A Demon's Contract

by Delmire Hart

  Zaxor threw back his head and laughed. Barkley stared in shock as the demon laughed and laughed. The sound was deep and genuine, as though he had not heard anything so funny in a long time. As the chuckles were dying down, he vanished. Barkley blinked, trying to figure out what was going on. Turning to Max, he opened his mouth to apologise when the demon was back.

  This time, however, there was another man with him. He looked to be about Barkley’s age, possibly older, with scruffy brown hair and a disgruntled scowl on his face. His dark grey robes were similar in style to the one all the mages at the academy wore, but his were much finer, with intricate silver scroll work along all the seams. Looking about, his scowl softened somewhat.

  “The academy?” The young man spoke with an odd lilting accent, but the words were easy enough to understand. “Why are we in Loria?”

  Zaxor wore a cat-like grin as he waved his hand, and the book Max was holding floated over.

  “The Adventures of Belvadair the Brave as told by Wesley Baird,” the strange man murmured as the book stopped in front of him. He stared at it for a long moment before exclaiming, “That son of a bitch!”

  The demon cackled in glee, clearly taking great delight in the deepening scowl and muttered oaths of his companion who was flicking through the book.

  “He always did threaten you that he would write a book one day,” Zaxor said, his tone oddly affectionate.

  “And most of it was his fault for dragging me into his problems. What kind of fanciful retelling is this?! Everything is blown out of proportion!”

  It suddenly clicked in Barkley’s mind just who was standing in front of him. He took a moment to stare over the grumbling man and felt a pang of disappointment. This was the brave hero whose adventures had filled him with delight and hope throughout his youth?

  “Belvadair?” Barkley asked tentatively, hoping he was wrong. The young man flinched at the name and looked at him as though noticing his presence for the first time.

  “Just Bel is fine.” His eyes dropped to the mark at Barkley’s throat before he turned to Zaxor in surprise. “Did you take a new contract?”

  “I did. This is Barkley and Max. It only took six hundred years for another war to threaten Loria, though you would know this if you left your room for anything more than to find more books.”

  “Um,” Barkley cleared his throat, feeling oddly unsettled with them being so at ease with one another. Why didn’t Zaxor treat him like that? “That’s the library’s copy, but I have one too. You could borrow mine if you want to read it properly?”

  Belvadair looked down at the book in his hands, his expression lighting into something akin to wistfulness.

  “Wes would scold me if I didn’t read his book,” Belvadair chuckled as he walked to hand the book back to Max. “I would like that. But for now, I was in the middle of translating an ancient Althulean tome.”

  He glared pointedly at Zaxor and the demon waved his hand lazily. Immediately, they were gone. Barkley huffed out a long breath he didn’t know he was holding and felt himself sag somewhat. That entire interaction had left him with mixed feelings.

  “Well, that was certainly not what I expected from today,” Max said with a small laugh, breaking Barkley from his thoughts. “But how about we get back to our own study?”

  “Oh! We should have asked him about the journal! You were having trouble deciphering some of it, right?”

  “Ah, but working it out is half the fun.” Max smiled as he carefully slid the book back into the bookshelf before turning back to Barkley. “And now I know who to ask if I get stuck. Come on, you have a lot to do as well.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Barkley sighed in frustration as he withered another plant instead of activating its dormant magical properties. He had given up trying to study magical theories, his head was too jumbled for him to focus, so instead he was trying to practise his alchemy. Unfortunately, it required just as much concentration as reading did, so all he had to show for his attempts were withered plants or plants with too much magic to use.

  He had forgotten that Zaxor had given him access to his magic yesterday and realised that maybe his practical magic exam wouldn’t be so hard after all. The difficult part might be getting Zaxor to teach him the basic magic he needed to know. And what if something came up in the exam that Barkley didn’t know? Zaxor could easily do anything they asked, but convincing him to do so was another matter entirely.

