Savior

A love story by Anima

Anima sighed as he made another course correction at the navigation console. Inside his cramped little starship, he watched a new screen flicker to life. The huge black creature studied the planet he was approaching via a viewscreen. Dust obscured many of its details, but the very lack of information that conveyed worried him. Crimson clouds surrounded the whole planet, giving it the appearance of having been dunked in blood. The cat growled in irritation as he felt and heard something bounce off the ship's hull.

'Debris of some kind. Oh my...quite a bit of it!' Anima's heart quickly sank as he took in the expansive fields of junk orbiting the planet. Vast war machines had been reduced to dust above this planet, probably along with their crews.

'Well, that pretty much settles it. This was a razed planet...there won't be anything down there.' His paw moved for the navigation controls again. Just then, a bright flare erupted on the surface of the planet.

"Computer, scan that bombed area for life forms." He murmured, leaning closer to the screen. A moment later, a readout glowed to life on his left.

[Massive life form readings...two species. Approximately 5200 of one race appear to be engaged in combat with one of the other species.] Anima let this sink in.

'One being holding its own against that many troops? I must see this. Perhaps I can be of assistance...someone who knows this part of space might know where I can find a nice habitable world.' His thoughts coalesced even as his paws moved, manipulating the landing controls.

"Curiosity killed the cat, I know. But...this could be worth the risk."

Hordes of rank, stinking beasts swarmed over a four acre piece of land, dropping to fire their weapons at a central point. Screams of rage and hate made the red-tinted air pulse in sympathy. Their anger was directed, along with their withering fire, at a single warrior. She stood with shoulders slumped by fatigue, just barely maintaining the telekenetic shield that deflected her enemy's fire. The field blurred the attackers' view of their opponent, but they knew her well enough by now. She was solely responsible for the destruction of ten legions of their kind! It had taken years to corner her, wearing her down with constant pursuit. And now, the last remnants of the very last legion were pitting their strength against the one who had nearly destroyed them. And this time, they were winning. It took all the lone warrior's energy to keep up her defenses, offense was utterly impossible. Every time a new volley was fired, the bolts came closer and closer to the female's lightly armored body. The sound of her anguished scream was lost among the grunts and snarls of her enemies, her last show of defiance before the shield began to collapse. Laser bolts began penetrating through the psi shield, in a weakened form at first, but quickly regaining power. Most missed, due to the obscuring effect of the field, but a few hit home. Scorch marks appeared on the defender's glittering armor, making her stagger. The field popped out of existence just as a spacecraft roared over the heads of the bloodthirsty army. Sizzling blue arcs of plasma spattered the enemy ranks, vaporizing dozens with each volley. But the return fire was thick, and soon damaged the ship enough to force a crash landing. Forgotten for now in the face of this new threat, the warrior fell to her knees and crawled behind a lump of fused metal, doubtless left over from a previous battle. Surrounded, the ship was soon reduced to so much scrap under the guns of the invading force. Not one of those sorry creatures saw the real threat until it was among them. A new being, huge and powerful, surged from nowhere into the flanks of the enemy. They gave before him, or rather, were mown down. Bodies hit the rust-colored dirt with huge slashes torn into their chests, and some fell in more than one piece. Panic turned to rage again, as weapons were brought to bear on this new menace. Lancing beams of energy burned into the soldiers surrounding the creature, but didn't touch the black thing itself. Invulnerable to their weapons, the beast bounded among the force and routed them. Battle screams became cries of pain, pleas for mercy, and orders for retreat. All were suddenly washed away by the unearthly scream the thing's muzzle gave birth to, forcing everyone on the field to clap their hands to their skulls in anguish! The bloodbath went on for hours, life ebbing from countless bodies as their shadowy foe tore into them. Not one creature of the invading force was left standing when Anima had finished. Flanks heaving and eyes glazed, the creature of night made his way towards the spot he'd last seen the lone warrior. Curled up behind a wrecked vehicle, the female soldier was out cold. Her fur was matted with grime, bruises and lacerations covered nearly every inch of her body. The armor she wore was far from new; the metal was patched and welded to the point of being unrecognizable from the original product. Despite her injuries, the fallen soldier was breathing steadily.

"Well, I seem to have finished what you started brave one." He said quietly, shifting from a quadruped to a biped quick as thought. He scooped her into his arms, and set off for shelter, stepping gingerly through a field of the dead and dying.

Krys awoke in unfamiliar surroundings, but the smell that seemed to fill her lungs with foulness was indeed familiar! The enemy! She must've been taken prisoner! But...she heard no guards. And she had been given a blanket, something these creatures would never have even considered doing. It was still too painful to try opening her eyes, so Krys snuggled deeper into the soft blanket against her. It was warm...and did she feel it move? Nothing seemed to matter much at the moment. She'd think more about it when she woke up...like, a year from now.

Breathing very slowly and deeply, Anima studied his charge. Bandages ringed most of her limbs now as well as her face, but her fur was now clean and her clothes replaced. A fox-species, undoubtedly, but how had one of those gotten here? No matter. She was the only one of her kind here, that was for sure. In fact, as the computer had told him before his ship kicked the bucket, she and those invaders had been the only life forms on this miserable planet.

'Exterminated.' He snarled mentally, still infuriated about the injustice of it all. As if picking up his negative thoughts, the fox-woman began to twitch and moan. Anima tried projecting soothing thoughts and feelings, and was amazed when she calmed immediately. Her breathing evened out, and her tail lost some of its frizz. She had lovely fur...a shade somewhere between red and orange that reminded the panther of warm, crackling hearth fires. The kind he loved to curl up in front of... The vixen's eartips were black, as well as her paws and feet. Her muzzle was long and narrow, filled with sharp little teeth. And her feminine attributes had not escaped Anima...she was quite well endowed. Anima let a sigh escape him.

'I've done all I can for her physically. I'll just have to wait and see how I can help emotionally...' He really felt...right, helping this beautiful creature. Her situation was pitiable yes, but that wasn't the whole picture. No, she fascinated the feline on a deeper level.

Chapter 2

Krys got a shock when she opened her eyes a day later. Her 'blanket' turned out to be the vast flank of a black-furred creature, who appeared to be asleep. They were in the lounge of the invaders' spaceship, hence the smell of her hated enemy. Couches were arranged around a number of round tables, scattered with some of the personal effects of the original owners. Indirect, the lighting was a soft green that seemed to come from everywhere. Surprisingly, (Given the nature of the previous tenants,) the entire area was fastidiously clean! Krys expanded her senses outward, searching for traces of the aliens. There were none. Was this black thing the one who'd saved her? She couldn't remember what had appeared on the battlefield, wreaking havoc among the troops. She raised herself up on one elbow, using her bestial companion's side to brace herself. The fur was soft and warm, heaving gently against her with the creature's breathing. Tentatively, Krys sent out a slim probe of inquiry into her "blanket's" mind. His surface thoughts, recognizably intelligent, were muddled by sleep, but none pointed to any negative feelings regarding her. She couldn't get any further than the most 'public' part of Anima's mind, (His name, she discovered,) impenetrable shields of immense strength cloaked the rest of his secrets from her. That in itself made her nervous, she'd never encountered anyone who could shield from her without twenty metric tons of electronics backing them.

"Good morning milady." A low, bass rumble from behind her caused Krys to turn her head. Though his words were in an unfamiliar language, she gleaned their meaning from his mind. The panther gazed at her calmly, huge golden eyes reflecting her nervous face. The gaze was level and soothing though, assuring her he meant no harm. She swallowed visibly, her soft tail swishing energetically against the cat. As carefully as she could, she sent her reply into his mind.

