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Amiglion winced as Zerrex grit his teeth, cursing under his breath and leaning against the wall with one hand balled into a fist. Blood was pouring down his other side as the Bloody King stared at them before turning and leaving the Drakkaren to try and hold as still as he could while Death tried to line up his shoulder where it had been hacked off by a rusty hatchet, before mumbling a quick incantation as a tear rolled down the reptile's cheek... but he wouldn't give the bastard who was just striding away the satisfaction of hearing him scream.

Five minutes later, it was done, and Zerrex was slowly flexing his reattached arm, panting raggedly and snarling a bit. He only had about ten minutes before he had to go to work, as Amiglion muttered another quick healing spell that caused the Drakkaren's body to pulse once, every muscle and fiber in his form seeming to twitch as Zerrex let out a grunt of surprise, and then he closed his eyes and relaxed against the side wall, a shiver rolling through him. "Thanks, Ami. I owe you one."

"Forget it... that fucking bastard, I can't believe he was just going to leave you like that..." Amiglion snarled, but he was pale and shaky from watching the tortures, as his scythe lingered quietly in the background. "I should report him to Queen Carmen, or the Chief Inquisitor, or maybe even the Princess-"

"These Inquisitors were handpicked by the Princess to test me..." Zerrex murmured, and then he straightened and stood up, rolling his shoulders as the pain and tiredness began to fade, likely thanks to whatever healing magics Amiglion had cast on him. He had to give Death one thing... he certainly knew his spellwork. "I think the entire point of it is cruelty... I don't know if she adores me some days, or if she just wants to stretch out my misery as long as possible before she eats me..."

Amiglion made a face at this, and then the Naganatine wrapped a companionable arm around Zerrex and squeezed him gently, smiling at him and leaning perhaps a bit too close for comfort... but what disturbed the reptile is that he didn't exactly mind it. "Now don't talk like that, huh? I'm sure things'll be great, you'll see!" A pause, and then he grinned a bit and asked playfully: "Hey, you wanna make out? I've got more experience under my belt with that than anyone else you'll ever meet, you know."

"Only if you want to." Zerrex responded in a playful voice, leaning in close and letting their muzzles brush together, and Death blushed before leaning forwards hungrily... and Zerrex shoved him off, adding mildly: "Oops, sorry, not fast enough. Come on, we have to go to work."

"You're an asshole. And shut up, Grim!" Amiglion added irritably over his shoulder, as the scythe bounced a bit behind him in a cheerful manner. But then he sighed and created a portal, looking morbid as he added darkly: "I hope that something big and heavy and pointy and nasty gets stuck in your penis. Like a centipede, or a rock."

Zerrex made a disgusted face as Death stepped through the portal, then he followed and stared as he strode out onto a metal platform where Masters wearing large, heavy helms were assigning some sort of tags to naked and mostly-naked prisoners of the Circle, many of them looking weak and emaciated from extended labor. It at least took away some of the Drakkaren's terror, but it didn't stop him from wanting to curl up his penis and hide it away, as a passing succubus licked her lips and grinned at the sight of his exposed crotch.

"Oh look, Lord Zerrex seems to have lost his clothing." mocked one of the nearest Masters on the platform, and then the minotaur shoved him rudely towards the lineup with the pole of his halberd. "Get the fuck in there, whelp! No time for screwing around, you're already late as it is!"

"Actually, we're right on time." Amiglion said meekly, and immediately three Masters turned on him with snarls that made him shrink back a bit. "But you know, I've never been good at keeping track of that sort of thing..."

Wonderful. My protection is useless. Zerrex thought morbidly, and then he paused, glancing over his shoulder as Grim floated slowly along behind him. "Well, at least you're with me."

The scythe nodded as the Drakkaren stepped into the back of the line, behind a mostly-hairless raccoon, and then he crossed his arms, making a bit of a face as he took another look around. He stood now at the edge of the platform, near a ramp of rock and dirt that was guarded by two minotaurs... and past that, he could see a guardhouse and Slavers striding around on a plateau of flat stone and dirt, snapping their whips at nearby slaves who were carrying wheelbarrows filled with shiny rocks.

It looked like they were in a mountain range, and the Drakkaren could see the Central Spire in the distance beyond the plateau below, which meant they were probably in the ‘corner' of the Circle of Lust... and turning in the other direction, he looked up to see what had to be one of the Great Stairways in the distance, which led all the way up to the Circle of Pride above them. Between that and here, however, there were several enormous, jagged mountains, and who knew where the Stairs touched down at?

The reptile shook his head a bit as he followed the line, several other prisoners stepping up behind him, before his eyes widened and he stiffened at the feeling of some male grasping him around the waist and beginning to dry-hump him, mumbling under his breath... and a moment later he heard a dull thud as Grim swatted the creature and knocked it off. Zerrex made a face, glancing over his shoulder to note the tubby wolf with a pair of small horns staring up at him hungrily from the ground, before a Master strolled over and backhanded him hard across the face, making him snarl.

"Keep your ass moving! Stop looking around like it's a fucking carnival!" The wolf snarled... and then he hesitated as Grim floated slowly towards him, half-raising the small metal buckler on his arm before adding gruffly: "Just keep moving. You aren't special here, Lord Zerrex, and we're here to make sure you know that. That's all."

The wolf backed off, and Zerrex sighed in relief and muttered a quick thanks to Grim. As he faced the front of the line again, he let his eyes flick back and forth to search for Amiglion... but he couldn't even hear him anymore, which he took to be a bad sign. He honestly hoped that Death hadn't gone and bitten off more than he could chew, since he'd been pretty clear on the fact that his powers weren't the strongest in the world... and then he made a face as another Master with a clipboard strolled up beside the first and beckoned to him.

Zerrex stepped out of line and walked over to the Master in faintly-blue armor... but the elk bowed his head courteously, speaking in a pleasant voice: "Lord Zerrex. My name is Lieutenant Ambrose, and I'm here under the orders of Captain Issen to make sure we have no... incidents." A pause as he glanced back and forth at the other Masters, several of whom shifted uncomfortably under the solid-blue eyes of the elk, before he held out a tag on a long string. "Please put this on, it's your pass in and out of Mine 12, where you'll be working. You'll be mining and hauling ore, mostly... there's already a cart waiting for you on the Northern Platform, that way."

The elk pointed to a stairway on his right, and Zerrex nodded as he slid the string over his head, idly touching the tag â€" it was covered in demonic runes that he couldn't read, and it felt both hard and brittle, much like bark. "Thank you... is there anything else I need?"

"Some luck and a pickaxe." The elk smiled a bit, and Zerrex nodded again and half-bowed before making his way in the direction he had pointed, feeling both glad and miserable. On the one hand, he might end up buried in rubble or being attacked by morons with shovels... but on the other, it would be hard work, and it would be physical work... both of which attracted him.

On the Northern Platform, he glanced around, feeling the metal under his feet... and a Master with red shoulder plates on his armor strolled over, glowering at him before looking down at his tag, and then he grunted and pointed at an ugly, lopsided cart on a set of rusted metal tracks. Leaning against it was a silver pickaxe, and then the Master slapped a metal skullcap over the Drakkaren's head, Zerrex wincing as the feline grunted: "Regulations. Now listen the fuck up, since I'm in charge here, got that?"

"Sir." Zerrex said dryly, and the feline glared at him angrily for a moment, sizing him up but looking warily at the scythe floating beside him as several Slavers loomed in the background of the isolated, lonely platform. Then he crossed his arms with a snort and jerked his head towards a massive green metal bin, where another prisoner was currently carrying armloads of precious stones to as a Slaver mercilessly tore into his back with his whip, howling at him to go faster.

