Logan and Beauty stared at each other. They stood within arm’s reach, but the distance felt much greater. The truth about her lust enhancing venom stood between them; a chasm he was uncertain how to navigate around.

“Alright, Beauty. I did my part. Now go and do yours.”

She nodded, but there was something in her body language that did not indicate confidence in the task she was about to attempt. That did not reassure him. Doubt was an emotion Logan had never seen on the demon’s face before now.

The subject of their conversation lay where they had left her. Venom from the big demon they had killed earlier that day still held her in its sexual grip. The poor woman writhed on the cave moss that was their bed, groping her own body, chasing an orgasm that would never come. Not, according to Beauty, without help.

Walking over to the squirming woman, he knelt out of her reach. “Miss, can you hear me?”

“Yes,” she gasped. “So hot… it burns.”

“I understand. I do.” Logan tried to offer a gentle smile. “My friend is going to help you. What’s your name?”

“Karen? I can’t… I don’t…”

“It’s okay, Karen,” Logan murmured. “It’s going to be okay.” Rising to his feet, he stepped away, trying to ignore the shades of uncertainty churning in his belly.

Beauty moved closer to the woman writhing on their bed, staring in silent contemplation as if deciding how best to proceed. Slowly, the Succubus turned to look at Logan. “Watch,” she said.

Logan cocked an eyebrow. “Watch hot, lesbian sex? I think I can manage that.”

“No.” She poked him in the chest with a finger. “Watch. See.”

Something in her tone of voice made the smirk on his lips wither and die. There was an intensity in her golden eyes that he could not identify. “Yes, I will watch.”

The succubus gave him a long, unreadable look before turning her attention to the woman who was writhing and moaning on their moss bed. On impulse, Logan reached out to lay a hand on Beauty’s shoulder. She glanced back at him, expression unreadable.

“Do you know what you are doing?” he asked.

“No.”

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. “Beauty, perhaps this isn’t…”

She silenced him with a gentle finger against his lips. “I fix. Make better.”

Logan looked back at her, speechless. What could he say? This task was what he had asked of her. For better or worse, whatever happened next was his responsibility.

Beauty began to slowly circle the human woman; every step was languid and graceful. Each movement of the demon’s toned body flowed, one into the next in a silent dance. The Succubus stared into Karen’s eyes. Claws, black and sharply curved like a tiger’s, emerged and withdrew from her fingertips, emerged and withdrew, an unconscious action like the beating of a heart.

Not a dance. Logan corrected himself. A hunt.

This was not sex, hot lesbian or otherwise. At least not yet. Faced with an uncertain outcome, the demon instinctively reverted to what she knew best, re-creating the dynamic of hunter and prey.

What he was seeing, he realized, was the real Beauty. The pure, primal essence of what she had been before Logan. A sexual carnivore. An instinctual, apex predator.

Karen sensed it as well. She went still and silent, hardly daring to breathe. Her dark eyes were wide open, unable to look away as Beauty prowled around in a slow circle. Like a rabbit, Karen was spellbound by the unwavering hunger in those glowing, lantern eyes. The woman’s chest rose and fell in sharp breaths. Her limbs trembled with equal parts of fear and need. Rose-color blazed on both cheeks from raw, sexual desire.

Logan stared at what he could only think of as a game of cat and mouse, except the mouse ached to be caught as much as she feared it. And the cat… the cat wanted to feed, knowing it could not.

Fear and longing, danger and desire. Sexual foreplay in Hell.

Watch. See. Beauty had all but demanded it of him. Was this what she meant for him to witness and understand? He did not know. They were on the edge of the map now. What happened next was anyone’s guess. The air was thick with the promise of undefined possibilities and unknown consequences.

Beauty dropped to hands and knees, crawled toward the woman’s feet, and reached out. Karen gasped at the demon’s silken touch on the delicate skin of her ankles. Slowly, without ever breaking eye contact, Beauty crawled further up her pale, trembling body, exploring and trailing sheathed fingertips up the gentle curve of calf, and knee, and thigh.

"Yes, oh yes," Karen moaned. "More. Please."

