Lilliths Tails 05: Birth of Lillith

"Temple? What god-dammed temple Anjou?" Eve demanded her face was white with worry and her glasses were askew as she grabbed the butler by his immaculate lapels.

"Miss please there is no need to excite yourself” he explained, “the temple is in the north wing, the master set it aside for his staff to fulfil their religious practices while in his employ." Anjou actually smiled politely at the mention of the temple a rare show of emotion for the native butler.

"If you would just follow me I will take you there immediately." Anjou turned and started down the corridor towards the north wing, soon his twists and turns took them down progressively plainer and less grand hallways into the servant’s quarters and eventually to a simple unadorned wooden door. Opening it revealed a less than impressive storage cupboard complete with clothes hooks mop and bucket. Anjou reached inside and pulled one of the hooks and the whole cupboard slid silently to one side revealing a dark stone spiral stairway.

"The master does so enjoy such little eccentricities, do forgive his sense of humour" he commented.

"I'm worried about more important things than his James bloody bond envy Anjou." She snapped starting down into the shadows with Anjou following closely behind.

The smooth stone walls slowly gave way to more and more intricate carvings of gigantic serpent coils. The whole place gave Eve the impression of descending into some giant living monster. The darkness brightened around the spiral stairway the soft glow of firelight making the walls seem to move as she descended deeper into the bedrock of the island. She passed blackened metal sconces holding burning torches and the coiling walls became more and more chaotic with the carvings crossing over and under each other the firelight making them seem to writhe and twist in the shadows. Eve came to the end of the stair a huge door of heavy oak and thick bronze that was covered by the image of a thousand intertwined snakes swallowing each other's tails.

"This is one of the many entrances to the temple Miss” Anjou explained, “the whole island is honeycombed with caves and tunnels which interconnect. We used to worship in them before our home was taken away to let rich men design weapons of war, master Black has given us the resources to build all you see on the condition we serve him without question."

"Was it worth it Anjou?” she asked, “when you sell your soul to the likes of him is it really worth what he gives in return.”

If the corridor had been dedicated to snakes the cavernous room beyond the door made it pale into insignificance. Every inch of rock seemed to have been carved into the shape of enormous coils. The stalactites descending from the darkness of the hidden roof were similarly carved, even the floor covered in soft white sand was often broken by the scaled bulk of a stone snake erupting from the sand before sinking back into the floor. All in all, it looked like some giant living creature but the carvings were nothing compared to the huge figure that dominated the rooms centre. Behind two burning braziers, an immense statue towered over the room, from the waist up her body appeared to be an incredibly beautiful woman with her arms outstretched towards Eve but her naked human hips gave way to serpent scales and her thighs melded together into a massive serpents body that disappeared into the sand-covered floor.

"Ah Evelyn I was wondering when you would come looking for me,” Eddie crooned stepping out from behind the statue, “I hope you like the look of our temple it's truly an amazing piece of work."

"The final phase Eddie” Eve demanded quietly, “do I even need to ask why Lisa is sick this morning."

"Always the smart one my dear, a woman can turn down my offer only so many times I'm afraid dear Lisa's mouth got the better of her!" Eddie replied sneering at Eve with a self-satisfied little grin as he calmly destroyed her life.
“Had you accepted my offer of dinner it might well have been you feeling a little under the weather this morning” he explained, “You can either get to work or watch your friend die for nothing.”

"Why Eddie? Why did you do it to her, she turned you down so you kill her are you really that petty?" Eve demanded her voice echoing around the chamber.

"Because I can my dear, what you seem to forget is I'm rich I can do what I want, to who I want and you had best remember it if you want to continue to work for me,” he spat back angrily, “now you have just lost a talented Biochemist but you have just gained an excellent test subject, so I suggest you start working on keeping her alive and less on irritating your employer."

"You can't get away with doing things like this Eddie,” Eve said quietly.

"I can get away with anything I want my dear,” he replied, “if you irritate me further I will prove the point, its been a long time since Anjou's people have had a human sacrifice, after all, they could well do with a bonus."

"Now I suggest you go treat your patient, my dear, I think your research team will have some questions for you on her. I suggest you make it known that she volunteered willingly, there are enough Vore fans in the team to make her sacrifice appear reasonable without too much trouble." Eddies leering smile made Eve feel sick and she fled without another word pushing past the silent Anjou on her way out of the room.

"Still think selling your soul to the devil was a good idea Anjou!" she asked as she passed him not waiting for a reply.

Eve found Lisa in bed in her untidy quarters, her lover's face was pale and her bed was drenched with sweat.

"I thought you would never come visit baby,” her lover said trying to smile, “boy I feel like hell." Lisa's voice was hoarse her usually melodic speech cracked and harsh.

"I'm here love I just had to go deal with something." Replied as she sat on the bed and cradled her lover in her arms hugging her to her tightly as if she never intended on letting go.

