“Hiya, Retvik, how are ya?”
Retvik grunted as he glanced up from his bottle of mead. He was in a bad mood for a myriad for reasons and had a lot on his mind. This distraction wasn’t completely unwanted, but it was unexpected.
“Hello, Elksia. Hello… Tenuk, you look… unusual…”
Tenuk grinned as he pulled up a chair and sat down. Elksia grinned as well, but she decided to just sit on Tenuk’s lap. Tenuk looking not himself was a common thing. After all, Tenuk was a Kronospast, he had always been capable of shapeshifting, even when he was mortal. That being said, Tenuk did have several different forms that he switched between, when he wasn’t blatantly being a Kronospast proper, and his most common form was that of a tall, gangly Rethavok with blue plating and grey-blue skin.
“Do I?” Tenuk teased. “I’m just being a Rethan today, same as normal.”
Retvik looked Tenuk up and down some more. He was much, much more muscular than normal. And he’d made himself a good bit taller than Retvik. Tenuk’s original shapeshifted Rethan form had always hovered at the 3m mark, and, these days, with Retvik having grown a lot since he became a Decay Lord, Tenuk had never adjusted his Rethan form. Until now, clearly.
Actually, now that Retvik was thinking about it, Elksia had made herself a bit taller too. Since Elksia was a Time Drake, she didn’t quite have the power to completely shapeshift the way Tenuk could, but she could ‘form change’. Basically, Elksia could change her shape, give herself wings or extra armour or whatever, but she always kept her normal colours and features, namely her green skin and armour tones, her arm-blades, bird-like talons and glowing eyes. Currently though, apart from being taller, Elksia was mostly her old, Vrekan self, with her arm-blades sheathed. She was also… not wearing much. Just a tiny pair of shorts and a single strip of fabric that covered her breasts.
Retvik didn’t know why female Vrekans had breasts. He did know why female Ksithans (and their relatives, the many Temthan subspecies) had breasts, it was to produce milk to feed their young. Retvik also wasn’t sure whether he could ask or not, after all, he’d known Elksia for pretty much their entire lives.
“You can ask me, you know!”
“Pardon?”
Elksia grinned. “You can ask me why we have tits. I won’t bite. I’m bird-like, I peck instead.”
Retvik stuttered. “Um… why do you have breasts, Elksia?”
“Milk. Lovely, pink milk. Did ya know? If you have a hatchling and someone else’s hatchie cries? Your tits leak milk. Happened to my sister once. At a fancy gathering. Ruined her top. Was hilarious.”
“Oh. Alright…” Retvik had no idea how to respond to that. Or, well, respond to anything really.
“Anyway, Retvik, friend, you seem mighty stressed!” Tenuk smiled. “I mean, I get that, we got attacked by pirates and there’s still some incinerated brain matter in the parking area, but you’re way more stressed than everyone else and you’re kinda out here on your own, drinking. Which isn’t like you.”
Retvik grunted. “I am more angry than stressed.”
“Oh? How comes?”
“Litvir snapped at me and has locked himself in his sleeping quarters. I was hoping that the… conversation we had would have made him more open to me, about us being partners, but Litvir is angry and I do not understand why. I fear he has been lying to me and does not want to be my partner. Definitely has not wanted to sleep with me lately…”
Elksia glanced at Tenuk, then giggled. She suddenly climbed across the table and sat herself in Retvik’s lap.
“If Litvir doesn’t want you, we’ll have you!”
Retvik opened his mouth but no words came out at first. After a third attempt at talking, he finally managed something.
“I… do not want to cheat on Litvir.”
“You ain’t married, it ain’t cheating!” Elksia chirped. “And, like, ain’t Litty polyamorous?”
“He is, and that concerns me.”
Tenuk tutted as he leaned on the table. “Why the fuck does it concern you? Like, the whole fucking reason we’re all here is because of a polyamorous throuple. Actually, let’s go back to that whole why does it concern you thing. Why DOES Litvir being polyamorous bother you?”
“I…” Retvik thought for a moment. He didn’t really know himself. “Us Rethans were always monogamous. We were taught that a partnership is always between two people. It was just tradition.”
“And you don’t think that maybe Litvir considered that tradition as restrictive and, now that Rethan society is no longer a thing, he has embraced being a demi-god and wants to expand his horizons?” Tenuk asked.
“Litty totally embraced that stuff anyway!” Elksia continued to be chirpy. “He’s like me. Doesn’t eat or drink really unless ya make us! Plus, Elkay’s kinda polyamorous too! Maybe it’s you being weird?”
Retvik eyed Elksia.
“What? He totes is! Like, sure, Elkay and Teekay are married, but they made a deal!”
“What Elksia is saying is that, because Teekay is a Skyavok and thus perma-horny, and Elkay has very low libido, even for a Rethan, they agreed that, as long as they discuss things in advance, they can both sleep with others to fulfil their needs!” Tenuk explained further. “In fact, they actually invited Eksi and Litvir into their bedroom during their honeymoon time off work, but Litvir declined.”
“How do you know this?” Retvik growled.
Elksia shrugged. “Eksi talks a lot. Nananana, never shuts up. He said Litty said no because Litty didn’t wanna upset you.”
“I’d bet a 4-ev of wages that Litvir would be fine with you joining us for a Vrekan threesome anyway!” Tenuk joked. “Litvir is a fucking weird Rethan, I know that because I’ve spent a lot of time with other Rethans, but Litvir is weirdly accepting of pretty much anything.”
“Apart from being called a vampire!” Elksia grinned.
“Hah, yeah, apart from that!” Tenuk nodded in agreement. “But yeah. I think you’d enjoy it, having two beautiful people making you feel good at the same time. Not like we never considered it when we were mortal anyway.”
Retvik closed his eyes and sighed, but didn’t say anything.
Elksia put an arm around Retvik, then playfully tickled him under the chin. “You’re thinking about it!”
“It is… wrong.”
“It bloody ain’t!” Elksia smiled. “I mean, you slept with Phovos. I sleep with my darling Tennypoo all the time. Teekay married a Rethan. Ain’t nothing wrong with one good night with your closest friends. Ya might even like it.”
“Also, you’ve drunkenly asked me before,” Tenuk added. “Back when you and Gath went through a really rough spot. We’re your oldest, closest friends, Elksia and I want to make you feel good, because you certainly aren’t getting good feelings from Litvir right now.”
Retvik sighed some more. What Elksia and Tenuk were suggesting was madness. But, aside from his lack of connection to the old Rethan Secret, Tenuk was a very convincing Rethan. And right now, with his new, updated, bulkier appearance, Retvik couldn’t deny it, Tenuk did look genuinely attractive.
“Hmph. I will… consider it. But let me drink more alcohol first.”
For half a second, things seemed to slow down, then switch back to normal. Elksia was no longer sitting on Retvik’s lap, but she had brought five bottles of mead.
“Let’s get drunk together.”
Retvik grunted, then downed his drink and opened a fresh one. “Fine. Sure. Not like I have anything to lose…”