Titans Ch. 02

As always, I'm blown away by the positive feedback I've received. This started out as just something I enjoyed writing, to see so many people enjoying it is incredible.

This is the last in initial burst of chapters I'm releasing. After combining some chapters to make them longer and more satisfying I only have a couple left that I haven't submitted; I'll be spacing out the releases to buy myself some time to get more written before I run out of content to submit.

I have the rest of the storyline planned out, and I'd much prefer to get it done and be shorter than I intended rather than leaving you guys and gals hanging so don't worry about me leaving it unfinished. Once this storyline is wrapped up I have a couple of older projects I might go back and rewrite for this site, and I'm always overflowing with new ideas, but no promises on that front.

Are you sitting comfortably?

*****

When Alex awoke, it was just getting light outside the canvas. He extracted himself from the bed and stretched until he felt his back crunch. Behind him, Talia sleepily rolled into the warm spot he had left. Deftly, he removed the sling and unraveled the bandages, rolling his shoulder and swinging his arm around to find no more aches or pains, save for a little stiffness from lack of motion. He left the cast on his wrist; it didn't really restrict his motion too much, and the break would take longer to heal.

Alex turned around and found Talia splayed out across the bed. Her long hair framed her head like a halo; she never brushed it, he noticed, but it always seemed to fall perfectly. More of interest to him at the moment, however, was the fact that the blanket had shifted, unveiling her beautiful body to the dawn light. He had an idea - some women he had known had disliked being woken that way, but he loved doing it so chances were Talia would love having it done to her.

Alex lifted the blanket and carefully got into the lower end of the bed. He kissed the elf's foot, which caused her to twitch slightly, but she didn't wake. Slowly, he trailed kisses up her calf, over her knee and onto her thigh. When he was about halfway up her inner thigh, she sighed in contentment and her legs parted for him. Still, she slept on. He worked his way up to the crease between her leg and her mound, and lightly licked along its length. A quiet gasp escaped her parted lips, but her breathing stayed steady. Moving slightly to the side, Alex kissed her slit. It was smooth, and already he could smell her arousal. He parted her lips with his tongue, licking along the length from near her anus to her clit. Her sweet juices flowed out onto his tongue. Rather than the musky flavor of human women, she tasted like zesty honey; Alex immediately decided he would have to do this more often.

In an unhurried fashion, he bathed every inch of her pussy with his tongue. He sucked her inner lips into his mouth and gently nibbled on them. He thrust his tongue as deep as it would go and slowly fucked her with it. Gradually, Talia's skin became flushed and her breathing deepened. When he decided that the time was right, Alex moved to her clit, brushing it up and down with the tip of his tongue. Her eyes began to flicker open and her breaths came faster. He sucked the little nub into his mouth and began to strum it faster.

Talia squeaked and arched her back as she simultaneously woke up and came. Her legs wrapped around his head and forced Alex further into her pussy. He didn't mind and kept up with what he was doing, increasing the pace. Her hands clawed at the bedsheets and her mouth gaped open as she had a second orgasm. Alex debated upping the pace again, but decided she had had enough for now and instead backed off, licking the length of her slit again as she came down from the high. Eventually she picked up her head and looked down at him.

"Good morning, lover," she said breathily.

Alex just winked, and kept eating her out. She moaned, and let her head flop backwards. He built her up slowly again, but when she neared orgasm he stopped. She whined in complaint until she saw that he was crawling up the length of her body.

Alex paused at her tits to give them a suckle and a nip, keeping her close to the orgasm he had cruelly denied her for a little while longer. When he reached her face Talia kissed him hungrily, despite - or maybe because of - the taste of her juices on his lips. Without letting go of the lip-lock, he lined his cock up and thrust inside of her with one smooth motion, aided by the ample lubrication. She spasmed beneath him as the sudden insertion sent her careening over the edge she had been teetering at. She moaned into his mouth as he fucked her hard and fast. She came again, and then the orgasm never seemed to stop. He ploughed into her for minutes that felt like hours, and when she thought that she would lose her mind from pleasure he groaned and emptied his seed into her womb. If he hadn't been smothering her mouth with his own she would have shrieked like a banshee; every muscle in her body contorted at once and she narrowly avoided biting his tongue off.

