Amdirlain’s PoV - Outlands - Outpost of the Monastery of the Western Reaches

Amdirlain’s days became a hectic mix of lessons and creation, though time spent with Sarah allowed her regular relaxation. Seven months had passed since Aitherlar started teaching her, and although Amdirlain continued to extend her psionic skills, their evolution remained elusive.

With her morning students dismissed to breakfast, Amdirlain teleported to the platform that looked across the obstacle course. Sarah was already present, sprawled back on a coach, and Amdirlain dropped beside her to sit quietly, merely enjoying her closeness. They were holding hands with their fingers entwined when Aitherlar appeared nearby.

Aitherlar waved at the start of the obstacle course. “Can you skip your flying today? I’ve got an exercise I want your complete focus on.”

“I’ll let Kadaklan know,” agreed Amdirlain.

Sarah grunted. “Never mind, I’ll grab his time. I’ve questions about my technique manual.”

“Okay,” acknowledged Amdirlain, and she tensed to rise. “Do we get to work now?”

“Enjoy your snuggling a while longer. We’ll start when the others get here,” replied Aitherlar.

“What do you want me doing?” asked Amdirlain.

“I want you to focus on attempting Greater Energy Wave with only Psi energy today. You’ve been close for a week with all the distractions.”

“I’ve not formed any lesser ones just with Psi energy yet,” protested Amdirlain.

Aitherlar snorted in amusement. “Likely, they’re too simple. I want your focus on something complex enough to require significant attention. Since that is the highest technique you know with Telekinesis, we’ll use it.”

Gilorn chimed in. “You’ve exceeded your schedule with Demi-plane creation. You could take some time away from there and dedicate it to psionics.”

Amdirlain gave a grumbling protest. “I need to keep pushing True Song.”

“Since you’ve told me you plan to travel the Material Plane with your Resonance switched off, it would be best to have other abilities developed,” argued Gilorn.

“I don’t see what the attraction is,” added Aitherlar. “There are far more interesting places to see in the elemental and outer planes. We should spend dedicated time just on psionics.”

“I will not do closed-door training. I’ve got the training sessions to manage,” protested Amdirlain.

“The contest challenges start soon,” noted Sarah. “You can refresh their bodies, but they could do with being mentally fresh for each day’s events. Whether you shut the doors is up to you.”

“Point,” allowed Amdirlain.

I hadn’t even considered pausing the classes for those events.

“Compromise,” said Amdirlain. “I’ll see if Livia is alright with me having a Gate open to our stellar project. While I create atoms for it, I’ll keep trying to trigger a wave with Psi energy.”

“We don’t have to be here,” observed Gilorn. “Or don’t you want to allow Aitherlar into another of your demi-planes?”

“She ate everything in Sarah’s playpen,” quipped Amdirlain.

“They respawned as you put it,” protested Aitherlar.

“Minor detail,” replied Amdirlain. “Everything that had spawned and maturated got eaten.”

“I asked Livia. There are three weeks until the contest. How about only morning sessions focused on Psi usage until then? If you’re unsuccessful, combine the two exercises here or based on a Demi-Plane,” proposed Aitherlar.

“Okay,” agreed Amdirlain. “I can compromise.”

“We’ll have to organise some options for our own week of fun. Let’s use the Demi-Plane you set up for the dragons—you’ve not let any of them access it yet,” proposed Sarah.

With the others arriving at the training hall, Amdirlain just offered Sarah a shrug. “That works.”

Three weeks of tantalising failures later, Amdirlain sat on a beach with her back against Sarah’s jewelled flank. Ahead of her, hundreds of targets stood up from a sunlit beach’s white sands and marched into the surf.

Aitherlar stretched out, unabashedly naked in an elven form. Light glistened off her silvery hair and warmed her olive-hue skin tone.

It’s not her actual body, so why should what she’s wearing bother Aitherlar? Any other body but her Dragon shape is a costume for her.

A cheer from further down the beach drew Amdirlain’s attention to Klipyl with her hands flung in the air. Lezekus, having lost the game, was timidly heading for the surf.

“I’m still not sure about the change of scenery,” said Amdirlain.

“You used to enjoy beach trips. It might help you relax,” replied Sarah.

