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Naibus left Maxia in the center of a large room, the floor much like a great golden platter. He could still hear the sounds of feeding from the other rooms, could smell pheromones and hormones and sweat. There was an underlying element of blood beneath everything that made his blood tingle and his desires heightened. Everything around him had this echo to it in appearance, feeling both further and closer at the same time.
“You, young one, are being consumed by your own feelings,” Naibus explained, going behind one of the walls of mirrors. “It is something that makes you less of a demon and more of an animal, quite unsightly.”
He rolled his shoulders, his fur rolling like waves with it. His hands were massive and clawed, made for tearing. He wanted to test them. He wanted to be tested. What she was saying was true and the animal reveled in her words like they were praise while the other part of him, his human half, buried deep beneath his huge frame, clutched at himself, disgusted by his own failings.
She came back from around the mirror, carrying a pile of fabrics. “You need to learn to embrace it, to use it for your betterment. I would expect that you would have had years to try to befriend yourself but it’s not every day that you lose your human blood.”
Naibus held out the fabric. In an instant, all Maxia wanted to do with it was tear it apart. He reached, claws twitching, for it, but she must have realized that he would not treat her things kindly. Instead she set it down on one of the lounges that sat around the room, running her hands over his snout as she did. Her hands were hot and he whimpered at the feeling, lashing out with his claws.
She cackled, pulling her hands away from him. He was nowhere near reaching her. She was too far away, her thin arms quick and fluid. He couldn’t catch her and his tail wagged quickly as he snapped his jaw.
“That’s cute but, you see, you are without rationality when you are only moving by instinct. You don’t want to hurt me, you want my help. Ralucad understands that he must make sacrifices in this place and, I’m sure you do as well since he put you in this state. Do you want to be better?”
Maxia’s demonic form finally agreed with him, allowing him to whimper in agreement. He didn’t want to be this. He didn’t want to be violent. He wanted his mind back.
Naibus touched him again, hands on his jaw, hands on his wrists, pulling her face down and close. He could bite it. It would be so easy. She was so close. She didn’t care for her well being. He could tear her apart.
He couldn’t move from her grip.
He growled and twisted, shaking like a pitbull, like a shark, but instead of having prey between his teeth it was himself in a trap and no matter how he moved he couldn’t be free. She had him. It was all lost. He was the prey after all. There was nothing he could do.
“Stop that!” Naibus hissed and he stilled, whimpering, staring up at her. “You’re ut going to hurt yourself. You need to gain control, listen to my words, to my voice.”
Her voice was beautiful in the way of a trained singers, just before a performance. Not singing, but about to. It rolled deeply over him, running like fingers through his fur.
“Close your eyes.”
He closed the gray one then the red. Everything was a deep dark red, specks of whatever lived on his eyelids dancing against what light came through. He breathed through his nose. That sent was so cloying, taking him over.
“Its dark and there’s nothing around you, nothing to fight, nothing to be afraid of.”
The red faded to black. There was nothing. He was floating. He did not feel her hands on him. He did not hear what was happening in the other rooms. It was just him in the cool black void, a beautiful voice resting on his shoulders like a cape.
“You are in the darkness, not this beast but you. He is all alone in here, wanting to be free. You put him in a cage, didn’t you?”
There was a white square in the middle of the darkness. It was a cell with glass walls. It was too bright to look into but Maxia knew what was inside. There was a conscience in there, a human being, his other half. The half that was always in control.
“Do you have the key?”
He looked down at his hand. There were two hands there. There was the massive clawed one, edged in lush brown fur, and there was a human one, small and bright, made out of light. It looked smaller than it should have been. Floating above his hands was a stone, just a chipped off chunk of granite. It spun in the void.
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He shook his head.
“That’s alright,” Naibus told him, “It will come to you the more you try to connect. For now you must go to the cage and you must listen to yourself. Build that relationship between your two heritages. And when you’re too angry, when rage is all you feel, come back here, find the cage, try again.”
The cage was all there was, so bright that he couldn’t even see himself. It filled his vision to the point that he thought he may be the one trapped inside.
A hand slammed against the glass.
He jumped, backing away, as the hand, black against all that white, slid down the glass. It was so weak, so small, this spindly little thing. It wasn’t how he’d ever pictured himself. And it was shaking. With Maxia’s dual hands he reached out, placed his hand on the glass on one side as if to touch the one he couldn’t reach.
“Protect him,” came his own voice, echoing through his mind, “Save them. They need you.”
His eyes snapped open and he was back in that golden room, surrounded by mirrors, Naibus releasing him and taking a step back. She was smiling with all of her mouths again.
“Feeling any better?” she asked.
He looked down on himself. He was still in his larger demon form, still monstrous, still dangerous. His temper though, was simmering instead of boiling. There was a bit more of him in himself, a purpose, at least.
He nodded.
She bent down and retrieved the pile of clothes. “Good.” she stated, setting them down in Maxia’s arms. “Now, you change into these, they seem to be close enough to your style and they’ll shift to accommodate whatever form you take, to an extent. If you get larger than me you’ll tear them.”
