Old World Magic

Chapter 7 -- L'offerta

I swallowed nervously. When a demon looks at you with a glowering face and glowing red eyes, and tells you that it's time for the two of you to have a little talk, there's no natural reaction other than fear. "A little talk you say?" I managed to ask quietly.

Ruby blinked once, her glowing red eyes winking out for a fraction of a second as her porcelain skin eyelids fluttered over them. Then she must have realized my discomfort and a smile split her lips. I'm sure the smile was meant to be reassuring, but her canine teeth were extended making the grin predatory. "Forgive me Mike, I'm not upset with you. I'm just feeling extremely passionate about something right now. When that happens sometimes my disguise 'slips' just a little bit."

I nodded and sat up in the bed, leaning against the mirrored wall. "Well, that's a relief," I said pantomiming wiping a hand across my brow, "I've had women upset at me in the past, and know that it's bad enough, without wanting that woman to be a demon with hellish powers. But what did we need to talk about then?"

"Adam," she said, then frowning she stood from the bed. I couldn't help but stare at her lissom frame as she stretched. Her milky white skin glowed in the candle light and her long black hair fell down her back in a river of shining ink. She moved like a cat, slinky yet slow and purposeful. Her deliciously well formed ass, not too small but compact and lean, invited me to touch it as she faced away from me. Her legs spread slightly and I could see the dampness on her thighs and her hairless sex. She always produced a lot of sexual fluid, even though she'd not been touched during this last round we'd had. I wondered if succubus like her were simply always ready to fuck at a moment's notice.

She turned towards me, and my eyes were still staring at that area of her hips, so I couldn't help but notice her swollen mons. Unlike Ivette, who'd left the room earlier, who had longer inner labia that protruded even when not sexually aroused, Ruby's pussy was very tight for lack of a better word. The succubus's current form had a thick and swollen pussy, fat outer labia that hid her thin inner lips. The thin strip of black pubic hair made a landing strip that narrowed towards the bottom, as if pointing towards but never reaching her slit. When Ruby wasn't very aroused, her thick outer lips looked like a glorious peach, but aroused as they were now, the two halves had swollen even further and spread from each other. They were coated in her delicious arousal, a thick and tangy fluid that ran clear and copiously, often flowing so freely that it would run down her thighs.

I drew my eyes upwards, across her abs that were flat and perfect, her belly button a gentle innie that invited your touch. She was lean, but not skinny. You could see the bottom of her rib cage, but not much more of that as she stood relaxed. Just enough padding on her body to hide any of her bones from showing through her skin, something that often ruined the look of a woman who was too skinny. Above that, perfectly formed C cup breasts hung with just enough weight to give them form, but not enough to cause them to droop. Her breasts sat proudly on her chest, capped by pert nipples surrounded by tight areola. Above that, her graceful neck which carried her almost too beautiful face. Her face was vaguely heart shaped, with the raven bangs that dipped to the lowest point right between perfectly manicured pencil thin eyebrows. Her eyes were almond shaped, wide and ever so slightly slanted, with a hazel color to them when they weren't glowing red. Her nose was thin and regal looking, almost royal, above soft bow shaped lips that begged to be kissed and were a vibrant red.

I sighed, realizing as she smiled, that I'd done it again. She chuckled and I asked, "How long?"

"Just a few minutes Mike," she said chuckling and breaking the spell she'd had me under. It was a power play she liked to do every once in a while. She could mesmerize with her beauty, and I realized that I'd let her do it to me. It was quite hard to resist, and honestly, wasn't a terrible hardship either. She put one hand on a hip and cocked it to the side, and I tried to look at her without falling into her beauty again. "Mike you've got to learn to resist that. A seducer like me learns how to mesmerize with beauty as one of their first spells or abilities. It may not seem especially dangerous, but even if it gives them a few seconds, that might be long enough for them to draw a weapon or cast a more dangerous spell without you noticing at all.

I shrugged my shoulders, "But in fairness am I likely to have someone try to mesmerize me that's as beautiful as you are, and stark naked?"

