by Logan Jacobs
She screamed out in pain as the spikes gouged into her scaled skin, and her arm was almost entirely shredded to the bone. Slimy, yellow blood oozed from the open wounds, and the gorgon hissed in fury and whipped around to me.
My tactic had worked, though.
While I distracted the gorgons, Ashe removed the glaive from her back, and one swipe slashed the back of a gorgon across the legs. Then everyone was fighting, and I only spared Ashe a quick glance since she could certainly hold her own during a mortal battle.
I brought my arm back again and aimed for the lead gorgon’s head, but before the flail could connect, the gorgon sliced her blade through the air. I felt a hot sting as the tip of the strange blade tore a line across my stomach, and I staggered backward.
This blade cut through me much too easily for a mortal weapon, and it burned like nothing I’d come up against on the surface world.
“Fucking bitch,” I spat.
I held one hand over the slice in my stomach, and I applied pressure to the oozing wound, but I was more concerned with the onyx blade that continuously slashed toward me.
I used all my demon strength to whip around my flail, and it connected with the gorgon’s head right on the top of her forehead. The black snakes of her hair squealed on impact, and they exploded into black sludge as they were smashed like putrid sausages.
When I yanked my weapon back to me, I managed to tear off half the gorgon’s face at the same time, and the white bone of her cracked skull was exposed.
The gorgon staggered silently on weak legs while yellow blood oozed from her bludgeoned head, but I took one last hit and completely shattered her skull into tiny pieces. Then she dropped to the ground in a pool of yellow blood and brain matter.
The onyx blade clattered toward my feet, and I bent down and snatched it up. I could feel the power that surged through the handle, and my suspicions were confirmed. This blade had been tampered with, and it possessed magic strong enough to mar the flesh of a demon like most mortal weapons couldn’t.
Then I heard a raging shriek nearby, and I noticed Ashe had also defeated one gorgon. She only had one left, and it looked to be a fair fight, with both opponents just as strong as the other.
I knew without a doubt that I could have left Ashe to it, and she’d still come out the victor, but where was the fun in that?
After all, my demon woman and I were a murderous team now.
All it took was for me to slice the remaining gorgon in the back with the onyx blade, and she let out a piercing scream. Then Ashe used her glaive and drove it through the gorgon’s chest. Both her back and front were now coated with the yellow blood that poured from the wounds like a fierce river, and Ashe and I both wore the same triumphant smiles as our opponent collapsed onto the ground in a heap.
“I’ll take one of these.” Ashe grinned as she scooped up an onyx blade from the bloody ground. “Atticus? Care for a new killing device?”
“I’ve got one, thanks,” I muttered as I checked out the cut on my stomach.
My congealed blood seeped through my shirt, and the fiery pain continued to flow through my veins. I lifted the blood-drenched fabric to get a better look, and it was worse than I had expected.
The cut ran diagonally from below my ribs to the center of my stomach, and black, veiny lines sprawled around the gouge. Infused weapons usually didn’t have the same effect on my demon body, so it must have been on account of my human form being more vulnerable to attack.
That was definitely something to keep in mind if we encountered more magical weapons up here.
“Shit, what happened?” Ashe gasped.
“That bitch cut me,” I sighed and pointed toward my nearly-headless victim.
“Are you okay?” the demon woman asked. “It looks painful.”
“I’ll be fine,” I said with a shrug “These human forms are just weaker, and I’ve noticed they take longer to heal. But we should go before any more gorgons turn up.”
“Or before the Blessed catch wind of what’s happened,” Ashe pointed out. “I guarantee they’d use all this as another reason to snatch us. Never mind that we’ve basically done their work for them.”
I smirked in agreement, and then I secured my flail and new onyx blade in my belt.
We briefly checked our surroundings to make sure the Blessed hadn’t caught up to us yet, and then we headed off and left the scene of the slaughter behind us.
Returning to the half-orc’s inn was out of the question now that the Blessed knew to look for us there, so I searched around for a spot that would do for the night. One inn we came across appeared much more run-down than the one we were at earlier, but as long as we were off the streets, I didn’t mind.
I opened the main door and winced at the sharp noise that came from the old, metal hinges. It sliced across the wooden flooring and then juddered to a stop. I couldn’t push it any further, but there was just enough room for us to slip past.
Then I realized the half-orcs must have owned most inns in the Shadow Quarters, because this one had a similarly grotesque gray beast waiting at the counter.
“Five pieces a night,” the half-orc snorted as we arrived at the desk.
“One night,” I said as I gave him a handful of pieces from my pockets.
The half-orc looked over the five coins on the desk, but he didn’t respond.
I got the impression he was deliberating about something, and I worked to calm my instant irritation. I was tired, cut up, and severely pissed off about how our night had gone. I could have used up the last of my energy fucking Ashe another four times, but instead, I’d been outrunning holy bastards and slaying gorgons for the last hour.
Had this asshole half-orc asked for more money at that moment, I probably would have left him bleeding out on the musty floor.
He finally accepted the money, though, and then he handed over a key for room four.
I gave him a tired nod, and Ashe and I walked toward the new room.
