by Gentry Race
“What do you see?” Hera whispered.
“A group of women. All tied up. No Tessa,” I said, moving along to the next room with an overlooking grate.
This room was filled with barrels of lye and vats full of acid. Jessica hung from a goddamn sex swing, suspended by her waist with her arms and legs tied up. I watched her face. I could tell from her expressions that she was fighting something within. Battling with the virus trying to consume her.
“It’s Jess,” I said. “We need to hurry.
I slammed my metal fist down on the grate, and it fell to the ground. I slipped through the opening and landed hard on the concrete floor. Hera landed softly and ran to the door, checking for the crazed witch.
“Jess,” I said, tending to her. Her wrists and ankles were swollen and bruised from the harness. I started to unhook her from the swing. I gently sat her down. “What is happening? What is Tessa doing with those women?”
Jess’s eyes were slow to acknowledge me. The virus still had a hold of her, but if it was anything like mine, it came in ebbs and flows.
“She… she’s changed,” Jess said.
“Changed?” I asked, alarmed. “Changed into what?”
“She only can infect women now—”
CRAACK!
The door burst open, and Hera hit the ground. I took a guarded stance and saw Tessa’s beautiful, evil face. Her body was now a deep crimson red that shimmered in black scales. On her back, a pair of wings that she spread outward in true dominating form. She had a pair of horns now, mimicking the sultry image of a succubus.
“Change is only the beginning,” Tessa said, pinning Hera down with her right wing.
The spiked wingtip dug into Hera’s shoulder, and she grimaced from the pain.
“Leave her, Tessa,” I yelled out. “This is between you and me.”
“You and me?” she asked, giving me the look of death. “It’s your fault I am this way. You made me into a monster. This body was my hope, and now I’ve lost my purpose.”
“Tessa,” I pleaded. “This can all go back to normal. You and me. We can go back to the Subspace. Nothing has to change.”
“It's too late, Michael,” she said, slowly looking back at a tied up cosplayer woman behind her. “My infection no longer works like it did. Being here has evolved my Gatica.”
I tried to work out what in the hell she was talking about. For her code to change, a glitch or mutation would have had to occurred. The new body she had stolen must have caused it. If she could only infect females now, her purpose would be worthless in the game world I’d created for her. Male players would dominate the game world without the risk of their gatica being infected. The scales would tip and be unbalanced. She would be obsolete. I didn’t blame her for not wanting to go back.
“Tessa,” I slowly said, helping Jessica up. “I know how you feel. We can work through this together.”
I saw the fear in her eyes. All the hate I had instilled in her — the insanity — had multiplied when she lost her purpose.
“Death was my purpose,” she screamed at me, digging her clawed wing deeper into Hera and then lowered her tone. “And you took it from me… like how I took James from you.”
My eyes widened. I felt my heart skip a beat to what she just said.
“What do you mean?” I asked. My mind raced. How could she have killed James? It was an accident.
“You brother James and I had thing for awhile, Michael,” she said, twisting her winged claw deeper into Hera. “He would come see me in the Subspace like how you used to.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” I yelled out. “James was killed in accident.”
“Was it an accident?” She said, with a devilish smirk. “Its strange how truck drivers can be so… easily distracted from the road.”
“You crazy witch,” I cried out under my pain. “Why? Why would you take him from me?”
“I just want to watch the world burn,” she finally said.
Hera yanked out the offending winged tip, spun around, and kicked Tessa’s legs out from under her. She fell back. I lunged for the she-beast.
She caught me with a blow to the chest, scraping into my metal skin with her giant talons. I kicked her back, watching Hera’s position.
“Michael, look up,” Hera called out.
I saw the ARMOR 2.0 projection rigs glimmering their light all around. Tessa was creating this place on the fly. If we destroyed the rigs, then we would be able to see the reality of where we were.
Tessa was on her feet and running to the other room for the horde of tied-up women.
“Hera, smash!” I called out to her.