  Max had outlined all the sections Barkley needed to study in the books he was lending him. The tests were usually very similar, if not exactly the same, as the previous mage exams. It seemed that no one cared enough to change the exams, especially with the small number of candidates they had now. It meant he had much less to study, and he was thankful that it meant he should be able to get out of the academy much sooner.

  If only he could focus enough to actually practise what he needed, though.

  Being confronted with his childhood hero and the reality that he was just as human as Barkley was strangely shattering. To make it worse, it didn’t seem like he had been involved in the grand escapades willingly. Barkley had known the stories were just that, stories, but even so, they had held a sense of magic to him that had been thoroughly dashed.

  But that wasn’t the only thing he found oddly off putting. The casual almost-friendship between Belvadair and Zaxor left him feeling left out. Even after their talk that morning, Barkley didn’t understand the demon, but he wanted to. After the war he would be spending the rest of his life, hundreds, if not thousands of years, with Zaxor. What did that mean? What did that entail? The demon was a mystery, and his intentions even less clear. Perhaps he shouldn’t worry about it; Barkley had only known him for a scant few days after all.

  But no matter what he told himself, that didn’t stop the odd nagging feeling eating away at him.

  Zaxor had said that Barkley’s contract wasn’t a game to him, but was that the truth? Was he just another human toy for the demon’s collection? Did it even matter if that was the case? It seemed like Belvadair spent most of his time doing as he pleased, so wouldn’t it be the same for Barkley?

  The thoughts were pointless; they had forged the contract and he would find out the answer to all his questions eventually. Yet… after seeing that Zaxor had Belvadair as a contractor, Barkley felt suddenly less important. Who else had the demon contracted over the thousands of years he had been alive? He had mentioned some to Max, but Barkley couldn’t remember the names, only that the older mage had been very excited.

  Was his plight truly as insignificant as it now seemed? The terror caused by the war still lingered in the back of his mind, spurring the desperation to save his family. He hadn’t truly comprehended what Zaxor had said that morning about human souls being reborn. Did that mean it was just one big cycle of peace and war? If so, what did it matter if he changed things now? What happens in a few hundred years when another war breaks out? Does the next human take Barkley’s place to contract a demon in an attempt to change the world yet again?

  Yet, even if it was all pointless, he would give anything to stop his family from suffering. Because their pain, their fear, it was all too real. The grand scheme of things meant nothing in the face of that. Barkley’s need to save his family warred with his new knowledge, and the only answer he could come up with was that nothing would change about what he was going to do. The only things that would change were himself and his perspective.

  “You seem confused.”

  Barkley jumped and was startled to find Zaxor spread out on the grass in front of him, his failed attempts at magic sitting between them. He had been so lost in his thoughts that he hadn’t even noticed the demon’s presence, although, knowing him, he might have only just appeared. Glancing around, he noted the sun was positioned lower in the sky than before, but there were still a few hours of daylight left. Otherwise, the academy grounds remained as empty as before, except for the series of greenhouses he sat close to. After his failed
attempts at study, he had decided to sit outside near the gardens in case he needed to go back for more ingredients to practise with.

  Sure enough, he had destroyed every single plant he had gathered.

  “The more I learn, the more I realise I don’t know,” Barkley admitted as he picked up one of the plants he had poured too much magical energy into. “I feel stupid all of a sudden. Stupid and insignificant.”

  “Because of Bel?” Zaxor’s tail moved across his body to wrap around one of the other plants, bringing it closer to his face for inspection.

  “Did he also contract you because of a war?”

  “Yes. It is rare for humans to contract the highest demons during peacetime. The price for a contract is too great unless you are truly desperate. Every one of my human contracts has been to end a war one way or another. Quite violent creatures, humans,” Zaxor commented idly as he set down that plant to pick up another.

  “It seems like this war is just one of many, like nothing changes for the future if I bring it to an end. Yet, I can’t sit back; it doesn’t change the pain it brings people here and now.” Barkley gave a bitter laugh as he shredded the overgrown leaves in his hands. “Even if this war ends up as nothing but a footnote in a forgotten book, it doesn’t change what I’m going to do.”

