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Volume 6 was really short.

[Volume Six: Interpersonal Chemistry (Issues 401-541)]

Sorry to have missed this one! I swear I thought I had posted it before Volume Seven (thanks for the catch, Wavey  Smiley). Without further ado:

Volume Six: Interpersonal Chemistry (Issues 401-541)


At the Infirmary, the orgy persists in earnest. Erin nearly reveals the secret of Miriam’s parentage to Adrian before Jacqui stops her by shoving her head down on his cock. Laura and Amy scheme to use the pendant to convince Hayley to fuck their boyfriend once again, which she eventually does while pretending to be Amy. Adrian briefly tangles with Einfríður thanks to Dani’s programming before she returns to Johannes’ room upstairs. The rest of the evening proceeds, with Adrian’s women putting him through his paces before everyone turns in for the night.

Julian arrives unannounced at Claudia’s hideout and disables a surveillance device hidden behind one of her study’s paintings, of which she was unaware. They discuss Adrian having the Watch; when Claudia suggests taking it from him by force, Julian reveals he has the broken lattice from the hit-and-run but says they are unable to repair it and do not have the power source even if they could. He also lets Claudia know about Cherry’s coma and her uncertain status. Claudia still wants to try to steal the scallop so they could use it to repair the Watch; they could then force Adrian’s women to their will, such as using Erin to heal Cherry. Julian points out that his women are far too formidable for that idea to be possible, and proposes instead that he and Claudia tell them where they can find Jakob in exchange for them repairing the Watch and healing Cherry. Claudia is distraught at the idea, but Julian assures her Jakob will eventually turn on them anyway and that this is the best course of action.

At Sawyer’s, it seems Vik has stopped by to spread some PC to an unknown party. It is unclear whether this is Yves, Sawyer himself, or another entity represented by the club’s security guard, but they seem to be planning to test PC on the girls at the club. We also see an empty hospital bed, implying that Vik has recovered Alex and Katie at this point.

The morning after the orgy, Johannes and Einfríður have left; at a diner, they have breakfast and discuss their itinerary, Einfríður displaying the completed scallop she has received from Danielle.  Jacqui calls Ezra and tells him it is time to reveal the truth of Miriam’s parentage to her. He tells her that he married Jacqui when she was in college, after she had gotten pregnant and been rejected by the father. Jacqui then calls said father, Patrick Cavanaugh, and his wife Miel, to tell them about Patrick’s daughter. She encourages them to come to Kearsarge and tells them about her relationship with their son. Miel calls Adrian soon after and informs him that Miriam is his half-sister. Adrian eventually marshalls the troops and introduces everyone at the Infirmary to his parents via video call, saying they can meet the rest when they come to visit.

Jacqui reveals to Miriam that Adrian is her half-brother, much to her chagrin. She and Adrian have an awkward reunion, and she asks him to tell her about Patrick. They discuss family matters, and Miriam also wonders if Erin’s ritual enabled her to break Jakob’s psychological restriction on her having sex. Though it was under odd circumstances, she thanks Adrian for a wonderful first time.

At cheer practice, Caitlyn and Hitomi discuss their relational drama, Hitomi revealing her new relationship with Coates’ crew. In the locker room afterwards, Hitomi makes a pass at Caitlyn, finally acting on her attraction, and Imani seeks to join the party. Caitlyn calls Adrian to make sure he is okay with the arrangement, and when he gives his approval, they enjoy each other. Imani tells Caitlyn amidst their fun that Astrid and Coates are having a party and encourages her to invite the entire SJI bunch, saying Astrid would love to meet them.

Julian checks into the Motor Inn in Kearsarge, where he has previously been staying. The desk clerk, Patricia, welcomes him back; however, when he heads to his room, she calls an unknown person and alerts them of Julian’s arrival. She goes to his room later with towels, claiming he had requested them, but when we next see them, Patricia has been stripped naked and held at pendant-point. Under trance, she claims that the man in room two wants her to come and shoot Julian; from her description, and the yellow car we see fleeing the motel, we can assume it is Vik. Julian begins to condition Patricia to serve him; when we next see her, her head is buried between his legs as he receives a return call from Angela, Johannes’ secretary who secretly works for Jakob. She tells him that Jakob is currently in the Geneva house, but then hangs up and warns Jakob to vacate. On the road, Vik is stopped for speeding by a female officer, but he doses her with PC to not only escape a ticket but coax a blowjob out of her, leaving her nude and strung out with cum on her face in her cruiser.

