Modifications – Chapter 3

Written by happiest_in_shadows :: [Friday, 24 March 2006 12:14] Last updated by ::

Modifications – Chapter 3

 

By Happiest in Shadows

 

 


Warning this story contains adult content so if you’re a minor don’t read it or if adult content involving sex, violence or super powerful women offends you don’t read it either. This story was written with input from Supernaught whose real name I haven’t inquired about.


 

 

Thomas couldn’t help but grin as he looked at Rachael walking around.

 

The black thong bikini that she wore hugged her body like a second skin and left very little to the imagination. The little top seeming as it would snap in a moment do to both the size of Rachael’s breast and how tightly she had drawn it against her skin. “I have to ask. Did you intentionally tighten that up too much?”

 

“Did I it up too much for what?”

 

“Did you intentionally tighten it up so much that if you weren’t enhanced it would be painful?”

 

Rachael glanced down at her chest and placed her hands against the underside of them she then hefted the lovely globes for a moment and shifted them from side to side. “You don’t believe this would be comfortable?”

 

“Well the material does seem a little thin against your skin and that not you tied is taking up an awful lot of material.”

 

“Huh. I can’t say that I noticed.” Rachael couldn’t help but grin of course the grin revealed the truth of the situation. She had actually been worried that she would snap the material the moment she took in a breath when she had been tightening the top but she couldn’t resist the urge to show off her features more clearly. “Is it bothering you?”

 

“Hell no!” Thomas responded before he had a chance to really think about what he was saying. It was a few moments after words that he realized just how enthusiastic his response had been and he felt a bit of a blush.

 

It was impossible for Rachael to keep from giggling as she walked over to Thomas who was currently setting up their tent. She proceeded to bend over in order to prevent him with the best view of her cleavage as she could. “I am glad you don’t mind.”

 

Thomas took a moment to clear his throat but wasn’t able to turn his gaze away from Rachael’s magnificent breast. “It actually surprised me when you put that bikini on. It isn’t exactly traditional camping attire.”

 

Rachael let out a slight sigh causing her chest to heavy forward. “I suppose you’re right but it isn’t like I need protection from the elements. I don’t even have to worry about bug bights anymore. Well unless somehow a mosquito comes along that can get through my skin.”

 

“That is a frightening though. A self guided bullet that drank blood.”

 

“I believe it would take more then a bullet.”

 

“Well yeah.”

 

“How is setting up the tent going?”

 

“The ground isn’t cooperating.”

 

“Is it too soft?”

 

“No.” Thomas couldn’t help but grin as he realized what Rachael was most likely thinking. “It is too hard.”

 

“Goody. Let me try.” Rachael didn’t bother waiting for Thomas to stand up but proceeded to slip her arms under him and lift him up. Turning around she gentle set Thomas down and bent down. Taking hold of the stake she went to take hold of the rope but stopped. “Okay perhaps you should show me how to position this.”

 

Thomas didn’t bother standing up but leaned over so that he could see what Rachael was doing. He then scooted over and positioned the line for her. “Okay now you just need to drive it through like this.” Thomas took hold of the stake and positioned it so that Rachael could see the angle she needed.

 

Rachael took hold of the back of the stake and proceeded to press it slowly into the ground. The earth gave all too easily and the only reason she didn’t do it more quickly was for fear that she would damage the stake. “I just love this.”

 

“Well you don’t here that about setting up a tent often.”

 

“I didn’t mean that and you know it. I mean that I can use my hand to exert more force then what others can do with a hammer.”

 

Thomas gave a slight chuckle and stood up he then proceeded to the other corner of the tent and began to set things up. “Once you are done there would you like to help me with this edge to?”

 

Rachael finished driving the stake in and stood up. “I would be glad to.”

 

“I have to admit I like watching you work.”

 

Rachael didn’t respond until she had moved over to where Thomas was crouched over the line. She then proceeded to bend down against Thomas back so that her breast was pressing into it. Reaching around him she took hold of the stake and began to press it into the ground while she pressed her breast into his back. Leaning forward she gave his ear a quick lick. “You know what I like having you watch me work.”

 

Thomas smiled and leaned forward more and more as was needed until at last Rachael let up. Turning around Thomas looked up at Rachael’s smiling face and placed his arms around her. He started to pull himself up but before he could do so Rachael lifted him into the air and brought her lips against his.

 

“Mm that is nice.” Rachael had held the kiss just long enough to insure that Thomas would need some air whenever she withdrew. She only gave him enough time to take in a few deep breaths before she once again pressed her lips against his.

 

Thomas actually found he enjoyed having Rachael lift him while they kissed it added something extra to the moment which she truly enjoyed. As they kissed he wrapped his arms around Rachael and pulled himself as firmly against her as he could. It was only after the fifth kiss that he relaxed his hold on her at which time she finally set him back down. “Wow that was amazing.”

 

“Yeah it was.” Rachael gave Thomas another kiss though this was upon his cheek and far quicker. After this she walked around to the other points on the tent and began to set up the supports once again.

 

Thomas would have followed Rachael around but she had left him somewhat wobbly which he was certain was her intention. “Well lovely lady. When do you want to begin testing?”

 

Rachael took a moment to look around their camp sight. “We could do some basic testing here but I don’t believe there is anything that would be of much use right here. How about we go for a walk and try to find some suitable testing grounds?”

 

“That sounds fine with me.”

 

“It’s hard to believe you were able to find a spot this isolated.”

 

“Well it isn’t exactly easy to get here.”

 

“That is true and I didn’t make it any easier.”

 

Thomas gave a slight laugh. “That is very true.” While they had been walking through the woods Rachael had taken every opportunity to make the path more difficult for anyone that might try to follow them. She had lay several large trees along the path as well as placed some rather heavy boulders in various positions. “I believe you might have over done it a little to be honest.”

 

“Well now the only thing we have to worry about is some bush pilot showing up. Hey do you think I could nock a plain out of the air? I bet I could throw a boulder high enough.”

 

Thomas couldn’t help but grin. “About a year ago you could barely move and now you’re talking about knocking plains out of the air by throwing rocks at them.”

 

“We have come a long way since a year ago. Okay that has the supports what else do you need to do?”

 

“They are some bolts I need to tighten up first.”

 

“Let me do it. I never thought manual labor was kind of fun but now that I can use my fingers to do the work others have to use a wrench for I get a kick out of it.”

 

“Okay but if you decide you’ve had enough let me know and I’ll finish up.”

 

“Just step me through what I need to do.”

 

Thomas gave a nod and picked up the instructions. Rachael and he had bought a fairly elaborate tent at her urging. It didn’t bother him though he had been worried when she told him she didn’t feel like being cooped up. The moment she had slipped into her bikini upon arriving at the camp site though his fears had quickly vanished. While she didn’t like the idea of a small tent he felt confident she would be spending quite a bit of time near him.

 

Rachael for her part was enjoying not only flaunting her strength but also the attention she was getting. She liked knowing that Thomas was focused entirely on her. She loved the way he looked at her whenever she drove the stakes into the ground or how easily she would fasten a restraint. “Okay that is enough of the easy work.”

 

Thomas took a moment to look at the bolts Rachael had fastened. He proceeded to check a few of them. “They seem tight enough that is certain. I hope you don’t plan on me being the one to take this apart.”

 

“Why do you say that?”

 

“I think you might have tightened them a bit too much.”

 

“Ah well don’t worry about that I’ll be the one to take our camping equipment apart as well.” Rachael was a bit perplexed when a sigh came from Thomas. “Is something the matter?”

 

“No. There isn’t anything wrong it is just that a thought just hit me.”

 

“What thought was that?”

 

“You carried the vast majority of our camping equipment up here. I wish I could do more to help out.”

 

“Well if you think of it proportional to our strength you actually carried more then I did.”

 

“Huh? What do you mean?”

 

“Well I was maybe at the most using two percent of my actually carrying ability when we were hiking here and to be honest I don’t believe I was even using that much of it.” Rachael gave an amused giggle as she considered the truth. “Who am I kidding? I know I wasn’t even carrying one percent of what I could comfortably carry. You on the other hand had to be at least carrying one tenth of what you can comfortably pack around. So if we look at it like that you were doing far more work then I was.”

 

“That is true but-”

 

Rachael quickly moved to interrupt Thomas. “No buts. I like to think about it based on our different abilities then just the raw material that was carried.”

 

Thomas smiled he knew better then to try and argue with Rachael when she was certain of something. “Thanks for being so generous.”

 

“You’re welcome. Now let us go look around.”

 

“Don’t you want to put on some shoes first?”

 

“No thanks. I admit despite my durability they are some things I wouldn’t like to step in but I believe it is more fun to walk around barefoot.”

 

“Okay but I’ll bring and extra pair along just in case.”

 

*****

 

Thomas kept a few paces behind Rachael as he followed her throughout the woods. It wasn’t so much that she wanted to be in the lead as it was necessary for his own safety Rachael had left a path through the forest that would have made a conservationist have a heart attack.

 

Rachael smiled as she came to another note worthy tree within her path. Since she had began her walk she hadn’t gone to the side for anything but had proceeded to tear down or move everything that happened to be in her way the vast majority of which didn’t actually cause her to stop however every once in awhile she would come by something that was particularly notable. At the moment it was a tree with a diameter so generous that Rachael doubted she could wrap her arms around it entirely.

 

A loud crack rang throughout the area as Rachael sunk her fingers into the tree and began to press them inward. She needed to insure that she had a grip on enough material so that she could actually be able to tear the tree up and not simply strip away a chunk of its exterior. It would have been simpler for her to just punch the tree and send whatever above ground toppling down but she preferred to lift and throw feeling it did a better job of showing off her abilities.

 

“Rachael you may want to be careful with that one its root system probably runs pretty deep.”

 

“Good that means they’ll be more to rip up.”

 

Thomas let out a bit of a sigh and started to back away from Rachael.

He knew that she was more then strong enough to lift the tree what he had meant is that she may tear up some of the ground with her and end up falling over. Then again it wasn’t very likely the tree would hurt her even if it did fall on her he just positioned himself to move incase it did fall backwards.

 

Rachael hadn’t mentioned it to Thomas but she knew exactly what he was concerned about. She actually felt quite confident that pulling the tree up entirely would tear up the ground and cause her to fall over and she wasn’t about to actually risk the tree falling on top of Thomas. This was a good thing though as pulling back and up tended to be easier then trying to lift it up with a forward motion.

 

Thomas could hear the tree’s insides being crushed as Rachael’s arms sunk deeper within it. He noted bulges began to appear around her arms as the material was compacted tighter together until the tree seemed like it would burst.

 

The sound of the tree being pulled up could have been mistaken for an explosion as with one sudden jerk Rachael pulled up on it with more then enough force to send the tree up and forward away from Thomas. She full expected the weight of the tree to pull her forward as well so that she would land atop it.

 

Thomas felt the shockwave run throughout the ground. It was actually far more forceful then he thought it would be and for a moment he nearly lost his footing. He grew concerned though when he looked up and didn’t see the tree falling. When he lowered his gaze back to ground level he was very perplexed to find that Rachael was still standing there.

 

Rachael held the tree tilted away from her and even though she was stunned to find herself holding up the trees weight she didn’t risk moving it towards herself to insure it wouldn’t fall backwards.

“Thomas this doesn’t make sense.”

 

Thomas knew that Rachael was strong enough to support the tree or had felt confident she was. However, as he looked at her he was also just as certain that Rachael’s one hundred and fifty kilograms of mass shouldn’t be anywhere near enough to keep the tree from falling forward and pulling her along with it. It was as if a chain was holding a ship in place without an anchor of any type. Slowly began to move forward to get a better look.

 

“STAY BACK!”

 

Thomas gave a slight jump and moved back quickly. He hadn’t expected Rachael to yell and the power in her voice left no room for doubt that she meant it.

 

Rachael blinked a few times suddenly regretting her outburst especially when she noted the nervous look on Thomas’s face. She hadn’t meant to scare him like that but he hadn’t been thinking.

“Sorry about that. It’s just we don’t know how I am doing this and I don’t want to risk you getting hurt.”

 

Thomas felt himself blush a little bit as he realized how big of a mistake he had nearly made. Here he thought Rachael wasn’t concerned with his safety and it turned out she was thinking about him more then he was. In truth he felt a little guilty as well at having doubted Rachael’s concern for him. “Do you have any idea of what is going on?”

 

Rachael let out a sigh and shook her head. “None what so everrrrr.” Rachael was more then a little shocked when she suddenly found herself tipping over at last the roots of the tree braking free of the earth’s confines entirely while its mass pulled her along for the ride.

 

The shockwave the treated generated when it hit the ground felt far less powerful then the one Rachael had caused when she went to tear it up. The moment the tree was done toppling over Thomas began to run over to it and climb up the side. “Rachael, are you alright?”

 

It took a moment for Rachael to respond. The impact hadn’t hurt in the least but it did surprise her after a few moments she began to tear her arm’s free from the tree. “Yeah I am fine and well that just wasn’t right. I should not have been able to stand there like that and then why did I fall over all of a sudden?”

 

“Your guess is better then mine.”

 

Rachael let out a sigh and stood up. “I don’t have nearly the mass needed to counter act the force of this tree’s weight even for a few moments. This is going to require some more testing. Let’s just hope that we can duplicate the results.”

 

“Do you want to lift the tree again?”

 

“No. We don’t need nearly so much mass to overwhelm my own and considering the unexpected results I want this to be a more controlled experiment then lifting something so.” Rachael grew quiet for a moment and looked down at the tree. “Awkwardly shaped. Come on down so that I can get this thing out of our way.”

 

Thomas gave a nod and quickly climbed back down and moved a few paces behind Rachael. He could tell that her mind was more on experimentation now then it was on flaunting her power and while he would miss the show he felt it would be better in the long run. Of course that didn’t mean the show was over, Rachael was still wearing her bikini and it didn’t take Thomas to realize that despite her mind now being focused on testing she still bent over in order to show off her pert rear in the most advantageous way.

 

Rachael more threw then lifted the tree to the side snapping the last few roots that hadn’t been torn up when she had lifted the tree or when it had fallen over. A few of the roots smacked her however she didn’t notice the impacts.

 

*****

 

Rachael pressed her hand firmly against her arm while she held it under the water she then moved it across her skin relying on the force of the friction to remove the sap from the tree more then the water to wash it away.

 

“So how are you going to go about testing to see what happened?”

 

“Well we really need some equipment to measure changes in different types of energy but since we don’t have any of that we’re going to do some basic test. Right now I believe we should just focus on how easy it is to duplicate. It would also be nice to find out if I can feel any changes happening inside of my body.”

 

“Did you notice anything after you lifted the tree?”

 

“No but I was a little in shock.”

 

“How long do you suppose this has been going on?”

 

Rachael stood up feeling content that she had washed the tree sap from her arms and began to walk back towards the shore. “I suppose it has been happening ever since my strength began to exceed natural human levels. It was just the tree was the first time that was so obvious that something wasn’t right.”

 

“Okay we need to find something with enough mass to overwhelm your own that is appropriately shaped. I’ll head down one direction following the river while you head down the other.” Thomas started to walk away when he was suddenly stopped by Rachael’s hand taking hold of the back of his shirt.

 

“Actually I wanted to stay together.”

 

“But we can search faster if we both go a different direction. You don’t have to worry about me so much Rachael I know how to survive in the woods after all.”

 

“Yeah I know but I wasn’t just considering your safety when I said I want to stay together.”

 

Thomas grinned and turned around. Extending his arm he wrapped it around Rachael’s waste since around her shoulder would have been too uncomfortable considering that she was a third of a meter taller then he was at least. Rachael responded by placing her arm around Thomas’s shoulders as they began to walk.

 

“Anyway I haven’t had any training in forest survival and while I doubt there is anything here that could harm me I don’t want to risk becoming lost.” Rachael continued walking along side Thomas for only a few moments before she just had to scoop him up.

 

Thomas was grateful that Rachael wanted to stick together however he hadn’t expected her to suddenly lift and begin carrying him. “Hey I thought you were ready to do some research.”

 

“Oh shush. You like it when I carry you and you have had plenty of exercise for the day.”

