Forbidden Magic: The Complete Collection Read online

  Piper pulled all the way back, letting her mouth pop off his cock. She looked up at him, her eyes a strange mixture of professionalism and lust.

  “How close are you?”

  “I’m close,” said Victor. “Just keep going.”

  He pulled her head back down, and she started sucking again, faster and more aggressively this time. Lewd noises came from the motions of her mouth. The apartment was tiny, and Victor wondered what Lucy’s reaction would be if she walked in on them.

  She set this up to begin with. I can’t be held entirely responsible.

  Piper started humming in sync with the movements of her mouth, giving Victor a blowjob that resonated up his cock. H closed his eyes and let pleasure sweep over his body, feeling himself nearing his limit.

  “Piper,” he said, in a near-breathless voice. “Piper!”

  He tapped on the back of her head. She kept sucking. He took a deep breath and harnessed every ounce of will he had to hold out, but it was impossible. He was going to cum.

  At the last second, Piper pulled her lips off his hard cock. With practiced movements, she positioned the jar in front of the head of his cock at the very instant it began to explode. She kept a firm grip on his member, literally holding it in place as Victor blasted his sticky seed into the jar.

  “Magnificent,” she whispered. “You must have double the sperm load of an ordinary man, maybe even triple.”

  Victor wasn’t listening. He melted into the pleasure as his dick spasmed. Out of mostly shut eyes, he could see Piper milking the cum out of his cock. The jar overflowed slightly with the last few spurts, and Piper brought her index finger to her mouth and sucked his cum off of it.

  “Alright.” She screwed the cap back on, fixed her hair, and then stood up. “Lucy will most likely be bringing you into headquarters sometime in the next few days. We’ll need to keep this up until you find a regular romantic outlet for your impulses.”

  “Keep… this up?” Victor was barely listening, too zoned out from his orgasm to make sense of her words.

  “Just relax and get some sleep. I’ll see you soon.”

  Piper walked over to the door and left the apartment. Victor rolled over on the couch, only taking the time to pull his pants back up before falling asleep.

  CHAPTER 9

  It was early in the morning when Victor woke up, early enough to still be dark outside. Someone was pulling a blanket over him, and he practically had to remember all of the events of the previous day to realize that it was Lucy.

  He opened his eyes and saw her slipping into a pair of heels on the welcome mat next to the door. She was wearing a similar outfit to what she’d had on the day before, except with a button up sweater in the place of the jacket, and silk stockings over her legs.

  “Where are you going?” Victor sat up on the couch and rubbed his eyes.

  “I have to follow up on the Night Angel leads as soon as possible, so I’m heading into work early this morning,” she said. “I left food for you on the table. I’ll send Kronenberg by around noon to check in with you.”

  Victor stood up abruptly.

  “I’m going in with you,” he said. “You’re going to need my help.”

  Lucy looked at him with a serious expression on her face.

  “No, I’m not,” she said, her voice blunt. “What I need you to do is take care of yourself and get some rest, until I can find a place to get you settled and we can start using you for research.”

  “I’m not giving you a choice, Lucy.” Victor crossed his arms and glowered at her. “There are a lot of ways I could use my powers to get into trouble. If you don’t let me help, that’s what’s going to happen.”

  Lucy let out a frustrated sigh.

  “This doesn’t involve you, Victor,” she said. “And there isn’t anything you can help with. Just because you’re an aura binder doesn’t mean you’re ready to join up with Monteiro.”

  “Do you have any other aura binders on staff?”

  Lucy didn’t say anything for a moment.

  “We have one,” she said. “She’ll be back in town within the next few days.”

  “Then you do need me, regardless of whether you’re willing to admit it or not.”

  Lucy shook her head, but she waved a hand in a conciliatory gesture.

  “You’re as stubborn as a mule, just like your father.”

  Victor cringed on the inside.

  The last thing I want is to be compared to him.

