I woke them with kisses and gentle caresses on their feet, where I was sitting, until I managed to pull them from deep sleep.

  When they opened their eyes, their faces seemed to radiate light, as if energy flowed from within them. Even so, there was urgency in their gazes.

  Tariel grabbed my arm. Anastácia leaned toward me and said, with a sweet smile:

  “I want you now, my love.”

  I answered with a silent smile. I stood and helped them up.

  The Sekvens watched us with mischievous expressions. They already knew what was coming.

  “I’ll help with the move,” Aluram said, bowing slightly. “Thank you.”

  We left Ana with them and went to the others.

  A commotion filled the place. Everyone gathered around the reborn girls, in a mix of curiosity, hope, and emotion.

  “They were quick to change clothes,” I commented.

  I told Tariel and Anastácia what had happened.

  “Following the heart, as the Sekvens teach, is leading me into a dead end.”

  “You did the right thing,” Anastácia replied without hesitation.

  Tariel crossed her arms, pretending to be stern.

  “You’ll have to promise to love and care for all of them.” She paused. “But… I know the three of us can do it. Or rather… the three hundred of us…”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  “You’re infected,” I teased. “We’ll talk later.”

  We laughed.

  When we approached, we were surrounded. There were smiles, tears, apprehension, desire, hope—everything mixed together, held in silence. I smiled.

  “Besides Nissi, choose those who need the most care. Or I can ask AX to draw lots. I’ll bring them all, without exception, in groups of five. I want each of them to reflect the beauty they carry in their hearts.”

  Joy came immediately, but restrained. Perhaps they feared seeming demanding. I found it amusing and respected their silence.

  For five consecutive days, thirty-six hours a day without rest, Julis and her team worked tirelessly to guide everyone through the process, preventing anxiety from dragging on.

  They chose the order themselves.

  I fetched each group. I talked with them, learned their names—which I never confused or forgot—led them to the capsules, and stayed by their side at the peak of their emotions.

  I admired their beauty and said so without restraint. But what I felt went beyond that.

  I knelt before them, kissed their navels one by one, and promised they would be cared for and loved.

  With each promise, my passion grew.

  And my certainty diminished.

  How could I have so many wives and give each of them what she needed?

  It was impossible.

  That was when a thought began to haunt me:

  The Sekvens had brought me there. They had always taught me to show what I feel. So… they should also help me solve this.

  That day, Tariel and Anastácia could hardly wait to return.

  We left the group in the capsules and headed back to Jazzia.

  What we lived in bed, under the influence of the feelings surrounding us, was extraordinary.

  Not just the sex.

  But the complicity.

  The affection.

  The sense of being one.

  A deep, real inner peace.

  There was so much love between us that, at times, it felt hard to breathe.

  Time disappeared.

  In that moment, we experienced something close to the Union the Known Universe takes such pride in.

  And I wanted it.

  I wanted to unite as they did.

  For a moment… I stopped wanting to be human.

  But it was as a human that I lived through all of it.

  I restrained the greed in my chest and let the tears fall.

  They were not of sadness.

  They were of happiness.

  Of desire.

  Of fulfillment.