“I don’t want to hurt you…” I announced, but still ready to slit her throat if she attacked again. The blade kissed her skin softly, unflinching. Pure terror filled her, evident from her eyes, her quivering lips, her tiny shivers running up and down her body. She said nothing. Made no movements; aside from involuntary muscle spasms and the steady rise and fall of her chest. I stared into the emerald, star-fired eyes and asked, “Can you speak?”

She said nothing. Her mouth opened a little to breathe in a little deeper, but no voice came.

I wondered if fear held her tongue. Or perhaps she didn’t understand me. Or didn’t want to speak.

“Can you understand me?” I asked. No response. I saw nothing betraying understanding either. She recognized that I was speaking… her eyes constantly flitting between my mouth and my hand holding the knife. But as for understanding what I was saying, it appeared she hadn’t the slightest clue.

A frown tugged on my lips. The communication barrier was going to be a pain… and I couldn’t really move, lest the knife move. If the knife moved… she would be on me again. As pleasant it was to be so close to her, I did not want the rest of my short life to be summed up by ‘man holds knife to throat till eternal sleep takes him.’

“Well crap… what now…?” I glanced back at Ditto who slimed up to her shoulder from her arm. “Any ideas…?” I asked it, more thinking out loud than anything. My eyes veered back to the Alraune, looking her over while I thought.

From her height compared to mine, she stood at just a sliver above five feet with a body of green, but primarily one of a human woman. And a woman was she… I couldn’t help appreciating the audacious curves favoring her form that allowed the eyes to slide over them as though a ship sailing over a stormy sea; and yet, whatever fat her lithe frame contained was held in her thighs and sultry bosom.

‘Somewhere between a C and D for size… maybe glancing on an E though…’ I mused. With my free hand I pinched myself, the pain helping me refocus my worries to survival and not her luxurious form. ‘Perfectly evolved for enticing men. What a dangerous race you are. Succubus of the forest indeed.’

I considered using Flash to stun her enough to dash. But, not only was that a pretty nasty way to retreat… it would likely damage her eyes and only make her angry enough to lash her vines in all directions, with a high chance of catching me mid-run. No go.

I could use Combustion…

“Yeah, and burn her… great idea, me…” I hissed at myself. Obviously that wasn’t an option either.

Other than those two, I only had Heal.

“So… I literally just Heal her till she faints, or is too exhausted to come after me…” I nodded. That was the only reasonable course of action I really had. There was no way to safely knock her out other than that. There was no way to secure her. There was no way for me to run with her awake… “So over-healing it is. I really hope there aren’t any negative side effects to this.”

I guided her hands in front of her and held them both by the wrist in a feeble attempt to make her a bit more secure. Ditto moved down to my hand, swallowing up both of her hands and mine. After I healed her enough, I could easily have Ditto latch onto me as I hopped out of the bulb and went for the tree line. There were a few barbed vines in the way… but with a decent second jump I could clear the majority and not lose much speed.

‘If I can just get into the trees, she can’t see me anymore…’ I looked at her eyes and offered a little smile.

“Don’t worry, this is going to feel really good… hopefully. I just don’t want to die yet. Okay?”

She just looked back at me fearfully.

“It’ll be over soon…” I cooed. After making sure Ditto could easily access my still-bleeding fingers, I prepped the spell. A surge of energy rushed through and Ditto began to glow. “Let’s make this a big one, Ditto… a really, really strong one.” I kept pushing the river into Ditto, causing it to expand and glow a brighter and brighter crimson.

The Alraune lightly tugged away from me in fear, but I held her still. I kept pouring Spirit into Ditto till I could tell the poor slime couldn’t hold any more without bursting.

At the last second, I pulled the knife away from her throat. “Invoke!”

Ditto flashed and a diamond, crimson sea washed over the Alraune. She had nary the time to respond before she hugged herself and wailed into the air. A ravishing series of escalating spasms wracked her body, ripping aroused moans and screams from her. The electrifying climaxes seemed to pile up and double over and over. Her chest heaved. Her mouth opened wide to swallow what air she could manage between. Her body locked, released, jerked and shifted in a constant writhing that her tentacles mimicked. Her face and skin flushed beautifully, and her eyes shimmered in brilliant ecstasy.

So enrapturing was her display that it took me a few seconds to remember what I was even doing. Escaping. Right! Her hands had pulled out of mine, and Ditto had stayed attached to me. I turned, placed my hand on the bulb’s vibrating edge, and pushed against it as I leaped out. My shoes sloshed against the ground with a crunch.

They slid a bit, nearly causing me to fall. I corrected myself with the bulb’s edge and pushed against it. Ran. Leaped over the vines. Landing on flowers, I took off sprinting like a thief from the police.

During the few seconds it took for me to reach the tree line, I imagined being grabbed again. Being yanked back. But her thrilling cries told me she was too busy at the moment to even try.