 

There was no way that Thomas was going to debate the issue with Rachael. She was right he did like her carrying him and in all honesty now that he was off his feet he could better tell how sore they had become. “We did walk a long way.” As Rachael carried him Thomas took the time to look along the river side for any boulders or other object that might provide both the mass and shape Rachael would need.

 

Rachael knew that she should be focusing on her test at the moment however she found that realization conflicting with her emotions as she would have much preferred to focus her attention on Thomas. At least by carrying him around she could do both of them though not to the degree of efficiency she would have preferred in either case. She also didn’t care for the fact that Thomas was looking at the wonders of nature and not at her.

 

“I believe I see something that would work.” Thomas proceeded to indicate a rather massive stone which was currently just at the edge of the river. It had probably been deposited there during a storm considering that it had been worn quite smooth.

 

Rachael glanced over at the boulder for a moment and then began to walk over to it. “Yeah I believe that it will do. See it is a good thing we didn’t split up other wise whoever had taken this path would had to run all the back down to where the other was to let them know what they had found.” Rachael waited until she was standing right next to the boulder to finally set Thomas down.

 

Thomas began to walk backwards away from Rachael as she bent down and began to feel around the rock apparently to insure that what they saw was indeed the majority of its volume and that there wasn’t any bit of it hidden under the ground. “So is it large enough.”

 

“Yes I believe that it is.” Rachael glanced over her shoulder to insure that Thomas was far enough away and began to straiten back up bringing the massive stone along with her. It didn’t take long for the rock to clear the water as it did indeed seem to have been placed on the land only recently so that very little of it was actually under the water and ground.

 

Thomas tried to keep his mind focused as he found himself suddenly regretting Rachael’s choice of attire. It made it rather hard to focus on what she was actually doing.

 

At first when she began to lift the boulder the weight was pressing down so that it wouldn’t require any special abilities to keep her standing as Rachael held the massive boulder closer to her body. “Okay let us see if this works.” Rachael began to extend her arms away from herself in order to shift the weight distribution.

She remembered with the tree that it took a few moments for her to fall over.

 

Thomas expected Rachael to fall over as she held the boulder away from her body but much as with the tree she ended up standing there even after her arms were fully extended. “Do you believe it is like that for the same reason the tree was or do you believe that it is something else?”

 

“Well I believe it is for the same reason as the tree but it could be the boulders orientation.” With that Rachael began to shift the massive stone about so that more and more of the weight would be focused towards the opposite end. The whole time she was waiting for the stones mass to overwhelm her own and send her toppling over.

 

“Okay that boulder has got to be heavy enough and with the way you’re holding it I would have to say your doing something spectacular.” Thomas remembered the incident with the tree however unlike the tree the stone was of a much more manageable shape and Rachael held it so that once again she would fall forward when she fell. “Rachael I am going to walk over to you okay?”

 

“Do you believe that it is safe for you stand near me when I am like this?”

 

“I believe so and you must feel fairly confident that it is since you didn’t yell no right away.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle. “Well yeah I dooo.”

 

Thomas gave a slight jump at the sound of the boulder impacting with the ground. Quickly he sprinted over to Rachael who was currently laying flat on the ground. “Rachael, are you okay?”

 

Rachael couldn’t bring herself to respond at first as she lay flat on the ground however after a few moments her body began to shake slightly and a muffled snickering could be heard coming from her.

 

Thomas let out a slight sigh. “Well if you’re laughing I imagine your fine.”

 

“Yeah” A few more amused snickers escaped Rachael as she began to set up and dust herself off. “Okay I believe I have a theory to work with now.”

 

“What would that be?”

 

“Well each time I have fallen so far I began to relax just before hand. It seems that while I am nervous or focusing on holding whatever I have up I stay that way but then again it could just be a matter of time. I need to test the theory.” Rachael took a moment to dust herself off after standing back up and once again bent down to pick up the rock. As she scooted her hands under it she took in a deep breath and tried to focus but broke into a series of giggles a moment later.

 

“This sounds like it is going to be hard to test.”

 

Rachael chuckled for a while longer before she could respond. “Yeah I believe that you’re right.”

 

“Maybe I should stand under the rock so that if you.” The look in Rachael’s eyes when she quickly turned her head around told Thomas that he had better not complete that sentence. Apparently Rachael didn’t appreciate him even joking about his safety.

 

“That isn’t funny.”

 

“Sorry.”

 

Rachael took in a breath or air and let out a sigh. She knew Thomas wasn’t actually foolish enough to take such a risk or she believed he wasn’t. Despite this she couldn’t stand the thought of him even joking about such things. At least his statement helped her focus her mind back on the task at hand.

 

Thomas took a few steps back from Rachael not because he was worried about her dropping the rock on him but he felt a little nervous and yet at the same time he couldn’t help but smile.

 

It was truly wonderful to know that she cared about him so much. He just had to remember that he wasn’t in the army anymore. He could joke about being blown up or shot back then but it was becoming very clear that now that he was with Rachael such things were out of the question. He felt like a child that had been scolded by an adult but at the same time to know she cared for him.


 

Rachael easily lifted the rock being certain to keep it close to her body so that it wouldn’t pull her forward again. Once again she extended her arms outward and once again she found herself holding the rock strait in front of her. With that she began to focus on the task of simply holding the rock remembering that she had to stay focused and not allow herself to become relaxed other wise she would end up falling over.

 

“You know even if remaining focused may be the key to lifting relaxing may not be the secret to falling over.”

 

“Crap. You’re right.” Rachael started to consider just how she was going to test this when she suddenly found herself falling over again.


 

Thomas felt himself blush a bit when he once again saw Rachael topple over. “Whoops. Sorry I didn’t mean to distract you.”

 

Rachael slowly turned to face Thomas when it was revealed there was a large grin on her face. “Well I believe that is the third time that allowing myself to become distracted and relaxed has resulted in me falling over. At least one of the theories is getting extensive testing.” An amused giggle escaped Rachael and she stood up once again. “You know what I believe I am going to start dropping the darn thing before it pulls me all the way over.”

 

“Yeah, perhaps waiting for the drop will help you remain focused.”

 

“It very well may.”

 

*****

 

As Rachael’s fist forced its way into the massive boulder the stone on the inside was further compacted and forced outward causing fractures to run up along the boulders weakest areas as the entire thing seemed as if it was ready to split apart. The energy generate when Rachael’s fist impacted with the exterior of the stone and the outer edges being forced outward caused what many would mistake for an explosion instead of an impact to ring throughout the area. “Mm nothing Thomas with how much force would you say I just hit this time?”

 

Thomas had been standing far to the side well away from Rachael and behind some cover while she experimented with the boulder. Now he looked out to see the considerable hole that her fist had left in it.

“Do you want an example or just numbers?’

 

“An example you were in the military after all you must have an idea how much force it takes to break through concrete.”

 

“Well assuming that stone has the same consistency as concrete I can safely say you hit as hard as a tank cannon but not as hard as a bunker buster.”

 

“Ah you don’t believe that I could handle a tank?”

 

“Rachael, most tanks couldn’t handle a single shot from their own cannon and I am fairly certain you can handle punching yourself so yes I believe you could handle a tank easily.”

 

“Thanks and now to the real question. If I hit this with the same force as a tank’s cannon then I should have had an equal amount of force acting back on me and since I don’t have the mass of a tank to counter act that force I should have been sent flying backwards. So how am I still standing here?”

 

“Well at least it confirms that whatever is holding you in place acts along a horizontal plain as well as a vertical.”

 

“Yeah that is nice to know. I wonder how dependable it is though.” Rachael proceeded away from the boulder and back into the more wooded areas. Once she was standing on the grass she turned to Thomas. “Okay tackle me.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Rachael placed her feet side by side to insure she couldn’t gain any footing with them. “I am not going to brace myself at least not with the legs and as much as I can resist the instinct. I want you to try and tackle me.”

 

Thomas stepped out from the cover he had been using entirely. He had seen Rachael using her strength enough to know that he wasn’t going to harm her even if he hit her as hard as he could. Of course all the practice they did with her dodging had helped a lot as well. He had plenty of time and more then enough experience in dealing with her strength to get over any fear he had of harming her physically.

 

Rachael had to fight the urge to dodge as she saw Thomas charging towards her as all the time dodging his fist had trained her body to do so. Fortunately it didn’t take him long to close the gap between him and fear so she didn’t have to fight for long.

 

Thomas felt himself impact with Rachael’s body at first it seemed as if she was going to topple over however this only last for a second. In a moment her body seemed to become remarkably solid.

 

Rachael quickly reached out the moment she felt Thomas’s body impact with her own. Her hands took hold of his shoulders before he could fall to far backwards and she pulled him back into herself. “Well I guess it works when someone else tries to hit me as well. Are you okay?”

 

Thomas gave his head a quick shake. “Yeah I am fine. You may be as sturdy as a steel wall but you’re a lot more forgiving.”

 

“Well there is a lot of cushioning between you and the majority of my body.” Rachael grinned and pulled Thomas more firmly into her chest.

 

“That there is.” Thomas leaned himself against Rachael for a moment before pressing his feet into the ground and pushing against her as hard as he could. It actually didn’t surprise him a great deal when he found himself falling forwards while Rachael was sent falling backwards.

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle after she hit the ground. She had realized what was happening but it had already been too late for her to keep herself from being pushed over. “I assume you were testing something.”

 

“Yeah I was testing to see if you’re still just as fun to snuggle.”

 

“And what results did you get?”

 

“All this experimenting hasn’t done anything to affect how fun you are to snuggle with. Oh and one more thing. I believe your ability to keep from being knocked around depends partly on whether or not you see the attack coming but then again it may also be because you were relaxed.”

 

“So many fun theories to test and all of them we really need to know.”

 

“Don’t you believe that we should only focus on one at a time though?”

 

“Yeah I do. So which one do you believe is the most important?”

 

“The one dealing with how much fun you’re to cuddle with.”

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle and wrapped her arms around Thomas pulling him more firmly into her then gravity was pressing him. “It is very tempting.”

 

“Yeah it is. I guess the main theory we should work with would be how you manage to remain in one spot while holding something that exceeds your mass.”

 

“Yeah and it is really the one we had best test while we are out here. Of course there is a problem with the lack of equipment but we can still experiment. Are my breast as soft as they were before?”

 

“Huh?”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle and quickly pulled Thomas up a bit so that his head was buried in her chest. “They’re still just as soft as they always were right?”

 

Thomas let out a content sight and tried to respond but found himself muffled by Rachael’s endowments.”

 

Rachael gave Thomas a kiss atop the head as she heard and felt him trying to respond. “You’re not certain? Is that what you are trying to say? Well then perhaps you should get a better feel of them.” Rachael continued to hold Thomas’s head against her chest while she took hold of one of his arms with her free hand she then pulled it so that he was feeling of the side of her bosom.

 

Since he couldn’t speak Thomas simply followed Rachael lead and began to squeeze her breast. As he applied more force he remembered not to hold back to be as forceful as he could be in order to provide Rachael with as much feeling as he could. There was no way he could harm her and his increased efforts only tended to stimulate her more.

 

Rachael let out a sigh and gave Thomas a few kisses on his head. Letting up a bit she allowed him to rise up only to pull him back down and press her lips against his. Thomas couldn’t do much more then follow along as he felt Rachael’s tongue pressing against the outside of his mouth he quickly allowed it entrance before Rachael forced her way in.

 

Thomas was a bit surprised when Rachael removed his hands from her breast and broke off the kiss. “Is something wrong?”

 

Shaking her head slight Rachael gently rubbed the top of Thomas’s hand. “You don’t have to try so hard. I want you to enjoy this as well, just squeeze as hard as you want. I know using all your strength the entire time can’t be that enjoyable.”

 

Nodding his head Thomas leaned down and pressed his lips against Rachael’s before she could press hers back to his. He felt her hand release his and once again began to message her breast. He fully expected her hand to once again press to the back of his head but instead he felt her fingers moving over him.

 

Rachael’s fingers wrapped around Thomas’s upper arm and gave his biceps a light squeeze. The muscle felt soft in her hand and she had to remind herself not to squeeze to hard or she would hurt him or worse. It was a rather exciting though for Rachael when she considered how strong Thomas had seemed before especially while she was still weak after first introducing the modifications to her system. Now he seemed so delicate and fragile.

 

Thomas’s left hand left Rachael’s breast and began to move up her body. Running along her chest she felt of her neck line for a moment and slowly wrapped his fingers around her throat. At first he began to squeeze gently however he began to apply more then enough force to choke someone feeling each breath that Rachael would take in when they broke off the kiss. It was a funny thought since in all honesty he knew he was the one that was being allowed to breath she could have held the kiss for far longer then he could have handled.

 

Braking off the kiss for a moment Rachael felt Thomas’s hand leave her neck and begin to move up along her shoulder. However, before she could once again press her lips to his Thomas bent down and gave her jugular a kiss. “Even your neck muscles are stronger then mine.”

 

Letting out a slight sigh in response Rachael shifted slightly causing her breast to rub against Thomas’s chest. Thomas got the message and began to use his right hand to message her breast more though he didn’t withdraw his left hand instead he began to run his fingers along Rachael’s shoulder and up her arms until he took hold of her biceps.

 

At first Rachael’s biceps felt soft however Thomas knew better. What he felt was only the skin as soon as he began to tighten up his grip there was a notable difference. Her skin might have been velvet soft but the muscle underneath was stronger then steel.

 

A delighted yelp escaped Rachael the moment Thomas began to squeeze her biceps. She didn’t know what it was but she loved it whenever he paid attention to how strong she was. It truly delighted her to see how much Thomas enjoyed feeling her muscles, feeling her strength.

 

Thomas felt himself lifted into the air as Rachael thrust her chest upward. It took him a moment to realize it but after a few moments it became apparent to him that Rachael was actually supporting the majority of his weight with her breast and they were hardly pressed down at all.

 

Rachael was a bit surprised when she felt Thomas’s hands tighten up on her breast and began to move more quickly. At first she wasn’t certain what was going on until she noticed her arched back and realized she was supporting Thomas entirely with her breast.

 

Thomas was lifted higher as Rachael took in a deep breath and intentionally thrust her chest into the air. Clearly she rather enjoyed the fact that he felt so light that she could support his weight with her chest.

 

A large grin was on Thomas’s face when he was lifted to the point that he could no longer maintain the kiss. The moment Rachael relaxed though their lips once again met. Thomas’s hands continued explore each bit of Rachael’s body that wasn’t covered. By now even his right hand had left her breast and was making its way down her side pressing into her stomach muscles as hard as he could.

 

It was a truly delight to press as hard as he possibly could on Rachael’s stomach and still feel his hand forced upward whenever she would take in a breath. Each time she would breathe in his hand would be lifted up with her breath just as easily as it had been the previous time no matter how hard he tried to force her stomach back down.

 

There was no desire to harm Rachael in Thomas’s actions and Rachael had no desire to make Thomas feel inferior to her rather his actions were motivated by an intense desire to feel Rachael’s strength and know how powerful she had truly become. Rachael for her part truly loved it when Thomas paid attention to her strength. Feeling his hands pressing against her body and how delicate his touch. She loved the attention and the admiration.

 

*****

 

“I guess we didn’t get as much research done as we planned to.”

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle leaned over in the car seat and gave Thomas a kiss on the cheek. “Well we did uncover a few things. I suppose we needed to take more time to enjoy one another then either of us realized.”

 

Thomas smiled and slowed the vehicle down by about three miles. He had no desire to get home any earlier then they needed to and leave their vacation behind them. “You know. I don’t believe the cop would believe me if I told him that you didn’t need to wear a seat belt since going through the window wouldn’t harm you.”

 

“I suppose you’re right. I’ll just have to prove it to him if we are pulled over then.”

 

Thomas shook his head for a moment though the smile never left his face. “After we manage to save up some money we’re going to have to buy some equipment and start testing you.”

 

Rachael leaned back in her seat and glanced down at her body. “Yeah I still want to try and detect any changes in energy levels around me when I lift something that exceeds my mass.”

 

“You’re first fight is in three days isn’t it?”

 

“Yeah it is. I thought about making our trip longer but figured it would be best to get back a few days early just in case something happened.”

 

“It’s always nice to have a little extra preparation time.”

