You keep Kurumi positioned above your face, hands gripping her hips to hold her in pce while your tongue continues its slow exploration. She trembles, caught between pleasure and sudden uncertainty as you speak against her flesh.

  "Sango, Riveria, Erza, Albedo," you say clearly, pulling back just enough that your words carry across the storage room. "I do believe you've been deceived by Kurumi."

  Kurumi's thighs tense against your face. "What are you-"

  "Hinata does have the ability to check your virgin status," you continue, resuming your oral attention between words. "But she's grown up with that power her whole life. She knows to respect personal boundaries. What she won't do, however, is call out someone for pretending to be the vilin."

  Hinata's voice comes soft from near the bedding edge. "Brad-sama is correct. I only verified Kurumi-san's status when she asked directly. I did not scan anyone else."

  Kurumi makes a strangled sound as your tongue finds a particurly sensitive spot. "You... how did you..."

  "Kurumi likely asked for her own virginal status," you expin to the room, hands kneading her breasts while your mouth continues its work, "and intuited with her timeline knowledge that the rest of you are the same. Bluffing the full disclosure."

  Erza sits up sharply from the bedding. "She lied? About invasion of privacy?"

  "Calcuted disclosure," Kurumi gasps, whole body shaking as your punishment continues without mercy. "Information was... ah... strategically valuable..."

  "Hinata," you say, never breaking rhythm. "While I'm punishing our lying Kurumi's lips, would you please use the telepathy web to privately ask each of the girls who were tortured, including C.C. and Shinobu, if they would like to have their status checked?"

  Hinata's vender eyes widen slightly. "Of course. Sending private messages now."

  Riveria's analytical voice cuts in. "Why would virginity status matter for those captured by the CDC?"

  "Personal knowledge mainly, wouldn't you want to know if your purity was stolen while sedated?" you pull back briefly, grinning up at Kurumi's flushed face. "For C.C. and Shinobu it's actually that if they're virgin it would be an oddity, and may suggest which variant universe they're from. Different timeline branches, different life experiences."

  Kurumi tries to speak but your tongue silences her with renewed attention. Her confident composure shatters completely, manipution crumbling under sensory overload and tactical exposure.

  "You're... impossible..." she manages between gasps.

  Albedo's voice carries genuine amusement. "She tried to manipute the maniputor. Bold, if foolish."

  Sango looks between you and Kurumi with visible confusion. "So she made up the privacy viotion to... what? Test Brad's response?"

  "Strategic transparency test. Brad's response, or maybe yours." Maria confirms from her position on your hips. "Apparently Brad saw through it regardless."

  Hinata's quiet voice returns. "I've responded to the others. C.C.-san says 'irrelevant but amusing.' Shinobu-san asks if this retes to the dimensional variance you mentioned earlier. "

  Kurumi finally climaxes with a sharp cry, bracing herself with the wall. You hold her there gently, hands stroking her back while she recovers.

  "The knowledge was real," Kurumi whispers climbing off you. "The method was... creative license."

  "Thank you for your consideration," you tell her. "Next time, just ask directly."

  Sinon approaches with measured steps, short blue hair catching the dim storage room light as she moves past the bedding where others rest in various states of recovery. She's completely naked now, having removed her bra and panties during earlier rotations, lean body carrying visible tension despite her controlled approach.

  You wrap your arms around her thighs as she positions herself above your face, holding her there gently rather than immediately pulling her down. She looks down at you, sharp eyes meeting yours with guarded curiosity.

  "You were awfully quiet during this," you observe softly, thumbs stroking the inside of her thighs. "Everyone else had something to say - questions, observations, protests. You just watched."

  Sinon's expression shifts slightly, vulnerability breaking through her usual alert composure. "I was learning," she says after a moment. "How you move. How everyone responds to you. What matters to you beyond just... physical completion."

  Maria shifts position on your hips, small hands braced against your chest. "She's been cataloging patterns," Maria confirms quietly. "Protective behavior. Consent verification. Emotional check-ins disguised as tactical assessment."

  "I needed to know if this was real," Sinon continues, voice dropping lower. "If the care was consistent or performative. If you'd maintain attention through eighteen rotations or start rushing toward the end."

  Your hands move up to cup her hips, holding her steady above you. "And?"

  "You haven't rushed once." Her thighs tremble slightly against your grip. "Kurumi tried to manipute you with her lie, and you turned it into punishment that still prioritized her pleasure. Erza needed reassurance about promises, and you gave it immediately. Sango needed explicit consent reminders, and you provided them without resentment."

  "That's what you were watching for," you realize. "Whether I'd treat intimacy as transaction or connection."

  Sinon nods slowly. "Online, everything was performance. Appearance, combat skill, social positioning - all calcuted for survival or advancement. The CDC treated us as objects to study and contain." She pauses, fingers tightening on your shoulders. "You're treating this like it matters. Like we matter beyond what we can provide."

  Maria makes a soft sound of approval. "You passed her evaluation."

