A Brand New Brooke

As Isabella’s consciousness stirred, she felt incredibly content and safe. She found her fingers interlaced with Mark’s. Even though his were covered in scales, they felt warm and pleasant to hold. His arms wrapped around her snuggly. This feels amazing. With her free hand, she touched her abdomen. I’m going to be a mom… Can I really do this? Isabella didn’t have an answer for herself and just took relaxing breaths. Soon, she noticed Mark’s morning wood begin to poke through her thighs. Isabella bit her lip as she felt heat spread through her body. She couldn’t see him but was fairly certain Mark was still asleep. I doubt that he would mind… Isabella lowered her free hand down to his penis and gently guided it into her.

It slipped in easily, and she began to move her hips back and forth slowly. A moment later, Mark said, “Well, good morning to you, too.” Mark joined Isabella in a gentle rhythm and began fondling her breasts. Mark began to nibble the tips of her ears, getting a slight moan from Isabella.

“Oh! Master… I want this… I want you… not just now, but… AH!” Isabella reached up and behind her, grabbing onto Mark’s horns. Mark felt as he climaxed inside of her, and she quivered in pleasure a moment later. “I want this to be a frequent thing. Okay… Master?” Isabella sounded like she was half in a dream.

“I’ll be happy to oblige that request, Princess.” Mark stroked back her hair and kissed her on the temple. Mark attempted to slip himself out of Isabella but found himself stuck. Isabella felt the attempt after Mark thrust his hips back to try to remove it.

“Mark? What are you doing?”

“I was trying to reposition, but I needed my penis out of you first, but it isn’t coming out.”

Isabella moved to assist but found she couldn’t get it out either. She felt it inside her, and it felt huge and thick. “Why won’t this come out?” (Not that I mind the feeling.)

Mark ceased his attempts to pull free and just wrapped Isabella in his arms. “I have an idea.”

“What?”

“Isa, I’m pretty sure my penis is effectively knotted, like a dog's. Which would be your fault.”

“Why would it be like that?” Isabella was genuinely confused. “Not that this isn’t pleasurable, with you holding me tight, Master, but I’m not trying to trap you inside me.”

Mark smirked, “You do know why a dog’s penis knots and gets stuck inside, right?”

“No, actually.”

“To ensure a higher chance of pregnancy.”

Mark felt Isabella tense in his arms, “Mark! You aren’t trying to actually put another pup in me, right?” (I don’t want another pup yet. No matter how hot the idea of getting bred is.)

“No, this is all you. Also, your pregnancy chance is still set to zero, and I don’t have Allie’s TF to bypass that.”

“I’m seriously not trying to have more kids with you already.”

“I know. I could hear your body say as much. Though apparently, the idea of me knocking you up is a turn-on for you. Also, your body used the word ‘yet’ when it talked about not having another pup.”

Isabella scrunched up slightly. (Stupid body, betraying my secrets. So what if I find the idea of having a dozen kids appealing?)

Mark began snorting out a laugh that quickly became a coughing fit. “Excuse ME! What do you mean by a dozen kids?”

“What!? What do you mean by a dozen kids?” Mark did feel Isabella’s tail twitch in excitement, but her face betrayed worry. (Oh, that sounds nice but terrifying.)

“That’s what your body said, Isa. That you like the sound of a dozen kids. It even said it again, even if you are a bit afraid of that.”

Isabella was blushing profusely. “You know this whole reading my body is totally unfair. Would that be a problem, though? I kind of always wanted a large family. You know I’m an only child, and now it’s just my mamá and me left.”

“You’re wrong there, you know. It isn’t just the two of you. Not anymore. Isa, you’ve been part of Allie’s and my family for a long time. Even more so now. You’ll definitely have a large family. Probably more than you could have ever wanted. I was just surprised that you wanted so many little ones. Especially since there are going to be so many wandering our future home already. I’ll say this, though: I’m not going to deny you more of your own kids if you want them.”

Isabella chuckled, “See, Mark, you’re a great Catholic. You’ll be very fruitful and multiply.”

“Is this your pitch to getting me back to the faith?”

