Ashara Nightfire
Born in the Umbrionis Void Empire… a world steeped in dark magic and lost souls.
This empire was no place for compassion or weakness—it was a land where only the ruthless and merciless could endure.
Nightfire was the child of a succubus and an elf, an unlikely and frowned-upon pairing.
Her mother discarded her without hesitation as soon as she realized Nightfire was a half-succubus.
Being a half-succubus was more than just undesirable—it was considered worthless.
Half-breeds rarely inherited the strengths of either parent and even in the rare cases they did, their lives were tragically short. Most half-succubi succumbed to death in their early years, unable to handle the chaos of their conflicted nature.
In such a brutal and unforgiving world, Ashara was seen as a defect, a burden. Her mother’s solution was simple: throw her away!
She grew up in an orphanage. Even in that ruthless world, the Archpriestess created that place so these people could find solace.
As for her father… she knew almost nothing. All she had were fragmented details: he belonged to an elf tribe her mother had seduced, and he might have been drained by her mother—or maybe he’d simply disappeared.
Either way, he was absent.
From the moment she was born, Nightfire’s awareness of the world was uncanny.
She understood far more than a child should as if something—or someone—had awakened her mind prematurely…. And then there was the presence.
The
other
.
Another being shared her body. Another soul!
This wasn’t a split personality or a figment of her imagination—it was a fully separate consciousness. It took years for Ashara to comprehend what was happening, and even when she did, she knew she could never tell anyone.
In the Empire, harbouring two souls in one body was a death sentence. The laws were absolute: one soul, one vessel. Any deviation was considered an abomination. Nightfire had no choice but to keep this secret locked away.
“From now on, your name is Ashara,” Nightfire had declared one day, naming the other soul living inside her.
To Ashara, Nightfire wasn’t just another presence. She was a guide, a protector, almost like an older sister. Nightfire taught Ashara everything she needed to survive. But as the years passed, their differences became stark.
Nightfire, shaped by a lifetime of hardship, was bold, direct, and unyielding. She cared little for the emotions of others and never hesitated to speak her mind.
Ashara, in contrast, had been shielded by Nightfire’s strength and had grown into a kind-hearted, naive young woman who worried incessantly about what others thought of her. She wanted nothing more than to be liked, to be accepted.
And one certain day, Everything changed when Nightfire’s succubus traits awakened— A nightmare awakened!
The traits had always been there, lying dormant. Occasionally, Ashara felt an odd heat around men, but it was subtle and manageable. When the full force of her succubus nature emerged, it became something else entirely. She began to crave men—specifically, their essence.
It was utterly….
“Disgusting, right?” Nightfire’s voice dripped with venom as she tightened her grip on Aether’s neck, her dangerous gaze locked onto his. “That’s exactly what Ashara told me.
Disgusting
….. Isn’t that rich?” Her fingers pressed harder, her lips curling into a cruel smile.
Aether didn’t understand why Nightfire was recounting her past now, but he knew one thing: he had to calm her. Fighting back wasn’t an option. If he attacked Nightfire, Ashara would suffer too.
“Nightfire! Stop it! You’re hurting him!”
Ashara’s voice rang out inside Nightfire’s mind, desperate and pleading.
Nightfire’s wicked smile only widened, “Even now, she’s more worried about you than she is about me. Can you believe that? Hahaha…. What an unfaithful little bitch,” she sneered, her voice laced with mockery.
“Please! Don’t do this!”
Ashara begged, but Nightfire ignored her.
Nightfire’s cold eyes bore into Aether, “Tell me the truth, Aether. Don’t lie to me,” she hissed. “When you first met me, what did you think? Be honest. I’m a succubus—you must’ve had some disgusting thoughts, right? Or are you going to pretend you didn’t?”
“I didn’t—” Aether started, but she cut him off.
“DON’T LIE!” Nightfire roared, her voice echoing dangerously. She leaned closer, her mouth almost brushing his face as if she might devour him,
“You men are all the same. No matter how noble you act, deep down, you all see me the same way.
Just admit it.
You thought of me as a slut, didn’t you?”
Aether’s face froze…. The truth was written all over him. Slowly, reluctantly, he nodded. “I’m… sorry,” he whispered.
Nightfire’s smile turned feral, “See, Ashara? This man you trusted so much, this man you thought saw you as more than a succubus… he thinks just like all the rest. This is the truth of your so-called friendship.”
Ashara’s voice was silent in Nightfire’s mind.
Nightfire’s grin widened further, “They call me a slut. They call me vile names, and label me a monster….. And not a single one of them stops to think about what it’s like to be this way.