[The same to you Anima. Th, thank you for helping me out.] Krys shook a little, eyes wide. She had no idea what to expect from this unknown being, and it had been so long since she'd spoken to anyone who hadn't desired to spill her blood! But he accepted her method of communicating as a matter of course.

"You are most welcome. I see you know my name, and therefore have me at a disadvantage. What are you called, milady?" Krys considered a moment.

[My name's Krys. Though I kind of like you calling me lady...] She tried to smile, and managed a lopsided grin. Anima snorted, waving a huge paw, (Imagine the claws!) in the air.

"I merely address you as what you obviously are. A lady, and a fine warrior as well from what I've seen. You're the last survivor on this mudball, you know." Anima dropped his voice on the last sentence, trying to break the news to her easily. Krys nodded slowly. She had no tears to shed for her fellow people. They'd all been spent decades ago.

[I was the last after the invaders destroyed the underground offices of the government. I managed to destroy most of the invaders and their ships, by, melting their minds, *shudder*...but one legion in their ship had been searching underwater for hidden installations. When it turned up, I had no energy to fight them. They chased me...and I hid. We played that game for so long...trading blows that weakened me further before I was forced to retreat again. If you had shown up any later--] Krys shivered violently, projecting distress with her body as well as her mind. She felt the tears rising, and by force of habit she squashed them back down. Tears did no one any good. Anima sensed her bottled up emotion, but decided it would be better released later.

"Are you a representative of this planet's original inhabitants then?" He asked, keeping his expression neutral. Krys shook her head quickly.

[No, I'm a creation of theirs. A super soldier. I was to be the answer to all their problems. I have the strength of a hundred men, a superior mind, and the gift of psi. Telepathy, telekineses, empathy, the works. That's how I destroyed the bulk of the invaders, cracking their defenses like eggshells and scrambling their minds.] Krys made a tiny shrug, still holding in the tears. [Though I guess I was employed too late to help my creators.] Anima studied her a moment longer, then rose to his paws.

"Please, come with me Krys. I think you've been lied to." The vixen quickly rose to her feet and padded after the strolling panther. What else was she to do? He led her through a corridor, then another, and down an elevator to the ship's medical facilities. The series of three connected chambers was filled with gleaming steel instruments and sleeping machines. A strong smell of disinfectant dominated the place and made Krys wrinkle her coal-black nose. Her dark guide passed into the last chamber, Krys a few feet behind. When he reached the bank of machines he wanted, his shape melted momentarily, and reformed into a bipedal version of his prior self. Krys stared, but wasn't given time for questions.

"They're crude, but the instruments here will prove me right. I had to use some of this stuff to patch you up, so it's already tuned to your physiology." Anima said as he warmed up some kind of scanner. He waved a glowing wand over her, starting with her pointed ears and working his way down. She watched him as he waved the wand, curiosity simmering in her mind. Who was he? Why in the seven hells had he saved her? Krys' line of thought was interrupted when a readout soon flickered to life on the machine's screen. Anima studied the numbers and a diagram that appeared after a moment. Krys recognized genetic information and DNA maps. Anima tapped a clawtip against the screen and turned to speak to her.

"Yes, that's what I thought. You were not engineered, not by these people in any case. There are no markers, tags, or splices. You simply didn't come from this world...or even this dimension. You see this here?" He pointed to the diagram of Krys' DNA double-helix. "You see how the picture is fuzzy looking? That's not normal for this machine. You're slightly out of phase, for lack of a better term. That coincides with all the accidental dimensional crossings I've encountered." Krys nodded slowly, taking this in. She'd been lied to? Why was Anima even telling her this?

[Why are you telling me this sir?] She projected, still puzzling out the screen's contents. Anima seemed surprised at her question.

"Why, I wanted you to know the truth! Isn't it better to know you had parents other than a test tube and chemistry set? That you emerged into the world from a womb instead of some kind of chemical vat?" Krys nodded slowly in response. He'd told her...just to make her feel better? Why? She projected that to the panther.

[Why are you concerned about my happiness?] Krys tried not to make her mental tone sound suspicious, so instead it came out flat and emotionless.

"I want you to be happy! Everyone has the right to be happy. I like you Krys, I want to please you. After all you've been through, you deserve nothing less." He rumbled, stepping closer to her while falling again to his more animalistic shape. Krys startled, it was unusual seeing someone besides herself who could do that.

'He likes me?' Her mind dropped into a kind of whirl when she heard that. Cautiously, Krys stretched out a hand and touched Anima on the top of his head. Her fingers sank into his delightfully soft fur, and she scratched him a little. Anima smiled, closing his eyes, and began to purrrrr. This nearly surprised the vixen into withdrawing her hand, the purr was like nothing she'd ever heard...it shook through her body like a subsonic note, and yet it was curiously soothing.

[You...like me?] She whispered into Anima's mind. He nodded, opening his eyes again briefly as she scratched behind his pointed ears.

"And I want you to like me too... You've suffered enough. More than enough. From here on, life can only get better." He smiled at her then, keeping his teeth carefully concealed. Krys chuckled weakly, picking up the nuance.

"A new, better life hmm? Well, I know how I'd like to start. I don't suppose there's a nice bath around here somewhere? I haven't had one since the war began..." Anima nodded quickly, and struck out for the elevator again. Once inside it and moving up, he turned to look at the vixen again. Green eyes...they were so striking! The thought was public enough for the vixen to pick it up. She stared back at him.

[You...like my eyes?] Krys murmured mentally. The panther nodded, his tail swishing a little more quickly. That brought a new question to mind.

[Anima, what are you? I picked up 'panther' from your thoughts, but that means nothing to me.]

"Krys, it's a long story. Why don't I tell you while you bathe?" She nodded and smiled, the expression coming a little easier now with use. The elevator stopped and opened out onto a well appointed chamber.

"Captain's quarters, he was the only one with a bath. It was filled with swamp ooze...but, I cleansed that out and used it to wash you up when we first got on board. It's clean now." Krys nodded, giving the kitty another head-scratch for his thoughtfulness. Inside the washroom, Krys uttered an excited bark of delight! The bath dominated the room, easily six feet deep and significantly more than that around. Anima touched a button near the doorway, pumping hot water into the sunken pool. Steam began to fill the room, softening the features of everything within.

"Relax, sorry this isn't your first bath in years, but it is the first you'll be awake for." Anima chuckled a little, another sound that shocked the fox-femme. Laughter was something else she had missed... She gingerly dipped her paw into the steaming water, almost moaning as the warmth soaked into her. Without any further hesitation, she stripped and eased down into the water. Once she was settled, Krys turned back to peer at her companion. He had crouched down, his belly touching the tiled floor, and was smiling at her sweetly.

"Comfy? Good. Now, for my little story. I come from Earth, a humble planet quite far from here, fairly undeveloped when I left. The resident sentients are bipedal, furless, with fairly simple minds. A powerful mage, (a magic worker to you,) on that planet perished in a magik gone wrong, and his powers were released. But that mage's powers were so intense and refined, they didn't disperse with their master's death. They remained, as a sort of energy cloud...or at least, this is what I've come to believe. Over time the power-mass developed intelligence. I was born. I chose the form of an animal indigenous to the planet, the one you see before you. This one's exaggerated however, the original creature doesn't grow to a quarter my size." Anima emphasized his point by rising briefly, and stalking about. Krys had to marvel at his liquid grace, the panther looked like a wraith moving behind a curtain of steam. But Krys laughed softly when he ruined his dignified poise by flopping down on his back. Grinning at her upside-down, he continued.

