Shifter Hunter

by Dante Steel

  Then again, these were just NPCs.

  No. If he treated them like they were less than himself, he would fall back on that line of thinking in the real world. Best to not be a dick.

  The woman motioned Gary and Yuna forward and led them to a saloon. This town had a Wild West feel to it, and Gary ordered some beer.

  Yuna picked at her beefy beans.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked her.

  “This doesn’t seem right.”

  He shrugged. “Maybe it’s for later in the game.”

  The Japanese woman frowned. “Maybe.”

  Before they finished eating, the boy from before came over to them.

  Yuna patted the stool beside her and helped him climb up. It was cute watching the little guy scramble up.

  “Why don’t you think you’ll shift into your wolf when you turn five?” Yuna asked.

  “Because I won’t.”

  “Won’t turn five?” Gary asked, thinking back to what Yuna had said about the NPCs becoming sentient. What if that happened within the game instead of outside? It wasn’t as if they didn’t have enough shifter bad guys to deal with without adding NPCs to the list.

  The boy blinked at Gary. “I’ll turn five! Why wouldn’t I?”

  “But you won’t shift,” Yuna said softly. “Why?”

  The woman who led them here was the one to serve them. She gave Gary another beer and then placed her hands on her hips.

  “Don’t you like it?” she demanded of Yuna.

  “I love it.”

  “Then why aren’t you eating?”

  “I must be talking too much,” Yuna said easily. “I’m sorry.”

  She really did seem to subscribe to the whole catch more bees with honey line of thinking. Gary didn’t think it was an act.

  Was he beginning to trust her? Maybe, which made the faintly apprehensive expression on her striking features that much more worrisome.

  “Finish up. Then we can talk. Come on, Rex. Let’s get you to your father.”

  “But, Mama!”

  “Hush now.” She shooed him out of the saloon.

  Yuna ate like a bird and offered the rest of her meal to Gary. He ate up. The food was interesting. Beef and onions, peppers and beans, the sauce was tomato-based but also tasted a little sweet to him. Not bad.

  Once they finished, the boy’s mother approached again.

  “What is going on?” Gary asked her.

  “We haven’t been able to shift,” the woman said.

  “In how long?” Yuna asked.

  “A few days now. Not yet a week.”

  “Why can’t you?” Gary was confused.

  “The entire town, all of us, we’ve been cursed.”

  “Oh,” Gary said, feeling relieved. The entire thing had him uneasy, and he couldn’t exactly say why. But this had quest written all over it.

  Yuna, though, seemed almost unnerved.

  “Who did this?” Gary asked. “Any idea how to break the curse?”

  “I don’t know.” The woman gathered their dishes. “I don’t know.”

  Any question Gary asked from there on out, that was her only answer. “I don’t know.” Gary hated that word and wished he would never hear it again. It just seemed ignorant to him. How could you not have any idea?

  After he finished his beer, Gary stood. “Do you want to see if we can stay the night? Or do you want to press on?”

  Yuna slowly looked up at him. She had been almost deathly quiet, and now, she looked incredibly pale even for her.

  “What’s wrong?” he demanded.

  “We have to find the others,” she said, easing to her feet gracefully, the extra cloth on her sleeves billowing behind her.

  “Okay,” Gary said slowly. “What about your supplies, though? We’ve come all this way.”

  “Gary, please.”

  He gulped. She sounded terrified. Yuna had never sounded like this before. Not even during their first battle had she been afraid. Now, she seemed ready to fall apart.

  His swallow almost got stuck in his throat as a sudden worry came to mind. No. He wouldn’t even consider that.

  Without hesitating any longer, Gary burst out of the saloon. He nodded to the boy, who was standing by his father near the fountain. The group still spoke with the leader, who glared at them.

  Gary and Yuna departed the city.

  “That was strange,” he muttered.

  Yuna didn’t answer. She was already flying back the way they had come.

  Which was great for them to make up time.

