Darker Shores (closed: Allonsy, StarWhisperer)

[StarWhisperer]

Ella could not believe that he had pushed her until she had climaxed. Well, actually, she could. She had expected it. She laid there, staring at the jeweled ceiling and walls for quite a while before she found the ability to move. Her legs felt like jelly. She looked around, spotting Crook-Nose. She stood up, walking over to him. “Where’s that room with the bath, buddy?” she asked. Ella swayed on her feet, struggling a bit to stay upright.

She followed the little imp to the bath and gratefully soaked her exhausted body in the steaming hot water. She could feel herself drifting off several times, so she climbed out, drying herself (and pushing away any little imp hands that tried to help). Ella pulled the sunset-colored robe back on, wrapping it about her shoulders. Her damp hair left slight wet spots on the shoulders.

Stumbling, Ella made her way back into the bedroom. She collapsed onto the bed, drawing a blanket over herself, becoming just a rhythmically breathing lump. She fell asleep almost instantly, exhausted. Malaphor wore her out with their first sexual encounter, and he had done it again. She wasn’t sure how healthy it was to live like this.

Hours later, her eyes slipped open. Ella looked around, a little bit disoriented. The ruby sun glowed in the sky above her head, through the glass ceiling. Ella stretched and groaned, her back cracking. Her muscles were sore again. She sat up, leaning back on her arms and looking up at the sky. It really was sort of awesome through the ceiling like that. She hoped that Malaphor would let her just lay here for a while…

 

[Allonsy]

Shadows crossed the glass ceiling of the jewel-like room Ella rested in, then, in a rush of large wings a huge bird came to rest along a rocky ledge just outside the walls of the chamber.

It was a bird, but huger, than any bird in the mortal world. The size of Ella's torso, with a wingspan broader than she was tall the creature resembled a huge raven, but for the band of red and orang on its wings, like an officer's badge of authority. Hunched beyond the glass walls, it eyed Ella, turning its head in quick, jerky motions watching her with round, golden eyes.

It gave a rattling cry, then hopped over to a panel in the glass wall, one with hinges and a clasp -- clearly a door to the narrow rock balcony beyond the glass.

It tapped the door, squawked rawly and spoke. "We see you," it rasped, "mortal girl. We see you, come speak." It ruffled its feathers and tapped the door again.

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella looked over and sat up, eyes widening. The bird was huge, and it scared her. It seemed like everything here wanted a piece of her in one form or another, and she had no doubt that the bird could rip her into pieces if it so desired, should she open the door it was standing on the other side of.

However, it commanded her to go speak with it. Ella glanced around. She wondered if she could get in trouble for this. If all else, she could claim ignorance. After all, she was relatively ignorant in this world. She knew nothing about anything here, really.

She slowly stood, clutching her robe about her. The bird’s eyes were piercing, and she felt as though it stared through her. Nervously, Ella crossed the room, feet brushed and tickles by the various rugs and furs strewn about the floor. She made it to the doorway and stopped, staring.

The bird was even larger up close. Ella chewed on her lip. “What… what do you, um, want?” It was strange to talk to a creature like that… in all of Ella’s wildest fantasies, she didn’t think any animals would ever really talk back to her. “I’m not letting you in…”

 

[Allonsy]

The raven rustled it's wings, feathers fluffing up like a ragged mane as it laughed raucously. "I don't want in, lost girl." It hopped back until it was perched on the uneven stonework that acted as a balustrade around the narrow balcony outside the window. "But you want out, yes, mortal child?"

"A fortress so great," the raven stretched its wings wide. "But no stronger than the sands under its feet, yes? Yes?"

It bobbed it's head. "I will trade you secrets and you will have choices ... come speak to me."

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella glanced back towards the door to the chamber. This couldn’t be allowed. She didn’t want to get in trouble. But the bird had piqued her interest. She hesitated only a moment longer before she reached out and opened the window.

She stepped up close, though not outside. “Secrets? What secrets? What choices?” She leaned close, looking at the raven almost urgently. “What are you talking about? What do you know?” A fortress only so strong as the sand below it… She had heard that before, actually.

“Why would you help me?” Ella tugged listlessly at a strand of hair. “Every creature here wants my blood, in one form or another. My blood or my flesh.” She shivered and closed her vibrant eyes for a moment. She half expected the bird to grab her or hurt her or something.

