The Succubae Seduction Bk. 02: The Twins Ch. 24

Shelly didn't miss the pitying looks she received from some in the room, but the worst one was from her father as he considered the android's words.

So, Sonia was done with her, huh? Shelly wanted to tell her good riddance, but her heart caught in her throat, and she couldn't speak. Why was everything getting so blurry? She wasn't crying, but her eyes were watering. There must be something in the air. She didn't normally suffer from allergies, but perhaps that was one more thing this pregnancy was doing to her.

"I appreciate your offer, Sonia, and I have no doubt that you are capable of keeping me safe, but my task will require more subtlety, and hopefully, no violence," Lyden spoke with calm deliberation. "I'd feel a lot better, knowing that you're looking after Sheila and Shelly. I know Gaia is very capable of protecting her realm, but I think they will need your skills more than I will. Besides, I'll have Brooke and Brock with me, if it comes down to a fight."

"And me!" Oberon piped in, cheering. "King of the Fairies, Keeper of the Cup, Lover of my beloved, and—"

Bridget snatched Oberon from the air and kissed him, cutting him off.

Shelly wasn't sure how to feel. Her emotions were going on another roller coaster ride, and she did her best to hold on as a laugh tried to burble up from her throat. Did she want Sonia around? Yes, because the woman was a great comfort to her, but also no because she cared for Shelly in a way that Shelly didn't think she could return. She knew it wasn't fair to Sonia, but that was how she felt.

"It's not very likely," Mei spoke up, her draconic, golden eyes flashing with determination, "but my siblings and I will fly across the six domains and see if we can spot anything."

Blue roared behind her, as though to agree.

Mei and Gokan chuckled before Mei added, "And mom says that she'll get other dragons to help, but you fleshy creatures look a lot alike. She promises not to eat anyone unless they deserve it, or look really tasty."

Lyden grimaced. "I know Jessica seems like the enemy—"

"She is," Alloria cut in, joining the group and the conversation.

Lyden continued as though he hadn't heard her, making the last elf glare daggers. "But please remember that she is also the Pillar of Fire's daughter. She is not the enemy, but the creature that lives inside her is."

After that, the conversation turned to logistics, and Shelly decided she was too hungry to take part in that. Her current logistics consisted of finding something to eat.

She went to the room assigned to her, surprised to find Gaia already inside.

"I figured from the way your stomach was growling, that it was time for another feeding," the Pillar of Earth declared. "Feeding you doesn't take up much mental capacity, just power, so I can continue to work with them out there while you eat."

Shelly realized that this was just a clone of Mother Earth, and started to shake her head. She understood the need to accept her breast milk but didn't enjoy the process. It wouldn't be so bad if she didn't know that her father had sucked on those same breasts just a bit earlier, or if she were emotionally attracted to Gaia.

Then she caught the scent of blueberries, and her mouth started to water. Unbidden, her legs propelled her forward even as Gaia stripped off her robe, revealing dark brown breasts, full and already leaking her rich life-sustaining milk.

Gaia's hand snaked to the back of Shelly's head, guiding her towards one stiff nipple. Shelly found the scent filling her nose came from the milk just before her lips latched on. Using her tongue and lips, she suckled from the teat, filling her mouth with the nutrient-dense liquid. It was warm and sweet as it slid down her throat, satiating her hunger.

Every time Shelly fed from the Pillar of Earth, the flavor was different. Somehow the powerful woman always knew what she was craving and could adjust her milk to compensate. Shelly was glad that despite her craving for fish, she didn't taste any as she continued to drink. Once the one breast was drained, Gaia guided her to the other stiff nipple.

For a brief moment, she wondered what would happen if Sheldon drank any of this milk. He'd immediately transform into a carbon copy of the Pillar of Earth, complete with all of her powers. Would that help the Pillar with her duties and relieve some of the strain, or would their abilities conflict with one another? Or worse, amplify, like it had the time he'd accidentally turned into Mandy?

"I'd hate to interrupt such a touching scene," Sonia's voice broke her from her thoughts, "but Ambassador Snow has requested his daughter's presence as we talk to Gloria before he departs."

