Day 47 Post-Impact - Night
The war room was packed.
Every senior member of Harmony had gathered for the debrief. Chen Wei, Hafiz, the wives, department heads, squad leaders. The holographic display showed the rift in glowing red, surrounded by tactical markers and threat assessments.
Sarnav stood at the head of the table, still wearing the torn remnants of his combat gear. The wounds had healed, but the memory of that ancient presence still lingered.
"S-plus class," he said flatly. "Whatever's maintaining that rift is stronger than anything we've faced. Stronger than the Iron Wolves. Stronger than Kane. Possibly stronger than me."
The room was silent.
"Fourteen survivors confirmed. Three awakened, including a B-rank healer. She's the only reason they're still alive." He pulled up sensor data. "Based on our observations, they have seventy-two to ninety-six hours before total resource depletion. The healer is already running on empty. She can't sustain them much longer."
"And the entity?" Chen Wei asked.
"It knows something was watching. It didn't see us directly, but it sensed our presence." Sarnav's jaw tightened. "Our window just got smaller. If we wait too long, it'll be fully alert when we go in."
"So we go tomorrow," Ishani said. Not a question.
"We go tomorrow. Dawn assault. Full force."
[ASSAULT FORCE - PROPOSED]
[TEAM ALPHA: SARNAV, ISHANI, MINJI, HAFIZ]
[TEAM BETA: CHEN WEI, JADE, 6 AWAKENED (C-RANK+)]
[TEAM GAMMA: NISHA, ANANYA, 4 AWAKENED (SUPPORT)]
[RESERVE: 12 AWAKENED (PERIMETER/EXTRACTION)]
[TOTAL COMBAT FORCE: 28]
Chen Wei studied the tactical display. "That's almost half our combat-ready awakened. If something goes wrong..."
"If something goes wrong, we lose fourteen people who are counting on us." Sarnav met his eyes. "I'm not leaving them to die."
"I'm not suggesting we do. I'm suggesting we have a contingency."
"The contingency is me." Sarnav's voice was flat. "If everything falls apart, I hold the line while everyone else retreats. The S-plus entity wants a fight? It gets one. With me."
Through the network, he felt his wives' immediate rejection of that plan. Nisha's fear. Ishani's anger. Minji's denial. Jade's cold calculation. Ananya's desperate prayer.
"That's not a plan," Jade said quietly. "That's suicide with extra steps."
"It's a last resort. One I don't intend to use." He looked around the room. "But everyone needs to understand what we're walking into. This isn't a raid. This isn't a skirmish. This is war against something that predates human civilization. We go in prepared to die, or we don't go in at all."
The silence stretched.
"I'm in," Ishani said first.
"In," Hafiz nodded.
"Obviously," Minji added.
One by one, they committed. Chen Wei. The squad leaders. Every awakened in the room.
"Then we prep tonight and move at dawn." Sarnav dismissed them with a gesture. "Get sleep where you can. Tomorrow's going to be long."
The room emptied slowly. Sarnav stayed, staring at the holographic rift, watching it pulse with dimensional energy.
You're brooding, the system observed.
"I'm planning."
You're brooding while planning. The two aren't mutually exclusive.
"What are the actual odds?"
Of mission success? Forty-three percent. Of your personal survival? Higher, approximately seventy-one percent. Of zero casualties? Less than eight percent.
"Someone's going to die tomorrow."
Statistically likely. Whether that death is meaningful depends entirely on the outcome.
He didn't respond. There was nothing to say.
Late Night
The master suite was quiet when he returned.
Nisha had waited up, but exhaustion had claimed her. She slept curled in the center of the bed, tear tracks still visible on her cheeks. She'd felt everything through the network. The danger. The fear. The brush of that ancient presence.
He covered her gently and retreated to the attached study.
Work waited. Supply manifests to approve. Team assignments to finalize. Contingency orders in case he didn't return. The unglamorous paperwork of leadership that no one saw but everyone depended on.
He was halfway through the extraction protocols when the door opened.
Jade stood in the doorway, tablet in hand, wearing an oversized shirt that barely covered her thighs. Her pale skin seemed to glow in the dim light, dark hair messy from sleep she clearly hadn't been getting.
"You're still awake," she observed.
"So are you."
"I was analyzing the sensor data." She stepped inside, closing the door behind her. "The dimensional readings are fascinating. Terrifying, but fascinating."
"Find anything useful?"
"Maybe." She crossed to his desk, leaning against it, close enough that he could smell her. Something floral, probably stolen from Nisha's collection. "The entity's energy signature has a pattern. Regular fluctuations, like breathing. If we time our approach to the low points..."