 

[Allonsy]

The raven watched Ella, gaze bright and inhuman. "I want neither flesh nor blood," it scoffed. "Nor fucking with such as you." The gleam in its golden eye was humor. "Birds have no cocks, mating is trickier for the lack."

"Just a single strand of hair." It paused, then went on, almost wheedling. "For the family."

"And I will tell what I know and you will have more than you have now," It puffed up a bit, standing tall on the ledge. Beyond the sky was pink and apricot as morning moved on, though the cliff face was still in shadow for the jeweled bedchamber faced west, over the sea.

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella’s fingers paused in her hair and she looked curiously at the bird. “For… the family,” she repeated, hesitant. She took a single strand between her fingers and tugged, wincing as it came loose at the scalp. She held the dark strand between her fingers, though, not giving it over.

“Okay. This will be yours once you tell me what needs to be told.” Ella held up the hair, looking at the raven expectantly. “I’m not sure what you really need it for… but it’s just a hair, so I can spare it. Speak quickly. I don’t want to get into trouble.”

She looked again towards the door to the chamber. Somehow she expected Malaphor to enter at any moment. She was a little surprised that he hadn’t put her into her cage in the room that served as a sort of office or study for him. Ella looked back to the bird and shook her head.

 

[Allonsy]

The raven strained forward but when Ella drew the hair back it clacked its beak in frustration, fidgeting on the balustrade. "Wealth and riches all around you," it said. "And a Prince of power to hold you. Tall walls to protect you and a prisoner's life to grieve you."

The raven shifted to look at Ella with its other eye. "The tall stones, no matter how strong, cannot stand if the ground beneath is weak and the secrets below are no longer hidden. One close your Prince who has grown hungry, hunger and loyalty do not go together."

"Keep silent and you may fall into the hands of another," the raven rustled its feathers in something like a shrug. "Perhaps they will be kind, perhaps they will not care for you. Speak and please your Prince of the moment and perhaps he will reward you."

The raven gave her a last sharp look. "Only one domain has an open door to the mortal world. Should it fall, you will live out all the days of your life on this side."

"Give me what you promised," it demanded then. But ducked its head with a scheming look. "Give me another and buy my loyalty."

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella stared hard at the raven. The wheels in her head were turning. Someone close to Malaphor was no longer feeling complacent. Well, that was interesting. Ella would have to think about this. She wordlessly tugged another hair from her head. She wasn’t quite sure what having this raven’s loyalty would do for her, but he was at least being useful now.

“If I were to speak,” Ella said slowly, “what would I say? What should I say? And which domain has an open door…? This one? Or another? You’re creating more questions than you are answering.” Ella clutched her hair tightly, holding it close until the bird answered her.

She hadn’t thought that there WERE any doors to her world… and the thought that Malaphor might fall and she be given to someone unknown had also not occurred to Ella. At least she knew Malaphor would not hurt her. But she thought of the Maw and shuddered. He, or anyone who was like him, certainly would, in an instant.

 

[Allonsy]

"The prince knows his kingdom but there are not eyes everywhere," the raven told her. "He is a beast of hotter passions and does not look to the cold stones. He must creep like a worm to find the rot in his domain."

The raven laughed raucously. "Tell him so and you may insult and aid him all at once."

It hopped closer, eyes fixed on the slender hairs in Ella's hands but gave her a scornful look when she asked about the door. "You did not fall from the sky, mortal girl! The prince has built a door between the worlds, if his power falls, so may the Gate -- built on his blood and his strength -- unless another takes it up. Chose where you lay your strength wisely, and find your own power here."

 

[StarWhisperer]

There was a feeling in Ella’s gut that told her Malaphor would want to know how she KNEW there was rot within his ranks. However, she was thinking that, possibly, it would be worth mentioning to him. She looked at the raven and nodded.

“I know I didn’t fall from the sky,” Ella defended. “I just thought the Gate went away once we came through.” She hesitated for another moment before yanking out a third hair and then handing all three over. “The third is for luck, an extra thank you.”

Ella stepped back and shut the window quickly. “Now, go. And thank you.” Ella turned away and walked back to the bed. She sat on the edge, thinking. Choose where you lay your strength wisely, and find your own power here… She could use this. The wheels in her brain continued to turn.

