System Break

Underneath the black folds of her cloak was a sublime body with delicious curves. Her round breasts defied gravity and their shape made me drool. While her waist was thin her hips supported her round, plump buttocks. It was nice cushioning for all the sitting she did.

Her cerulean blue skin was perfectly smooth - and excepting her head - hairless. Her nipples were a lighter colour, and her nails were darker. All I could think of was it was such a waste in covering herself up within the folds the large cloak.

"Give me your clothes," she said. She wrapped everything up in her cloak and tide it into a ball. I carried my boots and the sack with the artifact, and she carried the rest.

"I can leave my boots here," I said.

She nodded. "They will fill with water. We will bring a bag next time."

I laughed. "Assuming we live this time."

"I will go first," she said. "Count to twenty and follow." She did not wait for a reply and stepped off the edge of the deep hole. A few seconds later I heard the splash. You can fall a long way in a few seconds.

When I hit the water the speed of my fall took me down several yards and when I swam to the surface she was waiting by the edge. 

She nodded in the direction of the underwater passage. "It is this way. There will be air gaps take breath when you can - follow me."

She dived and kicked her legs. The bundle of clothes was tied to her back and as I followed I could see everything from her feet to her buttocks. Not only was she detached emotionally she had zero inhibitions about being naked in front of me. 

It was not surprising, the Svartalfar were the same way, but I still found it thrilling. I followed the exotic beauty through the under ground tunnels filled with water and it seemed to go on forever until we reached a large cavern without an end in sight.

We reached the edge and I climbed up onto a wooden structure. It had pillars and planks forming a boardwalk. "What is a dock doing here?"

"It is part of the old city."

The wood was rotting, and half the planks were missing but it would burn, and we could dry and warm ourselves. Beyond the docks and the water was a sandy beach but there were no buildings within my short darkvision sight. 

"I can see cores," I said. "There are monsters that way." I pointed into the dark beyond. There was some glowing moss and stalactites but not enough to see by, they twinkled like a couple of lonely stars in the night sky.

"The infest the city," she said as she unravelled her cloak. It was waterproof to an extent all my clothes within were almost dry. But she still smashed up a few planks and started a fire. "The fire will bring them. Be ready."

I sighed, I thought we might snuggle together in our nakedness as we warmed by the fire. It had been some time since I'd been with Gisael or anyone and my libido was beginning to build. The sight of Shade in the flesh had sparked my interest but instead I pulled on my clothes, harness, and weapons. Then I waited for the Crocroaches or whatever dwelled in the undercity.

The fire began to blaze, I drew two knives and Shade slid into a black garment which she wore beneath her robes. It was a one piece which was wrapped around her waist and legs tightly. It hung off her shoulder blades, split down to her stomach in a V-shape and her arms were bare.

She reached into the lining of her robes which were propped up to dry by the fire and pulled out several knives. They were shiny and black throwing knives, and I wasn't sure what they were made out of. So much for using qi as her weapon I thought until the knives began to hover around her.

Six knives orbited her in a crisscross pattern, from shoulder to hip. Each was support by her qi, but I could not see it. The knives were obsidian. 

"Why do you use obsidian?" 

"Those that can sense qi cannot sense it within the black glass."

"Can you sense qi?"

"I can, it is a rare gift. I sensed yours in the masters chamber which was a reason to claim you as my apprentice."

"But you didn't know I could see qi."

"I did not, but I knew you were the most talented man I have met."

"And what now. What do you think now that you know I can see qi? Does it change anything?"

"I do not know what it means. My path is not yet clear."

While we chatted the fire summoned the blind creatures which infested the city. At first I could see ten, then twenty odd scampering towards us.

"Twenty four," I said and she nodded.

She stood facing them with the knives circling her and I wanted to watch rather than fight by her side, but there were too many for six knives.

They poured onto the beach excitedly expecting a meaty dinner and our knives flew. I threw my first knife and guided it with my qi deep into the forehead of the rushing Crocroach. Individually they were not scary, but I imagine they could overwhelm someone with sheer numbers.

Shade's knife took flight like a missile launching from an orbital platform and its flight path was curved as it sliced through one Crocroach after another. Then another of her knives curved from right to left boring through another three. The flight paths revolved around her in an almost circular fashion. They curved back, behind her and around again.

The two knives worked together, moving in opposite directions and she still kept four orbiting her for defence, or she just did not require more.

For everyone I killed she killed four and soon the beach was covered in a mass of Crocroach corpses. I would never starve down here, there was spring water and all the meat I could want.

As I began to cut cores from their scaly hides I noticed more coming. These were slower, but larger. "Three more," I said.

"These were the drones," she said. "The dangerous ones come now. The black cloaks call them scarabs."