X-COM: Friendship Unknown

Chapters

001 - A lazy day start
002 - Dinner Date
003 - Testing boundaries
004 - Inter-species relations
005 - Cooking brings everyone closer
006 - Getting closer
007 - New arrival
008 - Big brain moves
009 - Recuperation
010 - Snap decisions
011 - Gaming, fuel
012 - Training your mind
013 - Refined training
Prologue - Letters to a worried princess

001 - A lazy day start

It was snowing outside. It wasn’t snowing gently either. That much could be sure from the single small window over the “kitchen” sink. It was supposed to be daytime. Yet it was a dark gray, probably due to the blizzard outside.

The one room apartment wasn’t lit well, a pair of computer screens lit the room from a desk. At which sat a young man. Like most of the populace, he had a unique skin and hair combination. Purple skin, shaggy, long red hair. And he was hard at work, even in the middle of sudden winter weather keeping him home.

He wasn’t called Command Line for nothing. He was good at figuring out where the problems were in new games, and most indie companies asked him to give their games at least a few hours of his time. He was currently working on a new card-based game to see if there were any exploits. Nothing was immediately obvious, but he had yet to try every combination of abilities.

There was a shifting on the futon against the wall. It had yet to be shifted into a couch, thanks to the bed’s occupant. Underneath a pile of blankets was a mound of tan-scaled coils. A scaled hand slowly popped out of the blankets and tugged a form from them. A snake-like head, complete with a cobra-like hood, emerged from the pile and blinked a pair of emerald-green, slit-pupiled eyes slowly. A sleek feminine torso in a thick wooly grey sweater “stood up” on the futon.

Zossi blinked sleepily and looked over at Command. “Commander, is too cold.” She said with a slight lengthening of her s’s. “Can we afford small heater yet?”

“Let me just dip into debug mode and see if there’s anything they missed,” Command Line said, humming softly. “The adventures that are there work properly, now I just need to throw everything at the wall and see what sticks. I have a few ideas about what breaks things...need to test them.” He shifted a little in his seat, to only take up one side of it. “You’re welcome to come over and steal some body heat,” he offered.

The Viper shifted, slowly uncoiling herself from the bed. There was a thump against the floor as her tail hit it. She slithered over somewhat slowly. “How can owner afford conditioner but not afford heating for cold times?” Zossi asked, slowly draping herself over Command’s back, her tail coiling around the base of the chair as she did. “Then again, is cheap apartment.”

There was a loud slam from down below. Moments later there was a knock at the front door. “Is everything okay?! I heard a thud!”

“Was me. Is unlocked. Come in.” Zossi called out sleepily.

The door opened and a girl’s head peeked in. Her hair was a deep green, and her face was a few shades lighter. Her cheeks bore a few dark green freckles. Her deep brown eyes squinted into the apartment. “You two always keep it so dark in here. Trying to save on rent or something? Anyway, that was you Zos?”

“Yes Wallflower.” Zossi, lazilly looked at the girl. “Can’t exactly step down from bed.”

“Right. Right. Sorry I worry so much. It’s just cold and reptiles don’t do well in the cold.” Wallflower Blush said with a nod.

“I know,” Command nodded, blue eyes glancing over to the woman at the door. “I plan to run out and get a heater for her in a bit,” he explained. “We weren’t expecting this snow for a few more days, so it’s an unpleasant surprise for us as well. And the reason we keep the lights off is, I’m a gamer, and she sees by heat anyways.”

“Is true, and scent.” Zossi nodded.

“That can’t be good for your eyes.” Wallflower deadpanned. “Good to know you’re doing okay. Zos, try not to go out in this if you can help it. Meanwhile, I am going to make sure Floor and the other girls are doing okay.”

“Thanks Wallflower.” Zossi yawned as the girl shut the door. “She seem high strung.”

“Well, she cares, even if the landlord doesn’t,” Command pointed out. “By the way, already planning on writing a strongly worded letter to the landlord, which will ‘magically’ leak out to the city and placement boards, about how cheap landlords are threatening Vipers by not offering heating during winter. I’ll probably have to include a receipt for a costly heater in the e-mail, but I think we can get rid of the jerk with this.”

“Do humans normally treat immigrants like this?” Zossi asked, wrapping her arms around his chest in a hug as she slowly nuzzled his cheek.

“Not normally, but the good ones in power act to prune the tree of the sickly branches when it’s pointed out to them,” Command replied. One of his hands reached up and pet the Viper’s head as he explained. “Plus, if we make an example out of him, the rest will fall into line very fast. The placement board’s got a lot of power, and I’m sure an investigation into where all the money he’s getting for housing you is going if not into seeing your needs are met will be very enlightening.”

“Wasn’t he paid more to house me? Wait… weren’t you?” She blinked, her nose wrinkling a bit. “Wait, that was spent on rent and food…”

“You would not believe how magically the rent seemed to increase the moment I got accepted to be your sponsor,” Command mused. “Fortunately, I’m paranoid and save receipts and transaction information like candy. Open and shut case.”

“Commander’s smart.” Zossi nodded, resting her head on his shoulder. “Now if snow would stop that would make the day better.”

“Aaaaand I think I found one combination that absolutely would break this game,” Command nodded. “And it’s actually doable in normal gameplay as well. Gonna write down the details in an email, shoot it at the devs, let them figure out why it works.” His fingers tapped away at his keyboard. “In the meanwhile,” he pulled up a browser with one hand on the other screen and began scrolling through Agency approved heaters for your Viper roommate. “Pick one of these and I’ll go pick it up from the store.”

“Is good broken like goat, or bad broken like Fallout?” She asked, squinting at the computer screens.

“Well it starts out good, but the thing is, it’s repeatable, an infinite loop, so it becomes bad,” Command explained. “So eventually you’d reach integer overflow and the game would crash.”

“Ah.” Zossi hummed. “This one, is small but last forever.” She tapped the screen with a finger.

“Ah, good, not too expensive for me, but enough to cause outrage when I put it with all the other evidence,” Command smiled. “In the meantime, I’ll go warm up a few heat sinks in the microwave and leave you my workout shirt for when I’m gone.” He looked down, then back up. “Once you let me,” he amended.

She grumbled but let him go and tugged herself away, almost begrudgingly uncoiling herself from around his legs too. She slithered over to the bed and flopped onto it. She started pawing at the blankets to start her new blanket nest.

A thrill ran up her spine suddenly, like lightning directly to her brain. Something had grabbed her tail and was teasing it. Turning, she saw Command toying with her tailtip with one hand while the other finished off his email.

“H-hey. Not fair.” She pouted. “You know the tip is sensitive.”

“Sorry love, can’t resist teasing you before I head out into the snow,” Command apologized. He rubbed the tip a few more times, before eventually letting her pull it out of his hand. “Okay,” he said, finally done with his email. He pulled a t-shirt off the back of a chair and tossed it towards the Viper, before standing up and heading to the closet. “Enjoy that while I prep myself for the harsh outside,” he told his roommate. “I’ll pop a few heat-absorbers into the microwave and toss them in before I go as well.”

She grabbed it and hugged it close. “Thank you Commander.” It still smelled like him from when he wore it working out earlier today. “You smell good.”

“So you say,” Command noted aloud. He pulled a thick looking jacket out of the closet and left the room, letting light in through the open door. He was gone for a few minutes, letting Zossi build her nest and put the shirt in a place where she’d be sure to smell it and him. By the time the male returned, the only bits visible of the Viper were her tail-tip.

“Got your heat-sinks,” he said aloud, dumping them on the nest. They weren’t anything fancy, just tube socks that had been filled with beans and other such hard, heat-absorbing objects, before being sewn back up. But they made for excellent snake warmers when a warm body wasn’t around, once they were microwaved for a minute or so. “I’ll be back in an hour, if you need these warmed up again, recruit Wallflower, I’m sure she’d be eager to help.”

“Mmm’kay.” Came the response as the heat-sinks got sucked into the blanket pile.

“See you in a bit,” Command patted at the pile, where he thought her head was, before heading out into the cold to obtain heating for Zossi.

“Is Zossi okay?” A pale tan girl with greasy black hair asked as she sat in her somewhat messy apartment. The girl sat in a beanbag chair as she wore a t shirt and boxer shorts. Her gray eyes blinked at Wallflower.

“She’s fine.” Wallflower nodded. She was kind of happy that the room wasn’t well lit, she knew how messy Floor could be. “How are you holding up, Floor?”

Floor Bored shrugged. “I’ve got my anime and my ramen, I’m perfectly fine.”

She didn’t look fine, but who was Wallflower to judge.

“Alrighty, so I was just checking to make sure you were okay, what with the blizzard.” Wallflower smiled and made for the door.

“What blizzard?” Floor blinked.

Wallflower sighed and left the girl.

“We’re all good. Everything’s fine.” Adagio virtually slammed her door in Wallflowers face.

“Okay then.” Wallflower blinked.

“Zossi, you doing okay?” Wallflower asked, peeking her head in.

“M’fine.” Came the sleepy voice from the pile on top of the futon.

“Okay, just making sure.” Wallflower replied. “You warm enough?”

“Hot socks ran out.” Came a response.

“Awww, want me to warm them up again?” Wallflower asked, stepping in and shutting the door behind her.

“Yes please.” Said the pile.

A pair of heat sinks slowly emerged from the pile and rolled to the bed, which Wallflower picked up and walked over to stick in the small microwave.

“It’ll be a minute.” Wallflower turned towards the pile.

A pair of green eyes now looked out of a small hole in the pile.

“Bluh!” Wallflower jumped. “Don’t do that!”

Zossi’s head popped out of the hole. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. You just surprised me.” Wallflower sighed as the microwave beeped. She retrieved the now very warm heat sinks and plopped them onto the bed. A hand emerged and sucked them back into the pile one by one.

Wallflower then sat next to the pile. “Want me to keep you company?”

Zossi’s head shifted and flopped onto Wallflower’s lap. Wallflower instinctively started petting her head like she was a dog. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

It was another half-hour before Command Line managed to show up again, and what announced his presence was the slamming of the apartment door as he barged his way in. There were several thumping noises as he bounced off of walls with the box he’d procured, but eventually he opened the door to his own room and managed to get the box down on the floor. He panted for a moment before standing up straight and looking at the bed.

Zossi was snoozing quite happily, her head in Wallflower’s lap. Wallflower, in turn, blinked sleepily as she sat up. “Sorry.” She yawned. “I got taken hostage.”

“Worse than a whole herd of cats, I tell you,” Command joked. “Hopefully, though, this’ll keep us safe during the bad winter weather.” He fiddled with the top of the box, eventually managing to get it open, and started to slide out a styrofoam-encased heater from the box.

There was a muffled thump noise as a manual that had to have taken up the bottom eighth of the box also slid out when he upturned it. The noise it made showed where all the weight had gone.

“Why’s that so big?” Wallflower blinked at the manual.

“Combination of trying to print it in as many languages as possible and include as many legal disclaimers as possible,” Command blithely answered. “‘Do not operate while your Viper is drunk,’ sort of thing. Oh, and also included are plenty of ‘not liable if you operate this and a Viper moves in’ sorts of disclaimers.” He found a free outlet near the bed, snaked the cord towards it, and plugged the space heater in. “Let’s go...medium to start with,” he mused, turning the dial halfway to maximum output.

“Probably a good idea, it is a small room, not counting the bathroom.” Wallflower nodded.

Zossi shifted and yawned. “Oh, hallo Commander.” She lifted her head. “Sorry Wallflower.”

“It’s fine.” Wallflower shrugged. “I’m used to things like that at this point.”

“Moreso than any of our neighbors are at least,” Command noted. “I notice they’ve tampered down their visits early in the morning.” Early morning Zossi was cuddly, especially after a cold night.

“Well Floor was worried, I think. I can never really tell.” Wallflower shrugged as Zossi sat up. The small heater had definitely started to live up to its name and was making the room much warmer. Clearly there was a reason it was Viper-approved.

“Oh, that’s nice…” Zossi sighed.

“Finally. Might have to get one of my own unless something happens to the landlord.” Wallflower giggled as she got up and headed for the door. “And I think I’ll leave you two alone for now, lemme know if you two need anything.”

“Will do,” Command Line noted, smiling at the girl until she left the room. Then he went over to his computer and began putting together the email to ruin their landlord. Several documents were opened, details were copied, rage flowed from his fingers through the keyboard. Eventually, the masterpiece was ready. Now the only things he had left to do were to send it to his landlord as an official complaint...then, without the scumbag noticing, send it also to the placement agency and the company in charge of the landlord. Maybe even the local newspaper. The only bad part of this would be the fact that Command wouldn’t be able to see the reactions personally.

“Zossi, love, want to come over and give my work a look before I send it?” Command asked out loud. “It is about you, after all.”

Zossi got up. This time she crawled out of bed instead of falling out of it. She righted herself, slithered over, and once again, draped herself over Command’s shoulders. “Mmmm…” She hummed looking it over. “Looks good to me.”

“Aaaand...sent,” Command smirked, pushing the button. And with that one press, at least half a dozen people would be seeing the situation his snake-friend had been put into. He gently turned the chair around so that he was facing the bed, letting Zossi drape herself over his front. “Hello love,” he whispered, hugging her close.

“Hallo human.” She booped his nose with her forked tongue.

“I got my work done and got you a heater,” Command mused. “What now?”

“Cuddles with Commander?” She tilted her head to the side.

“Sure, bed or couch?” the human asked.

“Couch.” Zossi stuck her tongue out. Supporting her upper body, Command let his snakefriend coil around him as he got up from the chair and made the bed look neater. Then he folded it back into the couch form it spent some time as and laid himself down on it.

All, without breaking contact with Zossi.

Zossi hummed happily, just hugging her human. She loved physical contact. Though that might’ve been more an aspect of her species.

“Cuddle-slut,” Command accused her, petting her hood with a hand.

“Shameless cuddle-slut.” She nodded into his shoulder.

“What would the rest of your species think if they knew you were so easily tamed by body heat and physical contact?” Command mused.

“Unsurprised.” She hummed in response.

“Heh,” Command chuckled. “What, did you all pick out humans based on which liked to cuddle most?”

“Fate or dumb luck. Either way, I’m happy that I’m with you.” She nuzzled his cheek.

“And I’m happy that you’re here too,” Command agreed, stroking along her coils with his hands. “So...did you want to do anything while we laid here, or are you more into the cuddling aspect of it? I could put a movie on…”

“Cuddles and a movie sounds great.” She nodded happily. “Netflix? Or some other service?”

“Nah, I’ve got most of the movies I want already saved to an online account,” Command replied. He reached for, found, and turned on the TV with a remote. “I just switch inputs like so...and bam.” A vast array of movie titles were laid before the pair as the human scrolled through the list. “Cheaper than keeping all that plastic lying around, for sure,” he quipped. “Pick something and I’ll probably have it.”

“Avatar. It’s so pretty.” Zossi said, grinning. With a push of a button, the old movie began playing on the screen.

“...Really puts it into perspective, all these ideas we had about aliens before we met you,” Command mused as they were introduced to the cast all over again.

“Who knows? There could be a planet like Pandora out there?” She mused, staring at the vibrant colors.

“Anything’s possible, I suppose,” Command agreed. “Once we work out FTL we’ll be able to go together.”

Zossi nuzzled his cheek and nestled her head into the crook of his neck.

“I can’t wait.”

002 - Dinner Date

The snow had passed. The bomb cyclone had ended. The light of the sun slowly started to shine through the window. Command was wrapped up in the snake’s coils. Not too tight, just tight enough for the bed’s occupants to be comfortable.

“What time is it?” the male grunted, trying to shift to see the alarm clock and failing to move very much. That was what happened when you had a Viper coiled around you.

Zossi yawned and grumbled, slowly uncoiling from around her human. “It’s… nine.” The snake finished uncoiling and rolled off the bed with a thump, leaving most of her lower half on the bed. “Time to get up.”

“Yeah, I’ll shower and then go make breakfast,” Command agreed, shifting out from under Zossi’s coils. He began heading towards the bathroom, stripping off his shirt as he went and leaving it on the ground. Which was immediately picked up by Zossi and hugged to her chest.

The snake hummed as she held the shirt. There was a knock at the door. Zossi slithered over to open it. It was Wallflower. Because of course it was.

“Heard a noise?” Zossi asked.

“Yep. Just checking on you.” Wallflower nodded. “I kinda feel like the house mom.”

“You are.” Zossi giggled. “It was me, like it normally is.”

“You have that snake weight.” Wallflower giggled too.

“Are you calling me fat?” Zossi tilted her head to the side.

“What?” Wallflower blinked, then blushed. “No! No, no no no…” She waved her hands in front of her while shaking her head. “I was just-”

“It’s okay. It was a joke.” The snake giggled again. “Don’t worry.”

“Right...” Wallflower chuckled uncomfortably. “Well, I’ll leave you to… ummm… get dressed.” She coughed awkwardly then walked away.

It was then Zossi finally noticed that she was barely covering her venom sacks with Command’s shirt. “Oops.”

The human eventually emerged from the bathroom and put on a fresh set of clothes, plucked from his dresser and hurriedly pulled into place. “Okay, Zossi, time for breakfast,” he noted aloud. “You can get clean while I go cook.”

“Thanks.” Zossi nodded and slithered into the bathroom. Command headed to the communal kitchen and began pulling together the stuff for pancakes and bacon, something everyone could eat. Even if the Viper did take hers as mostly bacon.

The man’s breakfast creation was cut off by a knock at the door.

“Good thing I haven’t turned the stove on yet,” he mused. “Coming!” He took a few steps to the door and opened it, still wearing his apron. Which was, funnily enough, styled to look like a Viper’s normal colors, with the text ‘Squeeze the cook’ on it.

In the doorway was a woman in a black suit. She had yellow skin, teal eyes, and a virtual mane of hair that seems to be split between streaks of deep read and gold. She had a black bag over one shoulder. The only decoration on it was a small keychain that had a small sun on it, split down the middle between yellow and red. The woman smiled as the door opened fully. “Hello, Mister Line I presume?”

“Yes,” Command nodded. “Look, if this is going to take a while, then please, come in. I was just about to make breakfast, if you’re hungry.”

“Oh, thank you, you’re too kind.” The woman stepped in after Command stepped aside for her. “I’m Sunset Shimmer with the Extraterrestrial Imigration and Investigation Bureau. You can just call it E.I.B. for short. We got ahold of that email you sent out about the conditions in your little apartment complex here.” She moved over to the small table next to the “kitchen” and sat at one of the two chairs. Then she pulled a tablet out of her bag. “Don’t worry, you’re not in any kind of trouble, the opposite in fact.”

“I’d rather hoped that was the case,” Command idly noted, getting out another few eggs to make more mix up. “I’ve been working to get rid of the scumbag for months now.” He began mixing up the pancake batter, tossing in a few secret flavors to make them irresistible when they were cooked.

“Yes, apparently he owns a few properties and does the same there. There’s going to be a few changes, nothing too drastic, just a few quality of life improvements.” Sunset stated, tapping at her tablet. “Also, we may use this site as a testing site as it were. See how another extraterrestrial or two adjusts to life here. Don’t worry, we wouldn’t shove them in here. I’m going to talk to the other residents.”

“Sounds good to me, sometimes I think Zossi could use a few friends that understand her when she makes an obscure reference.” Command was manning two frying pans at this point. In one, he was making the pancakes, and in the other, he was cooking the bacon. “Speaking of, I’m surprised she’s taking this long in the shower. Then again, Viper. I’m just glad our water bill is a flat rate each month.”

“Your rent and living cost payments are going to go down by the way. You are, essentially, doing a service.” Sunset nodded as the bathroom door opened.

Zossi came in, her torso wrapped in a towel. She saw Sunset and blinked, freezing in place though the tip of her tail did flick back and forth rapidly.

“Hello Miss-” Sunset made a few hissing sounds. “Don’t worry, I’m not here about anything bad happening involving you. Mainly your former landlord.”

Zossi relaxed. “Oh good.” The serpent slithered over to the dresser, pulled out a shirt and slithered back into the bathroom, only to shut the door again. Moments later she returned, dressed.

“How have you liked it here Zossi, I can call you Zossi, right?” Sunset asked, looking at the snake as she coiled her lower half around to make a seat for herself.

“Yes, you may.” Zossi nodded. “Things are good, Commander is wonderful.” She smiled.

“And have you been able to find a job yet?” Sunset asked with a smile.

“No.” Zossi shook her head. “Not yet. Commander did veto one I found. Though I don’t know why dancing around a pole-”

“No!” Command snapped.

“Ah, I can understand that.” Sunset chuckled softly. “I take it that you’re happy here, regardless?”

“I am.” Zossi nodded.

“Good.” Sunset put her tablet away and stood up. “Well, I think everything’s in order here. I’ll leave you two to your breakfast.” She walked towards the door. “We’ll be in touch.” She nodded at Command and left.

“Didn’t even stay for her portion,” Command noted out loud. “Zossi, love, you want to start then? I’ll just spread the rest around to the others, assuming they want some.” He slid a plate with pancakes and bacon piled on it towards the Viper.

The Viper gave a happy gasp and started chowing down.

“Yes yes, a fed snake is a happy snake,” Command chuckled. “Get you a nice heater after this and you’ll be good all day.”

“Mmmmhmmm.” She nodded through shoving food down her gullet.

“And I thought I ate fast,” the human noted. “Ah well. Just means you can be the delivery snake to the rest of the apartment.” He flipped another set of pancakes and turned the bacon in his pans. “Wallflower first, once this is done.”

The snake nodded, finishing her portion. A few minutes later, another plate of breakfast was ready to be delivered to the other residents of the apartment. This process was repeated for Floor, as well as the Dazzlings. Neither of which actually showed any appreciation for the delivered breakfast, even if they did take it. Eventually it was just Command Line eating his own breakfast at his own table, with Zossi coiled up nearby.

“Ah well,” he noted from her report about the others. “What can you do, can’t force someone to be grateful.” He nibbled a bit on a strip of bacon. “Still, the fact that they took the food is a good sign, I suppose.”

“You’re a good chef.” Zossi yawned as she curled up in front of the heater as it was set on low.

“I try,” Command noted. “And you’re adorable when you’re sleepy.” He chewed his way through his own food, musing to himself about the balance of the flavorings.

“Flatterer.” She mumbled, nodding off slowly.

“Well, with a snake sleeping in the corner of the room, guess I can get some work done,” Command noted. “First the dishes, then I can see about any new work offers on my computer.”

That was the one bad part of putting your roommate to sleep with a good meal. You had to do all the cleanup.

Twenty minutes later, the dishes were cleaned, put away, and Command was sitting in front of his computer again. “Hmm,” he mused to himself. “A few good offers. Let’s see...ah. That has potential. I might actually enjoy playing that one too. So...shoot off a quick message and wait for a reply.” He cracked his neck and fingers before typing out his acceptance. A few minutes later, and his message was in the ether to the developer. “And now, to relax while I wait for their reply.” The human checked over his shoulder to take in the status of his roommate Viper.

There was a set of tiered coils, atop which was a snoozing serpent with her head on her arms.

“Snek status, asleep and adorable,” Command noted, taking his phone out and taking a picture. “That’s going online,” he said to nobody in particular, posting the image to a social media account he’d started that only posted cute Viper pictures, mostly taken of Zossi when she was unaware of it. “Now...let’s play some normal games.” He booted up one of his old favorites and started in on it.

What was becoming a regular thing now, there was a knock at the door. Zossi was still snoozing so Command got up to see who was bothering them now. It was… Floor Bored?

“Hey, did some suit lady come by earlier?” The young woman with bags under her eyes asked. She was in black sweats and a blue hoodie, with the hood up despite how warm it was today.

“Yeah, she wanted to check in with Zossi, make sure she was happy despite our d-bag landlord,” Command replied, shrugging a little. “Also, he might be getting replaced or something. So, bonus there.”

“Awesome, he’s been refusing to fix my shower… and my toilet’s out now too, so can I use yours?” The woman asked. “It’s hard to clean your apartment when you can’t clean yourself, ya know?”

“Yeah, sure, just be careful not to trip over the snek,” Command stood to one side to let her pass into his apartment. “She’s sleeping right now and it’s adorable.”

“Thanks.” She leaned around and peeked at the snek. She smiled at him, looking quite tired. “That is adorable. Mind if I use your shower too?”

“Just don’t fall asleep in there and sure thing,” Command agreed. “I’m mostly trying to stay on top of what’s going on with the landlord at the moment, it’s no skin off my nose how long you stay. Just try not to drown yourself.”

“Thanks again, be right back.” And the young woman retreated down the stairs from whence she came. Only to come back a few minutes later with a fresh set of clothes. “Might need to do laundry today.” Floor mused as she stepped over Zossi’s tail in order to get to the bathroom. “I’ll try not to use up your soap.”

“Eh, I need to go shopping anyways,” Command noted. “I’ll make a trip out of it when Zossi’s awake. She might panic if I’m not here when she wakes up.”

“Probably a good idea.” Floor nodded then shut the door. Command shrugged again, then headed back to his desk. Hmm. No news about what was going on with the landlord yet…

There was a yawn as Zossi slowly uncoiled and stretched. “Did I hear someone?” She asked, blinked at her human.

“Yeah, Floor Bored is using our functional bathroom, apparently hers never got fixed,” Command called over his shoulder. “Have a good nap?”

“Oh the poor thing.” She gasped then nodded. “I did. Any news yet?”

“Not yet, but the top of the hour is about to come around, and new stories are typically done th-” Command pointed out.

There was a ping from his email. Which he checked. From a Sunny.

Your landlord isn’t going to be anybody’s problem anymore. He was discriminating against extraterrestrials in every one of his properties. We’ll be sending somebody over tomorrow to get a good look at every apartment. We’ll probably be installing somebody for each place too, so no worries about having somebody be too busy. I hope this is a bit of a fresh start. Have a great day.

“Ah, well, that’s that problem sorted,” Command smiled, turning to Zossi. “The old landlord is out, and we’ll be getting a more personal landlord by tomorrow to help fix things up. Floor will probably get her bathroom fixed first thing.” He mused to himself the next bit. “Maybe we should organize a building-wide effort to get the problems listed beforehand, make the inspector’s job easier…”

“That’s not a bad idea.” Zossi nodded. “Though I don’t know about our other friends downstairs. They’re always so cranky. Mmmm, maybe Wallflower should move to one of the second floor apartments? Everybody’s downstairs. We’re kinda lonely up here.”

“Well I mean, we have each other,” Command pointed out with a smirk. “But I wouldn’t say no to some other people moving up here as well.” He hummed in thought. “Question is, who…well, besides Wallflower. You’ve made your appreciation of her known.”

Zossi just shrugged. “Maybe we’ll get some new roommates.”

“Guess we’ll find out tomorrow,” Command replied. “For now, what does my pretty snek want to do?”

“Did I hear something about shopping, or was I dreaming?” The snek slithered over to the fridge, took a look inside, and hummed. “Yeah, we might need to restock.”

“Make a list, I’ll type it up and go get the things,” Command noted. “Oh, look at that. My bank account is looking remarkably healthy thanks to someone putting all the extra money our landlord was taking back in it.”

“They work fast.” Zossi slithered over to the desks and started scribbling at a spare sheet of paper.

“I guess when there’s wrongs to right, they don’t wait around,” Command agreed. “Okay, and...huzzah, the store is open today. And they say they’ve restocked recently too, so I should be able to get everything.” He glanced over at Zossi. “Once you’ve got a list ready for me, anyways.”

“Not a lot. Dish soap, some lunch stuff, meat, snacky stuff.” She passed over the list. “Oh, and shower essentials.”

“Can do,” Command entered those few things into a tablet. “Any preferences on the meat? I know you’re particular, even if sometimes you eat a whole roast in one bite.” The playful ribbing was accompanied by the human wiggling his eyebrows at Zossi.

“Ham. Ham sounds good. Maybe ham slices so I don’t end up eating the whole thing in one sitting.” The Viper giggled softly.

“...You do know they do this thing called luncheon meat, right?” Command posed. “You can make a sandwich with things like ham slices and have it as a nice mid-day meal.”

“Isn’t that what I suggested?” Zossi blinked.

“Just making sure, silly snek. Okay, ham for lunch…” The human hummed. “Oh, I know what I can do for dinner one of these days. Might need to get two. I have a good roast recipe that’s floating around somewhere around here, just need to find it and blow your mind with how good it tastes.”

“You’ve got my attention.” Zossi perked up a bit.

“Heh, well, you’ll have to wait until I check their spice aisle,” Command teased. “I need to season the meat, but it won’t take much.” He turned the tablet off and put it in a small carrying bag, before getting up from the desk and walking over to the Viper. “Hugs before I go shopping?” he asked.

The viper leaned over and wrapped her arms around him, briefly resting her chin on his shoulder. “Mmmm... hugs.”

Command squeezed back, and used this opportunity to kiss the Viper’s cheek. “Mm. Love you too. I’ll be back in an hour or so,” he promised.

“Sounds good.” Zossi nodded. “Good luck, try not to get confused for an employee.”

“Pfft, like that’ll happen,” Command rolled his eyes. “Okay,” he gently disentangled himself from her hold and stroked along Zossi’s hood for a moment in a show of affection. “Back soon.” He managed to tear himself away from looking at the Viper and headed out to buy the things they would need.

As he left the bathroom door opened and Floor stepped out with slightly damp hair and holding a balled up bundle of dirty laundry. “Hey.”

Zossi blinked at her. “Hey.”

“Thanks for letting me use the bathroom.” The young woman said as she crossed the room to the front door.

“Of course. Somebody should be coming tomorrow to look at the state of things.” Zossi made sure to explain in case she didn’t know.

“That’s good.” Floor nodded. “Ummm, thanks again.” Like that, Floor Bored left.

Now the Viper needed to figure out what to do with her time.

The human male hummed to himself as he pushed a cart through the aisles of the grocery store. True to their word, the store was stocked with most of the things he’d need to resupply his fridge. Now he was after a few roasts for dinner later on down the line. He’d already found the spices he would need. Barely, somebody else had left only one container of garlic powder on the shelf. He’d snagged the last one and went on his way. Now all he needed was a prime cut of…

Aha. Tri-tip. Perfect. He wouldn’t even be offended if Zossi wolfed an entire one down when he was done seasoning it, it was the whole reason he was buying multiples.

“Excuse me, are you trying to cook for your Viper?” A feminine voice asked. Command turned to see another viper, a white one with pink eyes, wearing a black sweater and skirt.

“Ah, yeah, that was my plan,” Command noted. “I’ve got an old recipe for a roast that I think she’ll like.”

“Ah, I thought so. I could smell her on you.” The viper giggled. “Careful she doesn’t choke on too much meat. I don’t want to ruin your plans, but want a few tips?”

“Well, I don’t need many tips on how to cook it or prepare it, but I’ll listen to what you have to say on the interactions between Vipers and roasts,” Command quipped. “Something tells me you have a unique perspective that would be foolish to discard.” Even as he spoke, he was pulling a few roasts off the shelf and putting them carefully in his cart.

“Well, just be careful with how many spices you use. Some don’t agree with viper digestive systems.” She cautioned. “Also, the rarer the better. Though that might not work well for a human, come to think of it.”

“Huh.” Command blinked. “Okay. So something like a simple salt, pepper, garlic powder roast would be good for me, but what would you recommend for her?” This was an aspect he’d never thought he’d have to take instruction in, but he wouldn’t turn down any help once proffered. Even as he spoke, the human turned his cart back to the spice aisle so that he could pick up something specifically for Zossi.

“Actually that sounds perfect. Just take hers off before yours. We vipers like some blood in our meat.” The viper said with a nod.

“Ah, so like my dad then,” Command quipped. “He always liked his meat to bleed a little when he cut into it. Still, I’m glad my plans won’t have to get more complex at least.”

“Very good, happy to be of help. As little as I gave.” She replied with a nod. “I hope this makes your viper very happy.”

“...She’s not my viper,” Command noted. “We live together, we’re equals.”

“Mmmm. Cute.” The viper smiled with a little hiss, then simply slithered away.

...What a weird encounter. Ah well. He had groceries to pay for.