He looked at the clothes. A lot of black, some red and gold for intrigue. He stared at his chest, feeling the heat rise.
“You look like a full blooded demon right now.” Naibus must have picked up on it. “Later you may look like a full blooded human, who knows? But here’s the thing, everyone here has true sight. We all know what you are, regardless of what shape your body is in. We all know you’re Mestura. We all know you’re male. You may be uncomfortable with your chest but don’t think anyone here will care about it in any way.”
He stared at her then, trying to read a trace of a lie. He didn’t see one. The heat lowered. He felt almost normal, for the moment, like perhaps visiting the cage helped.
“I’ll speak with your idiot friend,” Naibus said, slinking to the door, “Come out when you’re ready.”
Maxia stood there for a long while, just looking at what he was given, before setting it to the side. Part of him wanted to tear it apart, a large part of him. He wanted to tear himself apart, make his body the way it should have been. In this form he could do it, could heal from it, but it would be agony. He didn’t have time for that or for the healing.
He did tear his own clothes, finding that easier than taking it off. He tossed the remains of fabric onto a nearby lounge.
The shirt felt like silk and it was all black in most light but tilted a certain way gave the appearance of red snakeskin. It was shaped like an asymmetrical poncho, having buttons and clasps on it so that it could be pinned into place for when he was smaller. It was easy to wear and the formless shape of it in the front covered his chest better than expected.
The pants were a bit tight but felt like skinny jeans. The edging on the seams were gold and shining in a way that told him that they were magic. They split at the knee, though had golden laces, so his digitigrade legs weren’t constricted by the ankles and there were a few hole sin the back with flaps that connected to the waistband for his tail to have some comfort too.
He felt better dressed. Less of a monster.
He breathed, his eyes closed. He thought about the cage. He wanted to get himself out of there.
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Maxia shot forward, pinning Ralucad’s wrist against the wall, crushing the thin bones. Ralucad whimpered. It was like music, it was exactly what Maxia needed. Ralucad finally weak before him, not just in mind but in body. He ground Ralucad against the wall, drawing another pained sound.
It was a pounding, relishing, pleasure that came from Maxia’s muscles, finally free, finally able to do what they were meant to do, as Ralucad stretched his jaw, trying to reach for Maxia’s wrist, kicking out, trying, and failing to get free. Maxia could break him. He wanted to break him. Some part of him, far away, was screaming.
“I’m sorry!” Ralucad whined as he continued to struggle, against Maxia’s nature as well as his own. “I’m sorry! You’ll be back to yourself soon, I swear! You’ve been fighting it so well, don’t disappoint yourself now!”
Maxia bit into Ralucad’s over shoulder, digging his own sharp teeth in through the white shirt, feeling poison spill out of Ralucad’s body and into his mouth. He dropped the vampire then, rearing back, coughing and sputtering, trying to get the vile black blood out of his mouth. He threw his head back and forth as he spewed the toxins out onto the golden floor.
Naibus was clapping and laughing to herself, at the little show that they’d just put on for her.
Ralucad clutched at his opened shoulder, letting his knees give out so that he could fell to the floor. The black blood was already fading from his skin, the bruise in his wrist dancing through different colors, back to pale pale pink.
“Well, that was fun. And pointless,” Naibus mused on her last clap.
“Deal?” Maxia grunted, finding it hard to get the word out through the tingling burning sensation in his mouth. It tasted foul, like he’d slept with a dishrag in his mouth for a week.
“Do you have any better idea?” Ralucad grimaced. He picked up the remains of the amortiguador, a broken and twisted chunk of metal now.
“I do,” Naibus offered, “still a deal, but one with fewer ramifications. You’re reputation is well known, Ralucad, no one is willing to make a deal with you unless they are certain you cannot use it against them.”
Ralucad grimaced further. The affects of being in Hell unprotected was enough to make him squirm, for his skin to immediately start to turn ashy.
Whatever her deal was, it wouldn’t be something that he could take advantage of.
She stepped between them, reaching out with her lower arms to pick Ralucad up by the elbows, set him back on his feet. She was gentle in her motions, at least in comparison to Maxia.
“How about this? I want out of here. Most of us do and while my children and I have the most access to Earth it is through proxies and avatars. None of us have been able to set foot on real soil since The Embassy placed itself over the hellmouth.”
“You want me to get you out of here?” Ralucad grit out.
Naibus gave him a mischievous smile. “Oh, you’re smart! Yes, of course. It wouldn’t have to be for very long, just enough for me to have a little fun once a month.”
Ralucad thought on it, really thought about it. It took a long time and Maxia whupped his tail against the floor, rumbling. This was a bad idea. He couldn’t get out why though, his mouth was all wrong and he was still heaving through his anger.
“No.” Ralucad pulled himself free of her. “That’s too many people that would be in danger. You’re a demon and not a low level one, the amount of damage you could cause to humans would be far too great.”
