If it were possible to actually relax in the Pit, Courage was doing that. Days were spent studying more magic than she had ever dreamed possible for her talents—her much expanded talents, now—and her nights were often spent with either Corignis, Alphias, or both. She was lying down, reading a particularly interesting book about potent uses for shadow-magic, when she heard a familiar voice.

"Given up, have we?"

Courage's head jerked up. She looked around quickly in panic before she steadied herself. "Just found a comfortable place to rest, before the final stretch. You… you helped me in the lower Circles, but I know you will want something for that; you are a demon."

"You are learning. Everything comes with a price. What will you give me for this warning, I wonder?"

"What warning? I trust Corignis, and Learned." She heard the voice try to cut in on her, but talked over it. "That is, I trust Corignis, and by extension Learned. He has given Corign…" Courage clapped her hoof up and against her snout.

"Curiouser and curiouser. What has the First Lieutenant to the Lord of the Pit given the wayward succubus?"

"Buck off." Courage flashed a smile that included more fangs than she had possessed before entering the Circle of Avarice. "I don't owe you anything because you don't know my name."

"And what if I told you that you don't have long before the one time I will open the gates of the Pit? I can only keep them open so long. Be there, or don't."

"What?" Courage jumped to her hooves, the copy of Super Spells for Shadow Pals going forgotten. "You can open the gates and let me out?" Her thoughts raced, actually getting out, and past Cerberus, was the biggest problem she had yet to solve. "How?" Courage waited, and listened, but all that met her senses was stray laughter from that dark voice in her head.

The laughter slowly faded, but the voice kept silent. Courage waited, with an angry frown on her face, for a full half an hour. "Time to go." Her voice sounded small in the room, like just saying the words was betraying all the knowledge that was held there. "I really have to." She turned, coming face to face with Corignis and Alphias.

"I agree." Alphias leaned over and nuzzled Corignis. "I have you both…" He trailed off his words without forcing his will on either mare—he no longer had to. They are both with my foals, I have everything I have ever wanted. A shackle broke in his mind, a chain that had bound him to the circle clattered.

"It's good to be wanted, my stallion." Corignis nuzzled Alphias back, but nibbled down the dark fur of his neck. "But we have a deal, and once we are settled in to raise our foals we will call on you." Power flitted between them, trading, blending.

"You both want a ride up?" Alphias raised an eyebrow. "You understand, I cannot follow; I might have broken the chain that bound me here, but the Lord of the Pit himself bid me never to lift myself from my prison."

Courage froze, remembering the title the voice had given Alphias. "What did you do that made him do that? And what chain? I don't get it." She looked at the stallion, studying his eyes. Hunger was there, but it was a hunger she had sated, and if she was honest with herself, would sate again and again. Her eyes widened as she saw the hunger in him grow. He wants me. He has me, but he still wants me. Alphias leaned in, pressed his muzzle to Courage's ear, and whispered his name right to her. Before she realized what she was doing, she opened her mouth. "Courage Fire."

A tremble of pleasure ran through Alphias that had nothing to do with how sexy he though either mare was. "You. Both of you. I wanted power, I wanted company. But what I almost did was kill the Lord. Who knows, with the backing of both of you I probably could, now." He tossed a hoof in the air and leaned back from Courage. "So you understand? He chained me here with my own avarice, he bound me in a place where I would never find the power I desired. He chained me here, and you both set me free."

"I think he…" Courage stopped, straining against her inner mind. Something struggled to stop her from telling Corignis and Alphias what she suspected. He is binding me, not letting me tell them.

"I hear Tartarus is great this time of year." Corignis missed Courage's struggle. "Gluttony, then Lust; well I can't see Lust being a problem." She grinned. "But remember one thing, Courage, do not eat the food in Gluttony. No matter how hungry you get."

Courage blinked at Corignis and groaned. "Where were you in the ninth Circle?! Every time I came to a new one I had no clue what was going on, and now you give me advice. Okay. I'll bite. What happens if I eat the food in Gluttony?"

"It will taste better than anything you have ever eaten. It is literally the perfect drug. One bite and you are hooked." Corignis scrunched up her snout. "So if you get hungry just find some stallion and buck him."

"Or call me." Alphias grinned, and walked around Courage. When he bit at her dock, her tail pulled obligingly to the side. Every part of Alphias wanted to climb on her, to screw her and never stop. But he shook his head. Make her call me, make her use my name. Then she will not be unhappy when I call hers. He kept walking, leaving her puffy vulva alone.

"Tease…" Courage felt jilted out of some good sex, but had to admit that it was nice to realize there was regular sex to be jilted out of. "Well, if worse comes to worst, we blast our way through." Just thinking about choosing what spell to use made her a little giddy. I really have learned so much here. She looked around the library and gave a longing sigh.

"Come on, before you find another book to read, or… Learned… decides you are worth mounting again." Corignis gave a bark of laughter. "Do we still need the Sphere of Ascension?" She looked to Alphias.

