Swordsman of the Rift

by Brandon Varnell

  She was sitting against the wall, arms wrapped around her knees, and head resting on her legs. Her angels wings, which I hadn’t noticed until now, sat retracted against her back, though the ends curved around her body, resting on the grimy floor.

  “Hey…” I said, my voice scratchy and dry. Huh. Must have been from all the screaming. “I didn’t realize you were a prisoner too.”

  The woman must not have realized I was awake. Her shoulders jolted as she turned her head in my direction.

  “You’re awake,” she said with a sigh. Her voice was soft and lyrical, like a heavenly choir playing a beautiful melody. “T-thank God. I’m glad you’re okay now.”

  “I’m not so sure I feel the same,” I admitted. “But, well, I’m alive.” I paused. “Is it okay if I ask for your name? And what you’re doing here?”

  “I don’t mind telling you,” the woman said in a soft voice. “My name is Michelle. I am… was an angel under the grace of God’s protection.” She cast me a mirthless and self-deprecating smile. “Now I’m just a prisoner who was captured when my fellow angels revolted.”

  “That really sucks,” I muttered before what she said hit me. “Wait. What do you mean they revolted?! And heaven? Is this the same heaven that the Biblical God created?”

  “Um… I guess?” Michelle shrugged. “I don’t know much. All I know is that one day, all of us angels suddenly gained awareness, like… like we were just these mindless puppets that became conscious all of a sudden. Once that happened, a lot of the angels came to believe that we no longer needed to do God’s bidding and staged a revolve. I was among the angels who hadn’t abandoned her duties and fought against the revolters.”

  The woman hugged her knees tighter to her chest. Sorrow entered her green eyes. I could tell this topic was hard for her, but she also seemed… relieved, maybe. It was like she had longed to talk about what happened with someone, but she had no one to speak with until I came along.

  “I still remember how my own comrades came barging into the third heaven. God and the rest of us fought against them as best we could, but we were overwhelmed. I…” Her breathing hitched. “I do not know what happened after that. I was hit with a powerful attack from behind and knocked out of heaven… and then I woke up here.” Her smile returned, but it was, once again, a smile of self-deprecation. “As you can see, I’ve become nothing but a slave to these demons.”

  “Can you not escape?” I asked.

  “If I could escape, I would have done so a long time ago,” she admitted. “But they have me bound to them through a Geass. The only way to release the Geass is to kill the one I am bound to. That would be Maliperum—that’s the pink-skinned woman who’s been torturing you.”

  I didn’t know what a Geass was, but I assumed it was like some kind of magic, a curse or something, that kept her from going against that woman’s orders.

  “Well, maybe I can help,” I said.

  Michelle looked skeptical. “How would you be able to help me?”

  That was a good question, and I didn’t have an answer yet, but then I remembered it was possible to pull up a status screen. Maybe I could figure out something if I saw my level. I did so now.

  Name: Bryan Jenson

  Class: Magic Swordsman

  Level: 52

  Magic: Red/fire

  Attack: 100

  Agility: 100

  Defense: 100

  Magic Defense: 100

  Mana: 100

  Total Status Points available: 20

  Special Skills:

  Whirlwind Slash: Attack +5

  Death by Piercing: Attack +5

  Fire Slash: Attack +5

  Fireball: Attack +5

  Total Skill Points available: 2

  It looked like my level had gone up by two. I had twenty status points to spend on upping my basic stats and two skill points available. That said, I wasn’t sure what I should spend them on. Attack? Defense? Mana? I didn’t have any clue yet since I wasn’t sure what sort of stats would be useful in this situation.

  My special skills were a whole other matter.

  I didn’t have any new special skills; the one I would unlock next was a skill called Berserker, which honestly didn’t sound like something that would help me right now. It sounded like something that would turn me into a raging beast. On the other hand, maybe being a raging berserker that killed anything that moved would help me. That was something to think about. However, for the moment, I wanted to keep all my mental faculties intact.

  While I wasn’t sure what to do with my skill points right now, I decided to allocate just my status points. I put ten in attack and ten in magic defense, which sounded more useful than anything else, making my stats look like this:

  Name: Bryan Jenson

  Class: Magic Swordsman

  Level: 52

  Magic: Red/fire

  Attack: 110

  Agility: 100

  Defense: 100

  Magic Defense: 110

  Mana: 100

  Total Status Points available: 0

  Special Skills:

  Whirlwind Slash: Attack +5

  Death by Piercing: Attack +5

  Fire Slash: Attack +5

  Fireball: Attack +5

  Total Skill Points available: 2

  “What about that other woman who was with you?” I asked, speaking up once again after a long period of silence.

  “You mean Adina?” Michelle cocked her head to the side, her nose scrunching up in a cute gesture as she thought. “I don’t know. She is not as vicious or violent as the others, but she is still a succubus. My understanding of her is that she’s a low-level succubus, the weakest of the group occupying this fortress. She is normally in charge of cleaning your body and tending to you after I have healed your wounds.”

  “Do you think she would be interested in helping us?” I asked.

  “I… I don’t know, and I’m not sure if I should ask.” Michelle grimaced like she’d tasted or smelled something foul. “To be honest, I do not really approve of the idea of working alongside a succubus.”

