Bad Moon Rising by Rasputina
(Hence follows a few short written pieces, some by Eredis and some by me, on a planned story arc for the Knights which sadly fizzled out. I still like the villain, though, so I'm reposting the writing with Ere's permission.)
Without Equal: Prologue by Eredis Orill
Prologue - Bad Moon On The Rise Somewhere near Goldshire, Elwynn "Never has there been a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious." - Obi Wan Kenobi The man in the plush leather-backed chair fumed. His research was set back months, maybe years. Perhaps even permanently. The secrets of eternal life were to be his, and those forgettable twice-dead had stymied him. What's more, they had ensured his unceremonious ejection from Hearthglen, that little hamlet that survived a revolution of the dead. It was a pity, the man surmised, as their library was really quite complete. He would have to take his solace in the thought that he had at least acquired the books he needed to take his next step - and somehow use his exploration to draw out and destroy those laughable Death Knights before they bothered him further. It was all spread out in the pages before him. One small insert he removed from Great Libraries of Azeroth - really, he would have to delve into Ozruuk's tomes sometime to see what that lump of granite had to say about geology - and an entire tome that dissected the page that he had taken. Surely, the man thought, the Black Flight would know all I need about my next step. Could I even make another Dragon Soul? Likely not...but perhaps I will find what I need within. He closed his book and placed the insert atop it on the table next to his chair. A swift glance out the window showed nothing but the quiet evening outside his borrowed home. Now that his research was nearing completion, he could focus on his hunger. Where was his servant? It was getting late, and he was getting angry. He did not need to be any more irate than he already was, courtesy of the Knights of Menethil. ### Everyone knew about the Lion's Pride Inn. Adventurers taking their first steps often found themselves running candles and love philters to townspeople before getting shipped off to confront the Kobold menace. It was an important stepping stone for many a hero. But that's not why everyone knew about the Lion's Pride Inn. Everyone knew about the Lion's Pride Inn for its reputation after the sun went down. When the roads were lit by lamplight and the sounds of instruments, laughing, and aural indications of carnal relation interspersed with the clash of blades as adventurers fought in the street. It was the type of reputation that stank of sweat and vomit, of burning herbs and stale alcohol. It was the type of reputation that earned the Kaldorei a legend of only being able to breed after dancing near a mailbox or that there were legions of men and women who had a Dragon for a biological parent. It was one bright evening at the Lion's Pride Inn that the door burst open, showering the neighborhood with the raucous sounds of laughter and music. Two women stepped out; one a tall, slender, well-busted Human with hair as black as ink. She supported a second, shorter Human woman who gave great care to the presentation of her bust and rear, though her brown hair suffered for it. "C'mon Lina," the shorter Human whined. "We could've fooled around in there! It's not like anyone would've noticed!" It was clear to anyone who cared that the woman was drunk - it was the fall-down, why-is-my-horse-in-the-kitchen kind of inebriated that the Lion's Pride was known for. However, it seemed that the only person who did was Lina, the pale, statuesque woman holding her up. "Anastasia dear," Lina breathed, "I don't want us to be....interrupted." Lina's voice was like smoke. It drifted quietly from ruby lips to tanned, freckled ear and eased its way inside Anastasia's mind. It tickled at her lobes and tugged at her hemispheres. It filled Anastasia's head and traveled down her spine, where it added to the tingling sensation Ana felt every time Lina touched her, or spoke to her. It was desire, plain and simple. Anastasia giggled, and staggered towards the street. Adventurers clashed in the street, swearing at one another as they were disarmed or defeated, not a one paying any notice to the two women who were pulling themselves towards the houses on the lake. Such things were commonplace. Lina stopped long enough to nibble at Anastasia's neck, eliciting a low moan as bodies pressed together. Hands traveled up and down, touching and squeezing, hard nails pressing against flesh where it was found. The tingling in Anastasia's gut grew and grew, becoming a warm ball of desire that threatened to cause a disturbance right there and now. She felt as if she were wandering in a fog of pleasure, Lina her only shining light to guide her to climax. "Stoooooop," Ana cried. "I thought you wanted to-" "You're right," Lina said as she pulled away. "I'm getting impatient. I just wanted a little...mmm...taste." ### The house was elegant for the area it was in. A wooden fence separated it from the rest of the shacks and shanties that were normal for Goldshire, and the overgrown hedges near the door suggested that upkeep was not first and foremost on the occupant's mind. A carriage sat in the dark next to the house that looked to be in much better condition, though the steed that was quietly standing, ready to pull, looked a little off in the darkness. His eyes glowed red, as did the rest of him - though it may have been a trick of the light in the second floor window. The light itself spilled a gentle scarlet over the front yard, offering a warm, inviting aura to Anastasia as Lina led her to the heavy wooden door. "Ooh," Anastasia mumbled as she looked at the house. "This