TO BARE YOURSELF, DARLING~

Milo slept like the dead. No dreams, just a peaceful rest that he had sorely missed. When he finally awoke, he had no sense of how much time had passed. Faith had told him he could set the screen on his wall to display Earth time, but because of how light traveled through space, it wouldn't feel right to him. (Another thing to adjust to…)

As he lay there, stretching out, he noticed a weight on his left side. At first, he thought he was having some sort of episode. (Don't they say pain in your left side means a heart attack? I'm a little overweight, but I didn't think I was that bad…)

He rolled over onto his side and found himself face-to-face with Lucianna, the Pirate Queen. Every muscle in his neck seized. Breath hitched in his chest.

The captain of the Herald snuggled against his left arm. Her lips slightly parted, her chest steadily lifted and fell. So close and so warm, Milo's stomach tightened and grew hot. He gulped. (T-this is the second time…what's her deal?) He remembered when she had brought him back to his apartment. She had been the very first person, let alone a member of the opposite sex, to step foot into his apartment besides his former landlord.

He breathed deeply through his nose. That perfume, the spicy cinnamon and sweet apple, made his pulse quicken. (She's too close! At this rate, I'm going to…I gotta get away!)

Carefully, Milo tried to extract his left arm from under her. But as he did, his arm brushed against her chest. A thrill ran down his spine and exploded in his thighs. (N-no! Don't get distracted! Gotta get outta here before…)

Lucianna groaned. "Mmmm, you naughty boy…"

Milo froze. Her eyes were still closed. (Sleep-talking?)

Lucianna wrapped her left arm around Milo and pulled him in, shoving his face right into her heavenly valley.

(N-NO! THIS WAY TOO CLOSE!)

Her warmth enveloped him as she pressed the rest of her body against him. The aroma of an apple orchard came to mind as she wrapped one of her legs around his waist.

It was then Milo realized something.

Normally, Lucianna would wear her suit and cloak.

But here, in Milo's bed, with his face crammed between her breasts, Lucianna's velvety bare skin caressed his face.

(S-she's naked! She's naked in my bed! How did she even get here?! Does she have access to all the rooms?)

He steeled himself to extract his body from this indecent predicament, when Lucianna sighed.

"Darling~ Be mine forever…"

Her gentle snoring resonated in his face. Something about it helped him to calm down. The fire in the lower half of his body raged on. But after hearing how content Lucianna sounded, he dared not move.

(I…I guess this isn't so bad.)

Eventually, he drifted off to the rhythm of Lucianna's heartbeat.

***

Lucianna had vanished before he awoke.

Milo breathed a sigh of relief. Yet a pang of sadness struck him. He shook his head and rose from the bed.

He had to figure out the shower, which he immediately made use of after waking up. All he could think of was how close he'd been to her. How she'd been completely naked. A shiver ran up his spine, and goosebumps rose on his forearms.

He'd just finished suiting up when Tereine knocked on his door.

"Aye, newbie!" She gave him a wave. "You're gonna help me this morning while Albany cooks breakfast!"

"Sounds good! What're we going to do?"

"Well, the training room is a mess right now. Aye, we need to get it fixed up."

Milo followed her to the training room.

She pushed along a giant, floating cube made of steel. Several large hoses, each with its own handle, lay coiled on hooks attached to the cube's exterior.

Tereine smiled at Milo.

"Aye, bet you have nothing like this on Earth!" She patted the machine. "This is standard-issue on most ships! Leaves any space looking brand new!"

Milo ran his fingers along the cool steel. "Even the damage in the training room?"

"Especially that! This model has a few adjustments, thanks to our resident tech whiz! Faith really makes our lives so much easier."

"I'd say!"

Tereine pushed the floating machine into the training room. Milo gawked at the large indent in the wall where Rivra had crashed. He could still feel the immense power Lucianna had focused through him. Such a thrill to be humming with that much power! Though it somehow paled compared to the thrill of the previous night.

Tereine waved a hand in his face. "Aye, bridge to Milo! Come in!"

He shook his head. "S-sorry! I didn't sleep the greatest last night." That had been a lie. But he wasn't about to reveal his overnight guest.

She tilted her head, a playful grin teasing her lips. "Oh? Is it because you were dreaming of the captain?"

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. Tereine laughed.

"Aye, I'm joking! But I swear, you couldn't hide your feelings about her if you were threatened!"

Milo waved his hand. "C-can we just move on?!"

***

It didn't take them long to put the training room back in order. The cube had been a miraculous tool, able to dispose of debris and waste, but also able to recycle certain materials and use them to mend the dents in the wall. (If only vacuums on Earth could do that!)

They'd just finished putting the last weight machine back in place when the doors whooshed open. Rivra walked in, sporting sported quite a different outfit from her usual armored top and legs. Instead, she opted for a tight-fitting one-piece. Even covered up, Rivra's abs poked through the thin material.

"Good morning," Rivra said.

"Aye, morning."

Rivra turned her head toward Milo. "Since you're here, little man." She gestured to the weight machines. "There's no better time than the present. Let's begin honing your body to match that fighting spirit of yours."

Milo coughed. (Fighting spirit? Me? I'm the opposite of that. And why does she sound…excited? Should I be scared?)

Tereine patted Milo on the shoulder. "Aye, good luck to you. Can't say I'm jealous!"

She pushed the cube toward the training room doors.

"W-wait! What about cleaning?"

"You can help me later, if you want. But…" Her eyes flicked to Rivra, and she grinned. "You got your plate full, aye?"

Rivra began stretching herself out. "Come, little man!"