Beauty continued gliding up the woman’s lithe, eager body, relentless in her search to explore and inflame every erogenous zone she could find. The Succubus moved with singular focus from the top of Karen’s thighs, to the quivering plane of her flat belly, up the gasping frame of her ribcage and onward to the swell of pale breasts. Karen trembled and sighed, writhed and moaned, beneath the featherlight assault of the demon's expert touch.

Beauty stopped.

Karen whined, a wordless sound of protest. The Succubus lifted herself up over her plaything and back down. Beauty’s full breasts and pert nipples brushed against the other woman’s smaller, but no less reactive, nipples.

Karen’s mouth fell open in a keening whisper of pleasure, twisting and thrashing beneath the electric contact of breast-to-breast. The Succubus took that as an invitation and claimed her mouth with a ravenous assault of hungry kisses. Lips and tongues danced together in an erotic display of growing hunger. Beauty let her weight settle fully on the other woman. Legs spread and tangled together. Whether through courage or just desperate need, Karen broke the spell enough to reach out and begin to explore the demon’s lush body in return. Soft moans of pleasure floated on the still air as two bodies writhed together on the moss.

Lean muscle flexed beneath lavender skin as the Succubus placed her hands on the ground and arched her back in invitation. Karen was quick to accept, leaning up to trace the contours of Beauty’s full breasts with her pale, slim fingers and flick her pink tongue over purple nipples. The woman groaned into the ample swell of Succubus breast filling her mouth.

She reached up to trace fingertips along the delicate, inner curve of wet, lavender thighs, kissing high and touching low as Beauty hissed in pleasure. Karen brushed one finger between Beauty’s swollen nether lips. The demon spasmed and rolled her hips in hungry anticipation of more. Karen eagerly obliged, sliding two fingers up into her and stroking Beauty’s inner walls with a slow, gentle motion. Her thumb brushed against the hidden nub of Beauty’s clit.

The demon cried out her bliss and reached back with one hand to offer the same in return. Her fingers found and entered Karen’s pussy, tickling and teasing her dripping flesh toward orgasm. Gentle exploration grew frantic. Two female voices began to rise, ragged and needful.

Quite suddenly, Beauty pushed Karen onto her back and began to crawl higher up the woman’s petite frame, orgasm denied. The woman’s eyes flew open wide, her expression wild. A sound of raw, primal desperation burst from Karen’s throat.

Beauty continued to climb up her lover’s body. Karen kissed, licked, nibbled, and moaned along the muscled contours of the demon’s soft, sleek belly. Higher the Succubus crawled, brushing the delicate, snow-white, wisps of her pubic hair against the woman’s nose. Karen made a sound of pure animal desire. Beauty settled above her, silky thighs to either side of her head.

The demon girl looked right at Logan. Golden eyes flared with lust and fluttered with pleasure as Karen eagerly buried her face between the demon’s legs. One lavender hand settled into dark hair and pulled the pale face deeper into the wet, purple folds of the demon’s sex.

Muscles flexed as the Succubus began to gyrate on Karen’s face. Beauty’s magnificent breasts bounced and swayed with every gasp and grind. She sank lower, pinning the woman’s head between moss and the scalding heat of her white-haired sex. Karen squirmed and squealed, a willing captive securely held in place by strong thighs and a firm grip tangled in the long strands of her dark hair.

Beauty stared into Logan’s eyes as she climaxed. Shudders rippled over her generous curves. Karen’s muffled squeals of bliss echoed around the chamber walls as she writhed under Beauty’s weight and diligently swallowed, licked, and sucked the Succubus to completion.

When the tremors had passed, Beauty lifted one leg over, giving Logan a perfect view of her wet, swollen sex, and reversed direction. She bent low between Karen’s legs, arching her back and placing her perfectly round ass on display. He watched her mane of white hair begin to move in a slow rhythm as fingers and tongue dove into Karen’s aching pussy. The woman uttered a short, soft, scream of delight before Beauty’s weight and wet folds settled once more onto her lips.

The tempo increased, as did the volume of their combined efforts as each licked and sucked the other toward orgasm. The movement of Beauty’s ass was hypnotic as muscles coiled, and the firm globes swayed over the other woman’s face and soft spill of dark hair. A chorus of rising desire and the raunchy, wet, sound of females in heat bounced off the cavern walls. The scent of pussy filled the air like perfume.

