Breaking the Rules Pt. 06

Everybody stay cool. I've got alliteration, and I'm not afraid to use it.

Sequel to Bending the Rules, although hopefully if you're familiar with RPGs you won't have too much trouble following along without having read that. Not based on any particular gaming franchise or storyline, but there may be guest appearances.

Hard to believe it's been a whole year since I started this, feels like just a couple months. How do I know if I've been living in Furaha's private relativity chamber too long?

*****

The door locked behind Nuru after only a few moments. He wasn't sure who could have gotten to the lobby behind him that quickly, but it didn't matter; there was no going back now. He followed the vampress's directions as well as he could, although a lot of the symbols were hanging in out-of-the-way places, and he had to backtrack a few times and make sure he'd not taken a wrong turn. One led to another, and then out of town. Paladins and a few guards ran down several streets, calling to each other, looking funny at him as they passed.

"Don't go out there! The ghouls are about!"

"Damn. I can't see in the dark. How will I be able to follow the trail now?" he muttered to himself.

/Best settle in for the day. You'll have to meet up with her after sundown./

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

/You're talking to yourself again. Makes you look real crazy./

(Shut up. I'm talking to a demon.)

/That's so much better, the paladins will be relieved to hear it./

(Sexy time is done, you're free to go now.)

/I could, but I want you to appreciate what it is you just did. That was a big step you took./

(What, approaching a vampire voluntarily?)

/A high-society vampire. You broke so many rules back there, and each one of them gave me a bonus. In addition to the sheer number of other vampires who will be involved in the gossip of the evening, you took the dominant role for the first time, you had your first anal experience, you made her do a dirty cumwalk of shame completely naked, and you tried one of my special moves. I'm bursting with EXP, and I'm betting I even level again on the residuals as word gets around. You're about to be the center of a huge scandal in the cursed-one underworld; my face isn't in plain view, but if anyone's listening close to current events they're going to be seeing my shadow draped behind all of it. You know what my favorite part is? Go on, guess./

(Didn't have to draw on your MP?)

/Not that; you did it all on your own initiative. I didn't even have to push you, you did it pretty much all yourself./

(It was exactly the sort of fun I was hoping to have with you from the beginning.)

/Gods, why did we ever fight? This is the big time, Nuru. I hope you're ready for it; I know I am./

(We both had to get our heads out of our asses, apparently. If it's going to be more fun like that, I'm going to say it was totally worth the pain.)

/Even the mana burn?/

(Even that. Do I sense that it's going to happen again?)

/I don't know exactly what's going to happen here soon; I'm making a bit of a splash, but up until now it's been all in good fun. I do know that the word's going to get out before too long that a succubus has gotten too big for her brassiere, and then I'm going to have a steady supply of challenges before the higher levels freak out and all hell breaks loose. I hope to have a plan in place to get out of harm's way by then, and I am going to need your help - mana burn is very much a possibility. On the plus side, I've just unlocked a spell tree that I think is going to be very much in line with your interests. Naturally, this is the level where people start making OP accusations, so use it with extra caution./

(What kind of spell are we talking here?)

/Buffs. Like, straight eroticism converted to a temporary stat bonus. Also, a bit of healing in a pinch./

(Are... are you saying I'll be able to masturbate myself back to health?)

/Look, I'm not saying it'll be impressive, it's just a secondary effect. You can't just take 5 minutes to beat your meat and refill HP between waves of enemies, health potions and not getting hurt in the first place are better for that. But if you're injured badly and holed up somewhere for several days, you might get back up to where you can limp your way to safety. Although, I suspect increased Proficiency can improve that; there's some upgrades I can buy with enough use, but that particular path is expensive./

(So, masturbate regularly for best results. I can do that! I certainly have enough memories I'd like to revisit now.)

/But, hook up with others as much as possible. The effect scales about as well as the EXP from everything you do, and unless they're completely awful, I'll get more from you shacking up./

(Fuck yeah, even better. What else do you need?)

/I will request that you boost your INT with this once it's ready. Your MAG can't be improved upon, but that MP regen is going to be critical too. There's a lot of wards I'm going to have to build, and rebuild./

(That'll be my go-to. I may need something else once in awhile, but I'll give you a warning before I switch it up.)