"You're collecting silver, gold, and crystals... and don't worry, there'll be plenty of Slavers around to help you identify the good from the bad." The cheetah's bottom lip curled in an expression of dark entertainment, Zerrex frowning a bit at this. "That stuff you collect from inside the mine, you bring back out and throw it in there... don't worry, oh great and sage Lord Zerrex, this whole tunnel is a special reserved spot, just for you." He added after a moment with several mocking bows, and several Slavers in the background laughed. "We'd never have you pushing a wheelbarrow or shoring up timbers, or anything as menial as that, and-"

"Bring on the pain. I'm ready and waiting." Zerrex said mildly, and the cheetah looked up at him with a snarl as the Drakkaren flexed challengingly, meeting his eyes with a cold grin. "I just hope it provides a good enough workout."

"Fine, you want a workout? Then come with me, asshole." The Master snarled, before stomping off towards a small shack on one side of the metal platform... and a moment later Zerrex staggered out wearing a full two metric tons of weight distributed over his entire body, rolling his shoulders a bit as the Slavers laughed at his greatly-slowed movements. He glanced down at the heavy metal bracelets around his wrists and wondered idly if he could steal these and the boots... and then the cheetah said cheerfully: "Wait, Lord Zerrex! There's two more!"

Zerrex blinked... and before he could think to react there was a metal weight attached around the end of his penis, and one around his testicles, both slapped on in an easy movement by the Master's quick hands. Now he was in agony, his eyes bulging... and the pain grew worse every time he moved, his penis feeling like it was going to tear off as the cheetah snarled: "Now after wearing these all week, maybe you'll end up being as strong as me!"

An hour in, and the Drakkaren was greatly regretting his decision to get all this extra weight thrown on his body, as Slavers yelled at him and snapped their whips, the leather-bound demons looking overjoyed as Zerrex leaned into every hard swing of the pickaxe into the tunnel, already covered in dirt and with only two large chunks of silver to show for it, along with a piddling handful of crystals. The tunnel was only ten feet deep into the mountain... but Zerrex was getting the feeling that all the actual veins of sparkly minerals were likely far deeper inside the mountain, and they were going to end up forcing him to dig all those extra tunnels himself.

The day was long: longer than any other day Zerrex could remember off the top of his head, as he worked constantly for the fourteen hours and ended up with only one load of gemstones and ore to show for it... and then one of the Slavers snarled at him that it was quitting time and he'd better drag that cart the hell out and unload it.

The reptile got to the other side of the mine cart, and he forced it up the tracks, the wheels screaming in protest as he pushed it out of the tunnel... and then he stared in horror at the sight of Bones and Orphus standing and talking amiably with Longhorn â€" the cheetah Master who he guessed was also technically his boss â€" and several Slavers, Amiglion standing nearby and looking a bit bruised and a lot miserable. Immediately, Grim flew over to the Naganatine, and Bones said in a cheerful voice: "Why, Lord Zerrex! What are you doing here? And oh my, you seem to be handling yourself surprisingly well... oh, don't stop on account of us!"

A whip to the Drakkaren's thigh got him moving a bit faster, the reptile grabbing an armload of ore, gemstones and other minerals and staggering over to the car as Orphus added in his terrible, high voice: "Oh dear, oh dear! Lord Zerrex, silly you... you're already more than large enough in the crotch department! You don't need extra weights down there... but you know, if it makes you happy, then all the more power to you, and be as big as you can be indeed!"

The group shared a laugh as Amiglion slunk carefully away from them, and Zerrex made a bit of a face as he dumped the armload into the bin and quickly returned to his cart for another, doing his best to ignore them even as Bones said musingly: "Why... yes, he does handle that weight surprisingly well... I think he should wear for the rest of the week, what do you think, Orphus?"

"Oh, certainly, certainly." Orphus said agreeably, and then he snapped his fingers, and the weights Zerrex wore glowed purple, runes inscribing over them and Zerrex falling over with the next armload he was trying to carry over to the bin, the Drakkaren grunting and bloodying his muzzle against a sharp rock as he tried to pick himself up with a snarl... but to his horror, the pure, solid weight was making it difficult to move or do anything, and he could feel agony ripping up from his groin and his flesh down there literally stretching in response to the weight. "Oh, silly me! That's an increase mass spell... but darn, I added a permanency spell over the equipment already too!"

They shared another laugh as a Slaver began to whip Zerrex viciously, and the Drakkaren forced himself to all fours even under the lashes as the Slaver growled: "Pick it up and carry it over... no, pick those rocks up with your mouth and carry them one by one to the fucking bin!"

Zerrex felt horrified, and then the Slaver walked over and shoved his head down into a rock, the reptile snarling furiously but unable to fight back. His eyes widened in surprise, however, as Amiglion said coldly: "Hey, that's enough!"

All eyes turned to him, and Death was holding up a hand that was glowing with blue fire, the Naganatine glaring around at them all as he said curtly: "You are not to abuse Lord Zerrex more than you abuse other prisoners... many have already gone out of line with him, and it will not be tolerated. If you continue, I'll send you to the Abyss, which we all know is much worse than dying."

There was an uncomfortable silence... and then Orphus cackled and held out his hand, a scroll appearing in it before he read off clearly: "Lord Zerrex Narrius is to be placed under the care of four Inquisitors: Inquisitor Feliz Radamant Da'Kari, Duke of Eternal Night, Inquisitor Matheson Laurence the Third, Inquisitor Orphus Landem Dulcard, and Inquisitor Terronius, Duke of Soldier's Bounty. These four Inquisitors may use whatever means necessary to deal with Lord Zerrex, and there will be no time limit to their powers over him, meaning that they may incur any and all penalties and rewards upon his person as they see fit, as long as they have a positive vote of two or more on how he should be treated." A pause, and Orphus said coolly: "Sir Longhorn, you and your Slavers may treat Lord Zerrex however you like while he's at work, and currently, I think he's still at work. Lower your hand, Amiglion... you don't have enough juice to send an Inquisitor to the Abyss, no matter how hard you try."

Amiglion snarled... and then he grit his teeth and clenched his eyes shut, creating a portal and stepping quickly through it as the others laughed... and the Slaver shoved Zerrex's head down again, and he shuddered before picking up a rock in his mouth-

Longhorn leapt across the platform and kicked him in the jaw as hard as he could, and Zerrex screamed in agony as his teeth shattered and a chunk of rock went down his throat, but both Bones and Orphus went into another fit of laughter. And another hour was spent like this before he went back to carrying armloads quickly to the bin while being flayed by Slavers, until finally Zerrex used his Northern Star to create a portal and he crawled through it, his jaw broken and gagging on blood and rock, most of his teeth reduced to nothing, his body saturated in blood.

He ended up outside the cabin instead of inside, but it worked for him, since he immediately vomited chunks of rock and blood and some black substance out onto the ground, before flopping over. He had a vague sense of moment as he closed his eyes, and then slowly, bit-by-bit, the agony began to dissipate... but when he opened his eyes next, he saw Orphus standing over him with a cocky grin, the bat's insane eyes gleaming, and Amiglion was quietly sitting on the table behind him with his eyes closed and Grim in his hands. "Hello, Lord Zerrex! Seems like you were passed out for a while, gosh, but ain't that horrible? Anyway... today it's fun time, and I have the best adventure planned!"

Zerrex snarled a bit... but before he could respond, he was dropped into an illusionary world and he found himself floating in the middle of a reeking basin... and as he looked up, he saw Orphus sitting on a circle of some kind... and the Drakkaren frowned for a moment before he looked down at the water he was treading and then back up in horror, putting it together.

He was in a massive toilet... and that's where he spent the next five hours, trying to avoid being crapped on by giant asses. The moment the reptile was out of the illusionary world, he shot for the door... but Orphus grabbed his muzzle and covered his nostrils, grinning cruelly, and Zerrex vomited into his own maw before swallowing it... which caused him to vomit again, only for the same thing to happen. The world went gray as he gagged over and over uselessly, until finally he managed to control himself... and Orphus looked down at him, clucking his tongue in disappointment. "Oh Lord Zerrex... after what the Duke of Eternal Night told me, I expected so much more from you..."