“No. I won’t be doing that. Besides, I figure Laura would end up getting a bit jealous if you started worshiping a deity besides her. That being said… Mark, do you have an issue if I raise our kids that way?”

“Hmmm… I’ll have to think about that. If you mean in the faith, probably not, but you know how I feel about the church itself.”

Isabella just nodded. “I can’t say I really blame you there.”

“Besides, you might have your work cut out for you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Isa… our children will be living with an actual goddess, and her high priestess. Don’t you think that might influence them a bit? Not to mention, occasionally, I’ll be a god. Heck, depending on how this all works, some of our kids could be gods or demigods. I think all that is a question for the future and is something we need to discuss as a whole group. After all, it might be a bit confusing for my kids to wonder why they are being taught different religions.”

“That… is a good point. Something for another day.” Isabella felt Mark’s penis finally slip out of him. She turned around in his arms and kissed him. “Don’t let go of me yet.”

Mark pulled her in tight and heard her tail thumping against the bed. “I will say, I’ll need to get up soon. Brooke is receiving her transformations this morning, and I need to be there.”

“Fine,” Isabella whined. She rolled out of bed and grabbed her gear. “You know this is completely unfair that I have such scantily clad gear, compared to everyone else.”

Mark grabbed his own gear and got dressed. “You’re just ahead of the curve. Haven’t you noticed that everyone else’s stuff is getting skimpier?”

“I guess…”

Mark went and poured them both coffee. “Are you feeling better about things now?”

“Still a bit worried.”

“Then I’m going to suggest something: use the mirror. Heck, if you want, use the mirror with me. It might help.”

Isabella glanced at the mirror across the room. “You really think I should?”

“I think it’s helped everyone who’s used it eventually.”

“It’s clearer if I use it with you, right?”

“That’s my understanding, but fair warning, I might pick up some stuff about you. Like your favorite foods, and your fetishes.”

“Let’s do it. You already get to know what I really want anyway.” (Not that I mind that.)

Mark softly chuckled and walked over to the mirror with Isabella.

The mirror turned red, with streaks of white in the haze, as they were both pulled into a vision.

Isabella heard the sound of a bunch of children entering a dance studio. She could feel that she was at home, and that the large room, with a mirrored wall, was built for her, and for her to teach the kids how to dance. Not just her own kids, but any of Mark’s kids that wanted to learn. She was pulled to a church; it was her wedding day. She stood across from Mark and Allie. She knew she wasn’t just marrying each of them. It wasn’t three marriages, but one between them. She then saw a flurry of images; she and Allie were almost always together, Mark would join them as often as he could, and it was only when he did that she felt like things were complete.

Mark immediately spotted three differences when entering the foyer again. The first was from Ellen’s hall. The inky blackness that had been randomly mixed into the yellow and gold seemed to form intricate veins and seemed more fitting for the hall. Odd, I feel love from that hall. Wait… Mark was searching his feelings about Ellen and realized he loved her back. That’s interesting… The second thing Mark noticed was the brand new hall, situated next to Samantha’s. It was a pale indigo color, and he was surprised to find a feeling of acceptance and respect coming from it. Have I really made that much of an impression on Brooke?

The last change was to Allie’s and Isabella’s hall. It now had two wolf statues flanking each side of it with ornate collars on each, with tags labeling one as Isa and the other as Allie. What really surprised him was that, at the foot of Isa’s statue, there was one wolf pup, as part of the statue, but when he looked at Allie’s statue, there were three pups. Is Allie having triplets!? Oh, that would be just like Cassandra. She told me Isa just has the one; she didn’t say anything about Allie. Mark sighed but moved to walk down Isabella’s hall, but found he wasn’t able to do so. What the… Oh. I bet I have to have Allie do this with me, too.

