Sex, Drugs, and Oblivian

19/21

It was the most slug-brained idea she'd ever heard.

And Lucifer convinced her to go along with it. That made them both idiots. "Follow my lead," she warned him.

Lucifer grinned and rolled his shoulders as his wings disappeared. Mazikeen allowed her glamour to fade and her own face settled back into place. So, he was going to be smug about it was he? She would show him just how bad the whole idea was. With a grunt, Mazikeen grabbed his arm and shoved him into the main area of the den. He stumbled and fell to his knees. She tried to make eye contact, to reassure herself that he understood the role she played, but he displayed nothing but submission.

Mazikeen straightened her posture, and pushed a frisson of power into the room around her to ensure the attention of all those around her. Lania was only now dragging herself out of the private room. Weak. Mazikeen kept hold of Lucifer's arm and cornered the lethe dealer. "You damaged him, you'll deal with the consequences."

"I only allowed a sustaining dose. Someone else gave him more. We didn't damage him." Lania cowered and braced herself for another beating.

"Apparently this is all he's good for. I am a wall-guard, vowed to stand watch. The angel requires supervision. If you can provide that, we have something to discuss."

"And why would I believe that you accept me to handle him?" Lania leaned against the wall, her confidence returning.

"I don't trust you. I do need coin, and from what I've heard, coin is something he produced for you in abundance. Why shouldn't I take advantage of an opportunity? I deserve something for the trouble of handling him, don't I?"

Lania laughed, and Maze gritted her teeth. "You come here threatening me and mine, and now—"

"You used what is mine for your own gain. That is not a slight I take lightly. You're to return him each ash-fall before wind-rise, with the coin you make off him. Take my offer. In exchange, I'll let you continue to breathe"

Lania barked a laugh. "How am I to feed and care for him? If I am to take over your duties, there are costs involved. It is time consuming and expensive to provide adequate care," she cajoled.

Out of the corner of her eye, Mazikeen saw one of Lania's cohorts, a female, step up behind Lucifer and caress his face with the back of her hand. He automatically leaned into her, his head tilting toward her hand, mouth opening ever so slightly.

Did he know what he was doing?

"Keep what you need to compensate for his care," Mazikeen accepted Lania's counter offer.

"And the lethe?" Lania asked, glancing past Mazikeen, grinning at the display Lucifer was making. "He will want more. That is what our patrons are here for."

"You left him damaged and exposed to the winds." The anger slipped back into Mazikeen's tone.

"An unfortunate miscalculation." Lania pushed past Mazikeen, confidence returning to her body language. "His coupling partner was over enthusiastic with her gifts. It won't happen again."

"He was damaged before then. Tortured. It will not happen again."

"We gave him no more than he asked for." Lania hummed. "You don't even know what you're missing, do you?" She reached on the shelf for a jar and pried open the lid. "See how the angel reacts?"

It was too soon to be pushing this poison on him again. Mazikeen licked her finger and dipped it into the powder. A thin covering of powder stuck to her skin.

When she turned, Lucifer had stood and crowded near her. His eyes were on her. Not on her, on her hand, and what she offered. He was already swaying, and she took his elbow to hold him steady. "This is what you want?"

He nodded, opened his mouth, and licked her finger. He let out a soft moan and leaned forward, taking her hand in his, wrapping his lips around her finger, sucking every bit of powder off her skin that he could.

The effects were quick. His eyes lost their focus and tracked things around the room she couldn't see, his body swayed. "More?" he asked, reaching for her hand again.

But before he could touch her, his knees buckled. Mazikeen grabbed him before he fell and guided him down to the floor. He stared up at her and grinned, reaching for her, but she stepped back. The Lilim who'd been slithering up beside him earlier knelt at his side, and dipped down to catch his lips with hers, probably hoping for some left over lethe to enter her system.

Lucifer reached up and caught the female's shoulder, pulling her closer.

"You don't want to try him yourself?" Lania asked.

Mazikeen glanced back with disdain. "He's not our kind," she answered. "What others care to couple with isn't my concern."

Lania purred at Mazikeen's answer. "A true handler then. We understand each other. Yes? We will feed him twice per ashfall. No meat per his preferences. Provide him with the lethe he wants, and release him to return to you before wind rise. We keep half the coin that he brings in."

Lucifer moaned behind her, the sound muffled as the female closed her mouth over his. "Half?" She laughed. "You will feed him, provide him with no more lethe than I just gave him, ensure he comes to no harm, and you, personally, will escort him to and from my dome each ashfall. You may keep one third of the coin he brings in."

Lania looked past Mazikeen to the group coupling behind her. The sounds of pleasure coming from Lucifer made Mazikeen's blood boil. How dare they—how dare Lucifer—

He'd almost died from the lethe use. These Lilim left him exposed to the wind, barely able to walk, unable to communicate. How could he be so eager to take up with them again? Anger surged through her, at Lucifer, at herself for allowing this to continue...