We are just created like another race and yet….. Fuck these bastards!!
Do you think I asked for this? Do you think I wanted this curse?” Her voice broke with raw emotion, “Tell me, Aether. If you were reborn as a lion, would you eat grass?”
“That’s not—”
“YES OR NO!” she snapped, cutting him off.
“…No” Aether admitted.
Nightfire let out a bitter laugh, “Exactly. You already know the answer. And yet you judge me for doing what I was made to do.” She released him suddenly, letting him collapse to the floor. Exhausted, she turned and threw herself onto the bed, her monstrous face slowly transformed as it returned to normal.
For a moment, the room was silent.
Nightfire closed her eyes and whispered, more to herself than to Aether, “You men will never understand. None of you ever will…”
“Vampires drink blood, ghouls devour human flesh, werewolves tear apart live prey… and so many other creatures live by their nature without judgment.
Yet, we—succubi—are the only ones the world finds truly disgusting.” Nightfire’s voice cracked with bitter laughter, “We can’t fall in love like vampires. We can’t live happily with our families like werewolves. No… all we’re good for is selling our bodies.” She paused, her lips curving into a crooked smile, “Ha… yeah. You races really fucked us up, didn’t you?”
Her words hung heavy in the air, laden with unspoken pain. Nightfire wasn’t sure why she was letting all of this spill out. She turned her head to look at Aether, who was still on the floor, coughing and rubbing his neck, his expression contorted in discomfort.
“Hey…” she began, her voice softening slightly. “Can I ask you something?”
Aether glanced up, his face unreadable.
Nightfire chuckled, the sound tinged with sarcasm, “Don’t look at me like that. I just got… annoyed when you took back the feast. Wouldn’t any animal lash out if their meal was yanked away?” A faint anger laced her tone, but her lips quirked in a teasing smirk.
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Indeed it’s true… if someone showed a feast to the lion that had been hungry for many days… The reaction would be worse!
Aether studied her carefully. Slowly, he began to understand this woman—no, this
creature
—called a succubus.
Yes, he’d made a mistake.
A grave one!
Even though he had told others not to judge Ashara by her nature, he himself had harboured those very prejudices.
When he first encountered… He had seen her as nothing more than a succubus—a creature made for lust, a being born to tempt and corrupt.
That mindset had been ingrained in him, just like anyone in the society!!
“What do you want to ask?” he finally said, his tone cautious.
Nightfire tilted her head slightly, her smile widening as if his response amused her. “Hmm…. You really cautious one” Her playful tone quickly faded, replaced by a shadow of pain, “When was the last time you ate, Aether?”
He raised an eyebrow, puzzled by the question. “This morning,” he replied simply.
Nightfire nodded, her expression shifting into something darker, more raw, “It’s been 25 years,” she whispered. Her voice dropped, weighted with grief. “Exactly 25 years, six months, thirteen days, and twelve hours… since I ate.”
Aether froze, his eyes widening in shock. “What do you mean? Didn’t you just eat those snacks earlier?” His voice trembled with disbelief.
Nightfire let out a quiet laugh, her eyes gleaming with a mixture of amusement and despair. “Oh, Aether… did you forget what I said?” She leaned forward slightly, her gaze locking onto his.
“A lion eating grass,” Aether murmured, the words tumbling from his lips almost instinctively.
Nightfire’s chuckle deepened, her voice carrying a strange mix of resignation and humour. “In a way…. For 25 years, I’ve been eating grass” She sighed, her fingers brushing absently against the bedspread as if to ground herself, “And do you know what? It’s worse than grass…. It’s mud!”
Aether blinked.
For the first time, he felt a genuine desire to understand her, this being who had endured so much.
Why?
He wasn’t entirely sure. But he couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that this was important—important to her, and perhaps, to himself.
He hesitated for a moment, then moved closer to the bed. His movements were deliberate, “Then… tell me more,” he said.
Nightfire looked at him, her brows lifting in surprise. “Hmm? More? Why would you want to know more about me?”
“I want to understand you,” Aether said, his voice steady and sincere.
Nightfire blinked, momentarily caught off guard. Slowly, her lips curved into a sly smile, “Oh? Is that so? You’re suddenly interested in this so-called slut of a succubus?” she teased, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
Aether’s expression softened, a gentle smile touching his lips. “No,” he said quietly. “Not as a succubus. Not as some creature society has labelled.
I’m interested in knowing you….. The person named Nightfire.”
[+100 AP]
For the first time, Nightfire faltered. Her playful mask cracked ever so slightly, and she blinked at him in surprise. She wasn’t sure what to say or how to react.