Blazing Glory Ch. 02

"So this is where you grew up?" she asked looking to him. He nodded with a smile and she looked back. "It is a very simple place, but it definitely has a peaceful look to it. I can see why you care about your home so much."

They both started walking down the path towards the village as he remembered the past few days on the road with Kendra. At first, she had remained a little angry with him still for his actions but finally warmed back up to him by the first night. The whole trip had been been full of pleasant conversation albeit one-sided. Kendra had picked apart every bit of his mind and memory along to way. She really wanted to get to know him better which he felt was kind of odd. He figured the succubus would eventually tire and leave him sooner or later. By the time they reached Kyros, she knew almost everything about him from his childhood growing up to his intensive training in pursuit of his dream.

What bothered him was how uncomfortable she was in opening up to him when he asked her a few questions of his own. Kendra didn't seem to really want to talk about herself and would always answer with a question of her own to him. He wondered what she didn't want to discuss. Regardless, he wasn't going to press the issue. He didn't want to end up searching for his decapitated head either!

"Holy shit! Richard you lucky son of a bitch!" the yell carried over them. Startled out of his thoughts, Blaze grinned broadly and waved to his three childhood friends jogging over to meet them on the outskirts of town. He saw Joren, a tall lanky guy with a shock of bright red hair on his head and bright blue eyes amid all the freckles. Then there was the wall of muscle with dark sun-burned skin and black hair was right next to Joren. Holt was the apprentice of the blacksmith in Kyros and looked the part well enough. Panting right behind them lastly was good ol' Gram. Gram was a pudgy fellow but full of good nature and humor. The heavy friend had dark brown hair and a big warm smile like a lot of the village people did.

"Those are the friends you told me about?" Kendra asked. She stood there wearing an amused expression with one hand resting on her cocked hip.

"Yeah. That's them all right," Blaze said looking back to his pals having almost reached them. He had told Kendra all about how they each were considered weird by the other "normal" children. Joren was always picked on for his very rare red hair while Gram for being overweight. Holt was picked on out of fear because of his large size and well-built body. Blaze had been for being the smallest kid for his age in the entire village. All of them together became best of friends and looked out for each other. He remembers well enough Holt beating the living snot out of a gang of bullies striking him and Gram with sticks.

All three skidded to a halt in front of both of them with big grins. Blaze introduced all three of them to Kendra, but couldn't help but notice all three of them gawking at the woman like they'd never seen the opposite sex before. More specifically, how their eyes seemed glued to Kendra's large breasts and ample cleavage. He wasn't the only one to notice this either. A knowing smirk slowly grew on the demon's gorgeous face and she seemed to arch her back a little bit more. Her breasts strained all the more against her leather vest. It was such a sight to behold, even Blaze lost track of what he was saying and simply stared. Damn Kendra had beautiful browned tits!

Shaking himself out of the drooling daze, he looked back to his friends. "And this guys, is Kendra. I met her in Aidan along my journey."

Joren snapped out of his own lust-filled dreams to look to him. "You met her in Aidan? Does she have a sister? Dear gods I hope so."

Kendra chuckled softly and shook her head. "While I do have plenty of sisters, none reside in Aidan, Joren. Your good friend here rescued me from a bunch of thugs wanting to rape me just outside the city walls."

These words caused his friends to look to him with a proud approval that their friend had done something great. Blaze couldn't help but scratch the back of head and grin admittedly her words were true. Of course, he was that way until she spoke again.

"And I made sure to 'thank' my hero in the best way a lady could," she hummed knowingly. His jaw simply dropped as all three looked to him in shock and disbelief.

Holt looked back and forth between the two of them before roaring in laughter, "Richard! You scored with this vixen? Get the hell out of here! And I'm the king of the Sonel Sea with a mermaid as my wife!"

