”So what’s this you said about the Coven having places to have fun in?” Dee asked Faylen. They were once again having a small get-together with Moirai. Faylen and Moirai had become friends at some point and spent quite a bit of time together. The two had mumbled something about someone understanding their worries.

“Oh, that? Yes, they have dens in most circles of the Day and Night cities. No one dares to bother them, so they’ve spread around fairly well. I’ve only been to their dens once, so I can’t really speak too much, but I’ve heard they’re definitely places you can go for fun.” Faylen replied a little defensively. Her last and only visit to a Coven den had been rather embarrassing. She had wandered to a wrong section of the den.

“What’s this about Coven dens I hear?” Nyx asked as she entered the garden the trio was using for their get-together. Nyx had floated down from the sky and had managed to surprise even Dee with her entry. She had not been paying attention and the Meilin woman was one of the stealthiest people Dee had seen. Or at least she could be when she wanted to, which was not very often.

“I’m trying some things to relax and have fun for a while. Faylen recommended Coven dens.” Dee explained.

Nyx gave a small whistle. “She went straight for the Coven, huh? Bold choice. She’s not wrong though. Hmm, I wouldn’t recommend a den at the lesser circles though. While they could accommodate you, the dens have their wares scaled to the standard level of the beings around the den. From what you’ve told me, your fortitude and resistance to most substances is at the level of a true immortal. The concoctions with a dosage designed for a fifth rank being would just be wasted on you.”

“Sounds like you have experience.” Dee pointed out with a smile, which brought a groan from Moirai and a gale of laughter from Nyx.

“Unlike my stodgy daughter, I know how to have fun. I used to frequent the Coven dens fairly often, though I went mostly for the party aspect and not the kinkier or weirder stuff they can be into. I can show you some good places if you want. A girl’s night out sounds fun, considering all the work I’ve been forced to do lately.” Nyx replied with her grin widening. It also provided an opportunity to tease her daughter.

Moirai tried to change the subject. “Did you have a reason for coming here? You don’t visit all that often, and usually you come with a purpose.”

Nyx noticed the attempted topic switch and refused to give in, but she did have an actual reason to be here. She tossed a small scroll to Dee. “The Threads of Fate wanted me to forward that to you.” Then she looked at her daughter. “Come on, live a little. I can ask Shioko to come as well if you’re so worried. Though you know she draws men like wolves to a lamb chop, so there’s that. Anyway, you need some relaxation as well. And I mean proper relaxation and not just sitting here sipping plain tea. When was the last time you got laid? When will I get to see a grandchild?”

Nyx’s questioning was clearly making Moirai uncomfortable, and the latter quite directly ignored the former, while Dee opened the message. The message read: “I thought I’d provide a freebie prediction for you since it also benefits us. When you do cross the threshold to become an immortal, you might want to be somewhere remote. Very remote. The more remote the better. Think big explosion and lots of fire.” The message’s signature made it clear it came from the same seer that had helped Dee last time.

Faylen noticed Dee’s serious expression. “Bad news?” She asked.

“Not as such. Simply something to keep in mind.” Dee replied, folding the message and depositing it inside Croestia.

‘That’s good advice anyway. Your transition from a mortal to immortal isn’t exactly the usual fare. Normally people barely open their soul spaces which will then be very small and they’ll have no sign of a totem. You’ll have a half completed totem and an enormous Domain. The others can get used to the transition little by little, while you’ll get it all dumped on you at once, even if some of it is already leaking over. There’s going to be some side effects. You could go to the wilderness between Day and Night cities. Or you could open a portal through the Astral Plane and close both ends of the portal while you’re there. That would contain whatever happens inside the Astral Sea.’ Croestia suggested, and got a silent agreement from Dee.

“Ah fine! I’ll come then! It’ll be your fault if things go wrong, so you better be prepared to dig us out of trouble!” Moirai suddenly bellowed, giving in to her mother’s coercion.

“That’s my girl!” Nyx declared. “I’ll send a word to Shioko. She’ll come along, I’m sure.”