Einfríður asks Dani if she is certain Jakob is alive and remarks that his survival is a disaster for the family. Dani sharply retorts she does not care less, as the family left her at Jakob’s mercy. Their conclusion is that Jakob landed in the Faeroe Islands. Einfríður and Johannes leave, but Dani and Einfríður have one final exchange before they go; Einfríður asks how she will know when to use the scallop, to which Dani simply responds she will know.

At the record store, Erin and Jacqui admire Patrick and Miel’s album cover, Erin giving her approval. They discuss the recent developments with Miriam, and Erin seems to suggest she could enable Jacqui to have another child if she so desires. Adrian arrives and takes Jacqui to the back room; Miriam is close behind and makes out with Erin in the front. Ezra follows behind and says they are planning to meet Johannes for lunch, then waits for Jacqui and her in the car. Miriam asks Erin about her powers, and while Erin dodges the question, she tells Miriam to meet her at the theatre that night after rehearsal.

At lunch, Ezra and Johannes continue to discuss the fallout of Jakob’s possible survival, while Miriam texts with Reka about Erin’s plans and Einfríður texts Dani with updates on the conversation between the men. Einfríður chimes in that Dani is more than willing to help Jakob stay dead. Ezra tells Miriam to forget anything she heard during lunch, and she coldly responds that among all the other things she didn’t hear was acknowledgement of Jakob’s abuse of her. She chooses to walk back to the store in a huff, leaving Ezra behind.

Mallory, Marliese, and Amy discuss how Zenon is still not seeing patients. They realize that Dani’s crystal is the one he was using, which means they will need to begin pulling records on his other patients to potentially undo any programming he gave them.

Q and Kanti have sex over her lunch break. She misses a call from Vik in her passion, and he leaves her a voicemail saying not to tell anyone he called and that she shouldn’t believe the stories about him. However, given that we see his abuse of the policewoman, as well as Katie and Alex being used by him, overlaid with the voice memo, his position is dubious at best.

Mallory is summoned to see the head librarian of Wilmot Campus, Miss Randall, seeming intimidated by the concept. We later learn she is being sought to become the Head Librarian when Randall retires, but that the library safeguards dangerous things, and this duty will be yet another burden on her shoulders.

After leaving work, Danielle is confronted by Julian, who has put his guns and ammunition in a pile on the ground before him. Dani approaches and holds him at gunpoint, and Julian asks her who she hates more: him or Jakob. She calls Adrian, who arrives with Jacqui, and they and Julian talk. Julian claims that Jakob will do anything to recover the scallops and proposes the deal he had discussed with Claudia: if Erin agrees to heal Cherry, he will tell them where they can find Jakob. Adrian asks if he expects them to kill Jakob, and Julian replies it would be a wise decision. When Adrian says he will ask Erin, Julian expresses disbelief that he does not simply command her to do as he wishes, but Adrian remains resolute and promises to be in touch.

At Sawyer’s, the strippers are apparently being called in for personal review. Based on previous context, it is likely they are being experimented on with Pink Clouds, at the behest of whoever Vik gave them to at the club.

Speaking of Vik, Kanti goes to meet with Vik, Q hiding nearby to ensure her safety. Vik claims he has been set up by Q, that Q is the one who started making PC again and framed him. Kanti encourages him to tell his side of the story and stop running, but when Vik sees that Q has been keeping tabs on them, he shouts at her, calls her a whore, and doses her with PC. He abducts her in spite of Q’s best efforts, clipping Q with his car before speeding off.

