Chapter 1: The offer

About three in the morning, a whooshing sound had awakened Luca. He heard shuffling somewhere in the house. Luca followed the sound downstairs. In the living room, he met the darkened figure of a woman, slightly shorter than him.

“Beth? Is that you?” Beth was a former girlfriend whose quirky side led her to stalk men at odd hours. Luca still missed her.

Luca’s call to Beth was met with silence.

A burglar, he concluded. He did not know whether she had a gun. He took a few steps back.

“Do not be afraid,” said her soft voice in the darkness. “I am here only to help you die and make you eternally happy.”

“Lady, get lost,” he answered. “ My wallet’s on the kitchen table. Take it and get out.” It’s a full moon tonight, alright, he thought to himself.

“You have nothing to fear,” the image said. “I am a succubus.”

Oh great, Luca thought, A moment ago I had a burglar. Now I’ve got a crazy burglar. “Lady, fer chrissakes, take the wallet. And go get some help.”

“I am here to help you.”

Help me? A moment ago, she wanted to help me die. Batshit crazy broad, he thought.

“You are lonely. You will never be lonely again. I am here to place many women at your disposal.”

Luca had more thoughts about that night's full moon. “What the hell are you babbling about?” he asked.

“No babble here,” she replied. She took several steps toward him, which brought her into the moonlight. She was a slender woman with shoulder-length black hair, brown eyes, bright red lips, and an angelic face. She wore a shiny black bodysuit that covered her hands and feet.

“Hello, Luca. My name is Naamah.”

“How did you know my name?” asked Luca.

“For a long time, I have been wandering around in your dreams.”

“Whatever are you talking about?”

“Here. Observe,” Naamah said. She turned her back to him, which revealed a tail. She waved the tail, which began at the lower end of her spine, was covered by short black fur, and was as long as her waist to the floor. “I inhabit your dreams. I am indeed a succubus.”

At the sight of this woman with a tail, Luca stepped back. Color drained from his face.

“Who are you? What are you?”

“Yes, my name is Naamah. Yes, I am a succubus,” she said patiently. “And that,” Naamah waved the end of her tail, “is my nuptial rose. Unlike the rest of me, the rose is pure magical energy.” The nuptial rose was a heart-shaped appendage about the size of her hand. The rose pulsed as it turned a deep red. “I am going to use my rose to show you what a lucky man you can be.”

“Lucky man. W-w-what happened to my being a dead man?” Quickly, he looked around for a weapon. He saw none.

“Lucky and dead, too.” She smiled and said brightly. “Lie down on the sofa.”

“No,” Luca said. I don’t know who or what this woman is, but she is one nutty bitch, he thought.

Naamah stepped toward him. She blossomed the rose close to his face. “Now take a deep breath,” she said. Luca tried to avoid the odor, which was acrid. He turned his head at the smell; the aroma overcame him. His legs gave out, and he sat down on the sofa.

Gradually, the sight of Luca’s ordinary world passed from view. He saw a new world of orgies, skin, breasts, erections, lips, orgasms, nipples, vaginas, and testicles. Women called out to welcome him.

Luca heard Naamah’s voice above the interminable moans of the orgy. “Here is your welcome! From the Big Guy himself!”

“Welcome, Luca!” boomed a disembodied voice out of the air. “Welcome to the Eternal Orgy, the best place in your world or ours! I govern the Otherworld. I govern along with my queen, Linda. Queen Linda oversees the Eternal Orgy. I have been doing this royalty gig for a couple of eons now. By the way, are you interested in taking my job? Ha ha!”

Naamah materialized next to Luca immediately

From somewhere on the other side of the microphone, or whatever was transmitting the sound, Luca heard a woman’s voice. “Luca, this is Queen Linda. I so look forward to my first time with you.”

A dream, Luca thought. This is all a dream. Nice to think about, but a dream nonetheless.

The Big Guy finished things up. “All the citizens of the Otherworld eagerly await your life among us and your active part in the Eternal Orgy.” The Big Guy and Queen Linda signed off.

Naamah took control again. “Luca, I’m offering you a deal. Here is what you get. First, you get a woman.”

Luca brightened. Not half bad, he thought.

“In fact,” Naamah continued, “you will have an endless supply of women.”

Even better, even for a dream. And what would this succubus person want?

Naamah said. “Mana is the mortal’s spiritual energy force. This spiritual energy is expressed in men as semen. I want yours.