"Now, naturally as the sort of creature I was, I didn't get along well with anything living on the planet. Oh, I had a few flings...but that intelligent species was horribly short-lived, living only seventy years or so on average. I on the other paw, am probably immortal; energy cannot be created nor destroyed. I couldn't hope to find my equal among them. So i began to travel. It wasn't difficult to use my power to find an advanced, inhabited planet and teleport there. But the people living there led nearly as fleeting lives as the humans I left behind. So, I bought a ship and ranged further. That's how I stumbled upon this place..." Krys digested this, pouring some kind of cleansing solution into the water. Considering the species it was meant for, she was pleasantly surprised at its wonderful, spicy scent. Replacing the plastic squeeze-bottle on its shelf, she looked as seriously as she could over at the upside-down feline.

[Well, you've heard much of my tale already. I've been battling this invading force for...over a hundred years at least. I lost count a long time ago. You're the first friendly face I've seen in, in...] Krys dampened her mental link to the panther as emotions began to surge up the pipeline. But to her surprise, the enigmatic creature caught at the link and held it open. He spoke into her mind for the first time, with a mental 'flavor' of musk and soothing darkness.

[No, don't hold back, don't hide from me, please. Whether you're aware of it or not, bottling those feelings up will destroy you from the inside! I, I've seen it happen before... I will NOT let that happen, not when everything should be going right now!] Krys nodded mutely, and let her feelings pour. Sorrow, anger, hate, regret, profound loneliness...all surged into Anima in a rush. He took it all, returning feelings of hope, comfort, friendship...and something Krys didn't recognize. It felt so good...but wrong.

[I'm just trading bad for good! I have nothing to give you back!] She cried, trying again to sever the link.

[You have nothing to give, yet. I don't need it, you do. Trust me, I can spare some joy for you. Someday soon, maybe we can share...] He returned. Reluctantly, Krys kept the link open and let Anima pour his good emotions into her. She overflowed, crying tears of relief as her unhappiness was replaced with glory in her new situation. But it was inevitable that something else come along down the pipe that Anima hadn't meant to share. Krys didn't understand it. She'd felt it before, as an emotion between two of her Creators, (Or those who had claimed to be,) but it was as much of a mystery now as it had been then. Krys and Anima remained linked until exhaustion began to set in. Wearily, the vixen clambered out of the tub and into the huge, coarse towel the panther handed her. Once she was dry, Anima led her back to the captain's bedroom. A nest of blankets made a wonderful sleeping space for the vixen, while Anima curled up at the foot of the round 'bed.' Krys stirred, levering her torso up with her elbows.

[Would you like, to, um, share the nest with me friend?] Anima sighed in relief, but then considered. Was it right for him to try and seduce her, so soon after what she'd been through? Seduce may've been the wrong word, for the attraction he felt for the fiery-furred female transcended the physical. But purrhaps she needed the comfort as much as he... So the huge cat flowed over the lip of the nest, cuddling up close to her. Krys sighed, wrapping her arms around the middle of the silky animal, and burying her face in his soft bellyfur.

[I think we're both more comfortable now.] She murrred sleepily into her companion's mind.

"Indeed? Then we'll continue this arrangement in the future..." He purrred back, his rumbling voice tinged with good humor. Krys shrugged, squeezing her comforter tighter. That sounded just fine to her.

Chapter 3

Krys awoke to the sound of a very frustrated Anima cursing the computer console in the captain's office. She gingerly padded in, changing from her night robe and into her regular clothes as she went. Currently bipedal to sit in the captain's chair, Anima turned and smiled weakly at her.

"Sorry for waking you up. I just found out I need a few specially encoded keys to get this rustbucket to fly. Hopefully I'll be able to find them on one of the bodies out there...and on top of that, I'm starving. What about you? Hungry?" Krys thought for a moment, consulting her stomach. It grumbled at her impatiently.

[Yes, I'd love to have something to eat.] She sent to the panther, tucking herself into another chair in the office. Anima rummaged around in a satchel beside his chair, and produced a package of ration bars. Handing them over, he shrugged apologetically.

"It's not exactly fine dining, and I wish it could be more, but it'll keep you going." Krys unwrapped a bar with a noisy crackle of paper, and nibbled cautiously. Hmmph.

[Rations taste the same everywhere, it seems.] That got a chuckle out of the cat, who then rose and made for the door.

"I'm going to find those keys. Be back shortly." Alone again, Krys shivered a little. She had felt much safer and more comfortable with her big black friend around...

[Get yourself together Krys! You're a hardened soldier, you've been alone for over a century, apart from the bloodthirsty hordes chasing you!] Another sigh passed her delicate lips. It wasn't so easy anymore to be alone, now that she'd had company for a while. Or maybe she just genuinely liked the odd being. That was an intriguing thought. It was so long since she'd seen them, Krys had trouble picturing her former comrades. Some had shown affection for each other...was that the emotion she'd picked up from Anima the day before? Or was it just lust? She was no stranger to lust, many of the race that had raised and recruited her had desired to copulate with her. They said she was desirable...but after the fact, they never visited or spoke with her again...not in any personal fashion. Wouldn't Anima be the same? And then she'd be alone again...even more so than before! Krys hugged her knees, eyes squeezed shut.

[Please, don't let him be like those others...]

Anima rode the lift back up into the ship, one hand resting on his grossly distended belly and the other clutching three shards of etched plastic. He burped quietly, happily, as he stepped out into the ship and headed for the captain's quarters again. The door slid open at his approach, and the feline padded inside.

"Well, now we'll see if this thing can get off the ground..." Anima's voice trailed off as he saw Krys huddled on the couch, shivering slightly. Without a thought, he tossed the key cards onto a desk and hurried to her side.

"Krys? Krys, what's the matter? Can I help?" He cried, clasping her comparatively tiny paw in his. She just reached out and embraced his neck, her shivering easing a little.

[I was just reminiscing...but, I feel better with you here.] She projected, clutching Anima like a drowning swimmer clutching a lifeguard. When the vixen noticed his swollen gut however, she pulled back in alarm. Emerald eyes wide, she poked the silky mass.

[Where did THAT come from?] Anima was puzzled by the question at first, then realized where Krys' gaze and finger were resting. He chuckled a little, rubbing his silky tummy. His stomach chose that moment to let loose with a loud bubbling gurgle.

"Well, I've been pretty hungry...and though I prefer my food live, your former enemies are actually quite tasty..." Krys stared in shock, then surprised herself by starting to giggle.

[I didn't think it was possible, the invaders turn out to be good for something! But, live?] She shivered a little at the mental image that produced. It was hard to imagine Anima swallowing anyone whole and alive, letting them suffocate in the depths of his body...it seemed cruel!

"That's how I prefer to eat love. My food doesn't suffer for the most part. If it disturbs you, I'll try to be unobtrusive about it...and I don't eat anything sentient that doesn't want to be eaten." Krys nodded hesitantly, choosing yet again to trust the panther. Then her shaking returned full force, and she flung herself into Anima's arms.

[Hold me dear, please...] Surprised at first, Anima hesitated...but the shivering of the poor vixen urged him to enfold her in his soft embrace.

"I'd love to dear...now, and anytime you want." He whispered in her ear. Krys just squeezed her arms tighter around him in response. Purrrrring softly, Anima rocked back and forth on his knees, until Krys fell asleep once more.

"Such trust..." Anima said quietly, half in awe, his heart stirring as he carried the vixen to their nest. Perhaps this could work out between them.

