Chapter 38 - Out of the Shadows
"Well, I should probably go..." the unfamiliar voice said before I heard a yelp.
My eyes finally clearing from the flash, I saw a glowing form, suspended in the air. It was female (obviously), and appeared as a ghostly version of the fox-woman from the earlier illusion, albeit with only one wispy tail. She looked to be in a small amount of pain as a large, dark violet hand seemed to have taken a hold on her entire body.
I still had my grip on Karisa and she seemed to be fading in and out of consciousness. I tried to gently shake her awake, which prompted her to bury her face in my chest and start crying.
"It's gone...oh lords...it's finally gone," Karisa said as she wept in my arms.
"Hey, let me go!" the spirit shouted.
"I will consider it once you have answered all of my questions," Del said with a serious look on her face.
"I didn't do anything wrong!"
"Then you have nothing to fear."
"If the watch sees you, you'll be in trouble."
Ignoring the spirits attempt at a threat, Del took a step closer, keeping her hand raised in the direction of the creature, saying, "Who instructed you to influence Karisa?"
"Uhm...that's a se-" the creature began before her voice turned into a scream.
"Your existence will only persist as you remain useful to me. Let us begin again. Who-"
"She asked me herself! Please stop squeezing me!" the spirit cried in desperation.
"W-wait," Karisa said weakly as she let me go and rose to her feet, "It was Meryl...she said nobody would believe me if I was crazy, but that I could have Gabriel…"
"Right! See? I was just helping," the spirit exclaimed.
"You...made me think I was crazy. I've been fighting myself for almost two years because of you!" Karisa shouted as she stepped closer to the creature.
"B-but...you agreed! You said it was okay to hide those memories as long as you could have Gabriel. I even changed it so you'd think he was someone else…"
"Karisa?" Del asked with a curious look in her direction.
"She's right. I...saw something I wasn't supposed to see. Oh…"
"And now we have seen it as well. Your sister murdered Lady Ajora, and I imagine she has taken her place."
"Ajora was horrible! She made me and then left me in a cage when I wasn't doing her dirty work!" the spirit shouted.
"Be silent a moment, spirit," Del commanded as she looked back to Karisa, "What do you wish to do?"
"It was you! No...you're the one that convinced me to get rid of Joe…"
"Understood," Del began as her energy covered the mouth of the spirit.
"Wait!" I said, jumping to my feet, "Are you just going to kill her?"
"I am. Even were I to ignore that she has caused harm to you and Karisa, she could simply return to Meryl and further compromise your safety," Del answered mechanically.
"Just...hold on. Karisa...what do you want to do?"
"Let her go. This was my stupid choice in the first place. I need to start taking some responsibility for my own dumb decisions…" Karisa said calmly.
"As you wish," Del said with a small smile at Karisa before looking back towards the spirit, "Now, I have marked you, spirit. You aren't entertaining any notions of reporting this to her sister, are you?"
The fox spirit shook her head vigorously in response, still looking fearful.
With that, the spirit was released from the grasp of Del's magic. It remained floating in the air for a moment, staring at me with a look of obvious sadness on her face.
Finally speaking up she said, "I'm sorry...for everything. I knew once you tried to hide Gabriel that you didn't want me around anymore, and then everything started to fall apart once you met Joe."
Karisa replied, "This is my fault, you only did exactly what I asked you to do. Meryl couldn't risk Gabriel finding out about what she'd done, and I told her I'd do anything to keep him."
"If that's true, then why did you give him up yourself?"
"I was so stupid...so insecure. I didn't think I'd ever see another man smile at me or even care if I lived or died. I started to realize just how foolish I was the moment we...we…"
I'd known something like this was coming and was still left without anything I could even imagine saying that could salve this wound. How do you tell someone that they just need to accept their role in a Greek tragedy and try to get over it?
Placing my still-bandaged hand on Karisa's shoulder, I asked, "What's done is done. Would you be standing here right now if you hadn't made that choice?"
"No...and I know you're right. I'm actually seeing clearly for the first time in over two years and...I still just want to run away from it all."
"Believe me, I know," I began as I took a deep breath to continue, "But I won't let you run or hide. Whatever you need...I'm-we're here for you."
Turning to me, with tears in her eyes, she managed a smile, "I know. Plus, who could walk away from all this?" she asked as she poked my slender form.
Adding to my surprise, the spirit floated around behind me and placed a small kiss on my neck, just below the ear before flying up into the air and vanishing over the top of the closest building.
"Uh...what was that about?" I asked.
"That spirit has been with Karisa since before you met her. Any monster spending so much time around you would develop feelings."
"Was that...flattery, Del?" I said trying to hide my stupid grin.
"It was simply...an observation based upon the...data. At hand, that is…" Del said as she looked away, her voice trailing off.
"So, it's starting to get dark...where are we sleeping tonight?" I asked.
"Del was right. I do still own that old house, but it's absolutely filthy."
"Let us stay there for the evening and we can search for more suitable accommodations tomorrow, if you wish," Del offered as Karisa lead us towards her childhood home.
"So...about Ixi," I said after a few minutes of walking, I broke the silence and wishing almost immediately that I hadn't as I saw Karisa tense in response.
After another few moments, Karisa responded, "Ixi...was Ajora's lover. I don't know if Ajora ever cared about her-Ixi always seemed so sad when she thought nobody was looking. She would have done almost anything Ajora asked of her. My sister...has a lot to answer for. But not now, and...maybe not from me."
Giving that statement some time to sit in the air, I finally replied, "You're okay with that?"