 

[Allonsy]

It was the imps who came first, three of them carrying a chest to join the others along one wall. Crook-nose darted out from with a plate of food, much like the previous meal; water and dried fruits and nuts, something that could be cheese or could be potato.

The chest held clothes, the fabrics were rich silks and velvets, all piled together. The styles were either brief, or low slung or both -- the sort of styles that would leave the wearer mostly exposed to very exposed.

Crook-nose crawled onto the bed, pawing at the rumpled blankets. "Quick, quick and sweet and today will be all happy endings." He shrugged. "Sort of."

The other imps came to Ella with combs and brushes, fiddling with the bedding or picking up invisible bits of lint on the floor. They swirled about restlessly; without the more powerful demons to frighten them into silence and stillness they squabbled among each other, hissing curses and snapping their teeth. Crook-nose smacked any that got to close or too noisy, still clearly the top of this little heap of monsters.

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella smiled and patted Crook-nose on the head as she took the plate. She tossed him a nut from her plate. She was intent on keeping the imps in her pocket. She tossed some fruit to a couple more of them before she devoured the rest herself.

It was interesting. Time seemed to flow a bit differently here, or just seemed to pass more slowly… or more quickly. Either way, Ella never noticed she was hungry until the imps brought her food. She finished it off, kind of pushing the weird cheese/potato thing around before giving it over to Crook-nose.

She stood up and walked over to the clothes chest. She looked through it and sighed. Of course all of the clothes would be as substance less as what she had been wearing so far. It was a good thing that the temperature in the fortress was leaning towards hot rather than cold. Ella would have been constantly frozen.

She pulled out a dress, if you could call it that. It was silvery and soft. When she pulled it over her head, Ella just sighed again. Her back was entirely bare, the material clinging to just her ass, nothing above or below it. The front came up in a halter that was more like a collar; there was material coming down over each breast, but nothing in between them all the way until just below her navel. Ella looked at the chest, but shook her head. She doubted she would find anything that covered more, anyway.

Sitting down on the bed, again, Ella braided her hair without really thinking about it, then unbraided it again. It was a habit, formed in school when she was bored in class, that had stuck with her. She stared out of the jeweled dome at the landscape, waiting for someone to come and retrieve her.

 

[Allonsy]

Malaphor had plans for his new slave. He enjoyed her resistance but he wanted her submission and it was time to teach her so. The demon smoothed his fingers over the tool in his hand, bearing flesh-tearing teeth in anticipation as he shoved open the door to the bedchamber where he'd left Ella before.

The smooth crystal in his hand was simple enough, a slender rod, shallowly curved and meant to fit teasingly into a woman's most private places. Translucent crimson, a thread of gleaming bright red twisted through the translucent sex toy and Malaphor also had a slender gilded leather belt to hold it in place inside Ella. A few hours with this teasing inside her and Malaphor was sure she'd be eager for the satisfaction he could provide.

Malaphor also had plans beyond the slave he'd taken, though she was part of them. He needed to show her off, show that he owned her, prove that he could offer similar sweets to other demons, but with conditions. Control over access to the mortal world would make him more powerful, make him stronger and ensure his domain remained among the powers of his world.

Ella, he saw as he came in, was awake and dressed in a pleasingly inviting scrap of cloth. The imps scampered to the shadows as he came in. "A lovely sight, my pet," Malaphor rumbled, pleased. "You tempt me to spend my hours here but, sadly, my labors are never done."

The demon strode over, the light of morning picking out the breadth of his shoulders and the polished scales on his swaying tail. "I have a gift to torment you with," he told her, displaying the crystal dildo. "Undoubtedly you will tell me no."

The toy was pretty, if you were ignorant of its purpose, curved and sensuous in form. Meant to open Ella to more pleasures, when worn it would press against the hidden sensitive g-spot and a curved flange would nudge against her clit as she moved. Malaphor intended train Ella to respond to him with eagerness and hunger. He would stir her desires until she could no longer resist.

"Come here, lovely creature," the demon purred. "And we will begin the day."

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella jumped to her feet at Malaphor’s entrance. She realized that she had no idea how she was supposed to refer to him. By name seemed wrong, and Ella refused to call him sir. Instead of responding with words, she simply nodded in greeting.

