You turn your head over your shoulder to examine the newcomer.
At least she's more attractive than the hunger imps. Skin a bright pink over a three foot humanoid body, with wide hips half hidden by a black leather loincloth. Her top is covered in similarly simple garment, in white and tied off above her left shoulder to show off a hint of cleavage. A tight ponytail of incongruously blue hair exposes two small, white horns on her forehead set above equally blue eyes behind a set of small eye glasses. There's a flash of something in them, an intelligence carefully hidden.
She pauses for a moment as your eyes roam over her, her eyelids fluttering as she eyes you in return, before a small smile crosses her lips and she finishes her approach. She stretches out one had as she nears you.
You turn fully toward her and take the offered appendage in your own - the oddly human gesture coming naturally to you.
"You must be Red Scale. I must say, the scattered rumours I've heard hardly do you justice. You're positively... just wonderful."
A long tongue makes an appearance and the hunger imp licks her lips apparently unconsciously, then she smiles at you. She still hasn't let go of your hand.
"And your lair is wonderful. So many spots of residual lust for a little imp like me to find a snack."
She sniffs, and pushes her glasses higher up her nose, before freezing. After a moment, she let's your hand go.
"Although I was unaware that you had such... extensive ties with the demonic already. It does make my job somewhat harder."
You quirk an eyebrow. "Job? You're here for a reason?"
She laughs, a fakely airheaded thing that does little to hide the cunning in her eyes.
"Yes, this is a business trip - although I wouldn't be adverse to a little pleasure afterwards."
She takes a step back from you, then walks around the table till she claims the seat opposite you. Luss and Ziff jump back as if burned, taking artfully of bowls with them, as the lust imp snaps her fingers and a ring of pink flames spin into existence, disgorging a thin black case. She fiddles with her end, opening two metal clasps with small clicks, and opens it like a chest.
She frowns at the contents, removing several sheets of parchment and leafing through them. The frown on her face slowly grows until she shuts the case once more and turns to you.
"Red Scale, may I ask you a question, before we begin with my task?"
You cock your head and wave a hand at her.
"A task you haven't divulged yet."
"Yes, of course. The original purpose for this visit was twofold. Firstly, to open diplomatic ties between your lair and the Court of Lusts, as your personal Power has recently become deeply attractive to our interests. This part of my visit, a personal errand from my lady, is unchanged. Many of the documents here are to officially open such links, and open discussion of things like trade.
"As an aside, many inhabitants of the mortal realm would kill to have a trade agreement with the Court of Lusts. You probably know this but demons cannot feed on each other. Trade for... sustenance, shall we say, for physical resources, is hardly what most would think of as a hard bargain."
She pauses here for a moment, and shuffles her papers.
"The second part of my journey was more... subtle in nature. I was sent to ascertain why, and more importantly how, you had escaped the notice of the other Courts, and even the other Lords and Ladies of Lust. As far as my lady has been able to ascertain, she is the only one who has felt your awakening. Considering how much demonic essence is leaking from your lair this is... unusual."
You look at her for several seconds, ruminating on her words, before speaking.
"And... that part of your mission has changed?"
"That is my question. How long have you had Hunger Imps working for you? We've heard nothing from the Court of Gluttony about you and they are not the most circumspect of demons at the best of times. I am aware that these two are new, but I saw at least one other, along with a Mamonite - highly unusual. I am aware that this new gift from the gods has the power to evolve the inhabitants of dungeons, but to give her such power is... how long has she been here that you trust her so much?"
You shrug. "Much less than you're probably thinking. Less than a week."
The imp opposite you splutters, her eyes wide, and you continue.
"Sith proved herself intelligent and loyal, and willing to be a test subject for an at the time untested ability. That was enough for me."
The imp's eyes narrow in thought as she stares at you, before nodding.
“And such boons... are they really so cheap as to be given out such? My lady has received several claimant crystals, but has found their powers to be... mostly incompatible with her style of leadership. Is this-”
She cuts herself off, a light blush dusting her cheekbones.
“Forgive me. I got ahead of myself. Let me bring us back to the topic at hand. I will have to leave soon, to report the presence of Gluttony here, but that is unlikely to affect things in the long term, merely an interesting detail my lady will want looked into sooner than later. Would it be possible to leave these,” she proffers the parchment at you, “with you, and reconvene at a later date? All the information you should need to set up a profitable and... enjoyable partnership with my lady should be there.”
Her eyes rake over you again. “I am sorry to cut what could have been a very interesting trip short, but politics are politics, and unusual movements must be reported.”
You nod, relieved in part that you won't need to come up with an excuse as to why you sure as hell won;t be signing anything until Mercy has looked through it.
“I understand. Please, don't let us keep you.”
The imp pauses, glancing at you with those slightly too intelligent eyes once again, before nodding once.
“Most kind.”
A huge thank you to my patreons Spockk Kirkk, Abysslsniper, Tyrant615, Dakkanor, Jakelandiar, Curious Krissy, CBK, Roman, TheDrTelos, RD, Bakerdea, Hemlock and KN. A special thank you to Spokk Kirkk who is paying more than they need to, which is one of the most incredible feelings. A very special thank you to Roman for being insane and updating their pledge to a truly silly amount.
