The Mantis Equilibrium - Book Two - 4. Chapter 4 - Gawa, Eroli, & S'Kay

A trio of unusual individuals sat huddled around a small table. Each of them was unique. They spent several moments in silent awe, only occasionally breaking the quiet to express their feelings.

Three mugs of dark beer sat on the tabletop.

A woman with skin like mineral-rippled marble said, “It worked. It actually worked.” She looked like she was made of movable stone. When she spoke, her words seemed to reverberate inside of her. The strange patterns on her skin moved in a continuous and fluid dance. There were no visible pupils or irises in her colorless eyes, and her scalp was smooth.

“It was incredible,” agreed a man with thick hair the color of wheat that covered every inch of his body. Long claws extended from his fingertips, but he retracted them to lift up his glass for a sip.

The third individual remained quiet for the longest. She was bird-like in her appearance. Tiny protrusions curled up from the backs of her arms, over her shoulders, and across the sides of her face. Like the other woman, she did not have hair, but there were larger extensions on the top of her head. They looked like feathers.

“This is only the beginning,” she finally said to the other two. She turned her eyes to one of them and then the other. “I fucking love you both,” she declared. She stared into the eyes of the woman made of marble and said her name. “Gawa,” and the two of them kissed.

Then the bird woman turned and gazed into the eyes of the hairy man. “Eroli,” she said with sultry allure, and his name tasted good on her tongue They also kissed.

As their lips separated, Eroli said to her in a rapturous tone, “I love you.” He stroked the thick fur that covered his collarbones and chest.

“I love each of you,” Gawa added with a husky breath that echoed in her stone body.

The bird-woman gave them a mischievous smile. “I already can’t wait to do it again,” she said.

Gawa whispered to her, “I love you, S’Kay,” and Eroli repeated her.

“I love you, S’Kay,” and the two of them kissed, as S’Kay watched.

Gawa pulled her lips away and said, “I can’t believe our first time went so well,” but she paused. “Wait a second. No, I take that back. I actually did believe that we would be that good.”

S’Kay and Eroli were kissing again, and Gawa watched their tongues twisting together.

“I know we said that we should wait in between times,” she said over their slippery saliva sounds, “but I don’t want to wait. I want to do it again, and I want to do it soon. I don’t know that I’ve ever felt more alive than when we were done.”

Gawa sighed and continued. “The three of us, just standing there together in the dark, being quiet and reveling in the moment,” she said wistfully, “I feel like that’s what my life is meant for; that’s my purpose.”

The bird-woman and beast-man’s lips separated, and S’Kay added, “I could not imagine my first time without you both.”

They looked at each other with delirious, giddy smiles on their wet and pouty lips.

“I’ve never felt more beautiful,” Gawa said. The rippling pattern on her skin shifted in its ever-moving flow.

“And you were beautiful,” S’Kay confirmed.

The two women leaned together again and kissed deeply, breathing mutual breaths as their tongues danced.

“I actually think that it’s a good idea for us to wait just a little while in between,” Eroli started to say, but S’Kay pulled away from Gawa and interrupted him.

“I don’t want to wait,” she said in an incredulous and demanding tone. “I want to do it again tomorrow!” She spoke over whatever protests he attempted to make. “And I’d do it without you next time, if it came to that. We’re going to do it again, with or without you, Eroli.”

“Yeah,” Gawa agreed, “I don’t want to wait either. I want to feel that beautiful again.”

Eroli looked at the two women with uncertainty. “I guess if you want to,” he ventured, “I guess we don’t have to wait. I already know the perfect second place.” He asked, “Do you both really want to do it again tomorrow?”

S’Kay and Gawa smiled.

Each of them took a sip of beer.

“Gawa,” S’Kay said to the woman with skin that looked like stone, “tell Tualu that we need him again tomorrow night.” She caressed the feathery wisps that grew from the back of her own arms.

“It’ll be my pleasure,” Gawa replied. “We make a good team, the three of us and him. I suspect our little group will grow over time, but I don’t want to risk compromising what we have by inviting anyone else to join us yet.”

“I agree,” S’Kay concurred. “Maybe after we do it a few times together, we’ll decide to invite someone new to join in, but I don’t see that happening for a while. Did you have someone in mind?”

“No, not necessarily,” Gawa responded. “I guess a few folks pop up, but I’m not in a rush to add anyone else. There will be a better chance of getting caught if there are more of us. Our first time was so impressive, and I wouldn’t mind a repeat occurrence before we bring in new people.”

“People?” S’Kay repeated with a smirk. “As in, the plural of person? It seems that you have a few people in mind indeed,” she said with a laugh.

Gawa smiled and simply said, “I’m excited for our next time.” She held up her hand to examine her palm. It glowed purple and the patterns shifted across her skin.

S’Kay shook her feathers and licked her smiling lips. “We are going to accomplish such amazing and terrible things,” she said✪