“FUCK!”Lotus shouted when the ladder suddenly jostled underneath them. They gripped the rungs tightly and grit their teeth as a sudden wave of irritation burned wildly inside of them. They freed a hand and swung back to glare at the team of operators watching on the loading platform. “They hiring clowns these days? Get the fuck outta here if you don’t know what you’re doing!”
A long suffering sigh sounded beneath them followed by a low mutter of, “How in all of time and all of space did I end up with this loudmouth…?”
Lotus turned their irritated glare down to the pilot at their heels. “Shut it, Carnage. Or I’ll shut it for you.”
Carnage tilted their head back and met Lotus’ furious glare with an unimpressed stare of their own. “Ooh, I’m shaking in my boots. Just hurry up and keep climbing. My arms are getting tired.”
There were one, two, a thousand different things that Lotus wanted to say to that. Fortunately for everyone else, the mission was time-sensitive, and that alone was enough to stop Lotus from going on a tirade like they wanted. So, they just sucked their teeth harshly and continued their climb. Carnage shot a look over their shoulder to the operative team, who all seemed to recognise the small mercy they were granted and immediately relaxed.
As the two pilots climbed, a smooth voice echoed through the hangar and announced, ENDLESS PILOTS 1 AND 2 LOADING IN PORT 81.
The cockpit for the Endless combat model hissed open and retracted inside of the mech’s chest cavity to grant the pilot’s entry. Within the spherical space were two dark, suspended seats positioned to face each other. Lotus didn’t hesitate to crawl inside and claim the top, front-facing seat for themself. Carnage was close behind them, but once they saw Lotus locking into their seat, they froze in place. Lotus only smirked at their displeasure.
“Don’t tell me you’re getting cold feet already,” they then teased.
“You’re driving?” Carnage’s eyebrows jerked upward.
“What do you think?”
Don’t raise to the bait, Carnage thought almost immediately. They rolled their eyes and grumbled under their breath as they climbed inside as well. Forced to take the bottom seat, they rolled onto their back and spread their legs underneath Lotus as they secured their feet to the slotted pedals on either side of the driver’s seat. As they made themself comfortable, they looked up and were immediately met with Lotus’ smug expression.
Carnage looked higher to a point on Lotus’ forehead. “I refuse to look at you during this flight if you’re going to be like this.”
“Ha! Tough shit. S’not like you really have a choice, huh?”
Carnage grit their teeth as they reminded themself, Don’t take the bait, don’t take the bait. They were aware how many pilots came with their own… quirks, but it had been a long time since they dealt with someone with such an obnoxiously childish attitude. This was going to be a long flight.
Thankfully, they didn’t have to think about it for very long. They arched their back as thick cable rolled against the ports lining the spine of their suit. Several ridges and nodes rubbed against their back until the cable was able to slot in with the correct configuration. Carnage jerked again. Their expression pinched as each port was filled, and a thin moan pressed against their pursed lips. Lotus watched as pain and something more flickered over Carnage’s expression, and Carnage let out a breathy “Fuck…” as they eased back down against their seat once more.
Such a simple word revealed that “something more” to be the unmistakable sound of pleasure, and Lotus’ eye twitched when they realised it. More than that, they were immediately caught off guard by how enraptured they were by Carnage’s intialisation process. They cleared their throat, shoved their arms into the hydraulic motion control cuffs, and curled their fingers around the steering units. With both pilots properly locked in, the cockpit gave a warning alarm before sealing shut and submerging them both in darkness.
“Ever fly with a partner before?” Carnage asked, their voice still too throaty and sensual for Lotus’ liking.
“I don’t need a partner. I’m better when I fly solo.”
It was Carnage’s turn to smirk now. “Clearly, the Marshall doesn’t think so.”
Lotus was almost thankful when their brief arousal was replaced with the familiar burn of annoyance. They bucked at Carnage as if to pounce on them, only to be cut off by the protective restraints under their chest and across their hips as well as their arms trapped within the cuffs. Feeling a bit petty and unable to stop themselves, Carnage winked and then laughed softly when that only served to irritate Lotus further.
A holographic panel appeared between them. “Endless, checking in.”
