The Pact Ch. 07

"What's going on?" Lisa whispers to a nearby merchant.

"The army of the Necromancer is coming," he says as he hastily packs up his goods. "Time for me to leave!"

Beside her, she hears Steve curse. "I have to go," he says.

"Where?" she asks.

"She must be stopped. A siege will only provide her with more dead for her army," states the paladin gravely.

"Who is the Necromancer?" Bubba asks.

"An ancient threat thought to have been put down half a century ago," he replies.

"We are going with you," Lisa states firmly. When Steve looks to argue, she narrows her eyes and says, "Don't make me unleash the fuck-beast on you," with a hand threateningly on her belly.

"She's right," Bubba says, "We are a team."

Steve sighs, obviously not willing to waste the time to argue, "Fine. But I need to go to my grove for guidance."

Lisa winces and murmurs, "Home..."

The paladin shakes his head and says, "No, not that one." He crouches and touches the ground. A portal grows and the crowd around them, already curious at their conversation, is startled and falls back. When it opens, the elf strides through and Lisa and Bubba follow quickly.

Beyond it lies a vast and ancient forest with trees so tall and full that they replaces the sky with a canopy of endless green. There is a reverent stillness, like in a temple, and near total silence except for the quiet sounds of nature: a nearby brook, rustling leaves, and creaking branches.

Steve says in a voice nearly a whisper, "Stay here until I return." Both of them nod and watch the elf proceed in what seems like a random direction, disappearing into the dense woods. They look around and settle on some rocks by the brook to wait.

"How's your new friend working out?" Barry asks. Contrary to his usual practice, his voice is pitched to a respectful low volume.

"Dammit!" Bubba curses, startled by the demon's sudden appearance.

Lisa puts a hand on her belly and answers, "Taking some getting used to, but I'm happy."

The devil says softly, "Yeah, I probably should have warned you about that." He glares in the direction Steve went and adds, "I was rushed."

"So, what do I owe you?" she asks warily.

"Blasphemy," he replies with a grin.

She raises a finger threateningly and states, "I will not hurt Steve or disrespect his sanctum."

"He'll never know," Barry says reassuringly. "I'll know, and that's enough for me," he continues with a wicked grin.

She sighs and asks, "What do you have in mind?"

"Since I was a wee lad, I've always wanted to be blown in the sacred grove," he relates.

She raises an eyebrow and repeats, "Wee lad?"

He shrugs, "I was precocious. Also, elf childhood isn't like human childhood."

"How to you mean?" Bubba asks, suddenly curious. Lisa gives him a look and he shrugs, explaining, "I was raised by an anthropologist."

Barry turns so he's facing both of them and puts his hands on his knees. "Well, kids, faeries are ancient spirits tied intimately to nature. When we die, we are reborn anew, still with memories of our old lives. For us, the first years of our life are more about getting our bearings and figuring out who we are in this new incarnation."

"No babies," Bubba says with sudden realization.

"Yeah, not really," Barry agrees, "In contrast, each human child has a fresh soul, stupid and new."

Bubba asks, "What about orcs?"

"Orcs don't have souls. They are essentially angry meat," the demon replies. Seeing Bubba's expression, he shrugs apologetically, "Sorry."

"He's just fucking with you," Lisa says, giving the devil a dark look.

"He's only half-orc!" Barry says, defensively.

She punches him in the shoulder and then stands up. "Let's get this over with," she says curtly.

"Hey," the demon says, showing the way, "No rushing through this. This is my childhood dream, after all."

Bubba is left alone to ponder this new information in silence for a few minutes, then a burbling voice from the nearby brook seems to say, "Daddy?" He yelps and falls off his rock.

Lisa glances back at the sound but Bubba is already out of view. Barry says, "He'll be fine. Half a soul is better than none." A momentary expression of regret flirts across his face before he banishes it with his usual shit-eating grin. "This is going to be great!" he exclaims in a hushed voice.

The forest soon gives way to a large natural theater open to the sky. Soft grasses line the sides of the bowl down to a small spring. A scattering of brightly-colored flowers fill the air with an nearly intoxicating fragrance and the sound of birds and insects weave together in harmony, like music in a temple. By the water, Steve sits in meditation, hands lying limply on his knees, insensate and peaceful. Lisa is lost for a moment in the power of holiness here, something she's never felt in any human temple. She stares at her best friend in communion with the forces of nature he serves and feels a new respect.

As far from respect as can exist, Barry throws himself back on the ground, spreads his knees, and whispers urgently, "Get sucking, I don't know how much time we have!"

Lisa represses the urge to kick him hard in the nuts by counting to ten and then lowers herself between his legs, careful not to lie on her belly, then wondering if that matters. With a sigh, she takes the demon's cock into her mouth.

"Yes!" he exclaims softly. "Slowly, take your time. Don't rush it," he implores, contradicting his previous declaration.

The contradiction gives her an idea and she does, indeed, slow down. Drawing it out and teasing him, backing off when he seems to really be getting into it, letting him cool down before resuming. The whole time, her ears strain for any sound of activity from Steve. In her head, she imagines several equally violent scenarios which might play out should her friend come out of his reverie to find them violating his most holy sanctuary. He mistakes her delight at the thought of the paladin beating him senseless for enthusiasm.

"Yeah, I knew you'd come around. Suck it, bitch! OW!" This last is a muffled scream as she bites him. "I'm sorry, I'll stop," he whimpers.

She's finally rewarded by a bellow from below, "WHAT DOST THOU THINK THOU ART DOING!?" Barry comes immediately and hard and she nearly chokes but doesn't let go of him, grabbing his hairy goat legs as he tries to scramble back from her.

"So good," Barry moans, further proof he's getting off on this. "Hey Steve," he says with sadistic glee as the paladin stalks towards them, trying to hide his increasing panic at not being able to disengage from the spiteful warlock. He bats at her head ineffectively. Lisa notes with disgust that he remains rock hard in her mouth. She hears the drawing of a sword, followed by Barry says, "Whoa, okay. That's not necessary."

"Thou art a demon now, Barry, and I am paladin," Steve growls. Lisa feels Barry press back against the ground as he tries to escape the point of the blade advancing on his chest. She lets the dick drop from her mouth and rolls to the side.

"He made me do it," she says apologetically, trying her best to look innocent.

"Nobody makes you do anything, Lisa," Steve says darkly.

Barry disappears in a puff of sulphur.

With a sigh, Steve puts his sword away and looks around for a long moment. He says quietly, "I never get used to how beautiful it is."

Lisa nods slowly and concurs, "It's great."

He turns and offers her a hand. When she's standing, he gives her a tired smile and says, "He used to talk about that incessantly." When she looks confused, he clarifies, "Barry. He always talked about wanting to fuck here. I always said no." He looks into her eyes for a long moment and then gently caresses the side of her face.

"Disrespectful?" she asks, lost for a moment in his eyes.

Steve shakes his head and replies quietly, "Not with the right person." He smiles sadly and looks away, towards the way they came. "We should go get Bubba. There's work to do," he says.