The Pleasures of Hell 01.014

"Special?"

"Mhmm. I thought it mere weakness at first, that he could not last long when fucking you. But he insists your insides feel different, and that your body is quite ready to take his length quickly each time. He tells me it took Hannah many months to achieve that."

Mia squirmed. "He uh... he said that?" Knowing Adron, Zel was being more elegant than what that asshole had said. The bastard had probably said something like 'she has the tightest, most amazing pussy'. Though, based on the exact words Zel used, he also implied Mia could stretch to fit him easily? Now she wasn't sure if to be complimented or insulted.

"I bet, with time, we could fit Vinicius inside you." She licked her lips, pressed her back and side into the nook of Vinicius's arms and his chest, and made a deliberate showing of running her two closer hands and their claws down his stomach some more. "Very slowly spread you open, further and further apart, until you're near to bursting. Only then would his girth fit into you. And then I would push you down onto him, nice and slow, until you are whimpering for mercy, your belly bulges, and you struggle to breathe, insides full, quivering with bliss."

Mia gulped. If she was Zel's pet, and Zel was fantasizing about this, it was pretty much guaranteed Zel would make the attempt. And sure, Mia's sex drive was going a little crazy right now, what with that demon heart sending a buzz through her, and very much liked the idea of Zel using her as a sex toy and turning her into a fleshlight for Vinicius. But the small part of her brain that still managed to work was a little more concerned about her exploding like an overblown balloon.

"But--"

"But, that is not the goal tonight," Zel said. Oh thank god. "Trouble brews, and I cannot gamble upon the runes we discovered having any value to me. Tonight, we will try something else. Or rather, you shall." Zel stepped back. "Craft for me an aura."

"Craft one?"

"Adron has mentioned your abilities grow, and Kasimiro confirmed. So, you shall test your ability to craft a nuanced aura."

"But, what if I can't?"

"I believe you can." Zel stepped back from the beast, and walked away. With a graceful flare, she leaned back against the wall on the opposite side of the square room, folded her four arms across her chest, and smiled. "There are stories, fresh meat. Ancient stories, about the auras found on the battlefield in the first war. Demons today can only craft auras of violence and lust. With the power of the spire, I can craft auras that guide a horde toward a goal, but even that aura, more nuanced as it is, is still an aura of violence. But the old tales mention the auras of old, of the strange sensations demons felt in the presence of the Old Ones, and even Lucifer themself."

"They had... different auras?"

"Indeed. The tales also mention the auras of Heaven, though not in detail."

"The auras of Heaven. Like... Like I felt on the stairway, in front of the gate of Heaven. I felt calm, and happy. I felt good, and I knew it wasn't coming from me."

Zel's smile grew. "We know little of the powers of our ancient kin, only that they waged war on a scale grand and beyond our appreciation. The angels that pester my skies are but insects compared to the angels of the First War. The Old Ones, Lucifer, the greater angels, and perhaps even Lucifer's true kin, used auras to influence the world around them." Smile gone, now replaced with a wicked grin, Zel gestured to Mia. "It makes me wonder what you truly are, one who can read the ancient language."

Mia gulped again, but couldn't get rid of the boulder in her throat.

"I... don't know."

"Neither do I, my pet. We will find out together. For now, attempt to craft an aura of control."

"But you're in the room. Won't it affect you?"

"Perhaps. But I am well fed, and free. Vinicius is bound and drained." Zel licked a fang as she set her playful eyes on Mia. "If you can break me, then by all means little soul, try."

Say one thing for Zel, she was confident and perfectly willing to do things with her own two--er, four hands. Admirable, if she wasn't also a power hungry, dangerous person.

Mia nodded, and did her best to banish the sexy mental image Zel had put in her a minute ago. Not easy. Zel was hot, and huge. Vinicius was hot, and utterly gigantic. Little Mia, getting used by Zel like a toy on one of the bound beast's cocks? Even if it couldn't work physically, it was still a hot image, and tiny tingles of lust crept up Mia's thoughts. But that wasn't what they were here for, and Mia squeezed her eyes shut tight as she forced herself to think about the goal.