Mark instead decided to revisit Laura’s and Talia’s combined hall. As he entered through the temple doors, he felt a sense of belonging. When he got to the room itself, he did notice one significant change immediately. On Laura’s altar, where there was an intricate portrait of Laura and a pair of sunglasses reverently placed on a padded cushion, there were also two equally intricate portraits of himself and Mary, though they were smaller and flanked either side of Laura’s. Does Talia worship me now? I was a god for a little bit. I also feel a strange connection to Laura. Maybe it’s like a pantheon? Talia worships Laura but pays respect to friendly deities. Mark then looked at the bed. That’s more than paying respect…

Mark saw himself having sex with Talia, while she was eating out Laura, and he and Laura were kissing. It felt almost blasphemous to be gawking at the sight. Like he was intruding on something deeply spiritual. He went to the bedside and looked at the photos. Three wedding pictures sat there. Mark and Laura, Mary and Talia, and Talia and Laura. Mark then picked up the group photo and saw it had gotten bigger. Also, more complete.

Mark found himself back in his room as the vision ended. Isabella said, “That was intense. What about you?”

“I’m sort of used to it, though I will say something odd happened. I wasn’t able to walk down your hallway like normal when I do this with someone.”

“Why not?”

“Best guess is because it’s shared with Allie, and Allie hasn’t looked into the mirror with me.”

“Ah. Because I’m not my own person.” (Completely unfair, is what it is.)

“Isa, don’t talk like that. You might not be your own contestant, but you are your own person… Except when you’re my person…” Mark had a shifty expression on his face.

Isabella laughed, “Thanks, though I will say it felt like I’m heading towards something where I’m not complete without you and Allie.”

“That’s called love, Isa. I can already tell you, I wouldn’t feel complete without Allie in my life. Without you in my life.”

“Mark… I…”

“Isa… It’s okay, I do love you. I know you love me, too. I don’t think either of us is in love with one another. At least not yet. You’re still family.”

Isabella hugged Mark, “You’re right, we are family.” (Nothing will ever change that.)

“Would you say you were happy with what you felt?”

“Absolutely! The only part I found annoying was that you were absent frequently. Even then, it wasn’t bad, it just felt incomplete.” (Isa wants more Mark time, and more Allie time.)

“I’m happy.” Mark’s face then went pale as he remembered the statues.

“Mark? What’s wrong?” (Did he see something he wasn’t happy with?)

“Just remembering something in the vision…”

(OH GOD I WAS RIGHT!) Isabella placed her hands on each of Mark’s arms, “Tell me what’s wrong.”

“Isa, calm down, it isn’t bad, just a lot to take in. Remember how I mentioned your reproductive system might have been altered?”

“Yes… Cassandra said that I just have the one baby on the way, though.”

“Yes, she did. She told me that you have just the one.”

Isabella’s eyes went wide at the implication. Then her face went pale a moment later. (OH MY GOD! ALLIE IS GOING TO BE SO EXCITED! Wait… Since I’m going to marry Allie… meaning her kids will be my kids, so…)

“I see you understand,” Mark said, looking down at her. “Also, I promise not to tell Allie about your response to her proposal before you do.”

(What the hell are you talking about?) Isabella stepped back forcefully and stared up at Mark in confusion. “¿De qué diablos estás hablando?”

“Uh… Isa, your body told me you intended to marry Allie. The way it sounded was like you plan to accept her proposal.”

“I… I see. Well, thank you. Let’s get going, you have to be there for Brooke, right?” Isabella was looking at the floor and practically pushing Mark out the door. (Oh, GOD! Please, let’s just move on to this so I don’t die from embarrassment. Actually dying from embarrassment means I wouldn’t have to deal with this… Let’s call that plan B.)

Mark chuckled as he let her push him out the door to meet up with the others.

Laura woke up with a pile of women on top of her. Normally, she would be ecstatic about this, but she wasn’t waking up after a night of copious sex. When she went to her room, she found it empty. She figured Sadie would come back eventually. When it got particularly late, she went to look for her. She found her fairly easily, as Sam and Allie actually were coming to Laura for help.

The three of them had found Talia, Sadie, and Brooke, all drunk and passed out in bed. Talia was holding Sadie, who was holding Brooke. When Laura got there and tried to rouse them, none of them would respond. Moreover, when Laura tried to pick up Sadie, she found herself unable to pry Talia’s arms off of her. It seemed like her hands were glued to Sadie’s tits. The three figured it was Talia’s Anime Physics, and the only solution was for all of them to sleep in the same bed. Except this bed was only meant for three people. Laura managed to squeeze in up against Talia, and to Sam’s annoyance, Allie squeezed in against Brooke while Sam turned into a small dragon and slept on top of Laura’s breasts.

