Chapter Eleven : Feeling the Heat
Alloy put on an impish grin when Hex asked if they had a lab. The short dragon led the way with a cocky sway to her hips that wasn't there a moment before. As they did, the metallic clack of armor followed them close. Luna was kind enough for them to keep the element, just not trusting enough to do it without armed escort.
As they made their way down a long curved corridor, Bless noticed two guards in gold armor standing in front of a door unlike the simple cloth tarps. It was reinforced steel. She allowed her gift to let her see what was hiding behind that barrier. It was weak but complex, and it was looking back at her.
The corridor ended in a decently sized chamber. Every wall was lined with metallic drawers with labels that drew Hex and Bless to them. Their eyes lit up like fillies on Heart's Warming day.
The dark half of Arcane rushed off to the left of this chamber with square drawers all neatly labeled with masking tape and sharpie.
"Z-257 gears? Each one is worth 10,000 bits." Hex said in an almost excited tone.
Bless walked over to one of several small chambers with a heavily reinforced window. She reached out and touched the silver cylindrical chamber just to make sure it wasn't a dream.
"Is this a high-speed maturation chamber? I've heard about these… just never thought I'd see one."
"Yes, all wonderful, but this is my favorite."
Alloy walked into the center of the chamber towards a chair that looked so much like the ones Arcane repaired, only far newer. The chair was in three articulate segments that could lay flat or let the patient sit up right. To the sides were six metallic resonant plates, all automated to swing into place should they be needed.
"Chair, maintenance mode."
On Alloy's command a series of plates slid out on extending rails from an opening hatch in the chair's cylindrical base. What were normally thick bronze plates came out as paper thin gray plates of a metal which Hex nor Bless could recognize. Thirteen panels of interlaced crystalline gears made up this machine's 'brain', all so compact and neat.
"It took me a year to simplify the design, but here it is. Twenty five percent less moving parts. Easier to repair and easier to mod for experiments. All redundancies removed."
The twins moved to either side of Alloy and fell silent. The dragon formed a wider grin as the gold and blue eyes darted around the various gear boards. Silently, and in the language of a gear-head nerd, Arcane was falling in love.
Hex felt her face growing hot. This wasn't the side of her that could get flustered, and yet in a purely psychological way, there it was.
"So, this hypothesis of yours?"
Hex and Bless had to pull themselves out of a silent study of Alloy's design. The dark side of Arcane looked a little lost, her train of thought taking a moment to catch up.
"Oh! Yes. It came to me when Luna called me 'Her shadow.'
When we attempt to bridge nerves we have to do it with the least amount of serum and energy we can. This forces us to find efficient pathways to complete those neurological circuits. It can be enough to combat the secondary effects like muscular atrophy or senility, but going too hard can be fatal, or worse.
Our magic is based on the Elements of Harmony, positive flow. Maybe we should add something to weaken it, make it not so forceful and proactive. Make it more… confused, unsure of itself. Open to learn and adapt."
Alloy gave Hex the stare of one who just saw a chicken give birth through its beak.
"That has to be one the craziest things I've ever heard."
Hex was about to open her mouth and defend the idea before Alloy interrupted her.
"Which is why we never thought of it, but how?"
The twins looked at Alloy's horns. Their gift could read the magic flowing through it. The dragon formed a worried look on her face and already regretted entertaining this insanity.
"We need to make a new serum that utilizes both light and dark magic. Alloy, your gift is the ability to direct the development of chemical and atomic interactions. You're essentially a living transmutation spell. We also have the element of Redemption, which, I believe, is a sort of 'gray' magic. Put all of this together and we can finally make an adaptive serum that doesn't need any outside manipulation."
Alloy looked a little hesitant, the guards standing at the doorway were clenching their jaws tight.
"Perhaps…"
The metallic tap against stone sounded terribly familiar. Hex, Bless, and Alloy turned to see the two guards that escorted them as glowing spear tips pointed their way. The guard to the left turned and ran down the corridor. The one on the right bore his teeth in anger.
"Damn dragon! We should have never trusted your kind."