At the theatre, Miriam shows up to speak with Erin. She thanks Erin for helping her recover her memories, but asks if she did something else to her during the ritual. Erin admits she and Dani stripped out Jakob’s programming, and though Miriam is somewhat upset at her head being meddled with without her consent, she is grateful. She asks once again what Erin is and can do, and while Erin does not have a word for what she is, she claims she can teach Miriam some things. We later see Miriam reading from a rather thick tome by red wax candlelight, so we can assume Erin has begun to induct Miriam into whatever secret power system Erin controls.

At the Infirmary, Mallory, Dani, Erin, and Adrian share their respective news with the others. Erin says that, technically, her “healing ability” is instead the ability to take people’s injuries onto herself and then self-heal. Cherry possibly having brain damage from blood loss and oxygen starvation poses a risk that Adrian is not fully comfortable with, though he does admit Julian seems fairly desperate. Mallory comments they are being told to kill a stranger, but Dani counters that she knows Jakob and that they must kill him, or he will not stop until he takes them all.

While Laura and Hayley settle in for a romantic evening, Caitlyn returns to her place to find a nude Hitomi waiting for her. Hitomi begins to massage her and eventually initiates sex. Amy is approached by a desperate Q and informed of Vik’s abduction. They head to the record shop, and Amy calls her sister and Laura, telling her to meet them and Q to begin brewing up some of the antidote.

Mallory, Marliese, and Dani enjoy each other while they wait for Erin and Adrian to finish their fun. As Adrian goes to them, Erin calls her mentor, Aiken, and entertains him via video call. Dani waits for the others to fall asleep and retrieves a box from her room, beginning to look over pieces of Watch lattice. Erin and Aiken discuss Miriam, and while Aiken approves of Erin training her, he cautions her to be careful; regarding Cherry and Jakob, he tells Erin to let Cherry die, and to kill Jakob for what he did to her.
Vik meets with someone unknown, unhappy about a deal he has made, but begrudgingly accepts a bag of cash in exchange for Kanti, Alex, and Katie.

Jacqui stops at Rain’s once the antidote has been brewed. She says she needs Rain to ask her father a question. Rain says she regrets how things happened and asks if Adrian knows about her and Jacqui, once again indicating the still nebulous past between the two. Rain agrees to ask her question and seems to consult some celestial power, asking her father to look down. Whatever it is works: Rain sees Vikram sending Kanti and the other girls to a Princess Pink truck behind a warehouse. Jacqui thanks her and they take off. When they find the truck, she sends Laura and Amy out as bait, holding antidote-laced cloths over their noses in hopes of counteracting any PC Vik tries to dose them with. In the meantime, Jacqui and the others will follow the truck.

Amy tries to placate Vik, but he sprays her and Laura with PC. He tells them to get in his car and gives them his own laced cloths but based on their expressions, the antidote seems to be working. Amy activates a tracker in her purse so the others will be able to keep up with Vik’s location, and they stop at a gas station for Vik to make contact with his POI. The girls follow his instruction to fool around in the backseat of their own accord, but they hear a scream, and we see the red creature Cherry summoned approach Vik from behind as he is on the phone. When they run to find him, he is nowhere to be found.

Meanwhile, Jacqui’s crew tails the Princess Pink truck to Sawyer’s. They come around the back and find Yves driving the truck. Suspecting him of having accepted the girls from Vik, they demand he open the van. Yves is confused but complies, revealing the van to be empty. With only one other possibility, the crew heads back to the warehouse where Rain had seen Vik and the truck. Within, they find, of all people, Julian, and with him are a dazed Kanti, Alex, and Katie.

This is confusing to me, as the last time we saw Vik, he was attempting to use Patricia to assassinate Julian at the motel. Now, however, he and Julian seem to be making a deal over PC and the girls? If this is merely Julian trying to establish goodwill, why not simply neutralize Vik? If the deal is legitimate between the two of them, why does Julian so easily return the girls to Jacqui and Q? Questions, questions.

Regardless, Julian agrees to return Katie and Alex to the hospital, while Q is relieved to have recovered Kanti. All three girls are dosed with the antidote to clear Vik’s lingering suggestions. With Laura and Amy’s signal clear, Jacqui and Hayley rush to their location, where they reunite with Laura and Amy in the aftermath of Vik’s scream and disappearance.