Command had put his encounter at the store out of his mind by the time he arrived home, carrying a fair few bags of stuff for his apartment. “At least I’m getting my weight training in,” he muttered as he climbed the stairs. Not long until he could put it all down and get it where it belonged.

The moment he was inside Zossi’s eyes locked onto him. Her eyes widened and she let out a hiss.

“Hey love,” Command sighed, walking over to the fridge and putting the bags down, starting to put away the meat. Both the roasts and the sliced ham and such for sandwiches. “Got a plan for dinner later, I got lucky with the spice aisle.”

“There was another viper.” She hissed. “I smell her on you.”

“She offered me some advice, made sure my planned meal wasn’t going to make you sick,” Command noted out loud. “One day we have to go over the list of things you can’t eat before I try to prepare something too fancy for you.”

She slithered over and draped herself over him. “I have to get her scent off.”

“She barely touched me, you’re being over-protective,” Command noted. Still, he didn’t try to get her off of him. The things that would spoil were already away, the only things left lying around were the soaps, and those could wait a minute. Or however long this would take.

“I’m just making sure that everyone knows you’re taken.” Zossi replied with a hum.

“Sure you are,” Command noted out loud. Eventually he turned and caught the Viper in a hug, bringing her torso close to his. “Hey love,” he whispered.

“Commander.” She whispered back.

“So, I might’ve looked something up while you were napping,” Command noted out loud, still holding the Viper around what would be a normal person’s waist.

“And what’s that?” She asked.

Command glanced down before looking back up at her face. “The whole ‘clothing optional’ thing you sometimes do? Yeah, that’s not a cultural thing. I checked.”

Her cheeks flushed. “Oh…. Ummm… certain nests do it?”

“Mhm. Certain nests with only one male to go around.” Command noted. “They also noted that it only tends to happen when the Viper is receptive to, ahem, certain activities.”

She flushed even further. “Right…”

“So I guess I should ask,” Command said, still not letting go of the Viper. “Zossi, just how tightly did you want to coil around me?”

“Very.” She replied.

“And the fact that another Viper got even close to me is making you competitive, isn’t it?” Command noted. “Even if I tell you she was wearing clothes, unlike you.”

“I-I can get defensive if I want to.” She sputtered a little.

“Mhm. And the reason you never brought this up to me was…” the human trailed off. “You know, they’re working on making a serum to make humans compatible with Vipers? It’s to aid in the whole rebuilding a female only race thing we promised we’d do.”

“Right.” She nodded. “Maybe… ummm… we could wait, so…” She stumbled over her words.

“Hey, it’s not like I was going to sign up to be the first one in line to test this thing!” Command chuckled, stroking along Zossi’s back comfortingly. “But maybe we could...practice, if you wanted to that badly.”

“Not now, a bit too embarrassed to be honest.” She shook her head.

“Well obviously not, it’s still the middle of the day,” Command agreed. “But maybe later on.” He hugged the viper a little closer and sighed. “You know, if I didn’t know those were venom sacs, that would be very awkward,” he admitted.

She pulled away. “Fine! I’ll put a shirt on! You’ve made your point!” She threw her arms in the air as she dug through the canbet for a shirt.

“I wasn’t saying it was bad…” Command noted out loud. “I mean, do you know how many females I had a relationship with before you?” He paused for a moment. “None. Honestly, you’re the best thing to happen to me. I don’t mind if you’re a little more affectionate.”

Zossi tugged a t-shirt over her head. “Good, however the moment is ruined.” She said with a sigh.

“Aww, now sexy snek is just pretty snek,” Command teased.

“Flattery will get you…” she raised a finger, “somewhere… eventually…”

“I mean, you already coil around me when we go to bed, so I’d like to think I’m pretty far in the relationship game already,” the human countered.

“Now don’t get overconfident.” She crossed her arms.

“Nah, overconfident is me expecting results from tonight’s dinner,” Command agreed. “By the way, you’re going to get your own roast to eat all to yourself, and it’ll be seasoned and seared to perfection.”

“Ooooooo Roooaaast.” She sighed happily.

“I’m gonna season them and start the oven,” Command nodded. “No sneaking any nibbles while I’m distracted. And no being the distraction to try and get free meat.”

“Yes, Commander.” She rolled her eyes and flopped onto the couch with a huff.

Olfactory. Torture.

That was the only way to describe the hour long process of seasoning the meat, and slowly roasting it to perfection, for the Viper.

Command was right. It smelled like nothing she’d had before. She could all but taste it already. And yet it was locked away in the oven as the last few minutes of the cooking process ticked by. Guarded not only by the door keeping it in there, but also the watchful gaze of the human who had come to share the couch with her. He knew her very well, and the moment she got up to do anything, she knew his eyes would be on her. Either from attraction or for trying to keep tabs as to how close to the oven every part of her was, it would be hard to tell.

“Commander, this is horrible. Let me eat food.” She whined loudly.

“I know Vipers like their meat a little bloodier than we do, but I’m just trying to make sure it’s not so raw you could get sick eating it, silly,” Command chided her. “Five more minutes and you can have yours, impatient snek.”

“Fiiiiiiiine.” She groaned.

Time seemed to drag on. Command was comfy snuggled up to her coils as he watched the clock. The human was...very comfortable around her.

“I’m going to inhale that when I get it.” She said with a hum as her stomach growled.

“That’s why there’s two,” Command agreed. “One for me to cut up and share with the others, one for you to eat. One minute, by the way.”

“I can be patient.” She said, taking a deep breath.

“I’m gonna get up and check them now,” Command continued. “And we are not reenacting any sort of ‘tossing the treat’ scenes. I value you more than that.”

“Plate it and give it to me, I can control myself that much.” Zossi pouted.

“Suuuure, miss ‘go around naked,’” Command teased, heaving himself from the couch and walking over to the oven. He pulled the door open and stuck one of the roasts with his thermometer. Yup. Medium rare, meaning it’d bleed if stuck. “This one’s done for you,” he called, getting out a platter and putting the roast on it. It was still steaming as he pulled it free of the oven.

She stiffened at the scent, clenching her fists. “Hmmmm…. Smells so gooooood….”

The platter was put at the small dining table near the kitchen, at the side where there was no seat, specifically for the snek in the room. “Mine still needs a few more minutes before it’s done,” Command said, turning back to the oven and sighing. The price he paid for fully cooked meat.

She slithered over and settled herself down in front of the plate. She inhaled the aroma, giving a little shudder. She cut a slice off and brought it to her lips. The moment it went in her mouth she slumped. “Mmmmmm…….”

The spices that Command had used on the meat weren’t anything complex. At least, to him. The salt and pepper and garlic were common ingredients on Earth. It was how he’d coated the meat in an even rub of the spices, then roasted it slowly, to bring out the most flavor possible. Perfectly spiced and wonderfully savory. She’d be asking him to make it again, that was for sure.

The first bite taken, she proceeded to tear into her meat. Happy snake noises came from the table. By the time Command pulled his own roast out of the oven, the table was a scene of carnage.

“...I guess you liked it?” he offered weakly. “And now you’re messy and have blood all over your shirt and scales.”

“Dammit.” she frowned. “I just put this shirt on.” She huffed. “I’ll go clean up.” She uncoiled and slithered into the bathroom.

“Alternatively, you could keep going around naked~” Command called after her. He smirked mischievously at her indignant sputtering as he began cutting the roast into nice slices. He could easily share his cooking with the rest of the apartment, and had little doubt they’d all accept.

“But I’m self conscious now.” Came the muffled reply from the bathroom.

“And you weren’t when you were basically, what, trying to seduce me by coiling your naked self all around me?” Command countered. “You were pretty confident then.”

Zossi’s head popped out. “Well… yeah… I wasn’t actively thinking about it.” She said, slowly slithering out, now shirtless.

“Okay, how about this to help you think about it in a positive light,” Command looked up from where he was cutting the meat. “I’m not going to jump in line to test this serum they’re working on. I’ll wait until it’s 100% safe and compatible with humans, and even then, I’ll ask you your opinion first. But the fact that I’m even considering it should tell you what you mean to me.”

She slithered over to him, only for the front door to open.

“Hey I sm-” Wallflower froze.

Zossi froze.

Command kept cooking.

Wallflower turned a shade of pink. “Sorry!”

The front door slammed.

The bathroom door slammed.

Command kept cooking.

A voice whined from the bathroom.

“Fuck that for awhile!”

003 - Testing boundaries

It was all set up to be a lazy day at home. Command had plenty of groceries to last for a few days, at least. The only major thing that was scheduled to happen was the building inspectors that Sunset had said would come to make sure the building was still livable. Or at the very least, to take note of the problems that had been left to fester under the old landlord’s leadership. The various tenants had all written up a list of the things that were wrong (For Command, it was mostly about the lack of heating and the window that wouldn’t open) and Wallflower had compiled them into a nice folder.

So, Command thought he could get away with just a day to relax in front of his computer.

“What’s your plan today?” Zossi asked, resting her chin on her crossed arms as she peered at him from the bed.

“Just a day to relax and game for fun,” Command replied evenly. “Something to distract me while we wait for the inspectors Sunny promised.”

“And how do you want to distract yourself?” She propped her chin up on her palms while she shifted to rest on her elbows. He got a great view of her cleavage from within her shirt.

“Well I did manage to get ahold of some classic games, I was gonna set up a server and watch everyone who knows the IP react to the idea of there being servers for them again,” Command posed.

“Like what?” She smiled, flicking the tip of her tail back and forth.

“Oh, you know, the game that never truly dies, Minecraft,” Command quipped. “There’s always the data to run it somewhere.” A few keystrokes and the computer whirred a little louder. “That’s reasonable,” he nodded. “Server running, now to send out the announcement to the rest that it’s actually up and watch the fireworks.”

“So, you’re just letting people have at the server with no moderators or anything?” She blinked.

“I mean, I put myself as an admin, and I have the tools to discipline people right here with the console,” the human explained. “Plus I put up spawn protection of about five chunks around spawn, so people can’t just put lava on the ground and kill a new player over and over.”

“Well that’s good.” She peered at the computer screen. “Have anybody yet?”

“Nah, then again, it might take them a bit to download the client. It took me forever to find a site with the game on it,” Command replied. “It’s why I pointed out where I found it with the announcement.”

“Oh.” She hummed. “Anything pre-built?”

“Naaah, that’d remove the challenge,” Command shrugged. “I mean, at last update, the Nether had just gotten harder, and frankly I think everyone wants to explore that legit.”

“Interesting. Just spawn in and have nothing but your own knowledge and skills.” She nodded with an excited grin.

“Yeah, and all the old wikis are gone, so nobody knows anything concrete anymore about the trickery that used to be possible,” Command pointed out. “Heck, I don’t think anyone knows for sure where the new stuff was supposed to spawn or how to best interact with the mobs they added.”

“You’re just gonna watch?” She asked, tilting her head to the side. “Are you gonna build anything?”

“I’d like to see what sort of server this turns into first,” Command explained. “I’d like to be as hands off as possible unless I’m needed.”

“So, while it gets populated… What’s the plan?” The snake flopped onto the bed again.

“Idunno, I was just gonna watch to see what happened,” Command admitted, leaning back in his chair

“Well, don’t let me distract you.” She rolled onto her back.

“I’ll probably just play a non-intensive game while I wait,” Command agreed. “I mean, I hear tales of the old servers and how wholesome they were. Maybe we’ll see a revival.”

“Or it could be total anarchy.” She snorted. “Meanwhile, what are you going to play to pass the time?”

“Probably some simulated Animal Crossing,” Command noted, clicking over to his other screen and booting up an emulator. “I’ve heard it’s a wholesome time-sink.”

“And what’s that about?” She asked.

“I think the latest version was...start on a small island, and through time and hard work, turn it into a village of your dreams,” Command mused. “It’s a real-time life simulator. Time moves in the game like it does out here, not everything is available all the time. And broadly, one of the goals is to ‘collect’ one specimen of every bug and fish for the museum, as well as all the art and fossils. But you could also just make a project of making the nicest town, breeding cool flowers...it’s very much ‘what would you do if you had absolute power’ the game.”

“Huh. Interesting.” Zossi blinked and rolled back over onto her stomach.

“Yup. The characters are cute, the furniture is realistic-looking, and the bugs and fish are hyper-realistic looking,” Command agreed, as the signature music started playing. “A little off-putting, but it’s fun and overall a cute way to sink a few hours of your day into doing something.”

“That’s good.” She said with a sigh. “Maybe I should finally get a laptop or something. Laying here is only so fun when I’m not tired.”

“I mean, what do you want to do?” the human looked over at the snek from his chair, with an eyebrow raised. “We can’t go much of anywhere until after the inspector’s paid his visit.”

She shrugged. “Want a blowjob?” She stayed deadpan, then burst into a fit of giggles.

Command snerked in unity with her, chuckling a little. “I mean, if that was a serious offer, I wouldn’t say no,” he eventually said. “But...something tells me by the way we’re both giggling, it wasn’t.”

“Oh I may be able to unhinge my jaw, but I am in no way prepared for that.” She shook her head. “Maybe someday?” She shrugged.

“Entirely up to you, I’m not about to push the oh-so-dangerous snek lady into a physical relationship before she’s ready,” Command teased. “You might coil me so tight and never let me go~”

Her face flushing. “I-I’d prefer not squeezing you to death.”

“It was just a joke, love,” Command sighed. “I know you can control yourself better than that.” He picked up a nearby tablet and tossed it so it landed near her on the bed. “You can use that at least, I charged it last night and it’s plugged into the wi-fi.”

“Oooooo!” The viper pounced on the tablet. She grinned then blinked. “Have you used this recently?”

“The most use I get out of it is as a notepad for when I go shopping to remind me of what I need to buy,” the human replied. “I’ve got two screens at home for gaming, I mostly use it as a notepad and alarm clock, but it’s fully functional.”

“Good to know.” She nodded. She paused again. “I have no idea what to look for now that I have access to the internet.”

“And thus the most wholesome person online was discovered,” Command intoned in a sollem voice.

“I’m not looking up… stuff like that. Not when you’re awake and right there and…” She flushed and pouted.

“Okay, first of all, you do realize that I can’t see over your shoulder, and that it has an earbud jack, right?” Command pointed out. “Heck, it comes with a few built in in a compartment case you want privacy while browsing things with audio. And secondly, nobody said you had to, but the fact that your mind jumped there…”

“Shut up.” She puffed her cheeks out and glared at him.

“Plus there are things that aren’t videos on there,” Command continued. “Honestly, it’s like you assumed I was watching your every step.”

“I’m distracted, okay?” She huffed. “I’m just gonna... find something to distract me from my distraction.” She tapped away at the tablet.

“Fair enough, I’m just gonna chill with some wholesome town game,” Command teased back.

“Enjoy your town game.” She said with a small sigh.

Most of the afternoon was rather quiet and lazy. Not bad for either of them.

“I found a chatroom of other vipers.” Zossi announced.

“Good for you,” Command noted out loud. “All the companionship of talking with your fellow Viper without trying to get their scent off of me.”

“Yeah… that.” She said looking at the screen.

You two are all alone.

Just have at him. He won’t mind.

He probably enjoys getting wrapped up.

She was back to blushing.

“Enjoying the conversation?” Command posed, noting a lull in her typing on the tablet’s screen.

Her head snapped up. “Yep! Yes! This is all very wonderful!”

“Oh good, maybe I’ll get you your own tablet then,” Command smiled. “It’d be nice if you didn’t just have to borrow mine.”

“I’d appreciate that.” She nodded. “Though I might also want to get back to job hunting.”

“Just as long as you run them past me before you go to an interview,” Command warned. “I mean I won’t say no to you getting a job, but...I think you might need to be more educated about Earth culture before you try taking some of the jobs out there.”

“Absolutely.” She nodded. “Though, why do you say no to exotic dancing?” She blinked at him.

“It wasn’t just the dancing,” Command pointed out. “I looked up where you said you got the offer from, and that’s the lightest thing they do there. The pole-dancing was just the tip that I needed to look into it. Let’s just say the girls there tend to walk away with more than money as a tip.”

“Ooooooo…..” The viper winced. “I see…”

“I mean if you want to try, we can try getting a pole installed in here and-” Command started to tease.

“No! No! Definitely not!” Her face flushed further as her hood poofed out.

“Thought so,” Command agreed. “Well, I’ll be sure to curate any jobs you look at to make sure you’re not doing something you’d regret.”

“I’d actually appreciate that.” She nodded, settling back down to the bed again. Her face scrunched up briefly only for it to go bright pink again. Her eyes widened as she stared at the tablet. She occasionally glanced up at Command, then back to the tablet.

The human tapped away at his computer, humming to himself. He wasn’t paying attention to her, he was playing that island maintenance game.

She chewed her lip then quietly sat up to tug her t-shirt off. She quietly slithered up behind him and pressed her venom sacks against him. Specifically, pressing the back of his head between them as they rested on his shoulders.

“Mmmph?” Command looked to the left and right and chuckled. “Ah. I see Confident Zossi has come out to play,” he noted, somewhat muffled by the flesh around his head. “Hello to you too love.”

“They said that guys like to push their face between them.” She said aloud, her face still burning.

“Ah, well, yes, some males do like to do that,” Command agreed. “I think the important thing is that you’re comfortable doing it though,” he countered. “It’s okay to step outside your comfort zone a little, try new things, but don’t force yourself into doing something you don’t wholly want to do.”

“I mean, I don’t really get how they could be attractive, but… I guess there’s something oddly satisfying about it?” She said with a hum, resting her chin on the top of his head.

“I like to think of my goals with you as a person as twofold,” Command noted. “One, help you achieve your goals of getting gainful employment and being seen as a useful member of society. And two, get you to being a more confident Viper on a regular basis.” He looked up at the snek resting her head on his. “Sort of like this,” he agreed. “But more...you telling me what you want, so I can act on that information.”

“Isn’t the term baby steps?” She asked.

“Hey, people aren’t some kit you assemble out of a box,” Command teased. “You can go as fast or as slow as you feel like you need to. I’ll follow along and tell you if it’s too fast for my liking.”

“Okay.” She said sheepishly. “I’m… gonna go put my shirt back on…”

“Do you have to?” Command asked. “I kinda like the idea that you’re comfortable enough around me to try seducing me again. Plus, you’re just sexy to look at.”

She blinked. “I am?”

The human saved the game he was playing, before turning his chair around and hugging the Viper’s upper body close to his chest. “Honestly,” he admitted, rubbing his hands over her back and drinking in her form with his eyes. “I have trouble not stroking your scales and telling you how beautiful and sexy you are sometimes.”

“Really?” She relaxed against him. “Tell me more.”

“Your scale pattern is soothing to the eyes, your voice relaxes the ears, and cuddling up against you after a long day of dealing with idiots online heals my soul in ways I wasn’t sure it was injured in,” Command answered, piling the praise on like maple syrup on pancakes. “Honestly, you’re the best thing to happen to me, and I’m grateful for every day you decide to spend with me.”

“Oh… wow…” She said quietly.

“Mhm.” The human leaned forward and kissed one of her cheeks, softly. “Honestly,” he said, “The only reason I keep my hands to myself is because I don’t want to come off as pushy to the best bed-mate I’ve had.”

“Well….I wouldn’t mind… if you got a little handsy… sometimes.” She then immediately buried her face into his shoulder.

“How about,” Command said, reaching down and taking one of her hands delicately, and then he placed his wrist in her grip. “You show me where I can touch?”

“Ok-”

The front door knocked.

“.... Later.” She sighed as she pulled away and slithered over to the bed to tug her shirt back on.

“-So really,” Command was saying to the building inspector, who had only gotten to the second floor after an hour of dealing with the first-floor tenants. “The main issues we’re having in the building are twofold. While Zossi really doesn’t mind the heat in the summer-”

Command indicated the Viper, who waved shyly.

“-I would at least like the ability to open the window and maybe put in an AC unit that blows onto my desk so I don’t cook. And conversely, there’s no working heating system for when sudden cold snaps come in,” the human in the room finished summing up the issues they’d been noting with the apartment building.

The thin, pale-gray-skinned “man” with large, solid-black eyes nodded as he wrote on a clipboard. He wore a white button down shirt and jeans and nodded along as Command spoke. “Okay. Mind if I take a quick look in the bathroom to see the conditions in there?”

“That’s fine,” Command agreed, stepping to one side. “The only other real issue we’re having we can talk about when you come back out, though I have my doubts about you being able to help with it.” He hummed to himself as the Sectoid walked through the door to the bathroom. “I think I’ve been doing good on keeping the mold growth down…”

The bathroom light was flicked on. “Well depends on if you're referring to wanting to bang your snake friend over there, see how much a hitman is worth for taking out some bitchy roommates, or trying to distract me by thinking about cats.” The sectoid’s head popped out of the bathroom for a moment and he just tapped his temple with a small smile, before ducking back in. “And, baring a little mildew spray, everything looks pretty good.”

“Thank you, and to address your points in order of importance,” Command said as the ‘man’ walked back out of the bathroom. “I’m letting her make the first moves, even if I am incredibly attracted to her, because I’m trying to prove chivalry isn’t dead while I build up her confidence in herself, should I get tested for Psi potential to try and keep my thoughts private, and honestly, you can’t tell me you weren’t thinking of doing the same in the first minute upon meeting the majority of the trio.”

“Pffft.” The inspector snorted as he came back out, scribbling on his clipboard. “I just filtered what they needed through her bitching, beyond that I just played minesweeper.”

“Fair, wish I could do that,” Command answered with a nod. “No, the other issue is...Zossi’s kinda feeling lonely as the only extra-terrestrial in the building, and also as the only second-floor tenant with me. But it’s not your job to solve either of those issues, soooo…”

“Ooooo, that.” He nodded. “Well I am looking for a smaller place, myself.” He mused aloud. “Never really liked the fancy, expensive highrises, feels like a bit too much. To be honest, and I hope I don’t offend, but slumming it sounds kind of nice. Keep things simple.”

“I mean, there’s a reason I live here,” Command agreed. “It was about what I feel comfortable with, even if there was a scumbag taking most of the money we got for housing Zossi. Without that, we could have probably moved up, but eh...this is comfy. We don’t have to worry about maintaining much of anything on our own, we bring issues up with someone whose job it is to make sure we’re alright in exchange for a flat rent rate.” The human blinked a few times as he considered a few facts. “Actually...the quality of service started to go downhill after Zossi moved in…”

“That would be when he started skimping money.” The inspector nodded. “Oh, and if you need anything else, I’m also a contractor. If this place needs a bit more work done, here.” He held out his card. Simon Jones was the name on the card.

“Well, I wouldn’t know about the condition of the other rooms on this level,” Command noted, even as he tucked the card away in a pocket for later. “So you may want to give them a look while you’re here. I don’t think there’s been enough people here for them to be occupied in at least a year.”

“That’s concerning.” He deadpanned. “Well, I’ll go take a look at them before checking with the other two ladies downstairs.”

“Thanks for doing this for us,” Command said with a genuine smile, even going so far as to shake Simon’s hand before he left. “Honestly, I’m seeing more good in you than my landlord showed once Zossi was placed with me.”

“You’re quite welcome, Commander.” He said with a chuckle. “Happy to help.”

Once the sectoid had left, Command sighed and sat back in his chair in front of his desk, rotating around to look at Zossi. “So,” he said in a conversational tone. “Now that we have some breathing room in the budget, I was thinking I could go out and get psi-tested. I hear they’ve worked out how to get it done in an hour these days.”

“Oh, that would be something.” Zossi blinked, as she returned to her spot on the couch.

“Mhm, but not everyone who gets tested is positive, you know, so it might be a lot of money blown on a negative result,” the human pointed out. “Still, it’s something all humans should do at least once in their lifetimes.” He shrugged. “Just never saw the need before now.” Especially if we end up with Simon as a housemate, he thought to himself.

“Well, now that we have money to actually spend, you could.” The viper nodded.

“You sure you’d be okay by yourself for an hour?” Command raised an eyebrow. “Not going to apply for a job without me, are you?”

“No, no, I’ll just browse the web for stuff.” Zossi shrugged.

“Okay, see you in a bit then,” Command said, heaving himself out of his chair and grabbing his wallet. He walked over to the couch and gave the Viper a quick hug and a peck on her cheek, before heading out the door.

Turned out that the only place he had to go was the hospital. There was a simple test that you had to go through, then you’d receive your results in a couple of days. So that’s exactly where Command found himself.

The human receptionist looked up as he stepped up to the desk. “Hi there, what can I help you with?”

“Hi, yes, I’ve recently come into a bit of money,” Command explained, “And I looked for my closest Psi-testing facility. Turns out it was here, and that you took walk-ins, at least, according to the site.”

She smiled. “Yes, that’s on the second floor, number’s two-thirty. All you’ll need is a copy of your insurance card and your ID. If insurance doesn’t cover it, then you’ll have to pay, if they do, then it’s just a co-pay.”

“Ah, well, I never really inquired before, so I guess it’ll be a learning experience for everyone,” Command joked. “Wasn’t curious before, didn’t have money, then I was curious but still had no money.”

“Well do you have insurance?” She asked with a giggle.

“Yeah, I have a card in my wallet, do I show it to you, or…” Command asked, pulling out a slim fabric wallet from his pants pocket.

“No need.” She shook her head. “Just head upstairs and talk to the desk in their ward.”

“Ah, easy enough,” Command nodded, putting the wallet back away and tipping an imaginary hat at the woman. “Thank you for the directions, ma’am.”

“You’re welcome.” She nodded back at him. Command smiled at her as he went up the nearest set of stairs, following the signs until he found the Psi testing ward. He opened the door and knocked on it a few times as he peeked his head in, to get a view of what he was getting himself into.

It was…. A reception area. Complete with carpeted floors, an array of chairs and tables, complete with various magazines, and a long counter with a spot for two computers along the left side of the room (however only one was occupied). A Sectoid sat at the computer nearest the door and was on the phone with someone as he looked at his computer. There was a single hallway beyond the reception counter. As Command approached, the receptionist smiled and held up a finger to wait.

Ah, yeah. Psychic. The human nodded once and stood back, humming to himself as he waited for the Sectoid to finish his call. He probably knew exactly why Command was here. Heck, considering he worked behind the desk, he also probably knew if his insurance would be accepted or not.

The receptionist finished up his conversation, hung up the phone and started to type away at the keyboard. “Mister Line, it’ll be a few minutes but can I get your card and ID?” He asked looking up at the man.

“Yeah, not a problem,” Command said, walking up and pulling out his wallet. “Insurance card, government issued ID, here you are.” He put them next to one another on the counter and slid them a little closer to the receptionist.

They were taken and the receptionist took them to make a copy. He then gave them back. “It’ll be a few minutes. And that’ll also be a two dollar co-pay.”

“Fair enough,” Command smiled and slid his card through the reader. It dinged approved. He smiled at the receptionist.

“I’ll just wait over there,” He nodded, heading over to the chairs and picking up a likely-looking magazine. Hmm, ten facts about each extraterrestrial you didn’t know before. Could be a good laugh, if nothing else.

It was quiet for a few minutes. There were a couple other people who came in after him. A nurse in scrubs came out. A woman with yellow skin and a mane of pink hair. Her soft voice still carried throughout the room. “Command Line?”

“That’s me,” Command nodded, getting up and putting his magazine down. “My turn then?” he asked, tilting his head slightly as he did.

“Yep, I’m Fluttershy, I’ll be the nurse in charge of your examination.” She gestured at a small platform next to her. “First, your weight. Would you please step on the scale here?”

Command nodded as he stepped past the double doors keeping the waiting room separate from the proper ward. “Shoes on or off?” he asked, standing in front of the scale.

“Doesn’t matter.” She smiled as she pushed a button. “And… one-hundred and thirty.” She gestured down the hallway. “It’ll be the first room on your right.”

“Thank you,” Command nodded, heading to the indicated doorway. Huh. It looked like a standard doctor’s waiting room. He wasn’t unused to these. He found the bench and sat on it, waiting for his turn with the doctor.

Nurse Fluttershy input a few things at her laptop. “And you’re here for just a Psy test today?”

“That’s the idea, yes,” Command agreed. “Just to see if I’m sensitive to it or not.”

“That should be easy.” She nodded. “Doctor Echo should be a couple minutes.”

“Yeah, the healthcare system is still all about ‘hurry up and wait,’” Command quipped with a joking smile. “Ah well, I guess not even extraterrestrials can help us untangle bureaucracy.”

“He’s actually in another appointment.” Fluttershy giggled. “But I understand what you mean.”

“Yeah, I’ll just have to be sure not to make those jokes to the actual doctor,” Command smirked. “Anyways, thanks for your work here, ma’am.”

“Thanks. That means a lot.” She said softly, with a small blush.

“I’m well aware that when a patient is sick or needs attention quickly, when a monitor starts behaving erratically, the nurses are the front of the line in diagnosing and treating problems,” Command answered seriously. “You’re braver than you know.”

“I’m just here to help people.” She said with a nod.

“And I’m sure you’ve saved quite a few with some quick thinking,” Command smiled at her. “Hopefully, and I hope you don’t mind me saying this, I won’t need any help for this beyond what the doctor has to do for the procedure.”

“It’s pretty simple. Just lay in a machine for a little while while your brain gets scanned.” She shook her head. “It’s basically an MRI.”

“Ah, well, hopefully I don’t fall asleep,” Command teased.

“Trust me, you won’t.” She giggled.

A sectoid in a long white doctor’s coat walked in. “That’s another one down, and… Mister Line, I guess you’re next.” He smiled looking over the laptop that Fluttershy had passed him.

“I rather hope so, otherwise I’d be paying a lot of money for a nice conversation with a lovely nurse,” Command joked. “I hear it’s cheaper in the red light district, but they’re probably not medical professionals.”

“Either way, it’s less expensive than a therapist.” The doctor chuckled. “Right this way Mister Line.” He gestured at Command to follow him. “I’m Doctor Smith. And this shouldn’t take all that long.”

The human got up and followed after the Sectoid as he was led to the exam room. Said “exam room” was a counter and computer on one side of a window and a large tube-like machine on the other side of the glass. A door separated the two rooms. The doctor led Command over to the machine. “Go ahead and have a lay down there.” He gestured to the machine.

Command sat on the stretcher-like protrusion from the machine, before hoisting his legs up and turning so that he was laying flat on the flat surface in one smooth motion. “I get a lot of practice in getting quickly to bed,” he explained. “If I want to get in on my own, I have about five seconds before my Viper roommate coils around me for warmth and drags me in anyways.”

“Oh, lucky man.” Doctor Smith chuckled as he walked back into the adjacent room and sat at the computer. There was a click and the doctor’s voice came out of a speaker on the wall. “Now, this is going to be loud.”

And it was. The machine gave a very loud hum as it started and Command was drawn into the tube. There wasn’t much to do beyond wait.

“Now you might get a slight headache. That’s normal.” Could be barely heard over the humming.

“That’s kinda the reason we’re here,” Command agreed, wincing at the noise and sudden pain. “Now that you mention it, it’s kinda like a caffeine withdrawal headache…”

“That sounds like what everyone says.”

“You’ve never seen me make coffee,” Command joked. “Otherwise you might be worried.”

“Lemme guess. Black tar?”

“Worse,” the human answered. “Found some old recipes stashed on a thumb drive, labeled ‘do not let into the hands of starbucks,’ and I work sometimes late into the night on my computer, so…” He chuckled. “One’s called ‘Hellbrew.’ It involves making coffee with coffee as the base ingredient a fair few times.”

“Might need to snag some of those for a few coworkers. And, scan’s just about done, just another minute.”

“There’s an improved version,” Command noted. “Sadly, it’s impossible to do these days, at least according to the recipe. It’s called a ‘Nirvana’, and it has all the power of the Hellbrew but none of the taste. Whoever made it used like five different flavors to mask the taste of the coffee entirely, and two of them don’t exist anymore.”

“Damn Advent. Ah well.”

The machine stopped humming and Command was slid out of the tube. Doctor Smith walked in as Command sat up. “So, it’ll take a couple days to get the results. Looking at brainwaves is a bit of a tricky business.”