“Well?” she asked. “Are we partners?”

Luca replied, “I’ll think about it.”

Naamah’s shoulders fell. “What if I throw myself in as your first woman?”

“I’ll think about it,” Luca repeated. “Do I have to die for all this sex to happen?”

After eons of time and hundreds of thousands of men, Naamah had her answer ready. “Mortals might believe you have died. They will be wrong. In reality, you will have begun your new life. You will be here safely in the Otherworld.”

Naamah brought them both from the Otherworld to Luca’s bedroom. She removed her nuptial rose from Luca’s face. Luca sat in bed, groggy from the unusual experience. “See you later, Mr Mana Man,” Naamah said. “Tomorrow night, I will give you a taste of what will be yours.” She vanished with the same whoosh that announced her entry.

Luca lay in bed, gradually came to, and thought, What a dream! And what potential! A good-looking succubus in a black bodysuit wants to carry the hero away to a mystical land of nonstop sex. This one is good for three or four graphic novels! “The Mana Man— Defender of Sex and Justice.” It’s got definite possibilities!

***

Chapter 2: A question

After Naamah’s late-night meeting with Luca, she and her sister Eisheth were thinking out loud about their positions in the Otherworld.

Naamah asked, “Eisheth, why can’t a succubus be The Big Guy?”

“A succubus can’t be The Big Guy because you folks are too rational,” Eisheth replied.

“I’m serious,” said Naamah. “You and I have been around the Orgy for about two eons now. I have trained endless incubi who were new to their jobs. When I seduce a mortal man, he always says he enjoys the sex. So my experience is there. Now I want to run the show. Where’s my recognition?”

“In your dreams, sister dear.”

“Eisheth, I’m serious. I’ve found this guy who’s got tubs and tubs of mana. I am going to strike a bargain with him. When I’m done, I’ll have enough mana to qualify as the first Big Girl. Eisheth, I’ve been watching his dreams for years. He’s lonely as can be. He’s bound to take the offer of the Eternal Orgy.”

“Is this the teenager who was always leaving mana on his bedsheets?”

“Same guy.”

“Does he have the stuff to make me a succubus? My sort-of-mortal, sort-of-immortal status got old a long time ago.”

“Eisheth, he’s a full mortal. He has no such power.”

“Damn! The good ones never do. I need a drink.”

“Fine. But Eisheth?”

“Yeah?”

“If you find a guy at the bar, don’t start lying to him.”

”I will lie to anyone, my moralizing sister.”

Naamah sighed.

***

Chapter 3: Lilu’s unfortunate staff meeting

Lilu stood on tiptoe at The Big Guy’s podium at the incubus staff meeting. “Follow me!” shouted Lilu.

“To where?” answered the office-smart aleck, “A dwarf convention?”

About twenty incubi had already arrived, seated around a large oval meeting table, waiting for The Big Guy.

“I am ninety-five percent,” a number Lilu made up, “of a Big Guy. I am the next guy in line.” This was not true. There was no “line.” The Great Council chose the retiring Big Guy’s successor. Everyone knew this.

“You’re all savvy guys. The Big Guy is old. He’s neglected the Otherworld and all of you. The best bet for you in the Otherworld is to follow me.” Most incubi continued looking at him, speechless. A few giggled.

Lilu heard the Big Guy’s footsteps in the hall. It was time to wrap this up.

“If you won’t commit to me today, then you’d better watch your backs,” Lilu said. He waved his fist in the air. His tail curled up, then stuck straight out. He stormed out of the room amid a chorus of incubus laughter. “Buh-bye, short stuff,” said the smart aleck.

On his way out of the building, Lilu took a look into The Big Guy’s corner office. “You’re gonna be mine someday,” he whispered to himself.

Lilu made the executive decision to go to the nearest bar and get a drink.

***

Chapter 4: Intoxication

Lilu sat at a table at the Sippin’ Satyr, nursing a drink and his ego. Eisheth, who still wanted her drink and was on the prowl, eyed Lilu from the bar. After the staff meeting debacle, Lilu was not in the mood and did not respond. She finally sighed, got up from the bar, and sat beside him. Her diaphanous blouse allowed her nipples to show.

“I’m thirsty,” she said to Lilu.

“Have you got a name, Miss Thirsty?”

“Eisheth,” she said. “Buy a thirsty girl a drink?”

“Barkeep!” Lilu shouted. “Love Potion Number Ninety-nine.”