Erin has a dream about the red creature and, seemingly on a hunch, calls Jacqui and warns her of the creature. The group finds a bloody patch of ground and a blood-stained pistol, but no sign of Vik. The ladies debate what to do, as their presence has likely left DNA evidence and recordings on the security camera, but before they can decide, Laura tells them to run. They turn to find her staring down the red creature. She draws her pistol and fires as it swings for her, clipping its hand and eliciting a physical reaction (unlike earlier, when bullets did not seem to affect it at the airport). She dives for the car, and the ladies make their getaway, returning to the Infirmary, where everyone settles in for the evening into their own sexual triads.

Miriam, now free to explore her sexuality as she sees fit, showers after a night with Wes and Reka. At the record shop, she mentions she is job hunting around Kearsarge and makes out with Erin when she arrives. They head to the back room, and Erin asks if Miriam is up for another ritual that they had previously discussed. Miriam agrees, and Erin once more tells her to join her at the theatre after rehearsal. Adrian arrives and bumps into Miriam as she heads out, offering her coffee and mentioning that, with his folks coming to town soon, Miriam will get a chance to meet her biological father. Jacqui is nonplussed at the upcoming reunion.

Dani and Mallory discuss the upcoming dance at the strip club, and (contrary to my previous posts) Mallory informs Dani now that it will conflict with her birthday. Dani proposes a solution: simply celebrate Mallory’s birthday at the strip club, to which Mallory agrees.

It is telling that an event which has been in the works since the first 100 issues, complete with a birthday party which is set to be at that event from the early 500s, has yet to make an onscreen appearance.

Following their night of intimacy, Hitomi suggests that Caitlyn introduce her to Adrian that evening. Caitlyn is enthusiastic about the idea and snaps a picture of Hitomi to send to her master.

Jacqui heads off to yoga class, and Erin and Adrian discuss the entity Cherry created. Erin says that only Cherry can dismiss it, or that it will dissipate itself in the span of weeks, bringing them back to the question of whether or not Erin should heal Cherry. Erin proposes a solution given to her by Dani: use the Watch’s neural realignment to work around the edges of Cherry’s brain damage, then have Erin heal what the Watch can’t fix. Adrian is reluctant to use the Watch again, ordering Erin to tell the others not to take any action until he first consults with Rain.

The morning after her rescue, Q wakes Kanti and tells her they need to deal with Yves. When we next see them, however, they are discussing the ongoing search for Vik, and that will not be until the next Volume.
Erin leaves the record shop and bumps into Raven, who bashfully asks for a second day. Erin asks how far her place is, and the next we see them, Raven is eating Erin out in her bed. Erin asks her amidst their fucking to help her with something that night, likely the ritual with Miriam.

At yoga, Jacqui talks with a classmate named Heidi, owner of a local fish shop who has recently hired Miriam. On her way back to the record shop, she bumps into Erin and Raven, the former properly introducing the latter to Jacqui for the first time.

Laura, Amy, and Hayley agree to an evening together before going about their day. Laura meets with her TA, Professor Compton, and discusses her accidental development of Pink Clouds. The professor agrees that it will be a serious problem if the formula gets out there, as Laura says a serious meth lab could manufacture it. She does produce the cure to demonstrate to Compton; however, the ladies throw themselves at each other when the aphrodisiac-side effects of the formula overwhelm them. Meanwhile, Hayley discusses the complexities of the harem with Marliese, as she is beginning to fall for Laura and is actively dating both her and Amy, but is hesitant concerning Adrian. At Zenon’s office, the good doctor is still out, but his former patients are flooding Amy’s reception desk, claiming it is very important they keep their appointments.

At cheer practice, Imani confirms with Hitomi that she is going with Caitlyn to meet Adrian that night. Imani tells her to show him a good time, and asks if Hitomi knows what to do regarding Caitlyn. Hitomi replies that she does.

Overwhelmed by the deluge of coeds, Amy calls Hayley, but she has been dragged into the laboratory with Laura and Compton to join in their fun, leaving Amy without assistance.

