I briefed the others on my findings after I got back. We then proceeded to discuss our gameplan.

“Twenty-two in total!?” Roxy exclaimed.

“No way! That’s ins-insane!”

“Be grateful it’s not eighty-eight” I scoffed.

“Hwy hwould it be tat? Also at least hwe ‘ave tree of tem down”

“Yes. It’s conf-confirmed that Chr-Chris-Chrstia-Christian Bane is the deal-dealer for the AI maj-majors” 

“Buttermilk Waffles?” Reggie asked, bringing the tray towards us. “Freshly baked, I might add”

“Yes please” I nodded, taking some. “We have to do a bottoms-up approach here. Avoid touching Christian for now since he’s at the top of all this. Jeremy, focus on finding all the dealers from the Media department. Roxy and Youri, you two cover IT, and I’ll stick to Social Sciences. Then we’ll move onto the rest from there” First I gotta find out who the dealer in my class is. “To be honest, the bulk of our operation relies on Jeremy’s telepathic abilities. Which brings us to the next point”

“Tat tey’re makin powah-based drugs? So each deala dishes out different abilities? Alain gives telepathic ones, and it’s safe ta assume te girl gave ‘ypnosis or hwateva ‘er powah is. Does tat mean Christian’s is”-

“Freshly squeezed Pineapple juice?” The Butler questioned upon his return. 

“Thank you Reggie” I took the jug from him, pouring myself a glass. “I doubt their research and progress is anywhere near that advanced just yet, but that’s what they’re trying to go for. Christian’s ability is hard to reproduce so they need more time. But they definitely have prototypes. Whatever their main plan is, it’s still in the developing stages” I took a few sips of the juice.

“But we can’t discount the fact that, you know, that’s their plan in the end. The end goal is to ultimately be able to give and recreate any power via Pitch Black Five” Roxy interjected. 

“Yeah exac-exactly” I groaned as my stomach churned. I clenched my gut, trying to get up but nearly losing my footing.

“Are you ok-okay?” Youri rushed to my side.

“Mhm, it’s just” The pain left immediately as I felt blood rush down to my pelvic area. Oh… I see…

“To my knowledge, there was nothing wrong with our current batch of pineapples. Are you perhaps allergic?” 

“No?” I’d rather die than be allergic to my favorite fruit. “Besides I don’t think this kind of erec-reaction come from allergies”

“Tastes fine ta me. TIS KIND OF HWAT?”

“Ercraction, REACTION”

“Yes, mine is als-also fine” The three of us looked at Roxy, who remained silent.

“Like I said it’s no big deal. Maybe the acidity was too high. Nothing to cum-complain about” WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON? I managed to sit back down, placing a pillow on my lap to hide my otherwise quite obvious erection. The others greeted me with tilted heads and raised eyebrows. “Ahem so as I was saying” What was I saying?

“The creator of Pitch Black Five and Christian are probably working together to be able to supply any kind of power or ability via PBF. For now they can only do it with things like telepathy, but even then, we don’t know the full extent of that” Roxy explained.

“Seems like a copy of Y-, hwait nevahmind”

“Would you rather have some Apple Juice Monsieur Eden?”

“Uhhh sure, put it on the table please” I requested. Why is there so much lewd stuff going through my head? I’ve never been this turned on before. And that was after just one glass of juice…

“Ed-Eden, why do you have a pill-pillow on your lap?” Youri enquired. “Sor-sorry but it’s just ver-very dis-distract-distracting” 

“It’s cause” Shit… Do I tell them straight up? How do I explain? Does juice now make me horny? The images of many erotic scenes flowed through my head as I repeatedly tried my best to dismiss them. “I’m cold”

“Would you like a blanket? The weather is getting quite chilly lately” The Butler offered.

“It’ll probably distract these dumbasses even more. Just leave it. I’m fine” Am I really that touch starved? “Anyways, as I was saying, if that’s what Christian and his employer are aiming at, the entire continent’s at risk” Jeremy and Youri leaned into each other, whispering to one another. “FOCUS!” The two of them returned their attention. “Which is why Youri, you’re going to have to be extra careful now. Can’t afford to fuck, fuck up” I informed.

“So yer suggestin ta pull ‘im outta ‘is fling hwit Christian?” 

“Quite the opposite. I’m gonna ram him in even further” I grinned. They all looked at me, absolutely disgusted. “What? Pulling out’s not my thing” Oh… “I just mean I’m gonna make him go all the way in, as far as he can” WAIT! “That’s NOT WHAT I MEANT!” They shook their heads solemnly. 