Taking a deep breath, Karisa almost angrily replied, "I'm not-not at all. But, damn it...I want to do some living for myself! I don't want to think about revenge, or what I've lost, or what terrible thing is going to happen next. Can I do that? Am I allowed to have something-anything?!"
"Yes! I just...wanted to know if you were okay-if there was anything I could do."
"Look, I'm...not okay, but I will be. All I need you to do for me is...be you."
"This is the place, is it not?" Del said, some time later, as she pointed at a rather large home.
The place looked liked it might have been absolutely beautiful in its prime, but now it just looked like a run-down memory of a happier time that had not been kind in its passing. What was once a beautiful outdoor entryway, with a tiled stone mosaic depicting a bright sunburst, barely reminded one of the scene, even with the aid of the burnished light of the setting sun. The broken tiles had long lost any luster they might have once held.
The stone and stucco walls had been stained by all manner of dark residue over the years, possible evidence of impromptu sexual encounters by passing monstrous participants too eager to reach their own homes. The ground around the once-fine home was littered by the many tiles that had broken or slipped free from the badly weathering roof above.
There was still a fine bronze gate that held fast against entry to the innermost parts of the house within. The gate was shown to be unlocked, as Karisa easily pushed it open with a sigh before waving us forward.
Half-heartedly motioning us through the iron-banded, grey elm door, Karisa moved in behind us and closed the door, throwing a latch to seal the portal.
"So...it's probably cleanest in the last room at the top of the-" Karisa began before falling to her knees at the sight that now greeted her.
Looking around, I saw that the inside looked almost completely restored. The vaulted foyer positively shined, with the dark and varied wood used in the internal construction reflecting off of the brightly polished marble floor. The same tired sunburst mosaic of the outdoor entryway was shown again here, now painstakingly restored to gleam with a luster that threatened to put the resplendent setting sun to shame as it threw its last beams through the large windows of the home.
"This was to be the gift I had waiting for you when I departed," Del said as she helped Karisa to her feet.
"How…? I was just here a week ago and it was falling apart!"
"Skeletons can be quite good at manual labor. The construction is actually quite sound, it simply needed-"
Cutting Del off, Karisa threw her arms around the lich, not even trying to fight the slowly rising sobs of happiness, "Thank you Del...you don't know how much this means to me. I could-"
Interrupting her own statement, she placed a kiss on Del's cheek, not looking as though she had any intention of letting go afterwards.
Del reached up and began running her long, pale fingers through the bright red strands of hair, whispering softly, "Be calm, Risa. I just...felt that if this home could help raise one such as you, I could imagine none better in which to...raise your own children."
I never could have imagined Del saying something so perfect. It also did not escape my notice that she had used the name "Risa", her certainty enough to wear down nearly all of the doubts that I had remaining. Seeing the two women I loved sharing their own caring embrace also made made me feel more than hopeful about how our future would eventually turn out.
Del whispered something else to Karisa that I couldn't quite make out, earning a simple nod in response.
"Okay," Karisa said with a sniffle, "Let's go upstairs to...our room," she finished as she tried, in vain, to wipe away her continuing tears.
It was clear on our way up to the master bedroom that this house still needed a lot of work, but the amount of work that had already been done was shocking when compared to how the place appeared on the outside.
The master bedroom, however, looked to have seen the most work outside of the foyer, with new looking rugs draped across an otherwise well-polished floor. The other furniture seemed to have been removed with the exception of a very large four-post bed dominating the center of the room and drawing the eye upon entrance.
With a sumptuously silken, dark crimson color, the bed practically begged to be lied upon. I hadn't even realized just how tired I truly was, but one look at this bed brought that thought easily to the front of my mind.
Not seeing any nightclothes for me, and not caring in the least, I stripped myself naked on the way to the bed, quickly sliding under the covers and looking back at my wives with a smile.
"So? You guys coming to bed?" I asked with my arms wide.
"Did he forget?" Karisa asked Del as she looked at me curiously, still trying to dry her tears.
"No, I believe he was hoping that we would," Del said with a smirk.
To be honest, I nearly had forgotten about the hole I'd dug myself earlier. There was a caveat for food included, and just staring at the two beautiful women across the room would have been all the invitation I needed anyway.
"I actually did forget, but I'm not planning to renege on what I said earlier."
"That's good, Joe. I would have become somewhat cross if you'd upset Risa."
"I love both of you more than I'll ever be able to say. So...get over here and see if you can't make me regret biting off far far more than I can chew."
As much as I expected the both of them to pounce once given the invitation, it seemed that none of this was going to happen quite as I might have predicted.
If I'd had a calendar, I would have marked the day in bold red for the first time I ever had the pleasure of seeing two naked women walking towards me, threatening to outshine the love evident in their eyes was the deep primal hunger. The only thing more predatory than the looks being sent my way were in Karisa's fang-like smile and the reason-defying sway of Del's hips.
I would have been ready for whatever they had in mind by the time they they arrived to pull the covers up, but they shared a look and slid into the bed to either side of me. Slowly pulling me into a shared embrace as I wrapped an arm around each of them to bring them as close to me as possible.
Barring Del's penchant for investigative voyeurism, and a certain poorly conceived lamia illusion, this was going to be my first...encounter with both of my companions at once. I was at least as nervous as I was excited, not certain where to even begin.
It began slowly, with Risa's warm breath on my neck as she and Del each ran a slightly teasing hand across my sensitive skin.
"Is it silly that I'm...nervous?" Karisa whispered into my ear, chasing her words with a tiny nip of her teeth, almost contradicting the statement altogether.
"M-me too," I stuttered out as I looked between the two of them.
Propping herself up on an elbow, Del looked down at the two of us and shook her head with one of the smiles I was coming to truly enjoy seeing, "You are both so...exasperating. Is it the lack of clothing to remove that is somehow dampening your desire?"
