Incubus 1 Read online

  Incubus

  Volume 1

  Brandon Varnell

  Illustrated by

  Orendi Laran

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  Incubus Vol. 1

  Copyright © 2020 Brandon Varnell

  Illustration Copyright © 2020 Orendi Laran

  All rights reserved.

  Brandon Varnell and Kitsune Incorporated supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce creative works that enrich our culture.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use the material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact the publisher. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  To see Brandon Varnell’s other works, or to ask for permission to use his works, visit him at www.varnell-brandon.com, facebook, twitter, Patreon, and instagram.

  ISBN: 978-1-951904-08-1

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  Dedication

  This page is made in dedication to my amazing patrons. Without them, my characters would never get lewded by so many wonderful artists:

  Aaron Harris

  Alarinnise

  Alexander Rodriguez

  Amando Pastrana

  Benjamin Morgan

  Brennan

  Bruce Johnson

  Chace Corso

  Charles Dorfueille

  CosmicOrange

  DeseriDan

  Dhivael

  DNAnime

  Edward Lamar Stephenson

  ElJako98

  Emery Moore

  Fetischen

  Forrest Hansen

  Ine Airlcana

  Jacob Flores

  Jacob Wonjo

  Jason Grey

  Jeremy Schultz

  Jessica

  John Patton

  Kevin

  LarC85

  Lucid Fayt

  Mark Frabotta

  Matthew Wallace

  Max A Kramer

  Michael Moneymaker

  Nathan

  Nathan S

  Nicholas

  Omegapudding

  Phillip Hedgepeth

  Rafael Eriksen

  Red Phoenix

  Samuel Donaldson

  Sean Gray

  Seismic Wolf

  Starwarsscout Jon

  Thomas Jackson

  ToraLinkley

  Travis Cox

  Victor Patrick Baur

  Virgil Gardner

  William Crew

  Yuriy Snyadanko

  Zachery

  Contents

  1. Prologue

  2. Chapter 1

  3. Chapter 2

  4. Chapter 3

  5. Chapter 4

  6. Chapter 5

  7. Chapter 6

  8. Chapter 7

  9. Chapter 8

  10. Chapter 9

  11. Epilogue

  Thank you for reading!

  Afterword

  Sneak Peak

  Manga Page 1

  Manga Page 2

  Manga Page 3

  Manga Page 4

  Hey, did you know?

  Brandon’s LNs

  American Kitsune

  WIEDERGEBURT 2

  A Most Unlikely Hero

  Arcadia’s Knight

  Journey of a Betrayed Hero

  Rift

  Executioner

  Follow me!

  Prologue

  Anthony Amasius stepped out of the sliding doors to the hospital and into the brisk midnight air. The scent of salt mixed asphalt hit his nose as a chilly breeze blew through the street. Tall buildings loomed over his head, though none of them were larger than four or five stories. Larger buildings stood in the distance, however, some of them tall enough to reach into the sky. Lights from the buildings played off his face. There were a lot of signs, though fortunately, none of them were neon and gaudy.

  He looked behind him, at the large building with numerous windows and a sign hanging over the front that read “Academy Island Hospital for Catastrophes,” then turned back around and began walking off. His jeans ruffled against his legs, and his slightly baggy shirt hid his emaciated torso. He was wearing a large jacket to further conceal his rail-thin frame.

  As he was passing a store with several mannequins displaying the latest in women’s fashion in front of a large window, Anthony caught a glimpse of his face in the window’s reflection. His pale face was gaunt. There were bags under his eyes. His dark brown hair was a mess. Even though he was clean shaven, it didn’t change how terrible he looked. At nineteen years old, Anthony could honestly state that he was in terrible shape.

  Just as Anthony looked away and was about to continue walking, his wristwatch alerted him to a telepathy call. He raised his left hand. Attached to his wrist was a small band. It was silver, but there was a small black section, which was currently glowing. He waved his hand and a screen appeared in front of him. Selecting the communication app from the many programs on his screen, the name of the person calling appeared before him.

  Professor Incanscino.

  Anthony narrowed his eyes as he pressed on her name.

  “You’re calling at an awfully late hour, Professor. I’m guessing there’s trouble?”

  “I love how perceptive you are,” a voice said. It was soft and girlish, like the voice of a girl in middle or high school, but there was a sharp edge to it that banished the sense of it belonging to a child. It also wasn’t coming from any speakers. The voice sounded like it was coming from inside of his head. “Yes, there is trouble. We have a rogue werewolf who has infiltrated Academy Island. We don’t know what she wants, but she isn’t listed anywhere on the demon registry.”

