Manufacturing Maness by Kodyax

Manufacturing Maness

Kodyax, Bard, Dark, Gunslingers, Horror, Kymera, Science fantasy, Tiger-vixen, Wolf-bear, lovecraft, ranger, space opera, witch

The sequel to Surviving Insanity, it takes place chronologically soon after.

Manufacturing Madness

Three kymera lounge about in a master bedroom of an apartment complex in the remains of Philadelphia and not one of them is wearing a stitch of clothing. Kodyax lightly dozes on his back with a limbless Takara on top of grinning as the cybernetic tentacle that replaced his natural phallus is still lodged in her nether regions, not that she minds, it's one of the reasons she is smiling right now after all as an annoyed Lorelei lays beside them with her rear end up at his head on the left side of his body and idly surfing the local internet which displays holographically around her head as her heads up display, neural computer and internally integrated communicator that is interwoven in its connectivity with her jaw muscles, transcribed in her very jawbone even as it forms a cybernetic link with her ears and brain for wireless communication and surfing the local internet and through satellites broadcasting and receiving signals from all over the milky way galaxy and beyond.

Both Lorelei and Takara officially have their own separate bedrooms flanking the suite that was given to Kodyax but both the tiger-vixen and the raccoon-skunk want the same thing in their relationship with the wolf-bear, it's just that Taki caught Kody's eye and while Lori is a pleasant distraction for him, he has a bit of a marked preference for the witch, Taki over Lori much to the bard's dismay and the fact that the witch has also offered a shipmates with benefits relationship overture to her rival, Lori is more than a little skeeved out at the prospect as she only has eyes for the ranger. So here they are in a bit of a stalemate as Lorelei sees the fact that Takara can remove her cybernetic limbs at any time she wants to so as to present Kodyax with a naked torso to lavish his lustful intentions upon to be something of an unfair advantage on the witch's part as far as her arsenal of seduction methods go. A natural glove of white fur reaches over to caress the green furred thigh of the male in contention between the two females as a wide black and white ringed tail lightly bats the green furred head with a purple mohawk that controls the rest of the buff body lying on the bed but another green furred rear end is currently in the position the otherwise black furred female wants to sit upon and enjoy the pleasures of his flexible pole and its wanted invasion into her own sex.

Lorelei sighs and buries the white raccoon mask of her own white tressed head on the grey covers of the bed in utter frustration as her butt gets slapped in a mixture of amusement and annoyance from the green furred hand of the male she knows is strong enough to hurt her badly if he really wanted to but the stinging is a lot less than it could be as slow as he is to be roused to true anger. Takara laughs a little cruelly as she would love to have attached a faux phallus to her own bottom and invade either one of her companions although she is well aware of who would be more willing to allow this to happen as she telekinetically lifts and drags one of her own arms over to the bed and has its hand grope the rear of the other female, an action that has the skunk-raccoon freaking out in a quiet and subtle manner that Takara can read only from past experiences with the homophobic. As much as she protests to the contrary, Takara can already tell that the very idea of the two of them getting intimate with each other is something that makes the other most uncomfortable which drives a part of her to want to convince the bard as much as the witch can into making at least a partial commitment to playing in the spirit of sharing him and getting him all hot and bothered as he watches a two girl show before getting his opportunity to maybe join in.

Forcing the situation is a non-starter for Takara, no matter how much it turns her on as she can remember all the times Chaka forced her to perform when she didn't feel like it herself and even going so far as to hide her artificial limbs from her so that the tiger-vixen was fully at the painted wolf-lioness's mercy and while it was fun it still made the tiger-vixen feel used and more like an object to be used for another's pleasure than a full partner in a healthy physical relationship. The memory of the relationship she had with Chaka causes Takara to involuntarily shudder which in terms elicits her current lover's full and undivided attention. Kody licks at Taki's breasts in a manner that conveys his commitment to keeping her happy and ultimately interested in continuing the relationship he is trying so hard to maintain with her even he already knows her attention is straying to the other female in the room as her general preference is not for his gender but her own as he hopes his attentions will be adequate to convince her to stay with him even though a part of his own psyche chides himself for pursuing this and just letting go so she can pursue her own happiness with or without him.

Not for the first time, Takara moans in pleasure at the attention and affection Kodyax shows for her and a part of her ultimately feels guilty that she has the thoughts she has and feelings she gets towards other females. He loves her, that much Takara knows unquestionably but does she in turn reciprocate his tender feelings? She searches her heart for the answer and gets only ambivalence as she likes him but love is a very strong word; an emotion she felt for Chaka even if she treated her more as a tool for her pleasure; a punching bag for all her frustrations which Takara first took as signs she cared but now is not as sure as she once was.

Kodyax holds her close as she cries on his shoulder and gives her a look of concern as he is concerned as to what she is upset about and Takara silently bawls her eyes out as she cannot bring herself to tell him about how she is thinking about Chaka and alternatively what she is feeling for Lori as a potential partner as she has already expressed great displeasure at Takara's earlier attempts at amorous attention having been weirded out by the affections. For her part Lorelei is thoroughly annoyed since she finds lesbian intimacy to be awkward at best and dangerously wrong feeling to the point of being offensive and all she really wants is to be where Takara is now, riding the ranger for all he's worth and then some.

On a luxury star liner traveling from Luna to Pluto and back; in a state room rented with a big enough security deposit to allow its occupants to be undisturbed for the duration of the trip Chaka Zulu lays on a bed near a coffin laid out nearby, her tail twitching in irritation as she waits for her boss to awaken. The color of her pelt is already starting to pale as if rigor mortis is trying to settle in if only the necrotic energies keeping animate would only allow it. An elf in the attire of a maid lets herself into the room and looks about as Chaka pretends to be an actual corpse.