Chapter 4

Anima waited until Krys awoke before leaving her, feeling she might need someone around when she got up. He was right, Krys was very grateful to awake to a familiar face. They bathed and dressed together, then set about getting the ship off the dead world. On the bridge, the panther in bipedal form inserted the three cards into different slots on separate consoles. Screens blinked their state of readiness, which in most cases, turned out to be perfectly ready for use. Everything but the engines. Red lights flared all over the navigation console, making Anima shake his head and Krys wince.

[Oh, I forgot. I kinda fried the engines on this thing so the enemy couldn't search for me by air. Don't worry though, I know exactly how to get them working again!] She paused and collected her thoughts while Anima finished surveying the damage. He found an inventory list of spare parts, and handed it to the vixen. She scanned it, tail swishing nervously.

[Alright, it's going to take a few days to repair. I received training in mechanics, do you know anything about this stuff?]

"A little, enough to build my own ship from spare parts if I had to. But specialized repairs? Probably not." The kitty shrugged, and sank into a chair much too small for him. "I can hold the wrench for you though!" He giggled, an odd sound coming from him... Krys looked puzzled.

[A wrench? What's that?] She sighed, and sat on one arm of Anima's chair. [Be patient with me Anima, I haven't had much experience with humor.]

"No humor? Sees, I'll have to educate you a little further before we go on then. If there's one thing you need when putting up with me, it's a sense of humor!" So for a couple hours, the big empty ship echoed with two flavors of laughter; one high and fluting, the other dark and throaty. By the end of the 'lesson,' both were feeling much too silly to take work seriously. Krys was in Anima's lap, head against his chest, her sides aching from an excess of mirth. The panther was breathing heavily, his lips still curved in a smile. Murrring softly, Krys ran her hand over the feline's chest.

[Mmm, I like being close to you like this dear...] She sent to Anima, smiling up at him...almost entreatingly. Slowly, unsure of himself, Anima reached around and wrapped one, thick arm around the foxie's shoulders. He was so afraid the wrong move would separate them forever... But Krys sighed and leaned back against the densely muscled limb.

"I love having you near Krys, you make me feel appreciated... It's only fair you know dear, I feel attracted to you. Do you understand what I'm saying?" He gazed into her eyes, ears pricked forward, his heart racing. Krys could feel his pulse jump beneath the hand on his chest. She felt into his mind, seeking a deeper meaning to his words...

[You...you want to stay with me? And...you want to love me physically? There's more, but I don't understand it yet. It makes no sense. Yes dear, I'd enjoy it if you'd make love to me." She nuzzled her head against her friend, burying her face in his lush, silky fur. That wonderful purrrr resonated again, washing through her like a spaceship engine's roar. Anima squeezed Krys tighter to him, his heart soaring.

"You have no idea...well, I guess you do know, how great that makes me feel! Come love, show me how foxes mate." Krys nodded and smiling, led him back to the captain's room and their nest of blankets. She indicated he should lie down first, curling to follow the curve of the nest. She snuggled in next to him, trembling, a desire she'd never known stirring in her blood.

[I want you kitty...] She projected strongly, her words tinged with passionate reds, pinks and a sensation of heat. Anima nudged her, pointing towards his tail. His sheath, a structure Krys had noted only in passing before this, had poured forth a thick, glistening length of meat. It too was black, like the rest of the cat, and quivered with his pulse. A powerful musk rose off it, filling Krys' nostrils and setting her brain on fire...

"You've got me lover." He whispered, as his member finished swelling. More than two feet long and probably at least four inches thick, Anima's sex was a wonder to behold...and not a little frightening to the much smaller vixen.

[Think you could tone it down a little dear? I don't want to damage you or me on our first try...] Her eyes were wide, and despite her words, Krys licked her lips with a long narrow tongue. As she watched, that glorious penis shrank visibly, to something less prodigious but no less impressive. Moaning quietly, Krys pounced the organ and swarmed it with her tongue. Anima jerked, his back arching, then let the air escape his lungs in a *whoosh*.

"No, Krys, I want to please you too!" He protested weakly, trying to reach the fox and pry her off. But it was all too obvious Krys was pleased, treating the kitty's cock like the rarest and most delicious of treats. As the musk and taste fogged her brain beyond rational thought, Krys noticed absently that her thighs were wet...had she lost control of herself? She reached between her legs and touched her sex, drew the paw back and sniffed. No, it wasn't urine...it was more like a lubricant. Something natural? Her other lovers... [No, sex partners,] she corrected herself, had always used an artificial grease to ease their penetration. Did she desire Anima that much, that her body wanted to help mate him? Shivering with the thought, Krys released the heavy penis and let it fall back against the panther's belly. She scooted her bottom around then to face Anima's genitals.

[Roll over lover, let me climb on top.] She sent to the panther. He obeyed quickly, shifting over onto his back. Krys scrambled up on top of him, hands and feet disappearing into the lush fur. Once in place, Krys positioned her crotch over the bloated head of the feline's rod. He watched, shaking, as Krys grabbed his malehood and swiftly impaled herself on it. The swollen lips of her vulva stretched wide around the warm, blunt intruder, and eventually admitted it into the smooth, wet, hot depths of her vagina. Krys didn't pause in the penetration until her hips settled totally on Anima's belly, his ballsac resting softly against the underside of her tail.

[Oh love...I've never felt like this with sex...even being so long ago, I recall that none of those that bedded me had felt like this...] Krys shivered, and so did the muscles inside her, squeezing and rippling along the meat stuffed up in her loins. Anima gasped, then whipped his tail around to encircle the vixen's slim waist. Another surprise! The panther's tail was prehensile...that could come in handy later...

"My dearest love, I've never been this excited with anyone! I, I'm going to cum...!" Krys knew what was coming now, and braced herself. She felt the penis inside her swell a quarter more in girth, then gasped as warmth flooded her insides. Anima's seed poured forth in a tide of virile cream, washing up further into her slick tunnel and back out to spurt everywhere. Krys expected the flow to stop any second, but it continued...the pressure building inside her. Somewhere deep within her body, Krys felt something give with a mildly painful twinge. The pressure immediately dropped, and her cream-furred tummy began to swell. She watched it, dumbfounded, as her womb rapidly filled with panther-semen and inflated her abdomen! It went on for another two minutes before the flow abruptly ceased. Anima collapsed, sides heaving.

"Ohh, thank you Krys..." He moaned, reaching down and tugging her free of his softening cock. A trickle of his sperm ran from the fox's gaping sex, soaking into the fur on her thighs, but the majority of his spent lust remained in her soft depths. Bringing her up close to him, he touched his lips to hers tightly. This was something else new, none of her other partners had done this...but it felt right, and so intimate...she tried licking his lips, and to her pleased surprise, he licked back! They warred with their tongues for a time, breath and saliva mingling wonderfully. Finally, Anima broke the kiss and gave Krys the most beautiful smile she'd seen yet.

[Ready for a nap then dear?] She murrred into his mind, and was surprised when her suggestion was turned down.

"You haven't had your fun yet Krys..." He said reproachfully, and laid her down on a particularly soft blanket. She looked curiously at the panther, what other fun could she have? Without warning, Anima dropped his head between her damp thighs and slid his tongue up between her nether lips. Krys shrieked, digging her claws into the fabric beside her, as a wave of intense pleasure washed across her. What had he DONE?! He did it again, making her blood boil and body quiver.

