“…I therefore implore you, for our neighbour’s safety and our own ambitions, to allow me to use the army inside West Gestalt,” John ended his speech and let the parliament follow procedure. The swiftness of the gathering meant that not everyone was present, but enough were there to make a two-thirds majority vote. As long as everyone there voted positively, that was.

For once, John was not blessed with luck when it came to the machinations of state. Most of the parties that would have doubtlessly supported him were present in only low numbers while those that disliked either him or Fusion in its entirety were almost fully represented. Something that, after some debate and swaying, ended in the parliament reaching an inconclusive vote. The support reached the majority, but it didn’t reach the supermajority, causing the Speaker to announce an intent to repeat the vote tomorrow when the remaining representatives were present.

“Sorry, tiger,” Rave greeted him once he was outside. She, along with Aclysia and Beatrice, were the only haremettes currently around. “Seems like I didn’t grease the wheels enough.”

“I couldn’t have done more myself in an hour,” John comforted her immediately. “Ultimately, this isn’t too consequential. There’ll be another vote tomorrow and then the army will get moving. It just means people get a night’s sleep at the location before they are allowed to cross the border.”

“So, what do we do now?” she asked, as John headed down the stairs. “Wait until tomorrow?”

“Some of us, yes,” John told her and guided the way. “Let’s discuss the details elsewhere.” They went silent, then chatted about random things to pass the time. That lasted until they were through the teleporter and back in the privacy of the Palace. “What’s going to happen is that I will head over there anyway.”

“Isn’t that, ya know, against the law you wrote yourself?” Rave asked.

“It may be a bit against the spirit of it as seen by others, but there is a deliberate loophole I left for myself,” John explained and pointed at himself. “I am not a military asset. My highest rank is that of Fusion’s foremost representative in all federal matters foreign and domestic. In other words, moving around however I please is my executive privilege.”

“Rad.” His girlfriend grinned. “Makes enough sense. So, we’re just heading over there now?” Watching him scratch the back of his head, she raised an eyebrow. “Why do I get the feeling I won’t like what ya gonna say next, tiger?”

“I would like it if you and Aclysia stayed,” John told her.

Rave seemed more confused than upset by this. “…Why? Want to keep your absence a secret?”

“No, that’s not necessary. Fundamentally, me having this executive privilege has been used before when I went to Florida or the Small Lake Pact. I just never went as the vanguard before.” John shook his head. “No, this is about the vote tomorrow. I want you two to attend it as my representatives. Aclysia is the First Servant of State and you’re my girlfriend. That’s not really a political position but people respect you anyway because of all the public services you get underway.”

“Okay, that explains why I can be there, but not why I should be.” She crossed her arms and flipped some of her mane to the side by a strong motion of her head. “Aclysia could do things on her own. Can’t ya?” She looked over to the weaponized maid in question.

“It appears that I am not particularly popular with the representatives,” Aclysia responded. “My reasonable prioritization of Master’s goals and wellbeing may have led to me using methods and words that some people would classify as ‘harsh’ or ‘blackmail’ at several occasions.”

“Ah…” Rave’s gaze wandered over to Beatrice. As treasurer, the passive maid could have stayed with Aclysia instead. Without even putting the idea forwards, the pink-haired half-Asian continued the topic. “So, Aclysia doing things alone might motivate the opposition, is that the reason ya want me to stay?”

“Aclysia stands for the executive branch and you take the potential harm out of her presence, yes.” John nodded. “It might be overcautious of me, I think tomorrow’s vote is in the bag already, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

“Urgh, fine,” the Lightbearer agreed with an annoyed expression, “but ya better not clear up all of the fun without me!”

“No guarantees,” John told her with a smile. “A kiss before I go?”

“Just one.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and got on her toes. Slinging an arm around her waist, John bowed down and met her at the halfway point. Lips met, then tongues, as he held onto her athletic body for as long as passion lorded over urgency. Drinking deep of her sweet, minty aroma, he indulged as if he wasn’t going to see her in months. Finally, when he felt that he would be stuck doing more than kisses if he kept going, he pulled away. “Make me proud, tiger,” Rave whispered and let go.

