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Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 01

By: lysander815



This is the first chapter a multi-part, novel-length story. Think of it as epic high fantasy with a Dungeons and Dragons flavor. There's some exposition early on, but plenty of action to come. Feedback and comments are welcome! I hope you enjoy it.

I

The demons invaded decades ago, through a portal in the savage range of mountains that girded the western border of our empire. Though legends told of great beasts from other realms that would sometimes make incursions into our plane of existence, the corporeal monsters that roamed our lands - the dragons, the basilisks, the corrupted wizards - were real enough, and thus we paid no heed to the warnings in the forgotten ancient texts. But they came in legion, and rumors of their appearance were dismissed as the fantasies of weary caravan merchants and drunken sailors. The hill tribes worshipped their power, knowing no other gods, and were turned to their will in short order. The army came, and we turned them back; the demons thought they could overcome our magics, but a precious few among us, the wizards of the Starlight Tower, fought them and won. The bestial army was pushed back at the gates of our capital city and they scattered, and what little knowledge we had of them was put to work. The history books were written, and the stories rightfully focused on the stories of the heroes: Gallius the Magnificent, Halakai the Wondrous, Quentin the Unmatched. Though they lived long lives under the influence of their spells and potions, eventually they passed away, and left but a shadow of their power in the hands of their successors. My grandfather told the stories, tales from his childhood of fleeing a city overrun by the invaders, joining the army, fighting in that last battle alongside sorcerers of unfathomable power; my father, a man who grew up under the tutelage of a broken generation, passed them down to me.

The demons returned, of course. They had never really been dead, only decimated, and in attempting to evade the swords of militia companies wiping the last pockets of survivors from the countryside, devised a strategy much more insidious than before. Among the remnants of the otherworldly horde were the succubi and incubi who, not really male or female in spirit but presenting themselves in human-like bodies, worked their way into our empire, our cities, our towns, our homes. Thieving away the souls of our people by seducing them was easy work. The strict moral code some of our gods demanded of us was easily broken, and what had once been a horde of barbarian zealots became an underground cult, hiding in plain sight. They preyed on our men and women alike, draining their energies, using them as vessels for unholy reproduction. The succubi, impossible to distinguish from a human woman with the senses alone, harvested seed from our men and, once quick with child, killed them and left their battered bodies in dark alleyways and brothel chambers as ominous warnings. The incubi, with suggestive powers strong enough to break the resistance even the most pious priestess, kidnapped them and took them as wives. It went on for years before anyone knew. The half-demon half-human children were hidden away at first, and though their powers paled in comparison to their pureblood parents they could still seduce and breed and kill. We didn't even know we were fighting another war, and we had no army.

Then, around the time of by birth, or so I am told, the Orders emerged: the Brothers of the Sacred Sword, and the Sisters of the Sacred Sheath. Not an offshoot of any one church, but sanctioned as a holy order by the emperor, their temples appeared in the cities, their monasteries in the countryside. There was much secrecy around their operations, and in truth few of the common folk heard more than rumors and tavern whispers. Demon-slayers, holy warriors, blessed soldiers of superior prowess. Living on the streets, as I did, one heard more than the average peasant might. Gossip flowed through the city when I returned from the war against the pirates who raided the southern coast of the empire. Why hadn't the Orders intervened? Surely a handful of such legendary warriors could have turned the tide of battle, shaved months, maybe years, off a costly and bloody campaign. My company of conscripts emerged victorious, but with less than a third of our original numbers returning to the capital. Other brigades suffered similar losses. The demon cults were a threat, of course, but the more immediate threat was from the actual invaders, not the perpetrators of random and rare killings. The Starlight Tower had come to our aid. Why not these paladins of renown?

I spent months trying to find out, trying to buy my way into their temple. I made a home for myself in an alley in the slums, rather than rent a room with my back pay from my military service. I was allowed to keep my sword and armor, and soon enough the brigands who stalked the neighborhood in which I made my home knew that I would put up a fight if attacked. I stole, gambled, and engaged in pit fights with ever-growing pots of coin at stake. 

"If you're going to get into that temple, you best have the coin," some drunk in a tavern once told me. He had tried, he claimed, and failed, to join their order. "Them paladins'll take your donation sure enough, but if it's information you want, you need to get on their good side."

When I tried to track this man down again a week later for more information, I learned that the night after we spoke his body had been discovered at the inn, covered in claw and bite marks, his entrails spilled out over the dirty wooden floor of the room he was renting. I did not see the body but they said his skin was pale and dry as parchment, his face twisted in horrific agony. It was, the innkeep told me, the second such killing that year, and the season was only just turning to spring. Just two weeks ago, he told me, one of his barmaids had disappeared.

"The demons are coming for us, mark my words," the innkeep, Victor, said, serving me a flagon of bitter black ale to help wash away my disappointment. Victor and I drank together, then and often. "That Order you're after best act soon, or this time next year the bedrooms of this town will be littered with corpses." 

I raised the money - the sum of a hundred gold coins had come from another reliable source - but in the year that passed I remained unsure of my objective. Revenge was certainly off the table; I was skilled enough with a blade, but I was no match for one trained knight, never mind how many resided within that monumental cathedral in the center of our walled city. A hundred gold coins was no small sum, more than I could earn in a five years of working the fields or patrolling the streets in the city watch. Would throwing such an amount of money to join some secret society give me purpose? Would throwing such amount of money at them even get me anywhere? In my mind I played out the scenario: some broken old priest taking my sack of coins and thanking me for my contribution to the holy order, bestowing upon me some meaningless blessing, and disappearing through the stone doors of the temple forever. I searched for answers, collected rumors as fervently as I collected coins, and in asking a hundred people I received two hundred different answers to my only question: how could I pass beyond those stone doors and discover the real motives of these sacred soldiers?



Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 01



"The demon has one goal, and that is to copulate with a human and produce demonic offspring. Their appetites are insatiable," he said, with a sorrow in his voice. "Our knights, both of this Order and the Sisters, offer the demon an inexhaustible outlet for their carnal urges and, when the demon is fatigued and can consume no more, destroy them."

Nothing I had come across in my search for information had come anywhere close to revealing this truth. I stood, eyes on the tapestry, erection raging, stunned. The picture seemed to be moving, the flames in the demon's black eyes flickering, the man thrusting further and further into her, the blade descending. It was either some kind of magic, or my starved imagination running away from me. 

"I have heard many stories," I replied, after some time in contemplation. "But that is the most absurd."

"Whether you choose to believe it or not is entirely up to you," Althenon said. "And it does not change the facts. Our priesthood seeks out the demons, weakens them, and banishes them back to the netherworld from which they came. There are but twenty of us left, but we are strong, and we are winning."

"How can mortal men fight the succubi?" I asked. The demons my grandfather had fought during the war were one thing, but the succubi and incubi were creatures of great power, able to bend the will of humans almost without fail, given the chance. Only magic, it was said, could keep them at bay. 

"We are in league with the Starlight Tower," he replied. "Our goals are the same, if not our methods. We train. We practice." 

"I've heard tales of the ferocity of the demons," I said. "To withstand that must be quite a feat of stamina."

"One of them came to our side," he explained. "The sisterhood has a male or two as well, but their capture was much easier to accomplish. The incubi are governed by lust above all else, and residence with a willing group of women is more than enough incentive for the individual to stop their violent ways."

"I beg your pardon, but I must ask for proof," I said. "If I cannot be among your chosen, I believe my tithe has bought me at least that."

"That, and much more," Althenon replied. He raised his hand and beckoned to someone. We were not alone in the room.

Two armed and armored men approached, clad in silver plate from neck to foot. One of them was black of skin and shorter than the other, who was greying in the temples and had a scar across his left cheek. They reached us and stopped, without a word, hands on the hilts of their swords.

"Brother, please fetch Talaxel and escort her to the circle," he said to the dark-skinned knight. The man, who was only a little taller than myself, nodded and turned. With one hand on his sword he clanked across the room and disappeared through one of the doors.

"How may I assist you?" said the other man, who was smiling now, ever so slightly. 

"Take young Quentin here to the meditation room," Althenon commanded. "He will go through the first rite today. I will join you there shortly."





Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 01



"You have my sincere thanks," I replied, taking in a deep breath. 

"Save your words," he told me. "You will have plenty of time to express your feelings at your induction. For now, take rest in this room. I will bring you some books and food shortly."

"Again," I said, laying back on the mattress and the hard pillow. "Thank you."

Without a word, Althenon departed, but left the door ajar. I sat up, thinking I might be able to summon the strength to close it, but another figure appeared through the gap. Her form was unmistakable – Talaxel. I had nowhere to go but backward into the wall, and to hide under the blankets would be unbecoming for an aspiring knight. But she gave me a kind smile, and I found her much less intimidating when covered by a loose, shapeless gown. 

"My darling," she said, approaching the bed. She did it with much less force than I had the day before, and with a grace I found surprising for what most would call a demon. "You have nothing to fear."

"Why should I believe you?" I replied. "I have no explanation for what happened yesterday. Magic can be a powerful thing, I have heard, but to not be accountable for my action is something I have yet to experience." 

"My powers are great, but I have no desire to harm members of the Order," Talaxel said. She sat not at the end of the bed like Althenon had, but at the edge, mere inches from where I lay. 

"I was told you are here under duress," I replied. The memory was hazy, but I knew I had been told that, at least. 

"I sought asylum here when my own people tried to destroy me," she said. "In exchange for the service I performed with you last night, I am allowed to live here in relative luxury. I am happy to be able to help the brothers here fight my kind." 

"Forgive me if I am skeptical," I said. "You seemed all the demon last night."

"Half performance," she explained. "Half spell. The right wizard, the right command, and I have a tendency to lose control, if I allow myself to."

"I thought he was protecting me."

"He was," Talaxel said. "Had he uttered the wrong word, I might have torn you apart. But I wanted you, and I cannot give you a proper challenge unless a bit of my true nature slips out."

"Well, I thank you for restraining yourself," I said. Her presence was calming, if only because it dispelled my previous notions of her demeanor. 

"We will see each other again, I am sure," she said. "For the safety of the Order I keep myself relatively secluded, but you may seek me out if you have any questions. I'm sure they will arise as your time her lengthens."

"It's good to know that yesterday was a fiction," I said. 

"A fiction?" she said, laying a soft hand on my cheek. Her green eyes caught the light as she tilted her chin to one side, as one might use their face to comfort a child. "My darling, yesterday was just a taste of the reality that awaits you."



Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 02



II

Sir Ballard assured me that the wilderness would be difficult, but would be made more pleasant by the fact that we would not be traveling alone. Almost immediately I found he was correct. We traveled on horseback, a mode of transport to which I was grossly unaccustomed, and by the third day I could barely sit my saddle, let alone ride for hours without relief. A small pack mule followed us on a tether, carrying our food, bedrolls, tents and other various supplies. The two of us alone might have been able to manage everything with saddlebags, but the sorceress brought a ridiculous amount of equipment. Our animals were loaded down with satchels of sweet smelling herbs and padded cases of potions, all of which the young woman assured us were of vital importance to the mission at hand. I was not convinced; she had barely mentioned them after three days on the road, and I was beginning to think this was some other kind of test, of patience perhaps, or the tolerance of others. If not for her ally, the Lady Elaina, traveling alongside us, I might have made my disregard for her excess much better known to the rest of the group. 

Lady Elaina - Ballard assured me that she insisted on the honorific, and would not be amused if I casually discarded it - was a senior member of the Order of the Sacred Sheath. Much to my surprise she came to us heavily armed, a gigantic axe and round wooden shield slung across her back, torso weighed down by a tarnished shirt of chainmail. Having never met a member of the Order of the Sacred Sheath, I expected their membership to be comprised of old crones and unassuming virgins, as most female orders often were. She had a plain beauty about her - not to say boring, but to my eyes her appeal was simplistically pleasing - and though she was a woman of few words she answered my questions when asked, and was helpful in the beginning stages of our expedition. She knew the route without having to consult a map, and led us through overgrown trails with a confidence I rarely saw in my commanding officers during the war, let alone the women I had associated with before and since. On the first day she spent most of the daylight hours attending to the sorceress, a girl my age named Meredith who was either her squire or apprentice or otherwise subordinate, and once the camp was erected for the night she promptly disappeared into her tent and did not emerge until sunrise the next day. On that second day the rain came down from the mountains, and there was little conversation to be had through the roar of the downpour that rustled the leaves above. It was a singularly miserable experience, and I slept perhaps four hours between struggles to keep my bedroll dry and my tent from flooding. The mood was dark on the third day, but eventually when the clouds dissipated and our clothes began to dry, I was able, with much effort, to spark a dialogue with the sister who accompanied us.

"Lady Elaina," I began, speeding my horse ahead to bring myself up alongside her. Ballard took up the rear, making sure Meredith and her beast of burden did not fall behind. The terrain was difficult, and some space had grown between us. Ballard also warned me that the road was dangerous, and if he disappeared from time to time it was more likely that he was ducking into the woods to make sure we were not being followed by bandits. This appeared to be one such time, and since it was him who had sternly warned me against bothering our companions, I decided to use his absence to my advantage. "May I ask you a personal question?"

"Of course you may," she replied, bobbing along with the steps of her steed. "As long as I'm not bound to answer it."

"Fair enough," I replied. "Where do you come to the Order from?"

"The south," she answered, gaze on the road ahead. The sun was in front of us and the water off the trees glimmered, making it hard to watch the path without squinting. I turned my head to her. 

"I spent some time in the south," I told her. "Maybe I traveled through your home town."

"My home town isn't where the war was," she said. 

"How did you know I was in the war?" I asked. "I could have been a merchant, or a sailor before I joined the Order?"

"I have known Sir Ballard for many years," Lady Elaina explained. "He told me everything about you long before we embarked on this journey."

"I'm sure he couldn't have told you everything," I said. "But if you know everything about me, why don't you tell me something about yourself? It seems like we'll be traveling together for quite some time. It might make the journey seem shorter if we have something to talk about."

"You'll have to forgive me," she said, the harsh angles of her face blended to softness by a beam of light that broke through the foliage. "I haven't much to say to strangers."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I responded. "Though I've only been with the order for a few months, you shouldn't think of me as a stranger."

