Sex is a Job Description? Ch. 14

"You've unwound a very tight noose from around my neck with your heroics on the road today," Ceria said quietly into his ear.

"And you've wound one around my neck already," the agent replied.

"Oh have I?" the demon replied. "I thought you would enjoy seeing a familiar face or two from your recent sexcapades."

Tom grunted. "You know what I mean, Ceria. I don't expect to do anything but jump at shadows down here and get yanked by a rope around my neck."

"In that case, consider your leash a bit further south than your neck. I care very little where your head goes compared to where your cock goes."

"You and every other case subject I meet," Tom snorted.

At that moment, Tyrin caught sight of Ceria and her face lit up brightly. "Ceria!" The architect bolted for Ceria and Tom managed to unhook his arm in time to avoid being dragged to the ground with the two demons. Lusotan lowered his stance and held his weapon ready, but Ceria waved her hand to dissuade any action.

"Tyrin the Stargazer. It has been far too long."

Tyrin giggled and grinned at Ceria. "Ceria is warm. Warm like Star Child."

"Star Child?" the older demon questioned.

Aeril removed herself from the arm of her servant. "Oh yes, your hickey hoarder here had a lasting impression on Tyrin. He's half of what she talks about now." At that, Ceria gave Tom a sly look, and then hugged Tyrin warmly, kissing the younger demon's head despite the state of her matted, filthy hair.

"He's quite a star in his own right then, to impress Tyrin."

Tom blinked in confusion. Was that a compliment? From Ceria?

After Tyrin had finished speaking with Ceria about numerous projects they had discussed some time in the past, Aeril picked Tyrin up off the demon and continued through the gateway with her servant and Tyrin's in tow. Ceria stood back up, adjusted every ornament and bit of jewelry on her body, and took Tom's arm again in her own.

As Greg passed Tom, they managed a quick exchange.

"We're gonna be split up soon, so don't think it's weird if you end up alone with her."

Tom nodded. "I guessed as much."

With that, Greg and his servant, a busty blonde wearing only silver greaves and a necklace inlaid with rubies, split off from the group and were lost amongst the crowded square inside the gate.

Tom couldn't see much of it from where he stood, but he could tell that this place was like a huge carnival. Vendors and attractions and entertainment booths created pathways filled with demons, high-strung banners and wires and waving ribbons causing the skyline of the festival to bloom with life and color.

Demons of all kinds made their way around, making the most of what was offered. Servants hurried bout with food and drink and palanquins draped with satin and velvet cloths dyed in patterns that Tom thought denoted who was inside, or at least their social status.

To the left, a large stage had been erected with a pole in the center holding up a number of ropes nailed to it at intervals, with a banner bearing two pairs of wings wrapped around a sword at the top. On the stage, some battle was being reenacted with wooden swords and a dozen or so stage fighters.

Ceria led Tom through this chaos and mayhem, parting throngs of patrons with but her presence, occasionally waving a hand or giving a word or two to a guest. Tom didn't like the looks he was getting from some of them, and he knew Ceria didn't care in the least whether or not he was uncomfortable. She never did.

It took everything in Tom to keep his cool around her. He'd lost their bet to stay out of Hell for one year, and now he was without a doubt her slave while he was here. As per their agreement, he wasn't allowed to deny an order from her, or to deny an expressly-stated request by her.

"Don't be afraid; it's only a little further," Ceria teased, taking his hand in her gently.

Tom rolled his eyes. "If I hadn't been drugged up on morphine and Vicodin, there would be no bet or any of this."

"I made no mention of cashing that payment yet," Ceria countered in a mockingly disinterested tone. "I've got bigger things to worry about than what I have you wear and who you stick your prick in at my behest."

They continued for some time through the festival square, or at least the largest part of it. They came to a set of three massive staircases that spanned almost a football field's length across each, and about forty or so steps up. At the top of the first two staircases were landings filled with pools of dark blue liquid in which sat demons in various stages of sexual activity. Around the pools were gardens and pathways made of mossy vegetation that squished softly under Tom's shoes when he stepped on it.