[OH GODSSsssss, whatever you're doing, keep doing it!] She almost screamed into him, arching her back and trying to thrust her loins closer to that magic tongue. With her rocking movement, her ooze-swollen belly sloshed atop her. Then she felt the smooth tongue slip deep into her pussy, back out again, back in, setting up a shallow thrusting. With every inward stroke, he would do something delightful down there and make her jump! Something seemed to be building inside her, but what, Krys couldn't imagine. It was only when Anima clamped his maw fully around her drooling vulva and suckled did she comprehend, as her nerves exploded into fire! A blaze that roared through the pleasure center in her brain, making it boil and melt, ecstasy singing along every fiber of her taut body! It went on and on, an ocean of joy for her to drown in, and her body responded by gushing copious fluids down her lover's throat. Even her womb responded to the joy, contracting and feeding Anima's gift back into him. A gout of hot cream spurted from her sex and ran down into the male's belly. But delicious as the sensations were, her body couldn't keep it up forever. Eventually Anima eased up his ministrations...then stopped all together. He took her spasming body in his arms, cradling her tenderly. This too was something new...staying close after the fact.

"This was your first orgasm? I'm honored to be the first to give you such pleasure Krys...and I won't leave you. I'll still be here when you wake up, and if you like, I'll be there every morning for the rest of our lives." He purred in her ear, sincerity infusing every word. Krys nearly wept as his promise produced a reaction in her even more awesome and wonderful than the orgasm.

[I...I, I'd love that...] Was all she could manage. Completely sated and so happy it almost hurt, the couple cuddled together and slept.

Chapter 5

"Good morning lover!" Anima purrred excitedly, stroking Krys' cheek as her eyelids flickered up. "Ready to greet another day? Maybe we can get some work done on the ship. Where do you think we should sta--" Krys cut off the flow of words with her mouth, turning her head on its side and meshing muzzles with the feline.

[No work. Play. There's plenty of time for work later...] She sent to him, a definite tinge of imperative to her thoughts. Anima was quick to bow to the vixen's desires, and fulfilled them as best he could.

When the couple woke next, their sense of time had been totally thrown off. For god knows how many hours, the two had made love, ate, drank, then made love again. Now, Anima blinked in the darkness of the cabin and nuzzled his mate.

"I hate to ask, but, do you feel up to working today? The sooner we get off this planet, the sooner we can settle down. And frankly, I'd like something besides those creatures to eat. They're not getting any fresher..." Krys yawned and grinned up at the black mountain looming above her.

[Sorry dear, I haven't been very thoughtful. Of course we can work today! I would've started earlier, but I don't think either of us had the energy...] The crisp-feeling chuckle rolling through Anima's mind assured him Krys was pleased and eager to help. After an hour or so of primping, both beings rode the lift down to the engine compartment. Anima winced as the doors opened onto a darkened chamber, lit only by the occasional spark of a live wire.

[Hmm, maybe I overdid it.] Krys mumbled half to herself, looking for a way to restore illumination. Before she'd taken a step however, a glowing orb of golden light burst into being a few feet above their heads. Krys turned to look at Anima, who was smiling smugly.

"Just another little advantage to being an energy-creature." With the aid of the orb, Krys located a split power conduit and repaired it with Anima's help. Once lit again, the mess didn't seem quite so bad. The stink of ozone that pervaded the area had decreased dramatically since the actual explosions, but not enough to avoid being oppressive. Krys made a list of parts she'd need for repairs, walking among the ruined units of the engines. Massive cylinders of a rough, black metal, lying on their sides, the engines didn't look at all vulnerable or damaged. But Krys assured the panther they were quite disabled.

"I'll go get those parts then dear, alright?" Krys nodded and shot Anima a quick smile before crouching down to check under a fallen access panel for useful debris. Anima paused to admire the view from behind this provided, before returning to the lift.

The storage bay was on the other side of the ship, practical really, in case of an accident in the engine room. If those blew, the parts and cargo would be safe. Anima whistled, (More like an attempt really, given his muzzle,) as he stepped into the bay. Rows of crates stretched off into the distance, plastic and metal cubes of all sizes. A GUI computer terminal helped the panther navigate the awesome stockpile, locating for him the parts he needed. As he leaned over a crate he'd just opened to withdraw a particular tool Krys had asked for, he heard a clicking sound behind him...

{Hrruuuu talcya! Vrie gny *klick* *snap*} Slowly, the panther turned. An alien, one of the hated reptilian invaders, had managed to sneak up on him! Now, the thing's massive weapon's barrel was less than a foot from his chest. Anima grinned down at the creature, eyes sparkling malevolently.

"I don't think you want to mess with me friend. Why don't you just put the gun down, and make like a nice snack?" He purrred, licking his chops. The invader narrowed his huge green eyes at the panther, and started squeezing the trigger of his gun. A coruscating bolt of violet energy drilled through Anima, splashing over the crate he'd been standing in front of...been being the key word. Confused and now nervous, the alien looked wildly about. The lights snapped off. A painfully high screeching sound filled the musty air, like someone had run metal claws against a similar surface. Cringing, the creature turned toward the sound and fired. The bolt lit up the area briefly, exposing nothing of the dark form the invader had expected. In a flash of motion and a grunt of pain and surprise, the alien found himself on his stomach, his face pressed painfully against the deck.

"Well, I can't say I didn't enjoy that little exercise...but I'm afraid I have to cut our play time short. Ta-ta!" The gun, locked onto the soldier's arm with bone-penetrating bolts, was methodically neutralized by a few claw swipes. Then, embraced in arms that felt like steel wrapped in velvet, alligator-man found himself gazing into the jaws of his captor. Anima stuffed his prey's head past his lips, then slowly twisted the body until its shoulders began to work in. Croaking sounds of distress barely reached Anima's ears as the thing panicked, scrabbling with two-inch talons at the feline! Anima ignored the assault, moaning a little as the beast's shoulders sank down onto his tongue and began sliding as he hauled the rest of the body towards him. Dropping down onto his rear, the feline tilted his head back and let gravity help him out. His soft cheeks bulged with the struggles of his snack as it fought valiantly to avoid being buried alive in the soft, warm guts of this monstrous creature! Anima's lips closed over the critter's hands, tasting the metallic remnants of the gun he'd deactivated. And then, the panther swallowed. Muscles rippled powerfully, caressing the bulk in his throat as it tugged it down further. The reptile-morph vanished below its waist. Another swallow, and its armored thighs were consumed. Purrrring with anticipation and visibly aroused by the act he was performing, Anima hurried along the process by grasping the lizard's clawed feet and shoving. With such muscle power behind it, that shove sent the squirming meal sliding right into his belly. Stroking his gut and his cock at once, Anima groaned and mewled as the thing inside him kicked and fought for its life! Flailing about, the lizard caused no damage and plenty of pleasure in the creature it was now undeniably a part of...

"Gee, I hope Krys won't mind another day of little work..." Anima mumbled, his member trembling and spurting thick precum onto the deck. Rising to his feet and shifting back into non-anthro form, he padded back to the lift. His meal hardly showed at all, just a subtle, quivering bulge in his middle. Anima would make certain the lizard stayed alive for quite a while longer...

"Umm, Krys? Would you mind if we called it a day? I'm kind of in need of some attention..." Anima spoke as he padded into the engine compartment, gazing around for the vixen. He finally spotted her as she slid out from under a dented control bank.

She looked curiously at the panther, then noticed the mammoth penis hanging from his belly.

[My my, what could've gotten my kitty so excited?] She murrred to Anima, stepping over briskly. That's when she noticed the lump in his middle. A lump that moved from time to time... She looked back up into his eyes, an impending question in her look.

"I found one of our little friends hiding in the cargo bay, and decided to have a little snack. I guess I didn't mention how aroused I get with someone wriggling around in my guts..." Krys shook her head, he hadn't.

