CITY OF THE GODS: FORGOTTEN (38 page)

Digital Alteration of
La Cigale
(Jules-Joseph Lefevbre, 1872).

He heard small hooves clip-clopping on the polished stone floor and guessed it had to be the pink demoness he’d met here the other day. Then her soft voice echoed out of the darkness, “What do you want, and who are you anyway?”
  

“I came to speak with Sekhmet. It’s D’Molay. I was here a couple of days ago,” he said. The pink demoness he had met and briefly fallen in love with just a few days ago approached, carrying a scroll tied with a thin red cord with a tassel on one end. She studied him with her luminous green eyes, one of which was mostly covered by the dark curly forelock that diagonally ran across her face. Soon she smiled.

“Oh, I remember you. You brought my mistress her husband’s gem. She had been looking for that for over two thousand years.”
 

“I’m glad I was able to help her find it, then.”
 
He’d wondered what the gem’s significance had been to Sekhmet, but experience had taught him never to directly ask.

“Geb died a long time ago and she had given him that gem to celebrate their joining. It’s indestructible, so she knew it was still around, somewhere. Anyways, thanks for getting it to her.
 
It made her very happy.” She stared up at him with gratitude in her eyes as she shifted her weight from one cloven-hoofed foot to the other.

“Good. Is Sekhmet here?” D’Molay looked around the chamber, hoping to see the demon’s mistress. He was starting to feel those pleasant but uncomfortable pangs of attraction he had experienced the last time this demoness had been close to him. Every little gesture and movement she made was a beautiful distraction that made it hard to think or even breathe. He tried not to look at her, but found it very difficult, as she was dressed only in a short white linen skirt comprised of two flaps of fabric at the front and back, held up by a black leather belt with silver studs on it. She wore nothing on top, save for a necklace made of semi-precious stones with the cat symbol of Sekhmet in the center.

The demoness rested her index finger on her lower lip and looked up at the ceiling, as if she were trying to remember something. “Nooo, she’s not here. She has a meeting with Horus and Thoth today. She might be back later this evening though.”
 
The demoness turned around and casually walked back toward Sekhmet’s throne.
 

D’Molay took in a deep breath and sighed as the lustful thoughts and feelings spinning around in his head faded a bit. “I was hoping to ask her for a favor this afternoon.” Though he desperately wanted to follow the demoness, he resisted the urge to move closer to her.

For a moment it looked like the she was going to sit in Sekhmet’s throne, but she seemed to think better of it and turned back to face D’Molay. Then she dropped to the floor to sit, leaned back against the lower front part of the stone throne, and spread her wings.
 
She bent her legs up almost to her chin and hugged her legs. “So, what kind of favor do you need?
 
Maybe I can help.” She gave D’Molay a come-hither look and brushed some stray hair out of her face as she awaited his answer.
 

Despite the web of attraction, the distance from the demoness was enough for D’Molay’s head to clear a bit more. “I need to get into Set’s temple but the guards won’t let me pass. I’m looking for a friend and I think she’s in there somewhere.”
 

“Oh, Set likes to put people in his prison up on the top floor. He put me in there one time, when I first started visiting with Sekhmet. She made him release me, though.” She stretched her legs out and crossed them. “Set’s not very nice, you know. I’d stay away from him, if I were you.”
 

D’Molay already knew Set’s reputation, but the location of his prison was valuable new information. “I know Set’s evil ways. That’s why I’m trying to save my friend before he gets a chance to do terrible things to her. She has committed no crime and was falsely sold into slavery.”

“Hmm. The guards might let Sekhmet in ‘cause she’s a goddess, but they wouldn’t let me or you in. We’re not important enough.” Although her words were discouraging, she did not seem defeated. She tapped her pink, manicured finger on her chin and gave him a sort of mischievous smile. “Still, I might be able to help anyway . . . what was your name again? Sorry - I forgot.”

She shrugged apologetically.
 
He noticed that her wings rose a bit at the same time as her shoulders moved and managed to suppress a lustful thought about kissing them.

“It’s D’Molay. What should I call you? Do you have a name?”
 
He realized that he wanted to know her name more than he probably should.
     

“They call me Tenh-Mer. It means ‘beloved wings of the goddess.’ So call me that.”

 
        
“Tenh-Mer. It’s a beautiful name.” D’Molay shook his head to break away from gazing into her eyes. He realized she was having an effect on him again and looked down at his boots to try to avoid her gaze. “What is your idea?
 
I’m pretty desperate and I’ll take any help I can get right now.” He had a guess as to what her plan might be. No doubt she would use her sexual energy to seduce the guards.
 
It was an old trick, but in her case, it was bound to work.
 
He wondered if she was truly as attractive as he thought she was, or if her aura of desire just made her seem so.
     

Before she spoke, Tenh-Mer twirled a strand of her hair round her index finger, apparently collecting her thoughts. “I found a way out of the prison area they don’t know about, and I could take you there. The thing is, I’m not supposed to leave Sekhmet’s chamber. But I guess I could slip out and no one would notice.”

“That sounds promising, Tenh-Mer, but I don’t want to get you in trouble.”
 
His heart skipped a beat when he heard her information. He tried not to appear too excited, more out of force of habit than anything else. He was still wary of this beautiful creature whose convenient offer of assistance seemed too good to be true.
 

“As long as I get back here quickly it will be all right. But you have to promise me that you won’t tell anyone I took you. Promise?” She looked at him with an eyebrow raised and her arms folded.
 
