by Tamryn Tamer
In the darkness, Sable would feel nothing and for immortals whose memories were filled with suffering and loss, it was the greatest pleasure.
“Die you crazy witch!” Maznear threw his spikes at her as he kept backing up. Apparently, he thought that she needed to be close to him to hurt him. “Stay away from me!”
“Maznear,” Sable laughed. “Do you really think you can escape nothingness? It’s everywhere! The entire world is painted on top of it! Even you.”
“What?” Maznear said as Sable held out her staff. Maznear’s eyes went dead as his body was enveloped by darkness from the inside out until nothing remained but an empty space where Maznear used to be.
“Fuck,” Sable whined as she held onto her connection with the darkness. She should have made the fight last longer. She should have dragged it on for hours. “I shouldn’t have killed him.”
Sable looked around for any excuse to maintain her connection. She needed to maintain her connection because it felt so impossibly good. There was no more pain, no more suffering, no more hatred, only the blissful feeling of the void eating away her existence. She needed a reason to hold onto it.
Or maybe she didn’t need a reason? Was it really such a big deal? If she wanted to just enjoy the nothingness for a little while longer who would really notice? None of them knew how it felt to lose everybody they ever cared about over and over again. None of them understood how enjoyable it was to just close your eyes and not think about anything.
She didn’t need to explain herself to anybody! It was just going to be a few minutes and then she could cut the connection. It wasn’t like she intended to maintain the connection for a day. And even if she wanted to maintain it for a day it was her choice. Nobody had a right to tell her what to do! Not even her master!
Her master. Jericho’s face flashed in her mind followed by all of the other familiars in the house. Love was the secret to making life painful but it was also the secret of life.
She knew if she kept her connection to the darkness open, she might give in completely to it. And as much as she longed for oblivion, her love for her family was just strong enough to hold it off. She wanted to return to them as herself, not as some empty shell of who she used to be.
“Goodbye for now,” Sable whispered as she cut her connection with the void.
Feelings rushed at to her like water flowing into an empty glass. Pain, suffering, happiness, joy, anger, frustration, and love. Her body shook uncontrollably, furious at how she’d betrayed it, desperate to reengage the darkness and end the pain.
Everybody knew the Seraphim defeated the Nyxians but it’d be more accurate to say the Nyxians defeated themselves. When faced with the prospect of living an eternity full of loss, most Nyxians chose oblivion. Their civilization slowly declined as Nyxians continually gave into the darkness and erased themselves from existence.
By the time the Seraphim got involved there were only a few hundred Nyxians left. All of them addicted to the darkness. All at war with themselves over whether they should choose oblivion or life. The Seraphim gave them that choice and Sable chose life.
After meeting Jericho, she realized she made the right choice. Choosing oblivion when she had a master and a family that loved her so much, she’d have to be insane to do something like that. She’d enjoy her life with her master, then when they all died and she remained, she could always choose oblivion then.
Chapter 7
Romancing Riseva
“Shit, shit, shit,” Luna mumbled to herself while stretching as if she had any idea what she was doing. She really should have taken the offer to stay home but it was too late. If she were to run away now after insisting that she come everybody would be in a bind. All she could do was try to buy some time. “Idiot.”
Ethereals were watchers by nature. She’d seen hundreds of brawls, duels, and battles so she was no stranger to the mechanics of fighting. But when it came to actual skill, Luna had about as much combat experience as a child.
Over time she had mastered various stances that made her look like she was doing. She even acquired some rather intimidating batons from a dungeon she was exploring. But as far as fighting went, she sucker punched a person one time before teleporting away.
Jericho rushed toward Dalmeth leaving Luna by herself. She did a few final stretches while peeking at Riseva. She quickly turned away as Riseva glanced in her direction.
“Shit, shit, shit,” Luna mumbled as she realized turning away would make her seem nervous or cowardly. She finished her last stretch and struck a power pose while staring at Riseva. She fully expected Riseva to be coming toward her but instead she seemed to be focused on Jericho as he headed toward Dalmeth. “Shit, shit, shit.”
