by Dante King
“That’s, uh, really not necessary,” I said, backing away. “No harm done.” Looking behind me at the huge dent in the van, I added, “no serious harm.”
The demon seemed surprised by my response. “Are you certain, my Lord? Say the word and I will flagellate myself right here on this street.”
Wouldn’t that be a sight? “No,” I said, forcing out a laugh. “Really, you don’t have to do anything like that for me. No whippings needed today, thanks.”
Mareth hopped out of the passenger’s side door, smoothing down her skirt. I noticed the way she scanned every side of the street before joining my side, checking every possible avenue of attack for threats. I liked that about her—even as a flighty demon, she kept vigilant. Although it made me wonder why she needed to keep her eyes open for potential trouble. I didn’t wonder for long though; the demon attack had shown me that it’s a dog eat dog world in the demonic realms.
“I saw that,” the succubus said, giving me an excited punch on the shoulder. “Way to fucking go, Luke.”
“Saw what?”
“The thing you did with your eyes,” Mareth purred, gesturing at her own eyes with two fingers. “It looks like the rest of your powers of darkness are beginning to appear. Even I didn’t think it would happen this fast.” She glanced down at the massive demon. “Or that they’d be so strong!”
“I did not realize who you were,” the demon rumbled, its head low to the ground. “Had I known, I never would have raised my hand against you or damaged your property.”
So I’d done this? It must be some sort of sign, I realized. When the demon saw the magic in my eyes, he knew I was one of Lucifer’s candidates for Archlord. Meaning I’m much higher up the demonic totem pole than he was.
Shit. That explained why he kept bowing and scraping, like he’d just pissed off Tony Soprano. He knew I was one of Lucifer’s close associates.
“Hey—no worries,” I said, patting the demon on the shoulder. “Really. If anything, I ought to be apologizing to you. I nearly ran you down right in the fucking street!”
His wariness dissolved into relief. “You would not have seriously hurt me,” he rumbled, looking the van up and down with a critical eye. “Not with a vehicle of that size, at least.”
“Duly noted,” I said with a laugh.
When the demon didn’t rise to his feet after a few moments, the atmosphere around the van grew awkward. “You can, uh, get up now,” I said, trying my best to reassure the demon he wasn’t in trouble. I felt kind of silly about the whole thing now.
“He’s waiting for you to command him,” Mareth said matter-of-factly.
My eyebrows rose. “No shit?”
The succubus chuckled. “You’re very powerful, Luke. Even if you don’t realize it yet. When you showed your sigil to this demon, you didn’t just convince him of your status—you hit him with a compulsion. He’s your demon now.”
It took a few moments for me to digest the implications of that. “I didn’t even mean to do anything,” I said, locking eyes with Mareth. “I was just trying to get out of those catcher’s mitts he calls hands…”
Mareth shrugged. “Regardless, it’s done. I know this class of demon, Luke—they’re physically imposing but mentally weak. It should take a long time for a compulsion like the one you laid on him to wear off.”
Relief flooded me. It wears off, I realized, feeling less guilty about the whole thing. “How soon will he stop having to follow me?” I asked.
Mareth sniffed cutely. “Around thirty years,” she said, the corner of her mouth curling in a smirk. “Give or take a few months.”
“Thirty…?” I looked up and down the rows of houses, unable to believe what she’d just said. Thirty years was the length of a mortgage—if someone bought a house on this street, today, this guy would still be following my commands until the day they paid it off.
I whistled through my teeth. That was a long, long time.
“Can I just...I dunno, free him?” I asked. “Like the genie in that movie—they wished for him to be free at the end.” I tapped the demon’s knee with the side of my foot. “Hey, guy?”
The demon raised its massive red head. “Yes, Master?”
“What’s your name?”
He paused but a moment. “My name is Oni, Master.”
“Oni, cool.” I waved my hands like a stage magician doing a trick. “Oni, I grant you your freedom! You are released from my compulsion…”
I trailed off. The demon had already begun shaking its head. “Master, I cannot.”