STOP

Volume Six continues turning the wheels within wheels which began to spin in earnest in Volume Five. With Cherry hospitalized, Claudia and Julian are forced into the uneasy position of attempting to ally themselves with Adrian and his women against Jakob. Ezra and Johannes, meanwhile, begin speaking to the larger consequences that Jakob’s return to life will cause beyond the Wilmot crew’s bubble.

Several relational wheels are continuing to spin. Caitlyn, though she knows it not, has been targeted as the entry method for Astrid’s plans into Adrian’s harem, and Hitomi being an “offering” of sorts to Adrian sets the stage for what Astrid will do to her in Volume Seven. Meanwhile, while it may have seemed benign at the time, Erin beginning to teach Miriam her witchy ways in this early phase of the serial has long-lasting and still unresolved consequences, as the current nonsense which has stretched from the 1160s all the way to the 1530s is confirmed to be a direct result of Miriam’s growing talent in the arts that Erin and Aiken practice. Laura and Amy continue their quest to induct Hayley into the harem in spite of her protests, and Vik and Kanti’s relationship has forever soured after his attempted abduction of her.

Starter Marriage 4.1.37 released. Tons of bug fixes.

Hi, long time fan of the site (probably a decade at this point). Ive never posted on here. Im just worried about the lack of content. Any info would be appreciated. Also are there any other active forums for Daphne et Henri stuff? Would love to join the community. I hope this isnt the end. My yearly membership renews next year but I cant really justify it if theres nothing new. Most of the content on this site is incredible though, so worth it. My favourites are Waiting room and Persuader I think. So good. Hello to all and I hope everyone is doing well. 

I would love to see more than one comic this month if possible.  Two would even be acceptable at this point.  I'm sorry but as good as SJI & EU are I need more comics that are longer in page length

[Volume Five: Jakob’s Ladder (Issues 293-400)]

Volume Five: Jakob’s Ladder (Issues 293-400)

At Princess Pink, Kanti and Q reclothe themselves and are informed by Yves that township PD has called. Q wonders if it has something to do with his probation, but Yves surprises them by saying that they were asking for Kanti and that they need to get to Vik’s townhouse. We don’t see Kanti and Q again this Volume, but we do see Katie and Alex several issues later in the hospital being treated for exhaustion and hypothermia, so it is likely that Vik split after his confrontation with Julian and Adrian and left them behind.

At the Infirmary, the revelation of Jakob’s survival sends shockwaves through the main cast. Dani protests it is impossible while Marliese helps Mallory recover from the trying ordeal of calling upon the Baron. Erin and Adrian discuss her abilities, during which Erin is playful but evasive. She does however mention that Cherry apparently has a very particular, very dangerous power of her own. After examining flight paths along Jakob’s last known trajectory, the group comes to the conclusion that Jakob could have secretly landed his plane, which had been reported to have crashed. For safety, everyone at the Infirmary stays there for the evening, leading to passionate nights had by all. As Amy lies sleeping during the night, Dani notices that the crystal fitted into the ring Vik had given her bears a striking resemblance to the scallops.

Across town, on the same evening, Miriam spends several hours masturbating with a hitachi wand, seemingly very worked up and unable to sleep. The next morning, she gets coffee at Over Roasted and overhears Raven discussing Erin with Reka and Weston. She discusses the unusual relationship Jacqui has found herself in with the two, and they invite her back to their place. She accepts and nearly has sex with Weston, but cries out in protest as he is preparing to enter her. She explains to them she has some psychological block to having intercourse with a man, but she does have join in as Reka and Weston have sex, offering oral and accepting it from Reka in turn.

Hitomi, who has been exploring with Imani and Coates, finally meets Coates’ wife Astrid, still a nebulous figure even in the comic’s present run. However, given what we know about Astrid, it is likely this is the first time Astrid sinks her hooks into the cheerleader, which will lead to further shenanigans down the road.

Miriam drops in on fencing lessons with Reka and Erin, accepting a challenge from Erin and dueling her. She protests to Erin throughout the match that someone must have done something to her and the other members of Adrian’s harem. She suggests that Pink Clouds might be involved, thinking someone has used it on Jacqui, but when Erin informs her of Jacqui’s immunity to the formula, she breaks down suddenly. As they wash afterward, she explains she has memories of Q using PC on Jacqui, which is the only reason she informed on her mother. Erin asks Miriam if she trusts her, claiming that she can help Miriam remember what actually happened, and begins heading to the Infirmary with Miriam and Reka in tow.

