***The Netherrealm, Nix’s Stronghold***

***Katrine***

“To think that it would be that easy.” I marvel at the dark castle which defies the unreal landscape around it. Ghostly rivers of sparking energy flow through a badlands of some semi-solid material which shines with a greenish glow. Above it all, a dark violet sky reigns supreme, depressing in its emptiness. “… But I really don’t like this place. Are you sure that this is where Nix resides? I expected her to choose a friendlier dimension.”

Although, I have to admit that this is a pretty decent place as far as the Infernal Planes have to offer if my memories do not betray me. No magically mutated fauna or flora that wants to eat you. It’s neither too hot nor too cold – it certainly could be worse.

Celes frowns as she looks up the castle’s walls. “Yes, I am pretty sure that this is where Nix brought Isabella the last time I visited. Given that I remember correctly since a certain someone didn’t want to join me.”

“Hey, I had a war to fight,” Angrod complains. “And... your memories can be trusted. Don’t worry.” Angrod waves his hand dismissively. “I only hope that Nix remembers us. A few thousand years is a long time, even for an immortal. Do you think she managed to ascend to godhood?”

“I hope not, or she would have gotten into trouble with the Council,” Celes grumbles.

I purse my lips. “Well, if she is still stuck as a demi-god, we can fix that easily enough since she is a succubus.”

Celes and Angrod look at me, clearly curious about what I meant.

“I guess you died before you got the chance to learn about it, but I ascended during the final battle between Ascathon’s and Myrm’s factions.” I place a hand on my chest, indicating myself. “Haven’t you wondered why a former succubus matriarch is now a god? Turns out, all it took my former self to ascend was to leech a god dry… through quite… nefarious means.” I probably shouldn’t tell my husband about that.

Angrod nods. “So you fucked him to death and ate his soul-”

Celes cuffs Angrod in the upper arm since he brought the issue to the point quite shamelessly.

Decked out in his best and newest armour, my son in law doesn’t budge. He has his staff with him, and a set of blades which are attached to his back. Just like him, Celes and I also got our own crystal armour which is surprisingly comfortable to wear, even if putting on those flowing scales felt a little naughty.

I blush at the memory. It will take some time and effort until I manage to get to terms with my former self. Ashley would have never been able to totally commit to a single lover like I am to my husband.

“I see how that’s possible. A succubus’s innate abilities are a form of natural soul magic. Though, it should be impossible to absorb another’s soul,” Angrod glances at Celes, “it’s reasonable to believe that the act of taking a god’s power might’ve unlocked Ashley’s potential.”

“So it might not work for any demi-god?” I ask.

Angrod snorts. “Certainly not. They would need a succubus’s ability to drain another’s soul of his power and memories. Though, any soul has at least the potential to ascend. Whether they do or not depends on the individual’s strength and determination – and largely luck.”

“Yeah, in any case, should we try to knock or how do we do this?” Celes claps her hands together and gestures at the door, studying the hindrance which allows entrance into the castle. It’s about three times our height and seems to be a single piece of solid metal. “I think the others had more than enough time to get into position.”

Since this is supposed to be a family visit, we chose to be polite.

I nod, glad that we planned this first trip outside the Void Zone thoroughly. It’s not like we simply took a pathway to the Infernal Planes to get ourselves into trouble like bumbling idiots. Everything I remember of my past life tells me that the inhabitants of this dimension are not to be taken lightly.

Throughout the multiverse, there are beings whose powers differ greatly. While mortals – those who can’t reincarnate with their memories intact – are normally considered the weakest, there are dimensions which are so saturated with energy that even gods can get into trouble with the average inhabitant. Among them are first and foremost a set of dimensions called the Infernal Planes, this dimension being one of them.

It’s only common sense to show up here with a group strong enough to take on a roaming demon lord or two, their army of minions included.

Granted, having both Angrod and Celes at hand should be enough. But knowing that Nicosar, Arthur, and a few of our friends are waiting as reinforcements is reassuring.

Celes steps up to the large door which supposedly grants entrance to the castle. Raising her fist, she totally ignores the bell next to the entrance and hits the door, causing the entire structure to ring with a resounding echo.

I am a little surprised when a small door viewer which was previously perfectly hidden is opened with a smooth ‘zip’.

“Who is there?”

Celes clears her throat. “Isabella, I am here to see my daughter, Nix.”

I can hear some hushed whispers from the other side until the doorkeeper decides to answer. “Nix is out of the house. We don’t know when she will be back.”

Frowning, I step closer to the peephole. “How is this possible? Didn’t she leave anyone in charge when she left?”

“Lord Iraxar is in charge, but he doesn’t receive anyone,” the voice replies.

