A Pale Horse
                                   Chapter I: Last Day of the Old Life

Freyja sat on her bed with her knees pulled up her chest. Her duvet was pulled around her shoulders for warmth against the cold air of her bedroom. The only light came from a small glow-globe on her bedside table that filled the room with dim orange light that made the room look warmer than it actually was. Freyja liked the dim light. It was relaxing and easy on her eyes which had only moments ago been fast asleep. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and sat quietly on her bed while she watched Cecilia undress. 

Cecilia was Freyja’s oldest and closest friend, as well as being her roommate for the past two years. Though the majority of students in the Schola Progenium, the orphanage-cum-military academy of the Imperium, slept and lived in basic dormitories separated by gender, older students and especially those who stood out, where allowed private rooms. Freyja had been given a room with the older Cecilia, though the reasons as to why exactly she had been given the honour remained a mystery to all but the drill abbots who ran the secluded academy deep within the snowy forest.  

Presently, Cecilia was unbuttoning the top of her PDF fatigues. She was not a member of the Taigan Planetary Defence Force but often trained with them as part of an agreement between the two institutions. The black, white and blue fabric was casually discarded on her bed, exposing her tight navy-blue undershirt. The muscles underneath were tight, toned and large. Freyja could not help but stare at the way they moved under her skin as she undressed. The shadows seemed to make them stand out all the more, especially when Cecilia removed her undershirt and stood topless in the warm half-light. Freyja bit her lip and pulled her knees closer to her chest at the sight of Cecilia’s rippled belly, powerful arms and full, voluptuous chest. It was perhaps Freyja’s favourite vision of Cecilia; the young soldier, bathed in dim light and standing topless with her powerful muscles on display. 
Cecilia turned to face Freyja, a sly smile growing out of one side of her lips. Freyja knew immediately what the older girl was thinking for she had seen that face many times before and had eagerly been awaiting its return. She approached Freyja slowly, swaying her hips to exaggerated effect. The wooden floorboards creaked with each heavy step of her steel-toed boots. Freyja smiled up at the approaching girl and slowly allowed her knees to fall open. Cecilia knelt on the edge of the bed, inching closer towards Freyja. She was taller than Freyja by almost a full head and in her current position her breasts were level with the younger girl’s face which is exactly where she wanted them.

‘I missed you.’ Freyja said, smiling up at Cecilia. 

‘I missed you more. Two months is too long.’ Cecilia replied.

Freyja’s emerald green eyes locked with Cecilia’s chocolate brown as the two of them shared a long moment. Casually, Freyja took Cecilia’s breasts in her hands and began to squeeze them gently. Cecilia let out a soft sigh of relief as she felt the familiar touch of her companion’s hands. 

‘What did they have you doing?’ Freyja asked, still fondling the pale breasts and small pink nipples that capped each orb of flesh like snow upon a mountain peak. 

‘Prolonged survival and deep reconnaissance in the mountains’ Cecilia replied with a sleepy, relaxed voice. Her head lulled back as Freyja began to intermittently flick her tongue across the hardening nipples in front of her.
 
‘Was it fun?’

‘I was cold, wet and hungry almost constantly.’  

‘What did you do?’

‘Got hunted by PDF for three weeks and then got to hunt some vets from the 3rd Taigan.’

Freyja took one of Cecilia’s nipples in her mouth and gently teased it with her teeth and tongue. Cecilia responded by running her fingers through Freyja’s dark hair, holding the young girl’s head closer to her breast. 

‘How do you think it went?’ Freyja asked, Cecilia’s nipple still between her teeth.

‘It would have been better if you were there.’ Cecilia said, hugging Freyja’s head closer to her chest as Freyja wrapped her arms around Cecilia’s waist.

‘It’s really boring here without you.’ Freyja said. 

Cecilia ran her hands down the length of Freyja’s slim body. Her palms were rough and callused from field work and her short fingernails were still cracked and dirty, but her delicate touch was enough to cause shivers to run down the young girl’s body. Freyja was only wearing a thin nightie held up by straps on her shoulders and a pair of grey box panties. Cecilia’s fingers ran along Freyja’s shoulders, gliding across the bump of her collarbone under her smooth skin until they found the straps holding up the nightie. With a casual flick the straps were moved aside and the nightie fell away. 

Freyja’s breasts were small and supple though they fitted her slender frame perfectly. Her flat nipples were light beige and almost invisible against the perfect white of her skin. Cecilia looked down at her young companion and pulled her up into a deep kiss. Their breasts rubbed against each other as they did so. Tongues met in the space between their mouths and intertwined in a wet dance. Cecilia gripped Freyja around the neck and squeezed gently. She could feel the young girl’s blood flowing through the arteries of her neck and the muscles contract and relax as she focused on the long kiss. 

