Date: Mon, 15 Aug 2016 04:35:25 +0000 From: Michael Offutt Subject: Chapter 31-the Orb of Winter-Gay Science Fiction This story is protected under international and Pan-American copyright conventions. Please remember to donate to Nifty if you're financially able to do so. MY WEBSITE: http://slckismet.blogspot.com/p/books.html My email: kavrik@hotmail.com Pictures of the characters in this story: http://slckismet.blogspot.com/p/my-artwork.html Full story chapters and discussion: http://slckismet.blogspot.com/p/discussion-board-for.html For those of you who can't wait for new chapters, please visit my forum where I post months ahead. The chapters are bigger there than they are on Nifty. To see for yourself please go to http://slckismet.blogspot.com/p/discussion-board-for.html and find the folder that says "The Orb of Winter" and then open that up to view the chapters. Please note that the chapter order here will differ from my forum because I cut the chapters into smaller chunks for Nifty's audience. Also, if you aren't on my mailing list and want to be, please shoot me an email. Please check out my books on my website. ***** Chapter Thirty-One "Your eyes are golden," Paul said to Alexi. "Really? Fuck!" Alexi cursed. He turned into a mirror and checked his reflection. Sure enough, the irises had changed color. "Well I know what you did after lunch," Paul said from behind his dark lenses. "Did you get a good sniff?" "If you mean I went and changed his bandages and showed him where the bathroom is then yeah, you do. Grr, I don't have time to get another pair o' specs made before dinner." "Let's just skip dinner," Paul said flatly. "You really don't want to see Daphne. She's pissed as hell at you for not walking her back to her dormitory. And we have enough food in our packs." As if to accentuate this, he hefted his haversack which practically bulged with leftovers. They stopped just outside the hall filled with undead, and Alexi realized how cold it was here in the ruined part of the school. That and his feet hurt like hell. This was the price of walking around in shoes that look pretty but really weren't functional. "What's wrong?" Paul asked. Alexi just frowned. "I love these heels, but I never should have stolen them from Gabby's wardrobe. They're so fucking tight; I couldn't imagine someone with smaller feet, but I guess I found one." He bent at the waist and rubbed his ankle some. Paul gave Alexi a half smile. "You know, beauty is never comfortable." "What an odd thing to say," Alexi replied. "Think about it, Alexi. All the things that girls do to look nice is hard work. And even with furniture or clothes, if it looks nice it probably isn't going to be comfortable." Alexi didn't have a comeback for Paul. And in his mind he thought, Paul's right. So he opened the door and used his necromancy to move the zombies to one side of the corridor so that they could get through. The two boys walked past the rotting undead, chatting about exams, and then took a flight of grimy stairs to the top where Alexi's long wooden planks straddled the crevasse in the foundation. Making sure not to slip in the snow by stepping carefully, they made it to the other side where Alexi's lab and washroom awaited them. That's when Alexi saw the size eleven boot marks in the snow. "Were those here earlier?" Paul asked. "No," Alexi replied. Steeling himself, he turned the handle to the lab and peeked in. I hope those belong to Kian, he thought. It turns out they did. Kian stood about ten feet away, his back facing them, and he dried his hair with a towel. Alexi saw Kian had donned his leather boots—the ones which were made to slip over his metal sabatons—and tightened them into place via a shiny buckle over the calf muscle. Moisture from his toes had soaked through to make dark spots on the leather above; these exactly matched the dimension of his phalanxes and the sight was oddly arousing. But it was the sight of all that naked skin that brought Alexi to a full stop; Paul inhaled sharply and froze at the door. To be fair, Kian wasn't completely naked; he had the "second-skin" butt tasset in place (from his alien armor) as well as the profoundly suggestive codpiece. The latter barely covered Kian's genitals, and it left all his white-blond pubic hair to spring outward like a thicket. All of the oblique muscles on Kian's back formed cut ridges under his white skin, and the dimple above his bubble butt gleamed in the firelight. The butt tasset was such a minor piece of equipment that it left an inch of crack showing at the top of Kian's ass and at least the bottom quarter of each gluteus exposed. Indentions on either side of his glutes hinted at dimples present under the metal armor. As Kian dried out his hair, his spinal column formed a raised ridge between the well-defined trapezius and deltoids. There was so much detail on Kian's back that it was almost over-stimulating, and it exactly matched what he'd learned in anatomy class. After a moment, Kian