Technical Difficulties
So I'm apparently not dead....and I've been writing! I still do that?
"Please tell me you're not logging into that again."
Rowan's housemate, as always, chastises him about his new VR game he recently got. Rowan walks over to the coat rack, taking his sports jacket off, and shrugs his shoulders, shooting him the cocky grin that Rowan's so well-known for. "What can I say, Chace? I worked my shift today, went out, had some fun with the folks, and now I just wanna unwind." Rowan walks over to his computer setup: a real monstrosity, a desk filled to the brim with wires, buttons, and external devices. His computer screen is actually bolted to the wall, due to the size of it being so huge, the weight would likely topple his desk. Underneath said desk is a ChromoS-Tech computer core, loaded with top-end graphics and neural processors. Topping it all off is a multi-axis holo-sphere mouse, allowing movement in all cardinal directions with absolute ease and zero friction, and a comfy-looking black leather chair that Rowan flops into with luxury. The whole thing probably costs more than their own home, to which Rowan and Chace always go dutch with the bills whenever they arrive. Rowan proceeds to grab a headband covered in over a hundred small neural receptors. It fits snugly onto his head, atop his faded-Auburn hair; it is, after all, custom-made to fit him. "Besides," Rowan continues, "I work hard, don't I? I deserve a little R&R."
"Well, you can 'unwind' by doing lots of things. Reading, for one, or..." Chase looks plainly dumbfounded. He's used to his friend's quirks and fetishes by now, but all the while, they still end up confusing him to no end as to why, exactly, Rowan even seems to enjoy them. He stammers out, continuing, "...w-well, anything else at all! Don't you do anything normal?"
"This is normal for me, bud," Rowan sharply replies, as a holographic HUD flashes across his emerald eyes. "I don't expect you to understand it, but I do expect just a little bit of time to myself, okay?" The display flashes the usual rules into Rowan's face, as a female-sounding AI voice reads them out. Sometimes, he really wishes there was a skip function to this.
WARNING: This simulation may contain situations within it that are not suitable for players under the age of 21, including, but are not limited to: graphic violence, explicit nudity, use of mind-altering substances, and potentially sexual imagery and scenarios. ChromoS Entertainment is not responsible fo-
"Yeah, yeah, just get on with it already."
The female AI responds in turn, almost in a sort of sarcastic tone. Interpreting response as "Yes." Please enjoy the game.
VR tech has been on the rise for years, back in the age of that archaic computer company and their fancy glasses, or that obsidian brick some screaming guy from Sweden wore on his face. It's never been a very new concept, the idea of transporting yourself to another reality entirely through technology. The tech's been there for years, but ever since ChromoS Industries first revolutionized the VR experience by creating the very first neural system that can perfectly emulate the virtual experience as a true reality, the technology immediately skyrocketed. Mainstream media ate up the new invention, and, while people were originally skeptic, when they saw the potential for new ideas using ChromoS' neural VR tech, the band wagon surged with new supporters and corporate backing. Now, everyone wants a piece of the pie. People hardly go out and talk with each other anymore, as VR tech has become so powerful, it feels just like the real thing. Best of all, it can still be completely attached from the world we know, and still feel just as realistic. The science is....iffy; even now, the public, not even news media, knows a lot about how ChromoS does their technology, how they make it work, but who can complain? It's something incredible to be in a frozen tundra one second, to be laying back on a hammock at the beach the next, all of it looking, feeling, Hell, _smelling _so lifelike.
ChromoS' entertainment division followed this up with creating a VR game, VARUS: Virtual Augmented Reality Universe Simulator, to test out the power of their new technology. The idea was for a social-style MMO, like the olden days: testing the human senses through peer-to-peer interaction, and seeing how the body reacts when put under the intense pressure of combat. It's part psych experiment, part training program. The game's a bit exclusive, to which, with Rowan's income, it was easy to get his own copy. Chase simply sighs, seeing Rowan heaped into his chair, his brain in another place entirely.
"Fuck it, I'm gonna go watch TV."
A sudden rush, feeling almost like a mist, envelops over Rowan's senses before he feels his feet hit the ground of the virtual landscape. Granted, though, they're not really his feet...they're more beastial, strong, and grip at the ground with unmatched traction. He opens his serpentine eyes to a group of people welcoming his arrival: the server usuals, all gathered around him to meet-and-greet.
"Hey, if it ain't the big man on the server himself!" Says one of them, a feline-looking player by the handle of LoveStormer.
"How you doin', ya' big, scaly beastie?" Adds a Scottish-sounding hawkman, going by, no surprise, Hawkins5. for obvious reasons, he goes by the nickname of Hawk.
VARUS was never meant for a lot of the things that happen in it. It was designed as a social experiment mixed with a combat program. But ChromoS also released VARUS with a special function: open-platform modding on a universal scale. If a player imagines it, it can be done in VARUS. So when a player came up with an in-shop item that allowed players to "Be a bit more wild," VARUS became a furry paradise, even if the folks who go beast aren't always furries. What's more is, since everything feels realistic, this invites players to...experiment, and be a little frisky. It's not even all that uncommon that you see two players fornicating at the city square, rules being against it be damned, which serves at the hub-point to players new and seasoned alike.
Rowan, or, as his username titles him, TheMightyR, was up for something new: he grabbed an 'Animosity,' as the shop titles it, and took on a rather fierce visage: a sleek, gray-scaled body, with a vicious jawline and large, sweeping horns. He's wearing his Tier-10 equipment, with an interlocked chest of graphite plates, and fingerless armguards with a deadly-spiked appearance. The most notable of his equipment is his dual Magnums and Scaleblade, both menacing in their appearance and weapon statistics. He smiles at the others as they fawn over him, laughing. "You guys really know how to make me feel awkward, huh?" He says lightheartedly, in his always-sarcastic tone.
"Well, you are one of the most well-known players on here!" Hawk answers, staring at a few more things than just R's gear, which makes him cock a brow. He catches R's glance, and pats him on the back, laughing. "Ahaha, don't be thinkin' that, laddie! I'm taken, anyhow."
R chuckles uncomfortably, before Stormer baps Hawk in the back of the head. "Quit psyching R out, we need to plan an itinerary." She pulls out her device, the same oval-shaped data storage that everyone gets in the game upon starting, and breaks open a map of the virtual world. "So I was thinking we do a few runs of the Underspire, hopefully snag some Ethereal gear to use and sell. What're your thoughts, R?"
"Hmm, was really hoping it'd be the Pyrewraith Nests." The guys groan audibly, and R faintly growls. "What! I need some more materials to boost my Scaleblade!"
"But you always be suggestin' the nests, R." Hawk adds, as LoveStormer sends out the invites. R's own oval device beep-beeps, and he quickly accepts the invite. Their team insignia flashes above his head for a brief moment before his friends' stats appear off to the side. Hawk continues, "And we always end up getting our arses handed to us 'cuz you're the only one wh'knows how to fight'em!"