"Believe me when I say that the Order trusts you much less than you might think," she said, unable to hide a disapproving grin. "You have much to learn before you receive your knighthood."

"I know, my lady," I replied. I had heard this story many times before. There would be trials and study, tests of combat and knowledge of demon lore. "Many come to the temple, and so few remain for life."

"I wish I could say that most people give up of their own accord," she went on, "finding that the work of a knight is too difficult and consuming. But the truth of the matter is that many die because they believe they are strong, and in the end it's their pride that kills them."

"The last six months have made me doubt my strength, if nothing else," I said. Our horses had reached a steady pace now, and thought he road was still blocked by low branches and ambitious saplings we made our way quickly enough. I glanced back to see if Ballard and the witch had caught up with us; they were still out of sight. 

"It's more than fucking, you know," she said. "You'll have to be twice as good with your sword as you are with your cock. And there's no potion for that." 

"The brothers have beaten me near to death on more than one occasion," I said. I still had bruises on my chest from a round of training before we left. "My fighting is coming along. I nearly ran Sir Gregory through with last week."

"And what about that demon?" she asked, looking over at me with a cocked eyebrow. "How many times have you run her through?"

"As many times as I am commanded," I replied and, sensing her judgment added, "and no more."

"There's no shame in being prepared for the challenges to come," she said. "I've let the incubi take me many a time. When you know you have all the power, it can even be exhilarating. But know this."

She leaned over and, face near to mine, whispered so low that I could barely hear her over the hoof-clicks of the mare beneath me. 

"If you think Talaxel is working you over now, wait until you meet one in the wild," Lady Elaina said. "You'll think it's stealing your life through your loins. Many a time I thought I might come to death astride the cock of one of those monsters." 

"Have you met a full-blood?" I asked. They were much less common than their offspring, and tended to hide themselves better, but where allegedly much more ferocious and insatiable.

"Once," the lady replied, with a genuine smile now. She held her gauntlet out across the gap between us, so that if she stopped suddenly my chest would strike it at the nipple. "Cock as big as my forearm. I thought it might split my ass wide open."

"Your ass?" I asked. For half a year men had been watching me fight, watching me fuck Talaxel for hours at a time, but the idea of this raised a heat in my face that must have tinged it red. "My lady!"

"It takes skill to tire the demon," she said. "And patience. Some of the Sisters have the fortitude, but others must deploy different talents to keep pace."

"I'm sorry you have to do that," I said, imaging myself in that position. It was not a pleasant notion. 

"Please, boy," she said. "I would not do anything I did not want to do. There are a number of ways to kill a demon. Just because we take on a solemn duty does not mean that we cannot enjoy it." 

"It's easier for us, I suppose."

"Nonsense," she said. "If we come across an incubi on this expedition, I am sure you will learn first-hand."

"I look forward to it," I said. "Many of these things are clearly still a mystery to me."





Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 02



"My lady, it's the dinner hour," Ballard said. "It would be quite rude. And we've all had enough to eat already."

"One time I took two of the half-breeds," Lady Elaina continued. A pull of the wine paused her rant for a moment. "I took one with my mouth and one with my ass. They begged me to make them finish, to end their beautiful agony. At the same time they filled me in each end, and I banished them both with my dagger before their pricks were soft." 

"I suppose you never heard the tale of when Sir Duncan and I broke up the coven in the sewers beneath the capital temple district," Ballard said. "We subdued the beast, but only after we fucked our way through twenty mortal women under its spell." 

"Twenty women?" Lady Elaina asked. "You couldn't even handle one woman."

"Ask the witch," he replied, once again indicating Meredith with a spin of his wrist. 

"A girl," Elaina said. "Her snatch was ready for you, I'm sure. Dripping wet and quivering with anticipation, ready to burst at the lightest touch." 

"Of course it was," replied Ballard. "She'd heard the stories about me."

"Other than her, name one human woman you've fucked," roared Elaina, laughing with sadistic delight, "and I'll suck that tiny sausage of yours every night until we return to the temple." 

"I couldn't say," Ballard said after a moment of contemplation. "I never bother to learn their names."

"Your boasting is shameful, brother," said the sister. Meredith was giggling, red-faced.

"Ah, to bed with you all," he said, rising from the ground. "Tomorrow will be a long day. Perhaps even longer than my cock, I imagine."

Through fabric of his pants I could see the bulge of his hard member, stretching halfway to his knee. Were I to stand the group would see my raging erection as well, though it would not cut nearly as large a silhouette as Ballard's. At least his conception of his physical stature seemed less of an exaggeration; I imagined it springing from his pants, black and veiny and flexing as he stroked it, irresistible to all but those with the strongest constitutions. Meredith gasped when she saw it, averting her eyes but squirming in place all the same. Her breathing was heavy either from the laughing or from the same blind arousal their ribald conversation had provoked in me, but I could not be sure. At the first opportune moment I would have to duck into the woods to relieve myself, or I would never be able to get to sleep. 

"Go and follow him, if you must," Lady Elaina whispered to Meredith as the knight stomped away. "See if you can coax one more load from him before bed."

Without a word Meredith stood and, taking a moment to steady herself under the influence of the wine, skipped off to follow Sir Ballard as he disappeared behind the flap of the canvas tent. Suddenly it was silent again, except the crackling din of the campfire, though if Sir Ballard could stay awake under the drink I imagined it would not be quiet for long. 

"That was quite a display, my lady," I said. 

"All bravado, I assure you," she replied. "It keeps the aggressive ones at bay. And you may call me Elaina. As I just demonstrated, I am hardly a lady."

"You seem his match, at least," I said. "Excuse me, but you seem barely fit to hold the title." 

"I move in many circles," Elaina said. "There is a time to be reserved, and there are times to stand your ground."

"Who taught you to stand your ground?" 

"Who said anyone had to teach me?"

"I apologize," I said. "I know nothing of your background."

"There is little to say of my life before the Order," she said. "Though perhaps I can relay the story another time."

"I hope you forgive me for my curiosity, but I would very much like to hear it," I said. I did my best to give her a comforting smile, but if anything she seemed the type of woman who did not need the comfort of a man barely twenty. But she smiled back, and with a deep breath began the tale. 

"My husband was quite a warrior, but there were some things even he couldn't fight."

There was another pause. I don't know if she expected me to say anything, but in remaining silent I discovered I didn't have to.

"I found him with one of them," she said, looking past the fire into the wilderness beyond the border of our camp. "It wasn't his fault, of course. She was a gorgeous creature, even to me, and her magic was in full effect. He was on the brink of death by the time I returned home. There was nothing I could do but kill the beast."

"You killed one?" I asked. "Unaided?"

"A rage consumed me, and I was quick with his axe," Lady Elaina explained, nodding to her weapon laying by the campfire. "And it was only one of the half-breeds. I brought the monster's head to the temple, and they gave me a provisional admission to the order."

"Provisional?"

"I served as a handmaid in the temple for months before they let me attempt the first rite," she explained. "I was only fifteen. They wanted to make sure I was committed, and not solely out for revenge."    

"I can't imagine, my lady," I said, unsure of what else to say.

"No, you cannot," she replied. "When Meredith is done with Ballard, you can take the first watch with her. I am very tired."

"Goodnight, my lady," I said, bowing my head as she rose and made her way to the empty tent.

I rose as well and, erection diminished, wrapped the palm of my left hand around the hilt of my sword and made my way to the edge of the camp to begin my patrol of the perimeter.





Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 02



I came alongside him, firing ropes of seed onto the leaves at my feet. As soon as I was finished I tucked my shrinking rod away, and ducked behind the tree. Now that their passion was winding down I could not risk them seeing me. I turned to flee but before I could take a step I saw Meredith standing behind another tree, close behind me, one hand tucked into the chest of her robe fondling a breast, the other beneath her belt, rubbing her own cunt. She met my eye and winked at me, and with the hand groping her tit raised a solitary finger to her pursed lips to silence me. A quick jerk of her head signaled that I should depart first, and I did, glancing back only to watch her turn and run soon after, chasing me through the silent wood toward the risen sun.



Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 03



We reached the town in a few days' time, passing the abandoned mill Ballard spoke of, and through a desolate region of hills and grass where no trees could be bothered to root. As far as I was aware, no other liaisons occurred between members of our expedition, though the encounter I witnessed between Ballard and Elaina simultaneously answered many questions and raised others about my future and the nature of the Order of the Sacred Sword. Though I had not determined exactly why, the members of the sisterhood and the brotherhood were kept separate from each other in the confines of the capital, meeting only to discuss affairs of great importance regarding the hunting of the enemy or perform some rare ceremony that required, by law of the abstract divine power behind the Orders, required members of both sexes. But I had been given no specific instructions to avoid intimate contact with the sisters, or for that matter, any member of the opposite gender. Ballard had snuck off with Elaina into the woods, when he had made love to Meredith just hours before within hearing of the lady and myself. I imagined there might be a thrill to be gained from hiding, at least pretending that their affair was somehow illicit, though I could not understand why they would choose to fornicate against a tree when there was a perfectly warm bedroll nearby in which to conduct their exchange. It seemed I had a lot to learn.

But it did explain something about the familiarity between Ballard and Elaina. Before my admittance into the Order of the Sacred Sword, my only contact with women had been the result of currency exchanged in an establishment specifically designed to facilitate those sorts of transactions. The pirates had no women among their raiding parties, and even if they did I do not believe myself to be capable of the brutal acts they perpetrated with the women they took prisoner in the towns they raided. I had been a boy fifteen when I left to fight on the coast, too young and too stupid to convince one of the few girls I came in contact with on a regular basis to bid me an adult farewell. Perhaps they had been friends for years, as Elaina claimed, and only now had the opportunity to consummate their unrequited feelings toward one another away from the prying concerns of the strict doctrine to which they adhered. Or, I guessed, it was possible that their relationship as sanctioned, or that when traveling on assignment fraternization between companions was permitted. Meredith, though party to our mission, was outside the Order of the Sacred Sheath, and though she was studying under Elaina I discovered in conversation that she had free reign to do what she pleased as long as it was not detrimental to our efforts. Was there an Elaina in my future, somewhere among the young sisters? Would I one day, exhausted from fighting the vile and deceptive demons, yearn for the comforts of the flesh among my own kind? After experiencing Talaxel's ministrations, I had to assume the answer was yet. If her kind were the absolute future of my romantic life, I was in store for a much more difficult journey in the Order than I had anticipated. The texts I was assigned to read, the only words I was permitted to consume, spoke of heroic deeds accomplished by brothers and sisters of the Orders, feats of stamina and courage in fucking and slaying the creatures who had infested the empire. Only twenty years of such a history had been laid down by our scribes, but the stories were numerous and detailed. Information about anything else was, at least as the past half year had taught me, sparse.

It was midday when we reached the eponymous entrance to Rivergate, a great iron door on the bank of the river that ran along the western wall of the city. I had visited the city twice - once on my way to the war, and once on my way back - but even if I hadn't it would still have looked familiar. It boasted the same high, grey walls as the capital, and the city watch here wore the same blue cloaks that wrapped the armed soldiers that patrolled the streets on which the Orders' temples lay.

Perhaps for a moment I should remark on the nature of the cities the empire dotted the continent with. They large, though distant from each other, often located adjacent to large bodies of water or, in the case of those that guarded the borders of the realm, in the shadows of mountains that were used as a natural defense from one or more directions. Hundreds of years ago there had been a great age of building in the wake of the war that united the many disparate nations under one banner, and the empire, four hundred miles from end to end, three hundred and fifty from top to bottom, flourished before the demon invasion. Rivergate was one of the oldest cities, and the closest to the capital. It was built at the widest point of the river that wound from the southern coast to the seat of the emperor, and served as the last defensive outpost should invaders - pirates, perhaps - decide to make their way up the river in an attempt to claim the throne. Approaching the city from the north gave us a beautiful view; it was in the center of a river valley, surrounded by a verdant forest cut by many well-worn roads. 

"It's very peaceful," Meredith said as we neared the gates. She was right. There was little noise coming over from beyond the walls, and though the doors of the city were open to us few other people passed through them: two or three horse-drawn carts, a couple of men hauling a wagon piled high with cut lumber. 

"We have likely missed the harvest," Elaina said. "By a week or two, I would imagine. If you want excitement, the docks are always interesting. If fact, we should head there straight away. If we're in search of rumors about mysterious disappearances, someone lurking in a tavern there will likely blab for free."

"We should visit the temples first," Ballard replied. "If anyone would know about an evil presence in the city, it would be them."

"There are many temples here, from what I've read," Meredith said. "Where do we start?"

"We start at the docks," Elaina replied.

"Perhaps we could split up," I suggested. "I'm familiar with the docks. Perhaps I could accompany Lady Elaina there, and you could visit the priests?"

"Out of the question. We must remain together," Elaina explained. "Heaven forbid the thing is a full blood. It will take all four of us to bring it down."

"Very well," Ballard replied, with a shrug. "I care not. Neither inquiry is likely to yield concrete information. We will have to explore both options eventually."

No one bothered us as we entered the city, the sun at our backs, the quiet hum of the town seeming to part before us as we rode down the street. Elaina was correct in her assessment of the docks. Once we came down the hill to where the edge of the city met the river, we were confronted with a dense cluster of wooden buildings that butted against each other, with just a few wide roads leading down to a long stretch of piers at which dozens of boats were moored. It was much louder, and the stench was awful, and I wondered how even a demon could spend much time here without growing sick of the place. The slums in the capital were dirty, but here the reek of fish was almost too much to bear. 

"I wish I had known we'd be coming somewhere so disgusting," Meredith said. "I would have brewed a potion to kill my sense of smell. Or at least fashioned a mask." 

"You will survive, I am sure," Elaina replied. "Just be glad we're not tracking one of them through a swamp. They tend to hide there when they're waiting to give birth."

"That's foul," Meredith said. "I don't know why I ever bother leaving the capital."

"Perhaps you should keep your mouth shut," Elaina replied. "It will help avoid the stench, if nothing else."