At the top of the third staircase, a vast landing stretched out before him. Weathered gray flagstones supported a variety of buildings, some squat and unornamented, others pillared and decorated from top to bottom with statues and carvings of all kinds. Tom guessed this was the estate proper, as the only people here were servants who ferried construction materials and food and drink and supplies between some of the buildings and the festival grounds below.

In front of Tom and Ceria stood a servant holding a blade to the neck of a shackled, kneeling demon. The woman glared daggers at Ceria as she and Tom approached, her gaze hardening with every step the former took.

"I've got a little surprise for you," Ceria whispered to Tom.

"Oh boy, what an honor," he replied sardonically. He watched the servant carefully remove a key from his tunic and hand it to Ceria, who held it to Tom without looking at him, her eyes instead meeting those of the demon shackled before her.

"This is Adze," she said. "She's been a very naughty succubus and caught killing my servants and spying for Fentin."

"And this relates to me how?" the agent asked, taking the key.

Ceria grinned knowingly. "I made a deal with her."

Uh-oh.

"This is your champion? A human?" the succubus spat. "Disgusting."

"She made a deal with me that if she could suck your soul out, then she could go free. But if she couldn't, she had to satisfy my hellbores."

"Hellbores?"

Adze scoffed derisively. "Is this really it? All I have to do is overpower a human, hop the nearest wall, and freedom is mine?"

At that, Ceria shook her head slowly and dropped down so her face was level with Adze's. "Those cute puppies you'll be fucking later have your scent. Running may not be your wisest decision."

"Fine, let's get this over with then," Adze grunted, facing Tom with an open mouth.

"Stand, girl. He chooses when you try, not you," Ceria snapped, standing back up herself.

Tom shook his head. "Wait what? No, I'm not- no Ceria."

"I have guests to entertain, so I'll leave you two be for now and check up on you later." Ceria turned and descended the steps without saying another word, leaving Tom hopelessly outmatched by a succubus. He could feel her gathering the willpower she could muster to dominate his mind and make him free her, or worse.

"What's the matter? Are you afraid of me, human?"

Tom didn't make eye contact with her as he removed his belt and tie. He motioned for her to turn around, but she stood up instead, knocking the servant next to her to the ground.

"Turn around and kneel," Tom demanded.

Adze sneered back, "She may have given you the key to my chains, but that does not make me a servant to you, little boy." She took a step toward Tom, and the end of a spear swept across her knees, knocking her to the ground.

Lusotan stomped up the last step behind Tom and grabbed Adze by her hair and hoisted her to her knees. He then slid the haft of his spear into the crook of the succubus' elbows and held her arms behind her back, allowing Tom to do what he wanted.

"Continue," he said with a nod.

"Close your eyes," Tom said to Adze.

"Do you really-"

"Close them, or I shall remove them." Lusotan's voice was firm enough to give his threat all the validity it needed. Adze closed her eyes begrudgingly and Tom wrapped his tie around her head, tying it off in the back and securing it on her face with his belt. Once it was secured as tightly as he deemed fit, he thanked Lusotan and the demon promptly left to rejoin his mistress.

Adze stood slowly as Lusotan left and spit in Tom's face.

Tom wiped it away and balled his fists. "Before you form an opinion of me, tell me exactly what she told you about me."

Ignoring his question, Adze bared her teeth at him. "And what makes you think I'll keep this on?"

"Because you trust Ceria not to trust you alone with me," the agent answered plainly. "Now, what did she tell you?"

"You're her champion against Fentin and no matter how hard I try, I won't be able to devour you."

Tom took in the information and nodded slowly. "Well, let me set the record straight. She was right about the second part. Not a succubus I've met can..." his mind paced backwards to Paris, and he swallowed with anxiety. "You can't suck out my soul by any means. And I'm not her champion by any means. Hell, I'm only here because I was ordered to be."

"By that bitch mistress of yours?" the succubus sneered.

"If you mean Ceria, no. And she's not just a bitch you know. She's also an asshole."

Adze grinned widely. "And a frigid tease."

"And a snide cunt."

"You know," the succubus mused, her voice losing a bit of its previous hardness. "I might have liked you had I not been tasked to kill you for my freedom."

Tom rolled his eyes. "Good luck with that. As much as you might hate me already, it looks like we're stuck with each other. So we might as well make due with the company we've got in each other. My name's Tom."