"Kiss my ass... you're... you're sick..." Zerrex gagged again on the ground, then snarled and punched the floor hard enough to crack it as Orphus laughed above him, before he forced himself up to his knees... then reached up a hand and caught Orphus's sandaled foot before it could strike him in the face.

Orphus blinked, his head rearing back as his strange, red and black eyes glowed... and then Zerrex threw the bat's foot down and slowly stood up, towering over the demon before Orphus hissed and rose his hands, purple fire glowing at the ends of his fingertips: "You listen to me, Lord Zerrex, you can't intimidate me! I've seen worse demons than you and I served my time in the Hell of Gluttony, and I am just as powerful as the other Inquisitors-"

"Are you trying to convince me, or you?" Zerrex asked calmly, and then he smiled and reached a hand forwards, tapping it between the bat's eyes as the air rippled. "Besides, you're still under Inquisitorial protection... but as we just found out, as long as I don't actively attack you... I can still stop whatever you throw at me."

Orphus snarled... but then he clenched his hands into fists, the fire going out as he spun around and quickly retreated through a white portal. It left Amiglion staring, and Zerrex glanced over at him with a faint smile as Death murmured quietly: "You found yet another loophole in the powers of the Scholars, it seems... maybe the one you've been searching for for the whole time you've been here..."

The reptile nodded slowly, glancing over at him before asking in an embarrassed voice: "Can you uh... cast a cleansing spell on me of some sort? I stink and I'm going to throw up again if I can't get this taste out of my mouth."

"Absolutely!" Amiglion immediately jumped up, letting go of Grim, and the scythe floated away as Death simply rose a hand, and Zerrex felt something roll through his body before he breathed out and in, tasting a faint, minty flavor in his maw before smiling a bit and relaxing with a sigh, brushing the hair out of his eyes as his nausea quickly faded.

"Thank you." The Drakkaren looked over at Amiglion with relief, then he slowly rubbed at one of his shoulders before mumbling and walking over to pick up his name tag off the desk: "And I guess I'll come back later to get patched up after I get the crap kicked out of me."

Amiglion looked down in quiet shame for a moment, as Zerrex created a portal... and he glanced at Death before offering a smile and saying quietly: "Hey, it ain't your fault... take care of yourself, Ami."

He heard a murmured response as he slipped through the portal, and then the reptile once more stepped out onto the Northern Platform with a sigh, and instantly he was batted to the ground by the cheetah, who snarled: "You're late, asshole!"

And once more, the work and torture began: the reptile, still clad in the heavy vest, found the work almost impossible and horrifically-tiring, not given a single moment to rest as Slavers harried him mercilessly while he attempted to dig out the tunnel by himself. The worst part came when the Slavers screeched that he needed to shore up the rooftop for support... and the reptile had trudged out of the tunnel, been knocked down and kicked in the face for not bringing his cart and not getting a full load of minerals, and then he'd been pointed in the direction of the stack of ironwood timbers beside the small shack, which they used to shore up the cavern... and he carried three of these back with him, grunting under the blows of the Slavers, but keeping his head low and his eyes narrowed, trying to push through and concentrate on the task at hand.

At first, his strength had grown exponentially... but even now, after all his training, he was having a hell of a time just moving in this vest, and he wondered if he was either beginning to taper off to the most strength his current body could possess, or if he was the vest really weighed so much that it was making it nearly impossible for him to get used to it. Then again, perhaps he was just pushing himself too hard, hating how he was naked and vulnerable, hating the looks he got and the treatment of the Slavers, and in a fit of rage, swearing to himself quietly that he'd have his revenge on each and every one of them when the first chance came.

The rest of work was much the same as yesterday, except this time he avoided falling down and he managed a load and a half of mostly-ore, while extending the tunnel another ten feet into the mountain... but then he stared as the cheetah Master said idly: "I need you to finish laying down the tracks before you leave... the iron bars and support planks are all the way on the Southern Platform, however, near Mine 3."

Zerrex spent another two hours at work on getting and setting down the tracks... and then, finally, he was permitted to go home. The Drakkaren quickly left and collapsed on the cushions of his small shack with a groan, and Amiglion winced as he murmured quietly: "That bad, huh?"

"Worse." Zerrex mumbled, closing his eyes and feeling his frustrations mounting as he tried to think of something, anything to relax himself, even wondering if Amiglion would mind him masturbating furiously or if he'd want to join in or whatever... and as Zerrex grew increasingly edgy, the door suddenly flew open and the grand elephant demon had strolled in, announcing in his tough, pride-heavy voice: "Lord Zerrex, today sees the day where you will be broken."

Before the Drakkaren could respond, he was in a world of illusions, and Narrius was charging at him, all fangs and boiling darkness, as he'd been in that last terrible battle... but the reptile only sat down, looking miserable, and he completely ignored the illusion as it tore through him harmlessly. He closed his eyes as other terrible things assaulted him from all sides, horrible sounds and terrible feelings pushing at his mind... and it wasn't that they didn't bother him, but simply that he was too tired to care.

Suddenly, the Illusions ended, and Terronius frowned, asking him coldly: "What, have you conquered all your fears in the space of a week? Impossible! Be damned to you, why don't you react?"

"Because you suck." Zerrex said moodily, and the elephant demon stared at him with shock as Zerrex rose a hand with a sigh. "I'm sorry, it's not you. You seem a bit pompous, but whatever. I'm just... too exhausted to care. So what, a big monster is charging down at me, about to rip my head off." Zerrex rose his hands with a wince of effort and shook them, before they dropped to the ground with a loud thunk from the weights, the reptile looking disgusted. "Just how the hell is that different from any other day? You know what? Life sucks. Death sucks too, as I've found out."

"Only on occasion." Amiglion said mildly, and then he cowered as the three-eyed demon glared at him, Grim making a strange rolling motion through the air beside him. "Sorry, sorry!"

"Lord Zerrex. It is my duty to torture you." Duke Terronius said coldly, crossing his arms and raising his head proudly. "And I will not be... insulted, insulted by your stupid, foolish ideas! I shall prove to you that I can send you down into a quaking, shivering puddle of fear, for none can stand against my-"

"Just shut the hell up and do it then!" Zerrex shouted angrily, and Terronius looked startled as the Drakkaren snarled: "Dear fuck, all I ever hear in Hell is ‘ooh, look at me, I'm so special, blah-blah-blah,' but when it comes to actually doing something, all I see is shit! Shit! You want to be praised, then go talk to a fucking mirror, but stay the hell away from me, because all I see is yet another overblown egomaniac! Listen to me, and listen goddamn well, I am sick of all you cowards, hiding behind the Princess and the motherfucking Scholars with their motherfucking powers! You want to fight me, then fight me! You want to scare me, then scare me! But stop being a bitch and stop self-inflating your fat, ugly, chapped ass!"

Zerrex had leapt to his feet in rage, pointing angrily at Terronius, who had shrunk backwards, staring in shock, and even Amiglion looked uncomfortable as Grim pressed back against the wall. A moment later, however, the Duke straightened and cleared his throat, then he held up both hands and murmured quietly: "Look... Lord Zerrex, I uh... maybe... mayhaps we got off on the wrong foot. I was ordered by the Princess to harden you against your deepest fears, alright? And I honestly... honestly... do not know what you've been through. But I can see you're very emotionally-distraught over something and my powers will have no effect on you right now. But perhaps we can make a deal.

"I come from the Hell of Pride, and as such, I am driven by my inner strengths and abilities." The elephant straightened his collar a bit, pushing back his regal cape as Zerrex looked at him with greater disgust. "I may not look it, but once upon a time I was a very powerful court magician for... that's not important, you're right."

