Reforged!

Cormanworth

Andrea walked alongside Oliver Martin. Andrea did not recognize the roads or the landscapes where she was traveling. Farmland was farmland just about everywhere you went, crops in fields, corn and wheat. The roads were different. The roads are made of dirt, but the shapes and textures were always a bit different.

She was silent save the jingling of the shackled chains. Master was silent, he kept his eye on his new apprentice. She felt drained, she needed a bath, and she still thought she could smell the stink of blood on her body. Andrea was jittery, she would constantly be attracted to small running animals, they caught her attention, even if blurry to see at a distance.

She cast a spell to help her vision, “Arcana: Improved Sight, I get body enhancements, but yet my sight is not fixed.” she let out a sigh.

Oliver continued to study Andrea. The shocking events of the last hour changed his world. “So where did you train?”

“Yes, I was an apprentice at the prestigious Blackthorn Magic Academy in West Bale. Reached 2nd tier mastery.”

Oliver asked, “What’s your casting method?”

She looked as the bird flew out of a tree, “Kirian, no specialization. I had not picked a path yet.”

Kirian spell casters had the ability to modify spells at the time of casting, this made them more of an unpredictable form of magic caster, versus the Forge casters whose spells were strict and predictable, but easier to cast.

She paused as a small white rabbit ran across the road. Her eyes followed the furry animal until it disappeared into some green overgrowth of plants. “This is highly distracting. I feel like a small child looking at everything shiny.”

“As a predator, you’re finding targets that are standing out,” Oliver responded.

Andrea tried to rationalize the events of today. She shook her head. “This does not work, I don’t want to call you just master, it’s so degrading. I am not a slave. I am not a demon. I refuse to accept that.”

Oliver responded, “I trapped you in a Devil Trap, formed a contract with you. You are a demon. You are my servant."

"Thats' not fare." Andrea pouted.

“So, how did you become an avatar. I don’t know much about the processes.”

Andrea responded, “Well I don’t really know, What I gathered, two important processes came about, one my bloodline of the goddess, and the other was this dagger. She held up the dagger. It’s called Bloodfang, I think it contained a piece of her divine spark. I was being sacrificed by the Priests of Bhuul, for my purity, I only agreed to be the sacrifice, so the church would spare my mother and brother from persecution.

"The charges were all false. At the last minute, as I lay dying on the altar. She came to me, offered me a chance to live. I said ‘Yes’, The next thing I know, I wake up in a forest with these ″ she taps at her black rams horns.

“I get a quick lecture about what I am, and then the freaking Soul Stone of Chaos shows and dumps me into a battle. I think I died and the next thing I know I am waking up kissing my dream lover who I now have to call master.”

Oliver mused, “Joshua, you met the Soul Stone of Chaos, the trickster.”

“Yes, I still want to know what Katalina’s bet was with him. Though I am kind of glad to get this off my chest. I have had a really bad couple of days.”

“So you were not a soul who experienced the Hell Realm? Transiting from a lower demon to a higher one?” He asked. He was not entirely sure if he should trust the dream.

Andrea replied and looked down at her feet. “No, I am a human girl.” She did not like this feeling. She was getting hungry again, not to the point of going crazy. She wanted to touch him. She reached out to touch his face. Oliver noticed that and immediately grabbed her arm and pushed it down forcefully.

“No, you are not allowed to feed right now. I will get you a meal shortly. Just wait.” he scolded.

“Feed?” She asked.

He shook his head, “You really don’t know what to do? Do you? Your goddess is very twisted, turning you into a demon and not giving you instructions. Listen if you touch somebody with your bare skin, you will start to drain the life out of that person. You must avoid physical contact.

"The feeding does not start immediately, but in a few moments it will and when it does, you can kill somebody. That’s what you did to me earlier.”

“Just by touching somebody?” she paused and remembered, “Richard. The man in the coach, I remember him. He was already wounded by the brigands. I touched him, that was horrible. His face twisted and in pain.”

Oliver slowly spoke. “The Kiss of Death. A succubus’s most dangerous power, the ability to take the life out of a person. The process is very painful, like being burned alive.”

“Burned alive? I did not feel anything like that, I recall the feeling of pure bliss for a few moments. It was like being with you.”

Oliver did not respond. He kept quiet.

Andrea could see the fires and lights of a large walled city up ahead, “Where are we?”

He responded, “This is the capital, the city of Cormanworth for the kingdom. We will be approaching the east gate. Let me help you out a bit, Arcane: Illusion Other”. Oliver gave the illusion of her blue dress, one was not ripped to shreds and revealing her exposed body. He knew enough about illusionary magics to make a compelling illusion as long as you did not alter the image too much this worked very well.

Oliver and Andrea walked forward to the city gate, a large stone structure with an inner and outer gate made of iron and wood. The two gate guards sat lazily against the wall at this time of the night, just before the gates closed. Drex looked as he watched the city’s head occultist move towards the gate with a woman, wearing a blue dressed woman wearing silver shackles, both on her rest and ankles, the remaining chain links jingled as she walked. She had black rams horns on her head. “Greetings Master Martin. I see you have somebody new with you. Slavery is not legal here you know.”

Oliver looked at him, “She is not a slave, she is my new apprentice. We have had a long walk today. We are just on our way back home.”

Drex asked, “What’s with the shackles?” He looked at her shackles but kept looking back at her small chest.

Before Master Martin could answer, Andrea butted in, “I have recently left the church of Bhuul, I refused to be a sacrifice. You know how much they love to torment Infernals.” She tapped at her horns.

“Okay then move along.” Drex waved them inside.

“Thank you.” Andrea said. Master Martin just kept going.

Drex and the other guard kept their eyes on Andrea as she walked past. His eyes went down to her waist then her rear. The other guard jabbed at Drex, “She’s cute even with the horns. Think she’s got a tail too? I would not mind if it wrapped around me.” the other guard said.

“And your wife would kill you if you stare too long,” Drex told warningly, as he watched her walk through the gates and disappear into the city.