At work, Dani calls Adrian and informs him that the ring crystal Vik had contains the same circuits as the scallops. She is interrupted from her call when she suddenly sees Kuppler company deliveries being unloaded in the hanger. She goes outside and begins to call her father, but eventually changes her mind and tearfully hangs up before she can be connected to him. She then calls someone and asks to speak with Johannes Kuppler, Jakob’s brother, to inform him of her survival.

As mentioned previously, Marliese looks over Alex and Katie at the hospital after their abandonment by Vik. She prepares to call Laura so the girls can be given the antidote, but Rain appears and stops her, saying they can use Alex and Katie to find Vik.

Johannes, taken utterly off guard by Dani’s call, decides to fly into Wilmot to meet her in person. He informs his secretary Angela to search for a plane for him. As he leaves, she pulls out a phone and calls someone, eventually revealed to be Jakob, that Johannes has been told of his survival by Dani.

As she heads to the Infirmary, Erin is called by a panicking Danielle, who doesn’t know how to react to the news of Johannes’ imminent arrival. Miriam overhears the name Kuppler and reveals she knows Jakob as a client of her lawyer father’s. Erin abruptly changes course and drags Miriam to the record store. Despite the awkward atmosphere, she drags Adrian and Jacqui into the back room and begins having sex with them to charge herself up for a ritual to recover Miriam’s missing memories. Dani arrives, and the group persuades a skeptical Miriam to join them in the back and strip for the ritual. As they do, Jacqui calls her ex-husband, Ezra, and informs him he needs to come to Kearsarge due to Jakob’s reappearance.

Cherry and Julian stop for gas at a gas station. At the station, Julian uses a crystal pendant to hypnotize the attendant into not having to pay for gas and supplies. He leaves her on her knees with a card for a “free blowjob with purchase” beside her, because he’s terrible.

At her safe house, Claudia is shocked to hear that Johannes Kuppler has called for her, having thought the family did not even know of their existence. She wonders, if Johannes knows about them, if there might be a way out of their situation, and summons Derek, ordering him to intercept Johannes when he lands at the airport and to check on Zenon, who has stopped answering her calls.

In the mindscape brought on by the ritual, Erin helps Miriam recover her memories. While she believed that she and Q had had sex, in reality, she had caught Q with a PC-dosed Katie and had been dosed herself. At some point, she had met both Jakob and Dani, and Jakob had used one of the crystals on her. Contrary to her original story, Jacqui didn’t see anyone distributing PC, but was rather told by Yves about the distribution. She was then programmed by Jakob to keep her from revealing the truth. He sent Miriam to find one of the scallops for him, while Yves removed her memories that he and Sawyer were the ones dealing in PC, replacing those memories with Jacqui. Dani says that Jakob sent her to find another scallop as well, claiming he only had one whole one. Miriam claims Jakob had programmed her to save her cunt for him, hence her earlier freakout when attempting to have sex with Weston, and that he used a scallop fragment to make the pendant. Dani reveals (though without much explanation), that she sabotaged the Watch, and the ritual ends.

Dani now remembers that she found the scallop in the Wilmot steam tunnels, and she, Erin, and Adrian head there to recover the others; Adrian calls Caitlyn to meet with Johannes at the airport in Dani’s place. Miriam explains her false memories to Jacqui, and the two tearfully reconcile. When the reach the tunnels, Erin comments that Dani’s accent had changed; for her part in the ritual, Dani has recovered her own suppressed memories of her time as Jakob’s possession as well. They prepare to disassemble the mechanism containing the scallops, but stop to have sex first. Afterward, they discover that of a possible twelve scallops, four are still present in the device, much to their alarm.

While Miriam and Reka take a spin in the back room to work off the excess arousal lingering from Erin’s ritual, Ezra arrives and exchanges greetings with Jacqui. Afterward, they and Miriam go to Over Roasted, where Ezra eventually agrees to violate attorney-client privilege and tell them what he knew about Jakob, giving in when Miriam reveals that she was one of his victims.

