An Unholy Matrimony

An Unholy
Matrimony
A strange romantic tale by Adam J. Nelon

Chapter 1 - The Catch of the Evening

I'm sure everyone has had at least one moment in their lives where they fall asleep in one place and wake up in another. Some people take too much Nyquil before they go to bed, and the next thing you know, they're in the backseat of a car, pawing at the air while their friend drives them to the nearest iHop for an impromptu road trip. Some people get a little too eager to down half a dozen bottles of Captain Morgan and end up sobering up in the bathtub while the shower head drizzles them with cold water and their girlfriend tries to slap them awake. And some people end up falling asleep on the sofa trying to watch The Godfather in one sitting, and end up back in their bedroom with graffiti smeared over them of a mildly lewd manner, but can I say I've had worse experiences.

I fell asleep in my bedroom last night, and as I wake up at...whatever time it is, I have no bearing of where I am. From what I can tell, I'm upside-down. How I'm able to lucidly say that without having already experienced a red-out from all the blood rushing to my head is either because physics don't count where I am, or something is culling the blood flow. In either case, the fact I am still sane is either a testament to this location's suspicious disregard for Earthly laws of physics, my own luck, or simply my own force of will. If I had the capacity to pat myself on the back, I very well would do so. As best I can assess it, I'm in a big sac of...something. I never studied entomology, so I can't identify the substances of an insect's cocoon, but as far as I can tell, while I can very easily breathe this substance, it seems to have the effect of a muscle relaxant. As much as I wanted to speak to myself, if only to assure myself I was truly sane, or scream for aid, no words came out. Just bubbles. Gurgling and churning as if I were submerged in water. To be honest, the fact I was able to breathe was a surprise.

I could only barely make out the cocoon itself. It was of a fluorescent green color, giving off a slight glow of bio-luminescent light. Though it illuminated the area lightly, it gave me no indication of just where in the hell I was. Most of what I could make out in the darkness were faint lights in the distance. The opacity of the cocoon made it hard to tell; but it did make me wonder... Why was I in this cocoon? Who made it? Was I a prisoner? Perhaps some candidate for some human butterfly experiment? Either way, through some kind of acid, whatever form of clothing I had was dissolved, leaving me bare as a tree in autumn. Normally, I'd be fairly cold without something covering up my nude form, but the liquid in which I was inverted had kept me at a stable temperature, but the fact that my pubic hairs were floating in the same suspension as me managed to upset me.

While for the duration of my inner monologue, I spent the time silently getting what little bearings I could, listening to the oceanic swirling of the gelatinous substance in which I was immersed, a clopping sound soon interrupted me. Beats of hooves, at least 3 quartets' worth, began to draw near as my fetal positioned form tensed. I could only imagine whom those hoof beats belonged to. Whoever was approaching had to be my jailors. I could only assume they were here to check on me, and perhaps run some experiments upon me.

“So, you say you managed to find a unique specimen today, Corporal Alric?” Hummed a voice from afar, distinctly female.

“Yes, milady,” Hissed a male voice, nodding. “We don't exactly know the origin of the beast, aside from the fact we found it incapacitated somewhere out in the badlands. It looked dehydrated.”

“Dehydrated?” The female asked, cocking her head.

“Indeed...it must have passed out from the heat...”

It was then that a large shadow approached my cocoon, grimacing. Though the opacity of this sac made it hard for me to clearly look through, I could see a pair of violet-dyed eyes looking through me. A piercing, analytical gaze that would give anyone a feeling of foreboding and strife. I felt that stare pass through me as she scanned with her eyes.

“I can see this...creature...happens to be male...splendid...but with his lack of hydration, his use as a food source would perhaps be compromised...” The mare held a hoof (or what seemed to be a hoof) to her chin before turning to her subordinate. “Alric, see to it that there is something for this male to drink!”

“As you wish, your majesty!” hissed Alric, before darting off.

The mare turned to me with a cold stare.

“As for you,” she said, a glow emanating between her violet eyes. “Hold still. I don't want to miss.”

I cringed, shutting my eyes tight as I could. This couldn't end well...

A grim hum traced across my body, heat swirling across my body, before I found myself plopping face-first onto something with the consistency of mud. I opened my eyes, looking around myself with a look of confusion, before my eyes met the mare in true clarity.

