Demon Lust

by Raisa Greywood

  Slumping back, she didn’t even notice as her fingers idly traced little circles over her stomach while she tried to gather her thoughts. Would the creature come back if she ever unthinkingly uttered such stupid words again? A dark voice in the back of her mind whispered: I hope so.

  We Invite You In

  Sinistre Ange

  We Invite You In

  "Come on," Lee said, half-ordering, half-whining, doing her best to coax Gerry into doing what she wanted to do even as her impatience with Gerry's reluctance clearly showed through. "Don't be such a spoilsport, it's just a bit of stupid fun. Or are you saying you're chicken?"

  Chewing on the inside of her cheek, Gerry stared at her fellow sorority sister. Lee was daring, mischievous, and outgoing. She was also pushy. But Gerry didn't want to be the only party pooper, especially over something stupid. She wanted to fit in.

  Brandi and Anne were staring at her now too, looking up from where they were setting up the candles in a pentagram shape on the dilapidated wooden floor.

  "Oooooh, she actually thinks this shit is for real," Brandi said, laughing and elbowing Anne in the side. She smirked at Gerry as she brushed her a strand of blonde hair back from her shoulder, her eyes full of amusement. "Are you afraid of black cats too? Ouija boards? Ghosts?"

  Black cats no, Ouija boards and ghosts on the other hand...

  Maybe it was dumb but Gerry had never liked things like Ouija boards or 'Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board' when she was a kid, and she'd flat out refused to play Bloody Mary. It didn't matter that she was now eighteen and officially an adult, just the idea that the ghost of Bloody Mary might appear in the mirror made her shudder.

  Trying to do an actual demon summoning in a haunted house with her three sorority sisters... this was exactly how bad horror movies started. Of course, even the bad horror movies scared the crap of out Gerry. So did the spoof movies.

  "Isn't it enough that we're spending the night in a haunted house?" she asked plaintively. Her hands twisted in front of her. "Why do we have to try and summon something too?"

  Heck, she hadn't wanted to come here in the first place... but she'd always had a hard time saying no when someone else really wanted to do something, and when all three of her friends had thought a night in a haunted house sounded awesome... well it looked like her FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) was seriously going to bite her in the ass now.

  A demon summoning was exactly the kind of thing she'd be happier missing out on. On the other hand, walking away right now would just end in her being mocked by the entire sorority house and maybe losing the respect and friendship of the three other freshman sisters, the ones she was closest to. Ugh. Why did they have to like scary things? Why couldn't they have gone to an overnight at a beach house or something?

  "Because so far nothing's happening," Anne said, making it sound so reasonable. "So we might as well do something fun to help pass the time."

  "We could tell ghost stories," Gerry suggested. Truthfully, she didn't want to do that either. She didn't need to be more scared and jumpy, just being here was enough. But sitting and telling ghost stories sounded better than trying to make 'something happen.' Even if nothing was actually going to happen.

  Brandi rolled her eyes. "I'm sure we'll get to that. In the meantime, we're going to try to summon a demon."

  She almost managed to get through the sentence with a straight face, but Anne giggled and then Brandi and Lee were giggling too. Their amusement at the ludicrousness of it all helped Gerry relax a little bit. She really was being pretty ridiculous, she realized.

  Bloody Mary had never shown up when her friends had played it, no matter how many times they'd called her name. Gerry hadn't wanted to play that game when she was younger either.

  Nothing bad had ever happened to them when they'd tried to contact the 'other side' with a Ouija Board or played Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board. They'd all been braver than her and proven time and time again that her unease was unfounded.

  "Yeah, all right," she muttered, rubbing her forehead and ignoring the ominous feeling growing in the back of her head. "Let's do it."

  The other three cheered, Lee giving her a quick hug, before they all got back to work.

  Lee had found an old book, supposedly a grimoire, with a demon summoning 'spell' in it that she'd brought along tonight. There were other spells in it as well, but so far Lee hadn't bothered to try any of them out. It didn't help that a lot of the pages weren't in the best of condition, but the one to summon a demon was legible and the ingredients and directions surprisingly easy.