/Perfect. This corner of Hell is gonna be a deathtrap shortly. I'll have to get used to sleeping in a pile of bodies, sadly not the sexy kind I've always dreamed of./

(Ew. Won't you be able to enthrall them like you did your fieflord?)

/Well, maybe that too, eventually. I'm certainly going to try, but the downside is I have to get close to do that, and it'll be vulnerable for me. The good news is, they're going to continue underestimating me until they figure out how much MP I have to draw on from you. I'm betting most of them still don't know I've got full access, much less know that you respec'd to full MAG from almost none, if they even know of our pact. I haven't got much in terms of attack, but I can use my auras to deflect and weaken them, and they'll have to take care I can't Dominate them, which will sap their defenses, many of which aren't designed for that intense of a focus. Either way, I'm going to have a steady supply of kill EXP and/or cannon fodder while we sort out the details. Speaking of that - your friend at the travel agency was lying about pocket dimensions. She knows how to get one, or knows who does, and we're going to need it. The knowledge is heavily restricted, and the words themselves are probably monitored, so find an indirect way to ask her about it./

(Can I get you anything else? Phoenix feather maybe? Another respec potion? A god's private journal?)

/Cute. I know it's a big ask, but you have resourceful friends. I'd be more worried about what they're going to ask in return. We know what Katlego wants, and that makes her ironically easier to deal with. Your actual friends may surprise you./

(What does that mean?)

/If I knew exactly, I would tell you. You attract deviants, though. Not that it's a bad thing overall, but think about it; by definition, they are all off the beaten path to some degree, and they're going to be harder to predict. Tread especially carefully with our valkyrie. They may find their loyalties in conflict, and you won't enjoy being on the wrong side when they choose between them. Are you with me on this still?/

(I'll have to get back to you on that, Sanaa. Things are finally going well with Dayo. I don't want to screw that up.)

/Sacrifices must be made sometimes, Nuru. You may have a unique opportunity. Talk to me before you decide. Let me make my case./

(I will. But not today.)

/Twice-blessed mortals! Just when you think you're on the same page.../

Nuru ignored her cursing and focused on the problem at hand: where to store his exhausted body. He'd been up all night, on his feet and then on all fours engaged with some strenuous exertion, and it had been half a day since he'd eaten. The stone floor where he'd copulated had been rough on his legs and especially his knees. He decided to go after Lesedi, and damn the ghouls. He activated Tusa's oath and went out, eating some trail bread.

*****

Nuru jumped at Tusa's approach.

"F'Gah! Holy crap, you're quiet.!Fassada Girma!"

Grrrrnnnnf. Raaarwrrr.

[This is reckless. You are exhausted.]

"You say that like I was any good in a fight to begin with."

[You see even more poorly in the dark.]

"I am following a vampire."

[I'd hoped to travel with you a bit longer.]

"What do you mean? I'm not dissolving your oath. Come with me, that's why I called you."

[It's your death.]

"I'm not going to attack her. She invited me."

Tusa bowled Nuru over and sat on him.

"Ack! Hey! What are you doing!?"

Tusa flexed, pulling his claws back into their sheaths, and then batted Nuru across the face.

"Oi! Knock it off, you! Whose side are you on!?"

[Saving your life. You're under a hypnotic compulsion.]

"No, you're just wasting my time. Come on, get off me and help me find the signs."

[I don't understand. Am I not striking hard enough? It is supposed to snap you out of it.]

"Alright, I admit it, this seems crazy. But the city isn't safe right now and if she wanted to hurt me she could have done it already."

Tusa sniffed him.

[You have been intimate, without great injury. I begin to understand. You can't blame me for my confusion.]

"No, no, I get it. I appreciate you looking out for me."

[Her scent is subtle. I cannot track it directly.]

"Here, look. Signs look like this," Nuru said, dragging his finger in the dirt in the complex shape. "I think they appear near the road crossings. We need to follow them. I don't want her to have to open the door for me after the sun comes up; she'll probably refuse me."

[Dawn approaches.]

"!Kafa Mara Nauyi! Lead the way."

Nuru leaped to his feet and dashed after the feliform at top speed. They made great progress to the next intersection, but he halted abruptly as Tusa growled a warning. A ghoul was standing in the middle of the road, and turned to look in their direction. Tusa leaped forward to engage, swiping with his claws and hopping back out of range.