Terronius raised his hands again as Zerrex snarled, and then the Drakkaren said darkly: "Just cut to the chase. I've had enough bullshit for today, got that?"

The elephant nodded quickly, and then he said mildly: "I won't torture you today... but I would be most pleased if you would give me an example of your energy abilities-"

"Here!" Zerrex created a small sphere of blue energy in his hand, then threw it hard at Terronius, and the elephant covered his face with a wince before the sphere struck and exploded, knocking the demon flying backwards. Zerrex stared as Terronius landed on his back and rolled a few times, wondering stupidly how he'd penetrated the defenses of the Scholars... and then Amiglion slammed the door and gaped at him.

"How the hell did you do that?" he asked dumbly, and he looked almost excited as Grim spun quickly around the two. "Like... that was incredible, Lord Zerrex! Not only did you bypass the Great Shield, you blew Duke Terronius out of your home and onto his fat ass after completely ignoring his powers..." A pause, and then he asked dumbly: "Hey, do you smell burning?"

"I will not be humiliated, Lord Zerrex!" howled an enraged voice from outside, and a moment later there was a loud, furious whooshing sound before the door exploded off its hinges in flames, and Terronius held out both his hands, massive gouts of fire bursting out from them and saturating the small house as Amiglion yelped and immediately created a portal. "Die, both of you, I want you to die!"

Amiglion and Grim flew through the portal, and Zerrex leapt into it a moment before the house simply exploded, several chunks of wood flying through the portal and shooting over the Drakkaren's head as he landed flat in a field with a groan, blinking a few times. He paused, then stared at Amiglion, who was laying as flat as he could behind a bush and staring at the back of the Inquisitor, who was hopping back and forth on his feet and waving his fists angrily as he screamed profanities and vulgarities. "You teleported us just outside? What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Shut up, it seemed like a good idea at the time... look, I'm going to go and tell the Princess that all your Inquisitors are fucking nutcases. You um... you hide. And for God's sake, don't let the fucker catch you." Amiglion added, then he tapped the ground, a black portal appearing that he slowly sank through. Zerrex opened his muzzle to tell him to wait, but a moment later he and his scythe were gone, leaving the Drakkaren to try and escape somehow.

Duke Terronius was now looking back and forth angrily, and several Masters and Slavers were now gathered around him... and Zerrex quickly rolled behind the bush to look under the bottom of it as Terronius shouted furiously: "Find him! Find him, search every corner of Lust until you find him... start with the mines, then move on to the bars, then to the homes, you fools... I must quickly report this... this impudence to the garrison and assemble a task force to tear him into pieces!"

Terronius shot off down the road as the Masters and Slavers vanished through portals... and Zerrex let out a sigh of relief before digging in his pocket for his Northern Star as he sat up, wincing as he glanced back and forth before creating a small portal and squeezing through it.

The Drakkaren crawled slowly out into the aisle of the small store, and he stared up at several succubi, who stared in return before one of them covered her muzzle as her eyes bulged, but the reptile held up a finger and shook it quickly, grunting as he stood up and mumbling: "No, no, don't tell anyone... but uh... if you bring me home, I'll... do stuff for you."

And so, for an hour, the Drakkaren found himself hiding in a small house with the two succubi, the red one screaming in delight as she rode him mercilessly for at least twenty minutes while he ate out the blue succubus, before she returned the favor with a blowjob, the Drakkaren releasing his seed into her maw... and the blue succubus he then took doggy-style after she begged for it ‘up my tight little ass,' as she phrased it, while the red one lay beneath them in a sixty-nine with blue, before moaning as Zerrex finished inside the demoness and drew back, and the overflow poured down onto the red succubus's face as she looked delighted and dreamy.

They were about to force him into another round of sex when a dark portal appeared and Selena stepped into the small cabin with a glare, and the three sitting on the extra-large mattress stared at her before she sighed and turned away, twiddling a finger at Zerrex. "Why do I always find you with your dick out... put that away and come on, Queen Carmen and the Princess want to see you."

"I have no clothes." Zerrex said miserably, and Selena glanced over her shoulder with a frown, before he pulled carefully away from the two succubi, waving a goodbye to them as they blushed deeply and giggled like schoolgirls, and he strode over to Selena as he tried to force himself back into flaccidity before murmuring embarrassedly: "I... you see... Bones kicked them into the alcohol tank after he forced me into there with two girls... or well... shapeshifters, I mean..."

"What?" Selena looked horrified, then she snarled furiously, and Zerrex could swear the room actually darkened as her eyes turned completely black, her jaw growing larger as the two demonesses went from giggling to half-hiding with small squeaks of terror. Well, there went my erection, at least. That has to be a record time. "That piece of... come on!"

She stormed through the portal, and Zerrex hesitantly followed her, stepping into Queen Carmen's throne room... and Zerrex stared as Selena stomped out and then stood on the long red carpet in front of the four different Inquisitors who were lined up behind her. Zerrex slowly walked out beside her, the different Inquisitors looking at him with hate in their eyes... and then he turned to face the front of the throne room, crossing his hands embarrassedly in front of his flaccid, sticky penis and trying to stand straight despite the heavy weight on his body.

Queen Carmen was sitting on her throne, looking serious and cold... and to her right stood the tall, gaunt Princess, and on her left was Amiglion, holding Grim tight in one hand. Carmen glanced to the Princess, but she was emotionless, her mask hiding whatever was going on beneath it... but Zerrex could swear there was delight in her own emerald eyes. They're even greener than mine... "Lord Zerrex. Welcome. Inquisitor Selena, you look like you have something you want to say... I haven't seen you this angry since you last fought Queen Feldspar. What is it, young one?"

"I would like to lay charges of inquisitorial misconduct towards Inquisitor Feliz Radamant Da'kari, and suggest that the penalty be removal of his title and rank." Selena said coldly, glancing over her shoulder as Bones let out an audible snarl, clenching his hands into fists. "He has seriously overstepped his bounds in dealing with my charge, Lord Zerrex Narrius."

Queen Carmen glanced at the Princess again, but she only laughed quietly behind her mask before looking down at Carmen, who licked her muzzle nervously and frowned a bit, glancing at Zerrex before glancing over at Selena... and Zerrex could swear she was starting to grow bigger now, too. "Why do you say this, Inquisitor Selena? And please, calm yourself."

"I can't." Selena said simply, and then she closed her eyes before saying in a furious voice: "Lord Zerrex suffered a severe drinking problem in life, that he conquered by his own force of will, a rarity in mortal cases of substance abuse. Lord Zerrex never touched a drop, never once relapsed... and Inquisitor Feliz apparently took Zerrex to his personal club and shoved him into the alcohol tank with two shapeshifters in order to literally force him to drink."

Now Carmen frowned deeply as well, and she asked in a cold voice: "Is this true, Inquisitor Feliz?"

"So what if it is?" Bones snorted, stepping forwards and spreading his arms... before he patted Zerrex hard twice in the shoulder, and then put his hands together tightly and looked down at him when the reptile fell over, immediately saying mockingly: "Oh my, Lord Zerrex, I am so so-"

A bolt of white light shot through the Inquisitor, and fell backwards, screaming and clutching at his torn cloak, his bony arm falling to the floor as Carmen stood up and thundered: "I will not permit such mistreatment in my throne room! Do something like that again and you'll be sent to the Abyss... is this clear, Feliz Da'Kari?"

"Y-Yes..." Bones shuddered violently, the skeleton panting hard as he slowly forced himself back up to his feet, and Carmen snorted before sitting down, continuing to glare at him as Bones clutched his shattered shoulder, mumbling: "I didn't force him to drink... I simply escorted him to the tank with my mind, and plopped him inside... he wasn't in an illusion, he could have broken out at any time, if he really... I apologize, your Ladyship."

