The Succubae Seduction Bk. 02: The Twins Ch. 19

"She is a good fighter," Shlee murmured as they looked around the room. "We could have used her help."

"Maybe," he admitted, "but I didn't want to have someone else there to take care of."

"Like you take care of us?" This time he didn't miss the sharp edge in the other woman's tone.

"I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry, okay?" He leaned against one wall and held his head in his hand. Despite healing rapidly, he'd taken enough hits to give him a decent headache. Or maybe it was the stress. "I'm going to be the only male there... Wait, I didn't mean that in a chauvinistic way! She's already made her interest in me obvious. Between Mandy and you, my hands are full. I'm not looking to add another relationship."

Shlee turned him to face her and was surprised to see her smiling. "Your dad had how many wives, and you can only handle two girlfriends?" She chuckled and patted his still-tender cheek. "I'm teasing you. Since you managed to handle Jen as well earlier, I have no doubt you could handle three of us, but I'm glad we're enough to make you happy. It's one more reason I love you."

"Jen doesn't count," Eldon scoffed. "And a relationship is about more than sex. I've seen my dad get stretched thin when he has to balance his wives and his work. He was a great dad, when he was around. He was when he could be, but... Hey, where is Mandy?"

"She was trying to convince me not to go," Megan's voice sounded into the shattered room.

Eldon turned to her, his lips twisted into a grimace as he saw Mandy standing behind Megan in the doorway.

"Don't give me that look, Eldon Lance," Mandy told him. "She's one helluva fighter, and you can't deny that. Besides, she didn't ask you to be her boyfriend, just to let her fight at your side."

Eldon knew he should keep his mouth shut, but he had to say one last thing.

"We look out for each other. My sister and her girlfriend will be coming with us. I don't expect you to have to take care of yourself, by yourself. We watch each other's backs." He took a moment to meet her eyes, and wished that sparkle of mirth didn't still linger in their brown depths. "I'm sorry for the way I acted. I was trying to keep you safe, but I see that I was... wrong in thinking that way."

"Apology accepted," Megan said, and that sparkle of mirth turned into a conflagration as her lips rose in a broad smile. "And don't worry. I promise not to try and get into your pants. I'd hate to be a nuisance. Gotta respect a man who can apologize, though, and admit when he was wrong."

Eldon's cheeks burned as the three women laughed at his expense. That is until Sonia came running in, panic straining her voice. "Is Shelly in here? I can't find her anywhere!"

* * * *

"It looks like she left down this hallway," Shlee said, sniffing the air. They were walking down a long corridor towards the exit of Angela's volcano home, and Eldon had a sick feeling in his stomach.

"Why would she leave without saying anything?" Sonia asked, fear and worry lacing her tones. "I thought we were doing so much better... You don't think she was kidnapped, do you? Again?"

"No," Shlee shook her head. "She was alone. There are no other smells in here that are the same age as hers."

"Then where—" Sonia started, but Eldon cut her off.

"This is my fault. I should have talked to her before walking away."

"Drive women off a lot?" Megan asked with a delicately plucked arched eyebrow.

"She wasn't happy that we weren't going after Jessica," he told them, ignoring Megan. "I should have taken the time to talk to her, but when Jen said there was someone to see me..."

"You thought I was this Gloria woman," Megan completed for him.

"We're not going after Jessica?" Mandy asked.

"Sorry, with everything else that happened, I forgot to mention it," Eldon grimaced. "When we go to talk to Shlee's fiancée, we also need to make a detour to the Pillar of Darkness, and convince him to help us restore Areth to her body."

"Whoa!" Megan said, and Eldon realized she'd stopped walking.

He turned to face her and waived for her to come along. "We don't have time to stop. We need to find my sister."

Megan caught up in two long strides, then matched pace with him. "Your girlfriend has a fiancée?" she all but spat. "And you're okay with that?"

"Not really my choice," he replied, not in the mood to go into the intricate details of what happened between Gloria's leaving and forcing Shlee to love him.

"Not...?" She fell behind for a second and then caught back up. "You're really not the jealous type, huh? Is that because you don't really care enough, or because your heart is that big?"

He glanced at her, but kept his mouth shut. He didn't have to explain himself to her, and if she was with them long enough, she'd see the answer for herself.

