I said that book 4 was well received, but the last two chapters aren't why. Alice's murder attempt on Luka was not taken well by my little fanbase, although some defended it as in line with their characters and the story. But nobody actually LIKED it, so in hindsight I have to say it was a mistake to write it. This chapter didn't help matters either, as it just increased readers' frustration with Luka's willingness to forgive everything. So what made this book well received? The five chapters I wrote afterwards. For some reason, readers loved them. But for now, here's the end of the main plot of this story.
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Thankfully, I went two for two. Although I had no confidence in my ability to teleport, apparently I was pretty unerring and no barrier could stop me. I appeared in the area of heaven most familiar to me, the relatively quiet area not far from the gates. As usual, I saw no one about. I imagined that would change fairly quickly, unless the method of my arrival was undetectable to everyone who lived there.
If anything, more statues of Ilias than ever decorated the wide cloud road that led to the center of heaven, where Ilias kept her throne room. Even though Eden was the Goddess according to humans, Ilias probably only let her keep that job because Ilias had never taken much of an interest in actually helping the people on the surface. When she wasn't inciting humans to get baptized and kill monsters, she was urging them to pray to her even though she never intended to answer any of their prayers. I'd been exposed to enough of Ilias to decide that she wasn't truly evil. More an entitled mean girl with way too much power. It was time to put an end to that and see if living with less would change her for the better.
Either my entry had been detected, or I had been observed at some point, because less than a mile from the throne room I was confronted by over a dozen powerful looking angels led by an archangel. I recognized the archangel immediately. She had been the first to attempt to take my power on Ilias' orders, in the Monster Lord's castle. She had even defeated me and begun to rape me, until Alice had saved me and sealed her. Like all the other angels sealed in that war, she was freed afterwards. Apparently she had chosen to remain in heaven and serve Eden, at least until I brought Ilias back.
"Halt, invader!" the archangel ordered. "No surface dwellers may enter Heaven uninvited! If you surrender now, your sentence shall be only fifteen orgasms! Continue and you will be kept prisoner here for 10,000 years, enduring nothing but endless rape at our hands, and then released into a world you will not understand and where all whom you love will be long dead!"
If I had been in one of my better moods, I might have jokingly asked who would be responsible for administering my fifteen orgasms. I was not in a good mood.
"This is not the day!" I warned. "Your Goddess and her honored guest, who I presume to also be here, hurt me very badly. I'm here to have a very stern discussion with them about that. You do not want to stand in my way."
"Her 'honored guest' is indeed here," the archangel confirmed. "And I remember you well, old enemy. Since you have come alone, we have been instructed to let you pass. Ilias will deal with you herself."
"I appreciate it," I said gruffly, and continued on as the angels parted to let me through.
Soon enough, I entered the throne room, which wasn't even in a building. It wasn't quite outdoors, either. It was in between, with clouds for walls, but no ceiling. I simply walked through the clouds and entered the throne room.
Facing me were Ilias and Alipheese, each sitting on their own equal sized thrones. I was glad to see they were still getting along so well, despite everything. I had staked everything on recreating them so that they could interact, believing the primary cause of conflict in this world to be Ilias' loneliness. It had not saved me from a terrible ordeal at their hands.
They were not alone. Eden stood off to the right, on the higher level where the thrones were. When our eyes met, she smiled sadly, her expression apologetic. To my surprise, Promestein was also present, standing at my level, below Eden. Her expression was unreadable.
"Hey kid," Alipheese greeted me. "I'm surprised to see you here. Didn't think vengeance was in your nature."
"That snake whore manipulated him into this," Ilias said bitterly. "Luka, how do you feel about her now? She really showed you her true nature, didn't she?"
"How much of what goes on in my life do you see?" I asked Ilias.
"I'm not truly omniscient," she admitted. "But I can watch you whenever I want, no matter where you are, at least on this world. I have other things to do, of course, so I don't see even a tenth of what happens to you. But I saw enough. She was obsessed, wasn't she?"
"She was," I admitted. "But I'm not here because of her. I'm here for my own reasons."
"Do you think we're a threat to your peaceful world?" Alipheese asked. "I can assure you, we're not. You know I've always respected you. I've always seen you as being at our level. I have no desire to come into conflict with you. Most of my creations seem to like this world you've created. I see no reason to rock the boat again."
"Alice tried to tell me that you would eventually cause trouble," I said. "But that's not why I'm here either."
"Then why the fuck are you here?!" Ilias spat, now quite irritated. "Did you miss your precious Eden? She's so sorry she couldn't visit you while you were down and out. My orders."
Eden looked ashamed. "I wanted to, Luka," Eden said softly. "I wanted to see you so much. I would have sat tirelessly at your bedside and done whatever was needed to keep you comfortable."
"Yeah, like heal him!" Ilias said. "That's why I forbade you to see him!"
"I'm not here to see Eden either," I said. "I'm here because you two have something of mine. I want it back."
"Alipheese, he wants his power back!" Ilias said sarcastically. "You have your power! As much as we do!"
"You're not supposed to have that power, except what I gave you to hold your dark and holy magic together so that you two could interact. So I'm taking it back."
Ilias hiked up her dress and exposed her genitals to me. "Come and get it then! Of course, it doesn't work that way! But I'll enjoy seeing you give it a go!"