Eyeing the smooth object in the demon’s hand, Ella took a small step backwards. She saw the belt, she knew the intent. “You want me to wear that,” she said with a shake of her head. She wanted no such intrusions on her daily activities. She wondered if he would lock the belt into place. A sort of reverse chastity belt, meant for penetration and teasing… “I don’t want to.”

Yet, as he stepped close, Ella did not move any further away. She even spread her legs a bit, slightly more wide than shoulder-width-apart. Her eyes found the wall over Malaphor’s shoulder as he set himself to place the toy within the delicate folds of her sex and worked to fasten the belt into place. Ella took in a sharp breath. The toy pressed at her g-spot, giving her the slight sensation that she needed to urinate, though she knew from experience that would pass quickly. It was immediately clear that this would, indeed, torment her.

She could not decide if she should tell him what she had learned. Before he had entered, she had decided to tell him what she knew. Now that he was in her presence, she was more intimidated. Ella came to the conclusion that she would tell him, but she was wait until she was positive that this course of action was most beneficial to her interests.

When he had finished, Ella looked up at Malaphor coolly. “So. What does beginning our day involve?” She shifted and bit her lip; the toy had nudged at her clitoris and sent a thrill through her. It was undoubtedly going to be a very long day.

 

[Allonsy]

The sight of Ella, spreading her legs with a pout on her lips was distracting but Malaphor managed to turn his attention back to his plans, instead of the immediacy of his lusts. She would be all the sweeter for delay.

He slid his wicked little torment into Ella's pussy, the delicate lips parting yielding to the glossy shaft and her thighs shivering briefly as the curled bulb at the base nudged her clit. He belted it all in place a golden lock at the base of her spine to keep her from releasing herself.

The scant dress she wore, silvery and cool in comparison to her warm skin, hid all but the edge of the belt along the back, though if she were to bend over very far, there would be nothing hidden.

Malaphor's smile, if it weren't for the heavy canines as savage as a wolf's was almost friendly. "There is more to my world than these rooms, sweet Ella, and it is time that you see it. And that you are seen."

As his. And Malaphor planned to test out whether or not this fragile seeming mortal was strong enough to succor his lands and make him, in turn, strong.

Malaphor led her out from the bedchamber and beyond, through the room with the decorative cage, and out into the hallways. As before, other creatures, some almost human others creeping along the walls, or the floor of disappearing into the shadows, watched as the two passed.

The demon prince took Ella outside, where the sun of Purgatory hung like a sullen ruby in the sky. The stones of the courtyard echoed with shrill cries, like wavering screams heard far away and waiting for Malaphor's pleasure were a handful of his warriors and great dark beasts, horselike only on first glance. They were pitch black, but for the red of their eyes and their manes and tails flowed like silken smoke. They had a grace and beauty, but savagery as well, in the wild anger in their gaze and the fanged teeth in their muzzles. Slender creatures, their forms hidden by indigo veils, stood waiting beside most of the beasts, reins wrapped in their hands. One mount stood alone, clad in golden trappings and it was there Malaphor turned.

"This is a wide world, Ella," the demon said, "and much of it is mine. I have duties to attend and you shall attend to me, in turn."

In other circumstances, the demon prince would spurn riding another beast -- he was able to take winged form himself and needed not assistance crossing the world. But Ella could do no such thing and he must pay attention to her limits. Some he would push her past, others must be respected.

So, he took the golden reins from an imp and mounted the steed he had chosen, it screamed, shaking its fine boned head and gnashed sharp teeth.

"Come, Ella," Malaphor held a hand to her, bringing her to his lap as the narrow gates to this courtyard were dragged open by slope shouldered ogres. His riders fell into position around him as they thundered out of the gates and into the world beyond.

Malaphor kept a warm, broad arm around Ella's waist and settled her so that the rocking motion of the ride would not put too much pressure on the toy within her. The heat of his body was a shelter as the creatures they rode broke into a gallop, clattering down narrow, twisted streets and past clustered buildings that had a worn and battered grandeur about them. The air was not fresh, but warm and metallic on the tongue, even past the narrow band of city that surrounded Malaphor's fortress.

