Concrete and plaster rained down in chunks, dust billowing through the room like a sandstorm. Through the jagged hole above, a massive shape descended—all muscle and chitin, landing with a floor-shaking thud that knocked the bedside lamp to the carpet.

  Batu straightened to his full height, his mutated form filling the space between them and the door. The dim light caught on the bronze-brown plates of his exoskeleton, highlighting the fresh scar tissue along his left ribs where Sigrun's blade had found him in the Warren. His mandibles clicked once, twice, tasting the air thick with sex and fear.

  "At last, I've found you" he rumbled, voice like gravel in a meat grinder. "Your scent carried for kilometers. Like flowers blooming in rot."

  Sigrun rolled off the bed in one fluid motion, snatching Járn from where it leaned against the wall. The Thermal Axe hummed to life, its edge glowing cherry-red in the darkness. She stood naked except for sweat and Xin's seed still trickling down her thigh, blonde hair wild around her shoulders.

  "Batu." She hefted the weapon, adjusting her grip. "Should've known you'd follow."

  His compound eyes tracked the movement, but his gaze lingered on her exposed body—not with lust, but something else. Assessment. Calculation. "Primarch wants you intact. But he said nothing about untouched."

  Sigrun grabbed the thick quilt from the bed with her free hand, wrapping it around her left arm like a makeshift shield. The fabric was still damp with their sweat and bodily fluids, clumsy, sticky and awkward, but better than nothing.

  Batu lunged.

  His blade, a crude thing of bone and metal that had its lower part fused to his right arm, swept toward her head. Sigrun ducked, the quilt taking the brunt of the blow, fabric tearing but slowing the strike enough for her to pivot away. She swung Járn in a tight arc, forcing him back a step.

  "Xin!" she barked, not taking her eyes off Batu. "Move!"

  But Xin was already scrambling for his Nucleus Watch on the nightstand, fingers fumbling with the clasp as he strapped it on with trembling hands. The green interface flickered to life.

  [System Access: Poison Dragon Flute Hotel] [Room 2847 - Environmental Controls Available]

  His fingers danced across the holographic display, years of programming instinct taking over. The hotel's aging security was laughably simple—a few backdoors he'd memorized from old exploit databases.

  Batu pressed forward, driving Sigrun toward the corner. She parried desperately, the quilt smoking where his blade had sliced through, cotton stuffing floating like snow. Each impact jarred her arms—he was so much stronger, each blow threatening to knock Járn from her grip.

  "The smell of this Imperial you've had intercourse with," Batu growled, mandibles spreading wide. "Weak male. Soft flesh. Poor choice for breeding."

  "He's less creepy than you. At least!" Sigrun snarled back, spinning low to sweep at his legs.

  Batu jumped, but his left side moved a fraction slower, the wound she'd given him in the Warren still hampering his mobility. She noticed, filed it away, rolled backward as his blade embedded itself in the floor where she'd been.

  Xin's watch beeped: [Fire Suppression Override Engaged]

  The ceiling sprinklers erupted—not with the standard foam, but scalding water diverted from the building's heating system. The same water that had warmed their shower minutes ago now sprayed down at near-boiling temperature.

  Batu roared, his insectoid eyes instantly clouding with steam and heat damage. He swung blindly, demolishing the dresser, the wall-mounted display screen exploding in sparks.

  "Now!" Xin shouted, grabbing his scattered clothes with one hand and his glasses with the other. He slid into his socks and shoes.

  Sigrun snatched her black sports underwear from the shelf, her turtleneck from the chair, boots from beside the door, trench coat, her Nucleus Watch—no time to dress, just clutching the bundle against her chest as they bolted past the blinded Radi-Mon hybrid.

  The hallway strobed with emergency lighting. Other guests peered out through cracked doors, gasping at the sight of a naked Nordling woman with an axe sprinting past, followed by a thin Imperial man in nothing but his Nucleus Watch.

  "SECURITY ALERT," the hotel's AI announced in crisp Mandarin, then English. "HOSTILE PRESENCE DETECTED. FLOOR 28 EVACUATION RECOMMENDED."

  Behind them, Batu's howl shook the walls. The sound of splintering wood suggested he was tearing through the doorframe, no longer concerned with subtlety.

  They hit the elevator bank. Xin slammed his palm against the call button while Sigrun yanked on her underwear, then her turtleneck, not bothering with the sports bra still bundled in her arms.

  "He'll take the stairs," she panted, stepping into her boots without lacing them. "Or just jump down the shaft."

  The elevator dinged. They tumbled inside, Xin jabbing the ground floor button repeatedly. As the doors slid shut, they saw Batu emerging from their room, one eye weeping clear fluid, his massive frame against the emergency lights.

