Empath Rising

by Archibald Bradford

  Another lick.

  “Who… ah… who am I?”

  Ophelia punctuated her answering words with healthy licks.

  “You are… a good… kitty.”

  After that she pulled off Erica’s shirt and dragged her moist tongue across her upper body, leaving one long wet trail from the hem of her panties, up between her breasts and ending in a sucking kiss to the notch between her collar bones.

  Erica’s tanned skin glistened in the early morning light from her ardent partner’s affections and her dark nipples were stiffly aroused pebbles.

  “Now I want you to say it…”

  Erica took a moment to gather herself before she responded.

  “I-I am a good kitty!”

  “Good, now say ‘I am not dirty’. And I need you to believe it when you say it.” Ophelia twirled her tongue over the flesh of Erica’s pert breast, ending in another sucking kiss to her rich brown areola.

  “I… I am… I am not dirty…”

  “Louder kitty, let the world know.”

  Erica swallowed as Ophelia moved lower, her tongue dipping into the Katje’s belly button.

  “I am not… I am not dirty!”

  Ophelia pulled herself back up and rewarded her words with a deep and passionate kiss full on the mouth. She sucked the trembling cat’s lower lip between her teeth and nibbled on it delicately as her tongue stroked it from within.

  She released it as she felt Erica’s tongue seeking her own and surprised the girl by sucking as hard as she could, drawing her rough tongue into her mouth and bobbing her head gently on it.

  It felt incredible and Erica couldn’t help but purr deeply in her throat.

  After several intense tongue-sucking seconds Ophelia relinquished her hold, and then adjusted herself to deliver a loving peck to the tip of Erica’s nose.

  There was a pregnant pause before Ophelia asked, voice wry.

  “Your ears, really?”

  “Yeah.” Erica managed a chuckle; the pain was gone from her voice.

  Heat was in her gaze as she breathed in Ophelia’s gentle flowery scent; her world was surrounded by the Flutterby’s glorious wings, outstretched over them still.

  “Tell me something dearheart.”

  “Anything, sister…” Ophelia paused for a moment, overcome with emotion at the simple word.

  “Thank you.” She whispered; “I was worried, I mean... you and Milly are so close…”

  Erica took her turn to comfort the other girl, dragging her smooth tongue across her face.

  “You are my sister now, and not just because of the bond. What you just did for me, I won’t ever forget it.”

  A few tears dripped off of Ophelia’s face as she looked at the girl below her.

  “Thank you.” She repeated.

  “You wanted to ask me something?”

  Erica was nuzzling her face into Ophelia’s neck now and the butterfly girl was distracted.

  “I did? Oh… yes, I did…” She ran her tongue into Erica’s ear, the downy white fur offering a pleasant surface for her affections; “I’m just curious now… you like to make a mess, to get our bond-mate’s cum all over you, all over us… why?”

  Erica chuckled again.

  “I often forget that you others don’t have my sense of smell… his scent, no doubt it drives you two wild as well, but it lingers for me, especially when he marks us. I can almost taste it on you from last night…” She took Ophelia’s face in her hands and licked her several times before she stopped and shuddered; “It is exquisite.”

  Ophelia regarded her for a long time, their eyes locked together.

  “He won’t ever abandon you, not ever, no matter what was done to you in the past, and I suspect he has some inkling of it. He would sooner give up a limb.”

  “I know, when I first bonded, I was so happy, but at the same time so… unsteady. Thank you for reminding me who I am, for making me tell you... no, that’s not right; for letting me tell you.” Erica voice was much steadier now, while the moist lips between her legs begging for attention; “And now there is something I would like to do with you, if you are willing to try it. Something Milly and I were never able to because she’s so damn tall!”

  Her smile was coy and her hands had pulled up the hem of Ophelia’s gown and were kneading the delicious globes of her ass.

  “A-anything, I would do anything for you, sister-of-my-heart.” Ophelia’s voice faltered from the intimate contact.

  Erica’s smile turned downright predatory.

