Jason sat on a stump of an old tree that was cut long ago. His obsidian eyes glowed, mirroring the gleaming embers of the campfire in front him. He used a wooden stick to poke at the pieces of wood that were in the fire; the crackling sound of wood burning increased as the fire lit up again. From behind his back, the sounds of giggling and water splashing sounded out and he smiled softly for a moment.

It had been almost a year since he started posing as Alina's brother while guarding her. After the scandal that followed his introduction to the Sage family, he finally managed to make some semblance of his new identity and lifestyle. And very quickly, he realized that Alina had few precious memories, so he decided to give her his all and this led him to take her camping in the middle of nowhere.

At first, Madam Sage refused to let them go, citing that it was too dangerous but Jason managed to persuade her ... physically. She agreed to let them go camping provided that they take a team of escorts along with them. Jason and Alina were both unamused and decided to instead ditch these guards and only opted to take Katelyn with them.

However, unfortunately for Jason, neither of them were suited to wildlife. He felt that throwing them headfirst into the wilderness was the best thing for them and so, Jason forced them to set their own tents while he, after easily assembling his own tent, left to gather wood and hunt for food. Somehow, with determination, Alina and Katelyn were able to survive the first day of ‘Survivors’ and were now washing their bodies at a nearby pond. Since they weren't feeling safe, neither of them took a dip and instead used a cloth to wipe their bodies. Halfway through though, it somehow turned into a game of water tag, where they were both splashing water at each other.

Jason, who was watching over the fire and the bird meat roasting around it, imagined Katelyn's body as he heard the sounds of splashing water. A fire was lit inside him and he wanted very much to see that supple, budding, and deliciously wet body of hers, shining in the waning sunlight. He shifted his body as his erection became larger, a look of discontent apparent on his face.

Calm down, think good things. Just need to wait till night, Jason thought as he turned the sticks that had pieces of bird meat skewered into. He took a pinch of spices and salt from a pouch and sprinkled it generously over the meat that was now a deep golden color.

“Hey, you two, the meats almost done!” He called out to the two frolicking girls without looking behind; he knew that if Alina caught him peeking at them then he'd have to watch them eat while apologizing to her repeatedly.

“Ooh, that smells soo good!” Alina said as she breathed in the air when she got close. Her gleaming eyes shone with excitement as she grabbed a stick and sniffed it. “You're the best!”

“Course I'm the best, have you met me?” Jason smiled smugly as his nose grew a few inches and Alina rolled her eyes.

Jason took a skewer and handed to Katelyn who had just arrived. Her blonde hair with dark highlights was clipped upwards into an updo and the sleeveless shirt was wearing revealed her flawless milky skin. She smiled and took the skewer from Jason but the latter held on without letting it go. Bemused, Katelyn looked up at Jason and their eyes met. Inwardly, she squirmed with joy and shyness as she saw the unmasked gaze of desire he sent her but outwardly, she calmly looked back at him. Jason smirked at her, knowing full well what her true thoughts were as he leaned forwards.

“Careful. It's still kinda hot,” he said out loud before whispering into her ear. “I'll be visiting your tent tonight so don't go to sleep soon, babe.” [1]

After he finished whispering, he gently bit her ear while flicking his tongue around her earlobe. A numb feeling of electric pleasure surged through her body, starting from her ear and moving downwards while a shudder traveled down her spine at the same time. The sensation made her legs buckle and she grabbed Jason for support as he pulled his face away.

“What's wrong Katie?” Alina asked. From her position, she was only able to see Jason leaning forward and Katie supporting herself on him, nothing else.

“She's just a little tired,” Jason said with a smirk while Katelyn steadied herself and walked to Alina's side, her detached face showing no signs of the passion she felt.

As the three enjoyed themselves, time flew and soon it was night. After a few ghost stories around the campfire, coupled with smores, Jason sent the two to their perspective tents while he entered his own. He changed into more comfortable wear and was about to sneak out to Katelyn's tent when he noticed a shadow approaching his tent.

“Jason?” Alina called out attentively, her voice filled with nervousness.

Pretending to lay down in his sleeping bag, Jason answered her. “What's wrong, kid?”

Alina walked into his tent but didn't come near him. She shifted her weight uncomfortably while looking down at her feet. Jason waited patiently for her to tell him, knowing exactly what was wrong.

“I can't sleep,” Alina finally said. “Alone. Ca- can I sleep here? With you?”

“Sure, kid. C'mere,” Jason said after hesitating for a short while before patting the side of the sleeping bag next to him.

Alina hesitatingly lied next to Jason, who looked at her empty hands.

“No pillow?” He asked and Alina shook her head. “Want me to get yours?”

She shook her head again and grabbed the hem of his shirt, her face full of fear as though she was afraid he would disappear.

“Alright then. Wanna borrow my arm?” Jason asked and Alina looked at him with confusion, not understanding what he meant.

Noticing her look, Jason cuddled Alina closer to him and placed her head on his arm. Alina, surprised at first, smiled and curled next to him, the warmth of his body blew away her worries. Even though he had a muscular figure, Jason's skin was smooth and soft. It was like having a layer of cotton right above those steel muscles of his and Alina felt like he was a panther; full of explosive muscles that were hidden under a soft coat of fur.