  The elevator doors slid shut with a soft hiss, sealing them. Emergency lighting bathed everything in pulsing red, then orange, then red again. Twenty-eight floors to descend.

  Sigrun pressed herself against the wall, her bare back against metal, Xin could see his seed still dripping from between her thighs, feeling the taste of her lingering on his own tongue. Her skin prickled with goosebumps—from cold or memory, he couldn't tell.

  Xin stood opposite her, his thin frame shivering. His Nucleus Watch cast a green glow as he fumbled with his boxer shorts, nearly dropping them twice before managing to step into them. The fabric clung awkwardly to his damp skin.

  "Hey. I—" He started, then stopped, pulling the underwear up with jerky movements. A wet spot immediately formed where his still-half-hard penis pressed against the fabric. "Sorry."

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

  "For what?" Sigrun's voice came out rough. She grabbed her black sports underwear from the bundle in her arm. Keeping her back to him, she stepped into them, the elastic snapping against her hips.

  Xin peeked at her. The cotton immediately stuck to the wetness between her legs—his wetness, their wetness—and he could see her squirming at the sensation.

  "For that. I imagine it feels uncomfortable." He said.

  "Eh. Got nastier exits with other clients before." She waved it off.

  "Nastier…" He paused, unable to imagine.

  "Yeah. Last year, some guy named Huang tried to tie me in bed after cumming. Going for some BDSM, I guess." She replied, yanking her deep navy turtleneck over her head without bothering with the sports bra. The ballistic weave scraped against her nipples, still hard. "I'd let him, but the guy didn't pay enough. Should've just told me beforehand. Also, the next client was waiting."

  "What happened to…you know…" He probed, but wondering if he should.

  "You mean Huang? " She looked at him. "I axed him on my way out. The police probably found him and sorted things out afterwards."

  "Riiiiight." Somehow that got Xin more excited. Here was a woman who fucked and killed unapologetically.

  Floor 26.

  Xin pulled on his pants next, the synthetic material catching on his damp legs. His watch beeped softly.

  [+Equipped: Tactical Cargo Pants, Revolution Anniversary Edition, Manufacturer: Taiwanese Rebellion Surplus]

  "Your hands are shaking," Sigrun observed. The damp fabric of her turtleneck stuck to the sweat on her back, on her breasts, everywhere their bodies had pressed together just minutes ago.

  "Yeah." Xin's fingers struggled with his belt buckle. "Adrenaline, I guess."

  [+Equipped: Utility Belt, generic civilian model, Manufacturer: N/A]

  Floor 23.

  The elevator's news screen flickered to life, casting them in harsh blue light:

  "—Dragon District emergency services responding to structural damage at the Poison Dragon Flute Hotel—"

  "—unconfirmed reports of Radi-Mon presence—"

  "—citizens advised to shelter in place—"

  Sigrun bent to pull on her boots, and caught Xin staring at where her turtleneck rode up, exposing a strip of pale skin above her underwear. His face flushed red.

  "I meant it," he said suddenly. "What I said. Before."

  Her fingers froze on the laces. "Don't."

  "Don't?"

  "You cummed inside me and your brain is flooded with stuffs." She yanked the laces tight it looked like it hurt. "It's base needs, not love."

  He pulled his green hoodie over his white t-shirt, the fabric bunching awkwardly where it was still damp with sweat. His watch logged each item.

  [+Equipped: Field Tech Hoodie, ZenFusion Interplanetary variant, 5-year Warranty in effect]

  [+Equipped: Hoodie, Emerald Casual Wear, Hooded variant]

  "Then why did you kiss me back?" His voice was quiet, but it filled the small space.

  Floor 19.

  Sigrun's hand moved to her hair—still loose and wild from the sex earlier, how she'd thrown her head back when he came. Her fingers found her Programmable Hair Clip.

  "Heat of the moment." She activated the clip, nanomechanics pulling her blonde hair back into the tactical half-up ponytail. Combat ready.

  But her hand trembled as she adjusted the style, and she knew he saw it.

  Floor 16.

  A metallic groan echoed through the shaft above them. They both looked up.

  "That Batu is coming down," Xin said, fumbling with his beige jacket. The puffy material was inside-out, and he struggled to right it, his movements increasingly frantic.

  [+ Equipped: Ballistic Puffer Jacket, AsahiTech civilian variant, Osaka II variant]

  [+ Equipped: Jade, 10mm Magnum, Castor & Pollux A.I. targeting variant, (External feminine Aether detected on user)]

  Sigrun shrugged into her trench coat, the weight of it familiar, comforting. But the ballistic weave couldn't protect her from the way Xin was looking at her—like she'd just ripped something vital out of his chest.