[Well, now that you're...like...that, I suppose we won't get any work done. Besides, maybe he wasn't the last one in here...we'd be safer locked in the captain's room.] Anima was only too happy to agree, and gave Krys a pantherback ride back to their room. Once in the nest, Krys stroked the shifting bulge beneath her lover's skin. Its movement was sluggish, but constant.

[What's it like dear, to have another life inside you?] She murmured into her mate's mind, snuggling her body close to that moving lump. Anima groaned, his cock straining.

"It's impossible to describe...it gives you an awesome feeling of power to have another intelligent being engulfed in your belly. Though I use the term 'intelligent' loosely in my snack's case." He chuckled, but the sound seemed a little forced.

[Oh, sorry love. Here, let me see what I can do with that swelling there...] Krys turned her rump to the cat's erection, and wrapped her soft, luxurious tail around the pulsing staff of ebony flesh. He cried out, claws piercing the walls of the nest as his taut nerves twanged like a bowstring at her touch. Krys concentrated, focusing her mind, then altered her body. The tissues around her genitals became more elastic, looser, and much more difficult to tear. She also coaxed her body into upping its production of lubricant, and murrrred her arousal as she felt honey trickling from her sex. Anima's hips were jerking spasmodically by the time Krys unwound her tail and brought her hips to bear.

"Wait dear, I'll just make myself a little smal--AAHHHHHHOOooohhhhhhhhhhHHHHH!" Krys smirked even as her body trembled, easing her slick pussy down onto the monstrous cock. She absorbed it inch by inch, until she felt her groin press to the panther's belly. Neither could quite believe they were fully coupled. Krys stroked the outline of the cock through her belly, guessing it to have pierced straight to her womb. Thrusting would've been uncomfortable, and painful at the worst for both of them, so Anima contented himself with the caress Krys treated him to, and the muscular action of her soft vagina. Grunting and moaning, the two clasped each other as best they could as passions were inflamed and climax approached... A scream tore the air when Anima came, his hot seed geysering up into Krys' delicate womb. She grinned in pleasure as she felt herself fill with warm cream, her belly bulging outward again, then orgasmed as well. It felt so different when her cunnie spasmed around the solid bulk of Anima's cock, like it was meant to have a 'bullet to bite on,' while she came. But as before, pleasure took over her mind and fogged out rational thought...she was pretty much a drunken vegetable after her climax receded. Anima's belly began churning and groaning, and the movement inside increased dramatically for a minute or two, before ceasing totally. Sighing in utter satisfaction, the panther snuggled himself closer to Krys, who remained impaled on his great rod.

[That was great lover...I couldn't ask for anything more than you.] She sent, almost crying with the intensity of emotion she felt for this male. Anima wiped her eyes with a blunt finger, smiling tenderly.

"Now now, don't get so worked up love. I love giving you pleasure as much as receiving it..." She nodded, hugged his neck, and rested. Maybe, just maybe, tomorrow they'd get some real work done.

Chapter 6

In fact, the two got a lot of work done the next day, or cycle, or whatever. Krys pried panels off the damaged equipment, and directed Anima in wrestling the spare parts into place. One by one, the status lights on the bridge went from red, to orange, to yellow, to green. Last to be repaired were the engines themselves. Krys sat for a moment, leaning back on her lover's warm flank to consider the problem.

[The engines are molecularly sealed, to prevent damage or sabotage. There's no way in except with that destabalizer that was destroyed in your little tussle with your snack.] She grinned to take the sting out of her words, rubbing her cheek against Anima's.

"Sorry about that love, I didn't notice where the lizard was shooting that popgun of his. But it's no problem, I'll just do a little of my 'magic,'" Anima stood, stretched, then exploded in a shower of blue-black sparks. Krys screamed, then clapped her hands to her muzzle.

[It's okay Krys, I'm fine, just in pure energy-form. I'll need you to guide me inside the engines, and tell me what to fix.] The warm, deep voice in the vixen's head instantly calmed her. Glancing at the electronic notepad in her hand, Krys began instructing the energy creature in repairing a couple of couple of mass-folding generators so complex, that if a workman had been able to crawl inside, he wouldn't have had a chance in hell of repairing it. But Anima, as energy, raced along circuit paths and conduits, right to the trouble spots. Mostly his tasks were to spot weld, twist frayed cables together, and replace fused parts. He brought the spares inside the engine with the use of his teleportation, unnerving Krys every time a part vanished with a loud *pop*. There was a bit of delicate work where molecular components had been messed up, but Anima had little trouble manipulating even those tiny objects. Finally, the work was done, and Anima returned to his lover.

[It will take a moment for me to reconstitute love.] He warned her, as his outline shimmered into existence before her. Krys reached out timidly, penetrating the glowing skin of power that became more substantial with every passing moment. Krys marveled to see her paw inside Anima's chest, veiled in the dark energies swirling inside him. He warned her when having her paw in him became dangerous, and with a sigh, Krys withdrew.

[I like the idea of being inside you love...] She whispered mentally, stepping back while Anima finished reforming. His eyes widened, exposing more of the beautiful gold discs than usual.

"Truly? Do you mean, being in me like I'm in you when we make love? Or...in here..." His gaze as well as his paw drifted down to his belly, stroking it. Krys blushed, the insides of her ears coloring.

[The first has appeal as well, but it was the second I was thinking of...would it please you dear, to swallow me? To wrap your body around me in a more intimate way than even we've shared?] Anima nodded slowly, and as she watched, Krys saw his sheath disgorge its thick, shining contents.

"That would please me more than you can imagine lover. And do you know that no harm would befall you? I can keep myself from digesting if I choose, and just let you rest in there." Krys nodded, stepping closer again and into Anima's now-solid arms.

[Even if it wasn't safe, I'd love to fill your belly dearest...the fact that I'll survive the slide down your throat makes me all the more eager to try!] She didn't let him know that the idea of dying inside him, dissolving into nutrients to nourish his powerful body, also intensely turned her on. Just thinking about it made her sex shiver, and squirt cream into the pants of her uniform.

"Let me get the ship moving and on course, then while the computer searches for habitable worlds, we'll experiment all we want." Raising a huge hand, the panther caught Krys' chin softly. "It'll be a great help to me too you know, having such a willing snack for this long trip!" Krys giggled, reaching up to grab his hand and pull it to her lips.

[I'll sate your hunger anytime you want, wicked kitty.] She promised. Anima hugged her fiercely, then tossed his love onto his back and romped off to the bridge. Both exclaimed with delight to see the status lights all glowing a calm, relaxing green. Anima punched up a navigational model on the main screen.

"What do we want dearest? A forest planet? One that's mostly ocean? A mix of the two?" His blunt fingers danced over the console, flipping through star charts and the like.

[I don't really care, so long as I get to stay with you dear. But...a combo planet sounds nice. Cold in some spots, warm in others, with lots of different kinds of terrain.] She watched him enter these parameters, and then scanned the starmap.

"Okay, there're about three that seem to match that...but, it looks like they're inhabited by the invader's species." Anima's ears drooped, and he turned around to shrug helplessly. Krys bared her teeth and narrowed her eyes, almost snarling.

[I don't care! We'll clean them out if we have to! I'll wipe out their minds and you can chow down on their scaly reptilian hides!] Startled by this mood swing, Anima sat in a chair abruptly. Slowly, a smile spread across his muzzle.

"This would be an excellent way to get your revenge lover...and I must admit, those critters don't taste that bad. Sure, why not? And you won't have to mindwipe unless you want to, this ship is pretty well armed. Not to mention I'm brilliant in a fight as well." Krys nodded, plunking her rump in her kitty's lap.

[And modest too.] He giggled and nodded. Krys leaned into him to nuzzle his chest, and was shocked to hear a growl. Was her love growling at her? What had she done wrong?! Krys glanced up fearfully, to see...Anima looking sheepish.