She sounds so formal, Shelly realized as she broke from the nipple with a pop. A little milk leaked from the corner of her mouth, and Shelly wiped it with the back of her hand. She stared at the liquid for a moment before licking it off. If this was helping her develop the baby faster and getting it out of her, then she might as well accept all that she could.

But did Sonia have to give her such a dirty look? It's not like she wanted to suck on the other woman's breast!

"You go ahead," Gaia said, even as she melted into the floor. "I'm already down there."

"Can we talk?" Shelly asked as they walked out of her room.

"There's no law that says you can't," Sonia stated, tone level and yet distant.

Shelly ground her teeth in frustration but did her best to keep her own voice even. "I owe you a huge apology and my gratitude." Sonia remained silent, only giving the nod to acknowledge what was said. Shelly decided to push on, despite her emotions starting to well back up inside her. "I know it's not much, and I owe you a lot. I can't apologize enough for my behavior."

"You weren't yourself," Sonia cut in. Shelly waited, hoping she would say more, but the android remained silent.

"No," Shelly agreed after a moment, "I wasn't. But even before that. You've been at my side, helping me... caring for me, and I want you to know that I really appreciate it. I appreciate you."

Shelly saw her companion mouth the word, 'appreciate' with a grimace, but otherwise remain silent. They walked without saying anything for a bit, Shelly feeling more alone than she had in some time.

"You've been through a lot lately," Sonia finally spoke, breaking the silence and the building tension. "You've had some really shitty stuff happen to you. You've been kidnapped, abused, raped, manipulated, and more. I don't envy you what you're suffering. I learned a long time ago that the true worth of a person comes out when they are under pressure. Ignoring your behavior while a portion of your soul was missing, you have been childish, immature, and shown a poor ability to make sound judgments."

When Sonia started talking, Shelly had hope that they could work things out and move forward. But as she continued, it became clear that Sonia was breaking up with her. Each statement felt like a nail, driving straight into her damaged heart.

She didn't know she'd stopped walking until Sonia turned to face her. The woman's face was calm and dispassionate as she drove the last nail in.

"But hey, sorry for being so blunt and honest with you. I appreciate you as a person."

The world shimmered as tears sprung to Shelly's eyes. She tried to shove down her emotions and not show herself to be the immature woman she was just accused of. She knew she deserved the treatment, but it didn't lessen the pain. She wanted to run away and hide. The deepest darkest hole wouldn't be enough to hide from the shame she felt right then.

But she was determined to no longer be that person. She didn't want to, but she admitted to herself that she was immature. On more than one occasion, she had acted in the worst way possible, either running away, or making choices that showed she was childish, or self-centered.

Well, she wasn't going to be that little girl anymore.

"You're right," Shelly said, trying to keep from sobbing as she spoke. "I treated you poorly. You deserve better. If you give me another chance, I'll be better. I promise."

She couldn't see the look on Sonia's face through her watery eyes, but she waited patiently for a response.

"My current assignment is to keep you safe," Sonia said after some deliberation. Considering how fast the android could think, she must have put a lot of thought into her answer. "I think it would be best if I weren't emotionally attached. It'll allow me to be more level-headed in my decision making."

It took all of Shelly's willpower not to run away. She hadn't loved Sonia, true, but her heart still broke at losing this connection. Still, she was determined to be more mature and show that she wasn't the same person as before. If only she could get these damned tears to stop!

She didn't trust herself to speak, so instead, she nodded and started walking again. She could just make out the walls of Gaia's Mountain home, and the large blob that she could see of Sonia as she passed by. She heard the other woman fall in step next to her.

She did her best to wipe at her eyes and clear them before they reached where Gloria was being held but knew there was no mistaking the fact that she'd recently cried.

Once again, instead of hiding herself, she chose to step freely and walked into the room with her head held high. No more running.

Her dad saw her first, and Shelly saw his eyes flick to Sonia before grimacing, but kept silent on what his thoughts were.

Of course, Sheldon wasn't so tactful. "Shelly? What happ—oof! What was that for, Shlee?"