"We might slip in unnoticed."
"Theoretically. The margin for error is approximately four seconds."
"That's not much."
"It's more than zero."
She set her tablet down, the screen showing complex waveform analysis. But she wasn't looking at it. She was looking at him.
"You're planning to sacrifice yourself," she said flatly.
"I'm planning contingencies."
"Bullshit." Her eyes narrowed. "I felt what you felt when that thing touched your mind. I know what you're thinking. You believe you're the only one strong enough to hold it, so you're going to play hero and get yourself killed."
"Jade..."
"Don't 'Jade' me." She stepped closer, crowding into his space. "I didn't join this harem to become a widow. I didn't let you inside me, inside my mind, inside my heart, just to watch you throw it all away on some noble sacrifice bullshit."
Through the network, he felt her fear. Her anger. Her desperate need to make him understand.
"I'm not planning to die."
"No, you're just accepting it as an option." She grabbed his collar, pulling him up from the chair. "That's not acceptable. I won't allow it."
"You won't allow it?"
"No." Her grip tightened. "You're mine now, idiot. Mine and Nisha's and Ishani's and Minji's and Ananya's. You don't get to make decisions about your life without consulting us."
He should argue. Should explain tactical necessity, the mathematics of sacrifice, the weight of leadership.
Instead, he kissed her.
Jade kissed like she argued. Aggressive, unrelenting, determined to win. Her tongue pushed into his mouth while her nails dug into his shoulders through his shirt.
"Idiot," she gasped between kisses. "Stupid, self-sacrificing idiot."
"Noted."
He lifted her onto the desk, scattering papers and datapads. She wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer, grinding against him.
"I hate you," she said.
"I know."
"I hate that I love you."
"I know that too."
She yanked his shirt over his head, nails immediately raking down his chest. Red lines bloomed in their wake, not quite drawing blood. Not yet.
"If you die tomorrow, I'll find a way to resurrect you just so I can kill you myself."
"Romantic."
"Shut up and fuck me."
He pulled the oversized shirt over her head. She wasn't wearing anything underneath. Pale skin, slim frame, breasts that filled his hands perfectly. Dark nipples already hard in the cool air.
[JADE WONG - WIFE #5]
[PHYSICAL: 5'4" | 34DD-23-34]
[EMOTIONAL STATE: FEAR, ANGER, DESPERATION, LOVE]
[AROUSAL: ESCALATING]
[NOTE: PARTNER PROCESSES DIFFICULT EMOTIONS THROUGH PHYSICAL INTENSITY]
He took her nipple in his mouth, biting harder than gentle. She moaned, back arching.
"Yes. More. Make me feel something other than fear."
He obliged. His teeth found her neck, her shoulder, the swell of her breasts. Each bite left marks, claiming her, reminding her who she belonged to.
"Diu," she cursed. "Why do you have to be so good at this?"
"Practice."
"With your other wives." She grabbed his hair, yanking his head back. "I can feel them, you know. Through the network. I know exactly what you do to them. What they do to you."
"Jealous?"
"Competitive." She attacked his pants, freeing him with aggressive efficiency. Her hand wrapped around his cock, stroking hard. "I intend to be the best you've ever had."
"Good luck with that."
She squeezed harder, almost painful. "Was that a challenge?"
"Take it however you want."
Her eyes narrowed. "Fine."
She slid off the desk, dropping to her knees. Before he could react, she'd taken him in her mouth. Not gentle. Not teasing. She swallowed him to the root in one motion, throat convulsing around his length.
"Fuck."
She pulled back, grinning. "Not so smug now."
She went back to work, her mouth hot and wet and ruthlessly skilled. Her tongue worked his shaft while her hand cupped his balls. She took him deep again, holding, letting him feel her throat clench before pulling back.
"I've been practicing," she said conversationally, stroking him with one hand. "Watched tutorials. Studied technique. I refuse to be inadequate at anything."
"You're not inadequate."
"I know." She took him deep again, and this time he felt his control slipping.
"Jade. If you keep that up..."
She pulled off with a wet pop. "Not yet. I need you inside me first."
She stood, turned, bent over the desk. Her ass was pale and perfect, her pussy already glistening with arousal.
"Well? Are you just going to stare?"
He didn't stare. He grabbed her hips and drove into her in one thrust.
"DIU!" she screamed. Her hands scrabbled at the desk, scattering more papers. Her pussy clenched around him, impossibly tight. "Sei yan! You could have warned me!"