The elf ignores her as she creeps over to Dracula's coffin and as she tries to pry it open to get at the vampire lord the wight painted she-wolf-lioness kymera springs into action. She grabs the elf maid from behind and gropes her breasts as only a lesbian knows how to touch and caress another woman' breast. Despite the pleasure she is receiving the elf lady does her best to wriggle free of the other's grasp before Chaka feels a deep hunger and playfully bites the back of the elf's neck, not hard enough to even break the skin but the damage is done anyway as Chaka drains the life force of the mortal fey woman in her grasp with a hand paw over the other's mouth to prevent her from screaming as the kymera continues drink the essential essence of her victim and would be vampire hunter.

Dracula emerges from his coffin to witness the death of the half-naked elf woman Chaka has caught as a snack and plaything for the beginning of this voyage. Chaka lets the lifeless husk of the elf woman drop to the floor as she lets out a contented sigh as she lays down on the bed to digest her meal as Dracula himself gives her an approving nod. He applauds her even as he conjures up a mote of pure necromantic energy and blows it like a kiss to the new corpse which animates as a mindless zombie.

Chaka strips the zombie naked as Dracula orders it to do domestic work around the stateroom as the kymera watches with open lust displayed on her countenance. Her tail flickers with delight as she licks her muzzle as she sighs wistfully at the object of her necrophiliac desires. Dracula himself sighs wistfully and goes back to his coffin to continue his dirt nap.

Back on Terra, Kodyax gets a notice of a new email coming in that he needs to be aware of, or at least the sender, Major Hillary Greene, put an urgent flag on the communication that von Fenryx decides he should not ignore as he boots up the holographic display and Takara makes a none too pleased growl that amuses the male she is lying on but he makes no effort to dissuade him as he uses his eye motions to open up the email via blinking. He expected a mission briefing and is not disappointed as the email continues a video message and coding that will delete itself from the servers once it has finished broadcasting its encoded message. He has specialized software that will record relevant bits he needs to hold onto but not the entirety of the briefing itself.

"Greetings, Captain von Fenryx," The recorded Major Greene says warmly. "I have a mission for you and your team. Currently your status with us is that of provisional membership admittedly at the lowest levels possible. While you did excellent work retrieving the data packet; that is not sufficient for full membership as of yet." Her expression is stern but not cruel. "Think of this assignment as a field test of your capabilities as a squad commander. As you know the planet Mercury was long ago converted into an industrial complex world manufacturing goods needed by both the civilian and military markets. Factory #1331 has gone off-line since last week when you passed your initial trials with us." This gets Kodyax to sit up and take notice, cradling Takara to make she does not tumble off of him but the mere action is enough to alarm her as she glances at him fearfully. "We are authorizing you use of a vessel on an ancient design but one that is still quite useful today. I have taken the liberty of contacting your underlings, the Stooge brothers the retrieve a non-descript vehicle from the remains of a car dealership not too far from your location. You are to drive this vehicle to Cape May, New Jersey where you will be given further instructions. Send me an electronic missive when you get there so I will know when to expect you."

With that the message deletes itself from his inbox and causes a brief disruption in the normal operations of the neural computer he has implanted into his cerebral cortex with fiber optics touching on other parts of his brain and integrating itself into his own nervous system. Kodyax sighs and shakes his head as both females look askance of him. He smirks and chuckles before addressing them.

"We have another qualifying mission to complete." He announces with another rueful shake of his head.

"What are we supposed to be doing now?" Lorelei asks with a raised eye ridge punctuality the incredulity of her stare. <And why did you have to sit up all of a sudden?> Taki asks in mental voice of great perturbance. <How bad is it?>

"They're sending us off planet." Kodyax states. "Specifically they're sending us to Mercury."

"Sounds like they want to give the climate control in our suits a work out." Lorelei sarcastically remarks. "I know how hot it is over there. Even with the climate control in most of the buildings it can still be oppressive. And don't get me started on the one photo shoot one of my ex-agents decided would be a great idea inside one of their factories."

"Funny you should mention that" Kodyax teases.

<Please don't tell we're being sent to a factory!> Takara mentally pleads with him. <All that machinery gives me nightmares.>

<This coming from a woman who was once in love with a technomancer?> Kodyax sends back in a mental voice that speaks volumes on how absurd he finds the situation. <With all the cybernetics you have you can't tell me you're a technophobe.>

"She already sent the Stooge brothers to fetch a vehicle for us." Kodyax admits with a sigh and a shake of his. "Get dressed and gear up. I was not given a time frame and I don't trust the sense of humor the top brass have when it comes to us. For all I know they could giving us something like a joke van."

A medley of Maroon 5 tunes plays as they get dress as Takara levitates herself before telekinetically grabbing her cybernetic limbs and attaching them to herself in the proper manner and then donning a suit of modern armor that has a distinct samurai look to it. Lorelei puts on what looks like a prim and proper uniform, like those worn by the Beatles in their cartoon "Yellow Submarine" with the color scheme being purple and green which slightly clashes with her own black fur and white markings. Kodyax still rocks a rakish look in his freebooter armor of a leather jacket reinforced with obvious metal plates over a green shirt leather pants and sturdy boots with a steel helmet that includes a gas mask even if it looks compromised to accommodate his canine ears.

Industrial backpacks complete their ensemble each of which has a technomagical portal into extradimensional space in which they store their gear. A set of honks outside lets them know that the Stooge brothers have arrived and the trio go out to meet them only to be astonished by the purple and green paisley painted van with the words "Conundrum Contraption" written on both sides in neon orange. Both Lorelei and Takara glare at Kodyax who has the biggest shit eating grin on his muzzle imaginable as he shakes his head ruefully.

