This is the second chapter of my attempt at a modern fantasy story. I've always been intrigued by stories of the Fae but my knowledge of folklore (and particularly Scottish folklore) is far from perfect. So please understand that this written as a fictional romp which draws on folklore for its inspiration.
Although the first chapter scored quite well, the number of 'hits' seemed low. So, I thought I'd make this chapter a little shorter in the hope that more people might read at it.
Please let me know what you think.
BF
*******************************************************************************
Chapter 1
Jasper observed his mistress dressing from the corner of the room. He could see she was taking extra special care over her appearance today. For centuries the raven had watched over Ariel. He knew her better than she knew herself. Modern sensibilities considered it cruel to keep a raven as a pet, but Jasper wasn't captive. He was free to come and go as he pleased, but nonetheless he was bound to Ariel, an extension of her really.
It had been over a thousand years now since the Last Great Faerie Battle of the Highlands had seen the Seelie Court triumph over the Unseelie. But by the time peace had been won both sides had inflicted heavy losses on the other. Fae numbers were a shadow of what they'd previously been and it left the way clear for human-kind to dominate the highlands and beyond. The Fae became scattered and while the Faerie Queen and the Seelie Court remained in Faerie Kingdom, most Fae lived quietly among human kind. With the passing of the centuries they had largely disappeared into folklore.
However, there were always exceptions. Fae who used their powers carelessly, bringing attention to themselves. Humans were a jealous species and quickly stamped out anything that looked like competition.
Additionally, not all Fae were sympathetic toward the Faerie Queen and her Court. Some still sympathised with the Unseelie belief that, as the superior beings, they should be the dominant species, rather than humans.
Ariel had only just reached maturity when the last Great Faerie Battle took place. A faerie of noble birth, she had fallen in love with and married a captain in the Seelie archers. They had scarcely settled into their new lives together before he, like so many others, was slain in the battle.
Ariel was left heartbroken and unable to move past the loss of her husband as long as she remained in the Faerie Kingdom. So, when the call went out for volunteers to live amongst humans and watch over her own kind she answered it willingly.
She'd lived many lives since then, taking human form and reinventing herself every half century or so, in order not to draw attention to her own immortality. Occasionally she'd taken a lover to ease her solitude, but Faeries weren't like nymphs they didn't need sex to survive. When they were aroused however, they were prone to infatuation. It had been a while since Ariel had felt this way. Until now that was.
Ariel's current incarnation was that of the proprietor of Aberdeen's premier (and only) gothic clothing emporium, the 'Serpent's Kiss'. Her access to this aspect of human subculture allowed her to keep tabs on the city's dark underbelly.
It had been a busy week. Two nights before, Jasper had spotted Freja, a stowaway nymph from Norway, selling her body in the red-light district. Fortunately, they'd managed to rescue her before the city's pimps put a permanent end to her freelancing career. Thanks to Elise, Lady Duntoolin, Freja was now safely out of Aberdeen and in Duntoolin, where she was being looked after by the Laird and his son, Angus.
Then there had been Charlotte...
From the moment Ariel touched her, she'd known Charlotte was special. Her aura had been far more powerful than any nymph Ariel had met before. But since her activation the night before, Ariel wasn't the only one to have felt that power. It had been all over the local news that morning. Three men were in Aberdeen's Royal Infirmary, two suffering from blast wounds while a third had serious head injuries consistent with having been exposed to extreme pressure. The police were keeping an open mind about the incident apparently.
Jasper had observed events unfold from a nearby rooftop. He'd seen Elise walk into the Eagle public house then watched as men began walking out and into the alley to where Charlotte was waiting to receive them. It must have seemed like a good plan, Charlotte needed re-energising after her activation and the pub had a good supply of men with loose morals, eager for free sex with an attractive young redhead.
