Chapter 22: One Week Before Expedition

"What the literal shit are you reading?" Theo asked his roommate while trying to sip on his coffee. The book sleeve was titled "The History of Warfare", but Theo knew that tome was supposed to be twice the size of the actual one Mike was reading from. Whatever he was reading, it seemed to captivate his attention, so he definitely slipped the wrong sleeve over the cover to prevent anyone from noticing.

"None of your business," he replied while turning the page.

Sighing to himself, Theo took out the small trinket he found on his bed that morning. The dark purple coin was smooth on both sides, warm to the touch, and displayed a pattern of runes when he strobed the edges with his thumb. The sigil cast was a perfect blend of technology and mystical art, a tool designed to harness small spectral images that could only be viewed by the gifted owner.

They were often exchanged as romantic gifts, mostly by young women to whoever drew their fancy, and were fairly easy to acquire. The campus convenience stores sold them in abundance, and they were fairly easy to use, even for one not gifted with magic. He wondered when Lorelei had acquired it, but she definitely hadn't recorded anything until that morning.

Theo had never received one before, but seeing it on his bed that morning, he had a pretty good idea where it came from. The sigil cast registered him immediately, and glowed with several moving images that had him sprinting to the bathroom to relieve himself almost immediately.

Lorelei's spectral visage was mostly unclothed, and her shifting posture left little to the imagination. He found himself unwilling to part with it, and it had pretty much become his good luck charm.

"I can't believe she left you that!" Mike's voice was jittery with excitement, although there was an undertone of concern. For the first time he was able to move his arm freely, and was happy to no longer need a brace. He did, however, seem disturbed by the fact that an obsessed girl had slept in Theo's bed, only to leave him to sleep on his desk with just a single holo image as reparations. "The least she could've done was put out for you, or let you sleep in your own bed for that matter. Leaving behind something like that is such a tease."

Theo ignored the comment, trying to enjoy his coffee. He fiddled with the small coin that Lorelei had left him, before putting it back in his coat pocket. He wanted to enjoy his drink but found it tasted not very good. The coffee was more sour than usual, the beans likely from an older storage facility, which meant there was likely an issue with the cocoa plants harvested in the underground garden districts.

Inside the promenade, Theo and Mike had chosen a couch near the glass paned wall, and watched the pitter-patter of acid raindrops running down its surface. Overhead, television screens were playing a series of news reports, soap operas, and even ground ball tournaments from last season. All of that seemed dull, compared to the magical currents billowing outside.

Theo looked toward the crimson colored clouds in the distance. For the first time, viewing from this high up, he had yet to see a single tornado or spiral shape of wind churning the scenery. This quiet ambience wouldn't last long, the lapse in the storms would only last a few weeks. The slopes of mountain cliffs could be seen in the far reaches, which were usually overshadowed. It only seemed to confirm that the world was much grander than it seemed.

"You should listen to yourself sometime," Theo leaned back in his seat. "I worry about you."

Mike ignored the jest, adjusting in his seat and glancing away from whatever book he was reading.

"Seriously what's on it?" He asked.

Theo smirked, "You'll never know."

His phone vibrated in his coat pocket before Mike could pry any further. Pulling it out, Theo looked at the message, his brow arched. The message was encrypted with a cypher key. Using an app given to him by Victor, the message re-synced, and he saw it was from Konrad's accomplice, Monica. He read the message, and a smile formed on his lips.

"Looks like the expedition is finally settled. We depart next week."

"Cool cool," Mike sighed. "You sure you really want to do this?"

"Of course!" Theo hesitated, noticing Mike's less-than-excited tone. "Wait, aren't you coming with?"

Mike mulled on that for a moment. "I guess, but only if you promise not to get me sucked up a vortex."

"No promises," Theo grinned. "Have you gotten your gear yet?"

"I guess I better head that way now." Reluctantly, Mike slammed his book shut and threw it in his bag. Rising up from the couch, the taller man rubbed the back of his neck while grabbing his stuff.

Theo didn't get up, electing to stay behind and watch the clouds a bit longer. "Fun fun, don't forget to grab Marci."

"Oh I won't. Just hope the weather stays like this a while longer." Mike pointed out the window, his eyes barely noticing the tiny cracks in the corner of the large pane of glass.

Theo chewed his inner lip, running calculations in his head. These lulls lasted anywhere from two to three weeks. Should be plenty of time.

Alone with his thoughts, he looked up to the sky, wondering if he would be able to see the stars clearly once beyond the wall. The lack of storms might mean the skies would be just clear enough to see them. Thinking about that, his fingers continued to rub the small trinket in his pocket.

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"Voxsturm is dying. You know that right?" Konrad's voice was brimming with a magical flavor. Once again the human was testing her resistance, gaging whether he could, through the power of his suggestive magics, bend her to his will.

Lorelei had to admit, he was rather skilled, but each syllable acted as a barb, making it painful to resist, which coincidentally, made it even easier to tell it was magic manipulation, rather than her own innate desires.

He didn't want her to do anything salacious, merely offer him a curtsy, or perhaps, let him stroke her tail. She felt an unnatural need to curl up alongside him, something she never wanted to do before, and by resisting such urges, tiny jabs of pressure could be felt behind her eyes.

Keeping her focus, Lorelei stood silently in front of him. Her tail was fixed in the air, barely moving, as she glared back and forth between the man, and the wolfkin alongside him.