I scoffed. “Shit. Mareth, a little help here? I’m not exactly versed in what to do with demons I’ve put a compulsion on.”
The succubus regarded the hulking demon before her coolly. “You can do anything you want,” she said, cocking one flawless eyebrow.
“Except free him, I guess,” I grunted. “Well I can’t leave you here—but you won’t fit in the van. Plus Christina would probably have a heart attack.” I cocked my head, looking back toward the driver’s seat. “How is Christina, by the way?”
“She’s rattled, but otherwise unharmed,” Mareth informed me curtly. “If you’re really having trouble, may I make a suggestion?”
The demon continued to bow before me, just waiting for commands. “Please do,” I said.
“You should command Oni to travel to the Infernal Academy,” she said, crossing her arms beneath her breasts. “He’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer, to be sure, but you saw what he did to the van. He’s muscle—and you could use some muscle when you start setting up within the student body.”
Yeah, I thought, looking Oni up and down. I probably do. But this much?
Well, it would have to do. I made a decision.
“Give him directions,” I told Mareth, walking back toward the driver’s side door. It hung half-open, nearly torn from its hinges by the demon’s anger. “I’m going to check on Christina.”
“Of course,” Mareth said smoothly. “Soothe the girl. I’ll join you momentarily.”
I grinned. “I’m starting to understand why Lucifer wanted you to shadow me,” I told the succubus, climbing back into my seat. “What would I do without you?”
As Mareth gave my commands to Oni, I put my seatbelt back on and checked the engine. We’d taken some cosmetic damage, to be sure, but other than that everything seemed alright. Satisfied that we could drive out of here, I turned to Christina. “Problem’s solved. You okay?”
The blonde shook like a leaf in the passenger seat. Evidently, she hadn’t torn her eyes from the demon the entire time. “That was scary as fuck,” she panted, sounding equally frightened and excited by the turn of events.
“Hey—I handled it. That demon’s with us now.” I flashed what I hoped was a sexy smirk. “Mareth’ll be back in a minute. You want to finish what we started?”
Her eyes traveled to the bulge in my pants. For a moment I thought she was about to do just that, then she blinked and nibbled her bottom lip.
“Let’s get something to eat first,” she said. “My hands are still shaking. I need to calm down before we, ah, do anything else.”
“Gotcha.” The engine roared to life, headlights illuminating the night. This street marked the absolute edge of Christina’s neighborhood—beyond it stood strip malls and department stores galore. I’d driven this area for a while a few months ago, doing food delivery to make ends meet when the IT thing got lean. Christina didn’t need to know that, though.
“So where do you want to go?” I asked, leaning over the seat. “You figured out what you feel like yet?”
I meant it in more ways than one. Christina understood.
“Oh yeah,” she giggled, giving a start as Mareth climbed into the backseat. “I know just the place…”
“Oni’s on his way to the Academy,” Mareth said, closing the side door of the van and leaning forward in her seat. Somehow the dent the demon left hadn’t made it impossible to open and close the door, which surprised the hell out
of me. “That was quite the get, Luke.”
“Yeah, and I wasn’t even trying,” I muttered. “I wonder what kinds of things I can do when I’m actually exerting myself…”
Chapter 5
Christina’s place turned out to be a greasy spoon at the intersection of an auto parts store and the local campus’s library. It was a popular hang out spot for students, gig workers, and anyone who needed caffeine and grease at all hours of the night. I liked it immediately—but I was surprised that Christina did, too.
“It’s the whole ‘satanic ritual’ thing,” she’d explained, settling into a corner booth with Mareth and me. About half of the tables were full, mostly with college students. Both of the girls sat on one side, leaving me alone on the other. “Thanks to the sacrifices I’ve made to the Prince of Darkness, I can eat whatever I want and not get fat. Which means I am getting some nachos to start with.” She picked up a laminated menu, scanning it eagerly.