"We're really going to see Dimitri?" Shlee asked him next. She remained in front of the group, leading them with her nose. Eldon couldn't tell if that was excitement in her voice, or fear.

"Yes," he said and kept his eyes on her back. "We need to get that cleared up before our relationship can progress."

"Cleared up?" Megan asked, but Eldon continued to ignore her.

"How are we going to bring Areth back?" Mandy asked next. They passed out of the ground level entrance to the volcano into the bright light and heat of the Pillar of Fire's demesne. "I thought she was stuck as a statue forever."

"Statue?" Megan asked.

"So did I, but apparently Oberon knows a way to restore her, and told the Pillar of Air, who then told us. It won't be easy, though."

"You know the Pillar of Air?" Megan asked, then, "Wait, Oberon, as in King of the Faeries?"

"Yeah," Eldon sighed, "and Keeper of the Cup, Lover of Ladies, and Soulkeeper of the Fay. Look, if you're going to keep asking questions, we're never going to catch my sister."

"Don't be rude, Eldon," Mandy snapped at him. "I know you're stressed about Shelly, but we'll catch up to her. Then we'll get everything else accomplished, but you should be nicer to Megan. It's not her fault she doesn't know everything you do."

"Is he always such an ass?" Megan asked as she walked up next to Mandy.

"No, not normally," Mandy replied. "I think we wore him out earlier, screwing his brains out, and his regenerative abilities haven't restored his grey matter yet."

"Restorative... Yeah, I saw him heal pretty quickly after our fight," Megan said, apparently happy someone was answering her questions. "Is that because he's a shape-shifter? And can he change into whoever he wants to? Could he change into me?"

Mandy laughed, but Eldon ignored them as she started answering the newcomer's questions.

"You pick up girlfriends like shit does flies," Sonia glared at him.

"I don't appreciate that analogy," Eldon informed her. "And she's not a new girlfriend."

"I recognize her vocal patterns as belonging to the woman on the phone before we left Earth," Sonia replied. "Does she know she's not your girlfriend?"

It took him a few seconds of taking slow breaths to calm himself down. Sure, he might not have treated Megan the way he should have, but he was being treated like the bad guy. All that mattered to him right then was finding his sister.

Then it occurred to him that Sonia would be worried also, which would be part of her bad mood.

"We'll find my sister," he promised the android. "She'll be fine. She can defend herself."

Sonia looked at him like he was an idiot.

They walked on, Mandy explaining their history to Megan, Sonia pointedly ignoring everyone but Shlee, and the werewolf's nose leading them all.

That is, until Megan asked, "Who else are we following?"

"What do you mean?" Eldon asked.

"I may not have the nose of a werewolf, but I know how to track. Didn't take me long to figure out which prints were your sister's, but a while back another set joined hers. Either your sister isn't alone, or someone else is following her."

"I didn't want to say anything until I was certain," Shlee said with concern thick in her voice. "Something started following her. Its scent is newer than Shelly's is, but not by much."

"Do you know what it is?" Sonia asked, almost in a panic.

"Got any good water guns in your arsenal?" Shlee asked back. "Because whatever it is, if it's from this area, we're going to want some water."

"We're headed for the lake dad made during the Chaos War," Eldon noted as he looked around. "Shelly was probably headed there for water, before heading to Gaia's demesne. Do you think whatever is following her is doing the same?"

"I hope so," Shlee said, but didn't sound convincing. "That lake should be right over that hill, and we'll have an idea."

They had their answer before they reached the crest. The two sets of tracks became tangled, and it was obvious to everyone that there was a scuffle. It was also obvious who won, as the unknown tracks continued on, dragging something after it.

"There's no blood," Shlee commented as she stood up from the dusty ground. She brushed off her knees and looked to the north, where the tracks led.

"Any idea what took her?" Eldon said. Fear made his heart pound, but a lack of blood was a good sign that whatever it was, wanted her alive. At least, for now.

"Definitely something that uses fire," Mandy said, pointing to a spot on the baked ground that looked scorched.

"There is something odd about these tracks, though," Megan said as she squatted over the spot where the marks left the scuffle.

"And you know this from your vast experience with magical beings?" Eldon asked her, unable to keep his voice level.