Leaning in to press her soft, full lips against mine, Delilah reached over and pulled Karisa to her feet atop the bed.
"Del, what are you doing?"
"I assume you mean aside from drawing the two of you a map?" Del replied as she gently, but deliberately, pulled me to my knees and began guiding me to where I already knew I wanted to go.
"Just a moment," I said as I quickly removed the bandages on my hands with my teeth, satisfied to see nothing more than what looked liked long-healed scars on my hands.
Damn if their medicine here isn't a thing of beauty I thought, sparing only a moment for such trivial concerns as I reached out to the blushing Karisa, filling my hands with the firm flesh of her pert rear. As I pulled her towards me, I was wrapped in her incomparable scent and, with it, the memories of the many times that I had drawn her to edge of madness with my probing tongue.
Starting with a tentative flick of my tongue, I grinned as I saw her shiver in anticipation. I made only one more teasing pass, delighting in the reflexive sharp intake of her breath in response, before I dedicated myself to my task. Her already moistened lips welcomed their familiar lover as my tongue ran the length of her sex, my exploring fingers now also plying their trade upon her most vulnerable targets.
Every woman reacted differently to this technique. But only my Risa reacted like...this. Any further worries I might have had about this girl's potential identity shattered in that moment. I knew that there were tears on my part, and even as I prayed that they would go unnoticed, I felt Del's soft touch wipe away that mixed signal as she smiled coyly.
About to wonder how this was going to work, Del wormed her way beneath me and easily drew me into her mouth. I shook a bit at the tantalizingly familiar warmth, almost losing my grip on Risa in the process. Del seemed content to focus on teasing me, doing little more than slowly bringing my desire to a boil.
I began gently running my free hand over Risa's lower back, just enjoying the pleasant feeling of her soft skin under my roaming fingers as the feelings within her began to mount. With her voice continuing to rise in pitch, I knew Risa was close when I felt her break out into a sweat. Redoubling my efforts, it was only a moment later before her breath caught in her throat in several tiny gasps.
Del, not letting up for even a moment, seemed to smile up at me as she continued to taunt me. In just the time we'd been together, she'd somehow learned my body even better than I had, instinctively knowing how to pull back on her technique to leave me stranded upon the razor's edge.
Del simply would not free me from this prison in which she had me so easily locked, so I focused on the riches still spread out before me in Risa's weakening form. I threw myself back into my task with gusto. Even while Del refused to see me to my completion, I felt the tiniest sympathetic spark of relief upon each of Risa's.
After the fourth or fifth complete loss of composure by Risa, she overcame my resistance and pushed me away as her knees wobbled in the momentary weakness. Her brow furrowed in a determination to remain on her feet as she looked down at me with a smirk.
"Oh no," she said as she tried to catch her breath, "You aren't getting off that easy...c'mere," she said as she pulled Del from her spot beneath me to a standing position.
I sighed in an almost relieved frustration to have Del's teasing cease. There would be no rest for the wicked this night as Risa guided me a bit lower in an unspoken demand to see me unleash my energy upon Del. Before I could wonder what Risa intended to do, she had taken Del's place, determined to keep me paralyzed as well.
Placing my hands upon Del's seductively ample hips, I drew her in close, suppressing a shudder at the thoughts to which her own unique scent had given life.
"Are you certain you wouldn't rather-" Del began, only able to finish her statement in a loud, unintelligible shout.
I smiled inwardly in surprise to hear such a reaction from Del. It was certainly not what I was expecting to hear from her, and Risa's long fingernails making several quick, small scratches on my thigh told me that she was nearly as happy to hear that sound as I.
Del was, with her unnaturally sensitive body, far easier to please. After only a few minutes, she let loose a high-pitched scream. Pulling back slightly in the fear that something might be wrong, Del responded by gripping the back of my head to force me back, leaving her fingers tightly gripping my hair as she continued to silently scream to the heavens.
Pausing at the same moment that I had done so, Risa continued her voluntary task of driving me up the walls, he tongue teasing every inch of me. It was as if she wished to taste me more than simply make me feel good. Far from the overskilled touch of the lich, Risa easily made up for that gap with an enthusiasm that I hadn't seen since our first night together.
I attempted to tune out those sensations, despite knowing the futility of it all as I tried to focus only on Del in this moment. Since she didn't breathe, the only warning I got before each desirous wave that crashed upon Del's shore was the sensation of her grip on my hair tightening. Running my tongue across her honeyed lips, I began to focus directly upon her hidden pearl, feeling her give a satisfying shake in response. Not content to settle for simply that, I put my fingers to work as well, pulling them across her sensitive g-spot.
Such sweet action was not to last long as Del was brought to several successive episodes of her mind being overwhelmed by the desires of her body. It was at that moment that Del threw me to the side onto my back and straddled my face, her hands perched upon my chest.
"I...ah s-see why...you…" Del attempted, her speech broken and unsteady as she began to make small circles with her hips, trying to get as much from my tongue as possible.
"I know...I can't get enough of it. But now...I'm taking this," I heard Risa say, while being unable to actually see her.
It only took a moment for my mind to process what she was doing as I felt the inhuman heat of her vaginal lips as they placed their own passion-fueled kiss upon the crown of my member. Hesitating just long enough to make me worry that she only meant to tease, Risa slowly lowered her hips until she could go no further, leaving me nestled deep within her warmth.
"Oh, sweet lords!" Risa shouted to the ceiling as I felt the rapid pulse of her heartbeat pressing around my manhood from within her, her left hand also on my chest to give her the leverage she would need to move.