Joren and Gram laughed with Holt, obviously thinking this was some joke Blaze was pulling on them. Kendra simply watched the guys laugh with a knowing smirk before a wicked look flashed in those emerald eyes. She grabbed the still gaping warrior by his shirt and pulled him in to plant a hot wet kiss right on him. The laughter cut off almost immediately as his friends took their turn to gawk in disbelief at the sight of the vanilla-haired beauty kissing their pal wantonly right before them. Blaze overcame his shock and returned the lusty kiss, both their tongues caressing each other visibly to their audience. Kendra moaned into the kiss and pressed her body up against his, her breasts scrunched into his chest and pushed upwards enticingly with more visible cleavage between them.

When she eventually pulled away from him in breaking the kiss, all Blaze could do was sway there in a daze. What a kiss! He finally came to his senses to look see Kendra smiling sensually away from him. His gaze followed hers to see all three men gawking at them with their jaws hanging open in shock. Kendra's arm slipped in around his waist as she smiled to him knowingly.

Clearing his throat, he looked to the village behind his friends. "Well it was really good seeing you guys again. I'll try to find you again soon so I can tell you some of the details of my trip." They simply nodded, still speechless as, arm-in-arm, he and a pleased demoness walked past them into Kyros. He couldn't help but notice the envious looks his friends had, but also the looks of being happy that he'd found a real special woman. If they only knew how special!

Word spread like wildfire through the rest of the fishing village of his return and the radiant woman with him now. People he knew growing up now gazed at the both of them wonderingly. Most of the older men he respected simply smiled and gave him their nods of approval in finding such a fine woman. All the rest simply stared at Kendra drooling and undressing her with their eyes. The reactions from the women greatly varied. From warm, motherly approval of Kendra to fuming hatred that their girlhood crush was now taken. Most of the reactions were frustration from young women with tans yelling out for Kendra to give up her secret on tanning. Little did they know, her toasted-almond brown skin was hers naturally.

All the while he took this in with embarrassment, the succubus simply smiled all the more as her amusement grew. She was enjoying this way too much! He didn't even want to begin to try to understand why. They were finally at the outskirts of the other side of the village and walking up the path to his home. The small house was the same as the day he left it and sure was a beautiful sight to behold again. They had barely reached the front door when it opened and Ina rushed out. His mother seized him in her arms in a mother's tearful embrace.

"Richard! You're home! I was so worried about you!" Ina cried into his shoulder as she hugged him crushingly.

"M-mom..... I..... can't.......... breathe," wheezed out Blaze as his face began to turn red, then blue as he squirmed in her iron embrace.

Kendra covered her mouth with her hand to keep from losing it. Obviously, it was quite a struggle for her to keep her laughter subdued. He shot her a glare before Ina finally released her son. Blaze bent over and gasped for breath. Oh sweet delicious air! With a newfound appreciation for the air about him, the young warrior looked up and lost his breath again. His mother and Kendra were staring at each other. Kendra was smirking confidently as always while his Ina gazed coolly at the succubus with a mother's critical judgment.

After an ageless moment of silence, Kendra broke it with a small respectful nod of her head, "I am Kendra Tansanee. Your son has told me a lot about you. You've raised a fine young man."

Ina's temperament changed like a sea storm blowing quickly away inland as she now beamed proudly, "I know. You must be his girlfriend. I could tell the way you two walked together like a sweet young couple. Just like his father and I did so many years ago. Please, please! Come on in! It's dreadfully hot out here."

Kendra smiled in return and followed her inside with Blaze in tow rubbing his sore ribs.

"Mom, we need to get you and everyone else in Kyros away from here," he said following them into the kitchen. "There is a plague spreading up the coast from town to town towards here."

Ina sat down at the table as they did, no longer beaming with happiness. "I already know about it, Richard. All the people in this town know about it too. You haven't forgotten how quickly gossip and rumors spread from village to village have you? No doubt the very rumor is what brought you back right?"

"Yes. An old man told me in Aidan about it. If everyone knows, then why haven't I seen any preparations for leaving the village?"

She smiled to her son. "We're not about to give up our very livelihoods that easily. We've dealt with sicknesses striking Kyros before in the past. There was an outbreak of a deadly flu a few years before you were born in fact. The village has prepared itself and is ready with provisions in case of a quarantine being announced."

