Dubstep Succubus

by Aaron Siverling

  She closed her eyes and the light disappeared to nothing. Her swirling emotions roiled through her, sweeping me along with them.

  Confusion, embarrassment and regret at first. Then she opened her eyes again and I felt, and saw, anger, defiance, resentment, loneliness and… need.

  I pulled my mind back from her and said, "Um. I don't think - "

  "And why not?" She demanded as her thoughts followed mine. Not letting me hide my mind so easily.

  Then she slide into the center of the room to stand in the deepest depression.

  It only gave her an extra inch or so in height but the frantic conflicting urges to close my eyes or to stare, smashed into simultaneous disappointment and relief when I saw that such a decision was unnecessary.

  "Why not! We're here. I like you. You like me. We're friends. We love each other."

  "Yes, as friends…"

  Millions of years of evolution told me that what I was doing was absolutely wrong. The part of me that cared about Cherish as a person said otherwise,

  "... and only as friends."

  She glared at me for a long moment before saying, "You want it and I want it."

  "Yes. You want it. You don't want me. I know who you want. Who you really want. You're my friend and I love you too much to do this. I don't want you to ever look at me and feel regret. Or resentment."

  I stopped holding back from her, showing her what I really felt. I let her feel my love as much as my lust. My respect for her, my fear of rejection, my too many doubts and apprehensions.

  Her emotions flooded through me, so many of them, all of them mixed together in a confusing mess I couldn't make sense of.

  I didn't try to, I just accepted whatever she was feeling and let her work through it. Until it was her sadness that overflowed and overwhelmed the rest.

  I moved forward and put a hand on her shoulder, being careful about what I touched and what touched me

  I tilted her head up and kissed her forehead before resting my head against hers.

  I felt the rising tide of her sadness. The frustration she felt with her inability to stop it. And a hurt so deep I couldn't see the end of it.

  "What is wrong with me?" Her whisper was so quiet, the echo of her falling tears, almost hide the sound.

  "Your heart was broken. You tried to put it back together but you didn't know how, so it leaks. It spills out, despite everything you do and everything you try. I wish I could fix you. Put you back together, as if nothing were ever broken. But I can't and trying to do so would only hurt you more. But that's okay. You're not something to be given up, rejected or abandoned. You're someone to be loved and accepted. To be Cherished."

  She pressed closer to me, not with her body, but with her mind. The swirl of her thoughts and emotions washed over me, around and around until they settled into affection, regret and amusement.

  We stood like that for a long moment before she sighed and pulled away. Her emotions feeling more settled.

  She dismissed her Life Sight and said, "You are so stupid."

  "I'd call insult but I kinda agree with you," I said, pulling back from her to a more comfortable physical and mental distance.

  Our thoughts were again at that comfortable balance and I could feel her smile in my mind, even as I heard it in her voice. "You're also kind, brave, courageous and I will totally bring this event up in conversation if you ever need a wingwoman. I am also totally, totally willing to exaggerate as needed."

  "Thanks. Hey, um, what exactly is it you feel the need to exaggerate on?"

  "Hmm… well… speaking of changing the subject. I think - "

  I splashed water in her face, making her sputter and yell, "Hey! Rude!" before splashing me back.

  So naturally, I splashed her back.

  This went on a lot longer than it probably should have but we did eventually stop. Mostly because we got overheated.

  I decided I had gotten enough bath time and left Cherish to enjoy the water alone.

  I entered what I had taken to thinking of as the "changing" room despite the fact that all I did was change from my towel to my birthday suit.

  Then I discovered my clothes were folded on the bench, cleaned and dried. By magic for an extra fee.

  Cherish had mentioned that service on the way over, so I had no problem putting them back on.

  I was happy with the world and more relaxed than I had been in forever. A real hot shower and soap that didn't smell like plastic was heavenly.

  I was humming a Bob Marley song when I walked out of the room only to have Aeria punch me in the arm. Hard.

  "Ow! What was that for?" I turned, hiding my arm as I rubbed it.

