Diablo 2: Fallen

Diablo 2: Fallen - Chapter 3
By Lady Jasmine

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Disclaimer: I do not own Diablo II, its concepts, its designs or anything else related to it. Those are the property of Blizzard Entertainment, this story is simply a non-profit tribute and parody.

***

Chapter 3: "Out of the darkness"

Nightfall had settled over the inn while the paladins were gathered around a long wooden table late after uneasiness had settled over the young and brave Zacharius who eyed his leader with a certain suspicion that could only be born of his youth. For the past few days during their travel and their stay, Zacharius was becoming more and more aware of the lines of wariness marring his face and the often puckered brow appearing whenever Valerius frowned--which was often--even with the mouthful of such a delectable dinner that he was eyeing cautiously.

The dinner as usual was scrumptious. The roasted boar was juicy to every bite, the leek and potato soup was perfectly spiced and tasted wonderful--even to the harshest of the paladin critics--while the ale was a delightful treat the innkeeper had happily opened his secret stash from his stockroom.

Lutheric nodded to the innkeeper, gruffly thanking him for the food. The man smiled nervously and walked away, his feet scurrying away much like a startled squirrel.

With warm food and drink in their bellies, the paladins were starting to feel at home despite the hell outside. It was a questionable piece of heaven.

***

It was hell on earth. God himself must have tagged Valerius for a taste of hell; that could be the only explanation for Diemma to be constantly hounding him in the living world and in the sleeping. Even as he walked around the town, surrounded by no one, he still felt as though fate was doggedly hot on his heels.

Valerius stopped in his tracks, his thoughts slowing as he found himself facing the crude lion statue again on the edge of the small town.

His head still pounded fiercely with an ache borne of an unfulfilling sleep. In the night, he kept stirring and waking from Diemma's voice. A few times she'd suddenly out of nowhere start yelling at him. Not yelling a point, but just a word. Like this morning, as a wake up call, she yelled "POKE" to his mind until he rolled off of his pallet and stood up to face the bright morning light pouring in from the wide-open curtains he was certain he had drawn shut the night before.

Other times, Diemma would speak bits of speech, seemingly to talk in fragments to herself. Often it was just weird strings of words and nonsense as if to banish whatever she had said before. Most of what she had said he could vaguely remember. He'd question her sanity, and she'd reply saucily something that made no sense or was just said for her sheer amusement.

Then there was the times she’d whisper to him things that made his body ache. While it was true that Valerius hadn’t always been a paragon—particularly where women were concerned—he certainly felt he didn’t deserve that brand of torture.

She was at his heels many times, visible only to him. Many instances made Valerius question his own sanity, as well as her own if she were indeed a figment of his tired imagination. On his way to relieve himself, she ran out from the shadows of the thick woods to greet him with a silent glare or started cheering.

In response to his usual raising of the eyebrow, she asked, "Are your men enjoying the food?"

A flag of warning raised in Valerius' brain. "Yes," he said slowly. "What matter is it of yours?"

"Nothing," she replied airily. "Just that the smell of it was making me hungry."

He continued, as she followed him, nipping at his heels and brimming with a hidden energy showing in her determined stride.

"I thought demons don't eat food."

"I eat souls," she responded curtly. "And chicken."

His lips curled into a half-sneer as he traversed deeper into the wooded area. "Why are you still following me?"

"What are you doing?" she ignored the question.

"I'm going for a shit," he said flatly "What do you think?"

She gasped, stepping back. Her eyes widened as she clapped her hand over her mouth. Valerius stopped in his tracks, turning to stare at her, feeling a bewildered expression flash across his features. Here was a demoness, who probably killed many, yet her delicate senses were shocked by shit.

"You can't possibly get me to believe that you have never heard the word shit in your life," Valerius grumbled.

Diemma chuckled quietly. "No, I just never heard you say it." An errant lock of hair fell over her brow as she lowered her head and gazed up at him through thick lashes with a mischievous smile pulling one corner of her lips. She toyed with an errant lock of her raven hair. "Why, Valerius, I do believe I am a bad influence on you."

He made no response as she sauntered away from him, calling over her shoulder, "You may have your shit now."