 

“Anyway your knees are all scraped up and all that time on the ground wasn’t good for your clothes. It’ll be nice to have a nice bed to lie on again.”

 

“Just remember not to dig your fingers into the bed.”

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle. “That really was a surprise to find when we were done that the ground around us had been turned into powder. I suppose I have a tendency to squeeze a bit more tightly then I realized.”

 

“I am just glad your hands know the difference between my flesh and rock.”

 

“Blast it I just remembered something.”

 

“What is that?”

 

“We spent so much time testing to see how well you could remain stationary that we didn’t spend anytime after that trying to find out how much you can lift.”

 

“Ah you’re right. Still, I believe it was more fun having you try to tackle me.”

 

“Hey I didn’t just try.”

 

“Well you got me there. You managed to catch me off guard a few times so that you did tackle me.”

 

“And I thought I had taught you better then that.”

 

“Taught me better then what?”

 

“I thought I taught you better then to let yourself be caught off guard so easily.”

 

“I wonder what would happen if I tried to exert an upward force on nothing while you were driving. It might be interesting.”

 

“Hey. No testing in the vehicle especially while it is in transit.”

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle and leaned her head over onto Thomas’s shoulder. “Yes sir.”

 

“Do you plan on doing any shopping?”

 

“Huh? Why would I be planning on doing any shopping?”

 

“To prepare for your upcoming fight I know you like to flaunt your body while you’re in the ring.”

 

“I like to flaunt my body period but especially when I know you’re watching me but I just planned on wearing my old outfit.”

 

“Well I was thinking that since you’re moving on to bigger and better things you might want to try shopping for something new.”

 

“Oh is there anything in particular you would like to see me wearing?”

 

“That black thong bikini would be welcome. To be honest though I was thinking we might also try to find something that is more durable.”

 

“Why would I want to wear something more durable? Oh never mind. Yeah, I’ll be fighting stronger opponents now and I don’t want to end up naked. Only you get to see me like that I had just better never see you naked in front of another woman.”

 

“It’s a deal.”

 

“Do you have any ideas?”

 

“I haven’t really given the actual material much thought. I know of a few things that were used to make body armor in the military. They might be able to endure of course I don’t know how we would get our hands on the material or shape them into the kinds of outfit you enjoy.”

 

“I wonder what kind of garments a sex shop might have. I bet they would have some that looked nice but I doubt them having something that is durable enough.”

 

“Looking for a nice dominatrix outfit?”

 

“You better believe it. After all I am going to dominate in the ring.”

 

Thomas gave a slight laugh. “Considering that the best on record wasn’t even five times stronger then human I wonder how they’ll respond when someone shows up who is five thousand times stronger then a normal human at the very least.”

 

“You had better believe that is the lowest estimation of my abilities.”

 

“You could shop around and model a few outfits for me then we could at least use that to develop a basic design.”

 

“Yeah, we might as well though that doesn’t solve the dilemma of what I am going to do for my first fight.”

 

“Maybe you could just knock your opponent out of the ring with one punch? Just how much stronger then normal are you going to portray yourself as anyway?”

 

“That is another good question. I want to use enough so that I don’t have to hold back as much and let the fights last so long but then again I don’t want too much attention either. Do you believe that ten times would be too much?”

 

“Do you mean ten times stronger then the average human?”

 

“Actually I was thinking I could portray myself as being ten times stronger then second most enhanced human.”

 

Thomas gave a slight chuckle and shook his head. “I believe that would get you that attention which you said you wanted to avoid.”

 

“Yeah, you’re probably right. Then how about I portray myself as being ten times as strong as the world’s strongest non-enhanced human?”

 

“I believe that you could get away with doing that.”

 

Rachael couldn’t help but grin as she pulled her legs under herself and turned in the car seat. “Really, you think I could get away with showing off that much?”

 

“Well yeah. You want them to know that there is something very special about you after all.”

 

“That is true.”

 

“Now set back in your seat the right way before some cop pulls us over.”

 

“Oh quit worrying about that.” Rachael made no move to change her position as she leaned against the backrest. “I never got to show that much of my strength of it should be a lot of fun.”

 

“Just think you won’t just be beating up on normal people you’ll be beating up on those that have been enhanced.”

 

Rachael gave an excited giggle. “Yeah it is going to be a lot of fun. I’ll just have to remember that they aren’t that much stronger then a normal human so I won’t end up snapping their heads off.”

 

“Very true, you may be able to get away with giving them some bad injuries but I doubt they would tolerate you killing too many of your opponents. Anyway, I believe that they’ll be paying close enough attention that if you didn’t at least portray yourself as being ten times stronger then the strongest non enhanced human they would know something is up. I mean it isn’t like any of the fighters are going to be able to bruise you.”

 

“Yeah and if I get the hang of holding myself in one spot none of them will even be able to budge me. Do you think ten times is enough to just stand their and let them bruise or better yet brake their fist against my face?”

 

“I guess that depends on who you’re fighting. Everyone enhancements aren’t going to be equal after all. I imagine you’ll also see some of the more strange adaptations such as natural weapons.”

 

“What did Andrew say about that?”

 

Thomas grew silent for a moment and gave his head a quick shake. “I can’t remember to be honest with you.”

 

“All well natural weapons or not they won’t have anything that can break my skin.”

 

“You have become confident of yourself as of late.”

 

“Well how can I not be confident? My research and development finally paid off even more so then I expected. I have you to back me up if anything goes wrong and I am quite certain that I am the strongest person on this planet I may even be stronger then any machine on this planet now.”

 

“I wouldn’t go challenging the power output of any machine just yet.

Still, you’re probably right about not having to worry about any natural weapons. Considering what you did to that boulder.”

 

Rachael gave a nod then chuckled as she felt the vehicle pull into their drive way and slow down. “See I told you that you were too worried. You worry too much you know that?”

 

Thomas was silent for a few moments then his body began to shake. A very short while later he was shaking with laughter. This left Rachael with a rather stunned expression on her face.

 

“What? What is so funny?” When she didn’t get an answer Rachael began to lightly shake Thomas to try and get him to stop laughing so hard. “Come on tell me.”

 

“I worry too much coming from you? You’ve changed a lot since a year ago. I am glad. It is nice to see the Rachael that was hiding under all that fear and pain.”

 

Rachael felt herself blush. The majority of the times they had kissed she had always pulled Thomas to herself this time she leaned forward and allowed him to come to her. As Thomas’s lips met Rachael’s this time he wrapped his arms around her. Thomas held the kiss until he felt the need for air beginning to creep in when he felt a slightly rush.

 

It was easy for Rachael to tell when Thomas was indeed of air. She had plenty of experience now waiting for the moment to arise. Instead of waiting for him to pull away though she had breathed lightly into his mouth so that they could continue to hold the kiss and the moment. This surprised Thomas but he didn’t make any move to brake away now that the immediate need to take a breath had passed.

 

At last the two separated. “Wow I didn’t know that I could do that. I suppose my lunges trap a bit more air then yours do. You know there is one thing that I worry about.”

 

“What is that?”

 

“I worry about you. It is nice though, to no longer have to worry about myself so much.”

 

“I’ll try not to worry you too much.”

 

“Don’t let it trouble you. It is a nice kind of worried.”

 

“I have to wonder though. What makes you worry about me?”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle. “Well shouldn’t it be obvious. You’re precious to me but so delicate as well.”

 

“So is that why you didn’t want me to go off on my own in the woods?”

 

“Maybe it was.”

 

“Well I never have thought of myself as delicate but I can’t deny that compared you I must seem that way. I have to say though I prefer to be the one that protects you.”

 

“Don’t worry. I may be stronger then I was a year ago but I need you to protect me just as much as ever. We protect one another now.”

 

“And what could I protect you from?” Thomas climbed out of the vehicle and made his way over to Rachael’s door. Opening the door he extended his hand which Rachael took and climbed out.

 

The moment she stepped out Rachael wrapped her arms around Thomas and lifted him into the air so that they were eye level. “You know as much as I hated it I am glad it took a while for my body to begin to strengthen. It allowed me to get to know you. I need you Thomas I’ll leave it up to you to figure out how much and what for. Do you need me?”

 

“Yeah I need you Rachael. I love you my amazing Amazon.”

 

“What do you need me for Thomas? You’re a grown adult and you’re capable of taking care of yourself. For a year you took care of not only yourself but you took care of me as well.”

 

Thomas smiled and gave Rachael a kiss at last. “I see your point but even if that is true after being with you I don’t believe I could live without you.”

 

“Don’t worry you won’t have to. I wouldn’t let you leave even if you tried. Like I said I need you to.”

 

*****

 

Rachael looked in the full length mirror taking a moment to admire the top. The bottom half of it was a dark blue that clung tightly to her skin while the top was a black lace material that allowed the top of her breast to be seen. The material was quite fin so the outline of her nipples could be seen and indeed it made it a little too easy to see what the material covered. Despite this Rachael rather liked the design all they would have to do is darken the material so it wasn’t so transparent.

 

The bottom section for its part followed the same color pattern however it was far less transparent. The back as a simple thong which Rachael found she preferred. Now that she had something worth showing off she liked to do so.

 

Thomas set outside the ladies dressing room while Rachael tried on various outfits. It was a small miracle that they had something for some with Rachael’s build and height however the store was rather large and considering that she was trying on what effectively amounted to dominatrix outfits it fitted. He was more then pleased when the door opened and Rachael stepped out.

 

“Well what do you think?” Rachael glanced at Thomas and had to contain a giggle as she already knew the answer. The stunned expression on his face made his thoughts clear.

 

“What is it about the packaging that makes what is inside even more appealing? You make that outfit look stunning.”

 

“Do you think it is too little?”

 

“Well I would prefer if it wasn’t so transparent and to be honest I thought you would pick one of the more elaborate outfits.”

 

“I would have but they didn’t really fit me. I have a few modifications that I would like to have made but this is a nice base.”

 

“What sort of modifications?” Rachael and Thomas turned their heads as one of the clerks could be seen approaching them. He appeared to be in his mid twenties and had an amusing grin on his face most likely due to his job.

 

Rachael took a moment to glance at the clerk’s name tag though she made no efforts to cover herself. “Why do you have some more outfits that would fit me Mike?”

 

Mike took a moment to look Rachael over. “I don’t know if we have many outfits on hand that would fit your build but we can custom order outfits if you would like. We have a catalog of designs and we can have them made to fit those of all heights.”

 

Rachael was fairly surprised when the clerk’s gaze didn’t linger too long on any part of her body. It seemed that he had actually come over to try and sell them something and not just ogle her. She didn’t know if she was insulted or not. “Is it just a catalog or can you do custom jobs?”

 

“If you mean an entirely original design, yeah we can handle those as well though they can get quite pricey depending on what you want.”

 

Rachael turned to Thomas. “What do you think?”

 

“It sounds like a pretty good idea. Would you mind showing us just how it works?”

 

“Sure. Oh and as you noticed my name is Mike.” Mike’s first reaction was to extend his hand to Thomas and Rachael allowing Thomas and Rachael and Thomas to shake his hand in whatever ordered they preferred to do so and introduce themselves. “Okay come on back and I’ll show you what we have.”

 

“Before that, shouldn’t Rachael switch out of her clothing?”

 

Mike glanced back for a moment. “Only if she wants to I doubt any of the customers will complain.”

 

Rachael gave Thomas a quick smile. “Well?”

 

Thomas couldn’t help but return the grin. “It is entirely up to you I am quite happy to see you clothed or partially clothed.”

 

“Well since your paying so much attention to my rear right now I believe I’ll remain partially clothed.”

 

Thomas just chuckled and continued to enjoy the view as he followed Rachael and Mike behind a counter and over to a computer.

 

Mike always kept the computer running to save start up time and since he spent whatever time a customer wasn’t on the store browsing the internet. “Okay let me see the tag on what you’re wearing now so I can punch it in. That is if you plan on basing your custom outfit on that one.”

 

“Yeah I do.” Rachael didn’t actually turn around but located the sells tag herself and read off the serial number allowing Mike to punch it in.

 

The computer took a few moments but it quickly brought up the same outfit Rachael was currently wearing along side of it several boxes began to appear listing everything from colors to extra bits of material one could add to the design. “Okay. What would you like to try first?”

 

Thomas finally stepped up next to Rachael to see just what was going on. “So that program lets you design a new outfit?”

 

“Yeah we use it to piece together a lot of different outfits. Now if you want something entirely unique we just mark the spot with one of these.” Mike quickly brought up a group of materials ranging from a top shape to a little sliver of material each one of which had the words custom on it.

 

Rachael couldn’t help but grin. “Well isn’t that interesting. I imagine the price depends on the material used and the complexity.”

 

Mike gave a nod. “I can give you an estimate on the exact price but like I said it is more costly then what you were looking at before. The truly unique items are quite expensive and to be honest you’re going to require a lot of unique material. We don’t get many ladies that are quite your height in here.”

 

Thomas grinned as he looked at the screen then Rachael. “I believe it will be well worth it.”

 

Rachael gave Thomas a grin. “We don’t even know how much it is going to cost.”

 

“True, but this is an investment.”

 

Rachael gave Thomas a quick kiss. “That is true. Okay let’s get started. First I need the top to be darkened so that it isn’t transparent.”

 

Mike gave a nod and proceeded to add in some extra levels of shading until the outfit was no longer transparent. “How is that?”

 

“That is fine. Also I want to use a lighter blue then what you have there.”

 

“Okay just let me know when it is light enough.”

 

Rachael nodded and watched as Mike cycled through the shades of blue until it was border line sky blue. “That is good. What do you think Thomas?”

 

“It looks fine to me so I am sure it will look exceptional on your.”

 

Rachael would have told Thomas that he didn’t need to flatter her as much however she couldn’t bring herself to as she enjoyed it too much. “Okay how about some stockings and heels?”

 

“Do you want the stockings to have the same color pattern as the top and bottom?”

 

“Yeah but only the edges should be black.” Rachael gave Mike a moment to create the stockings. Apparently he had spent a lot of time working with the program as he knew exactly where to go. “Shorten the heels they shouldn’t be more then a few centimeters high. Thomas what recommendations would you like to add?”

 

“How about adding some material strips running from the bottom of the top down to your waste? Also I have always been a fan of those gloves that run to the elbows but don’t cover up the fingers.”

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle. “Okay add those to.”

 

Mike gave a nod. “Just give me a second and let me know if I am doing something wrong.”

 

“Don’t worry I will.” Rachael grinned as she leaned forward and watch the outfit being put together on the screen. In truth it seemed Mike had experience with such items as she had to only make a very small amount of corrections to the design before she finally had what she wanted. “What do you think Thomas?”

 

“I believe it looks great though I have to wonder how durable it would be.”

 

Rachael glanced at Mike who took the hint. “Well that really depends on the material you want it made out of and what you’re willing to give up. We have some sample materials on hand. Anyway, I’ll need you to test them to see what you want it made off anyway before I know what the final price is going to be. We’ll also need to take some measurements.”

 

Rachael gave a nod. “How long do you think it would take you to make the outfit?”

 

“Well that really depends on the material you want used.”

 

Thomas took a moment to glance at the screen one last time. “It couldn’t be made in three days could it?”

 

Mike gave his head a quick shake. “Sorry. You said this was an investment? I take it by your question you didn’t just mean for a general purpose.”

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle. “Well there is a reason I had you darken those areas.”

 

Mike gave a nod. “Well would you still be interested?”

 

Rachael gave a quick nod. “Let me see those materials you were talking about.”


 

*****

 

Thomas set on his and Rachael’s bed looking at the clothes design and the material that would be used to make it. “I have to admit it kind of surprised me that you decided to have it made out of silk.”

 

“They didn’t have any materials on hand that would endure the punishment anyway or to order. So I figured that the first could be just for our enjoyment.”

 

“I have a feeling I’ll enjoy you seeing you with it on far more then you’ll enjoy wearing it.”

 

“I don’t know about that I rather like the attention after all.”

 

“So what do you want to do about finding some tougher materials?”

 

“Asking around at the fight seemed like a good idea. I mean the fighters are bound to have their sources of course I’ll have to leave that up to you. Do you think you could talk around?”

 

“Sure. Though we may only have to look as far as Andrew.”

 

“Yeah I suppose I should have asked him before hand. Then again you could always try to get those military grade materials you mentioned.”