Beauty began to convulse and growl as the first shock waves of a second orgasm rolled through her body. Almost immediately, Karen began to wail her release, eyes rolling up into the back of her head and thrashing beneath Beauty’s weight as the proverbial dam burst. Her screams hovered somewhere between pain and pleasure, even with her face buried in demon pussy.

Several things happened next, both swift and subtle. Had he not been watching so intently, Logan might have missed it all.

The glow of the crystals at the back of the cavern flickered as the women began to cum. The orange hue almost seemed to brighten toward a lighter shade of color. The barest shift up the color spectrum.

Before Logan could give it more than a passing thought, Beauty leaped off of her partner as if stung by a wasp. Her face contorted, and her mouth opened to reveal sharp fangs. Feeding seemed a foregone conclusion. At the last moment, by sheer force of will, the Succubus staggered back and turned away.

At the same time, spots of color bloomed on Karen’s cheeks like a school girl’s blush. Her hair appeared to gain some measure of luster and shine. A warm hue seeped into her complexion.

Logan stared wide-eyed. She looked… alive.

Beauty rushed by, headed toward the exit. Logan spared a quick moment to confirm Karen seemed to be okay, then turned to follow. He found the Succubus standing at the cavern entrance looking out into the dark. The claws of one hand scratched absently at the rock beside her head.

He touched her shoulder. She flinched. The muscles beneath her silken skin were coiled tight with tension.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

She shrugged him off, nodded, then shook her head and snapped her teeth.

“I’m… not sure how to translate that,” Logan admitted.

“Feel…” she growled. “What is word for not feel as should?”

“There are many.” He shrugged. “If you do not feel healthy, then sick or ill. If you feel like fighting, you might be angry or upset. If you don’t know what’s wrong, then I guess you could say weird.”

“Feel weird.”

“Oh. Did having sex with that woman… did that feel wrong?”

“No. After.”

“Ah,” he replied. “Not feeding on her.”

“Yes.” Beauty snapped her teeth together. “Weird.”

“You have never had sex without feeding before now, have you? Never just for fun?”

She shook her head. “Food. Fun. Same.”

Logan sighed. “Right.”

“Until you.”

Before he could think of a reply, Beauty leaped off the ledge to the ground below and stalked off into the darkness. Briefly, Logan considered chasing after but refrained. Leaving Karen unsupervised was not an option, and even if he caught up, what could he say?

Something had changed between them. Something precious had been lost, and he did not know how to get it back.

One problem at a time. Logan sighed and turned back into the cavern. Walking in, he found Karen lying just where Beauty had left her. A quick examination seemed to indicate that she had suffered no ill effects from the unusual encounter with Beauty. In fact, the woman finally seemed to be at peace and sleeping soundly.

Good. She could use some rest after that ordeal. That was another weight off of his mind. So why was something still nagging at the back of his thoughts?

Watch. See. Beauty had demanded it of him and not, he suspected, for his voyeuristic pleasure. There was something specific she had wanted him to learn about or see. Unfortunately, whether he had seen what she had wanted him to see remained undetermined.

Logan wandered over to the cluster of glowing, orange crystals for a closer examination. Until now, he had thought of it only as a convenient light source to drive the darkness of the cavern away. Now that seemed a little naive.

There were six in total branching out from a central crystalline core. Five of them were close to the same size, none longer than his open hand, palm to fingertip. All except one. Reaching out, he touched the largest crystal that was nearly the length of his forearm and as thick as his wrist. It was smooth like glass and surprisingly warm.

That’s interesting. Logan struggled to remember long-forgotten high school lessons in physics. Warmth and light mean the crystals are emitting energy of some kind, I think. What was that quote? “Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, only… transformed? Directed?” He sighed. Dammit, I should have paid more attention in class.

Maybe it meant something important, and maybe it didn’t. Clearly, the laws of physics did not entirely apply here in Hell anyway. The proof was flying demons. By any realistic standard, that should be impossible. Human shaped creatures just were not built to fly, wings or no, but down here they flew anyway, laws of aerodynamics be damned.

More questions without answers. Unfortunately, there was nothing to be done at the moment except put it away for later consideration. File it with the rest under “W” for what the hell is going on. He thought.