“I get it,” Command chuckled. “The old saying was ‘it’s not rocket science,’ but honestly, I’d like to add ‘it’s not psionics’ to the list of sayings. I don’t fancy the idea of having your job.”

“It’s not a turmur.” Doctor Smith did a passable impression of The Govenator. He chuckled. “You’re good to go by the way, all the work is on our side.”

“Ah, thanks very much, and if you shoot me a message later I’ll try to send you the recipes I have recovered,” Command said. “Maybe we can work out a replacement for the things that aren’t around anymore.”

“Well take my card.” Doctor Smith fished a card out of his pocket and held it out. “It has my email.”

“Ah, thanks,” Command nodded, putting the card in the pocket with his wallet. “I’ll be sure to use it when I get home. And thanks again for doing this.”

“Of course.” Doctor Smith nodded. “Thanks for coming in.”

“And so I put his head between my venom sacks.” Zossi said aloud, as she wrote her message into the chatroom.

Oh I bet he loved that.

I don’t get why human males like them so much.

Yeah, they kinda carry deadly poison.

Most humans have a thing for them on their own females, so it’s kinda natural.

“Well, he liked it.” Zossi flushed, cuddling into her blanket in front of the heater.

I’m sure he did.

So what happened next?

“Well… He gave me a lot of compliments. I didn’t think he thought I was that attractive. But I guess I was wrong.”

Viper, you need to surprise him when he gets home.

“Oh, I don’t know…”

Sweetie, he’ll love whatever you end up doing. I’m sure he’s just happy to have you in his life. My partner says that to me all the time.

I kinda feel bad for earth women, what with all these ‘alien waifus’ being real.

Honey, if women want dick, they get a muton.

Damn straight!

Hey Zos, how big is he?

Zossi eeped aloud. “I have no idea!”

Come on, you haven’t peeked?

You must have once.

“I’m polite.”

Says the viper who goes around naked.

How long did it take him to find out that it’s not a ‘cultural thing?’

“Not long…” Zossi pouted. “He lets me keep doing it though.”

Viper, marry him.

He’s a catch.

Show him how much you appreciate him.

“I’d die of embarrassment first.”

Zos, seriously, just spin his little rolley chair around, unhinge your jaw, and blow his mind by making him fuck your throat.

Holy shit! Tone it down a little.

That’s hot.

“Eh….” Zossi’s finger pressed down on ‘e’ a few too many times.

I think you broke her.

She’s so innocent! It’s adorable!

Zossi shook herself. “I can be naughty!”

Naughty… Oh you sweet summer child.

Somebody’s been reading some old earth literature.

Sad the series never got finished.

Getting off topic.

“It’s fine.” Zossi sighed. “Vipers, I might go and calm down by… looking up cat videos or something.”

Or something.

Behave you.

“Bye.” She rolled her eyes and logged off. No, what to do with her time. She didn’t know how long Command would be gone for.

A thought crossed her mind.

A naughty thought…

She bit her lip.

The front door opened, and Command sighed as he walked into the apartment. “Well, that was painless, aside from the head...ache…”

The reason he trailed off was obvious as he looked up and into the apartment itself.

Zossi’s face was flushed as her eyes were glued to the tablet. She was covered mostly in the blanket but he could definitely see movement inside it. There were… rather lewd noises coming from the tablet itself. Zossi gave a whine and looked over as if just noticing him.

She froze.

The tablet clattered to the floor as the viper disappeared under the couch.

“I’msorryI’msorryI’msorry!”

O...kay. First thing to do, figure out what she had been doing that caused her to bolt.

So naturally, Command picked up the tablet and looked at it. That was some... rather graphic human on viper action.

Okay. So was she apologizing for watching porn on his tablet, or...something else? First thing to do, close the video. A quick tap on the tablet saw to that. Second…

Command knelt down by the couch, not reaching under it. He knew better than to put a hand in the viper’s hidey hole. “Hey. Hey, Zossi. I’m not mad,” he soothed. “I just have...questions. Did you think I would be mad at you? I could never be mad at you, beautiful.”

“Sorry… I panicked.” Came the reply from under the couch. “I know watching isn’t bad, but you caught me…..”

Okay, that answered one question and made another the obvious one to ask. “Zossi...were you pretending that was you in the video? Is that why you thought I’d be mad?” Command tried to ask in as non-threatening a voice as possible.

“... Maybe.”

“......You know, if you want to try some of that later, I wouldn’t tell you no~” Command teased. The surest way to get her out was to make a ridiculous statement that she had no choice but to respond to. It also helped that he was telling the truth.

“Really?”

“Well it’d be hard to do any of that with you under the couch,” the human pointed out. He got up and stretched a little, before putting the tablet back on the couch, next to the blanket. “I’ll be in my chair, I’ve got an email to send real fast. You can go back to watching your totally-not-a-substitute relationship.”

The viper slowly slithered out from under the couch and plopped herself onto it. “I’m tempted, but I’m also nervous and embarrassed… So I’m torn.” She glanced at the tablet.

“Tell you what,” Command said, spinning in his chair so he faced the couch. “I’ll give you a kiss. One free kiss, on the mouth. And if that doesn’t help calm your nerves, fine. But if you choose to do more, that’s your choice.” He smiled. “I’ll just be the gleeful enabler.”

Zossi blinked, then her face flushed. She held out her arms. “‘Mere.”

Command got up and walked over to the couch, hugging the Viper close to him for a moment, just reveling in the hug. Eventually he pulled his head back and gave Zossi that kiss, his warm lips meeting her scaly ones. She melted against him, humming into his lips. Command ran his hands over her back, just soothing her with his touch as he held the kiss for as long as possible.

Eventually, Zossi had to break away, gasping for breath. She met Command’s eyes. “Wow… That…. That was… wow...”

“Mhm,” Command agreed, peppering her neck with a few kisses as well. What? She was this close, he wasn’t going to waste the chance to help her over her nervousness.

She immediately relaxed against the back of the couch. “Ohhh…. That’s nice... Just, keep doing that…”

Command didn’t let up for a moment, moving his hands around to massage the Viper’s front as he kept kissing her scales. He’d relax his roommate if it was the last thing he did. He also knew the large protrusions on her front were venom sacs, and thus felt nothing...so he didn’t pay much attention to them. Instead his hands traced along the inside of her hood while his kisses teased her collarbone.

Zossi whined a little. Her hood fluttered a little at the contact. “Commander…”

“Yes?” the human asked, pulling up and giving her a cocky smirk. “Is my sexy snek in need of something? Maybe she should take it~”

“I-I want you to-”

The door knocked.

Zossi blinked. Suddenly she frowned darkly. “Hold on.”

She got up and slithered over to the door and opened it.

“Wallflower, sweetie, I know you’re a worry wart, and I love you for that.” Zossi said sweetly. “But now is not the time.” The viper then shut the door and turned back to Command. There was a hungry look in her eye.

“...Zossi?” Command ventured. “You...okay there?”

She leapt on him.

004 - Inter-species relations

Author's Note

Kinks: Cluddleslut, massaging scales, licking a snek, A very long tongue, dirty talk, love making.

004 - Inter-species relations

Zossi pinned her human to the bed, staring into his eyes. Only to pull away. “Sorry I needed to get that out of my system. Would you mind continuing where you left off, since Wallflower’s gone?”

“Oh...sure. Just come down here,” Command said, waving his hands up at her hood.

She lowered herself down on top of him. Then booped the tip of his nose with her tongue. “Better?”

By way of reply, Command’s hands came up to either side of her hood and started to stroke along the inside of it, framing her face with care and attention. She grew this dopey, happy grin as she pressed her head into his hands.

Command used this to pull her face closer to his and meshed his lips with hers again, letting their bodies touch as close as they had been once more. Mmm...he rather enjoyed this side of her. The side that wasn’t afraid to seek comfort in his arms.

She pulled away for a moment, only to close her hood and tug her t-shirt up and off. Once done, she dropped it onto the floor and returned her head to his hands.

“You,” Command said, before peppering a few quick kisses onto her lips. “Are such a cuddleslut,” he eventually finished.

“Would you prefer I was just a slut?” She giggled cutely.

“I mean, not really, because then I wouldn’t have you all to myself for when you’re cute like that, or sexy like this,” Command returned, stroking one hand all the way up and down the inside of her hood and reveling in the little thrill it sent through her body.

“You think I’m sexy?” She asked with a contented hum. “Am I not the only one who’s looked up vipers and humans?”

“Ah, but see, you looked up videos,” Command pointed out. “I looked up just the raw data. So, for example, I know not to massage your venom sacs, because you don’t really feel it like a human would. But I can just keep...touching you…” Command teased, his hands going to her back and stroking up and down her body.

“Want to get your cuddleslut off by just touching her hood?” Zossi asked in a half-moan, half-sigh.

“Well, see, I could do that,” the human seemed to consider it. “Or...I could give your whole body a massage. From tail tip to hood, just stroking over your scales...I know you like being touched in general.”

“Ooooh…. Yes please…” She gave a happy hum as she nuzzled his hand.

“Well then, let me onto your back real fast,” Command suggested. “You’re...kinda on top here. I have an idea.”

She got up off him and sat up, allowing him up before she laid down and looked up at him.

“Shh, just look ahead,” Command suggested, straddling her back and massaging the serpent’s scales gently.

She nodded, then laid her head down and closed her eyes. Slowly, his hands trailed over her scales, not stopping at the back and even occasionally reaching under and around to her front. He spent plenty of time on each segment of her body, touching, massaging...just trying to make her feel good and squirm from his fingers alone.

So lost in pleasure was she that she almost didn’t notice the slight sound of cloth hitting the ground nearby.

“Mmmmm… don’t stop…” She murmured. “It’s so nice…”

Eventually the only thing left was the tip of her tail, and Command’s approach to that was...unorthodox.

There was a moment where nothing happened, then Zossi felt her tail being picked up and-

And suddenly it was somewhere warm and moist and was that his tongue, was he suckling on her tail-

She gasped for half a second then moaned. Her hips rolled slowly into the couch.

Command pulled the tail tip out of his mouth and licked it, long and slow. “I take it you like?” he teased the snek.

“Where’d you learn to suck like that?” She teased back, opening her eyes and looking back at him.

Huh. He’d lost his shirt sometime between when he’d gotten onto her back and now. He wasn’t massively muscled, but he also wasn’t fat. Must’ve been the result of going to that gym every so often. Made him nice and lean.

“For your information, there’s a lady who knows how to make popsicles, she has a cart in the summer weather, and the best way to enjoy them is to suckle on them,” Command replied easily. He stuck her tail tip back in his mouth and ohbytheancestors-

She gave a throaty moan as her tongue lolled out of her mouth. “Ahhh… Sh-should I return the favor?”

Command teased her tail with his tongue a few times before pulling it out. “I’m just doing this to make my sexy snek feel sexy,” he pointed out. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t feel up to.”

“Well didn’t we agree on being a little handsy?” She asked, biting her lips and meeting his eyes.

“Well, you haven’t stopped me from doing this,” he held up her tail tip with one hand, “yet, so I assume you’re comfortable with me doing things to you, at least to this point. So...it’s up to you how far you want to take thi-”

She rolled over her front half over and ran a hand down her stomach. They reached her waist and pressed down. A pair of fingers spread and revealed her damp pussy.

“...Ah, I guess that answers that question,” Command blushed a little. “Um. While I’m incredibly turned on by the fact that I turned you on,” and he was, she could see it bulging his pants, “I’m trying to let you take the first mo-”

She replied by sitting up and pressed her free hand into his bulge until her fingers wrapped around his shaft through his pants. “Lose ‘em.”

“Yes ma’am,” Command nodded once, sitting back and undoing the button and zipper before kicking his pants clean off. Leaving only his boxers to contain his length from her sight. She hummed, looking at him with lustful, half-lidded eyes. Her fingers traced down his stomach and hooked the waistband of his boxers. With an excited giggle she tugged them down.

Huh. Well, he wasn’t as large as the humans in those videos, but they had prepared her for what a human penis looked like. Then again, maybe they had penis scouts to look for the biggest ones for those videos. The head was just as weird as she’d recalled, but the whole thing snapped up and to attention the moment she’d freed it from its cloth prison. He’d not been lying about being ready for her.

She hummed and narrowed her eyes at it. She leaned in, lightly wrapped a hand around his shaft, then… she kissed the tip.

Command let out a gasp at that, then smirked as well, before bringing the tip of her tail back to his mouth and licking it with his tongue.

She gave a husky chuckle, opened her mouth and slid the fork of her tongue up his shaft. He retaliated by sticking the entire tip of her tail in his mouth and teasing it with both his tongue and some suction, to really send pleasure all the way up her spine. Her entire tail shuddered. With a moan, she started to slowly wrap her tongue around his shaft.

Command blinked. Somehow, he’d forgotten that she had a lot more tongue than he did. Still, he used his hands to tease the end of her tail. While not as sensitive as the rest of it, it would still help and- nope, that was his whole cock encased. In tongue. Someone had either been practicing or watching too many videos.

Her mouth slowly closed as she kept her tongue wrapped around his shaft. She moaned, sending vibrations through his shaft, as she started to slowly stroke his whole length with her tongue.

“Fuuu-” Command hissed, letting her tail free of his mouth. “Okay. Okay, I think I need to do something a bit more...physical than playing with your tail, love.” He looked Zossi over, then gestured with one hand while exercising his self control to the utmost. He didn’t want her to think he couldn’t take what she could dish out. “B-Bring your hips over here, let me repay the favor,” he asked.

Zossi glanced at him, smiled around his shaft, and slowly shifted her hips closer to him. Though as she did, she gave a light suck at his shaft.

Then Command’s fingers toyed around, and found her soaking lips. There was a moment of hesitation, before he dipped a few fingers into her moist cunt, spreading her with his own flesh and teasing her walls with his exploring fingers.

“Mmmph!” She groaned, squeezing his cock and jerking at it as her head bobbed on him. Command let out his own moan, one hand supporting him as he braced himself on the bed. The other kept figuring out where her inner weak points were in her tunnel, trying to see if there was something he could do to win this battle any faster. It wasn’t looking likely, another minute of the snake-wrapping treatment and he’d probably…

Her hips bucked into his hand as she unwrapped his shaft and bobbed her head hungrily. “Mmmmph! Mmmmph!” She grunted, wordlessly begging him to finish.

Who was he to deny her what she sought? The poor human used his hand not occupied in teasing the snake to grab onto her head and pull it flush with his groin, before letting loose and cumming into her mouth. His salty, sticky release started to jet into her maw, and Command sighed as he let go at last.

Her head was a haze. She drank down every drop of his seed as her hips bucked wildly into his hand. She was so close. She just needed-

Her lower body was pulled up as Command pulled her lower lips up to his mouth. He gave them a kiss with his mouth...and then started to lick and stick his tongue in to tease her, like she had done with him.

She pulled her head back and cried out. His face was suddenly splattered with liquid snake love.

Huh. Musky. Command licked his lips as he let the limp snake fall onto the bed in a heap. He wasn’t far behind her, falling just to the side. He managed to rotate himself so that he was on his back, and used one hand to stroke along the back of her hood idly.

“...You good?” he asked. “Or did you want more out of this? Cause it might be a minute for me to recharge, even with how sexy you are.”

“Flatterer.” She sighed, shifting to hug him close. “And… I think I’m good for now. It was… an amazing first time.” She giggled, kissing his cheek.

There was a slam of a door downstairs.

Command groaned but a sly, almost wicked smile crossed the viper’s lips. “Hold on…” She murmured into his ear.

There was a knock.

“Enter at your own risk.” Zossi giggled.

The door opened. “Sorry. Sorry. I just heard a- AHHH!” Wallflower screamed as she scrambled back out the door. “Sorry!Sorry!I’lljustleaveyoutwoalone!Neverknockingagain!”

“No! Come back! Bask in our lovemaking!” Zossi called out with a laugh. She sighed. “I’m gonna feel awful about that later, but I’m on my ‘we banged’ high.”

“True to both of those things,” Command agreed. “But, again, feeling your scales on my skin is doing wonders for my boner, so if you want to actually bang, just hug me and give me a minute.”

She shifted him until they were face to face. She kissed his nose then hugged him close to her. His hardening shaft pressed up against her hidden, yet hot and damp core. “How’s that, handsome?”

“Mmm, probably another ten seconds and we’ll get to get some practice for if you ever want me to take the transfusion to be compatible,” Command teased, pecking her cheek in return.

“Oh that’s tempting…” Zossi hummed. “Now…” She leaned in. “Want to punish your naughty subordinante, Commander?” She whispered in his ear.

“I mean I could,” Command agreed. “But I would rather just…” He used one hand and a clever hip motion to draaag his cockhead along her lips. “Tease the naughty Viper with the thought of mating with a male~”

“Oooooo….” She moaned. “What, do you plan on lubing yourself up with my juices?”

“You already did a good job of that,” Command pointed out. “Just tell me you want this, my sexy snek, and I’ll give you all the loving we can both handle.” His head was poised to dive into her tunnel, but the human was restraining himself from giving in. He wanted to hear her ask for it...beg for it.

“Yessss…. Please... I want it…” She gave a small needy pant.

That was all Command needed to hear. One hand went to her hips and helped pull her down, while his hips thrust upwards. In a smooth motion, he impaled his sexy snake lover on his shaft. Their cries of passion were quickly muted when he again pulled the Viper into a kiss, showing her his love and keeping the noise down for the others.

She hummed her need into his lips as her arms squeezed him closer to her chest. Slowly her tail started to coil around the pair of them, until the only thing sticking out of the snake-ball was a pair of feet.

“Guess you’re in charge again,” Command teased, running a hand down the inside of her hood. “So what are you going to do with your captive human, sexy?”

She gave a breathy sigh as her eyes closed. Her hips started to roll into his. She gave out a moan and pressed her hips into him and ground against him.

Then she was pulled into a kiss, and Command started to buck up into her thrusting. Not a whole lot, considering the amount of tail around them, but enough to where she could tell he was trying to drive deeper into her with her motions. He could feel her lips flutter with every thrust.

“This… Is nice…” She gasped out, bucking her hips faster. “Oooooh Commander….”

“I could lie with you like this all day,” Command agreed. “And I would not complain for a second, because it would be time well spent.” He stroked her hood and kissed her cheek again. “Maybe we should do that one day. Just us, fucking all day, nice and slow.”

“Yes… Yes please!” She whined, bucking into him in her need. “I want to be yours!”

“Oh?” Command raised an eyebrow. “How badly do you want this, my sexy, pretty snek?” Maybe he could get her to be a bit more confident if she’d just admit it to him…

“I want it!” She gasped. “I-I- I want to fuck you- w-wanted to fuck you. F-for so long. I-I” She pressed her hips to his as he felt her walls spasm around him. “I love you Commander!” She cried as she climaxed, coating their hips in her love.

Command rode out her orgasm, holding her close and peppering her inner hood with kisses to keep her stimulated. Eventually she came down and realised...he hadn’t finished.

“Second time takes a little longer,” he admitted. “First time is kind of a hair trigger, second time takes work. But that just means I get to cuddle my sexy snek for longer.” He kissed the inside of her hood again and took pleasure in her moaning. “So...sexy snek loves me. Well, I can return the love, of course, but that doesn’t answer the question as to what sexy snek wants out of her Command Line. Does she want someone to fuck, or is she after a...deeper, commited relationship?”

“C-can I answer yes?” She asked. “Both?” She slowly unwrapped the pair of them but left him inside her. “A-also… F-fuck me until you cum Commander.”

“Oh?” Command slowly sat up and held the upper body of the Viper close to him as he reversed their positions from earlier. Now, she was lying under him, and he was looming over her. “I can do that,” he promised. “But, let me ask a question. How soon does my sexy snek want me to take the compatibility serum, once we have a working version?”

“As much as I’d love to lay your eggs.” She said, shuddering as she stared up at him. “Maybe wait for snakelets until we have a firmer relationship… or marriage... Whatever comes first.”

“So, wait until we get to the point where we’re fucking all the time before we try for eggs,” Command teased. “Can do. And speaking of…” He braced himself with his arms on either side of her head and started to piston her cunt with his cock. Back and forth, hard and deep, not letting up for a moment.

Zossi gave a strangled cry. Her hips started to buck again. Her tunnel was pulling at him, milking him, as she came again from the overstimulation.

“...You know, you might have been joking earlier, but I think once we get going you really are a slut,” Command observed. “You love this waaay too much for it to be normal.” He narrowed his gaze at the snake beneath him. “Am I going to wake up with you wrapped around every part of me now?”

“D-depends…” She whined. “A-and I’m y-your s-slut. Y-your sexy s-snake slut.”

“...I won’t be able to answer the door because a naked snake will be wrapped around me at all hours of the day,” Command sighed. “Well...it could be worse,” he admitted. “At least I’ll be fucking you a fair few times each day. And speaking of…” His thrusting took on a new urgency. “Here...I...come, love!”

“Y-yes! Cum inside me! Commander!” She managed to get out through squeals and whines.

Command gave one final thrust and held himself as deep as he could get. She could feel his sticky, hot, warm load painting her insides, leaving a trace as to how much her Commander loved her as far as it could go. He panted a little, holding himself on his arms, before flopping to one side and pulling himself free in the same motion. His warm cum oozing out of her snake slit.

Zossi gave a contented sigh as she melted into the couch. She had the dumbest, happiest grin on her face.

Command Line pulled the Viper close and hugged her upper body close to his, leaving their heads resting on each other’s shoulders. “You,” he managed to say. “Are going to be insatiable. Aren’t you? Now that we’ve fucked once. You’re going to want it again.”

Her head lolled over to look at him properly. “Porn has made your expectations very high. I don’t see myself turning into a dick-hungry viper overnight.”

“I’ll take that bet,” Command teased. “You seemed very into it during the act.”

“Getting into it doesn’t mean I’ll want it all the time.” She giggled and booped his nose with her tongue. “I can get into it and still be a sensible viper.”

“Sure you can,” Command agreed, with a smirk. “But I think we both needed that.”

The viper nodded. “Agreed...”

Command woke up in a haze. Something was missing. Zossi… He patted around. Was not in bed. Then he smelled it. His eyes cracked open. Zossi, was at their tiny stove, and she was cooking breakfast. She was also wearing only an apron. She seemed to be happily humming to herself.

By the smell of things, she was cooking bacon and eggs. Had… Had she ever cooked for him before.

Zossi paused for a moment, seemingly noticed the noises of the shifting sheets. She looked over. “Morning!” She grinned.

“Morning,” Command agreed, sitting up in the bed and stretching. Well, he had his underwear on, that was a start. He got up and cracked his neck. “Gonna shower and all that,” he said. “Unless your breakfast is that close to done, then I might just sit down and eat first.”

At that, she used the spatula and plated something. Which was set on the table. It was… scrambled eggs and bacon, both perfectly done. The juices of the bacon were even dribbling onto the scrambled eggs. “Enjoy.” She said, winking at him, before plating her own food.

Huh, all very wholesome. Well, he could sit and enjoy breakfast. It was a rarity that he didn’t have to cook for them, he’d take it when it showed up. The mostly-naked human sat in the only chair at the table, munching his way through his roommate’s cooking. It was very tasty, very well done. Well...maybe a little too much salt on the eggs, but for the first time he’d had her cooking, it wasn’t that big an error. She must have been educating herself quite a bit when he wasn’t watching.

As she started eating Zossi sighed. “I’m going to get made fun of. I’m gonna turn into a houseviper.”

Command blinked, looking up at the Viper. “Uh, no?” he ventured. “If anything, I’d be the stay-at-home dad of the two of us. My job doesn’t take me out of the house like, ever. Once you do find a job you’re qualified for, I wouldn’t stop you from going for it.”

“Well that makes me feel much better.” The viper smiled. “Though I bet you wouldn’t mind me making breakfast in the morning.”

“Well, it’s very good for a first attempt,” Command praised her. “The only things missing are some toast to tie it together, and maybe a little less salt on the eggs next time.”

“Now I know what to do next time.” She hummed. “Maybe I should download some cookbooks.”

“Make sure they’re modern ones, not ones uploaded to the archive, if you do,” Command warned. “A lot of things aren’t around anymore, so we’ve had to make substitutions.”

“Right. Good point.” She nodded. “You know, cooking was fun. I should do it more.”

“I’d be happy to help you with that,” Command smiled at her. “I mean, it’s your money coming in from the housing check. You can decide how it’s spent, and if you want me to get you ingredients to cook with, I can do that.” He then decided to toss in a playful ribbing. “Just make sure you don’t eat your meal in one bite.”

“I’ll eat you in one bite. Ever see me unhinge my jaw? Imagine that.” She giggled and winked at him.

“Someone’s been around the kinky parts of the internet,” Command noted blandly.

“Actually I blame one of the vipers in the chatroom.” Zossi replied.

“...And that sounds like something I didn’t need to know,” Command blinked a few times. “What, is she trying to get that close to a heat source?”

“I believe it was a blowjob reference.” She shrugged.

“Yeah well, now I can’t get a different image out of my head, thanks,” Command blinked a few more times. “And it’s gonna bug me all day.”

“Well.... maybe we could experiment with that later.” The viper winked, sticking her tongue out.

“...I don’t know whether to be scared or aroused,” Command stared blankly ahead. “Let’s go with yes.”

“Alright. But you have to get some work done first, and I am going to look up some cookbooks first.” Zossi nodded, finishing her food.

“Shower, then clothes, then work,” Command agreed, standing up and heading for the bathroom. As he passed Zossi, he gave her a kiss on her cheek, then the inside of her hood, before continuing on to complete his morning rituals of cleansing.

Zossi picked up their plates and started scrubbing them off in the sink. She sighed happily.

It was going to be a good day.

005 - Cooking brings everyone closer

“Knock knock.” A voice called out as the door knocked. Zossi, quickly adjusted her shirt, just to make sure she was fully covered.

The viper slithered over and opened the door. “Sunset.” Zossi smiled and shifted aside so Sunset Shimmer, this time in jeans and a blue tank top, walked in.

“I’m just checking on you two, seeing how things are.” Sunset said, taking a seat at the table. “So Fluttershy said you came by for psy testing.” She looked at Command, who had, by this point, at least put a t-shirt and his pants back on.

“Ah, yeah, thought it would be a good thing to do, now that we have, you know, money again,” Command admitted. He was doing his utmost to not look like the cat that had just gotten the cream, and he thought he was succeeding.

“Well, it’s not a bad idea.” She smiled, then glanced between the two. “You two have fun?”

The hard part about not reacting to questions was expecting them. Which Command hadn’t been. It was a small flinch, but it was there.

“Yes.” Zossi nodded.

“Well good. I’m happy for you two.” Sunset smiled. “And if you two are interested, at some point in the future, I might be able to make it a little easier to get on an interspecies reproduction trial.”

“Um, thanks?” Command squeaked. Aww, he was blushing. It was adorable. He’d been confident during the act, but once he was called on it he turned shy. “Are you supposed to be this interested in…” He couldn’t finish the thought.

“Consider it advancing human and extraterrestrial relations.” Sunset giggled. “Hey, fucking is significantly better than killing each other.”

“True.” Zossi nodded.

“Or that stuff going on in City 31,” Command mentioned. “Seems to be a melting pot someone forgot to take off of high heat.”

“Oh don’t get me started. My friend AJ has been there for awhile. My other friend Dash came out of retirement to help the squad that my old bosses put together.” Sunset nodded. “Don’t be surprised if AJ shows up one day. She’s always been pushing for peace between races.”

“Is she nice?” Zossi asked as she draped herself over Command.

“She’s stubborn, but she’s kind and has a good heart.” Sunset nodded, and giggled at the viper. The snake’s touch seemed to relax Command as his muscles went slacker from her embrace.

“So, um. I take it you’re involved in that rumored serum I’ve heard about,” Command floated the idea past Sunset. “The one that’s supposed to make it...possible for relations to be fruitful.”

“Kinda. I have a friend looking into it with the actual scientists. I’ve always been more of a people person over anything like science or engineering.” The woman said with a chuckle. “Oh, so I heard back from Simon. He’s going to be coming back out to work on the, lived in, apartments next week. Mainly some maintenance stuff. After that he’s going to start fixing up the rooms that have been vacant.”

“Oh, good,” Command smiled at the thought. “And that means we can have someone competent dealing with the housing afterwards, right? Because I’m getting tired of having to go down to the cellar myself to start up the heating in winter because our landlord finally threw the keys at me and told me to ‘do it myself if I wanted it so badly’.”

“Well Simon is moving in. He’s basically going to be a live-in contractor when he’s not going out to another site.” Sunset explained.

“Translation, psychic landlord,” Command summed up, stroking the nearest part of Zossi with a hand.

“Pretty much.” Sunset nodded. “In fact, I’d like to properly meet the other people that live in this little complex. Think you could introduce me?”

“...Tell you what,” Command countered. “How about I make lunch for the apartment, and while everyone is eating some good cooking and can’t muster a bad word, I can introduce you to everyone at once, including the troublesome ones?”

“That sounds great.” Sunset grinned.

There was a little picnic table (a poorly maintained one, but still serviceable) right outside the apartment on the lawn. The apartment itself was actually three stories, however only the first two stories were used. Sunset made a note to have Simon take a look at the third story and see how those apartments were holding up, if he didn’t already. It wasn’t a great building by any means, it was rather boxy and seemed to be mostly concrete painted white with some minor work done on the inside. That's what you get for cheap. Or what was supposed to be cheap. Might need to see about some more thorough renovations.

“Sunset?” A voice called out.

Sunset blinked. Was that? She turned and saw. “Wallflower?” Sunset gasped. “Holy shit, you’re alive!” She paused. “Sorry, I just can’t believe I missed you when I was here last.”

“It’s fine. So, what happened to you after everything went to hell?” The green hair girl asked.

“To be perfectly honest I joined X-COM, learned how to fight aliens.” Sunset said with a bit of an embarrassed smile.

“Oh wow.” Wallflower blinked. “And I suppose that’s how you got the government job?”

“A little higher than one government, but yeah.” Sunset nodded. “But, how are you doing?”

“I’m alright, I like to make sure everyone here’s doing okay.” Wallflower smiled. “Beyond that, I have a part-time night job at Seven-Eleven. It's not much, but it pays the bills.”

“Bills shouldn’t be as bad now, maybe less so if I can convince you to room with an extraterrestrial.” The gold and red haired girl giggled softly. “No pressure though.”

“That’s… huh.” Wallflower blinked. “I’ll think about it.”

“I left my card with Command, you can get my number with him.” Sunset nodded as Wallflower went to sit down at the table and chat with the viper “sitting” at one end of the table.

Command brought out some kind of steaming pan. The smell must have gotten some attention because a pale girl in a hoodie and sweatpants wandered out. Sunset walked over.

“Hi, I’m Sunset Shimmer.” She raised a hand.

The girl looked at it. Then quickly shook it. “M’ Floor Bored, I smelled food.”

“That would be Command’s work.” Sunset smiled and nodded towards the man setting the table.

“Yay, he makes good food.” Floor smiled, looking a little tired.

“If I may, what do you do?” Sunset asked.

“I stay at home, watch anime. I… don’t like going outside if I have to.” Floor shook her head.

“Are you employed?” Sunset furrowed her brow a bit.

“No.” Floor shook her head again. “I have… things. Can’t work. Anxious and… stuff.” She seemed to be struggling for words. “Haven’t heard from anyone in awhile.” She shrugged. “It’s all bureaucratic bullshit anyway. But, meh. Food.”

The girl wandered over to the table and was happily greeted by the others. Which got a shy blush in response. Sunset frowned and furrowed her brow. She made another note to look into Floor Bored. The girl might need someone to help look after her.

“Oh. My. God!” Was all Sunset had for warning before her tablet was smashed into her chest and she was wrapped in a bone-breaking hug. Her eyes were engulfed by blue. “It’s been years!”

“E-excuse me?” Sunset wheezed. “Air. Please.”

“Oops! Right! Sorry!” There was a familiar giggle as Sunset caught her breath.”Sorry, about that, don’t know my own strength sometimes. Aria says I’m going to kill somebody someday.”

Sunset straightened and saw. “Sonata?” She blinked at the former Siren.

“Yeppers!” Sonata Dusk said, giving a thumbs up while sticking her tongue out.