Sometime in the middle of the night, though, positions had shifted. Laura was now in the center, Talia in one arm and Sadie in the other. Brooke was lying on top of Talia, squeezing her like a plushie, and Allie was resting with her head on Laura’s abdomen, her body nestled between her legs. Sam had refused to vacate her rightful place atop her hoard but had extended one claw out to rest on Allie’s head.

Laura wasn’t sure what to do. What the hell am I supposed to do here? I could get up. I definitely have the strength to get out from under all of them, but I doubt anyone would be happy with me. Sam would probably throw a fit now that I think about it. Hmmm… Now that I think about it, this thing with her hoards might actually be a real problem. Mary's reduction of her breast size slightly caused Sam to have the largest grudge with Mark. Even with Sadie being unhappy with him. I think I need to have a talk with her about this.

It was a knock at the door that finally freed Laura from the pile. Everyone woke up at the sound, though half of them were groaning in pain, holding their heads.

Allie got up to answer the door, while Brooke, Sadie, and Talia rolled to the side holding their heads.

Sadie said, “Oh, god. The world is still spinning.”

“~GOOD MORNING EVERYONE!~” Cassandra said enthusiastically as she entered with Mark and Isabella.

Talia said, “By Laura, Cassandra, if you keep shouting, I will end your reign of terror.”

Cassandra smirked, “Had a bit too much to drink? Well, sorry to hear that. Now, everyone, out in the courtyard in ten minutes. If you aren’t there by then, maybe I’ll send a choir of angels with trumpets to follow you around all day.” Cassandra vanished.

Mark gave them all sympathetic looks and noticed Laura had still not gotten up, as Sam had refused to move yet. “Sam, mind letting Laura up?”

Mark heard a rumbling growl, but a moment later, Sam stretched and reverted to her humanoid form at the foot of the bed. “Fine, I suppose I can’t just sleep on my hoard all day. Speaking of my hoard. Mark, I would really appreciate it if you made sure to eat Allie out today, before you retire for the evening.”

Allie asked, “Um… Why? I’m not opposed, mind you, but that is an odd request.”

“Because if he doesn’t, I’m pretty sure, I’m going to tie you both up until he does, tomorrow morning.” Sam glared daggers at Mark, and Mark could feel her pressing down on him with her dragon aura.

Mark wasn’t going to take that and pushed back with his own, and hard, startling Sam slightly and arousing her greatly. Mark could see her pupils become vertical lines. “Assuming you could even restrain me.”

“Mark, you are a dirty little thief, and I want my hoard restored! I’ve tolerated this injustice so far because you couldn’t fix it. Tomorrow, that changes. I expect you to return what is mine. Otherwise, I will end up doing something drastic.”

Mark was about to retort, but Laura came over and gently soothed Mark with her own aura. “Mark, please try to remember that Sam doesn’t have control over this instinct, any more than you do as a dragon.”

Mark took a deep breath. “You’re right. I was planning on taking care of it tomorrow morning, but I have a feeling you would really drag Allie to me naked and tied up first thing tomorrow when the doors to the rooms open, if I haven’t fixed this by then. So, Allie, we need to make time to prevent our girlfriend from going on a rampage.”

Allie nodded, and Sam said, “Thank you.” Her shoulders relaxed, hearing that Mark was going to take care of this.

As everyone filed out of the room towards the courtyard, Brooke placed a hand on Sam’s should indicating she should hang back slightly. Brooke asked, “Sam, what was that about? I’ve rarely seen you that angry. I thought you and Mark were good?”

Sam tried to relax some more. “We are good… mostly. Brooke, as you have noticed, I’m a dragon now. Dragons have hoards. I didn’t realize I was even forming several hoards. How much do you remember of what Talia explained to you yesterday?”

“I mean, most things?”