  Floor 12.

  Another groan from above, closer. The elevator shuddered.

  "We need a plan," Sigrun said, forcing herself to focus. She grabbed Járn from the bundle, clipping it to her belt. Skuld followed, the collapsed shotgun sliding into its holster at the small of her back.

  Xin picked up his glasses, wiping them on his hoodie before sliding them on. They immediately fogged from the temperature difference between his flushed face and the cold lenses.

  [+Equipped: Space Delver v8, Burrell & Kao variant, Manufacturer: Taiwan Optical Ltd.]

  "I noticed something," he said, his voice steadier now, falling back on analysis. "When Batu was fighting. His left side—"

  CLANG.

  The elevator ceiling dented inward.

  Floor 10.

  "He's favoring it," Xin continued, speaking faster. "Where you cut him in the Warren. The Fenris tissue isn't fully integrated with his exoskeleton. It's a weakness."

  Sigrun looked at him. His hair was still messed up from her fingers running through it. His lips looked still swollen from kissing. His clothes hung wrong, hastily thrown on, nothing sitting quite right.

  "You could fucking see that while he was trying to kill us?"

  "I see patterns." He adjusted his foggy glasses. "It's what I do."

  Floor 8.

  Another impact. The ceiling buckled further, emergency lighting flickering.

  Sigrun's Nucleus Watch chimed with a blue bubble as she strapped it on:

  [All Equipment Restored]

  [Combat Ready]

  [Warning: Elevated Heart Rate Detected - 142 BPM]

  She glanced at Xin. His watch was showing something similar, but there was another notification glowing green:

  [Bond Formation Detected: Sigrun Fjeld]

  [Warning: Elevated Heart Rate Detected - 111 BPM]

  [Consensual Sexual Intercourse concluded. Aether Synchronization Rate: 73%]

  [Emotional Investment: Calculating...69% → 78% → 86%]

  He quickly minimized the display, but not before she saw it.

  Floor 5.

  The elevator shook violently.

  Sigrun grabbed Xin's hand. "Don't think too much. This is tactical."

  "Tactical?" His fingers squeezed hers. They were still sticky with her wetness.

  "Your hands are cold." She said simply. "Should work out some more."

  Floor 3.

  Floor 2.

  Ground Floor.

  The doors opened to chaos—guests crowding the lobby, autocabs jamming the street outside, security guards trying to maintain order with no idea what they were dealing with.

  "Wait!" Xin grabbed Sigrun's hand. "This way."

  They pushed through the crowd toward the building's convenience kiosk. Xin chose that moment to move towards it.

  "Are you seriously—" Sigrun started.

  "It's for H?kon. I promised him." Xin said, grabbing two meat buns from the warming display.

  "Fine. Get ginger tea," Sigrun said suddenly, her voice tight. "For my nerves. Now."

  He grabbed a bottle without question, tossing everything into a bag as he transferred credits from his Nucleus Watch:

  [Payment made. Current Account Balance - $20,661 Atomic Dollars]

  Behind them, screams erupted as the elevator doors exploded outward, Batu emerging in a shower of twisted metal.

  Sigrun had already called an autocab on her Watch, the vehicle pulling up just as they burst through the hotel's doors. They dove inside, Batu's roar chasing them into the night.

  "Where to?" the cab's AI asked pleasantly.

  "Anywhere but here," Sigrun gasped, finally zipping her turtleneck fully closed. "Unless there's somewhere you'd go?"

  "Silver Orchid Quarters." Xin leaned forward in his seat and said to the AI before turning to Sigrun. "Thanks."

  "Better to check on your little guy, anyway." She replied plainly.

  As the cab accelerated into Dragon District's neon maze, Xin noticed how Batu had moved in the hotel, how he'd favored that left side, how his strikes had pulled slightly off-center. Something to remember if they met again.

  Sigrun looked away, pressing her forehead against the cold window. Outside, emergency vehicles screamed past, heading toward the hotel. The sirens hadn't stopped. If anything, they'd multiplied.

  "Xin," she said quietly, not looking at him. "What you said before. In the bedroom."

  "I meant it."

  "You can't. You don't even know me."

  "I know enough."

  She turned then, and in the flickering light of passing street signs, he saw tears cutting tracks through the dust on her face.

  "You know little enough," she whispered. "And that's exactly why you could say it."

  The autocab hummed through empty streets, carrying them away from the wreckage of Room 2847, away from the Poison Dragon Flute motel, from Batu's fury, towards nothing but more questions.