Flame of the Succubus

by Jason Herc

  While Ember's Flame armor seemed impenetrable to Ryder's blade, I knew that my Bloodstained blade could pierce it. Or she could simply drop her armor.

  I didn't wait for Ember to ask a second time.

  Allura. Shardblade! I lifted my sword into the air as a cloud of needles descended upon it, coating my blade.

  Now! Ember rolled so that she was on top of Ryder, her back to me.

  I plunged my sword into Ember's lower back a little to the side, hoping I didn't hit anything too important. My sword slid easily past living Flame armor, which disintegrated around the point of entry.

  I pushed harder on my sword until I felt it emerge from Ember's belly and meet a second resistance.

  Ryder.

  Ryder screamed in pain as my sword pierced his belly. The moment my tip opened up Ryder's flesh, the needles coating my sword rushed downward and into the wound.

  Ember! I grabbed Ember and yanked her off Ryder, my blade still stuck in her back, as I poured every ounce of my rage into the needles coursing through Ryder's body.

  The explosion knocked us backward several yards. I removed my blade from Ember and immediately began sending a healing current of pure Flame through her. The Flame armor evaporated. Ember looked up at me weakly.

  "Did we get him?" she asked.

  I looked to Ryder and let out a cry of surprise.

  "Holy shit." Ryder's lower body had torn off, but his eyes were still open and he was trying to pull himself forward on his arms.

  Allura, watch Ember. I'm going to finish this.

  I stepped in front of Ryder's upper half, which was somehow alive. He looked up at me, his eyes brimming with hate.

  "It's over, Ryder." I raised my sword.

  "No fool. It's over for you." Ryder raised a fist. I slashed downward, cutting his hand off.

  The palm fell to the ground and opened, revealing crushed black powder.

  "See?" Ryder laughed. "You're doomed." He started laughing, but I split his skull in half with a downward strike.

  I looked back to Allura, who was back in her normal form, wrapping a cloth around Ember's back.

  "What was that?" I pointed to Ryder's hand. "What'd he do?"

  "I don't know—" Allura began.

  A black lightning strike from the sky smashed into the ground right where Ryder's corpse had been.

  When the smoke cleared, a twenty-foot tall figure in black armor stood before us. Infernal black Flames crackled all about him. An aura, stronger than anything I had felt before, crushed me to the ground, even in my infernal form.

  He turned his armored head to me.

  "Who dares summon the Obsidian Emperor?"

  CHAPTER 34

  I tried to speak, but the pressure was crushing my skull, and I was starting to see red spots. I reached for my infernal Flame, but it wouldn’t obey me.

  The fuck?

  I closed my eyes and focused on my pure Flame instead, letting it circulate through me and my succubi. I breathed in, breathed out.

  My strength, my will.

  The pressure on my body gradually grew weaker until I could bear it. I tried to stand, but a sudden increase pushed me to my knees.

  “Kneel in the presence of your Emperor,” the voice above me thundered.

  I gritted my teeth, while I tried to lift my eyes.

  The appearance of the Obsidian Emperor must have halted the fighting, judging from the silence.

  A set of hurried footsteps approached. I could make out a figure with a red band on his arm approaching the Emperor. He knelt.

  “Your Majesty. The sects banded together and attacked Ryder.”

  “The sects have always kept the Imperial peace. Why would they attack?” The Emperor’s voice boomed above us.

  “I…I don’t know,” the soldier stammered.

  The Obsidian Emperor made a sighing sound, barely gesturing a finger. The soldier in front of him turned to dust.

  “Useless. Who is that…Ryder?”

  I could make out the Emperor staring at Ryder’s remains out of the corner of my eye. He turned his armored helmet slightly to me and laughed.

  “An amusing state of affairs.” The Emperor stood up and shouted. “Stand, Ryder.”

  I thought the Emperor was possibly crazy, but the bloody remnants of Ryder scattered about the ground twitched. Someone behind me gasped as the flesh and bones came together and reformed before our very eyes.

  A minute later, Ryder screamed once again.

  “Quiet,” the Emperor barked. Ryder fell to his knees. “You are the Imperial agent who summoned me, are you not? Explain.”

  Ryder heaved and threw up. He wheezed, as if someone was crushing his lungs, which was probably the case. He turned his head to indicate me.

  “That one. Kill him!” Ryder gasped.

  Something red and dripping with dark blood was ripped out of Ryder’s mouth. It hung in the air before him, then plopped onto the ground. An invisible force slammed Ryder into the ground, pulverizing his recently re-knit bones. I had to hold back a chuckle, despite the gravity of the situation, as Ryder was turned into a bloody paste.

