by Dante King
“It has its perks,” I smirked, and she blinked, the spell broken.
Abby exhaled, as though the release had been a relief. Her tongue flickered out—unconsciously, I was sure—and traced her lips as she stared into my eyes.
“I want to know something.” I traced her face with a fingertip, brushing a curl of hair from her eye.
“What is it?”
“Your avatar. What are its powers? What can you do with it?”
Abby smiled shyly and placed a velvety hand on my chest.
Then, without warning, electricity exploded through my body. The shock blasted blast me off my feet and sent me sliding across the obsidian. Stunned, all I could do was lay there for a minute while the lightning jerked through my muscles. I didn’t know whether to be irritated, or impressed.
With a deft twist of my hips, I pulled myself onto my feet. Abby was already moving toward me, her eyes a crackling azure and lightning sparking between her fingers. Her hair danced with static, and even here, I could feel the electricity radiating from her.
“Damn,” I said, “you’re really something, aren’t you?”
“I’m a Storm Elemental,” Abby told me. “After Ciryli bonded my soul to my core, this form was the closest thing I could find to my own skin. I wasn’t like you—it took me fifty years to earn an avatar.”
The electricity flickered and died down, her hair falling back over her face. The dancing lightning in her hands fizzled out, leaving behind the smell of fresh rain and ozone.
“Well, it was definitely worth the wait.” I smiled at her.
Abby knew I was talking about the mountaintop, and I watched the blood flow back into her cheeks. But she didn’t stop stepping toward me, drawn to me like a magnet. I could see it in the way her pearly teeth chewed at her lip, the way her eyes constantly raced over my bare skin, the way it caught the blood-red and azure light of our cores.
Curiosity at her crackling form washed over me, and I tilted my head as I looked over her. The embodied of a lightning storm grew closer as her eyes communicated a raw desire. I had thought the residual electricity was part of her being a dungeon core avatar, but this new form was something else completely. Was this her avatar’s perk? Transforming into what could only be described as a Storm Elemental?
It was powerful, and more to the point, it could help Zagorath. A crazy idea swam into my mind, and I chuckled as I stepped away from her.
“Show me more,” I said.
Abby’s face couldn’t hide the disappointment that flickered past it. “What do you mean?”
“Your powers. What can you do?”
Her eyes glowed as a smile touched her face. “So much more.”
I opened my arms invitingly as a smirk crossed my face. “Hit me with your best shot.”
She hesitated, her eyes beginning to clear. I couldn’t have that—I needed to keep that power firing through her to find out what else she could do with it. My elf’s agility covered the floor in a few rapid paces as I laughed and whipped past her. She reached for me, but I ducked beneath her outstretched arm. My hand caught her wonderfully-formed ass with a firm but playful slap. Storm Essence boiled through her at the contact as lightning crackled through her clothes and turned her skin a bright blue.
There was the Storm Elemental. That’s what I wanted to see.
“Hey!” she snarled, her eyes narrowing.
“Come on,” I said as I zipped behind a pillar. “Catch me. Pin me down. Defeat me, and you can take whatever you like from my avatar.”
“I’m not sure you really want to see the full extent of my powers,” Abby said as the lightning swirling around her retreated into her pale flesh.
What was it going to take for her to stay in elemental form?
I poked my head out from behind the pillar and smirked at her. “You weren’t quite as hesitant on the peak, Abby. Something change? Or are you just getting bored of me?”
“You’re a cretin,” she muttered playfully before she started forward.
“And you’re slow.” I laughed, kicking off the pillar. “Show me the real power flowing through those lovely veins of yours.”
Lightning blazed to her boots, and in half a second, she’d covered the distance between us. I swung out of the way to dodge her sparking fingertips and rolled behind yet another pillar.
“Bertha, First Floor!” My voice boomed through the chamber as Abby chased me.
I wanted to test the full capabilities of both my women, and there was no better way than pitting them against each other. I just had to stall until Bertha got here.
Abby was fast, faster even than my elf’s fleet footfalls. Her boots skipped over the obsidian floors like… well, lightning. While I was agile enough to change direction at the last second, my movements were becoming predictable. She appeared in front of me, her whole body laced with lightning. This time, I couldn’t dodge her hands, and she caught hold of my chest. Lightning blasted through my system, and I spasmed, crashing into a wall.
The Storm Elemental shot toward me and leaned over my spasming form.
“Now are you ready to end this little test?” A grin of pure triumph appeared on Abby’s face, and she leaned in to kiss me as the lightning retreated from her lips.
I slipped under her arms yet again and smacked her ass playfully on the way out. Only this time, lightning flared at the contact, and an electric surge hit me like a runaway pick-up truck. A clap of thunder filled my ears as I slid across the floor. My muscles seized up again, and I gritted my teeth through the painful cramps.
I grounded myself on the obsidian as the rock seemed to drink the energy from my skin. My hair stood on end like some kind of 80’s rockstar, and Abby chuckled as she advanced.
“That’s quite the hair style,” she said.
“Thirty years ago, it was all the rage on Earth,” I said as I noticed Bertha enter through the corridor. From the smile on her face and the way she hefted her halberd, my champion knew my intent. This was a game, and she intended on playing her part.