  “That is an answer I have heard many times from some of the most powerful humans to walk this realm.”

  “And yet I feel so small,” Barkley confessed as he finally looked the demon in the eye. He could only hold Zaxor’s gaze for a moment before he had to look away. “Just another stupid human trying to end a pointless war for a price he doesn’t really comprehend.”

  “You said nothing has changed, but it seems like something has.”

  “Me, I’ve changed. How many days has it been? Five? What else will change as we go along? What happens afterwards? I’ve been trying not to think about it because my family comes first, but what happens to me?”

  “You come back with me to the demon plane,” Zaxor answered, his gaze oddly intense. Even when Barkley wasn’t meeting his eyes, he could almost feel those eyes on his skin. “I have a large fortress there where you’ll stay, along with several other humans, demons, elementals, and so on.”

  “So I just sit around for hundreds of years like Bel? You two seemed close.”

  “Oh?” Zaxor’s serious face turned sly and he grinned. “Is that what this is about? Are you jealous?”

  “What?” Barkley was taken aback by the suggestion and took a moment to assess his feelings. “I don’t think so. I just… in my life right now, this war, this contract, you, are important. I guess I thought that meant I would be important in your life too, but it was a silly thought. You obviously have more things to do than just helping me.”

  “I have plenty of things to be doing, yet here I am. So, little Barkley has learnt that this world doesn’t revolve around him. It’s a bitter truth to learn just how small you really are. Even in the demon realm there are those that think themselves to be more than they are.”

  “Are you trying to comfort me?” Barkley questioned, not entirely sure. The demon’s voice didn’t hold the usual mocking tone to it, but the sly smile was still in place.

  “Would you like me to?”

  Zaxor moved in a flash; one moment he was lounging in front of Barkley, the next he was on top of him. Barkley hit the ground with a soft thud, so surprised with the sudden turn of events he could only stare up at the demon above him. The grin adorning Zaxor’s face was nothing short of predatory as he leant right down until their noses almost touched.

  “I could think of several ways to take your mind off things.”

  There was an odd lurching feeling, then the surrounding area changed. It took Barkley a moment to realise they were back in his room, the lighting dim as the small window only let in so much light. They were sprawled across his tiny bed, the curtains fluttering gently in the wind from the open window. The sudden change in location was alarming, but Zaxor quickly stole his attention.

  A hand pressed lightly against his groin, bringing Barkley’s awareness back to the weight across his thighs and the closeness of their bodies. The demon’s eyes were captivating, the light colour glowing in the dim room. It reminded him that this was no simple human he was dealing with, as if he could ever forget.

  “What do you say, Barkley? Shall I comfort you?”

  Barkley could feel Zaxor’s words across his own lips they were so close. The air around them held a sense of stillness and anticipation, like the moment of waiting before the storm hits and nothing is the same. In the end, it was the demon’s use of his name that swayed him. It was an acknowledgement of him as an individual, not as a human plaything. He relaxed back into the bed and nodded.

  Zaxor’s grin widened, then he was pressing his entire body closer. Barkley gasped at the dual sensation of lips pressing against his while a hand wrapped around his rapidly hardening length. Where his clothes had gone, he had no idea, but then, he was no closer to understanding how magic worked than he had been a few days ago. The demon took advantage of his parted lips to deepen their kiss and Barkley wondered why he had never bothered to try this before. The sensations were foreign but pleasant. His body quickly heated under Zaxor’s masterful touches and small waves of pleasure washed over him.

  The demon’s movements were slow, almost languid, as though he was drawing out the moment. Barkley reached up to wrap his arms around Zaxor’s neck, drawing him closer as a breathy mewl escaped his throat. Zaxor broke their kiss to trail kisses across his jaw down to his neck. His oddly sharp teeth scraped across the sensitive skin there, drawing a shudder from Barkley. He stopped for a moment, and Barkley wondered what he was doing when Zaxor moved to wave his hand lazily, muttering strange words into his ear.