Logan turned his attention to Karen. In hindsight, his earlier estimation of looking “alive” was a bit of a stretch. She still had that ghostly complexion of a soul damned to hell, just much less so than before her tryst with Beauty. It was a huge improvement, to be sure. And yet, something was still bothering him, some missing piece of the puzzle.

Instinct was telling him something was off, and the combat soldier in him was inclined to listen. Logan looked again, using a trick he had learned on deployment by focusing on no particular detail, instead of seeing the whole picture. Letting the little details filter through his subconscious…

Fluids. He thought. The woman in front of him had just been face deep in steaming wet, demon pussy. Yet no trace of wetness or fluid could be seen on her lips, cheeks, or chin. He checked, with some discomfort, between her legs. Again, there was no evidence that a smoking hot Succubus had been munching on her mound. There was no physical evidence that a sexual encounter had occurred at all only minutes ago.

Everything in Hell seemed to be smoke and mirrors. Nothing was real, not even bodily fluids. Wounds bled only a wispy kind of smoke instead of blood.

Except for himself, of course. Logan bled when wounded. His sexual fluids did not just vanish. For whatever reason, he was the exception to what passed for “reality” in this nightmare dimension.

Was any of this real? Was it a dream? In truth, it seemed to be a little of both. Either way, there had to be some sense of how things worked. Things he had to learn for there to be any hope of continued survival.

Logan looked down at the pretty, young, Asian woman sleeping on his bed of moss and tried not to dwell on all that she represented. His fragile hopes rested on her slim shoulders now. He thought about Beauty and sighed. “I hope this gamble is worth whatever price we paid.”

*****

Some hours later, muffled sounds and slow movement indicated that Karen had begun to wake. Logan let her be, focusing on cooking dinner and taking inventory of the loot acquired from Dead Red. It was, he was pleased to note, a good haul.

A leather pouch of coins jingled nice and heavy in his hand. Combined with the other coins, it felt like they had gathered a significant amount of money. That would come in handy soon enough to buy supplies.

There was also a short sword of the same dark metal as his dagger. It vaguely resembled a Roman gladius. Top-heavy with a thick, double-edged blade equally suited to chopping or stabbing. Logan was certainly not a swordsman, but another blade could not hurt at all.

Beyond that, Dead Red had worn a jeweled ring and a golden armband that would surely fetch a good price in any thriving market, and gladiator-style leather armor plates across the shoulder and one arm. A design was stamped into the leather of a snake coiled to strike. Regarding the armor, he would have preferred something that protected his bare abs rather than shows them off. Still, armor of any kind was far better than being naked from the waist up. After weeks of running around bare-chested, he had almost forgotten how it felt to wear a shirt.

Finally, there was a leather bladder filled with some kind of eye-watering alcohol. It smelled like peppermint flavored paint thinner, judging by the scent stinging his nostrils. Still, as desperate for supplies, any supplies, as they were, even this had value. It might do for disinfecting wounds, or stripping paint if there was any paint to strip in Hell. Regardless, he had no interest in a taste test.

Hearing movement behind him, he turned to see that Karen was sitting up and looking around in obvious confusion. The clawing hunger seemed to be gone. There was clarity in her dark eyes, but also caution as she looked at Logan. Her expression was tense and wary, only a short step away from fear.

Logan offered what he hoped was a friendly smile. “Hello, Karen. How do you feel?”

“I…” She shook her head. “What happened? Where am I?”

He gestured around his head. “Both very good questions, Karen. This is our… well, home is a bit overly optimistic. Our shelter. You were attacked by a big, horny demon. We helped you. Don’t you remember?”

She was a long time answering. Confusion passed across her face like a shadow. Gradually, Karen looked at him with a kind of wonder in her eyes. “The hunger. It’s… gone!”

He nodded. “That’s good to hear. Anyway, you’re safe here.”

“Safe.” She spoke the word as if uncertain what it meant.

“Yep,” Logan replied, keeping his focus on turning the meat over the fire, making no eye contact or sudden moves. “Hungry?”

“I… remember food.”

He made an effort not to wince at the plaintive tone of loss in her voice. “That’s an… interesting response. Do you not eat? Out there?”