“This … this is nice,” Alina whispered as she moved her head inwards, conveniently hiding her face away from Jason's prying eyes. “My … my first memory of dad was waking up in his arm like this. He looked down at me and smiled. And mom … mom was on the other side of me, touching my head.”

Alina's voice was heavy with sadness. It had been many years since she last had a moment with her father and she began seeing Jason as more than just a guard. He was her friend, her brother, and now, at this moment, the closest thing to a father. She fought back the tears that were escaping her eyes when she felt a warm hand patting her head, slowly combing through her curly hair.

Jason slowly stroked her hair with his free hand but said nothing, to her relief. Closing her eyes, Alina fell into the most blissful sleep she had experienced in a long time.

Well damn, Jason thought wryly as his fingers combed through Alina's hair. There's no way I can leave her alone. Sorry, Katelyn.

Twenty minutes later, a figure unzipped and slipped into his tent’s opening, entering as silently as possible. Jason exchanged glances with Katelyn, who looked at Alina sleeping before locking her eyes on Jason. Bending down, she slowly crawled closer to him and leaned her body next to him, opposite of Alina. Flames of desire burned deeply in Jason's eyes and Katelyn responded by sending her left hand to his crotch. Slipping it into his pants, Katelyn gently tugged at the tip of his spear while refusing to break eye contact with him.

“I need you,” Katelyn breathed out, silently mouthing the words.

Jason's tagged breaths became rapid and deeper while Katelyn leaned forward and kissed him gently. The feeling of her rough and quickened massage, combined with her limpid and sweet kiss drove all reason from his mind and soon he slipped his fingers into the center of her legs. Her honeypot was gushing with nectar as he slowly fingered her and Katelyn let out a soundless gasp; her chewy bubblegum lips parted as she looked at Jason while he gently played with her.

Jason leaned forward and bit Katelyn's lips while using his powers to softly lay Alina on the sleeping bag. He then proceeded to push Katelyn down and press her body with his. He lowered the front part of his pants, unsheathing his towering rod. He then pulled her pajamas and panties down to her thighs before pushing her shirt upwards and flipping her bra aside, revealing those delectable cherries atop the twin mouthful-sized mounds.

Katelyn looked at Alina and gestured at Jason to do the same, silently reminding him that they can't go any further and Jason observed her face. Shame, embarrassment, shyness, and lust all clouded her face. She felt shameful at doing this while Alina slept nearby. She felt shyness at being seen by both Jason and possibly Alina and she embarrassed at how lustful and excited she felt from the thrill of doing this.

Jason smirked and entered her in one go, pushing his hardness as deep as it could go. Katelyn nearly moaned at the sensation but Jason covered her mouth with one hand while using another to pluck the ripe grape that was atop her budding bosom. Jason's rod was nearly engulfed by her honeypot when he reached her deepest part and he began to thrust at that point, bruising his tip against her cervix as he did so. He closed his eyes while her insides contracted and clamped on his spear; she was climaxing multiple times while swallowing her silent screams.

As her body shuddered underneath Jason's muscular body, stars filled Katelyn's mind and she surrendered to the pleasure she was receiving. Her heartbeat and the thrill that followed it only increased when she felt his rough hand blocking her mouth and the thickness of his rod that was trying to dig deeper. No matter how many times she did it with him, the euphoria that followed their workout never faded; she was addicted to his body now and she was sure Jason felt the same about hers.

The hooting of owls and warbling of crickets muffled the faint sound of clapping that their bodies were making. Jason lifted her arched back, supporting her with his arm as he bent forward and sucked her pink nipples. In response, Katelyn spread her legs further apart as she sat in his lap, pushing herself down and forcing his rod to kiss her deepest part.

“Ah, Kate - oh - lyn,” Jason moaned into her hears while her heart jumped again. She looked from the corner of her eyes to make sure Alina didn't wake up from his whispering as her body inadvertently lifted itself up and down. “You feel so, mmh, good. I can, ah, never get enough of you.”

Jason's hand which was covering her mouth moved downwards and brushed against her hardened nipples as it continued moving. It finally reached her sacred part and he slowly pinched the bean that was peaking out. As she opened her mouth to scream, Jason silenced her by roughly kissing her.

“Careful,” he whispered once he pulled his tongue away. “You might wake Alle up, Katie.”

As he whispered this teasingly to Katelyn, the latter felt a rush of adrenaline and climaxed again.

“Oh,” Jason looked amused and delighted when he felt her clamp on him again. “What's this? Do you like me calling you that? Alright, Katie. I'll call you that from now on, Katie.”

Each time he said her nickname, the one Alina always called her, Katelyn would tighten herself around him but she slowed her movements as she did so. Jason, noticing her exhaustion, pushed her back on the ground and pounded her as fast as he could.

“Ah, Katie. Oh, Katie. Katie, Katie!” Jason whispered into her ear as he propelled himself without regards to the noise the smacking of flesh made. With one last low cry her name, he thrust forth as deep as he could before pouring his essence into her. Katelyn bit into his shoulders drawing blood as she tried to prevent herself from screaming while she climaxed with him. Katelyn licked his bleeding shoulder as he sighed with content.

“Stay here tonight,” Jason muttered while grazing her neck with his lips. He continuously kissed and nuzzled her neck and collarbone as he kept his spear sheathed inside her.

