Page 103 of Chaos
“Not you,” Malice said, holding up a finger like that would actually stop Sinclair.
“Remember last time how we all admitted to having intense dreams about Merri? Those weren’t normal dreams. She wasdreamwalking. Visiting us each on the dream plane and feeding.”
“It did feel incredibly realistic,” Chaos said, mostly to himself.
“That’s because it was.”
“I don’t think I’m following,” Malice admitted.
“Succubi and incubi originally fed only in dreams. It was outlawed centuries ago for a number of reasons, most of them political. But the salient point for our purposes is that the dream plane is where succubi are most powerful.”
“Incubi were said to leave a female partner pregnant after repeated dream encounters. I’ve never done it, but I’ve heard the legends.” Sin’s brows were furrowed as he continued. “I’m not a true incubus, though, and I honestly thought those were simply stories made up to excuse infidelity.”
“Do you think it could work in reverse? Where a succubus could get pregnant via a dreamwalk?” Chaos asked.
I nodded. “I’m certain of it. It’s one of the reasons for the ban. The Council didn’t want them to overpopulate the rest of the demon masses. They were growing too powerful.”
“Then why the fuck didn’t you tell us about this weeks ago?”
Chaos was right, of course, but I truly hadn’t considered this a possibility because, frankly, I hadn’t remembered it was one. “I’ve amassed a great deal of knowledge in my long existence, and I’ve forgotten more than most creatures could ever aspire to know. Forgive me if one piece of lore slipped my mind.”
“Arguably the most important piece of lore for our current task.” Malice’s words were snide, and it took everything I had not to hit him.
“Merri still has to initiate the dreamwalks, so it’s not exactly like it was a viable option until we knew she was capable of such a thing.” I glared at him. “Besides, the skill has become so unused she would have no idea how to do it. Lilith certainlywouldn’t dare teach her. And it’s not exactly like one of us would have been able to explain it to her.”
“So if Merri realized that this was the safest and most satisfying way for her to feed, then why did she stop?” Chaos asked.
The room fell silent as we all searched for an answer.
“I think, maybe, for the same reason that none of us helped her feed until she gave us permission.”
“You think this is about consent?” Malice asked.
I shrugged. “We know how important it is to her.”
“Do you think she’s even aware she’s dreamwalking?” Chaos asked the question I was certain they’d all been thinking.
“Yes.”
Sin huffed. “And how do you know, Grimsby?”
“She told me herself.” They all stared at me as though I’d been holding out on them. “Don’t look at me like that. Why the hell do you think I called this bloody meeting?”
Malice had his fingers pressed to his temples and was currently massaging the area. “Okay, fine. So the suggestion here is what, exactly? We give her the green light to feed on us in our dreams, and we cross our fingers and hope that one of you three gets her pregnant?”
“It seems like the best option.”
“Why would she be willing to do it in our dreams but not in the real world?” Sin asked.
“Because there are no ill effects on us.”
“What do you mean?” Chaos asked.
“Think about it. All four of us dreamt of her, and even though she fed deeply, none of us were rendered unconscious or otherwise harmed. The magic of the dreamwalk must protect us in a way that we can otherwise only experience by sharing the drain.” I shrugged again, definitely outside the realm of myexpertise. Logically, though, it tracked. So far as I could glean anyway.
“It would remove the largest obstacle if that was the case,” Malice agreed.
“Hang on a sec. You saidthreeof us. The last time I checked, Chaos and I were the only ones on baby daddy duty. Since when did Daddy Death get added in as a sperm donor?” Sin asked, his brows almost to his perfect hairline.
