Chương 23: Crash Landing

Varek woke up shortly after Tim and Riku had started practicing soul techniques. Riku felt a little flustered after falling asleep curled against Tim's side, but as consciousness shifted to Varek's body, those soft feelings were immediately replaced by something far more intense. Burning rage coursed through Varek's veins. Someone had locked him away like a common criminal and told him they were going to kill what he had claimed as his.

Riku's usually gentle feminine mind struggled to understand the overwhelming feelings of possessiveness that flooded through Varek's masculine form. The hormones and instincts were completely opposite to what she experienced in her female body. As Riku, she craved feeling protected, safe, and desired—wanting to be pursued and cherished. But Varek's alpha male nature wanted to dominate and claim Lia completely. He thrived on having her off-guard, flustering and stumbling under his attention.

The fact that she was technically his college teacher made the pursuit even more thrilling—in this world, he was the one doing the chasing. Riku found herself struggling with the conflicting mental states.

"Am I seriously trying to give myself split personality syndrome?" she thought to herself. Controlling both bodies with her naturally cheeky personality worked fine, but the stark differences between masculine and feminine instincts were becoming overwhelming. She decided to experiment with a different approach—treating Riku as herself but allowing Varek to think like a separate character, almost like controlling a video game avatar.

Having separate thoughts being pushed from two different brains with their own hormones and desires, but controlled by a single mind, was incredibly confusing. Varek stood up in his prison cell and growled low in his throat.

"I am Varek. I have been disrespected, and someone has tried to kill what belongs to me." Riku felt a dark thrill letting Varek's mind run wild with its primal hormones and desires.

"I need to get stronger. I need to be powerful enough to protect what's mine and make Lia fall for me completely." The desire to chase and hunt a woman was intoxicating in ways Riku had never imagined. It felt primal and powerful, awakening instincts she didn't even know existed. The fact that Tim kept resisting only spurred Varek on even more—every challenge made the eventual conquest seem sweeter.

"Damn, I love this body," Varek growled under his breath. Riku knew Tim must be struggling with Lia's feminine feelings and responses, and she couldn't help but think that Varek's raw masculine energy was something designed to get any woman hot and bothered. Back on Earth, Riku continued practicing soul steps with Tim, her expression innocent and focused while her teacher had no idea that her other body was hellbent on conquering Lia with increasing intensity. This story has been stolen from Royal Road.

If you read it on Amazon, please report it Alarms suddenly went off all over the Flaming Saber Sect, their urgent wailing echoing across the mountain peaks. One of the guards rushed to Varek's cell, fumbling with the spirit-steel lock in his haste.

"All hands prepare to receive casualties! The ark returns!" he shouted as he freed Varek. Varek ran outside to see the massive vessel limping through the sky toward their landing platform. The ark was scorched, dented, and torn in multiple places, its hull blackened and cracked as it struggled to maintain altitude. Dark smoke trailed from several sections, and the usual graceful approach had been replaced by a barely controlled descent.

Positioned on a massive plateau was the sect's primary landing pad—a reinforced platform designed to handle the ark's enormous weight. The vessel came in hot and heavy, landing with a thunderous crash that shook the entire mountain. The impact left visible cracks in the platform's surface. Multiple landing ramps dropped down from the sides of the ark as wounded cultivators began stumbling out.

Some were carried on stretchers, others limped with the help of sect brothers, and many bore burns and injuries that spoke of battles beyond imagination. Varek's eyes went wide in shock as he took in the scene. How could something so massive, protected by two Nascent Soul level cultivators and the sect's most powerful defenses, be so devastated? What kind of enemy could inflict this level of damage on their flying fortress? Without hesitation, Varek ran forward to help tend to the wounded.

While he knew the Flaming Saber Sect had killed thousands in their attack on the Flowing Water Sect, he also knew he currently had no power to change anything. For now, he would concentrate on building his strength. He needed to become powerful enough to protect what was his—powerful enough that no one would ever dare threaten Lia again. Meanwhile, back on Earth, Riku and Tim had decided to walk together to the dojo after their long day of soul cultivation practice.

The weather had taken a turn for the worse, with intermittent rain creating a misty atmosphere and a chill in the air. Tim had lent Riku one of his hoodies when she'd started shivering. She looked comically small in the oversized garment, the sleeves hanging past her hands and the hem reaching nearly to her knees. But damn, it was cute on her, Tim thought as they walked side by side down the quiet street.

Riku didn't want to admit it, but wearing a large, pre-warmed hoodie that carried Tim's masculine scent was definitely a newly discovered weakness for her. The soft fabric smelled like his cologne mixed with something uniquely him—clean and warm and reassuring. She found herself pulling the hood up and breathing in the comforting aroma as they walked. She hadn't realized it herself, but she was starting to lower her defenses against Tim.

He seemed genuinely dependable and wasn't being pushy about trying to date her. Sure, he'd challenged her with that declaration about conquering her in both worlds, but all she'd gotten since then was respectful treatment and genuine care for her wellbeing.

"Ah, am I that different from Varek?" she mused silently.

"I do like the shy types I can fluster and make blush." The realization that she was drawn to Tim's more vulnerable moments—when he got flustered or showed uncertantity but she also liked when he pushed back sometimes too. As they approached the dojo, Riku glanced up at Tim's profile in the dim streetlight, rain droplets catching in his hair. For the first time since this whole bizarre situation began, she found herself genuinely confused about what she wanted.