They were going to control this brute, this berserker, this creature who'd spent who knew how many decades ripping and tearing other demons and humans into piles of meat. It wasn't hard to piece together something was wrong in Death's Grip, and Zel needed Mia to figure out if this goal of hers was possible asap. Gorlus was missing, and supposedly so were a few others. Danger was on the horizon, and whatever it was, it was going to be a problem.

Mia was pretty good under pressure, at university. She didn't panic. She buckled down and got things done.

Now she was panicking.

"I uh... I don't know if I can."

"Kasimiro says you've made progress."

"I have! I know I have. But it's... it's like trying to play an instrument, I guess, except how I'm feeling affects the instrument. And the instrument isn't really... in me, I think. My fingers plucking the strings are, but the thing I'm plucking isn't?" Her shoulders slumped and she stared at the floor. "I don't know if I can get... authoritative, I guess?"

Zel tapped her chin a few times before she sauntered over to Mia, gently moved her to stand in front of Vinicius, and squatted down behind her. Even squatting, she was still taller than Mia, and she set her two higher hands on Mia's shoulders.

"Picture this, then, little soul. You, sitting upon a throne, with a host of demons at your beck and call. A crown sits upon you brow. A princess of sorts. Your servants bring you silks from the Scar province. Succubi and incubi try them on for you. Devorjin and tregeera guard you, ready to die for you. This beast, yours to control and bound by a leash"-- she gestured to the leash she had hanging on a hook behind them--"kneels beside you, ready to kill at your command."

"A princess?" Ah shit, she said the magic word. A world flashed before Mia's eyes, her wearing a pretty dress and sitting on a fancy throne in a big castle. The castle could be old stone, or Gothic architecture, or even a fancy giant cottage of wood, but she would be beautiful and doted on. People from other kingdoms would come to talk with her father or mother, or her, people who wanted to make deals for land or money or goods. Soldiers everywhere, in armor or fancy tattoos or nice suits, all there to protect her. A giant beast under her command. Dangerous. Sexy.

And of course she would have bigger tits, because why the fuck not.

"Hold onto that image," Zelandariel said, "and do what it is you do."

Deep breaths, deep breaths, find the strings, the vibration. She closed her eyes and went digging, the same way she had with Kas earlier. If she plucked the strings, and pressed on them in the right spot to change the tone, she could make them vibrate emotion, whatever emotion or mental state she was feeling. The feeling of being in control. The feeling of being adored. The feeling of knowing other people would die for her if she ordered them to.

It might not have been the cold, harsh, cruel authority Zel probably wanted, but Zel mentioned the princess idea for a reason. Mia couldn't be a cold, harsh, cruel person, but she could definitely be a princess, and to turn that into an air of authority, of control, of respect and servitude, was possible.

Sure enough, she plucked the strings, and whatever it was she was touching, it resonated. The new tone vibrated out through the area, starting from her, and it poured out into the air, the metal beneath her feet, the metal walls, all of it.

Obey me. You want to serve me. You want to do what I say, because you love me. I am your princess.

Zel stood up. Mia almost dropped the feeling, half expecting Zel to hit her or something, for daring to emit the aura over her, too. But the giant, four-armed demon walked back over to Vinicius, and stood beside him, half facing him half facing Mia.

"She is a strange thing, isn't she?" Zel said. "Even now, I can feel this odd... presence, flowing from her. It asks me to take care of her. Protect her. Serve her." Her grin was gone. Instead of flirting with Vinicius, and pressing her breasts into him like usual, she folded her arms across her chest, both of them, and nodded slowly. Her attitude had changed. Was she trying to resist Mia?

Vinicius rumbled, but it was a quiet thing, soft, and... submissive? Zel had said he was always half starved of resonance, which might have left him easily affected.

"What do you think, young soul?" Zel motioned her closer, and after another slow breath, Mia joined her, now only a few feet away from the titan. "Is he bound to your will?"

"No."

"You can tell?"

Mia shrugged. "No, but I... I know I'm not doing the aura thing as strong as I do when I'm... you know..."

"Aroused?" Zel's smile returned, but only slightly. "Agreed. When you are delirious with need, it is as if the air itself burns with hunger. I have but to be near you when you crave sex, and soon it is all I can do to not find the nearest demon or soul and indulge myself." Despite the sex talk, she spoke with a solid tone. Mia's aura was definitely affecting her. "Now you must achieve the same strength for other mental states."