looks a lot better than some of the places I've been!" She took a step forward with great concentration, artfully mistiming her foot so she stumbled against Lina again. It was a naked attempt at feeling the woman once more. "Oh," she said without the barest hint of apology, "I am so clumsy...but your skin is so smooth...." Undaunted, or, perhaps very daunted and quite impatient, Lina rapped on the door. It opened at her touch, as if the stately house was waiting for her. "Wow!" cried Anastasia as they staggered up the stairs towards the bedroom. "Is this all yours?" Lina shrugged , her movements more cocksure and steady as they made their way through the darkness. "I work here," she said. "The Master sent me out for a meal, I came back with you." Both girls erupted into giggles by the time they made it into the bedroom. Infatuated with one another as lips met and bodies pressed together, they failed to notice the garish canopy bed against the side wall, clad in fine - if not aged- silks. There were bookcases and armoires along the walls, and a thick curtain over the one window that looked out over the sleeping area. In the corner, near a flickering oil lamp, was a chair that was padded and covered in fine leather. Lina and Anastasia were in the full throes of standing passion, giggles and moans aplenty, when an oily, cultured voice said, "You're late." Anastasia shrieked, then immediately stammered an apology. "Light I am so sorry we didn't think--" The man in the chair raised a hand, and the girl fell silent. "I did not ask you to make excuses. I have been waiting." Anastasia's eyes were locked on the man in the chair, her body pressed into Lina. Who was this man? What was it about his voice, the way he sat, the way he dressed? She could feel the hairs on the back of her neck rise as she felt his eyes on him. There was simply something about him that was...off. Like he didn't see Anastasia and Lina as... People. "I was-" Lina started, but the man raised a single finger. "You were brash and unthoughtful. You were more concerned with you than with me. You brought me back nothing. I shall simply have to take what I can from you then. You will need your strength for that, so you may as well enjoy yourself before I lose my patience." Anastasia pressed back into Lina's arms, feeling the chill of something she could not classify. Her eyes were fixed on the man, unblinking, until Lina's hands started to press against her curves in a most distracting manner. "You heard him," Lina whispered into her ear. "We may as well..." Anastasia melted, feeling her desire rise in her most delicate of places. Lina's voice was like honey, her touch was like cinnamon, and her breath on Ana's neck was as fire. It didn't take any effort on her part to turn and embrace Lina, losing herself in the desire of the moment. So passionate the embrace was, as clothing started to shed and low moans began to rise from throats, that Anastasia could only barely hear the man speak again. "Lina, stop playing with your food." It was enough to make Anastasia break away and look at the man, who returned the incredulous glare with a benign smile and a pointed finger. "As I said," mentioned Bertram K. Thorberly as he gestured to the women, "I will take what I need from her when she's done. She will need her strength. "That's a good girl." Anastasia's heart began to hammer in her chest as she turned to look again at lovely Lina, sumptuous Lina, wonderful Lina who had grown bat wings and elongated claws. The slightly-warm temperature of her skin had grown colder, and the grip had grown rigid. She looked on in horror as Lina's eyes began to glow red, and the succubus' serpent tongue left a trail of bubbling saliva along Anastasia's neck. It was electric. She could feel her resolve weakening with her knees as she lost her balance. It was as if she was floating on a cloud, the hard wooden floor as soft as the finest of down. Everything moved in slow motion as her mind reeled in terror, yet her body did not move an inch. Any attempt her mind made to move those leaden limbs was blocked by a wave of pleasure as Lina kissed here, nibbled there. Ecstacy mixed with agony as the claws flashed here and there, the warmth of Anastasia's lifeblood fading as she saw bits of flesh rent from her body. "Be a dear servant," uttered Thorberly as he sat, "and lend her a breath. I wish to hear sweet music." The succubus smiled. Anastasia, her vision starting to grey, could see the forced cheer in the demon's face, hear the battle of wills in her honeyed tones, and taste the personal pleasures that Lina was taking of Anastasia in the blood rising in the back of her throat. "Of course, Master." The last pleasurable moment Anastasia experienced was the soft, most tender kiss Lina placed on her lips. The succubus' breath pushed back the blood and bile rising in Anastasia's gorge. Against all physical possibility, the woman's back arched as she shivered, waves of intense ecstasy firing all of her nerves at once. It was a seizure borne of the body's knowledge that it was Anastasia's last moment on this planet, and it did not disappoint. Anastasia looked on Lina's face, and found only the selfish grin of a petulant child who got a sundae all to herself. The epiphany was enough to shut off the pleasure as easily as stopping a hand pump. ### Everyone knew about the Lion's Pride Inn. It was a palace of debauchery where anything could be found for a price. That evening, everyone knew about the Lion's Pride Inn because a tortured scream cut through the air and stopped the revelry for a long minute. It was the kind of scream that caused a stunned silence in its wake. It was the kind of scream one could only make as she was being torn into bite-sized pieces on a single agonizing breath.