"Where's the fun in that?"
He started moving immediately. Hard, fast, exactly the way she needed it. The desk shook with every thrust. Her screams echoed off the walls.
"Yes! Harder! Make me forget everything except you!"
He gave her harder. His enhanced strength let him fuck her with force that would have damaged a normal person. But Jade wasn't normal. The network fed her power, enhanced her durability. She could take everything he had.
And she demanded more.
"Is that all you've got?" she gasped. "I've felt what you do to Ishani! Show me that!"
He grabbed her hair, yanking her head back. His other hand found her throat, squeezing just enough to restrict airflow without cutting it off.
"Better?"
"Puk gaai, yes! Don't stop!"
Her pussy was clenching rhythmically, approaching climax. Through the network, he felt her pleasure building, spiraling toward release.
"I'm going to come," she gasped. "You're making me come, you idiot, you stupid wonderful idiot..."
She shattered around him, screaming curses in Cantonese, her body convulsing. Her nails found the desk and gouged furrows in the wood.
He didn't stop. Fucked her through the orgasm, pushing her toward another.
"Too much! Can't... sei yan... too sensitive..."
"You can take it."
"I hate you!"
"You said that already."
She came again, harder than the first time. Her knees buckled, but he held her up, held her in place, kept moving.
"One more," he demanded.
"Impossible. I can't..."
He pulled out, flipped her onto her back on the desk. She stared up at him with glazed eyes, chest heaving, body trembling.
"One more."
He drove back into her, this angle letting him hit deeper, harder. Her legs wrapped around him, heels digging into his ass.
"Sarnav... please..."
"One more, Jade."
His thumb found her clit, rubbing circles while he pounded into her. She screamed, actual tears streaming down her face, overwhelmed by sensation.
"Coming! Diu nei, I'm coming again!"
Her third orgasm crashed through her like a wave. Her pussy clamped down so tight it was almost painful. Through the network, the sensation echoed to his other wives. Nisha stirred in her sleep, gasping. Somewhere in the compound, Minji laughed breathlessly.
The sensation pushed him over. He buried himself deep, spilling inside her, pulse after pulse of release.
They collapsed together, breathing hard, the desk groaning beneath their weight.
[DUAL CULTIVATION COMPLETE]
[PARTNER: WONG YUK-KING "JADE" (WIFE #5)]
[BASE ESSENCE: 2,000]
[BOND MULTIPLIER: x20]
[EMOTIONAL INTENSITY: x1.5]
[TOTAL ESSENCE GAINED: +60,000]
"Idiot," Jade whispered, her voice hoarse.
"You said that."
"It bears repeating." She pulled him down for a kiss, soft this time, all the aggression drained away. "Don't die tomorrow. I'm not done being angry at you."
"I'll do my best."
"Do better than your best." She held his face, forcing him to meet her eyes. "Come back to us. All of you. Promise me."
"I promise."
She didn't believe him. He could feel it through the network. But she let it go, pulling him close, holding him tight.
They stayed like that until dawn approached.
Day 48 Post-Impact - Dawn
The assault force gathered at the eastern gate.
Twenty-eight awakened in full combat gear. The strongest force Harmony had ever assembled. Team Alpha at the front, Sarnav flanked by Ishani and Minji. Team Beta to the right, Chen Wei commanding with Jade providing tactical support. Team Gamma at the rear, Nisha and Ananya ready to heal and support.
The rest of Harmony had gathered to see them off. Hundreds of faces, civilians and non-combat awakened alike. Fear and hope in equal measure.
"We're going to save them," Sarnav addressed his people. "We're going to close that rift. And we're going to come back." He paused. "All of us."
A cheer rose from the crowd. Not loud, not triumphant. A quiet affirmation. A prayer.
He turned to his wives. Five women who'd given him everything. Who continued to give him everything.
"I love you," he said to all of them.
Five responses came through the network, overlapping and harmonizing:
"We love you too."
"Now let's go save some people."
The gates opened. The assault force moved out.
Behind them, the sun rose over Harmony.
Ahead, the rift waited.
[DAY 48 - ASSAULT BEGINS]
[TOTAL ESSENCE: 410,500 / 1,000,000]
[ASSAULT FORCE: 28 AWAKENED]
[OBJECTIVE: SURVIVOR RESCUE]
[SECONDARY OBJECTIVE: RIFT CLOSURE]
[THREAT LEVEL: EXTREME]
[S+ ENTITY: ACTIVE]
[MISSION STATUS: UNDERWAY]