  "Okay," Lee said, looking down at the candles and white paint making a pentagram on the floor, before checking the book. "Now we need to each prick our fingers and put a drop of blood in a copper bowl."

  Gerry groaned inwardly, but didn't protest again as they made it through the rest of the directions. The copper bowl of blood in the center of the candles, surrounded by bones - mostly chicken carcasses that Brandi had been saving after dinners all week apparently - and a circle of salt for protection.

  As Anne lit each of the candles in the order Lee directed her to, Lee read out the unfamiliar words of the spell. They sounded like nonsense words, but Gerry could feel herself becoming more agitated with each one of them. She was the only one - Brandi was practically bouncing in place with excitement while Anne's eyes gleamed in the candlelight. Lee was grinning ear to ear as she read out the words.

  "We invite you in," she said finally, looking up at Brandi.

  "We invite you in," Brandi said immediately, clasping her hands in front of her and looking thrilled.

  Anne blew out the match she'd been lighting the candles with, her excited smile matching Lee's. "We invite you in."

  All of them turned to look at Gerry. Her throat felt tight, the words clogging there. Lee's expression started to droop towards disappointment and Brandi rolled her eyes again, putting her hands on her hips as Anne flat out glared at her. She was ruining everyone else's fun. She just needed to say the words and then nothing would happen and they could do something else.

  "We invite you in," she whispered.

  Brandi actually did squeal and bounce now, clapping her hands as they all turned to look at the bowl.

  Nothing happened.

  Oh thank goodness. Gerry sagged with relief. She was about to ask 'what' next' when Lee spoke up again.

  "Oops! Forgot to say - so mote it be."

  A hot wind slammed into Gerry, stealing her breath, her scream of shock catching in her throat. It was hotter than any desert, scalding her exposed skin and pulling at her clothing like it was trying to rip the fabric from her body. She flew back as though thrown, only half aware of her friends, who had also been flung back. She wasn't the only one screaming.

  Gerry whimpered as she rolled along the ground, not stopping until her body crashed into the wall. Her back felt like one big bruise, but she barely noticed as she stared in horror at the center of the room, the center of the pentagram. The blood bowl was gone and in its placing was a yawning black hole... and hand was reaching out of it.

  If it could even be called a hand.

  The skin was dark red and it didn't have fingernails - it had black claws which stabbed the wooden floor and gripped tightly.

  Run, screamed her brain. RUN!

  But her body wouldn't listen, her limbs felt like they were frozen and she was breathing so hard and fast that her lungs were about to burst out of her chest, and so she lay there, staring, as a creature pulled itself out of the pit. No, not creature.

  Demon.

  This can't be happening.

  Except it was.

  And some part of her had known. That little voice in the back of her head, the one that had always been there, whispering to her of danger, the one that had gotten her mocked and belittled so often... it had known. Why hadn't she listened?

  Gerry stared as the demon straightened, the tips of the horns curving up from its head nearly touching the ceiling. The h
orns were the same black color as its claws and shaggy hair on its head, chest, and legs. It had actual goat legs, like a satyr. Her stunned brain supplied the correct term as if it mattered. The thing's broad chest and heavy musculature rivaled any body builder's. Its face would almost be handsome if its expression wasn't so cruel. A gasp caught in her throat as it turned its gaze to hers - its eyes were an endless, utter black, a dark void that inspired sheer terror just with a look.

  She was truly frozen until it began to look around, perusing the room and taking note of each young woman sprawled on the ground in terror.

  Someone moaned as another creature began to crawl out of the depths of the hole, this one more of an orange than a dark red, but otherwise similar in every way. That was when she noticed the tails.

  Oh lord have mercy...

  As soon as she had the thought, the red one, the first one out, turned to look at her again, piercing her with its sinister gaze, almost like it had heard her. But that wasn't possible. Was it?

