Conquest Of The Fallen: Dark Dominions

Chapter 71: Reign Of Morningstar

• TITANS LANDING

The people of a city once called the Capitol—a hub of elf magic, swelling merchant markets, and the damn finest military in all the nine realms; all gathered before a palatial rotund dome for a royal announcement. Unlike during the reign of the Fae, appearance was mandatory. Every single magical faction from the northern borderlands of Rumbrun to the coasts of the Cold Sea was represented.

But now, the former inconsequential trope called Hellion was the majority.

Eldoria had begun to accept ships into its harbors and ports again, but all sails were black and bore the colors of the Usurper. Masts hung heavy with red pentagons and porters carted boxes with the coin signage of House de Vries, the Royal House.

Though it had been a joint initiative of [The Fallen] to conquer the realms of men, a few among lacked interest in politics.

Most notably, the close pack of infernal [Sires]: Lord Asmodeus, Lord Lucifer, and Her Eminence: Lilith. And so they let corrupt Mephistopheles—or as he preferred being called these days, King Thebault the Usurper—keep the Black Throne. He did feel the suffix was a fearful title and kept it. He did not want the respect of the populace. Fuck their respect!

Fleshbags who were too weak to maim even a single Titan? No. He wanted their fear.

Nonetheless, though it was his name on the doors and his seal on the letters, Thebault was only King to the mortals. In the dark castle where they all lived now, everyone knew who the true masters were. It was as a mockery when the bards sang of the war: 'The Jester comes to rule nigh and far, only it is the reign of the Morningstar.'

King Thebault had beheaded—publicly, the dumb fool who first coined the rhyme.

"Who's the jester now?" He had held the man's torn head by his hair, dangling it as the blood sprayed the sands below.

But the song had stuck. He did not call the shots. Not by a long shot.

The night before, it Lilith who gave the orders to assemble the people for an official speech—by the new Court of Whispers, dispatching riders on fast horses to hamlets far from Titans Landing while the rest of [The Fallen] freaked out in beds of whores and ruminated in filth of prolonged sex.

It seemed she alone was of the single mind to not only conquer but actually rule the lands they had subdued. The rest were all about the freshest virgin thigh to sink into. Bitches, all of them. In fact, it wasn't until an hour ago that the King himself had been pulled from a morning bath pool quickie.

At least both her dark brothers had the decency to quit hosting their orgies for the time being.

The people were amassed below a protruding opal balcony that overlooked their hundreds. The open area already held several attendants to the Crown, Asmodeus and Lucifer at a shadowed corner from the misty morning sun, and the King before. He stood waving to a frowning crowd, who looked like they would toss stones at him if he wasn't prone to pour out lava back on them.

A blond vampiress was saying to her friend, "I mean how much of a donkey can he be? Only he is smiling. Can't he see their fuckin' faces? I wonder how ever the previous fey Queen named him her adviser."

"It's probably why the bitch fired him," the other woman added, and they both broke into chuckles.

They stifled it as the Herald began speaking for the arrival of Lilith. The entire hold of people, both those above and them beneath, fell into a deathly calm. Lilith had the night before, commanded that Giselle Van Imperia be brought up from her dungeon, and cleaned and perfumed for the occasion. She now drew the fey royalty behind her.

A collar of pure gold with Lilith's purple rune of [Sire Bond] was cuffed around Giselle's fair neck. The former queen was beautiful as sunshine. And Lilith sure dressed her as such, lavishing her in so much gold it hurt the eyes. It certainly caught the attention of her other demon slaves. Jealousy simmered in their bones as they murmured.

"Is that Her Eminence's new favorite pet?"

"Pffft—she'll bore of her in days."

But Lilith knew she'd never bore of the little blonde. She smelled her nephew all over Giselle. They had fucked at some point, and until she got Israfel back in her arms, Giselle would have to do.

Lilith rocked forward, wowing the crowd in her Goth beauty and suave fashion—chaffed obsidian heels skyrocketing her already prolific stature, with Giselle's gilded leash in her manicured fingertips, glossy black claws on display, like walking a dachshund.

The both of them together, [Sire] and [Bond], [Mistress] and [slave] were the image of sapphic impunity. They were smashingly beautiful, one complimenting the other. Who would ever have thought, Giselle Van Imperia, an Archdemoness' Sub?

The Herald was jostling between fawning over and announcing them respectfully.

"HER DARK EMINENCE, QUEEN OF THE NIGHT AND GODDESS OF THE UNDERWORLD. . .LILITH FIRSTBORN."