He waited a moment, listening to the fading of her footsteps before slowly unlacing his breeches. "She's as annoying as the hellfire gates are damned," he mutterec with a sigh. As he waited, his mind too occupied with what to do about the Demoness.

A whimsical part of him, a part he once thought lost, whispered to him: "Wouldn't it be nice if you could just find a bright star and wish her away?"

He silently stored that thought in "the good ideas" section of his brain before Diemma's voice cut into his head:

“Shall I make a wish on your dark star? Tee hee!”

“GO AWAY, DEMON!”

“Oh fine…”

***

The woman was insistent as she spoke in fine cultured tones. “I expect you to take care of it. Better this time.”

The innkeeper nodded rapidly, determined to meet or even exceed her expectations. His hands were shaking, the jeweled rings in his grasp clinking from his excitement. “O-of course! I-I will see to it. But what if they ask who was responsible?”

The woman pulled the hood of her cloak over her head and smiled from the safety of the shadows as she backed away, “They shouldn’t, but I am nothing more than a caring citizen… I suppose that will work.”

Her deep violet cloak swirled as she darted away, sprinting down the road towards the ruins of Schaez as dust kicked up from her booted feet.

***

Valerius sighed, drumming his fingers on the old and abused planks of the table. Another night, another feast. He quietly watched as the paladins heartily drank and ate, joking to each other with faces full of merriment.

His eyes darted over the platters of food as another tankard was passed to him. A quail, roasted to a fine gold hue shined with a coating of a sweet and stick glaze beckoned him. He helped himself to it, filled his trencher with the luscious quail and the seasoned potatoes.

As he bit into the tender meat, it suddenly occurred to him. “How much does this cost?” He didn’t even realized he said it in full.

Lutheric shoved the tankard further under Valerius’ nose, “Who cares? You know how these distant towns work, everything so much cheaper!” He lewdly blew a kiss over to a woman standing in the doorway.

Valerius shook his head at Lutheric’s actions. Is that really how the Hand of Zakarum should act? Like bawdy men in a whorehouse with their cup runneth over of ale or other spirits?

He lifted the tankard to his lips with a sigh, inhaling the pungent scent of the alcohol.

“Do not drink it!!!” a female voice shouted out.

Valerius spat out the liquid, glancing over his shoulder. Diemma stood behind him at full height, glaring. The paladin stood up quickly, disturbing the table.

No one complained about the food overturned because everyone was already slumped over, slumped back or passed out. His comrades all were out cold, snoring softly

He glared at Diemma, “Demon, what have you done??!”

Her hands found her hips as she retorted, “I’ve done nothing but stop you from having that drink!”

He glanced at his comrades, one by one tending to each one, make sure they were all okay. “Who did this?” he asked as Diemma knelt down beside him, the white hem of her dress scuffing against the dirty floor.

“I think she did…” she replied softly.

Valerius turned his gaze, following Diemma’s to the entranceway where a cloaked figure darted away and out into the fog.

“Wait!” Valerius jumped up and ran towards the entrance at full speed. He faintly heard Diemma protest then the sounds of her steps chasing after him.

The winds that tended to grace Ghrent was gone; the night was still and an eerie fog had settled over the quiet town. He found himself running through the thick fog, turning down corners and jumping through brush into the edges of town. With each step, he could hear Diemma’s breath and steps following him, and it assured him.

Granted, he could not rely on Diemma, but for some reason, the idea of a rather insane-seeming demoness being possessive of him did something to boost his sense of security in the face of danger. However, Diemma herself was a danger to him as well. What if she decided she was tired of him?

“That will never happen, I need you,” her voice echoed in his head though she never spoke it.

“And why is that?” he asked silently.

He swiped a smattering of leaves away from his face only to have his hands torn by angry thorns as his pursuit continued. His lungs were burning and his lips were dry from the heavy expels of air that had fed his muscles.

“It’s just fate, trust me,” she whispered back.

Valerius saw the figure turn back and could make out pale skin visible in the moonlight, but features unreadable from the fog. Not breaking his stride, Valerius drew his sword, ready to cut down his target if need be.