In a rich world, creatures like Malaphor -- and all who served him -- would simply plunder what they wished but Purgatory had not been a rich world for many centuries. If the demon prince wished to keep what was his, he must pay in the only thing that mattered here. In life.

"I must pick and chose where to spend my strength," Malaphor rumbled as the beast they rode slowed to an eerily smooth canter. "Some lands I sacrifice, others I preserve. The water runs dry at a settlement I possess and this time, I will save them."

He glanced down at Ella, held close to him as the nightmare's mane swept across her bare thighs. Malaphor smoothed his hand across her skin as well, savoring the fineness of it, stroking her as they rode. "Someday, I will not. I want you to understand, my pet, I am cruel and I am evil but it is only under me that the creatures you see around you have any hope of survival."

Malaphor, like the other demon princes, ruled by strength and not just strength of arms or savagery. He was strong enough to spend his own life, spilling blood into the ground, into the bread that fed his people, into the very waters so that plants might grow and young be whelped. But every drop of blood he shed weakened him and eventually, he would grow too weak, too vulnerable and he would be torn asunder by his enemies. The demon prince rested all his hope of a different destiny on Ella's slim shoulders.

They did not travel far, Malaphor would not risk taking Ella into lands he did not have total control over. They passed lands that had signs of old civilizations, when the world was young and teemed with life; half collapsed buildings, pillars that marked boundaries to lands once valuable but now nothing but dry sand and scrub. It was in the shadows of a great plain, full of narrow pillars, that Malaphor and the guards slowed. Smaller buildings were tucked amid the ruins of a greater age and the creatures here were sharp featured, red skinned, with high pitched giggling voices and long clever fingers. There was also desperation in their narrow eyes. The veiled riders that warded Ella and Malaphor bulled forward with their mares, driving the villagers back with savage hooves and deadly teeth.

"Come and see," Malaphor said and dismounted with Ella at his side.
_____________

Long post! Sorry! Creating a brand new world with plot in it takes words!

 

[StarWhisperer]

Outside. The place that great bird had come from, the place Ella had seen only glimpses of. Outside seemed scary, but she knew that Malaphor would hold tightly to her, not willing to lose his new toy so swiftly. Ella knew she would be protected.

They walked into the courtyard of the fortress. Ella winced at the noises. There weren’t bird and bug sounds out here; it sounded like torment, carried in by the wind. Ella sighed a little bit when she looked up at the sky. It was as red and gray as before.

The look she gave the mounts was wary at best. She had always been afraid of horses, and these were so much more intimidating. She shied away, especially when the thing that Malaphor mounted protested and gnashed it’s teeth. Clearly, it did not want her on it’s back. Despite this, she was pulled up to sit before the demon, nestled into his lap.

Despite the way Malaphor held her, the slight jostling was enough to move the toy nestled between Ella’s legs. She grew more and more uncomfortable, filled with a heat that she was having a difficult time ignoring. She knew there would be a wet spot beneath her when she was removed from the beast. She could feel her stickiness dripping down the insides of her thighs. She bit her lip, forcing herself to stay silent. She prayed that the ride would not last for too long.

When Malaphor spoke, his voice rumbled in Ella’s chest, deep and rich. “How do you save them?” she asked curiously, her sweet voice wondering. She thought for a moment that she would not like her life in the hands of someone cruel and evil, then realized that it was. She shivered at the feel of his hand on her soft skin. Ella wondered then what he would do in the years to come when she grew older and older, and her hair went gray and white and her face got lines…. Would he kill her then? She thought he would.

She took the villagers in with nervous eyes. They looked hungry. Everyone here looked hungry when they saw Ella, she realized. She stuck close to Malaphor’s side when they dismounted, finding once more that she would rather be near him than unfamiliar creatures. At least she knew he wanted to keep her. Other creatures, like the Maw, would not be so kind to her.

((lol! You shouldn't apologize for long posts. Long posts mean quite an effort and it's greatly appreciated.))

 

[Allonsy]

Malaphor surveyed the crumbled remnants of a once lively settlement with restrained despair. Despair was an alien emotion to the demon, and it kindled frustration and anger -- feelings more comfortable.

“How do you save them?”

The demon's gaze was complicated as he looked down on Ella. "Come and see," he said, striding off with a hand keeping the slender mortal close to his side. For all the creatures here were loyal (and weak), desperation might drive them to foolish acts and he would not lose his pet over foolishness.