"My stomach. I'm getting hungry again..." Krys leaned over and punched the autopilot, then tugged Anima out of his chair.

[Come on my voracious mate, let's see how well I fill your belly!]

Krys stepped into the darkened captain's quarters wearing nothing but a smile, letting her gaze linger on Anima. He was fidgeting in the 'nest,' his appetite getting the better of him. She drew closer only when he chanced to look up and see her, padding over with her hips swaying and tail swishing. She could almost see him drooling as he devoured her...with his eyes. Mmmm, not just his eyes would get a banquet tonight! She lifted a leg over the lip of the nest, giving her mate an eyeful of her sodden groin, before she stepped the rest of the way in. Despite her sultry movements and seductive manner, Krys was trembling. This was something she'd only dreamed about, ever since she hugged Anima and felt that huge bulge in his abdomen...but she was scared. What if it didn't work out? What if she suffocated in the hot confines of Anima's body? Would that upset her? With an erotic shudder, she decided that it would definitely not! But he'd promised she'd be all right... So it was with mixed feelings that she crouched down next to the reclining feline's head.

[All ready? Is your tummy crying out for my sweet body?] She grinned, teasing him, leaning forward to stroke his ebony cheek.

"It has been for hours my love...and I'm more than ready to grant its wish. Are you?" His purrrrr made her buzz as usual, tickling a little as the note hummed through her. Krys nodded emphatically, reached down, and pried open Anima's awesome jaws. To her surprise, he pulled back!

"No dear, let it go slowly...let the moment build. I want this to be something you will never forget!"

[Fat chance of that!] She sent, but sat back and waited. In a flash of dark, liquid motion, Anima melted into his anthro-form. Reaching out, he gathered her to him. She let a tiny whimper escape her as her breasts pressed tight against his soft chest, nipples springing to rock-hardness as they came into contact with the panther's fur. He shushed her gently, stroking a hand down her back. Cream from her sex trickled down her soaked thighs to saturate Anima's own thigh, the one she was sitting on. He smiled at her, quickly running his tongue over her muzzle.

"It turns you on as much as me, this act? Your scent is incredible..." He rumbled, filling his lungs with the sweet smell of the vixen's arousal. She nodded, reaching down to finger her sloppy folds. Anima took her hand away, tenderly, and replaced it with his own. One thick finger wriggled up inside her, easily the thickness and length of any of the lovers she'd had before Anima. He stroked her from within, just for a moment, before sliding his digit back out. Krys watched as he raised the sodden finger to his mouth and sucked it wantonly. Without warning, Anima suddenly pushed her down into the blankets. Firmly, but being so-very careful not to jar or injure her. Then, in one fluid motion, he scooped up her ankles and raised them. Her feet slipped onto his tongue, and slid back into the silk tunnel of his throat. Krys came right then, her thighs pressed tightly together and funneling the juices down into the crack between her furred buttocks. The panther noticed her orgasm, but didn't slow his consumption of her. Krys cried out as muscular ripples caressed her feet, and pulled them deeper. The temperature around her lower legs jumped five degrees. Anima groaned in ecstasy around his meal, leaning back against the wall of their love nest. He supported her body with his hands, guiding it down his soft throat. Another gulp, this one accompanied with a wet sucking noise, pulled Krys in up to her knees. She longed to finger herself, but was afraid Anima would take her hand away again. So she tweaked her nipples and kneaded her soft breasts, barking and moaning her joy into the night. Krys actually began wriggling her hips from side to side in an attempt to fill her lover more quickly, and succeeded in getting her waist past his lips. Then he did something she really hadn't expected. He slipped his tongue inside her! It felt glorious, better than before, that wet squishy piece of flesh delving deeply into her honeyed depths. She practically mauled her own breasts as she rode Anima's thick tongue, thrusting her hips against the roof of his mouth, and feeding her sweet musky liquids directly down the panther's throat. Soon, that delicious feeling built up inside her again, until it reached that critical point... Krys screamed! as she came for the second time in four minutes, her flow of cream increasing as her inner muscles all squeezed down on the tongue buried inside. And as she screamed and writhed in the flames of passion, Anima swallowed again. And again. And again. Each ripple of muscles tugged her inches deeper, something she didn't even realize until his tongue touched her nipples. Krys wriggled her toes, squirming in indescribable ecstasy to feel most of her slim body wrapped in wet, sweltering, velvety heat.

[Oh, why did you stop Anima? I feel soooo goood!] She thought at him, even as she raised her hands to stroke his swollen cheeks. He whipped his tongue teasingly across her nipples, soaking the fire and cream of her fur with his slick, warm drool.

[Just a breather. It takes a massive amount of energy to do this... When you're in up to your neck, your toes will find my stomach. Things will go very quickly from there, so this is the only time I can pause. I sense you're enjoying this...] Anima flavored the last sentence with mock innocence. She laughed into his head.

[That's the understatement of the century! I may be enjoying it too much in fact. Maybe from now on, all I'll want to do is wriggle down your throat. What'll you do about your cock dearest?] She was teasing him back, there's no way she'd ever turn that wonderful shaft down...

[I suppose I'd have to do a little creative stretching, like this...] Krys eeeeped! as Anima shifted, and bent waaaay over, until the head of his penis bonked Krys on the head. She looked up, just in time to get the thick shaft shoved past her lips. Krys choked and gagged for a split second before she could get control of her body, but then swallowed his member easily into her elastic throat. Now, this seemed to be ironic, but at the moment her brain was too fogged to figure out why...all she saw was the cock, all she felt was her body in her lover's throat. Anima rocked back and forth, jerking his hips. His slight thrusts slowly pushed Krys further into his gullet, until the panther's lips were actually brushing his own ballsac. Ivory fangs made a portcullis framing her view of the darkened quarters. It was only then that Krys realized her head was inside Anima's maw...and wriggling her toes, she could just feel the sphincter of his stomach. Hmm, bending over must've lengthened his esophagus...

[Here's a last drink before you take the long slide love...] Anima thought at her, desperation and passion staining his 'flavor' a deep red shot through with lightning. Anima's member bucked and spurted, shooting hot, sticky semen almost directly into the foxie's belly. Krys moaned and she swallowed, not influencing the cum's path, but milking its conduit. Gallons, at least, flowed into her stomach before Anima calmed down. She watched as he straightened, and gagged a last time as the cock pulled stickily free of her mouth. Then darkness became complete as Anima shut his mouth...and swallowed for the last time. It was like a ride in one of the flight simulators she had trained in years ago! Vertigo gripped her as she slipped down that delicious tunnel into an even warmer, cozier chamber. Her feet touched the bottom about the time her upper thighs were squeezing through the sphincter. Krys bent her legs, then kneeled, the slimy inner lining of the stomach almost gluing her in place. At last, her hands followed the rest of her down the throat and into the great cat's tummy. Krys curled up immediately, basking in the warmth...and when she thought hard about where she was, orgasm claimed her once again. Shuddering, her cunnie squirted more juices into the already-significant amount sloshing in the bottom of the soft organ.

[I'm fine love, it's...incredible being in here. You're as lovely inside as out.] She sent in response to a concerned probe. Krys cried out as her little world was shifted, and realized Anima had lay down. A dull thud-thud, thud-thud, thud-thud beat against her back. With a shock, Krys realized she was lying on top of the panther's huge heart... She grinned suddenly.

[Well, I've done the impossible. I'm closer to your heart now than I ever was before!] Anima groaned, and tried tickling her through the intervening walls of his flesh. She giggled, squirming inside him. But activity seemed so...wrong here. This was a place to relax, and forget.