 

“If I did I don’t know how we would go about processing the materials.”

 

“You know we may not have to try so hard to find materials that could survive the fights. I bet some toughened leather would work pretty well. Then again it all depends on how much money I am able to get my hands on and what you’re able to find out.”

 

“You’re going to make a lot of people quite angry I imagine.”

 

Rachael took a moment to retrieve a few of her exercise outfits from the closet. “Why do you say that?”

 

“You’re not going to lose.”

 

“Mm I suppose that you’re right a fighter that doesn’t ever lose is going to make quite a few people upset. Of course that means we are going to have to put some big bets on me early on before the odds are too far in my favor. Ah crap that isn’t any fun.”

 

“What?”

 

“I’ll have to drag out the fight and not win too easily and even if I do drag out the fight the fact that I don’t have any bruises will probably show that I was playing around.”

 

“Whoops I forgot about. You’re used to dodging humans these people are going to be moving much faster then normal though.”

 

“What do you believe that I should do?”

 

“Well there isn’t much you can do in this situation. I believe that you should just put on a show and have fun doing it. Just remember that you’re ten times stronger then the worlds strongest non- enhanced human. “

 

“Yuck, I hate that you know? I mean I spend all my life wanting this kind of strength and now I have to hold back.” Rachael was grateful that her back was to Thomas as she considered how long she would have to continue holding back. A look of shock soon appeared on her face a moment later. “Thomas I want to talk to you about something.”

 

Thomas quickly set up realizing that whatever Rachael had just thought of had her worried. “What is the matter?”

 

“Thomas I don’t plan on hiding how strong I am forever. I didn’t make myself this way to hide after all and even though I like the fights I have no desire for us to constantly be on the run.”

 

“You’re not thinking about saving up enough money and leaving the country.” Thomas knew that Rachael wouldn’t seem so nervous if that is what she was considering.

 

“It all depends on how powerful this body of mine becomes. If you remember I designed the treatment with improvement in mind.”

 

“Yeah I remember. So what do you plan on doing? You know the moment you come out they are going to try to arrest you and purify your genetics. It would kill you.”

 

“I won’t let them arrest me.”

 

Thomas climbed off the bed and walking over to Rachael. Placing his hands on her shoulder he turned her around so that they were facing one another and then wrapped his arms around her. “Rachael I already broke the law for you once before even though it was risking a lot of people’s lives. I am not going to leave you no matter how you decide to handle your coming out party.”

 

Rachael smiled and wrapped her arms around Thomas using them to pull him to her more firmly. “You’ll still love me no matter what I do or what I want to do?”

 

“Yes Rachael. I love you and that won’t ever change.” Thomas knew what Rachael wanted to do. She had no love for the world and even though she had been happier as of late he doubted her feelings towards it had changed. If the police did try to purify her he knew that she would kill as many people as it took to make them give up.

 

It had also become very clear to Thomas that Rachael had a darker side. He had seen it when she was fighting. Rachael truly loved to show off how strong she was and his presence only seemed to make her want to flaunt it even more.

 

Rachael gave Thomas a gentle kiss on the top of his head. “There was a time when I believed the only thing I needed was a stronger healthier body to be happy. I wanted to be as happy as possible so I designed the body to be as strong as possible. Then I met you and you just had to complicate matters. Now I know that there is something other then a healthy body that I need to be happy.”

 

“What did you plan to do once you have the healthy body you desired?”

 

“I want to get out and meet people. You know quit having to hide myself away because I didn’t feel safe due to my delicate condition.”

 

“Rachael did something happen to you before?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Well you always seemed more scared then what was required even for someone in your delicate condition.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle and shook her head. “I never had a very traumatic experience like being raped if that is what you mean. I just had a lot of little things piled on me over the years. I suppose the most frequent was in school when someone would try to play with me and would end up hurting me. I detested dodge ball.”

 

“Rachael I am going to ask you something and I want you to be completely honest with me. Could you kill someone?”

 

“Yes I could kill a lot of people and not feel bad about it. It didn’t matter to me the lives I was risking when I first modified my cells. It is a good thing I didn’t know you so well back then.”

 

“Why is that?”

 

“I wouldn’t have been willing to take the risk then.”

 

Thomas once again embraced Rachael. “I knew as much whenever I found out you had modified your body.”

 

“You loved me before I loved you.”

 

“For a very long time even back then I knew what you were capable of.”

 

“You do know that I couldn’t harm you? Don’t you?”

 

“Yes, you made that very clear when you refused to actually try and hit me when you were training for the fights before hand. You also prove it each time you keep me from doing something dangerous.”

 

“Like coming near me when I was holding that tree up?”

 

“Yeah like that.”

 

Rachael smiled and gave Thomas a kiss on the lips before releasing him. “Thomas, how do you feel when you see me showing off my strength?”

 

“I feel entranced.”

 

“How do you feel when you see me using my strength in the ring?”

 

“It excites me Rachael. To see you up their enjoyed yourself, flaunting your strength for everyone to see it is such a thrill for me to watch”

 

“Have you ever considered what it would be like to see me actually kill someone?”

 

“Yes I have.”

 

“How do you feel about that?”

 

“When I left with you Rachael I had to leave the rest of the world behind. After all you very well could have created a virus inside your body that couldn’t be stopped. You were then and are now my first and most important concern.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle. “That isn’t an answer to the question but it’ll do.”

 

*****

 

“Rachael and Thomas it is good to see you again.” Andrew was smiling as he led the small group down the hallway. “How do you feel about your first fight? Excited?”

 

Rachael gave a nod. “More then you might imagine.”

 

“Now it’ll be a while before your actual fight. Until then we could watch a few of the matches, you could get prepared or I could take you wherever you like.”

 

Rachael glanced back at Thomas to see if he had any ideas. When he just shrugged she decided. “Could we go ahead and place a bet on my fight? I don’t want Thomas up wondering around when he could be watching me.”

 

“Sure.”

 

*****

 

Rachael had to be careful not to shred her jogging clothes as she slipped out of them revealing the bikini underneath the same one which she had worn on her vacation with Thomas. “Well what do you think?” Thomas grinned and imagined that Andrew had a rather stunned look on his face however he quickly resolved that it was more fun to look at Rachael instead of turn around and confirm his thoughts.

 

Andrew took in a bit of a breath. “It’s quite nice. So that is what you want to fight in?”

 

Rachael let out a sigh. “To be honest it wasn’t my first pick. I have another outfit being made but we’ll need to find some better materials to make it out of other wise it wouldn’t last through the fight. We were hoping you could help us with that.”

 

“I know of a few people that could help with the materials or make just about outfit you may have in mind I assume that since you already have an outfit chosen it means you know a design you want.

Of course after the first few fights you probably won’t have much use for me.”

 

Thomas almost turned to look at Andrew but found his gaze still fixed on Rachael as he spoke. “Why would that be?”

 

“Like I mentioned before if you prove to be particularly capable then you’ll get a lot of offers from people who want to pay for the DNA design you used on yourself. The best fighters of the night are expected to stay around and speak with the audience.”

 

Rachael glanced over at Andrew. “Now I said when we first met that I have no intention of selling my design to anyone.”

 

“I know but you can still use it to make quite a few contacts. Also you may find someone that wants to sponsor you.”

 

“You mean some of the fighters are sponsored?” Thomas couldn’t help the surprise in his voice.

 

“Well this is very much a business. People pay here to place bets, see carnage and perhaps see someone with some improvements they want.

However, some fighters become so well known and revered that the odds are entirely too much in their favor. When that happens the only way for them to make a profit it make a very large wager on them since we don’t allow a fighter to bet against them self.”

 

Thomas gave an understanding nod. “Which means that they need someone with a large bank roll if they haven’t made much money in their previous fights?”

 

“That is right. Of course there are often other arrangements made between the sponsor and the fighter.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle. “I swear I have to ask. What kind of equipment and materials are you people able to acquire?”

 

“Well me. I can’t say that many but I know those that can. I am pretty certain that I mentioned a fair amount of the fighters are actually enhanced by part of the betting community.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle. “I have noticed something about you Andrew. You never seem to know how to do something on your own but you always seem to know someone that does.”

 

“Well I am an organizer to be honest with you. It is my job to know who can do what and for what price.”

 

“When are you going to start charging for your services?”

 

Andrew was a bit taken back by Rachael’s questions. Apparently he didn’t expect her to be so blunt. “What makes you believe I am going to start charging to introduce you to people?”

 

Rachael grinned but glanced over at Thomas. Thomas for his part got the message that she wanted him to take it. Setting up a bit Thomas elaborated. “You said that this was a business and in business as in most things knowledge is power and information is worth a lot. You know a lot of people and you seem to be friendly to all the new fighters.”

 

Andrew let out a sigh. “I swear I thought my salesman attitude would help disarm you. All I would ask in return or coerce in return would maybe be a few special fights.”

 

Rachael decided to resume the conversation. “So we swap favors?”

 

Andrew quickly raised his hand. “Depending on what your favors are worth. Rachael if you make a good impression tonight you could go along way. You’re already going in the right direction with that bikini. Customers like to see the results of the treatment even if they can’t purchase it.”

 

“So you help me with the starting stuff to butter me up and then if I do well enough you will help me with larger things.”

 

“That’s the idea.”

 

“And if I lose you forget I ever existed.”

 

Andrew felt himself growing somewhat concerned. He didn’t like it when someone caught on this much but he relaxed when he heard Rachael giggle.

 

Turning in Andrew’s direction at last Rachael placed her hands on her hips and flexed her muscles a bit. “You’re a sneaky one aren’t you?”

 

Andrew blinked a few times but at the end of it was grinning. “It is just business.”

 

Rachael waved her hand a bit. “Yeah I know. Well if you are work with the more valuable fighters more often then the less valuable get ready to work with me a lot. I have to ask though. Why did you say we wouldn’t need you for very long?”

 

Andrew gave a slight shrug. “I tell all the new fighters that just in case they don’t perform well.”

 

Thomas couldn’t help but chuckle as he listened to Rachael and Andrew. “I believe I realized one of the most common deals a sponsor makes with a fighter. I imagine the sponsors who enhance a fighter use the fighter as advertisement for their DNA design.”

 

Andrew gave a nod. “It’s one of the most profitable parts of the fights.”

 

Rachael couldn’t help but wonder now. “Do you know how many people have been enhanced?”

 

Andrew shook his head. “Honestly that I don’t know but I can promise you it is more then most people realize.”

 

“Here I thought all the time I was working on redesigning my DNA that it was an exceptionally small number but I suppose the government’s control of the technology isn’t as solid as I once believed. So who am I going to be fighting?”

 

Andrew couldn’t help but blink. “You mean you didn’t even take a look at your opponent before placing your bet?”

 

Rachael gave a quick shake to her head. “Nope I want to take advantage of my debut since after a few fights everyone is going to know not to bet against me.”

 

Andrew didn’t bother commenting on Rachael’s seemingly over confident nature but decided to just the answer. “He calls himself Ox which isn’t exactly original. He has been around for a little longer then you but only a little. Now I won’t give you information on how he fights but he is big.”

 

Rachael gave a nod. “That is fine but how big are we talking about?”

 

“He’s nearly three meters tall and anything but lanky.”

 

Rachael walked away from the mirror she had been standing beside until she was only a meter away from Thomas and Andrew. “I know you said you wouldn’t tell me anything about how he fights but would you at least tell me if he can take as much punishment as the build you described implies?”

 

“I’ll give you this information. He can take as much as his build implies and more.” Andrew felt a cold shiver when he heard Rachael giggle a moment later. Looking up and watching the Amazon’s tongue run over her lips he wasn’t entirely certain what was going on but he felt confident that Ox would like it.

 

Ox loved the crowd as he strode towards the ring. He hadn’t been fighting for long but he had been putting on good shows with his speed and power. In truth due to his average muscle strength being so much greater then that of an un-enhanced human’s he could move far more quickly then anyone of his size should have been able to. The only thing that upset him about today’s match was that he had to fight a new comer. He had yet to complete severe his link to the kiddy fights.

 

Thomas walked beside Rachael as they made there way to the exit which would lead to the ring. He wouldn’t actually be following her down the walkway but he would be staying near the exit so he could see from ground level.

 

As he walked though he felt strange there was a sort of charge in the air something that wasn’t just excitement or fear. There was something else a feeling that something very important was about to happen.

 

“Thomas. I want to make a strong impression in this first fight.”

 

A jolt seemed to run through Thomas as Rachael word’s hit him. The sentence was simple and there was nothing directly linked to their conversation of three nights ago or at least not the questions she had asked near the end. Still, he remembered them very clearly.

Rachael had asked if he would still love her if she killed someone and he had answered honestly to the best of his ability and said yes.

 

Rachael smiled when she felt Thomas’s hand take hold of her own and she turned him. For a moment their lips met and then the two of them continued towards the exit until at the walkway Rachael released his hand and began down the walkway. Thomas knew as he watched Rachael walking down walkway that she was about to reveal something to him.

 

When she had fought before Rachael had been restrained by the rules. She hadn’t been allowed to kill anyone. Now with her debut fight and that rule no longer so strongly enforced and his assuring her that he would love her no matter what she was going to remove one of the few masks that she had still worn even after the modifications.

 

She had to know. She had to know if Thomas had been honest with her before she allowed the relationship to go any further. This fight provided the perfect opportunity for her to remove that final mask and see if he had been lying to her or not. She had felt an aspect of herself building up inside of her ever since her body had begun to strengthen itself.

 

Maybe it had been there even before she enhanced herself but it was most assuredly there now, a desire to feel her strength and to feel someone brake under her hands. Rachael wasn’t sure if it was truly a lust for destruction or a desire to show her strength but whichever it originated from it boiled down to a blood lust that she had been repressing for quite some time now.

 

Ox grinned when he saw Rachael approaching. Her build made it clear to him that she was indeed an enhanced though he didn’t feel she posed any real threat. He felt confident that she was at best two times stronger then what her build would indicate. His build on the other hand was far larger then hers and he believed it to be stronger over all.

 

The announcer waited for Ox to climb into the ring before he began to speak. Unlike televised events they didn’t have any massive monitors to show the fighters off so the best time to introduce them was when they were actually in the ring. “Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the beginners’ night. Today we have two very unique fighters for you. Weighting in at two hundred kilograms and standing two and two thirds meters tall Oxxx.”

 

Rachael had to admit as she watched Ox in the ring he had some impressive improvements. Though she felt that her work was superior to whoever had enhanced him. Deciding to put on more of a show she waited for Ox to walk over to his side of the ring for her entrance.

 

There were a few gasp of appreciation when Rachael bent at her knees and quickly sprung from the ground easily jumping over the cage that surrounded the ring. As Rachael landed she couldn’t help but feel a little silly. The jump had been easy to make but it wasn’t quite what she had been going for. She didn’t know how to make any mid air flips or anything to add some elegance to the action. It might not have seemed important but she liked to flaunt her abilities after all.

 

“Now introducing Rachael, this sprightly young lady is self enhanced and just as rare her improvements are not sell.”

 

Ox couldn’t help but snicker as he heard that speaking up the over all muscle enhance he had undergone and indeed reached to his lunges giving him quite a loud voice when he wanted to use it. “A self job is that all you are? I swear I was expecting a challenge but now that I know your self improved. You probably just gain muscle mass more quickly then normal I bet over all your no stronger then a normal. I might even take your head off in one punch.”

 

Rachael could have just let Ox’s words slide but she wasn’t about to do so. “Those muscle enhancements must have damaged your brain. Hey dumb ass how many un-enhanced could stand at the bottom of that fence and jump clear over it? You really do deserve the name Ox.”

 

The announcer made no attempt to stop Ox or Rachael as they swapped insults. It was always nice to give the audience a bit more of a show then expected. Though he thought it was a very good idea to get out of the ring himself when he looked over at Ox and noticed that he had turned blood red. “It looks like our fighters are already done getting to know one another and it seems Ox may have a temper to match his strength. Let’s see if Rachael can endure it.”

 

The bell to fight was wrung the moment the announcer had climbed out of the ring and locked the door. Ox sprang from his speed having resolved to end this match quickly he was also going to see if he could carry through with the threat to remove Rachael’s head.