  __________

  Ophelia and Erica had been inside for some time, and Nameless had sensed some of the pain that they felt.

  He had personal experience with Ophelia’s tender care so he didn’t want to intrude, but the morning was progressing and they had things to do. So he and Milly entered the cottage again and were greeted by an incredible sight.

  Ophelia was sitting on Erica’s face while her own was buried between the Katje’s legs. They were tonguing and fingering each other energetically, apparently just achieving release when they had walked in.

  “Oh! Ah! Kitty, he’s watching us!” Ophelia managed to cry out around Erica’s clit, as she ground her own pelvis into the Katje’s tongue.

  “Let him watch! Let him watch as his good kitty gets off with his naughty butterfly!”

  The stunned Nameless felt pressure against his groin and looked down to see Milly wordlessly working his cock out of his pants.

  “Milly, what are you doing?” He turned to look at her beside him.

  “Oh Master, like you could see something like that and not need release!”

  It was a long time before they got around to milking the cow.

  The morning play time ended eventually, but they really had little to do that day except for bring the milk to market and Nameless was supposed to meet with lady Essig in the afternoon, so they had several hours to kill.

  Joe was taking the day off. He had muttered something about an anniversary the day before, he and his wife seemed to be getting along a lot better.

  They were about to leave the cottage when Miranda and her girls showed up on the porch.

  He wasn’t sure where they were staying now, what with Sadie and Xalanth having taken over Paul’s guestroom, though he had a sneaking suspicion it wasn’t far from him.

  “Hey kid. Just wanted to check and see how well you’ve been adjusting.”

  “Oh, I’m alright.”

  Jan poked her head in the cottage, gave a sniff and then pulled her head out with a disgusted look on her face.

  “Urgh, it smells like dirty cat sex in there.”

  Ophelia blushed and Erica gave a short hiss, fortunately Miranda stepped in.

  “Jan, be nice.”

  “I’m always nice!” The Wolfen said with crossed arms.

  Kala laughed at that.

  “Sister, you are the most mischievous wolf I have ever met!”

  Jan stuck her long tongue out at her.

  “Anyways, you lot have all had a helluva week, so I wanted to make sure you hadn’t all come unglued.” Miranda continued, ignoring the bickering girls.

  “We’re fine, thank you Miranda. Master is taking very good care of us all.” Milly said sweetly.

  Miranda snorted.

  “I’ll bet. You know, when this kid saw me naked I thought he was gunna die of embarrassment, now he’s having kinky sexcapades with three girls! You’ve grown a lot in a few short days.”

  Nameless suddenly found himself beet red and under the accusing gaze of several sets of eyes.

  His own girls were agitated to be sure, but Kala’s brow furrowed in irritation and Jez looked scandalized.

  “Was he peeping on you Mistress? I heard rapists like to do that!”

  “Hmmm, perhaps I was too quick to spare his life...”

  Jan smiled while Miranda groaned and Nameless tried to explain.

  “N-no, it was at the bathhouse-”

  “You were peeping on her in the bath
?!” Jez shook her head from side to side in condemnation.

  “Such a bold admission! Were I not sworn to safeguard your union to this cat girl I would surely take your life!” The Amazon flexed her grip on her spear threateningly.

  Ophelia watched the whole thing with a puzzled look on her face.

  “I have known you your whole life and you never once peeped on me while I was in the bath.” The Fluttterby uncharacteristically pouted.

  “Wait, we were in the bath together, when did you peep on Miranda?” Milly looked bemused as she calmly put herself between him and the Amazon.

  Jan was laughing now: as deliberately impish as she could be, her bond-mate had created this whole drama by accident!

  “I don’t get it, why would you peep on this old lady when you had Milly with you?” Erica asked, genuinely puzzled.

  Jan’s laughter abruptly cut out as she growled low at the Katje’s seemingly unintentional insult.

  “STOP! Girls please! Jan was there too!” Miranda cut in.

  The frog girl was thunderstruck.

  “He peeped on you both!?”