“The dead do not eat.”

“I see.” Logan nodded. “Good to know. Well, there is more than enough for two. If you want.”

“Why am I here? What do you want?”

Tension thrummed in her voice. Logan feared she might bolt for the exit at any moment. He pointed at the meat, cooking on a spit and dripping sizzling fat into the flames. “My name is Logan, and I want to eat dinner. Would you like to come sit by the fire and join me?”

She looked around, peering into the shadows. “There was someone else. I remember…” A hand drifted up to brush against her breast. The gesture seemed to startle her.

“That would be Beauty.” He replied as casually as possible. “She’s out hunting. I think. It’s kind of her form of aerobics.”

“A demon.” Her tone could have been a statement or accusation.

“Yep.” He nodded and turned the spit over the flames. “That too.”

“She is your Master?”

Logan found it interesting that Karen framed the question as if it were almost a foregone conclusion. The implications chilled him to the bone. He looked her in the eye. “No, Karen. Beauty is my… she is a friend. I call no one Master. Never have. Never will.”

“I don’t understand,” she muttered.

“That makes two of us,” Logan sighed. “But I want to understand, and I’m really hoping you can help me do that.” Logan smiled at her to lighten the mood. “But, not on an empty stomach.”

Logan heard the sound of slow, uncertain footsteps approaching. By the time he had the meat off the spit and cooling on a rock, she had come close enough to stand in his peripheral vision. He pretended as if he was unaware of her presence, afraid to move too swiftly and accidentally startle her into flight.

One small step at a time, she drew closer, drawn to the warmth and light of the fire. Logan cut a bit of meat off, placed it on a smaller rock, and set it off to one side before tucking into his meal. Eventually, she mustered the courage to sit by the fire. It was longer still before she reached for the food.

Karen held the small strip of meat as if struggling to remember what to do with it. She sniffed at it, then took a small bite. As she chewed, her lips trembled, and a tear spilled from her eye, as if it were the finest cut of steak and not half-burnt bristle pig.

“This is meat,” she whispered.

“It is, yes.” Logan nodded, but inside he fought to keep the astonishment off of his face at her over-the-top reaction to food. Did she not even remember the taste of food? What kind of horrid zombie condition had she been suffering before now?

“I remember this now.” Karen offered a faint smile of gratitude and took another small bite, slowly savoring each greasy morsel.

They ate in peaceful silence. After a time, Logan could feel her eyes on him. He looked up at the confusion casting a shadow across her pretty features and dark, liquid eyes.

“You look like you want to ask a question,” he prodded ever so gently. “It’s okay. Ask away.”

Karen chewed at her lower lip, obviously struggling to summon the courage to speak up. “I don’t understand at all. The Succubus you call Beauty… she fucked me, yet did not feed. You look human and wear the clothes of the Masters, but have declared that you are free. Instead, you claim friendship… to a demon. You have carried me to this place but have not had your way with me yet. You only show me kindness. Why?”

“That is… a lot to unpack,” Logan admitted. “Just for the record, when you say Masters, I assume you are talking about demons in general and not some specific niche group, yeah?”

To his surprise, she shook her head. “Not exactly. The Masters are older, more powerful, and far more dangerous. Some call them Elder demons. I have heard that they do not simply feed on the damned. They capture and enslave. We want nothing to do with their kind.”

“So, the big demon we saved you from, he was a Master, an Elder demon?”

“No.” Karen pointed at the striking snake design stamped into the leather shoulder guard Logan had taken for his use. “But, he served one. That is the emblem of a Master. Wearing it marks you as his or her servant.”

He touched the snake design on his shoulder. “Interesting. Probably some kind of military rank or mark of fealty.” Logan shrugged. “Well, it’s mine now. Spoils of war and finder’s keepers. He wasn’t the first. Beauty and I have terminated three so far, including the big bastard that attacked you.”

“That’s not possible.” She looked at Logan as if he had suddenly begun to speak in a foreign language.

“Of course it’s possible.” Logan paused to gather his thoughts. “Karen, do humans not fight back? Resist the demons… er, the Masters?”

“No.”