 

Rachael had been unprepared for Ox’s speed of course even if she had known about it she wasn’t sure if she could have avoided it. She was just too used to fighting humans. A loud crack could be heard as Ox slammed his fist into Rachael’s face the force of the impact not only having his full strength behind it due to his rage but also the momentum of his body. The impact was powerful enough due to Rachael’s relaxed state to drive her back and into the corner of the ring.

 

Thomas heard the ringing of the metal after the crack as Rachael’s head was driven backwards and into the metal support pole with enough force that it bent. The pole itself was entirely solid and placed deep within the concrete of the ring.

 

“Ah I heard a crack. Did my face hurt your hand?” Rachael gave an amused giggle though her voice was muffled by the massive fist that was currently pressed into it.

 

Ox was more then a little surprised when he heard Rachael’s mocking tone. Withdrawing his fist from her face he was to angry to feel it but he had indeed hurt his knuckles when he had hit her face what was shocking though that Rachael was entirely unharmed.

 

The announcer had actually gone silent when he saw Ox slam Rachael’s face into the metal pole when it had seemed the fight was over. However, he had been close enough to hear Rachael speaking as well and when he saw the smile on her face after Ox and withdrawn his hand he couldn’t contain it. “Can you believe this people? After a devastating attack like that Rachael is entirely unharmed. She may not be fast on her feet but this lady as durability.”

 

Rachael let Ox recover from the shock before she actually decided to retaliate. Pressing off the pole Rachael drew her arm back and attempted to drive it into Ox’s stomach.

 

Ox was fortunate that Rachael had allowed him time to recover from the shock of his strike having not affected her. If she hadn’t he wouldn’t have been able to avoid her fist.

 

Rachael had been so amused that Ox’s fist had been unable to harm her that she had forgotten how much faster then she he was. Despite the brief annoyance from having her attack avoided the smile didn’t leave her face. It still remained even after Ox took hold of her arm.

 

Ox went to jerk Rachael up having resolved to try slamming her to the ground. The moment he attempted to yank her upward though he found that she had suddenly become very hard to move. Rachael had been caught in a relaxed state when Ox went to hit her the first time so that the force of his attack was able to easily overwhelm her inertia. This time she had seen the attack coming so she was able to keep herself securely rooted to the spot.

 

Once again Rachael attempted to drive her fist into Ox remembering to use the level of strength she and Thomas had agreed upon. However, once again she found that her attack was too slow and he was actually able to release her arm and avoid the punch all together.

 

Rachael stopped her attack for a moment and just looked at Ox who clearly didn’t like the way this fight was going. “You’re a speedy bastard aren’t you?” Not waiting for Ox to reply Rachael once again went on the offensive.

 

Thomas could tell that Rachael was enjoying herself despite the frustration of not being able to hit her opponent. They had known it was coming after all. Rachael was used to avoiding and hitting human’s Ox was clearly moving two or three times faster then any of her previous opponents had been.

 

Ox didn’t know what had happened when he tried to lift Rachael off the ground. She didn’t have anywhere near the same mass as him and he was able to lift his own weight with one arm. Of course he didn’t know if hitting her head on was such a good idea as by now he had calmed down a bit mostly due seeing hitting her in the face had no affect.

 

Then again perhaps the reason he hadn’t been able to hurt her when he struck her in the face wasn’t actually due to her muscle’s but rather because her bones had been enhanced. It was rare for that to be the case but if it was he needed to try and hit her somewhere else.

 

Making use of his superior speed Ox was able to easily maneuver to the side of Rachael just as she attempted to strike him. With her arm being fully extended her side was fully exposed. Drawing his fist back he slammed it as hard as he possibly could into her side.

 

Rachael smirked a bit and glanced at Ox. “Going for a soft spot?” Spinning around Rachael attempted to drive her left arm into Ox but once again he evaded her attack. “This is getting annoying.”

 

Ox didn’t know what to do about this woman. She was as slow as a non-enhanced human but her strength was ridiculous. What was worse is after the first hit she had somehow managed to keep herself from being knocked around even though it was clear she had a very limited amount of mass.

 

Thomas had been watching some time and had already noticed that Rachael had forgotten something rather important. As he listened to the crowd shouting though he couldn’t help but yell out. “YOU HAVE LEGS.”

 

Rachael froze for a moment as she picked up on Thomas’s voice. Suddenly she felt very silly as she remembered her training. The whole fight so far she had only been relying on her arms and totally neglecting her legs. Grinning she turned to Thomas and gave him a wave. “THANKS FOR THE REMINDER.”

 

Ox didn’t know what was going on but the moment Rachael seemed to relax he moved in hoping that he could harm her while she was distracted. Drawing back his fist he slammed it into her back. A crack nearly as loud as when he had slammed his fist into her face seemed to resound through the ring.

 

It was true that a good fight made for a nice show but so did a slaughter and that is what the fight seemed to be shaping up to be. Ox seemed to be entirely helpless against Rachael. The only thing hitting her had done seemed to be injure him.

 

As Rachael attempted to either kick or punch Ox she found her irritation fading and her amusement growing. Even if he could evade her that would only last for so long as while she didn’t have speed to match her strength she had stamina to do so. The fight did have her wondering why she couldn’t move faster. Considering the force with which she could push off the ground she should have been able to move exceptionally fast.

 

The shouts of the crowd didn’t seem to reach Thomas’s ears as he focused on the fight. He knew those punches that Ox had leveled against Rachael would have seriously injured or perhaps even killed most people yet she had shrugged them off with ease. Now she had him on the defensive and it didn’t seem like that was going to change. After all even when he did land a hit on Rachael it had no affect on her at all.

 

There was of course a chance that the crowd would begin to think the fight was fake at least those that didn’t stop to consider what the pole behind Rachael’s head was made of and what her head had done to it. Thomas gave his head a quick shake. There was another thing which seemed likely to happen that would also confirm the fight had been very real the moment Rachael managed to land a few blows on Ox.

 

Rachael’s irritation had by now faded away entirely and she found herself feeling more and more like a kid. The fight had been business at first however as it had gone on it had switch from business to play. Rachael felt like a little girl trying to capture a butterfly with a net.

 

In all honesty Ox’s situation was very much like that of a butterfly’s. He could easily out maneuver his attacker however the distance he could travel was limited and his attacker was a bundle of energy he would fatigue before she did. He had yet to find a way to actually harm her and didn’t seem able to even slow her down. A butterfly once captured may often find itself pinned behind a frame by needles and even without his knowing Ox’s situation was similar to the ultimate fate of that butterfly as well since Rachael had already decided how she wanted to end the match.

 

Rachael for her part was the little girl with the net. She loved the game of chase and while Rachael had more understanding of her actions then the child. She had no more concern for the life of Ox then the child did for the butterfly.

 

Even through the roar of the crowd and the occasional crack of bone as Ox would desperately try to slow Rachael down Thomas soon found he could hear something very clearly. It wasn’t because of the volume of the sound but rather how strange it seemed. He heard giggling coming from the ring.

 

Ox hadn’t noticed it at first as he avoided Rachael’s attacks constantly having to avoid being backed into a corner where she could do some damage. However, as the fight went on he soon noticed it. She was giggling as if the entire fight was a game. As he took a moment to risk a glance at her face he could hardly believe the smile that was upon it. This had turned into nothing more then a game to her and he could do nothing about it.

 

The announcer was of course close enough to hear what was going on inside of the ring and as he listened he couldn’t believe it at first. He had seen one sided matches were one opponent would mock the other but it was the first time he had heard giggling. “Shhh do you here that ladies and gentlemen?”

 

The audience grew silent for just a moment. As the listened Rachael’s laughter reached their ears and for a moment the room grew silent. Then a roar seemed to shake the entire arena as the crowd once again began to cheer.

 

Ox felt a pain in his gut as he felt his back touch against the metal pole. The pain wasn’t due to being hit but for a moment he was trapped. It was all he could do to jump out of the way. As he landed to the side he heard a horrible shriek and looked up to see what had happened. Utter terror shot through him as he watched Rachael’s leg tear through the metal pole.

 

Thomas cringed for a moment. Up until now Rachael had kept her strength within the limits they had planned on that was until her leg tore through the pole. Now he worried that she might have revealed too much of her strength to explain it away as her being ten times stronger then the strongest non-enhanced human.

 

Ox was now certain that he didn’t want to get hit by Rachael. At first she might have only had very high levels of endurance after seeing what she did to the pole though he knew she had strength to match her durability. “Hold. Hold on. Stop it. Stop it damn you.”

 

Rachael didn’t care what Ox had to say enough to slow down in the least. He had begun to slow down since the start of the fight and now her punches and kicks were getting closer and closer to connecting. Swinging her leg in another attempt to strike Ox in the thigh a loud crack was heard throughout the entire ring as Rachael’s foot made solid contact. A delighted squeal escaped Rachael the moment she felt her foot impact with the muscle of Ox’s thigh and the muscle pulped.

 

A horrific shriek escaped from Ox as ever nerve in his leg was lit up. Rachael’s foot didn’t just bruise the muscle or break the bone but much as her fist had tone to the metal pole her foot tore its way through the leg. As he fell to the side he was just aware enough to see a large section of his leg fly off in the opposite direction and slam into the fence.

 

“At least you won’t have to suffer.” A giggle escaped Rachael as she quickly swung her leg into the air elevating it as high as she could before bringing her heel down atop Ox’s head.

 

An explosion was heard as Rachael’s foot impacted with the bottom of the ring after traveling through Ox’s skull. The force of the kick had been so powerful that it had actually torn a hole in the ring and caused it to jump slightly.

 

The announcer couldn’t respond at first. There had been some truly one sided fights but in only two blows Rachael had killed Ox. He wasn’t certain if he wanted to climb into the ring even after he was able to compose himself. Then Rachael glanced at him and he knew he had best get to declaring her the winner and he opened the door to let himself back into the ring. “And the winner by two hit fatality is Rachael.”

 

In the crowd a man sighed quietly. “Well he wouldn’t have been much good missing a leg anyway.”

 

Rachael had a delighted grin as the child that had finally managed to catch the pretty insect she had been chasing after for so long. As she climbed out of the ring and walked towards Thomas she prepared to see what the man she loved thought of her catch.

 

Thomas smiled when Rachael stepped past the door way and out of the public eye. Reaching up he placed his arms around her and gave Rachael a congratulations kiss. “I swear if I was grading you for accuracy there would be no way that I could give you a passing mark. We are going to have to figure out why you can’t move more quickly.”

 

Reaching her arms around him Rachael lifted Thomas so that she didn’t have to look down at him. “Did you enjoy watching the fight?”

 

“Yeah I did. He got a pretty good hit on you at the first.”

 

“That he did. Let’s go and get our money.”

 

*****

 

Rachael didn’t care for the other fighters that stayed around after their victories, especially since quite a few of them were taller then even her. There had been a total of three deaths during the fights one of them she had caused and two others. The one that everyone was talking about though was Ox’s.

 

“Excuse me Miss Rachael may I have a word with you.”

 

Glancing to her side Rachael found a rather well dressed man approaching her. He hadn’t been the first. “Sure. What do you want to talk about?”

 

“It is about your fight. My client realizes that you desire to keep your DNA design to yourself however he is willing to offer a very substantial sum to acquire it.”

 

“I am not going to sell the DNA design that I used on myself.”

 

“Perhaps you don’t realize how much my client is willing to pay.”

 

Thomas gave a slight chuckle this made the eleventh person that Rachael had turned away. After deciding to give Rachael a brake he stepped between her and the man. “Listen. Before you go bothering Rachael with whatever you’re going to offer why don’t you go speak to him, him and him.” Each time Thomas spoke he indicated another person in the crowd. “Also speak to everyone else that she talked to and find out just how much she has already turned down.”

 

“Sir I am talking to Miss Rachael. Now if you would just move.”

 

Thomas rolled his eyes but made no effort to move from his position between Rachael and the haggler. He did glance behind himself though when two arms wrapped around him and he felt a rather heavy weight settle on his back as Rachael leaned on him. Rachael brought her head so that it was level with her ear. “You’ve had more experience with strong arm tactics then me. Mind if I hide behind you?”

 

Thomas smiled and looked over his shoulder at Rachael. “You can try but I don’t believe I am big enough for that.”

 

“EXCUSE ME. Maybe you will change your mind once you know who I am working for.”

 

Rachael slowly straitened herself back up but made no effort to speak to the man having resolved to let Thomas take care of the negotiations for a while. It kind of surprised her how forward some of these people were with her given that she had killed her first opponent in the ring. Thomas for his part missed the feeling of Rachael’s body pressing against his own but resolved to get down to business. “And I suppose that your boss is somehow more important then theirs?”

 

“You seem to be forgetting your place in all of this. You’re the entertainment and the merchandise.” The man was by now ignoring Thomas and speaking at Rachael. “While your enhancements may be impressive I assure you if you hope to have a lengthy career you’ll learn to reconsider.”

 

Thomas glanced back at Rachael for a moment chuckled and looked at the man. “Rachael isn’t for sell.”

 

“You did well against a new comer but they are veterans far stronger and faster.”

 

“Whom she will be glad to kill I am certain. Now why don’t you go along?”

 

Looking at Thomas for a moment the man grinned. “Of course even if you could beat them you seem to have others to hur-”

 

The man was suddenly silenced when Rachael stepped to Thomas’s side and took hold of his throat easily lifting him off the ground. “I swear that if you threaten him I am going to pop your head off.”

 

Andrew had been talking about his latest discovery when he saw the happenings. A slight sigh escaped him. Here she was a new comer and she was already making enemies. Still, he couldn’t allow this to happen. “Now hold on. What is going on here?”

 

Rachael glanced over at Andrew as he quickly approached them. “This insect was threatening me.”

 

“Rachael. Threats or not there is to be no violence here now put him down. If you feel that he has done something to wrong you then you’ll have to take it up with him else where. Kill him at his home or some where down the road but there is to be no violence outside of the ring in this building.”

 

Rachael glared at Andrew for a moment but clearly he had dealt with this type of situation before. “Fine.” With that Rachael released her grip on the man’s throat allowing him to fall back to the ground.


 

Rachael’s frown faded soon enough and she bent at the waste giving a wonderful view of her cleavage. “You’re dead you little insect. The moment I find out what your name is I am going to kill you.”

 

Rubbing his throat the man slowly stood up. “It is a shame Andrew that you’re going to be losing a new attraction so soon.”

 

Once the man had walked away Andrew turned to Rachael and Thomas. “You know that you’re going to have to carry threw with that threat now don’t you?”

 

“Yes she will.”

 

Rachael, Thomas and Andrew all looked up to see yet another figure approaching them unlike the first though this one seemed a good bit older but still in exceptional health. He also had a rather young looking woman with a rather impressive level of muscle tone walking beside him.

 

Andrew quickly moved to greet the figure. “Dr. Williams it is good to see you again.”

 

Williams gave a nod. “It is nice to see you as well however I need to speak to this young lady or the gentleman that seems to be representing her.”

 

Rachael gave Thomas a bit of a nudge indicating she wanted him to take it. She realized that if Andrew greeted him so quickly he must be important however at the moment she didn’t exactly feel like being civil. Thomas stepped forward. “So Dr. Williams what would you like to talk about?”

 

“Well first. I am sorry if my employee was a little to forward with you. However, Rachael you need to learn to control that temper of yours.”

 

It was a good thing Thomas was standing between her and Andrew other wise Rachael would have had him by the throat as well. As it was Thomas’s standing in front of her helped to keep her calm. “Rachael didn’t appreciate it when he threatened me.”

 

“That is understandable. Sally here feels the same way about me isn’t that right dear?”

 

Sally grinned she had seen the fight between Ox and Rachael however she didn’t show any fear of Rachael. “Yeah, I believe I know where she was coming from.”

 

Williams gave a nod. “Anyway as I mentioned that young man. Now I know a starting fighter can’t afford to be seen as soft and that you need to carry through with your threat now but I really don’t like the idea of unwanted attention being brought on down here or having my home attacked for that matter. So I was hoping to make you an offer.”

 

Thomas wasn’t quite certain where this was going but felt it was worth finding out. “What kind of offer?”