“I think I’ll pass.” Faylen decided. The last time had been bad enough, and knowing Dee’s propensity to get into trouble and Nyx’s enthusiasm, she knew there would be trouble.

“I wonder if Nessera would want to join?” Dee mumbled more to herself. She had ways to contact the succubus, and this seemed right up her alley.

-----------

“This is my first time in the third circle.” Nessera was almost giddy with excitement. The chance to go to a Coven den, especially at such high circle was a real treat. She also got to spend some time with Dee again and to top it all off, the annoying Sidhe woman was gone! Things were looking good for her.

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to bring a succubus along? I mean I can see so many ways this could go wrong.” Moirai asked with a worried tone.

“Don’t be such a worrywart.” Nyx shot back at her daughter. “We’re here to have fun, and what better company than a succubus?” In front of all of their incredulous looks, Nyx actually licked her lips at the idea.

Shioko cleared her throat. “Anyway, we’re still at the third circle. There’s not that much trouble two and a half immortals can’t get you out of. Besides Moirai, you’re a strong rank nine. I think we should be ok.”

“Two and a half immortals?” Nessera mouthed a silent question at Dee, who in turn pointed at Nyx and Shioko while raising a finger, and then pointed at herself and raised a finger half-way. “Really? Already?” Nessera asked incredulously, and Dee nodded in confirmation. Her tails had been hidden this whole time, and the last time Nessera had seen her, Dee had been a class eight psion.

The discussions were interrupted as they reached a rather nondescript building. They were at one of the few trade focused areas of the third circle, currently controlled by no one in particular. The building looked well kept, but the dark stone walls didn’t exactly scream “place where you can party”. It was already late in the evening, and one of the rare darker periods of the Day city. The door to the building was preceded by a queue of people, but the line progressed quickly as people were either allowed entry or sent off. After a small bit of observing Dee wasn’t entirely sure what the criteria for selection were.

The ones doing the selecting were a pair of what Dee would at first glance describe as mages. They both used mana and had lots of it, but there was something different about them as well. It was as if the mana they used was somehow different. The duo was rather striking as far as appearance was concerned. They were a pair of a male and female and both looked human on the surface. They were also what could be described as excellent representations of their gender appearance-wise. The woman had a perfect skin, beautiful and delicate face and curves in all the right places. The male was a strongly muscled and jawed with a perfect posture, an appearance that screamed masculinity. Dee was one of the few that could tell that the two didn’t look that way by accident. There was something about the way their bodies and insides were constructed that screamed of planning. It was not fake or an illusion, just that they ended up looking as they did by choice.

As the group approached the line, the people in front made room for them. Dee had reigned in the dangerous air around her as much as she could, but there was only so much she could do. That said, the main reason for the rapidly opening space was that both Shioko and Nyx allowed a bit of their power to leak out, making it clear they were both immortals. When they reached the two at the door, Nyx flashed her insignia from Four Winds and the two magic users waved them through.

The insides of the building were a stark departure from the stoic outer appearance. It was also clear that the building was much, much larger from the inside than from the outside. The doors opened to a large but a low ceilinged bar and the word opulent came to mind. Everything from the servings to the furniture was the highest quality. Yet, it was all created with comfort and enjoyment in mind, not for ostentatious displays of wealth. The dark wall also seemed to have weird plants and vines growing all over them.

Their group was met by a young looking female magic user, who continued the trend of seemingly perfect appearance. Dee looked around her and noted that all the people she now realized were witches and warlocks, for females and males respectively, had their appearance representing what they themselves thought to be perfection. Beauty was always in the eyes of the beholder, so their appearance wouldn’t attract everyone. Still, it was really easy to tell the difference between the staff and the customers.

“Is this your first time in a den of the Coven?” The young female witch asked. She had noted the looks by Dee, Moirai and Nessera.

“For some of us, yes.” Nyx replied and indicated herself and Shioko. “For the two of us, no.”

“In that case, I will take you with me to one of the lounges and explain the basics. The two of you should come as well, and I’ll apply the sigils.” The witch politely guided them towards one of the numerous doors on the side of the room.