"I take it Eddie confirmed he gave me the damned virus then?" Lisa asked quietly.

Eve released Lisa and just stared at her a moment in silence. "You know?"

"It was the wine I imagine” Lisa replied, “I might be sick but I'm not stupid, fever, cramps, severe headache and nausea the same night that bastard tells us he wants to have a human subject trial, I know the symptoms just as well as you." Lisa had tears in her eyes but she still forced a smile.

"If it's any consolation I won’t feel anything,” she said hugging Eve tightly, “in a few hours I’ll slip into a coma and unless we go continue the process body will tear itself apart."

"There's got to be a way to reverse the process,” Eve said knowing already that there wasn’t time to look, “there must be something we can do."

Crying she held onto Lisa's hand with a death grip her whole body was shaking and she felt as if her world had been torn apart.

"You know there isn't time to come up with a cure” Lisa replied quietly, “Even if that bastard would allow you to try which he won’t, the process would be complete long before you had a workable treatment and by then there wouldn’t be enough of my original genetics left to work with.”

"I'll kill him!” Eve said her sorrow turning to rage “I swear it he will pay for this."

"Eve you need to pay attention,” Lisa replied sadly, “you can’t do anything to that bastard he's too powerful to hurt within the law and if you really did kill him do you think his people would let you live, let alone leave the island." Lisa pulled Eve into another hug her strength failing she fell back to the bed pulling her lover down with her.

"I will find a way” Eve promised, “I swear Lisa he won't get away with turning you into a monster."

"Eve as much as you will find this hard to believe I always did have a thing for snakes” Lisa whispered with the ghost of a smile, “Okay turning into one was never one of my ambitions but as I won’t remember much about being me I won’t know any different. Listen to me baby what can you hope to do against Eddie Black he's too powerful the only reason he tolerated us was his love of damned snakes and now I'm becoming his ideal pet that tolerance is at an end." Lisa released Eve from her embrace and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I haven't got much time left baby I can feel myself slipping away I'm going to lose consciousness soon, just promise me you won’t do anything foolish," she said her voice starting to slur a little.

Lisa stared up into her lover's face seeing the pain in her eyes. Eve was everything to her, her reason for living and being brave and strong right now was the only way she could keep Eve safe from Eddie. Even though all she wanted to do was scream and fall apart Lisa forced herself to keep it together.

"Never forget I love you, Eve,” Lisa said struggling to get the words out, “I always will"

"I promise Lisa, I love you baby" Eve replied.

She watched Lisa smile and slowly close her eyes and a few moments later her body relaxed as she slipped out of consciousness only then did Eve break down and hug Lisa to her sobbing uncontrollably. When Eve gathered herself together she gave Lisa one last loving kiss and smoothed the stains of her tears from her face before she left the room.

Eve sat on the floor of the darkened laboratory lit only by the soft green glow of the computer screens monitoring the life-signs of the inhabitant of the tank that dominated the room. In her hands she held the statue from Lisa's office the heavy wooden carving on her lap seemed to leer at her in the green light.

Fooling the staff had been easy, as Eddie had said enough of them were Vore fans to allow her to pass off Lisa's transformation as willing. Even as she said the words she hated herself for speaking them, making Lisa sound like some snake fanatic like Eddie.

The team had recovered Lisa from her bedroom and prepared her for her new environment, wires were attached to monitor her heart and brainwave activity. The engineered womb tank was flooded with a saline solution filled with the nutrients her change would require and buoyant enough to keep her body suspended. Eve had watched her heart torn as the temporary breathing apparatus was fitted to her lover's mouth and nose and her body slowly lowered into the tank. The womb did its job quickly, for the second time in her life Lisa was connected to an umbilical cord to sustain her, and the breathing tubes were removed.

Now her lover was gone her body might lie suspended in the soup of nutrients and minerals of the tank but everything that made her the woman she loved was changing adapting to her new purpose in life. Even if Eve could return Lisa from her transformation the changes already begun in her mind would have wiped out vast sections of her memory. Lisa was gone all that remained was Lillith.

"I thought you would be here." Anjou stood in the doorway a bottle in one hand, his immaculate suit was untidy his shirt undone to the waist and his hair was a mess. It looked like he had been drinking for quite awhile.

"Life working for your employer not as rosy as you thought Anjou?" Eve asked as she watched the native man stagger across the room and collapse down beside her.

"I have been a follower of the old way for my entire life” The normally taciturn butler explained drunkenly “when master Black he come to our reservation and he offers us our home back we say too good to be true." Anjou's normally impeccable English accent had slipped returning to the thicker native speech of the other members of Eddy's household.

"He was a younger man then, he sends me all the way to England to go to school, to learn to be a butler and to learn how best to serve him. I come back and he tells me I'm the only man he let see his whole plan. He wants to bring back the old ways he shows me his collection of snakes and he tells me he too believes serpents are the children of the gods." Anjou's voice was slurred slightly Eve doubted he had ever been this drunk before.

