Victoria Rayne,
Author

Kelsin woke in his bed to a throbbing headache. The blinds in his bedroom were open, a beam of sunlight pouring directly over his face. He covered his eyes with one arm and groaned.

He couldn’t remember much of the night before. There had been a devilish smile, a flash of teeth, and the cool touch of a man’s fingers intertwined with his. He wasn’t sure how much he’d drunk or how far he’d gone with that attractive stranger.

His whole body ached as he pushed himself up. His neck stung horribly, and he touched the side of it to find the rough, scabby surface of a dried wound. When he pulled his hand back, he was met with flecks of dry blood.

“My god.”

He stumbled as he stood, still blinded by the light, fumbling for the blinds and twisting them shut. Only when the room was plunged into relative darkness could he begin to think straight.

He headed for the hallway, but stopped when he caught a glimpse of himself through the mirror mounted to the door. His hair was matted from sleep, his face covered in indents from the crumpled sheets.

Something was different.

As he stepped closer, he decided it was his eyes. Either the light was playing tricks on him, or their color was off.

He brushed the thought aside for later as he made his way into the kitchen. His roommate, Anna, stood before the open fridge. She turned to him with a smile. “Hey, Kels! How was your Halloween—oh, you don’t look good.”

“I feel awful,” he groaned. “I think I had way too much to drink last night.”

“Look at your neck!” She slammed the fridge shut, closing the distance immediately. “It looks like a bite. Damn, you actually hooked up with someone! Someone… intense.”

“I guess. I honestly don’t remember.”

“Sit down, sit down. I’ll get you some ibuprofen and a glass of water.” She put her hands on his shoulders, ushering him to their rickety kitchen table before pushing him down into one of the seats.

As she got close, a delightful scent hit Kelsin’s nose. Lavender and vanilla… He blinked slowly, savoring it. He’d never paid any mind to the way she smelled, but right now, it was making his head spin.

As she moved away to fetch him his painkiller, the scent faded with her. Kelsin leaned forward, chasing it. God, he felt like a creep. Something was wrong with him today.

He watched her as she turned her back, filling a glass with cold water from the Brita filter. His eyes moved down to the roundness of her butt, the fullness of her thighs. She wore a tight pair of flannel sleep shorts. Very short.

Kelsin had known her for about two years now and had been her roommate for one. He considered Anna pretty, but there wasn’t anything more between them. They talked openly and frequently about celebrity crushes and people they found attractive on campus. Never had they had eyes for each other.

But oh, the way she brushed her blonde hair over her shoulder as she turned around. She had such lovely cheekbones, such perfect skin. For a moment, he could have sworn he saw a sensual gleam in her eyes.

As she set the glass and two small pills down on the table, he was struck by her smell again. Her hair fell forward, brushing his arm. Despite his fatigue, he could feel his sleep pants tightening, and he put a hand over his lap, hoping she wouldn’t notice.

“Anna,” he said, unsure what he was about to say. All he knew was that he wanted her to give him that look again.

“Mm…?” She turned, still so close, and her eyes widened. “Whoa, Kels.”

“What?”

“Your eyes are so red in this light. And darker than usual. Almost crimson. You can see okay, right?”

“Yeah,” he said, a little too fast. “I can see just fine today. Better than usual.” His eyes trailed down her neck to where her low-cut shirt exposed the dip of her collarbone. His vision was better. He saw her every pore, the perfect curve of the top of her breasts…

She stood up, and overwhelming disappointment washed over him as her scent faded again. He felt like a feral animal, desperate and heated and aching for touch. Something was wrong, for sure. Very, very wrong.

“I’m going to get in the shower,” she said. “Let me know if you need anything else, okay? The milk in the fridge is fresh. You should have some cereal, even if you don’t feel like eating.”

“Thanks,” he said, his hand pressing harder over his growing arousal. “…See you later.”

Kelsin ate slowly, listening to the faint sound of running water from their shared bathroom. She was in there, naked, body glistening and wet. He couldn’t push the image from his mind.

He normally loved this brand of cereal. It was terrible for him, sugary and delicious. But today, it tasted like ash on his tongue.

He gave up on it before long, pouring the rest down the garbage disposal and throwing his bowl in the dishwasher as he considered going back to bed. He was hungover as hell, after all, and sleep would probably fix him.