glanced in their direction and said, "Hello." He waved and cracked a smile. "Can you shut the door?" Paul and Alexi entered the room and obliged the teenager's request. Paul was visibly sweating, but not because it was too hot in the room. "How do you feel?" Alexi asked. Kian tossed the wet towel in a rumpled mess on the floor. His damp locks fell about his face in utter chaos now, and Alexi found himself wanting to comb it straight. Water gleamed off Kian's muscular chest, dripped down his pecs and hung from his taught nipples. His defined legs sported sweat trails down each thigh and into the top of his boots. The boy had removed all his bandages and only a few red spots remained. The ointment had really done its job. "Great," Kian said. "I can't wait for the stitches to come out. Some of them itch, and I hope I don't tear one open fighting tonight." "F-fighting?" Alexi asked. "There's to be no fighting." Kian's expression changed, and Alexi could tell that the boy was trying to come up with a rebuke for that edict. "I don't care what kind of excuse you come up with, I'm not letting you leave," Alexi said. "Doctor's orders." Then he stepped forward to put his backpack down on the worktable and instantly regretted it as the pain in his sore feet flared up. Wincing visibly, he said, "You need to stay here. I know you feel better, but trust me. The potion I gave you earlier needs twenty-four hours to complete its cycle. You could undo all the healing it's managed to accomplish." Alexi took another step and stumbled as his heel caught a hole in the floor planks. He fell forward, but didn't hit the ground. Kian rushed forward with reflexes that would put a cat to shame and caught Alexi in his arms. "Careful," Kian said. Then, as gingerly as Kian could, he lifted Alexi to his feet. "That's one way to turn your ankle." Alexi marveled that, even in heels, his full height hit to about Kian's lower lip. Milbar's beard, what I wouldn't give to be taller, he thought. "Are you all right?" Kian asked Alexi, crouching down to look him in the eyes. Alexi nodded, heat rising in his cheeks. He turned to Paul who just stood near the door, fanning his cleavage with his hand. Alexi rolled his eyes and set his sunglasses down on the workbench. "My feet are just killing me is all," Alexi said. "I've been walking all day, and –" Suddenly Kian gripped Alexi by the waist and effortlessly lifted the necromancer up and sat him on the worktable. Then Kian knelt on the floor and took a look at Alexi's gorgeous (but uncomfortable) pumps. "These hurt your feet?" Kian asked gently, looking up at Alexi through damp bangs. Alexi swallowed hard and imagined placing his soles on Kian's broad and muscular shoulders. "Yes," Alexi whispered, heart pounding in his chest. Deftly, Kian undid the jeweled clasps and slipped Alexi's feet one at a time out of the pumps. Then Kian took Alexi's right foot and pressed his strung thumbs to the underside, kneading the sore plantar and fascia. Kian's strong hands had just the right pressure, and they felt like magic. "Just relax, Alexi," Kian said. "You've earned this." The warm touch of his skin had an immediate effect in diminishing Alexi's stress. After a minute, Alexi closed his eyes and felt every tight muscle in his body start to unwind. This was the best foot rub he'd ever gotten, not that he had much to compare with. Shortly after this realization, Kian switched to Alexi's other foot and rubbed it for a good five minutes. "Hi, I'm Paulina," Paul said stepping forward and holding out his hand. This was really the first time that Alexi recalled ever feeling mad at Paul. Kian stopped working Alexi's foot and stood. Rather than grip Paul's hand (like a guy would shake another guy's hand) Kian took Paul's fingers, raised them to his lips, and kissed them with a slight bow. "Another lovely lady," Kian said. "My name's Kian. Kian Lightfoot." Paul stepped forward and brushed his fingers across the top of Kian's alabaster pecs. "Your skin is so nice and smooth...we should probably get you a shirt or something. Right, Alexi? I mean," Paul swallowed, mouth slightly agape. "We wouldn't want you to catch cold or anything." Kian grinned and clasped Paul's fingers. "Does my hand feel cold?" he asked. Paul shook his head. "N-no it feels very warm. Very nice, actually." Kian glanced at his armor on the floor. "I was just going to put my killsuit back on. It's comfortable, and I feel safe in it. I can even sleep in it without too much trouble. Are you two ladies...?" Kian kind of bounced his index finger back and forth between Paul and Alexi, as if there were an uncomfortable question lingering on the tip of his tongue that he deemed inappropriate. Suddenly Alexi got what Kian was asking. "An item? You're asking if we're dating? No...right, Paulina?" Paul shook his head. "Definitely not. Just friends. Not lesbian friends but single...lonely...friends. I mean...we like hot guys, but our studies have kept us non-sociable