For the first time since princess Yara’s disappearance several years ago, Antares was absolutely abuzz with news from the royal family.
Not only did King Helios leave his throne and fly off somewhere unknown, he returned and dropped a bombshell that left the entire continent shocked.
The entire capital was called to hear Helios’ royal decree that was rather short and simple.
“From this day forward, the fourth prince Exedra Draven is hereby excommunicated from the royal family. Henceforth, he shall only be referred to as the demon lord of lust, Abbadon!”
For a moment, there was only silence.
But as soon as that moment passed and Helios began to walk away, the entire audience delved into utter chaos.
“My king! Surely there must be some sort of explanation for this?”
“Is he serious?”
“Have you ever known our king to joke?!”
“Did he rebel?”
“Does this have something to do with the princess not being here today as well?”
Helios sighed when he heard the cries of confusion from the crowd.
‘My grandchild didn’t even get out much so why are they so concerned? They’re acting as if they’ve lost their best friend.’
Because the dragon king was utterly uninterested in matters that did not revolve around his kingdom or his daughter, he had no idea about the gossip that was spreading amongst his citizens.
After the party several months ago, Exedra had become quite the famous figure and he was just as feared as he was beloved.
Because the people of Antares only respected the strong, the story of the red prince who was capable of killing even evolved had become extremely popular among warriors.
And the tales of his mesmerizing appearance claimed the hearts of women young and old.
Though if they saw his current appearance, the flood that would occur in their panties would reach biblical proportions.
As Helios walked away from the balcony on which he made his decree, he left behind his two stunned sons.
Iori had devoted his entire life to understanding his father in the hopes of pleasing him.
So when he heard that his father had left to retrieve his sister, he thought for sure that he’d drag her back kicking and screaming if he had to.
Imagine his surprise when his father came back empty handed. Not only that, he also declared that his nephew was banished from the family and had become his own ruler.
“A demon lord… now I’ve heard just about everything.” He muttered.
Standing silently next to Iori was his younger brother and the second prince of Antares, Jadaka Draven.
Jadaka was a well built man who resembled Helios almost to a tee.
He had long silver hair and a powerful looking body that was further enhanced by his height of 6’8.
His bright skin was covered in full bronze scales that were similar to his father’s gold.
“Interesting… do you believe he has the power to hold such a title, brother?” Jadaka asked calmly.
Iori felt his gaze harden slightly.
How could he not understand his brother’s intentions?
“Jadaka…” he began.
The younger brother simply chuckled before he began to walk away.
“You needn’t worry brother. My curiosity in that bitch’s child is only-“
“Brother.” Iori warned as his eyes glowed a vibrant red. “We are no longer children. This has gone on far too long.”
Jadaka ignored his brother’s anger as he continued to leave the palace.
It seemed as though Iori had forgotten.
A long lived race like dragons are extremely adept at holding grudges.
-𝚟𝒩xt.𝕔𝔬𝐌
“Thank you, my lady!” Dagon said fervently. “Thank you so much!”
Bekka watched in equal parts horror and disbelief as the former vampire king who’d been missing for the last few hundred years began kissing the feet of her mother.
Karliah quickly kicked away the head of the sniveling man beneath her. “Enough. I have need of you, Dagon.”
The frail man did not seem to be bothered by the abuse of this muscular woman before him and instead prostrated beneath her. “Whatever I can do to repay you for this moment of kindness I will do it, my lady.”
“I need you to-“
“You… you’re Audrina’s father, right?” Bekka suddenly asked as she squatted in front of the decrepit vampire.
The man’s eyes seemed to take on a faraway light as he desperately tried to remember.
Finally, his eyes seemed to shine with a vague recognition. “I believe… I had a daughter by that name, yes.”
Bekka prepared to ask her more questions, but her mother’s firm hand on her shoulder caused her to pause.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have time for you to interview him about such things, daughter. Remember, even though it feels like you’re here, you aren’t. Your body is still in your world, waiting for your return. ” She warned.