 

“Well I would like to make a wager out of it. You know if you try to harm me or any of my employees outside of this place you’ll have to deal with a lot more then a few fighters. That isn’t very interesting though and brings unwanted attention. So how about we make a fight of it? I’ll choose some of my fighters lets say three of them and you take them on one after the other. If you win you get the young man to do with as you see fit.”

 

Thomas wasn’t certain of this but continued onward. “And if we lose?”

 

“Well the young lady dies the same thing that would happen if she attacked my home and lost. In either case she ends up fighting more then one opponent and at least this way you know there’ll only be three and we can bet on it.”

 

Thomas listened and didn’t really see a down side to the offer.

However, it was ultimately Rachael’s choice. “Rachael what do you want to do?”

 

“You can pick Thomas. I said you could handle the next bit of negotiations.”

 

Nodding his head Thomas looked back at Williams. “You have yourself a fight. When would you like for the event to occur?”

 

Williams gave a nod. “I believe it would be best if we gave Andrew time to spread the word. After all whatever way the fight goes this is important for both of us. It will either help establish Kate as a true contender or further demonstrate why people should behave after the fights.”

 

Thomas gave a slight nod of his head though he felt confident which one it was. Williams was just sending three more people to the slaughter. “So is it a deal or are there any other conditions?”

 

Williams gave a shrug. “I would appreciate it if she didn’t kill any of my men but considering the nature of the fight that is a bit much to ask for.”

 

Thomas started to agree but changed his mind. “Andrew since this is going to be a death match. Would it help the odds if Rachael agreed not to kill her opponents while they could try all they wanted to kill her?”

 

Andrew gave a not. “Well it would make it potentially more profitable of course it depends on what the penalty for her killing an opponent is.”

 

Thomas gave a nod. “How about for every opponent she kills another one gets to enter the ring?”

 

Andrew gave a nod. “I am sure I could get some arena fighters to do that. How do you feel about that plan Dr. Williams?”

 

“My main concern is the fight and three of my men. So long as the young lady fights alone and my men aren’t handicapped I don’t have much else to say though the young man’s proposal has me interested.”

 

Andrew gave a nod. “Okay it is a match then. I’ll let you both know a week in advance.”

 

Thomas lead the way out of the arena as Rachael walked a little ways behind him. He was stopped though when Rachael wrapped her arms around him. “I knew it was a good idea to have you handle the negotiations. I don’t know if I could have controlled myself if you hadn’t and the fight you set up sounds like a lot of fun.”

 

Thomas let out a relieved sigh. “I am glad you liked my decisions. I was worried you would have done something else.”

 

“Oh believe me I would have but I like your idea more.”

 

“What would you have done?”

 

“I believe I would have lost my temper and ruined my career before it even going. Perhaps you should handle all such negotiations.”

 

“If you trust me to do so I would be glad to.”

 

Rachael pressed her lips against Thomas’s cheek in a gentle kiss. “Okay then. You’re my manager.”

 

*****

 

“Shouldn’t I be the one cooking? You’re the victory girl after all.”

 

Rachael grinned and glanced at Thomas was currently setting at the kitchen counter watching her prepare dinner. “Hey you won a victory today as well. You got me a nice fight that I am certain will help me progress. Think of it as getting me a very good contract. It is certain to pay off well.”

 

“Yeah, but I am surprised you want to wait until after the fight to go and buy any equipment.”

 

“We might as well make as much money as we can while the betting is still good.” Rachael didn’t bother using any cooking utensils as she flipped the steaks instead she chose to reaching in the flames with her exposed fingers and flip the thick slabs of beef. When Rachael noticed that Thomas was watching her turning the steaks she didn’t bother lifting her fingers from the flames but set them upon those parts of the grill that weren’t covered.

 

“Careful you’re touching the flames.”

 

“Why would I need to worry about a weak little fire?”

 

“You’ll get your fingers covered in suit.”

 

Rachael faked a shocked expression and pulled her fingers away from the flames. “You’re right. I’ll just have to wash them off.” Turning to the sink and flipping on the water Rachael held her fingers under the stream for a moment before taking hold of her index finger with her free hand she then proceeded to squeeze the finger as she pulled her hand along.

 

“Is that hot water?”

 

“No it is ice cold.”

 

“You have impressive heat tolerance.”

 

“Well while that is true this isn’t heat tolerance. I was being honest.”

 

Thomas slowly stood up and began to walk over to Rachael. “You mean your making that steam by?”

 

Rachael didn’t let Thomas finish. “By squeezing my fingers so hard that despite the lack of speed the friction isn’t great enough to generate enough energy to convert the water to steam.”

 

Thomas reached one of his hands under the water and confirmed that indeed it was ice cold. “That is a lot of force.”

 

A giggle escaped Rachael and she gave Thomas a quick kiss before turning off the water. “Yeah but it gets my fingers good and clean.”

 

Thomas gave a nod and started to reach for the steak sauce intending to add some when Rachael gave his hand a light smack. “Okay. No helping I understand.” Grinning Thomas walked back to his seat and sat back down.

 

“So what type of fighters do you think Williams will have me smack around?”

 

“I am anticipating some real bruisers he seems to have a reputation to maintain which you may have challenged. Don’t be surprised if you encounter someone with natural weapons.”

 

Rachael let out a delighted squeal and ran over to Thomas throwing her arms around him and scooping him up. “You believe so to then? Oh I hope that all three of them have some extra adaptations perhaps some talons or a specially designed skeleton structure.”

 

“Maybe even an exoskeleton for added endurance and strength?”

 

Rachael gave an excited giggle. “Oh that would be wonderful. I would love to show them how weak their shell is compared to my fist. Do you suppose there would actually be someone that looked that different though? I mean adaptations like that are so rare.”

 

“To be honest Rachael I don’t know. I am a very surprised by all this.”

 

Rachael let out a sigh and nodded her head. “You mean the fights rights?”

 

“Yeah I do.”

 

“It surprised me as well. I mean I thought the government had a tight control over such things and that there were only a few illegally enhanced people. Those that were very rich and could afford it and those that snuck around in the labs like I did. Now I find out that I perhaps took the hardest path especially when I consider it.”

 

Setting Thomas down Rachael walked back over to the steaks and picked each one up. After examining them for a moment she set them back down upon the grill. “They aren’t done quite yet. Of course I suppose I should have expected the labs to be one of the hardest settings to perform such activities they are just about the most obvious if not the most obvious.”

 

“You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself. I mean who else is as powerful as you are?”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle and nodded her head. “Thanks for looking on the bright side for me. Still, I tend to like to believe I think outside the box.”

 

“You do. Who else has tried to design their DNA so that they would constantly evolve?”

 

“Thanks but I didn’t mean when it comes to my DNA designs. I meant in acquiring the materials.”

 

“You were playing it safe. There is nothing wrong with that.”

 

“Thanks. It still bothers me that someone could be enhanced just by being able to fight well enough and catching a sponsor’s eye but I suppose I should have expected this. The technology is pretty powerful and quite desirable which tends to lead to it being used.”

 

“That is true. I guess history has proven that. Of course you wouldn’t have been found out if Steven wouldn’t have contacted the police.”

 

Rachael froze for a moment and felt her cheeks growing somewhat warm as Thomas’s words opened an old injury. “I wonder how all that business went down. I mean have they recovered from the damage to their reputation yet? I hope nothing bad happened to Walter he was nice.”

 

“I haven’t been keeping track of any of it for quite a few weeks now. Would you like for me to find out?”

 

“Yeah it would be nice to know what happened to everyone.”

 

“You want to find out about Steven don’t you?”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle and felt herself returning to normal. “I am pretty angry with him. I would at least like to break a few of his bones.”

 

“You know trying to get revenge could be dangerous.”

 

Rachael let out a sigh and nodded her head. “I know which is why I won’t try to get revenge any time this year. So for a whole year you don’t have to worry about me getting us caught by going after Steven.”

 

“I don’t suppose I could get you to agree to just let it go could I?”

 

“You could” turning to face Thomas Rachael began to pout “but would you really deny me that? If you truly object I care for you more then enough to let him live.”

 

Thomas considered this for a moment. “How strongly would you have to object?”

 

“If you could would you pin me down and forcefully restrain me to keep me from harming him?”

 

“No. Even if I had the strength I couldn’t do that to you just to protect him.”

 

“Would you walk out the door and not see me for months or perhaps ever again?”

 

“No.”

 

“Would you yell and shout at me to stop me?”

 

Thomas had to consider this one for a moment but answer. “I don’t believe I could. I guess the most I would do if I was strong enough would be put my hand on your shoulder and ask you to think about it. Whether or not he really deserves to die?”

 

“Oh so you feel that strongly about it?” Rachael pouted a little more and looked down at the ground. She then extended her right leg and began to rub her toe along the floor. “Okay I’ll think about it. You feel far more strongly about this then I thought.”

 

“Are you mad at me?”

 

“No.”

 

“I didn’t hurt your feelings did I? I mean I am sort of protecting someone that once hurt you.”

 

Rachael shook her head. You’ve only asked me to think about it and I love you too much to be mad about such a small thing.” Before Rachael could finish speaking the phone’s ring got her attention.

 

“Don’t worry I’ll get it.”

 

Andrew had a wide grin on his face as he waited for the phone to be picked up. The moment the line clicked and the words hello were said he began. “The word is spreading faster then I expected. The only reason why Rachael even has a week is because I said I would give both sides that long to prepare.”

 

Thomas blinked for a few moments. “Well I doubt Rachael would mind speeding things along. Would Williams like to meet sooner?”

 

“I don’t believe that he would mind.”

 

“Well then get things ready as quickly as possible. Rachael is anxious for the event. The only thing she wanted to splurge on was two nice steaks.”

 

“Oh is she enjoying a last meal?”

 

Thomas gave a slight snort. “You saw what she did to that metal bar.”

 

Andrew gave a slight laugh, in all honesty he didn’t care which way the fight went though as Rachael would be the under dog he was hoping she would come out in the end. “Okay. I’ll let Williams know that you don’t even need a week to prepare.”

 

“We’ll be seeing you soon then.”

 

Rachael wasn’t certain who Thomas had been speaking to at first but she had picked up on the fact that it was Andrew after a few sentences. “Have things changed?”

 

“Yeah, it seems the word is already out. I told Andrew that you were willing to fight whenever Williams could get his three together.”

 

A devilish smile appeared on Rachael’s face. “Do you really believe he’ll be willing to speed his men along to the chopping block?”

 

“Now Rachael, you’re not supposed to kill anyone.”

 

A sigh escaped Rachael. “And I do need to work on building up a reputation. Fine, fine I’ll try my hardest not to kill anyone though that is going to make fighting a pain. It is so hard for me to land a hit on them.”

 

“We really need to work on that. Do you think it has something to do with whatever is holding you to the ground?”

 

“I believe so but to be honest with you I don’t even know if I could handle moving that quickly.”

 

“Didn’t you try to work an improved nervous system into your design?”

 

“Yeah, but things didn’t exactly happen as I planned as you may remember. Of course given that I can control all of this strength it might have been improved I just don’t know if it is any faster.”

 

“Do you have any idea on how we should go about testing you?

 

“I wish that I did. I suppose I really just need to begin working with it. Do you have any suggestions?”

 

“Well we could set up a device that could exert different levels of force on you and practice knocking you down.”

 

“That is a good idea actually. I could work on relaxing without cutting it off entirely with that set up.”

 

“Huh? I was just joking. You know?”

 

Rachael gave a giggle. “Well I wasn’t. I believe that is a good starting point especially if we are going to learn how to speed me up.”

 

“How much force do you believe the first one would need to be able to generate?”

 

“Well let’s keep things modest. I believe that one thousand two hundred Newton would make a nice starting point and eighteen thousand Newton would work for a maxim on the first device. Do you believe you could design something to suit those needs?”

 

“I believe so. You’ll need it to be able to exert the force at different angles won’t you?”

 

“Yeah in order to conduct the tests properly I will. It would also help if the speeds could vary.”

 

“Okay. I’ll see what I can come up with. Who knows perhaps after your fight with Williams men you’ll make some nice connections?”

 

“That would be nice. Anyway” Reaching her fingers into the flames Rachael removed the steaks and set them on two separate plates “dinner is ready.”

 

*****

 

“We really need to start networking.” Rachael followed Thomas through the crowd. They had just finished placing their bet on her and now both were going to head down to the fighters waiting area.

 

“Yeah, well they are going to have another after fight meeting this time. Perhaps we can find someone that could make the outfit you want.”

 

“Yeah other wise it is going to be a real pain to get the testing equipment or clothing made.”

 

“That is true. You probably couldn’t just go into a shop and ask for some clothes that could withstand being hit by a bullet and double as lingerie.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle at the thought. “I can only imagine the looks that I may get if I did that.”

 

“Well if you survive today I should be able to help with that.” Andrew approached Rachael and Thomas through the crowd. “I take it you bet everything on this fight?”

 

Rachael gave a nod. “Of course oh and in case you were wondering those steaks a few nights back weren’t my last nice meal. I hope Williams gave his men a last nice meal though. Oh crap, never mind on that part.”

 

Andrew couldn’t help the curious grin on his face. “Huh?”

 

Shaking her head Rachael glanced up at the roof for a moment. “I am not allowed to kill them.”

 

Andrew gave his head a shake. “You either have a great poker face or you are very confident in your abilities. I have to say though those setting the odds don’t agree with your confidence.”

 

Thomas gave a slight chuckle. “Then won’t they be upset whenever Rachael takes their money?”

 

Andrew couldn’t help but smile as it seemed that Thomas had just as much confidence in Rachael as she had in herself. “Well then it is a good thing you bet as much as you can. If you win this fight Rachael it is going to be nearly impossible for you to get even money by betting on yourself.”

 

Rachael let out a long sigh. “I know that is the only bad part about it. To make matters worse I won’t sell my design which means despite the fact that winning is going to make it exceptionally more valuable.”

 

Thomas gave a slight chuckle and gave Rachael a kiss on the arm before turning back to Andrew. “After Rachael wins this fight would you mind introducing us to a few people who could supply machinery and help with Rachael’s outfit?”

 

“After she wins the fight I will.”

 

Rachael couldn’t help but wonder. “So who did you bet on?”

 

Andrew grinned. “I handle the bets I don’t officially bet myself. However, I would be very grateful if you would just last past thirty minutes and if you won it would be wonderful.”

 

“So how confident are you in Rachael? I mean in what time range would you lose money?”

 

“If she doesn’t at least last twenty minutes then I am going to lose more then I win.”

 

Rachael gave an amused giggle. “Well I am glad to see that you’re so confident in me.”

 

Andrew grinned. “I saw Ox’s punches not even fazing you. I am confident in your ability to take a beating. I have to admit though your confidence makes me hopeful that I shall clean up. Oh and I wanted to tell you. Today you enter the ring first.”

 

“Why is that? I am the newcomer after all.”

 

“Yeah but it is your death match you’re the star of the fight.”

 

*****

 

Rachael found herself fairly amused as she looked around at the ring. They hadn’t just repaired the damage since her last fight but had improved the ring considerably. What had once amounted to steel bars or polls at best were now massive columns, the flimsy looking metal fencing still surrounded the ring but now it was backed up by several rather heavy looking bars. Of course Rachael couldn’t be certain if they were truly fastened into place or if they were just there for show. Then again the original polls had been secured to the foundation so there was a good chance the new ones weren’t just for show.

 

The announcer was used to see unusual fights and indeed death matches. However, as he readied himself he could hardly believe it was to be a one sided death match. “Today we have a very special event, three warriors against one fighter in what may be a first for this arena. A death match in which only one side is allowed to kill, Rachael the new comer with only one fight to her credit has agreed not to kill a single opponent in this fight while her opponents will be trying to do exactly that to her.

 

Should she slip up and kill one an entirely fresh fighter will be allowed to enter the ring. How can one fight hope to stand up to these odds?”

 

Rachael couldn’t help but giggle as she looked at the announcer. Who for some reason had grown quiet for a moment, “insects are still insects I am just using tape instead of needles.”

 

“Do you here that folks? It seems the young lady is quite confident however lets see if that is justified especially after she meets her opponents.”