She nodded with a grin and went to work, lunging for each rig.
I ran for Tessa, but was too late. She had untied the group of cosplayer women. In all, there were about fifty, each one showing a sign of the infection. Some were only shaking slightly, while a few had been fully transformed into vile fiends.
“You see?” Tessa called out. “These are my new children.”
I shook my head in angered disappointment as they scurried off, “Tessa, you’re not gonna’ win this.”
“Don't talk like you're one of those heroes!” she screamed. “You’re not, even if you’d like to be. You’re brother is gone. You hate me for it. Deep down, you’re just a villain like me.”
What she said was only half-true, and it killed me to see that being evil wasn’t the answer. I grieved for my brother inside. While her villainous infection was a way to smolder the loss of him, I realized in the end, the evilness only gets your friends hurt more, killed… causes pain to everyone around. I knew what I had to say to her.
The evil dungeon around me faded, revealing the familiar run-down building. Boxes and a large warehouse was all that could be seen after Hera destroyed the last projecting rig. The truth was revealed, and Tessa’s haunting tower of terror was at an end.
“You either die a villain, or live long enough to become the hero,” I said, taking a guarded stance, my steel-like skin shinier than ever.
I felt the conflicted embodiment of my idol superhero Adam Antium’s strength within me and thoughts of my brother with Ari standing behind him. The loss I had experienced felt tempered, but radiating. They were ready to fight with with me in spirit.
They were here for me. They were my superpower.
Tessa twisted her black claw-like nails, arched her back, and screamed, lunging for me. I recognized her usual move and dodged her slash, jumping to the side.
I rocked a blow to her head just as she passed me, and then jumped on her wings, breaking them to bone. She screamed in pain, finally able to feel what it was like to have a real body.
I gripped her throat, pinned her down, and squeezed with all my strength. Her once soaring, blue eyes were now red and slitted with hate. I squeezed harder. She gulped and choked. With every life sucking nuance she made and gasping sound she eked out, I imagined it was James fighting for his life — Ari fighting for his existence. The lives she had taken from this world. And now, the life I would take from her.
The maximum hate level was achieved. The mutated gatica was earned. I felt the fiery supersonic laser eyes ignite from my sockets. Blinding red beams of heat eviscerated her scaly skin. She screamed in agony as I burned her face off.
Tessa maneuvered both of her legs in front of my chest and kicked me back. I went flying, smashing into an I-beam. The metal bent back from the impact of my momentum and hardened metallic skin. I could feel the heat caused by the forced impression.
I dropped to the ground slowly, with a heavy thunk, and looked up expecting to see a crazed Tessa ready to slice my neck, but to my astonishment, it was
Jessica I saw, standing between us with her back to me. She looked back at me, her eyes bloodshot and her face cut up. She turned around to face Tessa, gaining her composure.
“What are you going to do to me?” Tessa yelled to Jessica. “You are but a mouse in a lion’s den.”
; Jess balled her fists up and got ready to fight. “I may be a mouse…”
Tessa sprinted toward her. Jessica didn’t hesitate, executing a backflip she’d perfected in gymnastics. Her feet swung up, and she kicked Tessa in the face, knocking her back.
“But I know gymnastics,” Jessica said with a devilish grin.
Hera met Tessa from behind, wrapping her strong arms around her waist, crushing her arms and wings in. She picked the beast up over her head and slammed her down on her head. Her neck snapped in an instant.
“And a superwoman,” Hera said, dropping Tessa’s lifeless body.
I got up and walked slowly toward them. I watched the life drain from the 3D-printed body. The woman I’d made, the soul of the game I’d created, was fading back to the subspace. She was gone.
Game over.
16
Superharem, us
A few weeks had passed since the events at Comic Con in San Diego. The world had changed, seeing real superheroes with supervillains face off and reveal their abilities. Committees were formed and inquisitions were held by authorities wanting to know the truth.