"Oh come on, guys!" R begins to rebuttal. "How hard is it to damage both the wings, then climb onto the back to strike the spine? I mean, does that even sound hard?"
"D...do you even hear yourself right now?!" Stormer audibly mrowls in frustration. "You're so hard-headed, you know that?"
"If I wasn't, then I wouldn't be the lovable scamp that I am." R replies in a thick undertone of sarcasm, doing a silly pose. Stormer rolls her eyes, going back to going over the mission itinerary. "Well, why don't we ask your weird friend there?"
A silent, human figure, armed to the teeth in full-body armor, both sleek and intimidating in its appearance, recognizes R's acknowledgement of their presence. Stormer inquires, "Who, Damien? He, uh, I think he's a he? Well, he doesn't talk." The sound of Damien's long silence following after Stormer's question lends truth to that. "He just...follows us around. He seems helpful enough." She leans close to R's ear-nubs, whispering. "And between you and me, I'm terrified to tell him to leave."
"I would be too." R and Stormer break, then R addresses the whole team. "So before we do anything, any chance we can-"
R gets inturrupted by the blur and swooshing sound of the entry hub ushering in a new player. She appears female, dressed in a concealing blouse and simple jeans. Her red hair accentuates her well-proportioned body quite well. Overall she's rather unassuming, but is still quite the looker. She looks at R and his crew innocently, and with a large amount of fear in her eyes from looking at the odd rabble of people. "H-hey..I'm, uh, a bit new here."
R can hear Stormer purring in a very inviting way at seeing the newbie, and he gives her a judging stare. "What? I'm not picky." R bro-punches her in the shoulder, and walks over to the new person. Her user flashes above her head for a brief moment: TayTay. Odd name for an odd girl. The woman recoils at R's approach, walking back very quickly. Stormer sighs, "R, big lizards tend to scare the newbs."
R chuckles, looking a bit embarrassed. "Right, ah..." He takes a few steps back from the player, and the tenseness around her starts to dissipate, and Tay starts to look a bit more confident. R tries again, and extends his hand out in a friendly gesture. "I'm TheMightyR, and welcome to VARUS."
Tay takes his hand with some small reluctance, and marvels at his grip, and how his hand feels so foreign. "Th-thanks. I never thought I'd be shaking hands with...well, frankly, I'm just surprised I'm shaking hands with someone. This place feels so real..."
"It does take some getting used to, believe you me." R smiles earnestly at the confused and bewildered young woman, and continues. "So, you say this is your first time taking the plunge?"
"Y-yeah...I was wondering where I start from here." She looks around the city square in awe: even if it's not truly real, the sights and artificial smells of the city nearly overwhelm her. It's an incredible experience, and nearly sends the poor girl into sensory overload. She near feels like she's about to faint, until R gets a firm grip of her arm.
"Easy there, ma'am! First-timers aren't well-acclimated to this sort of stuff yet." R helps Tay get her bearings, then continues. "I wouldn't try to take in all the sights at once, or you could fry that little noggin like an egg over-easy." Tay giggles faintly, and R just shakes his head. "No, we're gonna take this slow. You wanna know what to do next? Follow me, I can give you a tour of the place. Consider it a friendly gesture from one player to another, to get you settled a bit quicker and easier."
Tay smiles, appreciating R's generosity. "Wow, thanks. I guess I could use a tour guide, this place confuses me.." As Tay gets herself balanced, R looks over at the others, giving them a thumbs-up. Stormer simply sighs, and taps her device to postpone the mission for later. After all, best to keep an eye on R. He's a kickass, alright, but he gets himself into trouble all too often. Never a smart thing to have around the newbies. R nods his head in thanks, and gestures for Tay to follow him and his friends.
"So, let's get you started out."
R and company come up to a large, ornate fountain in the center of the city. Surrounding it, foliage that looks almost photo-realistic sways beneath Tay's feet. She moves down to touch it, feeling how fragile it all is, and giggling in excitement and curiosity. To R, she almost looks like a little girl, left out to explore on her own for the very first time. He can't help but smile; she seems so innocent, he can nearly forget that she's, if her data's meant to be correct, at least 20. "Well, we may as well start where we stand. This is the city square." R begins, posing a bit on the side of the fountain to emphasize. Stormer simply rubs her face with her hand-paws, feeling rather embarrassed to be even near R right about now. Hawk is too busy trying to get Damien to even respond to care about what's happening, constantly poking his shoulder, with Damien's continued silence as rebuttal.
"This is where everyone gets their start. Whatever you plan to do, you'll always be coming back here for something." He gestures around to the many different building entrances and kiosks. "The stores are player-run, meaning their stock is always dynamic; you'll find not everyone's merch is the same on a day-to-day basis. There're also buildings for training in stuff ranging from combat, to shop ownership, you name it."
"Wow. That's, uh.." Tay begins, looking slightly unnerved, "a bit overwhelming."
"Oh, don't sweat it. I'll take you through the paces, one-by-one." R replies with confidence in his voice. "I can bet you anything, after this, you'll know your way around this place like the best of 'em. Like me!" He puffs his chest out, and Stormer simply shoves him into the fountain. Tay giggles in the most adorable way, while R doesn't look very amused at all.
"Moving on then..."
After showing Tay the housing market and job board, R and crew take her into a large, steel catwalk, overseeing an intricate, arena-like area underneath them. R is the first to speak. "And here's my favorite place of all: the training complex!"
Tay feels a bit nervous, seeing the many deadly-looking devices strewn around the arena. "Uh, h-how does it work, R?"
R walks over, moving his scaly hands across some of the levers and dials. "Basically, this is where players hone how they fight; it's got thousands of built-in scenarios and presets, with even some player-made ones thrown in to spice things up." He pats Tay in the arm, "Want to give it a go?"
"Uh, I....guess so." She responds, very hesitantly.
"Excellent. I'll set some basic presets." Some few more levers and the such later, and R walks over to a metal bunker of sorts. "This here's the armory. Let's set you up with something your speed." As R is just about to open the door in, he can hear some faint slapping of hips inside, along with a low, whorish moan. A blush grows underneath his scaled face before stepping away from the door.
"Okay, ah, let's avoid going into the armory today."
"Why's that then, lad?" Hawk asks.
"No reason."
"FUCKING FUCK ME!" A voice screams from inside.
"Uh, working controls now!" R quickly walks over to the dashboard, setting up his custom presets. Tay giggles at how flustered he looks, but her expression quickly turns to curiosity as he, instead, goes into the designated training area, to the excitement of his friends.
"You guys look eager." Tay states observantly.
"Aye, this is gon' be good!" Hawk says, pressing his beak close to the glass, ignoring the sign not to. "He ain't TheMightyR for nothin', watchin' him fight's somethin' to behold."
"Yeah, I'll admit. He's a hotshot, an egotist, whatever fuck else you wanna call it," Stormer adds, setting her sniper to the side, "but he sure knows his shit in a scrap."
