The Gentleman Incubus
Page 21
Glenn Olson
Lesser Incubus
Life Points
867/2,980
Mana Points
0/6
Sanity
-1/0**
Strength
7
Vitality
7
Dexterity
8
Perception
15
Intelligence
15
Cunning
13
Spirit
0.6**
Willpower
4.6**
Affinity (Demonic)
19+3
**Penalized by Broken status effect
Lesser Incubus Skills
Phase
Active Skill—turns you immaterial for 3 seconds, allowing you to walk through solid matter for the duration (50 life points or 50 mana points)
Shapeshift
lvl 2
Active Skill—transform between human and incubus forms (100 life points)
*Level 2 effects—you may modify the physical aspects of your human and incubus forms while shapeshifting; gain two manipulator appendages while in incubus form.
Dream Shawl
Active Skill— wrap yourself in a shroud that makes others ignore you. Interacting with or drawing the attention of others increases their chances of noticing the shroud, depending on their Willpower and Perception. Lasts 60 seconds (50 life points or 50 mana points)
Soothe
Active Skill—calms a target for 60 minutes by filling them with a sense of peace and serenity. Targets can resist if their Willpower surpasses your own Willpower. Evoking hostility within the target through words or actions increases the probability of the target breaking the effects of Soothe (cast at will, 60-minute cooldown)
Empathy
Passive Skill—focus on a humanoid target to telepathically receive snippets of its emotional state. Also allows you to identify high-value victims that grant bonus Life Points when drained via Indulge (requires Human or Incubus form)
Link Life
Active Skill—creates a telepathic link between you and the target, absorbing 100% of all mental and spiritual damage the target is taking. If the current target’s Life Points are fewer than your own, then you transfer 1% of your current life points to the target (requires Incubus Form)
Indulge
Passive Skill—drain 10% of a target’s current Life Points when your partner orgasms during coitus. You gain double the drained amount in Life Points (requires Incubus Form)
*If your partner is under the influence of Soothe, Indulge drains 5% of their current Life Points while you gain quadruple the drained amount in Life Points (requires Incubus Form)
Chapter 11
“Glenn, you in there? Coming in now. I saw the news last night, about the demons invading and the Amarians announcing their alliance and… woah. Hey! Glenn? GLENN?! Are you okay!?”
Glenn smacked his dry lips as someone shook him by the shoulders, licking them with a raspy tongue to try and hydrate them. That same someone let him go, groaning as he plopped back unto something soft. He then heard the ringing splash of liquid inside a glass, right before someone raised his head by the neck and tipped a cool glass of refreshing water to his lips. He eagerly sipped, sputtering as he got some into his nostrils.
“Easy there, lover boy,” cooed Kristina, who Glenn recognized as his eyes focused on her. “Just take it easy.”
Glenn finished off the rest of the drink, sighing in deep contentment as the water helped freshen him up.
“You look like shit, you know that?”
Glenn silently nodded, still somewhat groggy and lethargic as he sat up. Kristina just stood back, staring at him with crossed arms. He sometimes wondered if it was a good idea to give Kristina, Hazel, and Samantha the code key to his apartment. This was one time he did not regret that decision.
“Well? You gonna tell me why you look like hell and why you fell asleep in your incubus form? Or do I have to beat the truth out of you?”
Her irreverent tone brought a chuckle out of Glenn, who realized he had fallen asleep on his couch instead of his bed. “My first encounter with one of my own kind,” he replied, matching Kristina’s own tone of irreverence.
Kritina’s wide-open eyes and o-shaped mouth elicited a smile from Glenn, who just couldn’t muster up the strength to come up with a witty rejoinder.
“A Greater Terror Demon. Stalks its victims, slowly drives them insane, then finishes them off with paralyzing fear until their heart gives out.” He rubbed his neck, brain still feeling like mush. “I got close to someone it Marked. It nearly did me in, too.”
Glenn expected his nosy, bossy, and fiercely mother-hen of a friend neighbor to press him for details. She instead pursed her lips and huffed, shaking her head.
“Well, that explains what happened last night. Check the news.”
Glenn blinked the last remnants of grogginess away, his eyes shifting as he mentally called up his HUD. They lost focus from the real world while they sifted through the icons that overlaid his vision, concentrating on the ImmerCorp news app that aggregated leading headlines.
ALIEN INVASION CONFIRMED! PRESIDENT TELLS ALL!
In a shock announcement last night, President Susana Stetmann has just confirmed that otherworldly creatures labeled as ‘demons’ have been waging a secret war against humanity.
[TAP HERE TO WATCH THE PRESIDENT’S SPEECH]
The president has stated that these creatures were first observed in Nu Angeles, though they have rapidly started appearing not just in the Confederated Republics of America but in major population centers around the world.