Her eyes had a feline quality. 2 deep pools of purple with tinted sclera and slitted pupils. Her eyes narrowed at me as she smiled, revealing a mouth with two long fangs.

“So, it would seem that our little hive guest is awake...slept well, I take it?”

Fear struck my heart as I got onto my back, starting to back away into the nearest wall, panting ever so rapidly.

“Aw, what's the matter? Scared?” This mare asked, creeping in front of me, craning her neck down. “Haven't much to say?”

I shook my head. Sweat beaded off every pore of my body, heat around all

“Well, I can fix that...my name is Archnid. Your name is not important, but your form is most interesting...”

The creature laid down in front of me, no longer baring teeth.

“As you may have heard, I have sent for Alric to provide you with a beverage, as you must be quite thirsty. While he goes to fetch some water, entertain me with some banter...if it is possible for you to do so, that is...”

I had hardly a word to say in my own crippling fear, but I nodded and tried to clear my head.

“Okay...first things first...just what exactly ARE you?”

Archnid cocked her head. “So you really are an odd creature...most intelligent folk know of our kind...I am what they call a Changeling.”

“A changeling?” I parroted, a bit confused.

“Indeed. We are creatures that consume emotions such as love, sorrow, and joy as sustenance, masquerading as other creatures to better extract this source of food...”

I blinked for a few moments. “You...eat people's feelings?”

“Well, that is the lesser term for it, but that is our modus operandi.”

I gulped at that comment and nodded. “So...how exactly do you extract it?”

Archnid grinned slyly, wrapping her neck around me. “We have our methods...but that is for us to know, and for you to soon discover...”

And now I was assuredly and properly paranoid. I almost felt like a fool to even ask, but my throat betrayed me, asking “So...is that why I am here?”

Archnid giggled maliciously. “Quick on the draw, are we?” she asked, holding a hoof to her mouth. “Well, since you asked so bluntly, yes. You could prove to generate plenty of love...but in your current state, I'm afraid that if I tried to harvest you now, you would die from exhaustion, and we simply can't have that.”

Part of me was in a mildly relieved that she was supposedly sparing me, but it also left a sinking feeling that I wasn't going to slip through her hooves...speaking of hooves, this creature looked as if it were perforated from several blasts from a sci-fi laser cannon, holes across her legs, whatever that mane was made of, her tail, and a rather jagged horn. Whatever inflicted those wounds, they made this creature look positively terrifying.

And, as if she were reading my mind, she chuckled, asking “Does my form frighten you?”

For a moment, she flared what appeared to be insectile wings. I wasn't quite the entomologist, but the appearance of them somewhat resembled a more a jagged pair of beetle wings. However, even in my own human understanding of entomology, such a description did not do much justice or injustice to describe them. If someone were to question me on what these...things looked like, the only logical answer would be to say they looked like an insect's.

“Forgive my homeliness, dear little one...I suppose I've forgotten to...put on my face...”

I was about to question what she meant by that phrase, but it seemed she was already beginning to answer my question. In a mere few seconds, a fuchsia flame arced across her carapace, turning her from a nightmare of many holes into a rather slender, violet horse, bearing a pair of what looked to be feathered wings, one of which wrapped about my person.

“Does this please you?” quipped the changeling, a coy smile about her face.

“You look lovely...” I said, trying to remain calm and refrain from upsetting her, under possible penalty of torture.

“Good...” hummed the mare as she looked into my eyes, rubbing my stomach with her hoof. “Forgive my boldness, but would you mind entertaining me about yourself, seeing as I spoke of myself?”

My sweat beaded even more as I gulped a knot down my throat.

“I don't see why not...” I squeaked, blushing like a beet.

“Very well...first, tell me what they call your kind...” Archnid asked, scanning the breadth of my backside, laying me down.

“My people refer to themselves as Humans...”

“Humans, eh?” She hissed quietly, turning me over. “A strange name for your kind...and a stranger appearance...”

The nightmare turned pegasus ran her hooves across my skin, prodding at it a few times.

“The texture of your hide is quite bizarre...it is so smooth...no fur...no carapace...no chitin...just pure flesh...not even hairs! How do you keep yourself warm?” wondered this woman of equine shape.

