Day 97-98 Post-Impact
The journey back felt different.
Sarnav led his strike team south through the Malaysian jungle, retracing the path they'd carved two days prior. The urgency was gone now, replaced by the quiet satisfaction of a mission completed. Forty-seven converts dead. The Voice silenced forever. One less Ascendancy faction threatening the region.
Elena moved beside him, her shadow abilities keeping her partially concealed even in daylight. She was quieter than usual, processing. This had been her first real mission as a wife rather than an assassin. The distinction mattered more than he'd expected.
"You're thinking too loud," she murmured in Russian-accented English.
"Didn't realize thoughts had volume."
"Yours do. Through the bond." A ghost of a smile crossed her scarred face. "The others feel it too. Your... satisfaction."
Behind them, Ishani snorted. "Satisfaction? He's practically glowing. Our husband likes winning."
"Everyone likes winning," Zara said from the rear, her military training keeping her constantly scanning their flanks. "The difference is whether you know how to do it consistently."
Serena walked closest to Sarnav, her probability sense extended outward like invisible radar. "Clear path ahead. No threats for the next thirty kilometers. We should reach Harmony by nightfall."
Observation: Strike team cohesion significantly improved post-mission. Recommend more joint operations.
Through the network, he felt the wives they'd left behind. Nisha's steady warmth, always present, always anchoring. Minji's excited anticipation. Sana's gentle relief that they were safe. Ananya's quiet happiness. Jiyeon's calculating assessment of their return timing.
And Jade...
Jade's presence in the network was muted. Controlled. She was there, but holding herself back.
Wife #5 has maintained elevated stress hormones for approximately 72 hours. Recommend addressing upon return.
He'd felt her watching through the network during the entire mission. Every Void Step into danger. Every combat exchange. Every moment he'd risked himself. She'd seen it all.
And she hadn't said a word.
Harmony Safe Zone emerged from the jungle as the sun began its descent, painting the sky in oranges and reds. The compound had grown since their departure. New tents dotted the western expansion, and the guard posts looked more fortified.
"Refugees from Voice territory," Serena observed. "Word spreads fast when a faction falls. The survivors need somewhere to go."
[HARMONY SAFE ZONE: POPULATION INCREASE DETECTED]
[CURRENT RESIDENTS: 1,293]
[REFUGEE INFLUX: 23 NEW ARRIVALS]
Chen Wei met them at the main gate, his expression a mix of relief and exhaustion. The security chief had clearly been running double shifts in their absence.
"Welcome back." He fell into step beside Sarnav. "Mission successful?"
"The Voice is dead. His faction is scattered."
"Good. That's good." Chen Wei consulted his tablet. "No major incidents while you were gone. Your mother handled the administrative surge from the refugee intake. The woman's terrifyingly efficient."
"I know."
"Tanaka Yuki's delegation confirmed arrival in three days. Japanese government escort. They're taking this seriously."
"We'll discuss it at the debrief. Where are-"
He didn't need to finish. The wives were already there.
Nisha reached him first, wrapping her arms around him without hesitation. Her Nature Magic pulsed through the contact, checking him for injuries, reassuring herself he was whole. "You're back."
"I'm back."
Minji bounced on her heels nearby. "Tell me everything! Did you use Eclipse Strike? Did the shadow teleport thing work on multiple enemies? Was there-"
"Minji." Jiyeon's voice was calm, controlled. "Let him breathe."
"I'm just asking!"
Sana approached more quietly, her Holy Light already scanning the strike team for wounds. "Everyone's healthy. Minor fatigue, nothing serious." She smiled warmly. "Welcome home, Sarnav-kun."
Ananya simply took his hand and squeezed once. No words needed.
But someone was missing.
"Where's Jade?"
The wives exchanged glances. It was Nisha who answered, her tone careful. "Server room. She hasn't left since you departed."
"At all?"
"We brought her food. She ate some of it." Nisha's expression said what her words didn't. "She watched everything, Sarnav. Every second of the mission. I don't think she slept."
Confirmed. Wife #5 has been monitoring all available data streams for 71.6 hours. Caffeine intake: concerning. Sleep: minimal. Emotional state: suppressed.
"Go," Ishani said, surprising him. The athletic wife nodded toward the compound interior. "We'll handle the debrief prep. Jade needs you more than the council does right now."
