Succubus Inquisition Ch. 05

His fear came true as they both turned towards the room, mouths gaped open. Either they really liked that horrible stench or else they knew he hid in the room. If they were drooling over the thought of his human flesh, this room might not be filled with animal bones, after all.

Athan placed his hand over his nose and took a deep breath, but it didn't help any. With a single kick, he kicked the door open, which burst the door open in their faces.

The tattered wooden planks shattered as they flew towards the lizards, raining painfully against their tough hides. He followed through with a round house kick at the base of the smaller's neck. It went down.

The larger lizard man brushed off the many splinters sticking in his skin and swung wide. Athan barely dodged, scraping his back against the stone behind him. Another two clawed strikes followed in quick succession. The monk blocked one that shook his arm violently and slowed him just enough for the second to swipe across his midsection. He grimaced in pain and brought both arms down hard, shoving the large muscled limb away.

The large jaws snapped at him several times, barely missing his face. The desperate monk brought his knee up hard, striking between the thing's legs, only to hit scaled armor. The monk grunted in pain, instead. A large tail swung around and swiped him off his feet, landing hard with a splat in the thin layer of mud. Rolling to avoid the tail slamming down on the spot where he'd been a second ago, he angled up a good sized broken plank of wood just as the large lizard prepared to strike, impaling the plank into its side.

The angry reptile recoiled back, removing the wood and regarding the monk with caution. It appeared he wasn't used to prey fighting back. The lizard puffed up his chest and hissed, no doubt trying to frighten the monk. The smaller lizard was climbing up onto all fours, groaning in confused pain.

Athan rolled forward and kicked, landing his foot hard into the midsection of the smaller foe, sending it flying. The larger lizard didn't see it coming as his comrade flew into his legs, and they both tumbled over. The monk rose to his feet and swung his foot out. Blood flew against the smooth stone walls as the larger lizard's head flung back from the blow.

The smaller of the two scurried off in a hurry, leaving the larger to groggily rise to his feet, rubbing his chin. Athan held his ground as the larger being looked him over. The monk expected to be attacked again, and sighed in relief when he wasn't. The lizard regarded him with a tilted head and slowly turned to leave. After a few steps he turned his head, looking over his shoulder. He grunted again and continued on his way, leaving Athan surprised.

In a way Athan hoped these folk were related to Dragus, for the effort he made to not kill any of them, which left him sore, bleeding and exhausted. Yet he was alive, and so were they. That had to count for something. He looked down and examined the large claw marks along his body. That one strike had really done some damage, yet it only stung. He had gotten used to the constant pain his body kept receiving. But that wasn't what shocked him – his body had begun healing, on its own!

That's why blood didn't pour down his body, and the wound only stung. Somehow his body had begun the process of mending the wound without his mind calming and setting the motions into play.

Changing into another form might not interest him, but this rapid healing? This he could handle!

The process felt slow but the monk imagined it could only get better with time. A brief look around made him realize he shouldn't linger any longer, just in case the lizards sought out reinforcements. After all, he had been trespassing on their territory.

Shortly after he found himself back at the fork that split the route he had run down. A thought made him wonder what path the lizard woman had taken. But he didn't worry about it. His path was clear and he set off, coming back to the uncleared rock surface of the cave tunnel.

A low hiss caused him to freeze in his tracks. The two lizards in the ruins weren't quiet or sneaky at all. His mind began to wander, imagining different creatures that could be smart enough to sneak up on him. Slowly he turned, and confusion mixed with his shocked features. The female lizard had caught up with him.

Standing at shoulder height, she stared at him with a tilted head, her grey scales tinted slightly with green. Another kind of look shined within those eyes, it wasn't hunger like the others. Her torn rags hardly covered her chest that swelled with each breath. The look she was giving him gave him the chills.

A clawed hand came up under her shirt and cupped a breast as her head tilted and long, forked tongue slithered out briefly.

"You like what you see?" She hissed out between labored breaths.

"No, actually I don't." He replied flatly, trying to keep his voice neutral.

"Fought bravely, you did." She took a step closer, tongue licking her scaled lips.

