Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

While his counterpart split off to introduce Hanako to everyone currently living within the Sage Dragon's Hearth, a different version of Vahn stayed back in order to give Da Vinci her 'reward'.

Though the word 'reward' both sounded and was sexual, sex wasn't the only thing Da Vinci demanded from Vahn during their brief, three-week stay in her laboratory. He was still her primary research subject, so, whenever she got him alone for long periods of time, Vahn had little choice but to submit himself for testing.

Fortunately, as dangerous and disconcerting as the word testing sounded, it wasn't particularly invasive. Da Vinci had long concluded that she wouldn't be able to make headway on his blood and composition until he reached the pinnacle, so, rather than focus on his physical and spiritual forms, her primary interest in recent years was Vahn's mental and emotional development.

As intent and willpower were two of the most important factors to determining a person's power and authority, Da Vinci wanted to know everything there was to know about Vahn. She had even proposed 'piggybacking' his mind at one point, but, as supportive as he was of her research, Vahn had readily refused her. Sis was also opposed to the idea, for a number of reasons, so Da Vinci had little choice but to interpret his world through Memory Projections and via direct questioning.

This is where things got interesting, as, for the sake of establishing a baseline she was intimately familiar, Da Vinci used their 'sexcapades' as the central focus of her research. In other words, they would 'experiment' with all manner of plays and positions before watching it back and analyzing it together. It was a remarkably embarrassing experience, but, after a while, Vahn had learned to enjoy it. After all, he wasn't the only one embarrassed…

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"I can still recall…the days…when this form made you uncomfortable…it's amazing how time…can change things…so drastically…isn't it…?"

Though she was doing her best to remain calm, a thick glaze covered Da Vinci's eyes like an oil painting as she stared off into space. Her body was currently enduring such an extreme amount of pleasure that she had needed to partition a piece of her psyche just to avoid sinking wholly into the abyss that was Vahn. It wouldn't be the first time he had 'broken' her, but, for both their sakes, Da Vinci did her best to remain sane even as she goaded him into more precarious plays…

Instead of immediately responding to Da Vinci's words, a greater volume of the nebulous black goo that currently formed Vahn's body surged into the visibly swollen abdomen of her 'Lily' form. At the same time, tendrils formed from the same substance coiled around her body, several holding her in place while innumerable others massaged each and every nerve cluster, muscle, and meridian in her body. There were even extremely fine, hair-like tendrils extending into her ears…

Retracting said tendrils, Vahn's voice, seemingly echoing from everywhere, answered, "I'm still put off by such forms. I simply tolerate them out of respect for my partners. If you weren't more than 50,000 years old, I would never do something like this…regardless of your form…"

Inverting Da Vinci's body, forcing her to dangle upside down, Vahn's tendrils began to coalesce until they had formed a nebulous mass reminiscent of the cosmos covering Da Vinci's body. Then, as countless lines of data ran across her phantasmagorical irises, the mass slowly encompassed her entire body…

(A/N: O_O…)

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After recreating her body and snuggling up to Vahn in her far more mature form, Da Vinci nestled as close as she possibly could to him before muttering, "I know you don't, but I still feel compelled to ask if you need my help. I may be a pacifist but I'm confident I can come out ahead in most Gift Games…"

Much like before, Vahn didn't immediately respond to Da Vinci's words. Instead, he made his right hand predominately immaterial before sinking it into her body and directly caressing her interior of her right buttock. This caused a tantalizing blush to develop across Da Vinci's face, but, after what she had just experienced, the pleasure derived from the Hands of Nirvana was like having someone place a single cube of ice against your skin after spending an hour in an ice bath.

"If the two of us worked together, there wouldn't be anything for the others to do. Besides, you still have difficulties in the West to take care of. I don't mind bringing you with me to the North, but, for the time being, I would rather you focus on addressing the matters in your own district…"

Though she puffed out her cheeks ever so slightly, Da Vinci didn't insist on Vahn allowing her to help out. Instead, she swat away his hand before standing up and reaching into the void to grab what appeared to be a golden ring. The diameter made it appear more like a bracelet than a ring, but, before he could even ask what it was for, Vahn's expression turned wry as Da Vinci explained, "I've been researching methods to make it easier for you to deal with multiple women at the same time. This ring pairs with the most recent version of the Aegis I've developed, the Aegis XXX. All you need to do is insert your penis inside and…you know what, why don't I just demonstrate it for you?"

On that note, Da Vinci tossed the 'ring' towards Vahn before reaching into the void to procure one of the upgraded [REquip] Systems. Her body was immediately garbed in her characteristic red and blue garb, but, beneath the renaissance-style clothing, a rather futuristic pair of underwear covered her breasts and bottom.