Gulping, Milo slunk his way over to Rivra.

"Stretch with me. And just because I can't see, doesn't mean I won't be able to tell if you're not giving it your all! So don't half-ass it!"

(So intense. But…at least she's acting friendlier with me. I think.)

They went through a few stretches, with Milo doing his best to mimic Rivra's motions. A lot of the stretches were like ones he'd learned the few times he'd gone to the gym. But it'd been a while, and some of his stretches weren't quite up-to-par when compared to Rivra. Every pull, every stretch seemed calculated and thought out. She never seemed inconvenienced or troubled by any of the stretches.

Meanwhile, beads of sweat already broke out on Milo's brow. (How many stretches are we going to do?! Don't kill me before the actual workout!)

"Okay," Rivra said. "Let's head over to the machines."

There were two sets of machines: one set of machines Milo could easily sit on and work out. Obviously, the other set would only accommodate Rivra and her massive frame. Everything about the machines was much, much larger than a regular weight machine. From the bench to the weights, Milo wondered if he'd feel like Alice in Wonderland if he sat on one of those machines.

"The machines are paired by exercise," Rivra said. "We'll trade off work outs. I'll do a set, then you'll do a set. I'll spot you. Obviously, I don't expect you to spot me. But watch my form and try to copy it."

Milo gulped. Rivra went first, and she kept stacking the weight onto her machine. She put so much on, Milo thought there'd be no way she could lift it.

But Rivra did thirty-five shoulder presses without breaking rhythm. She didn't even sweat, and Milo's arms tingled and ached just from watching her. (Oh boy, I hope she doesn't expect me to do that much weight…I'll die!!!)

She stepped over her machine, rolling her shoulders. "There's nothing like a morning workout to get the blood flowing!" She lumbered over to Milo and his machine. "Okay, now let's see you do a set. Pick a weight you think you can do. But don't forget to challenge yourself! You won't get stronger if you pick the easiest weight every time."

Milo picked the third-to-lightest setting. It'd been a while since he worked out, and he didn't really know how much would be too much.

"Focus on your breathing," she said. "And don't worry about struggling. I'll help you if you need it."

Milo sure did struggle. Rivra had breezed through her thirty-five reps, but by his tenth rep, Milo's arms were already shaking. (Am I really so weak?!) He moved to rack the weight, but Rivra clicked her tongue.

"Keep going."

"Huh?!"

"Push yourself beyond. You'll never get stronger if you can't push yourself past exhaustion."

"That sounds extremely unhealthy."

"You must keep pushing."

Milo huffed and picked up the weight again. The brief pause had given him some extra stamina, but, after a few more reps, his arms were trembling again. Sweat rolled down his face and greased his palms. He tried to adjust his grip. (I swear…I'm gonna…)

The bar slipped from his hands, and he wrenched his eyes shut, bracing for the impact.

Rivra caught the bar, and as if it were a paperweight, set it back on the rack with one hand. She grunted.

"We have much work to do. Let's keep going."

(Keep…going?!)

***

The next hour proved to be one of the most grueling hours Milo had ever experienced. Machine after machine, Rivra made each exercise look so easy, all the while maxing out the weight on each machine. Milo barely survived each machine at the lightest weights.

Rivra wiped her brow, glistening with fresh sweat.

"These weights are hardly a challenge anymore. I'm looking forward to having Faith upgrade them again. Of course, we'll need to find the resources." She grinned. "I will say, having found you, it will certainly make some things easier."

Milo, heaving breath, sweat staining his pits and chest, looked up at her through the bangs stuck to his face. "O-oh yeah?"

She planted a hand on her hip. "You sound tired. Albany should be done with breakfast soon. Shall we call it quits for now?"

(OH THANK GOD!!!)

Milo stood from his machine and stumbled. The world spun as he toppled over. (Too tired to protect my head…)

Only a few feet short of clubbing his head against a barbell, Milo stopped suddenly, suspended in the air. Rivra's giant hands formed a cage around his midsection, and she carefully pulled him back onto his feet.

"You're quite out of shape."

"Thanks. I hadn't noticed."

"Are you okay with walking?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm—"

As soon as Rivra let him go, Milo stumbled again, his shaky legs betraying him as his face darted straight into something solid. He wrapped his hands around something as thick as a tree trunk, his hands grabbing onto something firm, yet soft at the same time.

"Ahem."

Milo looked up at the towering frame of Rivra. He barely came to her waist. His left hand gripped her inner thigh, while his other clung to her rear. (OH MY GOD! SHE'S GOING TO KILL ME! I'M AS GOOD AS DEAD!!!)

But he couldn't move. His body felt so heavy. Every muscle trembled from their workout.

Rivra reached a hand down. Milo closed his eyes and braced for death.

Her hand patted his head. He opened his eyes and looked up at her. There was a certain look on her face, one that reminded him of a doting mother, or older sister.

"Come, let's get cleaned up."

She reached down and lifted him into her arms. Milo yelped as she cradled him against one of her massive breasts. She handled him like he was a baby, so light and so fragile. (At least she's not trying to kill me, I guess.)

"You did well today. I'm sorry I pushed you so hard."

"Oh, uh, don't worry about it!"

Rivra carried him to a door that opened into a shower room. It was a completely open concept, with the showerheads forming a ring in the middle of the room.

(Wait. There are no stalls. No curtains. Hold on!!!)

She walked to a corner filled with stools and grabbed one with her free hand. After placing it down in the center, she set Milo down on the stool.

She then stripped naked right before Milo's eyes.