“Same here,” Mareth said, bumping the blonde with a shoulder. “Succubi don’t get fat—it’s the coolest. Do you have any idea how many calories consuming mortals’ sexual energy burns?”
“Ugh, don’t get me started,” Christina said, setting down her menu. “So jealous.”
“Why would you be jealous?” I asked. “You’re both in league with Satan.”
“I’m jealous of that ass,” Christina muttered, just as a pretty brunette waitress emerged from the kitchen. She kept her curls in a stylish up-do, and the nametag pinned to one of her ample breasts said ‘MADDIE’.
“Good evening,” the waitress said, with just a hint of an accent in her voice. Her gaze flickered over each of us rapidly, already preparing to commit our drink and appetizer orders to memory. “My name’s Maddie, and I’ll be your server tonight. What can I get you three to start?”
“I’ll take the nachos plate,” Christina said, smiling up at the server. “And a glass of wine. Red—whatever’s open.”
“I’ll do the same,” Mareth said brightly. “Plus an order of tostadas.”
My stomach rumbled at the words. I glanced down at the menu, my vision swimming as another one of those waves of dizziness rolled over me. I had to eat something, soon.
Wait—why was I so hungry all of a sudden? I hadn’t started using my powers again, had I?
“I kinda feel like ordering one of everything,” I muttered, only half meaning it as a joke. At that moment, I felt like I could’ve torn my way through the entire list of entrees and still had room for three or four desserts. “Never mind. Give me a…”
Suddenly the waitress’s hand was on my own.
“Tell you what, sugar,” she purred, leaning so far forward that her tanned cleavage went on display. “How about you let me whip you up something special? You don’t have to worry about this—” she grabbed the menu out from under me, “-tonight. We’ll take care of you. Sound good?”
I looked into her eyes, already aware of what I was going to see. Maddie stared at me like she wanted to eat me right up—or she wanted me to eat her up.
“Uh, sure,” I grunted. “And some water, please?”
The waitress giggled. “Absolutely! I will be right back!”
She left our table, sashaying back and forth like a runway model. I couldn’t tear my eyes off her ass, not until she pushed through the cheesy saloon doors into the kitchen. They swung back and forth as she vanished, coming to a halt.
“Holy shit,” I whispered. When I looked over at Christina and Mareth, both of them wore identical grins. “I think she likes me.”
“You need food,” Mareth said, her grin refusing to fade. “A lot of it…”
Just then, a second waitress appeared at our table. This one was younger, barely the age of the college students around us. A strand of blonde hair peeked out from beneath the brim of her paper hat.
“Hi!” she giggled, looking at the three of us like we were celebrities. “Have you been seen to yet?”
My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Uh, yeah,” I said, pointing at the kitchen. “Maddie’s got us…”
Disappointment flickered in her face. “Oh. I see.” I’d thought that would be it, but instead she leaned in close, her lips grazing my ear. “Well, just know that if she displeases you in any way, I will be happy to step in and fill the breach.” Her tongue darted out, licking at the interior of my ear before she pivoted with another one of those giggles. In moments she’d gone, leaving my two girls grinning and me with a very confused look on my face.
“A lot of food,” Christina agreed, bumping fists with the succubus.
I shook my head. “I don’t get it. What the fuck is going on here? Are you some kind of VIP to the local college crowd, Christina?”
Before she could respond, the saloon doors swung open. I wouldn’t have thought it possible for a diner like this to move so fast—Maddie must have lit a fire under whoever worked in the kitchen. She carried a tray of heavy plates to our table, giving me what an old girlfriend of mine euphemistically referred to as ‘bedroom eyes’ the whole walk over.
“Here you go,” she said, placing the nachos and tostadas before Christina and Mareth. She also uncorked a bottle of wine and set it down, along with two glasses. “And this is for you…”
My jaw dropped open. Once, at her request, I’d taken a girl to a date at a sushi restaurant. I’d expected small, demure pieces of fish with balls of rice stuck to the underside, the way I saw in supermarkets. Instead, the girl had ordered something called a ‘sushi boat’—an entire platter of fish, stuck to every available surface of a wooden boat like some kind of crazy ocean liner. She’d eaten it all—and stuck me with the bill.