Cassie was perched against her long barreled rifle, her arms and legs crossed around it as if it were a precious treasure, or some long lost lover. She eyed the Succubus warily, her ears pointed toward her.

Konrad continued, "It's too degraded for continued stability. Too many sycophants crammed in too small a space. Too much knowledge has been lost, and too many wars have broken down our wards. It won't be long, without rediscovery, before Voxsturm collapses. It may already be doomed…"

He let that sink in the air, letting Lorelei digest that for a moment. In truth, Lorelei knew better than to trust everything he said. And besides, Marci's studies on ward magics were far more optimistic than this older man had to suggest.

Lorelei didn't say anything, merely remained standing while keeping her composure. There was a pang in her gut as she felt him draw back his magic, deciding not to test her any further.

"Some believe its Redever influence that's solely responsible for why the wards are weakening." Judging by his voice, Konrad didn't believe it himself, but seemed to enjoy watching her reaction to the proclamation.

"So the wards are weakening…" Lorelei spoke for the first time. Damn! She hadn't meant to speak, and feared her careless slip of the tongue might've been drawn from a more subtle version of his manipulation abilities.

Konrad nodded, leaning back in his chair. "The Kaiser, and his merry band of pushovers, aren't admitting anything, but the signs are clearly there to see."

Lorelei tensed, weighing each word carefully in her mind before speaking again.

"So why did you want to speak to me," Lorelei stammered, wanting to finish this conversation quickly. She didn't like spending any more time in the Darling Blossom than was necessary. She didn't like all the disapproving glances the workers gave her. They had done a lot of work fixing the damaged floor, and while the previous incident wasn't her fault, they clearly considered her a major cause.

"I see that you've had Allucia recently," Konrad dodged her question.

Lorelei's cheeks burned. "What!"

"I can see your veins pulsing, and their practically glowing purple."

Lorelei looked down, the blouse of her school uniform was always designed in such a way that it would expose a healthy amount of cleavage, and she could make out several spiderweb patterned veins surging with a dull purple color beneath her pink flesh. She cursed again to herself. She hoped the aftereffects would've gone away by now.

"What of it?" Lorelei eyed him accusingly.

"Nothing, just thought it was fun to mention." Konrad withdrew a long cigar from a hidden coat pocket, cut one end of it, and reached for a lighter.

Lorelei's fingers tingled. Each lungful of air suddenly tasted bitter, and she grew self conscious about the warmth of infused blood rushing through her veins. She hoped whatever was left of the Allucia would fully go away before too much longer.

"I thought you should know, Theo's mother has yet to learn of you." Mentioning that bitch made Lorelei's heart freeze. "I was wondering if threatening to inform her about you stalking her son might be enough to encourage you to join the expedition. But…I see that it's not necessary. Is it?" He took a long draw from his cigar upon finishing his statement.

Lorelei made her mind up then, she really didn't like this guy. "Your threats are unwarranted."

"Good," Konrad motioned for Cassie to retrieve something. The wolfkin sat her rifle down, its newly polished surface reflected the amber lamplight, and retrieved a large crate hidden behind Konrad's chair. She carried it slowly to Lorelei, and sat it in front of her.

"Damn that's heavy," Cassie breathed, before returning to Konrad's side.

Lorelei raised a brow, and opened the crate to see what was inside. She was surprised to find a grand assortment of gear, including a full set of body armor tailored to her measurements. The under layer sleeve was even modified to house her tail portion.

"The depots around here don't typically carry anything for Redevers, so I took the liberty of acquiring some stuff for you," Konrad smiled.

"Thanks…I guess." She pulled out one of the bodysuits that was to be worn underneath the hard plastic plates. It felt almost like latex, but she could feel the tiny fine hair layers of microfibre wiring coating the material. It gave off a static discharge as she rubbed her fingers against it. This was a 'false-nerve sleeve', something she had never actually seen before, and far more advanced than the bodysuits she had been given in the Redever army.

"How did you get my measurements?" She asked him curiously.

Konrad took another long draw from his cigar before answering. "I had to make some guesses. Monica helped, she has a knack for these sort of things. The under-sleeve doesn't have to be exact, its the armor plating that's more important."

"Is that all then?" Lorelei appreciated the effort, but still wanted to get out of here as soon as possible.

Konrad smirked, clearly interested in poking her senses a bit more, but choosing to restrain himself. "I'm just glad you will be joining our little party."

"Whatever," Lorelei picked up the crate, rather easily in fact, and took that as her queue to leave. She strode out of the room, ignoring the cool stare the wolfkin was giving her, and scurried from the Darling Blossom's basement as quickly as she could.

The crate wasn't difficult for her to carry, although Lorelei found herself holding it just beneath her breasts, rather than pressing it firmly against her chest. Her heavy bossoms rested on the lid as she returned to campus grounds, and with her arms pressing them together, Lorelei realized this might be the kind of pose Theo would like to see.

What am I thinking? Lorelei nearly tripped over herself, letting her mind wander to weird places.

As soon as she was within eye sight of the dormitory, her phone pinged. Carefully, she laid the crate on the sidewalk, letting her shoulders rest for a bit, and checked to see who was messaging her.

Seeing Marci's icon light up the screen, Lorelei rolled her eyes before reading the message.

Apparently, Theo was in her room…and wanted to talk to her.

Lorelei dropped the phone, her stomach clenching, and she nearly fainted on the sidewalk in broad daylight.