The pair of red eyes belonged to a demon queen---a succubus who ruled in the shadows of another realm, a place where lust and desire fueled existence itself.
She had felt it the pull... The cry of a soul consumed by pleasure at the moment of death. It was rare, intoxicating, and exactly what she needed.
With a flick of her will, Zander's soul was yanked from the void between life and death, dragged through the fabric of reality until it materialized in a dark, endless space.
Zander gasped, or at least, he thought he did. There was no air here, no ground beneath him, just... nothingness. He floated, weightless in the air.
"What is happening...?" His voice echoed, distorted.
Then, she appeared.
A figure stepped out of the darkness, her form shifting between shadow and flesh. She was beautiful in an unsettling way with sharp features, glowing red eyes, long white hair that moved as if alive.
Her presence radiated power, danger, and something else... hunger... but not for food. For lust!
"Zander Caelen, a playboy. Died at twenty-five during sexual intercourse. How poetic." She began talking. Her voice was smooth, silky, yet it reverberated through his very being.
Zander's eyes widened. He tried to back away but there was nowhere to go.
"Who... who are you? Where am I?" His voice trembled despite himself.
The woman tilted her head, a slow yet sweet smile curling on her lips.
"I am Nyx, avatar of the Succubus System. And you, Zander, are dead."
The words hit him like a punch to the gut.
"Dead?" He looked down at his hands and when he saw them looking translucent, flickering. Panic clawed at his chest.
"No... no, I can't be dead. God, please..."
"Your body is currently in the trunk of a car," Nyx interrupted, her tone almost bored now at the information.
"The man you were fucking is planning to burn you and scatter your ashes. Quite the tragic end for someone so beautiful, don't you think?"
Zander's mouth opened and closed, no words coming out. His mind raced as he remembered what had happened earlier.
"That motherfucker!" He cussed under his breath, his nose scrunching up in disgust.
"Well, I can give you a second chance." Nyx continued, stepping closer, her red eyes locking onto his.
Zander's head snapped up.
"Really?"
"Yes." Nyx circled him slowly, like a predator assessing prey and continued;
"You died in the throes of lust, Zander. Your cock was hard with your mind consumed by pleasure, only thinking of how to cum at that moment. That kind of death... it calls to me. It awakens the System." She explained, her voice dripping with excitement.
"What system is that?" Zander asked, his brows furrowing.
Nyx stopped in front of him, her smile widening.
"The Succubus System. I can return you to life, but you won't be the same. You will be bound to me. You'll become a collector."
"A collector? What's that?" Zander inquired curiously.
"You'll collect sexual energy from humans. Seduce them, fuck them, make them crave you and every encounter feeds the System, and in return..." She waved her hand and images flickered before Zander's eyes: stacks of cash, a perfect body, glowing skin, eyes that could entrap anyone, power beyond imagination.
"You'll be rewarded with everything you could ever want."
Zander's breath hitched. He stared at the visions, his mind spinning.
"I... I get to live again? And all I have to do is... seduce people? Have sex?" He asked in disbelief.
"Actually, complete missions," Nyx corrected. "The System will assign you tasks. Some simple. Some difficult. You must complete them all."
Zander's lips curved into a slow smile. This was what he'd been doing anyway, wasn't it? Getting paid to be irresistible?
"That doesn't sound so bad."
Nyx's smile sharpened, taking on a dangerous edge.
"But if you fail a mission, Zander, you'll be punished. The System doesn't tolerate failure."
The smile slowly faded from Zander's face.
"Punished? How?" He inquired.
"Suffering! The kind that makes you wish you'd stayed dead." Nyx's voice dropped, cold and merciless.
"The System is not lenient with punishment, Zander. It is brutal so don't take it lightly." She warned.
Zander swallowed hard as fear crept up his spine.
"I... I don't think I want this."
"Then stay dead," Nyx said simply, turning away as if the conversation was over.
"Wait!" Zander called out, desperation lacing his voice.
Nyx paused, glancing back at him with amusement.
"I... I haven't even enjoyed life yet," Zander said, his voice breaking slightly. "I'm only twenty-five. I can't just... die, thrown away like trash."
Nyx studied him for a long moment, then a pleased smile crossed her face.
"Good. Then you'll accept."
