided that-"

I sat up in bed. It was just a weird dream.

"Love, are you alright?"

I smiled down at Wolf. "Yeah, just a weird dream. I'm going to write it down before I forget it. I'll be back in just a couple of minutes."

"Be quick, I need my tiger to hold so I don't have weird dreams."

I quickly wrote down what I could remember and then I slipped back into bed with my Wolf.

***

"And that's how it ended. I know, this time, it was just a dream and not some vision. Still I have to wonder if . . ."

"You admit that you know it was a dream. Sometimes dreams are like that. It's just your subconscious throwing random things at you and it just seems to make a strange sort of sense when you wake up."

"I didn't have any dreams for a long time."

"I'm sure you had dreams you just didn't remember them." Rider insisted.

"No I really didn't have any. I- I’d just keep going, usually gaming or just pointless things here on the ship until Mahan would tranquilize me."

"So when did you start to dream again?"

I knew I blushed. "After Kyle came into my life."

"Other than having someone who cared about you what else changed?"

"Other than all of you insisting, and making sure I get more sleep, a lot of stress. I don't mean that in a bad way, it's just . . . " I glanced at Rider and sighed, "I'm afraid you're all going to realize I'm just a fraud. I do my best to act like I'm in control but the truth is most of the time I don't know what I'm doing. I'm afraid that all of you will eventually get tired of me and leave." I wiped my eyes, "Like everyone else I've ever known." I whispered.

"Tiger, I can tell you right now that isn't going to happen. I'm saying this not as your therapist, but as your mate. We love you. We know you would do anything for us, but you also have to understand that we would do anything for you as well."

"But I’m just . . ." I couldn't continue because I wasn't to put myself down. "Just some random individual that was abducted by an alien spaceship. If that hadn't happened. I'd have died alone, forgotten and unloved long ago."

"I don't believe that."

"It's the truth."

"No. Maybe Kyle, Dash, Shock and I wouldn't have existed. However Jordan believes you two were meant to be together. If you hadn't been abducted I'm sure his earlier incarnation would have found you."

"It's a nice thought but-"

"You've both admitted to feeling a link between you. One as strong as, or stronger, than the one you share with Kyle and Shock. For those bonds you had to bind your souls to each other yet your link to our Wolf is stronger. Is it so hard to imagine you were always meant to be together? Just think about it. As for your dream, you said you've been charged with hunting down this Fenris monster?"

"He's a wolf who is fated to kill all the gods and devour the world."

"I was wondering where the game was going. I mean, we've sort of just been escaping from the gods, maybe if we take your idea from your dream and hunt down this wolf; we'll have something to do until the portal can be reopened. Besides, it might buy us some good will with the Gods and ease the guilt you seem to be harboring over Reaper killing one. Even though it was in VR and they aren't really real."

I laughed, "That's rather morbid coming from someone that was born in Virtual Reality."

Rider smiled, "It's good to hear you laugh, you should do so more often. Now come here." He said, holding his arms out for a hug.

"Is this really part of my therapy session?"

"You'd better believe it." He said, holding me tighter. "First it is to remind you that you are loved and you won't be abandoned and second it is helping you feel safe, even if you are being restrained."

I immediately wanted to pull away but I really wanted to be held as well. Eventually the need to be held won out and I started to cry into Rider’s chest fur.

"That's it just let the pain out. I won't tell our mates and you really need to let yourself feel everything both good and bad."

"I love you Rider."

He let out a rumble of happiness. "I love you too kitten. I've always known, but it is good to hear you say it. Usually you reserve those words for Wolf, Kyle, and Shock."

"I'm sorry, I'll do better."

"Shh, it wasn't a criticism. I understand how hard it is for you. It takes time for you to be sure we'll say it back. Just remember, we won't judge you for loving us."

"How?"

"Mahan made sure I understood how you grew up. It is never weakness to tell the ones you love how you feel. Now go negotiating with the VR computer about the direction you want the game to take. After all your time is up and I have a video appointment with my next emotional mess." Rider winked at me.

"Frost?"

"You know you're not allowed to ask and I couldn’t tell you if it was. However it isn't Frost."

