Burning Lust

[GamingLord]

Heegh gave a nasty smile as he gripped Adira's hair tightly, pulling her up to her knees. He then took a clawed hand and held her face in it roughly, smiling as the points of his sharp fingers made her flesh bleed a bit. He never took his more recent, handsome angellic form for these encounters, only saving that for the few times it was necessary to try and tempt souls... something he was still learning how to do, and at a minimum, since it seemed if he wanted more powerful demons, the amount of souls he had in Hell affected how powerful they could be.

Heegh: "My dear, thank you for a lovely evening. I'm certain I didn't damage you too much, heh. I'll just have to try harder next time. You can have your mutts for now, I will be by to pick them up shortly."

The only reason for letting have Adira keep her hellhounds for that small amount of comfort, was because it amused the Satan that there was little they COULD do to lift her spirits after so many of their "special meetings". Hefting her up and ignoring the growling of the hell hounds so they were not even a threat compared to him, he tossed Adira onto her rocky stone bed. His massive, demonic form left the room, slamming the heavy metallic door behind him, the sounds of thick chains and sturdy numerous locks clicking and clacking into place.

Adira could see him leave through the window that showed her the isolated spirits. As he passed through the statues that represented being abandoned by God, Heegh snapped his fingers. Thick black tendrils came out of the walls, and snagged several spirits, causing them to scream. This was the only time the others could sense that someone else was there, and it frightened them as they never knew when or where the scream was coming from, and it was gone as quickly as it came. Heegh laughed darkly as he walked out of sight.  

[psychotic__Gal]

Adira's form shifted almost immediately when she hit the stone bed. She'd been trying to keep the form of someone...Someone Heegh had her be for so many times. Adira's face was scratched. He got through the cosmetics of her skin. She shook uncontrollably.

Adira was once known for her flawless skin, her beautiful ocean green eyes and her long, toned body. Adira's eyes teared up. She'd never wanted this job. Obviously. Now, her body was covered in dried blood, scars and bruises. She had a scar across her right eyelid. It was thin and white now but for someone who had once had flawless skin, it was noticeable. Heegh had been so kind as to put a mirror in the room. Right across from the bed. Sometimes he liked to see his body across the form of his enemy. Adira would often see red eyes and long black hair with deadly pale skin in the mirror. She was a vampire with that form. Someone Heegh called "Rosemary". Adira shook her head again.

The Hounds' paws hit the floor softly as they came toward her. Ophelia and Banquo. Ophelia was Adira's fire keeper, Banquo was of Ice. The two were mates. Banquo and Ophelia leapt lightly onto the stone bed. Banquo lied his head upon Adira's lap as Adira sat her aching body up. Ophelia curled up by Adira's feet. Adira buried her face into Phe's fur.

"I'm sorry." She murmured to them with a whimper, "I never expected this." The hounds whimpered, preferring not to speak they curled in more tightly to her.  

[psychotic__Gal]

Adira's hounds responded before she did. She felt Banquo move first. His cautiousness reigned supreme here. She could feel Ophelia's body tense up next to her. Adira's head lifted. She saw the door opening.

"What...What the hell..." Adira's voice came out softly. Banquo's ears perked. Ophelia lept off the bed and cautiously moved to the door, her ears against her head. She peeked out, staying low to the ground. She stood immediately and her ears perked, her tail wagged briefly. Banquo lept off the bed next, understanding Ophelia's motions better than Adira. His calm exterior was seen as he crossed the room and stood next to his mate with even more caution. His own ears perked and he even took a step out of the room.

Adira was surprised to say the least. Banquo was possibly the most careful individual Adira had ever met. Ophelia on the other hand...well, she often got too excited for her own good. Adira stood, fear in every one of her pores. Heegh could come back any second now...

Adira drew near to the door and poked her head out of the door way. She caught the last view of a Hunger Demon's tendril disappearing around a bend.

Adira's surprise turned into shock. Where the hell was everyone? Ophelia moved quickly into the open. Adira shot her a look to stop and Phe did as she was told but she sat upon her hanches with a sort of pride upon her features. Adira's eyes rolled. Banquo very slowly inched his way out of the room as well. Adira's sea green eyes widened in disbelief. Banquo sat next to his mate, his ears perked, listening before he turned to Adira. His expression said that the coast was clear.

