There was a knock on my door.

I frowned. I wasn't expecting any visitors, and I just wanted to sleep this fucking night away. Maybe they'll go away?

The knock repeated, louder this time.

Frustrated with this interruption when I just wanted to sleep this awkward night away, I pushed myself off of the bed. A part of me hoped it would be Eveline, so we can talk about what had just happened, but that might not be a good idea. Another part of me hoped she wouldn't be at the door, imagining her anger at whatever it was I'd said that had set her off. I remembered the words, I just didn't know why they'd be a problem.

I unlocked the door.

It wasn't Eveline. It was Lena, holding two glass flutes and a bottle of some wine that was on offer at the tavern.

"I didn't expect you here," I said to her, surprised at her appearance here tonight. "What's up?"

"You left suddenly," she replied to me in a sultry voice. "I thought I'd come find you, so we could drink some more."

Fuck, I do not need this complication, I thought to myself. "I'm not sure if this is a good idea," I told her with a heavy sigh, worrying what Eveline would think.

"Why not?" Lena asked, her tone one of innocence. "You're not hiding another girl under your bed, are you?"

"No," I wondered how I would explain this. "It's just that... Eveline-"

"The cat girl who came with you?" Lena asked, her voice curious, her slight smile giving nothing away as she stepped up to the desk and put the bottle and glasses down. "Are you two..."

"No," I said sadly.

"So you're not seeing each other?"

"No."

"You don't have an exclusive relationship?"

I was irritated. Didn't I just fucking say that already? "No, again."

"And you're not promised to each other in some arranged marriage at some point in the future?"

What the hell?! "Good god, no!"

Lena shrugged. "Then I don't see what the problem is with meeting you here for a few drinks this evening." She then corked open the bottle and poured two glasses out, putting the cork back in and handing me one of the glasses. "So we didn't get to really enjoy our conversation earlier."

"Which bit?" I asked, aware we'd roamed over the conversational landscape in the tavern.

"Well," Lena sat on the bed next to me, taking a sip from her glass and looking sidelong toward me. "Training, for one thing. If you're going to learn how to fight with blades, you need to learn from someone who knows how to fight with blades. It's not a good idea to try learning how to fight from someone who uses knuckle guards or claws."

"Fair point," I admitted with a shrug. "We should set a schedule."

"Let's start in the morning," Lena suggested, raising a glass, which I tapped gently with my own.

"What else shall we talk about?" I asked after sipping my wine.

"Where are you from? What do you do? What are your goals in life? How do you like Germany? Anything you like."

For some minutes, Lena topped off my glass if it got too low, chatting amiably about my home country, the exploits I'd recently been involved in, and how I'd recently been accosted by an organisation I still had no clue about.

"How did you get out?" She asked, expression aghast.

"I'm still trying to figure that one out for myself," I laughed, feeling the effects of the alcohol. "All I know is that I had to get out. They had me in a room with chains, and after trying to question me for a bit, they gave up, left me with a single guard. I waited for him to fall asleep, then broke the chains, choked him unconscious, and then made a run for it." I forebore mentioning too many details. They were irrelevant in hindsight.

"You know," Lena scooted closer to me, leaning against my shoulder. "Considering you know so little about fighting, you've done remarkably well in getting out of there."

I shrugged. "It seemed too easy," I commented.

"Maybe you just got lucky," Lena replied, and then moved on to something else. "Just imagine how much more capable you'll be once you've gotten some decent combat knowledge into your mind?"

"Who knows?" I shrugged.

She then took my glass from my hands, reached over to the table, and deposited it alongside her own. "So, Rick," she began, changing the subject as she sat right back next to me, grabbing my forearm and giving it a gentle squeeze. "I'll make this simple for you."

"What?" I asked, perplexed, but she merely smiled, stroking my arm.

"I've taken a bit of a liking to you," she said in a gentle tone. "We are getting along well, don't you think?"

I was slightly uncomfortable answering the question. It seemed to be leading somewhere. "I guess?"

"We are," she said simply. "You and I are getting along quite well. We make each other laugh, I've seen the way you look at me, and I must admit, you're very easy on the eyes." She then gave a slow blink as she turned to face me fully. "With that in mind, I'd like to make a proposal."