Ruby bent over and picked up her silk robe, shrugging it over her shoulders. It helped to shake off the last of her spell, and let me focus on her words. "Yes Mike!" she said as she tied the sash about her waist. "You're an eromancer and a mentalist. The first part of that means you're likely to be having a lot of sexual encounters. If someone finds out that you're weak after sex, easily manipulated, they'll use that against you."

I sighed, she was right. But even with the robe on, I was still distracted. A while ago, Adam had told me that one of the abilities that we mentalists had was a passive power, a new 'sense' that became second nature. In Adam's case, he saw halos around people's heads that told him things like their current state of mind or what have you. Well, my sixth sense had developed a little differently. Instead of seeing these hidden things, I could smell and taste them. I would get a 'scent' as it were and could tell a person's mood, sometimes their intentions, or if they were lying to me. But right now all I could smell was Ruby's musk. She was extremely aroused, and despite having had a little fun with Ivette and I, hadn't yet gotten off herself. The thick clear grool leaking from her pussy was all I could smell, it's musky tangy scent begging me to taste it, to taste her, to make her cum. I tried to focus on what Ruby was trying to say to me. "So what about Adam?"

"I'm sure you didn't appreciate being punished for such a a minor infraction tonight, did you?" She asked me, referring to my earlier punishment. As a magic user, Adam was my teacher, my mentor, and I was his apprentice. As such he made it very clear how I was to follow his directions and orders at all times. But he had told me to practice using my powers, as it would be the only way to hone them and have them grow. Yet, when I'd run into my first stumble, the first time magic had ever backlashed on me, he'd punished me. The punishment wasn't especially harsh, but it was somewhat humiliating. As a straight man, I did not particularly enjoy being forced to wear a butt plug for several hours. But what had made the punishment truly unpleasant was the way he had forced me. In a moment and seemingly without any difficulty, he took control of my body with his mind. My own body had betrayed me at his whim.

"No," I said coolly, "I would say that I didn't appreciate it at all." I pulled a corner of her silken sheets over my semi hard cock.

Feeling that somehow since she had slipped on a robe, I should likewise make at least a slight effort at civility. I shouldn't have bothered, she laughed, a smile of amusement breaking her ruby red lips. Her voice came out mirthful, sweet with it's almost girlishly high voice, "Oh Mike, you don't need to cover up for me. I only put the robe on so you wouldn't be distracted. But trust me, I've been around long enough to keep from getting distracted by the sight of a pleasant looking cock." Then almost under her breath she added, "No matter how much I could use it right now."

That caused me to chuckle, she really was aching for an orgasm. Though that gave me pause, she wasn't the kind of woman to deny her lusts. So the things she was saying were obviously important. I asked her to continue, reminding her we had less than an hour before Cheyenne joined us. Cheyenne was one of the contract prostitutes that not only worked for "Ruby's Hideaway" the brothel that Ruby ran and Adam owned, but also lived in the house on the compound, along with Ruby, Adam, Myself, and one other girl named Jessica. Cheyenne was sweet on me I thought, and with her Native American ancestry and wonderfully fuckable body, in another life, I would have been sweet on her as well.

Ruby nodded her head sagely, her coal colored bangs catching and reflecting candle light. "Have you considered why it is that Adam levied such a harsh punishment upon you?"

I shook my head but answered, "I assumed it was to drive home the point that we must not use our mental powers so forcefully."

Ruby sat on the edge of the bed and examined her fingernails. They were of course perfect, dyed red to match her lips, "No, for if that were the case, why would he so blatantly have forced you to do what you did?"

"I hadn't considered that." I answered honestly, "It does seem, in retrospect, a little odd. Scold me for forcing myself on someone, then do that exact thing. So why did he do it then?"

Ruby stood up and paced, "Because he wants to break you Mike. He's destroyed everything that you were already. From what you've told me, your old life is gone, burned. There's no way you could go back to it. Even the US Government has a hand in creating a new life for you now, and I doubt they'd take kindly to you trying to reconnect with it. So he figuratively birthed you into this world. You're his child in a sense, right?"

I nodded and let her continue, "But what always happens to fathers and their sons, eventually, at some point?"

I pondered for a moment and reasoned out where she was going. "The son grows up?" She waved her hand as if to ask for more, "The son grows up and becomes a man while the father grows old and weak?"