so...yeah...just single. And available." "Very available..." Alexi echoed. Kian chuckled and boxed Alexi in with his forearms, both palms pressed against the tabletop and the weight of his body carried forward into his muscular shoulders. He leaned into Alexi so that his hot breath could play against the necromancer's throat. Alexi heard Kian sniff him, and it reminded Alexi of a puppy exploring the world. Then Kian said, "Guys are stupid. Sometimes they don't see a good thing sitting right in front of their eyes." After saying that, Kian gave Alexi the most devastating stare he'd ever been handed and then licked Alexi's throat. He followed through with a kiss just below the ear. Alexi gasped at the electric touch of Kian's teeth and lips; Alexi arched his back, propping himself up on one hand to keep from crashing into his lab equipment. Kian nibbled at the skin beneath Alexi's jaw and then pulled back for a second, only to plunge at him to deliver a kiss that soon had Alexi soaring with the moon and the stars. Alexi parted his lips and Kian pushed his tongue inside, all the while opening and closing his own in a move that shoved moist heat into Alexi's quivering body. Kian felt scalding, strong, and alive; it didn't seem possible that such a man could be sucking and licking at his mouth; Alexi felt awash in Kian's testosterone. In fact he drowned in it. Alexi pressed against Kian and the boy whispered, "Slower...that's it...don't bite me but let my mouth...play...on yours," and their tongues lolled across one another. "Take your time," Kian whispered. "I'm not going anywhere." Kian's breath washed scorching across Alexi's chin. "Pretend I'm a frozen treat and just enjoy me." Alexi reached up with his other hand and gripped Kian's neck and felt the cords of muscle spring taut under his fingertips. Milbar's beard, Alexi thought, he's so lean and wiry. Kian parted from Alexi's lips to drag Paul into their exchange of body fluids. Once they started heavily snogging, Alexi leaned forward and sucked on Kian's left nipple. He ran his tongue over the pap, flicked it, and lapped the bud like a dog; in just a few seconds it grew hard. Kian reacted by twining his fingers in Alexi's long hair and applying pressure to the back of Alexi's head. This pressed his face harder into Kian's chest. "Oh god," Paul said, between gasps. His tongue slid along Kian's, who turned his head to the side for deeper penetration. The sloppiness of their exchange matched the sound Alexi made as he suckled and gently bit down upon Kian's skin. "Your—mouth—is—so—incredible," Paul said, almost hyperventilating. Kian turned back to Alexi and reached up and cupped Alexi's fake breasts, squeezing them with his hands. "Wait," Alexi said. Kian immediately stopped and pulled back, and a questioning expression took over his face. Carefully he removed his hands from the front of Alexi's dress, and Kian's face flushed with blood. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked, voice quiet as a mouse. "I'm sorry if I did. I just presumed you were into—" Alexi shook his head. "It's not that. I-I'm lying to you." He said, and then paused. "We're lying to you. But me more so than him." Kian's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Him?" "I'm a guy," Alexi said. "Not like you, obviously, but I have man parts. Paulina is transitioning. Her boobs are real, but as far as I know she still has her—" "Penis?" Paul asked. "The word is penis. And yeah I still have it. Thanks, a lot, Alexi." Alexi just stared at Paul for a minute. Both of them breathed so heavily that Alexi likened it to running a mile in hot weather. "We had to tell him. It's better this way than him finding out the other way, which was going to happen in probably under a minute if I hadn't said something." Paul looked ashen-faced and stared at Kian whose expression was as placid and as beautiful as ever, but entirely unreadable. The blond Atlantean swallowed hard and then said, "So I didn't do anything wrong? Like...you want this...right?" Kian asked, arching one perfectly-shaped eyebrow. "You're still attracted to me?" Alexi asked. Then he shook his head with his eyes closed. "To us, I mean? God that sounded awful. Am I fucking dreaming this? Is this even real?" Kian nodded and then laughed and Alexi realized "adorable" failed to describe Kian. "You're beautiful and smart. I-I haven't been with anyone for over a year, and I'm horny as fuck," Kian said. "I'll be honest about that. But right now you two look like the most beautiful girls I've ever seen. But it doesn't matter if you're even girls. I love you for who you are." Then he leaned in and kissed Alexi again but with even more ferocity. The heat was on once more, and Kian's fumbling fingers found their way up Alexi's dress. Alexi felt them grip his panties and rather than slide them off, Kian ripped the lace underwear in half and tossed them on the ground. Then Kian got down on his knees, lifted Alexi's dress onto the table, and took