"What?" I asked, suspicious.

"Nothing you'd object to," she said coquettishly. "Let's enjoy ourselves tonight. You're practically vibrating with sexual tension, and everyone needs release. I admit I could do with some attention myself. I think you'll like what I can do."

Part of me wanted to object. A large part, in fact. That part of me wanted Eveline, not Lena. That part of me held hope that we might be able to fix what had gone wrong earlier that night.

Another part of me, one that was becoming steadily intoxicated, just plain didn't give two fucks. Eveline had clearly gotten what she wanted from me, and then kicked me out because of something meaningless that I'd said. I didn't know what her problem was, I just knew I didn't deserve to be treated like an arsehole because of it.

That part eventually won out. I felt the need for some release, for a little comfort.

"You know what?" I told Lena rhetorically, taking her hands in my own. "I could use a good fucking," I said, cringing at my crass description of what we were about to do.

Lena simply giggled, taking my face in her hands, before launching herself at me and kissing my lips passionately.

Lena was very different from Eveline in many ways, the most obvious was of course that she was entirely human. Her manner of kissing was ardent, enthusiastic. She seemed to love to explore my body with her hands, as she stripped me of my clothes, and she kissed her way down my body from my lips to the base of my shaft.

"When was the last time you got one of these?" She asked as she then immediately wrapped her lips around the tip, her tongue licking against my glans. Curiously, I'd wondered what it would be like if it was rough, like a cat, instead of the smooth human variety that I was familiar with.

My reaction was still immediate. I was buzzing from earlier, and I became rock hard in seconds, as she started to work her hands up and down from the base to the tip, sucking like she had done this all her life, all the while looking up at me with an intense and lust-filled expression, to the point where I was over the edge in less than a minute. I let out a cry of lust as I hit orgasm, and she pumped me solidly as I came.

Then, without hesitation, she pushed me back on the bed and climbed over me, pushing my head back against the pillow before sitting on my face. "You ever done this before, lover-boy?" She cooed.

In response, I began to lick, gently at first, curling my arms around her legs, gently rubbing and stroking her smooth buttocks as she gyrated against my lips. I gradually sped up, varying my rhythm and my speed, until her gyrations became irregular and she let out a hoarse cry of ecstasy, grabbing my arms and digging her short nails into my skin. I felt my shaft twitch as I tasted her scent on my tongue, as she slowly leaked juices out into my mouth from her orgasm.

And then, she pushed herself back, crawling back towards my lower half, until her nipples rubbed against my chest, and her lips were level with my own. She once again kissed me with ardent passion, like a thirsty traveller drinking deep from a well. She pushed back after a moment and lifted herself up, grabbing me with a dainty hand, holding it in position as she impaled herself on to me, letting out a grunt, grinning at me as she did.

"Fuck me, Rick!" She ordered, her voice sultry. "Fuck me hard and fast!"

So I did. I lifted her up, she looked at me like a hungry predator, eager to feast, and then I started to slam my pelvis against hers, forcing my shaft deep into her pussy as hard and fast as I could. She cried out in surprise as I hit against her so hard, it caused her breasts to jiggle and bounce, her expression one of almost pained ecstasy as she quickly hit orgasm. Her pussy gripped my shaft tight, almost squeezing me like a Boa Constrictor, as she rode the wave of orgasm, and then on the crest of a wave, she grabbed my pectorals, and squeezed them, a serene and supremely satisfied smile on her face as she gyrated against me.

"Fuck, that was fast," she exclaimed. "It's not often I get to come so fucking hard!"

"Yeah, that was intense," I said, almost laughing. And it was. I'd never had an orgasm like that while I was in the old world, and I wondered how much of it was Lena, and how much of it was because of the nanocloud.

Then I decided it didn't matter.

"Wanna go again?" She asked coyly, shrugging her shoulders in a manner that suggested she was shy, and an act I didn't buy for a second. I was having too much fun to care.

"Hell yes," I said in a tone so husky, I hadn't expected it. And I realised, I was already set to go again, despite having ejaculated less than a minute ago. "Let's see how many times we can come in one evening!"

"Ooooo! A challenge," Lena cooed, a wide grin on her face. "I like the sound of that!"