We followed Elaina's lead, as neither Meredith nor I knew where to begin such a search, and Ballard seemed to be there simply to intimidate anyone who was gruff with the lady. On horseback we were quite conspicuous, so we led them through the docks, allowing them little leeway; I had no idea whether someone would be brazen enough to steal a horse directly from us, but after my time on the streets of the capital I knew that much stranger things had happened. Questions put to three different merchants – one of whom offered three silvers for a "peak at the blond one's cunny" – lead us to a tavern buried in the center of the district, where we were told we would be able to find a hot meal and a room for as long as we needed one.

"There's plenty of sailors there," the man said. Behind him were long spools of hemp rope, and in front of him samples on a small covered table. "At the very least you'll get a story 'bout one of 'em fuckin' a mermaid."

"Thank you," Elaina said, flipping him a copper. "I'll make sure to pay close attention>"

"Got girls there, too," he said as we turned, "if this one's not takin' customers."

It was subtle, but Meredith gave a wave of her right hand and mumbled a few words in a language I recognized as the arcane speech of the Starlight Tower, though I had no notion of what it might mean. Beneath the man's eye line, around the level of my belt, black wisps of smoke curled out from the tips of her fingers, and floated in the stall keeper's direction.

"What was that?" I whispered as we were yards away. It seemed Elaina and Ballard had not noticed her surreptitious casting. Aside from the man who protected me during my sexual encounters with Talaxel, I had never seen someone cast an actual spell. It filled me with a joy and curiosity; I had neither the mathematical talent nor the linguistic discipline to study the eldritch arts, and was enraptured by Meredith's effortless command of them.

"Quite hard to explain," she replied, speaking to me through the curtain of her yellow hair. We kept our eyes straight ahead, following close behind our superiors. "But you can rest assured in the morning that troll will find some uncomfortable blisters in a very sensitive area."

"Have you done that before?" I asked. 

"I would not do it to you, if that's what concerns you," Meredith said. She reached a hand out, the same hand who had just cursed the rude merchant, and squeezed my flaccid cock. "I would never do anything to hurt my new favorite toy."

"A funny way of showing it," I said, immediately afraid I was being too bold. But if one intends to ride into town, one might as well take his finest carriage. "Your plaything feels quite neglected." 

"All in due time," Meredith said. "You boys and your impatience. Think of it as a challenge, and not a test." 

"In that case, I await the hour the challenge is completed," I replied. I saw the corner of Meredith's mouth turn up, but she gave me no other signal.

#

I liked to think that my impoverished period, before I joined the order, gave me a tolerance for the gross and filthy. But my time shut up in the Order's halls had clearly softened me. The common room of the establishment was dimly lit, even in the early afternoon that otherwise brilliantly illuminated the city. There was a bar at one end, manned by a fellow as wide as he was tall, an a few roving girls in ankle-length skirts of unremarkable material made their way from over-packed table to over-packed table. There must have been a hundred men in the room, which was half the size of one of the reading rooms at the Order's headquarters. Smoke rose from numerous inflamed tobacco pipes, and a general atmosphere of shouting and carousing made it nearly impossible to hear Elaina's words. 
"I will speak to the innkeeper about securing lodging and accommodations for our steeds," she said. Ballard had remained outside with the horses, trusting that the threat of my sword and Elaina's giant axe would keep any trouble at bay. "Try to find a table, if you can."

It was an easier objective set than accomplished, but we found seats in a removed corner, which I imagined Elaina would appreciate. Though we had gone to no great lengths to keep our presence in Rivergate covert, if word traveled that two knights of the Order of the Sacred Sword, one lady of the Order of the Sacred Sheath, and a wizard of the Starlight Tower were within the walls of the city, any evil presence that made its home here would either flee or, worse, attack us if it believed itself powerful enough to overcome our considerable martial skills. I had yet to see Elaina fight, but if she was half as skilled as Ballard, between her and Meredith's ability to strike a man with disease with a flick of her wrist, we were quite a force to be reckoned with. Any demon who believed itself capable of defeating us would be a great and terrible monster, and everything I had read told me that demons did not have a habit of overestimating their prowess. 

"Well done," Elaina said, joining us with four wooden mugs in hand. "Sir Ballard should be along shortly. The stable boy informed me there is plenty of room out back. Our gear will be brought up to the room. What have you learned so far?"

"Excuse me?" I asked. 

"Have you spoken to anyone?" she asked. She leaned over and whispered into the space between myself and Meredith. "What is the mood of the room? Anything unusual?"

"Not to my eyes," I said, looking to Meredith. She raised her thin eyebrows and shook her head, clearly as befuddled by the question as I found myself. "Though there does seem to be quite a bit of drinking going on for midday."

"A ship arrived this morning carrying seventy soldiers," Elaina said. "They are on their way to Northolme. Apparently, there is some kind of uprising across the border, and more troops are required to ensure that the violence does not spill over into the empire."

"It appears as if the violence is about to spill over onto our table," Meredith said, a moment before she pushed her chair back and stood as a man came crashing down on the surface before us. The four mugs of ale went flying, one landing in my lap, another landing in Elaina's.

We stood just in time. Another man followed, and the weight of his tussle with the first man smashed the table into splinters. With a quick spin Elaina's axe was in her hands, one at the end of the long pole, the other just under the head. I followed her lead and drew my sword, the bastard blade singing as it left its scabbard. But the two men were laughing now, and some were laughing at us, as if the response of readying our weapons was somehow inappropriate upon the event of our unwilling inclusion in the flight. 

"Calm down, you bitch," said the second man, standing. He helped the first man to his feet; he was roaring with glee. The fight had clearly been in jest. "Unless you're ready to wrestle. But you'd best drop that axe to make it a fair fight."

"It would hardly be a fair fight," Elaina replied, lowering her weapon. "Your friends would surely have to step in to save your hide."

"Lighten up, princess," the first man said. He was bald and scarred, and wore a chain shirt underneath a heavy coat. A sellsword of some kind, no doubt, though if I could catch I look at the quality of the short sword at his hip I would have known for sure. "I can see you're not from around here. We'll get you some new drinks."

"Are you off the ship?" I asked, putting up my sword. 

"Fuck those idiots," the first man said. "They've already torn up half the docks, if things aren't bad enough."

"They're not welcome here," the second man added. They were both clearly drunk already, but I did not think it unwise to press them a little further.

"Tear up the docks?" I asked. 

"The city watch is roping them into one of their schemes," the man said. "I'm no brigand, but I like my privacy well enough. They're knocking on every door, turning out every purse."

"I heard they even sent a few into the sewers," the other said. "Doubt we'll ever see him again."

"Figured we'd hide out here for a couple of days until they left," finished the first. "Some sensitive business in the works, can't have that mucked up by getting nicked." 

"That's outrageous. Who runs the city watch?" Meredith asked, taking my lead. "I'd like to know what's going on." 

"Cunt named Valdar," came the reply. "You can find him at the watch headquarters, I bet. Up by where they built all them churches."

Elaina nodded, her weapon finally back around the strap on her leather armor. No one else in the room had even seemed to notice what had happened, but one of the barmaids looked despondently at the wreckage of the table, obviously concerned about the prospect of cleaning up the mess. I reached into my pocket and prepared a coin to pass to her when I had a chance.

"You have my thanks," I said. 

"We'll return for those drinks," Meredith added, throwing a saucy wink at the first man. It was a silly gesture, but I was glad to see her deploy it instead of another hex.

"Aye," the first man said. "Watch yourselves. Plenty of trouble in the streets."

"We'll take that under advisement," Elaina said. "With gratitude."

The two men nodded and, giving one more leer at Elaina, turned to rejoin their group. Taking a few steps away from the broken table, Elaina surveyed the damage and let out a long, tired sigh. She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again, and shook her head at the pile of beer-soaked boards. 

"Not bad," Elaina said. "We'd better find Ballard. It looks like we're going to the temples after all."

I touched the small of Meredith's back as she followed Elaina toward the door, and she turned her head to me and gave me an approving nod. I had not expected her to join in my questioning, but her instincts were remarkable, and she had helped us get the information we needed. I felt ashamed at my prejudice to be surprised, but I was nonetheless. 

"Again, Quentin, you prove that you have quite a remarkable tongue," she said. 

Elaina glanced back at us and shot me a knowing scowl. 

#

It was nearly sunset by the time we made our way, on foot, to the temple district. It was as if the governors of the city had gone out of their way to distance themselves as much as possible from the slums. It was cruel to sequester their wealth on one side of the city, but I supposed that, were I in their position, I would want to keep my valuables as far away from the criminal element as possible. 

"I was prepared to take their heads," Elaina said, telling Ballard the story of our encounter in the tavern. "But Quentin here stopped me."
"I did no such thing," I replied. "A couple of drunks, nothing more. You were nothing if not restrained, my lady." 

"Fine, fine," Ballard said. "I need no more information. Well done, Quentin. Now, may we continue?" 

"Where will we check first?" Meredith asked. 

"The priests of Kalamar and Arctus usually keep to themselves," I replied. "I know that much."

"Quite right," Ballard replied. "I know of no other members of the Orders in Rivegate at the moment. If anyone has heard of dark doings in the city, it would be the monks of Dalgot."

"The silent brothers?" Meredith asked. "I mean no offense, but an order under a vow of silence would not be the best source of information."

"They write," Ballard said, annoyance in his tone. "And only initiates and the most pious refrain from speaking. There will be someone we can speak with." 

Bells chimed from the tower of some other temple as we reached the outer gate of the modest building that served as the town's headquarters for the brothers of Dalgot. The iron latticework gates of the wall were locked, and we could see the wooden front door beyond, on the other side of a neatly tended garden. 

"Brothers," Sir Ballard shouted. "I my name is Sir Ballard of the Order of the Sacred Sword, and these are my trusted companions. I wish to speak to you regarding an urgent matter. Please, if it is not yet the start of your evening rites, please allow us in. We will take but a few moments of your time."




Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 03



"Ballard," Elaina growled. "Do not give away our true purpose. What are you thinking?"

"We are in the temples, not the slums," he replied. "We have no enemies here, and there is no one to gossip."

He was correct in the second part, at least. The streets were clear, and whatever business took place here during the day had long since concluded. Elaina began another protest, but the wooden door beyond the gate swung open, and a figure in brown robes began to cross the garden at a rapid pace. His bare feet slapped across the stone, though no other detail about him was apparent. Only when he reached the gate did he lower his cowl, speaking through the metal bars. 

"Late is the hour in which you call on us, Sir Ballard," he said. His pate was shaved bald and he looked young, though his youth might have been the illusion of too much time spent indoors. I could not see his eyes through the shading of his heavy brow. "Who are the others?"

"This is my squire Quentin," Ballard said. He gestured to Elaina next, then Meredith. "This is the Lady Elaina of the Order of the Sacred Sheath, my sister. And this is Meredith, of the Starlight Tower."

He evaluated us in turn with deep, calculating stares. 

"I shall allow you entrance, but when the sun is down we must begin our ritual," he said. "Make haste. There is not much time." 

We followed him through the gate, which locked behind us, and across the darkening path. Inside I found an antechamber similar to the one in the front of the temple of the Order, though it was lit brighter and contained two other robed figures, standing guard over another door with long wooden staffs. 

"Your weapons, please," the monk said. "As I am sure you are aware, we allow no steel in the monastery." 

With Ballard's approval we complied, unstrapping our sword belts, Elaina relinquishing her axe. 

"And the daggers," said the monk. He held out his hand, expectant.

"As I am sure you are well aware, these blades are ceremonial and nature," Elaina protested. "And designed only for the purpose of destroying dark evil."

"As there is no dark evil within the walls of our brotherhood, you will have no need of them," was the reply. "You have my sacred vow that your daggers will be returned to you upon your departure, and no later." 

Ballard nodded, and we gave the man our blades. 

"If you accompany me into the next room, we can discuss your business," he said, looking at the two guards. "We will have more privacy there."

Unlike the deceptive front of the Order's temple that led to an ornate chamber, the main room of the small Dalgot church was similar to the first, though it did sport a slightly higher ceiling. The remaining light outside was the only illumination in the room, and it appeared to be fading fast. In the center of the far wall was a raised chair, similar to the one the head of our Order used when addressing the brothers. Two rows of pews filled the room, between the entrance and the throne; this must have been where the monks held their mass and rites. 

"I will be brief," Sir Ballard said. "We have been sent here by the Orders to ascertain the truth of certain rumors about local disappearances. As Lady Elaina and I had heard it told, several bodies have turned up with savage claw marks, drained of life."

"You believe the demon is here?" the brother asked.

"A demon, perhaps," Sir Ballard said. "I understand that my our order and yours have not been in the habit of assisting each other, but any information you could give us to aid our search for truth would be much appreciated. May I have your name, brother?" 

The monk smiled. The room darkened. 

"It is as I suspected," he said. 

"What?" Elaina asked. "Do you know of the disappearances? Can you tell us anything? Anything at all would be helpful."

"I do apologize, Sir Ballard. Sir Elaina," he said. "And to you especially, Quentin. So young, so handsome."

A hard impact swept me off my feet, and before I could roll away to get back up on my feet a great pressure seized my body, and quick hands bound my ankles and wrists. A gag was forced into my mouth, by who I did not know. I contorted my body, kicking my legs with great force, but whatever entity had captured me had already moved beyond my range of motion. For a moment I took in the look of the ceiling, blank, square stones, and thought they might fall on me, crushing me. They were moving, spinning, and I feared my skull was cracked and the back of my head was bleeding. I rolled, and saw that Meredith was still on her feet, wrestling to escape the clutches of four brothers who, until moments I go, I believed had not even been in the room. They grabbed her by both arms and dragged her into the other end of the room. I strained against the ropes that bound me, but only succeeded in rolling over, giving me a view of Elaina and Ballard. They were similarly struggling, and too far away for me to slide over to them for assistance. 

