Chapter 16:
What is Needed
Unsurprisingly given the dangers that lost-tech posed, Kavanaugh’s lessons became part of their daily routine. And they all soon learned that fear really was the correct response in the vast majority of cases.
As the instructor told them again and again: fear makes you cautious and caution keeps you alive.
Baron’s fit of pique didn’t last long as he wasn’t one to let his emotions govern his behaviour, at least that’s how he told it. So after an awkward exchange of apologies between him and Nameless they were able to work together well enough, but neither one of them much cared for the other so it wasn’t something they relished.
To the young prodigy, Nameless was an anomaly. In his mind he was unqualified to be at the academy, even with the extraordinary collection of monster girls at his side.
Whereas Nameless resented being judged by someone who didn’t even know him, though he was also forced to admit to some insecurity.
Just as he had revealed to Ophelia, a large part of him felt that Baron was right about his qualifications.
Despite Nameless’s intense desire to avoid further drama, it had a knack for finding him.
Such was the case as he was leaving one of Kavanaugh’s lessons a few days after his confrontation with Baron.
“Boy! Er, Cadet Armstrong!”
He looked up to see Aegis Booker sitting on a bench waiting for him, and though he internally sighed at being called ‘boy’ by the older man, he stood at attention as his superior stood and approached.
Booker’s cheek twitched as he glared at a gawking Ginger nearby until she took the hint and left, then he gestured for Nameless to sit.
“At ease Cadet. I’m here on personal business.”
“Yes sir?”
“You know that my girl, that my Juni, was badly burned some years ago?”
Nameless frowned in thought for a moment, remembering the story.
“Yeah, I heard about it when we were searching for Volka. She’s afraid of fire right?”
Booker snorted.
“Bit of an understatement. I’ve lost count of the number of times Yana and I woke up soaking wet because Juni was trying to put out flames that weren’t there.”
Nameless winced at the unpleasant thought.
“I’m sorry, what can I do to help?”
Booker crossed his arms, looking more than a little uncomfortable to be asking for aid from someone junior to him in so many ways.
“I don’t know, it’s only gotten worse with Yana gone, I would ask Sadie but…”
“But her powers are still sketchy.” Nameless nodded with a slight frown; “Honestly I don’t know if I can help or not. I’d like to speak to Sadie first, she still knows so much more than me about this kind of stuff.”
Booker gave him a long look with his good eye, before gruffly patting him on the shoulder.
“I know how busy you are as a cadet, I’ll speak to Aegis Bloom, find you some time.”
Nameless shifted in place uncomfortably as he imagined Baron’s reaction to him getting time off of class for ‘personal business’.
“Actually sir, if it’s all the same, I’d rather take care of it on my own time.”
The older man’s mouth twisted into a frown as he considered the source of Nameless’s discomfort.
He barked out a gruff laugh once he thought he had figured it.
“No special treatment eh?”
“If that is alright with you sir.”
Booker shrugged.
“Fine. She’s staying with Tiana and the others. Don’t take too long eh?”
“I won’t sir.” Nameless nodded earnestly.
Taking Booker’s words to heart, he sought out the Lady Essig once all of his lessons were done that day, walking into Garland with Nina and Milly.
They were the only two of his girls whose heartstones were currently attached to his person so it wasn’t as if he could leave them behind.
Whenever Nameless found himself in Divinity Square he felt a surge of complicated emotions.
At an unspoken thought, the three of them altered their course to stand before the statue of the Aegis and the last Valkyrie and share a moment of silent reverence in memory of the Amazon who gave her life for him.
The pain of Kar’s death, the fear he felt at Evadne’s wrath, and the joy he later realized at Volka’s rebirth, were all tangled into a confusing knot.
To their right, the greenery that had sprung up from the concentration of Dryad magic was still in bloom, the chill of winter’s grip nowhere near enough to lessen the vibrant life of the place.
It was a fitting monument to Kar’s memory, and it helped him shake off his melancholy and turn back to the tasks of the living.
It was the first time that he had sought out the older Empath instead of the other way around, but she had given him a standing invitation to do so.
Not wanting to crowd Sadie and her Dragon, Milly and Nina stopped at a favorite bakery in the square while he went up to see the Empath in the Bastion.
He had a while to think on the many concerns on his mind as he rode one of the levitator cars up to the very top of the towering structure where she lived with her Dragon.
Once inside Sadie clasped his hands in both of hers and greeted him warmly.
“Nameless it is good to see you again my friend.”
“Good to see you to Sadie, er, Lady Essig.” His eyes flicked to Xalanth for one quick moment.
The Dragon offered a small nod from her place beside the white-haired woman as her bond-mate waved away his concern.
