Interstellar Age



The moment Erich met up with Emrys on the following day, the man shockingly punched him in the face. There was a clear look of rage on the man's face, but that quickly turned to an expression of pain, as he cried out in agony, while hopping around like a rabbit.

"Oh, you fucking cunt! I think you broke my hand!" 

Erich simply laughed when he saw this before explaining how stupid Emrys was for punching him in the face. 

"Well, honestly, what did you think was going to happen? My skeleton is practically made out of metal after the enhancements you had me go through! Now, why in the world do you want to punch me in the first place?" 

It did not take long for the endorphins to numb the pain, and for the trillions of nanites in Emry's bloodstream to begin repairing his bone structure. Within seconds, the man had basically recovered from his injury, where he gazed furiously at his protégé. 

"What did I fucking say? Do not flirt with anyone! You couldn't even last five minutes before getting yourself into trouble, now could you?"

Erich felt a great sense of offense after hearing this. It was not like he had done anything to cause this scenario to occur, the universe simply hated him. And because of that, he was quick to voice this sentiment. 

"Do you think I wanted to spend the night in a cell? I didn't do a damn thing. Celestia forced herself on me, all because of some weird obsession with fate and its prophecy. Fucking women! Can't live with them, can't live without them!"

Technically, Emrys could not argue with Erich, as he had a point. But he did latch onto something in particular that Erich had said and was quick to interrogate the man further about it. 

"Celestia? Since when are you two on a first name basis?"

It was only now that Erich realized he probably should have referred to Celestia by her royal title, but now that the cat was out of the bag, he did not try to hide it. 

"Since yesterday, why do you think I didn't immediately come to visit you after being released from my cell? It's because both Lunaria and her daughter wanted to speak with me. I was interrogated by the Empress in her personal quarters for well over an hour, and then when I returned to my room, lo-and-behold, her daughter was there waiting for me. I don't even know what I did to win their favor!"

This news baffled Emrys, who was quick to inquire further about it, his voiced filled with disbelief as he did so. 

"You spent time alone with the Alfheim Empress, and the Crown Princess? What exactly did you talk about?" 

Erich could not endure Emrys' scrutinous gaze, and thus he looked away before giving the man a non answer to his question. 

"I'm afraid that's our little secret..."

Emrys honestly could not tell if Erich was fucking with him, or if he was granted a private audience with two of the most powerful beings in the galaxy. He had no idea what they would have talked about, or how Erich had narrowly escaped the gallows. But whatever had happened, it must have been something serious for Lunaria to forsake the traditions of her ancient dynasty, and pardon Erich for his crimes. 

Naturally, there were rumors floating around about Emrys striking some kind of shady deal to secure his protégé's release. But, nobody in their right mind would ever dare to think that Lunaria and Celestia were now both courting Erich. The very idea was little more than the fever dream of a madman. 

Of course, Emrys was also free from such notions. After all, despite Erich's superhuman ability to seduce women, there was no way that the Alfheim Empress would entertain such a thought. Even if she did have a penchant for Germanic men. 

Thus, the man could not help but shake his head, while wondering just what in the hell the Alfheim Empress and her daughter wanted to convey to Erich. He would most definitely request a satisfactory answer from Lunaria herself when they next communicated. With this in mind, the Supreme Leader decided to move on to the next item of business.

"I'm just glad you're still alive. Let's head back to the Empire before any other crazy scenarios present themselves...." 

However, before Emrys could coerce Erich to do so, he was quickly glomped by two beautiful Oni women. There were tears in Ayumi's eyes while she latched onto her fiancee, and a look of relief on Yumi's stunning face as she bit into Erich's neck, ever so slightly. 

"You little bastard! You had me so worried! I thought for sure that bitch was going to gut you like a fish! What the hell did you say to convince her to spare your life!?!"

Erich was shocked by the way Yumi was treating him, and thus he pushed her away first, before petting Ayumi's silky indigo hair. As she cried into his chest like a child who had just been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. 

"Oh Erich! I thought you were as good as dead! Are you alright? Did they hurt you in any way?"

Seeing that Ayumi had given him an opportunity to escape yet another line of questioning, Erich simply ignored Yumi's remarks, and focused his attention on his fiancee. 

"I'm fine Ayumi, nothing bad happened to me. Honestly, my treatment was rather gentle compared to what it would have been in the Empire."

Erich truly wasn't lying when he said this, but unfortunately for him, Yumi wasn't letting this matter go, and quickly wrapped her arm around Erich's head while giving him a nuggie. 

"Stop ignoring me! I want to know just how the hell you managed to get off the hook for such a grievous crime!" 

Erich simply scoffed as he effortlessly escaped from Yumi's grasp, before placating her with a pat on the head, and an unsatisfactory answer. 

"I'm sorry, I promised Lu- I mean the Empress that I would not speak about such matters to anyone. Just be happy that I received a full pardon, without any demands made of me." 

Yumi curiously eyed Erich. She knew some kind of deal must have been met to secure his release. It was not like the mighty Alfheim Empress would simply let a man go who had dared to touch a member of her sacred bloodline. However, Erich did not seem willing to discuss what had happened and thus she looked over at Emrys, who simply shrugged while remaining silent on the matter. 

Upon seeing that she was not going to get a proper answer, Yumi sighed heavily, accepting this reality. However, in the very next moment, she stuck her finger in Erich's chest and asked another question. That was just as important to her. 

"You little bastard! You were freed yesterday morning, yet neither Ayumi nor I received a visit from you! Just who did you spend the night with?"

It was at this moment that Emrys sighed and rolled his eyes. He was particularly glad that nobody was around to witness this conversation, because it would be very difficult to explain. It was at moments like these that he did not envy Erich, and his ability to attract multiple women. Thus, he simply pointed to his watch, signalling that his patience was thinning. 

Erich, however, could not actually say the truth. He had spent the evening dining with Celestia, and they had quite a wonderful conversation. He felt like he got to know the woman quite a bit more than he would have expected. And there was definitely a good chemistry between the two of them. 

But like a proper gentleman, he ensured that she left after the meal was over, and returned to the palace untainted by his touch. He then spent the remainder of the night thinking about just how things had ended up the way they had. Obviously, after everything that had happened, he was in no mood to entertain his two Oni lovers.  Thus, all Erich could do was tell the partial truth and say he had spent the night alone. 

"Honest to God, I spent the night alone. From the moment I got back to my hotel room, I was absolutely exhausted and needed some time alone to think. There was nothing else that happened, I swear!" 

Though Yumi did not seem to trust Erich's words, at least not entirely, she decided to let the matter go. After all, the man had been through quite the ordeal, and it was reasonable enough to need some time alone after it was all said and done. Thus, she forgave him, but by biting on his ear, and whispering to him something enticing. 

"You cheeky bastard, making me wait so long! I had something brilliant planned for the three of us, but you just had to go and ruin it. I will expect to see you at my palace at some point during your next leave. Because I won't be able to wait another nine months without you inside me!" 

After saying this, Yumi kissed Erich goodbye before saying farewell to her niece, who would be returning to the Empire through the warp gate along with Erich and Emrys. As for the Oni Empress herself? She unfortunately had to look after an Empire of her own, and thus she would be returning to the Oni capital. Where she would rather impatiently await Erich's arrival.