The chair they put her in was ornately decorated with dark gems, the same chair I thought was for a much more benign ritual. It took four of them to hold her down once they had torn her robes off, and the power of her thin, naked body was useless against the strength of the four men restraining her. Others, perhaps the ones who had restrained the three of us, stood nearby, their faces and forms cloaked by the same heavy robes. They were merely shapes in the fading light, blending into one monstrous form. The monk who had greeted us, his hood still down, approached with a smoking golden chalice. I could only guess what liquid it contained. He chanted over it, and for a moment I thought it was pulsing with red light as he spoke, breathing dark magic into it. With one hand he gripped her nose, forcing her mouth open, and he upended the liquid. It bubbled over the rim of her mouth but she was forced to swallow most of it. The remainder dripped down her neck, trickling black snakes across her slight breasts. The priest withdrew the cup and stepped away. 

"Release her," he shouted to the men. "Let her fly."
And with that, they let her go, and her body rose into the air, writhing and struggling against restraints no longer in place. She disappeared into a cloud of darkness, and I screamed through my gag, thinking she might never reemerge. The cloud swallowed the light around her, and I heard from her a scream that turned my blood to ice. Could she reemerge? Was she already dead? I reached for her with my mind, but my limbs were unresponsive, tightly tied behind me. After endless minutes the black dispersed like a heavy fog, revealing her pained form.

The witch was utterly transformed. The soft lines of her face had harshened: raised cheekbones, a rounded chin, strong and horribly beautiful. Her breasts had swelled, and as she twisted in the air I could see that her buttocks had gone from flat to globular, firm and round in contrast to her tight stomach. She might have grown taller, or her legs had thinned and the muscles grown more defined. Terrible shouts came from her mouth, and she clawed at her own skin, crazed and inconsolable. 

I heard Elaina scream, though her shout was similarly muffled. The cold stones of the floor scraped against the bare skin of my arms as I inched forward, trying to get to her, and failing. 

"It is done, just as the Book says it should be," the monk said, raising his arms into the air. "We have found a true specimen. The magic within her is strong, and now it is ours."

As he lowered his outstretched hands she fell to him, and more gently than I would have thought he took her body and laid it out on the ground. The moment she reached his cradling arms she fell silent and limp, unconscious as hopefully not, as I feared, dead. The other monks gasped at the sight of her, and as the head monk raised his eyes to us I could see that they glowed a horrible crimson. 

This was the demon. This was one of them. Now not only my blood was ice, but my whole being, and I knew I was losing my very humanity in the aura of the horrible creature. Ballard and Elaina both cried out, but I could not bring myself to summon the energy, and whatever influence the demon exerted over me took my conscious, and I drifted into a deep and impenetrable sleep. 

#

I awoke later in the dark of a dungeon cell, a single torch flickering beyond the squared grate of bars. There was nothing more than a bucket and a layer of straw on the floor, and a few small puddles of my own blood. My bonds were had been removed but the pain of them remained; my struggle had forced them deep into my skin, the ropes cutting and chaffing me red. I was naked, and even in the torchlight I could see dark bruises blossoming on my stomach and chest. I had been beaten, kicked; I feared my ankle was broken. I tried rolling onto my back, but my spine burned and the straw did little to soften the stone ground. However, the rocks were cold, and that brought my muscles some relief. 

I called out, a grunt half painful and half inquisitive. I prayed that Ballard and Elaina were nearby, though I would not have been surprised to find that our captors had kept us isolated. 

"Thank heaven," Elaina shouted. The hallway echoed, and I could not determine how far away she was being kept. Two cells down? Three? "Quentin, is that you?"

"Where are we?" 

"I believe we are in the cells under the monastery," she replied. "Ballard is here, but he was badly hurt. I fear he might have fallen unconscious again. Are you all right?"

"I am alive, at least," I asked. I tried to sit up, but my arms did not have the strength to lift my body. "Where is Meredith? Is she with you?"

"I fear for her as well," Elaina said. She was realizing now that she no longer had to shout. "What they did to her was unspeakable."

"Did you see it?" I asked, terrified of her transformation. "What did they do?"

"I have only a theory," Elaina said. "If I am correct, it may be too late for her."

"Tell me now, Elaina," I said. I need some information, something to go on. There was no point in being coy now. "If there is information I should have, let me have it."

"I have heard of something similar to the potion they force fed her," Elaina said. "It does not transform the drinker into the demon, but it might as well. She will be their thrall, and I do not know how to break the spell." 

"Which one is the demon?" I asked. "Who is in command here?"

"Likely the one who greeted us," she told me. "The incubi do not travel in large numbers. There will be one, and perhaps one or two of his cambion. Though it is possible one could exert his influence over an entire priesthood on his own." 

"I will not kill her," I resolved, after a moment.

"I will not ask you to," Elaina replied. "And anyway, you would be no match for her powers. I do not know if I could even accomplish the deed without Sir Ballard." 

"Where are out captors?" I asked. "How long have we been down here?"

"I have slept twice, but I do not know for how long," Elaina said. I heard her groan, the sound I assumed I would involuntarily make were I to attempt to stand. "I have not seen our captors, but one of them left food outside my cell earlier. I will not consume it. I cannot trust it."

"Silence," someone shouted. A door flung open somewhere, crashing against the wall. 

"Release us immediately," Elaina shouted. "Bring Meredith to us. By the power of the Order of the Sacred Sheath, I command it." 

"Your order holds no power here," the voice said. It was male and sinister, deep and utterly without character. "Though I will bring you the witch. She has asked after you, in a fashion."

The voice answered no more of our questions, but the noise returned some time later. I had not bothered to move, as the pain was still too great. Elaina had fallen silent a while ago, and I hoped that they had not accosted her in her cell, rendering her unconscious. 

"Meredith?" I asked. "Meredith, is that you? Release us, please."

Soft footsteps moved down the corridor toward me, and with every ounce of strength I could muster I rolled onto my side, facing the cell door. Water was dripping somewhere, and I wondered if my thirst was conjuring the sound. I moved toward the door, dragging my useless legs across the ground. A form appeared, blocking the torch that hung outside my cell. It was slight, though with all the light obscured I could only see the outline of a woman, curvaceous and flawless, not at all Meredith. 

"Can you not rise, Quentin?" the figure asked. The sorceress' voice had been transformed as well, from something banal and feminine to a tone full of smoke and sultry whispers: seductive, dangerous. I knew now I was dealing with the influence of the demon. "A shame, my boy. I would love to see you rise."

"Meredith, please help us," I pleaded. "Unlock the doors and help us leave this place." 

"I cannot do that, Quentin," she said. I still could not see her face. It was as if a monolith was speaking to me, a featureless black statue brought to life by powerful magic. "You will remain in this monastery." 

"Elaina," I shouted. "Ballard! Meredith is here. Wake up! Wake up!"

"Sir Ballard and Lady Elaina are sleeping, my silly Quentin," Meredith said. She took a step forward, enough to close the small distance between the entrance to my chamber and the far wall. The orange glow of the fire blossomed around her silhouette, and I could see that she was wearing a black robe, open in the middle, covering her nipples but displaying the round inside curve of the breasts, the toned line of her abdomen, and the hair of her sex. The striped of her skin glowed faintly, or so it seemed to my starved eyes. 

"Why are you doing this?" I asked. "Please let us go. We will not harm you."

"My wondrous transformation has taken most of my former powers," Meredith snapped, an anger consuming her breathy voice. "But my wits are still about me. I am no simple idiot." 

She squatted down to bring herself as level with my face as she could, but my head was still not far off the ground. With much struggle I brought myself up, and was able to sit cross-legged. Pain shot through my rear, but a wince was all the sign I gave of the discomfort. Her knees were kept together, and she rested her elbows on them, examining me like one might appraise a child, or a colorful insect. She planed her chin in the heels of her hands, and looked at me with sick glee. All I could do was look up at her, pleading with my face. If there was any sliver of affection for me in her before she was taken, surely she would recognize me as a friend and not a foe. 

"You look hurt, my darling," she said. Her eyes gleamed, though the light was not hitting them. A smile crept across her porcelain features. "A shame. But you will recover. You must recover."

"What are you going to do with me?" I asked. "What are you going to do with Elaina? With Sir Ballard?"

"Ballard is strong, but useless to the prince," Meredith said. The prince; he must have been the one whose eyes glowed red, who made her drink the tonic. "He will be disposed of once he is strong enough to be questioned. Elaina will be questioned as well, though she may be given to the monks before the prince cuts her throat. They are so hungry for female flesh, you see." 

"You cannot hurt them," I said. "You are Meredith, of the Starlight Tower. We are your friends."

"Have you heard of the Book, Quentin?" Meredith asked. I had heard of many books, though I judged the time was not right for sarcasm. 

"It is a fascinating tome," she began. She leaned ever closer to me, her nose practically poking through the gap between bars. Again, she was whispering, her voice tight and high and full of mischief. "Missing for hundreds of years. But the prince saw it long ago. I'll not bore you with the details. Your small mind would not comprehend, in any case."

"Let me guess," I asked. "A prophecy? Instructions for opening a portal to the netherworld?"

"It is one, and the other, and more," Meredith said. "I am a small part of it, but important. I could not be if the Book was not real. My transformation was foretold in its pages."

"I promise, if you release us we will help undo whatever they have done to you," I said, entirely unsure of whether that was a vow I could make. But if the four of us escaped, and Meredith came willingly, I would not rest until I had recovered the gentle soul within her. "I know you, Meredith. Whatever they have done to you can be reversed. You do not have to live your life in this unnatural body." 

"My body is transcendent," she shouted back at me, a dark wind blowing from her mouth, her eyes alight with the same red glow I had seen in the eyes of this prince she spoke of. She shrugged off her robe, and through she remained crouched I could see her, the roundness of her breasts protruding from either side of her torso, her rear rounded like an hourglass. I hated it, hated what she had become, and if not for the pain in my body the stirring inside me might have manifested. I hated her for provoking this unnatural arousal in me. Meredith, the real Meredith, with her delicate limbs and modest features, was a gorgeous creature. This beast was profane and prurient, the manifestation of bodily sin. As these thoughts ran though me, my eyes remained transfixed, desperate for a glimpse of her cunt. Meredith released a wicked cackle.

"I see you yearn for me," she said. "You are pathetic. All your blathering, and you cannot resist me. I will have to inform the prince. I'm sure it will amuse him, and he will be delighted at the power of his creation."

"My eyes betray my animal instincts," I replied, falling onto my back in exhaustion, but also to force my eyes to the ceiling. "But I will destroy this evil within you."

"Say the word, Quentin," she said, "and I will join you in your cell. I will take you inside me and free you from your pain. All you need to do is ask. The prince is a glorious creature, but part of me still awaits your touch. You see, I am the same Meredith, in many, many ways."

"A falsehood," I spat back at her. "I will not lie with you." 

"Just a word, Quentin," she said. I looked over and saw that her knees had spread apart. She was balancing on the balls of her feet, running a finger up and down the lips of her dripping sex. I could see the glimmer of the wetness in the uneven light, and the urge to reach out and feel it was almost impossible to resist. 

"You know we are trained to resist," I told her. "Even without the potion." 

"A rare refusal," Meredith said, amusement in her voice. "I have tempted all the monks, and none of them begged off my affections. You are stronger, perhaps, than I thought."

"Please stop," I replied. "This is not you, Meredith. Whatever that demon is doing to you, you must resist."

"It is me," she said, making small circles on her clitoris with the tip of her finger. She let out a squeak, and closed her eyes. Biting her lower lip, she took several sharp breaths through her nose. Moments later, her mouth flew open and the only sound in the room was a sharp intake of breath. Her face flushed pink, and her skin shined now not with unnatural light, but with a thin sheen of perspiration. She had finished herself. "It is me, Quentin. It is me." 

Another voice sounded from the darkness, perhaps the same one who had visited the dungeon hours before. 

"Lady Meredith," he said. "The prince is waiting. You may bring the boy, or not. The guards are waiting."

"Well, my sweet," Meredith said, closing her thighs around her small hand and grinning. "Would you like to see what your darling Meredith has been up to?"

#

We had indeed been imprisoned under the monastery. Four guards in leather armor led me through the catacombs, winding tunnels lit only by a lantern the man who guided us carried. The cells were in a short hallway, all on one side, so the prisoners could not look across and see each other. Both Elaina and Ballard were sleeping, their faces buried in their arms. The other cells – there were five total – contained prisoners as well, though I did not recognize the two men. I presumed they were brothers who had decided not to follow the incubus that had taken over the facility, though I did not understand why the demon would not simply kill them to prevent revealing his plan to the larger world instead of confining them to the basement. When I reached out and yelled for them, either my companions or the unknown prisoners, anyone, to wake up, one of my escorts struck me in the side with a baton and I doubled over, nearly losing my footing completely. After that, I made no more effort to escape. 




Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 03



Once we were above ground I was lead to the left of a branching hallway. I made a mental note of the layout of the building. There would be a time in the future, I hoped, when I might need that information to escape. Meredith followed, and it was all I could do not to look back at her, to see what she was doing, to see if in her face I could glean any sense of what was to come. The one time I did meet her eyes she smiled at me, her white teeth the only pure thing about the look on her face. She had simply discarded the robe, and walked behind us naked, her widened hips swaying suggestively as her bare footfalls clapped against the floor. 

"Come forward, come forward," the prince said. It was indeed the man who had greeted us when we begged entrance to the monastery, though his appearance had greatly changed in the interim. Instead of the plain, pudgy robed man we had first seen, there was in his place a giant warrior, his skin bursting with muscles, his chest hairless and chiseled. He had cavalierly thrown his right leg over the arm of the throne, and next to his left leg dangled his cock, a flaccid, purple-headed snake. Two monks stood on each side of his throne; those closest to him held chalices dangerously similar to the one he had upended into Meredith's mouth, though they did not smoke or glow with faint light. If the cups were empty, I would count myself extremely lucky. A woman sat with her arms wrapped around the prince's leg, and she ran one finger up and down his calf with sensual delicacy. She was red-haired and buxom, her skin milky and her eyes cast admiringly up at the demon. 

"So, Quentin," he said, as I was brought before the throne. The guards squared me in, and I was made to kneel on the stretch of carpet that crossed from the room to the entrance to the pedestal on which the chair sat. It was surprisingly bright inside, but one look to the window told me it was night. "Who are you?"