 

The grin didn’t leave Rachael’s face as she began to watch Williams’s chosen fighters walk down towards the ring. As the announcer spoke she looked them over. The one in the lead was quite massive. He actually had an even larger build then Ox he also had a feature that made her smile. His fist seemed to be extra dense, after a moment of inspection she was certain the bones had been adapted to give him a sort of internal steel knuckle.

 

The fighter behind him Rachael quickly wrote of as snaky. His frame spoke of someone that had been trained or designed for agility. She couldn’t see any internal weapons but that didn’t mean he didn’t have them either.

 

The finale fighter Rachael quickly decided deserved the name Bones. His skull had been shaped in a rather thick way probably for head butting and when she looked at his arms she had to keep from jumping up and down with delight. His skeletal structure had been adapted so that he had two rather lengthy talons or spears sticking out from his arms. Given his level of modifications Rachael knew that he one of the few fighters that had given up any chance of operating in normal society.

 

All three of them had the aura of fighters that had given themselves entirely to the underworld so much so that they couldn’t survive in public. As the three of them made their way into the ring Rachael took on a combative stance. She hadn’t bothered using one for Ox and in truth didn’t believe she needed to use one for these three either. She doubted even bones would be able to break her skin.

 

There were actually only two things that concerned her. Holding back enough so as to not kill them but took them down quickly and actually hitting them. She felt certain that hitting snaky was going to prove to be a real pain.

 

The announcer took a moment to insure that everyone was ready. “Begin.”

 

Snaky as Rachael had expected quickly proved that he was the swiftest of the three as he easily moved around the three and went strait for her. As Rachael braced herself expecting him to strike her she was surprised when he spit in her face instead.

 

“YOU SON OF A BITCH.” Rachael hadn’t been expecting him to spit in her face and her voice clearly showed that she didn’t appreciate it. However, Snaky was quick to retreat back to the safety of his comrades.

 

Snaky grinned as he looked at Rachael. “Just wait until the paralyzing effects begin to kick in.”

 

Rachael heard the words but they didn’t truly register with her as she charged the three of them. As she advanced bones and snaky quickly moved to the sides and left the largest of the three to deal with her. Drawing back his massive fist he aimed to flatten Rachael’s face as he drove her fist into it. His fist connected solidly however it didn’t get the result he had expected as Rachael continued to move forward.

 

Hammer that was a suitable name for the largest of the three Rachael decided as she actually used her face as a weapon. Instead of trying to avoid his punch she had drove her face into it with the result that he felt as a normal human who had just punched a solid steel bowling ball that was moving towards them.

 

With the gap between herself and hammer now closed Rachael drew fist back and attempt to drive it into Hammer’s stomach. She was a bit surprised when he not only had the time to avoid the punch even at such a close distance but ceased it and proceeded to pull her even further forward.

 

Hammer easily made use of Rachael’s own forward momentum to send her slamming into the arena side. A horrific metallic ring was heard throughout the whole of the arena as she struck the metal bars with such force that had the not been backed up she would have torn clean through it.

 

Snaky chuckled as Hammer fell back from Rachael. “Well is she out?”

 

Rachael growled as she turned around to face the three. “No.”

 

Hammer shook his hand for a few moments. They had all seen Rachael’s speed so he knew that he could avoid her if she charged. “Her face hurt my hand.”

 

Bones gave a nod and stepped up for his group. “Then let me try her. How long until that sedative kicks in?”

 

Snaky gave a shrug. “She seems pretty advanced if she can take a hit like that. It could be a few minutes.”

 

Bone’s gave a nod and moved quickly to close the gap between him and Rachael far more quickly then Rachael would have thought he could move. The moment he was within range the spikes within his arms fully expended and he drove his right arm blade into her back. Rachael had been expecting this though and had already begun to push backwards and into the blade before he had even thrust it.

 

A cry of pain escaped Bones as the muscles inside his arm struggled to keep the blade extended even as it was forced back into its place. He was able to avoid the muscles being seriously damaged by quickly falling back.

 

Rachael glanced over her shoulder at the three of them. “As you can tell your attacks aren’t actually capable of harming me. Now I am going to kick all three of your asses. Oh and the little runt you have with you is really going to pay for spitting in my face.”

 

Thomas had been quiet since the start of the fight though he had been watching intently. Now that he had seen each of the fighters take a stab at harming Rachael he felt a wave of relief wash over him. Now she was clearly on the offensive. ‘DON’T KILL THEM.”

 

“I KNOW BLAST IT.” Rachael shouted in order to insure Thomas could hear her and to remind herself. It was actually a good thing Thomas had reminded Rachael that she wasn’t permitted to kill any of her opponents as at the moment she had been thinking it would be fun to impale Snaky on his own teammate’s spikes.

 

Hammer and Bones easily avoided Rachael’s attacks as Hammer remembered the incident when he used her own momentum to throw her. Avoiding one of her punches he once again took hold of her arm and sent Rachael flying through the air. This time however Bones was prepared and brought out both of his blades so that as Rachael flew over he drove their sharpest points into her.

 

As Rachael flew over she felt the razor sharp edges glide over her skin but fail to cut. In truth they didn’t even tickle her however she couldn’t help but feel a wave of concern when she felt them easily cut through the material of her top.

 

Bones Hammer and Snaky all stood back as they waited to see if they attack had been a success or not. Even if Bones couldn’t put enough power into his attacks alone to cut her skin perhaps by working together they had managed to do it.

 

Rachael straitened up slowly and made no move to attack the group as she looked towards Thomas through the steel bars and fencing. Instead she took hold of one of the heavy steel bars that now composed the ring. Using both hands she easily tore the metal apart then moved a few meters away and made another brake.

 

At last she stood back and allowed the shredded material of her top to fall away. For only a moment her breast were exposed before Rachael moved the steel bar over her nipples and proceeded to bind it around herself.

 

Thomas knew that everyone facing that side of the ring had just seen what happened. However, he also knew that the little show Rachael had just put on hand been for him. The whole time she had been bending the steel bar around herself her eyes had held his.

 

Rachael pursed her lips for a moment and blew Thomas a little kiss after bending the bar around multiple times to insure it would stay put. She then turned back to her three opponents. “I would say that you ticked me off by ruining my top but to be honest you didn’t. Now I am just amused.”

 

He could see it happening again once Rachael renewed her attack on the three. She had been rather upset when one of the fighters had spit in her face. That hadn’t lasted though as the fight went on Thomas saw Rachael anger and frustration slipping away as the fight was once again reaching the status of game. The only thing spitting in her face had done was delay this for a little while. Even now he could hear slight hints of it on the air, Rachael’s cute little giggles.

 

Andrew could hardly believe what he was seeing. The three as they were often called were some of Williams’ most feared fighters. He had only seen them in the ring by themselves a few times and even fewer as a group. However, whether in a group or alone the outcome had almost always been a complete slaughter of their opponents.

 

Now they were being ripped apart by someone that didn’t have nearly their speed or skill but was simply far too strong for them. Their attacks had proven entirely ineffective against her and Thomas didn’t know how many other methods of attack they could come up with. He wasn’t sure if he actually believed what was going on and imagined many in the audience felt the same way.

 

This was going to be good for her career as far as getting a spot as a high ranked fighter but it was going to kill her odds and it was only her second fight. Rachael had hoped to at least be able to bet on herself and receive a few decent pay days but that wasn’t going to happen. After she beat these three all at the same time she wondered if she could even make a ten percent profit by betting on herself. At least she would be making a lot of money on this one fight.

 

Thomas was glad that they had bet everything they could on the fight though he was beginning to wish that they had taken out a loan. Who in their right mind would be willing to bet against Rachael after she bent that steel bar? There was also the fact that even though her opponents had landed far more hits on her then she had them they were the ones that were looking the worse for it.

 

Snaky leapt into the air easily avoiding his comrade’s air born body. Hammer hulking form was sent slamming into the side of a ring. The impact was less powerful then when he had through Rachael into them but still had enough energy to cause a noticeable metallic ring.

 

Hammer slummed against the side of the ring. The punch hadn’t killed him but he felt as if his inside had been mashed and felt confident that he had a few broken ribs and every other one had been at least fractured. He could hardly believe it even as he felt himself losing consciousness. She had done so much damage to him with only a single punch. It was almost as if he had struck a normal human.

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle and turned towards Bones and Snaky. “That is one of you under glass.”

 

Bones and Snaky were fairly perplexed by Rachael’s comment but they didn’t bother asking what she meant. They were too concerned with avoiding her attacks but still trying to win the fight. Had it been an option they would have been trying their best to get out of the ring.

 

Rachael grinned at Snaky for a moment. “You’re so lucky that I agreed not to kill any of you. I’ll just settle for ripping out that tongue of yours.”

 

Snaky could have loved to try and get out of the ring now. Since Rachael had tore out a section of the bars he could probably make it through there. The only thing that kept him in the ring is that he knew that something far worse would happen to him if he ran away.

 

Thomas couldn’t help but smile as he listened to Rachael. Her fight with Ox had eventually become a game to her. The same had happened with these three except that she had taken the game to a higher level. She was now taking the time to taunt her opponents. He could quite explain but he felt his desire to reach out and touch Rachael growing all the stronger. The more she played with her opponents and the more she flaunted her power the stronger his affection for her seemed to become. His desire for her seemed to grow.

 

As Snaky and Bones continued to dodge her Rachael found her mind drifting to thoughts of Thomas and the fight with Ox. The fight had been fun and Thomas seemed to enjoy watching her but she hadn’t really taken advantage of the situation.

 

She wasn’t just fighting or playing a game. She was putting on a show. Two shows in all honest one which was meant for the audience that could see her physical actions only but she was putting on a show for Thomas as well and she wanted to make sure that he had time to enjoy the feature. As Rachael considered this she began to put less force into each punch and kick.

 

As Thomas watched the fight he began to notice something odd happening. Even though Rachael’s opponents were going more on the defensive now and simply trying to use her attacks against her. They were dodging by a smaller and smaller margin. At least that seemed to be what was happening. At least he wouldn’t have any trouble focusing on Rachael as he tried to figure out just what was going on.

 

Hammer had been able to endure a punch from Rachael however Snaky knew he didn’t have anywhere near that level of endurance. So when Rachael’s fist slammed into his side he truly felt it was the end of him. The impact was forceful enough to lift him from the ground and send him flying three meters.

 

Bones had at first been worried that he was the only one left. However, as he watched Snaky fly through the air he felt a surge of hope. Rachael had knocked Hammer even further then Snaky and Hammer had a lot more mass then Snaky. Perhaps the sedative that had been spit in her face during the start of the fight was beginning to work or perhaps she could only maintain her strength at such high levels for so long.

 

Once again extending his arm blades Bones quickly rushed in to strike once Snaky was down. Drawing his arm back he moved to drive his blade into Rachael’s heart.

 

Rachael was surprised when she saw the attack coming but still moved to block it. Holding up her right hand the blade slammed into her palm and she quickly wrapped her fingers around it. “You know not killing you doesn’t mean I can’t brake things.” With that Rachael bent her hand forward snapping off the very end of Bones weapon.

 

Thomas nearly jumped out of his seat as a horrible shriek pierced the air. Quickly scanning the area he realized that the sound was coming from the ring and in particularly the fighter who had just had part of his body torn off. Apparently whatever they had done to his body and skeletal structure had quite an effect upon his vocal cords as well.

 

Snaky’s eyes widened in horror as he set up and heard Bones screaming. Looking at his comrade he realized what had happened and knew that in just a moment he would be the only fighter left.

 

Rachael was somewhat surprised by how much of a response she had got from Bones just by braking the tip of his weapon. She had expected them to be numb instead it turns out they were rather sensitive at least when broken and even though the ear splitting scream he released didn’t hurt her ears she soon tired of it. “Shut up.”


 

Drawing her fist back Rachael sunk nearly to her wrist into Bones gut forcing all the air out of his lunges in one motion. Perhaps she was being merciful to him. As Bones sunk to the floor the blinding pain was soon replaced by unconsciousness.

 

Looking down at the bit of broken bone Rachael turned towards Snaky. “Hey look now I can just cut your tongue out instead of tearing it out. I wonder which one would be more fun though?”

 

Thomas grinned as he considered the final fighters situation. He knew that spitting in Rachael’s face would only anger her and yet what else could he do? The other two fighters had been far more suited to actual combat than he was. His specialty seemed to be going in and poisoning his opponent then waiting for it to take its affect. Now trapped in the cage with Rachael he was truly between a rock and a hard spot. The only thing he had going for him was his speed.

 

Rachael moved quickly to take hold of Snaky she fully expecting him to dodge but if she was going to wear him down she was going to have to make him move around. She was quite surprised when he didn’t make any attempt to move but continued to hold his ground.

 

Snaky glared at Rachael having already realized the fight was lost. If he had the option he would have retreated from the ring but since he didn’t he decided that he could at least when a minor victory and not play her game any longer.

 

While increasing the pressure which she exerted on his shoulder Rachael looked down at Snaky. “I know you can understand me and you know what is going to happen to you.” When Snaky didn’t even flinch under her grip or move due to her words a long sigh escaped Rachael which soon turned to a giggle. “Oh I see. You believe that you can ruin my fun by not even trying to run away. Well then let’s just test that theory.”

 

Thomas wasn’t sure what was happening until he saw Rachael lift Snaky from the ground and carried him over to the side of the arena. She then held him against the post as she dropped the bone from her hand to free it up. She then proceeded to take hold of the bars on either side of him and tear them from the others.

 

Rachael carefully bent the bars around Snaky so that he wouldn’t be able to wiggle free once she got going. If he believed that his refusal to fight back was going to spare him any pain he was sorely mistaken. He had attempted to kill her at the start of the fight after all so she wasn’t about to show him any mercy.


 

*****

 

“Let’s get that blood cleaned off you.” Thomas smiled and patted Rachael on the back one of the few parts of her body that wasn’t soaked in the substance. Rachael for her part giggled and allowed Thomas to lead her towards the wash room.

 

Sally glanced over at Williams. “David did a lot better then I expected. It took him a while to start screaming.”

 

Williams gave a nod. “Well at least he has a long rest to look forward to. She broke nearly everyone bone in his body most of them more then once I believe. It is even going to take an enhanced a while to recover from that.”

 

Thomas glanced over at the remains of the steel bar Rachael had torn from the ring. Once they had made their way to the washroom she had removed it and cast it aside like it weighed nothing. Standing up Thomas walked over to the bar and bent down. Taking hold of it he began to stand up. “Impressive. This bar feels like it weighs sixty kilograms.”

 

Rachael glanced out from the shower stall and gave a slight giggle. “Well I couldn’t leave the ring to get a new top so I had to improvise and just tying my top back together didn’t seem very elegant. I hope they don’t make us pay for the ring.”

 

The sound of someone knocking on the door got both their attention.

Rachael turned to Thomas. “Go ahead and let them in. Just tell them no peaking.”

 

Andrew had a wide grin on his face when Thomas opened the door.

“Well how is the victories couple doing?”

 

“Great, Rachael is cleaning the blood off of her right now.”

 

“Yeah I imagine she needs to. May I come in?”

 

“Sure. Just stay away from the showers.”

 

Andrew gave a nod and stepped past Thomas once he moved to the side. He then walked as close to the showers as he dared go. “Well Rachael. You did it. You beat three very lethal fighters without so much as breaking a sweat. They were like kittens compared to you.”

 

Rachael couldn’t help but laugh at Andrew’s comment. “Kittens? Andrew I was scratched by a kitten before I got my powers and it stung. Those three weren’t kittens compared to me. They were moths and not very big ones either. Anyway, kittens are cuter.”

 

Andrew nodded his head in agreement even though Rachael couldn’t see him. “You showed everyone though and made me quite a bit of money.”

 

“I made myself quite a bit of money as well. I suppose everyone that betted on a certain time limit lost their money.”

 

“Well yes since all time limits specified that you died between the start and finish.”

 

Thomas had to keep himself from laughing as he listened to Andrew’s voice. There was quite a difference between the tone he had been using earlier in the day and the tone he was currently using.

 

Rachael looked around the shower stall. “So are you going to introduce me to some people who could make the outfit I want?”

 

Andrew gave a quick nod. “Believe me Rachael they are plenty of helpful people that want to get to know you.”

