***The Infernal Plane of Lust***

***Isabella***

I had never before seen any of my sisters speechless, so it was quite amusing for me to witness all three of the triplets in such a state. They gaped in shared silence at the television screen, trying their best to process what had just happened.

Even if they thought I hadn’t caught on, it was apparent from the very beginning that they had never truly believed in my machinations. They were just showing leniency towards their youngest. Like some mortal would allow a child to play ‘pretend’ with a doll while knowing that the babe’s dreams would likely never come to pass, they allowed me to play with Amon.

In other words, they oversaw and ignored my actions because they thought nothing would come of it, believing that it distracted me from the truth, that I would inevitably have to give my first egg to Khorne.

Now, it appeared that they were realizing that Amon was a little more than what he seemed.

Jada was the first one to force her attention away from the surveillance footage. “How did he do that? Why did Ostreios let him go just like that?”

It was too bad that the scrying spell didn’t provide us with audio at this distance. And no matter how proficient any of my sisters may be at lip-reading, nothing could be gleaned from a few moving pixels.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly, though I had my theories. “But I have realized early on that Amon has an uncanny ability to get through sticky situations that would have ended any other demon permanently.” And that made him indeed the perfect candidate for a succubus mate.

Jada took a fistful of her popcorn and shoved it into her mouth, chewing it carefully. Her actions might have seemed uncaring if she hadn’t stared me down like some disapproving parent.

Which she was, in a sense. Just like all of my other sisters. Their ages could be counted in millenia while I was only a few decades old, a fledgeling compared to anyone else in the family. They may be my sisters, but they had taken part in my education just as much as mother herself.

I fidgeted beneath her attention, unable to keep myself from feeling like the little imp that had received her first lessons from Jada on how to Life Drain a victim properly. Or Danielle’s lessons on the harshnesses of demon culture, and which steps to take in order to unlock the succubus evolution. Or Claire’s endless tutoring on everything political and intrigue.

Jada returned her attention to the screen and watched as the three armies started separating. “Maybe we should have taken your ambitions more seriously, little sister.”

Danielle shrugged. “In any case, it will be interesting to see how your boy will fare in our castle. Maybe his luck will hold? He must have some hidden ace up his sleeve. No normal demonling would rise through the ranks as he did otherwise.”

“Why would he be at our castle?” Claire asked with a befuddled expression. “He may have made a name for himself in this battle, but there is still no way that mother would invite him when there is Khorne to deal with.”

Jada groaned and rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. Claire, haven’t you read the reports about Khorne? There is no way that he wouldn’t take an interest in this new prodigy who brought down a titan for him. Even if nothing more came of it.”

“Oh, could you quit calling him a boy?” I complained. Amon wasn’t a boy as much as I wasn’t a girl.

And little did they know that I had already pulled strings to ensure that Amon would visit our home under the right circumstances. Bribing one of Khorne’s entrusted lieutenants hadn’t been cheap, but it ensured that the Demon Lord’s future demise would be presented to him in the right light. Going along with just enough information to make Khorne interested enough in Amon to keep him close. Everything else would play out on its own.

My thoughts returned to the situation at hand when Danielle looked at me with a grin that showed all her teeth. She clearly had no intention to stop calling Amon a boy. “Make me.”

I was tempted, but I knew that I was the one who would receive a beating more likely than not. So I just huffed. “I am above such a thing. As if I would get into a bitch fight with my elder sister just because she wasn’t able to show proper decorum towards my chosen champion.”

“Oh, she has you there, sister,” Claire giggled and poked Danielle in the side of her bosom. The other demoness reacted by slapping the offending hand away, and the next moment they blurred and were rolling over the floor, giving their best in trying to choke each other into unconsciousness… it was their preferred way of settling arguments.

My first instinct was to separate them somehow, but Jada wasn’t exactly helpful, because she only cheered them on. After weighing my options, I decided that getting in between two elder succubi wouldn’t end well for me. If they wanted to fight, then that was their problem.

Though, I shouldn’t forget that some battles were still ahead until everything was said and done.

***The Infernal Plane of Lust***

***Amon***

I hadn’t much to say as our ordered appearance at Ebandon’s headquarters turned from a relatively boring debriefing between Ex and my little group to a full-blown interrogation between myself and our warband’s leader.

