by Randi Darren
“You said you wanted a partner? Well, you’ve got one. And I’m going to dictate the terms to a degree. You want the best Essence from me? Treat me as I’m demonstrating I wish to be treated.”
I rushed this.
Damn. I was too eager to capture an unbound Imp and start over again.
With that thought, Sam realized maybe he was worrying over nothing. If Irma wanted this to be what she was making it seem, it was that much less likely he’d have to worry about her.
She’d be looking out for his best interest.
Don’t have much choice for the time being.
That and I haven’t seen a single Imp other than her so far, which… actually, that’s rather disconcerting now that I think about it.
“And yes, I’m well aware that you have to feed from as many women as possible,” Irma said, squeezing his hand. “I’m sure it’ll hurt me a little bit, but that’s something I expected going into this.”
Sam let out a heavy sigh and shook his head. “Fine. We’ll try it your way for now.”
“Good. Now, Doppelganger,” Irma said, her fingers slowly interlacing into his. “Let’s just call her in here and start talking to her. Maybe an answer will present itself from there.”
A good plan.
“Go ahead then,” Sam said. “Worst case, I glamour her hard or we drop her in my plane.”
Irma gave him a smile, then reached over with her free hand to pick up her phone. She began pushing buttons.
Almost without realizing it, she’d slipped right back into her professional demeanor, one leg crossing over the other.
“Hey Hillary. I have an outside consultant in here, and he’s trying to figure out what we can do better as a company,” Irma lied smoothly. “Could you come in here? He wants to ask you some questions about my management and the company as a whole.”
Irma paused, her eyes moving back to Sam and then strolling down.
Following her gaze, Sam realized he was still naked.
Releasing Irma’s hand, he summoned his construct clothes again.
I should get my credit card today. I can start purchasing things.
“…that’s right,” Irma said, pausing. “As honest as you can be. See you in a minute.”
Irma hung up the phone with a smile. “All set.”
“I think I should let you run our business and clientele side,” Sam said with a sudden insight.
“Business?” Irma asked curiously.
“Long life span. We’ll need a company to funnel money through eventually, in and out. Need to start thinking about what kind of company to build now,” Sam said.
Irma blinked several times, a slow smile spreading across her face. “I’m so glad I went to that bar.”
Removing her hand from his, she gestured at the door and then slid further behind her desk, away from Sam. “She’s going to knock in a second. She always takes a few breaths before she comes in.”
“Oh. That reminds me, I imagine your office probably reeks of sex.” Sam lifted a finger, clearing the air with a drop of Essence as he stood up from his chair.
There was a polite knock on the door several seconds later.
“Come in, Hillary,” Irma said, laying her hands on the desk.
As she stepped into the room, the average-in-every-way Doppelganger glanced at Sam and then Irma.
“Come on in, have a seat,” Irma said, gesturing at the seat that was further into the office.
Hillary scooted past Sam and sat down.
Reaching over to the door, Sam locked it, then pushed his chair up against it and sat down.
Hillary had stopped breathing; she was staring at Sam.
“Hillary,” Irma said. “I think we should have a talk. I think you’ve been stealing, and that you’re not Human. I’ve been—”
“Oh no, you’re with the Federal agency, aren’t you?” Hillary said, still looking at Sam. She cringed into her seat, sinking low into the cushion. “You’re going to arrest me and send me up to that new prison up north. Aren’t you?
“Oh, oh, Mother told me not to do this.”
Sam was confused.
This person was a Doppelganger. A race of legendary assassins, thieves, and politicians.
And right now, she was acting more like a scared young woman.
That’s not true. She’s not acting—she really is.
Hillary’s features shifted rapidly as she clearly got wound up.
Her hair turned bright white, her eyes a pale gold color, and her skin slowly became as pale as a fish belly.
She had alien features, with high cheek bones and a small mouth. Her modest bust size increased slightly, her waist narrowed, and her hips shrank. Her clothes didn’t fit her at all now.