"Dammit, Ilias!" Alipheese said. "Show him some basic respect. He's one of us. If he's here to oppose us, then we'll deal with him together. There's no need to insult him. Show a little decorum for once, Ilias."
"Fine!" Ilias spat. "It's good that you came alone, my wayward hero. We don't desire your death. If you'd come at the head of an army, we'd have had to kill you and all who invaded heaven with you. Since you did come alone, we'll merely punish you. What should his punishment be, Alipheese?"
"Rape him again," the Dark God replied. "Punish him with that amazing pleasure again."
"Yes, but for how long?" Ilias mused. "We can't just rape him quick like we did in the castle. We need to take our time. At least a month. Maybe Promestein can paralyze him again. Send him straight back to square one."
"Promestein," I said. "I'm surprised to see you here. Last time I confronted Ilias you made sure to be as far away as possible."
"I had no interest in fighting you then," Promestein said. "And I have no interest in fighting you now. But I wasn't going to miss this for anything."
Ilias rose, cracking her knuckles. Alipheese followed suit. Alipheese took one last opportunity to dissuade me from my course.
"Look kid, you have to know you're overmatched here. In just a few months, we've learned more about how to use that power of yours than you've learned in your whole life. There's two of us. You're just going to suffer needlessly. Why don't you join us? Or go back home, back to your lovely life with your lovely wife and your harem of monster girls. I've been proud of you, watching you these last few years. Don't let me down now by being stupid."
"He's always been an idiot," Ilias said. "It's the one thing the Monster Lord and I agree on. He's too stubborn to back down now. Let's just get this over with."
Without further warning, a massive blast of power came hurtling my way. I immediately recognized it as my own power. No holy or dark magic at all. Good. Assuming I was right. If I was wrong, Ilias wouldn't have merely punished me. She would have obliterated me.
I could see her face widen in surprise when I didn't put up a shield. She had not intended to kill me. She had intended the blast to be blocked. It was simply the opening move. I was going to see that it was the final move.
The blast hit me full force. And did no harm. My body absorbed it as I expected it would. That did not mean there was zero effect. I began to glow, as excess power filled me. Despite the excess of power, I was not consumed by it. It was mine. It had always been mine, even after they had stolen it from me. Now confident in my victory, I reached out a hand and willed the rest of my power to return to me from Ilias' body. She was immediately transfixed, her body rising off the ground as I rendered her helpless and drew my power out.
"Promestein….?" Ilias asked, confused and alarmed. "What is happening here?"
"What's happening is that Luka figured it out," Promestein said with satisfaction, her hands in her lab coat pockets. "But I'm not going to spoil Luka's big revelation. Why don't you tell the great Goddess what's happening to her?"
Alipheese looked like she was about to do something, either try to turn into smoke and flee, teleport out, or attack, I wasn't sure. Taking no chances, I transfixed her as well and began to draw my power out. As I did, I approached closer to them and explained what I had learned.
"The power you took from me never stopped being mine just because you took it from me," I said. "You can only take it if I let you. Since I didn't know you couldn't, that was tacit consent. Now that I know, however, I'm taking back what's mine."
The two wannabe goddesses slumped back into their thrones as I drew the last bit of my power except for the small sliver it took to hold their dark and holy magics together.
"Yes!" Promestein exulted. That woke Ilias up from her stupor.
"You conniving, betraying…." Ilias growled, her rage quickly spiraling out of control. "Even with less power I can still rend you limb from limb!"
"No," I said, placing a protective shield around Promestein. "Even if I wasn't protecting her, you're barely more powerful than she is. You're not even at the level of a Heavenly Knight anymore. The amount of holy and dark magic you two had in you when I recreated you was only enough to allow your existences. You're shells of what you once were. With no easy way to get back to your former level of power."
"Wow, kid, I'm impressed again," Alipheese said with wonder. "And I have to thank you for not punishing us further. You aren't going to punish us further, are you?"
"No," I said. "I'm done. You're no longer a threat to me or anyone I love, at least not without taking on great risk yourselves. And if you ever try, I won't be nearly as merciful."
"You don't have to tell me twice," Alipheese said.
"I will get you for this!" Ilias raged. "Somehow! Some way! I will not rest until I've made you suffer! I am a fucking goddess! Even if I have to wait five hundred years for you to die, I'll take your soul and cast it into a new Sealed Sinner's Prison!"
"You can try whatever you want with me," I warned. "But don't ever hurt my friends or loved ones. Or mess with the peace of this world. I've given you a gift. You just don't realize it yet. Your power is what corrupts you. Without it, even you could be a good person. The one true thing you said to me was that you were lonely. Your power was creating a barrier between you and others. You have one friend now. Go make more friends. As equals, not as their goddess. I have as much power as you now, and yet I can still treat those I love as equals."
"You even treat strangers as equals," Promestein added.
"Don't worry, Luka," Alipheese said. "What Ilias needs is a long vacation learning to live among the regular folks. C'mon Ilias, I'm gonna take you to a wonderful place I know called Vegas. Two weeks there and your whole outlook will change."
"Please don't let her get drunk and come back with a husband," I said.
"I might just do it to spite you!" Ilias shouted back. Alipheese winked at me and teleported the two of them away.
