The fall of Lorit Options

[Jac]

This is an expanson of a short story I posted awhile ago. Comments and critiques are welcomed. Thanks in advance.

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Sunlight streamed through the open shutters over Thadius’s face as he lay on the bed. He grunted and threw an arm over his eyes before turning towards the wall. A delicate finger caressed his ear as a soft voice whispered into it, “Thadius, it’s time to get up dear.”

“Bah. They can’t begrudge me a few more minutes sleep, Lorit.”

“Thadius, you need to get up now, dear. You know how the Legion is. If you’re late again…”

Thadius sighed and rolled over to face her. He opened his eyes and smiled as he looked into her brown eyes. He brushed a finger over darkened skin and through her short red hair. “I know, Lorit, I know. It’s just that-“

Lorit silenced him with a finger on his lips. “Shh. Enough of that, Thadius. It’s time for you to get dressed.”

“Yes dear.”

Groaning, he rose from the bed and slowly changed into his uniform. Lorit rose from the bed, her lithe body glowing in the sunlight as she helped buckle him into his cuirass. He turned around and embraced her, tracing a finger down her bare spine. “How did I get so lucky as to find you, Lorit?”

Lorit smiled at him and tousled his short brown hair. “Because you’re so good to me, Thadius. But if you don’t leave soon, that may change.” She poked his chest playfully before bringing his head down for a kiss. He smiled as he kissed her before reluctantly releasing her and strapping on his broadsword. He strapped his shield to his left arm and donned his helmet before opening the door and stepping outside. Lorit donned a robe and stood in the doorway watching him leave until he turned a corner. She closed the door and leaned against it for a few moments before closing the shutters, plunging the house into darkness. She lit a candle and carried it to the bed. She stepped out of her robe and lay on the bed, waiting. After what seemed like hours, she heard the door open and close softly. A figure stood by the bed, seemingly untouched by the light. A cold voice filled the room. “It is almost time, Lorit. Are you ready?”

Her breath caught as she answered, “Yes, yes I am, Reden. How much longer?”

The figure smiled as pale fingers snuffed out the light of the candle. Lorit tensed briefly as she felt the figure climb into bed, but relaxed as heat flooded through her.

[Jac]

A cloaked figure staggered through the woods outside of the city, a horribly burned hand holding the hood low over its head. It stumbled from tree to tree, trying to avoid the pools of light that filtered through the branches. The figure cried out in pain as an errant shaft of light fell onto the exposed hand and burned away skin, exposing flesh and bone. Smoke rose from the wound before the figure fled away from the light, its crashing footsteps echoing in the silence of the forest.

It traveled for what seemed like hours before it finally came to a tomb overgrown with vegetation. Elaborate carvings surrounded a stone door, covered in ivy. The figure pushed aside the vines and traced the intricate patterns on the door while speaking ancient words of power. It stepped back as the door swung slowly open and entered the tomb with a sigh as the heavy door closed shut behind it. The figure paused in the torch lit hallway and removed its hood. It leaned against a wall, its head resting on its arm.

A coy voice broke the figure out of its resting, “You play a dangerous game, Reden. Why do you torture yourself so?”

Reden stiffened slightly as the words were followed by the scent of rose petals and an underlying tint of corruption. He raised his head slowly and lowered his arm before turning to the voice with a smile that did not reach his eyes. “I only do what I must, Dilia, as do we all.”

Dilia smirked as she glided towards Reden, her hips swinging slightly to the sides, her porcelain skin glowing in the torchlight shinning through the black fabric of her dress and revealing the lithe form underneath.. She stared at him through grey eyes set in a face with high cheekbones over full lips and a narrow jaw. She flipped an errant strand of raven hair over a bare shoulder and stopped in front of him, a hand on her hip. Reden’s eyes traveled the length of her form before returning to her eyes. Dilia smiled sardonically at Reden as he gazed at her body. “That we must, Reden, but you have been more than you must, much more. Haven’t you?”

.Reden stared at her. “What do you want from me, Dilia? I do everything you ask. I steal kids from their parents and bring them back here without complaint just so your ‘uncle’ can have his servants. I say nothing about the rituals you perform or the tasks you command. I also gave up my life willing to become,“ he waved a hand in front of his body,” this.”

Dilia smiled sly and traced the outline of his chin with a delicate finger before moving it slowly down his neck and over his chest. She breathed deeply, her breasts swelling against the sheer fabric of her gown. “Yes, Reden, you have never complained. And have you not been rewarded? When I chose you, I told you of the tasks you would have to perform, but I also told of the rewards if you did. Or have you forgotten them so easily?”

Reden caught her hand and lifted it to his mouth, kissing the fingers gently before holding it to his chest. “No, mistress, I have not forgotten. Please forgive me for any slight I may have caused.”

Dilia cocked her head to the side, lips slightly parted as she freed her hand and cupped his chin. “All is forgiven, Reden. Now go and fetch the child, my uncle is ready for him.”

Reden grasped her hand and kissed the fingers again before bowing. “Yes, mistress.” He spun on his heels and disappeared down a hallway.

Dilia watched him leave, a dark expression clouding her face, until he turned a corner. She turned and went the opposite way, entering a dark room lit only by the pale blue glow of a portal against the wall. She closed the door behind her and latched it before kneeling before the portal. Her hands moved in intricate patterns as she softly spoke words in an ancient tongue. The soft glow of the portal intensified and she had to close her eyes against the brilliance. As it settled, she opened her eyes and stared at the image before her. Cold, black eyes stared at her, thin lips pressed together in a pensive stance. Dilia stared at the man a few moments, the thick, raven hair slicked back from a widow’s peak, the sharp cheekbones, and the narrow chin. She bowed her head, waiting for the other to respond. The man looked at the top of her head for long moments before speaking, “Well?” Dilia raised her head and smoothed her face. “Everything is going according to your plan, father. Soon we will have the portal opened.”

The figure stared back impassively. “Very good. And Glaxin?”

“Reden is preparing the latest child, father.”

“Serve me well, daughter, and you shall have your reward.”

“Thank you, father. And Reden?”

“He is your pet, daughter. After I am free, I will have no further use for him.”

Dilia smiled. “I understand and obey, father.” She shivered as the image slowly faded and the portal once again grew dim. She rose on stiff legs and quietly unlocked the door, closing and locking it behind her. She stood in front of the door for a few minutes before smoothing her face and going in search of Reden, a wicked smile on her face.