"R-risa?" Del said loudly enough that I could hear, before leaning forward enough that I could see that Risa had pulled Del into a deep kiss, her free right hand tangling itself in Del's beautiful silver hair.
The scene arousing me far beyond what I would have ever thought possible, I pushed up from the bed with my hips to slide even more deeply within Risa as I tightly gripped Del's hips again and pulled her tight against me, allowing my tongue to boldly cast aside her hooded lady's mantle to deliver a personal greeting.
At my insistence, I finally felt Risa begin to move, her lips not leaving Del's as I caught the barest glimpses of their tongues rolling over each other like desperately mating serpents. I had no idea what could have prompted this drastic turn between them, but my mind was in no position to even consider the issue as my body called out for my full attention.
As the weight on this metronome continued its inexorable descent, I felt the powerful twinge of my own desire being unshackled as Del tensed above me, a veritable flood of her intoxicating secretions hitting my tongue.
I held fast to Del's hips, the only thing I could easily reach, as Risa finally came down hard, holding me tightly as my issue poured forth into her depths. Feeling the shaking of my body prompted a loud squeal from Risa as she finally joined Del and I in our surrender.
The feelings simply would stop as Risa's body continued to twitch in the aftermath.
"I-it's so warm...why does it feel so much warmer this time…? Risa asked in a shaky voice, her body still overcome with the occasional shake.
Regaining some of her composure as she laid her head upon my lower abdomen, Del replied, "I...do not know. So much of this...feels different. Why...did you kiss me, Risa?"
Now able to clearly see Risa as she remained seated atop me, I saw her run her hands sensuously up her belly and over her firm breasts to gently touch her own lips, saying, "I've...never felt so comfortable around another woman. I saw those beautiful eyes of yours and I just...wanted to kiss you. Did you...not like it?"
Sitting back up slightly in protest, Del rested her pale, slender fingers upon Risa's cheek, "I was only curious," she said, adding as she looked back at me, "Not once in my wildest fever dreams did I ever imagine I could have something like this. I feel...I-I am...happy."
Saying that, Del pulled Risa close again, their lips coming together more gently than before. Their soft kiss gave way to the timid meeting of their tongues as each of them now looked to be fully appreciating the moment that was being shared between the two of them.
Feeling Risa's pulse start to quicken again from where we were still connected, my manhood became rigid within her once more. I set my tongue loose upon Del once again as I felt her body also starting to respond to this new sensation.
Not a dash to the summit as before, this was something else. Feeling the slow and insistent pull of Risa's warmth upon me, I simply let myself feel every one of her slight movements. I felt the tiny press of each beat of her heart and the wonderful texture of her womanhood as her measured pace drew it across my skin like a silken glove that had been made to fit upon only me.
I kept with the same slow pace as I ran my tongue around Del's own opening. Teasing, kissing, and gently nibbling in equal measure, languishing in the steady release of Del's feminine slickness.
It was impossible to say how much time passed in that beautifully erotic moment before our pace again began to quicken. I felt it in Del's more insistent press above me and the slowly escalating fervor with which Risa moved upon me.
Sending my tongue upwards again, I slowly revealed Del's clitoris like opening a present, before I began to focus upon it with a more singular desire. I was rewarded again with the slight tensing of Del's entire body as she gasped at the feeling.
All at once it happened again, like a chain reaction. Del gave in to the feelings that passed over and through her with a wail that stoked my arousal to it's peak, demanding I thrust upward into Risa with my own release as she joyfully squealed in response as she felt my fluid rush to fill her.
Not even taking a moment to wind down, Risa rolled off of me to end up laying on her side as Del crawled forward and rolled onto her back, seemingly in a daze as she stared at the ceiling.
Fading quickly, I draped myself over Del, leaning up to steal a kiss from her lips before laying my head on her chest. Tasting the unmistakable essence of Risa upon Del, I smiled as I felt Risa pull herself up behind me into a spooning position.
Some time later, I nearly jumped out of my skin as I came awake in a start, realizing that Del was bringing me to a sitting position. I wasn't even certain when I'd fallen asleep.
"As promised," she said as she brushed my hair back from my eyes and offered some strangely-spiced bread and some sort of fruit juice with which to wash it down.
"This is really good," I said, eagerly digging in, adding, "Did you get some for Risa too?"
"Of course. I fed her first as she had positioned herself almost directly atop you. She went back to sleep afterwards."
"Where did you get this bread?" I asked between bites as I tried to figure out exactly what I was tasting, "it's...strange."
"Cells extracted from a...type of fungus were used to make it rise. The seasoning is from a variety of different plants," Del said as she seemed to be avoiding my gaze.
Catching on to where this was going, I took a large gulp from the glass of suddenly familiar-tasting juice, "So...what's it going to do to me?"
"Have I become so easy to read?" Del asked with a genuine displeasure.
"Are you asking me if you're easy on the eyes?"
"There it is-the hilarity.," Del said with a wry smile as she continued, "The juice is greatly diluted version of the elixir you were given before we threw you to the goblins, and the bread is simply a mixture of other...very arousing components."
"Am I going to be able to stay sane this time?"
"However unlikely it may be that my calculations are incorrect, I have given myself and Risa a similar concoction. She will be around shortly," Del added almost prophetically as Risa seemed to squirm about as if the room had just gotten a lot warmer.
Quickly finishing my meal, I was unable to hold back a yawn as it broke from its prison, "Soo...how long should this take to start working?"
Looking flushed as she seemed to be trying to do calculations in her head, she extended her arm towards the door to brace herself against an invisible wall or...stop some illusionary traffic, I supposed.