"I am just a man," I said, unwilling to give more information than was necessary. I felt the poke of a staff at my back. One of the guards was not happy with my answer. "I am a squire in the Order of the Sacred Sword, nothing more."

"Just a squire?" the prince asked. "As I thought. Meredith told me you had not been in the order long." 

As he spoke her name, Meredith appeared from behind me and approached the throne. She looked back at me, though I only saw one eye from behind her shoulder and her long hair. Her back was flawless and her rear was heart-shaped, the fat the potion had grown there giggling slightly as she strode toward her new master. 

"I promise, I do not know anything," I said. I sat back on my heels, keeping my posture straight, trying to show no signs of weakness or deference. I doubt it worked. The quavering in my voice no doubt gave me away. "I have only been with the Order for six months." 

"You will speak when spoken to," the demon said, bored. "Now, tell me. What did Meredith say of her purification?"

"Only that I am eternally grateful, my prince," she said, climbing the steps to the black chair. He beckoned her with the crooked finger, and touched his lips. As she bent over she kept her legs straight, and I could see a slight gap between her thighs, the puffy, outer lips of her slit. She had been shaved, as the prince had. No doubt it was part of the purification. Theirs was a deep and passionate kiss, and I looked away. The sight of their intimacy turned my stomach inside out. 

Just as I brought my gaze back to them the red-haired woman sprung to her feet and gave Meredith a mighty shove. It might have toppled her over, if one of the monks did not grab her as she moved, restraining the force of her attack. Instead, Meredith merely stumbled, breaking her kiss with the prince. The demon looked up and rolled his eyes, and leaned away from the fracas. Meredith sprung back at her, but a monk grabbed her as well, and in a moment both the women were restrained at the midsection, their smooth legs kicking in the air, their hair swooshing from side to side as they fought the men holding them. 

"Enough," the demon said, softly, though it stopped all commotion in the room. He pointed to a spot next to his chair, where the monk who grabbed Meredith had been standing. "Meredith, there will be fine. Victoria, to me. If you continue to fight, I will lock you in the cells." 

"Please don't, my prince," Victoria begged. She had a common accent, choppy and rough, signaling that she was most likely a local. "I'll be good, I swear it." 

"I apologize, master," Meredith said in return. "And I apologize for the behavior of this slut. I will punish her later."

"That will not be necessary," the prince said. "A week without my attention will be punishment enough."

Victoria wailed and pleaded, but the monk who had restrained her forced her back to her original position. In a moment she was silent, and had resumed her hypnotic massage of the demon's leg. Meredith assumed her position at the demon's right hand, and stood silent. 

"Now, where were we?"

"I cannot help you," I said. "I know nothing of the Orders or their plans."

"So, should I question your friends?" the demon asked. "Would you like to watch me torture them? I might even take the female, though she is a little athletic for my taste. I know you sampled Meredith's talents. Did you fuck the she-knight as well?"

"No, he did not," Meredith said. "Though I imagine he would have liked to. He has quite the appetite. You should have seen the way he looked at me, before my ascension."

"Really?" the prince said, tilting his head to look up at her. He reached up and took one of her nipples between his thumb and forefinger. She gasped and giggled, her thighs rubbing together as her knees weakened. "I'm sure you were a wonderful sight for a luckless squire. You weren't his first, were you?"

"I might as well have been," Meredith replied. "He could not withstand three seconds in my mouth."

"A shame he could not have had you," the prince said, looking back at me. "To have one's last time with a woman be so disappointing. A pity." 

"You cannot get away with this," I said. "The Orders will catch up with you eventually. There is an army of soldiers searching this city right now, investigating the disappearances of the people you've killed."

"Perhaps someone will come to this temple, asking if anyone has come to our monks to confess their crimes," the prince said. "But it is unlikely. And I will not be here very much longer, thanks to young Meredith here."

"You cannot take her," I shouted. "She is a member of the Starlight Tower. They will come looking for her, if I cannot save her myself."

The prince waived his left hand in my direction, and a sharp pain exploded in my ribcage. Someone had struck my side, and I felt to the ground, moaning like a simple idiot. I could not take breath into my lungs, and I sharp crack led me to believe one of my ribs had broken. A shrill laugh filled the room, the sound of the demon. 

"You will do nothing," the demon said. "Ladies, if you please. I feel a terrible urge, and I believe I need your assistance, lest it overtake me." 

"Leave her alone," I gasped. I tried to push myself back up, but another blow to my back rendered me incapable. 

"Attend closely, young Quentin," the demon said, standing. Victoria was thrown off but the two women rushed to him and, kneeling, wrapped their arms around his legs. His soft member hung halfway down his thigh, swaying back and forth.

Four hands rushed up the length of his legs to his cock, and took it firmly in hand. It was just long enough to accommodate their palms, and they moved his foreskin back and forth in unison. I could see it growing, quicker than natural, and in a few moments it was bulging and veined, jutting out in front of him, longer than Ballard's, much longer than mine under the influence of the Starlight potion.

"I hear your brothers have a habit of naming their cocks," the demon said. "I need to bestow no such honorifics upon my manhood. Simply behold my power, and despair." 

"Master, please let me have it," Victoria said. "I know I've been very bad, but I need to feel you. I will take a month without your touch if I can have it now, just for a moment." 

The prince ran a hand through her long hair, and smiled down at her. 

"I can see you are dedicated to me, and meant no harm," he said. His fingers twisted up her locks and pulled her close to the root of his shaft. "Show me how dedicated you really are."

Her full lips met his skin, and she let out an ecstatic breath. She worked her hands, and took one of his large stones in her mouth. 

"What are you waiting for?" he said to Meredith. She smiled and, flashing her possessed eyes at me for a second that might have only existed in my head, took the prince's head in her open mouth. 

"Please don't," I said, unable to bring myself to look. The room grew cold, and the stones hardened beneath my broken body.

Sometime later – moments? minutes? – I opened my eyes and saw that almost nothing had changed. The Victoria and Meredith, unrecognizable in her lust, worked the demon's member with their mouths and hands, barely able to reign in all of his length. The rod was wet with spit, and they worked in tandem to give him long strokes with a hand each. Victoria took his sack into her mouth, running her tongue along the lines and creases between his balls, and Meredith continued to suck him, taking inch after in of him down her throat. She could not manage much; he was as thick as her wrist, and his hardness was unforgiving. But she continued, opening herself to him, and she took his head and several inches of his shaft. I heard her coughing, gagging, but she continued, staring up at his towering form as she pleasured him. The waterfall of Victoria's red hair was still wrapped around his fingers, and he used his grasp and immense strength to pull her to her feet. She was nearly suspended in the air, standing barely on the tips of her toes, her small feet stretching to make contact with the ground beneath. 

"Let her sit on your face," the prince growled into her ear. "Please my woman, and you shall be pleased in return. 

Without removing herself from the prince's cock, Meredith lifted a leg and allowed Victoria to slide underneath her. The sorceress kneeled on the redhead's face, her buttocks nearly swallowing her head so that only a full-breasted, thick-thighed could be seen jetting out from beneath. 

"Lick my cunt, you foul slut," Meredith shouted as Victoria went to work, her head moving slightly. I could imagine her tongue pushing into Meredith's cunt, as mine had only a few days ago, tickling the tender spot that sent her over the edge so easily. They continued for minutes until the prince took her head in both hands, his fingers disappearing into her blond hair.

"She is wonderful," Meredith said. "You have given me such a wonderful gift!"

"Your gift is yet to come, wench," said the demon, and he pulled Meredith away from his member. He flexed the muscles of his cock and it bobbed in the air, as if pulled by an invisible string. Meredith took one of her oversized tits in each hand and squeezed as Victoria tongued her, the pale flesh of her breasts spilling out between her spread fingers. She tried to catch him with her mouth, but failed, his engorged tip darting upward each time her mouth tried to close on it. Victoria squirmed, using a free hand to rub herself while the other grabbed the flesh of Meredith's ass. 

"Please, give it to me," Meredith said, desperate, her head weaving in the air. "I would never presume to command you, but I must have your seed."

"Then you shall have it," the prince said, his square face soft with pleasure. Meredith rose to her feet, leaving Victoria masturbating on the hard ground, rolling to and fro on her back. She was close, it seemed, to bringing upon her own release, and Meredith and the demon watched her for a moment as she breathed deep and gave a throaty grunt. 

Victoria remained on the ground and Meredith climbed over her, resting on her hands and knees, her ass facing the prince. She kissed the redhead, who threw her arms around Meredith's shoulders and neck. Stroking his massive organ, the demon considered the sight before him, and slapped Meredith's cheek with his open palm. She cried out, but not in pain. 

"Punish me, my lord," Meredith said. "Harder. Harder!"

He spanked her again and again, and she wailed between deep kisses with Victoria. She moved back and forth, bringing her ass closer and further away from the demon, responding to his quick strikes. He stayed her hips with one hand and took his shaft in the other. For a second he felt Meredith between her legs, and she looked up, expectant. I could not quite meet her eyes; she seemed beyond reason now, looking into another world. In one quick motion he drove himself into her, and her body seized, split by his girth. 

"Fuck me, fuck me, fuck me," Meredith shouted with each thrust, her high voice broken by more shark squeaks. Her tits bounced, hovering over Victoria's open mouth. She took one of the pink nipples between her lips and sucked, reaching back and spreading Meredith's ass with her hands. The demon thrust into her with incomparable power, somehow withdrawing himself almost entirely and pushing himself completely into her with strokes too fast to count. The defined muscles of his abdomen flexed as he fucked her, tightening and releasing as he pounded away. From Meredith's mouth came a continual wail, punctuated by the sound of her skin slapping against his, the flesh of her rear rippling as he filled her to his hilt. She collapsed onto Victoria, her body contorting like a beating heart, and the prince did not withdraw. A darkness emitted from the beast, obscuring the light of the torches and lanterns, and he dug his hands into the smooth mounds of her rump. I could see the root of his member pulsing, his sack tightening, and I knew he was filling her with his seed. He stared up to the ceiling and let out an otherworldly roar. 

"Thank you," Meredith whispered, rubbing her body on Victoria's. "It's so wonderful. So wonderful."

"Get off," demon said, withdrawing his length from her and pushing her to the side. Meredith tumbled onto her back, her chest swelling with deep breaths, her round breasts heaving and pointing straight into the air. Her new body was firm, unyielding. 

The prince's cock was still straight and hard, glistening with Meredith's juices, dripping with his own liquids. He placed a hand on the small of Victoria's back and lifted her up, entering her as she lay on the ground, panting. It appeared he had another orgasm within him, and he took the second woman with the same speed and vigor. Her soft breasts, entirely unlike Meredith's false body, bounced and flopped in time with his fucking, and she took one of her own pale nipples in each hand, giving them hard twists and pulls.

"That's it, my love," she said, gyrating her hips to stimulate him further. "Fill me like you filled her."

The prince leaned over her, and for a moment it appeared that they were making love like a normal couple, the woman on her back, the man over her, her legs wrapped around him in a loving embrace. He moved in and out of her, eyes on her eyes, and came soon after. 

"Ooo, my lord," Victoria cooed. "Pump your hot seed into my cunt."

The demon looked up to me and flashed me his red eyes. What could it mean? His eyes had remained unchanged when he finished in Meredith. Was his lust sated? Would now be the time to strike? I could not wait to find out. 

The monks seemed transfixed with the spectacle before them, and I sprung to my feet, legs aching with every minute movement. A rage filled me; Meredith lay on her back a few feet from the copulating couple, oblivious to what was going on. She was under his spell, entirely. I broke up Victoria and the demon and wrestled him onto his back. He struck one my by bruises with a closed fist, and though the pain blinded me I was able to pin his midsection down with the weight of my pelvis, and take his head in my hands. A burst of strength filled my limbs and I snapped the creature's neck, producing a sickening crack that at once ceased his struggle against my hold. The prince's arms fell to the ground, and his legs stopped kicking, and his mouth hung open, tongue lolling from his unnaturally spun head. I fell off of him, rolling onto my back, between his corpse and Meredith's still form. 

A great sound filled the room, a draconic, hellish cacophony, and there was silence once again. It was the demon leaving the body, leaving the room. I knew that, even though I had destroyed his corporeal host, the spirit still haunted this realm, perhaps looking for another body to inhabit, perhaps looking for a way home. I would need to drive my dagger through his heart to banish him entirely, but without it, there was little I could do. The body lay still though, and the dark aura in the room dissipated, revealing the light it had hidden. I could not know for sure, but for the moment, the creature had lost his influence. 

A few of the monks fell to the ground while others, clearly confused, began to shout commands at each other. One of them approached me to pull me to my feet, but I pushed myself away to Meredith, who had fallen into what I hoped was a deep sleep. I covered her body with mine, protecting her from the monks who approached. 

"Away with you," I shouted at the closest one. "I will kill you next, I swear it."

The monk took down his hood and I saw a face, plain and clean-shaven. He looked emaciated and exhausted, his cheeks gaunt, his skin yellowed. 

"My son," the man coughed, his voice dry. "Please. It is me. Not the beast."

"Who are you?" I shouted. "Why are you doing this?"

"We are not doing anything," said another voice, one of the other monks surrounding myself and the sorceress. "Please, let us help you."

"Help me how?" I asked. "You did this. You aided that vile creature."

"No longer," he said. "You have done what we could not. A brother of the Order of the Sacred Sword indeed."

"Release my friends immediately," I said, voice heaving with pain. 

"As you wish," said the monk. He smiled, revealing stained teeth. "Just let us help you. You have done our brotherhood a great service."

"And you have done a great disservice," I replied. "To yourselves, to these women. To the realm."

"I assure you," the monk said. "We stand ready to answer for our crimes."

"You will," I said, looking down at Meredith's face. I could feel her heart beating beneath the breasts the potion gave her, the strange mutation that might never fade. "Have no doubt."



Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 04



After three days of rest and the recovery of our supplies from the inn, the inquiry began. A small number of the soldiers passing through the city remained when the rest of the regiment departed, and the city watch was a great help. Sir Ballard led the proceedings from a cot; both his legs had been broken during whatever fight had led to his incarceration in the cells. The monks, though showing no obvious signs of still being under the influence of the incubus, were confined to the monastery. Given their druthers, I do not believe they would not have left anyway. For most of the time we remained in the building, they remained in their ascetic quarters in silence contemplation and prayer. They had strict rules about their conduct, rules that were immediately reinstated when their possession was broken. 

That was what they called it: possession. Sir Ballard was understanding, to a certain degree, and explained to the watch during one of many long briefings that the Dalgot monks were not wholly responsible for their actions. He commanded them to search the other temples for signs of corruption, but upon returning the watch patrols reported nothing strange. Meanwhile, the monks were brought before a tribunal assembled in the main room of their church, where days ago the demon had taken both Meredith and Victoria. Moments after the demon was killed and I rolled off her the women were whisked away to the cells, not to be trusted; I had not seen them since that night. Both had taken the potion, apparently, but only Meredith had transformed. That was what, I supposed, was special about her in the eyes of the prince. The testimony of the brothers, taken individually, confirmed this time and time again. All twenty-two of them were brought before Ballard and Elaina one by one, each escorted by two of the armored watchmen. A few protested violently. Those that did were taken to the cells, and only later brought before Ballard and Elaina in chains. Elaina sat on a simple wooden bench next to the knight's reclining seat. There was barely enough room on the pedestal, so I stood in the back of the room, watching under instructions to carefully observe. The black throne had been carried into the yard and burned.

Each of the monks also denied direct involvement in the demon's takeover of the brotherhood, but the two men who had been in the adjacent cells when I awoke told a different story.

"A few of the brothers left the monastery," said one of the men, a grey-haired elder named Aaron. We questioned him on the second morning of the investigation. "It is strictly forbidden. When they returned, they had broken their vow of silence, and changed."

"Describe their behavior," Sir Ballard commanded. It was a great labor for him to speak. "Leave nothing out."

"There were three in all," Aaron said, listing off their names. Elaina made a note of them on a list she had compiled: every brother, their names, their alleged crimes. "I believed they had been visiting a brothel, but it was much, much worse than that."

"Go on," Elaina said. "We have no need for theatrics." 

The monk sighed, and struggled to continue in his ailing voice. He had been treated quite badly, perhaps as badly as us, though he had been in the cells for months and it appeared most of his physical wounds had healed. 

"Then the man appeared," said Aaron. "The demon. They said he was a brother from the monastery in Leavine, here to study at our library, but soon after the first woman appeared."

"A woman just appeared?" Elaina asked. "Explain."

"A few of the brothers brought a woman back at the demon's command," Aaron said. At Ballard's insistence, the brother gave their names. "She was a whore, I believe. A wanton woman, even outside the demon's influence."

"This was the first?" Elaina asked.

"I believe so," Aaron replied, sullen. From behind him I could not see his face, but he lowered his head in shame. "Please do not make me describe what they did to her."

"You are in no position to make requests," Elaina said. The tip of her pen hovered above the blank paper, waiting to record the information.

"Once the prince was done with her he gave her to the brothers," Aaron explained. His voice broke. "They took her, for hours. They did horrible things to her. They violated her over and over and over again. And she let them. The prince gave her that tonic, and she enjoyed it."

"Which brothers?" Ballard asked.

"All of them," Aaron replied. I believe he was sobbing.

"You?"

"I protested," Aaron said. "I tried to save her. But they beat me and locked me in the cell. I remained there until you released me."

Brother Christopher relayed more of the story.

"The first girl did not last long," he said. His questioning came directly after Aarons, but was much longer. "The prince was displeased with her. I don't know why. After two or three days she went into his bedroom and never returned. Then he commanded the brothers to fetch another."

"How many times did this go on?" Ballard asked, coughing. I brought him a cup of water and he grabbed my wrist, signaling me to remain on the pedestal beside him. 

"Three," Christopher said. He had not the courage to meet the eyes of his accusers, and we only saw the top of his bald head. "But that was when they locked me away. There might have been more after that. I was in the cells for quite some time."

"There were seven, before Victoria," one of the other brothers said the next day. I could not remember his name. Day after day, audience after audience, their stories blended together into one horrible narrative. "Sometimes he would keep them for a few days. The waited a month before killing one. The prince would have killed Victoria soon enough, and ordered us to find another. Then you arrived."

"Seven women," Lady Elaina exclaimed. "By the gods."

"What was he looking for?" Sir Ballard asked. "Why so many?"

"There was something special about Meredith," I interjected. "He said she was the one he was looking for, that she was chosen. He said something about a book. A prophecy, perhaps."

"What book?" Sir Ballard asked. He turned back to the monk. "What is he talking about?"

"The prince was looking for a book," the brother replied. "But we didn't have it in our library. I don't know what he meant by it, only that whatever was happened when Lady Meredith drank the potion was foretold somewhere."

Ballard leaned over to Elaina, whispering.

"Do you know what he's talking about?"

"It could be one of any number of books," Elaina replied. "A history, a holy book. Perhaps some tome of demon prophecy."

"Does that sound correct to you?" Ballard asked, looking up at me from his bed. 

"He speaks the truth," I said. "Though I don't know what he means by it."

"You, guard," Ballard said, shouting at one of the city watchmen. "Where is Lady Meredith?"

"In her cell, sir," the man replied. He was young, perhaps no older than myself. He seemed nervous. "Beneath the monastery."

"Why is she in a cell?" Ballard asked. "Bring her here at once."

"She attacked us, sir," the guard said. "And once we got her into the cell she wouldn't come out. She hasn't spoken since."

"What is the meaning of this?" Elaina asked the brother. "What did the beast do to her?"

"Even if the body doesn't change," I began, unsure how to phrase what I had seen, "the appetites change. They obeyed his every command."

"I have never heard of this before. When the demon departs, those under his spell return to normal. It must be this potion," Ballard said. He turned back to the brother and raised his voice to address him. "Brother. What do you know if this potion?"

He asked the remaining brothers, and recalled the brothers he had already interviewed to ask the same question. The potion, it seemed, was of the prince's own invention, a mixture that bound the drinker to the brewer's will. When given to the right person, it could transform their bodies as well, as had happened to Meredith. Why Meredith, and no one else, was unknown to the brothers. 

"I believe I have a theory," Elaina said over dinner, when the three of us were alone. We ate in the library, which the monks had been barred from entering. Guarding the door were four of the city watch; they accompanied us, at Ballard's insistence, at all times. 

"Please," Ballard said. "I must admit, I am truly vexed."

"The demon is attempting to create cambion without seducing and impregnating a human woman," Elaina said. 

"Is that possible?" I asked. I had heard of demon's using every method imaginable to turn a human to their cause, but a true transformation had never been recorded. 

"It may be," Elaina said. "During the war, other species of demons were capable of achieving a complete possession, creating more soldiers. But those demons were banished when the incursion ended. Only the incubi and succubi remain on our plane. It makes no sense." 

"If that is the case, I believe this book may be the key," Ballard said. "It may be something left behind. If it gives instructions on conversion or contains some demon prophecy, it is certainly no human book." 

"I thought the dark artifacts were burned," I said.

"It is a continuing responsibility of our Orders," Elaina said. "But yes, any remaining artifacts would be rare indeed. But it does not matter. If the demon knew where it was, he would have it already."

"He has clearly seen it," Ballard said. "We must report it to the Order. I cannot imagine what it might contain. Methods for demon to breed with demon. More potions. It could be anything."

"Might he continue his search for it?" I asked. 

"Undoubtedly," Elaina said. "Though it will take the demon some time to fabricate another body. We may have years to investigate this book before he resumes his search."

"We should ask Talaxel when we return," Ballard said. "I'm sure with some incentive, she will tell us anything she might know. The incubi Falgoth and Qydax may also know something."

"I will certainly try find out," Elaina replied. "Though these demons of ours are only half-breeds. They may know nothing."

"We shall see," Ballard said. "Meredith must be cured, and Victoria as well."

#

The brothers were assembled on the fifth morning. It seemed a small number, and I wondered how many of them had been responsible for the kidnappings, the attacks, the murders. Months and months under the demon's influence had changed them; they were sullen and pale, barely any of them could muster more than a few words in their own defense. A number of the city watch, as many as the brothers, were in attendance, as well as a delegation sent by the lord of the city; in contrast to the simple robes and room's palette of brown and grey, they wore fine colorful silks, the detail of which was visible to me even from their seats in the back of the nave. One of them, the lord's High Judge, had at the beginning of the inquiry made a large show of relinquishing his authority to Ballard and Elaina for the purposes of rendering, on behalf of the Emperor, a verdict in this matter. They were all quiet now, awaiting the decision. I stood on the pedestal this time, attending to Sir Ballard, my rightful place at his side. 

"Lady Elaina," he began, speaking as loudly as he could. The splints on his legs were complex and seemed form, but even after a week he could not yet stand without aid. "As the evil that seized this place was of the male form, it falls to an anointed sister of the Order of the Sacred Sheath to pass judgment on those complicit. I would remind you and all those present that, while my squire Quentin acted valiantly to destroy the demon's physical form, its spirit remains in this realm, and thus its influence has not been fully driven from our plane." 

"Thank you, Sir Ballard. You are quite right, and the law is straightforward in this matter," Elaina said, standing. Ballard looked up at her. The assemblage of men was stone silent before her. "You all know that it is a great crime to aid the demon, and even those of you who were not directly under his enchantments did nothing to stop your brothers from murdering and enslaving. The lives of seven women, as well as the torture of Victoria and Lady Meredith, are on all your hands. Since the influence of the demon can never be fully scourged from the mortal soul, and you all knowingly broke not only the law but the sacred vows of your order, my punishment must be appropriate."

Having studied the stories of the Orders and their various victories and the justice they carried out, I had a notion of what sentence might be passed down.

"Any brother who wishes to confess secret knowledge of the book the prince spoke of, or the method he employed to transform Lady Meredith, you may speak now," Elaina said. It was one last chance to help, and perhaps receive a more lenient sentence. No brother, however, rose to offer any information.

"Very well. Brother Aaron and Brother Christopher," she began, pointing to two men who sat alone on the forward-most right pew. "You will remain in custody and live out the rest of your days in whichever prison the city watch deems fit."

The two brothers who had resisted looked down to the floor beneath their seats. The other brothers, in the rows behind, remained transfixed on Lady Elaina. They must have known what was coming. These were learned men, and though the Order and its legal purview were shrouded in some mystery, the histories were also full of as much fact as legend. In the moments before Elaina spoke, I felt pity for them.

"As for the rest of you. By the power given to me by the Order of the Sacred Sheath, the most venerable and just sisterhood under the flag of the Emperor, in order to preserve the integrity of the realm and shield its citizens from evil I hereby sentence the members of this order to die. I command the city watch and the soldiers present in this room to aid me in carrying out this sentence immediately. The yard outback will do, I believe."

Sir Ballard gave a solemn nod, and the guards moved from their positions on the edge of the room to fence the monks in. One or two rose to their feet and began shouting curses at us, and another bolted toward the door, stopped only by a spear thrust to the stomach from one of the watchmen. He fell to his knees, screaming, and died on the stone floor. Elaina rose and lifted her axe, preparing for an imminent assault; I drew and inch of my sword from the sheath, following her lead. After a moment, I realized most of the monks seemed to be at peace. These were men who had devoted their lives to the worship of a god who had, it seemed, failed to protect them. I was unfamiliar with the specific tenets of their faith, but Dalgot had a reputation as a deity that rewarded dedicated service. These men had been tricked and abandoned, and now there was no going back to the lives they had led before a corrupt view let the demon through their door. 

Was it true what she had said, that those who had come under the demon's spell could never be fully liberated? What would become of Meredith, or this Victoria, who had been so deeply entranced? As the men were marched out of the room, to their deaths, I wondered if Meredith would eventually have to summon the same fate. I could not believe that Elaina would sentence her to die. The Order of the Sacred Sword had a vast library filled with information on the demons, and I was sure the Sacred Sheath had a similar archive. The Starlight Tower, the secretive group of magic-users to which Meredith belonged, was rumored to have immense power and would surely be able to devise some supernatural cure. 

Elaina followed the line of men as they left the hall, and barely a few minutes later, the screams began. The silence in the chamber had been a façade, and now that the men who had committed these horrible crimes were meeting their end, either the seriousness of what they had done filled them with grief or they, until their final breath, believed themselves innocent.

"What have you learned today, Quentin?" Sir Ballard asked. He looked not up at me but into the empty hall, as if nothing about it had changed. 

A number of possible answers occurred to me, but the fact that he was obviously looking for something specific left me with a sense of trepidation. I knew that, no matter how hard I pondered it, I would not give him the correct answer. 

"The influence of the demon must be stopped at all cost," I replied.

"You know that already," Ballard replied.

"Once a man is guilty, her remains guilty?" I offered. This was no better, I knew.

"No," Ballard said. "Justice is difficult. But it is not impossible." 

"Justice has not been served here," I replied. "Not while Meredith remains transformed." 

"Perhaps," Ballard said. "But you have done what is expected of you, and more. This city owes you a great debt."

I had no response to this. I stood for a moment, and Ballard signaled to a pair of guards who remained in the room. 

"I must rest now," Ballard said. The two men lifted him out of his reclining chair, and began to carry him down the steps of the dais, toward the door. "You should take some time to search this place. There may be more information to be found. Perhaps the basement cells will yield some answers."

#

Only Meredith and Victoria remained in the prison, but four guards were still stationed outside. The degree to which the building had been taken over by the city was quite remarkable. The lord's agents were already sorting through the library and the larder, removing the books and food stores. It was quiet and sunless downstairs, and I carried a torch through the winding corridors that led to the small row of cells. One of the guards recognized me as Ballard's squire and held the door for me. I gave him a curt nod and passed through the threshold, my right hand resting on the hilt of my blessed dagger. I could not allow my affection for Meredith to leave me unguarded; I would have to be ready if she was as violent as I had been warned. 