Cecilia moved forward, pushing Freyja against the wall. The cold stone stung the bare skin on the girl’s back but she barely noticed. She roughly squeezed the soft flesh on Freyja’s chest, groping her firmly and hungrily. Freyja did nothing to stop her older lover from taking what she wanted. As the touching and kissing increased, so did the movements of the two girls. Freyja groped and stroked all the exposed skin her hands could find as she was roughly forced onto her back by Cecilia. The older girl kicked off her boots and let them fall, loudly, onto the floor. She sat on Freyja’s lap, pinning the younger girl’s wrists to the mattress. She began to grind her hips against Freyja’s while staring into the girl’s eyes with a hungry, needy look.

Freyja undid the belt holding up Cecilia’s PDF fatigues and forcibly pulled open the zip. She slid her fingers up and down the rippled flesh of Cecilia’s tight abdomen and around her waist while the older girl massaged and played with Freyja’s breasts. Cecilia’s fingers pinched and brushed over the sensitive nipples that lay flat on Freyja’s breast. Freyja, in turn, reached up to cup the breasts of her lover and tightly squeezed them together. 
Together they had passed the point of no return. Their clothes were falling away and the momentum was carrying them forward swiftly. Cecilia slid her hand down Freyja’s body and into the younger’s girl’s underwear. Her fingers found the hot, moist slit hidden within and began to playfully tease it. Freyja let a gentle sigh escape her mouth as she felt the familiar touch she had been deprived of for so long. She started grinding her hips against Cecilia’s hand, desperate for the release that had been occupying more and more of her mind since Cecilia left. It had made studying hard as increasingly intrusive thoughts had fogged her head but at last she would find relief. 

Cecilia had done this many times before and knew what it took to get Freyja off. She rubbed and caressed the girl’s vulva with skilled fingers that almost instinctively sought out her aching clit and wet lips. Freyja began to whimper and groan as her most private area was invaded and explored. Wet sounds betrayed how utterly under Cecilia’s control she was. She blushed heavily when Cecilia brought her fingers up to show her how covered in cum they were, not that Freyja needed to be shown. She could feel her underwear getting soaked by the second. 
Cecilia licked her wet fingers before offering them to Freyja. The young girl quickly sucked on Cecilia’s fingers, tasting her own sweet cum on her lover’s fingers. Once they were clean and covered in Freyja’s and Cecilia’s saliva, the older girl returned to caressing the wetness inside Freyja’s underwear. 

As Cecilia’s slid inside the young girl and used her thumb to tease the girl’s firm clitoris, Freyja began to squeeze her own breasts. She grinded her hips against Cecilia’s hand, roughly moving her hips in time with Cecilia’s gentle thrusts into her. The young girl was breathing heavily, letting herself moan loudly. She took Cecilia’s hand in hers and encouraged her to go faster. The strange burning in the pit of her stomach was rising and it was only a few moments until it reached a climax.

Cecilia’s eyes grew wide as she watched Freyja lose control of herself. She was gasping for breath. Her chest rose and fell, causing the supple flesh of her breast to wobble and shake in a hypnotic display. The young girl’s face was tightened into a look of focus as she tried to hold back the climax inside her. Eventually the sensation bombing through her were too much for her to bear and she came. Her muscles tightened and her back arched, a single, long gasp of air was the only sound she made as her mind was flooded with endorphins. Her hips rocked back and forth on Cecilia’s hand as she climaxed again and again by Cecilia’s hand. 

When Freyja regained some measure of control, she forcibly grabbed Cecilia by the neck and pulled her into a kiss. Her breath was still ragged and her voice was unfirm as she spoke.

‘I want... you.’ She said.

Cecilia smiled and moved off of Freyja. Her fingers were still wet with the climactic juices of Freyja’s orgasm. She slipped her wet hand into her own underwear and mixed the sweet cum with her own. She lay on her back on the edge of Freyja’s bed and began to pull her fatigues down her legs. Freyja jumped at the opportunity to help and grabbed hold onto the knees of Cecilia’s fatigues. Cecilia lay back and lifted up her long, strong legs as her clothes were pulled away by naked Freyja. Filled with a new energy, Freyja took control. She held Cecilia down as she kissed the older girl’s tight belly, inching her way down. 

She planted kisses on the thin synthetic fabric that separated Freyja from the warm wetness of Cecilia’s vulva. The standard issue undergarments were a dull beige colour and boxer design that stuck to Cecilia like a second skin. Due to the moisture of excitement, the material had clung tighter to Cecilia than normal, giving an almost perfect outline of what lay underneath. Freyja smiled at the sight and ran her tongue across the barely visible lips of Cecilia’s vulva. Cecilia ran her fingers through Freyja’s hair, keeping a handful of it in her clenched fist. Freyja was not the same tease Cecilia could be when she wanted to; she was hungry and was not waiting. In one movement she pulled Cecilia’s underwear down and off. They were thrown away unceremoniously as Freyja pushed apart Cecilia’s legs. 