I dashed into the trees and a few layers in. Just enough to hide, but still close enough to watch. Peeking from behind the trunk I saw her still writhing in pleasure. She lay against the side of her bulb, one hand reaching out as if she had tried to grab my shirt as I ran, but failed. The other gripped the edge and kept her head up as yet another clenching of her body attacked.

She shivered. A low moan left her. The deeper green colored her cheeks, her mouth steadily opening and closing in tempo to her desperate panting.

My heart tugged. Lust as well. Part of me ordered that I march back and hop in with her. The other wanted to live.

“I really rather not die yet…” I whispered, giving the Alraune a half salute before turning and walking within the trees back to my backpack. Night was coming. I had to get going.

After collecting my bag and cleaning off what goop I could, I meandered back to the Alraune to check on her. Her voice had quieted. I wanted to ensure my magic hadn’t had a horrible side effect or I hadn’t climaxed her to death.

I expected to see the bulb closed. Or maybe her resting. But when I moved into sight, I found her desperately peering into the forest from her bulb, a look of weary sorrow covering her delicate features. From the way a strand of light shone on her, I saw a small tear.

“…is she… crying?” I wondered. Why? What had I done? Left?

But that was obvious. It was an escape… I didn’t want to be sucked dry. Maybe she wasn’t intelligent enough to realize that… or something?

I turned to hurry away, but the dejected look on her beauty was just too powerful. I just had to say goodbye… or at least say sorry for her sadness. Just to close the door and leave her on a more positive note; even though she had tried to capture me. I noted to myself, ‘Women’s emotions are fearsome things indeed.’

Carefully, I approached to the point where I was still a few trees into the tree line, thus having plenty of cover, but still exposed enough to be seen.

“Goodbye,” I called out, waving.

Her head snapped to look at me and the dejection vanished. Immediately her tentacles shot forward toward me. I jerked back, but I needn’t have bothered. They made it only a few feet before collapsing to the ground, too exhausted.

An adorably frustrated look colored her face. Biting her bottom lip lightly, she tried again. The tentacles rose a few feet and then fell once more.

“Huh… didn’t know tentacles got tired like that. Learn something new every day.” I gave a half salute, “See ya, little Miss Beautiful.” I turned to go.

Her voice called me back. It formed no words. Had no rhyme or reason. Just a pleading sound filled with emotion, like a note of a song, or the airy half of a vowel. I glanced back.

She was climbing out of her bulb.

I blinked. She was climbing out of her bulb?!

“Wai-wai-wait!” I shouted, hurrying closer to her, waving my hands. “That’s a bad idea!” The tome had said that they migrated and grew a new bulb once every Spring. So walking was possible for them… but if they were away from their bulbs for too long, the Alraune would die. “You should stay in there!”

My shouting drew her attention, but still she climbed. Squelching popping noises followed as she pulled one of her long legs out of the plant, sliding the glossy limb over the edge. She lowered it till her toes touched the earth and then, with a little jump, she pulled out her second leg and with a little maneuvering placed it on the ground outside as well. She was now completely out of her home. And fully naked, I noted.

A determined look guided her shaky steps forward. She stumbled, her legs weak, and her knees touched the ground but she caught herself with her hands. Struggling, she stood again and took baby steps toward me. Her haggard shuffling dared fate to bring her down once more.

I wanted to help. But, the tentacles… I looked at them and noticed something odd. The bulb was closing. The tentacles were retracing and curling around the bulb naturally, as if by muscle reflex.

‘Maybe detaching from the bulb causes her to lose control of it?’ I mused, watching. I still didn’t dare leave the trees, though. I half considered turning tail and just dashing, but I was too curious… and far too kindhearted to leave her who was working so hard to come to me.

“If you’re coming to kill me or something… this Prophet’s tale is going to really suck…” I commented, moving a little closer as she stumbled toward me. She fell once more. But, she stood and continued on.

I had no idea what to do, so I just waited.

When she drew close, her arms rose and she happily smiled, speeding up. She stumbled forward in a fall.

I jerked forward and caught her in a hug, lifting her to a stand. She hugged me happily, a giggle escaping her while nuzzling her face into my chest as if finally meeting her long lost lover.

“What the-” I froze. I felt something familiar. A snapping sensation. An extra ethereal limb, but this time with an actual presence in my mind. The stars aligned and the feeling was undeniable. The sudden attachment. An unfamiliar magical flow melding with my own.

My jaw dropped in shock. I had just formed a contract with her… accidentally!

“You… have got to be kidding me…” I muttered. She looked up at me, grinned cheerfully and snuggled into my chest again. A sigh escaped my lips. I couldn’t think fast enough to come to terms with what had just fully happened. All I knew… things had not gone as planned. At all.