The Neko's Tail - 33. Before the Storm

Relax. It was much easier said than done.

Artemis took deep breaths as a dozen cameras and microphones were pointed at him. He hadn’t seen technology this outdated since finding Elias.

Atharo stood beside him, speaking calmly and clearly.

“Recently, this Egaro transported water to your fine planet. He was set upon by pirates hoping to deny you all water and start another war between your people and the Faro. When their first plan failed, and Artemis finished his task, he was poisoned on Faro soil, again in hopes of starting a war. I have heard there is evidence that the poisoning was a success, however, that is not the case. As you can see, Artemis stands beside me, well and whole. At great risk to himself, he has returned to prevent any threat of war.”

“How do we know he is the same Egaro?” someone yelled from the crowd of people watching them.

Artemis cleared his throat nervously.

“My bracelet lists me as Captain Artemis Eustera of Egaro. If I am not mistaken, the body everyone believed was mine has no bracelet, thus was not part of the Fleets.”

“Officially the Alliance is standing behind the terms of your treaty with the Faro. The first planet that breaks the treaty will lose the support of the Alliance. Peace is in everyone’s best interest,” Atharo added. “Anyone who threatens that peace threatens the Alliance and will be dealt with accordingly.”

“Why did it take the Alliance this long to step in?”

Atharo frowned.

“The nearest base outside of the system is 15 lightyears away. Due to the vast distance and the limits of communication below the speed of light, it is difficult to share information between systems. The first we heard of your troubles was three days ago when Captain Artemis informed us of the issues you were facing. I can assure you I will be suggesting regular patrols through the system to my superiors.”

Artemis saw Geiro motion at Atharo, and the Xanar held up a hand, stopping another question.

“Thank you for taking the time to listen. I can assure you all the Alliance has your best interests at heart.”

They stepped back, motioning for Artemis to follow them as they walked away. Geiro fell in behind them, scanning the area for threats as the trio moved.

“You did well Captain,” Atharo said.

“All I said-”

“Was all that needed to be said by you.”

Atharo smiled.

“At least you didn’t throw up,” they chuckled. “Speaking in front of a crowd was not a pleasant experience for me when I first started my career.”

They moved quickly through the base, Atharo taking them toward the hotel.

“Rest for the day. Tomorrow, unless I am contacted by General Aro, we will return to the Whispering Eye and travel to Oyhaf B3.”

Artemis breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe he had sent the others to Reinard’s home for nothing. He certainly hoped so.

Elias curled up against Reinard, gently rubbing the Faro’s stomach. It could just be his imagination, but he thought he could feel a slight bump.

“The Xanar was right. They are growing fast,” Reinard smiled, his hand laying on top of Elias’.

Reaching up, Reinard’s lips pressed against Elias’ head.

“I love you,” he murmured.

Elias looked up, his lips meeting the Faro’s mouth. His hand brushed the back of Reinard’s head, their kiss deepening.

Pulling back, the neko whispered, “I don’t want to hurt the babies.”

“You won’t,” Reinard smiled at the cat lovingly. “But we don’t have to do anything you don’t want.”

Elias hesitated uncertainly. He wanted to try something, but he didn’t know if Reinard would do it.

“Can…”

He fell silent, staring at the floor.

“Can what?”

Reinard brushed Elias’ hair gently.

“You can ask me anything. I might not say yes, but I’ll never hurt you.”

Elias swallowed drily.

“Can you… can you have sex with me?”

The Faro smiled.

“Of course. You don’t have to be scared to ask me that.”

Elias stretched out, laying on his stomach. His head turned, gazing at Reinard with not a little apprehension.

“Elias? What are you doing?” Reinard frowned.

He pulled the neko back into a seated position.

“Did… Did you want me to… enter you?” he questioned.

Elias nodded slowly.

“Oh.”

The neko moved to get off the bed and Reinard stopped him.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked quietly.

Hesitating, Elias stared at the Faro.

“Yes,” he whispered.

Reinard kissed him gently.

“We can stop at any time,” the fox said, his hand pressing against Elias’ chest. “I want this to feel good for you. If you don’t enjoy this, just tell me.”