  She glared at me. "You can sing!"

  I blinked and said, "Um…I'm sorry?"

  She punched me in the other arm. Harder.

  "OW!" I turned to look at Taren who was casually leaning against the wall, smirking. "Dude! A little help!"

  He smiled wider and said, "What? Are you saying I should control my woman?"

  I opened my mouth but saw the trap just in time. Or so I thought.

  I snapped my mouth shut but Aeria had already narrowed her eyes at me and asked in an ice cold tone, "What was it you were going to say?"

  I answered without hesitation. "I was going to say that, that's sexist. Totally sexist and that you should totally punch him in the arm for that. No. Lower, like in the kidney. No. Center mass, in the belly. No! Lower! Totally lower! Totally in the - "

  "You say 'totally' a lot," Cherish said as she exited the changing room. Already dressed.

  "Huh, yeah. I totally do. I should totally stop that, like, right now."

  I went silent.

  They watched me.

  I held it back for, like, about a thousand years (Or three seconds) before I blurted out, "Totally!"

  Cherish slapped a hand over my mouth, I licked it. She ignored me and turned to Aeria. "So why are you hitting Ruin?"

  "He was singing!" she yelled. "And he was actually good!"

  Cherish removed her hand and wiped it on my shirt while I said, "And the problem with that is what? It's not like I was singing loudly, enthusiastically and completely off key for an hour while meandering through the woods as Whatsits and Snickersnacks attacked us at every turn, as a form of revenge for laughing at my newly sensitive nose and newfangled tongue stabbing."

  In that moment I was distinctly glad Aeria didn't have any offensive magic. Because if she had an Eyeball Blast Of Doom spell then there would of been a Ruin shaped hole in the wall right behind me.

  "You mean you could of sung properly this whole time?!"

  I smiled and said very firmly, "No. Not the whole time. Only when it was funny."

  She screamed and made to grab me, only to be barely held back by Taren and Tahaniria. I ducked and hid behind Cherish, laughing uncontrollably.

  Hey, if you ever saw a screaming, flailing Light Elf being held up in the air by a Dwarf and a Shadow Elf you would laugh too.

  “Ruin, stop laughing. You’re only making her angrier. Please? For me?”

  I covered my mouth and made an effort.

  Aeria suddenly stopped screaming, looked at Cherish, opened her mouth then closed it. She looked back and forth between Cherish and me, a smile slowly curling her lips.

  Then she said, "Ah, I knew it."

  I stopped laughing and said, "Uh, what?"

  The Elfs smile turned sly as she said in a sing song voice, "Oh, nothing…"

  Cherish sighed and said, "She thinks there's a thing between us."

  I stopped hiding behind her and walked around so I could see Cherish’s face. The resignation and slight resentment I felt from her causing me concern.

  I turned to look at Aeria as Taren put her back down and said, "Seriously we're just friends."

  She didn't stop smiling but nodded her head as if she were agreeing with me. "Sure, sure. Of course."

  I felt Cherish's resentment grow but before I could say anything she said it was t
ime to go.

  She started down the hall and I tried to change the subject. "Well, speaking of changing the subject. I'm hungry and kinda tired. Once we find the others we should find an inn."

  I said the last bit as we went through the door leading to the lobby where David was talking to the owner.

  The owner, having heard me, spoke up. "Oh, you may have some trouble with that. With so many, ah, newcomers. Available beds may be in short supply."

  Cherish kept walking out the door getting angrier with every step and ignoring me when I mentally asked her what was wrong.

  "Oh, that's okay." Aeria's smarmy voice came from behind us as she said to the owner, "I'm sure some of us can share."

  I didn't know exactly what it was about the insinuation that was making Cherish angry, I just knew that Aeria was doing it.

  "Hey. Stop that. I know what you're implying and I can assure you, the only thing I am going to be using my bed is for sleeping, eating and maybe building a little fort. That's it!"

  That was me trying to defuse the situation. Admittedly that's not something I'm very good at. In fact, it's the exact opposite of what I'm good at but I tried anyway

  Cherish stopped and turned around so abruptly that Aeria almost crashed into her.