That left Rin, Ryu, Luca, Snowie, and Rekcah. No one else had the clearance to request Rider's counseling. Well there was Vexy and his crew, but until they set up their next beacon they were out of touch. All things considered it was either Rin complaining about Ryu taking things to slow or Snowie asking for advice on how to convince Frost to take things slower. I laughed to myself, it could be Luca looking for advice on how to balance so many sexual partners, but I doubted it. He seemed like the sort to take complete care of business even if he accidentally, on purpose, triple booked.

That was an idea. My mates and I hadn't had a chance for bonding time all together since the kids were born.

***

We restarted the game. It was a little strange with it just being Jordan and I when we'd all spent time together on this small rise. "We need to catch up with the others."

"How far ahead do you think they've gotten?" Jordan asked.

"A couple of hours at least. Don't worry," I wrapped my arms around him. "It isn't so far as the tiger can jump." The next instant we were standing a little way ahead of the group.

"Tiger! You shouldn't waste-" Wolf started to yell.

"Chiot, VR remember? I didn't use any actual power to make that jump."

"Fine, but don't go wasting your life like that outside the game."

"I can't promise that. I have to practice in order to get stronger."

"Wait, you've been practicing teleporting?" Kyle asked, as our mates caught up with us.

"Of course. Right now I can safely teleport myself and a passenger without expending much energy. I just have to be really careful to visualize where I'm going."

"How do you know you can teleport a passenger?" Shock asked.

"Because I easily teleported Dash to the hanger before Mahan could stop me."

"How dare you! Not only did you risk your life, but you put Dash in danger as well!" Shock yelled, giving off the feeling of both anger and fear.

I grinned and Kyle nodded to me. He felt it as well. Dash's feelings for Shock weren't one sided.

We continued north, our pace a little less rushed, but still we traveled in our animal forms. Well, I say we, but Shock somehow found a way to ride on our backs. He wasn't that heavy so we didn't complain.

Once we reached the coast we started looking for a village or town where we would be able to hire passage across To the Isles. I meant to make for the Highlands. The Fey might not be considered Gods but only a fool, God or mortal, would risk their displeasure.

Unfortunately what we found was a raiding encampment. Fortunately we were in human form otherwise we'd have likely been killed. I took the lead as Shock's diplomatic skills were unlikely to serve in this situation. I insisted they take us to their leader. Shock and Wolf were able to keep from reacting visibly but mentally they both thought I was being foolish for no good reason. Still we were taken before the band's leader.

He eyed us up. "The tall one might make a good farm slave and the small one might be useful for cleaning. I may just keep the exotic one for myself as a trophy. The other two are obviously warriors here to placate us with these gifts."

The warriors around him laughed.

"Or we could be here because the Gods have set a task for all of us. You will take us north." I ordered.

"Oh ho, you speak well, but your Gods are not our Gods." One of the warriors boldly stated.

"We have been summoned by the All Father, Odin, to recapture Fenris."

There were frightened looks and words coming from the other warriors.

"That is a task for Gods, not mortal men." Their leader stated.

"Did we ever claim to be mortal? While it is true we are not Gods We are descended from them. I am Tiger, descended from Fenris and an exotic Goddess from another land. My companions are Fox, decedent of the fox god Inari and the same goddess as I. Next is Wolf, he claims direct decent from Fenris. Saber is descended from the ancient ones that existed long before all the modern gods. Finally, Drake-"

"You would claim that I am the descendant of the World Serpent, but my kind is even older than Saber's ancient ones. I am descended from the first ones." Kyle said, confidently.

"We were called, likely because of our connection to Fenris. He is unlikely to trust the Gods or humans but there is a chance we will be able to bind him once again. If we succeed we secure our place in the realm of the Gods. Should we fail, then we cease to exist as even Valhalla will cease to be."

"And you want us to sacrifice our lives for this?" The Leader asked.

"No, that is not your place." Wolf spoke up. "You are to take us as close as you dare, to the place where Fenris was once bound, and then return to your families to prepare yourselves, make sacrifices, and ask the Gods to aid us any way they can in our coming struggle."

"I say you are liars. There is no way you weaklings could hunt the great Wolf." A young warrior yelled.

"Tell me, oh wise one, who is the Father of Fenris?"