Sam thought she was actually rather pretty, in an athletic sort of way.
“I’m so sorry, Irma,” Hillary said, her voice having gone up in pitch as she morphed into her neutral form. “I’m so sorry. I needed the money. I’m sorry, so sorry. Please. Please don’t—”
Hillary glanced at Sam, clearly thinking he was someone else from somewhere else.
“Don’t do this. Please. Don’t. I need this job. I need it so bad,” Hillary begged.
Irma had looked shocked for an instant, but she recovered quickly.
“I don’t really have a choice, do I?” she asked, leaning forward and holding her hands up in defeat. “What else can I do?”
“I-I-I can help you! I can help you shore up everything and protect it better. I can help you!”
Irma was shaking her head, clearly at a loss.
“Please don’t give me to the Fed, or the PID,” Hillary wailed. “They’ll lock me away for too long. My species has a bad reputation. I’m not that way! My family isn’t like that!”
“Pretty sure you’re stealing from her,” Sam said, indicating Irma. “So your species is entirely like that. But you’re in luck; I’m not with this Fed or PID or whatever.”
“You’re not?” Hillary asked, looking at Sam.
“No. I’m not. But I need to talk to Irma, so…” Sam paused, staring into Hillary’s eyes. He pushed on her psyche with some Essence. “I need you to sleep for a time. Sleep.”
Hillary closed her eyes, slumped over in her chair, and immediately fell asleep.
“I want her,” Sam said, looking to Irma. “I can use her. I’m going to make her an offer to work for me, and a minor contract. Nothing at the level I gave you. More like an employee.”
“Oh. She’d be useful?” Irma said, staring at the non-Human with interest.
“Very. I could use her to infiltrate and help me with clients. That or just feed on her,” Sam said with a shrug. “Would you mind keeping her employed for a while until I can get my own company up and running?”
“Sure,” Irma said, looking at Sam. “She does good work. It wouldn’t be a loss to keep her.”
“Thank you. Do I have your approval to hire her?” Sam asked.
Irma grinned, lifting her chin slightly and turning her head to the side. “Oh? I get a say?”
“Of course. She’d technically work for you, not me. You’d probably task her with a number of responsibilities as well,” Sam said.
“Hm. Then I approve. Thank you for asking,” Irma said. “She’s a nice girl. Sounds like she just got stuck. Probably medical. Health insurance is a nightmare.”
Sam nodded, then shook Hillary’s knee.
Jolting awake, Hillary sat up and stared at Sam with wide eyes.
“What are you?” she asked.
“I’m an extra-planar lord. You’re about to be fired, by the way,” Sam said, then gestured to Irma. “And she might go file charges against you. Though I have an offer for you.”
“There are no planar lords,” Hillary said, her mouth a frown. “They’re all gone.”
“Not at all,” Sam said. Lifting his left hand, he opened up a portal into his plane.
Sunlight poured in from the other side, and the soft sound of the wind whispere
d through the trees.
“Now that I’ve demonstrated my credentials, I’d like you to sign a contract with me, Hillary,” Sam said. “I’d like to hire you as my assassin, thief, and spy. We can work on training for that first job function, but the other two I think you can fulfill easily enough. Though you’ll also be expected to allow me to feed on you as I like. I’m an Incubus, so that comes with almost every contract I sign.”
“You’re a planar lord,” Hillary whispered.
“Yes. I am. The job? Are you willing?” Sam asked.
Hillary nodded slowly, her eyes turning toward him.
“I think so,” she said.
Great. This is working out.
***
Sam hung up the phone and then rolled his shoulders.
Abigail seemed concerned about him, but also relieved that he wasn’t hanging around her.
“Thanks for letting me use your phone,” Sam said, turning to Hillary.
“Of… of course… uhm… do I call you my lord?” asked the young woman, who was standing in the middle of her living room.
It looked similar to Abigail’s. Used, worn furniture that was well maintained but clearly basic. The apartment as a whole was rather small, but she was living on her own.