He was gaining on it, the purple cloak was two yards away and getting closer. He could hear the person’s breath, feel the terror emanating from the body beneath the cloak. He could taste the desperation, and he knew Diemma was experiencing it all given how she was purring in his mind.

The whole time Valerius took to catch up to the figure and tackle it to the ground, Diemma was murmuring things in his head, reveling in the feelings of pursuit as though they were feelings of joy. She was whispering how lovely it must be, how wonderful it must be to be alive and feel something like that… and how wonderful it would be to be pursued. It was strange.

The body beneath Valerius was soft and yielding despite its ferocious movements to fight him off. The sword had been knocked out of his hand and out of sight no thanks to the fog. He grappled with the mysterious person before his plate gloved hand shot out angrily, catching the person in the head.

A high pitched cry of pain sounded she fell back.

Valerius silently cursed himself for harming a woman but still reached forward to pull the hood from her head. When he did, he instantly regretted it.

There, peering back at him with angry but energetic eyes was Diemma. Her chest was heaving, she was grinning and appeared to be the very picture of health with her face flushed. “Did you enjoy that?” she said in a low voice.

“YOU!” He stood up, pulling her up by her cloak as she laughed. Holding her in place, he turned his head to stare at another Diemma, silent with her white dress soiled from the run. “How Diemma?”

“I got bored,” the woman he held answered, pressing herself against him. Valerius angrily shoved her down and approached the white-clad Diemma. She wasn’t moving, she looked frozen in time if it weren’t for her lips, twitching, speaking to softly to hear.

He moved closer to her. “Diemma?” He reached out his arm to touch her pale shoulder but found his hand passing right through her before the illusion of her dispersed to the fog.

On the ground, Diemma’s shoulders shook under her cloak. “This was too easy, pet,” she stood up, pulling off her cloak, tossing it in the air with a dramatic grin. Valerius’ eyes widened. She wore a blue dress, made of what appeared to be a luxuriously smooth and shockingly sheer fabric. It would be described as a modest gown, with a high prim collar and conservative attitude the way it fell to the floor simply and covered her arms and wrists entirely. It would be modest… if it wasn’t so translucent.

Beneath the blue gauze, the rose tips of her breasts made his hands twitch, aching to reach for them while he buried himself in that secret spot hidden in the dark triangular shadow between her legs. She turned slowly to allow him to absorb every angle of her body. While she wasn’t well-endowed as the buxom wenches at the whorehouse his comrades had come across by accident, her breasts were still a beauty to appreciate.

Her legs were slim yet strong, and he found himself wondering how it would feel tightly locked around his waist in passion.

He shook his head and turned away, “Diemma,” he ground out. “I do not have time for your games.”

Her smile fell as her hand shot out.

Something slammed into him from behind, pushing him at full force into a tree. He groaned as he fell to the floor. The side of his head ached from turning to look at Diemma once he was struck. A warm liquid was matting his hair to his head. He reached up to touch his face to also learn the liquid was sticky.

Still lying on the twigs, rocks and crunchy leaves, he stared up
the night sky that peeked out at him from behind the foliage and fog. He vaguely registered the sound of Diemma’s footsteps crunching the leaves as she approached.

Diemma’s expression was solemn as she knelt down beside him and brushed the dirt from his face. Valerius’ hand twitched, but he couldn’t get the rest of his body to respond. “Diemma…” he uttered out warningly.

Her hand was trailing down his chest, pressing firmly on his mail. “You know, I do care bout you still regardless…” she said softly, humming to herself as Valerius watched in amazement as her hand passed through his armour until he could feel her night-chilled fingers toying with his chest hair. His body jumped in reaction to the temperature of her hands and his nipples tightened when they grazed them.

“Diemma… don’t…” he ordered her.

Her eyes locked with his as she crouched down closer, moving her other hand to steady her as she threw one of her legs over him to the other side of his body until she was straddling his stomach. The fabric of her sleeve glided across his skin as her fingers continued to toy with his chest hairs. She tugged on them, tangled her fingers in them and let out a chuckle when she pulled a few hard to force a grunt of pain from the paladin.

“Tell me Valerius, how long did you think you could keep me at bay? This is destiny…”

“What is destiny?” he muttered, clenching his jaw tightly, seething with anger.

