Chains of a Succubus

by Lanak F Tanor

  “Hey,” she said.

  I forced a smile onto my face.

  “I thought you already went to sleep,” I said.

  Binni looked a bit uneasy. I realised she was trying rather hard to keep her face away from the candle. I caught her eyes… they were a bit too black. The glow she had earlier was more or less gone as well. She also was standing in a slightly hunched manner, though she normally stood straight.

  “Everything okay?” I asked her, pulling the sheet over myself, settling down cosily on the bed. It was just an attempt to prevent Binni from thinking I knew something was off about her.

  “You know, you were asking about the pill…” Binni said.

  “You have one for me?” I said with false excitement. “You know, everyone thinks I am a tomboy or something. A little glow might go a long way to attract the boys, what do you say?”

  Binni came over and sat on the edge of my bed.

  She clasped my hand with her own. Her hands were cold… a bit too cold for the warm night.

  “You will get the pill,” she said with a smile. And then she stood up and left, closing the door behind her. I remained staring at the empty space. I prayed everything was all right with Binni… though I was well aware that it wasn’t.

  ***

  I woke up with a start. It was already morning. I didn’t know when I had fallen asleep yesterday night, lost in thoughts about Binni and the pill.

  I had had the weirdest of dreams. I had dreamt of a strange woman. She was exceedingly beautiful. But unlike a normal woman, she had horns on her head and a pair of wings on her back. Heck, she had even had a slim tail with a tip like an arrow-head. In my dream I had seen her lead me to a particular shop in the other end of the town. The shop had been filled with pills. The woman had whispered in my ear, her voice soft and attractive, but with the slightest edge of menace to it. The woman had promised me of boundless beauty for an endless period of time.

  I gulped.

  I had to tell about the shop to Mowa. I was pretty sure I had actually seen it in my last visit to the other end of the town, which had been a few days ago.

  ***

  “A dream?” Mowa said. I had rushed to his house right after a quick breakfast. My mother and Binni were still asleep in their rooms when I had left. Even Mowa had been asleep and it had taken much banging on his door to wake him up and to get him to come down. Mowa presently didn’t look very convinced at all even as he yawned.

  “It felt real,” I said.

  Mowa shrugged, rubbing his eyes.

  “I had a dream too. About me getting a bag full of gold. The gold felt real, I can still feel the touch of gold on my hands.”

  I glared at Mowa. It took him a moment to realise that I was glaring at him. Only then did he look like he had come back to his senses. He raised a finger at me in determination.

  “We are going to that shop right now,” he said.

  Mowa ran inside his house and he appeared again a moment later wearing a coat. We took a carriage to the other side of the town. Our town was quite big and we didn’t want to waste precious time.

  “So which one?” Mowa asked, after we had reached the part of the town which I had seen in my dream. Luckily the dream was still fresh in my mind’s eye and it was easy for me to spot the small shop where the beautiful woman had led me to. We went near to the shop.

  “Let’s enter it then?” Mowa said.

  “Let’s do it,” I said. I had a feeling the two of us were taking a dive into a sea of danger. “For Binni.”

  “And the other chicks as well.”

  We pushed the curtain of shop and we entered. A woman was sitting behind a table, not doing anything. She had quite a few boxes on the table. As she looked up at us, I realised that she was the exact same woman I had seen in my dream. Only she didn’t have the horns or the wings or the tail. Her hair was also tied in a very different… less seductive manner.

  Mowa extended a hand.

  “Heelooo,” he said to the woman. The woman took his hand and shook it for a rather long time.

  “Anything I can help you with?” the woman said to Mowa, glancing at me at the same time.

  Mowa let out a small laugh.

  “I am sorry, but I must say, you are really beautiful,” he said to the woman. Considering the seriousness of our task and the possibility that the woman could be associated with black magic, I hadn’t expected Mowa to say anything so trivial. The woman blushed.

  “Thanks, sir.”

  Black magic…

  The two words revolved around in my head.

  “Um,” I raised my voice, grabbing Mowa’s arm, “we’ll come back in just a minute,” I said to the woman, who looked at me confusedly. I took Mowa out of the shop.

  “What did you do that for?” Mowa asked me. “She was one beautiful woman. I really wanted to talk with her.” I slapped Mowa lightly on the cheek, so that he looked offended.

  “I have a hunch that you should stay outside,” I told him. “Come in only if I tell you too. And sorry for that.” I gave him a meaningful look and then I re-entered the shop.

  The woman inside was not smiling as much this time.

  “What do you want?” she asked me. Her words were not exactly warm.

  “A pill,” I said to her, meeting her in the eye. She smiled immediately.

  “Oh, I have plenty of those!” She opened one of the boxes, took a pill from it and handed it to me.

  I looked at it. It appeared to be the same one that Mowa had destroyed in his house.

  “How much does this cost?”

  “Oh, it’s free,” the woman said. All the coldness seemed to have gone from her.

  “Free?” I said. “How will you profit from it then?”