“It’s always Sadie to my friends Nameless, now come and sit with me.” She gestured for him to take a seat while she took her own; “Not that we don’t appreciate the company, but I take it that this is something more than a simple social call?”
He did as she asked, watching as Xalanth took up position behind Sadie’s chair.
In Nameless’s experience the Dragon was never far from her lady and he wondered at what it must have taken the older Empath to get used to the powerful monster’s intensity, her glowing green eyes never failed to unsettle him.
But then he reflected back on all of the times Nina had shown her true power and he had to admit that if he could get used to being around a Gigas...
He looked back to his hostess as she poured him a cup of tea.
“That obvious huh?”
She chuckled as she leaned back into her chair, her own freshly filled cup now in hand.
“Let’s just say that there are more than two generations between us and leave it at that. You have a very open face, when you aren’t on your guard anyways, and I have been reading people for a very long time.”
Nameless took a sip of his tea before explaining the reason for his visit.
She let out a heavy sigh when he had finished.
“Poor dear girl. I had hoped to help her myself, after it happened, but my strength was exhausted by then.”
“Has that... improved at all?”
She shook her head sadly.
“No. At least, not exactly. I am not as world weary as I was, the time I spent on that lovely farm with Mister Fletcher and his adorable Cockatrices rejuvenated me in many ways. But as for my powers... it’s like a muscle that has been overused and is now weak and shaky, I am barely able to peer into another’s mind now. Except with my Dragon here.”
She threw a loving look towards Xalanth, eternally watching over her.
“My Lady is always welcome in my thoughts.”
“And you in mine, my love, but we are getting off topic. As for Juni, you cannot simply enter her mind and confront her fears for her, she must do that herself or the trauma will return the moment you leave.” Sadie smiled when she saw Nameless nodding, already having figured that out for himself; “What you can do is enter her mind and perhaps show her that there is nothing to be afraid of. That can be a bit tricky as it depends on the fear, and I’ll admit it isn’t something I’ve done often. Honestly I think your Valkyrie would be a better source of information in this regard!”
He felt a little foolish at that point for not going to Volka first, but decided not to say anything about it.
“It sounds much like how I’ve helped Tenebrae in the past, but I wanted to check in with you to be sure. Thank you Sadie, I’ll talk to Volka. Together I’m sure we can help Juni.”
He finished his tea and stood to leave, but she extended a hand to stop him.
“A moment please, there is actually something I have been wanting to discuss with you since you returned from the wilds, though I’ve struggled with finding the right time to bring it up.”
Surprised, Nameless took his seat again, though he frowned slightly at the pensive expression on Sadie’s face.
“Do you remember once, when we spoke about Xalanth, or rather, Dragons in general? About how they see their bond-mates?”
He took a moment to recall the conversation before nodding, waiting for her to continue.
She took a sip from her cup, her inscrutable eyes watching him as he reflexively reached for his, forgetting for a moment that it was empty.
“Nameless, one of us needs to have children, human children. And I’m afraid that is simply impossible for me.”
His arm froze in the midst of retrieving the cup.
The Dragon loomed large behind her bond-mate as she placed one massive claw on either of the small woman’s shoulders.
“If any human ever tried to spread their seed to my lady...” She growled out before spending a few moments considering something dark and terrible; “I will never allow it, not even to save the world. She is my lady, and no other’s.”
“Right.” Nameless’s words were a bit strained; “So... I n-need to have kids. Why, exactly?”
Sadie patted Xalanth’s clawed hands reassuringly.
“Because, aside from Jonathan, we are very likely the last Empaths. And from what Volka has said, any child you father will have a one in three chance of being born an Empath as well. The world needs more of us Nameless.”
He drew in a shaky breath as he felt the weight of what she was asking of him settle on his shoulders.
“Wow.”
She offered him a sympathetic look.
“I know it is a lot to consider. As I said, I’ve struggled to find the right time to bring it up. There always seems to be more pressing concerns, but that is all the more reason for us to take precautions now.”
There was a serious struggle going on in his head as he strove to keep his emotions in check, not wanting his girls to pick up on the heavy burden the other Empath was laying on their bond-mate, especially after all of the other heavy stuff they had so recently been dealing with.
Then a bit of humour found him.
“So, is there a line of women on the other side of the door or...”
Xalanth let out a rumbling laugh while Sadie grimaced.
“No, I would never be so crass! I just wanted to make sure that you were fully aware of the situation so that you and your family could, ah, ‘take steps’ as it were.” She finished delicately.
“Yeah, steps towards the nearest bedroom.” His fingers fiddled with Volka’s feather in agitation.
Sadie’s cheeks turned a bit pink at his words while Xalanth’s laughter continued.