“If I’m supposed to relax, why am I the only one training?” objected Amdirlain.

Sarah lifted a gleaming eyelid. “Training in only one thing is relaxing for you.”

“Are you in Dragon form to not distract me?”

“I’m in Dragon form because I’m relaxing,” corrected Sarah casually. “It’s just as well you made the beaches so long.”

“Tiny,” chuffed Aitherlar.

“Why a beach trip?” asked Amdirlain.

“You enjoyed hitting the beach. Plus, I told Aitherlar every training year needed at least one beach trip,” snorted Sarah. “It’s in every anime you watched.”

Amdirlain put a hand to her face. “Sarah!”

“Are you going to hop into a swimsuit? Even Lezekus is wearing a bikini,” teased Sarah, and statues of Amdirlain in various outfits grew up from the sand.

Amdirlain tucked her hands into the shelves of her robes. “You troll, that’s not working.”

“Would it work if I gave you kitten eyes?” Sarah asked. “A one-piece?”

“Nope.”

“Get to work, Amdirlain,” instructed Aitherlar, interrupting their play. “I want you to continue working on your Greater Energy Wave. It’ll be your choice of elemental energy. Your breaking wave image matches the wave effect you’ve added to this beach.”

With an absent pat on Sarah’s side, Amdirlain knelt, straightened her posture, and set to work. She rested her hand on her knees and traced the effect of the pattern in her mind. The Radiant energy source high overhead warmed across her skin, but its sound clashed oddly with the echo of the hidden spines. Beyond an opened Gate into space, Amdirlain continuously increased the mass by adding billions of kilograms of hydrogen per second. The others came and went, enjoying their time in the odd sun, but Sarah watched Amdirlain while experimenting with her own Ki powers.

Harmony enfolded the energy of the atoms and the pattern she attempted to create in her mind. Hours wrapped themselves into days, yet Amdirlain didn’t move.

Repeatedly, the energy weave lit up Amdirlain’s mind briefly, only for the pressure to rip the pattern, and the Psi energy bled from it. Amdirlain repeated the same pattern and tried to allow Harmony to encompass it. When it spilled, she finally caught the fracture lines. Still, it was a hundred more attempts before the pattern formed and a crackling lightning wall swept across the targets. The ozone tickled her nostrils as understanding raced through her mind, revealing how the pattern had focused the forces together; a notification rumbled in the background. Amdirlain didn’t consider the message until she duplicated the feat twice.

[Telekinesis evolved!

Advanced Psychokinesis Unlocked!

Advanced Psychokinesis (1)

Telekinesis [S] (72) absorbed into Advanced Psychokinesis (1) -> [S] (1)

Note: One down, four to go.]

Amdirlain checked on her Profile and raised an eyebrow at finding it under her powers instead of having remained as a Skill.

That’s unexpected but a relief after months of effort. Here’s hoping the others don’t take as long.

Though Sarah was sleeping behind Amdirlain, her nostrils barely twitched at the odour in the air. Nearby were thousands of enchanted items packed crates that hadn’t been there when Amdirlain started training.

The release of power drew Aitherlar back from where she’d been playing a telekinetic game with the others. “Did you finally get frustrated, dear?”

“Yea of little faith,” drawled Amdirlain, and she repeated the pattern, mentally broadcasting so Aitherlar could observe it.

“Given your intellect, two hundred and twenty-two days is acceptable. Do better with the next ones,” ordered Aitherlar dryly before she winked at Amdirlain. “Well done, dear. Shindraithra’s currently napping, but I’m sure she’ll want to celebrate your success when she wakes. In the meantime, why don’t you try this exercise to relax?”

Aitherlar mentally projected a vivid landscape and assigned Amdirlain to catalogue the fauna and flora, using her simulated senses alone.

Yep, spot and list a few hundred thousand animals, plants, and fungi by sight and smell alone.

They returned to the monastery in time for the closing day of the year’s contest. Amdirlain scanned the prize boards outside the arena and found those who attended her classes filled the top spots in the fighting tourney, or were contesting the last places.

Aitherlar sent grains of sand from her clothing back through the Gate and took to the air. “I’ll see you all tomorrow. I’m going to go watch some energetic youths pummel each other.”