"You can't keep me off you forever. You have to sleep, human. And when you do, I'll slit your throat and be free again." Her words dripped with malicious intent.

"Not as long a tall, dark, and silent is watching." At that, Adze looked around in vain to find the demon that was no longer there. However, with her eyesight gone, she was left guessing where he was.

She turned angry. "Get this thing off my face, human." She bared her teeth again and tried to raise her hands to her face, but they came up short as the slack in her shackles tightened.

"Look, Adze, you can either get treated like shit or make friends with me. It's your call."

"Why don't you fear me?" she growled. "You groveled to that bitch earlier. I could feel how afraid you were."

"You're no Ceria. Now, are we going to be friends or foes?"

Adze changed pace immediately and dropped to her knees. Her mouth opened wide and her tongue lolled out, wet and long. She was daring him to resist her.

"Come fuck your slave then, big boy. She's just waiting for a long, hard cock to come make her quiet and bruise her up and d-"

Tom snatched the chain connected to the collar around her neck and tugged sharply, almost pulling the succubus over. "Enough. Let's go." He turned and started down the steps to the main festival square, and Adze moved to follow him.

"You know I'd be your wildest ride yet," she whispered into his ear sensually.

Tom shook her breath from his ear. "You couldn't suck me off if you had an eternity."

However, the succubus persisted without skipping a beat. "C'mon...aren't you even the least bit interested in everything I can offer you, at your slightest whim? Every dip and curve on my body, every moan, every single want and desire: yours to wrap around your little finger and toy with."

She nibbled at his earlobe as he slowed.

"On any other day with any other circumstances I'd have given in by now. But not today. I don't want to waste time down here."

The succubus inhaled deeply. "You smell like you're about to take me up on my offer. It would be alright for you to slip just a little bit..."

For that, Tom would be lying if he denied it. "You'll get your chance later."

"As you wish, horny boy." Her lips pressed against his ear and she kissed it wetly, sending shockwaves of desire through his body. He struggled to maintain what little composure he had left, and adjusted his throbbing member in his pants. As much as he wanted to deny it, she was turning him on to the highest degree.

He tugged her leash again and she complied without further resistance, only smirking as they descended the steps to the festival grounds and passed by demons that gave Tom very strange looks. He thought it must have looked something like a dog walking a human to them.

All around the pair, the festival was in full swing. Nearby, three stages were set up and two of them looked to be impromptu classes on sex, as each were set up with numerous contraptions and furnished with various beds and couches and furniture that was being used to show different positions that could be achieved with them.

The most interesting one looked like a spider web of chains with a slave strapped to it, gagged and blindfolded, upside-down. On the stage floor, a demon spun the web around on its axis, allowing it to come to a halt with the slave's head upright, level with hers. She said something to him, and then spun the web again so that he was again with his feet up and head down, back facing her.

It looked bizarre to Tom, but he guessed he'd see stranger than that down here after a long enough time. The third stage looked like some kind of reenactment with demons dueling with swords and shields, casting blows left and right with flurries of jabs and twisting dodges. One of them had a large, crested helm on and the other something that looked like it was a skull breathing fire.

Around them, a chorus sang about the great deeds of the heroes and how they were fated to slay each other at the climax of the war. The Seventh Circle's champion and the Second Circle's champion, deciding the fate of an entire race in a duel. Tom moved past the stage to get away from the mention of champions. Apparently, he was one, and seeing how champions were used in the past, it didn't give him much confidence for the future.

Further down the main path between venues and stages and mercantile shops, a long structure of dark green cloth and wooden poles intersected the path, lined with dozens of masks hanging from cords. They looked like threads of masquerade masks, colorful, ornamented, each distinguished from the next with its own designs.

Demons picked these up at will, tried them on, and several walked away with a mask on, moving on to other venues of interest. As he and Adze came to the mask shop, a demon beneath the large tent structure approached them with three carving tools in one hand and two thin sheets of wood in the other.

"You must be one of the Lady's guests from the Mortal Realm. Allow me to make you and your companion a new identity for the masquerade," he said, bowing low with exaggerated, sweeping motions. Tom looked at Adze, and she somehow knew he was looking at her, because she gave him a leer and licked her lips.

