Young Writers Society

"But of course," she murmured, leaning in as he pulled her forward and slipping the hand she had on his chest over his side and onto his back. She slid her right leg forward and brushed it against his in an almost taunting manner, the wetness of her attire causing it to cling tightly to her skin.

The goddess of shadows had brought many a man to his knees before her, from Alexander the Great to the mighty pharaohs of times long passed. It was amusing to see this demon, formerly so confident in his ability to make her succumb finally start to bend.

She wrapped her leg around his as he pulled her in to bring the two of them closer and leaned her head towards him so that their foreheads touched and her breath was warm on his face. Her touch was gentle and smooth but subtly strong like the serpentine name she took such pride in. And here he was, falling right into her trap.

Aagares struggled to grasp for some semblance of control, but he was slipping down a dangerous slope. Any minute now, he knew, he'd find himself doing something as disgustingly pathetic as begging. He couldn't let that happen.

"You, love," he gasped into her ear in a small surrender, all attempts in vain, "are absolutely maddening."

He hung on her touch, drawing forward as close as possible, and yet... he still persisted. He was not going to admit defeat.

However, he was on the edge. And it was a very thin one.

Apophis' fingers brushed the side of his face in a gentle caress and smiled coyly. "Of course I am, dear. This isn't my first rodeo, after all," she murmured, her lips brushing his ear once more. She ran her hand down from his face to his neck and chest, then across his belly and finally resting it on his hip, her other arm still clasped behind his back.

"No," he growled, all smoothness in his voice long retired. "that's one thing I'd never accuse you of, darling."

With the illusion of regaining control, Aagares moved down to Viper's neck, and just barely grazed his teeth across her skin. His hands travelled from her shoulders and across her back, talons sliding under fabric in their wake.

This was something he could control, and he relished in that fact. While he thought of his own hands, it was easier to suppress the reactions that were elicited from hers. Though, he lamented, he could never ignore her hands completely.

She was close. She could tell by the hint of frustration in his voice, the way he moved, the mere tension in his body language.

Well. If he was going to be stubborn, this, too, was a game she could play.

Apophis shifted her weight to the foot she had behind him and slid out of his grasp in a single, fluid movement. She brushed against him as she ducked under his arm and came around behind him with care to make sure there was as much physical contact as was possible without making the first move.

She turned and put her chin against his shoulder, wrapping her arms under his and pulling him close, their bodies pressed together in the water. She didn't speak, merely let her face rest tantalizingly near his.

At that moment, Aagares' will collapsed.

"Vixen." he rasped hotly, cursing her taunting, her unending patience, and her quick work with what she had turned him into.

He turned his face, and in a display of aggression even in his defeat, his lips met hers.

In only moments, he was caught completely in the trap of her lips, her neck, her hands. His claws became tangled in her dreads, and he surrendered again and again to everything he'd been holding back.

Some part of him that still remained distant from his passions protested savagely, but was quickly silenced by the elation of finally obtaining his desires.

Finally. It'd taken him long enough. She smiled and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer as their lips met with a passionate desire...



Viper wrung the water from her hair before stepping back into her shift and pulling her dress over her shoulder, fastening the brooch once more. How much time had passed was impossible to tell, but, needless to say, she was really quite indifferent. It'd been worth every moment, and the protests from her vessel had long since silenced.

Now clothed once more, she sat on the edge of the pool, watching the ripples as her toes touched the cool water.

Aagares' arms were slung over the edge of the pool, and he watched Viper lazily as she stepped back into her clothes. After a few moments, he stretched, and in one swift movement, he hoisted himself out of the water.

Rivulets of liquid slid off of his skin in resistance, and in a matter of seconds, he was dry once more.

"I suppose I should help you find your way again, if you so wish." He said casually, a slow smile starting at his mouth.

He idly came to stand behind her and rubbed one of her shoulders, not yet bored of the sensation of her smooth skin against his textured. "Now, where did you say you were on your way to?"

"Well, I was looking for Hell, before you distracted me," she answered with a small smile. "I do believe we may have wound up in the wrong Hell but I see no reason why we shouldn't have a bit of fun before finding our way back home."

"Oh, but of course not." He tilted his head and leaned over her shoulder, pointed teeth on full display, "and which particular brand of fun did you have in mind? There is a grand array here, if you know where to look."

"You tell me," she said, grinning up at him. "We do have similar tastes, after all."

He made a little sound of amusement in the back of his throat, and pulled back enough to stroke her cheek.

"Well, we could always check in on one of my victims." He cooed invitingly.

"Sounds like fun. Maybe I could get a few more ideas. I'm beginning to get bored of my current project and I'd simply love to get some more inspiration."

"Wonderful." Aagares grinned, slipped a single arm around Viper's waist, and wasted no time in whisking them away in another bright flash of light.

The chamber faded out and then in to the sound of screams of agony and a small, dim room.

A vague and faded semblance of a man, presumably a soul, lay suspended in a chamber, tied hand and foot and blindfolded. Thousands of miniscule blades pressed persistently across every inch of his bared body, seemingly drawing no blood.

"This was a little whim of mine," he explained, casually speaking over the begging that had started at their entrance. "The idea is that self and spatial awareness slowly fade, leaving only the reality of pain, which, given enough time, becomes indistinguishable with the soul's own essence."

He glanced over, head tilted and with a passionate gleam in his eye. "I'd love to hear your take on it."

"That's quite creative," she said, circling the soul with a sadistic, sharp-toothed smile. "So few look outside of the box these days. To create a pain that is so much a part of them that it cannot be escaped is not only tasteful but positively brilliant," she continued, kneeling and studying him with her dimly luminescent gaze. "Hush," she said softly to him. "The sooner you relent the easier it will be."

She rose, thoroughly enjoying this already.