  The creature dropped its eyes down, leaving her gasping for air as she suddenly realized she'd been holding her breath, leaving her lungs burning. She'd thought she couldn't be any more afraid, but when she saw it looking at the salt circle - the only barrier between the demons and her and her friends - she thought she might actually die from the fear pulsing through her.

  More creatures lifted themselves out of the pit, all similar to the first one, all with slight differences, and all different colors. Red, orange, yellow, and an eerie white. They looked like living flame. Prowling the inside of the salt circle, they leered at the young women who had summoned them.

  That was when Gerry realized that it wasn't just the summoning which had worked - their protection had too. The demons couldn't leave the circle.

  We have to send them back.

  "Lee..." Her voice was a croak and she turned to look at her friend. Lee was sitting up against the wall, a dazed look on her face as she stared at the demons. The grimoire she'd been holding was on the floor a few feet away from her.

  Lee turned to look at her and Gerry could see a small trickle of blood sliding down the side of her face.

  "Lee," she said again, more strongly this time. "How do we send them back?" Lee stared at her blankly, blinking like she couldn't understand what Gerry was saying. Frustration surged and Gerry raised her voice. "We summoned them, how do we send them back?! What did the book say?"

  Comprehension dawned. Lee jerked forward, scrambling for the book.

  "You don't want to do that." The demon's voice was like the rumbling of rocks, grating against each other as they tumbled down the mountainside - deep, coarse, utterly unnerving, and strangely seductive. Gerry felt her mouth go dry as her gaze jerked up to them. She wasn't sure which one had spoken - they were all staring at Lee now in an intimidating mass.

  Fingertips only inches away from the book, Lee looked up at them, confusion sliding over her expression and wiping away the terror. "I don't?"

  "Yes, you do!" Gerry's voice rasped as she looked frantically back and forth between the demons and Lee. Across the room, Brandi and Anne were staring at the demons with the same kind of befuddled, entranced expression that Lee now wore. Something was wrong... somehow the demons were doing something to them.

  The white flame demon shook its head at Lee, its cruel lips widening in a smile that showed off sharply jagged teeth. "You don't."

  Turning around, the orange one faced Brandi. Its voice was almost hypnotic, seductive in a crooning sort of manner. "Come. Wipe away the salt. Let us out."

  "No..." Her friends couldn't possibly... but Brandi was already moving. Slowly, but she was moving. Gerry struggled to her feet. It was up to her. Somehow, she wasn't as affected by whatever spell the demons had woven over them. Every muscle in her body felt like it screamed, but she lurched forward, nearly stumbling over her feet in her haste to get to the grimoire, while Lee just sat there next to it, staring blankly at the demons.

  She touched it - almost had it in her grasp - when something plucked her up off the floor by the back of her shirt.

  No, not something - a demon. She cried out in fear as she was yanked back. The thick, muscular arm that wound around her arms and waist was dark red - it was the first one that had exited the pit, the biggest of them. Screaming, she jerked her body around, trying to escape its hold. Its body heat was searing, far hotter than a human’s, and the scent of sulfur filled her nostrils, making her eyes water.

  It only took a minute for her to realize that her struggles were completely useless and she sagged in defeat, heart pounding so fast in her chest that she thought it might actually burst.

  What do I do? What do I do, what do I do, whatdoIdo? The question was a rapid refrain, spinning through her brain.

  "Hello, little witch." The hot breath of the creature across her ear made her shudder.

  "I... I'm not a witch," she whispered, kicking her feet out again, trying to connect.

  The deep rumble of a chuckle vibrated against her back and she moaned in misery as she felt its free hand grope at her hip, sliding under the hem of her shirt. Thankfully with its arm around her, holding her up, there wasn't very far its clawed hand could go. She felt the soft skin of her stomach quiver as sharp claws ran across it and she tried to suck in to get away from its touch. Its body was ripcord muscle, completely inflexible, giving her almost no room to squirm.

  Terror slid through her again, sharp as a knife, as she realized how incredibly vulnerable she was. It would be so easy for the demon to gut her, to slice her open with its claws and just let all of her intestines and blood spill out.