A pitiful wail drowned out the rest of her sentence. It wasn't from Lucifer or any of his partners. He seemed more than delighted to be holding the hips of the Lilim female, guiding her higher where he could reach her with his mouth. A male had joined beside them, his hand seeking under Lucifer's tunic.

The cry sounded again, from one of the back rooms.

Mazikeen darted forward and Lania grabbed her arm to stop her from going further.

"That is a private room. None of your business."

"What are you involved in?"

"I only provide space—"

But Mazikeen shook Lania off and strode forward. She'd seen no sign of the whelps Fraq had told her about thus far.

Solid doors were rare in the collective, but Lania seemed to have an abundance of them within her dome. This door was barred from the outside. Mazikeen pushed the bar from the door and swung it open. What she found inside made her feel ill.

Whelps. Three males. They lay sprawled out and sleeping on thin bedrolls, shivering. One, smaller than the others with large grey horns curling around his ears and small fangs poking up past his lips, lay curled on his side, keening in misery.

"You will release them. Whelps are off limits."

"They came to us." Lania complained. "They're not nestlings anymore."

Mazikeen growled. "Whelps have always been off limits. Everyone knows this. They are still under the protection of the nest-minders"

"I'm keeping them safe. We'll never lose another thrall to the winds. We only provide what they want—"

"Damaging a whelp, damages the Lilim." Mazikeen spat, tempted to end the entire deal. But Lania was too young to remember the days before collectives and walls were forged. Here in Anilith's collective, with the abundance of dames and the protection of the nest, Lilim young could be taken for granted. But Maze remembered back when sprog and spawn died of ash-lung and hunger, and the constant threat from beasts and other warring Lilim tribes threatened to wipe out the Lilim completely.

Lania backed against the wall and Mazikeen followed, tempted to end the charade and rip Lania's throat out.

"You will not harm another," Maze ordered. Lania sagged, breathing fast. "I am not the one you should fear over this." She waved in the direction of the still whimpering whelp. "It would be a shame if Dromos found out what you've been doing here." She waited a moment for the fear to bloom across Lania's expression again. "And he will know where to find the next one that goes missing, won't he?"

"Y-y-you wouldn't! You gain more by keeping me alive!"

Mazikeen barred her teeth. "You threaten the young of our kind and you think I care more about coin?"

Lania paled. "No more whelps. Our deal for the angel stands?"

"Yes. The deal stands, for now," Mazikeen growled. "The whelps leave with me." She crouched down and inspected each in turn. Two were simply sleeping and didn't seem too badly damaged as she woke them, but the one on his side keening worried her. His eyes were dim. She'd seen this with Lucifer. The whelp was cold and in pain at the slightest touch.

The whelp cried out in pain as she lifted him to give him sips from the waterskin full of sleeping draught. He quieted, but his eyes remained open and unseeing. He was weak, possibly beyond help. She hoped this wasn't Fraq's Wen. Now that he was unconscious, she wrapped him in her cloak, and lifted him in her arms. It was time to leave.

She hoped Lucifer was well enough to walk out of here, assuming she could get his focus off sex long enough to get him moving.

The most aware of the whelps touched her arm. "Where are we?"

"A bad place, but you're coming with me now."

He nodded.

"Help the other up and follow me."

She stood and waited until the whelp had followed her instructions. "Follow close."

In the main room, Lucifer was still preoccupied. The male lay half atop Lucifer nipping at his throat. Lucifer's belt was undone and his tunic rucked up.

"Get up, Lucifer. We're leaving now."

He frowned, and for a brief moment she feared he would refuse. But he blinked, pushed aside those who were interested him and focused his attention on her. "Maze?"

Mazikeen adjusted the unconscious whelp in her arms and freed one hand to pull Lucifer to his feet. "Fasten your belt."

Lucifer looked down at his state of disarray, fumbled with the belt, and secured it well enough. "Fix yourself. We're headed outside."

He knelt and retied the sandals, then regarded the whelp in her arms. "Oh. That's…" he cleared his throat and retrieved his cloak from the floor where it had been discarded earlier. It was big enough to fit over the slender shoulders of the other two males walking side by side.

Maze kept a close eye on Lucifer as they made their way through the lanes. This was too much. The way he'd responded to just that small amount of Lethe she offered was enough to doubt their entire plan.

"Are you with me?"

Lucifer walked slightly behind the two males, his footstep stumbling periodically. "I am." He glanced over his shoulder, quiet for a while. "We're being followed."

Maze nodded, but didn't dare turn to look. "How many?"

"Two. From the lethe den," he mumbled.

"Good. I wasn't sure how aware you were."

"I'm aware," he assured her. "Maze—"

"Let them follow. They're to think we have nothing to hide. Come walk at my side."

He glanced at the males, still walking side by side with his cloak over them. "But—"

"They're fine." She assured him, and he quickened his pace to catch up.

"There are other options," Mazikeen whispered. "I won't have you start taking that poison again."

"What options?" Lucifer asked.

