Gloomy attitudes formed on the faces of the Royal Court, as the Patriarch heard the plans his son had in mind, there was little he could do besides ask questions at random. It was the Empress, Zao Kuzunoha who finally spoke up in anger. "Can't you obtain souls in hell?" Her voice was hoarse and unwilling.
Wu Hai grabbed her hand and did his best to explain. "What is needed, cannot be located in Hell. Its not just the soul essence. I need you to understand and.. I need your forgiveness. I should have told her about certain things earlier, it is because I chose to let her experience things in her own way that I held my tongue. No matter what, I must find what is needed and if I have to take it by force, then so be it." His eyes glittered, her eyes showed disapproval and lingering questions, Wu Hai hugged her in front of the others. "Why can't I get what I need in Hell? Because its not possible, we need liquefied soul essence and I can't make it, not even the truthers can make it. In order to do that, I need to search the Demon Kingdom. Qu made mention of the possibility when we were gathering essences for testing years ago. The problem was, books are somewhat non-existent and spoken secrets, get exposed."
"You're not even sure that what you need is there? So why go!" Kuzunoha's unwillingness to let her husband go was straightforward.
He kissed her on the forehead and turned toward the other Elders.
"No, this is the only way..." Wu Hai told his plan in detail, he made no efforts to hide his actions or his past. When he was done, the Elders gasped in realization. He wanted to justify his decision to hold the information back but Kuzunoha was Hana's mother and the Empress, she deserved more than a passing excuse for his choices, they all did. "Its impossible to account for everything but I will not give up on our future, or the promises I've made. Qu said that it could only be found near the Black Tide Drip, the fountain of souls..which, he wasn't sure existed. The information we have is from the books of demons, its possible that the book was a trap but to what end? None of them could have expected that the book would fall into my hands."
"Books.." Wu Hai whispered to himself, he regretted giving her the book on the Heart of Darkness. He could have explained things further before she started to actively train it. There were subtleties that she lacked that couldn't be easily replicated, all of them took energy and devotion, the willingness to struggle on.
The more he thought it over, the less he understood and the more irritated he became over the situation.
A teleportation ring filled his palm. With a flick of his finger, there was nothing left where he stood, a small wisp of dust was all that remained. He arrived in Portano, just outside of the burnt down Tea Shop, getting some much needed fresh air.
Looking around, he wondered how long the old Capital would have taken to fix. There were a lot of repairs that had been done but the area was used as a training facility since the war. Wu Hai gave a distinct whistle, five soldiers and an instructor arrived. "Here are your orders." He reached out his hand and passed a scroll over. They were shocked to see the Emperor and more shocked that he had delivered orders personally.
Many questions arose but he didn't feel the need to explain.
Wu hai covered himself with a cloak and mask, spread his wings and dove from Portano's walls, heading to the Western seaboard and the mountains that lined the coast. As he flew, he stayed close to the deck and out of sight. It wasn't until he had flown for almost a day that he saw his first demon.
"{My teeth hurt.}" A voice came from no where as Wu Hai passed through a bone forest filled with molds and mushrooms. Stripped of their marrow by maggots, the bones were like monuments scattered in a wasteland. Looking down, a Rat Demon was biting on mushroom and its jaw was caught in a soft earth, it clung to his tooth like sap. Then, he started to convulse. Wu Hai saw the mud around the mushroom shift, a creature rose from the muck and swallowed the body. The creature was close to an elemental but it gave off a sinister vibe.
Wu Hai had other objectives, he had already wasted enough time paying attention to the scenery. He plowed through the territory toward the center of the swirl in the sky. A great spiral of energy was gathered to a single point, the lair of the Demon Queen Vira.
So many reason existed to second guess himself, but his pride, his promises and his family were among the most important details of his life.
The Emperor sped up.
Within the territory, he passes many different micro-cultures of beings, some more venomous than others, pus like slimes and even a terrible sack of flesh was rampaging around. The ones that Wu Hai had seen were roaming in a pack like dogs. There were also places that covered in eyes and corpse farms, disassembly and reconfiguration was taking place. The Undead were highly proficient at building bodies.