Our passions rose and fell constantly over the next few hours as we repeatedly climaxed with each other, varying our routine, trying out new positions, until at last, we collapsed onto the bed, sated with pleasure off of the back of a mutual orgasm that was slowly fading from us both.

I looked over to her as she caught my eyes, and then she burst out into laughter, doubling over. "That was more than I'm used to," she said as she restrained the impulse to laugh again, and I grinned at her. I could understand the laughter, I was still buzzing from our marathon session, the intense pleasure I felt pushing me to feel a fit of giggles of my own, but I held back.

"I needed that," I admitted softly. "And it's nice to just relax, after."

Lena nodded, stretching out and laying on her back, her naked body relaxing. "We leave tomorrow, right?"

I nodded. "We do," I added. "I've someone I need to see in Hanover."

"Any idea who?" She asked, as she took my hand and gave it a soft squeeze, her thumb tracing a line across the back of my knuckles.

I recalled the names of all three of my current targets. I had just visited Christoph Franke, and now I had to see Frederich Dietsze and Sofia Wagner. Lena turned on to her side, her breasts sitting slightly sideways as gravity pulled them toward the bed. She reached up with her hand and stroked my hair back around my ear, and I imagined I felt a very slight tingle. All of the faces of these people came to mind, unbidden. A brief flash on my visual overlay popped up, and then vanished as I caught it.

Fuck, I must have been drunker than I thought.

Deliberately, I started to think of Lena, the softness of her body against my own as we'd had sex just a few moments before, and her expression relaxed. She leaned forward and kissed my lips, then turned her back to me. "It doesn't matter, we've got plenty of time on the road. Let's get to sleep," she said, sounding like she was already on the way to dreamland.

For a moment, I wondered if maybe I'd offended her in some fashion, though I couldn't imagine what it was that I'd done, but then she pushed her arse back into my pelvis, let out a sigh, and reached back with a hand to grab my wrist. I obliged, wrapping my arms around her, pulling her close, and drifting off to sleep.

I woke up the next morning, my head something of a mess. My nanocloud alerted me to the reason as soon as it had determined I was no longer unconscious.

Electrolyte imbalance detected.

Obtain fluids as soon as possible.

Nanocloud will process necessary electrolyte balance in bloodstream once hydration is available.

I immediately fetched a glass of water, chugging it rapidly, feeling somewhat dehydrated, but otherwise I was fine. I tried to recall the precise details of the night before, and when I tried to recall the last few moments before I fell asleep, my nanocloud prompted me with an error.

Memory engrams corrupted within nanocloud interface.

Original synaptic data for a brief period approximately six hours ago has been lost.

Cause unknown.

Nanocloud will attempt to reconstruct data.

This operation will run in the background but may take some time.

Fuck, I thought. Memory issues? I wondered if it was because I'd had too much to drink.

Negative. Memory corruption from imbibing alcohol is no longer possible.

Nanocloud actively prevents excess alcohol poisoning and attempts to correct memory errors caused by misfiring neural connections while intoxicated.

Then something else must have happened. It was a mystery I'd need to investigate another time, because today, I needed to get ready to set off on the next leg of our trip.

I then noticed a note on my table top, picked it up, realised then it was from Lena.

I really enjoyed last night. Next time, I'll book us a larger room! -Lena

I cringed slightly at the thought. It wasn't that Lena was unattractive. On the contrary, she was alluring, attractive in the classic hourglass-figure pin-up model kind of fashion, and she was very personable. We got on fantastically. The sex was also mind-blowing.

The problem was, she just wasn't-

There was a loud, strident knock on the door. Whoever it was, they seemed angry. To save my sanity and to stop it from repeating, I decided to simply deal with them now and get it over with, so I opened the door.

Eveline stood there, looking absolutely furious.

Fuck my life, I don't need this, I thought to myself. "Eveline?" I asked, keeping my tone level.

"Get out of the way," she said, about to push her way past me and into my room. I blocked the way and refused to budge. "What are you doing? I said-"

"I heard you," I replied, my tone frosty. "I'm not sure what you think gives you the right to barge in to my room right now, but-"

"What I have to say to you is best discussed privately," she retorted.