  "So now I'm ready," Sinon says quietly, lowering herself toward your face with deliberate trust. "Show me what you showed the others. Intimacy that isn't performance or transaction."

  Your tongue makes first contact as your hands slide up to cup her breasts, and Sinon gasps sharply - genuine response breaking through years of practiced control.

  Your hands cup Sinon's breasts as your tongue continues its deliberate exploration, thumbs circling her nipples with the same patient attention you've maintained throughout the rotation. The game-version sniper trembles above you, short blue hair catching the dim light as her breathing quickens despite obvious effort at maintaining composure.

  "You're... still not rushing," she manages between gasps, thighs shaking against your face. "Even now. Even at the end."

  Your tongue increases pressure gradually, hands kneading her breasts with steady rhythm. Sinon makes a sharp sound - surprise and sensation mixing - then her whole body tenses as climax overtakes her analytical observation. She colpses sideways onto the bedding, gasping.

  "That was..." She trails off, looking at you with something approaching wonder. "You maintained pacing through each of us. No rushed completion at the end."

  Maria shifts position on your hips, small hands braced against your chest. "Evaluation complete?" she asks with knowing amusement.

  "Passed," Sinon confirms quietly, still catching her breath.

  You reach down to grip Maria's hips, pulling her down harder as you thrust up to meet her. The succubus's confident rhythm falters immediately under the sudden intensity shift.

  "Wait, I was supposed to-" Maria's protest dissolves into a sharp gasp as you bounce her rough against you, no longer maintaining the controlled pace that characterized the oral rotation. Your fingers dig into her hips, holding her in pce while you drive up into her with building urgency.

  "Brad-" Her small form rocks with each thrust, hands scrambling for purchase on your chest. "This wasn't - ah - the pn was-"

  You don't slow, don't ease the intensity. Maria's analytical composure shatters completely as dual stimution overwhelms her framework design. She climaxes with a sharp cry, whole body shuddering.

  You pull her down tight against your chest immediately, arms wrapping around her as exhaustion finally crashes over you. Your eyes close, consciousness already fading.

  "Good," Maria whispers against your skin, voice unsteady. "You're finally letting yourself rest."

  Mikasa's voice comes from nearby, quiet but firm. "I'll take over when Maria rotates to watch. He stays here until eight hours minimum."

  "Agreed," Maria murmurs, still pressed against you. "Sango - we leave for sunrise rotation at four. Until then, everyone sleeps."

  The storage room settles into retive quiet, breathing gradually evening out across the bedding. Your grip on Maria loosens slightly as sleep cims you, exhaustion finally winning over continuous operational momentum.

  Kurumi's voice drifts from the darkness, barely audible. "He sted through each of us. Maintained attention. Kept promises. Even when he had every excuse to cut corners."

  "That's why it works," Albedo responds softly. "Because he holds us."

  Silence returns, broken only by quiet breathing and the distant hum of ship systems. The two Gates continue burning mana somewhere above, maintaining their sustained reality manipution while you finally, genuinely rest.

  Consciousness returns slowly, filtered through the warm weight pressing against your stomach and the soft presence cradling your head. Your right shoulder feels damp—Rin's drool, you realize hazily—while your left arm throbs with pins-and-needles numbness beneath Sinon's compact frame.

  "Welcome back," Albedo murmurs from above, fingers combing gently through your hair. "You've slept almost eleven hours. It's noon now."

  Mikasa shifts slightly on your hips, still naked, muscur thighs framing your body. Her dark eyes watch you with that characteristic intensity, one hand rested possessively on your chest. "You tried waking around four when Maria left for watch rotation. I held you down until you stopped struggling."

  "Physically restrained me," you question, voice rough with sleep.

  "Yes." No apology in her tone. "You needed rest more than you needed to pn operations."

  Rin stirs against your shoulder, vender eyes blinking open. "Brad? You're awake?" She sits up quickly, wiping at her mouth with obvious embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

  "It's fine." You flex your left hand experimentally, trying to restore circution. Sinon makes a small sound of protest but doesn't release your arm. "How long has she been like this?"

  "Since about eight," Albedo says, golden-red eyes gleaming with amusement. "She climbed onto you while still sleeping. Very possessive for someone who cimed to be conducting tactical evaluation."

  The storage room has changed significantly since you lost consciousness. Bedding has been reorganized into distinct sleeping areas rather than the communal pile from st night. Several women sit near the edges—Kurumi reading from a tablet, Musashi practicing meditation forms in the corner, Hinata folding clean clothing into organized stacks.

  "C.C., Erza, and Violet are switching with Riveria, Asia, and Rika for day watch," Albedo continues. "Communications monitoring transferred to Bulma and Robin two hours ago. Nami is conducting hull inspection with Yoruichi. Sango is practicing with Hiraikotsu on the flight deck under Nova's supervision."

  You process this while gently extracting your numb arm from Sinon's grip. The game-version sniper makes a wordless sound of compint, blue hair falling across her face as she rolls away. Circution returns in painful waves.