He slowly bowed and stepped backwards as Queen Carmen rose a hand to him, and then she pointed at Zerrex as he struggled to get up, saying quietly: "You can take that vest off, if you like, Lord Zerrex... it seems to be troubling you greatly. And... are those weights on your penis as well? They must hurt like nothing else... please, make yourself comfortable, you aren't the one in trouble here... even Hell has rules that must be followed by its greater inhabitants."

"I can't." Zerrex said simply, and Selena glanced at him with a surprised look, the Drakkaren smiling faintly as he tugged hard at one of the weights... but it didn't even budge from its place. "See? There's a permanency spell on it of some sort... I dunno, ask Orphus."

"I can take it off immediately, really, and I'll even remove the extra weight, your ladyship, your majesty, it would be no problem, none at all!" Orphus babbled, stepping forwards and looking at the Princess for help, shaking his head rapidly before he produced the scroll he had several days back, smiling dumbly as Carmen narrowed his eyes at him coldly. "See, look at this, this scroll is handwritten, an order from the Princess, and-"

The Princess held her hand up, and the scroll tore out of Orphus's hand with enough might to send him staggering forwards past the Drakkaren before he fell over with a grunt, and the Princess took one look at it before tossing it into a nearby brazier, saying in her gentle but uncaring voice: "It's obviously a forgery. This contract was written on vellum paper instead of spiderweb paper... anyone could have created it."

"No!" Orphus screeched, and Carmen held up a hand with a snarl, and the bat was sent flying backwards, crashing into the closed doors almost forty feet behind him with enough force to crack the wood before he slid slowly down them, his eyes bulging stupidly in his head before he slumped weakly and whispered: "Not... not possible..."

"King Laurence, you have the habit of not healing your prisoners..." A pause as the Princess gently touched her arm, and Queen Carmen made a face before sighing quietly. "Fine. You are dismissed to continue your usual duties. Begone."

The Bloody King bowed, then turned and strolled to the massive doors, shoving one open and stepping carelessly along one of Orphus's wings... but the bat didn't seem to feel it as he continued to mumble to himself before Carmen's eyes settled coldly on the elephant-demon, who by now was looking terrified. "And you, Duke Terronius... a liar, a con-artist, a fool. You blew up a home and attempted to kill Lord Zerrex and roust a small army of Pride demons to follow that lead. You are like all Pride demons... you think you rule all the Circles of Hell. But this is my Circle, no matter how many of you are in it, and I will rule it the way I see fit."

"May I suggest a special punishment?" The Princess asked gently, and all eyes turned to her as she stepped slowly forwards towards Zerrex, before kneeling down and taking his face in her hands, gazing down at him with what he suspected was either some mutant, distant love for a dangerous pet or vicious entertainment. "Let us permit Lord Zerrex to take off this nasty set of weights... and fight these three Inquisitors in combat at once, to effectively demonstrate his strength without anyone... hiding behind cheap shields."

Zerrex blinked in surprise at this suggestion, then he smiled a bit: he'd forgotten she could read his mind so easily. A pause, and then she glanced over to the three Inquisitors, adding idly: "This is simply a test of your strength, should you agree... I'm sure Lord Zerrex would gladly go back to his duties after proving his mettle to you all, and all he would ask in return is that you don't incite the Masters and the Slavers into attacking him. Something small as that, and here's a chance for all three of you to have some fun with your current prisoner."

Three looked back and forth uncertainly... and then Duke Terronius stepped forwards and said coolly: "I know that I, for one, would be glad to take him by myself even without the aid of these others."

"Sure, we'll fight him." Orphus said immediately, picking himself up from the back of the room and stumbling forwards, rubbing slowly at his head as his red and black eyes gleamed... but he glanced over at Bones, betraying his nervousness as he asked mildly: "Right, Inquisitor Feliz?"

"Of course." Bones muttered, as he tore off the ragged, torn sleeve of his cloak and picked up his arm, snapping it back on to his skeletal body as dark energy steamed up from where the bones attached, the skeleton's hand flicking open and closed a few times. "Only if Lord Zerrex is up for it, though... we wouldn't want to hurt him at all, isn't that right, boys?"

The others chuckled in agreement as Carmen and Amiglion both looked nervous... but Selena was grinning coldly at the floor as Zerrex nodded a bit to the Princess, and she tapped his chest gently, the heavy vest fading slowly back to drab grey and instantly leaving Zerrex feeling lighter... and a moment later the armor fell free from his body, and the Drakkaren let out a long sigh of relief. He stretched his arms up towards the sky... then blinked and looked down in surprise when he saw darkness spinning up his legs, leaving a trail of cloth behind until he stood in a pair of plain black pants and polished combat boots, the Princess tilting her head as she said gently: "Just to make you more comfortable."

She straightened before waving an arm out to the side, and the Drakkaren stared back and forth as everything vanished in a blur of colors and sounds, anchoring himself against what still felt like solid ground with a wince before it shifted a bit under him, and he glanced down as solid images faded in around him from the shifting colors, all of them seeming to fall into place.

Now he was standing in a massive arena with a floor of white sand, larger than either of the other arenas he'd been in so far and with much taller walls made of heavy cement blocks. Spaced evenly apart were four massive steel portcullises, and the Drakkaren could see eager demons standing behind each as he turned slowly around and took in the plain battleground... but also the fact that Masters and other demons were already piling into the stands, as well.

Behind him, the three Inquisitors were spacing themselves out, all of them grinning coldly as demonic characteristics began to come out of the two living demons. Orphus's claws lengthened and his body increased in height slightly as his robes became taunter against his form, hissing as a long, forked tongue rolled out of his mouth and revealing fangs almost half a foot long, his matted fur turning dark black with streaks of red through it... and Terronius rose his hands up by his head, his three eyes closing as one opened with a sick squelch on either palm, leaning forwards slightly as several long spikes of black bone shot out of his back.

Far behind and above the Inquisitors, Zerrex could see Carmen standing by the Princess, who was seated in her throne... and he thought Selena and Amiglion were up on the enormous balcony that overlooked the battleground. A moment later, the voice of the Princess of Demons rang out, saying clearly: "Ready yourselves, combatants... and remember. Your life may very well be lost today... but do try and avoid killing if you can."

Zerrex somehow got the feeling that the three across from him weren't going to try very hard to keep him alive, as he readied himself and narrowed his emerald eyes... and then a bell sounded through the arena, and the crowd erupted into cheers as all three demons across from the Drakkaren shoved their hands forwards, the eyes on Terronius's palms gleaming.

He staggered backwards, then stared back and forth in horror as he realized he was trapped in some illusionary world, full of a madhouse of violent, disgusting, and sexual images and sounds... and the Drakkaren clenched his eyes shut, trying to drown it all out before he went insane and instead cocking his head... and a moment later, he felt something hard smash into his face and he was sent flying backwards, skidding through the sand before rolling to his feet.

There was laughter, terrible laughter... and still those images and words from all three illusionists were flooding into his mind, as Bones's voice snarled: "Not so cocky now, are you, you piece of shit? We'll teach you to complain about your treatment!"

The Drakkaren's head was smashed back and forth, and then something clawed down his chest, and the reptile was knocked backwards again, staggering violently but managing to keep to his feet, his eyes remaining tightly closed to try and block out at least some of the illusion... and then they snapped open as he turned and ran, trying to put a bit of space between himself and the invisible opponents before spinning around and muttering an incantation as fast as he could.

Before he could finish, however, something grabbed his muzzle, and something else stabbed into his stomach, as a voice said tauntingly: "You'll have to do better than that, Lord Zerrex... you aren't fast enough!" A pause, and then he was flung forwards, landing on his chest and skidding violently as he cursed, realizing they were right, clenching his hand into a fist... and inspiration struck him as he leapt up to a crouch and cocked his fist back.