Time was up. She had to do something. If she didn’t engage Riseva there was a chance that Riseva would engage her master. And Luna couldn’t allow her master to be distracted while engaging that monster. She focused on a spot near Riseva but not so near that she was in attacking distance, she hoped.
“Hey,” Luna nodded confidently as she appeared across from Riseva and struck a combat pose. “Don’t look at him. I’m your opponent.”
“You?” Riseva looked Luna up and down. “You’re joking. You’re just a blinky.”
“A what?” Luna asked defensively. She’d never heard the term blinky but it sounded patronizing. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You know,” Riseva made various hand gestures that Luna was sure made sense to Riseva but made absolutely no sense to her. “A blinky.”
“Do you mean a spatial magic user?” Luna asked.
“Exactly!” Riseva said. “But that’s a mouthful. So, you’re a blinky.”
“We don’t blink,” Luna insisted. “Blinking is what assassin’s do when they move between two points. It happens in a blink but much like a blink it takes time. Spatial magic manipulates space to appear somewhere else instantly. There is no blink.”
“If you look like a blinky and act like a blinky,” Riseva laughed condescendingly. “You’re a blinky.”
“If I’m a blinky then you’re a buggy,” Luna said crossly. “You have a shell, tails, stingers. Buggy, buggy, buggy.”
“You’re really itching for a fight aren’t you blinky?” Riseva smiled. “I suppose I can take ten seconds to kill you before I move onto that delectable morsel heading for my master.”
“Wait,” Luna stepped back disgusted. “Do you intend to eat him?”
“What?” Riseva’s face contorted. “No! I don’t eat humans! Are you asking that because I’m a demon?”
“You just said he looked like a delectable morsel,” Luna said. “Cake is a delectable morsel, chocolate is a delectable morsel, steaks are delectable morsels.”
“I meant it as a metaphor,” Riseva insisted. “Like he looked appetizing.”
“There it is again!” Luna pointed. “You’re going to eat him!”
“Not that kind of appetizing!” Riseva stomped. “You’re really getting on my nerves blinky!”
“I’m not the one describing my master as food,” Luna scoffed. “What would you think if I described your master as delicious and savory?”
“I’d say you’re a very disturbed woman,” Riseva said. “Dalmeth is anything but delectable.”
“I didn’t say delectable,” Luna said. “Do you find my master delectable.”
“Let’s move off this topic,” Riseva said while flailing her stingers faster than Luna’s eyes could see. She realized that if she blinked anywhere near Riseva she’d be either battered or stabbed. “We were going to fight, weren’t we?”
“Hold on,” Luna smiled nervously. She needed to buy more time and Riseva didn’t seem opposed to talking. She could use that. “Aren’t you going to put something on first?”
“Excuse me?” Riseva looked down at her exposed breasts and pussy as if she were fully clothed. “What do you mean?”
“I mean that you’re naked,” Luna said while squeezing her own breasts. “You s
hould be wearing something if we’re going to fight.”
“Oh,” Riseva looked around. “I’m fine like this. Let’s fight.”
“Wait,” Luna said stepping back again as Riseva moved toward her. “I’m not ready. I need to stretch.”
“You already stretched,” Riseva smiled while swatting her tails against the ground. Luna’s heart jumped with each successive swat. “You’re stalling. Don’t be afraid little blinky. The fight will only last a moment and then you’ll never need to worry about anything again.”
“Wait!” Luna yelled while holding up both of her hands. “I’ll teleport away! And I can keep teleporting away! I can bounce around the battlefield and keep you chasing me all day!”
“And I can ignore you and move onto your enticing master,” Riseva said gleefully. “This is fun. Maybe I should just head over to him now since you’re obviously not going to try to stop me.”
“Enticing,” Luna hopped excitedly. “You didn’t use a food one this time!”
“Food can be enticing,” Riseva replied. “Dammit. Stop distracting me with this nonsense blinky!” She stomped forward furiously as she stalked Luna.