Tay's interest is piqued. She's not big on watching people fight, but the way the rest of them seem so glued to him, the way he moves with such confidence and stride, she can't help but see what happens next. As for R, he unsheathes his scaleblade, a faint shimmer flowing across its intricate design before he spins it into a proper combat pose. And then, it begins.
A blade whirs to life as one of the drones go online, heading straight for R. He ducks and moves his body in ways you wouldn't expect, before making a clean hit at its center, disabling it. Another 3 spring into action, as does the floor itself! It contorts into a hazardous zone of various traps, pitfalls, and the like. R moves across the arena floor with extreme focus and care, as he strikes down the blade drones. It's quite the spectacle, with the faces on his friends being evidence to that. Tay can't help but stare as well, seeing that sort of supreme skill.
"He's amazing!" Tay says in excitement.
"He's a showoff," LoveStormer adds, watching with a smirk on her face. "He's gonna burn himself out.."
Ducking and dodging, and the difficulty gets even harder. More drones appear, and sentries activate, taking aim at R. In one quick motion, he tosses the blade towards his tail, gripping it like a third arm, as his hands take wield of his twin magnums. His gaze looks less focused now, and much, much more fierce. In a flurry of dancing blades and bullets, both his and the drones', he shoots down the drones, one by one, knocking away the razor edges and moving out of the way, ever-so-grazing closely to the sharp threats. Minutes pass by in this nirvana of war, until all of the drones heap onto the floor, and R stands triumphant....before slumping over, exhausted. Tay runs in to help pick him up, with Hawk and company helping out.
"Called it." Stormer states smugly.
"I'll take th'legs, lass," Hawk says to Tay, "you an' Stormer take an arm each."
R comes to, sitting on a bench outside the market stalls. Tay rests on his shoulder next to him. "I see you're awake, Mr. Tour Guide."
R shakes his head, forcing himself back to focus. "Th-that I am."
"Aww." Tay says, giggling. "And here, I was already comfy."
"I can see that." R says, faintly laughing. "How long was I out?"
"I dunno," Tay replies, shrugging. "I don't have a watch."
"I..." R is about to tell her she doesn't need one, but decides it's best to leave it be. "Uh...where's everyone else?"
"Somewhere in the market. They were expecting you to be out for a long time." Tay rolls off of R's shoulder, stretching. "Speaking of, care to show me around?"
"Someone's eager." R pulls himself up, a slight shake before he's ready to go. "Alright then, let's walk and talk."
The two walk together past stall after stall, selling wide varieties of oddities and the sort. Tay's quite enraptured by all the strange and interesting items on display. R casually walks through, glossing over what's to be seen. "So yeah, these are the market stalls. You'd be hard-pressed to think of anything that's not for sale here somewhere."
"So then," Tay inquires, walking past a stall selling spangly dresses that look straight out of a science fiction movie, "it's like a flea market?"
"Of sorts, but you're not far off the idea." R waves to someone manning a booth, selling something called Bro-Go. _Tay's not even sure she _wants to know what that is. "Of course, it isn't just exclusive to random junk and its likeness. You can find some valuable things here, ranging from the unique to the expensive."
"Wait, I don't get it." Tay states, clearly confused. "If you guys can make whatever you want, why buy it? Why not just make it yourselves?"
"That's an excellent question, but not really that simple." R admires Tay's interest. "See, making things here requires some precursor materials, everything does. The more complex, the more materials needed." He stops at a booth covered in metal scraps, and continues to speak as he peruses. "Some player-made items are given a lock, depending on consent of its owner, meaning only certain people who have permission can make and trade that item." R stops as he notes a dark shred of metal scrap, and pays the vendor a small credit chit. "Here you go, s'been a pleasure." His currency appears briefly as the transaction is underway. Tay whistles. 7 digits. R's loaded.
"So, what is it you just bought, anyway?" She asks. "It looks like scrapyard junk."
"Ah, this is a graphite shard. It's what my chestplate's made out of." He beats his hand into the unwavering armor piece. "Didn't think it was just my iron pecs, did ya'?"
"Hmm, maybe." Tay replies, giggling. This merits a faint chuckle from the dragon-man.
"Cute. Say, I noticed you were pretty content on my shoulder while I was out."
"I thought you could use the company. 'sides, why would I walk off from my cute tour guide?"
"Oh, so I'm cute now?" R prods, grinning from ear-nub to ear-nub. "I thought you were scared of mean, vicious ol' me earlier."
Tay blushes, looking down and feeling rather bashful about herself. "D-did I say 'cute?' W-well, I..."
The two find themselves at the end of this market row. Only other way is the one they came from. R leans against the wall, smiling genuinely. "Y'know, if you've got something you wanna say, you can-"
"Well heeeey!" A voice from behind Tay says. R gets a good look, and he doesn't like what he sees.
"Oh shit..."
A rather fancily-clad man sporting a Beretta at his waist walks up, greeting the two. His blond, regal hair and hazel eyes accent his smug grin, which, even for those who don't know him, would make you want to immediately punch him, as it screams "Cocky son of a bitch." His username flashes above his head for a second, reading Zephyrus. "How you been doing, pal?"
R groans, "What do you want, Syphilis?"
"Aww, is that any way to treat a friend?" Zeph replies in heaping sarcasm. "I simply wanted to say hello to an old buddy, is all!"
Tay backs up cautiously, talking to R over her shoulder. "Who is this clown?"
"Some asswipe who's got a stigma for me," R mutters back, "I beat him to a big pay, he's resented me since."
"How big?" Tay asks.
"How do you think I have all this money?"
"Okay, that big." She answers for herself.
Zeph fake-coughs to grab the two's attention. "I'm still here."
"And we certainly enjoy that fact, Zeph." R answers in his own thick sarcasm. "You're just such great company, like a rabid honey badger..."
"You're too kind, scaly." The amount of shared disdain between these two is enough to cut butter, and Tay knows it, trying not to get into the argument. Zephyrus looks Tay up-and-down approvingly, and smirks. "Who's the broad?"
"Dude." R states aggressively.
"What, just a question." Zephyrus says with a shit-eating grin. "I mean, if you're tapping that, you can be honest and-"
*"DUDE." * R repeats, even angrier. Tay decides that perhaps it was best to cut the conversation short, before the two men do something they'll regret.
"I'm one of the new players. R was just in the middle of showing me around the place." She says calmly, walking between them to avoid a confrontation. "I'm sorry to break this, uh...reunion short, but we were just about to go see the rest of the market."
"Who, with this freak?" Zeph laughs. "Come on, Rowan, buddy, you're preying on the new girls now?"
"Fuck you, Seth!" R barks out, a low snarl following close. Tay's starting to believe this rivalry's about a lot more than a paycheck...