“You… You haven’t aged a day.” Sunset blinked.

Truly the girl hadn’t. Sonata still looked like a teenager, while Sunset herself was in her mid-twenties.

“Yeah. Dagi blames the alien stuff that happened years ago.” Sonata shrugged. “When the whole shitstorm started, Aria and Dagi thought we could make some money looting alien tech. Some sort of container of orange stuff blew up while Aria and Dagi were arguing. We woke up in some hospital and pretty much gained superpowers after that.” She giggled. “It was a weird few years. We fought aliens. Aria liked it, Dagi was mad that X-COM never got back to us, and I just tried to keep our spirits up.”

“Wow… That… Huh.” Sunset blinked. “I may need to let my bosses know about you three.”

“Oh, would you?! I mean, I don’t know who they are, but if they could take a look at Dagi. She’s had bad headaches for like, ever.” Sonata said, giving a worried look towards the apartment. “Dagi doesn’t like going out. Aria does all her work from the computer. It’s hard to get them to come out, even for food.”

“I’ll definitely let my bosses know.” Sunset put a hand on Sonata’s shoulder and smiled.

“Thanks.” Sonata smiled.

Command waved at the pair and they walked over to the table and sat down.

The food looked amazing. It smelled like a hamburger, and there was melted, shredded cheese atop the potato topping. The violet-skinned man pulled out a plastic spatula from where he’d left it, and used it to serve up decent chunks of the food. Pulling out the first block of the casserole revealed that it had hamburger meat that was oozing with some sort of flavoring that had been applied when nobody was watching, and the base was made of the same potato goodness.

“Behold, my secret recipe,” he intoned, serving everyone a chunk of the food in as serious an expression he could muster. Which, given he was smirking at the fact that almost everyone was here for his cooking, wasn’t all that stern to begin with.

“Ooooooo! It looks so goooood!” Sonata bounced in her seat.

Floor just stared at it. She wasn’t drooling. Yet.

“That looks amazing Command.” Sunset smiled.

“He’s a great chef when he wants to be.” Zossi said with a nod, leaning over to nuzzle his cheek.

“Translation, we have money again, this is the first decent meal we’ve been able to afford in weeks,” Command said to Sunset. “It always is better when you can afford to make it yourself. Makes it more...homely, wholesome,” he mused wistfully. Everyone had a plate of food, so he sat next to Zossi and held up a fork. “To friends,” he suggested, before digging in.

There was a repeat of “to friends” from Sunset, Zossi, and Sonata. Floor simply just held up a fork before almost ravenously digging into the food.

Sunset spared the girl a glance, before looking at Command. “So, Command, what is it you actually do for a living? Just call me curious.”

He swallowed a bite of his food before replying. “Mainly, bug-testing,” he answered. “Got something you need to find out if it can be broken? I’m the guy. Work from home, get to look at exclusive programs first, figure out how they can be bested, if at all, and tell the coders of the exploits I find before the product gets released so they get a more polished program, rather than a buggy mess that breaks down in front of your investors.”

“Huh. I never really understood that myself, but sounds like a good job to have.” Sunset said, taking a bit and savoring the flavors for a moment.

“Floor how have you been?” Zossi asked the quietly eating girl.

“Hmmm?” Floor blinked at the viper. “Ummm, okay I guess? Ummm, the light novel of Shield Hero showed up the other day, so that’s been fun to read. Uh, and I keep putting off cleaning my apartment?”

“Let us know if you need any help, Floor.” Wallflower said, sounding mildly concerned.

“I’ll let you know.” Floor nodded and went back to her food.

Sunset watched for a moment, before swallowing. “So, Sonata, what do you do?”

“Oh, I work at KFC.” The girl said with a giggle. “It’s not as bad as you think. Turns out aliens are nicer than humans when it comes to customers.”

“Huh. You know, I can actually believe that.” Sunset said with a giggle.

“Everyone should be a good neighbor,” Command pointed out. “Until we figure out how to get off the ground properly, we’ve only got the one planet.”

“True.” Zossi nodded.

“Absolutely.” Sunset nodded as well.

“Dagi and Aria try.” Sonata said with a somewhat sad smile.

“It’s okay. I think we’re used to them by now.” Wallflower said with a smile towards the former siren.

“Was kinda hoping to lure them out, not gonna lie,” Command sighed. “Ah well.” He looked over to Sonata with a half-smile. “Can I trust you to take some up to them?”

“I was going to ask if I could.” Sonata grinned. “”Please and thank you.”

“Mhm,” Command nodded, getting up from his seat and going back over to the pan. He plated a few more servings of the casserole and put them to one side. “For when you want to take it to them,” he explained as he retook his seat at the table.

“I’ll go do that now!” Sonata got up, took the plates, and started back towards the apartment.

“Thanks for the food.” Floor said, getting up herself and following Sonata.

“That was great Command.” Sunset said. “You really can cook.”

“I’m hoping I’m as good someday.” Zossi smiled. “Oh, did I mention I want to learn to cook?”

“No you didn’t, but I’m happy you found something you like doing.” Sunset smiled back at the viper.

“Maybe we should do a weekly potluck thing.” Wallflower suggested as she set her plastic spoon down.

“This wouldn’t be your way of getting more of our cooking on a regular basis, would it?” Command asked in a joking manner.

“Maybe?” Wallflower shrugged. “I mean, that wouldn’t be a bad thing.”

“Does mean I’ll have to keep coming up with new things to try,” Command mused. “I’m sure I’ll figure it out.” He shrugged, not particularly bothered by the idea.

“And you and Zossi can cook together.” Sunset said with a nod, pointing her spoon at him.

“Yay.” The viper cheered quietly.

“And I definitely wouldn’t say no to that.” Wallflower giggled.

“Anything to try new food, eh?” Command ribbed her verbally.

“Absolutely.” Wallflower snickered.

“Well, that settles it,” Command nodded a few times. “We must embark on a culinary quest together, my dear Zossi.”

“That mean we’re going shopping?” The viper asked.

“Sure, we can make a trip to the store,” Command agreed. “I’m sure we’ll find something we both enjoy there.” He got up from the table, having finished his serving a while ago, and began to pack up the leftover casserole.

“And with that, I think it’s finally time for me to get back to work.” Sunset said with a chuckle as she got up. “I’ll be sure to keep in touch.” She nodded, slinging her bag over her shoulder.

“Thank you.” Zossi smiled.

“Yeah, thanks for coming by. It was great to see you again.” Wallflower said as the fiery-haired woman walked towards her car.

“I’d say that was a successful lunch,” Command noted. “Well, let’s pack up and then we can go shopping,” he said to Zossi.

“Sounds good.” Zossi nodded.

The grocery store was a little busy when they got there. Zossi really wanted to push the cart, so Command let her. Though it was rather funny hearing car noises coming from the viper as she pushed said cart. As a whole, the shopping was going well, despite the occasional clogged aisle. It was a Sunday. Why would so many people be out shopping at two in the afternoon, on a Sunday?

“Sorry.” Zossi said, sliding the cart to the side so someone could pass. “What do we have left?” She asked, glancing back towards Command.

“Some pasta, I’m kind of running low,” he supplied, looking down at his tablet to confirm that there was only one item left on the list. “The more variety we can pick up, the better.”

“So, to the pasta aisle then.” The viper nodded and slithered along, pushing the cart in front of her.

This aisle, at least, was relatively clear. Command sighed in relief as they began making their way down, humming to himself as he looked over what was on the shelf. “Spaghetti, macaroni, ooh, always wanted to try some lasagna…”

“So this is your viper girl.” A familiar voice called out. Command turned and saw the same viper he saw the other day slithering up the aisle with a basket over an arm. She, once again, was wearing all black. She also had a black purse slung over her shoulder. “Hello again.”

Zossi was immediately at his side and looped an arm around his arm.

“No need to be so defensive, honey.” The viper giggled, gesturing at Zossi.

“Ah, hello again,” Command replied, a little unsure as to what, exactly, was happening around him. “Thanks for the cooking tips the other day, I’m glad I didn’t try that without some expert advice.”

“Oh, of course.” The viper nodded. “Any time.”

“So this is who I smelled.” Zossi frowned a bit.

“She’s so defensive.” The viper looked at Zossi “You’re so defensive. It’s adorable.” She smiled. “You two are so cute together.”

“...Thanks.” Zossi still glared at her.

“Zossi, seriously, we’re all friendly here,” Command said, patting one of her arms with a hand. “Chill.”

“Here.” The viper held out a hand. “I’m Angel, I’m a photographer, and I have no intention of stealing your man. Seriously, I’ve had Muton dick, you don’t go back from that.” Angel giggled.

Zossi cracked a smile as she shook Angel’s hand. “Sorry.”

“No problem.” Angel replied. “I’ve known plenty of vipers who get possessive of their partners. Comes from having not enough males for fuck knows how long.”

“Something humanity has agreed to help with,” Command noted. “But until then, we’re all just neighbors.” He smiled over at Zossi and stroked the inside of her hood with a hand. “Very good neighbors,” he added.

Zossi shuddered a bit at his touch.

“Too true.” Angel nodded. “Say, you two are a cute couple. If you’re ever interested, I wouldn’t mind doing a photo shoot of the pair of you.”

“What do you say, love?” Command asked, still petting his adorable snakey girlfriend.

“Mmmm… maybe some time?” Zossi glanced at Command.

“Well, if you two are interested,” Angel reached into her purse and pulled out a card, “here. It has all my info.”

Zossi reached out and took it, before putting it in her small purse.

“See, isn’t it nicer when we’re all friends?” Command asked, hugging Zossi with one arm around her waist. “Thank you for the offer, miss, I’m sure we’ll be in touch once my adorable girlfriend here has time to...unwind.”

“Of course.” Angel nodded. “And, I think I’ll let you two get back to your shopping. Enjoy the rest of your day.” She smiled and nodded at both of them then slithered past them.

Command waited until she was out of earshot before turning to Zossi. “So?” he asked.

“Sorry.” Zossi mumbled not wanting to meet his eyes. “M’scared I’m gonna lose you.”

“Aww. C’mere and give me a hug,” Command said, spreading his arms wide. In response, she just leaned against him. This prompted the human to turn and give his girlfriend a big hug, holding her close so he could whisper in her ear.

“Silly snek,” he murmured, rubbing her back gently with his hands. “You’re not gonna lose me. You’re stuck with me. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“Thanks.” She said quietly. She cleared her throat. “Should we finish our shopping date?”

“Sure, let me just grab a few things…” Command smiled deviously. He pulled back for a moment…

Before darting in and stealing a kiss from Zossi.

“Eep!” Zossi instantly flushed and covered her mouth. She stared wide-eyed at her boyfriend.

“Sorry, you were too cute to not kiss,” he teased. The human smirked at the viper, before picking a box of pasta up off the shelf and putting it in their cart. “Coming?” he teased as he began pushing their groceries off to the checkout.

Zossi jumped and slithered to catch up to her human.

“I’ll show you who’s cute!”

006 - Getting closer

Author's Note

Kinks: Assertive Snek, Seductive Snek, Handjob Snek.

006 - Getting closer

“You really don’t have to do this.” Simon said, carrying a box up the stairs, trailed by Wallflower, Command, and Zossi, who were also carrying boxes.

“You’re a new housemate, of course we’re helping.” Wallflower said with a smile. “I’m trying to detense and not jump at every little noise.”

“She still does.” Zossi giggled.

“I’ve learned my lesson.” Wallflower deadpanned as Simon set his box down and unlocked the door to his “new” apartment.

“From what she’s thinking, wow.” Simon chuckled as he opened the door and retrieved his box.

“I mean, she didn’t see anything at the moment when she opened the door,” Command pointed out. “But yes, she has knocked on the door virtually every time Zossi’s landed on the floor.”

“I know some people who can help with all that stress.” Simon commented as he set a box down.

“I might take you up on that.” Wallflower said. “It’s probably not healthy that I jump at the littlest thing.”

“No, it’s not.” Simon shook his head. “After I get things organized I can give someone a call.”

“That’s kind of you.” Zossi said with a smile.

“Oh Wallflower, would you prefer someone to talk to or something like a massage? Or both?” Simon asked.

Wallflower blinked as she set her box down next to the first. “Uuuuh… Surprise me?”

“Gambling with your treatment, alrighty then.” Simon chuckled.

“Both sound nice.” Zossi said with a nod.

“Hmm, maybe I should try giving you a massage some day,” Command mused, setting his box in a neat little stack next to the other boxes. He turned back to Zossi, and examined her lengthy tail. “Then again, that might take all day,” he pointed out.

“Not if your test comes back positive.” Simon said. “Then again there’s a couple options even if it does.”

“All day massage…” Zossi cooed.

“And now that that thought is in her head, I know I’m going to have to try it sooner or later,” Command chuckled. “So, do you think you’ll need any help setting up in here?” The human directed the question to Simon.

“No, just some sorting.” Simon shook his head. “Most of the bigger things are being delivered later today.”

“Let us know if you need anything.” Wallflower commented.

“Yeah, we’re just a room over,” Command nodded, walking over to the Viper and looping an arm around her waist. “And usually, not busy.”

“Don’t worry. I have noise-canceling headphones.” Simon said with a wink, causing Zossi to flush.

“Maybe you could share some with Wallflower then,” the human riposted easily.

“Not a bad idea.” Wallflower giggled, blushing a little herself.

“True.” Simon said as he walked them to his door. “Thank you all again.”

“Of course.” Wallflower nodded.

Zossi just smiled.

“Take care,” Command nodded as they left the sectoid to his new home. It was a short walk across the hall to their own room, but first…

Command looked over at Wallflower. “Anything else going on we could help with?” he asked.

“Well… not much on my end. I just mainly need to water some plants.” Wallflower shrugged.

“Ah well, it’s good to ask anyways,” Command noted. “At least now we can go back and bond without fear of missing something important.”

“Right, bond. Well, I’ll leave you to it.” Wallflower said, walking down the stairs.

“What kind of bonding did you have in mind?” Zossi asked, tilting her head to the side curiously.

“Iiiiii,” Command smirked, holding the door open for Zossi as he drew out the first syllable of his sentence. “May or may not have found some ‘banned’ media from Advent’s time on Earth. Including all the good old movies they found ‘controversial.’” he finally finished.

“Ooooo! Like what?” Zossi asked, slithering up onto the couch.

“Oh you know, some cute ones. I’ve heard good things about, say…” Command went to his computer, clicked a few icons, input a command, and swapped his display with the television screen’s.

And now, a movie declaring itself to be ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ was playing.

“Oh how cute!” Zossi gasped happily.

“And after that, Mel Brooks’s complete works weren’t that hard to find, he and Gene Wilder did lots of work together,” Command noted. “I’m just glad they didn’t erase everything they didn’t agree with.”

“What’s a Mel Brooks?” Zossi blinked in confusion.

Command blinked a few times, slowly turning to look at the Viper in incredulity. “...We’re fixing this,” he stated. “Tonight. I’m making the popcorn.”

“Yay.” Zossi cooed happily.

“Brace yourself, though,” Command warned. “He did no less than half a dozen funny, satirical movies throughout his career. We will have to take it in shifts.”

“I don’t mind having a movie day.” Zossi shook her head.

“Huzzah, I get to practice cooking snack food for my Viper girlfriend,” Command smiled. “I’ll start with popcorn and go from there.”

“You spoil me.” Zossi coiled into a snek nest on the couch.

“You deserve it~” Command called as he went to the kitchen. “Popcorn, and then whatever we have lying around that can be turned into a snack,” he declared. “Time to test my skills!”

Spending a decent amount of the day just being together and watching movies was actually rather wonderful. Zossi just got to cuddle against her human and laugh at some old comedies. She thought that nothing could make this day bad in any way whatsoever.

She thought wrong.

There was a knoc- no. A pounding at the door. Like whoever was on the other side was going to come through eventually, it was simply your choice if they came through the door or through the door.

Zossi jumped at the pounding and whipped her head towards the door. She looked around at Command worriedly.

“I have no clue who it is,” he admitted, getting up out of the seat Zossi had made of her coils and heading for the door.

The moment he opened it slightly, the whole thing slammed towards the wall, making Command back away lest he be crushed between the two pieces of wood. The woman who entered barely spared him a glance, heading straight for the Viper on the couch.

“W-who are you?!” Zossi yelped, scrambling away from the oncoming storm of woman.

“Shush now,” she soothed. “Lemme get a good look at’cha.” She hummed as she visually inspected the Viper, going from head to tail and back again. “Well, y’all look okay,” she admitted after a few minutes. “Then again, I ain’t Shy with her fancy medical knowledge.” She glanced back at Command before looking at Zossi again. “He’s been treating you okay?” the woman prodded verbally.

“What?” Zossi blinked. “Absolutely. He’s amazing.”

“Mhm. I heard from Sunny about how he’s been helpin’ her out,” the woman admitted. “But what she didn’t say was if y’all had been...up to anything.” Aaaand now she was glaring at Command. “He’s not been pushing you into anything, has he?” she all but growled.

Zossi blinked. Then she frowned and glared right back at the woman. “I don’t like what you’re insinuating. If anyone has been pushy it’s been me. He’s been an absolute gentleman, in every sense of the word. In fact, Sunset seemed to be very happy with how we were doing and we just saw her the other day.”

Zossi snorted at the woman. She was tall, taller than Command at least. She wore a fancy black suit that seemed to barely contain her. She seemed to be made out of solid muscle. Her skin was a deep tan-orange. She had cream colored freckles below her bright green eyes. Her blond hair had been done up into a long ponytail. The thought that she could bust her nice suit by just flexing would have made the viper laugh, if she wasn’t so pissed at the woman.

“Yeah, that’s what they all say,” the woman muttered. “And then two months later we’re havin’ to relocate another Viper cause her housemate was an idiot.”

“I was the one who fucked him!” Zossi pointed a finger at Command. “I’ve been the one pushing to be more intimate! He has not initiated once! I do not like that you’re implying that he’s using me, if anything it feels like the opposite!” She threw her hands in the air.

The woman paused and actually blushed in embarrassment. “Ah...Ah’m sorry about that,” she said, actually apologizing. “It’s just...normally, yeah. Most of the people signin’ up to be Viper roommates at the Bureau are horny teenaged males who like the idea of rooming with an all-female species.” She suddenly lost the blush and gained a devilish smirk. “A’course, when we spot those sorts of cases, I like to stick ‘em with a Muton instead.”

“Did you do any research before you stormed over here? Or did you just see a viper and a human just flip your shit?” Zossi crossed her arms over her chest.

“Ta be fair,” the woman started defending herself. “Most of the pictures of the two of you hanging out involve you not wearing a shirt.”

Zossi blushed but didn’t stop frowning. “I’m thankful that he’s so comfortable with it. He believed the certain nests excuse for only so long.”

“Hey, if you’re comfortable running around without a shirt on, I’m not about to tell you how to live your life,” Command called from the kitchen. Apparently when he was stressed about new visitors, he went to make a snack so everyone could calm down while they ate something. “Heck, if you were wearing a shirt under a hot enough heat lamp, I’d be more worried about the shirt.”

“I haven’t set myself on fire yet.” Zossi huffed.

There was the sound of pounding feet. A panting Sunset skidded to a halt in the doorway. She was only in a red t-shirt and jean shorts. “Oh thank Celestia, nobody’s dead.”

“I wasn’t gonna kill anybody,” the strange woman defended herself. “Maybe scare the boy a little. But uh...miss Zossi here’s gone and shown me that I don’t even need ta do that, so…” She shuffled her feet a little. “I might just-”

“Have you even introduced yourself, or did you kick in the door and assault someone?” Sunset raised a brow. “Seriously AJ, your people skills have gone and died since you went to City 31.”

“That ci- I told you not to talk about that city,” the woman, AJ, bit off. “Not until all the NDA’s wear off. Cuz then I’ll have had enough booze to ferget about half of it.”

“Yeah, sure.” Sunset rolled her eyes. “An since you won’t do it. Commander, Zossi, this is Applejack.”

“Hello.” Zossi said somewhat icily.

“Now don’t be takin’ that tone with me, missy,” AJ said, waggling a finger at the Viper. “I reckon after Flutters, I know the most about how to disable any xeno on planet.” She smirked at the snake, then looked over at Command. “Would your boyfriend like to know all a Viper’s ticklish points?~” she cooed.

“Oh, don’t you dare.” Zossi flushed and leaned away.

“Then I recommend,” Command said, bringing out a selection of finger foods for everyone, “That we re-introduce ourselves, accept miss Applejack’s apology and explanation as to why she acted the way she did, and start over.”

Zossi sighed. “Alright.” She held out a hand. “I’m Zossi.”

“Ah’m Applejack,” the orange-skinned woman replied, taking the hand and shaking it. “Mah friends call me AJ.” She paused to let go and pulled up a chair to sit down nearby. “And for what it’s worth, ah am sorry about assumin’ things. But ya have to understand, it ain’t all that uncommon for us to have to relocate Vipers. Even though we ain’t able to help with the whole ‘lack of males’ thing yet, that don’t stop idiots from tryin’ to fill a hole they ain’t mean to yet. I’m not upset about two adults goin’ at it. What gets me mad,” she snorted, “Is when the idiots push ‘em into it early and keep stringing them along with promises of what’ll happen, even when it’s impossible. Cause all they want is no strings attached sex.”

“That I can believe.” Zossi nodded. “However I was the idiot in this case.”

“Yeah, normally it’s the other way around,” AJ admitted. “But, if you’re happy here, then ah’m really sorry. I saw all the pictures and thought-”

“Wait-” Zossi cut her off. “What pictures?”

“Oh, uh, lemme dig it outta my pocket,” AJ muttered, pulling out her phone and tapping at it for a moment. And for some reason, Command looked panicked.

“I’m sure she doesn’t need to see-” he started to say. Far too late.

AJ turned the phone around and held it out to Zossi.

Zossi blinked. Her eyes widened and she blushed bright pink. “C-Command… What’s this?”

It was...pictures of her. Video of her. Usually her doing something adorable. Like sleeping in a heap, or reaching for something and balancing on the back half of her tail. And rarely were the pictures taken of her from the front. Which meant...someone had to have been doing it without her knowledge.

Zossi slowly looked over at Command. She pointed at the phone. “What.”

“Yeah, that’s how I knew you started goin’ around without a shirt,” AJ continued. “It’s usually the first step towards the idiot human pushing the Viper into being more...easily accessible.”

Command, on the other hand, was silent and blushing a bit at having been caught.

“Command.” Zossi frowned at the human. “I get it, but couldn’t you have told me first?”

“That was...kinda half the point,” Command admitted. “I wanted to get a picture of you being cute without you knowing, and it just sorta...kept happening. And then I wanted to share how adorable Vipers could be, rather than their...current image.”

“Just so ya know,” AJ spoke up. “He started this thing about a month after ya moved in.”

Zossi stared daggers at Command.

“When you’re not aware of it, you’re very photogenic,” he said weakly. “I could take pictures of you being cute all day. Also, the only people that hate you being cute are idiots like our last landlord. Everyone else loves the cute snek pictures.”

“Yeah. I’m just mad that I didn’t know about it.” Zossi pouted at her human.

AJ chuckled and put the phone away. “So...yeah. Ah was worried about something that clearly ain’t an issue.”

“I don’t know about ain’t an issue.” Zossi frowned at Command. “But they aren’t as bad as you think.”

“Oh?” AJ perked an eyebrow as Command fidgeted. “Like what? What’s on your mind, Zossi?”

“Just figuring out how to punish my boyfriend.” Zossi kept her gaze on Command.

Command, to his credit, was trying his best to not be noticeable. AJ laughed. “Yeah,” she admitted. “But, and to help him out a little bit, human on viper crime, ‘specially the kind we have to deal with, started goin’ down after he started postin’ the cute.”

“That’s good, but I’m still mad.” Zossi kept staring at her boyfriend.

“Whelp, guess we aren’t needed for this bit,” AJ said, clapping Sunset on the back with a hand.

“Yep. Let’s leave the happy couple to their day.” Sunset snickered as the pair left.

Command felt a pit in his stomach as the door closed. He gulped, looking back to Zossi. “Aheh...no hard feelings?” he tried.

“Were you planning on telling me?” Zossi raised an irritated brow.

“...Eventually?” Command tried a tack that might get him out of trouble.

“Eventually, huh?” She asked. “I get what you were doing, but it’s still kinda creepy and an invasion of privacy.”

“I never did anything like attach an address or a name,” Command defended himself. “I’m not stupid. I just took a picture of my roommate being cute and posted it.” He paused. “Multiple times,” he then admitted.

“I would have been fine- Well, less mad about it if you actually told me yourself and not been outed by a pair of agents.” Zossi sighed, shaking her head.

“I just thought some of the special nature of it woulda been lost if you started, I don’t know, posing for the camera,” Command supplied.

“Or, I don’t know, ask me if I’m okay with the random picture. All you had to do was say, hey, can I take pictures of you when you’re being cute, or something.” Zossi frowned.

“Yeah, I messed up,” Command admitted. “I should have asked, I know it. I just...I wanted to show that Vipers are more than what some people think they are. That you can be cute and relatable even if you have scales.”

“I understand that, and I would have been fine with it.” Zossi nodded. Command sighed in relief. Maybe he’d get off the hook entire-

“However.” The viper spoke up. “I think that this relationship should be a little more mmmm… equal. I’ve been the one pushing this relationship along, and you’ve been very accommodating, but I might be time to get you out of your comfort zone a bit.”

Command gulped. “Now, I’m...sure there’s no reason for-” he started to say.

Zossi shook her head. “Uh uh.” She slithered over to the couch and sat down. “‘Mere.”

The human gulped, but sat near the Viper, wondering what she could be up to.

She wrapped an arm around him and tugged him into her side. “Calm down, I’m not going to bite you.”

“I’m...not afraid of that,” Command said. “Not around you.” He shifted a little bit so he was comfortable before asking a question. “So what were you planning?”

“I just want you to get a little more comfortable around me. I know we’ve had sex, but maybe you could, I don’t know, express yourself a little more.” Zossi said. “You’re allowed to have feelings, you know.”

“I...am I not?” Command seemed a little confused. “I mean, we do still talk and cuddle and the like. And I thought I was comfortable around you. What…” he trailed off, trying to think of anything he wasn’t doing correctly.

“Well, yes, but you don’t really express yourself that much.” Zossi said with a smile.

“Huh,” the human hummed. “Well. What do you recommen-”

Zossi tugged her shirt off. “They might not be breasts, but close enough right?”

Command’s blush was pretty evident. “Um. Zossi you don’t need to do that, you know. I’m fine with you doing what feels comfort-”

“Ap!” She put a finger over his lips. “What do you want to do?”

And now her human was blushing harder. He mumbled something against the finger on his lips.

She took her finger away. “Say again?”

“If I said it, Miss Applejack would probably rearrange my skeleton,” he explained.

“Miss Applejack, isn’t here.” Zossi countered.

“She’d find out,” Command shuddered. “No, I’m not going to push you into doing something you don’t-”

“I’m the one pushing you here.” Zossi giggled. “Say it.”

Command blushed again. “Ahm...maybe, we could cuddle,” he suggested. “And you could...undress me if you wanted?”

She blinked. “Is that it?”

“Well I mean...I wouldn’t...stop you,” he said, his face bright red.

Zossi leaned in and kissed him. “And I thought I was the innocent one.” She giggled as she playfully tugged at his shirt. It came off without any fuss, Command even raising his arms so she could peel it off his form. Once his top half was disrobed, he cuddled the Viper a little more so she could soak up his body heat.

“Mmmmm…” She hummed happily. “Better.” She nuzzled his neck a bit.

“Is...that all you wanted out of this?” her human asked. Aww, how cute, he thought she was done.

“This is nice, but I kinda want you to express yourself a little more.” The viper said, booping his nose with her tongue.

“Like...what?” Command asked. “I mean, I’m happy with cuddling you and all, but what more do you want me to-”

She took his head and slowly planted it between her venom sacks.

Judging by the intense blush and the muffled words, he enjoyed it. Quite a bit.

“Like that?” She asked softly, sliding a hand down to rub his thigh. Oooh, she could feel something familiar starting to grow between his legs. He apparently very much did like.

She slowly ran her fingers over the bulge she felt. “And how about that?”

That got a bit of a squirm out of Command and a muffled word or two, but he didn’t move to stop her, much like he said. He really did believe in her being in charge, apparently.

“Does this mean I’m the dominant one in the relationship?” She giggled, sliding her hand up to undo the button of his pants.

“‘bably” she heard him say into her chest. Guess he didn’t mind the idea. If anything he was using his hands to stroke her scales in a reassuring manner. Reassuring to her or him was up for debate.

She hummed as she slid her hand into his pants and ran her fingers over his length. She wrapped her fingers around it and squeezed lightly. That got Command to squeak and bury his face between her faux-breasts. She’d found a button and was pushing it.

She lowered her voice a little. “Do you like your viper girlfriend stroking you?” She murmured into his ear. His head shifted a few times in a shaky nod. “Want her to stroke you off?” She asked at his shaky nod. That got a muffled ‘yes’.

In response she squeezed a little harder and started to slowly slide her hand up and down in smooth strokes. Her human moaned into her chest and moved his hands away from stroking her, going so far as to start taking his pants off one leg at a time.

“So needy.” She giggled, stroking faster. “Want to make a mess for me? Want to make a mess for your viper?”

“Mmmph!” Command moaned into her chest once more. Still, at this rate, she’d probably find out sooner or later how messy he could be when she really teased him.

“Close already?” She stroked even faster. Another shaky nod was her response. She’d probably not have long until he...hmm. Best to figure out how she wanted him to spend it.

Zossi bit her lip. She wanted to do something naughty. She used her other hand to tug his underwear down. She pulled his head away and lowered her head. She opened her mouth, as she stroked fast, meeting his eyes as she pointed directly into her waiting maw.

The sight was too much for Command, his length twitching and starting to fire his load directly into the snake maw before him. All the teasing and the lewdness had pushed him over the edge, and he had plenty to give.

Her mouth wrapped around him and suckled as he emptied himself into her hungry maw. She hummed as she drank him. Eventually, Command huffed and sat back, his cock finally stopping the firing of his seed as his load was drained into Zossi’s maw.

She pulled away and made sure everything was swallowed. “How was that?”

“That was...intense,” Command eventually said, stroking the Viper’s head with a hand.

“I’m glad you liked it.” Zossi smiled and nuzzled his hand.

“And...I didn’t hate it,” the human admitted. “I just don’t feel comfortable asking for that sort of attention from you. Yet. You’d probably have to get me used to the idea before I did feel comfortable with it.”

“Like we said before, baby steps.” Zossi nodded. “Now, want to put some clothes back on so we can cuddle properly?”

“I mean, if you want to,” Command replied, not letting go of her.

“What are you more comfortable with?” She asked.

“Well…” the human drew it out for a moment, before sighing. “Yeah, you’re right, I’d probably prefer to be wearing pants at least.”

“Put on your pants, you silly human.” Zossi giggled at him.

“Fiiiine,” Command rolled his eyes. “After this, more cuddling.” He rolled off the couch and retrieved the garment, hopping into it one leg at a time.

“Yay, now my human is more comfortable.” She cheered cutely.

“Well, I mean, when you’re seeing to my comfort, how can I not be?” Command replied easily, sitting next to and cuddling up to Zossi. Wait...she hadn’t put her shirt back on.

“Something wrong?” She asked, tilting her head to the side.

“Nah, just...trying to be as comfortable around you as you are around me,” Command answered. “It shouldn’t be hard, right?”

Zossi shook her head and smiled. “Nope, not at all.”

007 - New arrival

A viper stared at an assortment of ingredients sitting out on the small kitchenette counter. A look of concentration was on her face as her tongue stuck out and occasionally flicked. She hummed and looked at her tablet, then looked back to the ingredients. With a nod, she set the tablet to the side and started prepping the various items for cooking.

She refused to use the microwave, deciding to use a skillet on the stove top instead. There was a hiss as cut veggies were tossed into the skillet. A second pan was set on a second burner, and beef was plopped onto it and mashed so one side of it could cook.