“Sigils?” Nessera asked, noting the term.

“You will soon find out.” Nyx replied with a small smile. She knew what was coming.

They were led through another door to a small lounge with divan seating and tables full of refreshments. “I will now go through the basic rules. First of all, anything that happens in the den will remain in the den. If we find out you’ve been gossiping on the outside, you will be banned from all the Coven dens, and if the infraction is large we will have you cursed. And believe me, we will find out. Secondly, there will be no fighting inside the den. If someone gets a bit too handsy, you’re allowed to set them straight, but you have to do so in moderation. Most people here are open to a certain amount of sexual advances unless you stay within designated areas, and others should not be punished for making such advances. Such is the culture of this place, and if you can’t deal with it, then stay within the areas so designated. Be firm and polite, but not violent. Don’t lead people on and then punish them. Use common sense."

“The dens are an area rather free in sexuality, and it is rather common for people to hook up for some carnal pleasures. It is not forbidden to do so in public, but I would advise you to move to a more secluded area for such things. Those areas are more comfortable and clearly indicated, and bother fewer people. This, of course, doesn’t apply to specific places dedicated specifically for carnal pleasure, in other words, our orgy zones. Due to the prevalence of sexual activity, everyone here is required to be under a contraceptive magical sigil placed on your lower back. That is one of the tenets of the dens: any sexual activity here will be consequence free.

“There are separate zones for consuming some of our more exotic concoctions and substances in comfort, but all areas have bars with both alcohol and certain…shall we call them mood enhancers? There’s a zone for just having a good evening, and zone for just partying and enjoying dancing and music. We have a zone for what we call heavy partying with a more sensual bent, where you can go to specifically look for company for some carnal fun. That area has the ambiance and the accoutrements for a more primal and sexual experience. Then there’s the orgy area, though it’s a bit early in the evening for that area to have too much activity.” The witch paused for a moment in her explanation to size them up. She had so far shown no shame in talking about the more sexual subjects and that didn’t seem to be changing.

“In addition, we have dedicated staff here that can provide you with a more appropriate attire. We understand that the world outside is more dangerous and you can’t walk around in party clothing. Yours really aren’t that appropriate for partying.” The witch continued and was right.

Dee, for instance, was wearing her scout clothing, with some customization now to separate her from the scouts. While form hugging, they were not exactly designed for having fun. Nessera was always dressed for fun but was covering her ‘fun times’ clothing with a wizard’s robe. Moirai’s clothing was very practical and so was Nyx’s. Shioko had a beautiful yukata that was quite appealing, but not party appropriate. They all nodded in agreement. The two immortals had been aware of this option and had not changed beforehand.

Dee raised her hand. “Uh, there might be a slight problem. I have a rather high resistance towards most kinds of magic, comparable to a young dragon. Even if I specifically allow the sigil to be placed freely, it will be worn down in a few hours. Not that I need one I think.”

The witch looked at her with a questioning look. “Explain please.”

“Well, when I was a child, I was in the tender care of an assassin order. They had us consume all sorts of substances and drugs, and I’m pretty sure many of them were not good for fertility.” Dee had not really thought of the consequences from the Zabaniya experiments for a while, but the witch’s words had reminded her.

“We can test for that easily. If you are fertile, you will need to have the sigil applied by our high ranking witches. They can make it stick for a while assuming you won’t resist. If you’ll follow me, please. The rest of you can enjoy the refreshments in the meantime. This should not take long.” The witch took Dee out of the room, leaving the others behind to enjoy offerings on the tables.

She took Dee to another room much further to the back, where a more mature looking, yet still perfect in appearance, witch was brewing several potions simultaneously. “Master, we need to test for fertility.”

The other witch looked up. “Such a young demon. It would be a shame if you had lost your fertility already. Come here, stand in the magic circle.” The so-called master led Dee to a large magical symbol carved into the ground.

“What does this do?” Dee asked with curiosity. She had seen many magical circles, but nothing so complex. Even her ability to read mana wasn’t enough to identify the spell, and that was one of her most important abilities when fighting mages.