Zeph, somehow making his shit-eating grin that much more shit-eating, enjoys how well he's pushing R's buttons. "Wohohoah, so hostile." He directs his attention to Tay, pointing in R's direction. "See, this guy's just a mess. I can show you a real good time."
R's had just about enough of Zephyrus at this point. He moves aggressively towards him, with Tay trying but doing little to hold him back. "You're gonna want to turn the fuck around and walk away. Now."
"Or what?" Zeph defiantly inquires. "You're going to scowl at me to death?"
R gets incredibly close, his serpentine eyes narrowing. "How's ripping your stupid damn face off and have you watch as I reduce the rest of you to fucking bitcode sound?"
"Tough talk, ya' fucking komodo." Zeph's shit-eating grin turns to a violent expression to match, which somehow still retains the shit-eating quality in full force. "Okay, how's this then: I break out a duel drone, we duke it out. Winner takes the girl."
R looks absolutely appalled at this point. "Tay is not a fucking trophy, you piece of shit!" He shouts, hand reaching towards one of his magnums. The stall vendors nearby know things are about to escalate, and quietly make distance away from the feuding players. "I will fucking degen you right here and now!"
"Degen?" Tay asks in obligatory fashion.
"Player death. One-and-done, sweetheart." Zeph answers. "And oooh, am I so scared! The lizard's gonna use his over-sized peashooter on me!"
"You know not to test me, Seth." R menacingly punctuates the sentence with a chambering _click _of the magnum in-hand.
"Then fuck the girl. You. And me."
"And when I win, you'll leave us alone?" R asks.
"Hmm, depends," comes Zeph's reply. "If you win."
"When. I. Win." R repeats, clenching his fists.
"Look, Rowan, right?" Tay says to R as he and Zeph square off. "You've got nothing to prove to this guy." She says with a disappointed glance in the blonde's direction. "Let's just catch up with the others, and leave this jerk to blow steam."
Zeph laughs, ruffling Tay's hair. "Look, doll, let the men discuss this." He pulls out a small drone, walking back to let it hover between him and R. "You just sit there and look pretty for when I win, alright?"
Okay, that tears it. Tay pats R on the shoulder, shooting him a knowing nod. "Kick his teeth in for me."
"Can do." He replies, as the drone counts down.
3
The two walk a short distance from each other, R laying down ground rules. "Standard dueling rules; we fight until someone submits. No harming civs, no degenning, no dirty tricks. I can trust you to do that for a least a few seconds, right?" glancing back at Zeph.
2
A barrier spreads out around the two, acting as both a defensive measure for spectators and a mark of boundaries for the duel. The cocky blonde gives R an unusually friendly smile. "Of course. I'm not _that _much of an asshole."
1
Tay backs up behind one of the market stalls, other people brave or stupid enough to watch nearby looking on at the approaching fight. She could swear, she saw Zeph cross his fingers behind his back...
Begin.
At the sound of the drone, R draws his magnums out with a trained speed and steadiness, holding them akimbo before firing...or at least, they should be firing. He tries it again, hearing a click from the weapons. He knows they're loaded...and as Zeph slowly turns around, in no hurry to react or even fire, and the barrier dims to the point that no one outside can see or even hear what's going on inside, red flags start to wave in the back of his head, and a creeping fear runs across his face.
"This is a private duel drone..." R states observantly.
"'No dirty tricks.'" Zeph repeats ominously, drawing his Beretta. "At least, none that they can see.."
Before Zeph gets a steady shot out, R leaps behind a stall, dropping a magnum in the confusion, his leg getting nicked by one of the bullets. That...that hurt! R looks over his wound, and notices the bullets went clean through. Zephyrus isn't using regular ammo; it's some sort of piercing round! Zeph continues to pepper the stand, laughing almost psychotically. "I'm gonna wipe you off the server, Rowan. And the best part? That your friends, that stupid girl, everyone won't even know." The clip empties, and Zeph reaches for another. "They'll think you shirked off in defeat, never to show your face again. And you'll never even be able to tell them otherwise."
"What the fuck is wrong with you!?" R shouts from behind the stand. "Why this drastic!"
"Are you fucking _blind, _Rowan? Those people? They _adore _you. Everyone just loves your fucking guts, thinks you some kind of hotshot, and what about me?!" He shouts, loading another clip into his pistol and firing it off. "You fucked me over, Rowan, when you ripped me off from that pay! Everything just got so much better for you from there, and here I am, trying to actually make a name for myself!"
One of the bullets punches through the reinforced stand, R just nearly grazing it. "You _knew _what the contract called for, Seth; only _one of us _was gonna get that chit!"
"It should have been me," Zeph replies coldly, a dangerous glint in his eye. "And you're gonna get to fucking pay for it with your blood."
Seth's gone too far this time. R quickly pulls out his data slab, as Zeph empties another round into the stall. His entire slab is shut down, weapons, items, not even the ability to disconnect or forfeit the duel. _He must've re-coded that fucking drone! _He thinks to himself.
A shot breaks one of the supports on the stall, sending it toppling over onto him! Now trapped under wood and rubble, Zeph slowly approaches towards his downed foe. R clambers out of the debris, towards the other stall. and brainstorms. Think, Rowan, better time than any to dupe this fucker. He comes up with an idea, and curls up, shouting in pain and "nursing over" his wound. "Oh Christ, my-my fucking leg! I can't walk!"
It's at this point Zeph looms over the counter, the loud click of the chambering mechanism marking a full round at the ready. "Don't sweat it, Rowan, I've got just the medicine for it..."
R then swings himself up over the counter, launching himelf into Zephyrus before he can react and knocking the pistol from his hands in the process. Not exactly graceful, but it did the trick. He composes himself fast, and beats Zeph to the pistol by wrapping it into his tail, staring his opponent down as the muscled limb snaps the weapon in two.
"God damn it!" Zeph shouts angrily. "Do you know how much it takes to make and repair those!?"
R cracks his knuckles, smirking. "It'll take a lot more to fix your fucking face when I'm through with it." Zeph hurriedly looks for his kinetic knuckle-dusters on his belt, and R, just as quickly, swats his hand away. The dragonoid pulls the gloves from his hands, and lowers into a defensive stance, staring his rival down. "We settle this, Seth. Like men."
Zeph, with a sigh, nods with R's decision. "Fine. Like men." He drops down into his own much more aggressive stance, the two now squaring off. The real fight begins.
Zephyrus charges in with a haymaker, R shifting his weight to duck under it, bringing himself around for the counter. His backhand connects with Zeph's head, and sends him reeling. The blonde brawler recovers quick, dropping stance to go for the leg sweep, with R just barely jumping it in time, but his balance is horribly compromised for it. Zeph takes advantage of this by simultaneously punching R in the chest and jaw, both strikes hurting way _more than he anticipated! What're those gloves lined with, flex-plate!? He hasn't the time to contemplate as Zeph continues his vicious assault, a flurry of punches and kicks across R's whole entire body, most specifically in the leg Zeph had shot earlier. In his haste, however, Zeph forgot about R's tail, which with a hasty duck, he spins himself and grips his tail around Zeph's leg, unnatural strength bringing him to sling the scrawny blonde into one of the vendor stands. Unfortunately for Zeph, this particular one was rather sturdy...so instead of a rubble of wood to cushion his fall, as much as that would be, he instead is treated to a loud and painful _phwam! against the stall. R, wearily, turns to face the now-pinned Zephyrus, and his hand finds a death grip on the human's neck.