"All you seem to be lately, is angry at me, sometimes with cause, mostly for pointless, trivial reasons, and in one case I distinctly remember, for no cause whatsoever, so no, I won't be inviting you into my room. Whatever you've got to say to me, you can do it out here, or not at all," I told her in no uncertain terms, ignoring the angry whipping of her tail behind her, as well as the angry set expression on her face. "Now get to it. What do you want?"

"Is she in there?" Eveline asked in a frosty tone.

So that was what this was about, was it? "Is who in there?" I asked, playing dumb.

"Don't insult me," Eveline snapped.

"I wasn't," I said. "You insult me though, by demanding to know if I have visitors when it's none of your concern."

"None of my concern?!" Eveline shouted, catching the attention of a few passers-by. I didn't respond to them or to her raised voice. "You fucking arsehole. You came in, did... Things with me, and then-"

"You immediately kicked me out of your room once you'd had your fun with me," I snapped, not giving her a chance to complete that re-telling of hers. "You said, and I quote, 'I've changed my mind. Women are allowed to do that, you know'. Well, yes you do, and you should also expect to accept the consequences of your choice. And since I'm so fucking disposable-" I spat the word out angrily, before continuing. "-to you, I'm not sure it's any of your concern who I invite into my private space when you're not using me like a fucking sex toy."

Eveline hissed, her face betraying fury. "I wasn't using you!"

Call it a bruised ego, whatever, but I had no idea what had caused her to turn the way she did when I said what I said, and without understanding what had happened, how else was I to react? "So you say," I hissed. "But your actions tell a very different story."

"Whatever," she muttered. "I know my own mind."

"Was there anything else?" I asked, my tone frosty, refusing to engage in that discussion any longer.

"Yeah," she retorted. "You need to reconsider just how freely you give out information about your quest. For all you know, that bitch-"

"If you want to alienate yourself from everyone around you any further," I snapped. "Keep referring to Lena as a bitch."

Eveline looked murderous. "I don't know why you defend her so fiercely."

"You don't?" I asked with considerable scorn. "Since we met her and her two fox companions, who I quite like, by the way, she has been nothing but friendly and accommodating with us, inviting us to journey with them, join us in the inn any time they frequent one, giving us enjoyable conversation. She didn't just treat me like I was some horse shit stuck to her boot, after she had a fucking orgasm."

"Fuck you, Rick!" Eveline spat, but within her anger was a look of pain.

I wasn't ready to acknowledge the expression, and I kept going. "You, on the other hand, have been adversarial, infuriating, argumentative and hostile toward me from day fucking one. You get snippy with me when I flirt with another woman, and then throw me away like a piece of fucking trash when you're-"

"Shut up!" Eveline hissed, her eyes misting slightly, her tail whipping about her in angry swipes. "Fucking stop this bullshit! You said something that cut deep! That really hurt me and reminded- No, you know what? I don't want to talk about it with you. How can I trust you with something private when you jump from one bed-"

"Enough," I cut her off. "That's none of your fucking business."

The tension was so thick, you could cut it with a knife, and for a moment, neither of us said anything to each other. "I'll stay out of your way from now on," she said icily.

I closed the door in her face without another word.

I was sure I'd think on it all later, then feel like the world's biggest arsehole for the way I behaved, but for now, I didn't need the headache, and I sure didn't need the hostility. Maybe it would be best to stay out of her way from now on. Once I get to Berlin, she could go back home, and I could decide what I needed to do next with my life.

I packed my travel gear, and vacated my room. Not long after that, I dropped my keys off, and headed over to the tavern, where I bumped into Ralf. He was alone, probably the first time I'd ever seen him by himself, so I ambled over to him and nodded in greeting.

"How are you?" Ralf asked me.

I shrugged. "Feeling like I should stay away from women," I sighed dejectedly. "I don't seem to be able to do anything but piss them off when I'm around."

Ralf gave me a fox-like grin. "Seriously? Lena seems to have taken a liking to you."

My head started to hurt. "Yeah, and Eveline hasn't stopped letting me know about it. I just had a dispute with her."

"Ouch," Ralf said, commiserating me with a clap on the shoulder. Honestly, I felt a little better for the camaraderie. "You think she's jealous?"