  "Hey! I - "

  Aeria's voice cut off when Cherish reached up and used a fistfull of the Elf girls shirt collar to yank her down, so they were looking at each other eye to eye.

  Tahaniria made as if to intervene but stopped cold when Cherish gave her a look.

  Cherish's eyes glowed with a green shine when she looked back at Aeria and said, "I know you think you're provoking Ruin but you're not. You're upsetting me. That's what's upsetting him and you need to stop saying the things you're saying. Now."

  "Why should I?" Aeria hissed back as she tried, and failed, to wrench herself free from the Nymphs gripe.

  "Because," Cherish explained. "Feminism."

  Aeria stopped struggling, frowned, opened her mouth to say something, closed it, then very quietly said, "Oh."

  When Cherish released her, the Elf girl straitened, took a deep breath and said, "I'm sorry." Then she made a sound of disgust and said, "Ugh, men."

  Cherish threw her hands up in the air and said, "I know! Right? Men."

  Taren looked and me and asked, "How exactly did this become our fault?"

  "Because," I explained. "History."

  The Dwarf looked confused for a long moment before understanding lit his face. "Ah, that makes sense."

  David, Taren and I turned to look at the three girls who were already chattering away as if the whole incident had never happened. Laughing and giggling as they walked down the street, not even bothering to see if we followed.

  "Wow," Taren said with admiration. "Women."

  I smirked. "I know, right?"

  Chapter Thirteen: Mmmmm… Ambrosia (cue drooling sounds).

  The town square was ringed with shops and opposite of where we came in, a large temple sat on the far side. In the middle there was a fountain with a statue of a large horse on top.

  “It's like a circus,” I said looking about the town square, which was actually a circle.

  There were food vendors, dancers, street performers and a mass of people, most of which were natives, milling about with the air of an impromptu festival.

  “And we're the main attraction,” Cherish said. "So we should do our best to behave and make a good impression.”

  “I always behave… in various… ways…”

  “Behave well. As in, being on your best behaviour.”

  “I guess we're the main attraction.” I told the others aloud. "I'm going to show my beast behavior.”

  Aeria have me a sidelong look. "I think you mean ‘best’ not ‘beast’.”

  “Eh, potato, tomato. They're both vegetables.”

  She made a sound of mingled disgust and frustration. "No! They're not! Neither of those are vegetables!”

  “Eh, whatever. Hey, if this is a circus I wonder which of us are the clowns.”

  Aeria groaned. "They're gonna run us out of town. I just know it. And it will all be Ruins fault.”

  “Why does everyone assume everything's my fault?” I said in irritation.

  Oblivious to my anger she said blithely, “It's an easy assumption.”

  “Don't take it personally, One.” I felt Cherish envelop me in a warm, supporting presence. Doing that hugging me with her soul, thing as she put an arm around my waist. "She isn't really blaming you.”

  She reached over and put an arm around my waist in a one armed hug as an added comfort.

  “Whether she is or isn't doesn't matter,” I said and took a deep breath. "She just touched a nerve, is all.”

  “You don't still think…”

  “That I'm really responsible for the Grey Hell? Not really. Not logically. But as you know, logic isn't my strong suit."

  She pushed her mind closer, her thoughts brushed against mine as she said, “Logical consistency is overrated.”

  “Well of course,” I agreed.

  I noticed Aeria looking me and I asked what was wrong.

  She looked away and said, “You got really quiet after I said that, you know, possibly insulting thing I said. I’m sorry.”

  I waved it away and said, “Don’t worry. We all have our sore spots. Our tender tendencies. Buttons buttoned up until they pop from the strain of too many pity sundays with bananas that are smaller than we expected. Don’t worry. There are plenty of bananas in the sea. Wait… is that how that saying goes? No, that can’t be right. Maybe I’m confusing plenty of bananas with plenty of piranhas in the jungle. Hmm, what was a banana a metaphor for again? Oh right it was for a p - “

  Aeria let out a loud groan that inched into a growl. “This! This is what I get for insulting Ruin. The Ruin. I should know better by now!”