R looks Zehpyrus in the face, finally returning Zeph's shit-eating grin full-circle. "After all your dirty tricks, this should _be the part where I cave your skull in and degen you. But I'm feeling particularly nice today, places to go as you might know, so I'll only say it once." He leans in close, the dark void of his serpentine eyes promising death without compliance. "_Yield." The dragon-man says menacingly.
Even in certain loss, Zeph is resilient. "F-fuck...y-you.."
R Sends an elbow drop into Zeph's chest, growling angrily. "Don't make me repeat myself."
The blonde cries out in pain, nodding faintly with R's words. "Fucking fine, I-I yield." The nearby drone recognizes the admitting of defeat, and the dome around them starts to flicker and dim. Confused people, vendors, and spectators alike are lined around the barrier, curious as to what had transpired inside.
Match over. Victory, by enemy submission, goes to: TheMightyR
Dozens of folks cheer over the results, and Tay bursts over and hugs the tired figure in glee. R lets out a pained wince, to which Tay quickly composes herself and gets off of him. "S-sorry...hey, you look-"
"Like I got kicked in the face?" R answers for her, jokingly.
"Y-yeah...eheh..." Tay rubs the back of her neck, thinking about things. She gets down and supports R on his bad leg, starting to walk away with him. "So I'm guessing I'll have to guide my tour guide, heh?" She giggles.
Before any response is made, a shot rings out, striking R in the side of the neck. The resulting pain and shock sends him limp, his data slab dropping to his side, blaring out in a hue of red and white.
WARNING: PLAYER CONDITION CRITICAL. DEGENERATION IMMINENT.** MEDICAL ATTENTION REQUIRED.**
Doe-eyed panic comes from Tay as she tries to stop the bleeding in R's neck. "R-Rowan! ROWAN!"
From behind them, a shaky Zephyrus stands, wielding the magnum R dropped before. His hand shakes like a leaf, trying ever-so-hard to get a focused shot out. "N-next one's...going right between the eyes.." None of the other spectators are armed, either humble vendors or passing players; none of them are equipped or brave enough to stop this madness. Tay looks him in the eyes, and a fierce anger she hasn't shown before kicks in, charging for him and head-butting him in the chest. It doesn't do much but stagger him, though, as he tosses Tay to the side. "Get...the fuck out of my way..." But just as Zeph is about to fire on the incapacitated R,
he freezes.
His entire body refuses to move, himself in a sort of stasis. He struggles around, but not a single muscle refuses to budge. A feminine voice, distinctively British, sounds out from the crowd. "That is quite enough from you, wouldn't you agree?"
The figure the voice is coming from is, by all surprises...Damien! The armor-clad human walks up, with Stormer and Hawkins having just arrived with her. Hawk, out of everyone, looks the most surprised. "Holy shite, it talks!"
The armored woman sighs, pulling her helmet off and tossing it to the side. The raven-haired woman stares down Hawk with ocean eyes, then turning to Stormer. "Love, how do you even put up with this wanker? It was everything of my patience not to deck him."
"Eh, he's kind of an acquired taste." Stormer replies humorously, and with a shrug. Her attention immediately turns towards R, flat on the ground and in great pain, and the frozen Zephyrus. She sighs, "You leave that heap of scales alone for a minute..." Then looking back to Zeph. "And I see this twat's still around. Didn't he get banned, like, twice?"
"Damien" motions a hand toward R, and he vanishes in a haze of code. Tay's in a panic, but the armor-clad raveness smiles calmly. "It's fine, I sent your 'tour guide' over to the medbay. They've got trained hands there, they'll know what to do with him."
Tay sighs in relief, looking the savior in the eyes. "Who...even are you, exactly?"
"Damien" rolls her eyes, pointing at her user as it dissipates into a new one altogether: HeavensDevil. The people around her mutter in shock and surprise.
"It's a mod!" "Guys, act natural." "What's she doing here?"
Hawk, completely ignoring the idea she's a moderator, is more interested in her name. "Oooooh! Like Hell's Angel, but...like..well, y'know, it's the-"
"Please...just...shut the fock up." Devil says to Hawk, as Tay's curiosity is sated. Her attention is then drawn to the frozen Zeph, a fury dancing in her eyes. Tay stomps over, her small form clenching with the opportunity to give Zeph exactly what he deserves, Devil simply shrugging her shoulders as Tay punches the immobile player in the face, the chest, and...some rather uncomfortable places.
Stormer watches on, wide-eyed. "Are you...not even going to stop her?"
"If I wasn't enjoying the fock out of this, I would be." Devil replies, snickering wickedly.
Zeph doesn't even get the ability to speak or object to this treatment, merely grunt in pain as Tay takes her frustrations out on him. "You're...such an...asshole! A fucking...fucking...asshole...fuck you!"
"Alright, alright, he's had enough, sweetie." Devil moves Tay aside, then, herself, giving a swift punch to Zeph's chest. "At least until _I _get a swing." She looks over Zeph's immobile form, smirking. "At tut tut, Zephyrus, into trouble again, I see? Enjoy the Stasis Field? I'm certain the sensation's familiar, given I've dealt with you before..." He pulls out a data slab, tapping over it. "Ah, here we are. Zephyrus, A.K.A. Seth Bradford; banned twice before, in which both accounts were in regard to illegally re-coded equipment and shady dealings with other players." She looks over at the drone, squinting her eyes. "Seems third time's the charm, hmm?" She walks over to the drone, taking out a device that starts to extract data of the previous duel between Zeph and R. "Ahh...so you _are _the one who's been dealing out those rigged duel drones? And with multiple charges of attempted de-gen of a fellow player, my my...you're racking up a score today." She slides her slab back into her armor, looking to Zeph with a fierce, yet professional glint in her eyes. "You'll definitely be giving me a strong case back with the dev team for getting rid of you for good. Maybe now, I can convince them their repealing your bans...twice, wasn't quite the smartest move on their part."
Tay and company simply watch wordlessly, the moderator working through her duties before manipulating the stasis field to bring Zeph to an arms-behind-back stance, to which she restrains his arms and downs the field. Devil looks over at the discarded magnum to the ground, cocking a brow. "I'm sure your friend will want this back?" She says to the others. "And sorry about the distrust. I felt it would be smart to follow around your friend for a while, since he tends to be, well," she pulls Zeph up to make him stand straight, "a magnet for trouble, you could say."
"L-let me go!" Zeph shouts at her. "I demand I have someone come to my defense!"