“No, I never was fond of those appellations,” Sam said. “I’m no petty lord with a name like Alexander who needs to hear those things. Sam will do just fine.”
Moving over to her couch, he sat down.
“Let’s talk about your new job,” he said.
Hillary nodded her head minutely. She still seemed shocked to Sam. Shocked and a bit lost.
“You’ll be taking my place where I’m working, once I clear my contract,” Sam said. “It’s a call-center supervisor. The salary is seventy thousand—”
“Seventy!?” Hillary said, interrupting him.
“Yes, and I should be done in a few months, I think. Until then, you’ll work for Irma as you have been.
“Now, why were you stealing from her?”
Hillary’s chin dipped down, her hands clutched together in front of her.
“My little sister wants to go to college. Mom can’t afford it, and Dad… Dad died, so it’s just us three,” Hillary said. “It’s just too expensive without her taking on a massive debt. Debt she probably can’t repay. She’s a good girl, but not as smart as I am. So, I… did what I did.”
Sam scratched at his chest while thinking.
It was a simple enough thing.
“Alright, is she applying to a local college, or something a bit further away…?” he asked.
“Local for now,” Hillary said.
“Fine. I’ll visit the college and talk to someone in admissions. Your sister will get a free ride for a while,” Sam said. “No more stealing from Irma. She’ll end up being your boss as First Imp. This might just be a job, and you can quit after a few years, but you’ll need to treat her well.”
“She’s an Imp?” Hillary asked, shocked. “She doesn’t have a mask, though. I thought she was a human.”
“Huh? Mask?” Sam asked.
“All… all paranormals are required to have a mask. It makes us look human to humans and helps… helps the PID track us, I think,” Hillary said.
“Hm. Help her with that, then; I have no knowledge of it. I’ve been off plane for many years,” Sam said. “Alright. Anything else I need to know before we seal our contract?”
“Seal our contract?” Hillary repeated.
“Yes. I’ll be feeding from you directly to seal our contract. In addition to the previous terms we discussed on the way over, I’ll translate five percent of the Essence generated into a mana crystal for you to utilize as you see fit during our first coupling.”
“Mana… mana crystal? Those don’t exist,” Hillary said, shaking her head. “Feeding from me?”
Sam sighed. He was beginning to wonder if she wasn’t going to work out after all.
“I’m sorry, never mind. I understand. I’m just a little flustered. Planar lords don’t exist anymore and yet here you are,” Hillary said. “Okay. Yes. I… agree. Feed from me, mana crystals, you’re a planar lord, and… and I’m going to sign a job offer with you. I can quit whenever I want after… three years?”
“That’s right, three years. Any other questions?” Sam asked. He’d done a fair job of laying out all the benefits for her. He could practically hear the need for money turning circles around in her head.
He wasn’t above pitching to a person’s need. It wasn’t like they were bartering for souls.
Just a job and some sex. She could quit after her contract period, just like any other job.
“Is the eternal youth really—”
“Yes, it’s immortality. You’ll also remain as young as you are today,” Sam said.
“Okay,” Hillary said. “Should I just… take off my clothes, or…?”
“Preferably, yes. Can’t do as much with them on,” Sam said with a grin. “Anywhere in particular you’d like this to happen?”
“My bed,” Hillary said, then shook her head with a frown. Turning on her heel, she started walking for a doorway nearby.
Sam got up, feeling excited.
He had his First Imp, and he’d found a Doppelganger willing to contract through sex with him.
He’d never had a Doppelganger before either.
Everyone had their own preferred method to contract. For an Incubus, nothing was better than savoring a contract with a meal.
“Do we need a condom, or—” Hillary’s voice fell off. She apparently couldn’t finish the question.
“No condom,” Sam said, dismissing his clothes and moving around to the far side of Hillary’s bed. She was undressing, putting her clothes away as she did so. “No risk of pregnancy, and I can’t catch anything from you, or vice versa. Incubus.”