"He tells me we all do as he says he bring back the Gods to the island, we do what he tell us and he will give us de wealth to build a temple to the gods like we never dreamed, but never did he say he would do this" Anjou's continued his eyes filling with tears “I see things not many see, always I watch and say nothing. I see your love for each other. Master Black, he is not good at understanding women he thinks they only interested in money he does not see it for most of the women he wants to give in to get his money or his power." Anjou turned to look at Eve and she could see he was distraught.

"My people in the old days sometimes they would make a sacrifice to the gods in times of trouble but always, always it was willing. Your lady she was not willing and she was tricked into this, I fear the gods will abandon us for this. I did not know what he had done until I heard him in the temple I did not know."

"It’s all right Anjou,” Eve said quietly her anger cooling towards the sad little man, “You couldn’t have stopped him I know that now there is nothing we can do now." Eve's voice was quiet and despondent

"Can you not turn her back?" he asked.

"Even if Eddie would let me try to change her back I cannot return her to the person she was, her memories will be all but gone, a second change might well leave her a vegetable" she explained sadly.

"So she cannot be a Woman but could you make her something else?" Anjou asked his question making Eve frown.

"I can alter the virus subtly we will have to, to fine tune her transformation but why do you ask?" Anjou took the statue from Eve and turned it to face her.

"This is Serass the Serpent Queen she is the most important goddess to my people, she is human and snake. Mr Black, he calls her a Naga it’s his greatest fantasy that’s why he allow us to build her temple I think, he loves snakes but he love this image beyond all others, I know he will not let you change her back but could you not return some of her to human like this and keep her mind intact? Master Black, he would do anything for such a woman I think this he would allow you to try."

Eve just stared at Anjou a moment.

"I don’t think you understand genetics Anjou” she explained, “it’s too late to save her or change her that much without risking making her a vegetable but you just gave me an idea." For the first time since she held Lisa in her arms that morning, Eve smiled, but her smile was anything but warm.

Six months later…

Eve sat across from Eddy at his desk he sat reading through her report on the final genetic changes to Lisa she had inserted that morning.

"So let me get this straight,” he said looking up from the report, “you are telling me that you have redesigned Lillith not to kill her prey but to alter them into Naga?" Eddy looked up from the huge pile of research documents covering his desk.

"Designed to be totally submissive Eddie,” she replied firmly, “ but it will only work on the first two women swallowed after she reaches maturity, Lillith's system isn't capable of taking anymore all others will simply get digested in the normal way I trust you are not displeased."

"No quite the opposite it seems all the time you have been spending talking with my butler about his gods has paid off well." Eddie smiled and settled back in his chair "I'm informed I cannot undo it even if I wanted to Lillith has just entered her final stage of development."

Eve looked coldly across the desk at her employer.

"It will take time for her to reach full maturity but when she does her scales will darken to metallic black indicating that she is ready to create her children."

"For someone who was so opposed to human trials, I'm just surprised you would do this” Eddie remarked watching her face carefully.

"What can I say, Eddy, if you can’t beat them join them” Eve replied, “besides the virus I inserted into Lillith was my creation alone which means you would be extremely unwise to harm me in case it goes wrong." Eve allowed herself the ghost of a smile. "It would be a great shame if you had me disappear and something unexpected were to happen to Lillith. I've given you your dream now all I ask is the money I was promised and my life to lead as I see fit."

Eddy leaned back and clapped slowly.

"Oh my dear I do believe I underestimated you, the money is already being transferred to your accounts in Switzerland and your life is yours to live as you see fit. All I ask is you change your name and disappear from sight on your own. Lillith will be ready to be removed from the tank in a few more days would you care to stay and observe?"

Eve stood up and shook her head.

"I have no wish to see the birth, the rest of the team will be more than capable of looking after her. In a few weeks, they will be leaving too and I will be very happy if I live to never see any of you again."

Eddy sighed and stood up behind his desk.

"It was a pleasure to know you, my dear,” he said smirking, “Anjou will show you to the helicopter pad. You are generations ahead of your time it will be a sad blow to my profit margin to lose someone of your calibre."

"Have fun with Lillith Eddy,” Eve replied, “I'm sure she will be more than you have dreamed"

With that last cutting remark Eve left the room, Anjou was waiting outside and walked with her to the waiting helicopter he held open the door to let her clamber inside.

"I will miss you, Miss Evelyn," the butler said respectfully as he prepared to close the door.

"We will meet again Anjou you can be sure of it”, she replied, “and when we do Eddy will regret what he has done I promise you that."

Anjou shut the door and bowed to Eve as the engines started up, in the brief moment before the noise and wind drove him back he caught sight of her face.

She was smiling…