He left the ibuprofen on the table, untouched.

Kelsin laid back down in the dark and willed his eyes shut, covering his face with both hands. Just sleep, he told himself, and this awfulness will be over soon.

-XXX-

When he woke, he was not in his bed.

The sharp sound of running water hit his ears before his eyes registered where he was: the bathroom. He was standing on the bathmat, face inches from the closed shower curtain. To his left, Anna’s clothes sat folded on the toilet lid. Her towel was on the hook to his right.

His confusion gave way to a burst of panic. What the hell am I doing?

But in an instant, the question was disregarded, drowned out by a burning need inside him; a sickly desperation in his gut, in the throb of his arousal. He glanced down, realizing with a start that he was naked.

Somehow, he could smell Anna, even now. It didn’t make sense—the water and the soap should have been enough to mute it, but still she was delicious. The flowery scent of her skin, the spice of the blood in her veins. On the air, he tasted something rich and syrupy, and his brain told him with confidence that it was her arousal: the slickness building between her legs.

He breathed it in slowly, letting it push all traces of thought far away. How could he possibly resist such a feast to the senses?

Behind the shower curtain, he heard her voice. It was faint at first, but came louder the second time. Moans. She was touching herself in there.

Every cell in his body buzzed to the tune of a single, overwhelming thought:

I need her.

Kelsin’s hand acted of its own accord, throwing the curtain aside to reveal Anna’s bare form.

Her eyes flew open with the sound of the curtain moving. She was leaning against the wall, her right hand between her legs and two fingers curled up inside of her body. Her other hand was on her breast.

Her eyebrows raised with surprise, but only slightly. Her pupils were blown wide as saucers. “Kelsin.”

When he spoke, his voice was lower than he’d ever heard it. “I need you, Anna.”

She held out her arms, her body slow and dazed. “Come here.”

As he stepped into the shower, the steam and hot water hit his skin and soaked his hair. Her gaze didn’t falter until he was in her arms, his lips against hers.

What stirred in him wasn’t infatuation—not like he’d felt when kissing a high school sweetheart or a middle school crush. It was pure carnal desire, a hunger that he knew only her bare skin could satisfy. Her scent was overwhelming, her touch shooting electricity through his every nerve.

The world seemed to bend and twist around them as his lips found her neck. He had no idea what he was doing, but something instinctive guided him. He grabbed one of her thighs, hiking it up around his waist, and pushed inside of her. She made a high-pitched sound, her nails digging into his back.

Her insides were incredibly tight, hot, and slick. Kelsin’s vision went spotty as the pleasure overwhelmed him. He wanted more than anything to taste her, and when his tongue pressed against her neck, he could feel the pulse of her carotid artery just beneath the skin. So warm, so full of life.

For a moment, everything faded in and out of focus, and Anna yelped. The sound was loud enough to cut through his fog of pleasure, and Kelsin pulled back with a start.

As his vision cleared, he saw red. Bright red blood dripping from her neck, and the semi-circular indents of teeth. His eyes went wide. “I—I’m sorry—”

“I don’t care,” she said. Her eyes met his, wide and bloodshot, the green of her irises nearly gone to the black of her pupils. She looked intoxicated—drunk on the sensations of him. “Don’t stop.” 

Kelsin swallowed, and a sense of euphoria washed through him as her hot, delicious blood slid down his throat. It was the most amazing thing he’d ever tasted.

She rolled her hips into his, clenching around him. “Come on… fuck me.”

The sudden pressure to his cock had Kelsin reeling. “Okay, okay.” He began to thrust up into her, and she threw her head back in delight. With every buck of his hips, he swore he could feel his own pleasure two-fold, as if he felt hers too. It was filling him, slaking a desperate thirst he didn’t know he had.

She cried out with a hard thrust, her nails raking down Kelsin’s back. His vision blotted again, this time to the point that all he saw was black. His ears were ringing, a taste on his tongue like pure ecstasy, his limbs going numb as all he felt was pleasure.

She clenched around him with one last whimpering moan, reaching her climax. Then her fingers slackened.

