He awoke not on the board but upon the bed, facedown and aching. His arms, unrestrained, were positioned over his head, and his legs were limp. A combination of blood, semen, and saliva trickled out from his bottom in a steady sluice, one that had long since soaked the sheets beneath him. His head spun about, and a thick haze covered his eyes as he opened them.
They'd moved to the bed after nearly two hours of "fun" upon the rack, and in a surprising twist, Tyrannus had come more than Tetsuda by two. Though he radiated dominance and sadism, a tad—just a tad—of a submissive edge had peeked out. Perhaps he'd spoken of blood and beatings, but his eyes, his tone, his adorably vulnerable blush, had cried to Tetsuda, "Please, dig into me—burrow into my body and never pull out…"
Moving his arms underneath his head to prop it up, Tetsuda turned his gaze to the rack. Dried blood stained the woodwork, and wax had hardened on the floor. Tyrannus had practically showered in Tetsuda's blood, holding him close as it flowed onto his body, all the while pumping himself into ecstasy. Had it not been for that accursed ring restraining his genitals, Tetsuda would have burst simply from hearing him.
I want to fuck him so badly… he thought. Ah, he's so beautiful…
With a sigh, Tetsuda dragged his mildly aching body into a sitting position, wincing and grimacing as the liquid came out at a quicker speed. He fluffed his hair aggressively, trying to shake his head of the yearning. It wouldn't happen—no time soon, anyway. Still, he couldn't completely discount the relationship they currently shared—after all, they were still having sex. Just...not the way he'd particularly choose.
He stared down at himself, completely bare of clothing and scarring. If he could select only one thing that he enjoyed about being an incubus, he would select self-healing. Major damages would remain major, yet little to no scarring would remain after he healed. Upon him, however, was a folded piece of parchment, which he held up.
Come to the southern courtyard, and be quick about it. You're an incubus—you should be able to recover without much issue. You don't need to clothe yourself.
~Your Master
Admittedly, the signature made him shudder a bit, but the letter itself sent a sense of urgency through him, one that propelled him out of bed and off to his destination.
The palace had three courtyards, one in the east, west, and south—which, Tyrannus had said, was reserved for the "scum" of Iyan, whatever that meant. Stone turrets and low walls surrounded the yard, comprised of cracked earth with black markings drawn at intervals. A few sets of stairs stood at various spots, the wall closest to the palace hosting only a throne. Unlike the other two courtyards, however, a massive pit occupied the middle segment of the field.
Rather than upon the throne, Tyrannus stood before the pit, along with a collection of other demons. He recognized Basileus and Regina immediately, yet the other four came from varying paths. Two were women, one clad in elaborate armor of bone and metal and the other wearing a flowing white gown and a mildly spiteful look. The other two were men, one with an eyepatch dressed in rich purple attire and the other adorned with so many jewels that he may as well been a living mine.
As the nude incubus drew nearer, their expressions—save for Basileus, of course, who wore a grin—turned skeptical—even offended, for the woman in white. Tyrannus's head turned when theirs did, and he smiled.
"I told you he'd arrive," he said. "Albeit a tad later than I'd have liked, he did experience quite an interesting encounter last night."
"What is it you wanted me for, Lord Tyrannus?" Tetsuda asked.
"Something quite important. But before we get to that, let's handle introductions." He stood to the side of Tetsuda, his eyes twinkling as he continued, "You already know Basileus and Regina, but now you stand in the presence of the other faction leaders. Ultimo Superbia and Avaritia—Praedicare and Rapax—as well as Ultima Ira and Invidia—Potentia and Zelotypia."
Tetsuda bowed his head. "I'm pleased to meet all of you officially." Truly, he hadn't heard much of the other Ultimos and Ultimas, yet Tyrannus had mentioned in passing that they were sometimes "even more insufferable than Basileus." Especially Ultimo Avaritia, he'd emphasized—he spoke of the greed demons so bitterly, even more than the Gulam and Desidia.
"So this is the incubus?" Potentia asked. "Doesn't look like anything much."
"Ya take 'im too lightly," Basileus said. "He's underdeveloped, but by no means is he weak. He's a rank two now, barely a year old. Borderin' on three."
"Basileus," Regina whispered.
"What? You see it too, don't ya? Kid's powerful."
"He can't be that strong," spoke Zelotypia. "He's only a year old, you said—can he even fight?"
"Handles the Et Cinere like a champion. With a lil' more training, I'm sure he'd be able to take down some of yer kind right easy." He snickered as she scowled at him.
"In any case," said Rapax, "you brought us here for a reason, Lord Tyrannus. Are you going to disclose that now?"
"You already have," he replied. To Tetsuda, he said, "Come with me."
The incubus followed him to the edge of the pit. It stretched about ten feet deep and twenty in all other directions, but it possessed more than just air and dirt. Shambling about, scraping against the walls and bumping into each other, were at least twenty Et Cinere.