But Elise hadn't counted on the huge oil rig worker who'd assaulted Charlotte. His friends had held Elise down, unable to rescue her future daughter in law and stuffed her mouth with their cocks while the big man cruelly ground Charlotte's face into the wall as he fucked her anus roughly.
What happened next though, nobody could have anticipated. The violence of her assault seemed to trigger something within Charlotte and the retribution she meted out to the perpetrators was both swift, and extreme. If Elise hadn't managed to intervene then there would almost certainly have been at least one fatality, but she'd managed to bundle the bloodied Charlotte into a taxi and they'd left the carnage behind them.
Nymphs weren't like faeries. They could mate with humans and bear their children, although the offspring were rarely nymphs themselves. Over time, this had led to Nymphs being effectively bred-out of existence. Their genes consumed into the larger human pool.
Every now and then there would be a throwback however and a nymph would be born. Sometimes these mutations lived their whole life without realising they were different, although if you know what you were looking for the signs were easy enough to spot. From birth they could hear telepathically, but a more obvious sign was a heightened desire for sex as they matured.
Fae scholars had long suggested that perhaps once in a million times the mutation could produce a kind of super-nymph, one with heightened powers. Such a nymph would be a prize to those who possessed her and threat to those who didn't. If Charlotte had such a gift then she needed to be careful. It was up to Ariel to protect her, not only because she was valuable to the Seelie Court but because Ariel was astute enough to recognise that she was already hopelessly infatuated with her.
Ariel checked herself in the mirror. She hadn't put in the facial piercings that were such a familiar part of her adopted persona, nor had she put in any of the others that usually adorned her body. In fact, she'd gone as far as to alter her appearance so as to remove any sign that the piercing holes had ever existed. Ariel desperately wanted to appeal to Charlotte but was uncertain how to go about it.
It had been over a century since she'd last felt infatuation. Back then she'd worn corsets so tight she could hardly breath and the sight of a shapely ankle had been enough to send a man into apoplexy. But fashions had changed and now it seemed that the trend was to show as much flesh as possible. While she had never had sex with a nymph before she'd encountered plenty and their need for gratification tended to drive them to dress more obviously than most. Ariel decided that the best approach was probably for her to do the same. So, she set off for Charlotte's hotel looking like what could best be described as, a goth-hooker.
Chapter 2
"Charlotte. Can you hear me?" the voice cried out.
Blearily Charlotte tried to open her eyes but she couldn't. Her eyelids were glued together by a crust of dried blood. She panicked for a moment then rubbed her eyes with her hand, breaking the crust apart.
"If you can hear me then please answer," the voice said. "Angus wants to know if you're ok."
The mention of Angus' name gave her focus. Charlotte lifted her head off the bed and looked around the room, but she was alone. Where was Elise she wondered and where was the voice coming from?
Then it clicked. The voice was in her head. She was a nymph now. She could communicate by thought with other nymphs.
"Who is this?" she asked.
"It's Freja, from Norway. You saw me yesterday in the shop."
"I remember. Did you make it to Duntoolin?"
"I did."
"And were Angus and the laird able to re-energise you?"
"Actually, it was only Angus, but yes he did, several times," Freja giggled, "He's got a very large cock hasn't he."
Charlotte felt an irrational wave of jealousy sweep over her. She must have been fucked by six or seven guys the previous night yet here she was begrudging Freja a much-needed re-energising.
"I'm glad you enjoyed my fiancé so much," she replied cattily.
"I'm sorry," Freja responded, hurt by the tone.
"No, I'm sorry Freja. I had a rough night," she responded. "I'm new to this nymph thing and I could do with a hug right now. But you have my permission to enjoy Angus as much as you want, and yes he does have a large cock doesn't he."
"Angus loves you and he's worried about you Charlotte," Freja continued. "He's been trying to call your mobile but there's no reply."
"I think must be out of charge. Tell him I'll charge it up and call him shortly."
"Ok." Freja hesitated then asked, "Are you sure you don't mind me fucking him. It's just that I still need topping up?"
