Balance Point (The Complex Book 0)

by Katherine Rhodes

  And considering how much Uni had taken out of the pittance they ‘gave’ me for the rinky dink apartment I now had, I was hoping that was the case down here.

  “Excuse me, ma'am.”

  Fuck, shit, damn. I stopped walking and turned around. The man walked forward from the shadows behind me. I'd been so lost in my head I hadn't seen him. I really hoped he wasn’t looking to attack me.

  “Are you aware that this area is restricted to residents?”

  “I, um…was just out for a walk and the door was open.” As he got closer, I could see he was wearing a version of the Climintra's uniforms. The breast pocket said 'volunteer'—which meant he was an aux officer with no weapons.

  Technically.

  “I'm sorry, but this area is not open to…” He paused he walk toward me, and cocked his head. “It's not…” His brow wrinkled. “You're not supposed to be here.”

  I sighed. I knew why he was stuttering, and I decided to just make the best of what this was. I stopped tamping down the sexual signals as I usually did, and let the galaxy's clumsiest seductress out to work her awkward magic on this poor unsuspecting man.

  I just hoped he wasn't married.

  “I was looking for some good sex.” Mentally, I shook my head. I was about as smooth as a brick wall—still, at least didn't sound really desperate. Yet.

  “So you... are walking around... “ He cleared his throat and shook his head.

  I ramped up the signals a little and moved in closer. “I'm looking for good sex. Just a quick, good lay. Are you a quick, good lay?”

  “I…uh…”

  I moved closer, and he shook his head in confusion. I walked him slowly backwards, pressing in closer and pushing him up against the rock of the tunnel, and I reached for the buckle of his pants.

  His hand shot out and grabbed mine. His eyes were clear again, with no hint that he had been partly under my sway moments before.

  I was in deep shit.

  “You want to have sex? We're not doing it here.” His grip tightened, he pulled me back down the hall where I'd come in, and up through the stairwell, past my original door to another landing. “If we're going to do it, we're going to do it right.”

  Those were his only words until we reached a door that he keyed opened and waved his palm over the reader.

  I didn't have a chance to ask where we were or what he was doing once we were inside. It was dark, but I could make out a bed in the dim light from the hygiene room.

  He pressed me against the wall just as the door closed. “You want to fuck?”

  “I need to,” I said, pushing my influence against him—and this time it didn't slide through him. He was resisting me, but he was still going along with this. I wanted to stop, and I didn't want to stop.

  And the greedy sex demon I was won out.

  I grabbed his buckle and yanked it open as he found the buttons on my pants. I stopped and grabbed his hand. “Undress. Forget the seduction. Meet me on the bed, naked.”

  The universe's most awkward seductress.

  Still, he was as good as his word and a trail of clothes followed us to the bed, where he grabbed me around the waist, pulling me close.

  “Clean?” He whispered the word while his hand found my breast.

  “Clean,” I agreed. What I didn't tell him was that no matter what sexual diseases Humans carried, Metas were immune. Most of us anyway. Our bodies just didn't respond to Human ills. And there was little chance of me getting pregnant since succubii had to be mated to go into a fertile cycle.

  And we were definitely not mating.

  His lips found mine in the dark, and he pressed in, taking possession of my mouth. He was hot, sweet, and soft all while being thorough with his plundering. I hadn't been kissed like this years, and the avalanche of desire it set off had my nipples peaking and thighs wet with desire.

  I was already starting to feel better.

  “What's your name?” His kisses trailed down my neck and before I could answer, he had me on my back on the bed. “I won't keep going without a name.”

  “Auralym.” I had no idea why I told him my real name. This needed to be nothing more than a quickie.

  He hummed between my legs, setting off satisfying tremors through my pussy. I needed this more than I thought. For a brief moment, I was afraid I had gone too long, and this was going to kill my oddly willing partner, but only just briefly. I knew I had been careful enough it shouldn't.

  “What's your name?” My words were almost cut off by the rush of hot desire he ignited when his tongue found my clit.

  “Mmmmmmarin.” He tricked me by humming that first letter of his name and distracting me. Of course at this point that wasn't hard to do, and I didn't really want to wait for my orgasm--as good as his tongue felt down there.

  Capturing his head with my hand, I lifted him away for a moment. “Marin. I like it. But I really, really want you to fuck me.”

  “Oh, do you?” He crawled back up the bed, licking and sucking his way back to my nipple. “You just want my cock?”

  “I just need it.” I wasn't above begging at this point, but I was trying not to. “Get your cock in me.”

  I could see his eyes flair for just a moment, and in the next, he slammed home inside me.

  I arched up off the bed and moaned my satisfaction. He started thrusting, pumping hard, and joined him, grinding against his body. He shook his head, panting. “Too fast, too much.”

  Shit! I'd never really shut down my sexual influence, and I'd overwhelmed him. I clamped down on it and in a smooth move, rolled us so I could control him. I didn't revel in being so sexual, but that didn't mean I didn't know what I was doing.

  Also, this guy was good. His thick cock was just right, and I was enjoying this. My actual enjoyment of sex was rare. Now on top of him, he seemed to relax a bit and nodded, his hands finding my breasts again. I moved over him in slow, careful movements, dragging my clit over his shaft. He moved one hand from my breast and found the bundle of nerves.