Talia shook and quivered like she was having a seizure, drawing deep gasps of air as if she were afraid of drowning. Alex just held her tightly, never removing his still semi-hard cock from her clenching pussy. When her shaking had died down to gentle shivers, he pulled out, and she contorted again. He lay down beside her, enveloping her in his powerful arms.

"Good morning to you too," he smiled at her gaping face.

She attempted to laugh between deep breaths, but failed, which made Alex laugh in return. Before long the two of them were laughing ecstatically at nothing in particular, rolling around the bed, drenched in sweat and each other's fluids.

The sun still hadn't fully risen and neither had the camp, which the messy pair were grateful for as the went to fetch a bucket and a washcloth. They helped each other clean, which resulted in some light teasing, but they were both too sore for a repeat performance. No longer in need of the linen shirt, Alex dressed in his armor again. Taking his helmet and his pistol on the belt and the knife on his thigh, but leaving the rifle and the med kit. He grimly asked the directions to Elizabeth's camp, and Talia only paused to wish him luck before telling him how to find her.

People were starting to groggily make their way around the camp, Alex strode confidently between the tents until he spotted the familiar green and brown of Major Swift's scout regiment. Elizabeth was organizing a weapon rack, when she spotted him coming her face set with resignation.

"What do you want?" she asked politely as he arrived.

"I was wondering about a rematch from yesterday," he gestured at an open area of ground in the middle of the tents with his recently freed arm.

This didn't escape her notice, she looked at him strangely.

"Your shoulder is healed?"

"Yep," he said, not elaborating further, "All the same, let's keep it a bit friendlier this time. Just sparring, okay?"

She smiled, though it didn't reach her eyes.

"Of course."

They took up their stances, and began bouncing on their feet.

"Will you and Talia be alright?" Alex asked, jabbing loosely at her guard, trying to get a measure of her.

"Why wouldn't we be?" she dodged around his attack and responded with her own, which he blocked with his forearms.

"How about me and you?"

"I have no problem with you seeing Talia," she responded, punching high then following up with a kick when his guard rose.

"That doesn't answer my question," he darted back to avoid her foot, tapping it on the side with fist to knock her off balance.

"I don't blame you for falling for her, she's amazing," she recovered quickly and reset to her stance, "And it's not her fault she fell for you."

Uh oh, that sounds problematic, he picked up on her wording immediately.

"What do you mean?" he asked cautiously, he batted at the sides of her raised arms and when she moved them jabbed in between to her chest.

She snorted, "You fall from the sky wearing miracles like they're nothing and then give us hope we might actually win this bloody war, what girl wouldn't fall for you?"

Again, Elizabeth had accidentally let something slip. She tried to carry on with the sparring like it was nothing but he caught it anyway. He hadn't even considered it, not since Talia anyway.

Don't overthink things, huh? he thought to himself.

She jabbed again and he knocked her arm aside, then swept in with a feint. When she moved to block it with her other arm he dodged inside it and stepped close, wrapping his arms around her and crushing his lips to hers.

Elizabeth froze in shock, a gentle moan rose from her throat, then shoved him back and slapped him across the face, leaving a stinging, red handprint.

"No!" she growled, going on the attack, "I won't do that to her, and I won't let you do that to her."

She attacked furiously and without pause, forgetting the polite practice they had been doing only moments ago. Alex dodged, blocked and countered. The occasional strike that made it past his defenses struck his armor, and the gel layer turned a hard punch into what felt like a gentle shove. When she overextended herself on a long reach he grabbed her arm and flipped her over his hip, landing her on her back on the floor. She heaved and gasped, glaring at him with betrayal on her face, then scrambled to her feet and strode away.

"Elizabeth, wait!" he called after her, but she ignored him and disappeared.

*****

"Well that was stupid," Talia shook her head.

Alex had just done telling her what had happened.

"I know I said don't overthink things, but that situation could have done with a little more thought."