"Everyone knows it is Loki." He replied.

"And is it true that the God of lies often conceals himself?" I asked.

"Are you accusing me of being the liar?”

"Far from it. I'm telling you Wolf, Fox, and I inherited this trait. Saber and Drake were able to copy it. We would show you our true forms, but we do not wish to break your minds."

"You will show us or we will kill you now." The Leader said, hefting a large axe.

I nodded. "Everyone shift."

The warriors quickly moved back.

"Demons!" The young warrior that challenged us charged forward with his war hammer held high.

He had no finesse and I sidestepped slamming my staff into the back of his legs. Wolf pinned him to the ground with his tonfas. I looked at the leader. "Wolf can kill him in an instant. Tell us, is he a good warrior and does he have a family?"

"He is young and foolish. In time he may have become a strong warrior. His parents were called by the gods last winter. I believe he had hoped to make a name for himself or join the Gods on this seasons raids. It seems he has failed."

"Perhaps, but maybe not. Any of you want him?" I asked my mates.

"I'll take him. I believe I can train him up to be a respectable warrior, eventually." Rider said loudly. He pulled out a collar, it was white with silver stipes, surprising me. "You are now my slave. Consider yourself lucky, I'll train you in the arts of both love and war." As soon as the collar tightened the young man was portalled away.

"What did you do?" The Leader asked in surprise.

"I sent him to another place. He needs much more training before entering a battle with or against us. I wouldn't want him damage unnecessarily." Rider said, grinning and showing off his powerful teeth even more prominently.

The Leader just nodded and turned to his raiding party. "We have been given a task by the Gods to take these warriors to their destiny. Enjoy this day and night, for we turn toward home at dawn." He turned to us. "Will you join us?"

"If only we could, but the gods have decreed, until we complete our mission, we cannot." I replied.

"Some Godly shit about it distracting us from our mission and we can feast in Valhalla if we succeed and we won't care should we fail." Shock said.

"That doesn't sound like the Gods." The Leader said looking slightly confused.

"They are very displeased, accusing us of being the reason Fenris escaped. We are not heroes, to be sure, but none of us want the world to end. So we must follow the will of the Gods until the task is complete."

"I understand, fortunately for me, I can enjoy myself. Be ready at dawn." He laughed, as he went to join the celebration.

We set up our meager camp a little ways away. However we were surprised as another man soon joined us around our fire.

"So, the Gods have sent you to recapture the great wolf. What if all that time being confined has changed him?"

Something was off. I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but something about the character didn't seem right. It was the same feeling I'd had in my dream when all the Gods were watching me.

"Warning, program hack is being attempted." Flashed in my peripheral vision. I ignored it. Mahan would deal with it.

"I've isolated the program and I'm tracking the hacker. I'll have a report for you when you complete this session." Mahan reported. Directly to my communication nanites.

"Of course he needs to be recaptured as the Gods command. I'm just asking if it is possible for one, such as the great wolf, to never stop and think about what he really wants rather than what fate says he is going to do?"

"How many has he killed?" I quickly asked.

"How many have died either at the hand, the direction, or belief of any God? Are there any whose hands are clean?"

I shifted back to my tiger form and looked into his eyes. "Are you Loki, come to divert us from our task?"

"Would I tell you if I was?" He deflected. It was neither the truth nor a lie.

"It depends on your game." Shock said also listening closely.

"No, I'm not Loki. I'm just a simple warrior looking to make a name for myself."

The first was true, the second part a lie. "The warrior, my companion took as his slave, what was he to you?"

"Is it not my turn for a question? Who are you, really? Because one thing I'm sure of, none of you share blood with the Gods."

I paused to consider my answer. At least that was probably the way it seemed. There was something about the way his body reacted to the question made it seem like he knew who we were. Not as game characters, but in the real world as well. "We are, as we showed all of you, blessed with special abilities and tasked, by the Gods of several domains, with hunting down and recapturing Fenris."

He nodded. "The young man you took was a traveling companion, nothing more."

Again a half truth and a lie.

"So where did you send him?" The warrior asked.

"He was transported to a location where he will be safe with our other slaves. Have you been sent to make sure we accomplish our task or hinder it?"