“Sounds like you’re old-fashioned, Dom.” She lifted a finger, and a lightning bolt danced on its tip.
Abby was having fun with this.
Good. It was about to get a hell of a lot more fun.
Bertha raced in from behind, her Amazonian form rippling with the same power as a hunting feline. Abby half-turned, saw my half-troll closing in, and dove across the polished floor. The elemental righted herself and zipped to the side as Bertha shifted her momentum. The dull handle of the half-troll’s poleaxe arced, looking to catch the Storm Elemental’s jaw, but Abby was out of range. The avatar raised her hands and lightning arced out from her fingertips, catching my champion in the chest. Bertha’s warrior braid sparked and stood on end before she hit the floor on her hands and knees. Her teeth gritted as the electricity coursed through her, stunned her, and kept her in place.
I figured I needed to even the odds a little, so I burst in from Abby’s left and aimed at her feet with a sliding kick. Caught off guard, she yelped as she collapsed. Bright blue sparks danced across her flesh as she touched the floor. The avatar didn’t stay down long; the lightning seemed to lift her upright.
The tempest brewing around Abby darkened, and tiny storm clouds appeared above her head. She was a hell of a sight—a walking thunderstorm—as she blazed toward me again, eyes burning with essence. Bertha suddenly swooped from the right and crash-tackled the elemental, taking her to the floor. Abby twisted and got a hand to the half-troll’s tightly-bound chest. Bertha’s eyes widened as she realized how dangerous close combat with an elemental could be, and Abby confirmed it by blasting the half-troll into the air like she weighed nothing more than a paperclip. Bertha corrected her fall and landed on her feet.
“Not bad,” I commented as I leaned on a pillar and watched. “Not bad at all.”
Bertha snarled, and her purple tattoos flared while her muscles expanded. Her evolved form seemed to grow more powerful with fury, and her footfalls c
ratered my polished floors as she charged. The half-troll didn’t slow as she snatched her halberd from the ground and swung for Abby’s leg. The storm avatar darted aside and hit my champion with a torrent of blue energy. This time, Bertha remained standing, her frenzied state giving her the stamina to withstand a direct hit. Abby lifted her palm again and sent more storm bolts into Bertha. To her credit, the half-troll kept her feet, despite her nerves and whole body being fried with lightning. The poleaxe shook in her hand as she waded through the energy.
I didn’t want to waste precious essence on resurrecting Bertha, so I shot toward Abby and caught hold of her from behind. I wrapped an arm around her throat, and Bertha was finally released from her torment.
Lightning raced through me again, forcing my muscles to contract. I endured the stunning force and yanked the elemental backward. We both crashed to the floor while I held her in a playful headlock. She twisted, trying to get free, but her essence rippled through me and kept me locked tight. Realizing this, she stopped channelling, just as the razor-sharp edge of Bertha’s poleaxe came to rest on her cheek. My champion was smiling now, her snarl from before now a genuine expression of admiration and appreciation.
“You fight well, little one,” the half-troll said to Abby. “A little more finesse and finer application—you truly would be a force to reckon with.”
I loosened my grip on Abby, and the lightning retreated into her pores as if someone had snuffed out the essence within her like a candle. She was now the creamy-skinned blonde I’d first met. Her body relaxed into mine, and I realized the Storm Elemental was just happy to be touching me again, even if I could’ve broken her neck from behind.
It was a weird method of flirting, but this wasn’t Earth, and these two weren’t exactly ordinary females. While were different, they were both warriors. This kind of sparring probably sent passion racing through their veins—it certainly fired me up.
I grinned at Bertha, who smiled in return and then inclined her head in a sign of respect.
“With your leave, Master?” she asked.
I nodded. “As you were.”
Bertha turned and vanished behind a pillar before heading through the corridor and back toward the antechamber.
I stood and shook the last of the static and electricity from my limbs. “This next pack of adventurers—they’re likely to be stronger than anything I’ve encountered before. It’s only going to end in our favor if we work together.”
Abby lifted herself from the dais, and I stepped closer to her. Her gloved hands encircled my neck, pulling me nearer.
“Will you stand with us?” I asked.
“You gave me hope.” She kissed my cheek and traced her mouth over my jaw. “You freed me. Why would I do anything else?”
My mind flashed back to my champion vacancy, and a crazy idea occurred to me. I didn’t even know whether it would work, but I wanted her permission before attempting to capture her. Call me old fashioned, but even as a vampiric elf, I wanted those under my command to show some willingness.
“Will you be my champion?” I asked her.
When Abby went still, my hands slid over her hips and pulled her closer. Her amazing azure eyes found mine, searching for deceit and manipulation, but she found neither. I meant it. I meant every fucking word. If I could have Abby as a champion of Zagorath, she’d never be lost to me. I could heal her, and even if her core was destroyed, she’d still be with me. By my side. She’d never die and never have to worry about being trapped again. She was a core. Abby understood the implications. She’d either be trapped inside my dungeon heart for my own uses if her avatar was to die, but it gave her two homes. She could live within her own jewel, flickering behind her—or mine, the blood-red, swirling heart of Zagorath.