"I defended myself, that was all. I meant no harm to your kind, and wish to leave in peace."

"Yet a part wants to stay." She motioned downward with her head. His eyes followed, looking down to find a tent within his trousers. It was then that he detected a subtle musk on the air. His body reacted naturally to that scent without his knowledge.

"Clearly you are mistaken." As he covered himself up, she grunted with amusement.

"Perhaps."

Her body stood straight up, scales appeared to smooth over. The green tint took a deeper shade as her body slimmed. Reptilian features shrunk and scales melted into her deep green skin. Hair began to grow atop her head until it flowed past her shoulders. Her eyes never changed yet her elongated snout shrunk back, leaving a wide mouth full of pointed teeth to smile at him. Her chest swelled within those torn rags and her tail slimmed but remained.

"Or perhaps you prefer this?"

Despite himself he felt his manhood twitch as her smooth voice met his ears. It felt strange to see her form shift as it did. And he'd be lying if he didn't say it was a little hot. Unconsciously his hands pressed a little firmer as his thumb rubbed in small circles.

Her smile widened at his response. "I thought as much."

The monk's voice caught in his throat and his retort never came out. There was no denying his body's reaction to her change. Even though he clearly hadn't been attracted to lizards. She shifted into a beautiful woman. One he instantly recognized.

"How'd you get here?"

She smiled and took two more steps towards him as he backed up, keeping distance between them. Her hand squeezed at her chest as she moaned out, taking three quick steps towards him, as he backed against the tunnel's rocky surface. Before she reached him the monk held out his hand to block her advance. The woman's body met his hand and exploded in a green buff of smoke, dissipating with a sultry sigh.

Athan leaned back against the rock, breathing heavy and unsure what had just happened. He felt nothing as his hand brushed against her, the moment before she vanished. That encounter had been strange, to say the least. He ran his hands up his blood stained robes and rubbed his eyes, vaguely noting his body had healed completely. He thought it best never to speak of his hallucinations to anyone. The scent was still on the air and he wondered if it had been there all along.

With a quick inspection of the area he concluded that the water dripping from the rocks had a strange musk to it. Perhaps that caused the hallucinations. As he took a sniff his blood boiled, causing a sigh of strange pleasure. He quickly straightened, cleared his throat and moved on, embarrassed.

Athan wandered back into the large chamber to find his mentor and the kitsune fast asleep and wrapped in thick furs next to the fire. Dragus startled him off to the side as his large head rose to greet him. For an extremely large creature, he sure could hide in plain sight.

"What were you doing in the deep depthss?" His concern washed away with worry as he took in the torn, blood and sweat soaked robes. "Are you alright?"

"Training," he said sarcastically. "I'm fine, just went for a walk and met some less than friendly folks."

The dragon's long neck carried his head closer as he sniffed the air and tilted his head.

"Your uh, children?"

The dragon laughed quietly, not to wake those sleeping.

"I have no heirss, and ssadly believe mysself to be the lasst of my kind. Thosse abominationss are nothing but parassitess that alwayss linger closse to my kind. Sstealing from our vasst treassure holdss. I haven't sslept on a comfortable pile of gold in a long time, hoping that they'd losse interesst and bugger off. Yet they sstill linger ass if they believe me a god among their people."

"Hmm well I didn't mortally wound any, just in case."

"Ha! You honor me, even though it wass unnecessary."

"My body also began to heal on its own, without me having to focus on it."

The dragon scrunched its brow in thought. The monk had no interest in shape shifting, but his body was adjusting as the draconic power grew within him. There'd have to be another way to teach him, a way more suited to his tastes. A glint of mischief shined within his eyes as he swiped a large, clawed paw out towards the monk.

Athan's body moved automatically, before he even realized the playful attack was coming his way. The large paw kept following him until it was joined by quick snaps from the dragon's jaws. The monk flipped, dashed and rolled, always a step ahead. The dragon chuckled quietly as he kept up the attacks, his body now standing within the great chamber.

