Dealing with the Devil

In the dead of night, five figures moved silently down the streets of a sleeping Negav.  Crystal lamps illuminated door ways and street corners, but their light did not penetrate the darkness of certain alleys and back ways.  The group slipped from the shadows into the light briefly, before disappearing down one of them.  At its end, the leader could barely make out a door frame etched into the wall.  His hand felt along its edge, attempting to find a release for the entrance.

The tallest of the group, a burly human, quickly turned his head at the scraping of boots coming from down the street.  He whispered to his colleague, "That could be a patrol, hurry up will ya?"

The leader leaned closer to the frame, trying to make out the patterns in the darkness. "Get off my back, Kazgi, I know what I'm doing. . ."

A hooded woman beside him nudged him, "Step aside, Mernof, you're taking too long, I've memorized it the code."

"Then by all means, Ana, open the damn thing!" he hissed. With a gentlemanly gesture he moved sideways to make room for the woman.

Indeed she did had it memorized, in flash she was pressing hidden seals along the frame, a faint red light brightening each one.  When she pressed the last one at the very top, the doorway moved back from the frame before sinking into the floor, revealing a dimly lit passage down into the wall.

Mernof pushed passed Ana, giving her a quick nod before rushing down the steps.  She followed him as well as the two other cloaked individuals.  Kazgi was down last, cautiously looking back down the alley before meeting the rest down the stairway.  Once they were all through, the door grinded back into place.

The stairway, unlike the street, was lit with torches, an orange glow filling the cramped space.  It spiraled down and down, opening up into a tunnel with a low ceiling.  Kazgi was uncomfortably bent over and made sure everyone in the group was aware of his discomfort.  Yulie, the shortest, giggled a little as the walked through the tunnel, but suddenly shrieked at the sight of a rat crossing her path. Ana quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, nearly knocking Yulie's glasses off her face.

When they came to a crossroads, the last member, Kanas, whose face was wrapped in cloth, revealed a map from his cloak on Mernof's command. With his finger he pointed to a location on the map, "We're 'ere, boss, and she oughta over in this section 'ere.  Lotsa ways to get lost, we best keep tight."

The leader nodded and waved with his hand for rest to follow. Kanas kept a close eye on their location, dotting each intersection they came across on the map, ensuring they weren't moving around in circles.  Several times they came across an unsightly display of bones and withered husks.  Two of them looked quite recent, as if something had just drained the life right out of them.  Both had strange bite marks on their necks as well, something none of the company was familiar with.  Was there a monster down here perhaps?  Yulie shivered at the suggestion and kept as close as she could to Ana.

After what seemed to be an eternity of walking, Kanas abruptly stopped and turned toward a narrow corridor that didn't appear on the map.  Unlike the rest of the tunnels, it was well kept and clean.  At the end he could he could see a door.

"Boss, tha' looks like it, she's right down 'ere," He nodded to the passage and let Mernof pass him as he rolled up the map and returned it to his cloak.  The troop came after him, once again, Kazgi was last, filling the tunnel quite easily.

Mernof reached the door and was about to knock.  Before he did, he looked down and noticed a carpeted mat with a swirling script that read "Welkommen".  He hadn't a clue what that meant, it almost sounded like "welcome" but for all he new it could mean "turn back" in another language.

"What are you waiting for, Mernof?" Ana impatiently asked, "You gonna stand there all day?"

He was about to snap at her, but the door then creakily opened on its own and the blackness behind the entrance was eerily revealed to them.  In an instant, the darkness was lit up by torches, making it a more welcoming, if not stranger.

A sultry voice echoed from within, "It's quite safe, friends.  I've been expecting you."

The party crept inside, finding a well kept chamber free of dust or grime, unlike the corridors they just passed through.  Not a single cobweb decorated the corners.  Someone certainly liked to keep their home clean, thought Mernof.