The red-skinned lesser demons clustered around Malaphor and Ella, drawn to Ella for her strangeness, the temptations of her body ill-hidden by her clothes, and by the life resonant and bright in her. The scent of her desire stirred other hungers in the creatures as well. None dared reach for her but it was clear they longed to. Around them, traces of grander could be seen, the simple huts were built of shattered marble and granite, some still covered with broken mosaic, others painted with scuffed images, gilt eyes glimmered from the faded figures. There had once been beauty here.

"Once these clever-handed creatures built all you see," Malaphor rumbled, tail lashing. They were coming to an open square; a low platform with a wide mouthed well reaching down into the ground. Plants clung to life among the stones of the platform, leaves a dusty ocher, a few bearing fat berries like drops of blood. Each plant with fruit on it had a sigil, a desperate sign of ownership, beside it. There was a faint, very faint, smell of dampness in the air. "Jewels and buildings, grand fortresses, roads, weapons ... "

Malaphor trailed off as they came to the edge of the well, staring down pensively into it. If it had once given water, it was clear that had been some time ago, the sides were bone dry. "Now they scrabble in the ground like maggots, the remnants of their kind gathered here, a paltry, starving handful."

The demon Prince's gaze shifted to the creatures that had gathered around them, a few dozen in all. "Useless," he snarled and they cringed to the ground, wailing apologies. His grip tightened on Ella's shoulder before easing, he glared at her, frustration thick in his deep voice. "Yet, if I let them die, there will be none of their kind left at all. What do you think, Ella? Should I let them fade away? Or should I spend my strength to succor them? Should I call back the water that has fled from this place?"

The demons around them swayed, low to the ground, their eyes fixed on Ella with desperation. The soft keen rustling from their throats was pleading, hungry, resentful and grieving all at once. Clearly seen, it was obvious that -- while they were slender by nature -- their bony shoulders and wrists were due to more to hunger than build. What was left of their lives was in Ella's hands and subject to her whim. Like all demons, they had no understanding of mercy.

Malaphor watched Ella too, wondering. For all the reading and the watching of the mortal world he had done, before breaching the barrier between them, his understanding of Ella was shallow at best.

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella stumbled obediently alongside Malaphor, working to keep up with his stride and jostling the instrument within her with each step. She bit back a frustrated groan. It was a bit difficult to focus her attention on what he was saying. She looked around, taking in the small village, in a shambles.

She leaned over, peering into the well. Ella wondered what the berries tasted like, but she had the idea that should she take one it would take the life of one of the gaunt creatures surrounding them. They needed it more than she, who was fed regularly in Malaphor’s fortress, did.

Malaphor’s hand tightened on her shoulder and Ella flinched before it relaxed. “What do you think, Ella? Should I let them fade away? Or should I spend my strength to succor them? Should I call back the water that has fled from this place?”

Ella looked at the lesser demons. She was conflicted. On the one hand, she was revolted by them, despised them for what they were… but. But they almost reminded her of larger versions of her imps and she imagined her only ‘friends,’ if you could call them that, here in this alien place. She imagined the imps, pests to the other residents of the fortress, but the ones who brought her comfort and helped her, she imagined them gone. She looked up at Malaphor.

“The death of a race would weaken your kingdom, I imagine,” she said slowly. “Power is important.” That wasn’t even close to the personal reasoning she had used to come to her conclusion, but she thought it might appeal more to Malaphor. “These creatures obviously have some… skills.” She looked at the sad mosaic huts, useless, sparkling rubble used to make shoddy shelters. “And if you can use me to bring back some of your power… and you let them die, you may regret the decision. I would let them live for now.”

 

[Allonsy]

Malaphor's gaze was heavy, watching the shifting expressions on Ella's face as he tried to understand her thoughts. His mouth tilted in approval at her reasoning. "They have their uses," he agreed. But it was her offer to be of use that caught his attention, that brought a sharp smile to the demon's face. Her consent was a small step, but a critical one.

"I would let them live for now.”

Hissing whispers spread among the red-skinned demons watching the disposion of their lives. The drew closer, crowding the platform.

"They they shall live," he said. "Because you bid it."