"If you're sure, Ban." Adira whispered under her breath.


Adira stepped out of her prison. It'd been the first time in at least a decade.

 

[GamingLord]

As Adira stepped out further into the hallway, she got chills, not from the cold, but from the dreadful feeling the large empty-ish room gave off. It lead down a ways, and branched off into several directions. Moving further in, she could hear the faint roar of battle, and perhaps even Heegh's roaring voice, though that was growing distant as if he were running in a direction away from her chamber.

- - - - -

Heegh's decent mood was ruined. As far as he could tell, some fool mage, no doubt a Niearcim, had royally screwed up summoning a hunger demon, and freed the rest. And the dark magic mages he had posted on guard were either asleep on the job, or too incompetent to prevent the doors from becoming fully unlocked. He would literally skin their hides later.

For now, he was trying to do damage control. The large, voracious beasts were devouring everything and everyone in Hell they could get their hands and tendrils on, like swarms of oversized, underfed pirahana. It would be up to him, and a handful of his best demons and fallen angels to get things under control again... and that would take days, with the large a mount of hungers roaming about, causing more chaos than necessary in Hell.  

[psychotic__Gal]

A day and a half had passed since the little band of a girl and her two dogs left their imprisonment. The two days weren't easy either. They were full of stops and re-directions as demons walked in and out of their paths. If one were to picture the screen of pacman but avoiding the bad guys instead of eating them, you would have the situation that Adira and her pups were in. After a day or so, Adira had to ride on Ophelia's back as she was in too much pain to continue walking. She chose Ophelia as Banquo was too busy keeping watch and he needed to focus on that alone.

Finally...Finally when it seemed like they'd lost hope... A breeze crossed Adira's face. She'd been sliding in and out of consciousness but this breeze brought a sense of longing so fierce she couldn't ignore it. She felt her excitement echoed in Ophelia's pace of movement. They were moving faster. Adira looked out upon...

 

[GamingLord]

The breeze had turned warmer and warmer, and soon they found themsleves in a room with a door made of magma and fire. It roared with flames, and a lizard-like eye blinked open in the middle of it.

Door: "Go back! By order of Heegh, this place is forbidden! Go back, or face dire consequences."

When asked what laid beyond the door by Adira, the door refused to answer, only repeating it's warning. Ophelia during this time was digging around out of curiosity, sensing something amiss.. Pawing at one of the walls with a bit of her own fiery ability enhancing her touch, she discovered carvings masked by grime and filth. Things in demonic tongues that said "Freedom", and "Exodus", "Hope." The name of a man called Jacob was etched in the wall, but for what reason, she couldn't discern. She shared her thoughts on this matter with Adira and Banquo.

It was then that the door react, swinging it's emerging fiery tendrils at Adira. Ophelia protected her owner by breathing a wide berth of solid flame that absorbed and redirected the swinging the tendrils, while Banquo growled and shot a stream of cold air directly into the demonic door. The door groaned in pain at this, so the two started to work together, Ophelia defending, and Banquo attacking with his icy abilities.

After a heated battle, the door was reduced to a bleedling, crumbling, cooled off magma crusted structure. It creaked, it's supports attaching it to the walls and ceiling snapping, as it fell backwards, smashing into bits of rubble and fiery ash. Beyond the now defeated door was a room that housed a large, black swirling portal that seemed to absorb all light. There were more carvings on the walls near the portal that appeared embedded into the rocky, cavernous wall. "Seek Jacob, freedom for those who yearn it, find the necromancer, this way to begin a new, seek the half face." They were scrawled, with some arrows pointing in the direction of the portals. Some held warnings to beware and be cautious though, that though there was freedom, it was dangerous.  

[psychotic__Gal]

Adira snuggled into Ophelia's body. "Thanks guys." She said softly, she reached over to pet Banquo. They were at a portal. A damned confusing one at that. Adira nodded her thanks to the door--though it had tried to kill her. "Jacob." Whispered Adira, "We need to find Jacob." Banquo and Ophelia looked to her with a slight nod of their heads. But who is Jacob? Asked a voice in Adira's head. The voice of doubt. Another male....will he take advantage of you as Heegh did? Will he truly give the freedom that the signs and the door said?