  “You slowed me down, sweetie, you didn't stop the meteor.” His meaning was clear: catch up because I'm coming.

  I focused on his fingers teasing me. They danced and twisted and dusted and flicked. It was a welcome change, and his movements were expert. I was almost glad I'd tried to seduce him. My body craved this so much.

  “Move faster,” he breathed, air jagged and harsh through his teeth.

  How could I say no? I changed from the leisurely pace of riding him to the more frantic pace of rising and falling on his dick. I was getting close too, and he could sense that—his fingers played more desperately with my clit. I leaned down to him, and he wrapped an arm around me, rolling us again.

  This time, there was no stopping him. He slammed into me so hard he rocked us up the bed. The sexual energy was pouring off him and my body soaked up every last drop of it.

  WIthout warning, he came, spilling his heat inside me, and trigging my own orgasm. My body bowed, sucking all the sexual energy off him and pulling his cock even deeper inside me. I pulled more energy off him, and I was suddenly terrified I was going to kill him.

  Then, the most amazing thing happened. He intentionally pushed more energy into me. Scads of it, filling me and feeding the sex-crazed demon that I was. There was so much of it, I came again, screaming and writhing in delight.

  I had not been this full since I had first started needing sex to survive.

  But this was more than just his sexual energy. This was energy he had stored, and built up, and managed to change into something he could give me.

  Shit. He wasn't Human.

  * * *

  Marindor

  Shit. She wasn't Human.

  I flicked on the light with my power, and finally got a view of this woman. Pale, creamy skin, wide, bright green eyes, her brown hair fanned around her head like a halo. A sheen of sweat glistened on her skin, and she really was gorgeous.

  And not Human.

  “What are you?” I managed t
o whisper.

  “What are you?” she whispered back.

  “You're not Human.”

  The woman below me was still consumed by her second climax, and I was certainly enjoying it as well. But through her pleasured haze, she shook her head. “I'm a Meta. A succubus.”

  “That makes so much sense. That’s why I was so instantly attracted to you.”

  She nodded. “I'm sorry. That was my fault. I've been desperate for sex.”

  I slid off her body and dropped down next to her on the bed. “I could tell. And if I were anyone else, you might have done damage.”

  “So, you're a Meta too.”

  She didn't seem to mind that I was close. We were virtual strangers, but even when I knew what she was, and was able to tune her out completely, there was something that attracted me to her.

  “I am. I'm a confluence psychic.”

  “Confluence?”

  “I can do more than just read the future.”

  “The light...”

  “Yes, and all that energy when I came. I absorb it from the people I'm around. I have to release it.” I cleared my throat. “I'm not going to lie, I tried to push it on to you when I found you in the tunnel. But you wouldn't take it, which makes sense since you're a sexual creature.”

  Auralym looked impressed. “You turned it all into sexual energy and let me have it?”

  “I did. I didn't know I could do that until I just tried.”

  She flopped her head on the pillow. “Please by the gods of Vaimm, tell me you're not married or mated.”

  I laughed quietly. “No, I'm not. I don't have significant other. I have trouble keeping them around, because of the psychic issues.”

  She rolled and looked at me, propping herself up on an elbow. It hit me again how gorgeous she was. “Can you read me?”

  I reached out to touch her mind with mine. That, in and of itself, was unusual. Thoughts from others usually jumped at me and tore their way in, torturing me. But as I got closer, there was nothing. She was a wall to me, no thoughts in or out, though I could sense them on the other side. “Are you blocking me?”

  “Nope.”

  Shit, what a relief! Silence. Well, as silent as my mind got. There was always background noise, but to not be assaulted by her thoughts, her present, her past, her essence was a welcome change.

  She grabbed the sheet on the bed and wrapped it around herself, slightly disappointing me as I was really enjoying the view of her breasts. “So you gave to dump the psychic energy you usually accumulate?”

  “Yes.”

  “How do you usually do it?”

  “Well, it usually involved going out for a night with friends. I dump just part of what I have in each of them. Or, I did. None of them came with me. I've been dropping a little here and there like I tried to with you, but it's just not enough or fast enough. I fill what I dumped quickly, and pile more on.”

  Auralym stared at me for a moment, considering something. “How about a trade?”

  “Trade?” I propped myself up on my elbow.

  “You and I meet once a week. Here, your place, my place, and we trade. Good sex, no strings. You get to dump your psychic overload, and I'll take it on. We both get what we need. And we can do that unless and until one of us finds a significant other.”

  Was there any drawback to this? I had kept her from the tunnels and the underground, I would get a chance to dump all the build up to someone who could not only take it but use it. And who knew I could dump it through a good orgasm? There really was no downside to this. “Alright. This sounds likes a win win for both of us.”

  “Good, that's a huge relief.”

  “For both of us,” I agreed.

  “Where the hell are we anyway?”

  I laughed. “It's a spare room. The Intra volunteers have assigned area we have to check on a weekly basis to make sure they are in clean, working conditions in case Uni wants to ship more people here. Less than half the domes are occupied, and the Climintra just don't have time to patrol the empty quarters. We have codes to unoccupied rooms. This is my sector.”