Moses vacates the driver's side as Takara slides herself in with Lorelei besides her leaving the oversized office chair bolted to the floor in back between them for Kodyax as the brothers occupy a couch in the back with a flat screen TV on the opposite walls playing video games to keep themselves occupied. Kodyax smirks as he realizes he is in charge of the music selection from where he is which is definitely not what the girls would have wanted as he makes the first selection as Takara drives the van out of the parking lot. Culture Club's "Move Away" is playing in everyone's auditory receptors which causes both females to blink at each other before looking back at Kodyax who just smirks.

Rain pours down, sparsely at first but gets heavier the closer they get to the coast as the music goes through Duran Duran's "Wild Boys", then goes into the theme songs of Jem and the Holograms, Kidd Video and Speed Racer as they speed down the highways with sparse traffic on the road but plenty of rain. A black van with the Yellow sign painted on its side becomes visible in the rear view cameras as Kody switches to Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn" theme which also was the song chosen to be the theme of the Midway games arcade series "Spyhunter" which many folks came to know it by. Karl gets up after hearing the change in theme to grab a plasma cannon before opening up the back door and giving the Armada of Entropy van a quick blast from his weapon that gives them the necessary incentive to back off.

Lori and Taki give each other a dangerous look as Kodyax gives Karl a thumbs up and a quick word of encouragement. They get on the New Jersey turnpike with the rain pouring down in buckets which gives Lorelei the idea of singing "It won't rain all the time" originally by Jane Siberry from the first Crow soundtrack which causes Takara to roll her eyes; Kodyax gives her a knowing wink and a nod of the head. As they get closer to Cape May proper the GPS turns itself on and gives them directions to drive onto the beach at the same time a mechanical sea serpent rises out the water and slams its head on said beach with an open mouth begin enough to swallow the van whole.

Takara isn't sure about this but the GPS says their destination route requires them to drive into the sea serpent so that is exactly what she does only to find the inside to be much like a one way lane tunnel going underground and underwater. Adequate illumination is provided for the long drive down to a hidden hangar that as far as everyone in the van knew, should not be there. When they finally get to what looks like a rest stop area they park the van and get out only to be greeted by Brom Blackstar.

"Well, well, well," Brom states sarcastically, "The circus has come to town."

"Do I get to be the White Clown?" Kodyax asks in an equally sarcastic manner.

"Good one!" Brom chuckles. "They made you Captain in charge of this F-Troop so I guess that's an affirmative. Follow me to get your further briefing from the Major, the disc is all revved up and ready to go."

<Do I wanna know?> Takara mentally grouses to the room and then just to Kodyax. <Lori has been anxy since last night. I think she's getting jealous.>

<What was your first clue?> Kodyax asks sarcastically and telekinetically gropes Takara's breasts. <What did you have in mind?>

<Now is not the time to get me horny!> Takara mentally hisses but her face displays a goofy grin that betrays her amusement as they move forward.

<With me as the meat I imagine,> Kodyax proposes telepathically to which she just nods seductively with a sinister smile. <How soon were you thinking of doing this?>

<Do I wanna know what you two canids are discussing?> Lorelei telepathically inquires of Kodyax. <It's obvious you two are have a purely mental conversation. And my ears are burning so I am guessing at least part of it has to do with me.>

<Be careful what you wish for, my friend the bard,> Takara telepathically warns Lorelei. <You might get it in a manner you were not expecting.>

<And what do you mean by that?> Lori asks pointedly.

<You want Kody between your legs do you not?> Taki counter inquires.

<Yes,> Lorelei mentally whimpers.

<Have you ever been tied up as part of foreplay?> Takara asks with a sinister tone in her mental voice.

<No!> Lori screams back telepathically. <But I have been curious.> <On our way to Mercury, once we get done with the briefing I have an idea for us to share him in a way.> Takara mentally coos at her.

"Ah, the new squad has arrived." Major Greene says proudly. "I thought they would respond promptly."

"Moe, how long did it take you and your brothers to get the van?" Kodyax asks of his subordinates.

"Not much more than an hour, boss," Moe states plainly as he nods like a bobblehead to the question.

"Didn't take us that long to get prepared," Lori states and Taki just nods in confirmation as the platform they are standing on with the Major rotates and descends further to reveal a hangar filled with classical flying saucers of nearly every design imaginable on shelves that stretch as far as the eye can see surrounding a huge moon pool in the center of the room.

"Oh, Major Hillary you shouldn't have," Kodyax beams in a tone of voice that conveys a good deal of awe and respect with just a hint of sarcasm. "I had no idea such a museum existed."

"That was the point, Captain von Fenryx," Major Greene states unequivocally. "There are quite a few factions that would just love to get their grubby paws on any one of these vehicles." "The dagonites themselves being just one." Kodyax states. "They use various models stolen from other races to confuse their movements. Usually gathered by inciting such a level of ennui in the former owners that they cause them to commit suicide." "Do we know this for a fact?" Major Greene challenges. "What incident can you point to as evidence for your supposition?"

"Roswell is the most glaring example, Major," Kodyax explains plainly. "Using various methods that I am not at liberty to reveal, the Xeno-Druid Society has learned that such was the case in that crash. There were dagonite agents present on Earth that snatched the saucer and made the government officials forget it ever happened. And later floated some dubious documentation to further muddy the waters." "It would appear our dagonite "friends" are quite adept at subterfuge." Brom states sarcastic.

"Sergeant, if you knew half of what I have learned you would not treat the situation so lightly." Kodyax growls in chastisement. "You said it yourself, that many in your organization find the findings of the Xeno-Druid Society dubious at best and completely incredulous at worst. I have been on the front lines of the shadow war taking place even at this very moment. But then again this is not first time we have encountered each other. I understand your superiors were quite unhappy with you after the debacle you were a part of in South America involving those Mayan ruins. Although how much of me you were actually able to discern is debatable."