Resisting the urge to shake his head and shrug his shoulders, Vahn donned the ring without putting much thought into it. In response, a tantalizing smile developed across Da Vinci's face as she licked her lips and said, "Think of me…" in a sultry tone.

Doing exactly that, Vahn was more intrigued than surprised when a realistic yet slightly transparent version of Da Vinci manifested atop his hips. At the same time, he felt a 'very' familiar pressure and warmth wrapped around him as Da Vinci flexed her abdominal muscles and asked, "How is it? Now we can have sex even when I'm preoccupied with work. Better yet, it includes a Layer, Visibility, and Delay mode. The Layer mode allows you to overlap multiple women in a similar manner to Aoko's Magic Blue. As for the Visibility and Delay modes, the former allows you to toggle off the projection while the latter synchronizes with the Aegis XXX to make sure your…ministrations aren't interfering with someone's work. Put simply, it allows your sex in the present to provide pleasure to women in the future. It even takes the person's sensitivity into-"

Realizing she was going on a tangent, Vahn's expression turned into a wry deadpan as he said, "Da Vinci…" in a helpless tone.

Coming to her senses, a picturesque smile developed across Da Vinci's face as she asked, "Yes? Is there something you'd like to ask~?"

Shaking his head, Vahn removed the ring from his penis before rising to his feet and saying, "You know I can't use something like this. I mean, I don't really mind, but I don't have sex simply to feel good…"

Giggling in response to Vahn's words, Da Vinci pushed back the ring he was proferring toward her, saying, "You're misunderstanding. This is more for the women around you than yourself. There are times when we want to get off but hold ourselves back because we don't want to travel all the way to the Sage Dragon's Hearth. There is also a substantial amount of interest in experiencing what it's like to be in the position of others. The Aegis XXX makes this possible as it comes equipped with an option to allow the wearer to interface with the projections of others. In other words, if you made love to me while wearing that ring, anyone who wears the Aegis XXX would be able to experience it at their leisure…"

Though he understood what Da Vinci was saying, Vahn couldn't help gawking as the implications of her words washed over him. The Aegis XXX, much as the name suggested, was, quite literally, a tool for masturbation. If he accepted and made use-

Interrupting Vahn's train of thought, Da Vinci moved forward to embrace him as she said, "You're overthinking things. If we were given the choice between you and a tool, each and every single one of us would choose you. The simple fact of the matter is that we each have our own responsibilities, and, while you are perfectly capable of tending to our needs, doing so obligates you to split your body and invest an inordinate amount of time towards our gratification. This is merely a stop-gap measure so that our urges don't build up while we're focused on other things. Nothing could ever possibly replace you, Vahn…"

Feeling the tensions drain from his body, Vahn wrapped his arms around Da Vinci's indescribably soft and petite frame. She was only 165cm tall in her most mature form, so, with his current height reaching 188cm, Vahn towered over her quite a bit…

After waiting for Vahn to calm down, Da Vinci gradually loosened her hold on his body, a teasing smile developing across her face as she explained, "This is actually a compromise we made after a discussion regarding the use of dildos and other forms of masturbation assistance. Only a handful of people were comfortable with the notion of inserting something 'foreign' into their bodies, so, rather than settle for a replacement, we came up with the idea of linking your penis to our vaginas through causal manipulation. Now, even if we're comforting ourselves in private, the thing getting us off is, and always will be, the genuine article…"

Punctuating her statement, Da Vinci slipped the ring onto Vahn's penis before linking her arms around his neck and doing the same with her body. She knew it would take a little more than words to convince him, so, for the sake of expediting things, she drew her lips close to his right ear before whispering, "I already received permission from the Council of Wives…each and every one of them is currently wearing an upgraded Aegis…"

In response to Da Vinci's words, projections of Artoria, Luvia, Olga, Rin, Eva, Asuna, Semiramis, and every other member of the Council of Wives manifested as realistic, overlapping projections. At the same time, the pressure on Vahn's penis increased explosively, as, much like when he made love to Aoko, he was experiencing more than a dozen different pressures and warmth simultaneously…

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After meeting everyone in the Sage Dragon's Hearth and settling into her room, Hanako found herself staring off into space with a rare smile on her face. She had never expected that the person she had been tasked to spy on would offer a place in his home. He had even given her permission to report back to the people who contracted her, but, as the person they had contracted was the Demon Lord of the Lost and Forgotten, Hanako had absolutely no intention of doing so. As far as she was concerned, the Sage Dragon's Hearth was her home. Vahn had stated as such, and, based on the reactions of everyone she had encountered since, they respected his decision and regarded her as one of their own. This was a novel experience to Hanako, but, even after several hours had passed, she couldn't help smiling at the notion she had finally found a place to call her own…

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(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Da Vinci is into some intense sh*t…','That ring is both convenient and dangerous…','Wholesome as fuck…(U w U)…')