Chapter 612: A Brief Interlude (1/2)

Although it was fairly early when Sinfaya left the Turtle House, Nix felt mentally drained and decided a short nap would be the best way to solve that. A noise from the Master Bedroom told him that the house had at least one occupant. Since he told Raine to meet him here, he assumed the dhassi must be upstairs.

”Raine?” Nix called her name at the top of the stairs, entering the bedroom through the open doors. ”Oh...”

Raine stood next to a pile of clothes, a smile on her face as she reached for the towel she had placed on the bed. ”Going to freshen up a bit. I hurt myself while sparring. Could you help me?”

Nix didn't bother to hide his smirk; the Xai Clan leader was a horrible actress. Instead of asking who put her up to it, he decided to go with the flow. ”Is it bad? I should check it out.”

Raine moved purposefully slow while wrapping her towel around herself before extending a hand toward him. ”Not too bad, as long as we take care of it right away, I should recover.”

An hour later, she lay against him, her pale skin pressed against his. ”Nix?” Raine propped herself up on her elbows, a movement that exposed the pink tips of her breasts. ”We won't lose this fight... Right?”

Nix shook his head. ”I won't allow it. When this is done, we can all go back to our lives. Or do whatever we like.”

Raine smiled slightly, taking the opportunity to slide a leg over him. ”I'm expected to take over the Fir'Dhassi. Not just the Xai Clan, but all of the Clans.”

”Doesn't surprise me. Few things build unity like war.” Nix gripped her hips before rolling them both over. ”Since you decided on a second round, this time it's my way.”

Raine's pale features reddened slightly. ”Isn't this the third round?”

”Huh? That bit in the bathroom didn't count.” Nix gripped her wrists, pinning her to the soft mattress.

Raine laughed unexpectedly. ”You seemed to like it... Sorry if I bit y...”

”NIX!”

A familiar voice shouted from downstairs. Nix sighed heavily and rolled to the edge of the bed. ”Be down in a minute.”

”She did that on purpose.” Raine pulled herself upright, sitting with her arms crossed beneath her full breasts.

Nix dressed quickly, adjusting himself as best he could. ”It's my fault. I didn't expect her to finish so quickly. Del stays here most of the time.”

Raine frowned at Nix's retreating form. ”Del stays here most of the time,” she muttered under her breath. ”Of course she does, at least she's stuck in that cat form.”

Nix walked down the stairs two at a time, not having to fake a smile when he spotted Del near the door. ”You look great! I can see the difference.” The Artic Stalker form was a unique and elite life form. Somehow, she seemed more vibrant.

Del waited while Nix checked her out. She had already noted the changes in herself, but he found them right away, even a few she hadn't realized. Only fitting, since it had started as one of his animations. ”What's Raine doing upstairs?”

”Demonstrating a Fir'Dhassi mating ritual,” Nix said with a straight face. ”Very complex.”

”No, it isn't. The Fir'Dhassi squat in bushes like beasts in rut.” Del's blue eyes glanced at the stairwell before nudging his face with her soft nose.

Nix laughed loudly, pushing Del's head away when he straightened up. The sound of the shower started up just as he opened the fridge. ”You speaking from experience?”

”Maybe.”

Nix frowned at the empty fridge, with Hyai spending all of her time at the Ranch, the Turtle House was not stocked properly. ”Don't lie.”

”I am advancing quickly, it might not be long until I recover my Ain'Dhassi form.” Del walked toward the door, her good mood suddenly soured. ”Is she staying?”

”No. We're heading to the ranch for dinner. I'll return by later by myself.” Nix watched as the Stalker broke into an easy lope. Del preferred the meat of a fresh kill. He wondered how much of the Ain'Dhassi Ranger was still in there?

***********Authors Note*******

Three young women play the character of Bali in rotating shifts.

Mason Dixon: 22-year-old exotic dancer from Georgia. The best gamer of the three.

Yu Yan: An MIT graduate who became unemployed when her office building unexpectedly burnt to the ground. This happened again a few months later and she's been mostly unemployed since then. As expected, she is smart and very good with anything electronic.

Ray Diaz: The artist in the group. A talented tattoo artist with a penchant for conspiracy theories.

*************

[1715 hours Chinatown, New York]

Ray glanced at the stasis pod. Yu was currently occupying the one they used for Bali, but over the last year, they managed to save enough for two more. ”I'm really nervous, Mase. Won't you come with me?”

Mason shook her head. She'd been keeping her hair short lately and dyed platinum blond. Perhaps playing Bali was influencing her. ”I'll give you fifteen minutes to explain things. We don't want to freak her out.”

”W-What if she doesn't show up. Or maybe she doesn't want to be our friend.” Ray's face scrunched up, a sign that she was fighting back tears. She didn't really care about her share of the R&B Pawn Shop, her concern was the person she spent hours talking and laughing with.

Mason knew better than to comfort Ray when she looked like that. If she did, Ray would spend the next hour crying on her shoulder. She'd work through it on her own in a few minutes. ”This is Ronnie we're talking about!”

The group had finally decided to approach the Inferno archer. They sent her a picture drawn by Ray, identical to one of the ones that Bali kept on her wall. A short message accompanied the drawing. ”Would you like to meet me? Next Friday at 1730.” They included the number to a Virtuna account under the name B. Zenda; Bali's last name.