^^ an Incubus Knight with hidden wings and tail ^^

— Gina —

The Tome in my hands seemed heavier than normal, like just holding it still required effort, as I stood inside the small building that a closed the Gate off from view or interference. I was currently awaiting the two Guards to return with a living enemy from within, so I could see if it could be used as a replacement for my own soul during enchantments, first of all, and then I'd try to summon up some demons, if that went well. If it didn't, well... I was back to square one on the book, and I'd need some human sacrifices. That would be challenging, both ethically and practically, but not impossible. I'd met some people who I would not even blink before tossing them into a volcano, so sacrificing them to a Devil? Not that much worse than the normal reality after they died, I imagined.

The Gate suddenly pulsed, as the two guards returned, covered in scratches and bite marks and holding a squirming and shrieking scaled creature between them. "Fucking Kobolds! Why Kobolds, of all the goblinkin to choose from?!?" Dan's Partner, a young guard from the Tomoi Clan whose name escaped me, growled angrily as he wrestled his gauntleted fist out of the tiny dragon-man's angry little jaws.

"He does look quite pissed, doesn't he? Let's do this as efficiently as possible; hold him down in this chalk circle, please?" I whistled softly to get their attention, pointing at the small chalk circle I'd made, with no embellishment or Runes, because I didn't know any for this yet except 'Bind-Enslave', and I wasn't sure that would work here for what I wanted. They acknowledged me with a grunt of pain and irritation, slamming the little creature down in the circle and pinning it down with their whole bodies; it was strong for such a tiny creature, barely hip-height, and they were trying not to wound it, which I assumed was where the challenge laid. "Now, let's see if we can make you... useful..."

The book turned without my command to a page that seemed to be about collecting souls, if I was understanding it properly. 'Perfect...' I nodded slowly, carving the Rune it showed me into the dagger in my hands with my glowing quill and then stabbing the 'Kobold' in the heart. The resultant drain on my internal reserves from carving the Rune was oddly tiny, unlike any enchantment I'd done over the past week, and I was just as surprised as the guards when the Kobold simply turned to dust, then the dagger warmed in my hands, returning the energy left over into my body directly. One portion of it, I noticed, disappeared, and I knew instinctually that that was the Tithe that the Contract Devil had taken for the Ritual. The remaining energy was about half of my own soul, and it sat in my gut like a warm dinner, not moving currently. "Huh... alright, well, that changes things... The Ritual was a resounding success, it would seem, but I need about three times that still to do anything useful with it... so how about this?" I flipped the dagger over and carved the 'Bind-Enslave' and 'Destroy' Runes into it, so it would send the Souls it ate to me, instead of the one wielding it, as well as killing a bit better than a normal knife. "Take this, and go kill a dozen or so Kobolds; don't worry about catching them alive, just kill them with this dagger. Easy enough?"

"Understood." Dan took his knife back, nodding to me and then Zawahili before jogging into the Gate with his partner at his back, his shield raised to rebuff enemies.

"So... what did he mean by 'Why Kobolds'? Does the dungeon change every time?" I questioned the tall woman behind me while I prepared a different ritual from the book, this one specifically to summon a Demon Familiar. There were many, annotated in the book, but a few caught my eyes specifically. The 'Incubus Seducer' seemed to me the most multi-use of them all, what with its simple elemental attacks and its ability to magically seduce people and control their emotions and memories. Such an ability would make it useful as a Guard and as something of a therapist for the Ladies working here, instead of allowing them to use alcohol and drugs to achieve similar -though more temporary- effects. Of course, removing memories would be a last resort, but just that ability alone meant I had to have at least one. Adding in fireballs? That was a nice bonus.

"No, not every time... Dungeons change on every New and Full Moon, so once every two weeks or so. On rare occasions, they get more powerful, or weaker, but they generally just change their structure and enemies... what are you doing, by the way?"

"I'm using the souls they're gathering in there to Summon a Demon to serve me as my Familiar. If it works, I can sell Daemons I've summoned as Pets in the Auction House. If it doesn't work, we have to kill an Incubus Seducer, so try not to look into it's eyes until we're sure if it's friend or foe."

"I see... understood." She drew her sword, a long naval cutlass, and retreated a few feet opposite me so she was behind where the demon would be summoned, poised to strike.

The sections of the book I didn't have the resources for were always greyed out, so when the Seducer's section turned red, followed by the Knight on the opposite page, I smiled and turned towards the circle I'd drawn, cutting my thumb a bit to kickstart the reaction. "Incubus Seducer, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation." The ashes of the Kobold from earlier began to swirl in an intangible wind, building a body for the Soul that arrived from within the ground, represented by a haunting red smoke that seemed to possess the body built by the Ashes... the 3 foot tall body that belonged to a Toddler more than anyone else, due to the fact that it'd been made from a single Kobold. It looked like a normal human, except for the pearly white fangs visible in its mouth when it opened it up and the thick mane of white hair that spilled down its back.