“Hmmm,” Eisheth purred. “You’re good-looking, and you know how to buy a girl a drink. What’s your name, stranger? And what do you do for a living?”

“Name’s Lilu. I’m an incubus,” he replied. “And,” he said firmly, “I am absolutely next in line to be the Big Guy.”

“Next in line to be the Big Guy? Color me impressed,” she said. “May I see your tail and its scepter, friend incubus?”

Lilu smiled. “A beautiful woman sits by me, and she’s got to be a skeptic. Okay, gorgeous, get ready. One tail, complete with scepter, comin’ up.”

An incubus’s scepter was a phallic appendage at the end of his tail. Lilu’s scepter was about as long as his hand and had a large pulsing testicle at its medial end. He waved the tail and scepter.

“You’re an incubus, alright,” Eisheth said. “Sorry to have doubted you. Tell me about becoming the Big Guy.”

Lilu said, “I’ve got the basics. I’m charismatic and I’m good-looking. And smart.” With great concentration, Eisheth stopped herself from both smiling and rolling her eyes.

Lilu continued, “My strengths are the Big Guy’s weaknesses. He’s gotta be how old, two eons at least. I was created only about half an eon ago. And the old guy has started neglecting the Otherworld. If he saw me in action, he would realize these things. When the time came, he would endorse me to the Great Council as the next Big Guy.

“My big problem is mana. You’ve got to have a boatload of the stuff if you want to be next in line. That, and a queen.”

Eisheth thought for a moment about Naamah’s recent find and the “tubs and tubs” of mana he had. Naamah had gotten to this new guy first. But it seemed Eisheth could negotiate with Lilu for royal status, something Naamah had not mentioned. Eisheth decided to pursue royal status.

“I can probably help with both of those problems,” Eisheth finally offered. “Interested?”

Lilu said. “Tell me more.”

“First, about the mana problem. I have a sister, Naamah. She is a succubus. Naamah is always seducing men to add them to the Eternal Orgy. She’s found this guy who’s got lots of mana. If I seduce this new guy, I could take a lot of his mana and deliver it to you. Enough mana to get you as far as the Big Guy’s door.”

“Yeah, yeah, I think you’re right. I could take it from there. Then I could show both The Big Guy and the Great Council what I’ve got,” Lilu said.

“Now let’s talk about your queen,” Eisheth said.

Lilu said, “It’s simple. Once I am The Big Guy, in exchange for your help, I will make you Queen Eisheth, overseer of the Eternal Orgy. Interested?”

“The Queen of the Eternal Orgy? Yes, yes, of course. I will be your queen. But on one condition.”

“What is that?”

“Once you’re The Big Guy, you make me a succubus. I want a tail and a nuptial rose.”

“No problem,” said Lilu. “Succubus status is yours.”

“Then we can seal the deal right here.” Eisheth opened her blouse and put herself on full display for Lilu. “Interested?” He was.

He waved his scepter close to her face. “Inhale,” he said.

She took a breath. “Oh, it’s wonderful,” she said, “I am yours. Have me. Take me now.”

Once inside her, Lilu inflated the size of his scepter. After a short while, her orgasm threw her head back and nearly made her faint. She collapsed into Lilu’s arms.

“That was marvelous,” Eisheth said between breaths. “Clearly fit for a Big Guy.” She kissed him on the cheek. “Now let me examine Naamah’s catch of the day.”

***

Chapter 5: Recruiting

On the second night, Naamah arrived about two in the morning. In last night’s dream, Naamah had said that she would return. Luca awakened immediately at the sound of the whoosh.

“Tonight, I’ll give you something I don’t give to every recruit,” Naamah said to Luca. “We’re going back to the Otherworld for the real thing. I think that after you’ve met one of our prettiest women, sex with her will settle any remaining issues. I asked Cleopatra to do the honors. She is a  busy lady, but she agreed.”

Cleopatra. Like I believe that, Luca thought.

Naamah blossomed her rose. As the night before, Luca tried to avoid breathing in front of the rose. But soon he could no longer hold his breath. As before, the real world dissolved, and he entered the Eternal Orgy as a visitor this time, not just a sightseer. Cleopatra was already there. She smiled and said Welcome. Holy mackerel, it is indeed Cleopatra! thought Luca.

Naamah was there, also. Eisheth soon arrived. Naamah gave her a cold hello. Naamah knew she was about to lose a large portion of Luca’s mana to Cleopatra, and she did not know Eisheth’s intentions.