Reinard’s hands fell to Elias’ waist, slipping under his shirt. He ran his fingers over the neko’s torso, smiling as Elias shivered at his touch. Lifting the shirt over Elias’ head, Reinard folded the fabric and set it beside the bed.

Cautiously, Elias sought out the fox’s mouth, their lips pressing together. Reinard ran his tongue over Elias’ mouth, seeking entrance, but the neko hesitated, pulling back.

The Faro changed tactics, gently massaging Elias’ shoulders. Elias purred, closing his eyes as Reinard’s fingers dug into him. The fingers vanished, and Elias heard the rustle of fabric. Opening his eyes again, he found Reinard removing his shirt.

The fox definitely had a small bump in his stomach, and his breasts seemed larger. It was a small shock to Elias to see Reinard this way, and for a moment the neko worried this would hurt the Faro or the babies.

Reinard removed his pants, the Faro’s rod springing free of its confines. He reached for Elias, gently running his hands over the neko’s body, and slowly Elias relaxed again.

His pants slid down his body slowly, Reinard pulling them off. They sat together naked, hands exploring the other’s body.

Gently, Reinard pressed his hands against Elias’ chest, the neko falling back onto the bed.

“Are you okay?” the fox asked breathlessly, a finger running down Elias’ side.

The neko nodded, his eyes wide but trusting. He knew Reinard wouldn’t hurt him.

Reinard kneeled below him, hands brushing over Elias’ rod. His tongue ran over Elias, and the neko twitched, juice leaking out of him.

“You taste like sugar…” Reinard murmured.

Elias frowned, his dick falling slightly.

“Is that bad?”

“No,” Reinard smiled. “I like it.”

A finger touched Elias’ butt and the neko tensed.

“It’s okay. We’ll go as slow as you need me to,” the Faro whispered, his breath washing over Elias’ groin.

His finger moved away, stroking Elias’ tail instead. The appendage flicked in his hand, curling around his finger as Elias purred.

After a minute of petting the neko’s tail, Reinard asked, “Are you ready?”

Sucking in a breath, Elias nodded. Reinard’s finger touched him again, and again Elias’ butt clenched.

“Relax,” Reinard breathed, flicking his tongue against Elias’ rod.

The neko hissed in surprise, his muscles loosening. Reinard slipped inside him, the feeling bringing back a memory of an elf doing the same thing to him.

Elias squeezed his eyes tight against the memory, fighting it back. Reinard’s finger slid through him, pushing in and pulling out.

“You’re okay,” the fox murmured, using his free hand to rub the neko’s stomach.

His finger pulled out completely and the Faro adjusted himself.

“Do you want me on my stomach?” Elias asked.

“Golaski no. I want to see you, gaze into your eyes as I make love to you.”

Reinard’s rod touched his hole, and Elias tensed again, but the Faro’s fingers wrapping themselves around his dick drew Elias’ attention away. There was a familiar pressure against his hole, one he hadn’t felt in months, and suddenly, with a pop, Reinard was inside the neko.

Elias sucked in a breath, clenching against the intrusion. It wasn’t bad, but it dredged up memories of his days in Astara, being used for sex.

“Elias? Are you okay?” Reinard questioned, holding perfectly still.

Elias shook his head, tears running from his eyes. He felt the fox withdraw, leaving him mercifully empty. Suddenly Reinard was next to Elias, kissing his head gently.

“You’re okay,” he whispered. “Everything’s okay.

Elias’ breath hitched, his arms wrapping around Reinard. The fox was still hard, juices leaking from him, and Elias slowly lowered his head. Reinard shouldn’t have to suffer because Elias was broken.

His lips surrounded Reinard’s rod, sliding up and down slowly. The Faro hissed, his hands falling onto the neko’s head. Reinard had just enough sense not to grab Elias’ hair, remembering what had happened the last time he had done that.

Elias could feel the Faro’s veins throbbing, taste the salt of Reinard’s essence, a strange lump near the base of the fox's length growing as it bumped against his lips. The fox didn’t last long, spilling himself into Elias with a loud cry, one that was certain to run through the house.

“I love you,” he panted, pulling out of Elias’ mouth.