"I gave myself a more concentrated dose of the serum, concerned that my physiology would not be as receptive to the chemicals. I was...mistaken. So…" She trailed off, her eyes almost glazing over momentarily.
"So…?" I asked.
"So I will need an accurate count of the seconds that pass before you find you can no longer count them," She answered in a distracted voice as she dragged me towards the corner of the bed.
"Del, I'm not even-"
Silencing me with a slight frown, she replied, "You are ready. Now."
Her voice echoed across the polished marble floor, and through every corner of my mind. For a brief moment I was unable to think of any facet of my reality that wasn't "now", and the following second I was unable to even consider anything beyond that demand. My body was going to heed her command, and my mind could stay behind forever if it wished to disobey.
Only touched by the haze for a moment, I regained control of myself in the span of a few heartbeats.
"Then what are you waiting for?" I said as I tried to come to a seated position, my legs already having been pulled over the edge of the bed to rest on the floor.
She answered by placing her hand in the center of my chest and pushing me back down as she moved forward to straddle me, her legs still planted on the floor just outside of my own, "For you to start counting."
My count didn't make it past "one" before she mounted me, the sensation instead convincing me that I was being pulled up into her. The breath stolen from my lungs by the sudden shock, I nearly lost myself right in that initial moment, barely holding myself back. Del began a satisfied hum as she began running her hands over her lower abdomen in an almost pleadingly unfulfilled moment of confused indecision.
Coming to a resolution a few moments later, she put both of her hands at the center of my chest, requesting without asking that I bear some of her weight. She then began to slowly pull herself free from my rampant firmness, her unyieldingly tight opening held me in apparent revolt, the inhuman pull of her so powerful that it seemed poised to draw the feeling from my limbs, and even the taste from my mouth. My jaw went slack as it it felt as though she meant to do exactly that.
Seeing a look of almost pained frustration on her face to feel the void left behind by my absence, she hovered above me for only an instant as she moved again. Pressing herself down upon me again, she looked down at the place of our carnal convergence as she let out what seemed like an uncharacteristic giggle. Not laughter, instead it turned out to be the only warning of her coming climax.
Her eyes never leaving the locus of our congress, she began to flex her ample hips, the resulting movement being more than my willpower could handle as I yelled out in my release.
"That's it, my love! It is as if you...hah...have released a flame within me. It begs my reason to think of anything more than this moment."
I could only grunt in response, still caught in the midst of my release.
"I..should not have taken that serum, Joe," she said as her actions contradicted every word, her hips rising and then plunging down to begin the act anew.
As the too-potent feelings dominated my thoughts, I began to reach for her hips in what would be a futile attempt to pull her from me, to escape, even if for just a moment. As I tried to move my hands, I saw Risa look down at me with a lust-filled smile, her tongue passing across her teeth in obvious hunger as she pinned my arms to the bed.
"You should have woke me up, I wouldn't have wanted to miss a second of this," she said, determined that she would not let go of my hands.
As I moaned in futility, Risa moved to trap my right arm between her slender, but powerful, thighs as she began to grind herself upon the only thing at hand. Her sighs of delight escaping her mouth the moment she started to move.
Using the little strength I still had before Del inevitably claimed it for her own, I pulled Risa around ahead of me, her legs crossing over my body as she wantonly splayed them as an invitation. Keeping her head in the crook of my elbow, I began to lay kisses upon her soft lips as I pleasured her with my free hand. The distraction of the act just barely enough to keep me from screaming out in response to Del's quickening pace.
Far too quickly, I cried out again as Delilah drew my seed within her, her lips sending forth a mewling sigh in response as she held her movement only a few seconds before starting to move again. Risa continued to passionately kiss me as if my weak moans were a dish upon which she could feast, her own orgasms coming too quickly to even count.
"Del needs to lose the recipe to this tonic," I thought to myself as the haze started to creep into my own perceptions, just as it had in the Sunslayer camp, as my "breakfast" began to take effect.
Almost as if she had sensed the moment the strange food had taken hold, Del stopped her up and down movements and simply brought herself as close to me as she could manage as if she was resting-or preparing to pounce. Any thoughts about why she had paused were destroyed the moment I felt her set upon me with her inhuman talent.
Just as before, I felt the tight ring of her cervix reach down about my glans, generating a suction beyond anything she'd ever shown with her mouth. The sensation was too much, as I was drawn to orgasm almost immediately.
The involuntary bucking of my hips only made it worse, as her ring stayed locked right at the middle of my head, throbbing in time to each spurt of my ejaculation as Del drew my seed deep within her.
I was overcome with a delectable anguish as my entire body began to shudder, unable to escape from the overwhelming ecstasy that Del forced me to endure. Even without her mind-bending eromancy, this feeling was more than I could hope to withstand for more than a few moments at a time, and she had locked me into a grip that seemed determined to hold me for hours at the least.
After only a few moments, Risa had moved to hold me down in earnest, giving me a wide smile as she did so.
"Is it too much, love?" She asked in mock concern as she leaned forward and kissed at my neck, her teeth now determined to leave her mark upon me as she continued in a whisper, "Maybe I can help."
Saying that, Risa sought to heighten my torment as she placed kisses down my neck and across my chest as she happily drove me mad, capturing my sensitive nipples in her sharp teeth and lashing them with her wicked tongue.
My mouth no longer covered, I began to howl as I felt Del clamp down fiercely about the base of my cock in climax as her inner ring even more tightly grabbed the top of my shaft, reducing the eruption of my seed within her to a trickle as her slick inner walls started to move in vibrating waves as she drew each moment of my climax into a rapturous eternity.
