Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

H e was in a foul mood.

But then, being awoken from a long slumber tended to have that effect on him.

He hadn't truly been sleeping, not in the way that mortals sleep. Rather, his mind had been banished to that empty no-place of the void with nothing but his own black thoughts to keep him company.

He wasn't sure exactly how long he'd been away. He only knew that it had been a long time.

A very long time.

The last time the priestesses had woken him, there had been no trees for miles around, and the land had been locked in a perpetual state of winter. Now, a summer forest surrounded his prison. A forest that was not only incredibly dense, but which also appeared to be quite old.

Seven hells, he must have been asleep for a thousand years.

So, who had woken him?

And why?

He'd not had a chance to see her clearly. His eyes were still hazy from his long slumber, his senses dulled by centuries of darkness. He'd only gotten the briefest glimpse of a naked backside darting off into the woods.

A decidedly feminine backside.

Was she a priestess? Perhaps. The priestesses had always been the ones who had summoned him before. They were the ones who had built this darkstone prison and trapped him inside with their magical incantations.

But if the woman who had summoned him tonight was a priestess, why had she bolted into the woods like a frightened rabbit at the first sound of his voice?

And where were her followers?

Normally, when he was summoned, there would be a good-sized crowd of supplicants gathered around the darkstone ring, all of them holding candles and chanting. Tonight the area was utterly devoid of people. The moonlight revealed only an empty clearing, and beyond that the dark wall of trees.

Cautiously, he took a step forward, then another. As he neared the standing stones that formed a ring around the altar, his skin prickled with warning, and he felt a repulsive force pushing against him, keeping him from advancing further.

Obviously, the power of the ring had not waned.

There were five candles burning atop the smaller stones of the ring, but he knew from experience that there was no point in trying to blow them out. The candles were a necessary part of the summoning ritual, but the power of containment was a constant effect inherent in the standing stones themselves. It had to be removed by a different ritual, one which could only be performed at certain times of the year, when the veil between the material and immaterial realms was at its thinnest.

He had to admit, the priestesses who had built this prison had designed it well.

But what about the woman who had summoned him tonight? She didn't seem particularly clever. If anything, she seemed a bit foolish.

He reminded himself never to underestimate a woman. It had been a woman, after all, who had tricked him into imprisonment in the first place. And it had been women who had forced him to do their bidding.

Well… perhaps "forced" was not the right word for it. There had always been exchanges . Still, he was resentful of the way the priestesses had used him, and he was eager to vent that frustration on someone.

The round little backside he'd just seen darting off into the forest would have been a fine place to start.

If only it weren't for this damned barrier.

He paced the circumference of the ring again, studying the ground that lay beyond the standing stones. The woman's robe was lying on the grass where she had left it when she fled. The fabric was unlike anything he had ever seen before, black as night and soft as the fur of a bee. He wanted very badly to touch it. He even started to reach for it without thinking, but he drew his hand back at the last moment, before the magic of the darkstone ring had a chance to burn his fingers.

Now who was the fool.

With a sigh of frustration, he moved back to the center of the ring and sat down on the altar to consider his options. They were few.

If he wanted to, he could send himself back to that empty place where he'd lain dormant for such a long time, but he immediately discarded that notion. Simply sitting here in a clearing all by himself was preferable to the boring, black nothingness of the void. At least here he could listen to the wind whispering through the leaves. He could smell the rich fragrance rising from the damp earth. He could look at the stars.

And someone was bound to wander by sooner or later. It might take a day, or it might take a millennium, but eventually someone would find him here, and when they did, he could trick them into setting him free.

All he had to do was wait.

He tilted his head back and stared up at the night sky. The stars glittered like a million scattered jewels above him. He knew each and every one of them by name. He'd been there when the Creator had hung them in the firmament. He'd helped.

Off in the forest, a twig snapped.

Someone was coming.

The demon turned in the direction of the sound and waited with quiet anticipation. His keen ears detected other, softer sounds. The shuffle of bare feet on dry leaves. The steady sound of air entering and leaving a pair of human lungs.

Then he saw her.

Slowly, cautiously, she emerged from the shadows of the forest. Her bare skin shone like marble in the moonlight. She was the most feminine woman he had ever seen, and he had seen thousands. Her breasts were round and full, and they swayed softly with every step. Her hair was long and black as oblivion, and down below, a matching triangle of dark curls nestled between her plump thighs.

His cock went as rigid as a spear. His balls ached with desire.

Had it not been for the darkstone ring, he would have already had the woman down on the grass with his prick thrust deep between her open legs. She probably would have screamed in terror at first, but by the time he was finished with her, she would be screaming for other reasons, and begging for more.

But alas, the stones did not permit it.

So he would just have to convince her to come to him.

She approached cautiously, like a cat, her wide eyes scanning the area between the pillars of the darkstone ring.

"Hello?" she said, her voice taut with fear. "Is… is someone there?"

She couldn't see him. He could have revealed himself to her easily enough, but he found invisibility useful for instilling an appropriate sense of wonder and fear.

"Hello?" she said again.

He didn't answer right away. He waited until he saw a shadow of doubt touch her pretty face. She was probably starting to wonder if she'd even really heard him before. Her doubt shifted into disappointment. He waited until she started to pick up her gown before he spoke again.

"Put that down."

The woman almost jumped out of her skin, but this time she didn't run for the trees. She still had her hand on the gown.

"Put it down," he said again, more gently this time. "If you wish to converse with me, you will do so without clothing."

The fear was still there, but now he saw a spark of defiance behind her dark eyes.

"Who says I wish to converse with you, demon?"

He chuckled. "Come now, woman. Why else would you be here? You summoned me. I came. Now put down your fucking robe, or this conversation is over."

The spark of defiance burned brighter, but she did as she was told. She left the garment lying on the grass and stood up, using her arms and hands to cover her nipples and the patch of dark fur between her legs. He was tempted to tell her to stop covering herself like that, but he sensed it was better not to push too hard. As long as he was inside the magic barrier, she was the one in control.

Besides, he found her modesty oddly enticing.

He was going to enjoy corrupting this one.

"Who are you?" the woman asked. "I mean, what is your name?"

"I go by many names," he answered, "but you may call me Beliath. And what about you? With whom do I have the pleasure of speaking?"

The woman stood up straight, and her face took on a haughty expression.

"I am Queen Malissa of Drachenval, wife of King Wulfgang the Fourth, and I command you to do my bidding!"

This time, Beliath did not merely chuckle, he laughed out loud, a great booming laugh that shook the stone pillars around him. The woman shook too, and her face blanched as white as the moon.

"I am not one of your subjects," Beliath said. "You have summoned me, and you may banish me again if you know how, but you cannot force me do anything against my will."

The woman looked crestfallen.

"However," Beliath continued in a softer, gentler voice, "I am open to the possibility of a fair exchange . Now, why don't you tell me what it is you want, and I will let you know if I can help you… and what price you must pay."

The blood returned to the little queen's face, and it kept on returning until her cheeks were as rosy red as two clouds at sunset. She seemed to be holding back her words, as if they were a living creature trying to escape from her mouth. Then she blurted them out all at once.

"I want you to give me a baby!"