That left me alone with Eden and Promestein. I still wasn't sure what to say to Promestein, so I decided to approach Eden first. Seeing me coming towards her, her eyes grew soft. When I reached her, she dropped to her knees.
"Luka, can you ever forgive me?" Eden asked. "After all that I owe you, I still couldn't defy Ilias. Does that make me a terrible person?"
"It admittedly is a character flaw," I said. "But I'm used to it. And you don't owe me anything. You healed me from far greater wounds when the Ancestors attacked me in Yamatai. You've done me many other favors as well. I owe you at this point."
Eden rose and towered over me. I wasn't that short, contrary to the popular portrayal of me, but Eden stood at least eight inches taller than me.
"Oh Luka," she said, smiling softly. "Friends do not keep score. I will always do anything for you that you desire."
"As long as it doesn't conflict with Ilias' wishes?"
"I am… beginning to reconsider that. What she did to you was cruel, selfish, and pointless. Only the latest in so many cruel acts she has perpetrated against you. And yet you do not hate her, do you?"
"No," I said. "I want her to change, like you did."
"Hopefully what you've done today sets her down that road," Eden said. "In any case, she is no longer very powerful. I am the Goddess, at least according to the humans. I will extend a hand of friendship to her when she returns. But we shall be equals from this day forward. I do not serve her anymore."
"Eden, that's incredible! That was the last step you needed to take!"
"I only hope I can live up to the hopes you've placed in me."
"You've been an amazing beacon of hope to the people of this world after their own goddess betrayed them," I said. "Just keep on doing what you're doing and everything will work out fine."
"I only wish it was adequate to atone for all the harm I've done in Ilias' name over the centuries," Eden said sadly.
"Just do your best," I said. "And if you ever need to talk to someone about it, you can always come to me. Or better yet, Tamamo. She also has regrets like yours."
"As she should," Eden chuckled. "She was a fearsome and remorseless enemy at one time. But maybe it's time to build bridges with former enemies who have shared our experiences. At least those of us who are capable of regret."
Eden stared meaningfully at Promestein, who was still present. I decided it was time to bite the bullet and face the one who had masterminded my months of suffering.
"So you figured it out," Promestein said nervously. "I was confident you would at some point. Now do you know what I meant when I said I was betting on you?"
"So this was all just a plan to manipulate me into rendering Ilias and Alipheese harmless?" I asked.
"What can I say?" Promestein said. "You changed even me. I could never betray you just to 'get a better deal'."
"No," I said. "Instead you made me suffer in order to get me to do something I wouldn't have otherwise done. I'm not sure if that's betrayal, but it certainly wasn't the act of a friend. Wasn't there some other way?"
"Not the way you're programmed, Luka," Promestein replied. "You had to see how capricious, entitled, and cruel they could be to realize what you had to do. I suppose I could have told you about the nature of your power, except…. I wasn't completely sure. It was just a theory. You definitely could have been blown to smithereens just then."
"I'm getting pretty tired of being manipulated," I said. "Ilias, you, even my Alice."
"Ouch," Promestein winced. "I don't know the full details, but I knew she had manipulated you before. She's the Monster Lord, it's kinda what she does. Those she can't just order around, she manipulates. So how bad was it?"
"You can't even imagine," I said. "You'll hear the full story eventually."
"So…." Promestein said. "What are you going to do with me, now? I'm totally at your mercy."
"You know I'm not capable of hurting you just to hurt you," I said.
"Yeah, I kinda figured," Promestein said. "Guess I get away with it again."
"I shall be happy to punish her on your behalf, Luka," Eden said. "Betrayal is second nature to her. She cares for no one."
"On the contrary," I said. "she threw away the best gig she's ever had because she wanted the world to be safe. I can't say that I trust you, Promestein. I get the feeling that you'd throw me under a bus in a heartbeat if you saw a larger purpose in it. But I do forgive you. So yes, you get off scot free again."
"You are a better person than I, Luka," Eden said, folding her arms. "If only I could talk you into staying and ruling heaven with me. You are more fit for this job than any of us who claim to be gods."
"Believe me, I'm wise enough to know how unfit I am for a job like that," I laughed. "But I have to admit your offer is tempting. You've always accepted me for who I am, Eden. I don't think you would ever have asked me to do something I didn't believe in. I can think of a lot worse fates than to spend an eternity up here with you."
"As someone who has been asked to do things she doesn't believein countless times, I could never inflict that on another."
"Well," Promestein said. "I guess maybe I'll go back to your world. Don't worry, I'm not going to try to sue you or anything. I'll just make my way as best I can. If you really don't hate me, maybe we can meet up for pizza at a mall some time?"
"We'll walk through the portal together to go get pizza," I said. "Because I want you to stay in this world. As a matter of fact, I want to offer you your old job back."
"Oh Luka!" Eden exclaimed. "Now that is just too much, even for you! How could you ever let her back into your trust again!?"
"I have to admit I'm pretty confused as well," Promestein said. "Are you really that naïve?"
"Far from it," I said. "Look, I want you back for two reasons. The first, I'll give you for free. The second, you have to figure out on your own. You're much smarter than me, so I don't think it'll be tough for you if you think for a second. The first reason I want you back is because frankly….. I need you. I have a project that I need you for, and I don't think it can be done without your help. And I know that even though I can't trust you, one thing I've never had to doubt is your commitment and interest in an intriguing project."
