Chapter
Twenty-three
Once Skylar double-checked the blinds and that she’d truly locked the door to The Bean Alchemist, she spun around to Vorg, who leaned back against the front counter.
He looked as sexy as he had last night, his horns, tail, and glow all on show again. He didn’t seem to mind that he was dressed in her clothing except for how obviously constricting it was. With the way he was reclined, it showed off the glowing hair trailing down from his navel and the lickable vee lines of his hips.
Cleanup had never been so easy, nor quick, since he’d used magic to tidy up as if they were in some kind of fairytale book. Damp cloths had wiped down tables, chairs, and even walls, while brooms and mops had moved on their own to clean the floors. Sugar jars had refilled themselves, and her coffee machine had steamed itself out as the scattered coffee grounds had been whisked away to the bin.
She could get used to this.
“Okay, time to talk,” she said, gesturing to a table between them and taking a seat.
He took the one across from her and leaned his elbows on the table with his hands folded to match hers. Her shoulders were stiff, whereas his were relaxed.
“I feel like we’re kind of doing this backwards, but... whatareyou?” she asked, trailing her gaze down his hunky body. “I couldn’t find anything in my spellbooks or grimoires about you, or even your little skowl thing.”
“I’m a metamophorfura,” he answered, his forked, glowing tail swaying behind him. “We tend to start out as a being with multiple appendages, as you first saw, and transform into something else, essentially mimicking the creature that feeds us sexual energy.”
She bit her bottom lip, scraping it against her teeth as she played with her fingers. “So I really did create you?”
He hummed in thought as he looked up at the ceiling momentarily. “Not create, not truly. I’ve been alive for centuries, but yes, you helped evolve me.”
“What? Like a freaking Pokémon?”
His blue brows drew together. “Pokey mon? Skylar, I may understand much of Earth, as do most within the multi-dimensional realms, but I’m not entirely privy to your human customs. Any obscure reference will be ineffective.”
“It’s a...” She waved her hand dismissively. “It doesn’t matter. So you feed off people like the incubi and succubi?”
“I feed on everything. I can eat, although it was through absorption in my first and second forms, and although Icanfeed on sexual energy, it has never been my food source until you.”
This time she frowned and shook her head, absolutely not understanding.
“It is exceedingly rare for someone towantto feed us and evolve us. Many intelligent beings consider us inferior due to our lack of an initial humanoid form, and many believe us to be limited in sentience. Which is untrue, even as we attempt to prove it through sign language with our appendages. I only knowof one other metamophorfura who has transformed through willing means.”
“Willing?” she asked with a gulp.
“As incubi might drain their prey to death, some of us have attempted to force our transformations through less-than-pleasant means. When you first changed me, I needed to hide within my home, as I would have been destroyed immediately upon discovery. It’s doubtful anyone would have believed my transformation had been consensual.” He opened his hands, held them wide, and shrugged – a surprisingly human-like gesture. “However, those who take extreme measures to evolve are also exceedingly rare, but there are monsters within every species, no matter who or what they are. Most of us just eat whatever we are near, whether that be a person, a creature, or a plant. We are omnivores and usually lie-in-wait hunters. Except for those of us who have chosen to live within the city, like me, and join society despite the way they ignore us unless it benefits them. We are useful, strong, and are one of the most powerful and magically equipped creatures. We’re exceptionally intelligent and adaptable.” Then he grinned as he added, “We are better.”
With a grimace and her eyes open wide, she whispered, “So you might have eaten me?”
“I did eat you,” he said with a wink. “Out, that is. I thought I was rather blessed when you not only summoned me but willingly fucked me. Had you refused my claiming, I intended to go into hiding, but I much prefer this. I can eat anything, should you wish to share a meal, but I will mainly feed from your energy, and in return, will feed you magic. It’s a unifying bond that works both ways, although most do not know this about us. They may have been more inclined to help us had they learned we offer power in exchange.”
“So that’s why my magic abilities have grown!” she exclaimed.
His purple-tinged lips curled as he remained silent to let her absorb all this new information. Turning inwards, Skylar pondered her next question, tapping the side of her pointer finger’s knuckle against her lips.
“Do you like this form?” he eventually asked, tilting his head as he regarded her. Then his grin grew mischievous as he leaned back and palmed down his chest. “I can only change to the three, but I can morph into any of them at will. I can also conjure my appendage form as an exterior spell. But with this one... you humans add to your bodies, and I can pierce it like you have yours, or give it tattoos as you have.”
Then, as if to demonstrate this, he glamoured his body from the neck down with an array of random tattoos, most of it blackwork and swirls, shapes, and lettering she didn’t know.
Skylar squeezed her thighs together when her clit throbbed in delight, because she’d always been a sucker for tattooed men. Seeming to notice the dilemma of her growing arousal, he leaned his elbows on the table and rested his chin in both hands with a deep chuckle.
“I will take that as a yes. This is temporary, but I can leave it until I have covered my body for you. I don’t mind a bite of pain.”
Escaping the conversation that might turn perverted, since her mouth had started watering, she switched the topic to something else. “What is darklight? You keep calling me that.”
“It is darkness that eats the light and sparkles in reaction to it with magic only a few of us can hone. If you don’t like it, I can call you something else. What do you humans use? Sweetheart, darling, baby–” He went to say another word but, apparently, something in her body language gave her away, because he grinned once more. “So, on the subject of piercings, is that something you want? I have quite the tongue for one.”