  “Another one? This is the fifth rogue therianthrope I’ve dealt with in the last month. Is the Academy Island Private Security Force even doing their job?”

  “Let’s just say they have had their hands full dealing with other matters and leave it at that.”

  “Whatever. I’m guessing you want me to take care of this woman?”

  “I wouldn’t be calling you if that wasn’t the case.”

  Anthony grimaced as he realized he would likely be getting home a lot later than he wanted, but it wasn’t like he could tell his professor “no.” He owed her too much to just dismiss her requests.

  “Can you give me her location?”

  “I’m uploading it now.”

  Anthony looked at his wristphone as the screen projected above it changed from Professor Incanscino’s name to a map of Academy Island. It quickly zoomed into a street, which showed a red dot moving through it. He recognized the area the dot was traveling through. It was the government district. This particular area was where the Academy Island Board of Directors met to make economic and political decisions. Their headquarters was a several dozen story building in the shape of an oval.

  Now what could she be doing over there?

  Well, he supposed what they were up to didn’t really matter. He’d been asked by his professor to help out, so that was what he was going to do.

  After ending his call with the professor, Anthony bent his knees, took a deep breath, and began channeling mana through his body. He winced when his nerve endings flared with pain, but he had grown used to his own magical circuits hurting when he activated body enhancement magic. It was just how things wo
rked with him.

  His body lit up as blue lines of power appeared on his skin, partially hidden by his baggy clothes. Not all the lines were hidden, however. There were several blue lines that traveled along his neck and face. Had anyone seen them, he was sure they would have said these lines looked like the power circuit of a supercomputer’s motherboard.

  Once his powers fully activated, Anthony was off. He shot forward with an incredible burst of speed.

  The world around him became little more than a blur as he ran. The government district of Academy Island wasn’t located too far from the hospital he’d just left. Anthony didn’t bother taking to the streets. He leapt onto the roof of a building in a single bound and began traveling in a straight line over the roofs, using his magically enhanced physical strength to leap from one building to the next.

  From this high up, Anthony could see a good portion of the city as it spread across the landscape like a vast jungle of steel. Tall skyscrapers rose into the sky. Some were so tall they looked like they might reach the stars. Of course, the stars were invisible here, blotted out by the innumerable lights from the city.

  Academy Island was a city that had been created after the San Andreas Fault ruptured some time at the end of the twenty-first century, turning a large section of what had once been called California into an island.

  Academy Island stretched on for about 150 square miles in all directions. Most of the island was composed of large buildings that contained numerous schools and research facilities. The reason this place was named Academy Island was because of the numerous magical academies that had sprung up, which taught everything from advanced magics to magical sciences. The research facilities, which were owned and operated by large corporations and companies that dealt with magic and technology, were also often associated with many of these schools.

  It wasn’t long before Anthony reached the government district, and he looked down to see if he could find the werewolf who was running around here. He couldn’t. Looking at his wristwatch again, he saw that the figure on the map had moved. They were traveling toward the government headquarters, where the Academy Island’s Board of Directors worked. He frowned, but adjusted his course and soon discovered the werewolf in question.

  They were traveling very quickly through the streets. Had he been a human, all he would have seen was a blur. As expected of a werewolf, her body was covered in brown fur that only just hid her powerful physique. Most of the fur was located along her arms, legs, and back. He couldn’t see much else, however, because her body was covered in what appeared to be… a patient’s smock?

  Still wearing his frown, Anthony leapt off the latest building he’d been running across and dropped to the ground. His knees buckled a little when he landed in front of the werewolf. He bent them to help absorb the impact, but even so, he couldn’t keep from wincing when he felt the powerful force jarring his knees. If only he wasn’t using a pseudo power granted to him through a magic he hadn’t mastered. If only he had several women who could…

  He shook his head and dispelled the thought.

  Meanwhile, the werewolf had stopped running when she saw him appear in front of her. Like most werewolves, this woman’s face resembled more wolf than human, though he knew werewolves could shape shift into a more human form if they wanted. Most actually preferred their human form because it allowed them to insert themselves into society more easily. He wondered why this woman was not in her human form.

  “I don’t know what an unregistered werewolf is doing on Academy Island,” Anthony said to the woman. “However, you should be aware that being an unregistered demon is illegal according to the Demonic Covenant. I would rather not have to get violent, so could you please surrender yourself to the nearest demon detention facility?”

  Anthony thought his words were well-thought out. However, the werewolf before him didn’t appear to have even heard what he said. She snarled at him like a rabid beast, then reared her head back and unleashed a ferocious howl at the moon. It was a sign of impending danger. The hairs on Anthony’s arms prickled as, seconds after unleashing what sounded like a cry for blood, the werewolf rushed toward him.