“I can't,” Katelyn whispered back. Jason was still basking in the pleasure but she pulled away, pulling his spear away from her quivering honeypot. Cream dripped out of her as soon as she pulled out, giving Jason immense satisfaction when he saw that.

“Then stay for a bit longer,” Jason said as he held her closer, feeling slightly disappointed at her.

After cuddling for a while, Katelyn stumbled away from Jason's arms. She fixed her clothes and went back to her tent, so as to prevent herself from falling asleep with Jason. This was to ensure that Alina didn't discover their relationship, something she insisted on despite him disagreeing.

Jason, who watched her leave, used his powers to clean himself and the tent, removing the musky smell of sex from the interior. He laid back next to Alina and looked up at the tent before turning to gaze at Alina.

Sorry, kid, He thought. Looks like I can't keep it in my pants. Some brother I turned out to be.

***

Alina looked around as she sat on her futon, her sky blue pajamas and untied hair made it evident that she was ready to sleep. They were each sitting in their futons; Alina was in the middle while Asami was beside her to the right and Michelle was next to Asami. On her left was Alice, who was sleeping peacefully, while Emily's futon further off was empty since she was currently with Jason.

Asami had been talking animatedly about her day today with Emily while Michelle was cleaning her gun in a serene manner when Alina zoned out. For some reason, that memory of when she first slept on Jason's arm kept coming to mind. That was the moment when she knew he was truly family, it was the first time she felt the warmth of someone caring in a long time. True, she had her mother, but Diana was always busy and was unintentionally distant from her.

“So, did you two really go on a date?” Alina asked after rousing herself.

“Uh, sorta,” Asami answered sheepishly. “It was more like … y'know… for practice.” [2]

“Practice what now?” Alina asked while Michelle paused her cleaning and looked at Asami curiously.

“Wait, you mean you've never done it?” Asami asked disbelievingly while looking at both of them, who were bemused. “C'mon. You know, you practice dating and kissing with your besties so you don't screw up when it's time for the real thing!”

“...” Alina didn't answer and looked at Michelle instead. “Did you ever …?”

“Non,” Michelle answered immediately. “Jamais.”

Michelle turned to look at Asami suspiciously, her eyes studying her face to see if she was lying. “Do copains really do that or are you trying to s'amuser us?”

“No, I'm being serious here,” Asami said before rolling her eyes at Michelle. “You probably didn't have any volunteers cause you're a prude. Not that that's a bad thing!”

Asami hastily added with a strained laugh when she saw Michelle narrow her eyes and reach for her gun. She then turned back to Alina while watching Michelle from the corner of her eyes.

“See, we girls are complicated creatures,” Asami explained while pretending to fix her imaginary glass like a certain teacher of theirs. “We don't want to ruin our first date and kiss by being inexperienced so we usually practice. And who better to practice with than your ‘blood sister’... You know, when you prick your fingers and press them together? Have you two never done that?!”

Asami looked aghast before she pulled out her phone, a firm determination set in her eyes.

“Ok, it's, like, three years late, but we're doing it,” Asami said as she used her SEC phone to create a spell that worked like a needle. “Alright, we prick our fingers and put them together while swearing to stay as sisters and friends forever. Let's go.”

“Non, merci,” Michelle replied while shaking her head. “I'm scared.”

“You're scared of a little needle?” Asami teased.

“Non, I'm scared of you transmitting STD to moi,” Michelle answered seriously.

“Ouch, low blow, Mitchie!” Asami said while clutching her heart and Alina collapsed in a fit of giggles.

After performing the, as Asami put it, ‘blood rites’, the three continued chatting, with Asami trying to convince the two to try and ‘practice’ french kissing with her and Michelle threatening to shoot her multiple times when Alice interrupted their girls talk.

Alice, in her sleep, rolled away from her futon and got closer to Alina while whimpering. The latter shushed Asami and placed Alice next to her and laid the child's head onto her shoulder. She then stroked Alice's head until she stopped making noises and the latter went back to sleeping peacefully. Alina's eyes turned gentle as she realized that she was doing the exact same thing as what Jason used to do for her when she was younger. She remembered how much security and peace she felt in his arms and wanted to do the same to Alice.

Michelle, being considerate, used a pre-programmed hologram to dim the lights in the room, darkening the place so that they could rest. Soon after, Emily came back and went straight to her futon, too distressed to talk to the others who all exchanged glances amongst themselves when they noticed her absent-mindedness.

Alina looked at Emily with mixed feelings. She understood what Emily felt and part of her wished to support her, encourage her to keep trying, maybe even put in a good word about her to Jason. But another part, a colder and more logical part, felt satisfaction at how it ended.

It's fine, This other part whispered to her. It's better this way. Let them draw a line and end it before it grows. Don't let her get hurt ... don't let her see the real him.

Neither side could best the other and soon Alina sighed and allowed herself to drift to sleep instead. One by one, each of them fell asleep, their dreams beckoning them to, hopefully, a better world.