"That thing that I saw before the ruins disappeared was you?" Brom blurts out. "How!? Why!? What the fuck did you do?" "I didn't do anything," Kodyax admits. "I was a low level grunt then. My superiors did the vanishing act, which was simple enough since that particular ruin shunts itself into extra-dimensional space for random periods of time. Xeno-Druids even more powerful than I am now sped up the clock for it to go back to whatever plane of existence it disappears to. And sorry for the little snafu I caused you in Giza. The hidden doorway in the sphinx is obscured for a reason. We still are not ready for what lies down there."

"Wait a second," Brom blusters. "You fucked me over at Giza? I thought a human shanked me then." "I was human then," Kodyax admits. "Shortly thereafter I volunteered for Moreau von Frankenstein's little program."

<You were human once?> Takara asks as she hugs him from behind. <What nationality were you? They recruited me from my home in Japan.>

<I'm a white American, of Irish and German descent,> Kodyax admits to her. <Do you know what Chaka was?>

<African I think,> Takara offers,

"This is neither here nor there," Major Greene says with an annoyed tone. "Although I think an information request needs to be written and submitted to the Xeno-Druid Society but that can be done later. Your location will be IF#1331 on Mercury that you need to investigate with temporary living quarters at the near by Bio-Dome #1313 in the Mocking Bird region, suite #2112. I understand it has a large repository of old musical instruments and an extensive library. I was informed that your old acquaintance Chaka Zulu had a vault there that she paid for somehow. As a failed and now deceased applicant I should like to know what is there and how useful it might be to our organization. Lieutenant Yamaha, I trust you will give a fair assessment of its contents." Takara mentally broadcasts.

"Excellent," Major Greene says with a nod. "I will leave you to it then, the saucer you have been assigned is on the ground. Activate it and proceed to Mercury, that is all for now, DISMISSED!" With that she salutes the septuplet as they go on their way. After they are out of earshot she turns to Brom. "Make an inquiry with both the society and von Frankenstein. I find both to be equally loathsome but I want some confirmation of Captain von Fenryx's wild claims."

"Will do," Brom says reluctantly, "Permission to speak freely, Major." "Granted, Brom, what's on your mind?" Hillary responds cordially.

"Call it a hunch, Hill, but my gut instinct on this is telling me he isn't bragging." Brom offers. "I don't take him for a braggart. Usually what he says he can back up."

"I get the same impression." Hillary admits openly. "We may have quite the maverick on our hands if even half of what he claims is true."

"He's a hunter, Major," Brom observes. "We need to give him seek and destroy missions most of all. Those kinds he seems to be good at."

"Lieutenant Jenkins is a bard by profession is she not?" Hillary asks rhetorically.

"I believe so." Brom returns as expected.

"She might be good at negotiations with the ranger and the gunslingers on hand to keep her out of harm's way. Although the fact that Lieutenant Yamaha must resort to telepathy for communication only compounds the awkwardness of her position as a psychic." Major Greene states as they watch the team enter their assigned vehicle. "I don't like having those elements around. Characters like her can steal secrets from your mind without you even knowing they were there. And don't even get me started on the Stooge brothers. How he can keep those loose cannons functioning as a capable unit I can't even begin to guess. Which in and of itself is disturbing as it insinuates a cult of personality that would prove highly problematic if it should be turned against us."

"We have to means to remotely detonate any one of these vessels, Major," Sergeant Blackstar offers.

"It is an option to be sure, Sergeant," Major Greene says in agreement. "But one I would rather not implement unless absolutely necessary. They are potentially too useful to consider that unless there is no alternative. Besides, there is no guarantee that would actually kill them. In which case we would have a very dangerous rogue element on our hands, one that would be very costly in terms of resources to eliminate. The ranger and the witch as a tag-team I dread most of all turning against us."

Takara shakes her head as she joins Kodyax in the command center as pilot with him in the captain's chair and Lorelei at the science officer's station and the brothers taking turns at engineering and the gunnery positions. Robots of varying sizes and shapes supplement the crew and aid as they can as they get a German styled saucer up and running. As a means of identifying the vessel the ship has a red shield emblem displaying the planet Earth with crossed swords behind the shield as the emblem of the organization they are currently working for.

A dagonite saboteur covertly watches the waters just beyond the beach of Cape May as it skulks about the gift shop on said beach soaking up the disappointment of the scant few workers as they go about their daily routine almost like organic robots with little joy other than what they fake for the tourists. A flying saucer shoots out of the water where the concrete ship used to be and flies off as the dagonite just watches while it cloaks itself and sets up a long distance thought projector. As night descends and the moon is in full view it makes its report.

<Spy-Cam to Channel X; Spy-Cam to Channel X; Hail the Overseer! Acknowledge, over.>

With that the dagonite slinks off into the night but little did it know that it was itself observed by hidden cameras concealed on the exterior of the souvenir shack. While its exact whereabouts are extremely hard to next to impossible to track the distortion field is easily notable as a visual anomaly. When it slinks off and out of sight, Major Greene takes note of its presence and sends a cadre of drone cameras to get an idea as to where it is going to but has little luck as the saboteur has already used a spell gem to make itself appear to be a bored male goth just out for a stroll before ducking into a motel where it set itself up with a room so it can rest easily enough and dine on the dark emotions of weary travelers on there way either home or to a vacation spot with the cheap hotel being all they could afford for the night.