The city of San Diego decided to forego any kind comic convention until further notice. Digital conventions sprang up all over the subspace after that, forever changing how pop culture was experienced.
And Iconoclast Games was at the center of it all.
Phil Travis denied everything about Tessa’s escape. With Hera and I so close to it all, he awarded each of us a significant severance to leave the company but stay on in ‘advisory roles’ for future releases. If you are good at something, never do it for free. It was the least I could do for the company that helped turn me into a superhero.
Hera and I never went back to our careers. Tessa’s ‘children’ were still roaming the streets, and we chose to hunt them instead, from Los Angeles to San Francisco. The supervira infection was spreading, but we were there in the shadows to stop it. The search slowed after a few more were caught. Most wanted to be cured of their villainy for good, but some put up a fight, ending up at the bottom of a grave.
Jess, having only been partially infected, chose to stay with us and receive Hera’s cure when she was ready. I was delighted to hear this, and even more ecstatic when I was invited to join in on the process.
Jessica, Hera, and I were now one. A team, formed by a bond that could never be torn apart. It was similar to how victims felt when they’d experienced the same trauma. And this was traumatic for us — losing Ari, being responsible for a horde of infectious villainesses on the loose.
I waited nervously in the hotel room we had rented out for the week. I was still wearing my cosplay from the day of searching; a worn leather jacket, hoodie and jeans — any antihero’s favorite attire. A lead had tipped us off to the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco, where a small indie press convention was being held. The villianesses on the run loved to hide among the crowds of cosplayers and hunt for their next victim.
Hera came in. She was quiet, her demeanor confident as usual. Her hair was done up and held in place by blue and white ribbon. She looked gorgeous. Her spaghetti strapped blue dress barely held onto her tight body. She sat next to me on the bed, and I could smell her perfume. She was as lovely as the first time I met her.
“You ready for this?” she asked me.
“I’m a little nervous,” I admitted.
“You and Jess have been together for a bit. I think this might be a good thing for you guys,” Hera said.
“Well, it’s definitely the best thing for her,” I said, shaking my head. “Those villainous temper tantrums have been pretty bad.”
She laughed.
KNOCK KNOCK!
Hera smiled, got up from the bed, and opened the door. Jessica wore a tight, black, pencil-waisted dress that climbed up her chest like I wanted to. She wore long black gloves and black stockings. She looked like she was ready for a funeral. And maybe she was — both her virginity and villainy were to be no more. The French likened the sensation of an orgasm to death: ‘la petite mort’. The little death.
“Sorry, I’m late,” Jess said, walking in.
She bit her lip nervously and sat across from the bed on a leather chaise sofa. She had her hands properly folded in her lap as she looked at each of us. Hera sat down next to her. I watched intently, curious how it would all go down.
Hera grabbed Jessica’s hand and held it softly. “This is a big day for you,” she said, then looked at me. “This is a big day for all of us.”
Jessica agreed, nodding her head. “I just want to say thank you for putting up with my attitude over the last few weeks. I know I could already be a bit of a bitch, and this infection seems to amplify it.”
We all laughed. I still had my fits, but they seemed more balanced between good and evil now.
I scooted toward Jess. Her hair flowed softly along her shoulders, and her makeup was darker than usual. She had been applying it a bit heavier ever since the change. She was so beautiful.
Hera leaned in and kissed Jessica. It took a second for Jess to get into the rhythm of Hera’s strength — she was a superheroine, after all. Hera reached over and felt Jessica’s breasts. They were slightly larger than Hera’s, but Jess had a skinnier frame.
I could tell Jess was getting into it. Having that evil virus was no joke — amplifying your aggressiveness. I felt my yearning kicking in. This was hot.
Jessica started to explore Hera’s body. She slid her hand over the silky blue dress that accentuated every curve and muscle of Hera’s hard body. Jess’s hand fell to the middle of her dress, and Hera opened her legs. They kissed more passionately now, and Jess reached under Hera’s dress, touching her. Hera’s hips rolled into the motion, feeling Jess with every sensation.