"Oooh!" Promestein cooed. "You've given me a lot of amazing projects over the years. What could be that interesting?"
"We'll talk about it later," I said. "First I'm going to have to convince the monsters in the castle, most notably my wife and the Four Heavenly Knights, not to kill you on sight. So can you guess the second reason why I want you back?"
"Um... you really want to have sex with me again? I did make some rather lewd promises towards the end of our little birthday encounter."
"Now you're thinking like the monsters you shake your head at all the time," I said. "The fact is, when you weren't working for me, I was constantly worried about the fact you were out there, doing who knew what. When left to your own devices, your research projects are dangerous and unethical. If you work for me, I can guarantee that you'll be as busy as you want to be doing good things."
"So in other words," Promestein said. "Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer."
"Now you're getting the idea," I said. "But it'll take some time to talk my wife and friends into not cooking your liver. So maybe you should take a vacation like Ilias and Alipheese for awhile."
"Gotcha, boss!" Promestein said with a wink. She prepared to teleport out, then paused. "And Luka? You can change anyone. I've never really had a friend before, but if I ever do…. I think that friend will be you."
With that, she vanished. Eden looked like she'd just eaten angel liver herself.
"Your friends close, your enemies closer? What imbecile came up with that one?" Eden asked.
"I don't actually know," I said. "I'll have to look that one up. In her case, I think it applies perfectly. Even after what happened, I'll be more nervous with her running around free than under my roof."
"You know she could be thrown back into prison," Eden said. "Ilias kept her there for hundreds of years."
"It didn't make her a better person," I replied. "That's for damn sure."
"Hmmmm…." Eden pondered for a moment. "You may be wiser than you think. Are you sure you won't stay awhile? Try that throne on for size?"
"No, that's not me," I said.
"Perhaps it is," Eden countered. "Have you ever considered why you have that power? Why no one else on your world had more than the tiniest trace of it when Promestein and Ilias went looking for a hero?"
"I always assumed I was given this power for a reason."
"Or perhaps," Eden mused. "You are a god who turned himself into a man. I read a pamphlet on your world that said such a thing had happened before."
"I'm not Jesus," I said.
"No, you are not," she said. "But in your own way, you are extraordinary. Please call on me any time, Luka, even if you just want to talk. I am rarely doing anything so important that I can't drop it for you."
"Well….." I said. "I do kinda need one favor."
"Name it," Eden said.
"I…. think I need a ride back to the castle. My power seems to be most reliable when I'm desperate or angry. I'm not confident that I can teleport back without killing myself."
Eden brought me to the entrance of the castle. I dreaded this moment. The dread was only tempered by my satisfaction in a victory in which no one had lost their lives. At least I'd have good news to report to my friends in the castle.
As I entered, I was almost immediately greeted by various visitors. The harpies and bee girl were still there, chatting in the foyer.
"Oh hi, Luka!" Beezy said. "I was just about to go back to Happiness Village! I don't fly long distances so well, so the harpies here graciously offered to fly me back!"
"Couldn't you just have a Knight teleport you back?" I asked. "I'm sure that's how you got here in the first place."
"Yeah…." Beezy said. "The Knights are in a bit of a mood. I didn't want to bother them."
"Ah, yes, I might have had something to do with that. I'm sorry it inconvenienced you."
"You can make it up to us by visiting harpy village again on your next birthday!" one of the harpies said brightly. "We had a lot of fun with you last time! Next time the queen wants to actually participate rather than just give orders."
"We'll see," I laughed. "A lot is up in the air right now."
"Hah!" another harpy laughed. "A flying joke! Good one!"
"Um…. That wasn't really my intent, but…. I think I'll…. Go talk to the Knights."
I left the harpies and Beezy behind to prepare for their long flight. I passed numerous kitsunes through the halls, which wasn't unusual. Finally, I ran into Alma Elma.
"Oh, Luka, you're back!" Alma Elma said, hugging me tightly and getting the usual… er… rise out of me. Normally she would comment on it, but this time she had other worries. "You should go to the throne room. Alice is in there. I mean, if that's who you came to see."
"I did," I said. "Thank you, I'll go there now."
I walked with trepidation to the throne room, not looking forward to this at all. What kind of mood would she be in? Happy that she'd successfully manipulated me into doing what she wanted? Still angry about various things that had happened over the last couple of months? I wasn't sure which was worse.
I entered the throne room to see Alice with her back turned, reviewing some paperwork. I didn't know how she did it. The job seemed to involve endless paperwork, and I still had no idea why. She turned to see who had entered. Actually, I'm sure she already knew. She knew my scent well.
"Luka!" she said, slightly surprised. "I… didn't expect you so soon. I wasn't even sure I'd see you at all."
"We're husband and wife, Alice," I said. "No matter what, I owe you this."
"And… what is… this?"
"Alice, I just need to know one thing," I said. "If I had given up, if I had truly decided not to resist…. Would you really have eaten me? I mean, finished eating me? You'd already digested nearly half of me."
She looked down. "Yes, Luka, I would have."
"Thank you for your honesty, Alice. Goodbye."
I turned to leave.
"Wait, Luka!" she pleaded. I turned to face her again. No matter what she had done, I would not leave her until she had said everything she wanted to say. I didn't want to leave with things left unsaid. "Luka, it's true that I intended to eat you. But know that it was the hardest thing I ever had to do. Even so, I knew I wouldn't really have to do it, because you always find a way to win when you need to the most. And you did!"