The debrief was efficient.
Mythili ran the meeting with her usual precision, the former High Court Judge treating faction leadership like courtroom procedure. Every detail documented. Every decision analyzed. Every outcome recorded.
"The Voice faction is neutralized," she summarized, not looking up from her datapad. "Twenty-six converts escaped, likely joining the remaining two factions. The regional threat level has decreased, but consolidation among survivors may create a more unified enemy."
"Agreed." Sarnav watched his mother as she spoke. Professional. Controlled. Not once meeting his eyes directly. "What about the seal?"
Chen Wei pulled up the relevant data. "Degradation has accelerated slightly. We were at 94.2% before your departure. Current reading is 93.7%."
[SEAL INTEGRITY: 93.7%]
[DEGRADATION RATE: INCREASING]
[CAUSE: UNKNOWN]
"The Voice said something before he died," Sarnav said. "About the entity transforming. Becoming something new."
Silence around the table.
"Cult rhetoric," Zara offered. "They all think their imprisoned god is special."
"Maybe. But he seemed certain." Sarnav remembered the fanatic's eyes, the absolute conviction. "He wasn't afraid to die because he believed the entity's emergence was inevitable."
Mythili finally looked up. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second before she returned to her datapad. "We'll increase monitoring on the seal. Chen Wei, coordinate with Jade's surveillance systems."
"About that." Chen Wei shifted uncomfortably. "Jade hasn't responded to any communications in the last twelve hours. Her systems are running, but she's not engaging."
"I'll handle it," Sarnav said.
The meeting continued. Singapore alliance updates. Japanese delegation protocols. Resource allocation for the refugee influx. Sarnav participated on autopilot, his mind already elsewhere.
When Mythili finally adjourned the session, she paused at the door.
"You did well," she said quietly. Still not looking at him. "The council will be pleased with the outcome."
"Ma-"
"The Tanaka delegation arrives in three days. We should discuss accommodation arrangements tomorrow." She left before he could respond.
Observation: Maternal unit maintaining professional distance. Cause: unresolved. Recommend patience.
He didn't have patience right now. He had a tsundere hacker who hadn't slept in three days.
The server room was dark except for the glow of monitors.
Jade sat in the center of her domain, surrounded by screens displaying data streams, surveillance feeds, network logs. Her pale skin looked almost translucent in the blue light. Dark circles under her eyes. Fingers trembling slightly from too much caffeine and not enough rest.
She didn't turn when he entered.
"You almost died twice."
Her voice was flat. Controlled. The tone she used when she was holding everything inside.
"Jade-"
"Once in the initial engagement. The Voice's sonic attack disrupted your Harmony Shield for 0.3 seconds. If Elena hadn't covered you with shadow armor, the follow-up strike would have hit your unprotected spine." Her fingers flew across a keyboard, pulling up footage. "And again during the pursuit. You Void Stepped into a crossfire zone. Three projectiles passed within centimeters of your head."
"I'm S-rank. I can take-"
"You're not invincible." She finally turned, and he saw the rawness in her eyes. Three days of watching. Three days of helpless observation. Three days of seeing every moment he'd risked himself while she could do nothing but watch. "You're not invincible, you idiot."
"Jade."
"I see everything." Her voice cracked slightly. "I see everything, and I couldn't do anything. I just had to watch and calculate survival probabilities and-"
He crossed the room and pulled her into his arms.
She resisted for exactly one second before collapsing against him. Her whole body was trembling, exhaustion and suppressed emotion finally breaking through her walls.
"I wasn't worried," she whispered against his chest. "I was just... monitoring. It's my job. I'm the intelligence specialist. I'm supposed to watch. I'm supposed to-"
"You haven't slept in three days."
"Seventy-one hours. And I could have kept going. I had contingencies planned if any of you got injured. Extraction routes. Medical protocols. I had everything planned except-" She pulled back just enough to glare at him, and her eyes were wet. "Except you kept almost dying and I couldn't stop you because I was here and you were there and-"
He kissed her.
She made a small sound of surprise before her hands fisted in his shirt and she kissed him back. Hard. Desperate. Three days of fear and helplessness pouring into the contact.
"You're mine," she breathed against his lips. Cantonese slipped into her voice, emotion stripping away her careful English. "Nei hai ngo ge. You're mine. Say it."
"I'm yours."