 

Rachael gave a quick nod and pulled her head back into the shower. “Now they aren’t going to start bothering me to sell my design are they?”

 

Andrew let out a sigh. “Well I can’t exactly stop them from asking about it.”

 

“Thomas, would you mind talking to them?”

 

Thomas gave a nod and walked past Andrew so that he could look in on Rachael. “Sure.”

 

It didn’t bother Rachael that Thomas was watching her clean off. In fact she rather liked the attention. “Would you like to come in here and help me get cleaned up?”

 

“I wouldn’t mind helping you get cleaned up later but not right now.”

 

“Okay. Then would you mind getting my clothes for me?”

 

“Does it mean I have to step away?”

 

“Well yes.”

 

“Here I am going to be doing you a favor and negotiate for you and you’re making me step away from such a wonderful view.”

 

Rachael giggled and glanced over her shoulder at Thomas. “I’ll make it up to you later.”

 

“Do you promise?”

 

“Yes I promise.”

 

“Well okay.” While still chuckling a bit Thomas stepped away from the shower and went to the gym bag in which Rachael had stored an extra set of clothes.

 

“Andrew. Is there anyway I can get them to drop the subject of buying my DNA design?”

 

“The only thing I can truly suggest is being firm on the subject.”

 

“You would think that beating up Williams men would be enough to get them to leave the subject alone. What were their names anyway?”

 

Andrew gave a shrug even though Rachael couldn’t see it. “You didn’t notice? The announcer didn’t name them.”

 

Thomas set Rachael’s clothes down where she would able to reach them without leaving the lower. “You mean they have never been named?”

 

“Nope they haven’t.”

 

“Is that common?”

 

“Well most fighters don’t use their real names but to not even have a title is pretty strange. Don’t get me wrong though. They aren’t the best that is out there.”

 

Rachael could be heard giggling despite the water. “Well of course they aren’t the best. There superior is right in here. Andrew you sound a little shocked about everything that has happened.”

 

“You surprised me. You can believe that.”

 

“Well if you don’t mind. Step out for a little while I want to get dressed.”

 

“Sure. I’ll just be talking around and seeing if I can find a few people who can help you with your outfit.”

 

*****

 

Rachael had spent more time washing her face then any part of her body. It was odd but the spit left her feeling dirtier then the blood did even though it came from the same person. Even as she stood with her back against the massive column she wished that she had taken some more time to wash her face.

 

“Well that was easier then I expected.” Thomas smiled as he approached Rachael having been a few yards away speaking with a few people about her outfit.

 

“You did a good job of negotiating.”

 

“It was easy thanks to you. It seems that speaking for one of the top fighters gives one a lot of leverage. I guess combative abilities have been a source of prestige for a long time and this is an arena after all.”

 

“That or maybe they just liked the description you gave them.”

 

“That could be true. I know I am looking forward to seeing you dressed up.”

 

Rachael grinned but took a moment to scan the room. “You know I am kind of surprised that I haven’t seen Williams the entire time that we have been here.”

 

“I suppose he’s checking up on his fighters.”

 

Rachael gave a slight shrug and proceeded to take hold of Thomas’s shirt collar and pull him closer to herself she then proceeded to spin him around and pull him against herself entirely. “Hide me. I think I see some people wanting to talk business.” Thomas could only chuckle as he put on his business face and prepared for another lengthy session of saying no to selling Rachael’s DNA design.

 

Gregory grinned as he overhead Rachael’s words despite the crowd of people. Years of working on various machines had taught him to drown out certain unwanted sounds. “No, I can’t say that I have come to talk about DNA designs though I am here to talk about certain designs.”

 

Thomas grinned. “That is nice to here. I take it your one of the people that deals with specialized equipment then?”

 

“That would be me. My name is Gregory Philips and I already know who you two are.”

 

Thomas gave a quick nod of his head. “I guess Rachael’s fights left quite and impression.”

 

“Yeah especially the ending” Gregory didn’t bother to mention that Andrew had given him an earful before he came over. “So just what kind of machinery are you looking for?”

 

“Well right now we need a sort of ram and weight combination. It also needs to be able to exert forces at different angles.”

 

“So a punching and pushing machine in other words?”

 

“Yeah we haven’t really been able to test Rachael in certain respects for quite some time.”

 

Gregory gave a nod. “How much force are we talking about?”

 

“It would need to be able to at least produce one thousand two hundred Newton of force for a minimum and eighteen thousand Newton of force would make a nice maximum.”

 

“So you believe that it would take somewhere between those ranges of force to affect you?” Gregory looked past Thomas and towards Rachael who had been quiet during the conversation.

 

Rachael had to keep herself from grinning when she considered Gregory’s question. Perhaps Andrew wasn’t as on her side as he pretended to be? “Yes that is our current hypothesis.”

 

Thomas had to keep himself from grinning. Instead he gave Rachael’s hand a quick smack as if she had done something wrong. “Rachael.”

 

Continuing to play along Rachael simply widened her eyes as if realizing she had just made a mistake but still trying to cover it up. She hoped this little bit of disinformation would pay off.

 

“What kind of area would you like the force to be able to be exerted over?”

 

Thomas glanced back at Rachael. “You know I was going to build the device. We really just need the materials and equipment.”

 

Gregory hadn’t acted as if he noticed the slip up on Rachael’s part or at least what he believed had been a slip up. “Well we can provide the tools and materials though that won’t really save you much money.”

 

Thomas and Rachael was fairly certain of what Gregory was actually up to now but decided to keep playing along. “That seems kind of odd. The cost of designing and constructing is normally far more then the materials.”

 

Gregory was able to keep himself from flinching as he realized that in his effort to insure they let him build the machine and get the exact design specific that he might have slipped up. However, considering Rachael’s fight he was able to think of a quick excuse. “Well normally only the best fighters get such special treatment and such reputations take a long time to achieve but your second fight was just so spectacular.” For a moment Gregory though he had did a nice job of excusing himself then he noticed Rachael glaring at him.

 

Rachael had been amused through most of the conversation but now Gregory had said something that truly upset her. “You listen to me. I don’t care if I only have a few fights to my name I am the strongest fighter there is.”

 

Thomas could have sworn he felt the anger radiating from Rachael. Apparently after just beating down three very powerful opponents even while hindered by her agreement not to use any killing strikes she wasn’t in the mood to have her abilities questioned or for someone to even suggest they were second to anyone else’s.

 

Gregory grew somewhat more nervous. He knew most fighters were quite boastful after a win but Rachael seemed to have taken what was meant to be a complement as a grave insult. “Ah, yes. I quite agree which is why you’re being offered such a wonderful deal.”

 

“Damn it!” The sound of Rachael’s voice caused nearly everyone in the room to turn in her direction. “Where is Williams? He still owes me that little twerp. Did they mention anything to you when you went to retrieve the money?” Rachael quickly glanced at Thomas.

 

“No. They didn’t say anything but I forgot to ask. Rachael, why can’t you just let it go though? You didn’t care until you just remembered and you had fun.”

 

“He threatened you. That is why and I won’t let him get away with that!” Rachael couldn’t help the anger in her voice as she began to scan the room.

 

Thomas glanced at Gregory who still seemed shocked but glad he wasn’t the person Rachael was yelling about. “It looks like we’ll have to continue this conversation some other time. As far as the design if it could have exchangeable heads the highest being half a square meter and the lowest being one ten a square millimeter that would be fine.”

 

Rachael didn’t wait for Gregory to respond but took hold of Thomas’s arm and began to lead him through the crowd. At the moment she cared more about finding Williams and getting her final prize then any testing device.


 

*****

 

Thomas sighed as he set just outside the door. It was one of the few times he had actually been separate from Rachael since their camping trip. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy her company and he didn’t exactly want to be separate from her now but he really didn’t want to see what Rachael’s idea of a fitting punishment for threatening someone she cared for was.

 

When he glanced down at his watch he wasn’t really surprised to find that Rachael had been in the room for three hours now. He was a bit surprised though when the door finally opened and Rachael stepped out without a drop of blood on her.

 

“Sorry to have kept you waiting.”

 

“Are you done with your punishment?”

 

“Yep all done. That should send a message. What is the matter you look a little confused?”

 

“There isn’t a drop of blood on you. I just thought the punishment you had in mind was going to be kind of messy.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle. “Thomas, do you remember the trick I did at the sink a few days ago?”

 

“Yeah, oh never mind. So how much time did you have to spend cleaning up?”

 

“It only took me twenty minutes to be honest. Of course if you don’t believe I punished him enough I could go back in there.”

 

“You mean he is still alive?”

 

“For now but I don’t believe there is a doctor alive that could save him.”

 

“No thanks.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle and leaned against Thomas. “Are you sure you don’t want to see what happens to people that threaten the one I love?”

 

“Considering what you did to that Snaky fellow for just spitting on you. I don’t believe I want to see what happened in that room.”

 

“Ah come on you have been to dissections before.”

 

Thomas gave a nod and gave Rachael a quick kiss on the cheek. “It’s nice to know that you’re loved.”

 

Rachael gave a contented sigh and scooped Thomas up in her arms. “Yes it is. Okay let’s get back to the party and see if we can still get a few things done. Then we can go on home.”

 

*****

 

“No. There has got to be a basement. I don’t care how nice the rest of the house is there has got to be a basement.” Thomas sighed in annoyance and lightly banged his head against the wall. “This is not working.”

 

“Finding a home that suits our needs is proving to be pretty difficult.”

 

Thomas gave a nod and looked up at Rachael who was currently setting at a computer monitor browsing various advertisements. “How is your search going?”

 

“It isn’t going very well. I have found a few homes that had a high enough equality electrical system but most of them don’t have a study enough floor plan.”

 

“We may just have to build.”

 

Rachael gave a slight sigh and leaned against her desk for a moment. “I really had hoped that money would quit being an issue once I won a few fights but blast it all. The equipment I want cost a lot more then I realized when I was using someone else’s budget.”

 

“I would have thought you would know the price quite well considering how long you spent gathering up equipment.”

 

“Well that was done over a long period of time and I didn’t really have other concerns at the time. Plus I got it cheaper then I realized.”

 

“How about selling DNA designs? You don’t have to sell your own you know.”

 

Rachael set up for a moment and suddenly gave herself a quit smack on the head. “I feel like such an idiot.”

 

“What?”

 

“You’re right. I guess I got kind of caught up in the idea of using my muscle to earn money. I have brains to.”

 

“Even without selling your own DNA design the fact that you developed yourself and have demonstrated what you can develop so clearly should add a lot of value to the designs you do decide to sell.”

 

Rachael gave a nod. “Of course there is still the matter of equipment. You’re right we might as well build.”

 

“We could keep looking a while longer if you want. I mean your house was able to meet the energy needs the equipment requires and you had sturdy enough flooring.”

 

“No. To be honest buying a house and adapting it was more of a compromise then I wanted. I just didn’t see any other option given that we have to hold onto enough money to make betting on me mean something.”

 

“That is true. Of course we don’t know if beating Williams’ men is going to hurt the odds that badly.”

 

“For my next fight let’s look into taking out a few loans.”

 

“Sure as long as they don’t have any conditional fights.”

 

“Huh, you think they will?”

 

“I don’t really know to be honest. Since your basically showing off what you’re capable of doing in the arena I am willing to wager a few of the fights feature speed only.”

 

Rachael visible and audibly groaned in response to Thomas’s point “Which I don’t have much of.”

 

“I don’t know if that is entirely true.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Near the end of the fight when you were fighting the fellow the blades you managed to block one of his attacks.”

 

Rachael grew silent for a moment as she remembered the side. “Hey you’re right. Do you think he might have slowed down?”

 

“Considering that he seemed to be trying to put as much power into the attack as possible I doubt that.”

 

“So you think that I might have for a brief moment then matching their speeds?”

 

“It’s hard for me to say for certain. It would have been better if that lanky fellow had actually fought back.”

 

“Yeah, I wouldn’t have broken so many of his bones if he had done that.”

 

“Well it would have been better for you as well. What were you thinking before that happened?”

 

“I was relaxing I suppose. I had resolved to keep my guard up so that I wouldn’t be knocked around but to draw the fight out and not use so much force. To be honest I was more relaxed.”

 

“Maybe tapping into your speed has something to do with how relaxed you are but also what you are trying to do?”

 

“That is very possible. I would have to be using more force then normal to push off the ground but I would have to be relaxed enough to not be grounding myself. Then again that is assuming I can control whatever force grounds me when I tense up.”

 

“We’re going to need some machinery to detect energy levels.”

 

“Yeah we will especially need to test for any changes in electric or magnetic forces.”

 

Thomas grew silent for a moment. “You know Rachael I just realized something or at least I believe that I may have.”

 

“What you’re beautiful whoops I already knew that.”

 

Rachael gave a slight giggle and gave Thomas a quick kiss. “Thanks, but come on what did you have in mind?”

 

“Would you mind if I stepped out for a few?”

 

“I would if it involves you leaving me here.”

 

Thomas gave a slight laugh. “Okay. Then we need to go out and pick up a few pieces of equipment really quickly.”

 

*****

 

“Well that should do it.” Rachael stood up and glanced down at the trampoline Thomas had been so eager to go out and purchase. “What do you want to do now?”

 

Thomas grinned and removed his shoes before stepping onto the trampoline and taking a few quick test hops. In the mean time Rachael couldn’t help but wonder what was going on. “Okay. Now I want you to climb on here with me.”

 

Shrugging Rachael did as she was asked and climbed onto the elastic material. “Is this just a plan to see how bouncy I am? As I assure you while firm they still have plenty of bounce.”

 

Thomas gave a slight chuckle. “Hey that is a bonus that I hadn’t thought about.”

 

“Well then what did you want to see?”

 

“The trampoline went down further when you climbed on here with me. Well.” Thomas grinned and stepped off the low platform and Rachael was immediately lifted slightly higher.

 

Rachael wasn’t exactly certain what Thomas was getting at. She knew that he must have a reason but she couldn’t help but grin. “Come on Thomas tell me what you’re thinking about. You’re making me feel silly.” A slight giggle escaped Rachael as a cute smile appeared on her face as well as a slight blush. She felt like she was conducting a kindergarten science experiment.”

 

“Okay now I want you to extend your arms as if you were going to pick me.” Rachael gave a nod and extended her arms. “Now I want you to pick me up.” Once again Rachael complied and leaned forward a bit so that she could reach under Thomas and lift him into her arms.

 

“Okay now how about telling me what is going on.”

 

“Wait.” Thomas took his time waiting to feel any change. He then glanced down at Rachael’s feet. “So are you ready to find out what I was testing?”

 

“Yes!”

 

Thomas couldn’t help but laugh. “Okay. The trampoline hasn’t been forced down at all since you picked me up.”

 

“What?” Rachael’s eyes widened and she glanced down at her feet. As she looked down in shock she finally felt the trampoline beginning to lower once again.

 

“Ah there it goes.”

 

“How did?” Rachael gave a quick laugh and pressed her lips against Thomas’s for a moment. “How did you know to test that?”

 

“I just thought about it when I remembered you lifting up that tree. How you were still taller then me even after you lifted it up? You should have at least sunk down into the earth a little with all that mass pressing down on your feet.”

 

“Okay then whatever I am doing to hold myself to a certain spot somehow doesn’t affect how much I weigh in relation to the wrest of my environment.”

 

“Well until whatever was providing the support decides to relax.”

 

“Of course I wonder if I can cause myself to lift up again.”

 

“I have been wondering that is well. It could have a lot of applications if that is the case.”

 

“Shhh give me a moment to try and focus.” Rachael closed her eyes for a moment and tried to remember how she had felt when she lifted Thomas up as compared to how she felt once she realized that she hadn’t caused the trampoline to sink down any. She hadn’t really been thinking of anything at the moment only that she was supporting his weight.”

 

Thomas felt Rachael’s grip shift slightly and her breast rub against his body as she lifted him up quite slowly and lowered him back down. Whether she was conducting a test or simply trying to excite him he didn’t know however he couldn’t exactly hide the results of being rubbed against Rachael’s wonderful breast. He started to say something when he noticed the look of concentration on Rachael’s face. Either she was trying very hard to get him off just by rubbing him against her chest or she was testing and in either case he knew not to disturb her.

 

End Chapter 3