In the void between the planets the saucer piloted by the kymera runs across a trio of delta winged star fighters bearing the yellow sign on their darkly painted chassis as an identification symbol much like American warplanes bear a white star to identify their country of origin and some Communist nations like China and Russia paint a red or yellow star for quick identification. Before the Armada of Entropy Pikes can react the Stooge brothers manage to blow one of them into so much space debris with a coordinated shot. The remaining pair try to execute a crossfire strafing run that only damages the craft's shields but also severely damages either one as they must endure a scathing broadside barrage from both sides. The laser turret manages to get the one to careen into the other before the saucer fades out of existence and the vessel enters the velocity slipstream that affords quicker travel time between planets than might otherwise be possible shortening the time passing from months to mere days.

Velocity slipstream travel is usually uneventful as the dimension is brightly lit with kaleidoscope clusters constantly rotating endlessly in what seems to be the background. Takara and Lorelei are reluctant to turn over control of the ship to the Stooge brothers while they have their fun with Kodyax but the Captain is confident in the general competence of his subordinates, he does leave instructions with Larry that should anything come up they are to be notified immediately. While yes, he trusts them but only so far as he has an idea as to what their level of skill is outside of gunnery and while they have a far superior grasp of tactical acumen, they are not totally incompetent, or so he hopes...

<You're sure they can handle this?> Takara telepathically inquires of Kodyax as they retire to the captain's quarters. <Yeah, I'm eager to play, but>

<I'm just letting them pilot the ship through the velocity,> Kodyax rations, <What's the worse that can happen?>

"You pre-programmed our coordinates into the ship's computer, right?" Lorelei asks as she just goes along for now.

Takara mentally announces. <And the ship is largely on autopilot so there shouldn't be a whole lot they can fuck up.>

<Remember who we're conversing about.> Lorelei mentally grouses.

<Don't make me spank you.> Kodyax mentally growls.

<Kinky!> Takara telepathically fires back with an abundance of amusement in her mental tone.

<Not into that, thank you very much.> Lorelei emphatically broadcasts.

<It's only strange the first time, Lori.> Takara telepathically teases.

<You two can go at it as much as you want.> Lorelei counters. <Just keep me out of it.>

Lorelei's words are more like throwing down a gauntlet to Takara than anything else as they get undressed for a session of passion. Takara has every intention of tying up Lorelei as part of the prelude even if Kodyax has his doubts as whether they should be doing this or not. As one might expect Lorelei was none too pleased at the prospect of being bound prior to getting what she ultimately wants from Kodyax but the promise getting fucked while bound is enough to allow it for this session.

Takara knows her knots and when she is done tying up Lorelei, the bard is completely immobilized and at the mercy of the ranger and the witch. The beauty of cybernetics when it comes to sex is that Kody has full control over his erection and the flexibility of the tentacle makes for a very wide number of possible maneuvers within a female's body should she let it inside of her as Takara found out earlier and Lorelei is delighting in as Kodyax does his best to please her as Takara sticks a device in her own crotch that unfurls with the hardness of steel but the texture of rubber but the fact it is a faux phallus is unmistakable as she rubs his back and kisses his neck between his shoulder blades. The fact that Takara is behind Kodyax and has not taken off her own cyberlimbs is a minor cause for concern with Lorelei but she dismisses it in light of the pleasure she receiving from Kodyax; not only from how he is ramrodding her but also because his muzzle has descended to her breasts, licking and suckling at her tits as he takes her pussy with great authority.

Kodyax is intent on giving Lorelei as much pleasure as he can as he waits for Takara to take him with her faux phallus, a thing that they both have on good authority that it scares Lorelei no end. And as much as this amuses Takara as it is a symptom of homophobia in the bard, the witch is all too aware of the damage pushing an issue with someone can do. Takara takes Kody's tail hole with great authority as she knows that this does not creep him out in the slightest. Her faux phallus gives her pleasure as she uses it on Kodyax as well, and while she hugs him lovingly; a part of her is forcibly reminded of when Chaka would do this to her and how forcefully she would conduct her love making sessions.

A smile creeps onto Takara's face as she drives Kodyax to ecstasy inside of Lorelei in a session that lasts just over an hour as they fondle each other profusely afterwards. They still have plenty of time till their craft reaches Mercury so they have time to play some more but Takara claims Lorelei for herself as Kodyax rolls over and takes a nap. Lorelei goes frigid as this is the part of the deal she didn't like when she signed on to be a part of this team as while she fully wants to be violated by Kodyax, Takara taking her with a faux phallus is just plain weird and not natural to her.

The rest of the flight in is uneventful, a fact that makes Kodyax suspicious even if Lorelei is thankful she doesn't have to do anything fancy with her landing maneuvers as they arrive at the main star port for the planet. A dagonite provocateur notices the arrival of the craft from the shadows of the observation deck and directs a squad of amputated hands with eyestalks on their stumps to crawl forward so the dagonite can get a better look. Takara takes note of the creepy crawlers and directs Kody's attention for identification purposes.

"Eye-crawlers," Kodyax says without so much as batting an eye. "Outside of the fact that there is a dagonite here on site and its watching us they are fairly harmless. Dagonites use them as drones to scout out different locations. They are usually hard to spot but in a structure like this with beams all around scurrying about on the ceiling is as good a hiding spot as any as few folks look up now a days."

"Looks awfully creepy to me." Lorelei observes with a shudder.

"You want us to shoot 'em down, boss?" Moe asks with a hopeful smile.

"Moses, these things are grown in flesh vats by the millions." Kodyax casually states. "I wouldn't waste my ammo, but if you and your brothers really want the target practice; be my guest."

"Excuse me!" A metallic voice cries out causing everyone to turn around to see a chrome plated mannequin attached to an automate Segway that is quickly approaching them.