  "Gate status?" you ask, sitting up carefully so Mikasa doesn't slide off your p.

  "Both Gates remain active." Albedo reports. "No communications from Webb yet, but Rika reports increased military chatter on encrypted channels. Something is happening in San Bernardino."

  Mikasa's hands tighten slightly on your chest. "The survivor influx you predicted."

  "Probably," you agree. "How bad?"

  "Unknown. Encrypted communications only. No visual confirmation." Albedo's fingers continue stroking your hair. "You have approximately three hours before network capacity empties completely. Cycling every sixteen hours will be a minor note. Will we begin conducting rge-scale enchanting operations, or begin climate manipution testing?"

  Kurumi looks up from her tablet. "Or you could eat something first. Breakfast ended four hours ago, but Asia saved you ptes in the galley refrigeration."

  Mikasa shifts her weight, making her continued nakedness very apparent. "You should shower before eating. Routine is important."

  "Routine, huh?" you mutter, but she's not wrong.

  You stand, feeling Mikasa's hands immediately on your shoulders. "Gate closure first," you say, reaching into the network. The deck-level Gate colpses cleanly, mana flow canceling. The second Gate remains active below decks.

  Mikasa guides you toward the showers without releasing her grip. "You slept eleven hours. Now you maintain routine."

  "Is that an order?" you ask, pushing open the bathroom door.

  "Yes." Precision in every movement. "Shower. Food. Briefing. In that sequence."

  You turn on the water, adjusting the temperature before angling the showerhead closer to the wall. Steam rises as Mikasa steps under the spray, dark hair pstering against her shoulders. You kiss her hard, hands gripping her hips, then push her back against the tile.

  "This routine enough for you?" You lift her legs around your waist, entering her in one smooth thrust.

  Mikasa's breath catches, fingers digging into your shoulders. "Brad-"

  "Maintaining routine," you say against her throat, fucking her steady against the wall. Water cascades over both of you, her breasts pressed to your chest. "Shower. Then food. Then briefing. Exactly like you ordered."

  Her disciplined composure fractures as you increase pace, muscur thighs tightening around you. "This wasn't- ah- what I meant-"

  "Should've been more specific." You kiss her again, swallowing her gasp as she climaxes, whole body shuddering. You follow moments ter, still holding her against the tile.

  Mikasa stays wrapped around you for several seconds, breathing hard. "You're deliberately misinterpreting orders."

  "Learning from the best," you say, lowering her carefully. "You did physically restrain me this morning."

  "You needed rest." No apology in her tone. "It worked."

  You finish washing slowly with more kissing, dress in clean clothes from the storage room, then make your way to the galley. The space is more organized than st night, Asia has clearly been managing meal prep, covered dishes waiting on the counter.

  Nami looks up from the table where she's reviewing navigation charts. "Finally awake. We saved you breakfast, but it's technically lunch now."

  Rin enters from communications, tablet in hand. "C.C. reports no contact from Webb yet. San Bernardino encrypted traffic increased significantly around nine this morning, then stopped completely at ten-thirty."

  "Stopped?" You accept the pte Asia hands you, eggs, bacon, toast. "As in silence, or as in resolved?"

  "Unknown." Rin sets the tablet down. "Communications monitoring detected military encryption patterns consistent with evacuation orders, then nothing. Either they implemented complete radio silence, or something interrupted transmission capability."

  Yoruichi appears in the doorway, purple hair still damp from her own shower. "Flight deck watch reported increased aerial activity south-southeast around ten-fifteen. Multiple helicopters, high altitude. Possible military transport configuration."

  Mikasa sits beside you, accepting her own pte. "The coalition either colpsed or consolidated. Those are the only scenarios producing simultaneous evacuation orders and communication bckout."

  "Or CDC remnants hit them," Kurumi adds from across the table, sipping coffee. "Prometheus Station had secondary facilities. Some survived your assault."

  Albedo enters st, white dress immacute despite the early hour. "Network status: 803,400 mana current capacity with single Gate consuming 450,000 per hour. Generation continues at 677,750 per hour, creating net surplus of 227,750 per hour. You have approximately fourteen hours before capacity fills completely."

  "If we learn of any CDC facilities, I'm for dropping a meteor on them. So we either start climate testing, or start teleportation testing," you summarize.

  Nami leans forward. "Or we could actually investigate San Bernardino instead of specuting. We have helicopters. You have teleportation. Someone should physically confirm what happened to that coalition."

  "Agreed," Mikasa says immediately. "Reconnaissance before strategic pnning."

  Rin nods. "I can maintain telepathy web coordination during flight operations. Communications monitoring continues regardless."

  Albedo smiles slightly. "Or you could enchant more infrastructure. Multiple locations remain underutilized."

  "A lot of options," you say. "Either they fell or they're busy, regardless what happens there is mostly irrelevant to us now. As long as the enchantment holds we'll learn more about the location ter.

  SnafuSam