"Eldon!" Mandy snapped at him at the same time one of her hands slapped the back of his head. She struck with enough force to knock him forward half a step and make his headache even worse. Before he could retort, her two left hands gripped his right arm and hauled him a short distance away.

"What is wrong with you?" she hissed when they were out of earshot of all but Shlee.

He opened his mouth to say he didn't know what she meant, but closed it before the lie had a chance of coming out as truth. He knew he was treating Megan unfairly, but he was stressed out about his sister, and everything else going on. Adding Megan just put more weight and responsibility on his shoulders that he didn't care for.

"You've been acting like a spoiled little brat ever since you ran into her, and she doesn't deserve it," Mandy continued when it was obvious Eldon wasn't going to speak. "Is it because she wasn't Gloria, like you hoped?"

The accusation stung him, but not as much as the pain in Mandy's brown eyes. She swept her dirty blonde hair behind one ear as she met his gaze. He was the first to look away.

"No... Yes... I-I don't know," he confessed, confused. Not even Mandy's talent for forcing the truth could get him to know the answer to her question. "My sister has been abducted, again, by who knows what, the world seems to be crumbling around me, I'm worried about you and Shlee, and we have to go meet up with Shlee's fiancée, not to mention dealing with the Pillar of Darkness himself to try and restore Areth back to her true form. Of those last two, I don't know which one scares me more, but I owe it to Areth. And the Pillars help me, I love Shlee. I know it was forced on me by Gloria, but it doesn't change the way I feel. Yes, I love you too, and no, that wasn't forced on me. I don't think I ever stopped loving you. Even after we deal with the three things right in front of us, we still have to chase after Jessica—who, by the way, thought she was my sister, and still gave me a blowjob and was sleeping with my actual sister, as if that's not messed up enough—and we need to stop her from whatever she's trying to do!" He took a moment to catch his breath before looking at the group over the scuffled area, who was trying so hard not to look at him, that they might as well have been staring. "And yes, I know Megan hasn't deserved the way I've been treating her, but I didn't ask for one more thing on my plate. I tried to drive her away, and you brought her back."

He looked back to Mandy's eyes and saw tears streaming down her cheeks, making him feel even more wretched. He wasn't prepared for her response, though.

"You love me?" her voice was soft, but he heard the hope and fear behind it.

"Isn't it obvious?" he asked. "I said it in your presence."

"No, you idiot!" She slapped him in the chest with the back of one of her right hands. "That's the first time you've said it since before you left me."

"One more way I'm screwing up," he said the words, and regretted them immediately. They sounded whiney, even to his ears.

Mandy pulled him into a powerful hug that he was certain cracked a few of his ribs, and rendering him unable to speak or even gasp.

"You're not a screw-up, Sheldon Shemhazau Lance. You're a good man, with a big heart, and I love you, too." She hugged him tighter, and he heard his back pop. Some noise must have escaped him, as she released him and let him down. He stumbled for a moment on legs that were momentarily numb before standing back upright and catching his breath.

"Sometimes I forget how strong you are," he managed when he was sure his voice wouldn't crack.

"I love you, Eldon, but I have to ask..." Mandy waited for him to nod. "Could some of your issues with Megan be because she kind of rejected you at the end? I mean, she was all hot for you, and then she walked away. You're a good man, Eldon, but sometimes your ego..."

He wanted to argue with her, to tell her it was everything else, but stopped. Her accusation stung him, and stung deep, but he knew she was being honest with him. He was being rude to Megan, but not anyone else. Was there truth in what she said? Was his ego bruised because Megan no longer wanted him? He already had two girlfriends, and really didn't want another. Was the fact that Megan had turned away from him, causing him to lash out at her?

He found he was staring at the redheaded woman, and she was looking back at him. She wasn't afraid of him, despite the way he'd treated her. And no wonder, since she managed him with ease. He waived for her to come over, and while she raised one of her eyebrows at the request, she still started in their direction.

"Thank you Mandy," he told his four-armed half-elf girlfriend. "I think I owe Megan another apology."

"I'll leave you to it, then," Mandy stated, and gave him a solid kiss on the lips. She nodded to Megan as they passed each other, but if she said anything, he didn't hear it.

"So, now you think I'll just waltz over here on your command?" Megan opened, still with that delicate eyebrow arched up.