The Drakkaren slammed his fist down into the ground as he released a burst of energy, and a blue shockwave ripped through the crowd around him, the illusion shattering as all three demons were knocked flying through the air with yells of shock, giving Zerrex enough time to leap to his feet and focus in on the nearest: Bones. He grinned as he charged in towards the skeleton just as he hit the ground, Bones slowly sitting up... and then Zerrex snapped his foot forwards into the jaw of the creature.

The skull of the Inquisitor was knocked off his spinal cord by the force of the blow, the jawbone shattering completely and cracks radiating through the muzzle-bone of the demon as Bones howled in agony... and Zerrex leapt into the air as the skull flipped rapidly above the headless skeleton, and the Drakkaren twisted onto his side before lashing out with one foot, sending the skull hurtling through the air and into the nearest wall to shatter like glass with a scream of outrage from Bones.

Zerrex landed on the other side of the undead creature, then he spun around and booted his body over even as he screamed in a incorporeal voice: "I'll kill you, Lord Zerrex! I'll kill you for this outrage, you won't live long before-"

As Bones's body flailed on the ground, Zerrex rose a foot before stomping down on his ribcage with a look of disgusting and twisting firmly, and Bones fell limp, tamed for the moment. The Drakkaren glanced up across at the other two demons, both Terronius and Orhpus looking horrified... and Zerrex booted the skeleton's side firmly, sending him rolling through the sand as he asked dryly: "So. Which one of you is up next to kick my ass?"

They exchanged a look, and then Terronius snarled and created a ball of fire and electricity, lobbing the sphere at Zerrex... and the Drakkaren rose his left hand, the sphere striking it before vanishing... and then his right arm lashed out in a hard pitching motion, and the sphere shot back towards the pair, sizzling violently. It crashed into Orphus and exploded, knocking the bat flat with a scream of pain as his body burst into flames as electricity crackled over him in the same moment, and he flailed miserably on the ground for a few seconds before Terronius quickly cast another spell over the bat, saturating him with water and foam.

Orphus sat slowly up, and the crowd laughed at his comical state as he lowered his head and snarled furiously, trembling violently... and a moment later he leapt up to his feet, charging stupidly at Zerrex with a howl of fury before going into a dive, spreading his wings and shooting at the Drakkaren with his fangs bared... and Zerrex gave the demon bat a disgusted look before reaching a hand up and grabbing him by the snout.

Orphus honked like a goose, and then Zerrex shook him briskly like he was a blanket before slamming him down into the ground, the bat wheezing in pain as he looked up in shock at two huge fists descending towards him... and Terronius covered his own features with a look of horror as the Drakkaren mercilessly pounded down on the bat's face with hard punch after hard punch, crushing in his features as if they were ripe fruit and sending blood squirting in all directions as if from a fountain.

Orphus wailed and spasmed in agony, clawing at the ground but unable to escape... and then the lizard grabbed him by the back of the neck and lifted him into the air, making a disgusted face as the bat's claws raked against his arm and wrist uselessly before he drove a knee into the demon's stomach, causing what was left of his face to contort in a grimace of agony before the reptile followed up with two more, and then he folded his fingers and drove his middle knuckles high up into the bat's gut, and he gagged violently before hurking as Zerrex seized him by the muzzle and held his jaws tightly shut, two of his fingers plugging the bat's nostrils.

He retched and vomited, then screamed as Zerrex said cruelly down to him, eyes flashing with malice: "Swallow it! Swallow it, just like you made me... and I want you to like it, bat, because no one is coming to save you!" The Drakkaren shook the bat's head violently as he choked and spasmed... and then he swallowed with a muffled moan before the process repeated, shivers wracking the demon's body.

Zerrex let go of the bat and shook him violently, glaring at him... and Orphus whispered in a broken, ragged voice: "I... I... I liked it..."

He gagged again, and Zerrex threw him away, the bat vomiting in midair and covering himself more than anything else, before he began to cry like a child, beating the ground with one fist as Zerrex strolled past him, and the lizard paused as he saw Bones's headless body stumbling around before he pointed to the side and murmured a quick incantation, and a spike of rock shot through the skeleton's midsection. The Drakkaren had only meant to pin him, but instead the skeleton fell in two halves, spasming violently on the ground for a few moments as his legs fell to pieces and an incorporeal voice snarled: "Ha, ha, very funny, Lord Zerrex! Terronius, do something, stop quivering and help me!"

"I... I..." All five of Terronius's eyes widened as Zerrex continued to walk slowly towards him, before he snarled and shoved out his palms, yelling in a trembling voice: "I'm the strongest here, Lord Zerrex! You will pay!"

The Drakkaren felt an illusionary world descend over him again, as creatures made of shadow slowly pushed out of the ground... but this one was ripped with static, Terronius's concentration obviously not what it had once been. It made even the most terrible of images seem almost ridiculous as the reptile glanced back and forth before he rose a hand in front of himself, taking a slow breath and concentrating on the sounds of screaming and terror... and he heard a panting coming from his right, as well as a mumbled incantation, and the Drakkaren immediately wheeled in that direction, shoving out a hand and unleashing a solid beam of energy.

It slammed Terronius off his feet, the illusions surrounding the reptile shattering immediately as the elephant-demon was sent skidding over the ground, screaming in agony as he was shoved violently backwards by the Drakkaren's attack before he skidded to a halt as the reptile relaxed, the elephant trembling violently at the end of a long trench through the dirt as Zerrex said mildly: "It won't work on me, Terronius. Now either fight or flee, it's your choice."

A pause, and a quick glance around the arena noted Orphus still crying and Bones crawling stupidly around in a circle, unable to find his own legs as his voice floated strangely through the air like the wind... and then the reptile returned his eyes to the elephant as he staggered to his feet and then rose both hands, and the eyes on his palms opened wide before glowing red and blue, and a torrent of cold and fire shot towards the reptile in a massive, twisting cone of flame and frost.

Zerrex immediately sprinted to the right, and Terronius dragged the enormous blast after the reptile before Bones threw himself out of nowhere and seized the reptile's leg, and Zerrex flailed his arms before he fell over with a wince and covered his head, the massive gout of mixed elemental magic blazing over his head before it continued to veer towards the right as Bones howled: "No, you idiot! He fell over, he's over here."

"Shut up and die already!" Zerrex snarled, reaching down and tearing off one of Bones's arms, and then he threw the torso into the air before kicking it hard at Terronius as he glanced over with surprise to see Zerrex... and a moment later, a black and white shape that collided firmly with his face, Terronius staggering backwards with a yell of indignation as he flailed his arms, the spell interrupted. He reached up, tearing what remained of the skeleton and his cloak out of his double-row of horns, and then he stared in horror before a fist collided hard with his face, knocking him flat on his back before Zerrex laced his hands together into a tomahawk and slammed them firmly down into the elephant's bulging gut.

Terronius retched and arched his back, gagging violently... and Zerrex snagged the elephant's trunk a moment later before spinning quickly around with him in a circle, snarling as he revolved several times and dragged the huge, fat demon into the air, Terronius screaming in agony before the reptile twisted and let go with a roar, hurling the elephant towards the wall as he staggered backwards. The demon collided with a sickening splat before collapsing to the ground in a crumpled pile, and Zerrex fell back on his ass with a grunt before shaking his head quickly and rubbing a hand through his hair.

He glanced around at the three demons: one laying in pieces, one in a broken, twitching heap, and one of them crying in a bloody pile... and Zerrex slowly forced himself up to his feet, panting quietly and shaking his head quickly as he brushed his hands together. He straightened slowly, then glanced down at his own bloody hands and the few wounds he'd sustained over the combat, and he murmured quietly: "I don't get it..."

Terronius was slowly sitting up now with a groan... and Bones was dragging the little that remained of his body away. Even Orphus was finally dying down to a sniffling, curled-up lump... and the Drakkaren realized with a chill that he might be incapable of killing these three demons, even as the crowd roared and cheered. Not because he was worried about any punishment or peril if he did, but simply because he wasn't a demon himself yet, and nor was he armed with any blessed weapon... or worse... because this is a game or a joke.