Each time I thought the sensations were about to drag me into unconsciousness, Risa found some way to keep me from fading with her glamour, always with a "tsk tsk" as if my mind's natural defense mechanism was an insult to the heavenly torture she felt my body deserved.
The next several hours passed in a debauched blur as Del and Risa kept me pinned to the bed from both ends, taking their pleasure from the the eagerly stubborn generosity of my drug-enhanced lust. Through the haze, I still took some of the greatest enjoyment I could ever remember experiencing to simply see Del so totally lost in her own lustful glee..
Even with her phylactery damaged, Del had always maintained enough of a distance from the demands of her body not to succumb to the sapid delights that assaulted it. She had made herself far more vulnerable this time.
Despite feeling the urge to cry in response to the exquisite pain that followed each of my easily conjured moments of release, the positively ambrosial consequent surrender of my two women in nearly direct response to those moments stoked a fire in my determination to power through whatever feeling my body tried to muster. In particular, Del's reactions were the most satisfying to see.
Finally no longer able to remain silent in the build up to the crux of her desire, Del looked around in a daze as though seeing the room for the first time before the storm of pleasure struck her in tandem with yet another of my own. The shared release looked as if it had impacted her physically as she violently arched her back and grabbed for my hips, her fingernails nearly breaking the skin as her normally soft voice vaulted several octaves to a shrill scream that drew on, unbroken, for nearly a full minute as she convulsed around me.
Too much for me to handle any longer, I lost consciousness.
"There he is! Geez, finally," Risa said as she smiled down at me in mock anger.
"The drug can only sustain one for so long before the body must rest," Del added.
"Well, it's already been two hours. I thought you said this was supposed to be some sort of punishment," Risa added with a sly wink in my direction as she gracefully answered my unasked question of "How long was I out?" It was becoming my damn catch-phrase.
I hadn't yet said anything, but I looked over at Del with a bit of concern.
Blushing a bit to see my expression, Del spoke up, "Your concern is appreciated, my love, but you need not worry. Though this is a far greater strain than any with which I have tested this body since it's creation, it is not more than I can handle."
"Sure, Del," Risa said, giving her a playful shove, "I'm pretty sure every neighbor for miles that heard you screaming believes that too."
"Your biological body would give out long before one such as mine, Risa."
"Are you guys seriously fighting about this?" I asked as I continued to get my bearings.
"I don't know, Del. Are we fighting about this?" Risa asked, sounding as if she were issuing a playful challenge.
"I respect your talents, Risa, but you are two thousand years too early to-" Del paused before adding, "I...know this is a glamour, Risa."
"No shit, really?" Risa said as she rolled her eyes slightly, "No, really...I've always had the ability to clone Joe. And one of these days you're going to need to learn how to resist these."
Letting out a moan as these unseen illusions must have begun their assault on Del, she replied, "You...will yield before I."
"Never!" Risa shot back with a playful smile.
Wondering how Del would use her own talents on Risa, I suddenly realized with some measure of dread that I was starting to feel...warm.
Delilah's eyes met mine and then were the only thing I saw, everything else fading to meaningless, empty, nothingness.
Becoming massive in my perceptions, her violet eyes swam with the power of her magic as her voice boomed in my perceptions.
Your existence has been made into nothing. Within this nothing I shall plant a seed that will grow to define you-to become you. I am desire. I am the seed that will fill you. You will know purpose in nothing beyond me.
The vision clearing, I snapped from my reverie to see Risa looking at me, her arms on my shoulders. My mind slowly grasping at a realization.
"Damn it Del, what did you do to him?" Risa asked as she turned towards Del.
Now rolling about on the bed in response to the assault of Risa's glamour, Del wantonly kneaded her own breasts, mercilessly teasing her own nipples with one hand as she desperately drove the fingers of her other hand into her nearly dripping cunt. The lewd sounds of her act filled the room, accompanied by her keening wails of desire.
"Ahh! I...haa...have volunteered...him. He will-" she stopped for a moment as her entire body went rigid, her form rippling as the release made her tremble, "...claim you."
As Del uttered those words, I felt Risa's grip go weak as a powerful blush colored her cheeks and her eyes fell to a seductive half-lidded invitation. I answered the call and pushed Risa down onto the bed on her stomach, moving her tail aside as I nearly dove upon her.
Claim me.
I could barely think about anything beyond the gorgeous woman before me as I pushed forward. My painfully turgid penis missing the mark after nearly a dozen attempts. The urge to cry at being unable to obey this command began to rise within me as I couldn't seem to reason out how to fulfill my purpose in this.
Let me show you.
Lost in her own trial, Risa reached back between her legs towards me. Taking a firm grasp of my shaft, she pulled me towards her waiting hole, pointing me to where I needed to go. As her moist lips quivered about the head of my tool, her breaths began to quicken in anticipation.
Now.
I thrust forward at the command of my desire, feeling a rush of intense heat as her lips opened just wide enough to accept me. Having penetrated her as far as I could go, her vice-like pussy squeezed at me, her body begging me to move. I reached down to her shoulder for leverage and began to thrust into her in earnest, each penetration sounding off with a satisfying "clap" as I collided with her firm ass, sending barely-visible shockwaves through the well-toned flesh.
Risa began a low, growling moan as I picked up speed, her entire body reacting with a shake to each thrust.
Momentarily distracted by Del letting loose another high-pitched scream, I placed my free hand on Risa's hip as I continued to bear down on her with even greater intensity. At the end of each driving thrust, my glans was rewarded with a small kiss by the unyielding entrance to her womb.