“He ev-even did the hand gest-gestures!” Youri cried. 

“Uhh if yer feelin some kinda way, hwe can continue tis later. Feel free ta relieve yerself first”

“QUIET! Stop going off topic” Roxy looked on in amusement, not saying a word.

“Sor-sorry Ed-Eden but, I don’t think we can foc-focus. Dare we rem-remove that pil-pillow from your lap?” For fuck’s sake….

“You know what, discuss this amongst yourselves. Imma go take a piss”

“Oh yer gonna do more tan tat my friend” Jeremy and Youri high-fived each other.

“Can you guys not talk about this stuff in front of a minor?” I demanded.

“Can you stop get-getting er-erect-erecti-erections in front of one?”

“KILL YOURSELF!” I slowly got up, clutching the pillow tightly as I shuffled towards the bathroom. I let out an exasperated sigh while locking the door. DAMMIT! WHY? WHY can’t I have my favorite juice normally? This has literally never happened before. BESIDES I only had ONE glass. I hate how difficult it is to take a piss when erect, and the fact that I can’t stop seeing sexual things going on in my head isn’t helping at all. After struggling for a good thirty seconds, I finally managed to relax, letting it all out for about a minute or so. I promptly washed my hands and left the bathroom. 

“Damn, tat hwas fast” 

“I was ACTUALLY peeing, you dumbass”

“He’s right. He left his phone beh-behind”

“You’re both the only ones being distracting. Roxy’s been sitting silently the whole time!”

“I refuse to comment on the matter. It’s very amusing though” She grinned.

“Exactly! Don’ tell us hwe can’t pick on our commander?” Fair enough. “Besides, ya should probably put that pillow back on” I looked down to find it still standing strong. ARE YOU FUCKING JOKING? I grabbed the pillow, slamming it down myself as I took a seat. 

“You know what, I don’t care. Jeremy, read my mind and brief the others” I ordered.

“Okie doke” The smile from his face faded instantly. “Oh, oh God. Oh my. EDEN! HWAT TE ‘ELL??” He cried, shaking his head vigorously. “HWY? HWY hwould ya subject me ta somethin’ like tat?” 

“Exactly, shut up. I can’t control this. Now settle down and let me finish. We’re almost done” I declared. “Youri, get even closer to Christian. Find out what that Silver-haired bastard is planning. Don’t focus on anything else. The three of us will then take on the remaining dealers. We’ll meet up after our classes to compare notes. That’s all, dismissed” I remained seated, waiting for the others to leave first. Roxy stayed as well. Dammit, I need to relieve myself of these erotic urges as soon as possible. “Is there something you wanted to discuss?”

“Is what you’re currently feeling a side effect of your powers awakening?” How did she just guess that?

“Maybe, I’m not too sure yet” But that doesn’t make sense. I’ve had these powers for a while but only seemed to use them in dire situations. The only time I consciously did it was to take out that one dealer. 

“Well either that or you really are touch starved and desperate” She yawned, stretching her arms above her head. 

“I’ll go to the library and find out more about my powers. Hopefully I’ll get my answer” I said, finishing the apple juice. Hopefully this doesn’t have any adverse effects.

“Should we have Reggie cut down on getting pineapples?”

“That would be, most appreciated” I laughed. As long as this feeling fades soon, I’ll be fine. “You should get some rest”

“I’m probably going to stay up a bit. Never got the chance to check out those mechs you brought back. And I didn’t get to thank you for it either. I’m sorry, I really appreciate you doing that for me” She smiled. “You risked your life for that, and I didn’t show any gratitude. I”- I put my hand on her shoulder, realizing it was probably wayyy too risky to hug her. 

“You worry too much. There’s nothing to be sorry for. But if it puts your mind at ease, apology accepted. And you’re welcome”

“Thank you for being patient with me. I just”-

“Roxy, two things. Firstly, the effect of this juice has clouded, perverted, and distorted my mind greatly, so we should really save this conversation for later. Secondly, please go to sleep. You’re tired and you’re going to end up overthinking this all. Well talk tomorrow” Am I doing something wrong that keeps making her feel this way? There’s clearly a reason she keeps wanting to have these kind of talks. Is something missing? Am I slacking as her best friend?

“Ok... Yeah, you’re right. Thank you” She shifted her gaze towards the floor. “Hope you sleep well”

“You too” I called out, heading down to my room. Unfortunately, my erection was still ever-present. Do I really HAVE to let out the pent up frustration? Can’t I just sleep it off? On the bright side, if I do end up, relieving myself, it won’t take too long…. That’s not a good thing…. Screw it, I’ll just try sleeping it off….