You turn your head over your shoulder to examine the newcomer.
At least she's more attractive than the hunger imps. Skin a bright pink over a three foot humanoid body, with wide hips half hidden by a black leather loincloth. Her top is covered in similarly simple garment, in white and tied off above her left shoulder to show off a hint of cleavage. A tight ponytail of incongruously blue hair exposes two small, white horns on her forehead set above equally blue eyes behind a set of small eye glasses. There's a flash of something in them, an intelligence carefully hidden.
She pauses for a moment as your eyes roam over her, her eyelids fluttering as she eyes you in return, before a small smile crosses her lips and she finishes her approach. She stretches out one had as she nears you.
You turn fully toward her and take the offered appendage in your own - the oddly human gesture coming naturally to you.
"You must be Red Scale. I must say, the scattered rumours I've heard hardly do you justice. You're positively... just wonderful."
A long tongue makes an appearance and the hunger imp licks her lips apparently unconsciously, then she smiles at you. She still hasn't let go of your hand.
"And your lair is wonderful. So many spots of residual lust for a little imp like me to find a snack."
She sniffs, and pushes her glasses higher up her nose, before freezing. After a moment, she let's your hand go.
"Although I was unaware that you had such... extensive ties with the demonic already. It does make my job somewhat harder."
You quirk an eyebrow. "Job? You're here for a reason?"
She laughs, a fakely airheaded thing that does little to hide the cunning in her eyes.
"Yes, this is a business trip - although I wouldn't be adverse to a little pleasure afterwards."
She takes a step back from you, then walks around the table till she claims the seat opposite you. Luss and Ziff jump back as if burned, taking artfully of bowls with them, as the lust imp snaps her fingers and a ring of pink flames spin into existence, disgorging a thin black case. She fiddles with her end, opening two metal clasps with small clicks, and opens it like a chest.
She frowns at the contents, removing several sheets of parchment and leafing through them. The frown on her face slowly grows until she shuts the case once more and turns to you.
"Red Scale, may I ask you a question, before we begin with my task?"
You cock your head and wave a hand at her.
"A task you haven't divulged yet."
"Yes, of course. The original purpose for this visit was twofold. Firstly, to open diplomatic ties between your lair and the Court of Lusts, as your personal Power has recently become deeply attractive to our interests. This part of my visit, a personal errand from my lady, is unchanged. Many of the documents here are to officially open such links, and open discussion of things like trade.
"As an aside, many inhabitants of the mortal realm would kill to have a trade agreement with the Court of Lusts. You probably know this but demons cannot feed on each other. Trade for... sustenance, shall we say, for physical resources, is hardly what most would think of as a hard bargain."
She pauses here for a moment, and shuffles her papers.
"The second part of my journey was more... subtle in nature. I was sent to ascertain why, and more importantly how, you had escaped the notice of the other Courts, and even the other Lords and Ladies of Lust. As far as my lady has been able to ascertain, she is the only one who has felt your awakening. Considering how much demonic essence is leaking from your lair this is... unusual."
You look at her for several seconds, ruminating on her words, before speaking.
"And... that part of your mission has changed?"
"That is my question. How long have you had Hunger Imps working for you? We've heard nothing from the Court of Gluttony about you and they are not the most circumspect of demons at the best of times. I am aware that these two are new, but I saw at least one other, along with a Mamonite - highly unusual. I am aware that this new gift from the gods has the power to evolve the inhabitants of dungeons, but to give her such power is... how long has she been here that you trust her so much?"
You shrug. "Much less than you're probably thinking. Less than a week."
The imp opposite you splutters, her eyes wide, and you continue.
"Sith proved herself intelligent and loyal, and willing to be a test subject for an at the time untested ability. That was enough for me."
The imp's eyes narrow in thought as she stares at you, before nodding.
“And such boons... are they really so cheap as to be given out such? My lady has received several claimant crystals, but has found their powers to be... mostly incompatible with her style of leadership. Is this-”
She cuts herself off, a light blush dusting her cheekbones.
“Forgive me. I got ahead of myself. Let me bring us back to the topic at hand. I will have to leave soon, to report the presence of Gluttony here, but that is unlikely to affect things in the long term, merely an interesting detail my lady will want looked into sooner than later. Would it be possible to leave these,” she proffers the parchment at you, “with you, and reconvene at a later date? All the information you should need to set up a profitable and... enjoyable partnership with my lady should be there.”
Her eyes rake over you again. “I am sorry to cut what could have been a very interesting trip short, but politics are politics, and unusual movements must be reported.”
You nod, relieved in part that you won't need to come up with an excuse as to why you sure as hell won;t be signing anything until Mercy has looked through it.
“I understand. Please, don't let us keep you.”
The imp pauses, glancing at you with those slightly too intelligent eyes once again, before nodding once.
“Most kind.”
A huge thank you to my patreons Spockk Kirkk, Abysslsniper, Tyrant615, Dakkanor, Jakelandiar, Curious Krissy, CBK, Roman, TheDrTelos, RD, Bakerdea, Hemlock and KN. A special thank you to Spokk Kirkk who is paying more than they need to, which is one of the most incredible feelings. A very special thank you to Roman for being insane and updating their pledge to a truly silly amount.