Logan could hear the deeper truth ringing in that one word answer like a bell. He might as well have asked, “Can the humans not grow wings out of their butts and fly around upside down?” In her mind, it would have been no more ridiculous a question.

“Karen…” Logan thought carefully about how to phrase his next words. “Do you know where you are? What this place is, outside of this cavern, I mean?”

She nodded and stared at her food. “Hell,” she whispered. “This is Hell, and we are damned.”

There it was. The soldier in him understood and despaired. Resistance required more than just weapons and courage. More than anything, it required hope to make it a struggle worth fighting. In Karen’s graceful, Asian eyes, Logan saw none.

He sighed, poked at the fire, and stared into the dancing flames. “I hate this miserable, fucking place.”

“What?” she asked.

“Nothing.” He pretended to smile. “More meat?”

A companionable silence settled between them. The crackle and pop of the flames was the only sound until the soft tread of feet drew Logan’s attention. Beauty stepped into the cave and the radiance of the flames, holding a fat little bristle pig slung over one shoulder. Her cat eyes glowed like golden lanterns in the firelight. Dancing shadows highlighted her taut muscles and generous curves.

Logan thought she looked like an amazon, fierce and beautiful. Karen had an entirely different reaction. She stared at the Succubus, wide-eyed and frozen with fear.

“Karen, it’s OK.” Carefully, he rose to his feet and stepped toward the frightened woman. “As I said, Beauty is a friend. No one is going to hurt you.”

She offered no response. Karen did not indicate being aware of anything or anyone except Beauty. Logan moved over to her side. “Karen, look at me. Look at me.”

The tendons in her neck stood out like steel cables as her head twitched and slowly turned to see him. Karen’s eyes were wild. Yet, her nipples had grown taught. Logan caught the faint scent of her arousal on the air.

Even now, fear and lust battled for supremacy in the poor woman. Perhaps it was the lingering effects of the demon venom that caused such a reaction. Then again, maybe it was just in the air of this twisted, terrible realm.

“Karen, this is Beauty. She saved you. Don’t you remember?”

The woman’s eyes moved back to the Succubus, standing at the entrance to the cave. Beauty watched the exchange with a tilt of her snow-crested head.

“I don’t… I can’t…”

“Karen.” Logan tried speaking on a soothing voice. “You’re safe. She won’t hurt you. Swear to God.”

An angry shriek nearly made Logan jump out of his skin. It had not been Karen. Logan turned to see Beauty looking at him with a shocked expression. Then, in response to the demon’s sudden outburst and already on the ragged edge of panic, Karen screamed and fled toward the back of the cavern.

“No, Logan.” The Succubus violently shook her head. “No! Weird!”

“What the hell…” He looked back and forth in complete bafflement from one female to the other. One was glaring at him and the other vanishing into darkness in mindless terror. “…just happened?”

Beauty looked angry. “Not say that word, Logan. Weird!”

“What word?” He could almost hear the click as pieces fell into place. “Oh,” he said. “Oh!” Logan leaped to his feet and walked over to Beauty. “So, that’s what passes for foul language down here? I’m sorry. I didn’t know. OK, no more references to the big G upstairs, I promise.”

“Weird, Logan,” Beauty chastised in a gentler voice.

“Got it,” he scowled, pinched the bridge of his nose against the first dull throb of a headache, and looked around for Karen. “Now it seems that I need to go convince our guest that you are not going to eat her. Be right back.”

Logan fished a stick from the fire and coaxed it to life as a torch to light his way. The back of the cavern continued beyond the large chamber they called home, twisting and tunneling deeper into the earth. Once again, he considered exploring further, but, as always, there were more important things to be done.

Navigating around twists of rock and tall stalagmites, he found Karen curled up in an alcove, shivering with fright, and wide-eyed. Eventually, time and gentle words coaxed her back into the firelight until he finally had the demon girl and the human woman facing each other across the fire pit. Logan stood between them, swallowing his frustration and reminding himself to suck it up and handle it. That this was all his bright idea and, thus, his responsibility.

He walked over, slid his arm around Beauty’s waist in a gesture of solidarity, and tried not to think too much on how awkward it now felt to touch her. When he spoke, Logan’s tone was kind but firm. “One more time, this is Beauty. Yes, she is a demon. She also saved you from a bad end. Feel free to say thank you.”