Cecilia squealed in delight the moment Freyja thruster her lips and tongue upon the older girl’s hungering quim. Freyja licked and sucked on the sensitive lips as her face was gently pushed into it by Cecilia. Though the short bristles of her unmaintained pubic hair scratched at Freyja’s face, she did not try to avoid them or complain. It would have been too much to ask that Cecilia maintain a perfectly smooth nether while going through survival training. Freyja was actually impressed at how little there was and was silently grateful for it. She slid her tongue up and down the wet slit, tasting the sweet, familiar cum of her lover. The young girl’s nose teased Cecilia’s small clitoris as she whole-heartedly ate her out. 

Cecilia wanted to squash Freyja’s face between her thighs, but resisted. Instead she rubbed the soles of her feet up and down Freyja’s bare back while softly moving her hips. Freyja wrapped her arms around Cecilia’s thighs as she continued to happily lick away. She squeezed the tight, powerful muscles of Cecilia’s legs and felt as they tensed and twitched under her skin. Freyja smiled and looked up at Cecilia. The older girl was sucking on the fingers of her free hand which had previously been inside Freyja. 

Freyja giggled at the sight of Cecilia’s face. She looked half-asleep and was mumbling to herself as the younger girl pleasured her. 

It did not take long for Cecilia to climax. She had been deprived of Freyja’s affection for months, as well as several other simple comforts like warmth, descent meals and a comfortable bed. Her normal tolerance and stamina were drained from two months slogging around a mountain in full field gear and now with a crotch full of adorable Freyja, she could barely contain herself. Her desire quickly got the better of her and she climaxed. Freyja, proud of her skill, prolonged the orgasm for as long as she could. Licking eagerly in and around Cecilia’s vulva, she used her expert tongue to masterful effect. Cecilia twitched and groaned, forced to endure an overwhelming assault of pleasure that spread like an avalanche through her. When she could take no, she forcibly pulled Freyja away and into a passionate kiss. 

Still fuelled by adrenaline, Cecilia reclaimed her place on top of Freyja, pushing the younger girl onto her back and smothering her in kisses and affection. They lay together, naked, bathed in the orange glow of the bedside glow-globe. Sweat, saliva and other fluids glistened on their bodies as together they writhed, sweaty and spent until they settled into a close cuddle. With their legs intertwined and hands held tightly, they shared a quiet moment, swapping quick pecks on the lips. 

‘I really did miss you’ Freyja whispered, smiling lazily as she did so. Her eyes were unfocused and drifted from Cecilia’s eyes to her lips. 

‘I missed you too. Every day up to my tits in snow, all I wanted was you’ Cecilia replied slowly. She hadn’t realised how exhausted she had been until now. 

A random thought entered Cecilia’s head suddenly. The look on her face changed slightly. It was too small for most people to notice, but Freyja caught it immediately. It was the same look of concern and uncertainty that she always wore when she thought of the future. 

‘What?’ Freyja asked. She did not have to be more specific. 

Cecilia did not try to act stupid. She knew she couldn’t hide these things from Freyja. The girl had a mind sharper than Cecilia’s aim, which as saying something. 

‘I think I know what the training was for. They weren’t just training us.’ Cecilia confessed.

Freyja furrowed her brow as her mind ticked over. The answer was obvious to her but she refused to register it.

‘I think they were looking for recruits.’ Cecilia said. 

‘For the guard?’ Freyja asked. She made no attempt to hide the concern in her voice.

‘I don’t think so. There were people I didn’t recognise among the drill abbots.’ Cecilia explained, thinking back to the faint recollection of the strangers in strange uniforms. 

Freyja propped her head up and rested it on her elbow. ‘Storm troopers?’

‘Maybe. Or the Commissariat’ Cecilia said, raising an eyebrow and allowing a small smile to cross her face.

Freyja felt a shudder of mixed emotions. Cecilia had spoken of joining the Commissariat for as long as Freyja had known her. It was her dream and her calling that Freyja had no right to deny but to see her lover and friend leave, probably forever, was a bitter thought. Pushing aside her worry, Freyja returned the smile and kissed Cecilia’s forehead. 

‘The Imperium isn’t ready for you yet and I’m not done’ Freyja said, rolling on top of her lover and kissing her more.

Cecilia laughed and embraced Freyja tightly. ‘I’m not going anywhere. Not for a long time’.

Together, they kissed for many more minutes in the orange light of the glow-globe. Outside, the snow continued to fall from the dark sky. Unknown to both young progena, forces more powerful than they imagine had sealed their fates and what had started could not be stopped. For that moment though, they were alone in the galaxy and nothing was more important than their love.