Grinning and shaking his head, Alphias snorted in amusement. "Of course not. Giving a special filly something to aim for that she could never hope to reach, was part of me snaring her here. I am sorry, Cou—"

"Bale. Bale Fire." Courage looked at Alphias. "Learned Scholar, if you please, we should practice using less exploitable names." She turned to look at Corignis. "Do you have an alias?"

"Corignis. A demon stole that much of my name many millennia ago. He shared it to all and sundry, I showed him up by wearing it with pride. My name is long enough that very few know more than that."

"Then call me Alphias." Alphias felt a little tension at the casual use of his name. "But Bale Fire will suit one with so short a name." He leaned towards Courage and inhaled her scent, finding not just "her," but also traces of himself and Corignis. "Go now, before I change my mind and keep you here for eternity."

"I…" It really struck Courage just how much the big demon was changing, was doing, for her. "I love you, Alphias in Sara Kin ark ti Fin Diablus." She watched his eyes widen with the use of his full name. "And you too, Corignis el Threpin ark Turas del Fife." She breathed deeply, power wrapping around her.

Alphias knew he couldn't get outraged, not when Courage had woven his name into a dedication of… love. "What have you two demonic mares done to me, that I find the use of my full name to be a thing of beauty? Go, now. But call on me soon, for anything you desire." He flashed his eyes at both Courage and Corignis then began charging his magic.

Courage's last thought, as the power wrapped around her and shoved her between Circles, questioned why she passed out each time.

"They're awake!" A male voice cut through the quiet of the room.

Courage turned her head to the speaker, and saw a cloaked pony stare back from under their hood. "Where are we?" She looked around more, seeing that Corignis was nowhere to be seen. The walls looked to be worked stone, and she lied on nothing more than a cot, a cot with scratchy hay in it.

"We are in a recovery room. You are safe after your journey. Did you come from Avarice, or from Lust? I think you came from Lust." The stallion reached up and pulled his cowl back to reveal an emaciated-looking unicorn. "Welcome to Gluttony, for what it is worth. My name is Hunger."

"Hunger?" Courage blinked at the name. "Wait, aren't you eating here? You look like you are skin and bones." She studied the pony, realizing that she could see the lines and edges of his skull through the thin flesh of his head.

"You are so astute! I fight the need, as does everypony here." Hunger gave a sigh. "And yes, I know how ironic my name is, but it helps remind me that I need to avoid eating the… the food."

Courage watched the stallion start salivating. "That's good. From what I hear, you really don't want to eat the food here…" Courage turned her head away from the pony, looking to the single, cell-like door. "I don't suppose you saw another mare just like me? Corignis?" It was then Courage lifted a hoof and bopped her head. "How rude of me. Bale Fire." She offered her hoof to the thin pony.

Hunger stared at the offered hoof, eyes almost glazing over before he lifted his own, thin limb to gently clop against it. "Sorry, we don't get many visitors from below, and definitely none that are this polite." He smiled, revealing bone-white teeth.

There was just something about the pony that put Courage's nerves on edge. Well duh, he is trying to live as best he can in a Circle of the Pit that makes food into an addiction. I would be a bit messed up too if I lived here for a few hundred years. She shook herself. "Okay. Well, I just want to find my friend and then we're headed for the next Circle up."

"Oh yes, your friend!" Hunger brightened up. "If you could help me find her, that would be great. Is there some way you locate each other, Bale?" Hunger walked to the door and banged once, then twice, then once again. Noticing Courage's focus, Hunger smiled that too-perfect grin again. "Security and all that. Don't want crazed demons roaming around."

"Right." Courage tried to smile, then remembered who and what she was now. Well, I am not crazed, I hope. But the rest is right. She was extra conscious of her wings as she ruffled them. "So where else could she be?"

"We are not the only defense for you poor lost souls." Hunger stepped out the door when it opened, leading Courage out. "But we like to think we are the most obliging. If we can find your friend and bring her here to safety, we will."

Courage saw another of the robed ponies, although this one didn't reveal their face. "I have noticed the higher I get the more pony-like everything is. This is the second Circle where I have only seen ponies, or pony-shaped beings." She shuddered at the memory of White.

"That stands to reason, the closer to the top we are, the more ponies that make their way down. I… I was sent straight here, from Tartarus." Hunger shuddered. "When I first arrived, I ate. It was before all this, all the safety. I joined the first group who set up the Sanctity."

"Is that the name of your group?" Courage felt comfortable, and berated herself for it. They are in the Pit for a reason, Courage. Remember White!

"Yup!" Hunger trotted along, the pit of his stomach aching for relief. Mentally he prodded his belly. Soon…

Author's Notes:

So I do this "Ask x" thing, x can be any pony within the story. You can ask them anything and I they will definitely hopefully reply. Keep the questions appropriate to the age-rating of the stories and of course, I they will answer the best question(s) in the author notes of the next chapter. The more votes a comment has the more likely I will get it to the right pony to answer, try and keep it to one answer per post! I They will pick one question per chapter. (note, the commissioner will answer questions in the comments, since this is their OC)

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