"So, here's the plan"
The six women were gathered around a map, on the table in Mai's room.
Saya pointed her finger at a village.
"This is where we are" she said " and this, far in the North, is Thorvesk, where Shun is. According to Reiju and Olga, he's gained control over these villages, just South of Thorvesk. And here" she added, tapping on a spot in the North-West "is the area under Goro's control. We don't know for sure in which of these villages we'll find him: according to Mai, he goes from town to town, killing and raping to his heart's content"
Every girl had a disgusted expression on their faces. Theresa had clenched her teeth.
"Now, I know we want to get to both of them, but Goro is our number one priority: his movements are much more unpredictable than Shun's. We got no guarantee that he'll stay in that area for long: if he leaves, all the work Mai did these past few months will be for naught. But I also understand Reiju's feelings: she wants to free Thorvesk from Shun's tyranny as soon as possible. So this is what we'll do: we'll follow the road to North-West together. At some point, Reiju and I will go North by ourselves. We'll investigate the villages under Shun's rule, and find a way to enter the city safely.
Reiju asked me to avoid confrontation with Thorvesk army, if possible: men in Thorvesk's castle are bandits that came in the city with Shun, but the rest are just people unwillingly following orders... for the most part"
"What a drag" Roxanne said "Do we have to bother sparing enemies, now?"
"Oh, I killed some of them!" Olga said, with a mortified expression on her face "I'm so sorry! But you know, they all had a very bad karma..."
"Of course it's not like everybody in the army is innocent" Saya said "Some of them probably like Shun as their leader: they also probably enjoy following his cruel orders. We aren't going to spare anyone that enjoys having innocent blood on his hands. Is that alright with you, Reiju?"
The girl nodded.
"You really want to head North by yourselves?" Theresa asked "Saya, you should not face Shun alone"
"It's okay" Saya replied "He can't touch me"
"Now now, don't get too cocky" Roxanne reprimanded her "This is Shun we are talking about"
"If even Roxanne tells you to not get too cocky, then you definitely are cocky" Mai said.
"Don't you girls worry. I have mastered the Will of the Goddess"
"The Mistress had mastered the Will of the Goddess too. She's dead" Mai pointed out.
"Yeah" Roxanne uttered "How the hell did Shun do that?"
Nobody answered. That question had gone unanswered for the last six months.
"He didn't give her time to use it" Saya conjectured "Either the Mistress decided not to use it for whatever reason, or he killed her by suprise. That's the only logical explanation: no Hokuto technique performed by a male user can overcome the Will perfomed by a female user. Anyway, we'll know when we see him: I intend to ask him personally"
Most of the girls had left Mai's room.
Mai and Jake were sitting on the bed.
"So...you're leaving" Jake said, looking at his feet.
"Yes"
"And you don't know if you'll ever come back"
"That's right"
"I..."
Jake had an anguished look in his eyes. He was struggling to tell her something.
"Mai, I...these past days with you..."
"Shhh" Mai said, putting a finger on his lips "You don't have to tell me anything. Come here"
She put an arm around his neck. Jake froze, pale and wide-eyed. She dragged him close to her and kissed him.
Then, she put his right hand on her breast.
"Do you like me?"
"Y-yes..."
"Do you want me?"
"I..."
She put a hand between his legs.
"This is the only thing I can do for you" Mai whispered "Think of this as a farewell gift..."
"This is..." Jake muttered "...no, Mai, stop it!"
He pushed her away. Mai stopped, with a surprised expression on her face.
"Did I do something wrong?"
"N-no, it's just that..."
He looked intensely at her.
"Mai-san, I like you. I really like you. Doing it like this...as a farewell gift...it's not how I want to do it. What I want is for you is to like me. Also...I don't want to say farewell"
Mai stared at the wall at the other side of the room.
"I'm sorry" she said "I don't think I can reciprocate your feelings. I'm no good with those. I never had romantic feelings for anyone: I only know sex. My Mistress taught me how to please a man, according to the Hokuto tradition: that's all I've been doing ever since"
Jake stayed quiet for a moment. Then:
"I know!" he said "Let's make a deal!"
"A deal?"
"Yeah! If you ever come back to Zaria...let's go on a date together"
"A date?"