She set a pair lids on the skillet and pan and glanced at the tablet again. Giving the cooking food a glance, she checked what equated to their spice rack. She opened the lid for the meat and sprinkled some pepper and cajun seasoning on it, before putting the spices away and started to flip and chop the cooking beef so it could cook all the way through.

Replacing the lid, and taking the lid off the veggies, she stirred and rolled the veggies around. They appeared to be cooking properly.

With a happy hum, she checked the tablet again. Everything seemed to be going well. However she needed rice. She hummed again. Then again… They did have tortillas. As she diced up the beef into ground beef, she hummed again.

“Could do something like tacos with it.” She talked to herself. “Some kind of meat and veggie skillet thing.” She nodded as she took the meat off the burner. She lowered the temp on the skillet burner and started to scoop the meat into the skillet and mix the veggies with the beef.

“Now….” She hummed again, ignoring the tablet at this point. “Do I do sauce, or cheese?” She tapped her chin as she stirred the meat and veggie mixture.

She set the beef pan to the side and pulled out a new one, before shifting some of the food into the second pan. “Maybe both?” She bent over and pulled out the shredded cheese and some particularly spicy sauce. She sprinkled cheese on one pan, and put the lid on it to let the cheese melt. Next she squirted a couple kinds of sauces into the other pan, put the cheese and sauce back, then started to stir the sauce, veggie, and beef mixture. Once properly mixed, she put the lid on the second pan and let them both simmer.

“Something smells good,” Command noted out loud from his desk. “Or at the very least, it smells spicy, and I do enjoy a good spicy meal.”

“I might share some, see what people like more.” Zossi commented, pulling out the soft tortillas. “I guess a plate at a time will have to do.” She mumbled as she set a couple tortillas on a plate and spooned a bit of each mixture of each onto each tortilla. She re-lidded the pans and slithered over to Command. “Want to try it?”

“Sure,” he said, pausing what he was doing and turning to face Zossi. “Oooh, they look good too,” he praised the viper, putting one plate on the desk before bringing the second one closer and folding the bread over. He picked up his impromptu lunch and took a bite, trying to gauge how skilled his girlfriend was at cooking.

“Well?” Zossi asked nervously.

Command chewed thoughtfully for a few seconds before swallowing. “The meat and vegetables are done well,” he started. “And the spices are only a little overbalanced. So overall, it’s a good first attempt. I don’t think most people will mind eating it, I certainly don’t.”

“Yay.” The viper cheered. “So, I think I might offer some to everyone else.”

“That sounds like a good way to earn some goodwill,” the human said, pulling the viper close and giving her a peck on the cheek. “Mmm, you’ve got the makings of a talented chef,” he hummed.

“Thanks!” She grinned and slithered back to the kitchenette to make more plates. “I am going to go give everyone else lunch.”

“That sounds like a plan the others will get behind,” Command agreed readily, turning back to the desk and starting to devour his own food.

The viper smiled and grabbed a plate. She slithered over and shut the door behind her as she left. Only for the viper to slither a few feet to the next door. She hummed happily as she knocked.

“Gimme a minute.” Came the reply from the other side. After a moment, Simon opened the door and smiled at the viper. “Zossi, hi. And thank you for the food.” He said before Zossi could hold out the plate.

Zossi blinked for a moment then giggled. “You’re welcome.” She held out the plate and he took it. “I will let you know what I think later, unfortunately I have a little project I’m putting together.”

“It’s fine.” She shook her head. “I hope you enjoy it.”

“I believe I will.” Simon nodded, shutting the door as Zossi slithered back to get another plate.

“How are you doing?” Zossi asked as she retrieved another plate.

Command cleared his mouth with a swallow, having finished off one of the tortillas she’d made for him while she was away. “I’m doing alright,” he called. “These are pretty good, actually. The cheese ones. The spices blend pretty well with the cheese and that helps it be not overbearing.”

“Oh good.” Zossi smiled and got another plate. “I’ll probably be popping in and out.”

“Yeah, I can see that,” Command teased. “But I do hope the others enjoy your cooking as well. That’s the best review for a chef.”

Zossi blushed and took another plate. She ducked into the hallway, and shut the door before slithering down the hallway to the stairs and started the slow slither down the stairs to the ground floor. She slithered over to the first door and knocked.

There was the sound of footsteps. The door opened to reveal Wallflower, behind her Zossi could see various potted plants, a couple were getting sun in the back window.

“Hey Zossi, you’re coming to me for once.” Wallflower giggled. “What’s up- is that food?”

“I made a little something.” Zossi blushed, handing out the plate, which the girl took.

“Thanks!” Wallflower blushed herself as her stomach rumbled. “I actually haven’t eaten much today.”

Zossi gasped as Wallflower took a bite. “That’s not good!”

“I nu!” Wallflower mumbled through her bite. The girl’s eyes widened, and she quickly devoured the offered food. “That.” She handed back the plate. “That was good.”

“Awwww, thanks.” Zossi smiled. “I’m just trying out some cooking.”

“And now you and Command can cook together.” Wallflower smiled.

“I heard food.” The pair looked over to see Sonata.

“Hey Sonata.” Zossi said. “I cooked.”

“Oooo!” Sonata oooo’d.

“I made some for you and the other girls.” Zossi explained.

“Well the girls are both out actually.” Sonata said with a giggle.

“I wouldn’t mind taking their portions.” Wallflower said with a blush.

“Oh, I have more.” Zossi said happily. “Please, eat my food.”

“Yay!” Sonata cheered.

Once Wallflower had shut her door, the three of them made their way up stairs.

“Command, we’re here to eat your girlfriend’s food.” Sonata announced as she and Wallflower flopped onto their couch and Zossi served up more of her food. “Cheese or sauce?”

“Cheese.” The girls said in unison.

“Good call,” Command agreed, pausing his game and turning to look at his unexpected guests. “See, I told you the others would like your cooking,” he said towards Zossi.

“And I’m glad they do.” Zossi said, bringing a pair of plates over to the pair of girls, who immediately started devouring the offered food.

“Well if that’s not a ringing endorsement for you to continue learning how to cook, I don’t know what is,” Command chuckled at the sight.

“Hey, I have more so they can have more of it.” Zossi shrugged. “Want more?” She asked, looking at Command.

“Nah, I’m full for now,” the male replied easily. “It was pretty filling stuff,” he complimented the Viper.

“It is.” Wallflower nodded.

“I’ll have more!” Sonata grinned holding out her plate. “Saucy ones please.”

Zossi giggled as she served up more for the blue haired girl.

“So what are you working on, Command?” Wallflower asked.

“Just puzzling out some old code, trying to see if I can make it work again,” he replied neutrally. “It’s hard going, but every now and then I find a piece here, a line there. Sooner or later I’ll pull the whole thing together and learn what it was.”

“Huh, anything particularly special about it?” Wallflower asked.

“Not really, but the fact that it’s basically everywhere on the old net tells me that it used to be important,” Command answered. “Just don’t know what it was yet.”

“Huh, weird.” Wallflower shrugged, relaxing back into the couch as Sonata somewhat messily ate her other skillet wrap thing.

There came a ding from Command’s computer. He blinked a few times, before turning around and checking what caused it.

Ah. A new e-mail. Okay then, so who…

Command Line your test results have come in. You are Psy Positive. Please schedule a follow up appointment at your convenience.

Well. That was...something. “Love?” Command called over his shoulder. “You may want to see this…”

Zossi blinked and slithered over to look over his shoulder. “Oh… Wow.”

“What’s up?” Wallflower asked.

“I went and got tested at the Psy clinic the other day, and...apparently I’m positive,” the male explained. “I um...well this could be the start of something, I suppose.”

“Mmmm, you need a follow up.” Zossi commented. “Who knows what that might entail?”

“I mean, it could be anything,” Command agreed. “Let’s see...we need to pick a time that works for us…” He hummed. “Well I’m mostly open, but I’m pretty sure it’d involve leaving you alone for a bit.”

“That’s fine.” Zossi shook her head. “I can handle being alone, and hey, I could always bother them.” She tilted her head towards Sonata and Wallflower.

“I don’t mean to be rude, but I just got home from getting more ramen and I smelled food.”

Everyone looked over to see Floor Bored in the doorway, in a black hoodie and black sweatpants, holding a back that looked like it was full of cup noodles.

“Come in! Come in!” Zossi quickly offered as the other girls scooted over.

“See, your cooking is so good it lures others in from across the apartment,” Command teased.

“Sauce or cheese?” Zossi asked.

“Meh?” Floor shrugged and sat next to Wallflower.

Zossi decided to give her one of each and handed it to the Floor. Who, despite looking like she was starving, seemed to savor her meal.

“And she has manners,” Command noted out loud. “Honestly, a little more work at this and you’ll manage to lure in the whole block when you cook.”

“My cooking brings all the people to the apartment!” Zossi sang a little off key, causing the girls to giggle.

“Silly snek,” Command teased, going back to the e-mail. “Hmm...I’m thinking...two days from now should be fine.” He started typing out the reply to the clinic.

“Sounds good.” Zossi nodded at him, returning to the kitchenette. “Okay. I have enough for two more. One of each. Or I could mix them together for a more even split of maybe three or four.”

“I’m good.” Wallflower said with a shrug.

“I would but I think I’ve eaten enough.” Sonata said with a giggle.

“I wouldn’t mind one more.” Floor said quietly.

As Zossi served up one last one for the pale girl, she started to put the rest in a tupperware container. “Leftovers then.”

“Something to be savored for lunch tomorrow, then,” Command quipped. “Sounds like a good idea to me.”

“And now to do dishes.” Zossi giggled as she put the tupperware away in the minifridge. She straightened and did just that.

Command’s phone rang, after all the dishes were done and the girls just spent time chatting. He didn’t recognise the number however. Curious, the man unlocked the phone and held it up to his ear. “Hello?” he said. “Who’s this?”

“Good.” That was clearly Sunset. “You did answer. So, it’s Sunset by the way. I have somebody to bring by if that’s okay.”

“Um, sure? Why are you asking-” Command started to question.

“Sorry, do you happen to remember what apartments are open?” Sunset said a little quickly.

“Um, most of the ones on the second floor, and quite a few on the third,” Command offered. “Is there a prob-”

“No, no problem. Just have someone needing a place to stay.” Sunset replied. “And sorry for cutting you off. This isn’t as urgent as I’m making it sound, really.”

“Oh, okay then,” Command sighed. “So, I take it we’ll be seeing someone new around then?”

“He’s a bit big, but he’s a teddy bear I swear.” Sunset said, sounding a little nervous.

“Um, okay then?” Command blinked. “You’re sure about this plan of yours, yes?”

“He’s fine, he just needs an apartment.” She replied. “You won’t even know he’s there. To be honest, we could just stick him in the apartment past Simon’s.”

“Oh, yeah, that could work,” Command nodded, not that Sunset could see it. “As long as you’re sure about this, then we could do with a new face around here to liven things up.”

“Well, I’m quite literally on my way with him now.” Sunset said with a weak chuckle. “Poor guy needs a van to take him.”

“Oh...dear,” Command replied. “Well, um. You’re sure the building will handle him?”

“Beneath everything, it’s still solid concrete.” Sunset replied. “I’m pulling up by the way.”

“Oh!” Command blinked a few times, before turning to Wallflower. “Um, we should probably head to the front door,” he said to the closest thing the apartment had to a Public Relations manager. “New arrival,” he explained to her baffled gaze.

“Oh really?” Wallflower asked as she looked over at him. “Well let’s go see them.”

This was met with a nod from the other girls. Command hung up his phone and headed down to the front door with the rest of them. He had an inkling who their new roommate might be, but it was always good to confirm it.

As the group came out of the front entrance, Sunset was just closing the door of what looked like a moving van. She gave them a wave before walking around to the side and opening the door.

Who, what, stepped out was massive. Command assumed it was actually a he (The him that Sunset mentioned). He was at least a head taller than Sunset and clearly humanoid in shape. The two things that stood out (besides his size) was his bright red skin and his large almost reptilian head. He had a wide jaw and high cheekbones. His eyes were a bright ice-blue. He was wearing an overly large black, long sleeve t-shirt and an equally large pair of jeans. Even then, the clothes seemed to have a hard time containing his mass.

He blinked in the sudden sun, shouldered a duffel bag (which looked rather small on him) and followed Sunset.

“Hey hey.” Sunset waved. “Didn’t expect a full welcoming committee.”

“Well why wouldn’t we meet a new resident?” Wallflower asked.

“I had some idea, but it’s always good to meet a new neighbor in person,” Command agreed.

“Hi.” His voice was quiet, yet deep and resonated enough for everyone to hear. “I’m Ajur.”

There was a multitude of hellos, before Sonata, while grinning, walked up and hugged him. At least she tried. “Hi! Welcome home!”

Ajur looked down at her a little awkwardly, then rumbled “Thanks.”

“So, Sunset says you’re looking for a room,” Command noted. “Well, let’s see how well you handle the stairs before giving you any room in particular.” He held the front door open and stood to one side for their new housemate.

Ajur did manage to squeeze himself through the door, and the stairs were of little difficulty. Sunset pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the apartment that was next to Simon’s. She opened the door and let the muton in.

“So you’ve got a little kitchenette, a living space, and a bathroom. If the shower doesn’t work for you we might have Simon do some renovating.” Sunset said, pointing out everything as Ajur set down his bag. “What do you think?”

“It’s nice.” Ajur rumbled.

“Alrighty.” Sunset smiled.

“We’ll try to be good neighbors.” Zossi said.

“But don’t be surprised if Aria or Adagio snap at you, but they live downstairs so you probably won’t see them much.” Wallflower explained. “If you need anything, let me know.”

“Need any help moving your stuff in?” Sonata asked.

“I should be able to get it.” Ajur replied.

“Nonsense.” Simon had poked his head around the doorway. “I’m Simon.” The sectoid said walking in. “I’m the quasi-building manager. Let me know if you need anything.”

“Thanks.” Ajur nodded.

“Let’s get you moved in!” Sonata cheered as she marched out of the door. “Oh! Then we need a new roommate party thing!”

“It’s like Pinkie all over again.” Sunset blinked.

“Who?” Command blinked. “I don’t think I know of that person…”

“Don’t worry about it.” Sunset giggled as everyone filed out. “You may or may not meet her. Hell, if she knows what I’ve been up to, don’t be surprised if you see a pink-haired woman come and bust down your door and throw you a you’re fucking a sexy viper party. She’s done weirder.”

“That, um…” Command blushed. “I think that would be...a bit much.”

“A bit much defines her to a T.” Sunset shook her head as the pair started down the stairs.

“So, was she in X-COM with you?” Wallflower asked, trailing behind the pair.

“Yeah. All my friends were. We kinda were on the bad end of stuff for a while.” Sunset nodded. “Especially when we first got picked up, then again that’s before the proper invasions.”

“Well, at least you were doing what you could,” Command quipped as they reached the front door again.

Ajur was staring wide-eyed as Sonata lifted a desk over her head and set it on the sidewalk like it was nothing. He then jumped as Zossi pulled out a cardboard box. “Wait a sec! Be careful with those, those are fragile.” He immediately lowered his voice after the wait.

“Sorry!” Zossi said quickly, making sure to handle the box with more care.

“I’d help, but I’m pretty sure the others have this handled,” Command chuckled. “Plus I don’t get nearly enough exercise to pull off feats like that.” He waved a hand at Sonata’s blatant defiance of what the norms were.

“Sonata’s unique.” Sunset chuckled.

Even Floor was helping, organizing boxes before Sonata and Ajur started ferrying them towards the front of the apartment.

“Yeah, I can tell,” Command quipped. “At least she’s tolerable out of the three.”

“Who knows, maybe if we get Adagio some help then all three of them will be a bit friendlier.” Sunset shrugged.

“Hopefully.” Wallflower nodded.

“Yeah, but see, for that to work they would have to, you know, want to be helped,” Command pointed out sensibly. “You can’t just force therapy down someone’s throat and call it a day.”

“You’ve got a point.” Sunset nodded. “However, if you want to brute force it a bit, there’s probably some psychics out there who could do it.”

“Bleh.” Wallflower shuddered.

“No thank you,” Command shook his head. “The way they are is a choice, just like getting help should be.”

“Exactly.” Sunset smiled and started towards the van. “Now let’s stop standing around and do some work, huh?”

008 - Big brain moves

“Are you adjusting okay?” Zossi asked, bringing a casserole to Ajur.

The Muton blinked down at her. “Yeah, everything’s okay.”

“I… brought you food.” Zossi said, only slightly nervous. She knew she didn’t have anything to worry about, but he was… big.

“Thanks a lot.” He smiled and stepped aside. “Sorry, I was in the middle of something, you can come in and set it down.”

Zossi slithered in and… blinked. Most of a wall was filled with bookshelves. Said bookshelves were filled with graphic novels and what looked like old manga. The wall next to the bathroom had a few glass cases up against them. The cases were filled with small painted figures. The kitchenette sink had a couple plates sitting in it. His large bed was doubling as a seat, because there was a small foldable table sitting in front of the bed. On it was a small angled lamp, as well as what looked like paints, a few paint brushes, a paper towel (on which sat another small unpainted figure.), and a mug filled with water. Next to all that was two pairs of large tweezers and what looked like a large pair of reading glasses. In the center of the room was a TV on a little table with wheels on the legs.

Zossi blinked, shook herself and slithered over to put the glassware on the kitchenette counter. Ajur slowly plodded over and sat on the bed. He put on the glasses, and picked up a set of tweezers in each hand. As if he was using something like chopsticks, he used one pair to lift the figure and another to pick up one of the paintbrushes.

“You paint?” Zossi asked.

“It’s calming.” He nodded before dipping the brush in black and starting to brush it over the figures legs.

“I can see the appeal.” Zossi smiled. “Well, ummm, have fun and enjoy the food.”

“Thanks.” Ajur nodded, too focused on his work.

Zossi slithered out of his apartment, shut the door behind her, and slithered into hers. On shutting her door, she slithered over and flopped onto the couch. She shifted her head a bit. “Soooo Ajur paints.”

“Like, canvas?” Command asked, clicking a few things on his computer. “Granted, not the first hobby I associate with someone with as many muscles as him, but it’s nice he has one.”

“You should see what he does. They look impressive.” She chuckled. “So, my plans for the day are done, what are yours?”

“I’ve got that appointment at the clinic, remember?” Command said. His computer started to wind down as he stood up. “They want to see what I might be able to do if they give me the right push.” He shrugged a little bit as he started gathering up his usual effects for going outside. “Can’t deny I’m not curious as well…”

“Oh right!” Zossi sat up. “Want me to come with you?” She tilted her head a little, curiously.

“I mean, I won’t stop you, but I’m pretty sure it’s gonna be boring,” Command chuckled. “I mean, even in the e-mail, they warn that while they’ve refined the ‘awakening’ process, it still requires an hour-long dunk in a tank with electrodes attached to my head.”

“Oh, well… I might see what the others are doing?” Zossi said with a hum. “Ummm, good luck?”

“Not sure how much luck plays a part of it, but sure,” Command replied, walking over to the viper. “Kisses,” he cooed, leaning down and kissing Zossi’s cheeks.

The viper flushed and pecked his cheek back. “Emmm, bring something to read, or something. Or text me.”

“Not a bad idea,” Command mused, going over and picking up his tablet. “For afterwards,” he nodded to himself. “See you in a bit~” he called as he left the apartment.

The viper watched him leave then sighed. She sat there for a minute. “Well what do I do now?”

“So, how are you feeling, Command.” Doctor Smith said sitting across from him on a stool.

“Well, nothing worse than a slight headache, like ‘missed a cup of coffee’ headache,” Command joked. “Probably the aftermath of the testing.”

“Yeah, it’ll do that to you.” Smith nodded. “Anything worrying you before we start the process?”

“Not in...particular?” Command blinked. “I’ll be honest, I have no idea what goes on in these sorts of things beyond what you warned me about.”

“Well we have something like a brainscan. It’s not like the MRI machine, it’s more something we put on your head and it just reads you for about an hour. You’re free to do whatever while that happens. Only downside is it’ll feel a little tingly and there might be a small headache.” Smith explained. “After we determine what your capabilities are, we stick you in a vat to fully draw out those abilities. Don’t worry, you’ll be out for the whole thing. After that you’ll probably get some meds for headaches and general aches as well as a psy-suppressor. It’ll take awhile for your body and mind to adjust so we’ll have to schedule another follow up.”

“Ah, good thing I brought my tablet to read a few things for the first part, then,” Command quipped. “Okay, so...Read while your device scans my brain, and then it’ll be time for all the fun stuff.”

“To be honest it’s tedious and boring. The machines do most of the work.” Smith shrugged. “Its leagues ahead of what we had years ago, but still....”

“Yeah, anything where the phrase ‘hurry up and wait’ applies is tedious,” Command agreed. “Still, at least it’s faster than it used to be. Maybe one day it’ll be instant.”

Smith laughed. “Ha! Perhaps.” He shook his head. “Okay let’s get you in a wire hat.”

“Sounds like the latest spring fashion,” Command joked.

Zossi sighed and slithered down to the ground floor. She stared at Wallflower’s door. She wasn’t sure if she should knock.

“Wallflower’s out.” A monotone voice spoke up.

Zossi jumped and turned to see Floor poking her head out of her door. “H-hey Floor.”

“Bored because Command’s gone?” Floor asked.

“Yeah…” The viper wilted.

“Wanna hang out?” The pale girl asked.

Zossi blinked. “Sure.”

Floor stepped out of the way as her door opened, and Zossi slithered in. Most of Floor’s apartment was covered in anime paraphernalia. Posters covered the walls, there were a few bookshelves of multiple sets of various manga volumes. A wall was taken up by a cabinet on top of which was a large TV. The kitchenette seemed bare, yet the microwave seemed well used.

“Wanna watch some anime?” Floor asked, flopping onto the futon.

“I.. haven’t seen any anime…” Zossi said weakly.

Floor’s eyes slowly widened. “We’re fixing this.”

“So, this shouldn’t be too bad.” Nurse Fluttershy said, smiling as she attached wires to various ports on the weave like thing that was on Command’s head.

“In theory,” Command quipped. “I love In Theory, everything works there. And Tomorrow is such a place of productivity.”

“What’s that from?” Fluttershy asked, tilting her head curiously.

“Not sure, it’s from a bit I managed to scour off the old ‘net,” Command answered. “But it’s very applicable.”

“That’s nice. I haven’t seen much salvaged from what remains of the internet.” Fluttershy sighed. She paused and jumped. “Oh, I’m supposed to be telling you about the different Psy-Types among humans.”

“Oh, by all means,” Command went to nod before remembering she was still attaching wires to his head.

“Alright. The most common is classified as Omni. It’s basically a Jack of all Trades, little bit of telepathy, little bit of telekinesis, a few other things mixed in. Following that are Telekinesis and Telepathy, those are kinda self-evident, and are only slightly rarer than Omni. Following that is the rarest kind. Elemental-Kinesis. It’s split between Earth, Fire, Lightning, and Water respectively. Those have the ability to produce and manipulate that specific element. Kind of like the Benders from Avatar if you’ve seen that show.” Fluttershy said with a giggle.

“I’ve heard of it, haven’t had the chance to see it,” Command replied. “So, do we know what to test me for?”

“It’s pretty much a catch all scan until specific requirements are detected, then it focuses that data so we have something to input into the chamber.” Fluttershy said with a reassuring smile. “Think of it like it’s starting big then narrowing down to a few specific things.”

“Ah, cool,” Command smiled back. “So the headaches won’t really start right away, gotcha.”

“Nope.” She shook her head. “And they shouldn’t be that bad.”

“We can hope,” Command smirked. “Alright doc, hit me.”

Fluttershy giggled as she walked back towards the desk as Smith chuckled and simply pushed a button on a keyboard. Outwardly, nothing happened.

“And… It’s started.” He said. “Ta dah.”

Command chuckled as well. “Okay, see you in an hour,” he commented, pulling out his tablet from his bag and starting to read a book on it.

“Aang’s so sweet!” Zossi sniffled as Floor patted her shoulder. “Why’d all of his family die?”

“Fire Nation went full Crusade.” Floor gestured at the TV.

“Oh no!” Zossi gasped. “That would explain the guy with the eye scar thing.”

“Hey, Zuko gets better. It just takes a while.” Floor said as she got up. “Want anything?” She asked as she walked over to her mini-fridge and bent over. “I’ve got… soda… starbucks drinks… juice… and water. Oh, I also have hot chocolate mix.”

“Oooooo! Hot chocolate!” Zossi gasped, making sure to pause the show.

“Gotcha. Coming up.” Floor said pulling out a couple mugs.

It had been… a boring hour. The headache was indeed not that bad. Little more than a weird pulsing feeling behind his eyes. Fluttershy was removing the wires as Smith looked over the computer screen, looking somewhere between shocked and confused.

“That wasn’t nearly as bad as the original testing,” Command mused. “Might need some migraine pills later, though.” He waited for all the wires to be removed before he rolled his neck. “Aaaah, that’s better.” Then Command looked over at the sectoid doctor. “So, what’s the verdict, doc?”

“Command, once you take a bath in the tank, you will be a… Electrokinetic.” Smith said, looking over at Command. “You’re going to want to be really careful around electronics, however you’ll probably have a Suppressor on at all times, so perhaps note.” He said with a hum.

“...Wait. Aren’t those supposed to be, incredibly rare?” Command blinked a few times. “I mean, I won’t say no to the idea of throwing lightning around one day, but that seems kinda...like a highly unlikely thing, even to me.”

“One in a million or so.” Smith nodded. “But the test doesn’t lie.”

“Huh.” Command blinked a few more times before groaning. “Aaaargh. If it’s going to be as bad as you say it is, I’m probably not going to be able to hang out on the computer as often as I’d like without frying it.”

“Again, you’ll have a suppressor.” Smith said. “It’ll pretty much cancel out your Psy abilities so long as you have it on. Also, though it’s not the most fashionable, it basically looks like a choker.”

Command snorted at the mental imagery. “Zossi will love that idea, I’m sure,” he managed to say. As long as it didn’t come with a spot for a leash, he should be fine…

“It won’t.” Fluttershy smiled at him. “It’s just a black band.” She paused and blushed. “Sorry, I’m a telepath, kinda can’t turn it off sometimes.”

Well. Now Command was blushing and looking away. “Ah...can we, uh...move past the awkwardness?” he suggested. “That’d be...yeah.”

“Sure!” Fluttershy said quickly. “Let’s move on to ummm vat prep! Yes!” She stiffly marched off.

“Man, I’ve heard everything. Nothing surprises me anymore.” Smith chuckled, stretching and getting up. “Let’s get you into some swim trunks.”

“So this is a…” Zossi squinted at the TV. “A show about a guy who somehow gets a home full of hybrid humans?”

“Basically.” Floor nodded. “Monster Girls are an interesting, and sometimes kinky, genre of anime.”

“Ooookay? Well… The snake girl is cute. Aaand… Is that a maid outfit?” Zossi blinked.

“It is indeed.” Floor nodded sagely.

“Uh… huh.” Zossi blinked. “This show is really pushing the boundaries.”

“Yeah, it’s clearly meant for guys, but it’s lewd so I like it.” Floor nodded with a small blush.

“Say… mind if I borrow some stuff to watch some time?” Zossi asked.

Floor blinked at her. “Of course! I don’t have anyone to chat with about anime. Well, except online friends.”

“I’m your friend.” Zossi said bluntly.

“Awww…” Floor said softly. “Thanks…” She shook herself. “So, want to finish this episode and move on to a different series or keep watching?”

“I want to see where this goes.” Zossi said, trying not to blush herself.

“I bet you do.” Floor giggled and nudged her side with an elbow.

“Oh hush.” Zossi said, flustered.

Command awoke slowly, his head was splitting. The only thing he could tell was that he was in a hospital bed, under some very comfy sheets, and that it was dark. He knew that if it was bright, his brain might’ve exploded. He could feel something around his neck, more than likely the suppressor, as well as an IV in his arm and one of those monitoring things on a finger.

“Hate...hospitals,” he muttered out loud, trying his best to twist to one side so he could at least block one ear. “Someone mute...the monitor.”

“Oh, sorry.” He heard the soft voice of Fluttershy as the beeping stopped. “How’s your head?”

“Like someone’s driving a spike through it,” Command answered, his eyes still shut. “Tell me it goes away.”

“Give it a half hour to an hour.” Fluttershy whispered. “I’ve got a drip to help. You can go back to sleep if you want. Oh, and it was a complete success, we can schedule the follow up when you're more alive.”

“Great. Can do,” Command groaned. “Ugh...I’m safe with the suppressor on, right?”

“Absolutely.” Fluttershy replied.

“Good,” the male sighed, falling back limp against the bed. “Just...ow. I thought the doctor was supposed to make you feel better,” he joked weakly.

“You will, but sometimes you have to hurt before you heal.” Fluttershy murmured.

“Then I better feel like a million credits after this,” Command riposted.

Fluttershy giggled. “Shhhh… Try and get some sleep.”

Command obeyed her instructions gratefully, closing his eyes to let his headache go away at last in the blissful haze of sleep.

“Papi is so cute!” Zossi gushed. “And so is Su!”

“Yep.” Floor smiled. “They tend to be rather wholesome.”

“Also- centaur girl, name is not coming to me. She’s so honorable and I want more scenes of her just eating carrots.” The viper giggled.

Floor got up. “So it’s not exactly the same thing.” She rummaged through her cabinet. “But,” She wandered over to Zossi and held out a box set. “This is, Interviews with Monster Girls. It’s cute and interesting and has the most gentlemanly teacher ever.”

“Ooooo!” Zossi brightened, taking it. “Got anything else like this?”

Floor hummed, taping her chin. “Does the name Konosuba mean anything to you?”

A worn out Command trudged up the stairs, carrying a bag that held his prescriptions. Almost unsurprisingly at this point, his door was ajar. He blinked when he heard Zossi cackle like a madsnake.

What in the world…

The tired Command pushed the door open a little more to take in the scene beyond. He wasn’t...quite sure what to make of it at first.

Zossi was rolling on the bed, laughing at something… Was that japanese? Was she watching something? The tired human craned his neck a little bit to try and see the TV screen. It was an anime, some brown haired kid was running around with what looked like a knight helmet. There was some blue haired girl channeling some magic.

“Huh.” Command blinked, the headache meds making him a little woozy. “Interesting. Didn’t know we had that stuff.”

Zossi managed to regain enough of her senses to pause the show. “I- I-hits from Floor. She has a collection.” Zossi slowly calmed. She took a breath and sighed, then looked at him. “How are you doing, you okay? How’d it go?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine in a few days,” Command waved a hand. “Gonna need some headache meds while my body adjusts, and basically the choker doesn’t come off for any reason until I get training.”

“That’s good to know.” Zossi nodded, eyeing the choker. “Want to relax?”

“That sounds like the best idea,” Command murmured, headed for the couch. He put the bag of drugs on an end table and flopped down onto the couch, sighing in relief as he got to get off of his feet after a draining day.

Zossi scooted over and set his head in her lap. She started to gently stroke his hair. “Awww, poor sweetie. Let me take care of you.” She said warmly.

“Where do you keep getting all these great ideas,” Command muttered, his eyes closed in relaxation.

“What?” The viper smiled. “I just want to help you relax after your probably stressful day.”

“Wasn’t much stress to it, just a whole lotta headaches,” Command said languidly. “Pills can take the edge off, but my body and brain still need to adjust…”

“Well you should take it easy then.” Zossi smiled leaning down to peck his forehead. “Maybe take a few days to just relax and adjust.”

“Sounds...great,” Command yawned. “I’ll just...take a quick nap…”

“Shhhhh.” Zossi shushed. “Sleep…”

Everything else was lost in a haze as the newly-awoken psychic drifted off in the embrace of the Viper.

009 - Recuperation

Zossi hummed softly as she slithered over and set a steaming bowl of soup on a little TV tray on Command’s lap, as Command zoned in front of the TV. “Need anything else? More pain meds, the remote?”

“You’re a darling,” the human groaned. “No, I think this’ll be...good for now.” He winced a little bit. “Nobody said it would be this bad,” he muttered.