“How big do you want to be today?” Naamah asked Luca.

“A bit taller,” said Luca, smiling.

“Okay, you got it,” said Naamah. Luca felt himself grow taller. “But that is not what I meant,” Naamah continued, “I didn’t mean big here,” holding her hand above her head, “but big here,” she said, patting his crotch.

Eisheth, still in her skirt and translucent blouse, stood nearby, checking out the new arrival. “Oh, sister, please, I want this one,” Eisheth pleaded, “I’ve never had any of your first-timers. Please, please, please. I’ve been horny for two thousand years.”

“Eisheth, you have not been horny for two thousand years.” Naamah replied. “You probably had five men before breakfast this morning.”

“Well, yeah, but what of it?” Eisheth said.

“It means you lied to me again, dear sister.”

Naamah found Eisheth’s unexpected request annoying and was pleased to have an easy way out.“Sorry, Eisheth, but I‘ve already promised him to Cleopatra.”

Eisheth, disappointed, answered Naamah’s earlier question to Luca about size. “Give him a cock down to his knees, Naamah,” Eisheth said. “Cleo wants it that long.”

“No, I don’t.” Said Cleopatra. “Naamah, what’s he got now?”

“Show her, Luca,” Naamah said.

Luca unzipped. His size was average. “He’ll do fine,” Cleopatra said.

“Luca, what is your choice?” Naamah asked. Luca brightened.

“Maybe add a little more?” he said.

“Men!” Naamah said, smiling. “You’re fine just as you are. But okay, here it is.” Luca gasped as he grew longer.

Cleopatra knelt and caressed him. “Now imagine that you and I are together in the Netherworld, on one of my pleasure boats on the Hap-ur, the Great Nile. You can be my ha, my naked man. She kissed the tip. “Feeling good, my Roman soldier?” She asked. Luca’s only response was to say, “Try again,” for, despite the kiss, he had remained soft.

“Are you afraid?”

“Well, yes. I am afraid of dying.”

“Don’t be afraid. I could cast a spell for you. How about that?”

“What would the spell do?”

“The Egyptian Book of the Dead lists almost two hundred spells. Overall, their purpose is to enable the dead person to emerge into the daylight of the afterlife.”

“Told you so,” said Naamah. “Luca, you’re still going to be alive over here, despite what other mortals might believe.”

“Let me tell you a story,” said Cleopatra, “Maybe we can get your friend to come out and play. When I was growing up, I didn’t speak Egyptian.”

“But you’re Egyptian.”

“I’m Greek. When I was nineteen, I had to learn Egyptian. One of the first things I learned was hieroglyphics.”

“High-ro what?”

“Hieroglyphics is a form of writing,” said Cleopatra. “It looks like a row of cartoon pictures.”

“No kidding? There was a language made up of cartoons?”

Cleopatra glanced at Naamah, who was vigorously shaking her head Yes.

“Yes! Yes! Tons of cartoons!” said Cleopatra, “And one of the first cartoons nineteen-year-old Cleopatra looked for was the one for the word phallus. The glyph for phallus was an image of two testicles and a long, erect penis. At the end of the penis, there was a curved line.

“Wow! The ancient Egyptians were all cartoonists.”

Cleopatra looked briefly at the ceiling, then at Naamah, who could only shrug.

“That calls for a celebration,” Luca said. “Make me nice and hard.” Pleased at her success, Cleopatra proceeded to do just that.

“Make me cum,” he finally said.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Cleopatra teased, “This little monster is kind of nice to look at. Maybe I should make him my next Uraeus.”

“Please make me cum,” he repeated.

“Hmm,” she said. “I still don’t know. I think Osiris himself created this wonderful little fellow in the Field of Reeds itself.”

“Please,” he pleaded.

Cleopatra felt his member enlarge. She felt his warm gush in her throat.

Cleopatra stood and hugged Luca. “I think that was the whole of Hap-ur going down my throat. Thank you,” she whispered into his ear. “You’re going to do fine here. Have me anytime.” Cleopatra said goodbye.

Luca talked to Naamah about the next woman he would meet. Naamah floated to Luca the notion of his becoming the official lover for the prettiest women at the Eternal Orgy, in exchange for his mana, of course. Luca replied that he was still not convinced that any of this was real. Luca asked Naamah if she wanted to be his girlfriend in the mortal world. Naamah said no.