  “AH! What a villain! Surely I must break my oath now!”

  The high drama was interrupted however when Paul strolled through the field looking for Miranda.

  “Hey Aegis, you mind explaining to my why I got an entire Amazon war-party camped in my barley field?” He was somewhat perturbed, even the former adventurer was wise to be cautious of the Amazons.

  “Ah, dammit, sorry Paul, I forgot to mention they were coming! Kid, you better come along, Lady Essig will need your help.”

  Confused, but glad of the interruption to the downfall of his good name, Nameless followed.

  Chapter 24:

  Tiny Troubles

  “Well met Aegis Holt!” The lead Amazon greeted the operative with a respectful salute; “I trust you have taken good care of my little sister?”

  To Nameless’s surprise Kala seemed nervous in the face of the older Amazon.

  The appearance of the battle-hardened war-party struck a significant contrast with the younger Amazon; each of the others bore far more scars and had a deadly edge to them that was noticeably softer in Kala and their weapons, although well-cared for, all showed much more signs of use compared to Kala’s own spear.

  Miranda moved to greet the Amazon with the giant gourd on her back and Nameless caught that her name was Yana.

  Eyebrows rose at the sight of Miranda’s injured shoulder.

  “Perhaps I should be asking if my sister has been taking care of you!” Yana frowned.

  “What this? Just a minor break, I wear the sling so my girls can fuss over me.”

  “Ha! Well said! But alas, we have grave matters to attend to. I am told that the Lady is here?”

  “Yeah, she’s in the guestroom. The Dragon booted us all out so she could rest up from her trip.” Paul’s neutral tone conveyed that he was none too happy about being evicted from his own home.

  The Amazon looked him over for a moment, and then sighed.

  “I’m afraid we must disturb her rest.” She jutted her thumb at the heavily guarded wagon behind her; “I am under orders to bring this poor creature before her, but I’m afraid she is too far gone. There is no light left in her heartstone.” Her tone turned morose, and many of her sisters hung their heads.

  “Let me be the judge of that.” Lady Essig’s wispy voice sounded from the porch, the mighty Dragon at her side; “Nameless, I would appreciate your help with this.”

  “R-right!” Nameless stammered, and suddenly felt every set of eyes present on him as he stumbled over to join the lady by the wagon.

  At a word from Yana, the Amazons threw back the tarp covering the cage on the back of the wagon. Nameless drew in a breath, the girl was so tiny! She looked so vulnerable.

  She knelt in the bed of the wagon, strange vines binding her lithe arms to the wagon bed on either side. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, head bowed.

  “Do not be deceived by her size, little Empath.” Xalanth’s rumbling growl sounded from beside him and he nearly jumped out of his skin at the Dragon’s sheer presence; “Look at the red of her skin: She is a true Gigas, and if she wielded her hammer even I would struggle some to best her.”

  It was a potent endorsement given how powerful the Dragon was.

  “Her stone?” Sadie’s voice got his attention and Yana handed it to her with a slight bow.

  The elder Empath clasped the ink black marble in her hands and closed her eyes, while her Dragon mate looked on, tail swishing in agitation.

  The crowd was deathly silent. Milly and Ophelia were both holding Erica as the sight of the Tenebrae stirred painful memories in her.

  The lady’s eyes opened after a full ten minutes had passed, she sighed mournfully.

  “I am afraid Yana is right, I cannot sense her mind anymore, all that remains is pain. I cannot reach her.” She turned to Nameless, a tear rolling down her cheek; “I’m afraid that we are too late my friend. She is gone.”

  Nameless felt his chest tighten, and imagined he could hear a desperate howling as he stared directly at the stone in her palm.

  He glanced again to the girl in the wagon.

  She looks so very frail.

  He heard a sob from behind and felt a stab of sorrow from Erica’s stone.

  All present bowed their heads.

  “I will do the deed, no other need bear the burden of it.” Xalanth’s rumbling voice was quiet, steady.

  “No.”