  A shrill scream from one of her friends made her gasp and then tears started to pour out, sliding down her face unchecked. She was facing away from the rest of the room so she couldn't see a thing through her tears except... was it getting darker?

  "Please," she whispered, blinking furiously as she tried to comprehend what was going on.

  The demon moved, and she was so frightened that it took her a moment to realize that it was thrusting a very hard, very large cock against her backside. She sucked in a breath to scream, but it was like her vocal cords had frozen. No, no, no, no, no....

  "You smell good, little witch," it said and something hot and wet touched the back of her neck. Oh god... it was the demon's tongue... it had licked her.

  "I'm not a witch!" she protested, more shrilly. She didn't know why she kept pushing that, it wasn't like it mattered, but it was almost as though her brain couldn't focus on the serious situation she was in and so it had grabbed onto that one small detail, the one thing it could deny.

  The demon laughed and Gerry nearly wet her pants at the sound. Something like that should never laugh. It just sounded wrong. So wrong.

  "You're wrong. I can smell it on you." Another touch of its tongue against her neck made her jerk and sob as tears spilled over and rolled down her face. The more it touched her, the longer this went on, the less surreal it became.

  This was happening. It was really happening.

  "You invited us in, little witch." The demon slid its hand down over her jeans, cupping her between her legs, and Gerry screamed - a short, sharp scream of denial that did absolutely nothing. If anything, the demon gripped tighter as more tears dripped off her chin and onto the floor. "Your witch blood allowed us to cross the threshold."

  My blood? My blood!

  This was her fault.

  The thought was horrifying and yet somehow, she'd known. Some instinct inside of her had always known that all the superstitions, all the silly games, were just possibilities. She moaned again, this time in denial, but she knew. This wouldn't have happened if she hadn't been here. If she'd pushed her friends to not try this stupid summoning. If she'd just left instead of caring about what they thought of her.

  "Your heritage makes it easier for you to fight us, but don't worry, little witch, I can help with that."

  The hand between her legs lifted she watched in horror as it sla
shed across the arm banded around her waist. Thick black blood welled across the wounds. Switching arms, the demon lifted the bleeding limb to her mouth and Gerry jerked her head back, clamping her lips shut as the demon pressed its wound against them. Claws dug into her side where it was holding her and she screamed at the sudden pain. Immediately, the demon took advantage of her open mouth and shoved its bloody arm in her mouth.

  The taste was bitter, coppery, almost like human blood but with a stronger flavor that churned her stomach and made her want to heave. Liquid trickled down her throat, thick and viscous and she nearly choked on it. But in order to breathe she had to swallow. It sat uneasily in her stomach, but even as nausea threatened, a strange feeling of lethargy began to flow through her, weighting her limbs, fuzzing her brain.

  Obey.

  The word whispered in her mind, the same deep gravel as the demon's, but she knew he hadn't spoken aloud.

  Obey.

  “Turn around, little witch, and face me.” The demon released her, stepping back. This was her chance! But she couldn’t run. Instead she found herself doing exactly what it had ordered her to, turning to face him. Her limbs weren’t obeying her brain’s commands and she could feel the same blank expression on her face that she’d seen on Lee’s, when the demons had stopped her from picking up the grimoire.

  Gerry wanted to whimper, but she couldn’t even do that.

  As she faced the demon, she realized she could see beyond him, and what she was sent a spear of misery and terror through her.

  All of her friends were naked, their clothing now just shredded fabric on the floor, and all of them had been claimed by a demon.

  Brandi was on the far wall, wrists held up by chains as she faced outward, her expression full of ecstasy as the orange demon moved his mouth over her body. Bite marks covered her breasts, dark and painful looking, as though he’d eased off just before actually breaking her skin and drawing blood. There were long scratches on her stomach and thighs from his claws, and when he shoved his mouth between her legs, Brandi’s body jerked and her head flung back, smacking against the wall… her eerie silence made the tableau even more horrifying.