Lilith dragged Giselle to the open balcony with her.

She pulled from her robust decolletage a piece of paper and unfurled it before her pet's golden eyes.

Lilith's voice was a hot whisper. "Read it."

Giselle was hesitant. She looked over her people dozens of feet below. They were never so silent to hear her out before. Fear was a great tamer. She still hadn't opened her mouth. Lilith moved her free right hand behind and sharply smacked Giselle's ass.

The Fae jerked in her golden apparels. Lucifer smirked in the shadows.

"READ. IT."

Giselle did open her mouth and began to read off the rough parchment, word for word. She tried not to imagine where the scroll had been. She knew the roses she was smelling though, were Lilith's amazing boobs.

"I, Giselle of the Guiding Light Fae, last of the blood born royals of the House Imperia hence at this time concede victory to the Underworld and its factions. Eldoria and her borders shall known as a demon Empire. The nine realms are to send in delegates with a ready hearing for tributes. . ." She paused.

"Do I need to spank you again, little fae?" Lilith leaned close and whispered in her ear. "There are those watching who wish I would. Do us both a favor and don't give the men unnecessary hard-ons."

Giselle gulped and continued, ". . .and so with contentment and true liberty, I surrender in effect all holdings of the Crown bequeathed to House Imperia to the risen House de Vries. Let us all, as a kingdom heed King Thebault the Usurper. L-Long may he reign." Her ending was shaky.

It took a while, but eventually the citizens below chanted—just like Lilith knew they would;

"LONG MAY HE REIGN!"

Giselle contested her words with all her heart, deep within her spirit. She was wildling blood. She would never surrender, not her people and not her crown, and certainly not to a fucking demon. She quickly scattered her thoughts before Giselle could read her mind. In the face of their Queen's open vote to the Usurper, a shallow clapping began from the mob below.

It was no boisterous hail of joyful folk, but for Lilith, it was enough. If she left the beasts of the others to it, they would decimate the earthlings to a trickle in a fortnight. And then who would they rule?

Their conquest would have been for naught. And there would be no agenda to forge on—with their devious scheming. Because dominion over Eldoria alone wasn't enough.

"Good girl." Lilith kissed softly Giselle's cheek in a move so swift it was like a brush of air.

As the taller brunette Archdemoness led away her blonde fae slave by her golden lasso, the crowd's clapping went up a notch. Even Lucifer was impressed in his hiding place. The Usurper took the stand and began waving again. On that rosy morning, none of the Fallen noticed the silver caped stranger peering out an immaculate white cowl to the high balcony ripe with demons.

On this stranger's forehead was the gold sigil of the Holy Ones.

It marked her as an Archangel.

Demons had taken control of a portion of the earth. They were free to interfere now.

Later that day in her grand suite of a bedroom; a penthouse chamber topping the castle, Lilith eased the rope off Giselle but kept the collar, and guided her to seat on a long fuchsia sofa. The fae perched daintily at the edge of it.

And it was almost frightening for Lilith to imagine the comely belle before her as Queen of such a vast Empire, when it looked as though she just had her debutante ball.

"Did you like me bringing up today? I know how you Fae are with sunlight."

Giselle fisted her palms in her lap. She didn't respond. Lilith urged with a voice an adult reserved for a naive child, "I know you're a wildling, but must you always be tough with me. You've been my prisoner now for what. . .a fortnight?

Tell me you liked being seen with me. I know you did."

Giselle remained stiff.

Lilith, frowning, walked over and smacked her peach cheek. But it was mild as a rove.

"TELL ME."

Giselle finally moved her lips. "I-I liked it."

An erotic black nail slid under her throat and long, feminine fingers cupped up her face. She let her gaze be pulled up to Lilith's. Giselle found the demoness smiling. She was tall and striking in the space of her Goth bedroom, so beautiful. Giselle again let Lilith ease her legs open and step into them. Her lungs burned with her trying not to inhale the woman's delicious fragrance.

Lilith's violet eyes were the clearest gems on hers.

"I have a feeling we'll be very good to each other, won't we?"

Giselle found herself nodding, and the left strap of her golden gown slipping off her shoulder. She gulped for the second time. She should hate this fucking bitch! She took her throne. She murdered her people. But in staring into Lilith's attractive and luminous smile, how could one despise a woman so hot.

What was it they said about Fae and the sun again?

Oh yes. It went like this,

"For every spill of sunlight, a fae's smile would burn so bright."

—and Lilith Firstborn was a purple sun.