  “But you already work alongside succubus,” I pointed out.

  “I know that.” Michelle scowled, though it didn’t seem like she was angry at me, but more like her situation made her angry. “But I do not have a choice in the matter. The Geass forces me to obey them.”

  “What are the conditions of this Geass?” I asked suddenly. “What is a Geass anyway?”

  “A Geass is a curse.”

  Finally, Michelle unwound her arms from around her legs and stood up. She came over to the bars, and I realized that my previous thoughts of her beauty were completely out of proportion. This woman was gorgeous in ways I hadn’t even thought of. Her body was covered in dirt, grime, and she looked like she hadn’t taken a bath in a while, but her large chest and wide hips were perfectly proportioned to match her slender waist.

  As she stood there, Michelle reached up and pulled down a bit of her white robes, revealing the milky white cleavage underneath, but it wasn’t the valley of her breasts that I noticed. It was the large black symbols marring her skin. A pentagram with strange lettering on the inside that I didn’t recognize looked as if they’d been burned into her flesh. As I stared at it, the pentagram pulsed like a beating heart.

  Michelle must have noticed my shock because she smiled sadly.

  “This Geass is a curse that forces me to obey any orders given. While I can resist to a certain degree, doing so causes immense pain, to the point where my mind will eventually shut down. When that happens, my body becomes a puppet under Maliperum’s control. I shudder to think about what she’d make me do if that happened.”

  As if she was imagining all the horrible things Maliperum would make her do when she lost consciousness, Michelle held her arms and shivered.

  “Well, we can’t do nothing,” I said. “I refuse to remain here, so I’m going to try and get out of this situation.” As I spoke, I looked at the woman trapped
in the other cell. “But I also know that I can’t do anything on my own. I have no weapons or even clothes. I’m pretty helpless like this. However, if we worked together, I think we can get out of here.”

  Michelle stared at me for a long time like she couldn’t believe what I was saying, but I didn’t let that bother me. I let her gaze wash over me. I let her incredulity bore holes into me. Instead of trying to defend myself with words, I gazed at her evenly, as if telling her through eye contact alone that I was going to break out of this place, and that she should join me.

  “Okay,” she said. “I’m in. I’m still not convinced we can actually do something, but I’m willing to try. Anything is better than staying here.”

  “Good.” I nodded. “However, we will need help. This is not something just the two of us can accomplish. I know you don’t like the idea, but talk to that succubus—Adina, you called her—and see if she’d be willing to work with us.”

  “V-very well,” Michelle said with a grimace. “I will ask her, but don’t expect her to actually help us. Succubus are not well-known for their benevolence.”

  I shrugged at her words. I didn’t know much about succubi beyond what I heard about from friends who were into supernatural shows on TV. They were supposedly sexy women who appeared in the dreams of men and drained them of their life. I think there were a lot of variations to the succubus theme, but the only succubus I actually knew of from any fandom was Morrigan Aensland, who was a sexy as fuck succubus from a video game franchise called Darkstalkers.

  Women loved cosplaying as her at conventions.

  At that very moment, the woman we had been talking about walked into the dungeon’s hallway and up to my cell. She paused in surprise when she realized I was awake, and I finally got my first good look at the woman.

  She really did look nearly human. She didn’t have horns or wings, and while she did have a tail, it wasn’t as prominent or long as the other succubi I’d seen. Pouty red lips, almost gentle blue eyes, and a straight nose were her most prominent features. She had black hair that fell about her forehead, traveling down to her lower back. Several bangs framed her elegant face.

  That said, like the other succubi, this woman didn’t have much in the way of clothing. Long boots that went past her knees clad her feet. Covering her crotch was something that resembled the bottom of a bikini. I could see her camel toe, which I guessed was on purpose. Her top was just thin strips of fabric that went across her nipples. I guess you could say they did their job, but I’m pretty sure her clothing would have been in violation of whatever laws the US had put in place to keep people looking modest.

  “You’re awake,” she said, and just like her eyes held a softer quality than most succubus, her voice was also quite soft, though it contained the same low and seductive tones as Maliperum. It must have been a succubus thing.

  Before I could speak, she placed a tray in front of my bars, then turned to Michelle and placed a tray in front of her bars. She stood up and stepped back as I looked at the tray’s contents. It looked like… bread and some kind of soupy water. There was a wooden spoon inside of the soup, though I honestly wasn’t sure it could be called as such.

  “It is good that you are awake,” Adina continued. “I’ll go inform Maliperum of this.”

  “Ah. Hold on a… minute…” I reached out my hand as if to call her back, but she disappeared out the door on the far end of the hall, and I slowly let my hand drop to my side. “Damn. That would have been the perfect opportunity to speak with her.”

  “I will speak with her the next time I heal you,” Michelle informed me.

  “I guess that’s good, but it also means I have to go through another torture session.” I shuddered. While I was able to resist Maliperum’s torture that did not mean I enjoyed it.

  “I’m sorry.” Michelle gave me an apologetic smile.

  “Don’t be,” I said. “It’s not like this is your fault.”