Caitlyn awaits the arrival of Johannes at the airport but sees Cherry and Julian also there. She arms herself with a pistol and approaches, and when they claim they work for Johannes, she asks if they are certain they don’t actually work for Jakob. Julian cuts her off by brandishing the pendant. When Derek arrives and accosts them, they offer him a pliant Caitlyn to distract him as they prepare to intercept Johannes; Julian reveals that his pendant was Zenon’s, meaning he and Cherry were the ones responsible for the break-in a few Volumes ago rather than Marliese and Rain. They greet Johannes and his pilot, Einfríður, and prepare to escort them away. Caitlyn, due to the priority of the Watch programming, is able to shake off the crystal’s influence and holds Derek at gunpoint before tying him up. When she reappears and Julian tries to subdue her, she kicks him in the face. He attempts to draw his gun but is held at gunpoint by Einfríður. They confiscate Zenon’s pendant and are preparing to restrain the two before Cherry lashes out with some sort of power and summons a red being of energy, which wounds Einfríður. Caitlyn and Johannes find that guns seem ineffective against it, so Caitlyn refocuses and fires for Cherry herself, striking her in the torso. They manage to flee before the creature can recover, though it is seen active in spite of Cherry’s incapacitated condition, meaning it is now out in the wild. For their part, Julian attempts to get Cherry to a hospital as she loses consciousness. Sidenote: This marks the last time that Derek has been seen in the story other than a flashback. While Claudia does call him when he finally escapes his bindings, he has not been seen in the flesh since.

Adrian, Erin, and Danielle discuss the scallops. According to Dani, they act as both power source and filter, able to lock into and change a person’s thoughts when properly focused in such forms as the crystal or the Watch. In spite of Cherry’s previous claims that he knew nothing, Dani says that he understood the scientific theory behind the scallops very well, but needed someone like her to realize the ideas.

Between Ezra, Johannes, Dani, and some narrative magic, we get a short glimpse behind the curtain as Jakob himself breaks the fourth wall to reveal some of his history. He apparently taught at Wilmot, which is where he discovered the scallops and began using them to take advantage of female students and faculty. We see that, for some reason, Rain at one point gave him the shattered fragments of one of the scallops, implying she is the one who made him first aware of their existence. Following his teaching career ending in a coverup of some scandal (hushed up by his father’s money), Jakob went into the family business of jewelry with a focus on timepieces. Simultaneously, he was researching the scallops and used one of the fragments to create the crystal, which we see him using to build his original harem. Among their number is Claudia, her maid Meghan, and Dani herself, whom he uses to create the Watch. Apparently, however, eventually his behavior became bad enough that his father’s money could not continue to cover up his dalliances, so he moved on. His narrative ends here, but it seems this is the point where he faked his death and went into hiding, his current precise whereabouts unknown.

At the Infirmary, Dani and Einfríður try to pinpoint Jakob’s possible location while Johannes speaks of Jakob with Erin, Mallory, and Adrian. He claims he needs proof of his brother’s faked death beyond Danielle, which they do not currently have. He does say that Julian has a history with the Kuppler family and expresses slight bemusement at the harem situation. Ezra, Miriam, and Jacqui arrive, and Ez and Johannes begin to discuss the potential fallout of Jakob’s survival. Johannes and the group identify a potential shell company in Claudia’s name which Jakob may be using to launder his funds while “dead.”
Dani eventually uses the crystal on Einfríður in secret, wishing to coax her into having sex with Adrian. Adrian offers to walk Miriam home, and she heads upstairs to get her coat, walking in on Dani and Erin using the crystal. They turn its power upon her without hesitation, priming her to make a move on Adrian as well. Sidenote: From the beginning, girls affected by the Watch’s programming seem to have an affinity for not only serving Adrian, but expanding the harem to as many other women as possible. Perhaps a lingering recruitment strategy for Jakob to swell his ranks? Who is to say?