“I wil-“ John started with determination but stopped when his girlfriend slapped him on the ass while he turned. “You cheeky little thing,” he complained.

“I ain’t Eliza,” Rave laughed and gave him a friendly shove. “Get out of here before I decide I’d rather have fun than help your state building.”

“Yes, yes,” John laughed, only remaining for as long as he needed to give Aclysia her own goodbye kiss.

“I will join you as quickly as is possible, Master,” the maid said.

“I know you won’t disappoint me, Aclysia.” After brushing some of her white hair behind her ear, he tenderly caressed the side of her face. “I love you.”

Aclysia put a hand on top of his and leaned into the motion. “I love you too, Master,” she swooned, the adoration radiating off her mind with unquestionable loyalty. As much as John wanted to remain, duty called and he finally turned away.

Beatrice in tow, he went back into the teleporter and, after two jumps, found himself somewhere else entirely. The Paradise tower in view, John stepped onto Florida ground. Military units, teleported over by Nia, Ted and Chemilia person by person, were organizing themselves into battalions there. John looked over the efforts and then left the barrier.

He and Beatrice had a short and hasty walk towards another barrier elsewhere. A smaller version of the car storage he had in Washington, built and maintained by the same people on his request. It was newer and not as well stocked, but he had enough cars there to pick one large enough for the people waiting for him there. He heard them around the corner before they came into view.

“How about you shut the fuck up, brain parasite bitch?” Eliza asked.

“Maybe I’ll when you learn how to have a stable mood,” Metra returned with a grin on her face.

“Rich coming from the queen of fucking mad.”

“I’m always angry, I would say that’s a stable mood. My control over my rage is at least as good as you are tall.”

“So, it’s very short?”

“You said it.”

“…Go fuck yourself.”

“Only if you watch me.”

“Statement: you both have issues,” Beatrice announced her and John’s arrival.

“”Shut the fuck up, passive bitch,”” both shouted.

“Fact: you are annoyed because I sass better than you,” the passive maid remarked, while John passed all three of them to pick out a car.

‘The elementals can remain incorporeal, so we only need four seats,’ he thought.

“I’ll sass you, alright, I’ll sass your entrails out of your fucking smartass mouth,” Eliza cussed.

‘The muscle car? It would go the fastest, so that would probably be the best choice…’

“I do not possess entrails.”

‘We might have to go off-road though. Did I have a truck with a mana engine here? I think I requested something like that to be stationed…’ He checked the segments of the garage until he found a truck and opened the hood. ‘That sure does look like a mana engine. Better question is if it was already equipped with a Mobile Barrier…’

“You’re not sassy, you’re just pedantic,” Metra growled.

“Statement: these are not mutually exclusive. If you wish to broaden your vocabulary, I recommend reading. I understand this task may be outside of your attention levels. Oh,” Beatrice’s surprised sound was about as stilted as the acting in The Room, “suggestion: imagine the books are fighting you. With your literacy, that should be a simple task.”

“One of these days I will force Siena and Undine to merge into Cumslut just so I can hatefuck your pretty, annoying ass,” Metra threatened.

“Please use whatever hole pleases you at that time,” Beatrice remarked with a bow. “As a fully trained submissive servant, it is my pleasure to serve.”

“Fuck you, now I want a cock up my ass,” Eliza complained. “Joooooohnnnnn, Bae made me horny!”

“The back of this truck does have a cage. I requested it for Velka, but I guess we could repurpose it as a horny jail,” John joked from underneath the car. ‘There is a Mobile Barrier generator… I guess production did pick up recently thanks to the World Gems and Magoi’s students coming along. Useful enough for me.’

He came back out from underneath, just in time to hear Eliza say, “If you want me to turn into a total bitch in heat during the drive, we can do that.”

“What do you mean ‘turn into’?” Metra asked. “You’re both a total bitch and in heat already.”

“You know what, just for you, I will turn into the most sadistic cunt you’ve ever known,” Eliza hissed.