Shelly ignored the couple as she looked at the captured succubus. Gloria was encased in solid diamond from her wrists and hips on down. Despite that, she had a calm expression on her beautiful features. Her bright blue eyes took them all in with a considering gaze until they landed on Sheldon. They softened slightly, as Sheldon and Shlee whispered back and forth. Gloria's blonde hair fell about her face in perfect curls, as though she were getting ready to go out on the town, and not a prisoner.

She remembered that Gloria was one of the Firsts. One of the original chaos creatures that were sucked into the growing bubble of order that formed within the chaos, and became used to this reality. It was still hard for her to grasp what Gaia revealed to her father, and then he relayed to her. There was no reason for the Pillar of Earth to lie to them about that, and so she accepted it was true, without truly understanding it.

"Shelly," the one-time goddess of love, addressed her, "I haven't had the opportunity to talk to you and apologize for what happened."

"There seems to be a lot of apologies going around today," Sonia muttered behind her.

Shelly ignored the robot and stepped closer to Gloria. "My memory is a little fuzzy about what happened. Why did you make us do that?"

For a moment, confusion shown in her eyes before understanding dawned on her face. Shelly understood immediately that the captive had read her mind and saw her memories. That also told Shelly that Gloria's powers were not being canceled. Gaia must trust Gloria to some extent. How hard would it be for the Greek Goddess of love, Aphrodite, or even the ancient original temptress, Lilith, to convert them to her bidding? Gloria had a long history as other personas. Personas that also had a long history of manipulating people.

"I don't blame you for distrusting me," Gloria said, still following her thoughts. "I didn't have anything to do with causing the orgy in the Orange Bubble. That was already underway when I returned after fighting off Poseidon and then killing Varun. Yes, his death was at my hands, but not my choice. Jessica had already taken control of me before we went into Varun's demesne. I had no choice but to do as I was commanded. And it was at Jessica's command that I made everyone forget what the Nameless One inside Jessica made you all do. I'm all for open sex, and sexual expression, as well as some good old debauchery, but forcing all of you into that was a perversion that I'm not into."

"And yet you forced me to fall in love with Eldon," Shlee cut in, apparently ending her discussion with Shelly's brother.

Speaking of the man, he'd stepped up close to Shelly and whispered to her, "I didn't mean to be insensitive. Shlee informed me that I was rude, and I'm sorry."

Didn't he understand that he was just as rude by bringing her tears back up? "Don't worry about it," she snapped at him. She felt the lump returning to her throat, and couldn't stop her eyes from shifting to where Sonia stood in the back of the room. Gloria spoke, and Shelly pushed the android to the back of her mind, if not the back of her heart.

"That was very selfish of me," Gloria said. "I didn't know that you had a fiancée, and wouldn't have done it, had I known."

"But you were willing to force it on me?" Shlee continued. Shelly could see that this line of conversation was hurting her brother, and she wanted to speak up in his defense. She felt his hand on her arm as she stepped forward and held her tongue instead. Given that second to think, Shelly realized that her brother probably needed the answer to that question as much as the werewolf.

Gloria took a moment to formulate her answer. "Everyone thinks that I can make any two people fall in love. I can only grow and nurture something that already has a seed. I didn't take anything from you. You had the choice to leave and go your own way at any time. You'd already cared for Sheldon before I left. I'm not saying you would have cheated on your betrothed with him without my intervention. I am saying that your decision to stay with Sheldon, despite already being engaged, was your decision."

"I don't understand how that was being selfish of you," Sheldon spoke up next. She could hear the pain in his voice but suspected that only those who knew him well enough could.

"I didn't lie to you when I told you that I love you." Her eyes flickered to Mandy, standing close to Shlee. "I also didn't lie when I told you that any man I've loved has suffered for it. I want you to be happy, Eldon. You are a good person, and you deserve to be happy. I could see in Shlee that she was also a good person at heart and already cared some for you. I also didn't miss the flirting she'd done with you. I, however, didn't see that she was already taken. Somehow, she kept that buried deep in her mind. I'm truly sorry for the pain my actions have caused you."

"Did you—?" Mandy started to ask, but Gloria shook her head.

"No, I didn't do anything to your heart. "You never stopped loving him, though you tried to hide that from yourself."

Silence fell for a moment, broken by a heavy sigh from Gloria.