I called her name when I reached her cell. She was huddled in the corner, and I could not tell if she was awake or sleeping. Victoria must have been in another cell further down, and she was also silent. Meredith stirred, her body unfolding in the darkness. I held my torch out, but even against the bars it only illuminated a portion of the cell, so that only her hairless legs were in view. She had been given a cot but she did not use it, choosing instead to curl herself up in the straw. 

"This cell smells of you," she whispered. I leaned forward, pressing my face against the bars. I could barely hear her.

"I was here only a few days ago," I said. "The night I killed the demon. Do you remember?"

"How dare you presume I do not remember," Meredith said. "He was the prince. He was my love."

"Once you showed an interest in me, or so it seemed," I said. "Do you remember that?"

"A moment of weakness, I am sure," she said. "Look at you. You are pathetic."

Her words reminded me of Talaxel when she tried to win me to her side, before she realized she could no longer fight the defenses of the potion. I felt no mental probe from Meredith, but there was the same rage, the same blind passion to consume.

"I destroyed the demon," I replied. "Certainly that must prove something about me."

"A momentary setback," Meredith said. "The demon can take many forms, and will walk this earth again."

"Meredith, listen to me. Please," I said. "I know you are in pain, but you must believe me when I say we will leave this place soon. You will be returned to the Starlight Tower, and you will be cured. You will be normal again."

"Normal," Meredith scoffed. "You are normal. I am divine."

"What happened to you isn't natural," I said. "Your body will be restored, I promise." 




Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 04



"You never listen, do you?" she replied. "Fine, take me back to the tower. I care not. I shall be free in due time. The prince will return to me."

"What are you?" I asked. "What's inside that unnatural shell?"

"Your new goddess," Meredith replied. 

"Who is the demon prince?" I asked. "Prince of what?"

"He is your new god," Meredith said. Crouched, she approached the bars, and wrapped her fingers around them, looking up at me. Her eyes flickered in the light, but the lower half of her face remained shrouded; it seemed as if her words were coming from nowhere at all. "He will remake this world, and you along with it."

"Why can he not return to the demon plane?" I asked. "Why is the netherworld closed to him?"

"It is not a matter of open or closed," Meredith said. "I am hungry. I must be fed."

"I will have the guards bring you some food," I replied. I turned to leave, but an arm shot out from between the bars and took a handful of the material in my pants. 

"That is not what I hunger for," Meredith whisper-shouted. "Your cock is but a shadow of the prince's, but it will do. Open the door to this cell, and I will give you a taste of his most wonderful creation."

Both her hands passed through the gaps in the bars now, and she rubbed my crotch, her roving fingers teasing the length of my flaccid member through my trousers. I grabbed her wrists, one then the other, and pushed them away. 

"Were you Meredith, I would perhaps hesitate a moment," I said. "But you are not Meredith. That much is certain."

"Finally you are beginning to understand," the creature inside the cell said. 

I turned and left, my boots echoing on the floor. 

#

With the help of four members of the Rivergate city watch, we brought Meredith and Victoria back to the capital in chains. 

"Please understand," Elaina said at the start of most days, when she tied them to their horses. "We would not have to do this if you did not attack us."

The women remained silent, a special form of protest that filled Sir Ballard with his own version of quiet anger. Now and then Meredith would glare at me, but Victoria remained unfocused and distraught, her eyes often cast at the ground. 

Sir Ballard rode in the back of a wagon that had been given to us, along with two weeks of supplies, by the lord of Rivergate as thanks for ridding his city of the evil inhabiting the monastery. It seemed a small reward, but when his representative tried to offer more, Sir Ballard refused. Later, as I sat with him in the back of the cart, he explained. 

"The Order of the Sacred Sword has a bad enough reputation, and the sisters do not fare much better in the eyes of the average citizen," he said. "Better to let the news spread that we work without expectation of reward. He have other avenues for financing." 

We immediately returned to the temple district, to the Orders' headquarters. As they were women, and women were only allowed in the Order of the Sacred Sword under very special circumstances, Elaina brought Victoria and Meredith to the Sacred Sheath for rest and examination.

"We will observe and question them for a few days, at least," Elaina said. "One of her companions from the Starlight Tower will be consulted, no doubt. Please be patient. I will send word when I can." 

I thanked Elaina, and gave my farewell to a gloomy Meredith. Knowing there was little, if anything, I could do to reach her, I turned and followed the wagon across the street. A number of squires and stewards emerged from the rear door to help Sir Ballard to his chambers, following closely by a nagging apothecary who doubted the skill of the healers who had originally set the knight's leg. Before he disappeared into the upper floors of the building, he gave me some final instructions. 

"Take some rest, and speak to Althenon. He will assign you new duties in short order," Ballard said. "Thank you for everything. You have done a great service for someone so knew to the order."

He was not alone in his praise, once I told my story.

"You overpowered an incubus?" he asked. Two brothers joined us in the dining hall: Sir Gregory, and another I had not met named Sir Hallis. He was a smaller man - he barely came up to my shoulder when we were both wearing simple sandals - but built thicker than Gregory, and younger. He appeared to share some lineage with Sir Ballard; perhaps one of his parents hailed from the far-off land that gave Sir Ballard his darker skin tone. 

"He had just finished for the second time," I replied. "He was very much distracted. I only killed the body." 

"Tell us about him," Hallis said. "How did he seem?"

"Confident," I replied. "He made me watch from only feet away from him. Though I cannot blame him for underestimating me. I had been severely beaten."

"What about his appearance?" Gregory asked. "Was he enhanced, as the witch was?"

"I can only imagine," I said. "He was unlike any man I have ever seen."

"No cambion, then," Hallis resolved. "Only in rare cases do they appear entirely human."

It was true, I thought, recalling the horns that sprung from Talaxel's forehead. 

"Full demons always appear human?" I asked. 

"Only full demons have the power to make manifest a body of their own design," Gregory explained. "Their offspring with humans are perverted by their darkness, and often bear signs of their heritage."

"I fucked a girl with a tail, once," Hallis shrugged. "Another had stunted wings."

"Did he give you a name?" Althenon asked. "Any clues to his identity?"

"None," I replied. "He merely called himself the prince. The women and brothers called him that as well."

"Fascinating," Althenon said. "I know of no hierarchy amongst them. It is a distressing thought. If there is a prince, there may be a king." 

"It may be a recent development," I said, having come across no mention of such royalty in my studies. "The prince spoke of a book."

"Yes, yes, this book," Althenon mused. "Sir Ballard spoke of it. Quentin, will you accompany me in the library this evening? I must record everything you know about this book."

"I do not care for this," Hallis said. "We must speak to the High Paladin. An effort to recover this book must begin immediately."

"Who can we ask?" Sir Gregory said. "We have the collected knowledge of the demon in this very building, and none amongst us have come across any mention of this book." 

"Meredith may know more than she is revealing at present," I offered. "Though I do not know how to get the information out of her if she had it."

"A chosen one, you said?" Althenon asked. I nodded. "I must hear about that as well." 

"Perhaps we should consult Talaxel," I suggested. "You rescued her from a demon coven, did you not?" 

"In a sense," Gregory said. "None who were there still live, but I have heard that her mother was a substandard specimen. A succubus who had been herself cast out from a larger cult. It is likely that she knows nothing."

"I do not mean to be presumptuous," I began, "but has anyone thought to ask?"

"She has been questioned," Althenon replied. "But as Sir Gregory explained, it was not as if she grew up during the war among demon society. Though she has never faced the specific questions you mean to raise."

"Perhaps she may be of some help," Sir Hallis said. "I will fetch her and bring her to the library after sundown. She is much more amenable at night." 

"I could not have put it better myself," Gregory said, elbowing Hallis in the ribs. The brothers spoke the truth; I found her desires much more insatiable in the dark, and it was when the world slept that she spoke to me in much more affectionate tones before and after our sessions together. I imagined the brothers would recount similar experiences.

"Well, gentlemen, it appears we have a plan of action," Althenon said. "The High Paladin is currently on assignment, though I understand he will return within the fortnight. We should endeavor to have some information to present to him by that time."

#

Althenon's strategy for research proceeded without any semblance of reason or order. The library was not massive, and in fact it was not much larger than the one at the Dalgot monastery, but as the head steward roamed the shelves, drawing books from them seemingly at random, I realized just how much information the archives at the Order of the Sacred Sword held. All the books I had read from the library so far, on the topic of demons and their motives and the history of the war that had brought them to our plane, had been brought to me by Althenon or another steward, and I had been to the library only to return them, or when a brother brought me there as I assisted him with his errands. But venturing further into the depths of the chamber, I found surprising nuances. Tightly packed between the books were scrolls, and some rows of tomes stood double-stacked in front of other full rows. I wondered how far back the layers went, whether or not there was an end to the number of books held in the two story library. Having never spent much time researching, I could not tell if there was some system of organization Althenon was following as he darted from one section to the next, sometimes pulling a book immediately, sometimes appraising the spine for several seconds before shaking his head and moving on. 

After nearly a half an hour of roving the shelves we settled on a table with a stack of roughly fifteen books of various heft. Some he opened, picking specific pages and laying them out before us. 

"This is a list of books the Orders have seized from demon lairs," he said, pointing at one of the open books. As he said, the page contained the titles of some books I had heard of and many I had not, with a description of the contents of each. I lifted the page to see the next, and the next; the list went on for several pages. 

"Where are they now?" I asked. 

"Some are here," Althenon said, waving a finger in a circle to signal the shelves that surrounded us. "Some are in the vault. Others were destroyed, either by choice or by accident."

"The vault?"

"Beneath the cells of this building there is a vault of demon relics that the brothers or the Starlight Tower could not figure out how to destroy," Althenon explained. "Among the amulets and weapons there are a few books with sensitive content not fit for the library." 

"Sensitive content," I said, wondering what that might be.

"A few spellbooks," Althenon said, indicating a few entries in the log. "I believe one or two are bound with human flesh." 

"We should check there," I said, trying to push from my mind the thought of a book made of skin.

"In due time," he said. "We usually need the High Paladin's permission to open the vault. We have plenty to work with here." 

We settled at the table and began to pour over the texts. Many of them were barely comprehensible to me; I had never been the strongest reader, having taught myself the skill in my youth, but the subject matter was much more complicated than those books I had been given by the Order to study during my training. Those dealt with demon lore and the history of the Order of the Sacred Sword. These books, with their obscure titles in foreign languages, spoke of unnumbered planes of existence, only one of which was home to the demons who invaded our world generations ago. 

"If we want to find out the truth of the demon power, we may have to make a larger cosmological study," Althenon explained, showing me a map of the material planes and their relation to each other. Our plane, the prime plane, was only one of many. Some were home to the gods, others were home to creature, it was told, not unlike ourselves. One, a very large one, close to our plane, was home to the demons. 

"It is not quite a matter of distance," he said, attempting to explain to me how the portal opened long ago, and how the invading army poured out of it. "Not a literal one, anyway. Some planes are relatively easy to travel to from ours, but others are impossible. Either way, it takes a great amount of magical power that usually kills the person who attempts it. The book the demon prince spoke of could contain instructions for closing the gap between our reality and theirs." 

"How did they do it last time?" I asked. 

"We do not know," Althenon said, shaking his head. "We only closed the portal once the demons fled. Any who remained in our plane would be trapped here permanently."

"Unless we banished them?" 

"Exactly right," he said. "They told me you were sharp."

"It makes a great deal of sense," I said. "If the prince is trying to create a perfect mate, he may be trying to create a more powerful demon. One who could open the portal, perhaps?"

"A distinct possibility," Althenon said. He put aside the before us and found another. It was a history of the demon war, but one I was not familiar with. "Within this book is an account of the portal closing, written by the sorceress who closed it. Please find it while I look for the catalogue of demon species with a known ability to travel between planes."

"If there were any still alive, would they not just open another portal and invade again?"

"Unlikely," Althenon replied. "We defeated them by sheer strength last time. I imagine it would take them quite some time to marshal an army large enough to attempt another invasion. And to what end?"

What end indeed. The facts we knew of the demon pointed to no motive in the invasion other than our utter destruction. They moved from city to city, besieging it with armies and magic until the walls fell. They took few prisoners, though those who were taken alive were often given to the succubi and incubi. When reinforcements arrived during their siege of the capital and the vast majority of their army was destroyed, the survivors retreated with unfailing speed to the portal. The Starlight Tower met them there, and there was one final battle, and the portal was shut. 

"It appears to be a very complicated process," I said, indicating the section in which the ritual was described. "I know nothing of spellcraft."

"Likely it was improvised on the spot," Althenon said after spending a moment reading the passage. "Or it is simpler than this writing is making it out to be. I would imagine closing the portal is significantly easier than opening it." 

I asked if we could consult the Tower, but he shook his head.

"It is not necessary," he said. He showed me what he had been reading. "It is ancillary to our concern. There are very few types of demons with the ability to travel between the planes. It is possible that the opening of the portal was as much an accident as anything else." 

"So they came here for no reason?" I asked. 

"Not necessarily. They might have opened the portal by chance, but they still had to choose to cross through it," Althenon said. "We simply do not have enough information."

"Would Talaxel know?" I asked. "She lived amongst a full-blood for many years."

"I have no idea. Once the portal was closed, there was no way to find out why. We stopped asking questions," Althenon shrugged. He called out to the darkness. "Steward, bring Talaxel to us."

"At once, my lord," said a voice, and I heard the opening and closing of the door to the library. 

"We should keep looking. If there is mention of the book in the writings about the war, we will find it," Althenon said. "Though you may be correct about going to the Tower. Their library is much more extensive than ours."

Minutes passed while we read in silence, only breaking it to point out an interesting fact to the other. The door opened again, and I heard two pairs of footsteps climb the stairs and approach our table. The steward, a boy no older than sixteen, seemed terrified of Talaxel, who wore a simple robe but slinked within it. It seemed as if it was threatening to fall from her shoulders at any moment.

"What could you possibly want?" Talaxel asked. "The sun set hours ago."

"We have some questions about a very urgent matter," Althenon explained.

"I'll answer none of your questions," she replied.

"Please, Talaxel," I said. "We need your help."