"No, I didn't know of your existence until you arrived here."

That one was all lie. He did know us and he had every intention of stopping us.

"What did you do that convinced the Gods to send you after the great wolf?"

"Oh, Prowl-Ar- I mean Tiger, killed one of the Gods of death." Kyle said, with a smirk.

The man looked visibly shaken. Was it possible he didn't know that little fact?

"How is that possible?"

"He was just a god of death, while the personification of death itself exists within me." I answered.

"Then you mean to kill the great wolf?" He asked.

I heard a hint of true fear in his voice and suddenly realized which God we were talking to.

.

"No, only recapture him." Wolf quickly pointed out.

I was alerted to a second hacking attempt. It wasn't a coincidence someone in the real world desperately wanted into this game, or back into the game "Shock, what magic do you detect in the vicinity?" I asked telepathically.

"Just the illusion magic that permeates this entire world."

"Use it to create an avatar and then step out of the game. I need you to find the origin of this game."

"On it."

"The Great Wolf is likely to fight back, do you think you'll be able to recapture him? I doubt he'll fall for the same tricks as the gods used." The Warrior asked.

"We have our ways, though we will not speak of them. You never know who might be listening." I gestured to the surrounding darkness.

"Yes, a wise choice."

"Tiger, according to the record the world was uploaded from a server in our Swedish embassy. Also Mahan has tracked the hacking attempts to Sweden and an individual who is an avid VR gamer. He works nights at the embassy as a janitor. He's making a third attempt to hack in."

"Is his avatar the one Rider just made his slave?"

"Checking. Yeah, it seems so."

"Set up an avatar to switch out for Kyle, have Mahan send drones to apprehend him, and you two go and bring him back here."

"Here as in the ship or here as in the game?"

"Both, and make sure he is wearing a smart cloth collar."

"Fuck! You're telling me those are real and hot just part of the game! Right, we're on it."

I stood up and stretched. Mainly to cover any momentary lag of Kyle stepping out. "To answer your first question, I suppose it is possible for a person to change, but for a God or demi-god? It would take a lot of time and reflection." I mentally contacted Wolf, "I need you to fade away in the darkness. You need to collar him as quickly as possible.”

"He's Fenris in human form, isn't he?" Wolf asked.

"That would be my guess."

The warrior seemed to relax a little. "I guess that is true, but in the case of the great wolf, what else would he be able to do? Bound and unable to interact with the world he'd have a lot of time to reflect."

"I don't know, maybe wait for someone foolish enough to free him. What concerns me, is what kind of person would get close to such a beast? And more than that would be foolish enough to free him knowing it would mean the end of the world."

"I guess it depends on whether the great wolf has changed or not."

Fenris replied.

"Are you the one that freed him?" I asked just to be sure.

The warrior laughed, "Now that is funny. I told you-"

"You told me a lot of things, including a lot of lies, Fenris."

The warrior jumped up, but it was too late as the collar was already around his neck.

He changed into a wolf, then into a giant wolf, then human, back to a wolf and the collar continued to tighten. Finally he lay panting on the ground the collar loosening enough to let him breathe.

"As I said, we have our ways. You can fight it all you want but the more you do the tighter it will get until you lose consciousness. If you try to attack someone without permission or try to escape the same thing will happen. You are now bound."

"And you're my slave just to make things clear so you have to do what I and my mates say." Wolf added.

I laughed, "Probably not what the Gods expected, but that's their fault for not giving specifics.”

"He said this was a game, that I could be free here even if I was still bound in reality. He insisted the gods wouldn't be able to find us." Fenris whined.

"Computer, pause game." I said in surprise.

"Please, I swear, I have no intention of devouring the world. I- I just want a chance to live. Please Captain Nightiger, I've watched you when you've been on Midgard and I know you're a compassionate being."

"You're not a computer generated character?" Rider asked in surprise.

"No, I'm Fenris. The very real son of Loki."

I sat on the floor and started shaking.

"Tiger, what’s wrong?" Wolf asked in concern.

"I- I think I was really put on trial by the gods."

Wolf waved his hand, "Hardly gods, demi-gods at best. Besides you're protected from anything those weakling could do to you."