Adrian walks Miriam home as Johannes and Einfríður settle in to stay in the Infirmary for the evening. Despite her protests to Jacqui’s relationship, Miriam seems willing to accept that Adrian may not be bad for her mother. She also, in spite of not wanting to invite Adrian in, aggressively kisses him on her front porch in accordance with the suggestions Dani and Erin laid in her mind. She begins to proposition him, but Adrian gently turns her down. Embarrassed, she apologizes, while he assures her it is fine, blaming her actions on the memory ritual (which linked the physical sensations of its users for a time afterward). He asks if someone can stay with her, and she prepares to text Reka.

Claudia is called by Derek and, upon being informed that the crystal did not work on Caitlyn, realizes with horror that the Watch is in the wild. She frantically orders him to recover it from Adrian, but as previously mentioned, we do not see Derek again, so he may have simply skipped town.

At the Infirmary, the girls prepare an orgy as they wait for Adrian to return, inviting Laura, Hayley, and Marliese to come and join the fun. When Jacqui double penetrates Dani, Erin, Adrian, and Miriam all react, their arousal linked to hers via the ritual. This results in Adrian and Miriam, in spite of their previous reluctance, throwing themselves at each other and frantically disrobing within Miriam’s apartment. Inside, Miriam enthusiastically consents to sex with Adrian, and right on cue, Reka appears with condoms handy. She calls Weston and gets his permission to participate in the festivities, and then Miriam and Adrian prepare for intercourse. Despite her warning that it has never worked for her before, Adrian successfully penetrates Miriam, claiming her virginity; whatever happened during the ritual seems to have broken Jakob’s restriction on her having sex, and she throws herself into it with gusto. The Infirmary crew is informed by Erin and Dani, who sense the moment through the link, of Miriam’s cherry being popped. Jacqui reveals (surprise surprise) that technically, this is an act of incest, as she had sex with Adrian’s father in college, making him and Miriam half-siblings. She swears them to secrecy, and the orgy continues, Einfríður descending the stairs and joining the fun.

Eventually, Adrian must leave. On his way home, Rain approaches him and sardonically comments that “Zeus would have approved.” He informs her of Jakob’s survival, of which she seems aware (in retrospect, it is likely the Atlas clock was some sort of message from Jakob to Rain that he was alive, though how that might have been communicated is unclear). She walks Adrian home and talks with him about “Odysseus, and how to win impossible battles.” She tells him of the sin of hubris, punished by the gods themselves for the arrogance displayed therein, and informs him it is his duty to keep Jakob’s hubris from being repeated. Adrian vulnerably asks her if he and Erin would have been together in spite of the Watch, and Rain confirms she had feelings for him before the fateful night. Adrian bids her good night and returns home, to find his harem of eight (plus Hayley, who is noncommittal, and Einfríður, who is eager thanks to Dani) awaiting his selection.

STOP

Cherry’s wound at the hospital will result in her being stuck in an extended coma, which leads to much of her remaining screentime being in the hospital before the events of issues 770ish-920ish. Julian, in desperation to save her, will eventually approach Adrian and his women with a possible deal, to be covered in subsequent Volumes.

Johannes and Einfríður’s entry signifies the heightening of the stakes. Jakob is alive, and now people to whom that information would greatly matter are privy to it. The investigation into his whereabouts will persist into the modern day in the real world, as he has yet to be located, and will involve all the players, from Adrian, to the Kuppler family, to Julian, to Claudia.

The recovery of Zenon’s pendant by Caitlyn from Julian at the airport will also lead to more shenanigans, especially when Hitomi’s exposure to Astrid’s currently mysterious powers eventually leads her to rope in Caitlyn, and possibly Danielle and the twins, into reconditioning all of Zenon’s former patients. The SJI women do so under the pretense of gifting Adrian more sexually obsessed women, though Astrid’s own goals are currently far less clear.

It kinda did feel like a panel was skipped

It's unclear whether this was intended to be 1536 or if 1536 was skipped. I could see the previous page leading directly into this, I could also see one page in between of Adrian solidifying influence over Miriam. I'm pretty sure the title "In the Zonev" contains a typo, though.

What happened to issue 1536?

yes what happened with 1536 ? I'm with you

What happened to issue 1536?