“Did you want to watch the final rounds?”

“I want to talk to Klipyl about a few things,” replied Amdirlain. “Shall I see you back at the training hall, or are you attending the tournament?”

“I’ll leave the cheering to Mother and Livia,” Sarah responded; after stealing a kiss, she stepped across the Domain’s boundary and reappeared in the training hall.

Except for Klipyl, the others bid her farewell and took to the air, flying towards the arena.

“You have my attention,” chirped Klipyl.

“From your perspective, based on your years as a Succubus, what was your predominant driver?” asked Amdirlain.

Klipyl tilted her head contemplatively as her nose wrinkled at the topic. “What are you looking to do?”

Amdirlain sighed. “I changed a Noble Succubus into a Fey before by reinforcing her Fey nature and purging the Infernal presence. I keep wondering how I influenced you and if I could influence more succubi. Or even other demons. I can’t make them change, but maybe I can encourage them to seek change.”

Klipyl clasped Amdirlain’s face in her hands. “Ammie, don’t you see? You dangled a way not to feel hollow inside before me and then left me to it. I wanted the opportunity to be different and pursued it, though I didn’t know how far it would take me. If I hadn’t wanted something more, the temptation of choosing between the unknown and Viper would have sent me down the simple path. The first steps were agonisingly hard.”

“There has to be more to it than that,” insisted Amdirlain.

“Viper didn’t hit you with the craving because she saw it as your weakness. All succubi crave,” insisted Klipyl, and she clasped her stomach. “There is a hollowness gnawing at their insides. Sex feels good. All the sensations stop the cravings, but when the sex stops, that emptiness returning hurts. You have this temporary sense of connection that always ends up severed, and again, you’re aching for more. I’d go hunting for more extreme experiences, only for them to leave me feeling the same. Which would get me angrier because I’d endured more or waited so long for them. I’d gotten locked into my species tier for years, feeling trapped and cut off, knowing the cravings would keep going.”

“It sounds like I did the wrong thing with Viper,” sighed Amdirlain. “I saw her as an enemy trying to take me over and consume me.”

Klipyl snorted. “She had a connection to you from day one, and she didn’t learn there was more to existence than craving sex and blood. Viper was in the best position to get free of those cravings and didn’t. You even sent her off, separated from yourself, and she worked to get summoned to Vehtë. Not only that, but she also used your name as her alias when she registered with the Adventurers’ Guild. Based on what Isa said, that wasn’t a random chance. Viper deliberately went after what you cared about, intending to ruin it.”

“It comes back to me. I had helped you and given you a pointer where I’d always just fought her,” murmured Amdirlain thoughtfully.

“You didn’t always fight her. I know you compromised to take an elven form, and she attacked you soon after. You set me on the first steps of a path out and then pointed me towards a way of being stronger in myself,” disagreed Klipyl. “I had stumbles and struggles on the way, but whenever I felt like stopping and hiding, I’d remember all that emptiness and the years of feeling trapped. It made a difference knowing I only had more of the same waiting for me if I gave in. Plus, I still had opportunities to get fucked into a puddle along the way.”

Would I have the most success with those trapped in a lower tier? Wouldn’t it be better to help billions improve themselves instead of eliminating them?

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“Now you just enjoy the sex,” observed Amdirlain.

“You know that isn’t all there is to it, but yes, I don’t have an emptiness inside. I’m complete within myself. When I have some fun, it’s an extra helping of happiness, and I enjoy the intimacy and snuggling afterwards. It warms me inside, laying beside them and watching them sleep. Knowing that the sensation of relaxation or happiness is one I helped bring about is good,” explained Klipyl. “Before that, the moment the dick, fingers, tentacles or whatever stopped moving, the cravings would return.”

Find those that want more, the way Klipyl and Ebusuku both did. They had that in common. We had that in common. All three of us wanted more.

Amdirlain wrapped Klipyl in a tight hug, and pressed her forehead against hers.

“Thanks,” murmured Amdirlain.

“Are you going to convert more succubi?”

Amdirlain shrugged helplessly. “I don’t know if it’s even possible. Your Oath and my connection to the Mantle were part of what happened with you.”