Tail and feet joined in the assault, and despite his first efforts to keep quiet, began to shake the ground. The two sleeping by the fire started, waking to a fully grown dragon hopping around, chasing the agile monk, his scaled neck swinging one way as his tail swung another, yet never reaching Athan. The dragon's laughter filled the chamber as he got carried away. The bald monk's body moved faster than he thought possible, and he too became carried away in the game.

A talon at long last reached its mark and dug a deep gash into the monk's back. Athan rolled away and kept moving. The pain caused him to cry out. However, as he kept moving, he could feel his body heal faster than ever before. The adrenaline rushing through his veins hurried the process and by the time his roll completed the wound had healed. In his brief moment of concern--- rubbing his back where the wound had been--- the large tail slammed into his chest, knocking the wind out of him.

He doubled over as he was flung against the cavern wall, blood spat from his mouth and he could feel broken ribs. Dragus closed in, snapping his jaws close, causing Athan to spin painfully out of the way. The scaled snout crashed into the rock wall, crushing rock and sending it scattering all over. As Athan spun away the dragon curved his head in the same direction, colliding with the monk and hitting him hard.

Athan could feel his body's recovery even as he suffered new blows. Instead of being flung against another wall, he clamped down his sweaty palms and grasped at the dragon's scales. With a quick pull he rose and kicked at Dragus' eye. With a surprised yelp the dragon halted his moment and shook his head, shaking the monk off. A clawed paw scratched at his eye as if the blow caused naught but an itch. A further shake of his head and he looked down with humor.

"Hahaha." The reptilian laughter filled the cavern once again. "Sso I get you to train, after all, sstubborn boy." He laughed out loud, and Athan found himself laughing along with him. His injuries had completely healed before his body had even hit the ground.

"That, was... Amazing." He took heavy labored breaths, completely exhausted and covered in sweat. He felt invincible! The monk examined his body quickly and found no trace of any wound, besides his destroyed clothing. It was a shame – fighting the demon wouldn't be a physical fight.

He solidified his thoughts. Something had stopped him back in the tunnel, stopped him from rushing in with his sexual impulses, even though the green skinned woman hadn't really been there.

Amber! Amber was the key. Even though he didn't know exactly how he felt about her, he did know one thing – at this moment in time, he didn't desire another woman. He desired Amber. That had resolved his will to resist, even though his body still reacted. It was just another aspect he had to train and practice for, willing his body to listen to his mind. That would be how he fought the demon, by sure will that he didn't want her. The thought sent an unsure feeling through his body.

Could he do it? Resist a sexual demon just by knowing he wanted another woman?

Their bubble of fun burst when clapping came from the fire.

The dragon and monk turned to see Bree happily standing, and clapping to their staged fight. Yshomatsu was sitting up, leaning against her legs with a tired yet pleasant smile upon his face. They had got so caught up in their fun that they had completely forgotten the two were sleeping nearby. They both felt horrible for a moment, but were pleased to see the two weren't upset.

Blake and his ranger companion Emilia were watching as well. Athan had completely forgot they were even among them. Having stayed at the cavern's entrance the two had felt out of place among the group. The dragon and kitsune made them feel uncomfortable.

Blake had since apologized for how he had acted in the past to Yshomatsu and had received a warm smile in return. Now the knight wished to be back among his people, not to mention he wished to return to his naïve ways, before knowing anything besides humans and animals existed. A time when he didn't send General Titus and his army off to their deaths. And now the monks wanted him to do the same with the rest of the legion's army.

He wasn't sure if he could make such a request again, even thought the result of doing nothing would be ten times worse.

During the whole event Dragus' scales shined with more life than they had before, as if being more active in recent days had allowed blood to flow more freely throughout his body. The scales were looking less like decaying flesh and more like his original brown. It also made him stand out a bit more among the grey rock of the cavern. If his body kept that up soon he wouldn't be able to hide in plain sight any longer.

Athan would need a new set of clothing and the thought made him chuckle, before he realized he had allowed his mind to momentarily forget about Amber. Guilt washed over him like a slap to the face. Dragus sensed his mood swing before the monk's face showed it.

"We're jusst about ready. Ssoon my little friend, ssoon. Allow the red dragon to fully form and we'll be off to resscue the damssel."