  Another minute passed while Ryder’s body was reformed again. “Your Majesty,” he gasped with the first breath he could take with his newly formed mouth.

  The Obsidian Emperor waved a finger at him, and Ryder winced, but nothing happened.

  “You tried to order me, little one. Watch your tongue, or I will watch it for you.”

  Ryder groveled, pressing his forehead to the ground. “A thousand apologies, your Majesty.”

  “Speak again.”

  Ryder raised his head slightly. “The one with infernal Flame. He holds the Soulstone. He comes to end your reign.”

  The Obsidian Emperor roared loudly. For a moment, I thought he was angry, but I realized the thunderous sound coming from him was laughter.

  “End my reign?”

  Ryder screamed as his body was ripped apart in five directions, his limbs and head severing from his torso.

  For the first time since entering the Abyss, no, for the first time in my life, I witnessed true horror. I had been afraid or worried plenty of times before, but I had only feared the loss of life. As I watched Ryder’s torn body be mended again, I realized that there were things worse than death. Much, much worse.

  At the same time, something deep inside me lusted for the power on display. I wanted to do the same to Ryder.

  “Who will end my reign!” The Obsidian Emperor’s voice echoed off the buildings surrounding us. He pointed at me. “That? I can wipe him from this plane with merely a thought.”

  Ryder didn’t reply. He faced the ground shivering. The pressure on me increased, forcing me to the ground. My ribs creaked in pain. My succubi cried out.

  A new voice spoke. “A wager, Prince of Princes.”

  I could barely think as the weight of the Emperor’s aura pressed down on me. The pressure suddenly relaxed.

  I had to rotate my head along the ground to see who had spoken. Crowley. He stood upright. Next to him was Yaeger, coated in blood. Whether the blood belong to him or his enemies was anyone’s guess.

  “Ah. The Beast. Your time has passed, False One.” The ground shook as the Obsidian Emperor took a step towards Crowley. “Still, your offer interests me. Speak more.”

  “Let the Stoneward live for four seasons. One of his earthly years. Test him, then. If he fails, he dies.”

  “And if he succeeds?”

  Crowley kept quiet, but Yaeger spoke. “If he succeeds, you will burn for all eternity in the deepest pits of the Abyss.”

  Fuck. The Emperor was going to kill us all, wasn’t he? I braced myself for the coming blow.

  To my amazement, the Emperor burst into laughter. “The little hunting dog still barks.”

  Then, the Emperor spoke more softly, his voice like the rumble of a distant storm. “Know this. I fear no one. You will have your wager. Wherever you are, in one year, I will find you.” He stretched out his hand
to Ryder. “And a gift. To aid you in your wager.”

  Ryder shouted. “No! No!” His words cut off as body was crushed. This time, though, it didn’t explode. Instead, his body deformed into impossible angles as it compressed without breaking.

  Soon, there was nothing left of Ryder but a dark cube. A small, tinny sound emerged from the cube.

  Holy shit. Ryder was still somehow alive, screaming.

  “Ryder is yours to command, young prince.” It took me a moment to realize that the Emperor was talking to me.

  “Uh, thanks?” I managed to whisper.

  The Obsidian Emperor stared at me, then broke into laughter again. “One year,” he thundered.

  The oppressive aura suddenly vanished, and I pushed myself to my feet.

  The Obsidian Emperor was gone. Around us, surviving members of the sects and Ryder’s army, along with a few stray soldiers from the Blood Army, slowly picked themselves up as well. They eyed each other warily, but neither side attacked.

  I shared a look with Crowley. Worry creased his yellow eyes. The full weight of what had happened crashed down upon me in that moment.

  I had one year. One year to kill a god of gods.

  TO BE CONTINUED

  This is the end of the first book of the Succubus Trainer series. Thanks to everyone who helped me write this book. Nick Freo from HaremLitFic.com helped me package and market the book a bit, because I hate all that stuff and only want to write.

  Visit www.HaremLitFic.com/Succubus to get a bonus preview chapter, in which Aidan opens Ember’s second Node. I already toned down the bedroom scenes for publishing on the advice of some early readers…but this is an unfiltered version.

  If you enjoyed this story, please also consider leaving a review on Amazon by clicking HERE. Your supportive reviews can make a big difference.

  Finally, be sure to check out Nick Freo’s King of Sin series HERE if you haven’t read it for a great dark fantasy harem story!