“Is that even possible?” she asked finally.
“Suppose it is.” I pressed my lips to hers, loving the feeling of her tingling skin. “You’ll always be by my side. Always protected. Always safe. We can hunt down Karlyle together and punish him for his sins. And when Entropy marches on Zagorath, you’ll be right here, with me. And the others.”
“You don’t strike me as a monogamous type,” Abby said, but she smiled.
I shrugged. “I’m good at sharing. Are you?”
“I can learn,” she said, and her mouth found mine again.
This was different from our first kiss. She was surer of herself this time. My smirk grew as her hands raced over my bare chest and her fingers massaged the ridges in my muscles. Her tongue probed, finding mine and curling around it. Abby stood on tiptoe, and her knee brushed against my thigh. On a whim, I caught her under the arm and took her to the glassy floor. She moaned in anticipation as I pinned her hips with mine. I stared deep into her eyes and reconnected with her soul.
“So, your answer?” I asked as my vision clouded with a vampiric haze.
“I think you know what it is.” She giggled.
“I want to hear you say it.”
“I accept your proposition. I’ll be your champion, Von Dominus.”
My gaze shifted, and suddenly I was swimming in her consciousness. I came to understand every inch of her skin and every facet of her power. As I studied her mind, I learned it was utterly different from my other champions. It wasn’t conniving and hyperactive, or a war between a disciplined half and a second half that boiled with savagery. Abby’s mind was a windswept garden, bursting with color and rain and beauty.
Then, as she squirmed, her fingers tore her clothing and bared herself to me. My gaze had ignited the passion within her, and she was eager to relive our mountaintop experience. The electricity of her flesh tingled and ticked my blood, and then a brief notification flickered over my vision.
Charm test . . . Success!
Abigail the Storm Elemental successfully Captured!
Storm Elemental (Storm Avatar)
Name: Abigail
Core: Storm
Rarity: Legendary
Possible Evolutions: 2 (Tempest Elemental, Raiju)
Abby moaned softly in my pointed ear as she pulled me into her. She didn’t need to tell me twice—in a moment, her cloak became a blanket yet again. We swapped places so that she was on top, and this time it was me who received. My back arched as her tingling lips found me. Her tongue sent electric waves rolling from my member, along my stomach, and into my head. I clenched my teeth and gripped her hair as every muscle in my body tightened. Before I could release my tension, Abby nestled herself onto me. As her hips moved with an electrifying rhythm, a thought occurred to me.
There’d never been a lightning storm on the First Floor before.
28
Interlude
The men at Ralph’s back were seasoned professionals—nothing like the Scalpers had been. The Sand Pirates moved with speedy efficiency, always together and protecting each other’s backs. As they ascended Shadow Crag, any Infernal monsters that crossed their paths were quickly slain. Alaxon had died before he could explain how to work with other adventurers, but Ralph was a fast learner. Their tactics were new to him, and he studied them with a keen eye.
The pirates traveled in a loose group, using a tempting, single target as a way to draw the creatures. Then that one individual moved back while the other pirates hungrily surged forward, dispatching the creatures. Even in tight knots of four or five, the enemy mobs couldn’t stand up to Ralph’s new band of adventurers. Their weapons, their sigils, and the Infernal Essence pumping through their veins was too much for Lilith’s spawn.
The band took a different path from the one Ralph and the Scalpers had used, a snaking trail leading up the opposite side of the foreboding mountain. The ex-lieutenant, and now Ralph’s right-hand man, Zarrik, hadn’t been lying—these pirates were starving for Infernal Essence. They were only too happy to feed their sigils on the guardians of the mountain.
Halfway up the mountain path, the pirates rolled out their packs and pitched their tents for the night. There was only one more day until they’d reach
Zagorath, and Ralph wanted someone to speak with. He’d remained mostly silent on the journey so far, but it was probably worth getting to know the pirates a little before trusting them with his life inside the dungeon. He approached Zarrick, and the grizzled warrior offered him dried jerky.
“Thank you.” Ralph took a mouthful of the old meat and gritted his teeth at the taste.
“You’ve held up well. Not bad for a kid.”
“Don’t call me that,” Ralph said, his voice edged with danger. He swallowed the last of the jerky and his stomach felt satisfied. He didn’t need much sustenance, not with the magical power rippling through his body. The essence nurtured him and doused his need for such simple things as food.
“I meant no harm. Youth is something you should take pride in. When it’s gone, there’s no way to get it back. Not unless you find yourself with some Holy magic.”
“We’re a long way from the Holy Realm,” Ralph commented.
“That we are. Should consider ourselves lucky,” Zarrik said. “It’s something terrible over there.”
“You’ve been?”
“Fuck no. That’s a journey and a half that one. Without magic, it’d take months, maybe even years. I just heard stories. Got themselves a real problem with the guilds, and the god who rules over the Holy Realm is a real piece of work.”
Ralph sat on a stray boulder beside Zarrik and let his eyes glance over the others. I They seemed to be in a good mood, chuckling at some lowbrow joke. Blades whistled as the pirates sharpened them while smoke billowed from pipes filled with a heady leaf from the Black Sands.