It's eyes opened slowly, revealing a third startling attribute, in its glowing red eyes, literally glowing as bright as neon light in the dark room. It examined its body, clenching its fists and turning them over slowly, before frowning and looking up at me. "Madame, I believe you've made an error in your Summoning. Did you not provide the correct amount of sacrifices to create my body?"

"I believe you are correct, yes, that seems to have been a problem. Regardless, you can grow on your own by way of the blood and souls you drink to sustain yourself, though a set portion of all your kills will be, of course, offered to me, as your Summoner, and another to the Contract Devil who is your Owner, totaling 50%. As for now, you'll need a Name, and then I'll try again with the summoning to get a Knight... how about Greyheart?"

He sighed softly, but bowed begrudgingly anyway. "As you wish, my Lady Chamberlain; you may address me as Greyheart. I suggest enough blood to build the entire body, this time, or it will be rather useless as a Warrior... you are lucky that none of my abilities require me to be fully sized... well, none of the magical ones."

I snorted softly at the crass insinuation, then looked at Zawahili. "You can protect me easily enough inside a Kobold Dungeon, right?"

"With the two guards? Yes, easily enough."

"Then let's get going; go fetch those two back to the entrance, and we'll collect the Ashes along the way, then summon a Knight once we've killed enough of them to do so... also, let me see your sword really quick, while I'm thinking about it, I'll Enchant it for you."

"Are you sure? I can't really pay for such a thing, Madame,-"

"Clan Members don't have to pay me for things when I offer them; only people who ask for things pay for them." I shrugged off her concerns casually and held out a hand, wiggling my fingers beckoningly.

After a few more moments of hesitance, she handed over her cutlass while eying the little Vampire -who was now gazing at her like a particularly tasty-looking Candied Apple, no-doubt compounding her worries,- with a nervous glance. It was easy enough to enchant the blade with the same thing as the Sacrificial Dagger, so it took only a few moments and it barely even drained me, with the extra power now pulsing through me.

"Good! Fetch the others back now, please, so we can proceed together?" I summoned Avid's Kukri for my own use, adding the same Soul-Drinker Runes into it while she disappeared into the glowing doorway like the breeze, leaving me slightly confused. "Huh... I'd thought her power was invisibility... but instead she's super-fast? I guess that's even more useful. Also, why are you staring at her like a rare steak?"

Greyheart explained himself without a hint of remorse, which was... almost impressive. "If I killed her and ate her, I could be full-sized in moments."

"... okay, well, you're definitely a Vampire... but she is a member of the Tomoi Clan, and as such an Ally of mine; you will cause no harm to my Allies. You will also not be killing or eating anyone without my permission."

The small vampire scoffed at me, crossing his arms in a pout. "I am aware of the nature of our agreement; notice I did not try to eat her. The Laws you have set forth do not halt me from fantasizing about sinking my teeth into her aorta and drinking of her lifeblood."

I glared icily down at the small man who was very, very big for his britches, considering he was only freshly summoned and already testing my saintly patience. "You will also be respectful and polite to me and all others you meet. I will not tolerate being embarrassed by your behavior, considering you, as my Familiar, are now a subsidiary representation of me. Should you make a good showing of it, I may even allow you to become an Incubus Lord, the next stage of your Evolution from a mere Cambion to the far more venerable Demon Prince."

He straightened his spine immediately, his expression relaxing into a more neutral setting, and then he bowed cordially. "My most sincerest apologies, Lady Chamberlain. I will endeavor to represent you well, in the future."

In the distance, the group of guards became visible, jogging towards us at an easy pace. As they approached, we moved to meet them in the middle, and I examined the state of the two guards; they were a little scratched up, but no worse than they'd been, it would seem. "Well, here's our escort, a bit battered and bruised but alive and well, yes? Are you capable of healing magic, Greyheart?"

"Only in exchange for Blood, Lady Chamberlain, but yes. Shall I heal your allies?"

"If they wish to make that exchange, knowing full well the dangers and benefits, yes, but only after they are aware of said dangers and benefits may they make that choice. Zawahili, how is your new cutlass treating you? Any issues?"

She showed me the silver blade, shivering subsonically with Magic, and showing no signs of wear and tear yet. "It is performing very well, Madame! And you? Any issues with your new Familiar?"

"None that weren't solved in a succinct manner. Gentleman, this is Greyheart, he is my Familiar, a vampire whom I summoned to serve me; he has been commanded by way of a Devil's Contract to not harm you or allow harm to come to you, so you may trust your backs to him... though he is a Mage, and thusly more useful as a Long-Range Support. He can also heal your wounds, I believe, though there are probably some drawbacks such as some Anemia, yes?"