“This… us… our meeting finally,” she said as she leaned down to his chest and Valerius’ eyes widened as he felt her tongue touch one nipple. He was still wearing his mail!

He sucked in his breath and groaned. “Diemma, we’ve met before…” he glared at her.

She paused thoughtfully. “Not like this.”

“We need to rectify that situation then,” she smiled, her body sinking into his.

Valerius gasped as he felt soft skin press and weigh down against the hard muscles of his stomach. Craning his head, he could see Diemma’s lower body, sinking through his mail to press against him.

“We could do this even while you’re fully dressed,” her face came closer to his as she pressed her lips against his. Her tongue darted out to touch the small trickle of blood at the corner of his lips.

Something stirred within him; it was that feeling of longing again. Below, in his loins, he could feel something fierce churning, demanding satisfaction. Diemma simply smiled; she could feel it too.

“My, my,” she said coyly, her hand reaching behind her.

When her hand encircled the proof of his desire, his eyes immediately shut. He had forgotten what it felt like to be touched by female hands. Though they were calloused, it still felt good to be held so intimately.

She didn’t move though. She didn’t say anything. She was no longer there!

Valerius opened one eye first, then the other. Diemma, the luscious—though 100% insane and demonic—woman was out of his sight. How?

He heard a crunch behind him and whirled around. Standing there, Diemma, wearing her white dress gazed back at him with her hands clasped together over her chest. She closed her eyes slowly and sighed.

He struggled to get up and located his sword in the leaves. With one arm extended, the tip of the deadly blade was pointed at Diemma, just inches from her throat. “It ends now, Diemma. No more games.”

“No more games,” she whispered back, opening her eyes slowly. They were filled with tears which Valerius was a little unnerved to see. A demon who can cry… how silly.

“I’m losing it, Paragon…”

He arched an eyebrow, “If you are telling me you are crazy, I already knew that. We established that during our first meeting.”

She shook her head, “No… it’s not the same. I’m losing it… I can’t control what I do anymore… I don’t know what’s going on.” She sounded hysterical. “I didn’t do those things to you, did I?” She sank to her knees, not caring if the pointed end of the sword followed her as she sat on the ground.

“I didn’t do it, yet I could see it…” she whispered in horror. “It must be them…”

Valerius narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “What are you talking about?”

“I don’t want to be that person again… I CAN’T be that person again!” she burst out hysterically. “No more of that, no more of that!”

Valerius reached out with his left hand and smacked her across the face. She said nothing and didn’t even move or flinch from the impact. The paladin was surprised. He hit her with full force, yet she didn’t even move. Though when he struck her after their pursuit, she was in pain.

“I’m losing it… I can’t control myself anymore!” she wailed, bursting into tears. “They can’t be here, they can’t be!”

The paladin hesitantly knelt down next to her. “Diemma, calm down.. what are you talking about?”

She looked at him, her eyes filled with terror, “Them! My sisters!”

A chill momentarily ran through Valerius before he shook his head. “That’s impossible. They’re dead. They’ve been dead for some time now.”

Diemma nervously looked around and shook her head. “N-no! You don’t’ understand! That’s what they do to me! That’s how they use me!”

Valerius gazed at her intently, “Use you?”

The demoness crossed her arms over her chest protectively and squeezed her eyes shut, “I don’t want to be like that anymore, I don’t like it.” She whispered it repetitively like a prayer closer to her heart… if there was one.

Diemma looked at him, seeming quite vulnerable. “A stronger evil can suck in any evil weaker than they,” she replied, shivering. “Diablo and Baal are the ultimate examples… but they’re out of reach to me…” She paused to smile crookedly. “Which is good, they can’t use me. I thought I’d be safe here, I thought no one would come here. Then you came here….”

She narrowed her eyes, “You had to come here and ruin my sanctuary… You… that’s when it started, that’s when I started this way.”

“Diemma… you’re not making much sense.”

“And that’s because of you!!!” she yelled angrily, both hands lashing out to shove him back. “It’s your fault!”

Valerius regained his balance and stood up with his weapon pointed at her again. She stood up and the sword tip followed her again. “You brought this back to me! You are trying to use me!”