"I shouldn't have kissed her," Alex hunched, crestfallen, over a bowl of porridge.

"That part was fine," chastised the elf, "What you shouldn't have done was flip her onto her back. She's a very proud woman and that's the second time you've shown disdain for her combat skills."

"What am I supposed to do?" he asked, "I can't let her win, and I can't beat her. She's good, but I've had a lot more practice."

Talia lay a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I know that, and you know that, but all she sees is someone who's going to replace her. She was the giant killing expert before you, you know, because she took one down with only a squad of scouts to back her up. You killed three without a thought and even injured and without your armor you're showing her up."

Alex mulled over what Talia had said throughout the day. With the use of both his arms he didn't even need to roll the barrels in the armory, he just picked them up and carried them, which left him with a lot of time to sit and think. He had to agree that the kiss wasn't a problem. Elizabeth's reaction had been concern for Talia, which was easily dealt with since Talia didn't mind. Her feeling like she was being replaced was trickier, because depending on what the General decided it was possible she would be; assuming of course that his stubbornness would be shifted by the sight of the mech striding clean over his defenses.

When they had done for the day, Alex and Talia headed for the training fields on the edge of camp. The scouts drilled in their usual spot, but they seemed disorganized. When they got closer, they noticed a distinct lack of the familiar shock of red hair.

"Where is she?" puzzled Talia.

Alex squinted, there was a green and brown streak approaching at speed from the horizon.

"Who's that?" he pointed out the approaching figure.

The scout hit the edge of the training field and hopped between the wagons of the barricade, he stopped briefly next to an officer and then jogged on towards the center of the camp Behind him the officer started forming his men up into ranks and issuing orders. Alex ran sideways, intercepting the young man as he reached the crowd and stopping him with an outstretched hand.

"What's going on soldier?" he asked, barring the way.

The scout fidgeted, itching to continue on.

"A mob of Wildings sir, about a league away. They have a giant with them. The major stayed behind to hold a forward position."

Alex lifted his arm and the scout sprinted away.

"Shit," he swore, "ShitshitSHIT."

He looked to Talia.

"Go," she said, "She needs you."

He nodded, and ran off towards the pillars where his mech was still stashed.

As he ran, Alex grabbed at the medical spike in his socket. He managed to hit the button without slowing down and the nanobots began retreating into the spike. He barreled through the two guards lazily watching the entrance and bolted up the hill. His legs were burning by the time he got to the mech, and he bent over panting while he waited for the scanners to recognize his presence. The giant robot was huddled under an overhang, but when it picked up the signal from the captain's implant it turned to face him and opened the cockpit. The medical spike was tossed to the floor next to his seat as he made room for the neural spike. As soon as he was plugged in, Alex made the mech stand up and run.

The robot's feet were thunder on the plains as it ran faster than the deer who scattered as they heard it coming. Without a passenger to jostle Alex was free to push it to its limits. The diagnostics were done, and it wasn't great news. While his late firing of the rockets designed to slow his descent had saved him some of the fuel, it had resulted in quite a lot of damage. The lasers had been knocked out of alignment which meant no beams and no arc gun, the blast cannon was functioning at half capacity meaning it wouldn't do much more than knock down most targets, and it would barely tickle a giant. Only the plasma gun and the blades were working properly, he hoped that would be enough.

Advanced sensors scanned the surrounding area, quickly picking up the large life-signs of what could only be the giant, and dozens of smaller lifeforms. He changed trajectory to take him on the quickest route there. He hoped it wouldn't be too late.

Alex crested a hill and immediately saw the giant. It stood, arms folded, looking sadistically amused as a bunch of smaller creatures swarmed something attempting to take shelter in a small copse of trees. He had a sickening feeling that he knew who that was. As soon as he was within range he raised an arm and fired a bolt of plasma at the giant. It struck an invisible bubble, which flashed silver, and some sort of talisman around the beast's neck began glowing red. Well, that was one weapon immediately rendered useless.