[Krys? I just realized what I can do. If you want, I'll absorb you...but I'll keep a copy of your mind. When you're a part of me, it's a simple matter to make another body for you and install your mind.] He sent this tentatively, not sure how she'd react to his desire to digest her. He was staggered by her response.

[If I want? Dear, it's the only thing I can think of I haven't yet been given. Please love, digest me! Make me part of you...] Anima smiled mentally, caressing his bulging stomach with the utmost of tenderness and love.

"Your wish is my command..." He murmured, and focused his power. He scanned her brain, isolating every tiny part of it, and also mapping her body. With that information stored, there was no way Krys could ever be lost to him. With that confidence, he felt justified in falling into an exhausted sleep.

Krys felt Anima reading her body and mind, knowing he was making what would happen next safe for her. But when his mind dulled, she realized he'd gone to sleep! Indignant, she began to struggle, beating at the thick walls of Anima's stomach. He slept on. Then a curious tingling touched her backside. Acid! She screamed in fear, raking her claws through the tender tissue of her lover's stomach. But perhaps the acid had already been at work, for her claws seemed to melt as she tried to rip her way out. There was no pain, just a feeling of disassociation as her body melted away like butter. THIS was what she had wanted, being helplessly trapped in Anima's gut, and digesting to feed her lover...to nourish and strengthen him. When the thick, digestive ooze slid over her heart, her last thoughts were those of sheer joy and pleasure.

Krys woke up curled in Anima's soft embrace, with his quiet snores whistling in her ears. Falling back against him with a sigh, Krys grinned. She could feel the bulge her original softened body made inside Anima. She imagined it an hour from now, flowing through his intestines... Krys fingered herself, murrrrring in bliss. What a delightful start to their voyage...

Chapter 7

Krys munched a ration bar happily, watching the view-screen in their quarters. Anima was somewhere behind her, trying to make something tastier of the rations stored on the ship. Krys had never complained about the plain bars and similar items, but the panther knew how tiresome they could be after awhile. She was watching a story made for the screen, one about a young female who ran off with her forbidden lover to a wild wood. It was a story about love and survival, which was probably why the vixen picked it. The characters were of the invader's race, but that hardly seemed to matter in this context. After a half-hour or so, Anima padded over to his lover with a bowl of mush.

"It might not look like much, but it's kind of like oatmeal. Nicer tasting than the dry version, and it'll stretch our supply. Not that we're low, but we might need them later." Krys nodded absently, not even looking at the bowl. Anima was hurt, he'd worked hard to make this glop appealing!

"Krys! Won't you even try it?" Slowly, she turned from the screen and looked up at the panther blankly. A second later, she shook herself and apologized.

[Sorry lover. I was just engrossed in the movie...] She pointed to the screen. Anima looked, and saw the female smiling gently and rubbing her scaly belly. It looked swollen.

[She got pregnant...she's very happy about it.] Krys murmured, taking the bowl. Anima lay down at the vixen's feet, helping warm them in the cool air of the room. Murrrring softly, Krys kneaded Anima's back with her feet.

[Dear? I've got another question for you.] She said after a moment or three. Anima turned his head, letting her sink into the gold saucers of his eyes. [Would you...would you make me pregnant? I...want to have your children.] If she hadn't been so scared, Krys would've laughed at the expression on the panther's face. It took a minute to compose himself, before he answered.

"I...I really shouldn't be surprised anymore. You've shocked me like this two or three times already... Yes dearest heart, I would be honored to sire your cubs. I've manipulated my seed to be sterile up until now, a precaution I must take, as my sperm naturally shape-shift to adapt to my mate's body and species." Krys nodded, smiling broadly, and flung herself on Anima to hug him.

[Thank you so much Anima...can we try tonight?] She waited breathlessly for him to roll over and answer. He was grinning at her now, showing most of his teeth.

"Try? There is no try, only do! When I put my mind to it, I'm the universe's greatest stud." Krys frowned prettily and demanded he prove it, so the couple retired to the bedroom. Krys lay on her back, legs spread wide. Her slit was moist, drooling nectar and delicious scents that tantalized the vixen's dark lover. Anima covered Krys with his body, bringing his loins in line with hers, and then gently stroking into her. His awesomely erect member slid with little difficulty right to her womb, penetrating the cervix. Anima groaned, his back muscles spasming in ecstasy as he began to thrust. Wet, squelching sounds filled the room as the panther began to rutt. For that was what he was doing. His objective was to cum, and though Krys was sure he'd make certain she enjoyed herself too, that was a secondary consideration. The vixen moaned, clenching her slick, inner muscles along the length of penis dipping in and out of her. Her swollen labia gripped and tugged at the cock at every opportunity, trying to coax Anima's load into her willing receptacle of a body. Gradually, Anima's thrusts built in power and frequency, until with a deafening scream, he emptied his huge balls directly into Krys' soft womb. She could feel his seed splash into that secret chamber, filling it, then stretching it with the amount of sperm inside. She came to orgasm on that sensation, being filled to the brim with her lover's cum... Panting, the two lay coupled for nearly an hour before separating. Anima propped Krys' bottom up on some pillows, to keep every drop of semen inside her.

[I see what you mean about being a stud dear...that was definitely the shotgun approach. Overkill to the max.] Krys moaned, touching her sensitive nipples. Anima licked them for her, purrrrring smugly.

"If you use your senses, you'll see you've already been fertilized. I used a bit of my magic to bring some of your eggs down...you now have about twelve fertilized eggs growing inside you..." Krys blanched, her hands flying to her stomach.

[TWELVE?! But...I can't hold that...well, I guess I could. Why twelve at once though?] She cried into his mind. Anima grinned again, and kissed her.

"It was a nice round number. Ten was too few, fourteen was too many. Besides, I want to see you waddling around with a belly the size of me...you'd be a lot of fun to curl up with, given all those little critters kicking away inside you..." Krys nodded slowly, then shivered...in anticipation. But her sense of self also told her something disturbing...

[Anima, some of the cubs are strange! They're going to have six limbs...and are going to be almost twice the size of their siblings! Five of them are like that! Did we do something wrong?] Her eyes brimmed as she imagined half her offspring as hideous mutations. Anima shushed her, and followed his mental link to examine the growing embryos.

"Oh, relax my sweet. They're just 'tauric is all. They're supposed to be bigger. It isn't my doing, I suppose your genetic history must include a few foxtaurs somewhere..." Krys sagged with relief. She turned her attention back to her belly, pushing the sloshing mass back and forth. The minds inside her hadn't even begun to develop really, but there was a distinct *presence* of twelve...no, thirteen lives in her loins.

[I'll learn what it is to have another life inside me...different from your way, but life all the same. Thank you love, you great black stud.] Krys giggled a little, opening her link to Anima a little wider so he could feel what she did. The sperm he'd just pumped into her were present in such quantity that Krys could actually feel them moving inside her. Perhaps they were also large...as the panther himself was. He chuckled, wrapping himself around the vixen and stroking her distended abdomen. She caught Anima's head and held it tight against her breast. No, there was no one like her Anima.

[And no one like my Krys.] She heard in her mind, tinged with love and possessiveness. Embracing tightly, the couple expressed their love verbally and physically, as the ship sailed on through the black ocean of stars we call space.

THE END

Dear Krys,

I think this may be my finest work yet, and I have only you to thank for it. You're my inspiration, the reason I stuck with this, and the one I hoped to please by writing this. Dear, I can only hope you're as happy with this as I am. *nuzzles* I hope we can be together again soon.

Love,

Your Anima