  “Part of the marketing really,” the woman said, casually, “The pill enhances your beauty. When other girls see the positive effects of the pill, they will come to get one themselves. Eventually I’ll charge money for the pill. You see, sometimes in business you need to suffer a loss initially so that you can make a profit later on.”

  I nodded at her.

  “Why don’t you give me the other boxes filled with pills?” I asked her, “I’ll give the pills to my friends myself, I am sure they will love them.”

  “No, I cannot allow that, unfortunately,” the woman said, her earlier coldness returning.

  I sighed. Enough with pretending I was a naïve girl with the single dream to become more beautiful.

  “What do you get messing about with innocent girls and women with you black magic?” I asked the woman. The woman took an offended face.

  “Black magic? What are you saying?”

  “Hey, don’t pretend you are innocent,” I said, “I know your free pills have got nothing to do with marketing. Just accept what you are doing, all right? Let me give you a hint. If I put this pill over a fire, it will start giving out black fumes with green sparks. Is that enough?”

  The woman glared hard at me. Suddenly her appearance seemed to change right in front of my eyes. Her clothes vanished and horns appeared on her head. On her back a pair of wings appeared and she also got a tail. Her beauty was gone however. She looked frightening.

  She leapt over the table and grabbed me by the throat. She opened her mouth wide, revealing fangs.

  “I guess we won’t need the pill for you,” she said and was about to bite me, when in a bid to save myself, I hit her on the head with my fist, right at the base of one of the horns. This pained her and her hold on me loosened. I shrieked. Caught with fear I ran out of the shop.

  “What happened?” Mowa asked, seeing me in the state of shock. Several of the passersby gathered around me as well.

  “There is a demon inside the shop,” I said, panting. I could still see the woman in my mind’s eye.

  “Demon?” Mowa said. He pushed me aside. He and a few of the other passersby went inside the shop. They quickly came outside.

  “There is nobody inside,” Mowa said.

 
“But there couldn’t be,” I said. I pushed him aside and entered the shop myself. The demon was gone and so were the boxes. Only the pill in my own hand remained.

  ***

  Chapter 6: Lanak Tanor

  The Sphere was much faster than a horse. But the mental energy that the Sphere demanded was exhaustive. I felt like I would fall down unconscious in a few minutes

  I decided to land the Sphere. I was in a terrain that was covered with forests, so it was difficult to find a proper landing spot. I reckoned I would have to opt for a crash landing. I prayed the Sphere would survive the impact of the trees that were about to hit it. I lowered my concentration, and the height of the decreased at a slow pace. In a minute, I was just above the canopy of the jungle. By this point, I could no longer take the weight of the Sphere in my mind. I lost all concentration.

  The Sphere fell.

  I wrapped my arms around the luxurious seat, bracing for an impact. The landing ended up being softer than I had imagined, even though the Sphere jerked violently every time it hit the branch of a tree. Finally it was on the ground.

  I needed some fresh air. With the last bits of mental energy left in me, I willed the lid of the Sphere to open. Then I clambered outside. I fell down on the forest floor. The air felt fresh to the nose. For a while I just sat there gulping air by the mouthfuls.

  Then I realised that the ground beneath me was quite wet, and so were the trees. I reckoned there had been a rainfall here a few hours back. My stomach groaned. I was hungry. I had run out of my dry meat, and my water skin was empty as well. My main priority now was to find food and water.

  A rustling sound reached my ears. Could it be a river? It would solve my water problem easily, otherwise I would have to go collecting water from the leaves of tree. Straining my ears, I began to move towards the sound of the river. The ground was wet enough that my foot left clear prints on it, so it would not be hard for me to find my way back to the Sphere.

  It took me a good fifteen minutes to reach the river. It was actually more of a large stream. The water was crystal clear and I filled my water skin to the brim. Water found, now let’s search for some food.

  There were birds sitting on the branches of trees. If I had had a bow and arrow, I could have had some chances of getting them, but with only the swords with me that would not be possible.

  Just then I heard a snorting sound.

  A bush at the edge of the forest parted, and a strange creature made its way towards the bank. It had a black body that was covered with spikes. Its face however was like that of a wild boar and it possessed two horns on the head.

  The animal was half my own size. Only after it had come a considerable distance towards the river that it saw me. It stopped abruptly, its ears turned in my direction. I reckoned the animal had weak eye sight and a weak sense of smell, and depended on its ears. I had stood still so far, plus there was the sound of the stream. This was possibly why the animal had only now come to know of my presence.

  The animal decided I was a threat. It pointed its horns towards me and readied for a charge.

  Quick! Get a sword! A voice in my head said.

  I spurred into action. I willed one sword to appear in my hand and held it tightly. This animal was not going to do any harm to me. Rather, I was going to eat it.

  And then the animal charged. It was fast for its size and shape. I swung my sword. But too late, I missed hitting it and the next moment the animal’s head and horns impacted my legs. I sailed through the air and fell into the river.

  You have been hit!

  You receive -100 health!

  It was with great effort, kicking my arms and legs like mad, did I manage to make my way back to the river bank. But just then, the animal charged again. I held the sword, pointing the tip right towards the animal.