Everyone had seen that Gluttony’s Avatar himself had paid me a visit, and then consequently allowed me to leave. As to why, that was anyone’s guess, and now they naturally wanted to know.

In hindsight, that might have been a part of Ostreios’s revenge. With him making a public spectacle out of our acquaintanceship, there was no way in the Infernum that I would be able to fly beneath the radar of higher powers from now on.

Surely, Ebandon would have liked me to spill everything about my relationship with Ostreios, but I kept my mouth shut, relying on Isabella’s influence to keep myself safe. Whatever my succubus friend told Ebandon to get me into his warband, it apparently kept him from just beating the knowledge out of me.

It was obvious that our leader had known that there was a bounty on my head, but not that I was involved with another plane’s avatar. Ebandon didn’t have to be overly intelligent to guess that I was the one who Ostreios was searching for, but what he couldn’t fathom was why the Demon Lord would let me go after being at his mercy.

I just played mute on the subject, deciding that the less Ebandon knew the better. Isabella was quite clear on the subject that her family had more influence over Ebandon’s little warband than he would want anyone to know. So when he pressed the subject, I simply insinuated that I knew exactly what was going on.

“You really believe that I will allow you to walk out of this tent without an explanation!? This is my warband! And if there is anything that could have consequences for my organisation, then I have a right to know,” the old codger complained.

“And I have my own circumstances with Isabella and the Ashborn family. Aren’t you beholden to them too? I doubt that it is within my rights to give explanations that would inevitably involve their turf. Unless you want me to inform them of our conflict of interests?” I responded immediately, assured in my assumption that there were circumstances that tied Ebandon’s hands. Any other demon would have already taken action instead of posturing in front of a supposedly weaker party.

Ebandon studied me without a word. His hesitation in reaction to my reply only proved that he was trying to intimidate me with words alone.

Seeing that I wouldn’t take the bait, he brushed over our argument as if it hadn’t existed and quickly deviated to another topic. “We have to pay a visit to Khorne. He saw your ‘heroic’ act in stunning the enemy’s titan which allowed our spell projectors to take it down.”

Ebandon sighed in obvious displeasure. “Now he wants to congratulate you in person.” And then the man grinned cunningly. “Certainly to ask you a similar question regarding your encounter with Ostreios.”

Unfortunately, Ebandon was right. I couldn’t refuse Khorne, or I would make another enemy. He was also likely to ask the very same uncomfortable questions.

I sighed and glared at our warband’s leader. I was now certain that he was nothing more than a puppet that danced according to the Ashborns’ tune. Seeing no other option, I decided to once more throw Isabella’s weight around. “Then I suppose that it’s in both of our best interests to come up with some evasive answers.”

Hopefully, relying so heavily on Isabella’s name wouldn’t weigh the scales in her favour. But given the situation, I had very little choice.

Ebandon regarded me without even trying to hide his dismay. For a moment I thought he would refuse just out of pride, but then he nodded.

And so my day devolved from bad to worse when all of us were dragged in front of Khorne, the current ruler of ‘half’ of Lust. He greeted us at his temporary headquarters, which was every bit as haughty as I imagined it to be.

Where other legion leaders thought a simple tent sufficient, Khorne had a mobile fortress, one of the flying ships which I heard so much about. It was a monstrosity of steel that had landed and flattened an area of at least a square kilometre. I was sure that this instrument of destruction was capable of controlling a huge area with its weapons alone, given that it was bristling with spell projectors and other weaponry that I could only guess at.

I had half a mind to study all the enchantments that made this wonder of ingenuity possible, but we were led too quickly through its labyrinth-like hallways to glean any deeper insights.

Though the man who received us at the end of our journey certainly was nothing like I had him imagined to be.

Khorne was a Wraith, a type of war-demon with incredibly high magical resistance. He was also pale and gangly, and at least one head taller than myself – horns not counting. Yet his every movement spoke of power.

Somehow, I had imagined someone like him to be some stern-faced persona who wouldn’t take shit from anyone. Someone who instilled fear in those around him just by being there. How else could a demon assemble several legions and force powerful Demon Lords beneath his banner?