***

Jason stayed with Helen for a while, telling her of all the things that recently happened. He told of her how he became a teacher, how Alina was finally acting like a child again, how he met Elizabeth and ended up marrying her. He would smile sometimes and frown other times, the range of emotions expressed in his face today was more than what he usually expressed in a year. Finally, he brushed her hair and tossed the flower she was holding away. The flower slowly withered into tiny particles of light before disappearing while Jason conjured another in his right hand. This new one glowed a brighter color and he placed it in Helen's clasped hands before kissing her forehead.

“I'll be back again, sis,” he whispered reluctantly, his eyes full of sadness and regret as he left the room.

After leaving Elizabeth in Morocco, Jason had traveled the world with Helen, looking for a cure to her curse. He realized that it was almost impossible to heal her because this curse was imprinted onto her soul, and no one has been able to control souls, save possibly for the highest existence that created them. Eventually, in desperation after seeing her suffer the curse twice more, Jason tried to manipulate Helen's soul but the act sent her into a permanent comatose state. While Helen didn't blame Jason and smiled to the end, he blamed himself for her predicament and was watching over her since.

After exiting the room, Jason walked past the hallway, his every step propelling him meters ahead at a speed that made him look like he was teleporting. He finally stopped and entered another room, a large laboratory that was filled with cutting edge technology and old artifacts such as a cauldron, a furnace, and a pestle with a corresponding mortar.

He walked to the cauldron and placed it over the furnace before lighting it up with his ability. Then he pulled a burning stone from a sealed compartment and placed it into the furnace. This was a starstone, flames from a neutron star that was condensed into solid matter. By placing it underneath the cauldron, which was still cold, Jason could focus on his alchemy without worrying about the flames. He then pulled multiple herbs from his pendant and separated them into two batches. One was full of leaf-like herbs while the other were ground herbs like ginseng.

He placed the leaf-like herbs into the cauldron then surrounded the entire pot with an energy field, this allowed him to control the temperature that was licking the cauldron. He used his energy to increase the heat a hundred folds and the leaves slowly withered into ashes while a few droplets of concentrated essence leaked from the remains. Creating a hand of telekinetic energy, Jason directed it to keep the ashes away from the droplets while placing another field around the starstone, cutting off the heat of the flames. Then he gathered his energy and directed the green droplets into a vial where it settled, slowly solidifying itself into a jade-like substance.

Placing it aside, Jason gathered the second batch of herbs and crushed them in his hands. He used his powers to prevent any juice from leaking out of his fist while compressing it into a small ball that rested in his palm. He put the ball of herbs into the mortar and used the pestle to smash it. Even as he did so, he showered the herbs with his spiritual qi as he ground it into a fine, thick paste. After he was done he poured the paste and the jade droplets back into the cauldron which was cleaned by his telekinesis power.

Slowly, Jason lifted the field around the starstone while condensing his lifeforce into his hand. The lifeforce compressed itself into a liquid state that looked like blood and once enough was formed, Jason poured it into the cauldron before completely releasing the field covering the starstone, allowing the flames to burn brighter and stronger. Soon, the jade, the paste, and the liquid lifeforce merged into one, a blue liquid that Jason had once given as compensation to the guardians of the girls: the healing potion he called poultice. [3]

This was the truth behind the medicine that could save almost anyone that was a breath away from death. The method Jason used was one that ancient Practitioners used to refine artifacts and medicine. And this was his biggest secret: the fact that he himself, and Alina, were Practitioners. While ordinary people had no knowledge of such beings existing, special people within the upper echelons of governments and militaries were aware of such existences for centuries.

Practitioners have existed for eons but secluded themselves before the fifteenth century due to the drought of spiritual qi in the world. But the Meteor Incident not only brought Psionic Aether to the science world but reinvigorated the magical world's Spiritual Qi that had almost dried out. The ancient Ley Lines had awoken once again and the turbulent world returned as Practitioners reemerged and attempted to claim areas thick with energy for their own purposes.

This was why Sanctuary had a rather antagonistic view of Practitioners; the latter had tried to take Sanctuary for their own multiple times, and this was because the artificial island was built over a major Spiritual Vein. While Jason was not amongst those who coveted Sanctuary, he knew the leaders, the Council, would definitely try to obtain more benefits from him should he reveal himself as a Practitioner. This was also why he told Alina never to reveal her full strength; while he may be able to bluff others, claiming that he strengthened himself with his Esper powers, Alina couldn't. If she revealed the superhuman abilities that came from practicing a Formulae, then the gig would be up and their lives would be even more complicated. [4]

Jason slowly placed the poultice into small vials when he heard a faint echo in his mind. Placing the vials in his pendant, he took a step forward as the space around him distorted and he disappeared from the laboratory and into the hallway. As Jason appeared a shadow rushed at his feet and kneeled while holding a letter in her hand. Jason took it and read it with an impassive face before looking down at her.

“Impressive, it's only been a little over an hour … uh ...” Jason said while squinting his eyes, trying his damnedest to recall her name.

“Yinying,” she answered with glowing eyes full of reverence.

“Right, Yinyang?” Jason muttered.

The shadow stood up and stepped into the light, her slanted eyes had a natural curve while her thin eyebrows and delicate face gave her an outstandingly beautiful feature. Her long black hair reached her shoulder blades and her full lips were naturally red. What really grasped his attention were the fanged teeth and cat-like irises she had. His gaze also lingered on her sharp ears which were pointer than usual.