“Right, okay. Right,” Hillary said. “Incubus. Planar lord who’s an Incubus.”
Hillary crawled onto her narrow bed and lay down on her back.
“Should I… should I stay looking like this?” asked the Doppelganger, who still appeared as one of her race. “Is there anyone you’d want me to look like?”
“Up to you, doesn’t matter to me,” Sam said. “You look nice. Different. And for a Doppelganger, you’re cute.”
Chewing at her lower lip, Hillary spread her knees apart, baring herself entirely to him.
Sam got up into the bed and settled directly atop Hillary, his knees pressing into the bottoms of her thighs.
Hillary didn’t seem to know what to do with her arms. At first she laid them down next to her. Then across her chest.
She didn’t smell like a virgin, which meant he didn’t have to go through any extra steps. Though she seemed to be decidedly acting like one.
Thinking it’d be better for him to play it safe than sorry, Sam figured he’d take it slow for their first time. With any luck, she’d become a regular meal.
Glancing down, Sam shifted his hips around to push his tip up into her channel.
Hillary tensed up.
“You alright?” Sam asked, peering down at her.
“Uhm, yes?” said the young woman as she stared back up at him. “Aren’t you an Incubus?”
“Yes,” Sam said, smiling faintly.
“Aren’t you going to… to hurt me and feed off my pain and… and all that?” Hillary asked.
Laughing, Sam shook his head.
“No. I feed off your orgasm. My goal is to make you feel as good as possible. Where in the world did you get that bad information from?” he asked.
Hillary coughed once and then laughed, her body slowly relaxing under him. “Don’t worry about it. Just me being stupid. I’m ready.”
Sam shrugged.
“It’s just sex,” he said. “Sex with a contract tied to it, but still just sex.”
“Just sex,” Hillary repeated with a nod. Making some type of choice in her head, she reached up and looped her arms around his neck. “It’s just sex.”
“Yup. Just sex,” Sam said, then pushed forward. The head of his member sank into her, parting her tight walls.
Hillary took in a slow breath as his shaft began to fill her. When his hilt pressed in tight to her lips, she shuddered with a soft moan.
“You’re a little big,” Hillary said, shifting her hips around. There was a strange sensation around his girth inside her. She suddenly felt much tighter around him, but also like he could push harder on her.
“That’s better,” she said.
Okay. That’s… neat.
Sam chuckled at that, looking at the Doppelganger.
“That’s rather fun,” he said.
“You like that? Here, watch this,” Hillary said with a smile. Suddenly her chest became massive. Massive and perfect. Her waist narrowed, and her hips widened. “Better? You like it?”
I clearly needed a Doppelganger in my life.
Setting his hands down on either side of Hillary’s much wider hips, Sam pushed at her with his lower half, grinding himself down on her clit and lips.
“Very. I think we’re going to have a lot of fun together, Hillary. I might visit you more than I do Irma,” Sam said. Leaning down, he kissed her hungrily, pushing his psyche into her at the same time.
Hillary’s tongue whirled and danced over his. Delighted at her willingness, Sam began to turn her sensitivity up on her nerves. At the same time, he began to flood her brain with hormones. Using a tiny piece of Essence, he stroked her entire psyche from top to bottom.
Quivering uncontrollably, Hillary practically melted under him.
Perfect.
He pulled out of her, then immediately pushed forward again when he reached the tip. With smooth movements, he worked himself in and out of the Doppelganger.
Leaning away from her as he pumped down with his hips, Sam watched Hillary. He often enjoyed viewing his handiwork.
It got him off to see how much women enjoyed it.
He was an Incubus, after all.
Hillary lay there beneath him, moaning and turning her head to one side. She was struggling to roll her hips in time with his thrusts, bringing him deeper into her.
Pushing down on her hips with his forearms, Sam began to pound his way into her. He wanted to cram everything into her as fast and hard as possible. Pushing more Essence into her, he tweaked her nerves even higher, trying to practically set her body on fire.