What Maddie unveiled reminded me of that boat. Only instead of raw fish, the oversized platter held a little of everything—chicken wings, a t-bone steak, scrambled eggs. It was a veritable cornucopia of food—and it looked like it served four, at the very least.
“Enjoy,” the waitress said, licking her lips and winking. “Oh, I almost forgot.”
She set a massive mug of beer down next to me, the glass frosty with foam. Then, next to it, a shot of some dark, heady liquor.
“I ordered water,” I said mildly.
The waitress gestured over her shoulder. “They ordered it for you,” she purred, indicating a table across the room. A half-dozen sorority sisters sat there, and all of them were staring at me. “By the way, another patron will be paying for your food as well, this evening. You won’t even need to bother with a bill.”
“That’s...wow.” I should have argued, but the moment the smell of food hit my nostrils, I felt like a beast. I needed to eat. “Uh, tell them I’m very grateful…”
“I will.” The waitress put a hand on my shoulder. “And we’re very grateful to have you here,” she whispered huskily, sliding my hand between her legs.
Holy fucking shit.
“Thanks,” I said again, pulling my hand away with great reluctance. “We’ll let you know if we need anything else.”
“Please do.” The waitress turned away and left. Only after she’d gone did I realize she’d barely spoken a word to Christina and Mareth.
“Fuck,” I said, turning to the girls. “That was wild…”
“He doesn’t get it yet,” Mareth said, sharing a grin with Christina. “He’s so cute when he’s failing to understand something.”
“Get what?” I asked, glancing back across the crowded diner at the table full of co-eds. “I don’t understand.”
Mareth drummed her nails on the table. “You eat for free,” the succubus purred, licking her lips. “All you have to do is walk into a room and you become everyone’s favorite person. They’ll buy you drinks, pay for your meal—and those waitresses? Totally into you.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Try hitting on one, you’ll see.”
I started to understand. “They’ll give me their number, will they?”
Christina chuckled darkly. “Luke—they’ll give you their panties if you ask.”
“It does
n’t even matter if they’re married or not,” Mareth said, getting into it now. “Shit, the ring probably makes it even hotter. You could drag that girl who just brought our appetizers into the bathroom, get her on her knees—she’ll do whatever you want. Even shit she’s never done for her husband!”
“Anal,” Christina said, nibbling at the edge of a nacho. “Or a threesome with another waitress…”
The possibilities left me dizzy. “Look, I’m not doing anything like that,” I said. Not tonight, I mentally amended. “Right now, there’s only two girls I’m focused on. And they’re both sitting right across from me.”
Both Christina and Mareth looked gratified at the compliment. “You’d better dig in,” Mareth said. “Otherwise your food is going to get cold…”
It most certainly will, I thought, my stomach giving another undignified rumble. Only I don’t really think I’d care…
For a few minutes, the conversation around the table ceased. At first, I tried to apply some manners and grace to the way I ate the massive plate of food—but soon, I gave up. At least I managed to hold onto my utensils, even if they were mostly used for shoving bits of steak and macaroni and cheese into my mouth.
The massive hunger inside of me flared after a few bites, then faded once I’d torn through about a third of the platter. By the time it was half done I’d begun eating normally, able to carry on a conversation between bites.
As I looked up from the half-finished meal, I noticed the atmosphere in the diner had thickened considerably. Most of the waitresses had unbuttoned their blouses and hiked up their skirts, showing nearly as much skin as strip club hostesses. At a table near where the co-eds lounged, two students made out hot and heavy, pawing at each other as if they were alone in a hotel room and not in public.
“Alright,” I said, looking over at Christina and Mareth. “I can increase the level of lust in the general vicinity, and stoke it within mortals.” I held out a single finger. “I can force lesser demons to serve me.” I added a second finger. “What else can I do?”