"I don't know if I can... get the aura to do that." She was horny girl, always had been. The moment puberty hit, bam, her internet history became a minefield and she indulged herself in a thousand kinks, always hungry for new things. Stories about ladies getting into scary situations with giant sexy monsters who ultimately ravaged the lady, only for the lady to then 'fix' them, and then bloom a romance, were her guilty pleasure. Really fucked up stuff, psychologically speaking, but a guilty indulgence she -- and as far as the internet showed, a lot of young girls -- loved. Of course Mia would have an easy time creating a powerful sex aura with her new magical super powers.

Auras for other mental states? Not so much.

Zel tapped her glowing horn, kinda like someone tapping their chin in thought.

"Stay here. Focus. Practice your aura. I will return." The enormous demon woman walked away, hooves quietly clacking on the metal floor with each step. She closed the door behind her.

Which left Mia alone with Vinicius, in a large metal room, with dangling skull braziers lighting the space in its flickering, living light.

Mia looked up at the dragon. The four-armed titan looked back down at her. She squirmed and looked down. Okay, eye contact was a little too intense with the demon, like trying to look into the eyes of some sort alien, unknowable intelligence. He wasn't that, though. He was a demon, and far as Mia could tell, demons were pretty simple, even smart ones like Zel. They wanted to fight and fuck, to eat and survive, and mostly just enjoy their lives. For some of them, that meant being crafty, ruling a kingdom, and striving to spread their influence. For others, like the one in front of her, that meant wanton slaughter.

"I'm... sorry," she said. "About, uh, the... fellatio, before. I forced that on you, didn't I? With the aura, I mean." And because she couldn't fucking help it, the first thing she did to the giant deadly murdering monster beast once she was alone with him, was apologize. Even her princess 'obey me' aura disappeared.

Vinicius said nothing, not even one of those tongue clucks. Just because his mouth was bound didn't mean he couldn't do that weird clicky language some demons like Kas and Acelina liked to use. Zel probably had his snout wrapped with chain for a different reason.

"I... I don't know why I'm talking to you, honestly. Far as I know, you're a big bad demon, and it'd probably be a good thing if I learn to control you." She took a step closer, and forced herself to look up at the juggernaut. Why did he have to be so huge? Twelve feet tall to her five? She could literally walk underneath him and her hair would only graze his crotch. "I guess I'm talking to you, because... I want some kind of proof you deserve it?"

The beast said nothing. He did rumble though, a quiet thing, and unless she was going crazy, he managed a small shrug.

"Well, Zel isn't here, and I don't think Hell has monitoring devices. So... if I ask you a question, will you answer me?"

Another quiet rumble, but after a few seconds, the beast nodded, chains barely allowing the movement. Oh thank god, he could communicate. Or maybe that was a bad thing? If it turned out he wasn't some horrible monster, doing her best to break him and make him obey her would be a lot harder.

But if he was willing to communicate, she had to. Just like all those times David would obsess over something, Mia knew she'd obsess over this, too. She had to know about this creature she was supposed to subdue.

"Your name is Vinicius? Zel hasn't been lying?"

Nothing for a moment, as if the dragon was considering communicating after all. But a second later, he nodded.

She smiled, and did her best to not start bouncing in place. As the excitement surged through her, her heart or whatever plucked at the strings, and sure enough, the aura changed into one of excitement. Not good. She grabbed hold of her heart, her inner fingers, whatever it was plucking the strings, and did her best to stop them.

She managed. Like palm muting a guitar, or putting her fingers over the exit hole of a wind instrument, she quietened the way her heart affected the waves of whatever it was around her she touched. Okay okay, learning learning, maybe not learning what Zel wanted, but learning to hide the weird aura thing was still a very valuable skill. Somehow she doubted she'd be able to do if... when aroused, but still.

"Um... Did you really try to kill Zel, a long time ago?"

Another nod.

"Decades ago?"

He tilted his head to the side. Damn those were big horns, and a lot of them.

"... centuries ago?"

A nod.

"You've been locked down here for centuries?"

A nod.

Fucking hell.

"Okay, um..." Time for tough questions. "I heard you were a killer. You killed a lot of people, a lot lot, more than needed. You... went around, fighting for violence's sake, and... I suppose if I was going to say it like Zel would say it, with a hefty coating of bombastic language, you 'reaped a harvest of death and slaughter'. Is that right?"