It was obvious that she expected a formal promise from him.

“Of course, Tenh-Mer. I promise not to tell anyone you helped me.” He had never expected to make a pledge like this to a demon, but the City was always full of surprises.

Sitting across from her was getting to be a distraction again. He could not stop himself from looking at her dark curly hair, long legs and pert breasts. “So, what exactly is your plan to get me into the prison?” It was still not clear exactly what she had in mind. He felt a bead of sweat trickle down his forehead.

Tenh-Mer looked a bit taken aback. “Didn’t I explain it?
 
Oh. Well, I was flying back to the compound after a long journey, and I was really tired. Flying is a lot of work you know.
 
Anyway, I got a little lost and instead of landing here,” Tenh-Mer gestured to indicate the building they were in at the moment, “I ended up under the ledge of the prison building. I was sure I was at the right place, so I found a gap in the roof and climbed in. It takes you right into the prison. I’m sure no one knows it’s there, cause you can only find it if you can fly up under a roof ledge and then squeeze through the hole.
  
Got my wings all scratched up, but since you don’t have wings, crawling in should be easy.”

D’Molay shifted uncomfortably. “I’m not sure I can handle this, Tenh-Mer.”

“You mean you’re afraid of me dropping you, or of flying?”

“Neither actually. What I mean to say is I’m not sure I can be this close to you and restrain myself. Could you at least put more clothing on? Maybe that would help a bit.”

She immediately covered her exposed breasts by crossing her arms and resting her hands on her shoulders. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t expecting visitors today, so I didn’t bother. Let me find something.” Tenh-Mer quickly hopped over to the back of the throne and started rummaging through a large wicker basket. “How about this?”
 
She emerged holding a white cotton shirt with long, puffy sleeves. Tenh-Mer put her arms through the sleeves so that the shirt closed at the back instead of the front. “Can you tie it up at the back? With these wings, I have to wear things like this backwards.”

“All right.”
 
D’Molay walked over. With her arms still sticking out, she turned around. His eyes shot to her firm little pink behind and a tail that came out from the bottom of her spine. Her tail was about three feet long with an arrow shaped point at the end. It looked just like any demon tail he had seen in Purgatory, except it was bright pink instead of the usual deep red. As he started to tie the fasteners, he had the overwhelming urge to grab and passionately kiss her.
 

D’Molay’s hands were trembling, but he managed to take hold of both ends of the shirt to bring them together. He tied the first lower strings, then the next one up. Each set if strings seemed to pull him closer to the demoness. Unable to resist any longer, D’Molay leaned in and kissed her on the neck, then held her close in a soft embrace.
 
“I - I can’t -”

Tenh-Mer slowly turned around as he held her, then she embraced him back. “You were very strong D’Molay. Few humans last more than a moment or two.”
 
She looked up at him with green mischievous eyes and gave him a long, lingering kiss.
 

He held her close and felt her body pressing up against his. She was soft and yielding. “You feel so good . . . I can’t believe I’m doing this.”
 
Then he kissed her again as he ran his hands through her thick black hair.

“Mmmm, yes,” Tenh-Mer moaned. D’Molay felt a shudder run through her wings as he caressed her. His hand glided down the small of her back and gave her left buttock a squeeze.
 
Tenh-Mer sighed expectantly as his hand moved to her other cheek.
 
As his hand moved gently along, Tenh-Mer’s tail slipped into his hand and he started. His eyes opened wide and right in front of them were the pink horns that protruded from Tenh-Mer’s head.

“What am I doing? Y-you’re a demoness!” He thrust her away and stepped back, dizzy with the conflicting feelings that ran through him.

“What’s wrong?
 
What’s the matter?” She stared at him, confused.

“I can’t do this. I shouldn’t do this!
 
I came here to rescue someone, not . . . not fall under your spell!” D’Molay stepped back a few more paces and turned his head away so as not to look at her, for fear he might rush back into her arms.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I can’t control it, it just happens!” Tenh-Mer’s words rang sincere in his ears, but he still moved to leave.

“I must go. I’ll find my own way into that prison. I’m sorry I bothered you.”
     

“No, D’Molay. Stop, please! I’ll take you there, right now, and then I can ask Sekhmet to get you out if you can’t escape on your own. Please.” Her voice was pleading and she almost sounded like she was going to cry. “Let me help you,” she said in almost a whisper. She fell to her knees on the cold, stone floor as he walked away. D’Molay stopped in front of the golden doors.

With some distance between them, D’Molay felt his head starting to clear again, although he still felt a strong pull to resume what they had just started. He gripped the door handle in his hand like a life preserver as he risked a look back into the darkness at her. “Can I trust you, demoness?
 
Can I even trust myself?”

Tenh-Mer remained on her knees, motionless as she regarded him sadly. “I met a priest once in the Celtic Realm. Like everyone else, he fell in love with me. He said that God must have created a creature like me to test the faith of the pious against the sin of lust. I don’t know if that’s true, but he was the last person who was able to resist my charms.
 
Maybe you can be the next one. The way I am is a blessing and curse, D’Molay. I never have friends, only lovers and they never really love me. They just fall under the spell that surrounds me.
 
Please, let me help you, just as a friend?”
 

As she spoke, D’Molay squeezed the door handle so tightly that his knuckles turned white. He was again drawn in by her open arms, convinced by her luminous eyes glistening in the darkness. His fingers released the ornate door handle. “A-alright, let’s try again.”
 
He silently chastised himself and resolved to keep his composure when he moved close to her.