  He sighed. “So much for having a peaceful resolution.”

  As the werewolf charged forward, Anthony bent his knees and adopted a simple fighting stance. He reared his left fist back and watched as the woman came closer. By this point, he could see the werewolf’s shaking eyes and dilated pupils. The frown he’d been wearing since the beginning grew larger. It looked like she was terrified, or like she’d gone insane. He wondered if she could even understand him. Perhaps she was one of those feral werewolves who refused to interact with human society. But if that was the case, then what was she doing in Academy Island of all places?

  These thoughts and more left as the werewolf reached him. She raised her massive left paw, sharp claws glinting in the moonlight, and brought them down quicker than a bullet.

  Anthony was faster.

  Before the woman’s strike could land on him, he delivered a punch to her torso. A loud, concussive bang echoed across the street as the werewolf was lifted clean off her feet and sent flying. She hit the road, skidded across the blacktop, and stopped several yards away from him. Anthony waited to see if this woman would stand back up. When she didn’t, he relaxed his stance.

  The glowing lines covering his body faded away as if they’d never existed. As they did, the mana enhancing his physical strength left, and exhaustion took its place. It felt like his bones that had been filled with strength had suddenly become brittle, like his muscles brimming with power were now weak like a kitten. His shoulders slumped.

  “Professor? Are you there?” Anthony asked after using his wristwatch to call Professor Incanscino again.

  “I’m here. I’m guessing you dealt with our furry problem?”

  Anthony snorted. “She’s unconscious and ready to be picked up.”

  “Good. I’ll have the Academy Island Private Security Forces come by and pick her up. Can you wait there until they arrive?”

  “Do I have a choice in the matter?”

  “You do not.”

  “Then what’s the point of asking?”

  “True enough. Anyway, I still expect to see you in class tomorrow. Don’t be late.”

  As the woman hung up, Anthony lowered his arm and looked over at the werewolf, who was still quite unconscious. While he didn’t look it, he was quite powerful when using the magic ability Physical Enhancement.

  He walked over to the woman and noticed that even while unconscious, her body had not reverted back into her human form. That was… odd. He gave the woman a pensive stare, but then shrugged and sat down next to her. It would be awhile before the Academy Island Private Security Forces arrived. He was tired, so he didn’t want to continue standing.

  As he looked at the night sky, he released a soft sigh.

  “So much for getting a good night’s sleep…”

  Chapter 1

  Beep! Beep! Beep!

  Anthony stifled a groan as he lifted his face from the pillow. He glared at the alarm clock sitting on the nightstand beside his bed, wishing he had the power to shoot laser projectiles from his eyes so he could incinerate the damn thing.

  It was 8am, and Anthony felt like his head had just hit the pillow before the alarm clock began going off. He hadn’t even gotten home until around 4am this morning thanks to the events of last night. Not only had he gotten barely four hours of sleep, but this was the second time he’d stayed up late. Last night he’d had to stay up to study for an upcoming test.

  Stupid werewolf. Stupid professor.

  He shut off the alarm clock and sighed. It looked like today was gonna be another inglorious day.

  Stumbling out of bed, Anthony wandered out of his bedroom and into his bathroom, where he took a quick shower in the small shower unit. It was just a small square space with enough room for him to stand. His soap and shampoo were sitting in a small alcove next to his head. If hi
s shower head wasn’t detachable, Anthony didn’t doubt that washing himself off in this dinky little shower would have been impossible.

  After showering, Anthony went back to his bedroom. He found a clean pair of baggy black jeans, an equally baggy T-shirt, and a jacket with a hoodie. He put the socks on last and made his way into the kitchen/living room.

  Anthony lived in a small one-bedroom apartment. It wasn’t more than maybe 300 square feet, had a single bedroom, a living room attached to a kitchenette, and a bathroom with a toilet and a shower.

  Because he didn’t have much space, Anthony didn’t decorate his residence with anything. The white walls were mostly barren. Only a few pictures hung from them, and most of the pictures were located in his bedroom. His living room featured a single small couch with a holographic television. Meanwhile, his kitchen had a very small stove, an even smaller fridge, a microwave, and a few cabinets attached to the ceiling.

  Anthony went to the fridge.

  A glance inside revealed several square boxes; each had the logo of a fox plastered on the side and the name Kitsune Kitchens underneath it. He grabbed one of the boxes labeled Eggs & Ham, peeled open the top, placed it in the microwave, and pressed Auto Cook.

  It only took about two minutes for the food to cook, and then he was sitting down on his couch and eating a quick meal of processed eggs and ham. He wolfed his meal down as he watched the news. The newscaster was reporting on something that caused his mind to turn to last night’s events.