Kelsin pressed her hard into the tile as he gave one last thrust, stilling as he came inside of her. He felt it through his whole body—the satiation, the sense of something of hers flowing into him, becoming his. He didn’t know what that something was, but the sensation was pure bliss.

Finally, he pulled back, gently letting go so she could regain her footing.

The second he did, her legs gave out and her body dropped like lead. He caught her before she could crumple to the floor, and her wavy blonde hair fell over her face, plastered there by the pelting water.

Horror dropped through Kelsin’s body, ice-cold, from his throat to his feet. He hoisted her up, brushing the hair from her face. “Anna?”

But her eyes were shut, and her head dropped limp over her shoulders. “What the fuck…?” He stumbled out of the shower, pulling her along with him, and set her down on the bathmat. Her arms dropped beside her head, and he brushed another lock of hair away. “Anna!”

The bite on her neck was a glaring red against her creamy skin, and the broken skin taunted him. There wasn’t enough blood for it to be the cause of a fainting spell, so what had happened? His hands shook as he ran them through his hair. “God, why did I bite you…?”

And why did you taste so good?

He dropped forward on his hands and knees, setting his ear to her chest, and nearly cried with relief when he found a heartbeat. Through the post-pleasure clarity, it occurred to him how little of this encounter made sense. He didn’t know how he’d gotten into the bathroom, he didn’t know why he’d been naked, he didn’t know why she’d just accepted him in. She didn’t tell him she was in pain, she hadn’t asked him to stop, she hadn’t done much of anything.

Neither of them were ever like this. It was like a switch had flipped that morning, and they just couldn’t live without tearing into each other.

Kelsin ran his hands through his hair as guilt descended, gutting him. The moment he’d tasted her blood, that need inside of him had drowned out all reason. He hadn’t stopped to consider whether this was a bad idea. And he must’ve done something wrong, must’ve hurt her somehow, because she’d just dropped.

“I’m so sorry, Anna. I’m so, so sorry.”

The thought of calling an ambulance occurred to him. He hesitated at first, picturing her humiliation if she turned out to be completely fine. But if she wasn’t…

Kelsin was not taking that risk. He scrambled to his feet, eyes scanning the countertop for either of their phones. He’d just spotted Anna’s and reached for it when the bathroom door swung open with a horrible crash. It slammed the wall hard enough to come nearly off its hinges.

He jumped, turning to find the entire apartment plunged into darkness. Kelsin could have sworn it was morning just a little while ago, but it was black as night outside the bathroom, all the lights off. A familiar silhouette stood in the doorway’s light, his hands tucked casually into his pockets.

His name returned to Kelsin immediately: Esper. With it, he recalled a few strange images: wet runes painted on hardwood, a scarlet glow reflected off the ceiling, and his own hands pinned beside his head.

I’m going to make you beautiful.

“Who are you?” Kelsin asked, eyes wide with shock. But when he glanced back at Anna, his mind pivoted back to the more pressing issue. “You need to help me. Something’s wrong with her—”

Esper held up a hand to silence him. He took a few steps into the bathroom, and when he did, Kelsin saw his eyes. His sclera were pitch-black, his irises two crackling rings of yellow.

“Be at ease, my dear. She’s going to be fine—you’ve just worn her through.” His hint of a smile was poorly concealed. Maybe he didn’t even mean to conceal it. “Thoroughly.” He knelt, placing a hand on Anna’s head. There was a spark to his eyes—a bright flash of energy—and then Anna broke up into a million tiny fractals. They shimmered on the air, then faded until there was nothing left in her place.

This had to be a nightmare. It was the only logical explanation, and any moment now, Kelsin would shake himself awake. He sank back down to his knees, staring at the empty space between them. When he spoke, his voice cracked under the weight of his terror. “What the hell did you do?”

“Shh.” Esper lowered himself until he was sitting on his calves, tone soft like he was comforting a child. “She’ll wake tomorrow in her bed, safe and sound, and it will be like none of this ugly business ever occurred.” He gave a sigh. “I’ll admit, I should have known better than to put you back in your bed. I thought it a kindness to grant you a final day of normalcy before the bigger changes began… but you were bound to slip up. To take a bit too much from your first. Most newborns do, after all.”