"What, so you can drag them down with you, chap?" Devil asks in counter. "Apologies, but this isn't a police arrest. You get no attorney, we already have all the evidence we need. The re-coding on this drone is much like the last 2, clearly your signature." She pulls the drone down, packing it under her left arm as she escorts Zeph with the right. "You all take good care, give your scaly friend my best regards," she says to the trio, as she boots Zeph into moving. "Come on, let's move it."
Zeph thrashes around, yelling. "FUCK you! FUCK YOU ALL! I'LL FUCKI-"
Devil sighs, setting his mouth in a mini-stasis. "Pray, love, at least exit with some dignity to you." Carting away the offender, it leaves a crowd of confused people that wander off to get back to what they were doing, along with Tay looking to Stormer and Hawk with a mix of fear and relief.
"Stormer, where's the medlab from here?"
The soft hum of medical equipment abounds Rowan's ears as he wakes up. His visions, hazy, as he pulls himself to a sitting position. He pulls the covers off of himself; he's now wearing a patient's garb, along with some derma-patches on his neck and legs. He hates when they do that, the derma-patches are only designed for human skin. Contrasted against his black scales with the pale tan, they look like he has some sort of skin disease. But, better looking odd than being degenerated right now. He hears some knocking from the main door to his room, and he answers with "Come in."
The door swings open, splitting at the center and swiveling upwards, and in comes Tay, entering with her arms folded behind her, smiling gently. "Doctors said you recovered within the hour, so I thought I'd stop by and say hello."
R is rather surprised. He looks over Tay in curiosity, blinking. "Wait, you waited an entire hour out there just to see me?"
She nods gingerly, sitting down in the chair next to his medical bed, holding out the first hand: a bouquet. "Thought you might enjoy something to cheer you up from all that nonsense with that a...uh, j-jerk." She didn't want to come off as ill-tempered as she did after what had happened. R smiles calmly at the gesture, but shakes his head. "Not a flower person, I guess...here."
She gives him back the magnum he lost in the market, and his eyes widen. He looks lost in thought for a moment, then looks back at her, temperament in his eyes. "Keep it."
Tay's clearly confused from that response. "Hang on, what?"
"You keep it, it's yours." He gestures his head over to his equipment still sitting on a nearby possessions table. "I already have one, after all. And think of it as a welcoming gift to VARUS. And for being an awesome friend."
Tay's blushing at being mentioned as his friend, the young woman babbling. "B-but Rowa-I mean, R, I...I couldn't possibly take this, this is yours!" Tay exclaims, insisting on giving it back.
R once again shakes his head softly. "Not anymore it's not. Just keep it, alright?" He pleads her, a charming smile. "You'll never know when it'll come in use."
She looks at the well-polished weapon. Just looking at it, you can tell it's heavy: a steel-framed revolver, modeled just like those ancient weapons from back in the computer age. She's barely even able to hold it up with both her hands; just how does Rowan even carry one of these, let alone two!? With no proper place to put it, she loops it to the back of her pants. R chuckles, "And don't be afraid to call me Rowan, by the way. I'm not embarrassed by my name, after all." He hmms as he notes where she put the magnum, sighing. "I'll have to explain to you how to sort inventory later."
"Th-thanks...Rowan." Tay responds, still blushing. She gathers up the courage to ask him to accompany her, before he simply gets up on his own. She stares wide-eyed, "Careful! Don't hurt yourself!"
Rowan laughs hardily. "It's fine, Tay. Fully-recovered, remember?" He stretches about, doing silly poses and the like, before faking a strain. Rowan "limps" over to Tay's side, and wraps her arm in his. This makes her blush furiously, the courage she thought she had to speak dissipating immediately. Rowan smiles. "Well? Aren't you going to lead the poor, injured patient out the door?"
She giggles, her face red as a cherry. "Y-yeah...LoveStormer told me about this awesome spot just outside of the city." She looks down at her feet for a moment, trying to force the words from her throat. "D-do you wanna...go there?"
Rowan smiles knowingly. "I would love to go on a date, Tay." She nearly jumps out of her skin when he says it; is she really so easy to read?! Rowan responds by pulling her a bit closer, and her, in turn, melting into his arm.
"S-so we're going then?" She asks hesitantly.
It's reached nighttime on the server, the skies in a beautiful hue of dark blues and twinkling stars across the digital landscape. Tay and Rowan arrive at a small hill, overlooking the city square off in the far distance. Everything feels so...alive right now, at least in Tay's mind. The city's alight with beautiful scenery and colors, which she gets to look at alongside an....admittedly attractive beast-man. He looks at her in sympathetic, piercing eyes, sitting down with her beside him. He's wearing much more casual clothing for the occasion: a red muscle shirt (to which he shows off plenty of muscle) and a pair of brown cargo shorts. Rowan lays back, getting comfortable on the ground, the feel of the life-like grass underneath him being so inviting. "Th-this is the place," Tay says.
"It's a lovely spot, Tay. Stormer definitely knows her romantic scenery." He jokingly admires. Rowan looks a bit lost in thought, then begins to talk. "So, I guess we start at basics, get to know some things about each other." He pulls Tay over, and she lays down right beside him, looking up at the sky. The two rest flat, watching the stars pass by. "You already know my real name, it's Rowan. But I don't know yours." He implies the question, with a smile.
The woman rubs the back of her head. "M-my real name's Taylor. My friends, well...they always called me Taytay as a joke name back in school, but...the nickname just...sort of stuck," she answers, shrugging. "I mean, there're worse names to go by, I guess.."
Rowan pats her on the shoulder. "I think it's a great name. It's quirky, like yourself."
She giggles at the compliment. "Well aren't you a charmer?"
He leans over, his scaly muzzle leaving an awkward kiss on her cheek. It makes Taylor feel...strangely enticed. "You know, you don't have to be nervous. You're not gonna run me off or anything." Rowan tells her calmly.
"W-well, it's just...you're just so cool, Rowan!" She says almost yelling. "Y-you can fight, you're brave, you care about your friends, and I'm...well, I'm just-"
"A ditz?" He says, snickering. The comment makes her recoil, before he pulls her back. "Hey, I was joking...you're something special, Taylor." He says, looking dead at her, meaning in his voice and eyes. "You stuck around for me while I was on my...I guess deathbed? That's not the point."
Rowan pulls her even closer, wrapping an arm around her back, a sort of hug meets cuddle. "I don't think any other girl I've met on here would've stuck around like that. Hell, to be honest, a lot of the girls on here are nymphs; the second I wouldn't have just what they want, they'd leave." The comment makes Taylor smile a little. "I mean, Stormer's awesome, but she's a bit of a tomboy herself, so I guess that's why she's not so...off like the rest."
She giggles, "And what about Hawk?"
"He's Hawk," Rowan answers, deadpan. "There's no fucking explaining him."