  But also didn’t mean that they avoided all of the shifters. Hawks divebombed them. Yuna burned to ashes each one. The harpies were harder to kill. So damn ugly. They were hideous-looking creatures with female heads attached to birds’ bodies. Gary either just blew past them or else he stabbed them in the neck or throat to kill them without slowing down much at all.

  A sense of urgent worry was compelling him forward. During his time away from the girls, he realized just how much they meant to him. Nicoletta and her passion. Elena and her fierce ideals. Olivia and her joy. Despite everything they had been through both before the game and during, they were his people. His girls. His loves.

  If anything happened to them while he had been gone, he would never forgive himself.

  Gary hadn’t realized just how far they had traveled. Night came, the light from the five moons surprisingly dim, and it was several hours past dawn before they arrived. They hadn’t taken the time to rest, instead flying on through, albeit at a much slower pace. A few times, Gary had to call out to Yuna to ensure she wasn’t dozing off. Twice, she had nudged against him to return the favor.

  When the sun blinded them, Gary felt recharged. Maybe it was fear driving him forward, but he blew Yuna out of the air as he rushed ahead.

  Maybe the cursed wasn’t supposed to be a quest. Maybe it wasn’t a part of the game. Maybe Smaug had survived. Maybe he had crossed over. Maybe he had been the reason for it.

  Gary had to make sure the girls, his girls, were all right.

  To say Gary was shot by the time he arrived at the tavern where the girls had gone would be an understatement.

  The sight that greeted him, though, shocked him fully awake.

  Chapter Ten

  In fact, the sight that greeted him, though, shocked him and his cock fully awake.

  Gary landed on the roof of the tavern. His cock throbbed at the scene. All three of them were laying out on blankets, sunbathing, topless.

  He was hard as hell. Holy fuck.

  Now that he knew they were all right, every worry and concern about Smaug flew clear out of his mind. All he wanted to do was get it on with them.

  Olivia opened her eyes and noticed him first. She winked at his crotch. “Gary’s johnson, it’s so nice to see you again.”

  “You can see my johnson,” he said with a grin. “Right now if you’d like.”

  By now, the other two had opened their eyes and were sitting up. Elena reached for her attire and then stretched instead. She must’ve changed her mind about dressing or else she just wanted to torture him because that stretch was too long to be anything but deliberate, and the way her boobs swayed…

  “Gary?” Nicoletta called in a suggestive tone.

  “Yes?”

  “You can shut your mouth,” she teased.

  “What if I would rather kiss you instead?” he countered.

  She laughed and shook her head. “Not happening.”

  “Why not?” Oh, God, his balls were aching. His cock was throbbing. If he didn’t touch it, or if one of them didn’t, he was afraid he was going to explode.

  “You haven’t technically dated any of us,” Elena said.

  “Gaming together totally counts as a date,” he argued.

  “No dates, no kisses, no sex,” Olivia said. She brushed her hair back, thrust out her breasts, and then proceeded to twist one of her nipples.

  Gary couldn’t look away. “You’re nothing but a damn
tease,” he grumbled.

  Olivia laughed. “That’s what you get for not taking advantage of me.”

  He gapped at her, shocked. “I would never take advantage of you!”

  “What if I want you to?” she purred.

  Confused, he scratched the back of his head. “Then it’s not taking advantage of you.”

  “Same difference.” She waved her hand. Even that simple gesture made Olivia’s boobs bounce.

  He damn near was ready to rip off his clothes. “We’ve eaten meals together. Had drinks together,” he said desperately.

  “You haven’t paid our way,” Nicoletta said.

  “I bought us rounds!” he protested.

  “Drinks. Really, Gary? You can’t be better than that guy at the bar who tries to liquor up the girls on the off chance he might get lucky?” Elena asked.

  “You aren’t some girls,” he said. He was growing desperate, and he sure as hell hoped Yuna wasn’t going to come around anytime soon.

  “We’re your girls?” Olivia asked with a laugh.

  "Why is that so funny?" he asked. "I love you all. I've told you that. I would do anything for you all. If you want dates, fine. Of course. Anything you want. I'll do anything to make you all happy. I would even die for any one of you."