I began to thrust as powerfully as my body would allow, hearing Risa let out little "yip"s each time I hit bottom. Pushing her ass a bit further into the air, she grasped the sheets as her breaths came even more quickly. Not even feeling like I was anywhere near my limit, I simply continued to push into her deepest reaches until-
Hear this command and obey your desire at the moment of its asking. Now.
I was immediately overcome. Almost violently grabbing Risa to hold myself within her, my semen rushed to fill her in nearly a dozen potent spurts as her entire body shuddered with her own powerful orgasm.
Even with the assault of the overwhelming pleasure nearly driving me mad, I began moving within her once again. With only a whimpering moan in protest, Risa's grip tightened on the sheets as my pace ramped up even more quickly than before.
I again heard Del cry out as she kicked at the bed, unable to escape from the illusionary sexual assault.
You have more to offer your desire. Now.
Again, I was thrown over the edge as I jammed myself to the hilt, connecting with enough force to push Risa flat onto her stomach as she let out a muffled scream into the bed, again experiencing her climax with me.
Moving back up to my knees, I grabbed Risa by her slender hips and pulled her up from the bed slightly as I continued, unsure where I'd ever managed to get the stamina to keep moving.
Now.
This command came after only a few moments, but brought with it a release that was no less earth-shaking than those previous. And just as before, convincing me that Risa was snared by the same spell as I, she shuddered, her knuckles going white as she held onto the bed with all of her strength.
"You-mmm...you give up?!" Risa shouted, getting no direct response from Del.
My mind however, heard another command, delivered with an edge of desperation.
Now.
I couldn't resist and did exactly as the distant voice demanded. Still unable to find an end to my lust-driven desire, I rolled Risa to her side slightly, pulling one of her legs up and over my shoulder as I continued to drive into her, now reaching even more deeply as my prick began making solid contact with the sealed passage to her womb on every thrust.
My pale seed began to pour from her onto the bed, soaking the sheets as Risa's body simply couldn't contain any more.
Now.
Not even wanting to disobey, I continued to drive forward, marking Risa's slavering sex with my seed.
Risa had begun tearing the sheets as the fabric could no longer withstand the tension of her desperate grip. Whatever strange magic had been keeping me moving seemed to be fading as I started to sweat in a rapidly growing fatigue.
And again.
My liquid again filled her, her body doing little more than weakly shaking as she moaned even more loudly in the wash of the overpowering sensations.
My muscles starting to protest even more vigorously, I rolled Risa finally on to her back and nearly fell upon her, my movements even more subdued than before.
More.
I felt my warm cum running out of Risa around my pulsating cock as quickly as it was deposited. I held myself within her, my muscles no longer having the strength to do more than twitch as I cried out in protest.
The inhuman desire had also started to fade as I tried to catch my breath. Looking over at Del, I saw that she had almost completely stopped moving, her face frozen in a look of lust as the rest of her body seemed to quiver over an unending series of tiny explosions.
Again!
My muscles could only tense as the all-familiar shiver rushed over me from head to toe as even more of me spilled into Risa's shuddering form, doing little more than adding to the growing puddle on the bed.
Feeling utterly exhausted, I managed to utter, "Truce? Please?"
Barely an instant later, I saw Del's body relax as Risa broke whatever glamour she'd had active. I then felt the insidious claws of that odd eromantic effect pull from my mind completely.
"You two must rest," Del finally said, a few minutes later as she moved toward us.
As she slowly pulled us apart, neither Risa or I was able to do much more than squirm in response. Once my deflating penis had slipped free from the tight grasp of Risa's nethers, a steady stream of my essence began to flow freely onto the already damp bed, further staining the already ruined sheets.
Finally laying me on my back, Del positioned Risa next to me where she instinctively crawled into her preferred spot as though it was the most natural thing to do.
"You aren't...leaving, are you?" I asked lethargically.
"Things have...changed somewhat since I made the decision to leave. Once I return with food, we shall have a proper discussion on where things will proceed from here," Del answered as she gently brushed the hair from mine and Risa's brow.
"Okay, Del. You know I love you, right?"
"I am...made more aware of that fact daily, Joe. Sleep now.
With that I drifted off to dreamland, anxious for Del's return.
-
-Back through Delilah's eyes-
Procuring supplies had been simple enough and I was on my way back home in under an hour.
"Excuse me miss, we need you to come with us," a voice said in my direction.
Turning, I saw two members of the city watch looking eminently ready for a fight, and staring at me to await my response.
"What is this regarding?" I asked as I shifted my gaze around, looking for any other eyes that could be watching this exchange.
An undead positively reeking of recent sexual activities drew enough second glances that it was impossible to determine if there were any parties that showed more than a passing interest in the exchange.
"Just a few questions...there was a slaying down near the harbor yesterday and arcane forensics identified the cause as necromantic in origin. If you have nothing to hide, then you shouldn't mind coming with us, right?"
I had a very...firm alibi to cover the entirely of yesterday. As I wanted to let Joe and Risa sleep, I saw no harm in coming with them. They left me to wait for several hours while the guards questioned at least a dozen other undead about this death. I couldn't help but be concerned about this potential setup as I sat between a ghoul and a skeleton, indicating that the order of the day must have been to gather up any undead for questioning.
Many pointless and stressful hours later, I was released from questioning after using my abilities to simply question the spirit of the victim to find the killer. I laid out the details as the spirit tearfully related them.
"The ineptitude with which this guard is run is truly baffling. The victim had necromantic essence within her because her husband had spent time at one of the brothels that caters to a taste for undead flesh. This is a clear suicide, the 'victim' having consumed poison which is still within her system. She claims she also left her husband a note explaining such-I can only assume it was more efficient to round up every undead in the city than to simply spend a few moments questioning the man," I offered, upset that I had been detained for something so foolish.