  As the animal came to hit me, the sword penetrated the middle of its forehead. I could feel its skull giving way to the sharp sword. The animal cried out in pain. In a few seconds the animal had ceased all movement and it slumped to the ground, my sword embedded in its head. I exhaled, not believing I had killed the beast.

  I skinned the animal and gutted it quickly. I was afraid that predators would come along catching the scent of blood. I was able to find a special kind of moss that remained dry despite rains and I started a fire. Soon, I was chewing on the tough meat of the beast.

  But of course, it was not possible for me to eat the entire animal and I had no wish to leave it behind. Right then, I had an idea. I couldn’t remember if I had done something like that in my tamer days. I touched the part of the beast that I had not cooked, and I willed it into my mind.

  A new icon appeared in my peripheral vision, with the word ‘Food’ written on it. I felt an extra mental burden but it was not much. I was about to leave the river bank, when a great sound reached my ears. It seemed to be coming from all directions.

  Then a great shadow fell over me and the bank. I looked up at the sky. A great creature was falling down directly towards the bank. It was like a giant serpent, only it had massive wings, which apparently were not working presently.

  My heart did a somersault as I realised that the creature was a dragon. It was coming directly towards me. I would get crushed if it fell on me.

  I dashed away from the river bank, towards the trees. Barely had I done so that the dragon landed on the river, creating a giant splash that drenched me, although I was a good distance away. The dragon was so big that the river current could not move it along, and the reptile floated in a limp manner over the water. Its eyes were close.

  I knew it was a bad decision, but I couldn’t stop myself. I went towards the dragon. The body of the dragon seemed to be covered in some kind of a gooey green liquid. Was the creature dead?

  I went towards the head of the beast. I had never seen a dragon earlier. The dragons resided deep underground, where there is always fire and magma. It was extremely rare for a dragon to come out to the surface through an opening in the earth’s crust such as a volcano.

  I looked up at the sky, searching for any signs of a happening which had made the dragon fall dead to the ground. But when I looked down, back at the head of the dragon, the eyes of the beast were open.

  My heart stopped.

  Smoke came out from the nostrils of the great beast even as it stared at me. I was paralyzed to the spot, and although I should have fled immediately to the Sphere, I didn’t.

  And then the dragon opened its mouth. Was it going to roast me in its fiery breath and eat me?

  Instead of fire, words ensued from the mouth of the dragon.

  “Please,” the dragon said in a male voice. He sounded weak.

  Please?

  I was not sure what to do.

  “Wh… what happened to you?” I said after much hesitation. I reckoned I was the first human to be speaking to a dragon in a good while.

  “Please save me,” the dragon said.

  “Save you? From what?”

  Besides, if there was something that the dragon couldn’t save himself from, what chance did I had at saving him?

  The dragon turned his head with much effort and eyed his body.

  Was I supposed to save the dragon from himself?

  Then I realised… It must be the gooey liquid.

  “The green thing covering you?” I asked.

  The dragon made the slightest of nods.

  “Should I remove—?”

  But I couldn’t complete my sentence. A sudden green glow came over the eyes of the dragon. He cried out, a cry that made me go deaf. He began to beat his wings hard and the strong wind that was created threw me away as though I was made of cotton. I landed roughly amongst the trees and from there I watched as the dragon took off to the air. He climbed height fast and soon he was like a mere bird in the sky, I watched him go until the clouds blocked him from view.

  That had been one weird experience. I made my way towards the Sphere.

  When I reached the Sphere I saw that there
was a man near it, moving around the great spherical vehicle, touching it with his hands.

  My jaws dropped to see that it was none other than Ranik, the mayor’s son. What was he doing here? More importantly how had he got here? I had always disliked him. He was way too pompous for me.

  I stepped into his view with a cough.

  He looked up and he smiled. He seemed to have aged in the short while that I had not seen him.

  “I see I have come to the correct place,” Ranik said.

  “How did you come here?” I asked. I did not speak warmly. I wanted him to know that we were out of the town. That he was the son of the mayor didn’t matter here anymore.

  “A little help from the wizard,” Ranik replied.

  I was confused. Why would the wizard sent him after me? After all, I was the one whom the flames had chosen.

  “You came in a different Sphere?” I asked him. I could fathom of no other way he could have come here so fast.

  “Nah,” Ranki replied, observing his fingernails. I could see small specks of green sand sticking to his fingernails even from my position a good few metres away. “Just a little magic powder.”

  “You can come here using magic powder?” I asked. What was the point of sending me first on a horse and then in a magic craft? Why didn’t the wizard give me the magic powder if it could help one travel great distances in a heartbeat. Perhaps Ranik realised what questions were going inside my head and he spoke.

  “The powder makes you age,” he said with a grimace. “That is why I reckon he didn’t give it to you. Since you are already old it wouldn’t be great if you got even more feeble, would it? I on the other hand can afford to age a few years. But I am still at cross with the bastard wizard because he didn’t tell about the ageing to me, even after I made him the payment.”