Into the Darkness Read online

  I felt Taesa grab a woman who was looking for the missing man who she had seduced and eaten. My witch yanked her off of her feet and pinned the woman to a wall. Then, she began to drain her.

  Of her life.

  And, her fluids.

  Until only ash and bones remained.

  Then, Taesa poured that energy, the essence of the poor woman’s soul, through our link, and into me.

  I gasped in disbelief. Power roared through my mind, more than I had ever felt before. It shattered the spiderwebs, casting arcane shrapnel through my mind.

  The stone that had been forming on the outside of my skin cracked.

  And, for just a second, I was back in charge of my mind.

  It might kill me, but I had only one weapon to fight Brynn.

  God help us both.

  I grabbed the spell of taming and activated it.

  Our minds were already too close for her to block, or dodge my attack. Her golden eyes saw the one thing that she never wanted to see… my spell ripping through her mind.

  Brynn screamed and shock on top of me, as the black barbed spell carved into her soul.

  Then, I yanked the barb tight, holding on for all my might. If Brynn won, she would consume me, and I would become her willing slave.

  I hated slavery, but if servitude was either my, or her, destiny, then I was determined that it wasn’t going to be mine.

  Brynn’s golden gaze poured through me, burning everything in its path. I screamed as memories of my childhood evaporated.

  My mother’s face.

  The first girl that I had kissed.

  Justin and I playing tag.

  Memory after memory evaporated around me, destroyed by my wife’s gaze.

  Brynn was more potent than Mary or Taesa. Her power obliterated me as I held onto her soul.

  “Submit,” I demanded, as I raised my arms, using the energy that Taesa was filling me with to fight Brynn. In my mind, I slammed my hands together and summoned hellfire.

  Then… I burned her soul.

  Brynn shrieked and screamed as I tore into her. I had to hurt her enough that she couldn’t fight back anymore.

  “Submit,” I screamed at her, as Taesa swooped down and scooped up another peasant. Power, taken and not given, flowed into me.

  I shuddered, understanding the evil that she was committing, and my complicity as well. But, I wanted to survive more than I wanted to be a good person.

  Striding into Brynn’s mind, I pummeled her soul with hands of stone and fire, as her gaze burned away more of me.

  My first pet.

  The time my father beat me for lying.

  Gone.

  Clang.

  Brynn’s golden eyes shook. She swayed on top of me and then fell next to me.

  Gavin stood over her with a metal shovel in his hands, and I could see Brynn’s blood on the flat blade.

  “Finish it,” he yelled at me. “Tame her!”

  Hana hurried into the room and pushed him aside. Then, straddling my hips, she kissed me.

  My mind twisted, as something forced its way into my soul, shattering Brynn’s bonds. Power flowed through my mind, making it focus. It was power offered, not taken.

  A soul came to me with arms unbound.

  I screamed as I merged with Hana.

  Golden barbs pierced both of our souls and snapped tight.

  Energy that I could barely understand gave me strength and purpose.

  My eyes fluttered, and then Hana sat up.

  But, I felt a bond form.

  Before I could begin to understand what happened, the words, “Be Mine,” whispered from my soul.

  They wrapped around Brynn… and Hana.

  The taming spell formed a vise around both of their minds, squeezing and cracking away any defenses that it found between us.

  Brynn’s heart stopped beating for a second. Or, was it Hana’s?

  Then… thud.

  The battle was over.

  Brynn’s heart began beating again.

  I turned my head and stared at Brynn. Blood dribbled out of her nose in a rush.

  Then… Brynn… evaporated, just like Mary had.

  Her soul stayed, but the essence of Brynn… changed. Her personality, her drive, everything that made her Brynn… stopped… because the taming spell demanded that she become new and different.

  It was the only way.

  She had hidden her true feelings from me for so long.

  Brynn hadn’t loved me.

  She had used me.

  I was a fool in her eyes.

  But, now that feeling changed.

  Pop.

  It was gone.

  And, replacing it was...

  Brynn smiled at me with love in her eyes.

  It made me feel… awful.

  I watched as her personality was eaten by the spell, consuming her whole. The other woman could bend and accept me. But, Brynn had to be destroyed, in order for her to kneel.

  She had never knelt to a man before.

  It was unthinkable.

  Then, she groaned, and her eyes rolled into the back of her head, as Brynn slipped into unconsciousness.