“Maybe it’s something to put on your to-do list for when you’re a Primordial,” suggested Klipyl.

Okay, if even Klipyl refers to my to-do list, I talk too much about it.

“If.”

“WHEN!” yelped Klipyl, and she clasped Amdirlain’s face. “I believe you can do it.”

“Some things are outside my control,” cautioned Amdirlain.

“But not how much you’ll work to achieve it,” rebuffed Klipyl. “Happier subject. How are you and Sarah doing? You two snuck off after your success.”

“You mean aside from my frequently crying over her?”

“You don’t always do that. Have you let her give you a shirtless massage yet?” asked Klipyl softly.

“No, I keep chickening out,” admitted Amdirlain. “Whenever I consider it, I can’t stop thinking about how I look under this appearance. Which is a ‘me’ problem since Sarah didn’t even blink the last time she summoned me. I can massage her fine, but when I think about her hands on bare skin, I get problematic reactions.”

Klipyl wrinkled her nose. “It’s easy to accept the pretty stuff about ourselves; the ugly stuff is hard. Yet the cocoons of butterflies aren’t pretty. Still, you don’t hear poets saying they can’t write a poem about someone because the first part is fuzzy, and the middle part is yucky. My hand-to-hand fighting is pretty blah compared to you. Was your martial arts all cool dancing to start with?”

“No, when I started learning karate, I was very blah,” replied Amdirlain.

“But you kept at it,” asserted Klipyl.

Amdirlain rubbed a thumb along the side of her wrist, aware of every spine concealed beneath her form. “Yes.”

“We love you,” Klipyl said, offering Amdirlain a beaming smile. “What holds you back the most?”

“I can hear the spines, the foulness in them,” whispered Amdirlain.

“You let Sarah hold your hand readily enough,” Klipyl said softly.

“The form has hard pads across the inside of the forepaws,” admitted Amdirlain.

Klipyl tapped her nose. “You like her kissing your neck.”

Amdirlain sighed. “Sarah distracts me with kisses first, and my brain stops getting in the way.”

“I have a scary suggestion,” said Klipyl.

“Which is?”

“Regularly wear a loose top so Sarah can slide her hand under it to rub your back while kissing you,” explained Klipyl. “Your shadow vines form a single-piece outfit. Get used to her stroking your back, and have the confirmation you’re not staining her before moving on to the massage. That’s probably the issue: you’re afraid of contaminating her. Take it one step at a time. You were trying to do that, but that first step was further away than we thought.”

“I kept jamming my toes on the step’s edge,” laughed Amdirlain bitterly.

“Why didn’t you tell us you could hear your spines and that they upset you?” Klipyl asked.

Amdirlain shrugged. “They’re not upsetting me, but I can hear them.”

“Fine, would weighing on you be a better description?”

“I didn’t want to worry anyone.”

Klipyl snorted. “Pick a new outfit and see how you go. I’d suggest a ribbon, but that’s me. Change is good. Isa would say bet on happiness and not regret.”

Amdirlain gave her another tight hug and headed on her way, adjusting her clothing as she got close to Sarah.

When Amdirlain appeared on the platform, Sarah looked up and smiled. Her expression turned quizzical at the brightly coloured shirt and pants Amdirlain had on.

“Did you misplace your shadow vines?” asked Sarah.

Amdirlain twirled about to show off the large tropical flowers that patterned her clothing front and back. “You don’t like my outfit? I’m trying to get my paranoia to take a vacation.”

“It’s very much a summery vacation vibe,” noted Sarah. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a neon Hawaiian shirt that should come with vision hazard warnings.”

“Maybe I’ll sell them in a gift shop,” quipped Amdirlain nervously as she sat beside Sarah.

“What are you so jumpy about?” asked Sarah, caressing Amdirlain’s face.

Do I tell her the truth?

“First time I’ve had an outfit on that you could slip your hand under,” admitted Amdirlain. “I have a hard time crossing the threshold of you massaging my back because I can hear my form. So I don’t want to take any clothing off when I’m not distracted.”

“Ahh,” breathed Sarah. “You never told me.”

“Self-doubt digs deep wounds,” muttered Amdirlain.

“Then let me kiss that better for you.”