  “Don’t say that,” Olivia snapped, all pretenses of teasing suddenly gone.

  Her anger surprised him. “It’s the truth,” he said. “I would—”

  She jumped to her feet—thank you—and marched right up to him. Her hand covered his mouth, and he stared down at her, into her amazing green eyes, and then lower to her naked chest that was heaving as she breathed heavily.

  “Don’t say that,” she repeated firmly.

  “I won’t,” he tried to say, but the words came out muffled.

  “Good, because if you do…” Her eyes welled with tears.

  Despite her obvious distress, his heart swelled. She had to care for him if she was that upset and worried over the thought of losing him.

  “I’m just an avatar,” she said. “I’m not worth it.”

  He had stood there, allowing her hand to cover his mouth, but now, he claimed her hand in both of his and placed hers over his heart.

  “You are not just an avatar. You are worth it.” He leaned down for a kiss.

  She jerked back, out of his grasp, and she flounced back to her blanket. Once more, she reclined.

  “You all are crazy,” he mumbled.

  “Crazy? Why?” Nicoletta asked.

  "First of all, you don't need to sunbathe. Your skin is always dark. You don't need to tan."

  “I know, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t feel good. Besides, we doubt they put UV rays into the sunbeams.”

  “You don’t know that!” he said.

  “Gary, listen to yourself,” Olivia drawled. “Seriously. You’re probably the only guy in the world who would complain about the three women he loves sunbathing nude on a rooftop.”

  "I just have your best interests at boob—heart. At heart." He could facepalm for that slip-up.

  Olivia giggled. Elena rolled her eyes, and Nicoletta grimaced.

  “Too many boobs for you to handle?” the Hispanic teased.

  “Maybe. I don’t know. We can find out,” he said. “I can squeeze some, lick some, have some rubbed against me…”

  “You can’t handle us all at the same time,” Olivia said.

  A groan slipped out. “I want to try to prove you wrong,” he said.

  “Clearly you do.” Elena deliberately dropped her gaze to his groin.

  “Yes. Please. Now. Right now. Ladies, you’re killing me.”

  They exchanged glances. He couldn’t figure out what they were thinking.

  “I don’t know,” Nicoletta said.

  “Would it be weird with me being an avatar?” Olivia asked.

  “No,” Gary wanted to shout, but he kept quiet. He was afraid his input might make them more willing to vote against him.

  “No,” Nicoletta said for him, and he breathed easier, grateful to have her on his side. “Gary and I had sex when I was an avatar. Trust me. I felt something, and he clearly did.”

  “Yeah, but… there’s nothing inside of you,” Olivia said doubtfully.

  “Who says that has to be the case?” Nicoletta asked deviously.

  Elena blushed.

  “We can take a vote,” Olivia said. “Who wants to?”

  Nicoletta eyed Gary, giving him a once-over, her gaze lingering on his face and then his covered cock.

  He held his breath. Gary wanted this, wanted them so badly he was nearly ready to cream himself right then and there.

  “Yes,” Nicoletta said.

  Olivia spread her legs. Her attire was the skimpiest by far, and she shoved the bottom portion of her leotard aside. Again, Gary was amazed that the developers allowed this to be shown, but he wasn’t going to complain. Even her avatar looked wet. How could that be?

  “I’m a yes,” Olivia declared. “How about you, Flamethrower?”

  Elena hesitated. “I… I don’t know.”

  “If you don’t want to, we don’t have to,” Nicoletta said.

  “We don’t,” Gary said, unable to keep quiet.

  Elena glanced at them all. “I’m afraid.”

  “Afraid?” Olivia furrowed her brows. “You don’t have to be scared. We won’t bite unless you tell us to.”

  “Maybe not afraid. Worried. Nervous. I… When Gary, Nicoletta, and I… it was more us with him but us separate if you know what I mean. This… This won’t be like that, right?”

  “It won’t be anything that will make you uncomfortable,” Gary said. “If you want us to stop at any time, just tell us.”

  Elena nodded.