“It isn’t like that! Nameless please, this is serious!”
“Oh I know. I am fully aware of how serious it is. But I don’t think you are.”
The Dragon’s mirth finally abated and along with her lady she looked to the suddenly dour faced young man.
Sadie lips twisted to one side as her brow furrowed.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean you aren’t the one who has to tell five possessive women that you need to go out and do the deed with who knows how many other women.” He ran his hand through his hair again: “I mean, we sort of just dealt with some stuff with Milly. And she had a hard time accepting Nina at first, and Nina! I have no idea what she will think of this!”
He left out the part about them considering Escrya, deciding that he wasn’t quite ready for anyone else to know.
There was a long silence as he mulled things over, until eventually Sadie shifted forwards in her seat with one eyebrow raised quizzically.
“And, the others?”
He snorted.
“The others are more pragmatic. Ophelia won’t like it, but she’ll understand, Erica will want to watch, if not join in, and Volka has no doubt been thinking the same thing as you since we pulled her out of the desert.”
He stood up abruptly.
“This isn’t something that needs to happen today is it? Because we’re going to need some time. And just to be clear, if any of my bond-mates aren’t okay with this, then neither am I. As Xalanth said, not even to save the world.”
Sadie stood as well, the Dragon’s claws falling from her shoulders.
“Of course, I understand. I won’t bother you with this again, I know how busy you are.”
He gave her a quick nod and turned to leave.
“Oh and Nameless.”
He looked back over his shoulder to see her smiling at him, along with Xalanth.
“I greatly admire you for your choice to join in the fight. Good luck with your training, Aegis.”
Not sure how to respond, he offered a pained smile and an awkward nod before leaving.
Xalanth’s own smile fell into a frown once the door clicked closed.
“You did not tell him of the Troglodyte.” The Dragon observed.
Sadie let out a particularly unladylike yawn and shook her head.
“We’ll tell him if we can ever find her. I don’t want to get his hopes up over what may turn out to be nothing but a rumour. He has enough on his plate.”
“My lady, always so wise.” Xalanth rumbled, her eyes hooded and a familiar heat in her tone.
But dark thoughts made Sadie miss the cues her Dragon was giving her.
“Am I?” She sighed; “He blames himself for Jonathan, when he should blame me for not seeing the darkness in him ages ago.”
Xalanth growled at the unwanted response to her amorous overtures.
“You both need to place the blame where it belongs.” It was clear from the anger in her voice that she was referring to Evadne, but it faded quickly as her mighty claws palmed Sadie’s breasts and she spoke huskily into her ear; “But there are better things to dwell on right now, are there not?”
Sadie chuckled as she leaned back into her bond-mate’s embrace.
“Such a feisty Dragon! is it going to be one of those days then?”
__________
A short while later Nameless and his girls were in the corner of the common room of the dormitories, sharing the sweets Nina and Milly had brought back from the bakery.
After taking a few deep breaths to gather his thoughts, and his courage, he broached the subject with his bond-mates.
“Look girls, I have something I need to talk to you about, something really important.”
Erica and Milly were sharing the comfy sofa, the Katje on top of the Minotaur, grooming her sister’s hair with her rasping tongue.
Her purring stopped for a moment as she spoke.
“You wanna talk about how you need to stick it to some human women so the Empaths don’t die out?”
She gave the sleepy Minotaur’s hair one last lick before taking in his startled expression.
“Oh please, you aren’t that good at controlling your emotions, that and Volka explained it pretty clearly.”
“Right...” He replied uncertainly.
Once Erica hopped out of her lap, Milly stood and stretched with a yawn, then looked at him with hooded eyes.
“We don’t have a lot of space back home, so I hope you aren’t planning on anything permanent.” She said simply.
“No! I mean, I haven’t planned anything at all!”
She nodded her acceptance.
“Okay.”
His shock at Milly’s reaction was plain, so Ophelia took pity on him, the Flutterby setting the last of their teacups to dry beside the sink in the little kitchen before turning to join them.
“Dearheart, it’s like Erica said, Volka already explained everything, some time ago actually. So we’ve already had this conversation.”
“But... I haven’t!”
“No, but you’re a horny little fucker. You get the easy job. The rest of us have to watch.” Nina observed.
His indignation evaporated at the giant’s dark words and he looked to her with pleading eyes.
“Nina, I wouldn’t, I mean I couldn’t-”
Volka placed her arm around his shoulders from beside him, interrupting his sputtering.
“But you will. Because you very recently told Ophelia that you wanted to do more.”
He looked to her, seeking the wisdom of the ancient angel’s golden eyes.
Instead he got a pie to the face.
An actual pie.
It was blueberry, with copious amounts of whipped cream, one of the ones Nina had brought back from the bakery.