Organs were packed into clean boxes, separated and recombined, some stitched, some not. When Wu Hai saw the nearby settlement, he stopped to check the atmosphere.
Hovering overhead, he looked down on a small community of Demons, demonkin, hell beasts and lesser demons all in one place. Hell beasts were products like livestock, natural creatures from the landscapes of hell, over the generations they had become a greater source of the Demon's food. Lesser demons were those demons without enough intelligence to make decisions. Their dwellings left something to be imagined, many of them lived in the carcasses of other larger beasts that were draped with hides.
The spot shook in his chest and seemed like it was giggling.
Wu Hai beat his chest and regained his resolve, there were still several days flight to reach the Gates of Laerns.
֍ꟷꟷꟷꟷ֍
'They've come a long way since we last encountered' The Emperor remembered a few scenes from the war, after the death of Maria. Green flames burned on the horizon and an ethereal gate that stretched into the sky and the soil beneath blocked all physical entry and reflected attacks. 'Looks like they've upgraded.' The Gates of Laerns was a formation that was surrounding the Demon Queen's Palace, its imposing visage could be seen from all corners of the Kingdom when it lit up the night skies.
No amount of concealment would work for him, he could feel bodies watching him from a distance.
He flapped his wings and hovered before the breach. "{I seek an audience with the Queen. I will remain here until she arrives.}" He lowered himself with grace, put his hands behind his back and stood straight, showing off his regal persona.
The wall of green flames shook wildly, shimmers came across its surface and small holes appeared while soldiers came out and lined themselves up.
'Che' Wu Hai clicked his tongue, the soldiers that had arrived were all clad in heavy armors. Each of them was several times the Emperor's size. In their hands were various weapons that gave off a sinister feeling like they spent their existence in battlefields and all of them wreaked of death.
Wu Hai was surrounded.
The Gate opened gently and a red figure, dressed in a red dress with black trim walked seductively toward the guest at her gate.
The Emperor was familiar with her abilities, slender with green eyes and jet black hair, five horns crowned her hear. He gulped instinctively and waited for her to finish the approach.
There was a hissing noise that came from some of the soldiers. Then, the woman raised her hand, silencing all noise in the surroundings.
"{You've come alone?}" A coquettish look came over her face and she circled the Emperor. Her face looked like it had a smile on it, her teeth looked sharp. "{Looks like my guess is right!}" She spun in a circle and stopped in front of him, bending over gently to reveal some cleavage and a grin filled with her sharp teeth.
"{I've come to offer something the Queen wants, who better to deliver it?}" Emperor Zao stood before Queen Vira with pride on his face and she could read it well.
"{Oh? Tell me then.. what do you bring me?}" Her face perked up like she was expecting betrayal and a fight.
Her eyes widened in anticipation.
"{I have conditions for revealing this information, if your Majesty chooses to hear my offer, I have a Bloodoath Contract to secure our mutual safety while we speak.}" A scroll materialized in his hands and he sent it over slowly.
"{I see.}" She pointed at it and sent it to her subordinate to look at and check for traps.
He handed it over after checking it and stepped away. "{No traps and it seems well written without loopholes. I believe it will pose no harm to the Queen."} The large demon shrunk back and waited by the side.
"{Very well, I will hear your proposal.}" A pin appeared in her hand and a drop of her blood sealed the contract.
She flicked it over to him and he caught it.
Wu Hai stored the pin away and pulled his fingertips across his palm, dripping blood onto the contract.
When he threw it out, a shield formed, then, another. Fifteen shields covered the pair and the Emperor brought out a table and chairs to sit. There was a blood throne in his inventory from the Vampire Queen, he set it down and Vira's eyes sparkled.
"{Is this what you have brought me? I'm touched... but it changes nothing.}" She sat down, tossing her dress to the side and gave dirty looks to the Emperor. "{I won't listen to pandering, this had better be worth my time.}" Her finger ran across the edge of the chair in fascination.