  “We can start slowly,” Olivia said. “One of us can touch you if that will make you feel better, or you can touch one of us. Whatever you want. Whatever will turn you on. This is about all of us being pleasured.”

  Gary frowned. “It’s about all of us sharing our bodies and making love,” he countered.

  Olivia nodded. “Yeah, that.”

  Elena bit her lower lip and glanced at Nicoletta.

  “You can touch me,” Nicoletta said.

  “Can I kiss you?” Elena asked.

  “Yes.”

  Elena inhaled deeply as she leaned over. “I guess this means yes,” she murmured.

  Right before their lips met, someone landed on the rooftop beside Gary. He yanked his hand away from his cock as if he had been burned. He hadn't even realized he had been rubbing himself. Nicoletta and Elena jerked apart and scrambled to grab something to cover themselves. Nicoletta used her costume while Elena grabbed her blanket.

  But Olivia? She took her time covering up, and Gary couldn’t help being jealous as he watched Olivia maintain eye contact with Yuna, who actually tilted her head down slightly to gawk at Olivia’s rack.

  Once before, Olivia had done something like that, exposing herself for others to see. Well, that time, Gary had done it, but she had baited him into it. When Gary first acquired his telekinetic power, he hadn’t known how to use it. To try to get him to grow more comfortable with it, Olivia had suggested that he lift her skirt. This had been before they were superheroes for the first time, so no superhero attire yet.

  When he had lifted her skirt, he’d revealed to everyone that she wore nothing underneath it, and he and everyone could see that she shaved all but a thin patch. For longer than was necessary, she’d kept her skirt up, giving him and others an eyeful. And others had looked. He couldn’t blame them. Olivia was fucking hot.

  As she finally dressed, Gary recalled something else. He had asked her, begged her really, not to have sex with anyone else. She never had agreed to that.

  Did Olivia have feelings for him? Yes, he was certain of that. She loved him. She had already said that. And she loved Nicoletta and Elena, too.

  Love clearly came easily for her, which almost surprised him, considering her tragic past. Maybe i
t was a coping mechanism.

  But that she had fallen for them all made him wonder if she had fallen for someone before they had all gotten together. What if she had someone waiting for her whenever she logged off? Then again, she had moved into Nicoletta’s for the summer, so maybe that wasn’t the case.

  However, it was possible that she might fall for someone else again, someone like Yuna. Gary didn’t appreciate the way Olivia was looking at Yuna. He knew it wasn’t fair for him to want three girls to himself, so how could he fault Olivia for falling for someone else?

  Sure, he could argue that Olivia didn’t know Yuna, so how could she fall for her? Love wasn’t supposed to be something you slipped on like a coat. Maybe it wasn’t love. Maybe it was just lust.

  But if that was the case, then did Olivia truly love him or Nicoletta or Elena like she said she did? Maybe it was lust all the way around. Maybe he was just in lust, too. He had never gotten this horny all of the time before. He had a near constant hard-on when he was in their presence. Despite his worried thoughts, he was still hard. In fact, he thought he felt some pre-cum.

  Gary hadn’t been in love before, not like this. It wasn’t lust. Not on his part.

  As much as he didn’t want to question Olivia, he couldn’t help it.

  Chapter Eleven

  Gary clasped his hands behind him so he wouldn’t be tempted to touch himself. Not that he thought he would in front of Yuna, but he sorely needed to readjust, and—

  Fuck it. He turned around, readjusted, maybe stroked himself a few times, readjusted again, and turned back around.

  All of his girls were dressed now. Nicoletta and Elena were standing, but Olivia remained sitting with her legs spread. Her leotard was tight against her, and Gary swore he could see how wet she was through her clothes.

  “I didn’t mean to interrupt anything,” Yuna said. With her dark hair, she looked like a gothic tomato.

  “You’re fine,” Olivia said with a wave of her hand.

  Both Gary and his cock distinctly and vehemently disagreed with her, but he wasn’t about to announce that out loud.

  Instead, he said, “I’m afraid we have some bad news to share.”

  All eyes turned toward him except for Yuna.