Yet the man greeted us with the cheerfulness of some entertainer at his headquarters, inviting us to sit and eat at an open-air banquet at the top of his mobile home. The view of the battlefield was magnificent, though I could have done without the titan’s clean-picked bones in the distance.

Ostreios and his people had already retreated long before this meeting with their priced spoils – food.

“We have to celebrate our hero!” Khorne said while showing me off to his underlings. “It’s not every day that you get to see someone punch a titan in the eye!”

“Don’t make such a big deal out of it,” I replied cordially, wishing I was somewhere else. “All I did was distract the creature.”

“Which is a feat deserving of recognition!” Khorne replied without hesitation and gestured for us to sit.

“You shouldn’t let his behaviour fool you,” Ebandon whispered while sitting down next to me. “He's had people who went against his wishes drawn and quartered.”

“But I do have to ask,” Khorne took a sip of what seemed like dragon wine. “Why did Ostreios let you go?”

“It wasn’t so much that he let me go, as that he threw me off his carcass,” I replied candidly, rehearsing what Ebandon had suggested for me to reveal freely. “Apparently, I wasn’t of much interest to him. Of course, he asked a few questions beforehand.”

I studied the offered food on the table and pulled the tongue out of the cooked head of some creature that I didn’t know.

“Hm,” Khorne swirled the wine in his glass. “Which questions?”

“Nothing incriminating.” I shrugged. “From what I caught, he just took his people through a random dimension door after invading the Heavenly Planes and wanted to know who else was fighting on this battlefield. It didn’t look like he intentionally interfered in our conflict.”

“His appearance was rather unexpected,” Khorne admitted. “At first I thought that Mekedesh made some deal with Gluttony, but it is true that he didn’t take sides apart from seeing to his own gains in this battle.”

I nodded. “Well, I explained the situation to him, since that couldn’t have been some great secret. Ostreios seemed amused and asked a few more questions about Lust’s political situation. When I wasn’t of much help in that regard he decided to throw me off ‘his’ titan – which his minions interpreted as a sign to let me go. Since he is Gluttony’s Avatar, I didn’t find it in my heart to question him on the matter, nor to remain for long enough to give him time to change his decision.”

“Ha!” Khorne grinned. “That is certainly one hell of a story.”

He looked into his glass, apparently considering something when one of his men stepped forward. “My Lord, assuredly you would have to reward someone who made himself a reputation like that on a battlefield. It wouldn’t do for a man of your status to be seen as stingy among your subjects in the face of such an accomplishment.”

“I assure you, there is no need for additional rewards!” Ebandon interjected quickly, apparently afraid of becoming indebted to Khorne. “Amon is a part of my warband, and as a warband, we were properly employed and under contract while we held the legion’s flank. And it was your spell projectors who took the titan down.”

Our warband leader shot a meaningful look down the table, causing me to nod, followed by all of my minions.

Khorne nodded. “That is true, though that titan was Vordrior the Blighted, one of Lady Vegth’s great generals. And with that, an important asset to Mekedesh. Those with titan evolutions don’t simply respawn at an Anima Stone – which isn’t well known since they die so rarely. They have to reform and regain their strength over several seasons. This means that thanks to Amon, we dealt a lasting blow to my enemies. Vordrior was also a skilled spellcaster. There would have been no way to take him down without some distraction. I am afraid that I feel obliged to give our young hero something, however small, or I feel the Infernum would weigh it against me. What would you like, Amon?”

“I-”, I hesitated, unable to think of anything that wouldn’t land me in more trouble than I already had. Of course, there were any number of things that could gain me more power, but asking for them openly would make it apparent that I was one who hungered to rule over his own fate. I was reluctant to make myself an obvious competitor to people like Khorne. “I honestly have no need for anything, my Lord.”

My answer felt weak and foolish by demon standards, but I felt like there was no other possibility.

“But I have to give you something.” The Demon Lord frowned darkly, and then his expression lighted up. “Oh, I know. Why don’t you accompany me to a succubus den? As it happens, I was about to visit one on a mission of diplomacy. You can have your fun there. As long as you belong to my entourage, you are protected from any lasting damages to your person.”

And it assuredly would cost him nothing. The other moved in the back of my mind.