This announcement came on the heels of the dramatic arrival of another group of humanoid creatures through ‘portals’ opening up over the city of Nu Angeles. This second group of creatures call themselves ‘Amarians.’ They are led by one Inasha Pridestar and claim to be following the tracks of ‘demons’ planning to invade Earth. The president has earlier claimed that demon activity was first observed in the city of Nu Angeles—the same city that the Amarians appeared in.
[TAP HERE TO LISTEN TO INASHA PRIDESTAR’S STATEMENT]
The president has announced that the Confederated Republics will be cooperating with the Amarians, who so far have submitted to Confederate authority. The president has also stated that it has only recently identified the Demon threat and is reacting accordingly. Political analysts have pointed out, however, that the visible arrival of the Amarians may have forced the administration to divulge the existence of the Demons far earlier than it wanted to.
[TAP HERE TO WATCH COLLECTED AMATEUR FOOTAGE OF THE AMARIAN ARRIVAL]
The governor of California has declared martial law throughout the state, advising citizens to stay indoors until the Demon threat can be properly identified and contained. Local officials have begun…
Glenn pressed his lips together as he closed down the news app, mentally commanding his HUD to disappear.
Seeing his expression, Kristina sat down beside Glenn and leaned her chin into the palms of her hands. “Cat’s out of the bag, then.”
Glenn nodded numbly, still processing the suddenness of it all.
“What are you going to do?”
He shrugged. Annie knew he was a demon. He transformed right inside her house, in front of her robot servitors with their cameras and memory banks. That, and he’d introduced himself to her manor’s digital assistant when he submitted the security key she gave him. She had more than ample evidence of his demonic nature.
And if that wasn’t enough, there’s also all the sex workers he’d been with. They’d surely make the connection, realize that he’s an actual demon—not a regular Joe with a weird kink for wearing f
ancy mechatronic suits. Sure, Ynnistoria said that she wiped the digital footprints he left behind whenever he booked appointments, but still…
“Hey… Hey! Earth to Glenn, Earth to Glenn, over.”
Glenn snapped out of his thoughts, startled by Kristina waving a hand in front of his face.
“You’re doing that thing again.”
“Um… what thing?”
“That thing where your face shuts down, flattens out all creepy and stuff. You do that when you’re either really pissed off or when you’re really worried. Looking at the tone of your voice, I’m guessing it’s the latter, yeah?”
He hesitated for a moment before replying with a brisk nod.
“Yeah. Figured that’s the case. So… what do you plan to do?”
Glenn smiled weakly, thankful to his friend for helping him focus his thoughts. “Someone knows I’m a demon. She saw me transform from my human into my incubus form… along with four robot servitors and who knows how many security cameras.”
Kristina groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose and scrunching her face up out of complete frustration. “Shit. That… really complicates things. I was hoping you could just lay low, ride out this insanity until the government and their new alien buddies sort this whole mess out. But if someone knows what you are, possesses irrefutable proof of your nature… that changes things, doesn’t it?”
Glenn leaned back on his couch, shifting his tentacles out of the way to make himself more comfortable. Kristina widened her eyes as they landed on the two manipulator appendages that squirmed their way around Glenn’s back. Her surprise quickly gave way to laughter as she realized what they were.
“Really? Fucking really, Glenn? You grew tentacles?”
Glenn rubbed his neck with his clawed fingers, a sheepish smile completely out of sync with his incubus form playing on his lips. “They came with the improved version of Shapeshift. See, the level 2 of Shapeshift lets me tweak my physical features.” He inclined his head to the side, humming to himself in thought. “You know, that might actually solve my problem. I can practice changing my human face, take up a whole new identity. Might even get a new implant to cover up my digital—”
Ynnistoria: That is not an option, Glenn. Our life force is bound together, you and I. To separate yourself from me is to—
ImmerCorp Anti-Malware Shield has detected anomalous behavior! Please wait a moment while we clear that up for you!
Ynnistoria:—kill yourself. Listen to me, Glenn: do NOT remove your implant. If you do, we’re both going to die, and—
… … … !!! … … … … … … …
ImmerCorp Anti-Malware scan completed! We found [1] issue, and have automatically treated the infected file for you!
Glenn jumped up in surprise at Ynnistoria’s violent interruption of his thoughts. Ynnie?
Ynnistoria: Yes, Glenn? How may I assist you?
He shook his head in disappointment. His digital assistant had the tendency to go off on a tangent and then just pretend as if she couldn’t remember what she just said. It was like she had this hole in her digital mind, something suppressing her memory. It was almost like how he reacted whenever he remembered the past, like Mother and Annie and the Mistress and how she left him way back—
(Good boys do what they’re told, forget what they’re told to forget. You’re a good boy, aren’t you?)
“No, scratch that idea,” Glenn muttered absent-mindedly to himself. “I can’t replace my synaptic implant. It’s tied to what I am now. But even if I change my face though, the police will easily track me down with my implant. If that happens, I’m as good as dead. There’s only so far I can run before a couple of hunter-killer drones catch up to me. I… don’t know what to do now.”