Blaze blinked as he considered what she said before sighing, "I guess you're right. At least everyone is prepared. Still, I would feel better if you weren't around here and in danger mom."

"You're so sweet, Richard, but don't worry. I'll be fine," she said and smiled comfortingly. "You two should get some rest and sleep. It's a long trip from Aidan. We can talk more in the morning."

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In his dimly moonlit room, Blaze stared silently up at the ceiling once again. He couldn't rest as his thoughts ran chaotically through his mind. Wondering if Kyros was next on Death's agenda, he worried constantly. He knew every single person here and any single death would hurt deeply. The warmth of Kendra's body pressed against his side was comforting. She lay cuddled up against him, arm draped over him possessively as usual.

When he wasn't thinking about Kyros, his thoughts most often turned to the succubus. Why was she so silent about her past? Why the mysterious sense she held about her like a shrouded cape warding off the sun. Most often, he wondered why she was even still here. From his understanding, her race normally always dwelt in the Abyss. They only entered this realm to cause mischief for one. The other reason he heard was to become pregnant to increase the numbers of their race. Other than that, they preferred ruling over sub-demons and lower fiends in the Abyss.

So why does Kendra choose to remain here for so long? If she wanted to become pregnant, she could have done so already long before she met him. He sighed softly as he wondered about her reasons. Her body stirred slightly against him before brilliant green eyes opened up to look at him. The moonlight made her eyes reflect the light and glow breathtakingly.

"You're not asleep, Richard. What's wrong?" She asked softly. She raised her head slightly to look down at him sternly, "And if you say I'm snoring I'll kick your ass!"

Blaze couldn't help but chuckle as he shook his head. "Well, it's not that. But I was thinking about you. You're just so mysterious to me. There is so little I know about you and you won't open up to me. I was just wondering why you choose to stay here. I thought your race's preferred home is the wastelands of the Abyss."

Her gaze turned to look out the window for a few moments as she thought his words over. After some silent seconds, she lay back down beside him and rested her head on his left shoulder. "My people don't care much for me. So I was outcast from their presence and the Abyss."

"How could that be? Kendra, you're the only demon I've ever met but I bet none of them come close to being as beautiful as you. And you just seem so powerful. I feel I haven't even seen you scratch the surface of your strength. How could they do that to you? Why?"

When she spoke, the profound sadness catching her voice caught him off guard. "I dared.... to care," she said softly.

He remained silent and didn't push any further. For that, Kendra was grateful. They both drifted off to sleep together, her arm more tightly wrapped about him now.

*******************

The young warrior woke up in the morning to the familiar sounds of movement in the kitchen and the sizzling of breakfast. His eyes bolted open in eagerness with the thought of eating his mother's home cooked breakfast. No one could cook like she could! Something didn't feel right though. His chest felt lighter than usual. Turning his head to look beside him, he saw Kendra wasn't there with her arm across him. Getting out of bed to put his clothes on, he heard two familiar voices speaking in the kitchen. Finally having laced up his boots, he stepped out of his room and into the kitchen area.

"I'm curious, Ina. How far north has this wave of death spread according to the rumors?" Kendra said, leaning back against the doorframe. She winked to him as he entered, "Morning stud!"

His mother smiled to him warmly, "Good morning, Richard! I'm sorry if we woke you. Kendra and I were just talking and getting to know each other. I'll have breakfast ready in a moment dear."

He nodded as he ran his fingers through his hair and leaned against the wall. His mother remained oddly silent as if she hadn't heard Kendra's question. She set the table and served them the best breakfast he'd had in the longest time. But his mother still remained silent at the table during the meal until they had finished.

"It's no longer rumor," Ina said with a frown as she looked down, "Everybody just heard yesterday that Kato, not far south of here, was just recently hit by this epidemic. No one knows what is spreading it. Many are killing any seagulls and rats that get close to the village. We have become even wary of tradesmen coming through to buy our fish."

"All right then. I am curious about this now. I think I will go for a little look," the demoness said as she stood from the table.

"You can't go there! For Stavros's sake Kendra, you'll come down with it and die!" a dismayed Ina said with wide eyes.