Taylor laughs, wrapping an arm around Rowan's head, stroking one of his horns. It feels so real...she has an expression of sheer curiosity. "How do they do it?"
"Hmm?"
"I mean, how do they make, like...all of _this _happen?" She says, gesturing out to the city, the skies. "This feels too real to just be nothing at all..."
"The things that can trick a human brain are tough to comprehend." Rowan answers honestly. "Even I don't know how it works, and I have a major in computer tech." He ponders for a minute, giving it thought. "If I were to guess, it's how the tech plays with the brain and the nerves connecting it to the body; giving it senses of pain, touch, smell, things that may not be there, but feels like they are.."
"Okay, this is kind of giving me a headache," Taylor says bluntly. "S-sorry, I'm just not a big tech geek, it confuses me.."
Rowan nods, understanding, and the two simply lay back, quietly watching the starry sky. The two silently pull at each other, getting just a bit closer, more comfortable. Tay reaches for something she left in her pocket, Rowan looking over at it in curiosity. "What's that, Tay?"
"N-nothing." She answers, nervously.
"You know you can tell me..." Rowan tells her, sighing.
"Oh, fine...it was supposed to be a surprise." She pulls out a small pill, white with dozens of colorful streaks across it. Rowan knows what that is...it's an Animosity pill! He looks at Taylor in shock, and she feels uneasy. "L-look, I was asking Stormer about it, and she said she could get me one, so I...I asked her for one." She explains, frowning. "I..just wanted to look pretty for you."
Rowan frowns. Then he pulls her in close for another kiss; this time, on the lips. Taylor melts into the exotic feel, her tongue wrapping across his. He pulls back, breathlessly wording, "You're already beautiful." He sits himself up, catching his breath, and looking at the pill in her hand. "Are you even sure you want to take that? Didn't she tell you?"
"T-tell me what!?" Taylor asks in fear.
"Calm, calm. She never told you there's no reverter?" He shakes his head. Damnit, Love. He looks at Taylor, explaining slowly and calmly. "I actually never wanted to stay like this. When I heard about those silly little pills, and what they do, I thought I'd just try it for the fun of it." He tugs at his horns, proving that they are, in fact, really a part of him. "I didn't know, though, that the reverters they were talking about that came with it? They were no longer being made." He says, a very sad laugh coming from him. "So there I was, a big, scaly hardass, trying to ask for the reverter, and they _laughed _at me." He pulls at his gray, scaly hide, chuckling. "I'm actually glad; it feels pretty good, _I _feel pretty good."
"So, what you're saying is..."
"If you take it, you stay that way." He answers matter-of-factly.
Well, she can't fault Rowan on being blunt. She stares the pill over one last time. Curiosity overtakes her completely, and she caves in, swallowing the pill with little ado. "I...don't feel any different."
Rowan smiles. "Give it a second."
Taylor's stomach rumbles, and she feels very on-end, as if her whole body's being electrified. "Wh-what's going on?! I...I'm feeling dizzy!"
"Just focus, Tay. Think about what you want to be." He holds her hand tight, as he can feel her shaking like a leaf. "Keep calm, and think...close your eyes, and imagine something, then imagine yourself as that something. Imagine how it feels, how you'll feel. When you're certain, when you know what you want..."
Taylor feels strange now. The dizziness is slowly going away, as she closes her eyes and does what Rowan instructed. She thinks, slowly, focusing on just what she wants. She thinks about the pet wolf her father used to own...her fur was always so beautiful and silky, always feeling so...soft, alluring. And her eyes, they were always so calm and wise, as if she knew something her human companions didn't. She continues to think about it, a little bit more. It's only when Rowan's voice breaks her from this concentration that she comes to.
"...open your eyes."
Taylor does just that, and....she's just what she imagined! Her body is covered in a beautiful mix of soft browns and whites, her arms, legs, everything resembling human anatomy, but only to a small degree. She rubs her hand...paws...over her face, and her suspicions are true: her face is that of a wolf as well, her muzzle short and rounded, just like the very creature she imagined. Her chest is much more rounded-out, while still being subtle; all the same, though, that shirt she's wearing isn't doing a good job keeping it all in now. Two soft wolf tails swish behind her, her nearly entranced by the sight. Two tails? Did she imagine two of them? She must have. Rowan catches her confusion, smiling. "There's sometimes a defect. My feet are much more animal than I imagined, for example."
"It's....it's incredible." Taylor mutters, breathlessly. She feels winded, and yet while looking at Rowan...wanting. Needful.
Rowan notices the way she looks at him, and he's reasonably confused. "Tay, are you alright?"
She crawls into Rowan's lap, wrapping a clawed hand behind his head, her nuzzling closely into him. "I feel amazing..."
Taylor pushes Rowan back slowly, resting firm against the soft dirt, struggling against his date, who has a very focused, yet very feral, look in her eyes. Her expression is rather coquettish, as she finally finds a grip against the buttons of his pants. He looks her dead in the eyes, a cold stare making her stop short of her goal. "No."
The wolfess frowns, a slight whimper coming from her voice. "Wh-why not?"
"I'm sorry, but this doesn't feel right. We're-well, _you're _rushing this." He gently pushes her off him, dusting his back off.
"You can't tell me you don't want to, Rowan.." Tay answers, her hand pointing to the rising peak coming from his groin.
The scales on his face turn a dark red as he blushes. "I mean, it's just...I don't want to make Seth right."
Taylor sighs, resting back onto Rowan. "Is that what this is about?" Rowan doesn't look her in the eyes, and she grips one of his horns in her hand-paw, pulling his gaze back over to her. "You're a lot better than what he says about you. You know that..."
"Maybe...but not by much." Seems Rowan doesn't hold himself to very high regard.
Taylor rubs her hand across Rowan's shoulder, her smile very assuring. "Rowan, stop worrying about what that jerk thinks of you. Think about what _you _want right now, not what people're expecting out of you."
Rowan falls silent. For someone who was so shy, her words strike as nearly profound. He looks in her eyes, assessing her body...yes. He can't deny it. Her beautiful, sculpted figure. Her ocean-blue eyes; they have an almost...feral spark in them. He forms the answer in his head again: yes. He wants this just as much as she does. And he says just that.
"I....I want you."
She smiles, pushing Rowan back once again, him becoming much more compliant this time. She works at his cargo pants, unzipping them to his dark red, segmented member slipping free, right into her hand. She marvels at it, how warm, how..._real _it feels. She strokes it gently, with Rowan's breath catching. She strokes further, further along, feeling the lustful urge to lick the tip of it. She gets a good taste of his pre-cum, beaded off at the spear-like tip; it tastes faintly salty, almost like a warm, more viscous ketchup. Rowan growls, his muzzle grinning wide. He brings Taylor's new muzzle up to his own, and plants yet another long-drawn kiss. The way his lips curve across her feminine face feels heavenly, her canine tongue wrapping around his more draconian one, the two moaning and sighing in bliss. He rubs his shaft against her chest, sliding into the crevice left between her once-B-cup breasts, now D-cup, and her straining shirt. He breaks from the kiss with a bemused smile, as his claw so-easily undoes the buttons on Taylor's blouse. "Such a boring little piece of cloth. Heheh..."
