Dan felt spent and empty, but was oddly comfortable and unworried. Gentle warmth flowed through him as a pink fog settled in at the edges of his vision.
Passive Ability: Mark of the Succubus
-Energy +
-Semen production ++
-Orgasm addiction
-Orgasm lock
-Succubi magic vulnerability +++
Dan read the message twice, but his mind couldn't focus long enough to process everything. Abilities weren't supposed to have negative effects. And what did "semen production" mean, exactly? He looked up at the woman sitting next to him, brow furrowed, and struggled to voice a question.
"Poor boy. It's so difficult to think, isn't it?" she asked, looking at him in concern. Dan nodded slowly. "Shh, it's alright darling, I'll take care of that for you. The mark helps you serve me better, Daniel, that's all you need to know. You just rest as long as you like before you return to your own world, then come and find me when you're ready."
As she left Dan's vision, exhaustion overwhelmed him. He saw the automatic log-out counter begin as his eyes closed. He woke briefly upon exiting the VR construct, then fell asleep still wearing the helmet.
*****
Dan woke up to his second alarm. Irritated, dehydrated, head pounding, he rolled off the bed, set his headset on the nightstand, and silenced his phone. 8:45, no time to eat or shower before class. Ugh.
He dozed through Calc and daydreamed through American History. It was so irritating that she'd gotten him again, and so thoroughly. What had that mark even been? It was bullshit, he mused, that she'd been in town at all, much less able to hit him with some kind of permanent debuff. He'd write an e-mail to the devs. Maybe tomorrow, after he'd gotten some homework done.
His text tone went off as he got back to his apartment. Jimmy was asking to hang out tonight. Dan sent back "Sorry, homework," before making himself a sandwich. He didn't have the time or energy, and Jimmy would probably want to play Saga anyway.
Maybe she was a player? There were rumors of secret, unique classes, though no one on the forums had ever posted proof. But she'd talked about having trouble entering towns, and she hadn't been flagged as a player either. The alternative was equally unlikely, and much more concerning. The AI for Saga Online was incredible, cutting-edge even, but there was no indication it extended this far. Lifelike as the NPCs were, Dan had never heard of one acting anything like this.
Glitch? Virus? Rogue developer, secretly inserting a sex demon into the game, unnoticed by anyone else? Everything seemed ridiculous, far-fetched. She did seem to follow the game's rules, if in an odd, rule-breaking sort of way. There was a pattern to how her powers worked, some kind of limitation. She seemed to be avoiding interaction with other players, from what she'd said. Maybe she was afraid of being discovered? Would someone else be able to resist her, or was she being over cautious? What was her plan, anyway? Boss-type monsters in Saga Online were able to execute fairly complex, long-term plans, like recruiting a group of bandits and raiding farms for supplies. Presumably she had something in mind beyond messing with his head.
He wanted to log back in and do some in-game research, maybe check the Floating Library for advanced texts on demons that other players hadn't bothered looking up. But he really didn't have time, not to do a good job of it and still complete his homework for the next couple of days. He'd probably need to go over the slides for today's classes online, given how little attention he'd paid in class. Plus, he was right in her clutches if he logged back in - what good would it do him? You were limited to one character in Saga Online, for safety purposes: switching into a third body type could cause migraines, hallucinations and other mental issues, apparently. And the accounts were too expensive for him to buy a second one.
What if he submitted a stuck character report? Dan sat down at his computer and pulled up the help screen for Saga Online. It would probably take a day for them to handle it, but glitched or stuck characters could be teleported back to the nearest waypoint. It would solve Blaize's most immediate problem, at least. Dan submitted the request, feeling mildly satisfied.