When Sarah drew her close, Amdirlain reinforced the privacy barriers. Their soft, lingering kisses soon had Amdirlain flushed, but Sarah stayed above the cloth as she caressed Amdirlain’s back—the slow circles across her lower back evoked shivers that tingled along her spine. Sarah’s hand slipped under her shirt, and the contact with bare skin sent a rush of heat across her body that made Amdirlain flinch when she realised the old emotional wound it echoed.

“Sorry, I’m indeed very jumpy,” muttered Amdirlain. “Now I’ve found the obvious issue that had been getting to me, and I feel so stupid for missing it.”

Sarah smiled reassuringly and started withdrawing her hand, only to stop at Amdirlain’s head shake. “The circles you traced across my back. Would you do that on my skin? It made me feel all melty.”

“Lower or middle?” Sarah asked in a near whisper.

“Both were very nice,” replied Amdirlain. “Between my spines and what Viper used to do, I’ve so many issues with feeling good. I’m sorry I’m such hard work.”

“Waves of cravings and heat?” asked Sarah, her lips brushing Amdirlain’s as she spoke.

Amdirlain breathed. “Yeah.”

“We’ve plenty of time to help you associate those sensations with genuinely pleasurable experiences,” murmured Sarah.

They resumed kissing, and Amdirlain let out a happy sigh when Sarah’s caresses started tracing the first circle against her back. Amdirlain let her negative reactions to the rush of warmth and longing wash past her. Eventually, she drew back to fan her face; the gesture earning a bright smile that lit Sarah’s expression and rippled through her melody.

I know her emotions better than I know my own.

“I’m sorry.”

“You’ve nothing to apologise for, Amdirlain. Viper abused you for years, and it’s your scars that are showing, sweetie, not a revulsion for me or anything else,” reassured Sarah. “It’s your body’s reaction that you don’t trust. Part of that is likely since you’re still in a Fallen form and have the spines and other stuff going on. I can understand that you expect your body to betray you.”

“Do you want to get changed? I’ll massage you,” proposed Amdirlain.

Sarah smiled playfully. “Both sides?”

“Just your back,” said Amdirlain. “But if you want, you can lie down without the towel.”

Sarah’s composure was unruffled, but the concealed joy was worth the nervous tension that bounced through Amdirlain.

My girlfriend’s going to be completely naked. I’ve never used that title, but she’s slipped it into conversations here and there.

Amdirlain blinked. “Hey, girlfriend.”

Sarah gave her a slow smile. “Hey, my love.”

The blush darkened into Amdirlain’s scalp, but she soon had the massage table set up. With her hands tracing Sarah’s back and leg, Amdirlain lost herself in the beautiful arias formed by Sarah’s mingled pleasure and happiness. The growing music prompted Amdirlain to tune out the sour spines concealed within herself.

The flesh is just a gateway to the pleasure I bring her. Have I become a hypocrite? I used to walk around naked. I can touch Sarah but flinch when her touch gets too intimate. Stop! Focus on how soft Sarah’s skin feels and the pleasure it brings her.

Hours later, Amdirlain slowly found her courage and daringly traced her inner thigh. Sarah’s desire had layered the air, and Amdirlain felt it echo within herself.

“You are feeling bold tonight,” breathed Sarah.

“As bold as you’ll let me,” whispered Amdirlain.

Sarah’s legs parted further, and she nodded into the table. “As bold as you feel comfortable, my love. Can I roll over, or are you too jittery?”

She knows I’m nervous. Please don’t let me mess this up.

“Whichever you’d prefer,” allowed Amdirlain.

“I want to watch your eyes, beautiful,” murmured Sarah.

Amdirlain lifted her hand from Sarah’s thigh, and she smoothly rolled over. As she settled herself, Amdirlain moved along the table and teasingly stole a slow kiss, hand caressing Sarah’s thigh as she did.

As she straightened, Amdirlain managed a huskily issued request. “Part your legs for me, my love.”

The anticipation that rolled off Sarah grew as she repositioned herself, and the eagerness in her theme made Amdirlain nervously bite her lip. Her gaze ran across Sarah’s lean form, savouring the willowy softness that framed the Soul within. Impulsively, she leant to lick circles around a hardened nipple while her fingertips caressed Sarah’s smooth mons. The quickening heartbeat and sharp inhalation she’d provoked tempted Amdirlain into caressing slow circles that dipped lower. Heady desire thickened the air as each caress of her outer labia beaded moisture across the inner folds.