“Are you? Are you really? You’re probably going to smell John’s dick and instantly forget about anything you wanted to do.”

“…Then I’ll just set Siena on your ass!”

Metra considered for a second and then admitted, “Yeah, that could work.”

“There you fucking go!” Eliza triumphantly declared.

“Alright, alright, girls,” John knocked against the door of the truck to finally interrupt their conversation, “if you would get in here. Beatrice, you’re driving. Metra, Eliza, you come on the backbench with me.”

“Yessss,” the blood mage hissed ecstatically and came around.

The truck was of the pickup variety; chassis, suspension and wheels had all been modified to allow driving on common off-road terrain. As with most of John’s cars, it was black and of a sleek design. As sleek as the sturdy bulk of a truck allowed anyway. They all got inside and were greeted by a mixture of two fragrances. There was the typical ‘new’ smell, coming from the faux-leather and plastic covers, and cinnamon from a recent application by one of the attendants. John appreciated both.

Beatrice got on the left of the two front seats, while the remaining three got on the back bench. The Gamer was in the middle and, despite there being more than enough room for all of them, the two women pressed against him with shameless desire. The car slowly moved out of the cove it had in the garage system. Guided by Beatrice’s capable hands, the only input John had to give was to tap into the Mobile Barrier.

While they rolled out of the building, Eliza took a second to look over her shoulder and check out the improvised animal cage behind them. It doubled as the compartment, being modified to have the separating wall replaced with bars and adding some scratch protection to the animal-exposed surfaces.

“You would cramp Velka in there? That’s so mean!” she declared.

“It’s better than a regular dog cage,” John told her, not even bothering with the ‘it’s a lot of space’ route. Any limited space for Velka would be ‘cramped’ to Eliza. “The odds of her having to go in there are pretty slim anyway.” The Gamer looked at the seatbelt and decided to ignore it. If they somehow crashed, he was more afraid for the road than his face. Putting his arms around the two girls, short and tall, he said, “You have to keep me entertained for the next nine hours.”

The drive from Miami all the way to Alabama, where the East Gestalt was located, was quite long. So long that it had been a consideration to take a flight to a nearby city and walk the rest of the distance. By opening and closing barriers, they could have crossed the distance by running, which would have been almost as fast as driving regularly (when limited to John’s speed). It would also have been a hassle, however, and John wasn’t sure about just flying into the middle of enemy territory. Going by car from his own border had the advantage that they could turn around and book it quite easily and Scarlett could, if they got stuck in a Trap Barrier, use the car as a beacon to find their last location. Provided that they parked it outside a barrier, of course.

‘Note to self, put another long-range teleporter somewhere around the south-west border,’ he thought to himself. None of this would be in need of deliberating if he had a closer instant-travel option. He was distracted by his worries when both of the women by his side discarded their winter clothes, which they had put on to get to the car storage without standing out.

“You’re really fucking sure you want me to tag along?” Eliza asked, once naked. A sudden surge of doubt reflected in her eyes. “I might, you know, do the usual and flip the fuck out because I’m shit at self-control.”

John kissed her on the forehead. “If you do, I’ll be there to stop you, alright?”

“Personally, I look forward to seeing you kick someone’s ass,” Metra remarked. “I’ve never actually seen you fight. Best I got where those violin-esque sounds in the distance and some training.”

“I’m pretty strong,” Eliza mumbled.

“That’s what I hear, but I want to fucking see,” Metra declared.

“Leave something alive for Metra to test her new weapon on,” John said.

“Rex Magnar and I will have fun, don’t you worry.” The First of Wrath grinned. The weapon was currently at home, but Chosen Loyalty made it so it would come over whenever Metra needed it. A slight improvement from having Metra’s armament stored inside the Gamer’s inventory. “Handjob sound good for a start, Master?” she then asked, her expression turning lusty as John put his own clothes away.

“I don’t want anything to get on the seat,” John told her.

“Facefuck it is!” Eliza declared and bowed down before Metra got the chance, taking the entirety of his already erect cock into her throat.