"This courtyard," Tyrannus said, "has a special purpose. It's for the Bracket, a tournament in which prisoners of war and/or themselves compete for their freedom through to-the-death matches against one another. We haven't had one in a few years, since we need twelve people minimum to make it worth it, but the number's slowly climbing."
"And this is an added challenge?"
"It can be. There are three pits total—the other two are just hidden at the moment—and sometimes we open all three to keep things interesting, especially with stronger opponents. In times when the Bracket doesn't run, however, this is a torture chamber. Prisoners who refuse to cooperate, whether out of rebellion or fear, get thrown in here. Basileus or Regina charm them most of the time, however, so they don't kill the prisoner immediately—dead can't speak and all. Regardless, the mere presence of them is stressful enough to make most of them crack. Imagine being in a hole full of shit—same principle."
Tetsuda nodded slowly. "So...you're going to have me witness torture?"
"No, no, nothing like that. I came here to give you something, actually."
At that, Potentia stepped forward with a sword belt in hand. Tyrannus took it from her and removed the blade within the leather casing. The body was dark blue, engraved with intricacy and vaguely shaped like a scrotum at the hilt. The silver blade, long and keen, glinted in the sunlight.
"Erectus," Tyrannus said, examining the blade from all angles. "Very nice craftsmanship, isn't it? Hand-forged with care by Basileus and Potentia themselves. Full of strength." He pushed a button on the hilt, and three curved spikes shot out at different intervals on the blade. "And secrets. Makes for quite the weapon, doesn't it?"
"It's...very impressive…" Tetsuda said.
Tyrannus's gaze drifted downward, and he chuckled softly. "Now, now, don't get too excited. There's plenty of time for that." He held out the sword and belt. "I bestow this blade upon you with the promise of strength and good fortune upon the battlefield. May it serve you well."
Tetsuda outstretched his hands, but just as his fingers grazed them, Tyrannus tossed them off to the side, right into the pit. Tetsuda's eyes widened, and the other demons reacted with varying levels of surprise. Tyrannus, however, wore a smile.
"Oh, no, it fell," he said. "Deepest apologies, Tetsuda. Would you mind grabbing them for me?"
Eyes wide and mouth slightly agape, he stared down at the pit. The blade and belt had landed at the farthest possible points from each other, and the Et Cinere suddenly looked even thicker than before. His gaze shifted to the other demons, who gazed at Tyrannus with mixed looks of surprise and intrigue—of course, Basileus held the greatest amount of the latter.
"Well? I'm waiting, Tetsuda."
Slowly he turned his attention back to the pit. With a deep breath, he nodded. "Of course, my lord. Just...give me a few moments…"
"Take all the time you need."
Why…? Tetsuda thought. Why must he be so beautiful yet so cruel?!
Even a year later, he still hated wearing clothing, yet in this situation, he wished he had thrown something on before coming into the pit. The heat the Et Cinere radiated was staggering, something he'd never noticed before from a lack of close contact with so many at once. It felt strong enough to melt his skin off—all the more reason not to let them touch him.
Their eyes were red, lifeless, just as they always were—no one was controlling them. No one would show mercy to him.
All attention turned to him when he dropped down, yet despite the danger of the pit, the stares above it were far heavier. Especially from the beautifully cruel tyrant, undoubtedly smirking from directly above.
No...no, he couldn't focus on Tyrannus. Not now. Not here.
A cracked set of fingers grazed his shoulder, and Tetsuda grasped its wrist before it could go any further. His eyes locked with the Et Cinere's, which gradually shifted blue.
"Fight with me," he whispered.
Another hand grasped his shoulder, yet Tetsuda crouched and elbowed it in the chest, hard enough to send it back. The charmed Et Cinere lazily swung its arms at one of its former brethren, looking like a sloth yet hitting with as much strength as a warhammer. Meanwhile, Tetsuda spun and kicked the other Et Cinere in the chest once more, his heart swelling when he noticed the crack in its core. He kicked again, this time splitting it in two. Rather than immediately disintegrate, its body glowed bright red, and Tetsuda had to back away as what felt like lava assaulted his body.
Now that he looked around—albeit briefly, as he pushed and kicked them away from all directions—they did look somewhat different than the normal Et Cinere. They were...bigger. Still slow and uncoordinated, but definitely bulkier and harder to hit as effectively. What had Tyrannus done to them?
Something with the size of a child and the weight of a mountain jumped onto his back, and Tetsuda staggered forward until he fell to its knees. A rough, sandy surface grated across his shoulder, and he screamed as the heat seared his skin.
"Do it to them!" he shouted unconsciously.
The creature formerly upon his back—a child-sized yet warrior-built Et Cinere—leaped off and latched onto the upper body of another. Tetsuda briefly grabbed the place where it had licked, but the overwhelming heat beside him drew his claws into the core of another Et Cinere. Again, rather than disintegrate, its body turned a bright, overwhelming red.