"But the punishments..." Zander was about saying but Nyx interrupted.
"Will be worth it. Because the rewards, Zander, are beyond anything you've ever imagined. You will be wealthy and powerfully irresistible."
Zander's eyes gleamed as he imagined the rewards. His old life hadn't been that good. He had been aiming to get himself a penthouse and a luxury car and even playing around hadn't gotten him those yet.
But this... this was everything he'd ever fantasized about.
"Just to complete missions?" He thought, hesitating for a heartbeat then he nodded;
"I accept."
"You've made the right choice." Nyx smiled knowingly then she raised her hand and a glowing contract materialized in the air---symbols and text written in a language Zander didn't understand.
"Touch it, that will be your signature." She told him.
Zander reached out, his translucent hand touching the contract. The moment he did, it flared with dark red light and dissolved into his chest.
A sharp pain shot through him and he screamed as his soul burned, reshaped, bound.
"Welcome to the Succubus System, Zander Caelen. You're now a collector." Nyx's voice echoed around him.
At that announcement, a dark mole appeared on his chest, directly on top of his heart.
~~~~~~~~
Consciousness slammed back into Zander like a freight train.
His eyes flew open and he gasped, sucking in air into his lungs. His heart pounded in his chest.
His body felt... different and alive but he couldn't move.
Panic surged through him as he realized he was folded up, cramped in a small, dark space. The smell of leather surrounded him.
A car trunk.
Zander's hands shot out, feeling around in the darkness until his fingers found the latch. He pulled it and the trunk popped open.
Cool night air rushed in and Zander scrambled out, tumbling onto the concrete of a driveway. He lay there for a moment, chest heaving, as he stared blankly into space.
"Am I really alive?" He wondered.
At that moment, a shout from inside the nearby house snapped him out of his daze.
"I told you, I was drunk! I don't even remember how it happened!" Roland's voice, desperate and pleading.
"You expect me to believe that? You had a man in our bed, Roland! In. Our. Bed!" The wife's voice was shrill, furious.
Zander's eyes widened at the realization that he was in Roland's driveway.
"That fucking psychopath actually put my body in the car to dispose of me?" Zander muttered angrilly, pushing himself to his feet.
Then the cold air hit his bare skin and he looked down.
He was completely naked.
"Shit."
Zander quickly leaned back into the open trunk, searching frantically. His hands found his trousers and shoes and he yanked them on as fast as he could.
No shirt, but he'd deal with that later.
Carefully, quietly, Zander made his way down the driveway, glancing back at the house, voices still shouting inside.
He didn't wait to see if Roland would come back out.
Zander hurried down the quiet street, his bare feet slapping against the pavement. It was past midnight so the neighborhood was silent, most houses dark.
As he walked, something flickered in his vision.
Zander stopped, blinking hard.
A translucent screen appeared before his eyes, glowing faintly in the darkness.
[SUCCUBUS SYSTEM ACTIVATED]
[WELCOME, COLLECTOR ZANDER CAELEN]
[MISSION 1 UNLOCKED]
Zander's heart raced as he stared at the screen.
The text shifted, new words appearing:
[MISSION 1: BEGINNER LEVEL]
Objective: Find a random stranger and make him orgasm twice without physically touching him.
Time Limit: 7 hours
Rewards: $2,000, Enhanced vocal seduction ability, +20 Charm Points
Failure Penalty: Electric shock through entire body for 90 seconds
Zander's jaw dropped.
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
He read the mission again, hoping he'd misunderstood but apparently, he hadn't.
"How the hell am I supposed to achieve that?" He hissed at the screen. Even as a glorified playboy, he hadn't done anything like that before.
The text shifted again:
[FAILURE IS NOT TOLERATED. COMPLETE YOUR MISSION OR FACE PUNISHMENT.]
Zander clenched his fists but then his eyes drifted back to the rewards.
Two thousand dollars. Just for one mission. And an ability? Enhanced vocal seduction?
His lips twitched despite his frustration.
"I guess I can try it out... but..."
The screen didn't respond. It just hung there, the countdown timer ticking down.
[6:58:32 remaining]
Zander ran a hand through his hair, mind racing. He glanced around the empty street, then started walking with purpose.
He was about to find out just how far his charm could really go.
Would he achieve this?