"Leaving aside the fact you were willing to kill me," I said. "You said a lot of things in that gym that you can't take back."
"Luka, I didn't mean most of those things. I was…. I was…."
"Trying to manipulate me into doing what you wanted?"
"Yes," she admitted. "Luka, I'm sorry I had to do that, but I'm the-"
"The Monster Lord, I know," I said bitterly. "You have responsibilities, and even if you have to sacrifice your husband, you're going to fulfill those responsibilities."
"Yes," Alice said sadly. "You shouldn't have married me, Luka. You should have married Granberia or Tamamo. As sad as it would have made me had you made that choice, I would have blessed it with enthusiasm. You would have been so much happier. Maybe that's why I've been so generous about letting you spend time with them and get intimate. I rationalized it as being necessary, but maybe I just felt guilty about what it meant for you to have to be my husband. All those responsibilities, and I don't spend nearly enough time with you. Especially when you needed me the most. I was so wrong to treat you the way I did these last couple of months."
"Alice," I said. "Why can't we just be a man and a woman in love?"
"You know why," she replied. "I am….." she gestured with her hand for me to finish.
"The Monster Lord," I obliged. "But here's the thing: remember when we first traveled together and you wouldn't protect me?"
"Of course," she answered.
"As I recall, part of your reasoning was that I'd always planned to travel alone, so since I'd already expected to have to fight without help, I shouldn't resent you for not helping."
"Makes sense," Alice said. "Sort of."
"Well, a Monster Lord has never had a husband before. It's always been assumed that a Monster Lord would have to do her duties alone and not use a husband to do her fighting for her. Yet that's what you did. I know you said you would be with me, but you had to know that just as in the recent adventure on Ariana's world, this was something only I could do. You knew that, and yet you made me do it. You relied on me as a crutch even though when you sought the Monster Lord position you knew that you would almost certainly not have a husband while you were in the position."
"But you are my husband!" she protested. "And there are jobs only you can do!"
"There are," I admitted. "And I'll do them, to the best of my ability, for the reasons I think are right. I just need to know that even if I don't want to, even if I'm acting weak, that you'll still love me. Even if you're the Monster Lord, we can't have a marriage where your love is conditional."
"Luka, if I acted weak as the Monster Lord, could you still l love me? If the world faced a grave crisis, and I didn't want to act because I was afraid, you'd really still love me?"
"I would," I said. "I'd urge you to step down as Monster Lord if that happened, but I would never stop loving you. As you say, it's a harsh world, and that harsh world can break people. I wasn't broken by what happened to me, but if I had been, my wife should have still supported me. She should have been there for me. I have to know that if I am broken, if I do give up, that you won't just try to put an end to me. Or stop loving me."
"Luka, I don't know what you want me to say. Do you want me to promise I'll never try to kill you again? Okay, that's easy. I know I went too far. Everyone knows I went too far. Word spreads fast here. I'm afraid I'm a very unpopular monarch right now. Do you want me to promise that I'll never stop loving you, even if you became a coward? The truth is, when I said I had no use for you, that's not the same as me not loving you. I loved you and cried for you inside as I devoured you. But if you became useless as my husband, by choice? I could still love you, but I wouldn't respect you."
"Alice, I promise you that I'll never give up. I'll never become a coward. But there are fights I don't think are worth fighting, and yes, sometimes I might be afraid or weak from time to time. I'm only human, Alice. And to be honest, today you gave me loads of new nightmare material. I'm probably going to be a basket case fairly often over the next few years, at least. It might even be hard to sleep with you, because I'll dream that that mouth is opening…."
"Oh, Luka, I'm so sorry!" she cried. "I always mess up the big things! If you want to leave me, I understand. You don't even have to go back to your world. I'll bless a marriage between you and Granberia or Tamamo, or even Alma Elma."
"I want you, Alice," I said. "But it's apparent we have a lot to work on. If you promise to never manipulate me again, to love me unconditionally, even when I disappoint you, and to never, ever, try to eat me again, then I'm willing to try to be a man worthy of you."
"Oh, Luka, except for a few brief moments, you've never given me any doubt that you're worthy of me," Alice replied. "And I should have been more understanding during those brief moments. I can be… the opposite of empathetic at times. You've been through so much and I don't always get how much It affects you."
"I guess all we can ask of each other is to try our best," I said. "So, you never even asked me how it went."
"I assume well, since you seem to be unhurt," she observed.
"Ilias and Alipheese will never threaten us again," I said. "I'll explain the details once I've had a long nap."
"Get good sleep," Alice said. "You do realize the makeup sex is going to be epic tonight?"
"I look forward to it," I said, smiling. "Alice, I love you."
"I love you too, Luka," Alice said. "More than you can imagine. I know how difficult it is being my husband, but I do appreciate you, so much. You should probably tell Granberia that you're okay before you go to bed. She was climbing the walls."
"Oooh…" I winced. "I did leave her hanging there."
"Yes, you did," Alice said. "You might want to exaggerate the details of the battle a bit. She'll be more likely to forgive you quickly if you tell her about all the glorious acts you performed."