“Well, normally, we wear clothes...we're not usually in the nude, as I am.” I replied curtly, trying to maintain my rationale as she examined me as if she were a doctor.

“Not normally? So you are nude sometimes?” cooed the changeling, looking at one of my hands as she raised it in her hoof.

“Essentially, yes.”

“How strange...most creatures I have seen would care less what their bodies were covered in. They see clothing as a novelty to be used for formal occasions and colder climates...”

“Well, not all of us wear clothes on a regular basis. As you point out, it's partially the problem of the climate...”

“Partially?”

“Yes. You see, where I come from, it is considered taboo to be without clothes in a public setting, unless you are where other unclothed folk reside.”

“So it is normal to adorn yourself in clothing? How awfully modest of your race.”

“I would agree; frankly, I only see it as a winter's necessity...”

“Indeed...which begs the question... are you comfortable right now?”

“More or less...why do you ask?”

“I was under the impression you were a bit uncomfortable being unclothed in front of one like me.”

What was once a blush upon my cheeks grew to a full face of red.

“I don't mind at all, Miss Archnid!”

“Please, call me Your Majesty, if you so desire. For if you did not notice, I am the queen of this hive.” chuckled the changeling as she further studied my hand.

“As you wish, milady...”

“If you are cold, I would be happy to produce something for you to cover yourself in...” She offered, smiling a tad more.

“You would?” I asked, my blush receding just a bit. “That seems awfully generous, for someone who seems to only want me for food...”

This incited a giggle from the girl behind the woman's guise.

“Oh, please,” She cackled, with a wicked grin on her face. “You should know that I only mean to preserve you so that you may be of continued use...that is all...”

While I was a tad frightened by this comment, I tried to remain as calm as I could. Considering the room was far too dark for me to navigate effectively, escape would be a foolish and impossible gesture. I supposed the only way I would survive was obliging to whatever this matriarch asked of me.

“I must commend you; however... you are being quite cooperative for a changeling captive...that is a rare quality.” Archnid cooed. “In any case, I must ask...what is this that I hold in my hoof? Has your hoof been split, or something?”

I looked to what she was holding.

“That's not a hoof,” I said bluntly. “We call those hands. They have little things called “fingers”, which can do a number of tasks...”

“Fascinating...could you possibly demonstrate one of these tasks to me?” she asked, letting my hand drop freely.

I took a moment to think about it before I smiled and nodded.

“I don't see why not...” I hummed, a wrapping one of my arms around her shoulder, pressing down upon it to coax her wing open.

For a moment, she gasped as I began to feel the texture of her wings.

“As you can see, your majesty, my fingers are very flexible appendages. Each of them have several nerves, with which I can feel your coat and feathers...I can also use them to hold objects, if I see the need...”

“Interesting...” replied the mare, before her eyes locked onto something else of mine. “Pardon me for being rude, but is something wrong with your penis?”

I looked down at my crotch before looking to her again, blushing a bit.

“Don't worry. That's normal,” I said, lowering her hoof.

The queen began to lift my phallus and examine it more personally. She began to rub it with her hooves, heat slowly conducting on my skin as it tensed, much to her surprise, before it went from being a mere limp mass of flesh into a proper pylon of potential perversion.

“This is quite bizarre...your penis has gone from being limp and small to being straight and large! What form of magic is this, human? What sorcery have you hidden?”

I chuckled to the changeling for a moment before explaining quite simply, “It's not magic, your highness. It's just how my body works...”

“Oh? Do tell...” mused the mare with a curious hum.

I took a few calm breaths and put on a brave face.

“Simply put, the reason my penis isn't always straight is because it typically only goes straight when I'm aroused, which causes my heart rate to go up, sending blood to it to make it stiffen up. If it were always like that, it would be more painful than pleasurable...”

“A strange thing you are, my little foodstuff...I will be sure to keep that in mind when I begin the harvest...”

As this malicious mare murmured this, a smaller changeling came in, his (or was it her) mistress returning to her normal, terrifying form.

“Working your charms on your quarry already, Archnid?” It asked, a male voice coming from its throat.

“As much as you would like to hear that, no. I'm merely studying for now, Alric,” hissed the queen, turning about-face to speak with her junior. “Did you procure the refreshments that I had asked you to get for this one?”