Kelsin ran his hands through his hair a second time. “Take too much…?” His gaze moved down to his lap, and he sat back, quickly pulling his knees to his chest as he remembered how exposed he was. “I don’t—I don’t understand. What are you talking about?”

Esper clicked his tongue. “It’s time for you to come home with me. You wouldn’t want this to happen to anyone else you care about, hm? You were lucky this time. If she hadn’t passed out, she would have begged you for more. With your hunger, you wouldn’t have been able to resist, and the consequences would have been truly dire.”

“My… hunger?” It all sounded insane, but Kelsin knew exactly what Esper meant. And whatever he’d done in an attempt to sate it had nearly cost Anna’s life. Still, he didn’t understand what it was he hungered for.

“Oh, come now. You don’t have to play coy.” Esper leaned forward, placing one hand on Kelsin’s knee. He tugged it gently to the side, a silent request for him to open his legs. “It’s okay, dear. There are many others like you. This is all very normal.”

“Don’t touch me!” Kelsin shrunk away, but then Esper was crawling over him, using both hands to pry his knees apart.

When his back was pressed fully to the side of the bath, Kelsin had no choice but to give in, letting Esper spread his legs. The man’s fingers trailed up his thighs, making him shiver. “Tell me. Has sex ever felt like it did with her? Have you ever felt so sated, so full, so energized by another’s succumb to pleasure?”

Kelsin felt his face flush a deep red. He squeezed his eyes shut. Nightmare, he told himself. This is just a nightmare.

“No, but—I don’t really have sex… I mean, that was the first proper time—”

“You’ve climaxed before. You’ve felt the glorious rush of endorphins as you tip over the edge. The way your blood pumps hot in your ears. Haven’t you?”

“I… yes.”

“But was it ever like this?” Esper asked, one hand brushing the tip of Kelsin’s cock. He should have been worn out and overly sensitive, but it twitched at the very touch. His abdomen flared with desire, and the hunger returned, wanting more.

Esper laughed. “Newborns… Positively voracious things.”

“Get off of me,” Kelsin said, his voice catching in his throat, weaker than he would have liked it to be. He pushed at Esper’s arms, but his resolve was weak. That rekindled desire was overpowering, making his head spin. His every nerve was on fire, his heart skipping beats. “What did you do with Anna? I have to make sure she’s—”

“Like I said,” Esper said, his voice low and smooth, “she’s going to be fine. I’ve already made sure of that.”

“What…?” Kelsin shook his head. “What are you?”

Esper sat back slowly, raising one hand. “It will be easier just to show you.”

When he snapped his fingers, the world went black. A wave of intense vertigo wracked Kelsin’s body, his head pounding, until he felt the plushness of a mattress beneath his body. When he blinked the sparks from his vision, he found himself lying across a lavish four-poster bed.

The room itself matched the bed perfectly: massive, everything gold and crimson. The ceilings were vaulted and incredibly high. Pillars formed decorative arches along the walls, the spandrels engraved with different fiendish-looking creatures: things with horns and massive, bony wings.

The place was like an ancient, gilded temple in its prime.

“Welcome,” Esper smiled, “to my home.” When Kelsin looked, the voice no longer belonged to a pale, cunning man with dark hair. His skin was deep red, his fingers donning sizable claws. His head bore four curved, black horns: the innermost ones were at least as thick as the man’s forearms, while the outer two were thinner, curling around the others in a twisted imitation of a crown.

But perhaps the most impressive thing about the man (monster?) was the set of wings that sprouted from his broad shoulder blades. They were thick, fleshy, and sharply angled, matching the red tone of his skin. Combined with the significant height he’d gained, they gave him a looming figure; enough to cast the bed in shadow.

Not even the structure of his face was the same. Every angle was sharper. He was someone—or something—else entirely.

Kelsin recoiled against the pillows as he took it all in. “…Are you the devil?”

“The devil? No. But a devil, yes. Now that we’ve left the company of mortals, you’d do well to know me by my real name: Esperoth.”

He climbed onto the bed, and Kelsin scrambled back until he hit the cushioned headboard.

“The first part of accepting what you’ve become is to do away with that human sense of modesty,” Esperoth said, his voice low. He took Kelsin by the hips, pulling him forward. Kelsin yelped as his back dropped to the mattress. “Try to get comfortable. I can feel your hunger, little one. You need to indulge it so your body can finish changing.”