“So you know about Mark’s ability to copy our TFs and Allie’s TF that lets Mark customize her?”

“Yeah.” Brooke nodded, unsure what the point was.

“Mark copied it at the beginning of the round on his wedding night with Allie. Mary used it to shrink her breasts.”

“And her breasts are part of your hoard?”

“Yes. Laura’s as well. Specifically, I’ve made a hoard of very plush pillows. It’s been getting more and more frustrating because I can’t do anything about it.”

“Sam… you know it is unreasonable to demand Mark physically alter his body, right?”

“I know that, Brooke, I do. I can’t help this, though. This isn’t a simple matter of willpower either. You’ll probably understand better shortly what I’m talking about. Also, I promise you, no matter which transformations you get, you can count on me to help you get through this.” Sam placed a hand on Brooke’s shoulder.

“Thanks, Sam.” Brooke placed her hand on top of Sam’s.

The group entered the courtyard, finding Cassandra waiting for them. “Mark, Brooke, please join me. The rest of you, please take a seat.” Cassandra produced seats for everyone but Brooke out of thin air. Everyone took a seat. Mark begrudgingly took the large ornate one that was to Cassandra’s right.

Sadie asked, “Do we really have to watch this?” Most people glared at Sadie. “Never mind, forget I said anything.”

“So, how’s this work exactly?” Brooke asked, “You wave a magic wand, and suddenly I’m different?”

“No wand necessary,” Cassandra said with a smile. “Now, I must say these did not turn out as I expected them to.”

“Isn’t that sort of the point of the vote?” Brooke said snarkily. Most of the girls got nervous that Cassandra would get upset with her. Brooke saw the reaction, “What? I mean, if the point was just to change us, however she thought it would go, then why bother with the vote? Also, why are you all so tense?”

Sadie said, “Maybe don’t mouth off to the extremely powerful witch who is about to transform you?”

“She’s just going to announce the results. What’s going to happen? Plus, Cass doesn’t seem to care.”

“Brooke, did you forget about her vetoes? I know we mentioned them several times.”

“Right… well, outside of the abductions, Cass seems genuinely nice. I doubt that she’s going to punish me just for being a bit sassy.”

Cassandra was smiling and shrugged, “Still feel the same as before about your choices after your bender yesterday?”

Brooke, Sadie, and Talia all groaned as they winced. Brooke said, “Don’t remind me. Also, yes.”

“Well, the first set of votes was fairly close between your choice and Mark’s choice throughout the poll.”

Talia groaned, “Oh, come on, you aren’t about to tell us it’s another tie, are you?”

“Why would you think that!” Cassandra said aghast, placing a hand on her chest. Not one of the seated individuals found her response amusing, and all glared at her. “Okay, that’s fair. There have been an unusual number of ties.” Cassandra paused for an extended time.

Talia said, “There’s a tie, isn’t there?”

Cassandra sighed, “Alright, FINE. Yes, there’s a tie. Apparently, the Audience was split between wanting to give Brooke or Mark what they wanted.”

“So, I’m getting both of them then?” Brooke asked skeptically.

“INDEED!”

“No chance you’d use your veto power to get rid of one of them?”

“I considered it, but I’m not going to.”

“It’s because there’s another tie, isn’t there?” Talia asked.

“No.”

“No, there isn’t another tie, or no, that isn’t the reason.”

Cassandra ignored Talia’s question. “Now, are you ready, Brooke, to have a bunch of siblings?”

“Not really, but hit me.”

Maintenance Duty: Brooke regularly works on maintaining the ships she’s assigned to. This will now extend to relationships within the Harem, with an emphasis on hers and Mark’s, both physically and emotionally. Mark can assign her a ‘ship’ to focus on helping to repair or maintain, but only one at a time. [Sub Mechanic]

Two Worlds, One Family: Mark’s harem and staff comprise people from two different worlds, but they are now one big family. Brooke will find the members of the harem to be like her sisters, and Mark’s Staff to be like her cousins now, and they will treat her that way in return. [Tarzan]

Everyone except Mark and Cassandra in the courtyard immediately felt a difference as the TFs took hold. Brooke was a sister; she was family. Sam felt the smallest change as she already thought of Brooke as family. The others had mixed reactions. Laura, Allie, and Talia all felt a level of protectiveness towards Brooke. Sadie and Isabella were more uncertain, as both had no actual siblings, but they definitely thought of Brooke as a sister now.

