A Spider Demon's Revenge

PART 1

Claude Faustus had to be the unluckiest demon alive.

If being being known as the demon that abandoned his contract for another, only to be run through the chest by his arch nemesis with a demon sword wasn't enough to land him in a world of embarrassment with a tarnished reputation, the punishment that followed upon his return to Hell was. Claude expected eternal imprisonment and physical torture; the typical punishment for demons that failed their masters. After all, making contracts was one of very few freedoms Satan gave his minions, and failure of any sort was inexcuseable in his eyes. No, Claude had not just failed his former contact holder, Alois Trancy. He had failed the master of all demons, Lord Satan himself, and he had braced himself for whatever misery and anguish the Prince of Hell would put him through.

But Claude would have rather been drawn and quartered a thousand times over, eaten alive from the inside out by maggots, and made into a hellhound's chew toy over the punishment that had been selected for him. Rather than being marched out of Satan's throne room in shackles and chains, a she-demon that seemed less than pleased to be bound, gagged, and caged was carried in; another spider demon with a powerful hatred burning in four ember eyes and a disgusted snarl that was clearly visable through the rags layered over her lips. The single phrase that rolled out of Satan's mouth next turned Claude's confusion into a bitter mixture of anger, annoyance, repulsion.

"You are now eternally bound to this woman."

Being eternally bound to another being, be it a human, demon, angel, or grim reaper, was equal to marriage in the human world. The only difference was divorce was not an option. Either partner could have as many sexual partners as they desired, or choose to remain in the human world for as many centuries as they pleased. Neither could ever make the mark of an eternal binding fade. It was like a wedding ring that couldn't be taken off, and in most cases one demon would relentlessly follow the other. And that was exactly the kind of she-demon Claude had been saddled with. He still had the freedom to go and make contracts as he pleased, but with an aggressively clingy spider she-demon at his side.

Anansi was just as unenthused as Claude was... for maybe a second. Her aggression rapidly cooled into amusement after looking Claude over a time or two. Considering the spider demon was in no position to refuse her without further punishment, and the fact that Claude just happened to be one of the more attractive demons in Hell made him a trophy of a mate.

Anyone who took half a glance at the two spider demons could tell they were polar opposites. It was common knowlege that Claude was dull and quiet. Anansi was energetic and loud. Claude was apathetic in nature. Anansi was curious and always interested in something, her energy usually being used to find new ways to torture other demons and damned souls around Hell. She was almost always talking while Claude preferred to keep his lips sealed.

Claude could tell that this pairing was completely intentional. On top of being loud and obnoxious, she was a lot like the master he had betrayed. Blond hair, fair skin, and incredibly flirtatious towards him, Satan had made sure to select a demon that reminded him as much of Alois Trancy as possible. Hell, even her voice sounded a little bit too much like the earl's for comfort.

If Claude had lower standards for mates, Anansi could have been classified as a trophy bride. She had a gorgeous face with soft pink lips, slightly flushed cheeks, and those four ember eyes happened to stake the claim of being the most beautiful found on any spider demon. And beind her locks of platinum blond hair sat four more ember eyes on the back of her head; used by most spider she-demons to watch for those who tried to attack from behind. Her upper body was that of a slender woman with breasts that were neither too large or too small. Below her waist was the body of a spider with a large, bulbous abdomen and eight sleek little legs, all painted in an array of shimmering blues and greens with some hints of red peeking through. The only thing that kept Claude from being happy with being eternally bound to her was everything else. The noise, the resemblance to Alois, and the fact that most spider she-demons preferred to eat their partners, or at the very least parts of their partners shortly after mating.

And of all the times he could have been sent back to Hell and eternally bound to a spider she-demon, he just had to sent back in the middle of breeding season. Not that every single day wasn't breeding season for demons, or demons of lust, at least, but it was probably the only four times out of the year that Claude would avoid other demons like the plague, especially considering that she-demons would hunt down males for the opportunity to mate. Sometimes it was for status, sometimes it was for genetics, and sometimes it was simply to compete to see how many males they could boast about breeding with. The fact that Claude was eternally bound to a she-demon paired with the fact that it didn't matter if one partner wanted to mate and one did not meant that he was completely at Anansi's mercy.

And Anansi had no mercy.

"So are we going to do this, or what?" she inquired as they exited the devil's palace.

"Do what?" Claude grumbled.

Anansi rolled her eyes as she started to circle him; her eight legs rhythmically tapping against the ground, "You know what."

"I'm not really in the mood, Anansi."

"You've never really ever been 'in the mood'. I'd bet all eight legs you're still a virgin."