  He started to put his shoes on. Lucy set a hand on his shoulder and turned him so that he was facing her again.

  “I’m only bringing you in so that we can get a head start on your training. This doesn’t mean that you’re going to be going out into the field, or helping in any capacity beyond making phone calls and running internet searches.”

  “Of course.” Victor smiled.

  The ride through Undercliff City felt different in the daytime. A couple of smokestacks billowed up from the industrial district, marring the otherwise magnificent skyline. The traffic wasn't as bad as Victor assumed it was going to be, a result of a massive population shift in the 21st century that skewed demographics in favor of urban denizens too poor to afford cars.

  The region, at its core, was still in a state of flux. Undercliff City had been a huge producer of domestic automobiles a hundred years ago. As the economy adjusted and accepted more imports, Undercliff’s primary industry had practically vanished overnight. It was only now that a burgeoning tech sector, of which Monteiro was one of the crown jewels, was raising hopes of the area regaining its former glory.

  Lucy pulled into the parking garage and found the same space she’d parked in the day before, which Victor assumed was her reserved spot. The two of them got out and started walking toward the elevator.

  Victor followed her in, and the doors had just begun to slide shut when a man walked around the corner and toward them with purposeful steps. He was tall with pale skin and jet black hair, slicked back either with gel or from leftover moisture from an early morning shower. He wore a black wool coat, which seemed like overkill for the mild autumn weather.

  “Good morning, Lucy,” said the man.

  “Terrance.” Lucy smiled and nodded curtly. The man, Terrance, glanced over at Victor, and Lucy took a breath and began introductions.

  “Victor, this is Terrance Pronto, the head manager of the Research Applications Department on the 15th floor. Terrance, this is Victor—”

  “Anders,” said Terrance, smiling as he cut her off. “I can tell just from looking at him.”

  The elevator doors closed. Terrance walked over to the buttons and slowly pressed the one for his floor, keeping part of his attention focused on Victor.

  “Yes,” said Victor. “Nice to meet you.”

  “It’s funny, I didn’t realize that John was back in town.” Terrance looked at Lucy. “Has he stopped in to meet with Eli yet? I imagine those two would have a lot to talk about.”

  Lucy looked pained. She bit her lip, glanced at the wall for a second, and then met Terrance’s eye.

  “John… has passed away,” she said. “Victor has come to Undercliff City to manage a couple of open affairs on his behalf.”

  “You look a little young to be managing your father’s will, Victor.” Terrance smiled. “How did it happen?”

  Victor resisted the urge to grit his teeth.

  This is the last thing I want to talk about right now.

  “Natural causes,” he said. The came out sounding anything but natural.

  “But how, exactly?” pressed Terrance.

  “Why does it matter to you?” asked Victor. “He’s dead, and I’d appreciate it if you’d leave it be.”

  Lucy shot Terrance a look, and the pale man held up both hands.

  “I do apologize. It’s just I worked on several projects with John. We didn’t always see eye to eye on things, but he was a trusted coworker. It saddens me to hear that his time arrived so early.”

&nb
sp; Lucy cleared her throat, and he turned to face the elevator doors.

  “Terrance, I’m going to need the report on your proposal for industrial uses of the Aura Project by the end of the day.”

  “Of course, Lucy,” he said. “I’ll make sure you get it. You just make sure that your department is ready to make the necessary changes for us to turn it into a marketable product.”

  The elevator finally reached the 13th floor. Victor felt tension rush out of the tiny space as the doors opened. Kronenberg was hovering directly outside, and the orange dome on the top of the drone flickered with excitement when he saw Lucy stepping out.

  “Perfect timing, Lucy!” Kronenberg paused, and the drone leaned slightly to the side as it noticed Terrance. “Please tell me that you’re not dropping by for an unexpected visit, Terrance.”

  Terrance showed his teeth and slowly shook his head.

  “If I needed something from you, I would send one of my assistants to get it.”