Kelsin tried to get up, but Esperoth straddled him, pinning him down. “Changing? What the hell am I changing into?”

As Esperoth leaned down, his clothes evaporated into fractals, just as Anna’s body had, until he was completely bare. When he rested his forearms beside Kelsin’s head, his wings curled around them, engulfing them both, obscuring Kelsin’s view of anything but him.

Surrounded by Esperoth’s skin, Kelsin could smell him clear as day. Cinnamon, rich cedarwood, and something darker that he couldn’t name. His scent, combined with the heat radiating off his body, had Kelsin salivating despite the unease that lingered in his chest. He wanted to taste the blood beneath that crimson skin and find out if it was richly spiced like Anna’s. He wanted to be drunk on it.

Esperoth’s lips brushed the crown of his head, and a sharp pain erupted from one spot near his temple. The skin there was tender, like it had taken an awful hit. As his mouth moved to the other side of Kelsin’s head, a second spot of pain flared up on his other temple.

“Ugh… what is that?”

Esperoth blew on the skin, his hot breath raising gooseflesh over Kelsin’s arms. “Horns.”

His eyes flew wide open. “Horns? You can’t be—”

“Horns, indeed. Not even visible yet. The beginning is awkward and a bit painful. But the more you feed, the quicker everything will grow in.”

Kelsin shook his head for the umpteenth time, preparing himself to ask what else was supposed to grow in, but then Esperoth rolled his hips, pressing them flush against Kelsin’s, and he couldn’t stifle his moan in time. Esperoth’s arousal was large, and blazing with heat.

Kelsin couldn’t help his reaction—he was famished, and he felt like he was going to die if he didn’t get more of whatever delicious ecstasy Anna had given him earlier. He pressed himself up into Esperoth’s hips, his body flushing with pleasure as their erections ground together.

“Good boy,” Esperoth crooned into his ear, balancing himself on one arm so he could bring his other hand down between them, gathering up both of their cocks. Esperoth pumped his hand slowly, teasingly, his fingers slickening with precum. He made a pleased sound in his throat, and Kelsin felt his pleasure, drinking it in, basking in it.

Finally, he understood. This was what he hungered for: the sexual gratification of others.

He needed more. Not for his own leaking erection, but for Esperoth, so he could feed. “Faster,” he said, breathless. “Please.”

Esperoth clicked his tongue in faux-mockery, but gave Kelsin what he wanted. As his pace quickened, he bowed his head, pressing their foreheads together.

The sore spots on Kelsin’s head screamed in protest, but all he could focus on was the way pleasure mounted inside of Esperoth, the way his abdominal muscles tightened with the anticipation of climax. It was delectable. It was everything and not nearly enough.

“More, please,” he begged. “Please, just—” He swallowed back a mouthful of saliva. It was so good, but it could be better. “You can fuck me, Esperoth. I need you to come.”

Esperoth gave a low laugh, his breath beating against Kelsin’s lips. “Eager boy. I wouldn’t penetrate you without preparing you properly. Not when your body is still so human.” Then just like that, he pulled away, climbing off.

A wave of panic washed over Kelsin. Was that it? Did he ruin it? “No, wait—”

“Relax.” Esperoth sat himself against the headboard, taking his cock in hand. “I’m only changing position. Why don’t you use your mouth?”

“Oh.” Kelsin rolled over, pushing himself up on his hands and knees. He felt half-crazed, almost predatory. He’d never sucked a guy off before, but he would do anything for his fill of ecstasy.

In the back of his mind, he knew something bad had happened. He was supposed to be upset about something. But whatever that was, it was a distant prospect now.

Kelsin wasted no time, settling between Esperoth’s legs, bracing himself on his elbows. Esperoth’s cock was slick and glistening with arousal. Thick and ready and—oh—like honey-coated velvet on his tongue. He took it down as far as he could manage, then pulled back up to lap at the slit. It was a surprise, how sugary-sweet it tasted. Esperoth’s precum alone was just as delicious as the sensation of pleasure, and Kelsin was determined to milk as much of it out of him as he could. He worked his hands as he moved his head up and down, noting the little twitches and groans that Esperoth made when he did something just right. A massive, clawed hand came to rest on the top of his head, not pushing down, but weaving gently through his hair in a grounding gesture.