“The longer you stay here, the greater risk you run of not being able to return. You need only learn what you need to learn and leave.”
Bekka was disappointed but she nodded in understanding.
She would not allow anything to stop her from returning home to the embrace of her family.
“Vampire.” Karliah called. “Teach my daughter how to use the void element. Leave nothing out.”
Dagon bowed deeper until his forehead was touching the ground. “I will do my best, Sarra-Tahazu.”
Karliah snapped her fingers and another portal opened at the feet of all three of them, taking them to an area more conducive for learning.
–
Asmodeus was briefly confused when he awoke to see an unfamiliar ceiling.
He prepared to sit up when he realized he was in position that he knew all too well.
Very gently, he turned to the side and saw his darling wife sleeping so peacefully it would be easy to mistake her for a corpse.
‘But this grip…’
Asmodeus looked down at his arm to see that Yara was clinging to him tight enough to cut off his blood circulation.
The demon smirked before he raised his hand to touch her face.
Before he even made contact with her silky smooth skin, Yara’s violet eyes flashed open.
For a moment, disbelief lingered in her eyes while humor flickered in his.
“Good morning, my wife.” Asmodeus said with a smile.
Yara wondered if this might’ve all been a dream.
It wouldn’t be the first time she’d had dreams of her husband waking up early only for him to still be recovering when she woke up.
But this… it was all so very real.
His voice reverberating in her ears, the feeling of his warm breath on her face and even those red and black eyes that inspired fear in others and devotion in her.
Not wanting to get her hopes up only to be disappointed again, Yara shut her eyes again and laid back down.
‘A dream, its just a dream, Yara.’ she told herself.
“I’m aware I may not look my best after such a long nap, but this feels a bit rude, Yara.”
Immediately, her eyes flashed open and they quickly filled with tears.
“Darling!”
Yara immediately leapt on top of her husband and began to cry harder than before.
Asmodeus smiled helplessly and proceeded to let himself be drowned in the tears of his wife.
Eventually, Yara regained enough of herself to say the words she’d been holding onto for almost twenty years.
“You *sniff* big jerk! How could you *sniff* send me away like that?!”
“…”
“Stop smirking you bastard!”
Asmodeus could not help it.
He’d forgotten how cute his wife could be in the time while he was away.
“Yara… you know that my only desire was to get you away from harm. I would never be able to forgive myself had I been the reason you got so much as a scratch.” The demon explained as he wiped the river of tears coming from her face.
“But if I am to die I wish to die alongside you!” Yara argued, her husband’s attempts to dry her face appearing to be entirely in vain.
“And what of our son?” Asmodeus countered.
This did give Yara pause as she loved her son dearly. Even before he became what he is today, he was already her pride and joy.
He represented the culmination of their love after all.
“I know the words you want to hear from me, my dear. However I cannot in good conscience apologize to you knowing that I would repeat my actions should the need arise.”
Yara did not seem to like that, but Asmodeus paid her pouting face no mind as he finally rose up from the bed.
After such a long period of inactivity, his body cracked and popped as he flexed his well defined muscles and walked towards the window.
Peering outside, he stared in awe at the sky above as well as the enormous tree standing majestically in the distance.
“How is this…” He began before he immediately began to draw his own conclusions.
“Yara.”
“Y-Yes?!”
Yara was mesmerized by her husband’s body that she hadn’t been able to appreciate in a long, long, time.
Asmodeus of course noticed it, as an incubus how could he not?
However he greatly enjoyed pretending to be dense with Yara and making her say what she wanted on her own.
He felt a greater sense of satisfaction that way and he enjoyed teasing his wife.
“I wish to see our son.” Asmodeus said absentmindedly as he stared in wonder at the city below.
“Where is Carter?”
Yara suddenly stopped drooling over the demon’s firm buttocks and wrinkled her nose in confusion.
“Who is Carter?”