“Thank you?” Karen gasped.

“Your welcome,” Logan shot back. “See? All best buds now.”

The two females looked at each other. Somehow, Logan didn’t think they agreed with his assessment of the situation. This is going to be a long night. He thought.

*****

“Now, let’s all just sit down, talk like civilized people, and figure out our next steps. Karen, I still have questions. I hope you will have some answers.”

So saying, Logan took a seat on a rock he had rolled over to the fire as an impromptu chair. Beauty did the same, settling into her accustomed place on their moss bed by the fire. Both of them pretended that there was not an awkward silence still hanging between them. Reluctantly, Karen shuffled over and lowered her bum to an outcropping of rock.

“I’m so confused,” she mumbled.

“Then, you are in good company,” Logan replied. “Because I have been in a constant state of confusion since waking up in this nightmare. Maybe together we can clear some of that up.”

Karen nodded. “I’ll try.”

“Good.” He smiled. “That's all we can expect. What do you remember of your life from… before all of this?”

“Just bits and pieces.” She shrugged. “I remember a tree that makes me feel safe. The smell of grass. A child’s toy for riding on. Green with yellow stripes and two wheels.”

“Sounds like a bicycle,” he replied.

“Bicycle!” Karen smiled. “Yes, that’s it.”

Logan nodded. “Interesting. Something very similar happened to me. It would seem that crossing over from the land of the living comes with a free memory wipe. The good news is that I remember more every day. I suspect you probably will as well. Alright then. Let’s talk about the present situation. What can you tell me about Hell itself? It’s inhabitants? The geography? Cities or towns? I know almost nothing, so anything helps.”

Karen stared into the fire and shrugged. “I have heard rumors. Two cities, both enormous, vile nests where the Masters live in luxury and slaves service their every depraved desire. The nearest is called Gomorrah; only a few days travel from here.”

“Ah,” he replied. “Let me guess. The other city must be Sodom.”

“Yes. How did you know?”

“Lucky guess. How very Biblical.”

“It is said that male slaves are sent to Sodom. Gomorrah trades in female souls. Or so I have heard.”

“That sounds about right,” Logan said. “That was what you thought we were doing to you, yes? Capturing you to be a slave?”

Karen nodded. “I met another soul once who claimed to have escaped from Gomorrah. He said he was captured and sold to a Master as a sex slave. He also said…” Karen huddled into herself and rubbed at her arms as if suddenly chilled. “He said that he was one of the lucky ones. That there was a worse fate than slavery.”

“What does that mean?” he asked.

She shook her head. “I don’t know.”

“No worries.” Logan smiled gently. “Believe it or not, you have been very helpful. I’m just sorry you have had to suffer so much pain.”

“Our fate is to suffer for our sins,” Karen sighed.

A hot, surge of primal fury took his breath away. “I am disinclined to acquiesce to that request.”

“I don’t understand.”

Logan offered a grim smile. “It means the Masters can fuck right off.”

Karen looked at him as if seeing Logan for the first time. “Who are you?”

He shook his head. “No one of consequence.”

“I don’t believe that.” She looked him up and down, especially at the weapons and armor he wore. “You are as strong as one of them. Strong enough to fight them and win. Yet, you know almost nothing of the world outside this cave. How is that possible?”

“I honestly do not know,” he replied. “That is just one of the things I hope you can help me understand… eventually. For now, let’s talk about something else.”

“Alright,” she sighed. “What do you want to talk about?”

“You,” Logan answered. “Karen, I need your help. There is so much I need to know. About Hell. About the human souls trapped here and about the Masters ruling over them. Can you explain these things to me?”

She nodded. “I can try.”

“Atta girl.” Logan winked.

“Although I’m not sure where to even begin.” Karen frowned.

He settled back against the wall, laced his fingers together, and crossed his ankles. “Let’s start with something you said earlier. You made a curious comment about the Masters. You said, 'We want nothing to do with their kind.' instead of saying, 'We want nothing to do with demons of any kind.' Why did you make that distinction? It almost sounded like there are some demons you don’t try to avoid. Am I mistaken?”