stock of everything he saw. Hairless and small, Alexi's erection grew toward Kian's nose. Barely reaching four inches and hanging above a pair of balls the size of very small figs, Kian gently swabbed them with his tongue. The warmth and wet smoothness of the attractive boy's attention sent sensations arcing through Alexi's tense body like a bolt of lightning. He fell back onto the bench, sending glass beakers and tubes scattering. Alexi arched his back as he felt Kian suck on his dick. Kian licked it, fingered it, and then swallowed it up to the base, all the while covering his teeth with his lips. After about five minutes, Alexi's body felt an intense rising tide of sensation. It felt new to him, and he tapped on Kian's head even as Kian gripped him about the throat with his strong hands. It became more difficult for Alexi to draw a breath, and the hypoxia made him light headed. "I'm cumming," Alexi struggled to say. Then a moment later he said, "Nnnggh," and Kian held his mouth open while Alexi shot into it, splashing against Kian's white teeth and getting some across his nose and lips. Kian let him go, and Alexi gasped for air, but the rush (and the intensity) left him trembling. Then Paul dropped next to Kian (unable to hold himself back) and cleaned Kian's face with his tongue. Kian threw Paul against the floor, hiked up Paul's dress and pulled the boy's panties off. Paul's dick was even smaller than Alexi's, and Kian was able to take the whole thing (twig and berries) into his warm velvety mouth. Kian probed Paul's body with his fingers, and squeezed Paul's very real tits in one hand while fingering his butthole with the other. After five minutes, Paul shot a load into Kian's chest and splashed white down to his navel. Kian laughed and grinned and tore Paul's dress open to expose his round boobs. "Tethyr's teeth I want to fuck your tits," Kian said. Alexi hopped onto the ground and wrapped his arms around Kian's chest, running his finger through the goo Paul left there. "Make love to me," Alexi whispered. Kian arched both eyebrows and his look softened to one of devastating sympathy. "I-I can't," he said. "I want to, but I can't." This took Alexi a little by surprise. "Why?" "You boys are too tight," Kian said. After a moment of silence, Kian continued. "Did you guys not take a peek when I was unconscious?" Alexi and Paul both looked at each other and then shook their heads no. "It didn't seem right," Paul said. "Invasion of privacy and all." This made Kian smack his sweaty forehead and he leaned back on his haunches, which had the added effect of making his glistening cum and sweat-stained abs stand out even better in the light. "I think I should probably just show you. Do you two want to take a look? I'm not proud of it, but I was born this way." Alexi and Paul didn't hesitate and nodded yes enthusiastically. As if that weren't enough, Alexi even said, "Yes, please Mr. Kian." Kian grinned devilishly and said, "You're adorable. Seriously." Kian stood up and walked over to the mattress and then sat down with his back against the wall. "Come on," he said, motioning at his codpiece. He planted the soles of both boots on the mattress and spread his legs so that Alexi and Paul could get a full view. They joined him almost instantly. Once there, Kian popped the metal codpiece off with his long deft fingers. This had the added effect of causing his skin-tight butt tasset to come free. When he pulled it off, the largest cock Alexi had ever seen flopped into view and instantly started to rise. "Holy shit," Paul said, in awe. "It's...huge...and so veiny." "And so thick," Alexi added. "Milbar's beard you're pale; the blood vessels have a bluish tint here and there." "I bet it tastes delicious," Paul stated. "Please let me taste it." "In a minute," Alexi interrupted. Mr. Kian, may I touch it?" Kian nodded and then added, "Just Kian, please. I'm pale because I haven't really gotten sun in a year. I used to be tanned; I guess maybe getting out of my armor could be healthy once in a while. Guys, I know you want to play but please lick your hands first. I'm extremely sensitive and dry skin chafes." Paul grabbed a measuring tape and then licked his palm thoroughly. Now wet, Paul held the tape to the moist white-skinned monster easily as thick as his forearm, uncut, and one he was able to confirm (a few seconds later) as being twelve inches erect. Considering Kian's twenty-eight-inch waist, the huge dick looked freakishly out of place on him. But once Alexi got used to staring at it, he discovered he couldn't take his eyes off of it. Buried in the foreskin was the meatus of the glans. Alexi expected it to be pink like Kian's nipples, but this thing was the same color as the rest of Kian's skin. And the base of this gargantuan horse cock was buried in that thick white-blond bush; it grew over Kian's big balls in strands several inches long. Those hairy balls were (in turn) the size of mandarin oranges. But that's where the hair