"Oh, before I go," I said. "I need to tell you something that you're going to need to chew on for awhile. I'm hiring Promestein back."
"You… you…." Alice stammered. "hired…. But….. how? Why? Have you lost your mind?!"
"It turned out that she didn't really betray me," I explained. "In fact, she was doing exactly what you did. Manipulating me into doing the exact same thing you wanted me to do. I can't very well forgive you and not forgive her, can I?"
"I didn't paralyze you!"
"No, you tried to kill me."
"I… I…. I….. Sigh. Fine. I'm sure you have your reasons."
"Very important ones," I said. "We'll discuss that later as well."
Granberia was in fact quite forgiving, so happy was she to see that I was okay. She listened approvingly to my description of the events that transpired in heaven. She was less approving that I was bringing Promestein back. I'd have to make sure Promestein stayed in the lab for awhile. Not that she ever seemed to leave it.
After a long nap in the room I'd been in for months, I awoke to find all Four Heavenly Knights by my bedside.
"Oh, hey ladies!" I said. "You know, the last time a few powerful monsters surrounded my bed it didn't go well for me."
"Oh, sorry!" Tamamo said, grimacing. "We just wanted to say that we're all so happy that you're staying! We feared that we'd never see you again!"
"It takes a lot for me to give up on people," I said. "I just love all of you so much."
"We love you as well, Luka," Erubetie said. "Alice has still not reinstated your hall pass, even for birthdays, so I'm afraid you will have to remember that without physical reminders."
"You know," I said. "If I forget, you could… just tell me you love me."
"Hopefully Alice will just reissue you that hall pass," Alma Elma chuckled. "I'm not comfortable telling anyone I love them unless we're both in a horizontal position. It just feels weird."
"I still expect you to take me to another movie," Erubetie said.
"Oooh! We can all go!" Tamamo said excitedly.
"Hmmmm…" Alma Elma thought aloud. "I've never been to Luka's world. You guys have never trusted me to behave myself there."
"We still don't," Granberia said. "But if all four of us are present, perhaps we can keep you out of trouble."
"Says the girl who nearly started an interdimensional incident by getting into a bar fight!" Tamamo chuckled.
"It was just once!" Granberia protested. "Or twice."
It was so good to be back, even though I hadn't been gone long. Relationships are complicated, especially when you're married to the Monster Lord. But it was all worth it. I wouldn't give this up for the world.
Epilogue 1
I awoke in Alice's arms. It had been a month since we made up. Life had returned to normal for the most part. Eden had visited me two weeks ago to inform me that Ilias and Alipheese had returned. Ilias was in a much better mood, and thank goodness, had not brought back a husband. Only time would tell if the two of them could accept their reduced role in the world. It's not as if they were weak. I could count only seven beings more powerful than the two of them. Still, it would be tough to get used to given their long existence as the most powerful beings in this universe. I decided that as tough as it was, I should actively try to cultivate a relationship with Ilias. Alice was VERY skeptical, but accepted that I wouldn't be Luka if I didn't try. Eden took the liberty of setting up a date night for me with Ilias in a few months. That should be… interesting.
For now, however, my normal routine was beginning to reassert itself. Nanabi was thrilled to have me back in our little office and today was a work day. After that, I'd get my usual quality Granberia and Alma Elma time. Tamamo might even drop by to spend time with me during work hours. My day would end in Alice's arms, and possibly in her…. Well, whatever she decided to use on me that night.
"Good morning, darling!" she said, stretching and yawning. Since she could unhinge her jaw, her yawns were mildly alarming. If she inhaled too deeply, I feared she might swallow me through that mouth. Despite the horror of her second mouth, I actually found being swallowed by her actual mouth rather intriguing. I'd never had the guts to tell her that, though. Sphinx kept on teasing me that she'd tell her. I would be mortified when that day came.
"So… I need you to do me a little favor tonight," Alice said. "You're probably not going to like it, or maybe you will. Either way, it has to be done."
"What do you need?" I asked.
"I'm reinstating your hall pass, normally for birthdays only, but tonight is an exception."
"You need me to have sex with someone?" I asked. "Who could you possibly need me to have sex with?"
"Well, you see…. Promestein came back to work today, and… the reception was pretty hostile, although no one touched her because they knew you'd be upset with them. But what she did can't go unpunished, so I discussed with her what an appropriate punishment should be. We agreed upon something, and it involves you going to the lab after work tonight to… punish her."
"Punish her…. By having sex with her? I don't follow."
"And you're such a sweetheart for not following," Alice said, kissing my cheek. "Just go to the lab. Promestein will help you with her punishment. Just make sure you punish her good."
"Oookay…" I responded, having no idea what this would involve. Or whether it was even safe. If Alice said it was fine, I had to assume it was. Promstein had no sanctuary anymore. If she did something bad to me, her life could be measured in minutes.
That night, I nervously knocked on the door of the lab. "Come in!" I heard Promestein's voice say. "You know you don't have to knock, boss!"
I entered the lab. Promstein was there, in her lab coat as usual.
"Hey, how are you, Promstein?" I asked.
"It's good to be back," she said. "It was… tense, but your wife and I worked out a way to dissipate some of that tension. It's going to require you to do things that are out of character for you, but believe me, it's completely necessary. And might even be a little fun for you."
"I really, really, don't want to hurt you," I said.