  I put my hands up in a calming gesture. “I’m just saying we all have something that hits us in the heart. For me, it's the ending to 'Lilo and Stitch.” I took a deep breath. “When that genetically engineered monster from outer space fell to Earth, bringing chaos and destruction in its wake and ends up with a family who loves him for who he is…" I sniffed, trying not to let the tears fall. "It just gets me." I tapped a claw over my heart. "Right… here."

  Aeria gave me a dubious look. “Uh huh. I’m not… wait… oh… Light and Love… is he crying? Oh hell… he's actually crying… I… I don’t know what to do with that.”

  “It was just so beautiful...” The last word ended with a squeak as I wiped away a stray tear.

  Cherish rubbed my back and made comforting noises while the others watched with confused expressions. Then she determinedly changed the subject, telling us about the various shops and what they sold, as well as the general prices.

  We were lucky that Cherish had been here long enough to get to know the place, because David had to leave us. He wasn't allowed to play tour guide. He had orders to work crowd control and to watch out for pickpockets.

  I was pretty sure he only stuck around this long to keep an eye on me until I was someplace stuffed with witnesses and guards.

  It was just Taren, Aeria and Tahaniria along with Cherish and me. Liza had already showered and left by the time everyone else was done with their bath.

  I was back to my old non-weepy self as we walked and talked and gawked and rocked the that “We are tourists! Here us Ohhh and Awww!” that most of the Subadults were doing.

  We passed a few Elves who watched us with pretend disinterest and scores of Half-Elves who didn’t bother pretending. Rare Native Dwarves were scattered around the crowd and had the determined look of sales people who worked on commission.

  People were wandering around, as individuals or as families and whenever I saw a child staring at me I gave them a smile and a wave. Some hide behind their parents, a few waved back. A couple did both.

  I probably should have mentioned what people were wearing a while ago but it was just the usual medie
val garb. Or what the movies thought of as medieval garb. Or renaissance garb. Or… I don't know. Whatever. Two would know,

  “Cherish? Is this normal medieval garb?”

  “Garb you say?” she asked with a smirk.

  “Whatever. Don't make fun of my wordiness.”

  “Is wordiness even a real word?” she pondered.

  “I speak it. It conveys meaning. Therefore, “ I put and hand up and shaped it into a ‘W’ sign, “Word.”

  “Eww.” Cherish cringed away from me. "Don't you ever do that again.”

  “Hey, what up Hoe!”

  “What did you call me?!”

  “Private Hoe!” I cheerfully waved at the Centaur where he stood at attention by the fountain. "Good to see you again!”

  Cherish looked to where I was waving just in time for the private to give me a curt nod before he went back to scanning the crowd.

  She turned back and glared at me while I gave her my most innocent look. "What? His last name is Hoe. He's a Private in the cities army so now he's… Private Hoe.”

  She tried to continue glaring but I felt a spark of amusement from her as her lips twitched.

  “We met his uncle on the road. The Captain,” I said, continuing to smile innocently.

  More amusement.

  “He introduced himself the Captain Hoe.” I widened my eyes to ‘Super Innocent’ levels.

  Cherish was biting her lip and shaking slightly as she fought for composure.

  “He informed me that his grandpapi was a Major Hoe.”

  She lost the battle.

  The tide of immaturity that surged over the boundaries of propriety spilled out of her mouth in a spray of sputtering laughter.

  She laughed so hard I had to hold her up while people gave us a wide berth.

  “Is everything alright?” And there he was, Private Hoe.

  “Yes, sir! Sir yes, sir!” I saluted with my left hand while my right struggled to keep the sagging Cherish upright without grabbing anything inappropriate.

  It was surprisingly difficult. There was so much not to grab that in the end I was just holding her up with a sort of headlock and an awkward grip on her elbow.

  “Are you… sure?” He stared down at Cherish as she trembled with silent laughter, tears running down her cheeks.