  My mind began to ache, as it expanded again.

  The ache became a throb, and then a pounding.

  It felt like a thousand giants were slamming against my skull with hammers the size of trees.

  I screamed and shrieked until mercifully, my brain entered the darkness as well.

  - 25 -

  I woke up feeling horrible. My brain felt like it was swelling. Sweat was dripping down my body, but I was no longer on the floor.

  Women lay unconscious all around me.

  Naked.

  Beautiful.

  Women.

  Mary, Brynn, Taesa, and… even Hana.

  And, all of them were asleep, which was even stranger.

  Gavin stood up. He had been sitting to my left.

  “Drink this,” he ordered.

  I was too tired to fight. I swallowed down as much as I could.

  “That will help,” he said. “I hope you survive.”

  The potion pulled me under... into a world of dreams.

  Volcanoes exploded, showering me with embers.

  I was running and covered in blood.

  And, all the women were screaming at me. They chased me through a forest with pitchforks and whips, baying for my blood.

  “Love me!” Brynn shouted. “You must!”

  “He’s mine!” Mary screamed as she threw herself at me, trying to knock me down.

  Taesa swooped over me, trying to snag me with her talons.

  I ran around a tree to dodge her.

  Hana hit me with a club. The force struck my face so hard that my feet came up from under me, and my head hit the ground. But, instead of hitting the dirt.

  Splash.

  My body fell into a deep, cold sea.

  I sank down, deep into the depths until I could barely see the hint of sunlight above me.

  From deep below, I could feel bubbles roar and churn. Then, they swarmed up and over me, flowing upwards in a stream, like the bubbles in beer.

  I felt an arcane bubble burst into life in my soul, and then another.

  The pain was overwhelming. I wanted to run and hide, but I couldn’t escape my skin. I felt my flesh burn off, as the power rose up out of the depths. Like a fish in the frying pan, I screamed as pain burned every ounce of flesh on me.

  Another bubble burst out, and then a fourth.

  My eyeballs melted, leaving me in darkness, floating in the fiery depths…

  Of Hell.

  It was where I belonged.

  I had encouraged my servant to feed and eat several souls, probably dozens, to save my life. I could have stopped her and accepted my fate.

  Instead, I ate and stuffed my gut with the essence of other sentient creatures.

  I was a demon.

  A scream dribbled out of my lips as my women churned up and out of the darkness.


  All four women circled me and then dragged me deeper into the depths of hell. Instead of hands, they had tentacles, claws, and fangs.

  Blood rose in the water above me, as each of them took a bit of my life.

  I belonged to them now.

  Taming them was a lie.

  I was trapped.

  The screaming didn’t stop until…

  --M--

  I opened my eyes again.

  The fever was gone.

  The four women were still lying on top of me in a pile of bodies and limbs. None of them had awakened yet.

  I shut my eyes and slowly looked at the wreckage of my mind.

  My four original bubbles had grown to six and now eleven.

  And, I felt Taesa’s six.

  And Mary’s eight.

  And… Brynn’s twelve.

  I looked at all the women and then realized that there was a fourth.

  Hana.

  She only had two bubbles, and one was bonded to mine.

  Crap.

  I hadn’t meant to bond with her, at least, not consciously. She had done something. Connected us somehow.

  And, what had she poured into my mouth from hers?

  I had eleven bubbles, but four were taken to link me to the other women. That left me seven to use for spells. Plus five free bubbles from Taesa, and seven from Mary, eleven from Brynn and one from Hana.

  Twenty-nine.

  I had room to inscribe twenty-nine spells, or I could connect them to make more powerful spells work.

  My mind felt sick with greed and wonder.

  Then, I realized that some of the bubbles were already inscribed.

  I focused first on Taesa.

  She had one that linked her to me. Another had a spell on it that looked strange. I ran my hands over the inscriptions, as I read the runes. Blister had at least been diligent enough to teach them to me.

  Flight.

  I touched another.

  Ghost Form.

  Another, which was really one spell that was entwined around two bubbles.

  Consume.

  And, the last… hmm. Unlike the others, it was harder to decipher. After a few minutes, I gave up. I’d figure it out later.

  Taesa didn’t have any free bubbles. All of hers were taken when she became a Cailleach. I wondered if they were instinctual skills, or if a head witch had inscribed them.

  I touched one carefully. It felt… permanent.

  Instinctual then.