The witch smiled. “While the priestly folk have a stranglehold on healing magic due to their holy patrons, we witches are not far behind and we know much more about the physiology of various beings. We also know how to gather information more effectively. I’m sure you’ve been Delved before to determine the severity of your injuries? Well, think of this as that except much stronger and more detailed. It also works better on psions such as yourself.”

Both Dee and the young witch were surprised but for different reasons. Dee was surprised the older witch had noticed so quickly, and the young witch was simply surprised that Dee was one of the rare psions. Dee noted that and teased her a bit. “There were two more of us back with the group.” And received a wide-eyed stare from the young witch.

The older witch laughed. “Do excuse her. She hasn’t seen much of the world outside the Coven. Besides, the few psions we have managed to hire have been very helpful in improving some of the experiences we provide.” A wave of light passed over Dee and a long string of letter and number appeared in front of the older witch, and she studied them for a while before giving a whistle.

“Well, well. Someone so young and on the cusp of becoming an immortal. Both as a psion and a holy power user no less. You might be the youngest immortal I’ve seen. Some of your heritage is extremely intriguing as well.” The witch noted Dee’s worried look. “Don’t worry, this is strictly confidential. What happens in the den, stays in the den. That especially applies to the staff. Anyone unable to keep their traps shut will find themselves in a world of pain. That said, there’s something in your heritage that even this spell is unable to identify fully. Something draconic. That’s odd. Usually the spell had no trouble identifying dragons.”

“To the point please.” Dee urged the older witch.

“Ah right, my apologies. I rarely get to see values like this. A Domain just about to be born? That’s just incredible. Yes to the point. My apologies, you are unable to have children.” The witch didn’t bother sugarcoating her words.

“I suspected the assassins had done a number on me with the drugs.” Dee mumbled with a sigh.

“Ah, I’m afraid you’re under a slight misconception. Your infertility is not due to drugs. Beings that could be described as chimera almost always have trouble with procreation. In the strictest definition of the scientific term, you are a chimera of the highest order with one of the most mixed heritages I’ve ever seen. It’s fairly clear you were created this way in a lab, not by nature. You have been unable to have children since birth. In addition, your body is very strong with death energy. Extremely strong. Even if your heritage didn’t stop you from procreating, the death energy would kill any unborn child. Even undead would have easier time having children. I’m sorry but you are officially one the most infertile beings I’ve had the pleasure to meet.” The witch felt a little bad about her words. So she continued.

“Tell you what. I hate giving such bad news, so the whole evening is on the house for you. Also, as a tip, I’d recommend asking for the strongest stuff from the bars. Both because of your resistance against such things, which is rather phenomenal as well by the way, but also this might be a good night for you to get well and truly hammered. News like this and strong alcohol go well together. I’ll make sure none of our staff charge you for your orders. And I do hope you come again and that your next visit will be more pleasant.”

As the younger witch led Dee back towards the room with the others, Dee realized she had a nasty feeling in her gut due to the news she had just received. It seemed odd to her why she would feel that way simply due to being infertile. She had already suspected as much and certainly felt no desire to have children. Demons, in general, weren’t exactly known for having a strong motherly instinct and she had personally shown no inclination towards having any either. It took her a moment of introspection, but she finally realized that it wasn’t the future without children that bothered her. She could always adopt some poor unfortunate orphan if she really wanted it. No, what bothered her was that she was given no choice in the matter.

‘I’m starting to get real sick and tired of having no choice in so many things.’ She silently said to Croestia, who didn’t reply. There was little Croestia could say. Dee had already recognized that her totem was the representation of her will to stand above others so that she didn’t have to feel fear anymore. Part of it was also her decision to no longer be beholden to the wills of others. Yet here she was again, having choices taken away from her.

The others noticed Dee’s mood as soon as she entered the room and could guess that the news was not positive. “Time to have some fun and forget all negative things!” Nessera suddenly declared.

Dee thought that was a wonderful idea.