“I’m sorry.” The snek wilted a little. “What can I do to help?”

“Cuddles?” Command offered, opening one arm a little to let her in.

Zossi plopped herself on the couch and nestled against his side. There were a couple snaps of static but that was normal at this point. “Better?”

“Mhm,” the human nodded, kissing Zossi’s cheek and drinking in the feeling of her being next to him.

“So what are you watching?” The viper asked as she rested her head on his shoulder.

“Just a documentary,” Command sighed. “Just...something to take my mind off things.”

“Wanna just just chill, or watch something else, or wanna play a game? Sorry I don’t know how to help.” Zossi said, looking a little flustered.

“No, you’re honestly good and adorable when you’re trying to help,” Command chuckled, squeezing her against his side. “But thanks for trying.”

“Okay…” Zossi said, sounding unsure. “Just let me know if you need absolutely anything.”

“Right now what I need is for you to relax,” Command hinted. “You being tense is just making me tense.”

Zossi took a breath and relaxed against him. “Okay. Okay. I can calm down. I just worry about you.”

“Fair enough, but worrying won’t fix anything,” Command agreed. “But having you by my side makes it so much easier to relax.”

“Yay.” She cheered softly nuzzling against his cheek.

“So,” Command mused. “How long until my next pain pill dose?”

“Lemme see… You took the last one… You’ve got ten minutes.” Zossi nodded. “Then it’ll be another ten to kick in.” She pouted. “I’m sorry. Maybe we could ask for a stronger suppressor?”

“It’s fine,” Command brushed the concerns off. “Just wanting to make sure I don’t miss it.” The small snap of discharging electricity didn’t escape her notice.

“I got the times in my head. You can only take four a day.” Zossi nodded. “And this’ll be your second.”

“Yay for drugs,” Command chuckled. “And how long until I don’t need them?”

“Two more days.” Zossi said with a hum. “Then you have to wear the suppressor for two more weeks.”

“Joy,” Command replied. “Well, hopefully the random sparks die down before then.”

“I can get used to it.” She smiled at him. “Plus it might be a little kinky eventually.” She winked at him and giggled.

“I’d need a lot of training for that,” Command replied easily.

“Well, obviously.” Zossi nodded. “I wonder…” She hummed. “Who would be the one training you? I mean, you probably have to anyway since rare psychic power stuff.”

“Yeah...no clue,” Command shrugged. “I mean, I’ve been told we’ll talk about that when the suppressor’s off.”

“Mmmm true.” She hummed then kissed his cheek with a small snap of static. She made a small face and puckered her lips a bit. “And I’ll need to get used to that.”

“I mean, I’m not exactly in control of it yet,” Command pointed out.

“Duh, silly. I’m assuming this just happens.” Zossi giggled.

“Well, we don’t know for sure yet, but it seems likely,” Command agreed.

“Hey, I think Floor mentioned an anime we should watch.” Zossi hummed. “She specifically mentioned it after hearing about your new psychic powers.”

“I mean, it’s not quite developed properly yet, but sure, what’s the anime?” Command agreed.

“A Certain Scientific Railgun.” The viper said with a small shrug. “Apparently there’s a couple series that can be watched side-by-side with it.”

“Okay...sounds interesting,” Command allowed. “You got it to hand?”

“She was gonna give me the box set of the first season, but she has to actually find it. Some series she has more on hand than others.” The viper shrugged.

“Fair, fair,” the human nodded. “Okay, so…” He took a sip of soup and sighed. “That’s good,” he told the Viper. “You’re getting good at that.”

“Thanks. It’s just some chicken soup.” Zossi smiled.

“It’s still good,” Command praised her.

“Yay.” The viper bounced happily.

“Mhm, I can taste the effort you put in,” Command nodded. “So...thanks for being here for me.” He kissed her on the cheek again, sighing as he relaxed against both the couch and the Viper.

“Awww…” She blushed. “You always know how to fluster me.”

“You’re worth it~” he teased.

“I am?” She squeaked.

“Mainly for your reactions,” Command nodded.

She covered her face. “Don’t look at me.”

“But you’re so adorable~” Command taunted. “For a big snek girl, you’re awfully cute.”

She slowly pulled her turtleneck up and stuffed her face into it. “Why do you make me like this?”

“Cuz you’re cute, and I like you,” Command said blandly. “And it’s fun seeing you turn red.”

Her eyes poked out of her turtleneck. “I’m not that cute, right?”

“Sorry, you’ve been diagnosed with a terminal case of adorable,” Command said solemnly.

She gasped. “Oh no! How do I fix it?!”

“I’m writing you a prescription for ten grams of snuggles,” Command said with a bit of a smile. “I suggest you fill it as soon as you can.”

“Please snuggle me! I don’t want to die!” She pleaded piteously. In response, Command held his arms open for her to take advantage of. She flopped into his arms as her head popped out of her turtleneck and immediately started to nuzzle his face and neck.

“Mmm...this is nice,” Command mused, hugging her back. Snake hugs really were the best.

“Mmmmhmmm.” She nodded into his shoulder. She pushed herself up. “And you need to take your pill.” She got up and slithered over to the kitchenette.

“Ah, the one thing that can interrupt a good snuggle time, medication,” Command sighed. Ah well. “Bring on the fuzzy feelings.”

She slithered back over with a glass of water and a pill in her palm. “Here.”

“Mmm, down the hatch.” Command took the pill, took a breath, and gulped it down with the water assisting him. He already felt better.

“Back to cuddling?” Zossi asked, taking the glass and returning it to the kitchen.

“Oooh, that sounds good,” Command nodded. “Let’s do more of that, yes.”

The snek slithered back over and plopped down, snuggling up to his side. “I’m your little cuddleslut.”

“That, I can get behind,” Command all but purred. “Mmm...You’re very good at that.” He stroked the Viper’s back with one hand and sighed as the familiar feeling of scales registered and comforted him.

“Mmmmmm…” She hummed nestling her head into his shoulder.

“Honestly I could probably just stay here all day stroking and cuddling you,” Command noted out loud. “You’re very cuddleable.”

“Is that even a word?” Zossi asked, scrunching up her face in thought.

“It is if I say it is,” the human decreed. “Now. Let’s take up the whole couch and just lie here like lumps.”

“Hold on.” Zossi got up, accompanied by a whine from Command, and picked up the TV tray, before moving it to the kitchen.

“Oh yeah, that woulda been messy,” the human noted.

Zossi returned and cuddled up next to him again. “Wanna lay down? Or would you rather use me as a pillow?”

“How about I use you as a blanket?” Command teased. “There’s certainly enough of you for that.”

“I can do that, but are you sure I’m not too heavy?” She asked tilting her head to the side.

“I trust you not to crush me,” the human answered, moving to lay on his back. “Let’s try it.”

Zossi crawled over him and laid on top of him. She coiled her tail around so it covered his legs, then rested her head next to his. “Better?”

“Mmm, big snek blanket,” Command hummed, kissing her lips gently. “So cuddly and cute.”

“Awww…. If you say so.” She blushed.

“I do,” Command nodded once. “I like cuddle-snek, you’re adorable like this.”

“Thanks…” She replied, blushing.

Command then used one hand to pull her hooded head closer to his own and started kissing her on the lips, while the other hand stroked along her inner hood to feel the scales.

She squeaked a little and melted against him. Her arms wrapped around him.

This was nice. Cuddling, sharing warmth, being close to each other like this. Zossi was a good friend. Command moved his hands to stroke against Zossi’s sweater and frowned. Right, she’d gone back to wearing clothes. It was so much easier when she was more comfortable around him to get a handful of scales…

Zossi broke the kiss. “Trying to get a little handsy?” She giggled.

“Well, it was easier before you went back to wearing clothes,” Command admitted. “Plus there’s something about the feeling of scales that just relaxes me.”

“Would you prefer the turtleneck off?” She asked with a small smile.

“I’ve told you before, you don’t have to wear clothes around me,” Command riposted.

“Aaaaand Wallflower hasn’t been knocking down our door recently.” Zossi hummed, looking thoughtful.

“Yeah, she muttered something about not wanting to startle the guy with shock powers or his snakey girlfriend into a startle reflex,” Command joked.

“Of course.” Zossi rolled her eyes and tugged her turtleneck up. Command laid there and then promptly went back to cuddling Zossi once she laid back down after taking the sweater off. His hands roamed over her scaly back as he hugged her close to him.

“Why do you like my scales so much?” She asked with the occasional giggle as his hands roamed around her scales.

Command paused a moment to think his answer through. “I think,” he said carefully, “That when you went around without clothes on, brushing up against me, trying to get me to do things to you, it sort of...ingrained into me over time that you trusted me enough to bare yourself to me. That the feeling of scales on skin was a good thing, soothing, relaxing even.”

“I guess that’s good?” She said with a small hum. “I’m happy I can comfort you at least.”

“Ye, though it doesn’t quite feel the same without you trying to grope me every ten minutes,” Command joked.

“I wasn’t trying to grope you that much.” The viper huffed.

“I’m counting accidental brushes of your tail as well,” the human countered. “Cause I know there’s no such thing as accidents with you.”

“I just didn’t know how to flirt yet.” Zossi countered, shifting her head to look at him.

“And there’s no real need to flirt now,” Command pointed out. “I mean, we’ve already crossed the biggest hurdle already.”

“Yeah, a couple times-ish” She giggled with a small blush. “But hey, I now know that you like my scales.”

“I mean, yes, your scales are comforting, but you’re not scaly everywhere,” Command pointed out, before blinking. “Wow. Uh. The drugs must be loosening my reaction time to my first thought.”

“Well… true.” The snek blushed a little redder.

“Let’s go back to cuddling before my tongue suggests we sleep together again-” Command cut himself off by forcefully closing his mouth.

“I’m not going to sleep with you when you’re on drugs silly.” Zossi shushed him. “Especially who knows what might happen in the middle of it.”

“...Point,” Command allowed himself to say. “Okay. That makes me feel better.”

“Did you really think I’d sleep with you when I’m this worried about you? If you were perfectly healthy and in your right mind, maybe. But not when you’re hurting and on drugs to stop the hurting.” Zossi pouted a bit at him.

“Well you were sort of...insistent when I was fine,” Command pointed out, before raising his hands in surrender. “Fine, fine. Cuddles it is.”

“I’m sorry. I can just get really in the mood sometimes.” Zossi sighed. “But, yeah. Cuddles are fine.”

“Mmm, snakey cuddles,” Command sighed as they laid together again.

“And human cuddles are best cuddles.” She cooed. “Because you are so warm and cuddly.”

“Well you can’t discount how smooth you are,” Command pointed out. “But yes...let’s just enjoy the whole lack-of-pain going on.”

Zossi nodded. “Just laying around sounds very nice.”

There came a “knock” on the door. It really sounded like polite pounding. “Sorry.” Came the apologetic rumble of Ajur.

“You know I could’ve knocked.” Floor’s voice followed, sounding a little irritated.

Zossi blinked, then sat up to put her turtleneck back on.

“But isn’t it the gentlemanly thing to knock or something?” Ajur asked.

“A, technically you’re not a man, and B, no, no that’s not a thing.” Floor replied.

“Huh. I swore I saw that somewhere.”

“I’m comin.” Zossi said, pulling away from her boyfriend and slithering to the door. She opened it and wasn’t sure who to look at. The, on the small side Floor, or the, having to hunch over, Ajur. “Can I help you two?”

“Sorry again.” Ajur rumbled.

“It’s fine.” Zossi said with a somewhat strained smile.

“We were just wondering if you wanted to do a binge watch of something?” Floor asked. “I just found out that this guy likes manga.”

“Among other things.” Ajur rumbled with a small blush.

“Well, I was going to spend the day cuddling with my very in pain boyfriend who is dealing with his psychic awakening, but I’m sure he wouldn’t mind me leaving him all alone to suffer in silence.” Zossi said, only a little tense.

The pair in the doorway blinked.

“Zossi, it’s fine, the drugs kicked in a minute ago,” Command called from the couch. “And we’ve got surge protectors everywhere,” he added after a moment of thought.

Zossi craned her head around. “You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m fine for a little bit,” Command waved his hand at her. “Go on and help Floor find that anime she was talking about earlier if nothing else.”

“That I can do.” Zossi replied, then turned back to the pair. “Fine, let’s go watch some stuff.”

010 - Snap decisions

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to take off the choker?” Zossi frowned as Command unclipped the choker and set it down. “Aren’t you worried about zapping… everything?”

“Well, yes,” Command agreed. “But I’m never going to learn how to control this power just sitting around on my behind. I need to figure out how it works so that I don’t do that.” He breathed in, before relaxing and trying to figure out how the sparking sensation under his skin translated to his new mental muscle.

The viper leaned away, paused, then slithered closer to the couch. “I’ll just sit over here while you do that.”

“I’m astounded by your confidence in me,” Command muttered, keeping his eyes closed as he attempted to figure out how to call up this power willingly. That would be step one. Step two would be turning it off, then remembering that sensation and constantly applying it to himself.

Zossi’s tongue flicked out. “The air smells like ozone.”

“Yes, I need to figure out how it works before I can make it stop working,” Command muttered. Okay, he probably had enough going to qualify for step one. Now...how to stop it? Maybe suppressing the mental sensation of pins and needles…

“Ummmm…. Try relaxing?” The viper suggested.

“Yeah, my method isn’t working,” Command agreed. He then tried untensing, letting go of the feeling of power. Maybe that would work?...

Zossi glanced around as the lights started flickering. “Not sure if what you’re doing is helping.”

“I’m going to give it five more seconds, then I clip the thing back on,” Command agreed. “Nothing seems to be working...yeah, back on with the collar.” He reached for the suppressor device as he saw sparks dance along his fingers.

“Want me to do that?” Zossi asked, glancing at the suppressor.

“I think I can manage-” Command began to say, only for a flash of static to lash out and hit a lamp on Command’s desk.

“Maybe some help would be good,” he then said in a small voice.

Tentatively, the viper slithered over, took the suppressor (despite the snap of static) and snapped it closed around his neck. Thankfully, the electrical disturbances ceased. “You know there’s probably a reason that they have you wear it until your next appointment. They might have someone able to actually train you in whatever this can do.”

“Yeah...point,” Command sighed, heading back over to the couch and falling onto it with a thump. “I just wanted to show some proficiency in controlling it at least a little before the appointment, you know? Like, ‘Hey, I’m not completely incompetent.’”

“Sweetie.” Zossi sighed as she flopped next to him. “This isn’t a competence thing. It’s like… Mmmm gun training or martial arts training. You don’t go in saying hey I know how to shoot already, or Look I can do this already. You don’t have to impress anyone. It’s actually more liable to make you look kinda reckless or foolish. Do you get what I’m saying?”

“Yeah, I do,” the human sighed, stroking Zossi’s scales absently. “I just get antsy with the whole idea of not being able to control this. I wanna be able to touch my setup without fear of frying it, you know?”

“Even that’s been getting better. It just goes to show you’re actually adjusting.” The viper nodded, leaning over to nuzzle his cheek. “And it seems that you do better when you’re not thinking or stressing about it.”

“Well yeah, I guess it probably takes a force of will to call up and probably doesn’t like the idea of being put away without doing something,” Command mused. “Huh. Should we maybe get like, a battery and a target I can shoot to charge it with whenever I have a flare-up?”

“Good idea, but I don’t think psychic powers are self-aware.” Zossi rolled her eyes.

“Well it’s certainly not easily controlled right now,” Command pointed out. “Honestly. Trying to figure out how to control the electricity is kinda like trying to grasp the edge of a huge problem that turns out to be the ocean when you get a little bit of it.”

“Which is why you’ll probably get a teacher.” The viper nodded sagely.

“I better, otherwise I’ll have to live in like a power plant for the rest of my days,” Command joked.

There was a knock at the door. Zossi got up. “I think you might’ve messed with the rest of the apartment.”

“Aheh...whoops?” Command tried his best to look sheepish. “I mean, I didn’t mean to…” He looked away from the door, already promising himself not to take the collar off until his next appointment, if it would mean the others wouldn’t knock on the door.

“It’s fine.” Zossi said as she slithered over to the door. And what she opened it…

A girl stood there. Her yellow skin looked a little pale, making her an off-white. Her magenta eyes looked tired, and sported some noticeable bags. Her bright orange hair laid straight over her back and shoulders. She was wearing slightly baggy jeans and a purple t-shirt. “Hey.”

“Adagio?” Zossi blinked. “Hi, are you okay? Do you need anything?”

“M’fine. Just got my internet fritzing for a sec there.” Adagio Dazzle shrugged.

“Sorry.” Zossi winced. “Somebody decided to try to test out what it would be like without a psy-suppressor.” She looked over her shoulder.

“Figured it’d be the new zappy boy.” Adagio chuckled. “So, Sonata says that the girls are avoiding your boy toy cause of his static stuff. Mind if I poke him?” She asked with a raised brow.

“I mean, that shouldn’t be a problem, but I just got done trying to get myself under control,” Command warned. “I’m probably full of static and-”

Adagio slipped past the viper and strode over to Command. She reached out and poked him. There was a ~snap~ and a ~fwoomph~. Adagio’s hair suddenly sprang up into a massive mane of curls. “That’s better.” The girl sighed.

Command blinked. “That’s...one way to use static charge,” he admitted. “Probably not my first thought, but at least someone is getting some use out of it.”

“So Shimmer told me through Sonata that I should probably get checked out at the hospital for psychic stuff. She thinks I should set up an appointment on the same day as your next appointment so we could go together. I just think she wants to get me out of the house so to speak.” Adagio rolled her eyes. “If anything it should stop the headaches. Supposedly.”

“Oh hey, actually,” Command turned to Zossi. “Do we have any of that headache medication left? She could probably use a little of it to take the edge off.”

“Yeah, you only used about half of it before switching to Ibuprofen.” Zossi nodding, slithering into the bathroom.

“Well look at you, being a drug dealer.” Adagio smirked.

“I mean, I’m not planning on using it, it’s already paid for, why not put it to use with someone who needs it?” Command shrugged. “I think I’d only be a drug dealer if you paid for it, though,” he mused.

“Here.” Zossi said, coming back out and handing the girl a bottle of pills.

“Mmmm just take with water.” Adagio commented. “Thanks.”

“Anything to help out,” Command nodded once. “Oh, have you been enjoying the food? I try to send some back with Sonata every now and then…”

“No offense, but I think I like Z’s better.” Adagio gestured a thumb at Zossi.

“Awww thanks.” Zossi said with a small smile.

“Told you~” Command sang. “Anyways, yeah, thanks for the warning, no more indoor practice for me until after my appointment.”

“Just relax and don’t stress about it.” Zossi nodded.

“Sure. Thanks for the pills.” Adagio nodded, rolling her eyes.

“Welcome, and I hope to see you around a bit more often,” Command waved from the couch. “Though if you start to have a side effect, you should probably not take them as often.”

“Good advice.” Adagio walked towards the door. “Might see ya around.” She waved before leaving.

“See ya.” Zossi waved.

Once the door closed, Command smiled and relaxed. “Well, she wasn’t...nearly as bad as I thought she might end up being,” he mused.

“Maybe she’s in a good mood?” The viper shrugged, and cuddled into his side. “How’re you feeling?”

“Boooored,” Command whined. “I can’t go anywhere near my setup for fear of turning it into scrap.”

“Well want to watch something, or want a massage?” Zossi offered.

“I wouldn’t say no to either of those things,” the human agreed readily. “Anything to take my mind off of my situation.”

“Scoot up a bit.” Zossi gestured him forward. Command slowly moved up the couch a ways, wondering what the Viper had planned. The viper’s delicate-looking, yet strong hands slid over his shoulders and gently applied pressure.

“Ooooh that’s good,” Command all but melted under her touch. “That’s…” He didn’t have words for how she was getting tension he didn’t know he had out of his system. She was just so good at it.

“Jusssst relax.” She said softly, smiling as she slowly kneaded his shoulders. Slowly, Command started to slump forwards more and more, his eyelids growing heavier the longer she kept up the massage.

“There you go.” The viper cooed as Command drifted off. Eventually she had a snoozing human on the couch. One who sparked occasionally, but it was only a quick snap before the collar suppressed it again.

There was another knock.

Zossi sighed. “Stay here.” She said getting up.

The human murmured something in his sleep, shifting only a little when she left.

The viper slithered over to the door and opened it, only to see Simon on the other side. “Hey Simon.” Zossi blinked.

“Hey- Did Command take off his suppressor?” Simon asked, raising a brow as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Ummm… Yes?” Zossi asked.

“Well make him stop that.” Simon stated. “I not only felt that, he could’ve fried all the fuses in the complex.”

“Sorry.” Zossi said weakly. “He was being stubborn.”

“I figured, but still.” Simon shook his head. “No. He can’t do that until he actually knows what he’s doing.”

“Okay. I’ll let him know.” Zossi nodded.

“Hey. We have a surge earlier?” Zossi jumped as Floor spoke up. Apparently she’d walked up during the conversation.

“Yes.” Simon nodded, looking at the new arrival. “Floor, how are you?”

“I’m… ummm... fine.” Floor said with a small blush.

Zossi just glanced between the two.

“Oh! So, right. I actually came up here for Zossi.” Floor looked at the viper.

“Huh?” Zossi blinked.

“I found this. Had it stashed in a box.” The young woman gave the viper a box set.

Zossi looked at it. “A Certain Scientific- Oh! You found it!”

“Yep! Just season one.” Floor nodded happily.

“Make sure Command doesn’t take off the suppressor.” Simon commented, before walking back to his own apartment.

“I’ll be sure to.” Zossi nodded before looking back to Floor. “Anything else you’d recommend?”

“A Certain Magical Index would be interesting to watch after Railgun.” Floor said with a hum.

“Well thanks for that.” Zossi nodded as Floor smiled and turned to leave. The viper smiled back, before shutting the door, and slithering over to set the set of dvds by the tv. She sighed and slithered over to sit next to her snoring boyfriend. She smiled and gently ran a hand through his hair. He was so cute when he slept.

She leaned back and rested her own eyes, planning on enjoying a nap herself.

When Zossi woke up, she noticed that a few things had shifted during the nap.

For one, she and Command were leaning on each other on the couch now. Not that it was unpleasant, he probably was enjoying the feeling of her scales, like usual. And she liked being close to him as well.

But the most notable thing that had happened thanks to the shift was that his occasional sparking discharge had somewhere to go before it got suppressed by his collar.

And the tingles from the sparks didn’t feel bad at all. It was like a pleasant, vibrating buzz. She hummed happily and hugged him close.

That seemed to provoke a bigger snap, and the tingles started to run up and down her whole body, bringing a pleasant twitch everywhere they went. She shuddered. Maybe she could learn to enjoy some aspects of his affinity for electricity.

She shook herself and got up. She didn’t want to get too riled up without him being conscious. She looked around, now understanding why he could be bored. She spied his computer. The same computer he hadn’t been able to touch, lest he damage it. She slithered over and sat down in the chair. Turning the computer on, she hummed as she thought about what to play.

There was that server thing he’d set up not long ago. Maybe she could...make an account and log into that? It couldn’t be that hard. She hummed to herself and started typing at the account creation.

The game couldn’t be that addicting.

011 - Gaming, fuel

A blocky fist punched at a block tree. The tree block cracked and broke in a few punches, dropping a wood block as it did.

“You know you have an axe for that, right?”

“I know, I just like punching trees.”

Zossi had quickly found herself enjoying Minecraft, so much so that when Command woke up, he found her still playing it.

“Fair,” Command nodded once. “Plus you can never have too much wood, it’s used in most everything.”

“I need big chests.” The viper nodded as she punched away at the rest of the tree.

“Good on you for punching out all of the tree, leaving it hovering would be annoying,” the human pointed out.

“And the leaves will just break and drop stuff.” She nodded again, moving on to another tree.

“Like sticks and saplings to replant the trees and apples,” Command agreed. “Just don’t forget to make some tools before midday, that way you can get ready for nightfall.”

“Yep, more wood axes and mining picks. Not gonna do a sword till I get some iron.” The snek finished with another tree.

“That may or may not be a good idea,” Command hummed. “I mean, it’s not like it’s rare or anything, but finding it in the earth could take some time for your first day. Not to mention smelting it up is also laborious.”

“Mmmmm.” Zossi pouted, popped open her crafting menu and made a wood sword. “Fine. Just in case.”

“Good call, you should make all the tools you need out of whatever you have to hand at the moment,” Command nodded once. “Not saying you’re going to need to defend yourself on the first day, but there is a reason there’s a wooden sword recipe in the game.”

“I know.” The viper rolled her eyes as she looked at her crafting menu and turned the wood she gathered into wood planks. “I’m gonna need more wood for a small house. Maybe I should find some sheep for wool so I can make a bed.”

“Also a good plan,” Command noted. “Sleeping through the night is the best way to survive the hordes of monsters that spawn at night.”

“I’m also gonna need torches, right?” She glanced at her human. “Light source?”

“Something like that to keep yourself safe at night, yes,” Command agreed with a chuckle. “But if you can’t find any coal, you can chop some logs and turn them into charcoal by smelting them in a furnace.”

“Cool.” She nodded. “How do I get a furnace though?”

“Eight cobble in a chest pattern on a crafting bench,” the human supplied. “Needs fuel to run, preferably coal, but wood works in a pinch.”

“Kaaay.” She said, returning to her work of punching trees.

“And on that day, the trees, knew fear,” Command intoned.

“Silly human, trees don’t have emotions.” Zossi stuck her tongue out at him.

“I have got to show you some movies I salvaged,” Command hummed. “You’d change your tune pretty quickly.”

Zossi narrowed her eyes. “I swear Sonata mentioned something about a bad horror movie featuring trees.” She blinked, shrugged, then went back to punching trees.

“Nah, I was thinking more of an adventure movie series,” Command countered. “Something to show you how some humans thought of trees in a fantasy setting.”

“Huh.” The snek shrugged. “I think I should set up a house before I take a break.”

“Probably a good ide-” Command started to say, before pausing. “Wait. Turn back to the right there? Yeah, what’s that on the horizon?”

“I have no idea?” Zossi frowned and started for whatever it is.

“It looks like a wall for a huge build…” Command hummed. “Huh. I wasn’t expecting that.”

“What is it, and is it dangerous?” The snek narrowed her eyes at the screen.

“Well, it means...wait. Are you playing on the server I set up?” Command questioned.

“I dunno?” The snek blinked, shrugging.

“Well, it shouldn’t be bad to just go forward and see what that’s all about,” Command urged.

Which the snake did, moving her character to the rather large wall. “Yep, it’s a wall.”

“There’s a button over there, next to what...looks like a segment for a gate,” Command pointed out.

Shrugging again, she poked the button. There was several shifting noises, and the gate smoothly melted into the floor, revealing a small village beyond.

Along with another player.

Zossi blinked. “Hi.” She paused. “Wait, has there been chat that I’ve been missing?”

“Not that I can see,” Command pointed out. “But yes, it appears there’s a nice community here already, doing some things. Make friends with them.”

“How do I do that?” The snek quickly looked between the screen, Command, and back.

“Try typing ‘Hello,’” he offered. “Um. Hit the T button to talk first and then type it in. That opens chat up.”

She hit T and a chat window did indeed pop up. And it was already full of people. ‘Hello.’

She blinked at the amount of hi and hello messages that popped up. “They seem friendly.”

“They’ve built a nice little town here,” Command noted. “And seem to be working on a huge castle as well. Why not ask them how far they’ve gotten in the game?”

Zossi chewed her lip and typed at the chat. ‘Hello. Nice town you’ve built. How far have you gotten?’

There was a moment while the people on the other end were silent, probably typing as well, and then…

‘Well, we’ve raided the Nether for some quartz, but turned back before the Piglins could show us why it’s hell in there.’

‘Yeah, but Observers make farms soooo much easier.’

‘We’re setting up all the little things to automate resource gathering before trying to find a fortress. You’re welcome to some of our infinite iron.’

Zossi blinked. ‘I’m new. I understood none of that.’

‘Orientation?’ One typed.

‘No. Don’t you dare. You’ll overwhelm the poor girl.’

One of the other characters jumped in front of Zossi’s screen. ‘Follow me, I’ll take you to a bed real fast, then we can run you through the basics.’

She nodded, paused then typed. ‘Okay.’ Then proceeded to follow the character.

“Huh,” Command observed as they walked through the village. “It’s like an old-time city in there. Buildings looking like thatched huts, periodic torch poles. They really went all out.”

They stopped in front of a house. ‘Here, you can stay here while you figure out how you want to do things,’ the character nodded.

‘Thanks.’ She typed. ‘But what stuff needs doing?’

‘Well,’ one person typed. ‘You can always pull up your achievement menu to see an abridged guide of the game.’

She looked up at Command. “Achievement menu?”

“Hit the ESC key,” he offered.

Which Zossi did, only to find the Achievements button in the menu. She clicked it. Her eyes bugged out a bit.

“You don’t have to do them all,” Command chuckled, patting her tail a bit. “But it does help you find your way early on. Like, you need stone tools to get at iron tools, and iron tools to get better materials.”

“Uh huh, I think I saw you using stuff like that.” The snek returned her attention to the screen and clicked on the bed.

‘Everyone to bed, we need to get the newbie’s spawn set,’ someone sent out.

‘Fortunately I always bring two beds with me when I go adventuring,’ someone else typed out.

‘There’s being prepared, then there’s that,’ a third person noted. A moment or two passed, and then the night was skipped.

‘Okay, so, what’s your next objective to learn about?’ Zossi’s guide questioned.

‘Iron.’ The snek typed out.

‘Okay, the farm is over here,’ the guide led her to one side of the village. There was a...device. Huge constructs of iron were spawned, washed away, and then iron bubbled up and was placed in a chest.

‘What is that?’ Zossi blinked.

‘Iron farm,’ the guide said. ‘Couple of villagers put in a module, zombie in a minecart that runs back and forth and scares them into making a golem appear. Golem gets washed into the lava down below, iron comes up.’

‘Huh.’ She blinked again. ‘And there’s iron in the chest?’

‘Unlimited supply of both iron and red dye,’ her guide agreed. ‘I tend to turn the flowers into bonemeal for the farms, but you’re welcome to some of the iron.’

‘Thanks.’ She took a stack of iron from the chest. She got a popup for new recipes.

“Huzzah, you have achieved the next gear of stuff,” Command noted. “These guys are pretty nice.”

‘Working on the infinite slime farm,’ one of the others typed into the chat. ‘It’s not easy. You have to NOT be next to it for it to work, so you don’t know for ages if you did it right or not.’

‘That sounds frustrating.’ Zossi nodded. ‘And I think I might take a break for a bit, but I might be back on. It’s kinda fun.’

‘We’re working on farms for everything that can be easily farmed, to make life easier,’ someone noted. ‘We’ll have quite a few done soon enough. I think kelp is next.’

‘Cool.’ She looked at Command. “How do I save and exit?”

“Escape menu again,” her human supplied.

“Duh.” The viper tapped Escape and found the exit button. “Right.”

“Well, I guess that people finding the server and playing on it is exactly what I’d hoped to have happen,” Command chuckled. “So, that’s good.”

“Yep!” The snek leaned back and stretched out, only to flop back onto the floor. She’d been “sitting” on her coiled up tail.

“Silly snek,” Command teased. “Maybe I should read the console more to see what’s been happening in the game while it’s been running,” he mused.

Zossi rolled over and uncoiled herself so she could “stand up” properly. “That sounds good.” She nodded. “In the meantime, want some dinner or late lunch or something?”

“That sounds great,” Command nodded. “Food is always good to have after a gaming session.”

“True.” The snek slithered over to the kitchen. “So, what are you in the mood for?”

“Hmm...what do we have for ingredients?” Command asked, flopping more horizontally onto the couch and staring at the kitchen from his new headrest: the arm of the couch.

She checked the fridge. “We have… Oooo! We have steaks!”

“That sounds great,” Command noted. “We have any spices to rub them down with?”

“Mmmm. Lemme see…” She bent over and checked the little cabinet next to the fridge. “A couple dry rubs, some Misses Dash, and a couple specific steak seasonings.”