Brooke swayed slightly but stabilized herself quickly. “That was a trip. Heh, I guess that thing about eventually being your sister wife is looking more true by the minute, Sam.”

Mark let out a snort of laughter at the joke, but he was the only one, though Sam did give Brooke a warm smile.

Cassandra beamed at Brooke, “Already thinking about wedding Mark? How excellent to have someone get on board with the program.”

“Uh… yeah, sure. Is there a reason I don’t feel anything for the other TF? Will I even be able to tell? Or is it more like I’m just going to do it without realizing why I’m doing it?”

“A combination of things, really,” Cassandra began with a shrug, “Mark hasn’t assigned you a ship to focus on, and the TF only has you repairing and maintaining the ships, not building them. I’m sure if you think about a particular ship, you’ll be able to tell if it needs maintenance, though.”

Brooke went ahead and thought about a few relationships of those present. Her and Sam. Sam and Mark. Sadie and Chloe. She found the first one to be in pristine condition, needing no work. The second one had a huge but specific problem. Mark had stolen from Sam. She realized she had some insight into how to fix the problem as well. In this case, if Mark returned the stolen property, all would be forgiven. The last relationship was in ruin. If this were a real ship, I’d just have it decommissioned and broken down for scrap. Hopefully, Mark won’t **** me to help fix that because I’m not sure it’s even possible.

Cassandra smiled, “I see you’ve gotten a handle on it. Now onto the next poll. This one was a bit close, too. Though critical mass was achieved in the end for one option to pull ahead.”

“Oh, thank goodness.” Brooke heaved a sigh of relief, realizing what won. She saw Sam shaking her head. Will it really be that big of an issue?

“I’m glad you’re pleased, Brooke, because you are going to make one eager sub.”

Nuclear Sub: Any orgasms that Brooke has while subbing to another will now cause a chain reaction of orgasms. [Sub Mechanic]

Brooke didn’t feel any different after Cassandra waved her hand at Brooke. “Umm… I don’t feel any different. Also, I didn’t think that this affected my desires. Why would I be eager?”

Talia answered her question before anyone else could. “I’m willing to bet you get addicted to the pleasure. That or it’s so much better that any orgasm not subbing to someone will feel disappointing in comparison.”

“This won’t actually cause me to be addicted to it, right?” Brooke asked Cassandra a little worriedly.

“Not explicitly, but it could technically happen, especially if you are prone to addiction. Though what Talia said isn’t the only reason I said you would be an eager sub. As this next vote was a crushing victory. You might find serving others to be the best thing ever now. As you won’t have any issue going down on someone now, as SUB-Mersible, won.”

SUB-mersible: Brooke will now have no issues going down on someone for an extended period of time; in fact, she will find it extremely pleasurable. Her lung capacity will expand significantly, and she’ll find she’ll happily dive down below when ordered to by those with more authority than her, which is Mark, Sam, and anyone with more VP than Sam. [Sub Mechanic]

Brooke immediately felt the effect on her breathing. It was easier and deeper than before. So, let’s see Mark, Sam, Laura, Ellen, Merida, Flora, Allie, and Isabella. They all have the authority to order me. Huh, that… doesn’t bother me like I thought it would. Probably the ‘happily’ part, if it bothered me, then they would know I wasn’t actually happy to do it.

Cassandra asked, “Anyone care to help demonstrate her new TF? Mark? Sam? Want first crack at ordering Brooke here to give oral to someone?”

“No,” Mark replied.

“Oh come on, Mark, don’t tell me you aren’t tempted.” Cassandra teased.

“Cassandra, move on. We aren’t doing this now.”

“Fine. Spoil sport. The last poll was for your gift. I must say that the audience was really divided on what to give —”

“It’s another tie, isn’t it?” Talia said, interrupting Cassandra. “Seriously, this is getting crazy.”