The mob turned to look at this new enemy, confusion spread among them. The giant was evidently the leader, and he recovered first, drawing a crude dagger the size of a door from at its hip. The mech roared, an unnatural cacophony that sent shivers down Alex's spine. The noise had been designed by a team of somewhat amoral psychologists to trigger primal fear responses, but giants didn't have the same fear instincts as humans, and it roared back and met the charge head on.

Alex was expecting to bowl the giant over, but they apparently had more mass than he thought, and he was jolted in his harness as it grabbed him by the shoulders and he skidded to a halt. Elizabeth tried to take advantage of the distraction to go on the attack, as he saw her shadowy form dispatch a couple of what had to be goblins before the rest were forced to turn away from the newcomer to swarm her again. The giant smashed the knife into the body of the mech, it skittered of the armor plating but the impact knocked him backwards.

Alex's own blades slid out on his wrists. The giant growled in confusion and brandished another talisman at him. A pulse of electricity knocked him back again, and he had to stumble backwards to avoid falling over. The knife came around and he blocked it with a metal fist. Time to show this giant what he was made of.

The wrist-blades swung around, and the giant dodged - surprisingly nimble - but Alex was forcing him to give up ground. It grew more and more frustrated with the lack of openings, and eventually it snapped, lashing out with the dagger again, trying to take the mech's blade in the shoulder in order to deal some damage in return. The mech's blades were sharper though, and it cut deep. The knife glanced off the armor.

Alex pulled back, and the arm he had hit hung limply. The giant roared and clutched at the wound, knife falling to the floor. Its beady eyes locked on the source of its pain, and it dropped its shoulder and charged. Alex braced to take the impact but had once again underestimated how heavy it was. The mech's feet skidded, and it fell over. Luckily Alex didn't have to obey the normal laws of a fight, and he rotated the mech at the waist until the giant was beneath him. When the two behemoths landed, the walking tank crushed the giant with its weight.

Alex hauled himself to his feet, he still had the goblins and beastmen to deal with. The goblins were a little smaller than humans, and the beastmen a little bigger, but they still only came up to the middle of his shin in the mech. He stomped and kicked and punched them into the ground, one by one. When the last few tried to flee, he cut them down with a spray of plasma, setting a small smoldering fire in the grass with their corpses.

Elizabeth picked her way out of the trees. There was a small gash on her cheek, and she was applying pressure to a wound on her side where her armor had been rend open. Most of all she looked tired. Alex drew the mech up into an exaggerated fighting stance, hopping on his feet, making the ground shake. Elizabeth squinted up at him.

"Well? Aren't you going to fight me?" he called out through the speakers.

"Why would I do that?" she asked, bewildered.

"You seemed more than happy to try earlier," he reminded her.

"Yeah, but now..." she began.

"Now I have an unfair advantage?" he stopped bouncing, "Get used to it, I always have an unfair advantage."

The cockpit opened. When he spoke again, he didn't use the speakers.

"Who are your parents?" he asked her.

"Uh, Lord and Lady Swift, of Thornvale," Elizabeth was now thoroughly confused.

"I didn't have any," he barely waited for her answer before responding, "They grew me. In a vat. Do you understand? I was designed to be the best warrior there is. Twenty years of training, seventy years of active service. If I had been a regular soldier I'd have a chest full of medals but I don't have a single one. They expect me to be the best, they gave us the best training and the best equipment money could buy because we are the best of the best, and because we're the best of the best, when we achieve something extraordinary it's just us being what they made us.

"You are a phenomenal fighter, and a great leader. The fights I had with you are among the toughest I've ever had, and even though I'm an officer the most I ever commanded was two other mechs. I couldn't keep a regiment in line. No matter what feats of warfare I achieve, none of it will matter as much as what you've already done. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, others have greatness thrust upon them. I don't think I need to tell you that the first is the least impressive."

Speech over, Alex took a deep breath. The mech's shoulders moved up and down in sympathy. Elizabeth looked up at him with a strange smile on her face.

"That's why you love talking about that 'advanced materials science'," she told him.

"Sorry?" Alex was the confused one now.

"They made you a warrior, so you made yourself a scholar. You show off your knowledge because it's the one thing they didn't give you."