"If you don't do it, someone else will," Promestein replied. "Nothing I ask you to do today is going to hurt me badly. I'll be fine in an hour or two. I'll probably even enjoy it. So, you want to get started?"
"Um, sure," I said.
Promstein walked over to me and helped me out of my pants and shirt.
"Remember how I said I wanted to service you under your desk?" she said with an evil grin. "I guess you don't technically have a desk in here anymore, but you can use mine. Go ahead and sit down."
I did as she said. Promestein crawled under the desk and lightly grasped my penis in her hand. She then began to gently suck on me, just the head at first. I quickly got hard and she began to move her tongue around the head and underside. As before, she was nowhere near as skilled as a monster, but her human feeling mouth was a nice contrast to the incredible intensity of a monster's. It was relaxing and pleasant. Relaxing and pleasant wasn't her intention today, however.
"It's too bad I never learned how to deepthroat in all the centuries I've existed," she said. "My mouth is so small, too! I can only really get a third of you in there. You should force my head down."
"What?" I asked in astonishment. "But…. You'll gag."
"I will, won't I?" she said with a wicked smile. "It'll feel really good too. Those monsters may be great with their ability to just swallow your dick whole, but the sensations you'll feel from forcing me will be unique and pretty great too. Try it."
I tentatively put my hands in her soft hair. I marveled at how good her hair felt in my hands. She had never been particularly interested in having a pretty hairstyle, but she had naturally amazing brown hair, soft and straight. I slowly pushed her head down until she was halfway down my shaft. She abruptly gagged and I let her go.
"Oh, come on, Luka!" Promestein said. "You're supposed to be punishing me! Get a good hold on my hair and force me down all the way! Then either hold me there or let me up just to force me down again. And keep doing it until you explode in my throat!"
This time I slowly pushed her down until she was almost all the way down. She gagged three times as my dick slowly went further down her throat. Impatiently she added her own hands to mine and forced herself down the rest of the way. Her whole body arched as she gagged powerfully. The sensation was incredible as her throat muscles tightened and her tongue tried to alternately swallow me and then push me out. I let her up immediately. Her eyes were watering and she began to cough.
"Keep going!" she ordered.
I pushed her head down again, hard, all the way, and held it there for a moment. The powerful gagging continued, then stopped as her throat relaxed a little, perhaps getting used to me being in there. Extremely thick saliva began dripping down my shaft as I let her up again, then quickly forced her back down.
"I don't want you to throw up," I said.
"I won't," she replied, gasping. "I don't eat much. Keep going."
I pushed her head down again and again, each time feeling my dick penetrate past her tongue into a warmer, tighter, softer place. I would not be able to stand up to this long, which was good, because I was finding the whole exercise distasteful, even as it was making my penis very happy. A minute later, I felt an orgasm rising and forced her head down all the way and held it there. She coughed each time I spurted into her throat. She was taking it like a champ, however, never begging me to let her up until I was finished.
When I had ejaculated my last, I let her head up. Her eyes and face were a mess and she was coughing like crazy. I was hoping that would be the worst of it.
"Okay, now quickly!" Promestein said. "Put me over the desk and take my ass hard!"
This I was slightly less reluctant to do, because I remembered how much she liked this. I lifted her up and placed her on the desk, and lifted her lab coat. Not surprisingly, she wore nothing under it. I plunged my still wet dick deep into her ass. She gasped, but also smiled. I pounded away as hard as I could, causing her to yelp each time. That smile never left her face, however, as she looked back at me.
Five minutes later, she commanded me to choke her. I lightly grabbed her neck as I had last time. "No, do it hard this time! You're punishing me!"
She put her hands over mine and squeezed, hard. I obeyed and tightened my grip on her neck. Her butt tightened around me, sending me over the edge again. My grip unintentionally got harder as I came. When I finished, I realized in horror that I was killing her and let go. She turned around and raised her legs into the air.
"That was really good, Luka," Promestein said. "Don't fear getting rough with me. I'm built almost as tough as your wife. You can make me uncomfortable, but you can't really hurt me with your bare hands. Now fuck me as hard as you've ever fucked anyone. Make it a good hate fuck! Even if you don't really hate me! Make me scream!"
I plunged into her and pumped as hard and fast as I could. She did a lot of screaming, but I didn't mind, because it seemed to be screams of delight. My own screams added to hers as I came a few minutes later, still pumping hard and deep.
When I was finished, I collapsed back onto the chair. Promestein was still lying on the desk, breathing hard. Since her foot was in front of me, I tenderly grasped it and began massaging it. She had given me quite an experience. I wasn't sure how much I enjoyed it, but it had definitely been something.
"What are you doing?" Promestein asked, sitting up. "Are you giving me a foot massage?! Luka, get out of here! This is not how punishment works! Unless you can devise more ways of punishing me, you're supposed to leave me lying here in ruins to think about what I've done! Go on, get out! You can be nice to me again starting tomorrow!"
I quickly grabbed my pants and shirt, threw them on, and went out the door. To my surprise, all four Heavenly Knights just happened to be in the hallway, trying to pretend they were just hanging out.
"Since you were listening this whole time," I said. "Did I do good? Is everything square now with her?"
"It's a start," Granberia said.
"I can think of many more things you could have done to humiliate her," Erubetie said. "You didn't even call her a whore or slut!"