stopped. Kian had no hair or discoloration on the inside of his thighs or on the taint, or up his treasure trail to his belly button. And Kian's asshole was a pale white pucker that looked so tight, it would barely accommodate a small finger. And Kian had so little body fat that the ripped definition of muscles and veins jumped from the flesh and kept his butt cheeks from even touching. Gods this is glorious, Alexi thought. Unable to hold himself back any longer, Alexi licked his own palm and then gripped the tip of Kian's dick in his hand and slowly rolled back the foreskin. The smell of the ocean wafted to Alexi's nostrils, and Kian gasped. The blond boy tapped the back of his head against the wall, the vein in the center of his forehead became more pronounced, and he closed his eyes while making fists with his hands. Then Kian's mouth popped open only to close again almost immediately. Kian sucked in his lip and his chest quaked; his mouth popped open a second time, tongue hanging out and breath in a pant as his stomach quivered. "What?" Alexi asked worried. Kian just shook his head and whispered, eyes still closed, "Nothing...that's bloody perfect. I-it just feels so fuckin' good. Tethyr's teeth! Please don't stop. Please," Kian begged, chewing on his lower lip. As Alexi uncovered the glans, Paul gaped at the size of Kian's urethra. "I could stick my pinky in that," he said. Kian opened his eyes and shook his head, "Please don't. That hurts; someone's done that to me before. Nnnggh...right there...Alexi." Kian struggled to catch his breath and shut his eyes again. "I was stretched out by a thick sound once...it's a kind of catheter...and it broke this thing inside me that now produces royal jelly. That's the clear fluid you'll see spurting out in just a second. It's very slippery. You guys are welcome to jack me off," Kian said desperately, "But please be careful. When I start cumming, I can't stop, and I won't want you to either. It's hard to describe. If it goes on too long, it'll paralyze me, and then it may start to look pink, which is blood. No one's ever let it go that far on me before, but I'll be at your mercy. As a rule of thumb, just don't let me cum more than ten minutes. After that, it starts to get painful." Kian's mouth fell open as Alexi rubbed his thumbs into the sponge-like shaft of Kian's girth. Kian's big balls flexed, and just like he'd said, a drop of clear liquid appeared at the entrance to Kian's wide urethra. Alexi smoothed it over Kian's ivory skin with his thumb, and it was incredibly slippery. In fact, it was better than lube, and it didn't seem to dry out. "A little more pressure there," Kian said, sucking on his lip. "And the thumb over the slit...yeah like that...and down...long even strokes. Nnnggh...that feels good," Kian said. Now the clear liquid flowed with every stroke to the top of Kian's head, almost like Alexi was milking a snake. After a moment, Kian grabbed Paul behind the head and pulled him close to his mouth, kissed him, and then gave him a command. "Lick my balls. Suck on them. Do it while Alexi's jacking me." Kian scooted down a little more and lifted his left leg so that Paul could get at his nuts with ease. He just rested the leg across Paul's back. "The hair gets in my teeth," Paul complained but Kian just put pressure with his hand on the back of Paul's head. "You can pick them out later," Kian said. "That's it, take one of them into your mouth," Kian's eyes narrowed to mere slits. The expression on Kian's sweaty and gorgeous face was one of intense ecstasy. "Now do you guys see what I mean?" Kian asked, chest gleaming in sweat and boots soaked through from underneath. He bent his right knee and rested his sole on Alexi's thigh. Paul swabbed Kian's balls and even brushed over his butthole. This made Kian shiver uncontrollably. "I—would—prolapse—your—arsehole," Kian breathed. "Oh god..." "Are you cumming?" Alexi asked. Kian shook his head. "Not yet. It takes a while for me, but the pressure is there. It's building." Sweat pooled in the hollows of Kian's neck and in all the crevasses his muscles made on his chest and between his abs. Alexi noticed that the royal jelly (which now coated his entire hand) dripped onto the mattress, and it even started running down his wrist. It was also starting to look a bit cloudier. Wisps of whiteness, like smoke, were visible and the viscosity had increased. After ten minutes, Kian's body shook and his hands formed claws on the mattress. "Are you cumming now?" Alexi asked, eyes wide in both awe and horror. Kian's dick was so thick that with Alexi's hand gripped around it there was still at least an inch of space between his thumb and longest finger. That and he could feel blood and other liquids moving up the stalk; Kian's pulse pounded on Alexi's skin. "Nnnggh," Kian said, grunting. Sweat poured off his ripped body and he sucked his lower lip in, biting himself gently with his white teeth. "Don't stop," he begged, voice just above