'Pretense, what a waste of time.' Wu Hai sighed and sat down across from the Queen. "{Then, let us talk.}"
As they sat within the isolation formations and shields, they were surrounded and the number of demons that surrounded them grew steadily. Hundreds of Demons began to gather and stare at the bubble between themselves and a mortal enemy.
In front of everyone, the Queen stood up and slammed her hands onto the table. There was no noise, nothing that would cause them to attack but her disagreement was clear. Then, she stopped moving altogether and sat down slowly.
Her head started to nod, looking at her hands, she was shaking.
Then she stood up again and kept nodding, her face changed again like she had heard something blasphemous. Her fists were gripped tightly.
The Emperor pulled out another Bloodoath Contract and slid it across the table. It spun when it came to rest in front of her.
She bit her lip, stood up and paced.
The eyes of the Demons that surrounded the Formations were standing in confusion, some were even yelling for her not to accept whatever deal was being pushed in front of her. When she grabbed it, many demons began to beat on the shield.
It caught her attentions and she beamed in their direction.
The Emperors mouth moved a few times, he looked like he was giving a good show, confident and full of spirit.
He flipped his hands over and a Green Compass materialized.
Inside of the Formations, Wu Hai spoke to the Queen, he left a strange impression on her this time. "Erinle, do not come out. I have an order, do not deny me."
The voice of Erinle could be heard coming from the face of the Compass, "Don't worry, I had no intentions of coming out and revealing myself. What can I do for you, Master."
The Emperor spoke in his mind, even his thoughts sounded hoarse, he clearly felt conflicted about it.
"If that is your wish, then so be it." A Green light formed in a ring, it banded around the Green Compass strobing downward then bouncing and floating toward the Queen. It pulsed several times, strobing over her body and then the green pulsing stopped.
When it disappeared, Erinle chose not to speak again. Wu Hai understood the reasons, he put the Compass away.
"{I've fulfilled my first promise. Read and acknowledge the contract.}" His patience was disintegrating by the moment.
"{About your other request. It requires a hunt, a dangerous one. By committing to this contract, I will abide by it but If you should die..}" Queen Vira tapped at the paper.
Wu Hai shook his head. "{If I die, isn't that a win for you? What more could you want at that point. As to the matter of betrayal..}" He pointed at the contract, "{That's what this is for.}"
'Hmmph' Queen Vira felt like eliminating the Emperor right then and there, she had already gotten something that was unobtainable by other means. "{Must I do this part? It is beneath me.}"
"{If you don't, how will your subjects respond?}" The Emperor smiled and it made her face twitch.
"{Are terms are final?}" Queen Vira grinned with teeth, feeling intrigue, she pulled the other pin from her hair, releasing it from the bonds and a her long hair fell down past her knees. Using the second pin, she stabbed it into her heart, a deep, dark colored droplet formed on her breast and she collected it on the pinhead.
As it fell, it sparkled and splat against the contract sheet.
Bright Red filled the space around them and vibrations shook the shields to dissipate.
When the Red light dissipated, Wu Hai was standing in front of the Queen. She was kneeling before him. Everything seemed rather mysterious, the Demons tried to move but they were held in place by a strong force.
Queen Vira stood up, then walked beside the Emperor, standing at his side.
He threw out another formation, it was white in color but not at all dangerous to the Queen.
"{GATHER THE HUNTERS}" She stepped into it willingly, her image became a hundred times larger, she could be seen across much of the surroundings, no intelligent being could possibly miss her announcements.
"{ALL HAIL THE EMPEROR, OUR BENEFACTOR!}" As she finished the sentence, she had a hard time saying it. A look appeared in her eyes but it wasn't regret, it was disbelief. Never, in all of her existence did she see herself bowing before another.
Emperor Zao turned toward the image formation, revealing his face and took down the hood from his cloak. Dark smoldering horns adorned his crown and black fleshy wings covered his back. His eyes were all white and sparked while he move forward, bringing the image closer to his face.
He opened his mouth, ready to speak.
A film of fire surrounded him and he spread his wings.
Queen Vira looked at Emperor Zao, 'Marvelous... such power, it will be ours.'