“Thank you master, it is good to be able to protect you again. I was not worried, though Bob was getting a bit frantic over...”
“No I wasn’t,” Bob huffed as he puffed out his chest. “I was not getting frantic at all and how do you even know that word?”
Alburet chuckled, “Enough, guys. I’m sorry for the delay but I’m back now and we have a new addition to the family. Are you ready to meet her?”
Bob and Tiny both nodded that they were indeed ready. Alburet smiled as Karen and Stacia came out the gate and over to the group. “Well, now that we are all here, let us walk a bit away from the guards before I summon my last minion.”
The other seemed a bit puzzled but followed him. After a few hundred yards he stopped and turned to the group. “Fluff, Karen, Bob and Tiny, it is my pleasure to introduce you to my last minion. Stacia, if you would please.”
Stacia shimmered followed by a puff of smoke. When it cleared she stood there in her full Succubus form. “It is a pleasure to meet ya all in me other form,” she said, but her words were distinctly tinged with worry.
Tiny was the first one to speak, probably as Bob would have pointed out that he was too dumb to be surprised. “Welcome to the family, Stacia. It is good of you to join us in helping the master.”
Stacia giggled, “Thank ya, Tiny.” Her relief was evident when she spoke.
“Buh, what?” Bob finally got out. “But a half blood can’t be a minion.”
“We aren't sure that she is a half-blood anymore, Bob,” Alburet said. “Even the people over at the Infernal Retinue Service don’t know how it happened.”
“So, that patch note was your fault?” Karen said.
“It seems that way,” Alburet shrugged. “I wouldn’t trade her for anything, though.”
“Well duh, not with the massages she gives. Wow, that is so cool.” Karen said taking a step towards Stacia. “Can I touch your wings and tail?”
Stacia smiled, nodding quickly, “Aye. Thank ya for not rejectin’ me friendship.”
Karen paused as she traced the tip of a wing, “Why would I?”
Fluff interjected, “Half-bloods are barely tolerated in Stormguard. Full blood demons inside the walls are almost unheard of. No doubt she was worried we would spurn her as a friend now that we know.” Fluff stepped forward and gave Stacia a hug. “I will never reject a friend just for being themselves, Stacia. I was happy to know you before and I am even happier to know you now.”
Stacia sniffled as she returned the hug, her words soft, “Thank ya, Fluffball.”
Karen wrapped her up in a group hug from behind, “Me, too. If anything, you look even sexier now. Makes me want to see what round two would be like now.”
Stacia giggled a little, “Master likes me this way, too. I was so nervous when he first summoned me, but he has quashed all me doubts.”
Alburet smiled at the women all hugging, “So there we have it…” he cut off as he noticed Stacia was no longer in the group. “Wait, why is she no longer in the group?”
Karen jerked back quickly checking her interface. “I didn’t remove her, hang on I’ll reinvite her.” After a few second Karen shook her head, “It gives me an error saying minions can’t be part of a group.”
Fluffball pursed her lips in thought for a second, “Stacia, shift back to human please.” When Stacia did Fluff turned to Karen, “Try again.”
A second later Stacia was back in the group, “Right. Now that is weird,” Karen muttered.
“Stacia, can you shift back to demon form?” Fluffball asked.
Stacia did and as soon as she shimmered she was kicked from the group. “Oh, I get it now,” Alburet said. “As long as she’s in human form she can pass like anybody else. If she goes full on demon, though, it treats her like a minion. Good thinking, Fluff.”
“It was the only thing that made sense,” Fluffball replied, as she groomed her ear, with a small smile.
“Well, there we have it. Stacia is my succubus. I am going to ask that you keep it amongst us though, please. She doesn’t want any backlash at her family because she’s a minion now. They’re worried what others in the city would think if they found out,” Alburet informed the others. Both Karen and Fluff agreed to keep it between them.
“Now that we’re ready, can we go hunt?” Karen asked.
“Sounds good to me. What do you think, two imps, two destroyers, or two succubi?” Alburet asked.
“Two succubi, they can crowd control both orcs in the patrol groups. We can go through them one at a time starting with the wargs.” Karen replied, her eyes lighting up, “That should make it easy as pie.”
Alburet turned to Stacia and used Copy on her, and a second Stacia appeared. Unlike the previous times he had used Copy on Tiny or Bob, this time the copy wasn’t a washed out version of the original. The second Stacia was just as vibrant as the original. Both Stacia and her copy wobbled on their feet for a moment and Alburet steadied the two of them. “You okay, Kitten?”
“Yes, master,” both versions of her said in unison. Brows furrowed, a moment later only the one answered, “It is weird. I am getting vision, hearing and the rest from both bodies at the same time. I think I have it under control now.”
“If Stacia is okay, let us commence with the slaughter,” Karen said as she began to move further into the grasslands followed by the others.
“Two succubi. Double the pleasure and double the fun,” Bob chuckled.
Alburet rolled his eyes, “Oh, you so funny, Bob.”
“I want to try tha’,” Stacia said as she walked along on either side of Alburet.
Bob cackled at her words, making Alburet sigh, “Enough, Bob. We will discuss it later, Kitten. Do you know instinctively which one of you is the first you, by the way?”
The one to his right raised a hand, “Aye. I can even separate me thoughts enough to make my bodies do separate things easily.”
Bob broke up laughing at her comment. Before Alburet could say anything though Tiny spoke up.
“First pack,” Tiny rumbled as he took the lead.
Alburet darted forward and buffed him, “Okay. Tiny, take the warg first. Stacia, you know what to do with the orcs.”
Both Stacias began to sing a wordless song and the two orcs who had turned towards Tiny stopped dead, eyes going vacant as she sang. Tiny met the warg head on, blocking the first attack with his shield before hacking at the mob himself. Karen appeared and stabbed the warg in the flanks as Fluff leapt into the fray with twin axes flashing. Alburet blinked a little in awe of how fast the fight went as the warg quickly died.
“Wow, that was awesome,” Alburet muttered before shaking his head. “Stacia, we’ll be taking the one on the left first. Go ahead and join the others in melee once it breaks out of the daze, but keep the other one locked down.”
“Aye, master,” one of her answered as Tiny moved to hit the one he had indicated.
A minute later the combat was over and Tiny had barely been scratched. “That was so sad,” Karen chuckled. “I am so tempted to suggest we move off to the gnoll area instead, even if they are level twenty.”
“Hmm that’s a bit of a level gap there for me, much less you, Karen,” Alburet replied.
“Tomorrow would be okay for that area though, if we can get her a level or two,” Fluff put in.
“That still leaves all day to farm these orcs, so let’s do it hard and fast,” Karen said winking at Alburet. “If you can keep up with all of us women, that is.”
Fluffball went crimson at Karen’s double entendre, ducking her head and grooming her ears, while Stacia giggled as she pushed both of her bodies against Alburet. “Okay, this is not going to help us get Karen a level,” Alburet said before slapping Stacia on both of her asses. “Come on, we are going to grind like hell.”
“Promise, master?” Stacia giggled as she ran out of his reach. “Karen, he promises to grind us hard if we get ya a level.”