"Okay, I know you all are very angry at her for what she did to me, understandably so," I said. "But you're all women! You shouldn't want some man to degrade a fellow woman!"
"He's right, guys," Tamamo said. "I say we're square now."
The other three sighed and concurred.
"It's not as if she didn't enjoy it," Alma Elma said. "I've been wanting you do to something like that to me for ages."
"Alma Elma," I said. "Have I ever told you how happy I am to have you back? You can't even imagine how much it means to me to have you in my life again."
"I never left!" the queen succubus laughed. "Oh, don't explain it! I know! And you tell me that every opportunity you get. You're the greatest, Luka! You still owe me a good hate fuck, though! I did try to kill you, you know!"
Epilogue 2
In the small meeting room, one of several in the castle, I had assembled Promestein, Tamamo, and myself. It was time to reveal the critically important project I needed to start. Promestein, to my relief, wasn't hurt. It had been only two days and she looked as if nothing had happened. I felt dirty for what I had done, and yet I could feel my erection in my pants thinking about it. I knew that if I wanted to do that again, Promestein would almost certainly say yes even though she wasn't due any more punishment. I had had no idea the scientist was such a freak. But more important matters had to be discussed here.
"So what's the big project, boss?" Promestein asked.
"Ilias made a really good point to me during one of our conversations," I said. "Even with this ring that stops my aging, it's just a ring. One day it'll get damaged, or fall off, or I'll die from something not related to aging, as almost happened when Alice…. Well, you know."
"I still can't believe it," Promestein said. "And I thought I could be cold."
"Anyway," I continued. "I need to know that the world will be safe even after I'm gone. Ilias and Alipheese are still out there, and at some point they might find a way to increase their power."
"I can think of one way already," Promestein said. "They could destroy themselves and reconstitute in five or ten thousand years. Doing it the natural way would make them as powerful as they were originally, Of course, they couldn't interact, so that's not an ideal solution unless they become so power hungry they are willing to give that up and be lonely again."
"And I'm sure that even with this ring I won't be around that long," I said. "But the ring gave me an idea. This power is mine. Apparently, it can be taken from me if I let it, or simply don't know that I can prevent it. But what if I could just… give it to people? Or pass it down after I'm dead? I'd have to think there's a way."
"Did you have in mind some kind of artifact?" Tamamo asked. "Is that why I'm here?"
"Yes, you are the expert on artifacts," I said. "Also, both of you are truly immortal. Barring a violent death, you two actually will be around thousands of years from now. Whatever solution we come up with, you'll still be around in all likelihood to see my wishes carried out."
"I guess I'll add this to my duties of watching over Monster Lords," Tamamo said. "No biggie! I'm really warming up to this 'keep the world peaceful and safe' job! Gives me a sense of satisfaction I've never felt before."
"The question remains, how to do it?" Promestein asked. "I guess a ring would be the most obvious artifact to use. It would have to be one powerful enchantment. The Five Rings of Brocia could wield all holy and dark energy in the world, as well as each ring having a passive enchantment. We might have to do it in multiple rings that all have to be gathered together."
"I don't like that," I said. "Sure, it makes it harder to get them all, but in another world, Black Alice wielded them. Making them hard to all put together isn't much of a deterrent to someone dedicated enough. I want it to be easy to use. Just one ring, but only one who is worthy can wield it."
"You read too many comic books," Promestein said. "How would you even judge such a thing? Is Tamamo just going to hold onto the ring until someone she deems worthy comes around? No one is a perfect judge of character. Eventually, it will still fall into the wrong hands."
"No, it can be done!" Tamamo argued. "Luka, didn't you say that Daniel's power was a reflection of who he was? That it was bitter and hateful?"
"Something like that," I said.
"Luka's power is a representation of who he is as a person!" Tamamo said excitedly. "Do you realize what that means?"
"Hmmmm…" Promestein mused. "It means that in theory, we could develop an enchantment that only allowed the ring to work if the person wearing it had a heart and spirit similar enough to Luka's. Then his power would be compatible. Yes, it just might be possible."
"So we could store a full load of my power in the ring," I said. "And then if someone like me put it on, it would give them all of my power? As in, it would be as much theirs as it is mine?"
"I think it can be done," Promestein said. "I'll need your help, Tamamo, as you're the expert on creating and storing magical artifacts. It's a good idea. When Luka's gone, the world will need a protector from time to time. Even if Ilias and Alipheese never cause trouble again, there are other potential threats that we can't even imagine today."
"Given all that you've been through, Luka," Tamamo said. "I really hope that you've waged your last battle. You deserve to have your happy ending for the next hundred or hopefully thousand years. But nothing lasts forever. Someday…."
"And that's why I want this done," I said. "An insurance policy for this world, to make sure that no gods, no dimensional rifts, no otherworldly invaders, and no Daniels destroy what we've built."
"It could be an insurance policy for more than this world," Promestein said. "I'm sure Ariana would appreciate that kind of insurance policy as well."
"We'll make two then!" Tamamo declared. "One for this world, one for Ariana's world. And if we encounter other parallel worlds that we can access, and where magic works, we'll make rings for them as well!"
"You know what that means, Luka," Promestein said, pulling out a syringe. "Special sauce time."
"Stick him and die," Tamamo said threateningly, her tails swishing about.