The steady rhythm of Amdirlain’s licks and caresses soon drew groans from Sarah as a musky aroma thickened the air. Sarah raked her hand across Amdirlain’s back and clutched her shirt until the fabric protested.

Amdirlain paused and lifted slightly to find Sarah’s heated gaze fixed on her face. “Should I stop?”

An indignant huff of protest from Sarah ignited a playfulness Amdirlain hadn’t previously allowed herself.

“No? But you’re not saying much,” sighed Amdirlain teasingly. “Your little noises are cute.”

“I’m surprised you’ve done this much,” groaned Sarah. “I didn’t want to startle you. Keep doing that—unless you want to lap me up.”

The second option caused a surge of self-doubt, but Amdirlain returned her fingers to Sarah’s mons. As she worked her way lower, she bent to plant little licks along Sarah’s breasts, gradually moving higher until she started to trace lines along the side of Sarah’s throat. The little heated rumbles that Sarah let out encouraged Amdirlain’s efforts.

“Like this?” questioned Amdirlain. The slightest pressure parted the outer labia, and Amdirlain’s middle finger curled. She drew a line upward across Sarah’s inner lips, tracing their mid-point and spreading their folds outwards. A gentle pressure on her clitoris drew a satisfied sigh that mingled with the soaked noises as Amdirlain reversed course and saturated inner lips parted.

Tentatively, Amdirlain teased inwards. One finger worked the entrance until Sarah relaxed enough that the soft velvety walls of her vagina accepted two. With slow wrist flexes, Amdirlain slipped deeper inside and gently increased the pace of her motions. As Sarah’s hands shifted to the table edges and caused the mithril frame to squeal, Amdirlain halted and slowly withdrew.

“Oh!” protested Sarah.

“There’s no rush. I’ve got tonight off,” murmured Amdirlain.

“Since when,” groaned Sarah.

“Since now,” replied Amdirlain, releasing a quick song.

With that taken care of, she rubbed her palm against Sarah’s mons and drew an appreciative sigh. Amdirlain’s fingers slid back within her folds and gradually found a pace that kept Sarah on edge. Her mouth hungrily claimed Sarah’s, and soon, her touch brought forth a rush of sweet fluids as Sarah’s hips buckled against Amdirlain’s hand for the first time. She let Sarah relax briefly and teasingly started circling her fingers again. Sarah pressed into her hand as Amdirlain sought another crescendo.

It was the middle of the monastery’s night before they moved to cuddle on the deep couch they’d brought from Qil Tris.

As Amdirlain snuggled into her arms, Sarah panted happily. “I’ll never criticise the hours of fingering practise harp players conduct again.”

Wrangling with self-doubt, Amdirlain focused on Sarah’s afterglow and smiled shyly. “I had to get used to the finger placement. Did I push you too far? You dented our table.”

Sarah glanced at the impressions her fingers had dug into the mithril. “I’ll honour its sacrifice. It’s just as well that you’re tougher than you look, or I might have crushed your fingers.”

“I love you,” laughed Amdirlain joyfully, the sound light within her.

“And I love you,” breathed Sarah.

Amdirlain hugged her, unbothered by Sarah’s nakedness, and the heat of her crotch pressed against Amdirlain’s upper leg. “I’m not a hypocrite, am I?”

“You have understandable body issues that I don’t, about your body or mine,” reassured Sarah. “There are some noticeable advantages to you being able to hear me.”

“Thanks,” replied Amdirlain. “I noticed that myself, and it certainly saved me from multiple newbie mistakes.”

Sarah nuzzled the side of her face, tugging playfully at Amdirlain’s shirt’s hem. “You can practise your fingering on me whenever you want. What brought out your radiant glow? You are brighter than your outfit now.”

“Listening to your song,” admitted Amdirlain shyly. “The knowledge that I brought you pleasure.”

“Maybe next time you’re feeling up to a massage of your own, listen to my song rather than your flesh,” proposed Sarah.