Valerius look bewildered. “Use you? You? A demon? What are you talking about??!”

Diemma laughed, shaking her head and turning away from him, “You don’t get it—no, of course he doesn’t get it.” She shook her head and muttered angrily to herself. “I can’t think straight if he’s near, I want his goals, but then there are other things that beckon my aid…”

The paladin wasn’t sure what to do. She was turned away. He could strike her down now, end it here. She had to be the one behind all the vicious murders. The town would find peace at last.

“But… was there really ever peace even before she arrived?” he thought, lowering his sword.

Even though she was a demon, she still acted like a human… a crazy one, but she had the second-guessing nature of a human. It was an enigma to him that called to his sense of order to solve. He sighed and sheathed his sword before approaching her.

“Diemma,” he said softly and very cautiously. “I don’t know what you’re talking about it… but I get the feeling you want to tell me something.” He glanced down at her. “And thank you for changing your clothes, by the way.”

She turned around slowly, wide eyes staring up at him nervously. “I changed clothes?”

Valerius fell silent. “Do you know anyone who can will their shape to change? Or teleport?”

She nodded slowly. “I can.”

He sighed. “Well, there went that theory.” His lips twisted in thought. The fog around them had clearly settled over his brain, clouding the solution of this mystery. “So… people use you?”

She nodded.

“Do you remember what happens when people use you?”

“No…” she said sadly. "I only know because of the visions..."

"Visions," he repeated.

"Before things happen, I get a vision of it. Sometimes it's just before, sometimes it's years before... whenever someone uses me... it's always minutes before." She suddenly paled. "Soon... no..."

“Do other demons know where you are?”

“They’ll find me.”

“How?”

“Fate,” she said softly. “A strong one in evil must meet its match of good.”

Valerius sighed. “The only one in these parts that would fit the requirement of being good is Avellai, and she’s dead.”

“And that’s why they’ll come,” she responded, her eyes darting around. “Because evil lives here.”

“Diemma… evil is you.”

She shook her head, “No, it’s not.”

Valerius laughed, raking his fingers through his hair. The whole argument was ridiculous. A demon was insisting she wasn’t evil though she played a huge role in the slaughtering of many innocent. A fallen angel who probably bathed in the blood of virgins like one of her sisters, or slaughtered impure women.

“No… I’m not like them… I want to be like you… but something…” she closed her eyes, struggling to find the words.

“Diemma?”

“I should do it,” She opened her eyes, gazing upon him coolly.

His hair prickled as he reached to draw his sword only to find nothing at his belt. He looked down in shock then up at Diemma as her hand flew out again to force him back into a tree, pinning him against it.

“Argh! Diemma!! You bitch!” Pain shot throughout his head, emanating from the back of his skull. No doubt a lump would form there in the morning.

She sauntered up to him with slow and seductive motions, enticingly swaying her hips, “Yes, she is a bitch, isn’t she?” Diemma agreed, a smile gracing her lips as she leaned forward, a hand planted on the trunk of the tree as her lips touched the rough skin of his cheek.

Valerius closed his eyes as he felt her hot breath trail up his jaw to his ear. He moaned as he felt her teeth nip down on his left ear only to be followed with a warm wet tongue tracing the edge of his ear. “Diemma, you say you want me to help you…” he grunted as Diemma’s hand sunk in past his armour to his chest again. “But then you do this. What do you want?”

“Diemma?” she asked softly, laughing. She raked her nails across his chest, making certain she also caught one of his flat male nipples. He winced in response and she enjoyed it all too much. “You have no idea what’s going on do you?”

“Diemma?” he asked again, not sounding sure. He groaned again when her hand passed through his armour.

“It’s like she said about a strong evil meeting its match in good,” Diemma grinned as her hand moved lower, cupping him, lightling scratching her nails over his scrotum. She pinched the loose skin there, tugging on it and the coarse hairs that covered it.

He glared at her, his face pinching in pain. He didn’t like how his body was responding to her, this angry and cruel demon…. So unlike the crazy Diemma he was used to.

“You’re not Diemma, are you?”