"I'd find you no matter how deep you hid yourself in a crowd, human."

Tom rolled his eyes and tugged at the succubus' leash. "It's not you I'm worried about." The two followed the demon beneath the tent and were sat down at a long table where demons and succubi alike were being judged by artisans on what masks they should be given.

"Let's see..." the demon said idly, pursing his lips as he examined both Tom and Adze carefully, eying their features closely. After a few moments of contemplation, he grinned. "I've got something she might like." He disappeared into the crowded center of the tent and returned shortly with a red mask bearing flecks of silver and bronze across one side of the face and swirling patterns in green that looked like blooming flowers on the other.

"How about we end this little charade and get this off my face," Adze suggested, reaching back to pull the tie and belt off her head. Tom grabbed her arm stiffly.

"You know what'll happen," he warned, and the succubus groaned audibly. They both seemed to realize again that she couldn't reach her face given her restraints.

The artisan shrugged. "I'll find something for you, something becoming of a human who tames the will of a succubus."

Adze snorted, "Made to bend the knee with fire and sword."

"Like you didn't already offer everything to me on bent knees without question," the agent retorted quickly, earning him a nip at the base of his neck.

"It's still being offered if you're brave enough for it," she cooed seductively. Tom fought to end the conversation before things got like they had been earlier. Her voice carried some kind of unnatural entity with it that was driving him absolutely insane with desire.

The artisan returned after a tense few moments between Tom and Adze with a mask that looked befitting of a demon. The face of the mask curved up into a short spiral at the edges that looked like they could loop around the ear of the wearer entirely. Gold outlined the mask, broken at regular intervals by green crystalline studs. Around the eyes were carved swirling patterns that reminded Tom of Celtic symbols.

"A black mask for a powerful individual," the artisan beamed, handing Tom the mask. Tom looked at it briefly before taking it and the other mask and leaving the tent. Adze followed closely, her leash still firmly in his fist and wrapped around his knuckles.

They found themselves taken in by the crowded festival grounds, Adze commenting that she could smell the sex being had on the stages and at the venues nearby. More than once, she stopped Tom to listen to a how-to about something she was interested in.

"Are these classes on how to have sex? You're a succubus. What could you possibly need that for?" the agent asked, utterly confused.

Adze smiled faintly. "There is always more to learn about lovemaking," she replied. They watched one stage, although Adze could only listen, for a long while until the new set of volunteers came onto the stage. Adze expressed interest to leave and Tom left without any disagreement.

All this showcasing of bodies in coitus and beautiful women intimately explaining the inner workings of lovemaking was turning him on. Not that Adze's occasional attempts at seduction were helping either.

After what seemed like hours of wandering around the grounds, having come upon a new type of venue or event every few minutes, Adze raised her head and sniffed at the air. Tom stopped as she frowned deeply.

"What?"

"Let's go this way," the succubus suggested, pointing in the opposite direction that they were heading.

"What's that way?" Tom was suspicious, but the succubus sniffed the air again and nodded.

"I'd rather not be near that bitch if I can help it." Tom nodded and they backtracked a ways before running into a servant who stopped them and addressed Tom by his name.

"Champion Tom, forgive my intrusion, but my mistress requests that I show you your rooms." He bowed low in respect.

"Rooms? I thought for sure Ceria would have Adze and I sleep together to move things along," lamented the teen with mock enthusiasm.

The servant seemed confused for a moment. "If...if that is what you desire, you may. Your quarters are not simply one room, however, honored guest."

"Oh joy, the luxury suite," Adze chimed sardonically.

"My mistress asks if you would be content to be shown your quarters now."

Tom shrugged. "Sure, lead on." The servant nodded and the agent and succubus followed him through the web of guests and slaves and servants and entertainers, cutting a path through their number with surprising ease. Eventually, they made their way back to the enormous staircases and up to the estate proper.

They entered one of the larger buildings and passed through a large number of slaves going about their business, ferrying food and drink and materials to the festival in neat, chaotic order. Somehow, it all looked like it was making sense, but everything was so erratic and hurried that it looked like some kind of mess of orders that just so happened to be carried out as it should. Tom didn't understand how all these people knew exactly what they were supposed to do, or how at least they looked like they did.