He drew a blade from his belt then, razor sharp and a clean, bright silver -- strange in a world so tainted. Malaphor held Ella close and the two of them crouched at the edge of the well. "Hold out your hand."

The blade was razor sharp, the kiss of it more like cold than pain.

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella hadn’t really meant ‘go ahead and cut open my hand to help them,’ but obviously that was Malaphor’s plan. She flinched, shutting her eyes tightly, tensing against his side. She was unable to watch as he cut open her palm.

It didn’t really hurt, per se, but the feeling was odd, unlike the normal feel of a knife slicing one’s hand. Ella opened her eyes to see the brilliant red forming a small puddle in her cupped palm. Her life, leaking out into her hand. Her life that could, here, give life to others.

She wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do with it, but she supposed she would be guided. In the meantime, the lesser demons were leaning towards her. She wondered if they could smell her blood. It was quite possible, even probable, she reasoned to herself. She wondered if they wanted to eat her. Probably. They did look so hungry…

The way they crowded her made her nervous. She stayed close to Malaphor’s side and shut her eyes again, against the hot feeling of blood rushing to her newly created wound and against the demons surrounding her.

 

[Allonsy]

THe life in Ella's blood simmered in Malaphor's vision and drew the others like moths to a flame. The demon prince bare his teeth over Ella's bend head, arm circling her possessively -- protectively.

He guided her to hold her hand over the empty well, and pressed his much larger palm to her bloody one. When the first drop of blood fell from their clasped hands, it fell with Ella's mortal power and Malaphor's intent.

Malaphor bound that intent to Ella's sacrifice with his own will and the old, arid language of creation. "Num-ache," he called, the words rolling in his broad chest and thrumming on the air. "Yna umna-che. Come," he said finally, "wake and come as I bid."

A low sound rose from the well, like a distant, deep bell rung once. A cold exhalation rose from the well, blowing over their skin, stirring Ella's dark hair and Malaphor's bronze colored mane. The noises rose too, the pitch higher, wilder, louder, and Malaphor laughed in triumph even as he leapt away from the well, Ella gathered tight to his side.

The water came back, not in a trickle but a flood, spraying from the well like a gyser and falling over the gathered demons like rain -- something that had not been seen for centuries. It was cold and clean, untainted by the dust and iron that seemed to permeate everything in Purgatory.

"Yes!" Malaphor roared, sweeping his arm out, water caught like diamonds on the tips of his horns before he shook them off. The water settled somewhat, draining into channels in the platform, running off to fill aquifers that had long been bone dry.

"This is the way of the world here," Malaphor smoothed a hand down Ella's bare arm before gripping her wounded hand and pressing his fingers to it to staunch the blood. "It is because of you the creatures here will survive."

The demons were grateful. They were also avaricious, watching Ella with bright, darting gazes -- imagining what it would be like to have her to themselves instead of at Malaphor's bidding. Malaphor kept Ella close though, as the demons showed their gratitude as Malaphor wished.

He had not been exaggerating as to the skills of the demons here, and they brought forth those things they had created; weapons and jewels, strange devices. Malaphor settled in grand state in one of the better constructed buildings, for life did not come for free.

It wasn't exciting, except for Malaphor and possibly for the creatures who were seeking his favor.

One of the demons approached Ella, sidling to her side, cradling a cup of the clean water. "For you," it said, with a toothy smile. "Since it is from you."

Though the demon was not an it. Thin arms and legs but a gently round belly, small breasts and a pointy face revealed that demons, monsters though they might be, lived and bred like humans. She offered the small cup again. The demon's yellow gaze flicked to Malaphor, crouched over something dangerous and shiny, with the maker extolling the device's virtues.

"They will be occupied so, for awhile," the demon said and there was a hint of wry amusement in her voice. "Sit," the demon pushed a wicker stool to Ella and crouched on the floor by her.

 

[StarWhisperer]

Ella’s heart pattered in her chest as they leaned beside the well. It hurt a little, having his hot flesh pressed against the wound, already heated, but she didn’t make a sound. The words he called out, reverberating in her core, made gooseflesh spread across her chest and down her arms and legs.

Malaphor let out a hearty laugh as a breath of air blew over them from the well, and then pulled her backwards away from it as a noise built. The gushing geyser was sudden. Ella’s hand flew to her throat. Everyone was in an uproar, the sounds of it rather joyous for having been made by a bunch of creatures from purgatory.