"He's afraid of you already Mike," she said, "He let that slip to me. You've got the potential to be a great mage. A very powerful mage, far more powerful in time then Adam is. I don't know exactly how that kind of thing works, but after only two weeks, Adam already knows that fact. I'm also sure he doesn't want to burn you. You're too valuable, and besides, he still cares for you in a mentor / apprentice way. But, if he can break you, if he can instill that sense of never ending fear in you. If he can make it so you never think you're more powerful then he, then you'll never challenge him."

I was confused, "Why would I want to challenge him?"

Ruby sighed and turned glaring, "Maybe you don't want too Mike, I don't know. Maybe you'll enjoy being his little submissive apprentice your entire life. Maybe when he decides that a butt plug isn't enough and he's using his prick on you, you'll get stiff and thank him for his attentions."

Now I rolled off the side of the bed and stood up, angry, "Now wait a God damned second..."

Ruby flinched and it totally threw me off. But before I had a chance to capitalize on her moment of weakness she resumed her tirade, "Well then, trust me, you'll end up challenging him at some point. Because the more your power grows, the more he's going to try to keep you under his thumb. It's not that he actively wants you to fail or be subordinate, it's just that he can't imagine letting you surpass him in power."

I pondered what she said and walked to her window. Pulling aside the curtain I looked out into the early Nevada morning. It was purple with pre dawn light and I could already see clouds moving across the sky, with the mountains in the distance. Ruby moved behind me and placed one hand on my shoulder, wrapping the other about my stomach. Her delicate hand crossed the muscular abdomen that I'd been given with this new body. I felt her breasts, behind the thin silk of her robe, press into my back.

She whispered softly as she hugged my back, "But as powerful as you may be, if he's your only teacher, if all you ever learn is from him, then you'll never be able to beat him. He'll never teach you every counter to his attacks. He'll never teach you how to see through all his tricks. He'll never teach you his blind spots."

I turned around, letting the light blocking curtains fall back into place, darkening the room again to candlelight. She looked up at me with eyes that were hazel, and her soft body crushed against mine. For a second you could forget what she was, you could forget that she was a demoness, a succubus, a creature controlled by lust. For a moment she was simply a beautiful woman holding her body tight against mine.

But I recalled what she was, while she'd never been anything but honest with me, I didn't know if I could trust her honeyed words. "And who would be able to teach me such things? You I suppose?"

She nodded, "Among others, yes. I could teach you much however.

I felt the crux of this discussion coming, and I gently pushed her away from me. Holding her at arms length, I asked, "What would I pay for such an honor?"

A coldness came over her eyes then. She knew, she knew that I knew. There was that between us, that knowledge. She was not some damsel in need of rescue nor was she some merciful benefactor. She was a succubus, a demoness, and she wanted something. She pulled back from me then and smiled, "No more dissemination then? Fine, I'll give you the full truth of it."

She moved to sit on the edge of the black silk sheeted bed and crossed her legs, causing the robe to fall away, exposing her creamy legs all the way to her hip. "It's simple Mike. I've been trapped here for more than four decades. Four decades in this desert hell hole. While my kind measures time differently than you mortals, that doesn't mean that it's exactly enjoyable to be stuck in one place for that long. At first I thought Adam was my savior. At first I thought he was the only chance I had at surviving."

She suppressed a shudder, mostly, and looked up at me, her red eyes haunted by the memory she was reliving, "I was stuck. The mage who'd brought me here bound me with a contract that I was too foolish and too inexperienced to refuse signing. When she died, I was trapped there, in Las Vegas. I had no idea how to survive in this realm of man. I'd only been summoned once before, and that was to be the sexual play thing of a mortal mage for a night. Even then it was what you'd think of as more than a hundred years ago, and so the world had changed in the intervening decades."

"I walked the streets, my face painted like the hookers I saw. I'd take any trick, and I took the money, though I cared not for it. I just knew that I needed to feed. The worst was when I'd go days without a john, days without feeding. I'd feel myself slipping away then. I was no more demoness at those times than you are now. But something would always come along, a taste, an orgasm, a shot of some fat middle aged man's cum in my mouth..." She closed her eyes, lost in the story, "...always something just in time to bring me back from the edge of oblivion. Something to feed me, to remind me of who and what I really was."