Mai was clearly perplexed.
"Yes! I know a place!" Jake explained "There's a small hill in the north part of the village, near to the town's walls. You've been in Zaria only for a few days, so you've never been there. The view is gorgeous. When you come back, let's go watch the stars, and spend the evening together"
Mai smiled.
"Sounds nice" she said.
"Good" Jake said " Then, it's a date. I'll wait for you"
Theresa was standing outside the inn, with her back againsts the wall.
She had her eyes closed.
The sun felt nice on her skin. Too bad the sun could not warm her up inside. Sometimes, that man's words echoed over and over again in her head.
(Theresa, please...I'm no good...only you can help me…)
(Yes! THIS is the relief I was looking for!)
"Are you ok?"
Theresa opened her eyes. Saya was looking at her with apprehension.
"Yes. I was just...remembering"
Saya got closer to her and gently touched her arm.
"We'll get to him" she said "I promise you. We'll get to him"
"It doesn't matter"
Theresa gazed at her with a sad look in her eyes.
"It doesn't matter if we kill Goro" she said "and it doesn't matter if we kill Shun. We can't change what happened. Our lives are never going to be the same"
Saya stood silent for a moment.
"I won't deny that" she finally said "But whatever happens to us from now on...I'll be by your side"
Pain. The man only knew pain.
Pain during the day. Pain during the night. On some nights, he would wake up in his bed and scream at the top of his lungs.
Sometimes, his abilities were enough to keep the suffering at bay. Some other times, no technique or remedy were of any use: he could only endure.
Right now, his face was hurting. He could feel it, like a thousand needles embedded in his flesh, even though he was almost at the climax of pleasure.
He was having sex with four women. Three of them were shaking, barely managing to hold back tears. Only one was smiling: a beautiful blonde woman, with a terrible scar on the left side of her face. He had disfigured the most beautiful women with brute violence, but he wasn't responsible for that: instead, he had often kissed that scarred face gently.
"Come on" he growled at the woman on top of him "You're not trying hard enough"
"I'm sorry, Goro-sama"
"What's that frightened look you got, uh?! Are you frightened of my face? Is that it? Does my face disgust you so much, you freaking whore?!"
"N-no...that's not true...Goro-sama, please..."
The man grabbed both sides of the woman's head. He squeezed it, with superhuman strenght. Blood spurted through his fingers: one eye and a clump of brain matter splattered on the floor.
The scarred woman laughed, while the other two looked terrified.
Goro looked at them.
"Uhm, not in the mood anymore? Well, it doesn't matter. Your time is up anyway"
The head of one of the girls expanded and exploded. The breasts of the other one started to bloat to an excessive degree.
"N-no, please, I'll be good, I promise to do good..." she begged, with tears running down her cheeks. In the very moment her breasts exploded, the scarred woman slit her throat with a knife.
Goro and the last remaining woman were now completely covered in blood. They kissed passionately, and started to make love to each other.
"Ayako" he whispered in her ear "You're the only person I have left. The only thing that keeps this pain at bay"
Then, he remembered their faces: Saya, Theresa, their Mistress Yasmine...all looking at him with contempt.
I'll kill them, he thought. I swear that someday I'll kill them all!
At the first floor of the inn, the six women were having dinner.
"Do we really have to depart at dawn?" Roxanne asked "You girls are so strict. I had hoped to sleep a little more in the morning"
"Now now, Roxie-chan" Mai reprimanded her "Don't be so lazy. We have been getting up before daybreak for years. Disclipine is required to defeat our enemies"
"Forgive me" Reiju said "But...can you really do it?"
They all looked at her.
"Don't get me wrong" she continued "I've seen what you're capable of. The way Roxanne-san fought...it was amazing. Also, terrifing".
Roxanne cracked a smile: she had a thing for flattery.
"But the man called Shun...he's beyond amazing. I watched him fight my father. My father was so much stronger than me: I'll have to train for years to even get close to his level. His Nanto Ujou Ken had gone undefeated for over a decade. And yet...that young man from Hokuto was in a whole new league. He killed my father in an instant: I could barely follow his movements. Can you really deal with someone like that?"