“Yinying,” she replied. “Xiao Yinying is my full name.”

“Yinying,” Jason corrected himself while muttering her name under his breath. “Station your true self at Sanctuary, you'll be my intermediate if I need anything.”

“Yes, m'lord!” Yinying answered at once. She wanted to say something else but hesitated.

“Speak freely,” Jason said emotionlessly when he saw her hesitate.

“M'lord, you … you have not tried to regain control-”

“I'm not interested in ‘lording’ over you,” Jason interrupted. “Also, I don't truly believe you serve me.”

“But you created-”

“I? I created nothing. That was my past incarnation who built this … place,” Jason interrupted her again. “And it is he whom you revere, not me.

“But you're right, if I wished for it, if I focused my attention then, yes, I could become your ‘Lord’. But I don't want to. I only want a normal life. Well, as normal as normal can be.” Jason smiled faintly as he said the last part before he turned to look at her and his smile faded. “I'm only here for Helen and to use you and this place as tools, that's it. Maybe one day ... but not now.”

Yinying said nothing and bowed before following Jason, claiming to be a follower of his previous incarnation. Years ago, she managed to track Jason and persuade him to allow him to follow her. And the main reason why he agreed and let her occupy this place was because of her knowledge of his curse, information that he thought could aid him with Helen's curse. When this failed, he allowed her to stay and look after Helen. Though she wasn't allowed in the room, he had given her a crystal that helped her monitor her vitals.

Activating his powers again, Jason and Yinying entered through the portal once more. Once he was gone the shadows swallowed the hallway leaving only darkness behind. Arriving back in the Loft, Jason waved a hand to dismiss her, and she quickly vanished into the shadows, leaping from one building to another. Once she was far away though, she stopped and fiddled with a black stone that was hanging on a necklace. Yinying cleaned it gently with her sleeves.

“Soon mistress,” Yinying muttered to herself. “You'll see him soon.”

***

In the Loft, Jason checked the time and realized that it was half-past eleven. Remembering his appointment with Melanie, Jason walked back to the balcony, and after checking the surroundings, he jumped over the railing and used his powers to create air streams on his back and hands, allowing him to fly. Once he was far enough, he deactivated his powers and landed on his motorcycle which was flying with its wheels spread out and it's turbine engines on. Pushing the handle that turned into a dual joystick, the turbine at the back accelerated the bike at such a speed that Jason reached the area closest to the outskirts of the island in a matter of minutes.

Right before nearing his target, Jason activated silent-mode and the spinning turbines that were screeching came to a low hum. He landed the bike atop a roof of the Feng Shui Buildings, a three-building complex that had overarching bridges connecting the three buildings together. Originally, the investor for this building wanted to create the best apartment complexes in the still infant Sanctuary, however, the creators of Sanctuary changed its design and built a dock on the nearby pier then. Soon after, other developers of nearby buildings were unable to continue funding their projects and this area merged with the Sumps.

“Great view,” A voice behind Jason purred after he turned off his bike and straightened himself, preparing to get off. Two hands slithered and coiled itself around his neck as the girl behind him pushed her body against his. He could feel two mounds of elastic softness pressed against his back, even with his shirt on. He felt a faint tingling sensation when the figure breathed near his ear while whispering. “Feels a lot better too, right?”

“Melanie,” Jason answered stoically while trying to not focus on her seduction. “Y'know it's bad for a single girl and guy to be so close to each other.”

“Oh? And what is that?” Melanie's voiced moaned as she wrapped her legs around him as well. “It's just a -ah!”

Melanie shrieked lightly and pulled away from Jason after his body emitted a light current that shocked her. Moving away from his bike, which also zapped her, she pouted as Jason got up and finally turned to look at her. She was currently wearing her Phantom armor, which was composed of an under-armor that looked like a one-piece leather outfit, an armored vest on top of it Her boots were just below her knees and the guns strapped to her legs glinted when a strike of lightning danced overhead.

“See, I'm a timid person,” Jason explained his flimsy lie when he saw how upset Melanie was. “There's no way I'd have the courage to approach a Queen of Second Academy. One who's also a student of mine, might I add.”

Yeah right. If you're timid then I'm the Queen of England, Melanie rolled her eyes as she thought this.

“I'm not even one of your students,” Melanie replied. “I'm in the university curriculum while you teach high schoolers.”

“Same difference,” Jason shrugged. “Besides, can you imagine how many broken hearts would surface if people saw us together? I think the suicide rates in the academy would dramatically increase!”

Melanie giggled after hearing this, a bright smile on her face which was gleaming from the rainwater. She used a hand to swipe back her soaked hair and Jason couldn't help but admire her beauty for a second. Despite her curvy twin mountains, her stature which was barely five feet and thin features made her look like a teen. And in this rain, Jason had to admit, it made him imagine how she'd look like in the showers. Despite the intense workout he had with Elizabeth and the injuries he suffered recently, his libido reared up and a burning sensation rose in his loins.

“So, what did you need my help with?” Jason asked, steering the conversation away.

“I don't need help,” Melanie said. “But I thought you'd like to take this mission.”

“Nah, I'm still injured,” Jason pointed at his shoulder which was actually healed by now. “It's tingling like crazy thanks to the rain.”