He was attempting to bring a smile to the monk's face. The dragon succeeded for a moment. Athan knew how important it would be not to rush in unprepared, but that didn't lessen the pain of waiting. The monk just nodded, and decided that he needed to get some rest.

Meanwhile, the armored humanoid wolf known as Fenris dragged a chained woman behind him.

It felt like they had been walking for ages, going at such a slow pace. The grassy hillsides didn't help the lesser demon figure out their location. Short, yellowish-green grass covered every inch of ground she could see. The hills prevented her from seeing too far in the distance, even at their peaks. As far as she could tell there was nothing, absolutely nothing around them but grassy hills.

Amber put up a fight, once she regained consciousness, and the wolf was forced to bind her hands and neck. The remaining members of his pack followed close behind, threatening to snap at her heels if she stopped walking. The previous night they had camped out with a fire and the strawberry blonde questioned his intent.

He appeared to be a brute, bent on the completion of his task and nothing else. His eyes wandered over her body countless times, her torn clothing hardly doing a thing for her modesty. She wanted to know what he planned to do with her, and didn't like the way he looked at her body.

To her surprise, he had replied with a tale of how he had been summoned to this world, to hunt down Meridiana's rebellious children. He had attempted to refuse but the strong pheromones the succubus released took hold of his primal instincts, and the wolf took over. And before he knew it he was enslaved to her will. He hated himself for it and felt extremely stupid.

She silently agreed with him on that point.

The fact that he was returning with only one of his charges scared him. He had hoped to carry out his task and be done, returning home, praying never to be summoned by her again. But he feared she'd view his return with only Amber as a failure, and dreaded to receive punishment. A quick death would be welcomed, but he feared the succubus would further enslave him to her will, instead, cutting off any hope for freedom.

Amber had attempted to plead with him to let her go, and her friends would help him end the rule of the succubus once and for all. But he couldn't believe her, because no one could fight a succubus and come out on top. It was simply not possible. He couldn't risk invoking her wrath upon him for joining her rebellious children.

For a brief moment Amber thought of using her powers against the wolf, but decided she didn't want to stoop to Meridiana's level, and instead held her head high as she was dragged to an unknown future. The closer they got the more she had her doubts. Fenris looked so sad and his story broke her heart. Damn that binding spell, making her care! Who needed feelings? Honestly?

After the silent temper tantrum, she thought back to Athan and wondered if he would rush off to rescue her. His time slowly ran out if he was. Once she reached the mistress his chances of saving her were reduced to ash. If the monk had been seduced by her subtle advances there would be no chance of resisting a powerful succubus like Meridiana.

After an entire day of walking without putting up any fights the wolves behind her had stopped treating her like a meal. They walked beside her rather than at her heels. And she found herself petting one behind its ears. They were amazing animals and she found herself admiring them. If only they weren't bringing her to her doom.

At the start of her binding she had sought to break free and feed her demonic hunger that controlled her will with his soul. But as time went by she found herself free of the cursed hunger. Able to think for herself again, rather than be a slave to her body's need, she began to admire and then respect the monk. It wasn't until they met the dragon and he had commanded her to remain safe that she found herself having feelings for him.

In a desperate attempt to save his life she had confessed feelings of love. Did she really love him? She liked him, respected him, sure, but love? Was she capable of love? She didn't know exactly, but it would appear she'd never get the chance to find out.

One thing was certain, however. She didn't like Fenris. She pitied him, felt sorry for him. But she didn't like him, not at all. His unwillingness to join her cause against the force of evil that he himself didn't even agree with... It fueled her hatred. If the time came and he followed her commands, he wasn't worth saving!

The succubus was close. She could feel her mistress' presence. They'd reach her in the morning.

Fenris stopped and began to make a fire, in a small valley between hills, apparently reluctant to rush to his demise. Amber knelt down next to the fire and prepared to lay down, surprised when both wolves laid down with her. The armored wolf didn't appear to mind as he sat on the other side and warmed his hands. Amber changed her position to lay with her head at the base of the fire between the two wolves. Their bodies would keep the rest of her warm.