"You're right, Mr. Snow," she said to Lyden, though no one else had heard him speak. "Your children's happiness is important to you, but so is finding out where Jessica is and stopping her. We must stop her. I might not be a Pillar, but I can feel the veil between the two worlds thinning. Had I succeeded in killing Gaia, I fear that reality would have soon crumbled. Since I failed, she will likely enact another plan, but she didn't make me privy to what that might be. She's smart, but she's also naive. Sending me after Gaia was probably the worst choice she could make. I might weaken her, but it would take forever to try and kill the Pillar of Earth."

"True," Gaia spoke for herself. "Besides the fact that I can manifest in multiple places at once, there are other reasons that I won't go into as to why killing me is nearly impossible. Which makes me wonder why she chose to send you after me."

Gloria gave a self-deprecating smile before she answered. "Because I advised her to do so. I knew of some of your defenses and knew that I couldn't succeed. Of course, I didn't know that any of the rest of you would be here, or how spectacularly I would fail. I wish I would have known that the key to breaking free from her control was in loving someone."

Shelly wanted to take a moment to absorb that knowledge, but the conversation was continuing, and she didn't want to miss anything to do with Jessica.

"Love helps you resist the Outsider's control," her father was saying, "but I'm not sure about breaking free. How do we know that the second she gives you a new command, you won't be compelled to obey?"

Gloria's demeanor drooped at those words. "I wish I could assure you that I wouldn't, but I can't be sure. All I can say for certain is that I am currently not under her command."

"Shouldn't the fact that our living lie-detector is here be able to confirm it?" Megan asked. She'd been so quiet and unobtrusive that Shelly hadn't noticed the redhead in the room. She should have stayed quiet, though, and Shelly was more than happy to let some of her frustrations out on the woman.

"Mandy's power only compels a person to speak what they believe is true," Shelly informed the woman. She tried to keep her voice informative, but even she heard the strong note of condescension. "The stronger they try to lie, the more the truth comes out. It won't make them speak a truth they don't know."

"Sheesh, sorry I asked," Megan grumbled.

Shelly didn't know what it was about the other woman that rubbed her the wrong way, but she knew she didn't like this girl who'd decided to stalk her brother.

"I've heard all I need to hear for now," Lyden said. "Unless there is something else you'd like to say, Gloria?"

The succubus looked grateful for the opportunity. "Jessica is cautious, and always moving, but she rarely ever goes to Earth. She stays in this world for the most part. She spends most of her time in the Pillar of Fire's lands but avoids any open flames to keep her mother from spying on her. There is only one place where she went to more than once while I was with her. A hot spring here in Gaia's domain, frequented by fairies, and known for its restorative properties."

Shelly's breath caught in her chest. She knew what hot spring Gloria was talking about. Why did Jessica keep returning to that place? She wanted to believe it was because she actually cared about Shelly, but a dark corner of her heart said that couldn't be the truth. Did she require constant healing for something?

"Thank you. Anything else?" Lyden asked before Shelly could ask her own question.

"Only that I truly am sorry for the pain I've caused your family," Gloria said, her head drooping.

Shelly almost—almost—felt sorry for her. She had no doubt that Gloria regretted what she had done. And She understood what it was like to be forced to do something against her will. But Gloria was also an all-powerful goddess, ancient in her power and knowledge. And while she may, or may not, be completely free from Jessica's control, she was outside of the woman's reach. Gloria wouldn't be giving birth to the child of a monster, the product of rape. There was little left in Shelly to give for pity to other people.

"Ambassador Snow," Gaia cut in, "If you and your wives and partners would see me back upstairs? There are some last-minute things to be arranged before you leave." Without waiting for a response, she walked towards one wall, melting into it.

For some reason, Shelly's father looked unhappy about meeting with the Pillar of Fire.

Shelly was anxious to go and visit the hot spring, but as she turned to leave the room, she lost her balance. Sonia was right there to catch her, one strong arm helping her stay on her feet. With one hand, Shelly rubbed her distended stomach, cursing inwardly. She wasn't going anywhere until this baby was gone. She wondered at losing her balance like that until it occurred to her that her stomach had grown faster than her muscle memory. She'd been lucky that she hadn't had an issue until now.