  “And you have another job?”

  “Yes, I work in the Uni-Tailor Repair.” I smiled. “I wanted something that was nothing like who and what I was back home. That was about as far as I could get. What brought you here?”

  “An unwise sexual encounter. I had no choice.”

  That was all I would get out of her. I could tell by her tone—which was a nice change. “And you?”

  “I didn't want to deal with being a confluence, bound up in all kinds of ceremony and duties. Maybe someday I'll go back, but that bullshit was for the birds.”

  I let my words drift away. I didn't think I would ever go back. Even if it meant leaving the solar system on a generational ship, I'd do it. The amount of responsibility the community heaped on a confluence--especially one with the last name Fels'bri—was crushing. Some of the people on Lorn were there to earn money; some really believed that Metas and Humans would work together. Some were there because they were forced there, or made a deal where this was their way out of a bad situation. I ran. I ran from everyone and everything I knew, hoping I could get away from what I was. But even here, there were things that followed me.

  I could read minds. I could dreamwalk, know a person's past and future. I could use telekinesis. I could do things I didn't even know I could do yet. It was the blessing—or curse—of a confluence psychic. We were born only one in ten thousand psychics, and psychics were the most common of Metas.

  I knew that if I ever went back home, I'd be welcomed by everyone but my family. Which was why I had no plans on going home. My parents had pushed me away in favor of my little sister until it became clear I was a confluence and could be very noteworthy for them in the long run. By that time, I hated them enough that I knew I would take what I could from them and go.

  When the Complex became public, I was the first one to sign up. I would be able to get away from everyone and have less psychic energy to handle. Or so I thought. I hadn't realized how much Humans sucked at tamping down their psychic impressions. Metas were good at it, so even if there were a lot of them around, there was a low, slow flow of energy. Humans…well, they seemed to shove every ounce of energy at me. And within the week I had been there, I was already overwhelmed.

  When I saw what I thought was a Human in the underground entrance, I thought about how perfect it would be to dump the energy to her. She'd pass out, and I could put her in a room and no harm, no foul.

  Turned out, this little, sexy Meta was on her way to do the same thing I was in the tunnels: find someone to use for our outlets. I realized she was studying me again, and I smiled. “I got time for a round two.”

  Her face fell flat. “I could if you wanted.”

  I was surprised. “You… weren't…”

  She put a hand on my arm. “No. You were fine. It was all good. But sex is necessary for me. I get tired of seeking it out and trying to convince people to fuck me to keep me alive.”

  “I'm more than willing.” I raised an eyebrow with a smile. “You don't have to work too hard to convince me.” I rolled on top of her. “Top off the tank?”

  Auralym laughed. “Okay, that's funny. I could get used to having you around.”

  “I could get used to have you around… my cock.” I slid my now-ready shaft inside her again.

  Her laugh turned into a moan, and she seemed convinced that a round two was a good idea.

  Chapter Two

  John

  Sythoplas was shit.

  I had to admit it was taking the edge off the hunger, but it was wretchingly awful to injest. I was going to need some real, fresh blood and soon, or I was going to be getting Hangry.

  Hangry was such an excellent word for what I was feeling.

  The problem was, being a night dweller, there weren't nearly as many people out for me to make friends with, and find potential donors. Despite my inherent sex appeal, and the reputation that a lo
t of blood drinkers had, I didn't like to take from someone unwilling.

  And that was the irony of my being here. That little bitch was willing. She had also been a liar—to her father and to me. Now, I was here. Drinking liquid shit, and bemoaning my decision to be an upright citizen of the Meta community.

  Bartending was now my profession of choice. It seemed a smart way to go, but at the same time, surrounded by all those warm, full blooded bodies, I was already having trouble not drooling over the meals that were walking around.

  Still, it wasn't a popular bar. It had been set up for a slightly older crowd, not the night partiers that young of all Metas and Humans seemed to be. Five hundred years of life tended to make a person slightly cynical and totally unwilling to put up with that crap behavior.

  The Uni-Bar Lorn Circuit was a dark, comfortable place where a lot of the inhabitants came to enjoy a late night beverage. Somehow I had wound up as the night manager, and it was my discretion that we welcomed everyone. The complex was supposed to be a cooperative, and if Metas and Humans couldn't have a beer together, how the hell were they ever going to figure out this dischord?

  I'd been in charge a week and had already broken up at least four fights. Only one had a come to fisticuffs, but the verbal ones had been vicious. The physical fight had me using the incredible strength I'd gained as a vampire—and the Humans certainly didn't like that. I'd been tempted to just take one of them by their scruffy neck and solve my hangry problem.

  But I didn't.

  Now it had spread that I was not going to tolerate bullshit and the bar was peaceful and successful in just those ten days. Also, in those ten days, there was no sign of anyone who might be willing to share a little of the liquid nourishment.

  So I was sipping Synthoplas between beer orders. Desperation was also driving me to put a little dark beer in the glass because seriously? It was like gargling with old underclothes. Or over used shoes.