Celes huffs. “Wasn’t he her boyfriend when I last paid her a visit? I am sure that he will receive us once you tell him that Nix’s mother, grandmother, and father are here.”

There is a gasp from the other side and the door viewer is closed quickly, sealing perfectly with the rest of the door.

Angrod uses his staff to scratch his temple, but he doesn’t say anything.

“This whole situation seems fishy to me,” I comment. “What do you think?”

Celes pops her knuckles, sounding irritated. “I think this calls for forced negotiations. Even if they don’t want to, at least they have to talk to us.”

Bringing her fist up and swinging it like a hammer, my daughter hits the door with a resounding ‘Boom!’, breaking it off its hinges.

Tilting inward, the large door falls with unstoppable force, sending a wave of dust into the castle’s courtyard.

Celes wastes no time and steps onto the door, walking into another’s home like the queen she is.

Angrod and I follow her into the courtyard, where once the dust is settled, a lonely imp is revealed, carrying a basket with vegetables and meat. He stares at us, his wide eyes switching back and forth between Celes and the door.

“I want to see someone with authority! Where are the guards!?” Celes demands.

“Trazolock and Sulvud are… under there…” The imp’s accusing gaze lowers to the door which we are standing on. “I think their current ‘state’ doesn’t allow for any kind of conversation.”

Angrod rolls his eyes and gestures with his staff. “Which means that you are promoted. Show us the way to the lord of this castle before I decide to take down this whole place!”

As the lowest of demons, it doesn’t take the imp long to cast away its pride and come to the conclusion which is the most beneficial to its survival – in a typical manner for its kind. The little red demon drops the basket, abandoning its kitchen-duties, and gestures for us to follow.

Flapping its wings, the red fellow guides us deeper into the castle, past abandoned rooms and empty hallways.

Only now do we get to see the sad and desolate state of the place. Most demons aren’t known to pay much attention to their living arrangements, their sturdy nature making most mortal conveniences unnecessary. But succubi often put a lot of importance on even the smallest of pleasures, so I can’t believe that Nix would ever accept living in such a place.

So either Nix isn’t living here anymore, or there aren’t enough inhabitants to keep the castle in shape.

“What happened to this place?” Celes asks the question that burns on our tongues. “Where are Nix’s minions? Shouldn’t a stronghold as large as this one have at least a war-band or two at the ready?”

“They left. This place isn’t the same since the Mistress was abducted,” the imp explains.

“Abducted!? How? By whom?” I bark, wanting answers right now. The imp trembles in fear, but I don’t care. “Well?”

“It happened two or three centuries ago, Lady,” the imp explains. “Some deities showed up at our doorstep and demanded our absolute servitude. Naturally, Nix refused, but that was before she knew the visitors were gods.” The imp waves his hands. “They abducted the Mistress and left Lord Iraxar in charge.”

“What do you think? The Council?” Celes whispers to Angrod and I close in to hear his reply.

“Possible, but unlikely,” Angrod replies. “I am quite sure that I would have learned about any hostages during Tjenemit’s interrogation. It’s far more likely that this is completely unrelated. Probably some group of weak deities who are hiding on the Infernal Planes for one reason or the other. Even if it’s dangerous, it’s the only place you can go if you want to stay off the Council’s radar.”

“Possible allies?” I ask.

Celes rolls her eyes. “They nipped that possibility when they took Nix. Who knows what they are doing to her?”

I shrug. “Nix is a tough piece of leathery demon-hide. I am sure she is doing well enough.”

“Be that as it may.” Angrod allows his staff to come down on the floor, cracking a tile. “I have a principle of bringing hell down on anyone who touches a family member. If those deities know anything, then their souls can tell us after I am done with their physical incarnations!”

The imp guides us into a throne room, where a large demon with burning horns is lounging on a couch, three succubi tending to his needs. One is feeding him with pieces of some grilled meat, while another fans him cool air with an oversized leaf. The third is busy between his legs.

“Iraxar!” Celes barks. “What are you doing here while Nix is missing!?”

The demon frowns, studying the three of us. “Who are you to barge in here like you own the place? Why didn’t the guards stop three measly halfbreeds?”

While Iraxar makes his speech, the imp who was our guide silently steals himself away. I ignore it, deeming that we won’t need the little guy anymore.

Celes clears her throat. “This may be a different body, but I am Isabella, Nix’s mother. This is my husband, Amon. And my mother, Ashley. I would like to know where my daughter is and what you are doing here.”

Iraxar coughs up the piece of flesh he was about to swallow and spits it into the hair of the succubus who was pleasuring him, leaving the demoness quite grossed out. She pulls a face and tries to get the meat out, but doesn’t dare to say anything.