"I'm sorry if I'm not eager to become nourishment for your brood."

Anansi laughed loudly, "Like I would eat you, Faustus! No, I don't love you enough to eat you to feed our babies."

At least we can agree on something there, Claude though to himself as he walked on, is own eight spidery limbs curled up on his back.

Claude's demonic appearance didn't hold a candle to Anansi's. His eight limbs were girthier, spiked, and patterned with blacks, greys, and browns. Four black, soulless eyes sat on his face, and he wasn't blessed with having four more see things from behind. Not that he needed it. Next to Anansi, he was just as lifeless and dull as his personality.

"Oh, come on!" Anansi said, wrapping her arms around him, "If we're going to be eternally bound to one another, and it's the middle of breeding season, we might as well take advantage of it."

"You're really that eager to lay anywhere between one hundred to one thousand eggs? Good luck. You can't even wait a day to let this whole eternal binding situtation settle in. You won't be able to wait three days for those eggs to mature, let alone three weeks for them to hatch from an egg sac."

Anansi let out a mischievous giggle, "Who said I was going to be the one laying the eggs?"

The question made Claude stop dead in his tracks and throw a cautious glance over his shoulder to Anansi. The mischievous look in her eyes matched her giggling as she slowly crept towards him until she was pressed against his back. Resting her head on his left shoulder, she wrapped her arms arounds his waist, her hands gliding up and down his abs.

"I think you'd make a wonderful host for our eggs," she whispered, "The thought of it really turns me on."

Claude cringed, "I think not!"

In one swift motion, the spider demon's eight legs unfolded, sending Anansi flying backwards and landing hard on her back.

"I don't love you enough to become a host for your vile offspring!" he hissed, walking briskly away, "If you'd like, ask another demon to take my place, instead."

Anansi rolled off her back and tried to regain her footing, "That can be arranged, you know."

Claude stopped and turned, "What are you talking about?"

The look of mischief hadn't faded in the slightest. Instead, Claude's question made it intensify until Anansi was grinning from ear to ear.

"What do you say to a little revenge?"

"Revenge? On whom?"

The she-demon beckoned to him with a slender clawed finger.

In cautious steps, Claude inched his way closer to her until he was close enough to hear her whisper into his ear.

"Michaelis."

Claude shot her a skeptical look, "Michaelis? As in Sebastian Michaelis? The raven demon indentured to Ciel Phantomhive; that Michaelis?"

"Used to be," Anansi stated, "Used to be indentured to Ciel Phantomhive. Apparently Satan put an end to that, and now Michaelis is eternally bound to Shelob, or something. I don't know. The point is that Michaelis is down here right now! Now's the perfect time to exact your revenge and make him pay for--"

"No thank you."

Before Anansi could get another word in, Claude was already walking away.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, scurrying after him.

"Firstly, that plan is outrageously stupid. There's no convincing or tricking Michaelis into being the host of another pair's brood. Secondly, Michealis won the battle for Ciel Phantomhive fair and square. It's Hannah Anafeloz that I would have had to get revenge on if I would have won."

"And thirdly?"

Claude stopped and turned to Anansi once more.

"And thirdly, do you know how much trouble we'd be in if we did that to Michaelis? If he really is eternally bound to Shelob, like you claim he is, he's probably already host to all of her eggs. Not to mention Michaelis is Satan's youngest son. If we go through with this crazy plan of yours, we'd both be looking at a millennium of torture for each egg. No. Thank. You!"

As Claude started walking away, Anansi lunged forward and wrapped her arms around his legs.

"Please Faustus!" she whined, "I want us to be able to sow our wild oats like everyone else this season!"

"So why can't you do the honour of carrying the eggs like you're supposed to?"

"Because!" Anansi hissed, "I don't want to go through the "joy" of childbirth. With all of the discomfort and the mess, no thanks! Besides, I've got something against that Shelob bitch anyways. It would just be more fun to see the look on her face when the spiderlings hatch out and they look like you or me, and not her."

"In other words, you want to start something with Shelob. Well, you have fun with that."

Before Claude could continue on once more, Anansi jumped on top of him and pinned him down on the ground, trapping him inside of her eight radiant legs. If looks could kill, Claude would have been set ablaze by the raging fire in her eyes. Her mouth curled into a disgusted sneer as she looked down at him.

"Listen here, Mister," she snapped, "You're in no position to argue! If I wanted to, I could go to Lord Satan right now and have you tortured for displeasing me. You have two options: you, or Michaelis. Now, which is it going to be?"