CHAPTER 53

"Won't hurt to try."

He knelt by the bed and slid his hands under her scalp. Her hair was completely gray now, just like her eyes. "I'm going to pull, okay?"

"Pull straight toward you. You're fighting all those muscles in there right now, don't be afraid to get rough with it."

"But... what if..." the image of Dana's head somehow separating from her body was ludicrous, but he couldn't help himself.

"Then Sulyvahn and I can start a club, or something. Maybe even a goth band. He's already got the outfit for it."

He laughed. "I keep forgetting that guy is out there. I've had too much on my mind recently. Have you met him? What do you think?"

"Not much to think about, really."

He braced his feet against the frame of the bed and pulled. Dana slid toward him, and he swore to himself. He sat down and raised his feet, placing them on her shoulders.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Bracing myself." He pushed with his feet and held tight to her jaw. Her skull slid along the bones of her spine, and the crackling noise alone turned his stomach.

"Oh, I hate how that sounds," she said.

"That makes both of us." He relaxed for a second and then tensed up again, hooking his fingers around her skull. He took a deep breath and yanked as hard as he could, trying to ignore the popping sounds and sensations.

There was a loud crack, and Dana let out another groan. Her head now seemed to be properly seated, and the lump was finally gone.

"Just like that, right?" Mike asked.

"It's like popping your elbow, times a million. All that buildup, and then a moment of..." She blinked a few times, then looked towards Mike. "Um... I still can't move."

"Oh shit, let me feel." He worked his fingers along her spine. Though he had no idea what he was doing, he figured he would notice something really off. Already, he was thinking of the best way to get Dana to the centaurs. He really should have taken her there first instead of trying to deal with the issue himself, but he had wanted to be helpful.

At least he couldn't kill his patient by accident.

"I don't feel anything weird. Your neck feels normal." He stood up and leaned over her, then frowned. "I think I might know the problem."

"Well?" Though she looked at him, her eyes were completely unfocused. Her skin was now an unhealthy shade of gray, and her face had sunken in just a little.

"You look dead. Like, no joking or anything, but you look bad."

"Shit." She frowned, which looked like a quirky smile from where he stood. "I fucked up my leg earlier. I can only regenerate so much without..."

"Say no more." He made a dash down through the house to the kitchen, and removed one of her few remaining shot glasses of spunk. He went back to his room and pulled the lid off. "Let's see if this does the trick."

The moment he had uncorked the glass, Dana's nostrils flared and she opened her mouth wide, making him think of a baby bird waiting for its meal. He poured the fluid down her throat and watched her swallow it.

Seconds later, she inhaled sharply through her nose, and he heard a couple of pops throughout her body.

"What was that?" he asked.

"My ribs, apparently." She looked at him. "I can sort of feel my body now, but I still can't move."

"Should I get some more... food for you?"

"Uh..." She was breathing hard now, indecision on her face. "I think I'll need something stronger, actually. And soon."

"Here, we can have Naia help."

"No, wait." The faraway look in her eyes had turned to something else, and he recognized it for what it was. Hunger. "I mean... it's a little bit weird, but we can both be adults about it, right?"

"Yes, of course. If you're sure." He knew how she felt about sex with a man, and had done everything in his power to keep her from feeling like she had to. The last thing he wanted was to be resented. After all, it was partially his fault she was a zombie to begin with, and knowing that she had to do this to remain alive and sane often filled him with guilt.

"Oh, I'm sure. Absolutely sure." A bit of a spark had returned to her eyes, and she was licking her lips. "Like, if you don't do something soon, I'm going to freak out."

"Okay, yeah, I get it." He started to unbuckle his pants, then frowned. "So... you can't really move."

"You're stating the obvious."

"But then how... like should I just..."

"Just rub one out, okay?" Her voice was strained. "Blow your load on my face. Really. Less talking, more jerking."

"Uh, yeah." He pulled his cock out of his pants and Dana inhaled sharply, staring at it like a starving orphan at Thanksgiving dinner. He stroked himself a few times, and his cock hardened in his hand, now standing at full attention. When he looked down at Dana, drool was now running along her cheeks, and he swayed his cock from side to side.

Her eyes followed, her entire focus on his thick shaft. Seeing how enthralled she was with his meaty member gave him a rush, and he used his other hand to tug down on his balls, preparing himself for the task at hand.

His magic woke up now, humming through his veins with nowhere to go. It crawled along his chest and belly first, then ran across his thighs before rolling up his spine and repeating the process. The sensation was both pleasurable and a bit distracting.

Dana made a noise similar to a whimper, and he saw that her attention was caught by a single bead of precum that had spilled over the top of his cock and clung to the ridge of his glans.