No, it's merely a lesson... chided a gentle voice in his head, and Zerrex glanced up in surprise before turning slowly towards the balcony, where the Princess was standing and gazing down at him, her eyes shining through her mask even from where she stood. And you've done well in teaching it, Lord Zerrex. These three shall remain your Inquisitors, but you've successfully put them in your place... and if I had not intervened with my abilities, I'm sure you would be more than capable of killing them. But their own arrogance is the real victor here... after all, how can three petty illusionists hope to win against someone such as yourself, who specializes in close range combat in a situation like this?

Did you... did I only win because you wanted me to? Zerrex asked her in his mind... but there was only silence in return as the Drakkaren grit his teeth, clenching one of his hands into fists as the Princess threw her arms wide on the balcony and declared in her pleasant, easy voice: "Lord Zerrex has proven himself an admirable opponent, and before he destroys these three demons entirely, I announce him victorious!" A pause as the crowd roared, cheers and screams mixing with a few boo's and insults.

Before Zerrex could say anything, the world blurred again, and suddenly the Drakkaren was standing back in the throne room, alone except for the murmuring concubines and harem girls sitting on the cushions... and a moment later, a portal appeared, and Carmen and Selena stepped through this as the Queen muttered: "-never been so disappointed..." A pause, and then she blushed and turned towards the lizard, laughing and rubbing the back of her head. "Lord Zerrex! That was... that was an interesting fight out there."

The Drakkaren grunted as he sat down on the ground, shaking his head a bit and mumbling as Selena strode quickly over to him: "Not really... I think it was stacked."

"It was." Selena said mildly, and Carmen winced a bit as the Inquisitor checked over his wounds, sighing a bit. "Except I honestly don't know if it was more for you or for them... except even with the amount you've improved, there's no way you should have beaten all of them so easily... yet on the other hand, I'm about ninety percent sure Orphus should be dead. You left his face looking like a melon someone had just thrown off a cliff, yet he seemed more humiliated than hurt at the end."

Zerrex nodded a bit, shaking his head slowly, and then he glanced over at Carmen as she came over to him as well, shrinking down to his size as he did so and crossing her arms, glancing back and forth nervously before tracing a rune out on the spiderweb tattoo on her body... and Zerrex stared as the inverted Echo rune stayed in place on the webbing, etched in black. "Honestly, I... I don't know what's happening sometimes in Hell anymore. Treachery, games, lies, deceit... even the Princess seems to have changed. I'm getting worried... and I hate seeing the way you were used out there, Lord Zerrex." She looked at him honestly... then suddenly hugged him when the Drakkaren stood up, closing her eyes and murmuring quietly: "We're technically family, after all."

The reptile drew back and gaped a bit, and Carmen grinned slightly, looking embarrassed as Selena did a double-take. "Well... my father's name is Baron Kandas Fy'Ren Vanna... and he just happens to be the grandfather of the one you call your daughter, Cherry."

Selena's jaw dropped, and Carmen glanced at her before saying mildly: "You shouldn't do that on this plane, or someone's going to put a penis in there." A pause as the Inquisitor blushed and clamped her muzzle shut, and then Queen Carmen bowed a bit to Zerrex as he continued to stare stupidly at her, saying softly: "You've taken care of my... step-niece, I guess, and taught her well and pulled her away from harm. For that, I can never thank you enough, Lord Zerrex... and for that, I am always in your debt."

"Is the Baron still alive?" Zerrex asked after a moment in a careful voice, and when Carmen smiled and nodded, he felt a strange relief roll through him. "I'm glad... he's... I'd like to meet him someday, and I know Cherry would as well..." A pause, before he asked hesitantly: "And... what about Beatrice Blossom?"

"I know she died and was sentenced here... but she became a very, very powerful demoness, what we call an Incarnation â€" in simple terms, a being that becomes so infused with the power of the sin that most represents them, they all but turn into the sin itself." Queen Carmen said slowly, then she sat down on the floor and the other two followed suit, the female frowning back and forth from one to the other. "Incarnations have to be sealed until they grow into their powers, and appear almost exclusively once in a demon's lifetime. I've only ever seen three, including Beatrice... but she was by far the most terrible."

Carmen paused for a moment... and then she waved a hand slowly, and suddenly the throne room darkened slightly and other figures faded into being, Carmen murmuring softly as an Amazon literally ran through her: "This is only an illusion... but I figured it'd be better to show you than anything else."

Zerrex nodded a bit, standing slowly as Selena looked down quietly... and a moment later, the throne room doors were blasted off their hinged by some terrible force, Amazons flying in all directions with screams of pain before crashing to the ground, and a Carmen in full battle armor leapt off her throne with a snarl, pointing a golden sword at a slim, attractive figure that strutted slowly through the center of the open doorway with a quiet titter. The sword was attached to a short chain that locked into a runed manacle around Carmen's wrist... but the reptile figured there was a trick or two to the blade as it glowed with light. "Beatrice Blossom! Halt this indiscriminate rampage and come to your senses... you've gone insane with your own sins!"

Beatrice only smiled coldly... and Zerrex was struck by her beauty, even in the illusion. Taunt scales that were a gleaming purple, and bright blue eyes... a body slender but strong and toned, and clad in a thong and a tight leather bra, with a black collar around her neck, small silver rings holding all her clothes together... and then she held her hands out to her sides, and two large steel hoops spun rapidly into being before bursting into blue flame as she said in a voice that was both wonderful and cruel: "I'll be giving the orders here, Carmen... you can't stop me."

She held one hand out, and the hoop shot forwards, but Carmen deflected it with the sword, wincing and snarling before throwing her sword back at Beatrice in return... but she only tilted her head to the side, and the sword bounced off a transparent blue shield, rotating violently through the air before it crashed down into the floor, point-down. Carmen snarled, then flicked her wrist, and the blade returned to her hand as Beatrice said softly: "See? Not even you can stand against me."

She paused as portals opened all throughout the room, Scribes in white cloaks and vaguely-female creatures of hulking muscle, like the Gigataur versions of the Amazons, stepped through... but Beatrice only sighed and rolled her head on her shoulders, and the fires that lit the room turned blue before she put her hands on her hips, and her shadow lengthened and grew slowly, her eyes glowing with power as she said softly: "I guess we'll do it the hard way, then."

The illusion faded out slowly to the sound of her laughter, and Carmen shook her head slowly as Zerrex stared at the spot where Beatrice had stood, murmuring quietly: "She was nearly unstoppable... but then again, Hell has seen only a few dozen Incarnations from the Seven Major Sin Circles, and maybe a hundred from the Hell of Minor Sins... but only a few have ever been able to control their power completely, and most of the others we had to banish to the Abyss, seal, or destroy. Incarnations are consumed by one sin and one goal... and it has a tendency to drive them insane, like you saw."

"I heard Beatrice wasn't exactly a model mother in life either, though." Zerrex murmured, clenching one of his hands shut before he sighed and turned around, sitting down and glancing at her tattoo again, and Carmen smiled a bit as she gave him a look.

"Like that, huh?" she asked teasingly, then she reached across and gently touched the swastika, and Zerrex winced as the vines moved and danced, the swastika itself spinning several times in its circle. "I think this is pretty nice myself... but I got this after the fight with Beatrice. Now I can have whatever protective runes I need on me whenever I want instead of scrabbling to form a circle around myself while the other person kicks my ass with magic."

"You seem too tough to have your ass handed to you too easily." Zerrex responded softly, and Carmen smiled at him warmly as he added: "I certainly wouldn't ever want to go up against you in a one-on-one... and you know, that was also quite a neat weapon you were using... demonic in origin, I'm guessing?"