“Wait, wait, wait!” Luna said as Riseva angrily approached. Luna panicked as the demon and her slashing tails got closer. She still didn’t have a plan, she found herself wondering what her master would do in her position. Luna smiled, “My master finds you enticing too.”
“What?” Riseva stopped her approach. She shook her head and glared at Luna even angrier. “I won’t be mocked blinky.”
“I’m not mocking you,” Luna insisted while waving her hands like a maniac back and forth. “He actually asked if I thought there’d be an opportunity to sleep with you.”
“Liar,” Riseva said as her face turned pink. She slammed two of her tails on the ground threateningly. “Look at you. You’re terrified of me. Do you honestly expect me to believe your lies?”
“But I’m not lying,” Luna whined. “He really said it!”
“Even if he did it doesn’t matter,” Riseva growled. “I am a loyal servant of Dalmeth.”
“But what if Jericho kills Dalmeth?” Luna retorted. “Then you’ll be free to do what you want, right?”
“My master won’t be defeated by a human mage,” Riseva chuckled. “But, if my master were defeated I would be free to do as I please.”
“Would it please you to share a bed with my master?” Luna smirked.
“Would it really please him to share a bed with me?” Riseva countered while attempting to read Luna.
“Absolutely,” Luna shot back as if her life depended on it. Sure, her master may have been joking but she didn’t know that for sure. And technically all she was really doing was relaying his message. And if Jericho didn’t want to do it Luna supposed she could take one for the team. “And if he’s too busy I’d be happy to.”
“You?” Riseva took several steps back. “What do you mean by that?”
“You know,” Luna proceeded to make several crude hand gestures while peppering in various licking motions and facial expressions. “That kind of stuff.”
“Are you crazy?” Riseva asked genuinely confused by Luna’s theatrics.
“Only by Ethereal standards,” Luna shrugged. “So, you wouldn’t be interested in that? You’re only interested in my master? Because that could pose a problem.”
“Because you lied about him wanting me,” Riseva’s eyes boiled with rage at being made a fool of. “I’m going to tear you to pieces blinky.”
“No!” Luna responded fiercely as she realized how her words might have come off that way. But she stood her ground as Riseva approached ready to kill her. “It’s because there’s only one of him and we’re already sharing him with,” Luna started counting in her head but there wasn’t enough time, “I don’t know! There’s like over a dozen of us! So sometimes we…you know…make due.”
“Make due?” Riseva’s stingers stopped inches in front of Luna’s eyes. Luna could see the poison dripping from them. “Why should I believe any of this nonsense?”
“Because I’m an awful liar,” Luna smiled nervously. “So, I must be telling the truth.”
“I don’t know,” Riseva said coldly as her third tail twirled around Luna’s waist. It squeezed Luna tightly as Riseva leaned in closely and stared into her eyes. “I don’t know what to make of you blinky.”
Luna decided to take a gambit. She wrapped her arms around Riseva’s neck, pulled her close, and kissed her passionately on the lips. She felt Riseva’s tail tighten for a moment before gradually starting to loosen. Riseva returned Luna’s kiss for several seconds before she realized what she was doing.
“What?” Riseva released her and backed away quickly. Her face was completely red and she avoided eye contact with Luna. She trembled as she touched her lips with her hand. “You just kissed me!”
“You kissed me back!” Luna smiled victoriously. “I win!”
“What is wrong with you blinky?” Riseva snapped while glancing at her demon compatriots fighting. “If my master sees me kissing you, he’ll kill me.”
“Right,” Luna grinned mischievously as a naughty idea popped into her head. “Catch me if you can.”
Luna teleported as far away as she could while still keeping Riseva’s line of sight. She smirked as the scorpion-tailed demoness quickly gave chase. Luna was impressed by how fast Riseva was as Luna continued to blink further and further way until they were completely out of range of the fighting.
“What are you doing?” Riseva growled as Luna blinked directly in front of her and barraged her with kisses. “Get off me! If my master sees…”
“We’re all alone now,” Luna said playfully. “Your master probably thinks you’re chasing after me to finish me off.”