Kristina’s eyes traveled up, away from the squirming limbs, and settled on Glenn’s face. She scooted closer to him, leaned into him, and cupped his face with both her hands.
“Take a deep breath and relax, Glennie-bear. Everything will be fine. Just inhale. And exhale. Inhale… and exhale. In, out… in, out. There you go.”
Glenn nodded as he followed Kristina’s instructions, his mounting panic dripping away as she appeased him with her soothing words.
“First things first: how are you on life points?”
Glenn Olson
Life Points: 642/2,980*
Warning! You are currently being affected by Infernal Hunger!
“Low, actually. Low enough to trigger my Infernal Hunger. No wonder I feel so agitated.”
Checking his own stats menu made him realize why he felt so off: the hunger. He was most definitely under a quarter of his total life points, which meant that he’d be under the effects of Infernal Hunger. The familiar cravings began tugging at him now that he noticed them.
Kristina nodded slowly. “Yeah, I figured; you tend to be jumpy when you get low on LP.” She grumped to herself, leaning back on the couch and giving Glenn a once-over. “At least you’re already in your incubus form. Speaking of which, you said that you could change your physical appearance. How far can you take it?”
“I honestly don’t know. It’s a relatively new skill, and I need to Shapeshift in order to practice. That means a hundred life points per shift. But still, it’s something I need to get started on. With practice, I hope to change my appearances—both my human and incubus forms.”
Glenn clenched his jaw, inhaling deeply to relax his muscles and gather his thoughts. “The demons… they got too greedy last night and decided to attack in the open. And then there’s the flashy arrival of the Amarians, going so far as to start hunting demons the very moment they got here. The government’s definitely going to crack down on them hard now, and being able to change the way I look will help me stay under the radar.”
Kristina’s amused smile flattened out, replaced with a thoughtful expression as she nodded. “Yeah, I can just imagine how useful that would be. Especially with those Amarian guys going around hunting demons. I’ve watched the footage of their arrival, of them laying the beatdown on other demons. Magic portals, rune-scripts popping up over their hands, fucking glowing swords and wings of light… that shit’s straight outta the game, yo.”
Glenn chuckled at Kristina’s jarring change in tone. “And where did you pick that accent up, Kris?”
Kristina startled at that before biting her tongue and cursing to herself. “New import on the team who tries way too hard with the e-speak. Ugh… thanks for pointing it out. Last thing I want to do is get infected by that douchebag’s lingo.”
Kristina hummed in satisfaction to herself before she turned back to Glenn, wearing a frown on her face. “But still… why tentacles?”
Glenn raised his palms up in defeat. “They came with Shapeshift when I leveled it up. I was too busy gushing over the potential benefits of changing my physical appearances that I didn’t really give much attention to the other perks. Turns out ‘manipulator appendages’ is a fancier term for tentacles.”
Kristina extended her lower lip, nodding her head in thought as she hovered behind him. She squinted at the wriggling protrusions, poking at one with her finger. The tentacle leaned into her digit, pushing back with equal force. Glenn inhaled sharply, heat traveling from the tips of the tentacle down to his stomach and groin.
The familiar cravings reminded him that his life points were low and that he needed to feed.
“Huh. Soft, pliable… you know, I’ve seen porn of this. Hell, I’ve even tried a few sims involving tentacle porn. Kinky stuff. My Hermes implant isn’t built for immersion though, so most alt-world porn is mostly pressure and imagery.” She chewed her lips as she began caressing the squirming limb, which responded by leaning even more heavily into the palm of her hand.
She then sighed, shaking her head softly, before gripping one of the tentacles in a fist. Glenn responded by constricting the tentacle, shrinking it so it fit snugly inside th
e palm of her hand. “You know, you’re already low on life points. It just so happens that I’m also wondering how it would feel like to ride these puppies,” quipped Kristina as she began rubbing it up and down inside her palm. “Hint,” she added, squeezing it a little bit tighter. “Hint, hint,” she finished, trying and failing to suppress a smirk.
Kristina Hooper
Life Points: 190/700* (approximate)
Glenn was just about to refuse her, mention how dangerous a session could be because of her low life point levels, when he remembered something.
Ynnie, please bring up my skills menu.
Ynnistoria: Certainly, Glenn. One moment.
Glenn skimmed through his menu, Kristina quirking a brow at how he zoned out to work with his HUD, when he came across the skill he wanted to examine.
Link Life
Active Skill—creates a telepathic link between you and the target, absorbing 100% of all mental and spiritual damage the target is taking. If the current target’s Life Points are fewer than your own, then you transfer 1% of your current life points to the target (requires Incubus Form)
Glenn squinted at the screen laid over his vision and switched over to another menu.
Glenn Olson
Life Points: 627/2,980*