a whisper. "Alexi...Paulina...Please god don't stop...don't stop...don't stop...," and then Kian drew in a ragged breath as his balls flexed. Panting, Kian stared wide at his own urethra as the first ivory jizz appeared. It was a single pearl, and Alexi had only a second to appreciate it for its perfect whiteness. Then the string came, and it shot out with such force it sprayed him in the eyes. Then another followed suit and another after that. One ropy white mass even hit the ceiling. A third sprayed halfway across the room. The entire time, Kian made claws with his fingers, arched his back to make his ribs and sternum flare, and kicked out with his boots. "Shhiiitte!" Kian yelled and pounded the mattress with his right fist. "Don't stop," he kept saying. "Don't stop." Cum flowed over Alexi's hands. It squirted everywhere, soiling his dress, and getting in both his and Paul's hair. And it just wouldn't stop. Each time Alexi rubbed his hand down the shaft and then up again, another stringy shot fired from Kian's urethra. After five minutes, the boy's eyes were starting to dilate and he was close to hyperventilating. "Alexi stop," Paul said, cum dripping from his face, over his cleavage, and in his hair and ears. The floor was spattered with it, as was the wall. Kian's own chest was drenched in it and so was the mattress. It looked like a pint of thickened milk had exploded all over them. "I've never seen anything like this," Alexi stated, letting go of Kian's cock. Kian's horse dick hung there a moment, squirting out a few last stringy lengths. Kian stared forward, unblinking, and mouth agape and gasping for air. After a minute, Kian's fingers loosened on the mattress, and he looked up weakly at them with those gorgeous spots of blue. His own cum dripped from his nose, lashes, and bangs. After five minutes, he smiled and pulled Alexi into him to kiss him. At this point, Alexi just went with it. But gods was this a mess. "Thank you," Kian said. "I feel relieved; less stressed." "I should hope so," Alexi replied and kissed him back. Paul lay his head in a pool of cum on Kian's shoulder and Kian turned his head and kissed Paul on the nose. It was practically the only clean place on Paul's face, and it made Kian giggle trying to find it. "I fucking can't believe this happened," Paul said. "The royal jelly causes that?" Kian nodded. "It changed me forever. I think I could fill a pint with semen on a go if I tried. That's about the point it turns pink." "Bloody hell," Alexi said. "Bloody hell indeed," Kian echoed. "Would you two like a smoke?" Kian sat up and walked over to his backpack. He paused to snatch the towel off the floor and wiped himself down, cleaning off his chest and legs as best he could but missing plenty of spots. Alexi just enjoyed the view of Kian's dick, which in a more flaccid state swung between his legs like the pendulum to a clock. Then Kian tossed the towel to Alexi and Paul to clean up some. As they did this, Kian crouched down to rummage through his haversack. The rawness of Kian's muscles framed his small white asshole, his dick, and his balls perfectly from behind. The pose made protuberant the depressions to either side of his bubble butt and both Achilles tendons, which bulged out from the back of his legs. Then he walked over to the hearth with a pipe in hand, all the while stuffing herbs into the bowl that he pinched from a small bag. "I love having a smoke after sex," he said kind of off-handedly. "I think you two will like it. At least I hope so." "What is it?" Alexi asked, watching Paul wipe cum out of his hair. "Mmm...it's called `skunk,'" Kian said. "It has a strong smell to it but it's really mild and gives you this great smooth high that lasts for a little more than an hour. You never want to use it before sex, because it gives you beer dick." "Beer dick?" Paul asked. Kian blinked as he tugged on the pipe, lighting the bowl with a glowing splinter of bone. Then he tossed it back in the fire. "This is really strange-looking wood," Kian said. "It's not wood," Alexi replied. "It's a smokeless fire spell that uses bone. I didn't want anyone to know that we're staying in the ruins on the back end of the academy." Kian coughed and blew out some smoke. He stood and pulled on the pipe again and the cherry red end of the bowl flared. A moment later he exhaled an even bigger cloud of smoke, coughing and smiling. "This is a school?" he asked, gesturing around him. Then he walked over to the mattress and sat back down. He didn't even seem fazed by all the cum puddles on the mattress. "You didn't know it was a school?" Paul asked. Kian handed Alexi the pipe first and said, "Just take a little in, hold it, try to keep from coughing." Alexi did as he was told and felt the burning sensation build almost immediately in his lungs. He could only hold it for a few seconds before exhaling (coughing the entire time). "That was a good first try. Then he handed Paul the pipe." Alexi laid his head against