“You can’t be them! They vanished a long time ago!” He gestures towards us. “Girls, throw them out.”

“Can I kill him? This is taking too long for my tastes and I doubt that Nix would miss him after everything we’ve heard and seen.” Angrod takes a step forward, but Celes holds him back.

“Everything can be solved with talking,” she explains patiently. “I want him at least to tell us where to find Nix.”

The succubi on Iraxar’s side are equally reluctant to attack. Instead, they try their best to talk good sense into the demon lord.

“Are you sure that we can take them? They already got past Trazolock and Sulvud.”

“There is no way that I will go against someone who claims to be Ashley, The Succubus Queen of Castle P.o.P.” The second succubus distances herself from her master. “Even if she is an impostor, there are still some far mightier demons than ourselves roaming the planes who would come running if they hear about the name. I want no involvement with those!”

Oh, fun. Somehow I hoped that my past self’s fame would have diminished over the years. Hopefully, this won’t cause us trouble down the road.

“What if it is true? Going against the Bitch’s husband would be suicide! He wasn’t called the Slaughterer without reason.”

“Why do they remember Ashley and Amon with reverence, but I am nicknamed the Bitch!?” Celes calls out while shaking her fists, silencing the room.

I wince, knowing my daughter’s temper. Angrod also distances himself from his wife.

The succubus with the large leaf looks baffled. “But everyone knows that you caught the greatest warlord the Infernal Planes have ever seen with the baby trap. You are famous far and wide among the succubi. It’s why Nix decided to settle in a place like the Netherrealm. With the weight of such a famous mother on her shoulders she couldn’t stay in the Planes of Pleasure.”

“See?” Iraxar gets to his feet, apparently intending to take care of matters himself. “They must be impostors if they don’t even know that.”

“Oh, I’ve had about enough!” Celes charges the demon lord before I can stop her, her foot impacting the demon’s knee and folding it sideways.

Iraxar takes the hit with a grunt, realizing the damage only after he starts toppling over. He sucks in air for a scream, but it is cut short when my daughter’s fist impacts his throat.

Reaching up, Celes grabs one of his horns and pulls him around, bringing the stumbling demon down on her knee, effortlessly breaking his neck. I gasp involuntarily and cover my mouth when Celes’s hand reaches for her opponent’s mighty privates and… disarms… him of his manhood.

Huffing and puffing, she drops Iraxar to the ground.

The large male doesn’t have to say much apart from a little twitching and stertorous breathing as he gurgles out his life. His three succubi, on the other hand, are quite offended.

“Why did you rip it off!? Ooh, wait, do you intend to stuff it?”

“What a waste of good life force.”

“What kind of succubus are you?”

Celes doesn’t waste any time, waving the demon lord’s unmentionables at the trio. “Don’t tell me what a demon is supposed to do or I will show you three wenches that women can just as easily lose important bits!”

That shuts them up quicker than if they had been threatened with eternal torture.

Angrod uses the chance to step forward and poke the cooling corpse with his staff. “So, I take his soul and we head to wherever Nix is?”

“I suppose…” I comment, having a bad hunch about what is to happen once we are there. If even my daughter lost her patience with Nix’s boyfriend, then what will happen once we are at the place of her abductors?

The three succubi immediately see their chance.

“Actually, the Olympians took over a castle not so far away from here. It’s just a one hour flight following the energy river upstream.”

The one with the leaf nods. “Yes! We can guide you there.”

“Want some?” Another offers the plate with the grilled meat to us. “Can we have his soul in return?”

“N-”

Angrod is about to answer when Celes interrupts him. “Let them have the scraps. And haven’t I told you that poking people with a stick doesn’t tell you whether they will live or die?”

“Only if I can have these Olympians. And poking them works. If they twitch, they are fine. If they don’t, they are not,” Angrod explains his reasoning cooly.

Celes covers her forehead with both hands. “Okay, you can have them, but we try talking to them first!”

“Because that worked out so well with him.” Angrod pokes Iraxar and I take note that he doesn’t twitch.

“I think he is dead,” I comment. If two people ever deserved each other, then it is Celes and Angrod.

Eventually, we return the topic to what caused us to pay this place a visit.

The succubi explain that these Olympians are apparently a whole pantheon who lost their home to some invader and were forced to relocate. For one reason or the other, they chose to settle in the Netherrealm, proving quite the menace for the local demons. A single god would have been defeated sooner or later, but a whole group of them proved to be a hard foe.

The Olympians slowly subjugated the demon lords around the area, demanding tribute in various forms. Food, valuables, minions, the new overlords weren’t picky. Overall, their behaviour was not much different from actual demon-culture – although the demons were only waiting for someone strong enough to put an end to them.