Her eyes opened again but they were still far off, "Then Adam found me. He was old even then, for a mortal I mean. Over a hundred years this man had survived, yet he looked not a day into his thirties. When he fed me his lust... his mana... oh, it was as if everything I'd lost came rushing back. I realized how close to the edge I was and swore myself to him if only he'd take me and care for me. He came up with the plan to open a brothel. All the sexual energy he could siphon off for himself, and enough to make sure that I didn't ever starve again."

Her lips parted and I saw her fangs again as her face grew angry, "There was only one other thing he could have promised me to entrap me fully, and promise it he did. He promised to try to find a way to free me from the contract that kept me bound here. But he hasn't. It's been over forty years Mike!"

I held my hands out in front of me, "Ok, calm down, calm down. I understand, he broke a promise."

She shook her head, her raven hair whirling out around her as she started to calm down a little, "No Mike, you don't understand. My kind, we take word very seriously. Contracts, agreements, what is said, these things are all very important. My world is always in flux, always mutable, always changing. But if someone gives you their word and then goes back on it, that's the kind of blemish that can follow them throughout eternity. Adam said he would try to free me and it's been decades with me still stuck here."

I suggested, "Is it possible he's still trying? That he's still looking and hasn't found a way to free you?"

Her eyes narrowed, "It's possible, yes, but I don't think that's the case. He has no interest in seeing me free of this place. This compound, this brothel, it's not just his home. It's not even just his major financial source of taxable income, though it is quite lucrative. The amount of sexual energy generated here helps fuel his powers on a daily basis. Being around so much sexual energy keeps him constantly mana rich. You as well I'd imagine. He'd not want to give that up, not easily. Having a succubus on hand running the show makes sure that clients leave happy, come back often, and spend loosely."

I nodded my head, "I'm willing to think about this Ruby, but you can't expect me to simply go against Adam on your word alone. Besides, what makes you think I'd have any better luck freeing you than he has?"

Ruby sighed, "I don't know if you would or not, but you're the first apprentice I've ever seen him take in over forty years. I know that I don't want to wait another forty for my next chance, waiting for him to take another. As for the other, no, I suppose I can't expect you to go against him. But what if we made a simple agreement?"

I didn't like where this was headed, but nodded, waiting to hear her terms.

"Adam can teach you mentalism," she said, "He's the strongest mentalist I've ever met, though I haven't met many. But I know a little about mind magic myself, and in addition I have some tricks that Adam doesn't. So I'll make you this deal, you and I practice together in secret, I'll show you what I can. In exchange, you simply promise me that if you and Adam do fall out, you will try to free me from this place."

I nodded and she held a hand out to shake. I shook her hand then gasped and pulled away. For a moment it felt like my hand was stung by an insect or poked with a hot coal. I looked down at my palm and saw a black mark there. It faded quickly but Ruby stood up and said, "A deal has been struck. Now, let me tell you how I do my mesmerize trick, Cheyenne should be here shortly and we can practice with her."

I rubbed the palm of my hand, "I thought you wanted Cheyenne here so we could have a threesome, I never thought you wanted her here to practice magic with."

She smiled and opened her robe, letting it fall to the floor. She spread her feet slightly and I could see her slick juices literally running down her thighs, almost to her knees. She dipped one finger into her soaking wet pussy and then brought it to her lips and licked it. Smiling wickedly she said, "Who said we can't do both?"

- - -

Several hours had passed and I was feeling exhausted, something I hadn't felt since I'd awoken in my new body. It was closing in on ten in the morning, and Cheyenne, Ruby, and myself hadn't slept yet. Cheyenne had been a willing participant in our training sessions, promising to keep quiet about what we were doing.

"Ok Mike," Ruby said, finally putting a stop to the practice of the mental spells she was teaching me. "If we don't let Cheyenne get some sleep, Adam's going to wonder why she's so tired. She can't keep up with us."

I nodded and Cheyenne seemed relieved and also somewhat tired. "Mum's the word to Adam," she said with a wink, "You don't have to worry about me."