Kian's shoulder and felt happy. He looked up at his hands, and his nail polish made him giggle. "I don't think this stuff is working," he said. Kian kissed him. "Yeah? You're giggling. So maybe it is working." Alexi absently reached down and touched Kian's flaccid cock, which now looked more like an albino python wearing a white leather sweater. It seemed weird that it was so erect and hard only a few minutes before. "That's beer dick," Kian said. "Now you know. And...I'd no idea this was a school." Kian stretched his arm out on the mattress so that Paul could cuddle with him. Alexi watched as Paul buried his nose in Kian's armpit and took a deep sniff. "You like that?" Kian asked, toking on the pipe. "I do," Paul said. Kian just smiled. "Then give us a lick while you're down there." Kian turned to Alexi and said, "I came across this place because I needed to find somewhere to hide," Kian said. "I came in through a window in another hall. The fact that it belonged to you just makes me lucky. What do they teach here?" Alexi stared at the ceiling. He'd never noticed how intricate the patterns were there. "Necromancy. I'm graduating in just a few days. There's a ball, and I don't even have a date," Alexi said. Kian turned his head and exhaled some smoke out of the side of his mouth. Then he let Alexi take a pull. The "skunk" in the bowl was about half ash now. "I'd be your date," Kian said. "It's the least I could do for you helping me." "I don't want you to feel obligated," Alexi said. Kian shook his head. "That came out all wrong. What I meant to say is I'd love to come if you'd have me. I can dance really well too. I'm quite dexterous." Alexi rolled his eyes. "Believe me, I can see you're dexterous. You're probably the most dexterous human I've ever seen...that anyone's ever seen." Kian's eyes, now bloodshot, became a bit reflective. "Yeah, that's probably true." Paul came up from licking Kian's armpit to giggle. Then he took the pipe from Alexi. "Proud of yourself much?" "Why shouldn't I be?" Kian asked. "I've just made two necromancers fall in love with me." Paul rolled his eyes. "That's not the greatest accomplishment." "Why?" Kian asked. "Where I'm from, all the best things in life are controlled by smart people. That may not be the Zandan way, but your country sucks. I'm sorry, but its way better out there. Out in the world. People actually have freedom, and there isn't evil everywhere." "Zanda's not evil," Paul said. "Yes it is," Kian replied. "You just can't see it, but summoning and controlling demons is not a normal thing. And this place is crawling with Timeron knights." "They are the best warriors in the world," Alexi said. "I pretty much hate them all," Kian replied. "It's a religion thing. But I was almost gang-raped by a bunch of them over a year ago when I was strung out on a drug called Eros. My last girlfriend got me addicted to it, and it almost ruined me." "So now you're addicted to Trance?" Alexi asked. "Are you a drug addict?" Kian sucked on the pipe and stared at him. "You saw that, eh? I don't know. I shot myself up with it because of pain but today I haven't had any cravings. Not even once. Weird, right?" "Not weird," Paul said. "Alexi's necromancy lessened the hold it had on you at the same time as he repaired your bones. And then there's the potion he gave you." "If you take it again," Alexi said, "the addiction will come back. You could choose to stay clean at this point, and I think your mind would thank you for it." Kian fell silent and handed the bowl back to Paul. Then he slowly exhaled the smoke which floated above Alexi's head in a white cloud that seemed to take on all kinds of animal shapes. He saw a monkey, an elephant, and even a giraffe. "I need something for the pain," Kian said softly. "I don't want to use it, but my line of work gets me hammered sometimes. I don't think I'll be able to stay away from it." Alexi frowned and gently kissed Kian. "Maybe I can come up with something. I'm not promising anything, just give me some time to do some research. In the meantime, please stop using Trance." Kian opened his mouth as if to object and Alexi silenced him by placing a finger on Kian's lips. "Just promise." "I'll try," Kian said. "That's as much of a promise as I'm willing to give you." "It's too bad that you hate the Timeron knights," Paul said, absently trailing his finger on Kian's muscular chest. "Why?" Kian asked. "They may be good soldiers, but they're rapists and murderers." Paul shrugged. "They have access to the entire city. Whatever you're looking for you could find if you had some Timeron knight armor and some spurs." "That and you could show up in Timeron knight armor for my ball," Alexi added. "I'd get so many popularity points for that. You could take me into the Scarlet chamber and fuck me then. I'd lose my virginity in front of the entire school." "You're a virgin?" Kian asked. "Yeah," Alexi replied. Paul added, "me too." "Tethyr's teeth," Kian swore, a devilish grin