Claws grabbed his shoulder, right where it burned, yet the low groan the creature made ceased. Tetsuda whipped his head around to find an Et Cinere impaled in the skull by a spike.
That came from the injury on his back.
He jerked his shoulder upward, and the spike grew until it had completely obliterated the creature's skull. That wouldn't stall it for long, he knew—as long as the core was intact, they'd keep moving, even if their body parts were severed from the torso.
Though intrigued initially by the new development, he caught sight of the belt, laying relatively isolated a few feet away. He charged forward, swinging and shoving all the while, until it lay at his feet. He snatched it from the ground, but rather than keep it, he launched it out of the pit.
If he recalled correctly, Erectus—he'd have to change the name later—would lay directly diagonal from where he was now—a pathway full of the mutated Men of Ash.
He locked gazes with another creature close by. Using Ultroneous bonds hadn't worked for long in Tetsuda's case, but perhaps fate would smile upon him today. "Clear the path," he ordered.
Its eyes flashed blue, albeit dully, yet it proceeded before Tetsuda. Where the other one he'd charmed with Salutem, he didn't know, and it wasn't easy to see, either. The two glowing Et Cinere had disappeared, yet in their place was a near-blinding cloud of red ash. His eyes stung, yet they didn't close; his throat burned, yet he didn't cough; his path was blocked, yet he didn't fear.
Intrigue from the spike on his shoulder once more filling his mind, Tetsuda balled his fist, but rather than punch the core of the one in front of him, he just grazed its side. As he'd expected—delightfully, in truth—a curved spike jutted out from his wrist and impaled the core. Just before it turned red, he shoved it into a group of other Et Cinere, who seemed just as affected by the insufferable heat as he'd been.
He ran once more, swinging his spiked arm at anything and everything that came close. He was almost certain that he'd impaled the ones he'd charmed, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was the freshly-forged blade a few feet away.
Once again, something jumped on his back, but this time, as he fell to his knees, he willed two spikes out from the middle of his back. It let out a strangled squeal, but he didn't bother launching it off. Even with the massive weight upon his back, the weight Tyrannus had placed upon him occupied his mind. No matter how attracted he was to Tyranus, he couldn't cling to him forever. He'd have to become his own demon at some point, independent of the crutch the King of Naiyan offered. It was a nice crutch—so lovely, so beautiful and pure—but it was a hindrance for both of them. Tetsuda for preventing growth, and Tyrannus for preventing focus. He couldn't be a hindrance. He wouldn't be a hindrance. Not to Tyrannus.
He dove forward and snatched the blade as he fell to the ground. Short-lived pain seared across his chest and abdomen, but now that he held Erectus in his hands, everything felt right. He felt...empowered.
But he couldn't waste his time going on a killing spree—that would happen later. What he needed to do was get out of the pit.
He'd initially wanted to climb atop an Et Cinere, but no part of him wanted to touch them. As much as he wanted to hold onto the blade, to make love to it, in a sense, he forced himself to throw it up and out, just as he'd done with the belt. Letting out an ash-filled breath, he forced two spikes out from his wrists and impaled them into the walls. They easily stuck into the stone, and he wasted no time in scaling the wall.
When he reached the top, he remembered the groaning creature on his back and forced the spikes to retract. It fell back into the red cloud that was the pit, while Tetsuda's lungs breathed deeply the fresh sulfuric air of Naiyan.
He practically collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily and aching in all areas of his body. His head pounded, and his eyes drifted shut. He'd done it. He'd made it. Finally, it was over…
"Well, well, look at you," Basileus chuckled from above. "Master of discoverin' powers in dangerous times, aren't ya? Incrementa this time."
"Just as I'd told you all," said Tyrannus's kingly voice. "He's powerful. Dedicated. Special."
He felt a hand, familiar and tender, touch his cheek and lift his head up. Slowly, barely, he peeled back his eyelids to gaze into a warm set of orange orbs.
"Perfect for ruling Ceniyan."
"Ceniyan?" asked Potentia. "You want him to run such a dangerous territory at only a year old?"
"We knew you were bold, Lord Tyrannus, but to even think of this…" commented Rapax.
"You saw it for yourself," Tyrannus replied, his thumb gently stroking Tetsuda's lower lip. "He's more than strong enough to handle the Homines Ignis. Some of you even turn at the mention of them."
"Homines...Ignis…?" Tetsuda whispered.
"Mutated Et Cinere," he explained. "They're half as smart yet three times as deadly as deadly as their counterparts. I'm surprised your skin's still in such good condition—they're melted sometimes to make the Smelt even hotter." He ran his fingers through Tetsuda's hair with his other hand. "I'll let you rest for awhile before my plans continue. Fighting a pit of Homines Ignis and just discovering Incrementa...I'm surprised your body hasn't shut down yet."
"It's...about to…" He dropped his head despite Tyrannus's hand. "Thank you...Lord Tyrannus…"
"Of course. Now rest, little incubus. I'll handle the dissenters."