Saya, who was sitting right next to Reiju, put a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry. Even though I could never dream of reaching Shun's level, he still won't be able to lay a finger on me. He will be completely powerless. Such is the fate of a man confronted with the Will of the Goddess"
"Leave him to us and don't worry about a thing, Rei-chan" Roxanne cut it short "So…since this is the last night we'll be spending in Zaria...how about we have a bit of fun?"
"Speak of the devil..." Mai said, looking across the room.
Two drunken men were harassing a woman; she was trying to get away from them, but they grabbed her arms and started to grope her; while doing that, they laughed like they were having the best time of their lives.
"Fuck!" Saya uttered "Seriously, how many molesters are in this town anyway?!"
"Never too few" Roxanne said, with a predatory look in her eyes,
"Girls, can we not?" Saya asked, with an exasperated look on her face.
"Since when do you care for molesters and rapists?" Theresa replied.
"I don't! It's just...I have a lot on my mind right now. Do we really have to do this? Can't we just...I don't know...give them money so they'll go away?"
"They have a pretty murky karma, though" Olga pointed out "I'd like to let them go, but they're definitely baddies...heavens, what a tough decision to make..."
"There's no decision to make" Theresa said, with a fierce look in her eyes "If we let them go today, they'll rape someone else tomorrow. Scum like that never changes. Here, I'll handle them"
"No Theresa" Mai said "Please, allow me to dispose of them. After all, I've grown quite attached to this town's people, and I don't like to see girls molested in my work place. But first..."
She pressed points on both sides of her ribcage. Her breasts slowly expanded, gaining at least one size.
"I thought I would spice things up a little" she said, winking at them.
"You're so good at it, Mai-chan" Olga said "Now they're as big as mine!"
"That's just water retention, though" Roxanne pointed out "Don't flatter yourself"
"Hey, no man has ever complained"
"Pretty hard to complain when your brain is splattered all over the ceiling"
"Well, here I go" Mai said, rising from her seat.
She approached the men, who turned around and dropped their jaws.
"Hey there, lady, nice tits!" they greeted her.
"Thanks" Mai said in coquettish voice "I grew them myself. Is there something I can do for you gentlemen? You both look soo stressed out"
They let go of the girl they were harassing and grinned.
"Let's see...we'd like to fuck all night long. How about that?" one of them said.
"Very well" Mai said "Please follow me. I'll grant your wish"
She took their hands and led them upstairs.
"She's so selfish" Roxanne complained "Keeping all the fun for herself"
"She really likes doing them in pairs" Olga commented.
"Well, they're dead now" Saya snorted "Hell, I almost feel sorry for them. I should have killed them myself: it would have been merciful. Mai's so fucked up"
"Aaah what did you do to us?!"
"I can't stop! Somebody help!"
One of the guys was naked on the bed, on all fours. The other one was standing behind him, with his pants dropped: he was violently thrusting his pelvis forward.
"It hurts! It huuurts!" cried out the guy on all fours.
"G-gross!" groaned the other one.
Mai was looking at them with a big smile on her face.
"What's wrong, gentlemen?" she teased them " I thought you wanted to fuck all night long, so I granted your wish. You're going to be fucking for the next nine hours"
"N-no way" said the man who stood behind. He barfed, covering his companion back and head in puke.
"One last thing" Mai added "When nine hours are over, both of your heads will explode. So please, enjoy the time you have left to the fullest"
"No, please!"
"For the love of the Gods, help us!"
Deaf to their begging, Mai got out of the room.
This was fun, she thought. I wonder what else our journey has in store for us?
The stars shone brightly. In the night sky, the Big Dipper seemed to shine even brighter.
On the terrace at the very top of Thorvesk's Royal Palace, the young man sat with his eyes closed, in meditation. The wind ruffled his long, raven hair. He inhaled the cold air and focused.
His ki exploded all around him, reaching up to the starlit sky.
Aside from that, nothing happened.
The man called Shun opened his eyes, and got up.
I still haven't attained it, he thought. Why is that? Is my sadness not enough?
He looked up, gazing at the Big Dipper.
Even so, I still can't see the Death Omen Star.
He cracked a sad smile.
I'm sorry, Saya. It appears I won't be allowed to die just yet...