Kendra looked back over her shoulder to Ina with a small smile, "Thank you for your concern, but I'll be fine. Diseases don't affect immortals like me."

The wings of the succubus appeared and spread out behind her lower back to prove her point. Blaze saw his mother gasp in horror as the realization of what Kendra was hit her. He reached out to grab her hand firmly in an assuring manner as he looked to his mother.

"Mom. don't worry. Kendra is a succubus to be sure, but she isn't evil...... At least, not entirely I should hope."

Kendra glanced sideways to him with a knowing smirk, "You should hope..." The sexy demon gave him a wink.

Always the tease, he thought with an audible sigh. "Kendra. At least wait until you get to the out of sight of Kyros before you fly off, will you?"

She simply chuckled and nodded, quite obvious that was what she had been planning to do anyways. Hips swaying oh so tantalizingly, she walked out of the kitchen. Blaze looked back to his mother who was now looking at him in shock. He laughed in embarrassment as he tried to find the words to explain to his mother how this situation came about but couldn't. Minutes passed by long after Kendra had left and he was still trying to find the best way to explain this, but he never had the chance.

In the uncomfortable silence, they both blinked as they thought they heard something. Exchanging confused glances, what they heard grew louder until they heard without a doubt what it was.

Somewhere, someone was singing a song......

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Kendra relished the feeling of the cool sea air flowing beneath her wings as she glided southward. The strong sea breeze along the coast helped provide her abundant lift so she didn't have to tire herself flapping them. She'd been flying only for a short time from Kyros before she could already make out another village in the distance. She had enjoyed the attention in Kyros as well as the company of Blaze's mother. Ina was a strong, kind woman. Kendra hadn't really cared too much about what happened to Kyros. Her Blaze was what only mattered to her.

But now that she had seen the friendly people in Kyros, Blaze's friends, and Ina, she felt different now and didn't want them to die either. Time to find out what the heck was going on in this area. She was already almost above the village of Kato. Looking down, she faltered in her flight in her shock. The dead were everywhere. They lay all about in the streets with no sign of life. But what really stunned her was that they were all naked. Not a stitch of clothing on any of them! Kendra steadied herself in her flight again and glided down towards the odd grisly sight.

What kind of plague or sickness would cause this? She had never heard or seen the like in the centuries she'd been alive. The dust wafted over the naked humans as she landed softly in the street. Walking slowly from body to body, she kneeled down to inspect many of the corpses surrounding her. Kendra was baffled. There was no sign of any kind of sickness. No boils, blisters, rotted skin, or any other disgusting evidence of a deadly sickness. All the bodies looked to be in good health. Even their eyes were clear with no narrowing of the pupils. It's like their hearts simply stopped. But why was everyone naked?

Rising to stand, the succubus hid her wings as she walked to the nearest building. Stepping inside, Kendra saw she was inside the local tavern. The sight was the same as outside. Naked bodies lay dead all about on the floor and tables. Shaking her head, she stepped outside. Hours passed as she walked through the streets and buildings. Everything was the same throughout the village. That was until she reached the beach. Bodies starting to bloat under the hot day sun lay about on the beach. A few more were floating in the shallow waters.

But these were different than the bodies she'd seen before. All the bodies in the village were men and women of young to middle age. These bodies were all men and every one of them were mutilated in various ways. Some bodies were missing their limbs and heads while others looked to have been skewered right through by something. The waves and beach were red with the blood of so many men. This was just getting more and more bizarre. Kato reeked of death and she was wanted to get back to Blaze more than ever now.

Kendra was just about ready to unfold her wings when some movement in the corner of her eye grabbed her attention. She looked to see a large group of humans making their way towards her along the beach. There looked to be just under a hundred of them and as they came closer, she saw the group was comprised of children and elderly humans. The group began to disperse some with most heading into the village while a few elderly women headed their way towards her.

"Who are you and why are you here in our village?" Demanded the old woman woman who looked to be the one in charge. The two old men with long knives stood beside her protectively with glares daring her to try to do anything.