“I'm sure you'll be changing your mind soon,” Melanie replied while tossing a hologram at Jason. “Recognize him? He was Mr. Cage, the combat instructor for the Academy before you joined. Turns out he was a turncoat for those mercenaries you killed.”

“Huh,” Jason caught the hologram and expanded it. He looked through the photos for a moment, remembering them as the mercenaries who wanted to kidnap Alina, the ones he killed in the construction site.

He skimmed through the mission briefing and frowned. According to the briefing, the Council suspected that there was a connection between the attack in the Heavenly Park and the mercenaries. Being an artificial island, there were only a few ways to enter illegally and the Council believed that the group responsible for ferrying the mercenaries were also responsible for bringing the Practitioners to Sanctuary under the Council's nose.

“Well well,” Jason said after reading it. “Looks like those geezers are losing their touch. To think they let a gang grow into a smuggling syndicate that controls the whole western pier. Tsk tsk.”

“Those geezers really are annoying,” Melanie agreed. “I told them to poison the leaders of various gangs and take control of them. It's unfortunate that Ms. Graves was the first to be against my suggestion.”

“Mmhm, it's a good idea,” Jason mulled over Melanie's words while rubbing his chin. “I think I'll do that when I'm bored.”

Melanie's eyes lit up but she crossed her arms after considering the ramifications of what his words implied.

“Are you … planning to overthrow the Council?” She finally asked slowly. While she had an obsession with Jason and would agree to anything he ordered from her with a heartbeat, she still felt that going against the Council was a poor choice.

“What? No, no. That'd be boring,” Jason gave her an amused glance. “Plus, more work for me if I did that. That's like asking you to take Silvie's position in the Academy. Would you agree to that?”

Melanie shook her head repeatedly in horror while imagining how much more paperwork she'd have to do if she were to replace Silvia. A shudder ran through her body as she tried driving away that horrific scene from her mind; the one thing she hated the most was paperwork.

“Hmm, well. This ... is a problem,” Jason muttered while moving to look over the docks.

Enhancing his vision, he could see a handful of armed men overlooking a small group of workers who were loading large containers from a ship. Considering the timing and their handling, Jason narrowed his eyes as he realized that he could detect faint signs of life from those containers.

“I didn't bring my Phantom armor,” He turned back to Melanie and said.

“Good,” Melanie replied while leaning and supporting herself on his shoulder. “This is a covert mission, we can't let them know that we're Phantoms.”

Jason turned his head and looked at Melanie, realizing now that her Phantom armor had no Council insignia. Phantoms were covert operatives that did the Council's dirty work. For such reasons, there were no approved uniforms and instead, each Phantom had their own unique armor. The only thing that they were required to wear was a special holographic badge that most usually wore on their shoulder. This hologram emitted a solid light image of the Council insignia just a few centimeters above the arm.

“So … what you're saying is…” Jason tilted his head and asked.

“I'm saying it's the perfect time to test your new gear,” Melanie answered flirtatiously.

Immediately Jason turned and grabbed her by the throat with a single arm. His killing aura froze the area around him as the droplets of rain slowed down from his intent that became nearly tangible. Melanie, despite having her throat constricted, smiled and looked at Jason with eyes full of misguided passion.

“Mmm … I like being manhandled,” Melanie said to Jason. “It's nice to know you're so dominant. Harder, Jason. Harder!”

“Were you spying on me?” Jason asked quietly while tightening the grip on her throat. He was concerned that she knew more than just his armor. If she knew about his status as a Practitioner ...

“Do ... you have ... to ask?” Melanie gasped out erotically.

Jason tossed her away and tried to calm his killing intent. His first reaction to Melanie's revelation was to kill her, that way he'd be sure she didn't know about his secrets. But he also knew that there would be complications if he killed or attempted to confine her in any way.

“I told you before didn't I?” Melanie coughed before talking to Jason. She didn't even lift herself up as she looked up at him, her body lying exotically on the ground. “I know you. The real you, Jason.”

Jason understood what she meant and his breathing stalled. The fact that trouble didn't knock on his door meant that Melanie hadn't revealed his secrets to anyone. Yet.

“How long?” Jason asked coldly, his voice full of danger.

“Since we first met, all those years ago,” Melanie replied calmly while getting up. “You barely used your Esper power to fight those bastards off.”

“Ungh,” Jason grunted. He realized that he was sloppy in his young age. “So, what do you want from me?”

“Yours, I want to be yours,” Melanie answered without thinking. “I want everything. Your body, your mind, your heart. I want it all.”

“Too bad,” Jason replied. “My heart is missing. Oh, and two girls already have my body and mind respectively. Pick again.”

Melanie froze in shock before grabbing Jason's shirt. Her eyes were filled with crazed pain and anger. “Who? WHO ARE THEY?! TELL ME! Please … please tell me you're lying. Please ...”

Melanie started off screaming before she began sobbing, begging Jason to tell her who had stolen him away from her. Jason looked down impassively, his eyes narrowed as he considered the possibilities of her trying to kill his women. There was a spark between him and Elizabeth; she was his first and he could never forget her how she felt and Katelyn was always on his mind. The guilt and desire he once felt for her made sure she was never off his mind.