I could see how Khorne had achieved his position – it was all about giving without actually giving. “That would certainly be a great honour, but-”

“No ‘buts’!” Khorne interrupted. “It is decided! To refuse would be to refuse my generosity.”

I felt a muscle in my face twitch involuntarily, but there was obviously little I could say against the offer after I had already refused a wish of my own. On the other hand, if I was being dragged into this, he could at least allow me to take my people with me. “Could I take my party with me? It’s just a handful of people, and they are like family to me.” I gestured towards the others who had wisely kept silent throughout most of the day. “It wouldn’t feel right to deprive them of such an experience after they fought at my side through thick and thin.”

Khorne leaned back with a smug expression on his face. “Of course.”

So we found ourselves trekking through familiar woods no less than an hour later, with Ebandon and Khorne in the lead, accompanied by fifty of Khorne’s most trusted men. It was a gloomy walk, with most of the demons staying silent and watching their surroundings as if we were in enemy territory.

Kitia used the chance to make her way closer to me. “You are aware that the storms will be starting soon?”

“Yes,” I replied from between clenched teeth. “Would have been nice if someone told me earlier that the Anima Stone network and generally all dimensional transports will be shut down!” It hadn’t taken long for me to inquire about Ostreios’s expedient retreat. I heard about the dangers of the Storm Season before, but every time it came up, the most important detail had been forgotten to be mentioned first. One would think that when explaining the dangers of the environment, disrupted dimensional travel would be the first point on the list.

She nodded. “And you are aware that we are going to Ashborn Castle?”

“Of course.” I sighed. “But what can I do about it? You were there when Khorne roped us into this mission.”

“Well, you could have left us to wait for you at Irkos,” she whispered back. “You know, where it’s safe?”

I rolled my eyes. “If I have to go through this, then you are to suffer with me.”

Kitia huffed. “And why do we have to walk? Couldn’t Khorne have just flown us to the Ashborns’ castle?”

I didn’t know the answer to that either, but it was clear by now that she was just complaining to me in order to vent her frustration. “I can only guess that the alliance between Ashley and Khorne isn’t as tight as he would like it to be and that she has something against a flying warship that could lay waste to a fortress hovering above her abode.”

Our journey reached its end and concluded our conversation when we finally broke through the dense forest, which allowed me to let out a sigh. That forest had woken unpleasant memories of dryads playing bondage with me.

Khorne was the first to approach the gates which loomed like an open maw. Above the gate, the initials 'P.o.P.'' were inscribed in pink letters on the castle's obsidian stone. And as we approached along the narrow path that led to the gate, most of my attention was on the suspicious vegetation at the path’s side and not the impressive architecture. Those vines and pod-like plants made all of my survival instincts scream to stay well away.

I only returned to watch the castle when a single succubus appeared out of the gate with a giddy expression on her face. She was a blue-skinned version of Isabella that oozed innocence, though I had an inkling that this was only a facade.

“Welcome to castle P.o.P! My name is Felicia and if there are any questions or needs, I am very willing to provide assistance!” The female bowed deeply, giving every visitor an unhindered view down her cleavage.

Then she ushered us inside the courtyard, playing the perfect hostess by greeting every single demon in person, right until Ebandon mentioned something that got everyone to look back towards the path we had taken in befuddled surprise.

“Wait, fourty-nine? Aren’t we missing a person?”

I quickly counted, and indeed, one of Khorne’s fifty men was missing.

Looking back at the path, the only thing that stood out was that one of the plant’s pods was wriggling ominously, showing me exactly why I had stayed far away from those vines.

“Oh, I am so sorry!” Felicia bit her lip and was quick to snatch some mean-looking gardening tool from next to the gate. It looked like some oversized scissor and seemed perfect to cut back those vines. Although, I bet it could also have served to eviscerate someone who attempted to get past the gatekeeper.

And then she was already running towards the pod. “I am coming! Hold your breath! Don’t swallow the digestive juices!” And then she was cutting into the shuddering plant, trying to get out the prey. “Spit him out, Vorephilia! Bad plant! You know that you are not supposed to snatch people off the path!”

The other demons next to me shuddered involuntarily, but I could only sigh at the fond memories this predator engendered inside my mind. The sight reminded me of easier times when I was a little demonling who was the master over his valley while fighting lizard-things.