"OK, I'll bite," Kodyax grouses. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"Greetings, sir, I am ST3W4RD," the robot intones. "I am in charge of docking procedures on the ground at docking bay 86. Please input your identification information for our database." One electronic data dump later. "Welcome to Mercury, Captain von Fenryx. There is a sand skimmer waiting for you a gate X-7 and a vault awaiting the appraisal of Lieutenant Yamaha in sector X-13 which is near your other destination. I sent the relevant data to your neural networks. Thank you for landing here and have a pleasant stay on Mercury."

Kodyax and Takara share a confused look before just shrugging and continuing on with their journey. Lorelei goes on ahead with the Stooge brothers as she wants nothing to do with the leavings of the dead technomaner bitch even if Takara feels obligated to investigate and by proxy Kodyax is compelled to tag along to give moral support at the very least and emotional support if such is needed. Eye crawlers follow Kodyax wherever he goes as a matter of course as the dagonite makes a quick report.

<Klaxon to Channel X> The provocateur broadcasts. <Klaxon to Channel X, hail the Overseer and respond, please, over.>

<Channel X to Klaxon, hail the Overseer, report!> Channel X orders.

<Klaxon to Channel X, kymera ranger spotted here on Mercury, advise, over,> Klaxon reports.

<He's on Mercury now!?!> Channel X conveys. <What is he doing and how did he get there?>

<Subject arrived in a saucer craft an hour ago along with others.> Klaxon reports. <Right now he is accompanying a tiger-vixen to a vault.>

<Monitor the situation, Klaxon,> Channel X commands. <Report his movements and let me know when he leaves; DO NOT ENGAGE. Praise the Overseer; Channel X over and out.>

No response is needed as all Klaxon needs to do is obey and that it has every intention of doing as it keeps watching to see what Kodyax and Takara do as she opens up a chamber on the ground floor of the tower hangar. Not wanting to be monitored in the vault Kodyax shoots down the closest eye crawler with a monstrous pistol that he barely seems to be able to hold, let along fire but oversized revolver has a heavy recoil as belays its sheer damage potential but in his hands it is a little more manageable if only by a fraction than it would be for a normal human user to utilize the showy firearm. Klaxon jokes to itself that with a weapon that huge it's a wonder he isn't chomping on a stogie or perhaps overcompensating for something which is a lie that it knows since every report on the ranger seems to indicate he is quite competent in every endeavor he attempts.

What greets the eyes of the kymera in the chamber is a scene out of a horror movie with naked female headless bodies floating in giant tube filled with fluid that perfectly preserves the corpses contained within. Heads in transparent jars stare lifelessly at the pair even as some of them have enough animatronics to appear to be still living. Name tags on the tubes correspond to names in Takara's memories of former lovers of Chaka that she mentioned to Takara as a warning to remain but only eluding that "bad things" befell those she felt had ultimately betrayed her as she looks on in horror at humans, elves and even a few other kymera, with one of the corpses being a lovely looking bunny-vixen that fills both of them with sorrow that she should meet her end at Chaka's hands and its quite evident how each had met their demise as there is a pneumatic guillotine in the room and an empty set of tubes with the name "Takara Yamaha" printed on them both as well as a video wall playing the last moments of each woman's relationship with Chaka along the end of their lives.

It's a good thing Takara's legs are artificial because that is the only thing keeping her standing when she sees her own name on the empty tubes and even then she starts to fall backwards into Kody's embrace. For his part Kodyax just glares at the name tag and holds Takara in his arms as she feels very weak and vulnerable. She turns around and cries into his chest as he just holds her closely against himself, very much incensed at Chaka but at the same time very sympathetic towards Takara whom he hopes now sees that even if she chooses another female and does not reciprocate his desire for her to remain with him as his mate that Chaka was ultimately going to be extremely detrimental to her continued existence.

Seeing her name on that tube hits Takara like a runaway freight train in how Chaka was already planning to murder her at some point which to her is the ultimate betrayal. The illusion of the deep love that they once shared is shattered as Takara bawls her eyes out in Kody's fur as she comes to grip at how deeply she was deceived. He says nothing, he doesn't need to as he caresses her spine in an effort to comfort her as she comes to grip with the shock of this revelation.

<Damn her!> Takara telepathically screams bitterly but only Kodyax is around to receive as her anguish explodes in her mental voice. <Damn her to the courts of Hell. May the Yama King treat like a fucking whore!>

<Easy, Taki,> Kodyax warns mentally. <What goes around comes around. But that said, you have every right to feel betrayed.> Takara telepathically promises. <Even her memory is tainted to me now.>

Kodyax heaves a heavy sigh and wonder how long this promise is going to last but says nothing aloud but just guides her to where the others are in utter silence. Lorelei is none too pleased that Takara has practically draped herself all over Kodyax but he just gives her a look that brooks no dissention or even the hint of questioning from the bard as they make their way to the automated factory. Moses presents his commanding office with a box he and his brothers found under a seat.

The box has a biometric lock on it that is keyed to Kody's DNA and once he presses his hand to the reader it automatically opens and reveals seven prisms of transparent crystal and a note for him to read.

Captain von Fenryx,

The following eldritch crystal capacitors have been impregnated with an invisibility enchantment for you and your unit. You are to use them to infiltrate the factory and assess the situation. If you deign it necessary destruction of said facility is authorized but you will need to have a documentable reason for said destruction. The code word for activation is "INVISIO" it is advisable that you activate them all at once.

Major Hillary Greene

Kodyax hands out the gems to everyone and has everyone give the note the once over so they know what is expected of them. He also makes sure everyone says the command word at the same time as he gets the sneaking suspicion there could be extra benefits to doing so as this was almost highlighted as something he should do. It turns out his suspicions were quite correct as everyone that activated their gem together would be able to see the others and telepathic communication links were established between them.