"What the fuck did you just say?"
Alloy squared her strong shoulders and tilted her muzzle up in defiance. An emerald shimmer danced between the brown filaments of her iris as her horns began to glow the same hue. Her eyes were soon burning bright with embers of green as emerald webs of smoldering light radiated from the black ivory of her horns.
Another metallic clang answered the first. Hex and Bless punched their tap cloves together. The three fuses in each device began to glow as each twin took their place along the left and right of Alloy.
The guard took a step back as his confidence faltered. His eyes flicked rapidly between Hex and Bless while his spear quivered towards Alloy.
"Corruption! Blasphemy!"
The guard shouted as his knees grew weak and eyes flicked side to side . It was almost enough to set the three aback. Bless was the first to notice. The colors in her tap glove were brighter pastels and white sparks. Hex's tap began to dance with neon smoke, viscous magentas, sherbet oranges, electric green, deep blue, blinding yellows, and violet edging on black in vicious patterns.
A voice echoed from the walls as if it came from all sides. It boomed between ears, under ribs, rumbled under hooves and feet. It was only one word and yet it made all five stand down.
"Enough."
Queen Luna walked into the chamber and put a hand on the guard's shoulder. He shrank back like a child about to be scolded. Luna never met his eyes yet the expression on her face gave the order. He quickly turned away and vanished down the hallway without another word.
The Queen let the quiet distress shared between the twins and Alloy simmer. Moments felt like minutes stretched in what felt like a standoff between three mice and a panther.
She cracked a smirk.
"Clean yourselves up and get some rest. We'll talk in the morning."
Queen Luna turned away without another word, leaving them in silence.
-
The mine's low walls and blue light stole any hint of what the outside world was doing. Perhaps the sun was just coming up for a new day, perhaps it was the dead of night. Without the weirdness of Arcane's switching forms it was any guess what time of day it was. The only thing for certain was a need for the day to be over.
But Luna had a point, no use hitting the sack dirty.
A few of those doorways passed-by were branches to yet more corridors which weaved deeper into the stone. One such passage began to grow humid and warm as Alloy led the way. The walls began to glisten and water dripped from the glowing crystals as they came to an intersection of three paths. The leftmost path was draped in a blue cloth tarp, the rightmost covered in a pink cloth.
"And this one is ours." Alloy said as she pulled back the center cloth. Behind the purple covering was a cavernous chamber with tall Stalagmites in shallow water, some spewing out steaming jets.
Hex and Bless walked in without any further encouragement. The chamber was humid yet not terribly hot, and for an enclosed chamber the air was fresh. A quick look around answered why. Among the stalagmites were a forest of azure trees that arose from the shallow lake, a sort of weeping willow with large pods that seemed to breathe in and out slowly.
"It's beautiful." Bless said as she looked up onto a ceiling that was obscured with mist, almost like a cloudy sky hidden below Equestria.
"What do you mean by 'Ours'?", Hex asked yet realized the answer before the last word.
The short dragon was already peeling off her shawl and letting it fall onto a flat dry rock. Her shirt followed. It wasn't long before she stood naked before the twins. Her feathers were thicker at her chest to form a fluf between the heavy orbs, all green with a gentle fade to white. The rest of her coat was sleek and traced out toned arms and a flat chest with just a hint of curve.
Hex let her eyes travel to the gap between Alloy's wide hips only to be left in confusion. The white coated mound looked perfectly female.
"This seems a little ridiculous.", Bless said just loud enough to be heard. Even her shy self couldn't accept the idea of running onto three beings like herself in a single week. "We already ran into two Stallmares just recently. The odds of this are just so small."
Alloy stepped to the shore of that shallow spring, her curvy backside decorated with a short doe-like tail of emerald feathers.
"You mean like finding the seventh element of harmony and being split in half by said element?", Alloy playfully shot back.
Hex gave a shrug. "Six friends saved the world from a corrupted queen that was sealed in the moon's shadow for a thousand years only roughly after they met. I suppose we shouldn't be that surprised."