"I'm sorry," he told her, meeting her challenging stare. "I've treated you unfairly. I've been rude, and you don't deserve it. I didn't ask for you to come along, but I would be an idiot not to recognize your worth as a fighter."

"A bigger idiot?" she pressed.

"It's hard to be much more of an idiot when I'm in my ogre form," he confessed with half a smile.

"And you stunk pretty badly, also," Megan rejoined.

His smile grew bigger. "There is a lot of history you've missed, and I can't promise to keep you safe, but I will promise to treat you better."

"You'll be my big cowboy?" she asked in a suddenly sultry voice. "Or perhaps my knight in shining armor, considering the world we're in now?"

"Something tells me you don't need either of those," he said, knowing she was testing him.

Her lips cracked into a smile as she gave him a sharp nod. "And don't you forget it! I can take care of myself. I'm not asking you to fight for me, but to let me fight next to you."

"Deal," he said and held out his hand.

"Deal," she agreed, taking his hand in a firm grip. "That doesn't mean I'm letting you right into my panties, though. Sonia told me what kind of a man you are. I don't disapprove, exactly, since I can tell you don't force them. You're cute, even if you act like an asshole at times, and you can kiss like nobody's business, but that doesn't mean I'm just going to jump into your harem."

He stared at her, lost for words for a few seconds before managing to splutter, "I-I wasn't going to ask you to."

"Good!" She flipped around, her unbound hair whipping out, and headed back to the scuffled tracks.

Eldon cursed, as he'd completely forgotten about his sister. How could he have been so stupid? Why was he so easily side-tracked? He ran back to the group.

"I still don't understand what's wrong with the tracks," Shlee was commenting.

"Look at the way they move," Megan told them. "Here, the pads of the foot are bigger than over here. And what are these little squiggly lines here? Also, as they walk away, you would expect there to be variations in the prints as it drags Shelly away. They should be a bit deeper, but they aren't. Instead, they look the same as before meeting up."

Eldon squinted at what she was pointing at, anxious to take off after the creature, but also knowing that it was important to understand what they would be going up against.

"I'm running a simulation of the tracks now in an attempt to figure out what might have made them, but my internal databases don't have enough information. Being cut off from the classified servers is hampering my effectiveness." Sonia replied, glaring at Eldon. It wasn't like he'd meant to get her fired. "If my simulations are correct, and there is a ninety-eight percent probability that they are, then the reason there is no alteration to the tracks after dragging Shelly away, is because the creature is strong enough that it barely even notices her weight. Unfortunately in this world that doesn't narrow down our list of possibilities."

Megan gave Sonia an odd look, until Shlee whispered, "She's a super advanced android. Isn't it the coolest?"

"Something that strong should leave behind bigger tracks, though," Megan replied.

"If the creature was natural, yes," Mandy said. "You're forgetting about magical creatures, and you're forgetting that it can change the size of its footprint."

Megan acceded the point and flicked a bug off her leg.

Eldon's heart froze. "Don't move!" he warned everyone, his panic rising. Everyone looked at him, but no one argued. He looked again to where Megan had pointed out the squiggly lines, then around at the bare ground. It only took him a second to find what he was looking for.

Ants.

"No. No. No, no!" he repeated, realizing who now had his sister.

"Eldon?" Shlee asked. "What is it?"

Water... He would need water, or something aligned with that element. But why would it take her, instead of killing her outright? It didn't make sense. He had to be missing something, but what?

"Eldon!" Mandy shouted as Megan jumped to her feet and tackled Eldon to the ground in one quick movement.

Fire coursed through the air in the spot he had just occupied. If not for Megan's tackle, he'd be recovering from third degree burns.

The two rolled away from each other and got to their feet in fluid motions. Eldon faced the creature that had either taken his sister, or was another one of its ilk.

The Myrmidon grinned at him, fire burning in the back of its throat. Small red and black ants formed its body, making the creature's skin look like it was moving and shifting in a sickening manner. When it spoke, its voice was deep and yet raspy. "Children of Lyden. My liege has a huge bounty on you. Today is my lucky day. I caught two!"

Movement out of the corner of Eldon's eye caught his attention, but he was too slow to stop her. Megan's hand came up and fired three rapid shots into the creature's chest. Ants, and pieces of ants exploded from its chest as her bullets ripped through its body, but it didn't even take a step back.