Banquo walked--if it was possible--even more cautiously now. Warnings across the wall. His fur rose off his body (What little fur he had anyway). Yet still, Ban led them on.

 

[GamingLord]

The travel through the portal was a strange experience, the gateway sucking them through, and freezing them outside while heating them up inside. Shades of black and grey... shapes, vague and distorted zipped past their vision, until suddenly there was clarity, and they landed on one of the floating land masses into the void.

They were all covered in a light layer of frost from their journey, and it made all but Banquo shiver. The strange combination of cold and warm was fading into neutrality even now. They would at least spend the next couple of days there, lost, hungry, too far to see where the opening of the Void lead to Limbo was.  

[psychotic__Gal]

Energy. Zap.

Adira dodged being zapped...Ophelia was not so lucky. Adira glanced down as she felt fur underneath her instead of slim bone.
"Ophe--" Adira began but she stopped once she saw the new form. Adira burst out laughing. Ophelia's eye twitched.

"If I needed a new form I could have morphed myself. Damn this energy." came a female soft, young voice that sounded almost as if it were British. Ophelia's voice. Adira couldn't help but giggle.

"But you're so...cute!" Adira managed to get out before another round of chuckles.

A low, gruff voice let out a chuckle underneath his breath.

"Poor Ophelia." This was a male, young but wise voice. It was accented with a gentle Italian accent. Banquo.

Ophelia growled at Banquo...which caused the other two to start laughing again. Ophelia's growl wasn't as menacing as it once was. Ophelia let out a sigh.

"I'm sure it will wear off." Adira said seriously, snuggling into Ophelia's fur. Another sigh before...

Adira started shivering. "Ophelia warm it up please." She stated, her teeth chattering and obscuring her voice. Ophelia's body temperature rose almost 10 degrees. The frost melted from her. Banquo looked like he was enjoying himself.

"Heegh had me in a fire chamber." Ban explained with a shudder, "Which is why Ophelia and I were weak at the time."

"He had me in an ice chamber." Phe shivered, "I wanna kill that b*****d."

"I do too, my loves. He deserves God's punishment..." Adira's eyes were downcast but not for long, "Do you guys feel something?" Ban's ears perked and Ophelia sniffed the air.

"I've.." Began Ban, "We've felt this before on only one occasion.." His face was scrunched in concentration.

"Right after we were born." Ophelia continued where Banquo left off, "There's something about Hell Hounds...we can't be born in Hell. The Hound mates, as well as one other set of mates move--very briefly of course-- to the living realm...There they dig a den in the earth to provide shelter and a place for the pups to stay...the pups who survive anyway." Phe's eyes looked to the ground.

"We move to Hell at six weeks. Most...Most of the offspring can't live that long. There were only three to survive in Ophelia's litter. There were two in mine. These numbers are including Ophelia and me." Banquo's eyes were downcast as well.

"What happened to your siblings?" Asked Adira, interested in the hellhound dynamics.

"Heegh." Ban said simply, hate etched in his tone.

"Your father ran into Ban and I when you were a small child..he made us a proposition. If we served as your guardians, we wouldn't have to go to Heegh. You see...Heegh has very few Hell Hounds left at his control. Basically, all he has are our siblings."

"My brother, Nym--he controls stone like I control Ice."

"My sister, Nerissa--She creates and manipulates impurity...like the plague insects. As well as my brother, Salanio, who controls lightening." Ophelia growled.

"So...all Hell Hounds control some element?" Adira asked.

"Most of us." Ban corrected.

This was said why Ophelia and Adira were still shivering.
“So…what is it?” Adira finally asked.
“Love.”
“As in…?”
“Yes. God’s love.”

 

[GamingLord]

Jacob: "That's alright. Let's just try to unsummon it now and start again."

The winds were violent and fierce, tearing up bits of dirt and rock, threatening Adira and her hounds as they grew closer and closer.

- - - -

Meanwhile, back at THoR, Galantros and Black were sipping hot chocolate in their pajama's, stariing at the christmas tree, and shaking gifts to try and guess what were in them. GL was feeling so close and cozy that his wing tendrils started to take a mind of their own, slipping up Black's nightgown without him realizing it and stroking her back.