Another pause, but eventually he nodded. Either he knew he had no choice but to tell the truth, or he was the honest type.

"And you probably want to kill Zel, right?" A dumb question. She knew the answer.

A nod.

"Do you want to kill me?"

He shook his head. Mia squinted up at him, forced herself to make eye contact, and came closer.

"Even after what I did to you? You've been resisting Zel for years, centuries, and I came along and undid some of that in minutes. You don't want revenge?"

He shook his head again, and followed it with a quiet rumble. She'd have an easier time reading the mind of a literal lizard than trying to figure out if the ragarin demon was lying. But because she was a stupid, overly empathetic person, no matter how many times it bit her in the ass, she wanted to believe him anyway.

"Do... you think you deserve to be locked up like this?"

No answer. He did tilt his head to the side a bit, but nothing else.

"Do... you think you'd try and take back this spire, if you got out?"

He nodded. Okay, that was definitely a bean on the truth side of the truths-or-lies scale. Maybe she should ask some questions that weren't directly about him?

"Do you think Zel will... hurt me if I don't do what she wants?"

He nodded.

"And worse..."

It wasn't a question, but he nodded anyway.

Sighing, she paced back and forth in front of the titan, a few feet away from his legs.

"Do you have any idea about me? Why I'm unmarked, and can make auras and read the ancient language? Have you seen any other unmarked souls before?"

He shook his head. It'd been a long shot, but it was nice to put another bean on the truth side of the scale. He could have lied so she'd find a way to release him.

Sighing, she ran her fingers through her red hair as she stared at her bare feet.

"You have to understand, okay? Just a few weeks ago I was a regular human, living on the surface, doing my own thing. I was nobody, nothing important, nothing. I spent over two weeks hanging around as a ghost, doing absolutely nothing. Then I went to Heaven, and Hell scooped me up, right out from under me, right at the Gates of Heaven! Dropped me off here in Hell, me and... I almost died the first five seconds after I landed here! But some demons noticed I was unmarked, so they took me to Diogo, then he took me to Zel, and the whole time I had this weird aura thing affecting people and demons and I can't control it and apparently I can read the ancient language that Lucifer him... themself used to write with, and... and..." She threw up her hands, stomped around a few more times, and marched up to Vinicius, right up to him so she had to look almost straight up to keep eye contact. "You're a child of Belial, one of the Old Ones! You're centuries old! Multiple! You have to know at least something!"

Silence. A heavy rumble. A slow shake of his head.

Sighing even louder, she pressed her right hand against his left leg. Yeap, that was borderline steel. His skin wasn't quite as dark as Diogo's, but nearly, and the titan was twice as thick as the brute.

And, wow, she was really close. It didn't dawn on her just how close, until she looked at where her hand pressed against his leg, halfway up his quadriceps. After a heavy gulp, she forced herself to look away from the giant leg literally bigger than her entire body, and back up at the bound colossus.

"You don't know anything?" she asked, her hand still on his leg.

Another head shake, and another quiet rumble. But something else, too. As he stared down at her, something changed, something in his skin. It got a little redder, and just a little softer under her touch.

She took a step back. "Um... I..." What the fuck, she hadn't been putting out a sex aura! Had she? No, no she hadn't. For the first time in days, she'd stopped thinking about sex and thought about something else, something she absolutely loved: trying to figure a person out, figure out how they worked, figure out what made them tick.

But the colossal demon in front of her felt differently. His skin was getting redder, and his eyes were locked on her.

"No no! No. Nope. We're not doing that." She turned around and hugged her silk tighter to her body. There was no way she could be horny. She'd been getting fucked quite thoroughly lately, and living some pretty ridiculous, extreme fantasies. She was the opposite of pent up. She was sexually drained. Or at least, she should have been sexually drained, exhausted, depleted, dried up and done.

But she wasn't. How much of that was because of her sex drive, or because of the demon heart she'd eaten, she didn't know.

She groaned and rubbed her face with her hands. A succubus. She was a succubus! Except, she wasn't. She'd seen succubi, and she was not that. And yet here she was, picturing it, picturing what it'd be like to be picked up by the bound monster, and used like a toy. Maybe Kas and Adron would join him, and she'd have to pleasure them all at the same time. Maybe--