"Again."
"I'm yours, Jade."
"Diu..." She kissed him again, biting his lip hard enough to draw blood. "Take me to bed. Now. I need-I need to feel that you're real. That you're here. That you're-"
He Void Stepped them both to his quarters.
They materialized beside his bed and Jade immediately shoved him onto the mattress, climbing over him with predatory intent. The exhaustion in her eyes had transformed into something fiercer. Hungrier.
"Three days." She straddled his hips, pale thighs bracketing him. "Three days of watching you risk yourself. Three days of calculating every way you could die." Her nails raked down his chest, leaving red trails even through his shirt. "Do you know what that does to me?"
"Show me."
Something dark flickered in her expression. "Careful what you ask for, idiot."
She tore his shirt open, buttons scattering across the floor. Her mouth found his neck, biting and sucking hard enough to bruise. Marking him. Claiming him.
[WIFE: JADE - EMOTIONAL STATE: ELEVATED]
[BOND RESONANCE: INTENSIFYING]
"I see everything," she whispered against his skin. "Every woman who looks at you. Every threat that approaches. Every moment of every day. I see it all, and I can't-" She bit down hard on his shoulder. "I can't stop watching. I can't stop needing to know you're safe."
He flipped them, pinning her beneath him. The sudden shift made her gasp, eyes widening.
"Then watch this." He kissed her deeply, swallowing her moan. His hands found the hem of her shirt, pulling it over her head. No bra underneath. Pale breasts with pink nipples already hard and peaked. "Watch how much I need you."
"Sarnav-"
He took one nipple into his mouth and she arched off the bed, a Cantonese curse escaping her lips. "Diu! Puk gaai, that's-ah!"
Her body was hypersensitive from exhaustion and emotional overload. Every touch made her shake. Every kiss drew desperate sounds from her throat. He stripped her remaining clothes away, revealing pale skin and the wetness already glistening between her thighs.
[SENSITIVITY: SIGNIFICANTLY HEIGHTENED]
[AROUSAL INDICATORS: EXTREME]
"You need to sleep," he murmured against her stomach, kissing lower. "After I'm done with you."
"Don't you dare stop to let me sleep, sei yan." Her fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him where she wanted. "I've been watching you for three days. Now I need to feel you."
He gave her what she needed.
His tongue found her clit and she cried out, thighs clamping around his head. She was already so close, wound so tight from days of tension, that it only took minutes before she was shaking through her first orgasm. Her pussy clenched around nothing, desperate for more.
"Inside," she demanded, pulling at him. "Now. I need you inside me now."
He positioned himself at her entrance, feeling her arousal coat the head of his cock. "Look at me."
Her eyes met his, vulnerable and fierce at the same time. The tsundere walls were completely down. This was Jade, raw and real and desperate.
"I'm here," he said. "I'm real. I'm not going anywhere."
He thrust into her.
The sound she made was almost a sob, her body arching to take him deeper. Her nails dug into his back, scratching bloody furrows that healed almost immediately thanks to his S-rank regeneration. She didn't seem to notice or care, too lost in the sensation of being filled.
"Mine," she gasped. "Nei hai ngo ge. You're mine, you're mine, you're-"
He set a brutal pace, giving her what she needed. Hard. Deep. Each thrust driving the fear and helplessness from her body, replacing it with pleasure and the undeniable proof of his presence.
[DUAL CULTIVATION: ACTIVE]
[ESSENCE TRANSFER: IN PROGRESS]
[BOND LEVEL: DEEPENING]
Jade came again with a scream, Cantonese and English mixing into incoherence. Her pussy clamped down on him, rhythmic contractions milking his cock. But he didn't stop. She needed more than one release. She needed three days of tension completely purged.
"More," she demanded, even as aftershocks rolled through her. "Don't stop. Don't you dare-ah!"
He pulled out and flipped her onto her stomach, pulling her hips up. The new angle let him go even deeper, and her fingers clawed at the sheets as he resumed his pace.
"I'll always come back," he said, leaning over her to speak directly in her ear. "I'll always come back to you. To all of you."
"Promise." Her voice was breaking. "Promise me, idiot. Promise-"
"I promise."
She shattered for the third time, her whole body going rigid before collapsing into the mattress. This time he let himself follow, spilling inside her with a groan that she answered with a satisfied whimper.