  The Dragon’s head whipped around in surprise at the sudden firm intensity in Nameless’s voice.

  The boy was staring directly at the tiny girl, his eyes bore a serene determination that the Dragon had rarely seen from humans.

  “It’s too late, Nameless. Remember what I told you before?” The lady Essig had one hand on his shoulder, the stone still clutched in her other; “There is nothing left of her to save. No Empath has ever reached a girl whose stone had gone completely dark, though many have tried. That is how we lost Jonathan.”

  “Maybe… maybe.” Nameless nodded, Xalanth turned back to the cage expecting the boy to capitulate; “But I have to try.”

  Again the Dragon was surprised by his intensity.

  Wordlessly he held his hand out to Sadie.

  She looked at him, measuring his will, and then sighed as she recognized that he would not change his mind and deposited the stone in his hand.

  “Remember what I said; anchor yourself or you will be forever lost. Do not spend too long looking for her, because if you do, I won’t have the strength to pull you out.” Her tone was grim; “She cannot be saved, but this is a lesson that every Empath must learn for themselves.”

  “I understand, thank you.” He took the stone and faced his mates, offering a reassuring smile as he met their worried gazes.

  None of them tried to dissuade him.

  “Master, please be careful.” Milly said, her voice quiet, her fears left unsaid.

  He nodded at her with a wink but had no words.

  “Open the cage.” Sadie’s voice commanded and Xalanth moved to comply.

  The moment the cage opened the Gigas’s head snapped up, her rapid panting continued as her eyes locked with Nameless’s.

  He met the darkness in her gaze and didn’t hesitate, hoisting himself into the cage and shuffling towards her.

  His eyes were locked on the Gigas so he therefore did not see that all of the Amazons present had dropped to one knee with their spears on the ground at their side as they offered him their respect.

  “May the Valkyrie guide you, tiny man.” A whispered prayer was made by each of the blooded warriors.

  As he approached the minuscule girl, his fingers nervously playing over the surface of her stone, her eyes narrowed and her panting stopped.

  She pressed her tiny breasts forwards, the vines going taut on her arms.

  A challenge.

  With calm that surprised even him, he extended his free hand and
placed it sideways over her heart.

  “Hello, what’s your na-”

  Darkness reached out and swallowed him as she fell backwards with his weight on her.

  “Good luck, you stupid little shit.” Miranda muttered.

  __________

  The maelstrom that he now endured was different from Erica’s.

  He felt whole mountains being torn asunder all around him, and he felt strength in his bones to rival the avalanches that roared off of the illusory slopes.

  He also felt a terrible sadness, a lonely ache that could never be undone.

  His mind reeled, he had remembered what lady Essig had said and held his anchors; the brilliant points of light, blue, green, and purple, each representing the bond with a different one of his girls, barely kept the maelstrom from consuming his mind.

  The Lady had merely taken a cursory look compared to what he was attempting. He was already far deeper than she dared venture, yet he could sense no sign of a personality within the vortex of negative emotions.

  He cast himself deeper.

  He searched the mountains that were also jagged blades of hate and rage. He scoured the peaks while his soul was raked by the cutting edges of the black emotions. The agony was beyond belief but he endured, desperate to find even a tiny spark, the tiniest of hints that the girl could be saved.

  He explored the hateful peaks for eons. Time lost all meaning as he became a creature of singular purpose: to seek.

  A small part of him noted that this is probably exactly how the other Empaths lost themselves.

  He didn’t care.

  __________

  It had been three hours and silence reigned around the wagon.

  Respectfully, the others had parted to allow the Empath’s mates to approach the open cage and they held each other mutely as they watched the still form of their man resting atop the tiny giant.

  Each of them could sense him, could sense his desperate quest and the pain it caused him, but were able to do nothing to help but stand by and love him.

  Erica soundlessly wept, knowing all too well what he endured.

  The Amazons held their kneeling pose, bodies rigid even as sweat dripped from their brows; for so long as the young Empath had strength to search, they had strength to witness.