"The Sisters gave it to me." Carmen said almost reverently, and at Zerrex's curious look, she shrugged a bit and idly rubbed the rune on the spider's web out with her palm, leaving the tattoo untarnished once more. "They may be priestesses, but they know their way around the forge... it's a weapon designed to work with the elemental powers of light, which is where most of my talent is. I got lucky and pulled a cheap powerhouse divine element... but you, you've got some mad skills yourself with energy, it looks like, and even I envy that."

That opened up a thousand more questions Zerrex wanted to ask, but Selena quickly hauled the reptile to his feet, bowing to Carmen and saying politely: "Your Majesty, I'm afraid we should be taking our leave now... Lord Zerrex has work soon, and I want to go over with him and Amiglion what's been going on..."

"Wait." Carmen held up a finger, glancing at Zerrex with a mix of sympathy and distaste, and then she said slowly: "Lord Zerrex, I'm supposed to inform you, under strict orders of the Princess, that you are still to obey every instruction of the Inquisitors... and that they still retain full power over you. She also told me to put the vest back on you and attach a ten-day permanency charm..." Carmen looked morbid at this, before adding flatly: "But I ain't putting those dick-weights on, don't worry. Now that's just bullshit and a wonderful way to injure your penis... you might be able to get a hard-on still, sure, but that it makes fucking too much work, right?"

"Right." Zerrex made a bit of a face, rubbing the back of his head: not at her Cherry-esque manners, which were now explained in a surprisingly-easy fashion, but instead at remembering how glad he'd been to do none of the work for that first round of sex with the succubi he'd ‘picked up.' Although it was more like I was getting drive-thru then attempting to pick up a chick... "Well... if you have to, you have to. I'll just look at it as more exercise."

"One last thing, too." Carmen paused and glanced over at Selena, as she made a flicking motion with her wrist, and Zerrex winced as the weights still sitting on the throne room floor began to quickly reattach themselves to his body. "Selena... if you would kindly show Lord Zerrex your true body?"

Both Zerrex and Selena blinked, and then the latter flushed deep red and babbled: "My... my lady, I... I... please, I am... I don't, I mean, you know..."

Carmen reached over and squeezed her shoulder supportively, and then she said gently: "Inquisitor Selena... please. Go ahead... I'm sure Lord Zerrex has been at least a little bit curious after all these years, after all."

She nodded slowly, looking down with embarrassment, and then quietly stepped away from the two... but as she walked away, her muscles bulged and thickened outwards, small spikes pushing out from her elbows and thickening into large cones... and out of her back two rows of long, thin spines pushed out down either side of her spinal cord, standing straight out of her back for a moment before slowly laying flat. A moment later, two massive, leathery wings shoved out of her shoulder blades as her horns lengthened and twisted. Her body went from slender to enormous and powerful; her hands flexing open to reveal not fingers but instead mobile, enormous talons; her tail lengthening and becoming a deadly flail with the top of a reptilian skull pushing out of the base, the entire dome of bone covered in small but lethal thorns.

Slowly, she turned around, her leather outfit stretched over her body and the corset now squeezing only her sides, the leather laces that made up the front of the costume now tightly stretched over thick abdominals. Her breasts had receded somewhat in proportion to her body, and what looked almost like her rib bones had jutted out over the sides of her bosom, caging them together. Her jaw was huge and full of too-large fangs, and her eyes were completely black, with red pupils burning at their center, and two small horns had sprouted from the end of her muzzle much like a rhinoceros as she slowly bowed her head forwards and closed her eyes, murmuring quietly as she adjusted the straps lacing around her breasts: "This is my true body, Lord Zerrex. Like all Lust demons, we put on a beautiful façade... but inside, we are all tortured, evil spirits, and this is what I look like past the smoke and mirrors and pretty colors."

"You're still pretty." Zerrex said quietly, and Carmen smiled warmly as she clasped her hands together tightly, the Drakkaren glancing over at her with curiosity. "But... does that mean you have a form like hers, too?"

"I'm a hybrid demon... a shapeshifter, but a mix of an Amazon and Daius." Carmen shrugged a bit as he breasts vanished into her body, spreading her muscular arms and gazing at him with quiet amusement. "Sorry, no fancy super body here... just plain old me."

"I wouldn't say that..." Zerrex nudged her gently, and Selena stared and gaped stupidly even in her demonic form as Carmen grinned widely and slid an arm around him. "You're still quite something. And you got some damn impressive guns on you, too."

Carmen snorted, but flexed and winked, looking entertained nonetheless. "I like you, Zerrex. You're an interesting person. And Selena, see? He's perfectly fine with you..." A pause as she slapped Zerrex firmly on the back, the reptile turning towards the demoness and offering a smile: he'd seen far worse things than Selena's true form now, after all... although he was admittedly impressed by the height she went up to. "Now go ahead, take him back home... and we'll have to get together again sometime, Zerrex your lordship."

The Drakkaren rolled his eyes, then he blushed as Carmen leaned in and kissed his cheek gently, reaching up to touch the spot before Selena snagged him and dragged him through a portal before he could say anything stupid... but he caught the mischievous look in Carmen's eyes and thought she was thinking some dirty thoughts herself just before the reptile was jerked through the darkness and back into the space where his home had used to be.

He made a face as Selena rubbed her head slowly, and then she blinked at Amiglion's squawk of surprise from where he was sitting on a nearby stump before glancing down at herself and flushing deeply, her form immediately reverting back to her slender, smaller body. She looked lamely from Zerrex to Death as the latter righted himself, Grim floating disapprovingly nearby as the Drakkaren shook his head quickly and muttered: "Urgh. You're a bitch no matter what body you're in."

"Oh, shut up." Selena grumbled, and then she sketched an inverted Echo rune with her foot, before adding another rune beside it Zerrex didn't recognize, and she turned to shout loudly at Amiglion: "Can you hear us?"

Amiglion stared and frowned, then asked dumbly: "What? Hey, wait... did you just put down a Silence rune? Selena, come on, you know those aren't supposed to be used like that, you're going to cause a permanent temporal distortion..."

Zerrex looked from one to the other, then asked blankly: "So uh... what the hell is he talking about?"

"Bullshit, that's what. It doesn't matter." Selena waved a hand, looking mild. "We're still several hundred years away from rune combinations, so don't worry yourself with that, Zerrex. In other news, you're in some serious shit, as Carmen was getting at... but even worse, since she doesn't seem to realize what kind of danger she's putting you in. The Masters are Pride demons, and they want to take over the realm of Lust... and we've got information coming in from all sides now that the entire Circle of Pride is ready to side with Prince Az'Iriel. The more they see her favoring you, and worse, the more people see you with that ‘Lily' person, the more trouble you're going to end up in. Royals are not supposed to show such favor in Initiates, even if the High Monarchs do... and it's not like Amiglion can protect you, even if Grim's helping out."

"I'm now close enough I can hear you. I hate you." Amiglion said sourly, as he stood a few feet away...but Grim was circling the area, apparently watching for any intruders. "I can't do anything if the Princess herself has decreed that the Inquisitors can grant and take away whatever they want... I mean look at him, stuck in that punishment vest for another ten days! It's like he's being tortured for the sake of torture, it's sick!"

"Funny, never thought I'd hear that in Hell." Zerrex said morbidly, as he laid down and put his arms and legs out, taking a few moments to rest as the weight seemed to grow on his body. It wasn't as heavy as it had been, probably thanks to Carmen, but it was still more than he was able to comfortably handle... and then he sighed as Amiglion and Selena began to argue, saying loudly over both of them: "Look, I have to go to work in a few minutes. I understand. I'm screwed, I'm in trouble, I'm doomed to ten thousand years of torture here in Lust. All I can say anymore is bring it on and let's get this over with... I'm sure by the end of it I'll be drunk and hiding in a toilet from my worst fear, which by then will likely be the Bloody King."

Selena and Amiglion glared at him, one with anger and one with sourness... but in the eyes of both he also saw fear, and he wondered silently whether or not he was right.