I was so turned on, I couldn’t help but readjust my seating and let my member swell in excitement. The girls took notice and smiled at me. I smiled back, waiting for a signal for me to come in. Hera stood up and grabbed Jessica’s hands, pulling her over to me, and I kissed Jessica. She tasted like strawberries and her hair wafted of vanilla.
Hera bent down and kissed Jessica’s neck, while Jessica rubbed my pants, feeling every inch of me. I couldn’t withstand the stimulation and broke the kiss from Jess. Hera and Jess stayed at the level of my waist.
Jess was no stranger to me, and neither was Hera at this point. Jessica took the initiative first, easily unsnapped my jeans, pulling them down and letting them fall to the floor. Each one put a hand on my cock and shared the tip of it. The feeling was incredible.
They worked their hands back and forth, each one taking a taste. I could enjoy this feeling forever. I looked down, and Hera was left sucking on the tip. I gently stopped her.
“This is for Jess,” I said, motioning for both of them to come to the bed.
Hera stood up and dropped her dress to the floor, her body resembling a statue of a Greek goddess. She climbed onto the bed first, resting on her back and elbows. Jessica followed but kept her dress on. She still wasn’t sure about herself, but I was going to let her know how beautiful she was.
She kissed Hera, while Hera rubbed her body over her dress, up and down. I was going to explode, finally seeing Jessica’s soaking wet muff, poking through her red, lace panties. Her labia were engorged and firm and screaming for stimulation.
Hera pulled down Jessica’s dress partway, from the top, grabbing a hold of her breasts and giving her nipples a few licks and kisses. I gently rubbed the head of my cock along each of their juicy labia, spreading the moisture for the taking to come.
“You need to do me first, then do her to pass it on,” Hera reminded me in an ecstatic moan.
I nodded and dipped lower, pulling Hera’s soft panties to the side. I softly placed the tip on her clit and rubbed it down, feeling her slickness. A few centimeters down, I was aligned with her and slowly letting myself in. She gave a gasp, and I slipped it in, easing it side to side, feeling her open up to me.
I grabbed onto Jess�
��s hips while I gave Hera all of me, pressing her down to rub her clit on Hera. The feeling was amazing as I rocked them both back and forth. Jess flipped her hair back and turned to me.
“Give it to me, Michael,” she moaned uncontrollably.
I pulled out from Hera. Jess’s dress didn’t want to let go of her thighs and hips. I gave it a good tug, and the black dress released all of Jess to me. Her legs were spread, and her back was arched, ready for the filling. I propped one foot on the bed and tickled Jess along her labia.
“Please,” she yearned for more.
I went straight for it. She wanted it bad. I felt like I was trying to break into Fort Knox; she was tight. I changed my angle and felt the inside of her stretch out a bit. She yearned, and I made sure I wasn't hurting her.
“More,” she said, kissing Hera.
I grabbed her hips and glided her along my pole of stimulation. I tried not to forget about Hera, reaching down and rubbing her, but she didn’t wait long to sneak her way out from under Jessica.
I still was gently giving Jessica all of me when Hera stopped me and flipped Jessica over. Jess panted in excitement, her hair now disheveled and her eyeliner a bit smeared. Hera and I were working her.
Hera now jumped on top of her, mounting her pussy directly over Jessica’s. I rubbed my cock over her engorged clit. I could feel the precum beading up on my tip.
“Fuck me til I cum,” Hera said, grabbing Jess’s chest and kissing her passionately.
I put it deep within Hera. She could feel every inch of me as I thrusted at a different angle with every thrust. She moaned, working her clit into Jess’s, and I could feel her inside hug me tighter. She was going to come if I could just last. It was a race against time.
“Oh my god,” Hera yelled.
I felt a gush of juice burst from Hera and pulled out for a moment, letting the juices run down from Hera and onto Jess. I had never seen so much female cum in my life.
“Quick, now give it to her,” Hera said.
