Getting home (Incubus Marked)

It was late when you got home, very very late. It was a mad scramble to avoid the police cars, the fire trucks and every other concerned rubbernecker who wanted to converge on the burning mill. The three of you had no idea what to do with Gabbie, as you were reasonably sure that the cult would have people scouring for her at every bus stop or motel.

“I have an attic,” you eventually conceded. “If you’re ok with sleeping on a very old couch and being cooped up for a few hours, you can crash there.”

The girl nodded gratefully, offered you a half dozen thank yous and promises to repay your kindness, but you just waved her off. It was late, you were tired, and your chest ached terribly.

Tina and Marcus went their own ways, while you and Gabbie crept into the darkness of your home. You went to the laundry first, making sure that your smoky clothes got a thorough wash in the machine, took an oversized shirt to give to Gabbie, then went into the kitchen. You took out a couple of water bottles from the fridge and some bags of chips for Gabbie and then led her upstairs and into the attic. It was dusty, dark, she was surrounded by old junk and had to make do with a broken couch and a few blankets as bedding, but the girl seemed happy enough. You supposed anything was better than a cage.

On your way to bed you peeked into your mom’s room. She lay sleeping, breathing gently. You hadn’t seen much of her lately and hoped that she was doing ok. In the dark you blew her a kiss and then closed the door.

In the bathroom you took your shirt off and stared at the glowing splinters that had lodged themselves in your chest. The flesh around them had puckered and burnt, but you were determined to get them out. The tweezers shook in your hand as you tried to pluck them. It was agony, sheer and utter agony as you tugged at one of the pieces and tried to contain the scream bubbling up in your throat.

You pulled again, and this time you were met with a flash of light.

A battering ram of images struck you, so fast and with a **** that staggered you. You saw a vast stretch of wilderness, a sea of trees and distant mountains. A great ball of fire came crashing from the sky and the world was turned into a hellscape of fire and ****. Amongst the flame and smoke an inhuman hand emerged.

Next you found yourself shifting through time, observing through eyes that weren’t your own as the world changed. The cleared landscape was soon settled, there was conflict with the indigenous people, the civil war broke out, the depression struck, the boom of development that came after the war. Silent Oaks grew around you in a blur.

And there were women.

Young and beautiful, they found themselves offered up in service to the beast.

One after the other, you felt them give their bodies over to you.

Over and over…

The pleasure reached white hot intensity, but just as you felt yourself be driven to the brink things shifted again and you returned to the waking world…