<Alright,> Kodyax mentally broadcasts but especially looks at the Stooge brothers. <Those gems only had the basic spell in them so do nothing predatory when we get to our location. Until I tell you to break enchantment and attack, you are to observe only. For right now, right at this moment I am going to treat this as an intel gathering stealth mission. Which means I want everyone to be as silent as possible. There is a mental link between the seven of us now, I suggest we use it. Takara, Lorelei and myself have access to the knickknack talent of this nature so we are used to this but you four I know are not. Moe, you especially need to learn this, unless you choose which minds to include or exclude you will issue a general broadcast for all of us to mentally hear. I have chat logs of exchanges between you and your brothers. That's fine but make sure you make those kinds of communications in the family so to speak. Do I make myself clear?>

<Yes, boss!> The brothers broadcast as one.

<You're going to regret this,> Takara telepathically warns Kodyax specifically.

Kodyax mentally grouses at Takara.

To outside observers an empty skiff makes its way to a seemingly empty warehouse, devoid of anything living or mechanical inside, at least to a casual observer. Even drone fly-bys reveal only an empty and abandoned warehouse and factory. However anyone actually physically visiting the place and can overcome the psychic and technical interference gets a much stranger picture.

Creatures that look like two hands complete with stumps attached at the stump terminus that has eyes poking out of the middle of the thing crawl around on one hand while the other manipulates ambient psychic energy fields to telekinetically manipulate the world around them. Warp guards patrol the floor as a figured in an armored cone with arms coming out the sides holding a chainsaw claymore with missile pods slightly above them makes its own rounds, patrolling as if it were a robot on the outside wrap around porch that acts as a kind of sci-fi rampart for this fully running factory producing armor and munitions made to Dagonite specifications. Kodyax and his crew walk around in something resembling a state of shock as Kody himself intently watches the hand things that are the general size of an average human male.

<What are these things?> Lorelei asks of Kodyax telepathically. <The hand things I mean.>

Kodyax broadcasts mentally as he is fascinated by the things.

<They are psychically active,> Takara mentally observes. <I'm detecting high levels of psychokinetic manipulation coming from those things. We need a more specific term for these things, Kody.>

A black robed figure passes by them and appears to be directing them in some fashion as a black will o' the wisp orbits its head.

<Vanguard?> Takara telepathically inquires of Kodyax.

<Vey good, my dear, that is a vanguard.> Kodyax mentally reassures and praises her.

Takara psychically utters with a shiver down her spine.

<What are those weird looking things they're making?> Lorelei asks.

<Munitions and armor,> Kodyax states plainly.

<I'm picking up other mental broadcasts.> Takara states.

<Claymore to Saber,> The psychopath broadcasts to the vanguard. <Hail the Overseer, talk to me, buddy.>

<Saber to Claymore, Hail the Overseer and state your reasons for contacting me, over.> Saber mentally grouses.

<Claymore to Saber,> Claymore begins to communicate telepathically, <That abandoned skiff is freaking me out, bud, you have the baffles working to make this place seem abandoned, right?>

<Of course, the henchhands report no deviation.> Saber states emphatically. <What are you driving at?>

<Kodyax is here on the first planet,> Claymore states.

<You think he is here? He came on the skiff?> Saber counters. <Why would he do that?>

<They're talking about us.> Takara reports.

<Right, Moe, you and your brothers set up demolition charges.> Kodyax orders.

The brothers do not answer, they just obey as the three officers access the computer matrix of the facility. None of the trio are exactly experts in this field but individually they're competent enough to gain access to the controls and overload them enough to create a meltdown situation. Lorelei is meanwhile recording everything with a set of software she had installed in the neural computer all seven of them had installed in the back of their own skulls but in Lori's case it takes advantage of what she sees and uploads a copy to a cloud she can access in the pangalactic web.

Moses and his brothers are masters of destruction, despite what one might otherwise think of them their collective skill in demolitions is unparalleled. Von Fenryx is relying on this to get the job done as Takara does her best to monitor the mental chatter going on around them. Taking out the compromised facility is part of their mission parameters and they have enough evidence to show that it was necessary to demolish the factory even if this was not something that was on the recommended list but Kodyax knows his limits and taking out all the dagonites on site is not a viable option.

Invisibility helps but there is no getting around the fact you actually still have to be sneaky when doing your business without being noticed. The Stooge brothers may not be the sharpest set of tools in the shed but even they know not to use the invisibility they have been granted as a complete shield from being detected. And while Kodyax did provide them with some instruction on telepathic etiquette he forgot to mention the fact that creatures that rely on telepathy as their primary means of communication can eavesdrop on the mental communications of others quite readily.

<Alright you mugs!> Moe broadcasts mentally to his brothers. <We got a job to do and we better not screw it up.>

<Right, Moe,> Shemp interjects, <We need to be quiet, which is why we're doing this whole weird mental thing, right?>

<Right, Shemp,> Larry states. <They can't hear us shout at one another this way.> <Larry, can the dagonites overhear us doing this whole telepathy thingy we're doing now?> Karl asks to which Larry just gives him a physical shrug.

<Say, that's a good question,> Moe mentally broadcasts in a thoughtful tone of voice. <Yo, Larry! Go ask our cyborg witch superior about that.> <Why her?> Larry asks. <I'm not questioning you, Moe, but usually we ask the boss these things.> Moe admits openly.

<Good answer, Moe, I'll ask her.> Larry says with a nod of his head and then to Takara: <Hey, Asian boss lady, we got a question. Could the dagonites overhear us talking like this?>

<Yes, actually,> Takara answers in a startled mental tone of voice. <They would have to know you are around and communicating like we are so I would advise caution.>

<Gotcha, lady boss,> Larry returns and then to his brothers. <The witch says if they have mind to scan for our mental frequencies they can eavesdrop so I think we should keep chatter amongst ourselves to a minimum.> <Good call, Larry,> Moe broadcasts as they fan out to cover more ground. <If you can use hand signals, use that, let's not give these monsters any inkling we're here.> <RIGHT!> The other brothers send as one.