“Talia…” Cassandra said icily, “Be quiet, and don’t interrupt me again. Now, as I was saying, they were divided on what to give you, extremely so. Talia is correct that it did end in a tie. You will be getting all three of them.”

“Well, that’s not really bad; these are all positive changes.” Brooke shrugged.

Always Shipshape: Brooke will find things to be clean, orderly, and in good condition from now on. In particular, her clothing will always fit and be clean, while she will always be healthy, fit, and feeling as good as new after a night’s sleep. [First Mate] [Boon]

Percussive Maintenance: Sometimes things just need a good whack. Brooke can now just hit things until the problem is resolved. She must intend to be trying to fix the thing in question. [Sub Mechanic]

Law of the Jungle: Brooke will now find it much easier to survive this jungle with her new fitness. Her body will be pushed to the peak of normal human capabilities. [Tarzan] [Boon]

Brooke felt her clothes become slightly curvier and more comfortable, fitting her more snugly, and the smell of **** on her gear from yesterday vanished. All her joint pain and headache vanished instantly. Then came the changes to her fitness. She felt her heart rate slow as her muscles gained significant mass. I feel fantastic! Brooke adjusted her posture slightly as her hair gained a silky sheen. “So what all does this cover?” Brooke asked, looking over her now athletic frame.

“That’s simple. Everything,” Cassandra explained unhelpfully.

“Right… but like what does it really mean?” Brooke pushed.

Cassandra sighed, “I won’t give it all away, but generally speaking, if a single non-magical human being can physically do something, so can you. As an example, why don’t you try shattering Laura’s long jump distance before the show?” Cassandra waved her hand, and a sand pit and run up track with the jumping line appeared in the courtyard.

Brooke looked at the sand pit and then at Laura. Laura shrugged, “Go ahead, I won’t be upset. I’ve already shattered my own score from then.”

Brooke went ahead and took off the armor she was wearing and unbuckled the sword from her waist. She ran up to the line and jumped as far as she could. Cassandra announced. “7.5 meters. A world record back on your earth. I should note that your upgrades are based upon the capabilities of human women, but since you have two fitness-enhancing TFs, you’ll actually be able to get the world record for a lot of things relatively easily, even against men. Well, assuming Laura doesn’t compete with you. Unless it involves skill, this won’t help with skill. I’m glad you seem pleased Brooke, and with that, my job here is done.” Cassandra didn’t hesitate and vanished. She reappeared a second later, saying, “OH! I almost forgot. Brooke, you have 5000 BP just like I gave Sadie and Hilde at the beginning of the round.” Then Cassandra vanished once again.

“So… what do we do now?” Brooke asked the others.

Laura stood, saying, “Now we get back to the challenge.”

Sadie asked the group, “Does anyone have any specific preferences on what we do today?”

Most shook their heads, not really caring. Talia said, “Yes, actually. Here,” Talia took out a pad of paper and handed it over to Sadie. “That’s the plan I came up with.”

Sadie read over the page and then flipped to the next. When she got to the third page, she quickly flipped through the whole pad of paper and found it was full of notes. “When did you write all this up?”

“Yesterday, morning. I was stuck here during the prisoner exchange, figured I might as well come up with a plan. I made some adjustments yesterday after realizing Brooke was going to be joining us.”

Sadie just kept reading. “Hmmm… It’s a good plan, but I have a few issues with it, Talia. It looks like it prioritizes the team victory at significant cost to our personal CP scores. Not sure how I feel about that.”

“Go to page 17.”

Sadie flipped through to the page and read. “Okay, now this I can get behind. I’m not sure I like the team division here, though.”

“Page 19.”

Sadie rolled her eyes and flipped forward two pages and found a dozen different team combinations and the pros and cons of each combination.

“Damn, Talia. I knew you were a genius, but this is incredible.”

Talia shrugged, “Not really. It was more time-consuming than anything.”

“Fine, we’ll go with combination E. Laura, Sam, you two will go with Talia. She’s found two quests on the way to another trial for you three to go through. Allie, Isa, you’re with me. We have a quest and a trial as well. Isa, we are also going to recruit your companion if we can today.”