Their shared pleasure mounted, higher and higher, growing more delicious as it climbed—until Esperoth’s muscles finally seized up. As he came, he gave a low groan from the back of his throat.

Kelsin shut his eyes, overwhelmed by the rush of energy and the delicious taste on his tongue. He sucked at the tip as he stroked Esperoth through it, hardly noticing as his own climax washed over him. When Esperoth sighed and stilled, Kelsin took that as his queue to pull off. He swallowed blissfully, wiping his mouth on the back of his arm.

“Look at you.” The devil smiled down at him, tipping Kelsin’s chin up with one finger. “Sated yet?”

Kelsin wished he could say yes, but that hunger was an ever-present gnaw at his insides. It was lesser now, but alive and well. “Not… quite.”

Esperoth laughed. “I didn’t think so. Come here, into my arms, and we’ll talk for a moment while I recover.”

Kelsin wasn’t too keen on the idea. That reminder of something bad returned to his mind, and briefly, he thought of Anna. Right.

Fuck. He couldn’t trust this man. If he was really a devil, then he was evil by definition.

But the longer Kelsin hesitated, the more that sweet cinnamon-cedarwood scent called to him. This time, he was aware of it: all rational thought teetering on the verge of being swallowed whole by his desire. He wanted to hate Esperoth; he really did. He knew he should. But for some reason, he couldn’t.

When Kelsin lifted himself up, there was a sticky mess beneath him. His own spend had spilled over the silken sheets, and it partially coated his stomach. “Oh, shit, I—”

Esperoth laughed again. “Please. What did I say about modesty? If I hadn’t wanted cum on my sheets, I wouldn’t have brought home an incubus.”

Incubus. Kelsin was pretty sure he’d heard that word before. In ghost stories, maybe. Or erotic fiction. Or both. “Is that what I am? Some kind of demon? Something that needs sex to live?”

“In a sense. You need to cause sexual pleasure as a medium through which to harvest energy. That energy is what sustains you. While I suppose you could probably survive off other forms of sustenance, I can’t imagine it would be a pretty existence.” Esperoth held out his hands, waiting for Kelsin to come to him.

Kelsin’s body moved faster than his thoughts, and as he climbed into Esperoth’s arms, he couldn’t help but be grateful for the electric contact of that hot skin against his. Esperoth liked it—it excited him, and so Kelsin liked it too. “What other kinds of sustenance are there?”

“All devils and demons consume the blood of thinking creatures as a diet staple. You acquired a taste for that rather quickly.”

Kelsin’s stomach dropped, thinking again of Anna. A fresh shock of clarity returned to him. “Esperoth… What exactly happened to her? How can I be sure she’s okay?”

The devil clicked his tongue. “She’s just fine, Kelsin. And don’t let yourself feel guilty about the slip-up. It wasn’t your fault—it was mine. I should have taken you here immediately. You see, I haven’t created an incubus or succubus in centuries. I nearly forgot how ravenous they are in the beginning. Vampiric, really. And learning how to control your hunger as a newborn can be something of a Herculean task.”

Kelsin squeezed his eyes shut as hard as he could. Usually, in the midst of a nightmare, this worked to rouse him from sleep. When nothing changed, he gave a quiet scoff. “Being taken to a devil’s home, made into an incubus, feeding off of Anna’s pleasure… it’s complete lunacy. You get that, right? Please shake me awake already.”

Esperoth gave him a sympathetic smile. “I can’t shake you awake, Kelsin. But if you’d like, you can take of me again. Anyone you’ll find on this plane is immortal and can be fed from without consequence. You might tire them out, but no harm done there, hm?”

Kelsin swallowed hard. He didn’t want to drop the issue about Anna. But God, he was still hungry. So incredibly hungry. It grappled with his worry, desperate to overpower his every reservation.

…Maybe one more round wouldn’t hurt, since the devil was offering. “Okay. But then I have more questions.”

“Of course. I’m happy to answer what I can.”

When Kelsin moved to straddle Esperoth’s lap, he got a wicked smile in return. “Alright,” he said with a sigh. “How would you like me to please you?”