While this conversation was going on, Eisheth vanished. She reappeared at Lilu’s table at the Sippin’ Satyr. Eisheth said to Lilu, “Luca is your man for mana. He’s got lots of the stuff.” Eisheth had never touched Luca, of course; she was lying.

“Great,” Lilu said. “Where is the mana?”

Eisheth looked at the floor. “Oops,” she said. “In the heat of the moment, I forgot,” she lied again. “His mana is still swirling inside him.”

“Well,” Lilu said, “now I know he has some good stuff, and I know how and where to find him. Great work. I’ll take it from here.” They kissed and said goodbye.

In Eisheth, Lilu thought to himself, I have a partner and a queen. He impressed himself. Now on to the corner office— Goodbye, Big Guy. Lilu conjured a cigar and lit it with a snap of his fingers.

***

Chapter 6: Back to mortal reality

Naamah drew her nuptial rose away from Luca’s nose and mouth. Drowsily, he returned to mortal reality. Luca felt himself shrink back to his usual height. His penis lost the extra length. He opened his eyes.

“Well, how about that? Convinced, Mr. Skeptic? Say yes, and ecstasy is yours forever,” Naamah said.

Luca said, “Naamah, I still doubt that any of this is real. As wonderful as this experience is, the Otherworld might only be a hallucinogen in your tail thing. For all I know, I might still be asleep and dreaming.”

“Alright,” Naamah replied, exasperated. “That’s two tries. The third time will be a charm. You aren’t satisfied with oral sex from Cleopatra? Tomorrow night, Mr Mana Man, I will take you to the center of the Eternal Orgy. You will faint from ecstasy before the evening’s over. You will wish that you had been living in the Otherworld for a million years!” With that, Naamah vanished.

Luca sat on his living room sofa. On the sofa? Dream or no, I have to admit that was pretty nice, Luca thought. Cleopatra! With me! Maybe, just maybe, I’ve finally got the stuff to find myself a woman on my own.

He dialed Beth. Yeah, Beth had her quirky side, but she’s still an old girlfriend, and you’ve got to start somewhere, he thought. The idea that, for a first try, this might be a bad call did not occur to him. The first call went straight to voicemail. So did the second and third calls.

Someone picked up the fourth call. “Hello?” said an irritated woman’s voice.

“Beth! Hi. This is Luca.”

His greeting was met by silence.

“So how have things been?”

Silence again.

“I wanted to tell you a funny story about the other night. I had a dream about a female intruder, and I called out your name in my sleep, thinking she might be you.”

Silence.

“She wasn’t, of course.”

Silence.

The call clearly was not working. “Well, thanks for your time, Luca said. “I’ll call back later.”

Silence.

“Uh, hello? Has anyone been there?”

“You still do not have a girlfriend, do you, loser? So you decided to call me,” said the irritated voice.

“Bitch!” Luca yelled into his phone. He threw the phone across the room. He threw himself on the floor and wept. He cried from pain and confusion and loneliness and hatred and self-loathing and failure.

Luca had had enough. He stood up. “Naamah!” he bellowed into the void. “You and I have a deal. Forget about tomorrow night. I’m ready to go.”

Naamah appeared immediately. “Okay. One question, just one. Do you accept the deal—your mana in exchange for eternal membership in the Eternal Orgy?”

“Yes.”

“Great! After the next few days, you will be free.”

“Why not right now?”

“Cleo swallowed a bit more mana than I had thought. I want to wait until you have replenished yourself. Every woman is going to want you, and it will be a lot safer for you if you’ve got a full load ready to go. At most, it’ll be a few days.”

Luca was silent for a moment. A distressed look crossed his face. “A few days. Oh, my God, that’s right! Naamah, I have deadlines coming up.”

“What’s a Dead Line?” Namath asked.

“I’m a cartoonist. Cartooning is how I make a living. I have to mail my work to magazines and newspaper syndicates no later than a certain day every month. That day is a deadline,” said Luca.

“Baby, I thought I was clear,” Naamah replied. “After the next few days, you will never again have to worry about making a living. And believe me, once you’re known and active in the Eternal Orgy, you aren’t going to care about drawing anything.”

“But right now I’m still alive, and I have a deadline. In two days, I have stuff to finish and mail.”

Naamah thought about the situation. Finally, she said, “Okay, let’s go see what you have to do.”

“You’ll love it,” Luca yelled as he headed for the stairs. “Well, come on,” Luca waved his arm in a “Wagons-Ho” gesture.