For a long moment, neither of them moved.
[DUAL CULTIVATION COMPLETE]
[ESSENCE GAINED: +3,500]
[JADE - ESSENCE GAINED: +2,500]
[JADE: D+ → C (BREAKTHROUGH)]
[BOND LEVEL: SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED]
Wife #5 cultivation breakthrough achieved. Congratulations on the emotional catharsis. Very productive.
"Shut up," Jade mumbled into the pillow, apparently hearing the system through their bond. "I hate that thing."
"No you don't."
"...no, I don't." She turned her head slightly, one exhausted eye peering at him. "I hate you a little though."
"I know."
"Three days, Sarnav. You made me watch for three days."
"I'm sorry."
"You're not."
"I'm sorry you worried."
She was quiet for a moment. Then, so softly he almost missed it: "I'll always worry. I'll always watch. I can't... I can't not know where you are. What's happening to you. I need to see." Her hand found his, fingers intertwining. "Is that... is that wrong?"
He thought about the yandere elements the system had flagged. The way Jade's need to monitor had escalated over the months. The way she'd killed a spy without hesitation, without remorse, because he'd been gathering information on Harmony.
"It's who you are," he said finally. "And I love who you are."
"Idiot." But her fingers tightened on his. "I'll be watching. Always. No one can take you from me. No one can hurt you without me knowing. I'll see it coming. I'll stop it."
"I know."
She finally let her eyes close, exhaustion winning over her need for vigilance. Within minutes, she was asleep, the first real rest she'd had in three days.
Sarnav held her, feeling her breathing slowly even out.
Through the network, he felt the other wives. Nisha's approval. Ishani's understanding. Even Elena's quiet acknowledgment that Jade's protectiveness wasn't so different from her own possessiveness.
They all had their ways of loving him. Some softer. Some fiercer.
He wouldn't change any of them.
Jade woke three hours later, still tangled with him in bed.
"The seal readings," she said immediately, exhaustion replaced by sharp focus. "They're worse than what Chen Wei reported."
"What do you mean?"
She reached for her tablet on the nightstand, pulling up data she must have been tracking even in her sleep. The network fed her constant updates, even unconsciously.
"93.7% is the official reading. But there are microfluctuations underneath. Patterns." Her fingers flew across the screen. "The entity isn't just waiting anymore. It's... doing something. Testing. Probing."
[SEAL INTEGRITY: 93.7% (OFFICIAL)]
[SUBSURFACE ACTIVITY: DETECTED]
[ENTITY STATUS: TRANSFORMING]
[ESTIMATED COMPLETION: UNABLE TO CALCULATE]
"The Voice said it was becoming something new," Sarnav said.
"He was right." Jade's expression was grim. "I don't know what it's becoming. But the energy signatures are changing. Evolving. The seal isn't just degrading because it's old. Something inside is actively working to break it."
Through the network, he felt all ten wives go still. They'd sensed the information through their bond. The warning.
Nisha's concern pulsed warmly. Ishani's protective instincts flared. Elena's cold tactical assessment. Serena's probability sense reaching toward a future that suddenly seemed more uncertain.
Something was coming.
Something that had been sealed away for reasons they didn't fully understand.
And it was transforming.
Recommendation: Accelerate power consolidation. The current threat assessment may be significantly understated.
For once, Sarnav agreed completely.
[DAY 98]
[SARNAV: S-RANK (HARMONY SOVEREIGN - FIRST STAGE)][PROGRESS TO SECOND STAGE: 6%]
[WIFE CULTIVATION STATUS][1. NISHA - D+ | 2. ISHANI - D+ | 3. ANANYA - D+][4. MINJI - D | 5. JADE - C (BREAKTHROUGH) | 6. SANA - C][7. JIYEON - C | 8. SERENA - C | 9. ZARA - C][10. ELENA - S]
[HARMONY SAFE ZONE: 1,293 SURVIVORS | 3 SECTORS]
[ASCENDANCY STATUS: THE VOICE - ELIMINATED | 2 FACTIONS REMAINING]
[SEAL INTEGRITY: 93.7% (ACCELERATING DEGRADATION)]
[ENTITY STATUS: TRANSFORMING - COMPLETION UNKNOWN]
[INCOMING: TANAKA YUKI - ETA 3 DAYS]
[WIVES BONDED: 10/32]