"I'll keep asking around. Someone will know something."

He shook his head. "No. This will work."

"I don't like it." Maze glanced at him, but Lucifer didn't look like he had any doubts at all.

"You don't have to. We'll find her, and end this."

They were quiet the rest of the way to her dome by the wall. Fraq and her two males were piled together by the fire, sleeping. Fraq woke when they entered and she immediately rushed to Mazikeen's side, tugging at the male in her arms.

"Let him sleep." She let Fraq take him, place him by the fire and reclaimed her cloak. The other two from the den joined Bof and Grog, and all four males snuggled close, curling around each other. The larger of the two groaned, beginning to tremble. She sighed and passed the flask to Fraq. These two would need a strong pack. "Give them two sips each, and have Bof and Grog keep them warm."

While Fraq dealt with the males, Maze set about making some scalded ooze porridge. She kept a close eye on Lucifer. He sat away from the others, on the far side of the dome, his back against the wall. She gave him his space and set out enough bowls for everyone, the drugged whelps would eat when they woke. Fraq handed Bof and Grog their portion. They stayed curled around their sleeping charge as they ate, and Fraq wrapped herself around Wen to eat hers.

Maze retrieved the flask and brought it and the porridge to Lucifer. She sat at his side, and gave him the porridge first.

He accepted and started to eat. "I didn't think I'd be welcome back here."

Maze punched his thigh, not with a lot of force, but enough to make him wince and look her way. "This is your home."

"Is it?"

"I am your home," she glanced at her trophy pouch, they hadn't spoken of it yet, and she didn't know how to explain what it meant to her that he'd saved it. "Lucifer, I found what you left for me. The pouch. And the coin. Why? There were hardly any provisions left in the dome, what were you saving the coin for?"

"I wanted to give you the pouch sooner," Lucifer admitted. "But I didn't know how. I was at fault for what happened and—I didn't want to make things worse."

Mazikeen wrapped her fingers around his. "I should have protected you better."

He continued. "I saved the coin for you to use as a bribe to be free from the wall-guards. Rillam told me I could make more at Lania's Den than at the Leviathan's Pit."

She squeezed his hand. "If that's where Anilith wants me to be, there's not enough coin in the collective to buy my way out of it. Rillam would know that." She placed a flask in Lucifer's hand. "I added a sleeping draught. Drink it."

He held the flask, fine tremors shook his hands. "I'll be fine."

"You won't. Sleep will help ease the side effects of going back on the lethe."

He drank it, and then tilted his head back against the wall. Maze watched over him as it took effect, his eyes drifted shut, and his head lolled. She eased him onto his side and draped her cloak over him.

Bof and Grog had fallen asleep with their charges. That left her and Fraq.

"Should I run and get the nest-minder?" Fraq asked.

Mazikeen shook her head. "It's too close to wind rise. No harm will come to them sleeping here."

"Do you think Wen will be okay?"

Mazikeen took a breath. The dull look in the eyes didn't bode well. "No. But I'm sure he was strong to last as long as he did."

Fraq clenched her jaw. "Did you kill them? Did you make them pay for this?"

"Not yet. I still need them for now."

The whelp's hands fisted, anger taking over. "Why not?"

Mazikeen eyed the whelp, taking her measure. Fraq was a good pack leader; she was protective of her males. She liked Lucifer. Mazikeen needed a loyal aide in this endeavor, and Fraq was the Lilim to fill the position. "The Spire is involved."

The whelp's eyes widened and her coloring paled. "The Spire?"

"Yes. Are you afraid to go further?"

Fraq glanced back at the pile of males sleeping by the fire. Her gaze lingered on the far too still bundle of Wen on the other side. "They took my male." She nodded toward Lucifer. "They took yours." Her expression turned hard. "Spire or no, I want to end them."

Mazikeen clapped her on the back. "Good! We need the dealers to believe that I am selling Lucifer's services in exchange for a cut of the coin. The dame who hurt him won't come back if she thinks I am lurking in the shadows, so I must be standing duty on the wall. Do you understand?"

Fraq thought about it for a moment before speaking. "You need a stand-in on the wall. Me."

"Exactly!"

"How will you watch? They know what you look like. And you are taller than me, will no one notice?"

"I have power enough to hide my features. My post is at the farthest edge of the wall. The only one who goes that far is the whelp that delivers the food. You seem to have a way with the males. Either convince him to keep quiet or pay him. I will give you coin. No one else will look closely. How is your leatherworking?"

"Passable. Why?"

"We have a wind to make a set of armor for you that passes as mine from a distance."

Fraq looked back at the males again. "What about them? They're lost without me. And Wen…"

"They will go with Wen to the nest. Squee and Dromos have experience in easing the suffering of whelps on Lethe. If your males, Bof and Grog, are house-trained, then you may keep them here."

Fraq spluttered with indignation. "House-trained? What kind of pack leader do you think I am? They'll behave. No breaking. No stealing. No messes."

"Good. We have a lot of work to do."