Elias swallowed the load in his mouth, smiling at the Faro.

“I love you too.”

Artemis stood up from the bed, feeling restless. He felt like something was about to happen, something bad, but he didn’t know what.

There were only so many times he could pace the room, not even able to look outside because Geiro said a sniper could be waiting to shoot him.

He missed Reinard and Elias, but at least they were safe. And they had each other, so they wouldn’t be as bored as he was.

The Egaro walked out of the bedroom, finding Geiro staring at the viewing screen.

“I need to talk to Colonel Atharo,” Artemis said.

“Why?”

“We need to get off-planet.”

Geiro scoffed at the tiger.

“Why, because you’re bored? Is the big bad explorer getting that itch to run off into the black?”

Artemis growled, turning away from the Faro. He made his way to the door, stepping through into the hallway. Grumbling, Geiro followed him.

The tiger knocked on Atharo’s door, and a moment later it opened, revealing the Xanar with a gun in her hands.

“Captain, what are you doing out of-”

A hole appeared in the Xanar’s torso, at the same height as Artemis’ head. The tiger yelped as Atharo stumbled. He caught the Xanar, lowering them to the floor.

“Shit!” Geiro yelled.

He grabbed Artemis’ wrist, pulling him away from the door. The door moved to close itself, but Atharo’s body stopped it.

“We need to get her to a pod!” Artemis exclaimed.

“My orders are to keep you safe, not her!” Geiro snapped.

Artemis wrenched himself from the fox’s grasp, kneeling once more beside the Xanar. The shot was in their right shoulder and it didn’t look lethal, but he didn’t know Xanar physiology. It could have hit their heart.

Atharo’s chest rose and fell shallowly, and Artemis shook them roughly, trying to wake them.

The Xanar groaned, their body tensing as their eyes opened.

“Colonel, we need to get out of here!” Artemis said urgently.

Atharo pushed themself to their feet, Artemis rising beside them. Their hand covered the bleeding wound in their shoulder, and they turned to Geiro.

“Check the hall,” they commanded.

The Faro drew his weapon, stepping through the door. The sound of glass shattering could be heard from in the room, and Artemis turned, seeing shards of glass falling from the window on the other side of the room.

“It’s a trap triggered by walking through the door,” he realized.

Falling to his knees, Artemis crawled through the door, hearing a nearly silent hiss as a gun discharged above him. Standing up, he saw a small hole in the wall across from the door and pointed it out to Geiro.

“Can you disarm it?” he demanded.

The Faro shook his head, motioning for Atharo to crawl through after Artemis.

“We’ll leave a warning for the hotel. Let’s get to the shuttle.

They hurried down the hall, Geiro leading the way with his weapon out. Someone screamed as they rushed past, but the trio ignored them.

“This is why you don’t go anywhere without an armed guard,” the Faro snapped at Artemis as they neared the shuttle.

“That trap was set a while ago, probably not long after we checked in. I’m just grateful I had the foresight to put you two in the other room,” Atharo gasped.

Blood was flowing freely from their wound, their hands unable to staunch all of it. Artemis swore the hole ran through their body, leaving an exit hole in Atharo’s back, but there wasn’t much they could do about it.

“Artemis, you will fly the shuttle. I can’t handle docking with my shoulder,” Atharo said as they hurried into the shuttle.

Artemis nodded, sitting in the pilot’s seat. He scanned the controls quickly, relieved to find they were in a similar layout to his old ship. He started the engines and immediately sent a hail to the base.

“Planet base, this is Colonel Atharo of the IMFL requesting immediate take off. Be advised there is a weapon firing in the base hotel, room 54. Trigger is walking into the room,” Atharo said in a strained voice.

“Understood Colonel. Request granted.”

Artemis didn’t wait for the rest of the message, engaging the ship’s thrusters immediately.

Geiro held his hands over Atharo’s back, trying to help with the bleeding.

“Get us to the ship now Captain,” he demanded, as blood flowed from the Xanar.

Artemis didn’t have to be told twice. He opened the throttle as far as it would go, the shuttle heating quickly as they sped through the atmosphere at record speed.