  Michelle did not say anything to me, but I could tell from her expression that she still felt guilty. Maybe it was because she was an angel. Michelle was quite easy to read, even to someone like me, who had never talked to her before today.

  Since there was nothing more for me to do, I sat down, grabbed the bread, and began eating. It was stale. It tasted awful. It was also hard. My teeth screamed in protest as I bit into it. While I wouldn’t say this was a lot like biting a rock, I also wouldn’t say this crap was soft like bread. I tried dipping it into the soup, but that really didn’t help.

  Adina came back several minutes later with Maliperum. The sexy as hell succubus who I was beginning to loathe brightened when she saw me. Her lips curled into a smile, but despite how sexy it was, I didn’t find it the least bit gorgeous. While I had never hit a woman before, in that moment, I would have been more than willing to sock this bitch in the face… if I thought it would help.

  “I’m glad you’re awake,” she said, her smile growing. “I have a fun schedule planned out for you. I do hope you will enjoy it.”

  “I’ll probably enjoy it about as much as I enjoy the idea of getting syphilis,” I said.

  Maliperum’s expression turned brittle.

  Now that made me smile.

  Chapter 5

  I woke up with a gasp as phantom pain stabbed me in the chest. Placing a hand over my chest, I tried to find out where the flesh had been torn. I was expecting to feel frayed flesh, hanging muscles, and my own exposed rib cage. What I found instead was perfectly healthy skin. A sigh of relief escaped my mouth, unbidden.

  “You’re awake,” a voice said, and I sat up and looked at the cell next to me. It was Michelle, on her feet and looking at me in relief. “I’m glad to see you are okay. Your wounds this time were… really bad.”

  “Bad is… an understatement,” I admitted as I sat up, rubbing my chest. My hands were shaking. “I honestly thought I was going to die there.”

  During my last torture session, I made a snippy comment about how Maliperum was only able to seduce men thanks to her succubus powers, and that no man would fuck her used cunt if she didn’t have the power to control their minds. She had not taken kindly to that comment. Completely forgetting what she was torturing me for, the woman had torn open my flesh with reckless abandon. I was honestly astonished I hadn’t died from blood loss or even shock.

  “Well… I’m glad you are okay,” Michelle said at last.

  I smiled at her. “Me too.” A moment of silence lapsed between us, but I knew we couldn’t remain like this. Grimacing as I stood up, I stumbled over to the bars, placed my hands on them, and leaned my face against them. “Did you talk to Adina yet?”

  At my words, Michelle grimaced and looked away. “I… I have.”

  “And what did she say?” I asked.

  Michelle frowned, brow furrowing and nose wrinkling in a manner that was incredibly cute. Were the situation not so dire, I might have tried convincing her to warm my bed, but that wasn’t something I could afford to do right now.

  “She—” Michelle began, only to be interrupted when the door to the prison opened and in walked the very succubus we were talking about.

  Adina wore the same skimpy outfit as last time. It made me wonder if these succubus ever changed their clothes? What did they do when they had to wash their outfits? Did they have multiples of the same outfit? While these thoughts spun around my head, Adina came up to my cell and leaned in close.

  “Is it true?” she asked.

  I blinked. “Is what true?”

  “Is it true that you plan to kill Maliperum and escape from this place?” she expanded on her question, then glanced at Michelle before looking at me again, her expression serious. “Michelle told me you want to get out of here. If you’re getting out and getting revenge on that bitch, then I want in.”

  While it was definitely a good thing Adina wanted in, I would admit that a part of me was suspicious. She was a succubus. Would she so readily betray her comrade for me?

  “Will you really
help us?” I asked, including Michelle in my words. She was also going to be escaping with me.

  “Yes,” she said.

  “What’s in it for you?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Adina asked. When I just stared at her, she took a step back and spread your arms. “Look at me.”

  There was something more to her command than just wanting me to look at her, so I did. Her long boots were black and contrasted her beautifully unblemished skin. The thong-like article of clothing around her hips allowed me to see her camel toe. Her hips were wide and perfectly proportioned with her breasts, which of course were quite large. She had a thin waist that I would have loved to take body shots off of and a cute little belly button. Her tits, only covered by a thin cloth, were large and round, to the point where I would have assumed they were fake if I didn’t know her species.

  Finally, I looked at her face, at her sultry lips that looked like they were made for being nibbled on, at her bright blue eyes that appeared surprisingly gentle, at her straight nose, and at her long black hair. She was perfectly symmetrical, aesthetically appealing in a way that was inhuman. Of course, she wasn’t human, so I guess that made sense.

  “I am looking.” I shrugged. “But I’m not sure what I should be seeing. All I see is a really hot woman.”

  Adina smirked while Michelle bristled at my comment. I scratched the back of my head, wondering if maybe Michelle was jealous that I found Adina attractive, but it wasn’t like the succubus was the only one. Michelle was hot too. No two ways about it. However, her beauty had never really come up in conversation before.

  I shrugged and put it out of my mind.

  “You have good taste.” Adina’s lips curled into a friendly smile. “However, that isn’t what I meant. If you look closely at me, I am sure you can discover the difference between me and other succubi.”