"Darling, I'll answer your questions," she said to me. "Not his."

"I don't understand," I said, looking from Talaxel to Althenon, and back.

"Old grudges die hard, I suppose," Althenon said. "Very well. I grow tired anyway. Quentin, please record any information you find relevant, and we can review it in the morning. Blow out the candles when you are finished."

He took the arm of the steward as he rose from the table and made his way toward the stairs. 

"Come, my boy," he said. "It is time for rest."

After a few seconds of waiting the door closed behind them, and there was silence. I remained in my chair, and Talaxel seated herself on the table edge that faced me, her legs dangling to the right of mine. 

"I didn't know how late it was," I said, looking up. "I apologize for waking you at this hour."

"I don't sleep," Talaxel replied.

"I didn't know that," I said. "How do you fill your time?"

"Books, mostly," she said, looking around the room. "And there are many who come to me seeking in the night. I am not strictly forbidden from interacting with the stewards, you know."

I had not been aware of that. 

"What about Althenon?" I asked. 

"He helped devise the spell that keeps me restrained during my encounters with the brothers," she explained. "I knew there would be some chains placed on me when I came here, but you cannot imagine how strange an experience it is."

"I'm sorry," I said. "If it's unpleasant for you, I can stop coming to you for our sessions."

"It is not unpleasant," she said. "Though it seems like a loss, to be incited into a demonic, erotic rage that serves no other purpose than to give the brothers practice against the real thing. When my passions are less restricted, I find them much more pleasurable."

I thought about that for a moment.

"If you could have one thing, what would it be?" I asked.

"Free will," she replied without any hesitation.

"But you have that," I said. "Granted, you are confined to this building, but your time is your own. You are free to pursue your own interests. Am I wrong?"

"That's not exactly it," she sighed. "I wish for freedom from the impulses."

"I don't understand," I said, for the most recent of many times that night. "You said you enjoy experiencing your passions."

"When the spell restrains me and my mate does not finish inside me, I am left unsatisfied," she said. "Why do you think I am always ready for the brothers?"

She took my hand, which was resting on the table, and brought it between her legs, under the fold of her robes. The crease where her legs met was hot, and her slit dripped with wetness.

"My urge is to breed and create more demon spawn," she said, leaning forward, gasping, as she rubbed my fingers up and down the line of her cunt. "It is instinct, but it is not what I would choose." 

"What would you choose, Talaxel?" I asked. I found that I was not aroused; being with Talaxel without the presence of a wizard of the Starlight Tower muttering over our bed was a dangerous prospect. I had no idea what might come out of her: tender passion, or unbridled rage.

"I would choose you, my darling," she said, thrusting my fingers into her. There was no resistance. She closed her eyes and threw her head up to the ceiling, opening her legs wider. "I would choose you every time." 

She drove my fingers into her for a few moments, grasping my wrist with both hands and her hips thrust against me. Biting her lip and smiling, and looked down and met me with her emerald gaze. Curtains of hair fell over the sides of her face, and she looked at me through a tunnel; it was only us now. It had only been us, always. 

"You want me," she said. "I can see it in you."




Order of the Sacred Sword Ch. 04



"You see nothing," I replied, though if she looked at the crotch of my pants under the table, she would have quite a few clues as to my mood. How quickly she was able to turn things, even without the dark pressure of her demon heritage. 

"Why deny yourself?" she said, and throwing a leg my head, withdrew my fingers and slid into my lap. The length of her skirt bunched around her waist and she held my shoulders as she straddled me, grinding herself into my erection.

"It has been a while," I said. 

"Then let yourself go," Talaxel replied. The smell of her black hair was earthy, and filled my nostrils. Her hands took either side of my face and she drew me in for a deep, passionate kiss. I felt no power from her, no evil, and when our lips parted she must have registered the surprise on my face. "Quentin?"

"Apologies," I said. "I just don't know what to make of this."

"Every time one of you brothers come to my with your big, fat cocks with their big, stupid names, all you do is ram it up my cunt and fuck me until you've had your fill," Talaxel said, a tinge of resentment in her voice. I could certainly understand why. "When was the last time you were with a real woman? When was the last time you were inside a real woman?"

The thought of Meredith pained me, and for a moment I looked away. Her hands brought my face back to hers, and I made my admission. 

"Since before I came to the Order," I replied. 

"As I suspected," Talaxel replied, releasing my head. She reached below her legs and began to unlace my pants. "Let me be your real woman, Quentin. You have nothing to worry about." 

Her hands found my hardness, and my hips shot up when she wrapped ten fingers around my shaft. 

"Oh, Quentin," she said, burying her lips in my neck. The smell of her hair was overwhelming, and I breathed it in deep, savoring its unusual qualities. So rarely had I been around a woman, let alone a clean woman; I had almost forgotten what it smelled like. "You're ready for me too, I see." 

"You're so different," I said. 

She pressed her forehead against mine, our noses grazing. 

"As are you," she said. She looked down at my cock, which was jutting out from the stop where our bodies met. "Such a modest sword, when not enhanced by that foul potion."

"I miss it," I said, remembering the power I had felt with that giant member, artificial as it was. The thought of Meredith flooded me again; the desire for the perfect body was something I had ignored, disregarded in her. It did not seem so silly now.

"You shouldn't," she said, stroking me with both hands. She planted another, quicker, kiss on my lips. "I can take a foot of cock, when overcome with certain appetites. But I much prefer the real thing."

With a fluid motion she lifted her legs again and dropped under the table, beneath my legs. She took my pants with me, removing them completely with a hard pull and balling them up before throwing them aside. 

"Do you enjoy me from down here?" she asked. I could see only the glimmer of her eyes, her thin fingers wrapped around my member. The points of her horns sticking out into the candlelight. 

I nodded, bereft of words. 

"Pretend you are some important scholar, at some important library," she said, giggling. "And pretend I am some serving girl you sent for deep in the loneliness of the night." 

"I am an important scholar at an important library," I replied, weaving a finger through her hair. The tip of her tongue darted along the head of my cock, for only a shadow of a second. "But you are no serving girl." 

"I've brought you your wine, sir," she said, voice still infected by a gorgeously disarming humor. I felt her mouth again and again, brushing, fluttering. Her hot breath was transcendent. "Is there anything else I can do for you before I retire?"

"I have been hard at work all day," I said, playing along. "I beg you, relieve my tension."

"As you wish," she said, and before my mouth was closed I felt hers closing, sealing around the head of my member. 

One hand worked my stones as another moved in time with her bobbing head, taking the saliva from her mouth and spreading it on my length. The movement of her hand smoothed as she took me in deeper and deeper, her mouth growing wetter and wetter. I could not see her but it was easy to imagine her looking up at me, her hair swishing as her head moved. I brought a candle from the table down to my belly and finally saw her face, a pale mask in the blackness, flawless and stretched by the intrusion of my cock. In one moment she was taking me all the way inside her, nose pressing against my pelvis, and another she drew me out and flicked her tongue at me. I watched it flap in a quick blur, stimulating every inch of me. With my free hand I dug into her hair, pressed my palm against the back of her head, and held her down on me. I was deep within her throat for several seconds, and I felt I might burst. But she fought at just the right time, wiggling away from me and shooting me a devious smile. 

"Not yet, master," she said. "Your serving girl needs your mouth now. Then you may have your way with her."

She moved onto the table with a leg on either side of me, pushing the books aside, but not before releasing her robe from around her body. It fell to the floor and her curved body confronted me with brazen confidence; the horns sprouting from her forehead were the only thing that betrayed the angelic image. I flew wildly into her cunt, kissing at the insides of her thighs, teasing her clitoris with the tip of my nose. 

"My word," she said, placing both hands on my head. I took her button in my mouth, and sucked it as far in as I could. Meanwhile my fingers found her hole, and entered it once again. "Who taught you that?" 

"A scholar reads many books," I said, looking up and meeting her eyes from beneath the mound of hair beneath her legs. "And recalls every experience."

She let out a mirthful laugh, delighted by my words. Both hands thrust my face back into the gap of her pussy. 

"You are a wise one indeed," she said, squirming as she held me in place. My tongue worked in and out of her, stroking the inside of every fold it could reach. Her smell below was more wonderful than the scent above, and as I tasted her I wondered why every woman tasted different, and if any woman could taste as good as Talaxel. Was it part of her demon parentage, some leftover trait that made her irresistible to men? I could imagine swarms of them, fighting each other to the death for the chance to be where I was now, lapping up the juices that flowed from Talaxel's sex. She moaned and cried, and reached a final climax when three of my fingers thrust in and out of her and I had her clitoris firmly in the grasp of my sucking lips. Her nails dug into my scalp, but though it hurt when her shuddering noise was finally done she rubbed the pain away. 

"Enough browsing," she breathed. "It's time for a deep, deep study."

Without another word I stood and entered her, slowly inching my length through the tight rim of her hole. Hanging over the edge of the table she grabbed my ass, pushing me into her further and further until I could go no farther. She kissed me, and I kissed her back, and our lips remained locked as I began thrusting, slowly, ever slowly, reveling in the satisfaction of her cunt releasing me and allowing me back in once again. She wanted me, and she was pure; whatever evil that was once in her, or still in her, was in hiding, and I was perhaps for the first time seeing the real Talaxel, the woman I had only before fucked. But this was something else entirely. It was not making love - I did not love her - but we were kindred spirits in sexual adventure. 

"Fuck," I said, cursing into her ear. "You are too much for me." 

"Please, not yet," she replied, whispering. I felt the swell of her breasts through my shirt, her hard nipples, her firm flesh. Her hips bones were defined, but soft, and made excellent handles as I increased my speed. "Let me finish on your cock, and you can take my any way you want."

I did the best I could to restrain myself, biting my own lip, biting Talaxel's neck, whatever I could to not come. She tightened around me, both her cunt and her legs, wrapping my in her body so I could not escape, could not exit her. 

"So big, so big," she gasped. "Forget that potion. You fill every part of me."

"I am glad," I said, grunting. "There is nothing left of me to put into you."

Her hands explored by back, and I explored hers, and finally she took many deep breaths and finished, the pulsing of her muscles gripping my member and nearly driving me over the precipice. We were still, and she brought in a massive breath and held it, shaking, nails digging into my back. The air released from her slowly, as if I was squeezing it out of her, and her forehead came to rest against my collarbone. Her reprieve might have lasted. She looked up at me, her green eyes peeking above the hard lines of my own body. 

"How do you want me, Quentin?" she asked. 

I told her. 

Talaxel climbed onto the table and turned around, her ass facing me, her elbows on the table, her head down. I ran a finger up and down her slit; it was red and open, but the hair around it was damp and I could tell it was waiting for more. I felt the cheeks of her ass with both hands. They were large and firm, but had a pleasing give I could not stop exploring. When I finally released her she wiggled it at me, her cheeks moving back and forth, her hips rotating, popping up and down. I buried my face in her for a moment, my tongue in her pussy, my nose pressing into her ass. She moaned, and begged. 

"Take me now, Quentin," she said. "Fuck me and spray your seed on my ass."

I entered her, and wasted no time. I imagined it was not difficult for her to finish me. Her ass rippled as I slammed against her, and I could feel the muscles in her cunt working me, pulsing, milking me as I fucked her as hard as I could without hurting her. Talaxel cried out, and I believe that it was because I pleasuring her yet again, and the noise was not only for my own consumption. I grabbed under her hips, my biceps bulging, and gave her a few final thrusts. I seized with pleasure and pulled out of her just in time, the spasms in my shaft sending ropes of white seed over the thick rounds of her behind. She cooed and sighed as I came, teasing me with the power of her voice alone. When I was finished I released myself, and sat back down in the chair, incapable of making any further movement. 

Talaxel rolled over and sat down on table, her angular face red with arousal. She laughed, and looked at my ridiculous form. 

"See, that was not so bad," she said, leaning forward to me. "Was it?" 

"Not at all," I asked. We were both out of breath. 

"I came twice," she said, taking my hands in hers. "So you may ask me two questions."

I had entirely forgotten. I looked at the stacks of papers we had assembled on the table, the volumes, the tomes, and realized that none of it meant anything. 

"During my time with the prince, he mentioned a book that gave him instructions on how to transform one of our companions into the perfect mate," I began. "If you know of this book, can you describe it for me?"

"I know it," she replied. The sexual exhaustion had disappeared entirely from her voice, her heaving breaths now normal. "Every demon knows of the book. During my time with the coven, they could not stop talking about it. It is a master spellbook of sorts, with instructions for numerous demon rituals. How to transform another creature into a demon, how to open a portal to another realm, how to breed all sorts of monsters, how to create an incurable plague."

"Who has the book?" I asked, exhilarated. "Where is it now?"

"No one," Talaxel replied. "It was lost in this plane thousands of years ago."

"Thank you," I replied, squeezing her delicate hands in mine. "Thank you so much. You may go, if you wish."

"Goodnight, my darling," she said, kissing me on the cheek. I watched her leave, her robe remaining crumpled on the ground. 

#

"The book was here long before the demon invasion," I told Althenon. We gathered with Hallis and Gregory the next morning. "That is why we don't know about it. It was not amongst the relics found in the demon strongholds after their defeat, because they invaded our plane to recover it."

"A bold theory," Althenon said, considering it. "But not unrealistic."

"All they would need is one demon to open the portal, and they could send through an army to find it," Gregory said. 

"But it doesn't make any sense," mused Hallis. "Why send an army when they could send covert agents to recover it undetected?"

"They did send covert agents," I said. "The incubi and succubi blend in well enough. The only reason we can find them and kill them is because we know how. Most people would succumb to their will without resistance. I would not be surprised if they were ordered to remain here instead of fleeing through the portal after the last battle."

"I believe Quentin may be correct," Althenon said. "When the High Paladin returns, we will bring it to him."

"What do we do in the meantime?" Hallis asked. 

Althenon thought about this for a moment, staring at his plate of breakfast.

"We will question Meredith and Victoria, and the incubi in the Order of the Sacred Sheath, and consult a member of the Starlight Tower," Althenon said. "There is much information we are lacking, but thanks to young Quentin I believe we now know which questions to ask."