I wasn’t used to feeling this tired or needing to sleep so immediately after a fight. Usually, I thrived on violence and bloodshed when I was in my demon form, but this human form seemed more high-maintenance.
It felt like I hit a brick wall.
I couldn’t function any longer, and I couldn’t focus on anything important. It may have had something to do with the impact from the onyx blade, but it could have also been the result of everything I’d done since removing the Dark King’s shackle from my arm.
Now, all I wanted to do was close my eyes for a few minutes with my fiendish demon lover beside me. Then I wanted to open my eyes without seeing the Tempest Void swirling around me and to continue with my new life on the surface world.
When we opened the door of our new room, I’d never been more excited to see a bed. I stripped my clothes off and dropped my weapons on a table without even giving the room a proper look, and then I allowed the soft bed to welcome me with open arms. My eyes closed within seconds, but I vaguely registered the feeling of Ashe joining me at my side before I fully relaxed.
“Mmmm… this is nice…” The demon woman’s hand slid over my bare chest as her thigh hitched up over my leg, and she bit lightly at my shoulder before exhaustion took over.
The next thing I knew, the morning sun broke through the murky windows of the room.
I stretched out my tired muscles and immediately felt the fiery pull of the wound on my stomach.
Those gorgon bitches.
The wound stung like a bitch, but the veiny lines had faded, and I knew this cut would heal in a day or so. Still, those snaky creatures deserved the ending they’d received.
Ashe was dozing naked beside me, and her silver nipples glittered even more in the morning light. I almost couldn’t believe how much she’d let me enjoy her last night, but then I remembered offering to let her obey me up here on the surface world.
Which meant this beautiful, fiendish, Infernal Huntress belonged entirely to me.
Every delicious
inch of her was mine.
My mouth began to water as I raked my eyes over her silvery curves. She looked so calm with her thick silver lashes closed, and I fought the urge to spread her thighs open and bend my face down between them so I could lap up her sweet juices.
It was Ashe’s first night sleeping soundly without a Lord Captain around to wake her up and send her on a mission, so I forced myself to keep my hands off her for now.
If I did my duty up here and protected her as a master should, there’d be plenty of time ahead for playing all kinds of sinful games with the beautiful little fiend.
I silently got up and got dressed, and my shirt was covered in stains of mud and blood. The blood was both mine and the blood of trolls and gorgons, and the sleeves were torn off from using them as bandages.
My arm was healed enough not to need a wrapping today, and I studied the dried black holes that were trying to seal themselves. It was still a shocking sight, and I decided I’d need to get some more clothes, especially if we intended to blend in on the surface world. For now, I’d rely on my leather jacket to keep it hidden.
I made sure Ashe was still asleep and then collected the bucket that had been left in the room. Then I headed outside and stopped at the well in the center of the courtyard out back, and I glanced around at my surroundings briefly. I was relieved there weren’t any freaky golden eyes glowing in the shadows of the trees, and I could hear the grumbling of other Shadow Quarters’ residents somewhere beyond the bounds of the courtyard.
Once the bucket was heavy with water, I pulled it back up from the well using the rope, and I snuck back into the inn.
Ashe woke up as I closed the door behind me, and she sent me a sleepy smile while she mussed the silvery waves of her hair.
“I got us some water to clean up some of this blood and sweat,” I said as I held the bucket up.
“My hero.” She grinned.
“I didn’t see any of the Blessed when I was out there,” I said as I removed my jacket. “Hopefully, this means we can get out of this shithole and into better digs before we encounter them again.”
I splashed some water onto my face and smiled at how good it felt. The icy water broke through the heat of my skin like the boiling rivers of the Hellscape never did. The pleasurable feeling intensified as the water dripped down my chest, and I continued dousing myself in the water until it ran all over my hair, down my shoulders, and onto the floor.
I still didn’t feel like I’d gotten enough of the icy freshness. I was definitely going to have to find more water up here to enjoy myself in.
“Where shall we go?” Ashe questioned as she joined me near the bucket.
I had to think about the safest possible option, and where we’d be less likely to find trouble like the Blessed. The forest was a no entry zone for us, but when I’d first arrived in Port of Rengfri, I’d spent some time by the sea. That struck me as a potential escape route, but I hoped we could get to the harbor from the Shadow Quarters without having to walk through the forest.
“We’ll check out the harbor,” I decided. “I’ve seen vessels sailing past, and we can work out when they dock.”
“Who hangs out down there?” Ashe asked while she dabbed some cold water on her silver cheeks, and her pink eyes fluttered closed as a pleasurable smile curled on her lips.
“We can work that out when we get there,” I replied. “But it might be the only option we have to escape.”
Ashe and I began getting our things together, and I watched as she slid her new onyx blade into the make-shift belt around her waist. I pocketed the last of my pieces to buy some more clothes and food on our way there.
Then we left the Shadow Quarters, and Ashe followed alongside me and kept her head lowered like I did. Even though our eyes were still noticeable, the lower our heads hung, the easier it was to stop the humans of Rengfri from reacting badly whenever we walked past.
I led us back to the part of the city I’d first arrived in after killing the five knights in the forest, and I kept a lookout for anything that appeared promising.
