Page 14 of The Demon's Due
A throat clearing broke the spell. Síofra backed up as she became aware of incredulous stares directed at them. Her cheeks burned with embarrassment while her body ached and her pussy clenched around nothing. She had lost all awareness of where they were.
She slowly backed up before turning and walking away, every step feeling weighed down.
But she knew she had to escape.
Chapter 9
Síofra skipped a class and hid in the large greenhouse adjoining the botany department. It was deserted at this time, the only occupants a couple of elves making out behind the lemon tree. They were oblivious to her presence and even if they noticed her, she didn’t rate any higher than the furniture or the trees. She distractedly looked out at the mountains in the distance before closing her eyes. Her phone was switched off. Morgan had been blowing it up and she just needed a moment to think. Her body felt …not hers. And then, there were those visions.Was she losing her mind?
She needed help…but who could she ask?
The sun was just a sliver on the horizon when she returned to her room alone, her hand trembling as she fit the key into the lock. The door creaked open-
Large rough hands grabbed her just moments from safety. The sparks that erupted all over every point of contact and the smell of all things warm and safe immediately told her it was Morgan. One hand covered her mouth as she was lifted off the ground likeshe weighed nothing. She struggled as she was yanked into the derelict corner room, the door slamming shut with a boom.
Síofra twisted around, panic flaring in the pit of her stomach, but the moment her gaze met his, the scream died on her lips.
His eyes weren’t Morgan’s anymore.
They shimmered pale gold, sunset spreading across glass, pupils dilating until they devoured the color. His mouth moved, lips twisting as if something else was forcing its way through.
“-Síofra,” the sound dragged, layered with voices that were not his own. “Beautiful. Fragile.Mine.”
Morgan’s jaw locked, his veins standing out in his neck as if locked in an internal struggle she wasn't privy to. His normal voice ripped through as if strangled.
“Get out of my head! She’s not-she’s not yours!”
Then the other voice returned, smoother now, deliberate and terrible in its depth. “Silence, vessel. You breathe because I allow it. She will look at me. Not you.”
Síofra pressed back against the wall, her pulse pounding hard as terror and confusion warred in her chest.
And then Morgan seemed to stiffen, his torso arching unnaturally. Smoke seared the air as a black shape pressed forward from inside him. It was not entirely separate-its jagged form stretched out of Morgan’s chest like fire made flesh.
The creature’s dark visage was too sharp to ever be handsome, all angles and shadow, horns spiraled with embers glowing along their ridges. His golden eyes burned as if they could see through skin to bone and they were focused on her. The air filled with the scorched tang of woodsmoke and ash.Black lips pulled apart in a macabre smile displaying the sharp teeth of a predator.
“Yes, my pretty little morsel, let me introduce myself.” Ashmedai said, his voice resonant now, clearer. “I am Ashmedai, Lord of Demons. This boy was ordained to be my host evenbefore he was born-marked with runes by my minion while in the womb. He is but a vessel for my return.” His clawed hand pressed into Morgan’s skin as if to prove ownership. “Through him, I will gather my artefacts, and walk again in the Undercroft as its king.Only then ,can I give you your due as my queen.”
Morgan gritted his teeth, fighting for words. “You are terrifying and confusing her, grandpa. Just let me do the talking. And what happened to ‘I give you my word that I will stay concealed’?”
The demon seemed to consider that and both of their surprise,began to subside back into Morgan’s body.
Morgan sighed and turned to Síofra again.
Morgan dragged a hand through his hair, fingers scraping his stubble, eyes darting as if the walls themselves were closing in.
“Síofra-just… just listen, yeah? I’m not-I’m not trying to hurt you.I would never hurt you.” His words stumbled out, broken, rushed. “There’s this…this thing, this creature, he’s in me. Won’t leave. Says he’s the bloody king of demons, trapped by some human king centuries ago.”
“That pathetic king Sol” supplied the creature helpfully.
“ And I swear, yesterday’s conjuring-”,Morgan continued as if he didnt hear him.He shook his head hard, breath ragged.“It wasn’t random. It was set up. For you and me.”
His voice cracked, frustration lacing every syllable. He shoved both hands back through his hair, pacing. “He-he won’t shut up, won’t leave me alone unless I help him. Says he needs these… artefacts. That’s the only way he gets back to the Undercroft. And gods, he’s already broken his word about ten times in the last bloody hour, so I don’t even know if-f I can trust him.”
His chest rose and fell too fast,pale blue eyes desperate as he looked at her.
Síofra carefully backed up, still trying to get her head around what he was trying to tell her.
A shadow peeled itself away from him for long minutes before receding back into him with a hiss of smoke. The room sagged into silence, though the smell of charred wood lingered.