She cocked an eyebrow and looked him over before turning her attention to Maxia. “Whatever you need downstairs for, it must be important, right? At least important enough for you to ally yourself with such a mindless demon.”
“He’s not mindless!” Ralucad spat. Maxia stared at him. Part of him wanted Ralucad to explain, to protect him. He didn’t even know if Ralucad would forgive him for attacking him just moments before. “I did this to him. He’s not a full demon, he’s not used to being like this. I took away his humanity.”
Naibus reached out, put a hand on Maxia, and when he pulled away with a snarl she actually chuckled. “Well, that explains his sense of style, at least. Let me guess; he’s usually a lot smaller, closer to your size?”
Ralucad shook his head, trying not to smile. “Shorter, but broader. You’re not going to dress him up, are you?”
“I’m sure I’ve got something that will fit. You stay here and think about what I’m offering you.”
She tried again, this time getting a grip on one of Maxia’s horns, and led him away from the main room, deeper into the building.
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There was something on her that made Maxia know that she had been on Earth recently but he couldn’t see it. The veil of human sight had left him with his blood and he could only see her as she really was, the lack of limbs and wings obscured by little more than a thin layer of gauze. His true sight was all that he could see with.
She was tall, taller than the Xestor, possibly ten feet before her horns Her skin was slick as polished stone and as translucent as amber, allowing her purple veins to be easily viewed through her skin, as well as her twisting mockery of organs. They were nothing like human ones, no lungs or heart, just tubes and sacks for digestions. The skin on the backs of her arms, on the tops of her thighs, on her tail, wings, and face, were thick and opaque, a bright and deep blue. Like her children, there were many mouths on her, though her face had three and they all appeared to lead to the same place. She had six sets of feathers wings, each of them dipped in gold, patterned similarly to an angels. Her horns were also tipped in gold, straight and smooth, going straight up from her forehead.
“Well, aren’t you a big boy!” she praised with her deep melodic voice, not quite singing but sounding as if she were just about to. She wasn’t looking at Ralucad, not yet, as she adjusted her round yellow glasses to look Maxia over. “I don’t think we’ve met, I’m Naibus!”
She stuck out a hand, the other three still sitting at her sides. Maxia snapped at her ling fingers, at the dangling gold jewelry of bracelets and rings sparkled. She pulled her hand back, straightening up, eyes wide as she stared at him.
He skirted back. He was going to ruin this. He just wanted to bite her though, so badly. He wanted to prove himself. She was slim but far larger than he was and it made him want to prove himself. He couldn’t stand standing still. He felt like he was going to burst.
“Ignore him!” Ralucad interrupted, standing between them, “He isn’t part of this deal. I’m the one who’s offering himself.”
Her expression shifted, almost fell, as she looked Ralucad over. Then she crouched, getting on eye level with him. She chuckled, the sound dry and rattling. “Offering yourself? Do you even know what you’re offering?”
She looked at Maxia again. He rumbled deep in his throat. There was an arousing stench rising off of her, musky and thick, clouding his judgment. It was different from the rage, at least, but it was just as numbing to the rest of his emotions. She smiled, with all of her lips.
“We need to get downstairs,” Ralucad pressed. “We were told that we’d have to make sacrifices to do so. I am willing to give you whatever you can take from me.”
She pushed a finger to his lips, shushing him. Her finger was thin but long enough to slide over his entire face. He shuddered. Maxia could tell that he was trying not to breathe, but he was still being affected by her pheromones. His tongue slipped out between his teeth and slid up as much of her finger as it could.
“What you offer, Ralucad, is nothing that I require. I have many children and they all give me the energy they harvest. You’ve seen the lake outside? That is all the sexual energy I have gleaned and that I may gorge myself on whenever I desire it. You would make a decent meal for me, I think, if you were not also completely toxic.”
A tongue snaked out from her shoulder and lathered a thick trail of saliva on Ralucad’s cheek. He didn’t pull away. He didn’t look offended. He moaned at the sensation.
Naibus made a face though, wiping the tongue clean. “Yes, completely toxic, I can tell from just your skin. We are completely incompatible. If you wish for some sort of deal, you will have to try harder than that.”
‘Deal’. That creature in Limbo had warned them against making deals, had threatened Ralucad against it. Now that was what he was trying to do. He was putting them both in danger. Maxia was able to shake off the affects of the pheromones then, finally, his anger at Ralucad finally overpowering him. He couldn’t fight it, not now. Ralucad was going to get them both killed.
He pounced on Ralucad, making him call out in surprise, knocking him back and back and against a wall. One of Maxia’s hands were wrapped around Ralucad’s throat, half of his shoulder, pinning him to the wall. His mouth was close. He could smell the adrenaline, could see how Ralucad reached down, freed his yataghan from the makeshift sheath at his side.
Naibus: female presenting but I haven’t put any thought into her actual sex/gender because she’s not human and doesn’t have human society shoving gender norms down her throat