Finally making my way back home, away from the sheepish apologies of the watch, I found the gate swinging open. I hadn't locked it, not having the key, but it was bothersome that I had forgotten to at least latch it. Rather than be upset at this turn, I simply smiled as my pace quickened, my feet longing to bring me back to the side of my lover.
Ascending the stairs and throwing open the door to the master bedroom, I saw the windows open, a powerful breeze inviting the curtains and bedding to dance in the embrace of the wind.
Moving quietly towards the bed, I saw a sealed letter laying upon what would have been my side of the bed. Already dreading the contents, I opened it quickly, at least somewhat reassured by the breathing lump that laid adjacent, hidden under the sheets.
Dearest Delilah, We were friends once. None of us blamed you for what happened, and even before Enki left this world he made me swear that I would convince you to return to Ahmose to tell her what has transpired. I'm tired of waiting for you to get over your grief-or over yourself. Your Danuki is unharmed and remains within Alnor, resting peacefully within one of the houses I own. You are already aware that it would be too dangerous for her to accompany you to your destination. I'm certain that, with your intellect, you're thinking that there is nothing I could do to convince you to return to Blacksky. Until recently, you'd have been right. What were the chances that the emotionless Sorrow of Blacksky would ever find her heart captured by a man? That makes this doubly painful for me. You know why I am doing this. Ahmose has lost her mind and will never leave that place. I would have delivered the report myself-even though it should be your responsibility-if I could. But as a true demon, you know that neither I, nor any of my servants, can survive in that place. If you ever felt any love for her as I did, you should have jumped at the first chance to save her from her insanity. I would be lying if I said that taking this route wasn't enjoyable on some level. When I presented myself to your man and told him that I would have him, he managed to fight through my charm enough to offer me-ME, of all people, a chance to be pleasured by his tongue instead of forcing myself upon him, saying that he wasn't 'allowed' to have sex with a succubus. Your essence was so strongly upon him that I thought he might actually escape. Luckily for me, you'd fed him some of my special tonic so overpowering him was not difficult. For what happened next I must apologize. I know that I could be forgiven my nature for claiming his body, but the genuine tears in his eyes made it a truly painful experience for me. You know that he loved you as well? You and some...Risa-the danuki, I assume. He must have screamed your names a hundred times as I repeatedly forced his body to betray him. Over and over I took him, and he just wouldn't stop saying your names with every single breath. Those thoughts are...buried now, possibly forever. I am willing to face your vengeance for this, Delilah. If I must, I am willing to die for this crime. Nothing is so cruel as to force pleasure upon a being against their will. But you left me with no other choice. I spent nearly a hundred years begging and another four thousand waiting for you to walk again with the living. I know you must still love Ahmose or you would not still carry her sorrow. Now...I've poured so much demonic energy into this man that it will consume his entire being from within if it is not removed. There is only one place you can take him now to undo what I've done and I'm certain you've pieced that answer together by now. You were always telling us that we must always face the consequences of our actions. It's your turn Delilah. As much as it pains me to the pit of my being, I swore an oath, and in fulfilling it, I will take and destroy everything you touch from now until the end of eternity until you perform this task and the...other. The final judgement of the council is absolute. You know that if you but asked, I would see the other task done? That...thing is hiding beneath that rancid pit of hate to the east. You'll find it in your old home, west of Zarom. Again, I am more sorry than I could ever express that this was the only way. I hope that once this is resolved, you may still look upon me kindly. Always,
Genevieve, Wrath of Blacksky
I let the page fall from my grip, caught as it was in the breeze, to fly from the room into the open sky of Alnor. Any hope of running of hiding was gone. This wasn't even a declaration of war. This was a reminder that I was alone for a reason.
I looked at the huddled form of my beloved as he began to stir. I didn't want to consider what she had done to him, or that she had thrown another grief upon Risa in tearing her away from him.
"Del! You're here!", Joe cried out, the effects of the demonic energy having obviously warped his consciousness.
"Yes, Joe. I'm-"
Before I could finish, he threw himself upon me. As my lover thoughtlessly penetrated me, I saw his irises had been stained red with lust. He had become like an animal with no wants or desires beyond a need to spill his seed into any woman within reach.
Even as my own monstrous urges were awakened by his frenzy, my heart was lost in sorrow. Why did I have to love him? Why did I have to need him? Why must I break every oath I had ever sworn upon that place to have him back-to be with him and Risa?
As my tears began to flow freely, Joe seemed to take on an almost confused look-but didn't even slow his pace for a moment. As each penetrating thrust made its way into me, shaking my entire body with the force of its need, each brought forth a painful memory. As I felt my body give in to my lover's assault, I began to weep openly, screaming out in a sadness I hadn't felt since before I had passed beyond humanity. Lying there on the floor with my hands limp at my sides, I finally felt my body betray me at the same moment that his went rigid with the release of his tainted essence within me.
Part of me wanted to end this man that had become my weakness. Did I not believe that he would abandon me once he learned the truth? Did I dare to believe that he wouldn't?
No. It is only since I've met this man that I could even define or understand how empty my existence was without him. Even if he would reject me, I couldn't let him stay like this. This wasn't my lover, this wasn't my chosen-this wasn't my...Joe.
With another painful wash of emotion passing over me, bringing a round of fresh tears, the body of my lover began its plunder again.
"I no longer care if I must break every oath I've ever sworn," I said out loud, "Once you are asleep, I will...take you to that place."
I placed an affectionate hand upon his cheek that went entirely unnoticed as he continued.
"Even if you hate me for it...I will save you, my love."
His only response was another series of animalistic grunts as he fed me more of his energy.
I would return to Blacksky.