The dark half of Arcane pulled off the borrowed clothes and made a pile near Alloy's before walking into the water. The crystal clear spring only came up to her knees. As she lowered herself in she felt a soft tingle under her fur. The spring gave off a gentle heat that made strained muscles quiver and give up their stress.
Bless hesitated at the shore, her arms crossed over her stomach and clenched the lower edge of her shirt. Her cheeks began to grow pink under her fur.
Alloy rose up and walked back on shore to assure Bless.
"Bless, are you okay?", Alloy said softly. The white mundane turned her head to break eye contact. Behind them tears welled up in Hex's eyes and fell down her cheeks. The dark mare touched her own face, confused why she was crying too.
"Just… everything has been so fast lately. As Hex it's so easy just to jump from one place to another without worry. Face a pack of Timberwolves? Yeah, no problem. Tell your boss to go fuck themselves? Yep. Sleep with a friend? Why not? Have a drunken toss in the sheets with a coworker? Life's short, why the hell not.
As me… all these thoughts flood my head. I have doubts, some that make sense and some that don't. They all feel about as important as the other, so much so that I can't tell the difference. Who am I, really? Am I her or me?"
Alloy reached up and gently gripped Bless's shoulders. The dragon rose up on the tips of her toes and nuzzled Bless's cheek until their eyes met. Foreheads touched and eyes stared into each other. Somehow this felt better, so much of the world blocked out by Alloy's soft chocolate eyes.
Bless found herself bending her knees slightly and coming level.
"You are both. You have doubts and you are brave. You worry about others and you care about yourself. Bless, I don't know how this is for you, but it's like this for others in their own way. Tell me, as Hex, you never cared like you do now?"
She thought back to Brick.
"Maybe."
"And you? Have you ever done something bold?"
She thought back to beating the hell out of a mirror.
"…"
"As for us. We're just taking a bath. There's no need to assume-"
Alloy didn't get her last word. Bless leaned in with a slight tilt to her head and sealed a kiss. Her lips parted and was surprised when a slender forked tongue coiled around her softer muscle. A wave of release ran down Bless's spine that made her quiver. Her heart beat rapidly in her chest as Alloy slid one hand and cupped her neck. She could feel the prick of sharp claws, but the dragon was careful not to add more pressure than her skin could take.
Alloy laced fingers between Bless's and gave a gentle pull. The kiss broke as the white mare was led to the water.
"See? I do belong in the third bath." Alloy said with a little grin as her steps made an ebony cock sway between her thighs. The dense thing had an angled prick and bumps neatly lined along its fat belly, the organ now parting a slit that hugged around the base and tucked into a healthy mound underneath. "And before you ask, no, Dragons don't have cloacas. At least not the ones from my world. Do… your dragons…?"
Bless cracked a smile, "Um, unless it has mechanical parts I have no clue how it's put together… but if you want to ask about dragon crotches I'll be happy to help you look it up."
"Ahem, am I invited to this heartwarming scene?" Hex spoke up from her lounging spot near the shallow pool's shore.
Alloy flashed a toothy grin and slid her arm around Hex's waist before giving a pull. She was short but solid. Even if the dark mare wanted to resist there wasn't much chance she could. The twins closed in on Alloy with nuzzles under her chin. The two kissed and nibbled between the fine thin feathers covering dark skin. Unlike standard feathers, the shaft of each was silky and flexible, more like tasseled fur that added a density to her coat.
Arcane did her best not to mirror the motions of her two forms. Her collective consciousness was getting more and more used to this split status, more comfortable to the distinct feel of one form versus the other.
Hands closed around both of her lengths and began to slowly stroke. Hex let out a sultry groan, Bless releasing an airy squeak. Their hips swayed and tried to keep from synchronization, though sometimes that couldn't be helped. It didn't seem Alloy minded.
Hex slid her nuzzle up to seal a kiss with Alloy. Her softer dark tongue teased the dragon until hers was coiled about. Bless ventured lower and decided to take a bit from her Dark half's methods. Her teeth gently closed around the dark chocolate nib of Alloy's nipple and pulled just a bit. The dragon arched her back and moaned into Hex's maw.