Volka held it in place for a moment, her arm on his shoulders keeping him from escaping as she well and truly mashed the still-warm pastry into his astonished visage.
“And now Husband, our position has been made clear. All joking aside, I know this isn’t a small task that is being asked of you, but it is quite possibly the single most important thing you will do in your lifetime, even more so than stopping Jonathan and Evadne’s machinations. We need more Empaths, and we also need to go to bed. It is quite late and I understand we are all training with Kavanaugh again in the morning.”
She gave his shoulder one last squeeze before leaving him to set the ruined desert on the counter in the kitchen and join the others as they filtered out of the room.
He pressed a finger to one nostril and shot a blueberry out of his nose with a burst of air.
“You owe me a pie.” Nina grouched over her shoulder as she left.
Because of the cream and mushed berries in his eyes, Nameless couldn’t tell if the tiny red Gigas was talking to him or Volka.
He was pretty sure it was him though.
“Wow.” A familiar voice said behind him.
He turned and squinted at Ginger who had a look of wonder on her face.
“Dude. Your life is complicated.”
Internally he cursed at their carelessness in having such a private conversation in the public room, externally though he pretended not to know what she meant as he sat on the plush sofa and took up a napkin to clear the pastry from his face.
But since when did the redhead need input from someone else to carry on a conversation?
“I mean, an Empath, wow. That explains why you have so many bond-mates! Honestly I kind of thought you people were just a myth!”
He tried to play it off, this time with a snort of derision at her phrasing.
“‘You people?’ I’m not a people. I’m just a guy with blueberries up his nose.”
Impatiently she waved a hand at him as he went back to wiping at his face.
“And a guy who can read monster girl minds!”
“I don’t- fuck! I don’t read minds!”
She was taken aback by the uncharacteristic curse, finally getting a sense of his irritation as she carefully sat next to him.
He gave her a measuring look before resigning himself to offering something of an explanation.
“I feel their emotions, and please keep it to yourself. It’s not something we advertise.”
She tapped her chin as she mulled over his words.
“Wait, so... Is it kind of like how Celeste always knows when I’m pissed off, or horny, or have gas?” She drew in a sharp breath as realization struck and caused her to leap back to her feet; “That’s why the Aegis recruited you! Even though you’re shit at math and built like my little cousin!”
He ground his teeth together as he cleared the last of the pie from his face with the now sodden napkin.
“I volunteered. No one recruited me.”
But she wasn’t really listening at that point, pacing excitedly as she worked through the numerous implications of his gift.
“Holy crap, no wonder you’re so good with monster girls! Even that little Gigas of yours must be just putty in your hands!”
“You’re playing with fire calling her little.” He remarked drily.
After several weeks of living across the hall from her, he had learned that conversations with an excited Ginger very quickly became conversations between an excited Ginger and herself. So he took the opportunity to go and wash his face properly at the sink.
“And that explains why everywhere you go Amazons are all over you! And the new security team, with the crazy feathers and stuff! But I mean, I kind of thought that was because of Volka, and hey! Is she the one that shrunk my green bra? Not cool man! That was one of Celeste’s favorites!”
“She draws the line at messing with people’s underwear.” He lied absently.
With his face now clean, he frowned as he became aware of the state of his shirt; Volka had been very thorough in her pie mashing and he was more than a little concerned about blueberry stains on the uniform.
Without a second thought he pulled it over his head.
He heard an odd strangled noise from behind him; evidently Ginger took notice when he began to disrobe.
“Holy shit!” She exclaimed, her attention now riveted on his naked back; “How did you get those scars?!”
His hands paused, holding the balled up shirt over the sink.
Slowly he turned around, meeting her wide-eyed stare.
Milly’s previous owner had struck him across the chin and chest with a whip, but it was the scars from Evadne’s attempt on his life that the excitably redhead was referring to.
Despite the painful memories, the look on her face had him fighting not to smile: the poor girl was waiting on bated breath for his response.
Then he had a wicked idea and put it into action without a second thought.
“Being bonded to a Gigas... comes at great personal cost.” He said grimly.
Her hands flew up to cover her mouth as it fell open and he abruptly left the room without giving her any further explanation.
Wanting to get the shirt to the laundry before it stained he rounded the corner a bit too quickly and ran right into Baron.
“Shit, sorry Baron.” He mumbled.
The last thing he needed was another argument with his fellow cadet.
But rather than the long-suffering sigh or eye-roll that he was expecting, Baron merely looked him over, his eyes speculative as he turned to one side to let Nameless pass without any grief.
“Thanks.” The orphan mumbled.
Inwardly he was concerned that perhaps he could have been more circumspect in his brief conversation with Ginger.