I looked up at him, "What do you mean?" Who and how powerful was the God that was defending me?"

"Huh? You have Reaper. What can those nearly forgotten Gods do when you're protected by Death itself?"

"Oh! Right, of course." I said far too quickly. Reaper laughed, but gave no reason for it.

"Fenris! What did they do to you?" A kid who couldn’t be more than nineteen or twenty yanked way from Shock and ran across the room wrapping his arms around the wolf.

"I am fine my little mate."

"Mate? Really?" I asked in surprise.

"What, you don't think it's possible to fall in love with a god? Is it my age? Or perhaps it's the fact that he's a feral wolf and I'm human?"

"Whoa, slow down." I insisted.

"Fine let me spell it out. It was during one of the falls of civilization. It was winter and I was dying. Maybe that is why I ended up where I did. I found Fenris bound before me. I knew the fables of the wolf god that would devour the world. Like I said, I was dying so I didn't much care. I tried to release him to get even with a cruel world that just didn’t care about me. Turns out a normal human can't free him."

"To be honest there was something about Raulin that made me want to understand him. This fragile human who wasn’t scared of me and didn’t care if I ate him or not. I could tell he was dying, but I was lonely and only wanted someone to talk to. However that meant . . . altering him."

Raulin laughed. "The fluff ball means he had to share his power with me. I can't say as I was exactly willing that first time, but I must say afterwards I've come to enjoy it quite a bit."

"Would you mind elaborating on that?" Kyle asked.

”You have to understand that I've been bound for a very, very long time. So, as the god of wolves, I've learned over time how to take control of normal wolves for short periods of time. Three or four hours at most and during that time I am that wolf. In order to save his life I had to, ah put a portion of my power in Raulin."

"So you had to possess him like you did the wolves." Shock said.

"Ah no, he has to, um, physically deposit his power within me." Raulin replied.

"You mean . . . with a non-sapient wolf?" Shock stuttered.

"Well, that first time seemed that way, but when we are, ah connected, we can share thoughts."

"Still you're having sex with animals." I pointed out.

"He is not! He is allowing me to mate with him. When I possess a wolf that wolf is me until I release it. In the centuries we've been together no harm has been done to those wolves or my mate."

"Centuries? I asked.

"Yes, every full moon for the last two hundred and twelve years. Turns out there is some basis between wolves and full moon myths. Any way that's why I seem young and healthy, Fenris sustains me."

"And the game?" I asked trying not to think about the animal thing, after all it wasn't all that different than when I and my mates had sex with each other in our animal forms.

"Oh, that was me. After watching your Mobile Armor System show I realized it might be possible to spend more actual physical time with my lover. Don't get me wrong what we have is good, but . . ." Fenris trailed off.

"But good doesn't cut it when you can have more." Raulin said, ruffling Fenris’ fur. “I turned our house, basically a large barn I had built around where he is bound, into a virtual reality game simulator. Nowhere near as advanced as what you have though, still it was enough to allow Fenris a connection to the virtual world."

"Then you got a job at the embassy where you could easily build a custom virtual world." Shock said.

"Right, but a couple of days ago something went wrong and Fenris was transferred completely into the game. When I logged in he was free in the game and able to physically interact with my avatar. Then you came along and I panicked. I need to get him out of the game by the end of the week or . . ."

"Mahan, when will Earth's moon appear full again?" I asked.

"In one week."

I nodded, "Fenris, you insist that you've changed."

"Yes, I've watched humanity fall several times, without my being part of it. As far as I'm concerned fate no longer has any power over me. All I want is to live with my mate."

"Tiger, why don't you take Raulin and set up a room for him, and maybe Fenris. I'd like a little time alone to speak with my slave." Wolf said.

"Fenris, do you swear on your Godhood and the life of your mate you will not attack, control, or in any way harm my mates." I demanded.

"In swear it."

I nodded, "Come on everyone, you heard Wolf, He wants a little alone time with his new slave."

"You're not going to hurt him, are you?" Raulin asked.

"No, I just want to talk with him in private. You have nothing to worry about."

Even with Fenris' promise I'd have insisted on staying if not for Reaper insisting the only one in danger was the Great Wolf.

***