The small vampire nodded politely. "That is correct, and a mild case of vampirism that is generally resolved by simply not dying by way of exsanguination within one Dawn of when you were last Bitten."

"... Ah... well, even if they did die and turn into Vampires, which I very much doubt would happen, they would be your Thralls, yes? Not wild creatures that would go off and do... whatever?"

He grinned widely, showing his fangs and making both men step slowly away from him. "Oh of course, yes, any Vampire is Servant to its Sire until said Sire sees fit to release them, unable to resist any order given them, much in the same way our contract works, Lady Chamberlain, you may rest easy."

"Hm... anyway, I'm sure you don't need Healing just yet, right? Good then let's go hunt down some Kobolds; I'd like at least four Incubus Knights before the night is through, so we need to kill at least 56 Kobolds with the Soul-Drinker Weapons, and collect the Ashes, as well! You'll all be paid a bonus for this clearly extraneous request, as well as per monster slain, of course."

The younger of the two guards grinned viciously, readying his weapon. "Well, that definitely changes things, doesn't it, Danny?"

The taciturn man had apparently attached his now-cursed dagger to his staff to create a spear, and he checked it now to make sure it hadn't come loose, shrugging at his younger partner. "Not really, no. Keep your shield up and your eyes forward, Tom, and I'll handle the rest. We have a few coming our way already."

—

Over the next five or so hours, we collected a pile of ashes that was around twice the size of our entire party, as well as the souls necessary to summon the Knights I wanted. During that time Greyheart also drained several corpses, but only managed to grow to the size of a preteen before halting any further growth, to his irritation. Still, we had the Ashes all piled up in one spot at a crossroads of the Dungeon, on top of a summoning circle that was made of the last of my chalk.

"Alright, let's get this party started so we can go home and rest for the night..." I sighed, opening the Demonomicon and scrolling to the Incubus Knight Demon. "I think I'll summon four of you and two more of the Seducers, as well as this other variety, the Succubi Enchantress, which seems to be a female version of the Incubus Seducer... same abilities, at least. And maybe some other stuff, we'll see what I have the power for. Everyone ready?"

"No problems here; I'm still feeling great!" Tom, the younger guard, was grinning in exhilaration as he was still hyped up by the excess power from the Soul Drinker Sword he wielded giving him a tithe of its absorbed souls, like they all did. It was apparently highly addictive, so I'd have to watch out for that, I was sure.

"We will stand guard, Lady Chamberlain." Zawahili eyed him with some concern, but nodded to me to begin.

"Alright... Incubus Knight, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Incubus Knight, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Incubus Knight, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Incubus Knight, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Incubus Seducer, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Incubus Seducer, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Succubus Enchantress, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Succubus Enchantress, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Hell Hound, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation. Hell Hound, Be Summoned and Thus Serve With Pride; The Lady of The Glade Commands Your Obsequious Capitulation."

About 80% of the pile of ashes immediately began to melt, molding through a slightly disgusting display into ten individuals, eight humanoids and two canines who promptly disappeared, making me stare at where they had been in surprise. "Hell Hounds, Heel." Immediately, two obsidian-furred doberman's with golden eyes sat in front of me, staring expectantly at me and awaiting new orders. At their tilted heads, however, I couldn't resist scratching them happily, rolling them over and rubbing their bellies as they groaned in happiness. "Oh! There you are, good boys!!! How cute are you?!? Alright, sit up!"

"... Ahem?" Glancing upwards away from the two dogs, I found myself looking at two gorgeous women with glowing red eyes and form-fitting red dresses that matched the large red wings on their backs and tails visibly wrapped around their waists, two grown versions of Greyheart who were staring at him already with amusement, and four red-skinned, horned, and armored individuals who seemed more like Tieflings than Incubi, but they too had wings tucked up against their backs, as well as long swords made of an odd sort of white metal, not silver.

"Ah, hello! Yes, good that you're all here! Pair off, if you would, into groups of five; one Hound, one Seducer, one Enchantress, and two Knights per Party. Also, I hope you can disguise yourselves to appear human? If not, then my plans for you are going to be... severely stalled."

One by one, their appearances changed subtly, the Seducer's hair gaining color to platinum blonde, the Enchantress' wings and tails disappearing, and the Knights' Skin turning a variety of hues while their horns and wings and tails retracted into their bodies in an oddly putty-like fashion, which was somewhat off-putting. The Hellhounds were the easiest, as their eyes simply stopped glowing gold and turned a normal-ish white, like certain huskies' white eyes.

"Perfect... let's go get some sleep, then, and we'll do some more in the morning... I've got some new ideas."