“What about Mark and me?” Brooke asked.

“You two will be going and dealing with the cow-girl problem. Mark should be able to help cleanse the infected now, not to mention significantly help thin the herd. It should also be an effective way of getting you caught up in levels. First things first, though, we have Empire Merit to spend.”

“Page 29,” Talia said helpfully.

Sadie flipped to the page and found suggested upgrades for each person, and a general list of useful purchases for the group as a whole. Sadie saw that Talia had color-coded the various options based on usefulness. Sadie had to ask at this point, “Talia, are you sure you don’t just want to be party leader?”

“Absolutely. A few reasons. One, I wouldn’t want to put myself in a position of power over Laura. Two, I currently estimate the chances of our team winning to be about a coin flip. I don’t want to risk that much VP. Three, you might notice that there is a lot in the pad. I’m not sure that I would be decisive when it counts, and I’ve learned I don’t have the people skills I thought I did.”

Laura frowned slightly, hearing Talia’s first reason, and then everyone frowned more because they were confused than annoyed, hearing her second reason. Laura asked, “You really think it’s that close?”

“Of course, why wouldn’t it be?” Talia asked, genuinely not understanding why anyone would think differently.

“Haven’t we been getting our asses kicked?” Sam replied, “Like, both of the priority quests to stop the other team failed, and we are getting pressed hard to deal with the fallout.”

“Um… No.” Talia replied. “Look sure they got credit for completing the quests involving the idols, but the cow-girl situation is under control. The idol at Harper’s Haven was retrieved immediately. Sure, it was annoying that it triggered, but it isn’t really that big of an issue, from the reports. Honestly, the amount of XP Laura, Mark, and Isabella got from farming the cow-girls yesterday was substantial. As for getting our asses kicked, the first time was a hit-and-run sneak attack, while we were engaged with other foes. That was hardly a fight, really, and it almost ended up being catastrophic for the other team, where we would have captured one or two of them. In the second fight, we were down two or more team members the whole time. Our issue is being caught unaware, not that we aren’t stronger than they are.”

Talia paused a moment to let everyone digest that and then continued. “Moreover, whether we win or not isn’t about fighting them when we are on the defensive. It’s about whether we can locate their base before the end or not. Also, what resources each side has collected by the end, for that final fight. I’m hoping that completing the trials today will shift that number significantly in our favor.”

Sadie cut in, “Okay, so, let’s worry less about our chances and do something to improve them instead. Now… Sam… Isa… I hope that you don’t feel that this is unfair, but I’d like to spend very little of the Empire Merit on you two to help some of us catch up. You’re substantially ahead of us on gear.”

Sam nodded, “That’s fine. You guys didn’t get as much as you thought you would from the trial, and locating the opponent’s base was a team reward. Plus, I’m actually getting a few upgrades this morning. I was told there was a wait on some of them, but they should have arrived today. I think Cassandra added the value to the CP score since I spent the merit.”

Sadie visibly relaxed hearing Sam say that and seeing Isabella nod in agreement. “Mark, I think you need to go take Laura to your room, but please be fast about swapping out my now worthless TF.”

“Wait.” Sam protested. “He needs to copy Allie’s TF.”

“Sam, he can do that later. I don’t want to risk him getting infected.”

“What about Brooke?” Sam asked, annoyed, “You don’t seem concerned about her getting infected.”

“She can’t be.” Talia said, “She’ll always be healthy, thanks to one of her boons. I specifically noted that this division of us should only be done if Brooke got Always Shipshape.”

Sam thought about that, “My bad. Sorry, Sadie.”

“Mark, Laura, you’ve been given your assignment. Also…” Sadie sighed, “I’m not telling you that you have to do this, but I think Mark should copy your Goddess TF.”

Laura looked at Sadie, then grabbed Mark’s hand and strode away without a word.

“You really think that’s a good idea?” Sam asked.

“No. I don’t. I think it is likely to make him really powerful, though. It’s up to him anyway, let's go to the Merit shop.”