flashing across his face. "Did I land in a school of virgins?" "Most likely," Alexi said. "There's some that aren't. And there are a few transvestites, but they aren't nice like us." "Mean girls, eh?" Kian asked. "What would you say if I told you that I owned the best Timeron knight armor in my haversack over there?" That made Alexi's eyes widen. "Really?" Kian shook his head. "It's custom fit to me, but I don't have spurs. I could get some before your ball though. I'd just have to knock some knight over the head and steal them." Alexi laughed. "It wouldn't be the same. Just come as you want. We could even steal some clothes for you. A real Timeron knight would have been awesome though. They'd talk about that in this school for years to come." "There's no way to become a Timeron knight," Kian said. "It takes years of training." "Actually there is," Paul said, taking a hit from the pipe. "You've got to enter the Blood Bowl in the Arena of the Flayed Man. Skellhaundar Romax holds these games every week. There's one tomorrow as a matter of fact. The winner gets gold spurs, but there hasn't been a winner in years. The field is really difficult and some people even die." "Why do people enter then?" Kian asked. "Prestige, title, money. Honestly, I'm surprised more people don't enter," Alexi said. He sucked on the last of the "skunk" in the pipe and then tapped out the ashes, handing it back to Kian. "That shit's great." "I know, right?" Kian asked. "So this Timeron knight thing...it's really important to you, right?" Alexi shrugged. "Not really. It'd just be nice. I'm just glad to have a boy that wants to go to the dance with me." As Alexi said this, he could tell Kian was deep in thought about something, but he couldn't put two and two together right now. All he wanted to do was watch the clouds of animals hump each other as they floated past his eyes. "It's the spurs that are the most important," Paul said, rather absently. "The gold ones are really nice and recognized by anyone. You could go everywhere in the city wearing those, even into the Librarium Apocalypto, and no one would question it. Hell, I bet there's some secrets in there." "I'd much rather see what's in the Keep of Anghul across the bay," Alexi said. "That's where they take the most interesting political prisoners. They've probably got some skeletons in their closet." "And a Timeron knight could walk through that and not be questioned?" Kian asked. "Absolutely. It's their fortress. Would you be questioned in your own home? Nope," Alexi said. Kian stood up and fetched the breastplate of his killsuit and then sat back down. He pointed at the gash that had been cleaved through the corobidian, and several of the dents in it. "Do you know anyone that could fix this?" he asked both boys. Alexi thought about it for a moment. "Not off the top of my head, but I'd be willing to give it a try. Corobidian is really hard to work because it's so tough, but necromancy has spells to both weaken and strengthen metals. I might be able to repair that gash, but it will take some time." Kian nodded and turned the breastplate around. Alexi's eyes were drawn to the center where the symbol of a dagger lying in a pool of blood dominated the decorations. "This is a remarkable piece of armor," Kian said. "I'd like that if you could repair it. I won't need it for a few days." "I've seen that symbol before," Alexi said. "What does it mean?" Kian blinked and regarded Alexi with wide eyes. "It's the symbol of Tethyr, god of thieves. Where did you see it?" Alexi swallowed and thought back to his trip to see Horigum Khaine a few days ago. "It was on the lower right corner of a window of a shop in the Hollows. A tailor called "A Bespoke Fit" or something like that." "Can you show me where it is?" Kian asked. "It's important." Alexi shrugged. "I have to go down there anyway. The shop next to it sells butt plugs. I think I'll need to buy some to stretch myself out before the ball. That way you can really fuck me." "You'd do that for me?" Kian asked, eyes misting over a bit. "In a heartbeat," Alexi admitted. Then Paul said, "Can you get me some too?" Alexi shrugged. "I should hope so since you're paying. I've spent all my money." Paul frowned but said, "Okay." "Can we go today?" Kian asked. "Maybe," Alexi replied. "It's getting kind of late though. And what would you wear?" "I've got everything but the spurs," Kian said. "So I'll wear my Timeron knight armor. It'll have to do for now." ***** The complete novel is now available to read at http://slckismet.blogspot.com/p/discussion-board-for.html under the label "The Orb of Winter" if you care to read ahead. Are there any artists out there willing to draw some pics for my story? If so, please email me. There is an "Orb of Winter" map now in both the NEWS section of my website and in the FORUMS of my website. If you go to my website directly from this posting, you will want to begin with "CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE."