Author's note: I know it says Happy Ending, but this story has two more chapters to go. If you liked it and want more, I do continue the story and will post those books as well.
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"Luka… Oh brave Luka…"
I knew I was dreaming again. For all my power, my body was still human. It was weak. Quadruple Giga was violent enough with just the four spirits. With my own power and Alice's added, the result must have been like a bomb going off. I must be unconscious. Unless Ilias had won in the end and was messing with me. One final act of cruelty. Or perhaps the first of an endless number of them if she chose to keep me.
"Ilias?" I called out. "Are you real or is this just a dream?"
I felt foolish for asking. If this was only a dream, she would still tell me she was real. Of course, she did.
"I am real, Luka," Ilias replied, appearing before me. All trace of anger and madness were gone. This was the Ilias I first saw in my dreams, so long ago. "But my time remaining is short. My physical body has been destroyed. All that is left of me is some residual holy energy. Soon, even that will fade away and I will rejoin the great cycle of life and death."
"Have you come to me to have your revenge?" I asked.
"Revenge?" Ilias asked. "No. I have no power. All I have is here with you. I couldn't harm you if I wanted to. You have defeated me. I only wished to talk. I know your heart, Luka. I know that you are capable of understanding."
"I'll listen," I said. "But first I need answers."
"If you want more details, I'm afraid I don't have time to give them to you. I can only answer one question. Then you will listen."
"Okay," I said. "I'll keep it simple then. Am I dead? This doesn't feel like a normal dream. It feels like I'm fading away."
"That's because you are," Ilias replied. "you're not dying, you're transitioning back into your world. As the one who brought you here, your connection to this world was through me. I am dying, so you are fading away from this world to return to your own."
"But I don't want to leave!" I protested. "I want to see how things have changed! I want to see the better world I worked so hard to create! And… I want to see Alice!"
"I'm sorry, Luka," Ilias said, truly seeming regretful. "I put you in a position where there was never a possibility that you could ever be happy. Even in your ultimate victory, you have lost something precious to you. Minutes ago, I would have gloated. I guess the only part of me that is left is the better part of me. I feel only sorrow for what I've done to you."
"At least I get memories, and my life back," I said. "Wait, I'm not going to wake up thinking this was all a dream, or forget about it, will I?"
"That's a second question, but I'll answer it. No, you will remember everything. I can't guarantee that you'll believe it all. Now, it is your turn to listen."
"Okay," I said. "Go on."
"Being a god is a lonely existence," she began. "All I could ever do was take portions of myself and create other beings. That grew tiresome. After all, they were just incomplete versions of me. I longed for the day when the living creatures of the surface could communicate with me. You may think me a megalomaniac, but I didn't set out to become that way. When man arose, I revealed myself to them. They chose to worship me. I didn't want their worship. I wanted their friendship. But they would not accept me as anything less than their goddess. I became their goddess because I couldn't be anything else to them. In truth, I don't even know if I'm really a goddess or not. Perhaps there's a higher power than me, one that even I don't know of. I know that in your world they believe in such things. Maybe one of those gods watches over this world too. Perhaps I denied the people of this world the ability to find their own answers. To make up their own legends, their own gods."
"It seems they did find their own answers, at least many of them did," I said. "people were falling away from you. You started to resent that."
"I did," Ilias admitted. "Because if the people don't need me anymore, who am I? I sought to influence humanity but they influenced me. They convinced me that I was a goddess. My entire identity became tied up in the idea."
This reminded me of a death row confession. On one level, I just couldn't feel bad for her. She was millions of years old. She had the capacity to be wiser. Instead, she chose the route of vindictiveness. But maybe I'm just a softy. I still sympathized on some level.
"Ilias," I said. "You never had to question your identity as a goddess. Even though many had fallen away, so many loved you. You had no shortage of people who would do anything for you. Yet those were the ones you had killed first."
"Yes," she said. "I was enraged by my disappointment in them. They were weak. I should have loved them for who they were."
"And you should have loved the monsters, as well," I said. "Did you know even some monsters worshipped you?"
"Yes," Ilias replied. "even though I was not perfect, I demanded a perfect world. One in which every voice lifted in song to me, and every eye turned towards me. Instead I should have been grateful for all that I had. Too late, I realize that now. I hope that you have a good life, Luka. You deserve that. Goodbye, Luka."
I slowly awakened. I was in my room, lying on the same bed that Ilias had taken my virginity in, more than two years ago. How was this place still mine? I was renting it. Had it really all been a dream? I looked at my chest. It was still heavily scarred from Granberia's sword. No, not a dream. All of that had really happened! Then I remembered that time passed more slowly here. How long had it been? Two months? If so, I might still be able to pay my rent and avoid eviction. It seemed so unimportant after all I'd been through, and yet it was still essential that I not be homeless.
I looked around. "Irene's" clothes were still strewn about. It was as if I'd been gone only a second. Was I really that alone in this world? Had no one even come to check on me? It was a jarring transition. I'd lived as a loner my whole life, until I went to a completely different universe and found friends. Now I was back to being alone. Did I still have a job? I found that I really didn't care. I felt for my gold pouch. It was still there. How much did I have? It felt like a few pounds. That was quite a bit of money on this world. I'd be fine for awhile. Long enough for Alice to come for me.
Would she come for me? Did she even know I was still alive? What if she assumed I was vaporized in the cataclysm of whatever our Quadruple? Sextuple? Giga had created. What if she knew I was alive but just thought I was better off being back home? What if she didn't really love me? My heart was broken. She had all kinds of reasons to leave me here if she loved me. Maybe it really was for my own good. She had all kinds of reasons to leave me here if she didn't.
I put the thoughts out of my mind as best I could. No matter how she felt about me, she knew that I had wanted to stay. She would not simply ignore my wishes. Promestein had been coming here frequently. There was a way. She and the kitsunes would find it. I just had to have faith, and wait. Since time moved faster there than here, she could come for me at any time. I would wait for her. At some point I'd have to call my job and beg them to take me back, or find some other work. For the time being, I was in no mood to go back to my old life. I'd pay my rent and any bills left unpaid while I was gone, and sit in this apartment and wait. Yep, that's what I was going to do. Alice would come for me. She had to. She wouldn't break my heart like that.
Two weeks passed. No one came. I was spending my money on pizza delivery and watching a lot of TV. I'd missed TV. It was a small consolation that took my mind off of my loneliness. How much time had passed in Alice's world? Two months? Three? Why hadn't she come?
I finally decided to leave my apartment and go to the mall. Being a couch potato and eating pizza all day was going to ruin that great body I'd worked so hard to get. I could already feel some flab developing. It wouldn't do for Alice to find me a slug of a human being, lying in a couch smelling like Cheetos and Dominos. Mall walking was nothing compared to the journeys I embarked on over the last two years, but it was at least some exercise.
The mall proved to be a small pleasure. It cleared my head a little. Seeing people was also nice. I started imagining what our reunion would be like if it happened. Would it be like in the movies? I'd see a silver haired girl in front of me, turn her around, but it wasn't Alice, and then I'd look up and see the real Alice in the crowd, looking at me, and we'd rush to each other and embrace, and music would play? Thinking stupid thoughts like that made me think that maybe it was never going to happen. What happened to me may not have been a dream, but the idea of me living permanently in a world of magic and monster girls with my love, a lamia, the Monster Lord, was starting to sound absurd. I'd give it another week. Then I had to start rebuilding my life. Such as it was.
Despite my desire to maintain my toned body, I found Burger King to be too much of a temptation. It had been so long, and I needed what pleasures I could obtain to counter my depression. I sat and ate. As I began my second burger, I saw hands holding a tray, stopping at my table. I looked up. Alice? No, not Alice.
"Hello, Promestein," I said neutrally. Truth be told, the idea of seeing ANYONE from that other world in front of me lifted my spirits, even if it was an enemy. I wasn't going to let her know that.
She sat down in front of me. "Hello, Luka," she said. "you don't look so good. Rough transition?"
"You could say that," I responded. "so where were you during all… that? The last time I saw you was in the volcano ambushing Eden. Then… nothing."
"It simply wasn't part of my plans to get involved in that," Promestein replied, putting a French fry in her mouth. "For the most part, things went as I planned."
"Do all of you have convoluted plans?" I asked. "What were you trying to get out of all that?"
"Like Ilias, my plans were designed to achieve more than one goal," she explained. "I either wanted Ilias to need me, to accept me again, or to get my revenge on her. I didn't really care which. It didn't go entirely as I'd hoped. I can never return."
"You're stuck here?"
"Only in the sense that Eden would destroy me if I set foot on that world again," Promestein explained.
"Does that mean you could send me back?" I said hopefully.
"I could," she said. "But why would I? What can you do for me?"
"I… I don't think there's anything I have that you would want," I said glumly. "So did you come here just to bask in my loneliness?"
"No, I did not," she said. "Consider this sort of an exit interview. I'm interested in you. What I want from you isn't enough to get me to send you back. That involves risk to me, and I won't risk myself for you. But I will answer your questions. In exchange, you'll answer mine. I know you have questions, so I know that's worth something to you. How about it?"
I said nothing, concentrating on eating again. I did have questions, and to be honest, as evil as she was, I wanted to talk to her. I'd spoken to no one in two weeks.
"Look, I can see you're hurting," she said. "So let me sweeten the pot a little by telling you something that'll cheer you up. I imagine you're sad because your lady love hasn't come for you?'
"How astute of you," I said sarcastically.
"Well, worry no longer," Promestein replied. "She and those foxes have been working night and day to get you back. They're close. You'll see her before too long."
That did get my attention. "Really?!" I said. "Okay, you've given me something big, assuming you're being honest with me. I'll answer any questions you have."
"How about you go first?" she said.
"All right, let's start with the obvious. Why me?"
"Lots of reasons," she answered. "we spent quite a bit of time looking for the right person. Ilias was only interested in strength and magical power. Your strength wasn't bad, but your magic potential set you apart. I'd never gotten readings from anyone as high as yours. Now granted, we didn't search this entire world. Just this small area, actually. But this area has over a million people from all over your world, so I surmised that if there was a good candidate to be found, he would be found here."
"How can people here have magic power?" I asked. "There's no magic here."
"Almost no magic," she corrected. "the rules of your universe are more fixed, more inflexible, than in mine. The realm of what's possible at the atomic level is limited. Still, that allows for some magic, although scientists here wouldn't call it magic. Just a biological process they don't understand yet. People with your level of this power signal it with things like ESP, telekinesis, uncanny reflexes, deceptive strength…. I designed an app that allowed me to scan for that kind of power and identify it. That's why Ilias threw something at you, to test the accuracy of my scanning."
"So you were just looking for raw power?"
"She was. I wanted something more. You were the second man we found. The first was a big burly beast of a man, probably some biker, or bouncer, who knows? I tried to stick him with a paralytic in the parking lot. He shook it off and got away. I had to talk her into more… subtle means to get a man alone, since I didn't have time to develop a stronger paralytic. The humans of this world are a tougher breed than the cattle back on that world. So anyway, you seemed needy, and gullible, and easy to manipulate. I spotted you for a virgin the first time I laid eyes on you. Ilias was pretty certain as well."
"Well, thank you for THAT as my first experience," I said sarcastically.
"Now you answer one of my questions," she said. "Why did you fall in love with a monster?"
"That's a weird one," I said. "Shouldn't it be obvious? We traveled together, we grew close. We were the only people in each other's lives. We'd both lived lives of isolation for a long time. I'd say it was inevitable."
"Hmmmm," Promestein mused. "That makes some sense. I expected that being a man from this world, you would either have hated monsters for trying to rape and eat you all the time, or been like a kid in a candy store, screwing everything in sight. You were powerful enough that you could have made your own arrangements with the local monsters, you know. Predators hate to get injured when chasing prey. It means going hungry later. You could have negotiated the terms of feeding them in a way most humans couldn't."
"Don't think I haven't been tempted," I replied. "there are so many ways for monsters to pleasure you that I've fantasized about touring the world again, this time alone, and sampling them all. I guess I just fell in love."
"Now that sounds more like a typical male," she said, smiling. "But as we know, that's not how it went. You were attacked dozens of times. The Monster Lord refused to help you. Why didn't you grow to hate them all?"
"I don't know," I said. "I just don't hate very well. I don't even hate you. I guess I'm just not capable of hating."
"Fascinating," she said. "the crazy thing is, I think that none of this would have worked out half as well as it did without your unique viewpoint on things. I never would have thought of that as a criteria for selecting a candidate. Okay, your turn."
"How do you know Alice is looking for me if you can't go back to that world?" I asked.
"Because I have that lab under constant surveillance," she said smugly. "I wanted your allies to have access to it. It was all part of the plan. Gaining that access enabled you to get rid of the seals and invade heaven. The replacement seal was a nice touch I hadn't anticipated. That Tamamo is a smart one. My turn. Why did you help Eden? Was it her aura affecting your judgment?"
"Her aura was gone by then," I said. "I just couldn't stand to see someone suffer."
"Even after she raped you," Promestein said, shaking her head.
"I'm not sure it was rape. It felt right, somehow. That's some powerful magic."
"She is a Seraph," Promestein replied. "the funny thing is that she doesn't even think of it as coercive. She thinks people do whatever she wants because she's lovely and kind and persuasive. Of course, when you've known her for thousands of years as I have, it doesn't affect you anymore. I imagine you'd be immune to it by now as well, given your strength of will."
"It was definitely gone by then," I agreed. "her screaming… it was horrible. I had to kill, once. Or maybe I didn't have to. I chose to. But the one I killed at least didn't suffer. I can't stand suffering."
"Ah yes, that arrogant archangel at Ilias Village. I wish I'd been there to see it. She was particularly mean to me. She was a sadist, that one. I'm only sorry that her death was instantaneous. Which brings me to another question. How did you feel when you destroyed her?"
"Empty," I said. "At least right afterwards. When I did it, I was enraged."
"Humans are so fascinating," she said. "angels tend to have just one purpose. For me, it has always been the pursuit of knowledge. For Eden, it was serving her goddess. But you humans, you have such complex motivations. You went your entire journey to the Monster Lord's Castle, dead set against killing anyone, no matter how awful they were, and then as soon as you get back to Ilias Village, you destroy an angel utterly. But then you went back to not killing!"
"I killed Ilias and Black Alice," I pointed out.
"You participated, and then only because there was no other way. Do you feel guilt about that?"
"I don't know that guilt is the right word," I said. "More… sorrow that their lives led to that bad end. They had so much potential to do good, but instead chose to hurt people."
"Maybe I should learn something from you," she said. "I probably won't, though. I've made a lot of enemies. At least for now, I'm safe here. I like it here, actually. Humans here really love science. This world has wonders I never even dreamed of. I think I'd like to help them advance even further."
"That sounds vaguely threatening," I said.
"Does it?" she laughed. "If so, I wouldn't worry. This place has laws. Regulations. Nonsense like that. I won't be allowed to do everything I want. What is available for me to study is fascinating enough. At least for the next few hundred years."
"So it looks like you're the big winner of all the scheming that went on in the heavens," I said. "You're getting away with murder."
"I was the smartest, so why shouldn't I have been the victor?"
"It feels like I only saw a small part of the whole picture," I said. "It feels like there was so much more going on."
"There was," she replied. "I had co-conspirators, but they all died. One of them ran the drain lab. You should have been dead. She had orders to destroy the place if it was breached. Instead, she gave you and your allies time to escape. I never did figure out why she would do that. She wasn't a living thing. She was a very intelligent machine. I didn't design her to disobey orders. But I did design her to think. I wonder if artificial intelligence will evolve the same way here?"
"How about that mansion that contained the seal on Alice? We got there, but someone else had already cleaned out the opposition."
"That was another of my co-conspirators, La Croix," she replied. "I was very disappointed. She had such amazing surprises in store for you and the Monster Lord! Her damn sister ruined it all. It all turned out well for me in the end. As you can see, I'm the last one standing. Black Alice and Ilias are gone. That damn Eden is still alive, but I never really hated her, so it doesn't bother me. She was just an obstacle that I needed to get out of my way. Fortunately, she's as easy to manipulate as you. Well, anyway, you probably won't see me again. You'll be off in that other world making little monster babies soon enough. I'll make myself a life here and I'll probably enjoy it. I truly do wish you well. I never had any animus towards you."
"Wait," I said. "This is purely academic, but did you bring Yamatai Village over from this world?"
"I did not," she said, getting up. "I still don't know how that happened. In this world, your scientists have theories about wormholes, alternative universes, that sort of thing. I'm interested in finding out why that happened myself. The significance of that event was that it proved there were other universes. I devoted my research to discovering the world those people came from. Now I really am going, Luka. Good luck to you."
I arrived home, got undressed, and took a long shower. I felt a little dirty having had a nice conversation over hamburgers and fries with someone who had participated in an attempt at genocide of an entire world. Yet I felt selfishly grateful that she'd given me news about what was going on back in Alice's world. She was looking for me! I thought about what I would say to her. For me it had been two weeks. For Alice, it would have been months.
I got out of the shower and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw a lamia. In my living room. It was Alice! I just stared. She smirked. I realized I was naked. Even though I'd been warned she was looking for me, seeing an actual lamia in my living room in my world seemed surreal.
"I'm getting a strong sense of déjà vu here," Alice said, smirking and folding her arms.
"How long have you been standing there?" I asked.
"Standing here?"she asked. "Ever since you walked into your washroom. I've been in your little home for two hours. Your situational awareness hasn't improved at all."
"Oh," I stammered. "You must be hungry then! I have some Doritos in my cupboard. I know you like those."
"Found them. Ate them."
"There's also some candy bars in the drawer."
"Found them. Ate them."
"My refrigerator…"
"Is empty now," she said.
"Alice, I missed you so much," I said. "Thank you for coming to find me. I didn't know what to do without you."
"I had no choice in the matter," she said. "Do you know how many people were despondent that the great hero was gone?"
"Oh," I said.
"Don't look at me like that!" she said angrily. "Come here, give me a hug."
I rushed into her arms. She returned my embrace. "So," she said. "ready to go see the world you helped create?"
"I would really love that."
She took my hand and led me to my bedroom.
"How did you find me?" I asked.
"The kitsunes just sent me to the location you were brought here from. It was all on those discs. I ended up in your bed. I imagine when we go back It'll be to the same place you entered my world the last time."
She pushed me onto my bed and climbed on top of me. I remembered something just then. "That was pretty high up. I fell pretty hard."
"Don't worry, Luka," she said gently. "I'll never let you go."
She was true to her word, although it proved unnecessary. Whoever had altered the calculations had done so precisely. We transitioned to soft ground with only a slight jolt. We continued to lay there in each other's embrace for a moment. I looked around. This was definitely the forest near Ilias Village.
Alice rose and helped me up. "Here, I brought you some clothes," she said. "This is convenient. You'll get to start at your adopted home. No one has been more eager to see you again than these people. I should just caution you, though. It's not called Ilias Village anymore."
"I guess that makes sense," I said. "Wouldn't want to name the place after a goddess that ordered everyone murdered."
As we walked towards Ilias Village, Alice briefed me on the events of the past couple of months. With Ilias gone, the angels had decided to surrender or flee. Eden had proclaimed herself the new goddess and declared the war ended. To Alice's dismay, many former Ilias followers had been quite willing to simply transfer their worship to the new goddess. At least the heavens had been quiet. A few angels had elected to stay on the surface, mainly the ones known to be most personally loyal to Ilias. They were not making trouble, so in the spirit of everyone getting along and being peaceful, they were permitted to integrate into society as long as they behaved themselves. Alice had had a lot of work to do in the aftermath, naming new Queens to replace those who had sided with Black Alice being one of the most important tasks. The chimeras had simply wandered off. The intelligent ones sheepishly returned to the cities they had attacked and asked for forgiveness. The wild ones continued to terrorize the countryside, claiming victims from time to time, but were slowly being hunted down. The machines had all stopped functioning soon after the Drain Lab had been destroyed.
She cautioned me that only Tamamo and Alice herself knew that I was back. The other Knights and the people would be surprised. Since she knew she could safely teleport me, she said that we'd teleport from place to place on our way back to her castle. Then we would talk about our future.
Ilias Village had been in ruins when I had last seen it. Only the temple had been left standing. Ilias had been fine with killing her followers, but had apparently ordered her statues and temples left untouched. Such vanity! But the Ilias Village I came back to just two months later looked almost as good as new! I flushed with embarrassment when I saw the sign: Welcome to Luka Village.
"Tamamo took it upon herself to personally oversee the reconstruction of the hero's adopted hometown," Alice said. "She called on all the kitsunes to assist. She added a lot of modern conveniences as well. Nothing like your world, of course, but Luka Village is now the most comfortable small town in the world."
"Luka!" someone shouted. "Luka is here!"
People began to rush to the village entrance. I think I'd made it about five steps inside the village limits. People congratulated me, patting me on the back. To my further embarrassment, once enough people surrounded me I got hoisted on shoulders and paraded around the village. It was amazing to see everyone, everyone that had made it out in time when that archangel had attacked. As I was being paraded around the town, I caught sight of the temple. In the stained glass windows there were images of Eden replacing the images of Ilias that had been there previously.
To Alice's mortification, people kept on asking when the wedding was. Alice darkly hinted at horrible consequences for Tamamo, who she was sure must be spreading those rumors while overseeing reconstruction of the village.
When I'd said all my hellos and goodbyes, promising to visit frequently, Alice teleported us to Iliasburg. Er, now known as Edenburg. "Since we're apparently doing déjà vu today, why don't you go to the city center? There might be something that that will interest you," she said.
We walked to the center of the city. The sight that greeted me would have been alarming had I been as idiotic as Alice said I was. Soldiers were sprawled all over the square, moaning. At the center of the square was Granberia.
"Is no one else brave enough to challenge me?!" she shouted. "This city's army fought off heaven's forces! Surely one Heavenly Knight isn't enough to defeat you all!"
"Working off some aggression, Granberia?" I asked.
Her head swung in my direction. Her eyes widened in shock. Before I knew it, I was lifted off the ground, wrapped in a bear hug. She began turning around in circles, holding me up in the air. Just for reference, I'm bigger than Granberia. Yet she was holding me like a child. She put me down.
"Luka!" she cried happily, throwing her arms around my neck. "Look at you! It seems like forever! I thought I'd lost you! The huge explosion, and then you were gone!"
We were starting to draw a crowd. "What are you all looking at?!" she shouted, directed mainly at the soldiers. "Don't you need to be practicing? One thousand reps! Go on! Get to work!"
"Granberia's been a little... on edge since you went away," Alice explained. "I had to bring you back before she hurt somebody."
"Oh, I'm just training these weaklings!" Granberia explained. "I was so impressed that they performed well during the war that I decided to bless them with my training. Help them meet their true potential. Although seeing them now, it's a wonder they weren't slaughtered."
We saw other old friends: the three little bandits, the owner of the Sutherland Inn, who promised us free stays and all the Amadangos we wanted. Granberia told me she was taking a week off from training the soldiers to spend more time with me when we got back to the castle.
Next was Happiness Village. Happiness Village had probably gotten off the lightest in the war, thanks to the harpies' military prowess. Nevertheless, the queen and the human village elders were grateful for my own help in driving off the angels. About those angels…. The trinity angels had decided to stay in Happiness Village. They were still trying to figure their new lives out. For the time being, they continued to function as a threesome, pleasuring willing men on their cross of pleasure. The humans and the harpies didn't like this, as it made men addicted to them and unwilling to consider harpies or humans as potential mates. Since the men were willing, there was nothing they could do about it except wait for the angels to decide that they wanted men of their own. Some of the human women were experiencing a small amount of schadenfreude that the harpies were feeling inferior.
Next was Port Natalia, where I had an experience that was both happy and mortifying. Alice took me to the beach where I had suffered two defeats to the crab girl, Cindy. Cindy, of course, popped out of the water and greeted us.
"Hello, Luka!" she said brightly. "Don't worry, I'm not going to try to clean you today. But just so you know, I forgive you for that last time, so you can come and get my special course any time you want!"
Alice presented Cindy with a medal for valor during the final battle in the heavens. Cindy still bore the damage to her shell. She also issued her a laminated certificate declaring her an honorary Fifth Heavenly Knight, signed by the Monster Lord and all Four Heavenly Knights. She also had to include a dig that Cindy was the only monster in all the land who had defeated the great hero without ever suffering a loss. In addition, she had earned unlimited privileges to visit the Monster Lord's castle any time and stay as long as she liked. I was happy for her, if a little uncomfortable at the idea of her hanging out at the castle.
I made sure to visit Meia, who offered me another blowjob, which I declined, of course. Alice's tail was circling around my legs threateningly the whole time we were in her house. I was so happy to be back that I didn't mind. There was nothing Alice could do that would make me unhappy. Her entire vocabulary could have consisted of "idiot" and I would have been over the moon.
Next was San Ilia, which was also well on the way to being rebuilt, and renamed, although a new name had not yet been selected. They were in the process of taking suggestions. The great cathedral had been converted to the worship of Eden, but the city's people weren't willing to cede temporal authority to the religious leaders as they had under Ilias. They were instead forming a democratic government.
Sabasa was a little more lenghty. The king would not take no for an answer when it came to having a great feast. Alice, remembering the feast from last time, 'reluctantly' agreed to stay for it. This would take us to the end of the day, so we would stay in the castle for the night. Sara greeted me with a gigantic hug. She seemed to be in much better spirits, although she wasn't willing to discuss why.
The pyramid was being remodeled as a tourist attraction, surprisingly, at Sphinx's request. She was in the castle thinking up riddles to ask tourists. The penalty for getting the answers wrong would be that they would have to feed her some of their semen. I imagined this was going to be a very popular tourist attraction. After that, Alice and I turned in for the night. She started out sleeping in another bed, but when I awakened, she was holding me.
To my surprise, Alice next took me to Witch Hunt Village. The village had been attacked during the war, but the females who had been altered by Lily had defended it well. Lily herself was under house arrest, but as long as she behaved herself, the villagers were willing to let her live in peace and eventually be freed completely. It was a new world. Everyone deserved a fresh start, in the opinions of most.
Then she took me to Plansect Forest, which I had not seen since I stopped their war. Everyone seemed to be getting along well. The slimes had joined the insects and plants in the forest until their spring could be purified. I also ran into my first spirit there, Undine.
"It was quite a shock when you were suddenly gone," Undine told me. "But our contract with you is still valid. All you need ever do is call us if you need us and we'll be inside you instantly. Our bond is permanent."
"Where are the others?" I asked.
"Sylph and Gnome went back to their respective homes," she replied. "Just remember, you can call on us anytime. We have a mental link with you just like the Heavenly Knights have with each other. Go ahead, try it."
"Sylph?" I tentatively asked.
"Luka!!!" a voice in my head spoke. "You're back! Yay!"
Erubetie was also in Plansect. True to form, her greeting was polite and formal. We briefly discussed plans to get humans involved in helping to clean up the nearby springs, as well as ways to prevent future pollution.
Next was Grand Noah. The games were still going on, although some humans, inspired by my example, actually sought to win rather than just get raped. None had come close yet, but the monsters seemed to enjoy the more intense competition. Alma Elma was there as well, getting ready to enter the next tournament. Her greeting was almost as enthusiastic as Granberia's. Unlike Granberia's welcome, Alma Elma's drew a throat clearing from Alice. She sheepishly released me.
"You should sign up for the tournament, Luka," she said. "I'd love to wrestle you again."
"He's not signing up to get raped in front of a crowd again, you walking obscenity," Alice growled.
"Rape Luka?" Alma Elma said. "I'm hurt. I would never do that again. How about it, Luka? It'll just be a straight wrestling match. I won't do anything inappropriate. Just our sweaty bodies rubbing against each other while we roll around. Wouldn't that be fun?"
"I think I'll pass, for now," I said. "I'm afraid the coliseum doesn't hold good memories for me."
"Oh," Alma Elma said, downcast. "I'm sorry."
"It wasn't just you," I quickly said. "the whole hostage situation, nearly getting eaten… maybe I'll appear here again someday. But only if Granberia participates too."
"If you could get her to participate, it would be the greatest tournament of all time!" Alma Elma said joyously.
Yamatai Village was a special treat. The village had been basically untouched by the war, at least in physical terms. Tamamo had retaken the city after our battle in heaven without a fight. The monsters that had turned on the populace had immediately submitted to her authority, leaving Shirohebi with no allies. Yet the damage in Yamatai was longer lasting. The trust between the monster population and the human population had been shattered. Of course, not every villager was upset with the monsters. The Akaname girls were getting to lick someone every day. Even the great monster Yamata No Orochi that had lived in the cave demanding sacrifices had moved into the city and had no shortage of volunteers willing to feed her. Miko was especially embarrassed by her behavior. She had disgraced herself, yet boys kept on coming to the lamia shrine to ask her to do more of what she'd already done to them. Shirohebi had been pardoned and now occupied the lamia shrine with her twin sister. She did not seem sorry about what she'd done. At least she hadn't killed anyone.
As expected, I found Tamamo in the kitsune shrine. More big hugs followed. Then she got serious. "Have you and Alice had the talk yet?"
"Tamamo, calm down," Alice said. "We're going to have that talk when we get back to the castle. Right now, I'm showing Luka off to his adoring public and letting him see how things are now."
"Uh huh," Tamamo said skeptically.
I had to ask Alice to take me to Succubus Village. She seemed to have a thing against succubi just like she did against foxes. But I really wanted to see if things were going well there. As it turned out, Alma Elma must have been successful in getting the village to unite with Lady's village. There were more than succubi there. There were just as many men. There didn't seem to be much restraint about where and when the monster girls fed on the men, but since they were only feeding on men who wanted to be fed on, and not killing them, I guessed that it must be okay. A little kinky, but fine. Alice was disgusted and reminded me that this was why she didn't want to bring me there. Emily and the mayor were co-leaders, although Emily preferred to defer to the older succubus most of the time. Potatoes had become the major crop of the village. Given that the village's monsters consisted of succubi and carnivorous monsters, it was not really a popular choice. The humans liked it just fine, however.
Grangold was looking pretty good after the twin catastrophes of the ant rebellion and the war. Ants were really efficient workers. Monsters of other types had begun to immigrate to Grangold. The king and queen ant had even set up a matchmaking service for humans and monsters. I thought that the king and queen ant should probably hook up themselves, but decided not to say anything.
Gold Port was pretty bittersweet. Alice had come to remove the enchantment that had turned Lazarus to stone, but he'd already been freed, apparently because when Alice was sealed the enchantment wore off. He had later died defending the city. He had achieved the martyrdom he sought. Witnesses say he had died saving a monster child from a Trooperoid. Maybe at the last he had changed?
Night was beginning to fall. Alice took me back to the castle. I was so nervous. This would be the time that I got an answer as to whether she loved me or not. To whether she would marry me. It seemed like I'd been waiting forever. Tamamo was there to greet us.
"Welcome back," Tamamo said. "You're home, Luka."
"I guess I am," I said.
"You'll always have a place here as long as you want it," Alice agreed. "Why don't you have the butler take you around and you can select a permanent room to stay in? I know you're tired, so get some rest."
"Isn't there something you want to say to Luka, Alice?" Tamamo said, a bit of an edge to her voice.
"I was, but it's late," Alice said. "we should both get some rest and we can talk tomorrow."
"Okay!" Tamamo said brightly. "Luka, I'll be up to see you soon. I still owe you a Nine Moons."
"Tamamo!" Alice objected.
"What?" the kitsune said innocently. "don't you think he's earned it?"
"You could try being a little more subtle," Alice said, grumpily. "Besides, I need to discuss this with you, first. Your rules, remember?"
"Fine," Tamamo replied. "Let's have the discussion right here. No reason Luka can't be in on this."
"Ugh," Alice said. "Fine. So I'll just come right out and say it. Am I allowed to marry him? Has he proven he's stronger than me?"
"He defeated you in battle," Tamamo pointed out.
"I wasn't giving everything I had," Alice argued. "You know I would have beaten him if I'd used pleasure attacks or been more creative with my magic."
"Fair enough," Tamamo said. "It's irrelevant, anyway. Luka, you proved you were strong enough the first moment I met you, when you refused the temptation of my tails in order to do what was right for your village. As far as I'm concerned you are more than qualified to marry the Monster Lord."
Before I could thank her, Alma Elma stepped out of the shadows. "I knew you were worthy when you refused me in the coliseum, thus keeping your promise."
Granberia stepped out as well. "I knew you were worthy when you challenged me in Iliasburg, despite your fear."
Finally, Erubetie emerged. "And I knew you were worthy when you continued to hold to your dream of coexistence, even as I tried to kill you."
I was moved. I was also impressed. This had Tamamo setup written all over it. Alice had clearly not been expecting this either. She struggled to find words.
"If the Four Heavenly Knights all recognize that you're worthy of marrying me, then I guess…. I guess I wouldn't mind if you'd be my husband."
"Oi, Alice!" Tamamo said, slapping her own head. "Wouldn't mind? Luka, please show her how this is done!"
"Alice," I said, taking her hands. "I have to confess, I was infatuated with you from the moment I met you, although I tried to hide it. You were a little… rough on me at the start, and I didn't want to get my heart broken. But through everything, you gave me the strength and the training to be more than I ever could have dreamed of being. I've already gone over at length why I fell in love with you. Since then, I've only found more reasons. Coming to get me when I'd been cruelly snatched from this world, protecting me with your own body against Ilias' final assault, but most importantly, being the kind of woman who was willing to do anything to achieve her big dream. Lay down your own life, assault the very heavens, even charge into a haunted house. Alice, I love you. I want to be partners with you as long as I live, helping you to continue the pursuit of the dream we both share."
Her eyes glistened with tears. "Luka," she said. "I've loved you for so much longer than I'll ever admit, and I feel so stupid for waiting until now to tell you. I rationalized that as Monster Lord I couldn't make promises to anyone with my heart, but I was just being idiotic again. You could have died without ever knowing! You think that I saved your life on this journey, but you also saved mine. I could never have done any of this without you. I love you so much, Luka! Would you please marry me?"
"Of course I will!" I said joyfully. "When do you want to do it?"
"You just did," Tamamo said. "We monsters keep it simple. She said she wanted to, you said you wanted to, so it's done. All that's left is the consummation ceremony."
"Consummation ceremony?"
"You have to have sex with her for three days straight," Tamamo explained. "Enjoy! And please don't die!"
"Whoa, hold on!" I objected. "There's still a few things that we have to work out. Weddings don't just happen. There are details!"
"What details?" Alice asked.
"Well first, what would my duties be as the Monster Lord's husband?"
"Just do what you've been doing," Tamamo said. "Be the hero the world needs. Right wrongs, pursue justice, that sort of thing. You can also be in charge of our tech. You're pretty handy with those computers. I'm sure you can think of a lot of ways those things could make people's lives better."
"Okay, that sounds fine," I said. "But a marriage is an equal partnership. You can't just make me do things the monster way. There have to be concessions to human traditions as well. I want a real wedding. A human wedding."
"Way ahead of you," Tamamo said smugly. "It's all been planned out. You'll have it in Ilias Village next week. Everyone who's anyone has already been invited."
"You conniving little kitsune!" Alice said. "You have no shame! How long have you been scheming?"
"Get over it," Tamamo laughed. "Anything else?"
"One last thing," I said. "In human tradition, the woman takes the man's last name."
"I'm not giving up my Fateburn name," Alice said firmly. "That name has controlled the throne for centuries."
"She has a point," Tamamo said. "Although I dare say that your name could be just as regal. What is it, by the way?"
"Um….. Snodgrass."
"Luka Snodgrass?" Granberia said, dumbfounded.
"So um…. How about no?" Tamamo said. "Alice Snodgrass, doesn't work at all. Fear the great Monster Lord Snodgrass!"
"Luka Fateburn sounds good to me," Alice said. "A fitting name for a hero."
"All right, you talked me into it!" I said. "My name does kinda suck, doesn't it?"
"Now that everything is settled, get to the consummation," Tamamo said, pushing Alice and I towards the nearest guest room. "Go! Go! Go! The sooner you get it started, the longer Luka will have to recuperate. He can't be half dead for the human wedding ceremony!"
I still wasn't sure about three days. That sounded like too much of a good thing, and possibly dangerous as well. Alice laid me down on the bed and reassured me. "Don't be afraid, I'm going to take care of you. I'll cheat a little. You can sleep for a couple of hours at a time. You can do this. I know you're strong enough."
She was true to her word. The three days were a haze of pleasure, exhaustion, and sleep. When it was over, I needed days to recover. My penis hurt, too. Real bad. The magic had covered up the pain from too much exertion and too long with an erection, but once it was all over, I just laid in bed and moaned.
The day of the wedding arrived. So many people were crowded into Ilias Village. Since there weren't even close to enough accommodations and the distances were vast, the fairies had kept their teleportation network in place for the occasion. There were talks of keeping it up permanently to make travel to anywhere on the planet easy for everyone. I thought that was a fine idea. It would give this world a transportation network superior to anything on my supposedly more advanced world.
Alice felt silly wearing a white dress, but she was willing to put up with my traditions since I'd put up with hers. She decided to spread the pain by making the Four Heavenly Knights dress up as well and be her bridesmaids. Granberia swore bitter vengeance. Erubetie, after some modeling in the mirror, thought her own dress was cute.
The ceremony started out beautifully, everyone gathered around. All of the world's royalty, everyone I knew from Ilias Village, as well as countless humans and monsters who had been impacted by my presence on this world. The priest of Ilias who had seen me off on my travels officiated. I gave him a fairly traditional script, since I realized I had never attended a wedding in this world before. I decided to keep it simple.
"Friends, we are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union of Luka the great hero and Alice Fateburn, the Monster Lord in marriage. Through their time together, they have come to realize that their dreams, hopes, and goals are more attainable and more meaningful through the combined effort and mutual support provided in love, commitment, and family, and so they have decided to live together as husband and wife."
Suddenly, a bright light shone in the sky like a second sun. Descending from the skies and alighting right next to the priest, was Eden. The crowd was in awe. Few had ever seen a Seraph before. She was more than that, now. She had adopted Ilias' mode of dress, all white. I had to admit it was better than her crashing our wedding in the nude. Eden surveyed the crowd and addressed everyone.
"This union symbolizes a new day for this world," she began. "I came here to give it my blessing, so that all could see that I desire peace and coexistence in the world. Nothing could be more meaningful towards that goal than the union of a human hero and the Monster Lord herself. I know that many of you were raised on Ilias' commandments, that relations between humans and monsters were unnatural, an abomination. That was an errant teaching. I tell you as your new goddess that these unions are blessed. Even more importantly, I want you to love one another, not just in a sexual sense, but truly love one another, with all your hearts. If recent events have taught us anything, it is the preciousness of life. Don't waste your lives on hate and resentment. Forgive one another. Love one another. Be like Luka and Alice. And now, I would be honored if you would allow me to take over officiating this ceremony."
"By all means," the priest said happily. "oh, here, there's a script."
"A script?" Eden said, confused. "Oh. I see. Very well. Ahem. Luka, do you take this woman, Alice, to be your lawfully wedded wife?"
"I do."
"Alice, do you take this man Luka, to be your lawfully wedded husband?"
"I do."
"Luka, you may now kiss the bride."
I did. It was our first ever kiss. The only thing we'd saved for marriage. I found out why right away. Alice really didn't know how to kiss. The crowd cheered appreciatively.
Eden stayed for the reception. While everyone was getting situated, I saw Alice grab Eden and say something to her. Alice's expression was not friendly. Eden looked a bit afraid. She said some words to Alice that seemed to calm her a little. Later on in the reception, Eden asked me for a dance.
"So you're the goddess now, huh?" I said as we slow danced.
"I didn't want to be," Eden said. "But it fell into my lap. The angels didn't know what to do. Some wanted to continue fighting. Others were simply despondent. Taking over resolved their problems. Most pledged loyalty to me. Others decided to stay on the surface and integrate into society. I don't believe for a moment that I am fit to fill Ilias' shoes. It seems to have stabilized the situation, however."
"I'd say you're off to a pretty good start," I said. "The people needed to hear a message of peace directly from the mouth of their goddess."
"That's what I was telling your bride a moment ago. She still holds a bit of a grudge. I can't blame her. I led armies that killed many of her people. But she saw the advantage of me being here in the cause of peace. She even gave me an olive branch. When she gets back to the castle, she's going to perform the ceremony to release my sister angels from their seal inside your sword. I promised that they would behave themselves."
"Wow, that's really great!" I said.
I must have danced with a lot of women that day. Sara got hold of me at one point, to tell me how happy she was for me. Especially since it removed her main competition for Granberia. I even got dances with each of the Heavenly Knights. Two of them were quite good. Tamamo and Alma Elma each had a lot of grace. Granberia had two left feet, and Erubetie… well, the less said about that, the better.
Of course, the bride and groom got the final dance. Alice decided to take human form for that one. It helped. A little. Dancing wasn't really her forte. But I could see how happy she was, and that's what really mattered. She had also eaten the entire wedding cake.
This was going to be the start of my greatest adventure of all.