“Well, those last two sound promising,” Command agreed. “But sometimes you have to experiment to find a mix you like.”

The viper pulled out the various spices and seasonings, popped the tops, and flicked her tongue over each one. Seeming to pause to think between each one.

“I trust your judgement to figure out what will taste good,” Command called from the couch. He sort of just...laid there for a bit. “Man, this couch is comfy.”

“Yes it is.” She agreed before picking a couple seasoning and putting the others back. She pulled out the steaks from the fridge, pulled them from their packaging, and set them on a plate, before shaking a bit of each seasoning on each steak. She then set the plate to the side as she pulled out a large enough pan.

“We’re also going to need something to serve as a side dish,” Command noted. “Can’t just eat meat and have that be healthy.”

“Lemme see what else we have.” The snek said as she put the pan on to heat. She checked the fridge. “Mmmm what goes well with steak?”

“Well, some sort of noodle dish would probably be a good idea,” Command suggested.

“We do have quite a bit of ramen.” Zossi nodded as she checked the cabinet again.

“That could work, as long as you make enough of it,” the human agreed. “I know your appetite.”

“Two ramen packets then.” She nodded, pulling out a pot and starting to fill it with water. “And be thankful I’m hungry for food and not… other things.”

“Hey, as long as it was you making the first move, I wouldn’t have any objections,” Command teased.

“Always the sub.” She stuck her tongue out at him.

“Hey, you saw Miss Applejack’s muscles,” Command pointed out. “I don’t want to be on her bad side.”

“I know what side you want to be on.” She snickered.

“Hey!” Command called indignantly.

“Am I not wrong?” She raised a brow as she turned to put the steaks on the pan. They sizzled before she put a lid on it.

“I’d die in the attempt, and you know it,” the human answered, rolling over on the couch to look at the ceiling.

“At least I’d give you a chance to breathe.” She nodded, still giggling. “Want to cuddle before I have to do more stuff with food?”

“I’d rather not distract you from the cooking,” Command replied. “Oh, you could also make your own stock with a bouillon cube for the noodles and throw some fresh vegetables in with them. Maybe even some hot pepper spice for flavor. Ramen as it should be, not with the prepackaged powder and dried veggies.”

“Oh fine.” The snake pouted as she rummaged through the fridge again, intent on cooking “proper” ramen.

“Gotta have a full meal,” Command teased. “Proper nutrition is important~”

“But meat is so good though.” The viper whined as she tugged veggies out of the fridge and pulled down the cutting board.

“I’ll make a proper chef of you one day,” the human promised.

012 - Training your mind

Author's Note

Kinks: Electrostim, so much electrostim, seriously he knocks her out with pleasure.

012 - Training your mind

Command sighed as he sat on the examination table. After the long, long period of time he’d had to wear the suppression collar, it was coming off.

For about an hour while he got a handle on his powers, before going back on, but at least it was coming off under supervision.

Now...who had they managed to procure to help him get a handle on his extraordinarily dangerous lightning powers?

There came a knock, then the door opened to reveal…

“Hello Command.” Fluttershy smiled as she walked in and pulled out a stool so she could sit down. “Good to see you again.”

“Ah. Hi again, ma’am,” the man nodded at her. “Um. Are you the one that’s going to be training me?” He was slightly puzzled by the idea. As far as he knew, she didn’t have lightning powers herself…

“Well, I’m the one who’s going to start teaching you concentration and control. We’re going to have to fly in a specialist once we’re sure you can handle yourself without any outbursts.” Fluttershy smiled. “And don’t worry, this won’t be anything all that complex. It’s going to be something more like meditation.”

“Ah. Okay then, that makes more sense,” Command nodded in agreement. “So, um. I’ve never actually meditated before…” he admitted with a sheepish grin.

“It’s not hard, and it’s also a great way to fall asleep if you’re having trouble.” Fluttershy smiled. “Hopefully, I’ll just have to talk you through it.”

“Let’s hope,” Command agreed, tugging a little on his collar. “Um, should we take this off now or later?”

“Yes.” She nodded. “Oh but first, are you feeling stressed or nervous?”

“Not right now,” Command replied, thinking about it for a moment. “Mostly just anxious about what’ll happen once it’s off.”

“Well, we can take it off and see what happens.” Fluttershy said, standing up and walking over.

There was a moment of silence, as the pair worked together to carefully take the suppression collar off of Command’s neck.

Then there was the feeling of static starting to build up on Command’s skin. His hair started to be repelled from itself, standing on end, as he tried to not panic.

“Shhh…” She shushed softly. “Close your eyes and slow your breathing.”

Command did so, trying to steady himself. He tried to calm himself down through Fluttershy’s instructions. They...seemed to be working. At the very least, the buildup was slowing to a crawl.

“Slow breaths, in and out.” Fluttershy continued. “Everything is okay. You’re calm. You’re at peace.”

The buildup stopped, an equilibrium being reached at last. Command was doing his best to stay calm, to stay at peace. And it seemed to be working, at least, helping him stop from going completely out of control.

“There we go.” She said with a small giggle. “How do you feel?”

“Like I’m balancing on a tightrope to stay calm,” Command said easily. “Lean a little too much to either side and…”

“Uhp, shhhh. Don’t think, just relax.” Fluttershy cut him off. “Just feel all the tension leave your body.”

He felt a soft warmth roll over him like a blanket. Command relaxed a little more, trying to get all his tension out of his body.

Unfortunately, his mind interpreted that as ‘get all the buildup out of the body, it’s causing stress’.

A bolt of electricity splashed out and hit the roof, causing Command to jump and panic. “Oh geeze! I’m sorry-” he started to say, and abruptly cut himself off as he felt the buildup starting again. “Okay, no,” he muttered. He immediately started to calm himself down to avoid a second bolt.

“It’s okay.” Fluttershy responded, sounding perfectly calm. “Discharges are going to happen, don’t worry about it and try to relax.”

“Right. Right,” Command nodded, breathing calmly. The buildup slowed, before reversing. The man nodded as he kept himself balanced, to make sure another discharge didn’t happen. He needed to get this under some form of control, which meant keeping himself calm enough.

“This is the first time, discharges are going to happen.” She soothed. “We’re going to be meeting more. Now, slow your breathing and just focus on my voice.”

Command nodded again, keeping himself as calm as he could manage. He focused on Fluttershy’s voice, trying not to think about the balancing act he was doing. Just...calm, relaxing...that he could do.

Huh. Was the trick not thinking about it?

“If it helps, zone out.” She giggled softly. “And if you fall asleep, good.”

“Don’t think I can, not easily,” Command said languidly. “Electricity like this running through me is better than coffee. Only time I can get to sleep these days is in Zossi’s grasp. Scales are relaxing.”

“Well, homework then.” Fluttershy hummed. “Try sleeping with your collar off.”

“Um...if you’re sure,” Command’s brow furrowed. “I mean I don’t think there’s anything conductive next to the bed...maybe the frame…”

“You have electricity-proofed your place, right?” She asked, sounding slightly concerned.

“That...mostly involved putting plastic plugs in the outlets we weren’t using, to avoid a possible discharge blackout combo,” the man admitted. “There’s so much that is conductive that it’s hard to find replacements for everything.” He cracked an eye open. “Plus, our combination couch that folds out into a bed is just comfy at this point.”

“Hmmm.” She sat back down on the stool. “Well maybe find some rubber stoppers or something to put around your bed?”

“Did that, put some caps on the parts of the bed that contact the floor,” Command agreed. “Keeps it from touching the floor, so if there was a discharge it’d ground out into the rubber first.”

“Good.” She nodded. “Well, before we get back to it, I’d recommend spending a little time per day not wearing the collar.”

“I...think I can do that,” Command agreed. “Might have to be careful, but it should be doable.”

“Good.” She smiled. “Now, relax…”

“So...I had a thought,” Command said, idly lying on the couch and watching a movie. His collar was currently off, he was zoned out, and the only indication that anything was going on on a deeper level was two of his fingers slightly spread and having an arc of electricity jump up them.

“Hmmm?” Zossi turned her head to look at him as she sat on the other side of the couch.

“Well, as long as I kept the charge low, like this, I can practice,” Command elaborated. “But I think I recall reading something about how low levels of electrical power running across a muscle group can relieve pain and tension. And you’re all muscle, especially that tail.”

She blinked. “I’m listening.”

“Well, if I keep the voltage low, practicing on you would be good for my mental control,” the human elaborated. “Plus you’d probably find it pretty nice. I mean, when was the last time you had a massage?”

“Foooorevvverr.” She groaned out. “Should I strip?” She winked at him. “So the clothes don’t catch fire or something.” She giggled.

“Honestly, I’ve told you I don’t mind it when you choose to not wear a shirt,” Command teased. “But yeah, the idea is, tail tip in one hand and like, one of your hands in the other, and run a current through you at low power back into myself.”

She immediately started to scoot over as she tugged her shirt off. She stopped just shy of touching him then waggled her tail tip in front of her face. Command stuck his tongue out before gently grabbing the tail with one of his hands. He held the other out towards her for her to take, to complete the circuit…

Her hand touched his and laced their fingers together.

There was immediately a low, pulsing heat, running the length of her body. It started in her tail tip and pulsed randomly through her length, always ending in the hand that Command was holding. He was careful about how much power he used, but there was one thing that remained true: he kept doing it. He seemed to not be focusing too much on the act, just repetition of it.

Zossi let out a shuddering gasp that morphed into a throaty moan. “O-oh… b-baby….” She groaned out as her free hand squeezed her balled up shirt. Her head lolled back as she bit her lip.

“Huh?” Command looked over. “Is it too high? I can lower the voltage a little bit if it’s too much…” He was mostly concerned she might be in pain, this was the first time he was doing something like this.

“No! N-no. K-keep going.” She said, panting a little.

“Oh, okay then,” Command turned his attention back to the television. The random pulses kept going, bringing an internal heat to her body as the electricity lanced through her with every pulse.

“Oh… Why haven’t you done this before.” She groaned as she squirmed a bit.

“Trying to get used to the whole ‘having powers’ without the threat of blacking out the apartment via random lightning bolt,” Command idly replied. “Plus if I try to focus on it, I start thinking about it and the whole thing falls apart. Just setting it as a thing to do on repeat to get me used to it is very much easier.”

“Well it feels-” She shuddered. “Really good.”

“I guess that means I got the voltage right then,” Command noted. “Now it’s just an exercise as to how long can I hold it for. I don’t think my electricity is going to dry up anytime soon, so it’s more a mental thing of how long I can ignore what I’m doing.”

“W-well this i-is relaxing, b-but it’s also… distracting.” She groaned.

“I mean, I’m kind of trying to distract myself from what I’m doing in the first place,” the human said out loud. “Again, it’s a mental training thing. What do you mean?”

“Fuck, I always forget I have to be blunt.” She hissed and rolled her hips a bit. “Command, sweetie, this is acting like the best vibrator ever. You’re making me very horny.”

At that, Command blushed, and the pulses got a little bit more power, a little more random than they had been. “Ah...heh. Umm...not, my intention?” he offered.

“It’s fine.” She panted and bit her lip again. “S-so, want to try and get your viper girlfriend off?” She winked at him while her free hand slid up her body to squeeze a venom sack suggestively.

“Uh, well, now that you, um, mention it...I think there’s...something I can do to help with that?” Command offered. “It’d probably be safer if we stopped doing this first though, and we, um...got into position.”

“Want me to put your collar back on?” She asked as he let go.

“No, I uh...I think it’ll be better with it off,” the human replied, taking his shirt off and carefully putting it on the floor so he could find it later. He fumbled with his pants for a moment, before eventually slipping those off as well.

She gave a throaty giggle as she wiggled down to the floor and started to tug his underwear down. She flicked her tongue out suggestively. Not that she needed to tempt him that much, he was already half-hard from the suggestion and the moaning she’d been doing.

“I, uh, don’t know how long I can control the zapping while we’re doing this,” he admitted. “But I have a plan for it.” He patted the couch a few times. “Really, we can just...if you wanted to jump to it…”

She tugged his underwear off then slid back up to the couch. “Want me to be on top, or should I lie down?” She asked, tilting her head to the side as she toned down the seductiveness.

“Well, actually, this plan requires me to be coiled up,” Command teased. “So just let your viper instincts take over, and I’ll make it worth your while, sexy~”

She blinked. Then her face shifted to a smirk as she pounced on him, pinning his waist to hers as her tail started to wrap around the both of them.

Command kept himself calm and waited. Sooner or later, she’d move on to the meat of the issue, and then he’d surprise her again. All he had to do was maintain control until…

She shifted. His length slid inside her slowly as she finished coiling around his legs and waist.

Then...the shocking came back. From every part of him, a low, dull pulse of heat washed through her body where it impacted his. Especially the part of him she’d inserted into herself. That seemed to be a focus of the human’s attention.

She virtually shoved her waist against his, burying all of him inside her as she started to squirm. She tightened around his length like a vice. And the shocking never slowed. It was just a pleasant warmth that emanated from every part of him, seeping into her form as he used his gift to bring his snakefriend pleasure like no other.

She groaned and hummed as she bit her lip. Her eyes closed as she rocked herself against him. Her hands padded around for his, desperate for his touch.

Then Command’s hands were pulling her head down to his, letting their lips touch in a kiss...that was also infused in that pleasant, shocking warmth coming from the rest of his body.

She squealed. As a pleasant warmth and wetness rolled over his length.

That was, what, five minutes of him using his power to bring her pleasure?

A slightly evil smirk crossed Command’s face. How long could she stand it?

Maybe it was time to find out the exact amount of pleasure a Viper could stand before they passed out.

“Mmmmppph… Ahhh… Keep- Keep… More.” She groaned as she rocked harder.

Oh, Command had no plans of stopping. If anything, he was going to act like a battery until she couldn’t hold her eyes open any longer. The human wrapped his arms around the Viper’s back and held her close, letting his excess power ground out into the Viper as he focused on maintaining it at a level that wouldn’t hurt her.

Her head reared back as her mouth opened in a soundless cry. A groaning squeak left her throat as she shuddered. Her hips twitched and bucked into his.

And Command. Just didn’t stop. For a moment.

He didn’t know how much power he had...but this was probably the best way to spend it that he’d found so far.

So he was going to keep doing this until he ran out, or Zossi fell unconscious.

Zossi was groggy. She didn’t know how long they’d went at it. She didn’t know how long they’d been passed out.

All she knew was that she was dehydrated.

Thus the viper half-slithered, half-crawled to the kitchenette to get a glass of water, leaving her human snoozing on the couch. Once thoroughly hydrated, she snuggled down next to the couch with her tablet and jumped in the chatroom with her viper friends.

She chewed her lip as she, somewhat shyly, spilled the tea of her rather intense experience with her boyfriend.

-He’s definitely a keeper, sweetie.

-You already have this great guy and now he has lightning powers? No fair!

-Are you ‘sure’ he’s human, because damn.

She rolled her eyes. “I just wanted to tell someone about what he did to me.”

-Well I’m happy for you.

-Would you be interested in sharing?

-Ooooo! Great idea!

“Eh?!” She typed, while staring wide-eyed at the screen. “No!”

-Oh, come on!

-That’s not really fair to the rest of us.

-Girls, stop. Find your own men.

-Yeah, he might be rare, but he can’t be the only one.

-And excuse me while I go search for… something.

“Thank you.” Zossi sighed softly.

-I mean, what if we’re into chicks. Can you imagine a lady with magic lightning fingers?

-Yes please.

-Hmmmm static fingers or static cock… Can’t decide.

-How about both? Get double-teamed by the lightning twins.

Zossi groaned and face-palmed. “Oh my god.”

-Just make me a viper sandwich.

Zossi was already regretting telling them.

-Girls! I return with links!

-Yay!

-Thank you!

Zossi rolled her eyes and decided to leave them to… whatever they’d found. She set down her tablet, got up, and stretched. Her eyes fell on the bathroom door.

She blinked.

“A shower would be amazing right now.” She murmured, sighing softly.

Thus the viper left her sleeping boyfriend to relax in the warm vapors of a hot shower.

013 - Refined training

The mining was going quite well for the snek and her new friends. Zossi found that she enjoyed resource farming-slash-exploring more than crafting things or fighting.

“Ooooo more redstone.” The viper did a little happy bounce on the coils that made up her seat. “That’ll help. Oh and your tips are helping everyone a lot by the way.”

Command was glancing between seeing what Zossi was up to and making static snap between each of his fingers in order.

“Hey, I’m just looking for things related to the game,” Command answered. “It was popular enough once to get lots of people playing it, there’s probably a whole slew of videos out there I have yet to find.”

“Anything you can dig up on the old web would be great.” The snek nodded as she dug her way around a patch of lava.

Command’s phone started to buzz. He blinked. That wasn’t a message. He pulled it out of his pocket and unlocked the screen.

And that was Sunset calling. Command accepted the call and put it up to his ear. “Hello?” he said, careful to turn off his lightning touch so as to not fry the phone.

“Hey, good you answered.” Came the woman’s reply. “So, a specialist for your Electromancy is coming by. Sorry for the short notice, but because interlinking hospital-psy classification-work related-things an old school friend is gonna come by. I’ll supervise so she doesn’t end up killing you.”

“...Is that an actual concern?” Command asked after a moment to process what she’d said. “I’m willing to wait for someone less likely to do that if it’s an option…”

“Sunset, I thought you were a professional, God!” Came a half-heard voice. “I’m not gonna kill the guy!”

“Well excuse me for being concerned that a pair of Electomancers are going to be zapping things.” Sunset snarked back. “Sorry, we’ll be there in a little bit, she’s driving.”

“Oh, okay then,” Command blinked a few times before looking around. “Um. Where will we be practicing? I don’t think here is a good option…” What with his room of easily zappable computer parts. That Zossi was using.

“And they say you have people skills, gimme the phone.” Came a complaint.

“Wha- hey!”

There was a sound of a scuffle.

“You’re driving!” Came Sunset’s now farther off voice.

“Sorry about her. You got nothing to worry about, kid. I take safety very seriously, at least when I’m training.” Came the new woman’s voice. “It’ll be a few minutes, I think Sunny needs more caffeine.”

“I do not!”

The phone clicked.

“Huh,” Command turned the phone off and put it away. “So, Sunset found a trainer for my electric powers,” he said out loud, mostly to Zossi. He kept up his little training exercise once the phone was away, of making little arcs of electricity snap up and down his fingers.

“Oh good!” Zossi smiled at him. “And enjoying your practice?” She gestured at his fingers.

“Well, I mean, I’d be practicing on you, but you’re kinda on the computer at the moment,” Command teased.

“Well that- uhhh- doesn’t mean you can’t… or… something.” The viper flushed and turned back to the computer.

“Yeah, it kinda does,” Command replied easily. “I’d rather not fry my computer, and I don’t have enough training to only zap you yet.”

“Very very true, so, moving on.” Zossi wiggled a bit as she refocused on the game. “I’ll work on lunch in a bit here. Unless you're gone, then I’ll just cook for everybody again.”

“Well Sunset and the trainer did say they’d be here soon, so who knows?” Command shrugged. He kept the electrical training to one hand and used the other to run over Zossi’s long tail. Just to tease her a bit.

“Eep!” The snake visibly jumped and fell off her now twitching tail coil. “You dick!” She whined from the floor.

“I thought that was the part of me you enjoyed, after the electrical powers,” Command taunted.

“Getting pleasured by magic fingers is preferable to random zappings to sensitive areas.” Zossi grumbled as she got up.

“With the right settings, your entire tail is a sensitive area,” Command countered.

“Now I need to find a rubber thing to cover my tail.” The viper screwed up her face as she slithered over to the computer and exited the game. Then she slithered over to the kitchenette and started to look through things to figure out what to make.

“I’m glad one of us is going to invest in protection,” Command noted aloud.

“There’s probably some moral lesson or something there.” Zossi commented, putting out some steaks.

“Something of the sort,” Command agreed.

The viper plopped a pair of steaks on a pan and set the pan on the burner. “I’m gonna cook the steaks, then I can chop them up and put them in something.” The snek thought aloud.

“Oooh,” the human hummed from the couch. “Maybe some rice and fried vegetables, make a whole dish out of it.”

“Oh, great idea!” She said, pulling out another pan and tugging the cutting board off the wall.

“Now all I have to do is hope I’m still here when the food’s done,” Command noted, going back to playing with his powers on the couch as a form of training.

“If not, I can save you some.” The viper said with a smile and a nod.

“Oh, that’d be wonderful,” Command agreed. He was starting to get a hang of small electrical powers.

There came a knock at the door.

“I’m working.” Zossi commented. Command sighed, but pushed himself up and answered the door. There was sunset in a nice black suit.

Next to her was a teal-skinned woman with amber, almost orange eyes. Her hair was cut short, but was still noticeably yellow-orange. She was wearing jeans, a blue t-shirt, black shoes, and a dark green hoodie. “Hey, I’m Dust. Lightning Dust.” She held out a hand.

Command shook it, and there was a tingle that ran up his arm. Ah, so...was that normal when meeting someone who had the same sort of powers as him? “Command Line, but most just call me Command,” he introduced himself.

“Wanna get to work, or would you rather your lady finish lunch?” Dust asked.

“You can go, it’s fine.” Zossi spoke up.

“And I might keep her company.” Sunset moved in to sit on the couch.

“Sounds good to me,” Command agreed. “Gives us a chance to work on this, and gives Sunset and Zossi a chance to catch up.”

“Well come on then.” Dust nodded out the door. Command followed readily, leaving the Viper to the tender touch of Sunset.

“So, you figure anything out?” Dust asked as the pair sat at one of the picnic tables on the roof of the complex. “I’m sure you’ve got a few party tricks down already.”

“Well I mean I can do this,” Command said, making electricity snap up and down his fingers. “I can also run a current that doesn’t kill someone through their body and back into myself. I’m a cheap electro-stim unit.”

“Careful of how many amps you put through somebody.” She warned, pointing a finger at him. “Low amps are good and probably what you’ve been doing anyway. Fuck, it’s probably only what you’re capable of at the moment. It’s like a muscle, the more you train it, the stronger it’ll get.”

“So, keep it low, even if it feels like I can do more, as long as I’m using it on someone else,” Command summarized.

“Well, think of it like water. Amps are the amount of water and volts are water pressure. Lower is better because it’s basically less electrons flowing through somebody. Mmmm, amps how much electricity and volts are how much you’re pushing.” Dust rambled on. “Sorry for the science lecture, not everybody knows the difference, and pretty soon you’ll be able to feel the difference.”

“Hey, not a big deal,” Command commented. “It’s nice to know the finer details of how this works.” He hummed for a moment as he thought about the situation. “So...I should be trying to do things for longer as training. But I should also keep it safe if I’m doing things to someone else, so keeping it low and careful with how much I push into them, so as to avoid injury. This will let me work up my skills without hurting anyone.”

“Precisely.” She nodded. “Trust me, I know how many amps it takes to knock someone out if necessary.”

“That...is not something I hope to learn,” Command gulped. “Nor do I wish to get into a situation where it’s needed.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to, but a little static aided self-defense wouldn’t hurt.” Dust shrugged. “But we don’t have to do that now. I’ll be staying in town for a bit, so we have time to practice and talk and such.” Dust leaned back and stretched.

“Oh cool, so I had a question,” Command replied. “Is it normal for Vipers to get...aroused at low voltages running through them?”

“Man, you hit the right spot and that’s kinda everybody.” Dust snorted a laugh.

“...Well I don’t have much desire to ply these talents on anyone except my snakefriend…” Command muttered.

“Good on you. I’m sure she appreciates it.” Dust shrugged. “Now, show me some party tricks.”

“How’s life?” Sunset asked, watching the viper cook. “You happy?”

“Yeah, life’s good. I’m good.” Zossi nodded, slicing up the cooked steak.

“And how’s the adjustment to Command’s Electromancy?” Sunset scooted up beside her to start stirring the cooking vegetables in the pan.

“It’s kinda great.” Zossi said with a sigh. “Unless he zaps me on accident… or when he jolts some sensitive areas when I’m not expecting it.”

“Make sure you talk to him about it.” Sunset glanced at her.

“We did a little today.” The viper nodded. “I made a comment about getting some kinda rubber insulation clothing thing.”

“Good idea.” Sunset nodded. “Beyond cooking, getting into any other hobbies?”

“Well I’ve been getting into anime thanks to Floor Bored.” The snek glanced at Sunset and saw the girl’s questioning look. “One of the girls downstairs, she’s an anime fan. It’s kinda great. We hang out sometimes. Oh, and Wallflower has been less jumpy and doesn’t really come running that much anymore. So that’s a plus.” She hummed. “Everyone else kinda keeps to themselves. Except for Sonata, she tends to drag at least some of us out every so often for whatever it is she wants to do together.”

“Well it sounds like you’re making friends, at least.” Sunset smiled. “I was worried for a bit there.”

“Thanks for the concern.” Zossi smiled back at her. “Now, how spicy should we make… whatever this is?”

“Well the rice’ll be ready in a couple minutes, and that could either be mixed or be the base for the pretty much curry. So… How about liquid fire?” Sunset suggested.

“Ooooo, I like the way you think.” The snek bounced happily.

There was a loud snap and the smell of ozone. A can flew off the table with a black mark smoking on it. Dust lowered her hand. “And you too can shoot lighting, if you practice.” She said a little theatrically.

“Well I mean, I have been practicing ever since the collar came off,” Command replied, a little hesitantly. “I don’t know if I can do that just yet, but I can give it a shot…”

Dust walked over, set up a can, stepped back and gestured at it. Command nodded once, held out a hand, and breathed deeply.

The scent of ozone increased as a glow started to build on his hands...and the resultant spark got no more than an inch off of his form.

“Hey, I wasn’t expecting you to actually do it.” Dust snorted. “It’s fine. Practice that little static jumping thing and you’ll be able to zap things in no time.”

Command breathed heavily as he slumped a little. “I think the problem is…” he took another breath. “I can build the power. But getting it past my body is...proving hard.”

“And that is something you get to figure out. It’s kinda hard to put it into words.” Dust shrugged. “But… hmmmm.” She picked up the can and brought it over. She held it up. “Zap it.”

Command blinked, before building the power again and sending the spark across the short distance. “It’s a lot easier when it’s closer,” he admitted.

She moved back and set the can down. “Try again.”

Command took a breath, built the power...and the spark got about two inches from his body this time, fizzling before it even got to the can.

“Is it...a problem with me?” he asked.

“You probably don’t have enough energy built up. That grows, again, as you practice. I just figured that you might be able to hit it the same way lighting can strike a lightning rod, or the same place twice for that matter.” She shrugged. “Don’t let it get you down, newbie.”

“So...basically, put the can down on the roof, keep taking steps back and seeing how far I can go before I stop being able to hit it?” Command questioned.

“That could work too.” Dust admitted with a chuckle.

“And I can practice how long I can hold it with careful application of my talent on Zossi…” Command mused. “Basically whenever I use it I should consider it training.”

“Smart thinking.” Dust nodded along to his thinking.

“Right, starting tomorrow, I’ll come up here with a can in an attempt to practice how far I can throw the electricity,” Command agreed. “And I’ll also practice on Zossi...when she allows me to.”

“Hey, consent, wonderful.” Dust chuckled. “So, I’d show you some more flashy stuff, but I don’t wanna cause a power outage. Huh, right, probably should have mentioned, I’m kinda a superhero in Manehatten.”

“Huh,” Command blinked. “Guess that comes with the refinement of my technique. Not that I want to get to the point where I need that much power, but I’d like to have a few more tricks than I do.”

“Just use your imagination.” Dust moved over and sat on the bench of the picnic table. “You’ll come up with some fun stuff.”

“Yeah, I probably will,” Command agreed, sitting next to her. “Hmm. I might keep it all low-key, though, as I train myself, so nobody figures out what I can actually do.”

“‘Ey smart move, and you can surprise your girlfriend in the bedroom with your magic hands.” She nudged his ribs.

“Well I mean, I already did that once,” Command answered with a blush. “She uh...really liked it.”

“Oh, lucky guy.” She snickered, then got up. “Come on, let’s see if that food she’s made is done.”

Lunch was…. Spicy. Sunset and Zossi loved it. Command thought it was good. And Dust... managed to eat it with enough drink. Sunset and Dust bid their goodbyes, and Dust said that she’d keep in touch.

Now the man and his viper were cuddling on the couch.

“So… How’d you like the food?” Zossi asked, glancing at Command.

“It was tasty,” Command replied with a soft sigh. “I might not have much of a tongue for spicy things, but I could learn to love it if it’s all as delicious as that.”

“I try.” Zossi said happily.

Command took a breath, psyching himself up for what he was about to ask. “So, um, Zossi,” he said. “Lightning Dust and I had a chat on the roof about how to train myself. And while there’s various techniques for power buildup, the best way to train how long I can hold something is…” Here he blushed. “What...we did the other night. Me running a current through something for a prolonged period of time. But!” He held up a hand. “I’m...very aware of what sort of an effect it has on you, so I’m...going to try to not do that without your permission. I can’t say I’ll always succeed, I’m a little bit staticy all the time now, but I won’t do anything like what happened the other night without you asking for it.”

“The occasional accidental zap is fine.” She replied, shaking her head. “But, thank you for actually asking. And I will definitely let you know when I’m in the mood, and I’ll be sure to let you know if I’m feeling like something special.”

Command let out the breath he’d been holding. “I’m glad you’re not mad at me,” he admitted. “I’m sorry about the zaps I’ve been giving, I need to keep a tighter hold on my static to make sure it doesn’t leak into everything I’m doing.”

“Again, zaps are fine. They’re gonna happen.” The viper nodded. “I’m sure you’ll be able to get a reign on things.” She smiled.

“Yeah, eventually,” the human nodded. “As long as you’re not upset, then...I’m relieved.” He ran a hand along Zossi’s tail, not even a spark jumping between them.

Prologue - Letters to a worried princess

Twilight Sparkle was worried. She hadn’t heard from Sunset Shimmer in over a month. Then again, the young woman’s job had been taking up most of her time. Twilight was probably just being extra anxious.

She sat on her balcony overlooking Ponyville. It had grown a little the past few years, but it kept the same homey charm it held the first time the young unicorn had felt when she’d first came here. Twilight sighed as she looked over to what had formerly been her school. Now run by Starlight Glimmer, creatures from all over the world came to learn the magic of friendship.

Looking at the school only made her think of Sunset again. Though it had been years ago, she still clearly remembered the ‘former’ unicorn. They still kept in contact, though schedules did tend to conflict, and Sunset’s work kept her busy. As busy as Princess work sometimes.

Twilight frowned. Sunset Shimmer had a … rather difficult life. Even thinking about it, made the Princess feel a tad sicker from worry. The young woman had been through so much…

She should probably check the journal again… just in case.

The Purple Alicorn Princess trotted from the balcony and into her personal study (A nice addition to her castle that separated her personal collection of books, from the castle library.). She’d moved the portal to Sunset’s world here, after much refinement of course. It could only be used in short bursts now, but that was better than waiting years for the portal to open on it’s own, or rely on Sunset’s journal to operate.

On the note of Sunset’s journal, the book was sitting right where she’d left it. On a small table in the corner, right next to her comfy reading chair. The alicorn trotted over to the chair and sat down, only taking a minute to actually get comfortable (She required her a pillow and her wings to be at just the right position), before lighting the lamp on the table. With a small light from her horn, Twilight levitated the journal into her lap and opened it.

There was nothing new. Just Sunset’s most recent message.

Twilight sighed and shook her head, then flipped back through the journal. She brushed a few mane hairs out of her eyes as a page caught her eye.

Hey Twilight,

So try not to freak out. (You don’t need to rush through the portal.) I just figured I’d let you know that something weird happened. I’m really not surprised since nothing has gone wrong in months, (Being out of High School still feels weird) but anyway.

You know the geode necklaces? The ones that basically turn us into superheroes? Well the girls and I kinda... absorbed them. We were fighting off the most recent person to get a hold of some ancient magical object tossed here, (Because Earth is a Star Swirl’s Magical Waste Dump.) and we all ponied up, like we do. Only the necklaces kinda just sank into our skin. We only really paid attention after the fight. The girls and I now don’t need the geodes to do our magic. It’s all on command. It’s cool, but a bit weird at the same time.