[Find the marker quickly. There are more coming.]

Nuru looked quickly around; two more ghouls were creeping up through tall grass on the side. He pretended to ignore them, and tried mightily as he looked around to ignore the fight that Tusa was waging, slowly chipping away at the ghoul's health. Finally it had enough and began loping away. Tusa charged over and engaged the other two as they broke cover to attack Nuru with his back turned; he ran in a circle around the road intersection, scanning the ground and nearby area for the symbol. Tusa was losing ground on the two ghouls, who were instinctively splitting apart to engage Nuru from different directions. Nuru looked closely at the road sign.

"This way!" he said, taking off one direction, seeing a tiny and shallow etching of the mark he was looking for, more with his fingers than his eyes. Weightless Foot expired and entered cooldown.

The two ghouls backed away, perhaps sensing the fight not to be worth winning if they had to chase him. However, the injured ghoul burst out further ahead in an attempted ambush, now hungry to make up for its lost health and sensing an advantage, and Nuru had to dodge for his life one way and then another. Tusa slunk behind, waiting for the perfect moment, and then getting in a critical hit from the blind side. The ghoul screamed and flailed, doing a few minor hits to either of them but only prolonging the inevitable. Tusa crushed its skull in his jaws, and then it lay still.

[A worthy adversary. I wonder what might happen if we encounter one with actual armor.]

"That's not a comforting thought. Come on, let's keep moving."

They reached the next intersection. Nuru found a small collection of stones in the shape he was looking for, just off the road in another direction. Away they went again.

[They're following us.]

"Hopefully we're almost there."

Nuru found another collection of stones, on the side of the road, but seemingly leading back the direction he had just come.

"Crap. Now what?"

[Let us look more carefully on the way. A vampire does not have a cleared road to her door, surely.]

They backtracked a little bit, and then Tusa broke away from the road in once place.

"Find something?"

[Maybe a trail. Very faint. I think I smell something, too.]

They reached a heavily-overgrown pile of dead trees, with a possible entrance under one side, just as sunlight started peeking over the treetops around them.

[Too small inside. I will wait here. Good luck.]

"Afraid of tight spaces?"

[After my time in a cage, perhaps you can understand why.]

"Ah... yes. No worries. Thank you, my friend."

Nuru scrambled inside, trying not to impale himself on jagged remains of branches, and watching out for anything that might be hiding. He turned a corner and found himself facing a door, old and ornate and mysterious. He knocked, and steadied his breathing.

Chunk.

The door unlocked and crept open. A thin hand reached out and crooked a finger at him. He slipped inside, and everything went dark.

*****

Nuru opened his eyes. He was lying on a bed, finely furnished. He was alone, and naked. The ceiling was surprisingly high, and gave the space an enormous feeling, though in fact the room was barely large enough for the bed. A crystal high in one corner directly across from the doorway shed light throughout the room. He was still drowsy, having slept who knows how much of the day away, but eager to see where he was. A set of tiny connected hallways connected several rooms in a bit of a star shape, he could start to make out. The central connection had a covered hole in the ceiling through which the barest hint of light leaked, and appeared to be feeding the crystals on the walls at the end of each hallway. Luxurious furs covered the floors, and he padded quietly from room to room, getting the lay of the place. There were no windows, and he found his clothes carefully folded by the front door, along with his drum and pack. He wasn't cold, so he left them and kept exploring. There was a kitchen area that didn't appear to have been used in some time; cobwebs had grown over much of the counter space and the seating area. Another room had a bath; this had been used quite recently, and was in fact still wet. There was a storeroom of some kind but he felt he aught not pry, particularly since it would require an actual prybar he did not have available. Then, finally, the master bedroom. Lesedi made a remarkable impression of a corpse in the middle of the pallet on the floor; her skin was pale, and she was still and silent beyond Nuru's ability to detect any sign of life.

He stood there watching her for some time, pondering. Should he go back to bed? Should he join her? Should he say something?

He caught a tiny glimmer of light; one eye had cracked open and was looking at him through the slit.

'Hi,' he whispered, sounding like a shout in the absolute stillness.