I'll find them, I'll find them and I'll kill them, Melanie insisted in her mind after calming down. I'll make sure there's no one else for you but me, I promise.

Well, fuck, Thought Jason, who could tell what she was thinking from her crazed eyes. She's finally lost it.

Jason's mind spun as he tried coming up with solutions and soon an idea formed. He considered the possibilities and decided to go forth regardless. “It's impossible for you to replace them like that. The one who has my body is my first love. If you kill her, you can never take her place. I will always compare you to her.”

Melanie's body shook as despair filled her when she heard Jason's cold voice. Tears dripped down her eyes as she slowly gripped the gun on her thigh, considering whether she should just kill herself instead of living like this.

“Also, the one I always think about is dead. That's why I can't get her out of my mind,” Jason continued while preparing himself to stop her if she tried shooting the gun. He wasn't sure if she'd try to kill him first so he wasn't about to let his guard down. “But that doesn't mean I don't have a place for you.”

It took a few seconds for Melanie to comprehend Jason's words before she looked up at him with hope-filled eyes.

“You still have a chance to win me over, to heal my broken heart,” Jason tried speaking elegantly, spewing words from songs he knew to try and convince her. “But only if you play fair. Killing them will just make me hate you but if you -”

Melanie looked at him as her fighting spirit ignited the flames burning deep in her eyes. “I'll make you forget about them, I'll steal you from them! I'll make sure you can't live without me!”

Crisis averted. For now, Jason thought. Gotta thank Alle for making me binge watch anime.

“Good,” Jason said smoothly. “Can we focus on the mission instead?”

“Alright, but you still owe me a favor,” Melanie replied after calming herself down and returning back to her sweet self. Seeing Jason's confused face she explained. “You asked me what I want from you. Since I can't have you, I'll just cash it in as a favor for now. Any. Favor. I. Want.”

“Fine,” said Jason, knowing this was the least he should do. “Now, tell me about the mission.”

“Simple. See that tower? That's our objective,” Melanie pointed to a tower that was about five stories high. There was an observation deck that allowed guards to oversee the entire docks and the cranes that towered over it. The station was only accessible through a single elevator that could be remotely deactivated should the station be targeted. “We tried hacking into their systems but it runs on a closed network. The only entrance to their network is monitored 24/7, meaning they'll detect any hackers. So, the only way into their system -”

“Is to access it on-site through a physical memory device,” Jason said, finishing Melanie's sentence.

“Mmm, I get all wet when you finish me like that,” Melanie said with a purr.

“I'll handle the guards,” Jason said after watching the gunmen patrol for some time. “You wait for my signal then go in and check the cargo.”

“It's your call,” Melanie shrugged while agreeing to his plan. “I'll follow you anywhere. Speaking of which, how about a kiss? For good luck.”

“Oh?” Jason smirked before grabbing her and kissing her deeply. Like the last time, Melanie moaned and gasped, collapsing after orgasmic spasms buckled her legs.

“You asked for it,” Jason murmured huskily before walking away.

How does he do that? Melanie sighed and watched him leave with a dreamy gaze. Just one kiss and I'm … I want him. I NEED HIM...

Jason summoned a large gate-like black hole that he walked into. Instead of disappearing, Jason walked through it like it was mist, exiting the black hole from the other side. The only difference was that now he was wearing his new Fenrir armor. The armor made him look bigger and taller; now he was a hulking 6.4 feet monster that was barely visible in the dark, rainy weather.

“Time to play,” Jason growled, his grating metallic voice void of emotions.

Leaping through the air, Jason landed on an unmanned gantry crane and observed the guards below it.

Hmm, twelve guards. All armed with automatics and AP rounds, Jason thought while mapping the terrain in his head. Need to scan for SECs and Espers, don't need any complications happening.

Activating his HUD visor, Jason used a special infrared vision to detect changes on a quantum level, the waves were translated as lights and all twelve men lit up.

Ungh, they're all Spellcasters … and four of them are Espers ... each of them is paired with a bodyguard while they're patrolling. Hmm, how about the guards in the station?

Jason used his enchanted senses along with the infrared vision to check the station. There was a woman checking the records and a security guard who was attempting to flirt with her.

Looks like one guard and an accountant, or something like that. Both are normal people, Jason thought. They're not a threat, I just need to focus on the men below.

Placing his hand into an opening beside him, Jason pulled several grappling pivots from his pocket dimension. These were extras for his shoulder-mounted grapples which, after one use, needed to be unclipped and load again with new pivot. The reason he took these out was due to the fact that they could be used on their own without being mounted.

Aiming at the crane near him, Jason fired a grappling pivot and then locked his side onto the crane he was standing on, creating a tightrope between the two. He did the same on the other cranes, creating a makeshift tightrope bridge that connected all of the cranes together.

That'll make things easier, He thought as he silently leaped down. I should target the outliers first, hit them silently so they won't know what's coming.

Running over containers and slinking in the shadows, Jason reached the northernmost guards, a duo that stood near each other and observed the area outside the formation. Pulling out his black blade, Jason crouchingly approached them from behind their backs. His feet slowly stepped on the ground without making a noise. Once he was close enough, Jason stabbed the left guard, an Esper, from the back of his head. With a shing, the blade entered his head and exited through his mouth.