Saber, the vanguard mentally hears the last communication and scans its surroundings for the source. It sees nothing out of the ordinary at first but it does start to do some patrolling. Kodyax internally curses himself and takes aim with his sniper rifle as Takara just shakes her head.

<You'll blow our cover,> Takara warns Kodyax as they hide from Claymore making its rounds.

<Someone here?> Claymore mentally broadcasts as Takara puts both hands to her muzzle with a look of utter shock and horror on her face. Lorelei slips over to an observation platform, places a summoner grenade down and sets a timer to go off when she gets back to the others. The grenade, which looks like a metallic twenty sided die, cracks open and shines a bright light into the air above which forces a nightgaunt to materialize. <A nightgaunt?> Claymore broadcasts fearfully. <Where did that thing come from? Saber! I think the Shadow Star Syndicate sent a spy!>

<Overseer is the puppet master behind King Kutulu you fool!> Saber rattles off to its compatriot in an angry tone of voice. <Someone else stole one of our grenades. Just kill the ruffian and find the culprit; NOW!!!"

Kodyax smirks and gives Lorelei a thumbs up as he drops a grenade of the same type onto the floor that summons a somewhat humanoid form of ogrish proportions but with a vertical mouth and four forearms. Saber sees the gug and immediately attacks it with a sabre of pure nothingness forged of the lethal dark matter of the void itself. On the ground, the brothers see the absolute chaos their superiors have wrought and give themselves and their officers a thumbs up as they hurry up and finish their task.

Lorelei is video documenting everything for later dissemination as she believes that nobody will rightly believe them otherwise. Miraculously, the brothers manage to get all the charges put in place with timers set to give themselves just enough leeway to get to the skiff and get out of Dodge before they go off and blow everything to kingdom come. Kodyax, Takara and Lorelei suddenly have a timer show up in the virtual heads up display they each have as part of the basic cybernetics package most folks have as part of their daily lives.

Takara gives Kodyax an inquisitive look as he makes a hand signal that they need to move, right now, right this second and he does his best to stealthily bolt towards the skiff. Lorelei just shrugs and makes her camera a kind of reverse go pro set to record as she beats a hasty retreat after Kodyax and not wanting to be left behind, Takara soon follows after, making a mental note to ask Kody what was going on once they reach the skiff.

Lorelei uses a remote starter to get the engines powered up as they make their way to it and the brothers get their first and ready assault rifle rocket launchers just in case they need them to cover their retreat as they wait for their commanding officers to join them. As they make their mad dash out of the building, Kodyax catches a gleam that he decides to investigate much to the initial dismay of the two ladies. Takara is about to berate him when she recognizes what caught his attention as a set of rocket packs, three of them that are seriously out of date but extremely conveniently placed to cover their escape.

Despite warnings from the two females to leave the jet packs alone as they are old enough to be antiques and thus could very well explode at the worst possible moment, Kodyax puts one on and activates it. Lorelei and Takara facepalm as one but reluctantly put on the jet packs and follow after him. As it turns out they just commandeered for themselves flight packs which is fusion of technology and magic that works no matter how antique the design may be which Kodyax already knew after activating his detect magic talent and analyzing the devices, which both Lorelei and Takara figure out since they manage to actually use the things properly and not turn into sentient fireworks in the Mercurian skies.

The invisibility enchantment wears off shortly after Kodyax begins his flying lesson but at that point it was redundant as explosions started going off to give the dagonites and their minions something other than them to worry about. As the skiff flies across the surface of Mercury, the factory begins to crumble behind them and something rockets away from the wreckage as a wave of ill will bathes them in mentally muttered messages of menace as both Claymore and Saber vow vengeance vehemently violent upon those that dared oppose them. Klaxon is on hand to observe their triumphant return as it notes the mushroom cloud in the distance and assumes the factory that they infiltrated and overrun with their forces is now forfeit as it heaves a heavy sigh and shakes its head in disbelief.

<Klaxon to Channel X; Klaxon to Channel X, please respond, over.> Klaxon mentally broadcasts to Channel X.

<Channel X responding: report!> Channel X responds tersely.

<Kodyax has just returned from his excursion and it looks like the munitions factory that confiscated is now compromised.> <You mean destroyed,> Saber interjects. <Claymore and I are en route now.>

Claymore grouses.

<We'll hash out excuses later.> Channel X promises. <For now, contact Oven and have it create a disturbance to draw them to its location. We may be under strict orders not to engage, but that does not mean we cannot harass. Klaxon, any idea what they were looking at when they were there where you are?>

<Looking over a vault paid for by one Chaka Zulu.> Klaxon reports. <Oven, doesn't she have a cache where you are?> <Aye, that she does.> Oven responds.

Klaxon puts forth.

<She was indeed,> Oven relates. Klaxon states.

<Undead actually,> Channel X intervenes. <I did a catch and release from Dracula as he sent a coded message to Pluto. Simple cypher to decrypt but he has made her a wight and is traveling to Pluto to have her trained. We need to proceed with caution, but I think we have a golden opportunity here. If we can fully convert Chaka to our cause we will have a worthy spy to feed us information. But we must do so under the radar of Tepes; if he finds out we will get some entirely unwelcome attention.>

"Trouble brewing on Heliopolis," Lorelei relates to Kodyax as they begin take off procedures.

"The city in the sun?" Kodyax asks to which Lorelei just nods as Kodyax and Takara share a look.

<Can we go please?> Takara telepathically pleads. <I've never been there and always wanted to visit.> "Sounds like a plan to me." Kodyax says with a nod. "Let's visit the sun."

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