  Kronenberg broke out into laughter as the elevator doors shut.

  “I never could stand that man,” he said. “I think all the hair gel he uses has soaked into his brain.”

  “Take it easy on him Kronenberg,” said Lucy. “We have to work with him, not against him.”

  Lucy walked fast. Even though she was shorter than Victor, he felt like he needed to focus in order to keep up with her. The 13th floor wasn’t that populated, with maybe ten or so staff members working in cubicles or desks in the central command room, but all of them gave her their attention as she went by. She stopped short, and Victor almost crashed into her.

  “Kronenberg, can you help Victor get settled for a couple of minutes?” She waved a hand to another young female employee even as she spoke. “I have to make sure everyone is on task for today.”

  “Of course, Ms. Wilson.” A bit of sarcasm came with Kronenberg’s response. “Come on, let’s take a tour of the break room.”

  The drone bobbed through the air, leading Victor back toward the elevator and then into a small room past a row of cubicles. It looked like the break room in any office except for the newspaper clippings on the wall, all of which detailed murders or other suspicious incidents.

  It almost looks like the bedroom wall of a crazed vigilante.

  “I’m a little surprised to see you up and about today, Vic.” Kronenberg landed on a table next to the breakroom’s fridge and folded two spider legs underneath his drone body, effectively sitting down.

  “Did you expect Lucy to lock me up?” Victor smiled.

  “Yes. Either that or for you to head for the hills and get as far away from Undercliff City as you could.”

  Victor raised an eyebrow and shook his head.

  “That’s not really my style,” he said. “Intimidation tactics only make me angry.”

  “That’s the part I don’t understand. You don’t work for Monteiro. This whole situation is new to you. Why are you so eager to jump into the middle of it?”

  Victor thought about the question for a couple of seconds. He reached over to a coffee pot on the counter and began pouring himself a cup.

  “Let’s just say that I’ve been in the middle of this situation for a while now.”

  Kronenberg started to say something else, but before he could, someone that Victor recognized poked into the break room. Piper had a smirk on her face and wore a white lab coat over a cutesy pink t-shirt and jeans.

  “Victor.” Her voice had a heavy, flirtatious tone to it. “Good morning.”

  She walked over, brushing up against him a bit as she got herself some coffee.

  “Good morning, Piper,” he replied. “Sorry about the house call last night.”

  “Oh, that’s quite alright.” Piper smiled at him and stood a little too close as she stirred a spoon around her cup. “It was my pleasure.”

  The air crackled with potential for a moment as they locked eyes. Kronenberg whirled one of his drone’s copter blades and made just enough noise to pull them back to reality.

  “Well, I have to get to work,” said Piper. “I’ll see you later, Victor.”

  Victor flashed her a smile as she walked out. Kronenberg took to the air and hovered in front of his face.

  “No way…” The drone shook from side to side. “Victor, you dog!”

  CHAPTER 10

  Lucy came into the breakroom a minute later, carrying a tablet computer and speaking to a young female assistant as she walked. She pointed to something in the main room and the girl took off. Then, she turned to Victor.

  “Kronenberg, can you hold down the fort here for a few minutes? I’m going to take Victor down to the simulation rooms.”

  The drone nodded.

  “That’s a good idea. He’ll need a space to practice if he’s ever going to be able to work in the field.”

  Lucy frowned.

  “It’s more to keep him busy for the afternoon,” she said. “He’s a teenager.”

  “He’s right here, within earshot,” said Victor.

  “I wouldn’t rule out letting him help so quickly, Lucy. He’s already gained control of one of the Nano Auras, practically without any training.”

  Lucy shook her head and started walking out of the breakroom.

  “Just make sure things run smoothly here, and let me handle Victor.”

  Victor scowled as he followed after her.

  What the hell am I doing here? I’m not interested in being coddled all day.