The guard on the right turned and jumped, fear pounding his ears as his heart leapt to his throat. At once, he aimed his gun while preparing to shout when Jason twisted the blade in his arm and aimed his elbow blades at the guard; they flew out and sliced into the guard. The three blades, each vibrating at a molecular level, easily cut through him before spinning into a nearby steel pillar. The guard’s body slowly collapsed as he clutched his throat; the blades cut through his throat, and stomach, causing blood to gush out of his wheezing throat while his intestines leaked out with a splat.

Before he fell completely, Jason caught him and slowly laid both guards on the ground silently, not alerting any of the nearby guards. He then jumped sky-high into the air and grabbed onto a tightrope, vaulting himself onto it with one hand. From his perch, he began checking the situation below and noticed that a patrol of two would encounter the two corpses soon.

Moving to angle himself right below them, Jason created a chain of energy and swung it down towards one of the Espers. The chain wrapped around the Esper’s neck and pulled him into the air as Jason jumped down; he used the weight of his body to lift up the Esper’s body, who scratched at his throat, trying to gasp for air as he chocked. He landed behind the second guard, who was going to shout at the sight of the Esper hanging and tied the other end of the chain around his neck before relaxing the hold he had on it. The weight of the Esper lifted the guard into the air and both were swinging their legs in midair as they slowly died from the constriction. Without sticking to admire his masterpiece, Jason merged into the shadows and began searching for new prey.

Sneaking up on another two, another Esper and his bodyguard, Jason struck the guard at the throat with a knife-palm, silencing him with a crushed larynx and then grabbed the Esper in a reverse guillotine grip from the back. With a snap, he broke the Esper’s neck and then grabbed and smashed his head into the wheezing guard who was watching with wide eyes. The guard's head caved in as blood spurted everywhere; the force of the hit killed the guard instantaneously as fragments of his skull, mired with globs of brain goo and blood, splattered everywhere. Blood dripped from the teeth-shaped breather, making him look even more vicious and monstrous in the dim light. [5]

Only one Esper left, need to take him out quick before killing the rest.

Balancing himself on a tightrope again, Jason raised an arm and aimed it at an Esper. A small dart flew out of the gauntlet and hit the Esper in the neck. Right after, Jason aimed and shot the guard next to him. Soon after, both collapsed with blood leaking out of their orifices.

Alright, now for the real show. A hologram popped from Jason's gauntlet and he used it to access the city's power grid, his hands typing into the holographic keyboard at record speed.

Let there be ... darkness, Jason thought as he pressed a button on the holographic screen.

By now, the remaining four guards realized something was up but before they could react, all the lights in the city's sector died out, leaving only darkness that was darker than the abyss. Each used a simple spell to light the area around them. A few bubbles of light flew out of a magikal circle and floated above them but they could feel no comfort from it; the shadows twisting around them suddenly looked twice as dark as before. To them, the darkness looked like the gaping maw of a beast, trying to swallow them. [6]

“What are you fuckers waiting for?! Get a move on, now!” a guard shouted at the dock workers. A small object was suddenly thrown at the dock workers and the guard that shouted. Raising his gun he aimed at the small object while carefully approaching it and studying it carefully. It was a half-spherical device, the top was round while the bottom was flat. Thinking it was a dud, the guard turned to shout at the surrounding dock workers when the object started shooting multiple electrode projectiles in every direction. The guard and several nearby workers were caught, they collapsed while twitching as electricity flowed through the Tase-grenade and into their bodies.

The remaining guards huddled together, ignoring the screaming workers who ran away like headless chickens. Water dripped down their foreheads and nearly into their eyes as rain continued putting; their back felt a chill as the wind swept past their soaked shirts. Clanking and footsteps came from all around them, from above them in the crane, from below the ground, and from them from the surrounding containers, destroying any courage they tried to build.

Suddenly a low growl was heard from behind them. They each slowly turned that direction but were unable to see past the darkness. The growling slowly increased in decibels, grinding against their ears and increasing the headache pounding in their heads while their eyes blurred and burned from sweat mixed with rain, forcing them to squint. In the darkness, two bright blue lights lit up. In the center was a spot of darkness that slowly turned to stare at them. It was at this point that they realized those weren't lights: they were eyes. Frozen in fear, none of them could lift a finger as the monster with glinting sharp teeth leaped of the shadows and grabbed them. Amid screams of horror and crunching of shattering bones, the spells of light around them flickered before fading into nothingness ... [7]

[1] In the flashback, Jason is around 17 and Katelyn turned 15. So ... yeah. Basically, two sex-crazed teens going at it whenever they can.

[2] Asami is making things up, trying to cover for Emily, she's lying about what they did together earlier on the day.

[3] From Chapter 12, when he offered the poultice to anyone who was injured.

[4] Formulae is the name for Cultivation Techniques. The name Techniques exist, but it is known by Daoist Cultivators in China. Internationally, it's known as Formulae.

[5] Neck-snap Oliver Queen style: (https://youtu.be/MWKAlMNRCTk?t=171).

[6] Spellcasting is modern Magick, so it's like Techno-Magic. The Caster uses a SEC to gather Aether and convert it through a quantum mathematical equation that bends the laws of physics.

[7] The music for how Jason feels right now: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUDgJ_D0Fxg).