The relaxed suggestion helped Amdirlain calm her desire-jangled nerves. “I tuned my True Form out tonight.”

The flare of Sarah’s nostrils signalled she caught the nervous pheromones, but she only smiled reassuringly. “When you’re feeling ready, not before.”

Her happy, patient melody caught at Amdirlain’s heart and rubbed at painful regrets. A coldness loomed ominously in the back of Amdirlain’s mind, but she pushed it away. It was a craving for happiness that helped her fight it away.

“There is something I need to take care of,” Amdirlain breathed.

“What’s up?”

“Down,” corrected Amdirlain, and she slid along Sarah’s body.

Sarah got out a questioning. “Amdirlain.”

This time, her first licks caressed Sarah’s stomach, but soon they landed on her engorged labia. The curious salty-sweetness had her lapping further, and her fingers cupped Sarah’s hips. Sarah clutched her shoulders and squirmed as she kept up the flitting motions.

They eventually broke the couch.

Custodian’s PoV - Outlands - Eldritch Key Haven

The winged figure in her chamber had Custodian chiming harshly. “Leave Amdirlain alone.”

“Orhêthurin,” corrected Laodice. “Her name is Orhêthurin. She has to realise it.”

“Laodice, you remained in Leviathan’s blood a long time,” noted Custodian. “I’m sure there are works you need to check. Things that the lesser aspects of War might have let slip past them.”

“Some planets might be more peaceful for a time, but hatred will stir passions eventually,” countered Laodice. “Tell me about the worlds you’ve helped Livia gain a foothold on.”

“Why do you wish to know?” asked Custodian. Their brilliant facets radiated an internal light across the surrounding pillars and the prisons’ shifting timers.

Laodice smiled. “I am fully within my rights. After all, you’re setting up Protection and Tyranny to clash. Such a War needs proper supervision from germination to termination.”

“Did you stir Viper to War with Julia?”

“No, I stirred Orhêthurin to War with Viper. The demoness was set on consuming her from when Orhêthurin’s will pushed her away. The spiteful demoness was even fully aware when resentment turned to hatred.”

“Julia’s will,” corrected Custodian.

“Whatever mask she wants to wear, she’ll always be our Orhêthurin,” rebuffed Laodice. “Her Soul is full of battlefronts and self-loathing, just waiting for the right spark to raze planes. Now give me the names of those planets.”

“You want her warring within the Abyss,” accused Custodian.

“It needs her flames to eradicate the filth,” replied Laodice. “You can’t deny that those whom your protectiveness focuses on would be safer with untold trillions of demons destroyed. One versus how many?”

“Our mother,” Custodian replied, the words humming across the stone.

Laodice raised a finger warningly and stabbed it towards Custodian. “Orhêthurin was our mother. Decide: is she Amdirlain or Orhêthurin? If she is Amdirlain, you owe her no more loyalty within the rules than anyone else. If she is Orhêthurin, then you owe it to awaken her.”

“Amdirlain sealed the Eldritch away,” said Custodian. “The conflict between Hell and the Abyss should be enough, even for a glutton such as you.”

“The rules don’t count the Eldritch,” rebuffed Laodice.

“Gideon acknowledged the achievements, and you have no valid response for that conflict, do you?” insisted Custodian. “Orhêthurin is no more.”

“That I don’t believe. Mother removed and sealed away so much of her strength, so who is to say what else exists with the power? The impostor’s flaws must be prepared correctly, and then a fulcrum will tear her apart.”

“You think she’s powerful enough to find it but not resist it?”

“The realm itself will ensure Mother finds her way back to us.”

Custodian's words hissed with soft disappointment. “Unlike you, I do not reward kind service with betrayal.”

“War is about winning, not kindness.”

“And I do not treasure such behaviour. Go.”

“You’d best not warn her,” growled Laodice.

“I’m not allowed to contact anyone not under Protection’s banner directly, and there are no timers in need of her attention for millions of years.”

Laodice vanished.

After weighing options, Custodian sighed regretfully and shifted strength from one protective barrier to another. With the cascade years away, they sent Nexus a request.

In the Abyss, an Eldritch watched a Gate appear; the energy from beyond it was far more tempting than its demonic toys.