  “For future reference, the simulation rooms are just below us on the 12th floor.” Lucy waited for a few people to step off the elevator and then led Victor onto it. “There are four of them in total, so usually, they’ll be at least one free unless it’s a busy day.”

  “What is a ‘simulation room’, exactly?” asked Victor.

  “A room that simulates different things.” Lucy flashed him a supremely condescending smile.

  “Yeah, I figured that much,” said Victor. “Is it so hard for you to treat me like an adult and answer my questions?”

  “I’ve literally seen you cry over a missing stuffed animal before,” said Lucy. “Does that answer your question?”

  Victor gritted his teeth.

  She still sees me as my father’s son. There’s so much that she doesn’t know, that she can’t ever know.

  It only took a second for the elevator to drop down to the twelfth floor. The doors opened, and the two of them stepped into a flawless white hallway. There were two doors on either side, with a single touch screen at eye level on the walls next to each one.

  “Here, this one’s open.” Lucy walked over to the first door on the left and tapped on the touch screen for a moment. The door slid to the side smoothly and they both walked through.

  The room on the other side looked much like the hallway, except it was far more expansive. It was at least a hundred feet across and the same spotless white color as outside, and had about fifteen feet of ceiling clearance.

  “I’m not tone deaf, Victor.”

  “What?” He glanced over at Lucy with a raised eyebrow.

  “I know how badly you want to help, and to be a part of this.” Lucy turned to him with a serious look on her face. “And I know it has something to do with whatever happened to you and to your dad.”

  Victor couldn’t meet her gaze. He scratched his head and tried to act like he was inspecting the featureless room.

  “But in order for me to be able to trust you with anything, you’re going to need training.” Lucy walked to the center of the space. “Weeks of it, at the least. Maybe months or years. And this room is designed to give you that.”

  She pulled a pair of eyeglasses out of her pocket, put them on, and then began tapping on her tablet. After a moment, the entire room shifted, turning black instead of white. The shift was sudden and total, and Victor’s stomach fluttered for a moment as he forcibly regained a sense of equilibrium.

  “Jesus fuck…” he muttered. “Warn me the next time before you do that.”


  Lucy smiled at him. She pressed something else on the tablet and a neon green grid appeared over the walls and through the air. It looked like something out of Tron except in a full three dimensions, cutting through the space like the web of a computerized spider.

  “You being able to see all of this, the projected images in this room, is something that took almost a year of research for us to figure out.” She pointed to the glasses over her eyes. “People like me, without nanites, need to wear glasses in order to use the simulation rooms.”

  Victor was awe struck. He walked toward Lucy slowly, taking each step as though half expecting to fall through the floor.

  At least I’ve only got coffee in my stomach.

  Lucy was smiling as she tapped on her tablet. After a second, a new shape appeared in front of her, an exact replica of a basketball. The shadows were a bit off, and the details were less pronounced than they would have been on a real one, but other than that it was perfect.

  “Here.” She gave it a small push and sent it moving through the air toward Victor. He reached up, and to his amazement, caught it. “You can make things, too, using your nanites instead of a computer. Just close your eyes, picture what you want to create, and then push it out.”

  I can actually feel it. What the fuck?

  Lucy must have seen the look of amazement on his face, because she started chuckling.

  “Again, your nanites make the simulations in the room much, much more interesting than they are for regular humans. They can recreate the perception of touch and weight inside your head, without actually needing anything physical to represent it.”

  “But it’s… not really there?” Victor shook his head, feeling a little confused and more than a little unnerved. “What if I decide I want to put my hand through it?”

  He tried to push his hand into the basketball, but something held his movements back. It felt exactly as though he was holding the ball, down to the tiny bumps and ridges.

  “If you really want to, you can make yourself do it,” said Lucy. “It’s similar to how your body would go through the process in real life. You wouldn’t pop a ball, even knowing you could, at least not typically. Your body has its own form of impulse control, and harnessing that allows us to make incredibly realistic simulations without having to worry about them being perfect.”