Karen gave him an odd look. “Have you never tried to pet the Hell Hound?”

Logan blinked at her in surprise. “I… no. Explain it to me like I have no idea what you are talking about, please.”

“You ask the strangest questions!” Karen shook her head, clearly baffled by the topic. “Alright, then. The sexual hunger all damned souls feel, it never ends, as you well know. That hunger can drive you crazy. Most, not you apparently, but most of us eventually become desperate enough to seek relief, however, and wherever we can find it.”

“Demons?” Logan asked.

Karen nodded. “Young ones.” She gestured at Beauty. “Like her. Yes, they feed on us but, if we are lucky, they don’t take too much.

“Wait.” Logan held a hand up. “Didn’t you say that being fed on was agony?”

“Yes, and no.” Karen shrugged. “It is an agony of intense pleasure. So intense, it hurts, but still better than the alternative, such as if an Elder demon catches you. Like the one you saved me from.”

“What is worse than excruciating agony?” Logan asked.

“Pain eventually ends,” Karen replied. “Enslavement is forever. That is why we damned souls called it petting the Hell Hound because it is an act of desperation, a great risk, and sometimes the Hound bites.”

*****

Logan lay on the moss, in the silence, and watched the shadows creep in as the fire continued to flicker and die. Even the ever-present Hellwind had ceased to moan and scratch at the rock outside. The cluster of crystals was a steady, orange glow against the back cavern wall. Karen slept awkwardly on the far side of the fire, on the unyielding ground, with her back to him. A small pile of animal hides to rest her head on had been the only comfort he could offer.

Beauty was curled up almost in her accustomed place, on her side with her back to him. They did not spoon, did not touch as they normally would. Only a few scant inches between them, but it felt much farther.

Perhaps she slept; perhaps she merely lay still. Like so many things where the Succubus was concerned, he could not know for certain. Despite the luscious curves of her naked body, it had never been more clear that she was not human. To judge her by human standards had been a painful mistake that he did not intend to repeat. What that meant in practical terms remained to be seen. The current status of their relationship remained… undetermined.

That would have to be addressed, and sooner rather than later. He could not afford to alienate his only ally. Now that Karen’s recovery seemed well underway, Logan had to find a way to set things right with the Succubus. How he was going to do that also remained a mystery.

1. His future.

Be careful what you wish for. He quoted. You just might get it. It was a thought that tasted of bitter irony, one that circled in his brain like a vulture over fresh roadkill, ugly and persistent.

He had wanted to understand Beauty better. He had wanted answers from Karen. Now Logan had both.

Goddammit. He thought.

Long after the conversation was over, Karen’s words still haunted his every thought. The picture she had painted of life in Hell was all he feared and more. Human souls, wandering naked and helpless across a nightmare landscape. Sometimes in small tribes but more often alone because large numbers drew unwanted attention. Tortured by their own unending, insatiable sexual hunger. Aching for a release that could only bring greater suffering. Endlessly hunted by demonic overlords, for sport, or profit, or just for amusement.

All his life, Hell had been nothing more than a children’s cautionary tale. Be good, or you will go to Hell. Even experiencing it first hand had not revealed the sublime horror of what it truly meant to be a damned soul, forever trapped, forever suffering. And for what? Was this part of some grand plan from a cosmic being that he didn’t even believe was real?

It made no sense! An eternity of pain, prison without hope of parole, for the sin of being human? A starving person steals a loaf of bread and gets to pay penance until the end of time? How was that fair? How in the fuck was that a plan, divine or otherwise?

The very idea was twisted and sadistic. It was wrong. It was evil, and he wanted no part of it.

Not my god. Not my afterlife. I don’t belong here.

Logan went very still as an idea took root in his mind. A seemingly impossible idea but under the circumstances…

Queen Maeve put me here. She claimed she could take me back out again if I just called her name. That means there is a way out. It can be done. I can find a way out!

To escape Hell itself. How such a thing could be accomplished, he could not begin to imagine. It didn’t matter. He had to try. Find a way out or die trying. Either option was preferable to where he was now.

Even a desperate plan was better than no plan at all. For the first time since descending into Hell, Logan fell into a peaceful sleep and dreamed of blue skies, fresh bread, and laughter.