A fine misting covered Ella, drifting from the main body of the water. She stuck close to Malaphor’s side, shivering with her adrenalin. “It is because of you the creatures here will survive.” It was odd, to be the giver of life in a place of death. Malaphor pressed his hand to her wound, stemming the free-flow of blood. It occurred to Ella that he might lick it from his fingers later. That was a rather disturbing notion.

Ella took the cup of water from the demon… demoness? With a small nod. He hadn’t realized it, but she was parched. She took a sip, and then several great gulps, and the cup was empty. “Thank you.” She sat down on the offered stool and took a sharp breath. She had forgotten the sleek tool, now warm, within her, and it jostled her in a way that was a little too pleasant for her to ignore.

She glanced over at Malaphor, then back to the demon woman before her. “Do… do you have a name?” That was a stupid question. She shook her head at herself. “I’m Ella.” And that was stupid, too. She probably already knew that. Everyone probably did. “Thank you for the water. And the seat. My legs feel like jelly.” Was there jelly in purgatory? It was strange to talk to someone here who wasn’t Malaphor or an imp.

 

[Allonsy]

The she-demon had a sly, clever face and she glanced around the quiet corner they'd settled in before crouching on the dusty floor beside Ella. "Uphir," she murmured. In another time, she might have been a queen among her kind, but now she was just a survivor and little different from any of the others scrabbling in the dust.

She gestured at the cup, "Drink, and take back some of what is yours."

The rumble of Malaphor's deep voice rolled in the air, and the snarling answers of the creatures currying his favor. Uphir rolled her eyes a bit. "They will be playing with their toys for awhile."

The demon eyed Ella, smelling the heat in her, as well as the traces of blood and the Demon Prince's relentless possession. Her long fingered hand, claws well tended, strayed to the rise of her belly and the gesture was recognizable to women everywhere. The round belly was not starvation but new life; pregnancy.

"Do not be too afraid here," she leaned in closer to the mortal. "My kin are more interested in their shiny weapons than purer pleasures. It took me a decade to get a decent coupling out a fertile male." Her voice was scornful.

"We might only eat you," she went on. "Or raise the greenhouses for you and the Prince will never allow that."

"I am grateful," Uphir admitted, voice low, for gratitude was not a popular concept among demons. "The Prince would not have shed enough blood to keep my belly alive. My child will be born with a debt to you."

Uphir was grateful, but she wasn't grateful enough to take on a debt if she could avoid it. Better to pass it to her child.

 

[StarWhisperer]

“Uphir,” Ella repeated softly. “Thank you.” She looked down at the cup in her hands and frowned. Was it really hers, though? She wasn’t really her own, anymore… she belonged to Malaphor, a possession like the bobbles and trinkets the lesser demons were currently showering him with.

Ella smiled at Uphir’s eyeroll. Apparently, male demons were just like men. “Boys and their toys,” Ella murmured. She looked up from the floor at the feeling of being watched. The she-demon laid her hand on her stomach and Ella could not help but smile. Something about pregnancy, even that of a demon, which should have terrified her, brought a nurturing joy in her. Human instinct.

She blinked a few times at the offhanded way Uphir mentioned that they might only eat her. “Well, I… I hope I don’t get eaten. Though I suppose there would be worse ways to die than having someone live because of me…” Being in this place was changing her very swiftly, she thought once she had spoken those words.

There had not been much concern about being raped. At the very least, Ella had just assumed that Malaphor would not want to share that particular aspect of his favorite new toy. At least, not yet. Sitting with Uphir, Ella could not help but wonder what the birth of a demon would be like. Would it be painful? She looked at Uphir’s stomach and a terrible thought occurred to her. What if she were to become pregnant with Malaphor’s child? Was that possible? She would pray not, but she doubted God would hear her in purgatory.

Ella shook her head and waved her hand. “I know that things work that way here, debts of blood and sacrifice, but I don’t want it. I have very little free will here. I’m an object, a pawn in a game much, much bigger than myself. I made the choice I did to preserve my humanity for as long as I can. The choice I made is the difference between myself and Malaphor. To him, your survival is a business deal. To me, helping others is what keeps me human when I’m surrounded by the antithesis of humanity.”