'Can't fool you, can I,' she groaned, stretching and yawning.

'I didn't mean to disturb you,' he replied.

Her eyes snapped open and fixed on him. His head swam.

"!Yi Mamaki!" he mouthed, putting no air into the words.

Entrancement shifted the world around him, and her face floated up in front of him, as his floated right up to hers, and they stared each other down in a contest of wills.

"Boop," she said, from behind him, her face vanishing in the darkness.

He turned to face her, but she was gone too quickly.

She clucked at him disapprovingly, and the world snapped back into focus. He was lying on the bed next to her, and she was waving her finger in his face.

-You have a lot to learn about the art of Entrancement- she said through her eyes.

+Are you sure? I got exactly what I wanted+

"Ha ha ha!" she laughed, before slapping her hand over her mouth, and groaning lightly, holding her head with the other hand.

+Should I let you sleep?+

She licked her lips and shifted on the bed, staring back at him, then reached down between his legs.

-You stayed up for me, I can return the courtesy-

+I don't want to be rude+

-Very well, be boring then-

+On second thought, that's worse+

-I'm glad you agree. Sleep well?-

+Apparently so, I don't remember my clothes coming off, and normally that's something I pay close attention to+

-My wards knocked you senseless, and I cleaned you up a bit-

+That bath was for me?+

-I find my home has a particular smell to it, comprised of the materials of its construction as well as its inhabitant. I rather it not be overwhelmed by a single guest-

+Sorry, adventuring is dirty work+

She giggled faintly, barely more than a hoarse breath.

-I was sad to remove the smell of our evening together from both of us. I rather enjoyed that part of it. Yet, I'm afraid I haven't the interest in saving your clothes. I'm glad you left them off when you woke-

+Me too. There's more of what happened last night if you're interested+

-Sadly I must decline for now. My head couldn't take it during the day. Let us converse, instead-

+What would you like to talk about?+

-My wards reacted most peculiarly to you. You are not a low faction, and thus activated the knockout, yet not one of the secondary effects followed. Why is that, do you think?-

+I'd have to know how the wards work. I haven't looked at them closely+

-Power flows through the outer ward, enabling the inner ward, not that I should go into much detail with a stranger. However, let it suffice to say that the link to the inner ward is governed by runes meant to defuse the knockout effect if any of the Low Faction auras are detected. Some factions, even of the Low, are considered unfriendly and have additional surprises waiting for them-

+Which are considered friendly?+

-At the least, Adisa's and Samba's-

+Perhaps I am one of the others+

-Not even going to pretend to be one of those two?-

+I will not insult your intelligence. You know those exceptions, and yet you remain uncertain. Clearly you have eliminated them as possibilities, but I think I'll leave you with that mystery a bit longer+

She giggled again, showing her teeth, which he had not gotten much chance to see since her mouth did not open to talk.

+You are not what I would expect of a vampire+

-And what is it you expect?-

+Giant fangs for one thing+

-I'm not one for theatrics. My original pearls suit me fine-

+Really? It's not some kind of transformation when you're hungry?+

-No indeed. I admit, some of those afflicted with this curse pull or file their vestigial teeth for dramatic effect. I find it rather distracting speaking with one like that, to say nothing of the speech impediment-

+You don't just use this eye communication with everyone?+

-It can be rather invasive, despite the convenience. As your Entrancement demonstrated, it becomes a struggle wherein the highest INT stat holds the advantage. It is also easy to reveal more than what is intended-

+You don't seem to mind it with me, isn't that unwise?+

She laughed, reaching over to pat his face gently.

-And how should I find you remotely threatening, Level Eleven? On the contrary, I am quite comfortable, and I am enjoying our mental intercourse. You're in my home, where I hold all the power, even in my weakened state. Unless you care to test me...-

+You think the lowly human worker isn't smarter than you?+

-Yes, and no. I'm certain my INT is greater, but you are no lowly worker. You are far too confident, and your smell is nothing like the sweat of pointless drudgery-

+What's it like then?+

She rolled a little to get closer to him and pressed her nose to his neck, then rolled back.

-You are, mmm, intoxicating. So many things are different about you, I can hardly begin to count: your lively face, your gentle touch. Except when it isn't gentle...-