Lotus pressed their thumbs against the buttons on the inside of their steering units, and that reset the motion controls. Their arms slowly spread open as they replied, “Locked and loaded.”
Carnage’s fingers danced along the consoles underneath their hands as they began the pre-flight routine. “Endless 2, ready to launch.”
“Copy that. Neural sync countdown in three- two- one.”
The communication window disappeared, and the pilots closed their eyes as the cockpit’s interior dropped in temperature. Seconds later, a luminescent bioimmersion gel flooded in. Carnage inhaled sharply through their nose when they felt the gel come in contact with them. It covered their legs and soon crawled higher along their arms up to their chest. Lotus shuddered from the familiar chill as the gel drenched them from above. Their grip tightened, and they focused on keeping their breathing steady as they waited for the gel to cover them entirely. But where Carnage was prepared for what was to come next, Lotus was not.
As a solo pilot, Lotus was used to a completely different process that came with neural syncing. Their skin would tingle as thousands of nanomachines were drawn out of their body and assimilated with the ones inside the mech. After receiving all the data from the mech’s previous flight sessions, combat encounters, and current updates (and being somewhat overwhelmed), they’d be all set to fly.
But with a partner… There was so much more for their brain to process. There was so much more that their body had to endure. And the worst part about it was that they didn’t hate a second of it.
As the gel filled every inch of the cockpit, there was that customary tingle of the nanomachines beginning to make their circuit. Lotus’ mind was forcibly emptied of all thoughts as they accepted a new stream of information and sensations. But they weren’t prepared for the sensation of… a warm body pressing to theirs. Of legs embracing their hips and hands running along their flesh.
Lips melded to their own and breathed life into them so that they didn’t suffocate in the gel. Long fingers stroked through their hair before pulling the thick locks back to prevent them from tangling with the carbon cables. (And maybe for another reason as well…) The pleasure mounted slowly and filled every nerve in Lotus’ body.
They gasped against prying lips and tried to press closer against the body that ached for theirs and writhed against their form. They bucked their hips and were blissfully met in kind. The steady pace of their heart monitor slowly increased as they fell into rhythm with Carnage’s thrusts. They wanted to take the lead properly, and it would have been fitting considering they took the top seat. In this position, they were the lead pilot, the driver. They were supposed to take all challenges head-on—but they were woefully unprepared to tackle this particular obstacle.
Carnage was took full advantage of Lotus’ inexperience. Their want was overwhelming in its urgency; they were charging towards the end, and Lotus was hopelessly lost in their current. Carnage dug in and pried open Lotus’ mind, leaving them raw and twitching and exposed for a total unification. Soon, the very essence of Carnage consumed Lotus entirely, leaving them blinded by the afterglow of relentless, seemingly endless ecstasy.
Lotus’ back arched as they rode out the ruinous pleasure. They moaned helplessly and clenched their fists to the point of pain around the steering units. It felt like lifetimes before Lotus came back to themselves. As they returned to their senses, the Endless mech flared to life. Every face of the cockpit began to glow through the gel. Lotus’ floating vision found something to latch onto when a status window appeared before them.
ENDLESS PILOT NEURAL SYNC: 100% — COMPLETE.
“Let’s go.” Carnage’s voice echoed inside of Lotus’ head, and save their husky tone, they sounded completely unaffected by what transpired.
“Wha…”
A laugh resonated in Lotus’ chest. Though they were both physically still in their seats, Lotus swore they could feel a hand seal around the back of their neck, and Carnage’s eyes met theirs.
“You should have let me drive,” Carnage teased, and their lips quirked up in a smile briefly. But they quickly moved on, not giving Lotus a single moment to recover. Their eyes returned to the status window, which they soon replaced with a protection of an astral map, and they began to lay down coordinates. “Take-off in ten. Get ready.”
Lotus mentally shook off their partner’s touch—or at least they tried to—and they concentrated hard on the map. “Don’t tell me what to do,” they blustered before opening a transmission window to communicate with the operators waiting for them in the hangar. “Endless 1 and 2, live and ready to launch.”
“Roger that, Endless. Launch protocol engaged.”