Kazgi was the last to enter as he squeezed through the door.  Just as it did so, it slammed shut and locked.  All five spun around and silently panicked, hearts racing and sweat forming on foreheads.  Ana felt a presence and she turned to face the chamber again, urging the others to do so.

In the formerly empty room appeared a finely crafted table, two chairs on their side, and a woman sitting across from them.  She was unlike anything any of them had seen before.  Her skin was milky white, contrasted sharply by her blood red hair and piercing yellow eyes.  She was quite curvaceous, seemingly not ashamed to show them off.  Her top consisted of a rather tight looking crimson corset with a black cloak draped around her shoulders.  They could not see what was under the table, but they couldn't have imagined anything more modest.

A sly smile crept across her face; she knew what they were thinking.   She loved being in control.

"Come, sit, "she beckoned.  The two chairs moved on their own, turning invitingly toward Ana and Mernof.  Both of them looked at each other and nodded, deciding not to refuse her invitation.  They gingerly sat down, shuffling their seats back to the table.

Mernof found his voice suddenly dry, but he managed to speak, "I believe you know what we've come for, Lady de Marinbou."

She loved being called that again, it was some time since her departure from her world.  She'd give anything to attain that power again.  "Of course, I have it right here. . ."  One of her hands drew into her cloak.

Kanas and Kazgi flinched, their hands reaching for their weapons.  De Marinbou quickly raised her other hand to stop them, slowly pulling out a small green phial.  She placed it on the table, the gelatinous liquid slowly leveling out.

"The essence of a cockatrice laced with the pollen of a moss basilisk.  I guarantee it'll succeed in turning whatever or whoever into stone with a small dab."

Mernof began to reach for it, "How can we be sure of that-"

The white-skinned woman snapped it back up before he could.  "You want a test? Surely my reputation is more than enough.  You would've had to have heard of me to know what I'm capable of.  It's a policy of mine to never cheat my customers."

The party leader tugged on his collar sheepishly, "Please forgive me, my lady, I'm sure what you say is true.  It wouldn't be asking much, would it?"

De Marinbou's smile vanished and was replaced with a scowl.  "So be it.   You, big one, stand here and hold out your arm."

Kazgi looked at for a moment, than to Mernof and Ana.  Mernof nodded to him.  The big man slowly walked to the side of the table then rolled up his sleeve and held out his left arm.  De Marinbou popped the cork on the phial, letting a small amount drop onto his flesh.  The green gel looked like it was burning and solidifying to his skin, spreading out along his arm to his hand.  The burly man grabbed his arm, crying out in pain.

De Marinbou sunk back into her seat, "See? There you go. It works."

Mernof stood up, drawing a dagger from his belt.  Ana did the same and behind them Kanas drew out a flint-lock pistol.  Shakily, Mernof threatened her, "If you don't fix him right now, I'll have to cut up that pretty face of yours!"

If she were in any other mood, de Marinbou would've torn out his throat and reveled in each of their blood in turn.  She was feeling uncharacteristically generous today and decided to abide.  A golden needle appeared in her hand, seemingly from the air, and she pierced the stony skin that was slowly entrapping Kazgi.  He stopped screaming and the rocky formation began to crack and fall off his skin.

"Here," she tossed the big man the needle, "You may want to hang onto that."

Mernof gripped his dagger tighter, "Ok, you had your fun. . ." He held out his hand toward her. "If you don't mind we'd like to have what we came for."

De Marinbou smiled again, smugly this time. "What about payment?  What do you have for me?"

Ana put her dagger away, pulling a pouch that clinked with coins off her belt.  She dropped it on the table and pushed it toward de Marinbou.  The ivory lady merely stared it, abruptly saying, "That's not quite enough, I need more."

"That's all we can spare!" Ana shouted, "What more could you want?!"

De Marinbou's arm drew up, her finger pointing to each of the party members in turn. She stopped, pointing past four of them. "You," she said.