“Indeed, your majesty,” replied Alric, sliding what looked to be two clay bowls. One of the two held a large amount of water, while the other held a volume of pale-blue berries. As I examined them, the male changeling smiled to his queen and chuckled.

“I made sure that these berries will do well for this one's health. He can rest assured he will enjoy them...” He snickered, turning away as he made his leave.

“Thank you for your obedience, Alric...I will make sure to reward you double your allowance come harvest tomorrow evening. Meanwhile, we should leave this one to eat. He has quite a day ahead of him...” Archnid hummed, walking over to me before lifting my chin with her hoof.

“Isn't that right, my little morsel?” She asked, looking into my eyes with a stare as sharp as a pair of whetted daggers. A rather large knot formed in my stomach and throat, before I swallowed my fear and nodded, to which she released me.

“I will return later to prepare your resting accommodations. For now, fill your stomach. You must have a hunger and thirst like none other...” hissed the hive queen as she left.

Finally; for once, I could breathe with some ease. At least for the moment, anyway. The retreating of hoofsteps secured my sanity for the time being. Speaking of time, the overwhelming darkness of the cavern made it impossible to judge how long I had been here; my internal clock is probably thrown off-kilter. Such is the price I must pay for acquiescing to a femme fatale such as the Queen.

At this point, I am fairly certain that escape would be nigh on impossible to execute. The aforementioned darkness seems to extend past this section of cave I have been left in, and because my glasses apparently did not make the transition, my perception would also be compromised. Plus, considering the fact that Changelings, to some degree, resemble insects, this would also have the problem of possibly thousands of others outside the cave that would be ready to apprehend me, should I have the audacity to attempt escape. Plus, considering the fact I'm not exactly a track runner from ancient Greece, my chances of being able to run away while completely nude and without footwear are pretty slim.

In noting all of this, it would be logical to assume that I am most definitely screwed. In any case, it seems I am going to be stuck here as an indefinite prisoner until I outlive my usefulness. Well, shit. It looks like this is going to be my home for a long time to come...

My eyes returned to the berries again. The berries were fairly small, almost too small for me to pinch individual berries in my fingers. As I picked up one of the small berries and popped it into my mouth, a pleasant taste surged into my mouth. Though tart, their flavor was not unlike that of the common blueberry. Satisfied, I began to consume more. They were so tasty! So ripe and juicy! So...tiring...

How long had I been inside that cocoon? My inverted posture had begun to show its toll. The blood going to my head must have made me drowsy...or perhaps the berries were doing something? Perhaps the phrase “rest assured” was more literal than I had thought it would be? I wasn't entirely sure, but at the rate I was consuming, I would succumb to the berries' power before I could possibly make any sort of resistance. And thus, I end this awkward introduction with some proper prone rest.

Some time after the human prisoner had passed off into sleep, Archnid and Alric returned the chamber that housed him, the Queen in particular cocking an inquisitive brow.

“Alric?”

“Yes, my mistress?”

“What kind of berries did you feed this one?”

Alric blushed as he pressed his holed hooves together.

“They wouldn't have happened to be Hypnos Berries...would they?” queried the queen, putting quite a serious tone in her voice.

Alric chuckled nervously, sweat beading off his carapace.

“Consider your extra allowance revoked. Now begone; I must concentrate on preparing another cocoon for this one...” hissed the Queen, her horn glowing a menacing deep purple as she fired off a disciplinary bolt into her disorderly subordinate, startling him.

“Y-yes, your highness!”

Needing no further instruction, the adviser fled to his own part of the caverns, leaving the queen alone with this strange alien. With some repositioning, the hive queen flicked her tail film over the “human”, taking a strand from it to thread into one of the many of the large pores in her arm. Like a spider, she began to weave a cocoon around the alien creature, humming a nondescript tune as she wove. As she surrounded the human in her weaves, she began to utilize this opportunity to more carefully examine her quarry. Her analytical gaze scanned the man's body, lifting every limb, examining most every intricate detail.

“Such a fascinating structure this creature has...” quipped the Queen, taking in the details of her captive before snickering to herself just a tad.

“Well...they say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery...”

Archnid returned to her weaving, but in the process decided to experiment with her own queenly powers...