The courtyard I brought us to was far busier than the one in the Shadow Quarters, and I spotted a few women collecting water from another well. Others were throwing buckets full of a thick, dark liquid onto the streets. The stench from the alley on my first night reached me again, and it confirmed my initial thought to be true.
The bucket contained the waste of these mortals along with other unimaginable items.
We wandered closer to the tavern where I’d eaten stew, and I was reminded I’d have to go repay the man his four pieces once I had more. But then I noticed a building with bolts of fabric hung up in the window. It looked like the place to get a new shirt for me, and Ashe could probably use a new dress that wouldn’t draw quite so much attention to us, too.
I’d lost count of how many humans gawked at her bare thighs, but all of the mortal women’s legs were covered in long dresses on this side of town.
The shop with the fabric looked the same as many others on the outside, with dark wooden beams, arched windows, and iron frames. We stood for a moment to consider the array of colors and textures in the window, and then Ashe turned a quizzical look toward me.
“What are we doing here?” she asked.
“Getting new clothes.” I grinned.
I went ahead and opened the door, and I instantly noticed the difference between this shop and the one owned by the half-elf in the Shadow Quarters. This one was cleaner, well-lit by candles and natural light, and even the smell was fresher. A woman stood at the other end of the shop behind a wooden desk with a couple pairs of scissors as well as some other tailoring devices around her. She wore a burnt-orange dress with long sleeves and a piece of rope tied around her middle. Her hair was blonde and curled just below her ears, and her blue eyes stared down at the desk before her. She gave us a timid wave but refused to look anywhere near our faces while her fingertips trembled.
“We’re here for some clothes,” I said from my spot by the door. “A shirt for myself, and a dress for my partner.”
“O-Of course,” the woman stammered. “Please, pick the cloth you prefer.”
Ashe and I followed the direction she pointed and began to survey the different materials. The wall to our left was covered in cloth of all various colors, textures, and thicknesses, and I sighed with disgust as I eyed a bright gold cloth with pristine, white saints embroidered all over it.
“Does she make them for us?” Ashe asked in a whisper.
“I don’t know,” I replied. “I’ve never done this before.”
Clothing or garments were thrown at us in the Hellscape. If a piece tore during a mission, then we’d receive a replacement, but that was all I knew. If this woman had to make the clothes, then it could be a while before they were ready for us to wear. We didn’t have that long, but if this was the only option on the surface world, there wasn’t much we could do about it.
I found a roll of black cotton, and I decided this matched the jacket I always wore a lot better than the blood-stained white one I already had on. Ashe grabbed a roll of deep sapphire blue silk, and she sent me a questioning look as she held it near her pale cleavage. Then she smiled when I sent her a firm nod of approval, and the two of us turned around.
“We’ll take these,” I said to the woman behind the desk, and I held up the chosen fabrics.
“Yes, sir,” she mumbled.
The woman came toward us, but it was clear by her rigid posture that she would have preferred to stay back behind the desk. Still, she took the bundles of fabric from both of us, and then she brought it all over to her workspace.
“Can I ask, how does this work?” I questioned.
“Oh,” her eyes widened for a split second. “I-I shall cut your cloth to size and make your garments, as well as any undergarments you wish to accompany them.”
“I don’t wear undergarments,” Ashe sighed, and the shopkeeper blushed bright red. “Too restrictive.”
&nb
sp; “I’m fine with just the shirt for now,” I said while I tried not to grin too much.
Then the shopkeeper brought out a long, white measuring tape that reminded me of the tool we used to decide how far to stretch a cretin’s limbs in the Hellscape.
“Can you open out your arms?” she asked cautiously.
Once I had my arms out to the side, the woman began to take my measurements, and she wrote everything down on another piece of paper. She fumbled with her tools a few times as I saw her eyes flick to the blood and brain matter still caked to the flail in my belt, but she did a decent job of controlling her shaking fingers. Once she finished taking every possible measurement of my torso, arms, and neck, she moved onto Ashe and did the same thing with her.
The shopkeeper looked even more nervous working close to Ashe, and I wondered if it had to do with her bloody glaive or her lack of undergarments.
My demon lover smirked with obvious enjoyment as the woman tightened her measuring tape around her ample breasts, tiny waist, and luscious hips. When it came time for her legs to be measured, Ashe intentionally hitched her already-revealing red dress up so her pussy was centimeters from being exposed.
The poor shopkeeper was as red as the dress when she finally shot up from her work.
“All done!” she announced in a wavering voice.
“Lovely,” Ashe purred with a sinful smile. “When can I expect my pretty dress to be ready?”
“I-It’ll be by sundown,” the woman announced after a brief moment of silence. “I’ll start on everything straight away.”
“How many pieces?” I asked.
“Forty for the both of them,” she replied.
We left the shop without saying another word, and Ashe let out an amused snicker as soon as the door had closed behind us.
“Are they always that frazzled up here?” she asked.
“I couldn’t say, but your beauty probably didn’t help the situation,” I chuckled.
“There’s something so enjoyable about scandalizing the innocent,” Ashe sighed.
We had time to eat and check out the water as previously planned, so we decided to do the more pressing work of surveying our escape options first.