I haven’t seen any downsides yet. I’ll keep in touch, and I’ll let you know if I notice anything.

Twilight chuckled. It was always fun hearing about Sunset’s adventures as some kind of small town superhero.

She flipped a few pages, skimming the daily life updates. Then her eyes locked on something.

Twi,

It’s Sunset. Try not to worry, but there’s something really weird going on. People around town are disappearing. The police have no idea what’s going on. The girls and I are trying to track down what we can, but people are just there one day and gone the next. It feels like some scary wild goose chase. I’ll keep in touch as much as I can.

Twilight frowned. It was only the beginning… She flipped a page.

Twilight,

It’s RD here. Sunset’s been getting bad headaches for some reason. So has Sci-Twi, Rarity and Fluttershy. What’s worse, the disappearances are increasing. It’s like 3 to 4 people a week. We still have no idea what’s going on. I just wanted to give you a head’s up on the situation. Just in case of something bad, you might want to shut down your portal thing. Because, what if it’s aliens and they want to get to Equestria? Anyways, hope everyone over there is doing okay. One of us will keep you updated.

She flipped another page.

Twilight shut down the portal! I’ll tell you everything as soon as I can. Just shut down the portal!

That was all she got for over a week. She still felt the knot in her gut from reading that the first time. She had, at that point, already shut down the portal, eering on the side of caution. But Twilight could almost feel the panic in those hastily scrawled words. She flipped another page.

Twilight. First, I want to say that the girls and I are okay. Second, I’m confiding in you something that probably shouldn’t get out to the general public.

Aliens. Extraterrestrials. Are real.

I know you might not believe me, but hear me out.

So, the girls and I were snooping around one night. When this giant fireball just flew over town and crashed on the outskirts of town. We immediately went to investigate. When we got closer, we saw this ship. It had to be a ship. It was a fucking flying saucer. It looked like it’d been hit by something pretty nasty. There was a big gouge out of it.

The saucer had plowed right through an old factory building. There were things wandering around it. These gray humanoids with massive black eyes. Ugh, just thinking about them makes my head throb.

We didn’t see it, but we heard some kind of plane or something fly overhead. We tried to stay in the cover of buildings and the occasional chunk of rubble. Rarity, Sci-Twi, and Fluttershy were complaining of headaches, I was having one too but it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. One of us, not sure who, must have tripped or kicked something because the gray things, aliens, suddenly stared right at us.

Twi they were fast. Something that small shouldn’t be that fast.

We made a dash to get away, but it felt like they were on top of us. These bolts of green plasma (I’d seen plasma before btw) were flying over our heads.

I turned to look back and I met one’s eyes. My head suddenly felt like it was in some kind of vice. I screamed. Everything gets hazy from there.

The handwriting changed.

It’s Rarity, Sunny’s not doing so well after writing that. So, I’m taking over.

It all feels like a bit of a blur, but here’s what I can properly remember. Sunset screamed and grabbed her head. There was this weird lavender light that was connecting that horrid gray thing’s head to Sunset’s. It was like, despite the headache that Fluttershy and myself had, we all just snapped when Sunset went to her knees. I managed to throw out a shield in front of Sunset. Fluttershy grabbed her and dragged her back while Applejack threw a chunk of concrete. Sci-Twi seemed to be in some kind of shock, because she just helped Fluttershy drag Sunset. Applejack had missed with her concrete block by the way, but I believe she was aiming to stop whatever attack Sunset was under. Rainbow decided to charge at the one that was attacking Sunset. All she managed to do however, was knock it aside and race back to us before she got shot.

It was at this point that Sunset started glowing. Her screaming stopped as she started to glow a bright crimson. An aura of that crimson pulsed from her head. As it did a line of crimson shot down the gray things line and… Oh the thought makes me gag. The thing’s head exploded. Gave me nightmares for days.

Well right after the explosion, we heard gunshots. The second two were killed by something. I’m not sure, because I am told that I fainted.

The handwriting changed again.

RD again. I’m finishing up. It. Was. Awesome! These guys in black and yellow combat gear came in and cleared out the ship. There were actually more aliens and we just found a few stragglers.

We basically got voluntold to get in the VToL that had brought them. Unfortunately, I’m not allowed to say what the interrogation was like. (Don’t worry, it was an interview.)

Oh, and before anybody else gets to say it. Because of our magical bullshit (though they call it Psy for some reason) we’re all part of X-COM! (Also, don’t tell anybody I told you.)

Twilight chuckled at Rainbow’s enthusiasm as she flipped another page. There was about a week long gap between the last message and this one.

Twilight,

First let me say that Rainbow was not supposed to mention the existence of X-COM. It’s basically a multi-nation funded Black Ops army that combats aliens. Aliens that apparently have been trying to take over the world. I’ll get back to that.

We’re all fine. Turns out that Sci-Twi, Fluttershy, Rarity, and myself are all psychically sensitive. It might have something to do with magic, but I’d rather not bring up the by M word until I do a little research with Sci-Twi. So far as X-COM is concerned, we’re just unique and powerful psychics. They don’t really have an explanation for Applejack’s strength or Rainbow’s speed. And they aren’t even trying to analyse Pinkie. She already broke a few of their machines just from trying.

We’re all getting put into basic training. Fluttershy, Sci-Twi, and Pinkie are primarily going to be in reserve back at base. (No I can’t tell you where it’s located.)

I’m in a Psy-Ops program with Rarity. This is going side by side with the ‘normal’ basic training. Applejack and Rainbow are taking to it like a fish to water, to quote AJ. Both are pissed that our town got attacked. Hell, so am I.

We’re all handling the stress of things differently. Pinkie bakes in the commissary. Fluttershy seems to calm down just by helping people in the med bay. I’m pretty sure she’s going to be a support medic. AJ and Dash train, Sci-Twi gets sucked into science research projects with Doctor Vale, and Rarity helps work on the projects that include any kind of tactical gear. Turns out she has a knack for production and she gets along great with Doctor Shen. And me. I just message you. Well, that or check on the girls.

It’s weird. Turns out Empathy isn’t the only magic/psy thing I’m good at. I can levitate things like Sci-Twi. However Sci-Twi can lift bigger and heavier things than me already. I don’t see her going into combat.

I-

I kinda want to go into combat. I want to help the other squad mates. There’s a guy younger than us called Ace. His whole family got killed by something called a Chryssalid. He’s a good kid, but he’s hurting and wants to take out his anger on the aliens. I don’t really blame him.

And now I have to go. More training. I’ll try to keep in touch.

Twilight flipped a few more pages. There were the occasional messages for the other girls. Then.

Twi. I had my first mission. Oh, it’s RD btw. I just got back and I can still feel my heart pounding in my ears. Trying to calm down. And yes I’m okay, just got grazed.

So it was an escort mission. Basically, bring this guy to an extraction point. It was me, Ace, Sunset, a Sniper codnamed “Deadeye”, and an Assault codenamed “Scythe.” We meet the guy in Hong Kong goes by the name “Dragon.” Basically he has some info or gear or something. Also he shot a Sectoid in the face, and he’s supposed to be a civilian!

Extraction is basically just across this big yard or something. Yet a bunch of Sectoids and Thin Men show up! I was expecting a firefight, but it was actually more like a waiting game, seeing who would pop out from behind cover first.

Twilight. I killed one. I finished off one of the Sectoids that Sunset shot. To be honest, I kinda blindfired as it made a move towards Dragon. But I got the kill. It was both exciting and sickening at the same time. I’m trying to rationalize it that this thing would’ve killed me or one of the girls without a second thought. I’m just gonna keep telling myself that.

Oh right, I had a story I was telling. We get within like 20 feet of the extraction point and this giant bug thing just pops out of nowhere! Ace lost his shit. He fucking charged at the thing, shoulder tackled it like lineman, and shoved his rifle into it’s face. It didn’t have a head when he was done.

After that, Deadeye and Scythe cleared out the last couple Sectoids and we got Dragon to the VToL.

I might need a drink, or a talk with Fluttershy, or Sunset. Maybe all three.

Twilight grimaced at Dash’s message. She understood how bad things were over there. Sci-Twi and Fluttershy gave her more than enough detail on that. But… something about her friends needing to kill rubbed her the wrong way.

Twilight, it’s Applejack. This is gonna be quick. I just need to vent.

I know we’re doing what we have to. If we stood down, the damned aliens would kill us all or enslave us, or worse. I just don’t like having to kill them. How can somebody, even if they’re some kind of alien, learn if they’re dead? Killing them just rubs me the wrong way. I try to use the stun gun when I can, but I’d rather not have my face clawed off. I might have to talk to Sci-Twi and Shen and see if either of them have ideas about some kind of tranquilizer bullets.

I might not like killing them, but bringing them in alive to get experimented on, also rubs me the wrong way. Some of the higher ranks say I’ll get used to it, but I don’t want to get used to it. Is it too much to hope for peace in the future?

I kinda wish I could go back home to the farm. But I can’t just leave, everyone depends on everyone else.

If I need to, I’ll message you more.

Twilight smiled a little. It was great seeing that some of her friends didn’t just dive into being a soldier. She flipped a couple pages.

Hello Twilight, it’s Twilight,

We’ve made some breakthroughs! We finally have enough resources to construct two new labs! A Cybernetics Lab and a Genetics Lab!

The Cybernetics Lab allows people to go through a process to become a cybernetic soldier housed in a MEC (MEC stands for Mechanize Exoskeletal Exosuit). In layman’s terms they become a giant cyborg robot. The Genetics Lab allows us to use Meld to modify soldiers with alien DNA. Both are entirely safe and completely optional. That being said, Rainbow opted for gene therapy. She’ll be in the vat for a few days. I asked Applejack if she was interested in either of them, but she flatly replied with a no, then proceeded to pick up a drone and carry it into the Engineering Bay for repairs.

Pinkie’s really interested in a MEC, but the rest of us are trying to get her to think about it first. It’s basically a full-body conversion. We just don’t want her regretting it.

Twilight sighed as she flipped another page.

Hey Twilight! I have robot arms! Apparently I was out for a few days but now I have this awesome giant robot body! There’s this great pneumatic piston thing! It’s gonna do wonders to walls! Or aliens for that matter! I can’t wait to try it out.

Twilight face-hoofed.

Dear Twilight,

It’s Fluttershy. I can’t help worrying that Rainbow and Pinkie are changing a bit. Both of them went through modification and yet they act like nothing’s wrong. They even get excited for the next mission. And here I am, worrying if one day they won’t come back at all. I haven’t seen any combat. I don’t think I’d be able to shoot at anyone or anything. I hope I don’t have to.

Twilight frowned and sighed. She felt for the girl. Such a kind soul shouldn’t have been in that situation. She turned a page.

Hey Twi, It’s RD again. You know having alien bits inside me should be worrying, but I feel amazing. My eyes are better. I can jump higher than Shake.

Oh! I almost forgot! A few of us got codenames! So I’m Lightning, probably due to my speed boost. Which is weird because it never used to tire me out, then again it used to come from a rock. AJ is Warden, Pinkie is Party-Popper, and Ace is Guillotine. Ace got the name probably because he has a thing for blowing aliens heads or arms off. Pinkie got her’s because her explosion magic stuff can work on her gear. Like when she used a grenade launcher, she would automatically also make a smoke screen. Or on her MEC grenade launcher, the explosions are bigger. Though Pinkie prefers to run up and punch things. I don’t blame her, I sprint into the faces of things that used to give me nightmares and blow them in half. AJ’s pretty simple. She can take a hit.

Seriously there was a point where we were putting a tracker on this train and AJ got pinned between a couple of Mutons who were punching her, and they didn’t do a thing. She just knocked them out with a couple punches. She’s pretty awesome, but she always seems cranky after coming back. No idea why.

Twilight rolled her eyes at the oblivious girl as she turned a page.

Dear Twilight,

Sorry it’s been so long. Things have been pretty crazy. I’ll fill you in when I can, but basically, we took down a massive alien ship and that made them retaliate by attacking our base while some of us were out. I wasn’t selected to deploy at the time so some base personnel, Sci-Twi, Rarity, Fluttershy, and I had to fend off all the aliens that were breaking in.

Some got in the med bay.

Twilight. I’ve never seen Fluttershy get that angry before.

She virtually one-man-armied through the base. Not only that, weird thing. They started deploying these weird snake people. Fluttershy did something. It had to have been psy-related because all the Chryssalids and snakes just collapsed for a moment, kinda like cutting a puppet’s strings, and the next moment they’re turning on their allies.

We learned something really valuable. This whole invasion thing. There’s some kind of higher ups. Some kind of incredibly powerful psychic beings are basically using these various aliens like disposable foot soldiers. And Fluttershy managed to free some of them.

Once the base was clear, Doctor Vale wanted all of them executed and studied. What surprised me was, the Commander said no. And I quote, “We’re already on the backfoot. We have been no matter what we do. If what Miss Shy has done is in any way a tactical advantage, we’re going to take advantage of it. And we can only do that if they’re alive to tell us what their plan was.”

Fluttershy now has almost a cult following of base personnel, and snakes, and she has like three pet Chryssalids following her around.

We still have a lot of clean up to do, so I’ll have to fill you in later, unless one of the other girls does.

Twilight shuddered. She’d seen Fluttershy when she got mad. It was a scary sight. Psychic Fluttershy would be so much worse. She flipped another page.

Twilight! It’s Pinkie! We found a girl in a truck!

So these aliens were on this dam and they were trying to transport something, only the something turned out to be a girl! So her name is Gabby and she has psychic powers. She threw a few Mutons off of the Dam, it was kinda great. I didn’t get to do much besides punch a Sectopod. She hasn’t fully got control of her powers yet, so she needs to go in the pod for like a week-ish. Also, it turns out that the aliens have some of her friends at some base so we're gonna go clear that out and save her friends. I’ll try not to blow up too much, I know you worry. TTYL!

Twilight had no idea how her friend could be so endearing and so terrifying at the same time. The messages had stopped for a while after that. Days. Then Months. Then years,

She’d almost given up hope. Her friends had been killed.

Then one day.

Twilight, it’s Sunset, we’re still alive. I found the journal in the ruins of the old base. Turns out my locker hadn’t been ransacked.

Twilight had instantly written back. What had happened.

It was supposed to be a suicide mission. Ace, AJ, Dash, Gabby, Deadeye, and a viper named Angel (A medic, trained under Fluttershy) went aboard the main ship. At least, it was big enough to be the main ship.

The fight… was hellish. I swore that we’d die more times than I could count but, call it fate, somebody managed to pull something off to save us by the skin of our teeth each time.

I guess you need a bit of an update too. So the aliens are led by these beings called Ethereals. They’re basically beings of psychic energy that need physical bodies to exist. Why they want Earth probably has something to do with getting more permanent bodies.

So we’re on a ship with multiple Ethereals as well as pretty much every single alien we’d fought up to that point, and the Prime Ethereal.

The final room… still makes my brain ache. Dash got mind-controlled. AJ had to pin her down. Ace was just using a sword at this point because he’d ran out of ammo a couple rooms back. Angel was patching up Deadeye who was still taking shots despite his gut wound. I got locked in mental combat with two Ethereals while Gabby fought the Prime.

There was this orb. I honestly can’t remember what it was supposed to do. But Gabby. Gabby made some kind of portal and threw us out of the ship.

I hadn’t known her all that long, but she sacrificed herself to take the ship with her.

We couldn’t really celebrate.

See, not long after we “won” more ships arrived. Earth surrendered. The “extraterrestrials” weren’t here to kill us. No. They were here to “Enlighten” us. Enlighten, my ass.

As they “Enlightened” the world they took out X-COM’s bases. Commander was kidnapped. Shen was killed. Vale just disappeared.

X-COM was in tatters. Those of us still alive hunkered down as Advent rose to power.

We’ve effectively gone from being an army, to being a band of rebels. Pinkie’s MEC couldn’t be maintained, so we had to mothball it until we get supplies to fix it. Pinkie is something of a morale officer. Fluttershy is the onboard medic. Rarity helps Shen’s daughter, River, in Engineering. Sci-Twi is basically heading what’s left of the science division.

Those that are more combat oriented have adapted a bit. Ace is regularly using a sword. Both AJ and Dash switch between rifles and shotguns depending on range. I have a preference for an SMG when I’m not using my mind magic. It feels much more like hit and run tactics. Get in, screw something important over, get out.

I need some serious rest. I’m leaving the journal out if the girls want to add anything as time goes by. Like the good old days.

Twi sighed. She’d been overjoyed to hear that everyone was safe, for the most part. However losing pretty much everything, the world falling, friends dying. It had all been almost too much to take in at the time. She flipped a few more pages.

Twi, this is RD, you are not going to believe this. We found the commander! He was being kept in a weird alien tube in the middle of one of their cities, hooked up to like five computers. We had to cause a big distraction to be able to get at him, which Central did by blowing up a truck. We would have lost the new guys if it hadn’t been for me and AJ giving them appropriate directions. They sorta look up to us as more senior field agents. Though I suppose Central backing you helps a lot.

Anyways. Yeah, we found the commander and got him out of there. Central literally carried him out on his back as we made our way to the VToL. It was touch and go to get him awake and alive properly, they...did something, I don’t know what. Fluttershy would know more than me. But they pulled whatever it was out of him and now he’s walking around like five years ago was just yesterday. Sci-Twi is already analyzing the chip thing they pulled out of his skull, but it’ll be a couple of days before we can figure out why they wanted him so badly.

In the meantime, AJ and I are preparing for a mission. We’ve got a new base, but it needs more power to be up to the job of helping to free Earth from the grip of the aliens. Fortunately, not everyone believes Advent’s lies, and we’re not the only rebels. Someone out there found the power converter we need to get this thing up and running properly, and they plan to sabotage the train tracks the aliens want to use to take it away. When they run into the trap, we plan to be there to welcome them to Earth properly.

It had been great hearing from Rainbow Dash again. Even greater knowing that they weren’t giving up any time soon.

Twilight, this is Fluttershy. I have some good news. Well...good if you look at it like I do.

We found Vale. Or, her research base. What was left of it, anyways.

We’d been getting a signal out of the northern USA for a few days now. We couldn’t make heads or tails of it properly, but Sci-Twi ran it through some of the old encryption codes X-COM used to use, and it started to make some sort of sense. She then postulated that maybe it needed to use all the codes at once, and we managed to get something. Just a string of words, but it was all we needed to act.

Vale had made her own extraterrestrial research base, seperate from X-COM, while working at X-COM. The date embedded in the signal didn’t allow for anything else.

So, we sent a team in to figure out what she’d been up to. Considering what might have been there, I decided to accompany the team, just to keep everyone safe. And I mean everyone.

Sure enough, when we opened the main doors, there was a literal nest of vipers in there. When they saw the others, the vipers seemed ready to shoot, but the moment they caught sight of me, they...hesitated. Like they knew me.

Then I...I noticed that these ones never had a psychic signature attached to them.

Twilight, Vale had been breeding her own vipers.

I realized what this meant within a few moments, and told the others to lower their weapons. After a few tense moments of a stand-off, everyone disarmed. I explained to the vipers we were here to find Vale, and they explained she wasn’t here. Then they asked if we were here to take their treasure, their King, away.

After going through Vale’s research logs...oh, it’s...it’s almost too cruel.

Twilight, the Etherals had been systematically exterminating every male viper that they found, just to keep their soldiers in line, both mentally and as a form of population control.

It took a lot of coaxing, mostly by pointing out that if we could find them, then the Ethereals certainly could as well, and...well.

One of the rooms on board the base is now, as the new recruits call it, a ‘snake pit’. Mostly watched over by the viper king, but their most well-trained females are eager to help the others see that there is worth in rebelling.

As Central says, “Anything that takes an advantage away from Advent is something I’m willing to use. I’m not eager about having had to install heated floors in a whole deck, but if it keeps Vale’s legacy alive, and keeps us safe, then I’ll sign the check and gripe later.”

That had also been good to read. The concept of slavery had been abolished in Equestria centuries ago. Such a vile practice shouldn’t exist anywhere. Having liberated vipers must have been a major boon to the resistance at the time.

Twilight, this is Twilight. I wish I could be talking to you about more...cheerful news. But I managed to decode the chip that had been lodged in the Commander’s brain.

Twilight, the reason nothing we did ever really worked until we found him, was because he was the keystone in a psionic network, linking every Advent officer back to him. They were running every combat situation they encountered back through him, in real time, and the things he would do to react to the sorts of trouble we were causing, the aliens used against us.

Fortunately, ever since we pulled him out of that tube, their intelligence has decayed over time. But…

Have you ever had that sort of situation? Where one of your friends feels guilty about something they think they did, that they consider their fault, but wasn’t?

I ask, because the Commander has been...mopey. Ever since I told him that news, he seems to sit around the office and do nothing. I tried to give him some leads to follow, but...nothing. He just sits and stares at the side-by-sides I showed him, the simulations I pulled. I feel like it’s my fault he feels this way, and he thinks he failed us by not being perfect.

Twilight understood that all too well. She’d learned all too quickly that everything couldn’t be perfect, no matter how much she planned. Throughout her life it felt like that lesson had been virtually beaten into her.

The time she’d lost her mind when she didn’t get a letter to Princess Celestia on time. Another time when she focused too much on what it meant to be a Princess.

So she said as much. She recounted the lessons she’d learned over the years and told Sci-Twi to show them to the Commander.

She turned another page.

Twilight, it’s Sunset.

I don’t know what you said, but the Commander is back to his old self. More so even. He’s reinvigorated and ready to kick Advent ass. I can’t thank you enough. I’ll update when I can, but we have a world to save.

Also, Sci-Twi might need some advice. She wants to figure out the connection between Psionics and “Thaumaturgy.”

That brought a smile to Twilight’s lips. Then she turned the page again.

Twi, this is AJ, we’ve finally gotten a lead on the Etheral’s plans. It’s...well, it explains a bit of what’s going on. We got two big breakthroughs on the same day.

First, we managed to sort of hack into the Psi-net that keeps all the Advent officers linked. Did that one myself, stuck a psychic lance in an officer’s head for long enough for Sci-Twi to get a connection. And it got a reaction, alright. Some sorta...strange, computer glitch came to life. Critter came at us once we did that. Sci-Twi called it the Codex, the guardian of the Psi-net. Took a lot of bullets to put down. She could teleport all over the place, clone herself, and make our weapons malfunction whenever she pleased. Dash delivered a kick upside the damn thing’s head once we got it down to one of itself and the thing collapsed, leaving behind a metal brain looking thing. Sci-Twi’s analyzing it now, we might need a new facility just for that. You just know the vipers will complain about the noise if we stick it anywhere near them, and I can’t blame them. There’s a reason crew quarters are on the far side of the ship, as compared to the science bay. You only need one midnight explosion to value the far bunk.

The second thing that happened was, we raided one of Advent’s black sites the same day Sci-Twi made sense of all the data. Right in the middle of the damn raid, actually. I was getting in a sumo match with one of the Mutons, one of the recruits was enjoying abusing his mindshield to slice a Sectoid in half, and the other one was sniping any Advent officer that thought to drop in. Then Dash took the last guy up to the door, the one who had one of them little drone things, and they opened the door to the bottom of the facility.

Twi, what we found there…

…

They’ve been kidnapping humans, because, after Sectoids, we’re the next most psychically sensitive. But they’ve been manipulating the Sectoids so much, they can’t handle much more. Hell, most of ‘em are born in a tube.

Us, though? We’re fresh. Ripe for harvest. Which is what they’ve been doing.

They’re trying to build themselves bodies they don’t have to hold together through sheer thought. By melting humans down and putting them back together again.

They manage that, their little, ‘Avatar’ project? The full might of an Ethereal not focused on holding itself in our world, unbound for the first time in ages?

Game over.

That’s what we’re stopping. That’s why we fight. It coulda been Apple Bloom, or her friends, or my family, in there. And I’d rather die first, than see any of that happen to anyone else.

Twilight felt a little shiver run down her spine. She could almost hear AJ saying that and it made her heart swell with pride. AJ had found something to fight for. With a smile and a nod, she turned the page.

Twi! Twi twi twi! I can write to you again! I have my huge metal robot body back and it. Is. AWESOME!

The others went on some huge mission to a decommissioned robot facility, and it was really super deep and moving about how our head engineer found a piece of her father’s legacy left behind for her to recover. We have an AI teammate, it’s pretty sweet, not gonna lie about that one.

But!

Because there were other robots there, Central and Commander put together their brains with Sci-Twi and they made a MEC bay and ohmygosh! My old chassis is baaaack in service!

Well, I say back in service. It needed...a good tune up. Okay, a major tune up.

Fortunately we managed to bust up quite a few alien robots! So we have parts to spare! It’s just about as good as it used to be, which means I can punch through walls now! It feels awesome to be back on the front lines again!

I mean...I understand why I couldn’t help. Parts aren’t cheap. I didn’t even mind being the morale officer while we couldn’t get them.

But it doesn’t sit right with me that all my friends are helping to fight off these big mean alien invaders and I’m stuck in the kitchen!

So I’m gonna...help, the scientists we’ve recruited and that Sci-Twi is in charge of. Maybe...suggest a few lines of research.

I’ve always wanted to stick a plasma cannon on this rig.

Twilight shuddered at the thought of a giant robotic Pinkie Pie equipped with cannons and quickly turned to the next entry.

Twilight, this is Sunset, we’ve managed to decode the data that we recovered from the Codex brain and the Psi-net. We’ve got part of a location where the Etherals are building their Avatar. Every black site we shut down shuts them back, but it doesn’t stop them. But every one we raid puts us closer to finding them. This is the last active black site that we know about, Commander has been really gung-ho about connecting the world through radio relays. Rebel radio is quite popular, if you know what frequency to tune into.

I write because, well, I may not get more than a hurried chance in the future. And also to ask if you know what the main issues with going underwater about a mile or more might be. Because so far, the closest thing we have to an approximate location for the Avatar site are in the middle of the ocean off of flipping Australia.

So yeah. Help would be appreciated. Either in how you might do it, so we know what not to shoot when we get there so that we all don’t drown, or if something like atmosphere sickness might be an issue.

Twilight had recommended diving suits and decompression chambers. Perhaps a boat to contain them if necessary. Beyond that, she couldn’t be much help.

There had been a delay between that entry and the next one, but when the alicorn flipped the page a few times…

Okay, Twi, we...yeah. We’re safe. Safe enough, anyways. We stopped the Ethereals.

Turns out, there was a way to find them. Sci-Twi built some sort of...psionic gateway, and Commander...he took control of one of the uninhabited avatars that we...stole, from one of the blacksites. The same sort of thing the Codex used to get at us. He linked himself to it and accompanied us on the mission from afar.

It wasn’t enough that we killed their perfect avatar that they’d finally made. Yes, they did make one. But Commander engaged it in a psychic wrestling match and held most of its power at bay, meaning we could shoot it. That’s the funny thing about inhabiting a body made of humans: they tend to die when shot at.

But no, that wasn’t good enough for the Commander. While we were distracting the Ethereal by shooting it a lot, we also had a rookie who was trained to do two things and two things only along for the ride. Run, and plant explosives.

We wanted to drown the facility when we were done with it, so they could never do this again. And seeing as how most of the Ethereals were sleeping in special tubes in the base, waiting for their turn with a body...we’re, pretty sure we’ve ended the threat of the Ethereals for...ever. Hopefully.

Commander made sure we all made it back to the gateway, and went through it, before he triggered the detonator he’d carried on his stolen body’s person. The whole thing filled with seawater in seconds. And while I do feel bad about some of the soldiers that were brainwashed into serving there, and there were a lot of them that got thrown at us...that’s, not the issue.

See, without the Ethereals controlling them, the rest of their soldiers sort of ‘woke up’. They were let off the chain for the first time in ages, in many cases, the first time in their lives. Some of them were still an issue. You don’t argue with a Muton when he says he wants to go through your house, you open the door before he makes a new one.

A new society has to be put in place. One to deal with human and extraterrestrial relations. Because they can’t go home on their own. All that sort of technology belonged to the Ethereals. Maybe, maybe, if we research it enough, we can make a starship one day, and help species like the Vipers, the Sectoids, and the Mutons find their old home worlds. But there’s a lot of tech to research first.

So. My question.

How the fuck does Celestia manage it?!

Twilight chuckled. Her reply had been, If I get a clear answer, I’ll let you know.

Over the coming months they kept regular communications. Governments had to be reestablished. Peoples had to be resettled. Her friends had to find jobs outside of X-COM, at least the military side of X-COM. X-COM itself, now that the threat had ended, had turned more to the side of helping Earth’s permanent guests find fulfilling lives in society. What once were the hunters, were now the helping hand to bridge the gap between humanity and their neighbors from the stars.

Both Sunset and Applejack had shot up the ranks. Sunset had helped extraterrestrials get situated in new homes, whereas AJ fought for extraterrestrial rights. Fluttershy had thanked X-COM for everything they’d done, then moved on to a nursing job at a hospital, specifically helping those who might be psychically sensitive. Sci-Twi basically dug herself a hole and devoted almost all of her time to the study of Elerium. She had contacts within multiple government space agencies. Pinkie now rarely used her MEC, however she did reverse-engineer certain weaponry into little more than non-lethal light shows. Said shows were put on for various orphanages around the world. Rarity on the other hoof, had fused an old passion with a new passion, inventing clothes that weren’t just stylish, but practical as well. Her latest idea was a dress that could deflect a plasma bolt. Rainbow Dash used her advanced physique to become pretty much the world’s best athlete. And when she wasn’t on the court, she helped teach children the “joys of futbol.”

Eventually Twilight’s and Sunset’s messages went to once a month.

The reason Twilight was worried was, it had been over a month…. By twelve hours.

As Twilight looked at the last message she’d received, she sighed. Sunset was probably just-

The book vibrated in her lap.

Twilight jumped, causing the chair to topple over, taking her with it. The journal skidded across the floor.

Twilight groaned as she got up. She brushed herself off with a hoof, levitated the chair and righted it before setting it back down. Her wings flapped a little in irritation as she levitated the book over and opened it.

Twilight! It’s Sunny! How are you doing?

Twilight rolled her eyes as she retrieved a pen from the table and replied. “I’m doing just fine. Also, you’re late.”

A wizard is never late, Twilight Sparkle, nor are they early. They arrive precisely when they mean to.

Twilight blinked. What?

Sorry. Got a hold of some pre-war movies. Anyway, I have a question for you.

Twilight shook her head and giggled. Well what is it?

Would you be interested in helping with some interspecies relations?

Twilight blushed as her eyes widened. The mare’s wings shot out straight. She scowled at the journal page. I am not going to have sex with an alien!

There was almost a full minute with no response.

Sorry for the wait. Was dying of laughter.

No. That’s not what I mean. (Also where is your head and how long has it been since you’ve gotten some dick?) Anyway, no what I was referring to was, would you be interested in helping with things like interspecies reproduction, hormone adjustment stims for hyper-aggressive Mutons, psy-dampeners for Sectoids, things like that. Sci-Twi is just as bad as Vale was now that she’s focused on her project, doesn’t return any calls unless you have something to do with Elerium.

Twilight blushed again, this time in embarrassment. I would love to. I can schedule some time.

Great! Because there’s a few people I’m looking into. Think of them as a bit of an urban interspecies test case. See, there’s this landlord, and he’s causing all sorts of problems for his tenants. Now, normally this wouldn’t really be my area. However, about half of his tenants are extraterrestrials. And this guy owns multiple properties. So, we really couldn’t do anything until now.

Twilight’s interest was piqued. What changed?

Well, there’s this guy who lives with a Viper. Seems he’s been keeping receipts for every little thing this landlord’s been doing. Or, doing wrong, if we’re being realistic. Seems he’s actually putting the viper in danger due to negligence.

Twilight nodded along. Okay. But what does this have to do with me?

Well, I’m pretty sure the pair are a couple, or at least are very, very close. And we can’t exactly rely entirely on the one Viper King, because you know, inbreeding. So Twilight, wanna sequence some DNA to see if we can get a viper population boom going?

Twilight grinned at the page. I’d love to.