His shaft pushes between her breasts, her sighing at the sensation. "H-how does it feel...s-so good..." She questions, as it slips even further through. Rowan's hands press against Taylor's breasts, pressing them into his warm, pulsing shaft, making her moan. Pulling it back out, there's a feature to his cock that she hadn't noticed before: a massive knot, right at the base of it. She swallows hard. He isn't actually going to use that, right? _She ponders it for only a second, and grins wildly. _Who am I kidding! I want it in me!
She re-positions herself, Rowan doing just as he did with the blouse, his claw running across the buttons, catching the zipper and slowly pulling it down. His tail wraps around Taylor's leg, the tip playfully pulling at her panties. She moans even louder this time, as the tip of his tail brushes against the blooming flower that is her canine pussy. The smell...to put it into words would be a disrespect. Taylor swivels her hips against the tip, her tongue lolling out from how good it feels. Rowan laughs at the blissed-out wolfess. "We aren't even fucking yet, and you look like you're gonna cum."
The wolfess adopts a bashful expression. "I-I'm sorry, this just...it feels so weird, and-" Rowan cuts her off with another kiss, his tongue drawing deep into her mouth, letting her savor the exotic tastes of his fleshy organ. He breaks off, leaving her breathless. "...s-so...right.." She wiggles her hips to entice Rowan into piercing her womanhood with his beastly shaft. How could he possibly deny such an adorable thing like her? He brings the tip of his tail away from her muff, and replacing it with another tip entirely: the one belonging to his dragon dick. He presses into her pussy lips, making her whimper in desire. He pushes just a bit harder, harder still...
Schlick!
His cock sails in without resistance, making Taylor cream herself just out of the very thought: she's about to get laid by a dragon! Well, not a real one...but the reality sinking in won't ruin her fun, no sir! He feels her already clamping around him like a vice, and he tries to laugh behind gritted teeth. "Slow down, sweetheart! You're getting a little ahead of yourself!"
She presses her hips hard into Rowan's, trying to drive out another orgasm while the high is still going. She grunts and moans, the sensation of such an inhuman appendage deep within her warm, pink depths making her devolve into the most base of desires. Eventually, she tires herself out, releasing her grip on Rowan's horns, and Rowan rolls the pair over, smiling calmly at Taylor. "Slow. The fuck. Down."
She whimpers, biting her lower lip, as she feels her body become pinned by the stronger male presence. "O-okay.." Rowan brings his hips forward, slowly, parting the needy wolfess' hips. Taylor's body shudders, limp and exhausted, but still craving that heady scent to shoot right into her body. He very gradually brings his hips to a faster and faster pace, the wet slapping of their love-making becoming all the more obvious. "O-OOOoooh, th-this feels...so...good!" Her loins quiver once again as she feels herself coming to a second wind, Rowan eagerly pushing harder into her as her claws dig into his scaled hide. He moans softly himself, Turning into a prolonged growl as he feels Taylor's body starting to give. He's at that edge, which clearly Taylor is at as well, considering she's now babbling. "F-fu-fuck me! I LOVE IT SO MUCH! I-c-cum in meeeee!"
Rowan's willpower finally breaks, and his whole body is clear to shudder, sending a thick wad of sperm straight into Taylor's digital avatar. When suddenly,
TheMightyR has lost connection to the server.
Silence.
What. The fuck. Tay sits there, breathlessly, as Rowan's avatar vanishes in a single blip. The shock fades into pure anger and frustration, as she gets off the ground and kicks a heap of digital dirt around. "Of ALL the times that-"
Rowan's vision goes blank. He shakes himself back into reality, the VR machine hooked up around him, his HUD screen blank. He hastily removes the helmet, and it appears that Chase pulled the power plug to his internet modem! Confusion turns to rage as he unhooks the helmet from his head, his body sweating and painfully stiff as he goes over to punch Chase in the chest. "WHAT THE FUCK, GUY?!"
Death stare upon him, Chase babbles out an explanation. "S-sorry, buddy! I saw you convulsing and freaking out in the VR setup! I thought it was electrocuting you, or you were going into a damn coma, or something!"
"I was in the *MIDDLE OF * something!" Rowan shouts, flailing his sweaty arms around almost cartoonishly.
"What could you have possibly bee-" Chase sees and smells the sweat coming off of Rowan, and the bulge coming from his sweat pants. "Of, for fuck sake, Matthews, really?!"
"I-it wasn't my fault!" Rowan says defensively. "She was just...so cute, and, I... *AARGH! * I don't know!" He flops onto his bed by the corner, grunting in frustration as he presses a button on the side of the bed, it immediately absorbing the sweat from him and drying him off via several micro-fans dotted across the hovering bed frame.
Chace winces, looking at his pissed roommate, not sure whether to chastise Rowan or apologize. So, logically, he does both. "Look, for whatever it's worth, Rowan, I'm sorry about that, but...seriously, what the fuck, man?"
"Just..." Rowan waves a hand off at Chase from the bed, flopped over on his face. "Get out, Chase. I gotta get some fucking sleep, or something..."
"Alright..." Chase walks out of the room, no other ado than to simply watch some more TV. As the doors slide shut, Rowan rolls over to clap his hands, the door auto-locking for the night, and the lights dimming. He sits there, with a massive headache, unsure of what to do.
Well, have _I _got some explaining to do tomorrow, or what?
Rowan decides some early-morning coffee would help wake up the senses. He takes the local tele-hub over to the commercial square of New Washington, walking the remaining blocks to reach the local cafe he goes to. After going inside, writing out a chit for the cashier (human, thankfully; automated employees tend to weird him out.) he prepares to go sit himself with his latte, before he notices a face nearby. A familiar one. Female. "T-Tay?"
The female figure, sitting at a booth, looks at Rowan in confusion. "Uh, have we met?"
Rowan's first reaction is to sit down at the booth with her, eyeballing her with a death grip on his latte. Within seconds, he's already alienated the woman opposite to his seat; must be a new record for him. "Uh-I-uh..."
"Do I need to call the cops?" Taylor says, her hand reaching for her pocket.
"No! I just...I'm..." Rowan stops for a second, taking a chance to focus. After a deep breath, he smiles. "Y'know, last night wasn't on purpose..."
"Pardon?" She asks?
"Y'know, the connection problem..."
Taylor looks at Rowan like he's lost his mind, before it dawns on her. He's..."Oh, my God." Her look of surprise fades into an amused smile. "You're a lot less...smooth in-person."
"Eheh, I get that sometimes..." He says, a blush sweeping his cheeks. The two sit there for a minute, not saying a word. It's a mix of awkward silence and contemplation, before Rowan breaks it:
"So...I guess we just...talk, right?