  “What—?” Barkley started but stopped as a strange swirling black dome surrounded the bed, the wall beside them causing it to become misshapen. Small magelights danced at the top of the dome, their light a soft, gentle glow.

  “It stops all sound and light from coming in or out,” Zaxor explained, his lips caressing Barkley's ear. The action made it very difficult to focus on the words the demon was saying. “This way no one can interrupt us, so relax and let me hear you.”

  The demon moved down his body, licking, biting, and kissing his way across Barkley’s skin. Barkley gasped as Zaxor spread his legs to settle between them, his tail caressing the soft skin of his inner thigh. A moan escaped his throat as sharp teeth latched onto a sensitive nipple, gently worrying it while his hand continued its tortuously slow pace up and down his length. Barkley automatically raised a hand to his mouth to hold in the sound escaping his lips, a habit from sharing a room for so many years, but Zaxor was having none of it.

  He let go of Barkley’s cock to grab his hand, pressing it back into the bed beside his head. Only once he was sure that the young man wouldn’t move did he let go to continue his exploration. Inch by inch, he caressed every part of Barkley’s now hypersensitive body. Seemingly in punishment for trying to hold in his moans, Zaxor left his hard cock untouched this time. He seemed to delight in every gasping moan he pulled from Barkley, his eyes frequently darting up to take in his expression.

  “Now that’s a sexy look,” Zaxor commented, seeming far too unaffected for Barkley’s liking as he sat up to stare down at his naked form.

  Barkley’s breaths were coming in pants, the muscles in his thighs spasming as deft fingers brushed over his sensitive hip. The only sign to give away Zaxor’s lust, other than the bulge in his pants, was his intensely glowing eyes. His pupils had become cat-like slits and the bright grey iris’s had taken on a reddish hue that glowed in the dim light. There was something satisfying in knowing he was affecting the demon, even if he tried not to show it.

  After a moment of observation, Zaxor shuffled down, his movements surprisingly graceful, until his face hovered above Barkley’s aching cock. He grinned, his too-white teeth glinting in the light, and the look was
feral, almost otherworldly. A thrill of danger ran through Barkley, but before he could think to move, his mind went blank.

  Wet heat surrounded his cock as Zaxor took his length into his mouth. Barkley clutched at the sheets as his back arched at the sudden onslaught of pleasure. He had been teased for so long that he could feel his impending orgasm coiling tighter and tighter within him. He jerked as Zaxor took him even deeper into his mouth, and he felt the demon’s whipcord tail curl around one of his legs to hold it in place.

  The sheer amount of pleasure coursing through him put all his previous exploits to shame. A ragged groan ripped from his throat, louder than the rest, as he was swept away by Zaxor’s attentions. Barkley shuddered, muscles contracting, as the waves of pleasure washed over him until all that was left in its wake was a soft, languid glow. Opening eyes he didn’t remember closing, he looked up to see Zaxor sitting up on his knees above him, fluid dripping from his cheek and lips. His long tail flicked behind him, having released its grip on Barkley.

  His taunting grin was back in place but he said nothing as he brought a hand up to wipe his thumb across his lips. A tongue darted out to lick the fluid from his digit before Zaxor vanished, the swirling dome disappearing with him.

  The image of the grinning demon licking Barkley’s spend from his thumb would be burned into his memory forever.

  Chapter Twelve

  Barkley groaned as he ran his hands over his face. His exposed skin pebbled in the cool air, the sticky discomfort around his groin making itself known. What the hell was he doing? He had no answer to the question. Sitting up, he spotted his clothing discarded in a heap on the floor near his desk. He used a spare cloth, dampened with water from the pitcher he had brought up after dinner yesterday, to get himself somewhat clean before dressing.

  His most precious treasure, the book of Bel’s supposed adventures, sat open on his desk where he had left it. An odd, many-sided rock sat next to it, something he didn’t remember seeing before. It seemed to glow faintly, its surface smooth under his fingers when he picked it up. Something of Zaxor’s, no doubt. Putting the strange stone down, Barkley picked up the book instead.