“What?” Riseva looked around and realized the only things around them were dirt, rocks, and a few patches of grass. “What are you planning blinky?”
“Shut up and kiss me buggy,” Luna said while invading the demon’s mouth with her tongue. Riseva let out a soft moan as Luna’s hands began kneading her large exposed breasts. Luna pulled away and giggled, “Now, what do you want me to do.”
“What?” Riseva asked as Luna began licking down her neck toward her exposed chest. “What do you mean?”
“It’s a simple question buggy,” Luna moaned as she flicked Riseva’s nipple with her tongue. “What do you want me to do? I need to hear you say it.”
“I don’t know what I want,” Riseva blushed as Luna bounced between her nipples teasing them. “I’ve never done this before.”
“You’ve never?” Luna paused and pulled away. “Define this.”
“What?” Riseva looked away embarrassed. “I mean this. I’ve never had, you know.”
“Are you saying you’re a virgin?” Luna smiled wickedly while filthy thoughts of all the things she could teach her flowed through her mind. “Like, you’ve never had sex with a man or a woman?”
“I’m not really what most people are looking for,” Riseva gestured at her body. “And I’ve been locked away for centuries and before that, I was busy helping my master eradicate life. I just didn’t really have the opportunity.”
“My master is going to be so mad at me,” Luna grinned lecherously as she roughly squeezed Riseva’s plump breasts. She dove in and began licking Riseva’s nipples with renewed excitement. “I’m going to have so much fun with you.”
Luna kicked off her boots and excitedly removed her tight paints revealing her lacey teal panties. She tossed her pants on the ground and removed her top then tossed it in the same spot. She grumbled as she sifted through her inventory and started pulling out spare clothing and tossing it into the pile.
“What are you doing?” Riseva asked as Luna emptied her inventory of anything fabric. “Are you nesting blinky?”
“You could say that,” Luna said pulling Riseva down into the pile of clothing with her. Luna smiled as she ran her hands across Riseva’s breasts and started to move f
urther south. She slid her fingertips across Riseva’s smooth chitinous abs before reaching her soft hairless mound. “I’m going to nest your brains out.”
“Fuck,” Riseva moaned as Luna leaned in and started slowly rubbing her clit. Luna giggled as Riseva struggled to remove Luna’s blue brassiere. Getting increasingly aggravated Riseva eventually used her tail to slice it off exposing Luna’s perfect perky tits. “You’re so cute.”
“You want to touch them?” Luna asked playfully. “Go ahead.”
“Really?” Riseva nervously grabbed Luna’s breasts as Luna tried not to laugh at the amateurish demon. “Am I doing this right?”
“Here,” Luna pulled her hand off Riseva’s clit to help the demoness position hers. “Hold them like that and rub them. I also like having my nipples pinched.”
“What about bitten?” Riseva said eying Luna’s breasts hungrily. “And can I lick them?”
“Of course,” Luna said while sliding her hand back down to Riseva’s wet pussy. Her own pussy was getting wet to the point her panties were starting to get uncomfortable. Luna glanced down at her panties suggestively. “You can touch me anywhere you want you know.”
“Anywhere?” Riseva’s eyes shifted to Luna’s striped panties. Her hand started to move as if she were entranced, completely unable to stop herself as she stroked the damp spot on Luna’s panties. “They’re so soft.”
“We’ll have to get you some then,” Luna giggled as Riseva attempted to match her pace. “We can’t have you walking around the house naked. Our master wouldn’t be able to help but fuck you every chance he got.”
“Stop it,” Riseva blushed. “You don’t have to keep lying.”
“I’m not lying,” Luna laughed happily as she slipped her finger inside of Riseva and started exploring her drenched channel. “And his cock, you’re going to love his cock. It feels so good.”
“Better than this,” Riseva panted as Luna started massaging Riseva’s insides using the technique her master used on her. She located the demon’s g-spot and started to slowly stroke it with her fingers while gradually increasing her pressure. “This feels so good.”