“Ah.. now we’re getting somewhere,” she whispered to his lower body. He wasn’t sure if she was responding to his question or greeting his erection. He realized also how ironic it was that for the past few nights he had imagined erotic encounters yet the one that happens to him in reality was none of the hundreds that had flashed through his mind on the trip to Ghrent or during the stay.

“Who are you?” he choked out, his breath catching as her hands were exploring his length through the armour.

“Your fate,” she smiled in response to the gasp she elicited from with her nails on the length of his hard organ. She brought one of her hands to her face, licked her palm, then pressed her palm to the proud head of his penis, swirling the cup of her palm around it.

He groaned as her hand closed around the top of his cock. He had been craving a woman’s touch for days and perhaps it was his own fault that the touch he would get would be from a demon’s identity he wasn’t sure of.

“Your name,” he bit out. A touch of dread hit him as Diemma lowered in front of him and moved her face in the direction of his groin. “Diemma, no, don’t do….!”

His protest faded as he felt her warm mouth close around the head of his cock. His groin tightened as her lips tightened and traveled further down his length until his penis was fully in the wet cavern of her mouth.

He moaned as he clenched his fists, rebelling against the hot sensations her mouth produced. Her sexual appetite was voracious given the way she greedily sucked him and touched him. One hand was cupping his sac, fingers toying with the hais there, while the other hand raked over his hips, pelvis and thighs, nails scratching in wavy patterns, making every bit of skin her nails came near cry out for her ministrations.

“Holy… damn demon, “he cursed out, feeling his toes curl within his boots as he struggled to speak between rapid breaths. “No, don’t!”

She was speaking to his mind. “You can call me Diemma if that’s who you’d prefer.” Her laugh echoed in his head as he turned his face away and groaned.

It was too much, he was so close. He didn’t want to come. This was definitely a demon, but it wasn’t the demon he was familiar with. He hated the helpless feeling this unknown enemy was forcing onto him. This demon, this one controlling Diemma, this one using Diemma as a vessel… this had to be what Diemma was babbling about, what she was so scared of.

He fought harder, thinking of all sorts of disgusting or revolting sights he had come across during his lifetime. “Diemma!” he grounded out. “Snap out of it!”

“No,” said the voice in his head. “But you seem so fond of her…”

Diemma teeth grazed over the rim of his head as she hummed. She could feel him twitching in her mouth. Though he was fighting her, there was no stopping the inevitable.”

“More than you,” he retorted, his head tilting down to glare at her. He huffed, a wave passing over him causing all the muscles in his body to spasm. He fought it furiously, pushing that carnal goal aside.

“Well, if that’s the case, I’ll grant you one boon…” she whispered to his mind. She looked up at him, her hand twisting around his cock as her lips pulled up into a smirk. Her eyes turned back to his groin before they changed to a hazy lustful expression. Her head darted forward and her lips clamped down firmly as she bobbed her head furiously on his saliva-slickened cock. The rhythmic and wet-sounds of lust roared in his ears over the sound of her humming. It was all too much.

His pulse raced wildly as his groin tightened. He groaned loudly and yelled out Diemma’s name as he thrust his hips forward, deeper into her mouth, pouring himself into her warm and inviting mouth. He squeezed his eyes shut and felt his rapid breathing slow as he felt her tongue cease its lapping of his juices.

He looked down at her, cursing her as she pulled away from him and raised her eyes to meet his gaze. The lusty look was gone replaced with a confused look. Diemma.

“Valerius?” she said, muffled by his cum spilling from her mouth. The white liquid dribbled down her chin until a few drops ran down her neck, sliding lower until it hid behind the neckline of her white dress.

The paladin sank to his knees as he felt the force that had kept him pinned to the tree leave. He knelt down in front of Diemma and looked at her, almost afraid of her reaction.

She turned and spat the liquid, which the dirty of the earth quickly absorbed. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and looked up at him, “What was I doing?” she asked in horror.

Valerius’ gaze fell. “You didn’t do anything... it was someone else.” He felt guilty. He was naturally inclined to aid the innocent. Here was a demoness, powerless to another evil, and he still felt a need to protect her. And he had failed to protect her... a demon.
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