"I don't even want to think about that right now."

"Fair," Ralf snorted. "I've had my fair share of sticky situations."

I shrugged, smiling wryly. "How's Suzie?"

Ralf shook his head, but there was mirth in his eyes. "She's Suzie. What more can be said?"

"Just a bit of fun?"

Ralf paused for a bit. "Maybe?"

I was surprised. "You like her, don't you?"

Ralf's hand went to his neck, rubbing it in obvious embarrassment. "I don't wanna jinx it," he said quietly.

"Alright, I won't tease," I told him. "Lena about?"

"Looking to get into a little fun with her?" I coughed into my hand, deliberately avoided saying anything. "Oh! You already did?!"

"Yeah," I whispered. "That's why I'm dealing with so much abuse from Eveline right now."

Ralf didn't say anything to that, though he glanced over to the apartment block I'd just walked from. "Listen, I don't want to be an arsehole, but I think you should think about things."

"What do you mean?" I asked, surprised at the turn of the conversation.

"Have you done anything with your feline friend?"

An angry rejection burst out of me before I could stop myself. "We're not friends, she's made that exceedingly clear."

"Sorry," Ralf sighed, his expression contrite. "Did you, though?"

Fuck. "Yeah," I sighed. "That's part of the fucking problem."

"So," Ralf asked. "What happened?"

"You want a play-by-play account?" I asked, amusement rearing its' ugly head. "I didn't know you were into that kind of thing!"

"Funny guy," Ralf laughed. "But no. I'll take a guess. You had some fun with Eveline, then afterward, Lena came and saw you?"

"Shit," I sighed. "When did this all get so complicated?"

Ralf shrugged. "Right?"

"How did you know, anyway?"

"It's not difficult to guess," Ralf laughed. "Eveline stormed out, demanding you follow. Neither of you come back. Then Lena gets up after about ten minutes, and she doesn't come back either." Then his expression turned serious. "So what really happened?"

So, I told him. Told him how Eveline seemed to enjoy our interaction at first, only to go cold and kick me out after I'd said something that she took a dislike to. Told him how Lena then came visiting, got me drinking, and then propositioned me. Told him how Eveline visited me this morning, obviously upset. Told him how I complained about her apparently treating me like a sex toy, and how she got angry at me.

How she'd looked hurt.

I resisted the instinct to feel sorry for pushing her that way. I was still annoyed by what she did.

"Man," Ralf sighed. "Something about what you said was a trigger for some experience in her past. I don't know what, so I can't comment, but she couldn't face you right then."

"Did she have to be so cold about it to me, though?"

Ralf shrugged. "Probably not," he allowed. "Truth is, she's going to feel bothered that you then went and slept with Lena."

I sighed explosively, putting both of my palms up into my eyes, pushing against hem as the pressure caused me to get a headache. "Fuck," was all I could say. "Well, now she's not talking to me."

Ralf clapped me on the shoulder again. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry you're dealing with this."

"No," I said quietly to him, hanging my head a bit. "This is all my problem."

Neither of us said anything after that, both waiting for others to show up. Suzie soon appeared, seeming out of breath, but she was bouncing around like she'd just downed a cup of coffee and had a sensitivity to caffeine, grinning like a fool as she clutched at Ralf enthusiastically. Ralf, for his part, looked flushed.

"Hi Rick," Suzie said with a high-pitched squeak as she saw me, then turned her attention back to Ralf.

Eveline appeared from her apartment, took one look at me, and then stalked off. I called out to her, and she ignored me.

Fine. If that's how she wanted to play things...

Lena then showed up, wearing her travel gear and carrying a set of makeshift practice blades. "Shall we get started?"

I looked back in the direction that Eveline had taken off in. "I don't know..."

"Seriously?" Lena scoffed. "What's on your mind?"

"I- Eveline and I need to-"

"You and Eveline need to do nothing," Lena interrupted me, her expression irritable. "She clearly doesn't like us humans, so why should we bother entertaining her?" Lena didn't seem to notice the frown that Ralf sent her way, but I caught it. "Let her go off and do what she wants to do. We have training to keep us busy." And she took me by the wrist. "Come on, already!"

I was too tired to argue, so I just went along with it.