Behind Kanas, cowering in the corner, was Yulie.  She shivered, wrapped in her cape, and pushed up her large-lensed glasses to focus on the voluptuous woman.  Her heart pounded in her chest.

Mernof looked back at the small girl, "What? Yulie? What for?"

De Marinbou stood up, the chairs and table disappearing into a fine mist.  The coins in the pouch scatted upon the floor.  What they couldn't see before was that she was wearing a pair of baroquely detailed undergarments, completed with a garter belt and stockings.  None of them could say they saw that one coming.

"I need her."

"I said what for! Give me a straight answer, woman!"  Mernof's voice cracked embarrassingly.

"Her blood."  She flashed them a toothy smile, revealing some rather sharp looking canines.

Ana interjected, "Well you can't have her!  . . .You can have my blood if you want!"

De Marinbou rolled her eyes, "Blood isn't like wine, my dear, it doesn't get better with age.  No, I need sweet, fresh virgin blood . . . and she's the perfect candidate."

"What was that?!" Ana hissed.

Her eyes shot the other woman a stern gaze, putting her off balance for a moment.  "You can wait until I'm done or you can go.  I can assure you, she won't be harmed."

Mernof cleared his throat, ". . . and she'll be given back in the same condition?"

Ana was shocked, "Mernof, you can't be serious!"

"I can't guarantee that she will. . ."  De Marinbou held up the phial and played around with it with her fingers. "It's this or nothing."

The gears in Mernof's head churned so loudly you could almost hear them.  Their plans hinged on that petrifying potion and if Yulie was to return to them anyway, what did he have to lose?

". . .Alright. Deal."

Yulie timidly shrieked, "B-but! But boss-!"

"Deal."  She handed them the phial and the door unlocked and reopened itself.  "If you don't mind, I'd like to conclude my business with her alone."

Mernof shuffled out of the room, clutching the potion to his chest, while the other three gave one last look at small Yulie.

Kanas put a hand on her shoulder, "We'll wait for ya at th' tunnel."  Ana and Kazgi followed him out of the chamber and the door behind was shut once more.  Now it was just the girl and the woman.

De Marinbou tapped her cheek thoughtfully, scanning Yulie with her striking eyes.  "Yes . . . perfect indeed."

The young girl fidgeted and looked at the floor, "W-what do you need me to do, my lady. . .?"

The vampire turned from her, beckoning her with a smile and open hand, "Follow me, you won't need to do much. And please, call me Meredith. . ."

Yulie hesitantly crossed the room, looking up at the beautiful woman.  With a sway of her hand, the vampire conjured a doorway on a once vacant wall.  It swung open on its own and they both entered.

The next room was finely furnished, graceful and elegant as any highborn noble would have it.  Yulie was drawn back, her fear replaced with awe and giddiness.  She felt like a princess standing in here, although it could've used a window or two.

As Yulie gazed in wonderment, Meredith undid the fastener on her cloak, draping it over her arm before setting it on a chair in front of mirror.  Meredith looked at the reflective plane, watching as Yulie turned to look as well, only finding that Meredith had no reflection at all.  She skipped beside the vampire, waving her arm in front and behind her, experimenting with this odd phenomenon.

"Its part of the curse, as is what I need you for, little Yulie."  Meredith turned sorrowfully from the mirror, sitting on the large, red sheeted bed.  She patted a spot next to her, "Sit down, would you? And take off that cumbersome looking cape. . ."

The young girl blushed, the heat of her skin fogging up her glasses.  She unclipped the cape and let it fall to the floor, but then she quickly picked it up and set it over the same chair.  She was sleight and lithe, even through her black-clad tunic.  Yulie was unsure as to how this had anything to do with drinking blood, but she felt compelled to do anything Meredith asked of her. . .

Next she found herself sitting next to the curvy vampire, tense and shaking.  "You. . . said it won't hurt. . . right . . .?"

Meredith stroked Yulie's  face, taking off her large glasses.  "My dear, you won't feel a thing . . . at least not right away. . ."