Alloy broke the kiss and playfully pushed Hex away before pulling Bless closer. The dragon showed her strength again as Bless was pulled into her lap. Water sloshed up the the stone shore and Alloy's hips as she lounged back. Her hips rolled back as Bless' curled hips forward. The soft bumps along the dark dragon length grazed under Bless' cock base on its way down.
Bless squeezed Alloy's thighs for support and found, not surprisingly, the wide hips kept her well spread. She leaned back and felt Alloy squeeze into her. Bless's pale pink length rapidly twitched as her internal buttons were smashed.
Alloy began to roll her hips and move within the white mare as Hex appeared over Bless's shoulder. She gave a gentle smile down to the dragon as she wrapped the thick hips around her waist. The dark stalmare tip kissed the mound and lips before wedging inside. She could feel the silky skin part as she eased into a tight passage. Only two inches deep and Alloy's body grew hotter than the spring water they bathed in.
"So cold…", Alloy let out an inward gasp.
"Want me to pull out?", Hex offered.
"No! I mean, no. Never used ice in foreplay?"
Bless laughed softly between her moans, the normally shy mare raising and dropping her toned curvy ass eagerly, "Hex's cock is getting really hot. Literally."
"Have you ever used hot wax In foreplay?", Hex answered as she squeezed the top of Alloy's thighs, assuring the dragon she wanted more.
Arcane felt her minds in synch. Her motions didn't feel confused or conflicted. Hex leaned in and quickened her pace and Bless thrusted her hips down harder. Alloy barely had to move, the two mares thrusted In and onto her in a dance that grew in tempo. Their three voices echoed off the high ceiling with no care of who could hear them. They moved in spite of fatigue and strain. In many ways the challenge to endure another hour of sweat and pleasure was the entire point.
Bless was the first. Her spine arched and head pointed up. Alloy's hands reached out and laced with the white mare's fingers as her pink length shot out messily over the dragon's breasts.
"Damn, a bit pent up?", Alloy snickered, glad she was eventually going to use this bath as a bath.
The dragon's snicker followed a gasp. To an Equis, Hex's cum would feel warm, but in comparison to Alloy's internal temperature, it felt like a shock of ice. Her walls bore down hard on the dark mare's length as the dragon's heat spilled into Bless.
Hex pulled free and moved onto hands and knees beside Alloy with a sweet but lewd smile.
"Why don't you use those cock-bumps properly?"
Bless rose off Alloy with her small hint of a smile, the little grin that would make her lose at poker if she were ever foolish enough to play. The dragon formed a look of realization before sitting up and moving behind the dark mare. Alloy gripped Hex by the waist and pulled her back. Her dark tip parted the near-black folds, earning a low moan. Hex could feel the texture of Alloy's cock-belly stroke the sensitive roof of her walls.
Bless slipped behind the dragon and quivered as Alloy's doe-like tail brushed her stomach. White hands ran over Alloy's as the pink length sank inside and felt that heat bare down. She remained still, just her breasts leaning into Alloy's back and her muzzle on Alloy's shoulder.
It was the dragon's dance this time. Alloy moved her hips into Hex and onto Bless as the two mares remained steady, at least as much as possible. Alloy's wide hips were as strong as they were matronly. The two had to flex their thighs and brace for the back and forth collisions of a dragon satisfying her needs.
Bless let out a tiny squeak as she felt herself twitch hard within the quickly shifting heat. Hex began to pant as that texture mercilessly stimulated an inch of highly sensitive flesh about a finger-tip deep into her pussy. Once again, Bless was the first to break. The white mare grabbed for anything and found Alloy's chest. She gripped as her length pulsed inside the dragon's pussy.
Alloy pressed her back against Bless's chest as the incredible heat spilled into Hex. The water was clouded by the dark mare's release as the twins tightly pinned Alloy in place with their bodies to preserve this high. After a long moment the three collapsed into the water and lay side by side, staring up in the afterglow.