  Turning, I studied Mary’s seven free bubbles. All of her’s were inscribed as well, but with spells that she had memorized. They felt fragile, unlike Taesa’s.

  Mary’s were falling apart, just like Blister’s had after they were created.

  I wondered how it would work. If Mary would inscribe them, and I could use them, or if I could take them and not allow her to use them.

  Probably both.

  Mary’s mind felt like a hot box. Her mana vault was still pregnant and just raring to pop. It would only take a little push to make her mind give birth to more power.

  Brynn’s bubbles were interesting as well. She had eleven free after we bonded. I still felt horrible about that, but she had attacked me. It’s not like I held her down on the ship’s deck and raped her.

  I remembered losing parts of myself when she attacked, but I couldn’t remember what those memories were anymore.

  I wondered how that would change me.

  Shivering, I saw that her bubbles were a mixture of instinctual and ready to use. Her gaze took up three of them. Nope, it was four. She had one that allowed her to talk to snakes and another that let her see in the dark. That left five free.

  What a mess. I didn’t know how to use the girl’s free bubbles. And, if I did, was I denying them the use of their own magic?

  Well, I had more of my own power than ever before at least. That would have to do for now.

  I tried to sit up, but Brynn was lying across my legs with her face resting on Mary’s ass. That made me chuckle, but laughing hurt. My mind felt burnt and crispy.

  Hana opened her eyes first.

  - 26 -

  She was younger than me, I guessed somewhere around twenty. Her body was skinny, almost anorexic. But, her eyes were a pretty blue.

  We had to do something about her acne. It covered most of her face in a weeping, crusty mask that was accented by scars that ran down her face. On her forehead, three huge pockmarked sores wept fluid.

  Though now that we were bonded, it didn’t bother me as much, I realized.

  Hana was pressed up against me, and I could feel her emotions.

  Loneliness and fear were the most prevalent. Along with despair, when Hana felt my unhappiness with her profoundly pockmarked face and small breasts.

  No one had ever said that she was pretty… because she wasn’t.

  Her own thoughts raged, cataloging her physical deficiencies.

  Not pretty enough.

  Too skinny.

  Terrible acne.

  Big ears, big feet.

  Tiny breasts, barely a mouthful.

  Ass too big.

  Lanky hair the color of straw mixed with mud.

  Twisted, mangled teeth and an overbite a donkey would be proud of...

  I leaned over and kissed her, as a rush of lust poured through me so much that it hurt. My body was as abused as my mind, but kissing Hana felt nice. And, I wanted to drive away her fears. Someone had told her for years… that she was not good enough.

  That was wrong. Hana’s physical attributes didn’t define her. They were only the flesh covering her soul.

  Her hand touched my face, and that made me feel a little better. Hana’s lips were thin and hard, but her mouth was warm and comforting. I spent what felt like hours kissing her, as I projected acceptance, warmth, and safety to her.

  Hana had chosen me.

  And, somehow, she had either added herself to Brynn’s taming, or she had offered her soul as some sort of… mating.

  I wasn’t sure.

  I just knew that her connection felt different than the others.

  The serum in her mouth had strengthed me. Gavin had given it to her. I saw that clearly now that I had access to her thoughts. The potion was meant to support and strengthen all of our bonds, making them work better.

  Gavin had known that she would bond with me.

  He had added her into the mix on purpose.

  I wondered why?

  Hana’s hand touched my chest tentatively. Then, with a deep an abiding hunger, her hand slipped lower, until she was tenderly touching my manhood.

  I moaned slightly, scaring her. Hana withdrew, pulling her hand back, like a frightened fawn trapped in a hunter’s gaze.

  That wouldn’t do. So, I opened my bond to her a little wider, even though that hurt a bit.

  I let her feel how it had felt when she touched me. My pleasure swirled around her. But, she didn’t understand it.

  Virgin.

  The word vibrated inside her mind with a savage intensity. Hana was confident that she would die a bitter old woman with hundreds of cats surrounding her.

  She began to circle in a negative spiral again in her own head, and this time, I could hear her mother’s voice screeching in the background.

  Stupid slut.

  Whore.

  Ungrateful cow.

  Too dumb to live, and too stupid to find a man.

  Moron.

  Ugly bitch.

  Dumb…

  I leaned in and kissed her again. Then, I slipped different words into her head… brave, courageous, warm, and brave again.